Author: Brett Venter

You were expecting Amazon, yet another company with masses of cloud infrastructure, to give AI a skip? It is to laugh. Nope, the company’s Fire HD tablets, in celebration of the announcement of an update to the Fire HD 8 series (and also in service of a possible stock price bump), have generative AI headed their way. And not just the new hardware either. The company announced it is “adding new generative AI-powered features to compatible Fire tablets”. The stated aim is to “help customers be more productive and creative throughout their day.” Amazon Intelligence https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_WZaFWzmQk Maybe you prefer your…

There’s a new Office coming in 2024. No, not that one. Microsoft has a new standalone Office 2024 software suite out in the wild that lets you trade in a monthly subscription for a once-off payment. It’s at least double the cost going in the door but it’ll work out cheaper in the long run. But you should be aware going in that you won’t get any of Microsoft’s nifty new Copilot features with your document software. That’s got us eying the basic priced package with interest but if you’re hoping to use the software for “commercial purposes” and sending…

Every nerd has looked longingly at the Raspberry Pi mini-computers at least once but not everyone has the imagination to use it for anything more than a very compact media centre PC. For the other folks, the new Pi AI Camera add-on could be just the thing to get that skunkworks Spot knockoff up and running. Or perhaps it’ll just allow whatever your project happens to be to take better photographs. See, the Pi AI Camera is just what it sounds like — a Raspberry Pi-compatible camera sensor with integrated artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities. Oh, and it’s also made with…

Microsoft’s HoloLens augmented reality headset was one of the most promising takes on an augmented reality headset. Perhaps not from a comfort perspective so much as a usability one but it seems that potential has come to a close. UploadVR reports that Microsoft has ended production of its HoloLens 2 headset and there won’t be a follow-up headset to replace it. The remaining stock will continue to be sold but no new products will be added to the line. Adieu HoloLens At least the curtain will take some time to close on this product lineup. The original HoloLens, like the…

The name Orion conjures up images of greatness. Think about it. There’s the constellation. The Greek mythological figure. The telescope brand. Actually, forget about that last one. There’s a new one in town, however, and he works for Mark Zuckerberg. Meta earlier this week announced an upgraded but cheaper version of the Meta Quest 3 but it also unveiled what the company considers the future of augmented reality. That would be Orion, a set of augmented reality glasses that are lighter and more manageable than most offerings. Even if they make you look like you had your specs tattooed onto…

Soon, everything you love will have ads. Even the moon, if some folks have their way. For now, though, it’s your TV that could feature ads in unexpected places. Some models of LG TV have been spotting displaying new screensaver ads. This doesn’t appear to be a widespread phenomenon yet but it is a phenomenon. The folks over at FlatpanelsHD found and recorded several instances of screensaver ads natively displayed by LG. The folks who made the TV. LG takes a chance The ads show up briefly before the screensaver kicks in and appear tailored to whichever region the TV…

The gamers at Stuff (that’s most of us) have a soft spot for PC gaming hardware specialist SteelSeries. If only we had compatible budgets. The brand’s newest gaming gear might fit the bill for something a little more budget, if only because you might have to buy two. We’re talking about SteelSeries’ new Arctis Gamebuds, in-ear buds intended to be used with Sony or Microsoft’s newest consoles. You could also use them with your PC, mobile device, and probably the Nintendo Switch, but those are unofficial usages. Song of SteelSeries At least, that’s what SteelSeries’ product lineup suggests. There are…

If you’re a human adult with a disposable income and a nostalgia problem, you’re probably the target market for the new Dab 1a electric motorcycle. The creation of Dab (the company), the EV is themed around the Nintendo Game Boy Color (apparently — we don’t believe it). Specifically the Nintendo Purple and the translucent variant of the handheld console*. This doesn’t go any way toward explaining why the company has purple Nintendo 64 controllers in its promotional images but we’ll let that slide for now. Even though we can also see Resident Evil 2 on the TV behind the bike.…

Duolingo, the app famous for having an owl mascot that hates you (and a few other things), has done yet another completely unexpected thing. Instead of Mexican takeout, you can now buy an owl-themed portable piano. No, the minds behind the language learning app haven’t lost theirs. The service offers music lessons in addition to those French and German courses you’ve been neglecting since 2021. This new product is intended to help you get to your daily piano lesson by… well, making you carry around a piano. The key to Duolingo It’s not like the company could give each user…

If you’re in the market for a wearable that isn’t made by an unholy union of Google and Samsung, Vivo’s Watch 3, newly launched in South Africa, would like you to turn your attention in its direction. The smartwatch borrows some of the design aesthetics of the more popular Android wearables but the Chinese company has taken steps to make this one its own. Mostly this comes down to a proprietary operating system, Origin OS. It’s based on Android so it should work with your device (and most of the third-party apps that exist for wearables) but it doesn’t have…