It's been a busy week in the tech industry this week in the world of AI. Not only did OpenAI give his ChatGPT human-like memory, it also launched the Sora video generation tool. This is amazing.
Staying on top of these and other fast-moving technology developments can be a daunting task, so we've hand-picked the seven biggest tech news stories from the past week to help you stay up to date. .
As we look to the coming days and weeks, those of you in the United States can look forward to President's Day sales. Our trade experts are dedicated to finding you the best deal on the shiny new technology you've been looking for. .
And at the end of the month, the MWC 2024 trade fair begins in Barcelona, gearing up for a slew of smartphone and other mobile technology announcements.
7. OpenAI wowed us again with Sora's AI-generated video
Just when you thought the AI hype was over, OpenAI has launched something that will make you think and watch twice this week. The latest trick from the ChatGPT maker is Sora. Sora is a text conversion tool that lets you create stunningly realistic video clips from simple prompts. It's exciting and scary at the same time.
Sora isn't available to the public yet, but the quality of its clips looks like a real leap forward in AI-generated video. Scenes that have traditionally been a pain for algorithms to dream up – scenes with moving people, pets, textures – appear to be fine for Sora, which has a significant amount of computation behind it.
OpenAI says Sora is still being tested internally and is certainly far from perfect. But the impact on stock video, advertising, games, and even movies is clear. Goodbye reality, it was nice to meet you.
6. More display issues on Samsung Galaxy S24
Samsung's Galaxy S24 phones are disappearing from store shelves, but some users continue to encounter frustrating display issues.
Shortly after the Galaxy S24, Galaxy S24 Plus, and Galaxy S24 Ultra were released last month, there were complaints about the phones' vibrant display mode, which reportedly produced an ugly, washed-out color palette. Samsung has since released a software patch for that particular issue, but this week more display-related criticisms surfaced.
Several Reddit users have reported seeing grainy textures when viewing dark gray colors on the Galaxy S24 display, while others say viewing the display at low brightness is “honestly unacceptable.” They report that a horizontal bar appears.
Those affected by the latter issue have also reported excessive banding when viewing gradient images, so we wouldn't be surprised if Samsung issues a second display-related update in the coming weeks. Probably.
5. Introducing smart earrings
A research team at the University of Washington has unveiled thermal earrings. This is a smart earring that can measure body temperature very accurately, thanks to a sensor in the stud that measures in the ear, and a second sensor in it that hangs below and measures the ambient temperature.
This two-sensor setup sends data to a compatible Bluetooth device. Based on our testing so far, it's much more accurate than typical smartwatches. However, he was the only six participants in this study.
If this earring proves to be a truly useful upgrade for body temperature tracking, and the design can be tweaked to look better, this kind of device could soon help people track their menstrual cycles and alert them to fever and stress. We hope that it will prove to be a valuable tool to help you. , and other issues that affect body temperature.
4. Prime Video removes Dolby Vision and Atmos support from ad-supported tier
Amazon introduced ads on Prime Video a few weeks ago, but to remove them you have to pay an additional $2.99 per month in the US and £2.99 per month in the UK (Australian subscribers have to pay an additional $2.99 per month to remove them) The ads (you don't have to pay) will last until later this year, but we don't yet know how much they'll cost.
This was frustrating enough for people who prefer ad-free content, but Amazon has now announced that if you don't cough up ad-free streaming, the content you watch won't even support Dolby Vision or Dolby Atmos. Revealing this made things even worse. .
This is the latest anti-consumer action to take place in the streaming space, which has seen advertising and price increases across many of the best streaming services over the past few months. We hope Amazon reverses course on supporting Dolby on its ad-supported tier, but we're not holding our breath.
3. Samsung and Google fought to give us an invisible AI friend
Both Samsung and Google have been working heavily on AI features in their latest flagship phones. And now it's time to take the next step of bringing that AI assistance to our wireless earbuds. This week, Samsung made its first splash by rolling out an over-the-air update that brings live translation and interpretation capabilities to the Galaxy Buds 2 Pro, Galaxy Buds 2, and Galaxy Buds FE.
What are the drawbacks? For now, you need a Galaxy S24 phone to use these AI features, but they will eventually come to older phones as they don't require an internet connection and work on your device. . And Google isn't far behind, with some recently discovered code within the company's Gemini app suggesting the new assistant will soon be coming to compatible headphones as well.
2. Marvel made some great announcements
After a rough year in 2023, Marvel announced a number of exciting announcements this week.
Leading the way was confirmation of the long-awaited Marvel movie. fantastic four But that's not all we learned about the highly anticipated MCU movie. New release dates and titles have also been decided for upcoming superhero movies (fantastic 4), and retro-futuristic posters – the latter poking fun at the Marvel era. fantastic four The movie is set.
In line with the arrival of deadpool 3First trailer for – read our article deadpool and wolverine For more details, check out our trailer breakdown and upcoming Disney Plus show announcements X-Men 97Official release date and teaser, there's a lot to look forward to in Marvel Phase 5 and beyond.
1. ChatGPT now has human-like memory
Not to be outdone by OpenAI's shiny new Sora tool (see entry #7), ChatGPT also received a major upgrade this week, at least for some early testers. OpenAI has revealed that it has given ChatGPT memory so it can remember all of your preferences, interests, and quirks, and apply that knowledge to future chats.
The feature is still being tested in both the free and paid versions of ChatGPT, but it's another important moment for the rapidly evolving technology. This means that unlike most AI sidekicks today, new conversations no longer start from scratch, and ChatGPT uses knowledge of your preferences to work more efficiently and ultimately appear more human-like. means.
