Apple’s iPad drops to $299, plus the rest of the week’s best tech deals

Now’s a great time to pick up Apple’s iPad ahead of the upcoming school year. The base, 10.2-inch tablet is $30 off right now and down to $299, which is the best price we’ve seen it. It may not have all the bells and whistles that the iPad Air does, bu…

Sony’s LinkBuds S drop to a new low of $148 at Amazon

Sony’s LinkBuds S are now particularly tempting if you’re looking for true wireless earbuds with a dash of intelligence. Amazon is selling the LinkBuds S at a new low price of $148, well below the usual $200. That’s even better than the Prime Day discount, and could make them an easy choice if you want major-brand audio without paying a stiff premium.

Buy LinkBuds S at Amazon – $148

The LinkBuds S’ signature feature is their smart playback. They can automatically start or resume music based on your activity — you can specify a playlist when you go for a walk, for instance. They’re also billed as the smallest and lightest wireless earbuds to support both active noise cancellation (ANC) and high-resolution audio. That’s worth considering if comfort is paramount, especially if you intend to listen for the claimed six hours per charge (another 14 hours is available through the case).

As the middle ground between the top-tier WF-1000XM4 and budget WF-C500, the LinkBuds S involve some compromises. The auto playback feature works for both Android and iOS users, but it’s limited to Spotify and the soundscape app Endel. ANC isn’t quite as powerful as it is in the WF-1000XM4, and the case doesn’t support wireless charging. The sale price makes these omissions easier to forgive, though, and Sony has touted after-launch upgrades like a low-latency mode for gamers.

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Samsung’s Z Fold 3 durability one year in: Tougher than you might think, but with one big caveat

Foldable phones are still kind of awkward, unproven devices. But over the last three generations (with a fourth presumably on the way), Samsung has made major strides with its designs, paving the way for innovative (though sometimes quite pricey) alter…

Engadget Podcast: Why is the OnePlus 10T so odd?

This week on the show, Cherlynn is joined by guest co-host Sam Rutherford to talk about the newly launched OnePlus 10T. Why did the company choose to sacrifice an alert slider, wireless charging and some other features in exchange for extreme speed? How does the OnePlus 10T stack up against other midrange phones like the Pixel 6a? Then, our hosts discuss the cloud-gaming handheld that Logitech and Tencent are working on, as well as the curiousheadlines that permeated the consumer tech news cycle this week. 

Listen below, or subscribe on your podcast app of choice. If you’ve got suggestions or topics you’d like covered on the show, be sure to email us or drop a note in the comments! And be sure to check out our other podcasts, the Morning After and Engadget News!

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Topics

  • Our OnePlus 10T review – 1:37

  • Logitech and Tencent are working on a handheld cloud gaming console – 24:15

  • It’s not just you: Uber receipts are actually crashing Outlook – 30:34

  • Spotify finally adds a play button that doesn’t shuffle, but only for premium users – 32:22

  • PlayStation Accolades feature is being discontinued because online gamers aren’t nice – 36:09

  • Microsoft negs Activision Blizzard’s game library amid acquisition process – 37:33

  • No, Google Stadia isn’t shutting down – 39:28

  • Discovery+ merger leaves HBO Max’s future in doubt, and Batgirl cancellation – 43:04

  • Working on – 51:58

  • Picks – 53:12

Video Stream

Credits
Hosts: Cherlynn Low and Sam Rutherford
Producer: Ben Ellman
Livestream producers: Julio Barrientos, Luke Brooks
Graphics artists: Luke Brooks, Brian Oh
Music: Dale North and Terrence O’Brien

Amazon is buying iRobot, the creator of the Roomba robot vacuum

Amazon just took a big step toward cornering the market for household robots. The company has reached a deal to acquire iRobot, the creator of Roomba robot vacuums. The purchase is worth $1.7 billion in cash and will maintain Colin Angle as iRobot’s CEO. The two firms didn’t say when they expected the deal to close, but that will depend on the approval of both iRobot shareholders and regulators.

In announcing the deal, Amazon didn’t outline its exact plans. Amazon Devices Senior VP Dave Limp focused on iRobot’s ability to “reinvent how people clean,” and said he looked forward to inventing products. Angle said Amazon shared iRobot’s “passion” for innovative home products and felt the internet giant was a good fit.

A successful merger will end 32 years of independence for iRobot. The company was founded in 1990 by MIT researchers, and initially focused on military robots like PackBot. It marked a major turning point in 2002, when it unveiled the first Roomba — the robovac quickly became popular and racked up sales of
a million units by 2004. The company expanded its lineup to include products like robotic mops (Braava), and became so successful that it sold its military business in 2016.

iRobot has faced a rough few months. While it generally fared well in recent years, the company posted a loss in its latest quarter and saw both its revenue and cash reserves shrink. It also warned of weaker growth due to the potential impact of inflation and reduced customer demand in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The company was hopeful that it could get back to profitability and even outperform its past expectations, but it might not have to worry as much with Amazon’s help.

The deal could up-end the household robotics market. iRobot has fierce competition these days, including Anker’s Eufy brand, Neato, Roborock, Shark and Wyze. Amazon would not only give iRobot more resources to fend off rivals, but much stronger marketing — it’s safe to presume Amazon would promote iRobot products over the alternatives. As it stands, Amazon could use the acquisition to fuel projects like its Astro companion or a growing legion of warehouse robots.

YouTube testing ‘pinch to zoom’ feature for Premium users

YouTube has quietly introduced an experimental feature called pinch to zoom exclusively for Premium users, Android Police has reported. It lets you zoom into the video player and then pan around to look at different parts of the screen, both in po…

Google made one of its best search shortcuts even more useful

Google searches with quotes just became much more useful if you’re looking for the exact place words appear on a page. The internet giant has updated quote-based searches with page snippets that show exactly where you’ll find the text you’re looking for. You might not have to scroll through a giant document just to find the right phrase.

There are limitations. Searches with quotes might turn up results that aren’t visible (such as meta description tags) or only show up in web addresses and title links. You might not see all of the mentions in a snippet if they’re too far apart. You’ll “generally” only see bolded mentions on desktop, and you won’t see the bolding at all for specialized searches and results (such as image searches and video boxes). You may have to use your browser’s on-page search feature to jump to the relevant keywords.

The company characterized the change as a response to feedback. It hesitated to make snippets for these searches in the past, as documents didn’t always produce readable descriptions. This is an acknowledgment that people using quotes to search are sometimes “power users” more interested in pinpointing words than reading site descriptions.

What to expect from Samsung’s August 10th Unpacked event

Samsung is holding its next Unpacked livestream on August 10th, and expectations are running high. The company has used previous summer events to introduce new foldable phones, smartwatches and earbuds, and the company has effectively confirmed a repea…