Author: Mobile Syrup

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Student discounts on Apple’s new M2 Pro/M2 Max machines available now

Apple’s Education Program is a solid way for anyone to get a slight discount on new Apple products.

The new M2 and M2 Pro Mac mini, alongside the new 14 and 16-inch M2 Pro and M2 Max MacBook Pros, are available with the student discount, as shared by RedFlagDeals user ‘GTA2020.’

Previously, Apple used Unidays to verify that people were eligible students, but that limitation was lifted in January last year.

Check out the discounted pricing for the new machines below:

Mac mini

14-inch MacBook Pro

16-inch MacBook Pro

It’s worth noting that the pricing mentioned above is for the base variant of each model. Additional cores, memory, storage and pre-installed software incur an extra cost. Also worth noting is that Apple has locked down the Education Store with new rules that limit people from taking too much advantage of the discount. These rules limit shoppers to one desktop, Mac mini, laptop, two iPads and two accessories per year, per Apple account.

Find out how the new machines benchmark against their predecessors here.

Source: Apple Via: RedFlagDeals user ‘GTA2020’

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Nintendo’s Switch is the best and worst way to play GoldenEye 007

GoldenEye 007 has finally released on the Xbox and Nintendo Switch.

While the Xbox version of the game is available as part of Xbox Game Pass ($11.99/month) and on the Switch through Nintendo’s Switch Online Expansion Pack subscription tier ($64/12-months), the two versions of the Nintendo 64 classic feature several key differences

First off, the Xbox version of GoldenEye 007 features 4K, a smoother frame rate and split-screen local multiplayer (it seems to be similar to the cancelled, leaked Xbox 360 remake in 4K). On the other hand, Nintendo’s version of the iconic first-person shooter offers online multiplayer, an HD resolution and more limited controls options.

It’s worth noting that on Xbox, if you already own a digital copy of Rare Replay, you’ll also get access to GoldenEye 007 for free. Both versions can’t be purchased separately and require an Xbox Game Pass or Switch Online Expansion Pack subscription.

As someone in their mid-30s who played a lot of GoldenEye 007 in the late 90s, I’m incredibly excited to jump back into the game, particularly its multiplayer mode. While I initially thought I’d go with the Switch version to play online, my tune has changed since I learned the game doesn’t offer online matchmaking. Also, there’s something kind of hilarious about playing a 24-year-old N64 game in 4K.

On that note, the Switch version of GoldenEye 007 doesn’t feature any control options that didn’t exist in the original version of the game, which means you can only assign firing your weapon to the left trigger or A button (since I have the Switch version of the classic N64 controller, this won’t be an issue for me), and that movement controls are mapped to one joystick. If you’ve played a console first-person shooter in the last 20 years, this control scheme feels very archaic.

The Xbox version takes a different approach with its “Diamond” control option that switches the control scheme to feel more like a modern FPS, with movement being controlled by two joysticks. However, the Xbox version of the game doesn’t appear to feature the original release’s cheat codes, which means you’ll need to unlock additional features and levels the old-fashioned way.

Via: Polygon

Image credit: Xbox

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Zellers’ restaurant is coming back as a food truck

Zellers’ iconic Famly Restaurant is making a comeback alongside the department store chain, but as a food truck.

When asked about the fate of its fondly remembered but undeniably kind of awful in-store restaurants on Instagram, Zellers told commenters that they’d need to “wait and watch” for more information about the return of the coveted chicken sandwich with gravy on top. However, this morning, Zellers dropped the news that Canada has been waiting for.

“That’s right – you want it, you got it. Whether you called it The Skillet or Zellers Family Restaurant back in the day, we’re comin’ in hot,” wrote the Zellers account on Instagram.

Before you get too excited, it’s important to point out that there won’t be restaurants inside the Zellers locations at The Hudson’s Bay locations. Instead, Zellers Family Restaurant food will be available through food trucks for a limited time.

In a recent press release, Zellers says that “time-honoured classics” and “brand-new bites” will be available through its food trucks. The full menu hasn’t been selected yet, with the retailer asking Zeddy fans to weigh in on what food will be served at its food trucks. The top five most-voted food items will be available at its food trucks.

  • Big Z Burger
  • Fries and Gravy
  • Hot Chicken Sandwich
  • Grilled Cheese Sandwich
  • Onion Rings
  • Quesadilla
  • Poutine
  • Hot Dog
  • Chicken Fingers
  • Veggie Burger

This spring, 25 Hudson’s Bay locations across Canada will offer an “in-store experience” ranging from 8,000 to 10,000 sq. ft., which means they’ll take up a substantial amount of floor space.

You might be wondering why MobileSyrup, a website focused on tech, is writing about Zellers? Well, it’s because we’re both iconic Canadian brands and because Zellers has an Instagram account… or something. (I actually used to work at a Zellers location in Brampton, Ontario and find the brand’s nostalgic comeback hilarious — so that’s the real reason.)

Image credit: Newswire

Source: Newswire, @zellersofficial

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Apple’s very familiar HomePod 2nd-Gen sounds great

I recently had the opportunity to get a behind-the-scenes look at Apple’s 2nd-Gen, full-sized HomePod. While I only spent a brief amount of time listening to the new smart speaker, I still walked away with a good idea of its sound quality.

Apple explained how the smart speaker’s spatial audio works, the experience of using two 2nd-gen HomePods in stereo and discussed its deep bass and high chiming pitch capabilities. I can’t yet write about my whole experience with the device (I have a review coming soon), but here are my thoughts on what a few tracks sounded like pumping through the HomePod.

We listened to several songs, including a live version of Hotel California by the Eagles and Everybody by Ingrid Michaelson. With Hotel California, you really feel like you’re a part of the concert thanks to spatial audio, surround sound and clear timbres.

I was pretty impressed by the sound quality. Bass seems truly deep and shook me to my core, whereas high frequencies are clear and easy to make out. Thanks to the HomePod’s room-sensing capabilities (which are also included in its predecessor), the smart speaker can direct vocals toward the listener, including taking advantage of the acoustics in a room to bounce sound off the walls.

I was also fond of how spatial audio pumps through the new 2nd-Gen HomePod. However, some aspects aren’t perfect. For example, the room I listened to the HomePod in featured very high ceilings, which made vertical sounds challenging to distinguish. However, the effect of spatial audio replicating sounds from around you is accurate and really does make it feel like the sound is coming from all directions.

It’s also worth noting that using two HomePod speakers for stereo sound is impressive. The resulting soundscape is incredibly wide, and I actually got confused at one point regarding where the audio was coming from. The room had three speakers, two main ones that were plugged in and one off to the side, and the sound tricked me into believing that the one on the side was plugged in and producing music.

You can use the HomePod to create a home theatre experience with Apple TV 4K. You can make the HomePod the audio system for all devices connected to the TV and control what’s playing on the Apple TV hands-free, though I haven’t been able to test out this feature yet.

The new HomePod is available to pre-order now for $399 ahead of its February 3rd release. This is a welcome price cut considering the original Homepod cost $449 at launch. The smart speaker is available in ‘White’ and ‘Midnight.’ It’s also made with 100 percent recycled fabric with a colour-matched woven power cable. The 2nd-gen HomePod utilizes a custom-engineered high-excursion woofer, built-in bass EQ mic, and beamforming array of five tweeters around the base that work together to offer an improved acoustic experience. It also sports Apple’s S7 chip combined with software and system-sensing tech to offer advanced computational audio.

While these are quick impressions, my time with Apple’s new HomePod was impressive. Of course, I’ll need to test the speaker further once I get my hands on a device for review, including comparing it to Google’s Nest speakers and the HomePod mini.

Image credit: Apple

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Smartphone sales experienced their worst quarter since 2013: IDC

Smartphone shipments met their most significant quarterly decline in the last three months of 2022, a time typically reserved for high sales given the holiday season.

According to data from the International Data Corporation (IDC), shipments declined by almost 20 percent year-over-year to 300.3 million units across the top five companies.

Apple’s shipments declined 15 percent, Samusung’s 15.6 percent and Xiaomi’s 26.3 percent.

In total, 1.21 billion smartphones were shipped in 2022, the lowest figure since 2013.

“We have never seen shipments in the holiday quarter come in lower than the previous quarter,” Nabila Popal, a research director with IDC, said. “Heavy sales and promotions during the quarter helped deplete existing inventory rather than drive shipment growth.”

Various reasons contribute to the low figure, including lower consumer demand and inflation. IDC says concerns remain sales won’t recover in 2023.

But there is a positive, Anthony Scarsell, a research director with IDC, says. “Consumers may find even more generous trade-in offers and promotions continuing well into 2023 as the market will think of new methods to drive upgrades and sell more devices, specifically high-end models.”

Source: IDC

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Medium is accepting ChatGPT when others are trying to banish it

Online publishing platform Medium published a blog post on January 26th, where it detailed the approach it is taking against AI-generated content.

The platform, which prizes human knowledge and experience, asked the Medium Community what it thinks about AI-generated writing. “This is a moment of huge transformation in the digital world, and the potential implications are both wide-reaching and still not well-defined. But they’re also not abstract: AI-generated content is here now, and it’s important to start wrestling with that impact now too, even as the landscape is still taking shape,” wrote Medium’s VP of content, Scott Lamb.

According to him, the feedback received comprised primarily of a common sentiment — the fact that people paid and signed up to read what humans have written, and to pay their worth for doing real work. “I don’t want to give AI the eyeball hours or oxygen on a subscription platform,” commented a user.

On the other hand, according to Lamb, there were many responses regarding the need for transparency and disclosure. Taking that in mind, Medium updated its distribution standards to include an AI-specific guideline:

“We welcome the responsible use of AI-assistive technology on Medium. To promote transparency, and help set reader expectations, we require that any story created with AI assistance be clearly labeled as such.”

Lamb then goes on to explain that this is Medium’s initial approach when it comes to combating AI-generated content. “As this technology and its use continue to evolve, our policies may, too,” he wrote. “We believe that creating a culture of disclosure, where the shared expectation of good citizenship is that AI-generated content is disclosed, empowers readers. It allows them to choose their own reaction to, and engagement with, this kind of work, and clearly understand whether a story is machine- or human-written.”

In case Medium comes across content that it believes is AI-generated, but doesn’t have the necessary disclosure, the piece of content won’t be distributed across Medium’s network.

Elsewhere, a 22-year-old from Toronto has already developed a tool that can detect whether a piece of content was written by a human or an AI. The tool is called GPTZero, and it measures the “perplexity, creativity, and variability” of a piece of text to display a score that reveals whether the text was generated by ChatGPT or a human. Read more about it here.

Image credit: Medium

Source: Medium

Categories
Mobile Syrup

More Pixel Tablet details emerge, confirm no ‘pro’ variant

We’ve known for a while that Google is working on a Pixel Tablet — the company has teased the tablet multiple times already. However, beyond snippets of information from Google, we’ve had to rely on leaks and rumours for everything else we know. Well, the latest leak indicates some previous information about the Pixel Tablet was incorrect, namely the existence of a Pixel Tablet Pro.

Researcher and leaker Kuba Wojciechowski took to Twitter to share a new round of information about Google’s upcoming tablet. Wojciechowski started by explaining new information that supersedes their previous leak about the Pro tablet, based on uncovered codenames ‘tangor’ and ‘tangorpro.’ In short, Wojciechowski learned that tangorpro actually replaces the tangor variant of the Pixel Tablet — the only major difference between the two devices was the chip, with tangor using the first-gen Tensor and tangorpro using Tensor G2.

Wojciechowski tweeted that Google cancelled the tangor project and that we’re likely to get one Pixel Tablet — the tangorpro variant.

Moreover, Wojciechowski shared some information on the tablet’s other specs, citing an anonymous source. The Pixel Tablet will reportedly include 8GB of Samsung LPDDR5 RAM and 256GB of Kioxia UFS storage. The tablet will also sport a side-mounted fingerprint reader and a 2560 x 1600 pixel resolution display. Wojciechowski  noted details of the display driver, writing that it’s “typically used for driving the backlight layer on LCDs, which means that the Pixel Tablet most likely doesn’t have an OLED screen.”

The Pixel Tablet does have two docking station options, one with a speaker and one that’s just for charging, as previously rumoured.

Finally, Wojciechowski shared several pictures of a Pixel Tablet on a charging stand, but the pictures don’t really reveal much we didn’t already know about the device. The biggest piece of information is a sticker on the tablet with the acronym ‘EVT,’ which stands for “engineering validation test.” According to 9to5Google, EVT is a common step in building and testing a new device. The stickers also reference the two docking stations.

Source: @Za_Raczke Via: 9to5Google

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Best Buy Top Deals Jan 27-Feb 2: Galaxy Buds 2 Pro, JBL Charge 5, WD External Hard Drive and more

Best Buy Canada’s new batch of Top Deals is live now with discounts on wireless earbuds, Bluetooth speakers, laptops, wearables and more.

Check out some of the Top Deals from the sale below:

Logitech ERGO K860 Bluetooth Ergonomic Keyboard – English: $129.99 (save $22)

Acer Aspire TC Desktop PC (Intel Core-i5 12400/256GB SSD/8GB RAM/Windows 11): $599.99 (save $200)

Epson EcoTank Photo ET-8550 Wireless All-In-One Supertank Inkjet Printer: $899.99 (save $200)

Acer 23.8″ FHD 75Hz 1ms GTG VA LED Monitor (KA242Y ABI) – Black: $119.99 (save $80)

j5create USB-C to Triple Monitor Docking Station (JCD543): $99.99 (save $50)

Raycon The Everyday Over-Ear Noise Cancelling Bluetooth Headphones – Carbon Black: $99.99 (save $30)

Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro In-Ear Noise Cancelling Truly Wireless Headphones – Graphite: $234.99 (save $55)

HP 15.6″ Laptop – Jet Black (Intel Pentium Silver N6000/512GB SSD/8GB RAM/Windows 11 Home): $499.99 (save $130)

ASUS VivoBook X515 15.6″ Laptop – Slate Grey (Intel Core i5-1135G7/512GB SSD/8GB RAM/Windows 11): $649.99 (save $150)

JBL Charge 5 Waterproof Bluetooth Wireless Speaker – Red: $199.99 (save $40)

Arlo Ultra 2 Spotlight Camera Security System Bundle w/ 3 Wire-Free Indoor/Outdoor 4K Cameras – White: $899.99 (save $250)

Garmin fenix 6 Pro 47mm Multisport GPS Watch with Heart Rate Monitor – Black: $479.99 (save $400)

Dyson V11 Absolute Extra Cordless Stick Vacuum – Nickel/Red: $799.99 (save $200)

Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite 10.4″ 64GB Android 12 Tablet with Snapdragon 720G 8-Core Processor – Grey: $329.99 (save $20)

Insignia Air Fryer – 5L/5.28QT – Black: $79.99 (save $150)

Sony Alpha a7 II Full-Frame Mirrorless Camera with FE 28-70mm Lens Kit: $1,399.99 (save $600)

WD Easystore 18TB USB 3.0 Desktop External Hard Drive (WDBAMA0180HBK-NESE) – Black: $379.99 (save $150)

Marketplace deals:

Refurbished (Excellent) – Dell Latitude 5420 14″ FHD Laptop, Intel IRIS XE, Intel Core i5-1145G7, 16GB DDR4, 256GB SSD, WIN 10 PRO (Certified Refurbished): $549 (save $2,151)

Open Box – Samsung 55″ 4K UHD OLED Tizen Smart TV (QN55S95BAFXZC): $1,499.99 (save $1,500)

MotionGrey Enforcer – Office Gaming Chair, Ergonomic, High Back, PU Leather, with Height Adjustment, Headrest & Lumbar Cushions – Black: $189.99 (save $370)

Check out all the Top Deals for the week here. The sale ends on Thursday, February 2nd.

MobileSyrup utilizes affiliate partnerships. These partnerships do not influence our editorial content, though we may earn a commission on purchases made via these links that helps fund the journalism provided free on our website.

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Amazon unveils Valentine’s Day fueled sale with discounts on tech

If you’re into self care then you’d want to take care of yourself this Valentine’s Day and buy some good tech.
Amazon has taken the time to curate some great deals on tech, which some of them you’d love. Check them out below:

MobileSyrup utilizes affiliate partnerships. These partnerships do not influence our editorial content, though we may earn a commission on purchases made via these links that helps fund the journalism provided free on our website.

Source: Amazon Canada

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Bethesda, Xbox titles on sale on Steam after Developer_Direct

Several Bethesda titles and other games are on sale on Steam right now following the recent Xbox Bethesda Developer_Direct. Check them out below out below:

You can check out the whole sale here.

Via: @Lbabinz