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The new i3 was set to go on sale this fall, but BMW will open them months ahead of schedule because demand is so strong. BMW opens i3 orders early due to strong demand If you were waiting for the new BMW i3, you might be in luck. Although BMW said it would go on sale later this year, it’s reportedly now planning to open orders as soon as this week. A new report from German auto magazine, Automobilwoche, citing sources familiar with the matter, says BMW is opening orders in Germany for the i3 “First Edition” as early as…

WhatsApp has long offered disappearing messages, but the feature has two notable limitations. It applies to all messages in the chat rather than individual messages, and the deletion timer starts from the moment a message is sent, regardless of whether the recipient has read it. WhatsApp is currently working to address both. Earlier this year, it began testing an “After Reading” timer for disappearing messages that starts the deletion countdown only after the recipient opens the message. Now, WABetaInfo reports that it’s also testing view-once messages, which will let users send individual texts that become inaccessible after a single read.…

Ferrari seems very committed to bringing gated levers and selectors back to its cars. Between the Purosangue SUV’s novel gate-shaped toggle switches and the gear lever–shaped control device rumored to come to the Luce EV, the automaker seems keenly aware that one of its most notable signatures is the clacky, notchy shift mechanism from classic prancing horses with manual transmissions. The automaker seems to be getting one step closer to its supercar heyday if a recent patent is to be believed, which describes an actual gated manual shifter that can work with the automaker’s existing automated transmissions. Base Trim Engine…

Automotive Rolls-Royce has never been a brand to treat history like a museum piece. Instead, Goodwood tends to bring its past forward through craftsmanship, design, and the kind of quiet symbolism that rewards a closer look. That approach is on full display with the new Black Badge Ghost Tourist Trophy, a one-of-one Bespoke commission revealed on the Isle of Man to honor Charles Stewart Rolls’ landmark victory in the 1906 Isle of Man Tourist Trophy. The car pays tribute to the Light 20 H.P. Rolls-Royce driven by Rolls and his riding mechanic, Eric Platford, in a race that…

Midjourney CEO David Holz just showed off the company’s first hardware product and plans to build a San Francisco spa, which he admitted is a bit different from the “cat pictures” produced by its AI image generator. Dubbed The Midjourney Scanner, it’s an ultrasound-based full-body scanner that uses a ring of sensors to capture vertical slices of the inside of your body, looking at the composition of your muscle, fat, bone, and organs to start. Holz said ideally, you could do this once a year or every single day, as it “aims for image quality comparable to MRI in many…

The biggest car news and reviews, no BS Our free daily newsletter sends the stories that really matter directly to you, every weekday. The world was just turned upside down. What’s down is up, up is down, and it’s unclear, but water may not be wet. Hyundai created something so good that Porsche just had to have it. And now it does. On Wednesday, the 2027 Porsche Taycan debuted with fake gear shifts and as the German automaker put it, “more emotive electric sport sound.” Other small changes debuted as well including a native Tesla-like NACS charge port. The fake…

Sometimes, the most American things don’t come from America. Hot dogs are basically German frankfurters, denim was invented in France, and Robocop was actually directed by a Dutch guy. We all know Subarus are Japanese, but they seem to have been built specifically for American drivers who take on a lot of highway miles and the occasional backroad in all sorts of weather. Case in point, some Subarus never even hit the market in their native country, like the Subaru Ascent, the Indiana-built midsize three-row that the brand has been considering selling in Japan. It’s sorta like how Ram and…

There’s something quietly satisfying about driving a high-revving, naturally aspirated Audi RS sedan with Quattro all-wheel drive and a six-speed manual gearbox. Of course, that’s simply not possible in a brand-new Audi these days. The company has long since moved with the times and retired the stick shift, just like most other OEMs. But for purists and enthusiast collectors who hanker after those halcyon times, a used B7 Audi RS4 – available in the United States during the 2007 and 2008 model years – is something to behold. These cars are still trading for reasonable money right now, but they’re…

Shangjie H5. Credit: Shangjie Updated Shangjie H5 starts at 159,800 yuan ($23,510), unchanged from its predecessor. It features Huawei’s Qiankun ADS 4.1 system and a 192-channel LiDAR. Shangjie, a brand jointly developed by Huawei and SAIC Motor (SSE: 600104), launched the upgraded H5 SUV (sport utility vehicle) on Thursday with a starting price of 159,800 yuan ($23,510). It marks a significant update for the Shangjie brand since it rolled out its first model in September 2025, with the starting price kept unchanged from its predecessor. The starting price is 10,000 yuan, or 5.89 percent, lower than the earlier pre-sales price…

The ultralight may become a permanent fixture in Apple’s smartphone lineup. Sam Rutherford for Engadget Apple could be making a follow-up to the iPhone Air, the ultralight smartphone introduced last fall. According to Mark Gurman at Bloomberg, plans may be in motion for the company to launch a second version of the device for spring 2027. Sources said the potential new product might add a second rear camera, improved battery life and a version of the A20 Pro processor. Apple rarely offers specifics around sales figures for individual models, but our impression has been that the…