tech
China's latest EV is a 'connected' car from smart appliance maker Xiaomi
Xiaomi, a well-known maker of smart consumer electronics in China, is joining the country's booming but crowded market for electric cars.
The tech company will start taking orders for the SU7, a sporty four-door sedan, following a launch event with founder Lei Jun in Beijing on Thursday evening. Analysts think it will be priced in the 300,000 yuan ($40,000) range.
Government subsides have helped make China the world's largest market for electric vehicles, and a bevy of new makers are locked in fierce competition. Most of the industry's sales have been domestic, but Chinese makers are pushing into overseas markets with lower-priced models, posing a potential challenge to European, Japanese and American auto giants.
Lei is not bashful about that challenge, saying at an unveiling of the SU7 in December that Beijing-based Xiaomi aims to become one of the world's top five automakers in the next 15 to 20 years.
"I believe that one day, Xiaomi EVs will be a familiar sight on roads around the world,” he was quoted as saying in a company news release.
Xiaomi, founded in 2010, is entering an overcrowded market that analysts expect will undergo a shakeout in coming years, with weaker startups falling by the wayside.
The combined share of EVs and hybrids in China's auto sales is likely to reach 42% to 45% this year, up from 36% in 2023, according to Fitch Ratings. But the agency said in a December report that the competition could put pressure on automakers' short-term market share and profitability.
Known for its affordable smartphones, smart TVs and other devices, Xiaomi aims to capitalize on that technology by connecting its cars with its phones and home appliances in what it calls a “Human x Car x Home” ecosystem.
Tu Le, the founder of the Sino Auto Insights consultancy, said that Xiaomi is trying to close the loop by adding transportation to a product mix already integrated into its customers' personal and professional lives.
“The ability to seamlessly be a continuous part of someone’s life is the holy grail for tech companies,” he said in an emailed response. “You probably don’t know anyone in Beijing that doesn’t have at least one Xiaomi product, be it a mobile phone, computer, TV, (air) purifier, or tablet.”
As a newcomer to automaking, the company is making an educated guess that it can design and develop a car that will sell, he said. Given the sluggish Chinese economy and an ongoing EV price war, he predicted it would take a year or two to see if Xiaomi can adapt to correct any missteps and succeed.
“They are a technology company, so that’s their advantage but they need to reconcile that with drinking through a fire hose to learn how to be a tech company that builds cars,” Le said.
CreditSights, a financial research firm, said it expects Xiaomi's EV division to sell 60,000 vehicles in its first year and lose money for its first two years because of high marketing and promotion costs.
Chinese automakers trying to expand abroad face political headwinds.
The EU is investigating Chinese subsidies to determine if they give made-in-China EVs an unfair market advantage overseas. The U.S. announced an investigation last month into Chinese-made connected cars that it says could gather sensitive information about their drivers.
“China is determined to dominate the future of the auto market, including by using unfair practices,” President Joe Biden said when the U.S. investigation was announced. “China’s policies could flood our market with its vehicles, posing risks to our national security. I’m not going to let that happen on my watch.’′
China pushed back this week, filing a World Trade Organization complaint that alleges that U.S. subsides for electric vehicles discriminate against Chinese products.
The U.S. Defense Department put Xiaomi on a blacklist in 2021 over alleged links to China's military, but removed it a few months later after the company denied the links and sued the U.S. government.
Walton NEXG N9 Review: Budget-friendly Phone with Decent Features
Walton, a leading electronics product manufacturing brand in Bangladesh, released the NEXG N9 in March 2024. It is the latest smartphone in Walton’s NEXG lineup. Refined in many aspects, the NEXG N9 appears as a next-generation effort from Walton under a budget-friendly price range. Let’s take a look at the main features, pros, cons, and price of Walton NEXG N9 in Bangladesh.
Key Features and Specs of Walton NEXG N9
Design
The Walton NEXG N9, a stylish smartphone, measures 170.6 mm in height, 77.6 mm in width, and 9.1 mm in depth, weighing 219g (including the battery). Its sleek glass front adds an element of sophistication. It is available in Mirror Black, Chrome White, and Mystic Cyan colors.
Elegance will be felt when the phone is within a grip as it uses a smooth glass back. A giant circular stage has protruded on the top mid of the back to room triple Ai cameras and a flashlight. The circular stage encompasses itself with a golden rim along the protruded part, and on its mid has an oculus branding.
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The device features the usual design, with the power button and volume rocker conveniently positioned on the phone's side. The tactile power button and volume rocker enhance the user experience, providing quick and effortless control.
Display
The Walton NEXG N9 boasts a spacious 6.82-inch (17.27cm) punch-hole FHD+ IPS display, measured diagonally for an immersive viewing experience. This expansive screen enhances productivity and multitasking, accommodating various applications and activities comfortably.
With a crisp resolution of HD 720 by 1640 pixels and a modern 20:9 aspect ratio, it ensures vibrant colors, sharp text, and commendable image quality.
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Employing IPS INCELL Technology with 2.5D Glass, the display guarantees standard color reproduction and offers a capacitive touch screen for seamless interaction. Its 90Hz refresh rate also contributes to smoother scrolling and improved responsiveness, enhancing the overall user experience.
Cameras
The Walton NEXG N9 has an impressive camera setup to capture life's moments with clarity and detail. Its rear camera features a powerful 50MP AI Triple Camera system, ensuring sharp and colorful shots with its wide aperture of F/1.8. With features like autofocus, LED flash, and various shooting modes, including portrait, video, and panorama, it offers versatility for every photography enthusiast.
The camera also boasts advanced capabilities such as AI scene recognition and digital zoom, enhancing the quality of each image. For selfie lovers, the 8MP front camera with F/2.0 aperture delivers clear and vibrant self-portraits, supported by features like face detection and digital zoom. With the ability to record 1080P Full HD videos, both rear and front cameras ensure that every moment is captured beautifully.
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Top Smartphones Being Released in April 2024: A Mix of Flagship, Midrange and Budget Options
After an exciting March release schedule, smartphone enthusiasts have a lot to look forward to in April as well. March saw most of the releases at MWC. The story would be more or less the same in April as well as Chinese releases in the previous months will have their global debut in April. With that said, here’s a list of the most anticipated smartphones to be released in April 2024.
Most Hyped Smartphones Releasing This April
OnePlus Nord CE4
The Nord CE from OnePlus has been the budget lineup of the brand for several years now. The Nord CE phones bring exceptional value for money like an ode to OnePlus’s early days.
We already have official renders of the new Nord CE4 on OnePlus India’s official website. The smartphone is expected to feature a 6.74-inch AMOLED panel with 1240 by 2772 resolution, 451 ppi density, 120 Hz refresh rate, and HDR 10+ support.
The processor will be an octa-core Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 based on the 4 Nm architecture coupled with Adreno 732 GPU. Users will be getting micro SDXC support along with 8/256 GB and 12/256 GB RAM configurations.
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The back will feature two cameras with the main one being a 50 MP f/1.8 shooter. The second camera is rumored to be an 8 MP ultrawide shooter. The front will feature a usual 16 MP sensor.
We don’t have an exact release date as of yet, but based on rumors, it is expected to be sometime in mid-April.
OnePlus Nord 4
Another smartphone from OnePlus that’s expected to hit the international market is the OnePlus Nord 4. The Nord 4 will be the global variant of the already announced OnePlus Ace 3V.
By all accounts, the Nord 4 will share a lot of similarities with the CE4. But the former will have certain features to justify its higher price.
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Unlike the CE4, the Nord 4 will come with a Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 processor. It will also have IP65 water and dust resistance. The Nord 4 will unfortunately miss out on the extendable storage option. The rest of the configuration is expected to be the same as of now.
Samsung Galaxy M15
Samsung is gearing up with their budget and mid-range lineup in April. The first of the M series smartphones to hit the market would be the budget Galaxy M15.
The M15 will feature a 6.5-inch Super AMOLED panel with a 90 Hz refresh rate, 800 nits HBM, and 1080 by 2340 resolutions. The 19.5:9 aspect ratio will boast 396 ppi density.
On the processor end, users will be getting the entry-level MediaTek Dimensity 6100+ based on a 6 Nm architecture. The octa-core processor has a chip design of 2x2.2 GHz Cortex-A76 & 6x2.0 GHz Cortex-A55. The smartphone will come in 4/128 GB, 6/128 GB, 8/128 GB, and 8/256 GB storage configurations.
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There’s a triple camera setup on the M15 with the main sensor being a 50 MP f/1.8 shooter. The additional sensors are a 5 MP f/2.2 ultrawide and a 2 MP f/2.4 macro lens. The front will feature a 13 MP f/2.0 selfie shooter.
The expected release date of the Galaxy M15 is sometime in mid-April.
Samsung Galaxy M55
There’s a hard rumor going around about the new Galaxy M55. The initial idea that the M55 would mirror the A55 has been quelled thanks to a series of new leaks.
The M55 will feature a 6.7-inch screen with Super AMOLED tech onboard. That means a 120 Hz refresh rate and a 1000 nits HBM is on the cards.
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The Exynos 1480 found on the A55 would be replaced by a rather old Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 on the M55. The storage options will be either 128 GB or 256 GB with an extension of up to 1 TB.
The camera remains more or less the same with reduced ultrawide and macro capabilities and an enhanced selfie camera compared to the A55.
The Galaxy M55 will go live sometime in late April.
Motorola Edge 50 Pro
Motorola is gearing up with its flagship release of the year, the Edge 50 Pro.
The smartphone is expected to be powered by the new Snapdragon 8S Gen 3 processor. It’s an underclocked version of this year’s flagship 8 Gen 3. The smartphone is absolutely stacked in terms of storage as users will be getting options of up to 12 GB RAM and 512 GB of internal storage.
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The display on the Edge 50 Pro is rumored to be a 6.7-inch FHD AMOLED panel with a 165 Hz refresh rate. The smartphone will also feature a triple camera setup with the main camera tipped to be a 50 MP one.
The official India launch date of the Edge 50 Pro is set on 3rd April.
realme GT 5 Pro
Even though the realme GT5 Pro had its official launch last December, it didn’t make its global debut. Words coming from China indicate that things are about to change as the GT5 Pro may make its global debut sometime in April.
The smartphone is powered by Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 4nm processor with storage options going up to 16 GB RAM and 1 TB internal.
Read more: Pros & Cons of Flagship Smartphones
As for the display, the GT5 Pro has a 6.78-inch LTPO AMOLED panel with 1B colors, 144 Hz refresh rate, and HDR10+ support with 1264 by 2780 resolutions.
The triple camera setup features a 50 MP f/1.7 main shooter, a 50 MP f/2.6 periscope lens, and an 8 MP f/2.2 ultrawide lens. The front camera is a 32 MP f/2.5 selfie shooter. For more on the GT5 Pro, check out the in-depth review.
Infinix Note 40 Pro+
Infinix Note 40 Pro+ will make its global debut sometime in late April. The news comes after the smartphone had its official Chinese release on 18th March 2024.
The Note 40 Pro+ will be powered by the mid-range MediaTek Dimensity 7020 based on a 6 Nm architecture. The storage configuration comes in a single 12/256 GB option.
Read more: Infinix Hot 40 Review: Is It A Good Deal Under BDT 18000?
The display on the Note 40 Pro+ is a 6.78-inch AMOLED panel with a 120 Hz refresh rate and 1080 by 2436 resolution.
The camera on the Note 40 Pro+ is its key selling point. The main sensor is a 108 MP f/1.8 sensor with both PDAF and OIS. The additional sensors are two 2 MP depth and a macro shooter. The front features a 32 MP f/2.2 sensor.
Tecno Pova 6 Pro
And the last one on the list is the Tecno Pova 6 Pro slated to launch in mid-April. The news comes after the device was officially announced in February this year.
Tecno Pova 6 Pro is expected to be powered by Mediatek Dimensity 6080 based on 6 nm architecture. The storage option on the device will go up to 256 GB internal and 12 GB of RAM.
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The display on the Pova 6 Pro will be a 6.78-inch AMOLED panel with a 120 Hz refresh rate, FHD+ resolution featuring 1080 by 2436 pixels, and 1300 nits of peak brightness.
Pova 6 Pro will feature a triple camera setup. However, users will have the 108 MP f/1.9 main sensor only to work with, in principle. The additional rear sensors are a 2 MP depth sensor and a 0.08 MP auxiliary sensor. It also has a 32 f/2.2 MP selfie shooter.
Final Words
April 2024 is lined up with a lot of exciting smartphone releases ranging from flagships to mid-range to budget-friendly segments. Most of the releases have already been launched in the Chinese market as it always gets the exclusive first release from most local brands. Nonetheless, users will be getting a lot of choices in terms of price and performance match.
Read more: Most Anticipated Smartphones Coming in March 2024
China Media Group launches new Al productions
China Media Group (CMG) has embarked on an extraordinary journey towards merging Al technology with media, marking a significant milestone in innovative content creation.
CMG announced the launch of its latest Al productions on Wednesday.
The highlight of the launch event was the unveiling of "Chinese Mythology", the first multilingual microdrama entirely produced by AI.
This groundbreaking series represents a revolutionary shift in content creation, with artificial intelligence handling every aspect of production, including art design, storyboards, video production, dubbing, and soundtrack.
Furthermore, Al enables the overcoming of language barriers for audiences, a previously unparalleled achievement in the industry.
CMG also unveiled the first episode of the micro-drama series "AI Reads Classics", titled "Zhou Chu Eliminates Three Evils", further highlighting Al's storytelling capabilities.
The team completed the production of this episode in just 5 days, a remarkable accomplishment that underscores the efficiency Al brings to the process, which would typically require 3 to 4 months without Al.
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Moreover, CGTN presented "The Rebirth of the Young Hero Nezha", an Al production that reinterprets ancient mythology using modern technology. This innovative approach is demonstrated by the Al production process, with the story resulting from training a large language model to deeply understand the classic plot from "Investiture of the Gods" and utilizing the AIGC tool to create adapted scripts.
The significance of Al in interpreting ancient myths lies in its ability to offer fresh perspectives on timeless narratives, capturing the collective dreams and aspirations of humanity.
This fusion of Al advancements with cultural heritage enriches comprehension of the past and inspires new forms of expression that seamlessly blend thought, art, and technology.
Despite the inherent imperfections in Al-generated content, the pursuit of excellence continues, driven by the belief in continuous improvement. This underscores the enduring truth that quality works deeply resonate with human emotions and concepts, regardless of the technological means employed.
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To address the risks and challenges posed by Al in the media industry, CMG has already developed and released the first set of regulations governing the use of artificial intelligence in Chinese media.
These regulations encompass crucial principles such as compliance with laws and regulations, maintaining direction, ensuring safety and controllability, safeguarding privacy respecting intellectual property rights, and promoting collaboration.
Special emphasis is placed on ensuring the authenticity of news and accurately portraying historical events, characters, and cultural nuances through Al productions.
Activists, journalists decry Facebook's ineffective management of hate speech and disinformation in Bangladesh
In Bangladesh, a chorus of concern arises among anti-war crimes campaigners, journalists, and activists regarding Facebook's apparent inability to stem the tide of hate speech, calls for violence, and communal attacks that have jeopardized public security.
Despite Facebook's community standards, designed to combat such abuses, numerous accounts indicate these guidelines are routinely ignored in the country.
The problem was highlighted in the lead-up to the national election, with a speech by Tarique Rahman advocating for street-level action to determine the nation's future. This speech, broadly shared via BNP's social media accounts, was flagged by civil society and rights activists as an “explicit call to violence.”
The post-election period saw no improvement, as a surge of unfiltered disinformation on Facebook blatantly breached the platform's community standards. According to Ranjan Karmakar, a human rights activist and prominent member of the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council, the rise of Facebook users since 2010 has directly correlated with the spread of hatred and rumors preceding major communal attacks, yet effective countermeasures remain absent.
The issue is compounded by the “questionable integrity” of local fact-checkers, with some minority community members, including those from the persecuted Ahmadiyya community, accusing Facebook of failing to protect minority groups. "The stated objective of Facebook to keep the platform safe failed miserably in the case of minorities, and this should not be allowed to continue," stated an Ahmadiyya community member, highlighting the broader implications of Facebook's policy failures.
Senior journalist and former news editor at BanglaVision, Chapal Bashar, criticized the double standards of some fact-checkers, suggesting a broader issue with the platform's enforcement of its policies. Additionally, family members of martyred intellectuals have reported facing restrictions on Facebook when trying to share content about the war-time atrocities committed by the Pakistan army and their local collaborators in 1971.
Tonmoy Ahmed, an anti-war crimes campaigner and Awami League's web team coordinator, who survived a brutal attack by Shibir activists in 2013, shared his long-term observations of the platform. "As an active Facebook user for over a decade, I've noticed a biased approach from the authorities. Those who instigate violence often go unflagged, which clearly violates policy guidelines. Furthermore, exposing hate campaigners and militants recruiting youths on Facebook, and upholding democratic ideals and societal values, are growing increasingly difficult."
This collective outcry underscores the urgent need for Facebook to reassess its policies and enforcement mechanisms in Bangladesh, ensuring that the platform does not become a conduit for hate speech and violence but rather a space for safe, constructive dialogue.
Humane’s Ai Pin: Incredible Features of the ‘Smartphone Killer’
AI has already become a promising technology, demonstrating the convenience it can add to daily life, letting people automate different tasks and get a more satisfactory experience. With mobiles, computers, smartphones, cameras, glasses, rings, and watches, the world has seen a vast implementation of AI technology over the last few years, and the latest addition to the list is an Ai pin. A San Francisco-based tech innovating company, Humane Inc., has announced the soon-to-be-placed launch event, either at the end of March or in early April.
What is Humane’s Ai Pin?
A tiny, superlight, and lightweight wearable device, the Ai pin integrates AI technology, a projector, and numerous sensors to bring up a few cutting-edge functionalities, which can be intuitive or natural. However, where this brilliant AI Pin shines the most is its capacity to act like a smartphone, at a level of efficacy that people have termed it “a smartphone killer pin,” without even using a screen or a digital interface. The world is about to observe how a small peck of a pin can replace screen scrolling.
The pin turns on when touched and takes directives from the user's voice or hand gesture. It will take directive over voice command and run applications or provide information with the power of a sublime Ai with oral interaction capacity.
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Invention
The whole idea of the Ai Pin has taken birth from two extraordinary minds- Imran Chaudhri, CEO of Humane Inc., and his wife, Bethany Bongiorno. The couple said their prime goal was to free humanity from smartphone addiction. Soon, the AI Pin will hit the market under the banner of Humane, founded by a couple of ex-app executives, giving them a proper chance to achieve their goal.
With people bolstering the positive and limited sides of the device, Humane and several more big-name companies like Microsoft, OpenAi, and so on have visioned potentiality in the idea of an Ai device that users can clip to their clothes.
Imran Chaudhri and Bethany Bongiorno have combined a handful of modern technologies, such as app development, networking, cloud computing, databases, laser projections, etc., underneath their latest innovation. Each technology will work jointly with the rest and provide the ultimate result — communication with a user through projecting a laser diagram on the user’s palm and voice command.
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Specs and Features
Humane Ai has released a video exhibiting a few of the critical features of Ai Pin, only to shock users and show what’s coming.
The tiniest and the quickest source of info: The Pin wields a dynamic UI to generate a user interface optimized for the different types of information.
Communication: The tiny pin lets users take calls and send messages with voice commands. Users have to name the recipient and instruct the Ai pin to give phone calls or write and send texts.
Camera: The pin rooms dot cameras to take photos and record videos if necessary instruction is given. Users can record videos or take pictures by tapping a finger on the pin.
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Media playback: Like all modern devices, the pin allows users to play different media files precisely and smoothly.
Reminders and Notes: An essential feature that every device with a user interface has, the ability to take notes and set reminders is installed in the Ai Pin. Users will be able to use this feature easily by commanding through voice.
Web search: The Ai Pin can look up any keyword or information on the web and provide the data asked by a user. On request, it can provide the data in an easy format.
Translation: The Ai pin will let users search words and sentences and find answers in more than 50 languages, which can be convenient during emergencies or travel.
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Productivity: Multiple productivity tools and software like After Effects and PhotoShop can be connected to Ai Pin to instruct different courses of action.
Image Recognition: Humane’s Ai Pin can scan images and provide critical information like how old the images are, what is in the image, and other information about the origin. The pin can do the same with objects, too.
Notification: Dealing with notifications will be systematic with the Ai Pin. It will store and summarize all the notifications in a place and inform the user when instructed without needing to open all individual apps.
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How to get around Instagram’s new limits on political content
Instagram has started an automatic clamp down on the amount of political content appearing in its users' feeds, but there is a relatively quick and easy way to turn off the controls if you don't want to keep the limitations place.
As part of an initiative Instagram announced last month, the popular social media service owned by Meta Platforms has stopped “proactively” recommending political content posted on accounts that users don't choose to follow. To do that, Instagram has automatically set the “political content” control to “limit” on user accounts.
The limits also affect users with Threads accounts tied to their Instagram accounts.
The change has triggered an uproar among some users who feel as if Instagram is unnecessarily limiting political discourse in a year that pivotal elections are being held in U.S. and other countries.
Here's how to get around Instagram's political curbs in just a few steps.
1. To open up the political spigot again on Instagram, open up the app on your smartphone. Then tap the three-dash menu at the top right.
2. Navigate to “settings and privacy,” then choose "content preferences," then open the “Political content” menu.
3. Find and turn on the "Don't limit" option.
Once that is done, you should once again start to see posts relating to government, elections and other political matters shared from accounts that you don't follow flowing through your feed.
Symphony Innova 30 Review: Budget-friendly, Powerful Camera Phone
Symphony Mobile’s latest addition, Innova 30, hit the market on 18th March 2024. The phone has struck smartphone aficionados with awe, unboxing powerful features and a premium look within an unbelievably budget-friendly price. As an expected consequence, doubt about the efficiency of these features has arisen. Is the phone keeping its promises? Let’s look at the features, pros, cons, and price of Symphony Innova 30 in Bangladesh.
Key Specs and Features of Symphony Innova 30
Design
For the look, Symphony Innova 30 has used a fairly trendy design with a 164.27 mm by 76 mm by 8.45mm flat, glossy body, rounded on the corners. A regular camera panel has protruded on the back to room three circular lenses and a flashlight, which has been a general trend for camera modules nowadays.
The back gives the feel of a glass-made frame and glows with a gradient multi-color shade when light falls on it from a certain angle. A plain, black logo of the brand name appears on the lower back.
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For the body material, Symphony has used reusable plastic, which has been renovated to look like a metal frame. The phone weighs 193g and may feel heavier than what is expected from a plastic frame body.
All the necessary buttons and ports are available. The SIM tray located on the left can house two nano SIMs and a microSD data card. The power button, located on the right, just beneath the volume rockers, has embodied a fingerprint sensor.
The phone's overall look offers nothing unique but a market-norm figure, most probably in an attempt to play safe, as the design has already been a hit among smartphone lovers.
Symphony Innova 30 has three explicit color variants- Reflective Green, Mirror White, and Space Green.
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Display
A 6.56” IPS HD+ screen is laid on the front to display Symphony Innova 30. With a pixel density of 269, the display emanates not only vivid but also colorful pictures, supporting around 16M colors. The display features Incell technology, which is integrated with multi-touch functionality. Maintaining an aspect ratio of 20.15:9, the display appears sufficient for giving a complete video-watching experience. It supports a maximum of 1612 by 720p resolution.
The display covers the whole front side of the phone, surrounded by linear chins and bezels. The thickness of these two properties is astoundingly thinner compared to other smartphones around the same budget range. The display also rooms a punch-hole front camera at its top center area.
Cameras
Symphony has put tremendous effort into providing high-end technology and hardware in the minimum possible budget with the Innova 30. But the phone manufacturing has outdone every other brand and model with the camera section of this phone.
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Equipped with a powerful rear camera setup, the Symphony Innova 30 boasts a 108MP UHD sensor with an f/2.0 aperture. Packed with features such as AI capabilities, slow motion, portrait mode, and night mode, it promises versatility in capturing moments. Additionally, users can explore Pro mode and HDR for enhanced creativity.
The front camera featuring an 8MP sensor with an f/2.0 aperture, offers features like display flash and front portrait mode for quality selfies. With a zoom limit of 10X for the rear camera and 4X for the front, users have flexibility in framing their shots.
While video recording is capped at 1080p for both rear and front cameras, the Innova 30 ensures users can capture moments with clarity and detail.
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How to spot AI-generated deepfake images
AI fakery is quickly becoming one of the biggest problems confronting us online. Deceptive pictures, videos and audio are proliferating as a result of the rise and misuse of generative artificial intelligence tools.
With AI deepfakes cropping up almost every day, depicting everyone from Taylor Swift to Donald Trump, it’s getting harder to tell what’s real from what’s not. Video and image generators like DALL-E, Midjourney and OpenAI’s Sora make it easy for people without any technical skills to create deepfakes — just type a request and the system spits it out.
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These fake images might seem harmless. But they can be used to carry out scams and identity theft or propaganda and election manipulation.
Here is how to avoid being duped by deepfakes:
HOW TO SPOT A DEEPFAKEIn the early days of deepfakes, the technology was far from perfect and often left telltale signs of manipulation. Fact-checkers have pointed out images with obvious errors, like hands with six fingers or eyeglasses that have differently shaped lenses.
But as AI has improved, it has become a lot harder. Some widely shared advice — such as looking for unnatural blinking patterns among people in deepfake videos — no longer holds, said Henry Ajder, founder of consulting firm Latent Space Advisory and a leading expert in generative AI.
Still, there are some things to look for, he said.
A lot of AI deepfake photos, especially of people, have an electronic sheen to them, “an aesthetic sort of smoothing effect” that leaves skin “looking incredibly polished,” Ajder said.
He warned, however, that creative prompting can sometimes eliminate this and many other signs of AI manipulation.
Check the consistency of shadows and lighting. Often the subject is in clear focus and appears convincingly lifelike but elements in the backdrop might not be so realistic or polished.
LOOK AT THE FACESFace-swapping is one of the most common deepfake methods. Experts advise looking closely at the edges of the face. Does the facial skin tone match the rest of the head or the body? Are the edges of the face sharp or blurry?
If you suspect video of a person speaking has been doctored, look at their mouth. Do their lip movements match the audio perfectly?
Ajder suggests looking at the teeth. Are they clear, or are they blurry and somehow not consistent with how they look in real life?
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Cybersecurity company Norton says algorithms might not be sophisticated enough yet to generate individual teeth, so a lack of outlines for individual teeth could be a clue.
THINK ABOUT THE BIGGER PICTURESometimes the context matters. Take a beat to consider whether what you’re seeing is plausible.
The Poynter journalism website advises that if you see a public figure doing something that seems “exaggerated, unrealistic or not in character,” it could be a deepfake.
For example, would the pope really be wearing a luxury puffer jacket, as depicted by a notorious fake photo? If he did, wouldn’t there be additional photos or videos published by legitimate sources?
USING AI TO FIND THE FAKESAnother approach is to use AI to fight AI.
Microsoft has developed an authenticator tool that can analyze photos or videos to give a confidence score on whether it’s been manipulated. Chipmaker Intel’s FakeCatcher uses algorithms to analyze an image’s pixels to determine if it’s real or fake.
There are tools online that promise to sniff out fakes if you upload a file or paste a link to the suspicious material. But some, like Microsoft’s authenticator, are only available to selected partners and not the public. That’s because researchers don’t want to tip off bad actors and give them a bigger edge in the deepfake arms race.
Open access to detection tools could also give people the impression they are “godlike technologies that can outsource the critical thinking for us” when instead we need to be aware of their limitations, Ajder said.
THE HURDLES TO FINDING FAKESAll this being said, artificial intelligence has been advancing with breakneck speed and AI models are being trained on internet data to produce increasingly higher-quality content with fewer flaws.
That means there’s no guarantee this advice will still be valid even a year from now.
Experts say it might even be dangerous to put the burden on ordinary people to become digital Sherlocks because it could give them a false sense of confidence as it becomes increasingly difficult, even for trained eyes, to spot deepfakes.
Samsung Galaxy A55 5G Review: A Budget-friendly Version of Galaxy S24?
The Galaxy A series has often been considered the toned-down version of the flagship S series. It has been Samsung’s reliable mid-range device that mimics the look and feel of the flagship. Samsung recently launched the Galaxy A55 on 15th March 2024 globally. As a successor of the A54, how does it stack up against its predecessor? More importantly, does it hold ground on par with its competitors? Let’s find out.
Key Specs of Samsung Galaxy A55 5G
Design and Build Quality
The A series has always been replicative of the S series. Users would be hard-pressed to tell the difference between the two side by side. The A55 follows the S24 with its glass front, aluminum frame, and glass back.
The frame has a brushed finish on the A55 which oddly enough, gives it a more premium look than the S24. The frame around the volume rocker and the power button is slightly raised which aids in the overall ergonomics.
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Dimension-wise the A55 comes in at 161.1 mm by 77.4 mm by 8.2 mm with 213 g weight. The overall dimension is a tad bit larger than last year’s A54. The front screen is protected by Gorilla Glass Victus+, the same as that of the S24. In line with the flagship, Samsung has finally introduced a symmetrical display on the A series.
In addition to the highest 256 GB storage, the A55 also comes with a shared micro SDXC slot. There’s unfortunately no headphone jack on the A55 which was expected as Samsung stopped its inclusion in the A series. The A55 comes in Iceblue, Lilac, Navy, and Lemon colors which gives it distinction from the S24.
The Display
Samsung is often touted to create the best smartphone display in the market. The A55 stands up to that hype with its 6.6-inch Super AMOLED, 120Hz, HDR10+ panel with 1000 nits of HBM. The symmetrical display is 0.2 inch larger than the one on A54 with a center punch hole for the front camera.
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The resolution of the display comes in at 1080 by 2340 pixels with 390 ppi and an unusual 19.5:9 aspect ratio. The screen-to-body ratio has also seen a jump at 85.8% which is the highest among any A series device to date. With over 16 M color support, the A55 is one of the most vibrant and eye-pleasing devices in the mid-range category.
The Camera The A55 features a triple camera setup just like its predecessor. The main sensor is a 50 MP f/1.8 with PDAF and OIS. The secondary sensors are a 12 MP f/2.2, 123˚ ultrawide shooter, and a 5 MP f/2.4 macro shooter. The front features the usual 32 MP f/2.2 selfie camera.
It is difficult to differentiate the camera performance of the A55 from that of the A54 as both of them feature identical sensors. The pictures came out great in daylight with good color balance and dynamic range.
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The post-processing on the A55 seems to have slightly improved as it shows better exposure and portrait details side by side with the A54. The edge detection in the portrait mode has also gotten better.
Pictures taken in artificial light or low light suffer a bit from softness and grains. The night mode is stable in low light as it does an excellent job of capturing details and maintaining the overall sharpness of the image. The quality of the selfie camera is also as usual. It produces decent pictures with good details in bright conditions.
The videography on the A55 is rated to be 4K at 30fps and 1080p at 30/60fps with gyro-EIS. OIS and EIS both work well to produce stable videos with good exposure.
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