Coming with more RAM, a larger M.2 slot, and a larger battery

Asus has finally revealed a bit more details about the upcoming ROG Ally handheld console update that was rumored earlier, revealing it will be a bit more than just a minor update but rather a redesigned console with the same APU and the same screen, but more RAM, larger M.2 slot, and a larger battery.

Speaking to The Verge, Asus' SVP, Shawn Yen, confirmed previous rumors that the upcoming ROG Ally X, as it is supposedly called, will still use the AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme APU as well as the same 7-inch 48-120Hz VRR screen. It will also fix the previous issue with the SD Card slot, which will be moved away from the heatsink. Asus revealed a few teasers, which suggested a black color design.

On the other hand, Yen confirmed to The Verge that the ROG Ally X will have a significantly larger battery, and while he left all the specifics for the launch, he did hint that we would be looking at over 3 hours of gameplay in the worst-case scenario. Apparently, the longer battery life was the single biggest request, and the company did not realize that people would prioritize it over weight, so obviously, expect the ROG Ally X to be much heavier.

In addition to the bigger battery, the Asus ROG Ally X will also feature a larger M.2 2280 SSD slot, which is a pretty important upgrade, as it will give users a much wider choice in SSDs since the M.2 2230 SSDs are quite rare. Both the bigger battery and larger M.2 slot suggest that the ROG Ally X could be larger as well.

Asus also teased that we could see more than 16GB of RAM as well, possibly with a 32GB option.

Asus will be holding a special announcement on June 2nd, just for ROG Ally, where we'll see if there are any other updates. One thing is sure, it will definitely come with a higher launch price compared to the original ROG Ally.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vze62qJK1Sk

One to have for Ghost of Tsushima: Director's Cut and Homeworld 3

Nvidia has released its latest WHQL Game-Ready driver, which brings optimizations for Ghost of Tsushima: Director's Cut and Homeworld 3 games, and a single bug fix.

According to the release notes, the biggest update with the new Geforce 552.44 WHQL driver is the support for the new Ghost of Tsushima: Director's Cut game, which launches on May 16th. The game will feature support for Nvidia DLSS 3, Reflex, and DLAA. The driver also adds optimizations for the Homeworld 3 game, launching a few days earlier, on May 13th. Unlike Ghost of Tsushima, Homeworld 3 will only support Nvidia DLSS 2.

The new Geforce 552.44 WHQL driver also adds new Geforce Experience settings for several games, including Content Warning, Gray Zone Warfare, Manor Lords, No Rest for the Wicked, and Outpost: Infinity Siege, and brings a single bug fix, which is a new Resizable BAR profile for the Ghost of Tsushima: Director's Cut game.

As always, you can download the latest Nvidia Geforce driver and find full release notes over at Geforce.com.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzWBNwhb870

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQsA9eoV9-Q

Streaming services have cut their own throat

As streaming services bundle their offerings, increase prices, and introduce adverts, it's clear that the demand for Blu-Ray discs is experiencing a resurgence. Consumers are eager to retain ownership of their favourite content without recurring costs and remain unconvinced about reverting to piracy.

Studio Distribution Services, which manages the physical distribution for Universal Pictures and Warner Bros, their products will soon be making a nostalgic return to the shelves of 132 Fred Meyer supermarkets and 170 GameStop outlets across the United States, in addition to being available on GameStop.com.

This indicates that films such as 'Dune: Part II' will shortly be accessible in a physical format, potentially boasting superior visual quality. In this manner, viewers can relish the movie and become fully engrossed without fretting over buffering, bitrates, or the necessity of an internet connection. The partnership announcement highlights that the selection at Fred Meyer and GameStop will rotate, encompassing full-length movies and television series.

'Dune: Part II' will premiere at Fred Meyer, available in 132 locations from May 14, 2024. The collaboration is set to grow, featuring a wide array of titles and more expansive displays. The GameStop launch will be notably significant from the outset, showcasing 20 titles on a principal wall in the 170 stores nationwide. Additionally, a variety of 4K UHD, Blu-rays, and classic DVDs will be on offer. This diverse selection caters to all entertainment preferences, especially considering that the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 consoles are equipped with disc drives capable of playback.

This represents a considerable expansion for both retailers, presenting all three disc formats to a broader audience. For those who previously frequented outlets like BestBuy, which have ceased stocking physical media discs, this development is a triumph for the category and the merchants that stock them.

Thanks to AI

TSMC has announced that their April takings have shot up nearly 60 per cent compared to last year, thanks to a massive demand for the top-notch semiconductors that are all the rage in AI gadgets.

The Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company holds sway over more than half the global chip market, and its is the one kitting out everything from mobile phones to Nvidia's snazzy AI tech.

The company said that in April, it earned "about €6.76 billion (NT$236.02 billion)... a hefty 59.6 per cent more than April 2023. That's a step up from the 34.3 per cent leap it reported in March.

Last month it reported a 13 per cent bump in first-quarter earnings to about €17.61 billion, and they're banking on a 27.6 per cent surge for the next one.

The smashing hit of OpenAI's ChatGPT has kicked off a proper AI frenzy, with a worldwide scramble for the bleeding-edge chips needed to power AI services.

About the only thing that is keeping TSMC’s share price down is that most of their factories snug in Taiwan, the self-governed isle that China's got its eye on. Beijing is not mincing words. They might flex their muscles to get Taiwan under their thumb, and they've been flexing their military might around the island quite a bit lately.

The chip supply chain is a bit wobbly, and governments are nudging TSMC to expand its production beyond Taiwan's shores.

The Yanks, in particular, are on a mission. In 2022, they passed the Chips and Science Act to give their own semiconductor scene a makeover.

US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo discussed it just Wednesday at a US House chinwag, saying that if China were to nab Taiwan and TSMC, it would be a disaster for the US economy.

"Right now, the United States nicks 92 per cent of its top-tier chips from TSMC in Taiwan," she said. "They're miles ahead of what we're up to in the States."

TSMC plans to build a third factory in the US, bringing its total US investment to about €60.48 billion.

They've hit a few snags stateside over the past year, putting it down to a tight squeeze on the talent pool – chip-making's not exactly a doddle, after all.

But if they succeed, Raimondo reckons the TSMC plants in Arizona will be the first to produce chips on US turf.

This year has also seen TSMC kick off a new €8.02 billion venture in Kyushu, down south in Japan—a bit of a triumph for the Japanese as they duke it out with the US and Europe to charm chip firms with hefty handouts.

They've got another Japanese project in the pipeline in Kumamoto for even fancier chips.

Can’t always cater for US puritans

OpenAI is stirring up controversy with its contemplation of developing an NSFW version of its AI software.

product is largely hamstrung by the fact that it has to allow children, nuns, retired colonels, and US Christian right-wingers to use it. This means that many words in common use, which are ideal for describing situations, or scenes, are banned because what they might be used for. Yesterday DALL-E would not create a picture of the Ancient Greek goddess Persephone because I described her as wearing a black robe. Apparently robe was a blocked word. 

Puritans involved in AI insist that is to prevent the creation of deep fakes, but others point out that taking care of conservative morals does fit with OpenAI's pledge to create a "safe and beneficial" AI.

OpenAI is toying with the idea of giving devs and users the green light to "responsibly" churn out what they're calling not-safe-for-work (NSFW) content with their products. They're talking about stuff like erotica, over-the-top gore, nasty language, and swearing.

It an announcement the company said that it was having a nosy into whether we can give the thumbs up to NSFW content for those old enough to see it...

“We're keen to get a handle on what people and society reckon about how our models should behave when it comes to this sort of thing."

The comment was part of a blurb OpenAI put out about how they put their AI tools together. Joanne Jang, one of the OpenAI lot in San Francisco who had a hand in the write-up told NPR OpenAI wants to spark a conversation about whether it's right always to keep erotic text and birthday suit snaps off its products. She made it clear that deepfakes are still a no-go.

Major incident

Diabetic Apple fanboys who trusted Job’s Mob’s testing of an iOS insulin pump app apparently risked their lives.

More than 200 folks with diabetes have had a bit of a nightmare because of a dodgy iOS app that's been knocking off their insulin pumps too early.

The FDA's been on the blower to say that Tandem Diabetes Care had to tell everyone to ditch version 2.7 of their t:connect app. Why? 'Because it has been having a mare, crashing and restarting more than a dodgy old car, and it's been sucking the life out of the pumps' batteries with all the Bluetooth chatter.

This means the pumps are conking out way before they should, leaving people in the lurch. Tandem's been quick to tell everyone to get the app updated to version 2.7.1 or newer, which should sort the mess out. There's no need to send anything back, but the FDA's still calling it a "Class I" recall, which is code for "it's pretty serious, and someone could've copped it."

While no one's kicked the bucket because of it, one has to wonder how this product was tested before it was allowed into the Apple store.  Job’s Mob charges a pretty penny to allow access to its store and one of the things it brags about is security and that the product does what it says.

And he can’t turn it off and turn it on again

Elon [look at me] Musk’s attempt to put a computer chip into a person’s brain ran into trouble when the chip borked.

His company, Neuralink's first attempt at sticking its chip in someone's noggin, hit a snag when the gizmo started to come loose from the patient's brain.

The bloke in question, Noland Arbaugh, had the op back in February to get the Neuralink chip fitted in his head, but not long after, the thing started to lose its mojo. It turns out that some of the tiny threads that linked the chip to the brain were backing out. Neuralink's keeping schtum about why the chip started to back out of Arbaugh's brain, but they've said in a blog post that their boffins have tweaked the implant and got it working again.

There might be some concern with the device, as the death rate among primates who tested the chip was also rather high, but Musk was not going to let that sort of thing bother him—after all, he is not putting a chip in his brain.

The dip in the chip's powers didn't seem to bother Arbaugh, and he was still able to play chess on the computer just by thinking about it, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The Journal added that they even considered yanking the implant out when they clocked the problem.

Arbaugh claimed the implant in a demo in March, saying it's "already changed his life," even though it's not been all plain sailing and they've "run into some issues."

Xbox related

Software king of the world, Microsoft, is planning to open a mobile app store to give Apple and Google a run for their money.

Xbox's bigwig Sarah Bond (pictured) spilt the beans about their plans to throw their hat in the ring with a mobile gaming shop.

Bond's letting on that this new, yet-to-be-named shop is set to open its virtual doors in July, but you won't find it in an app – it's all happening on web browsers. It also has Microsoft's shiny new toy, Candy Crush Saga, ready to be the belle of the ball from day one.

Microsoft's leap into the mobile gaming fray – the cash cow of the gaming world – has been on the cards, especially after they splashed out a cool €64.17 billion on the California gaming giant Activision Blizzard King.

In November, Xbox's head honcho Phil Spencer was nattering about "chatting up other partners" to kick off a mobile store maybe.

This is shaping up to be a proper showdown between Microsoft and the likes of Google and Apple, seeing as most mobile games are nicked through their app shops.

Bond told Bloomberg Vole’s new Microsoft mobile store "is a proper all-rounder – it's about who you are, your game stash, your persona, your prizes, and all that jazz, following you around rather than being stuck in just one playground."

Crushes artistic customers hopes and dreams

The Fruity Cargo Cult Apple's marketing team had to eat humble pie after its latest iPad ad showing a press squashing all sorts of artsy stuff, rubbed folks the wrong way.

As we reported yesterday, the Twitterati were quick to give Apple a good telling-off after Apple’s supreme dalek Tim Cook posted the ad on X.

They called it a right clanger, given that artists are fretting about their position in this newfangled AI malarkey.

Apple's marketing boss Tor Myhren admitted that Apple had cocked up with this video and it was sorry.

In a damage-limitation move, Jobs’ Mob decided not to air the ad on the TV as they'd planned.

For those who came in late, the ad, set to Sonny and Cher's "All I Ever Need Is You," was meant to be a one-minute wonder called "Crush." It showed a bunch of creative kit like guitars, pianos, and paint tins getting blown to bits under Apple's press.

In the end, the press returned to show off the new “paper thin” iPad Pro, which has just destroyed anything artistic and worth remembering in the last 50 years.

Hugh Grant pointed out that the add showed” the destruction of the human experience. Courtesy of Silicon Valley,".

Reed Morano, a big shot director from Hollywood, told Cook to "read the room," calling the ad "psychotic."

The Tame Apple Press is doing its best to remind those who were angry about the advert that Jobs’ Mob once made an “iconic” advert in 1984 which showed a plucky underdog lobbing a hammer at some big brother type. So having a duff ad after 40 years is fair enough.

Who would have thunk that ignoring a Judge would be contempt?

Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers appears to be gunning for the bigwigs at the fruity cargo cult Apple for ignoring her order on iPhone app payments.

Rodgers is concerned Apple is still making it painful for folks to use anything but Apple's own payment system in iPhone apps, even though she's told Jobs’ Mob to sort it out and let people pay how they want.

The whole thing's about whether Apple's still nudging people to use its own payment setup, which—let's be honest—they make a tidy sum from, what with their 15- 30 per cent cut on everything you buy in the most popular apps.

During the court chinwag, which lasted for a good four hours, Judge Gonzalez Rogers didn't seem too chuffed with Matthew Fischer, the bloke who runs the iPhone app store. She reckons Apple is just trying to keep its profits safe rather than making it easier for us to use other payment methods as she wanted.

She really put Fischer on the spot, asking him if Apple's made it all confusing on purpose to keep people from using other ways to pay. "It's all about keeping the competition down, isn’t it?" she said, trying to understand why Apple's set it up like this.

Fischer's sticking to his guns, though. He says Apple is just obeying orders while also trying to keep the baddies off the internet and make a bit of money back on what it has invested in the app store and its software.

To be fair this whole “we need to charge an arm and a leg so our users are more secure” argument is getting old and rather transparent.

Apple's even devised a new way to take its cut, now asking for 12% to 27% on stuff you buy through other payment options. When the judge called them out for still raking it in, Fischer said it would work out to about 18 percent on average. “We've got to make a living, after all."

Apple has been trying to get out of this for over two years, but the Supreme Court is not having it. Since January, they've had to let app developers link to other payment options.

Fischer claims Apple only had 38 apps ask to use these other payment links, out of the 2 million or so iPhone apps in the States. And he couldn't even tell the judge how many of those actually sell stuff.

Epic Games, the lot behind Fortnite, reckon this shows Apple's still playing the system to keep things in their favour. They want Apple to open up more, but they didn't manage to convince the judge last year that Apple's app store is taking the mickey with its prices.

Facebook and Instagram's owner Meta, Elon Musk's X, Spotify, and Microsoft are all backing Epic. They say Apple's still squeezing developers for too much cash and stopping them from telling customers where they can get stuff cheaper.

Apple has none of it, though. They say Epic is just trying to get a free ride and not pay for using Apple's kit.

The court's going to have another go at this tomorrow when Phil Schiller from Apple is supposed to have his say. The judge wants it all wrapped up by 17 May, but she's warned it might drag on a bit longer.