Valve likes to warn people about the risks of DIY Steam Deck maintenance, and this time reminding you that trying to upgrade the built-in storage can lead to problems. Following a PC Gamer article about modding the Steam Deck, Valve hardware designer Lawrence Yang warned against upgrading the NVMe SSD. While technically possible, the larger M.2 2242 drives are hotter and consume more power than the 2230 models the handheld was supposed to support. Yang added that you can “significantly shorten” the system’s life. You’ve been told. — Matt Smith
You may get your hands on the device sooner than expected. And if you don’t already have a Steam Deck — or you fried yours with an ill-advised upgrade — Valve says it’s ramped up production and will ship more than double the number of weekly units. If you were to pre-order a Steam Deck now, you probably wouldn’t receive it until October. However, as Valve is ramping up the number of shipments, it can reduce that wait time. It’s harder than it looks to cover the full breadth of a video game’s influence.
Nintendo
The Nintendo 64’s GoldenEye 007 – the rare Bond game that not only cemented the franchise agreement but heightened the experience – is one of a handful of games that warrants a lengthy making-of documentary. Drew Roller’s GoldenEra tries to encompass the entire creative route, from its inception as a small project on Rare’s rural campus to the monster it became. GoldenEra has gotten many of the original team on the record, along with several journalists and talking heads from across the game industry. But multiple segments — those about Perfect Dark, Free Radical Design and Timesplitters, GoldenEye fan movies, and the modding community — feel slightly shallow.
LG is jumping into the EV charging sector with the acquisition of AppleMango, a South Korean developer of EV battery chargers. It said tLG plans to install an EV charger production line at LG Digital Park in South Korea by the end of 2022. his should help it create “fully-featured” charging stations with a user-friendly interface and real-time control and management. In particular, it will utilize its “tough, dust and waterproof” outdoor digital display technology.
That can affect performance for loading apps and more.
According to testing by YouTube sites Max Tech and Created Tech, Apple’s 13-inch MacBook Pro M2 with 256GB may have worse SSD performance than the equivalent M1 model. The $1,300 base model showed about 50 percent slower read speeds and 30 percent slower write speeds. It turns out that the 13-inch MacBook Pro M2 has a single 256GB NAND flash storage chip instead of two 128GB chips like the previous M1 model. That would mean the driver can only use two lanes in parallel, limiting performance.
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Apple claimed Qualcomm could use two patents to sue again.
Apple and Qualcomm may have ended most of their feud in 2019, but the battle isn’t over. The Supreme Court has rejected Apple’s request for a hearing to potentially invalidate two Qualcomm patents that played a key role in the 2017 efforts to ban sales of Apple Watch, iPad, and iPhone over alleged modem technology infringements. The court didn’t explain why the request was denied, but May’s Justice Department amicus briefing argued that there was no evidence the patents harmed Apple’s business.
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No, Zelda, maybe ‘Silksong’?
Engadget
A Nintendo Direct Mini is slated for June 28 at 9 a.m. ET. However, it probably won’t feature any news about Mario, Zelda, Pokémon, or any other Nintendo franchise. Nintendo says it will focus on third-party titles heading to Switch, which could be a pretty meaty affair. It clocks in at 25 minutes, and Nintendo’s online showcases usually run at a fair clip. One of the more notable third-party games slated for a Switch debut, No Man’s Sky, already has an October 7 release date, so it might not get much attention. There’s always a chance for more details on Hollow Knight: Silksong, which is expected to release next year. Our editorial team, independent of our parent company, has selected all products recommended by Engadget. Some of our stories contain affiliate links. We may earn an affiliate commission if you buy something through one of these links.
