It's the middle of summer for those of us in the northern hemisphere, which means many of us are getting out and about to make the most of the warm weather. But there's little worse than finding yourself mid-hike or with several more acts to go at a festival only to find your phone is out of juice. To help you stay in touch with friends and share envy-inducing photos on Instagram, you might need a portable charger, and a solid Anker options is currently on sale. The Anker 334 MagGo Battery with a 10,000mAh capacity is 21 percent off at $31.49. It typically costs $40. This model is a strong choice for iPhone users as it's MagSafe-compatible. According to Anker, you'll be able to charge an iPhone 15 Pro 1.7 times over and an iPhone 15 Pro Max 1.2 times thanks to its decently sized battery. The company also suggests that the power bank could add up to 22 hours of video playback time to an iPhone 14. The power bank delivers 7.5W of wireless charging. It's unlikely to easily budge from the back of your iPhone as it has 10N of magnetic force, which is more than Apple's own MagSafe charger. On the downside, you'll need a compatible device to use this. The Anker 334 MagGo Battery only works with the iPhone 12 and later models. If you have a case that isn't MagSafe-compatible, you'll need to remove that first too. In addition, wireless charging is slower than simply plugging your phone in, but that's perhaps less of a concern when you're off camping for a weekend. Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/you-can-snag-an-anker-10k-magsafe-power-bank-now-for-32-143426995.html?src=rss

If you're having a little trouble with Microsoft Office or Teams today, you're not alone. The company has reported some Azure-related issues that are preventing some users from accessing certain services. The problems started at around 8AM on Tuesday.Microsoft reported on a status page that "a subset of customers may experience issues connecting to Microsoft services globally." The company deployed several engineering teams to try and resolve the problem as swiftly as possible. "We've identified multiple workstreams and are working to mitigate impacted workstreams by performing failover operations," it said in a statement. "More details will be provided as they become available."For what it's worth, there was a significant spike in outage reports made to Down Detector on Tuesday morning for both Microsoft and Microsoft 365. Here's hoping the issue is resolved soon so you can rejoin Teams calls you never wanted to be on in the first place.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/some-microsoft-services-including-office-are-suffering-from-an-outage-142757596.html?src=rss

Google has rolled out updates for Search with the intention of making explicit deepfakes as hard to find as possible. As part of its long-standing and ongoing fight against realistic-looking manipulated images, the company is making it easier for people to get non-consensual fake imagery that features them removed from Search.It has long been possible for users to request for the removal of those kinds of images under Google's policies. Now, whenever it grants someone's removal request, Google will also filter all explicit results on similar searches about them. The company's systems will scan for any duplicates of the offending image and remove them, as well. This update could help alleviate some of the victim's fears if they're worried about the same image popping up again on other websites.In addition, Google has updated its ranking systems so that if a user specifically searches for explicit deepfakes with a person's name, the results will surface "high-quality, non-explicit content" instead. If there are news articles about that person, for instance, then the results will feature those. Based on Google's announcement, it seems it also has plans to school the user looking for deepfakes by showing them results that discuss their impact on society.Google doesn't want to wipe out results for legitimate content, like an actor's nude scene, in its bid to banish deepfakes from its results page, though. It admits it still has a lot of work to do when it comes to separating legitimate from fake explicit images. While that's still a work in progress, one of the solutions it has implemented is to demote sites that have received a high volume of removals for manipulated images in Search. That's "a pretty strong signal that it's not a high-quality site," Google explains, adding that the approach has worked well for other types of harmful content in the past.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-makes-it-easier-to-remove-explicit-deepfakes-from-its-search-results-130058499.html?src=rss

If you're a dedicated Google Maps user like me, then you know its not perfect. But, Google is now announcing some improvements with a range of new features for Maps and Waze. One of the things I find most exciting is the additional guidance on entering buildings and where to park. In the coming weeks, Maps will start lighting up the destination and entrance to it as you approach, so you (hopefully!) don't have to circle it three times in the dark.Google is also now making it easier to report incidents while using Maps, increasing the size of these icons so you can share quickly and safely while on the go. You can also tap to confirm a previously reported incident after approaching it.Waze is getting three updates, including new camera alerts. Now, Waze will be able to alert you if a camera is approaching and tell you what it's monitoring, whether it be speed, seat belts or accurate carpool lane use. Waze will also notify you if there's a traffic event nearby or close to one of your starred locations. You can then send an alert to a friend or family member. Both of these updates are rolling out now on iOS and Android. Rounding out Waze's updates is the ability to get navigation guidance even when your phone is locked. This feature will launch globally on Android soon, while it will arrive on iOS in the fall.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-maps-will-show-you-where-to-enter-your-destination-130021496.html?src=rss

Meta has explained why its AI chatbot didn't want to respond to inquiries about the assassination attempt on Trump and then, in some cases, denied that the event took place. The company said it programmed Meta AI to not answer questions about an event right after it happens, because there's typically "an enormous amount of confusion, conflicting information, or outright conspiracy theories in the public domain." As for why Meta AI eventually started asserting that the attempt didn't happen "in a small number of cases," it was apparently due to hallucinations.An AI "hallucinates" when it generates false or misleading responses to questions that require factual replies due to various factors like inaccurate training data and AI models struggling to parse multiple sources of information. Meta says it has updated its AI's responses and admits that it should have done so sooner. It's still working to address its hallucination issue, though, so its chatbot could still be telling people that there was no attempt on the former president's life.In addition, Meta has also explained why its social media platforms had been incorrectly applying the fact check label to the photo of Trump with his fist in the air taken right after the assassination attempt. A doctored version of that image made it look like his Secret Service agents were smiling, and the company applied a fact check label to it. Because the original and doctored photos were almost identical, Meta's systems applied the label to the real image, as well. The company has since corrected the mistake.Trump's supporters have been crying foul over Meta AI's actions and have been accusing the company of suppressing the story. Google had to issue a response of its own after Elon Musk claimed that the company's search engine imposed a "search ban" on the former president. Musk shared an image that showed Google's autocomplete suggesting "president donald duck" when someone types in "president donald." Google explained that it was due to a bug affecting its autocomplete feature and said that users can search for whatever they want anytime.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/meta-explains-why-its-ai-claimed-trumps-assassination-attempt-didnt-happen-120002196.html?src=rss

Google has responded to allegations it censored searches about Donald Trump after Elon Musk baselessly claimed the company had imposed a search ban on the former president. Google explained the bugs in its autocomplete feature caused the issues. But Musks tweet, viewed more than 118 million times, has forced the search giant to publicly explain one of its most basic features.Google added that the strange suggestions for president donald were due to a bug that spanned the political spectrum. It also affected searches related to former President Barack Obama and other political figures. Mat SmithThe biggest stories you might have missedThe Senate just passed two landmark bills to protect minors onlineI really want to like Star Wars OutlawsThe best soundbars in 2024You can get these reports delivered daily direct to your inbox. Subscribe right here!Perplexity will put ads in its AI search engineAnd share revenue with publishers.Perplexity will start sharing revenue with some publishers as part of an advertising platform it plans to launch around the end of September. The Perplexity Publishers Program comes less than two months after the startup, valued at $3 billion, came under fire from Forbes, Wired and Cond Nast for allegedly scraping content without permission.Continue reading.Samsung tests its Galaxy Z Flip phones as police bodycamsA pilot scheme is expanding to 25 metro police departments across five states.SamsungA new blog post from Samsung highlights how law enforcement is adopting its Galaxy Z Flip series devices. The line of foldable mobile devices was part of a pilot program, two years ago, in Kimberling City Police and Indian Point Police in Missouri, to test how the phones might improve daily operations. According to Samsung, the program was the first time police used a foldable device as a bodycam. The foldables were customized in collaboration with Visual Labs, a company that repurposes mobile devices as body and dash cameras.Continue reading.This robot dog has a vacuum to clean up trashIt uses AI to pick cigarette butts up from Italys beaches.IITItalian scientists have built a quadruped robot that can identify litter and pick up the smaller bits with its leg-mounted vacuums. The group published a paper in Aprils Journal of Field Robotics on VEROs development. Discarded butts release toxic chemicals and microplastics into the ocean as they break down. Its also the second most common undisposed waste worldwide in areas that are hard to reach for most robots. VERO picked up 90 percent of the cigarette butts identified in testing.Continue reading.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-morning-after-google-dismisses-elon-musks-claim-that-autocomplete-interfered-in-the-election-111558485.html?src=rss

Nothing just announced a relatively surprising hardware update for its Phone 2a smartphone. The Phone 2a Plus is a modest upgrade, but still significant, being as how the original 2a was just released back in March.Most notably, the 2a Plus has a faster chip than the OG 2a. The originals Mediatek Dimensity 7200 Pro maxed out with a clock speed of 2.8GHz. The 2a Plus boasts a Mediatek Dimensity 7350 Pro that can hit 3.0GHz. Beyond that, the new model features a slightly quicker wired charging speed, at 50W instead of 45W.NothingThats about it. Every other aspect is nearly identical to the 2a. It has the same camera system, the same battery, the same display and similar aesthetics. This isnt a bad thing. We loved the Phone 2a in our official review, calling it a budget phone that's packed with personality.Now onto the bad news. This phone will technically be available to US customers via the companys beta program, though there are some caveats. American customers can only buy the gray version and not the black one. Even more important, the 2a Plus doesnt offer true 5G connectivity with many of the major US carriers. This includes both AT&T and Verizon.The Nothing Phone 2a Plus costs $400 and that gets you 12GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage. Nothing Beta members will be able to order the phone on August 3. UK residents can scoop it up directly from the company on the same day. Nothing says well have to wait until September to find out more details regarding global availability.NothingThe company also released a few tidbits about the upcoming Nothing OS 2.6. There will be an updated Game Dashboard with new features and the ability to block third-party app notifications.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/nothing-just-announced-the-phone-2a-plus-a-minor-refresh-of-a-pre-existing-model-093049030.html?src=rss

The Apple Watch is undoubtedly a statement piece, but just like your iPhone or iPad, you can quite easily (and affordably) jazz it up with some of the best Apple Watch accessories. Whether you choose a fancy new Apple Watch band to add your own personal touch, a case to protect it or a portable charger for added convenience, there are plenty of accessories to choose from. And although Apple does offer a few official accessories, they tend to be on the expensive side. Thankfully there are some great third-party options from reputable brands like Spigen, Anker, and Belkin, to name a few. Check out our favorite accessories for the Apple Watch, and get excited about customizing yours. Best Apple Watch accessories 2024 This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/best-apple-watch-accessories-133025270.html?src=rss

Our pick for the best budget MacBook is back at its all-time low price. Right now, you can get the 13-inch MacBook Air with an M2 chip for its Prime Day price of $799, down from $999. The deal is available on the 256GB models in Silver, Space Gray or Starlight, but doesn't include AppleCare+. We dubbed this MacBook Air a "near-perfect Mac" when it debuted in 2022, giving it a 96 in our review. Some of the features that stood out to us included the M2 chip, which has eight CPU cores and up to 10 GPU cores. Apple might be up to the M4 chip now, but if you're looking for a device that can do all the basics without struggling, then an M2 is plenty strong enough. Apple's 2022 MacBook Air also offers a Liquid Retina Display with a 60Hz refresh rate and 500 nits of brightness. The entire device is also slimmer and sleeker than its predecessor. Plus, it has a quad-speaker system, compatibility with Dolby Atmos and Spatial Audio and a three-mic array. Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apples-m2-macbook-air-drops-back-down-to-a-record-low-of-799-135526109.html?src=rss

When people type a question into Perplexity, the two-year-old search engine scours the internet and uses information from multiple sources, including online publishers, to synthesize an answer using AI. Soon, Perplexity will start sharing revenue with some publishers as part of an advertising platform it plans to launch around the end of September, the company announced on Tuesday.The initiative, known as the Perplexity Publishers Program, comes less than two months after the San Francisco-based startup backed by investors like Jeff Bezos and NVIDIA, and valued at $3 billion, came under fire from Forbes, Wired, and Cond Nast for allegedly scraping content without permission and ignoring robots.txt, a type of file that websites use to block page-crawling bots.Perplexitys initial partners include TIME, Fortune, The Texas Tribune, Der Spiegel and Automattic, the company behind WordPress.com. Its not clear exactly how much revenue Perplexity will share with publishers. Dmitry Shevelenko, the companys chief business officer, declined to reveal numbers but told Engadget that it would be a meaningful double-digit percentage shared back with the publishers that contributed source input to the answer." He also said that the partnership would extend across multiple years without specifying how many. What this wasnt, Shevelenko insisted repeatedly, was a response to the critical press coverage in the last few months. Weve been talking to publishers since January, he claimed. No aspect of this program is reactive to these recent accusations.For months, publishers around the world have been concerned about the potential of AI-powered search engines and chatbots to decimate traffic by simply sucking up their content and using it to provide people with answers directly instead of having to actually visit their websites. Google has followed suit too the company now sources answers from search results and displays AI-generated versions at the top of the page. But so far, it doesnt compensate publishers.[Our revenue share] is certainly a lot more than Googles revenue share with publishers, which is zero, Shevelenko said. The idea here is that were making a long-term commitment. If were successful, publishers will also be able to generate this ancillary revenue stream. Perplexity, he pointed out, was the first AI-powered search engine to include citations to sources when it launched in August 2022, although the company reportedly redesigned its user interface to show them more prominently after being called out by Forbes in June.AI companies like OpenAI have struck deals with major publishers including TIME, News Corp, Vox, Axel Springer, the Financial Times and others to use their content to train AI models, writing checks ranging from $5 million to $250 million. Perplexitys revenue-sharing program, however, is different: instead of writing publishers large checks, Perplexity plans to share revenue each time the search engine uses their content in one of its AI-generated answers. The search engine has a Related section at the bottom of each answer that currently shows follow-up questions that users can ask the engine. When the program rolls out, Perplexity plans to let brands pay to show specific follow-up questions in this section. Shevelenko told Engadget that the company is also exploring more ad formats such as showing a video unit at the top of the page. The core idea is that we run ads for brands that are targeted to certain categories of query, he said.PerplexityThis makes sense for Perplexity because it does not train its own AI models. Instead, it lets users choose from leading AI models like OpenAIs GPT-4o, Anthropics Claude 3.5 Sonnet and Metas Llama 3.1 to summarize answers from the web. Its very simple, Shelevenko said, if were making money and a publishers content was used on that ad impression, the publisher will get a cut of that revenue.But without knowing how much percentage of ad revenue Perplexity plans to split with publishers, its unclear whether the move will help publishers make up for any revenue lost due to declining traffic as AI-generated search engines and chatbots become more popular. And breaking into an online advertising business dominated by Google and Meta isnt easy. Setting up an ads business takes time, Toshit Panigrahi, founder of Tollbit, a startup that lets publishers monetize content by offering it to AI companies for a fee they can set themselves, told Engadget. Publishers are expected to hand over content today in the hopes that Perplexity sets up a successful ads business and cuts them in.Shevelenko refused to comment on the recent controversies that Perplexity has been involved in with publishers but acknowledged that onboarding them had become harder in the last few months. Some [of our conversations] were in a great place, he said, and then the bad press hit and then they kind of, you know raised more questions.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/perplexity-will-put-ads-in-its-ai-search-engine-and-share-revenue-with-publishers-130052289.html?src=rss