Consumer & Gadgets news

Consumer & Gadgets

Wearable glove turns data into heat and touch for more personal insights

University of Adelaide researchers have developed a wearable glove that uses heat, touch and physical objects to transform data into a sensory experience. The prototype, called ThermoPhy, was developed as part of a remote ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Intelligent, but not conscious: A warning about AI chatbots

Have you ever said "thanks" to ChatGPT, or "please" to Claude? Maybe you're just being polite, showing some civility to a helpful and eloquent conversational partner. You may even consider politeness a safe choice, just in ...

Consumer & Gadgets

AR-assisted Japanese flower arrangement helps beginners learn at home while preserving mindfulness

Ikebana, the Japanese art of flower arrangement, is an important form of Japan's Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) that fosters creativity, mindfulness and aesthetic sensitivity. Also known as "Kado," or way of the flower, ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Love at first prompt? How AI-assisted courtship is rewriting the rules of online dating

In the famous French play Cyrano de Bergerac, the brilliant but insecure Cyrano lends his eloquence to the handsome, tongue-tied Christian to help him woo his lover. Today, a remarkably similar scene is playing out among ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Can Pepper the robot be a good playmate?

What's it like to play a physical game with or against a robot that both looks and behaves like a person? That's what NTNU researchers wanted to find out when they conducted a controlled laboratory experiment with Pepper, ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Rising costs and competition threaten GoPro

For nearly 25 years, GoPro cameras have gone underwater, glided with parachutes and slipped down ski slopes, allowing the adventurous to record images of their experiences.

Consumer & Gadgets

Entirely new way of making espresso shakes up the coffee world

Researchers at UNSW Sydney have harnessed the power of ultrasonic sound waves to make espresso-strength coffee with room-temperature water, cutting energy use by up to 75%. That morning coffee kick from a shot of espresso ...

Consumer & Gadgets

The consequences of relying on AI for accurate news

It's no secret that the last few years have seen a massive explosion in the use of artificial intelligence for general information-gathering. An even more recent trend, though, is how large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, ...

Consumer & Gadgets

How AI chatbots become better learning coaches

Many AI systems answer questions in a matter of seconds—and, in the process, often prevent people from doing exactly what learning is all about: thinking for themselves. Machine learning expert Jakub Mačina is therefore developing ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Apple tries again on AI, turns to Google for help

Apple unveiled an artificial intelligence overhaul for the iPhone on Monday, turning to Google for help two years after the company stumbled in its first attempt.

Consumer & Gadgets

New app lets anyone operate a robot from their phone

Someone with no computing experience may soon be able to remotely control a robot from anywhere on the planet using a smartphone, thanks to new technology developed by Georgia Tech. The new technology is also set to revolutionize ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Framework generates 'shadow art' from scan of any object

Some people have a gift for creating beautiful works of art. Others appreciate art but do not have the talent to create it. Researchers at Cornell Tech and the Cornell Bowers College of Computing and Information Science have ...

Consumer & Gadgets

New deep learning framework solves the cold-start problem

Recommender systems suggest potentially relevant content by evaluating user preferences and are essential in reducing information overload. However, when users join a new online platform, recommendation systems often struggle ...

Consumer & Gadgets

New music release day could be dangerous for distracted drivers

Researchers seeking to understand the impact of smartphones on driving safety have a warning for music fans: Release day might be dangerous. The study, described in a working paper published last month by the National Bureau ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Report calls for AI toy safety standards to protect young children

AI-powered toys that "talk" with young children should be more tightly regulated and carry new safety kitemarks, according to a report that warns they are not always developed with children's psychological safety in mind. ...

Consumer & Gadgets

How Apple's new low-cost MacBook Neo may shake up the market

With a price tag of $600—$500 with a student discount—Apple's new MacBook Neo releasing today is shaking up the entry-level PC market and education sector, competing squarely with similarly priced Windows laptops and Chromebooks.

Consumer & Gadgets

Gray screens and loading delays cut gaming time by 30%

You know it's time to put your phone down, but your thumb finds "Play Again" once more. In an age where digital entertainment never sleeps, willpower alone isn't enough. As more players, especially the younger generations, ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Second-hand phones surf rising green consumer wave

The secondhand market for smartphones has surged in recent years, borne up by lower prices as well as interest in eco-friendly consumption even as some still fear buying a dud.