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Samsung says its latest mobile memory is a production breakthrough

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Samsung is fond of bragging about its progress on memory chips, but this is one time where it made a particularly notable breakthrough. The Korean firm has started mass production of 16-gigabit LPDDR5 mobile RAM chips that are billed as the first memory ever to be made using extreme ultraviolet lithography, which uses lasers and light-sensitive chemicals to etch silicon. Aside from giving Samsung an edge over rivals, it reportedly clears a “major developmental hurdle” in scaling RAM — this could offer much more room for the industry to grow.

This also translates to some immediate real-world gains, as you might expect. The 6.4Gbps of bandwidth is about 16 percent faster than the 12-gigabit chips seen before, while a 16GB package of chips is about 30 percent thinner. That could lead to slimmer phones or space for components like batteries and cameras.

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Samsung teases premium Thom Browne Edition of the Galaxy Z Fold 2

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As you might imagine, though, the combination of a fashion imprint and the extras could easily make this one of the most expensive Samsung phones to date. The Thom Browne Galaxy Z Flip cost $2,480 when new, or well over the $1,380 price of the standard Z Flip. With the Z Fold 2 likely to carry a considerably higher starting price (the original Galaxy Fold was $1,980), there’s a real chance its Browne counterpart could crack the $3,000 mark — this really will be for the wealthy and style-conscious.

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GoPro’s Hero 9 Black might include a color front screen for vloggers

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It’s not certain when the Hero 9 Black will ship or how much it will cost, provided the leak is accurate. GoPro has timed recent launches for late summer or early fall, however, so it may just be a matter of weeks before a new model arrives.

This could be a particularly important launch. GoPro made significant job cuts in the spring as the COVID-19 pandemic hit and hurt both retail sales as well as the size of its customer base. You don’t have as much incentive to get an action camera if it’s not safe to go on adventures with your friends. If the front display helps with video, this and the company’s Twitch-like streaming service could expand the audience for the Hero line to include more vloggers and social media enthusiasts who want to document their lives.

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After Math: 15-Minute COVID tests and 27,000 not-so-great scots

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abbot

Engadget

This new rapid COVID test from Abbot promises to diagnose people for the virus in just 15 minutes, rather than the 15 or so days current testing systems require. The government has already put in an order for 150 million of the tests but seeing how well the Trump administration has handled the pandemic so far, rest assured they’ll find a way to shoot themselves (and the CDC) in the foot over this.

nukes

Engadget

What, you thought Bitcoin was just pulled from the internet’s ether? No, it takes electricity and lots of it in order to mine the digital currency. Current estimates put the practice’s global power usage at just over 7 gigawatts.

shipment

Engadget

Even though the COVID quarantines have us stuck inside and glued to our phones more than ever, the pandemic has not been kind to cellphone manufacturers. A recently released study found that global handset shipments have dropped by more than a fifth since March. Apple, unsurprisingly, appears to be none the worse for wear.

dunning kruger

Engadget

Oh my dear Dunning Kruger. I get that countless people on the internet see themselves as self-styled experts in various fields but this takes the cake. A teenager living in North Carolina didn’t let a little detail like having no functional understanding of the Scottish language stop them from authoring more than 27,000 articles — 49 percent of Wikipedia’s entire collection on the subject — on the subject.

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Twitter says Chadwick Boseman’s final post is the most liked tweet ever

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Twitter has a new record for the most liked tweet, but it’s a bittersweet moment. The social network has confirmed (via Deadline) that the late Chadwick Boseman’s last post, the news of his death by his family, is the “most liked tweet ever.” The Black Panther star’s obituary post had 7.7 million likes as of the afternoon of August 29th, although that appears to have dipped slightly as of this writing.

Boseman died of colon cancer at 43 on August 28th after a four-year fight against the disease. The news prompted an outpouring of grief and sympathy, including likes and retweets from celebrities and groups like Dwayne Johnson, The Academy and the NAACP. Some of his last projects were for Netflix, including Spike Lee’s Da 5 Bloods and the yet-to-premiere Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.



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Instant Pot’s WiFi-connected pressure cooker drops to $80 at Best Buy

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The discount is $50 off the price we’ve seen this model hover at recently ($130) and $70 off its standard price. The deal also makes it the same price as the Instant Pot Duo (6-quart), a machine that’s just as solid but a bit more basic than the Smart WiFi model.

A key feature of the Smart WiFi model is exactly what you’d expect — WiFi connectivity. This Instant Pot can connect to your home WiFi network so you can control it from your phone with the companion mobile app. In addition to starting the gadget, you can also monitor the status of the meal that’s cooking and schedule cook times in advance. You may not be going to the office much right now, but this feature can come in handy when you have long days and want to start dinner in the Instant Pot before you even get home.

The Instant Pot Smart WiFi also adds cake maker to its long list of capabilities, which also includes pressure cooker, slow cooker, rice cooker, yogurt maker, saute pan, steamer, and warmer. The standard Instant Pot Duo (which normally costs between $80 and $100) not only doesn’t have the cake-maker setting, but it also doesn’t connect to WiFi. The 6-quart model is a good size for most people — you’ll be able to make many family dinners in it without worrying about it taking up too much space on your countertop.

Even if you think the hype is overblown, it’s hard to deny the versatility of the Instant Pot. This deal on the Instant Pot Smart WiFi is a great one if you like the idea of making the cooking process even more automated with the help of a mobile app.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.



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Porsche pushes back the launch of its second EV to 2021

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To some extent, Porsche is taking advantage of uniquely favorable conditions. It still expects to turn a profit in 2020 despite COVID-19, helped both by the Taycan as well as a recovering Chinese car market. The company did have to cut costs, but it has so far refused to cancel new models.

As it stands, the Cross Turismo should play a crucial role in Porsche’s transformation. It’ll join the upcoming Macan EV in bringing electric Porsches to a more mainstream audience. Porsche expects 40 percent of its cars to be completely electric by 2025 — it won’t get there without more practical people haulers. The Cross Turismo’s later release suggests Porsche is confident it will hit that goal without having to rush new models to market.

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Tesla Autopilot now detects speed limit signs

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Tesla cars are now smarter about recognizing street signs. Electrek reports that the automaker is pushing a software update that lets Autopilot detect speed limit signs using the EV’s cameras. Your car should stick to the limit more accurately than it did before, when it was relying solely on GPS data. You shouldn’t risk a ticket just because your car sped up prematurely.

You should also have fewer embarrassing moments at intersections. There’s now a chime that sounds when the traffic light you’re waiting for turns green. If there’s a car in front of you, the chime will wait until that vehicle moves forward It’s still up to you to confirm your intention and resume semi-autonomous driving, but that beats listening to honking horns from people waiting behind you.

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Watch a Toyota-backed flying car’s first public, piloted test flight

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Toyota-backed SkyDrive has finally conducted a public, crewed test flight (via Observer) for its flying car after years of work. The startup flew its SD-03 vehicle around the Toyota Test Field in the city of Toyota with a pilot at the helm. While it wasn’t autonomous, as you might have guessed, it showed that the aircraft could work as promised in the field.

The SD-03 is billed as the smallest electric VTOL (vertical take-off and landing) vehicle in the world, and it’s meant to usher in a “new means of transportation” for urban life. It has a total of eight rotors that help it fly safely even if there’s a motor failure.

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The Xperia 5 II might be Sony’s first phone with a 120Hz screen

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You’d otherwise get much of the same performance as the more expensive device, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. You’d have three 12MP cameras for main, ultra-wide and 3X telephoto shots, with Zeiss lenses and 4K 120FPS video recording. You’d also get a Snapdragon 865 chip, 8GB of RAM, 128GB of expandable storage and 5G support.

Despite the timing of the leak, the Xperia 5 II wouldn’t arrive at IFA. Instead, Sony is reportedly aiming for a September 17th debut. The main question is the price. It’s likely to cost less than its $1,200 counterpart, but it’s not certain by how much. That difference could be vital when 120Hz support is relatively commonplace in phones like the Galaxy S20. Sony is arriving half a year later, and might face stiff opposition when the technology is no longer a novelty.

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