Runnings Rings
Samsung could be giving ‘Rings of Power’ a new meaning, potentially entering the realm of smart trackers that fit around your finger. A patent was discovered on South Korean forum Naver. Sure, patents need to be taken with a pinch of salt. It’s not necessarily a sign of what’s to come. But in this case, it tells us that Samsung is at least considering the possibility of a smart, lightweight ring tracker.
According to Notebookcheck, Samsung is looking for ways to fit an optical heart rate monitor and ECG tracking into the ring. There isn’t much else to see here. If a ‘Galaxy Ring’ were to become a reality, it won’t be anytime soon. It’s likely that a sleep tracker is thrown in too, with a battery that can last a couple of days at the least. A ring like that won’t be cheap, considering Oura’s latest smart ring goes for $300 (R5,500). Will Samsung trump that? Maybe.
Source: TechRadar
J.R.R Tolkien is turning over in his grave
If the idea of a Warner Brothers ‘Movieverse’ gets you excited, we’re here to tamper that excitement. This ‘Movieverse’ isn’t Warner Brothers’ attempt to copy the MCU – it already tried and failed with its DCEU. Somehow, this is far worse than the DCEU. Warner Brothers are selling The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings as a set of NFTs, kicking off the sale of other Warner Brothers movies as NFTs.
Two versions of Fellowship are available: the Mystery edition and the Epic edition. The former has 10,000 copies available, while the latter is limited to 999 copies. The mystery edition has a chance of receiving one of three special menus, including The Shire, Rivendell and the Mines of Moria. Purchasing the Epic edition gives you access to all three. Each edition includes a 4K UHD version of the film, eight hours of commentary and “location-specific image galleries.”
If owning a hyperlink to a movie is something that interests you, then you’ll need to cough up $30 (R550) for the Mystery edition or $100 (R1,800) for the Epic edition.
Source: Gizmodo
Spreading Discord over Microsoft
As it stands, Xbox owners and Discord frequenters require a smartphone in order to join a voice channel. That could be changing pretty soon, according to an Xbox blog post detailing a move away from requiring a phone to join channels. Beta testers have already received the feature. A phone is still required to call specific friends, but it’s a step in the right direction.
We’ll hopefully be seeing something similar come from PlayStation’s end in the near future.
No official release date was announced, unfortunately. Though we’ll probably see a release in a couple of weeks, once Microsoft has ironed out any unforeseen kinks.
Source: Engadget
“You got any games on your phone?”
As the Microsoft and Activision Blizzard deal continues to pend, Microsoft wants to focus on an ‘Xbox Mobile Platform’. One that would ideally challenge the App Store and Google Play Store. A lofty goal, for sure. But one that is certainly made easier with Activision Blizzard standing behind it.
“The transaction will improve Microsoft’s ability to create a next-generation game store that operates across a range of devices, including mobile, as a result of the addition of Activision Blizzard’s content…” the company said in its CMA filings.
And it’s easy to see why Microsoft is trying to horn in on the mobile game industry. Microsoft’s filings tell us that generated revenue from the King division and Activision mobile games made up for more than half of the company’s revenues in 2022.
“Shifting consumers away from the Google Play Store and App Store on mobile devices will, however, require a major shift in consumer behaviour. Microsoft hopes that by offering well-known and popular content, gamers will be more inclined to try something new,” Microsoft added.
Whether that’ll work… remains to be seen.
Source: TechCrunch