A new leak reveals Google will offer a $200+ bonus to customers who purchase a new Samsung phone.

A periodical store in Santa Fe, NMGetty ImagesAs 2024 comes to a close, here's a look back at some of the tech stories that caught my eye in the past year. These articles deliver perspectives on enterprise AI adoption and implementation, the growing pains of digital infrastructure, new cybersecurity vulnerabilities, how overlooking past warnings about technological dependence can lead to devastating failures and how the new business and social dynamics in an increasingly AI-driven world.AI and The Last MileBy Hollis Robbins, Anecdotal, November 15As AI becomes increasingly integrated into daily decision-making, Robbins introduces the concept of the "last mile," the crucial 5% to 15% gap between algorithmic recommendations and human judgment. She argues that while AI promises to democratize services, it's creating a new form of inequality where human insight becomes a luxury good, suggesting AI might inadvertently be creating a new kind of digital divide.How Companies Can Use AI to Find and Close Skills GapsBy Brian Eastwood, MIT Sloan Management Review, June 10A study from MIT's Center for Information Systems Research reveals how companies like Johnson & Johnson are using AI-powered "skills inference" to quantify skills proficiency, identify gaps, and transform workforce development. The research shows this approach has increased participation in professional development programs by 20% while providing executives with valuable heat-map data that assists in strategic workforce planning. It also introduces the concept of a "career lattice" rather than a traditional career ladder.MORE FOR YOUEnterprise Philosophy and The First Wave of AIBy Ben Thompson, Stratechery, September 24Thompson draws a compelling parallel between AI's enterprise adoption and the first wave of computing in the 1960s and 70s. While most AI discussions focus on consumer applications and employee productivity, he argues the real transformation will mirror how mainframe computers revolutionized back-office operations. The piece suggests that like early computing, AI's most significant initial impact will come from top-down enterprise implementation rather than grassroots adoption.Scaling: The State of Play in AIBy Ethan Mollick, One Useful Thing, September 16Mollick breaks down AI development through the lens of "scaling laws," the observation that larger AI models consistently outperform smaller ones. He introduces a novel generational framework for understanding AI models and reveals that beyond increasing model size, AI capabilities can be enhanced through increased "thinking" time during operation, suggesting two distinct paths for future AI advancement.Boards Need a New Approach to TechnologyBy Tarun Khanna, Mary C. Beckerle, and Nabil Y. Sakkab, Harvard Business Review, September-OctoberMost corporate boards remain too focused on defense when it comes to technology, emphasizing security and digitization while missing broader opportunities in areas such as new materials, space science, and genomics. Drawing from experiences at companies like AES and Altria, the authors make the case for dedicated board technology committees to help identify and prioritize new opportunities, mitigate appropriate risks, and shepherd core technologies through development. As only 36% of Fortune 100 boards currently have such committees, the authors argue that more companies need to shift to a more offensive stance toward technology.The Great Repatriation? IT Leaders Reset Cloud Strategies to Optimize ValueBy Mary K. Pratt, CIO.com, July 22As companies mature in their cloud journey, many IT leaders are strategically moving select workloads back from public cloud to on-premises environments. About 80% of organizations anticipate some level of repatriation in the next year, driven by concerns over costs, data privacy, and compliance. This represents a refinement of cloud strategies rather than a wholesale rejection, with companies adopting more nuanced hybrid approaches that place workloads where they make the most sense, whether in public cloud, private data centers, or edge computing environments.Pagers Attack Brings to Life Long-Feared Supply Chain ThreatBy Eva Dou and Gerrit De Vynck, The Washington Post, September 19A devastating attack in Lebanon in which thousands of pagers were rigged to explode has exposed critical vulnerabilities in global electronics supply chains. The incident goes beyond previous supply chain infiltrations, like the NSA's interception of Cisco devices or Israel's past use of rigged cell phones for targeted assassinations. The event demonstrates the increasing difficulty and complexity of securing modern electronics against adversaries, challenges which could accelerate efforts by some organizations to relocate critical technology manufacturing domestically.Y2K Sent A Warning. The CrowdStrike Outage Shows We Failed to Heed ItBy Zachary Loeb, TIME, July 24The CrowdStrike software update failure, which caused widespread Windows outages across various industries earlier this year, mirrors the disasters predicted during Y2K. While Y2K was averted through concentrated effort, its key warning about systemic vulnerability went unheeded. The article suggests that, like Y2K, the CrowdStrike incident offers another opportunity to address the "shortsighted thinking" in technology infrastructure and increasing dependence on interconnected systems that can allow for scenarios where a single point of failure can cascade into widespread disruption.Bill Gates Never LeftBy Ashley Stewart, Business Insider, April 30A revealing investigation shows that despite his public departure following misconduct allegations in 2021, Gates remains deeply influential at Microsoft, particularly in shaping its AI strategy. Through internal memos and private meetings, he has been quietly orchestrating Microsoft's AI transformation, including its crucial partnership with OpenAI, all while CEO Satya Nadella publicly distances the company from its founder. The article argues that this behind-the-scenes involvement has been crucial to Microsofts emergence as an AI leader.Looking for AI Use-CasesBy Benedict Evans, ben-evans.com, April 17Evans suggests that while chatbots show immense promise, widespread adoption still faces two key challenges: technical limitations and use-case discovery. Drawing parallels to VisiCalc's success with accountants in 1982, he suggests that rather than becoming a universal tool, AI might follow SQL's path, becoming a powerful underlying technology packaged into thousands of specific applications that solves distinct problems for particular users.Peter High is President of Metis Strategy, a business and IT advisory firm. He has written three bestselling books, including his latest Getting to Nimble. He also moderates the Technovation podcast series and speaks at conferences around the world. Follow him on Twitter @PeterAHigh.

What just happened? As AMD's recently launched Ryzen 9000 desktop CPUs dominate sales charts and mobile users anticipate the company's next-gen APUs, news regarding Zen 5's Fire Range laptop CPUs has been scant. A mysterious Asus gaming notebook benchmark that appeared on Christmas might be the first hint of an impending Dragon Range successor. An Asus ROG laptop with an unnamed AMD engineering sample processor was recently discovered on Geekbench. An established leaker believes it might be one of the earliest sightings of a CPU from the company's upcoming Fire Range lineup.The device's Geekbench AI scores don't offer a clear picture of real-world performance. However, it is the first ROG Strix G-series laptop with an AMD processor to appear since the 2023 editions, which featured Zen 4 Ryzen 7000HX Dragon Range chips. The 2024 variants, including the most recent G16, exclusively use Intel Alder Lake CPUs.AMD announced Fire Range alongside the other Zen 5 variants earlier this year, but the laptop processors have received much less attention than their desktop and integrated brethren. The socketable Ryzen 9000 Granite Ridge chips launched in August to a positive reception, with the Ryzen 7 9800X3D taking the gaming CPU throne.Meanwhile, the Ryzen AI chips and their larger AI Max cousins recently began appearing in mobile gaming devices. The AI 9 370 and closely related Z2 Extreme are expected to power a new generation of portable PCs, while the AI Max appeared in a recently leaked Asus 2-in-1.Click to enlargeThe new ROG Strix chip is labeled with a nondescript sample number, but its specs suggest it might be a high-end Ryzen 9 model. Its 16 cores, 32 threads, and 2.5GHz base frequency indicate a follow-up to the 7945HX or 7945HX3D. // Related StoriesFire Range will likely compete against Intel's upcoming Arrow Lake Core Ultra 200HX CPUs. Little is known about them, but the top-end model might feature 24 cores and a 5.5GHz boost clock. Intel is set to unveil Core Ultra 200H and 200HX during the first quarter of 2025.At the other end of the laptop stack, AMD has also remained silent on Krackan Point, its upcoming lineup of budget laptop APUs. A Geekbench AI test for an engineering sample appeared in November, and the company is expected to unveil devices using the chips sometime next year.

WTF?! Far less than a quarter of e-waste generated globally is properly collected, treated, and recycled, according to the UN. That's why repurposing and extending the lifespan of discarded electronics is so crucial. One person has done just that, with a remarkable home charging system created by repurposing over a thousand used laptop batteries. This remarkable feat has been running successfully for an astonishing eight years without a single battery replacement, as detailed by the creator, Glubux, on the online forum Second Life Storage.The setup is housed in a somewhat unassuming shed 50 meters (164 feet) away from the individual's residence, but its purpose is anything but ordinary. It combines old laptop batteries with solar panels to create an off-grid power supply, essentially turning a pile of e-waste into a sustainable energy solution.Despite the unconventional nature of this system, there have been no reports of fire hazards or swollen battery issues throughout its nearly decade-long operation. In fact, Glubux claims he can power his entire house from it, including the washing machine.The project's origins can be traced back to November 2016, when the creator shared his initial plans on the forum. At the time, he had already begun producing part of his electricity needs with a modest 1.4kW solar panel array, an old 24V 460Ah forklift battery, charge controllers, and a 3kVA inverter.However, Glubux aimed to expand his setup by constructing a dedicated shed to house additional batteries and charge controllers/inverters. He had already amassed around 650 laptop batteries and had started sorting and assembling them into packs, each designed to hold approximately 100Ah by carefully matching the number of cells and using copper wiring for efficient connections. // Related StoriesWhile some initial hiccups arose, such as uneven discharge rates among packs with different cell counts, the creator quickly adapted by rebalancing the packs and adding cells where needed. Eventually, he ended up using over a thousand laptop batteries.If you're wondering why the batteries in the photos don't resemble your typical laptop power pack, that's because laptop batteries have historically been multiple battery cells housed within a single casing. However, in this ingenious setup, Glubux took those individual cells and assembled them into their own customized racks a process that likely required a fair bit of elbow grease and technical know-how, but one that has ultimately paid off in spades.Fast-forward to the present day, and a recent update from Sunday revealed that the setup has been running without a hitch for eight years, with not a single laptop battery cell requiring replacement. Glubux has also upgraded his solar panel array to 24 units rated at 440W peak each, providing ample power generation capacity, especially during the winter months.

The Samsung Galaxy S22 series is great, but many users have been plagued by bootloops for a year or more. If youre finding yourself among that number, dont worry you arent alone, and Samsung does offer a potential fix. A quick search of the r/SamsungGalaxy subreddit shows multiple posts reporting bootloops from the One UI 6.1 beta update and more posts from a year or more ago. This is far from an uncommon issue.The primary fix for this problem is to send your phone to Samsung for a replacement motherboard, although this comes at a cost since the S22 series is no longer under warranty. However, another Reddit user u/HenryTan shared an update that Samsung will cover the cost of repairs. It might be a matter of luck, but u/HenryTan suggests emailing the Samsung CEO for a faster response. They also admitted that being a Samsung Care member could have influenced the decision.Recommended VideosOther posts on the r/GalaxyS22 subreddit show multiple complaints from a month ago, when One UI 6.1 was released, but there have been multiple posts per month for the last several months about the issue.Please enable Javascript to view this contentOther users have turned to less orthodox fixes. Before you go any further, please note that we do not recommend this method. It only offers a temporary solution and could result in more damage to your device.Tushar Mehta/Digital Trends / Digital TrendsRedditor u/Pleasant-Apartment84 said putting their Galaxy S22 into the freezer for 20 minutes fixed the bootloop problem, but that the phone immediately began looping once it heated up again. Since Samsung is replacing the motherboards, the freezer trick seems like an odd solution, as temperature would most likely apply to the battery. Fortunately, the freezer trick allowed u/Pleasant-Apartment84 to transfer their data before the phone began looping again, this time with an added green line on the screen.RelatedThe cause of the bootloop isnt clear, and Samsung has yet to make a statement addressing the problem or the odd, if original, solution. If your phone is stuck in a bootloop, take it to a professional for repair. You might save a few dollars if the freezer trick works, or you could risk completely destroying your phone.Editors Recommendations

Table of ContentsTable of ContentsSicario (2015)Boogie Nights (1997)When Harry Met Sally (1989)Moonstruck (1987)Hush (2016)Since when did New Years Eve get so expensive? Restaurants are charging an arm and a leg for New Years Eve reservations. If youre not prepared in advance, you might spend an unnecessary amount of money. The same goes for the movies. Theres no need to pay for a movie if its on a FAST service free ad-supported television.Sign up for a FAST service, find a movie you want to watch, view a few ads, and youre good to go. Its like watching commercials during a television broadcast. Luckily, there are some recommendations below on what movies to watch. Our picks include the quintessential New Years Eve rom-com, a crime thriller, and an innovative horror film.Recommended VideosWe also have guides to the best new movies to stream, the best movies on Netflix, the best movies on Hulu, the best movies on Amazon Prime Video, the best movies on Max,andthe best movies on Disney+.RelatedLionsgateMost moviegoers by now are used to Denis Villeneuves visual style, which he mastered in the epic blockbuster Dune: Part Two. In 2015, Villeneuve was still gaining popularity as an auteur, and anyone who watched SicarioKate joins a team that includes Alejandro Gillick (Benicio del Toro), an enigmatic assassin with ties to Mexico. The mission is to kidnap one of the cartels top lieutenants to smoke out the leader. As Kate immerses herself in the investigation, the rules of engagement are blurred, causing her to question the missions ethics. Sicariomight be loud with in-your-face action, but my word, is it enthralling.Stream Sicariofor free on Tubi.New Line CinemaBefore he became PTA, a master filmmaker, Paul Thomas Anderson was the hotshot battling with Quentin Tarantino for the best young director of the 1990s.While Tarantino had Pulp Fiction, PTA hadBoogie Nights, his 1997 classic about an up-and-coming pornographic actor in the 1970s San Fernando Valley.The well-endowed Eddie Adams (Mark Wahlberg) is recruited by director Jack Horner (Burt Reynolds) to join the porn business. Eddie changes his name to Dirk Diggler and becomes a star, rising to the top with his friends Reed Rothchild (John C. Reilly), Rollergirl (Heather Graham), and Amber Waves (Julianne Moore). Once 1980 hits, it all comes crashing down for Dirk thanks to a cocky attitude and crippling drug addiction.Boogie Nights (1997) Official Trailer #1 - Paul Thomas Anderson MovieBetween the memorable characters and signature needle drops, Boogie Nightsproved that PTA would be an important filmmaker for years to come. Its a fun romp through a world most people dont know about, and it has a jaw-dropping climax.Stream Boogie Nightsfor free on Pluto TV.ColumbiaThere arent as many memorable New Years Eve movies compared to other holidays like Christmas and Halloween. However, When Harry Met SallyWhen Harry Met Sally investigates if men and women can just be friends.In 1977, Harry Burns (Billy Crystal) and Sally Albright (Meg Ryan) share a car ride to New York City and discuss their ideas about relationships, specifically how sex ruins friendships. For the next 12 years, Harry and Sally are in and out of each others lives. What happens when friends catch feelings? Good luck finding a better rom-com to watch tonight.Stream When Harry Met Sally for free on Pluto TV.Metro-Goldwyn-MayerIts hard to comprehend in 2024, but romantic comedies used to win Oscars. Take Moonstruck, Norman Jewisons 1987 rom-com that won Best Screenplay (John Patrick Shanley), Best Actress (Cher), and Best Supporting Actress (Olympia Dukakis). And guess what?Moonstruckdeserved every one of those awards.Italian-American widow Loretta Castorini (Cher) lives in Brooklyn Heights with her traditional parents, Cosmo (Vincent Gardenia) and Rose (Olympia Dukakis). Loretta reluctantly accepts a marriage proposal from her innocent and goofy boyfriend, Johnny (Danny Aiello). When Johnny leaves for Sicily, Loretta must invite his estranged brother Ronny (Nicolas Cage) to the wedding. It seems like a simple enough task, but when Loretta falls for Ronny, it complicates her safe future with Johnny.Stream Moonstruckfor free on Tubi.With a title like Hush, you can probably guess someone or something must be quiet. Hushis directed by Mike Flanagan from a screenplay he co-wrote with Kate Siegel. Maddie Young (Siegel) is a deaf writer who retreats from the busy streets of New York City to a life in the countryside, specifically a house in the woods.One night, a masked man (John Gallagher Jr.) stabs and kills Maddies neighbor. Because she cant hear, Maddie has no idea what happened until the killer reveals himself outside her door. The killer makes Maddie his next victim as he stalks her every move. At a brisk 81 minutes, Hushis a terrific home invasion thriller that has become one of the more unique additions to the slasher genre.Stream Hushfor free on Tubi.Editors Recommendations

Sony Bravia 8 review: A solid and lovely OLED TV Score Details The Bravia 8 is the Sony OLED TV most folks should buyProsGorgeous right out of the boxExcellent motion and upscalingAmazing contrastImpressive HDRGreat soundConsMissing deep calibration featuresNot as accurate as most Sony TVsTable of ContentsTable of ContentsSony Bravia 8 OLED specsThe right amount of brightImpressive, clear soundNumbers for Nit NerdsTest resultsYour eyes will thank youWorth the extra money?Earlier this year Sony announced the Bravia 8 an OLED TV sandwiched between two mini-LED TVs, the Bravia 7 and Bravia 9 and since then Ive been curious about it. This TVs predecessors most recently, the A80L and the A80K before that have always had one clear advantage over the competition: Sonys processing. However, competitors like LG have done a lot of catching up on the processing front. Now the Bravia 8s leg-up on the LG C-series OLED TV isnt quite as stark as it has been.Still, Sony has managed to hold onto a dedicated and enthusiastic crowd, and so far has maintained a major pull with premium buyers. My question has been: Does the Bravia 8 deliver what those folks want? Who should buy this TV over the LG C4? What does it have and whats it doing better than the competition? Lets get into it.RelatedPrice range$2,000 to $3,900Sizes55, 65, and 77 inchesWeight37.7 to 71.2 pounds (depends on size)Display typeOLEDProcessorXR ProcessorOperating systemGoogle TVScreen resolution4K Ultra HD (3,840 x 2,160)HDR supportDolby Vision, HDR10, HLGRefresh rate120 Hz, VRR (HDMI 3 & 4)Gaming featuresALLM, PS Remote PlayAudio supportDolby Atmos, DTS:XOutputsHDMI 2.1 x 2 (eARC x 1), HDMI 2.0 x 2TunerATSC 3.0The Bravia 8 is an OLED TV, so right off the bat it has tremendous appeal thanks to its amazing contrast and color. Its a Sony, so we can expect all the processing that drives its OLED panel to be top-tier, and simply among the best you can buy.There are three types of OLED panels used in TVs today: the relative newcomer,QD-OLED, uses quantum dots to achieve extremely impressive color volume and accuracy. Then theres WRGB OLED, sometimes called W-OLED, which uses a white subpixel to boost brightness. Finally theres a hot rod version of W-OLED called MLA OLED, which uses tiny little lenses to boost brightness even more.Zeke Jones / Digital TrendsThe Bravia 8 uses a standard W-OLED panel, meaning it is not trying to be the most intensely bright OLED on the market. Sony leaves that bragging right for its award-winning A95L QD-OLED. That doesnt mean this TV cant get impressively bright. It just means that its not a hot rod, and you dont have to spend hot rod money to get it.One thing youll notice about this TV is that it doesnt flaunt its ultra-thin OLED panel like other brands do. Its still very thin, but Sony gives the TV a uniformly thin chassis, rather than one thats ultra-thin at the top with a big bump-out toward the bottom like the LG C4.The TV comes with two feet that can be mounted toward the center, reducing the width of its footprint so it can fit on smaller platforms or out toward the edges. You also have a choice of two different heights in either of those positions: one that slings the TV low for a sleek look and one that elevates the TV, allowing a wide array of soundbars to fit just in front of it without blocking the screen.The Bravia 8s remote is backlit and made of a recycled material Sony makes called Sorplas, which has little flecks in the finish. It uses two triple-A batteries, and has a microphone for voice control and calibrating the TVs sound.There are a couple of transducers mounted to the back of the panel that allow the screen to act as a speaker, which, when paired with a little bass driver on the back of the TV, adds up to really impressive and clear sound. On larger models, it may seem like the voices are coming from the actors mouths.The TV comes with two HDMI 2.1 inputs; one is an eARC connection for feeding a soundbar or A/V receiver. The TV also includes an ATSC 3.0 NextGen TV tuner. Compare that to the LG C4, which has four HDMI 2.1 inputs, but no NextGen tuner on board.Zeke Jones / Digital TrendsThe Bravia 8 runs on Google TV (my favorite) with a built-in smart TV interface, which has been customized by Sony. The LG C4 runs LGs WebOs (which is fine, but definitely not my preferred smart TV platform).If you choose to augment the Bravia 8 with a Sony soundbar or a Bravia Theater Quad Dolby Atmos surround system, the TVs speakers can work as a center channel and otherwise expand the sound. Sony has a few other little bells and whistles available, but thats the most notable one.Before digging into measurements, lets talk about some curious things you may have already heard about.On Vincent Teohs HDTVTest channel, he noted that this TV was missing some deeper picture settings and adjustment options and wondered if the restricted bits were just for his region or if it was a global thing. He confirmed that the Bravia 8s in Japan were also missing some settings, and I can confirm that this is also true for the North American versions.Zeke Jones / Digital TrendsThe Bravia 8 does not have a Smooth Gradation slider, which lets you alter the strength of the algorithm that aims to smooth out jarring transitions in color shades. Smooth gradation is still at work in this TV you just cant make adjustments to it. This TV has a 10-point white balance calibration menu as opposed to the more granular 20-point white balance youll find in TVs like the Bravia 9 and A95L. There is also no color management system at all.Professionals need all the controls to calibrate a display as close to perfection as possible. However for most people this isnt an issue not in practical terms.When I asked Sony why the Bravia 8 is missing controls we have come to expect in its TVs, a spokesperson pointed out that with the controls available, this TV can be adjusted to have white balance and color errors with a Delta E of less than 3, which is considered to be below the threshold of human perception. They are correct: I got Delta errors of less than 3 for white balance and most colors.Zeke Jones / Digital TrendsIn my opinion, Sony probably thinks that its super-enthusiast audience or those in professional circles arent looking to get a Bravia 8 instead they are more likely to get a Bravia 9 or an A95L. I dont think anything meaningful has been lost by not including those controls, so I feel comfortable acknowledging this is not a disadvantage to Sony customers.When I asked Sony about what advantage is gained by not including these controls, they politely declined to answer. Left to speculate, I think it may perhaps reduce the cost of production. Otherwise, if it doesnt save them money, why not just leave those things in? (Vincent speculates it is possible that a co-processor chip was omitted. However, it appears that Sonys processing is as effective here as it is in other Sony TVs.)Along those lines, Sony essentially says that their picture processing engine the XR processor evolves year by year, and the user interface and specifications are optimized for each model and panel type as far as customer usability and convenience are concerned. Therefore, certain features differ between years and in between models.Zeke Jones / Digital TrendsThat sounds like processing demands are lower for the Bravia 8 than for the Bravia 9 which has a new backlight system that Sony has likely tweaked the XR processor for and for the A95L, which has a QD-OLED panel that behaves differently and needs its own special treatment.I suppose that if the Bravia 8 had an MLA OLED panel, it might need its own special treatment as well. I dont sense anything nefarious here, however the fully transparent answer would likely get extremely deep in the weeds and likely misconstrued by less savvy media and its probably not worth risking the PR nightmare of a misguided discussion on forums. I could be dead wrong, but Ive been in this business a while, and thats what it feels like to me.In the end, does it really matter? Im going to say no, it doesnt matter to 99.99 percent of humans on this planet. What does matter is how the TV performs.To conduct my measuring, I placed the Bravia 8 in Professional mode for both SDR and HDR. When I subjectively evaluated the TV with Dolby Vision content, I used Dolby Vision Dark.In Professional SDR mode with the default settings which has the brightness set to 40, and more importantly, the peak brightness setting set to off heres what I got:Peak luminance was 100 nits very strict adherence to SDR which is what I would expect for Professional mode. The two-point white balance was a little odd. Sony doesnt always target exact D65, but the blue channel at just 100 nits seemed really off. That is easily calibrated out using the white balance controls.Zeke Jones / Digital TrendsWith a 20-point grayscale measurement, the blue channel was hot all the way up the chain. The color balance was OK, but not what I expect from Sony.In Cinema mode default, the brightness was maxed out and the peak luminance was set to medium. It was better in some ways, and worse than others. I saw a lower error at the very brightest white but it was more off through the top half of the grayscale, which was weird.Next I tested in Professional mode with everything maxed out, which is how I had the TV set most of the time I was watching SDR content. In some ways it was better; in other ways, it was more of the same. The factory tuning leaned cooler, which I have to presume was intentional. It was a marginal difference.When messing with color temperature, in just 10 minutes I was able to make adjustments to the white balance to get everything below a Delta E of 2.The Bravia 8 is an excellent OLED TV.Credit goes to Vincent for making this next part much easier for me:EOTF tracking with the peak brightness setting at high was the default for the HDR Professional mode, and the tracking was off in a couple of places. It wasnt bright enough in some areas and too bright in others, which is very un-Sony-like. When the peak brightness setting was bumped down to medium the EOTF tracking was spot-on. However, peak HDR brightness went down significantly.Im OK if a TV brand wants to offer an over-brightened HDR setting most people find that approach easier to watch. However thats not what I think most folks are expecting out of Sonys Professional mode, and I dont think that folks should have to decide between accurate HDR tracking and full HDR brightness capability. Its not a compromise Sony has asked anyone to make in the past, and I dont understand why we would be asked to accept it now.Zeke Jones / Digital TrendsHowever, Sony could be reading its audience and knows this is not going to bother the vast majority of folks who buy this TV. What advantage does Sony gain by going this way? Cost savings? That will just have to remain a mystery.Heres my takeaway: This is not really an enthusiasts TV. Not only is it missing those typical granular calibration controls, but the white balance and grayscale is further afield than Id expect. It can be corrected well, but if youre looking for Sonys historically excellent out-of-box accuracy, the unit I tested didnt have it. Also, seeing it track so low on the EOTF with the peak brightness set to high was just odd.The Bravia 8 is reasonably accurate in its Professional and Cinema picture modes, right out of the box, and you can tweak it to be even more accurate if you want to. With the peak brightness setting at high, you will get a very enjoyable, if not technically dead-on-balls (thats an industry term) accurate picture. If you want extremely accurate HDR tracking, the trade-off is a fair amount of brightness. Most of you, though, are going to be thrilled with this TVs HDR performance, as it can get very punchy in bright highlights and it generally makes all content look amazing.The Bravia 8 is an excellent OLED TV. It has great upscaling and image clean-up capabilities, making it an ideal choice for folks who watch a lot of cable or live TV streaming services like YouTube TV, Sling TV, or Fubo TV. It has a super clean picture 95 percent of the time. The color isnt just accurate, its gorgeous. Its an OLED TV that starts at a baseline of awesome, and also happens to be an excellent example of an OLED TV, thanks to Sonys outstanding processing.The Bravia 8 is absolutely worth considering.The Bravia 8 is a mind-blowing treat for the eyes. There are brighter hot rod OLED TVs, and mini-LED TVs can get a lot brighter. But when you start from perfect black and there are no backlight anomalies? You will be dazzled.I enjoyed watching the Bravia 8 a lot and I have access to the worlds best TVs. I never feel the need to take the Bravia 8 down and put up the Z95A because the Bravia 8 is lovely. If you are looking at getting your first OLED, or even replacing an OLED thats four years old or older, the Bravia 8 is absolutely worth considering.The question is not a matter of whether this TV is worth buying it absolutely is. The question is whether you should spend more to buy this TV as opposed to an LG C4 OLED. At the 65-inch size, the Sony Bravia 8 is about $200 more than the LG C4. Does the Bravia 8 earn that extra $200?The LG C4 has four HDMI 2.1 inputs while the Bravia 8 has just two and one of them is taken up with the eARC functionality. If you have both the Xbox Series X and a PlayStation 5, or a gaming PC and you want to use eARC to get audio to your soundbar or A/V receiver, I suppose the LG C4s additional HDMI 2.1 ports are an advantage. However, for most folks, they arent.Zeke Jones / Digital TrendsThe Sony has an ATSC 3.0 tuner whereas the LG C4 does not. I suspect it isnt going to sway many folks. However, the Sony Bravia 8 has better sound quality than the LG C4. If you want the best dialog clarity, the Bravia 8 is a better choice.The Bravia 8 has a standard remote as opposed to LGs magic motion remote. I know which one I prefer what about you?The Sony runs Google TV as opposed to LGs WebOS. Again, I know which one I prefer what about you?Im a fan of the LG C4 and Id be quite thrilled to own one. But, if Im spending my own money, would I shell out an extra $200 on a 65-inch Bravia 8? Yes, because of the better sound, Google TV, and a remote that doesnt drive me crazy.I think that extra $200 is gonna break down to maybe an extra $4 per month over the course of four years, which is as long as I can keep a TV before upgrade-itus sets in.Transparently, Im a top-tier OLED kind of person when it comes to my living room. If Im buying an OLED TV, Im probably going to save up a little longer to get the Sony A95L, the LG G4, the Samsung S95D or the Panasonic Z95A, which has really captured my heart (even though I hate Amazon Fire TV). If Im going big, its going to be a huge mini-LED TV.The Bravia 8 is a solid and lovely OLED TV. It gets a full recommendation from me. The question is: Is it the right TV for you? Hopefully, Ive helped you arrive at that decision.Editors Recommendations

His collaborators included Mickey Hart of the Grateful Dead, Herbie Hancock, Bla Fleck and Van Morrison.

TechnologyA robotic boom could see thousands of humanoid units entering workplaces and more in 2025, but whether they will have staying power remains to be seen 23 December 2024 The Digit robot made by Agility Robotics is already working in warehousesAgile RoboticsHumanoid robots are poised to enter warehouses, automotive factories and even some homes in growing numbers in 2025 but whether they can really take hold remains to be seen.The machines in this new revolution will be different to existing working robots, which are primarily lone arms doing repetitive motions on assembly lines or wheeled bots navigating warehouses. Humanoid robots with two arms and legs should fit more easily into spaces designed for humans, but pulling that off will require much better artificial intelligence to handle

A massive blackout in Puerto Rico left more than 1.3 million power company customers in the dark.Luma Energy, the power company, said restoring power could take up to 48 hours.It said that the outage appears to have been caused by the failure of an underground power line.A massive blackout hit Puerto Rico early Tuesday morning and it could take days to restore power.The outage, which struck around dawn, the Associated Press reported, left nearly 90% of private power company Luma Energy's 1.47 million customers without power, the company told the AP.Luma said the issue appeared to have stemmed from the failure of an underground cable. It said fully restoring power could take anywhere from 24 to 48 hours. On its social media, it said it would begin restoring power "in phases." For instance, by 11 a.m. Eastern, the utility said it had restored power to the Municipal Hospital of San Juan, among other locations.Still, many customers were left without power throughout the island territory of the US. "It had to be on the 31st of December!" one man told the AP, standing outside a grocery store in San Juan. He said the power outage came on his birthday. "There is no happiness," he said.Puerto Rico has dealt with a sometimes rickety power system for years highlighted in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in 2017 and again with Hurricane Fiona in 2022. Luma is in charge of distributing energy across the island, while a company called Genera PR provides the power both have been under scrutiny for the territory's frequent outages, The New York Times has reported.In a statement posted on Facebook, translated by the Times, Puerto Rico's Gov. Pedro Pierluisi said: "We are demanding answers," adding that the two power companies "must expedite the restart of the generating units outside the fault area and keep the people duly informed about the measures they are taking to restore service throughout the island."