The Morning After: Elon Musk's brain implant is working -- in pigs

#Tech

On Friday night Elon Musk made good on his promise to show a working Neuralink device. The company announced that it successfully installed its Link hardware in the brains of pigs, and in one case, removed the device without causing any obvious problems. The test subjects were present at the event, even if they weren’t always cooperative, and Gertrude’s Link seemed to successfully read signals generated by her neurons whenever she smelled a tasty treat.

Musk once again made pie-in-the-sky promises about what the tech might do in the future (the phrase “Fitbit in your brain” came up), but the biggest advance we could see may been the prototype “V2” surgical robot that helps to sew 5 micron-wide electrodes into a subject’s brain. So, who’s ready to be an early adopter?

-- Richard

P.S. - RIP Chadwick Boseman.

How to buy a gaming laptop

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No matter what your preferred price point, size or graphics capabilities are, Devindra Hardawar can help you find the best gaming laptop available. And if you’re not sure what you want, then either he can help you narrow things down, or you can just go with the one pictured here -- a $1,450 ASUS ROG Zephyrus G14 that’s his pick as the best one for most people.
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How to talk to people who believe in QAnon

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While conspiracy theory experts agree there is no easy way to “get someone back” from the group, there are ways to better your odds at getting through to someone. Karissa Bell explains.
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What you need to know about Apple's iPhone 12 and 12 Pro

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Apple has already confirmed it will ship its new smartphones later than usual this year and has remained quiet about its next splashy launch event, but that's not all -- we're also expecting the company to unveil as many as four new iPhones in one shot.

While we wait for the full, official details to emerge, mobile editor Chris Velazco can walk you through what we already know about the most unusual iPhone launch in Apple's history.
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Sony might send you an invite to pre-order the PS5

Selections will be made ‘based on previous interests and PlayStation activities.’

Sony will invite some dedicated gamers to be first in line for its PlayStation 5. To get on the list for one of the pre-order invites, go to the PlayStation website and submit your PSN username on the form. If you’re selected, then you can expect a chance to pre-order one of the PS5 consoles, as well as whatever accessories you need.
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The best deals we found this week: AirPods Pro, Galaxy Buds+ and more

Samsung’s speedy T7 SSDs are still available for $30 off.

This week brought a bunch of deals on devices including Apple’s AirPods Pro and standard AirPods, in addition to the solid Samsung Galaxy Buds+. You can also still grab a new Samsung portable SSD for less before the school year begins, plus snag a smartphone gimbal from DJI for less than $100.

Here are all the best deals from the week that you can still snag today, and remember to follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter for more updates.
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