Category: Technology

Google will have to pay over $1 million to an executive who alleged the company discriminated against her based on her gender and later retaliated when she spoke up about it. Ulku Rowe, a Google Cloud engineering director, accused the company of hiring her at a lower level, lower paid position than men with less experience who were hired for similar roles at the same time, according to Bloomberg Law. She also claimed she was passed over for a promotion in favor of a less qualified male colleague.

A New York jury on Friday decided that Google did commit gender-based discrimination, and now owes Rowe a combined $1.15 million for punitive damages and the pain and suffering it caused. Rowe had 23 years of experience when she started at Google in 2017, and the lawsuit claims she was lowballed at hiring to place her at a level that paid significantly less than what men were being offered.

It comes nearly five years after some 20,000 Google employees organized a walkout to demand changes around the company’s handling of sexual misconduct and discrimination. While the company pledged to do better on sexual harassment, its response still left a lot to be desired on the topics of bias. According to Bloomberg Law, the Rowe lawsuit is the first such case Google has faced since the protests.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-ordered-to-pay-1-million-to-female-exec-who-sued-over-pay-discrimination-214702002.html?src=rss 

Blizzard hasn’t exactly been subtle in marketing Diablo IV, but its latest PR stunt is especially on the nose. To celebrate the release of the game’s new season, Season of Blood, and the high-payoff Blood Harvest events it introduced, Blizzard has launched a month-long blood drive in the US that’ll unlock in-game rewards as more people participate. Once donations reach 666 quarts altogether, players will be able to enter a sweepstakes for “a custom liquid-cooled PC infused with real human blood.”

The first tier of rewards, a batch of five weapons cosmetics, will unlock once donations hit 33 percent of the goal. At the 66 percent mark, players will also be granted access to the Loch Raeth Maor Barbarian armor cosmetic. When donations reach 100 percent of the goal — a total of 666 quarts of blood — the Vermilion Eye Piebald Mount will become available, and the sweepstakes for the custom PC will open.

Aside from the whole “human blood in the coolant” gimmick, the Seasons of Blood custom PC features NVIDIA’s GeForce RTX 4090, an Intel Core i9 CPU, 64GB of DDR5 RAM, 3 TB SSD Storage, and the Quantum Vector GPU Waterblock for cooling. And, the sweepstakes won’t just be reserved for those who donated. Once the goal is met, any player in the US over 18 can enter. The blood drive is open from now through November 20, and you don’t need to go anywhere special to get in on it. Players 18+ can donate at their local blood centers, then submit proof on the Diablo Blood Harvest website.

A typical blood donation is 1 pint, so it’ll take a little over 1,300 donations to hit the final goal. Players can keep track of the blood drive’s progress by visiting the above website and its motivational fountain of gushing blood. At the time of writing, it’s already at 15 percent — or almost halfway to the first goal. 

Considering the Red Cross recently announced we’re in the middle of a blood shortage, it’s maybe not the worst idea. All of the rewards will be doled out a few days after the blood drive closes, on November 22. Happy harvest!

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/blizzard-will-raffle-off-a-human-blood-infused-pc-if-diablo-iv-players-donate-666-quarts-192828807.html?src=rss 

The high-end Roomba s9+ may normally be too expensive for most people to justify spending on a robot vacuum, but a one-day-only deal has shaved the price nearly in half, bringing it down to an all time low of $500. If you’ve been holding off on buying the premium model, which we ranked as one of the best robot vacuums out there, now’s the time to scoop it up.

The Roomba s9+ is a splurge in every sense of the word, and boasts 40x the suction power of iRobot’s more basic vacuums. Its 1.5-foot-tall self-emptying base holds up to 60 days worth of waste. And with a sleek, black and copper design, it isn’t an eyesore. The s9+ is D-shaped, as opposed to being fully circular, meaning its flat edge can more effectively get into corners. We found the s9+ paired quickly with WiFi and the iRobot app for an easy setup, and wasn’t unreasonably loud when it emptied its bin.

The vacuum works on carpets and hard floors, and has multi-surface rubber brushes to handle more difficult types of debris, like hair. It also promises to filter out microscopic particles and allergens like those that might be accumulating around the house from your pets. But, while it’s meant to excel at cleaning up pet hair, its sensors aren’t made for spotting and avoiding pet poop. It does, however, have “Careful Driver” technology to avoid slamming into objects while it cleans. At the current discount, the s9+ offers premium cleaning power at a mid-range price.

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This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/irobots-roomba-s9-robot-vacuum-is-down-to-its-best-price-yet-163052747.html?src=rss 

SpaceX is planning to launch as many rockets as it can over the next two-and-a-half months in an attempt to fly 100 flights by the end of the year, company exec Bill Gerstenmaier recently told the US Senate Subcommittee on Space and Science. He also revealed that the company has an even more ambitious goal for 2024: To launch around 12 flights a month, for a total of 144 missions for the whole year. According to a company official who talked to Ars Technica, SpaceX intends to ramp up its mission numbers next year, mostly so that it could officially roll out its satellite-to-cell phone service. 

“With our 2 million users, (we) need that constellation refreshed,” the spokesperson told Ars. “We’re also going to look at direct to cell communications with Starlink, and that’s a key feature that gets added next year with those 144 flights.”

The company first announced the service, which will allow normal smartphones to connect with its satellites, back in 2022. It made the revelation alongside T-Mobile, which promised to make the capability accessible to its subscribers. T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert likened the technology to putting a cellular tower in the sky and said it could eliminate deadzones one day, allowing people to easily get in touch with loved ones even if they’re in the middle of the ocean. SpaceX VP of Starlink enterprise sales Jonathan Hofeller also said earlier this year that the company is gearing up to start testing the service. 

As Ars notes, SpaceX previously said that the capability will require larger satellites that will launch onboard the company’s Starship vehicle. The giant rocket is yet to be operational, though, and the company had to design an intermediate-sized Starlink satellite that can fly on its Falcon 9 rockets. That satellite is bigger than older models but smaller than the ones needed to enable voice and data services. SpaceX doesn’t have plans to roll out Starlink voice and data until 2025, though, and will introduce its direct-to-cell capability with texting coverage only next year. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/spacex-will-ramp-up-its-launches-in-2024-for-starlinks-satellite-to-cell-service-133050178.html?src=rss 

As expected, the Supreme Court will weigh in on a controversial case attempting to limit contact between federal officials and social media companies. The case could have sweeping implications for how social media companies make policy and content moderation decisions.

The case stems from a lawsuit, brought by the attorneys general of Missouri and Louisiana, that alleges Biden Administration officials, the CDC and FBI overreached in their dealings Meta, Google and Twitter as the companies responded to pandemic and election-related misinformation. A lower court previously issued an injunction that severely limited government officials’ ability to communicate with social media companies, though some restrictions were later relaxed.

Now, with the Supreme Court agreeing to hear the government’s appeal in the case, the entire lower court order remains on hold. As The New York Times notes, three justices, Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch, dissented, calling the decision to allow the lower court order to remain paused “highly disturbing.”

It’s not the only case involving free speech and social media on the Supreme Court docket this term. The court will also take on two landmark cases that could reshape how social media platforms enforce content moderation rules. Those cases involve two state laws, in Texas and Florida, that would prevent social media companies from removing certain types of posts.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-supreme-court-will-hear-case-on-governments-contacts-with-social-media-companies-224551081.html?src=rss 

Twitch will now allow its users to stream concurrently on other live video sites. The announcement was made at TwitchCon in Las Vegas, just as it dropped new simulcasting guidelines. The company emphasized that simulcasting is permitted as long as the “Twitch user experience is not compromised” on other platforms. 

Back in August, Twitch relaxed its rules on cross-streaming, allowing channels to have their live content appear on social media apps like TikTok and Instagram. In terms of what new competitor services are kosher now, Twitch’s language is broad — citing that “any service” is on the table. The lone exception appears to be channels which have signed exclusivity contracts with Twitch.

The new approach to simulcasting might seem to hurt the company’s bottom line. A live streaming platform wants more entertainers, so, why allow users to take their content elsewhere? The move might be a response to several big-name streamers jumping ship and signing deals with competitors in the space — YouTube specifically. It’s pure speculation, but perhaps handing creators additional revenue streams with no strings attached might be enough to keep major players on board, and medium-sized streamers happier with their income.

Twitch has been trying to update policies across the board to keep both its users and investors happy. The company just attempted to address off-platform doxxing, and it has even dabbled with machine learning programs that can moderate chats. It also introduced new features borrowed from other social media companies, like stories and feeds.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/twitch-will-allow-simulcasting-to-competitor-streaming-platforms-222133289.html?src=rss 

You can’t trust everything on a Wikipedia page, which is why it’s important that you refer to the original sources cited in the footnotes. But sometimes, even the primary sources can lead you astray. Researchers have developed an AI focused on improving the reliability of Wikipedia references by training the algorithms to identify citations on the website that are questionable.

The program, called SIDE, does two things: check if a primary source is accurate and suggest new ones. However, the AI operates under the assumption that a Wikipedia claim is true. This means that, while it can check for the validity of a source, it can’t actually verify claims made in an entry.

In a study, people preferred the AI’s suggested citations to the original 70 percent of the time. The researchers found that in nearly 50 percent of the cases, SIDE presented a source that was already being used by Wikipedia as the top reference. And 21 percent of the time, SIDE was one step ahead when it churned out a recommendation that was already deemed appropriate by human annotators in the study.

While the AI appears to demonstrate it can effectively help an editor verify Wikipedia claims, the researchers admit that alternative programs could outperform their current design in both quality and speed. SIDE is limited in its capabilities — namely, the program only considers references corresponding to web pages. In reality, Wikipedia cites books, scientific articles and info presented through other media beyond text like images and video. But beyond its technical limits, the whole premise of Wikipedia is that any writer anywhere could assign a reference to a topic. The researchers suggest that the use of Wikipedia itself could be limiting to the study. They allude that individuals who plug citations into the website could permeate bias depending on the nature of the topics in question.

Meanwhile, we all know that any program, especially an AI that is dependent on training, could be prone to the exposure of the biases of its programmer. The data used to train and evaluate SIDE’s models could be limited in that regard. But still, the benefits of using AI to streamline fact-checking, or at least use it as a supportive tool, could have reverberating applications elsewhere. Wikipedia and social media companies alike need to contend with bad actors and bots that flood digital town squares with false information. This is especially true and important now more than ever, in the wake of misinformation spreading around the Israel-Hamas war and the upcoming presidential elections in the US. The need to mitigate misinformation online could be catalyzed with AI tools, like SIDE, designed for this exact purpose. But there are still some advances that need to be made before it can.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/study-shows-ai-program-could-verify-wikipedia-citations-improving-reliability-184543711.html?src=rss 

During the TwitchCon Las Vegas Opening Ceremony on Friday, Twitch CEO Dan Clancy made an important announcement regarding the platform’s off-service conduct policy. Starting now, Twitch will take action against users who doxx and swat others outside of its own platform.

Doxxing (publishing someone’s personal information such as their full name and address) and swatting (making a prank call to dispatch emergency services to someone’s home) have long been problems in the livestreaming community. Now, if Twitch catches a streamer or other user doxxing or swatting someone on another platform or even offline, it may suspend or ban their account.

Twitch started enforcing its off-service conduct policy in April 2021. At the time, it said it would respond to serious incidents that “pose a substantial safety risk to the Twitch community” even if those happen away from its own platform. Before it makes any enforcement actions related to off-platform activity, Twitch requires evidence of such incidents taking place.

The policy covers issues such as sexual misconduct, terrorist activity and recruitment, explicit or credible threats of mass violence and being a leader or member of a known hate group. The platform also takes action related to threats against Twitch and its staff, as well as those who share harmful misinformation. Adding doxxing and swatting to the list is a long-overdue move given the serious and occasionally even deadly nature of such actions.

Twitch had some other safety-related announcements to make at TwitchCon. Streamers and mods will soon be able to anonymously send warnings to chatters who step out of line. The chatter in question will need to acknowledge the warning before they can type in the chat box again. Twitch notes that many streamers have an informal three-strike system in place to keep their communities safe, and this channel-level chat warning feature aligns with that.

Earlier this year, Twitch started testing an AutoMod feature called Smart Detection. This tweaks AutoMod (a tool that automatically keeps inappropriate content out of stream chats) based on the moderation actions that streamers and their mods make. Smart Detection is now live on all English-language channels. Twitch plans to roll it out more broadly in the future.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/twitchs-off-service-conduct-policy-finally-covers-doxxing-and-swatting-193222663.html?src=rss 

We’re in the awkward stretch between Amazon’s October Prime Day sale and Black Friday, but if you can’t wait a few more weeks to start your holiday shopping, there are a few notable tech deals you can take advantage of today. Premium TVs like Samsung S90C and TCL QM8 are both down to new all-time lows, for instance, as is the budget-level Hisense U6K. If you want a new set of wireless earbuds, the Lightning version of the AirPods Pro is $60 off Apple’s list price, while the wallet-friendly Jabra Elite 3 is down to a low of $40. We’re also seeing discounts on Anker wall chargers, recommended gaming laptops and more. Here are the best tech deals from this week that you can still get today.

Samsung S90C

The 55-inch Samsung S90C has dropped to $1,298, which is a new low and roughly $150 below the sale price we saw earlier this month. This OLED TV has received near–unanimous praise for delivering the high contrast, smooth motion and wide viewing angles expected from a good OLED set without sacrificing as much in the way of peak brightness and color saturation. That’s because it uses a QD-OLED panel, which mixes OLED tech with a quantum-dot layer. The big benefit is that it’ll hold up better in a brightly-lit room compared to a standard OLED TV (though it won’t get as bright as the best LCD sets). The S90C is also well-equipped for gaming, as it has four HDMI 2.1 ports that can support up to a 144Hz refresh rate in 4K. The main drawbacks are that it doesn’t support Dolby Vision HDR (like all Samsung TVs) and that its default Tizen software can be somewhat clunky.

TCL QM8

If your living room is particularly affected by glare, the TCL QM8 is a well–reviewed LCD TV with higher peak brightness alongside quantum dots and similar gaming features. It also uses a mini-LED backlight to help with contrast, though it won’t look as color-rich as a good OLED TV, and its viewing angles are narrower. Right now the 65-inch model is down to $901, which is a new low and about $200 off its usual street price. The Hisense U8K, another LCD TV that’s received similarly high marks, is also worth noting, though the 65-inch version of that TV currently costs $1,098.

Hisense U6K

Moving closer to the budget side of the market, the 75-inch Hisense U6K is on sale for $698, which is another all-time low and $100 less than its usual street price in recent months. This is a much more basic LCD TV compared to the QM8, so it won’t look as vibrant, it’s limited to a 60Hz refresh rate and it lacks HDMI 2.1 ports altogether. That said, it’s far more affordable, and it’s one of the few entry-level TVs to support mini-LED backlighting, full-array local dimming and quantum-dot color. Reviews elsewhere suggest those features help it provide better contrast and color than most TVs in its price range. It also uses the Google TV platform, which we’ve found simple to use. Like most budget TVs, though, it’ll look washed out when viewed from an angle. If a 75-inch set is too big, the 55- and 65-inch models are still available for the lows we saw earlier this month.

Anker wall charger sale

A handful of quality wall chargers from Anker are on sale this week. The Anker 736 Charger, for one, is down to $43 from its usual $60. This is a larger model meant for laptops or multi-device charging, as it has two USB-C ports that can individually output up to 100W alongside a USB-A port. The Anker 735 Charger, meanwhile, has a similar port selection that tops out at 65W but comes in a smaller overall package; it’s down to $40, which is a $20 discount. For less strenuous needs, the Anker 511 Charger is closer in size to an old iPhone charger and packs a single 30W USB-C port. That one is on sale for $17, which is about $3 less than usual. Finally, you can get a two-pack of the Anker PowerPort III 20W Cube for $14, which is around a $4 discount. That one has a similarly tiny shape as the 511 but tops out at 20W, which may be enough if you only need it for a non-Pro iPhone.

Apple AirPods Pro

The Lightning version of Apple’s second-gen AirPods Pro is back on sale for $189. That matches the all-time low we saw during Amazon’s Prime Big Deal Days sale earlier this month and comes in $10 below the earphones’ typical street price in recent months. The AirPods Pro are the “best for iOS” pick in our wireless earbuds buying guide and earned an Engadget review score of 88 late last year. They continue to offer a pleasingly warm sound profile, effective noise cancellation, an excellent transparency mode and a host of helpful integrations with other Apple devices. A recent update added a useful “Adaptive Audio” mode as well. Do note, though, that Apple released a refreshed model with a USB-C charging case (as well as improved dust resistance) last month. That one isn’t on sale as of this writing, though we may see a discount as we get closer to Black Friday.

Govee M1 LED Strip Lights

Govee’s M1 LED Strip Lights are on sale for $70 at Amazon with a $30 coupon, matching the lowest price we’ve seen. This is a 16.4-foot strip you can cut up and adhere around your house for some colorful ambient lighting. Its colors are bright and saturated, and through Govee’s app you can apply several different effects to separate parts of one strip. If you ever want to give a room a more clubby vibe, it can also sync with music. Alexa, the Google Assistant and the new Matter smart home standard are all supported. Just note that it can be something of an eyesore when it’s not active, so you may not want to stick it right out in the open. We currently recommend the M1 in our guide to the best smart light bulbs.

Jabra Elite 3

Jabra’s Elite 3 earphones are down to $40 at Best Buy, which matches their all-time low and falls about $25 below their average street price. We gave this wireless pair a review score of 88 back in 2021, and we currently recommend it in our guide to the best budget wireless earbuds. For less than $50, its modestly bass-boosted sound still impresses, while its compact design, snug fit and IP55-rated water resistance make it a fine choice for workouts. Battery life is decent as well at seven or so hours per charge. It’s a bit short on features, though, as there’s no wireless charging, wear detection, multi-device pairing or active noise cancellation.

Keychron V3

The tenkeyless Keychron V3 mechanical keyboard is down to $69, which is about $15 less than its typical going rate. Amazon also has it on sale for $5 more. This is a recommendation from our guide to the best gaming keyboards, as we consider it a great entry point for those looking to get into mechanical keyboards as a hobby. It’s sturdily put together, compatible with all the major operating systems and configurable with a handful of comfortable switches. (Broadly speaking, the tactile K Pro Brown is best for typing, while the linear K Pro Red is faster for gaming.) Those switches come pre-lubed, so presses have a smooth and full sensation out of the box, while the PBT-coated keycaps feel crisp and stable. It’s not dead quiet, but it’s not super loud either. It’s also hot-swappable, so customizing the keys and switches down the road is fairly straightforward. 

Samsung Evo Select 

The 512GB version of Samsung’s Evo Select microSD card is back on sale for $30, which is $2 more than the deal we saw during Amazon’s Prime Big Deal Days sale but still $5 lower than its usual street price. The Evo Select is the “best value” pick in our microSD card buying guide: It’s not the fastest card we tested, but it’s perfectly adequate for those looking to boost the storage of a Nintendo Switch, Steam Deck or Raspberry Pi at a low cost. The Samsung Pro Plus will technically perform better if you can pony up another $5, but that card isn’t priced any cheaper than usual.

MSI Stealth 14 Studio

A configuration of MSI’s Stealth 14 Studio laptop with an Intel Core i7-13620H processor, an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 GPU, 16GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD is down to $1,200 at Best Buy. That’s the lowest price we’ve seen for this model and $300 off its MSRP. We gave the Stealth 14 Studio a review score of 87 back in June, praising its striking and relatively light (3.75 pounds) design, solid speakers and capable performance for everyday gaming. This is a lower-end config than the one we reviewed — the CPU is slightly slower, while the 14-inch display has a lower 1,920 x 1,200 resolution and 165Hz refresh rate — but the same general sentiments apply. The main downsides are its middling 720p webcam and the fact that it can run hot under duress. You still won’t get a ton of battery life from a gaming laptop like this either. But if you want a more portable machine for gaming and media editing, there’s good value here. We currently recommend the Stealth 14 Studio in our guide to the best Windows laptops.

ASUS ROG Zephyrus G14

The ASUS ROG Zephyrus G14 is the top overall gaming pick in that guide, and it’s now on sale for the same price at Best Buy. The model discounted here includes an AMD Ryzen 9 7940HS chip, a GeForce RTX 4060 GPU, 16GB of RAM, a 512GB SSD and a 14-inch, 1440p, 165Hz display. At $400 off ASUS’ list price, this deal marks an all-time low. The G14’s pitch is similar to the Stealth 14 Studio: It’s a compact gaming laptop that doesn’t totally sacrifice the “laptop” part. It’s powerful enough to run modern games, but it’s not an anchor at 3.64 pounds, and its keyboard and trackpad are comfortable. Whether you should get it over the MSI config above likely comes down to your willingness to trade storage space for a higher-res display. The G14 also has more ports, including two for USB-C and two for USB-A, though the Stealth 14 Studio includes a Thunderbolt 4 connector, which may be important if you ever want to use an external GPU.

Sonos Move

Sonos has its first-gen Move speaker down to $299, which is a $100 discount and matches an all-time low. This deal comes with a major caveat, as Sonos replaced the Move with the upgraded Move 2 earlier this year. We found the new model to deliver improved sound quality and far superior battery life in our review; other upgrades include a redesigned set of touch controls and line-in support (with an optional adapter). If you can spend another $150 — or wait for a potential sale — you should get that device instead. If you can’t, though, the broad strokes of the original Move are similar: It’s still a hefty yet portable speaker with balanced sound, a weather-resistant design and all the usual Sonos perks. It still pairs easily with other Sonos speakers and can connect to a range of streaming services, plus it supports AirPlay 2, Alexa and the Google Assistant. Its battery just lasts closer to 10 hours instead of 20 like the Move 2.

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This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/samsung-tcl-and-hisense-tvs-fall-to-new-lows-plus-the-rest-of-the-weeks-best-tech-deals-160856325.html?src=rss 

Mic modeling has come a long way in just a few years, and modern software plugins, to these ears, get quite close to the real deal. Universal Audio has been at the forefront of this technology for a while and now the company’s released a new condenser microphone that integrates with its equally new Hemisphere mic modeling plugin.

The SC-1 is a large diaphragm condenser microphone, operating as part of the company’s Standard Series that also includes the pre-existing SD-1 and SP-1. The SC-1 launches alongside the Hemisphere plugin that gives users digital access to a full range of classic mics from big-time companies like Neumann, Telefunken, AKG, Sony and others. The plugin uses a similar technology to the company’s Sphere line of modeling microphones, but with a drastic reduction in cost, as the SC-1 costs $500 and Sphere microphones range from $800 to $1,400.

The Hemisphere plugin lets you instantly audition different microphones to suit the take, tweak proximity, adjust filters and more. All of these adjustments can be done before recording or afterward, just like with the Sphere line. One benefit the SC-1 boasts over the Sphere line is that it requires just a single XLR input, while Sphere microphones require two to properly capture that stereo field.

The Hemisphere modeling plugin also extends to those other Standard Series mics, like the SP-1 pencil microphone and the SD-1 dynamic microphone. As for the SC-1 itself, it’s a standard no-frills large-diaphragm condenser with an extended dynamic range and a frequency response from 20 Hz to 20 kHz. There’s also an emphasis on low self-noise output, which makes it easier to transform via the numerous modeling options.

Universal Audio’s SC-1 is available for preorder right now and ships later in the fall. The microphone includes the Hemisphere modeling plugin, so your wallet won’t have to double dip. Additionally, the plugin is a free upgrade for existing SD-1 and SP-1 owners.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/universal-audios-sc-1-condenser-microphone-comes-with-new-modeling-software-153349656.html?src=rss