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The Google Pixel 9, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold and everything else announced at the Made by Google Pixel launch event

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August used to be a relatively sleepy month for tech news — no longer! Now that Google scooted up its annual October Pixel event by two months, the tech world is abubble, going over everything execs announced from Mountain View, California at the Made By Google keynote on Tuesday. 

The Pixel 9 launch event came with enthusiastic introductions for all the hardware we expected, including the new Pixel 9 and its sizable camera bump. The Pixel 9 Pro and the larger Pixel 9 Pro XL made their official debut, too, and the new foldable, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold, does indeed measure just 0.4 inches thick. The new Pixel Watch 3 and Pixel Buds Pro 2 have now been revealed, as were plenty of software features, mostly in the form of Gemini integrations. One surprise was the not-loudly-stated fact that Pixel 9 Phones won't launch with the Android 15 operating system — they'll have Android 14 to start. For the play-by-play, you can check out our liveblog or check out Google's stream. If you just want the highlights, here's everything announced at the 2024's Made by Google Pixel event.

Various Google Pixel 9 phone handsets are arrayed on a white table.
Photo by Sam Rutherford / Engadget

What you first notice about Google's latest Pixel 9 is the redesigned look. The camera band has been replaced with oblong oval that stands proud from a slab that's about a tenth of an inch thinner than the Pixel 8. The screen size has bumped back up to 6.3 inches, after dipping to 6.2 inches on the Pixel 8, and is covered in Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2. It's got a polished glass back with satin metal finishes on the frame and cameras. 

Speaking of cameras, there's the same number as last year (two in the back, one in the front) but the previous generation's 12 MP ultrawide lens has been replaced with a 48 MP ultrawide lens. The other two cameras have the same specs, except the front cam now has autofocus for better selfies. To take advantage of those fancy sensors, new AI photography enhancements like Add Me and Reimagine join the existing Magic Editor, Night Sight and Best Take features. 

The Pixel 9 houses the same Tensor G4 chip, designed to be better at everyday tasks, while using up less battery. That's the same chip as its more expensive siblings and now the base model Pixel comes with 12GB of memory, eliminating the option of an 8GB model. That extra RAM will help handle the many Gemini integrations coming standard in Android 15. Pressing and holding the power button will overlay the assistant on whatever you're doing on-screen and can answer questions, pull details from other apps, and produce contextualized recommendations based on images you take. 

Engadget's Sam Rutherford spent some time hands-on with the Pixel 9 family of phones and so far, likes what he sees, noting that the new designs "look great" and the AI tools and features are shaping up to be useful iterations on what can otherwise seem like a buzzy bandwagon add-on. 

The Pixel 9 comes with 7 years of OS and security updates and is available in Obsidian, Porcelain, Wintergreen and Peony. Its starts at $799 for 128GB of storage and is now open for pre-orders and all Pixel 9 phones will hit the shelves August 22. 

The Pixel 9 Pro and the Pixel 9 Pro XL are propped up on a glass table with a pink pear candle in the background.
Photo by Sam Rutherford / Engadget

Those not content with a standard-issue phone can opt for the Pixel 9 Pro or the Pixel 9 Pro XL instead. Notably this year, the Pro moniker doesn't necessarily mean bigger; the Pixel 9 Pro is the same size as the regular Pixel 9, both with 6.3-inch screens. Google created a new category in its lineup with the Pixel 9 Pro XL — a phone with the the same general specs as the Pro model but with a larger, 6.8-inch display and a 5,060 mAh battery (versus the 4,700 mAh battery on the smaller version).

All three Pixel 9 models use the same Google Tensor G4 processor, but the two Pro phones have 16GB of RAM on hand to execute AI tricks and any other task you might demand from them. You can get either phone with 128GB of storage or a full terabyte. The Pro models also pack an additional 48 MP telephoto lens in the back and a heftier 42 MP selfie camera up front. 

Both come with a year's subscription to the Google One AI Premium Plan which lets you access all of the tricks Gemini can do — after the free trial, you'll need to pay $20 monthly (the plan also comes with 2TB of storage). 

The Pixel 9 Pro starts at $999 and the Pixel 9 Pro XL starts at $1,099. Both come in the same four colors: Obsidian, Porcelain, Hazel and Rose Quartz, and include a promised seven years of security and features updates. Like everything announced at the event, the phones are now open to pre-orders and will be on store shelves August 22.  

The Pixel 9 Pro Fold is open to display its interior screen.
Photo by Sam Rutherford / Engadget

We now officially know that Google's second foldable phone is not called the Pixel Fold 2, but rather the Pixel 9 Pro Fold. To go along with the enlarged name, there's a bigger, eight-inch inner screen, making it the largest on any phone out there. The outer screen is larger too, measuring 6.3 inches, up from 5.8 inches last year. Google claims the interior screen is 80 percent brighter than its predecessor and now maxes out at 2,700 nits. 

A persistent complaint with foldables is how heavy and bulky they can feel. Google hopes a few design tweaks will help with that. The Pixel 9 Pro Fold now measures just 0.4 inches when closed, making it the thinnest foldable on the market (as long as you don't count the sizable camera bump) and at 257g it's about 25 grams lighter than the Pixel Fold.  

The new foldable houses Google's Tensor G4 chip, comes standard with 16GB of RAM and offers your choice of 256GB or 512GB of storage. Like every piece of 2024 Pixel hardware, the 9 Pro Fold is tailored around Google's Gemini AI contrivances. Pressing the power button brings up the assistant, which you can use in split screen on the foldable. The phone also comes with a year of the One AI Premium plan, which jumps to $20 per month afterwards. 

The three exterior cameras include a wide, ultrawide and telephoto lens with 5x optical zoom and up to 20x Super Res Zoom. There's a 10 MP camera on both the interior and on the front of the exterior screen. And, thanks to the foldable nature of the phone you can take selfies using the more powerful rear cameras by checking out the preview of the shot on the exterior screen.  

We've already spent a little time with the new foldable and so far, like what we see. It's thinner than Z Fold 6 but packs a larger interior screen. And the AI tools the foldable enables actually seem useful.

The Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold costs the same $1,799 as the 2023 model and comes in either Obsidian or Porcelain. It too is now available for pre-order and will hit stores September 4.  

Both the 41mm and 45mm sizes of the Pixel Watch 3 are displayed on a person's wrist.
Photo by Sam Rutherford / Engadget

Last year we said the Pixel Watch 2 was "catching up to its rivals," but still took issue with the disjointed Fitbit integration and the lack of wireless charging. Fitbit is still very much a part of the Pixel Watch 3 experience and charging still requires a cable — our full review will tell us whether those are dealbreakers or not. 

The watch now comes in two sizes, with a larger 45mm case size joining the 41mm model. Thanks to thinner bezels, the 41mm display is 10 percent larger than on the Pixel Watch 2 and the 45mm screen is 40 percent larger. Both screens peak at 2,000 nits, which is twice as bright as 2023's watch, and both get as dim as 1 nit. 

There's a new readiness score and cardio load tracking, which sounds a bit like the Training Load feature in Apple's watchOS 11 — all of which give you feedback on how hard you're pushing yourself. New integrations include displaying a live feed of your Nest cams from your watch and using the wearable as a Google TV remote. The battery offers the same 24 hours of use on a charge, but Google claims recharging will be 20 percent quicker with a 30-watt wall adapter (sold separately). Call Assist will add the "hold a minute" ability, which can answer your call and ask the caller to wait until you're in a better spot or have set down whatever you're working on.  

The heart rate tracking has been updated to work more accurately while running, an activity that's particularly hard to track. Readiness score and Cardio Load combine to give you a Daily Readiness score, which tells you how intense you should work out in a given day.  

The "first of its kind" Loss of Pulse Detection feature will automatically call emergency services and direct them to your location if the algorithm detects a dangerous situation judging by your pulse, movement and other metrics. It will start out in select EU countries and parts of the UK, with more regions to come. 

The 41mm Pixel Watch 3 retails for $349 for WiFi only and $449 with LTE. The 45mm model goes for $399 or $499 if you get cellular connectivity. Both come in your choice of black or silver, with an added hazel hue for the larger case size. You can pre-order them now and the watches will be on the shelves on September 10. 

A closeup of the Pixel Buds Pro 2 in Wintergreen sit on a green rock.
Photo by Sam Rutherford / Engadget

Despite being smaller and lighter, the Pixel Buds Pro 2 somehow manage to pack an extra hour of battery life compared to the Pixel Buds Pro, now getting up to 12 hours of play with noise cancellation off. The Silent Seal feature is back and now should reduce twice as much noise as before. Plus they'll support Spatial audio with head tracking — but only when paired with a Pixel 6 or newer phone or a Pixel Tablet.  

The Tensor chip inside, the first in a pair of Google earbuds, enables the new features and the company claims it can process audio significantly faster in order to adapt to your environment. And thanks to multi-path processing, noise-cancellation computations don't happen on the same channel as the audio, so the music you hear is unaltered.  

New "twist-to-adjust" stabilizers should keep the buds in place when you're working out, but can be rotated in the other direction for a more comfortable feel. Conversation Detection is back, meaning you won't have to pull out a bud when you need to talk to someone — instead the music pauses when you start speaking and resumes when you're done. The Buds claim to be the lightest noise cancelling earbuds in their class. 

And of course, Gemini is built-in. You can do things like ask for walking directions or access your email. It also supports Gemini Live, which Google's Sandeep Waraich demonstrated on stage by using the prompt "Let's talk live." Gemini suggested things like breathing techniques to stay calm in a crowd and tips on how to approach a person they admire.  

The Pixel Buds 2 Pro are available to pre-order now and will be on shelves on September 26. They come in Porcelain, Hazel, Wintergreen and Peony, and are selling for $229, which is $29 more than the Pixel Buds Pro were at launch. 

The new Pixel Screenshot app is only available on Pixel 9 phones at launch (no word yet on wider availability) and uses Gemini Nano (the on-board AI model) to save, extract and organize info you might otherwise forget the origin of. For example, you can take a screenshot of an Instagram post about a music festival and the AI will give you a summary as well as buttons to do things like add dates to your calendar the next time you access that screenshot from the app. A screenshot of a restaurant should produce options to call the business or navigate there via Google Maps. 

Google says you should also be able to ask natural questions using the microphone, and Pixel Screenshots will either answer it outright and bring up relevant annotated images. The app launches today, along with everything else and while it's reminiscent of Apple's redesigned Photos app, we'll have to try it for ourselves to really suss out all the differences. 

The one thing we expected that didn't come into play was the launch of Android 15 — we heard a little about the new operating system during May's Google I/O event. But now we know it's not coming right away. New Pixel Phones will launch with Android 14. The Google execs didn't hit that fact very hard, but a look at the Pixel 9 spec sheet confirms it. It's possible the new OS simply wasn't ready for a bumped up release date, as the hardware was, and Android 15 may very well be sticking with its October launch date. We won't be surprised to see the OS drop later this fall.

When it comes, Android 15 will, unsurprisingly, revolve around giving Gemini the reigns and letting Google's AI do your bidding. But all of those AI features will still be available when the phones launch, even if they're running Android 14. 

Google has revamped its Assistant around Gemini. Google hardware Chief Rick Osterloh said, "It's the biggest leap forward since we launched Google Assistant." And Google promises that the assistant won't just be for fancy new flagship devices, but existing mid-range ones as well — and not just Google phones, but all Android phones. Some of the event's live demos were performed on Samsung and Motorola handsets (although there were a few hiccups). President of Android, Sameer Samat, called Gemini the "most widely available AI Assistant." 

Gemini can be pulled up over whatever app you're using and answer your questions about what's on screen. Circle to Share lets you quickly send whatever you happen to be looking at to your contacts with just a couple taps.

You can now also ask Gemini to access files in your Drive or messages in your Gmail account to generate text-based content like bios, workout plans or itineraries. To keep your personal details private, requests involving the most sensitive info are handled by Gemini Nano, an AI model that lives on your phone.

Other examples included asking Gemini to create a list of the foods a YouTuber ate in a video and then adding those to a list. Or asking it to create a playlist described by vibes. With Gemini Live, you get a few new voices, including Dipper, Ursa and Vega. Gemini Live hits hard on the conversational aspect, and the responses did indeed sound natural — especially when you don't have to keep saying "hey Google."

Pixel Weather, a redesigned weather app for the Pixel 9 family, comes with a handy AI summary and is completely customizable. Call Notes can give you an AI-powered summary of a call after you hang up. You can even review the full transcript. For privacy, the transcriptions and summaries are taken care of on-device instead of sending it to the cloud. Of course it's completely optional. 

Other features revealed in Mountain View include the Add Me feature in photos — which NBA All Star Jimmy Butler came on stage to demonstrate. The AI trick allows the photographer to be in the shot by taking one photo without them, and then another with them in place, then AI merges the photos, ensuring reality's increasing subjectivity. 

Pixel Studio can create images using text prompts and suggestions for different styles fonts. Google's Alexander Schiffhauer noted that thanks to RCS coming to iPhone, these and other images will appear the same for everyone in text message conversations.  

On the Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold, the Made You Look feature will get your toddler to look at the camera and smile by displaying fun cartoon characters on the exterior screen while you take the image with the rear camera. Magic Editor combines classic photo editing with AI interpretations and generative AI capabilities so you can, for instance, add wildflowers and a hot air balloon to an image you took where the grass was boring and the sky was clear.  

We also got a quick look at where Google's research in AI is leading. Google hardware Chief Rick Osterloh told us that Gemini will continue to evolve, particularly through integration with Project Astra, Google's deep mind research prototype, which was demonstrated back at I/O earlier this year. The goal is an even more natural and context-aware assistant, allowing Gemini Live to understand your questions and pics to help you get things done, such as homework, brainstorming and more complex tasks like how to open a business.   

Catch up on all the news from Google’s Pixel 9 launch event right here!

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/the-google-pixel-9-the-pixel-9-pro-fold-and-everything-else-announced-at-the-made-by-google-pixel-launch-event-170033517.html?src=rss

The Pixel Screenshots app uses AI to scour the screengrabs I can’t remember why I saved

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About 50 percent of my photo album is receipts. That is, screenshots of everything I consider even mildly interesting. Whether it’s Uber drivers who never seem to be getting closer, hot tea from my friend’s Instagram Stories or unfathomable email threads, my gallery is full of unexplainable internet detritus. Best of all, just from viewing their thumbnails, I can never know where exactly a specific image is, because walls of text all look the same from afar. So when Google announced its new Pixel Screenshots app at its Made By Google event today, I was excessively excited.

The Screenshots app launches alongside the Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro Fold, and uses Gemini AI to help locate specific images. After you grant the app access to your photos, the AI will not only ingest files it thinks are screenshots, but also start identifying what’s within each picture.

On the home page, you’ll see a row at the top called “Collections,” with a series of pre-organized snaps like “Gift Ideas,” “Boots” or “Places to visit.” These can be curated by yourself or suggested by the system.

Below this row is a grid of all your most recent captures, and at the bottom is a search bar and a Plus symbol next to it. Pressing that symbol will let you either launch the camera or import a photo from your album. This is helpful for pictures you’ve taken of real-world signs that contain information you want Gemini AI to help remember.

Tapping each screenshot in this app will expand the image and bring up a title, summary and buttons based on its contents. These are all AI-generated, so if you’re looking at a picture of a music festival’s Instagram post about upcoming dates, the title might say “Lollapalooza headline acts” with buttons to add specific events from that picture to your calendar. If you’ve pulled up an image of a restaurant’s website, then Screenshots might offer shortcuts to call the shop or navigate to the business address via Maps.

From the home page, you can either type into the search bar or tap the microphone icon in it and ask Google for things like “What was Sam’s WiFi password?” or “How much do I owe Cherlynn?” The app will scour your gallery and not only return images with possibly relevant info, but also attempt to answer your question up top. In the demo I saw at a recent hands-on event, a Google rep asked the app “When do the tickets for the festival go on sale?”

Screenshots responded almost instantly by pulling up a picture of a folk festival’s Instagram post, and seconds later showed the words “The tickets for the festival go on sale on August 5th.” This example was particularly impressive as there were multiple dates noted in the screenshot, one for the ticket sales starting and one for the festival itself kicking off. From the same interface, the company’s rep was able to get the Pixel 9 to set a reminder to buy the tickets in time.

It’s kind of a coincidence that Google is launching this app today, considering Apple’s redesign of its Photos app also pays extra attention to organizing and filtering out screenshots. My experience of both approaches is extremely limited at the moment, but currently I slightly prefer Google’s Screenshots app. It feels like a more focused and deliberate way to look for information and get help from AI, rather than possibly getting distracted by my million selfies in the Photos app on my iPhone when I’m trying to look for a bank statement, perhaps.

The use of AI to make sense of our screenshots feels like a smart one, though there are of course privacy concerns. Microsoft already had to hit pause on the rollout of its Recall feature that was supposed to remember everything you were doing on your computer by taking screenshots every few seconds. Google’s Screenshots app uses Gemini Nano, which is its on-device AI model for local processing, and the company says this feature won’t share your screenshots offline (beyond the backups you might already have opted in to via Google Photos).

The Pixel Screenshots app will be on the Pixel 9 family at launch, and the company has nothing to share on wider availability at the moment. But based on how Google has launched and rolled out apps like Recorder in the past, it’s likely that older Pixel devices will get Screenshots in time, as long as it’s received well by users.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/the-pixel-screenshots-app-uses-ai-to-scour-the-screengrabs-i-cant-remember-why-i-saved-170043423.html?src=rss

Google Pixel 9 and 9 Pro hands-on: A smart evolution, and a smaller Pro model

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With the new Pixel 9, Google is continuing its push for more AI-powered features while also developing a more durable design and addressing one of my longest-running requests: the addition of a more compact Pro model.

Unlike previous generations, the Pixel 9 line will now be divided across three handsets. There’s the base Pixel 9 which features a 6.3-inch screen, the 6.8-inch Pixel 9 Pro XL and the newest member of the family: the Pixel 9 Pro, which has all the same features as the Pro XL but in a smaller chassis with a 6.3-inch screen. In essence, the P9 Pro is for everyone who always wanted the extra telephoto camera you got on previous top-tier Google phones, but without the need to upgrade to a physically larger device.

The standard Pixel 9 will be available in four colors: obsidian, porcelain, wintergreen and peony.
The standard Pixel 9 will be available in four colors: obsidian, porcelain, wintergreen and peony.
Photo by Sam Rutherford/Engadget

All three models are powered by Google’s latest Tensor G4 chip. However, when compared to the regular Pixel 9, while it has the same size screen, the P9 Pro’s display sports a slightly higher resolution (1,280 x 2856 versus 1,080 x 2,424) and better peak brightness (3,000 nits vs 2,700 nits). It also gets more storage size options (up to 1TB) and 16GB of RAM instead of 12GB like on the base model. However, both the Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro feature the same 4,700 mAh batteries, so longevity should be quite comparable.

Now that we got that out of the way, we can look at the line’s updated design. Every model features Gorilla Glass Victus 2 in front and back along with a boxier frame that Google claims is twice as durable as the previous generation. There are also a few small cosmetic differences such as a different color options (the most notable is peony on the Pixel 9 and rose quartz on the Pro and Pro XL) and a matte satin finish on the base model versus a shiny, polished treatment for the more expensive Pro phones.

From the front, it almost looks like Google is stealing a page out of Apple’s playbook, as both the Pixel 9 and iPhone 14 have similar silhouettes with flat sides and rounded corners. But everything changes when you flip the phone around. Gone is the camera bar that recent Pixels had become known for and in its place is a tall pill-shaped module that looks kind of like a visor. It’s almost like what an Among Us character would look like if you made one into a phone.

For 2024, Google's top-tier phone will be split into two models: the 6.3-inch Pixel 9 Pro (left) and the 6.8-inch Pixel 9 Pro XL (right).
For 2024, Google's top-tier phone will be split into two models: the 6.3-inch Pixel 9 Pro (left) and the 6.8-inch Pixel 9 Pro XL (right).
Photo by Sam Rutherford/Engadget

But more importantly, Google has upgraded the Pixel 9 line’s camera sensors with a new 50-MP main camera, a 48-MP ultra-wide that can also shoot macros and, for the Pro and Pro XL, a third 48-MP cam with a 5x telephoto zoom. Unfortunately, it was hard to get a good sense of how much image quality has improved during my short hands-on session, but I’d argue the biggest improvements are some of Google’s new camera features anyway.

This includes the debut of Zoom Enhance, which was originally teased back during the launch of the Pixel 8 but hadn’t been officially released until now. It takes soft blurry images and uses AI to increase both detail and sharpness. But the most impressive thing is that it seems to deliver on the TV show magic from series like CSI, where you can just press a button and suddenly a blurry pic becomes clear as day.

In Google’s Magic Editor, there are two additions called Autoframe and Reimagine. The former relies on machine learning to analyze existing shots and recompose them to better highlight the subject or their surroundings while filling in the blanks similar to how the Content-Aware Fill tool works in Photoshop. Meanwhile, the latter can add new elements to a photo (it works best on foregrounds and backgrounds) simply by typing something in the prompt box. During our session, I replaced a road with a raging river with surprisingly good results.

There’s also the Add Me tool, which uses augmented reality guides to help you shoot two group shots with different people holding the phone before merging everything together. This means that everyone can be in the final image without needing to ask a stranger for help. And as an expansion of last year’s Video Boost tool, you can now shoot videos with up to 20x zoom or clips with up to 8K resolution.

But perhaps the most intriguing new software is two new exclusive standalone apps: Pixel Screenshots and Pixel Studio. Pixel Screenshots is very straightforward as it uses AI to analyze and search through all your saved screenshots so that you can easily retrieve information like reservations, things mentioned in a text or anything else. That said, unlike Microsoft’s Recall feature in Windows 11, the Pixel 9 doesn’t create screenshots and save screenshots automatically, you have to do that on your own. This potentially sidesteps some of the more pressing security concerns, especially as everything in the Pixel Screenshots app happens on device.

The new Pixel Screenshots app on the Pixel 9 uses AI to help search and organize all your screencaps.
The new Pixel Screenshots app on the Pixel 9 uses on-device AI to help search and organize all your screencaps.
Photo by Sam Rutherford/Engadget

Alternatively, for people who want to create brand new images, the Pixel Studio app uses AI to generate pretty much anything you can think of. You can even make custom stickers with your friends’ faces and combine them with other materials to create things like invitations.

Elsewhere, the Pixel Weather app features new AI-generated summaries of the day’s conditions, while updates to Clear Calling and the new Call Notes feature allow you to better hear and transcribe what’s being said. Finally, for more adventurous folk, Google’s Satellite SOS feature will allow you to text emergency services for help even when your phone doesn’t have a cellular or Wi-Fi connection. The service will be free for the first two years, though it remains to be seen how much it will cost after that.

Critically, both versions of the Pixel 9 Pro will feature a telephoto camera with a 5x optical zoom.
Photo by Sam Rutherford/Engadget

All in all, the new Pixel 9 family isn’t a major departure from last year’s phones. That said, I think Google’s revamped designs look great and there are a ton of individual features and tools that seem quite powerful. So even if you might not have plans for all of them, stuff like Satellite SOS, Add Me or the Pixel Studio could make or break certain situations. Then you combine that best-in-class image quality, great screens with top-notch brightness. But the biggest ongoing development is how Google continues to build out its library of class-leading software and services. The Pixel is already home to powerful features like the Pixel Recorder, Call Screener and more, and now it’s getting support for Satellite SOS plus apps like the Pixel Studio, which is essentially a self-contained alternative to services like Midjourney. Year by year, it feels like Google is continuing to grow its lead in AI and software.

The standard Pixel 9 starts at $799 and will be available in four colors: obsidian, porcelain, wintergreen and peony. The Pixel 9 Pro and 9 Pro XL start at $999 and $1,099 respectively, and will be available in obsidian, porcelain, hazel and rose quartz. Pre-orders go live today with official sales beginning on August 22.

Catch up on all the news from Google’s Pixel 9 launch event right here!

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/google-pixel-9-and-9-pro-hands-on-a-smart-evolution-and-a-smaller-pro-model-170015733.html?src=rss

Opera’s AI-focused web browser One is now on iOS

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Opera One, the browser with a focus on generative AI features that Opera launched for desktop last year, is now available for iOS devices. It retains its desktop counterpart's cleaner look, but it comes with a full screen interface and features specifically designed for mobile use. The company said it experienced a 63 percent growth in new users across the European Union after the Digital Markets Act was implemented, and now it has "embraced the opportunities presented by the new regulatory landscape."

Users will be able to move their search bar to the bottom of the screen if that will make it easier to type in queries on the go, especially if they're only using one hand. They can also activate the search bar simply by swiping down in the same way they'd swipe down to look for apps on their phone, as well. In addition, the browser's updated search function can make it faster to look up information: As soon as they start typing, a set of predictive chips will show up right above their keyboard with several possible options, including complete URLs for websites they may want to visit. The colors of the browser's top bar and bottom search bar change to blend in with the website the user is visiting, and both bars disappear when the user starts browsing.

And since Opera One has a focus on generative AI features, it comes with the company's Aria built-in browser assistant. Aria now has voice input, so users can speak queries out loud. Plus, users will be able to ask Aria to generate images using Google’s Imagen2 image generation model. Finally, since Opera puts a focus on security, the One iOS browser comes with a built-in ad blocker and free VPN.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/operas-ai-focused-web-browser-one-is-now-on-ios-130013697.html?src=rss

Patreon will have to use Apple’s in-app purchase system or be removed from the App Store

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Apple takes a lot of strong positions, but their ultimate hill to die on might just be requiring apps to make purchases through the tech giant. The latest example comes from Patreon, which announced that Apple is requiring it to switch over to the iOS in-app purchase system or risk expulsion. Patreon's entire purpose is to allow creators to offer "patrons" memberships in exchange for content. While some tiers are unpaid, creators offer paid options to make money — something this shift could impact. 

Patreon users need to know about two main changes. By this November, all creators can only offer a subscription-based plan on iOS as the app store doesn't support other formats, such as first-of-the-month or per-creation plans. As a result, Patreon is rolling out a 16-month-long migration process that will shift all memberships to subscriptions by November 2025. At that point, subscription-based plans will be the only option available, unfortunately proving Apple's far-reaching power. 

Apple will also be taking a 30 percent cut on all subscriptions made on the Patreon iOS app after November of this year — something its done for Patreon in-app commerce purchases since early 2024. Patreon has designed a tool that allows creators to increase their prices on the iOS app and leave them as is on the browser site and Android devices. However, creators can turn it off if they'd rather leave their rates as is. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/patreon-will-have-to-use-apples-in-app-purchase-system-or-be-removed-from-the-app-store-192631471.html?src=rss

Intel is bringing GPUs to cars

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Intel has unveiled a discrete GPU for cars, the Arc A760A, designed to bring the "triple-A gaming experience" from home over to your car, the company announced. No automotive partners were revealed, but vehicles with the new chips will go on sale as soon as 2025. 

With car buyers increasingly focused on in-vehicle entertainment above all else, the chips are designed to "unlock a new era of AI-powered cockpit experiences," according to Intel's press release. 

The GPUs will allow voice, camera and gesture recognition to make it easy to control up to "seven high-definition screens rendering 3D graphics and six-in vehicle cameras and interactive features." At the same time, it can supposedly run demanding triple-A gaming titles, in-vehicle entertainment and AI-powered productivity apps.

Intel is bringing GPUs to cars
Intel

The system will also be highly personalized to the driver. It'll include the ability to "execute complex vehicle control commands through natural language processing, answer vehicle-related questions accurately, and even engage in leisurely chat with users, providing a more interactive and enjoyable journey," according to Intel.

Intel added that it has created over 500 features and AI apps for automobiles, with over 100 independent software vendors working on in-vehicle experiences. In addition, the A760A will be fully compatible with software developed for its iGPU PC platform, while scaling from entry- and mid-tier vehicles up to higher-end cars. 

Intel said it wants to be the "go-to partner for automakers." It's clearly looking to diversify its offerings in the wake of quality-control problems with recent PC chips and financial woes that may see it lay off up to 15,000 employees. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/intel-is-bringing-gpus-to-cars-120057738.html?src=rss

Proton Pass now supports Touch ID and Windows Hello biometric logins

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Proton’s password manager is gradually catching up with rivals like 1Password. The company, known initially for its encrypted email and VPN services, added biometric authentication to its Proton Pass app, which came out of beta earlier this year. The feature works with Touch ID on macOS and Windows Hello on Microsoft’s desktop OS.

Like with many other services, biometric authentication lets Proton Pass users quickly unlock the security app using their fingerprint or face without typing the login password every time. However, it isn’t available for free users: Only those on a Pass Plus plan (and above) get access. The minimum plan costs $23.88 annually or $4.99 if you’d rather pay monthly.

Proton is also fleshing out its password manager to include identities, meaning it can autofill forms with your contact info in one click. Similar to biometric authentication, this type of feature has been seen countless times in competing products. Still, it (along with the recent addition of dark-web scouring) shows Proton is dedicated to building out its encryption-focused password manager, which initially launched in beta in early 2023.

Unlike biometric logins, identities are available for free users — not just those on a paid plan.

“With the introduction of identities and biometric authentication, Proton Pass is significantly boosting productivity for our users,” said Son Nguyen Kim, Proton Pass product lead. “These features not only enhance our security offerings but also streamline everyday tasks, allowing users to save time and reduce stress in managing their digital lives.”

The new features are available today in the Proton Pass app for Windows and Mac.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/proton-pass-now-supports-touch-id-and-windows-hello-biometric-logins-100025225.html?src=rss

Sonos is delaying two product launches until it fixes its buggy app

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Last quarter should've been a triumphant one for Sonos with the launch of its first headphones, but the company is facing the realities of its botched app redesign. CEO Patrick Spence explained in the company's Q3 earnings press release that Sonos has reduced its 2024 fiscal guidance as a result of "problems" both customers and partners encountered with the software update. But, the issues don't stop with revenue. The company also said on its earnings call it will delay two new product launches planned for Q4 until the app is fixed.  

“Thanks to Ace, our long-awaited entry into headphones, we reported year over year revenue growth and delivered results that slightly exceeded our expectations in our third quarter,” Spence said. “This was overshadowed by the problems that our customers and partners experienced as a result of the rollout of our new app, which in turn has required us to reduce our Fiscal 2024 guidance. We have a clear action plan to address the issues caused by our app as quickly as possible."

Spence said the new products were ready to ship in Q4, but that right now "our number one priority is to make this right and ensure that the next chapter is even better than the previous ones." Of course, the company hasn't officially discussed exactly what those two products are just yet. Bloomberg reported late last year that Sonos was working on a set-top TV streaming box and a successor to its premium Arc soundbar. The CEO also admitted during the call that the total cost of fixing the issues with the app will cost the company $20-$30 million. However, Spence is confident Sonos will bounce back, describing this as only one "chapter" in the company's history.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/speakers/sonos-is-delaying-two-product-launches-until-it-fixes-its-buggy-app-213743460.html?src=rss

macOS Sequoia may require weekly permissions for screen recording apps

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macOS Sequoia will require regular permissions updates to use screen recording and screen-sharing capabilities. The software is in its public beta, and the new Apple operating system has added pop-up notifications that will ask users to confirm that software has access to the device's video and audio. For now, there doesn't appear to be a way to permanently grant permissions to third-party apps. Developers confirmed with 9to5Mac that this is a feature, not a bug. We've reached out to Apple for more information and will update this post with any additional details we receive.

These permissions alerts in Sequoia will pop up weekly, as well as the first time a relevant app is opened after a reboot. This security feature will be triggered by both third-party apps focused on screen recording and general programs that have screen-sharing capabilities, such as Zoom, Slack or Discord.

This feature might remind you of the User Account Controls from the Windows Vista days. We haven't run into this permissions issue in our time with the beta version of macOS Sequoia, so it's hard to say if the Apple version will be quite as infuriating as the Microsoft pop-ups.

macOS Sequoia does bring other useful updates to the computing experience. As well as introducing AI features with Apple Intelligence, the update will let users see their iPhone screen mirrored on their Macbooks, and can block distracting pop-ups in Safari.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/macos-sequoia-may-require-weekly-permissions-for-screen-recording-apps-215854870.html?src=rss

Apple’s latest iOS 18 beta walks back some changes to the redesigned Photos app

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Apple is pumping the brakes on some of its updates to the Photos app in iOS 18. The company made some changes — removing some features and tweaking others — on Monday to address user feedback. The pared-down version can be found in the software’s fifth developer beta, which app makers can install today.

The biggest change is that Apple removed the Carousel from the Photos app altogether. The iOS 18 feature used “on-device intelligence” (which, confusingly, isn’t the same as Apple Intelligence) to aggregate what it thought was your best content, placing them in a swipeable row. Previously found to the right of the photo grid, it’s now gone altogether, helping Apple clean up one of the features that earned a healthy dose of complaints from beta testers.

In addition, Apple tweaked the All Photos view in today’s update to show more of the photos grid. The company also added Recently Saved content to the Recent Days collection. Finally, Apple made albums easier to find for users with more than one. (The difficulty of locating that section was a frequently echoed complaint among testers.)

Two iPhones showing different views of the overhauled iOS 18 Photos app. White background.
Apple

Apple pitched the changes to the Photos app as one of the pillars of its 2024 software update. Although the app is streamlined into a single view and designed to be more customizable, it too often ends up as a mishmash of extra features most people won’t need, sometimes getting in the way of finding what you’re looking for.

A Reddit thread from July with over 1,000 upvotes gave voice to some of the most frequent complaints. “Once again taking a rapid-use app and making it into an experience for no reason,” u/thiskillstheredditor commented. “I just want a camera roll and maybe the ability to sort photos by location. It was perfectly fine, if maybe a bit bloated, before. But this is an unmitigated mess.”

Time will tell if today’s updates are enough to clean up the app’s user experience ahead of iOS 18’s fall launch to the public. The changes aren’t yet in the public beta but will likely appear there in the next version or soon after.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apples-latest-ios-18-beta-walks-back-some-changes-to-the-redesigned-photos-app-180145232.html?src=rss