Engadget Email Newsletter

Now available on your smart speaker and wherever you get your podcasts

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Play | iHeart Radio

It's Monday, March 09, 2020.

Hey, good morning!

As the world’s biggest phone show that never happened wraps up, and companies finish showing their new devices at dedicated events from New York to London and Hong Kong, we’re already scanning the horizon for what’s next. Namely, budget spin-offs of existing phones, like a cheaper Pixel 4, and a new flagship phone from Motorola -- a company that’s avoided high-spec battles in recent years.

If you’re reading this, you’re more interested in the high-spec, high-cost phone, but for a lot of people, cheaper phones usually suffice. The Pixel 3a amazed me last year -- and I wasn’t alone. Can Google repeat the magic? And will more people pick up a Pixel based on past success? Maybe. I’m less interested in Motorola’s flagship phone hopes. Again, times are tough if you're not making iPhones or Galaxy phones.

-- Mat

Google might stick to the basics for its next Android handset.

Pixel 4a photo leaks hint at a no-frills budget phone

Waiting on a cheaper Pixel phone? Multiple leaks appearing on Twitter and Reddit appear to show Google's upcoming low-cost Pixel 4a phone in the wild -- to be honest, looking a bit worse for wear. Judging by the pictures, the prototype ditches the face recognition and dual cameras of the regular Pixel 4 in favor of a more conventional fingerprint reader and single rear cam, though it still has that huge squarish camera module. It seems Google will keep the headphone jack around for those who can't justify Bluetooth earbuds -- a stealthy way of keeping shoppers’ additional costs down, perhaps?

The Edge+ might also be headed to the US.

Motorola's first high-end phone in years may have a 'bezel-free' display

Motorola hasn’t attempted a flagship phone for a while -- perhaps because Apple and Samsung seem to have that market sewn up. Flip-phone experiments aside, Motorola’s Edge+ is another attempt at phone glory. Leaks suggest a 6.7-inch phone with a "bezel-free" (on the sides, at least) curved screen and, according to renders, a relatively tiny hole-punch camera.

Your real-life soccer skills could improve a virtual team.

Google and Adidas prep smart insoles that tie into 'FIFA Mobile'

The latest Google wearable appears to be an embeddable sensor for your soccer / football boots. Not only will it do the obligatory movement tracking you’d expect but also translate that presumably middling performance to FIFA Mobile. Your skills, including in real-life challenges, promise to improve the Ultimate Team in your game. Adidas and Google have teased an announcement on March 10th.

Save up to 62 percent with these open box Sony headphones

People love a super-expensive EV.

Lotus has already sold out its $2.6 million electric hypercar

The Lotus Evija: an electric hypercar costing over $2.6 million. Who would buy it? Some people. Apparently. Lotus has reportedly already sold out of the Evija production run for 2020, which is due to start in the summer. It didn't provide specific numbers, but there were expectations the automaker would make 130 Evijas in total. Perhaps now, it might make more.

But wait, there's more...

1. Apple Watch might detect your blood oxygen levels

2. Samsung's Galaxy S20 Ultra is surprisingly sturdy

3. New York power plant mines Bitcoin using excess energy

The Morning After is a new daily newsletter from Engadget designed to help you fight off FOMO. Who knows what you'll miss if you don't subscribe.

Now available on your smart speaker and wherever you get your podcasts:
Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Play | iHeart Radio

Craving even more? Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.

Have a suggestion on how we can improve The Morning After? Send us a note.

You are receiving this email because you opted in at engadget.com.

Not interested anymore? Unsubscribe from this newsletter.

Engadget Email Newsletter

Now available on your smart speaker and wherever you get your podcasts

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Play | iHeart Radio

It's Saturday, March 07, 2020.

Hey, good morning! You look fabulous.

The word for the week is “canceled.” As additional cases of the new coronavirus continue to pop up, companies and event planners took steps to try and avoid creating environments where it might spread rapidly. On Friday evening the city of Austin declared a local disaster and called off the 2020 SXSW festival, making it just the latest on the list.

Other companies scaled back on travel and encouraged employees to work from home, while some delivery firms like Instacart and Postmates unveiled new no-contact options.

-- Richard

(View in browser.)

The winner did not wish to be identified.

The Nintendo PlayStation sells for $360,000 at auction

Bidding for this legendary prototype concluded Friday when someone placed a $300,000 bid. With the buyer's premium, the person who won the auction will pay $360,000 to own a piece of gaming history.

That sounds bad.

Researchers discover that Intel chips have an unfixable security flaw

This week security specialists Positive Technologies disclosed their discovery of a tiny gap in security that could allow attackers with local or physical access to inject malicious code and, eventually, commandeer your PC. The vulnerability is within Intel's Converged Security and Management Engine (CSME), a part of the chip that controls system boot-up, power levels, firmware and, most critically, cryptographic functions. Since the boot code and RAM are hard coded into Intel's CPUs, they can't be patched or reset without replacing the silicon.

The flaw affects chips manufactured over the last five years or so. Intel said that it was notified of the vulnerabilities and released mitigations in May 2019 so they could be included in firmware updates. However, as the researchers explain, "since... the ROM vulnerability cannot be fixed, we believe that extracting this key is only a matter of time. When this happens, utter chaos will reign."

Sometimes a smartphone camera just won’t cut it.

How to buy a compact camera in 2020

If you want better photos than a smartphone can deliver but also don't want a bulky DSLR or mirrorless camera, you may need a compact camera in your life. There’s a wide variety of models out there with different sized sensors, fixed, zoom and superzoom lenses and lots of manual controls (or not).

Check out Steve Dent’s advice laying out the different features available on each brand and model to help you choose just the right one.

This best-selling language app is just $40 today

Also: Xbox Series X speculation and first impressions of TCL’s foldable tablet concept.

The Engadget Podcast: Coronavirus hits tech and a chat with ‘Cosmos’ Ann Druyan

This week on the Engadget Podcast, we dive into the many ways the coronavirus is affecting the tech industry, all the while remembering to wash our hands and not touch our faces. And for something completely different, Devindra chats with Ann Druyan (starting at 26:59), the co-creator of Cosmos, on the show's incredible new season. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Spotify, Pocket Casts or Stitcher.

It's likely faster than your gaming rig -- but don't give up on that desktop yet.

Does the Xbox Series X make gaming PCs obsolete?

On paper, the Xbox Series X’s sheer power blows away most gaming rigs today -- but what does that mean for PC enthusiasts? To be honest, there's still plenty we don't know about the Series X or what the state of PC hardware will be later this year. But based on Microsoft's spec dump last week, we can start making some educated guesses. Read on to let Devindra Hardawar guide you away (or toward) the next big console race.

You might head to the Moon or Mars.

NASA accepts applications for astronauts for the first time in four years

NASA has started taking applications for its next round of astronauts, some of them likely to be part of future Moon and Mars expeditions. You'll have until the very end of March to apply, but make sure you qualify first. NASA says that you'll need to be a US citizen with either a master's degree in a STEM field or an equivalent, such as two years of work toward the doctorate in your field, a medical doctorate or the combination of a completed test pilot school program with a STEM bachelor's degree -- deep breath. You'll also need real-world experience that includes either two years of "progressively responsible" work experience or 1,000 flight hours as a pilot in command.

And then there’s the long-duration spaceflight physical...