We knew it was going to happen, and now it has: the first game emulators are appearing in the iOS App Store, after Apple responded to increasing regulatory pressure by relaxing its rules on the type of apps it would accept.

As spotted by AppleInsider, we’ve already got Emu64 XL (for the Commodore 64) and iGBA (for the Game Boy Advance and Game Boy Color). Both are free to install for the iPhone and the iPad, and don’t come with any in-app purchases.

iPhone maker Apple denied violating a court order governing its App Store and urged a California federal judge to reject a request by “Fortnite” developer Epic Games to hold it in contempt.

Apple made the arguments in a filing to U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in Oakland, who presided over Epic’s lawsuit in 2020 accusing Apple of violating antitrust law with its tight controls over how consumers download apps and pay for transactions within them.

The Apple filing criticized what it called an attempt by Epic to make Apple’s “tools and technologies available to developers for free.”

Epic, it said, wanted the court “to micromanage Apple’s business operations in a way that would increase Epic’s profitability.”

Epic declined to comment. Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the dispute, part of a long fight between the two companies.

Epic largely lost its case against Apple, but Rogers in 2021 ordered Apple to give developers greater freedom to guide app users to alternative payment methods for digital goods.

The U.S. Supreme Court in January declined to hear Apple’s appeal of the injunction order.

Epic said in a court filing last month that Cupertino, California-based Apple was in “blatant violation” of the court’s injunction. It pointed to Apple’s imposition of a 27% fee on developers for some purchases, which the video game maker said makes links for alternative payment options “commercially unusable.”

Epic also alleged Apple barred some apps from informing users about other ways to pay for goods.

Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Elon Musk’s X and Match Group last month echoed Epic’s arguments, telling Rogers that Apple was in “clear violation” of the court’s order.

In a similar case that Epic brought against Alphabet’s Google, a judge in San Francisco is expected this year to issue a separate injunction affecting the Google Play Store.

The case is Epic Games Inc v Apple Inc, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No. 20-05640.

Motorola is back with what could be the best-looking phone of the year. The Motorola Edge 50 Pro is a mid-range smartphone with a design that makes it look and feel premium. While this formula has been used by many brands in the last couple of years, only some have managed to nail it. The Edge 50 Pro adds to it by offering some world-first features, but are they good? I’ve been using the Edge 50 Pro for a couple of weeks now to find out if there’s more to the phone than just design and some validations.

Motorola Edge 50 Pro price in India

I’ll start with the price. The Motorola Edge 50 Pro is available in two variants in the country. There’s the 8GB + 256GB variant, which is priced at Rs. 31,999, and there’s the 12GB + 256GB storage option, which is what I’m testing, priced at Rs. 35,999. You could purchase the phone at a lower cost by availing certain offers, but the above-mentioned prices are what the phone is being sold for without any offers.

The phone offers rounded corners and curved edges

The phone is available in three colour options. The Black Beauty and Luxe Lavender variants have a soft vegan leather-finish rear panel, whereas the MoonLight Pearl is a special variant with an acetate finish that is apparently handcrafted in Italy by Mazzucchelli. I’m using the Luxe Lavender variant, and I think it looks great in this colour. All of these colours were curated with the help of Pantone.

The unboxing experience of the Motorola Edge 50 Pro is going to be a unique one. Firstly, Motorola has used zero plastic in the packaging and everything is printed using soy ink. Second, and we confirmed this, Motorola sprays perfume on each box to make it smell good. And it does smell good, for quite a long time actually.

The Edge 50 Pro box can be recycled

Inside the box, you get a case, some paperwork, a SIM ejector tool, a USB Type-C to Type-C cable, and a 125W Turbo charger. In our case, the 8GB RAM variant comes with a 68W charger.

Motorola Edge 50 Pro Review: Design

I’d have given a solid 10 to the Edge 50 Pro in the design department, but that’s not the case and here’s why. The phone looks and feels great the moment you first take it out of the box. It’s got a stunning design, and the colour makes things even better. The rear leather finish panel, curved front and back, rounded corners, and the aluminium frame make this phone a delight to hold as well. However, the rear leather panel doesn’t sit flush with the frame, and you can feel the edges when you’re holding the phone. And this is why I’m giving this a 9 in design.

The rear vegan leather finish panel is easy to clean

The leather finish also means no fingerprints to clean. The squarish camera module does protrude, but also blends with the rear panel in a slope. While it does make the phone wobble when laid on its back, it looks great. The Edge 50 Pro weighs 186 grams and is 8.19mm thick, but the weight is well distributed, and the curved front and rear panels make the phone seem thinner and smaller than it is. Folks with big hands can easily use this with one hand.

On the front, you get a curved display with symmetric bezels. The side bezels are thin and are barely visible due to the curve, whereas the top and bottom ones are also slim and uniform. The volume and power buttons are on the left edge and are clicky. You’ll also find a microphone on the left edge and one at the top. At the bottom, you’ll find the USB Type-C port, SIM tray, microphone, and loudspeaker. The phone does have a dual speaker setup, but it’s of the hybrid type, with the ear speaker working as the second speaker.

Motorola has offered 3 microphones on the Edge 50 Pro

Motorola has also given an IP68 rating for the Edge 50 Pro, and I found the rubber seal in the SIM ejector tray to be of good quality. You should be able to dunk this in the swimming pool without much worry, but don’t shoot a whole Reel underwater.

Motorola Edge 50 Pro Review: Specifications and software

The Motorola Edge 50 Pro is equipped with a Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 processor, which is paired with up to 12GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 256GB of UFS 2.2 internal storage. Yes, the storage is on the slower side, but it’s not really a dealbreaker. The phone gets dual SIM dual 5G support, Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.4, NFC, and a USB Type-C port. For location services, the phone offers support for GPS, AGPS, LTEPP, SUPL, GLONASS, Galileo, and Navic satellites.

The Edge 50 Pro runs on the new Hello UI

The phone has an in-display fingerprint scanner, which works fast. I didn’t face any issues with it during my use. Motorola has packed a 4,500mAh battery in the Edge 50 Pro, which is smaller than what most other phones offer in this price segment. However, you do get up to 125W fast charging support along with 50W wireless charging.

In terms of software, Motorola has changed things around a bit. The Edge 50 Pro comes with Android 14-based Hello UI, which is different to the My UX that we were used to. It’s a lot lighter with hardly any additional apps apart from Google apps. There’s no bloatware, the interface is mostly stock with some Motorola design elements, and you get some additional features such as Moto Unplugged, Ready For, gestures, Smart connect, custom fonts, colours, icons, and Family Space. There’s also an AI theming feature called Style Sync that uses AI to create custom wallpapers from photos taken using the camera or in the gallery. The AI feature works well but isn’t as good as similar features found on more expensive phones.

There’s no bloatware on the phone

Motorola promises three years of Android OS updates and four years of security patches.

Motorola Edge 50 Pro Review: Performance

Moving to performance, the Motorola Edge 50 Pro is great at running daily tasks, gaming, and more. The Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 is a fairly recent chipset and has enough oomph to run all kinds of tasks smoothly in most conditions. I ran some benchmarks to see how it performed, and on AnTuTu, it managed a score of 8,18,387 points. That’s slightly higher than the recently launched OnePlus Nord CE 4 (Review), which also runs the same chipset.

The performance on the phone is good, but what’s even better is the display. Motorola has included a 6.7-inch pOLED curved display on the Edge 50 Pro with 1.5K resolution and 144Hz refresh rate. The panel also offers up to 2,000 nits peak brightness, HDR10+ support, 10-bit colour, and DCI-P3 colour gamut, and is claimed to be the world’s first Pantone-validated true colour display.

The Edge 50 Pro has protective glass and a screen protector on the display

I found the colours to be a bit oversaturated in Vivid colour mode, but you can choose the Natural colour option to get the most natural and realistic colours. There’s also a Radiant mode that makes the colours appear more vibrant and brighter. The display is great overall, offers excellent viewing angles, and is easy to read even under direct sunlight. It’s a great phone for content consumption.

What’s also good is the stereo speaker sound that comes with Dolby Atmos support. While there’s not a lot of bass in the audio, I found the speakers to be loud and clear, with no crackling even at full volume. The microphone quality is also good.

The curved display can cause ghost touches when playing games

The Motorola Edge 50 Pro is pretty good as a gaming phone as well. I didn’t notice any drop in frame rate, touch sensitivity issues, or lag when gaming on the phone. I played BGMI for about 45 minutes, and it worked great in Ultra HDR graphics and Ultra frame rate. The only issue I faced had to do with the display. Since the phone has a curved panel, there were plenty of ghost touches when playing games. Otherwise, the Edge 50 Pro performed quite well in games and didn’t heat a lot, either.

Generally, I did not face any lag or stutter while performing regular tasks. The 144Hz display makes sure to hide any lag in the user interface. The only time I faced a lag was when viewing a photo in the camera app, which took about a second or two to load. Yes, there were a couple of instances of some lag when opening apps in the background, but it doesn’t happen enough to call it a problem.

Finally, let’s get to the battery performance. While the 4,500mAh battery is smaller than most other phones in the price segment, I was able to get more than a day’s battery life out of the Edge 50 Pro. In our HD video loop test, the phone lasted only about 15 hours, though, which isn’t that great. When I used the phone for basic tasks such as making calls, messaging, some YouTube, browsing, and using the camera, it lasted more than a day. With heavy usage, I was getting almost a day’s worth of battery life. However, what’s amazing is that the phone can be charged from 0 to 100 percent in just about 25 minutes and 0 to 50 percent in around 10 minutes. This is with the 125W charger, of course, and using it did heat up the phone quite a bit.

Motorola Edge 50 Pro Review: Cameras

The phone is equipped with a triple rear camera setup that includes a 50-megapixel primary sensor with f/1.4 aperture and OIS support, a 13-megapixel ultrawide unit with 120-degree field of view and a macro mode, and a 10-megapixel telephoto sensor with OIS and 3x optical zoom. There’s also a Time of Flight (ToF) sensor, an LED flash, and autofocus on the square rear camera module. For selfies, the phone offers a 50-megapixel sensor with autofocus.

The Edge 50 Pro features a 50-megapixel front camera

Motorola claims that this is the world’s first and only phone to have a Pantone colour-validated camera system. Both photos and videos shot from the phone are said to offer realistic and true colours with accurate skin tones, but that wasn’t entirely the case. The camera interface is simple to use and offers several modes. There’s also a Tilt-shift mode, a Pro mode, a Night mode, dual capture, long exposure, a 50-megapixel mode, and more.

Images shot with the main 50-megapixel rear camera offer very good details and colours with good HDR. However, if you zoom in on the image, you’ll see that the details are lost in the shadows. I also found that the images were still slightly saturated even after turning off AI enhancements, choosing a natural image style, and using a Natural colour mode for the display. Or perhaps the folks over at Pantone know the colours better, and my renditions are just wrong. The primary camera takes good shots even in low light, but again, they are oversaturated.

Moving on, while the telephoto camera does shoot good 3x zoomed shots in both daylight and lowlight conditions, the details can be a little muddy. Colours are once again slightly oversaturated. The ultra-wide camera produces good photos in daylight but isn’t that good in lowlight conditions. Selfies are good with ample details in good lighting conditions and skin tones are also very close to reality. Images from the phone are generally brighter as well. There’s also a Macro mode that produces decent shots. Let’s take a look at some samples.

Top to bottom: Ultrawide (2 samples) Main 50-megapixel sensor (3 samples) 3x Telephoto (2 samples) [Tap to expand]

Coming to video performance, the main camera can shoot at 4K resolution at 30fps. The videos come out good, even in 3x zoom, and have a good dynamic range with hardly any noise. Colours are slightly boosted, but nothing unrealistic. In low light, the video performance drops, but videos are still usable if there’s ample lighting. The stabilisation is also pretty good and is aided by AI, according to Motorola.

Overall, the camera system on the Motorola Edge 50 Pro is good and usable.

Motorola Edge 50 Pro Review: Verdict

The Motorola Edge 50 Pro is a great phone that’s competitively priced. However, in some areas, you may be better off purchasing other phones. For example, if you want better performance, you could opt for the Oppo Reno 11 Pro (Review). However, it lacks an IP rating and wireless charging and offers similar camera performance.

Then there’s the Vivo V30, which offers slightly better camera performance and the same chipset. However, it lacks wireless charging and a few other features.

Motorola Edge 50 Pro offers a lot more features than some of its competitors. I honestly think that this is probably one of the best smartphones in the price segment. The cameras aren’t amazing, but they’re not bad, and you get usable sensors. The display is excellent, you get a standout design, wireless charging, an IP68 rating, and a lot more. The Motorola Edge 50 Pro is on the edge of greatness and is definitely one of the best mid-range phones you can buy today.

I’m going to tell you that my Roomba S9 Plus is haunted, but don’t dwell on the haunting. The buttons are stuck, which may or may not be related. I have been living with the haunted Roomba and its broken buttons since last year, when it was still under warranty, but it only recently started waking me up in the middle of the night. When I finally contacted iRobot for support, they told me that my Roomba was dead (undead?!), and it would be impossible for them to fix it. 

I need to live with the haunted Roomba or destroy it. 

Again, let’s not dwell on the haunting part. There are many things you can replace on a Roomba. Of course, you can replace the filters. You can replace all of the cleaning elements, like the brushes and sweepers.

If you’ve been eying up an iPhone at Verizon, right now is a great time to consider picking up a deal. As well as several large trade-in rebates from the carrier, there are also an increasing number of promotions not tied to that usual criteria.

For example, right now, you don’t need a trade-in to get the standard iPhone 15 for free alongside a new line on a Verizon Unlimited Ultimate plan. If you pick one up on this admittedly pricey plan you’ll be entitled to a full $829 saving, which will cover the entire cost of the device over 36 months.

Mercedes-Benz has revealed an upgraded version of its luxury electric sedan, with more tech, an increased range and the reintroduction of the upright bonnet star all featuring in the upcoming EQS.

The model, which has been under scrutiny for its shocking residual values, has been given the once-over to ensure it remains competitive, with the 55-inch MBUX Hyperscreen now coming as standard across the range.

This gargantuan infotainment system sees three displays merge seamless across the dash, giving the interior the look and feel of a NASA control room. On the outside, there’s a darker grille cover and reworked headlights, as well as the upright star bonnet badge, which was famous for going missing on classic Mercedes vehicles of the 70s and 80s.

Perhaps more important to potential owners is the fact that new batteries have been fitted, which are almost 10kWh up on the previous 108.4kWh packs, delivering an additional 51-miles of range. Couple this with some aerodynamic tweaks to the bodywork and Merc reckons you can achieve more than 500 miles before it requires plugging in. That’s almost 100 miles more than the top spec Tesla Model S.

Nothing is official yet, but if we had to make an educated guess, we’d say the Google Pixel 8a is going to be unveiled on the first day of Google I/O 2024, which is May 14. Now two new leaks have given us more of an idea about what to expect from the handset.

To begin with we’ve got leaked renders of the Pixel 8a courtesy of Android Headlines. There are four colors on show here, apparently called Mint, Porcelain, Obsidian, and Bay (or light green, pale gray, dark gray, and light blue, as they’re otherwise known).

The weekend has officially arrived, and if you’re browsing for some Saturday bargains, Amazon has some fantastic deals right now. Amazon’s weekend sale includes discounts on tech gadgets like AirPods, TVs, and tablets and best-selling home items like vacuums and kitchen appliances. To help you find the best of the best, I’ve gone through today’s sale to bring you the 13 best deals I recommend.

• Shop Amazon’s full weekend sale

The deals listed below are some of Amazon’s top-rated items from brands like Apple, Bissell, LG, Keurig, and Amazon’s own smart home devices. Some highlights include Apple’s latest 10.9 iPad on sale for a record-low price of $349, this Shark ION robot vacuum marked down to a fantastic price of $169.99, and LG’s brilliant 48-inch C3 OLED TV on sale for $996.99.

Shop more of Amazon’s best weekend deals below, and keep in mind these are limited-time offers that might not be around for long.

Amazon weekend sale: Saturday’s 13 best deals

Google Pixel 8a — the successor to last year’s Pixel 7a — will reportedly be launched at Google I/O 2024. Ahead of the arrival of the purported smartphone that is said to arrive as an affordable version of the Pixel 8, Android Headlines has published 360-degree images of all four colour options of the upcoming Pixel 8a handset. As per previous reports, the Google Pixel 8a will be equipped with a 4,500mAh battery and run on the company’s Tensor G3 chipset.

While the rumoured Pixel 8a is yet to be revealed by the company, there have been several leaks of the handset’s design and hardware specifications. According to the publication, the Pixel 8a will be launched next month in four colour options — Bay (Blue), Mint (Green), Obsidian (Black), and Porcelain (White) colour options.

The purported Google Pixel 8a in four colourways
Photo Credit: Android Headlines

The images leaked by the publication suggest that the Pixel 8a will bear a very close resemblance to the Pixel 8 that was launched last year. The latter arrived in Hazel, Mint, Obsidian, and Rose colour options, which means that the purported Pixel 8a will share at least two-colour options with its more advanced sibling.

Earlier this week, a live image of the Pixel 8a surfaced online, giving us a good look at what could be the design for Google’s next A-series Pixel phone. According to the leaked image, the phone’s rear panel will have a rear camera module that is similar to the Pixel 8, while the rear panel will have a matte finish, unlike the Pixel 7a.

According to previous reports, the Pixel 8a could arrive with Google’s Tensor G3, the same chip that powers the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro, along with 8GB of RAM. The phone is also said to sport a 6.1-inch full-HD+ (1,080×2,400 pixels) OLED panel with 120Hz refresh rate, and 1,400 nits of peak HDR brightness.

The Pixel 8a is also tipped to debut with the same camera configuration as the Pixel 7a — a 64-megapixel primary camera along with a 13-megapixel ultra-wide angle camera. It is also said to pack a 5,000mAh battery with support for 27W wired fast charging. We can expect to hear more about the Pixel 8a ahead of its expected debut at Google I/O 2024, which begins on May 14. 

CJI Chandrachud advocates ethical AI in legal research; AI investment to boost productivity and worker pay: BlackRock CEO; Instagram enhances content discovery with generative AI integration; Surat municipal schools to offer AI and coding courses- this and more in our daily roundup. Let us take a look.

1. CJI Chandrachud advocates ethical AI in legal research

Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, at the Indo-Singapore Judicial Conference, advocates for ethical AI integration in legal research. He lauds technology’s role in reshaping the judiciary, stressing ethical considerations. Chandrachud highlights India-Singapore ties and Singapore’s technological advancements, promoting cross-border dispute resolution, ANI reported. 

Also read: Google One VPN to be discontinued, here’s the reason

2. AI investment to boost productivity and worker pay: BlackRock CEO

BlackRock CEO Larry Fink asserts that AI investment will elevate productivity and increase worker pay. Fink highlights the correlation between productivity gains and wage growth, emphasising the firm’s goal of achieving more with fewer employees. BlackRock’s AI investments have propelled client assets to a record $10.5 trillion, showcasing the effectiveness of technology in driving efficiency and productivity, according to a report by Bloomberg. 

Also read: Honor Choice Watch Review: Snazzy looks, decent performer

3. Instagram enhances content discovery with generative AI integration

Meta is harnessing generative AI to revolutionise content discovery on Instagram. Users can now engage with an AI assistant directly through the platform’s search function, receiving tailored content suggestions and even requesting recommendations on specific topics. This move underscores Meta’s commitment to leveraging AI for enhanced content curation and user experience, The Indian Express reported. 

4. Surat municipal schools to offer AI and coding courses

Surat Municipal Corporation plans to introduce AI, drone, robotics, and coding courses for students in Classes 9 to 12. Commissioner Shalini Agrawal highlights the initiative’s aim to equip students with essential skills, with budgetary provisions already made. Professional agencies will provide the education, ensuring quality training in municipal schools akin to private institutions, The Indian Express reported. 

Also read: Stay safe from deepfake scams with these 5 safety tips

5. Google DeepMind unveils TacticAI to revolutionise soccer coaching

Google DeepMind introduces TacticAI to enhance soccer coaching with AI. Developed in collaboration with Liverpool FC, it utilises data from over 7,000 Premier League corner kicks. Researchers assert its superiority in designing attacking and defensive strategies. This innovative blend of art and science aims to revolutionise soccer tactics, leveraging data for informed decision-making on the field, Business Insider reported.