Author: News Room

Apple is planning to bring access to a number of third-party AI chatbots to its CarPlay in-car platform, according to a new report. Right now, Apple only enables drivers to interact with Siri, but that looks set to change. Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman’s sources claim that Apple is planning to enable drivers to consult rivals like ChatGPT and Google Gemini. Apple already offers ChatGPT as an option within iOS, while it is working with Google to bring Gemini’s skills to Siri starting this spring. So it would make sense for Apple to bring the chatbots to CarPlay too. It won’t work…

Fortnite developer Epic Games says the account some people believed to be linked to Jeffrey Epstein is a “ruse.” In a reply on X, the developer writes, “an existing Fortnite account owner changed their username” to “littlestjeff1,” an alias spotted in several emailed receipts from YouTube in the Epstein files.The email suggests that “littlestjeff1” may have been connected to Epstein’s YouTube account, prompting online sleuths to search for the username on other platforms. Users later uncovered a “littlestjeff1” account on Fortnite, along with a 2019 email that mentions purchasing VBucks in Fortnite — though the sender and recipient are redacted.…

Sony is set to debut its next-generation noise-cancelling earbuds next week. Judging by a teaser clip, the WF-1000XM6 buds will be unveiled on February 12. The teaser posted on YouTube promises a reveal next Thursday at 8:00 pacific time. That’s 4:00pm UK time. We can’t be absolutely certain. They might not be the WF-1000XM6, but the timing lines up given the recent speculation and mounting leaks. We can’t glean an awful lot from the teaser, which shows what appears to be an open earbuds case with the buds poking out. The Walkman Blog recently predicted the February 12 launch date,…

300 journalists have lost their jobs at The Washington Post. Over 300,000 readers have canceled their subscriptions. Owner Jeff Bezos, who purchased the legendary publication in 2013, has driven his reputation into the ground by using his vast empire to churn out content designed to make President Donald Trump happy: Amazon MGM Studios spent $40 million to produce a fawning documentary about Melania Trump, which premiered days before the Post sent out mass layoff notices. And yet, he’s gotten nothing out of his attempts to suck up to Donald Trump — at least, nothing that’s a net positive to his…

Apple is reportedly dropping plans to launch a paid Health+ subscription service within iOS 27, according to a new report. According to Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman, Apple plans instead to take the features intended for the paid platform and roll them into the existing, free-to-use Health app. That’ll start with this summer’s reveal of iOS 27, the report says. The report’s sources say Eddy Cue – the man in charge of Apple Health – decided to abandon the plans because it wasn’t a very good fit. I would agree with that. Apple gatekeeping services that could make their users’ healthier and…

Aura’s Aspen digital photo frame is a great Valentine’s Day gift if you want something that’s slick and sentimental, and right now it’s on sale for $199 ($30 off) at Amazon, Best Buy, and Aura’s online storefront. That’s the lowest we’ve seen the frame sell for since the holidays.With its paper-textured, antiglare matte display and adjustable metal stand, the 12-inch Aspen looks remarkably similar to a classic picture frame. It lets you upload and share photos from anywhere. It also has features that help photos feel more personal, like a sharp 1600 x 1200 HD LCD panel that makes images…

An autonomous vehicle drives down a lonely stretch of highway. Suddenly, a massive tornado appears in the distance. What does the driverless vehicle do next?This is just one of the scenarios that Waymo can simulate in the “hyper realistic” virtual world that it has just created with help from Google’s DeepMind. Waymo’s World Model is built using Genie 3, Google’s new AI world model that can generate virtual interactive spaces with text or images as prompts. But Genie 3 isn’t just for creating bad knockoffs of Nintendo games; it can also build photorealistic and interactive 3D environments “adapted for the…

Amazon has unveiled a refreshed Fire TV lineup for the UK, spanning new televisions and its most affordable 4K streaming stick yet. The pitch is simple: there’s more to watch than ever, but finding something good still takes too long. The new Fire TV range, Amazon says, is meant to fix that. It’s worth noting that these were first announced in the US at the end of last year, and they’re now making their way to the UK. Leading the announcements is the Fire TV Stick 4K Select, priced at £49.99. It’s Amazon’s cheapest 4K streaming device to date, and…

I’ve used Alexa to manage my shopping list for years. There are plenty of great list apps out there, but the convenience of adding items by voice anywhere in my house, pulling up the list on an Echo Show in the kitchen, and having it on my phone via the Alexa app has worked well for me. Until it didn’t.Alexa Plus, combined with a redesign of the Alexa app that puts the generative AI-powered assistant front and center, has made the entire process so irritating that I’ve reluctantly switched to Apple’s Reminders app and Siri.This is not what I wanted.…

It’s been one of those weeks for watches, where the launches just keep coming and coming. On top of the big hitters we’ve already covered – including Swatch’s AI-DADA, Breitling’s debut drop with Aston Martin and IWC’s slick new George Russell collaborations – there’s been a fresh wave of heat worth shouting about. From tough-as-nails G-Shock to an Audemars Piguet that will no doubt make collectors weak at the knees, these are three of the hottest watches launched this week. Audemars Piguet Neo Frame Jumping Hour The Neo Frame Jumping Hour is Audemars Piguet having a bit of fun with…

Search online for the best Bluetooth speaker and you’ll find plenty of cheap Bluetooth speakers in the list. But how can you tell the bonafide bargains from the low-fi letdowns? We’ve rounded up a range of options that won’t hurt your ears – or your wallet. Decent beats are no longer reserved for premium speakers. Sure, the speakers below are unlikely to satisfy serious audiophiles. And a few favour portability over outright performance. But for the 99% of listeners who don’t have a soundproofed music room, the best cheap Bluetooth speakers make takeaway tunes enjoyable and affordable. From compact music-makers…

He might be dead, but it sure seems like Jeffrey Epstein won.Sure, Epstein was arrested on charges of sex trafficking minors. Sure, he died in jail. (I am not going to wade into the debate about how.) But he subscribed to a racist, misogynist ideology that meant rich white men like him could do whatever they liked. And it seems he took measures to spread it.The latest tranche of Epstein documents made it obvious. Consider all the “contrarians” and “anti-woke” warriors who show up in the latest dump: Peter Thiel, Elon Musk, Larry Summers, Steve Bannon, and of course, Donald…