Enlarge (credit: Getty)

Ask Me Anything (AMA) has been a Reddit staple that helped popularize the social media platform. It delivered some unique, personal, and, at times, fiery interviews between public figures and people who submitted questions. The Q&A format became so popular that many people host so-called AMAs these days, but the main subreddit has been r/IAmA, where the likes of then-US President Barack Obama and Bill Gates have sat in the virtual hot seat. But that subreddit, which has been called its own "juggernaut of a media brand," is about to look a lot different and likely less reputable.

On July 1, Reddit moved forward with changes to its API pricing that has infuriated a large and influential portion of its user base. High pricing and a 30-day adjustment period resulted in many third-party Reddit apps closing and others moving to paid-for models that developers are unsure are sustainable.

The latest casualty in the Reddit battle has a profound impact on one of the most famous forms of Reddit content and signals a potential trend in Reddit content changing for the worse.

Enlarge / The store recently burgled is in Lynnwood, Washington. The one pictured is in Palo Alto, California, but last year was infamously robbed. (credit: Getty Images)

Breaking through an Apple Store's secured doors sounds like a tall order, even for ambitious burglars. But what if you didn't have to get through the Apple Store's doors after hours and could instead break into the unassuming store next to it? Tunneling into an Apple Store to steal an alleged $500,000 worth of iPhones sounds like something out of a (not particularly exciting) heist movie. But as the gaping hole in the espresso machine store Seattle Coffee Gear's bathroom will tell you, this is no Ocean's Eleven.

As reported by Seattle's King 5 News on Tuesday, two people allegedly broke into Lynnwood, Washington's Seattle Coffee Gear before creating a large opening in the store's bathroom wall, which connects to the neighboring Apple Store's backroom.

Mike Atkinson, CEO of Seattle Coffee Gear, said on Twitter that surveillance footage shows the two perpetrators getting in and out "in under 15 minutes."

Enlarge / AliveCor and Apple's battle started with the Apple Watch Series 4. (credit: Valentina Palladino)

Apple will continue fighting California-based AliveCor over the startup's electrocardiogram (ECG) technology. On Tuesday, AliveCor announced that US President Joe Biden had decided not to veto the US International Trade Commission's (ITC) December ruling that could lead to an import ban on the Apple Watch Series 4 and later.

It's unlikely that Apple's watch will be totally banned. But as The Verge pointed out, AliveCor could walk away with a licensing agreement from Apple to use its patents in the Apple Watch.

According to AliveCor, which has around 150 workers to Apple's 80,000, it shared its ECG sensor technology with Apple in 2015 while building a business relationship, The Hill reported earlier this month. In 2018, Apple released the Apple Watch Series 4, which not only introduced an ECG sensor to the smartwatch but also blocked outside heart monitoring apps. AliveCor said this forced it in 2019 to stop selling KardiaBand, an ECG band that the company announced for Apple Watches in 2016.

Enlarge / Razer's BlackWidow V4 Pro wired mechanical keyboard. (credit: Scharon Harding)

If you've ever wished your keyboard had more buttons, Razer's BlackWidow V4 Pro may be for you. It expands the full-size keyboard layout to include a column of macro keys and three non-mechanical buttons on the keyboard's left edge. The keyboard also has a volume roller and a so-called Command Dial, which lets you twist your inputs to control zoom, scroll through a long spreadsheet, or tweak the size of a Photoshop brush.

Despite Razer's gaming focus, the BlackWidow V4 Pro fits well in work settings thanks to its extreme, multi-layer programmability, a strong but imperfect typing experience, and a USB-A passthrough port. It's easy to dim the RGB lighting and get to work with complex key bindings; you can launch frequently used apps and sites with a keypress and navigate programs with the dial.

But many of the BlackWidow V4 Pro's best features require you to keep Razer's Synapse app open, and while this isn't a new complaint, the introduction of the multi-function dial puts a harsh spotlight on this limitation.

Enlarge / He's also selling AirPods Pro cases modded to use USB-C. (credit: Exploring the Simulation/YouTube)

AirPods are a convenient accessory... until the charging case breaks. Functioning earpieces are useless without a case to juice them up. And as one user has detailed, Apple would rather you buy a whole new case than fix the one you have. Well, considering the e-waste the planet's drowning in and the premium price of Apple's wireless headphones, that's an inconvenient truth. But now if you're willing to break your warranty and put your faith in the hands of a clever tech tinkerer, you can get the printed circuit board (PCB) needed to replace the battery in your AirPods Pro case and give it a USB-C port while you're at it.

The mod comes from Ken Pillonel's Exploring the Simulation YouTube channel. Pillonel's the same guy who brought you an Android phone with a Lightning port and an iPhone with USB-C. About six months ago, he also posted a video demoing how to make a PCB and 3D-printed case for repairing the first- and second-generation AirPods and equipping them with USB-C.

On Wednesday, Pillonel brought his mad genius to the AirPods Pro. The DIYer has shared on GitHub how to 3D-print an AirPods Pro case, since it's hard to open the things for repair without breaking them.

Enlarge / Puget Systems won't be using the 1TB or 2TB Samsung 990 Pro anymore. (credit: Samsung)

Samsung has earned a strong reputation among PC enthusiasts when it comes to solid-state storage. Its Pro series of SSDs are often among reviewers' top recommendations for users seeking high-speed storage for large work files, apps, and boot drives. Over the past year, though, reliability concerns around Samsung's 980 Pro and most recent 990 Pro have marred this reputation. It has become so notable that custom PC-maker Puget Systems, a top proponent of Samsung SSDs since the SATA days, has pulled 1TB and 2TB Samsung drives from its lineup.

For Puget, problems with Samsung SSDs, which the 22-year-old boutique PC shop sells in its custom-built systems, started with the 980 Pro that came out in September 2020. On January 31, Puget wrote a blog noting it "received a surprising number of reports of failing Samsung drives, specifically with the 2TB version of the 980 Pro.

"The most common failure mode that we have found is that the drives are suddenly locked into read-only mode, rendering the drive unusable. If the failed drive is the primary drive, then the system becomes unbootable until the drive is replaced and the OS is reinstalled," Chris Newhart, a Tier 2 repair technician at Puget, wrote.

Enlarge (credit: Lenovo )

Smart displays have struggled to gain a foothold in a saturated market. Even an old smartphone or tablet can give the best smart displays a run for their money. From the Facebook Portal videoconferencing display and Amazon Echo Show 15 to Samsung's series of desktop-sized smart monitors, companies have been trying to find a purpose that sticks. The next effort is Lenovo's 27-inch ThinkView Plus. It attempts to find a niche for smart displays for business purposes but does so with a limiting focus on Microsoft Teams.

Announced at Information Systems Europe conference in Barcelona today, the ThinkView Plus is two parts videoconferencing display, one part USB-C monitor.

On the monitor side, you get decent connectivity options—one HDMI, one DisplayPort in and out, two USB-A ports, and one USB-C (versions not specified). However, at 1920×1080 resolution and a pixel density of only 81.6 pixels per inch, you're not going to get the type of image quality you might expect from the price tag alone. Lenovo hasn't specified the ThinkView Plus' panel type or other related specs.

Enlarge / Apple will pay you less for this iPhone 13 Pro Max than it used to. (credit: Samuel Axon)

As spotted by MacRumors on Wednesday, Apple has cut the trade-in values of iPhones by up to $80, with the biggest cuts coming to the iPhone 13 Pro Max ($570 trade-in value versus $650 before) and the iPhone 13 Pro ($470 versus $550).

And while trade-in values for many base models (iPhone 7, 8, X, and 11) and some of their sibling releases (iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone XR, XS, and XS Max) remain unchanged, nine out of the 20 iPhones listed now have a reduced trade-in value. According to MacRumors, most Android smartphones also saw a reduction in trade-in value.

Apple has cut trade-in values as recently as November and has done so over the years without explaining why. The devices losing value could be one factor, and the most recent change to Apple's trade-in values follows an abysmal year for smartphone sales. According to market intelligence firm IDC, sales dropped 11.3 percent from 2021 to 2022. The year saw the lowest number of phones shipped (1.21 billion) since 2013. Apple saw a 4 percent drop (226.4 million versus 235.8 million).

Enlarge / A concept laptop with Samsung Display's new 16-inch OLED touchscreen. (credit: Samsung Display)

As plenty of laptop makers proved at CES earlier this month, there will be plenty of OLED laptops to choose from in 2023. The technology's high-contrast, rich image quality has tempted creatives and power users alike. A new year means new ways to entice shoppers, though, so one approach Samsung plans to take with its next series of Galaxy Books concerns the screen's physical build.

On Tuesday, Samsung Display, which makes display panels for various companies, including parent company Samsung Electronics, announced that it started mass production of a new touch-capable OLED laptop screen. Samsung Display is calling it the first On Cell Touch AMOLED (OCTA) screen for laptops. Per a Google translation of the South Korea-based company's announcement, these screens use embedded touch sensors, whereas other OLED laptop panels use adhesive to apply a film screen with touch sensors. According to Samsung Display, the film represents 6 to 11 percent of the screen's thickness.

Because it uses fewer materials, Samsung Display also claims its OCTA technology is more environmentally friendly than the previous design and will weigh less due to a "simplified" panel structure.

Enlarge (credit: Getty)

Amazon's business practices and footprint have received plenty of criticism over the years. From its misleading products and reviews and its environmental impact to its effect on small businesses and its own employees, its shoppers are left with a fair amount of guilt every time they use its convenient platform. AmazonSmile, which donates 0.5 percent of the price of eligible purchased items to a shopper-selected charity, has been one way for shoppers to ease that sense of guilt. Come February 20, those shoppers will have to find a new path to absolution when AmazonSmile is shuttered.

Amazon emailed participants of the free program about the news on Wednesday. The email said that AmazonSmile, which launched in 2013, "has not grown to create the impact that we had originally hoped."

AmazonSmile shoppers can pick which charity will receive the 0.5 percent donation from the 1 million 501(c)(3) charitable groups participating. These groups include American Red Cross, Meals on Wheels America, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, and local groups, like specific Boys and Girls Club chapters.