The weekend’s best deals: Steam Summer Sale, Apple Back to School promo, and more

Enlarge (credit: Ars Technica) It's the weekend, which means the time has come for another Dealmaster. Our latest roundup of the best tech deals from around the web is particularly heavy on video games, as Steam's annual Summer Sale kicked off earlier this week. The PC gaming storefront's latest mega-sale runs until July 7 and, as is...

1d

New bacterium roughly the size, shape of an eyelash smashes size record

Enlarge / The bacteria, Ca. Thiomargarita magnifica, discovered in the French Caribbean mangroves is a member of the genus Thiomargarita. (credit: Tomas Tyml) Clinging to sunken debris in shallow, marine mangrove forests in the French Caribbean, tiny thread-like organisms—perfectly visible to the naked eye—have earned the title of the...

1d

LCD vs. LED vs. Mini LED vs. OLED: A quick guide

Enlarge / Magnifying the differences, similarities, pros, and cons. (credit: Aurich Lawson) Somewhere along the line, consumer display technology became an alphabet soup full of terms using the letters "LED." In this succinct guide, we'll provide a brief overview of common initialisms found in the world of TV, PC monitor, and laptop...

1d

PlayStation studios, major publishers break silence on abortion rights [Updated]

Enlarge / Just some of the game franchises represented by studios coming out in support of reproductive rights today. Last month, Insomniac Games (Spider-Man) CEO Ted Price reportedly told his employees that parent company Sony "will not approve ANY statements from any studio on the topic of reproductive rights." That is apparently...

2d

Apple’s AR/VR headset will arrive in January 2023, analyst projects

Enlarge / An early augmented reality demo by Apple, using a smartphone instead of a headset. (credit: Apple) Tech industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has offered the most specific prediction about a release date for an Apple augmented reality/virtual reality headset yet: January 2023. Kuo has often made accurate, informed predictions about...

2d

NASA’s Psyche mission launch on hold indefinitely pending reevaluation

Enlarge / One of two solar arrays on NASA’s Psyche spacecraft is successfully deployed in JPL’s storied High Bay 2 clean room. The twin arrays will power the spacecraft and its science instruments during a mission to the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. (credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech) On Friday, NASA held a press call to announce...

2d

Pig heart transplant failure: Doctors detail everything that went wrong

Enlarge / Much of the heart is composed of muscle cells like the ones shown here. (credit: Ed Reschke) Earlier this year, news broke of the first experimental xenotransplantation: A human patient with heart disease received a heart from a pig that had been genetically engineered to avoid rejection. While initially successful, the experiment...

2d

Spurred by Roe overturn, senators seek FTC probe of iOS and Android tracking [Updated]

Enlarge (credit: Getty Images | Westend61) Four Democratic US senators today asked the Federal Trade Commission to "investigate Apple and Google for engaging in unfair and deceptive practices by enabling the collection and sale of hundreds of millions of mobile phone users' personal data." "The FTC should investigate Apple and Google's...

2d

Chrome OS update automatically brings photos from Android to your Chromebook

Enlarge (credit: Acer) Google announced Chrome 103 on Thursday, making it easier to share photos from Android to your Chromebook. The company also said an update that will simplify Bluetooth connections is on the way. As detailed in a blog post by Alexander Kuscher, director of Chrome OS Software at Google, the update builds on the...

2d

Microsoft will start banning players from all private Minecraft servers

Enlarge / Players that Microsoft bans from Minecraft will soon also be prevented from joining private servers like this one. (credit: Tynker) Since its initial release over a decade ago (and even following Microsoft's 2014 acquisition of developer Mojang), Minecraft has let players create private servers where they're in full control...

2d