Engadget News + Next

Amazon ends paid COVID-19 leave policy for workers Word Count: 295; ‘Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ drops to a new low of $40 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Amazon's pandemic boom is over: Flavored e-cigarettes are exempt from the FDA's proposed menthol ban Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You can now ask Google to remove phone numbers from search results;'Disney Dreamlight Valley' looks like Animal Crossing with Wall-E and Moana Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sifu' is getting difficulty options to help more people actually finish the game;Ableton's updated Learning Synths website can record and export your musical doodles Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Apple Music and the App Store are experiencing issues;Elon Musk to buy Twitter for $44 billion Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Twitter is reportedly re-examining Elon Musk’s $43 billion takeover bid; Someone left a prototype Google Pixel Watch at a restaurant Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sony is looking into ad-supported games now, too; For $200, Best Buy will haul away your two biggest hunks of tech junk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Instagram's latest algorithm tweak will 'value original content more'; Garmin unveils new Vívosmart fitness tracker after nearly four years Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Netflix isn't blaming the pandemic recovery for its lost subscribers; Cre8Audio's NiftyKeys is a MIDI controller you can build a Eurorack synth in Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

First Playdate orders begin shipping today; Netflix is making an 'Exploding Kittens' mobile game and TV series Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tesla investors say a judge found Elon Musk’s ‘funding secured’ tweet was misleading; Tesla will no longer include a mobile charger with new vehicle purchases Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NASA hopes to make space more accessible by addressing socioeconomic barriers; Meta teases a web version of Horizon Worlds Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dungeons and Dragons owner Hasbro buys up D&D Beyond:Governor Newsom faces accusations of meddling in Activision Blizzard lawsuit Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Snapchat lets news outlets automatically share articles as stories; Beats is rolling out some handy features for Android users Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Biden administration cracks down on 3D-printed 'ghost guns';Epic Games receives $2 billion investment from Sony and Lego's parent company Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

'Kingdom Hearts IV' features a new look for series protagonist Sora ‘Sonic the Hedgehog 2’ has the best opening weekend for a video game movie Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Twitter test lets you 'unmention' yourself in tweets; Wordle’s Wordlebot will analyze how badly you played Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Xbox controllers can now switch TV input back to your console;THQ Nordic will host a digital game showcase on August 12th Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

JLab's $60 JBuds Air Pro can connect to two devices simultaneously;Germany seizes the world's largest, longest-serving dark web market Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

DOJ seizes $34 million of crypto from the dark web seller; Amazon's planned worker chat app would reportedly ban words like 'union' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Someone modded ‘Doom’ to add ray-tracing;NASA delays SLS Moon rocket test due to safety concerns Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You can now share YouTube videos directly to Snapchat; Windows' revamped phone sync app puts Android notifications up front Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

White House launches covid.gov with testing and treatment resources;YouTube TV finally supports picture-in-picture on iOS Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

No one asked for a hamburger vending machine, and RoboBurger answered;Hackers swipe nearly $600 million from a 'play to earn' crypto game Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Among Us' back online following a DDoS attack this weekend;TikTok is testing a watch history feature Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A massive DDoS attack leaves ‘Among Us’ unplayable in North America and Europe;Crunchyroll ends free ad-supported simulcast streaming for 2022 spring anime season Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Grimes claims responsibility for 2012 hack of culture blog Hipster Runoff; Atari collaborates with Cariuma to create a 50th anniversary sneaker collection; Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Russia blocks Google News; Twitter DM search now works the way you'd expect Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Uber app will lose the "split fare" option in April;Twitter can now create GIFs using your iOS camera Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

SpaceX aims to send Starship into orbit in May; Google’s March feature drop finally reaches the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Russia denies cosmonauts wore yellow jumpsuits in protest of Ukraine invasion; Epic will donate two weeks of 'Fortnite' proceeds to humanitarian efforts in Ukraine Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Snap bans anonymous messaging from third-party apps; Tile will help you scan for unwanted tracking tags; Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Facebook removed a deepfake video of Zelensky; Netflix wants to charge you more for moochers on your account Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Mark Zuckerberg confirms NFTs are coming to Instagram; Microsoft updates Xbox Cloud Gaming to reduce input lag on iOS Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Lyft follows Uber in adding temporary fuel surcharge; CD sales rose for the first time in 17 years Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Samsung's next Galaxy A Event takes place on March 17th; Ford will sell some Explorer SUVs without rear climate controls due to chip shortages Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Facebook will ‘temporarily’ allow Ukrainians to call for the death of Putin and Russian soldiers; Google is rolling out air raid alerts on Android phones in Ukraine Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ukraine may move its top-secret data and servers abroad; 'Heardle' is like 'Wordle' for the musically inclined Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

iOS 15.4 will arrive next week, allowing you to use Face ID with a mask; Lumen is the second major US internet provider to leave Russia Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Instagram pulls Boomerang and Hyperlapse from app stores; Riot Games will donate proceeds from in-game passes to Ukraine relief Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Netflix stops streaming in Russia; SpaceX sends additional Starlink terminals to Ukraine Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Netflix launches its first interactive daily quiz show; Twitter will bring workers back into the office on March 15th Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Twitter may soon add a dedicated tab for podcasts; Amazon is closing all its physical bookstores and '4-star' shops Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Apple halts sales of all products in Russia; Paramount+ anniversary sale drops plans to $1 for new subscribers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Microsoft is the latest to ban Russian state media from its platforms; ‘Forza Horizon 5’ adds American and British Sign Language support Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Meta restricts Russian state media access to Facebook in Ukraine; Elon Musk pledges to send Starlink terminals to Ukraine Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Phone Face ID repairs may soon no longer require a whole device replacement; Tumblr is available ad-free for $5 per month Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Apple Store hostage taker demanded $226,000 in cryptocurrency as ransom; Marvel's Netflix shows are coming to Disney+, but only in Canada for now Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Amazon accused of interfering in Alabama union rerun election; Google says a fix is on the way for a Pixel 6 WiFi issue Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Apple's AirPods Max headphones are $100 off at Amazon; Twitch adds a long-promised 'Play on Luna' button Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices