Game Platform Makers Skipping E3 Show; Ford Cuts Prices on Mustang Mach-E; Metaquest Pro Gets $400 Cut; 2023 Hyundai Ioniq 6 Beats Tesla Model 3’s in EPA Range

We will have a recap report tomorrow after Samsung’s Unpacked event with the new Galaxy hardware. 

The E3 conference is coming back June 13th in Los Angeles, after dropping live get togethers during COVID. There will be 3 notable vendors who will be skipping the festivities, though. Theverge.com reports that Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft are all passing on a presence at E3. Sony actually ducked out of E3 in 2019, and hasn’t exhibited there since then. Nintendo has usually put on a good dog and pony show, but after Microsoft joined Sony in skipping out, they probably didn’t feel they needed to spend the bucks…they have had great results with their Direct Video presentations where they don’t have to share the spotlight with competitors. 

After Tesla announced some hefty cuts in pricing on some of its models, Ford has fallen into place and done the same. According to arstechnica.com, no Ford Mustang Mach-E is getting anything close to the $20,000 cut in price on one of the Tesla models…but the Fords are cheaper to begin with. Price reductions run from $900 to $5900. That top cut gets you the GT Extended Range, which will now set you back $63,995. Ford is also increasing production, gearing up to build 130,000 battery electric vehicles from the 78,000 originally planned. That’s good news, as there has been quite a wait time, just like on the Chevy Bolt models from General Motors. In both Tesla’s and Ford’s case, the price cuts get them under US government caps so that buyers can take advantage of tax credits.

If you have been longing for the Meta Quest Pro, but just couldn’t see dropping $1500 bucks on one, this may be for you. Engadget.com says the VR headset is down to $1099.00 at Amazon. The Quest Pro is 50 percent more powerful than the Quest 2. It also features solid built-in speakers with support for spatial audio, meaning you don’t necessarily need to reach for a pair of headphones when using the Quest Pro. Keep in mind that it is a weighty rascal at over a pound, and has less battery life due to all the advanced components. You can now step into the Metaverse with a few more dollars in your wallet.

With all his focus on Twitter, Elon Musk might want to switch back and pay a bit more attention to Tesla. Arstechnica.com reports that Hyundai’s new 2023 Ioniq 6 EV just finalized a 361 mile range from the EPA…eclipsing even the longest range Tesla Model 3. The range leader from Hyundai is a single motor rear wheel driver rolling on 18 inch wheels. It will be the cheapest Hyundai EV, but no official pricing has been released yet. Everything makes a difference…picking the larger 20 inch wheels cuts the range down to 305 miles. 

I’m Clark Reid, and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.