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HyperX just introduced a new wireless headset that can keep rocking for up to 200 hours on a single charge. Thats over a week of constant music. The Cloud III S is a followup to 2023s original wireless headset, but brings Bluetooth audio into the mix. The robust battery allows for the aforementioned 200 hours of listening when using Bluetooth. That metric drops to around 120 hours when streaming audio via a 2.4GHz wireless connection. Just like the original, the headphones ship with a USB dongle for 2.4GHz. However, it can connect without a dongle when using certain newer HP Omen gaming laptops. HyperX A long-lasting battery isnt the only innovation the Cloud III S brings to the table. Its also fully customizable, via magnetic ear plates. These are 3D-printed on demand, which is something HyperX has been experimenting with for a while. Users can create and buy these customized 3D-printed ear plates directly from HyperX, but only in select countries. Theres also a removable boom mic for traveling, but that wont impede the ability to take calls or trash talk other gamers. The headphones feature a backup omni-directional mic, which is a nice touch. The HyperX Cloud III S is expected to hit store shelves in May, but pricing hasnt been solidified yet. For reference, the original Cloud III launched for $170. The new headset will be available in an all-back or black and red.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/hyperxs-new-cloud-iii-s-wireless-headset-streams-bluetooth-audio-for-200-hours-on-a-single-charge-184838572.html?src=rss
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Sarah Wynn-Williams joined Facebook in 2011 when it was very much in its move fast and break things era. A former United Nations diplomat, she had aspirations of helping Facebook boost its standing on the global stage. Over nearly seven years at the company, she had a front-row seat to some of Facebooks most consequential (and controversial) moments. Last week, she published Careless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism, a memoir about her time at the company and how she slowly became disillusioned about Facebooks role in the world. Since it was announced, Meta has thrown the full weight of its PR machine against the book. The company initiated arbitration proceedings, which resulted in a ruling that now prevents Wynn-Williams from promoting her own book. Meta spokesperson Andy Stone said the arbitrators decision affirms that Sarah Wynn Williams false and defamatory book should never have been published. He said that urgent legal action was made necessary by Williams, who more than eight years after being terminated by the company, deliberately concealed the existence of her book project and avoided the industrys standard fact-checking process in order to rush it to shelves after waiting for eight years. Her publisher, Flatiron Books, said in a statement it was appalled by Metas actions, noting that the arbitrator's order makes no reference to the claims in the book, which went through a thorough editing and vetting process. After reading the book, its easy to see why Meta PR has made such a fuss. Wynn-Williams worked closely with the companys top executives, traveling around the world with Mark Zuckerberg and former COO Sheryl Sandberg as they met with foreign leaders and shaped the policies that would define Facebook. She also delivers many firsthand accounts of what Zuckerberg, Sandberg and current Chief of Global Affairs Joel Kaplan did and said behind closed doors. Much of it isnt pretty. Here are some of her most shocking claims: Zuckerberg requested to be gently mobbed during a visit to Asia Wynn-Williams was often tasked with organizing the meetings various Facebook executives took with heads of state and other government officials. One of the more bizarre details is Zuckerbergs request ahead of a three-week long trip to Asia. According to Wynn-Williams, Zuckerberg requested that she arrange either a peace rally or a riot during his visit. Facebooks CEO never explains the request, but Wynn-Williams speculates he wanted "to test out how effective his product is in turning Facebooks online tools into offline power. At first, I think he's joking. Peace rallies are not my area of expertise, and-to be frank-I've never been asked to organize a riot before. Especially one for a tech CEO. I assume something has been lost in his communication-that it's some sort of mix-up. "Riot" and "peace rally" are such completely different things. Then Debbie emails to say that she ran into Mark and he told her that he wants a peace rally or a riot and we need to come up with some ideas that will enable him to be surrounded by people or be "gently mobbed." Zuckerberg refused to take meetings before noon, even with heads of state Zuckerberg apparently had a strict policy about not taking any meetings before noon. This policy applied not only to internal meetings with others at Facebook, but heads of state. Wynn-Williams recounts how Zuckerbergs refusal to take morning meetings almost derailed a planned meeting with the president of Colombia. That same year, she said she was forced to reschedule Zuckerbergs address at the UN to a later time slot because, according to Wynn-Williams, the United Nations isnt important enough for Mark to do an event before noon. Meta built Zuckerberg a special room to protect him from Zika Facebook took extreme measures to protect Zuckerberg from Zika during a visit to Peru for the APEC conference. To protect the CEO, who was apparently hoping to soon conceive his second child, the company opted "to build a controlled structure on the site of the APEC conference center where ventilation, exposure to others, and bug mitigation can be overseen by Facebook. Wynn-Williams dubbed it operation perfect sperm. Zuckerbergs desperate attempts to talk to Xi Jinping Wynn-Williams spends a lot of time delving into Facebooks plans to bring the social network to China. She also details Zuckerbergs attempts to get face time with Chinese President Xi Jinping. In 2015, Zuckerberg flew to Seattle for a longer than normal handshake with Xi (who was in the city for a tech summit Zuckerberg was not invited to). He later caused a diplomatic crisis when he posted a photo of that handshake, which only shows the back of Xis head. The following year, Zuckerberg and his team hoped to surreptitiously get the CEO in front of Xi at APEC in Peru. Facebook arranged for Zuckerberg to give a speech directly before an appearance by Xi, which meant the two men would be in adjacent dressing rooms. The goal, according to Wynn-Williams, was to engineer a spontaneous encounter during which Zuckerberg could make his pitch to get Facebook into China. But when Xi arrived, he was flanked by dozens and dozens of men in military uniforms who created a barrier such that, according to Wynn-Williams, Xi didn't even have to risk making eye contact with Mark. She says that Zuckerberg was hurt by the demonstration. Sheryl Sandberg wanted Facebook to promote organ donation Not long after starting at Facebook, Wynn-Williams says she was told that Facebooks first proactive initiative to build relationships with governments around the world will be organ donation. The idea was apparently Sandbergs, who ran into a former Harvard friend and tranplant surgeon and offered to help him source donors. But when Wynn-Williams brought up the logistical and legal issues that generally make it difficult to transport organs between countries, she says Sandberg was indignant. Do you mean to tell me that if my four-year-old was dying and the only thing that would save her was a new kidney, that I couldnt fly to Mexico and get one and put it in my handbag? Facebook would later add organ donation to the life events users could add to their profiles. Sheryl Sandberg and the plane crash that wasn't In 2013, an Asiana flight from Seoul to San Francisco crash-landed on a runway, killing two people and injuring more than 100 passengers. Sandberg, who was promoting her book Lean In at the time, was also traveling from Seoul to San Francisco that day. Following the crash, she posted on Facebook that she and several Facebook colleagues were originally meant to be on that flight but had switched to United so we could use miles for my family's tickets. Sandbergs supposed near-miss generated multiple headlines, which isnt surprising, as Wynn-Williams claims Sandberg was personally briefing reporters about the incident. Wynn-Williams was baffled by these reports. She writes that the Facebook COO always flies United and never considered Asiana. In her recollection, she and another colleague remarked to each other how weird it was for Sandberg to do this. Why Zuckerberg and Sandbergs Facebook posts get so much engagement Wynn-Williams heavily implies that there may be some behind-the-scenes manipulation of Zuckerberg and Sandbergs Facebook posts. She doesnt offer any proof that this has happened, but says that a meeting attended by someone from Marks personal communications team raises the possibility. According to Wynn-Williams, Sheryls assistant describes his job as managing engagement for Mark and Sheryl's social media using all of Facebook's tools. When Wynn-Williams asks directly if they are gaming the sites algorithm, she says the assistant replies that you dont want to know. Joel Kaplan needed a geography lesson Some of the most telling anecdotes in Careless People involve Kaplan, who joined Facebooks policy team in 2011 and was promoted to Chief Global Affairs Officer earlier this year. She writes that Kaplan, who was a deputy chief of staff in the George W. Bush White House, was surprised to learn Taiwan is an island and that often when we start to talk about pressing issues in some country in Latin America or Asia, he stops and asks me to explain where the country is. Kaplan slow-rolled Facebooks response to problems in Myanmar By now, Metas failures in Myanmar, where hate speech and misinformation on Facebook helped incite a genocide, are well documented. Wynn-Williams, who early in her tenure flew to Myanmar to try to sell officials there on the companys connectivity projects, describes her futile attempts to get more resources for content moderation in the country. She blames Kaplan in particular. She says she started this long process of trying to hire someone for Myanmar in 2015 and found a human rights expert who fit the bill in May 2016, but Kaplan blocked her from making the hire in February of 2017. He allegedly told her to move on and get over it. She later concludes that when it came to Myanmar, those people just didnt matter to him. (Meta had broadly labeled Wynn-Williams claims about Facebooks actions in Myanmar as old news, saying in a statement that the facts here have been public record since 2018, and we have said publicly we know we were too slow to act on abuse on our services in Myanmar.) Kaplans alleged harassment Wynn-Williams also accuses Kaplan of harassment and other inappropriate behavior. After complications while giving birth left her in a literal coma, she writes that Kaplan asked her over one of their regular calls during her maternity leave where are you bleeding from and got angry when she didn't answer. Later, when she returned to work, he gave her an unofficial performance review on her first day back, saying that she wasnt responsive enough. Wynn-Williams eventually reports Kaplans behavior and an investigation is opened, but that very quickly it seems to switch from an investigation of Joel, or the facts, to an investigation of me. Shes fired at her next performance review. Meta has disputed Wynn-Williams' allegations. This book is a mix of out-of-date and previously reported claims about the company and false accusations about our executives," a spokesperson said in a statement. "Eight years ago, Sarah Wynn-Williams was fired for poor performance and toxic behavior, and an investigation at the time determined she made misleading and unfounded allegations of harassment." Update, March 18, 2025, 1:57 PM PT: Wynn-Williams describes her tenure at Facebook as lasting seven years, beginning in 2011. But, according to a Meta spokesperson, she was fired in "late 2017." This story has been updated to reflect that she worked at Facebook for "nearly" seven years. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/the-wildest-details-in-the-facebook-memoir-meta-is-trying-to-bury-183310491.html?src=rss
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The brackets are set and the teams are en route to their respective arenas. The 2025 NCAA Tournaments, affectionately known to many as March Madness, begin this week. The mens tournament begins first on March 18 with the womens version tipping off on March 19. Both will begin with First Four or play-in games (depending on who you ask) before providing action on the court through the first weekend in April. Different broadcasters own the rights to each tournament, so streaming them both can be confusing. Ive broken down the best, most affordable way to access each one so that you'll be ready when the games begin. When does March Madness start? The mens NCAA Basketball Tournament begins on Tuesday, March 18 with two of the so-called First Four matchups. These are the four games that are used to determine the final four teams in the main 64-team bracket. To some, theyre known as the play-in games although theyve officially been part of the men's tournament since 2011. The first game on March 18 begins at 6:40PM ET with another to follow at 9:10PM ET. The same schedule is expected for the second slate of games on Wednesday, March 19. On the womens side, March Madness is offset from the mens tournament by a day. The first two of the First Four games are Wednesday, March 19 at 7PM ET and 9PM ET. The second pair of matchups follows on Thursday, March 20 in the same two time slots. The 64-team bracket kicks off in earnest for the men at 12:15PM ET on Thursday, March 20. For the women, the main action begins at 11:30AM ET on Friday, March 21st. Heres the full schedule for each tournament: 2025 Mens NCAA Basketball Tournament First Four: March 18-19 First round: March 20-21 Second round: March 22-23 Sweet 16: March 27-28 Elite Eight: March 29-30 Final Four: April 5 Championship game: April 7 2025 Womens NCAA Basketball Tournament First Four: March 19-20 First round: March 21-22 Second round: March 23-24 Sweet 16: March 28-29 Elite Eight: March 30-31 Final Four: April 4 Championship game: April 6 How to stream the 2025 Mens NCAA Tournament ASSOCIATED PRESS CBS and Warner Bros. Discovery share the broadcast rights to the mens tournament, and as they have in years past, TV coverage will be spread across four networks. During the course of March Madness, games will air on CBS, TNT, TBS and truTV, with the final rounds and championship game landing on CBS. If you already have a paid TV plan (such as traditional cable), the best way to watch the mens tournament is with the March Madness Live app or website. Once you log in with your TV provider credentials, you can watch every game in one spot with features like multiview (up to four games at once) and excitement alerts that let you know when theres a close game. The app also offers ways to follow your bracket, if you filled it out on MarchMadness.com. And when youre watching on desktop, the crucial Boss Button will throw up a fake work screen when you need it. March Madness Live is also available on Amazon, Fire TV, Apple TV, iOS, macOS, Google Play, LG smart TVs, Roku and Xbox devices. If you dont have a compatible TV provider already, your best option is to actually use two services. Its not ideal, I know, but it will save you a lot of money. Maxs Standard plan is $17/month and gives you access to live games from TNT, TBS and truTV. While you can watch NCAA Tournament games with the Basic with Ads tier, B/R Sports, which powers all of the live coverage on Max, will only be available on Standard and Premium levels starting March 30. Yes, Warner Bros. Discovery set its policy to change in the middle of the tournament to make more money. For the CBS games, youll need a Paramount+ with Showtime subscription that costs $13/month. So, in total, your best option to stream all of the mens tournament is $30 spread across two apps. A live TV service like YouTube TV or Hulu plus Live TV is over $50 more per month at full price, but they would offer you one-stop shopping for all the games in the mens tournament. YouTube TV is currently on sale for $70/month for the first six months you use it. How to stream the 2025 Womens NCAA Tournament ASSOCIATED PRESS While Warner Brothers Discovery owns the rights to the mens NCAA Tournament, ESPN has the womens bracket locked down. Every game of the womens tournament will be spread across ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPNEWS, including the First Four matchups. The Final Four will be on ESPN, but the championship game will air on ABC. All three of those culminating games will stream on ESPN+. Since ESPN+ wont get every game, its not an option if you want to watch the entire tournament. You will be able to watch select matchups on both ESPN+ and Disney+, but ESPN hasnt announced what those will be. So, unfortunately, your best bet is a live-TV streaming service like Sling, YouTube TV or Hulu + Live TV for a comprehensive experience. Sling is the cheapest avenue here, with the requisite Orange and Sports Extra plans costing $34 (Sling is currently offering a discount on the first month of Orange). YouTube and Hulu live TV options are both the same price at $83/month (YouTube TV currently discunted to $70 for the first six months), so its a matter of which set of content and features you like best. YouTube TV offers a handy multiview tool so you can watch up to four games at once, but Hulu + Live TV comes with Disney+ and ESPN+ (both with ads) for that cost. (Opting for Hulu + Live TV only saves you one whole dollar per month if you dont include the Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu bundling.) If youre a more casual fan who can afford to roll the dice on the select options on ESPN+, you can save some money. That service only costs $12/month. And if you already have a TV plan that includes the ESPN family of networks, the ESPN app is the best place to watch the tournament. The mix of scores and info, along with multiview streaming for up to four games at a time on Apple TV and Xbox, make the app a well-equipped conduit for the womens tournament. The March Madness website only shows scores and news for the womens tournament. There are no live games available on the website. What if I want to stream both the mens and womens tournaments? ASSOCIATED PRESS If youre hoping to stream all of both the mens and womens NCAA tournaments, I hope you ordered Samsungs eight-TV bundle. In terms of streaming services, just jump straight to a live-TV option like YouTube TV or Hulu + Live TV. I prefer the former because of its multiview feature a tool that Hulu doesnt offer. At times when there are multiple games that you want to watch, especially during the first two rounds, youll want multiview in order to keep tabs on all of the action. Are any of the March Madness games available to stream for free? You can watch all of the games broadcast on CBS on the March Madness website and mobile apps without a TV provider. Sure, its a small sample of the tournament, but its completely free and a good option for casual fans who dont have a paid TV plan they can exploit for more of the action. Its also a good option for watching the first round at work, if your company hasnt blocked streaming sites, or if you can discreetly watch on your phone. For the womens tournament, there arent any games available for free. Unless you have an old-school OTA antenna, in which case you can watch mens games on CBS and womens games on ABC without any kind of streaming plan. Of course, this is a streaming guide so Id consider an antenna an extraordinary move in 2025. If you were hoping to use a free trial period to watch March Madness, Ive got bad news. None of them will be long enough to watch an entire tournament. Some of them dont offer them at all, but the longest is YouTube TV at 10 days which wouldnt get you through the second weekend.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/how-to-stream-every-march-madness-2025-game-181552865.html?src=rss
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