132 – Breaking News & Latest Updates 2026
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Richard Lawler

Richard Lawler

Senior News Editor

Senior News Editor

    More From Richard Lawler

    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    Watch the whole Amazon hardware presentation or just the highlights — it’s your choice.

    Amazon has posted the video of its fall 2023 hardware showcase on YouTube so you can watch Dave Limp & Co. reveal new updates for Alexa, Echo, Fire TV, and other Amazon products for about an hour and fifteen minutes.

    However, if you’re in a hurry, then you can scroll through the stream linked above which includes hands-on impressions, or our video edit that will take less than 60 seconds.

    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    Hey, what was that device behind Dave Limp?

    While Amazon’s hardware boss talked over Alexa’s updated large language model (LLM) capabilities with local processing for faster requests at the Amazon hardware event, a picture displayed behind him showed something that looked similar to an Echo Hub, but a bit bigger.

    If it’s a new device, we’ll probably find out more very soon.

    Amazon hardware event 2023
    Amazon hardware event 2023
    Image: Amazon
    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    While we wait...

    Amazon’s 2023 hardware event is about to get started, but if you have a few minutes, you can check out Jen Tuohy’s preview or go back and look at the top products announced last year before the presentation kicks off at 11AM ET.

    Is this the year of the Always Home Cam security drone?

    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    About the iPhone 15 Pro’s battery limits.

    In response to a question from MacRumors writer Joe Rossignol during our iPhone 15 Pro Q&A, our reviewer Allison Johnson listed off the options from their charging menu, including one clearly labeled “80 percent limit,” which you’d think would mean a hard stop to reduce wear and tear on the battery.

    However, in our testing so far, the new phones still don’t always stop charging once they reach 80 percent, even with the setting enabled. We’ve contacted Apple about the behavior and are doing some more tests — we’ll let you know what we find out.

    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    Now Unity says it’s changing the new pricing policy.

    After nearly a week of indie developers tearing down Unity’s new pricing policy that was set to take effect on January 1st, the company now says, “We have heard you.” Unity’s pricing scheme that was set to take effect in 2024 would have established a convoluted setup charging game makers for downloads and installations.

    Unity didn’t hint at what the changes are or reference the protest that saw some prominent devs disable its ad monetization tools, only saying it will release the details “in a couple of days.

    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    MGM’s ongoing Las Vegas “cybersecurity issue” even caught up FTC chair Lina Khan.

    The hacking incident has affected services at the company’s resorts and hotels for nearly a week. MGM Resorts said on Thursday, “We continue to work diligently to resolve our cybersecurity issue while addressing individual guest needs promptly.

    Now Bloomberg reports that one of the guests suddenly waiting in line to be checked in by staff resorting to pen and paper was US Federal Trade Commission chair Lina Khan, in town for meetings related to the grocery chain megamerger of Kroger and Albertsons.

    When Khan and her staff got to the front of the line, an employee at the desk asked them to write down their credit card information on a piece of paper.

    As the leader of the federal agency that, among other things, ensures companies protect consumer data wrote down her details, Khan asked the worker: How exactly was MGM managing the data security around this situation? The desk agent shrugged and said he didn’t know, according to a senior aide who was traveling with Khan and described the experience to Bloomberg as surreal.

    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    July 27th, 1999.

    Prime Video’s — not Amazon Prime Video, they hate when you call it that — next sports documentary Bye Bye Barry is going to revisit the abrupt retirement of one of the NFL’s most incredible running backs, which he announced via a fax sent to the Wichita Eagle.

    I’ve followed the examples of both Sanders and Calvin Johnson by leaving the Detroit Lions — and their one Super Bowl-era playoff win — behind in the interests of my mental and emotional well-being, but I’ll be watching this one.

    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    Biden admin gets Supreme Court involved in its First Amendment fight with Missouri’s AG.

    In July, a federal judge decided Biden administration officials violated the First Amendment while contacting social media companies about removing posts with covid misinformation.

    His injunction barring them from making contact in many cases was narrowed by appeals court judges but now the Biden Administration has asked the Supreme Court (PDF) to put a hold on it (Washington Post, New York Times). Now there is a temporary hold until September 22nd (PDF).

    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    And here’s the trailer for the next Aquaman movie.

    It has been forever since star Jason Momoa and director James Wan were initially linked to DC’s Aquaman franchise, and now its second movie is set for release on December 20th.

    Following The Flash and Blue Beetle, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is now set to close out DC and Warner’s old comic book universe before the new James Gunn-led one starts with Superman: Legacy in 2025.