Brian Heater
Hardware Editor
The Latest from Brian Heater
Royole returns with another foldable
I first spent time with the Royole Flexpai at a TechCrunch event in China back in 2018. The devices was exciting. It was the first commercially released foldable, after all, before Samsung and Huawei
Despite slowdowns, pandemic accelerates shifts in hardware manufacturing
The COVID-19 pandemic didn’t hit every factory in China at once. The initial impact to China’s electronics industry arrived around the time the nation was celebrating its new year. Two weeks a
Microsoft set to acquire Bethesda parent ZeniMax for $7.5B
Microsoft this morning announced plans to acquire ZeniMax Media Inc. for $7.5 billion in cash. The gaming holding company is the parent to a number of high-profile publishers, including Bethesda Game
Conan O’Brien on how to embrace an ever-changing media landscape
“Like most of the best things in my life,” Conan O’Brien explains, with a wry smile, “the success of the podcast was a complete surprise.” The answer is a typically self-effacing one from th
Steven Yang and Sonny Vu discuss COVID-19’s impact on tech manufacturing
Like most of the rest of the world, COVID-19 hit the manufacturing sector by surprise. That China — which continues to comprise the vast majority of electronics manufacturing — was the first globa
Crover’s robot swims in grain silos to monitor environmental conditions
Crover’s robotic platform isn’t the sexiest or most exciting — particularly for a startup that began life with space travel in its sights. But the real future of robotics and automation lies in
A closer look at the new Apple Watches
I’m very much still working on a full review of the new Apple Watches — specifically the Series 6. As of this posting, I’ve had the wearables in my possession (and on my person) for a little und
Connected fitness startup Tonal raises another $110 million
Connected home fitness startup Tonal announced today that it has raised an additional $110 million. The latest round of funding includes existing investor L Catterton and new names, including Delta-v
Sony’s PlayStation 5 arrives November 12, priced at $500
If in-person events were still a thing in 2020, there’s a pretty good chance we’d know a lot more about the PlayStation 5 by now. With tech companies setting their own event schedules, how
Alexa’s new celebrity wake words ‘Hey Samuel,’ turns the assistant into Samuel L. Jackson
Alexa just read me Monday’s baseball scores. It was great for two reasons. First, the A’s shut out the Mariners 9-0 in the second game of a doubleheader. And second, she did so in Samuel L. Jackso
Ubisoft teases Assassin’s Creed and Splinter Cell VR titles for Oculus
One of the biggest complaints around VR is the same issue that’s plagued generations of gaming platforms: content. A console is only as good as its games, as the saying goes. Today at Facebook Conne
Four perspectives on Apple’s new service bundle
Apple’s hardware event yesterday wasn’t particularly eventful for its most popular devices, bringing only iterative changes to Apple Watch and the iPad. But the company tipped its hand as
GoPro’s Hero 9 Black arrives with a bigger battery and front-facing screen
After leaking like crazy, the GoPro Hero 9 Black arrives today, bringing with it a handful of features aimed at keeping the company on the bleeding edge of the action camera category. GoPro has, of co
Apple One bundles iCloud, Music, TV+, Arcade, News+ and Fitness+ for $30 a month
Seems everything charges a monthly fee these days. It also seems that every Apple event brings another way to fork over $10 a month to the company. This time out, it was the addition of Fitness+, whic
The Apple Watch Series 6 arrives Friday, priced at $399
As expected, the centerpiece of today’s big hardware event is the latest version of the Series 6. Apple continues to utterly dominate the smartwatch category, with the company currently commandi
Long-range delivery drone maker Volansi raises $50M
Robotics generally have seen an increase in interest during the pandemic, so it makes perfect sense that investors are taking a closer look at autonomous drone delivery. That’s good news for Volansi
Formlabs announces a large-format medical and dental 3D printer
Formlabs was one of a few desktop 3D printing companies to weather the massive tech bubble a few years back. The Somerville, Massachusetts-based company set itself apart by bringing advanced industria
DaVinci Kitchen is building a robotic pasta-making kiosk
The robotics industry is having a major moment amid the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s true that category has been an exciting target for investments for a number of years now, but labor
Google will announce a new Pixel, smart speaker and Chromecast September 30
Hardware season is in full swing. Apple’s big Watch event kicks off tomorrow and Samsung is readying itself for a third (!) Unpacked event on September 23. Now Google’s getting in on the fun. Afte
What to expect from Apple’s hardware event
If this was a normal year, we would be settling in for an iPhone event right about now. This is, however, very much not a normal year. And while we are, in fact, getting an Apple hardware event tomorr