Accessories
Apple Watch Pride Edition bands celebrate LGBTQ+ movement
Representing the breadth of LGBTQ+ communities and experiences
Apple has been continuously supporting the LGBTQ+ community, and it’s been visible ever since the launch of Apple Watch Pride Edition in 2016.
This year is no exception, as Apple introduces a new Apple Watch Pride Edition band and a dynamic watch face on International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia. The new features embrace a much more colorful presentation, inspired by multiple Pride flags representing the diverse LGBTQ+ community.
Pride Edition Braided Solo Loop
Apple weaved the original rainbow colors together with various Pride flags to represent the diversity among LGBTQ+ experiences.
The Braided Solo Loop tells a collective history of movements spanning across generations and communities, through colors. For instance, the Black and Brown colors symbolize the Black and Latinx communities along with those who have passed away from or are living with HIV/AIDS. Meanwhile, light blue, pink, and white represent transgender and nonbinary individuals.
Regarding its material, the band features a stretchable recycled yarn interwoven with silicon threads. It’s designed for comfort even without buckles or clasps. If you’re worried about the fit, there are 12 available lengths of the Braided Solo Loop.
The Pride Edition Braided Solo Loop is compatible with Apple Watch SE and Apple Watch Series 4 or later.
Pride Watch Face
This year, Apple came up with a special Pride watch face. It mirrors the new colors of the band, representing the combined strength and mutual support of the LGBTQ+ movement. When you rotate the Digital Crown, the threads on the watch face infinitely scroll and animate when you raise your wrist.
Additionally, Apple includes a new App Clip functionality to ensure immediate access to the new matching watch face with ease. The 2021 Pride watch face is coming soon as part of a software update. App Clip codes require iOS 14.3 or later.
Pride Edition Nike Sport Loop
There’s also a new Pride Edition Nike Sport Loop, showcasing the six colors of the original rainbow, and utilizes reflective yarn to support those who engage in outdoor workouts, especially at night. The design is comfortable yet durable and infinitely fits any wrists. And of course, it pairs nicely with a corresponding Nike watch face.
The Pride Edition Nike Sport Loop is compatible with Apple Watch Series 3 or later.
Price and availability
The Pride Edition Braided Solo Loop retails for US$ 99 while the Pride Edition Nike Sport Loop is available for US$ 49. Both bands are available at apple.com and the Apple Store app. The Pride Edition bands will be available at Apple Store locations beginning May 25. Meanwhile, the Nike Sport Loop will find its way to nike.com soon.
The new Pride Edition bands are available to order today from apple.com and the Apple Store app, and will be available at Apple Store locations beginning May 25. The Pride Edition Nike Sport Loop is also coming soon to nike.com.
Apple’s long-running financial support towards the LGBTQ+ movement
Apple isn’t a company riding on the LGBTQ+ movement. The latest introduction of these watches is just one of Apple’s commitment to celebrating and supporting the movement.
The company has been working with LGBTQ+ advocacy organizations that bring positive change, including Encircle, Equality North Carolina, Equality Texas, Gender Spectrum, GLSEN, Human Rights Campaign, National Center for Transgender Equality, PFLAG National, SMYAL, and The Trevor Project in the United States, as well as ILGA World internationally.
SEE ALSO: Apple Watch Series 6 Review
Phones flip and fold. Now webcams do too.
Foldable screens have found their way into phones, tablets, and laptops in recent years. Now, OBSBOT is taking that idea in a considerably smaller direction: the webcam.
The OBSBOT Meet Flip is the company’s first foldable 4K webcam packing:
- 1/2-inch stacked CMOS sensor
- intelligent audio
- a collection of AI-powered meeting tools
All of these inside a body weighing just 37.7 grams.
A fold that does something, not just a gimmick
The OBSBOT Meet Flip isn’t foldable just to make it easier to throw into a bag.
Closing the webcam physically blocks the lens and puts the device into sleep mode. Open it when you want to be seen, flip it shut when you don’t.
A physical privacy cover isn’t novel in itself. What’s clever here is how it’s part of the folding design.
As someone with a love-hate relationship with data privacy, I almost always keep some physical barrier over my laptop webcam. And if I can avoid having a webcam there entirely, even better.
Serious camera hardware in a pocket-sized webcam
Despite its size, OBSBOT hasn’t treated the Meet Flip like a basic laptop-camera replacement.
Inside is a 1/2-inch Exmor RS stacked CMOS sensor with Quad Bayer technology, capable of recording 4K UHD at 30 fps or 1080p at 60 fps. It also packs an f/1.8 aperture, HDR, PDAF autofocus, ISO 100–6400, and up to 4x digital zoom.
At its core is a 1/2-inch Exmor RS stacked CMOS sensor with Quad Bayer technology.
It can record:
- 4K UHD at 30fps
- 1080p at 60fps
You also get:
- f/1.8 aperture
- HDR
- PDAF autofocus
- ISO 100–6400
- up to 4x digital zoom
On paper, that gives the Meet Flip a better shot at handling the situations built-in laptop webcams often struggle with: dim rooms, harsh backlighting, changing lighting conditions, or simply moving around in front of the camera.
HDR helps keep faces visible against bright backgrounds, while PDAF autofocus continuously adjusts focus as you move closer to or farther from the lens.
The wider f/1.8 aperture should also help in less-than-ideal lighting.
The point is that once the Meet Flip is set up, you shouldn’t have to spend much time thinking about the camera itself.
It listens differently depending on the room setup
The Meet Flip also uses an intelligent dual-microphone system combining omnidirectional and directional microphones.
Instead of relying on one pickup pattern for every situation, it offers four audio modes for different setups:
Directional Mode focuses on sound coming from the front, making it the obvious choice for solo calls.
Dual-Directional Mode listens to both the front and rear of the webcam, which could be useful for interviews or conversations between two people sitting across from each other.
Smart Omni Mode is designed for group meetings, picking up voices from around the room.
And Pure Audio Mode provides unprocessed left and right stereo channels for users who would rather handle the audio themselves in post-production.
Auto Gain and AI Noise Reduction also work across the first three modes, helping clean up audio without requiring much manual adjustment.
It gives the Meet Flip more flexibility than a typical webcam microphone, especially if you regularly switch between solo calls, interviews, and group meetings.
AI that doesn’t intrude
AI has become an almost obligatory addition to new hardware in 2026, but several of the Meet Flip’s features put it to work on real-world meeting annoyances.
AI Auto Framing keeps you in frame, with options for:
- Group
- Single Close-up
- Upper Body
- Full Body
Gesture controls can also toggle Auto Framing or adjust the zoom without reaching for a keyboard or mouse.
More interesting is AI Magic Notes.
Through OBSBOT Center, it provides real-time transcription and can automatically generate meeting summaries with key points, decisions, and action items. It works across Google Meet, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams.
Although AI Magic Notes is offered as a subscription service, every Meet Flip includes 120 complimentary minutes to get started.
MORE with OBSBOT Center & OBSBOT Live
There are plenty of other software features as well. OBSBOT Center includes:
- Background Blur and Background Replacement
- Real-Time Beauty Mode
- Picture-in-Picture overlays
- Smart Eye Tracking
- Teleprompter support
- Detailed image adjustments
The Meet Flip isn’t limited to laptops or desktops either. Through OBSBOT Live, it can connect directly to smartphones and tablets over USB-C for mobile streaming and content creation.
Flip it open. Fold it away.
None of those features reinvent the webcam on their own.
Taken together, though, they make the Meet Flip a more thoughtful take on a piece of hardware whose basic design and features have barely changed.
The flip may grab your attention first, but it’s how OBSBOT uses that design alongside its camera, audio, and software features that makes the Meet Flip interesting.
The OBSBOT Meet Flip is now available at US$ 119 and is currently available through OBSBOT’s official store, Amazon US, and select retailers.
Accessories
England, Wales start banning Meta Glasses
The smart glasses are now banned in courtrooms.
Earlier this year, New York became the first state to issue a blanket ban against smart glasses in courtrooms. The new regulation marks one of the first public spaces to prevent the contentious devices. Now, England and Wales are following suit in their courtrooms by banning Meta glasses inside.
As reported by The Guardian, courtrooms in both countries will confiscate Meta Glasses from those taking them into the building. Owners can retrieve them again upon exit.
Like the decision in New York, the English and Welsh bans are simple enough to follow. As it is everywhere, it’s forbidden to record video inside courtrooms in England and Wales. Because Meta Glasses have cameras (and are primarily used for their video capturing capabilities), they fall under prohibited items.
Notably, smartphones are not included on this list, despite having sizable cameras themselves. Although, to be fair, it’s much more difficult to discreetly record video using a smartphone. Smart glasses pride themselves with the ability to take videos seamlessly.
Meta Glasses are having such a moment today. Though some users, especially creators, are excited for them, a significant chunk of the population is concerned over their ability to take videos without subjects knowing they’re being recorded. Some users have even found ways to disable the built-in LED indicators which should, in theory, warn the public that the glasses are recording. It’s since turned into a privacy nightmare.
What if smart glasses could make you more present instead of recording everything around you? Check out MemoMind or back it up on Kickstarter.
After spending time with the MemoMind One around New York City, THE Michael Josh wanted to answer one question: Do smart glasses actually become more useful when they stop trying to be a camera?
In this video, we take a look at the MemoMind One — a new pair of AI-powered smart glasses that take a very different approach.
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