The original HomePod sounded great but sold in such low volume that when Apple stopped selling it in 2021, the remaining stock still showed a manufacture date of 2018. And yet now that it has been discontinued, the price for used speakers is rising. What’s going on? “For a small category of users—too small for the full-sized HomePod to continue as an ongoing product—the HomePod was the right combination of features,” writes Apple journalist Jason Snell on his personal blog....

The iPod touch began as a cheaper, slimmer version of the iPhone for people who didn’t need, or want to pay for, the iPhone’s cellular connection. It became a great way for kids to use apps and for restaurants to give to waiters. For many, including this author, it was a first step into truly mobile computing. Now, it has been supplanted by iPads and by hand-me-down iPhones. But in many ways, the iPod touch was better than all of these....

Apple’s iOS 14.5 includes a feature called App Tracking Transparency, which puts you in control of which apps get your data. You probably already know your favorite apps constantly track you behind the scenes, but Apple puts the control back into users’ hands. “This is a great step forward in the fight to reclaim our privacy,” Mark Weinstein, Founder and Chief Evangelist of MeWe, told Lifewire over the phone. No More Tracking Aside from being able to unlock your phone while wearing a face mask, and the addition of new Siri voices, iOS 14....

If you are a fan of old-school, turn-based JRPGs, you would probably prefer Xenoblade’s approach. If you’re more of an action gamer, though, you are more likely to like Last Story’s system. Winner: The Last Story Last Story is predictable and clichéd, whereas Xenoblade contains a more elaborate and original story with a few genuine surprises and a unique premise. While that should give Xenoblade the upper hand, its story is weakened by bland characters and a conventional approach, while the Last Story gets a leg up from more focused storytelling, sharper dialogue, and slightly more engaging characters....

“Big name players will certainly help increase the speed at which we are able to roll out self-driving fleets,” wrote TerraNet CEO Pär-Olof Johannesson, to Lifewire in an email. “Big Tech has their work cut out for them: prioritize safety in their rollouts.” A Self-Driving Future Autonomous vehicle technology has been in the works since the 1980s, but we’ve yet to really make self-driving cars normal and obtainable. Of course, big players like Tesla already are succeeding in the market, but experts say we need more innovation to make the technology more widespread and more accepted, and that Big Tech will help....

They really are going all-in on an electrified future. Well, at least some of them. For years, the Los Angeles Auto Show has billed itself as the tech showcase. It calls itself “Automobility,” cramming the overused word “mobility” in place of “show” to create a nonsense jumble of letters meant to signify the future of transportation. It’s typically marketing and bravado that, in addition to traditional car news, involves a host of startups, some of which we’ll hear from again....

A new Verizon program might be collecting information about your browsing history, location, apps, and contacts. The company says it uses the data to understand your interest, but some privacy advocates are sounding the alarm. “You should assume your wireless carrier captures at least some of the metrics associated with your browsing behavior,” privacy and cybersecurity expert Sam Dawson at ProPrivacy told Lifewire in an email interview. Data Sinks A recent report from Input notes that the “Verizon Custom Experience” app is set by default to allow access to your data....

Here are 10 of the best ways for how to improve cell signal reception and strength no matter where you are. Both major and minor mobile service interruptions are usually posted on a provider’s website and social media accounts such as Twitter and Facebook. If no announcement has been made, you can also try contacting a representative via their official customer support portal. All you need to do is keep an eye on your phone’s signal strength via the bars at the top of the screen as you walk around....

This is where a bootable antivirus program becomes the hero of the day. With one of these scanners, you create a special flash drive or CD/DVD disc from a working computer and then use it on the infected machine to scan the hard drive for viruses—all without needing to start Windows! Since the most serious of viruses cause damage to the parts of your computer that allow it to start, a bootable antivirus tool can often be a powerful weapon at your disposal for getting the virus removed and your computer back up and running....

Below are our picks for the best DVD burning software. Some are free for a trial period, so it’s a good idea to download and try the products out before purchasing the full application. Creators will appreciate the suite of editing tools—including an old movie effect, slow motion, transitions, and keyframe animation, and the ability to remove black bars from the sides of a video file. Nero Video also supports vertical video from smartphones, and can create movie titles and posters for your content....

If you like the idea of having a backup storage solution for your media files in a pocket-size and fast-performing device, the ADATA SD700 offers that in spades. This external SSD is extremely lightweight for nearly half a terabyte of storage and is faster and more efficient than your average HDD. I tested the SD700 for a few days and was pleased by its convenient portability, ease of use, and reliably swift performance....

Big tech companies are partnering with the University of Illinois to form the Speech Accessibility Project to upgrade AI’s understanding of people with disabilities or unusual speech patterns. The project will gather a set of high-quality, diverse speech samples that will help improve speech technologies. “Being able to devise new interventions and screening tools will help us be more proactive in early detection of conditions in children and help us customize more specific therapies for a patient’s condition,” Karen Panetta, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at Tufts University and an IEEE Fellow, who is not involved in the project, told Lifewire in an email interview....

What Is an ALP File? A file with the ALP file extension is an AnyLogic project file used with AnyLogic simulation software. These files use XML to save everything that pertains to the project, including models, the design canvas, resource references, etc. Ableton Live pack files also utilize this file extension, in Ableton’s Live software, for storing audio data. You might see those with other Ableton files, like those in the Ableton Live set (....

The Astro is a Day 1 Edition product, meaning it’s available via invite-only preorder, and will initially cost $1,000. It’s cute-looking and uses voice-recognition software, cameras, artificial intelligence, mapping technology, and voice- and face-recognition sensors as it zooms from room to room, capturing live video and learning your habits. The convenience comes with a catch, though. “Astro is basically an Alexa with eyes and wheels,” tech expert Scott Swigart told Lifewire in an email interview....

This program has all the features you’d expect in a good remote access tool, like file transfers, chat, and spontaneous support. However, before using this program, know that some virus scanners have flagged it as a threat. Is Ammyy Admin Safe? Ammyy Admin’s official website has been reported by various sources to contain malware. You can try searching for a valid download link elsewhere, but we don’t recommend using their official website at ammyy....

When WPA2 is enabled with its strongest encryption option, anyone else within range of the network might be able to see the traffic, but it is scrambled with the most up-to-date encryption standards. WPA2 vs. WPA and WEP It can be confusing to see the acronyms WPA2, WPA, and WEP because these seem so similar that it shouldn’t matter which you choose to protect your network, but there are differences....

When buying a dash cam, you aren’t really buying a camera, you’re buying insurance, and that’s what the Anker Roav DashCam C1 provides. You may not record top-notch cinematic video, but you will get the evidence you need to back you up in an insurance claim. Design: Slick and modern The Anker C1 is a slickly-designed camera, with a solid, high-end appearance. The body seems robust enough to stand a chance of surviving an accident and won’t clash with the interior design of an expensive vehicle....

The iPhone 12 line is Apple’s largest to date, packing four different 5G-capable phones that are all largely similar at the core, yet vary in size, materials, and added perks. While the core iPhone 12 is the best pick for the majority of buyers, delivering an excellent balance of power, style, and capabilities for the price, there are pricier options available. The iPhone 12 Pro Max sits at the top of that heap, delivering Apple’s largest phone to date thanks to a huge and stunningly crisp 6....

Overall Findings Recent models of the Apple Watch have included a second model that includes LTE cellular data. This feature lets you place calls, stream music, and search the internet from your wrist. It also adds significantly to the cost of the device, but if you make full use of the convenience, it may be worth the extra money. Price: Cellular Will Cost You The GPS + Cellular models of the Apple Watch first became available with the Series 3 release in September 2017....

Overall Findings Arduino technology is at the forefront of what many call a hardware renaissance, an era in which hardware experimentation is more accessible than before. Arduino exploded in popularity. It reached a mainstream audience that was unexpected, given its niche beginnings. Arduino spawned other products, such as Netduino, which uses the .NET Micro Framework. Arduino and Netduino are excellent microcontroller platforms, and each has strengths and weaknesses. Arduino is less expensive, has a large community, and more scalable projects....