Archives January 2023

Fujifilm India has expanded its endoscopy solutions portfolio with the new compact ultrasonic probe system named PB2020-M2. The company announced the latest system t the 3rd Annual conference on Interventional Pulmonology – Bronchus 2023. The two-day conference which was held at Hyderabad was attended by all leading Pulmonologists from 18 countries. Here, Fujifilm India showcased its range of Pulmonology solutions through one of its kind “Experience centre” at the trade exhibition. Here we have shared all the details of the latest compact ultrasonic probe PB2020-M2:
PB2020-M2: Key features
The newly launched PB2020-M2 is a compact ultrasonic probe that is designed for a more efficient examination. This system claims to provide real-time ultrasound imaging of peripheral lung lesions. The system is not only small and lightweight but it is also user-friendly and provides high-resolution ultrasonic images. It comes with an outer diameter of 1.4-1.9mm and it can easily pass through a 2mm working channel bronchoscope.
Other products showcased by Fujifilm
Fujifilm India’s Endoscopy Division also showcased a new slim-line Video Bronchoscope EB-710P. This product is a thin endoscope which is equipped with a compact CMOS sensor. The tip of the Bronchoscope is just 4.1mm in diameter. This design helps the machine to penetrate the periphery of the lung much more easily than a conventional system.
Apart from this, the Bronchoscope also has a rotation mechanism which allows the user to return the endoscope safely to its original position before the withdrawal. The small diameter and its rotation function along with the innovative EB-710P endoscope system increase the safety and comfort of a bronchoscopy.

Dr Nobuyasu Awano, Department of Respiratory Medicine, Japanese Red Cross Medical Center, Tokyo, Japan has also delivered a lecture on the new slim-line bronchoscope EB-710P. Awano also described the bronchoscope’s clinical benefits for diagnostic and therapeutic procedures during the event.
Speaking on the occasion Managing Director of Fujifilm India, Mr Koji Wada said, “The new technology will not only aid better operability but will also support enhanced examination.”
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Intel has steered a bumpy road with its Arc Alchemist graphics cards, but a forthcoming driver update might offer a sizeable enough performance gain to keep the company’s hopes of cracking into the discrete graphics market alive a little while longer.

Since the launch of the first Intel Arc A380 discrete GPU, halfway into 2022, Intel’s GPU series has been plagued by a number of incompatibilities and driver issues, especially with older games running on DirectX 9. 

It’s been almost five years since Samsung unveiled what was then the world’s biggest solid state drive (SSD) in terms of capacity. The PM1643 was, for a very long time, the apex storage device but it did come with a hefty tag. Back in 2020, it retailed for just under $8,400 and three years later, still commands a hefty $4,939 sticker price. 

A relatively newcomer is about to change all that, the Intel SSDPFWNV307TZ (soon to become Solidigm SSD D5-P5316) has dropped in price and now costs less than $2,699 at Walmart (opens in new tab) (and Newegg (opens in new tab)). At a little over $87/TB, it is quite an achievement given that 4TB PCIe Gen4 drives struggle to smash the $100/TB floor.

Apple may introduce its first foldable device in 2024, which could be a folding iPad. While we may not get a new iPad in 2023, we could see a new folding iPad joining the lineup next year.
Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo had previously hinted that Apple has been working on a foldable iPad but did not say when it would launch. Now, Kuo, in a tweet, says that he is “positive” that the foldable iPad could launch as soon as next year.
In the tweet, Kuo predicts a 10 to 15 percent decline in iPad shipments in 2023. However, the analyst says that the introduction of the new foldable iPad in 2024 will benefit the shipments while also improving the product mix.
Kuo does not divulge much into what to expect from the foldable iPad except that it would feature a kickstand made of carbon fibre.
No new iPads in 2023
Apple started 2023 with new M2 series chipsets, MacBooks, Mac mini, and HomePod. Soon, it is expected to unveil its first-ever mixed-reality headset, and as usual, there will be new iPhones, Apple Watches, and even the new Apple Silicon Mac Pro. But, we may not get a new iPad this year, suggests Kuo.
New iPad mini to launch in 2024
Apart from the foldable iPad, Kuo suggests that Apple will also refresh the iPad mini in 2024 with a new processor. The new iPad will go into mass production in the first quarter of 2024, says Kuo.
There have been rumours of the foldable iPad aiming to replace the iPad mini, but as per Kuo, that would not happen. The analyst says that the foldable iPad would be a lot more expensive than the iPad mini. So, it is unlikely that the folding iPad would ever replace the iPad mini.

Virtual office meetings and online classes have become common since the pandemic days. Some of the popular online meeting platforms include — Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet. Just like any other virtual meeting software, Google Meet offers some handy features like auto-generated captions and Companion mode. Here we will discuss what is Google meet companion mode and how it works:
Google Meet Companion mode: What is it
Google Meet’s Companion mode is a handy feature that allows users to access a second screen during virtual meetings. This option improves their user experience by enabling users to multitask on any device. Companion mode can be an important feature for users who are in a meeting room with others. By using this feature, users can access a second screen to raise their hand or send a message in the chat as an individual without sending it as a group while they are in the meeting room. This feature also helps users to declutter their single screen by splitting content between two displays.
Google Meet Companion mode: How it works
Users should not confuse Google Meet’s Companion mode and Participant mode. With Companion mode enabled, users can chat with other Google Meet participants, share their screen, access a virtual whiteboard for ideation and can even turn on captions to follow the speaker. Other features like hand-raising, conducting polls and Q&A are available only in specific Google Workspace editions.
However, users need to keep in mind that while entering a meeting in Companion mode, the audio and microphone will remain disabled by default. This will prevent audio echoes for the user and other participants as well. Google Meet won’t display two names in the participant list, instead, it will show the name with a Companion tag in the People menu. Moreover, the virtual meeting platform will also hide the participant grid in Companion mode. This will simplify the interface on users’ companion devices.

Moreover, if users want to speak or listen to others using a companion device, they need to connect to the hardware in the meeting room or use a Nest Hub Max for the call. Users can also join the call with Participant mode on their laptop or mobile phone.
How to use Companion mode in Google Meet
Users can connect their companion device to a Google Meet call in two ways. Firstly, users can activate Companion mode from a meeting invite link. To do that, users need to turn on their secondary device, open the meeting link and wait for the “Ready to join” screen to load. Here, users will be able to select the “Use Companion Mode” link button.

On the other hand, users can also access the dedicated Companion mode website to activate companion mode. For this, users have to start their secondary device and visit the g.co/companion website. Here, users can input the meeting code or link in the “Enter a code or link” box and click the Start Companion button.
Users must sign in to the Google account where the invite to the meeting was originally sent on their secondary device. If users are unable to log into their Google account they will need approval from the meeting host to join the call.
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A foldable iPad with a carbon fiber kickstand is reportedly in the works and may launch early 2024.

This information comes from notable Apple tipster Ming-Chi Kuo via a Twitter thread (opens in new tab). While there isn’t much to be gleaned from the short thread, what he reveals paints a rather interesting picture for the tech giant in 2023. According to Kuo, Chinese manufacturer Anjie Technology will be supplying the carbon fiber kickstand for the new device and is expected to benefit greatly from this “growing trend of foldable devices equipped with kickstands.” He goes on to say the upcoming iPad will launch alongside a revamped iPad Mini which is “likely to begin mass production” during the same time period. As for the near future, things are going to be a little unfriendly towards consumers. Kuo says it’s possible “there may be no new iPad releases in the next [nine to 12] months” as Apple works on its upcoming devices. He also predicts iPad shipments will dip 10 to 15 percent year-over-year in 2023.

Intel appears to have quietly killed off its open source RISC-V developer environment, Pathfinder. 

The news may come as a shock to many SoC architects, software developers, and product research teams, primarily because Pathfinder was only announced in August 2022, however to others, it may have been an expected move.

Marshall is a brand synonymous with road-worthy guitar amps, but this new portable Bluetooth speaker seems rugged enough to stand up to a world tour with Slash.

The Middleton certainly looks the part, featuring the company’s script logo on a black plastic housing. Made from 55% post-consumer recycled plastic, the casing has a IP67 rating, meaning it offers complete protection from dust as well as being able to stand up to being submerged in 1m water for at least 30 minutes.

A new cyberattack that appears to be targeted at Ukraine and is designed to overwrite crucial Windows files has been spotted by security firm ESET.

“On January 25th #ESETResearch discovered a new cyberattack in Ukraine. Attackers deployed a new wiper we named #SwiftSlicer using Active Directory Group Policy. The #SwiftSlicer wiper is written in Go programing language. We attribute this attack to #Sandworm,” a Tweet (opens in new tab) by the firm read.

Palo Alto Networks’ Unit 42 team has uncovered a series of tools and malware samples in a recent Black Basta breach, with one particularly nasty train gaining particular attention.

The campaign uses years-old PlugX malware to infect removable USB drives, which can go on to affect any Windows host they are connected to.