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So a shoe company turned into an AI company…. That’s it, that’s the joke. In this episode, Devindra chats with Engadget’s Daniel Cooper about Allbirds’ sudden transformation and what it says about the AI economy. Also, they chat about the Artemis II moon mission, Meta being warned about the dangers of facial recognition (again) and how teens think social media is really shaping them.

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Topic

Near-dead shoe company Allbirds is doing AI now – 1:47

Artemis II safely returns to Earth, did you know they had DSLRs and iPhones up there? – 15:57

Meta warned by dozens of civil rights organizations that facial recognition in its smart glasses will enable predators – 28:41

Social media isn’t bad for teens, say teens – 36:00

NAACP sues xAI over data center pollution – 44:30

Around Engadget –  50:28

Credits

Hosts : Devindra Hardawar and Daniel Cooper
Producer: Ben Ellman
Music: Dale North and Terrence O’Brien

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/engadget-podcast-allbirds-goes-from-shoes-to-ai-115922991.html?src=rss 

You’ve probably seen DJI’s stick vlogging cameras everywhere. At trade shows and tech events I’ve attended, it’s often the de facto video camera used by reporters and influencers alike. The Osmo Pocket 3 was easy to use, had sharp focus, potent image stabilization and handled vertical and horizontal video recording with minimal compromises.

That was two years ago, so naturally it’s time for an update. According to our review by James Trew, the Osmo Pocket 4 is the one to beat. It’s still incredibly easy to record with, whether you’re doing talk-to-camera vlogs or ambitious, more cinematic-quality videos. With a new 1-inch sensor, improved framerate capture and an extended battery, it’s better than its predecessor in every way. (Except the $605 price.)

There’s a new dedicated zoom button, and you can assign up to three controls to this button through single, double and triple clicks. There’s also 107GB of internal storage, so you don’t need to add storage — that’s plenty to get started with.

There are some things on our wishlist: we’d love some optical zoom, and the lack of dust- and water-protection might give you pause before more ambitious video shoots.

— Mat Smith

The other big stories this morning

Not just Street Fighter: Call of Duty movie arrives on June 2028

Recteq X-Fire Pro 825 review: A smart grill that pulls double duty

Reed Hastings is leaving Netflix after 29 years

You can now hide Shorts on YouTube

Rejoice.

You can ditch the barrage of short-form videos from your YouTube feed if you don’t want to see them. YouTube has rolled out the capability to set your Shorts feed limit to zero minutes. The video-sharing platform originally launched a Shorts feed limit back in October last year, but the lowest option you could choose was 15 minutes. The priority placement of shorts I didn’t want to watch has rankled me for a while — this could be the solution.

Continue reading.

The first full trailer for the new Street Fighter movie is here

Yes, Ken beats up a car.

After a short teaser dropped last year, we’ve finally got a full trailer for the newest attempt to bring Street Fighter to cinemas. The good news, to me, is that it’s going to be silly, fun and high camp. Ken and Ryu are squabbling, and M. Bison is still, bafflingly, a head of an international crime org. And Chun-Li plans to take him down. Jason Momoa is playing Blanka and Curtis ‘50 Cent’ Jackson is portraying Balrog, while mask-toting Orville Peck will don another mask as Vega.

Continue reading.

Allbirds pivots to AI

Never a good sign.

It’s like walking on a Claude.

Continue reading.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/the-morning-after-engadget-newsletter-111515383.html?src=rss 

Blackmagic Camera is one of the more powerful third-party smartphone camera apps available and it’s now even more useful for solo creators. Blackmagic Design just announced that the latest iOS version 3.3 now supports Apple Watch, letting you control the app and monitor video remotely from your wrist. It also includes ATEM camera control so you can use your iPhone as a live studio camera. 

With the new Camera Apple Watch companion app, you can remotely control and monitor your iPhone from anywhere within Wi-Fi range. It lets you start and stop recording, control zoom and adjust settings like frame rate, shutter speed (angle), white balance and ISO with a tap. You can also see a view of your video for framing control, though a Watch screen is probably a bit too small to accurately check focus. 

The Watch app will benefit solo creators who want to mount their iPhone on a tripod to record standup or vlogging activities. To set it up, you install the Watch app through your iPhone and it will automatically connect and sync to your device. 

Use your iPhone as a broadcast camera? Sure, why not

The other key feature is iPhone control from Blackmagic’s ATEM Mini switcher used by streamers and broadcasters. To use it, you need the $420 Blackmagic Camera ProDock that gives your iPhone 17 Pro or iPhone 17 Pro Max an HDMI output, timecode, USB-C and other ports. Blackmagic Camera now lets you connect a single HDMI cable from the ProDock to an ATEM Mini switcher, then adjust settings, trigger recording, focus and zoom. It also offers a DaVinci primary color corrector so you can match and create digital film looks during live production. 

Finally, Camera now supports Blackmagic’s “Focus and Zoom Demand” controls (a knob and handle) designed for broadcast cameras. When those controls and an iPhone 17 Pro/Pro Max are connected via USB-C to a ProDock as shown above, you can zoom and focus Camera app video without taking your hands off the tripod handles. Together with the ATEM feature, it lets you use an iPhone as a full broadcast camera, which looks slightly weird but is pretty cool.

On top of those features, Blackmagic Design also added ProRes RAW stabilization and general bug fixes and improvements. Blackmagic Camera for iOS 3.3 is available now as a free download from the Apple App Store.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/blackmagic-camera-for-ios-now-has-a-companion-watch-app-194529980.html?src=rss 

A Call of Duty movie is still happening, but don’t hold your breath for it to hit screens any time soon. Today, the popular FPS’ social media revealed that the movie’s theatrical release date will be June 30, 2028. 

A film adaptation of the game franchise was first revealed last year, and shortly after, we learned that Taylor Sheridan and Peter Berg would be serving as the producers. The duo, whose past credits include Friday Night Lights and Yellowstone, will also be co-writing the project under Berg’s direction. We still haven’t heard anything about the cast, or even what era of the long-running series will be depicted, so it seems like a safe bet that there’s still a ways to go before this wraps. But CoD is nothing if not a money-maker, so reimagining it as a summer blockbuster seems pretty expected.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/call-of-duty-movie-arrives-on-june-30-2028-200033481.html?src=rss 

Perplexity has just released Personal Computer. The software, which is available starting today for Mac, builds on the multi-model orchestration capabilities the company debuted with Perplexity Computer at the end of February. Like Claude Cowork (and, as of today, OpenAI Codex too), it’s a suite of computer use agents that can work with your files, apps, connectors and the web to complete complex and “even continuous workflows.” 

Perplexity suggests a few different use cases for Personal Computer, starting with the obvious. “You can ask Personal Computer to read your to-do list,” the company states. “In fact, you can ask it to DO your to-do list.” It explains you can open the Notes app on your Mac, ask Personal Computer for help and the system will reason how to best assist you. In the process of tackling that task, it can work across all your files, as well as apps like Apple Messages. When needed, it will also employ multiple agents to complete a request. Like Anthropic did with Claude Cowork, Perplexity says you can also use its software to organize messy folders so files feature sensible names and there’s an easy-to-understand structure to everything.

You can prompt Personal Computer with your voice, and you can even initiate and manage tasks from your phone. Perplexity says the app creates files in a secure sandbox, and any actions it takes are auditable and reversible. “A system that acts on your behalf needs to be useful and legible. It should feel like a team you manage, not a rogue employee with keys to your most important data,” the company said.   

Personal Computer for Mac is available starting today, beginning with Max subscribers. Perplexity said it would bring the app to its other users soon, prioritizing those who joined the waitlist for the experience. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/perplexity-brings-its-personal-computer-ai-assistant-to-mac-202045969.html?src=rss 

While I dabble in other Overwatch modes, I spend the vast majority of my time there in Mystery Heroes, a casual mode in which you load in as a random character and automatically switch to another one when you respawn. It’s by far my favorite way to play Overwatch (which I do a lot!), since it helps me switch off and relax. Others play it as a warmup for competitive action. It requires a particular skillset, as players need a working knowledge of all 51 heroes to help them coordinate with teammates and know what the opponents have on deck. But with the arrival of the new Overwatch season this week, Blizzard changed Mystery Heroes, and made it much less fun to play. 

The developers say they modified Mystery Heroes “to help keep the mode’s casual pace intact while mitigating some of the more extreme pain points it’s had in the past.” That might have something to do with how the mode handled perks. In other modes, players earn perks (upgrades to their existing tools or entirely new abilities) throughout a match. In Mystery Heroes, they load into a round with random perks already equipped. That’s fun! I love the chaos of Mystery Heroes and trying to make things work with whatever hero and perks I have. 

Now, perks are gone from Mystery Heroes. I kind of get it. Nixing them helps players clock what’s going on a bit faster — they won’t feel the need to quickly check which perks they have when they’re racing back to the action when the time is running out. Perks were only added to Overwatch a little over a year ago and they’ve helped make the game more enjoyable. Removing them from Mystery Heroes diminishes it compared with other modes, especially given that some heroes are now more oriented around their perks.

Overwatch

The other major change in Mystery Heroes is a switch from teams of five players to 6v6. I’m fine with 6v6 in other game types, but it makes Mystery Heroes much worse. 

In other 6v6 formats, you typically have two tanks, two supports and two damage heroes. In Mystery Heroes, the defense might load in with four tanks and two supports (teams are limited to three heroes from any class after respawns). While tanks generally have lower health pools in 6v6 modes, that’s still an oppressive composition to run into. Attackers lack the agency to switch to other characters that can counter such a setup. For instance, if the attackers don’t spawn in as heroes that can get behind a chokepoint and take out those supports, they might never break through. That doesn’t make for a fun round. Trying to keep five other players alive as a solo support isn’t exactly a blast either.

I’m not the only one who’s disappointed with these changes. In every single Mystery Heroes game I’ve played since the update, other players have lamented the loss of perks (the reaction to the 6v6 switch is more mixed). They’re protesting on Reddit and the Overwatch forums too. 

It’s not like I’m averse to change. Blizzard has made a ton of updates to greatly improve Overwatch over the last few years. It added the big Stadium mode in 2025 and the game recently had a soft, successful relaunch. Even in this season, there are lots of positive tweaks, including some welcome hero updates (and some that are less welcome) and the return of post-match awards. New damage hero Sierra is rad too. 

The Mystery Heroes changes, though, are a step in the wrong direction. I dearly hope Blizzard reverses course on those soon. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/blizzard-just-made-overwatchs-best-mode-much-worse-185114683.html?src=rss