Month: November 2019

Enlarge / Long Island Solar Farm. (credit: US DOE)

One of the arguments that's consistently been raised against doing anything about climate change is that it will be expensive. On the more extreme end of the spectrum, there have been dire warnings about plunging standards of living due to skyrocketing electricity prices. The plunging cost of renewables has largely silenced these dire warnings, but a new report from the Department of Energy suggests that, even earlier, renewables were actually lowering the price of electricity in the United States.

Plunging prices

The report focuses on wholesale electricity prices in the US. Note that these are distinct from the prices consumers actually pay, which includes taxes, fees, payments to support the grid that delivers the electricity, and so on. It's entirely possible for wholesale electricity prices to drop even as consumers end up paying more. That said, large changes in the wholesale price should ultimately be passed on to consumers to one degree or another.

The Department of Energy analysis focuses on the decade between 2008 and 2017, and it includes an overall analysis of the US market, as well as large individual grids like PJM and ERCOT and, finally, local prices. The decade saw a couple of important trends: low natural gas prices that fostered a rapid expansion of gas-fired generators, and the rapid expansion of renewable generation that occurred concurrently with a tremendous drop in price of wind and solar power.

Enlarge (credit: Ars Technica)

Greetings, Arsians! The Dealmaster is back with another set of deals to share. Today's roundup is headlined by a deal on the Crystal version of Sony's DualShock 4 controller, which is down to $40 at Walmart.

We've seen the PlayStation 4 gamepad drop down to this price several times before, but it's still a nice drop from the $40-50 range in which it normally sits online. Sony says this will be the DualShock 4's retail price during Black Friday, so you won't be punished for getting it ahead of time. If you're looking for a spare controller for your PC or iOS device, we'll note that Microsoft's Xbox One wireless controller has been down to $40 as well for the past couple of weeks, just in case you prefer the larger size and asymmetrical joystick layout of that gamepad. That is the same as its Black Friday pricing as well.

If you don't need another controller, however, we also have deals on the OnePlus 7 Pro, Apple's AirPods Pro, Razer's DeathAdder Elite gaming mice, Amazon service subscriptions, and much more. Have a look for yourself below.

After a tease earlier this week, Valve has revealed more details and a new trailer for the first new Half-Life content in over a decade. The "full-length" Half Life: Alyx will hit Steam in March 2020, Valve says, with support for "all PC-based VR headsets." Pre-orders are already available for $59.99, though the game will be free if you own a Valve Index headset.

The game, which Valve says is "set between the events of Half-Life and Half-Life 2," has been "designed from the ground up for Virtual Reality" (i.e. you can stop hoping for a 2D monitor release). "Everyone at Valve is excited to be returning to the world of Half-Life," Valve founder Gabe Newell said in a statement. “VR has energized us."

"We’ve invested a lot of ourselves in the technology," Newell's statement continues. "But we're also game developers at heart, and to be devoting ourselves to a VR game this ambitious is just as exciting. For that to come in the form of Half-Life feels like the culmination of a lot things we care a lot about: truly great games, cutting edge technology, and open platforms. We can’t wait for people to experience this."

Most of the hype around this month's Apple TV+ launch centered on the TV portion—the Jennifer Anniston-led Morning Show, the Thrones-y future dystopian series See, the alternative history of the space race in For All Mankind. Like its streaming competitors in the tech sector, however, Apple also plans to release and produce original movies for the new service. But now, one of the service's first high-profile film projects is abruptly being held ahead of its previously scheduled December 6 theatrical release.

The Banker, a period piece starring Anthony Mackie and Samuel L. Jackson, will no longer hit theaters next month ahead of a planned January streaming release. As reported in The Hollywood Reporter, that's because sisters Cynthia and Sheila Garrett allege they were sexually assaulted in the 1970s for nearly a decade by one of the film's co-producers—Bernard Garrett Jr., their half-brother and son of one of the men portrayed in the film.

"Last week some concerns surrounding the film were brought to our attention. We, along with the filmmakers, need some time to look into these matters and determine the best next steps," Apple said in a statement.