Author: Trent Meikle

On the list of franchises that never needed a reality game series, Fallout might top the list, alongside Netflix’s Squid Game. Real-life Vault-Tec — AKA Amazon — has ordered a Fallout Shelter game show, based on the half-decent mobile game, that’ll stick contestants into real-life vaults — AKA “an immersive world” — to compete for huge cash prizes. Just… without the threat of a nuclear apocalypse to worry about. Yet, anyway. Take shelter, Amazon’s on a roll The ten-episode series will be produced by Studio Lambert, which handles Undercover Boss and Netflix’s own Squid Game: The Challenge. The new game show comes right as Fallout…

When Samsung launched Galaxy AI nearly two years ago, it was always with the caveat that the free ride would one day end. Since then, Samsung has built out the Galaxy AI suite to one day exploit that newfound reliance on artificial intelligence by charging for it. Today, Samsung confirmed that certain “basic” features would remain free going forward, as outlined in the footnotes of its Galaxy AI page. Galaxy brain move “Galaxy AI basic features provided by Samsung are free. Future releases may include enhanced features or new services that are offered on a paid basis. Different terms may…

It’s not just you. The PlayStation Store is a little more bearable of late. It hasn’t magically gained a bunch of new, amazing games. In fact, it’s the opposite. Sony has seemingly banished publisher ThiGamesDE from the store, which was responsible for high-quality content like The Jumping Burger and 1,000+ others just like it. Like a kid in a clothing store That, if you missed the sarcasm, is what’s known as shovelware. Extremely low-effort rip-offs of ‘real’ titles that appeal exclusively to the folk who care about the arbitrary number of trophies on their profile populated the store, burying the…

YouTube may not have sparked the short-form content craze, but it certainly loves to capitalize on it. Somewhere along the line, even the vampires executives at YouTube HQ felt at least a little bad for contributing to the continual frying of kids’ dopamine receptors, prompting the site to introduce parental controls for Shorts. Announced in a blog post today, YouTube confirmed that parents would soon gain access to new controls that allow Shorts’ role on the site to be drastically diminished, or banished entirely for teen accounts (YouTube Kids doesn’t offer Shorts). Another one of its goals involves “introducing new…

Yesterday, Apple invited Google into its inner circle to find and correct the errors of past AI leadership and finally deliver the next-gen Siri it promised years back, except with Gemini AI at the helm. The deal, reportedly worth $1 billion per year, was announced in the form of a joint statement, which stopped short of revealing what the partnership could mean for consumers. A new report from The Information sheds some light on what’s to come. The Apple of Google’s AI Apple, it seems, has organised its paperwork correctly. Part of that hefty yearly fee will allow the Fruit Company to…

For whatever reason, Oppo felt it prudent to introduce the Oppo A6 Pro 5G to the world before the regular A6 lineup. The company’s budget series has broken cover overseas, offering 4G and 5G flavours to entice users on both ends of the budget spectrum, and leaving the Pro to cover its mid-range bases. Oppo’s back on the budget train The Oppo A6 4G and Oppo A6 5G are nearly identical, down to the rear dual camera setup and IP69 water- and dust resistance. They share 6.75-inch IPS LCDs (720×1600) that’ll have no trouble hitting 120Hz and 900 nits of peak brightness.…

It’s been a hot minute since we were reminded that OpenAI’s Sam Altman had teamed up with former Apple design chief Jony Ive to create a dedicated AI device. That might have something to do with reports that the device was struggling to find its footing as of October last year. Fresh rumours have surfaced, courtesy of Smart Pikachu on X, claiming the device will take the form of “unique, unseen before”… earbuds. Stop listening to Alt rock, Man Altman and Ive’s lovechild, formerly known as ‘io’ before a trademark dispute forced the two to fold the company into OpenAI,…

You may have already made friends with Samsung’s R2,500 Galaxy A07, but we bet you’ve yet to meet its prettier sister, the Galaxy A07 5G. That’s because it only just got its start in Myanmar, bringing with it several upgrades that’ll likely pull it out of the camp of ‘totally budget’ and dump it into the regular ‘budget’ market. Big OS upgrades for the budget crowd The Galaxy A07 5G is slightly chonkier than the Galaxy A06 5G, weighing in at 199g and measuring 8.2mm thick, while the IP54 rating fends off dust and water. Still, it holds onto the…

Apple, it seems, has admitted defeat in the AI space. The iPhone-maker inked a new multi-year collaboration with Alphabet’s Google that will use its Gemini AI models to deliver the long-awaited Siri revamp in the coming year. The deal, which reportedly hovers around the $1 billion-per-year mark, places Google even more firmly in OpenAI’s sights as the two ramp up the battle for AI market dominance. Hey Siri Google! “After careful evaluation, Apple determined Google’s AI technology provides ‌the most capable foundation for Apple Foundation Models,” Alphabet said, which smugly noted that its AI models would also power the Fruit…

If you thought Google’s AI Overviews were past the whole ‘eat a rock a day, put glue on your pizza’ thing, think again. The search giant proved once again that its AI-powered summaries cannot be trusted when it comes to potentially life-changing information after The Guardian did a little digging, calling it “dangerous and alarming,” and ultimately ended with Google turning off AI Overviews entirely when asking for certain medical advice. “In one case that experts described as “really dangerous”, Google wrongly advised people with pancreatic cancer to avoid high-fat foods. Experts said this was the exact opposite of what should…