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Apple has announced that it’s working with Samsung at its Texas plant to “launch an innovative new technology for making chips.” Those chips are reportedly cutting-edge image sensors for iPhones, according to The Financial Times. That in turn means that Sony may no longer be Apple’s only supplier of smartphone camera sensors for its upcoming phones.

The chips in question are reportedly three-layer stacked image sensors that will allow for fast smartphone camera shooting speeds and high-frame-rate 8K video, along with reduced rolling shutter “jello” distortion. Both Samsung and Sony (along with Canon) have recently said that they’re working on such chips.

The news marks a reconciliation of sorts between Apple and its frenemy Samsung. Apple stopped using Samsung in favor of TSMC as its primary contract manufacturer back in 2011, kicking off a decline in Samsung’s chip business. Now, Samsung has scored back-to-back foundry wins with Apple and its recent $16.5 billion deal to build chips for Tesla. 

Samsung may have won the business due to its likely exemption from upcoming tariffs on foreign chips announced yesterday by Trump that could be as high as 100 percent. It looks like companies with manufacturing in the US like Samsung, TSMC and SK Hynix will dodge those import taxes. However, Sony’s image sensors are built under contract by TSMC in Taiwan, and Sony itself doesn’t have any such chip plants in the US. 

Sony has about a 45 percent share of the $21.8 billion image sensor market, compare to about 19 percent for Samsung. One big reason for Sony’s domination is its cutting edge technology, having been first to market in nearly every major advance, including backside illumination, two-layer stacked sensors and global shutters on mirrorless cameras. According to a recent rumor, Sony was contemplating a spin-off its sensor division but held back due to Trump’s tariffs. 

“We remain confident that we are advanced in providing sensor technology to our customers, and we will focus on continuing further technological advancement through larger sensor size and density,” Sony said in a statement in response to the news from Apple. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/apple-is-reportedly-working-with-samsung-to-build-iphone-image-sensors-in-texas-120021281.html?src=rss 

Sonos plans to raise prices across its products later this year in order to minimize the impact of tariffs on its earnings, the company has revealed alongside its financial results [PDF] for the third quarter of 2025. It hasn’t listed the products and their new prices yet, but it said that it’s evaluating any changes it might need to its promotional strategies and that it has flexibility to move production between Vietnam and Malaysia as needed. To note, the Trump administration had imposed a 20 percent tariff on imports from Vietnam and a 19 percent tariff on imports from Malaysia. Sonos also said that it will invest on diversifying its geographic footprint and expanding its presence in markets that represent only a small share of its revenue today to drive growth. 

The company took steps to diversify its supply chain last year, which led to its manufacturing facilities in the two aforementioned countries. It now only relies on Chinese plans for products bound to the US for a limited number of accessories, such as speaker stands. Still, for the third quarter of 2025, tariffs reduced Sonos’ gross margin for the third quarter by $2.1 million and its cash flow by $3.5 million. In the fourth quarter of the year, which covers the holiday shopping season, Sonos expects tariffs to reduce its gross margin by $5 million and to remove between $8 to $10 billion from its cash flow. 

Overall, Sonos posted a revenue of $344.8 million in the third quarter, which is almost $100 million larger than its revenue for the fourth quarter of 2024. It’s not a secret that 2024 was a tough year for the company. It rolled out a major update that broke its app, which led to the delay of product releases as it worked to fix the issue. Former Sonos CEO Patrick Spence even stepped down in the beginning of 2025 and was replaced by ex-Snap executive Tom Conrad.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/sonos-is-raising-prices-this-year-to-make-up-for-tariff-expenses-123031336.html?src=rss 

Tea bills itself as a safety dating app for women, allowing users to anonymously share details about men they have met. A new app called TeaOnHer has emerged that attempts to flip the script, with men sharing information about women they date. And while Tea drew scrutiny last month after a data breach revealed user information, including potentially identifying details such as phone numbers and personal anecdotes, the copycat app seems to be suffering from the same problem.

TechCrunch discovered several security issues at TeaOnHer, which is currently second most popular lifestyle app on iOS. (Tea is the current leader despite the issues). The publication reported that it identified a security flaw that allowed anyone to access TeaOnHer user data, including usernames, email addresses, uploaded driver’s licenses and selfies. It also found a possible second issue where the email address and plaintext password for Xavier Lampkin, founder and CEO of the app’s developer, was left exposed. These credentials appear to offer access to TeaOnHer’s admin panel, which is another security risk.

The full report at TechCrunch also raises concerns about the content shared on the app, which included spam posts with nude photos of women. It’s unclear how many of the roughly 53,000 users for TeaOnHer might be bots, or whether the app was ever meant to be used seriously; chunks of its description in the iOS store use near-identical language to Tea’s listing.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/theres-a-tea-app-for-men-and-it-also-has-security-problems-224435459.html?src=rss 

The Game Devs of Color Expo is returning for its 10th year from September 16 to 19. The online conference both celebrates the games industry’s developers of color, and acts as a showcase for new upcoming game through its companion GDoCExpo Direct showcase.

This year’s GDoCExpo Direct kicks off the conference on September 16 at 4PM ET / 1PM ET on the Game Devs of Color Expo YouTube channel. The direct is supposed to feature “more than 30 games” and it’ll be paired with a Game Devs of Color Expo Steam Sale with discounts and demos to try for some of the games featured in the showcase.

Watching the Direct is free, but to view the Expo’s developer interviews and live panels, you’ll have to pay for a ticket. A regular ticket costs $50, but the Game Devs of Color nonprofit organization also offers cheaper ways to attend for anyone who can’t afford the ticket price. This year’s conference includes talks on budgeting, design leadership and “Decolonizing Cozy Games.”

Game Devs of Color has been running the Game Devs of Color Expo since 2016, with the explicit mission of amplifying “the creative power held by people of color in games.” The Expo and Direct attempt to make industry knowledge and marketing opportunities accessible to creators, but the organization also helps directly fund game projects through grants. Game Devs of Color says it’ll award $15,000 in “no-strings development grants” to developers at the Expo this year, and that it’s awarded “a total of $405,000” since 2019.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/game-devs-of-color-expo-2025-starts-on-september-16-204559199.html?src=rss 

RedOctane Games is back and ready to make more rhythm games. The studio announced its re-launch today and said it is already in production on its first title. Charles and Kai Huang, who co-founded the original RedOctane back in 1999 and launched the Guitar Hero franchise, will serve on a special advisory board for the new company. The first RedOctane was acquired by Activision in 2006 and shuttered in 2010.

The team is small, but it has some heavy-hitters from the rhythm game world. Its head of studio is Simon Ebejer, who was the production director for multiple Guitar Hero games, and many of its employees worked on Guitar Hero and DJ Hero. RedOctane will operate within parent company Embracer Freemode, which also houses CRKD, a gaming accessory company that also has history in rhythm games.

There are some interesting competitors to this revived RedOctane on the market, such as Clone Hero and Fortnight Festival, not to mention legions of arcade titles. It should be exciting to see what new ideas RedOctane will bring to the party.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/redoctane-relaunches-and-will-continue-to-make-new-rhythm-games-211816411.html?src=rss 

Apple plans to invest an additional $100 billion in the US, the company announced on Wednesday. The investment follows President Donald’s Trump’s previously announced plans to raise tariffs on India by an additional 25 percent (bringing the total tariff to 50 percent) for purchasing oil from Russia. Apple relies heavily on manufacturers in India to create the iPhone, so adding to its already $500 billion investment in the US is likely a way to avoid being impacted by the tariffs.

“Today, we’re proud to increase our investments across the United States to $600 billion over four years and launch our new American Manufacturing Program,” Apple CEO Tim Cook shared in a statement. “This includes new and expanded work with 10 companies across America. They produce components that are used in Apple products sold all over the world, and we’re grateful to the President for his support.”

In February, Apple said its original $500 billion investment plan would go towards building Apple Intelligence servers in the US, and that the majority of the new jobs the funding would provide would be focused on R&D, silicon engineering, software development and AI and machine learning. As part of this additional investment, Apple says it’s also deepening its relationship and investment in component makers working in the US, like Corning and Amkor. 

Corning produces the glass for iPhones and Apple Watches, and the company says that “soon, every iPhone and Apple Watch sold around the world will be built with Kentucky-made cover glass.” Apple is investing in Amkor to take advantage of the company’s “advanced chip packaging and test facility in Arizona.” Apple says its “leading the creation of an end-to-end silicon supply chain in the United States” through its investments.

In a statement to Bloomberg before the announcement, a White House spokesperson suggested the new investment would “help reshore the production of critical components to protect America’s economic and national security.” The Trump administration has previously called for Apple to make the iPhone in the US, something CNN reports is difficult to downright impossible.

Apple’s current strategy for dealing with Trump is similar to how it handled the President during his first term. In 2019, Apple CEO Time Cook and Trump “opened” a Mac Pro factory in Texas. The factory had been up-and-running since 2013, but the President was pleased by the optics of making a deal. Apple’s partnership with Amkor was similarly announced years ago in 2023, but is being trotted out now because it fits with Apple’s “American Manufacturing Program.”

Apple is a trillion-dollar company that can afford to spend a few billion to avoid paying tariffs, but it also likely planned to increase its investment in the US anyway to keep up with competitors. It’s entirely possible the company is just packaging its spending in a way that flatters the President. 

Developing…

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/apple-to-invest-another-100-billion-into-the-us-to-avoid-tariffs-210250020.html?src=rss 

Wired reported on new cybersecurity research that demonstrated a hack of the Google Gemini artificial intelligence assistant. The researchers were able to control connected smart home devices through the use of indirect prompt injections in Google Calendar invites. When a user requested a summary of their calendar and thanked Gemini for the results, the malicious prompt ordered Google’s Home AI agent to take actions such as opening windows or turning lights off, as demonstrated in the video above.

Before attacks were demonstrated this week at the Black Hat cybersecurity conference, the team shared their findings directly with Google in February. Andy Wen, a senior director of security product management with Google Workspace, spoke to Wired about their findings.

“It’s going to be with us for a while, but we’re hopeful that we can get to a point where the everyday user doesn’t really worry about it that much,” he said of prompt injection attacks, adding that instances of those hacks in the real world are “exceedingly rare.” However, the growing complexity of large language models means bad actors could be looking for new ways to exploit them, making the approach difficult to defend against. Wen said Google took the vulnerabilities uncovered by the researchers “extremely seriously” and used the results to speed its work on building better tools to block this type of attack.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/researchers-hacked-google-gemini-to-take-control-of-a-smart-home-201926464.html?src=rss