Latest News - Page 669

Apple's latest iPhones have been on sale for six months at this point, but some people continue to struggle to deal with a particularly niggling bug. Owners of iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro, and iPhone 15 Pro Max handsets are reporting issues that cause some Bluetooth devices to refuse to stay connected to the latest that Apple has to offer.

People have been reporting similar issues since not that long after the iPhones first went on sale in September 2023 and it was assumed that a subsequent software update would rectify whatever was going on. However, as we edge closer to March 2023 a new MacRumors report says things haven't improved. Citing reports from its own forums, MacRumors says that older Bluetooth devices like some in-car systems keep disconnecting from iPhones.

The reports include people running various versions of iOS including the very latest iOS 17.3.1 release which makes it clear that this isn't a bug that Apple has squashed just yet. However, the report does note that some iPhone owners had been told that a future iOS 17 update would resolve the problem but so far, that hasn't happened.

Apple has long been rumored to have some big iPad refreshes in the works for 2024 and two of the most important are likely to be OLED upgrades to the 11-inch and 13-inch iPad Pros. Both models are set to be updated for the first time in a good long while within the next couple of months, and the OLED display is likely to be among the most vital improvements.

Now, a new report by The Elec has outlined Apple's plans for the two tablets in terms of which companies will be tasked with producing those OLED panels. The report says that Apple intends to use both Samsung Display and LG Display, two companies that it has used in the past.

According to the report LG Display is the company that has been asked to put together the 13-inch OLED panel for the biggest tablet while Samsung Display will take care of the smaller 11-inch version. Both of these new tablets are expected to launch at the same time, probably in March or April depending on which report you believe.

There has been a lot of talk of late about Apple's attempt to increase its positioning in the world of AI. That will hopefully see Siri improve greatly and rumors have big AI-focused updates coming to the iPhone in 2024 - likely with the arrival of the iOS 18 update and iPhone 16 models this September. Now, a new report claims that Apple is already using a ChatGPT-like chatbot internally, with some customer support agents employing it to help them do their work.

MacRumors reports that the generative AI tool was recently launched as a pilot program that gives some AppleCare support workers access to it for testing purposes. The tool, called Ask, can automatically generate responses to technical questions that have been received from customers with Apple employees then passing the response on to customers either over the phone or via online chat systems.

The report says that Ask will automatically use Apple's in-house knowledge base to formulate its answers and employees rate the responses as either helpful or unhelpful in an attempt to better train it. Apple reportedly wants workers to use the new tool in the first instance before relying on traditional research methods like searching the knowledge base themselves.

The Apple Vision Pro mixed reality headset has only been on sale for a few weeks and hasn't yet reached a month on the market, but there are already a few issues starting to crop up. Thankfully, most of those issues appear to be software-related which means that Apple will be able to fix them by releasing new updates over the coming weeks and months. But the latest issue to crop up is different, and it's a worrying one at that.

The issue at hand is a phenomenon that has started to crop up online and particularly on Reddit, with users reporting that their headsets are starting to crack. To be specific, the front cover glass that sits atop the EyeSight display is cracking in some instances, and seemingly of its own accord.

Users report that the headset's glass is cracking in a straight line around the halfway mark with no sudden impact or drops causing it. Some users say that their cracked glass was spotted after leaving the headset plugged in and charging and then returning to the device later. Others suggest that the crack could be related to the extra tension placed on the glass when the head straps are being tightened.

Survival-crafter Palworld has amassed an incredible 25 million players in just a few weeks.

Recent sales figures prove that Palworld wasn't a flash in the pan. The game stole headlines earlier this month with its viral sales spree, racking up 1-2 million copies sold per day for almost 2 weeks. By day 12 of market availability, Palworld had reached 19 million players.

Now Palworld developer Pocketpair has released updated figures. In its first month of sale, Palworld reached 25 million+ players. This includes 15 million Steam sales, and 10 million Xbox players, but the last part isn't necessarily full game sales. Remember that Palworld is on Xbox Game Pass, so the "players" metric includes both game purchases and Game Pass subscribers.

Here's a bit of an odd one - we've just got wind that MSI is only providing firmware updates for its pricier, highest-end QD-OLED monitors, namely MPG models, whereas the MAG monitors won't get new firmware (with one sole exception - we'll come back to that).

This situation was revealed by an MSI rep on a Reddit post, when they were questioned about one particular model, and replied to confirm:

Others in that Reddit thread followed up asking whether this meant software updates via a USB stick might not be supported, but that new firmware could be installed using another method, perhaps?

Generative and constructive AI could open up a new way to monetize the games industry through creative and interesting means.

AI is a hot-button topic in the games industry, and for good reason. Gaming is collectively bloodletting itself in an attempt to purge the virus of rising costs, leading to thousands of layoffs. Artists understandably don't like the idea of their work being stolen via AI, and very much don't want to be replaced by automated processes. And right now, it's fair to say that companies are eager to grasp at any cost-saving tools that are available. AI is seen as the future of, well, everything, and it will undoubtedly be scaled for the world's largest entertainment medium.

Artificial intelligence is being advanced at such a rapid rate that it will assuredly disrupt key parts of the economy, including the $180 billion interactive entertainment industry. The most practical public use-cases for AI in gaming have been things like automated voiced dialog, and there's been talk of using AI to help create quests and streamline other processes. Microsoft has teamed up with AI experts Inworld to bring AI tools to the Xbox SDK environment, and Xbox's CFO Tim Stuart says that 'anyone can be a game developer' with AI's help.

The GeForce NOW cloud streaming service now supports over 1,800 games as this week sees the arrival of some new titles from Bandai Namco's catalog - including Tales of Arise, Katamari Damacy REROLL, Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series, PAC-MAN MUSEUM+ and PAC-MAN WORLD Re-PAC.

Also arriving this week is the new survival adventure game Nightingale, the tactical strategy of Terminator: Dark Fate - Defiance, and the excellent new roguelike driving game Pacific Drive. Unlike other streaming services, GeForce NOW allows members to play the games they own from many devices with access to a 'GeForce RTX 4080 SuperPOD', with DLSS, Frame Generation, and real-time ray-tracing.

In addition, you've got access to over 100 free-to-play titles - plus support for games on Steam, Xbox for Windows (including PC Game Pass), Epic Games Store, Ubisoft Connect, and GOG.com. This year, GeForce NOW is celebrating its fourth anniversary, where last week, we saw the arrival of a couple of heavy hitters in the form of Ubisoft's Skull and Bones and Microsoft's Halo Infinite.

It's another big week for The TT Show, with plenty of stories from the world of console hardware, games, GPUs, AI, science, and space discussed. This week's episode begins with a lengthy discussion about the future of Xbox, its games coming to PlayStation and Switch, and what's in store for the next-gen Xbox and PlayStation consoles. Will AI be the key to delivering the technical leap people expect?

Alongside the next-gen gaming talk, which includes what's coming from NVIDIA and AMD, Jak and Kosta take a detour into the world of 8K gaming and whether it should happen anytime soon. The TT Show hosts believe the performance hit isn't worth it, so watch or listen to the latest episode and let us know your thoughts.

Also, Kosta goes through the new NVIDIA App, which presents a significant software update for GeForce RTX owners, combining Control Panel with GeForce Experience in a fast, minimal, and sleek new package. It's a fantastic update from the overhauled overlay to the expanded system monitoring tools to the new RTX HDR and RTX Dynamic Vibrance tools for PC games.

Technology has advanced so rapidly that most devices in a 2024 household are always online smart devices perpetually connected to the cloud. Beyond this, no workforce, industry, or government agency exists without a complex and interconnected web of users, systems, and online technologies. Is it any wonder that cyber-attacks are on the rise and have cost the world $8 trillion USD in 2023?

According to ExpressVPN, the cost of cyber-attacks has increased steadily in recent years. With the rise of generative AI and more sophisticated technologies, the $8 trillion figure will hit $9.5 trillion in 2024 and effectively double to $17.9 trillion by 2030. Last year alone, the cost of cyber attacks would have made it the third-largest economy in the world behind the United States and China.

As for who bears the brunt of the cost, if you answered 'us,' you're correct. Looking into over 550 organizations hit by data breaches, IBM's 2023 Cost of Data Breach report arrived at this conclusion - additional costs passed onto consumers in various ways. So, the next time you see a subscription fee increase, one of the main reasons could very well be cybersecurity costs.

Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said he hopes to one day make chips for its competitor AMD, and that it has plans on becoming the world's leading foundry by 2030.

During the recent IFS Direct Connect event, Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said he wants the company to enter the custom chips market -- something AMD is heavily involved in, but has its semi-custom chips made in Taiwan at TSMC -- as well as supply Intel's process nodes and "sharing" each stage of manufacturing technologies, including its exciting new packaging technology.

Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said: "Well, if you go back to the picture I showed today, Paul, there are Intel products and Intel foundry, There's a clean line between those, and as I said on the last earnings call, we'll have a setup separate legal entity for Intel foundry this year. We'll start posting separate financials associated with that going forward. And the foundry team's objective is simple: Fill. The. Fabs. Deliver to the broadest set of customers on the planet".

The 2022 CHIPS Act saw $39 billion in direct grants, plus loans and loan guarantees worth $75 billion to spark up domestic semiconductor production in the United States... and it needs way more money.

US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said that the US needs continued investment in semiconductor manufacturing in order to take global leadership and meet demand from AI technologies. Raimondo said: "I suspect there will have to be - whether you call it Chips Two or something else - continued investment if we want to lead the world. We fell pretty far. We took our eye off the ball. When I talk to him or other customers in the industry, the volume of chips that they project they need is mind boggling".

Intel has plans for a $20 billion plant in Ohio and a $20 billion expansion of its plant in Arizona and is also in discussions for a further $10 billion in grant and loan incentives. Intel recently announced its first customer for its new Intel 18A process node: Microsoft. Microsoft is building a new chip using Intel 18A in the future, while Intel teased its next-gen Intel 14A process node for 2026 when it plans to be the home of making the fastest chips in the world.

Reddit has officially filed paperwork for an Initial Public Offering (IPO) on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), where we'll see the RDDT as the ticker symbol, and longtime users of Reddit will be able to buy RDDT shares.

Reddit CEO Steve Huffman said that many longtime Reddit users feel a "deep sense of ownership" over their communities on the platform, continuing: "We want this sense of ownership to be reflected in real ownership-for our users to be our owners. With this in mind, we are excited to invite the users and moderators who have contributed to Reddit to buy shares in our IPO, alongside our investors".

Reddit's filing said: "Our users have a deep sense of ownership over the communities they create on Reddit. This sense of ownership often extends to all of Reddit. We see this in our users' passion for their communities, their desire for Reddit to be as amazing as possible, and in their disapproval when we let them down. We want this sense of ownership to be reflected in real ownership - for our users to be our owners. Becoming a public company makes this possible. With this in mind, we are excited to invite the users and moderators who have contributed to Reddit to buy shares in our IPO, alongside our investors".

Not to be confused with EA's reboot of the franchise, the original Star Wars Battlefront (2004) and Star Wars Battlefront II (2005) were iconic releases. Blending the massive scope and mix of on-foot and vehicles of multiplayer games like Battlefield with everything Star Wars, they were an instant success. Although fans have kept these games alive with mods and custom servers, Aspyr and Lucasfilm Games are releasing a remastered and revamped Star Wars Battlefront Classic Collection on March 14, 2024.

The Star Wars Battlefront Classic Collection will come to Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC (via Steam) for $35.01 USD - and yes, it will support online multiplayer for up to 64 players! Some fantastic additions include expanding the Hero Assault mode to more maps, including all bonus content and official Steam Deck support.

Star Wars Battlefront Classic Collection includes maps, characters, vehicles, and ships from the original trilogy and the prequel trilogy - with content spanning the breadth of Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace through to Star Wars Episode VI: The Return of the Jedi.

Alongside the launch of the new NVIDIA App, be sure to check out our full coverage below if you haven't already; NVIDIA has also just released the latest GeForce Game Ready 551.61 WHQL driver that you can download through the GeForce Experience app, the new NVIDIA App, or directly from GeForce.com.

In terms of game support, the new Game Ready Driver adds day-one support for Nightingale, an impressive-looking fantasy survival adventure game. Nightingale has some pretty intense hardware requirements, so thankfully, there's DLSS 3 Frame Generation support for those with GeForce RTX 40 Series GPUs.

The big NVIDIA story for GeForce RTX owners this week has been the launch of the new NVIDIA App, available now in beta, with the GeForce Game Ready 551.61 WHQL driver supporting the new app that combines GeForce Experience and the old-school NVIDIA Control Panel in a slick, fast, and impressive new package.

"Built from the same research and technology used to create the Gemini models," Google's new lightweight Gemma LLMs have been designed to run natively on local PC hardware powered by NVIDIA GPUs.

For use in third-party AI applications, Gemma 2B and Gemma 7B were both developed by Google DeepMind, with each open model capable of surpassing "significantly larger models on key benchmarks," according to Google, while running on a GeForce RTX-powered laptop or PC.

The Gemma pre-trained models are designed to be safe and reliable, with NVIDIA adding that the models are optimized to run on its open-source NVIDIA TensorRT-LLM library - accelerated by the over 100 million NVIDIA RTX GPUs available in AI PCs. Gemma can also run on JAX and PyTorch.

Modders are at it again, this time taking apart NVIDIA's older-gen GeForce RTX 2080 graphics card that launched with 8GB of VRAM and modding it up to 16GB.

The client that requested the mod on their GeForce RTX 2080 graphics card provided the additional memory required, which made the mod on the RTX 2080 less work for the team. NVIDIA originally launched the GeForce RTX 2080 back in 2018 based on the Turing GPU architecture and featuring the TU104-400 GPU. The GPU featured 2944 CUDA cores, and 8GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit memory interface.

The modders removed the old 8GB of memory from the RTX 2080, soldering on 16GB of GDDR6 memory in its place, while also adjusting the jumpers (as you can see in the pictures below) so that the GPU is tricked into recognizing the new memory installed on the card.

Intel's next-gen Xeon "Clearwater Forest" CPUs will feature up to 288 cores based on the new Darkmont CPU architecture, with no P-Cores in sight with Clearwater Forest, its 288 E-Cores.

The latest information on Intel's next-gen Clearwater Forest CPUs is that they will feature Foveros Direct advanced packaging technology, with 3D stacking technology allowing Intel to drive the E-Core count up to an incredible 288 cores of processing power.

Intel's latest hybrid bonding technology is codenamed Foveros Direct for 3D stacking of the Clearwater Forest-based Xeon CPUs. This CPU packaging technology features a base time on top of the interposer, that's connected through a high-speed I/O, EMIB, and the cores will be sitting on the highest layer of the chip.

Nacon is gearing up to unveil more of its new open-world Terminator survival game, where we'll see more of what to expect from the exciting new Terminator game on February 29.

The developer is hosting its Nacon Connect event on February 29, where we'll not only get a more detailed look at its upcoming Terminator game but we'll also see more of GreedFall 2: The Dying World, Test Drive Unlimited, Solar Crown, Ravenswatch, and Crown Wars: The Black Prince.

Nacon originally announced its as-yet-untitled Terminator game back in 2022; where the new open-world survival game is in development at Nacon Studio Milan, with the game taking place between the events of Judgment Day (Skynet dropping nuclear bombs and wiping out human civilization) that leads to the formation of the resistance by John Connor. You'll play as part of a group of survivors trying to stay alive in a post-nuclear apocalypse... against Terminators.

Samsung has just announced it's forming a new semiconductor development organization in Silicon Valley called AGI Computing Lab, which will work on developing AGI-specific semiconductors.

The leader of this new AGI organization is called AGI Computing Lab and is being led by Dr. Woo Dong-hyuk in a senior vice president role, as well as a former Tensor Processing Unit (TPU) developer from Google, where he was one of the three people who designed the TPU platform for Google.

Samsung has been providing HBM memory chips for AI GPU makers like NVIDIA, but now the company is pushing into its own AGI semiconductor business, with a $100 billion war chest to take on the likes of TSMC and Intel, which just announced its latest Intel 18A and next-gen Intel 16A process nodes. Intel plans on taking the crown from TSMC in making the world's fastest chips this year, aiming for domination against TSMC in 2026.