Nest Learning Thermostat review: pretty smart
The fourth generation of the Nest Thermostat improves on the original in almost every way, and it’s still a stunner.
The fourth generation of the Nest Thermostat improves on the original in almost every way, and it’s still a stunner.
Feed refreshed
With the arrival of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth on PC January 23rd, Square Enix is once again asking players to be cool about mods. In an interview with Epic Games, director Naoki Hamaguchi asked that modders, “not to create or install anything offensive or inappropriate.” A similar ask was made on behalf of Final Fantasy XVI, and like that request, this one will likely be ignored as well.
The automaker has received the green light to push new Drive Pilot software that enables its cars to operate as fast as 95km/h (just shy of 60mph) on the Autobahn.
Level 3 autonomous systems still require a driver behind the wheel, but they can go hands-free and even distract themselves by doing something else, like watching a movie.
Per the company’s incident page, a hacker accessed Anthropic’s official X account, sharing two crypto coins (that are, of course, a scam). It isn’t year clear how the account was compromised.
It’s the latest example of the Biden team approving massive loans for clean energy, battery, and electric vehicle projects as the clock winds down on the president’s time in office. The PG&E loan is the biggest to-date and will go toward investments in “hydroelectric power generation, batteries and power lines,” according to the New York Times.
[The New York Times]
After being banned from India in 2020 along with other Chinese apps, Shein won a rare exception — but it comes with strict parameters.
Among them: the fast fashion giant must hand over customer data to its Indian partner Reliance Retail. Shein products will also be produced locally, with government security audits.
Dexcom’s Stelo continuous glucose monitor (CGM) for those with Type 2 diabetes is starting to use generative AI to write weekly reports with “more personalized tips, recommendations, and education related to diet, exercise, and sleep” than the template previously used.
CNBC:
Stelo’s AI reports don’t give users medical advice, though Dexcom has been using an AI framework from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to help guide the feature’s development, [Dexcom COO Jake] Leach said.
Cable Matters’ new 11-in-1 docking station includes four Thunderbolt 5 ports that can drive three 8K displays at 60Hz when connected to a Windows PC, or a pair of 6K/60hz displays when connected to a Mac. For $349.99 the dock also includes three USB-A ports, microSD and SD card slots, and supports Thunderbolt Share.
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1/2
The new feature allows users to pin the feeds of Roku indoor and outdoor wired cameras to the TV screen while watching other content. This is supported on most 4K Roku Players and TVs, and is rolling out alongside a motion-activated rotating security camera carousel feature that was teased in October.
6
Verge Score
I wanted the Colorsonic to zap my grays. Instead, I got a lesson in tradeoffs.
The Irish Data Protection Commission announced the fine following an investigation into a data breach that affected 29 million Facebook users. The incident stemmed from an exploit of Facebook’s video upload feature, allowing hackers to obtain users’ names, email addresses, phone numbers, and more.
Meta, which has already faced several fines from the DPC, plans to appeal the decision, according to the Associated Press.
[Data Protection Commission]
A collection of fun, affordable, and unique gifts fit for everyone on your list.
The parade continues. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew met with the President-elect earlier today, Sarandos is set to meet with him tomorrow, and Jeff Bezos’ meeting is apparently on Wednesday.
The self-driving computer in some new Teslas is apparently failing, according to Electrek:
The problem is linked to a new version of Tesla’s HW4 (sometimes called AI4) onboard self-driving computer. Internally, some refer to the new version as AI4.1. The computers are short-circuiting. The cause is still being investigated, but one source told Electrek that one of the possible causes is the low-voltage battery short-circuiting the computer during the camera calibration process.
The full report has more, including that remedies could include a computer replacement or a potential software patch that Electrek says would “help temporarily.”
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John Chu’s Wicked sequel was always going to need some sort subtitle to set it apart from Part One, and it seems the studio has decided on calling it Wicked: For Good — an allusion to one of the songs we’ll all probably be humming to ourselves next year.
8
Verge Score
A touch more speed and just a tiny bit more convenience.
The VW-owned exotic brand had planned to release an EV in 2028 based on the Lanzador EV concept revealed last year. At a press event in Italy, Lamborghini president Stephan Winkelmann told reporters, “We do not think 2029 is late to have an electric car. We do not think that, in our segment, the market will be ready in 2025 or 2026.” Lamborghini did make time to launch the Temerario plug-in hybrid this year.
Three years ago, I was surprised to find out Ozy Media existed, much less that its COO was caught impersonating a YouTube exec while trying to secure a $40 million investment from Goldman Sachs.
Now, its CEO has been sentenced to nearly 10 years in prison after being convicted over the summer on fraud and identity theft charges.
[The New York Times]
With roughly one month until the “ban” phase of the US TikTok “divest or ban” law, TikTok’s making a last-ditch appeal to the Supreme Court:
The Supreme Court has an established record of upholding Americans’ right to free speech. Today, TikTok is asking the Court to do what it has traditionally done in free speech cases: apply the most rigorous scrutiny to speech bans and conclude that it violates the First Amendment.
[Newsroom | TikTok]
Media critic Matt Pearce on ‘Lessons on media policy at the slaughter-bench of history’
Capcom surprised at The Game Awards with revivals of both Okami and Onimusha, but it sounds like there’s more on the way. The developer says that, in addition to its big franchises like Resident Evil and Monster Hunter, it’s “focusing on re-activating dormant IPs that haven’t had a new title launch recently.” Which can only mean one thing: Dino Crisis is getting a remake. (Please?)
Now that iOS 18.2 and Apple’s associated software updates with Apple Intelligence and ChatGPT are widely available, it’s followed up with a new round of developer betas released Monday afternoon.
iOS / iPadOS 18.3, macOS Sequoia 15.3, tvOS 18.3, visionOS 2.3, and watchOS 11.3 are all available now. The listed release notes are sparse, but 9to5Mac reports that macOS 15.3 adds Genmoji.