Intel’s internal documents showing the performance of 14th-gen Raptor Lake Refresh and 15th-gen Intel Arrow Lake Core processors for desktops have been leaked. CPU gains are unexciting, however, GPU gains are massive.

Some time ago, Intel announced that the 14th-generation of Intel Core CPUs, that is, Meteor Lake, would have a tile-based design. In it, the processor will have five different tiles, a CPU tile, an SoC tile, an IO tile, a GPU tile and a base tile. This is different from a single monolithic CPU, which we usually get from Intel.

However, to everyone’s disappointment, it was later revealed that Meteor Lake processors would not be released on desktops. Instead, desktops will get Raptor Lake Refresh with higher clocks than the 14th-generation CPUs. Desktops will have to wait until 15th-gen Arrow Lake processors get the new tile-based architecture.

We do know that Raptor Lake Refresh will release later this year in Q4 and Arrow Lake is expected to release starting Q4 next year, in 2024. However, until now, we didn’t know what type of performance benefits Raptor Lake Refresh and Arrow Lake would provide. Now we have some ideas about it.

Arrow Lake Performance Leaked

A well-known German-based tech news reporter, igor’sLab has leaked internal Intel slides showing the performance of two different generations of its desktop CPUs.

There are a few things visible in the slides. First, the internal slides have the current-gen Intel Core i9-13900K at their base for comparison. Second, Intel has fixed the P1 and P2 power usage levels in Raptor Lake to 250W and Arrow Lake to 253W. This suggests that, unlike previously rumored, Intel Arrow Lake will not have any improvements in power usage.

Coming to the main performance part. The Raptor Lake Refresh has just 4% max gains over the current-gen Raptor Lake processors. This is understood because Raptor Lake Refresh is just current-gen processors clocked higher.

The 15th-gen Arrow Lake processors, however, show variable performance increases in different tests. In some tests, it’s showing just 6% gains over Raptor Lake. In others, it’s showing 21% gains. Though the average seems to be around 10%.

Though this is just preliminary information, these CPU performance improvements, if true, are rather unexciting. Having said that, expect Intel to optimize the CPU further to increase its performance. Let’s hope that the 21% improvement in a multicore test is then seen across all the single and multicore tests.

Massive GPU Boost

Another massive thing that the leak reveals is the performance of the built-in GPU inside the Intel Arrow Lake processors. It is stated that Intel will use its Arc-based Xe LP GPUs inside the Arrow Lake processors. These lower-powered, Arc graphics cards based iGPUs seem to show a massive boost compared to the current-gen Raptor Lake processors.

As per the leaked slides, the iGPU inside the Arrow Lake processors will have a 220% to 240% increase in performance. This is unbelievable and massive. If this turns out to be true, then it’s going to be a game-changer for Intel. This means that one could easily play games at common resolutions and lower settings without the need for any dedicated graphics cards. This could rival the APUs that AMD is expected to release later.

New Socket & New Coolers

Intel Alder Lake, Raptor Lake and Raptor Lake Refresh have one thing in common. They all use the LGA1700 socket for the CPUs. The 15th-gen Arrow Lake processors, however, will come with a newer LGA1851 socket. Which means newer motherboards will be required to power them.

But the newer motherboard isn’t the only requirement. As per igor’sLAB, the LGA1851 socket again changes the Z-height and contact. While getting a cheap and compatible cooler for Alder Lake and Raptor Lake itself is not easy. It seems that Intel has again made sure that one will need to either buy a new CPU cooler or a new mounting kit for it. These mounting kits are not available for cheap everywhere in the world and sometimes they are even more expensive than the CPU coolers themselves.

Whatever it maybe. It would be interesting to see what actual improvements Intel Arrow Lake CPUs release with.

Source

According to SlashNext, the developer of WormGPT is allegedly selling access to the program at a well-known hacker forum. In a blog post, the company said, "We see that malicious actors are now creating their own custom modules similar to ChatGPT, but easier to use for nefarious purposes."

Before being made public last month, the hacker appears to have first exhibited the chatbot in March. WormGPT, unlike ChatGPT or Google's Bard, has any controls to stop it from responding to harmful requests.

WormGPT

WormGPT is the "dark side" of ChatGPT

According to SlashNext, the malicious variant of ChatGPT, known as WormGPT, was made available this month. In contrast to other well-known generative AI tools like ChatGPT or Bing, it may respond to searches that contain dangerous information.

It's crucial to keep in mind that WormGPT is a harmful chatbot designed to help internet criminals carry out their activities. WormGPT should not be used for anything. If we are aware of the risks associated with WormGPT and its potential impacts, we may better appreciate the benefits of using technology ethically and responsibly.

WormGPT's developer has also shared images showing how to direct the bot to write malware using Python code and solicit help in developing potentially harmful attacks. The creator claims to have used the 2021 big language model's open-source GPT-J, a previous large language model. After the model was trained using data on the creation of malware, WormGPT was developed.

Products like WormGPT are making generative AI even scarier

AI has become significantly dangerous

With the improvement of technology, especially artificial intelligence, known cyberattacks like phishing have become more and more used by hackers from all around the world. WormGPT is the latest product that lifts all the ChatGPT restrictions to help these bad actors, and we need to be careful against these phishing attempts.

Deepfakes, fake news, and spam are only a few examples of the uses of generative AI technologies, which are growing more and more potent. Unfortunately, these technologies may also be employed for illegal activities like spreading malware and phishing scams.

Here are some recommendations on how to protect oneself against harmful generative AI tools:

• Recognize the warning indications of an "evil" generative AI technology: These tools frequently make use of grammatically sound but meaningless language, or they could include typical phishing attack tactics.
• Take caution while clicking on links: Never click on a link in an email or text message unless you are certain that it is authentic.
• Update your program frequently: Security fixes that might assist in protecting you against generative AI tools that are dangerous are frequently included in software upgrades.
• Use a reliable password manager: You can generate and save secure passwords for all of your online accounts with the aid of a password manager.
• Be cautious while sharing information online: Never divulge sensitive information to someone you don't know and trust, such as your credit card number or Social Security number.

It is entirely prohibited to use it for phishing or other illegal activities. It is far preferable to use the normal ChatGPT rather than attempting to use this one because it doesn't vary in any way from the regular ChatGPT in terms of responding to general and legal inquiries. Besides, GPT-4 is far better in almost every aspect.

WormGPT might theoretically be used for good intentions. But it's important to remember that WormGPT was developed and spread with malicious intentions. Any use of it raises moral dilemmas and legal risks.

Source

We also looked at the amount of time that Macs receive updates after they're discontinued. Models that are sold for an abnormally long time—like the entry-level 21.5-inch iMac that Apple sold from 2017 to 2021, to pick one example that Sonoma doesn't support—don't get software updates for longer just because Apple sold them for longer. This differs from the timeline Apple uses to provide hardware repair services, which is determined based on "when Apple last distributed the product for sale." This should make you hesitate before you buy the nearly three-year-old M1 MacBook Air today just because it's a little cheaper than the M2 models.

 

• 

• 

Having established that late-model Intel Macs are receiving fewer updates than older Intel Macs did, the question is whether this is another dip in support that will revert to the seven- or eight-year norm once all Intel Macs are gone or whether this is a new normal and we can expect Apple Silicon Macs to receive fewer years of updates going forward (six-ish years of feature updates has been the norm for iPhone models that Apple has dropped in the last couple releases, including 2015's iPhone 6S and 2017's iPhone 8).

 

We won't know that for sure until 2026 or 2027, when the first of the M1 Macs start hitting this wall. Apple has been selling M1 Macs like the MacBook Air and iMac for a long time, so I certainly hope that these systems have many years of updates left to come. But the data shows that this isn't a given.

The explanations

It's easy to look at this data and conclude that Apple is chasing a planned obsolescence strategy, which may well be true. But there are nuances, and there are some user benefits (albeit minor ones) to dropping support for old hardware relatively quickly. And Apple also can't control when other companies decide to end support for parts inside those Macs.

 

The most likely cause for this decline in support for latter-day Intel Macs is also the simplest one: It's simply in Apple's business interests to do so. Most cynically, if your old Mac gets fewer years of software updates, you have one more reason to buy a new Mac. And buyers on a budget have one more reason to consider new or Apple-refurbished Macs rather than used ones.

 

But Apple's business interests and its customers' interests do have some overlap. Maintaining Intel code alongside Apple Silicon code takes time and money for Apple to do, time and money that is saved when some of that code can be removed. But removing files needed to support those older Macs also has benefits for people using Macs that are still supported. Removing support for multiple old Intel architectures in Ventura saved between 3GB and 4.5GB of disk space on supported Apple Silicon and Intel Macs, compared to the same computers running macOS Monterey.

 

And users of Apple Silicon Macs will continue to benefit from this as more Intel code is removed from the operating system. Eventually, more app developers will also start dropping Intel support, shipping apps that only contain Apple Silicon code instead of universal ones that contain all the code needed for both.

 

Since last year, Intel has published a support document that is very explicit about its support timelines for various processor generations (PDF). When processors reach their "End of Servicing Lifetime" (ESL), the company will no longer provide any kind of technical support or security updates for issues affecting those processors. After a later "End of Support" (EOS) deadline, Intel even scrubs support documentation and drivers for those processors from its website.

 

Intel says it will typically add processors to this page when they're within 12 months of their ESL date. And as it turns out, Intel has generally opted to stop providing updates and support for most processors around six or seven years after their initial release. The 7th-generation "Kaby Lake" processors in the 2017 class of Macs will all hit that ESL date at the end of March 2024.

 

Even if security support for Intel chips is a consideration, Apple is moving aggressively here. March 2024 is still six months or so after macOS Sonoma's probable release date.

 

From Apple's perspective, support from Intel means ongoing firmware updates and updated drivers, things that help keep the Mac platform secure and keep it running with minimal crashes, bugs, and instability. As we said a year ago, it's possible to continue running modern operating systems on top of outdated firmware using old drivers, but Apple might not want to be responsible for security flaws, instability, or other problems it can't actually fix without Intel's help, especially for six-year-old systems.

 

From a user's perspective, though, the fact remains that these older systems with older processors don't become pumpkins just because Intel has decided it is done supporting them.

The writing is on the wall for Intel Macs—but how far away is the wall?

With three years of the Apple Silicon era under our belts (and four OS updates), it's getting a little easier to guess what will happen to these last Intel Macs. With the caveat that this is all still speculation, here are three possible scenarios, listed from most to least likely:

 

Scenario 1: Apple supports 2019/2020 Intel Macs in macOS 15 and ends Intel support in macOS 16.

 

Why it could happen: The best predictor of Apple's future behavior in matters like these is usually its past behavior, and each of the last four macOS releases has moved the compatibility cutoff forward by a year or so. The macOS 13 update mostly cut off pre-2017 Macs, the macOS 14 update is cutting off pre-2018 Macs, and macOS 15 could cut off pre-2019 Macs. (The last of the Intel Macs came out in early to mid 2020; I think it's slightly more likely that they will get lumped in with the 2019 models when Apple decides to cut those off.)

 

Why it might not: Apple could choose to be either more or less generous with future software updates.

 

Scenario 2: Apple ends all Intel Mac support in macOS 15.

 

Why it could happen: Apple didn't let PowerPC Macs linger long; it totally cut out all PowerPC support in macOS 10.6 Snow Leopard, released around three years after the end of the Intel transition, and it used the disk space savings as a selling point.

 

Why it might not: Intel Macs sold way better than PowerPC Macs did, and ending all Intel support aggressively would leave more people out in the cold than ending PowerPC support did. This would also be a quick cutoff for the 2019 and 2020 class of Intel Macs, which in this scenario would get fewer years of software support than any Mac since the mid-2000s. Apple was selling some 2018 Mac minis until earlier this year and the 2019 Mac Pro up until a few weeks ago.

 

People who bought those Macs between late 2020 and now hopefully did so with the knowledge that the clock was ticking for Intel Macs, but even with the promise of two years of security-only updates, totally ending feature updates for year-old systems seems excessive.

 

Scenario 3: Apple supports the same Intel Macs in macOS 15 and ends Intel support in macOS 16.

 

Why it could happen: At this point, there are so few Intel Macs left that they're mostly pretty homogenous in terms of hardware speed, capabilities, and underlying architecture. Almost all of them have Apple T2 chips, and Intel's CPUs during that time were improving relatively little year over year. The same stagnation that led Apple to dump Intel in the first place should theoretically make this entire last batch of Intel Macs pretty easy to support.

 

Why it might not: The last time a new macOS release supported the same Macs as its predecessor was 2019. And every year since then, there have been Macs on the unlucky side of the cutoff line that were very similar to some of the fully supported Macs. Age, more than hardware capability, seems to be dictating where Apple draws the line for Intel Macs.

Keeping old hardware alive will only get harder

The version of macOS released in 2017, High Sierra, happily installed and ran on Macs from 2009 and 2010. If you bought a Mac that year, you may have done so expecting it to get similarly generous update support. As the sun sets on the Intel Mac era, it's clear that this won't be the case for any of the remaining Intel models, even if they're meeting your day-to-day needs just fine.

 

What I'd like from Apple in this situation hasn't changed much since last year—pump the brakes, issue security updates for old versions for longer, and communicate better and more in advance about when old hardware is losing support. But the problem isn't limited to Apple's systems.

 

Microsoft supported—and even encouraged—anyone with a Windows 7 or Windows 8 system to upgrade to Windows 10. You could run a brand-new operating system from 2020 on a 10-year-old system—or something even older with the appropriate hardware upgrades—and you could expect to get most of the same features you'd get running the same software on a brand-new PC (performance, battery life, and other hardware features aside). When it was introduced in 2021, Windows 11 wouldn't officially install on anything made before 2017. (Windows 10 will, however, be supported with security updates until late 2025, several years longer than many Macs.)

 

Google's ChromeOS is doing a bit better, offering eight years of updates from launch for most post-2020 models and five or six years for pre-2020 models. But when those updates dry up, it's the end of the line, at least as far as "official" support goes.

 

Users of all of these platforms do have some recourse. You could do an "unsupported" Windows 11 install or switch to ChromeOS Flex. You could rely on community-made hacks and workarounds like the OpenCore Legacy Patcher. Or you could install a Linux distribution of your choosing (last year, Linus Torvalds made headlines for suggesting that the Linux kernel could drop support for 1989's Intel 486 CPU). But each of these options comes with some amount of fussiness and friction, and if you're advising a normal person who just wants to safely use a functioning computer with an interface they're used to, it's almost always easier to advise them to just buy something new.

 

I feel like I'm yelling on behalf of a tiny pool of people when I talk about this stuff—those who care enough about security and new features to want to stay up to date and who also care about keeping older hardware up and running (and in the continuing utility of secondhand PCs). And those who think that people shouldn't need to switch from the operating system and ecosystem they're comfortable with if they don't want to. I also don't think companies should be obliged to officially support every product they release in perpetuity.

 

But it's exasperating that it's getting more difficult across the board to keep running up-to-date software on functioning hardware that's more than seven or eight years old—especially as the right-to-repair movement is notching some small but significant victories and as carbon emissions caused in part by the manufacturing and shipping of new hardware are causing more and more visible problems.

 

Microsoft's strategy for Windows 11, at least so far, might be a good example to emulate. Officially, the company discourages upgrades on unsupported hardware, and the older your hardware is, the harder it is to convince the OS to install. But once the operating system is installed, at least in my experience on "unsupported" systems, it runs fine, and installing new feature and security updates doesn't break it. Go back far enough and you'll still hit hardware that the software simply won't run on, but this kind of approach could work well for recently unsupported systems that still have some life in them. (Microsoft could decide to stop releasing updates for these machines tomorrow, but the current status quo is "install Windows 11 if you insist—it's your funeral.")

 

This might not be a viable way forward for macOS. For starters, macOS is designed to only run on a limited subset of specific hardware, whereas Windows at its core is more modular and made to run on any system that conforms to PC standards. But I'd still like to see Apple find a way to break free of the software-support binary—to give advanced and technical users and aging but useful hardware a space to exist in between "supported" and "unsupported."

 

Source

What you need to know

• ASUS has announced its ProArt RTX 4060 Ti.
• It brings double the VRAM compared to the standard model, taking it from 8GB to 16GB.
• This bump in specs comes with a significant price increase.

ASUS have announced its creator focused ProArt GeForce RTX 4060 Ti that doubles the VRAM of the standard 4060 Ti models from 8GB to 16GB. It's a wonderful looking GPU and will work well in a production focused build due to the lower power usage of the 4060 Ti and its Ada Lovelace architecture. 

Here's some of what ASUS says the ProArt edition brings to the table in terms of hardware additions and software features:

• It has an OC (overclock) mode that bumps the clock speeds up to 2685MHz from the 2655MHz of the default mode.
• Triple fan 2.5-slot design will keep it running cool.
• Dual ball fan bearings that last up to twice as long as conventional designs.
• 0dB technology that lets you enjoy light gaming in relative silence.
• Auto-Extreme precision automated manufacturing for higher reliability.
• GPU Tweak III profile Connect enables creators to optimize system performance and cooling for every app.
• It has an 8-pin power connector.

Windows Central take

The 4060 Ti 16GB is effectively what consumers should have received at the very least for the $399 price they're paying for that standard 8GB model. For the ASUS ProArt 4060 Ti 16GB consumers will likely be paying a $100+ premium for this increased VRAM and a huge cooler that simply does not belong on this tier of GPU.

If you want a higher level of gaming performance to boot, well unfortunately the RTX 4070 only has 12GB of VRAM. You'd have to go up to an RTX 4080 to get this amount of VRAM without switching to AMD. So, the 4060 Ti 16GB is still your best bet on a budget.

Along with other 16GB VRAM editions of the RTX 4060 Ti, the ASUS ProArt version is expected to launch on Tuesday, July 18th. However, don't expect many SKU's from AIB's as demand for this card is expected to be even lower than the poorly received RTX 4060 Ti 8GB.

Source

Source

Source

Threads received over 150 million downloads (iOS and Google Play combined) within seven days of its launch. It achieved the milestone 5.5 times more quickly than the second-fastest app to do so. The microblogging app is followed by Niantic's Pokémon GO which reached the same milestone in 33 days, and Call of Duty: Mobile which took 106 days.

The analytics firm notes that Threads had around "93 million active users globally during its first partial week of availability." It said that the weekly active user (WAU) count of the newly launched social media app had reached about one-fifth of its rival Twitter worldwide.

On the contrary, numbers from Similarweb and Sensor Tower suggest that the app's user engagement has dropped since its official launch earlier this month.

Speaking of its market share, Data.ai says India has taken the top spot by capturing 33% of the app's download share for iOS and Google Play combined as of July 12. Brazil has the second biggest footprint with a 22% share, followed by 16% of the global app downloads coming from the United States.

Threads is unavailable in the EU due to privacy concerns and it's awaiting regulatory approval for the launch. It was recently reported that its parent Meta is trying to stop EU users from using the app via VPNs.

While the Twitter rival is profiting off Instagram's massive user base, Threads users a still waiting for a number of key features to be added. Instagram head Adam Mosseri assured that many Threads features are on the way, but there are no immediate plans to introduce direct messaging in the app.

Via TechCrunch

Source

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman writes in his weekly newsletter, Power On, that Apple is working on releasing the new iMac this October. The company is not expected to unveil new 15-inch MacBook Air or Pro models this year. That is because Apple had launched the 15-inch MacBook Air and M2 Ultra Macs last month.  Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo had hinted earlier that the company's M3 Pro and M3 Max chips will only be ready in 1H of 2024, which is likely the reason why the next-gen MacBook Pros and desktops won't be announced this year.

First M3 Apple Silicon Macs could be launched in October

Apple is said to be focussing on three new Macs with the M3 Apple Silicon chip, a 13-inch MacBook Air, a 13-inch MacBook Pro, and an iMac. The company's 13-inch laptops have been selling like hot cakes, the MacBook Air M1 which debuted in 2020, still has a strong demand among buyers.

As for the performance of the computers, the next-gen chips are said to be built on TSMC's 3 nm process. The Apple M3 may have a 12-core CPU, an 18-core GPU, and could support up to 36 GB of RAM. While the regular version of the M3 chip could be equipped with 6 power-efficient cores and 6-performance cores, a higher-end version of the chip with 8 power-efficient cores and a 20-core GPU is said to be in development, as the M3 Pro. Both models could deliver higher performance and better battery life than the previous-gen's M2 chips.

The iMac market however is quite interesting. It has been two years since Apple launched the 2021 iMac, which came with an M1 Apple Silicon. The company did not opt to release an upgraded version of the all-in-one computer with an M2 chip last year, so a refresh is due. The upcoming M3 iMac will serve as an upgrade for the target audience, while retaining the same core design as its predecessor, i.e. it could sport a 24-inch display.

It is worth noting that Gurman had recently reported that a 32-inch iMac is in development. Apple wants to provide users with a large screen machine, and that it will be powered by an M3 chip. However, the 32-inch iMac may only hit shelves by the end of late 2024.

The Cupertino company is expected to unveil the iPhone 15 series in October, and is also said to reveal the next-gen Apple Watches. It will also announce the stable release of iOS 17, iPadOS 17 and macOS 14 Sonoma. It is likely that the M3 iMac could also be unveiled during the event.

The Bloomberg journalist has hinted that Apple is testing a new iPad that may be announced this year. However, the company is not expected to launch new iPad Pro models with OLED displays and M3 Pro chips until 2024. An iPad Air that may be powered by an M2 Apple Silicon does not sound like a bad deal, especially if we consider the iPad 2022 which came with an M1 chip. A newer model with a better processor, and/or upgrades for the other components could be welcomed by users.

Source

After more than a decade of development, the first version of Wi-Fi, known as 802.11, was released in 1997. It was a remarkable feat. Connecting to the internet inside a place, whether residential or office, without any need for an Ethernet wire.

Initially, Wi-Fi offered speeds of only 2Mbps. Two years after the official release of the specs, it received an update called 802.11b, allowing speeds up to 11Mbps. Then came more updates to it, like Wi-Fi a and g. The most important one was 802.11n. Released in 2003, it supported speeds from 72Mbps to 600Mbps. It still powers a huge number of routers worldwide.

In 2008, Wi-Fi received an even bigger update in the form of 802.11ac. It not only allowed speeds starting at 433 Mbps and reaching 6933Mbps, but it was the first specification to officially support the 5GHz radio frequency. This was a big deal as 2.4GHz is used by many appliances and is subject to interference, not to mention that it was getting crowded.

Then came Wi-Fi 6, which supported speeds up to 9608 Mbps and also supported the 6GHz radio frequency. The latest Wi-Fi 7, released a few years ago, however, supports speeds up to 46120Mbps (46Gbps).

The problem with Wi-Fi, however, is that it’s based on radio frequencies, which have their own issues. While it can reach a lot of places, its speeds are limited. The further you are from the router, the slower it gets.

So some people thought, why not use the light as an internet communication source. It looks like we do now.

Introducing LiFi

A few days ago, the IEEE 802.11 Wi-Fi standards authority officially released (via Tom’s Hardware) the 802.11bb standard. Known as LiFi, it’s a significant milestone for the new wireless communication tech.

Unlike Wi-Fi, which uses the radio frequency of the electromagnetic spectrum, LiFi instead uses the visible light spectrum, the light that is visible to us. In simple words, it uses common light to transfer data.

What it does is convert a simple LED bulb into an internet router. Wherever the light of the bulb reaches, you can access the internet through it. LiFi is specifically designed for it. Not only that, it’s quite cheap to implement, as existing lighting fixtures can be used for it.

The outcome of doing that is that it supports speeds up to 224 GBPS (gigabytes, not gigabits). Which it claims is a hundred times faster than the fastest Wi-Fi available, WiGig.

It also claims that one doesn’t need to turn the LED lights at full brightness all the time, as they have found the performance to be similar whether the LED lights are dimmed to 10% or kept at 90%.

In terms of actual performance, the 224 GBPS speed is just theoretical, just like the theoretical Wi-Fi speeds mentioned above. Currently, they have been able to successfully show speeds above 1GBPS. Not to forget, it says that a blue LED can provide up to 3.5GBPS, while a single white LED can provide up to 1.7GBPS.

Also, as LiFi doesn’t go through walls, technically, it provides better privacy to the user.

Conclusion

The people behind LiFi specifically mention that it’s not made to replace Wi-Fi, but instead compliment it. It can be used in areas where Wi-Fi isn’t possible to use or allowed, or where high-speed internet isn’t possible wirelessly.

The LiFi idea itself isn’t new. In fact, it’s been used in industrial areas for some time now. But now that its standards are finalized, we will see that it will easily become available to consumers too.

However, it will require compatible devices to be able to use it. So we will have to wait at least a few years for it.

Source

When modern smart displays first arrived in 2017 in the form of the first-generation Echo Show, we called them creepy with big potential. Over the past six years, smart displays still feel like a lumbering category with untapped potential—Amazon, Google, and even Meta haven’t been able to crack the code to turn a smart display into a must-have home device. It feels like these screens, which let you control smart home devices, make video calls, and ask voice assistants anything, should have had their Big Moment™ during the era of lockdowns and Zoom-only hangouts.

But as Apple demoed during WWDC and Google unveiled at Google I/O, the best smart displays are already in our hands and homes. Both companies have announced software and hardware that take devices you’re already familiar with—smartphones and tablets—and turn them into smart displays when you aren’t using them. 

Notably, this is Apple’s first foray into the category. (Google has a few smart displays on the market but hasn’t launched anything new since 2021.) This might indicate that Apple is experimenting with dedicated smart display hardware for later down the line, but between Apple and Google, it’s a clear case we never needed smart displays at all.

Tablet or Phone

Photograph: Google

Apple and Google have each selected just one device that doubles as a smart display, and they’ve taken different paths. Google's Pixel Tablet costs $499 (7/10, WIRED Recommends) and transforms into a smart display when you place it on the included speaker/charging dock. You can buy these docks separately ($129) and place them around the house. 

The slate will switch over to Hub Mode when you magnetically dock it, which accepts smart home commands via Google Assistant, and has an easy way to access smart home touch controls. It has a few display options you can choose from, like an animated clock or photos from your Google Photos library, and since it supports Chromecast, you can cast shows or music and have it play through the built-in speaker. 

Photograph: Apple

Meanwhile, Apple chose to transform the iPhone into a smart display. The iPhone's next major operating system update, iOS 17, will have a mode called StandBy that activates when an iPhone is charging in a horizontal orientation. You'll be able to customize what your StandBy mode includes, from a clock and photos from your library to interactive widgets. Your iPhone will only remember those settings when it's using a MagSafe charger. A cheap $40 stand is all you need to make it work with your device, as long as it supports iOS 17.

Photograph: Google

It's worth noting that Google has had a similar function when you place its Pixel phone on the company's own wireless charger. This triggers easier access to smart home controls, toggles on Do Not Disturb and Bedtime Mode to keep you off your phone before bed, and the screen doubles as a sunrise alarm to emulate the sunrise and wake you up.  

Both of these approaches have appeal. Apple's StandBy mode is like a bedside clock, and the option to use any charging stand that allows horizontal charging makes it easy for any iPhone user to try it anywhere in the home without spending much. The Pixel's larger display—and included speaker in the dock—appeals to me even more. I can follow recipes using my favorite apps, stream shows, control my smart home, and do practically anything else but on a bigger screen. The tablet isn't locked to one part of the house as well.

Call Me Maybe

Smart displays have a wide range of features, but they rarely deliver them better than other hardware. It’s far easier for me to find a recipe I want on a laptop, phone, or tablet. A digital photo frame’s screen will make my family photos look tremendously more natural than any smart display. Smart displays also rarely remember which episode of a streaming show I was last watching. 

I will concede on one feature: Weather details are much more glanceable or easy to conjure up on a smart display than my phone or smart speaker. Air quality is also a nice on-screen offering on Google's Nest Hubs. But that’s not enough for devices that can cost anywhere from $55 to $250 these days.

Photograph: Google

Perhaps the biggest potential, and biggest disappointment, are video calls. These should be the perfect device to make a quick video call on in the age of Zoom, Google Meet, and FaceTime, right? They’re hands-free, you can use voice commands, and many have cameras that can zoom in and out and follow you as you move around a room. But smart displays never managed to make it easier or more convenient to use them for a call instead of your smartphone, tablet, or computer.

Making a call on your smartphone or tablet is already easy; adding a stand that will let you enjoy other benefits and make whatever call you'd like while staying hands-free feels like we've finally made it to the convenience smart displays have been promising for more than half a decade.

No more propping up your phone when there's a stand that will hold it horizontally for you while you make a call hands-free. If you decide to move around, you can simply pick up your phone or tablet and walk away, rather than feeling locked into anywhere the device is sitting. (Or regretting you didn't use a smart display when you sit down next to it, already on your iPhone or laptop. That definitely hasn't happened to me.)

The Echo of Amazon

Photograph: Amazon

Between Google I/O and WWDC, Amazon also made an announcement in the world of smart displays: two new Echo Show 5 displays. One is a minor refresh on the current model, and the other is its first version for kids. The announcement left me scratching my head. It felt like Amazon was spinning its wheels while the other players moved in a more exciting direction. I'm currently testing the new third-gen Echo Show 5 and it’s just reminded me of all the limitations smart displays haven't solved.

Amazon has a number of displays available, from the pint-size Show 5 to the large, 15-inch Echo Show 15 that needs to be mounted on a wall. Ultimately, they each feel like a different style of pasta being thrown at the wall, waiting for one to stick.

With Apple's reluctance to enter the space with dedicated hardware, and Google's tablet and docking station combo as its first new offering in two years, it feels like confirmation that smart displays have always been a half-baked idea. What we really needed was the perfect stand to give us these same features, while taking advantage of the screen that's already in our hands. That kind of simplicity, my friends, is what a smart home should feel like.

Special offer for Gear readers: Get WIRED for just $5 ($25 off). This includes unlimited access to WIRED.com, full Gear coverage, and subscriber-only newsletters. Subscriptions help fund the work we do every day.

Source

(May require free registration to view)

1. Windows 11 23H2 confirmed and more
2. Windows Update and Windows Update-like ransomware
3. App updates and new features
4. Gaming news and the FTC takes the L
5. More layoffs
6. Office gets new font
7. Fun read and trivia
8. Random Fact about Microsoft

Windows 11 23H2 confirmed and more

This week, Microsoft reminded those unwilling (or unable) to upgrade from the original Windows 11 version 21H2 to 22H2. Customers sticking to the first Windows 11 release should note that the OS will soon reach its end of life. Therefore, no more security updates, new features, fixes, etc. Luckily, users have three months to plan the upgrade.

Microsoft plans to kill the original Windows 11 release in October 2023, just in time for the next feature update, version 23H2. And this week, Microsoft confirmed that Windows 11 version 23H2 would arrive in a few months as an enablement package. Sharing the same branch and code base will ensure users move from 22H2 to 23H2 faster and with fewer risks of encountering an issue or bug. Microsoft did not provide exact dates, but it said users should expect Windows 11 version 23H2 around the fourth quarter of 2023.

Windows insiders testing preview builds from the Dev Channel got nothing new to install this week. However, Microsoft finally released a fresh build in the Canary Channel. And unlike previous releases, build 25905 brought quite a few new features. Here are the most notable changes:

• The long-promised 3D Fluent Emojis are finally available in Windows 11. However, the implementation requires extra improvements, so expect more changes in future updates.
• A built-in TPM troubleshooter: in build 25905, the Windows Security app (aka "built-in antivirus") lets you run diagnostics to detect and potentially resolve problems with the Trusted Platform Module firmware, which is a must for those running Windows 11 (on supported hardware).

• System repair via Windows Update: you can ask Windows to download and reinstall your current build without removing apps, files, and settings. This thing will serve as a nice troubleshooting tool for those not having a bootable USB around for in-place repair.

• No more arm32 UWP app support: those using Windows 11 PCs with ARM processors should update their UWP apps before installing the latest Canary build. All arm32 UWP apps will not open once the upgrade is complete.

• Cortana is now user-removable: Windows 11 build 25905 allows uninstalling Cortana like any other app downloaded from the Microsoft Store. Right-click Cortana in the list of all apps and select Uninstall. Previously, removing Cortana required executing a terminal command.

   

You can find other changes in build 25905 in the release notes. Build 25905 is not everything Microsoft released in the Windows Insider program:

• Beta Channel: 22621/3.2048 with File Explorer Gallery and dark mode for Paint
• Release Preview Channel: 22621.2066 with notification improvements and fixes
• Release Preview Channel: 22000.2243 with the same changelog
• Release Preview Channel: 19045.3269 with various fixes

Windows Update and Windows Update-like ransomware

We all know modern Windows versions install many updates every month. Most users do not pay attention to Windows updates unless they introduce new features (check out five coming soon to Windows 11), break things, or encrypt your data. That is right, someone made ransomware that disguises itself as Windows Update. You might think your PC is installing the latest Patch Tuesday release, while in reality, it only encrypts your files. Yikes!

Luckily, we had plenty of good Windows Update-related news this week. For example, enthusiasts created a true to its era website to let old Windows 95, 98, and XP systems get the latest updates. You can access the website using Internet Explorer 5 and experience Windows Update in all its ancient glory.

Those using more modern Windows versions got planned Patch Tuesday updates with fixes and security improvements. Here are the details for each supported Windows 10 and 11 version:

• Windows 10 versions 21H2 and 22H2: KB5028166
• Windows 11 version 22H2: KB5028185
• Windows 11 version 21H2: KB5028182
• Dynamic updates: KB5028311 for Windows 10 and KB5028312/14 for Windows 11

Notable changes in those updates include fixes for mouse stutters and a Secure Boot bypass. Installing all available patches will make your system perform better and safer. Microsoft also revealed details about many malware-infested Windows 11 and 10 WHQL drivers. The company promptly added them to its revocation and published a security advisory.

Get those app updates

Windows Subsystem for Android, which lets you run Android apps on a Windows 11 PC, received a new update to test before the public release. Version 2306 Preview improves camera compatibility, storage, OneDrive, security, picture-in-picture, and other subsystem parts. If you are an active WSA user and want to test new features and improvements before everyone else, sign up for the preview program here.

In addition to releasing the latest set of improvements for Windows Subsystem for Android, Microsoft launched the Amazon Appstore, giving all developers the green light to publish their Android apps to run on Windows 11 PCs.

Speaking of app stores, Microsoft started rolling out two new features for the Microsoft Store on Windows 11. Windows Insiders can try the new AI Hub (announced at Build 2023) and pricing information improvements.

Other notable updates released this week include Rufus 4.2.4070 Beta with fixes and ZIP64 support and Microsoft Dev Box public availability. Those owning Surface computers can also download fresh firmware releases for the Surface Pro X device family and the Surface Studio 2/2+. These updates contain important fixes (camera issues are finally resolved) and support for new accessories.

Microsoft 365 Insiders can try the new Recording Studio in PowerPoint on macOS, new features for Teams Phone, and the new wireless photo transfer feature in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint on Windows.

VMWare released a Tech Preview of its next-generation Fusion virtualization software for macOS. It adds full 3D hardware acceleration, giving Apple Silicon users access to DirectX 11 3D games and other benefits. And speaking of 3D acceleration, Intel Arc users can grab the latest beta driver with support for Exoprimal and Jagged Alliance 3.

Gaming news and the FTC takes the L

We had a few major stories on the gaming news side. For starters, Microsoft finally scored in the Activision-Blizzard merger case. The five-day hearing ended in Microsoft's favor, which means the only remaining stumbling block on the road to finishing the $69 billion merger is the UK's Competition Appeals Tribunal. The FTC attempted to file an appeal to stop the acquisition, but the court denied it. As the saga continues, check out Phil Spencer's internal memo about the win against the FTC.

The second bombshell dropped earlier this week is about Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb leaving the Xbox team after working for Microsoft for over 20 years. One of the most prominent Xbox managers revealed his departure on Twitter, citing the desire to "work on the next chapter" of his career. Phil Spencer, Xbox head, thanked Major Nelson for his dedicated and passionate work, and even the official PlayStation Twitter account paid their respect.

We wish Larry Hryb all the best in his new ventures!

Seeing such a legendary face leaving Microsoft is sad, but the world continues spinning, which means more gaming news and interesting stories. After Microsoft went on a crusade against emulators running on Xbox consoles, some developers bypassed new rules and offered paid access to emulators via Patreon. The new emulator collection comes stripped of as many identifiable elements as possible. Still, that does not guarantee Microsoft will not be able to target-lock and shoot down the project. Therefore, proceed with the venture at your own risk.

In the previous episode of Microsoft Weekly, we discussed the increased price of Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. This week brought us more Game Pass-related news. Microsoft announced the end of the experimental Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Friends and Family plan that allowed you to share the subscription with up to five people.

According to the statement from Microsoft, the company will be "evaluating the learnings to help create an offer that we can bring to more players world-wide in the future." Those using the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Friends and Family plan will get their benefits revoked on August 15, 2023.

Those playing on Xbox One and Xbox Series consoles will be glad to learn about the new feature that lets you report abuse in voice chats. The system (currently under public testing in the Alpha and Alpha Skip Ahead rings of the Xbox Insider program) allows sending a 60-second clip of an in-game voice incident to Microsoft for future investigations and taking action against the abuser.

If you prefer playing on PC, check out this week's Epic Games Store giveaway: Train Valley 2 is available for grabs until next Thursday. Also, Microsoft launched the Ultimate Game Sale, allowing Xbox and PC users save up to 80% on popular titles, such as Forza Horizon 5, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Star Wars: Jedi Survivor, and more. Finally, there is a bunch of great PC games on sale on Steam.

More layoffs

At the beginning of this year, Microsoft revealed it would terminate 10,000 employees, slightly less than 5% of its workforce. Sadly, the company is not done with layoffs: this week, a Microsoft spokesperson confirmed a new round. Microsoft's employees from various departments have already changed their LinkedIn pages, but the exact number of people Microsoft wants to let go remains unknown.

Office gets new font

Microsoft surprised everyone this week by announcing a new default font for Office apps. Aptos will replace the legendary Calibri introduced 13 years ago alongside Office 2007. Here is how Microsoft describes the new font:

Similar to mid-20th-century Swiss typography, Aptos is a sans serif. Also referred to as Grotesque or Gothic, sans serif often have simple letterforms, even strokes, and they’re easily readable. Aptos, made of varying geometric shapes, is bold, well-defined, directive, and constrained. It articulates many different languages and tones. Stem ends are clean cut. Subtle circular squares within the letters’ contours allow higher legibility, especially at small sizes.

You can find more information about Aptos here.

More fun read, trivia, and reviews

Do you know about the "Microsoft ActiMates" brand? In his latest "look back" article, John Callaham dives into Microsoft's past and weird products, such as a Barney toy made by the software giant in the late 1990s. Imagine connecting a plush toy to your TV or computer and watching it react to what is playing on a VHS tape.

If you are a fan of unconventional devices, check out Steven Parker's hands-on FluentTalk T1 Mini, a portable and affordable translator. In the era of smartphones doing virtually everything, it is beyond interesting to see a niche device dedicated to only one thing.

The legendary Nokia Lumia 1020, a beloved Windows Phone smartphone with a 41-megapixel camera, marked its 10-year birthday. Here is a look-back article remembering the best cameraphone of its era (with the best mobile operating system ever made), which still can beat the living pixel out of many modern smartphones.

Finally, here is a fun one: NTDEV, the mastermind behind the Tiny11 project, has pushed Windows 11 way past its limits by running the OS with only 176MB of RAM, which is 23 times less than the minimum requirement of 4GB. Pointless and unnecessary but still impressive.

Random fact about Microsoft

Did you know that Microsoft has a track record of making unorthodox products seemingly unrelated to operating systems or productivity apps? In 1995, the company released a CD-ROM called "Microsoft Dogs." It featured information about various dog breeds, training tips, and even a virtual dog show.

The CD-ROM was part of the "Exploration Series" products under the Microsoft Home brand to showcase Windows' multimedia capabilities. Other Exploration Series CD-ROMs included "Ancient Lands," "Dinosaurs," "Dangerous Creatures," and "Musical Instruments."

Source

You probably already know how popular Instagram's Threads app has become if you use social media even a little. Threads is currently seen as Twitter's main rival after it gained 10 million users in just 7 hours of release.

However, some people want to use Threads without Instagram and ask Google if it is possible. Let's see if you can use Meta's new social media platform without an Instagram account.

Threads without Instagram: Is it possible?

It is not possible to use Threads without Instagram as you will have to log in with your IG credentials and the application also offers you to follow everyone on your Instagram. It also doesn't look like this will ever change and people who wants to use Threads will have to create an Instagram account too.

Some users who are not interested in using Instagram may find this disappointing, however there are a few reasons why this is the case. First of all, Threads was created as an Instagram add-on. It syncs your contacts with your Instagram account so you can quickly see who is already linked to you on Threads.

Second, Meta is probably using Instagram to help Threads evolve and grow  since it is still in its development. Meta may make sure that Threads has a big enough user base by requiring users to have an Instagram account.

Can you still register a Threads account if you don't want to use Instagram?

No, you cannot set up a Threads account without using Instagram. There is one small solution, nevertheless, that you may use.

Making a fake Instagram account and using it to make a Threads account is one approach. If you truly want to use Threads, there is a method around this constraint, however it is not ideal. You will still need to create an Instagram account as using Threads without Instagram is not possible.

Source

Source

Source

MANY OF OUR favorite TVs and monitors today boast displays with high refresh rates that promise smoother onscreen action and a sharper picture. Many of the best Android phones and all of Apple's iPhone Pro models (from the 13 Pro on) can reach a 120-Hz refresh rate.

High refresh rates are also talked about a lot in gaming, where fast reactions and instant onscreen updates can mean the difference between victory and failure. There are even a handful of Android gaming phones that can reach 144-Hz refresh rates and higher.

What Is a Refresh Rate?

All content on your display is made up of individual still frames (photos) shown in sequence at a very high speed. The refresh rate is measured in hertz (Hz), and it dictates how often the frame can change. A refresh rate of 120 Hz allows a new frame to be displayed up to 120 times every second. A 60-Hz display can only refresh the screen 60 times per second. And you can guess how many times a 90-Hz screen can refresh.

And What About Frame Rate?

It’s important to note that the potential benefit of a high screen refresh rate is limited by the frame rate of whatever is onscreen. With videos or video game graphics, this is expressed as frames per second (fps). Movies typically run at 24 frames per second, because it's a theatrical standard, while many games can run at up to 120 fps.

Touch Response Rate?

Just to confuse you more, manufacturers sometimes list the touch response rate (or touch sample rate) for touchscreen displays, which is also measured in hertz. This number relates to how often the touchscreen scans for a touch from your finger. The higher the touch response rate, the faster it responds to your touch.

How Refresh Rate Impacts Your Phone

A higher refresh rate allows a phone's display to keep up with gaming action and reduces motion blur on video, but it can also make navigating around the interface feel more responsive than it would on a display with a lower refresh rate. Games look less choppy during frenetic action, video footage of fast-paced sports action appears smoother, and any jerkiness scrolling a long web page is reduced. To get the full benefit of a high refresh rate, you also need a high frame rate, and ideally, the two match.

The cost is often your battery life. Refreshing the image on a display more times per second requires more battery power. Processing power is also needed to run graphics at a higher frame rate. Processors have improved enormously, but battery life is still limited on smartphones. For that reason, most phones with high refresh rates do not run at the highest rate all the time. This includes Apple's Pro iPhones, which have an “adaptive” 120-Hz refresh rate, which scales up at select times, when you're more likely to notice the difference.

Higher refresh rates first came to smartphones with the gaming-focused Razer Phone, but manufacturers like Samsung, OnePlus, and Google have since adopted them in flagship devices like the Galaxy S23 series and the Pixel range.

What About TVs and Monitors?

The benefits of a high refresh rate for a TV or monitor are much the same as for a smartphone. The onscreen action should appear smoother, and the image can appear sharper. Here too, the frame rate of the content is important. There are times when the frame rate will not match the refresh rate, and that can make TV shows and movies look worse.

The ‘Soap Opera Effect’ Explained

Some TVs and monitors are better than others at dealing with differences between the frame rate and the refresh rate. Many simply reduce their refresh rate to match the frame rate, but displays with a fixed refresh rate have to find other ways to deal with this discrepancy.

When a movie is running at 24 frames per second, for example, but the refresh rate is higher, the TV may insert extra frames to fill the gaps. This can be relatively straightforward when the refresh rate is divisible by the frame rate, as the TV can show multiples of the same frame. A 120-Hz refresh rate showing 24-fps content, for example, can display each frame five times. But with a 60-Hz refresh rate and 24-fps footage, you end up showing an uneven number of frames, which can cause a juddering, shaky effect for some viewers.

Some TVs use motion smoothing (or frame interpolation). They generate and insert new frames by processing and combining the surrounding frames. Some manufacturers are better than others at doing this, but it can also lead to something called the “soap opera effect,” which many people feel looks unnaturally smooth.

At least with movies, the frame rate is fixed. With games, the frame rate can fluctuate wildly. If you go from an enclosed tunnel to a wide vista, for example, or there’s an explosion, the frame rate can easily drop from 60 fps to 20 fps as your hardware struggles to deal with the higher processing burden. There are complications when the frame rate doesn’t match the refresh rate, and the picture may suffer stuttering and tearing effects as a result.

Many Monitors Use Variable Refresh Rate

This solution to the difference between frame rate and refresh rate has been around in PC gaming for many years. The most popular formats are tied to the big graphics card manufacturers, so you have AMD’s FreeSync and Nvidia’s G-Sync, but there’s also the generic Variable Refresh Rate (VRR). This is important for console gamers playing on TVs. VRR is supported by the HDMI 2.1 standard, which is one of the reasons you will see people discussing whether a TV has an HDMI 2.1 port or not. (It also brings support for 4K at 120 Hz and Auto Low Latency Mode.)

Some of the latest smartphone and tablet displays support some kind of VRR. Apple’s ProMotion brought a 120-Hz refresh rate to the 2017 iPad Pro, for example, but it adjusts automatically to match the content. Changing the refresh rate like this reduces the risk of stutter or other unwelcome effects, and it can also reduce power consumption. The refresh rate might jump to 120 Hz when you use the Apple Pencil or play a game, but then drop much lower when the screen is static on a menu or webpage.

Should I Even Worry About Refresh Rates?

Some people pick up on higher refresh rates more than others. You may have to look at displays with different refresh rates side by side to see the difference. Gamers who play fast-paced games will feel the most benefit, but anyone can enjoy the upgrade. A higher refresh rate reduces motion blur and makes action feel smoother, can make the picture appear sharper, and can make smartphones feel more responsive and speedy. Then again, they may already feel pretty smooth, and if you don't notice, don't sweat it.

Source

In a 20-page letter, the government asked OpenAI for specific details on its AI technology, products, clients, privacy policies, and data security measures.

The action against San Francisco-based OpenAI represents the largest regulatory threat to date to a startup that launched the generative artificial intelligence craze, captivating customers and companies but arousing doubts about its potential dangers.

FTC ChatGPT investigation

FTC ChatGPT investigation target spreading false information

The company that created ChatGPT, OpenAI, is under investigation by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission to discover if it violated consumer protection rules by using its chatbot to spread false information and scrape open data.

The government requested precise information from OpenAI in a 20-page letter on its AI technology, goods, clients, privacy policies, and data security procedures.

The spokeswoman for the FTC chose not to comment on the investigation, which was first reported on Thursday by the Washington Post.

The FTC has also requested that OpenAI make public the data it used to train the big language models that serve as the foundation for services like ChatGPT, but OpenAI has so far rejected. One among the writers suing OpenAI over allegations that ChatGPT's LLM was trained on data including their works is the American comedian Sarah Silverman.

The FTC has asked OpenAI to disclose whether it received the data directly from the internet (via "scraping") or by buying it from other parties. Additionally, it requests details on any measures made to ensure that personal information was not included in the training data as well as the identities of the websites from where the data was obtained.

Poor governance inside AI firms, according to Enza Iannopollo, principal analyst at research company Forrester, could be a "disaster" for customers and the companies themselves, opening them up to investigations and fines.

“As long as large language models (LLMs) remain opaque and rely largely on scraped data for training, the risks of privacy abuses and harm to individuals will continue to grow,” she said.

Source

Researchers have just unraveled some of the subtle mysteries behind ancient Egyptian art. Using new scanning techniques, the team have shown how artists approached and modified tomb paintings that were either not up to scratch or needed reworks.

The study of ancient Egyptian paintings is as old as Egyptology itself. Since the 19th century, generations of scholars have examined the types of techniques, pigments, and materials these artists used in their work. However, much of this research has been carried out in museums and so has not considered paintings present in funerary chapels and temples to the same extent.

Equally, archaeologists have reconstructed ancient Egyptian artistic processes by investigating unfinished monuments, which show different stages of construction and presentation. But these studies have relied on traditional archaeological techniques of interpretation and guesswork to fill in the gaps where solid evidence is missing.

Now, an international and multidisciplinary team of researchers has gone a step further by conducting on-site experiments using portable scanners to glean insights into artistic methods that are otherwise invisible to the naked eye.

They used X-ray fluorescence imaging (XRF), which uses X-rays to assess the chemical composition of an object without requiring physical samples, on two paintings that were produced around 3,000 years ago. One of the paintings is of the pharaoh Ramesses II (who reigned between c. 1279 BCE and 1213 BCE), which is located in the tomb of Nakhtamon, an official who was buried near Thebes where modern day Luxor is. The other painting was located in Menna’s tomb, another Egyptian official, which shows Menna and his wife adoring the god Osiris.

Both sites were chosen for their excellent conservation and their accessibility.   

According to the team, these paintings show evidence of touch-ups that were made during their production, which have previously been overlooked. For instance, the headdress, necklace, and scepter in the image of Ramesses II have been substantially reworked. In the painting of Menna’s adoration, the position and color of an arm has been changed – the pigments used in the skin tone are different to those originally used, which reveals subtle alterations.

The arm of Menna as he stands in adoration of Osiris was repainted in a different position and then covered up.

The evidence suggests that either the individual artists were able to make changes they deemed necessary for the work or that those who commissioned them requested alterations.

This research shows that pharaonic art and the methods used to produce it were considerably more complex than previously assumed. The scientists plan to analyze other paintings in the surrounding necropolis to locate new signs of craftsmanship and to potentially find out the individual identities of specific artists.

The study was published in PLOS ONE.

Source

Light is almost certainly the fastest thing around. So it makes sense that "light-based wireless communications," or LiFi, could blow the theoretical doors off existing radio-wave wireless standards, to the tune of a maximum 224GB per second. [Edit, 2:40 p.m.: It does not make sense, and those doors would remain on each rhetorical vehicle. As pointed out by commenters, radio waves, in a vacuum, would reasonably be expected to travel at the same speed as light. Ars, but moreso the author personally, regrets the error. Original post continues.]

 

So long as there's nothing blocking the space between your receiver and the lightbulb you've fashioned into a LiFi access point. Or you don't need to turn the bulb off entirely to sleep. And you're willing to add a dongle and keep it pointed the right way, at least for the moment.

 

But LiFi, or 802.11bb, isn't really meant to replace Wi-Fi, but complement it—a good thing for a technology theoretically nullified by a sheet of printer paper. In an announcement of the standard's certification by IEEE (spotted on PC Gamer) and on LiFiCO's FAQ page, the LED-based wireless standard is pitched as an alternative for certain use cases. LiFi could be useful when radio frequencies are inhibited or banned, when the security of the connection is paramount, or just whenever you want speed-of-light transfer at the cost of line-of-sight alignment.

 

Frauenhofer HHI, one of the standard's developers, suggests "classrooms, medical, and industrial scenarios." Operating in the optical spectrum, rather than the limited amount of licensed radio wavelengths, "ensures higher reliability and lower latency and jitter," says Dominic Schulz, lead LiFi developer at Frauenhofer. It also reduces jamming and eavesdropping and enables "centimeter-precision indoor navigation."

 

Now that it exists as a published standard, how does LiFi exist as an actual product you can use? In very limited fashion. If you like bleeding-edge networking technology, you can get into LiFi for $2,200 with the LiFiMax Flex, a kit that is "the most affordable LiFi product on the market today," according to LiFiCo. For that price, you get a ceiling-mounted access point and antenna, a dongle, and RJ45 cable to run to your connection. If you had $200 more to spend, you could add in a LiFiMax Tab, a tablet in a ruggedized case that does not require a dongle to access LiFi (though, graciously, it also has traditional Wi-Fi connectivity).

 

Curiously, these packages only promise 150Mbps down and 140Mbps up. PureLiFi, designing products for original equipment manufacturers, promises that its Light Antenna One is "gigabit capable," while a product brief describes it as "1 Gbps +."  The product page suggests that LiFi is the "pathway to breakneck speeds," but where we are on the trail right now isn't any wider than traditional Wi-Fi's broadest points.

 

There is potential here, despite the early Wi-Fi-via-flashlight awkwardness. While you can't turn a LiFi point entirely off, the signal has integrity at 10 percent room illumination (60 lux), and LiFiCo's FAQ suggests future use of the invisible parts of the light spectrum. LiFi also, crucially, works as an actual light source. The current fluctuations inside the light, which transmit the binary data, are happening at speeds so fast that the human eye can't perceive them. LiFi should not, in other words, remind you at times why "dimmable" bulbs are important.

 

And an ultra-high-speed, sight-line-required connection could make sense for emerging applications like AR/VR/XR, peer-to-peer transfer in a secure setting, or simply offloading a bandwidth-eating process from a taxed Wi-Fi network.

 

While newer Wi-Fi standards and copper lines can seemingly handle most of our bandwidth needs, demand tends to grow in volume to the size of its container. LiFi could be that next container. So long as your cat doesn't walk over it.

 

Source

Bloomberg's story, citing unnamed sources, claims Microsoft is considering selling its cloud gaming rights in the UK to a third-party company. It could be offered to a telecommunications company, a gaming publisher, an internet-based business, or even a private equity company, according to the article.

Microsoft has already made a 10-year deal with UK-based telecommunications company EE to offer its Xbox and Activision Blizzard games on EE's cloud gaming service if the acquisition is completed. It would seem like a deal with EE to give them full UK game streaming rights for Xbox and Activision Blizzard games would be a natural next step.

The clock to make any sort of deal with the CMA is winding down very quickly. Microsoft and Activision Blizzard have until July 18 to close this deal according to their original plans. After that, it's possible the two companies could enter talks to extend the deal deadline, or Microsoft could walk away and give $3 billion to Activision Blizzard as a consolation prize.

Right now, all eyes are on the US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. It's expected to make a ruling sometime before the end of the day today on the US Federal Trade Commission's request for a preliminary injunction to keep Microsoft from buying Activision Blizzard. If the court does deny the FTC's request, it's possible Microsoft could finally close the deal over the weekend or on Monday.

Source

Reddit is sunsetting its current coins and awards systems, meaning you soon won’t be able to thank a kind stranger for giving you Reddit Gold for one of your posts.

 

Awards are little icons on posts you might have come across while scrolling around Reddit, and they’re given by other users to show appreciation for a post. Perhaps the most commonly-known award is Reddit Gold, which shows up as a gold medal with a star, but there also reaction awards and awards specific to certain communities.

 

See all those icons? Those are awards.

Screenshot by Jay Peters / The Verge

 

To buy an award, you need to use Reddit Coins, but if you don’t already have some, you aren’t able to get any more of them as of Thursday, according to a post from Reddit admin (employee) venkman01. Awards and existing coins will still be available until September 12th, and the change to the awards and coins systems means that Reddit Premium subscribers won’t get a regular allotment of coins.

 

“While we saw many of the awards used as a fun way to recognize contributions from your fellow redditors, looking back at those eons, we also saw consistent feedback on awards as a whole,” venkman01 said. “First, many don’t appreciate the clutter from awards (50+ awards right now, but who’s counting?) and all the steps that go into actually awarding content. Second, redditors want awarded content to be more valuable to the recipient.”

 

Reddit does have plans for some kind of award system in the future, but the post only provides vague hints about what that might look like. “Rewarding content and contribution (as well as something golden) will still be a core part of Reddit,” venkman01 said. “In the coming months, we’ll be sharing more about a new direction for awarding that allows redditors to empower one another and create more meaningful ways to reward high-quality contributions on Reddit." In a reply, venkman01 said that “we want to create a system that is simple, easy to use, and easy to understand.”

 

Many users aren’t happy with Reddit’s decision. “Killing features without replacements ready, yep, sounds like Reddit to me,” wrote one user in a highly-awarded reply. Another, replying to an announcement post in a subreddit for moderator news, expressed unhappiness that Reddit isn’t providing some sort of compensation or transition into the next system. And for users already frustrated at Reddit over new API pricing that forced some popular third-party apps to shut down, the loss of awards like Reddit Gold, arguably one of the most iconic elements of the platform, could sting that much more.

 

While Reddit hasn’t specified what the new system might look like, Android Authority may have dug up some clues. Based on code in the Reddit’s Android app, Reddit appears to be working on a “contributor program” that would let users cash out gold or karma (basically, points you get for posts, comments, or giving awards) they receive into real money. Reddit didn’t respond to a request for comment sent Wednesday about Android Authority’s article.

 

Source

Source

What you need to know

• ARM is reportedly negotiating with Intel and NVIDIA to get them as anchor investors ahead of its IPO.
• The company intends to raise approximately $10 million later this year by publicly listing its shares.
• NVIDIA previously tried to acquire ARM, but the deal was terminated because of significant regulatory challenges.

According to Financial Times and Bloomberg reports, chip giant Arm is reportedly in talks with rival makers Intel and NVIDIA to get them on board as anchor investors ahead of its IPO at the New York Stock Exchange, which is scheduled for later this year. (via Tom's Hardware)

If the Japan SoftBank Group firm can secure both companies as investors, this affirms the success of its forthcoming IPO. ARM majorly focuses on the development of silicon chips and the setting of license instructions used to determine how chips function. Key industry players like Apple, Samsung, and many others leverage ARM's intellectual property, such as Reduced Instruction Set Computing (RISC), for the chips incorporated in their own technology.

NVIDIA attempted to acquire ARM for $40 billion early last year, but the deal was terminated after both companies reached an agreement following significant regulatory challenges. There was also a growing concern over access to Arm's IP for competitors, which prompted U.S. and European regulators to block the deal.

And while negotiations are ongoing between ARM and interested parties, sources familiar with the deal have indicated that NVIDIA has shown interest in a share price between $35 billion and $40 billion. This translates to the ARM'S overall value. But at the same time, ARM's goals are significantly higher at an estimated $80 billion.

ARM intends to raise a whopping $10 billion later this year by publicly listing its shares. Keeping this in mind, with key industry players as anchor investors, ARM stands a better chance as a new listing in the market.

SoftBank's head, Masayoshi Son, has been at the forefront, trying to get anchor investors onboard to boost ARM's revenue ahead of the IPO. Financial Times has cited that ARM and Intel have already contacted regulatory bodies in the US to address potential challenges that might arise from the pending investment. 

To this end, none of the parties involved have commented on the matter, but we'll keep a close eye on the story as it unfolds and keep you updated.

Source

About the size of an SUV and partially wrapped in gold-colored thermal blanketing, the satellite’s cylindrical radar instrument payload contains two radar systems. The S-band radar is particularly useful for monitoring crop structure and the roughness of land and ice surfaces, while the L-band instrument can penetrate denser forest canopies to study the woody trunks of trees, among other observables. The wavelengths of the S-band and L-band signals are about 4 inches (10 centimeters) and 10 inches (25 centimeters), respectively, and both sensors can see through clouds and collect data day and night.

The payload took a roundabout journey to get to this point. The S-band radar was built at the Space Applications Centre in Ahmedabad in western India, then flown in March 2021 to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, where engineers had been developing NISAR’s L-band radar. At JPL, the two systems were fixed to the payload’s barrel-like frame before being flown to the U R Rao Satellite Centre (URSC) in the southern Indian city of Bengaluru in March 2023.

In the meantime, engineers and technicians at URSC, collaborating with teams from JPL, were busy developing the spacecraft’s main body, or bus, which is covered in blue blanketing that protects it during assembly and testing prior to launch. The bus, which includes components and systems developed by both ISRO and JPL, will provide power, navigation, pointing control, and communications for the mission.

A crane is used to align NISAR’s radar instrument payload, seen partially wrapped in gold-colored thermal blanketing, with the satellite’s spacecraft bus, which is inside blue blanketing, in an ISRO clean room in Bengaluru, India, in June. Credit: VDOS-URSC

Since the radar payload and bus were joined in a URSC clean room in mid-June, NASA and ISRO teams have been working together to route thousands of feet of cabling between them. Still to be attached: the satellite’s solar panels, as well as the drum-shaped, wire-mesh reflector that will unfold from the end of a 30-foot (9-meter) boom. At nearly 40 feet (12 meters) in diameter, the reflector will be largest radar antenna of its kind ever launched into space.

The NISAR satellite is currently undergoing performance testing, to be followed by several rounds of environmental testing to ensure it can withstand the rigors of launch and meet all of its operational requirements once in orbit. Then it will be transported about 220 miles (350 kilometers) eastward to Satish Dhawan Space Centre, where it will be inserted into its launch fairing, mounted atop ISRO’s Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark II rocket, and sent into low Earth orbit.

More About the Mission

NISAR is an equal collaboration between NASA and ISRO and marks the first time the two agencies have cooperated on hardware development for an Earth-observing mission. JPL, which is managed for NASA by Caltech in Pasadena, leads the U.S. component of the project and is providing the mission’s L-band SAR. NASA is also providing the radar reflector antenna, the deployable boom, a high-rate communication subsystem for science data, GPS receivers, a solid-state recorder, and payload data subsystem. URSC, which is leading the ISRO component of the mission, is providing the spacecraft bus, the S-band SAR electronics, the launch vehicle, and associated launch services and satellite mission operations.

Source

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) sent a letter to the Microsoft-backed business requesting information on how it addresses risks to people's reputations.

The inquiry is a sign of the rising regulatory scrutiny of the technology.

OpenAI has sparked a furore since launching its chatbot last year.

ChatGPT generates convincing human-like responses to user queries within seconds, instead of the series of links generated by a traditional internet search. It, and similar AI products, are expected to dramatically change the way people get information they are searching for online.

Tech rivals are racing to offer their own versions of the technology, even as it generates fierce debate, including over the data it uses, the accuracy of the responses and whether the company violated authors' rights as it was training the technology.

The FTC's letter asks what steps OpenAI has taken to address its products' potential to "generate statements about real individuals that are false, misleading, disparaging or harmful".

The FTC is also looking at OpenAI's approach to data privacy and how it obtains data to train and inform the AI.

This spring, Congress hosted OpenAI's chief executive Sam Altman for a hearing, in which he admitted the technology could be a sousce of errors.

He called for regulations to be crafted for the emerging industry and recommended that a new agency be formed to tackle it. He said he expected the technology to have a significant impact as its uses become clear, including on jobs.

"I think if this technology goes wrong, it can go quite wrong... we want to be vocal about that," Mr Altman said at the time. "We want to work with the government to prevent that from happening."

The investigation by the FTC was first reported by the Washington Post, which published a copy of the letter. OpenAI did not respond to a request for comment.

The FTC also declined to comment. The consumer watchdog has taken a high profile role policing the tech giants under its current chair, Lina Khan.

Ms Khan rose to prominence as a Yale law student, when she criticised America's record on anti-monopoly enforcement related to Amazon.

Appointed by President Joe Biden, she is a controversial figure, with critics arguing that she is pushing the FTC beyond the boundaries of its authority.

Some of her most high-profile challenges of tech firms activities - including a push to block the merger of Microsoft with gaming giant Activision Blizzard - have faced setbacks in the courts.

During a five-hour hearing in Congress on Thursday, she faced tough criticism from Republicans over her leadership of the agency.

She did not mention the FTC's investigation into OpenAI, which is at a preliminary stage. But she said she had concerns about the product's output.

"We've heard about reports where people's sensitive information is showing up in response to an inquiry from somebody else," Ms Khan said.

"We've heard about libel, defamatory statements, flatly untrue things that are emerging. That's the type of fraud and deception that we are concerned about," she added.

The FTC probe is not the company's first challenge over such issues. Italy banned ChatGPT in April, citing privacy concerns. The service was restored after it added a tool to verify users' ages and provided more information about its privacy policy.

Source

In 2001, developer Firefly Studios released Stronghold. At the time, the PC game, set in Europe during the Middle Ages, was a unique mix of a "castle sim" management game combined with real-time strategy battles of armies.

The series has seen a number of sequels released over the past two decades, as well as spin-off titles, including the most recent game, Stronghold: Warlords, which was launched in 2021.

Today, Firefly announced that it would go back to the game that started the franchise with a full remake. Stronghold: Definitive Edition will be released by publisher Devolver Digital and launched for the PC on November 7 via Steam.

Here is what fans of the original game can expect from the remake:

Building on its 20 year legacy, Stronghold: Definitive Edition features two classic campaigns told across 26 missions, alongside fresh single player content in the form of a new narrative campaign designed by Firefly Studios founders Simon Bradbury and Eric Ouellette.

Exclusive to the definitive edition, this new 14 mission campaign sees players march across the devastated English hinterland in search of Sir Longarm's captured kin, before venturing beyond the story in a challenging new historical 'Castle Trail' of 10 unique scenarios.

With remade artwork, a higher fidelity soundtrack, full Steam multiplayer support, Steam Workshop, modernised gameplay and more, Stronghold: Definitive Edition is the ultimate way to experience the game that started it all. Your kingdom awaits!

This is not the only new game in the Stronghold series that Firefly Studios is working on. The developer has also been creating a second game in the franchise that will use Epic's Unreal Engine 5 for its graphics. Unfortunately, that's all we know about the game so far, but Firefly has said it will be showing off "Stronghold: Unreal" sometime in the very near future.

Source