Новости за 06.12.2022

Apple is expanding developers’ options for pricing their App Store apps. The company announced 700 new price points and tools today in what it describes as the App Store's biggest pricing upgrade in its 14-year history. Additionally, devs can now set regional costs automatically in response to exchange rates.

Polestar is delivering a not-so-subtle snub to Mercedes' subscription performance upgrade. The automaker has released an update that gives the Polestar 2's long range dual motor variant a 68HP power boost (plus 15lb. ft. of torque) in the US and Canada for a one-time $1,195 fee. That's far from a trivial expense, but it's a decidedly better value than Merc's $1,200 annual fee for EQS and EQE acceleration improvements.

A little over a month after it arrived on Xbox consoles, the addictive roguelike shoot ‘em up Vampire Survivors will get its first DLC. The $2 Legacy of Moonspell expansion launches on PC via Steam and Xbox on December 15th.

Apple isn't done scaling back its plans for an electric car, apparently. Bloombergsources say the EV, codenamed Project Titan, is no longer a fully self-driving machine. It will reportedly have a conventional wheel and pedals, and will 'only' drive itself on highways. The company has also pushed the launch back by a year to 2026, the tipsters claim.

The European Commission and Amazon have reportedly come to an agreement that will allow the retail giant to avoid a fine for allegedly misusing seller data. According to The Financial Times, the company has pledged to give rival products equal treatment in the Buy Box section of its website, a move that should theoretically increase the visibility of the merchants selling those goods. Amazon also agreed to create alternate featured offers for customers less concerned about getting their purchase as quickly as possible... Читать дальше...

Giphy is looking to improve accessibility and help more people understand what the platform's GIFs are depicting with the help of alt text descriptions. It has teamed up with a content accessibility solutions provider called Scribely to add descriptive text to the platform's content. Screen readers will be able to read the alt text aloud, which will help visually impaired folks to know what's happening in a GIF.

CD Projekt Red is shutting down The Witcher: Monster Slayer, its Pokémon Go-style mobile title released last year. The game will start winding down at the end of January before going offline for good at the end of June.

Since Amazon first announced its Luna cloud gaming service in 2020, Ubisoft has been one of the company’s closest partners. The publisher embraced the service early and came out of the gate with a dedicated channel. Now the two companies are deepening their partnership with an expansion of what you can do with Luna.

YouTube is rolling out Twitch-style custom global emotes for comments and live chats. Threeindependentillustrators created the first batch of emotes, which are focused on gaming, though it appears that they work on any type of channel. YouTube plans to develop emotes for other types of communities in the future.

Meta thrives on ad targeting, but it may have to tone down its use of the technology in Europe. The Wall Street Journalsources claim the EU's European Data Protection Board (EDPB) has ruled that Meta can't require users to accept personalized ads. You could opt out of targeted ads on Facebook or Instagram if you'd rather not have the social networks track your activity. You can already decline customized ads using data from third-party apps and sites.

Snapchat is testing out a new way for its augmented reality lens creators to make money from their creations. The company is experimenting with a new feature that will allow creators to sell paid upgrades to lenses with Snapchat’s in-app currency .

Amazon has rolled out another round of discounts on Samsung storage devices, dropping various microSD cards and SSDs we recommend to their lowest prices to date. Among the highlights, the 1TB version of Samsung's 980 Pro SSD is down to $100, which is about $25 off its average street price over the last few months and beats its Black Friday pricing by $10. (Amazon mistakenly lists this as the standard 980 SSD, but it's the upgraded model.) This deal is also available at B&H. 

You don't need Spotify or a dedicated app to try karaoke at home. Apple Music has introduced a Sing feature that lets you take over the vocals. You can not only adjust the voice levels, but use multiple lyric views depending on what you want to belt out — you can perform a duet or even handle background duties. Apple also notes that the lyric views are now cued to the beat and light up slowly, so it's easier to know when you should draw out a verse.

Many Elden Ring fans are hoping to hear news of an expansion for the blockbuster title at The Game Awards this week. Publisher Bandai Namco has jumped the gun a bit by announcing a free multiplayer-focused update, which will go live on Wednesday.

The main thing that has put me off of playing more Valorant over the last couple of years is the length of matches. Riot Games is looking to do something about that with a shorter casual mode that it's starting to test in the game's public build.

The long-running squabble between Amazon and HBO appears to be over. Amazon and Warner Bros. Discovery have returned HBO Max to Prime Video Channels in the US. Pay $15 per month and you'll have access to House of the Dragon and other shows from within Prime Video — you won't have to manage separate apps or subscriptions. This will also provide access to the unified HBO Max and Discovery+ service (possibly called "Max") when it goes live in 2023. Discovery+ has been on Channels since 2021.

Whether you or someone you love is prone to losing things, or you just want the peace of mind of having a digital helper keep track of your stuff, Tile trackers are solid, inexpensive options that work with both iOS and Android devices. The company is having a holiday sale on Amazon at the moment that knocks 35 percent off a number of its 2022 trackers and bundles. You'll find the biggest discount on the Tile Sticker, which is down to just under $20, and you can get a pack of three Tile Mates... Читать дальше...

The White House and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing co. (TSMC) have announced plans to build a second chip plant in Arizona, AZCentral has reported. That will boost the company's investment in the state from $12 billion to $40 billion, while heavily reducing US reliance on semiconductor imports. 

Google is giving its search results on desktop the "continuous scrolling" treatment over a year after launching the feature on mobile. Continuous scrolling will eliminate the need to click "Next" or the page numbers at the bottom of your search results. Instead, Google will automatically load the next batch of results on the page once you've scrolled to the bottom of the current list. If you use Google on mobile, the feature will feel very familiar. 

While many phone fans in the US are intrigued with the Nothing Phone 1, with its transparent back and flashing glyph design, they couldn’t buy one. At least, not easily. It might be easier for its follow-up devices, though.

Yelp is offering users a more refined way to keep tabs on communications with service professionals when they have a problem to fix or want to make some home improvements. Through the Projects tab in the Yelp app, you'll be able to create, manage and organize jobs. Yelp says that you'll be able to use the feature to request quotes from businesses, compare prices, message contractors and schedule consultations.

After launching it in the US earlier this year, Apple's Self Service Repair program has arrived in eight European countries. Customers there will be able to perform many of the most common fixes on the iPhone 12 an iPhone 13 lineups, along with MacBooks with Apple silicon (not Intel models). "The Self Service Repair Store provides access to more than 200 individual parts and tools, as well as repair manuals," Apple said in a press release. 

More than a year after Meta asked the Oversight Board to weigh in on its cross-check rules, the group has finally published its full policy advisory on the topic. The board found that the program, which creates a separate content moderation process for certain high-profile users, prioritizes the company’s business over the rights of its users.

Apple violated federal law by holding mandatory "captive audience" meetings and making coercive statements with anti-union messaging, the National Labor Relations Board's (NLRB) Atlanta regional director has concluded. The workers at Apple's Cumberland Mall store filed for a union election with the NLRB earlier this year in a bid to join the Communications Workers of America (CWA). In May, however, they withdrew their petition, and the CWA submitted an Unfair Labor Practice complaint on their behalf. Читать дальше...

Waze is France's most popular navigation app, to the point that it was recently updated with three regional accents (Toulouse, Provençal and ch'ti). So it makes sense that Waze elected to partner with French automaker Renault to launch a new, dedicated version of the app for cars. It's available on infotainment systems via Google integration, starting with the Austral Hybrid and Megane E-Tech EV.