News

• The Lenovo Legion Go 2 has leaked in China with prototype units reportedly available to buy on second-hand platforms
• The prototype seen in a Bilibili video isn't using the AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme
• There's still no confirmation on a release date or what the finalized version of the handheld will be

It's been a while since we've had any updates on Lenovo's release plans or schedule for its next handheld gaming PC, since its announcement and brief showcase at CES 2025. Now, there's yet another twist in the tale, but not in the way you might expect.

As reported by VideoCardz, the Lenovo Legion Go 2 prototype has leaked in China, and units are rumored to be available for purchase on a second-hand platform, ahead of its official release. In a Bilibili video, it already has a brief teardown and showcase – and it's worth noting that the units appear to be missing the AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme processor.

Instead, it's reportedly using the Ryzen Z2 processor, or at the very least the widely-used (yet older) Ryzen Z1 Extreme. This isn't surprising, since Lenovo has technically confirmed that there will be other configurations of the Legion Go 2, as it stated that "the prototype features up to the new AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme processor".

However, what is quite odd is the lack of transparency from Lenovo. The Legion Go 2 has been slated for a launch sometime in 2025, and it seems as though that may be around September, based on launch rumors for Mexico, but we've still not seen the device beyond its prototype, despite it apparently launching soon.

There is some very encouraging news, however, as the handheld will use an OLED PureSight touch display, and from what's showcased in the Bilibili video, it's a sight to behold combined with the 8.8-inch display size. While it will likely cost around $1,000, I think the OLED screen may just about justify it, pitting it against competitors like the Steam Deck OLED.

Regardless of how powerful these devices get as the best handheld gaming PCs on the market, I'll always find it very hard to recommend any one of them that hits the $1,000 mark.

I've had the same thought about the new MSI Claw 8 AI+ and the new MSI Claw A8 – but if any device comes close to potentially justifying it, it's the Lenovo Legion Go 2.

Again, it's still in prototype, so we don't have the full picture of what it will have at launch, hardware and ergonomics-wise. However, I'm willing to bet that the highest configuration will cost $1,000 due to the addition of an OLED screen, combined with the improved performance using the AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme.

Now, I'm sure I won't be the first one to mention how unappealing that price point sounds, but it's possibly the only handheld that sounds like it might be worthwhile. I know other handhelds using OLED screens and powerful processors exist, but there's no world where you would ever find me recommending a handheld gaming PC that's over $1,500 (I'm looking at you, OneXPlayer).

If the Lenovo Legion Go 2 ends up being priced at or below the MSI Claw 8 AI+'s $899 / £899 / AU$1,799 price, then it instantly becomes an easier recommendation, especially up against the Steam Deck OLED or Nintendo Switch 2 – but again, it may still struggle to sell with a price that isn't affordable.

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• Disney is reportedly using generative AI from the same startup as Netflix
• Lionsgate and AMC Networks have also inked deals with Runway AI
• An increasing number of studios are experimenting with the tech

Disney is reportedly the latest Hollywood studio to quietly use the same generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) tool as Netflix – and it's easy to see why others have been attracted to the controversial tech as they cite time and cost saving benefits on production.

According to Bloomberg, The Walt Disney Company has been testing Runway AI's tools, and has even gone as far as to talk to the startup about possibly using its generative AI tools in movies and TV shows. While a Disney spokesperson has confirmed there are no plans to integrate the software, it's just another sign of how studios are becoming more comfortable with utilizing AI.

It's no secret that Netflix is using AI, for instance. Co-CEO Ted Sarandos openly confessed as much – during the company's earnings call last week – when he revealed AI was used to generate a VFX (visual effects) sequence in an original production for the first time in dystopian drama The Eternaut. At the time, it wasn't disclosed which AI software was used, but a source has reportedly confirmed to Bloomberg that it was indeed Runway AI's tech.

To be clear, The Eternaut was not the first time that Netflix had used AI. It unsuccessfully tried to fix 80s sitcom A Different World with AI upscaling and was caught up the AI Oscars controversy after Emilia Pérez was criticized for using voice enhancement tech. Still, it marks the first time that Netflix has used generative AI in one of its own original projects.

The reason why that's notable is because generative AI has the potential to completely upend the entire industry. There's a reason why the Hollywood actors' and writers' strikes in 2023 were so heavily focused on putting in place safeguards to protect the livelihoods and creative integrity of VFX artists and animators.

It's one thing to mess around with Runway's AI to turn your home videos into Hollywood blockbusters, but for a billion dollar industry to start cutting corners is a slippery slope that many are rightfully concerned about.

It's not just Netflix and Disney that are reportedly working with Runway AI. Two years ago, Variety revealed that VFX artist Evan Halleck used the startup's tools in Everything Everywhere All At Once to remove the background from certain scenes.

The same justifications were used then as they're now, with Halleck claiming that it was cheaper and faster to use AI tools than more time consuming processes like rotoscoping. Sarandos recently echoed these sentiments when he said "that the VFX sequence [in The Eternaut] was completed 10 times faster than it could have been completed with visual, traditional VFX tools and workflows".

At the time, it was also reported Runway was even working The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. "They’re using it almost for on a daily basis to translate hours of work. The team is able to iterate their ideas faster, and it’s helping them augment their creative workflow," Runway CEO Cristóbal Valenzuela told Variety.

In the years since, Hollywood has begun to warm to AI even faster then some may have initially predicted. Indeed, it's been reported that Runway AI inked a deal with Lionsgate in September 2024. Vice chairman of the studio Michael Burns says the tie-up will help it produce "movies and television shows we’d otherwise never make".

Since then, more production companies have jumped on the bandwagon. The creator and co-showrunner of Amazon's House of David , Jon Erwin, revealed to Variety that various AI tools were used to create a scene in the show, including Runway's AI video generator.

Just last month, Runway AI also partnered with AMC Networks to use its tools to help visualize a TV show that hasn't yet been produced as well as to generate marketing images, The Hollywood Reporter (THR) reported. "It’s kind of a natural transition for every entertainment and media company; they need to think through what AI means for them," Valenzuela told THR when asked about the AMC partnership.

It seems inevitable that more studios will continue to work with Runway AI as more become comfortable making it publicly known, and it looks like the startup isn't stopping at Hollywood. A new text-to-video game AI generator is on the way that will no doubt have a huge impact on the gaming industry once it's further developed, according to The Verge. Could we see Runway AI make the same inroads in the gaming industry? I'd look to Hollywood as the blueprint.

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• The Fantastic Four: First Steps doesn't require any Marvel movie or TV show homework
• Its director Matt Shakman says it's a standalone story in every sense of the word
• Shakman also confirms he wasn't asked to directly set up Avengers: Doomsday story

The Fantastic Four: First Steps director Matt Shakman has reiterated that the movie is a standalone story that doesn't require any homework on Marvel fans' part.

Speaking to TechRadar, Shakman says the forthcoming film isn't beholden to the same connective tissue that other Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) projects are because it exists in a parallel dimension. It's for this reason, Shakman believes, that the Marvel Phase 6 flick can be enjoyed by MCU devotees and newcomers alike.

For the uninitiated: The Fantastic Four's latest big-screen reboot is set in an alternate reality to the MCU. They reside in another universe designated Earth-828, which is a reference to the birthday (August 28) of Marvel icon Jack Kirby, who co-created Marvel's first family alongside Stan Lee.

The eponymous superteam's existence in a separate dimension is the first time that a Marvel Studios project has been set outside of the MCU, aka Earth-616. It's a decision that's not only vital to the tale that First Steps will tell, but also freed Shakman and company of the increasingly complex shared universe that began 17 years (and counting!) ago with 2008's Iron Man.

"I love Marvel's shared storytelling," Shakman told me. "I love interconnectedness and I certainly enjoyed doing WandaVision [the Disney+ show that Shakman directed all nine episodes of], which was a big part of that interconnection.

"But, it was very freeing to just focus on this universe where we didn't have to deal with all of that. This was our chance to build a whole new universe where they [Fantastic Four] are the only heroes. You don't need to see other Marvel movies or shows to appreciate it. There are no Easter eggs. There are no other heroes. It's just about them, their world, and their story."

That won't be the case once First Steps' end credits have rolled. One of this year's most exciting new movies is the progenitor for Avengers: Doomsday, with events in the final Marvel film of 2025 directly leading into the next Avengers movie. For more details on that, read my ultimate guide on Avengers: Doomsday.

So, despite First Steps being a standalone story, was Shakman asked to establish any story beats for Avengers 5 in his first MCU film?

"Where they go from here, that's up to others," he teased. "They'll eventually join up with Earth's Mightiest Heroes and that'll be fun to see."

I guess we'll find out when First Steps arrives in theaters worldwide on Friday, July 25! In the meantime, read my ultimate guide on The Fantastic Four: First Steps, and my First Steps cast and character guide, to learn more ahead of its release. Then, read the section below for more exclusive coverage of the superhero movie.

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• The Fantastic Four: First Steps director has a blunt message for fans who criticised the Marvel movie's visual effects: 'I think they're beautiful'

• Auracast support is in LG's 2025 OLEDs and some QNED TVs too
• One-to-many broadcasting is great for hearing aids and headphones
• Auracast is also in many Samsung TVs – but not all headphones offer it

Some of the most important technologies aren't necessarily the most eye-catching – so while LG's 2025 OLED TVs are impressively bright, for some people the most important feature may be their support for Auracast. That's an optional part of the most recent Bluetooth standards that enables multiple devices to stream audio from the same TV, or from other audio sources, without pairing.

It's a big deal for people with compatible hearing aids, or people who want to share the same show or movie while wearing a pair of the best wireless headphones.

LG has been pretty quiet about its Auracast support, which is surprising: as FlatpanelsHD notes, the only official announcement has been in collaboration with Starkey hearing aids, which suggests that LG sees Auracast as more of an accessibility feature than a mass-market thing.

But while supporting hearing aids is of course vital, Auracast also enables a shared audio experience for headphone users – and that's handy if you're in an apartment where listening loud is likely to upset the neighbors, or if you've got sleeping kids in the next room.

Most wireless audio connections are one-to-one, so when I connect my Samsung TV to my AirPods Max, I'm the only connected listener. But Auracast is one-to-many, so provided everybody's headphones (and other compatible kit such as Auracast-enabled Bluetooth speakers, hearing aids, AV receivers and soundbars) support the technology, they can all listen to the same audio at the same time with minimal latency.

There's more to Auracast than TV shows and movies, although it's great for that. It's also potentially very useful in places like transit hubs and lecture theaters, in sports bars and at speaking events.

LG isn't the first TV firm to support Auracast – that was Samsung, which first put Auracast into some of its high-end TVs two years ago – but the tech is in multiple LG models including the LG C5 and LG G5 OLED TVs, as well as the LG B5, the LG M5, and the QNED85A, QNED89A and QNED9M. And there's a growing selection of Auracast-enabled products out there.

One of the reasons for the relatively slow rollout of Auracast is that it isn't part of the core Bluetooth standard, so manufacturers can decide whether or not to support it.

However, a growing number of firms do, and hopefully that'll create a virtuous circle of firms making products that transmit Auracast audio and products that receive it – we're definitely happy to see it become standard among many of the best TVs.

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• Existing Kiro users are being limited, new users are not currently being welcomed
• Pricing details have been pulled – could a change be on the way already?
• Users cited poor performance and a desire for additional models

Just days after Amazon Web Services launched its new Kiro AI coding tool, the company has imposed daily usage limits and a waitlist for new users due to high demand.

By imposing these temporary measures, AWS hopes to buy its teams time to scale the supporting infrastructure and improve performance, following complaints from early adopters that performance was already suboptimal.

Existing users are being advised not to install Kiro on multiple machines, with warnings now being triggered once they read the temporarily imposed usage limits.

Even though Kiro is barely a week old and the temporary restrictions are even newer, malicious actors have already been busy readying a fake download site to capitalize on users seeking unrestricted access. With no option to bypass limits or buy extra tokens, users are being urged to be patient.

Originally offered in free, Pro and Pro+ tiers, AWS has removed pricing details, stating that "updated pricing details for different tiers will be shared soon."

"The way humans and machines coordinate to build software is still messy and fragmented, but we're working to change that," Nikhil Swaminathan and Deepak Singh explained when they lifted the wraps off Kiro on July 14, 2025.

When it launched, Kiro was set to be free for users during a preview period, but that all changed when it popularity surpassed expectations.

Looking ahead, it's expected that paid plans with metering will return, though it's unclear whether AWS will make changes to the costs in light of high demand.

Further down the line, it's possible that AWS might also expand on the existing models available (Claude Sonnet 3.7 and 4.0), with users requesting support for Gemini 1.5 Pro.

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• Microsoft promises to reduce data retention costs to less than 10%
• Sentinel Data Lake will break down silos and empower security teams
• A layer of AI will improve detection and response time to outpace adversaries

Microsoft has launched Sentinel Data Lake as looks to break down silos, lower costs and improve large-scale threat detection with an updated, AI-optimized security data lake.

Now in public preview, Microsoft says users will no longer need to choose between retaining critical data and staying within budget, promising to reduce data retention costs to less than 10% of traditional analytics logs.

It combines SIEM, XDR and threat intelligence into a single platform, bringing together data from Microsoft and third-party sources with over 350 native connectors, promising to be a whole "new architecture," not "just a new product."

In order to democratize threat intelligence and improve coverage, Microsoft Defender Threat Intelligence capabilities will now be available in Defender XDR and Sentinel without adding to the cost.

This is on top of the injection of artificial intelligence, which promises "faster detection, smarter response and the ability to outpace even the most sophisticated adversaries."

Microsoft says the update allows security teams to uncover attacker behavior without worrying about storage limits, which can significantly improve detection by analyzing company-specific trends.

Sentinel Data Lake "enables security teams to proactively detect latent attacks, detect emerging threats with AI-driven models, reconstruct attack timelines in forensic detail, and retroactively uncover indicators of compromise that might otherwise go unnoticed," Microsoft explained.

Among the benefits of Microsoft's upgraded Sentinel include the ability for companies to keep raw data for compliance and digital forensics and a lower TCO with faster ROI.

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