‘Minecraft’ looks like a completely different game in 4K

The best demonstration of the Xbox One X’s 4K capabilities comes from an unlikely, blocky source: Minecraft. Behind closed doors at E3 2017, Microsoft showed off a handful of games it upgraded to 4K just for the Xbox One X, including Gears of War 4, but Mojang’s cube-based crafting game clearly gets the most drastic upgrade. When the Super Duper Graphics Pack lands in the fall (for free), those blobs of grass will transform into blades. See for yourself:

Minecraft is getting a lot of love from Microsoft this year. The Better Together update lands in August and it’s huge — crucially, it moves the Xbox One and Nintendo Switch versions of Minecraft to the Bedrock Engine, which already powers the mobile, Windows 10, Amazon Fire and VR versions of the game. This means Minecraft will finally be the same experience across all of these devices, receiving the same updates and DLC, and enabling cross-platform play.

The Better Together update won’t apply to the PlayStation 4 — or PS4 Pro — version of Minecraft right away.

“It’s not for lack of wanting to or effort on our part,” senior global communications manager Aubrey Norris told Engadget. “We are in discussions with our partners right now. We want PlayStation and we invite Sony to bring PlayStation players onto Bedrock.”

And then there’s the Super Duper Graphics pack. Anyone with an Xbox One X or 4K-capable PC will have the option to play an updated version of Minecraft, complete with raised rails on tracks, highlights on the edges of blocks, rippling water, atmospheric scattering and specular highlights.

This is all on top of the year’s existing updates, including the Community Marketplace that landed in June, giving players the power to sell and buy their own worlds, texture packs and skins.

Follow all the latest news from E3 2017 here!

‘Shadow of the Colossus’ was rebuilt from the ground up for PS4

When Sony unveiled a remake Shadow of the Colossus for the PS4, it raised one big question: is it just a glorified remaster, or a true revamp? Thankfully, it’s more than just a quick-and-dirty upgrade. Sony’s Shuhei Yoshida tells Famitsu that every asset has been remade — about the only thing left is the core gameplay. There will be an option for a modernized control scheme, but that’s about as far as the functional changes go.

The asset re-do isn’t completely surprising. The developer, Bluepoint, had already produced a more straightforward remaster for the PS3. Also, there’s the simple matter of age: a 2005-era PS2 game just isn’t going to look great on your 4K TV without an overhaul. While it’s easy to feel burned out by wave after wave of game remasters, this is fresh enough that it could be worth a look even if you can still play an original copy.

Follow all the latest news from E3 2017 here!

Via: Siliconera, Polygon

Source: Famitsu

Facebook made a bot that can lie for better bargains

Chatbots can help you order pizza, accept payments and be super racist, but their usefulness has been pretty limited. However, Facebook announced today that it has created a much more capable bot by giving it the ability to negotiate, strategize, and plan ahead in a conversation.

Getting computers to understand conversation at a human level has been a pretty unsuccessful venture thus far. It requires not only a large amount of knowledge but rapid and accurate adaptability as well. But researchers at Facebook Artificial Intelligence Research (FAIR) have developed a new technique that lets bots successfully navigate a very human type of dialogue — negotiations.

To do this, FAIR researchers sourced actual negotiation conversations between two people. They were presented with a set of objects — like books, balls and hats — and each person was given different sets of values for each of those items. Next, the individuals negotiated how to divide the objects between them. A recurrent neural network was then trained to negotiate by teaching it to imitate the actions of real people involved in negotiation.

FAIR researchers then went a step further. Rather than just programming imitation, they also had the system learn how to achieve negotiation goals, reinforcing good outcomes when they happened. The bots were also tested on real people, most of whom, according to Facebook, didn’t realize they were talking to a bot, which speaks to the level of conversation they could hold.

To gain that sort of language command, researchers used what they’re calling “dialogue rollouts” to allow for long-term dialogue planning. Essentially, the bot thinks through a potential conversation, simulating how it will go all the way to the end. This lets the bot avoid confusing, frustrating or uninformative exchanges and instead engage in conversations that will help achieve its negotiation goals.

These dialogue rollouts led to bots that negotiated harder and proposed the final deal more often than their counterparts. The bots were also able to produce novel sentences rather than just relying on sentences encountered through training data. And remarkably, the bots engaged in some sly strategizing. There were instances when the bot feigned interest in an item that had no value to them and then pretended to compromise later by conceding it in exchange for something it actually wanted. In a statement, Facebook said, “This behavior was not programmed by the researchers but was discovered by the bot as a method for trying to achieve its goals.”

This is a pretty major step in bot development and AI research. And Facebook says it’s progress in the development of a personalized digital assistant. The company is publishing their research on this work as well as releasing open-sourced code today.

Essential’s exclusivity deal with Sprint might not be so bad

Few Android phones have generated the enthusiasm that Essential’s PH-1 has. If you haven’t been keeping up, it’s a very pretty, surprisingly clever premium smartphone cooked up by Andy Rubin, one of the men responsible for unleashing Android upon the world.

On the flip side, few US wireless carriers have fared as poorly as Sprint. In terms of subscribers, it’s in last place out of the Big 4. So, it was a surprise for these two companies come together to cook up an exclusivity deal of sorts: Sprint gets to be the exclusive US carrier for the PH-1, leaving Essential to sell unlocked models to everyone else.

This seemed, in a word, dumb. In an interview with USA Today, Essential President Niccolo de Masi said the company took the leap with Sprint because it likes to “bet where the market is going as opposed to where the market was.” He went on to add that Sprint is the “network of the future,” which is probably the nicest thing anyone under contractual obligation has ever said about the carrier. At this point, it’s a little difficult to imagine the pendulum of fortune swinging back in Sprint’s direction, but that doesn’t matter. The thing to remember is that while this isn’t a perfect deal, it’s still a deal. That’s more than most of Essential’s premium, unlocked competition have. Even better, Essential gets to have its cake and eat it too.

Remember: The PH-1 looks a lot like a love letter to Android’s power users. (I affectionately refer to them as the OnePlus crowd.) They like insane performance, thoughtful design and straight talk; they abhor compromise. OnePlus is a great example of a company that has been chasing this flagship dream for years and done well. Essential is ready to compete in this very specific market. For all the people who prefer to skip middlemen and get their devices straight from the source, Essential has you covered. Just buy it unlocked, pop a SIM in there, and have a great time.

Essential

The deal with Sprint just opens extra doors. If nothing else, Essential gets access to marketing money that it may have been unwilling to shell out itself. In case you haven’t been keeping track, Sprint is actually trying really hard to get back into people’s good graces. I’m not talking about those obnoxious “post-Verizon glasses guy” ads either (though some people seem inordinately fond of them).

Look at their most recent ploy: Customers who are willing to switch from their current carriers basically get an extended, one-year trial run of Sprint service for basically nothing. (You pay for a SIM and cover a small administrative fee each month.) Sprint has admitted that this won’t actually make it much money — instead, it’s a pretty naked grab for subscribers that could help liven up its next earnings release. It’s a clear sign that Sprint will do what it has to to stay in the fight. If it thinks it has a handle on the next big thing — which it might — we may see Essential ads on TV. Your Top-40-FM binge may break into a polished, 30-second Essential spot. Most important, you may be able to walk into a store and see what an Essential phone is like, and talk to a staff that’s been trained on it. By settling on a deal, Essential gets a whole new front in its war for success.

That Essential couldn’t close this kind of deal with a bigger carrier like Verizon or AT&T is telling. There’s very little detail available on Essential’s approach to software. We know that PH-1 will run Android, and that Essential founder Rubin was trying very hard to keep carrier apps off the device at launch. I suspect that was a big sticking point for other carriers. Whether you like Sprint or not, it isn’t nearly as bad as its rivals.

I mean, have you seen all the crap that comes on a Verizon phone? This junk software falls into two major categories: apps that have been pre-installed because of some lucrative partnership, or shortcuts that point to app listings in the Play Store (presumably because those companies didn’t want to pay as much). Verizon cut a deal with Google to sell its high-end Pixels to its customers, but come on — it was Google. Of course Verizon was going to figure something out. Essential obviously doesn’t have that kind of clout or leverage (yet).

AT&T is no saint in all this either. It generally adds less trash in favor of cross-promotional DirecTV nonsense that’s difficult for normal users to get rid of. And let’s not forget how many times AT&T has been burned by taking a chance on an exclusive phone deal over the years. Let’s see: there was the big stuff, like Amazon’s Fire Phone, Facebook and HTC’s First, the Padfone X … the list goes on. AT&T gets points for gumption, but the last time it really got an exclusivity deal right was with the iPhone 10 years ago.

If Sprint pledged some marketing muscle and promised not to screw about with Essential software, it’s hard to see how Essential could’ve refused. Andy Rubin’s new brainchild has little to lose and everything to gain from this tie-up. As for Sprint, it’s been batted around by the market for awhile, anyway — if it could survive that, it’ll survive a potentially misguided exclusivity play. Like I said, this isn’t a perfect deal, but a having a deal at all is better than nothing.

AirPods In Stock Today at Best Buy With Free 2-Day Shipping

Apple’s AirPods are in stock today on Best Buy’s website, with a free 2-day shipping option placing the wireless headphones to arrive later this week for customers in the United States. Faster one-day alternatives are available for around $20.

Users who purchase on Best Buy’s website will also get free in-store setup and advice from Geek Squad.

AirPods have had a six-week shipping estimate on Apple.com since the launch last December, and Apple has yet to give any indication when the headphones might be available sooner for customers.

Disclaimer: MacRumors.com is an affiliate partner with Best Buy and may get paid if you click one of the above links and make a purchase.

Tag: AirPods
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Apple Camera Lens Supplier Confirms 3D Sensing Module Shipments Coming in 2017, Likely for iPhone 8

Largan Precision, one of the current suppliers for the iPhone’s camera lens component, today confirmed that it will ship lenses for 3D sensing modules in the second half of 2017, suggesting inclusion in the next-generation “iPhone 8.” The confirmation comes from Largan CEO Adam Lin, who refrained from mentioning which company exactly the modules would be allocated for (via Nikkei).

The list of companies available is very short, according to analyst Jeff Pu, who pointed out that Apple is expected to be the only company in the world to launch a smartphone with a 3D sensing module in 2017. In total, Pu estimated that Largan is set to supply 90 percent of the iPhone’s rear camera lenses, 50 percent of its 3D sensing lenses, and up to 30 percent of the front-facing camera lenses.

A mockup of the iPhone 8’s front-facing camera and sensors via @VenyaGeskin1
The features and design of the iPhone 8’s front-facing sensor bar have remained one of the more uncertain aspects of renderings and mockups over the past few weeks. It’s still unclear whether the iPhone 8 will include a dual-lens front-facing camera or keep the single-lens of current generation devices.

The inclusion of a 3D sensing module further confuses things, since it hasn’t been suggested whether or not the technology would be directly integrated into the camera lens, or added onto the side among the ambient light sensor and proximity sensor. Pu’s data appears to suggest the latter outcome.

Key iPhone camera lens provider Largan Precision on Wednesday confirmed it would ship lenses for 3-D sensing modules in the second half of this year, according to the company’s chief executive.

“We will have lenses for 3-D sensing [module used in smartphone] ready to ship in the second half this year,” said Adam Lin, Largan’s chief executive in a press conference after the company’s annual general meeting.

A 3D sensing front-facing camera has been a rumored feature of the iPhone 8 since February, when KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported that the upcoming iPhone will gain a “revolutionary” front-facing camera system that consists of three modules that enable fully-featured 3D sensing capabilities. The technology’s applications could include facial and iris recognition features.

LG has been named as one of the other potential suppliers of 3D modules for the iPhone 8. If the biometric sensing features do arrive in iPhone 8, they’re believed to be fueled by technology that Apple acquired from Israeli company PrimeSense in 2013. PrimeSense is known as the creator of the original 3D body sensing technology used in Microsoft’s first-generation Kinect peripheral for Xbox 360.

Related Roundup: iPhone 8
Tags: nikkei.com, Largan
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Apple Supplier Confirms New iPhone Models Will Be ‘Waterproof’ With Wireless Charging

iPhone assembler Wistron has confirmed that at least one of Apple’s next-generation iPhone models will be “waterproof” and include wireless charging capabilities, according to Japanese website Nikkei Asian Review.

“Assembly process for the previous generations of [iPhones] have not changed much, though new features like waterproof and wireless charging now require some different testing, and waterproof function will alter the assembly process a bit,” [Robert] Hwang, [Wistron CEO], told reporters after the company’s annual shareholders’ meeting on Wednesday.

Apple analysts Jeff Pu of Yuanta Investment Consulting and Arthur Liao of Fubon Securities claim Wistron is splitting orders for the upcoming 5.5-inch iPhone with a flat display with larger Apple manufacturing partner Foxconn, so it’s likely that Wistron is referring to the so-called “iPhone 7s Plus.”

Given the higher-end “iPhone 8” is expected to be a premium smartphone, positioned above the iPhone 7s Plus, that model will likely feature wireless charging and improved water resistance as well. That leaves the next 4.7-inch iPhone, which is already rumored to have wireless charging, and it’s reasonable to assume the smaller model will have improved water resistance too.

iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus models are already splash- and water-resistant with an IP67 rating, but Apple’s fine print warns that “splash, water, and dust resistance are not permanent conditions and resistance might decrease as a result of normal wear.” iPhone water damage is not covered by Apple’s warranties.

Nevertheless, many iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus users use their smartphones in the shower, for example, without issue.

A report earlier this year said Apple’s next iPhone models will feature improved IP68-rated water resistance. In the IP68 rating, the “6” means the next iPhone would remain effectively dustproof, with “no ingress of dust” and “complete protection against contact,” while the “8” means the device will be even more water resistant.

Samsung’s Galaxy S8, which already has IP68-rated water resistance, is able to withstand 1.5 meters of water for up to 30 minutes.

Related Roundup: iPhone 8
Tag: nikkei.com
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Best app deals of the day! 6 paid iPhone apps for free for a limited time

Everyone likes apps, but sometimes the best ones are a bit expensive. Now and then, developers put paid apps on sale for free for a limited time, but you have to snatch them up while you have the chance. Here are the latest and greatest apps on sale in the iOS App Store.

These apps normally cost money and this sale lasts for a limited time only. If you go to the App Store and it says the app costs money, that means the deal has expired and you will be charged. 

Epica 2 Pro

Create epically funny photos with this app. With new poses, new special effects, and new scenes to choose from, you can turn even the most boring images into riots.

Available on:

iOS

GMAT Practice

GMAT Practice For Dummies shows you how to approach each type of question, recognize the traps that are built into the questions, and master the tricks that help you to avoid those traps. With this study tool, you get, analytical writing, verbal, and quantitative questions and tips.

Available on:

iOS

Skiplayer

Skiplayer promises to be a powerful machine learning algorithm to build an amazing app that helps you discover who you are by exploring your music habits in 31 different ways.

Available on:

iOS

Easy Spending

Over a million users agree that Easy Spending is the way to go easy on your spending, reduce debt, and grow your wealth. Easy Spending is an easy way to improve your spending habits.

Available on:

iOS

Zen Sketch

Zen Sketch is a cross between a note-taking and a painting app. The app hopes to strike a balance between power and simplicity, letting you organize and take advantage of your best work.

Available on:

iOS

OneAvenue

Join your favorite celebs’ fan clubs and get all of their social, music, videos, live-streaming, and tickets in one place. With this app, you can follow artists on their various social feeds, discover artists playing nearby, and get festival lineup information.

Available on:

iOS

Why buy a bunch of new smart appliances when you can just buy an IntelliPlug?

Why it matters to you

Replacing all the appliances in your home with smart appliances can be a drag, but the IntelliPlug could be a viable alternative.

Why buy brand-new smart appliances when you can just breathe new life into your old ones? That, at least, is the alternative smart home company Cnct is introducing by way of the IntelliPlug, heralded as the world’s smallest and most affordable smart plug. The Wi-Fi-enabled plug allows you to control your lights, appliances, and any other plugged-in device with your smartphone or tablet, from anywhere in the world. With full iOS, Android, and Alexa integrations, you can easily turn your connected devices on and off, set timers, or select a schedule by which these appliances can operate.

The IntelliPlug wants “everyone to experience a smart home at the fraction of the cost.”

Promising to cost less than half the price of other smart plugs (the early bird price on Indiegogo is $20 for a two-pack), the IntelliPlug wants “everyone to experience a smart home at the fraction of the cost.” The company says that its new product takes just three steps to setup — simply plug the device into any electrical outlet, download the Cnct app, pair the plug with the app, and from there, you’ll be able to control any “dumb” appliance from your phone.

Cnct notes that it also has plans to integrate Google Assistant in the coming months, so no matter what your smart home hub of choice may be, you can bring the IntelliPlug into your environment.

“With IntelliPlug, we wanted to create the most affordable smart plug on the market, and after dozens of prototypes and countless software iterations, we finalized the design and are ready to bring the Cnct IntelliPlug to the world,” said Adam Anderson, founder of Cnct. “Now everyone can have a smart home and be able to seamlessly control their appliances directly from their phone or tablet, while home or on the go.”

So whether you want to turn on your old coffee pot from your phone or turn off your hair straightener while you’re at work, the IntelliPlug can help.

The new Razer Blade Stealth packs bigger display, subtle gunmetal chassis

Why it matters to you

Razer’s thin-and-light Blade Stealth now makes sense for people whose eyes aren’t quite as sharp.

Razer’s Blade Stealth laptop has been a very attractive member of the ultra-thin segment of the notebook market, competing with Razer’s typical flair against machines like Apple’s MacBook and HP’s Spectre. Now, Razer has launched a version that packs a larger display into a thin and light chassis, bumping the screen from 12.5 inches to 13.3 inches, and upping the performance along the way.

The new 13.3-inch Razer Blade Stealth model uses bezels that are 50 percent thinner to squeeze the larger display into the same size chassis as the 12.5-inch version. The chassis is crafted from CNC-milled aircraft grade aluminum, and the machine measures 0.52 inches thin, and weighs 2.93 pounds, while providing up to nine hours of battery life.

Razer

In addition, the new model provides a  display that’s a bit easier on the eyes, with QHD+ (3,200 x 1,800) resolution that provides 276 PPI, compared to the 4K UHD (3,840 x 2,160) resolution at 326 PPI of the smaller display. At the same time, Razer has maintained display quality, with the same 400 nits of brightness and 100-percent sRGB color gamut support.

“The first Razer Blade Stealth’s success proved that highly mobile students, creatives and professionals alike are demanding more in terms of performance, personalization and value,” says Min-Liang Tan, Razer co-founder and CEO. “From the classroom to the boardroom, the new Razer Blade Stealth continues to set the standard for mobility, power, durability, and value in laptops for productivity everywhere.”

The new machine maintains the previous version’s solid productivity performance, with a standard seventh-generation Core i7-7500U processor and 16GB of LPDDR3-1866MHz RAM. Up to 1TB of PCIe SSD storage can be configured. In addition, the Razer Blade Stealth supports the company’s Razer Core external GPU enclosure supporting Nvidia and AMD discrete GPUs for high-end gaming.

Connectivity includes two USB 3.0 Type-A ports, a USB Type-C connection with Thunderbolt 3 and external GPU support, and HDMI 2.0a audio and video output. Stereo speakers and a 3.5mm headset provide the audio, and Killer Wireless-AC 1535 provides 802.11ac Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.1 wireless connectivity.

The Razer Blade Stealth is available in two color schemes, traditional black and — for the first time ever — gunmetal with tone-on-tone Razer logo. The black version of the Razer Blade Stealth includes the company’s Razer Chroma multi-color laptop keyboard supporting customizable lighting effects and 16.8 million RGB color options. Those who opt for the gunmetal version, however, will have to settle for traditional white backlighting.

The new machine is available in the US, Canada, United Kingdom, and France starting today at Razerzone.com, and will be released worldwide in June and July 2017. Pricing starts at $1,399 for the new Razer Blade Stealth, and the Razer Core is available by itself for $499, or for $399 when purchased with the laptop.