Ghosts of Sparta rejoice, for you can now think in peace without your smart-ass son reminding you how slow-witted you are. The latest patch for the PS5 version of God of War Ragnarok adds the option first seen in the PC port to tone down the boys excessive and unsolicited hints when Kratos is contemplating the games many puzzles. Stick a sock in it, Atreus.
Game Version 06.00 for PlayStation 5 adds the reduced puzzle hints feature. Although Atreus isnt the titles only overly helpful companion, hes Kratos most frequent comrade in the award-winning game and therefore the most notorious culprit. Activating the option will pipe down all of your partners excessive hints throughout the game, a feature players wouldve loved to have had when Ragnarok arrived two years ago.
The update also includes PS5 Pro enhancements, like a new mode that enables Favor Quality while keeping things running at a smooth 60 fps. The patch also lets owners of the new console unlock the framerate when running on variable refresh rate monitors, and the Favor Performance mode gets boosted to match the PS5 Pros boosted specs. Finally, it adds support for the AI-fueled PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution as an upscaling option.
On both PS5 tiers, the update also adds a new accessibility option with audio descriptions for all the games cinematic scenes. Youll also find the requisite bug fixes, including remedies for Brok losing his way to the shop in Freyrs camp (dumbass) and problems related to crafting hilts.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/god-of-war-ragnarok-for-ps5-finally-lets-kratos-solve-puzzles-in-peace-190806687.html?src=rss
The Pixel Watch 3 is on sale in an early Black Friday deal. Not even two full months after Google debuted the smartwatch, it has hit a new record low price of $280. That's a tasty discount of $70. That deal is specifically for the Wi-Fi-only 41mm model, but there's an offer on the 45mm option too. The larger variant can be yours for $330. That's $70 off as well.
Furthermore, you can save on the LTE-enabled versions of both sizes. The cellular variant of the 41mm Pixel Watch 3 has dropped by $100 to $350. As for the 45mm LTE model, that will currently run you $400, which is also a $100 discount.
The Pixel Watch 3 is our pick for the best smartwatch for Android users. It's Google's best Pixel Watch yet. It has a display with a 60Hz refresh rate. The screen can drop to just 1 nit of brightness while you're asleep (or perhaps at the movies) to help conserve battery life. The smartwatch can run for over 24 hours on a single charge. Handily, the Pixel Watch 3 charges faster than previous models too.
Thanks in part to the help of Fitbit's knowhow, the wearable is a great activity tracker. Functions include detection and custom running plans, along with the ability to track other metrics such as Cardio Load. However, you'll need to stump up for a Fitbit Premium plan to access more in-depth coaching. Some software quirks and slight bulkiness are other drawbacks of the Pixel Watch 3.
Other features include the likes of weather forecasts, calendar alerts and map directions that you can access via Google Assistant voice commands. In the end, we gave the Pixel Watch 3 a score of 84 in our review, with Engadget deputy editor Cherlynn Low calling it a "a serious smartwatch [that's] ready for the competition."
Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/google-black-friday-deals-include-the-pixel-watch-3-for-a-new-low-of-280-184803582.html?src=rss
Black people throughout the country, in more than 20 states, have been getting racist text messages that order them to report to a plantation for slave labor, according to reporting by CNN and numerous other outlets. The texts reference slave catchers and picking cotton, in addition to warning the recipients that they will be searched upon arrival.
Following the 2024 election, people in Virginia, Georgia, and more reported receiving racist text messages claiming they were selected to pick cotton at the nearest plantation. pic.twitter.com/XUYTyaI1Su Complex (@Complex) November 8, 2024
These hate-filled messages have been received by both kids and adults. The texts appear to be targeting Black and Brown individuals, including students, New Yorks attorney general Letitia James said. Various AG offices from other states have also issued statements.
The texts all come from unknown phone numbers and began ramping after the election on Tuesday. NAACP president Derrick Johnson said that these messages represent an alarming increase in vile and abhorrent rhetoric from racist groups across the country, who now feel emboldened to spread hate and stoke the flames of fear that many of us are feeling after Tuesdays election results.
I have been made aware of racist and vile spam text messages individuals have received throughout Louisiana. I have directed the Louisiana Bureau of Investigation to fully investigate the origins of these disgusting texts that only intend to divide us. I urge anyone who received pic.twitter.com/akz37kYbXq Attorney General Liz Murrill (@AGLizMurrill) November 7, 2024
The mother of a University of Alabama student who received one of the messages said that its eerie that its the day after the election. Its eerie that it came to my daughters personal phone. Its eerie that its only going to Black students.
A spokesperson for Donald Trumps presidential campaign wrote in a statement that it has absolutely nothing to do with these text messages. The FBI has addressed the situation in a statement, noting that its been in contact with the Justice Department and other federal authorities on the matter.
FBI Statement on Offensive and Racist Text Messageshttps://t.co/vpQYAO6LT7 pic.twitter.com/iDtN36WhX4 FBI (@FBI) November 7, 2024
It remains unclear who sent the texts and how they did it. The messages targeted people of color, suggesting that the senders had biographical information on the recipients. Many of the messages were sent through TextNow, a free app that provides phone numbers, texting and calling services.
TextNow told CNN that it believes this is a widespread, coordinated attack. The service lets people sign up anonymously and sends texts via randomly-generated phone numbers. It says it has been busy rapidly disabling the related accounts. The company is also working alongside our industry partners to uncover more details and continue to monitor patterns to actively block any new accounts attempting to send these messages.
If you have received one of these horrific texts, lawmakers encourage you to reach out to your states AG or email OAGCivilRights@dc.gov. Its currently unknown how many people have received the messages.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/black-people-across-the-country-have-been-getting-racist-texts-about-slave-plantations-173059798.html?src=rss
This time of year has a lot of merry and bright things to be excited about, but it can be stressful if youre stumped on what to get your mom, dad, best friend, coworker or kids teacher as a holiday gift. Whether you enjoy or dread buying gifts for people, its safe to say we all want to give our loved ones things they will enjoy and appreciate. But theres a lot of noise, junk and bad deals disguised as good deals to sift through as we get closer and closer to the holidays.Allow us at Engadget to help you through it. Here, youll find all of our holiday gift guides collected in one place, so you can more easily find the best Christmas gifts you need this year. Are you looking for white elephant gift ideas? Are you struggling to come up with a good gift for the father figure in your life? Are you just looking for a good board game to pick up for your own family? Weve got you covered with gift ideas for all of those scenarios and more. We'll update this post as more of our gift guides hit the internet, so check back for even more gift ideas throughout the season.
Table of contents
Best white elephant gift ideas
Best board game gifts
Best retro gaming gifts
Best gifts for coffee lovers
Best cooking gifts
Best tech toys for kids
Best gadgets for your pets
More coming soon!
Best white elephant gift ideas
According to legend, the King of Siam would give a white elephant to courtiers who had upset them. The recipient had no choice but to simply thank the king for such an opulent gift, knowing that they likely could not afford the upkeep for such an animal. It would inevitably lead them to financial ruin. This story is almost certainly untrue, but it has led to a modern holiday staple: the white elephant gift exchange. These gift ideas will not only get you a few chuckles, but will also make your recipient feel (slightly) burdened.
Read more: The best white elephant gift ideas
Best board game gifts
We could all use more time away from screens of all types and sizes, and board games are a fun way to do that and bond with friends and family. You can find plenty of unique sets out there now, from word puzzles to whodunnits to calming playthroughs that showcase the beauty of the little things in life. From games with giant monsters to those with haunted mansions, were sure at least one of our suggestions will be a hit with you and your loved ones.
Read more: The best board games to gift this season
Best retro gaming gifts
A million new video games seem to come out every week, but for some of us, nothing beats the classics. If you know someone who is way into retro gaming but dont feel like hunting through eBay and local shops for gear to add to their collection, were here to help. Weve rounded up a few of our favorite gift ideas for the nostalgic gamer in your life, from video upscalers for old consoles to retro-themed books and artwork.
Read more: The best retro gaming gifts for the holidays
Best gifts for coffee lovers
When it comes to making a great cup at home, coffee nerds are constantly learning and love to try new things. Whether the person youre shopping for is a newly indoctrinated pour over lover or obsessive over every brewing parameter, weve compiled a list of the best gear for coffee geeks that you can get this holiday season.
Read more: The best gifts for coffee lovers
Best cooking gifts
There are few things more rewarding than making good food for your friends and family. But after a while, its easy to get bored with the same tried and true recipes. And what better way to inject some fun into your favorite home chefs routine than with a brand-new kitchen gadget? To help you find the right gift for the cook in your life, weve put together a list of our favorite kitchen gadgets across a wide range of prices and categories.
Read more: The best cooking gifts
Best tech toys for kids
Were all having a bit of a budget crunch this year, but the good news is that when its time to bestow presents on the young ones (or young at heart), you dont have to break the bank. Our list of our favorite tech, science and design toys is stacked with items under $100, with plenty of reuse packed in so the fun can extend far beyond the holiday season.
Read more: The best tech toys for kids
Best gadgets for your pets
In Engadgets Slack rooms, our pets are high on the list of stuff we chat about just behind work-adjacent tech stuff, insane current events, video games and food. Weve bought plenty of high- and low-tech stuff to keep our furry friends fed, occupied, safe and happy and weve put together the best of what we tried here. Perhaps youre shopping for your own very good boy or girl, or maybe you have a dutiful pet parent on your list either way, the gadgets gathered here will make great gifts, according to the enthusiastic tail wags (or aloof meows) o our own fur babies.
Read more: The best gadgets for your pets
Check out the rest of our gift ideas here.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-best-christmas-gifts-for-everyone-on-your-holiday-list-170018565.html?src=rss
You can soon top up the battery of a Volvo electric vehicle at more than 17,800 Tesla Supercharger stations across the US and Canada. That should make it much easier for Volvo drivers to find a place to charge, even though they already had access to tens of thousands of fast charge points.
Starting November 18, drivers can locate Tesla Superchargers via the Volvo Cars app or built-in Google Maps. It's possible to pay for charging sessions via the Volvo Cars app as well.
There's one teensy catch, however, especially if you have had a Volvo EV for a while: to access Tesla Superchargers and other North American Charging Standard (NACS) chargers, you'll need an adapter. This costs $230 ($310 CAD) and can be ordered from authorized Volvo retailers. The automaker will start shipping them to retailers on November 18, but adapters for the EX30 will be available at a later date. That said, Volvo is including the adapter with purchases of the new EX90 flagship SUV, EX40 or EC40 starting with model year 2025.
Volvo announced in June 2023 that it would support Tesla Superchargers and the NCAS. It's one of many automakers that have backed a more standardized approach to EV charging in North America.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/volvo-ev-drivers-can-start-using-teslas-supercharger-network-this-month-165541360.html?src=rss
Nintendo and the Pokémon Company are seeking approximately $65,700 in compensation from their lawsuit against Palworld developer Pocketpair. In a press release the studio issued on Friday, it said Nintendo and the Pokémon Company want 5 million each (plus late fees), for a total of 10 million or $65,700 in damages.
At first glance, that's a paltry amount of money to demand for copying one of the most successful gaming properties ever, particularly when you consider Tropic Haze, the creator of the now defunct Yuzu Switch emulator, agreed to pay $2.4 million to settle its recent case with Nintendo. While Nintendo and the Pokémon Company may have well wanted to sue for more, their legal approach may have limited their options somewhat.
Report on Patent Infringement Lawsuithttps://t.co/iS4Uk2tjWg Palworld (@Palworld_EN) November 8, 2024
As you might recall, when the two sued Pocketpair in September, they didnt accuse it of copyright infringement. Instead, they went for patent infringement. On Friday, Pocketpair listed the three patents Nintendo and the Pokémon Company are accusing the studio of infringing. Per Bloomberg, they relate to gameplay elements found in most Pokémon games. For example, one covers the franchises signature battling mechanics, while another relates to how players can ride monsters.
Pokémon games have featured those mechanics since the start, but heres the thing: all three patents were filed and granted to Nintendo and the Pokémon Company after Pocketpair released Palworld to early access on January 19, 2024. The earliest patent, for instance, was granted to Nintendo and the Pokémon Company on May 22, 2024, or nearly four months after Palworld first hit Steam and Xbox Game Pass.
According to Pocketpair, the two companies seek compensation for a portion of the damages incurred between the date of registration of the patents and the date of filing of this lawsuit. Put another way, it's a small window of time the suit targets.
Im not a lawyer, so I wont comment on Nintendos strategy of attempting to enforce patents that were issued after Palworld was already on the market. However, I think its worth mentioning that Pocketpair CEO Takuro Mizobe had said before the game's release that Palworld had cleared legal reviews, suggesting the studio had looked at Nintendo's patent portfolio for possible points of conflict. In any case, the Tokyo District Court is scheduled to hear opening remarks from each side next week.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/nintendo/nintendo-palworld-lawsuit-seeks-65700-in-damages-163051523.html?src=rss
The 9th-gen iPad is on sale via Amazon for only $200. Thats a fairly substantial discount of 39 percent, as the regular price for this model is $330. The deal applies to both the dark gray and silver colorways.
This is a tablet Apple first released back in 2021, so its getting a bit long in the tooth. However, its still a fantastic machine, particularly for the price. We called it a nice upgrade in our official review. The battery life is on point, the screen is crisp and the performance is snappy. Its an iPad.
This is a relatively ancient tablet with an equally ancient A13 Bionic chip. This isnt the best iPad to buy for those looking for raw power. However, its the perfect tablet for those who want a media consumption machine on the cheap. Netflix in bed? Sign me up.
This sale is for the 64GB model and doesnt apply to the 256GB version. The 9th-gen tablet is being discontinued, so its highly likely this is the last chance to pick one up at this price. Once the stock is gone, its all over.
Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/black-friday-deals-include-the-9th-gen-ipad-for-a-record-low-of-200-161404147.html?src=rss
Thanksgiving is a few weeks away, but there are some killer early Black Friday deals around already. For instance, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 have dropped back down to $170. That's $80 or 32 percent off the list price. It's not quite a record low, as the AirPods Pro 2 have been on sale for $169 in the past, but it's not far off at all.
The AirPods Pro 2 are our pick for the best wireless earbuds for iPhone. We also gave them a score of 88 in our review back in 2022.
We feel that the transparency mode, which is powered by Apple's H2 chip, is excellent. It sounds far more natural here than on any other earphones we've tested.
Apple has built on this by recently enabling hearing health features on the AirPods Pro 2. These include an FDA-approved hearing aid function and hearing test. The earphones may also be used to help protect your hearing in loud environments, such as concerts, without muffling the audio.
Other useful features include fast pairing and ease of switching between Apple devices, spatial audio, hands-free Siri and solid active noise cancellation. The earphones are IPX4-rated for water resistance too. On the downside, the touch gestures take a little getting used to.
The AirPods Pro 2 ran for about six hours and 15 minutes on a single charge during our testing. The charging case (the battery of which you can top up wirelessly or via USB-C) adds up to three extra charges.
Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/apples-airpods-pro-2-are-back-on-sale-for-170-ahead-of-black-friday-150737558.html?src=rss
Let's get this straight up front: The Vive Focus Vision isn't a competitor to the Meta Quest 3, or the recently released Quest 3S. At $999, how could it be? Instead, it's another stab at the high-end VR market for HTC Vive, an audience it's cultivated since the launch of the first Vive headset in 2016. While Meta has leaned more towards cheaper and more mainstream VR headsets over the last decade, HTC Vive has done practically the opposite, aiming for VR gearheads and enterprise customers with PC headsets like the Vive Pro 2 and feature-rich standalone models like the Focus 3.
You can think of the Vive Focus Vision as a cross between the Focus 3 and last year's goggle-like XR Elite. It's a standalone headset with two 16MP color cameras for mixed reality, built-in eye tracking and automatic interpupillary distance (IPD) adjustment. It could also be appealing to PC gamers with its $149 DisplayPort wired streaming kit, which gives you an uncompressed view of high-end VR experiences like Half-Life: Alyx.
Hardware: An aging CPU
As intriguing as its new features are, though, the more I tested the Focus Vision, the more it felt like a missed opportunity for HTCs Vive VR platform. For one, it's running the same Snapdragon XR2 chip as the Focus 3 and Quest 2. That chip originally debuted in 2020, and it simply seems inexcusable in a high-end headset today. Both the $300 Quest 3S and $500 Quest 3 sport the XR2 Gen 2 processor, which is 2.5 times faster than the original chip and also has up to eight times faster AI processing. For a high-end headset at the tail-end of 2024, I would have expected HTC to at least match the power of far cheaper competitors, or even better to include Qualcomm's newer XR2+ Gen 2 chip.
The Focus Vision is also still using older Fresnel lens optics, which are prone to artifacts and light bleeding, instead of the sharper pancake lenses in the Quest 3. At least HTC shoved in 12GB of RAM this time around, compared to the 8GB found on the Focus 3 and Quest 3. And the company still has a resolution advantage over the Quest 3: The Focus Vision delivers 2,448 by 2,448 pixels per eye, compared to Meta's 2,064 by 2,208 pixels per eye. HTC Vive's 120-degree field of view also delivers a greater sense of immersion than the 110-degree FOV in the Quest 3.
The Focus Vision shines best when it comes to overall build quality and comfort. Even though it's made of plastic like the Quest 3, it's a sturdy device that clearly looks more high-end than Meta's offerings. Ample cushioning helps the Focus Vision rest comfortably on your forehead and behind your noggin. And its halo-like head strap, together with the ability to flip up the visor, makes it easy to slip on over large glasses.
Best of all, the Focus Vision features a removable battery at the back of its headstrap. That provides a helpful counterweight to the bulky front-end, and it could conceivably let you stay in wireless VR all day if you've got enough spare batteries. The headset also has a small built-in battery, which allows you to stay in your VR session even when you're swapping out the larger rear power cell. This is the sort of thing we'll probably never see in a consumer Quest headset, as it's simply too expensive to implement, and Meta isn't building for enterprise customers who demand continuous wireless. (And to be fair, it's also easy to just plug the Quest 3 into a USB battery pack.)
Devindra Hardawar for Engadget
In use
Using the Focus Vision doesn't feel much different than the Focus a headset I liked when I reviewed in 2021, but as a business-focused device I warned that no consumer should actually buy it. That's not too surprising, I suppose, since both headsets share the same basic design, displays and CPU. In standalone VR mode, playing the Maestro demo genuinely made me feel like I was conducting an orchestra (an experience I also had on the Quest 3S), and I enjoyed hopping around a few virtual worlds in VR Chat.
Other experiences, like the classic underwater VR short theBlu, felt just as immersive as they did on clunkier tethered headsets. While I could tell the Focus Vision didn't have the best lenses around, and I wished it had more graphical horsepower, it still delivered a thrill as I stood in the middle of a sunken shipwreck, waiting for an enormous blue whale to pass by. It was also nice to see the Vive app storefront a bit more populated than it was in 2021. Still, it pales in comparison to Meta's Quest library, which has far more titles and plenty of compelling exclusives (including Star Wars titles like the Vader Immortal series and Tales from the Galaxy's Edge).
Devindra Hardawar for Engadget
We already knew that HTC Vive could build a decent headset the Focus Visions controllers and speakers are just as capable as they were on the previous model but what about the Focus Vision's new features, like mixed reality and eye tracking? Unfortunately, there's not much to say just yet. There are a handful of mixed reality experiences available, like the creation app Figmin XR and the shooter Yuki, but they're not exactly mind blowing. The Focus Vision's 16MP mixed reality cameras deliver a fuzzy view of the real world (similar to the Quest 3 and 3S), so it's not nearly as immersive as something like the far pricier Apple Vision Pro.
The Focus Vision's eye tracking feature also refused to work for me entirely, even after I tried to calibrate it without glasses multiple times. That didnt seem like a huge loss though, as there are only a handful of games in the Vive store that support it (like Capsule Critters and Mare). It's a feature that seems more useful for developers who want to build their own eye tracking experiences, than it is for people who just want to play games with eye tracking.
Devindra Hardawar for Engadget
Solid stand-alone VR
A better selling point for the Focus Vision is its ability to stream uncompressed desktop VR experiences but only when you invest in the $149 DisplayPort streaming kit. While Meta's Quest's headsets have been able to connect to PCs for years, first via USB-C cables then wirelessly, they also deliver a heavily compressed view of desktop VR. By going straight to the DisplayPort connection on your video card, HTC Vive aims to deliver something closer to what we saw with the Vive Pro 2 and other dedicated PC headsets.
After playing half an hour of Half-Life: Alyx, I can confirm that the Focus Vision delivers a solid desktop VR experience, especially for a standalone headset. But given that it already costs $999 and requires an additional $149 accessory to get there, it's hard to tell who will find this compelling. True VR heads have likely already invested in serious desktop setups like the Valve Index, or the recent Bigscreen Beyond (which uses absurdly clear microLED screens like the Vision Pro).
The beauty of connecting standalone headsets to PCs has always been about value. It was a huge bonus when the $300 Quest 2 could deliver adequate desktop VR. But that just isn't the case for the Focus Vision. I suppose if youre a developer who wants a single device for testing both standalone VR and complex desktop experiences, or working for a business that needs multi-use VR headsets, the Focus Vision could fill some sort of need. But either way, that seems like a fairly niche use case.
Devindra Hardawar for Engadget
The Focus Visions auto-IPD adjustment, which scans your eyes and physically moves the lenses to be in the ideal position, was also hit-or-miss for me. Sometimes it worked just fine and landed near my prescribed IPD of 66. But sometimes the automatic process would land on an IPD of around 72, which made everything look a bit blurry. And occasionally the feature just wouldnt work at all. Auto adjustment is helpful if youre sharing a headset with other people, but otherwise manually choosing your preferred IPD is far more useful.
During my typical standalone usage, the Focus Vision lasted for around one hour and 45 minutes, close to the two-hour estimate from HTC Vive. Thats less than what I typically see on the Quest 3 and 3S, but at least you can purchase additional batteries and easily swap them. The built-in battery, which enables hot swapping, lasts for about twenty minutes, but its also not something youll typically be stressing.
Devindra Hardawar for Engadget
Should you buy the Vive Focus Vision?
Despite my issues, the Focus Vision still sits in an interesting position in the world of VR especially since Meta gave up on the Quest Pro, which would have been a close competitor. It still delivers decent standalone VR, despite using an aging CPU and lenses. And if you dont want the clutter of SteamVR sensors in your office, its a smart way to tap into powerful PCs for more immersive VR experiences (so long as you buy the $149 DisplayPort kit). But for a $999 headset, its a shame HTC Vive didnt try harder to make the Focus Vision stand out.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ar-vr/htc-vive-focus-vision-review-a-premium-vr-headset-with-average-performance-150029763.html?src=rss
