Apple’s latest iOS and macOS updates offer more control over live sports

Apple may be several weeks away from releasing iOS 16, macOS Ventura and other major updates, but that isn’t precluding one last hurrah for current-generation software. The company has released iOS 15.6, iPadOS 15.6 and macOS 12.5, all of which provide more control over live sports in the TV app. You can restart matches already in progress, and you’ll find typical playback options like pause, fast-forward and rewind.

The new software also fixes a Safari bug that could revert a tab to a previous page. You can expect the customary round of security patches (most of which fix holes allowing arbitrary code), including equivalents for older macOS versions like Big Sur and Catalina. Equally new watchOS 8.7 and tvOS 15.6 releases, meanwhile, deliver bug and security fixes to Apple Watch and Apple TV users alongside generic “improvements.”

The timing suggests these may be the last significant updates for existing software. Apple has historically shipped major versions of iOS, macOS and other software as soon as September, and there aren’t hints of iOS 15.7 or similar upgrades on the horizon. The company is shifting its priorities, and the modest changes in these latest updates reflect that changing focus.

Apple’s AirTag four-pack is on sale for $89 right now

Now’s a good time to pick up a few AirTags while you can get a four-pack for one of the best prices we’ve seen. Amazon has the multipack of Apple’s Bluetooth trackers for $89, or 10 percent off their usual rate. While the bundle briefly dropped to $85 on Prime Day last week, this $89 sale price is still a good deal, especially for those that have more than one item they’d want to keep track of with the gadgets. If a single AirTag is enough for you, you can pick one up for $27.50 right now.

Buy AirTag (4 pack) at Amazon – $89Buy AirTag (1 pack) at Amazon – $27.50

While Apple has competition from Tile, Chipolo and even Samsung to a degree in this space, those steeped in the Apple ecosystem will find a lot of advantages to AirTags. They pair quickly and seamlessly when placed next to iPhones, and then you can label them and track their locations using Apple’s Find My network. You can force your AirTag to emit a chime, which should help guide you to your missing things, and those who have newer iPhones can use the ultra-wideband feature to be guided to their things using on-screen directions.

A slight downside to AirTags is their lack of keyring hole, which makes them a bit less versatile than competing trackers on their own. You’ll have to buy a holder of some sort if you want to hook the AirTag to your keys, but the coin-sized devices can easily slip into a bag or wallet without taking up too much space.

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Microsoft is giving Xbox Insiders free access to classic Bethesda first-person shooters

Microsoft is giving select PC gamers free access to four classic games by Bethesda and id Software, which it acquired as part of its $7.5 billion ZeniMax purchase in 2020. And three of them wouldn’t have been released if the tech giant isn’t acquiring Activision Blizzard, as well. In a post on the Xbox blog, Microsoft has revealed that Xbox Insiders on Windows PC can now preview Heretic: Shadow of the Serpent Riders, HeXen: Beyond Heretic, HeXen: Deathkings of the Dark Citadel, The Elder Scrolls: Arena and Quake Champions. 

It’s not surprising that the offer is only available for PC users part of Microsoft’s Insider program — as Ars Technica notes, the first four games in the list were originally released in the mid-90s and run via DOSBox emulation. DOSBox runs software for MS-DOS compatible games, but it’s a pretty inelegant solution for making old titles playable. 

The Elder Scrolls: Arena is an open-world action RPG published by Bethesda, with a first person perspective and features melee combat and magic. Meanwhile, Heretic, its sequel HeXen: Beyond Heretic and the latter’s expansion pack, HeXen: Deathkings of the Dark Citadel, are all first-person dark fantasy shooters. They were built using a modified version of the Doom engine, and though they were published by id Software, they were developed by Raven Software. Activision acquired the rights to those games when it purchased Raven in 1997.

Microsoft first announced that it’s purchasing Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion in January this year and expects the deal to close no later than June 2023 if regulators give it their approval. It’s an all-cash deal that values Activision at $95 a share. Microsoft plans to add Activision Blizzard games to the Xbox Game Pass as part of the acquisition, and some of those games may be like the Heretic-HeXen series, which Activision doesn’t fully own.

Google will start field testing its next-gen AR glasses this August

Back at I/O 2022 in May, Google teased the return of its augmented reality glasses by showing an early prototype of its next-gen glasses. Now, the company is just about ready to start real-world testing. You might spot a Googler wearing the glasses in the wild as soon as August.

“The real-world tests will allow us to better understand how these devices can help people in their everyday lives,” Juston Payne, a group product manager at Google’s AR and VR division, wrote in a blog post. “And as we develop experiences like AR navigation, it will help us take factors such as weather and busy intersections into account — which can be difficult, sometimes impossible, to fully recreate indoors.”

The testing will be limited to a few dozen people (Google employees and trusted testers). The prototype models will be equipped with cameras, microphones and in-lens displays. Google is assessing audio and visual sensing for functions such as translation, transcription and navigation.

However, the features will be limited. The glasses won’t capture photos or videos, though Google will use image data to translate text and display directions. Data will be deleted “after the experience is completed” unless it’s going to be used for debugging and analysis. In that case, Google will remove sensitive information, such as faces and license plates. The company will delete image data used for research purposes after 30 days.

Google Glass wasn’t quite the success the company hoped it would be — it’s an enterprise product these days. The company wants to get things right with its next-gen AR glasses, so it’s taking things slow. Payne noted that it’s early days for the project. There’s no release timeline for the glasses as yet.

Google’s tool to turn old laptops into Chromebooks is now widely available

Earlier this year, Google announced ChromeOS Flex, a tool that lets anyone take an old Windows or Mac laptop and give it new life by installing Chrome OS. After launching ChromeOS Flex in “early access,” Google now says that Flex is ready to “scale bro…

Apple’s 16-inch MacBook Pro is $250 off right now

If you’ve already decided you want to go big on your next laptop, consider the 16-inch MacBook Pro. We gave it a score of 92 in our review, and we didn’t find too much to knock it for. However, it’s pretty pricey with its $2,499 starting price. But right now you can pick it up for $250 less at Amazon as the online retailer has knocked the price of the 512GB version down to $2,249. That’s the best price we’ve seen it, and you can get the discount on their the silver or space gray model.

Buy 16-inch MacBook Pro at Amazon – $2,249

Unlike many of Apple’s other notebooks, the 16-inch MacBook Pro was redesigned a bit to make it more of a power user’s machine. It has a 16.2-inch Liquid Retina XDR display that’s only interrupted by a top notch that houses the 1080p webcam. The TouchBar is gone but Apple’s Magic Keyboard remains a dream to type on, and the trackpad is wonderful to use as well. But arguably most importantly, the sides of the MacBook Pro now have a bunch of ports that have been missing from the notebook for a long time. It has three Thunderbolt 4 USB-C connections, a full-sized HDMI port, and SD card reader, a headphone jack and a MagSafe power connector — all of that’s to say that you won’t be living as much of the dongle life as you might have been before, although you might still need a USB-A adapter every now and then.

The base model that’s on sale runs on Apple’s M1 Pro chipset, 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage, and it comes in at fairly hefty 4.7 pounds. While it’s not the most portable machine (we recommend going for the 14-inch version if that’s a priority for you), it’s certainly a powerhouse when it comes to performance. In our benchmark testing, the Pro blew most comparable Windows machines out of the water and did so while maintaining a strong battery life. The 16-inch Pro lasted about 16.5 hours during our battery tests, and it’s worth noting that we didn’t see a performance dip while running on battery power alone.

Ultimately, the 16-inch MacBook Pro is best for audio and video producers or others in creative fields who want the maximum amount of screen space possible along with some of the best performance you’ll find on a laptop today. Yes, it remains pricey even when on sale, but it’s a much better buy when you can grab it for $250 less than usual.

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The best Amazon Prime Day wearable deals from Apple, Samsung, Fitbit and others

Smartwatches and fitness trackers keep track of your activity throughout the day, but they’ve also become some of the most popular accessories over the past few years. There are more options to choose from now than ever before, and Amazon Prime Day dea…

The best budget TVs and streaming gadgets for students

Listen up, students: You deserve better than watching movies on a laptop in bed. If you want to truly be immersed in a film (or game, or TV show), nothing beats a large TV. And it turns out, you don’t have to invest thousands to get started with a dece…

Amazon Prime Day deals knock Eero 6 WiFi systems down to record-low prices

If you’re looking for a way to upgrade your home’s WiFi, Amazon’s Eero 6 routers are a good option. Not only are there are a number of WiFi 6 options to choose from, but all of them have been discounted for Prime Day. The Eero 6 is on sale starting at $71, while the Eero Pro 6 starts at $148 for the two-day shopping event. The company’s newest editions, the Eero Pro 6E and the Eero 6+, are available for $194 and $90, respectively.

Buy Eero 6 at Amazon starting at $71Buy Eero Pro 6 at Amazon starting at $148Buy Eero Pro 6E at Amazon starting at $194Buy Eero 6+ at Amazon starting at $90Shop Eero 6 deals at Amazon

Most people will be best served by either the Eero 6 or Pro 6 systems. The former can cover up to 1,500 square feet with just one node, and you can add additional routers into the mix to expand coverage for larger homes. It’s a dual-band system that can reach speeds up to 900Mbps, and each router has two Ethernet ports built in. For Gigabit internet, the tri-band Eero Pro 6 is your best bet as it supports that level of speed, plus one router can cover up to 2,000 square feet.

Amazon came out with both the Eero Pro 6E and the 6+ earlier this year, but they’re very different systems. The Pro 6E is the best WiFi 6 system you can get from Amazon right now, and it gives you access to the 6GHz band to reach speeds up to 1.3Gbps. Each node covers up to 2,000 square feet, and you’ll be able to connect up to 100 devices at once. The Eero 6+ sits in the middle of the standard Eero 6 and the Pro 6 systems. The dual-band router will give you speeds up to 1Gbps, coverage for up to 1,500 square feet and a device cap of 75. Plus, it has access to a 160MHz radio channel, which should provide faster wireless speeds.

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