Archives 2023

Apple Arcade saw some popular additions in 2023, offering something for everyone. Here are 5 cool games that truly stood out:
Crossy Road Castle
The addictive “frogger-like” gameplay gets a castle twist. Climb a procedurally generated castle, facing new challenges and enemies with every floor. The charming art style and addictive loop make it a perfect pick-up-and-play game.
Sonic Dream Team
This reimagined classic brings back the beloved Dreamcast title with modern visuals and gameplay tweaks.Explore vibrant islands, collect Wisps, and utilise their unique powers to defeat enemies and solve puzzles. A nostalgic treat for Sonic fans and newcomers alike.
Football Manager 2024 Touch
Manage your dream soccer team in this streamlined version of the acclaimed series. From transfers to tactics, you control everything. The touch controls are intuitive for mobile, and the depth of gameplay keeps you engaged for hours.
Disney Dreamlight Valley Arcade Edition
Dive into a charming life-simulation adventure alongside iconic Disney and Pixar characters. Restore a forgotten valley, befriend familiar faces, unlock hidden secrets, and personalise your dream home. A delightful experience for Disney fans of all ages.
Assemble with Care
This unique puzzle game combines precision with heart. You play as a restorer, traveling the world to fix broken objects and uncover the stories behind them. The relaxing gameplay, beautiful environments, and heartwarming narrative make it a truly special experience.
Other titles you can try

Israel’s government agreed to give Intel a $3.2 billion (roughly Rs. 26,600 crore) grant for new $25 billion (roughly Rs. 2,91,100 crore) chip plant it plans to build in southern Israel, both sides said on Tuesday.

The news comes as Israel remains locked in a war with Palestinian militant group Hamas in the wake of the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel.

The expansion plan for its Kiryat Gat site is an “important part of Intel’s efforts to foster a more resilient global supply chain, alongside the company’s ongoing and planned manufacturing investments in Europe and the United States,” Intel said in a statement.

In addition to the grant that amounts to 12.8 percent of the total investment, the chipmaker also committed to buy 60 billion shekels (roughly Rs. 1,37,500 crore) worth of goods and services from Israeli suppliers over the next decade, while the new facility is expected to create several thousand jobs.

Intel operates four development and production sites in Israel, including a manufacturing plant in Kiryat Gat, and employs nearly 12,000 people in the country.

In June, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Intel would build a new $25 billion (roughly Rs. 2,91,100 crore) chip plant in Israel but Intel until now had declined to confirm the investment.

Yet Intel said construction work is already under way for the expansion of the site, including clean rooms and support buildings. A significant portion of the buildings, including the casting of piles and first floors, has been completed, it said.

The new plant is due to open in 2027 and operate through 2035.

© Thomson Reuters 2023

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US-based chip giant Micron Technology Inc has settled its high-profile intellectual property theft lawsuit with China’s Fujian Jinhua Integrated Circuit Co. According to a report in Bloomberg, the agreement with the state-backed Chinese rival reportedly comes amid the US company’s efforts to mend ties with Beijing.
In a statement, Micron said that it has reached a global settlement agreement with Fujian Jinhua Integrated Circuit Co.“The two companies will each globally dismiss their complaints against the other party and end all lawsuits between them,” a Micron spokeswoman said in an email.
What is the IP theft case
In 2017, Micron sued Fujian Jinhua and its Taiwanese partner United Microelectronics Corp in the US. The company accused the two of stealing its memory chip trade secrets. A year later, Fujian Jinhua and UMC were charged with conspiring to steal trade secrets from Micron as the Justice Department steps up actions against China in cases of suspected economic espionage. The Trump administration added Fujian Jinhua to the so-called entity list, blocking sales of American components to the Chinese chipmaker.
UMC has since settled with Micron and pleaded guilty in a deal with US prosecutors, who agreed to drop serious charges of economic espionage and conspiracy for the alleged IP theft.
China banned Micron
The settlement comes months after the Chinese government in May barred Micron’s chips from “critical infrastructure” over cybersecurity concerns. The US too has been working with allies to prevent Beijing from obtaining the most advanced semiconductors and the latest chipmaking technologies.
Earlier this year, Micron warned that about half of its sales tied to China-headquartered customers may be impacted after China banned the chip maker from key infrastructure projects. In May 2023, China’s cyberspace regulator Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) announced that America’s biggest maker of memory chips poses “serious network security risks”. In a statement, CAC said, “The review found that Micron’s products have serious network security risks, which pose significant security risks to China’s critical information infrastructure supply chain, affecting China’s national security.”
How Micron pacified China
Micron appears to have attempted to pacify Beijing, including promising to invest another 4.3 billion yuan ($602 million) in its Chinese chip-packaging plant and sending Chief Executive Officer Sanjay Mehrotra to visit the world’s second largest economy.

Elon Musk-led electric vehicle maker Tesla has reportedly confirmed that it will participate in TSMC’s (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company) 3nm NTO chip design finals for the upcoming year. TSMC is also expected to increase its 3nm chip production in 2024. This shows the growing demand for advanced semiconductor solutions.
How TSMC’s 3nm chips will help both companies
According to a report by GizmoChina, Tesla is set to become an N3P customer as it plans to use TSMC’s latest technology to produce next-generation Full Self-Driving (FSD) smart driving chips.
TSMC is planning to start the production of its N3P process in 2024. When compared to the previous N3E process, N3P is designed to deliver a 5% improvement in performance, up to 10% reduction in power consumption and a notable 1.04 times increase in chip density.
The Taiwanese chip designer has claimed that N3P’s performance, power and area (PPA) metrics as well as technology maturity will outpace Intel’s 18A process.

This is not the first time Tesla is set to collaborate with TSMC. In the past, the electric vehicle manufacturer had placed multiple orders with the chip designer.
Earlier, TSMC supplied the Dojo D1 chip which is based on the 7nm process and the HW 4.0 chip which features the 5nm process to Tesla. The company’s addition of Tesla to the N3P customer list will mark a strategic move for both companies.

Analysts have predicted that this partnership will help Tesla to become TSMC’s seventh-largest customer. This partnership will also inject fresh momentum into TSMC’s revenue growth trajectory.
As Tesla continues to lead the automotive industry with innovative technologies, the collaboration with TSMC shows the crucial role semiconductor advancements play in shaping the future of electric and autonomous vehicles.
Tesla is also planning to enter India’s electric vehicle market soon. However, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highway, Nitin Gadkari recently expressed his concerns about allowing driverless cars in the country. Gadkari said that he would not permit these vehicles in India as it has the potential to affect the jobs of India’s large population of drivers.

Chinese smartphone maker Vivo’s sub-brand iQoo launched its latest flagship smartphone, the iQoo 12, in India earlier this month. Now, the company is set to launch other products on its home turf at an event on December 27. At this event, iQoo is set to launch its Neo 9 smartphone lineup which will also be accompanied with iQoo TWS 1e earbuds as well as the first smartwatch from the company, the iQoo Watch.
iQoo took to the Chinese social media platform Weibo to tease the design of the smartwatch. The upcoming wearable is expected to be a redesigned version of the Vivo Watch 3 smartwatch. Just like the design, the iQoo Watch may also have a similar price as the Vivo Watch 3.
For reference, the Bluetooth-only version of the Vivo Watch 3 is priced at CNY 1,099 (nearly Rs 12,800) while the eSIM variant carries a price tag of CNY 1,299 (nearly Rs 15,000).
iQoo Watch: What to expect
The upcoming iQoo Watch may offer various strap options which may include silicone, leather and woven straps. According to a report by GizmoChina, these straps are expected to arrive in a range of colours to cater to different tastes.
The smartwatch is also likely to have a lightweight design and may weigh only 36 grams for user comfort. iQoo Watch’s watchband design is also expected to allow for effortless installation and automatic dial matching. The smartwatch may also feature a crown that may support both rotation and button presses for better navigation.

Coming to the specs, the smartwatch is likely to sport a 3D curved glass dial with support for an always-on display (AOD) feature. The smartwatch is also expected to support various watch faces, which may include an outer space-themed design, a classic watch appearance and a sporty watch face.
The iQoo Watch is also likely to offer dual-mode functionality with support for both eSIM and Bluetooth connectivity. In eSIM mode, the smartwatch is expected to offer up to 7 days of battery life. However, the battery life may extend to 16 days in Bluetooth mode.
Internally, the watch is rumoured to be powered by Vivo’s proprietary BlueOS operating system. The iQoo Watch may also incorporate advanced health monitoring capabilities, which include an 8-channel heart rate sensor and a 16-channel blood oxygen sensor.

Redmi A3 could be launched in India soon, as the successor to the company’s affordable Redmi A2 model that was launched in May with a MediaTek Helio G36 SoC. The Xiaomi sub-brand is yet to announce plans to launch a new Redmi A series smartphone, but a new handset has reportedly been spotted on the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) website with model number 23129RN51H. The alleged Redmi A3 has previously appeared on websites including NBTC.

Tipster TMKTECH (@Tmktechfamily) posted screenshots of the purported listing of the Redmi A3 on the BIS website. As per the leak, the handset carrying model number 23129RN51H has appeared on the BIS site. The listing suggests Redmi and Poco brand names for the handset, indicating that Poco could launch a smartphone under its brand name in different regions as a rebranded version of the Redmi A3.

It’s worth noting that Redmi is yet to confirm the development of a Redmi A2 successor. This purported handset has reportedly been spotted on the NBTC, IMDA, and EEC websites earlier with model number 23129RN51X. It is expected to come in several variants.

The Redmi A2 was launched in May with a starting price tag of Rs. 5,999 for the base 2GB RAM + 32GB storage variant. The 2GB RAM + 64GB storage variant is priced at Rs. 6,499, whereas the 4GB RAM + 64GB storage model is priced at Rs. 7,499.

The Redmi A2 runs on Android 13 and features a 6.52-inch HD+ (1600 x 720 pixels) LCD screen with 120Hz touch sampling rate. It is powered by a MediaTek Helio G36 SoC, with up to 4GB of RAM. With the virtual RAM functionality, the available memory can be expanded up to 7GB. It has a dual rear camera unit comprising an 8-megapixel primary sensor and a QVGA secondary camera. For selfies and video chats, there is a 5-megapixel camera sensor at the front. It houses a 5,000mAh battery with 10W fast charging support.

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We know the Apple Vision Pro will be available to buy soon, but we don’t know when exactly that’s going to happen – though a new tip from a well-placed source suggests we’ve not got all that much longer to wait.

Well-respected Apple tipster Ming-Chi Kuo (via 9to5Mac) suggests that the headset is going to be available to consumers in “late January or early February” of 2024, matching up with Apple’s own announcement that it would be available “early next year”.

It could be a blockbuster start to 2024 for Apple as speculation is rife about Vision Pro’s launch. Noted Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo calls it “the most important product for Apple for 2024. In a note to investors, Kuo said that Vision Pro shipments in 2024 are estimated to be approximately 500,000 units. “Vision Pro is currently in mass production and will begin mass shipments in the first week of January 2024,” noted Kuo.The analyst also expects Vision Pro to hit the “store shelves in late January or early February based on the current mass shipment schedule.”
Apple, notoriously tight-lipped about product launches, remains mum on the official launch date.
Kuo also believes that if user feedback on Vision Pro is better than expected, “it will help strengthen the market consensus that Vision Pro is the next star product in consumer electronics and the related supply chain stock price.”
The Vision Pro promises to blur the lines between the physical and digital worlds. Apple unveiled Vision Pro in June 2023 with cutting-edge features like high-resolution displays, advanced eye-tracking, and spatial audio to deliver immersive experiences in gaming, entertainment, and professional applications.
Vision Pro features an ultra-high-resolution display system that packs 23 million pixels across two displays, and custom Apple silicon in a unique dual-chip design.
Spatial computing makes new types of games possible with titles that can span a spectrum of immersion and bring gamers into all-new worlds. Users can also play over 100 Apple Arcade games on a screen as large as they want, with incredible immersive audio and support for popular game controllers.
Apple Vision Pro starts at $3,499, and will initially available in the US, with more countries coming later next year. It’s still not known which countries will get Vision Pro and when as Apple hasn’t revealed any details about its availability outside of US.

Deepfakes have emerged as a major talking point this year as a malicious side-effect of artificial intelligence (AI). Many bad actors have used the current boom in this space to use AI editing tools to create fake images of people and institutions. Multiple reports have emerged of criminals creating fake nudes of people and then threatening them to post these photos online if the victim did not pay them money. But now, a group of researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have come up with a tool that can help combat this problem.

According to a report by MIT Technology Review, researchers have created a tool called PhotoGuard that alters images to protect them from being manipulated by AI systems. Hadi Salman, a contributor to the research and a PhD researcher at the institute said, Right now “anyone can take our image, modify it however they want, put us in very bad-looking situations, and blackmail us…(PhotoGuard is) an attempt to solve the problem of our images being manipulated maliciously by these models”.

Special watermark tool to protect photos from AI

Traditional protections aren’t sufficient for identifying AI-generated images because they’re often applied like a stamp on an image and can easily be edited out.

This new technology is added as an invisible layer on top of the image. It cannot be removed whether cropped or edited, or even when filters are added. While they do not interfere with the image, they will stop bad actors when they try to alter the image to create deepfakes or other manipulative iterations.

It should be noted that while special watermarking techniques also exist, this technique is different as it uses pixel altering as a way to safeguard images. While watermarking allows users to detect alterations through detection tools, this technique stops people from using AI tools to tamper with images to begin with.

Interestingly, Google’s DeepMind division has also created a watermarking tool to protect images from AI manipulation. In August, the company launched SynthID, a tool for watermarking and identifying AI-generated images. This technology embeds a digital watermark directly into the pixels of an image, making it imperceptible to the human eye, but detectable for identification.

With Christmas Day over comes the chance to score some great after-Christmas sales. And one of the most appealing deals I’ve seen so far is the AirPods Pro 2 with USB-C on sale for $199 at Amazon. That’s a great saving of $50 on some of the best wireless earbuds money can buy. 

Impressive active noise cancellation, great mics for making calls on the move, an attractive design and a compact charging case now with USB-C connectivity, make the AirPods Pro 2 very compelling: just check out our AirPods Pro 2 review if you need further convincing.