The Morning After: American Airlines is ordering 20 supersonic jets
Boom is a startup trying to reintroduce supersonic flight.
American Airlines has agreed to buy 20 Overture aircraft from Boom, with the option to purchase an additional 40 planes if all goes well. The deal is one of the strongest shows of support for Boom yet, surpassing the potential 50-jet commitment United Airlines made last year. One wrinkle: Boom hasn’t yet built a working passenger jet.
The company plans to establish a manufacturing facility at North Carolina’s Piedmont Triad International Airport. It expects to begin construction later this year, with aircraft production to follow in 2024 — though the plant’s first completed jet won’t fly until 2026. If Boom can deliver on its Overture promises, there are some pretty big benefits: flights between Newark, NYC and London in under four hours and San Francisco to Tokyo in approximately six hours. The company also claims Overture will be a “net-zero carbon” aircraft, thanks to its ability to fly on 100 percent sustainable aviation fuels. You’re still burning fuels, but you’re burning sustainable ones.
Check out our 2020 deep-dive on Boom, right here.
— Mat Smith
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Alienware’s new gaming monitors feature fast refresh rates and retractable headset hangers
And couldn’t look more ‘Portal’ if they tried.
Dell is releasing two new Alienware-branded monitors this fall. Before you ask, they don’t feature QD-OLED panels like the incredible Alienware gaming monitor we fell in love with here. The more interesting of the two new monitors is the 27-inch model, with an LG Nano IPS panel 2560 x 1440 resolution and native 240Hz refresh rates. A factory overclock even pushes the refresh rate to 280Hz. There’s also a retractable headset hanger.
Winamp's revival includes platforms for musicians and fans
The creator service makes it more than an MP3 player.
Winamp has opened invitations to a creator service that gives musicians tools to distribute, promote and (of course) profit from their work. While most details won't emerge until features appear in September, this is slated to include fan subscription support debuting in November. It seems to be a Patreon-style platform for creators.
Walmart+ members will soon get Paramount+ streaming as part of their subscription
Its membership program now has an answer to Amazon Prime Video.
Walmart has struck a deal with Paramount Global to add its streaming service to Walmart+ starting in September. Walmart+ members, who are currently paying $12.95 a month or $98 a year for unlimited free delivery on orders over $35 across the US, will also get a Paramount+ Essential subscription for free. Walmart's membership prices will remain the same; it's just the service will now come with an answer to Amazon's Prime Video.
Adidas’ new solar headphones can also be charged by your bedroom light
Fully charged, they should offer 80 hours of playtime.
Adidas has teamed up with Zound Industries to make the RPT-02 SOL on-ear headphones, which can be charged with either natural or artificial light. It's made of a combination of recycled plastic and nylon, and the headband is a highly flexible light-cell material that can be screen-printed onto plastic. The RPT-02 SOL retails for $229 and will be available online on August 23rd.
