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Alphabet is letting its laser-based internet company Taara fly and be free, according to reporting by Financial Times. Googles parent company is spinning off the service from X, its moonshot incubator system (not to be confused with X the social network.) Taara uses light beams to provide high-bandwidth internet and phone services to hard-to-reach areas of the world. This places it in direct competition with Elon Musks Starlink network of satellites. Taara now has two dozen staff members and is hiring aggressively. It has secured backing from Series X Capital. Alphabet will retain a minority stake, but it remains tight-lipped regarding seed funding details or potential financial targets. Theyre going to be able to get connected quickly to market capital, bring in strategic investors and generally be able to scale faster this way, said Eric Teller, Xs Captain of Moonshots. Taara already operates in 12 countries throughout the world and has provided supplemental service during events like Coachella. The tech works by firing beams of light to and from various terminals. Alphabet says the system can transmit data at 20 gigabits per second over an area of around 12 miles. The company also says that these systems are relatively easy to build and maintain, especially when compared to satellites in space. It has its origins in an Alphabet-created concept called Loon. This was a modified version of the same idea that shot beams of light to and from groups of balloons floating on the edge of space. There are strict governmental and regulatory hurdles to flying thousands of balloons near space, however, so it wound down in 2021. Loons loss was Taaras gain, as the newer entity uses the same lasers. Mahesh Krishnaswamy, Taaras general manager and a lead engineer, says that the next step is to develop a silicon photonic chip that will eliminate the need for many of the mirrors and lenses currently positioned on system terminals. The newly-minted startup has a long way to go to catch up to Starlink, which has over four million subscribers worldwide. Taara doesnt even sell subscriptions directly to consumers. Instead, it partners with existing telecommunication companies like T-Mobile to extend their networks to remote locations.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/alphabets-starlink-competitor-taara-is-spinning-off-into-an-independent-company-154653176.html?src=rss
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Although the future of TikTok remains uncertain, the app continues to get new features. The latest is called Security Checkup, which is a centralized dashboard designed to help you protect your account. You can find the tool by going to Settings and privacy > Security & permissions in the TikTok app. The idea behind Security Checkup is to make it easy for you to do things like link a phone number and email address to make sure you have a backup login method, turn on two-factor authentication, set up a passkey and enable biometric login options such as facial recognition. In addition, you'll be able to see which devices are logged into your account, so you can revoke access for any that you don't recognize or no longer use. Handily, TikTok will flag any unusual behavior that it detects on your account and you can review any oddities here. We've seen other major platforms introduce similar features in the past. Instagram, for instance, rolled out a tool that's also called Security Checkup back in 2021. Still, it's better late than never to add handy features, especially when it comes to helping users secure their accounts.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/tiktok-rolls-out-a-security-checkup-tool-to-help-protect-your-account-152819724.html?src=rss
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Apple's over-ear headphones are back on sale at one of the best prices we've seen all year. The AirPods Max have dropped to $480. That's $69 off the list price. It's not quite a record low price for these headphones. We've seen them drop to $450. But this is still a solid deal on the AirPods Max, especially if you've been waiting for a solid discount. It's also worth noting that this is the updated model with USB-C charging, rather than the old Lightning port that Apple has phased out. We gave the AirPods Max a score of 84 in our review back in 2020 (yes, they've been around for that long without an update save, for the new charging port and colorways!). We felt that the sound was excellent and balanced with solid active noise cancellation (ANC) and an excellent transparency mode so you can hear what's going on around you. In our testing, the AirPods Max met Apple's promise of a 20-hour battery life with both ANC and spatial audio switched on. We enjoyed the simple control system, which uses an Apple Watch-style rotating crown. The AirPods Max are lightweight and comfortable to wear as well. On the downside, the AirPods Max still use Apple's older H1 chipset, meaning that certain features available on some in-ear AirPods models aren't present here. There's no support for high-res music streaming services either. Still, if you're embedded in the Apple ecosystem and are looking for an otherwise high-quality set of over-ear headphones, the AirPods Max are worth considering. Check out our coverage of the best Apple deals for more discounts, and follow @EngadgetDeals on X for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/apple-airpods-max-with-usb-c-charging-are-back-on-sale-for-480-142052420.html?src=rss
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