Samsung has reported a massive rise in operating profit for the first three months of 2022, thanks in part to the robust demand for its memory chips and the strong sales of its new Galaxy flagship devices. The Korean tech giant has posted an operating profit of KRW 14.12 trillion ($11.12 billion), which is 51 percent higher than the same period last year, and a record consolidated revenue of KRW 77.78 trillion ($61.2 billion).
As usual, Samsung’s memory division was a standout performer, exceeding market forecasts because memory prices didn’t drop as much as analysts had expected. It posted a consolidated revenue of KRW 26.87 trillion ($21.14 billion), and while it saw a slight decline in profit due to incentives and seasonality, demand for PC and server chips remained solid. The company’s foundry business also contributed to the division’s performance by achieving its highest ever first quarter sales. Samsung is optimistic for the division’s prospects going forward, but it also expects component shortages to persist through the second half of the year and will constantly monitor the situation.
While overall demand for mobile was down due to seasonality and “geopolitical uncertainties,” Samsung posted higher profit (KRW 3.82 trillion or $3 billion) and revenue (KRW 32.37 trillion or $25.5 billion) for the division this quarter compared to the last. The strong sales of its new flagship phones, particularly the Galaxy S22 Ultra, as well as of its mass market 5G phones contributed to both profit and revenue growth. Despite the allegations that a preinstalled app on S22 phones is throttling the performance of several applications, the company previously said that demand for the flagship is 20 percent higher than of its predecessor’s. Samsung expects component shortages for mobile to continue, as well, but it also expects the availability of component supplies for the S22 to improve. That’s why it plans to focus on maintaining strong sales for its flagships in the next quarter.
The tech giant reports a rise in mobile display earnings due to solid demand for premium products, as well. For larger displays, it says its QD monitors were well-received. It debuted its QD-OLED technology, which differs from standard OLED in that it only uses blue organic light-emitting diodes for a brighter output, at CES earlier this year. Samsung’s TV business lagged behind its other divisions, though, and saw a decline in demand following strong sales in the end of 2021 and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In early March, Samsung halted its product shipments to Russia, where it has a TV plant and where it’s known as the top smartphone brand.
Elon Musk may have already broken a key provision of the deal he made with Twitter. One day after Twitter disclosed the terms of its deal with Musk, the Tesla CEO is already raising questions about his willingness to adhere to a non-disparagement clause.
According to an SEC filing shared by twitter on Tuesday, Musk is “permitted to issue Tweets about the Merger or the transactions contemplated hereby so long as such Tweets do not disparage the Company or any of its Representatives.” In other words, Musk can tweet about the deal all he wants, but he can’t denigrate Twitter or its employees.
But once again Musk seems unwilling to moderate himself, and has done so at the expense of a top Twitter executive.
On Tuesday night, Musk replied to a tweet about an earlier Politico story that reported Twitter’s top policy exec, Vijaya Gadde, had cried during a meeting with staff discussing Musk’s buyout. The original tweet also noted Gadde’s role in Twitter’s handling of the Hunter Biden laptop story in 2020. (The company quickly reversed course after initially trying to limit the story, citing its policy on hacked materials.)
“Suspending the Twitter account of a major news organization for publishing a truthful story was obviously incredibly inappropriate,” Musk responded. On Wednesday, Musk targeted Gadde again, tweeting a meme based on her appearance on a 2019 episode of Joe Rogan’s podcast.
Just to say, there are many defensible _nuanced_ perspectives on content moderation and, also, @vijaya is one of the most thoughtful, principled people I know.
The tweets, which have prompted a wave of harassment directed at Gadde, have prompted two former Twitter CEOs to come to her defense. Twitter co-founder and former CEO EV Williams wrote that Gadde is “one of the most thoughtful, principled people I know.”
Former CEO Dick Costolo was more pointed. “You’re making an executive at the company you just bought the target of harassment and threats,” hesaid. “Bullying is not leadership,” he wrote in a separate tweet. “I’m just saying Twitter needs to be politically neutral,” Musk responded.
Notably, neither Jack Dorsey — who recently enthusiastically endorsed Musk’s takeover —or current CEO Parag Agrawal has commented directly. Agrawl tweeted Wednesday that he was “proud of our people who continue to do the work with focus and urgency despite the noise.”
I took this job to change Twitter for the better, course correct where we need to, and strengthen the service. Proud of our people who continue to do the work with focus and urgency despite the noise.
Twitter didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Regardless, this kind of “noise” from Musk is not likely to sit well with Twitter employees, many of whom are already apprehensive about the direction Musk will take the platform.
Musk has claimed that he wants Twitter to be “politically neutral,” which in his estimation “effectively means upsetting the far right and the far left equally.” Early reports looking at changes in follower counts for high-profile accounts suggest that far-right politicians are seeing a sharp uptick in followers.
Amazon has made a list for the most dangerous workplaces in the US for a third time. The advocacy group National COSH (Council for Occupational Safety and Health) has included Amazon in a “Dirty Dozen” list meant to shame what it sees as the least safe American workplaces of 2022. The internet retailer earned the less-than-flattering distinction for an injury rate more than double the industry average, including six deaths at a Bessemer, Alabama warehouse since it opened in 2020.
National COSH noted that one of the workers who died was reportedly forced to work while ill as he didn’t have enough unpaid time off. It also pointed to worker Jennifer Bates’ concerns that the “pace of work” and overall strain contributed to injuries. The advocates also pointed to Amazon firing Staten Island warehouse worker Gerald Bryson after a 2020 protest over a lack of COVID-19 safety measures. A judge recently ordered Amazon to reinstate Bryson after determining that he’d been fired in retaliation for his criticism.
We’ve asked Amazon for comment. It has historically denied putting workers at undue risk, and maintains that Bryson was fired for violating company language policies despite a lack of evidence. Amazon also made the list in 2019 and 2020. Other companies on the 2022 list include Dollar General, Hilton Hotels and Starbucks.
National COSH’s list won’t have any direct repercussions for Amazon. However, it’s not a good look for the tech firm after a string of allegations and incidents beyond the ones that helped it reach the list. The company has been chastised for running an Illinois warehouse during a tornado that killed six staffers in December. Workers’ rights proponents have also accused Amazon of misusing a charity work program to hide its true injury rates, and Bryson wasn’t the first supposedly fired for criticizing labor practices. We wouldn’t count on Amazon avoiding the 2023 list, even if it is trying to improve safety.
I’ve spent plenty of time in the past DJing, throwing small parties and going to events, so that’s put me in the mindset of looking for the biggest sound systems with the least amount of hassle. There are plenty of Bluetooth options these days that would make my younger self excited. The Soundboks Go is the latest of the bunch, packing a respectable boom from this relatively small package (18 x 12 x 10 inches). This 20-pound speaker is half the size of the Soundboks Gen 3 and nearly half the price at $699. It still has a thumping bass output, clear, long-throw mids and highs and wireless TeamUP expansion, but its physical connectivity is limited to a single 3.5mm aux input.
There’s a lot to like here for people who are looking for big sound in a format you can lug around without too much effort using its integrated handle or $59 shoulder strap accessory. With Soundboks’ SKAA wireless connectivity (TeamUP), it’s also easy to expand the setup with other speakers from the brand by setting one speaker to Host and the others to Join. This would let you quickly cobble together an event PA or dancefloor, but that’s no small financial feat considering the price.
The Go and the Gen 3 have a lot in common, both in sound quality and build. Both use the same swappable BatteryBoks, include a top hat (or pole) mount and offer a big, bright output (40Hz – 20kHz) with little to no distortion at the loudest volume. These Bluetooth 5.0 speakers work with the Soundboks app so you can adjust the EQ, custom sound profiles, volume, stereo positioning, set Bluetooth signal locks and download the latest firmware updates.
The onboard controls are fairly basic, providing a volume control that doubles as the power button, alongside the manual Solo, Host and Join button. The Join indicator shows the connection status, which you can read about further in the manual. For deeper controls, you’ll have to head to the app.
Jon Turi / Engadget
As for its build, the Soundboks brand has made a name for itself making rugged portable Bluetooth speakers and the Go follows suit. It has an IP65 rating so it can handle inclement weather well, just don’t dunk it in the water. On the exterior, there’s a solid ABS and polycarbonate cabinet and grille with silicone bumpers and a TPE rubber handle similar to the one on the UE Hyperboom. There’s strapping with loops that run around the center, which is used for connecting the shoulder strap. While the Go is easy enough to carry around by the handle, I’d recommend going all in and getting the strap as well if you plan to walk around with it for more than a few blocks. Sometimes even 20 pounds can seem heavier after a while.
The audio design for the Go has just one 10-inch woofer (96dB), a 1-inch horn-mounted tweeter (102dB) and you’ll find the bass ports around the woofer in a front-facing position. This limits the reflectivity of the bass from that of the Gen 3, making it generally better for outdoor settings.
That’s fine, since this is a speaker that works best when unlimbered at higher volumes and provides bass you can feel even at 20 feet away (most effectively in Bass+ mode). While that’s the ideal, you can use it indoors at a lower volume (50% or less on Indoor mode) to good effect, but again the output is very directional and can seem a bit big for smaller rooms. It is marketed as an “outdoor” speaker after all.
Still, you can shuffle through the custom profiles to get the ideal output for your particular environment. Bass+ mode provides the chunkiest and thumping bass output, but will tax the battery life. Power mode is still very loud, with plenty of bass and should give you 10 hours of playtime at full volume or 40 hours at medium. Indoors mode is a much thinner sound, but won’t disturb the neighbors as much and still sounds fine. There’s also a custom setting, so you can adjust the EQ as you see fit. However, if you’re thinking of just keeping the battery plugged in and charging the whole time while you play, keep in mind that you shouldn’t go past 50 percent volume or risk damaging the device.
One big changeup with the Soundboks Go is the focus on wireless connectivity over practical wired inputs and outputs. The single 3.5mm aux input is all you get, so even though it’s more portable, musicians and singers looking to amplify their craft on the road will have to try and make do — or upgrade to the Gen 3.
While the Soundboks Go is a high-end device, it can still fall victim to the capricious nature of Bluetooth signals. Using TeamUP to connect multiple speakers also has some range limitations, although raising the speakers up on top hats to maximize line-of-sight and having structures for the radio signals to bounce off of will help optimize connectivity. In my testing with the Bluetooth source being my pocketed phone and connecting a Soundboks Go and Gen 3 together via TeamUP they started to have a little bit of connection drop while about 40 feet away from each other in an area off a busy road with no walls of any sort nearby.
Having more than one speaker placed within 30 feet or less of each other or in clusters would seem to be the way to go here if you have them. If you’re planning an event, you may want to consider getting a SKAA transmitter to bridge your source and connect to the speakers for a more stable connection than Bluetooth. For the most reliable connection, you’ll want to stick with wired input, although the Soundboks Go’s 3.5mm port isn’t a standard for professional use.
Jon Turi / Engadget
Overall, the $699 Soundboks Go is definitely a more portable alternative to the $999 Gen 3 model, but loses most of the wired connections, aligning it more with the Bluetooth mainstream. If you want to use a pair as a Bluetooth loudspeaker alternative, it’s doable considering the up to 10 hour runtime at full volume in Power mode. But for larger (and louder) event applications, especially in Bass+, the runtime limit becomes an issue. As a personal standalone device, it’s powerful, portable and durable. The JBL PartyBox series (110 or 310) speakers are close competitors, but in portability, perhaps the JBL Boombox 2 is closer. That kicks out some volume, but doesn’t have the long throw like you’ll find with the Soundboks Go.
The price is a bit steep, but the audio quality doesn’t disappoint, especially in its size range. It can also be a great complement to another Go or a Gen 3 speaker, but it’s a less capable pro-level competitor. If you’re on the fence, there’s a 100-day return policy and a respectable two-year warranty (plus one more if you register the device). The Soundboks Go is now available to purchase for $699 on the company’s website.
Sony has revealed the three games that PlayStation Plus subscribers can snag in May at no extra cost. The headliner is a big one: FIFA 22. It was the 12th best-selling game of 2021 overall, according to NPD, and the most-downloaded title on both PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 in Europe last year.
You’ll be able to claim both the PS4 and PS5 versions of FIFA 22 starting on May 3rd. PS Plus subscribers can also snag a special FIFA Ultimate Team pack that includes 11 players rated 82 or above as well as an Icon Moments Loan Player Pick. You’ll be able to add one of three legendary players to your squad for five games.
Also in the PS Plus lineup for May is survival and action-RPG hybrid Tribes of Midgard for PS4 and PS5. Rounding out the trifecta of sort-of freebies is temple-plundering roguelike Curse of the Dead Gods for PS4.
If you haven’t claimed them yet, you have until May 2nd to snap up April’s games: Hood: Outlaws & Legends, SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom – Rehydrated and Slay the Spire. Sony also says Persona 5 will be removed from the PS Plus Collection on May 11. As long as you claim any of those before they’re rotated out, you’ll still be able to download and play them as long as you’re a PS Plus member.
This is one of the last monthly PS Plus drops before Sony revamps the service. It’s folding PlayStation Now into PS Plus and creating a three-tier system. The new-look PS Plus will roll out gradually and it’s expected to hit the US on June 13th.
At long last, Withings is releasing the ScanWatch Horizon in the US — several months after its debut. The diving watch-inspired hybrid wearable will be available in the country on May 17th for $500 with either a blue or green dial. Withings didn’t explain the reason for the long wait (it also missed an early 2022 target), but it initially had to hold for FDA clearance for the signature ECG feature.
The ScanWatch Horizon is Withings’ bid to court watch buyers who want smart features without giving up the artisanship of an upscale (if not truly luxurious) conventional timepiece. You’ll get the previously mentioned ECG sensor as well as activity, blood oxygen, heart rate and sleep tracking, all of which is tucked into a tiny display on an otherwise traditional-looking watch face.
However, design is everything here. You’ll find a tasteful steel case and scratch-resistant sapphire glass that look they’d belong on the wrist of a yacht enthusiast. And yes, the Horizon could serve as a real diver’s watch with a 10 ATM (100m, or 328ft) water rating. No one will mistake it for a Rolex or Patek Philippe, but you could wear it on formal occasions without receiving disapproving glances. Think of it as decidedly more affordable, if feature-limited. alternative to TAG Heuer’s Connected watches.
The time has come to say farewell to Bethesda’s PC games launcher. Starting today, players can transfer their games library, as well as DLC, virtual currency, in-game items and their friends list to their Steam account. Users still have until May 11th to play their heart out on the Bethesda PC launcher. On that date, the PC launcher will no longer allow access to any games. But users can still access their Bethesda.net accounts and transfer their games over to Steam after May 11th.
Players who are ready to migrate should make sure to read the detailed instructions on Bethesda’s website first. Any games users already own or purchases they’ve made will be available free on Steam. But keep in mind that the transferring process could get a bit hairy. While most game saves will automatically transfer, some will require players to manually transfer them over to Steam. For example, DOOM Eternal players will have to manually copy their saved files to their Steam folder. Bethesda has some updated instructions for DOOM Eternal players here. Fallout 76 players should note that there’s a special tool available to help make the migration easier, as well as an extensive FAQ they should read first. Wolfenstein: Youngblood at present isn’t available for transfer, so players won’t be able to carry over their progression on that game to Steam. But in-game skins and DLCs should transfer normally.
While migrating your library may seem annoying, Bethesda is sweetening the pot by making a number of new games available on Steam for the first time. These include The Elder Scrolls Arena, The Elder Scrolls Daggerfall, Creation Kit for Fallout 4 and Skyrim Special Edition, and Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory. Fallout 76’s Public Test Server is now available on Steam as well.
If you’ve had your fill of Animal Crossing: New Horizons and want to check out a new game with a similar flavor, it might be worth taking a gander at Disney Dreamlight Valleywhen it arrives. It’s a blend of a life sim and an adventure game that’s packed with Disney and Pixar characters.
You’ll be able to customize your character with T-shirts, dresses, hats and other gear you design yourself. There’s also the option of kitting them out with streetwear adorned with Mickey Mouse or a ballgown inspired by a Disney princess. Your home and village (which will have several biomes including snow-capped mountains and the Peaceful Meadow) can be decorated and upgraded as well.
As they explore, players will meet and befriend the likes of Buzz Lightyear, Moana, Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Simba, Anna, Elsa and Belle. It seems like there’s plenty to do. For instance, you can cook with Remy from Ratatouille, go fishing with Goofy and tend to Wall-E’s vegetable patch.
Gameloft Montreal/Disney
There’s a story-driven campaign at the heart of Disney Dreamlight Valley. After a mysterious event called The Forgetting, the village is full of Night Thorns. You’ll clear the thorns and help the residents restore their memories by completing tasks. More areas can be unlocked as well. Developer Gameloft Montreal is promising regular updates, including activities linked to new Disney and Pixar movies and events.
Disney Dreamlight Valley will be available on PC, Mac, Xbox, PlayStation and Nintendo Switch. Although it will formally launch in 2023 as a free-to-play game, you’ll be able to gain early access this summer via Xbox Game Pass or by buying a founder’s pack. Gameloft Montreal says the early access period will have exclusive rewards that can carry over to the officially released version.
They may not be able to shout “Eureka!” like their human colleagues but AI/ML system have shown immense potential in the field of compound discovery — whether that’s sifting through reams of data to find new therapeutic compounds or imagining new recipes using the ingredients’ flavor profiles. Now a team from Meta AI, working with researchers at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, have created an AI that can devise and refine formulas for increasingly high-strength, low-carbon concrete.
Traditional methods for creating concrete, of which we produce billions of tons every year, are far from ecologically friendly. In fact, they generate an estimated 8 percent of the annual global carbon dioxide emission total. Advances have been made in recent years to reduce the concrete industry’s carbon footprint (as well as in make the material more rugged, more resilient and even capable of charging EVs) but overall its production remains among the most carbon intensive in modern construction.
Reducing the amount of carbon that goes into concrete could be as simple as changing the ingredients that go into concrete. The material is made from four basic components: cement, aggregate, water and admixture (which act as doping agents). Cement is far and away the most carbon-intensive ingredient of the four so research has been made into reducing the amount of cement needed by supplementing it with lower-carbon materials like fly ash, slag, or ground glass.
Similarly, aggregate materials like gravel, crushed stone, sand might be replaced with recycled concrete. The problem is that there are dozens of potential ingredient materials that could be used and the ratio of their amounts all interact to influence the structural profile of the resulting concrete. In short, there are a whole slew of possible combinations for researchers to test, select, and refine; and working through those myriad options sequentially, at human speed, is going to take forever. So the Meta folks trained an AI to do it, much faster.
Working with Prof. Lav Varshney, electrical and computer engineering department, and Prof. Nishant Garg, civil engineering department, both of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the team first trained the model using the Concrete Compressive Strength data set. This set includes more than 1,000 concrete formulas as well as their structural attributes, including seven-day and 28-day compressive strength data. The team determined the resulting concrete mixture’s carbon footprint using the Cement Sustainability Initiative’s Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) tool.
Of the generated list of potential formulas, the research team then selected the five most promising options and iteratively refined them until they met or exceeded the 7- and 28-day strength metrics while dropping carbon requirements by at least 40 percent. The refinement process took mere weeks and ended up generating a concrete formula that exceeded all of those requirements while replacing as much as 50 percent of the required cement with fly ash and slag. Meta then teamed with concrete company Ozinga, the folks who recently built Meta’s newest datacenter in Illinois, to further refine the formula and conduct real world testing.
Looking ahead, the Meta team hopes to further improve the formula’s 3- and 5-day strength profiles (basically ensuring it dries faster so the rest of the construction can move ahead sooner) and get a better understanding of how it cures under varying weather conditions like wind or high humidity.
Google has long accepted requests to remove some personal information from search results, but now that option should be considerably more useful. Google has expanded the policy to let you ask for the removal of contact info like phone numbers, email addresses and physical addresses. You can also have Google remove login credentials if they pop up in queries.
The company’s previous stance limited requests to special instances, such as doxxing campaigns, as well as conspicuous fraud targets like bank and credit card details. Google will still review requests to be sure they’re honest — it won’t scrub references that are a matter of public record, for instance. A politician couldn’t simply ask to have their office phone number removed.
The expansion follows other recent efforts to curb the spread of sensitive info. As of last year, Google users under 18 can request the removal of their photos from image searches. However, this might be one of the more important developments. While the widened policy isn’t guaranteed to protect your privacy, it could thwart doxxers, harassers and stalkers who are counting on a quick Google search to reach their targets.
