Dec 29
“It’s kind of a problematic proposition,” Dave Williams said of the lawmaker’s decision to switch to a more conservative congressional district.
Dec 29
Our top science stories this week include a physics experiment to turn light into matter, an update from NASA’s Juno mission (it’s about to make a close encounter with Jupiter’s moon Io), and a roundup of the best archaeological discoveries of 2023.
Dec 29
I know we say this every year, but it feels like just yesterday we were all crammed in a single room in Las Vegas eating mediocre takeout and voting for our best in show. But CES 2024 is actually just around the corner. The show officially runs from January 9 – 12, though we’ll on the ground well before that, with the first CES-related events expected to kick off on January 7. Last year we saw a focus on accessibility and a rather disturbing amount of stuff that you were supposed to pee on or into. While we’ll probably see a good amount devices designed to help those with hearing impairments and mobility restrictions again this year, we anticipate some new trends to steal some headlines. Here’s a few predictions from our staff about what to expect from CES 2024 in Las Vegas.
User-friendly solar
Jackery
I suspect CES 2024 will be full of clean energy technology, packaged in the form of consumer hardware. Solar panels have traditionally been the purview of professional contractors but standalone setups are gaining in popularity. Two or three years ago, this gear would have been targeted at RV users but now it’s cresting into the mainstream. Pop-up panels, coupled with inverters and batteries that look like air conditioning units, sitting unobtrusively in the corner, are all the rage. It’s a plus that most of these setups are plug and play, removing the need for a professional to get involved.
There are a couple of drivers for this beyond the niche audience of folks looking to get off of the electricity grid. In many places outside the US, the cost of energy has spiked dramatically and it’s folly to think the same won’t happen here. Not to mention that, in places like Texas, people have seen the power grid fail with devastating consequences. It’s going to be a big market in the next few years and I’d expect to see more and more consumer brands follow Anker and Jackery into the home battery world. — Dan Cooper, Senior Reporter UK
MEMS earbuds
xMEMS
If Engadget’s audience stats are any indication, audio nerds are extremely excited about MEMS earbud drivers. As my colleague James Trew has detailed in his reporting, micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) may very well be the next big thing in headphones. A California-based company called xMEMS is the first to bring the solid state components to market, and the first true wireless earbuds that use them have recently gone on sale.
Some of the benefits of MEMS drivers are said to be improved response, better durability and more consistent fidelity. They also don’t require the calibration or matching that balanced-armature or dynamic drivers need on a production line. The only downside is that in their current state, they still need a hybrid setup with a secondary driver for bass. In its next-gen MEMS speaker, though, xMEMS is promising 40 times louder bass response.
The new model is called Cypress and the company will be demoing it for attendees at CES. xMEMS says its performance is consistent with the bass performance of “the best” 10-12 coil speakers currently being used in earbuds. What’s more, Cypress can improve ANC performance, which xMEMs says will cover higher frequencies – including crying babies. The company has already said the components won’t go into mass production until the end of 2024, so consumer products are over a year away. But the promise is too good not to be excited about a very early preview in Las Vegas. — Billy Steele, Senior Reporter
Wi-Fi 7 in everything
Netgear
While it may not be the most exciting development, I’m expecting to see a number of new devices with support for Wi-Fi 7 at CES 2024 — from laptops to TVs and everything in between. Currently, it’s still a work in progress, but with the official Wi-Fi 7 spec expected to be finalized sometime in early 2024, gadget makers are looking to get an early jump. Some benefits of Wi-Fi 7 include maximum speeds of up to 46 Gbps — more than twice as fast as what’s available using Wi-Fi 6/6E — along with a 320Mhz channel width that offers double the capacity compared to previous generations.
Another important feature is MLO (multi-link operation) which allows Wi-Fi 7 devices to use two bands at the same time, essentially turning a single wireless connection into a two-lane highway. For people with larger homes, this should improve the performance of mesh networks by allowing devices to switch bands without losing speed or connection. QAM (quadrature amplitude modulation) is also getting a significant boost from 1024-QAM on Wi-Fi 6/6E to 4096-QAM with Wi-Fi 7 which allows devices to pack more information into the same carrier signal.
The downside is that while there are some gadgets on sale today like the Samsung Galaxy S23 that already support Wi-Fi 7, you’ll need both a compatible device and router (not to mention a sufficiently fast internet connection) to take advantage of the spec’s full capabilities. In short, you should keep an eye out for new devices that work with Wi-Fi 7, but don’t rush out and upgrade everything in your home until prices stabilize and they become more widespread. — Sam Rutherford, Senior Reporter
The year of the AI PC
Intel
If there’s one buzzy term you’re guaranteed to hear a ton throughout 2024, it’s “AI PC.” It’s a phrase both Intel and AMD are using to describe computers equipped with chips featuring NPUs, or neural processing units. Similar to the way GPUs speed up graphics processing for gaming, an NPU offloads AI tasks to handle them more efficiently. For Windows 11, that’s mainly limited to Microsoft’s Studio Effects, which can blur your video chat backgrounds or punch up your lighting. But more Windows AI features are rumored to be on the way (Microsoft’s push to bring its Copilot AI everywhere is a big sign), and companies like Adobe and Audacity are also developing NPU-powered features for their apps.
For years chipmakers have been chasing higher clock rates, smaller process designs and a wealth of other architectural upgrades like 3D transistors to make their hardware faster and more efficient. The move towards mobile chip designs, like Apple’s Silicon, is yet another way to reduce power consumption while also speeding up computational possibilities. Intel, AMD and other companies are also focusing more on GPUs to beef up basic gaming performance, while also offloading some creative tasks like media encoding. NPUs are the latest tool chip designers can rely on, and they also have the potential to change the way we use our computers entirely (or at least, deliver a bit more power and battery life for ultraportables).
While it’s easy to be skeptical of marketing terms, the phrase “AI PC” is at least functional. There are still plenty of laptops on the market without NPUs — Intel only got into the AI game with its new Core Ultra chips — so consumers will need an easy way to differentiate between different types of systems. After all, if you’re upgrading your laptop to take advantage of Windows Studio effects and AI powered software, you don’t want to be stuck with a non-NPU system for several years. — Devindra Hardawar, Senior Reporter
Truly wireless TV
Cherlynn Low / Engadget
Displace made a splash at CES 2023 with its truly wireless TV that could be mounted anywhere, even suction-cupped to a window. The company’s demo left us with a lot of questions as it wasn’t yet ready to discuss key details of the product since what it showed off were CES-specific prototypes. The company is returning to Vegas this year and it’s already announced what it plans to have on display.
First, Displace says two sizes of TVs will be demoed: the 27-inch Displace Mini and the 55-inch Displace Flex. The display we saw earlier this year was also 55 inches, but a key difference between it and the Flex is that this new version attaches to an optional magnetic wireless charging stand. Both the Flex and the Mini pack enough battery life to last a month if you watch six hours of content per day, according to the company. There’s no pricing available for these yet, but they go up for pre-order on January 9, so we’re bound to find out soon. Displace said it will also show off a 110-inch model at CES, although details are scarce.
The original version has gone up in price since last CES: it’s now $4,499 and orders won’t ship until mid-2024. The new Mini and Flex aren’t expected to ship until late next year either. The main thing we’ll be looking for at CES is a status update. Are the units any more polished? Have there been any notable upgrades since that first prototype? How much will the extra swappable batteries cost? Does it look like the company will actually be able to ship in the next 6-12 months?
Displace has also announced an AI-based shopping platform for its TVs. Using the same gestures that control TV viewing, the tech can analyze a paused scene for products that might be available for sale. The system also allows you to quickly make a purchase by either bringing a phone or watch near the NFC-enabled TVs or by using a mobile app. Displace says the goal for its products has always been ambient computing, and the first step towards that is this shopping platform. It’s also a way for the company to make money off the TVs after the initial sale. — Billy Steele
We’re reporting live from CES 2024 in Las Vegas from January 6-12. Keep up with all the latest news from the show here.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ces-2024-what-we-expect-in-las-vegas-this-year-140040145.html?src=rss
Dec 29
The biggest winners in tech in 2023
Posted in: Today's ChiliThroughout 2023, it felt like the drama never let up. From Elon Musk’s nonstop shenanigans to the constant launches in the generative AI race, the last twelve months was packed with news. Thankfully, it wasn’t all bad, and this year saw more winners than before. There were clear frontrunners, like Threads and AI, but we also saw surprises like Apple’s Vision Pro headset and the iPhone maker finally embracing several open standards. Of all the things that happened this year, here’s the Engadget team’s list of tech’s biggest winners in 2023.
Threads
If you had told me a year ago that Mark Zuckerberg would use the Elon Musk-induced chaos at Twitter to his and Meta’s advantage, I wouldn’t have been surprised. If, however, you had told me that Meta’s slapdash effort to build a standalone Twitter clone based on Instagram would emerge as the most viable and popular alternative, I probably would have laughed.
But, if 2023 taught us anything, it’s that Elon Musk was more adept at taking Twitter X to lower lows than we could have possibly imagined. And while we’ll likely never see an actual cage match between Zuck and Musk, it’s impossible to ignore just how much Threads has benefitted from Musk’s self-inflicted wounds.
After an initial surge and drop-off in interest, Threads is back at 100 million monthly users. It was the fourth-most downloaded app of the year, according to Apple, despite a mid-year launch and months without any EU availability. The app is also beginning its long-awaited experiment with federation, which will eventually make its content interoperable with Mastodon.
Threads has, of course, benefitted from Meta’s vast engineering resources, as well as the company’s willingness to engage in good old-fashioned growth-hacking. And there are still valid concerns about Meta’s content moderation practices and the implications for allowing the Facebook owner to control yet another major social platform.
But the fact that Threads was able to grow so quickly despite all that shows just how desperate people were for an alternative. Threads may not have been the most advanced or most interesting of the wave of alternatives, but it’s been able to use its ties to Meta and Instagram to attract the most interest. And, right now, it has something X doesn’t: a whole lot of momentum. — Karissa Bell, Senior reporter
Generative AI
We capped off 2022 with the rising popularity of ChatGPT, OpenAI’s remarkably powerful generative AI chatbot. While the idea of having a conversation with a chatbot wasn’t exactly new, ChatGPT leveraged a large language model (LLM) to achieve natural, almost human-like responses, as well as the ability to craft readable text or pull up information on demand. It was a sign that AI was going to be an important topic in 2023 — something Microsoft proved when it launched Bing’s AI Chat in February, which was powered by OpenAI’s next-generation GPT 4 model. And so the AI wars began.
Screenshot
Google rushed to announce its Bard chatbot to pre-empt Microsoft’s Bing Chat launch, but it demonstrated the limitations of generative AI when it confidently answered a question about the James Webb telescope incorrectly. That led to an immediate 8 percent drop in Google’s stock, and it made the company seem like it was just chasing Microsoft’s and OpenAI’s accomplishments with Bing Chat and ChatGPT. (Bard was originally powered by Google’s LaMDA LLM, which had been in development since 2021.)
Bing Chat was just the start for Microsoft: It also launched AI integration in Microsoft Edge through a “Copilot” sidebar, something that also ended up arriving in Microsoft 365 apps, Windows 11 and Windows 10. Google, meanwhile, announced Bard integration for its Assistant and implemented a slew of AI-powered features into Gmail, Docs, Sheets, Meet, Chat, Slides, as well as the new Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro. Heading into 2024, we can look forward to Google’s GPT 4 competitor, Gemini, and Microsoft also announced that its Copilots are getting upgraded with GPT-4.
Outside of Microsoft and Google, AI ended up being the buzzword adopted by much of the tech world throughout 2023. (How quickly we forgot about Web 3.0, crypto and the metaverse.) But while the relentless hype cycle was inevitable, we also saw text-to-image generation tools like OpenAI’s Dall-E 3 become even more powerful, evolving beyond the creepy multi-fingered imagery it was famous for. AI is starting to influence the the world outside of tech as well: It was one of the most prominent concerns for WGA members during their 148-day long strike, and many people were fooled by the famous image of the Pope wearing a puffy Balenciaga coat, which was generated by Midjourney.
There’s still plenty we don’t know about how AI will influence our lives, though researchers like Timnit Gebru, founder of the Distributed AI Research Institute, and Margaret Mitchell are continually raising the alarm about ethical AI concerns. Much of the AI world seems to be following Facebook’s former philosophy of “move fast and break things” — expect to see more drama around artificial intelligence like OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s surprise firing and re-hiring. It normally takes a few years for a founder to get ousted from their company, like Steve Jobs and Twitter’s Jack Dorsey. Devindra Hardawar, Senior reporter
Photo by Cherlynn Low / Engadget
Apple meets RCS, USB-C and Qi 2
In 2023, it almost felt like hell froze over. Apple, notorious for its walled garden, not only introduced new phones with USB-C charging ports this year, but also announced it would support the RCS messaging standard. This happened after months of public badgering from Google (and its execs) and multiple reports calling out the green-bubble stigma. Apple appeared to relent, seemingly having come to terms with previous misgivings.
Though Apple’s declaration is a step in the right direction and brings better security and multimedia support for those on iPhones texting people on Androids, the bubble-color divide is far from dissolved. When the company does adopt the messaging standard, it may not change the way texts are presented. iMessage still has many features that RCS lacks, particularly those introduced in iOS 17 this year like Voice Memo transcripts and Check Ins.
Of course, it’s not like Apple is welcoming all these interoperable standards with open arms. Its adoption of USB-C is clearly a reaction to the EU’s mandate that all new devices sold next year charge with the same standard. And even after announcing RCS support, the company still worked hard to plug the workarounds that enabled Android platforms like Beeper and Sunbird to bring some semblance of iMessage support to non-iOS devices.
But when you consider all the changes made this year, plus the fact that iPhone 15s are among the first devices that work with the new Qi 2 wireless charging protocol, it’s hard to ignore the momentum. It doesn’t feel quite right to label Apple a winner because of all this, but with the number of people that are now better served and supported by the company’s devices, it won’t be surprising to see a fair amount of goodwill flow its way. — Cherlynn Low, Deputy editor
Photo by: Sam Rutherford / Engadget
Foldable phones
Since 2019, Samsung has had a virtual monopoly on big fancy foldable phones. But in 2023, we got not one but two new challengers in the Pixel Fold and OnePlus Open. And while neither can claim total superiority, they’ve brought some interesting innovations to the category.
With its super thin design and wider front display, the Pixel Fold makes it easy to use all of your apps without ever needing to open the device. So when do unfold it, you appreciate its 6.7-inch flexible screen even more. And unlike its rivals, Google didn’t cut corners with its cameras, as the Pixel Fold offers better image quality than pretty much any other handset (foldable or otherwise) aside from its recent sibling, the Pixel 8 Pro.
Meanwhile with the Open, OnePlus created a clever card-based multitasking system that makes it super easy to flip between apps. The Open is also thinner and lighter than Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 5. And while it’s still pretty expensive, thanks to a nifty deal that brings its price down to $1,500 with the trade-in of any phone, OnePlus’ first foldable is helping lower the barrier to entry for devices even further.
So in a year when the pace of Samsung’s innovation felt like it was starting to stagnate, two new rivals brought increased competition to the category, which is a win for anyone who’s ever thought about buying a big foldable phone. — Sam Rutherford, Senior reporter
Apple Vision Pro
Apple didn’t make the first MP3 player, and it certainly didn’t make the first smartphone. But the iPod and iPhone managed to out-innovate existing products and reorient the entire technology world around their existence. The Vision Pro is a similar play, albeit one that isn’t immediately meant for everyone. Companies like Oculus (now Meta) and HTC Vive have been pursuing consumer VR for almost a decade, but the Vision Pro takes an even bolder leap forward. Imagine having your apps floating above your desk, or having a video pinned to a wall of your room, or seamlessly reliving your memories captured in 3D spatial videos. And yes, it can also deliver immersive virtual experiences when it needs to.
As is true for many VR solutions, it’s hard to convey the magnitude of Apple’s accomplishment with the Vision Pro in words, screenshots or promo trailers. If you’re not terribly excited about spending $3,499 on Apple’s unproven goggles, I can’t blame you. But after spending some time with the Vision Pro during its launch event, I’m convinced it’s something special. Its screens are far sharper than any VR headset I’ve seen, its onboard cameras deliver a better mixed reality experience and the simple gestures Apple has developed for navigating its interface are wonderfully intuitive.
While the Vision Pro has its obvious issues — it’s priced for developers and early adopters, not average consumers; it’s still a chunky device that many people won’t want to wear — it fundamentally reshapes the way we’ve been thinking of mixed reality. It’s not just a gadget for VR games, nor is it something purely geared towards business purposes like the Hololens 2 and Magic Leap 2. It’s something truly new, and it could end up paving the way towards our spatial computing future. — Devindra Hardawar
Engadget
Gaming handhelds
Handheld gaming PCs combine everything you love about classic portables like the Gameboy Advance or the PSP with big performance (and admittedly much larger builds) plus the freedom to play practically any title you can think of. And in 2023, we saw an explosion of compelling devices with a range of designs: from big chunky units with detachable controllers like Lenovo’s Legion Go to a major revamp for the Steam Deck featuring a new OLED display. Meanwhile, systems like the ASUS ROG Ally offer top-notch specs in a sleek design. And this is before you mention smaller manufacturers like Ayaneo, GPD and others that have put their own twist on the category. But the best part is that most of these cost half the price of a typical gaming laptop, so if all you care about is being able to game from… well anywhere, 2023 has given us a wealth of options. — Sam Rutherford
Neuralink
Elon Musk’s Neuralink brain-computer interface startup came into 2023 against the figurative ropes. The FDA had denied its 2022 petition to begin human trials of its implantable prosthetic over concerns that prototypes of the device had killed a slew of porcine test subjects; rival BCI maker Synchron had already beaten it to market (having having successfully installed their device in a human patient that July) and the USDA had launched an investigation into animal cruelty claims against the company. Musk’s promise of beginning human trials “within six months,” made during a November “show-and-tell’ event appeared increasingly unlikely.
Heading into 2024, Neuralink is in a much better place. The USDA conducted a “focused” inspection of the company’s facilities but did not find any compliance breaches beyond a single issue in 2019 that Neuralink self-reported, per a report obtained by Reuters. That investigation came in response to a complaint filed by the Physicians Committee of Responsible Medicine, an animal welfare advocacy group, that alleged Neuralink and research partner UC Davis had caused the needless suffering and death of simian test subjects between 2017 and 2020. Neuralink may have placated that investigation, however, the USDA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) has since launched its own independent investigation at the behest of federal prosecutors into the allegations as such actions might violate the Animal Welfare Act. That process remains ongoing.
In May, Neuralink received the best news of its year: the FDA had cleared the company to begin early-stage human trials, after it had satisfactorily address the agency’s previous issues. “The agency’s major safety concerns involved the device’s lithium battery; the potential for the implant’s tiny wires to migrate to other areas of the brain; and questions over whether and how the device can be removed without damaging brain tissue,” current and former Neuralink employees told Reuters in March.
In September, nearly a year after Musk’s six-month promise, the Precise Robotically Implanted Brain-Computer Interface (PRIME if you really squint) study opened for subject volunteers. The study “aims to evaluate the safety of our implant (N1) and surgical robot (R1) and assess the initial functionality of our BCI for enabling people with paralysis to control external devices with their thoughts.” Whether patients turn out to have the devices implanted won’t be revealed until the trials are complete but given Musk’s increasingly erratic behavior and irrational diatribes, embrace of antisemitism and promotion of far-right hate speech — the fact that he ran Twitter into the ground in barely a year — could make selling people on the finer points of their cranial surgery an impossible task. — Andrew Tarantola, Senior reporter
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-biggest-winners-in-tech-in-2023-143012912.html?src=rss
Dec 29
“Removing a candidate from the ballot under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment is not something my office takes lightly,” California’s Democratic secretary of state previously said.
Dec 29
Siri's Not Dead Yet, Jony Ive Comes Out of Hibernation, and More of the Biggest Tech News
Posted in: Today's Chili
The sleepy week between Christmas and New Year’s is for hangouts and hangovers. That is unless you work at Apple. For the folks in Cupertino, this week was all about trying to get the Apple Watch unbanned and scrambling to find a new lead designer for the iPhone.
Dec 29
As president, the hotel mogul took the reins off employers at the expense of everyday workers. Now he wants another crack at it.
Dec 29
The Morning After: Google will settle $5 billion lawsuit over tracking Incognito Chrome users
Posted in: Today's ChiliGoogle’s Chrome has long featured the ability to launch the browser in Incognito mode, offering a seemingly blank slate for your internet browsing, away from your usual cookies, forms and web history. But that seemingly didn’t mean Google wasn’t keeping an eye on where you were browsing.
The company faced a lawsuit in 2020 that accused it of tracking Chrome users’ activities even when they were using Incognito mode. Google has now agreed to settle the complaint that originally sought $5 billion in damages, after failing to get the suit dismissed.
The plaintiffs said Google used tools like its Analytics product, apps and browser plug-ins to monitor users. By tracking someone on Incognito, the company was falsely making people believe that they could control the information that they were willing to share with it.
The lawsuit’s plaintiffs revealed internal emails that allegedly showed conversations between Google execs proving that the company monitored Incognito browser usage to sell ads and track web traffic. Which does sound like a thing Google would do. According to Reuters and The Washington Post, neither side has made the details of the settlement public.
– Mat Smith
You can get these reports delivered daily direct to your inbox. Subscribe right here!
The biggest stories you might have missed
This is the future of generative AI, according to generative AI
Apple reportedly faces pressure in India after sending out warnings of state-sponsored hacking
Russia will assist NASA with ISS space flights through 2025
The best PS5 accessories for 2024
Xiaomi says its EV can outperform Porsche and has more tech than Tesla
It tapped former BMW and Mercedes designers.
Xiaomi
Xiaomi, best known for its smartphones, smart home peripherals, and many other things, has made an EV. Unveiled at a Beijing event yesterday, the Xiaomi SU7 — pronounced “soo-chee” in Chinese — is a sedan that will come in two flavors: the dual-motor all-wheel-drive SU7 Max, and the single-motor rear-wheel-drive SU7.
Xiaomi claims the SU7 Max has a range of up to 800km and a 0-100km/h acceleration of just 2.78s, both of which apparently beat Tesla’s Model S and Porsche’s Taycan Turbo. There’s also a lot of tech splashed around, with a dedicated in-car entertainment system, ports for your (Xiaomi, of course) tablets and headlamps designed to look like the chinese character for rice – also the ‘mi’ in Xiaomi. We’ve chewed over all the details below.
Apple is selling its contested Watch models again
Both the Series 9 or Ultra 2 are available again from the company’s website.
The Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 are back on sale, after a federal appeals court in Washington D.C. granted a temporary pause on an import and sales ban. However, Apple’s wearables aren’t out of the woods just yet: the ban could be reinstated on January 10, when the International Trade Commission (ITC) decides on whether to grant Apple a longer pause.
The ban could also return on January 13, when the same agency makes a decision regarding Apple’s redesign of both smartwatches. The original ban lasted a little more than a day.
Look at LG’s two-legged robot
It’ll feature AI-powered skills and face recognition.
LG
Yes, CES is in a couple of weeks. Why do you ask?
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-morning-after-google-will-settle-5-billion-lawsuit-over-tracking-incognito-chrome-users-121651324.html?src=rss
Dec 29
Chris Christie Says This Is The Real Reason Behind Nikki Haley’s Civil War Response
Posted in: Today's ChiliThe GOP presidential contender said it “should make everybody concerned about her candidacy.”
Dec 29
Nikki Haley Hit With Brutal Question From Voter After ‘Last Night’s Slavery Thing’
Posted in: Today's ChiliThe GOP presidential hopeful was offered “a chance to redeem yourself” at a New Hampshire town hall.
Who's in charge here?
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.