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Galaxy S21 drop test: Samsung's newest phones didn't last long


Galaxy S21 drop test: Samsung's newest phones didn't last long

I had high hopes for the new Samsung Galaxy S21 phones phones going into our drop test, even though Galaxy phones haven't been the most durable in our previous tests. The S21, S21 Plus and S21 Ultra's curved displays aren't as pronounced as previous models and all the screens are covered in the strongest Gorilla Glass. But let's just say my hopes proved optimistic, and if you're considering going case-less with your new Galaxy S21, you may want to read on. 

While the three Galaxy S21 phones may look similar, the backs are all made of different materials. The S21 Plus and Ultra have glass on either side, while the back of the regular S21 is made of plastic. Because this difference could affect the durability of the phone, we decided to test out both the $1,200 (£1,149, AU$1,849) Galaxy Ultra and the $800 (£769, AU$1,249) Galaxy S21 simultaneously.

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Chris Parker/CNET

A lot of factors go into the durability of the screen, including the shape and thickness of the glass the manufacturer decides to use. We know from our previous Note 20 Ultra drop test that even the strongest Gorilla Glass Victus is no match for pavement, with the screen cracking on the second drop from hip height. But that doesn't mean the S21's screen will share the same fate: The two have different designs and the thick metal casing protecting the camera looks sturdier than the all-glass module on previous Galaxy phones. 

For our drop test, CNET Senior Video Producer Chris Parker dropped a brand new phantom violet Galaxy S21 and phantom black Galaxy S21 Ultra onto a concrete sidewalk. 

Drop 1: Pocket height (3 feet), screen side down

The drop from pocket or hip height is one of the most common causes of cracked screens, especially if your phone lands on a rough surface like a sidewalk. We start all our tests at this height. 

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The cracked screen of the Samsung Galaxy S21 after the first drop from hip height. 

Chris Parker/CNET

Galaxy S21: Broken screen

The top left hand corner of the phone opposite the camera hit the ground first, then the bottom corner hit, then the entire right side of the phone. This caused it to bounce back up a bit and land screen-side-down on the floor.

The bottom left hand corner of the glass had shattered with a few larger cracks stemming outward from the point of impact including a big dome-shaped one running through the middle of the screen. 

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The S21 Ultra after the first drop from hip-height: one small crack at the top. 

Chris Parker/CNET

Galaxy S21 Ultra: A small crack 

The initial impact of the drop seemed to be distributed relatively evenly as the phone hit the floor, with the top edge of the screen hitting the sidewalk just a bit earlier than the rest. It then jumped back into the air, flipped around and landed screen-side-up. 

The top edge of the metal frame on the S21 Ultra had what looked like silver sand particles where the paint was scraped, but the screen looked OK. That is, until we noticed a tiny crack on the top left-hand corner of the phone. It was small enough that it probably wouldn't bother you if you kept using the phone, but it was damaged nonetheless and not the ideal scenario after just one drop.

Drop 2: Pocket height (3 feet), back side down 

To test the durability of the back, Chris dropped the phones from the same height with the screen facing up. We obviously weren't expecting the plastic back on the S21 to break, but we wanted to see what kind of damage it would incur and how the camera would hold up to the fall. 

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The back of the Samsung Galaxy S21 had a few minor scratches after the second drop from hip-height. 

Chris Parker/CNET

Galaxy S21: Minor scratches

The top half of the phone hit the ground first, then the bottom edge causing it to jump in the air and complete a couple of flips before landing back on the sidewalk with the back side facing up. 

Save for a few tiny scrapes on the bottom, there was barely any damage on the plastic back cover, as we expected.

The camera was also in good shape, with no visible damage to the module or any of its three lenses, which are carved into the metal casing. Unlike previous Galaxy models where the entire camera bump is covered in glass, the module on the S21 is mostly metal and only the lenses are glass.

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The broken back of the Galaxy S21 Ultra after the second drop from hip height. 

Chris Parker/CNET

Galaxy S21 Ultra: Shattered back

The phone hit the floor almost flat, bounced a bit and flipped on its side causing it to land with its back facing up. 

The glass back on the S21 Ultra didn't survive. It had multiple fractures stemming from the bottom left hand corner and running up the entire back of the phone and a few loose pieces of glass coming off the corner where it hit.

The camera module on the other hand survived relatively unscathed, except for a couple small dings on the metal casing.

Drop 3: 6 feet back side down (S21), screen side down (S21 Ultra) 

Both phones were cracked at this point, but we decided to drop them one last time on the side which had sustained the least amount of damage. 

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The back of the Galaxy S21 sustained minimal damage after three drops with just a few scratches on the metal casing. 

Chris Parker/CNET

Galaxy S21: Scuffs on the camera module

The weight of the camera module must play a part in the landing, because this is what broke the fall yet again. With the camera hitting first, the phone then bounced on the opposite side and did a few flips in the air before settling screen-side-up on the floor. 

As expected, the back of the phone was still in good shape, but with some more pronounced scrapes towards the bottom. The top left hand corner of the metal camera module, which broke the fall, also had noticeable scratches. But the lenses remained intact. 

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The shattered front of the Galaxy S21 Ultra after a drop from 6 feet. 

Chris Parker/CNET

Galaxy S21 Ultra: Completely shattered screen

The phone landed almost completely flat, bounced up a bit and then hit the floor again face first.

The tiny crack on the top corner multiplied into an entire web of cracks covering almost the entire front of the phone. Some were deep enough to penetrate the screen and black out part of the OLED panel. The screen still responded to touch, but there were tiny shards of glass coming off it, so you wouldn't have wanted to keep using it, even with a screen protector on top. The cracks on the back had also continued to grow, though they weren't nearly as bad as the ones on the front. 

A second opinion

Allstate Protection Plans conducted a similar drop test on all three Galaxy S21 models with similar results. The screens shattered after the first drop (in this case from 6 feet). The back side of the S21 Plus and S21 Ultra also shattered after the second drop from the same height (back side down).

The breakdown

While our tests are by no means scientific and your results may be completely different if you drop your phone, our Galaxy S21 and Galaxy S21 Ultra cracked on the first drop, which was disappointing. The S21 has an edge over the Ultra as the back probably won't break even if you drop it multiple times. But you'll still need to put a case on it to shield the screen and I'd consider investing in a screen protector as an added layer of protection as repairing the S21's screen starts at $200. The silver lining is that the camera modules on both phones, which are more expensive to repair, seem to be sturdier than in previous modules thanks to the new metal casing. 

We reached out to Samsung for comment on our results, but did not hear back at publication time.


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The iPad Air Got an Overdue Upgrade. Here's What Apple Changed


The iPad Air Got an Overdue Upgrade. Here's What Apple Changed

The iPad Pro, iPad and iPad Mini all received an update last year, but Apple forgot the iPad Air. That is, until Tuesday, when the company announced a new iPad Air during its "Peek Performance" event. It looks like it was worth the wait -- and, maybe, the best iPad for its price.

The Air has the M1 processor of the existing iPad Pro model and recent Macs, but an otherwise similar design to the 2020 model, with an eight-core GPU. It also adds an ultrawide, 12-megapixel Center Stage camera, similar to existing iPad models. 5G is onboard, too, for faster mobile data. But the iPad Air still has the same display as before: no Mini-LED or OLED. It comes in a new blue color, and starts at $599 (£569, AU$929), the same as previously, with 64 and 256GB configurations, also the same as before. The new iPad Air is available March 18, the same date as the new iPhone SE. Preorders open Friday.

Read more: iPad Air 2022 vs. iPad Pro 2021: Apple's 11-Inch Tablets Compared

A new iPad Air was expected at this event; it's the iPad model that was clearly most in need of an upgrade. Reports indicated that the Air would gain the M1 chip, 5G, boosted entry-level storage (128GB instead of 64GB), and a wider-angle front-facing camera with the same digital-zooming Center Stage tech that's already on the other iPad models from 2021. All of these updates happened, with the exception of the starting storage boost.

The Air line has been around for years, and iPad Air models have tended to be midrange models that incorporate some of the iPad Pro's features at a lower price. The 2020 iPad Air looked and felt like a more affordable version of the iPad Pro, adding the Pro line's thinner-bezeled, curved-edge display, USB-C support, and compatibility with smart keyboard cases and the Pencil 2. But it started to feel a step behind Apple's other iPads last year: the 2021 iPad Mini looked like the iPad Air in a smaller size, but with its CenterStage camera and 5G, it had some features the larger Air lacked.

For more, take a look at everything else Apple announced Tuesday, including the iPhone SE 3 (here's how it compares to the 2020 model and why it's for people "who just want an iPhone"), new iPhone 13 colors and Apple's M1 Ultra processor, as well as the Mac Studio and Mac Studio Display. The products arrived alongside a release date for iOS 15.4, Apple's latest iPhone operating system update. You can check out everything Apple debuted at its "Peek Performance" event here.


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Fitbit and Apple know their smartwatches aren't medical devices. But do you?


Fitbit and Apple know their smartwatches aren't medical devices. But do you?

Bill, a 31-year-old engineer based in Ohio, has experienced health anxiety in some capacity for most of his life. That's why he bought a Fitbit Sense in late 2020. He thought it would reassure him that he was healthy if he was able to take an electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG) reading when he felt something abnormal, such as heartburn or an accelerated heartbeat. 

Yet Bill only grew more anxious after receiving inconclusive ECG results on the Fitbit Sense. An inconclusive result doesn't indicate a health issue; it just means the device couldn't get a reliable reading. This can happen if there's too much movement during the scan or if the wearer's heart rate is too high or low, as Fitbit explains on its website. 

But Bill didn't realize this when he was taking up to 20 ECGs per day because of his anxiety around springtime last year. (Bill asked that his last name be omitted from the story so that he could freely discuss details about his health. CNET has verified his identity.) 

"If it was inconclusive, I'd be like 'OK, I need it to say normal,'" he said. "And I would keep checking it to see if it was normal or not, just to reassure myself that I was fine."  

The Fitbit Sense and similar wearables such as the Apple Watch aren't intended for medical diagnosis, a distinction that gadget makers are very clear about. Yet smartwatches and fitness bands can now track metrics, such as blood oxygen saturation and body fat estimates, that may have previously required a visit to the doctor or a specialized device. Today's wearables are much more than just activity trackers, but they're also not a replacement for medical care, nor are they trying to be. So then what exactly are they? 

Based on conversations with medical experts, analysts and executives at the companies behind some of these products, that answer is starting to come together. If you consider the early days of step counting and basic activity logging as the infancy of consumer health tracking, the industry has entered its awkward teen phase. The data is much more advanced as these devices have matured. But companies are still figuring out the best ways to make sense of that data without overstepping the boundaries of what a non-medical device should do.  

"There is a distinction between measurements for wellness, which provide general guidance and would encourage you to exercise in a way that's helpful for you and to eat more healthy foods, and a medical device," Dr. Paul Friedman, a cardiologist in the Mayo Clinic's AI in Cardiology Work Group. "And I think the blurring of those is causing some confusion."  

The blurring line between medical and wellness 

The Apple Watch Series 6 (pictured) and Series 7 can measure blood oxygen levels.

Screenshot by Sarah Mitroff/CNET

If the line is already blurring, there's a chance it may become further obscured in the future as tech companies develop new ways to help us live healthier lives. Apple is working on tech that could enable future Apple Watch models to take readings for blood sugar, body temperature and blood pressure, according to reports from Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal. Fitbit is studying how its devices can potentially track pulse arrival time, or how long it takes for a pulse of blood to reach the wrist after a heartbeat, and its possible link to blood pressure monitoring. 

Wearable devices have become indispensable tools for aiding in medical research and encouraging people to develop healthier habits. In some cases, data from the Apple Watch has even saved lives. But while companies are clear about how not to use their products, some experts believe device makers could be clearer about how these gadgets should be used.

"I do get nervous, honestly, when I see more data types that are more truly clinical being used in a consumer way," said Dr. Devin Mann, associate professor of population health and medicine at New York University Langone Health. "Because the conditions tied to those data types are a little scarier, and people get scared easier."

Bill's anxiety about the Fitbit Sense's inconclusive ECG readings is personal and doesn't reflect the experience of most smartwatch owners. The medical experts CNET spoke with also believe wearables do more good than harm when it comes to health management. But Bill also isn't alone in feeling stress or anxiety about health readings from smartwatches and other digital wellness tools. 

One of Bill's inconclusive ECG results from the Fitbit Sense.

Courtesy of Bill

A 2020 study called the Digital Health Generation, a collaborative effort between professors at the University of Salford Manchester, the University of Bath, University of New South Wales Sydney and the University of Canberra, found that health tracking devices and apps can cause anxiety in young people. Some respondents in the study, which surveyed 1,064 kids and teens between the ages of 11 and 18 and some of their parents in southwest England, reported that they worried about failing to meet fitness targets or experienced difficulties setting diet and exercise boundaries. 

Dr. Lindsey Rosman, assistant professor of medicine at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine's cardiology division, has been studying the relationship between smartwatch readings and health-related anxiety. A paper she co-authored that was published in the Cardiovascular Digital Health Journal in August 2020 mentions a 70-year-old woman who believed smartwatch notifications were a sign of "worsening cardiac function," according to the report. She took 916 ECGs over the course of a year.

"As a researcher, I think it's a fantastic tool," said Rosman. "As a clinician in a cardiology clinic in particular, I think it opens the door to a lot of questions and concerns from patients that are currently being unaddressed."

A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association in September 2020 also suggested that smartwatch readings could be prompting people to seek medical care when they might not need it. Only 11.4% of 264 patients in the study who received an abnormal pulse alert from their Apple Watch received a "clinically actionable cardiovascular diagnosis of interest." 

Anecdotally, some tech product reviewers have also expressedconfusion over health readings from wearable devices, especially when it comes to newer metrics such as blood oxygen levels or body fat estimates. Unlike the ECG apps on both the Apple Watch and the Fitbit Sense, other new measurements like blood oxygen readings haven't received US Food and Drug Administration clearance on those devices, making it less evident what these readings should be used for.

"The role of many of those sensors remains to be determined," said the Mayo Clinic's Friedman. "And that's why it's so blurry, because you've got some FDA-approved components, which are pretty robust and quite useful. And then others which are not FDA-approved on the same device, and you have to take some of the information with a grain of salt."

As smartwatches and fitness trackers have grown more sophisticated, so has their place in our lives. One way that Jonah Becker, Fitbit's design director, describes that evolving role is as a partner to your health care provider. If people only visit their primary care doctor once or twice annually, devices like those made by Fitbit can help monitor bodily changes that occur throughout the rest of the year.

"There's no intent to take over the medical profession and replace it in any way," said Becker. "The idea in my mind is to sort of extend this partnership."

That's similar to Oura's outlook on what it means to walk the line between medical device and activity tracker. Oura makes a wellness ring of the same name that can track metrics like sleep, activity and respiratory rate. If the first wave of wearable devices was all about the quantified self, the current wave is about the road to making more sense of all those data points and using them to inform lifestyle choices, says Chris Becherer, Oura's chief product officer.

"What Oura is all about is helping you sort of contextualize what those decisions meant for you, rather than just saying 'your temperature was this' or your steps," Becherer said. 

The challenge of making health data understandable

The Fitbit Charge 5 pictured alongside the Fitbit app.

Lexy Savvides/CNET

Still, experts agree that more could be done to help us understand what these metrics mean. What's less clear is how the companies behind these products should go about doing that, especially since smartwatch makers already provide a lot of context about health metrics. 

Take an ECG on the Apple Watch, for example, and Apple will define the readings you might see and explain the device's limitations. The Apple Health app also has informative articles about what blood oxygen levels mean and the types of factors that could influence them. Fitbit's app has links to FAQ pages that define health metrics like heart rate variability and skin temperature and explain how Fitbit calculates them. Both companies also warn that users shouldn't make health decisions like changing their medication based on data from their smartwatches. But even those explanations may not have enough context to help the average person make sense of their own readings.

So what else can tech companies do besides being transparent about their metrics? One possible solution could be clinically supervised chatbots that can answer some questions when a wearer's doctor might not be available, says Mann. Mount Sinai's Dr. Zahi Fayad told CNET he would like to see more tools for easily sharing data from these devices with doctors, an option that companies like Apple, Fitbit, Oura and Whoop already offer to some degree today. 

Oura's readiness score provides a snapshot of your daily wellness. The new ring uses its temperature sensors to predict periods in addition to wellness. 

Oura

Julie Ask, a vice president and principal analyst at Forrester who has studied digital wellness at length, wants metrics that provide concrete advice. "Telling me that I sleep better when I go to bed at the same time every night? Not an insight," Ask said. "What we need is insight." She hopes to see these health apps take other factors into account, such as your first scheduled meeting for the next morning and your current exercise habits, to craft more personalized tips.

The question of what companies should be doing differently to make health data more clear and useful may not have a defined answer yet. But understanding how manufacturers are approaching this challenge today could be a good place to start.

Oura designs the language that accompanies its health metrics with two principles in mind: truth and positivity, according to Becherer. He says the data should be portrayed in a way that's upfront and  "cautionary but not too alerting." Amazon similarly tries to be "humble" in its Halo health app, says Melissa Cha, the vice president of Amazon's Halo division. 

"We try to have a very empathetic and humble approach to not thinking that we know the context for it, but surfacing those insights," said Cha. 

It's a fine line to tread, which is why Oura has thousands of different variations of what it calls "daily insight messages" that are displayed in Oura's app alongside metrics like the readiness score, according to Becherer. When Oura releases new metrics and features, like period prediction, those data points get factored into those messages as well. 

"There's just almost an infinite array of possibilities of what could be going on with your body," Becherer said. "And based on all of those signals, we'll target the right message to you." 

It also helps to know why companies are exploring new metrics in the first place if it's not possible to have all of the data needed to contextualize the results. For example, a fitness tracker wouldn't know if a wearer is up all night having fun with friends or studying for an exam, both of which can have different impacts on one's overall well-being. It seems to be a chicken-and-the-egg type of dilemma. It's difficult to build new features that make sense of health information without having a lot of data in the first place. 

For instance, consider how Fitbit approaches newer tools like its EDA app, which measures the skin's electrodermal activity to indicate how a person's body may be reacting to stress. It's not just the immediate result that matters. It's also about how EDA readings could factor into deeper insights down the road, according to Eric Friedman, Fitbit's co-founder and vice president of research for Fitbit at Google.

The Fitbit Sense's EDA app measures how your body might be reacting to stress. 

Lexy Savvides/CNET

He points to Fitbit's Sleep Stages, the feature that tells you how much time you've spent in deep, light and REM sleep, as an example. That capability exists on Fitbit devices because of other previously developed technologies, such as the ability to measure motion and heart-rate variability.

"Imagine taking that and EDA, and you kind of start building things together to start layering these health metrics on top of each other, going to the next thing," Friedman said.

Amazon sees its body fat scanning tool in a similar way. It plans to add more insights to the Halo app based on its Body feature, which provides fat percentage estimates by taking scans with your phone's camera and processing them through machine learning, says Cha. Part of the reason why it hasn't done more with this data yet is because Amazon was primarily focused on accuracy when developing the technology, according to Cha. The tool has been clinically validated and is as precise as methods a doctor would use, says Amazon, although it's not FDA-cleared.

Amazon's Halo app can estimate your body fat percentage by analyzing images from your phone's camera. 

Amazon

Still, Amazon's body-scanning tech has been somewhat controversial, criticized by reviewers from The New York Times and The Washington Post. (The New York Times' Brian Chen felt "body shamed and confused" after finding that Amazon's body fat results skewed higher than other devices such as a skin caliper or a Fitbit scale). Even Cha acknowledged that the results can be difficult to swallow. She says some Amazon employees on the Halo team were even surprised by their own readings.

But Amazon, along with other tech giants like Apple and Google, has big ambitions in the health space. Amazon launched a new tracker called the Halo View in late 2021 and is rolling out a nutrition service for the Halo app in 2022. The long-term goal for Amazon's body fat scanner is to make it possible for Halo members to have an accurate record of their body composition over time that they can share with their doctor, says Cha.

"We're just building on that now," she said. "So you'll be seeing new features and things come built on top of the body feature."

What's next for health tracking on the wrist

The boundary between medical and wellness devices is expected to further overlap as Amazon, Fitbit and Apple expand their health offerings in the years to come. That makes it all the more important to understand how readings from these devices should be interpreted today.

"Maybe vendors need to find new ways in which they can be clearer with consumers around the expectations that they might have when wearing some of these devices," Roberta Cozza, a senior director analyst at tech market research firm Gartner. "Because this will be getting just more and more complicated."  

One way the Apple Watch might evolve in the future is by adding blood-sugar monitoring, according to Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal. Both reports suggest the technology is in its early stages, however.

Doing so could potentially help wearable devices make more personalized observations about how diet and exercise changes are impacting a user's body, says Dr. Steven LeBoeuf, president and co-founder of health sensor maker Valencell. He added that technology might not be too far off.

"Now that has all kinds of positive implications," said LeBoeuf. "And so I think that you will be seeing that technology in wearables as well."

However, the industry is still far away from developing a device accurate enough to dose insulin non-invasively without breaking the skin, says LeBoeuf. 

Fitbit, meanwhile, is interested in further examining the link between physical and mental states, and how the two might affect each other, Friedman and Becker said. 

Despite some of the concerns about clarity regarding new metrics, the health experts CNET spoke with are generally excited about the industry's progress. Even Bill, the Ohio engineer who experienced anxiety over inconclusive ECG results, quickly started wearing his Fitbit again after temporarily shelving it. He still enjoys tracking activity and sleep, although he said he wouldn't buy a model with ECG support next time he upgrades his device.

Tech companies and the medical industry aren't exactly sure what the next phase of health tracking on the wrist will look like just yet. But making sense of all those data points will surely be a big part of answering that question, and it won't be easy. 

"It's just challenging; it takes expertise to really understand that," says Mann. "Maybe someday the computer can be the expert. Right now, it can't." 


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$700 Otto smart lock is the latest luxe gadget to go belly-up


$700 Otto smart lock is the latest luxe gadget to go belly-up

Would you buy a $700 lock for your front door? Some people would -- but they may never see the lock they preordered from a tiny Silicon Valley startup named Otto. 

Just four months after the company revealed its remarkably compact, meticulously designed Bluetooth- and Wi-Fi-enabled luxury lock, CEO and founder Sam Jadallah says his company has suspended operations indefinitely, won't meet its planned January ship date, and probably won't ship at all. 

Which makes Otto the latest in a line of luxury gadget flops in 2017, including the $700 Juicero cold press juice machine, the $1,000+ Teforia robotic teamaker and the $500 Pearl backup camera license plate frame.  

On Dec. 28, Jadallah wrote an obituary of sorts for Otto for Medium's HackerNoon blog, where he blames an unnamed company for Otto's failure -- a company that offered to buy Otto, but backed out at the last moment.

"In early September, we were approached by a public company who understood the product we built, the engineering behind it, and the opportunity it represented. Initially they proposed investing, but quickly shifted the conversation to an acquisition [...] On Dec. 11, they called me and stated they would not complete the acquisition nor revisit the investment proposal. I was stunned. The reason is still not understood," writes Jadallah.

According to Jadallah, Otto agreed not to pursue any other funding while it secured a deal with the unnamed company. (Remember the saying about putting all your eggs in one basket?) 

When it fell through, Jadallah says the company had no choice but to cease operations -- despite the fact that the company managed to manufacture a batch of hardware. Frustratingly, the locks are just sitting in a warehouse right now, according to an interview with TechCrunch. 

More frustrating for Otto's employees and contractors was the sudden holiday layoff. In an interview with CNET, Jadallah admits that he gave employees only two days notice and no severance pay, as alleged by former employee Ben Havilland. (Havilland wrote his own Medium post on the matter, which you can read right here.) 

He also admits that contractors, including server software engineer Kevin Burke, went unpaid for months. "We are actively working to resolve," says Jadallah. (You can read Burke's accusations against Otto in this post at Hacker News.)

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Otto's most recent team photo, volunteering at a Redwood City food bank in December.

Otto

In interviews with Burke and Havilland, both former employees say they mostly just wish they'd been told sooner so they could have left. "My ultimate goal is to pay my mortgage this month and put some food in my kids' mouths," Havilland tells me. "With two days' notice and a holiday approaching it's impossible to land a new paycheck to instantly fill the void."

Jadallah argues there simply wasn't time. If the deal had gone through, the money would have immediately been there to pay everyone, he says. "I acted as quickly as possible once the facts changed," he says. "I found out on Monday night and told the team Wednesday. It was incredibly painful -- I can't begin to describe."

Still, Jadallah won't say who the company's mystery benefactor would have been. "It's not relevant," he tells CNET. 

According to Jadallah, if Otto's locks do ever make it out of a warehouse, there's a possibility they could still work. While they do need Otto's online service for full functionality, he says they still have basic lock and unlock functionality with a paired phone. By the way, the CEO says that customers aren't out any money for the locks they pre-ordered -- their credit cards were never charged.

"It wasn't the same as Juicero or Teforia," he says of his company's sudden collapse. "It was about to be a big win for hardware startups, and it flipped at the last second."


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New Ford Mustang Will Debut on Sept. 14 at Detroit Auto Show


New Ford Mustang Will Debut on Sept. 14 at Detroit Auto Show

Hey, remember the Detroit Auto Show? It'll finally return this year. And on Wednesday, Ford CEO Jim Farley confirmed the automaker is bringing a big debut to the event: the brand-new, seventh-generation Mustang.

We first heard about the Mustang's debut thanks to a report from Automotive News. Hours later, Farley took to Twitter to confirm the Sept. 14 debut date.

The Mustang is expected to go into production early next year and will likely use carryover inline-4 and V8 engines. The current Ford Mustang model range is made up of the EcoBoost, GT, Mach 1 and Shelby GT500. (There's also the Mustang Mach-E but that's a whole different animal.) Ford's iconic sports car is built in Flat Rock, Michigan, and the company confirmed the next-gen Mustang will be built there, too, as part of a larger investment into local manufacturing.

As for the Detroit Auto Show, the event hasn't taken place since Jan. 2019, with the 2020 and 2021 events canceled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The 2022 Detroit Auto Show is scheduled to run from Sept. 14-25.

Update, 5:45 p.m.: Following our initial report, Ford CEO Jim Farley confirmed the news. This story's text has been updated to reflect this.


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Get an Acer Aspire Switch 10 hybrid PC for $229


Get an Acer Aspire Switch 10 hybrid PC for $229

acer-aspire-switch-10.jpg
"Mr. Data, prepare to separate the saucer section." Acer

It's a laptop. No it's a tablet! It's two, two, two computers in one!

In other words, it's a hybrid. And very often those jacks-of-two-trades are a master of none. Today's deal, however, appears to rate pretty well on both fronts.

For a limited time, and while supplies last, the Microsoft Store has the Acer Aspire Switch 10 SW5-012-12L7 Signature Edition for $229 shipped. Regular price: $349. Price elsewhere: $299.

The aptly named Switch is a 10.1-inch Windows 8.1 system with a screen that can pop free from its keyboard, effectively shrugging off laptop duty in favor of tablet goodness.

This happens via a nifty magnetic "snap hinge" that allows for four different display modes, something you typically see with convertible systems, not hybrids. Nice.

Other specs include an Atom processor, 2GB of RAM, 32GB of solid-state storage, and a battery that should last you at least 6 hours, at least according to CNET's review of the Switch 10 . That review praised the system's keyboard, touchpad and aforementioned versatility, but dinged its top-heavy design and limited storage. You can add more via microSD or USB, of course, but I'm bummed to see the keyboard has only a single USB port, and it's USB 2.0. Why, Acer, why?

Still, for $229 out the door, this is a pretty sweet system, especially for someone who doesn't need a ton of power but does want a roomy tablet with a keyboard dock. Plus, you get a one-year Office 365 Personal subscription! (It says so right in the description, even though there's a separate Buy option that would seem to suggest it costs extra.)

Thoughts?

Bonus deal: Still haven't pulled the trigger on an Amazon Prime subscription? Your patience has paid off: Tomorrow only, Amazon will be offering a 1-year Prime membership for $72. (Remember, the deal kicks in tomorrow, Saturday, Jan. 24. Right now it's just the regular signup page.) Regular price: $99. Sorry, current subscribers, this is for newcomers only. (Newcomers can also watch all 10 episodes of Amazon's newly feted series "Transparent," again tomorrow only, even without a subscription.)

As I've noted many times before, Prime is all kinds of awesome, with perks including free 2-day shipping on nearly everything, an exclusive streaming deal with HBO and a growing library of Spotify-style streaming music.


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Here's How to Save $15 on the New Google Pixel Buds Pro at Launch


Here's How to Save $15 on the New Google Pixel Buds Pro at Launch

Announced in May at Google's I/O developer conference, the new Google Pixel Buds Pro wireless earbuds are now available to preorder. Retailing for $200 and taking aim squarely at Apple's AirPods Pro, these are Google's first active noise-canceling earbuds and you can score a set of Pixel Buds Pro at a discount before they even launch right now via Wellbots. When placing your preorder there, simply use coupon code CNET15 for an instant $15 price cut, dropping your new earbuds down to only $185.

Google put emphasis on the active noise cancellation performance of the Pixel Buds Pro at I/O (video), touting its Silent Seal technology designed to provide a tight seal for blocking out outside sound while avoiding that feeling of built-up pressure. When you need to let outside noises back in, the Pixel Buds Pro's transparency mode allows you to do just that without removing the earbuds.

Other neat features include support for multipoint Bluetooth connections, IPX4 water resistance, Qi wireless charging support and up to 31 hours of listening time(that includes the capacity of the charging case). Unlike Apple's AirPods earbud lineup, Google's Pixel Buds Pro are available in multiple colors, namely charcoal, fog, coral and lemongrass, for a little added personality.

Google Pixel Buds Pro preorders are slated to start shipping on July 26 and shipping at Wellbots is free.


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Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 and 3080: Check for inventory restocks at Best Buy, Newegg and more


Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 and 3080: Check for inventory restocks at Best Buy, Newegg and more

If the crypto miners are all chasing after the flagship GeForce RTX 3090 and budget-minded gamers are buying up the entry-level GeForce RTX 3060, could that mean one of the middle children in Nvidia's latest graphics processor lineup -- the RTX 3070 or RTX 3080 -- stand a better chance at being found in stock? As much as I want to answer my own hypothetical question in the affirmative, reality says no. As with every other RTX 3000 series graphics card, the GeForce RTX 3070 and RTX 3080 cards are currently out of stock everywhere. You'll have the same rotten luck trying to find one of AMD's new Radeon RX 6000 series GPUs.

Your luck could change, however, in the coming weeks. As it did earlier with its RTX 3060 card, Nvidia is limiting the hash rate of its higher-end RTX cards to discourage crypto miners from buying the cards to get them in the hands and PCs of gamers. According to Nvidia, the new cards will begin shipping in late May and will be branded as "Lite Hash Rate" or LHR cards. These cards will throttle back performance if they detect that you're mining using the Ethereum algorithm, but will run at full speed for games.

The RTX 3070 is priced at $499, and the RTX 3080 is priced at $699. Both cards offer good bang for the buck. You'll pay significantly more than list price, however, for any RTX 3070 or 3080 that you find in stock right now, whether from a reseller on Amazon or an auction site like eBay or StockX. 

If you are willing to wait, you might luck into finding a card at or closer to its list price. To help improve your luck, bookmark this page and check the links below to RTX 3070 and RTX 3080 product pages at Best Buy, Newegg and B&H. You won't find anything in stock for either the RTX 3070 or RTX 3080 at the moment, but these retailers have a number of product listings from Nvidia and its partners -- Asus, Gigabyte, MSI and others -- for the new cards.

rtx-3070-dsc09367

Where can you find a GeForce RTX 3070 graphics card in stock and not outrageously priced? We're tracking inventory for it and its RTX 3080 sibling.

Lori Grunin/CNET

Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 (starts at $500)

Here are your best bets for finding the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 at national retailers.

Newegg has numerous listings for RTX 3070 cards, including some packages that include a motherboard. Pricing starts at $500 but nothing is currently in stock.

Additional reseller options (at higher prices): Amazon | eBay | StockX

Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 (starts at $699)

Newegg has many listings for RTX 3080 graphics cards, including bundles that include a motherboard. Again, not a single one is currently in stock. 

Additional reseller options (at higher prices): Amazon | eBay | StockX

In addition, keep an eye on Nvidia's site to check inventory for the new cards. You can also sign up for Discord's Stock Informer and get alerts on your phone when a card is in stock. You'll have to act fast when a notification appears -- there are currently more than 50,000 Stock Informer members -- but it will let you keep your finger on the next-gen GPU pulse.


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DIY phone speakers that rock (and a few to avoid)


DIY phone speakers that rock (and a few to avoid)

This hack looks like it would work, but it doesn't. The instructions say to cut off the ends of a cardboard box, to pinch one end and staple it together so that there is just a slot for your phone. It ends up looking a lot like a cardboard megaphone. It doesn't work like one, though. In fact, it doesn't do a darn thing. Folding it into a more curved shape doesn't help, either.


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2023 Hyundai Palisade First Drive Review: Steady as She Goes


2023 Hyundai Palisade First Drive Review: Steady as She Goes

Since its introduction in the 2020 model year, the Hyundai Palisade has done a great job acting as the automaker's flagship SUV. This three-row family machine is comfortable, competent and packed with good creature comforts. Solid as it is, there's always a little room for improvement. That's the conceit behind the Palisade's mid-cycle refresh: A few light tweaks here and there make a good car better.

The Palisade always looked fresh, but I think the 2023 refresh ramps it up. I like how the front grille is more prominent, maybe more intimidating, better blending with the daytime running lights and giving off a much stronger vibe. Hyundai's designers added a smidge more overhang up front to improve its side profile, but I barely notice a difference. The rear end loses some overhang and the lower half of the bumper picks up a butch new skid plate, but the overall look doesn't change much. A new set of auto-dimming side mirrors rounds out the exterior redo.

The Palisade's interior gets a little more love. A revised instrument panel looks just a bit fancier, with a full-width trim piece connecting the vents to add more visual width. The steering wheel looks fresher, too. The center console remains massive, housing most of the controls and offering a big storage cubby underneath. The third row remains a little tight for adults thanks to its raised floor, but it's more than spacious enough for kids, and a bevy of USB ports and storage spots means those in the back don't miss out on the Palisade's practicality.

Aesthetic tweaks aren't really the best part of the Palisade's refresh. Instead, it's all the new tech and creature comforts the automaker crammed in here. The 2023 Palisade picks up heated third-row seats, a massaging driver's seat, a 4G LTE Wi-FI hotspot running on the Verizon network, a boatload of faster USB-C ports, beefier wireless device charging and a digital rearview mirror. All trims now rock a 12.3-inch infotainment screen, and while Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are onboard, it's a wired affair only. Hyundai also improved its phone-as-a-key tech, which is now compatible with Apple products as well as Samsung devices. The underlying infotainment tech remains the same, which is to say it's easy to use and mighty responsive.

Hyundai's steering wheels are some of my favorites in the industry, and the Palisade's is no exception.

Hyundai

Safety tech abounds, as well. All Palisade trims come with forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, rear cross-traffic alert, rear parking sensors, full-speed adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go capability, and lane-keep assist. Highway Driving Assist, which combines some of the aforementioned systems to reduce some of the tedium of long expressway jaunts, is also standard on every Palisade. Moving up through the trims adds other features, like a surround-view monitor, blind-spot cameras and remote parking assist. Highway Driving Assist can also be upgraded to HDA II, adding lane-change assistance and shifting the vehicle's lane position if someone else is crowding you on either side.

The 2023 Palisade's powertrain is unchanged, with its 3.8-liter V6 producing 291 horsepower and 262 pound-feet of torque, routed through the buyer's choice of the front or all four wheels through an 8-speed automatic transmission. It's plenty fine, providing more than enough power for a three-row SUV with a decent exhaust note that never overwhelms the cabin. The transmission is a smooth shifter, and the stop-start system offers clean, annoyance-free operation. Simply put, it's a delight to pilot around town and never feels too large or onerous, even on tighter city streets.

Despite its size, the Palisade never really feels like a handful in the city.

Hyundai

The interior is a bit quieter than before, thanks to improved sound absorption materials, and my top-of-the-line tester offers some very cushy Nappa leather to keep occupants nice and comfortable. Visibility remains good from all angles, and the digital rearview mirror makes up for any heads in between my eyes and the rear glass. The ride quality is on the softer side, comfortable without feeling too floaty. I like that the suspension is the same across the entire range of trims, so whether you opt for the base SE or the high-end Calligraphy trim, the coddling is exactly the same. Load the SUV up with kids and cargo, and the ride should feel even smoother.

During my time with the Palisade, Hyundai put together an off-road course to show that the refreshed SUV can handle dirt and mud better than I might expect in all-wheel-drive guise. With a locking center differential, the Palisade cruises through deep, muddy ruts with ease, though its standard all-season tires aren't exactly engineered for the rough stuff. Bumpier, rockier roads don't really upset the car, nor introduce any strange sounds into the cabin; hell, the suspension is so competent that it stays pretty comfortable throughout the off-roading portion of my evaluation. The Palisade doesn't exactly offer class-leading approach and departure angles, but a couple steep drops didn't so much as plink the bumpers, so I am confident 99.9% of buyers will have no problem taking their Palisades wherever they want to go.

Is your Jimmy Buffett concert at the end of a gravel road? Have no fear, the Palisade can handle that, and a fair bit more, too.

Hyundai

The 2023 Palisade offers an impressive range of trims and price points. The base Palisade SE starts at $36,245 (including $1,295 for destination), with the SEL running $39,245 and the new rugged-looking XRT trim sliding in at $41,545. The penultimate Limited will set you back $47,795, while top-of-the-line Calligraphy trim asks for $50,195. All those prices are for front-wheel-drive models, mind you; if you want all-wheel drive, it's a flat $1,900 upcharge on every trim.

While the 2023 Hyundai Palisade might be on the light-to-medium side of mid-cycle refreshes, it's because Hyundai didn't need to do all that much. A few visual nips and tucks keep the aesthetics interesting, while a healthy addition of cabin tech and creature comforts make sure it remains competitive against cars like the Toyota Highlander and Ford Explorer. It's a great family car made even better.


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Samsung shows off new Galaxy S22 phones and Galaxy Tab S8 tablets - Video


Samsung shows off new Galaxy S22 phones and Galaxy Tab S8 tablets - Video

Speaker 1: This is CNET and here are the stories that matter right now, Samsung held its newest unpacked event and announced six new devices in the company's galaxy lineup of smartphones and tablets. The Samsung galaxy S 22 and S 22 plus offer 6.1 and 6.6 inch respective screens of upgraded processors and a triple camera array. That includes a 50 megapixel wide lens, a 12 megapixel ultra wide and a 10 megapixel tele photo Samsung [00:00:30] says low light photography and video capture has been improved in this year's models as well. The final phone in Samsung's lineup is the galaxy S 22 ultra with a of 6.8 inch screen, four cameras and a built-in Spen the premium device adopted the look and functionality of the galaxy note line of smartphones and appears to be officially replacing it in Samsung's lineup. The company also announced three new tablets at the event, the galaxy tab S eight S eight [00:01:00] plus and S eight ultra while all three devices offer upgraded cameras and processors. The S eight ultra stood out with a massive laptop sized 14.6 inch screen and dual front facing 12 megapixel cameras for video calls. Samsung also reiterated its commitment to privacy tools for customers, larger sustainability effort and extending OS upgrades to four generations of devices. So users can keep them longer. Get more details on Samsung's newest [00:01:30] devices, including pre-order and pricing information by visiting CNET.


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