The Guardian
3 days ago
Divide between Silicon Valley and ordinary people grows ever larger
Big tech believes the future is AI while everyday Americans remain wary; and the dangers of riding in a Tesla Cybertruck Hello, and welcome to TechScape. I’m your host, Blake Montgomery. This week in tech, we discuss a moment of divergence between Silicon Valley and everyday people; deep cuts at Meta to maximize spending on AI; writers caught using AI; and the frightening, fiery crashes of the Tesla Cybertruck.How the FBI can conduct mass surveillance – even without AIKash Patel admits under oath FBI is buying location data on AmericansWhy is the FBI buying people’s location data and how is it using the information? Continue reading...
The Guardian
3 days ago
European Commission president warns of ‘brutal, harsh and unforgiving’ world — video
In an address to Australia’s parliament, the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, says Europe offers stability in an increasingly uncertain world, but that stability is changing. Europe has faced more than four years of conflict in Ukraine since Russian’s invasion, along with the new threat of war in the Middle East. ‘The comfort blanket of yesterday is ripped away. It is confronting,’ she says. On Tuesday, Australia and the European Union struck an agreement that will lead to both sides slashing tariffs and expanding trade across a range of areas Continue reading...
The Guardian
4 days ago
‘We consider every mile we drive’: how fuel shortages are affecting readers worldwide
From a shop owner in India to a community worker in New South Wales, rising fuel prices are forcing people to ration oil usageMiddle East crisis – live updatesAlagesan, 35, needs liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to run his roadside drink and snack shop in Coimbatore, India, but with the fuel shortage since the US-Israel attacks on Iran, he worries his business could fold.“I am far away from the Middle East, but my life is affected,” he said. “The gas cylinder is not available because of the war. I don’t know what to do.” Continue reading...
The Guardian
4 days ago
iPhone 17e review: Apple upgrades its cheapest new smartphone
Mid-range handset gets chip, storage and MagSafe upgrades to offer more essential iOS features for less The cheapest new iPhone has been upgraded for this year with a faster chip, double the storage, automatic portraits and MagSafe, providing even more of the core Apple smartphone experience for less.The iPhone 17e is an upgraded version of the mid-range “e” line launched last year with the first iPhone 16e and is the latest member of the iPhone 17 family. It starts at £599 (€699/$599/A$999), undercutting the iPhone 17 and iPhone 16 by £200 and £100 respectively to be the cheapest new iPhone sold by Apple.Screen: 6.1in Super Retina XDR (OLED) (460ppi)Processor: Apple A19 (4-core GPU)RAM: 8GBStorage: 256 or 512GBOperating system: iOS 26Camera: 48MP rear; 12MP front-facingConnectivity: 5G, wifi 6, NFC, Bluetooth 5.3, USB-C, Satellite and GNSSWater resistance: IP68 (6 metres for 30 mins)Dimensions: 146.7 x 71.5 x 7.8mmWeight: 170g Continue reading...
The Guardian
4 days ago
‘This is the saddest moment’: families search for loved ones on Eid after Kabul hospital strike
At least 400 killed in Pakistan’s strike on drug rehab centre, Taliban say, with families searching unmarked mass gravesSohrab Faqiri spent Eid, the Muslim festival to mark the end of the fasting month of Ramadan, looking for the grave of his brother, killed in a massive Pakistan airstrike on Kabul this week.Pakistan’s bombardment campaign, on what it says is terrorist and military infrastructure in neighbouring Afghanistan, appeared to have gone catastrophically wrong. A rehabilitation centre for drug addicts was hit on Monday night, according to the United Nations and the Afghan authorities. The UN’s preliminary death toll is 143 people, while the Taliban administration puts the figure at more than 400 dead. Continue reading...
The Guardian
6 days ago
Owners from Great Britain travelling to EU warned over pet passport ‘dodge’
Bypassing animal health certificate system by using cheaper pet passport issued abroad could backfire, experts sayBritish pet owners who want to take their furry friends elsewhere in Europe have been warned not to try to dodge expensive health certificates by using a pet passport issued abroad.Before Brexit, taking a cat, dog or ferret to the EU was relatively simple: the Pet Travel Scheme meant an animal needed a microchip, vaccination against rabies, a pet passport and, for dogs, there were also requirements concerning tapeworm treatment. Continue reading...
The Guardian
6 days ago
‘We need to think much bigger’: trade minister calls for greater ambition in UK-EU reset
Exclusive: Chris Bryant says policy agreements are being done in bits and pieces but a greater vision is needed by both sidesIt was all smiles and warm handshakes when the two men in charge of renegotiating the UK’s relationship with the EU met in Brussels this week.Maroš Šefčovič and the UK minister for EU relations, Nick Thomas-Symonds, sharing a stage on the third floor of the vast European parliament building, were at pains to show the cross-Channel relationship was in a good place after years of rancour. Continue reading...
The Guardian
1 week ago
Resident Evil at 30: how Capcom’s horror opus has survived and thrived
From owing a debt to obscure Japanese horror Sweet Home to the influence of Aliens and Texas Chain Saw Massacre, the franchise continues to petrify players three decades onTo many of us playing and writing about video games in the 1990s, Resident Evil seemed to come out of nowhere. The emerging PlayStation and Saturn consoles were all about slick, bright arcade conversions – the shiny thrills of Daytona and Tekken – and Japanese publisher Capcom was in a rut of coin-op conversions and endless sequels to Street Fighter and Mega Man. Scary games were rare at the time and mostly confined to the PC. So when the news of a horror title named Biohazard (the Japanese name for the series) started to emerge in 1995, it caught the attention of games journalists as it seemed radically out of step with prevailing trends. Games were about power, but as early demos quickly revealed, Resident Evil was about vulnerability.Thirty years later, it’s still here. The series has sold more than 180m copies worldwide, with 11 core titles and dozens of spinoffs and remakes, as well as film, television and anime tie-ins. Its characters and monsters are icons, its tropes now embedded in game design practice. What has allowed it to not only survive but flourish in such a rapidly changing industry? Why do we still let it scare us? Continue reading...
The Guardian
1 week ago
Farage backs Tory attack on Muslim iftar event, saying public prayer ‘was a shock’ – as it happened
Nigel Farage echoed Nick Timothy’s comments after he said public prayer for Ramadan was an ‘act of domination’Starmer claims Tories have ‘problem with Muslims’ after Timothy tweetCleverly is trying to show a video, but it is not working. So he just invites Kemi Badenoch to start her speech.The Conservatives are launching their local elections campaign. There is a live feed here. Continue reading...
The Guardian
1 week ago
Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra review: its huge screen blocks shoulder surfers from spying on you
Latest Android superphone packs great cameras, fast chips, long battery, a stylus and first-of-its-kind privacy displaySamsung’s latest Ultra superphone promises to keep shoulder surfers out of your business with a first-of-its-kind privacy display built into its huge 6.9in screen.The Galaxy S26 Ultra is Samsung’s top-of-the-line phone costing £1,279 (€1,449/$1,299/A$2,199) and is one of the most feature-packed handsets you can get, with four cameras on the back, an integrated stylus and AI assistance in every corner. Continue reading...
The Guardian
1 week ago
Apple iPad Air M4 review: still the premium tablet to beat
Faster laptop-level power, rapid wifi and 5G, plus much-improved multitasking make the middle iPad highly capable beyond just watching TVThe latest iPad Air is faster in almost all facets, packing not just a processor upgrade but improvements to most of the internal bits that make the tablet work, providing laptop-grade power in a skinny, adaptable touchscreen device.The new iPad Air M4 costs from the same £599 (€649/$599/A$999) as the outgoing M3 model from last year and again comes in two sizes. One with an 11in screen, which is the best size for most people and a more expensive 13in screen version, which is ideal if you want a second TV or a laptop replacement.Screen: 11in or 13in Liquid Retina display (264ppi)Processor: Apple M4 (8-core CPU/9-core GPU)RAM: 12GBStorage: 128, 256, 512GB or 1TBOperating system: iPadOS 26.3Camera: 12MP rear, 12MP centre stageConnectivity: Wifi 7, 5G (eSim-only), Bluetooth 6, USB-C (USB3), Touch ID, Smart ConnecterDimensions: 247.6 x 178.5 x 6.1mm or 280.6 x 214.9 x 6.1mmWeight: 464g or 616g Continue reading...
The Guardian
2 weeks ago
Google Pixel 10a review: cheaper Android is great, but no real advance
Quality camera, good software and long battery life, but you should just buy the Pixel 9a insteadThe latest smartphone in the lower-cost A-series Pixel line shows what makes Google phones so good, while undercutting the competition on price. The problem is that it differs little from its predecessor, which is still on sale.Priced from £499 (€549/$499/A$849), the Pixel 10a is more like a second edition of last year’s excellent Pixel 9a. The two phones share the same Tensor G4 chip, not the newer G5 in the rest of the £799 and up Pixel 10 line; the same memory, storage and cameras; the same size 6.3in OLED screen, though the Pixel 10a reaches a higher peak brightness making it slightly easier to read outside. Continue reading...
The Guardian
3 weeks ago
Beats Powerbeats Fit review: Apple’s compact workout earbuds revamped
Secure, noise-cancelling Bluetooth earbuds that shine for exercise and everyday use on Android and iPhoneApple’s revamped compact workout Beats earbuds stick to a winning formula, while slimming down and improving comfort.The new Powerbeats Fit are the direct successors to 2022’s popular Beats Fit Pro, costing £200 (€230/$200/A$330). They sit alongside the recently redesigned Powerbeats Pro 2 as Apple’s fitness alternatives of the AirPods. Continue reading...
The Guardian
1 month ago
Logitech MX Master 4 review: the best work mouse you can buy
Ergonomic shape, quality materials and satisfying clicks, now with novel haptic feedback and repairable designLogitech’s latest productivity power-house updates one of the greatest mice of all time with smoother materials, a repair-friendly design and a haptic motor for phone-like vibrations on your desktop.The MX Master 4 is the latest evolution in a line of pioneering mice that dates back more than 20 years and has long been the mouse to beat for everything but hardcore PC gaming. Having given it a magnetic free-spinning scroll wheel, plenty of buttons and precise tracking, now Logitech is trying something different for its seven-generation: the ability to tap back at you. Continue reading...
The Guardian
1 month ago
Google Pixel Buds 2a review: great Bluetooth earbuds at a good price
Compact and comfortable Pixel Buds have noise cancelling, decent battery life and good everyday soundGoogle’s latest budget Pixel earbuds are smaller, lighter, more comfortable and have noise cancelling, plus a case that allows you to replace the battery at home.The Pixel Buds 2a uses the design of the excellent Pixel Buds Pro 2 with a few high-end features at a more palatable £109 (€129/$129/A$239) price, undercutting rivals in the process.Water resistance: IP54 (splash resistant)Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.4 (SBC, AAC)Battery life: 7h with ANC (20h with case)Earbud dimensions: 23.1 x 16 x 17.8mmEarbud weight: 4.7g eachDriver size: 11mmCharging case dimensions: 50 x 57.2 x 24.5mmCharging case weight: 47.6gCase charging: USB-C Continue reading...
The Guardian
1 month ago
Fairphone 6 review: cheaper, repairable and longer-lasting Android
Sustainable smartphone takes a step forward with modular accessories, a good screen and mid-range performanceThe Dutch ethical smartphone brand Fairphone is back with its six-generation Android, aiming to make its repairable phone more modern, modular, affordable and desirable, with screw-in accessories and a user-replaceable battery.The Fairphone 6 costs £499 (€599), making it cheaper than previous models and pitting it squarely against budget champs such as the Google Pixel 9a and the Nothing Phone 3a Pro, while being repairable at home with long-term software support and a five-year warranty. On paper it sounds like the ideal phone to see out the decade. Continue reading...
The Guardian
1 month ago
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