Kalakshar US

Starting with the first Galaxy Buds, Engadget’s audio expert Billy Steele has reviewed every pair of buds Samsung has produced — and he calls 2022’s Galaxy Buds 2 Pro the company’s best effort yet. Right now, Woot is selling pairs in either white, black or the perky purple hue of our review unit for 48 percent off the standard list price. That brings them down to $120 and the lowest price we’ve tracked. The listing indicates the sale will stick around until Friday or when the stock runs out, whichever comes first.

The Galaxy Buds 2 Pro are the company’s latest buds (though at this point they’re approaching the two-year mark). You can think of them as Samsung’s answer to Apple’s AirPods because they work best when paired with a phone from their own manufacturer. The Galaxy Buds will work with other Android Phones, and can work with Apple products (just with a number of missing features) but some capabilities, like 24-bit audio, are reserved for Samsung devices.

Overall, Billy gave the buds a score of 88 in his review and found himself impressed with the audio (after being underwhelmed by Samsung’s previous attempts). He appreciated the punch of the bass and open sound that’s both “full and filled with details and clarity.” The ANC is good too, effectively blocking the sound of a coffee grinder and the improved fit — thanks to a smaller design and pressure-relieving vents — makes the buds comfortable to wear for longer periods of time. The touch inputs allow for the control of a lot of functions without reaching for a phone, but adjusting the buds in your ear can sometimes result in mistaken taps. 

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This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/samsungs-galaxy-buds-2-pro-drop-to-a-record-low-of-120-155346593.html?src=rss 

Neopets has been trying to get back its once substantial userbase over the past year by fixing and relaunching its classic games, holding timely events and releasing new features meant to get people hooked on the virtual website again. Today, Neopets is launching a new storyline — or as the website calls it, a new “plot” — which is typically a site event that requires players to solve puzzles, fight opponents in the Battledome and do other activities in order to participate. Neopets says it spent the past three years crafting a narrative that “resonates with players from all walks of life” for the plot called “The Void Within.”

The storyline will feature a new protagonist named Nyx who’ll embark on a journey with players to explore “themes of community, family, inclusion, well-being and identity.” Together, they’ll have to find a way to banish the gray curse that’s killing all the colors across the Neopets universe. As part of the event, players will get access to new items, like a range of diverse hairstyles, as well as pride and accessibility customization options, for their characters. The website has also removed outdated terms and lore used years ago, has given the Library Faerie a wheelchair and has introduced new social media mascots with accessibility items like hearing aids. 

The Void Within starts rolling out today, with more episodes coming out one by one until early 2025. Neopets is also advising old players to log in if they haven’t visited in recent years, because it’s removing accounts that have been inactive for a decade by October, ahead of its 25th anniversary.  

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/neopets-is-back-with-a-new-storyline-thats-meant-to-foster-inclusivity-161213313.html?src=rss 

YouTube is borrowing a page from X (Twitter) and adding a community notes feature ahead of the 2024 US election. The company wants the short viewer-created blurbs to add relevant context to videos, such as pointing out misinformation or old footage passed off as new.

Notes will roll out initially as a pilot program for “a limited number of eligible contributors,” who will receive an invitation via email or Creator Studio. The invited participants will need to have an active YouTube account in good standing.

During the pilot phase, “third-party evaluators” will rate notes’ helpfulness to help train the system. YouTube says it wants to launch notes gradually to test and fine-tune the feature before making it more widely available. Look no further than YouTube’s often toxic video comments to see why that’s necessary.

Once the feature is calibrated and widely available, you’ll see them under videos “if they’re found to be broadly helpful.” Viewers will be asked to rate notes as “helpful,” “somewhat helpful” or “unhelpful” — and tell them why (for example, it cites good sources or is written clearly).

Note ratings will be determined by a bridging-based algorithm, which looks for connections among disparate groups. For example, if people who have historically rated things differently agree on a particular note’s helpfulness, that one will more likely appear. It sounds like the system could still be abused, especially considering how many online tribes today share an unflinching belief in the same debunked misinformation. But hey, we’ll reserve judgment until we see it in action.

The feature is awfully similar to one that was rolled out initially under the Jack Dorsey era of Twitter and expanded globally after Elon Musk bought the company in 2022. At the time, Musk described the feature as “a gamechanger for improving accuracy on Twitter.” X, as it’s known today, isn’t exactly known for its accuracy, but YouTube apparently saw something worth copying in the crowd-sourced context.

As for when you will see community notes, YouTube says the pilot will launch on mobile in the US first. The company anticipates mistakes during this test phase as it tweaks its algorithms. Everyone else in the US can expect to see notes appear “in the coming weeks and months.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/youtubes-community-notes-feature-rips-a-page-out-of-xs-playbook-162145673.html?src=rss 

The premise of A Quiet Place always seemed like great fodder for a game: make too much of a racket and a blind, noise-sensitive alien will most probably kill you. Six years after the original movie hit theaters, a video game spinoff is almost here. A Quiet Place: The Road Ahead is coming to PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S later this year.

Developer Stormind Games (Remothered, Batora: Lost Haven) has crafted a first-person horror adventure based on the movies. You’ll play as a young woman who attempts to steer clear of those terrifying creatures while dealing with her inner fears and family turmoil. All you’ll have to help you survive the aliens is whatever tools you can find, such as a flashlight or homemade noise detector. But as the movies and game trailer make clear, just a single noise can spell doom.

Publisher Saber Interactive first announced a video game version of A Quiet Place in 2021 and initially planned to release it in 2022. It took an extra couple of years and perhaps a change of studio (Saber initially said iLLOGIKA and EP1T0ME were working on the project), but The Road Ahead now seems to be just a few months away.

Meanwhile, a prequel movie will hit theaters later this month. A Quiet Place: Day One stars the brilliant Lupita Nyong’o and Joseph Quinn of Stranger Things fame.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/a-quiet-place-the-road-ahead-is-coming-to-pc-playstation-and-xbox-this-year-150813192.html?src=rss 

It has hit that time of year when all the rinky-dink chargers I bought have given up, and it’s time to invest in some quality options. I’m personally a big fan of Anker, so it’s exciting that Amazon is currently discounting some of Anker’s best charging gear. Included in the sale is 30 percent off Anker’s MagGo magnetic charging station, dropping its price to $70 from $100. This discount brings the Qi2-certified device to a new all-time low.

Anker’s MagGo magnetic charging station is a great choice if you’re looking for an all-in-one option for a range of devices. The 8-in-1 charger comes with two USB ports, two USB-C ports, three AC outlets and one magnetic pad. It offers 15W of power for wireless charging and gets faster when wired to devices — increasing to 67W for charging your MacBook through the USB-C port, for instance. Anker claims that speed can bring your laptop to 50 percent in just 26 minutes.

If you’re just looking for a wireless charging pad, then you can opt for Anker’s MagGo magnetic wireless charging pad instead. It’s touting a 10 percent discount right now, which only saves you about $2 — it’s available for $20 rather than $22 — but it’s still something. The best deal of the bunch is half off Anker’s 622 MagSafe power bank (5,000mAh), dropping its price to $35 from $70. It’s a great option if you have a newer iPhone and want to have easy, cordless charging wherever you go.

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This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ankers-magnetic-charging-gear-is-up-to-50-percent-off-right-now-134525337.html?src=rss