New Year fitness resolutions aside, many of us are cautiously making our way back to the gym. What about our home workout spaces? What about your Peloton bike? Following reports from CNBC that the company had put production on hold for its standard Bike and Tread (treadmill) products, as well as looking to cut costs, Peloton says it's not halted production. However, and note the choice of words, Peloton CEO John Foley said in a letter to employees that the company is "resetting [its] production levels for sustainable growth."
And what to do if you've moved on from your Bike? My dad used his stationary bike almost daily when I was growing up. And when he didn't, it made a pretty functional clothes rack.
5G tech has the potential to disrupt sensitive aircraft avionics.
Today, as carriers expand their 5G networks across the country, they're faced with a dangerous prospect: That one of 5G's spectrum bands may interfere with the radio altimeters aboard commercial aircraft below 2,500 feet, potentially causing automated landing controls to misjudge the distance from the ground and crash. This forms the basis of a fight between the US airline industry and the country's phone carriers.
Arguably one of the most subtle wearables, the Oura ring is back. It's smarter, it has a subscription service and it lasts almost a week between charges. But is there enough to recommend it above the Fitbits and the Apple Watches out there? It's not a device that every fitness person will love, but Oura seems a less ostentatious way of tracking your life. Senior Editor Daniel Cooper slips on the third-generation smart ring.
Casio hasn't been a serious player in the world of synthesizers for some time. Recently, the company teased what seemed like a return to real-deal synths. What we got is the Casiotone CT-S1000V. It looks like a mid-range Casiotone that uses the company's flagship AiX engine, with vocal synthesis tossed in as a bonus. In short, it's a singing keyboard.
The novelty of being able to whip up some lyrics in the companion app, send them to the CT-S1000V and play the words as a melody was more than enough to pique Terrence O'Brien's interest.
The cryptocurrency exchange published the results of its investigation.
Crypto.com's Chief Executive Kris Marszalek has admitted that hackers compromised over 400 customer accounts. While the issue was fixed immediately, and the company has fully reimbursed the affected users, unauthorized withdrawals totaled 4,836.26 Ethereum (ETH), 443.93 Bitcoin (BTC) and approximately $66,200 in other currencies. Based on current exchange rates, that's $15.3 million of ETH and $18.7 million of BTC for a total of $34 million in losses.
Amazon is opening its first-ever Amazon Style physical clothing store with the promise of a high-tech shopping experience, confirming a rumor from last year. It will offer brands consumers "know and love," according to Amazon, and an app will let you choose an item, size and color and send it directly to a fitting room or pickup counter. The first store is coming to The Americana at Brand in Los Angeles sometime "later this year," the company said.
Apple has finally closed a loophole in the US that allowed most buyers to claim education pricing, even if they weren't actually a student or a teacher. First noted on Reddit, the US Apple Store now requires buyers to verify their status via UNiDAYS to be able to purchase MacBooks, iPads and other devices from its education portal. The change appears to have happened over the past few days.
I'm based in the UK, where Apple has long required proof through the UNiDAYS platform to nab that often substantial discount on some of the company's priciest devices. For legitimate students and teachers, you'll have to click through to the UNiDAYS' partner page for Apple first and sign in before you get to those discounts. Not that anyone can go too crazy: shoppers are limited to one desktop, one Mac mini, one laptop, two iPads and two accessories per year. Still, that's a lot of Macs.
A new study has found that "space anemia" caused by weightlessness in space is not a temporary issue as once thought, the CBC has reported. "As long as you are in space, you are destroying more blood cells than you are making," said the University of Ottawa's Guy Trudel, who led a 14-astronaut study carried out by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).
The researchers said anemia could even be an issue for space tourism. The study also noted that "current exercise and nutritional countermeasures of modern space travel did not prevent hemolysis and post-flight anemia" in the astronauts tested.
Autopilot was apparently engaged at the time of the crash.
A Tesla owner is facing the first felony charges filed against someone using a partially automated driving system in the US. The defendant, Kevin George Aziz Riad, was driving a Model S when he crashed into a Honda Civic at a California intersection in 2019. It ended up killing the Civic's two passengers. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recently confirmed the vehicle's Autopilot mode was switched on at the time of the crash. The NHTSA formally opened a probe into Tesla's driver assistance system in August last year following a string of 17 people killed in 11 crashes involving parked first responder vehicles.
Verizon expects to hit over 1,700 cities this month, but AT&T's rollout is more limited.
After a six-week delay — and no availability near many airports for the time being — people in some areas of the US will have access to C-Band services starting today.
AT&T is taking a relatively cautious approach to its rollout, with its C-Band 5G services going live in "limited parts" of eight metro areas, including Detroit and Chicago. Folks in three regions in Florida also use AT&T's C-Band network. Verizon (Engadget's former parent company) says 100 million more people will gain access to its 5G Ultra Wideband network this month.
Affected users will need to move to a paid Workspace plan.
First, it was Google Apps, then G Suite and now it's Workspace. During all those name changes, Google offered new subscription plans while doing away with older ones. It now plans to sunset a tier that had survived the suite's most recent rebranding.
In an email spotted by 9to5Google, the company told Workspace administrators it won't offer G Suite legacy free edition as of July 1st, 2022. This doesn't necessarily mean you have to start paying for GDocs. If you're using Gmail, Docs, Sheets and the rest through a free Google account, you won't be affected by the move. Google will continue to offer free Workspace plans to nonprofits and schools that qualify for its Fundamentals tier.
According to Autoblog, Airstream's Thor brand has revealed an eStream concept self-propelling camper. The dual-motor trailer not only reduces the burden on the towing vehicle but can be remote-controlled from your phone to help you hitch up, reverse or simply move camp site. You can even use the motors to shift the weight distribution, so you might not need a special hitch.
You can now play Google Play Games on Windows — if you live in the right country. Google has launched registration-based beta access to "popular" Play Games titles on Windows PCs in Hong Kong, South Korea and Taiwan. Google said it would offer details of later betas and expansions "soon." It previously committed to a generic 2022 rollout.
Whether it's Xbox Cloud gaming, Stadia, PlayStation Remote Play or just a very severe addiction to Apple Arcade, gamepads are a better way to play many games on your smartphone. Normally that means using some kind of smartphone clip, but there are several options now that snap directly to your phone. The $100 Backbone One is a single-piece controller that extends to fit your iPhone and plugs directly into it.
Microsoft's been buying up studios for the last couple of years, adding notable developers and game series to the Xbox, righting the wrongs of previous generations of the company's console — namely the lack of exclusive games. And while the purchase of Bethesda last year seemed the biggest deal made in modern gaming, Microsoft picking up Activision Blizzard blows it out of the water. There's been a mixed response, however.
First off, the studio is mired in multiple investigations into allegations of sexual harassment and gender discrimination at the company, with calls for CEO Bobby Kotick to step down. Further, as Senior Editor Jessica Conditt lays out, this puts an incredible amount of industry power — and titles — in the hands of one gaming platform. (Two if you include PC.)
And what about exclusivity? In his blog post about the acquisition, Xbox's Phil Spencer didn't address Sony or Nintendo platforms specifically, but he alluded to the possibility of cross-platform support. "Activision Blizzard games are enjoyed on a variety of platforms, and we plan to continue to support those communities moving forward," he said, without getting into specifics. Spencer said similar things regarding Bethesda's Elder Scrolls VI at first, only for his comments to change later.
Nest speakers are now playing a different, shorter sound.
Multiple users noticed that Google recently changed its white noise on its Nest speakers series. A new ambient noise was repeating every 10 minutes, when it used to repeat every hour, with the previously crisp sound file now apparently "muffled" and quieter than before.
There were at least 100 complaints on Nest community forums, with many people saying they use the white noise to get their babies or toddlers to sleep. The feedback reached Google, which has reverted the feature back to how it was. Rest easy, angry toddlers.
You can request four tests per household, and the USPS will start deliveries later this month.
A little earlier than scheduled, folks in the US can now order free at-home COVID-19 tests from a United States Postal Service website. Households can each request one set of four rapid antigen tests. USPS will start shipping the kits later this month, usually within seven to 12 days of ordering.
Garmin's new Fenix 7 line will now include touchscreens — a first for this series. The great outdoors, with sweat, dirt, gloves and the rest, can usually mess with the proper workings of a touch interface, so it'll be intriguing to see how this works out. The new watches also include a new multi-LED flashlight, which can alternate between red and white as you run, matching your personal cadence.
Say hello to Klombos. They're climbable monsters with blowholes ion their heads to launch you into the sky. They also offer up items if you feed them. Provoke them, however, and they will attack. The latest update also revives Tilted Towers, arguably Fortnite's best-known location. While there appear to be some cosmetic changes, you'll have the chance to revisit the sniper-friendly clock tower.
