Twitch shows how close you are to becoming a paid streamer

Twitch is making good on promises to help streamers turn pro. It just switched on an Achievements system that shows your progress toward Affiliate or Partner status. If you need to stream more often or grow your average viewer count, you’ll know just by looking at your account dashboard — you’ll see progress bars for every milestone. You’ve typically had to guess at your performance before, which has led to more than a few people applying before they’re truly ready.

The launch also includes a Stream Summary feature that shows your viewership stats from previous streams, including data that contributes to your Affiliate and Partner goals. If you want to know how many new followers you got when playing a new game, you’ll have a simple way to check. This also includes insightful stats that can help you grow your audience, such as the sources of your views (say, a fellow streamer or Twitch’s game directory) or the most popular clips.

It’s no shock as to why Twitch is offering these tools: it needs to encourage as much broadcasting as possible, and that means offering help to streamers who want to turn their gaming (or creative work) into a job. If you know just where you need improvement, you may be more likely to push toward pro status instead of treating Twitch as a hobby. This doesn’t make the road to paid streaming any easier (you still need to be a good host and promote yourself to the hilt), but you’ll at least know when you’ve reached your destination.

Source: Twitch (Medium)

Microsoft expands Xbox digital game gifting to all users

Back in October, Microsoft began allowing digital gift-giving for games on the Xbox One. Users could log into the Xbox Store and select an Xbox One game to send digitally as a gift. The catch was that the feature was limited to Xbox Insiders. But now, just in time for the holidays, any Xbox user can send a digital game as a gift.

ICYMI: Gifting is now available to everyone in time for the holidays. Go ahead and send those digital 🎁! #Xbox

— Mike Ybarra (@XboxQwik) November 14, 2017

However, Forbes does make note of a few restrictions on the process. First, a few select Xbox One titles, such as Play Anywhere games, can’t be gifted digitally. You also cannot gift Xbox 360 or original Xbox games. Pre-release titles are also restricted; a game must be out and available. While you can send gifts across country lines, make note of the region of the person you’re sending to. Games will be tied to the region of the sender.

You can gift DLC, but in-game items such as currency and loot boxes are ineligible. There are also restrictions surrounding games that are on sale; gifters can only send two of the same discounted title within a two-week period, and no more than 10 discounted games in any 14-day period. Finally, neither sender nor recipient can seek a refund for a gifted game.

While this certainly isn’t a new concept, it’s nice that Xbox has expanded this program for the holidays. Now, the question is, which game should I gift first?

Via: Gamasutra

Source: Twitter, Forbes

Deezer brings lossless audio to the desktop with a new app

Music streaming service Deezer moved beyond Bose and Sonos speakers a couple of months ago in US markets, expanding its subscription offerings to pretty much everyone via a mobile app. Around the same time, Deezer opened up its HiFi tier to any speaker with Chromecast built-in. Now, the company is bringing exclusive video content and a free trial of Deezer’s $20 per month HiFi service to a new desktop app for macOS and Windows.

As noted by The Verge, the new desktop app makes Deezer the second service to offer lossless audio on desktop, after Tidal. Currently in beta, the new app will allow access to Deezer’s 43 million tracks as well as Flow, the service’s feature that uses your listening habits to create a custom playlist, like Spotify’s Daily Mix or Apple Music’s personalized playlists. Desktop users will also get exclusive videos with interviews and performances from artists. Subscribers in France, Germany, UK, Brazil and Latin America can expect local content in the app as well.

Deezer’s Premium+ service runs $10 per month, in line with its competitors. Its HiFi offering is $20 per month, and you can get a trial of the latter on the desktop if you’re a subscriber to the former through the end of the year. What’s more, the beta version of that new desktop app is available today.

Via: The Verge

Source: Deezer

Review: Bento Stack Keeps Your iPhone Cables and Accessories Neatly Organized

The Bento Stack, a new project being funded on Indiegogo, takes the concept of a Bento lunch box and applies it to iPhone and iPad accessories.

Available in three colors (silver, space gray, and rose gold) for $38, the Bento Stack is a container that offers up several sections that can hold a variety of accessories like cables, Apple Watch bands, an Apple Pencil, and more. I was able to go hands-on with the Bento Stack, and I thought it was a nifty organizational tool, if a bit bulky.

I have the Bento Stack in gray, and it seems to match well with Apple’s space gray devices. It’s covered in a soft, rubbery material that’s nice to touch, and it has a slight sheen to it, making it visually appealing for a simple plastic organization box.

Bento Stack measures in at 7.48 inches long, 3.35 inches tall, and 3.22 inches deep, so it’s not really going to fit well in a smaller purse or bag.

Aside from some customizations like an Apple Pencil holder and a place to store Apple Watch bands, the Bento Stack isn’t much different from the Bento lunch boxes. It has four storage components, a lid, and a silicone strap to hold it all together.

The top lid, which attaches to the cover, is designed to hold an Apple Pencil or a similarly sized pen. You can also remove the Apple Pencil from the lid and use the lid as an iPhone stand for watching videos.

Bento Stack’s top compartment can hold an AirPods case or wound up iPhone cables, and the bottom lid holds two Apple Watch bands in little plastic slots. It can only hold two — no more.

The bottom compartment is the deepest and can be adjusted to hold a MacBook Pro-sized charger along with additional cables and accessories. All of the dividers in the top and bottom compartments can be removed and repositioned as necessary to fit all of your accessories. You’ll need to remove dividers if you want to store things like dongles and adapters, as those can’t generally be wound up and shoved in like a cable.

When packing the Bento Stack, cables need to be wound carefully and nothing can be too tall or the components won’t fit together. I had a hard time getting an Apple Watch with band inside, for example, because it was too tall.

The Bento Stack Indiegogo page says the top compartment and the bottom compartments can hold 3 to 5 Apple accessories. I can get four in the bottom compartment if I really try, but I’m not sure which five accessories fit all together in any of the compartments.

As you can see below, I fit my Apple Pencil, two Apple Watch bands, my AirPods, a USB-C power adapter, a USB-C cable, an Apple Watch with additional band, and two Lightning cables into the Bento Stack and it was about at capacity.

That’s just about what I take when going on a short trip, but it doesn’t fit some larger accessories like a mouse.

None of the components of the Bento Stack snap together or stay attached without an included silicone strap that holds everything in place, so this is something that needs to be put on and removed each time you use the Bento Stack.

Bottom Line

I like the Bento Stack, but I don’t know how practical it is in day to day usage yet. You need to take the time to carefully wind up the cords and place all of the components in the proper spots to get the right fit, and then you need to add the elastic band if you’re traveling, which can be irritating if you need to get into the box multiple times a day while on the go.

Size wise, it’s bulky because of its rectangular shape, but it will fit in a backpack, large bag, or suitcase for travel. I was a little disappointed at how little it was able to hold for the price, but at the same time, I don’t think I’d want it to be any bigger because it’d be unwieldy for travel.

What would be nice, though, is if there were a Bento Stack XL with more storage that’s designed to be a desktop companion. I could see using that as an organizational tool more often than the standard Bento Stack. In its current incarnation, I find it a bit big for travel but too small to hold all of my accessories at home.

It’s worth noting that some of the Bento Stack components are device specific. For example, I’m not sure what else you could use the Apple Watch band section for.

You can break the Bento Stack down and only take one half of it with you if you only need a few cables while traveling, which is nice, and you can also lay out the components if necessary so you can get to all of your accessories easily.

There are hundreds of accessory organizing tools available on Amazon and other sites, but surprisingly, I didn’t see anything that’s quite like the Bento Stack. Most Bento boxes have been reserved for food, with nothing specifically dedicated to organization.

If you don’t mind the bulk of the Bento Stack when traveling, or if you need a minimal desktop solution for cable/accessory storage, Bento Stack is potentially worth checking out.

How to Buy

The Bento Stack can be “backed” on Indiegogo for the next two days. For a single Bento Stack, which consists of all of the pieces, four dividers, and two silicone straps, it’s $38. Estimated delivery for the Bento Stack is December 2017, and production appears to be already underway.

Note: Function 101 provided MacRumors with a Bento Stack for the purpose of this review. No other compensation was received.
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Here’s a Look at Some of the Black Friday Apple Deals Coming to Best Buy, Target, and Walmart

With a little over one week until Black Friday — the popular shopping holiday in the United States — most of the major retailers have shared the deals you can expect to see when you’re out shopping or online next Friday, November 24. Because we’re so close to some of the best deals of the year on multiple Apple products and accessories, as usual it’s worth being aware that you may want to hold off on making purchases or taking advantages of sales in the days leading up to Black Friday.

Thanks to deal leaks and official announcements, our Black Friday Roundup already has a pretty good idea of the sales you can expect on Apple products next week from places like Best Buy, Target, and Walmart. Below we’ve rounded up some of the best sales that have been announced for each retailer, along with the times you can expect to show up at each store. Note that many deals overlap, so it’ll come down to personal preference and location for which retailer you choose to purchase from.

Best Buy

Like many other retailers, Best Buy’s Black Friday sale actually starts on Thursday, kicking off at 5:00 p.m. local time on Thanksgiving, November 23. Stores will then close at 1:00 a.m. local time before opening up again at 8:00 a.m. local time on Black Friday. One of this year’s most notable sales (across most retailers) is for the 2017 9.7-inch iPad Pro with 32GB of storage, at just $250 for the Wi-Fi only model.

• 32GB 9.7-inch iPad (2017) will be available for $249.99, a discount of $80 off of the regular price of the device.
• 10.5-inch iPad Pro models will also be available for up to $150 off.
• The 128GB iPad mini 4 will be available for $274.99, a discount of $125 off of the regular price.
• Select MacBook Pro models will be discounted by as much as $250 off.
• 15 percent off Apple-branded iPhone Cases
• Up to $30 off Apple Watch bands
• Buy one get one 30 percent off iTunes Gift Cards

Target

Target will open its doors slightly later than Best Buy, at 6:00 p.m local time on Thursday, November 23. However, the store will close at midnight and then re-open a bit earlier than Best Buy on Friday, November 24 at 6:00 a.m. If you’re looking for an Apple Watch, and are okay with investing in an older generation model, Target will have one of the best discounts running this Black Friday with Series 1 models at just $180.

• Apple Watch Series 1 models at prices that start at $179.99, a discount of $70 off of the regular starting price of $249.99.
• Get a free $250 Target Gift Card with the purchase of an iPhone 8 or iPhone 8 Plus on an installment plan from Verizon, Sprint, or AT&T.
• The 10.5-inch iPad Pro will start at $529.99, a discount of $120 over the regular starting price of $649.99.
• The 32GB 9.7-inch iPad (2017) will also be available for $249.99, $80 off the regular price of $329.99 (matching Best Buy).
• Buy one get one 30 percent off iTunes Gift Cards
• Beats Studio Wireless Headphones for $159.99, down from $379.99

Walmart

Walmart’s Black Friday sales will kick off at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 23 in Walmart stores. Deals will be available all day online.

• Get a $300 Walmart Gift Card with the purchase of an iPhone 8 or iPhone 8 Plus on AT&T Next or a Verizon Device Payment plan (limited to in-store)
• Straight Talk Wireless 32GB iPhone 6 available for $129, a $70 discount off of the regular price.
• Walmart plans to offer the 32GB 9.7-inch iPad (2017) for $249, down from the regular price of $329.

Of course, there are many other announced sales coming next week, including some at eBay, Newegg, Staples, Macy’s, and more. Be sure to check out our Black Friday Roundup to keep an eye on any discounts you’re looking for this year, which will also include hundreds of popular apps for iOS and macOS as the shopping event gets closer.

Related Roundups: Black Friday, Apple Deals
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iPhone X Shipping Estimates Improve to 2 to 3 Weeks in Europe, US Could Be Next

Shipping estimates for the iPhone X have improved to 2 to 3 weeks across Europe, suggesting Apple’s efforts to ramp up supply and production are starting to see some success. The 2 to 3 week shipping estimates are an improvement over the previous 3 to 4 week shipping estimates that have been available since early November.

The new 2 to 3 week shipping estimates are available in all European countries where the device has launched, including the UK, Italy, France, Germany, Spain, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and more.

iPhones ordered today in these countries will arrive well ahead of the holidays, in early December.

Other countries in North America and Asia Pacific still list 3 to 4 week shipping estimates, but the last time shipping estimates improved, we saw better estimates in Europe that then expanded to the United States. We expect to see U.S. shipping estimates drop soon.

In addition to improving shipping estimates from devices purchased from the online Apple Store, we’ve also been hearing continual reports from MacRumors readers who have seen their pre-ordered iPhone X models shipping out much sooner than expected. Many who originally had December shipping estimates have already received their devices or are expecting them in November.

Apple retail stores are also receiving regular shipments and customers who check stock on Apple.com early and use stock-tracking tools like iStockNow have been able to make purchases with no wait time.

Back in early November, Apple CEO Tim Cook said Apple was working to ramp up iPhone X production week by week, with the aim of getting the new smartphone out to customers “as soon as possible.”

Ahead of the iPhone X launch, rumors suggested the device would be heavily constrained and in short supply until well into 2018, but given the improvements we’re already seeing, supply/demand balance could be reached earlier than originally expected.

Related Roundup: iPhone XBuyer’s Guide: iPhone X (Buy Now)
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Apogee and IK Multimedia Launch New MiC Plus and iRig Mic HD 2 Digital Microphones for Mac, iPad, and iPhone

Apogee and IK Multimedia this week separately announced availability of new and improved versions of their digital USB microphones, the MiC Plus and iRig Mic HD 2 respectively, for Mac, iPad, and iPhone.

Apogee’s MiC Plus
While plug-and-play microphones with analog-to-digital conversion aren’t always as good as professional XLR microphones, the sound these deliver is considered similar to a top studio condenser microphone.

Both the MiC Plus and iRig Mic HD 2 now feature a built-in headphone output that can be used for monitoring the audio signal during recording on the latest iPhone and iPad models or other compatible devices.

Apogee’s MiC Plus
Apogee says the MiC Plus has input “blend” monitoring that allows users to hear their input signal without any distracting latency, and mix that signal with the previously recorded track(s).

MiC Plus has improved dynamic range and can record much louder sound sources compared to the original version. The microphone’s audio quality is up to 24-bit/96kHz with 46dB of mic preamp gain.

Apogee’s microphone has a professional cardioid condenser capsule and is advertised as being small enough to fit in your pocket.

IK Multimedia’s iRig Mic HD 2 also features audio quality up to 24-bit/96 kHz, a gold-sputtered electret condenser capsule, and an integrated low-noise preamp. It has a handheld design with a tripod included.

IK Multimedia’s iRig Mic HD 2
Both the MiC Plus and iRig Mic HD 2 are certified by Apple under its Made for iPhone program, which means they work right out of the box with all iOS devices with a Lightning connector, as well as with Mac and PC.

MiC Plus now includes a USB-C cable in the box, in addition to the Lightning and USB-A cables that shipped with the original version. iRig Mic HD 2 is bundled with Lightning and USB-A cables and $170 worth of software.

iRig Mic HD 2 is available now from IK Multimedia’s online store and from authorized dealers worldwide for $130 USD, while the MiC Plus is available November 15 from Apple and Apogee dealers worldwide for $249 USD.

Tags: Apogee, IK Multimedia
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POKER & AI: THE RISE OF MACHINES AGAINST HUMANS

The AI technology has been picking up steam in the past couple of years. It’s no longer a gimmick or a faraway fiction. Scientists from all around the world are slowly but surely cracking this riddle. Sure, they are still a long journey away from creating a true Artificial Intelligence, but each year we see significant breakthroughs in this field.

Today, you can find some form of AI in many everyday places. For example, Alexa and Siri are world famous AI assistants. They will create appointments, answer your questions, set alarms, shop, and a million other things. Another great example is the Tesla car. Thanks to Tesla’s AI, self-driving cars are no longer a work of fiction.

But what about the poker industry? Surely there must be an AI capable of playing poker at high levels. The answer is yes, there is. This infographic will show you how the poker’s AI developed throughout the history, as well as where it is now. You can find a lot of interesting stats and information in this infographic, but if you are interested in reading more about poker related stuff, visit our website.

Rumored tests of early Windows 10 on Qualcomm processor fail to impress

Although Qualcomm’s SnapDragon processors have been successful at powering recent generations of mobile devices, that performance doesn’t necessarily translate to the Windows 10 ecosystem. In rumored early tests of laptops running Windows 10 on Qualcomm SnapDragon 835 processors, the benchmark results are anything but impressive.

Earlier this year Microsoft and Qualcomm promised much from the introduction of new Windows 10 laptops powered by the usually mobile processors, suggesting they would help make big gains in battery life and responsiveness. Early tests suggest otherwise, and though any pre-release benchmarks should be taken with a note of caution, they aren’t a good sign.

The rumored tests were apparently conducted using Geekbench and were dug up by Winfuture.de (translation by GizmoChina). They showed a single-core score of 1,202 points and a multi-core score of 4,068 when running Windows 10 S 32-bit. The scores took a roughly 10-percent hit when running Windows 10 Pro, too.

By comparison, a relatively low-end Intel Core-i3 CPU achieved a single core score of 3,692 points and a multi-core score of 11,860 points, as highlighted by MSPowerUser. That’s a near three-fold increase in performance with the Intel hardware versus the Qualcomm equivalent.

It’s important to note that these are pre-release numbers and really even pre-debut numbers, as we have not seen the fabled devices that Microsoft and Qualcomm are reportedly working on. That could mean that further optimizations need to be done. It could also be that a focus on battery life has left the devices a little underpowered, though Microsoft did initially claim that there would be no trade-off in overall performance for claimed increase in battery life.

It could also be that mobile processors like the SnapDragon 835, which are incredibly powerful when confined to a smartphone, just don’t perform as well on a desktop operating system as does hardware designed specifically for that kind of platform.

At the very least these results should be taken as a warning that if and when the SnapDragon-equipped laptops are officially unveiled, interested customers should wait for proper testing from third-party sources. Testing the actual hardware in a real-world setting will give us a much firmer idea of what these laptops are capable of.

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If the trains of the future look like Deutsche Bahn’s Idea Train, get on board

Locomotives may just come back into vogue. That is, if Deutsche Bahn’s concept for its “Idea Train” comes to fruition. While your preferred method of transportation today may not be the train, that could soon change with the debut of this incredibly futuristic design. Combining sleeping pods, noise-canceling chairs (that’s right, not just headphones), and even a digital fitness coach for your workout regimen, this train might make your commute more enjoyable than your actual job.

Known as the “Ideenzug,” this train is decked out with more features than even the most hip startup office. Doing away with the traditional setup of rows upon rows of seats, the Idea Train instead features a host of seating options, including swivel chairs that will either allow you face forward or backward. If you’re not looking to settle in, however, there are also benches and folding seats available for shorter rides.

For folks hoping to get some work done on the train, the Ideenzug comes with built-in tablet stands and privacy pods, so you can focus as you prepare for your meeting. Alternatively, for folks looking for a workout, there’s a fitness studio that comes complete with exercise bikes and a virtual trainer. Even kids will be able to occupy themselves on this train, as there are game consoles and a “play paradise” available for the younger tots.

Conceptualized by Christoph Kraller, who heads Deutsche Bahn’s regional train subsidiary “Südostbayernbahn,” this new-age train is intended to make train travel a more enticing prospect, especially as technologies like self-driving cars threaten the very existence of commuter rails. But as Dr. Jörg Sandvoß, the CEO of Deutsche Bahn noted, “We want to offer our local transport customers more in the future — a new and unique travel experience. That’s why we developed the Idea Train with completely new design ideas for the vehicle interior. Our goal is that the public transport commuters think about such ideas in their future tenders.”

Though it’s unclear whether this concept will ever see the light of day, it appears that officials are quite impressed by the mere idea. As Dr. Johann Niggl, spokesman the Bavarian Railways Company noted, “The mobility behavior of commuters in Germany is changing rapidly. Passengers expect comfort and individuality and want to use their time wisely. Vehicles must be suitable for mass transportation and highly reliable, but at the same time comfortable and individual. I therefore welcome the fact that DB Regio faces up to this challenge and develops the Idea Train.”

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