Consumer & Gadgets news

Consumer & Gadgets

Showing AI users diversity in training data can boost perceived fairness and trust

While artificial intelligence (AI) systems, such as home assistants, search engines or large language models like ChatGPT, may seem nearly omniscient, their outputs are only as good as the data on which they are trained. ...

Consumer & Gadgets

DeepMind researchers find LLMs can serve as effective mediators

A team of AI researchers with Google's DeepMind London group has found that certain large language models (LLMs) can serve as effective mediators between groups of people with differing viewpoints regarding a given topic. ...

Consumer & Gadgets

New tool can detect malware on Android phones

Screen readers, voice-to-text, and other accessibility features have enabled people with disabilities to use smartphones. Yet these same features make the phones more accessible to hackers, too.

Consumer & Gadgets

Apple unveils Depth Pro, an AI app that can map the depth of a 2D image

A team of engineers at Apple has developed an AI-based model called Depth Pro that can map the depth of a 2D image. The team has written a paper describing the app and its capabilities and has posted it on the arXiv preprint ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Exploring the hidden costs of free apps

Procrastination, sleep deprivation and reduced focus are part of the price we pay for free mobile apps. This is according to researchers at Linköping University and RISE, who have investigated the costs hidden behind the ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Q&A: Generative AI embraced faster than internet, PCs

ChatGPT's debut in November 2022 caused a near-instant sensation. It gave most users their first opportunity to try out a new type of artificial intelligence that uses existing data and published materials to create content ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Will Meta's Orion smart glasses be the next 'iPhone moment'?

Meta supremo Mark Zuckerberg unveiled Orion smart glasses, a new augmented reality (AR) prototype, at the annual Meta Connect developer conference. Ten years in the making, and still not expected on high streets until 2027, ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Here's how to maintain healthy smartphone habits

What is the first thing you do in the morning after you awaken? Many people immediately check their phones for notifications of messages, alerts and social media updates by their social ties.

Consumer & Gadgets

Virtual fitting rooms can be a double-edged sword

Driven by online shopping, a growing number of retailers have launched virtual fitting rooms in recent years. That includes Amazon, the top apparel seller in the U.S., along with Nike, Macy's and Walmart. The virtual rooms ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Whatever happened to the Metaverse?

When you first glide into Horizon Worlds, the virtual reality app from Meta Platforms Inc., you're greeted with a vivid cityscape and portals into worlds with labels like "adventure" and "comedy." On a recent visit to the ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Tax credit tool helps consumers track EV savings

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers have developed an online resource to help consumers understand the electric vehicle tax credits available through the Inflation Reduction Act.

Consumer & Gadgets

Global PC shipments plunge 29% in rough economy

Shipments of Apple Macs plunged during the first quarter of this year as the global personal computer market suffered due to tough economic conditions, market research reports said on Monday.

Consumer & Gadgets

The camera never lied... until AI told it to

An amateur photographer who goes by the name "ibreakphotos" decided to do an experiment on his Samsung phone last month to find out how a feature called "space zoom" actually works.

Consumer & Gadgets

Avoid using free public phone charging stations, FBI Denver warns

Federal Bureau of Investigation officials in Denver are warning travelers and shoppers to avoid public free phone charging portals, warning that "bad actors" use these to install malware and tracking software onto computers ...