The recent Google Play Store ruling could be bad news for Android phone users. Meanwhile, you only have a couple more days to buy a new Apple Watch before the ban kicks in. Catch up on the biggest product news of the week in our roundup. – Jorge Jimenez
The Google Play Store Ruling Is Bad News for Longtime Android Phone Users
Google’s been in and out of court quite a bit lately. Last week, Epic won a years-long suit against the search giant for anti-competitive practices within the Play Store. And this week, Google laid out what’s to come from the case against it for overcharging users in the Play Store. – Florence Ion Read More
Buy the New Apple Watch Now Before It’s Banned
Santa’s elves better hurry up and ship those new Apple Watches. Starting Dec. 21, the Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 will no longer be available for sale. Christmas Eve is the last day to buy one at the brick-and-mortar Apple retail store. – Florence Ion Read More
Here’s How to Get a Piece of the $US25 Million Apple Family Sharing Settlement
If you ever enrolled in the Apple Family Sharing with a family member between 2015 and 2019, you may entitled to a cut from the $US25 million legal settlement Apple agreed to pay. MacRumors did some math and claims you could get between $US30 to $US50 if you qualify. – Dua Rashid Read More
Volkswagen Bows to Touchscreen Criticism Will Bring Back Physical Buttons
There’s more than nostalgia making folks pine for the days of knobs, dials, and buttons. Touchscreens are fine for all-in-one devices but not for something as simple as controlling a car’s air conditioning. Volkswagen had to learn the hard way that just because something can be put in a touchscreen doesn’t mean it should. The automaker declared it will reintroduce physical controls back into future cars after eschewing them in recent releases. – Kyle Barr Read More
2023 Was the Weakest Year for Memes in History
For the last two decades, some of the weirdest and most creative things on the internet played out in images and GIFs. There have always been terrible memes, but for years, memes as a category were consistently funny, useful, inspiring, and even thought-provoking. They crossed over into all of the furthest reaches of our culture, serving as communal glue that invited us all to participate in a recognizable and easily adapted conversation. But judging by what we saw in 2023, it’s clear that the golden age of memes is over. Call it an obituary: memes are dead. – Thomas Germain Read More
Can Apple Finally Make Mac Gaming Stick?
This story is part of our new Future of Gaming series, a three-site look at gaming’s most pioneering technologies, players, and makers.
“Apple and gaming.” For decades, you’d be laughed at trying to use those two words together in a sentence. You might think that one of the world’s biggest PC brands would also be one of the best avenues for gaming, especially with all its bespoke components like the Mac-centric M-series and iPhone 15’s A17 Bionic chips boasting all that pint-sized power on a 3nm processor. But no: The gaming landscape on Mac is like a desert. Now, Apple is poised to change that sorry reputation—if only it can get out of its own way. – Kyle Barr Read More
Bipartisan Lawmakers Want to Know Why the Hell Apple Is Blocking Beeper Mini
Apple’s recent move to block Beeper Mini, the app that lets Android users chat with iPhone through the iMessage protocol, has caught the eye and a fair bit of ire of several U.S. congresspeople. Now lawmakers are calling for an investigation into the tech giant over “potential anticompetitive treatment” of the smaller messaging app. – Kyle Barr Read More
Flightless Bird: E-Scooter Company Bird Declares Bankruptcy
Electric scooter company Bird is flying south for the winter, and it might be a very different kind of fowl by the time it returns. The Miami, Florida-based micro-mobility company known for allowing rambunctious, helmetless e-scooterists to fly down city streets declared bankruptcy Wednesday, saying it was entering into a process of “financial restructuring” while still keeping its bikes and other scooters operational for now. – Kyle Barr Read More
Gizmodo’s Top Five Gadgets of 2023
Gizmodo highlights some of our favorite tech products to come out this year.
Master & Dynamic’s New Headphones Will Use Neural Sensors to Help You Focus
Master & Dynamic’s already-premium $599 luxury headphones, MW75, are about to get a very brainy upgrade. They’re about to get brain tech embedded in them. – Dua Rashid Read More