Just a couple of months after its debut, you can already score a great deal on the Apple Watch Series 9 thanks to an Amazon Black Friday discount. The smartwatch has dropped to $329, which is $80 or 18 percent off the regular price of $399. The previous low we saw for the Apple Watch Series 9 was $349 earlier this month.

This price applies to the 41mm model and you can take your pick from a variety of case colors and sport bands. Several 45mm variants are on sale too. That size of the Apple Watch Series 9 is down to $360, which is $69 off the standard price of $429.

At these prices, the Apple Watch Series 9 becomes a more enticing option as a gift for a special someone in your life, or even just yourself. We think this is the best smartwatch you can buy overall (though obviously you’ll need to look at different options if you’re an Android user).

In our review, we gave the Apple Watch Series 9 a score of 92. There are some major upgrades this year, thanks to the introduction of a more powerful S9 system-in-package (SiP) processor.

One of the key new features is called Double Tap, which builds on Apple’s Assistive Touch accessibility tool. When Double Tap is enabled, you carry out a pinching action using the hand that’s wearing the watch to carry out the main function in an app. It’s a useful way to control certain aspects of your smartwatch without having to touch the screen. You can use Double Tap to, for instance, snooze an alarm, pause a song that’s playing or reply to a message.

Using the gesture to reply to a message will bring up the Siri-powered voice typing option. So it’s worth mentioning here that, thanks to the S9 SiP, the Apple Watch Series 9 can handle on-device Siri processing. That makes the voice assistant’s performance a bit snappier, as Apple doesn’t have to send your request to its servers for processing and back again. It also means that Siri can work offline.

Elsewhere, a second-gen ultra wideband chip powers a more precise Find My iPhone experience, as long as the phone you’re looking for also has that chip. For instance, when you’re looking for a misplaced iPhone 15 Pro, the Apple Watch Series 9 will show you how many feet away the device is, along with a directional indicator to guide you to it. Other upgrades in the latest Apple Watch include a brighter display. You’ll also be able to check out the revised UI that Apple brought in with watchOS 10.

Meanwhile, the second-gen Apple Watch SE (which scored 89 in our review last year) has fallen to an all-time-best price too. If you’re looking for a more budget-friendly way into the Apple Watch ecosystem, this could be the right option for you. Both sizes of the Apple Watch SE are $70 off, with 40mm versions coming in at $179 and 44mm variants starting at $209.

Your Black Friday Shopping Guide: See all of Yahoo’s Black Friday coverage, here. Follow Engadget for Black Friday tech deals. Learn about Black Friday trends on In The Know. Hear from Autoblog’s experts on the best Black Friday deals for your car, garage, and home, and find Black Friday sales to shop on AOL, handpicked just for you.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apple-watch-series-9-falls-to-a-new-low-of-329-in-an-amazon-black-friday-deal-164517938.html?src=rss

Source: Engadget – Apple Watch Series 9 falls to a new low of 9 in an Amazon Black Friday deal

Dyson is taking $175 off the V15 Detect Absolute stick vacuum. The device won’t only clean your floors; it will show you how much dirt it’s sucking up, thanks to a built-in laser light and dust particle counter. The early Black Friday deal brings the powerful stick vac’s price down to $575 from its standard $750. A similar model, the Dyson V12 Detect Slim Absolute, is $250 off and down to $400 in another Black Friday vacuum deal as well.

Engadget tried the V15 Detect Absolute when it launched in 2021 and found it an elite cleaning machine for those willing to pay a premium. “It feels weird to consider a high-end vacuum as a luxury, or even a treat,” Mat Smith wrote. “But honestly, that’s how it felt when I was using it: reliable, powerful, and habit-forming.” He described the vacuum as a “total beast at extracting ingrained dust and dirt in carpets and rugs.”

In addition to its dirt-sucking prowess, the V15 Detect Absolute stands out with its laser-powered optic cleaner head. It illuminates dust particles you wouldn’t usually see, helping you better understand how dirty your floor is before tackling it. It also includes a piezo sensor, which sizes and counts dust particles, displaying them on the handle’s LCD. In addition to particle count, the screen shows your remaining runtime and maintenance alerts.

The stick vac has sensors that monitor brush bar resistance 360 times a second, adapting the device’s power usage across different floor types. It has an estimated hour of battery life and includes Auto, Eco and Boost cleaning modes to pace its energy use. Like all Dyson stick vacuums, you can convert it to a stubby handheld for getting those hard-to-reach spots.

The V12 Detect Slim Absolute has many of the same features as the V15, but in a lighter package. It has a 0.1 gallon bin, which is slightly smaller than the 0.2 gallon bin on the V15 Detect, and it’s suction isn’t quite as powerful as the V15. However, both models have the same 60-minute battery life and “detect” technology. They also both come with Fluffy Optic and Motorcar Cleaner heads that you can swap out, depending on the type of mess you have to clean up. If you have a smaller space or don’t have any pets to tidy up after, the Slim could be a good option for you.

If you’re looking for a cheaper model without the V15’s bells and whistles, Dyson also has a discount on the V8 Absolute. On sale for $300 compared to its usual price of $520, this vacuum has a less powerful motor than the V15 but is still plenty capable. It’s also lighter in hand and on the wallet. The stick vac ships with two cleaner heads (one specializing in carpets and another in hard floors) and lasts up to 40 minutes.

Your Black Friday Shopping Guide: See all of Yahoo’s Black Friday coverage, here. Follow Engadget for Black Friday tech deals. Learn about Black Friday trends on In The Know. Hear from Autoblog’s experts on the best Black Friday deals for your car, garage, and home, and find Black Friday sales to shop on AOL, handpicked just for you.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/dyson-black-friday-deals-include-up-to-250-off-its-cordless-vacuums-163102157.html?src=rss

Source: Engadget – Dyson Black Friday deals include up to 0 off its cordless vacuums

The Sunbird messaging app for Android has flown the solar coop. The app has completely shut down following massive privacy concerns, as reported by 9to5Google. This comes after the app received increased scrutiny when it partnered with Nothing to act as the basis of the smartphone manufacturer’s Nothing Chats app. Nothing’s app was only available for less than one day before the aforementioned privacy concerns came to light and it was pulled.

The app’s gone from Google’s Play Store, though the parent company says this shutdown is temporary, according to an announcement posted on Reddit. Long story short? Sunbird was a niche product that didn’t quite work and the Nothing collaboration turned the spotlight to that fact. It promised full end-to-end encryption but many users could exploit vulnerabilities to access private user messages. 9to5Google, for instance, found over 630,000 files using this vulnerability. Call me crazy, but that doesn’t seem too secure.

The writing was on the wall for Sunbird to anyone paying attention, which wasn’t that many people until Nothing got involved. The company missed several deadlines for launch, all while making lofty promises regarding secure iMessage and Android chat interoperability. During the company’s first announcement presser back in 2022, Sunbird refused to take questions regarding the underlying technology of the app and related privacy concerns, closing the Zoom chat when things got too hot, as reported by ArsTechnica. This led reporters to suggest that Sunbird simply wasn’t a “serious company.”

There’s also the giant Apple-sized elephant in the room. The tech giant recently announced it would offer support for RCS text messaging in 2024, completely eliminating the need for workarounds like Sunbird in the first place. In other words, the green bubble-blue bubble divide is coming to an end.

Despite erasing itself from the Play Store, Sunbird’s official website makes no mention of the shutdown, still boasting about the app’s peerless end-to-end encryption. The company’s also yet to make a public statement on the matter.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/sunbird-shuts-down-its-imessage-app-for-android-after-major-privacy-concerns-160713312.html?src=rss

Source: Engadget – Sunbird shuts down its iMessage app for Android after major privacy concerns

Nintendo has formally rolled out its set of Black Friday deals for the year. While there aren’t any straight cash discounts on Switch hardware, the company is offering a new Switch OLED bundle that pairs the $350 console with a digital copy of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and a three-month individual Nintendo Switch Online subscription for no extra cost. The console’s Joy-Con controllers feature a Smash Bros.-themed design as well. This bundle is available at several retailers, including Walmart, Target, GameStop, Best Buy and Nintendo’s own online store.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate typically retails in the $50 to $60 range and the Switch Online membership goes for $8, so that’s about what you’re saving here. We’ve seen the console go for less on its own, but if you’ve been meaning to give Smash Bros. a shot, there are much worse options for a free pack-in game. Although Ultimate was released way back in 2018, we still consider it the quintessential fighter for Nintendo’s system, and it currently holds a spot on our list of the best Switch games.

Speaking of, Nintendo has also discounted a handful of its own Switch titles. Some notables include the cutesy adventure game Luigi’s Mansion 3 down to $40, the 3D platformer Kirby and the Forgotten Land at a new low of $42 and the 2D platformer Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze down to a new low of $30. (Cue the memes.) Luigi’s Mansion and Tropical Freeze are both included in our roundup of the best couch co-op games, while Forgotten Land is on our aforementioned list of best overall Switch games. Elsewhere, the RPG Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is on sale for $40, while Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe and Mario Strikers: Battle League are each available for a low of $30. A couple of these deals aren’t all-time lows — and it’s hard to call games like Battle League and Return to Dream Land essential — but each is at least a little cheaper than usual.

Among Switch games that aren’t published by Nintendo (in America), the turn-based strategy game Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is on sale for $15, the recently released Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 is $20 off at $40 and the hardcore RPG Shin Megami Tensei V is back at an all-time low of $20. A couple other acclaimed RPGs in Persona 5 Royal and Octopath Traveler II are also on sale for $25 and $39, respectively. (Though you can get the PS5 version of the latter for $9 less.)

The Nintendo eShop, meanwhile, is now running a “Cyber Deals” sale through December 3. Many of the deals noted above are also available there, but other highlights include Portal Companion Collection (which includes the all-time great puzzlers Portal and Portal 2) for $6.79, the moving management sim Spiritfarer for $7.49, the throwback platformer The Messenger for $5, the beat-em-up Streets of Rage 4 for $12.49 and the superbly written Kentucky Route Zero and Disco Elysium for $12.49 and $14, respectively. All of those match the lowest prices to date for the Switch versions of each game.

Unfortunately (and perhaps predictably), many of Nintendo’s newest hits aren’t officially part of these sales, so we don’t expect to see major discounts on 2023 games like The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Pikmin 4 or Super Mario Bros. Wonder. Staples is technically listing Zelda and Wonder for $40 each, but it doesn’t have either game in stock as of this writing. You can also take $5 off Wonder at GameStop if you order online and pick up in-store, though that’s hardly a deal. The older Super Mario Odyssey and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild are on sale for $40 each, though Walmart says it’ll have both of those available for $30 on November 22, so it’s worth waiting if you’ve yet to play either of them.

There’s also a bundle that pairs a red and blue set of Joy-Cons with a digital copy of Super Mario Party for $100. Since the controllers usually go for $80, the deal effectively brings the game down to $20. That’s roughly $30 less than it typically costs on its own. It’s worth noting that this isn’t the latest Mario Party game, though — that would be Mario Party Superstars, which came out two years ago. Still, if you want a few new boards to play and need a set of Joy-Cons anyway, it might be worthwhile.

If you’d rather not pay up for the Switch OLED, Nintendo is still selling holiday bundles for the standard Switch and Switch Lite as well. The systems themselves aren’t any cheaper at $300 and $200, respectively, but the Switch is available with Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and that same Switch Online membership at various retailers, while the Switch Lite now comes with Animal Crossing: New Horizons at Walmart and Target. 

These bundles have been available for a few weeks, and the included games are again on the older side — Mario Kart arrived way back in 2017, while Animal Crossing hit in 2020. The Mario Kart bundle in particular is one that Nintendo rolls out just about every holiday season, so it’s not an amazing deal. Still, both titles tend to retail between $40 and $50 on their own, and both are included in our Switch games buying guide. If you’re late to the Switch train, they’re strong starting points. 

The big caveat to all of this is that we may be nearing the end of the Switch’s life cycle. The original console arrived nearly seven years ago, and various reports have suggested that we’re likely to see some sort of follow-up in 2024. A recent Eurogamer report, for instance, said that Nintendo demoed a possible “Switch 2” for developers in August. If you aren’t dying to catch up on Switch games you missed, it might be wise to wait. 

That said, the Switch’s library is still excellent. If you (or your kid) have been looking to finally hop on the bandwagon, these deals provide at least a little extra value — even if we’d have preferred to see more substantial discounts on the consoles by this point.

Your Black Friday Shopping Guide: See all of Yahoo’s Black Friday coverage, here. Follow Engadget for Black Friday tech deals. Learn about Black Friday trends on In The Know. Hear from Autoblog’s experts on the best Black Friday deals for your car, garage, and home, and find Black Friday sales to shop on AOL, handpicked just for you.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/nintendo-black-friday-deals-get-a-new-switch-oled-bundle-and-a-bunch-of-discounted-games-155016053.html?src=rss

Source: Engadget – Nintendo Black Friday deals: Get a new Switch OLED bundle and a bunch of discounted games

While Google may have officially released Android 14 at the start of October, there’s a good chance you’re still waiting for the update to arrive on your device. In recent years, the company has done its best to reduce the lag between when the latest version of Android arrives on its own Pixel phones and those from third-party partners, but that gap still exists in 2023. As of the writing of this article, many phone manufacturers are still beta testing their Android 14 skins.

Engadget reached out to nearly every major phone manufacturer in the US market to find out how close they are to releasing a stable build of Android 14. If you’re unsure if your phone will receive the new OS, this article will answer that question too.

ASUS

ASUS began publicly testing Android 14 in the US on October 10. At the moment, the beta is only available on the company’s current flagship, the Zenfone 10. “The Zenfone 10 Android 14 closed community beta is first up – and as such Zenfone 10 is the first device which should be getting a stable release,” an ASUS spokesperson told Engadget.

ASUS declined to say when Zenfone 10 users could expect a stable version of Android 14 to arrive on their devices, with the company noting the timing of the release “is highly dependent on the stability and results of the beta tests with our signed-up community members.”

Beyond the Zenfone 10, only a handful of other ASUS phones will receive Android 14 due to the company’s current policy of supporting its recent devices with two platform updates. Taking that into account, the oldest phones ASUS will update with Android 14 are the Zenfone 9 and ROG Phone 6.

Google

As the main steward of Android, Google was one of the first phone makers to release a stable build of Android 14. Much of the Pixel line, dating as far as back to 2020’s Pixel 4a 5G, has had access to Android 14 since October 4. Starting with the Pixel 8 series, Google has promised to support future devices for seven years. The first Android 14 Pixel Feature Drop will arrive sometime in December. In the meantime, you can enroll in the Android Beta for Pixel program to check out the first two Android 14 quarterly platform release (QPR) betas. Those include features that will arrive in later Feature Drops.

Huawei

Unless there’s a dramatic change in US-China relations, Huawei devices in the United States, Canada and Europe will not receive access to Android 14, at least not in the form accessible on devices from other manufacturers. In 2019, the Commerce Department placed the telecom giant on its Entity List, a move that prompted Google to cut official ties with Huawei. HarmonyOS, the company’s version of Android, doesn’t draw directly from the codebase Google makes available to its commercial partners. Additionally, most recent Huawei devices, including the Mate 60 Pro, aren’t available outside of China.

Motorola

Motorola will begin rolling out Android 14 to its phones in early 2024. The 2022 Edge, Edge+ and Edge 30 Fusion are the oldest devices the company plans to upgrade this time around. The company’s 2023 lineup — including the Razr, Razr+, Moto G Power, G Stylus and G 5G — are also slated to receive Android 14. “For the status of Android OS on a specific device, users can visit our software support page,” a Motorola spokesperson said.

Nothing

Carl Pei’s Nothing recently began rolling out the second open beta of Nothing OS 2.5, which builds on Android 14 with a few features designed to extend the capabilities of the company’s signature Glyph interface. “Nothing is continuing the process of Beta testing on Phone (2) which provides early access to our newest improvements, including new features for Glyph interface, and refinements resulting from Open Beta 1,” a Nothing spokesperson told Engadget.

Pei detailed Nothing OS 2.5 in a recent community update Nothing uploaded to YouTube. Among other enhancements, Open Beta 2 adds a new Glyph animation when the Phone 2’s NFC hardware is in use. The update also adds new optional shortcuts users can access from the Phone 2’s power button, and tweaks to the operating system’s three-finger swipe gesture to make it more reliable. You can find the full list of changes on Nothing’s website.

To date, Nothing has pledged to support its phones with three years of OS upgrades and four years of security updates. Having only entered the smartphone market in July 2022 with the Phone 1 and released one other handset since then, Nothing users can rest assured their device will get Nothing OS 2.5.

OnePlus

OxygenOS 14, OnePlus’ upcoming skin of Android 14, does not currently have a release date. The company declined to say when users could expect the update to arrive, telling Engadget it did “not have any additional information to share at this time.”

However, the good news is that OnePlus is testing a beta version of OxygenOS 14 with users outside of the company. On November 8, it announced the Beta 4 release of OxygenOS 14, at the same time making the software available to people in the US and India.

If you bought your OnePlus phone anytime in the last three years, it’s likely to receive Android 14. With its two most recent products, the OnePlus 11 and OnePlus Open, OnePlus pledged to provide four years of Android updates and five years of security patches. With earlier handsets, including last year’s OnePlus 10 Pro, the company said it would support those products with three years of platform updates.

With that in mind, the OnePlus 8T, which was released in late 2020, is likely the oldest OnePlus phone slated to receive OxygenOS 14. Additionally, as with most other manufacturers, those with older devices will probably end up waiting longer before they see the latest version of Android arrive on their phone.

Samsung

Samsung began rolling out a stable build of its Android 14 skin, One UI 6, at the end of last month. With the company offering four generations of OS updates on many of its recent devices, older phones like the Galaxy S21 and Galaxy A32 won’t be left out of the company’s Android 14 rollout. That said, expect to wait longer if you do own one of those earlier handsets.

Sony

Sony began rolling Android 14 to its flagship Xperia 1 V phone on November 6. If your 1 V hasn’t prompted you to install the update yet, you can manually check if it’s available to download by opening your phone’s Settings menu and tapping the “System Update” option, which is found under the “System” heading.

“The Android 14 update will be rolling out to other Xperia models,” a Sony spokesperson told Engadget. “However, we are not able to share the exact timing of that rollout.”

Xiaomi

Outside of Google, Xiaomi was one of the first OEMs to roll out a stable release of Android 14 to its users. As of this article, MIUI 14, which builds on the latest version of Google’s operating system, is available on the Xiaomi 13 Pro, 13 and 12T.

Unfortunately, those with older Xiaomi handsets may end up waiting a while before MIUI 14 arrives on their phone. “The exact timeline for Xiaomi to update its older devices to Android 14 is currently not available,” a Xiaomi spokesperson said. “Please stay tuned for further updates on this matter.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/when-will-your-phone-get-android-14-152432975.html?src=rss

Source: Engadget – When will your phone get Android 14?