got it. I’ve been busy frantically searching for last-minute headphone gifts and rewatching Netflix videos. level moon trailer Before the holiday TV marathon. There are many reasons why you missed all of this week’s tech news, but luckily he has a glass of mulled wine to fill you up.
Surprisingly, given that 2023 is coming to an end, this week marks yet another year with the arrival of iOS 17.2, which brings the Apple Journal app to iPhone owners, at least in the US. , up to two new retro news, generous Christmas stockings have arrived. Lego camera.
Elsewhere, Samsung Galaxy Book 4 series reveals specs ahead of next year’s global launch, and Google reveals all the top things we’ve been searching for in 2023 (the condiments category was particularly hotly contested) . So before you head to Amazon to buy a bargain waffle maker for Santa, here are all the top tech stories from the last week of 2023.
iOS 17.2 rolled out this week, with a new iPhone app called Journal being the main new feature. Journal allows you to record your daily thoughts as text, photos, videos, and even audio in a dedicated space, and uses on-device machine learning (yes, we mean AI) to help you come up with ideas. Specifically for iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max users, iOS 17.2 also adds a new action button feature, Translate, and the ability to record 3D spatial video for Apple’s upcoming Vision Pro headset.
This week, we also heard about an exciting beta feature in iOS 17.3: Stolen Device Protection. Essentially, this new security feature provides a last resort against thieves who have access to your iPhone’s passcode by requiring biometrics for certain important actions, such as viewing passwords, disabling Lost Mode, and erasing content. acts as a line of defense. I hope this gets permanently included in Apple’s next iterative iOS update.
This week has been a lucky week for us as we are big fans of both cameras and Lego. In early 2024, not one, but two of his camera-themed Lego sets were announced, and we’re having a hard time deciding which one is our favorite. You’ll probably need to get both.
The Retro Camera 3-in-1 Creator Set is a low-cost SLR build ($20 / £17.99 on the Lego website) with attractive flourishes such as a working film winding handle and rear film door, and will be in stores on New Year’s Day. Line up. On the same day, the Polaroid SX-70 One Step Lego set arrives to help us through the month. Here’s what he’s thankful for in January, Lego.
Still frustrated by slow Wi-Fi speeds? Well, the good news is we learned this week that (yet another) update to the Wi-Fi standard is scheduled to be completed in early 2024. is.
Yes, Wi-Fi 7 is coming soon and will be faster than Wi-Fi 6E. Even though it may not be available in existing kits. Only a handful of phones and laptops currently support Wi-Fi 7, but this news means that number will start to rapidly increase next year. And, finally, it might give you the stable, fast Wi-Fi network you’ve been craving.
Well, Microsoft has changed its tune about Windows 10. After initially hinting that the OS wouldn’t be getting any major new features in the future, it has now started rolling out Copilot AI (previously exclusive to Windows 11) to a lucky few users.
If you don’t already see the Copilot icon on your desktop, Microsoft announced this week that it will be rolled out more broadly in the coming months. It’s not a huge upgrade to Windows 10, given that Copilot AI is currently a glorified version of the Bing chatbot, but these features could be improved during his 2024 AI arms race. there is.
Android has been playing a cat-and-mouse game with Apple over iMessage this month, with its latest bold competitor, Beeper Mini, announcing that it has brought full iMessage functionality to the platform. Well, that didn’t last long, as Apple blocked the app this week citing “serious risks to user security and privacy.”
buzzer sound said It would “keep working” but as it stands it doesn’t seem to be working. I’m claiming now It turns out that Apple is intentionally blocking iMessage for some users. Based on this week’s evidence, the Beeper Mini and its ilk seem destined to offer a broken iMessage experience, at least on Android. Perhaps this is what Apple wants, even though Apple recently extended the olive branch of RCS support to next year. .
Intel just announced its new Intel Core Ultra series of premium chipsets, including the 14th generation Meteor Lake processors. This means manufacturers are rushing to launch new Windows laptops and desktops to take advantage of that. One of the first companies to appear this week was Samsung, which launched its Galaxy Book 4 ultrabook series.
The first three models announced are the high-end Ultra, the versatile Pro (in both 14-inch and 16-inch configurations), and the Pro 360 with a display that folds out to the back. We know that Intel’s new chips will have dedicated AI capabilities that will speed up responses to all AI-related tasks, such as voice recognition and image editing. Apple, it’s over.
Well, it wasn’t the most important Perhaps the most fascinating news of the week was when Google revealed the biggest web searches of 2023. Naturally, Google limited the results to fairly safe subjects like TV shows and music, but it also revealed the top song results from its “Hum Search” feature.
For complete results, check out Google’s Year in Search 2023 roundup. However, there are no prizes for guessing it. barbie just came out oppenheimer It’s in the movie category. I also spent an unhealthy amount of time researching his capsule on Google Trends Time this week. This shows how search has changed over the past 25 years, including important areas like sauces (congratulations to Béchamel sauce for sneaking into his third place this year).