The Engadget Podcast

We made it, folks! The end of the year is upon us, so Cherlynn, Devindra and UK Bureau Chief Mat Smith have gathered to break down the high and low points for the tech world. And for the first time, we duke it out to decide the first ever Engadget Podcast awards for the best and worst tech of the year. Let’s just hope things look brighter in 2023.Engadget’s best / worst of 2022 – 1:23Devindra, Cherlynn and Mat’s personal best / worst of the year – 27:07Engadget Podcast Official Best / Worst of the Year – 47:36 FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried arrested in the Bahamas – 1:00:09 Dell’s Concept Luna laptop can be dismantled in seconds – 1:02:41 Google’s smart home devices now support the Matter standard – 1:10:25Working on – 1:13:22 Pop culture picks – 1:15:00

This week, many of us saw our social media feeds taken over by colorful, surreal pictures of people we follow, except they don’t quite look like themselves. The images were generated by Lensa AI, and it’s the latest in what feels like a now-annual trend to use a new app to create mockups of your face in various scenarios. Alongside Lensa, some folks also saw blocks of text from another AI generator, ChatGPT. So on this episode of the podcast, Devindra and Cherlynn chat the appeal, implications and possible future of these types of AI, before being joined by Engadget editor-at-large James Trew for a check in on the state of action cameras.Lensa AI magic avatars and Chat GPT – 1:27 What’s the state of the GoPro-style action camera in 2022? – 23:47 iPhone users can now share digital car keys with Pixel owners – 43:02 iOS 16.2 includes time limits on AirDrop receiving – 47:44 Carl Pei said Nothing wants to come to the US – 53:40 Working on – 1:08:02Picks – 1:10:51

Finally, a Kindle you can write on! This week, we dive into Cherlynn’s review of the Kindle Scribe, Amazon’s first e-reader that can also capture handwritten notes. The hardware is great, but as usual, Amazon’s software feels half-baked. Also, Devindra and Cherlynn discuss the rise of new Twitter alternatives like Hive Social and Post. It looks like many communities are already splintering off to these services, but unfortunately, they can’t yet replicate the magic of Twitter.Kindle Scribe review – 1:13Rise of the Twitter clones: Hive Social, Post, and Mastodon – 19:28Amazon will lose $10 billion on its Alexa division this year – 34:12We’ve got a new trailer for the Super Mario Bros. animated movie – 38:01Working on – 43:58Pop culture picks – 45:30

This week, Cherlynn and Devindra chat with Senior Commerce Editor, Valentina Palladino, about our massive Holiday Gift Guide. If you’re looking for a decent laptop to gift, or maybe some budget gear for yourself, we’ve got you covered! Also, they dig into the FTX debacle (which got much worse than last week!), and Elon Musk’s ongoing fail whale Twitter acquisition. And on a surprising note, we end up having strong feelings about Amazon’s chat-based virtual healthcare service. Engadget 2022 Holiday Gift Guide – 1:24NASA’s Artemis 1 rocket finally launches – 27:20Cherlynn got to try Apple’s SOS satellite text message service – 28:56Qualcomm announces Snapdragon chips with hardware-accelerated ray tracing – 34:33Tuvalu turns to the metaverse to save its culture from climate change – 38:38Meta axes its Portal video chat device – 40:21FTX continues to collapse as regulator investigations begin – 43:15Elon Twitter is a mess: your weekly update – 48:36Working on – 1:02:47Pop culture picks – 1:05:59

We’re still waiting for Apple to deliver a real foldable iPhone, but that didn’t stop a group of engineers in China from crafting their own prototype. This week, Cherlynn and Devindra dive into the possibility of a real foldable iPhone, plus they discuss Meta’s massive layoffs and the fast downfall of the crypto exchange FTX. Also, what are the ethics of Apple limiting AirDrop in China (and eventually the rest of the world)?Chinese modders made a foldable iPhone – 1:32Meta lays off 11,000 people worldwide – 12:48Sale of crypto exchange FTX to Chinese-based Binance fails – 20:56Musk Twitter is a mess: the weekly update – 26:41Apple sets time limit for receiving Airdrops in China – 31:38Volvo unveils its EX90 EV SUV – 35:52Instagram’s web client has finally been redesigned – 39:37Google starts issuing Stadia refunds – 41:22Working on – 47:03Pop culture picks – 49:10

Well, it finally happened: Elon Musk has officially taken over Twitter. This week, Cherlynn and Devindra are joined by Engadget’s Karissa Bell to discuss how Musk is reshaping the social network. Are all the changes bad, or is there some method to his madness? (Spoiler: It looks more like desperation than anything else.) Also, we dive into some recent Google AI news, and Devindra explains why the new Apple TV 4K is genuinely great.Elon Musk’s Twitter fiasco – 1:26Thinking of leaving Twitter? Here are some platforms to check out – 21:49Google announces package tracking in Gmail – 29:55Texas AG sues Google over facial recognition data collection – 35:23The PS VR2 will cost $550, arrives February 22, 2023 – 38:07Xiaomi’s 12S Ultra concept phone has a massive camera with interchangeable lenses – 40:35Working on – 43:42Pop culture picks – 48:57

This week, Devindra and Deputy Editor Nathan Ingraham dive into Apple’s latest iPad and iPad Pro. The new base iPad seemingly justifies its price, but it also leaves out plenty of consumers who were well-served by the old $329 iPad. We hope that model sticks around for a long while. Also, we discuss if anyone needs M2 power in an iPad Pro (why not just get a MacBook?!), and we prepare for Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter. (Note: When this episode was recorded, his acquisition wasn’t finalized yet.)Timestamps1:40: iPad and iPad Pro (2022) reviews25:50: Surface Pro 9 5G review37:10: Elon Musk is buying Twitter, for real50:20: Brief thoughts on God of War Ragnarok52:50: Pop culture picks: Barbarian is on HBO Max, thoughts on Bad Sisters

Apple just dropped several new devices on us this week, seemingly out of nowhere. In this episode, Cherlynn and Devindra break down Apple’s new base iPad and iPad Pro with M2. They chat about why the iPad lineup is now more confusing than ever, and what that means going forward. (At least the new Apple TV 4K seems likely a genuinely solid upgrade.)Apple announces updated base iPad and Apple TV 4K – 1:36Microsoft lays off hundreds of workers – 20:22Netflix announces “extra user” fee to crack down on password sharing – 27:40Intel says the next generation of Thunderbolt is on the way – 35:47Silent Hill 2 remake and a movie are on the way – 41:29Working on – 47:37Pop culture picks – 53:21

What a week! This episode, Cherlynn, Devindra and Engadget’s Sam Rutherford dive into everything we learned at Microsoft’s Surface event. No, there was no new Surface Duo or Neo, and the actual fresh hardware was mostly incremental. We also reviewed the Pixel 7, 7 Pro and Pixel Watch, and Sam had some hands-on time with the latest Quest VR headset. As if that wasn’t enough, there’s some other news from Samsung, Chromebooks and more.Surface Studio 2+, Surface Laptop 5 and Surface Pro 9 – 1:32Microsoft's new Designer app is powered by Dall-E – 4:56Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro review – 32:48Pixel Watch review – 40:34Sam Rutherford’s Meta Quest Pro hands-on thoughts – 55:24Other news – 1:11:47Working on – 1:21:23Pop culture picks – 1:24:32

This week, Cherlynn, Devindra and Engadget’s Sam Rutherford dive into everything we learned at Google’s Pixel 7 event. Sure, it’s nice to have new phones, but it’s even nicer to see Google developing a cohesive design for all of its new devices. The Pixel Watch actually looks cool! And while we were ready to knock the (way too late) Pixel Tablet, its speaker base seems genuinely useful. Google may have finally figured out how to combine its software and AI smarts with well-designed hardware. Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro first thoughts – 12:04 Pixel Watch – 18:00 Also announced, Google Nest updates – 37:11 Intel Arc A750 and A770 graphics cards review – 42:27 Elon Musk announces intent to buy Twitter (again) – 44:56 Tesla showed off its robot (sort of) – 46:32 Gatorade made a smart water bottle – 47:40 iPhone 14 Plus review – 49:42 Pop culture picks – 52:41