Amazon’s Echo is back on sale for a record low of $60

If you missed the chance to pick up an Echo smart speaker during Prime Day last week, you have another opportunity to do so today. Amazon’s full-sized Echo is back down to a record-low price of $60, which is 40 percent off its normal rate. The Echo Show 5 is also on sale for $40 right now, which is only $5 more than it was on Prime Day. The Echo Dot, on the other hand, is currently 20 percent off and on sale for $40.

Buy Echo at Amazon – $60Buy Echo Show 5 at Amazon – $40Buy Echo Dot at Amazon – $40

You may just think of Amazon’s Echo as a way to get Alexa into your home, but it’s a pretty capable speaker as well. We gave it a score of 89 when it came out and it remains one of our favorite smart speakers. We like its spherical design and its bottom light ring that changes colors depending on what it’s doing. Inside the Echo are a three-inch woofer and two 0.8-inch tweeters that work together to help the speaker get quite loud and pump out sound with solid bass and powerful mid-range frequencies. It does a better job filling a room with sound than Google’s Nest Audio or Apple’s HomePod mini, which will be important for those who want to use it as their primary living room speaker.

In addition to asking Alexa to play music from various sources like Spotify or Apple Music, the Echo can be used as a Bluetooth speaker if you prefer. It also has a 3.5mm audio jack, which takes both input and output. Plus, if you buy two of the speakers, you can pair them together to play sound in stereo mode as well.

The Echo can also act as your main smart home hub thanks to its built-in Zigbee capabilities. Instead of buying a separate hub or bridge to connect things like smart lights, switches and more, the Echo can act as the central point in your home. And if you primarily get IoT devices that work with Alexa, you’ll be able to use voice commands to control them, too.

Overall, the Echo is one of the best smart speakers you can get at the $100 mark, so it’s an even better buy when you can get it for less. If you prefer a device that has a display to show things like weather forecasts and even security camera feeds, the Echo Show 5 is a solid option. It’s the smallest of Amazon’s smart displays, but that means it works well as a smart alarm clock of sorts. We like its surprisingly solid audio quality and its tap-to-snooze feature, too. As for the Echo Dot, it’s the smart speaker to get if you’re on a tight budget or want something that allows you to use Alexa voice commands without taking up too much space.

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Engadget Podcast: Diving into the Pixel 6a and Netflix’s latest mess

Is the Pixel 6a the best Android phone under $500? Tune in for Cherlynn’s review! This week, Devindra and Cherlynn also discuss why losing almost a million subscribers was actually a good thing fo Netflix. And they dive into Qualcomm’s latest hardware …

Naughty Dog shows off improved gameplay from ‘The Last of Us’ PS5 remake

With the PS5 remake for The Last of Usset to arrive soon, developer Naughty Dog recently showed the benefits you can expect with the new hardware. Now in a 10-minute video, the company has detailed new features including a speed-run mode and smarter AI, while walking through improved graphics, physics, character models, animations and more. 

As we saw last month, the new graphics are indeed much improved, with native 4K at 30 fps or dynamic 4K at 60 fps. The biggest changes are with gameplay, though. First off, the remake uses AI from The Last of Us Part 2, which gives enemies and NPCs more complex tactics, making for better fights. It’s not one-sided, either, as your companions’ AI has also been updated. 

The remake also includes new gameplay modes. One of those is a permadeath mode for those who want the full “infected” zombie apocalypse experience, along with new unlockable costumes for Joel and Ellie. The other is a speed run mode — details are scant on that, other than that you’ll be able to measure your progress with a timer. 

The other improvements revolve around characters, with new models that include far more detail “down to the irises and the pupil depths,” noted creative director and writer Shaun Escayg. The team also updated the animations with improved facial expressions, motion-matching tech for more flowing movements and more. It also includes new materials, physics, haptics, 3D audio and more.

The remake does look impressive, but it will sell at a full $70 triple-A price when it arrives on September 2nd. As such, Naughty Dog and Sony appear to be doing more than the usual amount of marketing for a remake, no doubt hoping to show potential buyers it’s worth that. 

Lawsuit accuses Chicago authorities of misusing gunshot detection system in a murder case

A 65-year-old man named Michael Williams spent almost a year in jail over the shooting of a man inside his car before prosecutors asked a judge to dismiss his case due to insufficient evidence. Now, the MacArthur Justice Center has sued the city of Chicago for using ShotSpotter, which it calls an “unreliable” gunshot detection technology, as critical evidence in charging him with first-degree murder. The human rights advocate group out of Northwestern University accuses the city’s cops of relying on the technology and failing to pursue other leads in the investigation.

Williams was arrested in 2021 over the death of Safarian Herring, a young man from the neighborhood, who asked him for a ride in the middle of unrest over police brutality in May that year. According to an AP report from March, the key piece of evidence used for his arrest was a clip of noiseless security video showing a car driving through an intersection. That’s coupled with a loud bang picked up by ShotSpotter’s network of surveillance microphones. ShotSpotter uses a large network of audio sensors distributed through a specific area to pick up the sound of gunfire. The sensors work with each other to triangulate the shot’s location, so perpetrators can’t hide behind walls or other structures to mask their crime.

However, a study conducted by the MacArthur Justice Center in 2021 found that 89 percent of the alerts the system sends law enforcement turn up no evidence of any gun-related crime. “In less than two years, there were more than 40,000 dead-end ShotSpotter deployments,” the report said. The group also pointed out that ShotSpotter alerts “should only be used for initial investigative purposes.” San Francisco’s surveillance technology policy (PDF), for instance, states that its police department must only use ShotSpotter information to find shell casing evidence on the scene and to further analyze the incident.

The lawsuit accuses Chicago’s police department of failing to pursue other leads in investigating Williams, including reports that the victim was shot earlier at a bus stop. Authorities never established what’s supposed to be Williams’ motive, didn’t find a firearm or any kind of physical evidence that proves that Williams shot Herring, the group said.

On its website, ShotSpotter posted a response to “false claims” about its technology, calling reports about its inaccuracy “absolutely false.” The company claims its technology has a 97 percent accuracy rate, including a 0.5 percent false positive rate, and says those numbers were independently confirmed by Edgeworth Analytics, a data science firm in Washington, D.C. It also answers the part of the lawsuit that criticizes Chicago’s decision to place most of it sensors in predominantly Black and Latino neighborhoods, which could lead to potentially dangerous clashes with the police. ShotSpotter said it’s a false narrative that its coverage areas are biased and racially discriminatory and that it works with clients to determine coverage areas based on historical gunfire and homicide data .

As AP reports, the lawsuit is seeking class-action status for any Chicago resident who was stopped because of a ShotSpotter alert. The MacArthur Justice Center is also seeking damages from the city for the mental anguish and loss of income Williams had experienced throughout the whole ordeal, as well as for the legal fees he incurred. Further, the group is asking the court to ban the technology’s use in the city altogether.

‘Dungeons & Dragons’ movie trailer looks like a loud, dumb and hopefully fun time

San Diego Comic-Con 2022 kicked off with a trailer for the movie Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, and it… actually looks promising? The upcoming film has an all-star cast with Chris Pine, Michelle Rodriguez, Regé-Jean Page and Hugh Grant, and blends action, fantasy, comedy and some of D&D’s most iconic monsters. 

“A charming thief and a band of unlikely adventurers undertake an epic heist to retrieve a lost relic, but things go dangerously awry when they run afoul of the wrong people,” the description reads. “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves brings the rich world and playful spirit of the legendary roleplaying game to the big screen in a hilarious and action-packed adventure.”

The trailer delivers the dragons you’d expect, including possibly an acid-breathing Ancient Black Dragon and a Red Dragon. We also see a Mimic disguised as a treasure chest, a Displacer Beast, a Gelatinous Cube and an Owlbear — a beast that goes back to the original D&D game. As for realms and spells, there’s what looks like the Underdark, a Heat Metal spell, Dimension Door spell and others. 

The film is being produced and distributed by Paramount and Hasbro, which controls the rights of the game and recently acquired the popular digital game-playing toolset D&D Beyond. Hasbro is also working on other film and TV adaptations for its toys including Transformers and My Little Pony. 

Instagram adds templates and tools to make it easier to create Reels

Meta has introduced new tools to expand the ways you can collaborate with others using Reels, as part of its strategy to be able to better compete with TikTok. To start with, you can now remix not just videos, but also photos on Instagram, giving you more material to use. The company has added more Remix layouts to include a green screen, a split screen or a picture-in-picture reaction view, as well, to make it easier to add your own spin or take to an existing Reel. Plus, you can choose to attach your remix to the end of the original Reel instead of having them play side-by-side. That format works better if you have a hot take or a rebuttal you want to publish.

In addition, Meta is rolling out templates to make it easy to create Reels with preloaded audio and video effects — you simply need to add your photo or video to one. You can see the company’s template collection by tapping on the camera icon in the Reels tab. Another new feature that makes the feature a more veritable rival to TikTok is the ability to record with the phone’s front and rear cameras at the same time using the Instagram camera. 

Finally, Meta has confirmed a previous feature leak that it will be turning all videos posted on Instagram as Reels, as long as they’re shorter than 15 minutes. Videos under 90 seconds long may be recommended on the app and, hence, may have a wider reach. But you don’t have to worry about becoming famous if you don’t want to be: Instagram won’t be using your Reels as a recommendation if your profile is set to private, and it will not retroactively convert old uploads. This feature is rolling out in the coming weeks and will also consolidate all your videos and Reels under one tab in the app.

Just a few days ago, Instagram also introduced a feature that would allow influencers to earn from their Reels. Creators can now share subscriber-only feeds that lock their content behind a paywall. Meta promised creators that it won’t be taking a cut from their earnings until 2024, but putting Reels behind a paywall is one way of monetizing them.The company’s executives previously said that they intend to focus on monetizing Reels as quickly as possible in the second half of 2022, so we’ll likely see more features intended to make money off the short videos in the near future.

Zoom brings end-to-end encryption to its cloud phone service

Zoom is bolstering its privacy and security protections by expanding end-to-end encryption (E2EE) to more of its services. First up is Zoom Phone, its cloud phone system. Users of that service will be able to switch on E2EE during one-on-one calls. When it’s on, E2EE will ensure calls are secure with cryptographic keys that only the calling and receiving devices can access. You’ll be able to verify the E2EE status by sharing a security code with the other person.

At the moment, it’s only possible to enable E2EE on Zoom Phone for calls between users on the same company Zoom account. They’ll need to be on the Zoom Phone desktop or mobile app and switch off automatic call recording. Account owners or admins will need to enable E2EE via a web portal before their users can activate it on calls.

In addition, E2EE will soon be available in breakout rooms — smaller discussions that break off from group meetings. Each breakout room can have its own encryption key. Again, account owners or admins will need to enable E2EE for their users.

Zoom started rolling out E2EE for meetings in October 2020, a few months after the company took off amid the COVID-19 pandemic and a trend of uninvited guests “zoombombing” calls emerged. Zoom initially planned to limit E2EE to paid accounts, but it relented after a backlash and offered it to everyone.

OnStar expands emergency response and roadside assistance to motorcyclists

General Motors has been putting its OnStar in-vehicle safety and security suite into its vehicles since 1997 with the system having undergone numerous evolutions, upgrades and expansions in the last quarter century. Soon its roadside assistance and crash monitoring services will be available to two-wheeled motorists and homebodies as well, the company announced on Thursday.

As part of a modernizing redesign OnStar is making its Guardian crash monitoring and roadside assistance features available to motorcyclists. The service will rely on the accelerometer and other sensors in the rider’s cellphone to determine if a crash has occurred (rather than using the vehicle’s sensor suite as would happen in an automobile wreck) but otherwise is identical to the existing triage and response process. The roadside assistance will include jump starts, gas deliveries and flatbed tows.

The company is also expanding its Alexa integration, which GM began testing last year with select OnStar subscribers. Like having a red telephone to 911, this service will immediately connect members “to an OnStar Emergency Certified Advisor” through their Alexa-connected device, “in scenarios where Members need to call for help hands-free and time is of the essence.” Today, that Alexa skill is available to every US OnStar subscriber.