Just when you think that the PS Plus Premium free game trials section couldn’t get any worse, you’re proven wrong. As we’ve mentioned before, the expensive perks already pale in comparison to the PS Store‘s free demos, and adding a trial for MindsEye is certainly a choice.
Most expensive PS Plus tier gets MindsEye trial following free demo’s delisting
The most expensive tier of PS Plus is now offering a two-hour trial for a game that holds a Metacritic average of 28/100.
MindsEye’s addition wouldn’t be so bad if: a. PS Plus Premium trials were regularly updated. b. MindsEye didn’t already have a free “Starter Pack” version that doesn’t require a Premium membership.
Interestingly, the free Starter Pack randomly disappeared from the PS Store, and we’re not sure if its removal is temporary or permanent.
At this point, PS Plus Premium, especially its Deluxe variant, has little to offer players beyond what the Extra subscription does. Cloud streaming is limited to certain regions, so PS3 classics are off-limits to Deluxe users. Game trials section isn’t updated frequently, all VR games have been quietly removed, and new classics are limited to one game per month (trophies not guaranteed).
Here’s hoping Sony makes the Premium offer more lucrative than this.
A popular Electronic ArtsPS3 multiplayer shooter is finally shutting down after more than a decade of service. Released in 2014, Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare is still alive and kicking on the last, last-gen platform. Unfortunately, that won’t be the case after April 2026.
Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare PS3 version shutting down, PS4 safe for now
PopCap said that it can no longer maintain Garden Warfare on the PS3 because it has reached a point where the console can’t handle newer updates. As a result, the game will be shut down on April 28, 2026.
Garden Warfare will remain playable on the PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and PC for the foreseeable future.
“We’ve made the difficult decision to sunset Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare on PS3,” an official statement reads. “As we continue updating our online services, we’ve reached a point where the PlayStation 3 version can no longer support the changes we need to make. Because of this, online services for Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare on PlayStation 3 will sunset and be permanently discontinued on April 28, 2026.”
EA thanked players for their support over the years.
Progress cannot be transferred from PS3 to PS4, so this is your last chance to unlock any remaining trophies.
TCL has been making smartphones and tablets at an impressive clip for years. While most companies have focused on foldable display tech — and TCL has dabbled — the focus has been on its NXTPAPER screens. Aimed at being friendlier on the eyes, and pitched as a device somewhere between e-ink slates and traditional tablets, NXTPAPER has gradually been upgraded and refined, reaching an apex at CES 2026 earlier this year with the Kindle Scribe-alike, the Note A1 NXTPAPER and its latest smartphone, the NXTPAPER 70 Pro.
At MWC, just a couple of months later, it's preparing for a major leap forward on future phones and tablets. It's been announced (and backed up with tech demos) that it's developing AMOLED NXTPAPER displays, aiming to combine the eye comfort benefits of TCL's current displays with flagship visual performance. This involved fundamentally redesigning and re-engineering the display architecture. Still, it should address the biggest problems with current LCD-based NXTPAPER, such as mediocre brightness, poor outdoor performance, and dull colors.
This NXTPAPER AMOLED screen, well, it looks like AMOLED:
Image by Mat Smith for Engadget
On the showfloor at CES, the company had several demo devices showcasing the new screen technology's brightness. While still photos don't really do it justice, it's impressive, and the anti-glare effect seems premium compared to third-party anti-glare protective films.
TCL says its incoming AMOLED display — it hasn't announced a device yet — will reach 3,200 nits of brightness. For reference, TCL's 70 Pro topped out at a mere 900 nits. TCL says it will also feature 120Hz refresh rates, 100 percent color gamut coverage, and blue light reduction that can go as low as 2.9 percent, which is 15 percent less than existing NXTPAPER displays.
The company plans to launch an AMOLED NXTPAPER smartphone before the end of the year.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/SKWPxFk
from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/SKWPxFk
While Honor has already made plenty of product announcements, with tablets, foldables and more, its most interesting device at MWC 2026 is the Robot Phone — and maybe the humanoid robot that came alongside it.
After briefly showing off a model at CES, Honor isn't quite ready to launch its Robot Phone. However, we got more specs, tech demos and a closer look following the company's MWC press event in Barcelona. The Robot Phone is currently set to launch later this year.
Image by Mat Smith for Engadget
Honor has put a lot of effort into ensuring its camera gimbal is highly mobile, to the point of creating a tiny personal robot that is, dare I say, adorable? The Robot Phone's pop-up camera can cock its head, shake to say no, nod to agree, and even "flip" – or at least rotate 360 degrees. According to Honor's presentation, it can even bop along to songs. A spokesperson told me that it's got five songs in its repertoire, so it's not clear whether they're programmed for these kind of demos, or will be a feature of the final retail device.
Another demo here at MWC showed how you could make the Robot Phone "sleep" by covering its gimbal eye, though it's odd that the camera is still exposed rather than folded away. My main concern with the Robot Phone is the robustness and durability of its robotic mechanisms. We've lived through several waves of smartphones that attempted much simpler mechanical camera functions and the threat of dust or heavy-handed users can't be ignored.
Image by Mat Smith for Engadget
The company says it's taken what it learned from foldables, regarding high-performance materials and simulation accuracy, and applied it to shrinking the camera module. On stage, Honor CEO James Li revealed what he calls the industry's smallest micro motor, much smaller than a 1-euro coin and, he added, 70 percent smaller than existing micro motors.
As this component has been reduced substantially, the Robot Phone's gimbal will be the industry's smallest 4-degrees-of-freedom gimbal system. That's a spec – we finally got a spec! It'll also offer three-axis stabilization in this tiny camera package, with the primary camera using a 200-megapixel sensor.
The fold-away panel that the primary camera tucks into also reveals more typical cameras, so you're not forced to use the gimbal if you don't need it. Still, that's one very thick camera unit:
Image by Mat Smith for Engadget
Honor has already started building out camera modes and features, with a Super Steady Video mode that enhances stability while swinging the Robot Phone around to capture video. AI Object Tracking will apparently intelligently follow subjects, while AI SpinShot supports intelligent 90-degree and 180-degree rotational movement for more cinematic transitions. We've seen these sorts of pre-programmed movements and functions in full-size phone gimbals and action cams. If Honor can nail it in such a tiny form, it'll be impressive.
Other specifications during Honor's press event were sparse, although the company announced a collaboration with ARRI Image Science to bring its cinematic smarts to the Robot Phone's gimbal camera.
In a press release, Honor's Li said the collaboration would bring ARRI's "cinematic standards and professional workflows" into mobile imaging. It's apparently the first time elements of ARRI Image Science are being integrated into a consumer device. Dr. Benedikt von Lindeiner, VP at ARRI, said the goal is to bring a true cinematic aesthetic, such as "natural color, gentle highlight roll-off, and a sense of depth," to shooting with an Honor smartphone.
Image by Mat Smith
Honor also made a humanoid robot companion for its Robot Phone. The bot took to the stage alongside the Robot Phone, danced alongside human dancers, did a backflip and shook hands with CEO James Li. It didn't say a thing, but fortunately, during some on-the-rails banter between the robot, Robot Phone and Honor's CEO, the Robot Phone was particularly chatty.
Like the many humanoid robots we've reported on and seen in person, Honor hopes to put it to work in both industrial and domestic settings, pitching it as a central part of the company's multi-million-dollar push into AI. For now, it's being called Honor Robot.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://ift.tt/Fm8r7L1
from Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics https://ift.tt/Fm8r7L1
