Category: Technology

I recently came back from a trip and the whole journey home I had one goal: find an outlet. My phone was at about 30 percent by the time I got to the airport, so I searched for outlets across the terminal and then worried about finding access on the train back home. All of this stress was simply because I didn’t bring my Anker Nano Power Bank with me. 

Now, I have the option with a lightning charger, but, if you’re also traveling quite a bit (or even often out all day), then check out the sale on Anker’s Nano Power Bank with Built-in USB-C Connector. Right now, the power bank is 33 percent off, down to $20 from $30. This deal brings it to just about $4 more than its record-low price last Black Friday. 

We’ve rated the Anker Nano Power Bank with Built-In USB-C as the best portable charger for Android devices (though it’s also great for the iPhone 15 and 16). It’s compact enough to fit in a small purse or a pocket and doesn’t require any cord attached to it. We found the 5,000mAh battery had enough juice to charge a Galaxy S23 Ultra to 65 percent in about an hour, so it works best for a quick boost while you’re running around. Plus, you can see how much battery is left thanks to four indicator lights on its front. 

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This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/pick-up-this-anker-5k-usb-c-power-bank-while-its-only-20-143636981.html?src=rss 

With TikTok likely just days away from being banned in the US, the app’s users are pushing some previously little-known apps to the top of Apple and Google’s stores. The app that has so far seemed to benefit the most is a Chinese social media app called “RedNote” or Xiaohongshu, which translates to “little red book.” 

The TikTok-like app for shortform video is currently the number one app in Apple’s App Store and is in the 34th spot in Google’s Play Store. RedNote has been gaining popularity as many TikTok creators have begun posting about their experiences trying out the Chinese app. Meanwhile, over on RedNote, a number of creators have shared videos about welcoming “TikTok refugees” to the service.

The app is set up very much like TikTok, with the ability to vertically scroll through feeds of shortform videos based on your interests. Much of the app’s interface is in Chinese, so it can be a bit confusing to navigate, though there are some helpful videos on TikTok that explain how to change the app’s language to English.

While RedNote seems to have come out of nowhere, the app has been popular in China for years. CNBC reports that the more than decade-old app is seen as a challenger to ByteDance’s Douyin and e-commerce giant Alibaba, with about 300 million users.

RedNote isn’t the only app that’s been boosted by anxious TikTok users. Another ByteDance app, Lemon8, is also trending in both Apple and Google’s stores, where it’s in the second and first spot, respectively. But while TikTok itself has at times boosted the app, Lemon8 will likely face the same fate as TikTok should the Supreme Court side with the Biden Administration, which seems likely.

Another video app called Flip, which describes itself as “where social meets shopping,” is also trending in both app stores. The app, from Los Angeles-based Humans, Inc., features shortform videos and an in-app storefront. It’s currently ranked number 14 in Google’s store and number four in Apple’s. The company was valued at more than $1 billion last year, according to Crunchbase.

Another app that has seemingly benefited from the impending TikTok ban is something called “ReelShort.” While the app’s name sounds like a play on Instagram’s reels and YouTube Shorts — both of which are well established TikTok clones — the app seems to be less of a TikTok clone and more of a wannabe streaming platform. The app features bite-sized clips of longer “movies” with bizarre titles like “The Heiress Blacklisted her Husband” and “In Love with the Alpha.” ReelShort is number seven in the App Store number two in Google Play.

While it’s unlikely any of these apps will remain popular for long, the fact that so many relatively unknown apps have risen to the top of the app stores so quickly is yet another sign of how influential TikTok’s users and creators can be. It also highlights how banning TikTok alone won’t curb the influence of Chinese tech companies in the US.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/chinese-social-media-app-rednote-is-the-number-one-app-as-tiktok-ban-looms-235929802.html?src=rss 

Alarmo, the most important hardware announcement Nintendo’s made in the last year, will soon be available to a lot more people. Nintendo says the motion-tracking alarm clock will be able to be purchased “in stores at participating retailers” in March, without the need for a Nintendo Switch Online subscription or a visit to a physical Nintendo store.

Nintendo’s alarm clock originally launched in October 2024. It combines beloved sound effects from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Super Mario Odyssey, and Pikmin 4 with motion sensors that can track your tossing and turning. This gives the Alarmo some rudimentary sleep tracking features, and morning alarms that can get louder the more you flop around, only stopping when you actually sit up.

As Engadget’s review found, Alarmo is pricey at $100, and not particularly great as a sleep tracker. The alarm clock can only track one person at a time, which keeps anyone who shares a bed from accessing its most charming feature. But if you’re weak to Nintendo nostalgia or have a child who’s already a fan, the clock is a cute way to start your morning routine.

In March, retailers will only have Alarmo “while supplies last,” but hopefully by then, die-hard Nintendo fans will already be saving up for their next big purchase.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/smart-home/nintendos-goofy-alarm-clock-will-be-available-to-everyone-in-march-222912137.html?src=rss 

Meta appeared to be blocking links to Pixelfed, a decentralized photo-sharing platform, on Facebook, according to both users on Bluesky and 404 Media. Any post that linked to “pixelfed.social” was deleted, with Facebook’s “Community Standards on spam” used as a justification.

When asked to comment, a Meta spokesperson said removing the posts was a mistake and that they’d be reinstated.

Pixelfed runs on the ActivityPub protocol and is part of the wider “fediverse” of decentralized posting platforms. It functions a lot like Instagram in its ability to let you share, like, and comment on images, but because its on ActivityPub, your posts could show up in other apps or be ported to entirely different takes on photo sharing if you want. Meta is slowly adopting parts of ActivityPub into Threads, which makes it possible to post to Threads and Mastodon at the same time, for example.

The timing of these deletions is enough to make anyone suspicious. Meta just announced pretty dramatic changes to how it plans to moderate speech on its platforms. The company decided to end both its third-party fact checking program and change its Hateful Conduct policy last week. The company’s loosening standards now allow for speech that would be defined as hateful under any normal circumstance, based on what Wired was able to dig up. 

It’s not unreasonable to imagine users might consider jumping ship to an alternative like Pixelfed in response, and the platform did share on Saturday that it was “seeing unprecedented levels of traffic to pixelfed.social.” It’s also not unreasonable to imagine the new right-leaning Meta might preemptively block its competitors, just like X did with links to Mastodon and Substack. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/meta-admits-it-deleted-links-to-decentralized-instagram-competitor-pixelfed-194624098.html?src=rss 

Samsung just announced new sleep-tracking tools available via the company’s Health app. This includes a new analysis tool that leverages other SmartThings enabled devices. Each morning, users receive a “sleep environment report” that takes factors like temperature, humidity, air quality and light intensity into account.

The app will also let folks automatically adjust room settings via the aforementioned connected devices. This should help people “create the ideal sleep environment.”

There’s another tool called “sleep time guidance” that suggests the optimal bedtime and wake-up time for each individual user. This is determined by analyzing sleep patterns, nightly habits and room conditions. Finally, the app now includes a new mindfulness tracker that helps manage “mood, breathing and stress levels.”

The company also made some announcements regarding the Galaxy Ring, just ahead of Samsung Unpacked on January 22. New sizes of the smart ring will be available for purchase on that date, which include two larger variants. This brings the number of available ring sizes to 11, with three color options. Additionally, the device is coming to new regions. These countries include Greece, Singapore, Japan, Taiwan and many more.

This news likely indicates that there won’t be a Galaxy Ring 2 announced at Unpacked. Instead, the event should focus on new smartphones and (of course) AI junk, er, I mean tools.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/smart-home/samsung-introduces-new-sleep-tracking-metrics-that-take-advantage-of-smartthings-enabled-devices-182052999.html?src=rss 

I think it’s safe to say that most humans on this planet are growing, how can I put this lightly, weary of the current billionaire stewards of our social media ecosystem. X is a hateful mess. Meta is trying to become a hateful mess. TikTok is likely on its way out. Social media is just not that fun or useful anymore.

However, a cadre of celebrities and notable ex-Twitter users are trying to “save social media from billionaire capture” by creating something called FreeOurFeeds. These folks want to build a new social media ecosystem, one that is focused on the public good instead of profit-driven incentives, as reported by User Mag.

Some of the big names behind this project include actor Mark Ruffalo, actor/director Alex Winter and sci-fi writer/journalist Cory Doctorow. Brian Eno is involved, as is Jimmy Wales (the founder of Wikipedia.) The plan involves building new social media apps on top of the pre-existing AT Protocol, which is a decentralized framework that Bluesky runs on. This would ostensibly give users significant control over their data, algorithms and the entire online experience.

“The last two decades have seen the world sleepwalk into a situation where a handful of companies dictate our entire social media experience. Now, for the first time we have an opportunity to rewrite the rules. Bluesky’s underlying technology, the AT protocol, could offer a new pathway for the social web.” said Sherif Elsayed-Ali, Executive Director of the Future of Technology Institute.

There are a couple of major hurdles here. Bluesky is still backed by venture capital, so the team has to raise money to ensure the underlying technology is put “on an independent pathway, so that the future of social media can be freed from the whims of any one company or group of billionaires.”

The foundation also requires money to start building critical infrastructure. All told, the organization hopes to raise $30 million over the next three years. There’s a GoFundMe right now, with the intent to raise an initial $4 million. Initial funds will be spent to launch a public interest foundation that will attempt to make “Bluesky’s underlying tech fully resistant to billionaire capture.”

Before you dismiss this notion as a bunch of rich celebrities holding out a donation can, let’s remember that even the wealthiest celebrity doesn’t hold a handle to the billionaires that control the levers of power. Mark Ruffalo, likely the most notable member of the group, is worth around $30 million and Alex Winter is worth $4 million.

Elon Musk is worth $416 billion and Mark Zuckerberg’s worth is creeping up on $220 billion. Musk is worth, wait for it, around 14,000 times more than Ruffalo. The difference between million and billion is pretty serious.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/celebs-and-tech-luminaries-including-mark-ruffalo-want-to-create-a-fully-open-social-media-ecosystem-174641161.html?src=rss 

At a time when Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg have shown that the whims of one person can upend an entire social network, Mastodon’s CEO and creator, Eugen Rochko, is heading the opposite direction. In a blog post published today, the Mastodon team announced its intention to let a new nonprofit organization take over the company. In other words, Rochko is voluntarily handing over the reins to the service he founded almost a decade ago.

The company took some actions towards forming a US-based non-profit itself a year ago, and that entity will continue to exist as a “fundraising hub.” However, the company as a whole will continue to headquarter its operations overseas. “We are taking the time to select the appropriate jurisdiction and structure in Europe,” the company wrote, “Then we will determine which other (subsidiary) legal structures are needed to support operations and sustainability.” Mastodon says the restructuring will take place within the next six months.

Rochko has made his stance against Musk clear. He told Musk to “get off the internet” two years ago. He has also called the recent Meta moderation changes “deeply troubling.” While Mastodon has not been as obvious a player in terms of raw user numbers as, say, Threads or Bluesky in the post-X restructuring of social media, Mastodon might still find the most moral path forward.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/mastodon-will-soon-be-owned-by-a-nonprofit-entity-170009789.html?src=rss