Hackers have found a way to add Controller Pak support to Nintendo Switch Online's N64 collection, available via the premium Expansion Pack tier, allowing players to save certain games and activate other features such as saving time trial ghosts in Mario Kart 64.
As reported by VGC, notable Switch hacker LuigiBlood took to Twitter to explain how to hack N64 Controller Pak support into Nintendo Switch Online, and in so doing, showing that the functionality exists in the emulator's code.
seems like it works just fine pic.twitter.com/rF6Mo1IW7CJanuary 28, 2022
Users on Twitter added that while they could get Controller Pak functionality to work on Nintendo Switch Online's N64 games, the saved data doesn't remain when closing the game. However, the emulator's built-in save state feature did maintain the data for later use.
Unfortunately, the major caveat is that the hack isn't possible on a retail Nintendo Switch. At least, not one that's fresh out of the box. Instead, a modified Switch is required, the setup process of which comes with its own set of risks, including bricking your console. As such, we couldn't recommend the process in good conscience if you're even the least bit risk averse.
The good news, though, is that the hackers' efforts show that Nintendo Switch Online's N64 emulator does indeed have Controller Pak functionality - it's just not currently enabled on the service.
That being said, with additions and improvements coming to the N64 service - such as improved performance for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - there's every chance that Nintendo will eventually enable Controller Pak support.
This would be pretty fantastic, as the N64 collection feels a little incomplete without Controller Pak support. Some games, like WinBack: Covert Operations, require Controller Pak support in order to create a save file. The only current option for players in that regard is to create a save state, which gets the job done, but probably isn't what developer Omega Force intended for normal progression in the game.
As mentioned, it would also allow for the saving of ghost data in Mario Kart 64's time trials, a feature that - without the use of hacking - is completely unavailable to Switch Online players at the time of writing.
There's gameplay benefits to this, too, as the enabling of Controller Pak support could breathe some new life into Mario Kart 64's time trial community, which has been kept alive by speedrunners to this day. And ultimately, we'll take anything that makes the wait for Mario Kart 9 that much easier.
Music streaming giant Spotify is in a spot of bother.
The company has lost anywhere between $2 and $4 billion in value, artists have been demanding that their music be pulled off the platform and users uninstalling with the app. The hashtag CancelSpotify has also gone viral.
Let's examine why the Swedish streaming giant is facing the music:
Spotify gets the full Joe Rogan Experience
In May 2020, Spotify inked a $100 million deal with arguably the biggest podcaster on the planet: Joe Rogan.
Now critics say Spotify is getting exactly what it paid for: The Joe Rogan Experience.
Rogan, who has become a lightning rod for giving platforms to far-right personalities, climate deniers and conspiracy theorists, recently interviewed Dr Robert Malone.
Malone, a virologist and immunologist, has become a hero in the anti-vaccine community and been banned from Twitter for sharing misinformation.
Malone has questioned the effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccine and falsely suggested that millions of people have "been hypnotised into believing" that the vaccines work to prevent serious disease.
Rogan, who is not exactly known for challenging his guests on their views, later put out a video on Instagram saying that he was only seeking to have conversations on his podcast with people who have “differing opinions.”
"If I pissed you off, I'm sorry," Rogan said. "I will do my best to try to balance out these more controversial viewpoints with other people's perspectives so we can maybe find a better point of view."
“I'm not trying to promote misinformation, I'm not trying to be controversial,” Rogan said. “I've never tried to do anything with this podcast other than to just talk to people.”
He also said that he schedules the guests on his podcast himself, and that he would try to book doctors with different opinions right after he talks to “the controversial ones.” Rogan noted that he earlier sat down on the show with Dr Sanjay Gupta, the chief medical correspondent for CNN, Dr Michael Osterholm, who is a member of President Joe Biden's COVID-19 advisory board, and Dr Peter Hotez from Baylor College of Medicine.
Artists voice concern
Following Rogan’s podcast, veteran rocker Neil Young demanded that they remove his music from Spotify to protest Rogan spreading misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccine.
The US rocker had written a letter to the streaming platform asking for his music to be pulled off because Spotify “is spreading false information about vaccines — potentially causing death to those who believe the disinformation”.
Young had reportedly said Spotify “can have Rogan or Young. Not both.”
Following his request, Spotify, in a statement on Wednesday, said that it regretted Young's decision, “but hope to welcome him back soon.”
However, Young wasn’t the only one who asked for his music to be pulled off the platform.
On Friday, Joni Mitchell sought to remove all of her music from Spotify in solidarity with Neil Young.
Mitchell, who like Young is a California-based songwriter, said, "Irresponsible people are spreading lies that are costing people their lives. I stand in solidarity with Neil Young and the global scientific and medical communities on this issue.”
It is of signifance to note that Young and Mitchell are both polio survivors -- contracting it in the early 1950s before a vaccine became available.
Britain's Prince Harry and his wife Meghan also waded into the controversy and expressed their concern to Spotify about COVID-19 misinformation on its platform.
A spokesperson for their Archewell foundation was quoted as telling Reuters, "Hundreds of millions of people are affected by the serious harms of rampant mis- and disinformation every day. Last April, our co-founders began expressing concerns to our partners at Spotify about the all too real consequences of COVID-19 misinformation on its platform.
"We have continued to express our concerns to Spotify to ensure changes to its platform are made to help address this public health crisis. We look to Spotify to meet this moment and are committed to continuing our work together as it does."
Spotify takes action
Reacting to the negative press and the billions of lost valuation, the music streaming service on Sunday said that it will add content advisories before podcasts discussing the virus.
In a post Sunday, Spotify chief executive Daniel Ek laid out more transparent platform rules.
“Personally, there are plenty of individuals and views on Spotify that I disagree with strongly,” wrote Ek. “It is important to me that we don’t take on the position of being content censor while also making sure that there are rules in place and consequences for those who violate them.”
Ek said that the advisories will link to Spotify's fact-based COVID-19 hub in what he described as a “new effort to combat misinformation.”
It will roll out in the coming days, Ek added.
He did not specifically reference Rogan or Young.
With inputs from agencies
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While Samsung Galaxy S22 leaks have totally laid bare the upcoming Android phones, it's easy to miss the small details when given big leaks, and it sometimes takes otherwise-unimportant leaks to get us to notice the little things.
Case in point, hands-on pictures of cases for the entire Samsung Galaxy S22 range have leaked, via SamMobile. These wouldn't otherwise be noteworthy, as they look almost identical to phone renders we've already seen (and the Galaxy S21 cases for that matter), but the design of them shows a Galaxy S22 screen feature that not everyone will be happy with.
This feature is a flat-edge display. Previous flagship Samsung phones used curved-edge screens for a few generations up until the design element was dropped on the Galaxy S21, and it seems Samsung is sticking with its choice for the S22 and S22 Plus.
The leaked cases show edges that go all the way to the front, whereas cases for curved-side screens typically only cover part of the phone's frame.
Note we're talking about the standard and Plus models - the Ultra devices have always had curved-edge displays, and if the case leak is anything to go by, that's not changing.
So it seems likely that the Galaxy S22 series is sticking with the design of its predecessors, with screens that are totally flat even up to the sides, and Samsung hasn't decided to revert back to the curvy mode of design.
Curved-edge displays typically prove rather divisive for flagship phones.
On one hand, mobiles with the feature are comfortable to hold, and the curving glass adds a level of premium elegance that you just don't get with a 'standard' smartphone.
On the other hand, curved-edge displays are very easy to press with your palm, so it's easy to accidentally select things you don't mean to when holding the phone. They make the mobile more fragile too, especially since cases cover less of the phone as a result.
So some people like the feature and others don't, and it makes sense for Samsung to cater to both audiences.
However, we typically see curvy screens saved for premium phones, and it sounds like the Xiaomi 12 and OnePlus 10 families, two contemporary rivals for the Galaxy S22, could go all-in on the rounded-glass design.
Since Samsung's only premium phone with a curved-edge screen could well be the Ultra model, which we're expecting to have a high price, people who want a phone with top-end specs and a premium design, but not a huge price tag, will find Samsung doesn't offer them what they need.
Mario Kart 9 is apparently in active development, and as we’d expect from the series, the new game will supposedly bring with it a unique twist to help shake things up.
Even though it's only a rumor, news that Mario Kart 9 is in development is a pretty safe bet. After all, it’s been almost five years since the launch of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and eight since the game’s original Wii U release. And with a total of roughly 47 million copies sold (between both Switch and Wii U versions of Mario Kart 8), a ninth entry in the series is surely a case of “when,” and not one of “if.”
Yet as long overdue as Mario Kart 9 may be, it’s not a game I think we’ll be seeing anytime soon. Not in 2022 at the very least. In fact, I’m not entirely confident that it’ll be released on the Nintendo Switch at all and I honestly hope that it isn’t, as I think Mario Kart 9 can only truly shine brightest on brand new Nintendo hardware.
As much as I can’t wait to hear Charles Martinet scream “Mario Kart…9!!!” such an event would be so much more glorious on a brand new Nintendo console. Whether that be in the form of the Switch 2 or otherwise, Mario Kart 9 has the best chances of standing out on a platform of its own.
After all, the original Switch model is getting a bit long in the tooth. March 3, 2022 will mark five years of the console being on sale, so it’s relatively safe to imagine the hardware guys at the big N are already cooking up the Switch’s successor.
Mario Kart 9 would ultimately be served better on new hardware, then. And if you look back at the history of Mario Kart releases, it checks out. Since the SNES, exactly one Mario Kart title has launched on almost every major Nintendo console and handheld, excluding the Game Boy Color and (shudders) the Virtual Boy.
Sure, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is an enhanced port, but it’s the only Mario Kart game on Switch (not including the Nintendo Switch Online retro offerings) regardless. Plus, it came with new modes, characters, and outsold its Wii U counterpart by a considerable margin. All the more reason, then, for Mario Kart 9 to stand out on its own, on an entirely separate console.
Which brings me onto the aforementioned “unique twist” that Mario Kart 9 is allegedly bringing to the track. It's a safe bet that Mario Kart 9 will indeed bring something new to the table, as have most games in the series before it.
What’s more, it’s important to note that each gameplay shakeup a new Mario Kart brings is often hard to imagine being pulled off on the previous generation of consoles, for the most part. You’d never get Double Dash’s duo karts on N64 with its limitations. Similarly, it’s difficult imagining Mario Kart 8’s track-bending anti-gravity on the much less powerful Wii.
If we follow that trend to its logical conclusion, we can surmise that Mario Kart 9’s “twist” could very well be something unachievable on the Wii U, or even the Switch. But what exactly could that be? Perhaps we can look to Nintendo’s competitors for clues.
Both the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S are fantastic consoles, loaded with incredible tech, some that Nintendo might be looking to implement into its next-gen hardware. Take these consoles’ lightning-fast SSDs which drastically cut down load times to mere seconds. Now, Nintendo games are usually fairly quick to load, thanks to masterful optimization. But there’s more to those SSDs than just fast load times.
Take Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart on PS5. It’s not the most incredible game in the PS5’s library, but it does demonstrate an astonishing gameplay feature: the ability to hop through rifts into entirely new levels on the fly. No load times or stuttering to break the immersion.
Now imagine a similar setup for Mario Kart 9. One second you’re happily pootling through a Toad-themed amusement park, the very next you’re hurtling through space around Rosalina’s cosmic observatory. My point is that Mario Kart 9’s unique twist could allow us to race on two, maybe three entirely separate tracks all in a single race. This track selection could be entirely random, or even mix in retro tracks with the new ones.
This is all just idle speculation, of course. After all, while Nintendo excels with certain innovations - like the Wii’s motion controls - it has traditionally been slow to adopt things like HD visuals and better online infrastructure, just to name a couple. As such, while Nintendo routinely impresses with its first-party lineups, there’s always something else missing that you just wish was there. And in this case, it’s far from a guarantee that Nintendo’s next console will implement tech like SSDs, let alone 4K resolution, even.
Failing (or perhaps in addition to) this, I’d love to see Nintendo take another crack at its HD Rumble tech. The company made a big deal out of the haptic feedback tech before the Switch’s launch, and rightly so, as it could transform the Joy-Con controllers into something that felt remarkably tangible. Launch title 1-2-Switch comes to mind here, which put HD Rumble atop its otherwise mediocre offerings.
And thanks to the PS5’s Dualsense controller, we know that haptic feedback can greatly benefit player immersion. Haptic feedback lets you feel the clattering of sword against shield in Demon’s Souls. The pattering of a rainstorm in Astro’s Playroom. The charging of your alt-fire in Returnal.
On paper, it sounds like a gimmick, but haptic feedback on PS5 has proven time and again to be an extremely welcome feature, and something I’d love to see Nintendo have more confidence in. The feeling of your kart’s tyres against the gravel, getting smacked in the backside by a red shell or being rocked by a Bob-Omb explosion, HD Rumble can only serve to benefit a game like Mario Kart 9.
Perhaps what’s most interesting about the Mario Kart series is that it can act as a barometer for the state of Nintendo in the moment. Super Mario Kart and Mario Kart 64 were fairly rough around the edges, but both represent a transition into the 3D space - the former with pseudo-3D Mode 7 tech, and the latter with early polygonal graphics.
The series beyond this flourished with copious experimentation. Double Dash, for example, switched things up with a two-characters-per-kart setup. Mario Kart DS, meanwhile, was Nintendo’s first foray into handheld online gaming. Wii introduced bikes which have been a mainstay ever since. Finally, Mario Kart 7 added paragliding and underwater sections while Mario Kart 8 quite literally turned gameplay on its head with anti-gravity tracks.
The point is that almost every Mario Kart game brings something new to the table. But not just in terms of gameplay, as most titles in the series also end up being some of the best looking games on their respective platforms. I’m still awestruck by just how incredible Mario Kart 8 Deluxe’s art direction and visual fidelity is - and that’s a five year old port of an eight year old game.
Mario Kart 9, then, is likely to go above and beyond in the visuals department should it launch on new Nintendo hardware. We’ve since seen how superb the series can look in 4K, thanks to emulation efforts with Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. However, that’s upscaled from 1080p, and we’ve yet to see a Mario Kart title made from the ground up with 4K resolution in mind. That’s something that Mario Kart 9 can hopefully deliver if it swerves the Switch in favor of Nintendo’s next-gen hardware.
That’s plenty of speculation for now, then. Ultimately, Mario Kart 9 is quite likely going to look and play nothing like we’re currently imagining. Well, besides the basics of driving karts on extravagant courses with a kooky cast of plumbers, princesses and reptiles. I am looking forward to whatever a new Mario Kart has in store, though, and can only hope it lives up to the supremely high quality of its immediate predecessor.
Late in 2021, HP informed its customers of its decision to end its popular “free ink for life” plan which allowed its customers to print up to 15 pages per month.
Now, as a double whammy, HP printer owners that have embraced the Instant Ink subscription service have been told that their subscription price will go up ( potentially by up to 50% in some cases) in March 2022.
The changes are two fold; firstly, the smallest plan sees a 33% reduction in its allowance (15 to 10), while its price remains the same (essentially a stealth increase from 6.67p/c to 9.9p/c) while moderate and frequent plans (50 and 100 pages) see a fixed increase of £1 or $1 (depending where you are) to £2.99/$2.99 and £4.49/$4.49, a rise of 50% and 29% respectively.
The remaining plans, which are likely to be less popular, have not seen a rise in price yet. The price of extra page sets (usually £/$0.1 each in lots of 10) and unused page rollover have remained the same. At $/£0.03, the most expensive plan also has the cheapest price per page.
The changes appear to be global and have been criticized on HP’s customer forums. “So, all in all I’m disgusted with HP, even before our relationship got off the ground.” one member wrote, summing up how most users feel.
As for all subscription services, Printing-as-a-service (or PAAS) has grown in popularity with HP being the innovator and the main driver, especially in the home printer market.
Instant Ink has been a big success, with HP revealing in October 2021 that it had 10 million users, generated $500 million revenue annually and a 30% annual revenue and subscriber growth. It is the most popular printing subscription services out there, by a wide margin.
The best alternative to subscription services like HP Instant Ink are so-called CIS (continuous ink system) printers and we’ve got a list of the best ink tank printers at the ready. Popular with hobbyists and DIYers at the turn of the century, big printer vendors have embraced them as competition from compatible ink cartridges became more intense.
Most major brands (HP, Epson, Brother, Canon) have at least one of these Supertank printer models: INKvestment, Ecotank, Megatank, Smart Tank. They all share the same philosophy: big ink reservoirs that can be refilled, a steep (but totally acceptable) buying price and a large footprint.
Rumors of WhatsApp making its way over to the iPad have been circulating for several years, but it seems there might be signs of light at the end of the tunnel for those hoping to see the instant messaging app appear on Apple's tablets in a native form.
In an interview with The Verge, WhatsApp boss Will Cathcart acknowledged that "people have wanted an iPad app for a long time" before going on to say that "we'd love to do it" – so make of that what you will.
While Cathcart didn't go as far as confirming that a tablet-specific app is going to see the light of day, or hint at any possible launch date, the confirmation that he and his team are keen on making WhatsApp for iPad a reality is encouraging news.
As Cathcart points out, WhatsApp engineers have recently been busy updating the encrypted messenger app so that it can work independently on multiple devices – you no longer need to have your phone switched on and connected to the internet to load up messages in the WhatsApp web portal, for example.
"We did a lot of work on the technology for supporting multiple devices," says Cathcart. "That would be really important for a tablet app, to be able to use the app even if your phone isn't on. So the underlying technology is there."
We've been here before though: last June, Cathcart also said that he would love to bring WhatsApp to the iPad, and we're still waiting. Plenty of users will be hoping that his enthusiasm for getting the app in the right form for Apple's tablets translates into an actual product sooner rather than later.
WhatsApp has grown to become one of the most popular messaging apps in the world, not least because it works the same across Android and iOS devices: no matter what type of smartphone people are using, they all get more or less the same experience inside the WhatsApp interface.
That cross-platform support takes a lot of effort to support though. The app's team is still working on the ability to migrate chats from Android devices to iPhones, and every time a new feature like this gets added, it's a substantial amount of coding and testing work.
The same can be said for getting WhatsApp running on multiple devices separately, without relying on an active connection to your phone. Part of the appeal of WhatsApp is its encryption, and this needs to be carefully handled on each new device.
In other words, putting WhatsApp on the iPad involves more than just making the screen elements and menus bigger for a larger screen. Back in August we saw a leaked image of WhatsApp running on an iPad, so it looks likely that a tablet version is at an advanced stage of development.
Cryptocurrency is a field that’s only grown since its inception, and Opera wants in. The company is making headway by developing another variant of its web browser: the Crypto Browser Project.
This app enables users to store their crypto wallets within the new browser. Users can also follow and manage different types of electronic coin, as well as the controversial NFT content that’s being offered by various companies. These capabilities are all grouped into what’s called Web3, a collection of activities that some predict will be heavily used across the web in the coming years.
Opera is breaking into new frontiers, creating specialized browsers like the gaming-focused GX. The Crypto Browser Project is Opera’s attempt to target users that have a crypto wallet.
TechRadar spoke with Jan Standal, VP of Product Marketing at Opera, to understand the need for a cryptocurrency-focused web browser.
If you’ve used an Opera product before, the Crypto browser will feel familiar to you. The layout is similar, but with a blue and green color scheme.
We asked Standal what Opera’s browser could offer to the crypto market:
“Browsers have always provided a trusted gateway through which consumers experience and engage with the internet - and all the new digital trends and technologies on it,” Standal explains. “With the Crypto Browser Project, we set out to build the first truly custom experience for people who want to experience blockchain and Web3 technologies, channeling almost three decades of experience we have in creating user-friendly browsers.
“Our Crypto Browser lowers the barriers to entry to the Web3 world by providing our users with easy access to blockchain news and tutorials, seamless browsing of Web3 Services and apps, and our trusted non-custodial wallet built directly into the browser.”
We wondered why the aim was a browser from Opera focusing on cryptocurrency, rather than a browser extension.
“By controlling the browser, we are able to solve experiences that can’t be solved with just extensions. Take, for example, the secure clipboard feature in the Crypto Browser beta: it protects your wallet address from being manipulated by other apps. Solving such cases makes Opera the most secure option for cryptocurrency and Web3 enthusiasts - something that wouldn't be possible to do with traditional browsers.
“While the shift to Web3 is underway, most of the apps are being created by small software companies, and we hope they can benefit from our technologies, experience, and user base.”
Since cryptocurrency is still in its infancy, we asked Standal how the browser could cater to different types of crypto.
“Partnerships are a priority for Opera - we are pursuing an inclusive multi-chain strategy. By creating a solution respectful of all ecosystems, and encouraging the development of common standards and practices amongst developer communities, we hope to help this incredible and diverse new field of creators achieve the fullest potential for their technologies.”
We pressed Standal on Opera’s decision to create a separate browser that focuses on cryptocurrency rather than incorporating crypto features into Opera or Opera GX.
“With the Crypto Browser Project, we are trying an all-in approach, providing people with a specific experience they need in order to interact with Web3,” Standal explains. “As the technologies of Web3 become more advanced, we will see a strong divergence in the way the browser will interact with the world - and it was important that we prepared for that.
“We believe that if you’re interested in cryptocurrencies, blockchain technologies, even funny coins, you should have a dedicated space for that. If you’re starting and simply want to understand the space better, the Crypto Browser Project will be the perfect starting point.”
Standal continued: “With Opera GX, we learned the power of community, and how we could craft a browser built just for the needs of our awesome gaming users. With the Crypto Browser project, we are showing the same care and attention to the crypto community focused on safe, easy, and intuitive access to crypto services and tools in a way even a novice can understand.”
There’s still the ongoing issue of security and authenticity when it comes to bitcoins. There’s also this persistent idea that crypto goes hand in hand with gambling, especially considering Bitcoin’s rise and fall in value is always making news. We asked Standal what steps Opera has taken with this browser to keep users safe.
“While it's true that crypto is not for everyone yet, we see that millions of our browser users are already onboarding to crypto and Web3 is happening. We strongly believe that it's better for serious companies to participate in the space, help the users and shape the industry rather than avoid it,” Standal explains. “Helping our users avoid scams is a natural part of this. The Crypto Browser provides you with the Crypto Corner, which is a source of tutorials, access to influential publications, and key information about the space. There’s also a whole set of security and privacy features such as the built-in VPN, ad blocker, the secure clipboard, and others.”
Another side to cryptocurrency is the NFT, or Non-fungible Token. These are digital assets, like images or videos, that are allegedly uniquely yours. Opera’s crypto browser will allow you to use your wallet to purchase these. We wanted to know where the company stood on this process.
“Those steps are outlined on NFT platforms,” Standal clarifies. “From our side, we make sure no one meddles with your wallet address by providing you with a built-in wallet and a secure clipboard to copy and paste your wallet address and other sensitive data.”
The company also announced in a blog post that the crypto browser is in development for Apple devices, and will be submitted to the App Store. But with features allowing users to manage their crypto wallet within a web browser, we asked Standal if Apple’s most likely response will be to reject the app, especially if there's explicit ways to buy and sell crypto.
“The Opera browser for iOS already comes with an array of crypto features. The Crypto Browser Project isn’t that different in terms of features; rather [it] builds them into a unified experience,” Standal continues. “It’s your entry point into Web3, with its apps and other solutions - as well as providing information about blockchain technologies. And [it’s] a safe and trusted source for where to explore next.”
It was surprising to see Opera announce a web browser solely focused on cryptocurrency. Considering some of the negative connotations of the field, it’s currently a slippery slope for any company to include any features that involve crypto and NFT content.
But Opera has gone all-in with this venture by presenting an entirely new browser, as opposed to a feature or a browser extension. While Standal maintains that the Opera Crypto Browser can guide users in crypto wallet management, while helping them to keep track of any other trend within the world of electronic currencies, users might do well to use dedicated apps instead.
Companies like Coinbase offer apps that give you a direct overview of your wallet, and only your wallet. Having a web browser that lets you watch YouTube videos, while allowing you to keep track of Bitcoin, may be too much for most users.
Time will tell if other browsers, such as Firefox and Microsoft Edge among others, will introduce features focused on cryptocurrency. We’d be surprised if any other company went the extra mile and created a whole crypto-browser, in the same way that Opera has.
Crypto could still be a fad that ends, a story that’s remembered at the end of the decade in some Netflix documentary. But then again, if companies don’t push some boundaries, we’ll know how far technology can go - or how convenient new ideas might be for us.
In the three months since the Google Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro launched, the narrative around them has soured: we started by praising all the new features and Google's successful reinvention after a few years of dull phones. That tune has since changed, and with the Pixel 6a on the horizon, we're struggling to muster up the enthusiasm we had at the launch of the original Pixel 6 models.
You see, it turns out there are a lot of Pixel 6 problems, and these bugs have been cropping up since launch. We've seen issues with Bluetooth, emergency calls, camera stability, audio playback, Wi-Fi connection, display aberrations and more.
How has Google responded? To their credit, they've been diligently issuing patches targeting these problems. Unfortunately, some of their solutions have actually introduced new problems, inevitably doing more harm than good.
None of this spells good news for the Pixel 6a - neither for the phone itself, nor for its pre-launch hype.
Despite top hardware, we're a little hesitant to wholeheartedly recommend the Pixel 6 family because of the ongoing software issues.
The problem isn't just the bugs, as not everyone is affected by them - it's the uncertainty surrounding them. We don't know when new problems could pop up, or what they could be and how they could affect the phone.
On multiple occasions, this writer has had to warn friends and family members who were considering buying a Pixel 6 about the issues the series has faced.
The issues have been going on for a few months now, despite Google's repeated attempts to fix them, which makes buying a new Pixel a bit of a risky investment.
We're not expecting the Google Pixel 6a for a few months - so why are we writing this article now?
Well, the phone has just entered the first phase of its existence because we're starting to see the rumor-mill warm up. A recent leak pointed to a May release date for the phone. We suspect that in the coming months, more information about the device will be leaked.
More writers and tech fans are going to join the Pixel 6a discussion, and the tone of those conversations could dictate how enthused prospective buyers will by the time the phone is actually available.
So if the Pixel 6a leak stories are punctuated by tales of the Pixel 6 series breaking in new and annoying ways, people are going to associate the company's phones with bugs (and perhaps rightly so).
There's also the additional concern that the Pixel 6a, which should be a budget version of the Pixel 6 in terms of hardware, will have the same software as the 6, meaning any issues still present in Google's software will inevitably make their way over to the newer handsets.
If Google can fix the Pixel 6 issues soon - and for good - it could stop the Pixel 6 problem news stories from bleeding into the Pixel 6a hype in any major way.
But if the Pixel 6a launch rolls around and we're still having trouble getting our Pixel 6 phones to work as intended, our vocal gripes could affect interest in, and sales of, the newer models.
This far ahead of the expected launch window, it's natural not to get too excited for the devices - especially since we've also got many major launches between now and then. But unless Google steps up in a major way, we're never going to be able to get beyond the disinterest we're feeling now.
The Apple AirPods Pro 2 are the rumored next-generation offering of the company’s popular noise-cancelling earbuds – and if the rumors are to be believed, they’ll be the most advanced true wireless earbuds we’ve ever seen.
The original AirPods Pro are among the best wireless earbuds you can buy, with immersive Spatial Audio support, active noise cancellation, and fantastic integration with the wider Apple ecosystem.
However, the next version of these buds are now rumored to come with a range of significant upgrades: we’ve heard about everything from codewords that can control the active noise cancellation to blood oxygen monitors embedded in the earbuds themselves, but how likely are such futuristic features?
Since the AirPods Pro 2 are expected to launch later this year (that’s according to respected analysts like Ming-Chi Kuo), perhaps the more fanciful ideas are just too futuristic - so let’s analyze the intriguing features we’ve heard about so far.
The most recent rumor circulating about the AirPods Pro 2 is that they’ll allow specific codewords and voices to ‘break through’ their active noise cancellation settings.
Spotted by Apple Insider, a new patent application called ‘Interrupt for noise-cancelling audio devices’ describes a new feature that’s designed to stop you from missing out on important conversations while active noise cancellation is switched on.
As explained in the patent, a user “may desire to be interrupted by pre-designation contacts… or by a person who speaks a designated keyword to the user”.
So, if your partner is shouting your name to say that dinner’s ready, future AirPods could turn off the active noise cancellation, enter Transparency mode, or turn off your music to allow you to hear them.
To stop any person from interrupting your music, you’d be able to pre-approve contacts known to you and your devices – and to determine whether you’re the one being addressed by these contacts, the AirPods could analyse the volume of their voice and how long it takes for their voice to reach you.
The patent also describes how this could work with codewords as well as voices, so you could train your AirPods to recognize when any person says your name, and turn off your noise cancellation accordingly.
How likely is this to happen? As with any patent, there’s no guarantee that the technology described here will actually make an appearance, let alone in a new version of the AirPods Pro that’s expected to launch in a few months.
This feature would be useful, and it certainly isn’t outside the realms of possibility that your iPhone could identify different voices and switch off your AirPods’ noise cancellation.
After all, Siri can recognize up to six different voices on the Apple HomePod and HomePod mini, and tailor its responses accordingly.
The technology required to make this feature work is definitely present – but whether it would be available at the time of the AirPods Pro 2 launch is another question. Apple has previously updated accessibility features on its AirPods range of products well after their launch dates, and we could see something similar happening here, perhaps to coincide with a new version of iOS.
The rumor that future AirPods will be able to monitor your blood oxygen levels is something we’ve been hearing about for some time now.
A 2020 leak from LeaksApplePro claimed that the AirPods Pro 2 will specifically come with ambient light sensors, backing up a previous report by DigiTimes that said future AirPods will use ambient light sensors to take biometric measurements – potentially for monitoring blood oxygen levels, as seen in the Apple Watch 6.
This could work like the ear-based clip-on pulse oximeters used in hospitals, which shine light through the earlobe to detect the level of oxygen in a patient’s bloodstream.
This would allow the AirPods Pro 2 to collect fitness data and measure it over time – useful, if you’re using the earbuds as running headphones – and perhaps even monitor conditions that cause shortness of breath and low oxygen levels.
How likely is this to happen? We don’t think this one is very likely. The current AirPods Pro don’t rest on the earlobe in a way that would work for a blood oximeter, and integrating an actual ear clip would bring a drastic design change to the AirPods Pro. Of all the earbuds that this feature could come to, the Powerbeats Pro are more likely, since they hook around the ear and have more contact with the skin.
Saying that, the technology to do this does exist. In 2019, FreeWavs completed a successful crowdfunding campaign for a pair of fitness earbuds that can measure your blood oxygen levels, as well as other biometric data. However, the product never came to market, with the company citing issues with accurately detecting blood oxygen levels, and even contemplating releasing a version of the earbuds without this feature to appease its backers.
Apple is a much larger company though, and if any brand could make this feature work, it’s Apple. We’ve already seen Apple integrate a pulse oximeter into the Apple Watch 6, which offers the ability to measure blood oxygen levels. As Apple says, measurements taken with the Blood Oxygen app on the Apple Watch 6 are “not intended for medical use and are only designed for general fitness and wellness purposes”, which makes it ripe for fitness-focused headphones.
Like all of the futuristic AirPods Pro 2 features we’ve heard about, gesture controls is a rumor borne out of patents awarded to Apple.
The first was a 2020 patent that describes the ability to control a pair of true wireless earbuds with ‘in-air’ gestures – for example, hovering a hand over the AirPods to turn off the noise cancellation or pause your music. This feature would use capacitive sensors to detect the proximity of the user to the AirPods.
More recently, Apple filed a patent for even more ‘out there’ gestures, describing earbuds that could be controlled by touching your face, shaking your head, and clicking your teeth together. These actions wouldn’t even be limited to the user’s own body, with the ability to control the earbuds by touching another object – for instance, tapping a table or squeezing the arm of another person.
How likely is this to happen? Cupping an ear over your earbuds to pause active noise cancellation or your music doesn’t seem that far fetched, and we can see Apple implementing this with a next-gen pair of AirPods Pro.
However, we can’t see people using the more flamboyant gestures in public, and it would be very difficult for Apple to ensure these gestures are accurately picked up by the earbuds. We’ve seen gesture controls implemented in true wireless earbuds such as the TicPods 2 Pro, which allow you to accept calls by nodding your head, and reject them by shaking it. However, we have found that such controls rarely work well, if at all.
It’s rare for Apple to take these kinds of risks with its products, preferring to let other companies experiment with new technologies before implementing them itself. Apple products are known for working well and for delivering ease of use, and the company is unlikely to take a gamble on gesture controls if it isn’t confident that they’ll work every time.
The rumored features that are most likely to come with the AirPods Pro 2 are less headline-grabbing than blood oxygen monitors and codewords, but they’re interesting all the same.
We can expect some improvements to the active noise cancellation technology; the AirPods Pro were released in 2019 and the technology has moved on since then, with models such as the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds offering near-silence with the ANC feature switched on. While Apple’s noise-cancelling earbuds do block out a good amount of ambient sound (especially if its a constant sound, like a rumbling train), you’re still able to hear things like music playing in a shared office.
We’re also hoping to see some improvements to the audio performance of the AirPods Pro, and we’d love for Apple to include an adjustable EQ so users could tweak the sound to their liking. This would let you dig into the different frequency bands - perhaps boosting the bass when you’re exercising to power you through your workout, or increasing the trebles and mids so voices sound clearer on podcasts.
Support for lossless audio and hi-res streaming is a possibility, too, as Becky Roberts, Hi-Fi and Audio Editor for What Hi-Fi? explains: “The AirPods 2 will likely be the first Apple headphones to launch since Apple Music went lossless and hi-res, and Apple will no doubt be keen for its headphone hardware and music software to be on the same page for audio quality, as is the case with its spatial audio technology.”
It’s not as simple as including support for a hi-res audio codec though. “The barrier to truly lossless support for headphones like the AirPods that rely solely on Bluetooth connection (i.e cannot be wired) lies in whether Apple can raise the ceiling of Bluetooth transmission quality, or find an alternative method to send high-quality music wirelessly to headphones.”
“We may be looking at an AirPods model further down the line for that,” she says. In any case, it’s clearly an issue that Apple is looking into. In an interview with What Hi-Fi?, Apple's VP of Acoustics, Gary Geaves said that “there’s a number of tricks we can play to maximise or get around some of the limits of Bluetooth,” but that “it’s fair to say that we would like more bandwidth”.
Truly lossless streaming, that doesn’t heavily compress audio files and reduce the detail in your music could be made possible with Qualcomm’s aptX Lossless codec, which can deliver CD-quality streams over Bluetooth, and is expected to start coming to headphones later this year.
Without the need to squeeze all the detail out of your music so that the files can be transmitted wirelessly, this codec should deliver a sound that closely replicates the quality that the musicians and engineers were working with in the studio at the time of recording.
Whether this technology will come to the AirPods Pro 2 remains to be seen - and as Roberts said, we still might not get fully lossless AirPods in 2022.
It’s also possible that the AirPods Pro will see a dramatic redesign in 2022, with Apple getting rid of the protruding ear stems that make its AirPods earbuds so instantly recognizable.
Of course, there’s no guarantee that any of these rumors will be proven right, or that the AirPods Pro 2 will even be released in 2022. Apple hasn’t confirmed that it’s working on the next generation of its noise-cancelling earbuds, and is very unlikely to do so before an official launch
Still, we’re pretty confident that the company will upgrade the AirPods Pro before the year is out. Three years after their release, the AirPods Pro are still a good pair of true wireless earbuds, but they certainly aren’t the best you can buy. Apple will want to change that by releasing a pair of earbuds that can compete with class-leading models from big competitors such as Sony, Bose and Sennheiser - and by focusing on more futuristic features, it could detract from areas it’s less adept in, like audio quality and noise cancellation.
Saying that, we daresay Apple will stay true to form and work on perfecting the less headline-grabbing features of the AirPods Pro before taking a risk on emerging technologies like biometric sensors, voice recognition, and gesture controls.
For a long time, it looked like DJI's affordable consumer drones would fly free from serious competition. But that all changed in September 2021 when Autel announced four upcoming drones that represent serious competition for DJI's successful, entry-level designs.
The Autel Evo Nano and Nano+ are designed to take on the excellent DJI Mini 2, while the Evo Lite and Lite+ models have landed to take a bite out of the popular DJI Air 2S.
Interestingly, the specification for the Evo Lite series looks like it was taken directly from an existing Air 2S owner’s wishlist – in fact, it could be a compilation of things we might well see in the DJI Air 3, if and when DJI releases that drone.
The Autel Evo Lite+ was designed to exceed or match the DJI Air 2S across the board, sporting almost everything in the existing DJI Air 2S, but with some features that go beyond that design and even compete with the Mavic 3.
But before we compare the drones and delve into the specifications, let’s start with the inevitable abuse that owning a Lite+ will unleash on your bank account.
With components in short supply and the cost of chip fabrication rising, the Lite+ was always going to top the Air 2S on price. But it's possible that the Air 2S' price could also rise, and the Air 3 will almost certainly cost more when it does appear.
At the time of writing, the Lite+ costs $1,349 / £1,129 / AU $2,499 for its standard package with a single battery and a single set of replacement blades. For the Premium bundle, with three batteries, lots of props, a three-battery charger, soft bag, and a few other goodies, that outlay increases to $1,649 / £1,399 / AU $2,999.
That compares unfavorably with the DJI Air 2S, with that drone costing $999 / £899 / / AU $1699 and its Fly More Combo with the extra batteries setting you back $1,299 / £1,169 / AU $2,099.
Overall, the Autel Evo Lite+ costs around $350 / £230 more, irrespective of which bundle you buy. That's a pretty substantial increase of about 30% over the Air 2S, which takes it to a level that's likely beyond the budget of many hobbyist fliers.
While these drones look remarkably similar in layout and design, the Lite+ is altogether a larger drone that measures 210×123×95mm when folded and 427×384×95mm when the arms are deployed. By contrast, the DJI Air 2S is just 180×97×77 mm folded and 183×253×77 mm when unfolded. This scale makes the Lite+ marginally bigger than even the DJI Mavic 3.
As both of these drones are above the 250g threshold, it might not matter by exactly how much, but the take-off weight of the Air 2S is only 595g, whereas the Lite+ is significantly heavier at 835g.
That might immediately look like a win for the Air 2S until you realise that the extra weight in the Lite+ is allocated chiefly to a larger battery, enabling a longer flight time of 40 mins over 32 mins on the DJI drone and superior wind speed resistance. It can also climb much more rapidly, reaching the legal height limit of 400ft in just 15 seconds.
Both drones have obstacle avoidance, an FFC transmission range of 12km and the ability to record up 5.4K resolution video up to 30 fps. But what truly divides these drones is the camera technology, as the Autel Evo Lite+ has a much more modern sensor, optics and image processing technology.
The Lite+ comes in three colors, including the signature Autel Orange, compared to the single grey color scheme that DJI has on the Air 2S.
Sensor size is all about collecting as much light as possible to produce the best representation when stills or video are captured. Both drones have a 20MP 1-inch CMOS sensor with 2.4μm pixel size, but the Air 2S has a fixed f/2.8 aperture.
One feature that the DJI Mavic 2 Pro offered that's missing on the DJI Air 2S was a camera with a variable aperture. This is something that's offered by the Evo Lite+, with its aperture adjustable from f/2.8 to f11.
This allows much greater management of the light that's entering the camera, without the need for ND filters – and even greater scope if ND filters are used.
The camera field of view on both drones is pretty similar, at 88 degrees on the Air 2S and 82 degrees on the Lite+.
But the Lite+ sensor also has many other enhancements that enable it to capture relatively noise-free content in even very low light conditions. Whereas the video ISO for both drones is capped at ISO 6400 for standard scenes, a special night mode on the Lite+ allows the ISO to increase to an incredible ISO 48000. This gives the Lite+ the edge when shooting in low-light conditions, and it's also better able to capture realistic colors in those situations.
Where the Air 2S has an advantage is that it can capture content in a D-Log format that provides plenty of scope for adjustment in post-processing – this is something that Autel has promised in a future firmware release for the Lite+, but it isn’t available yet.
While the Lite+ has ‘6K’ emblazoned on its camera, it offers an almost identical maximum resolution and modes as the Air 2S. The best resolution of the Lite+ is 5472x3076, whereas the Air 2S has two extra vertical pixel lines at 5472×3078.
At that resolution, both offer 30fps, and they can increase this to 60fps by trading down to 4K, and up to 120fps by going down to 1080p.
The maximum bitrate on offer is 150Mbps on the Air 2S and 120Mbps on the Lite+. This means there's slightly less compression on the DJI drone's video, though not enough to make a dramatic difference in quality.
Autel has promised HDR modes for 4K and lower resolution video in a future update, and that is something that DJI doesn’t offer or, at the time of writing, intends to add.
Both drones support H.264/MPEG-4 AVC and H.265/HEVC encoding, but the Lite+ has only 8-bit color representation where the Air 2S has the option to shoot 10-bit Dlog-M.
The biggest difference between these two cameras becomes evident at night, as the Air 2S has a maximum ISO of 6400 in manual video capture and only 1600 if you use Dlog-M.
For automatic video and still image capture, the Lite+ can match the Air 2S' ISO 6400 option, but using the Night scene mode boosts that sensitivity to ISO 48000. It also has special a moonlight processing mode to reduce noise impact when recording at these very high ISO levels.
Still images on the Lite+ can be shot in 10-bit DNG, showing the sensor can work with the extended contrast of this bit depth, and the maximum resolution is 5472x3648, identical to that of the Air 2S.
Overall, the Lite+ is a good representation of how camera technology has evolved since the Air 2S was launched, and its video quality is closer to that of the Mavic 3.
While the top speed of both drones is a similar 19m/s, the Air 2S has a quoted wind resistance of 10.7 m/s compared to the 16.5 m/s that the Lite+ can allegedly handle.
That performance level exceeds the 12 m/s of the Mavic 3 and hints at just how much power the Lite+ can call on when required. This raw grunt is apparent in ascent speeds, where it can rise at 8 m/s, a full 2 m/s faster than the Air 2S.
The flipside of this feature is that, being heavier, Autel prefers to avoid momentum taking control in rapid descents, and the Lite+ only comes down at 4 m/s, 2 m/s less than the Air 2S.
Overall, the Lite+ is better for getting up to altitude rapidly, but the Air 2S has a slight edge if you need to get the drone back on the ground quickly.
One good reason you might want to do that is a low battery, and with only a maximum of 3750mAh on the Air 2S and a flight time of just 31 minutes, that’s a plausible scenario.
The Lite+ has a relatively massive 6175mAh battery, and even though it carries an extra 240g (about the same as strapping a DJI Mini 2 to the Air 2S), it can remain airborne for an impressive 40 minutes.
Many DJI Air 2S pilots would be thinking about recovery at around the 25-minute mark, but the Autel drone flyer has at least another ten minutes of operational time ahead. That’s plenty of extra time to take another go at achieving that unique shot or trying something new.
The differences between DJI’s Ocusync 3.0 and Autel’s SkyLink transmission technology are subtle. For the majority who operate within the visual range limits imposed by most countries, they won’t experience disconnections even where there are interfering signals.
Technically, Skylink is rated for 12km FCC and 6km CE, whereas Ocusync 3.0 is 12km FCC and 8km CE. Flying in a CE environment, we didn’t notice any dramatic disadvantage for the Autel drone.
What we can confirm is that Skylink is far superior to Ocusync 2.0 as seen on the DJI Mini 2 and original DJI Mavic Air 2. It's very easy to fly out to the 500m limit, even in a cluttered location and behind buildings, without ever losing the video feed or control.
One aspect of the Autel drone that we liked was that the transmission technology provides a 2.7K resolution live video stream back to the Sky app when the drone is within 1km, whereas all the DJI drones can only manage 1080p at best. The clarity of this image makes the Lite+ easier to work with when operating around tree branches and wires that the obstacle avoidance might not detect.
The obstacle avoidance system on these drones is very similar, offering forward, rear and below sensors, but lacking lateral vision. The Air 2S also has additional upward-looking sensors, making it suitable for those who like to fly under structures such as bridges.
While it isn’t comparable, the forward sensors of the Lite+ have a greater vertical angle than those on the Air 2S, enabling it to see things above it to a degree. Still, neither of these drones have the level of avoidance we’ve seen on the Skydio 2, but it might avoid an expensive accident, especially for those new to the hobby.
In both, obstacle avoidance is disabled in 'sport' mode automatically, and it won’t work in low light conditions. For night landings, both have an LED that illuminates the ground below the drone to help downward-looking sensors see during this flight phase.
Currently, the Lite+ employs a system that inhibits the user from flying into obstacles that the drone senses, though it won’t autonomously fly around them, whereas the Air 2S has the option to self-navigate in a limited way. We believe Autel intends to add this functionality, most likely when it delivers dynamic tracking to the Lite+ shortly.
For geographic location accuracy, the Lite+ can call on GPS, GLONASS and Galileo, the same technologies that the Air 2S uses. One extra feature on the Air 2S that isn't available on the Lite+ is AirSense, a technology to detect other aircraft and helicopters while flying.
Like the recent DJI Mavic 3, the Autel Evo Lite+ has come to market with a few features still to be added, but fewer than the Mavic 3 had missing before its recent firmware update.
By comparison, the DJI Mavic Air 2 has been around for much longer, having first appeared in April 2020, before being updated to the DJI Air 2S a year later. This means the Air 2S is a more mature piece of technology with all its functionality complete.
DJI recently released an SDK for the Air 2S, enabling third-party applications like Litchi and Rainbow to operate the drone. Autel is also looking into providing an SDK, and we hope it provides one for the Lite+ at some point.
That said, the Lite+ has an attractive performance envelope already, and it will only get better as Autel delivers new firmware releases. A fantastic camera with enhanced low light capabilities and a variable aperture lens makes it ideal for those who take drone cinematography seriously.
When the extended flying time of the Lite+ is factored in, DJI now has some serious competition in the prosumer slice of the camera drone market. After Autel has added a flat profile shooting mode and 4K HDR capture, the Evo Lite+ could become the go-to solution for those unwilling to embrace the eye-watering cost of the DJI Mavic 3.
However, the Lite+ does cost a significant amount more than the Air 2S, and for those with a limited budget, that drone is still a great performer.
Did you know you can play eight different games on your car's display via Android Auto? And if you did know, have you actually played any of them since their introduction to the service in September 2021?
I certainly knew they existed, but I hadn't ventured into the gaming app until recently. And you know what, I'm digging what's being offered.
They may not exactly be console-quality games, but when you find yourself idling in the car with time to kill, they offer welcome respite.
It was just meant to be a quick 50-minute blast around the M25 - the motorway that circles London - to pick up my partner from a weekend away, but less than 10 miles from my destination traffic on this notoriously busy stretch of road ground to a halt.
It was impossible to tell how long I'd be stopped for, but the signs were ominous pretty much right away.
Nothing but stationary, red taillights stretched off into the distance in front of me. Meanwhile, on the other side of the central divider, the lanes were eerily quiet. Not a single vehicle was in sight - a sure sign that traffic had been stopped further up the road in the other direction too.
After 10 minutes of foot-tapping to Spotify's 'Born in the 80s' playlist (there are some bangers in there), I began to get fidgety.
With the car in park, I turned my attention to Android Auto. Tapping the menu icon I spotted the Game Snacks badge in the app list.
I'd honestly forgotten that it had been added to Auto just a few months ago, but with time on my hands and nowhere to go, it was time to tap and see.
You can only access the Game Snacks app when your car is in park, and your phone requires an internet connection to load and play the games.
I, thankfully, found myself at a standstill on a section of motorway with solid 4G, allowing the gaming to commence.
Now, it's fair to say the games offered by Google's in-house developer (Games Snacks) appear to be awfully similar to some well-known titles.
I started off with Bubble Words which is your typical bubble shooter - get a colored bubble at the bottom of the screen and shoot it at the honeycomb mass above, aiming at a group of bubbles of the same color.
The touch controls here were okay, with the ability to drag the aiming line and release to fire your bubble or give a simple tap on where you want it to.
It's not quite as responsive or accurate as it would be playing on your phone, but it was enjoyable and passed a good 15 minutes.
Once I'd had my bubble fill it was time to move on. Next, I opted for ZooBoom. I think the app icon has a passing resemblance to Angry Birds, but the game itself is closer to Bejeweled, albeit much simpler.
All you have to do is tap groups of two or more of the same animal face on a grid to earn points. There are bonuses and special items to unlock, but it was a little too basic for me, so I quickly moved on.
And I'm glad I did after I loaded Cannonballs HD, which was my favorite of the three games I played.
Got stuck in standstill traffic recently, but Android Auto games helped pass the time. Big fan of Cannonballs HD! pic.twitter.com/1zWTx1N6B3January 26, 2022
Again, it's a simple game with simple controls. You're in charge of a cannon and have a limited number of cannonballs to knock objects off the platforms in front of you.
As you move up the levels the shapes the objects make become bigger and more complex, and the materials vary too, forcing you to really think about where you're aiming your shots.
The tap-to-shoot controls worked well here and made for an enjoyable time-passer. So enjoyable, in fact, then when I finally made a cursory glance up to check the traffic vehicles were starting to move.
I returned to my navigation thanks to the handy Google Maps shortcut at the bottom of the display, flicked my car into drive and I was off.
I'd been stopped for just over an hour, but thanks to Android Auto it hadn't felt anywhere near that long.
The available games aren't going to wow you with their graphics, responsiveness or storytelling, but they may just make standstill traffic that bit more bearable.
Gaming in our cars is only going to grow thanks to the continued technological push in electric vehicles. We've already seen Tesla tease next-gen gaming in its cars, while we plugged our PS5 into the Honda e for a gaming session.
With bigger displays, increased processing power and in-car connectivity advancements, gaming is an increasingly viable option in our vehicles.
Today it's simple phone games on my car's humble display. In a few years, I could be looking at 4K gaming comparable to the latest consoles - and that would make traffic jams highly entertaining.
Sometimes there’s nothing better than an indulgent breakfast. Monday to Friday I tend to eat fruit for breakfast because easy prep means extra shut-eye in the morning. But come Saturday, I’m looking to kickstart the weekend fun with a tasty treat - and for me, that means French Toast.
There’s nothing better than soft, fluffy bread soaked in a sweet, eggy liquid - or if I’m feeling super special, an egg custard made with heavy cream - fried until it's crisp, and served with a lashing of maple syrup. However, when frying the bread in a pan on the stove, you have to monitor it like a hawk.
The temperature of the pan gets harder to regulate over time, which means that the first side of the bread cooks evenly to an appetizing, golden brown, while the second side burns, leaving a bitter flavor on my indulgent sweet treat.
Air fryers are great for evenly browning and crisping foods because it has a smaller cavity, which allows hot air to quickly circulate during the cooking process. So I wondered, could an air fryer be the key to perfectly golden French Toast?
Read on to discover what happened when we made French Toast in an air fryer - or, if you’ve already decided you want to invest in this handy kitchen appliance, check out the best prices right now:
As we already mentioned, French Toast only requires a handful of ingredients: thick-sliced, fluffy white bread (although whole wheat or multigrain will give you a nuttier flavor), eggs, a splash of milk, a pinch of cinnamon, and a dash of vanilla extract.
I have tried a number of French Toast recipes over the years, but have settled on this Jamie Oliver version for most occasions. On very special occasions, I make this BBC Good Food recipe that’s more indulgent since it uses heavy cream and brioche for a sweeter, richer dish.
While I felt confident in my knowledge of how to generally make French Toast - like what ingredients to use - I wasn't sure how to use the air fryer to cook the toast, what timing and temperature, which you need to know for something like the Instant Vortex Plus, the machine at the top of our air fryer list.
So I did some research on air fryer French Toast recipes, and coupled with my previous experience cooking with the appliance - for example, when I made fried chicken to rival KFC in an air fryer or when I discovered that cooking cinnamon rolls in an air fryer is better than my usual method - I settled on a cooking temperature of 385 F / 196 C degrees and a duration of eight minutes.
The only thing left to do was to start preparing the French Toast. I cracked the eggs into a large dish, added the milk, vanilla, and cinnamon, and whisked the liquid together. I then placed slices of thick white bloomer loaf into the dish for two minutes, before flipping each over to ensure all the eggy liquid was soaked up.
In order to compare the air fryer to my usual method, I created another batch of French Toast using the same recipe, but reserved for cooking in a fry pan on the stove. I used a ½ tablespoon of oil and a knob of butter - as I usually would - and fried the bread for three minutes on each side, with the stove set to a medium heat.
I set the air fryer to preheat while I heated the frying pan, then with the stove-cooked batch underway, I placed a slice of prepped French Toast on the crisper plate in the frying basket of the air fryer, and started cooking. However, halfway through cooking, I ran into my first problem when I went to flip the bread in the air fryer over to ensure each side crisped evenly.
The crisper plate was so hot that the eggy liquid had stuck to it, making it nearly impossible to turn without losing some of the crispy finish on the French Toast.
Once I got to the end of the cooking time, I opened the air fryer drawer and was extremely impressed. The air fryer had worked great, creating crunchy, evenly browned French Toast that was pillowy soft inside. It was also appetizingly golden brown, unlike the batch I fried on the stove, which burned (as usual!) on one side after the pan became too hot.
However, the crisper plate of the air fryer was left with a sticky mess that was burned onto it. Luckily, it’s dishwasher safe, so I popped it straight into the machine on a short cycle to ensure the remnants would be removed right away, while I pondered what I could do to prevent this issue in the future.
I had the same issue when I cooked cinnamon rolls in the air fryer, so I now use a round cake tin when cooking cinnamon rolls because this prevents the buttery sugary filling from seeping out of the rolls and making a mess of the crisper plate. But that 8-inch cake tin can only hold one slice of French Toast at a time, which will slow down my cooking process considerably.
So I decided to use baking parchment paper, which I cut into a strip just 2mm bigger than the slice of toast - so the hot air could still circulate around the bread; then I placed the paper on the crisper plate before laying the bread on top. This time, when it came to flipping the French Toast partway through cooking, I had no issues and there were no remnants stuck to the crisper plate.
Spurred on by the great results with my usual French Toast recipe, I decided to give the more indulgent version that uses heavy cream a go. After whisking together the ingredients to create the egg custard, and soaking the bread in the liquid for two minutes on each side, I pre-heated the air fryer using the same cooking temperature and duration as before and again, placed the French Toast on baking parchment paper so it wouldn't stick to the crisper plate.
Halfway through cooking, I went to flip the French Toast, and while the side facing up was evenly browned and starting to crisp, the side that had been face down on the baking parchment looked less appealing than I’d hoped.
I continued to let the French Toast cook, but when I eventually opened the frying basket at the end of the cooking duration, the toast wasn’t as golden brown or crisp as I had hoped. This, I figured, is due in part to the consistency of the heavy cream, meaning that the toast required more time to fully cook and crisp. I added an additional three minutes to the cooking time, and this change resulted in crisp, crunchy French Toast that was soft and fully cooked inside.
Using an air fryer really did improve the quality of my French Toast, ensuring it was evenly browned and crisp all over, while remaining soft and fluffy inside. It’s far easier than having to watch French Toast like a hawk as it cooks in a frying pan on the stove.
I’ll certainly be using an air fryer from now on when I make French Toast. But, I‘ll always use baking parchment paper to ensure the crisper plate doesn’t end up a charred, eggy mess. If French Toast is your go-to breakfast treat, I urge you to give the air fryer method a go.
