Demand for AI via consumer mobile apps has been climbing, with market leader OpenAI’s ChatGPT mobile app topping half a million downloads in its first six days. Now, another AI app is touting its own launch success, as the a16z-backed Character.AI app is claiming to have pulled in over 1.7 million new installs in less than a week on the market. The AI app maker, which announced a whopping $150 million in Series A funding earlier this year, valuing its business at $1 billion, offers customizable AI companions with distinct personalities, as well as the ability for users to create their own characters.
While there are a number of these AI character generators available on today’s app stores, interest in Character.AI has a lot to do with its founders. The Palo Alto–based startup was created by Noam Shazeer and Daniel De Freitas, AI experts who previously led a team of researchers at Google that built LaMDA (Language Model for Dialogue Applications), a language model that helps power conversational AI experiences.
At Google, the founders had become frustrated with the company’s hesitancy to roll out AI chatbots to other researchers and the general public, including through integrations with other Google products, like Assistant, The Wall Street Journal reported. Believing AI would revolutionize search and other areas, the duo ultimately decided to leave Google in late 2021, despite pleas from CEO Sundar Pichai to stay and continue their work on LaMDA. That same November, Shazeer and De Freitas founded Character Technologies, now home to Character.AI.
The mobile version of the AI chatbot platform launched globally to iOS and Android users on May 23, where it had a strong showing on Google Play in particular. Within the first 48 hours, the app saw more than 700,000 Android installs, putting it ahead of top entertainment apps like Netflix, Disney+, and Prime Video, for example. That trend is continuing in the days following the launch, the company confirmed to TechCrunch, thanks to installs in large Android markets like Indonesia, the Philippines, and Brazil. The U.S. is also a leading market for Android downloads, the company said.
Image Credits: Character.AI
Interest in the mobile app was also heightened by the popularity of the web experience that preceded it. Ahead of the app’s launch, the Character.AI web app was topping 200 million visits per month, Character.AI claims, and users were spending on average 29 minutes per visit — a figure the company says eclipses ChatGPT by 300%.
In addition, Character.AI reports that users quickly become engaged after first use. For instance, the company noted this month that once users send their first message to a character, their engagement rates jump to more than 2 hours average time on platform. To date, users have created over 10 million custom AI characters, the company added.
The team, still just 30 people, has been particularly busy this month, having launched its premium service c.ai+, which offers a similar set of perks as ChatGPT Plus, like faster response times, access during peak periods of usage, and early access to new features. It also announced a strategic partnership with Google Cloud for building and training its AI models. The deal will see the startup using Google Cloud’s Tensor Processor Units to train and infer LLMs (large language models) faster and more efficiently, it said.
While some startups massage their reported download figures to make them sound better than they are, it seems Character.AI’s numbers are likely accurate. We asked third-party app intelligence provider data.ai to compare Character.AI’s numbers with their own estimates and data.ai came back with figures that actually showed the apps had a higher number of downloads. (The apps are so new, third-party estimates may not be accurate at this time — but, if anything, these third-party metrics do confirm there is initial consumer demand.)
However, while ChatGPT has demonstrated staying power following its launch — it’s still No. 3 today on the top free apps chart in the U.S. — Character.AI demand seems to have declined slightly post-launch. As of the time of writing, the iOS app is charting at No. 13 in the U.S. App Store’s Entertainment category. On U.S. iOS, the app was No. 4 overall for its first two days, but declined since to a rank of No. 89 overall. On U.S. Android, it reached No. 5 on May 27 but dropped to No. 27 as of today, data.ai told us.
Asked if Character.AI was blowing some of its huge chunk of change on marketing spend to generate its initial installs, the company claims that was not the case. The app launched without a dedicated marketing budget and 99% of its downloads were organic, the startup said.
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Apple is testing two desktop Macs that are equipped with M2 Max and M2 Ultra chips, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The M2 Max chip first came out in January with the launch of the 2023 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models, but the M2 Ultra chip is new and would succeed the M1 Ultra chip that Apple uses in the Mac Studio.
Gurman does not know which specific Macs will feature the chips, but the machines are labeled as "Mac 14,13" and "Mac 14,14" internally. Previous rumors have suggested that the revamped Apple silicon Mac Pro could include the M2 Ultra chip, the Mac Pro that Apple is developing is labeled as "14,8" internally, so the desktop machines in testing now are likely something else, perhaps new versions of the Mac Studio. Apple is also working on new iMacs, but these are expected to feature M3 chips.
Back in April, Gurman said that there were updated Mac Studio machines planned for a future launch, but he also said that it was unlikely that Apple would release a version of the Mac Studio with an M2 Ultra chip because it would be as powerful as the future Mac Pro, giving customers little reason to opt for a Mac Pro.
The first machine that Apple has been testing includes an M2 Max chip with eight high-performance cores, four efficiency cores, a 30-core GPU, and 96GB RAM. The chip is the same as the chip that's in the M2 Max version of the 16-inch MacBook Pro.
The second machine has an M2 Ultra chip with a 24-core CPU (16 high-performance cores and 8 efficiency cores) and a 60-core GPU, though prior information suggests that M2 Ultra chips could feature up to a 76-core GPU. Different configurations feature 64GB, 128GB, and 192GB RAM.
Apple is testing these new Macs just ahead of WWDC, and Gurman says that he expects multiple Macs to be introduced at the event. One of those will be the 15-inch MacBook Air, but we don't know which other Macs might appear. Gurman stops short of suggesting these new Macs with M2 Max and M2 Ultra chips will be introduced at WWDC, but it seems like a distinct possibility.
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Earlier this year, Google announced that it planned to unify its Drive File Stream and Backup and Sync apps into a single Google Drive for desktop app. The company now says the new sync client will roll out "in the coming weeks" and has released additional information about what users can expect from the transition. To recap, there are currently two desktop sync solutions for using Google...
Earlier this month, Samsung announced its next iteration of Wear OS – One UI Watch 5. Having initially promised that software would debut a beta version for existing Galaxy Watch models, the company is now backtracking with looming unknowns.
One UI Watch 5 is set to carry some serious improvements over the current version found on the Galaxy Watch 4 and 5 series. Other than bringing the general updates inherently coming in Wear OS 4, One UI Watch 5 tweaks a few of Samsung’s popular features.
One major change is the shifting focus on sleep health and management. In One UI Watch 5, Samsung is aiming to take a holistic approach and use Sleep Insights and Sleep Coaching to build “healthy sleeping habits.” Samsung’s new iteration of Wear OS also brings personalized heart rate zones during running exercises.
Samsung made it clear that One UI Watch 5 would debut in full on the Galaxy Watch 6, which is likely to make its first appearance in July. That hasn’t changed, though the company is changing what was to come before that.
Announced in Samsung’s community forums, the company’s beta team stated that One UI Watch 5 would no longer be coming to beta on the Galaxy Watch 4 and Galaxy Watch 5 in May (via SamMobile). The team cites difficulties working with Wear OS 4, noting that it’s taking longer than expected. The initial assessment of a Wear OS 4 beta in May was exciting, though understandably hopeful.
While Samsung hasn’t made mention of changes to what the Galaxy Watch 6 will be running at launch, the Galaxy Watch 4 and 5 will need to wait a little longer before a beta build is available. Of course, there is no timeline as to when this will happen, though we expect it to be available before the new version of Samsung’s smartwatch sees the spotlight.
The Galaxy Watch 6 is expected to be unveiled alongside the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Z Flip 5 in late July.
Rest now, little Chromecast. Google has announced the decade-old Chromecast 1 is finally hitting end of life. A message on Google's Chromecast firmware support page (first spotted by 9to5Google) announced the wind-down of support, saying, "Support for Chromecast (1st gen) has ended, which means these devices no longer receive software or security updates, and Google does not provide technical support for them. Users may notice a degradation in performance." The first-gen Chromecast launched in 2013 for $35.
The original Chromecast was wildly successful and sold 10 million units in 2014 alone. For years, the device was mentioned in Google earnings calls as the highlight of the company's hardware efforts, and it was essentially the company's first successful piece of hardware. The Chromecast made it easy to beam Internet videos to your TV at a time when that was otherwise pretty complicated.
Google does not really make "Chromecasts" anymore—or at least it doesn't make products that use the original Chromecast technology stack. The original 2013 Chromecast, 2015's second-generation version, 2016's Chromecast Ultra, and 2018's third-gen versions are all dead-simple streaming sticks. They run the Cast OS, which is an ultra-lightweight OS cobbled together from bits of Chrome OS and Android. They have no default interface, they can't run apps, and they have no control mechanism of their own. Old-school Chromecasts exist solely as media receivers for the cast button in various apps like YouTube. You press the cast button in an app, pick a TV, and the screen turns on and starts playing media. That's it.
In 2020, Google released the "Chromecast with Google TV," a product that keeps the Chromecast brand alive but pivots away from the idea of a simple streaming stick. The new "Chromecasts" can still be media receivers, but they are dramatically more complicated Android TV boxes now. They run a full Android operating system, have their own interface, and come with a physical remote control for navigating the UI. You can log in to the stick, fire up the Play Store, and download updates and install apps. New Chromecasts are just set-top boxes in the form factor of a dongle.
Chromecast's pivot to Android TV means there are no current products that use the Cast OS. In fact, Google has worked to expunge the misfit OS from all of Google, with the other Cast OS product, the Google Nest Hub, switching to Fuchsia. The only work on the OS nowadays will be supporting the obsolete Chromecasts, with the newest being the 5-year-old Chromecast third generation. There's no word on how much time the other Cast OS sticks have left.
To the benefit of customers worldwide, Samsung did the unthinkable and gave the Galaxy S23 series a brilliant Snapdragon chipset in every market, excluding Exynos from the equation. As a result, the Galaxy S23 Ultra is one of the best Android phones ever made, especially since Samsung worked with Qualcomm to tune the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset exclusively for its 2023 flagship phones. Nevertheless, the “for Galaxy” chipset is not the only great thing Qualcomm did for the Galaxy S23 Ultra.
Counterpoint Research reveals that Qualcomm contributed much more to the Galaxy S23 Ultra. In fact, Qualcomm has a slightly higher design share in the Galaxy S23 Ultra than even Samsung. The US-based company won 34% of designs for the Galaxy S23 Ultra, as it provided not only the chipset but also the fingerprint sensor integrated circuit (IC), the key power management IC, the audio codec, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS and Sub-6GHz transceivers, and the RF (radio-frequency) power amplifiers.
Qualcomm has more Galaxy S23 Ultra design wins than Samsung
In contrast, Samsung’s component manufacturing branches contributed 33% (1% less than Qualcomm) to the final product we know as the Galaxy S23 Ultra.
Samsung and its subsidiaries supplied Galaxy S23 Ultra components such as the NAND flash, the AMOLED display, and some of the camera sub-systems, including the 200MP camera and the 12MP selfie shooter. Meanwhile, Sony supplied the 12MP ultrawide sensor, 10MP telephoto unit, and periscope telephoto sensor. And while the battery is packaged by Samsung, ATL provides the cell.
Other companies that contributed less than 27% of the Galaxy S23 Ultra’s components combined are Corning, Qorvo, TDK, Goertek, Murata, ST, Sony, NPX, and Knowles.
The research paper also suggests that Samsung’s bill of materials (BoM) for the 8GB+256GB Galaxy S23 Ultra comes in at $469. In contrast, the Galaxy S20 Ultra’s bill of material was estimated to be worth $528, while the Galaxy S21 Ultra BoM was 7% lower. The S20 Ultra was the first Samsung phone to boast a bonkers camera setup with so-called “Space Zoom” capabilities, which may have made it costlier to produce back in 2020. But costs have decreased as technologies matured and supply chains became more efficient.
It’s important to remember that these BoM estimates don’t include costs for software development, employees, marketing, or future firmware updates and prolonged support. They’re just an estimate of the combined cost of the phone’s components.
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The iPhone 16 Pro models will feature a taller aspect ratio of 19.6:9, a change that will trickle down to the standard iPhone 17 models the following year, new forecasts from display analyst Ross Young claim.
The iPhone 14 lineup has an aspect ratio of 19.5:9, a specification that is expected to remain the same across this year's iPhone 15 lineup. The change with the iPhone 16 Pro models means that the devices should get slightly taller, rather than wider. While the iPhone 16 Pro models have been widely rumored to feature larger screens for some time, the aspect ratio of the devices was unclear until now.
Young also provided exact display sizes for the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max. The devices are expected to increase from 6.12- and 6.69-inches to 6.27- and 6.86-inches, respectively. This represents a display size increase of 2.5% on both devices.
With the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Plus in 2025, Apple will apparently bring the larger 6.27- and 6.86-inch display sizes to its two standard iPhone models. As Young has previously reported, these devices are also expected to gain LTPO panels to support ProMotion for variable refresh rates up to 120Hz. This means that the standard iPhone 17 models look set to receive a substantial display upgrade, with larger sizes and LPTO for ProMotion.
In addition, Young reaffirmed his previous statement that the iPhone 17 Pro models will be the first to feature under-display Face ID technology, sitting alongside a hole-shaped cutout for the front-facing camera.
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Google hosted its annual I/O developers keynote at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, California today, announcing multiple new products and services related to Android, search, messaging, home automation, and more. Google Assistant Google Assistant is described as a "conversational assistant" that builds upon Google Now based on two-way dialog. The tool can be used, for example,...
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HyperX announced a new version of its flagship Cloud gaming headset for PC and consoles, the Cloud 3. It’s available starting Tuesday for $99.99. While its design doesn’t seems to have evolved much from the previous version that launched 2015 and quickly became the gold standard, the company says that the Cloud 3 boasts several improvements.
It claims to have re-engineered its 53 mm audio drivers for better performance, and its adjustable boom microphone supports noise-cancellation. Plus, it has a built-in metal pop filter to prevent unwanted sounds from getting through. In terms of fit, HyperX credits new materials with making it more comfortable to wear over long periods of time. It also includes a lifetime activation of DTS Headphone:X, PC software that enables 3D audio for a more immersive soundscape.
One of the most welcome changes is how it can connect to devices. The Cloud 3 can connect more easily to modern devices via USB-C, USB-A, or with the standard 3.5 mm headphone port. With this flexibility, you can easily connect to most consoles or portable devices you might have.
While the headset’s launch is exciting, a new iteration of HyperX’s flagship Cloud headset hitting shelves usually means that there are several tweaks of the formula to come. Historically, HyperX has released a wireless version after the launch of the revised wired model, then it follows that move up with console-specific headsets with lower costs. However, it’s possible that its release plans may be a tad different for the Cloud 3, since it’s now under the ownership of HP.
Crucial T700 PCIe 5.0 NVMe SSD review Fastest SSD on the Market
Unleash the Power with Crucial T700 PCIe 5.0 NVMe SSD: The Fastest SSD on the Market.
Introducing the impressive Crucial T700 PCIe 5.0 NVMe SSD, the epitome of speed and performance. Designed to push boundaries, this SSD delivers speed that sets it apart as the fastest SSD available. We are delighted to have received two samples of this SSD series, both boasting a generous capacity of 2TB but with 1TB and a 4TB model available as well. Among the SKU options, you'll notice one unit features a built-in heatsink. At the same time, the other is ingeniously designed to fit seamlessly underneath a motherboard heatsink (which is a must, as we'll explain later). At the core of the Crucial T700 lies the Phison E26 controller, the controller that supports the new PCIe 5.0 interface. Paired with Micron's advanced 232-layer 3D TLC NAND, this SSD series offers exceptional performance metrics, reaching up to an astounding 12 GB/sec for sustained writes. Although much anticipation surrounded the arrival of these drives, they have only recently made their way to the market in significant volumes. Currently, all "Gen 5" SSDs are based on the Phison E26 controller, positioning the Crucial T700 as a pioneer among production-grade PCI-Express 5.0 solid-state drives. The Crucial T700 sets itself apart with Micron's cutting-edge 232-layer 3D TLC NAND, ensuring optimal performance. The high-end drive also incorporates a DRAM cache chip to enhance its capabilities further.
Available in capacities of 1TB (USD 180), 2TB (USD 340), and 4TB (USD 600), the Crucial T700 offers a range of options to suit different storage needs. These models come with impressive endurance ratings, with the 1TB model offering 600TBW, the 2TB model offering 1200TBW, and the 4TB model boasting a remarkable 2400TBW. Crucial includes a generous five-year warranty with the MP700 SSD to provide peace of mind.
We've received two 2TB samples, one with included heatsink and the other to be placed underneath one on the motherboard. Mind you that Crucial is asking $30 extra for the heatsink.
CD Projekt‘s CEO has dismissed rumours that Sony may be acquiring it.
Over the past weekend a leaker who usually specialises in Destiny content claimed that they were aware of plans Sony had to acquire the Witcher and Cyberpunk 2077 publisher and make it part of Sony Interactive Entertainment.
However, in an earnings call following the publication of the company’s Q1 2023 earnings, CD Projekt president and CEO Adam Kiciński claimed that the rumours were untrue.
After an attendee asked if there was any truth to the reports, Kiciński replied: “Nothing has changed in our end.”
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He added: “So, I can repeat what we have been saying throughout the years – CD Projekt is not for sale.
“We want to remain independent. We have, I believe an excellent strategy. Not easy to execute, for sure, but it’s very exciting to follow our own path. So it’s a pure rumour.”
Elsewhere in the call, Kiciński stated that Cyberpunk 2077’s upcoming Phantom Liberty expansion will be playable at Summer Game Fest‘s Play Days event.
Back in March, it was announced that CD Projekt had decided to go back to the drawing board with Project Sirius, a new take on the Witcher series first accounced in October.
“I’m aware that it’s not great to hear from a company that the project is being re-evaluated,” CFO Piotr Nielubowicz explained at the time.
“But at the same time, in order to stay innovative we must experiment and be brave when trying new paths, and to stay in control and keep the right course, especially with a project that is new to us in terms of design, developed by a new studio in our family.
“We need to keep evaluating the situation as we move along. It’s better to cut costs early – and even restart if needed – than to carry on.”
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Motorola keeps churning out phones across all price brackets, from flagships in the Edge series to clamshell foldables in the Razr lineup. But barely any have managed to stand out against established rivals like Samsung.
In 2023, that just might change with the upcoming Razr 40 Ultra/Razr Ultra, a flip folding phone that looks astonishingly good, functionally ahead of the competition, and with impressive hardware inside. This phone looks like Motorola finally decided to go all out and give the best foldable that it can.
In the past few days, everything from detailed specifications and renders to full-fledged marketing videos has been dumped online. And from what I’ve seen so far, I am not inclined to own any other phone than the Razr 40 Ultra this year. Here are some of the reasons that I am hopeful for it.
Foldable phones and fragility go hand in hand. Leaked materials (via @evleaks) suggest the Razr Ultra will come with a respectable (by foldable standards) IP52 rating. More importantly, Motorola has solved at least one crucial engineering challenge here, and that’s the gap between the two halves of the screen when the phone is folded.
So far, every clamshell foldable phone out there has a wedge, leaving the doors open for liquid and dust particles to creep in. Not many moons ago, Samsung Galaxy Z Fold phones had a problem with solid particles getting underneath the foldable screen, leading to expensive damage.
Recently, smartphone makers have adopted a new mechanism where the screen forms a droplet shape when the phone is shut closed, while the hinge parts adjust on either side. This allows both halves of the side frame to shut closed, while a larger curvature allows the foldable panel to evade crease-related damage.
In the leaked renders above, you can clearly see the screen forming a droplet outline in the hinge area. Google adopted a similar trick for the Pixel Fold and says it has laminated the hinge parts underneath so that water droplets entering the frame simply flow out without causing any damage.
Plus, it appears that Motorola will be offering plenty of design choices to buyers. The black trim appears to rock a beautiful sandstone crystal finish reminiscent of OnePlus phones, while the peppy magenta shade has a leather texture to it.
Over the years, Samsung has increased the size of the secondary screen on its clamshell foldables, and Oppo and Motorola have followed suit, too. But this time around, Motorola is turning the entire upper half into a display that even surrounded the camera lenses.
It definitely looks good, and leaked marketing videos suggest you can actually run apps in all their functional glory. From streaming videos and playing games to being able to send messages with a full-fledged QWERTY keyboard — and even running Google apps — this secondary display on the Razr 40 Ultra means business.
Of course, you can park it at 90 degrees and use it as a camcorder or simply deploy it as a viewfinder to capture high-resolution selfies and videos using the rear cameras. You can even place app shortcuts, interact with notification banners, and make payments using the wallet app without having to flip open the phone.
This is the most functionally rewarding implementation of the secondary screen that I’ve seen on a foldable phone in this segment, and I can’t wait to push it to its limits.
As per Winfuture, the Motorola Razr Ultra will come armed with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset. It’s not the latest chip out there, but the performance gulf between this one and the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 isn’t really anything to worry about. Nothing is following in the same footsteps with the Nothing Phone 2, so there’s that precedent, as well.
The inner foldable panel is a 6.9-inch (2400 x 1080 pixels) OLED screen with an extremely high 165Hz refresh rate, the highest we’ve ever seen on a foldable screen so far. Over at the back is a 3.6-inch (1056 x 1066 pixels) display with a similarly high refresh rate and adequate pixel density.
Motorola has reportedly paired the Qualcomm chip inside with 8GB of RAM, 256GB of onboard storage, and a dual-SIM connectivity kit. The selfie camera is said to be a hefty 32-megapixel unit, while the rear face offers a 12MP optically stabilized primary camera and a 13MP sensor for ultrawide photography.
Battery capacity is reportedly 3,800mAh, which is not the biggest out there, but at least there’s support for 33W charging to juice it up quickly. 5G support is part of the package, and so is the convenience of wireless charging. Overall, the Razr 40 Ultra looks like a foldable that looks great and can also deliver the raw firepower of a modern top-tier phone. And that’s no small feat.
Not too long ago, I was apprehensive about suggesting a Motorola phone because the best that the company could do was promise two OS upgrades — and that was for high-end smartphones. For comparison, Samsung and OnePlus are promising four generations of Android updates and security updates for five years.
But things have improved over the past few quarters. This year, Motorola has assured three years of Android OS upgrades and security updates for four years for its Motorola Edge Plus (2023) flagship. Given the Razr 40 Ultra’s status as a premium phone, Motorola will most likely give it the same treatment – or even better – at software updates.
Another advantage in Motorola’s favor is the brand’s love for a near-stock Android experience that is as close to the Google Pixel phones as it gets, saved for some Pixel-exclusive tricks. Bloatware is an issue that plagues phones by Samsung and other Chinese brands, but Motorola’s track record has been quite clean in this department.
The Razr Ultra is checking all the right boxes
@Evleaks / Twitter
With a larger secondary screen that can run apps in full form and clean software to boot, Motorola already appears to have won the race for Android enthusiasts, including me. Pair that with the most stunning foldable phone hardware we have seen to date and solid internals, and my eyes are fixated on Motorola more than ever.
I’m hoping that the Razr 40 Ultra doesn’t jump into the ultra-luxe price tier, where the price tag becomes a deterrent for even diehard enthusiasts. According to WinFuture, we are looking at a price between $1,250 and $1,300, which isn’t too shabby by market standards.
If Motorola can really deliver on everything we’re seeing here at that price, it’s already got me as an excited customer.
Article From & Read More ( It’s official — Motorola’s next Razr is the 2023 phone I can’t wait for - Digital Trends )
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Just three weeks in, we are starting to get the feeling that The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is one of those games that's going to keep blowing our minds for years to come. For example, we have just today seen that the Portable Pot (a Zonai device that we have stumbled across multiple times in our travels so far) can in fact be used as a handy tool in vehicle customisation.
We had assumed that the device is best used for cooking heart-boosting meals and ability-granting elixirs, but oh how naive we were. It turns out that by flipping the Zonai kit on its side, it perfectly replicates a ball and socket joint, lending your vehicle builds a handy amount of flexibility.
This little nugget of knowledge was shared to Reddit by OneRunNoita, who you can see putting the pot through its paces in the video below — though if you would rather avoid spoilers and see the effect for yourself, then maybe don't watch the following until you have tried it out.
As shown in the above demonstration, the "ball and socket" effect of the Zonai device can act as suspension over rocky ground, used for making tight turns or keeping wheels spinning with a level of flexibility — who knew?!
Most of us at Nintendo Life can only dream of having the building mastery required for making something really cool with this cooking pot creativity, but we sure are excited to see what others manage to do with it.
Have you managed to use the Portable Pot in this way yet? Let us know in the comments.
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Japan and JAXA, the country's space administration, have spent decades trying to make it possible to beam solar energy from space. In 2015, the nation made a breakthrough when JAXA scientists successfully beamed 1.8 kilowatts of power, enough energy to power an electric kettle, more than 50 meters to a wireless receiver. Now, Japan is poised to bring the technology one step closer to reality.
Nikkei reports a Japanese public-private partnership will attempt to beam solar energy from space as early as 2025. The project, led by Naoki Shinohara, a Kyoto University professor who has been working on space-based solar energy since 2009, will attempt to deploy a series of small satellites in orbit. Those will then try to beam the solar energy the arrays collect to ground-based receiving stations hundreds of miles away.
Orbital solar arrays "represent a potentially unlimited renewable energy supply," the article points out -- running 24 hours a day.
Apple will begin accepting trade-ins of three new Mac models on June 5, the day of Apple's WWDC 2023 keynote event, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
In a tweet shared earlier today, Gurman said that the Mac Studio, 13-inch M2MacBook Air, and 13-inch M2 MacBook Pro, will become eligible for trade-in with Apple on Monday, June 5. Gurman is expecting new Mac hardware to be unveiled during Apple's keynote on June 5, including an all-new 15-inch MacBook Air model. "Read into that as you will," he added.
Apple introduced the Mac Studio in May 2022, offering M1 Max and M1 Ultra chip configurations. Despite the launch of a range of Macs with the M2, M2 Pro, and M2 Max chips, Apple has not yet refreshed the Mac Studio. Gurman believes that two new Mac Studio models are in the works, but is unsure of when they will launch.
He has previously cast doubt over the possibility of update being announced at WWDC, suggesting that Apple is more likely to wait until the M3 generation to update the Mac Studio as to avoid cannibalizing the Apple silicon Mac Pro. Even so, updated Mac Studio models with M2 Max and M2 Ultra chip options are not out of the question for WWDC.
13-inch MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models with the M3 chip are also rumored to be in development, but the first M3 Macs are not expected to launch until toward the end of the year. As such, Gurman's latest information about new Mac trade-ins does not necessarily that indicate direct successors for all of the aforementioned devices are on the immediate horizon.
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Google hosted its annual I/O developers keynote at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, California today, announcing multiple new products and services related to Android, search, messaging, home automation, and more. Google Assistant Google Assistant is described as a "conversational assistant" that builds upon Google Now based on two-way dialog. The tool can be used, for example,...
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When the original iPhone arrived in 2007, few people knew it would lay the foundation for the devices we now carry in our pockets each day. As the June 5 date of Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference approaches, all eyes will be focused on whether the tech giant can re-create that impact with its first entirely new product in almost a decade: a head-mounted computer.
The iPhone wasn't the first smartphone, nor was it the first mobile device to achieve cultural relevance as a status symbol. But it came at just the right moment, and there arguably hasn't been such a perfectly timed tech product launch since. Re-creating that moment will be challenging, even for Apple.
The tech industry has evolved a lot since 2007, and so has our relationship with technology. Devices like the iPhone and the BlackBerry revolutionized the way we access information and communicate, at a time when the idea of constant internet connectivity was relatively new.
But the biggest new gadgets since then (think smartwatches, wireless earbuds) were initially useful because they untethered us from those phones, helping us better navigate the influx of alerts flowing from them. It took years for the Apple Watch to establish its direction as a health and wellness device, and I suspect it'll similarly take time for the headset to find its niche.
The arrival of a completely new product -- whether it be a smartwatch or a headset -- doesn't feel the same as it did 16 years ago. Nor should it.
For the iPhone, timing was everything
The iPhone debuted at a formative time for personal technology. As the internet became a more integral part of our lives, so did the need to take it with us.
The iPod, BlackBerry phones and other personal digital assistants (better known as PDAs) provided a way to keep us connected on the go as people recognized the need to listen to music, send emails, and manage calendars away from home. Shipments of handheld computers from brands like BlackBerry and Palm rose 18.4% in 2006, according to Gartner data reported by the Associated Press in early 2007, underscoring the demand for mobile access to email and other communications.
Research in Motion's BlackBerry Curve 8350i, from 2008. The BlackBerry first appeared in 2002.
Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks
Then the iPhone came in 2007 and changed everything. Steve Jobs famously introduced the first iPhone as a phone, an iPod and an Internet communicator in one device. What made the iPhone so impactful was that those three things were already necessities in people's lives, as the success of cell phones, the iPod and home computers showed.
In 2000, 51% of US households had one or more computers, and more than 40% of households were connected to the Internet, according to a 2001 New York Times report covering Census Bureau data. The US added a record-breaking 25.7 million new mobile phone users in 2005, reported InfoWorld in 2006, citing data from the Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association. And sales of MP3 players were booming in the early 2000s, as market researcher IDC reported back in 2002.
Clearly the internet, MP3 players and cell phones were permeating everyday life long before the iPhone made its debut at the Macworld conference in 2007. The iPhone was the culmination of these trends, showing how hardware was catching up to the way people were already using tech products in their daily lives. Though PDAs and early "smart" phones like the IBM Simon were a promising start, they were largely designed to be handheld computers with cell phone functionality.
The iPhone and other modern smartphones took that idea a step further. When Apple's App Store arrived later in 2008, apps turned the iPhone and other handheld devices into Swiss Army Knives, expanding their functionality beyond the business-focused PDAs of years past. Today, mobile devices can serve as phones, internet and email portals, music players, mini-TVs, flashlights, wallets, keys and so much more, largely thanks to the proliferation of apps.
The App Store turned the iPhone into much more than a phone, iPod and internet communicator.
Angela Lang/CNET
But it's important to remember that even the iPhone wasn't an overnight success. The original model's price and initial exclusivity to AT&T, combined with the notion that Apple was a newcomer to the mobile phone business, certainly resulted in some skepticism about the iPhone's future. Let's not forget that the first model also had many shortcomings, as former CNET Senior Managing Editor Kent German pointed out in his review.
Still, the iPhone had a long-term impact because it filled a need at the right time -- even if it wasn't immediately accessible to everyone right away. Consider technologies that came before their time. Microsoft's SPOT platform sought to turn everyday objects like watches and household appliances into smart gadgets -- preceding today's smartwatches and the so-called internet of things boom. The SPOT watches never caught on, thanks in part to their bulky design and the subscription fee required to access Microsoft's MSN Direct service, as my colleague David Carnoy wrote in 2008, marking the end of Microsoft's efforts in that area at the time.
An Apple headset has a lot more competition for our attention
Fast-forward to today, and the tech world is buzzing about what's expected to be a similar moment in Apple's history. The company will reportedly introduce its first mixed reality headset on June 5, which Bloomberg says will have apps and software features that span gaming, communication, fitness and more. Apple has a reputation for popularizing devices like the smartphone, tablet and smartwatch, so the expectation is that it will do so again for headsets.
That may very well be true. But making head-mounted computers as ubiquitous as the iPhone is a tough task, even for Apple. Once again, it will all come down to timing. From smartwatches to earbuds, tablets to smart speakers, there are plenty of gadgets in our lives designed to fulfill different needs -- many more than when the first iPhone launched.
Devices like the Apple Watch can help us manage the influx of notifications coming from our phones.
Lexy Savvides/CNET
American households owned an average of 16 connected devices as of 2022, according to research firm Parks Associates. A Pew Research survey from 2021 found that 31% of US adults said they're constantly online. A Reviews.org survey, the results of which were published this month, found that 56.9% of Americans said they're addicted to their smartphone.
A gadget like Apple's virtual reality headset, which will cost around $3,000 according to Bloomberg, will have to be very compelling to demand attention in a world already oversaturated with screens and sensors.
The iPhone may have revolutionized the way we communicate and use the internet. But we're now in an era in which people are looking to disconnect from their phones more easily, and that shows in the new tech products from the last decade.
What do smartwatches, wireless earbuds and smart speakers have in common? They all allow us to access the internet without reaching for our phones, whether it's skipping to the next track on your Spotify playlist, asking a virtual assistant for today's weather forecast or getting a text message on your wrist. A mixed reality headset would seemingly do the opposite by further plunging you into whatever content you're experiencing at the moment.
Even the developments in generative artificial intelligence, or AI, that can create content based on prompts, are designed to help us spend less time buried in screens. Google, for example, recently showed off a new Gmail feature called Help Me Write that can draft messages for you based on a quick prompt. Tools like these could shorten the amount of time we spend replying to emails and other communications, and could arguably be more impactful than new hardware. (In fact, if you've been following tech headlines in 2023, AI is apparently in the midst of its own "iPhone moment.")
The slow-burn effect
In recent years, it's taken longer for new Apple gadgets to establish a role in our lives, and the Apple Watch is the strongest example of this. When introducing it back in 2014, Apple initially positioned it as a personal timepiece by highlighting its stylish design and time-telling accuracy, before mentioning health and fitness.
But as the gadget matured and became more popular, Apple leaned more fully into health. It added ECG functionality in 2018 with the Series 4 model, enabling the watch to provide more data about cardiac health and signaling a turning point for the device. In 2019, Apple CEO Tim Cook told CNBC that Apple's "greatest contribution to mankind" will be about health. Roughly three years after the first Apple Watch arrived, it became clear that health, fitness and wellness tracking would be the its most important purpose. The iPhone may not have been in everyone's pockets right away, but its role as a handheld computer, MP3 player and phone was apparent from the start.
The Apple Watch Series 4 was the first with ECG support.
Sarah Tew/CNET
Is it the right time for Apple's rumored headset? I don't have the answer, and I'm not sure if Apple does either. But one thing is for certain: If the headset is a hit, its success will look a lot different than that of the first iPhone. We might not understand the headset's role in our lives until years after its release, if the Apple Watch's trajectory is any indication. That wouldn't deem it a failure, it's just a sign of the times.
The so-called "iPhone moment" may be behind us for good. Or maybe it's just changed.
Users have taken to Twitter after finding a QR code hidden within the Marathon trailer released at PlayStation’s Showcase on Wednesday. This code led users to a website with a bunch of code and a login page. After some code cracking, users were able to login and recover some videos of an interview with the game’s director revealing more details on the upcoming title.
If you're interested then YouTuber Stylosa has a good video breakdown here:
Is Marathon on your wish list or is it too much of a Game as a Service for you to be bothered by it? Let us know in the comments below.
Article From & Read More ( Bungie's Marathon Trailer QR Code Leads to ARG with More Hidden Information - Push Square )
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We're just over a week away from the WWDC keynote where Apple will reportedly finally reveal its long-rumored mixed-reality headset, and there are undoubtedly a number of other announcements planned for the event.
Ahead of WWDC, Apple this week released Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro for iPad, bringing versions of the company's professional video and audio apps to the tablet for the first time. This week also saw various rumors about the iPhone 15 and 16 lineups, plus some fresh news about the upcoming iOS 17 update, so read on for details on these stories and more!
Apple Releases Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro for iPad
Apple this week released Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro for select iPad models. Apple says both apps have been designed to take advantage of the iPad’s touch-first interface, providing the "ultimate mobile studio for video and music creators." Both apps have subscription-based pricing set at $4.99 per month or $49 per year in the U.S. after a one-month free trial.
iOS 17 to Turn iPhone's Lock Screen Into Smart Home Display
iOS 17 will include a new interface that shows information such as calendar appointments, the weather, and notifications in the style of a smart home display, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. His report said the new view will appear when an iPhone is locked and positioned horizontally.
Ahead of WWDC, the Apple Developer app has been updated with new stickers and other preparations. 175 coding session videos will be available in the app for anyone to watch, free of charge, starting June 6.
iPhone 15 to Support 15W Wireless Fast Charging Using Non-MagSafe Chargers
iPhone 16 Pro models are expected to be released in September 2024, so they are still far away from launching, and Apple's plans could change before then.
2023 Pride Band for Apple Watch Now Available to Order
Inspired by the LGBTQ+ community, the new Pride band features a sprinkles-like design showcasing the original Pride flag colors and five others. Apple continues to support LGBTQ+ advocacy organizations around the world.
Each week, we publish an email newsletter like this highlighting the top Apple stories, making it a great way to get a bite-sized recap of the week hitting all of the major topics we've covered and tying together related stories for a big-picture view.
