Honda E

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We’ve recently had the pleasure of testing out the small city car the Honda E. It’s brand new and it’s a right little city slicker! It’s perfect for whizzing around the city or cruising in the countryside. Furthermore it’s Electric! So, it’s amazing to the environment and even better on your wallet!

It’s a nippy little car too, hitting 0-60 in 8.3 seconds! While it can go up to 137miles without needing a charge and if you are using a superfast 50kw charger it can get from 0-80% battery in just 31mins!

The Honda describes the Honda E as:

The new Honda e is a car designed and shaped by the city and how we live our lives today. A car that seamlessly links all the different aspects of your life with intelligent connectivity. A car created with a sporty character, yet capable of offering remarkable levels of comfort. And of course, a car that produces zero emissions.

We have to say that the design of the Honda E is something to behold, it’s a friendly little car and isn’t mean or bulky looking it’s in fact rather cute! It not only looks good but the design helps to reduce drag! Which in turn will improve efficiency!

Design

The Honda E is designed in a rather genius way as there’s A LOT of tech in one single panel. The front headlights, radar sensor and front facing camera are all located in one panel! How cool is that! What’s even cooler is that two compact high definition cameras replace conventional mirrors! We’re also very impressed by a dramatic black tinted glass roof!

Advanced tech is not limited to the inside either, the front door handles fit flush to the body work. They only extend outwards and illuminate once you approach the car. While on the rear they’re hidden within the window areas. The front/rear headlights also incorporate the indicators and the headlights even welcome you with a cool animation when you unlock the car! The charging point is centrally on the bonet. Therefore allowing you to access it from either side of the vehicle!

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Smart Design

There is some smart design features that Honda have added which make all the difference. For example where you place your smartphone has been created from fabric to secure and protect it. Also, every passenger has their own USB port so everyone can keep their phones charged and connected!

The rear view mirror is dual function as it can be used in a conventional wide angle mirror mode, or in a camera mode. Which will provide you with a clear digital image, even at night. Whilst it also provides anti-dazzle technology to reduce glare from headlights.

The door mirrors have been replaced by HD cameras, which provide clear iamges on screens from within the cabin. The cameras are smaller than regular mirrors and fit well within the width of the car. Reducing drag, wind noise and drag. But are also great for narrow streets and car parks!

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Electricity

As you should know by now electricity is what powers this little beast. Electricity is cheap, efficient and provides zero emissions whilst not letting up on power and performance.

The Honda E has been designed to be electric from the ground up. Power comes from a compact 35.5kWh lithium-ion battery. It drives the rear wheels via an electric powertrain which has been developed for the Honda E. Fully charged it can hit up to 137miles. Perfect for city driving! Whilst performance and range are constantly maximised as there’s a clever system on board which helps keep the E’s battery at their optimum working temperature!

The Honda E has a smooth and instant response to pressing the accelator. It has a power output of 154PS and 315Nm of torque. There is a 50:50 weight distribution on the car and a low center of gravity. Giving it this sporty feel to the drive.

Whilst sport mode will increase the acceleration response even more! Turning on Single Pedal Control will allow you to drive with more ease. As you can accelerate and decelerate by pushig your foot down to go and taking it off to brake! The Honda E has a great turning circle too at only 4.3m you’re incredible manoeuvrable and agile, perfect for city driving! Not only that, furthermore the Honda Parking Pilot assistance will help you get the most out of the city.

Connected

You can connect to your Honda E with the My Honda+ app. It will allow you to schedule charge times, close the car windows and even pre-heat the interior! Use your smartphone as a Digital Key and unlock, lock and start the vehicle. Furthermore the voice activated Honda Personal Assistant can hold a natural conversation with you. AS it will use contextual understanding to learn how to offer you recommendations! Helping you to find nearest charging points, favourite music or restaurants!

The dashboard is incredible as it has five displays to always keep you informed, entertained and connected! Two central 12.3″ touchscreens allow multiple information to be accessed by both the driver and passenger. You can switch screens by simply swiping from one to another. Even personalise them with your favorite pics! Send destinations to the navigation system from your smartphone via the My Honda+ app. Select music and do extra things with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto!

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Interior

The interior is spacious and beautifully designed, especially with the premium sound system providing the entertainment!

The seats in both the front and rear of the vehicle provide great legroom and are very very comfortable. The rear seats can also fold down and provide more boot space! LED Spotlights have been positioned overhead providing passengers with additional lighting!

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Charging

Charging the Honda E is effortless thanks to the charging point in a very easy to reach part of the car, the center of the bonnet! It also features an integrated LED light which will clearly indicate the status of the charge. There is also a safety lock to ensure the power cable cannot be removed whilst in use.

The cable has been designed to be angled away from the car to protect the paintwork when charging. The charging times will vary depending on the type of charger that you use. But if you use the rapid charger charging to 80% will take 31 mins.

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Safety

The Honda E has a lot of safety features to keep you safe whilst driving around. There is an advanced safety system including Honda SENSING. Which are designed to help you when you drive:

Collision Mitigation Brake System: If there is a possibility of a collision, with either a pedestrian or a cyclist. The safety system will alert you whilst simultaneously reducing speed. Helping to minimise the severity of an impact.

Road Departure Mitigation System: A camera will detect road boundaries. Therefore if the car begins to stray the system will provide a lane departure warning. The car will then automatically apply subtle corrections to the streeting to keep it in lane.

Traffic Sign Recognition System: Identifies traffic signs and relays the information to you via a visual display.

Lane Keeping Assist System: Provides a less stressful driving experience especially on motorways, by keeping the car in the middle of the lane. This can be overridden when the indicator is used.

Intelligent Speed Limiter: Automatically controls your vehicle’s speed to a speed pre-set by you or at the speed limit indicated by a traffic sign.

Adaptive Cruise Control with Low Speed Follow: This will maintain a safe distance to the vehicle in front. While if a vehicle in an adjacent lane cuts in front of you, the Honda E will predict this and adjust the speed accordingly automatically. While it only will resume to a set speed when the danger has passed. Furthermore the low speed follow tech will detect if the vehicle in front comes to a stop. It will automatically decelerate and stop if the brakes aren’t applied.

Auto High-Beam Headlights: Detects a vehicle in front, including oncoming vehicles and automatically switches between high beam and low beam.

City Features

The Honda E has specific features that help the car adapt to the city too:

Lead Car Departure Notification System: Alerts the driver when the car in front has moved ahead from a standstill and you are still stationary.

Low Speed Braking Control: This system is a combination of the following functions:

Low Speed Brake Function: If you are close to an object that you may not have noticed whilst driving at low speed, the Honda e will decelerate and give an audio and visible warning before applying emergency braking.

Collision Mitigation Throttle System: This system will warn you if you press down on the accelerator pedal while there is an obstacle, such as a wall, in front of you.

So what do you think of the Honda E? Let us know via our socials @howtokillanhour across all platforms!

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Audi e-Tron

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We love our cars here at How To Kill An Hour and cars are getting more and more technological. If not for the tech inside the car, such as sound systems and air con, but the actual car itself. Electric cars are becoming more and more popular and there’s more choice on the market too. So we decided to check out Audi’s first fully electric production vehicle. The Audi e-Tron.

Turning Audi’s well-known e-tron technology into a series. The car has tons of personal space, a fantastic and a powerful driving experience all thrown into an SUV. An all electric SUV at that. This thing is a beast and can handle anything you throw at it, it will handle city driving with ease and will handle countryside driving with a breeze. It’s the ultimate everyday use car.

Power consumption, combined*: 26.4–21.8 kWh/100km (NEDC); 23.6–21.0 kWh/100km (WLTP)CO₂ emissions, combined*: 0 g/km

Audi’s Electric Drive.

The e-tron is powered by two electric motors. Allowing the SUV, bearing in mind this thing is a beast. To go from 0-100km/h stupidly quick. During our tests Marcus estimates it’s around 5-6 seconds. So that’s comparable to a sports car. The Audi e-Tron is also all-wheel drive, allowing you to have optimal traction and handling in any driving condition. So, that’s right, you guessed it. Off roading!

The quattro drive can be switched on when required and the results are that which are specific to the situation that you are in. You’ll get situation specific torque distribution, flexible control of the axle movements!

Charing Solutions

Audi are great as they offer you various different ways to charge at home.

You can either use the standard mobile charging system, which allows you to use a household 23oV household outlet or a 400 volt three phase outlet.

Or you can use an optional “Connect” charging system. This doubles the charging power to as much as 22kW. Combined with a home energy management system this will offer some intelligent functions. As charging when electric is less expensive, or with solar electricity. If you have it of course. This will need a photovaltaic system if you choose this route of charging.

You can control all charging processes as well as pre-heating and pre-cooling via the myAudi app!

If you are just using the car for everyday driving, you won’t need to stop at charging stations. While if you are on a long trip you are able to use fast charging stations, which will use DC (direct current) at up to 150kW. This is a first for series production vehicles. This will allow the Audi e-Tron to get set for the next stretch of a long distance drive, all within half an hour!

It can also be charged using AC (Alternating Current) though this will take longer, recharging at 22kW is also available as an option.

Audi e-Tron design.

The car looks amazing, there;s no doubt about that. Not only does it look great the insides are just as good.

The Audi Virtual cockpit is amazing, it has a sleek display and it stands virtually free in space and can display the optional virtual exterior mirrors. The navigation system will also intelligently give you suggestions based on previous routes!

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Listen to the guys chatting about this here!

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Fake Faces. INSANE!

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Fake Faces. Sounds insane doesn’t it. Sounds almost as if you’d be able to notice a fake face right? It’s a face, surely it’s noticeable. Well, we found out that, that surely is not the case. There are now businesses that sell fake people. On a website called Generated.Photos. You are able to buy a ‘unique, worry-free’ fake person. For anythign from $2.99 up to $1000!!

You can use the fake people in a video game or to make your company website appear more diverse. You are even able to get their photos for free on ThisPersonDoesNotExist.com. Furthermore, and get this, adjust their likeness as required. Such as make them old or young or even change their ethnicity! A company called Rosebud.AI will even animate them and make them talk!

The ‘fakers’ have appeared all on the internet and have been used as masks by real people. Used for ill intent: spies who don an attractive face in an effort to infiltrate the intelligence community. Furthermore right-wing propagandists have said to hide behind fake profiles. Or online harassers who troll their targets with a friendly visage.

Fake Faces

The NY Times even created their own AI system to understand how easy it was to generate different fake faces.

The system will see each face as a complex mathematical figure, a range of values that can be adjusted. Thus changing the value will change the face as you see fit.

The NYT system used a different approach. Instead of values that shifted, it generated two values to establish a starting and end point for all values and then created the images in between.

These images have become possible in recent years thanks to AI called generative adversarial networks. So, you feed a computer program with loads of photos of real people. The program will then study them and come up with it’s own photos of people. Another part of the system will then try and detect which of those photos are fake. This back and forth makes the fake photos even more indistinguishable from the real thing! The portraits that were used in the NYT story (which we urge you to check out!) was using GAN software that was made public. By Nvidia, the graphics company.

Who knows where this tech could lead? Maybe there could be a whole party of fake people? It will become so difficult to determine who is real and who is fake!

“When the tech first appeared in 2014, it was bad — it looked like the Sims,” 

“It’s a reminder of how quickly the technology can evolve. Detection will only get harder over time.”

Camille François, a disinformation researcher whose job is to analyze manipulation of social networks.

Fake Faces and Advancing Tech

So, one of the reasons as to why these pics are so impressive is due to tech advancing so quickly. Tech has got so good at identifying facial features. We use our faces to unlock our phones or tell a photo software to determine who is who in a group of photos. Facial recognition is ued to identify criminal suspects. Facial tech is used every single day!

What makes it even more impressive is a company called Clearview AI scraped the web of billions of public photos. Which were shared by everyday users. Creating an app which can recognise a stranger in one photo.

While this facial recognition tech is impressive, other A.I. systems aren’t as perfect. Thanks to the underlying bias in teh data used to train the tech. Some systemes just aren’t good at recognizing people of color. As in 2015, an early image detection system developed by Google labeled two Black people as ‘gorillas’. Most likely because the system had been fed many more photos of gorillas than people of dark skin.

 Cameras, the eyes of facial recognition systems aren’t good at capturing people with dark skin. That unfortunate standard dates back to the early days of film development when photos were calibrated to best show the faces of light-skinned people. The consequences of this can be severe. In January, a Black man in Detroit named Robert Williams was arrested for a crime he did not commit because of an incorrect facial-recognition match.

Flawed

AI can make our lives easier. Though it is flawed. As are we.However, the thing to remember is that we as humas choose how these A.I. systems are made and what data they’re exposed to. We choose the voices that teach virtual assistants to hear. Which in turn leads the systems to not understand people with accents. It’s all down to us and the data that we feed it. The A.I. system is only reacting to what we put into it and reacting to a set of instructions that we feed it. If x is x, then if the system notices x it will show only x. So to speak. So if we were to design a computer to predict a person’s criminal behavior by feeding it data about past rulings. Made by a human jude. Which in turn will be biased towards those judges. Humans train computers to see how we want them to see. So if we were to label glasses as nerds or dweebs. It will associated people with glasses as nerds of dweebs!

Trust

We are all too quick to trust that a computer is hyperactive and always right. But studies have shown that in situations where humans and computers must cooperate to make a decision. For example identify fingerprints or human faces. People will consistently make the wrong identification when a computer nudged them to do so. In the early days of GPRS systems, drivers famously followed the devices directions to send them to cliffs or lakes.

We really do urge you to check out the New York Times’ Interactive blog post on this because it is fascinating there’s lots of interactivity on the site too. It really shows what technology is capable of. WOW!

(NYT)

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DJI OM 4 – Smartphone Gimbal

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You can create amazing content with your phone, we all know that. But what if it can be enhanced? Well DJI have created the DJI OM 4 a foldable stabilizer designed to complement your smartphone. Whilst allowing you to start recording straight away. It is magnetic, ultra compact and has easy to use features.

  • Magnetic Design
  • Portable and foldable
  • Story Mode
  • Gestures Control
  • Active Track 3.0
  • Quick Roll

The magnetic phone clamp helps to attach it to the device. It is incredibly thin and light. Keeping it very secure! The magnetic ring holder snaps your smartphone onto the OM 4, keeping it safely on the OM 4 or even use it as a kickstand!

Intelligent Features

The DJI OM 4 is has lots of great features that allow you to easily and quickly create great and captivating content!

ActiveTrack 3.0 helps you to follow subjects really easily. The updated version recognises adults, children and pets with accuracy. Fine tune your image composition with the joystick if you need to!

Story Mode is a one tap creative template that will stay in the moment whilst creating great content. So those not sure how to edit or shoot can create great videos.

Even try out the “Hitchcock effect” a creative zoom shot which delivers a Hollywood feel with little to no effort. The algorithms in the device know what to do, all you have to do is walk.

CloneMe feature is a grat feature that will create one epic panorama with several photos. Simply throw a ball, run or pose in the next frame. Making one cool photo, with you the star in multiple places at once!

You can control the DJI OM 4 with just a gesture. Snapping a pic or starting a video has never been so easy before!

Timelapse Central

The DJI has a whole host of different time centric modes on it to help create great videos and photos!

  • Timelapse – Speed up fluffy white clouds drifting across an open sky or condense a road trip into a few seconds. Impress your friends with captivating, compact videos. Pack a beautiful sunset into a short video clip, perfect for sharing.
  • Hyperlapse – Condense time and movement for a mesmerizing result.
  • Motionlapse – Add flair to your footage with a moving timelapse. Select specific positions before recording.

Creative Shots

The DJI OM 4 also has a whole host of creative modes to add more make your shots even more appealing!

You can even use the DJI Mimo App, which features a video editor that allows you to compose masterpieces on the fly. There’s even built-in tutorials which will help guide you around. Therefore you can focus on creating!
The DJI OM 4 has 3 axis stabilisation so all of your videos will be stable and easily watchable. Even with an external lens the DJI OM 4’s motor will help keep your smartphone steady and stable for smooth video! It will even directly control the shutter of most smartphone cameras.

DJI OM 4 Simple Shooting

DJI OM 4 is very simple to use and has a whole host of features to help make you create the best videos you can!
  • Flashlight Mode – A newly added sensor helps OM 4 recognize your movements and automatically adjust positioning, making low-angle shots easier than ever.
  • Quick Roll – Press the M button twice to quickly switch between portrait and landscape mode for even more convenience.
  • Singlehanded Control – A comfortable, intuitive design makes holding OM 4 with one hand while creating videos incredibly easy.
  • Standby Mode – Need to take a call midway through filming? Simply remove OM 4, and the device will enter Standby mode.

Purchase a DJI OM4 here!

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iPad Pro – A BEAST!

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The iPad Pro is an amazing piece of tech, it’s a piece of glass and powerful than most PC Laptops! Plus it has Pro cameras that can create great imagery, you can also create on it with a pencil, keyboard and trackpad!

Display

The display is a Liquid Retina Display and creates an immersive feeling. This is due to the features like Pro Motion, True Tone and industry leading colour accuracy. Making it both responsive and look great.

Cameras

The cameras are fast and highly calibrated which make the iPad Pro feel uniquely capable. It has both a Wide and Ultra Wide camera on it making it perfect to frame a great photo or video. Coupled with the studio quality mics and four speaker audio you can create quite the filmmaking rig!

LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) is also on the iPad Pro. Helping to determine distance by measuring how long it takes light to reach an object and reflect back. It was on NASA for Mars landing missions and now it’s in the iPad!

LiDAR can uses direct time of flight to measure light which is reflected from up to 5M away both indoors and out. It works at the photon level and operates at nanosecond speeds, which makes the iPad highly capable of creating fantastic augmented reality! It works with the pro cameras, motion sensors and frameworks within iPadOS to measure depth, helping to make augmented reality more believable! Placing an AR object is now instantaneous thanks to LiDAR. Allowing AR objects to pass in front of and behind real world objects.

You can shoot and edit in 4K Video and capture an entire room thanks to the Ultra Wide camera, even use Markup to redesign the shot on the spot. Or scan a document and mark it up with Apple Pencil and then send it back with a tap! The front facing TrueDepth Camera enables FaceID which allows for fantastic privacy options.

Speed

The A12Z Bionic Chip makes the iPad Pro faster than most PC Laptops available today. Making everything you do more fast and fluid, even with graphical intensive apps. The 8 core graphics processor means that you get even more performance and realism from apps and games.

A12Z Bionic is designed to be put to work. Even more so with Pro Apps. The 8-Core graphics processor will help deliver fluid workflows with 4K Editing and 3D design. Enhanced thermal design will mean higher peak and longer sustained performance. The Apple Designed Neural Engine enables on device machine learning as well.

iPadOS is designed to help harness this power, making every interaction snappy and smooth. Helping to move between apps smooth and effortless.

iPad Pro Magic Keyboard

The Magic Keyboard allows for the best typing experience on an iPad, plys a trackpad will help open up new ways to work with iPadOS. It has a USB-C port for pass through charging, back and front protection and has a floating design, allowing yout o connect your iPad Pro easily and magnetically, while allowing you to adjust it for the perfect viewing angle.
The full size keyboard brings hard keys and a scissor mechanism with 1mm travel for a great typing experience, the keys are even backlit!
The trackpad opens up a new way to work. It allows control of the new cursor in iPadOS. Helping with tasks like editing a spreadsheet or selecting text. Right from the trackpad. Furthermore it has multi-touch gestures allowing you to swipe to go home or between spaces.

Apple Pencil 2

iPad Pro
The Pencil has great tilt and pressure sensitivity, combined with low latency of the Apple Pencil 2, it will allow for all forms of expression. It also charges whilst magnetically attached to the iPad Pro.
Sketch ideas on the notes app like you do on paper, share them or add them to a presentation. You can even search your handwritten notes! Take a screenshot and even mark it up with your pencil. Scan a document and sign it with Apple Pencil and then send it away as a PDF, right on the iPad! Even draw directly in apps like Keynote! The iPad Pro can even transform your handwritten notes to text!

iPad Pro Lightweight!

The iPad Pro is really lightweight and able to fit into a backpack or on a table. Allowing you to take it anywhere and with 10hrs of battery life it will keep you going all day!

Who needs a laptop when you can print, project and send many fels wirelessly! Plus the USB C port allows you to connect anything from a camera to a external drive or even a display!

Even stream movies or music with the inbuilt WiFi. The iPad Pro is quickly becoming the perfect mobile workstation!

(Apple)
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FitXR

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Lockdown has lead to many of us having to work out from home and for some of us it’s ok and for some of us that can lead to problems. Not enough space or living in flat can lead to problems with people living downstairs. You can’t always work out as much as you can.

Virtual Workout: FitXR

Well virtual reality is here to save the day. FitXR is the new virtual reality workout studio. You can box and dance to adrenaline pumping music with more workouts that are always on the way. FitXR also allows you to workout in a group of people, virually of course! There’s also leaderboards, motivating music and personalised advice!

The classes on the FitXR were designed by top professionals to help increase energy levels, burn calories and improve your strength. Plus as there is always classes added you’ll never really have to do the same class twice! You can do boxing classes as well as dance classes!
Workout using a VR headset and make working out fun and sage! You’ll be dancing your way through many different workouts in no time at all!

FitXR Game Workout

As it’s game like FitXR is designed to become somewhat of a positive habit, which we all love after all! We’re improving our health, having fun and working up a sweat all at the same time! It honestly feels like a game that you won’t want to end! Who said working out is a slog!? Plus you get to workout to an expertly curated playlist which features the music genre of your choice, so you won’t get bored either!
It is designed for everyone too, classes range from 3 to 25mins and from low to high intensity. Classes are designed to give you a full body workout. Pick a class to suit your goal mood or time spare. Filter your classes by length, music, instructor and intensity as well.

Personalisation

You are given real time feedback from voice commentary from top fitness instructors to guide and motivate you on your workout. You can push yourself with real time metrics which include best explosive streak average punch speed and calories burned. Always pushing you to go further in your workout! Better yet, get a performance summary after each class and a weekly in depth analysis of how you performed. As you progress and play you will receive class recommendations and fitness tips based on your progress to help you achieve your goals.

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PS5 Stolen and Replaced With Rice?!

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PS5 was recently released in the UK, with many customers ordering from Amazon. However, many have been left bewildered with the fact that they were delivered bags of rice instead of a PS5!

It seems as though they have been allegedly stolen before they were delivered on Thursday 19th and Friday 20th November. Buyers had pre-ordered these devices months in advance and took to Twitter to share their dismay at being left out in the cold. Having their expensive consoles (£450) replaced by various kitchen appliances and other random electrical goods. Such as foot massagers, cat food, and George Foreman grills. Whereas others had their consoles marked as delivered when in fact they weren’t.

MTV Journo Bex April May tweeted about having her PS5 ‘missed’ around Thursday afternoon. When in fact no delivery had been attempted. However when she did receive a package, it was nothing by an air fryer.

The console has been highly sort after in both the US and the UK. Amazon sold out of pre-orders in September and when they went on sale on launch day, they too sold out within minutes at 1pm. However some buyers are putting their consoles online for over £1,000!

Amazon Ps5 Statement

Amazon released a statement responding to the wave of complaints and Amazon said that it was investigating what happened and for those affected to contact it’s customer service team.

 ‘We’re all about making our customers happy, and that hasn’t happened for a small proportion of these orders.

We’re really sorry about that and are investigating exactly what’s happened.

We’re reaching out to every customer who’s had a problem and made us aware so we can put it right.

Anyone who has had an issue with any order can contact our customer services team for help.’

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Seagate

Seagate reveals limited-edition Xbox Halo drive!

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Seagate are releasing a limited edition Seagate Game Drive for Xbox Halo: Master Chief Limited Edition! Teaming up with 343 Industries Seagate announced the latest addition to it’s popular line of storage for gamers – Game Drive for Xbox Halo: Master Chief Limited Edition. 

Seagate are looking to celebrate the legendary Master chief and the legendary limited edition Game Drive. It features a design that celebrates the Master Chief John-117. A limited Master Chief vinyl die-cut sticker set also comes in the box for fans to collect. It is available in 2TB and 5TB varieties. 

Gamers can begin their Halo journey as the Seagate Game Drive is compatible and will be immediately recognised! All by the full family of Xbox Devices, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S consoles. It will be easily installed in under 2 minutes. It’s USB 3.2 Gen 1 bus powered and will not need a seperate power cord to play. Users can play legacy games and archive next generation games on the Game Drive which can store more than 502 downloaded games.  

The drive is available only in limited quantities next week and the Game Drive for Xbox Halo: Master Chief Limited-Edition retails for £79.99 (2TB) and £139.99 (5TB).

Purchase your own HDD here!

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Playstation 5

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The Playstation 5 is almost here and it brings a whole host of improvements. Such as ridiculously quick loading times with an ultra speed SSD. Deeper immersion with improved haptic feedback and adaptive triggers and 3D audio!

Thanks to a brand new custom CPU, GPU and SSD with intergrated I/O, the Playstation console has been re-written, with near instant load times for installed PS5 games. Allowing developers to create even more expansive and immersive environments like we’ve never seen before. Not only that there is incredible graphics on the PS5 thanks to ray tracing. Which will bring a new level of realism as rays of light are individually simulated. Therefore creating a true to life shadow and reflections in PS5 games.

Games are played in 4K and up to 12ofps on compatible games with support for 120Hz on 4K Displays. There will be, on supported PS5 games rich,vibrant and lifelike colours on the graphics. Furthermore with those lucky enough to have an 8K tv, the PS5 is compatible with 8K displays through the HDMI 2.1 port!

Playstation 5 Flavours

There are two different versions of the PS5, a regular PS5 with a disc drive an a digital only version of the same console. Which is exactly the same, it just has no disc drive.

Both consoles offer backwards compatibility both through the disc and downloaded PS4 games. They will both offer game boost, which will improve current PS4 and PS VR games. Providing faster and smoother frame rates as well as improved graphics if the developer chooses to. PS4 disc based games and digital based games will both be able to be upgraded to PS5 their counterparts if the developers allow. Lastly both consoles will also allow for PS VR intergration. Connect your PS VR to the PS5 to enjoy VR supported games. You’ll need a Playstation Camera and a Playstation Camera Adaptor which you can request from Sony here.

PS PLUS COLLECTION

On release date (12th and 19th November) you will be able to play a selection of generation-defining PS4 games. If you are a PS Plus member at no extra cost!

Here are the games available in the PlayStation Plus Collection.

From Worldwide Studios:

  • Bloodborne
  • Days Gone
  • Detroit: Become Human
  • God of War
  • Infamous Second Son
  • Ratchet and Clank
  • The Last Guardian
  • The Last of Us Remastered
  • Until Dawn
  • Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End

From third-party publishers and developers:

  • Batman: Arkham Knight
  • Battlefield 1
  • Call of Duty: Black Ops III – Zombies Chronicles Edition
  • Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy
  • Fallout 4
  • Final Fantasy XV Royal Edition
  • Monster Hunter: World
  • Mortal Kombat X
  • Persona 5
  • Resident Evil 7 biohazard

The PlayStation Plus Collection will be an added benefit to the existing PS4 benefits that PlayStation Plus members receive for a single subscription price – no additional membership fee required. Once you redeem a game from the PlayStation Plus Collection, you can keep the games for as long as you are an active PlayStation Plus member. PS4 games redeemed from the PlayStation Plus Collection and played on the PS5 console will see benefits such as increased loading speed and improved or more stable frame rates with PS5’s Game Boost.

Playstation 5 – Immersion

One of Sony’s killer moves is the new DualSense controller. Which promises to bring a new deeper gaming experience with haptic feedback and adaptive triggers!

The new controller will enhance haptic feedback to make it feel as though you are in the game by allowing you to feel the effects and impact of your ingame actions through dynamic sensory feedback. This is enhanced even further with adaptive triggers. Which will allow for dynamic resistance levels which simulate the physical impact of in-game activities in select games. Such as pulling a trigger on a gun or pushing down a spring.

This is improved even further with 3D Audio technology (only available in headphones) you will be able to feel where the sound is coming from. In any direction! With compatible headphones you will come alive with Tempest 3D AudioTech!

Playstation 5: Entertainment

The PS5 is also a fantastic entertainment hub, watch Ultra 4K Blu-Ray discs on the PS5 (excludes PS5 Digital Edition) and stream 4K entertainment with supported apps on a 4K TV!

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One More Thing

Apple’s One More Thing: Everything Announced

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Apple have announced their new ARM-based Mac Processor during it’s One More Thing event. It’s called the M1 and is a 5nm system on a chip (SoC). It features an 8-core CPU and an 8 GPU core. Apple are claiming that the chip will deliver the best performance per watt compared to any processor on the market. The CPU cores are divided up into four high-performance and four efficiency cores. The former delivers industry leading performance in single threaded workloads in the CPU. While all four performance cores can work alongside one another for a boost in multi-threaded performances.

Contextually the current A14 SoC features a six-core design with two high performance cores at its disposal. Additionally the A14, much like the M1 includes the 16 core Neural Engine that cna complete 11 trillion operations per second.

Performance

Apple says that the M1 can deliver up to 2x the performance to that of a PC within a Macbook Air. Graphically the M1 delivers the best performance of any integrated GPU on the market, Apple claims. On board there is built in support for Thunderbolt 4, PCI Express Gen 4 and NVMe storage. The M1 will also allow for universal memory architecture, dedicated engines for encoding and decoding media. Also your data will be safe due to a secure enclave.

The M1 chip also allows for better performance and energy gains. With up to 15hrs of web surfing on the new Macbook Air and 18 hours of video playback on a single charge. Comparatively the the intel powered model will offer 11 and 12 hrs of battery time on the same test modes. Whilst the new M1 chip will bring Apple’s laptops instantly wake from sleep mode.

Apps

Apple have also stated that the first party apps (Final Cut, Logic) will take advantage of the M1 with improved performance. For example Final Cut is said to be six times faster on the M1 than on x86 processors. Furthermore Adobe and other developers will update their apps to take advantage of the M1 later this year. While before this upgrade, new Macs will ship with Rosetta 2. This will help translate existing x86 apps so that they can run on M1 Macs.

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One More Thing: Macbook Air

To take advantage of the new M1, Apple announced a brand new line up of hardware starting with the Macbook Air. The Macbook Air features an 8-Core CPU which performs up to 3.5x faster than the previous generation. The 8-Core GPU graphics are up to 5x faster than previous generation. Games will be more immersive and graphics intensive games will run at higher frame rates.

ML (Machine Learning) workloads are up to 9x faster. Apps that use ML based features like face recognition or object detection will work at a fraction of the time too. The M1 chips storage and the latest flash tech will deliver up to 2x faster SSD performance. previewing images and importing files will be much faster! With Apple claiming that the M1 is faster than 98% of PC laptops sold in the past year!

The Macbook Air will also run fanless thanks to the power efficiency of the M1, remaining silent! The Macbook Air will feature up to 15 hours of wireless web browsing and up to 18 hours of video playback. Therefore becoming the longest battery life ever on a MacBook Air.

When compared to the previous generation, the M1-powered MacBook Air can:

  • Export a project for the web with iMovie up to 3x faster.
  • Integrate 3D effects into video in Final Cut Pro up to 5x faster.
  • For the first time, play back and edit multiple streams of full-quality, 4K ProRes video in Final Cut Pro without dropping a frame.
  • Export photos from Lightroom up to twice as fast.
  • Use ML-based features like Smart Conform in Final Cut Pro to intelligently frame a clip up to 4.3x faster.
  • Watch more movies and TV shows with up to 18 hours of battery life, the longest ever on MacBook Air.
  • Extend FaceTime and other video calls for up to twice as long on a single charge.

Other features include Apple’s latest image signal processor in the M1 chip. This will help improve the camera image quality. There will be better noise reduction, greater dynamic range, and improved auto white balance and ML-enhanced face detection so users look their best during video calls.

Furthermore there will be P3 wide colour improvements for even an even more vibrant true to life Retina display. In terms osf privacy the Secure Enclave in the M1 and working alongside Big Sur will help to deliver incredible security features with Touch ID. Wifi 6 will help to deliver faster wireless performance. While 2 Thunderbolt ports and USB 4 support will help support for a wide range of peripherals.
The new Macbook Air helps to redefine the notebook and will start at £999!
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One More Thing: 13″ Macbook Pro

The 13″ Macbook Pro is the most popular notebook from Apple. Many people use it at Uni and most professionals use it creatively.

With the M1 and Big Sur, the most popular notebook will get even more powerful. The 8-Core CPU when paired alongside the Macbook Pro’s active cooling system is up to 2.8x faster than the previous generation.

Allowing for quicker times transcoding video, editing high res photos and editing 4K video! The 8-Core GPU is 5x faster and will allow for super smooth graphics performance whether they are designing a game or a new product. Furthermore the M1 is up to 3x faster than the best selling Windows laptop in it’s class! ML is up to 11x faster and for on device ML tasks that use the Neural Engine, the 13 inch Macbook Pro is the fastest pro notebook!

The battery life is great too with up to 17hours of web browsing time and 20hours of video playback. The brand new Macbook Pro delivers up to 2x the battery life of previous generation and the longest battery life on a Mac ever!

When compared to the previous generation, the M1-powered 13-inch MacBook Pro can:

  • Build code in Xcode up to 2.8x faster.
  • Render a complex 3D title in Final Cut Pro up to 5.9x faster.
  • Fluidly design intricate game scenes in Unity Editor up to 3.5x faster.
  • Perform ML tasks in Create ML up to 11x faster.
  • Separate out beats, instrumentals, and vocal tracks from a recording in real time in djay Pro AI, thanks to the amazing performance of the Neural Engine.
  • Play back full-quality, 8K ProRes video in DaVinci Resolve without dropping a single frame.
  • Compile four times as much code on a single charge, thanks to the game-changing performance per watt of the M1 chip.

Furthermore other features include studio quality mics for super clear recordings and calls. Apple’s latest camera ISP in the M1 will help to give sharper images and more detail in the shadows and highlights on video calls. It will also much like the Macbook Air will provide best in class security thanks to the Secure Enclanve in the M1 and Touch ID. The Macbook Air features two Thunderbolt ports with USB 4 support to connect to many different devices, such as Apple’s Pro Display XDR in full 6K resolution.

The new Macbook Pro starts at £1299
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One More Thing: Mac Mini

Mac Mini is Apple’s most versatile computer and with the M1 it is now even better! Packing a huge amount of performance and features into the small design.

M1 brings the 8-Core CPU with up to 3x faster performance to that of the previous Mac Mini. Dramatically accelerating demanding workloads, from compiling million lines of code to building enormous multitrack music projects. An 8-Core GPU will deliver up to a massive 6x increase in graphics performance. Allowing Mac Mini to tackle performance intensive tasks like complex 3D rendering with ease!

ML workloads take a huge performance improvement with up to 15x performance increase over the previous Mac Mini. The Mac Mini when compared to the best selling Windows desktop in it’s price range delivers up to 5x faster performance!

When compared to the previous generation, the M1-powered Mac mini can:

  • Compile code in Xcode up to 3x faster.
  • Play a graphics-intensive game like “Shadow of the Tomb Raider” with up to 4x higher frame rates.
  • Render a complex timeline in Final Cut Pro up to 6x faster.
  • Take music production to new levels by using up to 3x as many real-time plug-ins in Logic Pro.
  • Magically increase the resolution of a photo in Pixelmator Pro up to 15x faster.
  • Utilize ML frameworks like TensorFlow or Create ML, now accelerated by the M1 chip.

Mac mini also features an advanced thermal design to sustain its breakthrough performance while staying cool and quiet, support for up to two displays including Apple’s Pro Display XDR in full 6K resolution, and Wi-Fi 6 for faster wireless performance and the Secure Enclave in M1 for best-in-class security.

Mac Mini starts at £699

(Engadget / Apple)

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