Tag Archive for: How To Kill An Hour

MIND BLOWING DEEPFAKES!

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First of all this video is INCREDIBLE! While Deepfakes may be used negatively. We have recently seen online a fantastic use of DeepFakes!

Even if it is a little freaky, this DeepFake can be shown how it can be used for good….I guess?

It comes from the YouTube channel Jim Meskimen an impressionist and YouTuber. He wrote a poem and performed it in different voices. The twist?

In each different voice, the persons face was superimposed in incredible detail to his own face. While, his impressions are very very believable so if they were cut up into short clips. As outside of this piece, you could be forgiven to be thinking that they were said by the actors themselves! Jim’s impressions are very very good! Consequently, coupled with DeepFake technology this could revolutionise the impressionist community!

So who did he impersonate? Check out below are the actors that Jim impersonated:

  • John Malkovich
  • Colin Firth
  •  Robert Deniro
  • Tommy Lee Jones
  •  Nick Offerman
  •  George Clooney
  • Christopher Walken
  • Anthony Hopkins
  • Dr. Phil
  • Nicholas Cage
  • Arnold Schwarzenegger
  • Morgan Freeman
  • Bryan Cranston
  • Christoph Waltz
  • Joe Pesci
  • Jack Nicholson
  • George W. Bush
  • Ian McKellen
  • Ron Howard
  •  Robin Williams

Question Time

So, we throw the question out to you. Does this version of DeepFake technology show how it can be used for good? However, does it also show that it could be used negatively? Where can DeepFake technology be used? While, can it ever be used for good? Furthermore is DeepFake technology just something that should never be used, will it always be used negatively?

So, let us know via our socials! You can contact us via @howtokillanhour across all social platforms.

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Capcom Home Arcade

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Capcom Home Arcade

This brings back sooo many memories! Credit: Capcom USA Home Arcade

Posted by How To Kill an Hour on Thursday, 24 October 2019

We recently got to have a play on the Capcom Home Arcade and boy is it so good! It delivers a classic single and multiplayer arcade gaming experience. A real nostalgia buzz!

Hardware

This amazing piece of gaming tech features a grand total of 16 Capcom titles of the golden age of gaming. While it also features two full size premium stick and button configurations. Therefore allowing users to play the games how they were meant to be played back in the day!
The unit features a pair of competition class Sanwa JLF-TP-8YT sticks with 8-way GT-Y directional gates and OBSF buttons for the finest precision, response times and durability.

Capcom Home Arcade Games

The games that are on this fantastic nostalgia device include Mega Man, Giga Wing, Eco Fighters, Street Fighter 2 Hyper Fighting and many more! They are the original CPS1 and CPS2 arcade ROMS with emulation provided by CPS emulation dev Barry Harris. Therefore meaning that you get an authentic and accurate arcade experience!
Break some high scores in single player and team up with a friend in co-op multiplayer. Or if you fancy it you can battle them in head to head mode! Plus you can also upload your best scores via the Capcom Home Arcade’s WIFI to a highscore leaderboard!
The Capcom Home Arcade is a plug and play device, simply plug it into the TV with HDMI and the USB Cable to a USB power supply and you are away!
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Purchase yours here!

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THE ORIGINAL BOOK OF DREAMS! – ARGOS

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It’s almost Christmas time and do you know what that means? Hint: Argos.

Mistletoe?  – No

Chocolate? – No

Lots and lots of food? – Also No!

Alcohol?! – Nope!

So, what is it then?

Well, if you remember as a kid, Christmas almost always meant going through the Argos Christmas catalogue and picking out lots and lots of toys for Mum and Dad (oops!) we mean Santa to get for you. Circling them with a biro and a big grin on your face as you held that heavy catalogue of goodies on your lap.

Well, a brand new website has been launched that goes through the differing years of Argos Catalogos for your viewing pleasure, starting from the 70’s. While finishing up right to the present year for this years 2019 gifts!

Furthermore you are even able to click into each decades book and get a virtual look at what everyone was purchasing in yesteryear for Christmas.

Yes, you may get to go decade by decade but you also get to check out each year from within those decades catalogues! There’s a lot to look through and it was fun to check out the year in which you were born’s catalogue. Because, why not?!

As it can get a little nostalgic going through the different Argos catalogues so be warned! You may just want to be a kid again after viewing this website!

It’s not just a catalogue. It’s an Argos catalogue. (What? Wrong slogan?) – However, in all seriousness, as a kid in Britain an Argos catalogue was something that we all looked forward to looking through. Yet, there was just tons and tons of toys to look at and hope and wish that Santa would bring.

So, why not check out the full website by clicking here!

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Cable Guy Crash Bandicoot XL

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Listen up all you Crash Bandicoot fans out there! Have a Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch Lite a Smartphone or game console controllers? Well the Cable Guy Crash Bandicoot XL is just for you!

Crash holds his hands out to be able to hold them and display them! It’s an amazing, stunning and collectable figure which has been crafted to perfection in full oversized XL glory!

It is bright, bold and will look fantastic in any room. Crash has been designed by leading gaming merch brand Cable Guys. It will hold all types of devices centrally and perfectly balanced meaning it won’t topple over. It also comes complete with a 2M charging cable enabling it to recharge devices too!

Features:

  • Styled on your favourite marsupial, Crash Bandicoot.
  • Holds PlayStation and Xbox Game Controllers.
  • Also charges devices.
  • Holds Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch Lite and the XL.
  • Works with all models of smartphones
  • Officially Licensed Crash Bandicoot merchandise
  • Includes a 2M Micro USB Charging Cable.
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The Cable Guy Crash Bandicoot XL costs £24.97

You can purchase one by clicking here!

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Pixelbook Go

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Google are no strangers to the notebook world when they introduced the Chromebook in 2017. Now they’re making the Chromebook even more accessible to more people with the Pixelbook Go!

It weighs 2lbs and is 13mm thin, so very easy to take with you wherever! Plus at a starting price of $649 it’s even more affordable! You’ll get the quiet backlit keys, powerful processors, an even bigger battery and 13.3 inch touchscreen!

Design

The Pixelbook is designed for people on the go, completed with a matte finish, finely painted magnesium casing, it provides the Pixelbook light as possible, yet incredibly solid.

It has a grippable design making it easy to carry, the 12hrs battery life keeps it going as long as you are too! Plus charge it for 20mins and get 2hrs of power! Google even have some care suggestions to keep your new Pixelbook in top condition!

The keys are quiet Hush Keys so you can type away in the local coffee shop without worry! The Pixelbook starts up in seconds and stays super fast with auto updates! The Pixelbook Go has built in security in the Chrome OS, so you get speed as well as security!

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Pre-order today

Pixelbook Go pre-orders are available now in the U.S. and Canada, and in January in the U.K.

Simply click here to order!

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Nest Aware

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Google are looking to making it easier to let their customers know what is going on in their homes. They do this via their Nest Aware service. Combined with the Nest Cams you can get intelligent alerts and camera history. Nest Aware will give you more home awareness from your Nest devices at one affordable monthly rate.

One price for your entire home

Nest Aware’s new pricing model covers every single camera, speakers and displays in your home for one low price. Now with even more video and event history.

There’s also event based recording. Nest Aware will record this information only when your camera detects motion or sounds. Such as a dog barking or a person seen on camera. It will send you an alert so you can take action or watch clips later. This new service is alongside Nest’s existing 24/7 continuous video recording. You are able to scan through your entire history to see everything before during and after an event.

Two simple plans for Nest Aware:

30 days of event video history – $6 p/m (or $60 per year)

60 days event history and 10 days 24/7 video history – $12 p/m (or $120 per year)

More helpful alerts that matter from Nest Aware

Nest Aware coverage is expanding to include Nest and Google Home speakers and displays. Now you can enable these devices to be your ears when you’re away. They’ll listen for critical sounds, like smoke or carbon monoxide alarms, and send an alert to your phone. You then have the option to hear the audio clip or listen live to confirm the alarm.

Expanded sound detection is a big step forward in the kind of help we can provide, and it’s designed from the ground up to respect your privacy in your home. Sound detection happens entirely on your device, and your Nest devices will light up to provide a visual indicator when an event is being recorded and sent to Google so you can review it. You can also review and delete audio clips at any time in your Home app.

Emergency  fingertips

If a speaker or display picks up a smoke alarm sound, it will send an alert on your phone, with the new Nest Aware on the Home app you can call emergency services to your home. Even if your away from the house. If you happen to be home and can’t get the the phone you can even ask Google to call them with any Google Nest or Home speaker or display covered by your Nest Aware subscription.

Everything you need to know, in one place

The Home Feed will exist in the Google Home app from early next year. You’ll be able to see all events and notifications from your devices and get a general recap of the day. Scroll through prioritized events, watch full video clips or listen to audio clips.

When and where

The new Nest Aware will be available to 19 countries where Nest Aware is currently available. You are able to switch over your existing plans too. Expanded coverage to Nest speakers and displays with sound detection and emergency calling will initially be available in the US only.

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Nest Mini

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The Google Home Mini has brought Google’s Google Assistant to millions of homes, now the second generation, the Nest Mini, is bringing some major improvements.

A new speaker with powerful sound

With the Nest Mini, the hardware and software have been updated to make it sound even better. The Nest Mini provides bass that is twice as strong as it’s predecessor.  The expert audio engineers at Google have developed propriety audio tuning software to get the most out of the hardware. Helping to provide full clear and natural sound at every volume level. Google didn’t want to suppress any auditory details so expect clear audio from the Nest Mini.

The Nest Mini’s LED lights will alight as your hands get close to the device to indicate where you can tap to adjust volume. It’s also been improved to hear you better in noisy environments. Furthermore the Nest Mini will dynamically adjust the volume of the assistant whilst playing media. So if you have a noisy washing machine, the assistant’s response will be played back at a louder volume.

Whole home audio

Connect the Nest Mini to other Nest speakers to build a sound system for the whole home. Even create different groups in the Google home app and enjoy music, podcasts and more all throughout your home.

You can also stream transfer your music from one speaker to another, even in another room! Plus you can transfer music from your phone to a speaker as soon as you walk through the door.

For example you can say, “Hey Google, move the music to the living room speaker” to keep the party going.

Now you can call your devices from the Google Home app, use the intercom feature to talk from device to device, or call someone on the other side of the world – for free! Just need a Duo account and/or a Google Home/Nest Smart Speaker or display!

Making the best Assistant better

Nest Mini is smarter and faster than it’s original. As Google has embedded a dedicated machine learning chip into it, with up to 1 TeraOPS of processing power (basically very very fast). Thus moving some Google Assistant experiences from the data centers straight on the device.

If you are in the US Nest Mini will now learn the most common commands that you give it and process them locally for an even faster response time!

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Nest Mini is available for $49,  you can pre-order from the Google Store. Simply click here to order!

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Nest Wifi

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Google’s Nest Wifi is a really powerful router and Wifi Point, but it also adds Google Assistant, bringing you even more help at the home!

Whole home coverage

The new Nest Wifi system is two separate devices, the Nest Wifi router plugs directly into the modem. Therefore forming the basis for a strong and powerful home network. While the Nest Wifi point expands coverage to where you need it most.

This new device is more powerful than the predecessor Google Wifi, delivering up to 2x the speed and up to 25% better coverage. A two pack will deliver coverage for a 3,800 sq foot home. The system is also scalable so you can add more points at a later date. Already got a Google Wifi network? Easily add Nest Wifi to it for additional coverage.

Simple setup and control in the Google Home App

You can easily set up Nest Wifi. Simply plug it in, download and open the Google Home app and you’ll be guided through the setup in minutes! Once complete you can manage your network from within the app and all your other supported connected devices.

Google Home app, makes it easy to share Wi-Fi passwords with guests and prioritise devices, test the speed, set up a guest network and change your password. Have a Nest Smart Display? Share the network and password right on the display, simply scan the code with your phone to get online!

Manage separate homes in the app too! You can manage the wifi of a loved one’s network if they aren’t tech savy from your own home!

Have children? You can set up a Wifi Schedule so you can shut off the internet on certain devices at certain times during the week.

Hands-free help with the Google Assistant

Nest Wifi Point has a speaker has a Google Assistant so it can do everything that a Nest Mini can do. Listen to music and ask Google to do a whole heap of things such as pausing the Wifi for certain people or ask Google what the Wifi Network is like. For example:

“Hey Google, pause the Wi-Fi for Daniel.”

“Hey Google, what’s my internet speed?”

Designed for your home

Nest Wifi is beautifully designed with soft rounded edges and unobtrusive lighting, it’s meant to be placed out in the open (unlike other routers), plus it will perform better this way!

The Wifi points come in three colors, Snow, Sand and Mist!

Smart home support

Nest Wifi is built to provide foundation for the future of smart devices. Meaning it has local home connectivity, some devices will connect directly to the system without needing a hub. Easily set up the most popular lights and plugs right from the Home app.

Nest Wifi availability

It will be available in eight global markets in 2019. In the U.S., you can preorder right now and Nest Wifi will be on sale on November 4.

You can get a two pack with one router and one point for $269, or a three pack with one router and two points for $349.

Simply click here to order!

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Pixel Buds New and Improved!

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On average people check their smartphones around 100 times a day, mainly for playing a song, or to set a reminder or getting directions. Which takes up roughly 30 seconds of our time. Well the Google Pixel Buds are here to help make those tasks a little easier and a little, quicker. With instant access to Google Assistant. Not only are they helpful they’re also very clear, comfortable, have high quality sound and have a looooong battery life.

Pixel Buds in your ear

Everyone’s ears are shaped differently, so the folks over at Google have made  design that is comfortable for as many people as possible. They sit flush in your ear and have a low profile, making them extremely stylish! The stabilizer arc gently tucks in and working alongside the interchangeable eartip, Pixel Buds won’t ever leave your ears!

Sound Quality

Pixel Buds not only stay secure in your ear, they also let enough sound from the world around you to keep you aware of what’s going on. Making this a hugely important safety feature! While also delivering powerful sound. The eartios gently seal the ear to isolate the loud outside noise and to give you high quality audio. Yet the spatial vent underneath reduces that plugged ear feeling. While also letting through just the right amount of environmental sound to make sure you don’t get run over! However, there’s also a fantastic feature that the Pixel Buds have. Adaptive Sound! They will automatically adjust the volume as you walk around. For example if you move from a quiet environment to a noisy one you won’t have to constantly raise or lower the volume, they do it for you!

Calling!

Pixel Buds when making a call make sure your voice is at the forefront. The two microphones in each bud focuses on the sound of your voice. While suppressing other sounds in the background. Furthermore, Pixel Buds have a voice accelerometer that will detect speech through the vibrations of your jawbone. So you can be heard even in the most windy of conditions!

Connection

Pixel Buds have long range Bluetooth connectivity so you can use them even when your phone isn’t nearby. You can stay connected indoors up to 3 rooms away and outside up to 100m! They can also connect to Bluetooth 4.0 enabled laptops, tablets and iOS devices. Pixel Buds work with other Andriod 6.0+ devices with just a single tap.

They’ll also be able to detect when they’re in your ear, tap to play/pause, swipe to adjust volume. Get 5hrs of listening time on a single charge and up to 24hrs with the wireless charging case. They’re also sweat and water resistant!

Pixel Buds Are Helpful!

Pixel Buds also give you hands-free access to Google Assistant! Just say “Hey Google” and the assistant will ask you what you need. For example you can play music, send a text or translate a foreign language!

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Google Pixel Buds will be available in 2020 in the U.S. at $179, and will come in four colors: Clearly White, Oh So Orange, Quite Mint and Almost Black.

Simply click here to order!

For those outside of the US sign up for Google’s waitlist to be notified.

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Pixel 4

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The Google Pixel 4 has a camera that captures details that many others can’t, you can even use your phone without touching it, has a brand new Google Assistant and has a fast, responsive display! So, you could argue that the Pixel 4 has packed a ton of new tech into it!

Get the perfect photo with Pixel 4

It has the largest upgrade to a Pixel phone to date, there are now a total of 2 cameras on the back of the phone, including a telephoto lens. The software upgrade? A brand new Super Res Zoom feature, giving you exceptional image quality from a distance!

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Super Res Zoom (1x)
Super Res Zoom (2x)
Super Res Zoom (3.1x)
Super Res Zoom (5.7x)
Super Res Zoom (8x)

Night Sight has been upgraded and can be used for shots of the night sky, the stars and even the Milky way! Pixel 3/3a users will also get a version of this upgrade with a camera app update.

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All Pixel’s have HDR+ capabilities but with the Pixel 4 you can fine the the brightness and amount of details in the shadows. Pixel 4 also has a Live HDR+ in the viewfinder so you know exactly what the photo will look like, even when you’re using the new controls.

A new Google Assistant

The Pixel 4 has a deeper integration of  Google Assistant. Speech processing has improved and more requests can happen right on the phone without having to go to the cloud first.

The assistant also doesn’t take up as much space on the screen anymore, letting you better multi task across other apps. Google Assistant will quickly open apps, search your phone, share what’s on screen and more. The context of the queries will also do a better job answering.

For example, you can ask the Assistant to “show my photos from New York” and then say “the ones in Central Park.” Then, you can share a picture by saying “send it to Mum.”

A phone that senses what you want it to do

Pixel 4 has a Motion Sense feature that uses miniature radar sensors to detect when you’re about to reach for your phone and it will initiate face unlock or turn off your screen when you aren’t around. Also, new quick gestures let you skip songs when you don’t want to pick up the phone. Simply wave your hand to snooze alarms, dismiss timers or silence the ringer.

New built-in apps

The new Recorder app will record meetings, lectures and anything you want to listen to later, it will even simulatneously transcribe speech. It can also identify sounds such as music and applause. Plus search from within recordings to find a specific word or sound! However, English translation is up first with more languages coming soon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A new personal safety app will automatically call emergency services if you have been in a car accident. The Car Crash detection however,will be available in English in the US.

Built for performance and security

Pixel 4 comes with 6GB’s of RAM, a 90hz display and the Pixel Neural core. Pixel Neural Core is the engine for all the on device processing that goes on on the phone. Therefore more tasks are done directly on the phone increasing performance and privacy.

Also, the Titan M chip from Google provides protection for your most sensitive data and ensure the integrity of the operating system. While all this is combined with the latest version of Android 10, monthly security updates for 3 years, plus access to Google’s advanced security services, the Pixel 4 is designed to keep data secure.

Pricing and availability

For customers in the US the Pixel 4 is available through all the major U.S. carriers for the first time, including AT&T, C Spire, Cellcom, Google Fi, Spectrum Mobile (Charter), Sprint, T-Mobile, U.S. Cellular, Verizon, Visible and Xfinity Mobile (Comcast).

You can pre-order a Pixel 4 for $799 and Pixel 4 XL for $899, and phones will ship on October 24, globally. Pixel 4 comes in three colors, including Clearly White, Just Black, and a limited edition, Oh So Orange.

So, what are you waiting for? Simply click here to order!

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So, keep up to date with everything How To Kill An Hour by signing up to our newsletter by clicking here!

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