ICYMI: The 8 Biggest Tech Stories of the Week, from Google I/O 2024 to the 1000th Wordle
The tech news hasn’t stopped this week, but we’ve managed to keep up with (just about) everything that’s happened: from AI innovations to Apple laptops, from Android 15 to a new Porsche, there’s a lot to process been .
With that in mind, we can forgive you for missing one or two of the week’s biggest stories β and that’s where this ‘just in case you missed it’ roundup comes in. You can keep yourself informed again in just a few minutes.
We’ll see you next week at the same place and same time for another ICYMI. The tech news may have slowed down a bit by then… but we doubt it.
8. TCL showed off its next generation super bright mini LED TV
The recently unveiled TCL
It’s an absolute monster of a television set, and despite all that extra brightness, it’s actually more energy efficient than TVs with regular mini-LED backlights. It’s also surprisingly thin considering the technology inside.
For now, this TV is only available in China, so we don’t have details on wider pricing or availability. However, expect to pay a significant amount of money for the TCL X11H β and you’ll need a lot of wall space for it too.
7. We learned about a major M3 MacBook Air upgrade
One of the disappointments surrounding the base model of the M2 MacBook Air was the (relatively) slow SSD drive that came with it – but this appears to be an issue that Apple has resolved with the introduction of the M3 edition.
Based on some detailed benchmarks, it looks like SSD speeds are back to where they should be on the entry-level M3 MacBook Air (the one with 256GB of storage). Perhaps unsurprisingly, Apple hasn’t mentioned the change.
We’re extremely impressed with everything the M3 MacBook Air has to offer, and this only confirms our thoughts that this is the best laptop upgrade for the majority of people right now. Read our full MacBook Air 13-inch M3 review for more.
6. We saw Keurig’s new plastic-free K-Rounds coffee pods
Single-use coffee systems are clearly environmentally unfriendly β ββthink of all those disposable plastic K-cups β but Keurig is now ready to showcase the industry’s sustainable future with the introduction of K-Rounds.
These plastic- and aluminum-free coffee pods are actually just coffee, held together by an ultra-thin layer of alginate, a plant material. All that is left at the end is a flattened ground coffee husk that can be composted.
We saw the new K-Round coffee pods in action, as well as the Alta Brewer: a new machine custom built to process the new coffee pods. The hope is that we can start to make a dent in the half a billion tons of coffee capsule waste produced every year.
5. With the help of Apple, the Porsche Taycan Turbo GT was unveiled
The Porsche Taycan Turbo GT is the most dynamic car in the series yet, and the Weissach version of the vehicle broke lap records to prove its reputation as a super-powered speedster.
There was something else notable in the promotional video that Porsche released: Porsche CEO Oliver Blume watched the Taycan Turbo GT in action in augmented reality, using the Apple Vision Pro headset.
Hear a lot of nice words from Porsche about Apple, and vice versa. It’s one of the best demonstrations of the cutting-edge technology in the Vision Pro that we’ve seen yet β and the car isn’t bad either.
4. Another intriguing Rabbit R1 demo has surfaced
The AI-powered Rabbit R1 is undoubtedly one of the gadgets of the year so far: it hasn’t actually shipped to customers yet, but it offers an intriguing AI twist on the idea of ββwhat a pocket-sized portable computer can be.
While we wait for pre-orders to ship, Rabbit founder and CEO Jesse Lyu posted a video to social media, showing the R1 in action while taking notes. Once the recording is complete, you can get a full transcription and AI-powered summary of what was said.
It seems like there are still some rough edges to be smoothed out with the Rabbit R1, but even this quick demo shows what the little orange box is capable of. We look forward to trying it ourselves.
3. Wordle celebrated its thousandth puzzle
The world’s favorite five-letter word game reached a milestone this week, as Wordle celebrated its thousandth edition. The New York Times, owner of Wordle, marked the occasion by lighting up the Empire State Building in the game’s green, yellow and white colors, while millions of players around the world paid tribute by, er, completing the puzzle. (And if you need help on that front, check out our daily Wordle tips page for today.)
Will things still go well with 2,000? We wouldn’t bet against it. For a game that launched without much fanfare in June 2021, Wordle’s journey has been pretty much incredible, and we’ll definitely be playing for a long time.
2. Marvel has reportedly abandoned three sequels
It can’t be much fun being a Marvel executive right now, as the once lucrative business of superhero movies continues to dwindle. Maybe most of us are just ready for something else to take over our screens, both small and large.
A new report this week suggests that follow-up Antman, Captain MarvelAnd Eternals have all been canned β which is perhaps unsurprising, considering how poorly the most recent releases under those titles performed at the box office.
None of this has been confirmed yet, but there has been some disappointment expressed online by fans eager to see where these stories would go β and how Harry Styles would fare as Eros in Eternals 2.
1. We found out when Google I/O 2024 will take place
Google I/O is always one of the biggest events on the technology calendar, and this year’s installment kicks off on May 14 β that’s the day we’ll hear the keynote speeches about all of Google’s hardware and software making its way through the rest of 2024.
It’s a certainty that we’ll hear more about what’s in store with Android 15, while rumors (and history) suggest we might also get a big reveal for the Pixel 8a, Google’s next mid-range Android device.
Apart from that, you can expect AI β lots of AI. Google doesn’t want to lag behind its competitors in this area, so it’s likely there will be plenty of announcements about new AI features and integrations. We’ll know more in a few months.