Samsung Galaxy Unpacked event: what to expect - The Verge

Three new phones plus as many as five new laptops could await us on February 1st.

A leaked image claiming to show the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra.

Image: NieuweMobiel.NL

On February 1st, Samsung will hold its first in-person smartphone launch since the Galaxy S20 way back in February 2020. The company is widely expected to announce its new flagship smartphone lineup at the event, namely the Galaxy S23 series. But, as is tradition, Samsung will almost certainly include a couple of additional product announcements for good measure. Here’s a roundup of everything we’re expecting at the event, which is due to kick off at 1PM ET / 10AM PT / 6PM GMT on Wednesday. 

Let’s start with some context because past events often provide clues about what’s coming. Samsung held a very similar launch event last year in February 2022 when it announced the Galaxy S22 lineup consisting of the S22, S22 Plus, and S22 Ultra. Alongside it, the company also launched new tablets, the Galaxy Tab S8, Tab S8 Plus, and Tab S8 Ultra. 

This year, rumors suggest Samsung could shake things up a little bit. It’ll apparently still have a new lineup of smartphones to announce, but rather than tablets, it’s expected to have new laptops. The keen-eyed have spotted that Samsung’s reservation page for the upcoming launch specifically name-checks a new “Galaxy Book” alongside the new smartphone, and rumors suggest this will be a lineup of Galaxy Book 3 devices. 

Here’s everything we think we know about what’s coming:

The Galaxy S23 series

This one’s easy, and not just because Samsung has announced a new flagship smartphone lineup like clockwork at the beginning of each year for a decade. No, it’s also easy because Samsung’s upcoming smartphones have more or less leaked in their entirety already, meaning we have a pretty good idea of their looks and specs even if we don’t yet know exactly how this will translate into real-world performance.

Like last year, the lineup looks to be three-strong. There’s the standard Galaxy S23, the slightly bigger S23 Plus, and finally, the high-end Galaxy S23 Ultra. Rumors suggest the first two will share similar designs and specs, while the third will be more visually distinct with at least one significant unique feature.

A leaked image claiming to show the S23 and S23 Plus.

Image: WinFuture

We’re referring, of course, to the S23 Ultra’s main camera, which has consistently been rumored to be using a high-resolution 200-megapixel main sensor. That’s almost double the 108-megapixel sensor found in last year’s Galaxy S22 Ultra. As my colleague Allison Johnson wrote last August, higher resolution sensors like these matter because they mean phones can bin more pixels together to gather more light and produce brighter, more detailed shots. The exact sensor is expected to be Samsung’s ISOCELL HP2, which Samsung announced just weeks ago. 

Alongside this 200-megapixel sensor, a leaked spec sheet suggests the Galaxy S23 Ultra will have three additional cameras, a 12-megapixel ultrawide, a 10-megapixel telephoto with a 3x optical zoom, and another 10-megapixel telephoto with a 10x optical zoom. It amounts to a significantly better camera system than both the Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S23 Plus, whose own leaked spec sheets suggest will both have triple-camera systems consisting of 50-megapixel main sensors, 12-megapixel ultrawides, and 10-megapixel telephotos.

Leaked images suggest it won’t just be the camera systems that distinguish the S23 and S23 Plus from the S23 Ultra but their designs as well. The Galaxy S23 Ultra will seemingly have square corners and an accompanying S Pen stylus, reiterating its status as the spiritual successor to Samsung’s discontinued Galaxy Note phones. Meanwhile the Galaxy S23 and S23 Plus have much softer rounded edges, even if they’ve ditched the camera bump that distinguished the S22 and S22 Plus from the S22 Ultra last year. 

A leaked image showing the S23 Ultra’s squared-off design next to the S23 and S23 Plus.

Image: WinFuture

Next up, screens. As its name suggests, the Galaxy S23 is the smallest of the three phones, with a 6.1-inch 1080p 120Hz OLED display. The S23 Plus is slightly bigger at 6.6 inches, though its screen specs are otherwise largely the same. Finally, the S23 Ultra has a larger screen still at 6.8 inches, and importantly, it bumps the resolution to 1440p. It’s still OLED and still 120Hz.

Those same leaked spec sheets we mentioned earlier suggest all three phones are going to be powered by Qualcomm’s flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor in Europe, and historical precedent suggests we’ll see the same processor used in North America as well. What’s interesting is that there’s no sign of Samsung’s own Exynos processors in the Galaxy S23 lineup, which the company has historically used to power its phones in select regions around the world like Europe and India. Qualcomm suggested as much in an earnings call last year when chief financial officer Akash Palkhiwala said Qualcomm’s processor share would increase from “75 percent in G S22” to “global share in G S23.”

The rest of the lineup’s specs appear to be broadly consistent with previous Samsung flagships and the industry at large. We’re looking at between 8 and 12GB of RAM and 256GB to 1TB of storage in the Ultra, while the two other models will reportedly only ship with 8GB of RAM and between 128 and 512GB of storage. Battery capacities range from 3,900mAh to 5,000mAh across the three phones, with 45W fast charging on the Plus and Ultra and 25W on the base S23. 

In terms of pricing, internal Verizon documents posted to Reddit suggest we’re looking at a $799.99 starting price for the Galaxy S23, $999.99 for the Galaxy S23 Plus, and $1,199.99 for the Galaxy S23 Ultra, which is in line with last year’s models. European buyers might not be so lucky, however. In countries like Spain and Germany, leaked pricing suggests the starting prices may have increased by around €100 for certain models.

Galaxy Book 3

If Samsung’s reservation page is anything to go by, this year’s Galaxy S smartphone launch will be accompanied by a new line of Galaxy Book laptops. Rumors suggest we could see as many as five laptops announced, which MySmartPrice reports will be called the Galaxy Book 3, Book 3 360, Book 3 Pro, Book 3 Pro 360, and Book 3 Ultra. Last year, Samsung announced its laptops a little later in February at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. 

As you’d expect from its name, the Book 3 Ultra will reportedly be the highest-end model. According to leaker Ishan Agarwal, it’ll have a 16-inch 1800p OLED display, an Intel i9-13900H CPU, an Nvidia RTX 4070 discrete GPU, 32GB of RAM, 1TB of storage, and will be compatible with Samsung’s S Pen stylus. Its touchscreen could also be thinner and lighter than usual thanks to having its touch sensors integrated directly into the panel. 

A leaked image claiming to show the Galaxy Book 3 Ultra.

Image: The Tech Outlook

The rest of the lineup is reportedly split between 360 laptops, with displays that can flip all the way around to be used tablet-style, and standard clamshell laptops. MySmartPrice reports that the Galaxy Book 3 Pro 360 will also be available with a 16-inch 1800p OLED display, with a choice of an Intel i5-1340P or i7-1360 CPU, integrated Intel graphics, 16GB of RAM, up to 1TB of storage, and stylus support. The non-360 Galaxy Book 3 Pro will reportedly be available with a 14-inch screen in addition to the 16-inch version. 

Images of the Galaxy Book 3 Pro, 3 Pro 360, and 3 Ultra were leaked last year by The Tech Outlet, showing the laptops’ USB-C ports, headphone jacks, and charging ports. 

There’s not much concrete information about what we can expect from the non-Pro Galaxy Book 3 laptops. MySmartPrice reports both will come with just a single screen size — 15 inches — but their exact specs are less clear. Judging by the rest of the lineup, however, we’d expect both to feature 13th Gen Intel processors. 

But probably no tablets, earbuds, or smartwatches

It seems unlikely that we’ll see Samsung announce a new lineup of Android tablets, true wireless earbuds, or smartwatches alongside this year’s Galaxy S23 smartphones. The best evidence we have, frankly, is that if an announcement was coming, it’d probably have leaked by now.

Samsung did announce a new lineup of Tab S8 tablets alongside the Galaxy S22 last year. But according to a report from South Korean outlet The Elec, the company pushed back the release of its upcoming tablets (presumably the Tab S9) from their original December 2022 release date due to a drop in demand for consumer tech. According to The Elec, however, we should still expect a new generation of tablets to release this year, which means they might still launch alongside Samsung’s anticipated Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Z Flip 5 foldables at the company’s traditional summer launch. Just don’t hold your breath for an appearance in February. 

It’s a similar story with Samsung’s true wireless earbuds. The company currently has between two or three lines of earbuds, depending on whether you think it’ll ever release a follow-up to the (in my opinion excellent) Galaxy Buds Live. The company last updated its Galaxy Buds Pro lineup in August last year with the Pro 2 and released the non-Pro Galaxy Buds 2 in August 2021. That suggests the latter is due for an upgrade this year but maybe not for a few months yet. 

Finally, there are smartwatches, which last saw an update with last August’s Galaxy Watch 5 series. Samsung’s smartwatches have been on a 12-month release cadence for the past couple of years, meaning the most likely time we’ll see a Galaxy Watch 6 announced is in August 2023. 

Samsung’s Unpacked event will be livestreamed over on its YouTube channel on Wednesday, February 1st, starting at 1PM ET / 10AM PT / 6PM GMT.

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OnePlus Could Be the Next Android Brand with Folding Smartphones - Gizmodo

Imagine if this OnePlus 10 Pro could fold.

Photo: Florence Ion / Gizmodo

OnePlus could be the next major Android brand with a foldable smartphone. A circulating leak from the Chinese patent offices indicates the company may already be laying the groundwork to offer an alternative for U.S. users.

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A trademark listing discovered through the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) shows a company —Shenzhen Oneplus Technology— filing two patent applications for a “OnePlus V Flip” and a “OnePlus V Fold,” respectively. Yes, you would be correct in thinking they sound exactly like the corresponding Samsung versions of each device. They probably fold the same, too.

I accessed the patent through a link provided by 9to5Google, which has a screenshot of the listing on its site. Twitter user Mukul Sharma initially spotted the names of the smartphones. The pre-Elon verified account notes that internal testing of at least one of the mentioned foldables has begun at the OnePlus headquarters.

Rumors of the OnePlus foldables aren’t new. They’ve been circulating more heavily since last summer, especially after OnePlus’s co-founder, Pete Lau, tweeted a look at a hinging mechanism. It was unclear at the time whether it was for a OnePlus device or a smartphone for its parent company, Oppo.

Oppo has a foldable smartphone circulating overseas. The Find N2 launched in December, and it’s reviewing pretty well in other markets. It’s a bit shorter than Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 4, which it takes after, and has a slightly different aspect ratio. CNET says it’s somewhat squarish compared to the Z Fold 4's relative rectangularity. It would be no surprise to see Oppo attempt a similar form factor under the OnePlus moniker since it’s already an established brand in North America.

OnePlus also has the added benefit of being known as an affordable flagship brand. It’s managed to keep the OnePlus 10 Pro and 10T under the $900 mark, eventually dropping the 10 Pro down to under $600 for similar specifications stuffed into Samsung’s Galaxy s22 devices.

Folding phones will likely remain pricey until they become more common. Samsung’s current batch of foldables are too expensive, even with the cheapest foldable coming in at $1,000. It would be an excellent addition to the current folding smartphone portfolio to have something with a more accessible price point compared to Samsung’s Flip and Fold. That said, don’t expect too much of a discount. The Find N2 starts at $1,512 for 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage space, which is almost $300 less than the Z Fold 4.

There’s no word on whether any of this is official yet. OnePlus’s foldable smartphones are still just a rumor. But it sure is nice to think of a time when folding smartphones won’t cost as much as a mid-range laptop. Some older options like the rebooted Motorola Razr are already hitting steep sales, but even that still debuted at $1,500.

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Avoid these three scammy apps still listed in the Play Store (20 million+ installs) - PhoneArena

According to software firm Dr.Web (via BleepingComputer) a new category of activity-tracking apps has appeared on the Google Play Store generating over 20 million downloads. What makes these three tracking apps so appealing to Android users? They bill themselves as health trackers and pedometers that give you incentive to get into shape by promising to pay out cash rewards to those who reach certain goals.

Do not install these three apps; they are still listed in the Google Play Store

The report from Dr.Web points out that these rewards are often impossible to receive as users must accumulate a large number of rewards before being forced to watch dozens of commercials in order to cash out.  After watching all of those ads, users were advised to watch even more to "speed up" the rewards process. The report states that even after all that  "the apps did not verify any of the payment-related data provided by users, so the chances of receiving any of the money promised from these apps are extremely small."

Three apps mentioned in the report remain in the Google Play Store. They are:

• Lucky Step – Walking Tracker with 10 million downloads.
• WalkingJoy  with 5 million downloads.
• Lucky Habit: health tracker with 5 million downloads.

All three apps connect with the same command & control server. Such servers are usually used by attackers to send directions to systems infected by malware. With all three apps communicating with the same remote server, it is apparent that they have the same developer. It is also pointed out that earlier versions of the Lucky Step-Walking Tracker falsely said that users had the option of converting their rewards into gift cards for various online stores.

Remember, these crooked developers make money when you view their ads. The more ads you watch, the more money they make.

Do not install these three apps on your Android device

The Lucky Step-Walking Tracker app was eventually updated and the functionality that would convert rewards into cash was removed and the interface elements that would be tapped to make this conversion disappeared. All previously accumulated rewards instantly became worthless.

The one thing you can do to protect yourself from installing malicious apps

If you're a long-time PhoneArena reader, you know that we tell you to read the comments section before installing an app from a developer that you're not familiar with-even if the app is listed in the Play Store. That is where you will find red flags that can warn you to stay away from a certain app. For example, two comments written by a pair of unlucky Android device users who installed the Lucky Step - Walking Tracker app contained plenty of red flags.

These two comments from the listing for the Lucky Star app contain enough red flags to keep you from installing it

One comment came from a user who gave the app two stars (!!??!!) while stating that it is "Mostly ad junkie, there is really no benefit to the app...every time you unlock the phone it throws a full-screen ad at you...when I have an alarm going off it overrides that display and will not allow me to get to [the] alarm screen unless I first interact with it. It is just a scam designed to get as much of your data possible while feeding repeatedly ads just so they can make money off of you."

This is how these three apps trick you into watching dozens and dozens of ads

A second comment gives the app one star and says, "Also, there are a lot of annoying ads that you have to watch to get a few coins. This app is a real scam and garbage and a waste of time and effort."

We just punched up these apps in the Google Play Store so if you see them, do not install any of the three on your Android devices. Also, if you've already installed any of the three, uninstall them immediately.

Here's one more malicious app that you need to avoid

Dr.Web's report also mentioned a fitness app called FitStar that creates a customized weight-loss plan for 29 rubles (equivalent to 41 U.S. cents). However, what those subscribing didn't know was that the program they were signing up for was good for only one day. At the end of the trial, subscribers were automatically signed up for four days of service for an additional 980 rubles (equivalent to $13.86). Full access to the program cost 7,000 rubles ($98.98) and the app continued to automatically extend users' subscriptions every four days.

This app is also still listed in the Google Play Store. Comments for this app note that if you install it, the icon doesn't show up on your phone's list of installed apps making it hard to uninstall. The same review also notes that "The app is trying from the start to get into either Facebook or Google data..."

Don't put your phone or your wallet at risk. Stay away from all of the apps mentioned in Dr.Web's report.

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The latest ‘Super Mario Bros. Movie’ trailer pits Cat Mario against Donkey Kong - Engadget

Over the weekend, Nintendo shared a surprise trailer for The Super Mario Bros. Movie. The 30-second clip shows additional footage from a scene that was first featured in the trailer Nintendo released last November. More importantly, it marks our first chance to hear Seth Rogen’s take on Donkey Kong. After Mario dons his cat suit, first introduced in 2013’s Super Mario 3D World, Rogen’s Donkey Kong starts laughing. “You got the cat box! I’m sorry,” the ape tells his one-time nemesis before turning serious. “Now you die.”

With Sunday’s trailer, Nintendo has now offered fans a chance to hear the entire ensemble cast of The Super Mario Bros. Movie, including Chris Pratt as Mario, Jack Black as Bowser and Anya Taylor-Joy as Peach. Following the release of the film’s second trailer, Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto said Nintendo redesigned Donkey Kong's model for the first time since the ape made the jump to 3D in 1994’s Donkey Kong Country. The company went for a more comical design reminiscent of Donkey Kong's original character. The Super Mario Bros. Movie will arrive in theaters on April 7th.

All products recommended by Engadget are selected by our editorial team, independent of our parent company. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission. All prices are correct at the time of publishing.

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Watch a Real-Life 'Terminator' Robot Turn Into Liquid to Escape a Cage - CNET

Scientists have created a tiny robotic system that can transition from solid to liquid and back again, bringing a bit of classic sci-fi lore to life while they're at it. 

It's been 30 years since killer liquid metal robots entered our nightmares courtesy of 1991's Terminator 2: Judgment Day. That movie's shape-shifting T-1000 robot could seemingly overcome any obstacle while turning parts of itself into weapons at will. 

The specter of Skynet and the robot apocalypse have haunted us ever since, and now an international team of researchers has finally given us a real-world version of a T-1000, although with more altruistic aims. 

The team says it was inspired not by Hollywood, but by the humble sea cucumber, which can transition between soft and rigid body states. 

"Giving robots the ability to switch between liquid and solid states endows them with more functionality," says Chengfeng Pan, an engineer at The Chinese University of Hong Kong who led the study.

As if to gesture at Terminator-inspired night terrors, Pan and colleagues demonstrate this increased functionality by placing one of their miniature robots in a simulated jail cell and showing how it might escape. 

It can be a little tough to see what's going on in the video above, but basically the robot melts itself down to a liquid, flows between the bars and into a waiting mold where it cools, reforms itself and then pops back up. Granted, this escapee is a little less terrifying than a T-1000 since it needs a mold at the ready to reconstitute itself, but it's still enough to agitate any Luddite. 

The demonstration is part of a study published Wednesday in the journal Matter. 

Senior author Carmel Majidi from Carnegie Mellon University said magnets make all of this futuristic phase transitioning possible.

"The magnetic particles here have two roles... One is that they make the material responsive to an alternating magnetic field, so you can, through induction, heat up the material and cause the phase change. But the magnetic particles also give the robots mobility and the ability to move in response to the magnetic field."

The particles are embedded in gallium, which is a metal with a very low melting point of just 86 degrees Fahrenheit (about 30 Celsius), creating a substance that flows more like water than other phase-changing materials, which are more viscous. 

In tests, the mini robots were able to jump over obstacles, scale walls, split in half and re-merge all while being magnetically controlled. 

"Now, we're pushing this material system in more practical ways to solve some very specific medical and engineering problems," said Pan.

In other demonstrations, the robots were used to solder circuits, to deliver medication and clear a foreign object from a model stomach. 

The researchers envision the system being able to conduct repairs in hard-to-reach spaces and serving as a "universal screw," which melts into a screw socket and solidifies with no actual screwing required. 

The team is particularly excited about the potential medical uses. 

"Future work should further explore how these robots could be used within a biomedical context," said Majidi. "What we're showing are just one-off demonstrations, proofs of concept, but much more study will be required to delve into how this could actually be used for drug delivery or for removing foreign objects."

Hopefully the list of foreign objects that need removal won't ever include weaponized miniature melting robots, as they might prove difficult to track down and extract. 

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Hyundai casts Kevin Bacon as Dad in new IONIQ 6 ads [Video] - Electrek.co

Ever played “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon?” If you have, you’ll understand that Hyundai’s “Bacon Number” sits at one now that the automaker has tapped the renowned actor for a series of new ads with the IONIQ 6. As you’ll see in the video below, Bacon perfectly portrays the average dad but one who has made the switch to a Hyundai EV. Much like a new snowblower or a gloomy weather forecast, Dad can’t stop talking about it.

Hyundai’s brand-new model, the IONIQ 6, debuted last summer and is set to arrive later this year. My first impression of what the automaker describes as an “electrified streamliner” was admittedly “meh” compared to the IONIQ 5, but once I was able to explore this new EV inside and out, I quickly ate my words.

In addition to arriving as one of the most aerodynamic and efficient vehicles on the market, the IONIQ 6 will be extremely safe to drive, which is part of the reason why it sold out in the European market in less than 24 hours.

IONIQ 6 pre-orders are expected to begin in the US this spring, so naturally, Hyundai will begin rolling out ads to begin hyping up the new streamliner. Previous Hyundai ads have featured names like Ozark’s Jason Bateman, which aired during last year’s Super Bowl. Before that, we saw the accent-heavy “Smaht Pahk” spot featuring Bostonians Chris Evans, John Krasinski, and Rachel Dratch. Oh, and let’s not forget Big Papi.

During the NFL conference championships this weekend, Hyundai will broadcast a new campaign of ads featuring the IONIQ 6 and who else but Kevin Bacon embarrassing his actual daughter, Sosie.

Kevin and Sosie Bacon alongside the upcoming IONIQ 6 EV / Source: Hyundai

Kevin Bacon goes full dad mode with the Hyundai IONIQ 6

Hyundai announced the new IONIQ 6 campaign today by uploading two ads to YouTube before they air on TV this Sunday, January 29. The new campaign’s theme is titled, “It’s Time to Go Electric,” explaining that if your not-so-tech-savvy dad is driving an EV, it’s probably time you do so as well.

Bacon is still portrayed as an early adopter of EVs because that this point, anyone who buys one is still ahead of the curve in many ways. Like many decisions dads make, however, doing something cool before everyone else comes with its fair share of conversations about it, even to strangers at the charging station, but especially to their own children. Hyundai Motor America CMO Angela Zepeda elaborated about the new IONIQ 6 ads:

With the introduction of the IONIQ 6, Hyundai is once again making ​the electric vehicle lifestyle more accessible and convenient than ever before. If you are someone on the fence of going electric, we hope this campaign starring Kevin and Sosie Bacon will show how early adopters, at any stage in their life, can easily make the switch.

In one of Hyundai’s new 30-second ads titled “Grandkids,” Kevin Bacon explains how his IONIQ 6 purchase supports the Earth’s next generation, which, of course, triggers his daughter, Sosie, who is tired of being nagged about having children. I’m sure many other consumers will relate to that conversation, I certainly can. The ads were directed by the duo of Will Speck and Josh Gordon and produced by Furlined.

If you happen to be watching football this Sunday, keep an eye out for Kevin Bacon in the new IONIQ 6 ads, but if you don’t want to wait, here’s “Your dad is going electric” from Hyundai:

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Like a Dragon: Ishin - The Final Preview - IGN

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Chrome can now lock Incognito tabs on Android behind biometric authentication - Engadget

Google is rolling out a feature to Android that will add an extra layer of privacy when you browse websites in Incognito mode. The tech giant has revealed in a blog post (via The Verge) that the ability to lock Chrome Incognito sessions behind biometric authentication on mobile is currently making its way to Android users after debuting on iOS. When this feature is switched on, you will have to verify your identity through face or fingerprint authentication every time you return to an Incognito tab after exiting Chrome or navigating away to another app. 

Locked Incognito sessions first became available on Android in 2022 — over a year after Google started testing it for iPhones and iPads — but as an experimental feature you'd have to activate via a flag. Based on 9to5Google's experience using it on Android last year, this feature will show you a gray screen with the Incognito logo at the center when you come back to a tab protected by the privacy feature. You'll then have to tap "Unlock Incognito" to open biometric authentication or choose to verify your identity with your PIN code. 

While the feature isn't available for us yet, you can check out if you already have access to it by tapping on the three-dot menu at the top right corner of Chrome. Open Settings and then go to Privacy and Security to toggle on "Lock Incognito tabs when you leave Chrome" if you already see it as an option. 

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Dead Space Remake Video Review - GameSpot

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NBA All-World hands-on: Taking basketball video games back to the streets - Engadget

Niantic has created some of the most popular augmented reality games like Ingress and Pokémon Go. But this week the company is launching a new title called NBA All-World that might be the best application of its location-based tech to date.

For people who have played one of Niantic’s previous titles, NBA All-World features a very familiar formula. After installing the free app (available on Android and iOS), you are given a starter player and from there you can use the in-game map to navigate to real-world locations in order to collect items, earn cash or battle other players. The big twist for NBA All-World is that, instead of visiting random points of interest to battle others, you’ll need to visit real-world basketball courts to earn your spot on local leaderboards. And, of course, there’s a roster of big-name ballers like Giannis Antetokounmpo and Paul George to collect.

That might not sound like a major change, but it results in some very notable differences in how you play the game. The first is that instead of hanging out on random street corners like you often do while raiding in Pokémon Go, the need to go to local courts makes NBA All-World feel more grounded in reality. That’s important because Niantic says there’s actually very little overlap between people who play its other titles and more traditional sports gamers (just 10 percent according to Niantic senior producer Marcus Matthews). And after years of people playing basketball game series like NBA2K (or my personal favorite NBA Street) at home, Niantic sees All-World as one of the first games that encourages players to get off the couch and go back outside.

Because you have to physically go to real courts to take part in battles, NBA All-World feels better connected to the basketball community at large. While I didn’t get to try this out myself prior to launch, it’s not a stretch to imagine people going to a park to play All-World only to hop into a real pickup game. Then, when you sub out, you can go back to challenging leaderboards or playing minigames in NBA All-World on your phone while you catch your breath.

Niantic

As for the game itself, Niantic has also worked to integrate basketball culture into every aspect of the app. This includes partnering with companies like Adidas and Puma (but not Nike just yet) so you can buy virtual clothing or footwear that matches what star ballers wear IRL. Players in game are also modeled after their real-life counterparts, so centers like Domantas Sabonis are better at blocking while smaller guards are faster and better at stealing the ball. And while Niantic is keeping many elements of NBA All-World’s gameplay pretty simplistic (like defense, which is mostly automatic), the ability to move and juke in various directions, step back for a jumper or drive to the basket provides a surprising amount of depth.

I also really appreciate that because Niantic already has tons of info provided by users from its other AR games, NBA All-World is populated with tons of in-game locations and hot spots, from courts to places like banks and stores where you can grab items, energy and more. And when the game goes live this week on January 24th, gameplay won’t just be restricted to the US as NBA All-World is getting a full global launch, which really speaks to the international nature of the sport.

However, at this point it’s important to mention that while I think this might be the best use of Niantic’s location-based gaming tech so far, building a new community and playerbase of gamers is a challenge for any developer. This includes some of the company’s previous stumbles, like its ill-fated Harry Potter AR game which got canceled last year, or its Catan spinoff, which was discontinued in 2021 before ever seeing an official release. But for those looking to dive deeper into the basketball community, NBA All-World looks to offer the best blend of real life and AR integration yet.

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[Update: Pixel 7 Pro comparison] Galaxy S23 Ultra unboxing leaks alongside low-light and camera zoom samples - 9to5Google

While we wait for Samsung to unveil the next S-series flagship, we’re already seeing the Galaxy S23 Ultra get an unboxing ahead of the official launch.

An unboxing video shared by Twitter user Edwards Urbina showcases the Galaxy S23 Ultra in what appears to be a “Cotton Flower” colorway. This aligns with some early images of supposed retail packaging, but this goes a few steps further with short hands-on video of the upcoming flagship Android.

https://twitter.com/edwards_uh/status/1617333196592484352?s=20&t=TAjPX-AhX_gHTq9-eWBDYw

It appears that Urbina is based in Nicaragua, but it’s unclear how they have managed to get this unit early. Save the color, the unboxing shows that the Galaxy S23 Ultra that looks almost identical to its predecessor.

While we would never suggest upgrading from one phone to another after just a year, this does make it easier for S22 Ultra owners to stomach we’re sure. What is instantly noticeable is that the curved edges are slightly boxier on the new model.

It is hard to tell though without the previous handset for comparison purposes. The matte white finish is known as “Cotton Flower,” and this looks very familiar to the white S22 Ultra but instead of a silver frame, the video makes this look gold or soft champagne.

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[Update 01/24]: After sharing some initial samples, Urbina has posted yet more images that showcase the supposed prowess of the Galaxy S23 Ultra camera system against the likes of the Pixel 7 Pro. This even includes a direct selfie camera comparison that shows the Samsung phone producing tack-sharp images when compared directly to Google’s latest flagship phone.

While the Pixel 7 Pro doesn’t come with the latest and greatest camera sensor hardware, it offers impressive stills capabilities. In fact, it’s among the very best despite utilizing an older Samsung sensor. Conversely, the Galaxy S23 Ultra is set to pack in the best-of-the-best and latest sensor tech. We expected a gulf in class, but although the comparisons are not extensive, the differences are not as pronounced as we initially feared. That said, the S23 Ultra takes a step up in most areas.

The larger sensor appears to have zero issues at gathering light from a scene. You can see that color tones are also brighter and more vibrant than the Pixel 7 Pro’s contrasty almost dingy processing. We’ll save full judgment until the official release, but we’re intrigued at how well each system will fair in various conditions.

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After unboxing the Galaxy S23 Ultra, the poster also shared a number of sample images including several that showcase the low-light performance of the upcoming handset. Samsung is said to have upgraded the main sensor to a 200-megapixel sensor.

Two comparison posts showing night shots taken with no tripod seem impressive as it’s clean and sharp even in the darkest regions, but it’s hard to tell given the subject and obvious Twitter compression. The images of the plant pots looks very good with the brick wall being incredibly detailed even in a dingy environment.

Urbina also shared some zoom samples from the Galaxy S23 Ultra. According to leaked spec sheets, the S23 Ultra is retaining the same periscope zoom camera as the 2022 handsets. We could see Samsung make improvements via software tuning rather than hardware tweaks. These samples are still impressive, but not quite as interesting as the potential main sensor upgrade that has been touted.

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Microsoft will stop selling Windows 10 on January 31, but workarounds remain - Ars Technica

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Microsoft will stop selling downloadable licenses for Windows 10 on its website on January 31, according to a message on the product pages for Windows 10 Home and Pro. Although Windows 10 will continue to be supported with new security updates until at least October 2025, Microsoft is pushing anyone buying or building a new PC to use the newer Windows 11 instead.

Other retail sites will presumably keep selling physical and digital copies of Windows 10 for at least a little while, but even if all Windows 10 sales went away at the end of the month, people who really wanted it should still be able to get it.

For owners of older Windows 7 and Windows 8 PCs who want to upgrade—and you should, since both operating systems received their final regularly scheduled security updates earlier this month—Windows 10 should continue to install and run just fine on those computers at no additional cost. This is an artifact of the years-old Windows 10 upgrade offer. Microsoft officially stopped offering a free upgrade to Windows 10 in 2016, but the company never took any steps to stop the upgrades from working.

For people buying new PCs who simply don't want to use Windows 11 for some reason, Windows 10 and Windows 11 have (so far) used interchangeable product keys; on systems that shipped with Windows 11, I have had no issues installing and activating the equivalent edition of Windows 10 on the same hardware. Technically, only Windows 11 Pro licenses shipped with OEM PCs qualify for downgrade rights (PDF), but downgrades of the Home edition of Windows 11 should generally work anyway.

Microsoft is still releasing yearly feature updates for Windows 10, though the 22H2 update contained few, if any, major new features. Microsoft has shifted the bulk of its development effort to Windows 11, which is now being tweaked several times a year with new app updates, user interface refinements, and other features.

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