Celebrity Life

Apple on Tuesday began selling its Mac computers powered by the California giant's proprietary chips, which can allow the machines to operate more like its popular iPhones.

The MacBook Air, MacBook Pro and Mac mini will integrate Apple's new M1 chip which delivers improved battery life and allows the computers to run apps designed for mobile devices. The M1 replaces Intel chips used on earlier versions of the Apple computers.

The Cupertino firm announced plans in June to launch the new chip as part of its "Apple Silicon" initiative which gives it greater control over hardware and software.

[caption id="attachment_212161" align="alignnone" width="1024"] MacBook Air with M1 chip. (Image: Apple)[/caption]

Apple said in its release that "iPhone and iPad apps can now run directly on the Mac", although software developers will need to create compatible versions for the computers.

Patrick Moorhead of Moor Insights & Strategy said it remains to be seen if the new computers will deliver promised performance but that Apple will gain more control over its production with the new strategy.

[caption id="attachment_212164" align="alignnone" width="1024"] The new MacBook Air, 13-inch MacBook Pro, and Mac mini are now powered by M1, Apple’s revolutionary chip. (Image: Apple)[/caption]

"Compared to Apple iPhones, iPads, AirPods, and Watch, the Mac has underperformed as it less than 10% unit market share," Moorhead said.

"Given these challenges, the company has decided that the best strategy to help fix this issue is to make the Mac more like the iPhone and iPad by leveraging its mobile silicon into a computer platform and even allowing the Mac to run iOS apps."

More details here.

(Main and featured image: Apple)

The post The Latest Apple MacBooks are Powered by New In-House Chips and Run More Like iPhones appeared first on Prestige Online - Hong Kong.

Germaphobes, rejoice.

A Swiss start-up has created a solution to help prevent the spread of Covid-19 in communal buildings or businesses — self-disinfecting door handles. This innovation, set to launch in 2021, could become a key tool to help curb the pandemic, as researchers have shown that the virus could remain on door handles for up to three days.

Since the onset of the pandemic, some people have started using their keys or elbows to press elevator buttons, or their bus pass to open door trains to limit touching potentially infected surfaces. However, traditional door handles are trickier to open with your elbow.

[caption id="attachment_211888" align="aligncenter" width="650"] Self-disinfecting door handles will soon be a reality in the form of Tweaq Touch 1. (Image: Tweaq)[/caption]

Tweaq, a Swiss team of researchers specialised in contact-less technology, designed this new system, which can be adapted to most types of door handles. The system integrates a pump that brings disinfectant from the casing to a sponge inside the ring around the door handle. The system is activated when someone opens or closes the door, automatically driving the aluminium ring backwards and forwards along the surface.

Tweaq states that 99.9 percent of the germs are removed in the disinfection process, and that the system activates in less than three minutes after someone touched the door handle.

The ring, powered by lithium-ion batteries, can disinfect the handle around 1,000 times before running out of liquid. The smart system lets users know via a smartphone application when to change the disinfectant cartridge. Tweaq also chose to look to the circular economy so that the cartridges don't end up in the trash. When the cartridge runs out, the empty one can be sent back in exchange for a full one. The system also provides data about the handle, how many times it was touched and when handle use peaked during the day.

(Main and featured image: Tweaq)

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We review the latest iPhone 12 Pro, and discover that it's Apple’s best smartphone to date.

A month after its September Keynote, the $2-trillion tech company revealed a quartet of new iPhones: The iPhone 12, the iPhone 12 Mini, the iPhone 12 Pro, the iPhone 12 Pro Max. The 12 and 12 Pro are now available, while the Mini and Pro Max are still on the way (with availability beginning November 13). This drop of iPhones are 5G-enabled, and all four have new systems.

The iPhone 12 is the successor to the iPhone 11 — both feature a dual camera system with wide and ultra-wide zooms. The 12 Mini, which has a 5.4-inch display, is simply a smaller version of the 12 (see photos taken with it here). The Pros, on the other hand, are the ones with the triple camera system (more about that later). Of the four, the 12 Pro Max boasts the biggest iPhone screen ever at 6.7 inches. It also has a longer battery life and (without getting into specifics) extra camera capabilities like further zoom, enhanced low-light performance and “sensor-shift” stabilisation for better-quality images and videos (the Pro shifts the lens instead to counter movements).

Now, you can say that the regular Pro doesn’t get you all of the cutting edge tech in the range, but do you want to be carrying a huge slab of glass around in your pocket? One that makes single-handed or gesture typing a pain because your thumb can’t reach the far end of the screen?

[caption id="attachment_211756" align="alignnone" width="777"] The 6.1-inch iPhone 12 Pro and 6.7-inch iPhone 12 Pro Max side by side.[/caption]

Which brings us back to why I think the iPhone 12 Pro is the best handset, period. Sure, the extra camera tricks are cool and will presumably produce better results (albeit in some settings, which we shall see when it hits stores), but the regular Pro is more manageable than the Monster Max and just as impressive in performance.

Let’s start with the fundamentals that are standard across the 12s. It supports 5G — but until the local network catches up, the promise of faster speeds remains a promise. There’s the powerful A14 Bionic processor, Apple’s “fastest chip in a smartphone”, that makes everything from opening and switching apps to playing games run faster and smoother. Of course, this claim has been subjected to benchmark tests by Apple nerds from all over, and I’m pleased to report that the Pro not only outshone its predecessors (as you’d expect), it also obliterated pretty much every other phone in the market today in terms of speed and efficiency. Echoing tech reviewer Tom’s Guide, Android phones should just give up now.

It also has the gorgeous Super Retina XDR OLED display for more true tone colours, darker blacks and crisper pictures, a “Ceramic Shield” glass that purportedly helps with screen shatter and scratches, sleek flat edges (fans of iPhones past, rejoice!), a IP68 water resistant rating (maximum depth of six metres up to 30 minutes), and a nifty magnetic backing branded as MagSafe that allows you to attach things like a cardholder or a wireless charger.

[caption id="attachment_211757" align="alignnone" width="1024"] The innovative new MagSafe system enables seamless, high-powered wireless charging and easy-to-attach accessories.[/caption]

With the iPhone 12 Pro, you’re essentially shelling out more for its kickass camera. Similar to the 11 Pro, it has a triple-lens setup: a primary wide-angle lens, an ultra-wide lens with a 120-degree field view and a telephoto lens with 4x optical zoom range as well as a 10x digital zoom. In this year’s edition, the wide-angle lens lets in more light to capture more details thanks to the f/2.0 aperture, and the results are stunning.

But what is perhaps the most exciting upgrade in the Pros is the LiDAR scanner, which measures the distances of objects nearby using light reflection. It’s what NASA is using for its next Mars landing, and what Tesla is using for its self-driving cars. This translates to a better augmented reality experience, superior autofocus, and the ability to use the Portrait mode in low-light conditions. It’s also worth noting that you can now shoot smooth, incredibly detailed HDR videos at 4K with Dolby Vision up to 60 frames per second.

[gallery ids="211763,211764,211758,211759,211760,211761,211762"]

This all sounds amazing, doesn’t it? It really is. The iPhone 12 Pro is an absolute beast. It’s speedy, the display is bright and beautiful, the speakers produce louder, clearer sound, and it takes fantastic images and videos.

That said, even Apple’s best has had a few complaints, such as the device doesn’t come with a power adapter and in-box wired earphones (for environmental reasons), and the battery life isn’t that much better than its predecessor. But if you’re coming from iPhone X and later, those are hardly problems. More details here about the iPhone 12 Pro.

This story was written entirely using the iPhone 12 Pro, and first appeared on Prestige Singapore

(All images: Apple)

The post Review: The iPhone 12 Pro is Apple’s Best Smartphone to Date appeared first on Prestige Online - Hong Kong.

From monitoring vital signs to filtering filthy air and even translating speech into other languages, the coronavirus-fuelled boom in face masks has spawned an unusual range of high-tech options.

As masks become the norm worldwide, tech companies and researchers are rolling out weird and wonderful models to both guard against infection and cash in on a growing trend.

One of the wackiest comes from Japan, where start-up Donut Robotics has created a face covering that helps users adhere to social distancing and also acts as a translator.

The "C-Face" mask works by transmitting a wearer's speech to a smartphone via an app, and allows people to have a conversation while keeping up to 10 metres apart. "Despite the coronavirus, we sometimes need to meet directly with each other," Donut Robotics chief executive Taisuke Ono told AFP.

The lightweight silicone device could have immediate benefits for people such as doctors who want to communicate with patients from a distance, the company says.

[caption id="attachment_211645" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Donut Robotics chief executive Taisuke Ono posing for a photo with the smart mask "C-face" in his studio. (Image: Philip Fong/ AFP)[/caption]

It can translate speech from Japanese into English, Korean and other languages — a function that will become more useful once travel restrictions are eventually eased. But it does not offer protection from Covid-19 on its own, and is designed to be worn over a regular face covering when it goes on sale in February for about 4,000 yen (HK$297).

Donut Robotics raised nearly 100 million yen (HK$7.4 million) via crowdfunding to develop it, a success Ono believes was driven by a desire for innovations to make life easier during the pandemic. "We may be able to fight the virus with technology, with human wisdom," Ono said.

Another face mask developed in Singapore is aimed at protecting medics treating Covid-19 patients. It has sensors that monitor body temperature, heart rate, blood pressure and blood oxygen levels, and relay data to a smartphone via a Bluetooth transmitter.

"Many of these frontline workers will be exposed to patients when they are taking their vital signs," Loh Xian Jun, one of the scientists behind the invention, told AFP. "This poses a health risk to the nurses, and we wanted to think about a way to reduce such risk."

Its inventors say the device could also monitor vital signs of migrant workers in crowded dormitories, which incubated massive virus outbreaks in the city-state this year. They hope to trial it in the near future and market it commercially.

[caption id="attachment_211646" align="alignnone" width="1024"] More face masks such as LG's PuriCare mask are going high-tech with built-in air purifiers. (Image: LG)[/caption]

For those seeking to combat the effects of pollution in smog-choked cities, South Korea's LG Electronics has developed PuriCare, an air purifier mask. The futuristic white device, which fits snugly around the wearer's mouth, nose and chin, is equipped with two filters on either side and fans to aid airflow.

The filters are similar to those in the company's home air purifiers, and can block 99.95 percent of harmful particles.

Thousands have already been made available to medical staff and it will also be rolled out in shops in the future, the company says.

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Has the machine surpassed its master?

While prices for Banksy originals climb ever higher, a new AI has been programmed to create artworks that resemble those by the famous British street artist himself. So much so that some art collectors are already snapping up the GANksy creations.

While the works leave no doubt as to the identity of the artist they take inspiration from, the creator of the software, Matt Round, refrains from explicitly mentioning Banksy's name, to avoid any legal complications. The AI software was trained using a bank of hundreds of images of street art, some of which were probably Banksy's works, and was launched in September 2020. You can view a full gallery here.

"All of GANksy's works are original creations derived from its understanding of shape, form and texture. GANksy wants to be put into a robot body so it can spray paint the entire planet," said Round in a statement on his website.

[caption id="attachment_211600" align="alignnone" width="1024"] A new AI called GANksy is offering over 250 works of art for sale online. (Image: GANKsy and VoleWTF)[/caption]

Over 250 works by GANksy are for sale in the form of the exclusive ownership of a GANksy-signed digital file, with prices starting at £1 (HK$10.10) and rising by £1 with every purchase. As of now, according to Round's website, 91 pieces have already found a buyer.

These prices are a far cry from those that Banksy's works routinely fetch; many sell for several million euros. Last week, "Show me the Monet," Banksy's reimagining of a Claude Monet painting, saw the hammer fall at £7.6 million (HK$76.7 million) at Sotheby's London. The piece did not, however, beat the record set by the artist's "Devolved Parliament," which sailed past its initial estimation of £2 million (HK$20.2 million) to sell for £9.9 million (HK$99.9 million) at a previous Sotheby's auction in 2019.

[caption id="attachment_211601" align="alignnone" width="535"] Priest by GANKsy. (Image: GANKsy and VoleWTF)[/caption]

Works generated by AI have been well received at auction in the last few years. Among them is Paris-based arts collective Obvious's "Portrait of Edmond Belamy," which took the art market by surprise when it sold for $432,500 (approximately €365,970) in October 2018 at Christie's -- sixty times its low base estimation of $7000.

Earlier this year, the Bucharest International Biennial for Contemporary Art announced that the chief curator for its 10th edition, set to take place in 2022, will be an AI programme named Jarvis. Jarvis will be trained over two years to use deep learning to gather information on curatorial practices, as well as explore the databases of museums, universities and galleries to select artists and creators who will participate in the Bucharest Biennale. The chosen artists will exhibit their work in a virtual-reality gallery, according to the AI system's creators, Vienna-based studio Spinnwerk.

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Living in space just got a lot more appealing, because the moon is getting 4G connectivity.

With competition among Earth's telecoms providers as fierce as ever, equipment maker Nokia announced its expansion into a new market on Monday, winning a deal to install the first cellular network on the Moon.

The Finnish equipment manufacturer said it was selected by NASA to deploy an "ultra-compact, low-power, space-hardened" wireless 4G network on the lunar surface, as part of the US space agency's plan to establish a long-term human presence on the Moon by 2030.

The US$14.1 million contract, awarded to Nokia's US subsidiary, is part of NASA's Artemis programme which aims to send the first woman, and next man, to the moon by 2024. The astronauts will begin carrying out detailed experiments and explorations which the agency hopes will help it develop its first human mission to Mars.

[caption id="attachment_211420" align="alignnone" width="1024"] NASA's Artemis programme aims to send the first woman, and next man, to the moon by 2024. (Image: Gaston De Cardenas/ AFP)[/caption]

Nokia's network equipment will be installed remotely on the moon's surface using a lunar hopper built by Intuitive Machines in late 2022, Nokia said.

"The network will self-configure upon deployment," the firm said in a statement, adding that the wireless technology will allow for "vital command and control functions, remote control of lunar rovers, real-time navigation and streaming of high definition video."

The 4G equipment can be updated to a super-fast 5G network in the future, Nokia said.

[caption id="attachment_211421" align="aligncenter" width="737"] Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin walks on the surface of the moon on July 20, 1969, in a photograph taken by Neil Armstrong. (Image: History in HD/ Unsplash)[/caption]

In all, NASA announced last week it would distribute US$370 million to 14 companies to supply "Tipping Point" technologies for its mission, which include robotics and new methods of harvesting the resources required for living on the moon, such as oxygen and energy sources. The bulk of the funding went to companies researching cryogenic propellants, freezing liquids used to fuel spacecraft.

Among them, Elon Musk's SpaceX received US$53.2 million for a demonstration of the transferring of ten metric tons of liquid oxygen between tanks on a starship vehicle, NASA said.

(Main image: Gaston De Cardenas/ AFP; Featured image: History in HD/ Unsplash)

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