toyota has one The sleek and shiny new Prius, and the automotive press seems to agree: This one looks cool. Previous Prius models have long been viewed as, uh, not cool enough, with its awkwardly boxy teardrop shape and normcore vibe. The 2023 Prius looks chic by comparison, with a sleek body that squeezes the Prius’s teardrop into something resembling a Tesla.
It’s still an internal-combustion-electric hybrid that needs to be refueled to run — it’s a shame the all-electric revolution of the old Prius isn’t here yet. Toyota says it gets about 57 mpg combined, making it the most fuel-efficient Prius yet. The car will also be more agile than before, with a 220-horsepower engine under the hood. It’s good for the Prius; ask the Autobots. Other new features include a hands-free driving mode and a solar panel for charging the battery when the car is stationary.
The new Prius will be available in two models: the base Prius and the slightly more powerful Prius Prime. Toyota didn’t say when the cars will be available or how much they’ll cost, but look for them next year.
Here’s some other news from the world of consumer tech.
Microsoft Teams Get Games
Microsoft has announced a new feature for its Teams video conferencing software: video games. Participants in a Teams call can now play games such as Solitaire, Minesweeperand marvel right in the app. These games are aimed at people who use Teams for work. Nancy Baym, a senior principal research manager at Microsoft, said putting games into workplace tools can foster a sense of human connection, much needed after nearly three years of working remotely.
“People were able to be really productive, but they felt less connected, and that had a lot of detrimental effects,” Baym said. “Games are one of many really good ways to intervene gently and say, this is a product that lets you connect with each other in a low-pressure way.”
To reinforce the goal of bonding, none of the games are single player. (no, not even Solitaire). Which means you won’t be able to play the game quietly by yourself while you’re pretending to listen to your manager’s manager babbling about quarterly KPIs. Gaming with your team can be a great break from a busy day at work, even if it still amounts to spending time in front of a screen.We’ll see how long it takes for Zoom fatigue to give way Minesweeper fatigue.
Check out Leica’s big-lens phone
Hey, check it out, Leica has made another smartphone to follow up the Leitz Phone 1 in 2021. what is that? You ask does it have a camera? Oh, really. As you’d expect from this illustrious camera brand, Leica’s lenses are the main highlight of the Leitz Mobile 2. A single large lens occupies the top third of the phone. Its vision-centric design is a rebuttal to all the smartly integrated smartphone camera lenses.
The giant camera of the Leitz Phone 2 captures 47.2-megapixel images. On the other side is a 6.6-inch OLED screen that lets you view all those gorgeous landscape shots or glorious selfies. Oh yeah, you can also use it to make phone calls and stuff like that. It’s only available in Japan; those abroad will have to buy it as an import.
Netflix comes for your friends
The days of Netflix account sharing may be coming to an end. This week, Netflix introduced a new feature in user account settings called Manage Access and Devices. It allows users to disable their Netflix accounts on specific devices — a convenient way for users to deploy it to kick family, friends, and roommates out of their Netflix accounts. It’s an innocuous enough feature that it’ll be great for anyone looking to delete their credentials from a TV they lost in divorce to stop their ex from sneakily streaming shows off their dime. nice function. But it also set the stage for Netflix to purge account sharing.
Netflix has been working in this direction for months. The company has tested charging extra for additional accounts in several countries and said it plans to implement the program in almost all markets next year. The company also launched an ad-supported subscription program earlier this month.
too many twitter problems
Well, Twitter is working fine. Now that nearly all of its employees have left Twitter, and the site appears to be in freefall, things are about to get even weirder on the Bird app. (Assuming it stays up and running.) Whatever form Twitter continues to hobble, it’s never been more vulnerable to security threats.
This week in Wired gadget lab In the podcast, security writer Lily Hay Newman describes the ways Twitter’s precarious position can lead to hacks, data breaches, and the further spread of misinformation across the platform.
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