Amazon’s 3-for-2 sale includes ‘Elden Ring,’ ‘Nintendo Switch Sports’ and more

Every once in a while, Amazon will bring around a new 3-for-2 sale that makes it cheaper to stock up on books, video games, movies, toys and more. The latest sale includes Elden Ring and a number of other popular PS5, Xbox and Nintendo Switch titles, so you can pick up a handful of games that have been on your wishlist for a while without spending too much money. Just go to the overall sale page here and filter by video games on the left sidebar to see all of the included titles.

Shop Amazon 3-for-2 sale

If you somehow haven’t picked up Elden Ring yet, you can do so now — and not only is it included in this 3-for-2 sale, but both the PS5 and Xbox versions are $10 off their usual price, bringing them both down to $50. There’s a similar deal for Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga: both the PS5 and Xbox games are included in the sale and they are both $15 off, so you can get them for $45 each. Sifu: Vengeance Edition for PS5 is also eligible for this sale, but you’ll find it at its standard price of $50.

As far as Nintendo games go, you can pick up Nintendo Switch Sports for $48 in this sale, along with Kirby and the Forgotten Land, Triangle Strategy, Ori: The Collection and others. Some titles, like Triangle Strategy, have been discounted from their normal price, but you should expect to pay full price for most games — especially new ones. Regardless, it’s rare that you’re able to pick up three popular titles for the price of two, so if you’ve got a long-haul flight coming up soon or a roadtrip during which you’ll need plenty of distractions, now’s the time to stock up on games for your Switch.

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Apple’s 2021 iPad Mini falls back to an all-time low of $400

Apple’s 2021 iPad Mini tablet is a popular choice thanks to its portability and excellent specs, but it’s not exactly an impulse purchase at $500. If you’ve been eyeing one, the 64GB model is now on sale at Amazon for $400 (20 percent off) matching the lowest price we’ve seen. And if you need more storage, the iPad Mini 256GB model is discounted by 17 percent, dropping the price to $540. 

Buy Apple iPad Mini at Amazon

The 2021 model has similar specs to the iPhone 13, with the same speedy A15 Bionic chip that delivers a big jump in performance over the fifth-gen model. It comes with a larger 8.3-inch display with higher 2,266 x 1,488 resolution and eliminates the physical home button, moving the Touch ID sensor to the power button. The volume buttons, meanwhile, are at the top to make room for Apple Pencil 2 that can be attached to the side magnetically.

Other features include USB-C charging and upgraded cameras with support from Apple’s Center Stage feature, keeping you in the center of the frame during video calls. The main downsides are the lack of a headphone jack, limited 64GB of storage on the base model and fairly high price compared to tablets with comparable specs. Amazon has certainly taken the edge off the price, but it’s best to act soon before the deal ends. 

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Google pays $118 million to settle gender pay discrimination lawsuit

Google has agreed to pay $118 million to settle a lawsuit first launched in 2017 over gender-based wage discrimination, The Wall Street Journal has reported. Three former female employees accused Google of segregating women into lower paying jobs that curbed advancement, while similarly-qualified men didn’t face those obstacles. 

The lawsuit was expanded to class-action status in 2021 and the settlement covers around 15,500 female employees who worked in Google’s California offices after September 2013. It includes a clause that independent experts must review Google’s hiring practices and pay-equity studies, according to the law office representing the plaintiffs. However, Google admitted no wrongdoing as part of the deal.

“While we strongly believe in the equity of our policies and practices, after nearly five years of litigation, both sides agreed that resolution of the matter, without any admission or findings, was in the best interest of everyone, and we’re very pleased to reach this agreement,” Google spokesperson Chris Pappas told the WSJ.

Google ran a pay-equity analysis to see if salaries, equity awards and bonuses were fair since 2013. The co-counsel for the plaintiffs said that the settlement would be “precedent-setting” for the industry. 

“As a woman who’s spent her entire career in the tech industry, I’m optimistic that the actions Google has agreed to take as part of this settlement will ensure more equity for women,” said one of the original three plaintiffs, Holly Pease, in a statement from law firm Lieff, Cabraser, Heimann & Bernstein. “Google, since its founding, has led the tech industry. They also have an opportunity to lead the charge to ensure inclusion and equity for women in tech.”

Google is far from the only tech company to face complaints over gender-based pay. Riot Games recently paid $10 million to settle a gender discrimination lawsuit while Microsoft, Uber and other firms have faced pay equity accusations. The gender pay gap in the US didn’t improve last year, according to the labor group SHRM — March 15 is still Equal Pay Day, the date that represents how far into 2022 women have to work to earn what men earned by the end of 2021.

Amazon sale slashes Fire tablets by up to 45 percent

Amazon’s Fire HD tablets are on sale at the second-lowest prices we’ve seen across a range of 8-inch and 10-inch models. If you’re looking for the lowest price possible, the Fire HD 8 is available for just $50, and for the biggest discount, the the Fire HD 8 Plus is on sale for $60, or 45 percent ($50) off the regular price — the second-best deal we’ve seen so far. 

Buy Fire HD tablets at Amazon

There’s already a lot to like about the Fire HD 8, like Alexa support, a USB-C port that allows for faster charging, good build quality, 32GB of storage that’s upgradeable via a microSD slot, a sharp 1,200 x 800 display, 2GB of RAM, a big 4,850 mAh battery and a quad-core processor. The main drawback is the lack of Google apps, unless you’re willing to side load them. As mentioned, the Fire HD 8 is on sale for $50, or 44 percent off the regular $90 price, and is available in four colors including black and white. 

The Fire HD 8 Plus gives you all of those features, but boosts the RAM from 2GB to 3GB, while including wireless charging and a fast 9W charger in the box. The Fire HD 8 Plus is on sale for just $60 or $50 (45 percent) off the regular price. 

If you need something bigger than 8 inches, a pair of 10-inch tablets are on sale as well. The Fire HD 10 gives you a lot of tablet for the money, including a 1080p display, 32GB of storage, 3GB of RAM, an octa-core battery and fast USB-C charging. It’s on sale for $100, or 33 percent off the regular price. And finally, the Fire HD 10 Plus boosts those specs to 4GB of RAM, along with wireless charging and a fast 9W charger. It’s on sale for $130, or $50 off the regular price. 

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Astra’s latest mission to deliver NASA weather satellites ends in failure

Rocket startup company Astra has suffered from a second launch failure this year as its LV0010 launch vehicle failed to get to orbit with a pair of NASA weather satellites on board. “The upper stage shut down early and we did not deliver the payloads to orbit,” the company tweeted. “We have shared our regrets with NASA and the payload team. More information will be provided after we complete a full data review.”

The launch was backed by NASA as part of its mission to eventually deliver six TROPICS CubeSat weather satellites into orbit. Those low-cost satellites were designed to help NASA keep better track of developing tropical storms. 

NASA was disappointed but remained upbeat about the Astra program. “Although today’s launch with Astra did not go as planned, the mission offered a great opportunity for new science and launch capabilities,” tweeted NASA’s associate science division administrator Thomas Zuburchen. “Even though we are disappointed right now, we know there is value in taking risks in our overall NASA science portfolio because innovation is required for us to lead.”

Astra’s last mission also ended in failure, with the loss of four CubeSats including three from universities. The company blamed that on two separate problems, a wiring error and software flaw. 

It’s not unusual for launch failures early in the life of a rocket company — RocketLab has suffered from three since it started launching in 2017, and even SpaceX failed with its first three Falcon 1 launches from 2006-2008. However, Astra’s streak is starting to look like an issue. Of seven attempted orbital launches, five have ended in failure, with issues ranging from guidance problems to software flaws to engine failures.