The Siri that was promised back in 2011 never quite materialized. Now the big upgrade promised as part of Apple Intelligence is delayed indefinitely. Why can't Apple get Siri right?

The iPhone Fold is once again being forecast for launch in 2026, continuing a run of rumors and predictions about the foldable smartphone.A render of what the iPhone Fold could look like - Image Credit: AppleInsiderThe long-rumored iPhone Fold is widely expected to be in development and is slowly making its way to becoming a full product. As for when that could happen, the wait for consumers may not be that long at all.In Sunday's newsletter for Bloomberg, Mark Gurman talks about Apple's upcoming foldable device. Potentially called the "iPhone Fold," Gurman says he expects the model to arrive "next year," in 2026. Rumor Score: Possible Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

PartS.T.A.L.K.E.R.,partFallout, part something unique entirely,Atomfall delivers a wonderfully bizarre world where there is, to put it mildly, a lot going on, whether in a narrative sense or from a gameplay perspective. To help you get to grips with its abundant deliberate weirdness and its many interwoven systems, here, we have compiled a few handy tips and tricks that should help you find your post-nuclear sea legs in your first few hours in the Cumbria quarantine zone.HEAD TO WYNDHAMAtomfallbuilds up mystery on top of mystery from the very first second, which, combined with how little guidance it tends to offer in most things, means you may not have a very clear idea of what to do as your adventure begins. Of course, in the first few minutes alone, youll have picked up a couple of leads that you can follow, but our recommendation would be to head to Wyndham village. Found close to the northern edges of the first map that you find yourself in, the village is a hub of activity where youll find a number of key characters, locations of interest, leads to track down, and more.THERE ARE NO UNIMPORTANT LEADS (KIND OF)Atomfallblurs the line between quests and side quests in convincing fashion, to the extent that there is effectively no distinction. Youll be picking up leads constantly, and you never quite know which one will end up being how important. What might seem like a disconnected fetch quest early on could turn into something much more involved and elaborate than expected, while leads also often have a way of converging and diverging, which means youll often find your way back to the main thread in unexpected ways. Our advice, then, is to give equal importance to all leads, and instead make your decisions on what to prioritize based on your curiosity (or your ability to accomplish specific tasks).EXPLORE EVERY NOOK AND CRANNYAtomfallrewards exploration in a variety of ways. When youre not finding valuable loot, ammo, or crafting resources, youre getting your hands on weapons, recipes, and more. Beyond that, theres collectibles to find (such as comics or breakable statuettes), quirky NPCs or traders to encounter, secrets and backstory to uncover, and locations and points of interest to discover. Following your curiosity and exploring Atomfallsworld as thoroughly as possible is always recommended.SAVE YOUR BULLETSAtomfallsprinkles in survival elements in its core design, which means spraying and praying in firefight is never a good idea. In fact, to the extent possible, you should be avoiding combat. Ammo isnt exactly plentiful inAtomfallsworld, so make sure youre prioritizing other methods of dealing with foes whenever you can, whether thats stealth, making use of melee weapons, or avoiding enemies entirely.PLAN YOUR LOADOUTYes, avoiding combat is usually the way to go inAtomfall,but you might find yourself in situations where its the best way out, which is why having your loadout ready to go is so important.Atomfalllimits your inventory space so that youre only allowed to carry a certain amount of weapons melee and ranged at a time. That means you need to know what your preferred combat play style is, and plan your kit accordingly, especially if you know youre heading into a situation that could potentially get hairy.SET YOUR SHORTCUTSThis is also crucial, even if it is extremely straightforward. Opening your inventory doesnt pause the action yes, this is one ofthosegames which means swapping between weapons and items in the middle of combat is easier said than done. Each button on the d-pad serves as a shortcut, however, so make sure you always have the most useful weapons and items assigned- like a bow for stealth situations, or a shotgun for up-close brutality, or even a flashlight for the abundant dark and dimly lit environments and locations youll find yourself in.KEEP EATING FOODAtomfallsaforementioned survival elements are pretty basic and straightforward, all things considered, but the gamewillpunish you if you get too reckless- so pay attention to the basics. Youll lose health pretty easily (especially on higher difficulties), which means its best to keep an eye on your health bar at all times. Theres a lot of food and health consumables scattered throughout the world, so if youre not hoarding them (which you can only do so much, given the inventory restrictions), you should be consuming them right there and then, if youre running even slightly low on health.KEEP AN EYE ON STATUS EFFECTSThis should be an obvious one, but it bears mentioning nonetheless.Atomfallwill often hit you with status conditions, each bringing different pitfalls and disadvantages. Those disadvantages are usually severe, however, so its always best to deal with status conditions on priority. For instance, when you begin bleeding, youll lose your health with surprising speed, which means its imperative that you apply bandages as quickly as possible to stem the flow (and restore some health, of course).MANAGE YOUR HEARTBEATManaging your heartbeat which, yes, is basically stamina in a different skin is crucial inAtomfall. Actions such as sprinting or pretty much all melee attacks raise your heartbeat, and the higher that goes, the less physically capable you become. With your heartbeat at its peak, your vision will start dimming rapidly, your movement will be impeded, and your actions will be much more sluggish and much less effective. Dont spam melee attacks, dont sprint endlessly, and use items that help you keep your heart rate low (like tea).MAKE SMART USE OF YOUR KICKSSpeaking of melee attacks, make sure that youre not forgetting about your ability to kick enemies whenever you want. Not only is it a lot of fun to give an oncoming foe a swift kick in the knee, it can also be a pretty effective tactic to create space for yourself, in case you want to reload, swap weapons, use an item, or simply manage a rushing crowd.DONT IGNORE TRADERSThere are several traders to be found acrossAtomfallsmultiple maps, and each is worth paying regular and consistent attention to. For starters, traders are often a great way to get your hands on food, crafting material, ammo, or even weapons and recipes. On top of that, each trader also has unique stock, and their also have different things to sell at different times, which means its a good idea to keep checking in with traders every time you run into one. Usually, theyll have something useful in store that you can barter for. Make sure youre not bartering away anything too useful, however, because figuring out a trade that makes both parties happy is also a skill of its own.DONT IMMEDIATELY SPEND YOUR SKILL POINTSProgression mechanics inAtomfallare pretty simple and straightforward an RPG this is not, nor does it claim to be one but that doesnt mean they require no thought either. Skill points arent abundantly found, and the skills that you can unlock are often quite expensive. As tempting as it might be to spend your skill points as quickly as you get them, then, our recommendation would be to hold on to them until you can unlock something that you know will be useful to you and your play style.

Theres a lot to like about Assassins Creed Shadows. In stealth, parkour, world design, and more, it feels like the strongest, most smartly designed, and most engagingAssassins Creedentry in years. But where all of those area areas where the series has been known to stick the landing at different points over the years, there is one particular way thatShadowsimpresses that feels like a new frontier for the series. Specifically, Im referring to the way it implements its dual protagonist framework.Of course, this isnt the firstAssassins Creedgame to feature multiple protagonists by any means. In fact, Ubisoft Quebec the team behind Shadows hasonlyever releasedAssassins Creedentries featuring two protagonists, though the implementation has varied each time. Jacob and Evie Frye took the stage inSyndicate, but between the two of them, Jacob had the lions share of the main story to himself, with Evie very much playing second fiddle. InOdyssey,meanwhile, players could only play as one of ether Kassandra or Alexios, with whoever wasnt picked being a non-player character in the story.For the first time in the series history, then,Shadowsfeatures two protagonists who feel more or less on equal footing (though there is a certainly strong case to be made that Naoe is the primary driver of the central storyline), with both characters feeling meaningfully unique from each other and offering remarkably different gameplay experiences in more ways than one. And best of all, they are both an absolute blast to play as, almost to an astounding degree. From a narrative perspective, Naoe and Yasuke are both charismatic and instantly likeable leads, and they might even be the lone bright spots in the games otherwise clumsy and disappointing story- but its with their gameplay that both protagonists really shine, especially because of how effectively they are able to highlight the games own core strengths.Going into Assassins Creed Shadows,being a longtime fan of the franchise who had been desperately hoping for it to go back to focusing on classic stealth and parkour after having spent the last several years actively moving away from those elements, I had had little doubt in my mind that Naoe would be the character Id be spending the bulk of my time with. And while I haveplayed as Naoe more than I have as Yasuke (thanks in large part to my proclivity for stealth), I have also ended up spending more time playing as Yasuke than Id thought I would, and that time has been a ton of fun.Between the two protagonists, Yasuke is the more combat focused one. Hes a trained samurai and a veteran of the battlefield, and it certainly shows in his gameplay. Not only can he take a healthy amount of punishment, hes also quite deadly with his own strikes. Yes, he moves a little slower, but his attacks hit hard, hes more effective with his blocking and parrying skills, he has more health items to use, and he he has more adrenaline chunks with which to unleash special abilities. The arsenal of weapons that he has access to is also endlessly fun to use, with naginata spears, kanabo hammers, and teppo rifles each serving as deadly weapons, each more enjoyable to use than the last.Assassins Creed Shadowsboasts probably the best combat system in anyAssassins Creedgame, maybe with the exception ofOdyssey,and that combat is at its very best when youre playing as Yasuke. The rush that I get from barging into heavily defended strongholds and laying waste to enemies with formidable strings of attacks is amazing. And though combat is certainly not Naoes specialty, she can also hold her own in a fight, and combat still remains fun with her. She cant take as much damage and her attacks dont hit quite so hard, but shes much nimbler, much faster, and her own set of usable weapons kasurigama, tanto, and of course, the Hidden Blade all feel excellent to use as well.Naoe is, of course, the stealthier of the two characters, and just asShadowscombat shines with Yasuke at the wheel, the games stealth gameplay flourishes when Naoe is in the driving seat. Both characters have a base moveset that make stealth fun no matter what and facilitates strong level design in areas that demand the need to be sneaky. But Naoe, as a trained shinobi, has access to plenty more tools and abilities that elevate her gameplay. She can use Eagle Vision, allowing her to highlight and spot enemies through walls. She can hang off of ceilings when indoors to hide from soldiers directly beneath her. She can use smoke bombs to conceal herself, or bells to distract enemies.Naoe feels absolutely lethal, and makes sneaking around an absolute blast in a way that has felt downrightalien toAssassins Creedfor the better part of a decade at this point. Thankfully, Yasuke isnt completely incapable of being sneaky either. Just like the dichotomy between the two protagonists in combat, though one is certainly the expert when it comes to stealth, the other can is not exactly a complete novice either. Yasukes stealth abilities are much more limited than Naoes, but heiscapable of being stealthy when he needs to, in his own way.Another key gameplay department where the two protagonists feel instantly different to play as is the moment-to-moment traversal. With Naoe being more nimble than Yasuke by quite a margin, movement on the most fundamental level also feels different as each character. Simply put, Naoe is probably the fastest and best-movingAssassins Creedprotagonist to date, while shes also equipped with a grappling hook to help her navigate her surrounding- all of which is to say that parkour with her in charge feels more enjoyable than it has in an Assassins Creedgame in a really, really long time. Yasuke, meanwhile, feels significantly less agile, with his parkour gameplay feeling quite throttled in comparison. Heisstill anAssassins Creedprotagonist though, which means moving around the world as Yasuke is still fun, if in different ways, and admittedly not quite to the same degree.Whether in combat, stealth, or parkour though, itisremarkable that Yasuke and Naoe feel as different as they do. Each character feels fully fleshed out, and each offers enough strengths and advantages of their own that even if you do have a favourite, youre likely still going to want to spend a fair amount of time playing as the other. Ultimately, Naoehasbeen my main protagonist inAssassins Creed Shadows,as I had expected, which is thanks to the fact that she drives the games renewed focus on stealth and parkour (and thanks to the story naturally making her feel more central). But the fact that Yasuke stands more or less on equal footing in spite of his gameplay being focused on an area of the game that I had not expected to engage with much, given the option, is testament to just how goodShadowscombat is. In the end, Naoe and Yasuke both convincingly justify their presence on Assassins Creed Shadowscenter stage.Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.

Sunday, March 23rd, 2025Posted by Jim ThackerPolygonflow releases new free version of Dashhtml PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd"Polygonflow has made the content browser from Dash, its world building toolset for Unreal Engine 5, available for free.Instead of timing out, the free trial version of Dash now continues indefinitely in browser mode, making it possible to use Dash as a more powerful free content browser for UE5.The software includes advanced search features like fuzzy and Boolean search, and comes with libraries of thousands of free 3D models, materials and IES lights.An Unreal Engine world-building tool for games and VFX projectsThe full version of Dash is intended to let artists to build complex environments without having to navigate the Unreal Editors interface, working primarily in fullscreen mode in the viewport.It provides readymade behaviors accessible by typing natural-language search terms into a floating prompt bar for common scene-building tasks like create terrain and apply water, plus scattering tools for dressing environments.As well as game development, Dash can be used for offline work: for example to create animations, visual effects projects or architectural visualizations in Unreal Engine.You can read more about its features in this story on Dash 1.9, the current release.Now works indefinitely as a more powerful free Content Browser for Unreal Engine 5Polygonflow has now updated the trial version of Dash so that artists can use part of its toolset for free indefinitely.You can now use all of the features for free for 14 days, after which point you have access to the content browser, but not other functionality like object scattering, physics or material blending.The change makes Dash a more fully featured free alternative to Unreal Engine 5s native Content Browser, with support for asset tagging, and fuzzy, semantic and Boolean search.You can read about its functionality much of which was added in Dash 1.9, and which makes it quicker to search large collections of UE5 assets in the online release notes.Dash also integrates with Fab, Epic Games online marketplace, and comes with libraries of free IES lights and CC0 assets from Poly Haven.Price and system requirementsDash is compatible with Unreal Engine 5+ on Windows 10+ only. You can find details of current commercial pricing in this story.Free licenses work in demo mode for 14 days, providing access to the full toolset; then in free mode indefinitely, providing access to the Conent Browser and AI assistant only.Download Dash for free from Polygonflows websiteHave your say on this story by following CG Channel on Facebook, Instagram and X (formerly Twitter). As well as being able to comment on stories, followers of our social media accounts can see videos we dont post on the site itself, including making-ofs for the latest VFX movies, animations, games cinematics and motion graphics projects.Latest NewsPolygonflow releases new free version of DashUse the powerful Content Browser from the Unreal Engine 5 world-building tool free indefinitely. Comes with thousands of free 3D assets.Sunday, March 23rd, 2025Unity unveils its 2025 product roadmapFeatures due in Unity this year include in-editor LOD generation, swappable physics backends, and more generative AI tools.Thursday, March 20th, 2025Unity previews Unity 6.1Check out the key artist features in the next version of the game engine, including support for Variable Rate Shading and better DX12 ray tracing.Thursday, March 20th, 2025Character Creator to get new MetaTailor pluginAdd-on will let you send characters from Character Creator to MetaTailor with one-click, fit 3D clothing to them, then send them back to CC4.Wednesday, March 19th, 2025NVIDIA unveils Blackwell RTX PRO GPUs with up to 96GB VRAMNew series of pro workstation and laptop GPUs include the 'most powerful desktop GPU ever created'. See its key specs for CG work.Wednesday, March 19th, 20255 key features in Blender 4.4Check out the key changes in the latest version of the open-source 3D app, including important updates to animation and the CPU compositor.Tuesday, March 18th, 2025More NewsSketchsoft releases Feather 1.1GIMP 3.0 is out after seven years in developmentAdobe releases Substance 3D Modeler 1.21Adobe releases Substance 3D Painter 11.0Free tool: Lens Cap for BlenderCelsys releases Clip Studio Paint 4Assetify 2.1 converts Blender assets to game-ready formatsTutorial: Creature Combat Animation in MayaWonder Studio becomes Autodesk Flow StudioPolygonflow releases Dash 1.9Get KitBash3D's Gaea fantasy architecture asset pack for freeCheck out open-source Blender character generator MPFB 2Older Posts

Spring has sprung and so has Amazons latest sales event. Amazons Big Spring Sale kicks off on Tuesday, March 25th, and runs through Monday, March 31st, bringing with it a slew of discounts on gardening supplies, bedding, grilling essentials, and other springtime favorites. And while the discounts arent as steep as during tentpole events like Prime Day, you can still find steep savings on cheap security cameras, smartwatches, portable speakers, and loads of other tech.As is typical of Amazon, the retailer has already dropped a handful of deals in the run-up to the event, many of which we anticipate will stick around through the seven-day promo period. Most deals dont require you to cough up $14.99 a month for a Prime subscription, either, making it a great time to snag a tried-and-tested Verge favorite.Well be digging into all the deals and discounts next week; however, in the meantime, you can peruse a selection of the best early deals below, all of which have been handpicked and tested by a Verge staffer at one point or another.Featured dealsGoogle Pixel Tablet$279$39930% off$279Googles 11-inch Pixel Tablet uses the same Tensor G2 chip found in the Pixel 7 lineup. It also features a crisp LCD display and a four-speaker sound array. Read our review.Blink Mini 2$20$4050% off$20The 1080p Blink Mini now adds weather resistance so you can use it both indoors and outside, while continuing to offer a ball-and-socket mount so you can mount it to the wall. However, youll need to pay $3 a month for the optional Blink subscription plan if you want to use cloud storage and features like person detection. Read our review.Sony WH-1000XM5$250$40038% off$250With improved comfort, refined sound, and even better active noise cancellation compared to the previous-gen model, Sonys WH-1000XM5 offer a compelling mix of features for the price. Read our review.iRobot Roomba Combo i5$199$34943% off$199The Roomba Combo i5 Plus is the companys budget vacuum and mop robot with room mapping features but no virtual keep-out zones.Other deal recommendationsThe Beats Studio Pro are on sale at Amazon, Walmart, and Best Buy for $179.95 ($170 off), which remains one of the best prices weve seen. Looks-wise, theyre not drastically different than prior Beats models, though they tack on a useful transparency mode, personalized spatial audio, and lossless playback over USB-C. Plus, unlike most noise-canceling headphones, they offer native support for both iOS and Android software features. Read our review.If you prefer a pair of noise-canceling earbuds that support native software features on both iOS and Android, the Beats Studio Buds Plus are available at Amazon, Walmart, and Best Buy for around $130 ($40 off), nearly matching their best price to date. Yes, their lack of wireless charging and in-ear detection stings a bit at their typical list price, but their see-through design is slick enough that the shortcomings are (almost) forgivable. Read our review.Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones$349$42919% off$349Boses latest flagship headphones are a replacement for the Noise Cancelling Headphones 700, and offer a more travel-friendly design, spatial audio, better call quality, excellent comfort, and some of the best noise cancellation around. Read our review.Google Pixel Buds Pro 2$179$22922% off$179Significantly smaller and lighter than their predecessors, the Pixel Buds Pro 2 also offer stronger noise cancellation, a crystal clear transparency mode, and lengthy battery life. Read our review.The Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S2e aka, the best-sounding wireless headphones you can buy are available at Amazon starting at $296.71 (about $102 off), or from Bower & Wilkins or Best Buy for $319.99 ($80 off). The British audio brand isnt as well-known as Sony or Bose, though with the S2E, youre getting superb sound, superior build quality, and controls that rely on physical buttons as opposed to the tap/swipe gestures found on mainstream noise-canceling headphones like Sonys XM5. Read our review.Amazons ad-supported Fire HD 10 tablet is on sale at Amazon and Best Buy right now with 32GB of storage starting at $94.99 ($45 off), or about $20 shy of its lowest price to date. The 2023 model sports USB-C charging, a 10.1-inch, 1080p display, and 3GB of RAM, which is plenty if all youre doing is streaming or browsing. Just be aware that, like all of Amazons budget-minded tablets, its really focused on serving up Amazon content at every turn.Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max (2023)$40$6033% off$40Amazons latest streaming stick is faster than its predecessor with Wi-Fi 6E and double the storage. It also now displays widgets and artwork when idle while continuing to offer Alexa integration.UE Miniroll$59$8026% off$59Ultimate Ears latest disc-shaped Bluetooth speaker is small and affordable, with a built-in strap for attaching it to your belongings. It also charges via USB-C and features an IP67 rating against dust and water, along with up to 12 hours of battery life.JBLs Charge 5 is on sale at Amazon, Best Buy, and Walmart in multiple colors starting at $119.95 ($60 off), which is the best price weve seen on the portable speaker since July. Were not huge fans of the oversized JBL logo, but the powerful Bluetooth speaker hits all the right marks when it comes to functionality and performance, offering an impressive 20 hours of battery life and a built-in USB-A port that lets you top off your phone while listening to music.Despite the fact the Sonos app has been a bit of a debacle as of late, I have few qualms about recommending the Sonos Era 100 for $199 ($50 off), its current price at Amazon, Best Buy, and Sonos online storefront. Its a great smart speaker with stereo sound, privacy-conscious microphone controls, and support for both Bluetooth and line-in connections. It can also connect to Spotify and every other music service you can think of and supports AirPlay 2, letting you stream content from Apple devices. Read our review.Google Pixel Watch 3 (41mm, Wi-Fi)$290$35017% off$290Googles latest Pixel Watch 3 is bigger and brighter than its predecessor. It also features more advanced running capabilities, offline Google Maps functionality, and deeper integration with other Google devices. Read our review.Garmin Venu Sq 2$180$25028% off$180The Garmin Venu Sq 2 is a great replacement for a Fitbit smartwatch. Not only do they look similar, but the Venu Sq 2 has way more fitness features, long battery life, and no subscription.Rings latest Indoor Cam is on sale at Amazon, Best Buy, and The Home Depot for $39.99 ($20 off), matching its second-best price to date. The 1080p security camera boasts all the same features as the prior model including two-way talk, color night vision, and a built-in siren only its equipped with a redesigned mount that makes it easier to adjust. That said, youll need a Ring Protect Plan ($4.99 a month / $49.99 a year) to share or view video recordings.For a limited time, Garmins InReach Mini 2 is available at Amazon starting at $293.89 (about $106 off), an all-time low. The rugged, palm-sized satellite communicator might seem a little unnecessary given many recent phones now support satellite messaging, but the subscription-based gadget is still great for texting, sharing your location in the backcountry, and triggering an SOS alert in the event of an emergency. It can also last up to 30 days on a single charge, which is significantly more than your smartphone.Sonos Ray$179$27936% off$179The Ray is Sonos entry-level soundbar thats best for bedrooms and smaller apartments. It only connects to TVs via optical cable, thus missing out on HDMI-CEC functionality. It also produces balanced, dynamic sound despite its small size, easily besting built-in TV speakers. Read our review.Beats Pill (2024)$100$15033% off$100The 2024 Beats Pill offers improved sound, USB-C, and native support for Find My and voice assistants on both iOS and Android. It also bests the previous model with double the battery life (24 hours) and IP67 water resistance. Read our review.Blink Video Doorbell$33$6045% off$33Blinks Video Doorbell is the best if youre looking for a budget-friendly buzzer that offers motion-activated recording and alerts, night vision, two-way audio, and up to two years of battery life.The Blue Yeti microphone is on sale at Amazon in a myriad of colors for $89.99 ($40 off). Thats not the lowest price weve seen its fallen to around $70 in the past but its still a good deal on what has become a certifiable classic USB mic in the era of never-ending Zoom meetings. The versatile mic is easy to set up and simple to use, with a three-capsule microphone that can capture clear, warm sound that should appeal to both amateur podcasters and anyone wanting a more professional setup.One of our go-to gift guide picks, the Instant Pot Duo Plus, is currently available for an all-time low of $89.95 ($40 off) at Amazon. Multiple Verge staffers swear by the six-quart multi-cooker, which is similar to the base-model instant pot but comes with a few additional smart programs, including a customizable sous vide setting and a cake option that lets you pressure cook at high temperature for 40 minutes. Thats in addition to the ability to cook rice, steam veggies, and saut, among other actions.Google Nest Learning Thermostat (fourth-gen)$240$28014% off$240Googles latest Nest Learning Thermostat offers a sleeker design, support for Matter, and a Soli radar sensor to detect if a person is approaching. It also includes a second-gen remote temperature sensor for monitoring the temp in a room of your choosing. Read our review.Eero Pro 6E tri-band router$185$25026% off$185Eeros Pro 6E mesh router is the Amazon-owned companys last-gen model. It supports the 6GHz Wi-Fi band with speeds of up to 1.3Gbps and covers up to 2,000 square feet with one unit. Wired speeds can go up to 2.5Gbps. Read our review.Weve said it several times before, but if all you need is a basic monochrome laser printer, just buy whatever Brother model is on sale. Right now, thats the Brother HL-L2400D printer, which is matching its all-time low of $99.99 ($20 off) at Amazon as part of the retailers spring sales event. Its not really suited for photo use or anything fancy, but it connects to Wi-Fi, works reliably, and lasts ages on a single toner cartridge. It also supports automatic duplex printing, so, you know, it has that going for it.Amazons latest Echo Dot is down to $39.99 ($10 off) at Amazon, Best Buy, and Kohls. The tiny, orb-shaped smart speaker features onboard microphones and produces good sound for its size, making it a solid option for listening to music, issuing smart home commands, checking the weather, and making other various Alexa requests. It also includes a built-in temperature sensor, which can tell you the temperature in the room and trigger various Alexa Routines, if necessary. Read our review.Fitbit Charge 6$120$16025% off$120The Fitbit Charge 6 features a haptic side button, an improved heart rate algorithm, turn-by-turn navigation with Google Maps, and the ability to broadcast your heart rate on certain Bluetooth gym equipment. Read our review.Update, March 23rd: Updated to reflect current pricing/availability and several new deals, including those for the UE Miniroll, iRobots Romba Combo i5, and the Instant Pot Duo Plus.See More:

Language processing in the brain presents a challenge due to its inherently complex, multidimensional, and context-dependent nature. Psycholinguists have attempted to construct well-defined symbolic features and processes for domains, such as phonemes for speech analysis and part-of-speech units for syntactic structures. Despite acknowledging some cross-domain interactions, research has focused on modeling each linguistic subfield in isolation through controlled experimental manipulations. This divide-and-conquer strategy shows limitations, as a significant gap has emerged between natural language processing and formal psycholinguistic theories. These models and theories struggle to capture the subtle, non-linear, context-dependent interactions occurring within and across levels of linguistic analysis.Recent advances in LLMs have dramatically improved conversational language processing, summarization, and generation. These models excel in handling syntactic, semantic, and pragmatic properties of written text and in recognizing speech from acoustic recordings. Multimodal, end-to-end models represent a significant theoretical advancement over text-only models by providing a unified framework for transforming continuous auditory input into speech and word-level linguistic dimensions during natural conversations. Unlike traditional approaches, these deep acoustic-to-speech-to-language models shift to multidimensional vectorial representations where all elements of speech and language are embedded into continuous vectors across a population of simple computing units by optimizing straightforward objectives.Researchers from Hebrew University, Google Research, Princeton University, Maastricht University, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, New York University School of Medicine, and Harvard University have presented a unified computational framework that connects acoustic, speech, and word-level linguistic structures to investigate the neural basis of everyday conversations in the human brain. They utilized electrocorticography to record neural signals across 100 hours of natural speech production and detailed as participants engaged in open-ended real-life conversations. The team extracted various embedding like low-level acoustic, mid-level speech, and contextual word embeddings from a multimodal speech-to-text model called Whisper. Their model predicts neural activity at each level of the language processing hierarchy across hours of previously unseen conversations.The internal workings of the Whisper acoustic-to-speech-to-language model are examined to model and predict neural activity during daily conversations. Three types of embeddings are extracted from the model for every word patients speak or hear: acoustic embeddings from the auditory input layer, speech embeddings from the final speech encoder layer, and language embeddings from the decoders final layers. For each embedding type, electrode-wise encoding models are constructed to map the embeddings to neural activity during speech production and comprehension. The encoding models show a remarkable alignment between human brain activity and the models internal population code, accurately predicting neural responses across hundreds of thousands of words in conversational data.The Whisper models acoustic, speech, and language embeddings show exceptional predictive accuracy for neural activity across hundreds of thousands of words during speech production and comprehension throughout the cortical language network. During speech production, a hierarchical processing is observed where articulatory areas (preCG, postCG, STG) are better predicted by speech embeddings, while higher-level language areas (IFG, pMTG, AG) align with language embeddings. The encoding models show temporal specificity, with performance peaking more than 300ms before word onset during production and 300ms after onset during comprehension, with speech embeddings better predicting activity in perceptual and articulatory areas and language embeddings excelling in high-order language areas.In summary, the acoustic-to-speech-to-language model offers a unified computational framework for investigating the neural basis of natural language processing. This integrated approach is a paradigm shift toward non-symbolic models based on statistical learning and high-dimensional embedding spaces. As these models evolve to process natural speech better, their alignment with cognitive processes may similarly improve. Some advanced models like GPT-4o incorporate visual modality alongside speech and text, while others integrate embodied articulation systems mimicking human speech production. The fast improvement of these models supports a shift to a unified linguistic paradigm that emphasizes the role of usage-based statistical learning in language acquisition as it is materialized in real-life contexts.Check outthe Paper, and Google Blog.All credit for this research goes to the researchers of this project. Also,feel free to follow us onTwitterand dont forget to join our85k+ ML SubReddit. Sajjad AnsariSajjad Ansari is a final year undergraduate from IIT Kharagpur. As a Tech enthusiast, he delves into the practical applications of AI with a focus on understanding the impact of AI technologies and their real-world implications. He aims to articulate complex AI concepts in a clear and accessible manner.Sajjad Ansarihttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sajjadansari/Emerging Trends in Modern Machine Translation Using Large Reasoning ModelsSajjad Ansarihttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sajjadansari/Archetypal SAE: Adaptive and Stable Dictionary Learning for Concept Extraction in Large Vision ModelsSajjad Ansarihttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sajjadansari/SYMBOLIC-MOE: Mixture-of-Experts MoE Framework for Adaptive Instance-Level Mixing of Pre-Trained LLM ExpertsSajjad Ansarihttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sajjadansari/Researchers from the University of Cambridge and Monash University Introduce ReasonGraph: A Web-based Platform to Visualize and Analyze LLM Reasoning Processes

Snow White has endured a tough opening weekend at the box office, securing one of the lowest domestic totals for any of Disney's remakes so far.Comscore figures for the Marc Webb (The Amazing Spider-Man 1 and 2) directed Snow White revealed a $43 million domestic box office debut, which is the second biggest of 2025 so far behind only MCU flick Captain America: Brave New World and enough to top this week's chart, but below the live-action Dumbos domestic launch haul of $45 million back in 2019, and below estimates.For context, 2019s The Lion King, 2017s Beauty and the Beast, 2016s The Jungle Book, and 2023s The Little Mermaid all secured more than $100 domestically during their opening weekends.It was a similarly sleepy start for Snow White internationally, where the opening weekend brought in $44.3 million. That makes for a total of $87.3 million at the global box office, according to Comscore estimates.PlaySnow White is a live-action remake of Disneys 1937 animated classic starring musical veteran Rachel Zegler in the title role and Wonder Woman star Gal Gadot as the Evil Queen. It carries a reported production cost of over $250 million, and based on its launch box office, it now faces an uphill battle to break even, especially when you consider marketing costs.However, there may be light at the end of the tunnel for Snow White. Mufasa: The Lion King, Disneys The Lion King remake prequel, opened to a poor $35.4 million domestically when it came out in December, but ended up earning over $717 million worldwide at the global box office.Disney will be hoping for a similar 'sleeper hit' trajectory for Snow White amid continued tough questions about the performance of Captain America: Brave New World. Speaking of Brave New World, Captain America has now grossed $400.8 million globally ($192.1 million domestic and $208.7 million international) after six weekends.IGNs Snow White review returned a 7/10. We said: Snow White is a live-action Disney remake that meaningfully adapts its original, rather than creating a lesser mimicry.Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.

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Chinese robotics company Dobot has shown off its humanoid robot, dubbed Atom, preparing a sumptuous breakfast.The video, titled "Rise and Shine with Atom, Your New Breakfast Buddy!" shows the robot using its long, flexible arms to place pieces of ham, sausages, slices of toast, and cherries onto a plate. The robot even poured a glass of milk and lifted the tray for serving."Add some cherries, too," an American-accented voiceover says. "Such thin stems won't trouble me. Just two fingers are enough to grip it firmly.""All done!" the voice says. "A nutritious breakfast sets the tone for a perfect day."While it's unclear how much of Atom's skills could actually be transferred to a messy and unpredictable real-world kitchen rather than what's obviously a carefully controlled studio it's yet another demonstration that highlights how far the technology has come.There's a strong sense of enthusiasm in the industry for the future of humanoid robots that can assist in the home, with companies like Tesla, Figure, Agility Robotics, Unitree, and 1Xshowing off bipedal machines that could feasibly prove useful in a future home environment.Whether these robots will ever be affordable for the average consumer is an open question. But the costs are already starting to come down, with Chinese robotics company Unitree, for instance, offering a lineup of capable quadripedal robots for a fraction of the price of a Boston Dynamics Spot Mini. Its humanoid robot G1 is also already being mass-produced and goes for $16,000.Dobot's Atom is no slouch, with 28 degrees of freedom and an arm movement precision of just 0.05 mm. An AI system dubbed Robot Operator Model-1 allows the five-foot bot to adapt to its environment autonomously. It boasts a computing power equivalent to a contemporary gaming graphics card, as the South China Morning Post reports.The company claims Atom can also solder electronic components and calibrate precision instruments, which require extremely steady and precise arms and hands.Dobot announced its humanoid robot will go on sale for $27,500 sometime later this year, and has already started taking preorders.It wouldn't be the first to enter mass production. Humanoid robots have already started working at warehouses to complete human jobs."Humanoid robots are the first category of robots that can be doing completely different tasks based on the needs of the business or the time of the shift," Adrian Stoch chief automation officer of GXO Logistics, which recently employed two Digit bipedal robots from the firm Agility Robotics, told the Wall Street Journal."In the future, we could have Digit unloading a trailer in the morning, picking goods in the afternoon, and loading trucks in the evening," he added.More on humanoid robots: Humanoid Robots Are Starting to Work Human Warehouse JobsShare This Article