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The OnePlus Nord 2 5G makes another good argument for ignoring expensive smartphones
OnePlus' latest Nord phone makes some camera improvements and swaps over to a Mediatek processor. It might not be groundbreaking, but the Nord 2 5G seems like a solid phone at an excellent price.
Apple MacBook Air (2020) first look: Buy it for the keyboard
Hello from the new MacBook Air. Allow me to answer your first question up front: Yes, the new keyboard is excellent. There's only one problem with it: I've already greased the keys with residue from the peanut butter sandwich I was eating. Work-from-home life, y'all!
What do you want to know about the new Motorola Razr?
Back when it was unveiled, Motorola's new Razr seemed like it might be the foldable to beat. (I was in that camp, too.) Now, after a questionable Verizon launch and a concerning test, people are starting to see the Razr for what it is: A phone that costs as much as a flagship but doesn't always act like one.
Don't ask Samsung to say more about its rolling robot assistant
When we rolled (Ed note: groan) into Samsung's CES keynote address last night, we expected lots of platitudes about the power of AI and the experiences made possible by 5G. We got those, but also something else: Ballie, an adorable, rolling smart home control center that comes off like a mix between BB-8 and Haro from the Gundam series. Needless to say, I fell pretty hard for it.
Razer built a compact modular gaming PC around Intel's new NUC
A bit earlier this week, Intel gave us an early look at its NUC 9 Extreme, the latest in a long and fascinating line of super-compact PCs. It's bigger than the NUCs (or Next Units of Computing) we've seen in the past, but that extra size means this is the first NUC to play nice with unlocked Core i9 CPUs and full-sized graphics cards. As it happens, that sort of performance and flexibility was enough to catch Razer's eye, leading it to build a tiny, modular gaming PC built around Intel's latest high-powered Compute Element. Say hello to the Tomahawk.
These deepfake celebrity impressions are equally amazing and alarming
Actor Jim Meskimen partnered with deepfake artist Sham00k to make his celebrity impressions a little more realistic. Meskimen and Sham00k shared the results in a YouTube video, and honestly, they're pretty remarkable. While Meskimen did the voices, deepfake software applied the facial features of 20 celebrities, including George Clooney, Nicholas Cage, Colin Firth, Robert De Niro, Nick Offerman, Arnold Schwartzenegger, Robin Williams and George W. Bush.
What do you want to know about Samsung's updated Galaxy Fold?
Well, would you look at that: The same day Samsung announced its official US Galaxy Fold launch, it also loaned us one of its updated devices for yet another round of testing. For the next week or so, I'll be digging into the changes Samsung made in this redesigned Fold and reviewing it (yes, again) with more of a focus on durability. Before we get to that, though, I want to know what you want to know.
What to expect at Apple's September 10 iPhone event
There are three things you always count on September for: Kids trudging back to school, the end of summer's oppressive heat and new iPhones. Apple is gearing up to show off a handful of updated models at 1 PM Eastern/10AM Pacific on September 10th, but they're far from the only things the company plans to introduce. Before we jump on a plane and set a course for California, let's take a closer look at everything we expect — and hope — Apple has in store for us when we land.
24 hours with the Samsung Galaxy Note 10+
Very early yesterday morning, I picked up a shiny new Galaxy Note 10+ (in that trippy Aura Glow finish, no less). We'll have our full review completed soon, but after 24 hours of fiddling with it, there are a few features and flourishes that are worth digging into right now.
Adobe Fresco brings realistic painting to the iPad
Adobe has a second major app release for designers coming this year. Sure, Photoshop for the iPad is going to get most of the attention, but for illustrators and designers who dabble in digital drawing or painting, Adobe Fresco could be the real game-changer. In addition to syncing with your Creative Cloud workflow across desktop versions of Photoshop, Illustrator and more, Fresco's marquee feature makes digital painting with watercolors and oils a lot more realistic. Gone are the days when hardness, opacity and a few other parameters were the only variables you could control when painting in Photoshop. Now you can select an oil or watercolor brush and watch in awe as your strokes blend with the wet paint already on your (digital) canvas.
What to expect from Samsung’s Galaxy Note 10 event
Few companies revel in spectacle the way Samsung does, and if nothing else, the company's Unpacked event in Brooklyn will be an assault on the senses. Of course, all that spectacle serves a purpose: to get people hyped for its newest flagship smartphone, the Galaxy Note 10. We're getting ready to lug our gear onto the subway and report from Barclays Center live on August 7th, but before we do that, let's take a moment to sift through all the things Samsung could (and should) announce in a few days.
macOS Catalina preview: It's all about the apps
Three weeks ago, Apple was holding court at the San Jose Convention Center, where it kicked off its annual developer conference with first looks at iOS 13, iPadOS and the latest version of macOS, Catalina. Today the company is releasing Catalina in beta, though I've been testing it since last week. This time around, the story is mostly about Apple's first party apps, many of which have received an iOS-inspired overhaul. Speaking of the sort, it's been a year since Apple announced it was working on a framework designed to make it easy for developers to port iOS apps over to the Mac; first-party apps from last year's macOS Mojave release were even built on this technology. Twelve months later, Apple opened that development kit to third-party programmers, so we're finally seeing mobile-first apps adapted for Macs' larger screens. With this release, Apple also included a feature called Sidecar, allowing an iPad running iPadOS to be used as a secondary screen for mirroring or extending a Mac display.
The best weapon in 'Cyberpunk 2077' is a glowing orange garrote
Nanowire is the Swiss Army garrote of the future. The glowing orange thread is simple yet multifunctional, slicing through skin, muscle and bone like a whip. Or, it flings from the wielder's wrist like an electric snake to jack into the side of someone's head and hack their brain to bits.
iPadOS first look: Desktop-class browsing, better multitasking and more
We knew Apple would make major changes to iOS on the iPad, but we didn't think the company would take things a step further and announce iPadOS. (Not until Apple quietly let the news slip ahead of its WWDC keynote, anyway.) Craig Federighi, Apple's SVP of software engineering, says the process of using the iPad has become a "truly distinct" experience, one that requires special attention beyond that which goes into phone-centric versions of iOS. Needless to say, iPads stand to gain a lot when this new software becomes available later this year.
iOS 13 first look: Dark mode, Maps and more
A dark mode. A swipe-friendly keyboard. A slew of redesigned apps. These are just a few of the things you'll find in Apple's new iOS 13 release, but here's the rub: unless you're a developer, you can't actually try any of these new features until they become available in a public beta later this summer. (And even then, most of you will probably want to wait until iOS 13's official release this September.)
What to expect from Apple at WWDC 2019
Next week, thousands of people will flock to San Jose, California; nestle into their seats at the convention center; and listen to Apple unspool its vision for the future of software. They'll get their first concrete look at iOS 13 and learn what it means for their phones and tablets. They'll hear more about how the gap between iOS and Mac apps is starting to shrink -- albeit slowly. They might even get an early look at some new Pro-level hardware. And since we'll be there covering the show in full, you'll hear all about that stuff as soon as we do.
The next Call of Duty campaign is an emotional hellscape
Jaws, not Saw. That's one of the guiding mantras for the developers building Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, this year's installment of the legendary first-person-shooter franchise. Modern Warfare comes out on October 25th and it's at once an homage to the series' history and a completely new vision for Call of Duty, with the single-player campaign thrusting classic characters like Captain John Price into overwrought situations that are ripped from current, real-world headlines.
24 hours with Samsung's Galaxy Watch Active
Samsung's Galaxy Watch Active is cute. That's obviously not the only thing going for the company's latest workout-friendly wearable, but its relative cuteness is surprisingly important here. After all, it directly affected the components Samsung used here, not to mention the overall experience of living with the Watch Active. And at $200, it's also relatively inexpensive for a fitness-focused Samsung smartwatch.
Our first shots with the new Nokia 9 PureView
Mobile World Congress is finally, officially over, but there's no time to rest — not when we got the chance to test the Nokia 9 PureView around Barcelona, at least. We received the device just in time for its official release today, and early birds can pick up HMD's new photographic flagship for $599 for the first week; after that, the price balloons up to the regular $699.
Canon’s next full-frame mirrorless camera is the EOS RP
Well, it looks like the recent rumors were spot on: Canon is getting ready to launch a compact version of its EOS R camera. And here it is. Meet the EOS RP, a full-frame mirrorless shooter that costs a reasonable $1,299 (body-only). For those of you keeping track at home, that's $1,000 less than the EOS R, which just arrived in October of 2018.
