Amazon has reduced the price of the Echo Show 5 by $45. With the 53 percent discount, you can buy the smart display for $40, or just $5 more than it was during Prime Day. Released in 2021, the second-generation Echo Show 8 features a 960 x 480 resoluti…
Duet Display’s second screen app is now available for Meta Portal devices
Meta is making its Portal smart displays more useful to remote workers. Starting today, you can use the Portal Go and second-generation Portal Plus as a second screen for your Mac or Windows PC. The new functionality comes courtesy of Duet Display, the…
Here’s everything Samsung announced at its August Unpacked event
On Wednesday, Samsung held its latest Unpacked showcase. As expected, the event saw the company show off its newest foldable devices, the Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Galaxy Z Flip 4, but Samsung also devoted part of the proceedings to new wearables. Here’s eve…
Blizzard will stop selling ‘Overwatch’ loot boxes on August 30th
Blizzard will stop selling Overwatch loot boxes on August 30th, the studio announced in a blog post published on Tuesday. The date coincides with the end of the game’s recently launched Anniversary Remix Vol. 3 event. Blizzard notes players will still …
Yamaha’s flagship noise-canceling wireless earbuds arrive in the US for $280
After launching earlier this summer, Yamaha’s flagship TW-E7B true wireless earbuds are now available in the US. You can buy them starting today for $279.95. The TW-E7B have a few things going for them. They’re the first true wireless earbuds from Yama…
President Biden signs CHIPS Act to boost semiconductor production
Following successful votes in the Senate and House of Representatives, President Joe Biden has signed the CHIPS and Science Act into law. The $280 billion measure will provide significant financial assistance to American semiconductor firms. It sets as…
Firaxis delays Marvel’s Midnight Suns, maybe until 2023
Take-Two Interactive has once again pushed back the release of Marvel’s Midnight Suns. Following a delay late last year, the upcoming tactical RPG from XCOM developer Firaxis was scheduled to arrive on October 7th. The publisher now plans to release the game sometime within its fiscal 2023 year, which ends on March 31st, 2023. Additionally, Midnight Suns won’t arrive on all consoles simultaneously.
“We have made the decision to move back the launch timing of Marvel’s Midnight Suns to ensure the teams at Firaxis Games and 2K deliver the best possible experience for our fans,” Take-Two said in a statement. “The title will launch later this fiscal year on Windows PC, Xbox Series X/S, and PlayStation 5. The Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch versions will follow at a later date.”
It’s not just that Midnight Suns was just delayed (the dev team getting more time is great)
.. it’s that its PC/PS5/Xbox Series versions were delayed to later in fiscal 2023 (by March 31, 2023) but that the Switch and old-gen console versions now have no release date. Yikes pic.twitter.com/rNZ3xxzLok
— Stephen Totilo (@stephentotilo) August 8, 2022
Marvel’s Midnight Suns was first announced at Gamescom 2021. Unlike XCOM, the game includes a deck-building component. Battles still unfold over the course of multiple turns, but instead of each superhero bringing the same set of abilities to every battle, you’ll draw cards to determine their capabilities. Some of the characters that will join your roster include Wolverine, Iron Man and Blade. You’ll also create your own superhero named The Hunter.
iOS 16 beta brings back the battery percentage icon
Earlier today, Apple released the fifth iOS 16 developer beta. It adds a handful of changes, but if you’ve spent any time on Twitter, you know there’s only one thing everyone wants to talk about: the return of the battery percentage indicator. For the first time since Apple removed the icon in 2017 to accommodate the iPhone X’s notch, it’s possible to see exactly how much battery your iPhone has left without pulling down the Control Center shade.
ITS REAL pic.twitter.com/RKf2zkFS7i
— Ian Zelbo (@ianzelbo) August 8, 2022
If you’re enrolled in the developer beta, you can add the indicator to your status bar by opening the Settings menu and navigating to the Battery section. Once there, you’ll see a new toggle labeled “Battery Percentage.” The resulting icon is slightly larger than the one you’re probably used to seeing. Additionally, if you plug your iPhone into a charger, the icon will turn green and display a lightning symbol next to the battery percentage. Conversely, it’s yellow when your iPhone is in low power mode.
The option to see battery percentage is not available on the iPhone XR, iPhone 11, iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 mini. We’ll also note it’s possible the feature may not make it into the final release of iOS 16. The next version of Apple’s mobile operating system will arrive later this year. Some of the more notable features Apple announced at WWDC 2022 include new lock screen customization options, the ability to edit and recall texts in iMessage and real-time notifications called Live Activities.
Bandai Namco is reportedly making a live-action Pac-Man movie
Bandai Namco is developing a live-action Pac-Man film, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The Japanese publisher has reportedly tapped Wayfarer Studios, best known for its work on 2019’s Five Feet Apart, to produce the project. According to The Holly…
Less than 1 percent of Netflix’s subscribers are playing its games
Netflix’s entry into the gaming market is off to a slow start. According to an analysis performed by Apptopia on behalf of CNBC, the streaming giant’s games have been downloaded a total of 23.3 million times and average about 1.7 million daily users. Put another way, less than one percent of Netflix’s 221 million customers are taking advantage of the games included in their subscriptions.
Netflix did not immediately respond to Engadget’s request for comment. In the past, the company indicated it did not expect its gaming division to be profitable immediately. “We’re going to be experimental and try a bunch of things,” Netflix COO Greg Peters told investors during the company’s fourth-quarter earnings calls last year.
Still, the question that’s probably on everyone’s mind is how long Netflix is willing to wait to see if it made the right bet, especially after it lost nearly one million subscribers during its most recent quarter. Other lofty bets — like the company’s in-house fan blog, Tudum — were the subject of cutbacks after only a few months of spending.
The company has shared precious few details on how much it has spent expanding its portfolio beyond TV shows and movies, but most signs point to a significant investment. Earlier this year, the company paid $72 million to acquire Next Games, the studio behind Stranger Things: Puzzle Tales. More recently, it secured exclusive mobile rights to beloved indie titles like Spiritfarer and Into The Breach. The company is unlikely to make similar investments in the future if its current ones don’t pan out.