Feb 26
Feb 26
If you missed previous deals to get the Roku Streaming Stick 4K+ on Amazon at a discount, don’t worry: The device is currently listed for the lowest price we’ve seen for it on the website. You can get the streaming stick for $49, which is 30 percent off its original retail price of $70. Roku’s 4K+ stick comes bundled with the company’s Voice Remote Pro that gives you the ability to do hands-free voice search and to issue verbal commands, such as “Hey Roku, where’s my remote?” Asking that triggers the remote to play a sound, so you can find it even if it’s lost in the depths of your couch. The rechargeable remote control alone is usually a $30 upgrade.
Buy Roku Streaming Stick 4K+ at Amazon – $49
The streaming stick that ships with the 4K+ bundle is the 2021 version of Roku’s older 4K streaming device. Last year, Roku upgraded its 4K streaming stick with support for Dolby Vision HDR, giving it the capability to dynamically tweak the contrast and brightness levels for every individual frame in whatever it is you’re watching. The stick also supports the HDR10+ format, which has the same ability as Dolby Vision HDR.
In addition to adding support for those formats, Roku also designed the 2021 version of the 4K streaming stick to boot up around 30 percent faster than its predecessor. The company also said that the newer stick’s wireless receiver enables WiFi speeds that are twice as fast as before. Finally, the bundle gives you a couple of ways to watch movies or shows on your own without disturbing other people in your house. You can either plug in a pair of headphones into the remote’s headphone jack or pair a wireless model with the Roku mobile app.
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Feb 26
CPAC, Not Registered As A Foreign Agent, Is Taking Money From Foreign Interests Anyway
Posted in: Today's ChiliCPAC and its chairman, Matt Schlapp, have drawn a complaint for taking money from a South Korean partner that is lobbying against a U.S. bill at the conference.
Feb 26
One of the unique aspects of Clubhouse when it first launched was that it was a completely audio-only platform. However, the company has since acknowledged that not all participants might want to speak, and have since introduced a new feature that lets users send messages instead.
For those unfamiliar, Clubhouse is a social media platform that lets users host various groups or clubhouses surrounding various topics and subjects. Users can participate in these groups by speaking like they would amongst a group of friends or at a townhall meeting.
It’s actually not a bad idea and since you can’t really hide behind your voice, it did reduce instances of trolling and harassment that you might find on other social media platforms. With this new chat feature, users will be able to send messages and participate in meetings if they don’t feel comfortable talking out loud, or if they’re somewhere where it isn’t convenient to talk.
Clubhouse notes that creators will be able to decide if they want to enable chats when they start a room, which means that not all rooms will necessarily support the feature as it will be up to creators to choose. Creators can also appoint moderators and delete messages if they’re inappropriate, and there are also reporting tools if it gets out of hand.
Clubhouse Now Lets You Send Messages If You Don’t Feel Like Speaking
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Feb 26
It is generally not a good idea to share passwords. This is because you don’t know if the person you’re sharing the password with might have a compromised device that could be logging keystrokes, or if they might accidentally reveal your password to someone else, which could spell trouble for your accounts.
However, it seems that if you do ever need to share a password, Google could be working on something for Chrome. According to user Leopeva64 on Twitter, they have discovered that Google has included a new “Send password” button in Chrome’s built-in password manager.
It is unclear how this will work because right now, Chrome already lets users copy their passwords so presumably this password sharing feature might be a more secure version. It could be similar to how Google handles file sharing on Google Drive where only chosen users have access, and maybe the actual password won’t be shown and users can click a link to log into a website.
The button doesn’t seem to be working at the moment so it’s safe to say that Google is still working on it, but it’s an intriguing idea and we can’t wait to see how Google could manage password sharing in a safe and secure manner.
You Might Soon Be Able To Share Your Passwords On Chrome
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Feb 26
It’s the 25th of February, 2022 which means that Valve’s handheld console, the Steam Deck, has been released. So far early reviews of the console have been largely positive, but of course with it being the first-gen, we expect that there are a ton of areas that Valve could improve upon.
The good news for those who aren’t necessarily early adopters is that Valve has already started thinking about the Steam Deck 2. This is according to an interview with Edge (via GamesRadar) where Valve’s co-founder, Gabe Newell, revealed some plans for what the company would do with the second-gen model.
According to Newell, it seems that a more powerful and potentially more expensive model could be something they’re considering. “That’s an example of us being a little surprised by what our customers are telling us. They’re basically saying, ‘We would like an even more expensive version of this,’ in terms of horsepower capabilities or whatever. You know, that’s why we always love to get something out there and ship it. Because we learn a lot from that, and it helps frame our thinking for Deck 2.”
He also revealed that the company is thinking of making it more than just a console for your PC games, and taking the device beyond what you might get from a desktop or laptop. He also mentions the possibility of it being used for VR. Of course, it’s probably too early to tell what the Steam Deck 2 could bring to the table, but it’s promising that Valve is already thinking about it.
Valve Is Already Thinking About The Steam Deck 2
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Feb 26
HTC’s VR strategy will extend well beyond using car rides as theme parks. The company has outlined Viverse, its vision for a metaverse, and it’s promising to protect children from virtual dangers in the process. Viverse itself isn’t so much a holistic space so much as an “open ecosystem” joining multiple platforms together. You could socialize in VRChat, hold business meetings in Engage, collaborate in Vive Sync and unwind with “holographic” concerts in Beatday.
HTC’s day-in-the-life conceptual video suggests Viverse would also be full of plenty of metaverse buzzwords. You would exercise with AR fitness data, buy wine at a virtual tasting with cryptocurrency and browse NFT art (including the “Meowna Lisa,” naturally). As UploadVRexplains, though, HTC’s teaser is an unusual mix of real products with purely imagined scenarios, and no practical way to link them all besides what looks like a gateway app. The company is also optimistic about the adoption of this technology — there’s no NFT backlash or cryptocurrency legal headaches in this virtual world.
The parental controls might be of more value. HTC is introducing a Vive Guardian app to protect the privacy and safety of kids (and concerned adults) in VR spaces. A “Free Mode” lets you grant access to specific apps and content that children can explore on their own terms. Choose “Broadcast,” however, and you can limit young ones to specific experiences (such as apps and TV shows) beamed from the companion app on your Android phone or tablet. You can see what your children are using, and they’ll need permission to download content or make purchases.
Vive Guardian will be available on Google Play and Viveport, although it wasn’t listed as of this writing. It will support Vive Focus, Vive Focus Plus and Vive Flow headsets.
The existence of safeguards isn’t surprising when other metaverse operators have had to restrict content. Meta introduced personal boundaries in Horizon Worlds and Venues to discourage harassment, while Microsoft shut down AltspaceVR’s social hub following problems with harassers. It’s just a question of whether or not HTC’s efforts are enough to protect users — it’s not clear that you can fence off every potential threat in a given VR environment.
Catch up on all of the news from MWC 2022 right here!
Feb 26
The store in Arizona joins two in New York as the only corporate Starbucks stores with a union.
Feb 26
These days, with the smartphone market being as matured as it is, the improvements we’re seeing from generation to generation feel rather incremental so any changes tend to be a bit more subtle than back in the day. Such could be the case for Apple’s upcoming iPhone 14.
According to a report from The Elec, they claim that Apple’s iPhone 14’s OLED display could actually utilize Samsung’s new M12 OLED materials set. While not much is known right now, a report from OLED-Info (via Patently Apple) revealed that the M-series material set actually adds brightness to the OLED display, so it is possible that with the use of the M12, we could be looking at an even brighter display than the iPhone 13.
This new material set is also rumored to be used by Samsung in their upcoming foldable phones as well, so it will be interesting to see how this plays out. Samsung’s foldables tend to be announced before the iPhone, so assuming that is true for this year, we could get a glimpse at what we might be able to expect from the display of the iPhone 14.
That being said, we’re not sure how many users might actually be able to tell the difference in day-to-day usage. We imagine that many users probably have automatic adjustments turned on, and since displays are rarely cranked to maximum brightness to save on battery, like we said, we’re not sure if the differences will be obvious. Either way, we’ll have to wait and see.
The iPhone 14’s OLED Display Could Be Brighter Than The iPhone 13
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Feb 26
Image credit – Sensor Tower
Back in the day, developers who sold apps would typically sell it once and that was the end of it. However, over time developers started to realize it wasn’t particularly sustainable because it meant that they had to keep courting new customers in order to generate revenue, which is why the subscription model has seen an increase in popularity.
It turns out that many users don’t mind the subscription model either, at least according to a report from Sensor Tower. According to the data from the firm, it seems that spending on subscriptions has increased quite a bit in 2021 from 2020. The report claims that for 2021, iOS users spent a whopping $13.5 billion on subscriptions to the top 100 non-game apps.
This is an increase of around 31% from 2020 where iOS users spent $10.3 billion. This is also quite a huge difference in spending compared to Android, where in 2020, Android users spent $2.7 billion and in 2021, $4.8 billion. Given that there are obviously more than 100 subscription apps, the actual figure could be a lot higher.
This is also why we can imagine Apple isn’t so eager to introduce third-party payment support. Apple currently takes about 30% from all app and in-app purchases, including subscriptions, so giving that up would represent them losing quite a lot of money.
The company is said to have racked up $28 million in fines in the Netherlands for failing to comply with regulators, but as you can see, $28 million is but a drop in the bucket compared to the 30% cut they would have taken from the $13.5 billion in 2021.
iOS Subscriptions Are Making A Killing Right Now
, original content from Ubergizmo. Read our Copyrights and terms of use.
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