You can be as fabulous as Samantha Jones with this Amazon face mask – purchase the same one she used in ‘And Just Like That’!
You can be as fabulous as Samantha Jones with this Amazon face mask – purchase the same one she used in ‘And Just Like That’!
Sonos may be synonymous with WiFi-equipped multi-room speakers, but plenty of companies have introduced their take on those products since the Play:1 arrived in 2013. Today, JBL announced its new Authentics series, a lineup of three connected speakers that offer a lot of what we’ve come to rely on from Sonos. All three support multi-room audio and automatic self-tuning alongside Bluetooth, WiFi and Ethernet connectivity. While only the most expensive has Dolby Atmos immersive sound, the entire trio can run Google Assistant and Alexa at the same time, a feat JBL says it’s the first to achieve.
For the design of the Authentics series, JBL took inspiration from its L100 speaker that debuted in the 70s. That bookshelf unit featured a grid-patterned Quadrex grille as a prominent aesthetic element, one that the company has carried through a few of its pricier products over the years. That square layout graces the speaker cover on the Authetics series too, while a leather-wrapped aluminum frame and black and gold color scheme complete the look.
JBL is touting its new speaker line as the first units capable of running both Google Assistant and Alexa simultaneously on the same device. Plenty of speakers and headphones support multiple voice assistants, but you have to select one at a time. Here, you can set up these two in the JBL app and use either one (without diving into the settings menu) for hands-free control of connected devices, music and more. Simply say “Hey Google” or “Alexa” and the Authentics speakers summon the assistant you need. The company explains that it designed the integration in collaboration with Google and Amazon so that “customers have the choice and flexibility to communicate seamlessly with both voice assistants and take advantage of their different capabilities.”
At the top of the lineup is the Authentics 500. This model packs in three one-inch tweeters, three 2.75-inch mid-range woofers and a single 6.5-inch downfiring subwoofer. The company explains that this driver arrangement cranks out “crystal clear sound” with “tight, accurate bass.” The 500 is the only unit in the series that supports Dolby Atmos audio, delivering 270 watts of 3.1-channel sound for a virtualized 3D effect. As you might expect, this is the biggest and priciest option at $700.
JBL Authentics 300
The Authentics 300 is the only portable speaker in JBL’s new series. Priced at $430, this model is capable of 360-degree audio with a user-replaceable battery that offers eight hours of listening time. The 300 also has a built-in handle to increase portability, although the company is clear that the unit’s audio performance, including “distinctive highs and deep bass,” does well indoors too.
The Authentics 200 houses two one-inch tweeters with a five-inch woofer and six-inch passive radiator. JBL claims that this more compact option can “fill any space — big or small — with stereo sound,” including “deep bass” and “perfect balance” across all genres. It seems clear JBL is aiming to take on the Sonos One and Era 100 here, although the 200 is more expensive than those at $330.
All three of the Authentics speakers will be available in black on September 17th. The entire lineup is compatible with the JBL One app which allows you to sync music services, fully customize the EQ and adjust other settings as you see fit.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/jbl-takes-on-sonos-with-its-multi-room-authentics-home-speakers-150007836.html?src=rss
Most of us could stand to learn a new trick or two in the kitchen. Getting to grips with a new technique doesn’t have to be difficult though, especially if you have the right equipment on hand. To wit: we reckon the Anova Precision Cooker 3.0 is the best sous vide machine you can buy right now, and best of all, it’s on sale. The device has dropped by 25 percent to $149 at Amazon.
This is the latest standard model of Anova’s sous vide machines. It’s one of the best prices we’ve seen for it to date — it has dropped a little lower in the past but this is still a solid deal all the same.
The Precision Cooker 3.0 is a great all-rounder that’s easy to use. It can handle all the basics of cooking things like meats and eggs. The latest model includes digital touch controls, a stainless steel and water-resistant IPX7 design and a longer power cord than previous iterations. There’s WiFi connectivity, while the eight-liter-per-minute flow rate means it can bring water to the correct temperature faster than a lot of rival gizmos.
Anova teamed up with highly regarded chef J. Kenji Lopez-Alt to feature a wealth of fully tested sous vide recipes in its app. And hey, if you’re not exactly sure how to get started with sous vide, you’re in luck: we have a handy guide just for that.
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This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-anova-precision-cooker-30-is-50-off-right-now-151510851.html?src=rss
Games have the power to connect people across the world in enjoyment and teamwork, but they can also create a space ripe for toxic speech and hatred. Activision is attempting to minimize the latter, announcing a new collaboration with Modulate, a company using technology to identify these issues, for direct voice chat moderation in Call of Duty.
Modulate’s AI system, ToxMod, attempts to identify threats like hate speech, radicalization and self-harm in real-time. It claims to work in three steps: triage, analyze and escalate. ToxMod listens to all voice chats and pinpoints which warrant a further look. This flagged data is stored in their servers, while all other data will be processed right on the initial device. The company says it then evaluates everything from tone to emotion, analyzing not only “what is being said, but also how it is said and how other players respond to it.” Finally, it attempts to alert moderators about the most toxic incidents and leaves it up to them to take action. The company claims it’s the “only voice-native moderation solution” currently available, having protected “tens of millions of players.”
The integration of ToxMod could aid in preventing toxic responses as a whole, working alongside existing text-centric and reporting systems. “Tackling disruptive voice chat particularly has long been an extraordinary challenge across gaming,” Activision’s chief technology officer Michael Vance said in a statement. “With this collaboration, we are now bringing Modulate’s state of the art machine learning technology that can scale in realtime for a global level of enforcement. This is a critical step forward to creating and maintaining a fun, fair and welcoming experience for all players.” Last year, Activision started allowing games’ moderation teams to mute players using toxic language in voice and text chats.
ToxMod is now available as an English language beta release in North America for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II and Call of Duty: Warzone. It will be released globally — with the exception of Asia — when Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III releases on November 10th.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/call-of-duty-modern-warfare-iii-will-use-ai-to-clamp-down-on-toxic-voice-chats-160027704.html?src=rss
Google has revealed more details about how you’ll be able to use the Duet AI assistant to help you rapidly whip up emails and documents. In Gmail, the tool builds on existing AI-powered features such as Smart Reply. Click or tap the “help me write” button and you’ll have several options at your disposal.
Select “write your draft” and you can detail the type of message that you’d like Duet AI to generate. The tool will be able to draw from previous messages in the thread to make the draft response more relevant, Google says. If Duet AI creates a message in a tone that’s perhaps too casual, you can ask the assistant to make it more formal. There are options to make the draft more elaborate or condensed, and if you’re feeling adventurous, you can slap the “I’m feeling lucky” option. This, Google says, will “introduce fun variations on tone and style for content you’ve drafted.”
The options are pretty similar in Google Docs, though you’ll be able to make the tone of Duet AI’s screed more casual if you wish. There are options to generate a summary for a section or an entire document, use bullet points (for those Axios fans out there) and to create a different draft based on your initial description. Additionally, Google says you can use a custom instruction to “refine the generated content.” The “help me write” tool for Docs can pull in smart canvas features.
For now, the new virtual assistant is only available to organizations who pony up an extra $30 per user per month for the Duet AI for Google Workspace Enterprise add-on. Duet AI will be available for small- and medium-sized businesses as well as consumers in the coming months, but Google hasn’t revealed pricing as yet.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/googles-duet-ai-can-generate-emails-and-documents-in-different-tones-161534645.html?src=rss
It looks like Instagram is about to significantly increase the maximum length of Reels posts, according to reputable mobile developer and leaker Alessandro Paluzzi. The current hard limit for these videos is three minutes, but screenshots provided by Paluzzi indicate a forthcoming leap to 10 minutes. This would effectively transform the social media site into a more robust video-sharing platform like YouTube.
This move would also allow Meta’s Instagram to further compete with rival TikTok, as the latter already lets users post videos up to ten minutes in length. TikTok and Instagram seem to be caught in some sort of ouroboros of mimicry, with one app regularly adopting features originally unveiled by the other.
As TikTok and Instagram vie for a share of the long-form video pie, YouTube’s moving in the opposite direction. It’s been making a push to gain more ground in the short-form video space, recently adding a suite of creator tools and a TikTok-esque music-discovery feed. The days when you could easily label Instagram as the “photo one”, TikTok as the “short video one” and YouTube as the “long video one” are gone. It looks like they all want to be “does everything one.”
Engadget reached out to Meta for clarification regarding the move toward long-form video content and will update this post when and if we receive a substantive response.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/instagram-reportedly-making-reels-longer-to-take-on-tiktok-and-youtube-163059898.html?src=rss
The Duke of Sussex appears to call out his family for not being the ‘support structure’ he needed when he returned from Afghanistan in 2008.
The Duke of Sussex appears to call out his family for not being the ‘support structure’ he needed when he returned from Afghanistan in 2008.
Jessica Alba posted a cute photo of her two daughters heading off to school for their first days of 10th and 7th grade.
Jessica Alba posted a cute photo of her two daughters heading off to school for their first days of 10th and 7th grade.
Sofia Vergara revealed her relationship status after her split from Joe Manganiello when an ‘America’s Got Talent’ contestant flirted with her.
Sofia Vergara revealed her relationship status after her split from Joe Manganiello when an ‘America’s Got Talent’ contestant flirted with her.
Paulina Porizkova showed off what her face looks like with & without makeup at 58 years old & she still managed to look stunning in the transformation video.
Paulina Porizkova showed off what her face looks like with & without makeup at 58 years old & she still managed to look stunning in the transformation video.
