‘Nier: Automata’ fan patch gives a big boost to detail, framerates

Why it matters to you

If you’re having framerate issues with Nier: Automata, this fan patch might fix them for you.

A patch developed by the fan community surrounding recently released Nier: Automata has made a difference to many people’s framerates. Anecdotal reports suggest even those who struggled to run the game at the lowest of settings, can now run it maxed out with smooth framerates, Kotaku reports.

Nier: Automata is a fun, philosophical RPG that caught us off guard with just how good it is. However, one area of the game that a lot of people have been complaining about is performance. While the JRPG is hardly the most visually stunning game out there, some users found that even with hefty hardware under the hood, they couldn’t hit steady, playable framerates. The newly released patch, however, looks to have fixed that.

Developed by Steam user Kaldaien, the FAR (Fix Automata Resolution) and lighting performance patch tweaks the game’s settings and makes a few interesting changes to drastically improve performance. It disables the GeForce Experience and Nvidia Shield features, limits the maximum framerate to 60, uses triple rather than quad-buffering to reduce input latency, and changes the pre-render frame limit to three, among other tweaks.

More: No need to reset: NES Classic Edition hack adds home screen shortcut

While we can’t comment directly on the viability of this patch, a number of users have reported an improvement in the game’s overall performance. One Redditor claims it took them from 45FPS on the lowest settings, to 60FPS with everything maxed out. Many others in that same thread confirmed benefits on their own systems, while another user on Steam claims that they were able to double their anti-aliasing and have better framerates too.

If you want to try out the patch yourself, you can download it from Kaldaien’s GitHub page, where frequent updates are forthcoming. The developer has promised to continue tweaking the patch, adding a new frame-pacing limiter in the coming days, which we’re told could help reduce cutscene stuttering.

It is worth stating, however, that this is a fan-made patch and is not officially supported in any manner. It could make changes to your game that you aren’t expecting, so be careful downloading it. Make sure to run anti-virus software and back up any important game files before installing it.

Student’s VR therapy tool combats social anxiety and speech disorders

Why it matters to you

For those who are suffering from social anxiety or a speech disorder such as a stutter, this virtual reality system may be able to help.

Virtual reality is pretty much the definition of an emerging technology, which means that different applications are being discovered seemingly every other day. While concepts like VR games are all well and great, however, a student at Nottingham Trent University in the U.K. has a potentially far more transformative use case: using virtual reality as a therapy tool.

24-year-old Gareth Walkom first developed a stutter when he was six years old. Now as an medical product design student, he’s in a position to help others with similar afflictions. To that end, he’s developing VR software to help individuals work through social anxieties and speech disorders by confronting a variety of virtual scenarios.

More: Could VR unlock the cure for Vietnam veterans’ decades-old PTSD?

“During a session of VRET, the individual is to wear the virtual reality headset, where they see an avatar,” Walkom told Digital Trends. “The individual is to talk to this avatar, and while doing so, their eye gaze behaviors are tracked through the special VR headset. If needed, a calming environment is available, which they can easily change into if their anxiety levels become too high. Virtual reality exposure therapy [as] opposed to exposure therapy in person, presents a realistic yet safe environment for someone to better prepare themselves for a real-life, anxiety-provoking situation.”

At present, the system is still very much under development, although the signs are promising. In tests using a previous virtual reality exposure therapy system Walkom developed, participants who took part showed signs of reduced anxiety and improved speech after repeated sessions. Now Walkom is building on that promise with his latest version, which also includes eye-tracking technology.

The software offers feedback about behavioral anxiety levels, and then shows how users are progressing — or even suggests additional ways for them to improve.

“I am hoping to take my research to a PhD this year, where I have plans which I believe can be groundbreaking to improve many disorders,” he said. “I am still searching for a source to fund this research.”

Given how potentially important work like this could prove, we hope that he finds it. This is exactly the kind of technology we love to hear about.

Want to test your fertility? Researchers develop a device to help you at home

Why it matters to you

Male infertility is a common affliction, but it often goes undiagnosed. A new device from Harvard could change that soon.

Your self-diagnosing powers are about to get a lot more … personal. In this new age of telemedicine, not only do we not need to leave our homes to see a doctor, but we may not even need to see a doctor at all in order to test fertility.

The bright minds at Harvard University created a new device that allows men to measure their ability to procreate with no more than their smartphone. The cost of production is a measly $4.45 and a prototype of the device requires less than five seconds to test how strong your swimmers are. It also analyzes sperm count with 98 percent accuracy.

“Although male infertility is as common as female infertility, it often goes undiagnosed because of socioeconomic factors such as stigma, high cost of testing, and availability of laboratory facilities,” the Harvard team noted in an abstract published in Science. “To facilitate the necessary testing, Kanakasabapathy et al. have designed a smartphone-based assay that can be performed at home or in a remote clinic without access to laboratory equipment.”

More: Cinemood, the pint-sized projector for your pint-sized kids, now coming to U.S.

The easy-to-use device can be attached to your smartphone, and comes with a companion app — thanks to a microfluidic chip that comes with a minuscule tube, home testers can collect up to 35 microliters of semen, seal the sample, then use the device’s LEDs and lenses do the work. After analysis (which depends on stills and videos from your smartphone camera), you will get your results. “The accuracy of this approach was very similar to that of computer-assisted laboratory analysis, even when it was performed by untrained users with no clinical background, demonstrating its potential for use at home and in low-resource settings,” the team noted.

Unfortunately, the device isn’t very good at identifying deformed sperm, which is key in determining fertility. That said, researchers believe that they can make improvements to address this issue. As exciting as these developments are, the device is still very much in its nascent stages. For one, the at-home fertility tester doesn’t even have a name yet and has not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration. So while the future looks bright, it’s still a ways away when it comes to testing your sperm with your phone.

Want to test your fertility? Researchers develop a device to help you at home

Why it matters to you

Male infertility is a common affliction, but it often goes undiagnosed. A new device from Harvard could change that soon.

Your self-diagnosing powers are about to get a lot more … personal. In this new age of telemedicine, not only do we not need to leave our homes to see a doctor, but we may not even need to see a doctor at all in order to test fertility.

The bright minds at Harvard University created a new device that allows men to measure their ability to procreate with no more than their smartphone. The cost of production is a measly $4.45 and a prototype of the device requires less than five seconds to test how strong your swimmers are. It also analyzes sperm count with 98 percent accuracy.

“Although male infertility is as common as female infertility, it often goes undiagnosed because of socioeconomic factors such as stigma, high cost of testing, and availability of laboratory facilities,” the Harvard team noted in an abstract published in Science. “To facilitate the necessary testing, Kanakasabapathy et al. have designed a smartphone-based assay that can be performed at home or in a remote clinic without access to laboratory equipment.”

More: Cinemood, the pint-sized projector for your pint-sized kids, now coming to U.S.

The easy-to-use device can be attached to your smartphone, and comes with a companion app — thanks to a microfluidic chip that comes with a minuscule tube, home testers can collect up to 35 microliters of semen, seal the sample, then use the device’s LEDs and lenses do the work. After analysis (which depends on stills and videos from your smartphone camera), you will get your results. “The accuracy of this approach was very similar to that of computer-assisted laboratory analysis, even when it was performed by untrained users with no clinical background, demonstrating its potential for use at home and in low-resource settings,” the team noted.

Unfortunately, the device isn’t very good at identifying deformed sperm, which is key in determining fertility. That said, researchers believe that they can make improvements to address this issue. As exciting as these developments are, the device is still very much in its nascent stages. For one, the at-home fertility tester doesn’t even have a name yet and has not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration. So while the future looks bright, it’s still a ways away when it comes to testing your sperm with your phone.

Vivino Market will give personalized wine recommendations, then sell you a bottle

Why it matters to you

Not sure what kind of wine you want tonight? Vivino Market will help, serving as a sommelier on your phone.

Vinophiles, proceed with caution. This announcement may just be the best news you’ll hear all week, but don’t go too crazy. On Wednesday, popular wine app Vivino announced the launch of Vivino Market, which is described as a “wine recommendation engine that suggests unique wines to each individual user based on historical rating and purchase data.” It’s almost like having a sommelier follow you around (mostly to the wine store) while whispering sweet nothings in your ear about what you’d like to drink.

The new marketplace makes use of data aggregated from Vivino’s bustling community of 23 million members, recommending the wines that align best with individuals’ tastes and price points. Based on your historical ratings and scan behavior, you’ll be able to glean valuable insights from Vivino Market — so yes, that means the more you use Vivino, the more customized your recommendations will be.

More: The D-Vine, a ‘Keurig for wine,’ gets interactive touchscreen in update

“The wine world is rich, invigorating and fun to explore, but can also be overwhelming and, when searching for new wines, consumers consistently stick with what they know,” said Heini Zachariassen, founder and CEO of Vivino. “With the launch of Vivino Market, you are witnessing the beginning of a new way to browse, select, and purchase wine.”

Most important, perhaps, is the last step — the ability for wine lovers to purchase recommended bottles directly from the app. Thanks to Vivino’s two-click checkout process, you basically have a “buy it now” option. Thanks to the app’s extensive network of partner merchants the world over, you’ll be able to purchase more than 80,000 unique wines in the U.S. alone.

“For us, personalization is the key to getting users to come back again and again. Our goal has always been to use data and machine learning to build a recommendation engine that is personalized and focuses on discovery,” Zachariassen explained. “We use historical preference data from ratings and reviews to provide recommendations wine drinkers can feel confident about without even needing to taste test before purchase.”

The executive concluded, “We are confident that purchasing through Vivino Market is as reliable as trying the wine yourself.”

Latest AdDuplex data highlights a vibrant Windows 10 ecosystem

Why it matters to you

If you’re a Windows 10 user, then you likely already updated your machine to Anniversary Update and are ready for next month’s Creators Update.

Windows 10 hasn’t been quite as successful as Microsoft once hoped, with the company’s newest and most important operating system so far failing to achieve its aggressive growth path to a billion users by 2018. Nevertheless, with Windows 10 exceeding 400 million users and with a robust PC ecosystem, it’s not all bad news for Microsoft.

The latest AdDuplex data, which assesses the machines that run Windows phone and Windows 10 apps utilizing that company’s ad network, provides some additional detail on how the Windows 10 market is shaking out. Specific emphasis was placed on how quickly users are upgrading their Windows 10 machines and which PCs are dominating the ecosystem.

More: Windows 10 users will reportedly receive the Creators Update on April 11

Perhaps the best news for Microsoft that can be pulled from the AdDuplex data is the strong presence of Windows 10 Anniversary Update. With Creators Update right around the corner, the company should be pleased that more than 90 percent of Windows 10 users are running Anniversary Update, also known as Windows 10 Version 1607. According to AdDuplex, the Windows Insider group comes in at only 0.9 percent of Windows 10 users, which means that the users providing feedback on Windows 10 preview builds represent only a sliver of the overall population.

AdDuplex

For anyone who wants to predict how quickly Windows 10 Creators Update will roll out, perhaps Anniversary Update’s velocity provides a clue. If history repeats itself, then most users will give Microsoft time to work out the bugs before updating, at which point the numbers will jump dramatically.

AdDuplex

In terms of which manufacturers are dominating the Windows 10 ecosystem according to AdDuplex, the numbers shouldn’t come as any surprise. HP comes in first place with 24.3 percent of the market, with Dell in second at 15 percent and Lenovo holds onto third place at 11.8 percent. While Microsoft’s Surface line gets a great deal of the press, its market share remains low overall at 2.5 percent of Windows 10 machines.

AdDuplex

Finally, according to AdDuplex, the Surface Pro 4 remains the top seller among Microsoft’s Surface line of Windows 10 machines, representing 34.4 percent. The Surface Pro 3 remains in a strong second place position at 27.4 percent. Microsoft’s pricier Surface Book holds 7.5 percent, while the ultra-expensive and niche Surface Studio has only grabbed 0.3 percent of Surface users.

Microsoft will possibly be making the news soon with new Surface machines, specifically a second-generation Surface Book and then the highly anticipated Surface Pro 5. With Creators Update set to release on April 11, the Windows 10 ecosystem should remain of interest for the foreseeable future.

Trends with Benefits: Samsung’s Bixby is next level AI, Apple looks to merge iPhone and Macbook

Samsung’s Bixby: DT’s own Jeremy Kaplan went to Samsung’s headquarters at Digital City, South Korea to see first hand the new AI assistant that will debut in the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus. He’ll let us know his opinion and whether it could beat out Siri, Cortana and Google!

Apple patent revelation: A publication from the US Patent and Trademark Office indicates that Apple may be planning a to bridge the gap between phones and desktop computers. Has mobile technology finally become powerful enough to act as your everything device?

Each week, we gather a round table of tech experts from the Digital Trends staff, along with the occasional celebrity guest, to discuss all things tech. Topics range from the big tech stories of the week to predicting the future, all while maintaining a somewhat civil decorum.

At 2:45 pm Pacific we answer your questions live.

Please subscribe and share Trends with Benefits and send in your questions to podcast@digitaltrends.com. We also broadcast the show live on YouTube every Thursday at 2:30 p.m. Pacific.

Shanghai has a new high-tech retail store that’s almost 100 percent unmanned

Why it matters to you

Amazon may have plans to reinvent the grocery store, but Wheelys has already opened an unmanned retail store, in Shanghai.

Chances are you’ve heard about Amazon Go, Jeff Bezos’ smart reinvention of the grocery store, in which shoppers simply grab whatever they want off the shelves, confirm that they’re making a purchase, and then walk straight out without having to wait in line.

As it turns out, Amazon isn’t the only company trying out the concept. Wheelys is a startup that started out as a tricked-out bike café concept. It has been expanding, and recently opened the doors of a new unmanned retail store — with the exception of the occasional person to restock the shelves — in Shanghai, beating Amazon to the punch.

More: Amazon’s high-tech supermarket may only need three employees

“We have offices in Stockholm, Sweden, and Shanghai,” CEO and co-founder Maria De La Croix told Digital Trends. “Since we already tested the system in Sweden — one year before Amazon Go — Shanghai was a natural choice for us.

Called Wheelys 24/7, the new store concept relies on a mobile app customers can access to scan and then buy their items. The retail space is roughly 500 square feet in size, which makes it conveniently compact — although, we suppose, comparatively palatial next to a coffee shop on a bike.

It sells ready-to-eat fresh breakfast, lunch and dinner options, as well as snacks and Wheelys Meal Kits, which offer the necessary ingredients to quickly whip up a meal for yourself and a friend in just half an hour. There are also an assortment of groceries, ranging from your everyday basics to more artisanal luxuries like fine cheeses or chocolates.

Its approach to security is built on a pretty neat concept. You have to log in to the app in order to access the store; once inside, you’re scrutinized with security cameras. In other words, you could steal a pack of cigarettes and bolt for the door, but you may as well mug someone by swapping their wallet for your driver’s license and home address.

From here, the plan is for Wheelys to license out the technology so that other folks can get involved.

“With this system, any store can be turned into a staffless store, open 24/7,” De La Croix said. “The system offers a totally integrated point of sale, app, database with products, and payment system. Our vision is to provide this platform to empower entrepreneurs; to give Davids the tools to win against Goliaths, aka large corporations, like our vision with our Wheelys bicycle cafés.”

Android Theming: the ultimate guide

Life’s too short for an ugly, cluttered home screen.

Android is a system with a singular opportunity to shape our launcher and home screen experience in almost countless ways into what we want. Want to cover your home screens in app icons and make it look like an iPhone? Knock yourself out! Want your desktop to party like it’s 1999 with a home screen like Windows 98? Rock on! Just want to make your phone look presentable so you can find your apps without digging through pages and pages of nonsense? We’re here to help you!

Whether you want to tweak everything down to the dirtiest details in your folder icon colors or you just want to find a better way to organize your home screen, we’re here to help guide you through whatever you want to do with your launcher… or a new launcher.

Getting started with Android theming

What is a launcher? What is a widget? How do I use an icon pack? This is where we answer those questions and ease you into the wide, wide world of theming. The best place to start is at the beginning, after all, and this is definitely the beginning.

Getting started with Android theming

Home screen layouts and how to theme them

All themes are built around a layout: how you put your apps and widgets on your screen, how you balance blank space and shortcuts. There are layouts that leave a lot on the screen, there are layouts that hide everything away, and somewhere in between in a layout that’s right for your life.

Home screen layouts and how to theme them

How to make the dock the most powerful part of your launcher

When theming your home screen, the most powerful piece of your layout isn’t on your desktop, but rather below it. Your dock is like a Swiss Army Knife, letting you pull out your most used apps in the blink of an eye. It can also be expanded and multiply in space and power if you know how to use it properly.

How to make the dock the most powerful part of your launcher

How Android theming helped me find my inner artist

Home screen theming is, at its core, about making a phone your own. It’s about taking something that looks just like everyone else’s out of the box and making it into something that could only belong to you. Theming has helped me organize my phone, helped me expand my digital horizons, and helped me find my inner artist.

What will you find when you theme?

How Android theming helped me find my inner artist

No, you don’t need root to theme your phone

Customizing your phone can take a lot of different methods and madnesses, but the myth that you need root access just to make your phone look good doesn’t hold up today.

Once upon a time, customizing and theming your phone was something that relied on tweaks that could only be attained through root apps, but now, making your phone look awesome doesn’t mean diving into the unknown with root.

No, you don’t need root to theme your phone

Best launchers for theming

If you want to seriously dive into a launcher that’ll give your themes — and your everyday launcher experience — a serious upgrade, you should consider our favorite launchers for theming. See why we only seriously suggest two launchers for theming and find out which one is best for you.

Best launchers for theming

Inside Action Launcher’s Quicktheme

Action Launcher likes to claim it does everything quicker, and in no way is this as true as when it comes to theming. The key to this quick turnaround is in Quicktheme, which will tweak the colors of the whole launcher based on your set wallpaper. Here’s how it works, what happens when it doesn’t, and how to take advantage of it.

Inside Action Launcher’s Quicktheme

First five settings to know when switching to Nova Launcher

Nova Launcher is one of the most popular launchers in the Android ecosystem, and this five-year dynasty has stuck around for a reason: it just works and does so fabulously. While Nova Launcher is easy to get the hang of, it never hurts to get a few pointers while you’re finding your way around, and these tips will help you start off on the right foot.

First five settings to know when switching to Nova Launcher

Nova Settings Guide

Been around the block a time or two with Nova Launcher, but still find yourself wondering just what that setting you’ve always overlooked does? Our in-depth guide to Nova Launcher’s settings will help you make the most of one of Android’s most versatile launchers.

Nova Settings Guide

Using folders on your home screen and how to make the most of them

Folders are an awesome tool in the home screen themer’s box. They can help keep your home screen clean while still giving you all your apps within quick reach. Organize your apps, compress them into a single space on your home screen, and make them blend into any theme — folders are the TARDISes of the theming world! Allons-y!

Using folders on your home screen and how to make the most of them

Best icon packs for Android

A good icon pack is like that hat that goes with every outfit, or that trusty leather jacket that you can wear no matter the occasion. But which icon packs rise to the top among a market filled with icon packs big and small, ornate and simple? These ones do!

Best icon packs for Android

How to make a custom icon for Android

What do you do when no icon pack will mesh with your theme? What do you do when a shortcut just needs that personal touch? When all else fails, making your own icons can help tie a theme together and add your own flair to your home screen. Here are some of the many ways to make your own icons.

How to make a custom icon for Android

What you need to know about dark themes and battery savings

Black themes can be more than slimming. With the right phone and the right elements, a black theme can be energy-efficient, but there’s a bit more to it than slapping a dark wallpaper on your phone and calling it a day. Here’s the real deal about dark themes and the battery savings they can sometimes maybe give you.

What you need to know about dark themes and battery savings

The best theming widgets for Android

Widgets are a piece of the home screen experience that most users don’t use and that many don’t understand. They can offer amazing convenience and utility without ever opening their main apps. These widgets work well and look good doing it, making them the perfect addition to your themes.

The best theming widgets for Android

Facebook adds reactions and direct mentions to Messenger

One step closer towards becoming a robust messaging app; one giant leap towards adopting features typically heralded by Slack users.

First, it was Google Hangouts, and now it’s Facebook Messenger. Companies appear to be particularly drawn to those features that have made Slack so popular, but can you blame them? Slack’s communication dynamic truly is a deligh to use, and those other companies want people to say the same about their messaging apps.

Facebook has announced it’s rolling out two new functionalities to its Messenger app. Reactions will allow you to effectively react to a friend or foe’s response the same way you would a regular Facebook post. However, unlike Slack’s vast emoji offerings, Facebook limits you to seven, including a very terse thumb down emoji.

Messenger has also adopted Mentions, which seem to work the same way they would on Slack. To mention someone, type the @ symbol before their name to notify them to join the chat. This pings the person with an entirely different notification so they’re aware they’re wanted in a specific conversation. Of course, if you’re just not that into your pals, you could turn off this notification entirely.

The update to Facebook Messenger should be rolling out in the coming days.