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‘It’s ready… and it’s beautiful’: Samsung gives a surprise update on Galaxy Ring delivery date

by technovatica.com on

Samsung finished its Galaxy 24 launch event with a post-credits-style tease for the Samsung Galaxy Ring, but fans were only given a fleeting glimpse of the future smart ring’s design.

However, in a follow-up interview with TechRadar, Samsung’s Head of Customer Experience, Patrick Chomet, gave more light on what the Galaxy Ring is, who it is aimed for, and when it might be released.

“We have a beautiful ring,” Chomet informed us. “The hardware is available, and the product is stunning. We are doing some things with Samsung Health that are extremely impressive in terms of sleep.”

“But we need to do a lot [before it’s ready for release]. We have the hardware and some software, which we could have delivered today because it is ready, but having a complete package experience that people can utilize at scale [is different]. We’re getting there. “It will be later this year.”

Chomet’s statements imply that the Galaxy Ring could debut at the company’s upcoming Unpacked event, which is expected to take place between July and August. Samsung has also confirmed that a big update to its Health app will be available “later this year,” thus the Ring is expected to launch with those software changes.

Chomet stated, “It’s very exciting because, although Samsung Health works quite well – we’ve had a lot of good feedback on sleep tracking, and we’re investing a lot [in its development] – most people tell us that they find it difficult to sleep with a watch.” A ring is far more comfortable to sleep with than a watch.”

Indeed, the greatest smart bands are designed to help you track sleep and regulate energy levels in an unobtrusive manner, and it appears like the Galaxy Ring will compete with the superb Oura Ring in this regard.

Chomet remained tight-lipped about further details – “I always get nervous when my boss announces an in-development product” – but we’re convinced that more information about the Samsung Galaxy Ring will be released in the coming weeks.

In the meantime, check out our hands-on Samsung Galaxy S24 review, Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus review, and Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra review for our first impressions of Samsung’s latest mobile devices.

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Xiaomi’s latest wireless earbuds deliver high-end audio technology in a super-cool marble style

by technovatica.com on

Xiaomi has had a busy day of announcements, with the debut of five new phones and the confirmation that its newly introduced wireless earbuds, the Redmi Buds 5 Pro and stripped-back Redmi Buds 5, will be available globally.

What instantly stands out about these AirPods knockoffs is that the black and white Redmi Buds 5 Pro variants have a marble texture on the buds’ stems. The case has also been improved from last year’s Redmi Buds Pro 4, now featuring a vegan leather feel.

Despite their improved appearance, the buds are priced similarly to their predecessors. According to Notebookcheck, a pair costs €69.99 (about $76 / ₹ 6322.34/ AU$115), which is far cheaper than the price of most of the best earphones. Given that many of the lower-cost devices do not support high-resolution codecs – not even the mid-range Sony WF-C700Ns do – the Redmi Buds Pro 5 appear to be fantastic value.

What is unique about the Xiaomi Redmi Buds?

The Xiaomi Redmi Buds 5 Pro, which was first announced in November 2023, passed under our eye due to their limited availability in China. But that’s not to say we’re not impressed with their specifications.

Unlike the best AirPods, the Redmi Buds 5 Pro enable lossless music (however Apple has stated that the AirPods Pro 2 would have this capability when used with the Vision Pro). Xiaomi states it will support LDAC (CD quality) with a sample rate of up to 24bit/96kHz, AAC, SBC Bluetooth, and LHDC 5.0.

They have a coaxial twin driver design, similar to the Honor Earbuds 3 Pro and One Plus Buds Pro 2, with a 10mm piezoelectric ceramic tweeter and an 11mm dynamic driver. In our experience, this type of speaker system can provide exceptionally deep and full-bodied audio, so we’ll be curious to see if the Redmi Buds 5 Pro does the same.

On top of these characteristics, the buds include three transparency modes: Regular, Enhance Voice, and Enhance Ambient Sounds. Xiaomi also says that the active noise cancellation would be three times more effective than the Redmi Buds 4 Pro. Finally, with an impressive battery life of 38 hours with the case (the buds last 10 hours on a single charge), the Redmi Buds 5 Pro outlast many of the best wireless earbuds, including the AirPods Pro 2, which boast 30 hours.

It’s rare to find earbuds with this many capabilities and access to high-quality codecs for less than $100 / ₹ 10537.23 / AU$150, so Xiaomi has our attention. If the Redmi Buds 5 Pro sound as wonderful as they appear, then we might have a new rival in our best budget wireless earbuds list.

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I tested all earbuds with next-generation xMEMS speakers, and one stood out

by technovatica.com on

There was a lot of cool tech unveiled at CES 2024 (check out our roundup of the 20 best gadgets of CES 2024 for a full rundown of the award-winning TVs, projectors, speakers, headphones, and more), and among the innovations revealed at the show was a Californian semiconductor company called xMEMS, which hosted demos for its solid-state speaker driver technology. This next-generation audio technology offers a wider sound spectrum and greater detail from smaller, lighter units than the classic dynamic drivers found in the vast majority of today’s headphones and earbuds.

I’ve been reporting on this new technology for a few months now, even going so far as to boldly predict that they will be the headphone tech you won’t stop hearing about in 2024, so I was eager to seek them out to not only back up my prediction (which was a bit of that, otherwise I wouldn’t be good at my job), but also to hear the new Cypress prototype that was announced in November last year.

At CES 2024, I was able to demo all of the headphones that currently use xMEMS solid-state drivers, though not all of them used the same prototype. Instead, there were several combinations of the three generations available, such as the Montara, Cowell (and Montara Plus), and Cypress, the latter of which is designed to be used with the greatest noise cancelling earphones. Mike Housholder, xMEMS’s vice president of marketing and business development, tells me that they even had earbud prototypes created by the company and constructed by a “third-party” manufacturer.

These didn’t stick out to me for clarity, but that could be down to the incredibly bad fit, as I couldn’t get the foam-made earbuds to sit correctly in my ears without slipping out every few seconds. Instead, the options from established headphone manufacturers really stole the show for me. The Creative Aurvance Ace and Aurvana Ace 2 were both present, and I had already had the opportunity to try them out at another demo in London.

There were also models created by Singularity Industries, Kiss Communications, and Noble Audio, the latter of which typically produces very high-end equipment. Sure enough, Noble Audio’s IXM1 in-ear monitors sounded the best of the options I tried, but they cost $599, so they’re clearly not a bargain, regardless of their quality. It’s exciting to hear what the sound quality can achieve, but one of xMEMS’ selling points is its cost, so we’re eager to see what it can do further down the line.

Opinion: The Creative Aurvana Ace 2 makes solid-state speakers more accessible

For manufacturers, it appears that the new drivers provide numerous benefits, the most important of which is that they are reasonably inexpensive and cost effective to make.

Headphone manufacturers have often complained about the exorbitant cost of dynamic drivers. In a 2014 interview with Audio Head, John Moulton, the creator of Noble Audio, stated that he was already dissatisfied by the dearth of high-quality drivers on the market. “In the IEM sector, I wouldn’t say quality is getting cheaper. The problem is that the drivers are expensive. There are essentially two manufacturers of balanced armature drivers, and I believe a lack of competition contributes to keep pricing high.

Out of all the headphones I tried, including Noble Audio’s IXM1 wired earbuds, Falcon Max TWS and Triumph TWS true wireless earbuds, Singularity Industries’ ONI IEMs, and the Kiss Communication prototype (which has yet to be announced), Creative’s Aurvana Ace promise to be the best way to try out xMEMS solid-state driver technology for yourself at home, in my opinion.

Not least because the Aurvana Ace costs $129 / £134 (about. AU$200), providing enthusiasts with a more accessible option to experience the latest innovation in headphone speaker technology in a second pair that does not necessary replace your primary pair. I would not recommend them to someone looking for all of the current features seen in the best Wireless earbuds, but to the fans out there, they represent a watershed point in headphone innovation.

The higher-end alternatives were remarkable, but it’s already feasible to acquire incredibly decent headphones for $600, including the best wired earbuds. The true revolution will occur at the lower end, and while the Creative Aurvana Ace and Ace 2 are not the final form of this – they actually integrate xMEMS technology with a regular driver – their audio capabilities at the price point indicate the path we’re most thrilled to see this technology take.

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Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 may be back on sale in the US soon—with a catch

by technovatica.com on

Apple is apparently preparing a workaround for the US prohibition on the sale of the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 by deleting the ability to measure blood oxygen levels.

In case you missed it, Apple’s latest and greatest Apple Watches, the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2, can no longer be sold in the United States due to a patent dispute with health tech startup Masimo. The case centered on the watch’s blood oxygen sensor, which Masimo believes infringes upon its copyright.

According to 9to5Mac, Apple has recommended redesigning the Series 9 and Ultra 2 watches so that they can continue to be sold without the pulse oximetry functions. According to a filing from Masimo’s legal team, US Customs determined on Friday, January 12, that the Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2’s redesign, which lacks pulse-oximetry functions, “falls outside the scope of the remedial orders in the ITC Investigation underlying Apple’s appeal”.

This means that the watches can be sold again in the United States as long as they do not include those characteristics. Masimo’s lawyers’ filing goes on to say that “In Apple’s request under 19 C.F.R. Part 177 (in a portion it did not identify as confidential), Apple explained ‘that its Redesigned Watch Products definitively (i) do not contain pulse oximetry functionality…'” .

We’ll learn more about the US Customs ruling in due course, but existing owners should rest assured that if they’ve already purchased a Series 9 or Ultra 2, they will be unaffected by this decision.

Analysis: Significant hardware changes?

It appears that Apple succumbed in order to get its watches back on the stores as soon as possible, redesigning the watches to eliminate any functionality. This is considerably different from merely removing the opportunity to use the feature, which could have been reversed if the court battle had ended in Apple’s favor.

Apple is still keeping the details of the makeover under wraps. There’s a lot of speculation, and we don’t even know when Apple will restart selling Apple Watches in the US. In the meantime, you can still get one at Best Buy, where the Apple Watch Series 9 is currently on sale for $70 off.

However, be aware that if you want a repair or replacement for your current watch, you may be affected by Apple’s mandated modifications to its repair and replacement policy. This does not only apply to new devices; it will also affect previous models dating back to the Apple Watch 6.

If you do not live in the United States, nothing changes: Masimo’s patent claim solely applies to timepieces manufactured in the United States. For UK, European, Asian, and Australian shoppers, life goes on, and you can still purchase an Apple watch as usual.

“Apple’s declaration that their new watch lacks pulse oximetry is a positive step toward transparency. It is critical that one of the world’s largest and most powerful corporations respects smaller companies’ intellectual property rights and complies with ITC decisions when discovered infringing.”

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A tiny radioactive battery could keep your future phone operating for 50 years

by technovatica.com on

A Chinese startup has created a new nuclear battery that can power your phone for 50 years without being charged.

Betavolt Technology claims to have effectively downsized atomic energy batteries to 15 x 15 x 5mm, which is smaller than a cent. The small battery uses 63 nuclear isotopes to produce 100 microwatts and a voltage of 3V of electricity via radioactive decay.

The battery is now in pilot testing, and Betavolt intends to mass-produce it for commercial devices such as phones and drones. However, the company also claims that nuclear batteries might be used for aeronautical equipment, AI, medical equipment, advanced sensors, and micro-robots. The Beijing-based startup claims to have gotten inspiration from technologies like pacemakers and satellites.

Betavolt intends to advance their technology to build a 1-watt battery by 2025. While there is still more work to be done, the corporation appears to be confident, claiming that progress is well ahead of European and American scientific research institutions and enterprises.

Tiny nuclear batteries

This technology has the potential to revolutionize electronics by eliminating the need for chargers or portable power banks entirely, resulting in gadgets that run continuously and whose batteries do not decline in capacity or lifespan over charging cycles, as Li-ion batteries do.

It could even be safer, since Betavolt claims that the BV100 would not catch fire or explode in reaction to punctures or even bullets, unlike some current batteries, which can be dangerous if broken or subjected to high temperatures.

Such limitless power might enable drones to fly indefinitely, phones to function continually, and electric cars that do not need to be recharged.

Currently, nuclear batteries are employed in spacecraft, underwater systems, autonomous research stations, and crafts such as the Mars rover, but they are huge, heavy, produce a lot of heat, and are expensive. However, Betavolt claims that it takes a different strategy.

How Betavolt’s radioactive battery operates

Betavolt’s scientists created the radioactive battery by using nickel-63, a radiactive element, as the energy source and diamond semiconductors as energy converters.

The researchers created a single-crystal diamond semiconductor that is only 10 microns thick, then sandwiched a 2-micron-thick nickel-63 sheet between two diamond semiconductor converters.

The radioactive source’s decay energy is subsequently transformed into electricity.

Betavolt claims that its atomic energy batteries are lightweight, have a long service life, have a high energy density, and can operate regularly in extreme temperatures ranging from -60 to 120 degrees Celsius.

Because of the modular design, numerous atomic batteries may be joined to produce a higher energy output, which might power automobile technologies and AI systems, to name a few.

Toxic reputation

Understandably, most individuals would not want to carry radioactive material in their pockets, especially watchers of HBO’s excellent but scary Chernobyl series. Many people may be hesitant to use nuclear batteries because of the bad connotations associated with nuclear calamities such as the 1986 Chernobyl disaster and the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident.

However, the Betavolt addressed radiation worries, noting that the battery is safe because it emits no external radiation and is suited for use in medical devices within the human body such as pacemakers and cochlear implants.

According to Betavolt, following decay, the 63 nuclear isotopes transform into copper, which is non-radioactive and poses no damage to the environment.

While it seems like something out of 1950s science fiction, this technology has the potential to transform the face of electronics by enabling unwired, always-on gadgets, ushering in a new era of nuclear energy consumption.

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ICYMI: the week’s top five tech stories, from CES to Apple Vision Pro

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CES 2024 dominated the tech world this week, like a mega-robot with arms composed of smart showers and smart telescopes, a transparent OLED TV body, neural headphones for ears, and (of course) an AI brain. There was plenty to see.

We’ve compiled a list of our favorites from the Las Vegas show in a separate 20 best gadgets of CES 2024 piece, albeit a few are included below, but there has been other news this week as well.

So, if you need a fast catch-up, keep reading for your weekly digest, which magically travels from our brains to your screen and into your brain.

The OnePlus 12R came into view

The smartphone world may be focused on Samsung Unpacked next week, but there’s another huge launch on the way.

OnePlus will launch the OnePlus 12 and OnePlus 12R globally on January 23, and while we already know everything about the former (it was unveiled in China last year), the latter remains a mystery.

Or at least it did until this week, when a pair of leaks revealed additional details about its specifications, including as 100W charging, a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset, and a triple-lens camera with a 50MP primary sensor. Given that we already knew it will have a variable refresh rate screen and a big 5,500mAh battery, it appears well-equipped – yet it will apparently start at $499 (about  ₹4119531.56 / AU$750). If confirmed, this might be OnePlus’ inexpensive Samsung Galaxy S24 competitor.

The Mandalorian deserved a movie sequel

We’ve been fans of Disney’s Star Wars cartoon The Mandalorian since it premiered in 2020, but we were worried that Din Djarin and Grogu/Baby Yoda’s adventures would come to an end after season 3 last year. We were mistaken, because the two are getting their own Mandalorian spin-off movie.

The Mandalorian & Grogu will begin full production later in 2024, with Jon Favreau directing and executive producing, though no release date has been set. But we do know that it will be the first of several new Star Wars films currently under development at Lucasfilm.

Rumors claim that season 4 of The Mandalorian is also in the works for a future Disney Plus release, implying that the Star Wars saga will continue for a few more years.

The Samsung Galaxy S24 continues leaking

We’re only days away from the big announcement of the Samsung Galaxy S24 series, but frankly, we don’t think there’s much left to discover about the flagship phones.

This week alone, we’ve seen a large leak of every single spec for every Samsung Galaxy S24 model, learned about major features on all three S24 phones in a separate leak, and heard whispers regarding a possibly critical S24 display improvement. And they all come after weeks of teasing about the trio, which includes the Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus, Galaxy S24 Ultra, and the vanilla variant.

In short, we don’t expect many surprises at Samsung Galaxy Unpacked 2024 next week. However, that does not mean we aren’t enthused about it. Based on what we think we know, the S24 Ultra will be another fantastic phone – but not a particularly well-hidden one ahead of its launch.

Apple Vision Pro received a release date and its first video advertisement

Apple doesn’t do CES, of course, so it did what it usually does in similar situations and announced some huge news of its own instead. Hello, everyone! Over here! I’m Apple! Look at me…

To be fair to Apple, the story was rather huge; the Cupertino company revealed that the Apple Vision Pro will go on sale in February, with pre-orders beginning soon.

It also released the first Vision Pro video advertisement, which revealed several more facts about the mixed-reality headset, including which accessories it will come with. And that marketing budget may be required, because the Vision Pro, with a starting price of $3,499 (about  ₹ 291007.93 / AU$5,225), is unlikely to be purchased on impulse.

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ChatGPT receives its equivalent of the App Store. Here are the top early GPTs

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OpenAI has officially launched its GPT Store, which will let a small set of users and official partners to share customized chatbots with the community.

The platform will not be available to the general public, according to the corporation. You must be subscribed to ChatGPT Plus ($20 / £16 per month), Enterprise, or the newly established Teams plan. When you purchase the subscription, you will gain access to a range of GPTs in several categories. These include writing, programming, and artistic creation; some will even offer lifestyle guidance. One, in particular, can assist you in refining designs for a tattoo you are considering obtaining.

The GPT Store was first introduced in November at the company’s inaugural DevDay conference. It was exhibited alongside OpenAI’s then-new chatbot creation service. The store was planned to open later that month, but it was postponed several times, most likely as a result of CEO Sam Altman’s abrupt dismissal and reinstatement.

Curated chatbot

Although the average person cannot check out chatbots, you can visit the store’s page right now to see what is offered. Make sure you are not logged into your account; if you are, you will receive a notice asking you to subscribe to ChatGPT Plus. Each week, OpenAI will spotlight four GPTs at the top of the page. At the time of writing, AllTrails, Consensus, Code Tutor, and Books are all recommended.

The first one, AllTrails, will recommend natural pathways for you to explore. Consensus, formerly known as ResearchGPT, offers access to 200 million academic papers and can help you with your complex science queries. Khan Academy’s Code Tutor will review your recent computer code and provide advice on how to improve it. Finally, Books is the most mysterious of the bunch. Its description is obscure, but if we had to guess, we’d say it recommends books.

Below that, there are a handful of more lists highlighting chatbots that are currently popular in the community and those created by OpenAI’s own staff. There are plans to develop a revenue model that would allow users to profit from their inventions. Creators will “be paid based on user engagement” for their chatbots. There are currently little details. All we know for now is that it will be released in the United States in Q1 2024.

Follow the rules

Anyone with a subscription can build a GPT. According to OpenAI, no coding skills are required, but you must adhere to usage regulations and brand guidelines. It wants to keep everything clean.

You may read the regulations on the official website, but to give you an idea, users cannot: A) violate people’s privacy, B) construct an AI that may endanger the well-being of others, or C) use the platform to disseminate falsehoods. Break the restrictions, and the corporation will limit your capacity to share or profit your work. If you encounter any of these rogues on the GPT Store, OpenAI requests that you report them.

If you have a creation, you may share it by saving it to GPT and then selecting Everyone. This provides everyone on the platform access. Once completed, select “verify your Builder Profile” from the Settings menu. After you’ve completed all of these steps, your chatbot should appear on the storefront.

While you’re here, check out TechRadar’s seven tips for ChatGPT novices. That generative AI can be a bit difficult to employ.

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6 new facts we’ve learned about the Apple Vision Pro as its debut video commercial launches

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We’ve been waiting a long time for the Apple Vision Pro, which was first announced in June during Apple’s annual WWDC event. Yesterday, we learned that the Vision Pro will go on sale on Friday, February 2, with preorders opening on Friday, January 19 – and some other new details have emerged, as well as its first video ad (below).

As Apple enters full sales mode for this costly mixed reality headset, it answers some of our remaining questions about the device and gives us a clearer understanding of what it can do. Given that one of these will cost you $3,499 (approximately ₹290238.85 / AU$5,225) and more, you’ll undoubtedly want all of the details you can get.

Here at TechRadar, we’ve already spent some hands-on time with the Vision Pro and seen how 3D spatial videos look on it. Here’s what else we’ve learned about the Vision Pro during the previous 24 hours.

1. Apple believes it deserves to be in a science fiction film

Take a look at this brand new advertisement for the Apple Vision Pro and see how many iconic films you can identify. There’s a sci-fi element here, with flicks like Back to the Future and Star Wars included, and Apple clearly wants to underline the device’s futuristic nature (and make strapping something to your face appear hip rather than nerdy).

If you have a good memory, you may recall that one of the original iPhone advertisements used small excerpts from a variety of films starring Marilyn Monroe, Michael Douglas, and Steve McQueen. After 16 years, Apple is once again leveraging the power of movies to promote a new piece of hardware.

2. The battery will not last the duration of Oppenheimer

Speaking of movies, if you want to watch Oppenheimer in its entirety on the Apple Vision Pro, you’ll need to recharge. Christopher Nolan’s epic film lasts three hours and one minute, although the Vision Pro product website (via MacRumors) estimates a battery life of 2.5 hours for watching 2D videos.

That occurs when you are watching a video in the Apple TV app while immersed in one of the virtual settings created by the Vision Pro. Interestingly, the product page wording claiming that the device may function endlessly if plugged into a power source has been silently removed.

3. The software remains a work in progress

Given the expensive price of the Apple Vision Pro and reports of restricted availability, this does not feel like a mainstream product that Apple expects everyone to buy. It’s obviously not an iPhone or an Apple Watch, though a cheaper Vision Pro, which is reported to be in the works, could change the dynamic slightly.

With that in mind, the program still appears to be a work in progress. As 9to5Mac noted in the official Vision Pro press release, the Persona feature will be labeled as beta for the time being – that is, you will be represented in video chats by a 3D digital avatar who does not wear a clunky mixed reality headgear.

4. This is what you’ll receive in the box

According to Apple’s official press release, if you purchase a Vision Pro, you will receive two separate bands to wrap around your head: the Solo Knit Band and the Dual Loop Band, though the differences between them are not immediately evident.

The box also includes a light seal, two light seal cushions, a “Apple Vision Pro Cover” for the front of the headset, an external battery back, a USB-C charging cable, a USB-C power adapter, and an official Apple polishing cloth.

5. Apple may offer an app that helps you fit the headset

When it comes to fitting the Apple Vision Pro snugly to your head, we believe Apple will encourage purchasers to visit a physical store where they may be assisted by a professional. However, it appears that Apple has plans to ensure you get the optimum fit at home.

As reported by Patently Apple, Apple has filed a new patent for a “fit guidance” system within an iPhone app. It will supposedly function with “head-mountable devices” – similar to the Vision Pro – and appears to be meant to prevent the user experience from being ruined by a poorly fitted headset.

6. There will be a lot of information to watch

Another interesting detail from the Apple Vision Pro news release is that consumers would be able to access “more than 150 3D titles with incredible depth” via the Apple TV app. Apple is also unveiling a new Immersive footage format, which promises 180-degree, three-dimensional footage in 8K resolution.

This 3D film could be one of the most convincing reasons to get an Apple Vision Pro; we were certainly impressed when we got to check it out for ourselves, and you can even record your own spatial video for playback on the headset if you have an iPhone 15 Pro or iPhone 15 Pro Max.

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Without a Siri brain transplant, Apple will lose the struggle against artificial intelligence

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Siri is not the simple, delightful digital assistant that Apple introduced with the iPhone 4s in 2011. Siri 2024, albeit always AI-based, is significantly wiser than it was back then, when I asked it simple inquiries (“Where are the pumpkins?”) and had it perform simple chores, like as meeting scheduling.

Siri has undergone over a decade of brain transplants to make it a better interlocutor and digital companion, but Apple has never attempted to make Siri a genuine ChatBot, which was OK until the world shifted early last year.

Apple no longer has the luxury of avoiding a category while others stumble and fall. Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) is unquestionably the most important technological innovation of this century, and while not everyone is pleased with how ChatGPT, Google Bard, and Windows CoPilot work, their proclivity for hallucinations and plagiarism does little to impede their steady progress. We will never turn back the clock and abandon generative AI.

What’s in an AI’s name?

Microsoft felt comfortable dumping “Bing Chat” in favor of CoPilot because Bing still accounts for less than 4% of the worldwide search market. Nobody misses the question, “Did you ask Bing Chat?” Nobody knows what Samsung’s Galaxy AI implies for its Bixby digital assistant (a poor cousin to Siri), but I doubt anyone would object if Samsung replaced the Bixby button with a Galaxy AI button on the future, highly anticipated Samsung Galaxy S24 series.

For Apple, however, I believe there is too much brand equity to remove the Siri moniker. It’s a good moniker (which the late Steve Jobs, who died a day after its launch, undoubtedly helped define), and the iconography is robust and smart-looking. Have you recently used your iPhone’s Siri button? The animation on iOS 17 is quite future, and it seems appropriate for an upcoming Generative AI brain transplant.

My belief was supported by a recent news item claiming that Apple’s Generative AI work on its Ajax language model is progressing well, perhaps resulting in a Siri that handles conversation and personalization significantly better than the current version.

Still, this “leak” provides little specifics and does not corroborate my anticipation that Apple would take the hard step and make the Generative AI leap that will propel Siri into the dynamic arena occupied by ChatGPT, Bard, and LLMs such as Google’s Gemini and Meta’s Llama 2.

Apple has the power

The reality is that if Apple gives Siri a truly powerful LLM (backed by an even more powerful A18 Pro CPU that will handle on-board ML and fit ample tokenized data stores inside) and allows it to connect to all of Apple’s extensive ecosystem, Siri will be able to do things most chatbots can only dream of.

For example, it may finally fix the mess that is Apple Home Kit, allowing for better control and setup of every linked smart device in an Apple-based smart home. Even better, a lot of the job could be done with just your voice.

And who knows what’s possible with an incredibly smart Siri inside your greatest iPhone? It will help you maximize and use your phone in ways you never imagined possible. A Generative AI-based Siri provides a clear top-to-bottom benefit.

By the way, none of this would violate Apple’s unbreakable privacy promise if all Siri communications were encrypted from beginning to end. This manner, we could use Siri in Apple Car to complete a number of things at our home before we arrived. There are no fears about someone getting into the communication stream and learning about our smart homes or our lifestyles.

Realizing the potential

With this ultimate brain transplant, Siri would become the conversationalist we’ve always wanted it to be. To this day, most of my “conversations” with Siri conclude in two sentences, and it prefers to direct me to a web page result rather than engage in the back and forth required to find out what I want.

Apple has a massive opportunity here, but I’m concerned that full-scale Generative AI based on data-hungry LLM is too risky and might expose company to privacy concerns or even criticism of its machine learning models. People will want to know how Apple taught Ajax and Siri, as well as the source of the data. Is it based on all of our billions of iPhone behaviors (anonymized, of course), or did Apple pull training data from an artisanal well?

I recommend that Apple reject those fears and face whatever arises. It is time for Apple to genuinely join the AI competition. Do it at WWDC 2024 and set the world ablaze. We are ready for it.

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The M3 Ultra could arrive this year, but is Apple abandoning the Mac Pro?

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The Mac Studio is one of the best Macs available right now, packing tremendous performance into a surprisingly small package. And, according to TrendForce, it now appears like Apple may take it up a level with a powerful new M3 Ultra chip, which might arrive in just a few months.

It could make its debut at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June 2024. That largely corresponds to earlier Apple Ultra chips: the M1 Ultra debuted in March 2022, and the M2 Ultra debuted during the WWDC event in June 2023.

The inclusion of the M3 Ultra is significant given how outstanding Apple’s M3 lineup has been thus far. The M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max were released in late 2023, and they all brought significant advances due to the CPUs’ usage of 3nm process technology. In layman’s words, this means that these chips produce a lot of performance without raising the temperature.

The M3 Ultra is expected to take things a step further, as Apple’s Ultra family of CPUs is currently the most powerful option for Mac computers. According to Bloomberg journalist Mark Gurman, the M3 Ultra would include a huge 32 CPU cores and 80 GPU cores, making it by far the most powerful Mac processor available.

Is there no Mac Pro update?

TrendForce cites Chinese outlet ICsmart as saying that the M3 Ultra “may debut in [a] revamped Mac Studio mid-year.” Interestingly, neither TrendForce nor ICsmart mention the Mac Pro in their statements.

That could just be a typo. Or it’s possible that Apple is preventing the M3 Ultra from being used with the Mac Pro, either temporarily or permanently. If the M3 Ultra does indeed arrive in June but not the Mac Pro, it calls into doubt Apple’s commitment to the latter device and raises the question of whether the Mac Pro is being phased out.

We wouldn’t be surprised if the Mac Pro omitted the M3 Ultra entirely. The Mac Pro is upgraded significantly less regularly than the Mac Studio: when Apple introduced the M2 Ultra to the Mac Pro in 2023, it was the computer’s first chip update since 2019. In fact, because the Mac Pro was never equipped with an M1-generation chip, Apple may have decided to exclusively equip it with every other Apple silicon chip generation.

We’ll probably find out what Apple’s up to during WWDC in June, but there could be more leaks and rumors before then. Then we’ll see if the Mac Pro is truly going to be left out this year.

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