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Wondering why you’re hearing a lot about Clubhouse lately? We can partially blame Elon Musk: By popping up in a Clubhouse room in February, the world’s richest man (for now) brought the service a lot of attention. Here’s what you need to know about the exclusive chat app. Okay, so what is it? Here’s the gist: Imagine you have an app on your phone that lets you listen in on other people’s live conversations. But not in a creepy way; these people want to be heard. They may even be interesting or knowledgeable (no guarantee, though). And you may be given the opportunity to join the chat. Think of it as an audio-chat social network. So there are no pictures or video? No, only profile pics for each user. What platforms are supporting the app? Clubhouse…

Be saw lots of new 8K TVs at CES in January, with some coming from vendors known for making affordable models, such as TCL. That means 2021 is likely to be the year we start seeing 8K TVs hit the market at prices that far more people can realistically consider—we’re talking under five digits! Don’t freak out about replacing your still-new 4K TV just yet, though. 8K AT CES TCL’s announcement that its 2021 6-Series TVs will be entirely 8K is one of the more notable pieces of news from this year’s show, as the 6-Series has long been a PCMag favorite for offering high quality at a reasonable price. That said, TCL hasn’t yet announced pricing for its 6-Series TVs, and it noted that 2020 models will still be available this…

Early on in “Top Gun: Maverick,” Tom Cruise hops on his sleek motorcycle, wearing Aviator sunglasses and a leather jacket with patches, and speeds into a time machine. No, that’s not right. It’s actually us who take a trip back. More than 30 years after Cruise smirked his way to the cocky heights of the ’80s as the maverick Navy pilot codenamed Maverick, he effortlessly picks up the character in a new chapter of “Top Gun” that is an absolutely, thoroughly enjoyable ride — a textbook example of how to make a sequel. “Top Gun: Maverick” satisfies with one foot in the past by hitting all the touchstones of the first film — fast motorcycles, the song “Danger Zone,” military fetishisms, humorless Navy bosses, shirtless bonding sports, “the hard deck,” bar singalongs…

A FIT TING FINISH? Donald blew into the backfield and slung Joe Burrow to the turf on a fourth-and-1, clinching his first Super Bowl victory. The championship parade covered only 1.1 miles. But as Aaron Donald danced, drank, roared, blew kisses and flexed his cartoonish muscles, his mind drifted beyond the raucous celebration. As thousands screamed and chanted at the six double-decker buses carrying the jovial superstar and his Rams teammates, they rolled away from the Shrine Auditorium in downtown Los Angeles, snaking along Figueroa Street, inching toward the Coliseum. Donald bounced and sipped and hugged along the route, his gold chain and diamond-studded “99” pendant flopping from neck to chin. So much had aligned to make the party possible. Stay in the moment, he reminded himself. He wished to remember the details…

HULU | Pam & Tommy That couple, that sex tape, that scandal! COMEDY-DRAMA It’s tough at this point in time to place the marriage of Baywatch star Pamela Anderson and Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee on the spectrum of great celebrity affairs—somewhere between Sid and Nancy and Liz and Dick. Their relationship seems to have been both deeply romantic and highly turbulent. But the story of the couple (played by Lily James and Sebastian Stan, both terrific) has been intractably complicated by the mess over their sex videotape, stolen in 1995 and released to the world by a disgruntled contractor (Seth Rogen). Pam & Tommy devotes eight episodes to unraveling the scandal, which proved impossible to control: The tape was sold over the Internet, then went wider as a download. Despite its bawdy-satiric…

1 PANTHERS C.J. STROUD QB OHIO STATE Stroud throws with accuracy and touch from the pocket. The improvisation skills he showed in the national semi were a glimpse of what he can do when plays break down. 2 TEXANS BRYCE YOUNG QB ALABAMA Despite his size, Young is my top-ranked QB. He’s always composed, processes information quickly and is accurate to all three levels. 3 CARDINALS WILL ANDERSON JR. EDGE ALABAMA Anderson was elite at Bama—34.5 sacks, 62 TFLs. Power, length and burst give him impact as a pass rusher or run stopper. 4 COLTS ANTHONY RICHARDSON QB FLORIDA Richardson is relatively inexperienced as a one-year starter, but he has the most upside of any QB in the draft due to his size, speed and arm strength. 5 SEAHAWKS TYREE WILSON EDGE TEXAS TECH Despite a foot injury, Wilson had his most productive year (seven sacks, 14 TFLs). He’s an excellent combo of length…

Astronomy’s experts from around the globe answer your cosmic questions. Q | WHY WILL DAVINCI JETTISON ITS PARACHUTE SO QUICKLY INTO VENUS’ ATMOSPHERE? WON’T THIS RESULT IN LESS TIME TO COLLECT DATA AND IMAGES? Steven Portalupi Newmarket, New Hampshire A | Venus and its massive atmosphere present an incredibly challenging environment for any in situ probe mission. The planet’s surface temperature is approximately 860 degrees Fahrenheit (460 degrees Celsius) thanks to the dense CO2 atmosphere, which also creates a surface pressure 90 times greater than Earth at sea level. Sulfuric acid clouds exist roughly 25 to 43 miles (40 to 70 kilometers) above the surface in a thick layer. When the DAVINCI descent sphere spacecraft (DS) jettisons its main parachute approximately 32 minutes into the descent — around 24 miles (39 km) above the…

This is a story about a dog called Ouka who loves to fly with his owner, the French adventure filmmaker Shams. It is also a story about the healing powers of humankind’s oldest friend, and their unique ability to get us back on our feet when we’re feeling low. “Ouka changed my life for sure,” Shams tells me when we talk over video call. “It’s a long story,” he adds, “but I’ll try and keep it short.” Chances are, you will have come across the pair’s flying exploits via their popular Instagram feeds @ouka.sam (174,000 followers) and @ shamsfilmmaker (39,000). They’re the kind of videos that often get shared over beers at the end of a day’s flying. In one, Shams seems to be riding Ouka, whose fluffy white hair is swept…

Email can be a killer: Just ask New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who discovered some scandalous messages during a multinational investigation of Intel, the American semiconductor giant. The Intel emails, made public by Cuomo in 2009 when he was New York’s state attorney general, appeared to show that the company was taking a carrot-and-stick approach to ensuring that its customers used Intel processors for all, or nearly all, of the PCs that they sold. This might not rank as one of history’s most revelatory email brouhahas, but it was a vital factor in a billion-dollar settlement that would drastically change the semiconductor industry—and the wider tech world that relies on it. The effect is still felt in courtrooms and boardrooms worldwide and is, without a doubt, in the back of the…

MOVIE | Book Club: the Next Chapter Forget about reading—these women are ready for love COMEDY This follow-up to the 2018 hit begins with a gracefully done segment that acknowledges real life: It’s the pandemic, and Zoom is the only option for book-chat besties Vivian (Jane Fonda), Carol (Mary Steenburgen), Diane (Diane Keaton) and Sharon (Candice Bergen). Then the pandemic goes away, and we escape to happy fantasy. Vivian announces that she’s engaged to boyfriend Arthur (Don Johnson), and the ladies—none of whom suffers from a life-threatening condition that requires masks or extra vaccinations—fly off to Italy for an extended bachelorette party. They hop from one beautiful tourist destination to another, meet attractive foreign men and amuse themselves with cheesy-risqué jokes about the anatomical details of statues that date back to antiquity. All in…

DATABASE REVEALS OVER 200K PEOPLE INVOLVED IN POSTING FAKE REVIEWS ON AMAZON I actually reported some sellers attempting to buy my good review directly to Amazon. Amazon was extremely slow in actually being able to take down the vendors. The process was so painful, in fact, that I probably would never bother to do it again. I’m sure those same vendors are back up on Amazon as some other name, as Amazon does zero vetting of marketplace vendors. Amazon has serious issues with credibility and many of the Chinese vendors on their platform are very underhanded and don’t follow the Amazon Marketplace rules at all. I stopped reading anything other than the bad reviews, really. I do check the questions from time to time … but I never read the good…

I’ve been shot at,” says Emily Hikade, explaining life as a counterterrorism case officer in the Central Intelligence Agency. “People would shoot rocket-propelled grenades at your vehicle.” Tasked with collecting information overseas, Hikade, 46, put her life on the line every day. “I’ve been so close to explosions that I’ve been knocked off my feet, where it rings in your ears, and everything goes into slow motion,” she continues. “I was invincible; I felt fearless before I had kids.” Still, she had four boys while serving—Camden, now 15, Beckett, 12, Shaw, 10, and Gable, 7, with her husband, Christopher, 51, also a retired CIA officer—and by 2015 was longing for security and stability. “When you’re home, and you’re safe, that’s when you put on your pajamas,” she says. That idea inspired…

The pandemic has touched virtually every aspect of our lives, not least the way we work. Gone are the days of hour-long commutes and endless meetings; instead, we work from home or hot desk, relying on apps to keep us productive and connected. It can be tough to choose the right device - with both the MacBook Pro and iPad Pro offering unique benefits you won’t find anywhere else. Comparing the two will allow you to find the right machine. WORKING WITH THE iPAD PRO Apple revolutionized the way we think about computers when it launched the iPad Pro back in 2015, and since then, the Cupertino company has been on a mission to create the world’s best tablet. It’s worked; right now, the iPad range holds more than a third of…

OnePlus will raise the bar for budget phones with 5G and a 90Hz display for under $250 in the US, the company revealed exclusively to PCMag in mid-June. “From the premium and ultra-premium OnePlus 9 series to the OnePlus Nord N200 5G—our newest and most affordable 5G device ever—we’re providing more choices and easier access to 5G for our users,” OnePlus CEO Pete Lau said in an email interview. Last year’s OnePlus Nord N10 5G took the US prepaid market by storm. Reports from Wave7 Research said that the N10 and its cheaper 4G sibling, the Nord N100, lifted OnePlus’s market share to over 15% at Metro by T-Mobile. Now OnePlus is returning with a phone that brings more of the N10’s features closer to the N200’s price point. Although the N100 had…

As Apple edges closer to the release of the Apple Watch Series 8 and a new rugged version for athletes, developers are testing watchOS 9. The update includes a host of features that will transform how you work out and communicate, making the Apple Watch even better. A SLEW OF NEW WATCH FACES Taking to the stage at the virtual Worldwide Developers Conference back in June, Jeff Williams, Apple’s chief operating officer, said that users around the world had fallen in love with the Apple Watch for “helping them stay connected to those they love, be more active throughout the day, and better manage their health. This fall, watchOS 9 takes the Apple Watch experience to the next level,” he added, allow users to capture more “scientifically validated insights across fitness, sleep,…

Lamborghini Countach That the Piedmontese word countach translates roughly to “holy shit!” tells you all you need to know about the impact of this quintessential Lamborghini. Unlike earlier supercars, whose sensuousness was often compared to reclining nudes, designer Marcello Gandini’s brutal masterwork looks more like a deadly weapon, a flying ax-head. This is the Countach’s legacy: It defined a level of outrageousness against which all future supercars would be judged. But the Countach itself is defined by its mechanical packaging. Mounting the radiators at the sides meant the nose could plunge to a honed edge. The huge, longitudinally oriented V-12 faced rearward, its transmission pointed toward the front, centralizing the car’s weight and pushing the passenger compartment forward, inverting the typical sports-car proportions. Also, in the post-Countach era, a supercar without…

Au volant d’un camping-car, une longueur supérieure à 7,00 m et un porte-à-faux important sont des facteurs à risque en cas de manœuvre en marche arrière. Dans ces conditions, la caméra de recul est une aide précieuse. Ce troisième œil, est le complément idéal de ce que vous voyez dans les rétroviseurs. Le dispositif se compose d’un émetteur (la caméra) placé à l’arrière et d’un récepteur (l’écran) placé dans le poste de conduite. Les informations (image et son) sont transmises par liaison filaire puis restituées à l’écran. Les avantages d’une telle installation sont multiples. On a une vision à l’aplomb de la face arrière et une belle perspective, tant en longueur qu’en largeur, pour manœuvrer en toute sécurité. On peut également entendre ce qui se passe grâce au micro intégré,…

The public beta of macOS Monterey, released by Apple in early July, doesn’t look surprisingly new. Exceptions include Safari, which gets a dynamically resizing tab bar and other conveniences, and FaceTime, which gets a background-blurring portrait mode and screen-sharing features. As you get more familiar with Monterey, however, you’ll find improvements and conveniences everywhere and may wonder how you managed without them. This is because Apple’s annual updates to the Mac operating system tend to have a regular rhythm. Massive updates arrive on even-numbered years: Big Sur, for example, the 2020 update to macOS that was also the first version that ran on Apple Silicon hardware. Updates in odd-numbered years, such as Monterey, look more or less like the previous version but come with under-the-hood improvements that may do more for…

I’ll admit, I was pretty skeptical before unboxing the first smartwatch from OnePlus, aptly named the OnePlus Watch. At $159, it’s less than half the price of our Editors’ Choice winner, the Apple Watch Series 6 (which starts at $399). And while it doesn’t work with iPhones, it offers many of the same features as Apple’s market-leading wearable. So far, my skepticism appears to have been unfounded. The OnePlus Watch offers a large color touch screen, built-in GPS, 2GB of storage, a 402mAh battery that promises two weeks of power, and the ability to make and receive calls. It also has plenty of health and fitness features, including support for more than 110 workout types, automatic workout detection for jogging and running, rapid-heart-rate alerts, guided breathing exercises, stress detection, and the…

A half-dozen companies are potentially ready to spend $80 billion for C-Band, a new set of airwaves that promise to fix the perilous state of American 5G, at an FCC auction. That’s a vast amount of money, and it shows how important C-Band is. But what is C-Band, and what does it mean for 5G? Do you need a C-Band phone? Is C-Band a new frequency? Should you be scared of C-Band? I can explain. RECOVERING THE SATELLITES According to wireless testing firm Rohde and Schwarz, the C-band is all frequencies between 4GHz and 8GHz. When US wireless geeks talk about C-Band, though, they’re talking about 3.7GHz to 4.2GHz—and specifically, in this case, the range from 3.7GHz to 3.98GHz. This frequency had been used for satellite TV since the 1970s, but as C-Band…

Fitness trackers have become a lot more attractive over the years, but no matter the design, they tend to stand out. If you’re looking for a more discreet alternative that’s comfortable to wear 24/7, you might be interested in the Oura Ring. It looks like jewelry at a glance, but the Oura is far smarter than your average ring. This water-resistant wearable features heart rate, respiration, and body temperature sensors, as well as a 3D accelerometer to measure your activity, sleep, and recovery, and it works with a companion app to help make sense of your data and offer insights to foster healthy habits. The Oura’s ability to track workouts is pretty basic compared with a wrist-worn model, but it offers comprehensive sleep tracking and is more comfortable to wear…

The Wi-Fi Alliance, a group of Wi-Fi platform vendors that work with the FCC and electronics manufacturers to set standards for Wi-Fi technology, announced the Wi-Fi 6E designation in 2020 for any IEEE 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6) products that support 6GHz wireless spectrum. Essentially, this means Wi-Fi 6E enables faster speeds and lower latencies than Wi-Fi 6 and earlier iterations. WI-FI 6 VS. WI-FI 6E When the IEEE 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6) standard was first announced, it was limited by law to a wireless spectrum that only covered the 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands. Now, in a 2.4GHz band, you really have only three non-overlapping channels—and that bandwidth is shared by you, your family members, and your neighbors. If you’ve ever had problems staying connected to a Zoom call or had the latest episode of The…

With COVID-19 still keeping so many people working from home, Wi-Fi routers are doing a lot more than streaming movies and games. Not only are home Wi-Fi routers keeping millions of people working, but they’re also connecting an ever-growing range of smart home devices. That means picking one that does the best job for you and fits your budget is trickier than ever, especially now that we’re seeing more Wi-Fi 6 devices becoming available. When you’re shopping for a new router, start by considering the size of your coverage area and the number of clients you need to support as well as the types of devices that you’ll be connecting. Not everybody needs the kind of performance that you get with the latest and greatest models, and there’s no reason to…

Tyler Jones, CEO and founder of Las Vegas–based Blue Heron, is an architect and developer with a passion for designing homes that make his clients feel good. He believes in the concept of biophilic design—connecting people to their environment and helping them focus on the natural world. “This design impacts everything we do. As you enter the home, we wanted to invoke an immediate emotional response from how the architecture flows with the surrounding landscape,” he says. Founded in 2003, Blue Heron developed its signature Vegas Modern™ design philosophy to do precisely that. Its newest iteration is the Ora House—not in Las Vegas, but in the Bird Rock Waterfront enclave in San Diego’s La Jolla area. “What I learned in Las Vegas, I applied to this home in California,” he says. “This…

Through a steady London rain on the morning of May 6, the pomp and ceremony of King Charles III’s coronation began with a ride in the Diamond Jubilee State coach. The carriage, first used in 2014 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the accession of his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II, departed from Buckingham Palace at 10:20 a.m. Escorted by more than 150 members of the British armed forces and cheered on by thousands of damp but decidedly enthusiastic well-wishers, the enclosed horse-drawn coach rolled its way to Westminster Abbey. For Charles, 74, accompanied by his wife of 18 years, Queen Camilla, 75, the ride followed a carefully charted course, winding past landmarks like Trafalgar Square, the Palace of Westminster and Big Ben. At only 1.4 miles, the King’s procession…

At this year’s WWDC, Apple lifted the lid on what’s next for the iPhone as it unveiled iOS 16, introducing a whole host of new features designed to make our devices even smarter and more capable than ever before. From customized Lock Screens to the iCloud Shared Photo Library, the update further refines the world’s most advanced smartphone operating system. PUTTING THE POWER IN USERS’ HANDS This year’s iOS changes might not be as significant or dramatic as they have been in previous years, but it’s clear that Apple wants to further refine what it’s already made great, rather than tearing up the rule book with major design changes for the sake of it. Taking to the stage at WWDC, Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering, said that this…

On Sept. 3, just past the midway point of the 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs, the NHL issued a 2,500-word press release cataloguing, as the headline declared, INITIATIVES TO COMBAT RACISM AND ACCELERATE ITS INCLUSION EFFORTS. It was a sensitive moment for the league. A week earlier, after police in Kenosha, Wis., shot a 29-year-old Black man named Jacob Blake seven times in the back, player-led protests in the NBA, WNBA, MLB and MLS spawned a night of unprecedented work stoppages. The NHL, meanwhile, had continued to hold games inside its Edmonton and Toronto bubbles, provoking outrage. “[T]he lack of action and acknowledgement from the @nhl [is] just straight up insulting,” tweeted Sharks winger Evander Kane, one of the league’s few Black players. The NHL finally went dark the next day, suspending…

Why do these boxcars have built-in lights? I recently saw these bright orange boxcars parked near the Canadian Q National Woodcrest Shops. They have CN reporting marks, though I haven’t gotten close enough to get specific numbers. Many of them have red lights on both ends that look to be like the ones used at crossing gates. They must move these cars often, because I notice the number and position of the cars are different almost every time I pass there. What are these cars carrying that warrants the extra visibility? Ed Schmidt, Des Plaines, Ill. A Those aren’t general-service boxcars, but rather, what Canadian National calls Distributed Braking Cars. They’re designed to help keep up brake line pressure during long trips through the Canadian winter, when cold temperatures can cause the air…

Bob’s recent book, Earth-Shattering (Little, Brown and Company, 2019), explores the greatest cataclysms that have shaken the universe. In 1969, Elisabeth Kübler-Ross introduced her five stages of grief experienced by people who are facing life’s tragedies. But those five now-famous stages — denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance — have been overlooked by backyard astronomers. Say you’re an observer in a typical suburban location. You’ve spent a small fortune on a telescope that looks so cool, you gaze at it like it’s a Rembrandt. Tonight, you’ve invited over an old friend you’d like to impress; you’ve heard she owns some mountaintop acreage, and you fantasize she’ll let you build an observatory there. So you aim your telescope at Saturn, arguably the universe’s greatest crowd-pleaser. But to your horror, it’s not there. In its…

I’M A BIG FAN OF THE SAYING, “THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS BAD WEATHER, ONLY BAD CLOTHING.” As cooler weather starts to roll in, I’ve learned to embrace the change in seasons. Riding in the cold can be something you look forward to, too, with the proper gear and know-how. Winter cycling means being out on shorter, colder, and often wetter days, so focus your preparations to meet these conditions. Throughout the winter, I keep a very bright taillight as well as a 1,000-plus-lumen headlight on my bike all the time. They are essential for staying safer on an after-work ride or even the odd weekend ride that runs longer than expected. Pro tip: Plug your lights (and any other tech) into their chargers as soon as you get home. That…

With an overhauled MacBook Air reportedly just around the corner, experts are gearing themselves up for a new generation of computing. Likely to sport the M2 chip and an all-new design, the upcoming MacBook Air refresh could be one of the most significant to date. THE UPCOMING MACBOOK AIR Over the past couple of years, Apple has made something very clear: it means business when it comes to the Mac. Professionals and everyday users had grown frustrated with the Cupertino company’s approach to the Mac prior to 2020, with some calling the line-up scale and lagging behind competitors, especially in regards to price. But as Apple enters a new age with its own silicon chips, namely the M1 series and its Pro, Max, and Ultra counterparts, the company is once again being…

It seems that hybrid work, the “new normal,” might be pushing desktop as a service (DaaS) into the rank of front-and-center business tool, up from the minor curiosity it was only two years ago. That notion is due to some sudden and formidable market movement, most recently from Microsoft. Microsoft has had a virtual desktop service for a while—Azure Virtual Desktop, formerly called Windows Virtual Desktop. A rumor recently mongered by Mary Jo Foley, the queen of Microsoft leaks, has it that Microsoft will be announcing yet another DaaS development next week during Microsoft’s Inspire virtual conference. The new service will probably be called Cloud PC, and instead of supplanting Azure VD, it’ll be its own product aimed at general businesses and available as part of a Microsoft 365 subscription. Azure…

“Queen Camilla” was not a title the onetime Camilla Parker Bowles ever imagined holding. But on May 6, at age 75, Camilla will officially be crowned Queen alongside her husband, King Charles, 74, at his historic coronation. “Considering that for most of her life she’d never contemplated the idea of becoming Queen, she’s doing incredibly well,” says Christopher Wilson, royal biographer and author of A Greater Love. “It’s a hell of a challenge being permanently in the spotlight at this age, but she’s tough and can take it.” As she prepares to step onto the world’s stage, here are 10 little-known facts about the woman at Charles’s side. 1 She Wasn’t the First Member of Her Family to Have a Royal Affair. Camilla’s great-grandmother Alice Keppel was the favorite mistress of Charles’s…

Last year, I moored my narrowboat at the Dundas Aqueduct just outside Bath. The valley around the River Avon is known for its wild garlic, which carpets the woodland floor and raises such a powerful perfume you can smell it from your car, driving down the A36. But since the permissive paths that cut through some of the woods go nowhere near the wild garlic, to forage for my dinner I had to trespass. Conkwell Wood was initially enclosed in the early 19th century, when the manor was built at the top of the hill. Because we, in modern times, have been born into a nation of exclusion, and so take it for granted, it is hard for us to imagine the anger of a community suddenly evicted from such a…

The original Echo Show 8 has been one of our favorite smart displays since it came out two years ago, thanks to a nearly perfect balance of strong audio performance for the size, a bright and colorful screen, and loads of useful Alexa voice control and smart home features for a reasonable price. Amazon has changed very little in the second-generation model, which sells for the same $129.99 as the original. The second-gen Echo Show 8 looks and sounds identical to its predecessor, with only the camera for video chat and home monitoring receiving an upgrade. It isn’t quite as impressive as the motorized tracking camera on the Echo Show 10 ($249.99), but at nearly half the price, the Echo Show 8 is the best value in the smart display…

Apple has typically reserved its biggest and best smartphone experiences for the iPhone Pro Max line. In particular, if you want the largest display and the longest battery life of any iPhone, you usually have to pony up for Apple’s top-shelf device. That changes this year with the introduction of the Apple iPhone 14 Plus, a new handset in the iPhone lineup that brings you the big-screen experience at a slightly lower price. While we believe the iPhone 14 Pro Max ($1,099) and its powerful new features are worth the extra money, as well as our Editors’ Choice award, the iPhone 14 Plus is a respectable alternative with only a few drawbacks at a more budget-friendly price. PROS • Outstanding hardware • Big, high-resolution screen • Excellent battery life • Clean cameras • Swift performance CONS • Dated…

Despite numerous reports that Apple would overhaul the design of this year’s Apple Watch, the announcement of a Series 7 smartwatch was a more muted affair. Still, the wearable packs its punch with a number of new features, including a re-engineered display that helps to maximize the screen area, an improved battery life, and tonnes of under-the-hood tweaks. INTRODUCING THE APPLE WATCH SERIES 7 The Apple Watch has single-handedly revolutionized the smartwatch industry, helping users stay in control of their lifestyles and activity levels and saving dozens of lives in the process. It’s little wonder why Apple Watch is now one of Apple’s most popular and highly-anticipated product categories, so it was no surprise to learn that rumors of a Series 7 featuring an all-new design were rife. Apple had been poised…

With WWDC 2022 just around the corner, the rumor mill has gone into overdrive in regards to what’s next for iOS and iPadOS, with journalists sharing their wishes and predictions for the next-generation software. In the months ahead, Apple will further refine the world’s best smartphone and tablet operating systems and offer users even more valuable features. ENHANCEMENTS AND IMPROVEMENTS Although many technology experts and YouTubers use pre-WWDC to talk about their hopes for new features and software, Mark Gurman from Bloomberg has a proven track record when it comes to Apple leaks and rumors. He’s already shared a number of predictions for the new operating systems, suggesting that iOS 16 could offer“significant enhancements across the board, including an update to notifications.” Gurman has suggested that the new operating system has been…

The metaverse is in the air. Mark Zuckerberg won’t stop talking about turning Facebook into one. Zombie-strewn Fortnite says it’s on the way to becoming one. Microsoft is going to develop an enterprise one, which sounds fun. But what is it? If you’ve been nodding along and hoping that eventually people will stop talking about it, we have good news and bad news. Metaverse news is only going to increase. This is obviously the bad news. In better news, we have a quick primer to help you with the basics. So here are your questions (hopefully) answered. Hi. Hi. This is going to sound weird, but are you really here? Sure. Let’s say yes. I ask because I was just reading about Mark Zuckerberg and this metaverse thing, and it has thrown me into an existential…

CALGARY WRANGLERS captain Brett Sutter has encountered many talented players over his 1,000-plus-game AHL career, but few have impressed him the way goalie Dustin Wolf has. “He makes saves look easy that really shouldn’t be that easy,” Sutter said. “I played a lot against him last year and marvelled at him. He really gives you that ‘wow’ factor.” Away from the rink, Sutter says Wolf is a goofy, happy-go-lucky 21-year-old – one who loves to golf and play shinny at an outdoor rink with teammates. But on game days? Wolf morphs into a different person, one who is dialled in and carries himself with a business-like mindset when preparing for a game. “When he does his visualizations and warmup routines,” Sutter said, “you can tell he’s ready to go.” Since turning pro…

Dans le domaine des équipements connectés sur le marché de la première monte pour l e s c a m p i n g - c a r s , Truma a ouvert la voie en proposant le Truma iNet System. Avec ce dispositif, il est possible de commander les appareils de chauffage et de climatisation de la marque, mais également d’allumer et éteindre l’interrupteur 12 V principal ainsi que celui de la pompe d’eau. Cette application donne aussi certaines informations sur les équipements. Ainsi les utilisateurs peuvent notamment connaître la température extérieure, savoir si le véhicule est correctement connecté au réseau électrique terrestre ou encore connaître en temps réel l’état de charge de la batterie cellule et celle du porteur. Le marché de la seconde monte est aussi concerné…

Maintaining smooth Wi-Fi performance and throughput for gaming, video streaming, and smart home devices is important, but now that so many folks are working from home with no end in sight, you’ve also got to consider important work applications and different modes of work communication, especially video conferencing. This is where whole-house coverage becomes more than a nice-to-have. Many of the latest wireless routers can provide strong coverage to most rooms of a typical medium-size house, but larger homes and dwellings with dense walls, multiple floors, metal and concrete substructures, and other structural impediments may require additional components to bring Wi-Fi to areas that the router can’t reach. Range extenders do a good job of filling in dead zones but typically provide only half the bandwidth that you get from your…

This year’s bumper Worldwide Developers Conference focused not only on what was next for macOS, watchOS, iPadOS, and iOS, but also lifted the lid on new hardware from the Cupertino company, with Apple showing off the new MacBook Air, powered by the M2 chip. LEAPS FORWARD FOR SOFTWARE Although Apple typically saves hardware announcements for separate events held throughout the year, the company made the unusual move of announcing two new MacBook products at this year’s Worldwide Developers Conference. As well as an all-new MacBook Air, which has been redesigned, the firm also bumped the specs of its entry-level 13-inch MacBook Pro. That’s, of course, on top of the major announcements across iOS, macOS, and iPadOS, with each operating system given new features and tools designed to make the Apple ecosystem even…

“OF ALL THE HEAVENLY BODIES, comets are assuredly those whose appearance strikes most forcibly the attention of mortals,” wrote French astronomer Camille Flammarion in his book Popular Astronomy (1894). And, for as long as humans have looked toward the sky, it’s been true. Comets have both terrified and amazed us. This was never more apparent in modernity than in 1910. Comet 1P/Halley, better known as Halley’s Comet, had last been visible in 1836 and would grace the heavens again that spring. The comet’s return was highly anticipated, so imagine everyone’s surprise when a brilliant comet unexpectedly appeared months earlier. The object that would become known as both the Great January Comet of 1910 and the Daylight Comet was first seen Jan. 12 in the Southern Hemisphere. It’s unclear who precisely discovered it,…

A number of factors contribute to poor battery life on your Android phone. Thinner bodies, brighter screens, faster processors, more background software, and speedier internet connections all take their toll on phone batteries, though manufacturers are incorporating more powerful batteries to compensate. The Motorola Moto G Power has a 5,000mAh battery that can last for over 18 hours. Samsung’s Galaxy S phones, the most popular Android devices, can now last anywhere between 11 and 13 hours, depending on the model. Still, there are ways to get more out of any phone. When it comes to software, Android can be tricky to pin down. Each manufacturer uses a different version of the operating system, so certain settings and features are always going to look different or be located somewhere else. With that…

The Spark Mini is the latest in Positive Grid’s Spark range of digital modelling practice amps. These are designed to give the player access to a huge variety of emulated amps and effects, covering every imaginable genre and style, and they do that job very well. I recently reviewed the Positive Grid Spark 40, and came away impressed — there’s still one on the desk in front of me — and the new Mini, despite being significantly smaller, offers up all of the same modelling functionality and app integration. To find out how that side of things works, see www.soundonsound. com/reviews/positive-grid-spark-40. Crammed into the Mini’s tiny cuboid cabinet are Bluetooth audio, USB-C audio interfacing, and a built-in battery. Connect the amp with the app on your mobile device and you can use…

The sun is setting in Laguna Beach, Calif., and Trevor Lawrence wants to enjoy it. He opens the blinds so the light can stream in. His fiancé, Marissa Mowry, sits with a glass of red wine. They met as kids and started dating seriously in high school, and soon they will move to… well, hang on. “It’s beautiful out here,” Lawrence says. “Soaking this in is nice.… [I’m] just not looking too far ahead. I’m the type of guy if I look too far ahead, I get kind of stressed out.” He knows what is coming. He has known it for years. On April 29, Lawrence is widely expected to be the NFL’s No. 1 draft pick. As his father, Jeremy, says, “He is leaving the little world of Clemson,” heading to…

He must have had that nice window seat all the way from London. He looked under 40, medium height, slim and wore a blazer. It was October 2003 when I boarded the Emirates flight in Dubai and found that I had the aisle seat next to him. I attempted a smile as I sat down but his blank, distant look made me stop mid-smile. One of those, I thought. Each time I take a flight, I try to chat with the passenger next to me. Most people are responsive when they’re alone at 12,000 metres. Only those few, who barely even nod, make me keep to myself. So flying has helped me get to know perfect strangers. To a journalist, this could be the seed of an unexpected story or simply…

Music has helped to transform Apple in recent decades, from the launch of the original iPod to modern developments like Apple Music, the HomePod mini, and AirPods Pro. For music fans, the Cupertino company offers a great deal, and the chances are you don’t know about all of the hidden features, tools, and accessories Apple offers to delve deeper into music. THE STREAMING BATTLE Since its launch six years ago, Apple Music has made a significant dent in the industry. The latest data suggests Apple holds a 15% share of the global streaming subscription market, with Spotify ahead with a 31% share, and other players like Amazon Music, Tencent Music, and YouTube Music climbing the ranks as the market becomes increasingly fragmented and globalized. Nowadays, it’s hard to find a technology giant…

Ask any moderately tech-savvy netizen to name a free antivirus program, and you’ll probably get an answer beginning with the letters A and V. Avast, AVG, Avira—these three are known and loved all over the world, though not necessarily in the same parts of the world. All three companies also offer for-pay antivirus tools with even more protective features, and they’re thrilled by every free-level user who becomes a paying customer. But the free editions are effective and offer a welcome alternative to relying on Windows Defender (see our review in this issue). That rosy picture could potentially change when all three belong to Norton—or, more properly, NortonLifeLock. In truth, the free antivirus realm started to shrink several years ago, when Avast bought AVG. Avast has kept the AVG brand alive…

Amazon Kindles can put a library in your pocket. Whether you choose the basic Kindle, the pocketable Paperwhite, or a top-of-the-line Oasis, a Kindle holds thousands of books within its sleek black casing, and thousands more can be stored in the cloud. A Kindle betrays very little from the outside (no subway snooping of what you’re reading here), but there’s a lot going on inside. All Kindle models feature adjustable LED lighting so you can see the page while camping under the stars, while the Paperwhite and Oasis are waterproof for blissful beachside reading. And if you want to know how many more hours it will take you to finish a book, they can tell you that, too. Here are some tips that’ll help you get even more out of your Kindle.…

Reboots and revivals are everywhere you look in Hollywood—but who could have guessed that the most talked-about love story of summer 2021 would be an emotional real-life sequel? Part 1: Back in 2004 Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez broke off their engagement after an intense relationship that played out in a swirl of diamonds, red carpets and tabloid headlines. Part 2: Older, wiser and still passionate about each other, the superstars have rekindled their romance—and they’re determined to make it last. “They want a future together. Jennifer never thought she’d end up with Ben, but she’s thrilled that she did,” says a Lopez source. The feeling is mutual for Affleck, who first sparked buzz about their renewed bond when he praised Lopez’s “extraordinary work ethic” and “humility” in her May…

Until now, no one would have included in the many reasons to throw a set of Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 R gummies at a sports car that they would improve ride quality. But it’s true on the Z06 when paired with the $9995 carbon-fiber wheels, which shed a claimed 41 pounds. That this most extreme version of the Z06 is amazingly livable over far-from-smooth Michigan pave-ment is surprising, given that this car is also capable of setting many a track record. Going hardcore means you should choose the base targa body style, which saves about 90 pounds versus the convertible, and the $8995 Z07 Performance package. That’s actually a relative bargain, as it includes the carbon-ceramic rotors that cost $8495 alone, which makes the Cup 2 Rs only $500. Going…

“It was the month of May, the month when the foliage of herbs and trees is most freshly green, when buds ripened and blossoms appear in their fragrance and loveliness.”Le Morte d’Arthur by Sir Thomas Malory TAKE YOUR TIME TO… work Shire horses Experience the satisfaction of tending the earth behind a pair of Shire horses, enjoying the creak of the harness and the thud of hooves as they tread the ground. At Old Hall Farm in the Lake District, day courses teach you the basics of working these native giants, originally bred as battle steeds for Henry VIII. Learn to groom and tack the pair, then take the reins for tasks that, depending on the time of year, include harrowing, grass cutting and ploughing. A ploughman’s lunch in the sunshine rounds…

INTRODUCING MACOS 13: VENTURA Every year at its Worldwide Developers Conference, Apple lifts the lid on the changes it has been working on for Mac. This year, it was a double-whammy, with the company making the unusual move of announcing hardware at the typically software-focused event, showcasing an all-new MacBook Air with an M2 chip, and an updated 13-inch MacBook Pro. In recent years, as Apple has transitioned away from Intel processors to custom chips, the firm has put an increased emphasis on macOS and is now answering everyday consumers’ prayers with stunning new features that make the Mac better for everyday use. Whether you spend the day writing emails, working collaboratively, or editing video, this year’s update is for you. Perhaps one of the most exciting new features is Stage Manager,…

These days, you need as much internet security as you can get. From telecommuting to simply watching your favorite show on a smart TV, the average consumer’s attack surface is three to four times the size as it was when most of us had only one PC. That’s not only a worry—it’s also a chore, since you need to install protective software on all those devices. But while you can’t get around installing separate antivirus software on every device, you can at least make your virtual private network (VPN) concerns less aggravating by skipping the per-device procedure and simply installing a blanket VPN on your router. WHY GET A VPN? VPNs are internet security must-haves for a number of reasons. First, they make your computer appear as if it’s in a geographic…

With cutting-edge components and a sleek, sturdy chassis available in multiple color options and screen resolutions, the late-2020 reboot of Dell’s XPS 13 2-in-1 sets the bar for premium convertible notebooks. Intel’s latest “Tiger Lake” CPU and graphics options make the XPS 13 2-in-1 a top performer in its class. The battery life is impressive, as well. The starting configuration is a bit underpowered, but the premium for the well-equipped version reviewed here is reasonable. The system snags our Editors’ Choice award for best premium 2-in-1. PROS: Speedy graphics performance. Long battery life. Compact, lightweight, and attractive chassis. Multiple color options. CONS: Only two USB ports. Slightly uncomfortable keyboard. BOTTOM LINE: Sleek, powerful, and flexible, Dell’s latest XPS 13 2-in-1, now packing “Tiger Lake” silicon, is our top pick among premium convertible laptops. A…

As thespian put-downs go, this one is brutal. The actor who played the Earl of Grantham’s best friend in Downton Abbey was, according to his co-star, not blessed with talent. “He was what you might call ‘not a good company member’,” recalls Hugh Bonneville of the “lumpen” Labrador who played Pharaoh in series one. He’s chuckling as he remembers the dog (real name: Roly), who only agreed to descend Downton’s grand staircase beside him in their first scene together because Hugh had secreted “a wodge of chipolatas” in his fist. Fans of Robert Crawley and Henry Brown – Hugh’s character in the Paddington films – can rest assured that they’ll find no further character assassination, canine or otherwise, in the actor’s new memoir. Not only is Hugh a devoted dog owner…

IN THE ECHL, WHERE star players seldom stick around long, Newfoundland Growlers right winger Zach O’Brien is an outlier. O’Brien, 30, could play in the AHL or a top-tier Euro league if he wanted. But that doesn’t interest him all that much. The native of St. John’s, Nfld., would rather stay at home. “It was always a dream of mine to play at home at the highest level possible,” said O’Brien. He never got that chance in major junior, ending up with the QMJHL’s Acadie-Bathurst Titan instead of his childhood team, the defunct St. John’s Fog Devils. So when the opportunity arose for him to join the Newfoundland Growlers for their inaugural 2018-19 season, O’Brien, then an AHL/ECHL tweener who won a Calder Cup with the Manchester Monarchs in 2015, didn’t hesitate. He…

With his Presidency just seven and a half days old, Joe Biden had already put his signature to 37 executive orders—on everything from the COVID-19 pandemic to the climate crisis to transgender rights—when he strode into the White House Blue Room practically vibrating with the urgency of all he plans to do. “How long is this going to take?” he asked. “I need to get back to the Oval.” Only when Biden, 78, sat down beside his wife, Jill, did he seem to exhale, taking a pause from the nation’s crises to get misty-eyed about his grandchildren and his “surreal” return to a building he frequented over the course of his 44 years in public office—first as a U.S. senator from Delaware, then as President Barack Obama’s Vice President—but now…

The Hisense 350-sq. ft. Window Air Conditioner is a reasonably priced Wi-Fi-enabled window AC unit that you can control with your voice, your phone, or the included remote. It’s easy to install and did an admirable job of cooling in our tests. It doesn’t offer power usage reports or compatibility with Apple HomeKit and IFTTT like some other smart air conditioners we’ve tested, but it also costs less than many 8,000-BTU models, making it an affordable option for small to medium spaces. PROS: Reasonably priced. Easy to install. Fast cooling. Voice control. Relatively quiet. CONS: Lacks usage reporting. Doesn’t support HomeKit or IFTTT. BOTTOM LINE: The Hisense 350-Sq. Ft. Window Air Conditioner is a smart AC unit that can be controlled by your phone, voice, or remote, and does a fine job of…