This week, Cherlynn and Devindra look back at 2020 to figure out the best and worst of tech. From Apples M1 chip to the downfall of Quibi, it was a year of serious highs and lows for the tech industry, especially once you factor how the COVID-19 pandemic changed our lives.
Tech’s Winners of 2020 (Consoles and…the LG Wing?) – 1:31
Tech’s Losers of 2020 (RIP Quibi but not really) – 36:49
In other news – 59:28
Working On – 1:02:19
Picks – 1:06:20

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The Biggest Winners and Losers of Tech in 2020

A weekly news show where your favorite Engadget editors tear themselves away from their crippling technology addiction, to discuss our collective crippling technology addiction.

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Hulu's "Black Twitter: A People's History" documents the rise and impact of one of social media's most influential subcultures. The series, directed by TV writer Prentice Penny, is a reminder of the power of Twitter before its Musk-ified downfall, and a necessary cultural document. They say Twitter isn't real life, but Black Twitter proved otherwise. In this bonus episode, Devindra chats with Prentice about adapting the Wired article, "A People's History of Black Twitter," his own favorite social media memories, and where the legacy of Black Twitter will go from here.

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Diving into Hulu’s Black Twitter doc with director Prentice Penny

As rumors foretold, Apple has revamped the iPad Pro with an M4 chip, tandem OLED screen and a thinner case. There's also a new Magic Keyboard that should deliver a more MacBook-like typing experience! In this week's episode, Cherlynn and Devindra discuss how Apple is shining a new light on tablets (which also includes the new iPad Air models) and reworking its vision of mobile computing. Does anyone really need the iPad Pro today? And could it be more compelling if iPadOS improves its multitasking capabilities?




New iPad Pro with OLED and M4 processor, iPad Air and Apple Pencil announced at ‘Let Loose’ event – 1:04 

Google announces Pixel 8a with 120Hz OLED screen and AI capability – 20:50

What the heck happed with Helldivers 2? – 28:31

Microsoft shuts down Tango Gameworks and Arkane Austin – 34:10

Hades 2 early access is out now – 42:01

Around Engadget: Steve Dent reviews Fujifilm X100 VI – 45:39

Working on – 48:38 

Pop culture picks – 52:08

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Is the iPad Pro M4 overkill?

The Rabbit R1 is finally here, and it's yet another useless AI gadget. Sure, at $199 with no monthly fee, it's a lot cheaper than the $699 Humane AI Pin. But the R1 is slow, hard to use, and doesn't actually do much. The much-promised "Large Action Model" mostly powers things you can easily do on your phone. In this episode, Devindra and Engadget's Sam Rutherford chat with CNET's Lisa Eadacicco about the Rabbit R1 and whether AI devices are necessary at all. Just like cameras, the best AI device is the one you always have with you: your smartphone.




Rabbit R1 review: appealing design, underwhelming performance – 0:49

Tesla lays off Supercharger development team leaving future of the network unclear – 25:28

FCC fines U.S. wireless carriers $200m for selling customer location data – 30:05 

Razer will refund all Zephyr mask purchases over false N95 filtering claims – 32:52 

Drake deletes track featuring an AI clone of Tupac Shakur’s voice – 35:16

Working on – 36:23

Pop culture picks – 40:18 

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Kill the Rabbit (R1)

After months of anticipation, President Biden finally signed the TikTok divestment into law this week. It will force ByteDance to either sell TikTok to another company within a year, or see the app banned from US app stores. Is this a wise move to rid control of the social app from the Chinese government, or is it government overreach before TikTok has done anything wrong? Engadget Senior Editor Karissa Bell joins Cherlynn and Devindra to dive into what's next for TikTok. 




The US TikTok ban is signed into law, what happens now? – 0:57

Devindra and Cherlynn’s take on whether bad product reviews hurt tech companies – 20:42

Meta opening QuestOS to third party hardware developers – 31:39

Apple ‘Let Loose’ virtual event scheduled for May 5 – 33:48

Leading AI companies pledge to keep kids safe (though harm is already evident) – 41:48

Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses add multimodal AI – 43:58

X is allegedly working on a smart TV app – 47:01

Working on – 48:02

Pop culture picks – 56:29




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Why TikTok will never be the same again

The latest batch of rumors make it pretty clear that a PlayStation 5 Pro is coming this year, but will anyone really care about slightly better 4K graphics? This week, Engadget Senior Editor Jessica Conditt joins Cherlynn and Devindra to chat about the PS5 Pro, as well as her piece on the PlayDate two years after its release. You could say the Playdate is pretty much the opposite of another expensive high-end console. In other news, we discuss the death of Boston Dynamic's hydraulic Atlas robot, and the birth of an all-new digital model. We also chat about the abrupt closure of Possibility Space, an ambitious indie game studio.




Jess Conditt on Playstation 5 Pro rumors – 0:48

Jess’ thoughts on Panic’s innovative handheld, the Playdate, 2 years later – 14:24

Indie game studio Possibility Space announces closure, CEO blames media leaks – 27:29

Other News: Boston Dynamics unveils new, all electric Atlas robot – 35:39

Menteebot is a human-sized, GPT-powered robot you can command with natural language – 39:52

NASA confirms Florida man’s house was hit by space junk – 44:06

Sony (finally) changes its confusing product names – 46:05

Working on – 50:35

Pop culture picks – 56:35

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The Biggest Winners and Losers of Tech in 2020

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