Google Fi is launching a new Unlimited Essentials plan, costing $35 per month for one line. It’s now Google Fi’s most affordable plan, offering unlimited calls, text, and data, along with access to 30GB of high-speed data.As part of the change, Google Fi is renaming its Simply Unlimited plan to Unlimited Standard, which still costs $50 per month for one line. The plan will now offer up to 50GB of high-speed data instead of 35GB. That means you can use your data for longer without experiencing a slowdown. The Unlimited Standard plan now has 25GB of high-speed hotspot tethering instead of 5GB, too.Google is also increasing the high-speed data cap on its Unlimited Premium plan (formerly Unlimited Plus) from 50GB to 100GB. The plan will remain at $65 per month for one line, but it no longer offers unlimited high-speed hotspot tethering and now has a 50GB limit.In addition to these updates, Google Fi will now let you connect a secondary tablet or laptop to your plan with a data-only eSIM, which devices like Apple’s newest iPad Air and iPad Pro come with. Google Fi has long offered the ability to add a secondary device to your plan, but it previously required you to use a physical, data-only SIM card.To add a device with an eSIM to your plan, head to fi.google.com/account from your phone, select Manage plan, and then tap Connect your tablet. Google will then prompt you to scan a QR code with your tablet or laptop, and you’ll be able to connect your device to the internet “at no extra cost.”There are a couple of other updates coming to Google Fi as well. It will now let iPhones as well as Android phones access international 5G, and is expanding international 5G coverage to over 92 countries for users on its Unlimited Premium and Flexible plans. Google is also adding the ability to listen to voicemails from your Phone app instead of the Fi app “in the coming weeks.”

For a little over a decade, Microsoft has been working on a file system to succeed NTFS, which has been used in Windows since the introduction of the Windows NT kernel in the 1990s. This file system, called ReFS has been around for quite some time, but for most of us, it's still new, considering Microsoft has gradually been adding new features that make the file system more viable in more scenarios.

Marvel Rivals has added more ways to get players to express themselves through new customization features. NetEase issued a statement regarding the option to release a big update for the game on Thursday (April 17), detailing general fixes and character-specific issues that sometimes broke the game.

Instead of actually making Windows 11 worthwhile by adding features and resolving bugs that would convince a Windows 10 user to willingly upgrade, Microsoft takes a somewhat interesting approach. They quietly break Windows 10 features that people like, thinking that would finally convince users to take the plunge.

When the eufyMaker UV Printer E1 landed on my doorstep, I was excited to finally get hands-on with this unreleased machine. It promises direct-to-surface printing on everything from T-shirts and tumblers to canvas, wood, metal, and even glass. Since it hasn’t officially launched yet, I didn’t have the usual safety net of community tips, YouTube walkthroughs, or Reddit threads to fall back on. At first, there were just a few videos showing what it could do and a handful of tutorials included in the press kit.

Solar cells are joined together during production at the SunSpark Technology Inc. manufacturing facility in Riverside, California, U.S., on Tuesday, April 3, 2018. | Photo: Getty ImagesSolar cells from four Southeast Asian countries that have been major suppliers to the US are facing newly increased tariffs, hiked up as high as 3,521 percent. The tariffs affect Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam, which together accounted for more than three quarters of total module imports last year, according to Bloomberg. The tariffs essentially make the products “unmarketable” in the US, the Wall Street Journal reports.The tariffs essentially make the products “unmarketable”The move comes after long-running Commerce Department investigations into whether Chinese companies were funneling products through Southeast Asia to avoid tariffs and lower prices. It also heightens Donald Trump’s trade war with China after roiling global markets with drastic tariff proposals this month. The president called a 90-day pause on tariffs, excluding China. US solar companies have been split on what to do about cheap solar cells from Southeast Asia. Domestic manufacturers petitioned the Commerce Department to investigate, while renewable energy project developers are worried about the tariffs raising costs for construction and the manufacturing of panels in the US using imported cells.Cambodia refused to comply with the investigation, and got hit with the highest tariffs at 3,521 percent. Duties for companies in Vietnam reach as high as 395.9 percent, 375.2 in Thailand, and 34.4 for Malaysia. The US International Trade Commission still has to weigh in on the proposed tariffs in June to finalize them.

Nintendo is having one of the most interesting video game console launches ever. Not just because the Switch 2 looks to be much more than its predecessor. But because the Switch 2 appears to be riddled with uncertainty and rumors, all while fighting the overarching doom and gloom of a global tariff war in the background. To make matters worse, it appears now that Nintendo has limited its cloud save data for particular Switch 1 and 2 titles.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences acknowledged the existence of generative AI yesterday in new rule changes for its annual Oscars awards ceremony. Rather than dictate its use or require disclosures, the Academy simply says using AI doesn’t, on its own, hurt a movie’s chances — but that how it’s used could.Here’s what the Academy says in a passage added to its film eligibility guidelines:With regard to Generative Artificial Intelligence and other digital tools used in the making of the film, the tools neither help nor harm the chances of achieving a nomination. The Academy and each branch will judge the achievement, taking into account the degree to which a human was at the heart of the creative authorship when choosing which movie to award.As The New York Times notes, the organization almost went further by requiring filmmakers to disclose whether they used AI in creating a movie.The mention of AI is a first for the Academy’s rules, as the Times writes, and a significant one given lengthy actor and writer Hollywood strikes that started in 2023 and were, in part, prompted by the rise of the technology and its perceived threat to creative workers in the industry. The Academy didn’t just address AI with the new rule changes. Another new rule states that members are only eligible to participate in the final round of voting if they’ve watched all of the films being considered for a given category. But as the Times notes, it’s an honor-system requirement, as voters self-certify that they did so, and don’t have to prove it beyond that.

If Google is forced to sell off Chrome, ChatGPT’s head of product told a judge today that OpenAI would be interested in buying the browser, Reuters reports.Google breaking off Chrome is a proposed remedy by the US Department of Justice in US v. Google, in which Judge Amit Mehta ruled last year that the company is a monopolist in online search. The remedies phase of the trial began on Monday. Google plans to appeal the ruling.The OpenAI exec, Nick Turley, also testified that OpenAI had contacted Google last year about a potential partnership that would allow ChatGPT to use Google’s search technology. ChatGPT can pull from Bing’s search information, and while Turley apparently did not specifically discuss Microsoft, he noted that OpenAI has had “significant quality issues” with a company referred to as “Provider No. 1,” according to Bloomberg.“We believe having multiple partners, and in particular Google’s API, would enable us to provide a better product to users,” OpenAI said in an email shown at the trial, Reuters says. Google chose not to partner with OpenAI, and Turley said that “we have no partnership with Google today.”OpenAI has also been working on its own search index, and while OpenAI originally wanted to have ChatGPT use it for 80 percent of searches by the end of 2025, the company now believes reaching that milestone will take years, Turley testified, according to Bloomberg.

Nissan GT-R 50 by Ital design on display at Nissan Crossing in Ginza. | Image: Stanislav Kogiku/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty ImagesNissan’s next-generation GT-R is expected to launch by the end of the decade, and it’s not going to be a pure EV. The new R36 GT-R that will succeed the aging R35 will have a plug-in hybrid powertrain and launch in three to five years, according to Nissan’s chief planning officer, Ponz Pandikuthira, speaking to The Drive.Although it sounds like Nissan is already developing the GT-R in-house, Pandikuthira also hints to The Drive that the company may work with Honda to share a platform with a new Acura NSX. Pandikuthira has dropped a lot of theoreticals about the GT-R. He teases that it could house the 2025 Nissan Armada’s twin-turbo V6 engine, but also drive 70 miles or so on battery only for around-town errands.Pandikuthira also told The Drive that Nissan had built GT-R EV prototypes but believes an electric version “would complete one lap at the Nürburgring” before needing a recharge, echoing the same concern he had in a 2024 interview with Motor Authority. At the time, Pandikuthira said they had not yet decided what powertrain they would use. Other EVs like the Tesla Model S Plaid have run at least three laps on the Nürburgring on a single charge.Additionally, Pandikuthira mentioned that Nissan’s in-development solid-state battery technology probably wouldn’t work for the R36 GT-R. “It might be alright for other electric cars that you could do that are the cruising around need to be seen at a country club, but the ultimate raw performance GT-R as an electric car, that’s really quite a ways away,” Pandikuthira told The Drive.As noted by Jalopnik, it would be tough to hit a deadline for the GT-R by 2030, considering a possible collaboration with Honda could take a while. It raises questions whether Pandikuthira’s comments on the GT-R are aspirational, or if there’s something much further along that has yet to be shared.

Tesla released its first quarter financial earnings today, offering another peek into the crisis currently enveloping Elon Musk’s company. Tesla said it earned $409 million in net income on $19.3 billion in revenue. That’s below Wall Street expectations of $21.1 billion and represents a 9.4 percent decrease year over year compared to $21.3 billion in revenue in Q1 2024. The company’s profits also slid dramatically, logging a 71 decrease in net income for the first quarter. And Tesla’s automotive revenue — the money is earns from car sales — slid 20 percent year over year, from $17.4 billion in Q1 2024 to $13.9 billion in this most recent quarter. The sale of $595 million in regulatory credits once again buoyed Tesla’s finances — without which the company would have had to report a year over year loss. In a letter to shareholders, Tesla acknowledged that tariffs, as well as “changing political sentiment,” will continue to complicate efforts to grow out of its current rut.“Uncertainty in the automotive and energy markets continues to increase as rapidly evolving trade policy adversely impacts the global supply chain and cost structure of Tesla and our peers,” Tesla said. “This dynamic, along with changing political sentiment, could have a meaningful impact on demand for our products in the near-term.”Tesla was expected to be largely insulated from tariffs, thanks to its domestic supply chain. But the company says that its energy business, which includes solar panels and home battery products, will be hurt by the Trump administration’s trade war. “While the current tariff landscape will have a relatively larger impact on our Energy business compared to automotive, we are taking actions to stabilize the business in the medium to long-term and focus on maintaining its health,” the company wrote.In January, Tesla predicted that its sales would grow in 2025, but didn’t specify by how much. Now the company is rethinking that guidance and will update it after next quarter:It is difficult to measure the impacts of shifting global trade policy on the automotive and energy supply chains, our cost structure and demand for durable goods and related services. While we are making prudent investments that will set up both our vehicle and energy businesses for growth, the rate of growth this year will depend on a variety of factors, including the rate of acceleration of our autonomy efforts, production ramp at our factories and the broader macroeconomic environment. We will revisit our 2025 guidance in our Q2 update.It wasn’t all bad news: Tesla’s gross margins, 16.3 percent in the first quarter, came in above analysts’ expectations of 15.82%, according to estimates compiled by LSEG, Reuters reports. The earnings comes on the heels of Tesla’s worst quarterly sales report in three years. The company said it delivered a total of 336,681 vehicles, a 12.9 percent decline compared to Q1 2024. (For a direct-to-consumer company like Tesla, deliveries are a proxy for sales.)After years of exponential growth, the sudden reversal in Tesla’s fortune has left many investors and supporters with whiplash. Tesla now serves as a sobering example of what happens when a company is left on autopilot (or Autopilot, as it were) while its high-profile CEO gets distracted by questionable side projects. The sudden reversal in Tesla’s fortune has left many investors and supporters with whiplashTesla’s current troubles can be traced back to Musk’s position with the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, a specious effort to cut “waste and fraud” in the government that appears mostly aimed at eliminating humanitarian aid programs, cancelling critical scientific research, and terrorizing federal workers. He has also amplified racist and antisemitic theories on social media, attacked trans people (including his own daughter), and made a fascist salute during Trump’s inauguration. Tesla’s shares are down over 37 percent year-to-date, as investors beg Musk to put aside his political activities and refocus his attention on his primary company. Meanwhile, Musk’s antics have spawned a nationwide protest movement called Tesla Takedown, aimed at boycotting the company and driving down its stock price. And it appears to be successful in persuading many progressive Tesla owners to sell their vehicles, despite steep drops in used car values.There have also been an unrelated spate of violent attacks on Tesla stores and vehicles around the world, including several cases of arson and vandalism. President Donald Trump has said suspects caught defacing Tesla vehicles would be charged with “domestic terrorism.”Musk is pinning his hopes on AI, robotics, and self-driving cars, which he argues will propel Tesla to new financial heights. He claims the company will launch an “unsupervised” robotaxi pilot in Austin, Texas, in June. But his past promises about autonomous driving have failed to come true. And experts have questioned Tesla’s approach to the technology, pointing to dozens of fatal crashes that have occurred involving the company’s partially automated features.But the company’s on-again, off-again pursuit of a lower cost EV is what best exemplifies Tesla’s off-the-rails moment. For years, Musk has been promising an affordable electric vehicle, likely priced at $25,000, as a way to broaden the appeal of plug-in vehicles. But instead the company spent precious resources on the polarizing, unpopular Cybertruck. And now recent reports suggest that Tesla’s efforts to build a more affordable Model Y — its most popular model — is significantly delayed. The company reaffirmed its plans for new affordable models in the first half of 2025, noting in the shareholder letter that the changeover to the new assembly line for the refreshed Model Y also included prep for new vehicles later this year. “Given economic uncertainty resulting from changing trade policy, more affordable options are as critical as ever,” the company wrote.Musk and his executive team are expected to address all these issues and more in a call with investors at 5:30 pm ET. Tesla also said it would host a “live company update” including a question and answer session, in another sign that the company sees this moment as particularly fraught. You can listen here.

Max has become the latest streaming service to clamp down on password sharing. Warner Bros. Discovery announced on Tuesday that Max will charge an extra $7.99 per month to add someone to your account outside your household.The new “Extra Member Add-On” allows subscribers across all tiers to invite a friend or family member to create a separate account with their own login credentials. These members can stream from one device at a time and “enjoy all other benefits included in the primary account owner’s base plans,” according to Warner Bros. Discovery. Subscribers can only add one extra member per account.Max is also rolling out a profile transfer feature, which is supposed to make it easier for extra members to carry their watch history, recommendations, and settings over to a new account. Right now, Max’s extra member add-on is only available to people who subscribe directly to the service — not bundle subscribers.Max has been hinting at adding paid sharing to the service since last year, with Warner Bros. Discovery’s streaming head JB Perette saying in December that users will be able to add extra members in the first quarter of 2025. Netflix recently upped the price of its ad-free extra member offering to $8.99 in January, while an extra membership with ads costs $6.99 per month. Disney Plus launched a similar add-on for people you don’t live with, which also starts at $6.99 per month with ads.