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Adult Swim’s teaming up with Shinichirō Watanabe, director and creator of the original Cowboy Bebop, for a new jazz-tinged sci-fi anime series, as reported by Variety.Lazarus is being animated by MAPPA, the studio behind Chainsaw Man, Zombie Land Saga, latter seasons of Attack of Titan and so many more. Watanabe won’t be alone, as he’s teaming up with Chad Stahelski, the mastermind behind John Wick, to co-create action sequences.

This is a Watanabe joint, so expect plenty of jazzy visuals and audio cues. To that end, Lazarus features music from jazz and electronic musicians such as Kamasi Washington, Floating Points and Bonobo, among others.

So what’s it about? Lazarus is set in the near future and follows a ragtag team chasing down a mad scientist to prevent a mass-poisoning event. There’s no release date yet, but the creators are dropping more information, including a first-look trailer, at the annual Adult Swim Festival this weekend. It’s worth noting that many of the events planned for this festival have been canceled, due to the ongoing writers and actors strikes.

As for that other Cowboy Bebop on Netflix, Watanabe told Forbes that the live-action version is “not Cowboy Bebop.” It doesn’t matter anyways, as Netflix threw down the cancel hammer for that show in late 2021.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/adult-swim-lands-new-show-from-cowboy-bebop-and-john-wick-creators-161557849.html?src=rss 

Amazon Prime Day was a great time to pick up Apple products, but if you didn’t happen to catch the sale, you’re in luck: Amazon just dropped the 9th generation iPad back to its all-time low price of $250. You’ll see the full discount applied at checkout, as it includes an automatic coupon for an extra $29 off the $279 sale price. It’s routinely gone for $275 recently, but the extra savings was previously only seen during Prime day. The deal is open not just to Prime members, but to any one shopping on Amazon right now.  

The 9th generation iPad isn’t the newest model in Apple’s tablet lineup, but it’s still a good buy. We named it the budget pick in our guide to the best iPads and gave it a review score of 86 when it first came out in 2021. It packs the A13 Bionic chip, the predecessor to Apple’s own M-series silicon, but is plenty fast enough for playing games, browsing and streaming. 

Like older models, it has a lightning port instead of USB-C charging. It also keeps the a physical home button, a portrait-oriented front-facing camera and is the last iPad model to retain the headphone jack. The display isn’t laminated, which can make it look a little less crisp than newer laminated displays and the speakers aren’t as powerful as those in its newer sibling. 

While it may not stack up to the latest, (much) more expensive Apple tables, it’s the least expensive way to get yourself an iPad — one that’s plenty fast for casual use, looks clean and sharp for streaming and can handle the vast array of iPad gaming and productivity apps out there. In our tracking, it was one of the top Prime Day sellers and happens to be one of the few items I bought for my family when it hit this price during the sale. 

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/apples-9th-gen-ipad-returns-to-a-record-low-of-250-163040885.html?src=rss 

You may be more or less prepared for the academics of college, but the other life stuff can be an eye-opener. College might be the first time you’re in charge of your own finances, and with new living situations, new jobs and new connections, you may also be expanding the amount of personal data you’re putting out into the world. If you could use a little help with budgeting, remembering passwords or making sure everything you do online is secure, here are the finance and security apps we’ve used, tested and ultimately recommend.

Mint

If you’re new to tracking finances, getting an overview of your banking, credit and loan accounts in one place can be helpful. Mint is a simple and free app that does just that. I tested it for our subscription guide and continue to use it. The interface is intuitive and it’s pretty good at correctly categorizing purchases. The main features, like transaction history, self-budgeting and goal-setting, are available free. For $5 per month, you can have Mint cancel subscriptions on your behalf and you won’t see as many ad links peppered throughout the app (though, I’ve never found the ads particularly distracting.)

YNAB

For help creating a more formal budget, a few Engadget staffers use YNAB (You Need A Budget) and we recommend it in our guide to student budgeting. It’s based around a theory that imposes four “rules” to improve your money management, and learning those principles now will benefit you long after graduation. The browser and mobile app interfaces are pretty easy to use, and YNAB has a ton of instructional content for newbies that can point you in the right direction when you’re first setting up expense categories, debt trackers and sinking funds. It’s usually $15 per month or $99 per year, but students who can prove they’re in school can get a year for free.

Goodbudget

Between loans, jobs and, if you’re lucky, scholarships and financial aid, a student’s “extra” money can be pretty limited. Goodbudget translates the envelope technique to an app format, earmarking your money for the things you need to pay for. By visualizing what you have and what you need, you can see when there’s room for stuff you want, like going out with friends or decorating your first apartment. Plenty of graphs and sliders help map out your situation, and Goodbudget also offers free online classes for those who want to get better with money (granted, that may be a hard sell when you’re already in school). The free version gives you twenty total envelopes, split between expenses and goals, and lets you add one bank account. For unlimited accounts and envelopes, the paid version is $8 per month or $70 per year.

Acorns investment

Say you indulge in an Iced Toasted Vanilla Oatmilk Shaken Espresso for $5.75. The Acorns investment app rounds up that last 25 cents and deposits it into an investment account, and over time, your money grows. By providing a simple app and recommending just a few different portfolios, Acorns takes some of the complexity out of investing. For students in particular, it’s also easier to invest a few cents here and there than larger chunks of cash when you’re already just trying to get by. The monthly plan defaults to $5 per month with an option of a $3 plan at sign up. Both come with a checking and a retirement savings account in addition to the investment features, so if you’re totally starting fresh, this could prove useful.

1Password

Our senior security reporter, Katie Malone, put 1Password at the top of Engadget’s guide to password managers. Like all services like this, 1Password one helps you create unique and complex credentials for every site you use, and then saves them securely so you don’t have to remember them all. It works across most platforms and even lets you share logins and credit card info with other people as needed, which will make it easier to access any family accounts you may need while in school. The security and encryption measures are top-notch, with a zero-knowledge policy that ensures the company doesn’t store your data, as well as a bug bounty program that rewards ethical hackers who discover any vulnerabilities.

Proton VPN

If you study in public places where the WiFi is suspect, a VPN can give you an extra layer of protection. It’s not a cure-all for online security woes, but VPNs do create a protected “tunnel” to keep out people who may otherwise have access to your data, like your internet service provider or hackers targeting public WiFi. Proton VPN is the best overall option not just because it’s easy to use. The Switzerland-based company also enforces a no-log policy and their open-source software continually stands up to independent audits. Unlike some VPNs, it didn’t tank our connection speeds in our tests, either. Proton goes for $10 per month to access servers in 65 countries, or you can get the free version with access to just three.

ProtonMail

Free email services are everywhere, but finding one that isn’t propped up by selling your habits and history to advertisers is almost impossible. And while you might get a school email address, a good personal email will serve you long after access to your alumni mail is discontinued. ProtonMail is focused on privacy: It uses end-to-end encryption, whereas a service like Gmail encrypts messages in transit only. Proton’s open-source encryption methods are independently audited, and since the service is supported by paid subscriptions and not advertising, the company has little incentive to snoop your info. Free plans give you one gigabyte of storage and allow for 150 emails per day, while a $12-per-month subscription grants 500GB of storage and removes email limits.

Signal

As a non-profit, there’s no tech giant behind the wheel at Signal, which sets it apart from most other messaging services. A phone number is required for set up, but that’s about all the information Signal ever collects. It’s a favorite of journalists, protestors and people living in unstable territories, but students who realize their communications are no one else’s business will find the app useful, too. Texts, videos and images you send are end-to-end encrypted using open-source protocols, and you can even set messages to expire. Recent additions that enhance group chats may make Signal feel a little more like other messaging apps, but the core structure of the service will always be fundamentally more private than many competitors.

Noonlight

Staying safe in college extends beyond online safety, which is where apps like Noonlight come in. Tinder bought a stake in the app a few years ago to help people in the event of a date gone wrong. Within the app, you’ll find a giant white button that you press and hold in sketchy situations. As long as you hold the button, nothing happens. Let go of it, and unless you enter a secret pin to prove you’re safe, the police will be dispatched to your location. A timeline feature lets you add names and images when you’re meeting someone new. The safety network allows your friends and family to request check-ins and take action when they don’t hear from you. The free version includes all three of the features mentioned above, while the $5-per-month plan adds an iPhone widget and the ability to sync with rideshare apps.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/best-finance-and-security-apps-for-college-students-130035602.html?src=rss