ICYMI: The 7 biggest tech stories of the week, from the PS5 Pro pre-orders to Meta announcing its Orion AR glasses
What a week this has been, folks. Meta Connect 2024 introduced us to a new VR headset, the first prototype of AR glasses, and a slew of Meta AI upgrades β including an in-development ability to live dub Instagram reels.
We also said hello to the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE, the new one reviewed Legend of Zelda title, and prepared us for heartbreak in 2025 with the arrival of The last of us the first teaser trailer of season 2.
In case you missed all that, we’ve rounded up all these top tech news stories below so you can keep up to date with everything that’s happened over the last seven days.
7. Is there nothing that Nothing cannot do?
On Tuesday (September 24), Nothing unveiled its first set of open-ear earbuds and Ny Breaking’s audio editor couldn’t help but share her initial thoughts. She’d already said she thought these were the best ideas Nothing had had in a while (apart from the questionable “Ear Open” name), and after wearing them for a few hours, they didn’t disappoint.
Ear Open is so bad Nothing; their friendly praying mantis aesthetic is so special sympathetic. And just as the company’s Nothing Ear(a) impressed at a competitive price point, these earbuds are likely to be a big hit in the open-ear space. That’s especially true as they only cost Β£129, that is. the same price as the flagship Nothing Ear (which means your prices in the US and Australia will almost certainly be $149 / AU$249). Compare that to the Bose Ultra Open earbuds, with their price of $299 / Β£299 / AU$449.95. To see?
Put them on and they feel like nothing. The fit is excellent β ββeven putting both on at the same time is a breeze. You get the signature transparent-meets-monochrome-meets-titanium Nothing design language, plus on-ear pinch controls, although there’s now a knack for it purely because you have to locate where the old ‘voice’ idea is, to pinch. Oh, and the Advanced EQ setting? It’s another level…
6. Echoes of wisdom are there!
We won’t be surprised if not too many Nintendo fans are reading this, because they’re probably all playing right now The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom. This highly anticipated entry in Nintendo’s long-running franchise is something of a milestone, allowing players to explore Hyrule through the eyes of Princess Zelda for the first time.
And the good news is that it’s great. It combines elements from the classic Zelda titles with a wealth of new mechanics for an adventure unlike anything we’ve seen before.
Tasked with closing sinister rifts that threaten the kingdom, you’ll travel through a charming open world and experiment with a range of magical abilities. This allows you to make copies of certain objects whenever you want, which is as fun as it sounds; a summoned bed may be good for a quick nap in solitude, but when multiplied and stacked, it makes the perfect bridge across a dangerous divide. You can even spawn friendly versions of enemies to fight on your behalf.
It’s all wrapped up in adorable art direction, making everything from the characters to the world look like it was plucked straight out of a cute diorama. Check out our review below.
5. The Last of Us season 2 was teased
This week we were treated to our first new trailer for The last of us season 2, and we’re confident it will be just as emotionally devastating as the video game it’s based on. Released as part of this year’s celebration of The Last of Us Day (September 26 is the day the Cordyceps infection devastated the world of the game/show), we got both a two-minute S2 teaser and confirmation that this will be released sometime in 2025.
The teaser gives us our first glimpse of the characters players know from the games, including Abby and Ellie’s love interest Dina, and hints at what Ellie and Joel have been up to after the “five years of peace” that followed the events of Season 1 However, fans of the games know that it’s not all sunshine and roses for the survivors, so we’re going to take the next few months to prepare ourselves emotionally for what happens. The last of us 2025 has in store for us.
4. We spent some time with the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE
Samsung launched the Galaxy S24 FE this week alongside the Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra, and it looks like the new phone will prove to be the cheapest route into Samsung’s Galaxy AI ecosystem.
The S24 FE’s hardware upgrades over the Galaxy S23 FE include a larger 6.7-inch display, a new Exynos 2400e chipset, and longer battery life. But while that would be enough to make it a contender in the budget flagship stakes, it’s the phone’s AI tricks that we’re most excited about.
Chief among these is the AI-powered ProVisual photography engine, which it inherits from the standard Galaxy S24 and should offer improved low-light performance and optical zoom quality.
In our hands-on Samsung Galaxy S24 FE review, we described Samsung’s new device as “a great value phone for its power and features”, so we hope it lives up to that price once we put it through our full review process.
3. Meta’s affordable Meta Quest 3S broke the cover
The least surprising announcement of Meta Connect 2024 was nevertheless an exciting one: the much-leaked Meta Quest 3S. This affordable alternative to the Meta Quest 3 still packs a solid punch with its Snapdragon
In return you’ll have to accept a few downgrades β less sharp displays, a larger chassis and the loss of the depth sensor β but by all accounts the Quest 3S is an impressive VR headset for its price, and looks like it would are perfect for those looking to dip their toes into XR as we head into the holiday season.
We also saw Meta’s first fully functional AR glasses: the Orion prototypes. This isn’t something everyone can buy (although some are released as developer kits to help software makers create apps for the official specs), but from what we’ve been shown Orion looks great.
And it’s only going to get better, with Mark Zuckerberg promising that the consumer pair will be able to boast better displays, a more fashionable design and a more affordable price. Although on that last point, Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth later clarified that Meta meant affordable in terms of smartphones and laptops rather than “a Quest 3S price, or even a Quest 3 price.”
1. PS5 Pro pre-orders have gone live
It suddenly feels a bit like 2020 again. That’s because pre-orders for the upcoming PS5 Pro and the limited edition PS5 30th Anniversary Collection went on sale this week β with predictable results. Like? Well, like the official PlayStation Direct website which is quickly becoming flooded with potential buyers all eager to get their hands on Sony’s upcoming consoles and gear. Many had to wait more than an hour in digital queues just for a chance to pre-order the mid-gen refresh, and there were reports of crashes and timeouts and (inevitably) scalpers.
Most PlayStation Direct stocks completely sold out that same day; the 30th Anniversary Edition bundle disappeared within minutes in the US and UK, while the limited edition PS5 Slim, DualSense Edge and PlayStation Portal models quickly followed. However, stock is still out and at the time of writing, PS5 Pro units are still available to pre-order on Sony’s website.