Consumer & Gadgets news
Consumer & Gadgets
Queensland drivers back tougher distracted driving laws as tech evolves
Queensland drivers support tougher and clearer distracted driving laws as technology becomes more complex, according to new research from QUT. The study, which surveyed 494 licensed drivers across the state and was published ...
4 hours ago
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Consumer & Gadgets
New technology allows AI agents to read and respond to people's facial expressions
Technology now allows the creation of increasingly realistic AI agents. Human-like AI agents—such as the digital characters that appear as virtual assistants, game characters, and the increasingly lifelike "metahumans" used ...
21 hours ago
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Three ways to avoid being fooled by AI slop
Global society makes billions of images and uploads hundreds of thousands of hours of video on the internet every day. The problem is, some of this content is misleading or downright wrong. And when it's in visual form, it ...
May 26, 2026
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Research finds hotel booking chatbots can 'creep out' customers
Travelers who use AI-powered chatbots on hotel booking platforms often feel uneasy. That discomfort can cause them to disengage or delay booking decisions, according to new research from the Texas A&M College of Agriculture ...
May 25, 2026
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Smartphones may soon be able to track hidden objects using LiDAR
Modern smartphones are packed with incredible technology, from high-resolution cameras and advanced graphics chips to AI processors. In premium models, this hardware includes LiDAR (light detection and ranging), which helps ...
Consumer & Gadgets
SIGN/e: Writing music with moving shapes and colors
How can electronic music best be scored, music that's made not from staves, clefs and notes on the page but by physical gestures like turning a dial on a console or sweeping a hand across a synthesizer? And if that music ...
May 22, 2026
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Consumer & Gadgets
3D-printed speaker cover can focus audio into a private 'sound spot'
Music lovers may one day be able to blast their favorite artists, headphone-free, without angering the neighborhood or colleagues, thanks to researchers at Penn State. The team designed a system that can manipulate sound ...
May 21, 2026
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Consumer & Gadgets
AI system spots fake reviews with 93% accuracy on Amazon, 91% on Yelp
Online shoppers could one day face fewer misleading fake reviews thanks to a newly tested AI-powered detection system developed by researchers at the University of East London.
May 21, 2026
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Consumer & Gadgets
Google unveils smart glasses, taking on Meta
Google on Tuesday unveiled the design of new smart glasses, returning to a market the tech giant tried—and failed—to crack more than a decade ago.
May 20, 2026
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Consumer & Gadgets
Audio cues can make AI feel more human, though some users may judge it as rude
Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University are investigating how humans respond to artificial intelligence agents that sound physically present in the same room, work that could shape the future of audio-only AI systems used ...
May 18, 2026
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Consumer & Gadgets
Dark patterns on the web are designed to manipulate you. Why aren't they all illegal?
You open a free app to do one simple thing. Before you even start, a full-screen message asks whether you want to try the paid version. The "Start free trial" button is large, bright and hard to miss. The option to keep using ...
May 18, 2026
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Consumer & Gadgets
Humans are bad at making complex decisions. AI can call them out
When a list of pros and cons won't cut it, a new decision-making tool developed by Cornell researchers can use artificial intelligence to help make difficult decisions. But there's a twist: Instead of checking AI's result, ...
May 14, 2026
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Internet
They look like harmless game features, but these design tricks quietly reshape how young players spend money
Originally, video games were a product you paid for once and that then provided as many hours of entertainment as users wanted to spend at the computer or console. Now, however, on the mobile phones that are in almost everybody's ...
May 14, 2026
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Consumer & Gadgets
Wall design centers experience of deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals
According to many deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals, clarity—not volume—is one of the most challenging parts of understanding speech in enclosed spaces. In many types of rooms, sound reflecting off multiple walls muddies ...
May 14, 2026
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Consumer & Gadgets
From AirTags to AI nudification: The growing toolkit of technology‑facilitated abuse
It's hard to overstate the impact that artificial intelligence has had since the release of generative AI platforms such as ChatGPT just three years ago. While they have led to countless advances in how we live and work, ...
May 13, 2026
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Consumer & Gadgets
The EU's AI Act could indirectly regulate emerging neurotechnologies
Artificial intelligence (AI) has become a key factor in the advancement of many fields, but it is also a new frontier in the development of neurotechnologies. Beyond its growing popularity in fields such as automation, content ...
May 13, 2026
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Consumer & Gadgets
How tarot readers are using AI, and what it says about our growing reliance on chatbots
If you've ever turned to artificial intelligence to try to figure out how to handle a tricky situation with a friend or colleague, you're far from alone. For many, AI has become a modern oracle—a source of guidance, emotional ...
May 13, 2026
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Consumer & Gadgets
Human-like robot voices boost customer support after mistakes, five experiments show
When service robots make mistakes, it is not only important whether customers receive compensation. The robot's voice can also shape how the situation is perceived. A human-like voice can make customers feel more supported ...
May 13, 2026
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Consumer & Gadgets
GPS data reveal why pedestrians in Phnom Penh rarely walk the shortest route
Cities across the Global South are urbanizing at pace, but their built environments for walking rarely resemble ideal, tidy, and well-regulated networks. Vehicles are parked on pedestrian sidewalks, and a seemingly direct ...
May 13, 2026
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Consumer & Gadgets
Seven smart rings promise to break sign language barriers by turning hand movements into instant text
Researchers in South Korea have developed a new sign language translation system based on users wearing seven rings equipped with sensors. According to a new study published in the journal Science Advances, the technology ...
Consumer & Gadgets
For most US drivers, EVs offer emissions benefits and cost savings
Despite regional variability in climate, electricity sources, congestion, and the wide variation in individual driving patterns, electric vehicles generate less greenhouse gas emissions and do not cost more than comparable ...
May 12, 2026
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Consumer & Gadgets
Is your AI chatbot manipulating you? Subtly reshaping your opinions?
A billboard tries to sell you something. So does a used car salesman. But no matter how smooth the pitch, you're quite aware of the profit motive, and you can walk away at any time.
May 12, 2026
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Consumer & Gadgets
Americans love their iPhones (though sometimes they wish they could live without them)
The American obsession with the iPhone is complicated, as most love-hate relationships are.
May 12, 2026
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Consumer & Gadgets
People struggle to recall whether content came from AI, with labels forgotten after one week
From August 2026, an EU-wide AI regulation will come into force requiring the labeling of AI-generated content. However, a research team from the University of Bayreuth and Aalto University in Helsinki, Finland, has found ...
May 11, 2026
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Consumer & Gadgets
Why digital devices and online accounts need spring cleaning
If the spring season has brought an urge to scrub your living space from top to bottom, why not clear out the digital detritus cluttering your electronic devices and online accounts at the same time?
May 7, 2026
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