Kalakshar US

Patreon has spent the last few years pitching itself as a healthier alternative to algorithmic social platforms for creators. Now, the membership service is adding a bunch of new social features for its creators in an attempt to make its platform more of a viable alternative to mainstream social media.

The updates include a new post format, called Quips, that allows creators to share non-paywalled updates that can include text, photos or video. Patreon users can browse quips from creators via the app’s redesigned “home” feed, which now includes recommended posts. (Patreon says users can opt to only see posts from creators they’re already following if they wish.) The company is also working on a saved posts feature and a tagging feature so creators can @-mention each other in their posts. 

All that may sound a lot like social media, but Patreon CEO Jack Conte says the updates are meant to give creators a way to grow their audience without relying on platforms that aren’t as invested in their success. “I don’t think of it as competing with Instagram …  I feel like we’re competing with what Instagram should have and could have become, but did not,” he said in an update shared on his Patreon. 

Patreon’s “Quips” will make the service feel more like social media.

With the updates, the company is also walking a fine line between offering creators an alternative to social media and becoming the type of algorithmic platform it has railed against. Conte seems aware of this tension, noting that the membership-only tab will still deliver updates only from creators people are already following. “If we pivot too much to discovery and you don’t see the creators that you’re subscribed to and love, then we’re not doing our job of helping you cultivate long-term relationships, and we have to fix that,” he said.

At the same time, he says there are early signs that the changes will be positive for creators. According to Conte, creators who have tried a beta version of Quips have already seen a significant rise in new free memberships from the feature. So far, there’s been a much smaller rise in paid subscribers, with “somewhere in the 5 to 10 percent” range of new paid memberships coming from Quips, though Conte says he’s “optimistic” about its potential to drive paid growth,

Patreon plans to roll out these updates slowly, with full availability coming sometime next year. In the meantime, creators who want access to Quips sooner can join a waitlist to be added to the beta.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/patreon-is-adding-a-discovery-feed-to-help-creators-avoid-social-media-platforms-173000049.html?src=rss 

Amazon is in the middle of rolling out Alexa+, the long-awaited, AI-infused update for its voice assistant. At the same time, the company has also been giving a fair bit of attention to Amazon Music, adding things like Alexa+ integration and AI-powered playlists. And as of today, Amazon is rolling out a new community-focused feature called Fan Groups. As the name suggests, Fan Groups are a way for users to connect around different musical interests — and what makes this more fun to me is that these aren’t limited to Amazon-curated groups.

Once Fan Groups fully rolls out, anyone will be able to create a public group in Amazon Music based around a genre, region, time period or anything else you want to focus the group on. Right now, Fan Groups are only available in Canada during a a beta period, but they’ll come to other countries (including the US) early next year. Amazon has had testers building out some Fan Groups in the meantime so that testers don’t walk into a ghost town.

When you first open the Groups tab, which will be part of Amazon Music’s bottom navigation, you’ll see a top rail with Groups you’ve joined and a scrolling list of ones you can check out. Some of the examples Amazon showed off include “K-pop Now,” “Red Dirt Americana” and “Indie Insiders,” all of which feel pretty self-explanatory. Each group includes a “featured” playlist at the top and then a scroll of posts by people who’ve joined the group.

Members can share any song, album or playlist on Amazon Music along with a comment; you can then have a discussion on the post. It’ll be familiar to anyone who has used a Facebook Group over the years. Somewhat interestingly, Amazon is also letting you share external links Beyond the “posts” view, there’s also a music-only tab that just shows everything that has been shared to the group. One of the more intriguing features in Fan Groups is the ability to just hit “play” and listen to everything that’s been shared over time — it’s something that should be good for exploration as well as just seeing if the group’s tastes are aligned with your own.

In the quick demo I saw of Fan Groups, it felt like the rare new social tool that could be useful. Music is obviously an extremely social art, one that so many love sharing with other fans. Discovery is also a huge part of being a music fan, and I appreciate the fact that Amazon is building a way to get recommendations from other human beings and not just algorithms and AI. The only issue is that getting traction for a social network built inside of a specific service isn’t the easiest thing to do — you could just as easily share music on Facebook or any number of other apps. But the potential for finding new music and sharing what you’re into with other fellow obsessives make this feature worth a look once it fully launches.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/amazon-musics-fan-groups-are-a-refreshingly-old-school-way-to-share-and-find-tunes-150000084.html?src=rss 

It’s arriving too late to be part of a Sam Porter Bridges Halloween costume this year, but Kojima Productions has a new collaboration lined up that could be just the ticket for cosplayers or anyone who may wish to enhance their lower-body strength and stability. The studio has teamed up with exoskeleton maker Dnsys for a limited run of a model based on Death Stranding 2: On The Beach.

Dnsys claimed this was the first collaboration between an exoskeleton maker and a game studio. Kojima Productions art director Yoji Shinkawa worked with the company on the design, which draws from the color palettes of the game and is based on an existing Dnsys model. It has lights similar to the exoskeleton Sam wears in the game, and they indicate the battery level. 

The Dnsys Z1 Exoskeleton Pro – Death Stranding 2: On The Beach Limited Edition (to give its full name) is said to mimic the game’s load-balancing system by offloading up to 200 percent of the wearer’s body weight from their knees to help protect the joints. Dnsys said it adds 50 percent more power to steps and “intelligent gait control” to improve balance on stairs and uneven terrain. According to the company’s press release, you’ll “instantly feel up to 44 lbs lighter during vertical movements.” The exoskeleton is slated to offer over four hours of continuous support and there’s a quick-swap battery system.

Exoskeletons can be very useful, particularly for those who could do with extra support and/or have mobility issues. Or maybe you want to look the part while you carry some very heavy cargo on your back and listen to Chvrches and Bring Me the Horizon.

This limited-edition exoskeleton will be available on December 2. Pricing will be announced then. The regular price of a dual-leg Dnsys Z1 system is $1,500, so you can probably expect the Death Stranding 2 variant to be in that ballpark. You can also try your luck at scoring the exoskeleton for free through a giveaway.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/the-latest-death-stranding-collab-is-an-actual-exoskeleton-151215509.html?src=rss 

Samsung has partnered with iFit to bring its guided workouts to the Samsung Health app. The integration gives Samsung Health users limited free access to iFit content, offering one video from each of the seven workout categories — high-intensity interval training (HIIT), Pilates, yoga, strength, recovery, barre and mindfulness — per month. For access to a bigger catalog, Samsung Health users can also snag an iFit subscription for cheaper than the usual cost ($15 per month) of the basic plan, with the option for $10 per month or $100 per year. 

There are also perks for anyone buying a new Samsung device. You can get 30 days free when buying a Galaxy phone, three months with the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro and six months with any of the latest Galaxy Watch models. Samsung and iFit announced their partnership in July, and just a few weeks ago rolled out Galaxy Watch compatibility for some NordicTrack and ProForm machines, which can now display certain metrics, like live heart rate, on-screen while you work out. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/ifit-workouts-are-coming-to-samsung-health-with-free-and-paid-options-140000756.html?src=rss