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Alongside the official reveal of the Quest 3, Meta has announced when this year’s edition of Connect will take place. The event, which focuses on Meta’s developments in the augmented and virtual reality spaces, is set for September 27th and 28th, according to its website.

Connect is taking place a little earlier than usual this year. The 2022 edition happened in October. More details about Connect 2023 are coming soon, but one thing’s for sure: we’ll learn much more about the Quest 3 in late September.

Meta’s next virtual reality headset will be available sometime this fall and it’ll start at $500. The company says the Quest 3 is its “most powerful headset yet.” It will offer full-color passthrough to support mixed reality experiences. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the latest model will have twice the graphics performance of the Quest 2. The Quest 3 comes with redesigned Touch Plus controllers and hand-tracking support out of the gate. The company also noted that it’s reducing the prices of the Quest 2 headsets on June 4th.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/metas-connect-2023-event-is-set-for-september-27th-154545337.html?src=rss 

Don’t worry if your favorite shop or gym doesn’t have a digital membership card, as you’ll soon have a way to create one yourself. Google Wallet will soon add the option to save passes to wallet by taking a photo of the card. So long as there’s a barcode or QR code, you can replicate it on your Android phone for convenience and a backup.

Google is also matching Apple in supporting digital IDs. As of today, Maryland residents can add their driver’s licenses and ID cards to Wallet on any device using Android 8 or newer. Arizona, Colorado and Georgia residents will have the option in the months ahead. You can already use the Maryland IDs for TSA PreCheck lines at some airports, but an upgrade later this year will let you use digital IDs to verify online accounts or book cars through Turo.

Health insurance cards are also coming to Wallet through Humana in the US and the UK government’s HMRC app. As these cards include sensitive info, you’ll have to verify through a phone sign-in (such as your fingerprint) whenever you want to use them. Later this year, you can add corporate badges to Wallet.

You’ll also have a way to get your passes through Google’s Messages app when RCS is enabled. You can check in to a flight or train ride using a chatbot and get a Wallet pass without leaving the app. This will initially be available for travelers through Spanish train operator Renfe as well as Vietnam Airlines, while gourmands can reserve restaurants through platforms like TagMe.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-wallet-will-let-you-add-passes-by-taking-a-photo-160028725.html?src=rss 

Arturia’s effects collection just became a better value, particularly if you’re looking to recreate classic sounds. The company has released an FX Collection 4 pack that adds four effects, including a brand new Rotary CLS-222 kit (above) that modernizes the Leslie rotary speaker emulator. It’s best known as the sound used by guitarists like George Harrison and David Gilmour, and has also been used by jazz organists.

FX Collection 4 otherwise adds effects you previously had to buy separately, including the Dist Coldfire distortion plugin, the Korg-derived Filter MS-20 and the upgraded Rev LX-24 ’80s reverb box. There are tweaks to several tools, including 40 new presets for Efx Fragments and new functionality for the Bus Force and Rev Spring-636 effects. You might also be happy to see support for NKS VS3 and Apple Silicon AAX.

There’s now a total of 30 effects, including the SansAmp pedal-inspired OpAmp-21, Dist Tube-Culture (a riff on the legendary Thermionic Culture Vulture distortion unit) and the tape emulation tool Tape Mello-Fi. While this won’t cover every possible need, there’s a good chance you can either reproduce a familiar sound or make an ordinary instrument almost unrecognizable.

The company is offering FX Collection 4 for $399. That’s not particularly expensive as far as plugin bundles go. You might not need to buy much else to complete a track. We’d add that Arturia runs frequent sales, so it’s worth watching out for potential discounts.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/arturias-fx-collection-4-adds-a-leslie-rotary-speaker-emulator-150009128.html?src=rss 

Uber drivers won’t just have easy access to Tesla cars when they want to switch to EVs. Ford and Uber are launching an expanded Drive pilot program that provides a flexible Mustang Mach-E lease to rideshare drivers in Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco. Operators pick leases in one- to four-month increments, and get their Mach-E within two weeks. After that, they use a Ford Drive app to handle payments and maintenance. Ford, meanwhile, buys fleets of the electric crossovers from dealerships and uses them for service.

A lease costs $199 per week with 500 included miles, and $249 per week with 1,000 miles. Drivers pay 20 cents for every additional mile beyond what their plan offers. That may seem expensive, but Ford is counting on the no-hassle exits and renewals as a draw. Uber workers can lease only when they have enough driving time to justify the expense.

Ford and Uber initially tested Drive in San Diego last year with over 150 Mustang Mach-E cars in the fleet. The companies didn’t say how successful the initial run was, but they note that California is Uber’s best market for EV demand. Nearly 10 percent of all passenger miles were completed in EVs as of late 2022, Ford says.

To qualify, drivers need to have at least a 4.85-star rating and over 150 trips. The Mustang on offer is a no-frills rear-wheel drive model with 247 miles of range, although it does have CoPilot360 driver aids.

The lease option is in line with Uber’s goal of becoming a zero-emissions service in North America and Europe by 2030. This theoretically makes EVs more viable for drivers who can’t commit to a purchase or multi-year lease. Uber also sweetens the proposition with an extra $1 per ride (up to $4,000 per year) and the option of serving premium Comfort Electric passengers. Not that Uber has much choice. California will require that most ride hailing cars are electric by 2030, while New York City wants a wholesale switch by the same year.

Ford, meanwhile, benefits by getting the Mach-E into the hands of rideshare drivers who would otherwise rent a Tesla EV through Hertz. This boosts exposure for the brand for passengers, too, and helps with Ford’s bid to establish itself as a general mobility company. The challenge is simply competing against Tesla’s sheer volume. The Hertz deal puts up to 50,000 Tesla EVs on American roads, and Ford’s Drive pilot won’t compete at its current scale.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ford-will-offer-flexible-mustang-mach-e-leases-to-uber-drivers-in-three-cities-151534606.html?src=rss