Some of the best OnePlus phones will soon be getting AI tools, beginning with an ‘AI Eraser’, the first in a series of smart features that OnePlus says it’s bringing to its phones this year.
The AI Eraser will appear within the OnePlus Photos gallery app, and function like the Magic Eraser on Google Pixel phones, and the Object Eraser on the latest Samsung Galaxy handsets. This will allow you to highlight and remove unwanted objects or people from your photos, where the AI will attempt to fill the missing space to match the background seamlessly.
Which devices will get the upgrade – and when?
OnePlus says AI Eraser will be rolled out to phones including the OnePlus 12 – the company’s latest flagship – the mid-range OnePlus 12R, and the foldable OnePlus Open, from April and Europe later in Q2 2024.
The OnePlus 11 will also receive the AI Eraser. However, OnePlus phones and tablets that aren’t using Snapdragon chips, such as the OnePlus Pad and Nord 3 5G, which were released after the OnePlus 11, appear to be left out. OnePlus says it will provide further details of which devices will be upgraded and when, in due course.
OnePlus says it uses a proprietary AI model to power AI Eraser that it claims to have trained on “a vast dataset that allows it to comprehend complex scenes”. So we’re looking forward to testing the feature to see how effective it is compared to Google’s and Samsung’s tools.
OnePlus has shared before-and-after example images of a wedding scene. In the before shot, the hands of several guests are visible, and in the edited version these have been removed by the AI Eraser, and replaced by AI-generated background detail.
Image 1 of 3
(Image credit: OnePlus)
(Image credit: OnePlus)
(Image credit: OnePlus)
It’s hard to tell how effective the AI Eraser is based on a single demo image, and AI tools aren’t always perfect. While the edited image looks okay at first glance, a closer look reveals a couple of mistakes, including the bride’s thumb being cut off, and some areas that have been generated to replace the guest’s hands being removed looking incorrect.
Hopefully, OnePlus will provide more images of the feature in action, or a video, to give us a better idea of how effective it is.
Get the hottest deals available in your inbox plus news, reviews, opinion, analysis, deals and more from the TechRadar team.
As mentioned, OnePlus says it plans to introduce more AI features this year, but it has not provided details. We could see further camera enhancements such as blur reduction tools or by extending the canvas area. We could also see note-taking, translation, or assistants enhanced by AI, although we’ll have to wait and see.
The OnePlus 12 launched without any mention of AI features in January, despite AI functionality being baked into the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3’s silicon. At the time fans noted that OnePlus seemed not to be adopting the same focus on AI as Google and Samsung, with some saying they preferred this approach.
However, with more phones incorporating AI features, and Apple is rumored to be focusing on AI this year, it’s not surprising to see OnePlus climbing on the bandwagon.
OnePlus has made a name for itself by offering flagship phones capable of challenging the best Android phones from industry giants like Google and Samsung, and by offering AI features previously exclusive to these established players OnePlus could become more competitive than ever.
Oppo A3 Pro is confirmed to debut on April 12. The Chinese smartphone brand teased the design and colourways of the new A series handset earlier this week. Now, the same phone has been reportedly spotted in an official listing on China Telecom’s website with key specifications and pricing details. The Oppo A3 Pro is said to be listed with a 6.7-inch AMOLED display and a 64-megapixel dual rear camera unit. It is tipped to come with a MediaTek Dimensity 7050 SoC, coupled with up to 12GB RAM and up to 512GB storage.
The Oppo A3 Pro listing on China Telecom was spotted by GSMArena with the model number PJY110. The listing has been taken down since. As per the report, the phone was listed with a price of CNY 1,999 (roughly Rs. 23,000) for the 8GB + 256GB variant. The 12GB + 256GB version was priced at CNY 2,199 (roughly Rs. 25,000) while the top-end 12GB + 512GB model was seen with a price tag of CNY 2,499 (roughly Rs. 29,000). The listing reportedly suggests distant mountain blue, sky blue, and cloud brocade pink (translated) colour options for the handset.
Oppo A3 Pro specifications (expected)
As per the alleged listing, the Oppo A3 Pro handset will have a 6.7-inch display with a hole-punch design. It could pack 8GB of RAM as standard and 256GB of internal storage. The listing reportedly suggests a dual rear camera setup with a 64-megapixel main camera and a 2-megapixel sensor. For selfies, the listing indicates an 8-megapixel shooter.
Details about the processor and battery are not listed on China Telecom, as per the report. However, it is speculated to ship with a MediaTek Dimensity 7050 SoC and a 5,000mAh battery with 67W charging support.
Oppo already confirmed the April 12 launch window for the Oppo A3 Pro in China. It is teased to be available in Azure, Mountain Blue, and Yun Jin Powder (translated from Chinese). It is also confirmed to have an IP69-rated water-resistant build.
The Oppo A3 Pro is expected to come with upgrades over the Oppo A2 Pro. The latter was unveiled in China in September last year.
Affiliate links may be automatically generated – see our ethics statement for details.
As Brazil launched an inquiry into Elon Musk’s conduct, citizens are getting ready to evade potential social media restrictions.
The owner of X, formerly known as Twitter, first suggested users across the country download a virtual private network (VPN) on Sunday, April 7, 2024. His pledge came to ensure people can still access the platform in case the Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes decides to enforce restrictions for not complying with some account removal requests.
Brazilians appear to have listened to the billionaire. Some popular VPN service providers confirmed to TechRadar, in fact, a considerable spike in usage and sign-ups since then.
The need for a Brazil VPN
“To ensure that you can still access the X platform, download a virtual private network (VPN) app,” Musk tweeted on Sunday. So, why is he recommending Brazilian users download this security software?
That’s because one of the main capabilities of a VPN is spoofing your IP address location to make you appear as if you’re browsing from a completely different country. This is why, when governments decide to pull the plug from certain websites or online services, citizens turn en masse to these tools to evade censorship.
As the graphs below show, both PureVPN and ProtonVPN recorded a sharp increase in sign-ups to their VPN service following Musk’s message.
Image 1 of 3
PureVPN’s surge in VPN users (Image credit: PureVPN)
PureVPN’s spike in VPN app installations(Image credit: PureVPN)
“PureVPN has experienced a significant surge in traffic from Brazil, signaling a heightened concern for internet privacy and freedom among Brazilian users,” a company’s spokesperson told me.
Get the hottest deals available in your inbox plus news, reviews, opinion, analysis, deals and more from the TechRadar team.
Most notably, the PureVPN app has been installed up to roughly 45% more times than usual on April 8. According to the provider, this indicates the increasing need for a reliable VPN service in the region.
Also Proton, the Swiss firm behind popular encrypted secure email and free VPN apps, has been tracking a spike in sign-ups in Brazil of around 600% compared to normal levels since then.
The soar in Brazil VPN usage comes as a purely preventive measure. At the time of writing X works normally across the country—but future restrictions aren’t off the tablejust yet.
Why does X risk a ban in Brazil?
The beef between Musk and De Moraes kicked off on April 6—and the incriminated platform was the main battleground.
It began with the X’s global government affairs team lamenting to have been forced by a Brazilian Court to block certain accounts. The company shared its intention to legally challenge these orders as they are believed to not be in accordance with Brazilian laws, vowing for citizens’ freedom of speech “regardless of their political beliefs.”
About an hour after that, Musk confirmed to have lifted these restrictions despite being threatened with hefty fines, possible arrest of X’s employees, and a social media ban. “As a result, we will probably lose all revenue in Brazil and have to shut down our office there. But principles matter more than profit,” he wrote.
The following day Musk took the fight to a further level, calling for the judge to resign or be impeached—see the original tweet below.
Coming shortly, 𝕏 will publish everything demanded by @Alexandre and how those requests violate Brazilian law. This judge has brazenly and repeatedly betrayed the constitution and people of Brazil. He should resign or be impeached.Shame @Alexandre, shame.April 7, 2024
See more
At this point, Brazilian Attorney General Jorge Messias also turned on X to comment on the events and call for new rules around social media.
“It is urgent to regulate social networks,” he tweeted. “We cannot live in a society in which billionaires domiciled abroad have control of social networks and put themselves in a position to violate the rule of law, failing to comply with court orders and threatening our authorities.”
On April 8, Reuters reported that De Moraes officially opened an inquiry into what he described as “obstruction of justice.”
Although the nature of the blocking requests hasn’t been confirmed, De Moraes has been cracking down on the spread of fake news and hate messages online for a while now. These activities have increasingly made him the target of criticism, especially from many commentators on the right—according to Al Jazeera.
The judge isn’t new to restricting social media use, either. He already temporarily banned Telegram a year ago for failing to hand over data from neo-Nazi chats, and threatened another ban after the messaging app criticized the state of democracy in Brazil in a public message against the so-called fake news law.
Alongside fresh new social media restrictions, X now risks fines of up to 100,000 reals ($19,740) per day if it keeps refusing to comply with the blocking order.
We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example:
1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service).
2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad.
We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.
A recent study carried out by Ivanti has quantified the importance of flexible working hours in today’s professional landscape, however many employers are unwilling to compromise.
The 2024 Everywhere Work report reveals that four in five workers seek flexible working arrangements – that’s more than the number of workers who want remote work, highlighting the significance of flexibility.
However, only one in four workers say that their current jobs provide them with high levels of flexibility, prompting concerns about employers’ abilities to retain and attract talent.
Flexibility is more important than remote working
The report suggests that at least two in five professionals would even consider changing jobs in order to get more flexibility, with Ivanti CEO Jeff Abbott branding workplace flexibility as advantageous for businesses:
“Neglecting these factors may lead to higher turnover rates and dissatisfaction among valuable employees you are trying to keep engaged.”
Interestingly, more women consider flexible working (36%) and the ability to work anywhere (28%) essential compared with men (22% and 18%, respectively).
Ivanti’s study also indicates that investment into productivity tools that allow workers to be efficient from anywhere has been biased, with IT professionals most likely to experience a lack in sufficient tools, leading to burnout.
Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed!
While there may be some hope that artificial intelligence, when used correctly, could help improve worker productivity and satisfaction, many companies continue to have low AI adoption rates due to data inaccuracies and organizational silos, which could also be leading to degraded cybersecurity.
Besides emphasizing the importance of flexibility and remote working, Ivanti also proposes greater collaboration between IT, security, and leadership workers, with the hope that it could reduce the disparity in how employees and employers see these issues.
Spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds could be launched in Hong Kong this month with the first approvals likely to be announced next week, two people familiar with the matter said.
That timeline would make Hong Kong Asia’s first city to offer the popular ETFs and is much faster than industry expectations of launches sometime this year.
Regulators have sped up the approval process, according to one of the people.
Having lost much of its shine as a global financial hub due to restrictions during the pandemic, China’s faltering economy and Sino-US tensions, Hong Kong authorities have been keen to do what they can to improve the city’s attractiveness for financial trading.
“The significance of Hong Kong ETFs is far-reaching as it could bring in fresh global investment as well as pushing crypto adoption to a new height,” said Adrian Wang, CEO of Metalpha, a Hong Kong-based crypto wealth manager.
The US launched the first US-listed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) to track spot bitcoin in January, drawing roughly $12 billion (roughly Rs. 99,987 crore) in net inflows, data from BitMEX Research shows.
Bitcoin has gained more than 60 percent this year and hit an all-time high of $73,803 (roughly Rs. 61.5 lakh) in March. It was trading at around $69,000 (roughly Rs. 57.5 lakh) on Wednesday.
At least four mainland Chinese and Hong Kong asset managers have submitted applications to launch the ETFs, the two sources said.
The Hong Kong units of China Asset Management, Harvest Fund Management and Bosera Asset Management are among the applicants, according to the two people and a third source.
The sources were not authorised to speak to media and declined to be identified.
Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) and the three Chinese companies declined to comment.
China Asset Management and Harvest Fund Management’s Hong Kong units obtained approval this month to manage portfolios that invest more than 10 percent in virtual assets, according to the SFC’s website.
Their parent companies are among the biggest mutual fund firms in China, with each managing over CNY 1 trillion ($138 billion or roughly Rs. 11,49,963 crore) in assets.
Although cryptocurrency trading is banned in mainland China, offshore Chinese financial institutions have been keen to participate in crypto asset development in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong approved its first ETFs for cryptocurrency futures in late 2022. The largest one – the CSOP Bitcoin Futures ETF – has seen its assets under management swell seven times since September to around $120 million (roughly Rs. 999 crore).
Hong Kong-based Value Partners has also said it is exploring launching a spot bitcoin ETF. It has not disclosed if it has submitted an application.
Roku is planning a raft of Roku TV software updates that will make them smarter and prettier (even when not streaming your favorite content) and they’re not just for new sets.
Ever since Roku announced its Pro line of TV sets, wall-mounted units that radically cut down bezels and have something of a shadow-box look, the company appears to be fixating more and more on aesthetic appeal.
This week, for instance, the company is launching Backdrops. The name is something of a misnomer since Backdrops doesn’t put anything behind your best Roku Streaming TV image. Instead, the idea is more Samsung The Frame-like, replacing your traditional Roku City screen-saver image with a museum-quality work of art. On The Frame’s non-reflective, high-resolution displays, this art is, from a distance, almost indistinguishable from paintings. Roku TV sets are more varied in quality, so the effect might not be the same.
Image 1 of 2
(Image credit: Roku)
(Image credit: Future)
While Roku told me that they expect this art gallery collection to look better on its new Pro series line, virtually all previous Roku TVs will also support the Backdrop update to display mesmerizing works of art. All sets will adjust brightness to make the artwork look more vibrant. Sets with built-in ambient light sensors will, on the other hand, adjust luminosity based on the level of external light. The company couldn’t describe any specific pieces or where it’s sourcing the museum piece images but it did tell me that you’ll be able to curate your own collection or simply choose one piece of art as your go-to Backdrop.
(Image credit: Future)
Roku is also enhancing the intelligence of all Roku TVs with Roku Smart Picture. Essentially, any Roku TV will, with this software upgrade, be able to analyze what you’re watching and improve the image based on the content. If for instance, it detects a sports game, the TV will automatically switch to sports mode. If there’s content tuned to Dolby HDR10, then the set will adjust to support the image quality output.
(Image credit: Roku)
As with backdrops, even the oldest Roku TVs will get the Smart Picture update. However, newer sets like the Pro series will get more out of it. Those sets feature a dedicated neural processing Unit (NPU). As a result, Roku Pro TVs will get Roku Smart Picture Max, which will analyze content on a scene-by-scene basis. If, for instance, Smart Picture Max detects a sky in the image, it’ll boost the vividness to make it look more natural. A city skyline might get a sharpness boost to make it pop in just the right way.
Roku is also updating its overall platform, adding IMDB ratings to the browse and discover area, adding a top-searched Movies and TV row, and even enhancing its now iconic Roku City with new vehicles, including an ice cream truck and secret agent car.
Get the hottest deals available in your inbox plus news, reviews, opinion, analysis, deals and more from the TechRadar team.
While the software updates are not available today, Roku will roll them out in the coming months. Roku TVs and Roku-branded models sold this year will come with Smart Picture on by default. Older models that get the software update will need to enable Smart Picture in settings.
Mild spoilers follow for Prime Video’s Fallout TV series.
The golden age of video game adaptations is upon us. From Netflix’s various animated offerings, including Castlevania and Arcane, and HBO’s The Last of Us (TLoU), to big-screen takes on Sonic and Mario, we’ve recently been treated to some excellent movie and TV adaptations of the world’s most beloved game franchises.
Now, Prime Video is ready to enter the fray with its Fallout TV show, and fans of Bethesda’s multi-genre post-apocalyptic game series will be hoping it isn’t a dud that bombs upon launch.
Having watched the first four episodes, I can confidently say that Fallout is an atomically entertaining watch. Like TLoU on Max, it’s an ambitious, prestige-flavored adaptation that brings one of gaming’s most iconic series to life with a highly satisfying blend of source material devotion and narrative originality. Sure, there’s the odd blemish or two, but they do little to derail another fantastic video game TV adaptation.
War never changes
Fallout‘s plot is largely based around Ella Purnell’s Lucy, an idealistic Vault dweller who’s searching for her kidnapped father. (Image credit: JoJo Whilden/Prime Video)
Set in an alternate universe in the year 2296, Fallout takes place 219 years after The Great War – a cataclysmic event that saw the US and China engage in all-out thermonuclear warfare, which killed billions and ended civilization as we know it. Essentially, The Great War is ground zero for the stories depicted in each Fallout game.
However, pockets of humanity survived the nuclear fallout. The richest retreated to underground bunkers, known as Vaults in-universe, that could withstand said destruction. When the time was right (i.e. once surface radiation levels had dropped to safe levels), future generations would re-emerge to rebuild society. Little do those living subterraneously know, though, that remnants of humanity’s poorest also survived on the surface (collectively known as the Wasteland). Those individuals formed new tribes and communities, such as the militarized religious faction known as the Brotherhood of Steel, and they aren’t exactly enamored by the prospect of these ‘Vaulties’ resurfacing to tell them how to restore order to planet Earth.
The absorbing nature of those dynamics owes much to the talents and charisma of Fallout’s primary actors
Like Bethesda’s playable titles, Amazon’s adaptation is set in this post-nuclear world of haves and have-nots. However, rather than follow the games’ lead and focus on a single protagonist, which people play as, Prime Video’s Fallout follows three main characters whose paths continually cross in pursuit of an item that’s not only of great significance to humanity, but also key to them completing their individual missions.
Maximus is a Brotherhood of Steel’s squire whose path converges with Lucy and The Ghoul’s. (Image credit: Prime Video)
Of the show’s intrepid trio, impressionable Vault-33 dweller Lucy (Ella Purnell), who needs to locate said item to bargain for her father Hank’s (Kyle McLachlan) life after he’s kidnapped by vicious surface-dwelling raiders, is arguably the lead star. Maximus (Aaron Moten), an impatient individual who wants the object to help fuel his ambition of becoming a Brotherhood of Steel Knight, and The Ghoul (Walton Goggins), an enigmatic, centuries-old human-turned-mutant who experienced the world before The Great War, are also integral to the story, though.
This character-based divergence from the games might puzzle established fans who are used to Fallout’s singular protagonists. Diversifying the show’s main character lineup, however, keeps things narratively fresh as we follow their individual journeys and occasional team-ups – the latter of which provides unusually early face-offs between them.
Diversifying the show’s main character lineup keeps things narratively fresh
Most TV shows have a tendency to delay storyline convergence until later episodes, which builds anticipation for the inevitable crossing of paths, but which can also lead to subplots and other plot threads being dragged out. Fallout avoids this by bringing its major players together as early as episode 2 for an R-rated Western stand-off that’s as funny, dramatic, and over-the-top action-wise as the games are, with the ensuing battle faithfully recreating the franchise’s success-based, slow-mo ‘hit chance’ gunshots.
It isn’t the only moment where they interact and engage in buddy cop-style adventures, albeit certain individuals *cough* Lucy *cough* are subjected to such partnerships against their will. Yes, keeping Fallout’s protagonists apart means that there will be fireworks when they inevitably bump into each other, but seeing these characters with diametrically opposed worldviews chew the scenery makes for explosively fun dynamics, and I found myself longing for more humor- and drama-filled co-operation between them throughout the episodes I watched.
Into the wild blue yonder
Lucy’s travels take her a junkyard-based community known as Filly. (Image credit: Amazon Studios)
The absorbing nature of those dynamics owes much to the talents and charisma of Fallout’s primary actors. Purnell imbues the idealistic and naive, yet surprisingly resilient, Lucy with panache and instant likeability. Equally, she captures the wide-eyed nature of the cloistered Vault dweller seeing the post-nuclear, horror-strewn world for the first time with aplomb. Lucy’s childlike innocence and worldly inexperience make for plenty of awkward and darkly humorous moments as she traverses the surface world, which put Purnell’s surprisingly solid comedic timing on full show.
Lucy isn’t the only Fallout character who embarks on a coming-of-age-style journey. Lucy and Maximus’ experiences couldn’t be more stark (he’s a surface-dweller who’s had to feed on scraps throughout his entire life), but he’s as equally unworldly as his counterpart. However, unlike Lucy, there’s a ruthlessness to his power-hungry, indignant persona that’s captured with brooding intent by Moten. Still, given Maximus’ lifelong struggles and the gawky charm that Moten instills in Maximus, you can’t help but root for him.
Goggins is delightful as the morally ambiguous and merciless Ghoul
Goggins is delightful as the morally ambiguous and merciless Ghoul, too, but his gleeful and humorously menacing portrayal of the calculating and seemingly callous gunslinger isn’t the full extent of his role. The Invincible star and Marvel alumnus is on dual acting duties here, as he also plays Cooper Howard, aka The Ghoul’s former human form. A 21st century big-screen star, Howard’s intriguing ties to Vault-Tec, the megacorporation behind the creation of the subterranean nuclear shelters, are explored through flashbacks that are drip fed through Fallout’s primary narrative. Not only do they provide extra context to Howard’s backstory, his ties to Vault-Tec’s Vault Boy mascot, and The Ghoul’s present-day motivations, but they also reveal what the world was like prior to humanity’s self-inflicted near-total annihilation.
Flashbacks of Walton Goggins’ Cooper Howard provide a glimpse into the past of Fallout‘s alternate universe. (Image credit: JoJo Whilden/Prime Video)
These glimpses into the past – the “one thing we could never do” in the games, according to one of the show’s producers and Bethesda boss Todd Howard – provide a tantalizing but terrifying opportunity to show the blind panic and futility of the moment that The Great War began, too. And let me tell you: thanks to Goggins’ emotionally rich, dread-infused performance – one that’ll be immediately relatable to anyone with kids – it’s the most beautifully somber opening to a TV series I’ve seen in a while.
Fallout doesn’t just rely on its main trio to provide moments of levity and melodrama at its hilariously grim party at the end of the world. Hank and Lucy’s brother Norm (Moises Arias), plus the eccentric individuals that populate the show’s dystopian Los Angeles, including the mysterious and slightly creepy Wilzig (Michael Emerson), provide sci-fi-laced intrigue and narrative thrust aplenty to its various subplots.
The post-Lucy Vault-33 storyline is janky in its execution. (Image credit: JoJo Whilden/Prime Video)
That said, some story threads are haphazard in their execution. The post-Lucy Vault 33 narrative, for instance, is hamstrung by clumsy dialog, repetitive plot beats, and lackadaisical pacing. It eventually finds its feet as a semi-interesting mystery-thriller that sees Norm and fellow ‘Vaultie’ Chet (Dave Register) explore the nearby abandoned Vault-32 for… well, that’s getting into major spoiler territory. Still, it’s a story arc that failed to capture my imagination in the same way as those involving Fallout’s protagonists.
Franchise dedication
Fallout‘s iconic T-60 power armor is on full show throughout Amazon’s TV adaptation. (Image credit: JoJo Whilden/Prime Video)
No good video game adaptation is complete without honoring its source material. Thankfully, Fallout is as stuffed with homages and callbacks to Bethesda’s popular games as it can be.
I’m not exaggerating when I say it’s packed to the rafters with Easter eggs, either. From the immediately recognizable Nuka-Cola bottles, Vault Boy bobbleheads, and hugely impressive real-life Vault doors, to easy-to-miss inclusions like the Junk Jet and Robco Protectron, no stone has been left unturned in this show’s pursuit of authenticity and fan service.
There’s a ruthlessness to Maximus’ power-hungry, indignant persona that’s captured with brooding intent by Moten
That’s just scratching the surface of Fallout’s roster of trinkets, weaponry, and other in-universe tidbits. There are monsters galore (the gulper, yao guai, and radroaches to name just three), nuanced references to standalone games (see if you can spot the Westside and Dom Pedro town tributes), and enough Fallout 4-specific Easter eggs (Grognak the Barbarian! The Commonwealth! Super Duper Mart!) to look out for. Heck, there’s even an acknowledgment of Fallout 4’s faithful canine companion Dogmeat, albeit this very good boy is called CX-404 in Amazon’s adaptation.
The Ghoul is a clear throwback to the mutated humans in Bethesda’s multi-game series. (Image credit: Prime Video)
Fallout is amusingly self-referential in its use of other gaming staples, too. Its various, interwoven story threads uncannily resemble the gameplay mechanic of undertaking optional side quests and completing bitesize, multi-strand missions in order to achieve a larger goal. Indeed, Lucy, The Ghoul, and Maximus’ attempts to track down the previously mentioned MacGuffin to complete their individual main objectives serve as proof of that. An episode 3 quip from The Ghoul even references this gaming construct in the most meta way possible, when he sarcastically tells Lucy that “thou shalt get sidetracked by b******t every goddamn time”. Hey, Amazon’s take on the Fallout games wouldn’t be fully respectful if it didn’t ironically satirize them.
Speaking of the franchise’s penchant for humor, Fallout doesn’t skimp on the games’ wacky, deadpan, and macabre comedic tonality. As demonstrated by the giant, smirk-inducing ‘The End’ title card that greeted me mere seconds into its premiere, it wastes no time in perfecting the franchise’s signature humor. Thanks to Howard and Nolan’s input, as well as the sharp and witty writing of co-showrunner Graham Wagner (Silicon Valley, The Office US), who wrote the series alongside Captain Marvel scribe Geneva Robertson-Dworet, Fallout dives headfirst into absurdist, satirical, whimsical territory with one-liners, delightfully awkward encounters, and violently goofy spectacle that had me sniggering and guffawing throughout.
My verdict
Prime Video’s Fallout confidently and purposefully tackles Bethesda’s genre-bending, tonally diverse, and dense source material with hearty finesse and a highly satisfying authenticity that does justice to the franchise’s vast fictional universe. By staying true to the ambitious and large-scale world-building that Bethesda has perfected over the past 27 years, as well as telling a brand-new story in the fan-favorite series, it finds a near-faultless balance between the old and new that pays off handsomely.
Fallout fanatics, myself included, aren’t the only ones who’ll find lots to enjoy here. Fans of dystopia-set stories, such as Mad Max, The Walking Dead, and another of Nolan’s popular sci-fi works in Westworld will savor Fallout’s epic and sweeping narrative, pulsating and gory action (of which there is plenty, albeit with the odd lightweight and/or labored set-piece), and multi-genre appeal.
Without wanting to sound hyperbolic, I think Fallout might be one of the best Prime Video shows ever made. I can’t overstate how much I enjoyed it – and, with Nolan suggesting that the series’ creative team has “very cool” plans in mind for its rumored second season, the fact that I’m desperate to return to the Wasteland, whenever that might be, speaks volumes of its outstanding quality. Don’t be surprised if Fallout’s ‘Everyone liked that’ meme emerges from its own vault when, well, everyone inevitably falls in love with Amazon’s TV adaptation.
Fallout’s eight-episode first season debuts in full exclusively on Prime Video tonight (Wednesday, April 10) in the US, and Thursday, April 11 in the UK and Australia.
HMD announced a collaboration with Rajasthan Royals as their Official Smartphone Partner on Wednesday, April 10. The partnership is for “this year’s high-octane T20 season” which refers to the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL). Notably, IPL 2024 started on March 22 but Rajasthan Royals did not play their first game of the tournament until March 24 against the Lucknow Super Giants. Today, the Royals, currently ranked at the top of the table, will take on the Gujarat Titans in Jaipur.
HMD explains in a press note that the partnership aims to leverage cricket’s popularity in the country to increase brand visibility in India. This is expected to “bolster HMD’s position as an innovation-oriented smartphone brand.” HMD is presently known as the company that makes Nokia mobile phones. Earlier this year, the company revealed its plan to launch self-branded phones. This move could be chalked up to a foundational marketing campaign for that.
In February this year, HMD officially teased a smartphone with a clear HMD branding on the back panel. It was seen in a matte grey finish and is confirmed to launch in July. This is expected to be the budget N159V model which was leaked earlier and has been tipped to feature a dual rear camera system. Another HMD-branded handset surfaced online with a glossy pink finish and a distinctive black rear camera module. This phone is also said to be similar to the N159V model but will likely feature a 108-megapixel rear camera.
HMD has not yet confirmed monikers for its self-branded smartphones. However, previous reports claim that India is likely to be an important market for the company and that the HMD-branded phones could even see an India launch first before they go global.
A recent report also suggested that the company may unveil a series of HMD handsets. They could carry the monikers of HMD Pulse+, HMD Pulse Pro, HMD Legend, HMD Legend+, and HMD Legend Pro. The firm may also announce a new HMD T21 tablet.
The report added that the rumoured HMD Pulse Pro with the model number TA-1595 was recently spotted on the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA) listing. This phone could come in black ocean, glacier green, and twilight purple colour options. Another purported handset, the HMD Pulse+, is tipped to be offered in a midnight blue shade and get a 6.56-inch display. Both phones could support 6GB of RAM and 128GB of onboard storage, according to the leak.
Is the iQoo Neo 7 Pro the best smartphone you can buy under Rs. 40,000 in India? We discuss the company’s recently launched handset and what it has to offer on the latest episode of Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.
Affiliate links may be automatically generated – see our ethics statement for details.
Meta is finally bringing the ability to share high-quality photos in Messenger, a feature that many of its users have longed for. Users can turn on the HD toggle before hitting Send to avail of this file-sharing feature, the company announced on Tuesday (April 9). High-quality image sharing is also available on WhatsApp. Additionally, the social media giant is allowing users to create shared albums in chats. It is also rolling out the ability to send larger files.
The Mark Zuckerberg-led company announced the rollout of new file-sharing features on Messenger via a blog post. The upgrades include the ability to send HD photos, create shared albums in chat, and transfer larger files up to 100MB in chats to improve Messenger conversations and connections. Additionally, Meta has added an option for users to connect with others by scanning a QR code on Messenger.
As for the new HD photo-sharing capability, users can turn on the HD toggle and tap Send after selecting an image from chat compose. Users can tap on additional photos to send multiple in HD. WhatsApp started supporting HD photos back in September 2023.
Further, Messenger now lets users create shared albums with photos and videos with friends and family. To create an album in a group chat, users have to select multiple photos from the chat composer and tap Create Album. This can be also done by long pressing a photo in the chat and tapping Create Album. To add photos to an existing album users will need to tap Add to album. They can also rename albums.
Everyone in the chat can view, add, delete and download pictures and videos from the shared album. The album can be located by tapping the Media button in a chat.
Further, Messenger offers an alternative to email for sending large files in formats including Word, PDF, and Excel. With the latest update, users can share files up to 100MB by tapping the + button on the menu.
Lastly, Meta is providing a new option for users to connect with other folks by simply scanning their Messenger QR code found in the Settings. The sender can also share their QR code through a link. This would eliminate the old practice of typing out someone’s name or number to chat with them on the app.
Affiliate links may be automatically generated – see our ethics statement for details.
El Salvador is reportedly in a tense situation with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for merging Bitcoin with its core financial system. Bitcoin, the oldest and the most expensive cryptocurrency, is accepted as a legal currency in El Salvador alongside the US Dollar, which is the nation’s fiat currency. This financial dalliance of El Salvador with this highly volatile digital asset is not a decision that has sat well with the IMF.
The IMF has asked El Salvador to change its policies around Bitcoin in order to get the aid of $1.4 billion that it needs to expedite public debt payments and other financial obligations. Given El Salvador’s firm pro-crypto stance, its negotiations with the IMF are currently at a standstill, a report by international publication InfoBae said this week.
Last week, El Salvador received a fresh warning from an IMF associate. The official has clearly communicated to Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele that the institute is concerned about the financial risks associated with Bitcoin.
Despite its ongoing tussle with the IMF, Bukele has kept El Salvador’s engagement with Bitcoin ongoing. In 2022, Bukele set up a National Bitcoin Office delegated with the task of maintaining all official records related to the digital asset.
The Salvadoran President approved Bitcoin bonds to allow the country to gather capital to pay debts for the country, while also bringing in contribution for Bukele’s ambitious special economic zone called the ‘Bitcoin City’, via ‘Volcano Tokens’.
Around April last year, when Bitcoin was trading lowly at around $29,449 (roughly Rs. 24.5 lakh), El Salvador recorded an 18 percent drop in BTC-based remittances.
Despite this drop, Bukele has reportedly vouched to keep purchasing 1 BTC token daily until the asset becomes unaffordable.
Under the circumstances, it remains unclear by when the IMF consider processing the financial aid that El Salvador requires.
Meanwhile, the IMF has been working with the G20 group of nations to formulate rules to oversee and regulate the volatile digital assets sector. The organisation has also teamed up with the Financial Stability Board (FSB) to draft these rules.
The IMF is also working on a new platform to enable international transactions through CBDCs.
Affiliate links may be automatically generated – see our ethics statement for details.
