LG is set to launch a new version of its V30 phone model which will feature “the first of a suite of AI technologies” at Mobile World Congress (MWC) taking place in Barcelona this month.
LG calls this Vision AI and says that the device will focus on image recognition. The device will feature automatic image analysis for shooting mode recommendations along with object recognition and shopping suggestions. However, LG isn’t attempting to develop its own smartphone voice assistant, as Samsung has with Bixby.
Instead, the company will use Google Assistant and will be building some commands that are exclusive to LG phones. For example, you will be able to use your voice to trigger the new photo features. Earlier this year, at the Consumer Electronics Showcase (CES), LG announced that it had been researching how AI should be implemented into smartphones through LGThinQ.
Additionally, The 2018 lineup of LG TVs supports Google Assistant and Alexa. The company will be building a touchscreen fridge with webOS and Alexa. It will also be developing speakers that work with both major voice assistant platforms.
Google has decided that it will be removing the “view image” option that appeared when you clicked on a picture.
The button was previously used by users when searching for a picture and they wanted to see it independently to save it instead of going to it’s original site. The reason behind the removal is that, Google has been under fire from photographers and publishers who felt that image search allowed people to steal their pictures.
A deal to show copyright information and improve attribution of Getty photos was announced last week and included these changes. The intention seems to be either stopping people from taking an image altogether or driving them through to the website where the image is found.
This would also let people see any associated copyright information. Additionally, This would allow websites who have adverts to get more revenue. Today we’re launching some changes on Google Images to help connect users and useful websites. This will include removing the View Image button. The Visit button remains, so users can see images in the context of the webpages they’re on. pic.twitter.com/n76KUj4ioD
Social networking site, Facebook’s security standard, two factor authentication (2FA) reportedly auto-posts on user’s profile, reports The Verge.
The 2FA is regarded as a secure way to log in into an account. However, this security measure reportedly posts on your profile. This happens as the 2FA that uses your phone number to log onto the social networking site, tells you about friend’s posts. When replying to this message, it allegedly auto-posts on your Facebook profile.
According to The Verge, this occurs with any reply to a 2FA text message. The matter, identified by Bay Area software engineer, Gabriel Lewis was further criticised by technology critic, Zeynep Tufekci.
Whether the auto-posting is intentional or a bug, is currently investigated.
Meanwhile, Facebook is introducing a new feature for posting status updates, called Lists. The new feature is an added attempt by the company to encourage users to share more about themselves. In recent months, Facebook promised used that it would change the News Feed in order to promote “meaningful posts,” in an effort to show more content from friends and family.
How it works:
1. The feature is a section combined with the “What’s on your mind?” status update
2. Select the options where things like Polls, Feeling/Activity, Photo/Video, Check In, GIF are found
3. Select Lists and you can create a list of anything you want your friends to know
4. For example; places you would want to travel to one day or a to-do list for the day.
5. The Lists can then be decorated with gradient backgrounds and emoji that appears next to the list title.
For now, the ability to create Lists is only available on Android.
iOS users can view Lists on their phones, but currently, can’t create them.
The update has only been launched today, so reports suggest that if users do not see the update yet, they shouldn’t be alarmed it will show eventually.
Microsoft has just launched a party chat feature for its Xbox mobile apps.
Similar to WhatsApp, The feature allows Xbox Live users to communicate with their gaming friends via both voice and text when they’re out of the house and away from the console.
Additionally, the feature was also added for users who don’t always feel like putting on a headset during multiplayer sessions in order to communicate with team mates. Making the feature available after many weeks of testing puts Microsoft ahead of competitors as live voice chat isn’t an option for other gaming applications unless they make use of a third-party service.
However, the only downside of using the new feature is that sound quality can’t be guaranteed on the app as it depends on the type of smartphone that you are using. The feature which is found on any Xbox app is available on Android and iOS.
Following multinational technology company, Google’s announcement in June last year about a new feature that will remove “intrusive” ads, users can now finally say goodbye to these ads, reports The Verge.
This comes after the technology company decided to enhance user experience as ads were reportedly disrupting online experience.
The built-in ad blocker will be available from today.
However, Google will not remove all its ads, only those that do not conform to standards from the Coalition for Better Ads.
The Coalition for Better Ads identified that ads tend to disrupt user experience and result in slow browsing.
Sites will reportedly be assessed on the Better Ads Standards. They will then receive a rating of either a pass, warning or failing.
How it will work is, if a site receives several violations and ignores Google’s notification of these violations, then Chrome can take action by blocking ads on the site, after 30 days.
Ads that Google plans to block:
– Pop-up ads
– Auto-play video ads
– Sticky ads
– Ads with a countdown
Meanwhile, in October last year, Google for the first time has uncovered evidence that Russian operatives exploited the company’s platforms in an attempt to interfere in the 2016 election, according to people familiar with the company’s investigation.
The Silicon Valley giant has found that tens of thousands of dollars were spent on ads by Russian agents who aimed to spread disinformation across Google’s many products, which include YouTube, as well as advertising associated with Google search, Gmail, and the company’s DoubleClick ad network, the people said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss matters that have not been made public. Google runs the world’s largest online advertising business, and YouTube is the world’s largest online video site.
The discovery by Google is also significant because the ads do not appear to be from the same Kremlin-affiliated troll farm that bought ads on Facebook — a sign that the Russian effort to spread disinformation online may be a much broader problem than Silicon Valley companies have unearthed so far.
Huawei has introduced a new smartphone in SA called the P smart at a retail price of R3,999.
The company has deemed the device the first of it’s kind to be sold in the market at such an affordable price.
“It’s the first time the industry will see both a dual camera and FullView display at this price range and we are excited to introduce this to the South African market,” said Likun Zhao GM of the Huawei Consumer Business told media.
“Huawei P smart continues the design language of the sought-after P Series characterised by simplicity and elegance – a slim metallic body, flat smooth rear surface, with striking aesthetics. The exquisite smartphone with personalized photography functions will be available in black and gold colors,” said the company.
Features:
The Huawei P Smart features a one-touch split-screen mode which allows you to use two apps at the same time.
The camera offers the ability to take self-portraits using hand gestures.
This is supported by facial recognition, gender recognition, and a 10-level skin improvement effect for portraits and self portraits.
The company promises fingerprint recognition within 0.3 seconds with the fingerprint 4.0 system built found in the device.
The fingerprint recognition has additional functions such as fingerprint navigation, fingerprint shot, and alarm clock deactivation.
Here are the specifications of the device:
Dimensions : 150.1 x 72.05 x 7.45mm Weight : 143g Operating system : Android 8 Oreo + EMUI 8.0 Display : 5.65″ FHD+ (1080×2160) Rear camera : 13MP + 2MP Front camera : 8MP Storage : internal 32GB RAM : 3GB Processor : Kirin 659 oct-core (2.36GHz+1.7GHz) Battery : 3,000mAh Cellular data : LTE Biometrics : Fingerprint
The Huawei P smart is available for purchase at all operators in South Africa.
PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has given a presentation to executives at scandal-hit retailer on “the scope and focus of their forensic investigations,” Steinhoff says in emailed response to questions, without giving detail of what they will probe, Bloomberg reported.
Steinhoff will give updates on “the progress and any outcomes” of the auditor’s probe into accounting irregularities when possible, Bloomberg further reported.
Steinhoff was one of the top 10 shares on the JSE, it featured in tracking indices that are followed by investment funds including the PIC and the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF).
Steinhoff lost about $15bn (R184.17bn) in market capitalisation as its share price plunged by almost 85% after the scandal broke.
The Financial Services Board said earlier this year that it was also probing the Steinhoff matter and is taking it seriously, but addeed that it awaited a report from PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC) which Steinhoff had contracted to independently probe what led to the accounting irregularities in the financial statements of Steinhoff from as far back as 2015.
Apple has announced that the company will further expand its Apple Music student discount pricing to 82 new countries.
These countries include Israel, Malaysia, the Philippines, Poland, Portugal, and Taiwan, according to iMore’s Rene Richtie.
The discount offers 50% off the usual subscription price.
The discount was made available in SA, in 2016.
Additionally, since 2016 the offer was also made available in the US, UK, Denmark, Ireland, Germany, Australia, and New Zealand.
According to a statement from an Apple spokesperson given to Engadget, Apple is expanding it to ”nearly all the countries where Apple Music is available”.
To qualify for the student pricing, students will need to register with UNiDAYS.
UNiDAYS is a third-party service Apple uses to verify with colleges that a student is actually actively enrolled stated in a report by 9to5Mac.
The discounted price is available for up to 48 months or whenever UNiDAYS recognises that you’re no longer a student.
When you are no longer a student, users will have to pay the full price.
Technology is fast-tracking the way people work their trade. From creating articles to marketing stories and creating video, the digital applications that make use of artificial technology is assisting people with better compiling information and presenting their work.
We take a look at five applications which can assist people with everything from interviewing to transcribing, according to the International Journalist’s Network (IJNet).
Happy Scribe
This app enables people to transfer audio and video recordings into written format.
This saves time of manually transcribing which may take up to several hours.
Created by two Dublin City University students, Andre Bastie and Marc Assens in May 2017, this app enables users to transcribe more than a hundred languages.
Users can also edit the recordings and protect it as the app features encryption software.
Enlight Videoleap
This 2017 released app similarly offers users to edit files. Text as well as audio can be added to videos. The simple-design enables users to add media such as pictures and sound by simply tapping the screen. The video can also be edited by using your fingers and moving it around.
Focos
This app, created by developer Xiaodong Wang focuses on photography. It enables journalists to capture professional photos from their mobile device.
Its design is similar to the iPhone’s portrait mode which features the “bokeh effect” to photos. This is when the background of the image is blurred, allowing for more focus on the subject.
The apps also allows for 3D imaging and you can also use different lenses.
What the app also does is it provides video tutorials which shows you how to capture images.
Astro
Astro compiles email clutter by means of an artificial assistant, Astrobot.
The assistant is able to send reminders for people to follow-up on messages.
Users can also chat with Astrobot by using Amazon Alexa.
This artificial assistant provides users with advice on how to manage emails.
Recordly
A transcription tool, Recordly enables users to transcribe interview that has been recorded on their phone.
Meanwhile, in December, Google launched three new photography apps.
The apps are called Storyboard, Selfissimo! and Scrubbies and have reportedly been released as part of a new “appsperiments” launched by Google.
The photography “appsperiments” are “usable and useful mobile technology experiences built on experimental technology”, says a statement from the Google research blog.
Storyboard
Storyboard takes video clips and instantly takes out six frames that will be laid out in comic book style template.
Selfissimo!
This app is almost like an automatic black and white photo booth on your smartphone.
Scrubbies
This app allows you to remix videos like a DJ by scrubbing back and forth through a video clip to create video loops.
Local airline company FlySafair will now offer card payments for refreshments on all of its flights.
The airline has officially launched AviaPay, a new mobile point of sale system which enables passengers to use their credit and debit cards to purchase refreshments inflight.
Additionally, the system will also provide travelers with receipts, regardless of the payment method used. According to reports, the new mobile point of sale system called AviaPay, was launched by FlySafair to enable passengers to use their credit and debit cards for purchases.
Partnerships between BlueMarket Retail Solutions, and payment service providers, PayGate and PosMarket, made the solution available to address the needs of the aviation industry.
“Not only will this make transacting easier, but it also means passengers won’t have to risk carrying cash on them,” Kirby Gordon, head of sales and distribution at FlySafair told multiple media outlets.
“There are already discussions around added functionality, and we look forward to building on a relationship that has had a fantastic start. Look out for new innovations to be launched in the near future with FlySafair,” Theron Uys, business development director at BlueMarket further said.
