Gear Live: The Latest Tech, Gadgets, AI, and Gaming News
Xbox Elite Series 3 Controller Specs Leaked Out of Microsoft’s Own Design Lab
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Accessories, Microsoft, Rumors, Video Games,
Microsoft has not announced an Xbox Elite Series 3. Its own Design Lab appears to have described one anyway, down to the thumbstick options.
A Reddit user says they got into the backend of Spectrum Customizer, the configuration system that powers Xbox Design Lab, and pulled out configuration records and 3D component models for a controller carried internally under the codename Edessa. Digital Foundry reported the find. The files are no longer reachable, and Microsoft has confirmed none of what follows.
AI Routed a 16-Year-Old Up Crown Mountain. He Ended Up on a Climb Called the Widowmaker.
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: GPS, Misc. Tech, Artificial Intelligence,
A 16-year-old set off from Grouse Mountain at 8 a.m. on Saturday with a route up Crown Mountain that an AI tool had planned for him. The route was supposed to go up a gully. It put him into steep, technical rock-climbing terrain instead, and by mid-afternoon he was stopped at the base of a cliff with no way up and no safe way down. North Shore Rescue got the call just before 3:30 p.m.
The climbing route he had ended up on is called the Widowmaker. "It turns out that this hiker had somehow got far off the Crown hiking route (we are unclear exactly how/where) and became stranded on a climbing route known as the 'Widowmaker', at the base of its final headwall," the volunteer team said. Two rescue technicians were lowered from a helicopter, hoisted him into the aircraft, and flew him to a base near Cleveland Dam. The operation finished shortly before 6:30 p.m.
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| North Shore News
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On Friday, Free Gemini Is Just Flash-Lite. Paying $4.99 Still Won’t Get You Pro.
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Google, Software, Artificial Intelligence,
Three days from now, the free version of Gemini runs exactly one model. Google's own support page has the table: starting October 9, accounts without a paid plan get Flash-Lite, and that is the whole list. Flash and Pro move behind a subscription.
A cheap subscription does not fix it either. Google AI Plus, at $4.99 a month, picks up Flash and still does not get Pro. The only way to keep Pro is Google AI Pro at $19.99.
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Lucid Delivered 3,806 Cars Last Quarter. It Only Built 2,954.
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Corporate News, Transportation,
Lucid delivered more cars than it built last quarter. That is a first in the company's history, and it was the plan.
Lucid's own release puts it at 3,806 vehicles delivered in the third quarter of 2026 and 2,954 built. Deliveries are down about 7% from the 4,078 Lucid handed over a year earlier, and they came in below analyst delivery estimates. Production dropped 38% from the 4,774 cars Lucid built in the second quarter, the company's lowest quarterly output since early 2025.
Click to continue reading Lucid Delivered 3,806 Cars Last Quarter. It Only Built 2,954.
Nintendo’s Two New Free Switch Apps Are for Toddlers, and a Wooden Block Calls Up the Character
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Software, Toys, Video Games,
Nintendo put out two new Switch releases this week that cost nothing, run with the Wi-Fi off, and are built for someone who cannot read the title screen. Hello, Peach! and Hello, Luigi! are on the eShop now, free on Switch and Switch 2, and here is the complete list of things to do in them: poke a cartoon face, stretch it, spin it, and play peekaboo.
There is no score, no levels and nothing to unlock, and both run single player in handheld mode only. Nintendo's store pages file them under the genres "Action" and "Simulation," which is funny until you picture a toddler dragging Luigi's nose across the screen and decide the tag is doing its best.
The Department of War Will Pay Up to $75 Million to Turn an EV Battery Line Into Drone Cells. Only $22 Million Is Funded.
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Misc. Tech, Transportation,
An American factory built to make batteries for electric cars is about to start making them for military drones instead. Amprius Technologies landed a grant of up to $75 million from the US Department of War to do it. Only about $22 million of that has actually been obligated.
Amprius makes silicon anode lithium-ion cells, the kind pitched for years at EVs and electric aviation because they pack more energy into less weight. On September 28 the company said it will retrofit an existing US production line, currently run by what it calls a major South Korean manufacturer, to build 12 million of its cells a year for small and midsize drones. The target is early 2028.
Xbox Finally Has a Platinum Trophy, and It’s Called a Mythic Achievement
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Microsoft, Video Games,
Unlock every achievement in an Xbox game and nothing much happened. Your Gamerscore went up, the list showed complete, and that was the ceremony. PlayStation has handed out a platinum trophy for the same work for years. On September 29, Microsoft announced its answer, the Mythic Achievement.
The bar is every original achievement in a game. Clear them all and the game goes Mythic. Achievements added later by DLC or a title update don't count against you, and they can't take it back. "It's yours to keep," senior product manager Alex Charters said.
Click to continue reading Xbox Finally Has a Platinum Trophy, and It’s Called a Mythic Achievement
The Foldable iPhone is Here: Our First Impressions of the iPhone Duo
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Features, Videos,
Apple has finally made an iPhone that folds. I just spent a lot of time getting hands-on with the iPhone Duo at the Apple launch, and the excitement start right when you open it up. It introduces a completely new way to use iOS.
Let's dive into what this $1,999 device actually does!
Click to continue reading The Foldable iPhone is Here: Our First Impressions of the iPhone Duo
The iPhone 18 Pro’s Secret Weapon: How a Variable Aperture Camera Will Change Your Photos
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Features, Product Reviews,
Apple just changed how the iPhone Pro thinks. On the surface, the iPhone 18 Pro might look like a standard, iterative update. But underneath the familiar exterior lies a completely rebuilt architecture. We are talking about a new chip, a massive cooling upgrade, and a camera system that finally does something no other iPhone has ever done. Let's dig into what makes this device a quiet powerhouse.
A familiar design with a few smart tweaks
The body uses a high-heat force aluminum unibody, keeping it lightweight but incredibly tough. Apple introduced four colors this year: Black, Silver, Glacier, and Burgundy. The Burgundy finish is deep, sophisticated, and catches the light beautifully without screaming for attention.
Durability is highly impressive. Both the front and back feature Ceramic Shield 2. You can comfortably run this display without a screen protector and not see a single scratch after heavy daily use.
Up top, the Dynamic Island is about 25% smaller but now shows up to three live activities at once. Apple achieved this by hiding the FaceID IR camera directly behind the display pixels, giving you more screen real estate without losing functionality.
M5 Ultra Mac Studio Review: Huge Local AI Performance (for a Price!)
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, PC / Laptop, Product Reviews, Artificial Intelligence,
The M5 Ultra Mac Studio is the fastest computer Apple has ever sold, and after a couple of weeks with one on my desk, I can tell you immediately that it's shockingly good.
Apple sent me a near-top configuration: 36-core CPU, 80-core GPU, 256GB of unified memory, and an 8TB SSD. That's more computer than I've ever had in a box this size, and the numbers land about where Apple said they would back in August: 30% to 45% more CPU than the M3 Ultra depending on the benchmark, anywhere from 20% to 60% on the GPU depending on the test, and storage that runs two to three times as fast. The bigger change is who this machine is for. It used to be the video editor's Mac. Now it's the Mac for anyone who wants to run a 150GB language model on their desk without paying anyone a monthly fee, and Apple has priced it for exactly that person.
Click to continue reading M5 Ultra Mac Studio Review: Huge Local AI Performance (for a Price!)