Sonos has given two of its audio products price cuts. The Era 100 smart speaker and Ray soundbar now retail for $199. The change offers new customers a $50 savings for the Era 100 and $80 on the Ray. Both speakers would frequently show up on sale, but Sonos has confirmed that this is a permanent pricing change for the products.
These items have been available for a few years, so the price drop might signal that a refresh is in store for both. When it debuted in 2023, the Era 100 was an upgrade on the Sonos One, bringing overhauled touch controls and even better audio quality to the same cylindrical form factor. At $200, it's now selling for what the Sonos One cost, making it a solid choice for a home speaker. The Ray came out in 2022, offering a solid home theater performance without the most high-end audio or accompanying high-end price tag.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/speakers/sonos-cut-retail-prices-for-its-era-100-speaker-and-ray-soundbar-201049055.html?src=rss
During today's Nintendo Direct all about the Switch 2, the company shared how and when fans can finally get the handheld into their hands. After a long, long wait, pre-orders for the Switch 2 will begin on April 9 in North America. According to Nintendo's press release, its starting price tag is $450 and the console will be widely available on June 5. The console will be available from the usual lineup of retailers, which we expect to include Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop, Walmart and others.
The $450 price tag is for the Switch 2 console alone, but Nintendo said it will also offer a bundle with the Switch 2 and a copy of the new Mario Kart Worldgame, a Switch 2 exclusive, for $500.
There's some fine-print attached to pre-ordering directly from Nintendo. According to the pre-order page on Nintendo's site, you must be 18 years or older, sign in with your Nintendo account and register your interest in pre-ordering. Then, you'll be sent an invitation email when it's time to play your pre-order, and the invitation will be valid for 72 hours. And then there's this bit of info: "Invitation emails will be prioritized on a first-come, first-served basis to registrants who have purchased a Nintendo Switch Online membership with a minimum of 12 months of paid membership and a minimum of 50 total gameplay hours, as of April 2, 2025."
That seems to mean those who have paid for Switch Online in the recent past and those who have spent a good amount of time playing Switch games as of late will get first pick at buying a Switch 2. There's no telling if these same restrictions will apply if you want to pre-order from third-party retailers.
We knew from the teaser trailer for the Switch 2 that Nintendo's new hardware would be bigger and would have a new approach to the detachable Joy-Cons. The new Joy-Con 2 have a new C button, mouse controls and a built in gyroscope for tilt control. The console has a built-in mic to support a new feature called Game Chat that will let you communicate with friends in-game. The device is indeed a bit larger, with a 7.9-inch LCD screen that supports a 120Hz refresh rate, HDR and a 1080p resolution.
When docked, you'll be able to play at up to 4K on your TV, and Nintendo says it improved the consoles internal speakers as well. The new dock also has a built-in fan to keep the console cool and help maintain performance during long play sessions. The Switch 2 has dual USB-C ports for charging, and the base storage amount has increased to 256GB. The Switch 2's storage can be expanded like the previous model, but it will only work with newer microSD Express cards.
The Switch 2 has a number of accessories that you'll be able to purchase separately as well, including the new Switch 2 camera for $50, a new Switch 2 Pro controller for $80, an extra pair of Joy-Con 2 controllers for $90, a Joy-Con 2 charging grip for $35 and more.
Pre-order the Nintendo Switch 2 starting April 9 from:
The Washington Postreports that members of the White House's National Security Council have used personal Gmail accounts to conduct government business. National security advisor Michael Waltz and a senior aide of his both used their own accounts to discuss sensitive information with colleagues, according to the Post's review and interviews with government officials who spoke to the newspaper anonymously.
Email is not the best approach for sharing information meant to be kept private. That covers sensitive data for individuals such as social security numbers or passwords, much less confidential or classified government documents. It simply has too many potential paths for a bad actor to access information they shouldn't. Government departments typically use business-grade email services, rather than relying on consumer email services. The federal government also has its own internal communications systems with additional layers of security, making it all the more baffling that current officials are being so cavalier with how they handle important information.
“Unless you are using GPG, email is not end-to-end encrypted, and the contents of a message can be intercepted and read at many points, including on Google’s email servers," Eva Galperin, director of cybersecurity at the Electronic Frontier Foundation told the Post.
Additionally, there are regulations requiring that certain official government communications be preserved and archived. Using a personal account could allow some messages to slip through the cracks, accidentally or intentionally.
This latest instance of dubious software use from the executive branch follows the discovery that several high-ranking national security leaders used Signal to discuss planned military actions in Yemen, then added a journalist from The Atlantic to the group chat. And while Signal is a more secure option than a public email client, even the encrypted messaging platform can be exploited, as the Pentagon warned its own team last week.
As with last week's Signal debacle, there have been no repercussions thus far for any federal employees taking risky data privacy actions. NSC spokesman Brian Hughes told the Post he hasn't seen evidence of Waltz using a personal account for government correspondence.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/national-security-council-adds-gmail-to-its-list-of-bad-decisions-222648613.html?src=rss
U.S. National Security Advisor Michael Waltz looks on as U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff speaks to reporters outside the White House in Washington, U.S., February 4, 2025. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz
Riot Games has unveiled new details for its upcoming tabletop game, called Riftbound - The League of Legends Trading Card Game. We first got a look at this TCG under the codename Project K in December. The latest trailer showed off new artwork for the cards, including fresh takes on the LoL characters that aren't just copies of their in-game champion portraits. The card UI has also gotten some extra polish compared with what was showed late last year.
The team at Riot has been incorporating player feedback into the game's first set, called Origins. This set will have more than 300 different cards, and familiar LoL champions including Jinx, Viktor and Lee Sin will star in pre-built decks for this inaugural set. For the serious collectors, there will also be secret rare versions of the champion cards with unique art.
In addition to the previously revealed multiplayer aspect, Riftbound offers a path for reaching fans who don't have experience in this card game genre. Riftbound will have a box called Proving Grounds where champions like Lux, Annie, Master Yi and Garen will help newer players to get acclimated to TCG basics.
The timeline for the Riftbound is also starting to firm up, with its China launch is scheduled for summer 2025. Some English speaking countries will also see the game arrive this year, but other markets will have to wait until 2026; the devs didn't specify which regions will be on which timeline.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/riot-games-league-of-legends-tcg-is-officially-called-riftbound-212507458.html?src=rss
OpenAI has been doubling its audience for ChatGPT at a rapid rate, and the addition of its latest image generation feature has increased the AI assistant's popularity. Today, CEO Sam Altman posted to X that the service "added one million users in the last hour," calling it a "biblical demand" for the image generation.
the chatgpt launch 26 months ago was one of the craziest viral moments i'd ever seen, and we added one million users in five days.
When the company announced the rollout of image generation in ChatGPT last week, the tool was meant to be available to all user tiers. However, the high degree of interest meant that access for free users was walked back. Now, the company is reporting "issues with new signups," which has been its status for more than a day.
While ChatGPT's ability to create original images has been a delight (and occasional horror show) for users, the AI platform continues to draw the ire of artists and creatives. Many of these people have their work taken, either as training material for the large-language model scraped from the internet or improperly taken and modified by ChatGPT users, without any credit or compensation. One of the more visible examples have been the many memes image inspired by the animation style of Studio Ghibli. Altman is currently using one such image as his X profile photo, but other users have used ChatGPT to apply the look of the studio's films to violent or triggering content, raising a fresh round of questions about how creators can protect their work from misuse.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/chatgpt-gained-one-million-new-users-in-an-hour-today-201314746.html?src=rss
Google is revamping its smart home lineup, ending production on two of its devices in favor of integrations with third-party manufacturers. First, it will sunset the Nest Protect smoke & CO alarms. Existing products will continue to function and receive security updates until their expiration dates. They will also remain available for purchase while supplies last. Second, it will end production for the Nest x Yale smart lock. As with the Nest Protect, the remaining inventory will still be available for purchase and the devices will continue receiving security updates.
Rather than manufacture its own smoke alarm, Google announced that it will take a partnership approach. The company is teaming up with First Alert for a new smart smoke and carbon monoxide alarm that will integrate with existing Nest Protect devices and can be controlled from the Google Home app. First Alert hasn't provided an exact release date, but says the new alarm coming soon to the US and Canada and will be priced at $130. It'll be available in both Google and First Alert's stores, and also sold through retail stores and "professional distribution partners."
And on the lock side, Google will again partner with Yale. The pair is developing the Yale Smart Lock with Matter, which is meant to work with the Google Home ecosystem just as well as the Nest-branded lock. As the name suggests, it'll play nice with all manner of devices using the Matter smart home protocol, and Yale says its battery will last for up to a year. It'll be available "later this summer" at $170 in a variety of finishes.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/smart-home/google-will-stop-making-the-nest-protect-smoke-alarm-150024379.html?src=rss
Ubisoft is continuing its efforts to course-correct after several challenging years. Today, the video game company announced that it will launch a subsidiary centered around three of its most familiar franchises: Assassin's Creed, Far Cry and Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six. The as-yet-unnamed subsidiary will fold in the teams working on those three series, including Ubisoft studios in Montréal, Quebec, Sherbrooke, Saguenay, Barcelona and Sofia.
This new business will receive an investment of €1.16 billion (roughly $1.25 billion) from its longstanding partner Tencent, granting the conglomerate a minority ownership stake. Following the transaction, Ubisoft will narrow focus to its other franchises, such as The Division and Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon.
"Today Ubisoft is opening a new chapter in its history," CEO and Co-Founder Yves Guillemot said. "As we accelerate the company’s transformation, this is a foundational step in changing Ubisoft’s operating model that will enable us to be both agile and ambitious."
Ubisoft has been cutting costs and jobs over the past several months after several of its newprojectsflopped. There have been hints for a while that the company's leaders were interested in either finding a buyer or exploring a joint venture with Tencent to help reverse its fortunes. It's encouraging that the recent Assassin's Creed: Shadows has already reached 3 million players, but Ubisoft will probably need a few more wins to fully stabilize.
There is some extra good news in the announcement. The description of the new subsidiary does specify that "it will drive further increases in quality of narrative solo experiences." So while we can expect to also see multiplayer and free-to-play offerings from the Ubisoft umbrella, they aren't giving up on single-player games.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/ubisoft-spins-out-subsidiary-with-a-billion-dollar-investment-from-tencent-183516992.html?src=rss
YouTube Shorts has introduced a change that brings analytics for its bite-sized video option into closer parity with rival services TikTok and Instagram. The video platform will remove the minimum play time requirement it previously had for a user watching a clip to count as a view.
Beginning March 31, a "view" will be added any time a YouTube Short is played or replayed. This will likely mean that creators will see higher view counts after the change takes place. YouTube will continue to track "engaged views," which measure the number of times a clip was played "for a certain number of seconds." YouTube clarified that the shift would not impact Creator earnings or their eligibility for the YouTube Partner Program; both will continue to be assessed by the engaged view metric.
Both Instagram and TikTok have defined a "view" as the number of times a video starts playing, although those platforms also offer metrics for tracking time spent watching a piece of content. Considering YouTube Shorts, Instagram and TikTok have each claimed upwards of a billion monthly users, it makes sense that they count views similarly so that creators can better assess how many of those people they are reaching across the services.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/youtube-is-changing-how-it-calculates-views-for-shorts-233058880.html?src=rss
FILE- This March 20, 2018, file photo shows the YouTube app on an iPad in Baltimore. News that the shooter at YouTube’s headquarters Tuesday, April 3, 2018, felt that the tech company was suppressing her videos puts the spotlight on YouTube’s policies surrounding videos and the ads that support them. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)
Utah Governor Spencer Cox has signed the App Store Accountability Act into law, making it the first state to require that app store makers verify their users' ages. Under this law, people in Utah will need to be over age 18 to make a new account with an app store; underage users will need to link their account to a parent's so that the adult can give permission for the child to use certain apps.
The legislation is intended to protect children and teens, according to bill sponsor Todd Weiler, a Republican state senator. However, it has also raised questions about privacy and where the burden of responsibility falls to ensure that underage users don't see inappropriate content. Meta, Snap and X have supported the measure. "We applaud Governor Cox and the State of Utah for being the first in the nation to empower parents and users with greater control over teen app downloads, and urge other states to consider this groundbreaking approach," the three companies said in a joint statement Wednesday. "This approach spares users from repeatedly submitting personal information to countless individual apps and online services."
Google, which runs the Play Store, had opposed the bill, and called on the governor to veto the measure. We've reached out to Apple and Google for comment now that the bill has been signed into law.
As it stands, the App Store Accountability Act is slated to take effect on May 7, but it seems likely that it will face legal challenges. Digital privacy groups have opposed the law and others like it, noting security concerns about how sensitive age verification data will be used or protected. Other state laws requiring online services to confirm users' ages have also prompted lawsuits.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/utah-just-became-the-first-state-in-the-country-to-pass-an-age-verification-law-for-app-stores-225846117.html?src=rss
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH - AUGUST 10: Utah Governor Spencer Cox welcomes U.S. President Joe Biden before he spoke at the George E. Wahlen Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center on August 10, 2023 in Salt Lake City, Utah. President Biden was celebrating the first anniversary of the PACT Act. (Photo by George Frey/Getty Images)
Gaming journalism stalwart Game Informer has risen from the ashes. More than thirty years after its debut issue back in August 1991, the media outlet was officially shut down by parent company GameStop in August 2024. Since then, the rights to Game Informer were acquired by Gunzilla Games and, in an all-to-rare win for today's media world, the entire team that worked for Game Informer at the time of its closure will return to their jobs.
Editor-in-Chief Matt Miller posted the details about how the outlet was saved from the brink and noted that Gunzilla Games will be a hands-off boss. "The new owners insisted on the idea of Game Informer remaining an independent editorial outlet," he wrote. "They felt just as strongly as our team did that the only path forward was with an editorial group that made 100 percent of the decisions around what we cover and how we do so, without any influence from them or anyone else."
“We are proud to welcome the talented voices behind Game Informer in the Gunzilla Games family, and join their fight to preserve the heart of video game journalism in what has been a tumultuous time for the industry," Gunzilla CEO and Co-Founder Vlad Korolov said.
The website and its back catalog of content have been republished online. Game Informer's staff have also published reviews of more than two dozen games that came out during the site's hiatus and belatedly compiled their requisite best games of 2024 list. The print magazine is also expected to resume activity, and Miller said more details will be forthcoming about subscription and membership options.
Gunzilla Games, which counts Hollywood director Neill Blomkamp among its leadership, made a battle royale shooter called Off the Grid and also developed the GUNZ blockchain platform.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/game-informer-is-back-and-so-is-its-entire-team-210748358.html?src=rss
Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 has been delayed again. Publisher Paradox Interactive announced today that it is now targeting release in October 2025 instead of the first half of this year. "Paradox Interactive and The Chinese Room are committed to delivering this game, and we believe that ensuring great technical quality is more important than sticking to a specific date," the company said.
Creating the sequel has been a trial of endurance that would test even an immortal undead's patience. Paradox parted ways with the game's original developer, Hardsuit Labs, in 2021. The Chinese Room, which made notable indie games Dear Esther and Everybody's Gone to the Rapture, joined the project as developer in 2023. Today's update from offered some encouragement that the project is now in "a late development stage," however it has decided to discontinue dev diaries that offered behind-the-scenes peeks at progress.
The original Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines game came out in 2004 after its own challenging development. Made by the now-shuttered Troika Studios, it was an story-driven game inspired by a tabletop RPG about several vampire clans in a modern-day Los Angeles. It was a commercial flop, but acquired a loyal audience over the years and even cultivated a community for mods and fan games.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/vampire-the-masquerade---bloodlines-2-is-now-slated-to-launch-in-october-2025-194649207.html?src=rss
Google has the pedal to the metal on its AI development. Just a few months after the debut of Gemini 2.0, the tech giant has unveiled another upgrade in Gemini 2.5. As with any new AI launch, Google is touting a strong performance on LMArena for Gemini 2.5, particularly its capabilities in coding, mathematics and science.
The first model in this series is Gemini 2.5 Pro Experimental. Google said this is a thinking model that's intended to provide responses grounded in more reasoning, analysis and context than the answers offered by classification- and prediction-driven models. It's a different approach than Google took with the Gemini 2.0 series, which started off with the more efficient and less expensive Flash version.
"With Gemini 2.5, we've achieved a new level of performance by combining a significantly enhanced base model with improved post-training," the company said in a blog post attributed to Koray Kavukcuoglu, CTO of Google DeepMind. "Going forward, we’re building these thinking capabilities directly into all of our models, so they can handle more complex problems and support even more capable, context-aware agents."
Google had only just started rolling out Gemini 2.0 to its services, using it to power the newly added AI Mode in search and Deep Research for handling more complex queries. With today's launch, expect to hear more updates from the company about getting this latest version. Gemini 2.5 Pro Experimental is available now in Google AI Studio, and Gemini Advanced members can use it directly in the Gemini app.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/google-releases-gemini-25-ai-model-for-complex-thinking-182352224.html?src=rss
Apple announced that its Worldwide Developers Conference will be on June 9-13. The company is usually consistent with its event timing, so Tim Cook will probably take the stage to start the keynote on June 9 at 10AM PT/1PM ET.
We've already heard that iOS 19 and macOS 16 will be sporting new looks, so expect a focus on the latest software changes. And there's no way we won't be getting more Apple Intelligence updates. It was a core part of the iOS 18.3 update that rolled out at the start of the year and Apple has had struggles with some of the AI-powered features, particularly its notification summaries. One thing we don't anticipate seeing is the long-awaited update to Siri that will offer more personalization, also courtesy of Apple Intelligence. That project hit a delay in March and, no matter how hard we might hope otherwise, it seems unlikely the issues will all be resolved by June.
Although the keynote is happening in-person at Apple Park, the rest of WWDC will take place online and is free for developers to attend.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/apple-schedules-wwdc-2025-for-june-9-13-171840700.html?src=rss
23andMe has capped off a challenging few years by filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy today. Given the uncertainty around the future of the DNA testing company and what will happen to all of the genetic data it has collected, now is a critical time for customers to protect their privacy. California Attorney General Rob Bonta has recommended that past customers of the genetic testing business delete their information as a precautionary measure. Here are the steps to deleting your records with 23andMe.
Log into your 23andMe account.
Go to the "Settings" tab of your profile.
Click View on the section called "23andMe Data."
If you want to retain a copy for your own records, download your data now.
Go to the "Delete Data" section
Click "Permanently Delete Data."
You will receive an email from 23andMe confirming the action. Click the link in that email to complete the process.
While the majority of an individual's personal information will be deleted, 23andMe does keep some information for legal compliance. The details are in the company's privacy policy.
There are a few other privacy-minded actions customers can take. First, anyone who opted to have 23andMe store their saliva and DNA can request that the sample be destroyed. That choice can be made from the Preferences tab of the account settings menu. Second, you can review whether you granted permission for your genetic data and sample to be used in scientific research. The allowance can also be checked, and revoked if you wish, from the account settings page; it's listed under Research and Product Consents.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/how-to-delete-your-23andme-data-201451382.html?src=rss
Sparkling DNA helix structure in blue and red. High-tech concept of genetic research, bioinformatics, and computational biology. Design for science background, genomic study poster, and medical presentation. Abstract visualization with bokeh effect and dynamic particles.
Bloober Team is taking its horror game cred into a new direction with the launch of publisher Broken Mirror Games. This "co-development label" is collaborating with Rock Square Thunder, an indie outfit founded by ex-Bloober devs, for a new open-world survival horror game called I Hate This Place. It's scheduled for release in the final quarter of 2025 on PC, PlayStation, Xbox Series S/X and Nintendo Switch.
The source material for this adaptation is a comic book series of the same title from Skybound Entertainment by writer Kyle Starks and artist Artyom Topilin. Fittingly, the game has kept a hand-drawn style for its tale of protagonist Elena, who has accidentally unleashed a nightmarish force and now has to fight for her life by using her wits and finding shelter before the sun sets.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/bloober-team-launches-horror-publishing-label-with-debut-game-i-hate-this-place-220032691.html?src=rss
If you receive a lot of email, and most people do, then sometimes it can be a challenge to pull up a particular old missive in your inbox. Google has decided that the solution must be more artificial intelligence. Today, the company announced that it is rolling out an update that uses AI to assess inbox search queries to account for recency, frequent contacts and most-clicked emails. The "most relevant" search feature is rolling out globally to personal accounts, while business accounts will get it at an unspecified future date.
If the idea of yet more AI in your software icks you out, at least you won't be required to use this feature. Google notes that once a personal account gets the "most relevant" search results option, there will be a toggle to swap back to the "most recent" view that will show hits in reverse chronological order as usual.
If you're happily on board the AI train, you're in luck, because there are a lot more places that Google has been putting this technology. This month alone, AI has been popping up in more aspects of Google's search and shopping portals.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/gmail-is-getting-ai-powered-search-results-181745405.html?src=rss
Cairo, Egypt, April 1 2024: Google applications on a Samsung smartphone mobile, Gmail, chrome, google, drive, YouTube, Maps, Gallery, Meet and Google play applications, launching cellphone apps, selective focus
Boston Dynamics has treated us to a lot of impressive videos over the years and the company is back today with the latest example of its robotics mastery. In the clip above, its Atlas robot demonstrates several types of full-body movement, starting with a walk and advancing to a cartwheel and even a spot of break dancing. The different actions were developed using reinforcement learning that used motion capture and animation as source materials. At this rate, our future robot overlords will be able to out-dance and out-tumble us humans as well as out-think us one day.
The video is part of Boston Dynamics' research with the Robotics and AI Institute, but it has multiple partners aiding its work. For instance, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang touched on the company's GR00T model for robotics during the GTC 2025 keynote earlier this week. Yesterday, Boston Dynamics announced that it is deepening its collaboration with the company focused on AI in robotics. It is using NVIDIA's Jetson Thor computing platform to run "complex, multimodal AI models that work seamlessly with Boston Dynamics’ whole-body and manipulation controllers."
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/watch-the-atlas-robot-bust-a-move-in-boston-dynamics-latest-video-211329951.html?src=rss
Spry Fox announced its next game, which is "a cooperative village life sim designed to foster friendship, kindness, and community" titled Spirit Crossing. It has an art style that makes me think of a pastel-hued Spirited Away, especially given the presence of moody spectres hanging out in the quaint town setting. The teaser trailer also shows players engaged in classic cozy game activities such as giving gifts, fishing, coasting on hang gliders and riding very floofy critters. In other words: I'll be playing a lot of Spirit Crossing when it launches. There's no definite timeline yet, but Netflix said at GDC that the game is part of its 2025 mobile release slate.
Spry Fox dabbled in several different genres, including several mobile puzzle games with a signature style such as Alphabear and Triple Town, before settling into a groove creating cozy games. Spirit Crossing will be the studio's second project since joining the Netflix Games roster; Cozy Grove: Camp Spirit came out last summer. Players who want in on the ground floor of the devs' latest game can sign up now for closed alpha testing.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/spry-foxs-next-netflix-games-title-is-spirit-crossing-200643116.html?src=rss
Google has followed up an ocean's worth of leaks with the official announcement of its Pixel 9a smartphone, which will retail for $499. Possibly the biggest change to the new A-series model is in its appearance, with the removal of the camera bar on the back of the phone. In the 9a, the camera housing is "slightly domed," sitting nearly flush with the rest of the frame, giving this midrange model a sleeker appearance. There are also new colors for this series — a pale purple dubbed Iris and a vibrant pink named Peony — joining the usual Porcelain and Obsidian options. (The peony option is similar to that on the pricier Pixel 9.)
Our senior reviewer Sam Rutherford has already been able to check out the new device in person, and you can read why he thinks the Pixel 9a might be "the new midrange smartphone king." But here's the details before you head over to his impressions.
In addition to what's already been covered here, the Pixel 9a is also getting a chip upgrade, moving up to Google's Tensor G4 processor from the G3 that was in Google's excellent Pixel 8a. Performance in the 8a was already quite good, so expect even smoother control with the G4. As with the 8a, the 9a is equipped with 8GB of RAM and comes with either 128GB or 256GB of storage. The new A-series also promises up to "30+ hour battery life."
Cameras were a big reason why we liked the Pixel 8a, naming it our top pick for a midrange smartphone. The housing is different in the 9a, but it's also got slightly different specs inside. The rear dual cameras in the 9a offer 48MP wide and 13MP ultrawide lenses, while the front is equipped with a 13MP selfie camera; the 8a had 64MP wide in the rear camera. It'll support AI-powered features such as Magic Editor, Magic Eraser, Best Take and Photo Unblur. Google is bringing the Macro Focus option to the A-series for the first time for photos with lots of close-up details. There's also Night Sight to help improve your nocturnal photography.
It is worth noting that since the announcement, Ars Technica has reported that because the Pixel 9a ships with 8GB of RAM, it's "forced to" rely on an "extra extra small" model of Gemini AI. The article also notes that this means "some of Google's coolest AI features don't work on the 9a." However, Ars also states that features like AI-generated transcripts via the Recorder app will work on the 9a. Once we get our hands on a review unit, we'll figure out exactly what works and what is missing from the more powerful (and more expensive) Pixel 9 and 9 Pro.
The 9a will be available in the US and Canada in North America, as well as numerous other countries in Europe and the Asia Pacific region. Google says the device will be available in April, with no further detail on specific timing.
Update, March 20 2025, 11:25AM ET: This story was updated with more details about AI features that might not be available on the Pixel 9a.
Update, March 19 2025, 12:16PM ET: This story has been updated to correct the last sentence, which said pre-orders would open in April. There will be no pre-orders.
Update, March 19 2025, 3:27PM ET: This story has been updated to add a paragraph informing readers of our hands-on of the Pixel 9a, as well as another paragraph about an Ars Technica report on limited AI features.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/google-unveils-the-new-pixel-9a-for-499-140028552.html?src=rss
President Donald Trump's efforts to remake the US government continued today with the firing of the two Democratic members of the Federal Trade Commission. This agency has historically had five members: three from the same party as the president and two from the opposing party. The New York Timesreported that the president terminated the roles for FTC Commissioners Rebecca Kelly Slaughter and Alvaro Bedoya.
Both Slaughter and Bedoya said today that firing them is illegal. Commissioners' terms can only be ended early for good cause, such as "inefficiency, neglect of duty or malfeasance in office." Also, no more than three commissioners can come from the same political party, meaning the pair also cannot be replaced by additional Republicans. It seems likely that Trump will face a legal challenge over the attempt to eliminate these positions.
"The law protects the independence of the Commission because the law serves the American people, not corporate power," Slaughter said in a statement. "The reason that the FTC can be so effective for the American people is because of its independence and because its commissioners serve across political parties and ideologies. Removing opposition voices may not change what the Trump majority can do, but it does change whether they will have accountability when they do it."
Bedoya also posted about the action on X, seconding Slaughter's statement that removing their posts is illegal. "Tomorrow I will testify before the Colorado Joint House and Senate Judiciary Committees, and will have more to say then," he wrote.
Trump signed an executive order in February attempting to exert more control over several agencies that were formed to intentionally remain outside the White House's purview. The order targeted agencies such as the FTC, the Federal Communications Commission, and the Securities and Exchange Commission. The FTC recently deleted all the posts on its business blog from President Biden's administration, leaving a four-year gap with no published compliance advice.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/president-trump-has-fired-the-ftcs-two-democrat-commissioners-225952614.html?src=rss
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 13: FTC Commissioners Rebecca Kelly Slaughter (5th L) and Alvaro Bedoya (6th L) attend a hearing of the House Judiciary Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill on July 13, 2023 in Washington, DC. The committee heard testimony from Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan, whom Republican members accuse of "mismanagement," "disregard for ethics and congressional oversight" and "politicized rulemakings." (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
