Don't be shocked if a robot serves you the next time you eat out or go on vacation. LG is bringing its CLOi ServeBot to the US, giving hotels, restaurants and stores a semi-autonomous machine that can ferry up to 66lbs of food and other cargo across a busy space. While humans have to pre-program maps and set destinations, the bot can use a 3D camera, LiDAR and sensors to dodge people and detect when someone has removed an item from a tray.
Like other CLOi robots, the ServeBot uses its 9.2-inch touchsreen to both put on a friendly face for guests and take input. It's not fast at 2.2MPH, but its 11 hours of continuous use should be enough for a long workday.
This isn't the first LG robot to cross to the US. The Korean tech firm brought its disinfecting UV-C robot to the US in 2021. The timing might be apt, however. American companies are grappling with the combination of job shortages (particularly in service roles) and an evolving pandemic that adds risk to waiting tables or helming a hotel's front desk. ServeBot won't completely replace human workers, but it might lessen the sting of job shortfalls and reduce exposure for workers who frequently have to deal with the public.
Microsoft and Sony are struggling to keep up with demand for the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5. While Sony plans to keep manufacturing the PlayStation 4 for the time being to make up for its shortfall of current-gen consoles, the Xbox One is no more.
We learned in July 2020 that Microsoft had discontinued the Xbox One X and Xbox One S Digital Edition by that point. Now, it has emerged the company quietly stopped making the Xbox One S by the end of that year too. “To focus on production of Xbox Series X/S, we stopped production for all Xbox One consoles by the end of 2020,” Xbox’s senior director of console product marketing Cindy Walker told The Verge.
It seems the strategy has paid off. Xbox head Phil Spencer told The New York Times this week that Microsoft has sold more of the Series X and Series S at this point in their lifecycle than it has with any previous Xbox generation, though he didn’t reveal actual sales figures. Analyst Daniel Ahmad of Niko Partners said that would put shipments of Series X/S at more than 12 million units.
While the more powerful Series X typically sells out minutes after every stock drop (it doesn’t help that scalpers are using bots to snap them up), the Series S isn’t hard to come by at this point. It’s available to buy at the time of writing in the US, UK and Canada at retailers like Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop and Walmart. Given that the Series S can handle pretty much everything the Xbox One can — except for playing discs — it doesn’t make a ton of sense for Microsoft to keep making that console.
It’s a slightly different story for Sony. Save for the disc drive, there’s no difference between the two PS5 models. Given the high demand (Sony had sold 13.4 million units by October 2021) and the ongoing supply chain crisis, it’s harder for most people to score one of those consoles than a Series S right now. As such, Sony told Bloomberg on Wednesday it will keep making the PS4 (which uses less advanced components than the PS5) in 2022, despite reportedly planning to discontinue the console last year. The company's said to be making around a million PS4 units in this year.
Comcast is now considerably closer to making multigigabit cable internet a reality. The company has successfully tested the first 10G modem capable of multigigabit speeds. The Broadcom-built prototype used the full duplex DOCSIS 4.0 standard to provide download and upload bandwidth topping 4Gbps. For context, maintaining that performance would let you download all of Call of Duty: Vanguard's recommended install size for PC (61GB) in just over two minutes.
While this was a lab test, it's still a significant step forward. The company previously reached those speeds using a virtualized system, and in October 2020 was 'only' managing 1.25Gbps with the new DOCSIS technology. The new format is notable for not only improving downstream speeds, but enabling symmetric uploads and reducing lag.
The telecom didn't offer a timeline for when you might see customer-ready DOCSIS 4.0 multigigabit modems. You may have to be content with 2Gbps service for now. However, the larger question is whether or not you'll get to make use of a 4Gbps-plus connection any time soon. You'll need a speedy route across the internet, of course, but there's also the question of Comcast's data caps. While it wouldn't be surprising if Comcast raised or even waived caps for multigigabit users, it might be difficult to take advantage of the larger data pipe if any caps discourage sustained use.
The release of the Galaxy Buds 2 last year showed Samsung's prowess when it comes to making solid wireless earbuds. The $150 buds pack a lot of premium features into a relatively affordable price point, making them a good option for those with tight budgets. The Buds 2 are an even better buy when you can get them on sale for $100, which is what Woot has them for right now. That's $50 off the normal rate and a return to a record low — but before you take the plunge, remember to check out Woot's return policy since it does differ significantly from that of its parent company, Amazon.
Samsung made its smallest and most comfortable earbuds yet with the Galaxy Buds 2. They're 15 percent smaller and 20 percent lighter than the Galaxy Buds+, which were already pretty comfy to begin with. You'll get roughly five hours of use from the buds before they need more juice, which isn't a battery life to write home about but it is on par with many competitors. The earbuds' case holds an additional three full charges and it supports wireless charging as well.
ANC and the adjustable ambient sound mode are two of the buds' biggest selling points. Samsung brought those features down from its higher-end earbuds and, while the ANC isn't as strong as what you'll find on something like the Galaxy Buds Pro, it still does a good job of blocking out environmental noises. That five-hour battery life mentioned above is with ANC turned on too, so you won't have to sacrifice in that respect when you want a couple of solid hours with fewer distractions.
All of those features make a pair of wireless earbuds that provide a lot of value to Android users at a decent price. Make no mistake, the Galaxy Buds 2 are best when paired with an Android device — while it's possible to use them with an iPhone, you'll be stuck with the default settings.
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Arturia has launched Brute Noir editions of its popular mid-tier monophonic synths, the MiniBrute 2 and MiniBrute 2S. It also launched a limited Brute Noir edition of its DrumBrute Impact analog drum machine. All the versions are all-black rather than grey, so they may appeal to musicians who want that aesthetic or the exclusivity of a limited edition model.
As a reminder, the MiniBrute 2 is a monophonic synth that's semi-modular in that it has a decent-sized patchbay for rerouting the synth's signal, but it can also make sounds right out of the box. Other features include a pair of VCOs, two LFOs and the 25-note, velocity-sensitive keyboard with aftertouch and dual-oscillator Brute Voice. The MiniBrute 2s lacks the keyboard but offers a 64-step sequencer for "classic synth workflow and punchy Brute character."
Arturia
The DrumBrute Impact, meanwhile, is Arturia's entry level 10-voice analog drum machine. It's modernized with "gnarly FM," Arturia says, along with polyrythmic sequencing and a built-in distortion circuit. Arturia didn't reveal specific pricing for the Brute Noir editions ahead of publication, but the regular MiniBrute 2 and MiniBrute 2s models are $499, while the standard DrumBrute is $299 at Amazon.
Leica first announced its M10 rangefinder camera back in January 2017, and the company has since released multiplevariants of the camera since. Most recently, the M10-R added a 40-megapixel sensor to the to the camera, a big step up over the 24-megapixel one found in the original M10. But today, Leica is ready to leave the M10 lineup behind and move to a totally new camera, the Leica M11.
Well, “totally new” might be a stretch. It’ll look familiar to anyone who has seen Leica’s famous lineup of rangefinder cameras before, and it still uses Leica’s M mount for lenses, but the company has put in enough new features to justify giving it a new name. First and foremost is a new 60-megapixel full-frame sensor, making this camera a huge upgrade for anyone who might have purchased the original M10 back in 2017. The so-called “triple resolution” sensor can shoot at either 60, 36 or 18 megapixels in DNG RAW or JPG. Notably, Leica says it'll shoot using the full sensor area when shooting at a lower resolution, rather than cropping the image down. But these images might loose some sharpness because of pixel binning or line skipping that occurs when using the full sensor to shoot at a lower resolution. .
Shooting at lower resolution, though, will naturally save storage space and also offer extended burst shooting. The ISO on this camera ranges from 64 all the way to 50,000, a stop more than the 100-50,000 range offered on the M10 series. The ISO on this camera goes from 64 all the way to 50,000, a stop more than the 100-50,000 range offered on the M10 series.
Speaking of storage, the M11 has 64GB of onboard storage, which lets photographers storage images both on the internal memory as well as an SD memory card. Leica also redesigned the bottom plate of the camera to provide quicker access to the SD cart slot and battery. There’s also a USB-C port right in the bottom of the camera, which makes charging the battery and transferring pictures to a computer a bit easier. That’s a fairly common feature these days, but it’s still a welcome addition to the M11. Leica also says that the M11’s 1,800mAh battery stores 64 percent more power than the battery on older models
Leica
As with the M10 series, the M11 uses Leica’s optical rangefinder and manual focus only. But the 3-inch back screen, which you can also use as a viewfinder, has 2,332,800 pixels, more than double the 1,036,800 pixels on the M10. In another concession to modern technology, the M11 has both a mechanical and an electronic shutter.
The standard mechanical option can shoot at speeds up to 1/4000th of a second, while the electronic shutter goes up to a whopping 1/16,000 of a second. Perhaps most significantly, the electronic shutter will be totally silent, something that street photographers should appreciate. The M10-R had an “extra silent” mechanical shutter, but you can’t beat a motionless electronic shutter if you need perfectly quiet operation.
Leica is offering two models: an all-black M11 and a black and silver option. The latter uses a brass top plate and as such weighs in at 640 grams, 100 grams more than the all-black models. To save weight, that camera has an aluminum top with a scratch-resistant coating. Regardless of which finish you prefer, the M11 is wildly expensive, in keeping with Leica tradition. It costs $8,995 without a lens, the same price as the M10-R.
Given the numerous improvements here, it’s nice that Leica didn’t increase the price further, but — as we said when we checked out the M10-R — Leica rangefinders are as much a status symbol as they are a photography tool. We said the M10-R was the king of that category in 2020, but now it seems the M11 has taken the throne. The M11 is available to order now.
Apple is set to slightly alter the wording on its notice for the iCloud Private Relay error that switched off the VPN-like feature for some users. According to MacRumors, the tech giant will update its note for users, clarifying that their carriers aren't always to blame for the issue. After a previous iOS 15.2 update, some users found that they couldn't use Private Relay while on a cellular network. Private Relay ensures that, as long as the user is on Safari, not even Apple can see their activities.
The original notice puts the blame solely on mobile carriers:
"Private Relay is turned off for your cellular plan. Your cellular plan doesn't support iCloud Private Relay. With iCloud Private Relay turned off, this network can monitor your internet activity, and your IP address is not hidden from known trackers or websites."
T-Mobile, however, denied that it was responsible for the error happening to its subscribers' phones. It told Bloomberg's Mark Gurman in a statement that it identified a problem with the iOS 15.2 update that toggled off the feature by default. Apple denied that its update rolled out with changes to Private Relay, as one would expect: "No changes were made to iCloud Private Relay in iOS 15.2 that would have toggled the feature off," a spokesperson said.
Whatever the real reason is for the feature being switched off, fixing the problem could be as simple as toggling some settings back on. The updated notice that rolled out with iOS 15.3 beta now says:
"Private Relay is turned off for your cellular plan. Private Relay is either not supported by your cellular plan or has been turned off in Cellular Settings. With Private Relay turned off, this network can monitor your internet activity, and your IP address is not hidden from known trackers or websites."
Apple's support page now also contains instructions on how fix the problem: If Private Relay has been switched off for a cellular network, users can go to the network's settings and turn on "Limit IP Address Tracking." They can go to WiFi settings and do the same if the feature isn't working on WiFi.
On Wednesday, the White House said it plans to allocate billions of dollars for more wind, solar and geothermal energy projects across the US. That will include moving forward with the lease of six commercial areas off the coasts of New York and New Jersey to turn the area into wind farms. More than 488,000 acres of ocean seafloor will be used to build an estimated 5.6 and 7 gigawatts of clean power generation. Using the $65 billion Congress set aside for power grid upgrades, the initiative also puts $2.5 billion toward funding the installation of new transmission lines.
The Biden administration may still struggle to decarbonize the country’s power grid by 2035, however. Not only is there political gridlock, but the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has said that federal agencies spent $684 billion on coal plant carbon capture and storage projects — most of which have failed.
We all want to look good. Whether it’s on a stream or Zoom call, decent lighting is crucial. Logitech has just launched a new lighting device made for streamers called Litra Glow, and it says the product is capable of providing a "natural, radiant look across all skin tones."
Litra Glow delivers a glare-free light supposed to be gentle on the eyes and safe for all-day streaming. Logitech's TrueSoft technology promises cinematic color accuracy and enables a soft, flattering light that can apparently make streamers look less, well, tired.
NVIDIA has started rolling out Software Experience Upgrade 9.0 for Shield TV devices to upgrade their operating system to Android 11. The company says Experience 9.0 will bring the new OS to all Shield TVs, including the original 2015 models. The upgrade adds access to a new Google Keyboard with support for voice searches.
A class-action lawsuit has named Kim Kardashian, Floyd Mayweather and basketball star Paul Pierce as defendants for promoting a cryptocurrency called EthereumMax. According to Finbold, the plaintiffs sued the celebrities and the still-unidentified entities behind the tokens for causing the value of the Ethereum knockoff to soar so "they could sell their portion of the Float for a profit."
Canon has had to ship toner cartridges without copy protection chips due to ongoing shortages. That, in turn, has led to some ImageRunner multifunction printers incorrectly flagging official cartridges as knockoffs — Canon has even told printer owners how to bypass the warnings and deal with broken toner level detection.
He's concerned lawsuits could stifle the Bitcoin ecosystem.
Lawsuits are an increasing occurrence in the Bitcoin ecosystem, and former Twitter chief Jack Dorsey thinks he can help fend them off. Coindeskreports Dorsey, Chaincode's Alex Morcos and academic Martin White have proposed a nonprofit legal defense fund for Bitcoin developers to protect them against lawsuits and similar "legal pressure."
The PC’s pandemic-era renaissance continues. Canalys estimates PC shipments jumped 15 percent year-over-year to 341 million despite supply shortages. Simply put, many of the customers in 2021 were adding new PCs rather than replacing existing ones.
Google Meet has started rolling out live translated captions widely after testing the feature last year. It works on web or mobile but is still fairly limited, translating only English meetings to four languages: French, German, Portuguese and Spanish.
"Translated captions help make Google Meet video calls more inclusive and collaborative by removing language proficiency barriers," Google wrote in a Workspace blog. "When meeting participants consume content in their preferred language, this helps equalize information sharing, learning, and collaboration and ensures your meetings are as effective as possible for everyone."
Google
The feature is designed to be helpful for all-hands or training meetings with teams located around the world. It can also be helpful in education settings, according to Google, "allowing educators to connect and interact with students, parents and community stakeholders with diverse backgrounds."
To use the feature, users need to switch on captions in settings and set it to English before toggling on translated captions underneath. They can then choose one of the translated language options. For more detailed information, check Google Meet's translated captions help page.
Google first announced the feature at its I/O developer's conference last year, and Otter offers a similar service for Google Meet and Zoom. Live translated captions are available for Google Workspace Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, the Teaching and Learning Upgrade and Google Workspace for Education Plus customers. It's rolling out gradually as of yesterday, so it could take up to 15 days before you see it.
Nigerians can now access Twitter again without having to use VPNs or having to fear repercussions for doing so. The Nigerian government has lifted the ban on Twitter on January 13th, 2022, over seven months after it ordered telecom providers in the country to block the social network. According to CNN, Reuters and The Financial Times, Nigeria has decided to lift the ban after Twitter agreed to open a local office.
Twitter also had to agree to meet other conditions set by the government, including "managing prohibited publication in line with Nigerian law." The social network has to pay domestic taxes, as well, and to appoint a representative in the country who'll be in charge of engaging with local authorities.
If you'll recall, Nigeria originally suspended Twitter in June 2021 after the website removed a tweet made by President Muhammadu Buhari who used the platform to threaten citizens following attacks on government buildings. Back then, Twitter explained that the post violated its abuse policy. Nigerian authorities shot back by accusing Twitter of allowing its platform to be used "for activities that are capable of undermining Nigeria's corporate existence." They also warned citizens that they would prosecute those who tried to circumvent the suspension by using VPNs and similar tools. Bloomberg reported back in October that Nigeria was already set to lift the ban, so long as Twitter is used in the country for "business and positive engagements," but it clearly took a few more months for the agreement to be finalized.
Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, director general of Nigeria's National Information Technology Development Agency, said Twitter "has agreed to act with a respectful acknowledgement of Nigerian laws and the national culture and history on which such legislation has been built." The social network has also apparently agreed to work with the country's government "to develop a Code of Conduct in line with global best practices, applicable in almost all developed countries."
