๐ฎ E3 is dead, ๐ Apple's next event, and ๐ฑ Samsung's new $450 phone
All the tech news you missed this week in a banner-ad-free format
Todayโs tech ๐ winners & ๐ losers
โ ๐ฎ E3 2023 is canceled โ how the Apple effect killed E3
โ ๐ Apple WWDC keynote is June 5 โ will its AR headset be there?
โ ๐ฑ My Samsung Galaxy A54 review is up โ a great $450 Android
โ ๐ฅฝ Sonyโs PSVR 2 headset sales slide, as it makes mistakes
โ ๐ฆ Breaking: Twitterโs algorithm is now open source, says Musk
โ โ 3 new PS Plus free games unveiled โ whatโs coming in April
โ ๐งโโ๏ธ The Last of Us on PC is so buggy, Naughty Dog had to address it
โ ๐ป Maxโs Slim Pro 9i hands-on highlights Lenovoโs MacBook rival
๐ฉ ๐ค Microsoftโs Bing AI chatbot to insert ads while it still refuses to properly credit journalists. The future is great!
3 reasons E3 is canceled โ it begins with Apple
E3 2023 is officially canceled, meaning the biggest trade show for video games โ the Electronics Entertainment Expo โ wonโt happen as planned in Los Angeles this June. Itโs a sad day for nostalgic video game expo fans, but itโs not unexpected news.
๐ฎ Further reading: I dive into what it was like 20 years ago โ at E3 2003 โ to explain what todayโs younger generation is missing out on and what trends led to E3โs failure. Moreโฆ
๐ค Deal with it โ The Shortcutโs top deal picks
โ๏ธ Microsoft Office is $39.99 for PC and for Mac today โ down from $150
โ๏ธ Nintendoโs special-edition Zelda Switch OLED in stock: Best Buy, Amazon
๐ซฅ Zelda-themed fancy case & Switch Pro controller in stock too
โ $13 off with our PlayStation Plus Plus discount code when itโs time to renew
๐ฉ $20 off Microsoft Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, so $25 instead of $45
๐ธ Sonyโs ZV-E1 camera ($2,199) and Insta360โs Flow smartphone gimbal ($159) launch with AI smarts for content creators
๐ง AirPods Pro 2nd gen down to $199.99 on Admorama
Samsung Galaxy A54 hands-on review: flagship powers and microSD card slot at a cheap price
Pros
โ ๐ฐThe best Galaxy A-series phone at just $450
โ ๐๏ธ MicroSD card slot on the back of the SIM tray!
โ ๐ 5,000 mAh battery bests the S23 and S23 Plus
Cons
โ ๐ธ No telephoto camera
โ โก No wireless charging or reverse wireless charging
โ โ๏ธ Chipset has yet to be tested
Samsung Galaxy A54 pre-orders launched this week, and I got some hands-on time with the new affordable Android phone before its official April 6 release date, and yes, it comes with the microSD card slot everyone wants in their device. The early verdict: if the higher-specced flagship Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is way out of your budget, then this well-priced $450 alternative is worth a look. Moreโฆ
Apple WWDC 2023: June 5 keynote date confirmed
โก๏ธ The Shortcut Skinny: Apple AR/VR/IRL
๐ Appleโs Worldwide Developers Conference keynote will be on June 5, 2023
๐ฑ Expect previews of iOS 17, iPadOS 17, watchOS 10 macOS 14 and tvOS 17
๐ฅฝ Apple is rumored to show off a mixed-reality headset, RealityPro
๐ Free online sessions for Apple developers and students with limited in-person experience at Apple Park
Microsoftโs Bing AI chatbot will soon have more adverts
โก๏ธ The Shortcut Skinny: Bing-bong
๐คจ More adverts are coming to the Bing AI chatbot
๐ฃ Microsoft announced the changes in a blog post
๐ค It hasnโt been revealed exactly where the ads will appear
๐ Early glimpses suggest theyโll be inserted as citations
Sony PSVR 2 sales are off to a slow start despite PS5โs success
โก๏ธ The Shortcut Skinny: PSVR 2 sales
๐ Research firm IDC predicts PSVR 2 sales will hit only 270,000 by April
๐ฌ Sony wanted to ship 2 million devices in its launch window
๐ฐ IDC reckons the headsetโs high price is deterring consumers
๐ฅฝ The Meta Quest 3 might have more luck later this year
This is Lenovoโs new MacBook rival: the Slim Pro 9i โ hereโs our first take
โก๏ธ The Shortcut Skinny: the โAirโ equivalent
๐ป 7 new Lenovo laptops announced this week, and we tested them all
๐ The Yoga 7i launches in April, while the Slim Pro laptops launch in May
๐คฉ Lenovo Slim Pro 9i with Mini LED is the star of the series
๐คผโโ๏ธ Rivals Appleโs MacBook Air and Pro in terms of performance and price
๐ฎ Lenovo LOQ, its affordable gaming laptops, were announced last week
โThe Lenovo Slim Pro 9i screams โIโm a creator-centric laptop.โโ
Aprilโs PS Plus free games have been announced
โก๏ธ The Shortcut Skinny
๐ฅค Sackboy: A Big Adventure is the star of the show
๐ซ Alongside Meet Your Maker and Tails of Iron
๐ Theyโll be up to claim from April 4
๐ค Donโt forget the PS Plus discount code
Apple Pay Later introduced to iPhone and iPad users starting this week
โก๏ธ The Shortcut Skinny: Now & Apple Pay Later
๐ Apple Pay Later is launching in the US on iPhone and iPad devices
๐ต Finance online and in-app purchases ranging from $50 to $1,000
โฒ๏ธ Split purchases into four payments spread over six weeks
๐ซฐNo interest and no fees, but banks may charge insufficient fund fees
โ๏ธ Invites roll out today and to all eligible users in the coming months
I think with PSVR 2, the games haven't been all that great except for the bundled one. And Kayaking.