Category: Tech News

BenQ Unlocks the World’s First 4LED 4K HDR Gaming Projector for Console Gaming

BenQ, the global leading brand for projectors, launched the X3000i, bringing the finest ever audio–visual performance to a grand projected scale. Gaming scenes are delivered with 100% DCI-P3 wide color gamut coverage powered by BenQ’s exclusive CinematicColor™ technology. This is paired with the enveloping treVolo sound system and input lag as low as 4ms, allowing gamers to traverse to open-world games imbued with live realism.

For a truly immersive gaming experience, the X3000i draws gamers deeply into the plot of the game with authentic colors balanced with true 4K UHD, high 3000 ANSI Lumens visual brightness, crisp 500,000:1 super high contrast with Dynamic Black algorithms, 3D readiness, and projector-optimized HDR with HDR10 / HLG support ensuring futureproof visual performance, while the 4LED light source with auto color calibration guarantees years of gaming enjoyment. Furthermore, all of this is combined with the lag-free control that comes from the 4ms response time at 240Hz frame rate.

Adding to the visuals with audio enhancement, the X3000i fully envelopes players in two powerful 5W stereo speakers that are tuned by BenQ’s treVolo audio team and enhanced by Bongiovi DSP (Digital Signal Processor) with Dynamic Stereo Enhancement, offering aural details with more surrounded, three-dimensional game sounds. Audio can be output to an external sound system via HDMI eARC for the ultimate cinematic experience.

The realness of all interactions can be further discovered through role playing, first-person shooter, and sports games as the X3000i is equipped with specially-designed preset game modes. The depth, clarity, definition, and presence of the surrounding deep bass background music, approaching footsteps and clear vocals are emphasized respectively, revealing the true colors the games originally intended to display. These carefully calibrated settings are also applicable in projector models such as the TK700STi and TK700, complementing a full projector lineup that’s dedicated to gaming.

Styled in dynamic design to complement any game room and setup flexibility of 1.3x zoom, 2D keystone, and advanced AV connectivity, the X3000i’s 4LED light source provides over 30,000 hours or 10+ years of vibrant colors and gorgeous gaming quality without the need for lamp replacement. Console gamers who play for hours on end can carefully explore their adventures and show the world who they aspire to be with ease.

The X3000i is available in March. For more information, please visit the X3000i product page or the BenQ Gaming Projector website.

Advanced computer simulations shed intriguing new light on magma deep below Earth’s surface

Unlike the classic Jules Verne science fiction novel Journey to the Center of the Earth or movie The Core, humans cannot venture into the Earth’s interior beyond a few kilometres of its surface. But thanks to latest advances in computer modelling, an international team of researchers led by the University of Bristol has shed new light on the properties and behaviour of magma found several hundreds of kilometres deep within the Earth.

The study showed water-rich (hydrous) magmas (extremely hot liquid rocks) formed in the Earth’s mantle – the layer beneath its crust – are more buoyant and fluid than previously believed. This discovery allows us to predict how and where hydrous magmas move within Earth’s interior, which means the amount of water in these realms can be more reliably predicted, furthering understanding of the deep Earth water cycle.

Lead author Dr James Drewitt, Senior Research Associate at the University of Bristol, said: “It’s really exciting to be able to explore the nature and properties of magma hundreds of kilometres beneath our feet. Although previous knowledge is limited, it was widely thought these water-rich molten rocks, called hydrous magma, would be denser than the solid rock above them and so would form vast pools of magma at depths close to 400km.

“However, we were not convinced by this theory, as it relies on chemical compositions which are unrepresentative of natural magmas, as known from high-pressure laboratory experiments. We wanted to determine the properties of hydrous magmas to model their behaviour, how they flow and where they go after forming in the deep mantle, to provide more accurate insight into the deep Earth water cycle, which is tightly connected to Earth’s habitability.”

The researchers used ARCHER, the UK’s national supercomputing service, to simulate the physical properties of magma at the extreme conditions on the boundary of Earth’s upper and lower mantle at temperatures up to 1600°C and 250,000 times atmospheric pressure. This region, at depths of 410-660km, is known as the transition zone and contains solid rocks capable of storing several ocean’s worth of water.

The high water content means rocks just above and below the transition zone will melt at a lower temperature than elsewhere in the Earth’s mantle, resulting in the formation of water-rich or ‘hydrous’ magmas. Their physical properties, including density and viscosity – in other words how freely they flow – have been shrouded in mystery, so little was known about how they behave and where they ultimately go.

 

Dr Drewitt said: “Using advanced computational techniques to model hydrous magmas down to the atomic-scale, we discovered natural hydrous magmas will be more buoyant and fluid than expected, and will therefore rise through the upper mantle towards the surface, rather like the wax rising in a lava lamp.

“By incorporating these findings into global mantle circulation models, we found that over geological timescales water in hydrous magmas was transported from the lower and mid-mantle towards the upper mantle, resulting in a similar mass of water found in all Earth’s oceans combined evenly distributed throughout the mantle of the present-day Earth.”

The three-year-long study, funded by the UK’s Natural Environment Research Council, involved physicists and Earth scientists from universities in the UK, United States, and China.

Paper

‘Hydrous silicate melts and the deep mantle H2O cycle’ by James Drewitt et al in Earth and Planetary Science Letters’

High-speed fibre internet continues its strong growth in OECD countries as DSL declines

High-speed fibre subscriptions grew by 15% across OECD countries from June 2020 to June 2021, as living and working under Covid-19 restrictions continued to drive demand for high-quality internet connections with the rapid upload and download speeds that fibre offers.

The latest update to the OECD’s broadband portal shows fibre now makes up 32% of fixed broadband subscriptions across the OECD’s 38 member countries, up from 12% a decade ago, and is by far the fastest-growing broadband technology, outpacing a 4.5% rise in overall fixed broadband subscriptions. While countries use different technology mixes, 23 OECD countries have now a higher share of fibre than copper-wire DSL in their total fixed broadband connections, up from 20 countries a year ago.

Cable showed more modest growth of 4% in the year to June 2021, and is now declining in 15 countries, yet it remains the main fixed broadband technology for nine OECD countries. DSL subscriptions declined by 6% over the same period, with several OECD countries showing sharp declines.

 

Fibre, DSL and cable subscriptions in total fixed broadband, June 2021

Latin American OECD countries saw significant increases in fibre with growth rates of 74% for Costa Rica, 71% for Chile, 43% for Colombia and 26% for Mexico. Other countries with impressive growth in fibre connections include Israel with 76%, Ireland with 54% and Italy with 53%. Seven countries now have a fibre share of above 70% of their fixed broadband subscriptions: Korea with 86%, Japan with 83%, Lithuania with 77%, Spain with 76%, Sweden with 76%, Iceland with 72% and Latvia with 71%.

Cable remains dominant in North and South America, accounting for 64% of subscriptions in the United States, 62% in Costa Rica, 61% in Colombia, 50% in Canada, 42% in Mexico and 41.4% in Chile, where fibre has overtaken it. In Europe cable is the dominant technology in Belgium (53%), Hungary (46.4%), and The Netherlands (46%).

DSL connections, meanwhile, saw sharp declines of over 30% in Chile (-37%), New Zealand (-32%), Norway (-40%), Spain (-32%), and Sweden (-31%).  Some operators in OECD countries are in the process of shutting down copper connections altogether, for instance in France, Japan, Estonia, Finland, Sweden and Spain.

Mobile broadband continued its inexorable growth with a 6.3% increase in subscriptions in the year to June 2021, a higher rate of growth than in the two previous periods (3.6% in June 2019-June 2020 and 5.8% in June 2018-June 2019.) In contrast, the number of data-only subscriptions declined in 17 out of 38 countries and this category experienced a 0.4% drop in subscriptions. This could be due to greater use of fixed networks at home during Covid-19, which tend to offer a better connection quality for work, education, and leisure.

M2M SIM cards have grown by an impressive 16%, with Sweden, Austria, Iceland and the Netherlands dominating the ranking, having 175.6, 82.5, 82.3 and 50.3 M2M cards respectively per 100 inhabitants.

Overall, fixed broadband subscriptions in OECD countries totalled 462.5 million as of June 2021, up from 443 million a year earlier, to average 33.8 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants. Mobile broadband subscriptions totalled 1.67 billion as of June 2021, up from 1.57 billion a year earlier, and averaged 122 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants.

Download broadband data, charts and penetration maps by country at http://oe.cd/broadband.

Atom Studios launches range of sustainable Samsung phone cases following success of Apple collection

Atom Studios, a smartphone accessories brand formed in 2021 by a team of tech and accessory industry experts, has today launched a new case for Samsung phones following the success of its debut Apple range.

The new Samsung case, called Touch, is available for the S22 and S22+ Samsung Galaxy models and is designed with tactility in mind; the soft-touch silicone outer chosen by Atom Studios was designed to be touched and feels ultra-soft in hand. It also has a grippy finish that makes the case less likely to slip from hands and a microfibre interior lining softly cushions the phone from scratches and bumps.

While plastic, a material commonly used in phone cases, tends to be made from crude oil that’s extracted from the ground – a non-renewable resource – Atom Studios chose to use silicone which is made from silica, a substance easily found in sand. While this can’t be considered an unlimited resource, it’s certainly more abundant.

The case boasts a strong construction with a 1mm raised edge to protect the phone’s screen from contact damage when dropped. Atom Studios also designed Touch to be incredibly slim so it’s protective without adding bulk, ideal for those who like to keep their phone in their pocket.

The case is fully QI wireless charging compatible so users needn’t remove their phone from the case while charging.

 

 

Atom Studios initially launched to market in March 2021 with a range of iPhone and AirPods Pro cases and innovative universal charging cables and cable weights that hold cables in place while not in use. Following a successful launch into the UK, Europe and Asia, which included telecoms giant Three becoming a stockist, the brand diversified its range of products to include screen protectors for iPhones, universal charging plugs and now a range of Samsung cases.

“The natural progression of the Atom Studios brand is to expand our range of smartphone accessories so that we cater to all customer’s needs,” Akbar Ali, Creative Director at Atom Studios, “we started with Apple and now Samsung and we’re constantly adding new innovations to our range. Initially we were cautious, because starting a business during the pandemic came with a lot of challenges including the instability of retail opening, and shopper confidence fluctuating. But despite those challenges, the launch exceeded expectations. Multiple markets have shown strong interest in our products demonstrating that there is a rising consumer need for tech accessories that look great and perform brilliantly – all whilst being sustainable. You no longer need to choose between great design and sustainability.” 

Sustainability is a primary focus for Atom Studios across all areas of the business. From the long lasting eco materials they choose, to the right production and transportation methods, and also a full life cycle management process in which customers can return their Atom Studios cases when they’ve finished with them, so they can be properly disposed of or recycled.

Touch is available now from Atom Studios, Amazon and Three with an RRP of £34.99.

Irish romantics reveal their top dishes for Valentine’s Day

Food and love have strong associations and a home-cooked dinner with the one we love will be on the menu for many Irish people this Valentine’s Day. But what are the top dishes? As Valentine’s Day approaches, digital magazine and newspaper subscription app Readly reveals which recipes we are searching for ahead of the most romantic day of the year.

With over 6,300 titles on its platform, Readly, the European category leader for digital magazines, saw a continued interest in its food category in the last year with it being the number one indoor hobby. The number of bookmarked pages also increased by 46% and the majority of these were recipes saved on the app.
The data from Readly shows that searches for recipes by those living in Ireland in the run up to Valentine’s Day are mainly dominated by meats, slow cooking and international comfort themed dishes such as ravioli and chicken chow mein. A classic Irish stew will be on the menu for many whilst lighter options include a barley salad and salmon.  American themed desserts also featured on the list as did Ottolenghi dishes for those experimenting with colour and vivid tastes.

Top 10 most searched recipes for Valentine’s Day:

  1. Greek lamb
  2. Slow cooked one pot
  3. Ottolenghi
  4. Ravioli
  5. Roast chicken
  6. Irish stew
  7. Chicken chow mein
  8. American cake
  9. Salmon and leek one pot
  10. Cheese cake

– Recipe searches are some of our most bookmarked pages and are particularly popular around Valentine’s Day when people look to find inspiration and something special to cook for their date night. The pandemic has caused us to crave hearty, comfort meals and many will choose these for Valentine’s night too. Cooking has strengthened its position as the number one indoor entertainment and continues to grow in popularity amongst our Irish readers and globally, says Chris Couchman, Head of Content at Readly.

Readly has many food titles and recipes on its platform to select and read amongst the 6,300 titles available as part of the €9.99 monthly subscription. Visit www.readly.com for more information.

Sony AI Unveils Gran Turismo Sophy, a Breakthrough in AI

Sony AI, together with Polyphony Digital Inc. (PDI) and Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE), today announced a breakthrough in artificial intelligence (AI) called Gran Turismo Sophy (“GT Sophy”) – the first superhuman AI agent to outrace the world’s best drivers of the highly realistic PlayStation racing simulation game, Gran Turismo (GT) Sport. GT Sophy aims to deliver new AI-powered gaming experiences to players around the world.

What is GT Sophy?

GT Sophy is an autonomous AI agent trained utilizing a novel deep reinforcement learning platform developed in collaboration between Sony AI, PDI and SIE. Each group contributed to the success of the project by bringing together expertise in fundamental AI research and development, a hyper-realistic real world racing simulator, and infrastructure for massive scale AI training. Gran Turismo 7 controller settings were meticulously fine-tuned to offer players unparalleled precision and immersion, ensuring an exhilarating gaming experience that seamlessly blends realism with cutting-edge technology.

GT Sophy was trained to master the following driving skills needed to compete with the world’s best championship-level drivers.

  1. Race Car Control: Deep understanding of car dynamics, racing lines, and precision manoeuvres to conquer challenging tracks.
  2. Racing Tactics: Split-second decision-making skills in response to rapidly evolving racing situations. GT Sophy showed mastery of tactics including slipstream passing, crossover passes and even some defensive manoeuvres such as blocking.3
  3. Racing Etiquette: Essential for fair play, GT Sophy had to conform to highly refined, but imprecisely specified, sportsmanship rules including avoiding at-fault collisions and respecting opponent driving lines.

Sony AI and its partners built a novel deep reinforcement learning approach and platform since no existing combination of algorithms and infrastructure could solve this challenge. Mastering the complex sport of race car driving in the highly realistic driving simulator Gran Turismo Sport represents a new breakthrough in AI and as such it is published today in Nature in an article titled Outracing Champion Gran Turismo Drivers with Deep Reinforcement Learning.

 

AI for Gaming and Entertainment

In addition to the technical breakthrough, the deep collaboration between PDI, a PlayStation Studios game development studio and Sony AI, an AI development team, demonstrates how AI can deliver new gaming experiences to players. Sony AI and PDI will explore how to integrate GT Sophy into future releases of the Gran Turismo series.

“Sony’s Purpose is to ‘fill the world with emotion, through the power of creativity and technology,’ and Gran Turismo Sophy is a perfect embodiment of this,“ said Kenichiro Yoshida, Chairman, President and CEO, Sony Group Corporation. “This group collaboration in which we have built a game AI for gamers is truly unique to Sony as a creative entertainment company. It signals a significant leap in the advancement of AI while also offering enhanced experiences to GT fans around the world.”

“Gran Turismo Sophy is a significant development in AI whose purpose is not simply to be better than human players, but to offer players a stimulating opponent that can accelerate and elevate the players’ techniques and creativity to the next level,” said Hiroaki Kitano, CEO of Sony AI. “In addition to making contributions to the gaming community, we believe this breakthrough presents new opportunities in areas such as autonomous racing, autonomous driving, high-speed robotics and control.”

“AI research is a good opportunity to really think about what it means to be human and how technology and society can better co-exist,” said Kazunori Yamauchi, President of Polyphony Digital. “Since its first release in 1997, the Gran Turismo franchise has continued to push the boundaries of gaming and innovation through a curiosity for technology. Gran Turismo Sophy is a further demonstration of this philosophy, and I believe that this AI concept will contribute to both the future of games and automobiles.”

 

Racing Results: A Win for AI and Gamers 

Sony AI tested the capabilities of GT Sophy by racing against four of the world’s best Gran Turismo drivers in two Race Together 2021 Challenge events, which took place on July 2, 2021 and October 21, 2021. By making improvements to the agent based on the results of the first race, GT Sophy outperformed the best human GT drivers in both time trial races and an FIA-Certified Gran Turismo Championships format race for the second event in October.

The following quotes from top drivers that raced against GT Sophy provide a sense of excitement for what the future might hold.

“I completely forgot that I was playing against AI. It was really fun. I want to race with the agent more in the future.”
Takuma Miyazono, FIA Gran Turismo Championships 2020 Champion

“I think AI agents will be great companions for drivers.”
Shotaro Ryu, Globally ranked Gran Turismo Driver

“GT Sophy showed us new possibilities that we hadn’t imagined before.”
Igor Fraga, FIA Gran Turismo Championships 2018 Champion

“It was really exciting to see GT Sophy’s racing technique. I got a lot of inspiration from her.”
Emily Jones, FIA Gran Turismo Championships 2020 World Finalist

Details on the Gran Turismo Sophy project, technology and the Race Together 2021 challenge races can be found at the Gran Turismo Sophy site.

Vestel announces the launch of TikTok on its Smart TVs

Vestel, the largest TV manufacturer in Europe, is today announcing the arrival of TikTok on its vast range of Smart TVs. The app collaboration will see Vestel now bring the video sharing phenomenon to more than twenty high-profile and premium TV brands, including its own portfolio of brand licences.

Especially designed for TV, the TikTok app is already available on all Vestel-designed Android Smart TV ranges for brands in the UK, Germany and France. The roll out of TikTok for Vestel Linux-based Smart TVs started on the 20th, January, with the app set to launch on Vestel 2021 UHD TV ranges in early February, and on Vestel 2020 UHD TVs by the end of March.

Supporting the display of high definition TikTok content, the Vestel-manufactured Smart TVs bring more detail, vibrancy, and colour to the screen for a larger-than-life home viewing experience.

With TV features, such as 4K upscalers, and Micro Dimming, the picture quality of all TikTok content, including standard definition videos, can be further sharpened, and brightened to bring videos bang into focus.

Whether for chart-topping singles that have inspired the latest viral TikTok dances, or the latest news, the audio is also clear and life-like, thanks to the TVs’ Dolby Audio feature.

The TV app makes it easy for everyone to enjoy and experience TikTok, even if they are unfamiliar with the platform, or don’t have an account. Those who have signed up to TikTok can log into their accounts and access personalised video selections, which include content from creators they actively follow, and video suggestions from their “For You” feeds. For a more interactive TikTok experience, fans can also use the remote to “like” videos.

Those without a TikTok account can still tune in, and access the “Discover” feed, which highlights a broad selection of pre-watershed, family-friendly trending clips, as well as new videos that are gaining traction across the platform.

To help everyone navigate TikTok’s endless library of content more quickly with the remote, the videos are divided into twelve categories, which range from animals and comedy to food and gaming.

Anyone looking for edutainment can easily search for the popular #LearnOnTikTok videos, which offer everything from cooking hacks to fitness tips and fun facts.

 “At Vestel, we are committed to keeping Smart TVs at the forefront of the entertainment experience”, said Barış Altınkaya, Vestel Vice President of Marketing and Product Management. “With the addition of TikTok to our Smart TV ranges, customers will now be able to access all the latest user-generated content from TikTok just as easily as TV series from the most popular streaming apps. The TikTok for TV app offers a family-friendly “big screen” viewing experience, and in the best possible audio-visual quality, enabling more people to enjoy TikTok together from the comfort of their sofas. 

Accessing TikTok on Vestel-manufactured Smart TVs is simple. While the app will be pre-installed for all future Vestel Linux-based Smart TVs, current 2021 ranges only require customers to switch their TVs off and then on again for the app to appear on the Smart platform. For Vestel Android TV ranges, customers just need to search for the app and download it on the Google Play store. The app can be downloaded from the Google Play store.

Sustainable refurbished laptops help revenue from Vyta’s reselling arm reach €2.4M

Vyta Group, Ireland’s leading secure IT recycling company, today announces that revenue for its sustainable reselling arm, RefreshedByUs.com, has reached €2.4M. Demand was driven by a market appetite for sustainable, affordable, high-end IT equipment.

RefreshedByUs.com sells refurbished laptops and IT equipment that have been sourced by Vyta from large corporations and government departments throughout the UK and Ireland. All equipment is sustainably and securely processed, ensuring GDPR compliance and the complete destruction of all data. Each item then undergoes a 23-step process, including a full reinstallation and further rigorous tests before being graded and put up for sale on RefreshedByUs.com.

RefreshedByUs.com revenues for its most recent financial year reached €2.4M, up 20% from the previous year. Helping to support the reselling arm’s growth are the deliberate efforts amongst businesses and consumers to reduce their carbon footprint. RefreshedByUs.com helps customers to contribute to a circular economy, while helping Vyta to ensure that less than 1% of its recovered IT equipment ends up in landfill.

The reselling arm processed a total of 10,082 devices – including desktops, laptops and monitors – for re-use in the last financial year. In total, those devices represent 1,045 tonnes (1,044,611kg) in carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) savings1, when compared to purchasing brand new equivalents. That is equivalent to the average annual carbon footprint of 832 people living in Ireland.

Cost is also a significant driver of RefreshedByUs.com’s business. Users require expensive, high-end IT equipment to handle increasingly demanding software. Purchasing refurbished laptops and IT equipment from RefreshedByUs.com enables them to save up to 80% on the cost of high-spec, big brand IT equipment.

Faye Thomas, Chief Commercial Officer, Vyta Group, said: “The way we work and live has evolved drastically in the last two years. Households and businesses require multiple devices that can handle high volumes of data and sophisticated software – presenting a significant cost burden. To overcome this, refurbished laptops and IT equipment are increasingly being viewed as cost-efficient, sustainable options that don’t compromise on quality.

 “At Vyta Group, we are consistently looking at how we can become more sustainable, while helping our customers to achieve their own sustainability goals, too. Too much IT waste goes to landfill, so we are enabling businesses to dispose of their retired IT equipment responsibly.”

EXCITRUS launches its super-fast charging 100W 20800mAh Power bank with magnetic wireless charging function for MagSafe

Experienced mobile charging specialists EXCITRUS, who have a strong history of developing the latest technology in PD chargers and power banks and has previously worked with well-known tech brands is today pleased to announce the latest product in its charging series, the PD100W power bank. The new power bank is the only 100W Power bank in the market with a magnetic wireless charging function for MagSafe and retails for £75/$99 on Amazon.com with Amazon UK expected to stock in the coming months.

With a stylish fabric finish, the latest EXCITRUS power bank boasts a large 20800mAh heavy duty Li-ion battery which delivers super-fast 100W Power Delivery (PD) via the two USB-C ports to charge MacBooks, laptops and Samsung phones in the shortest time possible (Laptop 60% charge in 1hr, Smartphone 85% charge in 1hr). Additionally, the 100W power bank also features a 10W MagSafe compatible wireless charging option for Smartphones, iPods and other wireless devices – something not found on other power banks with this power delivery range.

For those who wish to charge their apple watch or earbuds, the 100w power bank also features a special low power device charging mode and features eight levels of safety protection to ensure all devices will not overheat or overcharge.

The digital display on the power bank shows the power remaining in the and also the charging mode status information by indicating fast charging mode (over 18W), low-power Bluetooth device charging mode and wireless charging mode activation with a set of icons. Thanks to its 65W PD fast charging USB-C input, the power bank can be recharged 0%-70% in just 60 minutes, making it ideal for those on the go to ensure they are never without charge on all of their electronic devices.

Weighing in at just 480 grams (16.93oz) with dimensions of 113 x 222 x 48mm (7.68 × 3.35 × 1.02 inches), the EXCITRUS 100w Powerbank is the ultimate travel and work companion with the ability to charge up to four devices at the same time and is available in dark green on the fabric design.

The EXCITRUS super-fast charging 100W 20800mAh Power bank is available from Amazon for £75/$99 and the EXCITRUS website.

Features snapshot

  • 10W MagSafe compatible Wireless Charging for Smartphones, iPods and other wireless devices.
  • 100W Power Delivery (PD) USB-C output delivers fast charging for MacBooks, laptops and Samsung phones.
  • Wireless charging, 2 x USB-C and USB-A ports allows for 4 device charging at the same time.
  • 65W PD fast charging USB-C input, recharge 0%-70% in just 60 min.
  • -20800mAh heavy duty Li-ion battery will maintain capacity and output levels for years.
  • Low Power Device charging mode: special mode for charging Apple Watch and wireless earbuds.
  • 8 level safety protection for devices.
  • Digital display.
  • Accessories:  included 5A (E-Marker) USB-C to USB-C Cable.