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The DJI Air 2S has been a longstanding member of our guide to the best drones, but several leaks have revealed that its DJI Air 3 successor is imminent – and could well be the new sweet spot in DJI's drone range.
A combination of rumored DJI Air 3 specs, plus leaked photos and a video, have started to build a picture of what we can expect from the mid-range drone. And the big news is that it's likely to get a new telephoto lens, similar to the one we saw recently on the DJI Mavic 3 Pro.
The DJI Air 2S currently has just a single camera with a 1-inch 20MP CMOS sensor. But according to regular DJI leaker @Quadro_News, the DJI Air 3 will add either a 1/1.3-inch mid-telephoto lens with an effective 3x zoom (like the one on the Mavic 3 Pro) or a 1/2-inch telephoto lens with an effective 7x zoom.
Neither of these would be 'zoom' lenses in the technical sense, but their longer focal lengths would offer a handy way to shoot photos and video of distant subjects, particularly ones that you can't legally fly near (eg. groups of people).
DJI Air 3 leaks, as you see pic.twitter.com/yS0ZCK6ZAqMay 24, 2023
These rumors appear to be backed up some recently leaked images and video (below), which have just appeared courtesy of Deals Drone and Dronemodelismo.
While not exactly clear or high-resolution, the images show that the drone has a large camera module that has likely been boosted from the one on the Air 2S to make room for that additional lens.
Adding an extra lens to the DJI Air 3 would also make sense in the context of DJI's current lineup, giving aerial photographers a reason to choose the newer drone over the small and otherwise excellent DJI Mini 3 Pro.
DJI Air 3 in testing. video from Wechat pic.twitter.com/GWrQ5BEdsyMay 24, 2023
The only other specs leak we've seen for the DJI Air 3 so far is an apparent 30-minute battery life, which would make its flight time almost identical to the DJI Air 2S. With an expected release in "late June or early July 2023", according to Quadro_News, we'll likely see more leaks and details very soon.
The only possible downside to the DJI Air 3's new lens and boosted specs could be a higher price tag, with the rumors pointing towards a price of around 7,500 yuan (which converts to around $1,060 / £860 / AU$1,625). But anyone looking for a compact, all-rounder drone could still see it as the sweet spot in DJI's range.
We were big fans of the DJI Air 2S when it landed in April 2021, awarding it a five-star review and putting it at the top of our guide to the best drones you can buy. It's since been pushed down that list by the sub-250g DJI Mini 3 Pro and the DJI Mavic 3, now more polished thanks to some much-needed firmware upgrades.
If the DJI Air 3 brings an extra telephoto lens, alongside other improvements like Ocusync 3.0 Plus transmission and improved high frame-rate video options, it could reclaim that top spot. The Air series has always offered a good middle ground between DJI's Mini range and its Mavic series, which command price tags that are tricky for most amateurs to justify.
We'd like to have seen an improved battery life on the DJI Air 3, but the rumors so far suggest that's unlikely – with one of the leaked photos appearing to back up that theory by showing a stash of spare DJI batteries.
It looks like it'll be well worth waiting until June or July to see what the Air 3 brings, if you've been thinking about buying a new flying camera – not least because of the wave of keenly-priced Air 2S drones on the second-hand market.
How much should one pay for true wireless earbuds? If under $20 is your answer, then Skullcandy has good news for you. The company’s new Smokin’ Buds are priced at a mere $19.99 (around £16 / AU$30), which strikes us as a smokin’ good deal – as long as the buds live up to the hype.
The best wireless earbuds can be expensive, with models like the Sony WF-1000XM4 and AirPods Pro 2 priced at $200, and the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds 2 at $300. But those buds all offer top-shelf noise canceling, which is a key feature Skullcandy’s new buds lack.
Noise-canceling aside, this Skullcandy offering is fairly feature-packed for under-$20 buds. Bluetooth 5.2 is used for a wireless connection, and there’s a microphone in each bud, which lets you use just one and still be able to take calls. Capacitive touch controls let you play/pause streaming and accept calls, while auto-on and auto-connect features automatically power up and pair the buds with your phone when you remove them from their case.
Skullcandy says its IPX4 sweat and water resistant buds are made from 50% certified recycled plastics and the packaging from 100% recyclable materials. It also says the use of smaller, more efficient batteries gives the new Smokin’ Buds a reduced overall carbon footprint compared to previous versions.
As for the battery life, Skullcandy rates it at 20 hours, with 8 hours from the buds and another 12 hours in the case. That’s higher than what you get with pricier budget buds like the Sony WF-C700N. A rapid charge feature gives you an extra 2 hours of playback time from 10 minutes charge time, which should be plenty to tide you over during a gym visit or commute.
With buds this cheap, you may reasonably worry about sound quality, but Skullcandy boasts of expertly tuned drivers in the Smokin’ Buds, along with Music, Movie, and Podcast EQ modes that have also been tuned by experts. The end result, according to Skullcandy: “clear, full range sound backed by impressive bass depth.”
There is no shortage of cheap, disposable earbuds, mainly because earbuds, whether wired or wireless, are easy to break. You throw them out and buy another pair, and then repeat the cycle ad infinitum.
Using recycled materials for both the construction of electronics and for packaging makes great sense, and Skullcandy is to be commended for making that effort with its Smokin’ Buds. As for a reduced carbon footprint due to the use of smaller and more efficient batteries (Skullcandy specs it at “just 2.67kg”), that’s something harder to quantify, so we’ll have to just take the company’s word for it.
We’ll also for now have to take the company’s word about the Smokin’ Buds’ sound quality. The performance aspect of wireless earbuds can vary greatly, and even expensive models can have less than stellar sound. On the other hand, some inexpensive offerings can be surprisingly good, as we discovered when we reviewed the JLab Go Air Pop, another set of wireless earbuds in the $20 range.
Will Skullcandy’s Smokin’ Buds be the cheap wireless earbuds to beat, potentially displacing the JLab Go Air Pop from its budget buds throne? The JLab model has mostly similar specs to Skullcandy’s buds, though its 32-hour total battery life with buds and case puts it ahead in that respect. But the Smokin’ Buds are the more environmentally friendly option, so let’s hope they sound good when we soon take them for a spin!
ChatGPT, the AI chatbot, is about to get a significant upgrade, adding Bing as its search engine and further cementing the growing relationship between Microsoft and ChatGPT developer OpenAI.
Microsoft announced the integration during its Build 2023 keynote on Tuesday stating that Bing is coming to ChatGPT as the default search experience. The announcement came amid a flurry of AI-related announcements, including the introduction of the GPT-4-based Windows Copilot coming to Windows 11 in June.
"We're bringing search grounding and Bing to ChatGPT," said Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella during his keynote.
Bing won't suddenly appear in ChatGPT. Its availability is based on a plugin Microsoft built for the ChatGPT platform and will start on the premium ChatGPT+ (which is based on GPT-4). Nadella said it will arrive on the free version of ChatGPT "soon."
While not much is known about this search update, it's clearly a big deal. First of all, this gives ChatGPT direct access to information newer than GPT-3's September 2021 training cut-off date. Nadella repeatedly referred to this integration as "grounding."
"ChatGPT is the most fast-growing consumer app we've ever seen and search grounding is a key feature so that all the information is current and grounded by what you have from the crawl and the index," explained Nadella.
However, to what exact degree Bing's search results and ChatGPT large language model (LLM) responses will be integrated is unclear. What Microsoft does say in a release is that ChatGPT answers "will be grounded by search and include citations." As most ChatGPT users know, the LLM typically does not cite its sources or offer direct links to related web-based information. Search integration could also cut down on ChatGPT's propensity for hallucinations.
Bing AI, which Microsoft introduced earlier this year and that is based on a bespoke version of GPT-4, does include links and citations. In other words, for those uninterested in visiting Bing AI, they'll soon have the best of both worlds on ChatGPT.
Naturally, OpenAI's apparent choice of Bing search over the industry leader is quite a blow to Google. On the other hand, Google is busy building its own powerful LLM system Bard that, as it demonstrated at Google I/O 2023, will soon integrate the ability to search based on images, code, export content, and work with maps. It still doesn't fully integrate Google Search, but that's only a matter of time. Basically, even with Bing integration, ChatGPT has probably grabbed just a slim lead over Bard.
What if Bing is not your search engine of choice? We've asked Microsoft if you can choose a different search engine – assuming Google builds a plugin– and will update this post with its response.
In celebration of Diablo 4’s launch on June 6, 2023, Blizzard, SteelSeries, and KontrolFreek have collaborated together to release a set of gaming accessories themed after the RPG title.
The Diablo 4 collection includes an Arctis Nova 7 gaming headset, an Aerox 5 gaming mouse XXL mousepad, and SteelSeries keycaps. Each of the accessories is styled to resemble items and equipment from Diablo 4, which is to say extremely cursed and awesome, with a fire and brimstone scheme and veins covering them. According to SteelSeries, there’s even an EQ preset for the Sonar audio software, though what that preset is hasn’t been confirmed yet.
Since these are licensed versions of already premium accessories, they cost even more, which might limit the market to truly devoted Diablo 4 fans. Of course, this is a limited edition set, so there’s probably not too much stock to sell through in the first place.
The full list of Diablo 4 accessories and pricing can be found below as reported by PCGamesN:
Plenty of information about Diablo 4 has been revealed before its June 6 launch. The most hellish, which is fitting for the game, is one of the PC requirements if you want to play in 4K resolution. It necessitates that you have a massive 32GB of RAM in order to play at the highest possible resolution.
Another update involves the news that a special area in the open-world game, called Fields of Hatred, has player versus player (PvP). Even more shocking is that there’s also permadeath in that area, meaning that if you fight and lose, your character is permanently dead and can no longer be accessed or played.
Finally, it was revealed by the studio that it would be adding quarterly updates to its story content, along with a free and premium Battle Pass. Story content will be accompanied by new features and mechanics, though it won’t count as DLC or an expansion pass on its own.
No matter what, it seems that Diablo 4 will be a very special game that should resonate with fans, especially going by the popularity of the several beta tests that have already passed.
WhatsApp is saving you from those awkward spelling mistakes and missing commas by giving you the power to edit messages - within limits.
We first saw inklings of this update in a late March beta. The feature didn’t work at the time, but there were some clues hinting at how it would function. From the looks of things, not much has changed since then.
To fix a text, Meta states you need to first long-press a sent message and then select Edit from the menu that appears. Users have 15 minutes to make their corrections. Texts cannot be changed past the time limit, forcing you to live with the typos you made (or you can just send a new text).
Messages that have been altered will display ‘Edited’ right next to them, making it clear to others in a chat that some corrections have been made. It all works similarly to iMessage editing on iOS 16. WhatsApp, however, will not save any sort of edit history, meaning others won’t be able to see previous versions of texts.
Editable messages are currently “rolling out to users globally and will be available to everyone in the coming weeks” so keep an eye out for the new patch. We asked Meta if there are any other restrictions. For example, on iOS 16 users can only make up to five edits to a text within a 15-minute window. This story will be updated at a later time.
WhatsApp has had quite a busy month as the platform has seen multiple updates in a short amount of time. Just last week, the app gained a Chat Lock tool, ensuring your private conversation stays private which can be useful if you’re using a shared phone. Before that, we saw the introduction of single-vote polls “to stop people from skewing [results] with multiple votes.”
As for the near future, it appears Meta will soon launch a “password reminder feature for end-to-end encrypted backups”, according to a recent post from WABetaInfo. The app will ask you to verify the password so you’ll always have access to the backup in the event you forget your login credentials. This particular update will be rolling out to both Android and iOS “over the coming weeks.”
There is a way to “brute-force” fingerprints on Android devices and with physical access to the smartphone, and enough time, a hacker would be able to unlock the device, a report from cybersecurity researchers at Tencent Labs and Zhejiang Unversity has claimed.
As per the report, there are two zero-day vulnerabilities present in Android devices (as well as those powered by Apple’s iOS and Huawei’s HarmonyOS), called Cancel-After-Match-Fail (CAMF) and Match-After-Lock (MAL).
By abusing these flaws, the researchers managed to do two things: have Android allow an infinite number of fingerprint scanning attempts; and use databases found in academic datasets, biometric data leaks, and similar.
To pull the attacks off, the attackers needed a couple of things: physical access to an Android-powered smartphone, enough time, and $15 worth of hardware.
The researchers named the attack “BrutePrint”, and claim that for a device that only has one fingerprint set up, it would take between 2.9 and 13.9 hours to break into the endpoint. Devices with multiple fingerprint recordings are significantly easier to break into, they added, with the average time for “brute-printing” being between 0.66 hours and 2.78 hours.
The researchers ran the test on ten “popular smartphone models”, as well as a couple of iOS devices. We don’t know exactly which models were vulnerable, but they said that on Android and HarmonyOS devices, they managed to achieve infinite tries. For iOS devices, however, they only managed to get an extra ten attempts on iPhone SE and iPhone 7 models, which is not enough to successfully pull off the attack. Thus, the conclusion is that while iOS might be vulnerable to these flaws, the current method of breaking into the device via brute force won’t suffice.
While this type of attack might not be that attractive to the regular hacker, it could be used by state-sponsored actors and law enforcement agencies, the researchers concluded.
Via: BleepingComputer
It's time for your daily dose of Quordle hints - now with added Daily Sequence answers!
Yes, that's right: the makers of Quordle have a new game, which sees you complete four Wordle puzzles consecutively. The twist is that the letters you've already used on the first game are repeated on the second and so on.
It's good fun, but also difficult - so if you already find yourself searching for Wordle hints, you'll probably need some for Quordle and the Daily Sequence too.
I'm a Quordle and Wordle fanatic who's been playing since December 2021, so I can definitely help you solve Quordle today and improve your game for tomorrow. Read on for my Quordle hints to game #482 and the answers to the Daily Sequence.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about Quordle today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
• The number of different vowels in Quordle today is 4*.
* Note that by vowel we mean the five standard vowels (A, E, I, O, U), not Y (which is sometimes counted as a vowel too).
• The total number of vowels across today's Quordle answers is 9.
• The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 2.
• The total number of different letters used in Quordle today is 13.
• No. None of Q, Z, X or J appear among today's Quordle answers.
• The number of today's Quordle answers starting with the same letter is 0.
If you just want to know the answers at this stage, simply scroll down. If you're not ready yet then here's one more clue to make things a lot easier:
• D
• E
• G
• F
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
The answers to today's Quordle, game #482, are…
How did you do today? Send me an email and let me know.
The answers to today's Quordle Daily Sequence, game #482, are…
Where Wordle challenges you to guess a new five-letter word each day, Quordle presents you with four puzzles to solve. And rather than complete them in turn, you do so simultaneously. You get nine guesses, rather than the six for Wordle, but the rules are otherwise very similar.
It's played online via the Quordle website and you can also get to it via the Merriam-Webster site, after the dictionary purchased Quordle last year.
As with Wordle, the answers are the same for every player each day, meaning that you're competing against the rest of the world. And also as with Wordle, the puzzle resets at midnight so you have a fresh challenge each day.
The website also includes a practice mode - which I definitely recommend using before attempting the game proper! - and there are daily stats including a streak count. You also get Quordle Achievements - specific badges for winning a game in a certain number of turns, playing lots of times, or guessing particularly hard words.
Oh, and it's difficult. Really difficult.
The rules of Quordle are almost identical to those of Wordle.
1. Letters that are in the answer and in the right place turn green.
2. Letters that are in the answer but in the wrong place turn yellow.
3. Letters that are not in the answer turn gray…
4. …BUT the word you guess appears in all quadrants of the puzzle at the same time, so an A could turn green in one square, yellow in another and gray in the final two.
5. Answers are never plural.
6. Letters can appear more than once. So if your guess includes two of one letter, they may both turn yellow, both turn green, or one could be yellow and the other green.
7. Each guess must be a valid word in Quordle's dictionary. You can't guess ABCDE, for instance.
8. You do not have to include correct letters in subsequent guesses and there is no equivalent of Wordle's Hard mode.
9. You have nine guesses to find the Quordle answers.
10. You must complete the daily Quordle before midnight in your timezone.
Quordle needs to be approached in a different way to Wordle. With four puzzles to solve in nine guesses, you can't blindly throw letters at it and expect to win - you'll stand a far better chance if you think strategically.
That's the case in Wordle too, of course, but it's even more important in Quordle.
There are two key things to remember.
1. Use several starting words
Firstly, you won't want just a single starting word, but almost certainly two or three starting words.
The first of these should probably be one of the best Wordle starting words, because the same things that make them work well will apply here too. But after that, you should select another word or possibly two that use up lots more of the most common consonants and that include any remaining vowels.
For instance, I currently use STARE > DOILY > PUNCH. Between them, these three words use 15 of the 26 letters in the alphabet including all five vowels, Y, and nine of the most common consonants (S, T, R, D, L, P, N, C and H). There are plenty of other options - you might want to get an M, B, F or G in there instead of the H, maybe - but something like that should do the trick.
If all goes well, that will give you a good lead on what one or sometimes two of the answers might be. If not, well good luck!
2. Narrow things down
Secondly, if you're faced with a word where the answer might easily be one of several options - for instance -ATCH, where it could be MATCH, BATCH, LATCH, CATCH, WATCH, HATCH or PATCH - you'll definitely want to guess a word that would narrow down those options.
In Wordle, you can instead try several of those in succession and hope one is right, assuming you have enough guesses left. It's risky, but will sometimes work. Plus, it's the only option in Hard mode. But in Quordle, this will almost certainly result in a failure - you simply don't have enough guesses.
In the scenario above, CLAMP would be a great guess, as it could point the way to four of the seven words in one go.
The annual prestigious German hi-fi show, High End Munich, is the stage Dali has chosen to launch its new IO-12 "state-of-the-art headphones delivering true hi-fi sound" and they're stunning lookers – easily as gorgeous as most of the best over-ear headphones around today.
They come from strong stock, too; while TechRadar's reviews of Dali gear hone in the brand's more heritage speaker output, my tenure at our sister publication, What Hi-Fi?, saw me help review the 2019-issue Dali iO-6, Dali iO-4, the Danish audio specialist's first ever foray into the world of wireless over-ear headphones. Why mention this? Because for an inaugural effort, those cans were nothing short of excellent for detail, finesse and form, marred only by a fractionally over-cautious delivery that lacked an extra ounce of punch for the price.
Cut to May 2023 and enter (to no small fanfare) the new Dali IO-12 over-ear wireless headphones, toting 50mm custom drivers, active noise cancellation, aptX Adaptive support and to top it all off, USB-C (read: wired) hi-res 24-bit/96kHz audio.
They're also the world's first headphones to feature Dali's patented Soft Magnetic Compound (SMC) magnet system. Let's dig into that, because although it uses the same material found in Dali's high-end speakers, to understand it you need to know about 'hysteresis'. When using conventional magnets in a speaker design, said magnets can introduce an unintended resistance to the voice-coil, which can lead to unwanted distortion in the audio signal, aka hysteresis. It's not an unusual phenomenon at all.
Dali's SMC technology combined with the company's signature paper fibre cones promises to significantly reduce hysteresis and lower uneven harmonic distortion drastically. The aim, of course, is crystal-clear sound with ultra-low distortion, and better depth and musicality.
And Dali isn't backwards about coming forwards on all of this, telling me, "By applying SMC to the IO-12s we have essentially achieved electrostatic levels of midrange clarity." Dali is referring to electrostatic speakers, which use a totally different kind of technology that's a huge step up in detail, but also in price – and they're hard to drive.
For audiophiles, the Dali IO-12 headphones have been designed to be used either wired or wirelessly. Thanks to both aptX Adaptive Bluetooth plus supplied 3.5mm mini-jack and USB-C cables, you can listen to your music from a host of devices including the best smartphones, the best hi-res audio players, PCs, games consoles and more. When using the supplied USB-C cable, dependent upon source and device, audio can be listened to at up to 24-bit/96kHz hi-res quality.
Dali is arguably best-known for its speaker lines drawing on an impressive 40-year heritage, including the stunning 2018-launch Oberon and 2017 Spektor ranges (although the newer 2022 Dali Katch G2 was also a belter of a Bluetooth speaker) and the company has chosen to stick to its guns with a simple, app-free operation here. But is that enough in 2023?
Users can of course skip tracks, adjust the volume and more using the IO-12's integrated buttons, but will this hold up in an ever-crowded market where in-app EQ tweaks, sound zones, sidetone and hearing tests are being shown off left right and center? I'd wager that if the sound is good enough, listeners will forgive the omission of a companion app – but only if the sound is exceptional.
The battery-life is good too, boasting 35 hours of fatigue-free listening, and thanks to the high-quality integrated microphones, you should be heard clearly when making hands-free calls or voice-controlling your compatible device.
Interestingly, the Dali IO-12 offer two sound profiles for listening to your music too. Want to listen to your music as the artist intended and leave any additional sound profiles well alone? No problem. But perhaps you're after a more punchy, bass-focused performance? The IO-12's tailored 'Hi-Fi' and 'Bass' sound modes offer a novel choice.
Vegans take note: the foldable design features a real leather headband along with those beautiful oversized square ear-pads.
Pricing? Of course (brace yourselves): $1,499 / £999, which is around AU$1,870, so very much at the top end of the best headphones on the market and more expensive than even the Focal Bathys or Bowers & Wilkins PX8 – but not quite as dear as the Meze Audio Liric.
Carl Pei, CEO of Nothing, recently confirmed on Twitter the upcoming Nothing Phone (2) will run on the Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 mobile platform.
This reveal comes a couple months after initial rumors hinting at the chipset’s inclusion, which raised some eyebrows at the time. Some questioned the decision to equip the company’s new flagship smartphone with last year's tech instead of the latest advancements, which is what Samsung did with the Galaxy S23. Pei, seemingly aware of these concerns, followed up the announcement with a Twitter thread explaining the reasoning behind the company’s decision to go with the older hardware. He states “it’s not just about speed – it’s about the complete package.”
Pei states the camera on the Nothing Phone (2) will support Raw HDR image files and 4K video recording at 60 FPS. This is thanks to the Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 sporting “an 18-bit Image Signal Processor (ISP) capable of capturing over 4,000 times more camera data” than the Nothing Phone (1). He’s also quite confident in the chipset’s efficient “power consumption and heat management”, calling it “best-in-class”.
It is interesting to point out Pei understands that the Phone (2) won’t be a powerhouse. The thread goes on to say the company is prioritizing the “user experience over being first in the specs race.” But at the very least, the flagship device will see an 80 percent boost in overall performance compared to the Phone (1) so improvements are indeed being made. Speed just isn’t a priority for them which is probably the smarter move.
If Nothing were to install the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 into the Phone (2), the price tag would most likely shoot up a considerable amount – not to mention all the bugs the users will have to deal with. An expensive phone would also fly in the face of its consumer base. After all, the company has carved a niche for itself as an affordable option to high-tech smartphones like the aforementioned Galaxy S23.
And as Pei states, the Gen 1 platform “has been thoroughly tested and continuously optimized through numerous updates since its introduction”, so it’s not like people are getting the dog days or anything. You could even argue customers will be using the chipset in its prime.
We should mention a recent report from tech news site Inverse claims Nothing OS is getting a redesign in order to be more distinct. The system has been criticized in the past for being a “mostly stock Android experience with a few sprinkles of Nothing’s custom dot matrix font”. According to Inverse, the new user interface will break from the “established grid layout”. However, there weren’t any screenshots showing off the redesign nor could the report confirm that it’ll end up on the upcoming device.
The Nothing Phone (2) is set to launch later this summer.
Since their inception, laptops have had the same clamshell form factor. It's a tried and true design. Tech startup Sightful, though, is doing something different, taking the screen virtual.
The company recently launched the Spacetop, a laptop that consists of nothing more than a keyboard connected to a customized pair of NReal augmented-reality (AR) glasses.
Putting the glasses on allows users to view a massive, 100-inch AR display that only they can see. Multiple windows can be opened at the same time as the screens curve around your point of view in every direction. To see a specific window, all you have to do is turn your head to face the app. The projection is also static, so you don’t have to worry about the windows moving around. Nor do they totally block the real space in front of you. You can still see the world around you.
The Spacetop runs on the proprietary Spacetop OS, but it also runs some third-party software like Microsoft Word and Spotify. The on-device browser does appear to be first-party, however.
Regarding its specs, the Spacetop isn’t the most powerful laptop; it apparently runs on smartphone hardware from 2020.
The Spacetop is powered by a combination of a Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 chipset, Adren 650 GPU, and 8GB of RAM. The keyboard measures 10.47 inches wide and 9.8 inches deep with a height of 1.57 inches (266 x 249 x 10.5 mm). In total, it weighs 3.3 lbs (1.5 kg) without the NReal glasses (the glasses add an extra 0.2 lbs). Battery life lasts a mere five hours on a single charge. Additionally, the Spacetop only comes with two USB-C ports (although they do support fast charging), plus 256GB of storage.
Performance-wise, it's a pretty lightweight laptop. So if you’re a gamer looking for a new way to play the latest titles, you might want to pass on this one. In fact, most people will probably pass this up.
Sightful is pitching the Spacetop as a new way to work remotely. However, a recent report The Verge shows the laptop doesn’t perform all that well. It “crashed early in [the publication’s] demo session and had to be rebooted.” Scrolling through windows was slow. Resizing windows, a pretty benign action, also took a while. The browser even crashed while trying to play YouTube videos.
Despite the middling first impression from The Verge, the system was apparently fun to use. So if you’re looking for a unique, lightweight laptop for doing work on the road, Sightful’s Spacetop might fit the bill. Early adopters can purchase one of 1,000 laptops currently available from Sightful's website. The price tag is unknown although some reports claim it’s $2,000 a pop. We reached out to Sightful for clarification on the price.
Something we neglected to mention is audio comes from the NReal glasses meaning other people can hear you, but the Spacetop does support Bluetooth, so get those earbuds ready.
For those interested in buying this one-of-a-kind laptop, we recommend you first check out TechRadar’s list of the best wireless headphones for 2023 .
Some hackers are in it for the money, while others are working for their governments, wreaking havoc and stealing data from opposing nations. But there is a small percentage of “hacktivists” - groups that don’t shy away from criminal activity, as long as it’s for a positive and socially acceptable goal.
One such group has recently been spotted targeting businesses’ Zimbra servers with ransomware. Instead of taking the ransom payment for themselves, they’re demanding victims make a donation to a charity of their choosing.
The group is called MalasLocker and seems to be from a Spanish-speaking country, as its data leak site, discovered by cybersecurity researcher from Emsisoft, Brett Callow, is titled "Somos malas... podemos ser peores," which is Spanish for "We are bad... we can be worse”. So far, the group is leaking sensitive data belonging to three breached organizations, as well as Zimbra configurations for 169 other victims.
The group appears to have started its campaign in late March 2023, further stating that it’s yet unclear how they managed to compromise the Zimbra servers, if they discovered any zero-day vulnerabilities and developed any malware for it.
Once they breach the servers and encrypt the files, they leave a ransom note with a unique message: "Unlike traditional ransomware groups, we're not asking you to send us money. We just dislike corporations and economic inequality," they say. "We simply ask that you make a donation to a non-profit that we approve of. It's a win-win, you can probably get a tax deduction and good PR from your donation if you want."
The group’s leak site carries a similar message, but with a crucial difference:
"We're a new ransomware group that have been encrypting companies' computers to ask they donate money to whoever they want," it says. "We ask they make a donation to a nonprofit of their choice, and then save the email they get confirming the donation and send it to us so we can check the DKIM signature to make sure the email is real."
So far, there’s no confirmation the attackers really distribute the decryptor to the companies that make the payment.
Via: BleepingComputer
After going mainstream with ChatGPT, OpenAI's CEO is now embarking on a new challenge online.
Sam Altman actually co-founded Worldcoin in 2019 with the mission of "building the world’s largest identity and financial network." Now, he seems to be close to securing $100 million of funds to kickstart the next step of the project: scanning everyone's eyeball to grant them free access to the new global cryptocurrency.
Some commentators have already expressed concerns about the ethical and privacy issues that could arise from it. So, will this end up being another privacy nightmare very much like his AI-powered bot?
According to the official website, Worldcoin is a new global cryptocurrency that aims to "create universal access to the global economy regardless of country or background, accelerating the transition to an economic future that welcomes and benefits every person on the planet."
Quite an ambitious mission, but how do its founders plan to do that?
The key to the whole project seems to be what they refer to as the Orb. This is software that "uses iris biometrics to establish an individual’s unique personhood." Once users have been verified, they can create their digital World ID and start receiving the crypto tokens.
The company ensures that the World ID, which was released last week in Beta together with the World App, "can be used pseudonymously in a wide variety of everyday applications without revealing the user’s identity."
This technology, the so-called proof of personhood protocol, is also believed to tackle some of the biggest issues raised by the quick development of AI-powered tools. It will discern between a real person and a bot, for example. Developers even believe that it could help provide a universal basic income to those affected by job cuts caused by AI.
Not everyone seems to be thrilled by the idea, though. Famous US whistleblower Edward Snowden raised concerns about the practice back in 2021. At the time, he pointed out how Worldcoin would de-facto build a global database of people's iris scans, keeping them in the form of hashes able to "match with future scans."
This looks like it produces a global (hash) database of people's iris scans (for "fairness"), and waves away the implications by saying "we deleted the scans!"Yeah, but you save the *hashes* produced by the scans. Hashes that match *future* scans. Don't catalogue eyeballs. https://t.co/uAk0NYGeZuOctober 23, 2021
The company ensures that it will not store eye scans. It also says that the device is safe to use and will not hurt people's irises.
Three people with knowledge of the deal have said to the Financial Times that Wordlcoin is now in "advanced talks to raise fresh cash as it prepares to launch in the next few weeks."
The startup seems to be attracting new investors, too, alongside previous names like FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried and internet entrepreneur Reid Hoffman.
Despite still operating on Beta, Worldcoin counts over 1.7 million sign-ups across the world so far, but the numbers are very likely to get higher soon.
Usually, whenever a company launches a new entry in a series, you’d expect the gadget to be bigger and better than the older models. That’s exactly what Amazon did with the second generation Echo Buds.This time, however, the tech giant is doing the opposite with the latest Echo Buds by incorporating a more lightweight design.
Noise cancellation, a major feature on past models, is now gone. Same goes for the differently sized silicone tips. Now, it’s just one pair of silicone covers (with a backup pair) to fit everyone everyone. The new Echo Buds also sport a “semi-in-ear design”, losing the tight seal the others were known for. This means outside sound will seep through, ensuring you'll be aware of your surroundings at all times.
So the audio coming out of these earbuds won’t be as all-encompassing, but they still have some interesting features. By overhauling the design, Amazon was able to improve the battery life significantly as the devices can now last up to 20 hours on a single charge “with the case fully powered”. The Echo Buds 2nd Gen, in comparison, could only last up to 10 hours with the case.
The rest of the features on the new Echo Buds are carryovers from previous installments. Alexa is back helping people set reminders or resume a podcast through the earbuds. Touch controls can be customized so you can have a double tap either play music, “answer phone calls, [or] mute your mics”. Speaking of which, the devices come with two microphones that, when used alongside the “voice detection accelerometer”, allow the buds to “distinguish between the person speaking on a call versus others around” you.
Multipoint pairing is making a return so you can “switch audio between two devices simultaneously”. Then you have the VIP Filter that allows users to select which notifications they want to hear and which ones to keep silent.
Interestingly enough, the latest Echo Buds are very similar to Apple's original AirPods. They both have the same one-size-fits-all design, lack noise cancellation, and even have a similar battery life (the AirPods can last up to 24 hours with the charging case). But the biggest difference is Amazon’s offering is way cheaper.
Instead of paying $140 for a pair of AirPods, these earbuds cost $40 (£32 or around $60 AUD). Not a bad price, truth be told. However, they're only available in the United States at the time of this writing, according to an Amazon representative. The Echo Buds are currently available for pre-order with the release date set for June 7.
Alongside the earbuds, Amazon launched a variety of new Echo smart devices including the semi-spherical Echo Pop smart speaker. Be sure to check out TechRadar’s coverage of the update.
In April 2023, we reported on a major issue with AMD’s Ryzen 7000-series processors, which were randomly burning out and sometimes even taking the attached motherboard with them. The issue, caused by excessive SoC voltages running to the CPU, was affecting both the Ryzen 7000X3D and regular Ryzen 7000 CPUs, though more the former than the latter.
Asus is offering support to users who installed beta versions of its motherboard BIOS software, by extending its warranty period for its AM5 motherboard. According to PC Gamer, the manufacturer confirmed its warranty includes both the XMP and EXPO memory overclocking profiles.
AMD did fix the problem rather quickly through a timely AGESA firmware update for the 600-series AM5 motherboards that support next-gen CPUs, with said update limiting the voltage to the chip to 1.3V. The manufacturer also released an official statement, stating that “anyone whose CPU may have been impacted by this issue should contact AMD customer support.”
The problem is that at that time it was unclear whether AMD would honor warranties for this particular issue. As we pointed out in a previous article, that statement concerning reporting to customer service could be for data-gathering purposes as damage caused by hardware overclocking is explicitly not covered in Ryzen product warranties.
TechRadar has reached out to AMD for clarification regarding this situation and will update this story with any statements given to us.
When looking over the evidence it’s clear that the AMD EXPO memory profiles are the main culprit. The memory overclocking setting in the motherboard BIOS is what's leading to the overvoltage of the chips, and it's not expressly stated that the users overclocked the chips themselves, just the RAM, which has manufacturer-provided presets.
However, Asus isn’t entirely faultless either. As Gamers Nexus noted when investigating this issue, Asus motherboards were still running EXPO memory profiles beyond 1.3V, which is supposed to be the SoC voltage cap set by AMD. And while this is a huge oversight on Asus’s part, it did own up to this defect and is compensating buyers, while AMD hasn't said one way or the other.
The fact that Asus is covering for a problem that’s the fault of both AMD’s own Ryzen 7000-series chips and Asus’s motherboard is absolutely bonkers. Regardless of whether or not it normally covers overclocking-related incidents, this is clearly the fault of both companies. AMD EXPO is AMD's own creation, after all, so it can hardly blame Asus entirely.
Overclocking is a very common practice for gamers and tech enthusiasts alike, to the point that manufacturers will almost always list overclocked specs for their components and even provide tools to overclock their hardware. The idea that AMD did not make a clear statement of intent to rectify that issue when it really should be covered under warranty is a terrible business practice.
Hopefully, AMD will fix this by honoring warranties for replacement CPUs, since its own AMD EXPO technology appears to be the root cause of all these problems and buyers having to replace such an expensive chip on their own budget is unfair.
A new ransomware threat actor has been detected targeting big businesses in hopes of equally large payouts.
Cybersecurity researchers from Talos uncovered a threat actor called RA Group which kicked off its operations in April 2023 using the Babuk source code, which was previously leaked, apparently by one of its former members.
So far, the group has successfully attacked three organizations in the US, and one in South Korea. It doesn’t seem to have an industry preference, as the victims were in manufacturing, wealth management, insurance, and pharmacy.
There’s nothing particularly unique about RA Group. It launches double extortion attacks, stealing sensitive data as it encrypts the systems, in hopes of motivating the victims to pay the ransom demand. Its website seems to be a work in progress, as the group is still making cosmetic changes. When it leaks the data, it discoses the name of the victim, a list of the stolen data, the total size, and the victim’s website.
The ransom note is personalized for each individual victim, the researchers added, claiming this, too, is standard practice among ransomware threat actors. What isn’t standard practice, however, is naming the victims in the executables, as well.
The malware encrypts only parts of files, in order to move faster. After the encryption is complete, the files get the .GAGUP extension. The ransomware then deletes everything in the Bin with the API SHEmptyRecyclebinA, as well as volume shadow copy by executing the local Windows binary vssadmin.exe, an administrative tool used to manipulate shadow copies.
The ransomware does not encrypt all files, though. Some are left accessible so that the victims can contact the group easier. The non-encrypted files are necessary for the victims to download the qTox application, used to reach out to the attackers.
WhatsApp is currently rolling out a new Chat Lock feature that will ensure your private conversations stay that way.
The Chat Lock update takes chat threads and places them behind their own locked folder which can only be accessed via your device’s own password or biometrics. Additionally, the content of those conversations will be hidden in your notifications so nosy people can't see what you're talking about.
Meta states in the announcement post that Chat Lock is ideal for people who share an unlocked smartphone with family, or, as shown in the official trailer, have their device stolen by their annoying, little brother. To enable the protection, all you have to do is tap the name of the chat and select the locking option. To reveal those chats, “pull down on your inbox” then enter your password or biometric in order to unlock them. Pretty simple stuff.
There are plans to expand Chat Lock options “over the next few months”. Meta states it’ll be possible to lock your conversations on companion devices. Plus, users will soon be able to create custom passwords for the chat that differ from the ones on their smartphones.
As for the launch, the post doesn’t say whether or not this is a global rollout nor does it mention anything about being able to use Face ID to unlock chats. We reached out to Meta for clarification. This story will be updated if we hear back.
Chat Lock joins WhatsApp’s long list of security features from Device Verification to end-to-end encryption and two-factor authentication, but that doesn’t mean things are perfect. There's always room for improvement as every now and again something goes wrong.
In this instance, we’re specifically referring to a recently discovered bug that allows WhatsApp to continuously use a phone’s microphone even if the app is closed. This was first discovered by a Twitter engineer who posted a screenshot of the app using the mic at least nine times in the early morning of May 6. Meta is aware of this but claims it isn’t their fault. Instead, the official WhatsApp Twitter account points the finger at Google, claiming there’s a bug in the Privacy Dashboard on Android. Regardless of whose fault it is, we do recommend turning off your microphone through your device’s settings menu to ensure complete privacy.
But if that doesn’t satisfy you, check out TechRadar’s list of the best-encrypted messaging apps of 2023 for alternatives.
– Super-fast A17 chip, may outperform the A16 by 20%
– Titanium sides, thinner bezels and a periscope camera
– Dynamic Island will return
– Apple to finally switches to USB-C
– eSIMs in the US, with France and possibly more of Europe
Apple is expected to unveil its iPhone 15 line later this year, with the iPhone 15 Pro sure to stand alongside the much-rumored iPhone 15 Ultra as the company’s flagship 2023 model.
It’s been nine months since the launch of the excellent iPhone 14 Pro, so we’re beginning to learn more about what to expect from the next generation of Apple’s best iPhones. Now that we've heard several consistent rumors about the iPhone 15 Pro, in this guide we’ve pulled together the leaks with the most credence.
For more iPhone 15 info, our iPhone 15 hub contains all you need to know about the base model iPhone 15, while our iPhone 15 Pro vs iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro vs iPhone 15 Ultra comparisons detail how the iPhone 15 Pro could stack up against other Apple iPhones.
Apple hasn’t yet shared official release information for the iPhone 15 Pro, but using the company’s previous iPhone release strategies as points of reference, we can make an educated guess as to when the iPhone 15 Pro will land.
The iPhone 14 line was officially unveiled on September 7, 2022 before going on sale over a week later on September 16. Apple generally picks the first or second week of September for its annual iPhone launches, typically opting for a Tuesday or Wednesday. We therefore expect the iPhone 15 Pro to be revealed – alongside the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Ultra – on September 5, 6, 12 or 13 this year, with phones going on sale around a week later.
There's no good news about the new phone's price, as early rumors suggest the iPhone 15 Pro could be even more expensive than the iPhone 14 Pro. Here’s how the latter phone was priced at launch:
According to a Weibo source and seasoned Apple analyst Jeff Pu, Apple will hike the price of the iPhone 15 Pro to boost the appeal of the cheaper iPhone 15, whose predecessor hasn’t been selling as well as expected.
We could therefore conceivably see the iPhone 15 Pro start at $1,099 / £1,199 / AU$1,899 for the 128GB model, though it’s also worth noting that Apple may opt to forgo 128GB storage options with the iPhone 15 lineup, as other manufacturers have done with their respective 2023 flagships.
For our money, we'd bet the iPhone 15 Pro will cost around $1,199 / £1,209 / AU$1,899 for the 256GB storage option. Of course, Apple may opt to remain consistent with its Pro-level pricing, but we don’t expect to see the iPhone 15 Pro cost anything less than $1,099 / £1,209 / AU$1,899.
On the design front, we expect the iPhone 15 Pro to be similar in size to its predecessor – that’s 147.5 x 71.5 x 7.85mm – but it could still look like a very different device.
We’ve heard from multiple sources, for instance, that both the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Ultra could get titanium sides, which would make them stronger and lighter than the stainless steel-framed iPhones currently available.
Both devices are expected to have rounded rear edges, too, in contrast to the iPhone 14 Pro’s sharp-angled sides. Apple was reportedly unsure about implementing this design change for the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Ultra, but leaked renders showing off these curved sides have since emerged, adding credence to the rumor.
We’ve also heard that the iPhone 15 Pro will be getting thinner bezels than the iPhone 14 Pro – which would be an impressive feat on Apple’s part, given that the latter’s bezels are already remarkably thin.
The iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Ultra were widely rumored to get solid-state volume and power buttons, too, but Apple analysts recently poured water on those claims. Leaks had suggested that these buttons would use haptic vibrations to simulate the sensation of being touched, despite not actually moving, but this technology is now expected to debut on the iPhone 16 line at the earliest, owing to its complexity.
The final iPhone 15 Pro design upgrade is expected to come in the form of a USB-C charging port. The EU has told Apple that it has to add USB-C charging ports to iPhones by 2024, but multiple leaks have suggested that Apple will be adopting the charging standard in 2023 with the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Ultra.
In terms of the phone’s display, the iPhone 15 Pro will likely retain its predecessor’s 6.1-inch Super XDR OLED screen and Dynamic Island digital cutout. The latter is expected to make its way onto the vanilla iPhone 15, too, though the next iteration of the Dynamic Island won’t necessarily be identical to that which is used on the iPhone 14 line. According to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the iPhone 15 Pro’s proximity sensor will be integrated inside the Dynamic Island itself, rather than positioned separately (as on the iPhone 14 Pro).
It's also worth noting that Apple may be preparing to move to eSIM in countries outside the US for the iPhone 15 Pro, with eSIMs reportedly coming to the next generation of Apple’s best iPhones in France. This is big news for all prospective iPhone 15 Pro buyers outside of the US. Apple typically sells the same iPhone models across most of Europe, meaning SIM card-less iPhone 15 Pros could also be coming to the UK, Ireland, Germany, Italy, Spain, Portugal and many other countries.
On the subject of cameras, the iPhone 15 Pro isn’t expected to stray too far from its predecessor’s (admittedly excellent) triple-sensor setup. The iPhone 14 Pro boasts the following three lenses:
A periscope camera is the only real upgrade that’s been rumored for the iPhone 15 Pro, but we suspect that this technology – and indeed a telephoto camera with a variable zoom lens – will be reserved for the photography-focused iPhone 15 Ultra.
The main difference between the iPhone 15 Pro’s cameras and the iPhone 14 Pro’s, then, will probably be the quality of sensors used. According to leaks, the iPhone 15 Pro is expected to sport new Sony-produced sensors that capture more light.
The iPhone 14 Pro rocks the latest version of Apple’s silicon – the A16 Bionic – which makes it one of the fastest phones (if not the fastest phone) money can buy right now. And yet, the iPhone 15 Pro will be even faster.
Apple’s next Pro-level iPhone is reportedly in line for an A17 Bionic chipset, which is rumored to be more efficient than the A16 Bionic. In fact, Chinese outlet DCInside reports that the A17 Bionic will boast a 20% more powerful CPU than its predecessor, meaning the iPhone 15 Pro should enjoy sizable speed gains over the iPhone 14 Pro.
Crunching the numbers, DCInside claims that the A17 Bionic earns a single-core score of 3019 and a multi-core score of 7860 on Geekbench 6, where the A16 Bionic scores 2504 and 6314, respectively. Naturally, we’d suggest taking these rumored figures with a hefty pinch of salt, but it’s exciting to think that the iPhone 15 Pro might sport benchmark scores to rival Apple’s best MacBooks.
As for other performance specs, the iPhone 15 Pro is expected to get 8GB RAM, where the current iPhone 14 Pro has 6GB RAM.
We haven’t heard all that much about the iPhone 15 Pro’s battery size – and we’re unlikely to, since Apple is typically coy about such details – but the iPhone 14 Pro rocks a capable 3,200mAh battery, so we’d be happy seeing the same size again this year.
Rumors have suggested that Apple is working on a reverse wireless charging feature for the iPhone 15 line, and if true, the iPhone 15 Pro will be able to wirelessly charge other Apple gadgets, where the iPhone 14 Pro can’t.
It’s also worth reiterating here that the iPhone 15 Pro is expected to get a USB-C port, so you probably won’t be able to use your older Apple Lightning cable to juice it up.
Incidentally, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo had stated that the company’s proprietary USB-C chargers would offer faster iPhone 15 charging speeds than accessories produced by other manufacturers, but the EU recently warned Apple against making such a move.
We've also heard that the iPhone 15 Pro’s Thunderbolt 3 version of USB-C will make the device compatible with 4K monitors, meaning you’ll be able to display certain types of content on a separate screen – as you can with the best iPads.
For example, a new cinematography feature that will allow live 4K Thunderbolt outputs to monitors while recording.Essentially, you’ll have the phone with all the camera controls, connected to a monitor displaying live 4K camera footage without any controls; in 16:9.It’s NicheApril 27, 2023
This option will supposedly arrive with iOS 17, which is likely to be announced in June, but only the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Ultra will be able to make use of the technology given their support for Thunderbolt 3.
It’s not yet clear whether Apple’s upcoming premium iPhones will allow you to share all types of content across multiple screens using the charging port alone – game and movie content, for instance, might still require AirPlay or an Apple TV. At the very least, though, filmmakers, photographers, and other creatives look set to have the option of visualizing their subjects on larger, control-free monitors with the iPhone 15 Pro.
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