Month: March 2023
Exclusive Prime Deal Saves Members Up to $120 on Eufy S11 Cordless Vacuums – CNET
These cordless stick vacuums are lightweight and easy to maneuver, and right now you can snag one for just $130 if you’re an Amazon Prime subscriber.
These cordless stick vacuums are lightweight and easy to maneuver, and right now you can snag one for just $130 if you’re an Amazon Prime subscriber.
It looks like PSVR 2 probably won’t outsell its predecessor
PSVR 2 is likely to miss its sales targets, according to a notable VR analyst.
It seems that PSVR 2 isn’t exactly on track to meet its sales targets, at least according to one notable VR analyst.
PSVR 2 looks like it’ll sell just shy of 300,000 units by the end of March 2023, according to IDC VR analyst Francisco Jeronimo. In a quote to Bloomberg’s Takashi Mochizuki, Jeronimo gave an explaination as to why the PS5 headset might be underperforming.
“Consumers around the world are facing rising costs of living, rising interest rates and rising layoffs,” says Jeronimo, “VR headsets are not top of mind for most consumers under the current economic climate.”
Jeronimo also states that a PSVR 2 price cut may be in order if Sony wants to “avoid a complete disaster.”
Exclusive: Sony’s PSVR2 is not doing well. IDC’s @fjeronimo expects sales of just 270,000 units by the end of March. “I suspect a price cut on the PSVR2 will be needed to avoid a complete disaster,” he says.https://t.co/pzmNKsnTjIMarch 30, 2023
The report comes not long after Sony CFO Hiroki Totoki expressed confidence in PSVR 2 exceeding the five million units the company achieved with the original PlayStation VR headset.
Now, it may be premature to cast doom and gloom on PSVR 2 when it’s been on store shelves for a little over a month. However, PS4’s PlayStation VR managed to sell close to a million units in its first four months on sale. Granted, the original headset was at a much lower price point and thus easier to obtain esppecially when compared to the eye-watering $549 / £529 / AU$879 it costs to net Sony’s latest VR headset.
Does PSVR 2 have a future?
I’m a big fan of PSVR 2, but I can’t help but be concerned for its future if the above sales forecast is accurate. When the PS Vita similarly underperformed a decade ago, Sony was quick to pull the plug on a genuinely fantastic handheld device. I hope the PSVR 2 will not meet the same fate.
But it’s so easy to see why PSVR 2 wouldn’t meet Sony’s sales expectations. I’ve said it before, to the point of sounding like a broken record, but it’s always going to be a tough sell when your VR headset costs even more than the console you’re buying it for. At the retail level, many consumers are going to see that and simply turn away.
I agree that PSVR 2 could use a price cut. It is a fantastic headset, but one that needs a better chance to grow. Currently, outside of a few exclusive experiences like Horizon: Call of the Mountain and Gran Turismo 7‘s VR component, PSVR 2’s library is lacking. At least compared to cheaper, standalone headsets like Meta Quest 2 and Pico 4.
Don’t miss one of the best PS5 games coming to PS Plus next week
Today Only: Grab a Waterproof Kindle Paperwhite Starting at $60 – CNET
Go digital with an e-reader that you can take with you to the pool or on your beach vacation this summer.
Go digital with an e-reader that you can take with you to the pool or on your beach vacation this summer.
Get Your Hands on a Refurb Chromebook for as Little as $50 at Woot – CNET
These used Chromebooks are some of the most affordable laptops you’ll find out there, and are great for basic tasks and web-based work.
These used Chromebooks are some of the most affordable laptops you’ll find out there, and are great for basic tasks and web-based work.
Three New iOS Features Coming to Your iPhone Following Apple Music Classical
With the Apple Music Classical app and an Apple Pay Later early access program now available, the list of previously-announced iOS features that have yet to launch is beginning to shrink. However, there are still a few features we are waiting for.
Below, we have recapped three more iOS features that are expected to launch in 2023, including an Apple Card savings account for Daily Cash, iMessage Contact Key Verification for enhanced messaging security, and the next generation of CarPlay.
iMessage Contact Key Verification
In December 2022, Apple previewed a new iMessage Contact Key Verification security feature and said it would launch globally in 2023. It’s unclear if the feature will be added in an iOS 16 update or introduced as part of iOS 17 later this year.
iMessage Contact Key Verification allows users who face “extraordinary digital threats,” such as journalists, human rights activists, and government officials, to further verify that they are messaging only with the people they intend. In conversations between users who have enabled iMessage Contact Key Verification, users are alerted if a state-sponsored attacker or other malicious actor were ever to succeed breaching cloud servers and inserting their own device to eavesdrop on the conversation.
As an additional layer of security, iMessage Contact Key Verification users can compare a Contact Verification Code in person, on FaceTime, or through another secure call to further verify they are communicating only with whom they intend.
Apple Card Savings Account
In October 2022, Apple announced that Apple Card users would “soon” be able to open a new high-yield savings account from Goldman Sachs and have their Daily Cash automatically deposited into it, with no fees, no minimum deposits, and no minimum balance requirements. The account would be managed through the Wallet app on the iPhone.
Once the account is set up, all Daily Cash received from that point on would be automatically deposited into it and start earning interest, unless a user opts to continue having Daily Cash added to their Apple Cash balance. Apple Card provides 2-3% Daily Cash on purchases made with Apple Pay and 1% on purchases made with the physical card.
The savings account was listed in the release notes for the iOS 16.1 Release Candidate in October, and Goldman Sachs updated its Apple Card customer agreement for the feature in December, but it is still not available as of the first iOS 16.5 beta.
Next-Generation CarPlay
At WWDC 2022, Apple previewed the next generation of its iPhone-based software platform CarPlay, which will feature support for multiple displays, widgets, and integration with vehicle functions like the instrument cluster, climate controls, and FM radio.
Apple says the first vehicles with support for the next-generation CarPlay experience will be announced in late 2023, with committed automakers including Acura, Audi, Ford, Honda, Jaguar, Land Rover, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Porsche, Volvo, and others. Apple plans to share additional details about the next generation of CarPlay later this year.Related Roundups: iOS 17, iOS 16, iPadOS 16
Related Forum: iOS 16
This article, “Three New iOS Features Coming to Your iPhone Following Apple Music Classical” first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums
With the Apple Music Classical app and an Apple Pay Later early access program now available, the list of previously-announced iOS features that have yet to launch is beginning to shrink. However, there are still a few features we are waiting for.
Below, we have recapped three more iOS features that are expected to launch in 2023, including an Apple Card savings account for Daily Cash, iMessage Contact Key Verification for enhanced messaging security, and the next generation of CarPlay.
iMessage Contact Key Verification
In December 2022, Apple previewed a new iMessage Contact Key Verification security feature and said it would launch globally in 2023. It’s unclear if the feature will be added in an iOS 16 update or introduced as part of iOS 17 later this year.
iMessage Contact Key Verification allows users who face “extraordinary digital threats,” such as journalists, human rights activists, and government officials, to further verify that they are messaging only with the people they intend. In conversations between users who have enabled iMessage Contact Key Verification, users are alerted if a state-sponsored attacker or other malicious actor were ever to succeed breaching cloud servers and inserting their own device to eavesdrop on the conversation.
As an additional layer of security, iMessage Contact Key Verification users can compare a Contact Verification Code in person, on FaceTime, or through another secure call to further verify they are communicating only with whom they intend.
Apple Card Savings Account
In October 2022, Apple announced that Apple Card users would “soon” be able to open a new high-yield savings account from Goldman Sachs and have their Daily Cash automatically deposited into it, with no fees, no minimum deposits, and no minimum balance requirements. The account would be managed through the Wallet app on the iPhone.
Once the account is set up, all Daily Cash received from that point on would be automatically deposited into it and start earning interest, unless a user opts to continue having Daily Cash added to their Apple Cash balance. Apple Card provides 2-3% Daily Cash on purchases made with Apple Pay and 1% on purchases made with the physical card.
The savings account was listed in the release notes for the iOS 16.1 Release Candidate in October, and Goldman Sachs updated its Apple Card customer agreement for the feature in December, but it is still not available as of the first iOS 16.5 beta.
Next-Generation CarPlay
At WWDC 2022, Apple previewed the next generation of its iPhone-based software platform CarPlay, which will feature support for multiple displays, widgets, and integration with vehicle functions like the instrument cluster, climate controls, and FM radio.
Apple says the first vehicles with support for the next-generation CarPlay experience will be announced in late 2023, with committed automakers including Acura, Audi, Ford, Honda, Jaguar, Land Rover, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Porsche, Volvo, and others. Apple plans to share additional details about the next generation of CarPlay later this year.
This article, “Three New iOS Features Coming to Your iPhone Following Apple Music Classical” first appeared on MacRumors.com
Discuss this article in our forums
Xbox vice president promises “10 more years” of support for indie devs
Xbox vice president affirms the company’s commitment to the ID@Xbox program for years to come.
Sarah Bond, Corporate Vice President at Xbox promises that gamers are in for “10 more years” of indie titles from Microsoft’s ID@Xbox program.
The ID@Xbox program has helped people all over the world enjoy titles from smaller studios, by giving their games a platform on Xbox Series X|S, PC and Xbox Game Pass. The program has hardly been a token effort from Microsoft, either.
I sat down with Bond to discuss Xbox’s plans with independent titles going forward. “It’s been 10 years of ID@Xbox, we’ve actually paid out four billion dollars to independent developers over those 10 years. We have 5,000 creators in the program, and 700 that joined even in the last 12 months.” To put that figure in perspective, that’s four times the rumored budget of Halo Infinite (via GameRant).
Bond sees Xbox’s commitment to indie games as “imperative”. “You know, 70% of people under the age of 25 would rather play a game than any other form of media. What do we want them to be playing?… I want them to have the ability to experience things that they otherwise never would.”
The vice president went on to discuss the successes of Tunic and Vampire Survivors, both of which were produced with the help of the ID@Xbox program. “Every year… some massive game emerges from an independent development studio… which basically [takes] over many people’s lives.” She continued: “[indie games are] an important investment for us, because we see so much innovation coming from there, but also it is the place where we see the most opportunity for new voices, perspectives, and talent to emerge.”
Independent’s day
(Image credit: Poncle)
Bond also described a new program in the works which would allow indie developers to “prototype their games and get real-time feedback as they’re learning.” Independent game development can often be a struggle, especially for people in marginalized communities who lack access to resources and technology. Xbox’s commitment in this regard is definitely a step in the right direction.
The vice president was keen to stress that she also felt Xbox had a cultural commitment towards “underrepresented” groups. “We developed the [ID@Xbox] program to help creators that are underrepresented in the industry today or who are building stories respectfully around groups that are underrepresented in the industry today.”
Xbox is certainly betting a lot of its chips on smaller studios. When I asked why this was, Bond replied: “I think independent developers are the source of the most innovation in our industry in some ways. If you think about it, every large studio today started as an indie at one stage.”
History certainly concurs with Bond’s assessment, since world-renowned classics like Fortnite and PUBG: Battlegrounds came from relatively small starts. Even Bungie, the original developers behind Halo, had humble origins, starting as the pet project of a University of Chicago undergraduate in 1991.
Xbox is right to continue its emphasis on independent games. Who knows what hidden gems and unforgettable experiences will be unearthed over the next 10 years? Bond certainly seemed confident, stating that: “the best is yet to come.”