‘Mystery Science Theater 3000’ is back on a dedicated streaming platform

The world never run out of bad ‘B’ movies to mock, apparently, because Mystery Science Theater 3000 (MST3K) is back for a 13th season, Variety has reported. Thanks to a Kickstarter campaign last year that raised $6.52 million, a full 13-episode season of the series will arrive on a dedicated streaming platform called Gizmoplex starting on May 6th.

As usual, some ordinary humans have been kidnapped by mad scientists (played by Felicia Day, Patton Oswalt and Mary Jo Pehl) and are forced to watch some terrible B-movies. To survive the process, they create companion robots to help provide a continuous stream of taunting and jokes throughout the entire running length of the films. 

This year there will be three hosts: Jonah Heston, Emily Connor, and original host Joel Robinson. They’ll “be forced to endure some of the cheesiest movies ever to appear on MST3K, including our first-ever Halloween special, our first-ever 3D movie, and a holiday special finale so big it’ll take all three hosts to riff it,” according to the team. The B-movies on the slate include Robot Wars, Santo in the Treasure of Dracula and The Million Eyes of Sumuru. 

The show was created by Joel Hodgson and debuted in 1988. It ran for 10 seasons on Comedy Central and the Sci-Fi Channel until 1999, and was later revived by Netflix in 2017 for two seasons, following another Kickstarter campaign. However, Netflix declined to pick it up for a third season. 

The latest revival will thus air independently on a dedicated MST3K platform called Gizmoplex, which offers a website and apps (iOS, Android, Apple TV, Android TV, Roku, and Amazon FireTV). It’ll premiere on May 6th with three episodes released daily from Friday to Sunday. After that, new episodes and one of 12 shorts will arrive every two weeks. The platform will also offer classic MST3K episodes from season 1-10, and for a limited time, they’ll be free and ad-free.

If you want the new episodes, though, you’ll have to sign up (unless you pledged support on Kickstarter). Individual episodes will cost $10, a three-month pass is $50, and a full season from May 22 to February 23 is $135. The latter includes a digital download of season 13. 

Atari collaborates with Cariuma to create a 50th anniversary sneaker collection

Atari is celebrating its 50th anniversary with some smoking new kicks. The venerated gaming company announced on Thursday that it is collaborating with sustainable footwear maker, Cariuma. The collection will feature five designs atop two of Cariuma’s most popular sneaker styles, the Chuck Taylor-esque OCA Low and the Vans-adjacent Catiba Pro.

The Catiba Pros retail for $98 and will come in black and white variants while the $89 OCA Lows will include a red color scheme in addition to the black and white. Though both prominently feature the Atari logo, the two styles will be discernible from a distance given the Lows sport the words “Game On” opposed to the Pro’s depiction of a pixelated Cariuma logo. The sneakers are constructed from eco-friendly materials including GOTS-certified organic cotton canvas, natural rubber and recycled plastics. What’s more, for every pair purchased, Atari and Cariuma will plant two trees in the Amazon rainforest. 

This isn’t the first time that the worlds of fashion and gaming have collided, Playstation has released branded footwear through Nike and Adidas has previously paired with Xbox — there was even an Atari speaker hat released not too long ago. The Atari x Cariuma collection is available online at Cariuma.com

The Morning After: Our verdict on Apple’s Studio Display

Apple’s new display is here, ready for the Mac aficionados unwilling to deck their workstation in anything less than brushed metal and soft corners. The Studio Display is a bit brighter than the 5K iMac; otherwise it’s the same 27-inch screen. That does mean it lacks features we’ve seen on the latest MacBook Pros, like ProMotion refresh rate and Mini-LED backlighting. 

There is an A13 Bionic chip to drive its webcam (which needs the help) and augment its speakers. For the $1,599 price, though, it’s missing some pretty standard features, like an adjustable stand, HDR and high refresh rates. If you want a Mac screen and don’t want to pay more than $2,000, it may still be the best fit. Read our full review here.

— Mat Smith

The biggest stories you might have missed

YouTube makes thousands of TV show episodes available to stream for free

The ad-supported series include ‘Hell’s Kitchen’ and ‘Heartland.’

YouTube is letting users in the US stream thousands of free ad-supported TV shows like Hell’s Kitchen, Heartland and Unsolved Mysteries. YouTube plans to offer around 4,000 free TV episodes on top of the 1,500 movies already available. This month, it added a raft of new movie titles, including Gone in Sixty Seconds, Runaway Bride and Legally Blonde, now available to stream for free with ads.

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PS5 will catch up to Xbox with variable refresh rates

Sony teased the feature will arrive in a few months.

Variable refresh rate (VRR) is coming to the PlayStation 5 in the “coming months,” Sony announced. If you have an HDMI 2.1-compatible TV or PC monitor, it will dynamically sync the display refresh rate to the PS5 console’s graphical output, Sony explained in a blog post. The feature is long overdue. VRR has been available on the Xbox Series X and Series S consoles since they debuted. VRR will help minimize visual artifacts, like screen tearing, offering a more consistently smooth picture.

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IKEA’s latest experiment in speakers is an outdoor LED lamp

It’s a Spotify-enabled Bluetooth speaker.

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IKEA

IKEA has unveiled the Vappeby Bluetooth speaker with a Spotify Tap button that doubles as an outdoor lamp, confirming an FCC filing we saw last year. With IP65 dust and water splash resistance, it’s designed to illuminate outdoor parties, BBQs, etc. with LED light while delivering 360-degree sound. The new model is now available to order for $65 in blue or gray.

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Nothing’s first phone will launch this summer

The Phone 1 will feature a Qualcomm Snapdragon and run a modified version of Android.

As teased, Nothing will release its first smartphone this summer and, in the usual marketing style of its CEO, OnePlus Co-founder Carl Pei, Nothing shared a handful of details while promising to reveal more soon. The phone will run Nothing OS, a modified version of Android that “captures the best features” of Google’s mobile OS while distilling it “to just the essentials.” Which I guess are two ways of saying the same thing. It’s a huge challenge to launch a new smartphone in a land of Galaxies, Pixels and iPhones, but I was pleasantly surprised with Nothing’s slick Ear 1 wireless buds. The company could pretty much win me over with a transparent smartphone, to be honest.

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PlayStation Network issues are affecting PS4, PS5 and other Sony consoles

The PlayStation Network is currently having some issues that are impacting PS3, PS4, PS5, PS Vita and web services. Sony said on a status page that it’s working to resolve the issues, but players might “have difficulty launching games, apps or network features” in the meantime. 

The problems are also affecting PlayStation Now (which might inconvenience those who want to stream games at the minute) and all aspects of the PlayStation Store. They started at around 8:30 AM Eastern time.

The issues come in the wake of updates Sony started rolling out for PS4 and PS5 earlier on Wednesday. Some players have noted on Reddit and elsewhere that their console isn’t able to verify a PlayStation Plus subscription or connect to online services.

The updates will (at least once the issues are resolved) allow PS4 and PS5 players to create or join Open and Closed parties. Sony has tweaked the UI of trophy cards on PS5 and added more accessibility options, including mono audio for headphones. Those with US- and UK-registered accounts can also test voice commands on PlayStation 5.

IKEA’s new outdoor LED lamp is also a Spotify-enabled Bluetooth speaker

IKEA has unveiled the Vappeby Bluetooth speaker with a Spotify Tap button that doubles as an outdoor lamp, confirming an FCC filing we saw last year. With IP65 dust and water splash resistance, it’s designed to illuminate outdoor parties, barbecues, etc. with LED light while delivering 360 sound, the company said. 

When you press the Spotify Tap button, it will start streaming from wherever you left off and another press will play a different recommendation based on your Spotify history. It also works with other streaming services or any media stored on your smartphone or other connected device. 

Vappeby offers up to 12 hours of music streaming, presumably without the light turned on. It charges via USB-C with a cable, but not a charger, included in the package. The lamp offers two LED light modes (IKEA didn’t specify which), and has a grip and lantern-like design.

IKEA's Spotify Tap Bluetooth speaker doubles as an outdoor LED lamp
IKEA/Miguel Perez

Spotify Tap rolled out in September last year and was available at launch on Bluetooth headphones from Samsung, Microsoft Surface, Bose, Skullcandy, and Jabra, Spotify said at the time. The company already has a range of Vappeby Bluetooth speakers (known as Eneby in the US) priced from $25 to $90. It also offers the Symfonisk bookshelf speaker build in collaboration with Sonos, available for €99 in Europe only. 

The company said that Vappeby is “an important step on IKEA’s journey to democratize music… increase user experience, lower the thresholds and make music and light easily accessible.” The new model is now available to order for $65 in blue or grey, though as mentioned, the USB power adapter is sold separately. 

Samsung’s speedy T7 Touch SSDs fall to new all-time lows

With great speed, security and reliability, Samsung’s T7 Touch SSDs are among the best storage expansion options for PCs and mobile devices alike. Now is a great time to pick one up, as both the 1TB and 2TB models are available on Amazon at all-time low prices. You can pick up the 1TB model in silver or black for $130 (a savings of $60), or grab the 2TB version for $260, or $110 off the regular $370 price.

Buy Samsung 1TB T7 Touch SSD at Amazon – $130Buy Samsung 2TB T7 Touch SSD at Amazon – $260

When it launched, the T7 Touch SSD won a CES Innovation Award thanks to its built-in fingerprint scanner feature with 265-bit AES hardware encryption. It supports read and write speeds of 1,050 MB/s and 1,000 MB/s thanks to the USB 3.2 connectivity, considerably faster than most portable SSDs. In addition, it comes with an LED status indicator and can withstand shocks from drops up to six feet. 

Fingerprint setup is relatively simple thanks to the included software. And while some portable SSDs are stingy with cables, the T7 Touch includes both USB Type C-to-C and Type C-to-A cables so you can connect it to PCs, Macs and portable devices. Finally, it offers a sleek and compact style, fitting in the palm of your hand and weighing just 2 ounces or 57 grams. As mentioned, these are the lowest prices we’ve seen on the T7 Touch models, so if you’ve been looking, now’s the time to act.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

Sony confirms VRR will arrive on PS5 in the coming months

Variable refresh rate (VRR) is coming to the PlayStation 5 in the “coming months,” Sony announced. If you have an HDMI 2.1-compatible TV or PC monitor, it will dynamically sync the refresh rate of the display to the PS5 console’s graphical output, Sony explained in a blog post. The feature is long overdue, as VRR has been available on the Xbox Series X and Series S consoles since they debuted. 

As you’re no doubt aware, VRR helps minimize visual artifacts like screen tearing. “Gameplay in many PS5 titles feels smoother as scenes render instantly, graphics look crisper, and input lag is reduced,” Sony explained. “Previously released PS5 games can be fully optimized for VRR through a game patch and future games may include VRR support at launch.”

Sony confirms VRR is coming to PS5 in the coming months
Sony

You’ll also be able to apply VRR to PS5 games that don’t support it, something that “may improve video quality for some games,” Sony said. The results may vary depending on the TV and game you’re playing, it added.

Sony only recently unlocked VRR on its HDMI 2.1-equipped TVs in the US and Europe. The PS5 offers 4K at 120Hz, but it’s arguably not as well implemented as the Xbox Series X/S consoles. 

Sony didn’t specify an exact date for the VRR patch, but will share more details as the feature gets closer to release. In the meantime, the latest PS5 release includes a few other new features. That includes the ability to test drive a Voice Command feature that lets you control media playback or find open games, apps and settings; join open or closed parties through the PS App; and enable a dark mode on PS Remote Play. All of those are rolling out later today.

Ford is turning its EVs into video conference rooms with help from Cisco

With its newly minted bi-directional charging capabilities, the Ford F-150 Lightning can now serve as a backup home power supply in a pinch. Soon, the automaker hopes it might do the same for your office space thanks to a new partnership with Cisco, makers of Webex conference software.

Ford CEO Jim Farley announced on Tuesday, “We’re going all in, creating separate but complementary businesses that give us start-up speed and unbridled innovation.” So far that effort has seen the company announce in recent months plans to separate its EV and ICE businesses, produce in excess of 600,000 EVs annually by in 2023, and introduce seven new EV models to the European market in the next few years. 

And what better way for Ford to fully capture the hearts and minds of the American driving public than to outfit their electric vehicles with the internet’s most popular pastime since March 2020, online conference calling? “We’re looking at ways to bring the human connection in,” Darren Palmer, Vice President, Ford Electric Vehicle Programs, said in a press statement. “We don’t see why people wouldn’t be using their vehicles as a fantastic quality office, to be able to collaborate together.”  

To that end, Ford and Cisco have partnered to “unlock the browser experience on SYNC4A,” the automaker’s infotainment system, and are currently developing a WebEx app capable of running natively on the HTML 5-centric OS. “Ford is excited to be collaborating with Webex by Cisco for next-gen experiences in our electric vehicles,” Palmer continued. “We see Webex as providing a secure and immersive collaboration experience.”

Your cat jumping in front of the webcam can be quite cute when you’re conference calling from home. Your kids loudly melting down in the back seat about who may or may not be touching whom is decidedly less adorable. To help prevent those high-decibel interruptions, future Ford EVs will be outfitted with Webex’s Optimize for My Voice feature which automatically mutes out everybody in the cabin who isn’t part of the meeting. To further minimize distractions to the driver, “We’ll make sure that any collaboration like Webex is deployed only when the vehicle is stationary, or audio-only when driving,” Palmer said. The companies did not disclose a timeline for the application’s eventual release.

Samsung’s Galaxy Buds Pro fall to $130 for today only at Amazon

Samsung’s Galaxy Buds Pro are a good all-round choice for those looking for Android-friendly earbuds. Even better, if you’re in the market for a set, they’re on sale on Amazon for today only for $130. That’s $70 off the regular price.

Buy Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro at Amazon – $130

We gave Galaxy Buds Pro a score of 85 in our review (the more recent Galaxy Buds 2 received a slightly lower score of 84). Along with good sound quality, active noise cancellation (ANC) and a comfortable fit, there’s support for wireless charging.

You’ll get up to five hours of listening time with ANC and Bixby voice cues turned on, and a total of 18 hours of use with the help of the charging case. Switch off ANC and hands-free Bixby and those numbers jump up to eight hours and 28 hours, respectively, Samsung claims. Thanks to quick charging support, you can add an hour of listening time after just five minutes of charging.

Samsung says the earbuds will withstand being immersed in three-feet deep water for up to 30 minutes. There’s IPX7 water resistance as well.

While this isn’t quite the lowest price we’ve seen for Galaxy Buds Pro, it’s not far off. They’ve dropped to $120 at Woot and $125 at Amazon in the past. Still, it’s a good deal on a solid set of earbuds.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

Roku OS 11 adds new audio options, photo screensavers and more

Roku has just detailed its first major platform update since it came out with OS 10.5 late last year, and it’s a big one. To start, Roku OS 11 adds an automatic speech clarity setting that Roku promises will make it easier to understand dialogue. At th…