Author: Aamir Khollam

WhatsApp to roll out ‘Call Links’ feature soon

WhatsApp head Will Cathcart recently took to Twitter and announced that the messaging app will be introducing the ‘Call Links’ feature. In the tweet, the WhatsApp head revealed that users will now be able to join a call using just a link and will be available for both video and audio calls. The feature will be rolling out next week and you will be able to get on a video/audio call with your group of friends with a simple URL click.

WhatsApp Call Links

With the ‘Call Links’ feature, users will be able to simply tap the option and generate a link for the audio or video call. Users can then share the link easily with friends and family. Users need to note that they will require the latest version of WhatsApp to enable this feature. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that WhatsApp is testing a new feature of calling up to 32 people in one video call. A similar feature is available in audio calls right now however, not for video. It is evident that Meta is taking notes from Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and similar platforms with the ‘Call Links’ feature. Users should note that the call link will expire after 90 days of inactivity. Whereas, if a link is sent to someone who doesn’t have WhatsApp then they will be redirected to WhatsApp’s download page on either Google’s Playstore or Apple App Store.

WhatsApp right now is in a transitional phase where the platform is turning out to become much further than just a mere messaging app. It was last month the platform started testing out WhatsApp Communities, which is basically similar to Facebook’s Groups. The Communities feature allows an admin to create a community with multiple user groups. A benefit of the WhatsApp Communities over Facebook Groups is that they aren’t public and users need to have an invitation in order to join. It looks like WhatsApp is going to make major changes in the coming years to its overall user experience.

Apple to skip the October event?

Its been months since Apple fanatics have been expecting the company to host the October event. The tech giant is expected to release a number of products like the latest iPad lineup and the Mac lineup before 2022 wraps up. Now, reports are suggesting that Apple may decide to skip the October event altogether and introduce the latest product lineup through multiple press releases. If true, it will be the first time in years that the American tech mogul skips the October event.

Apple October event likely cancelled

The latest Apple September event ‘Far Out’ introduced the latest iPhone 14 & Apple Watch lineup. The company also introduced second-generation Apple AirPods Pro which is currently being loved by Apple fans for its accessibility features. A similar event was expected for the launch of Apple’s iPad and Mac lineup but according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, the company has decided to go a different route. According to the report, the remaining updates of the Apple products do not warrant a highly produced show coupled with hands-on experience for attendees afterwards. The events similar to ‘Far Out’ require pre-planning and post-production which could all be wasted if the products don’t live up to the hype. So, are the remaining Apple products for 2022 not exciting enough? we’ll let you decide!

Expected products

Some of the expected upcoming products from Apple in late 2022 are 14/16-inch MacBook Pro models. Mac Mini with M2 and M2 Pro is also expected along with iPad Pros. The MacBooks are expected to come housing M2 Pro and M2 Max chips whereas two iPad Pros are expected to be launched in the 11 and 12.9-inch sizes. Apple is furthermore also expected to update the Apple TV set-top box with an A14 chip and RAM boost. In all honesty, all the upcoming Apple devices seem like mere updates as opposed to something that should be showcased through a big event.

Another thing hinting toward the October event getting cancelled is that the company has not revealed any promotional material like ads and social media posts hinting at it. This won’t be the first time Apple will opt out of an event to release its products. A few years ago, the company announced a whole slew of products through press releases.

Future Star Wars projects to feature AI-Generated Darth Vader voice

Star Wars fans around the world know that the franchise’s big baddie, Darth Vader is voiced by the legendary actor James Earl Jones. The actor has been voicing the iconic character since 1977. He first voiced Darth Vader in Star Wars: A New Hope (Episode IV) and it’s been 45 years since then. It was back in 2019 when the actor mentioned that he was ready to let go of the character. James Earl Jones, 91, has now decided to move on from the character and allow Disney to replicate the voice using another actor or voice artist. However, the company has decided to use an AI-voice modeling tool to get the job done.

AI Darth Vader Voice

Disney has surely had a strange history with CG characters, especially in the Star Wars franchise. Be it the unconvincing render of a CGI Luke Skywalker in The Mandalorian or the CG Princess Leia in Episode IX, the franchise has surely caught itself in some troubled waters. While it’s understandable that the iconic Star Wars character cannot be recast, CG iterations of them in the uncanny valley surely do not get the job done. The company also faced social media backlash as one of its flagship franchises, Marvel’s She-Hulk featured less than impressive CGI. But visuals and audio are two different ball games altogether.

Disney reached out to Respeecher, a Ukrainian company to replicate the voice of Darth Vader. The company trains text-to-speech AI machine learning models to replicate the voices of actors who no longer want to play certain film/show parts. The interesting part of this story is that the company was working on replicating Darth Vader’s voice all while Ukraine was under the Russian invasion. The company used archival footage recordings of James Earl Jones and fed them to an AI algorithm to create new dialogues for the Obi-Wan Kenobi series.

As a result, the company was successful in recreating the Darth Vader voice identical to its first appearance decades ago. It won’t be wrong to assume that Disney will now be sticking to using AI to create Darth Vader’s voice as the character is surely not going anywhere. James Earl Jones, on the other hand, is all set to voice another iconic character of Mufasa, in a standalone Lion King film.

Google Pixel 7 Series Prices Leaked

Google Pixel 7 is all set to launch globally and in India in the coming weeks. As the launch date of the devices comes closer, more and more details about the lineup are making their way to the internet. The company had teased the Pixel 7 and the Pixel 7 Pro back at the Google I/O 2022 keynote event and now it seems like the price point of these devices has leaked.

Google Pixel 7 leaked price

The founder of APKMirror recently took to Twitter and shared a screenshot of the Pixel 7 series pricing listed in the internal pricing data from Target. To the unversed, Target is one of the biggest retailers in the US having offline retail stores across all US states. According to the leaked data, the Pixel 7 will be priced at $599 (around Rs 48,600) and the Pixel 7 Pro is expected to be priced at $899 (approximately Rs 72,990). Readers should note that the leaked prices are exclusive only to the USA and prices are subject to change in India. However, it is the same price Google Pixel 6 was launched last year in the states.

The price difference between the USA and India Pixel 7 variants is not exactly surprising as this has been witnessed in previous gen Pixel devices too. It was just a few weeks back when Apple launched the iPhone 14 Pro lineup in India at a whopping Rs 40,000 extra than what it priced in the USA. One way or the other, It is good news that Google is bringing the Pixel 7 series to India. It will be the first flagship offering from Google in India after Pixel 3 and 3 XL debuted way back in 2018.

The latest leak takes it a notch further to reveal the colors of the Google Pixel 7 series. Google will be keeping true its color naming scheme with device colors named Snow, Hazel, Lemongrass, and Obsidian. Previous leaks had suggested that the devices will be powered by the Tensor G2 chipset, an improved version of last year’s Tensor chipset which powered the Pixel 6 series. As one would expect, the Google Piel 7 series will come with Android 13 out of the box. Personalized features to videos, photos, and speech recognition are also expected with the Pixel 7 lineup.

OnePlus Nord Watch Specifications Revealed

It was just last week that OnePlus teased the budget Nord Watch. Players like RealMe and Noise have already paved their way in the budget smartwatch category and it’s now time for OnePlus to take the market by storm. The company had already launched a number of products in the Indian market this year like the OnePlus 10T and Nord wired earphones, it looks like the Nord lineup will now be extended with the OnePlus Nord Watch. Check out all the details about the upcoming smartwatch below:

OnePlus Nord Watch

Currently, OnePlus has two offerings when it comes to smart wearables. The company offers the premium OnePlus Watch which is priced at Rs 14,999 and the entry-level OnePlus Band which is priced at Rs 1499. It looks like the company is trying to chart the gap between the OnePlus Nord Watch which is expected to be priced in the budget category, likely between Rs 5K to 8K. The device currently has a product page on OnePlus’ official website which has revealed a number of details about the upcoming project.

According to the OnePlus Nord Watch product page, the device will come with a 45.2mm (1.78″) AMOLED display. The display will have a high resolution of 338×448 coupled with 500 nits peak brightness. This will allow the device’s display to be comfortably visible under direct sunlight. While the display is definitely impressive, the refresh rate will be clocked at 60Hz which can be a deal breaker for some. On the software side, users will be able to choose between 100+ watch faces and 105 sports modes. The OnePlus Nord Watch will be revealed on September 28, 2022, according to the company’s official website.

 

According to reports, the smartwatch will offer up to 10 days of battery life. The device will also come equipped with women’s health tracking features. It will have support for both iOS and Android as one would expect. Reports suggest furthermore that it will be available in two color options, Midnight Black and Deep Blue. It looks like the company is prepared to shake the budget smartwatch segment with the OnePlus Nord Watch.

 

Instagram stories under 60 seconds will no longer be split into segments

If you’ve been on Instagram for a long time, you’ve seen a gradual change in the social media platform. The social media app which started off as an image-sharing platform eventually became a confusing mix of photos and videos, then the story format staple to Snapchat crawled its way to Instagram, and finally was Reels which was nothing short of a blatant rip-off of TikTok. Right now, it is visible that Instagram is focussing more on becoming a video platform as more and more short-form video creators make their way. As a way to merge its video products into one, Instagram has announced that Stories under 60 seconds in length will no longer be split into 15-second segments.

Instagram Story Update

An in-app alert was recently posted by social media expert Matt Navarra on Twitter which showcased Instagram’s new story update. The alert read ‘Videos up to 60 seconds long will no longer be broken up into segments.’ Whenever users will update their application they’ll get a notification stating that their Instagram stories will no longer be sliced up into small segments, making it an interruption-free viewing experience. This ultimately benefits the users as they won’t have to tap a story away or move on to another story quickly if they’re not interested.

Instagram has been testing out this new feature for a while with select users. It was a part of the Meta-owned platform’s process to integrate broader video options for users. It was back in October 2021 when Instagram retired its IGTV brand and combined IGTV and feed videos in one format. Whereas, back in July Instagram announced that all videos posted under 15 minutes will be uploaded as Reels. The change in story duration to 60 seconds is not exactly a surprising change. Instagram’s head Adam Mosseri had shared back at the start of the year that the platform will be doubling down and prioritizing its video.

The platform disappointed its users when it rolled out a TikTok-Esque full-screen feed. Users were vocally disappointed with the full-screen Instagram feed which forced the company to go back on the controversial change. Looking at the popularity of video-sharing platforms it is understandable that Instagram is adamant about being one. But it’s yet to be seen if users are interested in another video-focused platform.

 

 

NASA is about to crash a spacecraft into an asteroid… but why?

There are countless sci-fi movies in pop culture which showcase a forcefield protecting a planet from enemy attack. Even the finale of the Harry Potter films had all the teachers and students casting a spell to protect Hogwarts with the help of a forcefield from Voldemort’s attacks. While the concept is surely interesting as it can in theory protect Earth from asteroids or an alien attack, as unbelievable as that sounds, NASA has a different idea to protect our planet.

Project DART

An asteroid peacefully charting its course in outer space is going to get rocked by a visitor from Earth.  NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) spacecraft is set to collide with Dimorphos, a small asteroid orbiting a larger space rock, Didymos. The two space rocks do not hold any immediate threat to Earth but NASA is testing out a system that could possibly be used for planetary defense in the future. Space enthusiasts will be happy to note that NASA will be live streaming this event on its official YouTube channel. Check it out – HERE

The physics of the mission sounds straightforward; hit an object with force to change its course, but the execution? Not so much. The spacecraft has been on a 10-month journey, traveling over 11 million kilometers from Earth. The DART spacecraft needs to automatically lock into Dimorphos and adjust its trajectory to hit it. The spacecraft has to do ALL of this while moving at a speed of 24,000 Kilometers per hour. On the other hand, it is still unclear how the asteroid will react to the hit. How DART will hit the asteroid, depending on its own shape, size, and composition will determine the outcome of the hit.

How Dimorphos reacts to the hit will make humankind understand the nature of asteroids and our impact to change their course. In the future, this information can be used to plan planetary defense plans for a possible asteroid hit. Doesn’t it sound something exactly out of a sci-fi flick?

 

 

Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales comes to PC

Peter Parker can step aside as it’s time for Miles Morales to shine on PC. Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales is coming to Windows PC and has gotten its first teaser trailer, however, there is no official release date for the same. Check out the teaser for the new Spider-Man game HERE.

Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales

The game is currently available to play on PlayStation 4 and 5, however, the port will now enable Windows users to experience the game in all its web-slinging glory! The 30-second teaser does not justify the experience players will have as they see a teenager Spider-Man learning to become a hero and save his neighborhood. The teaser showcases Miles Morales in his stylish spider suit fighting his way through bad guys and protecting NY city. To the unversed, Miles Morales has an interesting set of powers like bio-electric venom blasts and camouflage. Read below to check out the system requirements to run the Spider-Man: Miles Morales game on PC:

Minimum Requirement

  • OS: Windows 10 64-bit 1909
  • Processor: Intel Core i3-4160, 3.6 GHz or AMD equivalent
  • Memory: 8 GB RAM
  • Graphics: NVIDIA GTX 950 or AMD Radeon RX 470
  • Storage: 75 GB of available space

Recommended Requirement

  • OS: Windows 10 64-bit 1909
  • Processor: Intel Core i5-4670, 3.4 Ghz or AMD Ryzen 5 1600, 3.2 Ghz
  • Memory: 16 GB RAM
  • Graphics: NVIDIA GTX 1060 6GB or AMD Radeon RX 580 8GB
  • Storage: 75 GB of available space

 

Best iPhone deals on festive Amazon & Flipkart sales

The biggest e-commerce platforms in the country, Flipkart and Amazon wrestle it out every year with their biggest sales. This year-round too, the Flipkart Big Billion Days Sale and Amazon’s Great Indian Festival sale kicked off around the same time. The two big platforms competing with one another by offering huge discounts on their products ultimately benefit the customer as they can avail the big price cut on their wishlist products. Right now, it’s probably the best time for you to get that premium phone sitting in your Flipkart/Amazon cart for months!

Apple products make a big splash in sales year-round, however, it is during the big sales when they sell like hotcakes. Right now, Apple iPhones are placed at discounted prices on Amazon and Flipkart sales. In India, iPhones are not just viewed as premium devices but as lifestyle devices that one aspires to buy. But buying them as they are launched is not possible for many due to the premium prices they come with. Now that the big sales are here, read below to know the discounted prices of the iPhone series:

iPhone 13/13 Pro/Mini

iPhone 13 debuted at a surprising price of just Rs 49,990 during the Flipkart Big Billion Days sale. However, the stock was sold out within just 2 minutes as people across the country jumped on to get the best deal for this device. The deal was probably a one-off thing as it is not available anymore. As of now, the iPhone 13 is available at a price of Rs 56,990, down from its original price of Rs 69,990. To my shock, the iPhone 13 mini is currently priced at Rs 58,990, which is 2K more than the standard variant. Click HERE to buy the iPhone 13 and 13 Mini from Flipkart.

On the other hand, the iPhone 13 Pro was priced at Rs 99,900 on Flipkart which quickly sold out. Now, interested buyers can head to Amazon to buy the 13 Pro 128GB model at a price of Rs 1,00,900, which is a steal deal in itself. Click HERE to buy the iPhone 13 Pro from Amazon.

iPhone 12/12 Mini

If you’re in the market to get an Apple 5G phone under the budget of 50K, then the iPhone 12 will be the perfect choice for you. The iPhone 12 was initially priced at an attractive Rs 39,900 starting price on Flipkart, however, the initial stock has been cleared out and the price has shot up to Rs 53,990. But you can still get the device on Amazon at the price of Rs 44,499, a good deal to say nonetheless. Click HERE to buy the iPhone 12 64GB variant from Amazon.

The iPhone 12 Mini on the other hand is still available on Flipkart at a discounted rate. The device is priced at Rs 38,990 on Flipkart. Click HERE to buy the iPhone 12 Mini.

Exit mobile version