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Spotify has started rolling out a feature called SongDNA that can show you the people behind your favorite tracks and give you an insight on how they were created. You can access it by opening the Now Playing view while listening to a specific song and then scrolling down to the SongDNA box.

Tracks that support the new feature will show you all the artists, writers, producers and collaborators behind them. It’s yet another way to make more music on the platform discoverable, since you’ll be able to tap on their icons to see their profiles and the other pieces they worked on. The box will also contain the samples and interpolations that helped form a track’s sound, as well as the covers it inspired. Spotify says it’s giving eligible artist and label teams the power to review and manage the components of the feature, so it’s bound to be supported by more and more tracks as time goes on.

“SongDNA is designed to make a song’s creative lineage more transparent so fans can easily explore the people and influences behind the music they love,” said Jacqueline Ankner, Spotify’s Head of Songwriter & Publisher Partnerships. “By bringing collaborators, samples, and covers together in one place, we’re making it easier for fans to discover new music and see how songs connect and come to life—while giving songwriters, producers, and rightsholders meaningful recognition for the role they play in creating it.”

SongDNA is making its way to paying iOS and Android users around the world, but it’s still in beta and might still go through revisions before it’s more widely available. It will roll out more broadly to Premium users throughout April.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/spotifys-songdna-can-tell-you-all-about-the-track-youre-listening-to-130000809.html?src=rss

It’s coming. Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) will take place from June 8-12. Going on past timings, CEO Tim Cook will take the stage for the keynote on June 8, most likely at 1 PM ET.

WWDC is a software-focused affair, so expect to see the upcoming "27" operating systems, now that the new naming convention has settled. Apple will likely cover iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, visionOS 27, watchOS 27 and macOS 27. However, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman is suggesting that WWDC will be "a fairly muted affair," – but in all fairness, WWDC has never been that explosive.

Still, there are things I want to hear about: Rumors suggest that iOS 27 will deliver big upgrades to Apple Intelligence and — possibly — that overdue Siri overhaul. Reports also suggest the presence of split-pane multitasking, if you’re aching to juggle spreadsheets, web browsing and more on your mobile device.

– Mat Smith

The other big stories (and deals) this morning

• Engadget review recap: Lots of Apple, Galaxy S26, Dell XPS 16 and more

• Wing expands its drone delivery service to the Bay Area

• Billionaire OnlyFans owner Leonid Radvinsky has died from cancer at 43

• Apple will reportedly start stuffing ads into the Maps app

Twitter turns 20 And now what?

Senior reporter Karissa Bell marks two decades on Twitter. Twitter/X as changed a lot, especially in the last five years, as AI slop, clickbait, and ragebait keep the algorithm ticking over. More recently, X’s AI assistant was able to ‘undress’ anyone you ask it to. Great.

The social network has moved far away from its exciting heyday of live tweeting, memes and more — or even a place to make new friends and contacts. In fact, I got my job here at Engadget through Twitter DMs to former Engadget editor Richard Lai. As Karissa puts it, "Twitter stopped being that place a long time ago.”

Continue reading.

Nothing Phone 4a Pro review A new midrange champ? Engadget

The Phone 4a Pro punches well above its $499 price tag. Nothing has successfully refined its hardware into a more premium, all-metal unibody, losing the jarring camera bump of its predecessor in favor of a sleek design that houses a genuinely impressive camera. There are still a few signs that it’s not quite a flagship (mediocre video recording performance and a lack of wireless charging), but at this price, these seem like minor complaints. Nothing’s next flagship phone needs to offer something, right?

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Samsung’s new S26 series can AirDrop like an iPhone A new update has added support.

Android AirDrop sharing is expanding to more devices. Samsung announced earlier this week that its Galaxy S26 Series is getting AirDrop support via the Quick Share feature.

Google first introduced the Quick Share feature on its Pixel 10 phones last year. The setting allows Android users to send and receive photos and files from an Apple device. Y’know, like AirDrop.

Continue reading.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/the-morning-after-engadget-newsletter-121555441.html?src=rss

Snapchat users are sending a staggering number of snaps to each other, according to newly released data from Snap. In 2025, Snapchat users created close to 2 trillion snaps, the company said in an update. 

That works out to about 5.5 billion distinct snaps per day and about 63,000 each second, according to the company. When you consider that Snapchat has about 474 million daily users, that averages to more than 11 snaps per user each day. In a blog post, the company called it "a reflection of how often people are capturing a moment in a bid to connect with one another." 

The numbers offer a window into engagement on the nearly 15-year-old platform where much of users' activity happens out of public view. The stat is the first time the company has shared the total number of snaps sent in a year, though Snap said last year its users shared more than 1 trillion selfie snaps in 2024. 

Snap, which at times has struggled with user growth, has been inching closer to 1 billion users for the last year. It reported 946 million monthly users in its most recent earnings report. CEO Evan Spiegel described reaching a billion people as a "long term goal."

Jim Lanzone, the CEO of Engadget’s parent company Yahoo, joined the board of directors at Snap on September 12, 2024. No one outside of Engadget’s editorial team has any say in our coverage of the company.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/snapchat-users-sent-nearly-2-trillion-snaps-in-2025-121500274.html?src=rss

If the Sonos app saga still has you down, Denon has three new multi-room speakers that give you some fresh alternatives. The company’s Home 200, Home 400 and Home 600 offer audio flexibility with other HEOS-enabled products. These new devices were also designed so that they blend in with home decor better than most speakers, coming in stone and charcoal color options for that purpose. As you progress up in number, the speakers not only get physically larger, but their sonic output is also more robust.

The Denon Home 200 houses three drivers and three amplifiers for “natural, room-filling sound” in a compact speaker. More specifically, you get two 0.98-inch tweeters and a single 4-inch woofer. The Home 200 looks a kind of like the Sonos Move 2, although Denon’s new compact unit isn’t portable. However, you can use a pair of them for a stereo setup, or connect two 200s to Denon’s Home Sound Bar 550 and Home Subwoofer for a 5.1 home theater system.

Next up is the Home 400, which carries two 0.75-inch tweeters, two 4.5-inch woofers and six amplifiers, in addition to two 1-inch up-firing drivers. Here, Denon says you can expect “a wide, airy soundstage” that provides room-filling audio coverage. What’s more, those upward-facing drivers project sound overhead, so there’s a greater sense of dimensionality and immersion here.

Denon Home 600 speakerDenon

The Home 600 is the largest speaker in the new trio, with dual 6.5-inch woofers alongside two tweeters, two midrange units and two up-firing drivers. Denon explains that this configuration offers “deep, authoritative bass” that provides more depth in your tunes than other two models.

All three of the new Home speakers have Wi-Fi, Bluetooth USB-C and aux connectivity with the wireless streaming powered by Denon’s HEOS tech. As such, you can connect these Home speakers with up to 64 other HEOS devices — including A/V receivers and Denon’s new DP-500BT turntable — and arrange your audio gear in up to 32 different zones. You’ll have access to tunes from Tidal, Amazon Music HD and Qobuz in the HEOS app, and all three new Home speakers support Dolby Atmos Music where available.

The Home 200, Home 400 and Home 600 speakers are available today for $399, $599 and $799 respectively. They’re available from Denon directly or other authorized retailers.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/speakers/denon-expands-its-multi-room-speaker-lineup-with-the-home-200-home-400-and-home-600-080000916.html?src=rss

The Federal Communications Commission has released a notice today designating any consumer routers manufactured outside the US as a security risk. The rule states that new foreign-made product models for network routers will land on the Covered List, a set of communications equipment seen as having an unacceptable risk to national security. Previously purchased routers can still be used and retailers can still sell models that were approved by the prior FCC policies. In an exception to the usual rule, routers included on the Covered List can continue to receive updates at least through March 1, 2027, although the date could potentially be extended.

The move stems from a goal in the White House's 2025 national security strategy that reads: "the United States must never be dependent on any outside power for core components—from raw materials to parts to finished products—necessary to the nation’s defense or economy." The notice from the FCC states that companies can apply for conditional approval for new products from the Department of War or the Department of Homeland Security. However, that requires the businesses to provide a plan for shifting at least some of their manufacturing to the US in order to receive that conditional approval. 

Few, if any, brands known for consumer-grade routers currently build products stateside. It seems likely this sweeping provision could face legal challenges from and cause confusion for the many companies that have production facilities overseas. In addition to Chinese tech giants like TP-Link, US companies will also be affected. NetGear, Eero and Google Nest are all headquartered domestically but have manufacturing in Asia. At least some of that manufacturing activity happens in regions like Taiwan that have historically been on good terms with the US. Until the sector sorts out this new restriction, don't expect to see any new router models on store shelves.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/the-us-bans-all-new-foreign-made-network-routers-223622966.html?src=rss

Anthropic announced today that its Claude Code and Claude Cowork tools are being updated to accomplish tasks using your computer. The latest update will see these AI resources become capable of opening files, using the browser and running dev tools. 

When enabled, the Claude AI chatbot will first prioritize connectors to supported services such as the Google workplace suite or Slack, but if a connector isn't available, it will be able to still execute an assigned task. Claude should ask for permission before taking these actions, but Anthropic still recommended not using this feature to handle sensitive information as a precaution.

Claude computer use will initially be available to Claude Pro and Claude Max subscribers on macOS. This feature is still in a research preview, so will continue to be adjusted based on Anthropic's user feedback. It will also support use with Anthropic's Dispatch feature, which allows a person to message the chatbot in a single continuous conversation across phone and desktop. 

Claude Cowork was introduced in January. It's an iteration of the Claude Code AI agent for programmers that is designed for more casual users.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/claude-code-and-cowork-can-now-use-your-computer-210000126.html?src=rss

EA has put another game on the chopping block, or at least the console versions of it. The company says it will delist the PS4 and Xbox One versions of Battlefield Hardline from digital storefronts on May 22, and shut down the online services on June 22. The single-player campaign will remain playable for those who own the game. The PC version of Battlefield Hardline isn’t affected by these changes.

In its announcement on X, EA didn't explain exactly why it's ceasing support for the game on PS4 and Xbox One. It pointed readers to a FAQ on its website that lays out some of the typical reasons why it ends online support for its games. These include factors like declining player bases. 

Battlefield Hardline, which was released in 2015, will still be available on Steam as well as EA's own PC app. The Steam version has a peak concurrent player count of 41 so far this year.  

It's hardly uncommon for a publisher to end online services for games with declining player bases, but it's an issue that's come into greater focus over the last few years thanks in part to the Stop Killing Games movement. EA alone has sunsetted dozens of games. Its website has a full accounting of these, spread across three webpages. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/ea-is-nuking-battlefield-hardline-on-consoles-193321551.html?src=rss

Apple is reportedly planning on inserting ads into the Maps app, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. An announcement could come as soon as this month, with the ads themselves appearing on iPhones this summer.

This will likely work similarly to ads in Google Maps and Yelp, which lets retailers and brands bid for coverage with particular search queries. I've personally never found the ads in Google Maps to be that annoying, so let's hope Apple's implementation is similar. 

This potential ad revenue could seriously bolster Apple's services business, which currently generates $100 billion a year for the company. This division accounts for around 25 percent of annual revenue but faces challenges in both the short-term and long-term, as regulators around the world push for changes to App Store policies.

Apple has yet to comment on the matter. This idea has been floating around since last year, with rumors going all the way back to 2022. The company already displays ads on the App Store and on the News app, so the jump to Maps isn't coming out of left field.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/apple-will-reportedly-start-stuffing-ads-into-the-maps-app-182311634.html?src=rss

Wing's drone deliveries are coming full circle after adding Bay Area to its service locations. The drone delivery startup has been rapidly expanding to metro areas across the US, but is now targeting the tech-friendly Silicon Valley region.

Going back to its inaugural deliveries, Wing ferried office supplies across Google's Mountain View campus in the Bay Area with its automated drones. It was still a startup out of Google's X, The Moonshot Factory incubator at the time, but early users were already asking for home delivery services, according to Wing. Now, Wing's latest delivery drones can deliver groceries, food, or whatever else fits in a small package weighing up to five pounds in 30 minutes or less to Bay Area residents.

It may not be that common to spot a Wing drone yet, but the company expanded its service to 150 more Walmart locations across the US, including Los Angeles, St. Louis, Cincinnati and Miami, earlier this year. The drone delivery company also extended its hours of operation to 9 AM to 9 PM in its Charlotte and Dallas-Fort Worth metros, with approval from the Federal Aviation Administration. Beyond the recent Bay Area expansion, Wing has previously mentioned Orlando and Tampa as potential markets to enter.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/wing-expands-its-drone-delivery-service-to-the-bay-area-175748410.html?src=rss

Apple announced that this year's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) will take place from June 8-12. The company tends to be consistent with event timing, so it's no surprise that CEO Tim Cook will take the stage for the keynote on June 8, most likely at 1PM ET. 

Much of WWDC will take place online and will be free to attend, though there will be an in-person component for select developers, students and media at Apple Park in Cupertino, California. You'll be able to take in WWDC via the Apple Developer app, website and YouTube channel. It will also be available in China on the Apple Developer Bilibili channel.

What should we expect this time around? This is a software-focused event and all indications point toward a reveal of the upcoming "27" operating systems. This would include iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, visionOS 27, watchOS 27 and macOS 27.

We don't know for certain what new features these operating system updates will bring to the table, with Bloomberg's Mark Gurman suggesting that WWDC will be "a fairly muted affair this year." Rumors have indicated that iOS 27 will deliver much-needed improvements to Apple Intelligence along with the delayed Siri overhaul. Reports also suggest the presence of split-pane multitasking, a redesigned Health app and a new battery management system for iPhones. 

In any event, we don't have that long to wait. Engadget will be on hand to report on all of the announcements and reveals.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/apples-wwdc-2026-is-set-for-june-8-12-171359493.html?src=rss

Polymarket announced that it's taking insider trading more seriously. Seen in its latest press release, the prediction market updated its market integrity rules, specifically those concerning insider trading and market manipulation. While Polymarket is taking the initiative to update its rules, it's likely a response to the rise in suspicious bets, whether it's about the US capture of Nicolás Maduro or the release of a new product from OpenAI.

As first reported on by Bloomberg, Polymarket is targeting three specific forms of trading activity. First off, users aren't allowed to trade on "stolen confidential information," or any behind-the-scenes knowledge about an outcome that people wouldn't otherwise have access to. As an extension, Polymarket traders are also prohibited from taking advantage of "illegal tips," which means that even if someone else has access to confidential information and passes it along, you still can't trade on it. Lastly, anyone who has a "position of authority or influence sufficient to affect the outcome of the underlying event," isn't allowed to trade on said event.

Users can expect more surveillance and enforcement around these new rules, too. Polymarket explained that if it or its users find "unusual or potentially questionable trading activity," the platform would conduct a review and if necessary, ban the wallet address, refer the issue to law enforcement or impose "monetary penalties." If you're curious what the punishment for insider trading on these prediction markets looks like, a recent case saw MrBeast's video editor suspended for two years from the platform and fined five times the amount of his initial trade size after Kalshi concluded its investigation.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/polymarket-is-cracking-down-on-insider-trading-with-updated-rules-163928655.html?src=rss

Leonid Radvinsky, the billionaire owner of OnlyFans, has died. He passed "peacefully after a long battle with cancer" at age 43, according to a statement from the platform published by Forbes. He was born in Ukraine, but grew up in Chicago.

Radvinsky didn't create OnlyFans. He purchased it back in 2018, though is largely credited with transforming it from a niche website to a gigantic porn empire. The platform became so huge that reports have indicated that Radvinsky personally made nearly $2 million every day in 2024. His net worth at the time of his death grew to $4.7 billion, which had more than doubled since 2021.

Leonid Radvinsky, the owner of OnlyFans, has died at 43 after a battle with cancer.

“We are deeply saddened to announce the death of Leo Radvinsky,” an OnlyFans spokesperson said in a statement to Variety. “Leo passed away peacefully after a long battle with cancer. His family… pic.twitter.com/xJetAcTZmU

— Variety (@Variety) March 23, 2026

It has been reported that he was in talks to sell OnlyFans in a deal valued at $8 billion. It's long-been rumored that he bought a controlling stake in the platform for around $30 million back in 2018, though that number has never been officially confirmed.

Radvinsky was famously secretive and avoided giving interviews, but his history is not without controversy. He built his fortune with websites that were much shadier than OnlyFans. Radvinsky founded a similar site called MyFreeCams back in 2004 when he was in college, which has been involved in numerous scandals.

He also founded a website called Cybertania, which provided links to various pornograpy sites. Some of these links claimed to direct users to illegal content involving children and animals.

Forbes did a deep dive into this and found that the site didn't actually lead to the offending content, but it's still likely that Radvinsky and the platform made money by getting people to click on the links. Records also indicate that Radvinsky held domain names like "websyoungest.com" and "aretheylegal.com" until 2014. It's currently unknown what those sites hosted.

He's also been sued for everything from spamming users to impersonating large companies like Microsoft and Amazon to direct traffic to his pornography sites. These cases were all settled outside of court for undisclosed sums of money.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/billionaire-onlyfans-owner-leonid-radvinsky-has-died-from-cancer-at-43-163211324.html?src=rss

The premise seems simple enough. LG promises that you can set its Sound Suite speakers anywhere and Dolby’s home theater tech will make them perform well. The soundbar, subwoofer and speakers don’t have to go in prescribed locations for the best results, which means you can place them where you need to and move them as you see fit. Of course, this all hinges on the reliability of the underlying tech and LG’s ability to make individual speakers that actually sound good. 

Like most premium soundbars and complete home theater setups these days, a complete Sound Suite collection is expensive. The centerpiece alone, a soundbar that most people will want in their customizable configuration, is $1,000. However, if you have a recent LG TV, or are planning to buy a 2026 model when those arrive, there’s no better option for boosting your living room entertainment experience. 

The components of the LG Sound Suite

There are four different devices that make up the Sound Suite. The centerpiece is the H7 soundbar ($1,000), which is the first one that works with Dolby Atmos FlexConnect (DAFC) technology. Then there’s the 8-inch W7 subwoofer ($600) and the M5 and M7 speakers ($250 and $400). LG allows you to pick and choose between these products to build a home theater set up that suits your needs — up to four speakers and one subwoofer. The only real caveat is that you need the H7 soundbar or a recent LG TV (2025 OLED G5, C5, CS5 and QNED 9M, or an upcoming 2026 model) to serve as the primary device for Sound Suite to work. That’s because the underlying tech requires LG’s alpha 11 Gen 3 AI processor, which is inside the soundbar and the company’s newer TVs. 

The H7 houses a dozen Peerless drivers comprising front, side and up-firing units. There’s also four woofers and eight passive radiators for bass and low-frequency audio. The soundbar has a pretty basic design, plain enough to sit in front of an LG OLED (or other premium TV) without being a distraction, and short enough not to block it. Both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi are available here, so AirPlay 2, Google Cast, Spotify Connect and Tidal Connect are all supported. 

The W7 wireless sub has an 8-inch woofer that gets really boomy at times. It’s quite large at 16.1 x 16.3 x 7.6 inches, but you can use it standing up vertically or laying down horizontally — whichever orientation fits your needs or available space. The M5 and M7 speakers offer basically the same features, including AirPlay and Cast, and can be used either by themselves, as a stereo pair, as a four-speaker array or as rear satellite speakers with the H7 soundbar. The main difference is the M7 has two full-range drivers, one up-firing driver and a woofer while the M5 only has a tweeter, an up-firing driver and a woofer.  

What is Dolby Atmos FlexConnect?

FlexConnect is a home theater audio technology that Dolby announced in 2023. It was available on TCL’s Z100 speakers last year, but LG’s Sound Suite marks the first time the feature has been available on a more robust living room product that includes a soundbar. FlexConnect allows you to position speakers anywhere in a room without sacrificing audio performance. The tech uses a TV or soundbar as the lead device to locate speakers so it can tune the sound to match their positioning. The system can also quickly adapt when you move a speaker — maybe for a party or other special occasion. 

FlexConnect works as advertised, but there is one caveat that should’ve been obvious, although I didn’t anticipate it. Every time you add or remove speakers from a DAFC group, you’ll need to recalibrate the system, which includes the software playing sounds from the speakers so that the TV or soundbar can locate them and Dolby’s tech adjusts their output. It doesn’t take long, but there is audible noise from each unit in the group, so you’ll want to factor in that time — and potential annoyance for anyone else in the house.

Other Sound Suite features LG Sound Suite H7 soundbar Billy Steele for Engadget

Sound Suite offers some of the same features as LG’s other home theater products. Those include Night Mode, Room Calibration Pro, AI Sound Pro+ real-time audio upscaling and Clear Voice Pro+ for enhanced dialogue. For the Sound Suite, LG has also introduced Sound Follow, a feature that allows you to adjust the “sweet spot” for the system based on where you’re sitting. 

Once you set your current position with a tap in the ThinQ app, Sound Follow is supposed to change the levels and tuning accordingly. I’m not entirely sure this was working on my system. Unlike my demo at CES, the seating position on the FlexConnect layout in the app was never updated. And while the UI seemed to indicate the change was made when I tapped the buttons, I couldn’t hear any difference in the audio. I asked LG for more information to ensure Sound Follow is functioning properly. 

A word about setup

Like most soundbars and speakers these days, you have to use an app to get them all connected and properly set up. And like Samsung, LG makes you do that through the same app that handles all of its connected devices — including appliances. Once you unbox and plug in the Sound Suite speakers, you add them in the ThinQ app as a new home theater arrangement. The software shows you which speakers are available to use and allows you to select which ones you want in the initial Dolby Atmos FlexConnect grouping. 

The app will ask you to set the distance between the soundbar and your primary seating area before running the sound optimization (tuning) process. ThinQ will display the speaker layout and you can edit the DAFC group at any time. If you move a speaker though, you’ll need to run the optimization again for the best audio performance. And if you’re using an LG TV as the lead device, all of this is sorted onscreen rather than in the app. 

Overall, the process is pretty straightforward, although I encountered some pretty significant connectivity issues that were very frustrating. I review soundbars and speakers regularly, so I’m familiar with the process of using an app to connect devices to my home Wi-Fi in order to get them up and running. With the H7, it took a few days to get it connected, which meant I could only use the soundbar with the audio options available on LG C5’s menu and wasn’t able to set up a larger Sound Suite configuration. After several router and soundbar reboots, I was finally able to get the H7 to connect and become available to finish the install. I’ve never had this problem before, so perhaps LG did something different with the Wi-Fi components here. 

LG Sound Suite M7 speakers Billy Steele for Engadget

When I was adding the M7 speakers to my DAFC setup, I had no issues connecting them to Wi-Fi initially. However, I did have trouble adding them to the FlexConnect group, which required each piece of the Sound Suite playing an audio calibration clip. Repeatedly, the ThinQ app told me there was a connection issue with one of the M7s, although eventually they all somehow got added anyway. I also had trouble removing speakers from the arrangement. Even though the app said sound was only coming from the H7 soundbar, one of the two M7 speakers was still connected and emitting sound when I didn’t want it to. For some reason, this only happened when playing music over AirPlay — TV audio over HDMI eARC always functioned as intended. 

If you’re using the TV as the lead device, you do all of the setup on the screen. I found this method to be more straightforward and reliable, although it blasted the calibration sounds at a deafening volume. There is a big issue though: Once connected to the TV as a DAFC setup, the speaker settings weren’t available in either the ThinQ app or on-screen menus. This meant I was stuck in standard mode, with things like AI Sound Pro+ inaccessible. I asked LG for more info on this because it greatly impacts the overall experience.

Which configuration sounds best?

Before I get into describing the various Sound Suite configurations, I need to make an important note about the limitations for the possible setups. LG only allows a maximum of five speakers in any Sound Suite arrangement, but you can mix and match however you want. Just remember if you don’t opt for the H7 soundbar, you’ll need a compatible LG TV as the lead device for FlexConnect to work. 

You can also use the M5 and M7 as standalone speakers in another room and swap them in and out of your living room or home theater setup as needed. In the multi-room scenario, Sound Suite speakers function much like a Sonos system would, and the M7 is more than capable of being a standalone music speaker with plenty of detail and decent bass. I wasn’t able to test the M5, so I can’t vouch for that one. Keep in mind that if you opt for the M5 or the M7 for your living room, you’ll need at least two of either one to use FlexConnect with your LG TV. 

After testing multiple configurations of the Sound Suite, I think the combination of the H7 soundbar, W7 subwoofer and two M7s is the ideal arrangement. I’ll hedge that a bit as I prefer to disable the M7s in the rear of the room when watching live TV — especially sports — as the same audio coming from the soundbar and those speakers didn’t really enhance the experience. Plus, arena noise seemed overly echo-y and off-putting. This setup is well-suited for streaming TV shows and movies, things where Dolby Atmos, or at least LG’s spatial upscaling, is at the height of its powers. 

The LG Sound Suite W7 subwoofer is quite large Billy Steele for Engadget

In this setup with the H7 as the lead, you get Sound Suite in its most immersive form. I always use Netflix’s Drive to Survive as my first test of a new home theater system, and LG’s lineup handled it like a champ. You get excellent directional audio, which makes the cars sound like they’re zooming around your living room. And the in-car shots are so enveloping, it’s like you’re sitting right behind the driver. This configuration also works well for music, though I preferred to use either one of the M7 speakers or the soundbar/sub duo rather than the whole shebang.

My second favorite setup is four M7s. Once again, this configuration requires an LG TV as the lead device, but if you have that, you can definitely save some room in front of your television with separate front speakers. Unfortunately, you can’t use a subwoofer too because if you’re using a TV to power the speakers, you can only add up to four. That’s a real bummer, but the TV speakers will be used as a center channel (dialogue) boost, so it’s not a complete waste. However, this arrangement would benefit from more bass.

The four-speaker setup could be particularly beneficial for people who mount their TVs on the wall and don’t want a soundbar underneath. And, again, FlexConnect allows you to put the speakers anywhere, not necessarily flanking your TV. You also get the option of moving these smaller speakers around when you need to — something you can’t really do with a soundbar. The only sacrifice I noticed audio-wise is that two M7s in the front doesn’t offer the same overhead sensation for Atmos content as the H7’s up-firing drivers.  

If you’re just using four M7 speakers for home theater duties, you’ll enjoy the immersive audio these Sound Suite speakers will provide. There’s lots of directional sounds with Atmos content, and there’s plenty of subtle detail that comes through on movies and shows. However, for live sports, this arrangement pulls commentary audio from the TV speakers and puts much of the arena/stadium noise in the rear M7s, which makes it difficult to hear the announcers at times. This is one area where the inability to adjust the audio settings really hampers the experience. 

If you’re hoping to invest in something that can pull double duty for music, I prefer one or two M7s for that purpose. And while there’s decent low-end thump, streaming your favorite tunes is where you’ll notice the absence of that W7 subwoofer.

The competition The controls on the LG Sound Suite M7 speaker Billy Steele for Engadget

If you’re looking for alternatives to LG’s Sound Suite, you have to make some sacrifices. The only other option right now that offers Dolby Atmos FlexConnect is the TCL Z100 speaker. Obviously, you’ll need multiples of this $300 device, and you’ll probably want to add the $350 subwoofer, too. Like the LG M7, you’ll need a compatible TCL TV to serve as the lead device for FlexConnect (a QM6K, QM7K, QM8K, QM9K or X11L model). I haven’t tested these 1.1.1-channel units, so I can’t provide a direct comparison to the Sound Suite’s M5 or M7. 

For those who can live without FlexConnect, Samsung’s Q990 series is consistently the best all-in-one setup you can buy. I haven’t reviewed one since 2024 because the company has been keen on shipping new models with minimal updates, which means the hardware and most of the features remain the same. The HW-Q990H will be the latest installment when it arrives later this year, with the biggest differentiator being a new dialogue boost called Sound Elevation. 

While the Q990 always comes with rear speakers and a subwoofer alongside a powerful soundbar, some features will only be available if you also have a Samsung TV. One of those is Q-Symphony, which utilizes TV speakers alongside the Q990’s drivers for more detailed and immersive sound. For the entire Q990 package, you’re looking at $2,000 — $100 less than the comparable Sound Suite arrangement of the H7 soundbar, two M5 speakers and a W7 sub.

Wrap-up

There’s no denying that LG has created a powerful and immersive living room experience with its Sound Suite lineup. I also like that the company allows customers to decide what they need without sacrificing the main draw of FlexConnect. While I did experience some setup and software issues, those are things LG can iron out over time — Sound Suite is still brand new, after all. I would like to see the company offer some discounted bundles and continue to add more audio features over time to justify the hefty investment. If you’ve got a couple grand to spend, especially if you have a recent LG TV, Sound Suite will be your best option for building out a home theater setup.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/speakers/lg-sound-suite-review-dolby-atmos-flexconnect-in-a-powerful-package-160000544.html?src=rss

When the Uber Black isn't premium enough, New Yorkers now have the option to call for a Wheely instead. Whimsical name aside, the London-based company is breaking into the US market by offering its chauffeur-hailing services to residents of New York City first, as first reported by Bloomberg. Think of it like Uber, but for business executives and VIPs who prefer better service and riding in Cadillacs and Mercedes.

"New York has long been requested by our customers, whether that be New Yorkers who have traveled with us in Europe and the Middle East, or our international clients who regularly visit the city," Anton Chirkunov, founder and CEO of Wheely, said in a press release.

Wheely

Besides its black car Business SUV service, New Yorkers can opt for Wheely First that offers a Mercedes-Benz S-Class W223 filled with amenities like Fiji water and towels. For a more dedicated service, Wheely has its Perfect Airport Pickup where drivers will track flights to line up a pickup, and the Chauffeur for a Day option that lets users reserve a chauffeur that will also pick up friends and family or run errands for you. For interested drivers in New York City, Wheely will port over its in-house "Chauffeur Academy," which is expected to grow to a network of 5,000 qualified drivers over the next five years.

While Wheely currently operates in London, Paris and Dubai, the company plans to expand to five major US cities within the next three years. According to Bloomberg, Wheely is considering markets in Texas, Miami and Palm Beach, Fla. as well as Washington, D.C. Wheely's entry into the US market comes about a week after the announcement of the Uber Elite program, which targets a similar demographic. However, Uber Elite is only available in Los Angeles and San Francisco currently, with plans to expand to New York soon. However, Uber may have Wheely beat when it comes to hailing a helicopter, thanks to its upcoming Uber Air option.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/wheely-an-on-demand-chauffeur-app-makes-its-us-debut-in-nyc-143233840.html?src=rss

Microsoft has locked in its second games showcase of the year. A Xbox Partner Preview stream will take place on March 26 at 1PM ET. It'll be available on the Xbox YouTube and Twitch channels. There'll be dedicated Twitch and YouTube streams with ASL interpretation, another featuring British Sign Language and one with audio descriptions in English on the main Xbox YouTube channel. 

The YouTube stream will be in 4K at 60fps (other channels are limited to 1080p) and have subtitle support for nearly three dozen languages. The broadcast will be available on regional Xbox channels as well. 

This showcase is all about upcoming games from Xbox's third-party partners. It will feature an in-depth look at Ryu Ga Gotoku’s Stranger Than Heaven (formerly known as Project Century), an update on Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl and the latest peek at The Expanse: Osiris Reborn. Along with those, expect some world premieres. Of course, many of these projects will be coming to Game Pass.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/xbox/xbox-lines-up-a-partner-preview-showcase-for-march-26-140117249.html?src=rss

As Google promised, Apple AirDrop sharing is expanding to more Android devices. Samsung announced today that its Galaxy S26 Series is getting AirDrop support through the Quick Share feature.

Google first introduced the Quick Share feature on its Pixel 10 phones last year and, in February, shared plans to increase the number of devices included. The setting allows Android users to send and receive photos and files from an Apple device, much like two Apple users do with AirDrop. To get media from an iPhone, Android users need to turn visibility settings onto "everyone for 10 minutes."

Starting tomorrow, March 23, Samsung will begin rolling out this AirDrop support in Korea. It should then expand to areas such as North America, Europe, Hong Kong, Japan, and Latin America. Once again, Samsung states that additional devices should be able to get AirDrop compatibility soon.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/samsungs-galaxy-s26-will-get-apple-airdrop-support-starting-today-110452832.html?src=rss

The developer behind the open-world RPG Crimson Desert has issued an official apology after players discovered several instances of AI-generated art in the game. Pearl Abyss posted on X that it released the game with some 2D visual props that were made with "experimental AI generative tools" and forgot to replace them before launch.

We would like to address questions regarding the use of AI in Crimson Desert.

During development, some 2D visual props were created as part of early-stage iteration using experimental AI generative tools. These assets helped us rapidly explore tone and atmosphere in the earlier…

— Crimson Desert (@CrimsonDesert_) March 22, 2026

Just a day after Crimson Desert's launch, players took to social media to post reports of potential generative AI usage. Pearl Abyss said on X that "following reports from our community, we have identified that some of these assets were unintentionally included in the final release." Now, the game's Steam page has an AI generated content disclosure, which says that, "generative AI technology is used in a supplementary capacity during the creation of some 2D prop assets" which are later replaced.

Moving forward, Pearl Abyss said it will conduct a "comprehensive audit of all in-game assets and are taking steps to replace any affected content." The developer said that these updated assets will roll out in upcoming patches, and that the team would internally review how it communicates with its player base to provide more "transparency and consistency."

Pearl Abyss isn't the only developer to fail to disclose the use of AI-generated assets in its games. Late last year, Sandfall Interactive was stripped of its Game of the Year and Debut Game awards from the Indie Game Awards for the use of generative AI in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 for placeholder textures that were mistakenly left in the game. Like Pearl Abyss, Arc Raiders' developer Embark Studios is going back and replacing AI-generated material in its game after some backlash from its player base.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/crimson-desert-developer-apologizes-and-promises-to-replace-ai-generated-art-183716439.html?src=rss

Elon Musk has announced the Terafab project, a joint venture between Tesla, SpaceX and xAI, to build the "largest chip manufacturing facility ever." In his usual grandiose fashion, Musk claims Terafab is the next step towards harnessing the power of the sun and creating a "galactic civilization."

Musk, CEO of all three companies, announced plans for the Terafab in a livestream on X. As the name implies, the project's ultimate goal is to produce a terawatt of computing power each year so that it can match the companies' growing demand for chips. Musk explained during the livestream that he's grateful to existing supply chain partners like Samsung, TSMC and Micron, but the current capacity of chip manufacturers only adds up to about two percent to what Tesla and SpaceX needs in terms of future computing power needs.

"We either build the Terafab or we don't have the chips," Musk said during the event. "And we need the chips so we're going to build the Terafab."

The Terafab project, estimated to cost at least $20 billion, will start with the Advanced Technology Fab in Austin, Texas, where Tesla is already headquartered. Musk said that the two types of chips will be produced in the Terafab: one for terrestrial purposes, like to power Full Self-Driving or Optimus robots, and another more high-powered, durable chip to be used in space. If you're wondering what Musk has in store for space, the SpaceX CEO filed an application with the Federal Communications Commission to launch a million satellites to create an "orbital data center" earlier this year. As promising as this sounds, it's worth noting that Musk has previously overpromised and underdelivered on other projects, like the Hyperloop, a $40,000 Cybertruck and fully autonomous driving.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/elon-musk-announces-terafab-project-he-claims-will-be-the-largest-chip-manufacturing-facility-ever-171718545.html?src=rss

There could be one more step required before creating an account and posting on Reddit in the future. According to Reddit's CEO, Steve Huffman, the social media platform is exploring different ways to verify a user is human and not a bot. When asked by the TBPN podcast how to confirm that it's a human using Reddit, Huffman responded with several verification methods with varying degrees of heavy-handedness.

RDDT requiring Face ID was not something I had on my bingo card but something has got to be done about all the fake / botted content — I just don't know how to sell face-scanning to redditors or even lurkers. https://t.co/7e7K3Di4ip

— Alexis Ohanian 🗽 (@alexisohanian) March 21, 2026

"The most lightweight way is with something like Face ID or Touch ID," Huffman said during the interview. "They actually require a human presence, like a human has to touch, or do or look at something, so that actually just proves there's a person there or gets you pretty far."

Besides these passkey methods that use biometrics data, Huffman said there are other options like relying on third-party services that are decentralized or don't require ID. On the other end of the spectrum, Huffman also mentioned more burdensome options, like ID-checking services.

Recent years have brought a rise in bots flooding social media platforms including Reddit, where they've even been used to conduct secret experiments. It doesn't sound like Reddit has landed on how to verify its users' human identity yet, but Huffman did emphasize that the platform still wants to prioritize anonymity for its users. However, verifying humanity through identifiable and personal data could end up as a dealbreaker for Reddit users who value the anonymity of the platform. 

"Part of our promise for our users is we don't know your name but we do want to know you're a person," Huffman said. "It'll be an evolution for us for a while, and probably every platform to find the right middle ground here."

Reddit co-founder and former executive chair, Alexis Ohanian, said on X that Reddit requiring Face ID wasn't something he expected but agreed that something had to be done about the fake content from bots, adding that, "I just don't know how to sell face-scanning to Redditors or even lurkers." We reached out to Reddit's communications team and will update the story when we hear back.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/reddit-is-weighing-identity-verification-methods-to-combat-its-bot-problem-195814671.html?src=rss

Need something new for your reading list? Here are two titles we think are worth checking out. This week, we've got Andy Weir's Project Hail Mary and The Thing on the Doorstep, an H.P. Lovecraft adaptation for Image Comics. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/what-to-read-this-weekend-revisiting-project-hail-mary-and-the-thing-on-the-doorstep-190000250.html?src=rss