Samsung Electronics has unveiled the BESPOKE AI™ Washer & Dryer Combo, showcasing it at IFA 2023 in Berlin. This all-in-one washer and dryer combo is powered by cutting-edge Digital Inverter Heat Pump technology and is touted to redefine your laundry experience.
Source: Samsung Electronics
Samsung’s BESPOKE AI Washer and Dryer Combo streamlines your laundry routine into a single, efficient step. You will be able to wash up to 25kg of laundry and dry up to 13kg without sacrificing too much space. Unlike having two separate machines, this combo unit takes up less space, leaving you with more room to spare. Its sleek and flat BESPOKE design can complement your home’s interior, blending seamlessly with other appliances and furniture.
BESPOKE AI for Intelligent Washing Even from your Phone
The BESPOKE AI Washer & Dryer Combo puts control at your fingertips with an intuitive Wide LCD display. The display lets you effortlessly choose washing and drying settings. Once the cycle is complete, it provides informative reports for your reference.
AI Wash intelligently detects the fabric’s weight, softness, and level of soiling based on water turbidity. Using this information, it optimizes water and detergent usage and fine-tunes soaking, rinsing, and spinning times for swift and efficient cleaning.
Nearly everything about the BESPOKE AI Washer and Dryer Combo is automated. After a cycle concludes, the door automatically opens, simplifying laundry retrieval. This also releases humid air and heat while bringing in fresh air to maintain optimal drum conditions. There is also a Heat Exchanger Auto Cleaning System that preserves drying quality. Additionally, the AI Energy Mode, part of SmartThings Energy, enhances energy efficiency.
Speaking of SmartThings, as with all Samsung devices, the Washer and Dryer combo can be remotely controlled with the SmartThings App. You’ll be able to set your washing to complete as you return from the gym or work. It’s also worth noting that the washer and dryer combo can also be controlled via other Matter compliant IoT apps.
Dolby Laboratories has unveiled Remember those days of needing professional equipment to get the best quality sound from your sound systems? Well, that’s about to come to an end with the new Dolby Atmos FlexConnect, – a huge update to its Dolby Atmos surround sound. The technology brings a feature set we’ve grown accustomed to with Samsung‘s flagship QLED TVs with Q Symphony and Sony‘s Acoustic Center Sync to a broader range of TVs starting with TCL TVs that are being announced at IFA 2023.
Source: Dolby Laboratories
Dolby Atmos FlexConnect will be able to seamlessly merge your TV’s built-in sound system with compatible wireless accessory speakers anywhere in a given space. FlexConnect will then intelligently adapt to your room’s layout and your chosen speaker arrangement giving you the most optimised audio experience from every corner of your space. Sonos also introduced a similar feature with their recently announced Sonos Era 100 and Era 300 speakers.
These are the hallmark features that Dolby Laboratories has highlighted:
An Improved Dolby Atmos Experience: FlexConnect incorporates compatible wireless speakers into your Dolby Atmos-enabled TV setup. Thanks to this, it’s able to replicate the position of the object better for a more immersive sound experience. This means you’re not just watching; you’re feeling every moment through your ears.
Unconstrained Speaker Placement: FlexConnect removes the constraints of traditional speaker placement. No matter your room’s size, furniture arrangement, or power outlet locations, you can position your speakers wherever they fit best. This newfound flexibility allows you to optimize your audio setup without compromising on sound quality.
Effortless Setup: Setting up Dolby Atmos FlexConnect requires no additional equipment or a tangle of cables. Using acoustic mapping, your TV’s built-in microphones locate each wireless speaker in the room. Once they’re all accounted for, the system automatically calibrates itself to deliver the most optimized audio performance for your unique environment.
Dynamic Audio Balancing: FlexConnect intelligently distributes audio signals from your TV to each wireless speaker. It takes into account the capabilities and locations of all your available speakers, ensuring that the sound immerses you.
The technology will be making its debut in TCL’s latest TV lineup coming at IFA 2023. It will not be surprising to see other brands begin to include this feature in their upcoming offerings.
Sony first introduced their very high-end, very clever, and very powerful Exmor T for mobile imaging sensor on the Xperia 1 V, Sony’s fifth generation flagship smartphone that does everything an Alpha user needs it to do and even more. The thing is, at MYR 6,399, the Xperia 1 V commands an asking price even higher than what Samsung asks for in their flagship Galaxy S line-up. While the Xperia 1 V is a brilliant smartphone that is supposed to offer unparalleled performance and functionalities to content creators or creative professionals, it may be a little too rich for plenty of users. So, you get the Sony Xperia 5 V then.
In any way you look at it, the Sony Xperia 5 V is a brilliant product still, even compared to its more premium brother, the Xperia 1 V. Sure, there are visual cues to tell the people who know that you are not using Sony’s top-of-the-line smartphone. Its display size, for example is only 6.1-inch compared to the larger 6.5-inch of the Xperia 1V. It is also only Full HD in resolution instead of 4K. You still get the unique 21:9 aspect ratio from the Xperia 5 V. It is also still an OLED display that offers up to 120Hz in refresh rate and 240Hz in sampling rate. According to Sony as well, the display on the Xperia 5 V offers 100% in DCI-P3 colour gamut coverage and even BT.2020. Like the more premium flagship, the Xperia 5 V also has an X1 engine just to power the display.
Beneath the Corning Gorilla Glass protected display though is still the very powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen2 platform that proved to be a force in the Xperia 1 V. It is not like you are getting a dwindled down battery too. Even in a smaller shell, you still get a 5,000mAh pack. That also means that this one smartphone can offer you even better battery life than even the great Xperia 1. Of course, the device runs on a rather stock version of Android 13 with just a few bloatware like its premium brother.
The bloatware powers the same Exmor T for Mobile sensor that its higher-end flagship brother gets. The Xperia 5 V boasts an effective 48-Megapixel underneath a 24mm lens with F1.9 aperture. Instead of two other cameras though, there is only one more camera that sits with the main shooter. You get a 12-Megapixel ultra-wide shooter instead of the clever variable telephoto that the Xperia 1 V offers. Still, you probably can get enough details with digital zoom from the 48-Megapixel photos. There is also a front-facing camera that is rated at 12-Megapixel for all your selfie and video-conferencing needs.
Source: Sony
Source: Sony
Source: Sony
Source: Sony
Just like its bigger brother, the Xperia 5 V maintains the same candy bar look and offers 3.5mm jack connectivity. Alongside that, there is the unique shutter button too. If you need, the Xperia 5 V also features a MicroSD card slot for storage expansion up to 1TB. There is fast charging for the large battery, you also get wireless charging still with the Xperia 5 V.
Price and Availability
While Sony Malaysia touts Q4 2023 availability, they have not officially announced its retail price just yet. We expect the Xperia 5 V to be a little more expensive than the current Xperia 5 IV at MYR 4,499. We do not think it will be priced above RM 5,000 though, at least there is no reason to believe that it will be priced as such. For now, we can only wait. For more information on Sony’s latest Xperia 5 V, you can head to their website.
Google Play Pass – the company’s answer to Apple Arcade – has made its debut in Malaysia. Play Pass will allow users access to a curated collection of mobile games free from ads and in-app purchases. Think of it like Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass for your Android phone. It currently has over a thousand games available in the catalogue on the Play Store.
Stealthily launched earlier this week in Malaysia, the Google Play Pass costs MYR10.99 per month. Your first month, however, is free. If you opt to subscribe to the Google Play Pass for a year, you’ll be getting a 25% discount with the plan renewing for MYR99 a year. The pass is shareable with up to five family members within a family group.
With the Play Pass, users gain access to games like Monument Valley 2, Stardew Valley, and more, all without ads and in-app payments.
Exciting times ahead for WhatsApp users as we round up the many new features coming very soon to your device!
Improved privacy features for messaging and calls
WhatsApp made great strides in privacy for messaging apps, when they introduced view-once messaging. Now, this process will get a whole lot easier. Spotted on a WhatsApp beta build on the Play Store, simply long-tap the send button to send a view-once message. This will also apply to sharing view-once photos and videos, though at the moment, GIF formats will not be able to be shared this way as reported by WABetaInfo.
Image source: WABetaInfo
Another boost to privacy, WABetaInfo have previewed a new feature called “Protect IP address in calls”. This feature can be toggled to mask your IP address by relaying calls through WhatsApp servers, making it harder to trace your location. While more secure, the feature comes at the cost of a small reduction in call quality. Another security feature for calls was the option to silence unknown callers. This toggle feature will stop calls from unknown callers ringing, while still showing up in your Calls tab.
Image source: WABetaInfo
Text formatting and enhanced media sharing
We can now expect more personalization and utility in messaging thanks to the new text formatting feature coming to WhatsApp. WABetaInfo showcased formatting tools such as syntax for blocking code snippets, quoting specific text, and creating text lists. There will also be a new “Quote”, which improves upon the existing “Quote message” feature. This will allow you to now quote specific parts of messages instead of the whole message.
Image source: WABetaInfo
WhatsApp will also be addressing another key issue; sharing HD media. As reported by 9to5Google via the Verge, there is a new “HD” button available when adding an image to a message. Selecting it brings up two options; standard quality (1600 x 1052) and HD quality (4096 x 2692). Recipients will also have the option to keep the standard quality or HD quality versions when on slow connections. No details on how compressed the images will be as of yet. WhatsApp will also give the same choice for HD video, as reported by TechCrunch. Users can now opt to send their videos either compressed to the current app standard of 480p or toggle HD video of 720p.
Native macOS app may be a reality soon
Great news for Mac users, WhatsApp will soon be available as a native macOS app. As reported by Tech Radar, the new app is already available to download for free via WhatsApp servers. However, if you prefer to use the Mac App Store, you will have to be patient as it is not available as of yet. Along with the new app, you can also expect integration with native Mac features such as “drag and drop” for easier media sharing and longer chat histories. There will also be enhanced call features, with capacity to connect 8 people on video call and 32 people on audio call. You can also join a group call after it has started, see your call history and opt to receive call notifications even when the app is closed. Alongside this features, you will also get the expected functionality of WhatsApp including end-to-end encryption and cross-platform support. Mac users will need to have a system running on macOS 11 Big Sur and powered by Apple chipsets; at least the Apple M1, to be able to use this app. If you don’t meet those requirements, don’t fret as there is always WhatsApp web.
Image source: Meta
Screen sharing and quality of life improvements
Another big addition coming to WhatsApp will be screen sharing over video calls. Keeping up with competitors like Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet, WhatsApp will now allow sharing of your phone or desktop screen as reported by Android Police. You can choose to share a specific app or your whole screen over a video call. Screen sharing will be protected by end-to-end encryption. The drawbacks are audio cannot be shared in screen sharing. To further support this feature, WhatsApp will allow video calls in landscape mode, to take advantage of your screen’s real estate. The feature might be coming sooner than expected. Keep a lookout for a Share button in the bottom action bar in your next video call.
Image source: Android Police
WhatsApp is also rolling out some quality of life enhancements to improve your app experience. This includes a revamped UI for Settings and the chat list along with a dedicated “You” page which houses your account information. There will be some minor visual enhancements, including the profile picture moved to the top right of the home screen.
Image source: WABetaInfo
Along with this UI update, Android Police has reported a new, sleek animation on the button when switching between audio message and video message. The icons jump up and twist when changing from a mic to a camera. This makes it easier to know which type of message is being composed, in addition to the existing floating tooltip. And finally, Android Police also reports the addition of a new page encouraging users to create their own Community. With WhatsApp being a staple for group chats, the Community feature will help organize messaging for larger groups of people. This is especially useful for neighborhood, schools and even select work groups. There is also a handy Get Started button that will help walk you through creating your first Community.
New features may already be in your hands
There are no exact dates when the new features will be available, but as it is a staged roll out, you may already have the chance to experience the enhanced WhatsApp. With the addition of these new features, WhatsApp is making great strides in keeping up with the competition. In fact, they may just end the year as the best messaging app in the market!
Lilith graces Sanctuary once again this September with the Mother’s Blessing Weekend, bringing generous XP and Gold bonuses for Diablo 4 players.
In response to player feedback on the scarcity of live-service content in Diablo 4, Blizzard Entertainment aims make it up to players with 25% increase in both Gold and XP gains. This event is set to take place from Friday, September 1 at 10:00 AM until Tuesday, September 5 at 10:00 AM PDT.
During this event, players across all World Tiers, including the Seasonal and Eternal Realms, will benefit from the boosted Gold and XP rates. To find this benefit in-game, keep an eye out for a new icon positioned next to your potion count, which signifies the enhanced rate of earning Gold and XP.
This news arrives shortly after the announcement of Diablo 4 Season 2: Season of Blood at Gamescom: Opening Night Live. Scheduled to commence on October 17, Season 2 will introduce captivating content, including a Vampire Hunter companion and vampiric powers.
As the anticipation for Season 2 builds, the Mother’s Blessing Weekend provides an opportunity for players to amass wealth and experience at an accelerated pace. Stay tuned for more updates on Diablo 4 events and developments that may enrich your gameplay.
Samsung Electronics has introduced two new display models, the HCU7030 and HCF8000. The two new models are tailored for the healthcare sector. These models aim to enhance user experiences with features such as integrated pillow speaker interfaces, 4K resolution, and HDR performance. They are also Web RTC ready, enabling swift video conferencing integration.
Source: Samsung
Source: Samsung
The HCU7030 is designed for hospital environments, while the HCF8000 is suited for both healthcare and hotel settings. The displays are designed to prioritize patient comfort. The HCU7030 boasts a business management suite for easy device enrollment, and both models offer UL certification and three-pin plugs to uphold safety standards.
The HCU7030 series ranges from 43 to 75 inches, while the sleek 32” QLED HCF8000 fits well in hospitality settings. Both come with a Multi-Code Remote to minimize interference and Web RTC for virtual healthcare assistance.
Source: Samsung
LYNK Cloud, a comprehensive cloud solution, equips both models with customizable content, remote device management, and access to OTT entertainment. Managers can analyze user engagement and content viewership for an optimized guest experience.
Pricing & Availability
The HCU7030 launches in the U.S. on August 25, and the HCF8000 arrives in the U.S. and Europe in Q4 2023. No public pricing has been announced at this time.
Acer Malaysia has opened registrations for the Asia Pacific Predator League 2024, inviting Malaysian Dota 2 and Valorant eSports teams to compete for the coveted Predator Shield and a slice of the USD400,000 prize pool at the Grand Finals in Manila, Philippines.
With a substantial local prize pool of RM100,000, the Predator League 2024 Malaysia Qualifier welcomes teams to sign up for Dota 2 and Valorant from 30 August to 14 September 2023 through https://www.planet9.gg/.
The Malaysia Qualifier matches will occur online, while the local finals will take place at Noizucon in the KL Convention Centre from 30 September to 1 October 2023. The victors of the Predator League 2024 Malaysia Qualifier will proceed to the Grand Finals in Manila on 13 to 14 January 2024, where they’ll face off against champions from the Asia Pacific region.
Since its inception in 2018, the Asia Pacific Predator League has served as a platform for emerging eSports talents in the region. Thousands of teams participate annually, vying for the opportunity to showcase their skills on the global Predator League stage, hosted by Acer. Acer’s consistent dedication to fostering the eSports industry through this yearly event has significantly contributed to elevating players’ careers.
Andrew Hou, President of Acer Pan Asia Pacific Operations, stated, “The Predator League reflects our ongoing commitment to nurturing the gaming community and enhancing their competitive level in the APAC region. The tournament’s global recognition has grown in recent years, and we are thrilled to bring it to Manila, which houses one of the world’s largest and most passionate eSports fanbases. We anticipate incredible gameplay from all participating teams.”
Google looks to be gearing up to join the league of life-saving services with the inclusion of satellite-based messaging in Google Messages. With Apple already offering satellite-based Emergency SOS, the company is reportedly teaming up with Garmin to bring a similar feature to Android devices through the upcoming Android 14 update.
Neil Rahmouni, a tech enthusiast, unearthed intriguing clues within Google Messages’ code, hinting at the integration of satellite messaging support. While not officially confirmed, Rahmouni’s findings suggest a possible collaboration with Garmin, a well-known wearable brand.
Garmin is renowned for its extensive satellite communication products and services, including emergency SOS options available across over 150 countries and all seven continents. If Google joins forces with Garmin, its Android 14-powered Emergency SOS could potentially outshine Apple’s offering, which is limited to a few countries.
Looks like Google Messages may use Garmin Response for the Satellite Emergency SOS
If true it could mean that Emergency Satellite messages would be available in 150+ countries👀https://t.co/egVqM6JaJV
However, Rahmouni wisely urges caution against excessive speculation until Google officially announces the partnership and its features. As Android 14’s release approaches, anticipation mounts over the precise connectivity options and satellite messaging capabilities it will introduce. Despite Google’s confirmation of satellite communication integration in Android 14, key details such as availability and supported devices remain undisclosed.
Navigating the online world while safeguarding personal information has become increasingly challenging. Mozilla’s response – Firefox Relay – has just received an upgrade that promises enhanced privacy protection in the digital realm.
In a bid to fortify online privacy, Mozilla has seamlessly integrated the Firefox Relay feature into the Firefox experience itself. Formerly an add-on, Relay acts as a protective barrier for users’ email addresses, shielding them from unsolicited marketing emails and potential data breaches. With this integration, users can conveniently utilize the Relay feature to safeguard their personal email addresses while navigating the web.
Acquiring this enhanced layer of online privacy is simple. Users need only possess a Firefox account to access the built-in Relay feature, available for free within the browser. Mozilla aims to make this feature available to millions of users over the upcoming weeks.
This integration lines up with Mozilla’s commitment to elevating the user experience by prioritizing privacy. The company introduced Firefox Relay functionalities earlier this year, allowing users to seamlessly interact with the tool through their toolbar, generate fresh email masks, and reuse existing ones. Notably, Relay ensures protection against web trackers, a significant step in preserving sensitive data.
For those unacquainted with Firefox Relay, it offers practical solutions for various online scenarios. Users can generate temporary email aliases to safeguard personal emails, benefiting from the service’s email filtering that eliminates trackers before forwarding messages to the primary email ID. Whether it’s crafting transient emails or maintaining confidentiality on public platforms, Firefox Relay empowers users to embrace a more secure online experience, now more conveniently accessible than ever.
