All posts filed under: Technology

Technology

13 Deals on WIRED-Approved Gear at Walmart

13 Deals on WIRED-Approved Gear at Walmart

Published by skeptic

Guess who hasn’t even started their holiday shopping yet? Yours truly. But I know, statistically speaking, surely I can’t be alone. Luckily I’ve hunted down some Walmart deals on gear that the WIRED team has hand-tested and would recommend to a friend. Today those friends are you and me. May the odds be ever in our favor. WIRED Featured Deals Power up with unlimited access to WIRED. Get best-in-class reporting that’s too important to ignore for just $2.50 $1 per month for 1 year. Includes unlimited digital access and exclusive subscriber-only content. Subscribe Today. Tech Deals Photograph: Ryan Waniata This discount comes close to what we saw during Black Friday. The Samsung S90D (9/10, WIRED Recommends) is one of our very favorite TVs out of the dozens and dozens we’ve tested. The colors are vivid, but not too vivid, and the contrast and black levels are perfect. It also comes equipped for gaming with a bevy of ports and support for Samsung’s Game Hub. This is another great deal that’s a holdover from Black Friday …

TikTok faces US ban after losing court battle | Science, Climate & Tech News

TikTok faces US ban after losing court battle | Science, Climate & Tech News

Published by skeptic

TikTok has lost an appeal against plans to ban the video-sharing app in the US. The social media platform had argued the proposal was a breach of the US First Amendment, which protects freedom of speech. TikTok pushed to overturn a law that could lead to its ban in a few months. However, the petition was dismissed on Friday by the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Its judges ruled the government’s ban was constitutional because it was designed “solely to protect that freedom from a foreign adversary nation and to limit that adversary’s ability to gather data on people in the United States”. The law, which was signed off by US President Joe Biden in April, requires TikTok to break ties with its China-based parent company ByteDance by mid-January – or else it will be blocked in the country. It was introduced following concern from some US politicians that the company might share user data with the Chinese government, despite repeated assurances from the firm that it would not. Critics …

Y Combinator alum Nowadays, founded by sisters, raises M to automate event planning

Y Combinator alum Nowadays, founded by sisters, raises $2M to automate event planning

Published by skeptic

Not even the people inventing AI always know what it’s good for besides writing emails. But there are seed-stage companies, like Y Combinator grad and 2024 Disrupt Battlefield participant Nowadays, that are doing something mind-blowingly useful with AI. Nowadays uses LLM AI to automatically plan large, expensive events. Using its own database of 400,000 global venues and a proprietary model based on a combination of OpenAI, Anthropic, and its own coding, Nowadays emails venues, caterers, and the like to gather bids. It will even make phone calls to nudge a response to unanswered emails. It then organizes the information and presents it to the event planner, who can make decisions and sign contracts. The company was founded in 2023 by sisters Anna Sun, CEO, and Amy Yan, COO, and has since been used to book over $4 million worth of events including for tech companies like Google, Amazon, Notion, and Supabase, Sun tells TechCrunch. The idea came about after Sun graduated from MIT. Her older sister, Yan, was working at Google some years after graduating …

Porsche 718 Boxster and Cayman EVs will be late, and here’s why

Porsche 718 Boxster and Cayman EVs will be late, and here’s why

Published by skeptic

The electric Porsche 718 lineup is set to launch next year, bidding farewell to the gas-powered 718 Cayman and 718 Boxster. But that plan has hit a major snag in the fallout over Swedish battery maker Northvolt filing for bankruptcy. Back in 2022, the Volkswagen subsidiary announced plans to replace the current generation of Porsche 718 with an all-electric range developed from the Mission R concept of 2021 and the GT4 ePerformance prototype from 2022. While only a few details have been released, Porsche did say that the 718 EV should have at least 250 miles of range and use a similar 800-volt architecture that allows the Taycan to DC fast-charge at a rate of up to 270 kWh. Not to mention the “real sports car” feels of the vehicle, with its battery tucked behind the driver’s seat to shift the center of gravity, allowing for more agile, flexible control. Porsche set to retire its ICE Boxster While Porsche hasn’t confirmed, reports say that the 718 was being developed with a battery from Northvolt, whose …

Need Some Comedy in Your Commute? Waze’s Latest Celebrity Voice Will Crack You Up

Need Some Comedy in Your Commute? Waze’s Latest Celebrity Voice Will Crack You Up

Published by skeptic

Choosing the voice for your navigation app is a great way to make your commute more bearable. While this selection typically comes down to a personal preference in tone or cadence, the popular Waze app is now offering a voice that does more than just read you directions—it will tell jokes, too. With a new celebrity voice, Waze can bring some comedy to your commute. For a limited time, you’ll be able to select the voice of Nate Bargatze, a Grammy-nominated stand-up comedian from Nashville, to articulate your directions on Waze. While the special voice setting is available globally, it only reads directions in the English language. According to Google’s blog announcement, Bargatze transcends your standard voice options by incorporating “witty commentary, relatable anecdotes and a healthy dose of Southern charm.” How to Download New Voices on Waze To take advantage of this or other limited release voices, head over to the Waze app. First, make sure your Waze app is up to date. According to Google, you should then see a “banner in the …

Snag a Ugreen Portable Power Station at an Unmissable Low Price

Snag a Ugreen Portable Power Station at an Unmissable Low Price

Published by skeptic

A backup power source should be essential in your home or car if you’re on the go. Whether you’re camping in the wilderness or dealing with a power outage at home, being able to charge your phone or laptop has the potential to be a big help during an outage. Like all great things, most power sources don’t come cheap.  Thankfully, right now you can score a Ugreen 300-watt power station at Amazon for only $140. It even makes a great holiday gift for the camper in your life. We don’t expect that special price to last for long, so keep that in mind when planning your purchase. Make sure you clip the on-page coupon to receive the full discount.  This Ugreen portable power station was made to provide your electronics and important devices with power for up to 10 days. It’s got two USB-A and three USB-C inputs and has a total capacity of up to 300 watts. This power station includes an LED light with three different settings: SOS, high light and low light. You …

First Look at the Genesis GMR-001 Hypercar

First Look at the Genesis GMR-001 Hypercar

Published by skeptic

The Genesis GMR-001 Hypercar represents a groundbreaking development in the world of high-performance racing. As the latest innovation from the renowned luxury automaker Genesis, this innovative prototype seamlessly combines advanced technology with the brand’s signature design philosophy of “Athletic Elegance.” The GMR-001 is set to compete in the prestigious Le Mans Daytona h (LMDh) category, a premier class in endurance racing known for its emphasis on hybrid technology and standardized components. By entering this highly competitive arena, Genesis aims to showcase its engineering prowess and push the boundaries of performance on a global stage, joining an elite group of manufacturers dedicated to excellence in motorsport. The LMDh category is particularly notable for its focus on balancing cost control with competitive parity. This approach ensures that teams can compete on a level playing field while still allowing for innovation and technological advancements. Genesis’ decision to enter the GMR-001 Hypercar in this category demonstrates the brand’s commitment to developing innovative technology that not only enhances performance but also promotes sustainability and efficiency. By embracing the hybrid powertrain …

The US Department of Defense is investing in deepfake detection

The US Department of Defense is investing in deepfake detection

Published by skeptic

“This work represents a significant step forward in strengthening our information advantage as we combat sophisticated disinformation campaigns and synthetic-media threats,” says Bustamante. Hive was chosen out of a pool of 36 companies to test its deepfake detection and attribution technology with the DOD. The contract could enable the department to detect and counter AI deception at scale. Defending against deepfakes is “existential,” says Kevin Guo, Hive AI’s CEO. “This is the evolution of cyberwarfare.” Hive’s technology has been trained on a large amount of content, some AI-generated and some not. It picks up on signals and patterns in AI-generated content that are invisible to the human eye but can be detected by an AI model.  “Turns out that every image generated by one of these generators has that sort of pattern in there if you know where to look for it,” says Guo. The Hive team constantly keeps track of new models and updates its technology accordingly.  The tools and methodologies developed through this initiative have the potential to be adapted for broader use, …

Affordable Third-Party Mac Studio Storage Upgrades Coming in 2025

Affordable Third-Party Mac Studio Storage Upgrades Coming in 2025

Published by skeptic

French company Polysoft has successfully reverse-engineered Apple’s proprietary storage modules for the Mac Studio and plans to offer more affordable upgrade options starting in January 2025, following a successful Kickstarter campaign. The company’s “Studio Drive” modules will be available in 2TB, 4TB, and 8TB capacities, with pricing starting at €399 ($420) for 2TB, €799 ($843) for 4TB, and €1,099 ($1,158) for 8TB – roughly half of what Apple charges for comparable storage upgrades at the time of purchase. Unlike traditional SSDs used in PCs, Apple’s storage modules require specialized engineering because the actual storage controller is built into the M1 and M2 chips rather than being part of the removable module. To develop compatible modules, Polysoft conducted extensive reverse engineering, sacrificing an original Apple module for detailed analysis. The company removed all its small components one by one using a laser station, inventoried them and measured their characteristics, then scanned every layer with a flatbed scanner. From this work, the company then made its own schematics and designed different boards, using the same Kioxia and …

Do your AirPods Pro fall out of your ears? This fix changed my life

Do your AirPods Pro fall out of your ears? This $20 fix changed my life

Published by skeptic

David Gewirtz/ZDNET Of all the computer gear I own, my AirPods Pro have been the least portable. No, that’s not a typo. Let me explain. I loved my first set of AirPods Pro, even after I dropped them into a cup of coffee. They’ve continued working for more than a year since then. I recently bought a pair of 2nd generation AirPods Pro over Black Friday weekend. (You can still save $80 on them if you’re interested.) Also: Why you should power off your phone once a week – according to the NSA My biggest reason for loving my AirPods Pro is because of how easily they automatically switch between my various devices. I have two Macs and an iPhone in our family room (which doubles as our work hub), and those AirPods Pro can be connected to any of my active devices in seconds. It’s great for productivity. I also love them because I can wear them (even without any tunes playing) to noise-cancel my little puppy’s constant licking. That’s a highly repetitive sound …