Technology

ICYMI: the week’s 7 biggest tech stories from Nintendo’s last Switch direct to the Google Pixel 9a finally getting a release date

March 29, 2025

This week Apple announced the date for WWDC 2025, Marvel teased its massive Avengers: Doomsday cast, and Nintendo held what’s set to be its last Switch direct before the Nintendo Switch 2 releases.

To catch up on all that and all our picks for the week’s 7 biggest tech stories scroll through this page so you’ll be ready for next week’s big announcements.

Once you’re done, read our picks for 7 new movies and TV shows to watch this weekend (March 28).

7. Apple set a date for WWDC 2025

(Image credit: Apple/Future)

It’s been an interesting few weeks for Apple with several new products and an official delay to the AI-infused Siri, but this week, we got the office dates for the 2025 World Wide Developers Conference.

More commonly referred to as WWDC 25, Apple’s weeklong conference at which it normally debuts its next-generation platforms and software will kick off on June 9, 2025. As we’ve come to expect, Apple will host a ‘Special Event’ on day one, which will be the week’s main keynote.

It’s safe to expect Apple’s CEO Tim Cook, many other executives, and product leads to showcase all the new features and operating systems. We’re expecting iOS 19, iPadOS 19, the next version of macOS, watchOS, tvOS, and the software that powers AirPods and HomePod.

6. Avengers assembled for Doomsday

The Avengers: Doomsday logo imposed on an image of 27 actor chairs with Robert Downey Jr standing off to the right side

(Image credit: Marvel Studios)

After teasing a big announcement, Marvel has revealed the entire, 27-strong cast for Avengers: Doomsday, and it’s full of heroes including familiar MCU Avengers like Anthony Mackie as Captain America, Letitia Wright as Black Panther, Paul Rudd as Ant-Man, and Simu Liu as Shang-Chi, as well as some soon to be heroes like the Fantastic Four’s Ebon Moss-Bachrach (The Thing), Pedro Pascal (Mr. Fantastic), Vanessa Kirby (Invisible Woman) Joseph Quinn (Human Torch). Oh, and Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom.

There were also a few surprises, like Tom Hiddleston returning as Loki, Lewis Pullman as Sentry, and Tenoch Huerta Mejia as Namor – the latter of whom were set up as antagonists the last time we saw them in the Thunderbolts* trailer and Wakanda Forever, respectively.

And then some big shocks like Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, James Marsden, Kelsey Grammer, Channing Tatum, Alan Cumming, and Rebecca Romijn – all of whom will reprise their roles as Mutants from the X-Men universe. Their inclusion and some lighting have led many to speculate the movie might adapt to the Avengers vs X-Men storyline.

There were plenty of absent Avengers – including these 17 we most want to see – but Marvel has said, “There’s always room for more,” in response to a post on RDJ’s Instagram suggesting the film might be even more packed than it already is.

5. We tested the Canon PowerShot V1

Canon PowerShot V1 compact vlogging camera on a wooden desk alongside the PowerShot G7X Mark III and PowerShot V10

(Image credit: Tim Coleman)

Canon confirmed the global availability of its PowerShot V1 vlogging compact camera, which was announced last month for Japan only, alongside unveiling the new EOS R50 V, and we had already had our hands on the V1 ahead of the announcement.

We reckon the PowerShot V1 outshines the few rivals it has for video: the Sony ZV-1 II, the DJI Osmo Pocket 3, and Canon’s own PowerShot G7X Mark III, chiefly because it packs a larger 1.4-inch sensor, reliable autofocus, decent optical stabilization, together with a suite of video features that include a built-in ND filter and cooling vents for unlimited 4K record times.

However, the V1 isn’t perfect, and we’ve identified a few drawbacks during hands-on time. All being said, our first impressions are very favorable, and this is one of the best vlogging cameras for beginners. You can learn more in our hands-on review.

4. Netflix added HDR10+ support

Netflix on iPhone

(Image credit: Shutterstock)

This week Netflix announced that it’s adding support for the HDR10+ advanced HDR format which is supported by TVs from the likes of Samsung, Panasonic, Hisense and TCL.

You’ll need a Netflix Premium account to access HDR10+. Netflix said that initially, it will be available on 50% of “eligible viewing hours,” but it plans to have HDR10+ support on every HDR movie and show by the end of the year.

This is great news for owners of the best Samsung TVs and best Samsung phones, because these don’t support Dolby Vision HDR – the only premium TV brand that doesn’t.

HDR10+ and Dolby Vision are superior to regular HDR (officially called HDR10) because they can support a wider dynamic range to make the most of today’s brighter and bolder TVs, but they can also embed scene-by-scene tone mapping – meaning that instead of your TV having to work how best to get all the detail out of a super-dark or super-bright scene, this information is included in the video stream.

Basically your supported Netflix content should look a heck of a lot better now on Samsung screens.

3. OpenAI unveiled image generation for 4o

ChatGPT Image Generation

(Image credit: Generated by ChatGPT)

This week OpenAI unlocked image generation in ChatGPT, which promises more convenience (because it’s baked into the app rather than being its own thing) and better results than the other AI image generators out there,

In demos, the Open AI team showed off text that is actually legible and not a weird jumble of scribbles, which makes the tool ideal for creating infographics and it can generate an image from a photo you provide as context, not just from a written prompt.

However, it’s already getting into trouble as people ask the AI to convert their pictures into the distinct aesthetics of South Park, SpongeBob, and Studio Ghibli movies.

The results are undeniably impressive, but not only does it continue to raise concerns about AI taking artists’ livelihoods, but it’s also making many of us ask the question of how ChatGPT knows what the ‘Studio Ghibli’ and these other properties’ styles look like, as that would suggest it has been trained on copyrighted material.

Perhaps in response to these criticisms, we’ve found it’s now much harder to make ChatGPT copy an artist’s style directly – it now refuses and creates more generic-looking works instead.

2. Nintendo held the Switch’s last direct

Nintendo Direct live blog.

(Image credit: Nintendo / Future)

With the Nintendo Switch 2 debuting in just a couple of days at its own dedicated Direct on April 2, Nintendo gave its predecessor one final hurrah with the handheld’s last Direct presentation. It was full of game announcements and updates on titles we already know about.

Pokémon Legends Z-A made an appearance, where we learnt about the new Z-A Royale battle mode, a twist on the classic Gym Challenge. We also got to check out gameplay from the upcoming Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, which saw Samus exploring a jungle planet. Finally, there was the surprise reveal of Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream, which, for many of us, was the star of the show.

There’s also the Nintendo Today mobile app which has already alerted people to the premiere date for The Legend of Zelda live action movie, and the new Virtual Game Cards which will allow you to share your digital games between consoles like a real cartridge.

1. Google finally gave is a Pixel 9a release date

Google Pixel 9a in black, peony pink, iris, and porcelain, showing back cover with camera and home screen

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

The Google Pixel 9a was announced in mid-March, but almost immediately, Google delayed the phone’s sale and only gave us a vague “April” release date. No specific official reason for the delay was given except that it was a “component quality issue,” but one leaker blamed heating problems around the camera module – though, take what they had to say with a pinch of salt.

Regardless of the reason, the Pixel 9a now has a release date. It will arrive in the US, UK, and Canada first on April 10th, followed by Europe on April 14th and Australia and Asia on April 16th.

When it does land the new Pixel 9a will cost $499 / £499 / AU$849 for 8GB of RAM with 128GB of storage, and comes in four colors: Obsidian black, Porcelain white, Peony pink, and Iris lavender.

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