Along with the release of its One UI 4.0 update, Samsung has revealed new Galaxy Watch software that brings features from its latest Watch 4 model to four older smartwatches, Sammobile has reported. Owners of the Galaxy Watch, Galaxy Watch Active, Galaxy Watch Active 2 and Galaxy Watch 3 are set to benefit from the new release.
With the Galaxy Watch 4, Samsung introduced Fall Detection with more levels of sensitivity and the ability to enable detection even if you're standing still. It will also send an SOS alert to approved contacts. That update is now available on the Galaxy Watch 3 and Galaxy Watch Active 2, though not the older Galaxy Watch/Watch Active models.
However, owners of all four watches will benefit from 10 new watch faces first launched with the Galaxy Watch 4, that offer extra customization options (text colors, backgrounds) or even different animated creatures on one. Other features include an updated group challenge in the Work Out with Friends feature and more accurate health monitoring. The update is arriving today in the USA and Korea and will follow in other regions later.
Following a beta launch in September, Samsung has released its One UI 4 software with new features from Android 12 like the Privacy Dashboard. As usual, owners of Samsung's flagship Galaxy S21 smartphone lineup, including the Galaxy S21, S21+ and S21 Ultra, will be first in line to receive it.
The biggest change with the new skin is how it looks. One UI 4 now allows a more customized experience with new color palettes and widgets, along with a wider range of emoji features, GIFs and stickers. That sounds very much like Android 12's Material You, except it's not auto- or AI-generated.
Engadget
The other difference from before is around security. Following the lead of Android 12, Samsung is introducing a Privacy Dashboard that brings all settings and controls into one place. For example, it will show when an app is attempting to access your camera, microphone or other sensor, and why it needed that data.
Other features include access to Samsung's extended ecosystem of devices and third-party apps. That will ensure a "seamless experience" when using non-Samsung apps like Google Duo, the company said. It's also promising a uniform look across devices like the Galaxy Fold, Galaxy Watch and Galaxy Tab.
Since the release of One UI, Samsung has been trying to get the latest versions of Android onto its high-end smartphones as quickly as possible. It's fair to say it's done that here, as Google released Android 12 less than a month ago onto its Pixel 3 devices. One UI 4 is available starting today for Galaxy S21 device, "and will soon arrive to previous Galaxy S and Note series as well as Galaxy A series, foldables and tablets," the company said.
Last year, California's supreme court ruled that Apple broke the law by failing to pay employees while they waited for mandatory bag and iPhone searches. Now, Apple has offered to pay $30 million to settle the suit and lawyers for the employees have urged them to accept it, Apple Insider has reported. "This is a significant, non-reversionary settlement reached after nearly eight years of hard-fought litigation," wrote plaintiff attorney Lee Shalov in the proposed settlement seen by Courthouse News.
Employees launched the suit way back in 2013, saying they weren't paid while being searched for stolen merchandise or trade secrets. The workers felt they were still under Apple's "control" during that five to 20 minute process and should therefore be compensated. Apple in turn argued that the employees could choose not to bring their bags or iPhones, thus avoiding a search in the first place.
Apple won an earlier battle in district court, but the case went to the California Supreme Court on appeal. There, the judges ruled that Apple workers were "clearly under Apple's control while awaiting, and during, the exit searches." The court dismissed Apple's argument that bringing a bag to work was an employee convenience, particularly that Apple felt employees didn't necessarily need to bring their iPhones to work.
"Its characterization of the iPhone as unnecessary for its own employees is directly at odds with its description of the iPhone as an 'integrated and integral' part of the lives of everyone else," the judges wrote. In that statement, the court referenced a 2017 Tim Cook interview where he stated that the iPhone was "so so integrated and integral to our lives, you wouldn't think about leaving home without it."
The settlement is still subject to approval by the plaintiffs. Nearly 12,000 current and former Apple Store employees in California involved in the lawsuit stand to receive a maximum payment of around $1,200.
IBM claims it has taken a major step toward practical quantum computation. On Monday, the company unveiled Eagle, a 127 qubit quantum processor. IBM claims it’s the first such processor that can’t be simulated by a classical supercomputer. To make sense of what that means, the company says to simulate Eagle you would need more classical bits than there are atoms in every human being on the planet. IBM is crediting the breakthrough to a new design that puts the processor’s control components on multiple physical levels while the qubits are located on a single layer. It’s a design the company says allows for a significant increase in computing power.
One aspect of Eagle the company isn’t talking about at the moment is quantum volume. Cointed by IBM, it’s a metric that attempts to measure the performance of a quantum computer by taking a holistic view of its different parts. Not only does it take into account qubits, but also the way in which they interact with one another. The higher the quantum volume, the more capable a quantum computer is at tackling difficult problems.
IBM
“Our first 127-qubit Eagle processor is available as an exploratory system on the IBM Cloud to select members of the IBM Quantum Network,” Jerry Chow, the director of IBM’s Quantum Hardware System Development unit, told Engadget. “Exploratory systems are early access to our latest technologies and so we do not guarantee uptime or a particular level of repeatable performance, as measured by quantum volume.”
Without knowing the quantum volume of the Eagle processor, it’s hard to say exactly how it compares to what's out there already. Last October, Honeywell claimed its System Model H1 had a quantum volume of 128 with just 10 connected qubits. For reference, earlier in the year IBM announced a 27 qubit system with a then industry-leading quantum volume of 64. Clearly, the company’s new processor is powerful, but qubits don’t tell the whole story here.
What’s also notable about Eagle is that IBM is not claiming quantum supremacy. According to the company, it’s a step toward that milestone, but the processor is not yet at the point where it can solve problems that classical computers cannot. In 2019, Google sparked controversy when it (briefly) claimed it had achieved the feat with its Sycamore system. At the time, IBM called the company’s claims “indefensible” based on the fact Google built the computer to solve one specific equation.
IBM will make Eagle available to select members of its Quantum Network starting next month.
Don't despair if you want to stream a show at a Tesla Supercharger but aren't paying for Premium Connectivity — you might have an official alternative. According to Electrek, Tesla EV owners have spotted Starlink satellite internet dishes at Supercharger stations. It's not yet clear how many there are or if they're accessible to drivers, but the deployment at least includes Florida.
Tesla hasn't commented on the rollout and is believe to have disbanded its PR team.
There are multiple possible uses for Starlink broadband at Superchargers. At the least, it could replace or supplement the existing connections that handle basics like payments and charger status. That could help the company deploy Superchargers faster and in more remote areas. That's important when the brand hopes to allow charging for non-Tesla EVs and triple the size of its station network.
You don't need that much bandwidth (the median US Starlink connection is about 97Mbps) just to process transactions, though, and it wouldn't be surprising if Tesla used the satellite link to provide WiFi to Supercharger customers. You're typically parked at a charger for long enough to watch some TV episodes — you could stream shows without a Premium Connectivity subscription or using your phone as a hotspot. Network congestion could be a problem if the chargers are busy, but it would be convenient and potentially sell customers on Starlink service at home.
Bitcoin just received a significant upgrade. As The Blocknotes, the Bitcoin network rolled out a long-in-the-making "Taproot" code upgrade early today (November 14th). The update improves both privacy and security for complicated transactions through new signatures that make them look like any other exchange. Would-be thieves or snoops should have a harder time recognizing when an unusual transfer is taking place.
The Taproot update should also change the Bitcoin network's scaling by dropping the existing cryptographic system. It might be easier for the cryptocurrency to handle demand.
This is the first major refresh of the network code's since 2017, and it might be well-timed. While there are some objections to Bitcoin and other forms of digital money, it now has potential users ranging from AMC through to the country of El Salvador. An upgrade could help Bitcoin better accommodate any newcomers, not to mention reduce hassles for veteran crypto traders.
The UK government apparently isn't satisfied with its initial probe of NVIDIA's ARM purchase. As Reutersreports, The Sunday Timeshas heard Digital and Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries will order the country's Competition & Markets Authority to conduct a "phase two" investigation of NVIDIA's deal over national security issues. The announcement could come as soon as next week, The Times said.
A second investigation would reportedly last about six months. After that, officials could either block the deal, approve it as-is or require concessions.
The country's Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport declined to comment on the story. We've asked NVIDIA for comment. The tech firm has focused its energy so far on downplaying concerns about ARM's neutrality if the deal closes, promising an open licensing model that treats customers fairly.
Any second investigation wouldn't necessarily spell doom for NVIDIA's acquisition. It would suggest the government has some qualms, however, and that NVIDIA might have to make some sacrifices. At the least, the company would have to be patient — it wouldn't get UK approval until 2022 at the earliest, and it would still have to wait for other regulators before finalizing the merger.
Apple's digital ID card support in iOS 15 may be convenient, but it also comes with tight requirements for the governments that use them. CNBC has learned states using Apple's system are required to not only run the platforms for issuing and checking credentials, but hire managers to handle Apple's requests and meet the iPhone maker's performance reporting expectations. States also have to "prominently" market the feature and encourage other government agencies (both state and federal) to adopt the technology.
Contracts are nearly identical for Arizona, Georgia, Kentucky and Oklahoma, some of the earliest adopters of the program. That suggests other states, including Connecticut, Iowa, Maryland and Utah, may have to honor similar terms.
Apple declined to comment. A representative for Arizona's Transportation Department told CNBC there were no payments to Apple or other "economic considerations," though the states would have to cover the costs.
The details raise a number of concerns. While it isn't surprising that states would have pay for at least some of the expenses, the contracts give a private company a significant amount of control over the use and promotion of government systems while asking governments to foot the bills. There's also the question of what happens when Android digital IDs become available — how do states juggle multiple platforms? Apple isn't preventing states from offering IDs on Android, but its requirements could give it a significant early advantage.
Google is finishing the week with more antitrust headaches. Reutersreports a group of Texas-led US states has filed an amended version of its lawsuit against Google over alleged abuses of power in the online ad business. The updated complaint provides more detail about Google's purported efforts to stifle competition, including the secret "Project Bernanke" ad buying program.
The states said Google used Project Bernanke in 2015 to drop the second-highest bids from publishers' ad auctions, pool money and pour those those funds into only those bids using Google Ads. That gave Google Ads bidders an unfair advantage and helped them win auctions they likely would have lost, according to the revised lawsuit.
We've asked Google for comment. It previously confirmed the existence of Project Bernanke, but maintained there was no wrongdoing and that the states' lawsuit "misrepresents" its ad business. The refreshed lawsuit may pose additional challenges to Google, though. At the least, the amendment underscores the states' attitude toward Google — they're determined to curb its behavior.
Amazon's Fire TV Stick 4K Max is already on sale two months after its debut. The company is selling its latest streaming adapter at a new low price of $35, a full $20 below its original sticker. That makes it a much easier choice if you were otherwise contemplating the regular Stick 4K — even with frequent sales, you're only paying a little bit more for a lot of futureproofing. The Fire TV Cube has also reached an all-time low of $80 (normally $120) if you'd prefer a hybrid smart speaker and media hub.
The regular Fire TV Stick 4K is also on sale for $25 (typically $50) if price is more important, or if you don't think you'll need the extras its Max counterpart offers.
The Fire TV Stick 4K Max may look much like its regular counterpart on the outside, but it's about 40 percent faster. That promises faster load times, a smoother interface, better gaming and headroom for new features like a live picture-in-picture view of your video doorbell. WiFi 6 support also delivers a more reliable connection for your 4K streams if you have a similarly modern router. While those aren't must-haves, the price gap is small enough ($10 as of this writing) to make them worth the money.
Fire TV's usual caveats apply regardless of the model you're buying. You'll have access to a wide range of apps and services, but there's no doubt Amazon favors its own. Likewise, these Alexa-centric devices won't be great fits if your smart home revolves around Apple HomeKit or Google Assistant. For most anyone else, though, these will be solid choices for living room streaming.
