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Tencent has added yet another studio to its stable of game developers. On Tuesday, the company announced it recently acquired a majority stake in Tequila Works, the Madrid-based studio best known for its work on Rime. Financial terms of the deal weren’t disclosed, but Tequila Works said the investment would help take its games “to the next level.” The studio is currently working with Riot Games on Song of Nunu: A League of Legends Story. Incidentally, Riot Games is also owned by Tencent.Tequila Works welcomes Tencent as a majority investor.https://t.co/AZSv8o3T24— Tequila Works | Song of Nunu ❄️ (@TequilaWorks) March 15, 2022“We are delighted to ally with a partner that allows us to make Tequila Works a stronger studio with access to all the resources required to produce titles of the highest quality, all made with the care and passion our beloved fans know us for as well as the opportunity of bringing these projects to a wider audience,” said Tequila Works chairwoman Luz Sancho.While Microsoft has dominated headlines with its high-profile acquisitions of Activision-Blizzard and Bethesda parent company ZeniMax Media, Tencent has quietly amassed an empire of its own. In 2021, it invested in more than 100 gaming-related companies, including Back 4 Blood developer Turtle Rock and Sumo Group in a deal that saw Tencent acquire the LittleBigPlanet 3 studio for $1.26 billion.

Ms. Marvel, one of several Marvel Cinematic Universe shows coming to Disney+ this year, will premiere on June 8th. Disney also revealed a trailer for the series. It centers around Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani), a Pakistani-American whose idol is Captain Marvel.It's not too much of a spoiler to say that Kamala gains cosmic powers of her own, such as super strength and a shapeshifting ability, seemingly through mystical bracers. On top of becoming a superhero, Kamala has to contend with more ordinary aspects of life as a teenager, including high school, crushes, career counseling and parents.Ms. Marvel (who'll be familiar to those who've read the comics or played Marvel's Avengers) is the MCU's first Muslim superhero. She'll also appear in The Marvels, which is scheduled to hit theaters on February 17th, 2023.Before Ms. Marvel premieres, Moon Knight, which stars Oscar Issac, will debut on March 30th. On Wednesday, all the MCU shows that were previously exclusive to Netflix — including Daredevil, Jessica Jones and Luke Cage — will arrive on Disney+.

Now might be a good moment to buy an Echo Show 5 as a smart alarm clock. Amazon is once more selling the second-gen Echo Show 5 for a record-low $45, or a large 47 percent below the official price. You can also buy the Kids edition for $55 (42 percent off) if the colorful shell and year-long Kids+ subscription prove appealing.Buy Echo Show 5 at Amazon - $45Buy Echo Show 5 Kids at Amazon - $55The Echo Show 5 is practically tailor-made for your nightstand between its small size, a sunrise alarm and a tap-to-snooze feature. It sounds surprisingly good for its size and includes a camera (with privacy shutter) for morning video calls. If you just want to check the weather or control your Alexa-powered smart home from your bed, this is all you need.There are some limitations. The interface isn't quite as elegant as Google's Nest Hub, and you'll want that device if you use other Nest devices or otherwise immerse yourself in the Google Assistant ecosystem. The video calling performance isn't a huge leap over the first-gen Echo Show 5, and you can't plug in a better set of speakers. For $45, though, there's not much room to complain — it costs less than an Echo Dot with clock while offering more overall functionality.Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

No modern smartphone is completely carbon neutral. Even the most eco-conscious phones are only partially made out of recyclable materials. But you can help cut back on plastic usage by at least purchasing an eco-friendly case to protect your phone from dings and scratches. There are plenty of them, from those that are completely compostable to ones made from ocean-based plastic. Best of all, eco-friendly cases are often just stylish and durable as their mainstream counterparts. Here are our favorites.PelaNicole Lee / EngadgetWithout a doubt, our favorite eco-friendly phone cases are those made by Pela. We absolutely love their colors and designs, plus the fact that the entire line is 100 percent plant-based and compostable. The case material is called “Flaxstic,” which the company says is made from flax straw and compostable bioplastic elastomer. Importantly, it's also free of BPA, phthalates, cadmium and lead. If you ever decide to get rid of it, you can indeed just chuck in a compost bin and it’ll be completely biodegradable.What’s more, Pela cases are available for a wide array of handsets. They can accommodate iPhones (from iPhone 5 onwards), Samsung Galaxies (Galaxy S8 and newer), Google Pixels (from the Pixel 3a on), the Huawei P50 and P50 Pro and the OnePlus 9.For iPhone users, we should note that Pela cases are not MagSafe-compatible by default. Strangely, too, you can only purchase an additional $6 MagSafe module for the iPhone 13, and not the iPhone 12. Applying it to my phone was pretty straightforward, so that’s not a big concern, but it’s something to keep in mind. And, obviously, the MagSafe module with all its magnets is not compostable; you’ll have to take it off and dispose of it separately.Shop Pela phone casesLifeProof WakeEngadgetLifeProof is a phone case brand that specializes in recycled materials. Each of its products is at least partially made out of recycled materials. But the most eco-friendly option is the LifeProof Wake, which is made from 85 percent ocean-based recycled plastic. According to the company, a lot of that comes from discarded fishing gear, which would otherwise be a fatal hazard for marine life like sharks and turtles.In addition, we’re big fans of the Wake’s design. It comes in four different colors, and features an attractive sculpted wave pattern. It feels sturdy and durable, and LifeProof says it’s drop proof from two meters (roughly six and half feet). Plus, it’s MagSafe-compatible by default. The LifeProof Wake is available for iPhones (iPhone 11 onward), Samsung Galaxies (Galaxy S20 and newer) and Google Pixels (Pixel 4a and up).LifeProof’s other cases aren’t too bad either. If you want a clear see-through case instead, LifeProof’s SEE series is a good option (those cases are made out of 50 percent recycled plastic), as is the NEXT series (they’re made out of 55 percent plastic and blocks out dirt, dust and snow). The FRE series (50 percent recycled plastic) doesn’t have a clear case option, but it’s also the sturdiest of the bunch: It’s the only one that’s waterproof from two meters for an hour.Shop LifeProof phone casesCasetify Ultra CompostableEngadgetCasetify is mostly known for making durable yet stylish phone cases, but it has several eco-friendly options, too. The latest is its new Compostable line, which is made with a 100 percent compostable and plant-based material called “Ecotify.” Basically, it’s a blend of bamboo, biopolymers and starch.The regular Compostable line has a drop-protection of around four feet, while the Ultra Compostable line, with its extra corner bumpers, has a drop-protection of about 6.6 feet. My recommendation would be to go with the more durable Ultra Compostable option, even if it does cost about $5 more.Unfortunately, Casetify’s Compostable line is only available for iPhones the (iPhone 7 and up). Casetify d

Microsoft brought the DirectStorage API to Windows to speed game load times, the Motion Picture Association says the streaming and theatrical movie market surpassed pre-pandemic levels in 2021, and Google adds Pixel Camera Service to bring camera features to third-party apps. MP3 Please SUBSCRIBE HERE. You can get an ad-free feed of Daily Tech HeadlinesContinue reading "Microsoft Brings DirectStorage to Windows – DTH"

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The VergeHowdy, team! I’m here, on a Tuesday. And what a day to have a platform, because now I can tell you to go watch / listen to the premiere of MUNA’s new song at 11:45AM ET. May we sob together. (The teaser made the music sound somewhat upbeat, but you really never know.) EXCLUSIVE: Big $$$ in virtual podcast events In-person podcast tours have shown that people are willing to pay for something beyond a pre-recorded episode. But virtual versions of those shows? In this climate of Zoom fatigue? Oh yeah, baby. In fact, they’re booming. Moment House has been live-streaming podcast recordings, called “Moments,” since March 2021, and I’m told that the company has sold 140,000 tickets over the course of the 56 that it’s hosted since then. The streams have averaged six-figure payouts for creators; one even reached as high as $500,000. Creators keep all gross revenue (Moment House makes money from a 10 percent service fee on the customer), with many shows returning to the platform quarterly. What happened to Zoom fatigue? These huge payouts come from a combination of tickets, merch, and tips from the audience, as well as meet-and-greet upgrades or after parties, all of which Moment House helps create a contained environment for. The platform has been a success for big names like the McElroy brothers and cult favorites like Morbid: A True Crime Podcast and Buffering The Vampire Slayer, but technically any podcaster can host on the platform. Moments are livestreamed and interactive, so they’re well suited to improvisational, chatty podcasts with devoted listeners. Bart Coleman, Moment House’s head of comedy, described the events to me as having “‘anything can happen’ energy.” Past Moments have included interactive trivia with audience members and a live merch fundraiser where hosts made a drinking game out of the milestones reached. Mike Muney, head of creator partnerships, tells us that Moments work considerably well for podcasters, many of whom have the dual goals of making money off of their work and engaging directly with their audiences. (Moment House also hosts concerts and has done so for longer than it’s hosted podcast recordings.) Podcast audiences have shown they’re willing to do their part: common paywalled perks for podcasts are ones that give listeners increased access to podcast hosts, whether through behind-the-scenes episodes or Discord chats. Moment House is a natural extension. But Moment House isn’t alone in this space. Last spring, Nick wrote about the virtual-performance endeavors of the company FRQNCY. At the time, there was a lot of doubt swirling around about its shelf life: would it last once audiences were able to return to in-person events? Now, it seems like there’s continued to be more desire for location-agnostic events than we could’ve known. Headgum launches its platform for booking host reads Last week, the podcast network Headgum publicly launched Gumball, a host-read ad marketplace that the company says is unmatched in being fully automated: brands can walk themselves through transparent booking calendars, playable samples, and audience demographics, then check out; on the other side, podcasters are given tools to manage their own workflow and decision-making (and can apply to join the platform here). Headgum built Gumball’s tech internally, and for years before the tool’s “debut from stealth,” the company used it to book ads for its own slate of podcasts, then eventually other select shows. CEO Marty Michael tells me he’s excited for even more independent shows to get in on it, especially since they’ve already seen a “halo effect” of sales from the existing relationships that advertisers have with Headgum shows. “Anything that saves time in this busy world, and in this demanding industry, is hugely help

It took a while, but AMD's first desktop processor with 3D V-Cache is finally on the horizon. AMD will release the eight-core Ryzen 7 5800X3D on April 20th for $449. That's the same price as the older 5800X cost when new, but the company is clearly betting that the much larger combined cache (100MB versus 36MB) will help justify the outlay. AMD claimed in January that the 5800 X3D could outperform both the Ryzen 9 5900X and Intel's Core i9 12800K in 1080p gaming, although it's safe to say real-world results might vary.There are also some decidedly more affordable CPUs if you're more interested in value for money than raw speed. AMD has introduced six budget Ryzen chips, including three Zen 3 models. The six-core Ryzen 5 5500 only supports up to PCIe Gen 3, a 4.2GHz boost clock and 19MB of cache, but at $159 (cooler included) should be the most accessible Zen 3 part to date. Step up to the $199 Ryzen 5 5600 and you'll get PCIe Gen 4 support, a 4.4GHz boost clock and 35MB of cache. The $299 Ryzen 7 5700X, meanwhile, is built for the sweet spot with eight cores, a 4.6GHz boost and 36MB of cache, although you'll have to bring your own cooler.Those happy to make do with Zen 2 have lower-priced options. The four-core Ryzen 3 4100 peaks at 4GHz with 6MB of cache for $99 with cooler, while the $129 Ryzen 5 4500 jumps to six cores, a 4.1GHz boost and 11MB of cache. Cost-conscious gamers can buy a $154 Ryzen 5 4600G with Vega-class Radeon graphics, a 4.2GHz peak clock and 11MB of cache.All six lower-cost CPUs should be available starting April 4th. We wouldn't be surprised if pricing climbs higher for the Ryzen 7 5800X3D given ongoing chip shortages, but they represent solid values at their official stickers. They might also do the trick if you lean AMD and can't wait until Zen 4-based hardware arrives late this year.

Intel has confirmed plans to build a semiconductor plant in Germany as part of an investment of up to €80 billion ($88 billion) in Europe over the next decade. The initial outlay for the facility in Magdeburg, the capital of Saxony-Anhalt, is €17 billion ($19 billion).The so-called "mega-site" will actually comprise two factories. Planning will start right away with construction expected to get under way in the first half of next year, as long as Intel gets the thumbs up from the European Commission. Production should commence at what Intel is calling "Silicon Junction" in 2027. As such, the plant won't help offset the global chip shortage any time soon.Intel says the dual plants will build chips using its top-of-the-line Angstrom-era transistor tech. It expects to create 7,000 construction jobs for the duration of the build, 3,000 permanent positions and thousands more jobs across partners and suppliers.Elsewhere, Intel will invest another €12 billion ($13 billion) to expand a factory in Leixlip, Ireland. It will double the manufacturing space and expand foundry services there. The company's also in discussions with Italy to build an assembly and packing facility there at a cost of up to €4.5 billion ($4.9 billion).Intel plans to build its European research and development hub near Plateau de Saclay, France. It expects to create 1,000 jobs as a result, with 450 of those opening up by the end of 2024. Intel aims to set up its main European foundry design center in France too. Further investments are earmarked for Poland and Spain.The company says the plan is "centered around balancing the global semiconductor supply chain with a major expansion of Intel’s production capacities in Europe." In February, the European Union announced a $49 billion effort to prevent future chip shortages and reduce reliance on parts manufactured in Asia.“The EU Chips Act will empower private companies and governments to work together to drastically advance Europe’s position in the semiconductor sector," Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said. "This broad initiative will boost Europe’s R&D innovation and bring leading-edge manufacturing to the region for the benefit of our customers and partners around the world."

CEO Matt Mullenweg on why he bets big on small companies Matt Mullenweg is the CEO of Automattic, the company that owns WordPress.com, which he co-founded, and Tumblr, the irrepressible social network it acquired from the wreckage of AOL, Yahoo, and Verizon. Matt’s point of view is that the world is better off when the web is open and fun, and Automattic builds and acquires products that help that goal along. That bet is perhaps most pronounced with WordPress itself. Around 43 percent of all the websites on the internet run on WordPress, which is a piece of open-source software anyone can download and use for free. It is officially administered by the WordPress Foundation, but if you don’t want the hassle, you can just go to WordPress.com and pay Automattic to do most of the work for you. It is an absolutely fascinating model that has obviously worked really well, and I wanted to know more about why Matt set it up that way and what the challenges of that structure are. I also wanted to talk about Tumblr — it’s Taylor Swift’s favorite social platform, and it is one of those things that users have kept alive no matter how many corporate owners have tried to kill it. But like every social platform, it has meaningful moderation challenges. Famously, to get an app on Apple’s app store, it had to ban porn, which users are still upset about. Matt and I talked about those challenges. One note: Matt mentions something called “Gutenberg” a few times — that’s the new creation experience in WordPress, the part of the site where people actually make things. This is a long one, but it’s deep. I think you’ll like it. This transcript has been lightly edited for clarity. Matt Mullenweg is the CEO of Automattic, the co-founder of WordPress, and the CEO of Tumblr. Welcome to Decoder. Very happy to be here. The last time you and I chatted was right after the Tumblr acquisition. That was a fascinating conversation, but it was years ago, so there’s lots to follow up on. Automattic has bought a lot of companies. You released a lot of products — started with WordPress, which you obviously founded. You acquired Tumblr, bought Pocket Casts, you have WooCommerce. Start at the beginning: What is Automattic? How do you think about it? What are all of your companies? Sure. So Automattic has been a fully distributed company since 2005. For 17 years now, we’ve been trying to make the web a better place. We want to democratize publishing in commerce. We’ve been saying that for a long time, before democratizing was cool. To do that, we both build, buy, or partner with things that make the web more open and fun. Pocket Casts is one of the very best podcasting apps. It’s very user-centric; it’s an independent alternative to the Spotifys and Apples of the world. We’re just relentlessly iterating on it to try to respond to user requests and make it better. Most of our business models are through people paying us, as opposed to advertising or other models. We provide upgrades and that recurring revenue is what allows us to come to work the next day. We’re about to come up on 2,000 people working full time with Automattic. It’s really grown a lot, even since the last time we talked. I think we hired over 700 last year. 700 people. Where did you hire them all? All over the world. We have folks in 93 countries now. From the very beginning, and especially last year, one of our big advantages is that we’re not really geographically restricted in where we hire people. We are strong believers that talent is evenly distributed in the world, but opportunity is not. When we provide opportunity to places where they don’t normally have it, we find really, really amazing people and they tend to be great colleagues that stay for a really long time. The other unusual thing we do is we pay global pay rates, which also helps for international re

If you ever wondered how General Motors, one of the biggest automakers on the planet, went from 0 to EV so quickly while managing to reinvent its iconic Hummer SUV, former-poster child of automotive excess, as a future-facing electric vehicle, the History Channel has a show for you. Revolution: GMC Hummer EV will take a behind-the-scenes look at the development of the all-electric supertruck when it premieres Sunday, March 27th at 11am ET. “Our goal was to upend what an electric vehicle is capable of and push the boundaries from 100 years of vehicle development experience,” Executive Chief Engineer for the Hummer EV, Josh Tavel, said in a press statement. “This documentary captures the soul of a team capable of incredible innovation and resilience. Their learnings are laying the foundation of vehicle development for decades to come.”The hour-long documentary, produced by Hiatus and Detroit-based WTP Pictures and directed by Sean King O’Grady, followed the Hummer development team over the course of two years of design at the Global Technical Center in Warren, Michigan followed by grueling environmental testing at GM's proving grounds in Milford and Yuma.If you miss the live premiere, Revolution will hit History on Hulu, History.com and the GMC YouTube page the following Sunday, April 3rd.  

You don't have to use Google Assistant if you're wearing a Fossil Gen 6 smartwatch. As promised in January, Gen 6 smartwatches now officially support the new Alexa watch app. Set it up and you can launch Amazon's assistant either from the screen (including through a tile) or by configuring one of the pushers. This will be helpful if your smart home revolves around Alexa, of course, but it also provides some choice if you don't want to be tied to one AI helper.This is the first Amazon-made Alexa app for a Wear OS device, Fossil said. It's available for Fossil, Michael Kors and Skagen models, and Fossil promises to improve it over time.Alexa won't be quite as convenient as using Google Assistant. You'll still have to tap the screen to invoke Amazon's assistant where Google will be available just by holding the home button. This is a start, though, and it may make Fossil Gen 6 alluring if you like Alexa but don't want to buy a Fitbit smartwatch to put it on your wrist.

You're probably used to sorting your garbage into bins: green for paper or blue for plastic and glass. But when it comes to electronics, we're still used to selling those off or tossing them into the trash heap. Unfortunately, our gadget addiction has real consequences for the planet, making it imperative that we dispose of everything responsibly.Sure, you can try parting with your stuff for cash, but it's a pain, and it can be tough, if not impossible, to find someone who wants a busted Xbox or 20-year-old CRT. Few places have curbside pickup — in fact, some localities make it illegal to leave electronics for the garbage collectors — so you're going to have to find a reputable center to take it. We've gathered some of the resources to help you dispense of your broken and unwanted computers, televisions and any other gadget flotsam that's been taking up space in your closet.National chainsThere is no national electronics recycling law at this time, so you won't find any federal programs to assist you with getting rid of old devices. The USPS does run a program for federal agencies and their employees, but it's not available to the general public. Instead, the rest of us have to rely on nationwide retailers to toss out our old stuff.Best BuyBest Buy has more than 1,000 locations in the United States, so it's likely you have one nearby where you can drop stuff off. You just need to take it to the customer service counter. They'll issue you a receipt too, but keep in mind that you can't claim the drop-off as a deduction on your taxes because Best Buy isn't a charity.You can even recycle televisions and monitors, though you'll be charged a fee of $30 per item to cover the higher costs of transporting and disassembling them. (Consumers in California are not charged the $30 fee, while locations in Connecticut and Pennsylvania will not accept televisions at all.) If you're turning in a printer, you’ll get up to a $50 voucher toward the purchase of a new Epson EcoTank printer.Also be aware that Best Buy limits you to three items per household per day, including up to two televisions.StaplesRecycling your stuff at Staples is similar to Best Buy — just bring your products to the customer-service counter. But it’s more limited in that you can only bring in seven items a day, and the store won’t accept televisions at all. Staples Rewards members also receive a small credit of $2 for every used ink cartridge they turn in, up to 20 a month.Office DepotOffice Depot has more than 1,300 locations, but unlike Staples and Best Buy, it won't recycle your old gadgets for free. If you're only getting rid of a few phones or batteries, those can be turned in at no charge. For everything else, you must purchase a Tech Recycling Box, which costs $5, $10 or $15 depending on the size. Once you have the box, you can fill it with as many items as you want, provided they all fit inside, including smaller televisions. So it's a great deal if you have a lot of stuff you want to dispose of. These can be turned in either in person or by mail.Home Depot and LowesYou can dispose of old rechargeable batteries, old phones and CFL bulbs in the dropoff boxes at any of 2,300 Home Depot or 2,200 Lowe’s locations. The bins are usually located in the front of the store, and Home Depot has an 11-pound limit on individual items.ManufacturersIf you can't make it to a retail location, especially when you need to get rid of only one or two items, many companies offer recycling programs for their own products. They'll even pay for shipping. Some run their own programs while others use outside organizations. We've outlined policies from a handful of manufacturers below.AmazonWhile Amazon would love to direct you to its trade-in program, you're probably reading this post because there's stuff you can't sell, and for those items Amazon offers mail-in recycling. You can send in your busted Kindles, Fire TVs and even Dash Buttons, as well

In early 2021, a group of retail investors realized that GameStop shares had been recklessly over-shorted by major investors. Big funds, certain that the retailer was about to collapse, had shorted 140 percent of the company’s entire public shareholding. Individuals, who co-ordinated their efforts via a subreddit called r/WallStreetBets, knew that they could exploit this vulnerability. They bought up all of the outstanding GameStop stock and drove up the price, forcing the big funds to pay over the odds to avoid losing a fortune when their bet spectacularly backfired.It’s this story that is outlined, more or less, in MSNBC’s new documentary, Diamond Hands: The Legend of WallStreetBets, which debuted at SXSW 2022. It tells the story from the perspective of some of the individuals who signed up early and held on to their stake. Some used the squeeze to make a fortune, while others came away with a more modest, but still fantastic, profit. The decision to focus on these personal stories makes for an engaging tale at the human level, albeit one that’s very one-sided.The film’s general thesis is that the short squeeze took place mostly thanks to the internet and what it has enabled. Without Reddit to coordinate the trades and Robinhood acting, at least at first, as a way around the stuffed-shirt brokerages, none of this would have happened. There is a suggestion that people were motivated to get into investing as a consequence of the stimulus checks. Which I don’t agree with, mostly because people weren’t sinking thousands of dollars into GameStop if all they had was a spare $600 to their name.It also affords, as far as I’m concerned, a surprising amount of time to talk about the broken social contract most millennials feel hurt by. As useless as the term is, since “millennial” means anyone aged 26 to 41, it’s weird to see MSNBC allowing those under 50 to talk about their plight. Perhaps this marks a new and refreshing change as people who have lived through the last twenty years of utter turmoil are now deemed respectable enough to appear on the news.The other noticeable thing is the lack of expert commentary from the usual types of Very Serious Men in Finance. The big money fund-types that lost their shirts on GameStop chose not to appear in the film, and so their story isn’t told here. Similarly, you get about five sentences from Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev, who became the internet’s most hated figure when his app chose to restrict trading on the platform, potentially prematurely ending the GameStop squeeze. The inequitable screen time makes the documentary’s coverage of some of the major players fairly merciless. Given Robinhood’s launch coincided with SXSW in 2015, it’s interesting to watch nearly 90 minutes of people saying that the app screwed them over at the same festival seven years later. We also don't get to speak to Keith Gill who, as Roaring Kitty, was at the heart of the effort to craft the initial short squeeze.There is one annoyance that it’s worth being aware of is the film’s decision to create a visual style that apes the language of Reddit memes. Lots of gaudy iconography, remixes of old viral videos and the sort of amateur kitsch awfulness you see a lot online. It reminded me of an experiment Charlie Brooker did on the excesses of youth TV. He piled a bunch of teenagers into a screening room and told them to signal when they got bored while they watched a bunch of clips from screechy, in-your-face teen TV shows. What held them in rapt attention, however, was a sequence from an Adam Curtis documentary, with its slow narration and lack of any visual pizzazz. The point being that just because a subject deals with kitschy, out-there imagery from the internet, you don't need to jazz up the visuals to make your story entertaining.Diamond Hands: The Legend of WallStreetBets premieres on MSNBC on April 10th at 10pm

If you're lucky enough to have gotten your hands on a PS5, you may be looking for a drive with which to expand your console's storage. We have a whole guide that explains how to do that and which SSDs are our favorites, and one of those drives is down to a new record low right now. Samsung's 980 Pro SSD in 2TB is on sale for $250, which is 42 percent off and $30 cheaper than its previous best price.Buy Samsung 980 Pro (2TB) at Amazon - $250The 980 Pro is one of Samsung's best SSDs with PCIe 4 connectivity and an M.2 2280 form factor. You can plug it into laptops and desktops if you're more of a PC gamer, but you'll need to provide a heatsink if you want to hook this drive up to the PS5. You can buy one separately, or grab the 980 Pro with one bundled for $300. We also like the 980 Pro's fast performance, supporting speeds up to 7,000 MB/s, and its nickel coating which should help control temperature levels.A couple of other drives that made it into our PS5 storage guide are discounted as well. The Patriot Viper VP4300 in 2TB is on sale for $330 — just clip the on-page coupon for $50 off to get the lower final price. This is actually our favorite drive for the PS5 thanks to its sequential read speeds of up to 7,400 MB/s and two included heatsink options (aluminum and graphene). Also on sale is the Seagate FireCuda 530 in 1TB, which you can get for $190. This drive supports speeds up to 7,300 MB/s and also comes with a heatsink. Buy Patriot Viper VP4300 (2TB) at Amazon - $330Buy Seagate FireCuda 530 (1TB) at Amazon - $190Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

You won't need a Galaxy S22 to use some of Samsung's latest software tricks. Samsung is promising to bring One UI 4.1 to many of its Galaxy phones and tablets from recent years, including its more advanced camera features. You'll have access to the Expert RAW editing app, more advanced object removal and simpler photo sharing. You can expect Google Duo live sharing and a Grammarly-equipped keyboard, too.The One UI 4.1 update will first come to Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Z Flip 3. However, it will also come to the Galaxy S21, S20 and S10 families, the Galaxy Note line (from the Note 10+ onward), unnamed Galaxy A handsets and all previous foldable phones. Galaxy Tab S7 FE and further unspecified Tab S models will also receive the new software.Samsung didn't provide a specific timeline for the rollout, although that's likely to vary by device, country and carrier. The plan also suggests you might be out of luck if you use a Galaxy Tab A or other affordable tablets. Nonetheless, it's welcome news for many users who'd rather not buy new hardware just to catch up on One UI features.