Category: Technology

Apple and Sony have quietly been working on bringing PlayStation VR2 controller support to the Apple Vision Pro, Mark Gurman reports in the Power On newsletter. Gaming isn’t exactly the Vision Pro’s strong suit, thanks in part to the fact that it doesn’t support typical VR controllers. But Apple has reportedly approached Sony in hopes to remedy that. According to Gurman, the two partnered up earlier this year, and Sony has been working on the project for months.

Apple and Sony planned to have support for PS VR2’s Sense controllers ready by now, but the launch has been delayed as they iron out a few issues, Gurman notes — like the fact that Sony doesn’t produce and sell the controllers separately from its headset at the moment. Barring a scenario in which the project is “abruptly scrapped,” though, Gurman reports that we should still expect to see it happen. The ability to use Sony’s controllers with the Vision Pro headset would bring benefits beyond its gaming potential too, allowing for more precise input for tasks like media editing than is currently possible with its eye and gesture-based controls.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/apple-vision-pro-could-soon-work-with-playstation-vr2-controllers-161547953.html?src=rss 

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) on Friday said it has ordered federal supervision of Google Payment Corp. after determining that it meets the legal requirements for such oversight. The CFPB monitors banks, credit unions and other financial institutions, and recently finalized a rule to supervise digital payment apps. In the order, which focuses on the Google Pay app and its peer-to-peer (P2P) payment service (discontinued in the US earlier this year), the CFPB said it has “reasonable cause to determine that Google has engaged in conduct that poses risks to consumers.” Google filed a lawsuit shortly after the announcement to challenge the decision, Reuters reports.

The risks identified by the CFPB are tied to Google’s handling of erroneous transactions and fraud prevention. Based on customer complaints, the order said it appears that Google didn’t adequately investigate erroneous transfers, or adequately explain the findings of its investigations into these issues. The complaints also indicate Google didn’t do enough to prevent fraud, the order says. But, the CFPB announcement notes that the order “does not constitute a finding that the entity has engaged in wrongdoing,” nor does it “require the CFPB to conduct a supervisory examination.”

In a statement to TechCrunch, a Google spokesperson said, “This is a clear case of government overreach involving Google Pay peer-to-peer payments, which never raised risks and is no longer provided in the U.S., and we are challenging it in court.” The CFPB’s order acknowledges that Google Pay was discontinued but says this is “not a basis to refrain from designating Google for supervision,” though it could affect whether it decides to conduct an examination.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/google-sues-after-consumer-financial-protection-bureau-orders-supervision-of-its-payment-arm-000829576.html?src=rss 

Senators Richard Blumenthal and Marsha Blackburn announced on Saturday that they’ve made changes to the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) with help from X to “strengthen the bill while safeguarding free speech online and ensuring it is not used to stifle expression.” The Senate passed the bill in July with a vote of 91-3, but it’s since stalled in the House, and its proponents are pushing for it to be passed before the end of the year. X’s CEO Linda Yaccarino also posted about the collaboration, and called for Congress and the House to pass the bill.

“After working with the bill authors, I’m proud to share that we’ve made progress to further protect freedom of speech while maintaining safety for minors online,” Yaccarino wrote in a post on X that was shared by the two senators. KOSA is meant to protect minors from “addictive” social media features and potentially dangerous content by placing a “duty of care” on the companies that own the platforms. But critics have argued that it could lead to censorship and other harms. The new changes, according to The Verge, clarify the conditions under which duty of care can be enforced and narrow its application around anxiety and depressive disorders, stating they must be “objectively verifiable” and tied to “compulsive usage.”

In their joint statement, Blumenthal (D-Connecticut) and Blackburn (R-Tennessee) said:

These changes should eliminate once and for all the false narrative that this bill would be weaponized by unelected bureaucrats to censor Americans. We thank Elon and Linda for their bold leadership and commitment to protecting children online and for helping us get this bill across the finish line this Congress. We appreciate that this endorsement and revised text reflects their publicly stated goal of furthering free speech without fear of censorship. We reiterate X’s call to pass KOSA by the end of the year — it is clear that this legislation has overwhelming support from Congress.

KOSA was first introduced in February 2022 and has faced opposition from groups including the ACLU and the Electronic Frontier Foundation. It’s been revised multiple times.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/x-helped-senators-update-the-kids-online-safety-act-so-it-cant-be-used-to-stifle-expression-221853260.html?src=rss 

New releases in fiction, nonfiction and comics that caught our attention this week.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/what-to-read-this-weekend-family-dysfunction-at-the-end-of-the-world-and-the-woman-who-challenged-victorian-medicine-200144632.html?src=rss 

A new game mode called Ballistic is coming to Fortnite in early access on December 11, bringing a 5v5 tactical first-person shooter experience. In Ballistic mode, one team will be tasked with planting a Rift Point Device — which will detonate 45 seconds after it’s placed — and the other team will have to stop that from happening. There will be one map (Skyline 10) to start and a limited selection of weapons and items, but more will be added down the line in “major updates” to come, according to a Fortnite blog post.

“Ballistic is a no-build mode,” the Fortnite team says. “All saved presets from your Locker will carry over into Ballistic, which supports existing Fortnite Outfits, Back Blings, Kicks, Wraps, Sprays, and Emotes! Pickaxes, Contrails, Instruments, Vehicles, and Jam Tracks are not used/supported.” If you get taken out during a round, you won’t be able to respawn. But, you’ll come back in the next round. The teams’ roles will swap after six rounds, and the match will end once one team has won seven rounds. You’ll be able to play Ranked or Unranked.

Ballistic mode will be available everywhere you can play Fortnite, except in South Korea and Russia, but the team says it’s “working to make Ballistic available in both regions.” Since it’s early access, players’ feedback will be used to improve the experience as it expands.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/fortnite-is-getting-a-5v5-first-person-shooter-mode-162200195.html?src=rss 

Now you’ve got one less thing you have to fish for in your pocket or purse at the airport. Starting today, Google Wallet can carry a digital copy of your US passport and use them at Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) checkpoints.

If you want to add your passport to Google’s virtual wallet, first you’ll need to download the Google Wallet app and log into your account or create one. Check the prompt “create an ID pass with your US passport” and follow the instructions. The app will ask you to take a video selfie to verify your identity and scan the security chip in your passport. It should only take a few minutes for Google to confirm your identity.

Your digital passport won’t work at every airport. Currently, there are 27 states (and Puerto Rico) with at least one airport that accepts digital forms of identification. The TSA website can show you which states and airports accept digital IDs.

Google has been testing the use and storage of digital passports in Google Wallet for some time. Several states have started accepting digital IDs just in the last few months. New Mexico is the newest state to accept digital IDs including driver’s licenses and state IDs in Apple Wallet and Google Wallet.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/google-wallet-can-now-hold-your-us-passport-215133683.html?src=rss 

It seems increasingly likely that Apple’s fourth-generation iPhone SE will feature the first 5G modem the company has built in-house. A new report from Bloomberg both confirms earlier reporting from 9to5Mac and clarifies that Apple’s first modem won’t be quite as capable as the chips the company is trying to leave behind.

The new modem, reportedly called “Sinope” won’t support mmWave, the short-range 5G technology Verizon offers that can theoretically reach speeds of up to 10 gigabits per second. It also will only offer four-carrier aggregation as opposed to Qualcomm’s six, “a technology that combines bands from several wireless providers simultaneously to increase network capacity and speeds,” Bloomberg says.

Apple’s modem will instead be focused on providing Sub-6 5G, the more common standard that’s already supported on the current iPhone SE, which was released in 2022. In testing, Apple’s new modem reportedly “caps out at download speeds of about 4 gigabits per second,” slower than Qualcomm’s current mmWave models, but the difference is easier to justify on a cheaper device and might not be that noticeable anyway. The goal is ultimately to achieve even tighter integration between the modem and other components of the phone to offer more important benefits than just download speed, like improved battery life.

Bloomberg writes that launching on the iPhone SE first is how Apple plans on managing the risks of its new hardware gamble. Debuting on the iPhone 17 Pro would be a mark of confidence, but most people expect a phone that costs upwards of $1000 to work without issues. Until Apple can guarantee that, the SE makes sense as a modem guinea pig. That won’t be the case for long, however. “Ganymede,” Apple’s second-generation modem, should be ready for the iPhone 18 in 2026 and match Qualcomm’s current offerings with mmWave support and faster download speeds. In 2027, the company’s “Prometheus” modem is aiming to surpass Qualcomm entirely in “performance and artificial intelligence features.”

A report published later today suggests these new modem designs could also have a pretty big influence on more than just the iPhone. Bloomberg attributes the thinness of the rumored iPhone 17 Slim to the space-saving efficiency of Apple’s new modem, and also suggests that future Macs and Vision headsets could get cellular connectivity in the future, too. This would mark the first time a Mac had onboard cellular, though the iPad has had the option since day one.

There’s still years before any of that happens, and the road to even get here has been long and winding. For one, Apple’s relationship with Qualcomm has been up and down. The companies were in a legal spat over patent violations that ultimately led to a settlement and a licensing deal in 2019. That same year is when Apple’s intention to move on from Qualcomm became more public with the purchase of Intel’s modem business. Apple has attempted to build a team that could create its first modem since then, and even re-upped its agreement to use Qualcomm modems through 2026 in 2023. It now seems like the company could be a position for that to be the last deal with Qualcomm it makes.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/the-next-iphone-ses-new-modem-reportedly-wont-be-as-capable-as-qualcomms-205330204.html?src=rss 

SpaceX completed its first Starlink direct-to-cell satellite constellation this week. On Wednesday, the company launched 20 satellites aboard a Falcon 9 rocket, 13 of which can communicate directly with cell phones without extra equipment.

The completed constellation follows the FCC’s approval of a deal between SpaceX and T-Mobile last week. The companies announced the partnership in 2022, touting plans for a future where phones can be connected to the world even in the middle of the ocean. SpaceX says the satellite constellation acts “like a cellphone tower in space, allowing network integration similar to a standard roaming partner.”

On Thursday, SpaceX posted on X that the direct-to-cell satellites will “immediately connect over laser backhaul to the Starlink constellation, eliminate dead zones and provide peace of mind when customers need it most.” The company sent and received its first text messages through T-Mobile’s network early this year.

The low-earth-orbit constellation has 6,799 operational satellites, and Space.com reports that about 330 can communicate directly with cell phones. On Thursday, Elon Musk said unmodified cell phones would enjoy a bandwidth of around 10Mbps per beam. He said future constellations will be capable of much greater throughput.

The companies will presumably go into more detail for consumers once Starlink Direct to Cell is available. It’s currently targeted for next year. However, the constellation isn’t locked into T-Mobile alone. Android Central reports that SpaceX senior director Ben Longmier said shortly after the deployment that the satellites are “open for business for any teleco in the world.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/space/spacex-completes-starlinks-first-direct-to-cell-constellation-212549713.html?src=rss