After getting engaged on ‘Queen’s Court,’ JR Robinson and Tamar Braxton’s love story has come to an end. JR announced that he ended things with Tamar.
After getting engaged on ‘Queen’s Court,’ JR Robinson and Tamar Braxton’s love story has come to an end. JR announced that he ended things with Tamar.
TikTok might be exploring new ways to make the app more profitable by playing around with an ad-free subscription model. This isn’t new for social media platforms. We’ve seen Snapchat introduce Snapchat+ and X (formally known as Twitter) introduce its Premium options as well, but this would be a new subscription offering for TikTok.
Hints of TikTok’s subscription plans were initially spotted by Android Authority. According to the report, the latest version of TikTok came loaded with new strings of code that indicated the short-form video app is testing an ad-free monthly subscription plan for its users. Android Authority uncovered a screen that presented users with the choice of two different plans. There’s the standard option, which will remain free and include personalized ads based on your activity. Then there’s the “Ad-free” option, which will cost $4.99 per month.
As of right now, there has been no official announcement from TikTok. (Engadget has reached out for comment and we’ll update the story if we hear back.) So it’s safe to assume that this is just a test being conducted since it is currently only available to a limited number of users. TikTok may or may not actually take the plan public, and if it does it may also change the $4.99 price tag based on the feedback.
TikTok’s drive toward increasing engagement and revenue is nothing new, but it seems the company has ramped up a bit. Earlier this year, TikTok introduced its marketplace — TikTok Shop — which brought a host of features for users, content creators and businesses. One of those features was the option for creators and businesses to drop affiliate videos directly into the feeds of users. This means the new ad-free tier may only remove ads served up by TikTok and not ones from influencers or their marketing campaigns.
Perhaps now we can all stop asking “How is this app still free?” because at this rate, no social media app will be completely free again
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/tiktok-might-be-exploring-an-ad-free-subscription-plan-191948633.html?src=rss
The ‘Almost Famous’ star took to Instagram on October 2 to ring in her youngest child’s fifth birthday with a sweet throwback video.
The ‘Almost Famous’ star took to Instagram on October 2 to ring in her youngest child’s fifth birthday with a sweet throwback video.
The talk show host and journalist have been friends since the 70s. Find out more about Oprah and Gayle’s longstanding friendship.
The talk show host and journalist have been friends since the 70s. Find out more about Oprah and Gayle’s longstanding friendship.
Loog is a company known for manufacturing fantastic starter instruments for kids, with the company’s diminutive electric guitar making our list of the best audio-related gifts back in 2019. Now it’s back with a digital piano that blurs the line between kid-friendly and appropriate for adults.
The Loog Piano is a gorgeous instrument that, while still tiny, brings some nifty features for both brand-new players and veteran key smashers. The obvious selling point here is the looks. The 3-octave keyboard is sandwiched between solid wood sides and the top’s covered in red “sonically transparent fabric” that really pops.
The company touts the piano’s “musician-grade sound and design.” The design’s certainly on-point, but what about the sound? The built-in stereo speakers let you play without headphones and Loog says the keys allow for dynamics (piano to forte.) The company says this is likely the first keyboard at this size and price point that incorporates velocity-sensitive keys. Check out this demo video of the piano in action without any post effects.
Loog boasts that the instrument uses both sampled and modeled sounds, so attack, decay and the air between notes should all recall an actual piano. The combination of the built-in speakers and velocity engine also works to mimic the analog instrument, but this is still a digital piano, so moving to the real thing later will require a bit of an adjustment period.
The Loog Piano is battery-powered and fully portable, and gets around three hours of play time per charge via the built-in USB-C port. It weighs nearly five pounds, however, so keep that in mind if you plan on stuffing this thing in your kid’s backpack. Though the speakers are a main draw, you can of course plug in some headphones for private playing.
You may notice what this instrument doesn’t have. There aren’t hundreds of other sounds. There aren’t built-in effects. There’s a volume knob and that’s about it. This is by design, with Loog stating that the instrument’s “full muscle is devoted to the piano sound.”
Despite lacking 400 horrible brass sounds you’ll never use, this piano does have one significant tech-forward feature. Loog’s instrument integrates with a proprietary app that’s primarily for learning piano. This app is filled with “lessons and game-like exercises that make learning fun and easy,” though the piano integrates with other learning software. Additionally, it ships with a set of decidedly low-tech flash cards to help teach chords and scales.
Instead of going with a traditional retail launch, Loog took to Kickstarter to drum up support for its latest instrument. As of this writing, it’s already smashed through the initial goal by a factor of 30, so expect units to start shipping in April. Early adopters can currently snag the instrument for $250, which is 20 percent off its eventual retail price.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/loogs-baby-digital-piano-could-be-the-perfect-starter-instrument-for-newbies-183208611.html?src=rss
‘The Queen’s Gambit’ star met her match in Malcolm McRae. Find out all you need to know about the actor and musician here.
‘The Queen’s Gambit’ star met her match in Malcolm McRae. Find out all you need to know about the actor and musician here.
Tequila was once considered the purest, most natural spirit from the agave plant, a traditional Mexican craft, is this still the case?
Tequila was once considered the purest, most natural spirit from the agave plant, a traditional Mexican craft, is this still the case?
The longtime L’Oreal spokeswoman strutted down the runway in a fabulous all-black outfit as she took the stage at the Paris Fashion Week event.
The longtime L’Oreal spokeswoman strutted down the runway in a fabulous all-black outfit as she took the stage at the Paris Fashion Week event.
Ed Kelce is the proud father of NFL superstars Jason Kelce and Travis Kelce, the latter of whom is rumored to be dating Taylor Swift. Learn more about Ed here.
Ed Kelce is the proud father of NFL superstars Jason Kelce and Travis Kelce, the latter of whom is rumored to be dating Taylor Swift. Learn more about Ed here.
Apple’s latest iOS 17 update has introduced FaceTime Reactions, which are animated effects that pop up on your screen during a video chat. These reactions are like the ones commonly used in Messages with other iPhone users, such as hearts, fireworks and thumbs-ups. These can sometimes serve as expressive substitutes for written responses or, in the case of FaceTime, punctuate your body language with 3D animations.
However, during video calls, these animated effects are a little different. You can activate them manually or using hand gestures. For example, you can create a heart shape with your hands and little red hearts will start erupting from the middle. Or you can toss up dual metal signs to get a laser light show. These 3D animated reactions will also show up in macOS Sonoma and iPadOS 17.
If you haven’t yet explored this feature, this step-by-step guide will walk you through how to make the most of FaceTime Reactions in your calls.
The most reliable way to make a visual reaction appear on screen during a FaceTime call is by pressing down on your picture during a call. This will force a popup menu to appear above you. You will see eight reactions to choose from.
You can select the thumbs-up or the thumbs-down icon to make a bubble with the respective symbol appear next to your face. Tap the heart and a trail of red hearts will appear on screen. To showcase your excitement, you can select the balloon icon or the confetti symbol to trigger a colorful on-screen display. Like in Messages, you can trigger a funky fireworks or laser beam show. Maybe you’re feeling down? You can make the screen turn dark and gloomy when you tap the rain icon.
With each symbol you select, the on-screen effect will last a few seconds for you and whoever is on the other side of the FaceTime call.
Rather than relying on manual taps, you can also activate these animated effects with specific gestures, although some may be more intuitive than others. For the most part, they worked as expected, even when I had a Memoji filter on. For instance, you can create a thumbs-up or thumbs-down bubble on the screen by performing the corresponding gesture – easy enough.
If you give a double thumbs-up with both hands, your screen goes dark, and you’ll get fireworks popping in the background. On the flip side, if you do a double thumbs-down, you’ll see a rainy animation take over the screen. And, if you’re feeling lovey-dovey and make a heart shape with your hands, your screen will light up with a bunch of heart emojis where your palms are.
While it might not be immediately obvious, throwing up a peace sign will fill your screen with a bunch of colorful floating balloons. Make it two peace signs and party confetti will appear, perfect for a celebratory mood. Now, for the trickiest one: if you want to see the laser light show appear, you’ll need to throw up two metal horns (🤘🤘).
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/how-to-send-animated-reactions-on-facetime-with-ios-17-160026338.html?src=rss
