Robot vacuum cleaners are so advanced these days that some of them barely need human intervention. Of course, that wasnt always the case in the earliest days of this market segment, with the first generations relying on some very basic technologies and software by todays standards. Although its name has become synonymous with robot vacs, the Roomba has almost all but faded into that background.Some, however, have found some rather creative uses for older models, with a bit of hacking and ingenuity. Giving a very old rolling robot a better brain and literally space-grade software, this mod turns a cleaning machine into a mess-making one, albeit not by intention. Instead of picking up dirt or even clothes, the Space Vacuum will instead drop pieces of food for your canine companion to munch on when its near.Designer: Joaquim SilveiraMost of us probably have a file of unused and abandoned electronics that are still a bit functional except for one broken or missing part. We dont have much practical use for them, so they just end up gathering dust and taking up space, sometimes forgotten until the next Spring cleaning. A few people, however, have the fortunate skill to bring these machines back to life, though sometimes with a different function so different from the original.This Roomba, for example, once cleaned up dirty floors in a previous lifetime. But with some clever use of off-the-shelf hardware like an Arduino and some skilled DIY electronics, it has been given a new lease on life as a dog food dispenser. Ironically, it now does the opposite of cleaning the floor and instead makes a mess, presuming the canine doesnt gobble up the treats first.What the Space Vacuum basically does is detect the presence of a dog, while differentiating it from other living critters in the house, and drops dog food from a paper cup that has its bottom partially cut out. Curiously enough, the software used for this project is NASA Jet Propulsion Labss (JPL) Fprime flight software used for space missions and controlling drones, which sounds a bit overkill for a food-dispensing robot. That, however, gives it the right to call itself a Space Vacuum, though the vacuum part is in question.Its definitely not going to win any awards for aesthetics or practicality, but the project does spark curiosity and maybe inspire a few more experiments using these house robots. The rather odd clothes-picking Roborock vacuum at CES 2025 demonstrated what these machines are actually capable of, especially with their advanced sensors and AI-powered brains. All they need is a robot arm or a proper food dispenser, and they have the makings of a general-purpose robot that wont take up too much floor space.The post Modified Roomba becomes a smart robot for dispensing doggie treats first appeared on Yanko Design.

The slow fade of broadcast televisionone of the few remaining free sources of news and entertainmentis about to accelerate, thanks to the policies of the new US presidential administration.

Is linen worth the splurge? Should you buy bamboo or silk sheets? We tested dozens of sheets to find our favorites, and we break it all down.

OpenAI, Oracle and SoftBank are planning to form a new joint venture called Stargate to invest in data centers, building on major U.S. investments in the technology.

MacworldWell-known leaker Majin Bu posted an image (above) on X of what he claims to be the casing for an iPhone 17 (in protective plastic wrap). if its realand its far too early to know for surethen the iPhone is about to go through some big changes.The image seems to show one large rear camera on the left side of a wide camera bar, with another round cutout on the right side for a flash, focus illuminator, LiDAR, or other sensor. This lines up with previous rumors for the new ultra-slim iPhone 17 model.Its rather early for a leak of this naturethe iPhone 17 Air (and all other iPhone 17 models) are expected to be released this September as usual, so volume production, and the supply chain and manufacturing leaks that come with it, wont begin until the summer. But Apple is known to shore up iPhone designs years in advance, so parts and prototypes are floating around. Its a big shift from the design of current iPhones, which bunch all the cameras and associated hardware together into a square in the upper-left corner. Apple has placed the camera in a square array since the iPhone 11, which was released in 2019.The camera bar design has been rumored for at least the iPhone 17 Air (the common name for a rumored ultra-slim model) and perhaps even for the entire iPhone 17 line. For more, check out our roundup of all the iPhone 17 leaks and rumors.

MacworldThanks to Apples feast-or-famine approach to product announcements, January can be a tedious month for the Macworld crew. The last batch of new products came out in the fall, and the next ones probably wont be here until the spring; in between, we shiver and get bored. In their wintry desperation, keynote-starved Apple reporters have even been known to watch product unveilings by other companies.I dont know if Ill go that far this week when Samsung holds its next Galaxy Unpacked event. Not because Samsung phones are intrinsically inferior to iPhonesalthough coincidentally they arebut because I feel like Ive seen it all before.Samsung, you see, is the original. Not, sadly, in the sense that it does things first, but in the sense that it was xeroxing iPhone designs before it was cool. I know this because the long-running patent dispute between Apple and Samsung was my first beat topic as a Macworld reporter. The first lawsuits were filed back in 2011, and the saga dragged on until 2018. I got a bunch of articles out of that dispute, and an appearance on British TV news. (I can only assume it was a slow news day.)Samsung and Apple have a long history of borrowing features from each other year after year.FoundryThe core of Apples original complaintwhich later got muddied by additional claims and counterclaimswas that Samsung had violated a number of patents covering the iPhones shape and software interface. It was suggested, not unreasonably, that the 1st-gen Galaxy S took a degree of inspiration from the iPhone 3GS that pushed the bounds of legal propriety. My own view was and remains that, once a device finds its optimal approximate design, it hinders competition if the company that came up with that design is able to prevent rivals from following suit in a general sense. But at the same time, its worth acknowledging that Samsung really was pushing its luck.Roughly 14 years on, Im feeling a little nostalgic about those simpler days when people could get angry about something as minor as product design. (Oh, hold on.) Funnily enough, given the lightning speed at which the tech industry is supposed to move, both Apple and Samsung are still releasing products from the same lines discussed in the 2011 lawsuit: well get a new iPhone in a couple of months, and at Galaxy Unpacked on January 22 we expect to see yet another Galaxy S phone. Which will presumably pay homage in its own way to the current range of Apple products.This isnt just a name or a general size and shape. Anything goes at Unpackedperhaps Samsung will announce a new charging standard called SafeMag. Or a camera cutout interface feature called the Energetic Islet. Im hoping to see a new button called the Controller For Cameras, with a Reaction Button on the opposite edge. Maybe Bixby Intelligence. And all of this of course will be announced by the new CEO, Tom Saute.At this point, of course, I am only indulging in facetious speculation. I dont know the details of Samsungs announcements, and even if I did, I wouldnt be allowed to tell you anything about them. But rumors suggest the new Galaxy phones will get rounder corners, a faster chip, and more AI. And a possible preview of an ultra-thin phone coming later this year. Ahem.Dont believe it? Youll just have to watch the event live and see for yourself. Then follow the ensuing seven-year legal battle right here on Macworld.Just kidding! I hope.

Todays AI models do a poor job of providing accurate information about world history, according to a new report from the Austrian research institute Complexity Science Hub (CSH).In an experiment, OpenAIs GPT-4, Metas Llama, and Googles Gemini were asked to answer yes or no to historical questions and only 46% of the answers were correct. GPT-4, for example, answered yes to the question of whether Ancient Egypt had a standing army, likely because the AI model chose to extrapolate data from other empires such as Persia.If you are told A and B 100 times and C one time, and then asked a question about C, you might just remember A and B and try to extrapolate from that, researcher Maria del Rio-Chanona told Techcrunch.According to the researchers, AI models have more difficulty providing accurate information about some regions than others, including sub-Saharan Africa.

Marking a fairly short round of developer betas, Apple has issued the first release candidates of iOS 18.3, iPadOS 18.3, tvOS 18.3, visionOS 2.3, watchOS 11.3, and macOS 15.3, alongside other builds.Examples of Apple Intelligence at work. On Tuesday, Apple issued what has become the first release candidates for the current developer beta generation. The first RC editions of iOS 18.3, iPadOS 18.3, macOS 15.3, tvOS 18.3, visionOS 2.3, and watchOS 11.3 were all offered for testing.There were also RC releases for older operating systems too. iPadOS 17.7.4 was made available in RC, as well as macOS 14.7.3. Apple often introduces builds for older operating systems, which often consists of compatibility updates and security patches. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

A new image leak supposedly backs up a claim of a major camera bar redesign for the iPhone 17 or iPhone 17 Slim, but the rumor still seems too improbable to be true.New images claiming to show the iPhone 17 camera bar design - Image Credit: BilliBilli/Tech-ShowIn December, a series of rumors proposed that Apple would radically shake up the camera on the iPhone 17. While seemingly unlikely, those rumors have resurfaced a month later, thanks to a blurry photograph.Shared by serial leaker Majin Bu on X on Tuesday, the post offers a single shot of two smartphone-like devices. Seemingly under a plastic sheet, the two devices bear Apple logos in the middle, similar to Apple's other hardware products. Rumor Score: Unlikely Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Look below for Archinect's latest curated selection of architecture and design firms currently hiring onArchinect Jobs. This week'sfeatured employer highlightincludes openings inBrooklyn, San Francisco,andLos Angeles/Pasadena.For even more opportunities, visit theArchinect job boardand explore our active community ofjob seekers,firms, andschools.MITHUNis hiring for a Project Architect with twelve-plus years of experience in San Francisco. The ideal candidate possesses proficiency with Revit and the Adobe Creative Suite, significant knowledge of architectural detailing, specifically wood-framed construction, and excellentverbal, written, and visual communication skills. One should also have strong communication, teamwork, collaboration, and conflict resolution skills.Sustainability Treehouse by MITHUN. Photo: Joe FletcherLos Angeles-based architecture and design studioORA (Oonagh Ryan Architects Inc.)is in search of aJob Captain/Mid-Level Designer with three to sev...