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• The great Google Maps Timeline switch deadline has been extended
• It keeps Timeline data exclusively on your smartphone
• Google gives you control over how long your data is saved for

Earlier this year Google announced that its Google Maps Timeline feature – which tracks where you go, over time – would be only available on phones in the future, with the web portal scheduled to be shut down near the end of 2024. Now it seems you've got a bit longer to switch over, if you want to keep your data.

As spotted by 9to5Google, Android Police, and others, a significant number of users are getting emails and on-screen alerts mentioning a deadline of June 9, 2025. If you want to keep the Timeline data you've got stored in the cloud after that date, you need to move it to your Android or iOS phone before the deadline.

However, that revised date may not be the same for everyone: on my phone, I'm getting a message that sets a deadline of April 6, 2025. Previously, Google has said that users get "approximately six months" from their first notification about this to move over, so it may depend on if you've already been warned.

To be sure, load up Google Maps on your phone, tap your account picture (top right), then choose Your Timeline. If you do want to keep your data on your phone going forward, you'll be taken step-by-step through the process. At the same time, you can select how long Timeline data is saved for.

What's going on?

Look out for an alert like this on your phone (Image credit: Future)

For years, Google has offered an optional Location History feature that tracks your comings and goings via your phone. The Timeline – available via the Google Maps apps and website – has been the user-facing part of Location History, letting you go back in time to see visited places and trips taken for any specific day, week, or month.

While some users are understandably reticent to let Google keep that much information, Timeline appears to be pretty popular: people use it to relive vacations and road trips, find that coffee shop they really liked that they visited two years ago, and to make sure their travel expenses are in order, for example.

The changes now underway mean Timeline data won't be stored in the cloud or available on the web any more – it'll just be on your phone. Google hasn't said too much about the reasons why, but presumably privacy and data security are the main ones. In addition, Location History (including settings for deleting older data) is fully folding into Timeline.

While encrypted backups will still enable users to move Timeline data between devices in the future (for new phone upgrades, for example), the shift will be inconvenient for those who liked to explore their travel history through Google Maps on the web, or who had several different devices contributing to it.

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If the Yellowstone prequel series 1883 and 1923 weren't enough, then you're in luck as the Paramount Plus hit show is getting another spin-off.

Ahead of the Yellowstone season 5 finale on December 15 (which airs on the Paramount Network and Peacock in the US, Paramount Plus in the UK and Stan in Australia), Deadline has reported that a deal has been closed for another new spin-off series, with fan-favorites Kelly Reilly and Cole Hauser reprising their roles as Beth Dutton and Rip Wheeler, who will lead the new show.

Taylor Sheridan, the creative mastermind behind the epic Western series and other gritty dramas like Landman and Tulsa King, is reportedly "working on the creative" for the upcoming spin-off. It's also believed to feature other cast members from the original series.

Thanks to Sheridan, Paramount Plus has become the home of neo-Western dramas and its extensive library is set to expand with another Yellowstone spin-off called The Madison, which is set to air sometime in 2025, led by Michelle Pfeiffer. That's not all as other spin-offs that have been greenlit include the limited series Lawmen: Bass Reeves, 6666 and 1944 - I'm struggling to keep up!

What do we know about the Yellowstone spin-off so far?

Right now, there is currently very limited information regarding the spin-off. According to Deadline, all we know is that the spin-off will be set in the same present-day time frame and will be the most similar to its original predecessor, with Yellowstone featuring in the title.

Yellowstone producers had been in talks with Reilly and Hauser for months after being eyed for a spin-off. It came out over the summer that the pair would potentially come back as leads of Yellowstone season 6 following the death of the series' lead character John Dutton as Kevin Costner decided not to return to the best Paramount Plus show's final part of season 5.

This news comes just before the season 5 finale, which left many fans wondering what happens next for the characters who are still alive at the end of the upcoming episode. But, now fans can rest easy with the announcement of a new spin-off, which means that this isn't the end for their favorite characters.

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• Sony doesn't see a "major risk" of PS5 users moving over to PC
• The company has found that players are purchasing more software after moving from PS4 to PS5
• The transition of players from PS4 to PS5 is "trending well"

Sony has said it doesn't see a "major risk" of its PlayStation players moving over to PC.

The comment was made in a shareholder's Q&A that took place earlier this month (via GamesRadar), where Sony discussed the current console cycle and the successful transition from PS4 to PS5.

"We are in the latter half of the console cycle for the PS5, and the number of PS5 titles has been increasing," Sony said. "We have also confirmed internally that the transition of users from the PS4 to the PS5 is trending well."

The PlayStation company also revealed that players are purchasing more games after switching to PS5, "which we see as a positive". However, despite increasing the price of the console in Japan and releasing the more pricey PS5 Pro in November, Sony said there's no current concern with users moving from PS5 to PC.

"In terms of losing users to PCs, we have neither confirmed that any such trend is underway, nor do we see it as a major risk, so far," it said.

Sony revised the retail price of the PS5 and related peripherals in September, citing "the recent challenging external environment, including the current fluctuations in the global economic situation" that will impact the business.

Now, the PS5 is priced at 79,980 yen ($552.39 / £417.98) while the PS5 Digital Edition costs 72,980 yen ($504.05 / £381.39), an additional 13,000 yen (around $90) since its last price hike.

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• LG discontinues all 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray players
• It last released Blu-ray players (the UBK80 and UBK90) in 2018
• 2024 has been a wild year for 4K Blu-ray fans

LG has officially discontinued its range of 4K Blu-ray players and Blu-ray players, with units only available as stocks last going forward, according to FlatpanelsHD.

LG's most recent 4K Blu-ray players, the UBK80 and UBK90, were released back in 2018, coincidentally the same year that Panasonic released one of the best 4K Blu-ray players, the Parnasonic DP-UB820, and the same year Oppo stopped production of its wildly popular 4K Blu-ray players.

In FlatpanelsHD's report, LG Korea didn't fully confirm its exit from the optical player market, leaving the door open for a return to making the devices if the demand was there but for now, only LG players already in stock will be the last remaining units available.

In what has been a rollercoaster year for 4K Blu-ray, with reports of 4K Blu-ray sales rising according to one major UK retailer, but Best Buy and Disney's decision to stop selling 4K Blu-ray also impacting availability, LG's announcement to stop production is another blow to physical media fans as its another major brand that has pulled out of the Blu-ray player market.

2024 has been a tumultuous year for 4K Blu-ray

(Image credit: Future)

As a 4k Blu-ray fan, it's been a year of ups and downs. While I believed earlier this year that home theater fans were being starved of the releases they want, with acclaimed movies or other classics only made available through smaller distributors such as Criterion Collection and Arrow Video, 4K Blu-ray always seemed to be in a state of flux.

Every time there has been some bad news, such as Disney's decision to move away from home physical media, there has been som better news to follow, like when Sony came in and saved the day by agreeing to distribute Disney and its associated properties – Marvel, Star Wars, Fox – physical media releases. Indeed, there always seems to be another piece of worrying news waiting in the wings.

With LG leaving the Blu-ray player market, it's another major name that has exited after Oppo in 2018 and Samsung in 2019. Only Panasonic and Sony remain in the broader market (with more premium brands such as Reavon and Magnetar still around but a much higher price) and it's a worry for 4K Blu-ray fans as more brands seem to be severing ties with the physical media world.

This follows on from another worrying sign where gaming consoles, which some people use as their Blu-ray player, are now having cheaper models offered without the disc drive such as the new Xbox Series X which could lead people away from discs, including 4K Blu-ray, in favor of saving money.

While there have been signs that physical media sales are slowly on the rise, once again in retaliation to ad-riddled streaming services raising their prices, having a big name like LG leads to more vulnerabilities in an already tumultuous market. I'm just hoping as a 4K Blu-ray fanatic that brands like Panasonic and Sony continue to fly the flag for 4K Blu-ray and all other physical media.

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• Final's flagship D8000 headphones have been dramatically re-engineered
• Two models: one for laid-back listening and one for listening loud
• From £3,999 / $4,299 / around AU$7,959

Let's get this out of the way first: the new Final D8000 DC and DC Pro headphones cost four grand at least in the currency of your choice. So if you're looking for the best budget headphones, you might want to skip the rest of this bulletin.

However, if you have the funds to drop between $4,299 and $4,799 on a set of headphones without blinking – and if you are, are you single and looking? Did anyone ever tell you how clever and funny and hot you are? – then these audiophile over-ears promise to deliver astonishing audio.

Final D8000 DC and DC Pro headphones: key features and pricing

(Image credit: Final)

The two models of D8000 headphones are very similar, but they're tuned differently. The D8000 DC "has tuning that is intended to be enjoyed" for relaxed music listening, while the DC Pro model is aimed more at audio professionals and those of us who like to listen loud. That means it has been tuned to deliver more prominent bass as the listening volume increases.

The original D8000 planar-magnetic headphones were launched seven years ago, and the DC and DC Pro are the latest evolution of that winning formula. The DC, Final says, stands for "Da Capo – symbolizing a return to the beginning, a complete reconstruction of Final's flagship headphones with a fresh, innovative approach."

There's a new version of Final's proprietary Air Film Damping System, which was developed to regulate the movement of the diaphragm and deliver richer, distortion-free bass. Final says it overcomes the magnetic constraints of other planar headphones for superior accuracy and a "deep, balanced soundstage".

In the new DC models the AFDS has been re-engineered: every bit of the metal mesh around the diaphragm has been redesigned. The diaphragm they surround is ultra-light etched aluminum which reduces the weight of the vibration system by roughly one-third, delivering faster response and improved high frequency clarity.

Both models are available from selected UK retailers now; US customers can pre-order for mid-December shipping. The prices are $4,299 / €4,299 / £3,999 for the DC model and $4,799 / €4,799 / £4,499 for the DC Pro.

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• Managers want decision-makers to trust AI even when human judgement is better
• Report claims we need to remember human expertise is essential in navigating complexities
• Workers should have more freedom to share concerns and experiences about AI

A report from the Frankfurt School of Finance and Management and ESMT Berlin has revealed workers are now being penalized for ignoring AI recommendations, even when they know better.

The study specifically highlights how organizations can implement AI-based systems to streamline their work processes, weighing up those benefits against unintended consequences of excessive dependence on these tools.

In a controlled experiment, the researchers found that managers wanted decision-makers to follow AI advice even if the advice is sub-par.

Managers want us to follow AI’s advice

In this particular study, decision-makers who deviated from artificial intelligence-driven advice and instead used their own human knowledge and judgement were given lower bonus payments, even though they put in more effort and critical thinking, leading to a better decision and outcome.

“This behaviour from managers causes employees to overly rely on the AI's recommendations and ignore their own expertise and intuition, even when these are superior to the AI, out of fear of being punished," the report concludes.

Professor Dr Mirko Kremer, Professor of Supply Chain Management at the Frankfurt School, summarized: “It is important to remember that human expertise remains essential to navigate complexities, make nuanced judgments, and adapt to unexpected situations that AI might miss – especially in in sectors like healthcare, aviation or autonomous vehicles, where the implications of blindly following AI advice can have huge implications.”

The researchers acknowledge artificial intelligence can be a powerful tool, however they call for greater transparency from managers and greater trust in human expertise.

Indicative of the fear surrounding AI and its potential effect on the human workforce, the study also calls for clearer communication structures for employees to express concerns and experiences with AI systems.

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