How Microsoft shrunk its Surface devices
Microsoft has brought me inside the Surface hardware lab from time to time over the years, showing me how its engineers test the hinges and fabrics that go into its products. They’re usually typical engineering demonstrations, but last month I was invited to Microsoft’s headquarters in Redmond, Washington, to see how the company built its two new smaller Surface Pro and Surface Laptop devices. And this time around, I was pleasantly surprised to be shown how Microsoft uses magnets,...
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Spotify will let you hit ‘snooze’ on good songs you’re getting tired of
Spotify is testing a new “Snooze” button that will let you temporarily remove a track from your recommendations in case you need a short break from hearing it. The option will appear for songs you choose to hide from your playlists, and it will prevent Spotify from putting them in your recommendations for 30 days. Spotify is testing the Snooze button with Premium subscribers first, but it says it will “bring it to more listeners soon.” Along with this update, Spotify is making a chang...
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Apple’s sci-fi epic Foundation is back for season 3 in July
One of Apple’s biggest series will start streaming again this summer. The company announced that season 3 of Foundation will hit Apple TV Plus on July 11th, with new episodes weekly through September 12th. As part of the announcement, Apple also released the first teaser for the third season. The show originally premiered in 2021, and is an adaptation of Isaac Asimov’s classic series of sci-fi novels, which span multiple centuries and follow the rise and fall of an empire, and a g...
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LinkedIn’s new AI search tool lets you describe your ideal job
LinkedIn is launching a new generative AI tool that allows users to find job listings by describing their perfect role. The platform’s updated AI-powered search bar now provides users with job posting results based on natural language descriptions, such as “find me entry-level brand manager roles in fashion,” and “jobs for analysts who love sustainability challenges.” The idea is to provide greater flexibility for people hunting for a new job compared to the restrictive search f...
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Matter’s latest update brings tap-to-pair setup
Two new features coming to Matter are designed to make setting up smart gadgets easier. Multi-device QR codes and a tap-to-pair onboarding via NFC are new options for adding devices like smart lights, plugs, locks, and more to a Matter home network. The updates are part of the new 1.4.1 specification for Matter announced today by the Connectivity Standards Alliance, the organization that runs the smart home interoperability standard developed by Apple, Amazon, Google, Samsung, and others in t...
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Amazon develops a robot that ‘feels’ touch, just like its human workers
Vulcan’s force-sensitive arm can apply just the right amount of pressure to avoid causing damage. Amazon has announced a new AI-infused warehouse robot that it says has a sense of touch. This allows the Vulcan robot to pick and stow roughly three-quarters of the items stocked in the company’s warehouses, a task that was previously handled predominantly by human workers. “Vulcan represents a fundamental leap forward in robotics,” says Aaron Parness, Amazon’s director of ap...
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Patreon’s iOS update allows creators to bypass in-app purchases
Patreon creators on iOS can now link fans to alternative payment systems. The latest version of Patreon’s iOS app allows creators in the US to accept payments outside of Apple’s App Store payment system. First seen by TechCrunch, the 125.5.0 update released on Monday enables Patreon creators to link out to web payments, avoiding the up to 30 percent commission that Apple charges on in-app purchases. This follows the Epic v. Apple ruling on May 1st that blocks Apple from imposing fe...
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Microsoft and Asus’ Xbox handheld appears in leaked photos
The first photos of the Asus ROG Ally 2 have surfaced online thanks to regulatory listings, but with a twist: there are two versions of the gaming handheld, and one features a dedicated Xbox button. We reported two months ago that Microsoft was working with Asus to develop an Xbox-branded handheld codenamed “Project Kennan,” and this appears to be it. It’s a black version of the otherwise almost identical white ROG Ally 2, with a small button in the top-left corner bearing an engrav...
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