This year, Star Wars Nite at the Disneyland Resort expanded its run with multiple dates of the popular, separately ticketed event geared toward fans of a galaxy far, far away. And let me tell you, I am so glad they did this to meet the demand from previous years. Last spring, the limited event felt packed to capacity. It was hard to do much as content creators and influencers flocked to get the first looks at character interactions and food—to the point where it was hard for regular park-goers (including a very pregnant me at the time, and the friend who’d invited me along) to do anything. Even with four-ish hours to do it in, if you just wanted to try the Star Wars-themed food or meet characters from the films not usually available during regular park hours, it felt impossible. I only got to try one ration of the special food items hidden deep in Tomorrowland that was not that great, and waited in a really long line to meet an Ewok.  This year, Star Wars Nite expanded to last a few weeks, happening on select nights between April 8 and May 6. Disneyland invited io9 to attend one of the nights and we knew to pick something smack in the middle to avoid the rush of Disney influencers competing to their firsts in. It was a much better experience than before and far more accessible. The overall experience was enhanced by allowing Star Wars fans more opportunities to gather over the course of the park’s “Season of the Force” celebration (March 28-May 11), and get to experience shorter wait times for all the offerings. It was such an enjoyable experience to be able to do more and spend an evening without the kiddo—my eight-month-old is not ready for late park nights—and get a redo with my friend. It was so much easier to get food and try different things for a Star Wars food crawl. I started out with my new favorite, the Fried Falumpaset cheese skewer, which is a Korean hot dog-inspired cheesy treat (no meat) that comes with a fantastic mustard cheese sauce. While it’s available during the day too at Ronto Roasters in Galaxy’s Edge, it’s an item we hope stays a staple year-round. Before the night exclusives became available I also got the Fried Chicken Baos for a small bite to hold me over before trying the event’s specialty noms. First up was the new honey chipotle-glazed Kalbi Ribs, which were perfectly charred on the surface and tender like Anakin’s face on the lava shores of Mustafar. It was served with with a side of steamed broccoli, purple cabbage, and blue rice. I’d definitely have this again because it’s hard to find themed foods that aren’t predominately carb loaded. Before wandering off for rides and character lines, I was intrigued by the vague description of Cafe Orleans’ themed offerings as “small bites and drinks.” It was a cold blustery night as we made our way to New Orleans Square as the sweet metal sounds of the Imperial March played from the stage on the Rivers of America by a cover band. Yes, they played  Billy Idol’s “Rebel Yell” too, and you know what? It was easy to get into the vibes. When we got to Cafe Orleans, the Star Wars Menu had an item that seemed to really be what the night needed for dessert: the sipping chocolate. Originally I was going to have the Galactic Princess Sundae but I didn’t want to feel Hoth-level cold so this new option was perfect and such a hidden gem. It was perfectly rich and warm, and came with sweet biscuits and a marshmallow that should have been Rebel emblem or Yoda shaped. It made me wish it had been part of a Star Wars themed high (republic) tea because that would have been so fun to dress up for. Disneyland already had the makings of it, with a Coruscanti salad with a Hawk-bat egg and the Galactic Republic flatbread. There was also a boozy option, the Rebel Refresher— it could be liquid courage to keep you warm and take on the Empire, but you might need to go to the refresher soon after. Dining at Cafe Orleans for their themed warm drinks and teas was such a nice way to not feel like you had to go-go-go, and it had a great vantage point to listen to the sounds of Figrin D’an and the Modal Nodes playing live on the river. © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 © Gizmodo io9 This year, the atmosphere was so much easier to bask in. The DJ parties were fun to roam around as we made our way to various meet and greets. The lines were so short for all the Star Wars rides it made it really worth the admission for the evening event; during the day with regular park guests they just get so crowded. The only thing that was really missing was the use of the theater next to Hyperspace Mountain, which could have had an Andor season two preview going. But there was so much to do including costume parades, “A Gathering of the Resistance” with Rey to unite in lightsaber igniting, and also a lightsaber how-to at the Fantasyland Theater. Merchandise was still a little hard to come by as Star Wars Nite exclusives ran out quickly in sizing, and the previously teased remote controlled Mouse Droid still hasn’t been released. The highlight of the night was meeting Queen Padmé Amidala. The line last year didn’t allow for stopping for a pose, you had to grab a selfie and keep moving. It was better facilitated this time and we actually got pictures with (and of) the incredible face actress who was a dead ringer for Natalie Portman. The only bummer was when we met Padmé, Anakin was not out to meet folks, meaning I missed him for the second year in a row. They have a great Jedi face character for him we’ve seen online. Ah, well next time! The Skywalkers had such a great presence at Star Wars Nite which makes sense as this year marks the 20th anniversary of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. The film marking the end of the prequel era has seen so much love from fans who grew up on it and the energy of the Y2K gen was felt throughout the night. There was so much excitement when Darth Maul showed up with his double-edge light saber and even Sheev Palpatine somehow returned. It was however the beautiful re-telling of those three films through Shadows of Memory: A Skywalker Saga through projection lights and narration by the lore weaver which capped off the night perfectly at Galaxy’s Edge. While there weren’t too many new-for-2025 attractions, it was a great change of pace to be able to finally do a lot more of what’s been offered and hoping that the next slate of events offers more exciting updates and characters from Andor, Skeleton Crew, and The Acolyte. Because if the prequels are any indication, fans of Star Wars love it all and outnumber the loud angry fans who gatekeep the content to just the original films. For more information on Disneyland After Dark: Star Wars Nite and tickets visit here. Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

Soda is a delicious addition to any meal. Sure, with all the sugar and chemicals in the kind the big box stores sell you, you’re drinking things you shouldn’t be drinking. But if you make your own “soda” with carbonated water and healthier flavorings, you can save time and money and drink healthier beverages at that. How can you do that? With a SodaStream machine, of course. And today, you can snag one from Amazon at a fantastic price. See at Amazon Head to Amazon to get the SodaStream Terra for just $60, down from its usual price of $90. That’s $30 off and a discount of 33%. This price applies to the Black, Misty Blue, and White colorways, and you get the Starter Kit as part of your purchase, which comes with the SodaStream Terra machine, a CO2 Quick Connect cylinder, a dishwasher-safe carbonating bottle, and 40mL of Bubly drops to create your first drinks. Quick and easy fizzy drinks at home for less This soda machine is super slim and fits on your countertop wherever you have space. It only really needs three things to operate: carbonation, water, and flavoring. It doesn’t run on batteries either, and needs very little flavoring to make delicious drinks. All you need to do is figure out what flavors you want and go from there. There are tons of Pepsi flavors to choose from as well as Bubly and other brands that you can mix and use to your liking to make tasty drinks that don’t come at $10 per box of 12 cans or $5 for a 2-liter, which is where we’re at in terms of groceries these days. All you need to do is fill your bottle, add your flavoring, and add the CO2 fizziness from your cartridge. It’s super easy to carbonate right in the bottle, and you’ll get the fizziest bubbles imaginable. If you’re not interested in having any flavoring, you can just have seltzer water on its own. If you want to make drinks quickly and start saving a little bit of money at home (and your health, for goodness’ sake), this is a great option. It’s inexpensive to get started with, and replacement bottles and other elements to save with are cheap too. Whether you’re getting it as a lifestyle change, to drink less sugary sodas, or to give your kids some options for when they drink at home, this is a buy you won’t soon regret. See at Amazon

Fear not, international fans: the James Gunn-helmed movie will indeed open July 11.

By Kyle Barr Published April 25, 2025 | Comments (0) | Nintendo Switch 2 and official Nintendo accessories © Alex Cranz / Gizmodo This week’s Nintendo Switch 2 preorder madness, both in the U.S. and abroad, offered more perspective on just how popular Nintendo’s new handheld console will be at launch on June 5. Already, it seems consumers are willing to bite their tongue and drop upwards of $450 on the successor to the original Switch. If you’re lucky enough to buy a device, you’re staring down the barrel of $70 or $80 games, plus near-$100 for additional controllers if you stick with Nintendo’s first-party accessories. Third-party accessories tend to be cheaper, but the licensed and more-niche peripherals set to sell alongside the Switch 2 seem to be inferior in some ways compared to Nintendo’s official gear. For instance, if you’re looking for the most authentic retro experience on the Switch 2, you’ll have to trade practicality for price. The return of the GameCube controller—again—seemed like a major win for gamers at first. But then Nintendo offered the confusing caveat that it’d only work with GameCube titles available via a Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack subscription. © Nintendo Confirming to Nintendo Life, Nintendo clarified that you can indeed use the GameCube controller to play other Switch 2 games so long as they account for the lack of a left bumper button and a right analog stick that’s shaped like a nipple. Even still, the new GameCube controller won’t work with any other console but the Switch 2. When asked for clarification, Nintendo sent Gizmodo the following statement: The Nintendo GameCube controller is designed for use with the Nintendo GameCube — Nintendo Classics collection of games and is an optional way to play those games. Since it doesn’t have all the buttons and features found in other controllers that can be used with the Nintendo Switch 2 system, there may be some issues when playing other games. The Nintendo GameCube controller can only be used on Nintendo Switch 2 and is not compatible with Nintendo Switch. Nintendo recently updated the listing for its GameCube controller on its website. Initial reports suggested the controller would cost $65, but the product page now just says it’ll launch alongside the Switch 2 on June 5. Only those who go through Nintendo’s priority sale on the My Nintendo Store may have the option to buy it first on May 8 through May 12. Gizmodo reached out to Nintendo to confirm a final retail price, and we’ll update this post if we hear more. Still, even if the controller ends up retailing for $65, it’s much cheaper than the new $85 Pro controller and $95 Joy-Con 2 (Nintendo recently bumped up each peripheral’s price by $5, citing U.S. tariffs). Both of those first-party controllers feel very good in-hand, but the premium prices only add the to cost of what’s already a pricey Switch 2. The Switch 2 GameCube controller isn’t the only accessory that may not function as you’d think. If you paid close attention, the April 2 Switch 2 Direct suggested gamers could face other issues with latency and jagged images when streaming to friends using Nintendo’s $55 1080p-resolution Switch 2 camera. Hori, which makes licensed Nintendo products, is selling a Piranha Plant camera that retails for $60. You’d think because it costs more than the official Switch 2 camera that the resolution might be better, but nope, it’s actually worse! While adorable, the Piranha camera is only 480p resolution, which isn’t even standard HD. Hori has another less-cute camera that’s compatible with Switch 2. You can find on Amazon’s Japan webpage, but it too is limited to 480p resolution. It costs 3,981 yen, or about $28 in the U.S., though we can only assume prices will be higher at home due to tariffs. On the upside, both of Hori’s cameras can plug directly into the Switch 2’s USB-C port while handheld, which is something Nintendo’s official camera can’t do. Until we’ve tried out the cameras we won’t know how they compare to Nintendo’s. It’s possible the lower resolution on Hori’s cameras could mean less lag and the image quality is negligible on the Switch 2’s screen. Nintendo’s store page mentions you can use “any compatible USB-C camera you’d like,” on Switch 2, which does insinuate you should be able to use most third-party webcams, but the company has yet to confirm that. If that’s the case, you could have way more camera choices. Why didn’t Nintendo just update the GameCube controller to function more like a modern gamepad? Why is Hori cheaping out on the resolution of its cameras? I wish I had real answers. So before you run out and buy any Switch 2 accessories, just make sure you know exactly what they can do. Daily Newsletter You May Also Like By Kyle Barr Published April 24, 2025 By Kyle Barr Published April 23, 2025 By Kyle Barr Published April 22, 2025 By Kyle Barr Published April 18, 2025 By Kyle Barr Published April 15, 2025 By Germain Lussier Published April 14, 2025

A common bacteria in our gut might be stirring up more trouble than we knew. A study out this week has found evidence that a mutagenic toxin produced by some strains of Escherichia coli can trigger early onset colorectal cancer. Scientists at the University of California San Diego led the research, published Wednesday in Nature. They found a link between exposure to the toxin, called colibactin, and colorectal cancers more likely to happen in young adults. The findings could help explain why the rate of early onset colorectal cancer has mysteriously risen in recent years, though more research is needed to confirm a causative connection, the researchers say. Colorectal cancer is the fourth most common cancer, with roughly 150,000 Americans diagnosed with it every year. It’s also the second most leading cause of death by cancer, killing around 50,000 Americans annually. As with many types of cancer, the incidence and death rate of colorectal cancer has been steadily declining over time. However, this decline isn’t equally distributed, since the incidence of colorectal cancer has been increasing in young and middle-aged adults. According to the American Cancer Society, rates of colorectal cancer among people younger than 50 have increased by 2.4% per year between 2012 and 2021. Scientists aren’t sure why these cancers have become more common in younger Americans, though some research has pointed the finger at processed foods, higher obesity rates, and other lifestyle factors. But this new study appears to add another suspect. The study researchers weren’t specifically looking to unravel this mystery; they were more interested in understanding why some parts of the world have higher reported rates of colorectal cancer than others. To do so, they analyzed the genetic signature of colorectal cancers taken from nearly 1,000 people across the world. These samples included people with both late and early onset cancer. Colibactin is already known to cause mutations in our cells that could raise the risk of cancer, and past studies have linked it to colorectal cancer. But the researchers were surprised to find that colibactin-related mutations were about three times more commonly found in the early onset cancers they studied compared to the late onset cancers. They also found molecular evidence that these colibactin-related mutations tend to show up early in a tumor’s development, suggesting they play a vital role in fueling these cancers. Coupled with other research showing that colibactin-related mutations often appear in the first ten years of life, the authors argue that this toxin could be a major instigator of early onset colorectal cancer. “These mutation patterns are a kind of historical record in the genome, and they point to early-life exposure to colibactin as a driving force behind early-onset disease,” said senior study author Ludmil Alexandrov, a researchers specializing in cancer genomics at UC San Diego, in a statement from the university. The researchers note that colibactin may still only be one big piece of a larger puzzle. They note that colibactin-related mutations were rarely found in more rural parts of the world. So it’s possible that other environmental factors like diet or antibiotic use are encouraging the growth of colibactin-producing E. coli bacteria in the gut in places like the U.S. Outside of colibactin, there might be other exposures that could explain higher cancer rates in different countries. But the team’s findings do provide fertile ground for future research, and could possibly even lead to interventions that could slow or reverse the rise in early onset colorectal cancer. The researchers are already hoping to study whether probiotics might be able to eliminate these more harmful E. coli stains, and they’re trying to develop early detection tests that can screen for colibactin-related mutations. All of this work, however, is contingent on further funding. And the researchers are quick to note that the U.S. government under President Donald Trump has aggressively limited funding from the National Institutes of Health in recent months—the same sort of funding that might go to important cancer research like theirs. “If NIH funding cuts impact our ability to do this work, that will be, in my opinion, a substantial hit to cancer research not just in the U.S., but globally,” said Alexandrov. “Our funding has allowed us to collaborate with cancer researchers around the world, collecting and analyzing large datasets from patient samples in multiple countries. That kind of scale is what makes discoveries like this possible.”

A Ghostbuster is offered as Tribute in the new Hunger Games, the Toxic Avenger cleans up Los Angeles, and an Arrow star boards a movie adaptation of the world’s most popular autopsy simulator. Do you know what happens to a toad when it’s struck by lightning? The same thing that happens to Morning Spoilers! The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping Deadline reports McKenna Grace has joined the cast of the new Hunger Games as Maysilee Donner, Haymitch Abernathy’s fellow District 12 Tribute. The Mortuary Assistant Deadline also has word Willa Holland (Arrow) and Paul Sparks (House of Cards) will star in a film adaptation of the horror video game, The Mortuary Assistant, from director Jeremiah Kipp. Holland will play Rebecca, “the young woman confronting terrifying supernatural forces,” while Sparks has been cast as Raymond Delver, “Rebecca’s mysterious mortician boss, who appears to be a mentor, but also a potential threat.” According to the outlet, “the film is billed as a new chapter in the story that will expand on the game’s world and mythology, delving deeper into the lore of the demonic entities plaguing River Fields.” Urban Legend According to THR, Gary Dauberman is in talks to produce a reboot of the Urban Legend franchise. Shanrah Wakefield has been hired to write the script. Final Destination: Bloodlines Bloody-Disgusting has a new Spanish-language poster for Final Destination: Bloodlines. © Warner Bros. The Toxic Avenger The Toxic Avenger was recently spotted cleaning up the streets of Los Angeles in honor of Earth Day. Fountain of Youth Apple TV+ has released another trailer for Fountain of Youth starring Natalie Portman, John Krasinski, and Eiza Gonzalez. The Bunker A micropathogen specialist (Chelsea Edmundson) is sealed in an underground bunker until she can develop a bioweapon to combat extraterrestrial invaders in the trailer for The Bunker, co-starring Tony Todd and Tobin Bell. Thorns Elsewhere, an “ex-priest working for NASA” investigates a remote observatory that went mysteriously silent after receiving a radio signal from space in the trailer for Thorns, a Hellraiser-inspired sci-fi film including an appearance from Doug Bradley. Darkly Deadline reports Blumhouse has teamed with Jamie Lee Curtis on a television series based on Marisha Pessl’s novel Darkly. The story concerns a teenager named Arcadia “Dia” Gannon as she lands an internship at the titular Darkly, a “terrifying toy and game company” whose founder died under mysterious circumstances. “As Dia and her fellow interns delve into the heart of Darkly, they discover hidden symbols, buried clues and a web of intrigue.” Love, Death + Robots Netflix has also released another trailer for the fourth season of Love, Death + Robots. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Finally, the cast of Strange New Worlds meets Spongebob Squarepants in a crossover promotion at Paramount+, Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

Princess Leia’s twin buns made Star Wars‘ first big fashion statement, but it wasn’t until the prequels that a true style icon emerged in the galaxy far, far away. We’re talking, of course, about Padmé Amidala. While her elaborate Queen of Naboo garb made an impression in The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones is where the Natalie Portman character really got to flex her favorite flowing fabrics and sleek battle attire. Lucasfilm, never one to shy away from marketing any corner of Star Wars, clearly hit upon a good idea by releasing a book of paper dolls celebrating costume designer Trisha Biggar’s gorgeous creations. However, 23 year after the movie’s release, pristine copies of Random House’s Star Wars: Attack of the Clones: Padmé Amimdale Paper Doll Book, featuring art by Joyce Patti, are hard to find. But fret not: as part of an upcoming Star Wars sale timed to May the Fourth, Heritage Auctions has on offer not a copy of the book, but the original Joyce Patti acrylic-on-paper artworks, mounted to illustration boards and suitable for displaying to show off every precise detail. The set of eight artworks (each measuring approximately 13.25″ x 20″) showcases Padmé new status as the Senator representing Naboo, as well as her off-duty attire while falling in love with Anakin Skywalker: “her loyalist dress, her refugee dress, her picnic dress, her dinner dress, her Tatooine blue dress, her wedding gown, and her Geonosis battle attire,” Heritage Auction notes. Anakin also gets his moment as an added bonus, but his Jedi togs ain’t much next to Padmé’s undeniable galactic flair. © Heritage Auctions/HA.com © Heritage Auctions/HA.com © Heritage Auctions/HA.com © Heritage Auctions/HA.com © Heritage Auctions/HA.com © Heritage Auctions/HA.com © Heritage Auctions/HA.com © Heritage Auctions/HA.com © Heritage Auctions/HA.com The fine print is that the starting bid on this set of original illustrations is the queenly sum of $3,000. Learn more how to bid here. You can check out the full Star Wars auction here. Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

Three fights against Marvel A-listers have paved the way for the Predator to slaughter any Marvel character he doesn't like.

By Ed Cara Published April 25, 2025 | Comments (0) | A blacktip shark (Carcharhinus limbatus). These sharks have only rarely been documented to bite people unprovoked. © Diego Grandi via Shutterstock Sharks might not be as responsible for rare human bites as we assumed. In a study released today, scientists argue that at least some shark bites should be considered a form of self-defense. Marine biologists from France led the research, published in Frontiers in Conservation Science. After analyzing shark bite data from throughout the world, they estimated that about 5% of shark-on-human bites are wholly defensive, rather than sharks trying to catch their next meal. The findings should help inform shark bite prevention efforts, the researchers say. “The results of this study show that sharks have as much right as any animal or human to defend themselves when their survival is at stake.” Lead researcher Eric Clua, a shark specialist at PSL University, was inspired to look into the topic by observations he had made during his field studies in French Polynesia. He often heard about fishermen who systematically slaughtered sharks that had unwittingly become trapped in fish pens. These sharks would sometimes bite the fishermen if they were initially unsuccessful in killing the animal. He also heard reports of accidental shark bites on underwater spearfishermen where the sharks appeared to only attack because they wanted the fisherman to stay away from their prey. “On closer examination, the opportunity arose to model this self-defense mechanism described in the study, which insists on human and not shark responsibility in this type of accident,” Clua told Gizmodo in an email. The researchers first analyzed data from recorded shark bites in French Polynesia—specifically, incidents that contained at least some information on the possible motivation behind the bites. Between 2009 and 2023, 74 such shark bites were documented in the area. Four of these bites, 5% of the total, were likely motivated by self-defense, the researchers found. Clua and his team then scoured through data from the Global Shark Attack Files, which has documented nearly 7,000 shark bites since 1863. They examined bites classified as provoked, involving people placed in close proximity to sharks. Once again, about 5% of the bites they studied—322 bites overall—seemed to meet the criteria for self-defense. These criteria include the sharks biting immediately after a human action that is, or could be perceived as, aggressive, and the bites being repeated but leaving superficial, non-lethal wounds. Paradoxically, a defensive shark bite might also be disproportionately violent compared to the human action that preceded it, such as a stranded shark aggressively biting a human trying to return it to the water. But this disproportionality might simply be a sign of the shark’s desperation to survive at any cost, according to Clua. “The results of this study show that sharks have as much right as any animal or human to defend themselves when their survival is at stake,” he said. “They also show that, counter-intuitively, it is advisable not to come to the aid of a shark in danger, as it will not necessarily perceive this human action positively and may react aggressively.” By uncovering the many motivations behind shark bites, the team hopes to prevent them from happening in the first place. People shouldn’t interact with or approach sharks, for instance, even if they seem harmless or appear to be in danger. And in general, you should be in groups of at least two people when swimming in places where sharks live, which can reduce the risk of a sustained predatory attack. Unlike some land predators, Clua adds, staying still will not dissuade a predatory shark from attacking, so you should always try to defend yourself if the worst-case scenario happens. At the same time, the researchers note that sharks are typically afraid of humans. As a result, shark bites are very uncommon, and even more rarely are they fatal compared to other animal-human interactions. There were only 88 shark bites recorded worldwide in 2024 and seven related deaths, for instance. By contrast, hippos are estimated to fatally attack at least 500 people a year, and the fatality numbers get even more skewed when you consider the diseases spread by certain animals (mosquito-borne malaria alone kills over a half million people each year). So while it’s important to practice good safety in waters that could contain sharks, people (reporters included) also shouldn’t over-inflate the risk of being bitten by them in the first place. “In addition to reducing the number of such bites in the field, we hope that one of the major effects of our study will be to modify the vision and attitude of journalists, by suggesting that they take a closer look at the conditions in which bites occur, without systematically blaming the animals, but rather making humans more responsible,” Clua said. The team plans to continue studying other types of shark bites, such as “exploration”-driven bites where the sharks might bite humans to test whether they’re suitable prey. Daily Newsletter You May Also Like By Ed Cara Published March 20, 2025 By Margherita Bassi Published March 9, 2025 By Ed Cara Published February 28, 2025 By Ed Cara Published January 21, 2025 By Isaac Schultz Published January 7, 2025 By Ed Cara Published January 3, 2025

By Sabina Graves Published April 24, 2025 | Comments (0) | Sketch of Shrek and Donkey (from a set of three character illustrations) by Colin Jack. © DreamWorks/Sotheby's The animation industry in partnership with ASIFA-Hollywood has launched AnimAID, and a fundraising auction at Sotheby’s is set to raise money for industry folks affected by the LA wildfires. The Walt Disney Company, Warner Brothers, Sony Pictures Animation, DreamWorks Animation, LAIKA, and more big studios have all donated an array of rare and unique pieces of animation art for interested parties to bid on. The online auction opened this week with the hopes of aiding artists and professionals within the animation industry who are facing displacement or have lost their homes as the city of Los Angeles continues to come together and rebuild. Animation producer Don Hahn (Beauty and The Beast, Howard) spoke on behalf of the cause on Instagram: “The animation community was hit hard by the Los Angeles fires. Now the animation world is banded together by donating artwork, priceless artwork to Sotheby’s for a very special auction to benefit an organization called AnimAID and those profits will go completely to victims of the LA fires.” The curation of over 90 years of incredible art draws from both cinema and television, including Snow White, The Simpsons, Inside Out, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, The Wild Robot, Beauty and the Beast, Avatar, and other beloved titles. Hahn continued, “Every bid makes a difference and helps people rebuild their homes and their lives.” The exhibition’s bidding is now ongoing and here’s a look at some of the pieces that are up for auction. Items also include film industry artist commissions, tours of the animation studios, signed posters, and more, as well as original production drawings and animation cells. For the live auction and more information visit here. Daily Newsletter You May Also Like By Sabina Graves Published April 23, 2025 By Sabina Graves Published April 22, 2025 By Sabina Graves Published April 11, 2025 By Justin Carter Published April 6, 2025 By Sabina Graves Published April 2, 2025 Germain Lussier Published April 1, 2025

The first three episodes of Andor season two are finally streaming on Disney+, offering a breakneck blast back into the early days of Star Wars rebellion. During io9’s interview with showrunner Tony Gilroy and star Genevieve O’Reilly, who plays Mon Mothma, the duo broke down the last moments of the third episode of this week’s drop. Gilroy also discussed how framing these pivotal years as three-episode mini-movies came about. Sabina Graves, io9: The initial plan was for Andor to run five seasons, with each season covering a year—but that evolved into these three-episode “movie” arcs. How much of the backstory was provided and developed as you went along? Tony Gilroy: I think when we came up with the idea and started to experiment with it, I originally thought, “Oh my god, well… is it going to work? Is it going to have lots of exposition when we come back?” Where people have to say “Oh since last I saw you…”? I didn’t want to do that, and if you’d asked me in the beginning I would have thought “Oh, I’m going to have to write a huge bible of negative space of all the things that happen in between,” you’ll have to issue these other memos and that’s a whole other month of writing and no, no. I mean in episode four, Adria [Arjona] and Diego [Luna] really needed to know what had happened with the soldier and what the missions had been like. That jump was specific; they needed to know certain things but as we went along there were so few questions. The pickups, the beginning of the episodes where people were and what they were talking about, seemed to be so available that I never had to write a memo about it. I had some conversations about it but I never had to go back in and and do the heavy lifting I thought in the beginning, no. io9: Genevieve, was it really liberating to have that negative space and those broad strokes to find Mon in these formative years in building the rebellion? I found her moment of letting loose in particular in episode three so cathartic. Can you take me behind where you were in having that moment unfold for her? Genevieve O’Reilly: Yeah, I mean those first three episodes go over three days. It’s in her ancestral home, it’s within her family culture. I felt really steeped in her history there and we didn’t—like Tony said, there was there was very little exposition. It’s just: there she is, that’s the practice, that’s the ritual. We understand it implicitly and then moving through those three days of that wedding and the inter-complications of the family relationships with her daughter, with her husband, the in-laws and then having Luthen there—there was so much going on. And as we come to the pointy end of those three episodes you really feel the implications of where she is at that moment, not just with the weight of those familial kind—that rigorous tension of what that wedding was, but then with Luthen being there and coming in with a clear eye in regard to her friend Tay Colma. We know Tay Colma so well from season one, he was such a fierce ally of hers, and so we start season two with him very loose, very tethered, or she sees that in him. It’s like he’s seeing those false gold idols of Davos Sculdun, he’s drinking that in and he wants some of that for himself and that is an implicit threat. Of course she sees the friend, she sees that’s maneuverable, but of course Luthen sees it much clearer—he’s much more brutal in his vision and he calls her on it. He calls her on her romanticism and he kind of really asks her to be honest with herself in regard to what rebellion really takes. He asks her to have that blood on her hands and she tacitly agrees, and so that moment that you’re talking about, that crescendo of movement and culture and celebration, is also a woman just wrestling with her own internal chaos. io9: it’s such a beautiful moment and the dancing and the drinking—Tony, what did you see as the strength and beauty of intercutting that with where everyone else is in that moment of crossroads? Gilroy: My brother John, who’s been with me forever, who’s just the master builder, post-production builder—we built a lot of crescendos. We’ve learned how to build these crescendos in the movies we’ve made over the years and then we did it in season one, the funeral. So this is really going to be a very complicated crescendo, we’re using a piece of electronic dance music which is really unusual. I’m getting to juxtapose Cassian saving the day and Mon Mothma with blood on her hands with Eedy showing up for lunch. I get to do everything all at once. I’m really pleased with the end of three. I’ll say one other thing about about Mon on the dance floor: it does another thing. It binds the audience to her because the only people in that room who know what’s going on are you and her. Everybody else is partying, everybody else is dancing, but you know what she’s into, and so that just creates what it does with the audience. I love how it binds the audience to the characters. Andor is now streaming on Disney+. Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

By AJ Dellinger Published April 24, 2025 | Comments (0) | A sign reads "Enforcement Zone Ahead" on a street in New York City where congestion pricing is enforced. © Deb Cohn-Orbach/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images Sean Duffy, Donald Trump’s Secretary of Transportation, would like to kill New York City’s congestion pricing. Donald Trump’s Department of Justice doesn’t think he has much of a case. We know that thanks to an apparent error on the part of the DOJ’s legal team, which uploaded and then removed an internal memo offering its opinion that the effort to kill the tolls is “unlikely” to win over the court. The 11-page document—uploaded Wednesday night to the docket for the ongoing lawsuit between New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority and Duffy’s DOT before being taken down—was originally sent on April 11 to DOT’s senior trial attorney Erin Hendrixson, advising her and her team to change their approach or risk losing their case. The DOT is defending Duffy’s decision to declare the project illegal. Yet the DOJ warned Duffy’s actions to dismantle the project “was contrary to law, pretextual, procedurally arbitrary and capricious, and violated due process”—none of which seems all that good if you’re tasked with defending the validity of the actions in court. As such, the DOJ’s attorneys concluded “It is very unlikely that Judge Liman or further courts of review will uphold the Secretary’s decision on the legal grounds.” Given that the current position seems to be a loser, the Justice Department attorneys recommended DOT change tact and argue the toll doesn’t align with the agency’s goals and was canceled “as a matter of changed agency priorities”—a position that is more legally defensible under regulations set by the Office of Management and Budget. According to Bloomberg, that argument fell flat in DOT offices. Normally, all of that would happen behind the scenes, and the parties would grit their teeth and move forward with a unified front. But then the DOJ went ahead and uploaded the document by accident—a fact it confirmed Thursday morning in a letter filed with the court that acknowledged it had inadvertently uploaded a privileged document to the public docket and asked the court to permanently seal the document. “Although the contents of the document have been made public in news reporting, the document was filed in error and should not be considered part of the court docket,” they wrote. The court has instead opted to temporarily seal it, though it seems a little silly given how widely available the document is at this point. The DOJ copping to accidentally uploading the document is a bit surprising. Luckily, the DOT’s behavior is much more on brand. In a statement to Courthouse News, a spokesperson for the agency rhetorically asked “Are SDNY lawyers on this case incompetent or was this their attempt to RESIST?” That same unnamed spokesperson called the mistake “legal malpractice,” and said, “It’s sad to see a premier legal organization continue to fall into such disgrace.” At least someone is on the ball in this mess! Daily Newsletter You May Also Like By Lucas Ropek Published April 23, 2025 By AJ Dellinger Published April 21, 2025 By Matt Novak Published April 18, 2025 By AJ Dellinger Published April 16, 2025 By Isaac Schultz Published April 11, 2025 Joseph Winters, Grist Published April 10, 2025

By Raymond Wong Published April 24, 2025 | Comments (3) | Motorola Razr+ 2025 in three different finishes © Raymond Wong / Gizmodo Two things were glaringly clear to me after sitting through a 2.5-hour event yesterday where Motorola pre-briefed press on its new trio of Razr Android phones. The company really believes in the flip-style foldable form factor popularized by Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip and it thinks more AI, shoved ever deeper into the software, will rescue us from the cruelty of pecking on apps and buttons with our fingers. Debuting today are three Razr flip-style phones: Razr, Razr+, and Razr Ultra. You can think of them as good, better, and best. Motorola claims the Razr Ultra is the most powerful flip-style smartphone with the best camera system available. We’ll be the judge of that when we get a device in for review. But the specs—including the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset—at least backs that up on paper. © Raymond Wong / Gizmodo They all look pretty similar, but here’s how you can spot the difference without pulling up a comparison chart. As the most premium model, the Razr Ultra sports the largest internal screen (7 inches), a dedicated Moto AI button on the left side, and fancier finishes such as Italian-made Alcantara, satin, faux leather, and wood. Upgrades over the other Razrs that you can’t eyeball right away: 50 megapixels for the main, ultra-wide, and selfie cameras; a large 4,700mAh battery; 68W wired charging; 30W wireless charging; and 5W reverse wireless charging. The Razr+ looks nearly identical to the Razr Ultra, but comes with a slightly smaller 6.9-inch internal screen, no physical AI button, a smaller 4,000mAh battery, slower charging (45W wired and 15W wireless), and a lower-resolution selfie camera (32 megapixels). It also has a less powerful Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 chipset. © Raymond Wong / Gizmodo Sitting at the entry-level, the plainly named Razr has a smaller 3.6-inch external display (there’s a “forehead” bezel not present on the Razr+ and Razr Ultra), lower-resolution cameras (50-megapixel main, 13-megapixel ultra-wide, and 32-megapixel selfie), and a mid-range MediaTek Dimensity 7400X chipset. However, the Razr does have a larger 4,500mAh battery than the Razr+. I got to play with all three briefly and they all felt well-built to me, with the only major physical quality difference being the materials and finishes. I really liked the luxurious Alcantara on the Razr Ultra, but the polished aluminum and plastic Razr didn’t feel cheap in my opinion. © Raymond Wong / Gizmodo Motorola boasted other quality-of-life upgrades for the new Razrs. The hinges are titanium, which the company says is four time stronger than before and can handle “up to 35% more folds” compared to previous generation Razr flip phones. Motorola also says the crease on the internal folding display is 30% less visible (unclear how Motorola arrived at that number but it does seem less visible), and the Razr Ultra supposedly has the strongest external screen thanks to it being Corning Gorilla Glass Ceramic. Gadget nerds might be salivating over the specs, especially the ones on the Razr Ultra, but the real appeal to these new flip-style phones might be Moto AI. Rather than develop its own AI—and risk embarrassing itself like a certain fruit-named tech giant—Motorola is partnering up with AI leaders and using their large language models and logic reasoning in the background for various tasks. Perplexity, the AI “answer engine” that’s been chipping away at Google’s search relevance, is deeply integrated into the Android 15 operating system. Google’s Gemini, Meta’s Llama, Microsoft’s Copilot, also power different aspects of Moto AI, assisting with general AI features like tasks suggestions (i.e. calling an Uber on your behalf or drafting an email), summarization, memory recall (think surfacing information from notes and screenshots), and more. Missing is any integration with OpenAI’s ChatGPT (and there’s probably a reason for that) and Anthropic’s Claude. © Raymond Wong / Gizmodo The cameras also have Moto AI baked in with a feature called Signature Style. The phones use AI to automatically adjust tone and colors and then learns based on how you edit your shots. It sounds neat, but that also diminishes the whole point of photos which is that they usually don’t have the same uninspired look to them. I want to mix it up with my photos! Not have a specific look. Fact is, every phone maker is promising game-changing AI features that they’re touting as more convenient or efficient. AI crammed deeper into your phone will help anticipate your needs! AI will save you from hundreds of taps every day. AI will finally fulfill the “intelligent” promises that voice assistants such as Siri, Alexa, and the Google Assistant failed at. That’s the AI dream everyone (including Motorola) is selling. The AI in these new Razr phones is better and more useful, but also not quite capable enough to fully offload everything to just yet. And who even knows when that’ll be, if that ever happens. (Naturally, Motorola didn’t address AI hallucinations.) All three Razrs will be available for preorder on May 7 and available unlocked on May 15. The Razr costs $699.99, the Razr+ is $999.99, and the Razr Ultra is $1,299.99.   Daily Newsletter You May Also Like By Raymond Wong Published April 24, 2025 By Florence Ion Published April 10, 2025 By Florence Ion Published April 8, 2025 By Florence Ion Published February 4, 2025 By Florence Ion Published January 16, 2025 By Florence Ion Published January 14, 2025

House of the Dragon adds three new cast members. Taskmaster can’t get a break in a new Thunderbolts* clip. And is the next Mission: Impossible movie really longer than Magnolia?  Morning Spoilers: you opened it, we came. Your spoiling will be legendary, even in hell! The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping According to Deadline, Joseph Zada has been cast as Haymitch Abernathy (Woody Harrelson’s character) in The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping. Whitney Peak will play “girlfriend,” Lenore Dove Baird. Herbert West: Reanimator Deadline also has word Haunting in Connecticut screenwriters Adam Simon and Tim Metcalfe are now at work on a new “contemporary reimagining” of H.P. Lovecraft’s short story, Herbert West: Reanimator. Predator: Badlands During a recent interview with Screen Rant, director Dan Trachtenberg discussed developing the Predator’s alien language in Badlands. We reached out to the guy who does the Navi language [for Avatar], who was very occupied, and recommended his mentee. We did it the way that The Lord of the Rings does Elvish or Game of Thrones does Dothraki. Except with those, there’s more of a precedent. As we discovered with that language expert… [the Yautja language] in the other Predator movies is complete nonsense. There’s no sense to it. People from the internet have tried to make sense of it, but none of it was made with intention. So we decided to make it with intentions. We completely developed the language. Everything they’re speaking has actual rules and structure and all that was written as verbal. Early on, we just did explorations with concept art of what we could do. I think lots of times, when people do more in a franchise, there’s a tendency to go into the Senate trading committees. I thought we… should have a sliver of that, but not let the movie be that. When people hear the premise, they may think this is all about the inner workings of the Yautja culture. That’s not what we want to do. This is an invention of the premise. Now the Predator is on a planet, and he’s going to be hunted by things, and he has to use his guile to figure stuff out. Mission: Impossible – Final Reckoning According to Comic Book, Mission: Impossible – Final Reckoning runs 2 hours and 49 minutes long, making it the lengthiest film in the Mission: Impossible franchise and second-longest of Tom Cruise’s entire acting career behind Magnolia. Thunderbolts* Taskmaster, Ghost, Yelena, and U.S. Agent battle in a four-way brawl before deciding to arrest Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine in two new clips from Thunderbolts*. Until Dawn Elsewhere, the latest TV spot for Until Dawn sells itself on the film’s practical effects alone. House of the Dragon Variety reports Tom Cullen (Trespasses), Joplin Sibtain (Star Wars: Andor), and Barry Sloane (Sandman) have joined the cast of House of the Dragon as Ser Luthor Largent,  Ser “Bold” Jon Roxton, and Ser Adrian Redfort, respectively. Star Wars: Mace Windu During her recent appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast (via The Direct), Bryce Dallas Howard confirmed she’s discussed a potential Mace Windu series with Disney and LucasFilm. Sam Jackson has been incredibly supportive of me and has told me many times that he would act in something that I directed, which is, like, I’m not worthy, basically. And then I went straight to Dave Filoni and I was like, ‘So, let’s just talk about Mace Windu and where he is. Can we just talk about this? Because, is he dead? Is he?’ Strangers Things: Tales from ’85 Comic Book also has word Netflix’s Stranger Things animated series is officially titled Strangers Things: Tales from ’85. Doctor Who Russell T. Davies discussed casting Rose Ayling-Ellis as a character named Aliss in this week’s “scary” episode of Doctor Who. Aliss wasn’t written as a deaf character. But then Rose’s name came up, and she’s acted for a long time on British television, and I instantly said yes. Because she’s just wonderful. It was a delight to work with Rose. As I talked with her, we put things into the script I never would have thought of. She modified things, and we modified things….[after submitting the script for a compliance reading] they tell us what we’ve gotten wrong, which is exactly the way it should work, [but] it came back with such a glowing report. [There’s a line of dialogue] about how hearing people can get paranoid around those who are quietly signing. “I’ve never seen that said out loud before,” they said. I don’t want to give away too much…is she the villain? Maybe she’s behind it all? [TV Line] Ghosts Spoiler TV has a synopsis for “Kyle,” the May 1 episode of Ghosts. Click through for images. Sam and Jay’s relationship is tested when Kyle (Ben Feldman), a handsome living who shares Sam’s ability to see ghosts, arrives at Woodstone B&B, on the CBS Original series GHOSTS, Thursday, May 1 (8:31-9:01 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network, and streaming on Paramount+ (live and on demand for Paramount+ with SHOWTIME subscribers, or on demand for Paramount+ Essential subscribers the day after the episode airs)*. The Last of Us Spoiler TV also has images from “The Path,” the next episode of The Last of Us. More at the link. © HBO YOLO: Rainbow Trinity Finally, Rachel and Sarah go on a musical adventure with a pebble, bush and snake to get their electricity back in the trailer for this Sunday’s episode of YOLO: Rainbow Trinity. Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

Daydreamers doesn’t stray too far from vampire movie narratives we’ve seen before; there are warring clans of bloodsuckers, a brother versus brother face-off, and visits to flashy clubs stuffed with fang-faced partiers. But it’s one of very few vampire movies to come from Vietnam, which makes it a curiosity worth seeking out. And once you start watching, Daydreamers‘ stylish execution and ridiculously good-looking cast just might hook you in. What you should not do is spend too much time worrying about the movie’s particular vampire “rules.” Basically, it comes down to this: there are two kinds of vampires roaming around contemporary Ho Chi Minh City. One group clings to the belief that if they resist killing humans and survive instead on animal blood, they may one day reverse the curse and walk freely in the sunlight again. (They are who the movie title refers to, if that wasn’t already obvious.) It’s a lonely, angst-ridden existence, especially for Nhat (Tran Ngoc Vang), who doggedly keeps to his “blood trial” training, hoping to become human again. It’s something his late mother dreamed would be possible for him and his brother, Marco (Thuan Nguyen), but since her death the siblings have become estranged. Marco is now part of that other vampire clique: flashy, vapid, and glamorous, they have fun living undead life to the fullest and have no desire to revert back to mortality. They give off major Lost Boys vibes. Thanks to the brief animated segment that Daydreamers opens with, we know that vampires have been around for hundreds of years but were nearly exterminated some time ago by revenge-seeking humans. To ensure their eternal survival, there’s a general shared agreement not to kill any humans, though not everyone sticks to that. An even bigger no-no, however, is letting any non-vampire become aware of vampire existence. “Leave no witnesses” is a sacred creed, though it was either a failing of Daydreamers‘ subtitles or script that made this point a little confusing, since it seems to create a pretty gaping loophole for that whole “kill no humans” thing. Any vampire who dares spill the secret is also supposed to get taken out, which can be accomplished using silver weapons, a stake through the heart, or good old-fashioned sunlight. Every vampire movie offers its own tweaks on genre lore, and Daydreamers leans really hard into its rules. You kind of wish it had just been “if we don’t kill humans we might heal ourselves” versus “hell yes, kill humans!”—and focused solely on Nhat versus Marco, rather than introducing a plot about Nhat falling for Ha, a human girl (Trinh Thao) he must protect once she accidentally figures out monsters are real. It’s a forbidden romance, but Daydreamers unfortunately provides precious little evidence of sparks between Nhat and Ha, despite the fact that they’re willing to die for each other within days of meeting. There’s a much spicier connection between Marco and vampire queen Trieu (Vietnamese superstar Chi Pu); the latter in particular has a charismatic screen presence that makes you wish Daydreamers had shifted more of its focus her way. © Dark Sky Films At just under two hours, Daydreamers has a lot of time to explore the push and pull between Marco and Nhat, whose shared history goes back over 100 years (at one point, Nhat reveals he was last in school in 1895), but has come to a head with their mother’s tragic passing and Marco’s subsequent transformation into a murderous bad boy. At its core, Daydreamers is mostly fascinated with Nhat’s dilemma: he doesn’t want to die, but even after all this time, he also doesn’t know how to live—though he becomes very certain that Marco’s way is not for him. Daydreamers takes place almost entirely at night, naturally, and it makes good use of that setting to lean into the neon-tinged glamour of eternal debauchery. The “vampire nightclub” trope was used to hilarious effect in What We Do in the Shadows, but Daydreamers plays it very straight. Perhaps that’s because the film hails from a culture that hasn’t already done vampire stories to death—or perhaps Daydreamers is a little too self-serious. Whatever the case, this movie is dripping with blood and eye candy in equal parts, and that’s a praise-worthy achievement even if the plot gets a little wobbly at times. Daydreamers opens in select theaters May 2; it’ll hit all the major VOD platforms June 3. Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

Driverless big rigs may soon be cruising down a particular highway in Texas. Axios writes that, later this month, driverless trucks plan to unleash themselves upon a 200-mile stretch of Interstate 45 between Dallas and Houston. Aurora Innovation, a Pittsburgh firm founded in 2017, has developed a truck, outfitted with sensors and specialized software, that can allegedly operate 24/7, with no breaks and no driver, while transporting large amounts of cargo to and fro across America’s freeway system. Aurora has been testing its vehicles in closed environments, and has also used “virtual testing” of real-world conditions. Aurora calls its AI-fueled software system the “Aurora Driver,” and plans to have its driverless trucks on the road by the end of the month. According to Axios, the new industry will revolve around a business model in which AI vendors lease their automated software to truck manufacturers, who will then sell the vehicles to logistics companies that need driving fleets. If all of this conjures Final Destination type scenarios, the companies behind this technology swear it’s safe (and some data agrees). In fact, one of the advertised benefits of driverless trucks is that they are actually safer than those with someone behind the wheel. “At Aurora, we believe that the benefits of self-driving technology will increase efficiency and mobility, while bringing a reliable driver supply and heightened safety to America’s roads,” the company’s website says. “A safer world where goods never stop moving.” Earlier this month, Aurora released a report that purported to explain how its model of automated big rigs can safely navigate roadways.

Whether you work from home or you do most of your playing from home, a new monitor is always a good idea. Think of how much you probably look at the screen on a daily basis. It’s not good for your eyes, that’s for sure. If there were a monitor you could use instead to try and make things as comfortable and as healthy as possible, you’d use it, right? Well, here’s the good news: there is, and it’s on sale right now. The 27-inch Asus 4K Eye Care Monitor is just $199 now at Amazon, down from its usual price of $249. That’s $50 off and a discount of 20%. It’s a limited time deal, so make sure you get yours fast if you want to make sure you don’t miss out. See at Amazon A monitor that protects and looks good on the eyes This monitor is the perfect size for just about any desk or computer setup at home. It’s 27 inches, with a 4K UHD screen, and that gives you 3840 x 2160 resolution with an IPS 178-degree viewing angle. It also supports HDR to give you bright and vibrant colors as well as darker areas on the screen for improved contrast. It also uses Adaptive Sync for a visual experience without artifacting. But the most important thing about this monitor is its Eye Care Plus technology, which is meant to help keep your eyes in tip-top shape. That might be a bit hard to believe about something you’re meant to stare at all day, but that’s why you buy this monitor in the first place, to help make your daily “stare at the screen all day” count. It uses a special tech called Color Augmentation to help you better differentiate between hues for less eye fatigue. It also gives you rest reminders so you know when to step away. All of these types of tech combine to make a monitor that you can rely on as a daily driver and one that still looks good for all the use you’ll get out of it for your various purposes. And now’s a great time to go ahead and get it at its record-low price, because with warmer weather you might be working at home a bit more. You want to preserve your vision as best as you can too, since you can’t just get it back once it’s deteriorated. Take some important steps to do that now and save some cash while you’re at it. See at Amazon

A Blade Runner game called Time to Live was once in development but never officially announced—and now that title is no more. All that’s left are a few details about what might have been. That’s according to Insider Gaming, which claims the project was in development with Until Dawn developer Supermassive Games. The title was reportedly a character-focused action-adventure title where players would take on the role of So-Lange, the sole Blade Runner existing in 2065 “well beyond their limited lifespan.” Pre-production allegedly began in late 2024, with several staff on 2023’s The Quarry involved. Had it gone into production,  the game was aiming to land in fall 2027 for PC and current and next-gen consoles. Documents obtained by the outlet mention gameplay would’ve been a mix of stealth, action, exploration, and investigation, similar to Cyberpunk 2077 or the Deus Ex games. What reportedly did Time to Live in was Alcon Entertainment, which owns the IP. The company allegedly canceled the project late last year, though a specific reason wasn’t given as to why; when asked, Supermassive told Insider Gaming it was “unable to comment.” io9 reached out to both it and Alcon for comment, and the latter acknowledged “discussions” of a Blade Runner project last year that “did not proceed for business reasons.” To date, Blade Runner has had three video games. The 1985 game was a shoot-em-up loosely inspired by the film, and the 1997 title was a point-and-click adventure. Then, 2018’s Revelations was a VR title from Seismic Games. A few years ago, Annapurna Interactive revealed it was developing Blade Runner 2033: Labyrinth, its first in-house game. However, that project’s status is unclear following the developer’s internal collapse in late 2024. Whether Time to Live existed or not, Blade Runner has been gradually expanding into a larger franchise these past few years. In addition to the games, Prime Video has an upcoming TV series starring Michelle Yeoh and Hunter Schafer. Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

The search for young Haymitch Abernathy in Lionsgate’s film adaptation of The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping is over. Joseph Zada (East of Eden) will be playing the young version of the character previously portrayed by Woody Harrelson. As fans will know, Haymitch was the last winner from District 12 before his mentee Katniss Everdeen. The Hunger Games official account shared the news. Additionally, Whitney Peak (Hocus Pocus 2) will be playing Lenore Dove Baird, Haymitch’s love interest and co-lead in the 50th Hunger Games, where double the tributes of children are offered to compete for their lives. In a statement from Deadline, Lionsgate Motion Picture Group Co-President Erin Westerman shared, “The Hunger Games franchise has long been a launching pad for remarkable young actors, and Jo and Whitney carry that legacy forward with incredible heart, depth, and fire.” “After auditioning hundreds of gifted performers from around the world, these two stood out—not just for their talent, but for the emotional truth they brought to these iconic roles. Haymitch has always been a fan favorite, and his origin story is one of the most anticipated in the franchise. His relationship with Lenore Dove is deeply woven into the emotional history of Panem. We can’t wait for fans to experience the story that shaped one of the most compelling characters in the series.” Francis Lawrence, who has directed all of the Hunger Games movies except the 2012 original, is returning. The script by Billy Ray is based on Hunger Games author Suzanne Collins’ latest prequel installment, Sunrise on the Reaping. The film is due out November 20, 2026. Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

The slate of animation coming to France’s annual Annecy Festival, running June 8-15, has been announced. And with it comes a lot of exciting presentations from global studios big and small celebrating the timelessness and reach of the medium around the world. Disney, Netflix, Warner Bros. Animation, DreamWorks, and Sony Animation are among the larger studios making a splash at the festival, including anticipated projects from Star Wars, Stranger Things, Marvel, and DC. None other than Bugs Bunny himself, drawn in classic 2D by Warner Bros.’ Hanna-Barbera Studios Europe, presented the Annecy trailer this year. The delightful short ad was directed by Grant Orchard (Hey Duggee) with executive producer Ben Bocquelet (The Amazing World of Gumball) with Eric Bauza voicing WB’s iconic character. It’s got us really excited for the annual international event and hopeful for more of the Looney Tunes’ presence during the ceremonies. Here are some of the titles we’re most excited to see and learn more about. Star Wars: Visions Fans of the anthology series will get an early peek at season three, which arrives in October and is led by Japanese animation houses. The specific short getting an Annecy spotlight, “Black,” is directed by Shinya Ohira and centers “a psychedelic battle between past and present, light and dark, and life and death plays out in the haunted psyche of an Imperial trooper who is on the cusp of defeat.” Pixar Animation Studios Spotlight Pixar CCO Pete Docter (Monsters, Inc., Up, Inside Out, Soul) will be presenting a showcase of the studio’s upcoming slate including Elio, Hoppers, and Toy Story 5. The festival will also celebrate 30 years of Toy Story with new behind-the-scenes look at the CG animated film that started it all. Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Zootopia 2 Walt Disney Animation Studios’ CCO and award winning director-writer Jared Bush (Encanto, Zootopia, Moana) will appear at Annecy for the first time to give a sneak peek at Zootopia 2. Marvel Animation – Eyes of Wakanda Marvel Animation will host a special “making-of session” that will double as an exclusive premiere screening of the first episodes of its Black Panther universe series Eyes of Wakanda. “The story follows the adventures of brave Wakandan warriors throughout history. In this globe-trotting adventure, the heroes must carry out dangerous missions to retrieve Vibranium artifacts from the enemies of Wakanda. They are the Hatut Zaraze and this is their story.” The series hits Disney+ in August. A Legendary Encounter: Icons of Animation Celebrate The Simpsons The Simpsons creator Matt Groening, executive producer and showrunner Matt Selman, and animator David Silverman are set to be honored at the festival for the longest-running animated show’s achievements in the arts. A panel will “offer a rare insight into the groundbreaking legacy of The Simpsons in animation,” among other events that will take attendees behind the scenes of modern pop culture’s first family of animation. WB Animation’s Bat-Fam © WB Animation The creators behind Merry Little Batman including director Mike Roth will lift the lid on the caped crusader and son’s continuing adventures with Bat-Fam. Creating Creativity: Celebrating 25 Years of Cartoon Network Studios A conversation between creators of Cartoon Network’s most formative animation shows during its first 25 years, including Gendy Tartakovsky (Dexter’s Laboratory), Craig McCracken (The Powerpuff Girls), Pendleton Ward (Adventure Time), Rebecca Sugar (Steven Universe), J.G. Quintel (Regular Show), and  Adam Muto (Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake). Netflix Animation’s Stranger Things and In Your Dreams Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 showrunner Eric Robles will be on hand to give the world a first look at the animated show in the universe of Stranger Things. The streaming platform will also give a peek at  brother and sister adventure feature fantasy film In Your Dreams, which centers around the siblings going dream-hopping to find the sandman. Animal Farm Andy Serkis’ adaptation of  George Orwell’s ever-so timely Animal Farm will make its debut at Annecy as an official selection screening event. The film is directed by Serkis, written by Nick Stoller, produced by Aniventure and Imaginarium with CG production by Cinesite. Naruto x Oasis © Annecy Festival This looks unhinged as beloved anime Naruto sees a collab with Oasis “celebrating manga culture with an animated film inspired by the openings, taking the audience into an epic adventure alongside the Oasis mascots. This project pays tribute to the aesthetic and narrative codes of anime, captivating manga fans.” Sony Animation The all-animal animated sports feature Goat from Tyree Dillihay and co-director Adam Rosette will be featured at the festival. No word on any Spider-Verse action, however. DreamWorks The Bad Guys 2 will make its debut at the festival. We’re hoping there will be some sort of update on The Wild Robot 2, which we’re eagerly anticipating. For more information about Annecy 2025 visit the festival’s official site here. Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

The Nintendo Switch 2 is generating massive hype but if you haven’t preordered yet, you may want to know that stock is already very low at most retailers. Most retailers have limited allocations and not every customer is going to be guaranteed a unit at launch. Among the handful of stores still regularly stocking, Walmart is one of the sole retailers where you can still preorder and with some added perks that make it your best option. Preorders start on April 24 at midnight Eastern Time (12:00 a.m. ET), the equivalent of 9:00 p.m. Pacific Time on April 23. The sale allows gamers nationwide to place orders from home but the demand is so robust that most retailers will sell out immediately. Walmart has a steady supply of both the standard Nintendo Switch 2 console at $449 and the Mario Kart World bundle at $499, and it guarantees the delivery on launch day (June 5). Preorder Switch 2 at Walmart Preorder Switch 2 + Mario Kart at Walmart Launch Day Delivery The offer that truly sets Walmart apart from the other retailers is the guarantee of launch-day delivery which is June 5. Customers preordering through Walmart by 8 a.m. local time on June 4 will have their console delivered for free by 9 a.m. local time on June 5—launch day, no less. That guarantee is a valuable benefit especially when you know that many other retailers can’t promise launch-day delivery due to low inventory. If you don’t want to suffer the frustration of waiting in endless lines or indefinite shipping dates, Walmart is a great choice. The Nintendo Switch 2 console itself is ready with everything necessary for a seamless gaming experience: The box contains the console, Joy-Con 2 controllers (left and right), Joy-Con 2 Grip, Joy-Con 2 Straps, Nintendo Switch 2 Dock, ultra high-speed HDMI cable, AC adapter, and a USB-C charging cable. This means that you can play immediately without the need to make additional accessory purchases. As you probably know the Switch 2 is a significant upgrade from the original: It features a larger, crisper 7.9-inch 1080p display for handheld play and 4K output when docked to a TV which offers stunning visuals, and HDR support. The console also boasts improved processing capabilities for smoother gameplay and faster load times, along with improved audio for a better overall experience. With demand through the roof and supplies limited, most retailers will sell out shortly after preorders open. Walmart is one of the few places accepting preorders but make sure you get yours before it runs out of stock (like it’s the case in the UK). If you want to reserve your place as one of the earliest to receive the Switch 2 when it’s released on June 5, your best bet is to act quickly and go with Walmart. Preorder Switch 2 at Walmart Preorder Switch 2 + Mario Kart at Walmart

The first season of Andor took moments to show the small ways the Empire oppresses its people. Season two’s premiere episodes continue that thread, with the darkest example so far coming in episode three, “Harvest.” Spoilers and a content warning for discussions of assault below. On a farming settlement, Cassian’s old friend Bix Caleen (Adria Arjona) is still recovering from her torture on Ferrix last season. The Empire’s come for a routine inspection (and to find undocumented workers), and an officer has taken a particular interest in her, asking when her “husband” is coming home and casually noting comms have been blocked. He then forces himself on her, resulting in her killing him in a blow to a head and a declaration to the man’s subordinate: “He tried to rape me.” In an interview with the Hollywood Reporter, Tony Gilroy—the show’s creator and writer of this season’s first arc—said it felt “organic and right” to incorporate the scene, which is part of Bix’s “difficult path” back to herself pre-torture. “I get one shot to tell everything I know or discovered about revolution and battles, with as many incidents I can get in there without having the story tip over,” he explained. “I mean, let’s be honest: in the history of civilization, there’s a huge arterial component of it that’s rape. […] Armies and power throughout history have committed it.” Star Wars has previously touched on sexual assault via Leia’s slave outfit and mentions of Qi’ra’s backstory in Solo, but it’s never shown an attempted assault. Gilroy noted the “very clear” limits of sex and violence Andor is allowed, but otherwise, Disney had no pushback on the scene. In a separate interview with Variety, Arjona recalled a mix of emotions reading and filming the scene. On one hand, she admitted being “really scared” beforehand, but she considered it “really fucking powerful” to get to do it in this franchise. “Bix is in the most vulnerable state she can possible be in, and someone tries to take advantage of her,” she said. “We’ve heard that story many times. The fact that Tony gave it to Bix was a big honor—and it was right.” There was “so much power” felt in declaring the attack an attempted rape, added Arjona, and advised for “any woman, for anyone, when you have a stranger, a male stranger, in your own space, everything becomes survival.” Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

By Kyle Barr Published April 23, 2025 | Comments (0) | Get it while it's hot or, you know, just wait until its in stock. © Alex Cranz / Gizmodo Absence only makes the heart grow fonder. If that idiom holds true, it means bad tidings for Americans looking to get their hands on the Switch 2. U.S. and Canada-based Nintendo fans will be some of the last in the world to have the opportunity to preorder the Nintendo Switch 2 at 12:00 a.m. ET on Thursday, April 24. If you want an inkling of how hectic events will be this week, take a gander at the hysteria of worldwide Switch 2 preorders. Nintendo itself indicated that even preorders through the My Nintendo Store’s anti-scalper “priority” console lottery may not guarantee you a first crack at the new handheld at launch June 5. Though some people online complained relentlessly about the $450 price tag of the Switch 2, Nintendo is already apologizing to people in Japan who may not get a Switch on release day. In a post to X (read via machine translation), Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa said it received “an extremely large number of applications” in Japan alone for its lottery sale of the Switch 2. Approximately 2.2 million people in the country signed up, which “far exceeds the number of Nintendo Switch 2 consoles that can be delivered from the My Nintendo Store on [release day] June 5.” Furukawa says: Just Japan My Nintendo Store received 2.2 million applications for the lottery sale Those who didn't get picked will be auto carried to the next lottery sale. Even with the second lottery sale they won't be able to accommodate every applied person!This is hype! https://t.co/jszUwkFtAh pic.twitter.com/SmUkmpBBid — Switch 2 Stock (fan account) (@Switch2Stock) April 23, 2025   There will be a second drawing for Switch 2 preorder ticket in the country, but even then Furukawa wrote “we cannot fulfill all of the applications we received.” The company is bumping up production for Japan. “We plan to continue producing and shipping a considerable number of Nintendo Switch 2 units in the future,” the Nintendo president said. Nintendo’s priority picks for Switch 2 buyers in the U.S. will be sent out on and after May 8. At least Nintendo is being up front about stock plans, though it may not aid folks overseas. In other countries where Switch 2 preorders already went live, the demand for the new handheld was “completely crazy.” That quote comes courtesy of Charlotte Massicault, the head of gaming at French retailer Fnac. Massicault told Frandroid (read via machine translation) that the first weekend of preorders reached “historic levels.” The retailer claimed it opened up preorders on April 2, the same day Nintendo fully unveiled the Switch 2. The French retailer seemed relatively confident Nintendo would avoid a shortage in the country. As with any product release as big as the Switch 2, demand will be different depending on the region. In countries like the UK, where Switch 2 preorders went live April 7, stocks are completely sold out on Amazon (which does not seem to have a U.S.-based page for Switch 2) and retailers like EEStore and Argos. That doesn’t mean the U.S. will meet the same fate, though it’s a factor of whether Nintendo had enough foresight to guess demand for different regions. Back during the original Switch launch, Nintendo sold around 360,000 units in Japan during the first month of release. Today’s figures indicate the legacy console maker is seeing many times more demand than its first handheld, but it’s not an apples to apples comparison. Nintendo lists “The Americas” as its biggest region for sales, of which the U.S. is the lion’s share of customers eager to snap up whatever the Mario maker provides. The Americas counted for 54.5 million original Switch sales compared to 34 million in Japan, according to Nintendo’s latest sales data. The company does not provide data broken out by country, though the entire European region made up 36 million unit sales over the Switch’s lifetime. Industry analysts have near-universally claimed the Switch 2 will be a big launch. Analysts who spoke to Gizmodo previously said Nintendo had put in more effort than most companies to generate enough stock of console units for launch on June 5. Other industry insiders claimed Nintendo may have shipped around 137,000 units to the U.S. earlier in the year, before Trump tariffs messed with worldwide supply chains and shunted the Switch 2 preorder date. Still, that’s a small number compared to how many handhelds Nintendo could sell in June alone. In Nintendo’s last financial earnings report, Furukawa indicated his company had learned from its mistakes with the original Switch’s launch stock woes. He further claimed Nintendo was working to meet “as large a demand as possible” for the Switch 2. He also hedged, saying “we believe it will not be easy to rapidly increase production capacity, so based on our prior experience, we are making preparations to be able to respond as quickly as possible.” U.S.-based preorders go live at midnight, 12 a.m. ET for Walmart, Best Buy, and Target. GameStop, with its too-good-to-be-true trade-in policy, will start selling Nintendo’s handheld at 11 a.m. ET. If your heart is set on getting a console on release date, you may need to stay up late just to make sure you get your place in line. Or, better yet, avoid the hubbub and buy one when it’s back in stock, though that could be awhile. Daily Newsletter You May Also Like By Kyle Barr Published April 22, 2025 By Kyle Barr Published April 18, 2025 By Kyle Barr Published April 15, 2025 By Germain Lussier Published April 14, 2025 By Sabina Graves Published April 11, 2025 By Sabina Graves Published April 9, 2025

By Margherita Bassi Published April 23, 2025 | Comments (1) | An Egyptologist in Paris has discovered secret messages on the capital's Luxor Obelisk. © Connie Ma from Chicago, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons In 1830, the viceroy of Egypt gifted France a 3,300-year-old Egyptian obelisk—a carved stone pillar with a pyramidal top. In 1836, the obelisk found its home in Paris, in Place de la Concorde. One would think that after standing in the center of the French capital for almost 200 years, Parisian Egyptologists would have learned all there is to discover about the ancient monument. But it turns out the famous obelisk still has its secrets. Jean-Guillaume Olette-Pelletier, an Egyptologist and cryptologist from the Catholic University of Paris, claims to have discovered seven previously undocumented messages carved into the 13th-century BCE Luxor Obelisk. Altogether, the inscriptions were intended to establish Pharaoh Ramses II’s divine authority in the eyes of the ancient Egyptian elite. The discovery and its interpretation were first reported by French media, and the researcher aims to further detail his findings in a paper forthcoming in the journal ENiM (Egypt of the Nile and Mediterranean). Olette-Pelletier identified the inscriptions in December 2021, when the obelisk was surrounded by renovation scaffolding. The scaffolding allowed Olette-Pelletier to observe the monument’s highest inscriptions, close to its golden pyramid-shaped top. According to EuroWeekly, it was when Olette-Pelletier attempted to read the hieroglyphs horizontally, rather than vertically, that he began to spot previously unidentified inscriptions. Some (perhaps all) of the new messages were hidden in the hieroglyphs themselves, a technique known as “crypto-hieroglyphs” used by the ancient Egyptian elite that today only six Egyptologists in the world are able to interpret, according to La Brújula Verde. “People had not noticed that under [one of the drawings] of the god Amun, there is an offering table. This allows us to discover a sentence where no element is missing: an offering that the king gives to the god Amun,” Olette-Pelletier told BFMTV. Combinations of the newly identified inscriptions produce additional meanings in what’s called three-dimensional cryptography. In total, the Egyptologist identified seven encrypted messages across the obelisk’s various facades. He explained that the enigmatic text can only be understood by walking around the monument. Additionally, the messages in question can only be seen from a specific angle. In particular, when the obelisk stood at the entrance of Egypt’s Luxor Temple, one of the messages would have been visible to vessels sailing on the Nile, according to EuroWeekly. This suggests that the message, exalting Pharaoh Ramses II’s divine power, was intended for elite individuals arriving by boat. Another inscription encourages viewers to make divine offerings to appease the gods’ anger. Overall, the secret inscriptions highlight Ramses II’s power, victories, longevity, and his appeasement of the gods through word-play from well-known papyrus texts. “These messages are a form of propaganda in favor of the builder of the site: Pharaoh Ramses II,” Olette-Pelletier told Le Point. He argues that Ramses II wanted to further legitimize his divine claim to power in the eyes of the noble class, as reported by EuroWeekly. Ramses II ruled from 1279 to 1213 BCE and is one of ancient Egypt’s most famous pharaohs. The Luxor Obelisk in Paris is one of two that he erected at the entrance of what today is known as the Luxor Temple—the second obelisk remains in Egypt. Ultimately, Olette-Pelletier’s discovery highlights that even the most familiar ancient monuments still hold secrets left for us to unravel. Daily Newsletter You May Also Like By Margherita Bassi Published April 23, 2025 By Margherita Bassi Published April 21, 2025 By Margherita Bassi Published April 15, 2025 By Margherita Bassi Published April 4, 2025 By Margherita Bassi Published March 26, 2025 By Margherita Bassi Published March 7, 2025

What a year for games based in Japan and featuring samurai, huh? After Assassin’s Creed Shadows in March, players can look forward to the PlayStation 5 exclusive Ghost of Yōtei October 2. Developed by Sucker Punch, the game takes place in 1603 Japan, over 300 years after 2020’s Ghost of Tsushima. Players take on the role of Atsu (Erika Ishii), a warrior seeking revenge against the people who killed her family. In the trailer below, we learn about her targets, the Yōtei Six: the Oni, the Snake, the Dragon, the Kitsune, the Spider, and Lord Saito. Armed with the katana Saito used to pin her to the wall during her family’s slaughter, Atsu sets about tracking and cutting them down, adopting the moniker of the Ghost first used by Tsushima’s protagonist, Jin Sakai. Like its predecessor, Yōtei is an open-world game, and players will explore Ezo (now Hokkaido), taking on contracts and killing enemies in various forms of combat. Unlike Jin, Atsu has dual katanas and other tools at her disposal like a gun, an odachi, and a wolf buddy that can attack enemies. There’s a lot of overlap between this and Shadows, the key difference being Yōtei players can be led to their objective via the way the wind blows. It’s a small thing, but it gave Tsushima a lot of charm and highlighted the beauty of its recreated island, so it’s nice to see that return here. Ghost of Yōtei will initially be exclusive to the PlayStation 5, but a PC release is likely some time after its release. PlayStation’s previously expressed hope this’ll be big enough to adapt into a movie or film, so keep that in your mind when you eventually play it. Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

“At what time exactly can you preorder the Nintendo Switch 2?” For eager gamers, that’s the very big question as June 5, 2025 (release date) gets closer. The general Switch 2 preorder window is officially opening at a very specific time: midnight Eastern Time on April 24, 2025. So at 12:00 a.m. ET, or 9:00 p.m. Pacific Time on April 23, preorders for the Nintendo console will be available to fans all over the United States online. See Switch 2 at Walmart See Switch 2 + Mario Kart at Walmart Where to Buy the Console? Walmart is one of the best retailers to preorder the Switch 2 from. Like Target and Best Buy, Walmart’s online pre-orders begin precisely at midnight ET on April 24. What sets Walmart apart is its promotion of free (and guaranteed) delivery by 9 a.m. local time on release day, June 5, for orders placed by June 4 at 8 a.m. ET, while supplies hold out. This early delivery promise on launch day is a special advantage that can be a lifesaver if you’re eager to start playing as soon as possible. Two general buying options have been provided by Nintendo for the Switch 2: The standard console is priced at $449.99 and a bundle of the console and the new Mario Kart World game is available for $499.99. Since Mario Kart World alone retails for $79.99, the bundle is a great value if you want to get into the new racing game immediately. See Switch 2 at Walmart See Switch 2 + Mario Kart at Walmart Best in Class Console What’s the difference between this new 2025 model and the previous version of the console? The portable display has increased to 7.9 inches at full 1080p resolution which is a big jump from the original’s 6.2-inch 720p screen. If you like to play on your TV, you will find that the new console offers 4K output for visuals that were not possible on the original Switch. The refresh rate is doubled (to 120Hz) when in handheld mode, and you’ll get HDR support. Beyond the screen, the Switch 2 also features a new kickstand design that is wider and adjustable at various angles for improved comfort. The Joy-Con controllers now magnetically clip on and connect via pins for simpler setup. Audio improvements include integrated speakers with 3D audio and a new Chat button that activates a built-in noise-cancelling microphone. Storage has also been increased to 256GB (from the original 32GB) and it supports faster microSD Express cards. What’s for sure is that securing a Switch 2 preorder requires moving quickly: demand will probably outpace supply. Stock will likely be gone quickly, and tariffs or import fees can cause prices to increase at any time. Preordering the Switch 2 via an established retailer like Walmart that guarantees release-day shipping is the best option to make sure you receive your console for the listed price. See Switch 2 at Walmart See Switch 2 + Mario Kart at Walmart

The evolution of home security has made smart doorbells essential, and Eufy’s Security Video Doorbell stands out with its dual-camera system and innovative features. Unlike traditional video doorbells, this model combines front-facing and downward-facing cameras to eliminate blind spots, ensuring you never miss a package or visitor at your doorstep. In a market flooded with smart doorbells, Eufy’s approach to comprehensive coverage and local storage sets it apart from subscription-dependent competitors. See at Amazon Right now, Amazon has dropped the price to $140, down from its regular $200 price tag. That’s a significant $60 (30%) savings on a doorbell that includes an extra battery pack – a valuable bundle that ensures continuous operation. For a device that offers premium features without monthly fees, this discount makes it an even more attractive option for budget-conscious homeowners. Affordable home security that you can rely on The standout feature is its dual-camera system, providing comprehensive coverage of both visitors and the ground in front of your door. This unique setup helps prevent package theft and gives you a complete view of your entryway, something single-camera doorbells simply can’t match. The innovative approach to coverage means you’ll never miss important deliveries or have blind spots in your security setup. Image quality is impressive with 2K resolution, offering crystal-clear footage that makes identifying visitors and reading package labels easy. The doorbell really shines at night, featuring industry-first dual-light technology paired with advanced processing for color night vision up to 16 feet. This clarity ensures you can identify visitors or monitor activity around your door at any hour. Power management is thoughtfully designed, with two quick-release 6,500 mAh battery packs included. This dual-battery system means you can charge one while the other keeps your doorbell running, eliminating any security gaps during charging. The quick-release mechanism makes battery swaps simple and convenient, ensuring your doorbell stays powered year-round. Integration capabilities are extensive, working with existing chimes, Eufy’s HomeBase systems, and popular voice assistants like Alexa and Google. Best of all, there’s no subscription required – all your footage is stored locally. This approach not only saves money long-term but also ensures your privacy by keeping your data under your control. For homeowners looking to upgrade their front door security, this deal offers excellent value. The combination of dual cameras, reliable power system, and high-resolution video makes it a compelling choice, especially at this discounted price. Whether you’re concerned about package theft, want to monitor visitors, or just need peace of mind, this doorbell delivers premium features without the premium price tag or ongoing subscription costs. Just don’t miss out on this all-time low deal while it’s available. Getting up from the couch is so overrated. See at Amazon

The Nintendo Switch 2 is now available to pre-order starting tonight with the official release date as June 5, 2025. Walmart is beginning pre-orders of the Switch 2 precisely at midnight Eastern Time on April 24, 2025 (which is 9:00 p.m. Pacific Time on the 23rd). Nintendo fans have two choices to choose from now: the Switch 2 console for $449.99 on its own, or the Mario Kart World bundle that includes the console and the eagerly awaited new Mario Kart game for $499.99. This is a great deal since Mario Kart World by itself can be bought for $79.99, so this is a great purchase for fans wanting to dive right into the new racing adventure from the start. Make sure you pre-order your Switch 2 asap as it can run out of stock pretty quickly. See Switch 2 at Walmart See Switch 2 + Mario Kart at Walmart Where Should You Pre-Order the Nintendo Switch 2? One of the most popular retailers to put your Nintendo Switch 2 preorder is Walmart: Walmart surpasses many other retailers by ensuring delivery by 9 a.m. local time on release date, June 5, for customers who preorder by June 4 at 8 a.m. ET (while supplies last). The guarantee of on-time delivery is a major advantage, especially with the expected high demand and short supply. Remember, Nintendo just postponed the pre-order phase in the U.S. by a few weeks, and the stock is still pretty short. So, why should you buy the latest Nintendo console? The Switch 2 hype is well-deserved given its stunning upgrade over the original Switch and the most impressive feature is a larger 7.9-inch LCD touchscreen with a 1080p full resolution in handheld mode (which is a gigantic improvement over the 6.2-inch 720p screen of the original). For those who like to play on the TV, the Switch 2 can output at 4K resolution for some games and offers beautifully rendered pictures the older system could not deliver. The refresh rate has also been doubled to 120Hz in handheld mode to allow for smoother gameplay especially for fast-paced genres like fighting and shooters. HDR support brings even more color vibrancy and lighting effects to the gaming experience. Other than simply the screen, the Switch 2 available for pre-order has a new and wider kickstand that spans almost the whole back of the console and offers multiple adjustable angles. The new Joy-Con controllers snap on and off magnetically and connect via pins which makes the setup easier and their durability better. Sound also got a boost with built-in speakers that support 3D audio while a new Chat button offers voice chat using a built-in noise-cancelling microphone. Storage has been also increased massively to 256GB from the original Switch’s 32GB and the console supports faster microSD Express cards. The gaming community is eager for the hardware but also for the launch games of the Switch 2. Mario Kart World promises expansive race courses with changing weather and improved water effects and other nostalgic franchises like Donkey Kong and Kirby are back with optimized-for-the-new-console games as well. Worth pointing out is the fact that Switch 2 remains compatible with the majority of today’s Switch titles. If you’re looking to pre-order the Switch 2, you must act quickly. Nintendo is trying to close down scalping and outrageous resale price markups but demand will greatly exceed supply. There will be stock shortages and with tariffs and import fees unpredictable, prices could skyrocket. Putting in a preorder today on the Nintendo console, especially with a good retailer like Walmart that guarantees on-launch delivery, is the best way to ensure that you’ll be able to get your hands on the new console asap. See Switch 2 at Walmart See Switch 2 + Mario Kart at Walmart

Noise-cancellation is a great addition on any premium pair of headphones or earbuds, but what it does is drive up the price way high. It’s not something that’s always needed. If you’re not frequently riding on airplanes or trying to drown out the sounds of a couple arguing in the apartment next door, you’ll probably be find just listening on the standard mode. So, you’d only be paying the standard price, not premium. Well, Soundcore has a solid pair of wireless earbuds that get the job done and are crazy affordable. Normally they go for $40 which is already pretty reasonable. But for a limited time, you can secure yourself a pair for 50% off. That’s right. At the time of writing this, the Soundcore by Anker P20i true wireless earbuds are just $20. See at Amazon Available in a variety of fun colors including black, white, blue, light blue, and pink, these wireless earbuds feature 10mm drivers with big bass sound. You can still get lost in your music without the fancy noise cancelation of expensive headphones. Personalized Listening Experience These Soundcore earbuds let you customize their sound to your preferences. Within the Soundcore app, you can choose between 22 EQ preset modes. The app also has its own “Find My Earbuds” feature the way Apple does for all its products.  They’ll even emit a sound on demand to help you locate them. That comes in handy when you don’t remember what bag you place them in and don’t know if you left that at home or in the office. You can listen to your favorite music and podcasts through the entire work day as these Soundcore earbuds can get up to 10 hours of battery life on a single charge. That time is extended further with the charging case which can boost that up to 30 hours. Find yourself in a pinch where neither the buds nor case are charger? No worries. A quick 10-minute charge will bring you back up to two full hours of listening time. The charging case also comes with a nifty lanyard attached to make it easy to clip onto your keys or a bag. These earbuds can be used to take phone calls thanks to their two built-in mics. They use an algorithm to identify your voice over background noises to ensure folks on the other end never have to hear your shout. You’ll come through crystal clear. For a limited time, you can pick up a pair of Soundcore by Anker P20i true wireless earbuds for their all-time low price of just $20. See at Amazon

It took the two biggest names in console gaming nearly a decade, but Sony and Microsoft finally seem to be learning the lesson Nintendo taught them ages ago. Handhelds are in season, and it seems Sony imagines its next big release will be a full-on portable PlayStation 5 (no, not that one). The real question is what it might be called, and if it will be released alongside a whole new console generation, namely the PlayStation 6. We have our doubts Sony will suggest a necessarily lower-power handheld console will be a sequel to the PlayStation 5 and—especially—the more-powerful PS5 Pro. It may indicate Sony is anticipating a dual-release, with one console focused on performance and the other on portability. Either way, the little flecks of info falling out the grinding rumor mill suggest this upcoming console could be the side-grade we’ve been hoping for. A mobile PlayStation that can access your complete library of digital titles in a device you can slip into your backpack. Late last year, reports from Bloomberg claimed Sony was hard at work on a handheld gaming device. There are still no details beyond the promise that it could be capable of playing PlayStation 5 games. That’s enough to get the thoughts racing, even though there’s still no hint of when we could see this handheld in action, or whether it will sit alongside a PlayStation 6. While Microsoft has not announced any official Xbox handheld, the company is reportedly working with Asus to create one slated for this year. Hell, Asus’ Republic of Gamers brand and Xbox have even added fuel to the rumor fires with cheeky teaser videos. Sony has been much more reserved. The company released the PlayStation 5 Pro late last year, which sported a fair number of hardware updates beyond the much-touted enhancements to the GPU. As for the PS6, known leaker KeplerL2 on the NeoGAF forums claimed the “PS6 design is complete” and further hinted the console could be running on next-gen AMD hardware. Some PlayStation diehards are betting on a 2027 release date. Sony normally works on a 6 to 7-year console cycle, with the PlayStation 5 debuting in 2020. I don’t see Sony waiting too long to release a proper handheld, not when the competition is so fierce. Still, there’s little left to a release date but pure speculation. Reuters reported last year that Sony is sticking with AMD for the PlayStation 6 chip. It suggests that the console may be compatible in some way with PS5 games. Depending on the when it launches, the new CPU in a PlayStation 6 could be running on the modern Zen 5 architecture or, according to the few leaks we have, on the supposed inevitable Zen 6, plus the chipmaker’s next-gen graphics architecture. The current version of the PS5 and PS5 Pro are running on modified Zen 2 architecture, but without more specifics we can only guesstimate the PS6’s performance. Sony sticking with AMD for the PS6 (and any handheld version) is practically a given. Lead PlayStation designer Mark Cerny said the company planned to introduce Fidelity FX Super Resolution, or FSR 4, to the PlayStation in the future. AMD’s updated upscaling technology takes a frame rendered at a lower resolution and uses AI algorithms to upscale it to a higher resolution, while keeping the framerate of the original rendering. FSR 4 introduced a whole host of new capabilities that increase the clarity and detail of upscaled images, and it’s already a winner on the latest AMD graphics cards, the Radeon RX 9070 and 9070 XT. Upscaling would be even more of a boon on a handheld, especially when trying to produce console-like, consistent performance that most PlayStation gamers expect. Leaker KeplerL2 also hinted that the next console would have “shader binary compatibility.” That just means games would “just work” on this new handheld. Otherwise, the leaker claimed it will have a 3nm chip running at 15W TDP, or thermal design power. Essentially, that means the chip will be running at relatively low wattages, equivalent to the max of what a Steam Deck can produce. AMD is already the main enabler of handheld gaming PCs, like the Steam Deck and Asus ROG Ally X. The chipmaker has also announced its AMD Ryzen Z2 Go and Ryzen Z2 Extreme for this year’s slate of handheld CPUs. The Z2 Extreme is meant to power top-end devices like the upcoming Lenovo Legion Go 2. Until we know more about the PlayStation 6’s performance, it’s hard to speculate about pricing. A portable PlayStation would need to be more powerful than a $450 Switch 2. Nintendo’s upcoming handheld is equivalent in performance to somewhere between a PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 4 Pro. The Switch 2 is making use of Nvidia’s DLSS upscaler to help achieve 4K resolution in some games. If Sony makes use of upscaling through AMD, it may already have all the pieces in place to offer us a handheld and far sooner than 2027. The way gaming is going, as consoles become more and more portable, perhaps we may not even need a traditional PlayStation 6 at all.