Category: 4. Technology

  • Microsoft PowerToys 0.94 adds shortcut conflict detection, fuzzy search and more!

    Microsoft PowerToys 0.94 adds shortcut conflict detection, fuzzy search and more!

    Microsoft has released PowerToys 0.94 with the joyous news that the v0.94 release cycle is “focused on new features, stability, optimization improvements, and automation”.

    This is a big release – PowerToys 0.94 has a lot of new stuff in it, but there are two things that stand out. The first is a shortcut conflict detection feature which helps track down duplicated keyboard shortcuts. The second is fuzzy search within PowerToys Settings – which is important as the suite of tools is now a colossal collection. But, of course, there is more. Much more.

    Let’s take a look at the two additions already mentioned. There are a lot of keyboard shortcuts added throughout PowerToys in the name of making it quicker and easier to do various things. But this can be problematic, hence the arrival of the conflict detector.

    In the release notes for PowerToys 0.94 Microsoft says of this: “A comprehensive hotkey conflict detection system was introduced in Settings to surface and help resolve conflicting shortcuts. Note that the default hotkey settings (Win+Ctrl+Shift+T, Win+Ctrl+V, Win+Ctrl+T, Win+Shift+T) may overlap with existing Windows system shortcuts. This is expected. You can resolve the conflict by assigning different hotkeys”.

    On the increasingly active PowerToys blog, the company goes into a little more detail:

    Ever used a hotkey and had two things happen at once? With so many shortcuts in PowerToys, it’s easy to run into conflicts. Now, shortcuts that are already in use (either by another module or by Windows itself) will be marked in red. On the new shortcut conflicts tile on the home dashboard, you’ll also see how many conflicts you currently have. Clicking the tile gives you a full overview and lets you quickly reassign shortcuts so everything works the way you want.

    PowerToys goes from strength to strength

    With the addition of fuzzy matching in search, Microsoft acknowledges that PowerToys is becoming a behemoth:

    PowerToys has grown a lot over the years, and with so many settings it can sometimes be hard to find exactly what you need. That’s why we’ve added a search box in Settings. Search supports fuzzy matching, so you don’t need to type the exact name. Just press Ctrl+F (or click the search box) and start typing. Suggestions show up right in the flyout, and selecting one takes you straight to the right settings page. Got more than five results? Hit the Show all results button to view everything in the full search page.

    The recently added Command Palette receives a slew of updates, and the belowed Mouse Utility gets a wonderful new accessibility feature in the form of Gliding Cursor:

    With this feature, you can control the mouse cursor using just a single shortcut. Instead of needing to quickly stop the cursor right on target, the gliding cursor lets you move step by step with more control. This is especially helpful as an accessibility feature for people who find fast or precise mouse movements challenging. It’s similar to switch access features found on other platforms, and makes it possible to use Windows with just a single button. Once you trigger the shortcut, the crosshairs begin to glide. Pressing the shortcut again locks the horizontal position, then the vertical, and finally performs the click.

    Just as exciting as the additions and changes to be found in PowerToys 0.94 is the little snippet of information Microsoft says about what is in the pipeline: “We are planning some nice new features and improvements for next month – a revamped Keyboard Manager UI, and a new utility that can automatically switch between light and dark mode based on your schedule! Stay tuned!”.

    You can grab PowerToys 0.94 here, or update your currently installed version by checking for updates within the app.


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  • Your Clothes May Harm The Planet More Than Flying — Here Are 5 Ways To Help

    Your Clothes May Harm The Planet More Than Flying — Here Are 5 Ways To Help

    If you’re trying to live sustainably and do your bit for the environment, you’ll no doubt be aware of plastic-free swaps, the high carbon footprint of flights, and the benefits of rewilding your garden.

    But did you know that, according to the United Nations Environment Programme, the fast fashion industry is responsible for about 10% of global carbon emissions – more than all international flights and maritime shipping combined?

    Plus, according to the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), people are buying more clothes and wearing them for less time than ever before.

    What to Read Next

    All of which means that buying fewer clothes and making the clothes you already own last longer could be one of the most meaningful things you could do to help the environment.

    “So much energy goes into making the things we wear, yet we treat them as disposable,” says Holly Gardner, founder of eco fabric-care brand byMATTER.

    pinterest

    “With the rise of fast fashion, we’ve lost the habit of keeping things – especially clothes. But what if we looked after our clothes the way we looked after our skin – with care, intention and good ingredients?”

    Here are Holly’s five top tips to help your clothes last longer…

    1. Skip the wash

    “This is probably the biggest one,” says Holly. “Overwashing fades colours, breaks down fibres, changes the original shape of garments and shortens the life of your clothes.

    “If something isn’t visibly dirty, it often doesn’t need a full wash.” To keep clothing fresh without running a cycle, air it – give it a shake in the fresh air or hang it outside – or spritz with a refresh spray.

    2. Look for natural ingredients

    “Harsh chemicals don’t just harm your health – they’re also tough on fabrics,” Holly explains. “Over time, they break down fibres, fade colours and can even leave residue that affects how clothes feel.”

    Look for natural alternatives with proven effectiveness. Holly recommends probiotics: “They clean effectively without being aggressive, and are a great option for keeping your clothes fresh and cared for without compromising their longevity.”

    clothes drying on an airerpinterest

    Oscar Wong//Getty Images

    3. Banish moths

    There’s nothing worse than finding moth holes in your favourite garments – and often you don’t realise you have a moth problem until it’s too late.

    “Certain scents, like lavender and cedarwood, smell like poison to moths,” says Holly. Fill your wardrobe with these natural deterrents to banish moths and give your clothing a beautiful fragrance.

    4. Sort your storage

    “The way you store your clothes has a huge impact on how long they last,” explains Holly.

    Her top tips? “Use breathable garment bags for special pieces (avoiding plastic wherever you can), fold heavy knitwear instead of hanging, and keep your wardrobe tidy and spaced out so fabrics can breathe.”

    This will protect your clothes while keeping your storage well-organised and easy to use — win, win.

    Niviy Clothes Covers Protector Bags Garment Covers Dustproof Moth Proof Coat Bag

    Niviy Clothes Covers Protector Bags Garment Covers Dustproof Moth Proof Coat Bag

    Protect special pieces from dust and moths by stashing them in breathable garment bags.

    5. Get sewing

    Although using a needle and thread can seem daunting, you don’t need to be an expert to make quick fixes that will give your beloved clothing a new lease of life.

    It’s easier than you think, and there are plenty of easy-to-follow YouTube tutorials available for everything from threading a needle to invisible mending.

    “I’ve learnt how to do simple things like reattach a button or fix a small hole, and it’s so satisfying,” says Holly.

    Green Sage Wire Storage 2 Tier Tall Caddy
    Next Green Sage Wire Storage 2 Tier Tall Caddy
    Credit: next.co.uk
    Scalloped Storage Box
    Dunelm Scalloped Storage Box
    Credit: dunelm.com
    Stripe Underbed Storage Bag
    Dunelm Stripe Underbed Storage Bag
    Credit: dunelm.com
    Headshot of Cara Laskaris

    Cara is Commissioning Editor at Country Living, covering everything from style and interiors to sustainability, artisans and the great outdoors. She has previously worked for Good Housekeeping, Homes & Gardens, House Beautiful, Prima and Red, and has an MA in Magazine Journalism from City University and a BA in Music from the University of Oxford. Follow Cara on Instagram @caralaskaris or Linkedin.

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  • The Singer Caballero, the Brand’s Take on a Time-Only Watch with the New Calibre-4

    The Singer Caballero, the Brand’s Take on a Time-Only Watch with the New Calibre-4

    Singer Reimagined has spent the past eight years experimenting with what independent watchmaking can look like. The Geneva-based brand, founded by Rob Dickinson of Singer Vehicle Design and designer Marco Borraccino, established its name with the radical Track 1 chronograph, powered by Agenhor’s Agengraphe. It was followed by the stripped-down Flytrack, the diving-oriented Divetrack, and the compact, helmet-style 1969 Chronograph and Timer, both powered by variations of Agenhor’s architecture. Most recently, Singer embraced its “restomod” DNA with the Heritage Collection Chronograph, housing restored Valjoux 236 calibres in a vintage-inspired two-register layout.

    With the new Singer Caballero, the brand steps into a new territory: a time-only, daily-oriented watch. It is the brand’s first creation to be powered by a proprietary calibre, the Calibre-4 Solotempo, and it demonstrates that Singer’s obsession with design and mechanics extends beyond sports-inspired chronographs. As its name suggests (Caballero, Spanish for gentleman), this new line appears to be about quiet confidence and horological substance beneath a deceptively simple, yet recognisably Singer exterior – in particular the 1969 collection and Heritage Chronograph.

    The Singer Caballero stainless steel case measures 39mm across and is 10.5mm thick. It is slim, though not quite under the magic 10mm mark that would have pushed it deeper into everyday dress-sport watch territory. Its architecture is composed of three distinct sections: a brushed mid-case, polished chamfers, and a domed sapphire crystal that softens the profile, with a signature fluted bezel. A sapphire caseback reveals the movement, and the watch is water-resistant to 50m. 

    The dial is executed without the indices in multi-layer lacquer, available in Piano Black, Empire Green or Petrol Blue. A golden-toothed flange, an applied Singer logo, and polished rhodium-plated hands, filled with orange Super-LumiNova for enhanced legibility, complete the restrained yet distinctive look. Apertures reveal the four rubies of the movement’s barrels, subtle reminders that this is not a conventional three-hander.

    At the heart of the watch is the brand’s first proprietary movement, the Calibre-4 Solotempo. Developed from the ground up, it uses four barrels arranged in two parallel sets, delivering a six-day power reserve with a flat torque curve. Running at 28,800 vibrations/hour, it is engineered for stability and long-term precision, ensuring amplitude remains constant across the entire reserve. Bridges are rhodium-plated and finely finished with micro-blasting and polished chamfers.

    The Singer Caballero is offered on straps in deep blue leather, khaki textile, or black textile, tapering from 20mm to 16mm at the stainless steel pin buckle. A steel bracelet option would have added versatility, but for now, Singer keeps things focused on straps. The price is CHF 17,500 (excl. taxes), production is limited. For more, visit singerreimagined.com.

    https://monochrome-watches.com/singer-caballero-a-time-only-watch-with-new-calibre-4-solotempo-four-barrels-introdcing-price/

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  • How Pixel 10 Pro created the world’s smartest phone camera – a peek inside Google

    How Pixel 10 Pro created the world’s smartest phone camera – a peek inside Google

    ZDNET’s Kerry Wan takes a photo with the Google Pixel 10 Pro camera.

    Sabrina Ortiz/ZDNET

    Isaac Reynolds has been working on the Pixel Camera team at Google for almost a decade — since the first Google Pixel phone launched in 2016. And yet, I think it’s fair to say that he’s never been more bullish about the technology that Google has integrated into a phone camera than he is with this year’s Pixel 10 Pro. A new wave of AI breakthroughs in the past year have allowed Google to use Large Language Models, machine learning, and generative AI imaging to unlock new capabilities to power another meaningful leap forward in phone photography. 

    I got the chance to sit down with Reynolds as he was still catching his breath from the launch of the Pixel 10 phones — and at the same time, ramping up for the next set of camera upgrades the team is preparing for the 2026 Pixel phones. 

    Also: Pixel just zoomed ahead of iPhone in the camera photography race

    I peppered Reynolds with all of my burning questions about Pro Res Zoom, Conversational Editing, Camera Coach, AI models, the Tensor G5 chip, Auto Best Take and the larger ambitions of the Pixel Camera team. At the same time, he challenged me with information I didn’t expect on Telephoto Panoramas, C2PA AI metadata, Guided Frame, and educating the public about AI. 

    I got to unpack a lot about how the Google team was able to engineer such big advances in the Pixel 10 Pro camera system, and we delved far deeper into the new photography features than Google talked about in its 2025 Made by Google event or in its published blog post

    Here’s my reporter’s notebook on what I learned.

    Mission of the Pixel Camera team

    “I think the major thing our team has always been focused on is what I call durable [photography] problems — low light, zoom, dynamic range, and detail,” said Reynolds. “And every generation [of Pixel] has brought new technologies.”

    Camera Coach

    Reynolds noted, “LLMs have such an enormous context window, and they’re so powerful at understanding that we can actually teach people to do things that tech can’t do. 

    “Today, tech cannot move the camera down four feet. Tech can’t walk the camera over 100 yards to the better viewpoint. It can’t tell you to turn 90 degrees. Now, Camera Coach can do that kind of stuff. So that’s just another way we’re using technology to solve some of these durable problems.”

    Google Pixel 10 Pro camera

    Google Pixel 10 Pro’s Camera Coach.

    Sabrina Ortiz/ZDNET

    Conversational editing

    One of the most surprising new features Google announced in the Pixel 10 was conversational photo editing — although this is technically a feature in the Google Photos app. This lets you simply describe what you want changed in the photo, with voice or typing, and the AI takes care of the rest. So you can remove a tree, re-center the image, or add more clouds to the sky, for example.

    Conversational editing in Google Photos

    Conversational editing in Google Photos.

    Google

    As Reynolds explained it, “Conversational editing just takes the whole interface away and it’s essentially a mapping function from natural language to the things that were in the editor. So you can say, ‘Erase the thing on the left,’ and it will just figure out what the thing on the left is and then invoke Magic Eraser. You can say, ‘Hey, when I was in Utah I remember the rocks being more red than that’ and it just increases the warmth a little bit. You can say, ‘Can you focus on the thing in the center’ and it puts a little vignette around it. 

    “And that mapping is a huge time saver. The promise of AI was not just that it would be informational, but it was that it would take actions for you. And I think this is one of the most perfect cases of the AI not just reminding you of something … but doing it for you. It has been really, really cool to see how effective it is. 

    “It even gives you suggestions. The AI will look at a picture and say ‘I think you have some bystanders you would want to remove.’ And so it populates these little suggestion chips. The funniest part of the suggestion chips is when you tap them, all it does is type into the text box. It’s not a separate pathway. You just tap the chip and it sticks something in the text box. You could have written that yourself. It’s not doing anything wildly different than you could do… It’s also got the voice button, which is super cool. You could just talk to it if you want to. The AI is getting so good so much faster than I could imagine, and I’m a professional in this space.”

    Pro Res Zoom

    As a photographer who loves zoom photography, this was the feature I wanted to talk with Reynolds about the most. I take a lot of photos with smartphones, but long distance zooms are where I most often need to pull out my Sony mirrorless camera and 70-200mm lens. I’ve already written about how excited I am to thoroughly test Pro Res Zoom, since it could help produce a lot more usable zoom photos from a phone by using generative AI to fill in the gaps in digital zoom.

    Reynolds commented, “The fundamental problem is, how do I turn a digital zoom where you’ve got a sensor pixel on the far right corner, and then another one on the bottom left corner. And you have to fill in all the pixels in between. You can do an interpolation. You can just set them all to be some color, like just average them. We’ve grown all the way through the process here. We’ve gone through multi-frame denoise. We’ve gone through multiple different generations of upscalers to make better interpolations. We went to a multi-frame merge that was block-by-block. And then the major advancement that was Super Res Zoom was going from a block-by-block multi-frame to a probabilistic pixel-by-pixel multi-frame… In parallel, the upscalers were improving. And the latest generation upscaler is the largest model we’ve ever run in Pixel Camera ever… And it’s just a really, really good interpolator. 

    “It doesn’t just say that’s black and that’s white, and so the middle is gray. It’s like, well, I know that that black pixel is part of a larger structure. I know that that larger structure appears to be the grout in between some brick on a facade. And so probably it’s going to be black up until that point, and then it’s going to turn red — which is so much smarter than just going, ‘Well, it’s black and it’s red. So, I don’t know. I guess we’ll just mix them as we go across.’ So we still have those real things as real pixels, and then we have to fill in what’s in between. And now the models are just so, so good at that.

    Pixel 10 Pro Res Zoom at 100x

    The top photo is at 0.5x zoom and the bottom is the same framing at 100x on Pixel 10 Pro.

    Google (screenshot by Jason Hiner/ZDNET)

    “We’ve had a long line of upscalers, and this is the latest one. All the upscalers have artifacts. Different upscalers have different kinds of problems. We’ve had upscalers in the past that were very, very good at text — because text has very harsh lines — but very bad at water, because water is fundamentally chaotic. This upscaler has its own artifacts, and those artifacts are very difficult for the human eye to recognize, because the new models are so good at making content that is 100% authentic to the scene. 

    “Like, yes, that’s a leaf on a tree. That’s exactly what a leaf on a tree looks like. It’s flawless. But for a human face, there is so much of the human brain dedicated to recognizing faces, that no level of artifact is effectively acceptable. The level of subtle artifact on a leaf, you may never notice. But the same subtlety on a face, you notice instantly — just because we’re human beings and we’re designed to recognize other human beings. We’re social creatures, so the bar for actually doing a good job with human faces is extraordinarily high.” 

    As a result, when Pro Res Zoom recognizes a human face, it won’t use the AI to upscale it. 

    C2PA metadata to label AI

    Because Google is now part of the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA), it has started to embed metadata into its photos to indicate whether generative AI was used to make the photo by using SynthID, a watermark created by Google DeepMind. Reynolds was deeply involved with the project to make this part of Pixel Camera.

    “The [C2PA] metadata identifies whether this was AI or not, and it just generally tells you the history of the picture and we embed it,” said Reynolds. “I was personally the product manager for that. I don’t do things personally like that a lot anymore, but I did take that one because I knew how important, nuanced, and subtle it was. And the deeper I got into that feature, the more I realized how little people actually know about what AI is or isn’t, what it can and can’t do, or how fast or slow it’s progressing.”

    An example of Google C2PA metadata for AI

    An example of Google C2PA metadata for AI.

    Google

    Also: Google Pixel 10 series hands-on: I did not expect this model to be my favorite

    Educating the public about AI

    “The world is honestly behind in terms of not realizing how good AI is already. So there’s some education to do. And we realize that AI can do things that I think users would really, really like if they understood better what was going on. So part of what we do in Pro Res Zoom is we don’t touch faces. I think that’ll make people more comfortable. We also show them the before and after — the version with the new upscaler and the one without it, and you get to decide for yourself, what did AI do? Did I find it acceptable or unacceptable? The overwhelming majority are finding it more than acceptable — highly preferred, in fact. They want the upscale. But they wouldn’t know that if they didn’t get to see the side-by-side. 

    “And then we also label it with content credentials [C2PA] so that whenever they transmit that photo, somebody else can make their own decision about, ‘How do I imagine this photo? Do I discount this as maybe AI? Or do I go, oh no, the content credentials are right there. They say it’s not AI at all. This is great. I have so much more trust now.’ And as users learn more, as they’re educated more, as they gain more comfort and more real world data points of what is AI and what isn’t, I think they will end up being more comfortable over time, and that’s what we’re seeing with Pro Res Zoom already. The customer satisfaction that we measured pre-launch was so good for that feature. 

    “And as the technology gets better, we’ll do more. We will put this stuff into more modes, perhaps. We’ll push the zoom a little higher quality. But we really want to make sure that we’re doing that as users expect and understand it. So we’re giving you options and choices and transparency, but we’re also trying to push the boundaries of technology in a way that keeps customer satisfaction high.”

    Google Pixel 10 Pro camera

    Google Pixel 10 Pro camera.

    Sabrina Ortiz/ZDNET

    Telephoto Panoramas 

    “There are always little goodies hidden all over the [camera] app,” Reynolds told me. “We build more stuff than we can realistically talk about.”

    One of the new photography features in the Pixel 10 Pro that Google hasn’t talked much about is Telephoto Panoramas, or what they affectionately call “5x tele-panos.” 

    These allow you to take more cinematic landscape shots using the zoom lens, new viewfinder controls, and the ability to to shoot 360 degrees and up to 100MP resolution. “There’s something that’s just so nice about zooming in with your lens and then stitching the panorama,” said Reynolds. 

    But what Google hasn’t talked about is the fact that it’s using an entirely new method of capturing these panoramic images.

    “A lot of panoramas in the market, and ours historically as well, were video based,” Reynolds noted. “And what that means is to make a panorama you take 100 to 1000 images, and each one of them, you stitch a little tiny vertical slice. So that means two things. Number one, it means that the artifacts you get tend to be curves, stretches, and compressions because you’re just going slice by slice. The other problem is that in that 30 seconds, you have to process [up to] 1000 images. 

    “So what we did is we said instead of a video we’re going to use photo input. So we’re going to take five pictures, not hundreds, and we’re going to put all of our processing behind it — full HDR Plus, full computational photography, Night Sight — and then we stitch a little bit of overlap. So instead of having a little sliver from each picture, it’s just a little overlap. That’s how [Adobe] Lightroom would do it, for example. We’re using the Lightroom method. 

    “And so we get Night Sight Panorama. We get panoramas now up to 100 megapixels. We get just super, super detailed and we can turn on parts of the zoom pipeline that we couldn’t necessarily do before. So you can use the 2x zoom, which on a Pixel phone has optical quality. And you can even invoke the 5x telephoto [on the Pixel Pro]. It’s a very computational-photography-forward, photo-based panorama.”

    Also: Google Pixel 10 Pro vs. iPhone 16 Pro: I’ve tried both flagships, and there’s an easy winner

    Guided Frame (accessibility feature)

    Another feature that has flown under the radar that Reynolds wanted to point out was Guided Frame.

    “Guided Frame is an accessibility feature. If you are blind or low-vision, we use Gemini to allow you to frame any photo,” said Reynolds. “In that case, you point the camera, you invoke Guided Frame, and it says, ‘This is a photo of a scene of the woods with some trees off to the right and a person on the left. Person is in frame, smiling, good for a selfie. And then it will take the photo. So if you can’t really see the screen that well, it helps take selfies and photos, because [selfies] are how people communicate. Whether you’re blind or low-vision or not, people communicate using pictures. So it gives them that capability.” 

    Auto Best Take

    I also asked Reynolds about the evolution of Best Take to Auto Best Take this year and was surprised to learn that this feature is actually using more machine learning. 

    “Auto Best Take is much more traditional processing,” Reynolds commented. “You can imagine this as a decision tree, because that’s essentially what this feature is. You press the shutter once. If that shutter press was perfect and everyone was smiling, everyone’s looking at the camera, then great. Done. One picture. 

    “Okay, let’s say it wasn’t perfect. Then we’re going to open the shutter a little longer and we’re going to look at every single frame. So that’s up to 150 frames in just a few seconds. If we see one that’s better, we’ll take it, we’ll save that one, we’ll process it in full HDR Plus quality… So when you go to the gallery, you’re going to see the one that we took as the primary, that’s called Top Shot. So that’s one step down the decision tree. 

    “Let’s say we looked at 150 frames and we couldn’t find one that was perfect, but we found one that was almost perfect, and a second one that was almost perfect but in a different way, such as a different face. Then what we’ll do is we’ll save both of those and then we’ll pass that to Best Take and Best Take will blend them into one that is perfect. And Top Shot will intentionally choose a range of pictures so that there’s at least one photo in which every face is smiling. So if there is a picture of every face smiling at least once somewhere in the set then it will do a Best Take. Once you look at 150 pictures, most of the time you get the shot. So very rarely does it actually go to Best Take. So it’s a little odd that we call it Auto Best Take, because in reality, we don’t do it very often, since it’s at the end of the decision tree. 

    “The goal is that you press the shutter one time and you get one photo and that photo is perfect. It does not matter how we get there. We never want you to have to take three photos [of the same group picture] again. Because why would you take three random photos when [the AI] can look at 150 photos. So we say just press [the shutter button] once. Give it a couple of seconds. You’ll see it in the UI. It draws boxes around people’s faces. It turns them gold when it thinks it nailed it. So press the shutter, give it a couple seconds, and then watch what you get at the end.”

    Google Pixel 10 Pro selfie camera

    Google Pixel 10 Pro selfie camera.

    Sabrina Ortiz/ZDNET

    The difference with Tensor G5

    Google made a big move in 2025 with its Tensor G5 chip powering the Pixel 10 phones — shifting from having Samsung build its Tensor chips in the past to a TSMC 3nm process that uses TSMC’s advanced technology to increase AI performance. I asked Reynolds about the impact.

    “[The boost with Tensor G5] is one of the largest before-and-afters I’ve ever seen in terms of processing latency,” he noted. “The first versions of Pro Res Zoom took like two minutes [to process]. And then by the end, once they got it on Tensor G5 and all the bugs had been worked out, that got down to just several seconds… So the Tensor G5 TPU is 60% more powerful, and we can definitely see that.”

    Also: Considering the Pixel 10 Pro? I recommend buying these 5 phones instead – here’s why

    The AI models powering Pixel photography

    Since so many of the Pixel 10’s most important new features are powered by AI advances, I wanted to know more about how the Pixel Camera team works with Google’s internal AI capabilities.

    “It’s not like there’s this one monolithic Gemini,” Reynolds said. “It is extremely carefully tuned and tested for one particular use case at a time… There are so many more versions of Gemini inside [Google] than you can see outside. And then you have to decide, am I going to prompt this Gemini or am I going to fine tune this Gemini? It’s all super, super custom to a particular implementation.” For example, he added, “Magic Eraser is generative, but it’s not Gemini.”

    Final thought

    Google is the only one among the dozen or so companies in the world building frontier AI models that also makes its own smartphone. And with the Pixel 10 Pro, the impact is starting to show.


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  • The Hoddle of Coffee: Tottenham Hotspur news and links for Wednesday, September 3

    The Hoddle of Coffee: Tottenham Hotspur news and links for Wednesday, September 3

    Welcome to another edition of the EFL Championship Roundup, where hoddle headquarters takes a look at the second tier in the English football pyramid.

    I’m beginning to think that maybe we should rebrand this monthly roundup to “Ryan Mason Watch”, because I’m more invested in his success as West Brom’s manager than anything else right now. And his Baggies are off to an unbeaten start to the season, even beating Stoke 1-0 while Mason was serving a one-game touchline ban.

    Let’s also not forget the few Spurs players out on loan including Jamie Donley and Ashley Phillips (both at Stoke), Yang Min-hyeok (Portsmouth) and Alfie Devine (Preston North End).

    But there are still some really interesting storylines to follow. One is the remarkably poor start Ipswich Town and Sheffield United are having. For Sheffield United, they must be wondering why they allowed previous manager Chris Wilder to leave after a 90-point season. They’re currently rock bottom.

    EFL Championship top six:

    EFL Championship bottom three:

    Ftizie’s track of the day: Bad Bad News, by Leon Bridges

    FourFourTwo: “‘To be stabbed in the back by your own chairman is unbelievable’ Tottenham Hotspur boss Thomas Frank’s little-known journey to the top revealed”

    Alasdair Gold: “Major frustrations, big coups and a surprise move – Inside Tottenham’s turbulent transfer window”

    Jack P-B et al ($$): “Tottenham Hotspur’s transfer window: Heady expectations, frustration and, in the end, excitement”

    The Standard: “Three ways Tottenham can line up with Xavi Simons and Randal Kolo Muani”

    The Independent: “The four transfer window themes that sparked a frenzied end to a chaotic summer”

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  • Compact Optical Displacement Sensor

    Compact Optical Displacement Sensor

    SICK has launched the new OD200, a compact laser distance sensor for measuring short ranges that offers high stability on highly reflective, dark and irregular surfaces. It can be used in applications as varied as real-time in-line quality control for reflective materials, precise counting of small parts and goods, and accurate detection of height deviations in assembled parts.

    A newly developed triangulation measurement core with powerful evaluation algorithms plays a key role in delivering a high level of accuracy. The OD200 is designed for high-speed applications, with process speeds up to 3 kHz, and is available in various sensor variants for measuring ranges of 25 mm to 160 mm, with repeatability down to 2 µm. In addition, the high-resolution receiver unit ensures even surfaces with low remission are reliably detected. The optical system is optimised for the geometry and quality of the light spot, as well as ambient light immunity. When combined, these features ensure reliable measuring for high-gloss, reflective or virtually remission-free objects, structured and uneven surfaces, or in critical ambient brightness. Interference caused by incorrect measurements and missing signals is significantly reduced to cut downtime, adjustment and maintenance effort, delivering higher productivity.

    Wide range of connectivity options

    Integration and commissioning of the compact OD200 is simple, even in confined spaces. Intelligent default settings and algorithms, as well as the intuitive, menu-driven user interface on the device’s display, simplify setup and operation. The flexible OD200 offers a wide range of connectivity options for automation systems and industry 4.0 environments, including all required and industry-standard interfaces and I/Os, IO-Link, an analogue current/voltage output, and one switching input and output. IO-Link ensures full access to the sensor, even in difficult or inaccessible installation locations. 

    Inline optimisation and condition monitoring

    The OD200 can be programmed using SICK’s free and easy-to-use SOPAS open parameterization and application software. In addition to the actual measurement data, the sensor also provides useful operating data, for example on the exposure time or the width of the signal peak, which is evaluated to calculate the distance. This information from ongoing operation can be used both for inline optimization of sensor performance and for condition monitoring of the sensor or processes. 
     

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  • Samsung Galaxy S25 FE, Tab S11 series leak leaves little to imagination before Sept 4 launch

    Samsung Galaxy S25 FE, Tab S11 series leak leaves little to imagination before Sept 4 launch

    Samsung will be unveiling new devices during its Galaxy Unpacked event on September 4. The devices are tipped to be the Galaxy S25 FE and the Tab S11 series. Latest leaks however, leave little to the imagination for what could be in store.

    Portuguese retailer MediaMarkt had first listed the S25 FE on its website. Recently, a report from Android Headlines confirmed the specifications from the listing.

    The Galaxy S25 FE will follow the same design as the rest of the S25 series phones. As per the leaks, the phone will come in four colours – Navy, Jetblack, White, and Icyblue. The Navy blue variant is expected to feature in most marketing material.

    The handset is likely to be powered by the Exynos 2400 chipset. Moreover, it will pack a 6.7-inch AMOLED display with a refresh rate of 120Hz. The screen will get Gorilla Glass Victus Plus protection.

    The Samsung S25 FE will pack a triple-camera set-up from its predecessor. The main camera will be a 50-megapixel sensor with Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS), alongside a 12-megapixel ultrawide and 8-megapixel telephoto. The front camera is expected to be a 12-megapixel sensor.

    The S25 FE will likely have a 4,900mAh battery with 45W wired and 15W wireless charging.

    Ahead of the launch, there are almost no details that are not available for the device. Thus, fans can expect the handset to come with these specifications if the reports turn out to be true.

    Samsung Tab S11 series: Here’s what we know

    Samsung’s flagship tablet line-up will have two devices this year, the base Tab S11 and the Tab S11 Ultra.

    The tablets were listed by Polish retailers Komputronik and X-Kom. The listings claimed that both devices will be powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 9400 Plus chipset.

    The design of the Tab S11 and S11 Ultra was also leaked. The base tablet is expected to have an 11-inch AMOLED display with 120Hz refresh rate. While the Ultra will likely get a 14.6-inch AMOLED unit.

    The S11 Ultra will have a dual rear camera set-up with a 13-megapixel main lens and an 8-megapixel ultrawide. On the other hand, the vanilla S11 will likely have a single 13-megapixel rear camera.

    Samsung has seemingly slimmed down the notch of the Tab S11 Ultra by using just a single front camera.

    Samsung S25 FE, Tab S11 series price

    The Korean phone maker is expected to price the Galaxy S25 FE at $650 (roughly Rs 57,229) for the 128GB variant in the US. The 256GB version could cost $710 (roughly Rs 62,512). This is the same pricing as the S24 FE.

    This could indicate that the Indian pricing will be the same as last year. The S24 FE was launched in India at Rs 59,999.
    The Tab S11 is expected to start at $860 (roughly Rs 75,706) in the US, with the Tab S11 Ultra starting around $1,200 (roughly Rs 1,05,636)

    – Ends

    Published By:

    Armaan Agarwal

    Published On:

    Sep 3, 2025

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  • Apple encourages suppliers to boost automation

    Apple encourages suppliers to boost automation

    As part of a shift away from Chinese manufacturing, Apple is accelerating an automation boost across its production supply chain.

    DigiTimes noted after increasing automation across all product lines for two years, pressure by the US government to relocate manufacturing out of China prompted the iPhone maker to step up its moves, with an eye to reduce labour requirements and improve yields.

    Apple reportedly now requires suppliers to invest in efforts to automate their facilities, which is a precondition for securing orders.

    Following a round of tariff hikes and exemptions by the US on China, Apple pushed its suppliers to increase production in India.

    Total iPhone export volumes from India in Q1 grew more than 30 per cent from Q4, while US-bound shipments almost tripled, data from Counterpoint Research showed.

    Source: Mobile World Live

    Image Credit: Apple


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  • Samsung's Exynos closes gap with Qualcomm, hints at comeback – 조선일보

    Samsung's Exynos closes gap with Qualcomm, hints at comeback – 조선일보

    1. Samsung’s Exynos closes gap with Qualcomm, hints at comeback  조선일보
    2. Samsung’s 2nm Exynos 2600 chipset is ready for mass production – GSMArena.com news  GSMArena.com
    3. Samsung now has another reason to shift back to Exynos as quickly as possible  SamMobile
    4. Exynos 2600 Matches Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 in Early Geekbench Scores  SammyGuru
    5. Samsung Electronics has virtually decided to re-load its application processor (AP) Exynos 2600 in i..  매일경제

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