The UK’s digital driver’s licence is coming later this year

The UK will release a digital driver’s license later this year, along with a digital wallet issued by the government. This will allow folks to “easily prove their age when buying age restricted items online and in person.” Obviously, it will also prove a person’s right to drive.

This will be one of the first digital documents available via the GOV.UK digital wallet, which is also launching later this year. The wallet will also be home to documents like Veterans Cards, Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks and “every other credential issued by the government.” However, many of these digital versions won’t be available until the end of 2027.

The technology harnesses the security features of modern smartphones, for enhanced privacy. The documents won’t open without a facial recognition check. The government says this will make digital documents more secure, “even if a device is lost.” We’ll have to see how that plays out.

There will also be a way for users to hide certain info when displaying the digital license. Top Gear has reported that, for instance, the tech will allow folks to hide home addresses when paying for stuff.

The best part? This is an opt-in technology. Traditional physical documents will still be available, just in case it skeeves you out to have official IDs hanging out on your phone. UK citizens can already apply for a license online using a stored digital photo and pay road fees.

It’s quick and easy to set up your Driver and vehicles account!

Simply add your vehicles and you’ll have access to all your details at your fingertips ✨

Start here 👉 https://t.co/DXTn3olbi0 #DVLADigital pic.twitter.com/xcG0vapJF8

— DVLA (@DVLAgovuk) January 17, 2025

Digital driver’s licenses are nothing new. Many countries use them already, including Australia, Denmark, Iceland and Norway. Even some US states, like Ohio and New Mexico, have made use of the tech.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/the-uks-digital-drivers-licence-is-coming-later-this-year-165008815.html?src=rss 

Bowers & Wilkins Pi8 review: Excellent sound comes at a high price

There are a lot of factors to consider when shopping for wireless earbuds. Some people want the best active noise cancellation (ANC) performance while others are more interested in features that enable all-day wearing. Some folks desire a seamless interaction with their phone and some are searching for the absolute best sound quality. If you fall into that last category, the Bowers & Wilkins Pi8 ($399) is worth considering.

The company has consistently produced some of the best audio performance you’ll find in over-ear headphones. But its wireless earbuds weren’t quite on the same level. They delivered great clarity and ample consideration of subtle details in songs. Still, though, there was work to be done to construct a fuller, more immersive soundstage. With the Pi8, the company has overhauled its sound platform, adding new, larger drivers for even more nuance and enhanced low-end tone. Unfortunately, though, there are still some areas where Bowers & Wilkins needs to improve in order to truly rival the best.

What’s good about the Pi8?

Bowers & Wilkins introduced an all-new design on the Pi8, offering a completely different shape than the Pi7 S2. This model has a more uniform, oval shell, which I think lends a refined look compared to its predecessor. The company also chose to use interesting details, like a microphone grill that spans the width of the earbuds, to hide components that have historically been prominently displayed. Yes, that outer area still accepts taps and long presses for calls and audio playback, and those actions garner quick responses.

The biggest update to the Pi8 is sound quality. Larger 12mm carbon cone drivers power the audio, which is a change from the 9.2mm dynamic drivers inside the Pi7 S2. Bowers & Wilkins also opted for 32-bit digital signal processing (DSP), up from 24-bit on the previous model. These earbuds also support aptX Lossless, while the earlier version used aptX Adaptive. The company says all of these changes, particularly the new drivers, reduce distortion and offer better high-frequency detail.

I found these claims to hold true. The Pi8 has enhanced detail compared to the Pi7 S2, which is a feat because those earbuds already offered excellent clarity. Instruments like guitars stand out on albums like mewithoutYou’s emo/post-hardcore Catch for Us the Foxes. On that record, the two guitars have a dialog or interplay going on during most of the songs, and you can clearly hear both playing their parts. The guitars also seem to float above the booming kick drum and grooving, droning bass lines. Aaron Weiss’ mostly spoken-word vocals also cut through the mix with all the emotion and metaphor he loads them with.

Billy Steele for Engadget

Bass performance has also improved on the Pi8. It’s never overpowering, but you get chunky kick drum sounds for rock and metal that drive the songs rather than drowning everything else out. No Cure’s thrashing metal album I Hope I Die Here is an excellent example of this. Drums are there to guide the thick guitar riffs through the heavy breakouts and groovier verses, but everything remains nuanced and distinct. Despite the vocals being entirely screamed, you can easily pick out every word instead of them fading into the mix.

Bowers & Wilkins extended the battery life on the Pi8 to 6.5 hours with ANC on. That’s 90 minutes longer than the Pi7 S2. That figure also inches closer to the likes of Sony’s WF-1000XM5 which stands at eight hours of noise-canceling listening. Bowers & Wilkins has once again included wireless transmission in the charging case, allowing you to use the Pi8 at times when a Bluetooth streaming source isn’t an option — like in-flight entertainment. This tool isn’t novel to the company’s products as others, like JBL, have baked it in as well. However, wireless transmission still isn’t so common that I’d say it’s readily available elsewhere.

What’s not so good about the Pi8?

The biggest downside to the Pi8 is the price: $399. Sony’s WF-1000XM5 were $300 at launch, although they’re usually available for around $200, and they’ve been at the top of our best earbuds list since then. Bowers & Wilkins gear has always commanded a premium over Sony and others, and that’s exactly what’s happening here. While the Pi8 does have more nuanced and detailed sound than the M5s, Sony and others offer advanced features that make your life easier.

For example, Sony’s flagship model can automatically pause audio when it detects that you’re speaking. It can also automatically adjust sound settings based on your location to help streamline your day. These types of tools could go a long way to expanding the range of the Pi8. The basics are all well covered on Bowers & Wilkins’ latest set, but there’s nothing additional here feature-wise, which makes its cost become a significant disadvantage.

Billy Steele for Engadget

This extends to the limited customization on the Pi8. There is a 5-band EQ in the company’s app for fine-tuning the sound profile, and you can change what a long press does. However, you can only select between ANC/ambient sound (left) and voice assistant (right) or volume controls (up on the right, down on the left). Having to forgo the ability to cycle between noise cancellation and transparency mode in order to get on-board volume adjustments is a significant sacrifice. Both of those actions are frequently used, and it would be nice to not reach for my phone to do them both.

Active noise cancellation is another area the Pi8 lags behind its rivals. I’d describe it more as noise reduction, since the technology here struggles with constant distractions like fans and white noise machines. Like a lot of earbuds, this model also has issues with human voices, but those are less of a concern at around 50 percent volume. ANC performance was just okay on the Pi7 S2 as well, so it’s still an area the company could improve to further close the gap to the likes of Bose.

The final verdict on the Pi8

Bowers & Wilkins continues to impress me with the sound quality it produces. The company’s Px7 S2e headphones are my pick for best overall sound quality and I’ll likely bestow the same honor for earbuds to the Pi8. Simply put, few companies are creating sound profiles with the amount of detail, nuance and depth that Bowers & Wilkins consistently delivers. Audio performance is definitely the main reason to consider buying these earbuds.

But there are other very important things that ANC earbuds need to do. You should be able to count on them to block a lot of noise, and the Pi8 isn’t great at that. I think advanced features like speech detection, adaptive noise control and other automated tools are important as we head into 2025 as well. Add the ability to customize controls and settings to a high degree to that list too. Those are missing on the Pi8, and I can appreciate that some people probably won’t care. But in my opinion, $400 earbuds should be all-inclusive and nearly flawless. The Pi8 shows this company is well on its way, but also that it still has work to do.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/headphones/bowers–wilkins-pi8-review-excellent-sound-comes-at-a-high-price-160032718.html?src=rss 

January’s Xbox Game Pass additions include Sniper Elite: Resistance and Tchia

It’s January and for many of us in the northern hemisphere, that means staying inside to escape the cold. To help you while away the hours, Xbox is adding another dozen-plus titles to Game Pass over the next couple of weeks.

Let’s jam through them in chronological order of introduction to the service, starting with Lonely Mountain: Snow Riders (cloud, PC and Xbox Series X/S via Game Pass Ultimate and PC). This multiplayer skiing game is a day one addition to Game Pass.

A whole heap of games are coming to the service on Wednesday. Flock (console via Game Pass Standard) is another multiplayer game but this one’s a co-op adventure that sees you collecting adorable critters with your buds. Gigantic: Rampage Edition (cloud, console and PC via Game Pass Ultimate PC and Standard) is a MOBA that I enjoyed my time with. It’s a revival of a game that was previously shut down but this time there are no microtransactions.

One of last year’s more intriguing games, Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess, also joins the Game Pass Standard lineup on console on Wednesday, along with pixel art platformer Magical Delicacy. In addition, Game Pass Standard members will be able to check out the absolutely wonderful open-world adventure Tchia on Xbox Series X/S. That was my second-favorite game of 2023.

Eagle-eyed detectives out there may enjoy the acclaimed The Case of the Golden Idol, which will be on Game Pass Standard on console as of January 22. It wasn’t for me, but it might be for you! Tomorrow’s final Game Pass addition is for the Ultimate and Standard tiers. The intergalactic sandbox Starbound will be available on cloud and console (it was already on PC Game Pass).

January 28 sees the introduction of another couple of day one games. There’s been some buzz about action RPG Eternal Strands and you can find out what that’s all about on cloud, console and PC via Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass. Orcs Must Die! Deathtrap will debut on the same variants of Game Pass, but not Xbox One, just Series X/S.

On January 29, puzzle platformer Shady Part Of Me will hit cloud, PC and console across all three Game Pass variants. The following day, Sniper Elite: Resistance will join the Ultimate and PC flavors of Game Pass as a day one newcomer.

There’s yet another day one introduction to Game Pass this month in the form of Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector (cloud, PC and Xbox Series X/S on Ultimate and PC Game Pass). This is a highly anticipated follow-up to a well-reviewed RPG from 2022. If you haven’t played the original yet and you’re a multi-platform gamer, good news! Citizen Sleeper hits the PlayStation Plus Game Catalog for Extra and Premium subscribers today.

Moving into February, Xbox has announced another Game Pass addition for that month. February 4 brings Far Cry New Dawn to cloud, console and PC by way of all three Game Pass offerings.

Last but not least, Xbox has revealed which titles are leaving Game Pass on January 31 across cloud, console and PC. They are Anuchard, Broforce Forever, Darkest Dungeon, Death’s Door, Maquette and Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem.

On top of all of that, Xbox is hosting a Developer Direct showcase this Thursday with fresh looks at Doom: The Dark Ages, South of Midnight, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and a mystery game. You never know, perhaps one of those will suddenly hit Game Pass as a surprise day one release this week too.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/xbox/januarys-xbox-game-pass-additions-include-sniper-elite-resistance-and-tchia-160856192.html?src=rss 

Masterbuilt adds another smart charcoal grill to its Gravity Series lineup

Masterbuilt has offered backyard grill masters smart options that burn charcoal instead of pellets since 2020. Last year, the company debuted two models ahead of CES, and in early 2025, it’s adding one more. The new Gravity Series 1150 is a larger sibling to the Gravity Series 600 in Masterbuilt’s lineup. With 1,150 square inches of cooking space, this bigger model has nearly double the food capacity and a longer burn time of up to 15 hours. To achieve this, the hopper on the 1150 can hold up to 12 pounds of lump charcoal or up to 18 pounds of briquettes. 

The grill gets its name from the gravity-fed hopper that allows charcoal to naturally fall and ignite during use. A digital fan automatically maintains temperature that can be adjusted with on-board controls or with the Masterbuilt app. Like last year’s Gravity Series XT, the company relocated the control panel on the 1150 from the shelf on the left side to the front of the hopper on the right. However, the controller itself looks like what’s on the 600 instead of the upgraded version that’s on the pricier XT.

Besides the increased capacity, the 1150 offers another key upgrade from the 600. Instead of a cart-style stand, you get an enclosed cabinet for additional storage. You can expect a temperature range of 225-700 degrees Fahrenheit, which means you can do low-and-slow smoking, high-heat searing and everything in between. All of the crucial grill stats can be monitored from your phone via the aforementioned app from anywhere. Lastly, Masterbuilt offers add-ons to expand the grill’s capabilities, including a pizza oven, rotisserie and griddle insert. 

The Gravity Series 1150 is available now from Home Depot for $999. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/kitchen-tech/masterbuilt-adds-another-smart-charcoal-grill-to-its-gravity-series-lineup-144924232.html?src=rss 

Meta lets users add WhatsApp to their main Accounts Center

Accounts Center is a single space allowing users to manage their Facebook, Instagram and (even) Meta Quest log-ins. Today, Meta has announced that WhatsApp is joining the list of supported apps, enabling you to reshare statuses and posts across all of your platforms. In addition, you can use single sign-on to log back into your WhatsApp account.

Meta has announced the change today, but it will take time before WhatsApp support is added to everyone’s Accounts Center, so patience may be required. In addition, Meta has pledged to add more features that can be shared across multiple platforms, like AI stickers, avatars and its AI-crafted selfie creations. Those worried about whether this may affect WhatsApp’s end-to-end encryption may rest easy, as Meta has said none of these changes will impact your messages’ privacy and security.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/meta-lets-users-add-whatsapp-to-their-main-accounts-center-150023247.html?src=rss 

The 65-inch LG C3 OLED TV is cheaper than ever right now

The Super Bowl is just around the corner, and there’s no better way to enjoy the game at home than watching them on a large TV — particularly an OLED, thanks to its color accuracy. The 65-inch LG C3 OLED TV is again at the lowest price that we saw during last year’s holiday season. It’s currently 20 percent off and down to $1,197. While this is the older C3 model from 2023, the newer C4 model costs more, and it remains a good choice if getting the absolute latest model isn’t a priority.

The LG C3 OLED TV supports Dolby Vision and HDR10, perfect for streaming shows and movies. The 4K panel also has a 120Hz refresh rate, which is great for console gaming, especially with a PS5 or Xbox Series X/S. To make the gaming experience smoother, there’s NVIDIA G-Sync, AMD FreeSync Premium and VRR to prevent screen tearing. There’s a reason we selected it as one of the best gaming TVs, and it still holds true even with newer models on the horizon.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/the-65-inch-lg-c3-oled-tv-is-cheaper-than-ever-right-now-143040370.html?src=rss 

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