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TikTok is striking back against Montana’s recently passed ban on the popular video app. On Monday, TikTok filed to legally challenge the ban in US district court.

“We are challenging Montana’s unconstitutional TikTok ban to protect our business and the hundreds of thousands of TikTok users in Montana,” a representative for TikTok said in a statement sent to CNET. “We believe our legal challenge will prevail based on an exceedingly strong set of precedents and facts.”

On May 17, Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte signed Senate Bill 419, making his state the first in the nation to ban TikTok over concerns related to its Chinese parent company, ByteDance.

“The Chinese Communist Party using TikTok to spy on Americans, violate their privacy, and collect their personal, private, and sensitive information is well-documented,” Gianforte said in a press release announcing the ban. “Today, Montana takes the most decisive action of any state to protect Montanans’ private data and sensitive personal information from being harvested by the Chinese Communist Party.”

TikTok reports that it has more than 150 million monthly active users in the US. And a 2022 Pew study found that 67% of US teens aged 13 to 17 said they used the app, with 16% of all teens saying they use it almost “constantly.” So can Montana, the eighth-smallest US state by population, really ban its just over 1 million people from using the app? It’s complicated.

For more on data privacy, check out CNET’s list of the best VPN services and how to stop iPhone apps from tracking you.

What does TikTok say in its legal complaint?

TikTok’s statement lists multiple reasons why the company believes the ban is unlawful, beginning by citing the First Amendment, which forbids government restrictions on free speech.

The company says the Montana law is “unconstitutionally shutting down the forum for speech for all speakers on the app and singling these speakers out for disfavored treatment with the content-based rationale that videos on TikTok are harmful to minors.”

TikTok also says the claims that US user data is being used by the Chinese government involve foreign affairs and national security, and should be dealt with at the federal, not state level. It argues that the state-specific ban on its national platform risks disrupting the flow of travel and commerce between states, and also says it’s unconstitutional that TikTok is singled out for harsh penalties based on speculation about its data security and content moderation.

TikTok is seeking a declaratory judgment and order “invalidating and preliminarily and permanently enjoining Defendant from enforcing the TikTok Ban.”

A representative for the Montana governor didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit.

Is banning TikTok really going to protect data privacy?

The Electronic Frontier Foundation, a nonprofit digital rights group, called the ban “unconstitutional” in a Twitter thread.

And an article from March published on the EFF site pointed out that nearly all social media platforms and online businesses collect a good deal of personal data from users, while noting that the surveillance and censorship practices of China make TikTok a special case.

“Still, the best solution to these problems is not to single out one business or country for a ban,” the EFF wrote. “Rather, we must enact comprehensive consumer data privacy legislation. By reducing the massive stores of personal data collected by all businesses, TikTok included, we will reduce opportunities for all governments, China included, to buy or steal this data.

Jason Kelley, the EFF’s acting director for activism, told CNET in a phone interview that the ban violates the First Amendment and won’t protect data privacy, but will put an “enormous burden” on Montana as it attempts to enforce the law. But he doesn’t think that’s the point.

“It’s not a law that is intended to be implemented,” he said. “It will waste a lot of taxpayer money and be litigated in court.”

Why is Montana banning TikTok?

TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, is headquartered in Beijing. Some fear that data acquired by the app could be accessed by the Chinese Communist Party, and could pose a national security threat to the United States if the company is forced to share US user data with the Chinese government.

In November, FBI Director Christopher Wray said the app could be used to “control data collection on millions of users, or control the recommendation algorithm, which could be used [to] influence operations if they so choose, or to control software on millions of devices.” FCC Commissioner Brian Carr last year called the app a “sophisticated surveillance tool.”

The ban wouldn’t take effect if TikTok is sold to a company not based in “any country designated as a foreign adversary” by the US government.

Montana’s ban is the first of its kind by a state, but in December, US lawmakers banned the app from government devices, and other countries have also restricted the app.

What does TikTok have to say about the China charges?

TikTok has denied that it feeds information to the Chinese government.

“There is no truth to the [Montana] governor’s claim that TikTok is associated with the Chinese government,” a representative for TikTok said in its first statement after the ban was announced. “The Chinese Communist Party has neither direct nor indirect control of ByteDance or TikTok. ByteDance is a private, global company, with roughly 60 percent owned by global institutional investors, 20 percent owned by the company’s founders, and 20 percent owned by employees — including thousands of Americans.”

TikTok Chief Executive Officer Shou Chew testified before Congress back in March. He said TikTok has been working on an initiative called Project Texas, which he said would create “a firewall that seals off protected US user data from unauthorized foreign access,” and include oversight by a US company.

What does the Montana TikTok ban involve?

The Montana police aren’t going to break down citizens’ doors and stop Billings or Butte teens from uploading or watching quirky dances or funny cat videos. Instead of going after individual users, the state’s attempting to prohibit mobile application stores from offering TikTok within the state.

So while the law does technically prohibit downloads of TikTok, it doesn’t mention fining regular citizens, just TikTok itself or whichever app store, Apple for iOS devices or Google for Android devices, allows Montanans access to it. The proposed fines are hefty — $10,000 per day for each time someone accesses TikTok, “is offered the ability” to access it, or downloads it. Again, those fines wouldn’t apply to the users, but the companies that allow them to get TikTok.

However, the bill also includes even stricter rules for state employees using government devices. It says that “effective June 1, no executive agency, board, commission, or other executive branch entity, official, or employee of the State of Montana shall download or access social media applications that provide personal information or data to foreign adversaries on government-issued devices or while connected to the state network.” And third-party firms conducting business for, or on behalf of, Montana are now prohibited “from using applications with ties to foreign adversaries.”

How will Montana enforce the TikTok ban?

This is unclear. The prohibitions on state employees and agencies kicks in June 1, but the main part of the ban won’t take effect until Jan. 1, 2024. That gives the state some time to figure things out, and in the meantime, there will surely be lawsuits, likely from TikTok itself, and perhaps entities such as the ACLU.

But as far as enforcement itself, there are some idea. The Associated Press reports that Montana’s attorney general has suggested the technology used to restrict online gambling apps could be used. Violations can be reported by anyone, and the state then sends a cease-and-desist letter to the company.

Google‘s latest update for Chrome makes it simpler to change your default desktop design from the standard white and gray color scheme. A new side panel enables you to access customization features and preview your browser design in real time, the company said Tuesday.

You can now switch colors, background themes or other settings by clicking the Customize Chrome icon at the bottom of your screen. The side menu pops up and presents color options and the ability to upload your own image or change the theme. Roughly 13 theme collections show up in the sidebar, allowing you to select options such as “Seascapes,” “Life” and “Latino Artists Collection.” It’s a slight change, as previously you had to visit Chrome’s Web Store to choose from a series of themes. However, you can still hop over to the web store to view a variety of options not shown in the side panel.

Chrome users can swap out different color schemes within themes, adjusting it to your taste. Additionally, Google says you don’t have to stick to just one theme. After making your selection, toggle “Refresh daily” to set up a revolving queue of backdrops.

To make the customization process even more streamlined, Chrome automatically saves your edits, eliminating the need to click “Done” to apply your changes. Once you’ve modified your design, just close the side panel. You can always change it back to the flagship version of Chrome if you prefer.

Learn more about how Google’s new experiment may affect your internet experience or how to keep your inactive account from disappearing.

Mobvoi, the company behind the popular line of TicWatch smartwatches, on Wednesday launched its latest watch, the TicWatch Pro 5. It runs on Google’s Wear OS 3 software and is powered by Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon W5 Plus Gen 1 chip, which should increase speed and overall performance. A new version of the Mobvoi health app will launch alongside the watch, which costs $350 and is available now.

In addition to the new chip, the TicWatch Pro 5 includes a number of other features like a rotating crown for navigating the watch’s interface and a smarter new backlight that should allow trail runners and night joggers to view the screen without illuminating their surroundings. There’s also a one-tap measurement feature to provide access to five different health metrics instantly, like heart rate, blood oxygen and more, as well as stress management and advanced sleep tracking.

Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 5 See at Mobvoi

On the fitness side, there’s continuous heart-rate monitoring, a built-in barometer, improved VO2 Max tracking and tools to help you understand the proper recovery time required after your workouts. There are over 100 different workout modes, which should make it easy to match what the watch tracks to the activity you’re doing. With the redesigned app, Mobvoi is putting more focus on the health-tracking aspects of the watch to better compete with companies like Samsung, Apple and Oura.

Mobvoi has historically focused more on lower-cost, entry-level models, which the company has had some success with. It’s also one of the only “smaller” companies that’s producing Wear OS watches. While this watch will launch with Wear OS 3, the most current version available today, it’s worth noting that Google just announced Wear OS 4 during its developer conference. When asked about that next operating system, Mobvoi did not have any announcements but said the company is working with Google on future Wear OS updates.

Still, Mobvoi’s overall focus on health, with both its new app and the TicWatch Pro 5’s features, further show that fitness is the major area of focus for today’s wearables.

Adobe has bulit generative AI abilities into its flagship image-editing software, releasing a Photoshop beta version Tuesday that dramatically expands what artists and photo editors can do. The move promises to release a new torrent of creativity even as it gives us all a new reason to pause and wonder if that sensational, scary or inspirational photo you see on the internet is actually real.

In my tests, detailed below, I found the tool impressive but imperfect. Adding it directly to Photoshop is a big deal, letting creators experiment within the software tool they’re likely already using without excursions to Midjourney, Stability AI’s Stable Diffusion or other outside generative AI tools.

With Adobe’s Firefly family of generative AI technologies arriving in Photoshop, you’ll be able to let the AI fill a selected part of the image with whatever it thinks most fitting – for example, replacing road cracks with smooth pavement. You can also specify the imagery you’d like with a text prompt, such as adding a double yellow line to the road.

Firefly in Photoshop also can also expand an image, adding new scenery beyond the frame based on what’s already in the frame or what you suggest with text. Want more sky and mountains in your landscape photo? A bigger crowd at the rock concert? Photoshop will oblige, without today’s difficulties of finding source material and splicing it in.

The feature, called generative fill and scheduled to emerge from beta testing in the second half of 2023, can be powerful. In Adobe’s live demo, the tool was often able to match a photo’s tones, blend in AI-generated imagery seamlessly, infer the geometric details of perspective even in reflections and extrapolate the position of the sun from shadows and sky haze.

Such technologies have been emerging over the last year as Stable Diffusion, Midjourney and OpenAI’s Dall-Ecaptured the imaginations of artists and creative pros. Now it’s built directly into the software they’re most likely to already be using, streamlining what can be a cumbersome editing process.

“It really puts the power and control of generative AI into the hands of the creator,” said Maria Yap, Adobe’s vice president of digital imaging. “You can just really have some fun. You can explore some ideas. You can ideate. You can create without ever necessarily getting into the deep tools of the product, very quickly.”

But you can’t sell anything yet. With Firefly technology, including what’s produced by Photoshop’s generative fill, “you may not use the output for any commercial purpose,” Adobe’s generative AI beta rules state.

Photoshop’s Firefly AI imperfect but useful

In my testing, I frequently ran into problems, many of them likely stemming from the limited range of the training imagery. When I tried to insert a fish on a bicycle to an image, Firefly only added the bicycle. I couldn’t get Firefly to add a kraken to emerge from San Francisco Bay. A musk ox looked like a panda-moose hybrid.

Less fanciful material also presents problems. Text looks like an alien race’s script. Shadows, lighting, perspective and geometry weren’t always right.

People are hard, too. On close inspection, their faces were distorted in weird ways. Humans added into shots could be positioned too high in the frame or in otherwise unconvincingly blended in.

Still, Firefly is remarkable for what it can accomplish, particularly with landscape shots. I could add mountains, oceans, skies and hills to landscapes. A white delivery van in a night scene was appropriately yellowish to match the sodium vapor streetlights in the scene. If you don’t like the trio of results Firefly presents, you can click the “generate” button to get another batch.

Given the pace of AI developments, I expect Firefly in Photoshop will improve.

It’s hard and expensive to retrain big AI models, requiring a data center packed with expensive hardware to churn through data, sometimes taking weeks for the largest models. But Adobe plans relatively frequent updates to Firefly. “Expect [about] monthly updates for general improvements and retraining every few months in all likelihood,” Adobe product chief Scott Belsky tweeted Tuesday.

Automating image manipulation

For years, “Photoshop” hasn’t just referred to Adobe’s software. It’s also used as a verb signifying photo manipulations like slimming supermodels’ waists or hiding missile launch failures. AI tools automate not just fun and flights of fancy, but also fake images like an alleged explosion at the Pentagon or a convincingly real photo of the pope in a puffy jacket, to pick two recent examples.

With AI, expect editing techniques far more subtle than the extra smoke easily recognized as digitally added to photos of an Israeli attack on Lebanon in 2006.

It’s a reflection of the double-edged sword that is generative AI. The technology is undeniably useful in many situations but also blurs the line between what is true and what is merely plausible.

For its part, Adobe tries to curtail problems. It doesn’t permit prompts to create images of many political figures and blocks you for “safety issues” if you try to create an image of black smoke in front of the White House. And its AI usage guidelines prohibit imagery involving violence, pornography and “misleading, fraudulent, or deceptive content that could lead to real-world harm,” among other categories. “We disable accounts that engage in behavior that is deceptive or harmful.”

Firefly also is designed to skip over styling prompts like that have provoked serious complaints from artists displeased to see their type of art reproduced by a data center. And it supports the Content Authenticity Initiative‘s content credentials technology that can be used to label an image as having been generated by AI.

Today, generative AI imagery made with Adobe’s Firefly website add content credentials by default along with a visual watermark. When the Photoshop feature exists beta testing and ships later this year, imagery will include content credentials automatically, Adobe said.

People trying to fake images can sidestep that technology. But in the long run, it’ll become part of how we all evaluate images, Adobe believes.

“Content credentials give people who want to be trusted a way to be trusted. This is an open-source technology that lets everyone attach metadata to their images to show that they created an image, when and where it was created, and what changes were made to it along the way,” Adobe said. “Once it becomes the norm that important news comes with content credentials, people will then be skeptical when they see images that don’t.”

Generative AI for photos

Adobe’s Firefly family of generative AI tools began with a website that turns a text prompt like “modern chair made up of old tires” into an image. It’s added a couple other options since, and Creative Cloud subscribers will also be able to try a lightweight version of the Photoshop interface on the Firefly site.

When OpenAI’s Dall-E brought that technology to anyone who signed up for it in 2022, it helped push generative artificial intelligence from a technological curiosity toward mainstream awareness. Now there’s plenty of worry along with the excitement as even AI creators fret about what the technology will bring now and in the more distant future.

Generative AI is a relatively new form of artificial intelligence technology. AI models can be trained to recognize patterns in vast amounts of data – in this case labeled images from Adobe’s stock art business and other licensed sources – and then to create new imagery based on that source data.

Generative AI has surged to mainstream awareness with language models used in tools like OpenAI’s ChatGPT chatbot, Google’s Gmail and Google Docs, and Microsoft’s Bing search engine. When it comes to generating images, Adobe employs an AI image generation technique called diffusion that’s also behind Dall-E, Stable Diffusion, Midjourney and Google’s Imagen.

Adobe calls Firefly for Photoshop a “co-pilot” technology, positioning it as a creative aid, not a replacement for humans. Yap acknowledges that some creators are nervous about being replaced by AI. Adobe prefers to see it as a technology that can amplify and speed up the creative process, spreading creative tools to a broader population.

“I think the democratization we’ve been going through, and having more creativity, is a positive thing for all of us,” Yap said. “This is the future of Photoshop.”

Editors’ note: CNET is using an AI engine to create some personal finance explainers that are edited and fact-checked by our editors. For more, see this post.

Adobe makes some of the best apps out there for all kinds of creatives, including photographers, graphic designers, animators and much more. And if you want access to it’s full suite of apps, then we’ve got a deal you won’t want to miss. Access to all 25 apps, including popular tools like Photoshop and Lightroom, would typically cost you a pricey $82 per month. But right now at StackSocial, you can get three months of access, plus 100GB of cloud storage, for just $30 total, which saves you over $200 compared to the usual cost. There’s no set expiration for this offer, so you’ll want to get signed up soon if you don’t want to miss out on these savings.

The subscription will grant you access to the latest version of a plethora of creative tools, including Photoshop, Illustrator, Premiere Pro, InDesign, Acrobat Pro, Lightroom, After Effects, Adobe Express and many more, so you don’t have to pick and choose. You’ll also get access to tutorials to help you through your next project, Creative Cloud libraries where you can save and share assets, and 100GB of cloud storage designed to keep your work safe, secure and easily accessible. Plus, tons of fonts, templates and stock assets. The apps will work on both Windows and Mac computers, and you can use the subscription on up to two devices.

Note that in order to redeem your key from StackSocial, you’ll have to create an account with Adobe and select a renewal plan, so make sure you’re comfortable with that before you purchase. Note that this deal includes three stackable codes for a one-month subscription, rather than a single three-month subscription code, and you’ll have to redeem them within 30 days of the purchase.

Netflix said Tuesday it’s now rolling out its updated policy on account-sharing in the US. It began sending emails on May 23 to customers who are sharing passwords with anyone outside of their household, Netflix said in a blog post.

If you’re sharing your streaming account with friends and family who live at a different address, you may opt to pay a fee for the extra user or to remove them from your account.Subscribers with either a standard or premium plan can choose to pay an additional $8 per month for each extra member. At this time, the extra member option is only available for those who are billed directly by Netflix.

Stream Netflix See at Netflix

There are limits to how many extra users are allowed on accounts. Only those with a premium membership can add two extra people to their account; the standard price plan allows for only one extra member. Netflix defines a household as one where everyone lives under the same roof. Members of that household are still able to watch content while traveling, and the extra fee will not apply.

When you open the Netflix app and navigate to your account page, you’ll see an Extra Members option. From there, subscribers can purchase a slot for the person outside their household. If they accept the invitation, the extra member will receive their own separate account, profile and password, and the fee is paid for by the main subscribing household.

The rules? Extra member accounts can only stream on one device at a time and are only permitted to have one profile. The extra member must also be located in the same country as the account holder.

Subscribers can also opt to remove users outside of their households from their account, and urge them to sign up for their own Netflix subscriptions. In this case, anyone who is removed from an account can transfer existing profiles to a new membership they pay for themselves.

Here’s a look at the monthly cost for each subscription plan:

The streaming service rolled out its new policy in February for Canada, Spain, Portugal and New Zealand. Netflix first announced its intention to crack down on password-sharing last year. In April, Netflix said it would implement a fee for US customers by the end of the second quarter.

Apple’s WWDC is set to kick off in less than two weeks. The big developer-focused event has traditionally been where we get our first looks at new software for iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches and Macs. But occasionally we get some new hardware, too.

This year seems set to be the latter. With plenty of rumors circulating around the tech giant’s mysterious augmented reality headset, a new 15-inch MacBook Air and the long-teased Apple Silicon-powered Mac Pro, it’s certainly possible there could be some physical products on stage alongside all the software improvements.

Although there’s still some time until Tim Cook pops up on stage and makes things official, here’s what we expect at the keynote address June 5.

When is WWDC?

This year’s WWDC runs June 5 to 9. The opening keynote speech is set for 1 p.m. ET (10 a.m. PT) on June 5.

As with past years, Apple will be streaming the keynote on its website.

What do we expect?

Apple headset

The biggest rumor heading into this year’s WWDC is of course the Apple headset. Rumored to be running on a new “xrOS,” the device could utilize mixed reality, a combination of virtual reality and augmented reality. There may be eye and hand tracking, high-resolution displays and… a potential $3,000 price tag.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman recently detailed how Apple plans to incorporate sports, gaming, workouts and iPad apps into the headset to show off what the new platform can do. Whether that’s enough to excite consumers and persuade them to drop three grand or for developers to commit to building apps for it remains to be seen.

MacBook Air 15

The MacBook Air has long been one of Apple’s most popular laptops. Frequently sold with a 13-inch screen, Apple has experimented with different sizes of Airs in the past, including offering an 11-inch model for years. Rumors these days, however, suggest that the company has a larger, 15-inch M2-powered Air raring to go. That once again comes from Bloomberg’s Gurman, who expects the new laptop to be announced at this year’s event. It’s about time.

While rumors point to an imminent announcement, it’s unclear how much Apple might charge for the new Air or how it might fit into the company’s existing MacBook lineup. The 2020 M1-powered 13.3-inch MacBook Air is still sold for $999, while the updated M2-powered 2022 13.6-inch MacBook Air starts at $1,199. A 16-inch MacBook Pro, meanwhile, starts at $2,499. Might the 15-inch Air fit somewhere in the middle?

Apple M-Series Mac Pro

Oh, the Mac Pro. Apple last updated the Mac Pro at WWDC in 2019. Despite some teases that confirmed it’s working on a new one powered by its Apple Silicon chips, the company has largely been quiet about the super powerful computer. Might the “another day” be June 5? It’s possible and Mac Pro fans may want to tune in, but with tempered expectations.

In an April appearance on The MacRumors Show, Gurman, the Apple savant, suggests that it still may arrive this year but not at WWDC.

New software

In addition to all the hardware rumors, we can expect Apple to detail the latest updates coming this year to its iOS, iPadOS, WatchOS and TVOS platforms.

Among the bigger iOS changes, Apple might finally add support for installing apps not downloaded from the App Store. The iPhone maker has long resisted opening up its mobile software to allow for sideloading, but new European regulations may have forced its hand.

Other software changes Apple might unveil include a new mental health app as well as widgets returning to the Apple Watch.

The Galaxy S23 launch may be far behind us, but Samsung likely has plenty more to announce in 2023. That’s if history repeats itself. Should Samsung stick to its annual routine, we can expect to see new foldable phones and wearable devices in August. The company also previewed new designs for bendable phones and tablets earlier this year, hinting that the company may be planning to expand beyond the Z Fold and Z Flip in the near future.

Though Samsung regularly releases new products across many categories, including TVs, home appliances and monitors, I’m most interested in where its mobile devices are headed. Samsung is one of the world’s largest smartphone manufacturers by market share, meaning it has more influence than most other tech companies on the devices we carry in our pockets each day. Wearables have also become a large part of how Samsung intends to differentiate its phones from those of other Android device makers. It’s a strategy to create a web of products that keep people hooked, much like Apple’s range of devices.

Here are the rumored Samsung products I’m most excited to see this year, based on rumors, leaks and the company’s usual product launch schedule.

Galaxy Z Fold 5

Samsung’s next phone-tablet hybrid will likely support the S Pen just like the current version. But the question is whether the S Pen will be included with the device, or if Samsung will continue to sell it separately.

A report from The Elec suggested the Galaxy Z Fold 5 could be the first to have an embedded S Pen. That not only means the stylus would be included free of charge, but the phone would also include a slot for storing it, just like on the Galaxy S23 Ultra and S22 Ultra. If you want to use an S Pen with the Galaxy Z Fold 4, you have to purchase it separately, and there’s no mechanism for attaching it to or storing it in the phone without buying a case.

It’s a seemingly small addition, but one that could make the Galaxy Z Fold 5 much more useful as a productivity device. It would also give the Galaxy Z Fold 5 a clearer purpose and could boost its appeal among early adopters, artists and notetakers. Samsung could target the same audience of shoppers that’s usually interested in the Galaxy Ultra or its previous Galaxy Note devices.

But a more recent report from ET News indicates the Galaxy Z Fold 5 will not include a storage slot for the S Pen.

Among the biggest changes, however, is expected to be a new hinge that could result in a thinner design. Korean news outlets The Elec and ET News, as well as prolific leaker Ice Universe, have reported that Samsung will implement a new water-drop-shaped hinge for the Galaxy Z Fold 5.

Samsung typically releases new foldable phones in August, so we expect to hear more around that time frame. In addition to the rumors around an included S Pen, the Z Fold 5 will likely have the routine upgrades to the processor and camera. What I’m really hoping for, however, is new software that makes better use of the phone’s giant screen, along with a foldable display with a less noticeable crease. That’s especially true now that Google has announced the Pixel Fold, giving the Galaxy Z Fold some fresh competition.

Galaxy Z Flip 5

Samsung’s pocket-friendly foldable will also likely get an upgrade around August, just like the expected Z Fold 5. The Galaxy Z Flip 4 already gets a lot of things right, and it’s one of the most practical and affordable foldable phones available. Yet there are plenty of ways Samsung can and should improve the Z Flip. Samsung’s flip phone could benefit from a larger cover screen, longer battery life and an upgraded camera that brings it closer to those found on the Galaxy S series, for example.

But the biggest reason I’m interested in seeing what’s next for the Z Flip is because of its price. The phone starts at $1,000 and is often available for less with an eligible trade-in, making the price similar to that of a standard, non-foldable premium phone. Samsung also kept the Galaxy Z Flip 3 in its lineup and dropped its price by $100 following the Z Flip 4’s launch. That further suggests the Z Flip is shaping up to be Samsung’s more affordable foldable phone option.

A Galaxy Z Flip 5 with a newer processor, better camera and larger cover screen for the same price as the Z Flip 4 (or perhaps a little cheaper) could be one of the most compelling foldables yet.

Galaxy Buds 3

If Samsung’s history is any indication, the Galaxy Buds 3 could arrive this August. Samsung released the Galaxy Buds 2 Pro in August 2022 while the standard Galaxy Buds 2 launched in August 2021. That timeline suggests Samsung’s regular, non-Pro earbuds may be due for an upgrade.

We haven’t seen many leaks about upcoming Galaxy Buds yet. However, given that the regular Galaxy Buds are meant to be a more affordable alternative to the Pro model, we can probably expect them to cost significantly less than the Galaxy Buds 2 Pro. Those earbuds are usually priced at $229 compared to the $150 Galaxy Buds 2. Although we don’t know what to expect, the Buds 3 could benefit from better water resistance and noise cancellation.

Galaxy VR headset

It’s already shaping up to be a big year for virtual and augmented reality headsets. Apple is expected to introduce a VR headset, and the PlayStation VR 2 just arrived in February. Samsung has been surprisingly absent from the VR space in recent years, but that could change soon.

Samsung announced in February that it’s working with Qualcomm and Google on a new mixed-reality platform. The company did not mention whether any specific products are in development, nor did it provide a timeline for future mixed-reality hardware or services.

“It’s more of a declarative announcement about how we are going to get it right in trying to build the XR ecosystem,” TM Roh, president of Samsung’s mobile division, said through a translator in an interview with CNET ahead of the announcement.

The reveal comes after a report from ETNews suggested Samsung would release an extended-reality headset for developers in 2023, according to an English translation of the story.

Since there aren’t many details, it’s difficult to know what to expect. But Sameer Samat, Google’s vice president of product management for Android, said during Google I/O 2023 that the company will share more about its “immersive XR” partnership later this year.

A new type of Galaxy foldable

Samsung hasn’t mentioned plans for future foldables beyond the Galaxy Z Fold and Galaxy Z Flip series, but it certainly has plenty of ideas to choose from. At CES 2023, Samsung showcased its line of “Flex” display concepts, including the appropriately named Flex Hybrid. That device has a foldable, tablet-size screen that extends by sliding out when opened to provide even more screen space.

The Flex Hybrid caught my eye, though, because I can understand the potential behind foldable tablets. Tablets are inherently larger than phones, so the ability to make them more portable by folding them in half seems more necessary. Tablets are also usually used as secondary devices for tasks like watching movies, reading, or getting work done. Having a display that could morph to fit different circumstances seems interesting.

Samsung also showed off some concepts as part of SID Display Week in May, including the Rollable Flex, which expands up to five times its length when unfolded.

It’s unclear whether any of these will graduate into real products. But it’s important to remember the Galaxy Z Fold started as a concept, too.

Galaxy Watch 6

Samsung hasn’t said much about its future smartwatch plans, aside from revealing that its new One UI 5 Watch software will debut on new watches later this year. There also haven’t been many leaks or rumors about the Galaxy Watch 6 yet. But if the company follows its usual schedule, we should see new Galaxy Watches in August.

One of the few leaks to have surfaced so far comes from a well-known leaker who goes by the Twitter avatar Ice Universe, who says the beloved rotating bezel will return to the high-end version of the Galaxy Watch 6. Otherwise, the upcoming watches will likely have the same health sensors found in the Galaxy Watch 5 and 5 Pro, which include those for measuring body composition, blood oxygen and taking an ECG among others. There’s also a skin temperature sensor that still isn’t active yet in the Galaxy Watch 5 and Watch 5 Pro.

Samsung’s Exynos W920 chip that powers the Galaxy Watch 5, enabled better performance for 3D graphics like emoji avatars and faster app launches. It’s unclear whether Samsung will develop a new chip for the Galaxy Watch 6, but I hope to see longer battery life regardless. Since Apple and Qualcomm have both made efforts to expand the functionality of smartwatches in low-power mode, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Samsung take this route, too.

Samsung is already experimenting with different opportunities for its wearables and phones to work together in new ways. For example, it recently announced a software update for the Galaxy Buds 2 Pro that will enable the buds to capture 360-degree audio when recording video with a Galaxy phone. It also expanded the Camera Controller app for the Galaxy Watch 4 and 5 to include zooming support. Hopefully we’ll see more of this with the Galaxy Watch 6.

We’ll know more about Samsung’s future plans as August gets closer. But if Samsung’s 2023 launch cycle is anything like last year’s, we can expect to see new foldables and more.

Twister Air is bringing an augmented reality spin to the color-matching game, replacing the mat with wristbands and an app that tracks how you move.

Revealed Wednesday by Hasbro, the $20 game uses the camera on a phone or tablet to track as players match wrist and ankle bands with colored spots on the screen.

Though Twister Air is unlikely to make players get into yogalike positions to hit all the spots, like the traditional game sometimes requires, it does prompt players to reach, clap, swipe or pose to earn points.

Twister Air can be played in teams, one-on-one or by yourself, and it includes 16 songs that play during games. The set comes with an adjustable stand for holding a phone or tablet, and you can play the game on a television using AirPlay for iOS devices or Chromecast when using Android.

Twister Air is the latest game to reinvent itself by taking advantage of augmented reality. March saw the release of Hot Wheels Rift Rally featuring a remote control car that races around on your floor while appearing to shoot along an AR racetrack that appears on your phone or TV.

Twister Air goes on preorder starting today at Amazon, and it’ll hit most retail stores on Aug. 1.

It seems like graphics card prices are dropping daily, especially for the budget 1080p gaming end of the market: No sooner had Nvidia announced its RTX 4060 at $300 when Intel decreased the price of its competing Arc A750 by about $70 to $200. And shortly before AMD even announced its new Radeon RX 7600, the company reacted to Nvidia’s pricing by shaving $30 off it to come in at a starting price of $270.

These types of recalibrations in prices aren’t unusual — it’s an “Uh oh. We don’t think our card will perform as well for the same money” response. It’s actually quite refreshing, a return to normal after the years of cryptomining- and pandemic-driven price insanity. And $269 feels about where this card should fall, delivering solid 1080p frame rates. But if you’ve got any interest in taking quality up a notch with raytracing or growing into 1440p, it may fall a bit short. And at $200, the Arc A750 looks surprisingly attractive in comparison.

AMD Radeon RX 7600

Like

• Compact and suitable for budget gaming PCs and upgrades
• Solid 1080p performance for the money

Don’t like

• Some minor wonkiness
• AMD’s raytracing performance still not up to par

You’ll be able to buy the RX 7600 starting this week; there’s an AMD version (which we tested) as well as versions from its usual board partners, such as ASRock, Asus, MSI, Gigabyte, PowerColor and more.

It’s not the cheapest AMD option, just the cheapest one based on AMD’s current RDNA 3 architecture. The last-gen RDNA 2 models, RX 6600 and 6650 XT remain in the line starting as low as $229. Above the RX 7600, there are no RX 7800 or RX 7700-class models as yet, so above the RX 7600 are the older 12GB 6700 XT and 6750 XT and the 16GB RX 6800, 6800 XT and 6950 XT, covering a price range from about $370 to about $900.

With 8GB of VRAM, small size — it’s two slots wide, but it’s quite short at under 9 inches — and relatively modest power and slot requirements, it’s a perfect fit for a new budget gaming PC build or for upgrading a 3-year-old low-end GPU in an older system.

Unlike Nvidia, all of AMDs graphics cards have DisplayPort 2.1 connectors (Nvidia’s still on 1.4a), but its somewhat moot for this class of GPU — it doesn’t have enough power to require the extra bandwidth that connection affords, like running 4K at high refresh rates.

Performance

In testing, the card generally delivered 1080p in the 80 to 120fps range at high quality depending upon the game, but you’ll have to scale back quality if you want to jump to 1440p.

The company’s FidelityFX Super Resolution 2.0 technology for upscaling theoretically offers a substantial performance bump: On the new 3DMark FSR 2 test, it boosted frame rates at least 75% and up to 190% with a variety of settings. (I didn’t test every permutation of resolution and quality because testing is an abyss I may never crawl out of.) But in many cases that just boosted 1440p frame rates from unplayable to borderline.

There aren’t a lot of games with FSR 2/2.1 — just about 50 at my last count, some of which haven’t shipped yet — and I wasn’t really happy with earlier versions. Still need to do more testing on this, especially versus Nvidia’s DLSS 3 and Intel’s XeSS. Data accumulation in progress.

The automatic overclocking of the GPU and memory via the driver didn’t seem to have much of an effect, though it remained stable in stress tests; you can manually tune them, but see above regarding testing abyss.

But one thing I consistently see is subpar raytracing performance compared with other GPUs. AMD seems to lag Nvidia and even relative newcomer Intel by a generation, even with the higher end RX 7900 XTX and XT. However, raytracing isn’t a hugely popular feature priority compared with the desire for better performance at higher resolutions; if you fall into that camp, don’t sweat it.

AMD does seem to excel at certain types of pro graphics tasks, notably those represented by the types of applications SpecViewPerf tests. It’s not exceptionally fast (it is a low end card, after all) and only at about 1440p and below, but for the money it seems like a good value.

I did experience a few screen redraw glitches and one system hang, but I couldn’t isolate the causes or replicate them, so for the moment I’ll consider them rub of the green.

I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw more new models to replace AMD’s existing 6000-series cards around the same time as Nvidia ships the RTX 4060 — July — and unless your current GPU is making you crazy with the slow, I’d wait to see what AMD’s planning and how the RTX 4060 shapes up.

Relative performance of other GPUs