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Posts tagged "leak"

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Apple Vision Pro might be lacking some features at launch, says leak
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Apple's Vision Pro headset hasn't even gone on sale yet, and it might not do for another year yet. But that was never going to stop Apple from working on what will follow it and now a recent report suggests that isn't just one, but two new headsets.

Unfortunately for Vision Pro hopefuls, that same report also suggests that Apple will hold back some visionOS features for when those successors are shared with the public – and worst of all, they're features that were originally penciled in for the Vision Pro's launch instead.

However, Apple appears to have chosen to delay those software features until the next found of hardware is ready, and that, among other things, could be enough to give potential buyers a reason to consider hanging fire – not that we imagine people are lining up to buy this insanely expensive device, even if it does turn out to be the best VR headset ever made.

Two is better than one

Writing in his weekly Power On newsletter, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports that  Apple has not one, but two new versions of the Vision Pro headset in development already – one of which will be a lot cheaper. Apple only announced the Vision Pro at WWDC on June 5, but it's already moved some employees from that project and onto teams that are working on what comes next in Apple's AR/VR lineup.

We noted the two new Vision Pro models previously, but the latest report from Gurman suggests that new software features will debut with those updated models, rather than the first headset – even though that one isn't even releasing until 2024.

Gurman says that Apple is working on “The ability to show multiple Mac desktop screens when connected wirelessly to a Vision Pro,” whereas the first Vision Pro will only connect to a single desktop at launch. There's also the suggestion that Apple Fitness Plus will be integrated somehow, allowing headsets wearers to work out while in an AR/VR world.

Finally, Gurman says that Apple also wants to offer “the ability for multiple Vision Pro users in a several-person FaceTime conference to use Personas.” The Vision Pro due to go on sale in the first half of 2024 will only allow one-on-one calls with Apple's haunting 3D avatars.

It's still too early to know when Apple will announce these new headsets of course, nor do we know how much that cheaper model will cost. We can hopefully expect to learn more as the leaks roll out in the coming months.

It's a bit disappointing that Apple will apparently be holding back some features – it's particularly odd to be hearing about it now, when the first iteration of the headset is still more than six months away from release. We'd imagine there probably is enough time for Apple to implement those features, in fact, which makes the whole thing all the more disheartening.

In other words, we're probably going to hold off on dropping $ 3,499 on the Vision Pro next year – at least, unless Apple confirms these features will be backward-compatible when they finally do arrive.

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Windows 11 Copilot leak gives us a glimpse of the AI assistant in action
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We know Windows 11 is set to get Microsoft’s Copilot built in, and we’ve just caught a glimpse of the AI assistant feature (well, actually, a couple of sightings, and we’ll come back to the other one later).

In case you missed it (unlikely, admittedly), Copilot is the Bing Chat-powered integrated AI that pops up in a side panel to help in Windows 11, and Windows Latest managed to get a peek at an early version (add your own seasoning, and plenty of it, as with any leak).

There’s a big caveat here, namely that the pre-release version of Copilot shown (in a very brief clip) isn’t fully functional by any means.

Still, it gives you a flavor of how the Windows 11 helper – an assistant with a much, much grander vision than Cortana – will perform, and what it can do.

Windows 11 Copilot Pre-release Version

(Image credit: Windows Latest)

We see the user instructing Copilot to turn on Dark Mode (which, ahem, it fails to do – as noted, this isn’t a proper working version), and a response to a food-based question (the queries work in much the same way as with the Bing chatbot already, and the three core personalities for replies are in here, too).

We don’t see much here, and nothing of the really cool tricks that Copilot will eventually be able to do (such as turning on multiple features in one fell swoop to help with a certain aim like ‘being more productive’, or summarizing content to go in an email, right there in the app, in-line).

However, Windows Latest does observe that Microsoft will use in-house plug-ins to customize the Bing Chat experience in Windows 11, and that Copilot will utilize a system of “action cards” to detect how you are using the OS, and offer up intelligent suggestions based on that.

Analysis: Where art thou, Copilot?

Okay, so while this glimpse of Microsoft’s AI is still very much early work, and not very exciting, it’s a useful hint that Copilot is ticking along progress-wise. Because we’ve not heard anything from Microsoft since the initial announcement of the AI, when we were told that it’d be in testing in June.

Now, June is almost over, and it seems unlikely that a preview build is going to show up later this week with a functional Copilot doing its query answering and settings manipulating stuff.

That said, we’ve caught not only this sighting of Copilot from Windows Latest, but there was another one at the weekend. That was provided by regular Twitter-based leaker Albacore, who pointed out that recent Windows 11 preview builds in the Dev channel have a Windows Copilot button (hidden – and when enabled, it doesn’t do anything, mind).

That’s another hint that things are coming into place for Copilot’s release to be tested in preview. However, we’ve got a feeling this will take a lot of internal testing before it gets to Windows Insiders, somehow. As the blurb in the Copilot side panel observes, it’s AI-powered, and “surprises and mistakes are possible”.

When it comes to a Bing chatbot query, a mistake is embarrassing enough, but with an AI embedded right into the heart of Windows 11, Microsoft is going to need to take a lot more care to avoid any potential blunders – even in testing.

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Windows 11 leak suggests Microsoft is making some big changes
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Windows 11 looks set to get some exciting new features in upcoming updates, with a leak emerging that apparently shows off Microsoft’s plans.

As Neowin reports, the leak comes courtesy of Albacore, a Twitter account that's well known for leaking Windows features. In a series of Tweets we were given a glimpse of what are claimed to be some of changes Microsoft is making to Windows 11.

The first is a new ‘Stickers’ feature for Windows 11. Users will be able to edit stickers and add them to the desktop. These stickers can be placed over your desktop wallpaper, and will apparently remain there if you change wallpapers – though Albacore suggests this feature won’t work if you use a slideshow as your background, or if you have multiple monitors.

It’s also not currently clear if these ‘Stickers’ will be purely decorative, or if they could offer some sort of functionality, such as displaying the date and time.

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More changes

Changes are also said to be coming to how notifications are shown in Windows 11. This appears to be an area where Microsoft struggles, as notifications in both Windows 10 and Windows 11 haven’t worked as well as many had hoped, with the notifications either being too distracting, or not distracting enough (and easily missed).

According to Albacore, there will be a new ‘Set priority notifications’ setting, which should hopefully give users more control over what notifications they get. Focus Assist, which is a quick setting for turning off or minimizing notifications, is also getting a new name – it’ll just be known as ‘Focus’.

There will also be new options for the ‘Focus’ setting, allowing you to hide badges on taskbar apps (and stop them flashing) and mute notifications. The aim of this mode is to minimize distractions so you can keep focused on the task at hand.

A new ‘Sustainability’ page is also being added to the Settings app. This will allow you to manage the power settings of your device so that it runs more efficiently, and there's also a link to information about how to safely recycle your device.

The page also has leaf-shape icons, and these look like the'll be used to give your device a rating for how energy-efficient it is.

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It also looks like some form of ‘tablet mode’ will come to Windows 11 that automatically hides the Taskbar when you use your device as a tablet (for example when using a 2-in-1 laptop in its tablet configuration).

It’s not clear when these new features will appear in Windows 11, if indeed they appear at all, but as some have been spotted in early builds it's possible that we could see them in Windows 11’s upcoming major update, known as Sun Valley 2, which is likely to come out in the second half of 2022.

Analysis: tweaks are welcome – but don’t forget the bigger stuff

Assuming this leak proves to be the real deal, these new features would broadly be welcome. While we’re not too sure how useful the Stickers feature will be, giving users more control over notifications, and information on how they can make their device run more efficiently, would certainly be great additions to Windows 11.

However, while it’s nice to get new features and performance tweaks, we don’t want Microsoft to take its eye off the bigger picture. There are still a few things it needs to iron out in Windows 11, including some vital missing features – such as the facility to drag and drop files onto apps pinned to the Taskbar – and we’d like Microsoft to prioritize addressing these issues, rather than worrying about cosmetic changes.

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Oops! Apple helps leak the Samsung Galaxy Buds Plus earbuds
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After revealing software appeared on Apple’s App Store, Samsung confirmed that a new-and-improved version of its true wireless earbuds, called the Samsung Galaxy Buds Plus, will be launching soon.

While it was live only briefly, the iOS app’s page noted that the upcoming 'buds are compatible with the iPhone 7 and newer as long as they're all running iOS 10 or higher. Samsung confirmed in a statement that the company is "excited to introduce Galaxy Buds+ soon," according to CNET. 

Given that Samsung Unpacked 2020 is coming February 11, and that the original Samsung Galaxy Buds launched at Unpacked 2019 alongside the Samsung Galaxy S10, we’re betting ‘soon’ to mean at this year’s event where we’re expecting to get our first look at the Samsung Galaxy S20. Heck, we even heard the Buds Plus will come free with the new flagship smartphone.

Unfortunately, the app page did not reveal anything about the true wireless earbuds beyond a photo, though the presence of the iOS app means iPhone owners will have more control over the Galaxy Buds Plus (like updating software) than before. Luckily, a specs leak just dropped.

Galaxy Buds Plus leak: more battery, smaller size?

Hours after news broke about Samsung’s official confirmation of the Galaxy Buds Plus, noted leaker Evan Blass tweeted out a spec sheet comparing the original models with the new ones. Best of all: they're allegedly only $ 20 more (around £15 /  AU$ 29) than the original model.

Assuming the leak is true, the Galaxy Buds Plus will have nearly twice the battery life (11 hours, with an additional 11 hours in the case) and will charge faster (recharging for 3 minutes gives an hour of playtime) than the originals. 

They’ll allegedly pack a two-way dynamic speaker (woofer + tweeter), an extra outer microphone, and have additional Spotify interaction with the outside touch pad. 

That’s a lot to boast, though the spec sheet didn’t mention whether noise cancelling –  a key feature in the AirPods Pro – would be coming to the new version. Sadly, rumors anticipate it won’t. 

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