The Engadget Podcast

Sony's $200 PlayStation Portal handheld is analyzed, including its game streaming feature. The hosts express excitement for Armored Core VI and discuss a new Samsung gaming monitor. Other topics include AI art copyright, Microsoft's product event, Elon Musk's social media proposals, and pop culture picks.

This week, Cherlynn and Sam are joined by noted foldables lover Michael Fisher (aka Mr Mobile) to talk all about their respective reviews of Samsung’s latest products. Why are our hosts more excited for the Galaxy Z Flip 5 than the Z Fold 5? Is Samsung coasting? Then, we discuss the latest happenings in X vs Threads, as well as a bunch of lighthearted news in tech this week.Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Fold 5 reviews with MrMobile – 1:22Will Elon actually pay for lawsuits related to posts on X? – 41:32 Threads is getting a website and search – 49:16Slack UI changes are coming to your workspace soon – 54:31 MrBeast is getting countersued for $100m – 1:03:21Working on – 1:13:55Pop culture picks – 1:19:52

While our reviewers spend time testing the numerous Samsung devices that were just announced, this episode Cherlynn and Sam dive into the relatively slow week in tech. Of course, we can’t escape the onslaught of news coming from X-Twitter-Musk land, just like how residents from a building across from the company’s San Francisco headquarters were unable to escape from blinding lights this weekend. We also go over some updates from Meta and Google and discover why Cherlynn loves clowns. This week in X/Twitter news: A disturbing strobe-light of a logo and hiding your checkmark – 1:21Tesla under investigation for steering and battery range issues – 11:31Half of Meta Threads users are now inactive – 24:16Meta may be working on an Abraham Lincoln AI chatbot – 29:39 Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman suggests the iPhone 15 could come with USB-C charging – 37:58Working on – 54:13Pop culture picks – 56:47

Samsung made a huge flex this week by hosting its first Unpacked event in Seoul, South Korea (sorry NYC!). In this episode, Cherlynn, Devindra and Senior Writer Sam Rutherford dive into all of Samsung’s news: The Galaxy Z Fold 5, Z Flip 5, Watch 6 and Tab S9. Is Samsung playing it safe this year, or is it actually bringing something new to the world of foldables? Also, we discuss Twitter’s rebrand to “X” (sigh), as well as why astrophysicist Avi Loeb is likely wrong about his extraterrestrial alien balls.Samsung’s Summer Unpacked 2023 Overview – 0:54Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Galaxy Z Flip 5 – 3:23Galaxy Watch 6 – 19:24Galaxy Tab S9 – 26:19Other News: Twitter is now X – 33:40GM announces plans to revive the Chevy Bolt – 47:44Astrophysicist Avi Loeb found tiny metal balls in the ocean, they probably aren’t alien tech – 51:30Microsoft announces pizza-scented controller as a TMNT promotion – 53:54AI News: Netflix lists machine learning jobs in the middle of Hollywood’s double strike – 55:54Working on – 1:00:34Pop culture picks – 1:08:24

AI can now place us inside South Park episodes – should we be worried? This week, Devindra and Deputy Editor Nathan Ingraham chat with Edward Saatchi, the CEO of The Simulation, about his company’s new AI technology that can generate TV episodes, movies and more. We preview a test South Park episode featuring Devindra, and discuss if this technology is actually a good thing for creatives. Also, Editor at Large James Trew joins to discuss his piece on AI-powered immortality. And to keep the sci-fi theme going, Devindra chats with the director and writer of Netflix’s They Cloned Tyrone, Juel Taylor and Tony Rettenmaier.Interview with The Simulation CEO Edward Saatchi – 0:59James Trew on digital immortality and AI’s place in a new field, “grief tech” – 20:48Microsoft / Activision Blizzard’s final merger deadline pushed to October – 32:19Apple is working on its own generative AI chatbot – 33:19 Google tests AI tool to generate news articles – 38:15 ASUS takes over Intel’s NUC PC business – 44:20Around Engadget: Sam Rutherford’s Nothing Phone 2 review – 51:21Listener mail: Rohan from Singapore on what’s keeping the iPad from being a “real” computer – 56:11Working on – 1:03:54Pop culture picks – 1:07:43 Interview with the the creators of the new Netflix movie They Cloned Tyrone – 1:13:25

It looks like Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard is trucking along, following a court rejection of the FTC’s injunction attempt. This week, Cherlynn and Devindra chat with Jordan Minor, a Senior Analyst at PCMag covering games, about this massive deal and what it means for the gaming industry. Will further consolidation end up being harmful for consumers (as we’ve been saying for a while), or will Microsoft actually help the beleaguered Activision? Also, we dive into our experiences with the latest Apple betas: iOS 17, iPadOS 17, macOS Sonoma and watchOS 10.Microsoft is (mostly) cleared to buy Activision Blizzard for $69 billion – 00:56Our previews of the iOS 17, iPad OS 17, macOS Sonoma, and WatchOS 10 betas – 21:55Meta’s Threads hits 100m users, Elon is not happy about it – 47:58Microsoft confirms Chinese hackers used 365 email exploit to access US government accounts – 51:32Google’s Bard can now speak 40 languages – 52:29Around Engadget: Sam Rutherford’s ROG Ally review and Katie Malone on why passkeys are suddenly everywhere – 1:01:46Working on – 1:05:47Pop culture picks – 1:07:06

It’s been a wild week for social media! While Twitter encountered many self-inflicted wounds, users jumped to Blue Sky and Mastodon. Then Meta decided it was a fine time to drop its Twitter copycat, Threads. This week, Cherlynn and Devindra chat with Engadget’s Karissa Bell about where all of these services are headed. Will Threads be the clear winner, thanks to Instagram’s social graph? Or will the future lie with fully decentralized platforms like Mastodon? Twitter continues to crumble, Meta introduces Threads Twitter clone – 1:10The next AirPods Pro release could include health features like a hearing test and body temperature sensors – 34:06Google’s Pixel 8 Pro prototype leaked – 37:18EU Digital Markets Act identifies a class of large ‘gatekeeper’ tech companies for additional regulation – 51:07 U.S. Federal Trade Commission announces huge fines for fake product reviews – 55:45Working on – 1:03:19 Picks – 1:06:15

This episode, Cherlynn is joined by senior writer Sam Rutherford and senior commerce editor at Wired Julian Chokkattu to talk about our reviews of the Pixel Fold. Will the recent spate of foldables by companies like Motorola and Google give Samsung some real competition and motivation to step up its game? We can only wait to find out. Samsung is holding its next Galaxy Unpacked in late July, and we’ll see what it has to unveil then. This episode, we also take a look at the latest addition to the Google Graveyard and the state of the podcast industry.Google’s Pixel Fold is the challenger Samsung needs – 1:22Google has given up on making its own AR glasses, will focus on AR software – 38:50Automotive organization SAE will create a standard version of Tesla’s charging plug for EVs – 45:19SiriusXM will shut down widely used podcast app Stitcher on August 29 – 52:11 RIP John Goodenough, inventor of the lithium-ion battery – 54:53 Working on – 56:01Pop culture picks – 59:02

This episode, Cherlynn is joined by senior reporter Jess Conditt and special guest Michael Fisher to talk about the week of reviews. From the Moto Razr+ to the Pixel Tablet, we look at how these devices fit into our lives and make them better (or worse). Than, we go over the highlights from Summer Games Fest and dig into that Titanic situation. Moto Razr+ review: a foldable with an external display you’ll actually want to use – 1:56Pixel Tablet review: Google made a great smart display and a passable tablet – 31:53 The doomed OceanGate submarine was piloted with a Logitech game controller – 47:50 Amazon is shutting down Halo health services at the end of July – 59:15 Jess Conditt’s takeaways from Summer Game Fest – 1:02:51 Working on – 1:19:27Pop culture picks – 1:20:51

What good is Reddit without the support of its community? This week, Cherlynn and Devindra discuss the recent subreddit revolts, following the company’s decision to dramatically increase the cost of its API for third parties. They’re joined by Ryan Broderick, the internet culture reporter behind the must-read newsletter Garbage Day. Will the protests amount to any sort of change? Or will Reddit CEO Steve Huffman prevail and make the company ready for a potential IPO? Also, we dive into our reviews of the new MacBook Air 15, as well as the M2 Ultra Mac Studio. Who needs a Mac Pro when Apple has such a powerful desktop already? Why are Redditors protesting Reddit’s API changes? – 1:15M2 Mac Studio and 15-inch MacBook Air reviews – 19:14U.S. Federal Trade Commission files injunction to block Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision/Blizzard – 27:04Alan Wake 2, South of Midnight and Baby Steps are Summer Games Fest standouts – 30:29 Working on – 34:06Pop culture picks – 36:26