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In just few days, Apple could finally unveil a new iPhone SE. According to Bloomberg, the company will announce its latest lower-cost model as soon as next week before it goes on sale later this month. The last iPhone SE was released back in 2022, and the publication says that Apple Stores have been running low on stocks in recent weeks. A few days ago, a Twitter user who goes by “Majin Bu” posted a video of a device that’s supposedly Apple’s upcoming low-cost iPhone model. Unlike the current version, it no longer has a home button marking the death of a feature that once identified the company’s mobile devices. 

The upcoming iPhone SE will reportedly have a camera notch at the top, which Apple had removed from its latest phones in favor of its Dynamic Island design. It’s also expected to have a USB-C port, which will allow Apple to sell it in the European Union, where all mobile devices are required to have USB-C charging capability. Apple had to stop selling the 2022 version and the iPhone 14 in the region late last year when the rule came into effect. 

Bloomberg previously reported that the new iPhone SE will be the first Apple device to use the company’s in-house cellular modem, replacing the Qualcomm chips it’s been using up until now. The phone is also expected to have Face ID and Apple Intelligence, made possible by the company’s A18 processor. The publication’s sources said Apple isn’t likely to hold a launch event for the device and will simply just start selling it on its website. At launch, the older version carried a retail price of $429, but that was two years ago — you can probably expect the new model with its more modern specs to cost a bit more.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/apple-will-reportedly-announce-a-new-iphone-se-next-week-120006642.html?src=rss 

This week, Devindra chats with Volvo Group CTO Lars Stenqvist about the company’s progress developing zero emissions trucks, both of the electric variety and experimental hydrogen options. While it’s a completely different company from Volvo Cars, Volvo Group still impacts consumers as one of the largest producers of heavy trucks. Stenqvist dives into how Volvo is thinking about new technology, and we chat a bit about how it’s approaching completely autonomous vehicles. (Note: This interview was recorded in early January, so we didn’t have a chance to talk about this week’s partnership between Volvo and the self-driving truck startup Waabi.)

Listen below or subscribe on your podcast app of choice. If you’ve got suggestions or topics you’d like covered on the show, be sure to email us or drop a note in the comments! And be sure to check out our other podcast, Engadget News!

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Credits 

Host: Devindra Hardawar
Guest: Lars Stenqvist, CTO Volvo Group
Producer: Ben Ellman
Music: Dale North

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/engadget-podcast-volvo-groups-cto-on-his-vision-for-zero-emission-trucks-123006981.html?src=rss 

UK officials have ordered Apple to create a backdoor that would allow them to see what users worldwide have saved on their iCloud accounts, according to The Washington Post. Their order reportedly demands blanket capability to view all of a user’s fully encrypted material whenever they want, wherever the target is located. 

While only certain iCloud data is end-to-end encrypted by default, users can choose to activate Advanced Data Protection for better security. With the optional setting enabled, the majority of a user’s data is protected by encryption, including their iCloud Backup, Photos and Notes. Except encryption won’t do users any good if authorities in the UK decide to take a look at their iCloud content. 

Apple will likely stop offering encrypted storage to users in the UK, The Post’s sources said, so it wouldn’t have to promise them greater security knowing that authorities will be able to access their account. As the publication notes, though, it doesn’t solve the issue of authorities demanding a backdoor entrance for all accounts, even for users outside the region. 

Authorities issued the order under the UK Investigatory Powers Act of 2016, which covers how they can get their hands on data and information for law enforcement purposes. When the UK government made changes to the Act last year, it said they were meant to “ensure the intelligence services and law enforcement have the powers they need to keep pace with a range of evolving threats from terrorists, hostile state actors, child abusers and criminal gangs.” The company won’t be able to confirm receiving the order, because it would be a criminal offense to do so. But it if did indeed get one, then Google, which has more users around the world, might also receive one soon if it hasn’t gotten one yet. 

Apple received a draft of the order when those changes were being debated by government officials last year. In a written submission protesting them, it said that the planned provisions “could be used to force a company like Apple, that would never build a back door into its products, to publicly withdraw critical security features from the UK market.” The Post says the company can still appeal the notice, but it can’t use that appeal to put off its compliance. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/uk-officials-are-reportedly-demanding-backdoor-access-to-apple-icloud-accounts-113556534.html?src=rss 

Hasbro Entertainment and Legendary Entertainment have joined forces to bring Magic: The Gathering to the big and small screens. The pair have signed a licensing deal to create “a live-action feature film and television universe” inspired by the card game. First up will be a movie, with other media to follow, but that’s all that’s been revealed so far.

Longtime MTG fans might feel skeptical about this announcement, because this isn’t the first time the intellectual property has been promised some kind of film or television adaptation. The card game’s Fandom wiki page lists many of the proposed movie projects over the years. First up was a plan for multiple movies with Universal all the way back in 2008, which never yielded anything. Then Hasbro made an attempt at a movie with Twentieth Century Fox in 2014, but that was also never heard from again. Netflix has also been attached to two different rumored Magic projects, but it seems like the streamer’s animated TV series might really come to pass, with a post on Tudum from September 2024 promising that it’s really happening and in production.

Legendary Entertainment has had several projects drawing on geek culture, usually bringing a big budget and a dark edge to their work. Most recently the studio worked on Dune and Dune: Part Two, and it also was involved in Christopher Nolan’s take on Batman in The Dark Knight movies as well as the Warcraft movie. MTG has a lot of lore to draw on, so there’s plenty of fodder for a cinematic universe. Here’s hoping the producers and talent have the understanding to turn all that potential into a good movie.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/magic-the-gathering-lands-deal-for-film-and-tv-adaptions-with-legendary-entertainment-000159168.html?src=rss