Month: March 2022

Enlarge (credit: Leica)

Leica’s new M11 digital rangefinder camera may as well come from an entirely different era. Don’t get me wrong; the technology inside of it makes it feel plenty modern. The M11 has a high-resolution sensor (a 60-megapixel backside-illuminated full-frame CMOS sensor to be precise), sophisticated metering tools, and even some of the usual digital accoutrements of cameras in our age. But in many ways, it works like the film cameras your parents owned. It thumbs its nose at autofocus, it doesn’t capture video, and it’s perfectly happy to accept lenses that are decades old.

More than that though, the Leica M11 just feels like, well, an old Leica. The new M11 is very much true to the heritage of the M series camera, which launched in the 1950s and went digital in 2006. It’s compact and understated, a box to which you attach a lens.

(credit: Leica)

The M11 is also true to its legacy when it comes to price, which is high. The retail price of $8,995 is more than most of us are ever going to spend on a camera. And that price is just for the camera body; Leica lenses, which range from $2,500 to $12,000, are sold separately. But even for those of us who cannot afford and will never own a Leica M11, I think this is a device we should notice and talk about. It deserves more discussion than a simple product review.

Enlarge / Critical infrastructure sites such as this oil refinery in Port Arthur, Texas, rely on safety systems. (credit: IIP Photo Archive)

For years, the hackers behind the malware known as Triton or Trisis have stood out as a uniquely dangerous threat to critical infrastructure: a group of digital intruders who attempted to sabotage industrial safety systems, with physical, potentially catastrophic results. Now the US Department of Justice has put a name to one of the hackers in that group—and confirmed the hackers’ targets included a US company that owns multiple oil refineries.

On Thursday, just days after the White House warned of potential cyberattacks on US critical infrastructure by the Russian government in retaliation for new sanctions against the country, the Justice Department unsealed a pair of indictments that together outline a years-long campaign of Russian hacking of US energy facilities. In one set of charges, filed in August 2021, authorities name three officers of Russia’s FSB intelligence agency accused of being members of a notorious hacking group known as Berserk Bear, Dragonfly 2.0, or Havex, known for targeting electrical utilities and other critical infrastructure worldwide, and widely suspected of working in the service of the Russian government.

Enlarge (credit: Ars Technica)

It’s the weekend, which means it’s time for another Dealmaster. Our latest roundup of the best tech deals from around the web includes an early discount on Apple’s newest iPad Air, the 64GB version of which is down to $570 at Amazon. That’s just a $30 discount, but it’s notable given that the tablet only began shipping last week. The one caveat is that Amazon is showing shipping delays as of this writing; if you need to have the device within the next couple of weeks, you may still be better off paying full price at Apple. But if you were planning on picking up the tablet anyway and are willing to wait, it’s a nice little savings.

We gave the new iPad Air a positive review last week, calling it “the best tablet for most people who can afford it.” While it isn’t a major overhaul compared to the previous model, it upgrades to Apple’s M1 system-on-a-chip, which is the same SoC used in the iPad Pro and MacBook Air, among other pricier Apple devices. It’s exceptionally quick as a result, to the point where performance shouldn’t be an issue for years to come. The included USB-C port now delivers faster transfer speeds, too, and the front-facing camera is now a 12 MP unit (up from 7 MP) that supports Apple’s “Center Stage” feature.

The iPad Air’s closest competition still comes from Apple itself. The 11-inch iPad Pro includes twice as much storage by default (128GB), better speakers, and a brighter display that supports a higher 120 Hz refresh rate, but it costs about $180 more. The entry-level iPad, meanwhile, is far more affordable at $329 and still performs well for everyday tablet tasks, but it’s not as powerful on the whole and uses a more dated design. For those willing to pay a bit more, the new iPad Air is a strong middle ground: it still has a great display for media consumption, and when paired with the right accessories, it’s as powerful as the current iPad Pro for getting more involved work done.