Category: I-phone

While leaks somewhat spoiled their launch, Beats' Studio Buds impressed us with their comfortable new design, balanced sound and seamless pairing with both Android and iOS devices. They were priced right, too, coming in at $150. But now the buds are on sale for the first time since they came out in June, so you can grab them for only $130 from Amazon. All three colors have been discounted, so you can choose your favorite and save $20.

Buy Beats Studio Buds at Amazon – $130

We gave the Beats Studio Buds a score of 84 and we consider them to be the best pair of Beats buds for most people. They have a smaller, more comfortable design that some past Beats earbuds and their IPX4 water-resistant housing will keep them safe even during your sweatiest workouts. The buds pump out good sound with punchy bass and they work with Apple's Spatial Audio feature, too. You're also getting noise-cancellation that uses adaptive gain control to adjust in real time, blocking out distracting noises like that from dishwashers, wind and more. As far as battery life goes, the Studio Buds should get five to eight hours on a single charge, depending on your ANC use.

You may think that because these are Beats earbuds that they're designed with Apple users in mind, first and foremost. However, Beats added a number of new features that make these buds better for Android users, too. They still have the H1 chip inside, so you'll get fast pairing and switching between Apple devices. But Android users also have a Fast Pair feature now, too, which allows Android devices to immediately recognize the buds during the initial setup. The Studio Buds work with Android's Find My Device feature, so you can use that to see the last known location of your buds.

There's a lot to like about the Beats Studio Buds, especially at this $130 sale price. However, they lack a few key features: wireless charging, onboard volume controls and sound customizations. We also weren't impressed with their call quality either. But if you're willing to sacrifice in those areas, the Studio Buds remain solid options for both Android and iOS users who want a reliable, comfortable pair of wireless earbuds that won't break the bank.

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If you're an Apple user and somehow haven't gotten your hands on a pair of AirPods yet, now's a good time to grab them. Amazon has the standard AirPods with their wireless charging case for $130, which is an all-time-low price that we haven't seen often in the past. However, shipping times are delayed (likely due to the rarity of this deal) so you'll have to wait until the beginning of September to receive them.

Buy AirPods (wireless charging case) at Amazon – $130Buy AirPods at Amazon – $114Buy AirPods Pro at Amazon – $190

If you don't want to wait, you can skip the wireless charging case and get the regular model for $114 — not a record low, but $45 less than their normal price. It's also worth noting that the AirPods Pro remain $60 off, bringing them down to $190.

Even if you haven't used AirPods before, you're probably quite familiar with them, especially if you use a lot of Apple products. They're the company's true wireless earbuds that, thanks to the H1 chipset inside, pair and switch seamlessly between iPhone, iPad and other Apple devices. It makes the initial setup quick and easy, and it allows you to go from taking a call on your iPhone to listening to music from your Mac with little delay. The H1 chip also improved upon the AirPods' connection range, and it enables hands-free Siri access, too.

Convenience alone is reason enough for some to invest in AirPods, but they're also a solid pair of wireless earbuds as well. Sound quality is decent (we prefer the AirPods Pro if you want the best sound quality Apple earbuds can offer) and they'll last for about five hours on a single charge. And with the wireless charging case, you can set the AirPods on any Qi-compatible pad you have in your home when you need extra juice.

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Tesla’s electric pickup isn’t going anywhere this year. The company has quietly pushed the release of the electric pickup to next year. That's according to its configuration page, telling you that you'll get to customize your truck when "production nears in 2022." This applies regardless of model — single-motor trucks were always going to arrive later, but a new 2022 launch seems to for the dual- and tri-motor machines, too.

Tesla delivering on its promises has been a rare feat recently. Just last month, its semi truck was also pushed back to 2022, due to supply constraints, both in sourcing batteries and the general mayhem that is COVID-19. Oh, and then there’s the Tesla Roadster, delayed until, yep, 2022.

Elon Musk said in January that there would only be a "few deliveries" of Cybertrucks in 2021, and that volume production was set for 2022. While the company stuck to that claim in its July quarterly report, the company only recently finished the engineering design for the EV, which would have made for an extremely tight production schedule.

-Mat Smith

Razer’s high-tech face mask needs beta testers

Its face mask is no longer a project.

Project Hazel is now the Razer Zephyr and you can sign up to test the device ahead of its launch later this year. Since we first saw the mask at CES 2021, Razer has added internal lighting and a silicon face seal. However, we still don’t know how much it’ll cost.

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Spotify ‘clarifies’ that its iOS app will support AirPlay 2 streaming

It claims there was a mixup over the music streaming feature.

No, no, no, it was all just a misunderstanding.

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Rocket Lab will launch its first Moon mission in late 2021

Take off from New Zealand.

The private spaceflight firm has revealed that its CAPSTONE mission will lift off from the company's original launch complex in New Zealand sometime in the fourth quarter of 2021. The mission was originally slated to launch in early 2021. However, the launch will represent a technical breakthrough for Rocket Lab. While the Electron rocket will serve a familiar role in carrying the mission into space, this will be the first time the company uses its Photon platform to put a satellite on a lunar trajectory.

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Microsoft starts publicly testing an Xbox night mode

Even your controller can dim for late-night game sessions.

Microsoft has started publicly testing an Xbox night mode that should make it more comfortable to play after dark. The feature can dim the screen, power button and even your controller light. An optional blue light filter theoretically helps reduce eye strain, and you can disable HDR to avoid extra bright images. The mode is currently limited to testers in the very early Alpha Skip-Ahead ring.

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Even a social network for doctors is struggling with vaccine misinformation

Doximity has trouble in its comments sections.

CNBChas found a deluge of bogus anti-vaccine claims on Doximity, an industry networking tool for doctors. While shared stories are from well-established news outlets and scientific publications, the comments are apparently rife with misinformation on vaccine safety, mask effectiveness and natural immunity. Doximity told CNBC it had rules barring material that contradicts public health guidelines, adding that it had a "rigorous" comment review process where physicians screened content. The company didn't explain the glut of anti-vaccine comments, however, or say when it might remove them.

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But wait, there’s more…

Engadget Deals: Apple Watch Series 6 Product Red drops to $300 at Woot

NASA's Perseverance rover fails to collect its first Mars rock sample

Gigabyte is the latest major PC maker to suffer a ransomware attack

Hitting the Books: How our lying eyes trick the brain into seeing motion during movies

China sues Tencent over WeChat's 'youth mode'

Facebook restores policy it 'lost' three years ago

Facebook has today announced that it has added two new destinations for when you want to move your data from the social network. In a blog post, the company said that users will be able to move their images to Photobucket and event listings to Google Calendar. Product Manager Hadi Michel said that the tool has been “completely rebuilt” to be “simpler and more intuitive,” giving people more clarity on what they can share to which platforms. In addition, users can now launch multiple transfers, with better fine-grain control on what they’re choosing to export in any one transfer.

This is yet another feature piled on to the Data Transfer Project, an open-source project developed by Google, Facebook and Microsoft. Facebook users can already send their photos to Google’s own image-storage service, as well as Dropbox, Blogger, Google Documents and WordPress. This is, in part, a way to address the long-in-progress ACCESS Act, which would enable users to transfer their data to any competing platform. Facebook says that it calls on government to “make clearer rules about who is responsible for protecting that data as it is transferred to different services.”

On Monday mornings, I send out a story via email: ultra-brief tales of 1,000 words or more, usually in genres including science fiction, horror, and the supernatural. Those stories collectively are called Once Upon A Time. I’ve also published four ebooks and one paperback anthology of those stories so far.

I’d love to have you as a subscriber to the weekly free story. You can subscribe via email here, or use the form below. Unsubscribe any time, from the link in every issue.

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Charter Communications has been sued by a group of major record labels who claim it has failed to address "flagrant and serial" music copyright infringement, The Verge has reported. It's the second time over the last several years that the group has sued Charter over song piracy. 

The labels said that they sent around 150,00 notices of infringement to Spectrum, Charter's internet service, including the IP addresses of "tens of thousands" of alleged infringers. They claim that the company turned a "blind eye" to the downloading, which occurred from July 2018 until recently. 

"Charter insisted on doing nothing despite receiving thousands of notices that detailed the illegal activity of its subscribers, despite its clear legal obligation to address the widespread, illegal downloading of copyrighted works on its Internet services, and despite being sued previously by Plaintiffs for similar conduct," the claim states.

The same labels sued Charter in 2019, claiming subscribers were using torrent services for music pirating between March 2013 and May 2016. "Charter persisted in contributing to and profiting from its subscribers’ infringement… even after receiving Plaintiffs’ March and April 2016 notices of claims and, remarkably, even after Plaintiffs filed the 2019 lawsuit," according to the latest lawsuit. 

The music industry has attacked multiple internet providers over the last few years. In June, ISP Frontier was sued by record labels over similar piracy claims. Internet service provider Cox, meanwhile, lost a $1 billion judgement in December of 2019, and vowed to appeal the settlement at the time. 

Acer and Apple aren't the only big PC brands reeling from ransomware attacks in recent times. Bleeping Computer and United Daily News report that Taiwan-based Gigabyte suffered a ransomware attack between August 3rd and August 4th. The company only confirmed that it shut down IT infrastructure and that a handful of servers were affected, but there are hints the attack might have been worse.

According to Bleeping Computer sources, the extortion gang RansomEXX claimed to have stolen 112GB of sensitive internal data as well as info from a code repository. This includes Intel and AMD chip information as well as a debug document. The breach is known to have affected both the Gigabyte support page and parts of the Taiwanese page.

Gigabyte said it contact law enforcement, but didn't say if it would pay the ransom.

RansomEXX started in 2018 under the Defray name, but rebranded in 2020 and has been targeting increasingly higher-profile organizations, including the Brazilian government, Texas' Department of Transportation and Ecuador's state-led telecom. It's not believed to be associated with the REvil group that attacked Acer as well as Apple supplier Quanta.

It's not surprising that PC companies would face these attacks. They not only have the money to pay ransoms, but a raft of technological secrets they're eager to protect. However, the string of attacks is still concerning. Apart from the short-term financial hit, there's also a concern these attacks could leak trade secrets that do long-term damage.

Tesla appears to have come a long way from the days when it was defying local COVID-19 safety orders. Wall Street Journalsources claim Tesla will require all staff at its Nevada Gigafactory to wear masks starting August 9th, regardless of their vaccination status. Employees at the battery plant previously only needed to wear masks if they hadn't been fully vaccinated.

The tipsters said Tesla was toughening its policy in the wake of the more easily transmissible Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2, including updated CDC guidance recommending that vaccinated people wear masks indoors. Although full vaccinations still reduce the chances of infection and symptoms, there's evidence that breakthrough cases (those instances when vaccinated people get infected) can readily transmit the virus to others.

The company hasn't responded to requests for comments, although it's not expected to do so when it quietly disbanded its public relations team in fall 2020.

Tesla has been slightly slower than its Detroit-based competitors, which reinstated mask mandates a week earlier. However, it's a sharp contrast from the EV maker's attitude in May 2020, when it defied an Alameda County lockdown and kept its Fremont car plant open. Elon Musk also threatened to move Tesla's headquarters out of California and sue the county. The move may have led to additional infections at the Fremont plant, and Musk said he contracted COVID-19 in November 2020.

It's easier for Tesla to comply this time when its factory can remain open. The car brand also can't afford to test officials' patience when it's struggling to keep up with demand for its vehicles. Still, the reported mask order is a sharp contrast to Tesla's previous attitude — it's volunteering to take action rather than fighting back.

Rocket Lab is narrowing down the details for its first Moon launch. The private spaceflight firm has revealed that its CAPSTONE mission will lift off from the company's original launch complex in New Zealand sometime in the fourth quarter of 2021. The mission was originally slated to launch in early 2021 from NASA's Wallops facility in Virginia.

The CAPSTONE (Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation Experiment) cubesat will serve as a vanguard for NASA's Artemis program. It will verify the propulsion needs for a highly elliptical lunar orbit, test spacecraft-to-spacecraft navigation systems and show the potential for private support in future missions. A successful mission would help NASA's future Gateway spacecraft safely approach and orbit the Moon.

The launch should also represent a technical breakthrough for Rocket Lab. While the Electron rocket will serve a familiar role in carrying the mission into space, this will be the first time the company uses its Photon platform to put a satellite on a lunar trajectory.

CAPSTONE could serve as redemption for the company. Rocket Lab has dealt with two prominent rocket failures, and only recently resumed launches following its May incident. A successful Moon launch would both reinforce that return to form and show that Rocket Lab can handle particularly ambitious projects.

Don't worry about claims Spotify won't support AirPlay 2 on iOS — the doom and gloom were a bit premature. iMorereports that Spotify has "clarified" its plans and will support AirPlay 2 streaming after all. The digital music giant didn't say when you might expect the feature, but promised updates "when they become available."

A representative previously claimed AirPlay 2 wasn't practical due to audio driver compatibility problems. It hadn't completely ruled out the concept, but suggested that it wouldn't be viable in the "foreseeable future."

We wouldn't expect a prompt turnaround on the feature even after Spotify's follow-up statement. However, this could still prove reassuring. AirPlay 2 should make it easier to stream music to HomePods and other devices that support Apple's media technology but have either limited or non-existent integration with Spotify itself.

Don't worry if you're determined to play an Xbox game into the wee hours of the morning — those late-night sessions will soon be easier on your eyes. The Vergenotes that Microsoft has started publicly testing an Xbox night mode that should make it more comfortable to play after dark. The feature can dim the screen, power button and even your controller light. An optional blue light filter theoretically helps reduce eye strain, and you can disable HDR to avoid searingly bright images.

You can manually toggle the feature if you'd like, but you can also schedule it either at fixed times or automatically based on sunset and (if you've been gaming long enough) sunrise.

The Xbox night mode is currently limited to testers in the very early Alpha Skip-Ahead ring. The perk will take a while to reach a polished release. Still, it's likely to be appreciated. It's easy to find night modes on your PC and your phone, but you haven't really had that luxury on consoles. If all goes well, you'll have a more consistent nighttime experience regardless of which screen you're using.

You'll have to temper your expectations if you were hoping to drive a Cybertruck before 2021 was over. Electreknotes that Tesla has quietly pushed the release of the electric pickup to next year on its configuration page, telling you that you'll get to customize your truck when "production nears in 2022." This applies regardless of model — Tesla had already warned that single-motor trucks would arrive later, but that now applies to the dual- and tri-motor machines.

Tesla had already hinted the 2021 target might not be realistic. Elon Musk said in January that there would only be a "few deliveries" of Cybertrucks in 2021, and that volume production was set for 2022. While the company stuck to that claim in its July quarterly report, the company only recently finished the engineering design for the EV — it would have just a few months to finish development and ship those initial trucks.

That could pose a competitive challenge for Tesla. GMC's Hummer EV is now poised to beat the Cybertruck to market barring delays. Even with setbacks, Rivian is still due to release its R1T truck in September. And while Ford's F-150 Lightning isn't due until spring 2022, the Cybertruck may have lost its first-mover advantage.

The delay wouldn't be surprising, though. The Cybertruck's cold-rolled steel body requires unique manufacturing techniques, and that's not including broader technical hurdles like the tri-motor system. Tesla is also known for optimistic timetables that clash with the realities of production. The automaker can at least count on pent-up demand, though. With over 1 million Cybertruck reservations, Tesla could have plenty of demand even if many of those would-be buyers have second thoughts.

WeChat may be a staple of Chinese digital life, but that isn't stopping the country's government from clamping down on the messaging giant's behavior. Reutersreports that Beijing prosecutors have sued Tencent over claims We Chat's restricted "youth mode" violates laws protecting children. The lawsuit didn't explain how the mode allegedly violated the law.

Youth mode prevents younger users from accessing payments, finding nearby friends and playing certain games. It's effectively a parental control tool for a "super app" that can handle many daily tasks in China.

Tencent hasn't commented on the lawsuit. It recently set stricter limits for young Honor of Kings players, capping their play time to just an hour a day on weekdays.

The suit might be part of a broader crackdown. China's state media blasted the game industry and online platforms just this week, and officials have previously demanded better protections against online threats to kids. The country has also focused much of its recent attention on reining in tech giants like Tencent, Alibaba and Didi, slapping them with antitrust fines and temporary app bans — the suit may be an extension of that effort.

The eSports world is coming to grips with a resurgent COVID-19 threat. As The Vergenotes, Riot Games has moved the last two matches of the League of Legends Championship Series (LCS) from Newark, New Jersey's Prudential Center to the LCS Arena in Los Angeles. The US spread of the new coronavirus' Delta variant has made it impractical to hold the large in-person event "in good conscience" even with vaccines in use, Riot said.

The LCS Arena is a "safer" location that will protect the health of Worlds representatives before they go to China, Riot said. While it wasn't surprised that other events would carry on, the Series didn't need to put people at risk just to offer its "core competitive product." LoL teams have played against each other in person at LCS Arena over the summer, but even those were derailed in favor of virtual competition after people associated with two teams tested positive for COVID-19.

The developer promised events at Prudential Center in the future, and said it would offer full refunds. More details would be coming soon, Riot added.

Other eSports leagues, such as the Call of Duty League, have pressed forward with in-person events in spite of the virus surge. However, Riot's decision suggests that at least some organizers are having a change of heart. We wouldn't be surprised if others followed suit, at least until vaccine use climbs and cases (hopefully) drop again.

Even an online medical community can't completely avoid COVID-19 vaccine misinformation. Gizmodoreports that CNBChas found a deluge of bogus anti-vaccine claims on Doximity, an industry networking tool for doctors. While shared stories are from well-established news outlets and scientific publications, the comments are apparently rife with misinformation on vaccine safety, mask effectiveness and natural immunity, among other issues.

The commenters are using their real names and have verified medical credentials.

Doximity told CNBC it had rules barring material that contradicts public health guidelines, including anti-vaccine material. It added that it had a "rigorous" comment review process where physicians screened content. The company didn't explain the glut of anti-vaccine comments, however, or say when it might remove them.

The findings highlight the problems with content moderation. Many social sites and internet giants have rules barring anti-vax content, but enforcement has been an ongoing problem due to either a lack of resources or users circumventing the rules. Doximity's problem is just a more egregious violation — this is a small, closed group full of people who are supposed to go through a tougher screening process. It's clear there's a while to go before Doximity and other sites can truly keep users sharing accurate information.