Author: Mobile Syrup

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Amazon reveals new Ring sensor that detects glass breaking

As CES 2022, Amazon revealed a new Ring alarm sensor that’s capable of detecting glass breaking from up to 25 feet away.

The sensor utilizes artificial intelligence to detect the sound and then notifies your Ring mobile app. The sensor itself seems to look very similar to a standard Ring security system base station.

The Ring Alarm Glass Break sensor can also be mounted to a wall, making it easy to place it near glass doors and windows.

Amazon says that the Ring Alarm Glass Break sensor is available to pre-order now for $49.99 and starts shipping on February 16th. A two-pack of sensors costs $94.99.

You can check out more news from CES 2022 here.

MobileSyrup utilizes affiliate partnerships and publishes sponsored posts. These partnerships do not influence our editorial content, though MobileSyrup may earn a commission on purchases made via these links.

Image credit: Amazon 

Source: Amazon 

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Asus unveils 17-inch foldable PC, laptops, gaming peripherals and more

Asus unveiled several new products at CES 2022, including laptops and accessories. Among the more interesting of Asus’ announcements include a new 17-inch foldable PC.

Starting with the laptops, there are quite a few interesting options. First up is the ROG Strix SCAR and Strix G, two gaming laptops powered by the 12th Gen Intel Core i9-12900H and AMD Ryzen 9 6900HX respectively. Both laptops also sport Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 Ti laptop GPUs for excellent gaming performance.

Asus also unveiled its new ROG Zephyrus Duo 16, featuring the company’s ‘ScreenPad Plus’ secondary display, as well as the ROG Zephyrus G14, G15 and M16 ultraportable gaming laptops sporting the company’s new ‘Nebula’ display.

Next up are the Zenbook laptops, which include the impressive-looking Zenbook 17 Fold (pictured above). And yes, it does look like a bigger version of Lenovo’s ThinkPad X1 Fold from last year. Hopefully, Asus’ take on a foldable PC works better — the X1 Fold was a neat first try, but an exorbitant price tag and significant issues with performance and battery life made it a no-buy.

Asus Zenbook 14 OLED

Alongside the Zenbook 17 Fold, Asus unveiled some regular clamshell Zenbook laptops with OLED displays.

Rounding out the company’s announcements were a series of gaming accessories, including ROG Swift OLED monitors with up to 4K resolution and 120Hz refresh rate, ROG Fusion II 500 and 300 gaming headsets, the ROG Chakram X gaming mouse and the ROG Strix Flare II Animate gaming keyboard.

Asus showed off its Rapture GT-AXE16000 gaming router too, calling it the “world’s first quad-band Wi-Fi 6E gaming router.” As the name suggests, the Rapture broadcasts a 2.4GHz band, two 5GHz bands and a 6GHz band, with the 5GHz or 6GHz bands available as wireless backhaul if you want to set up a mesh system.

Those interested can learn more about Asus CES announcements here.

You can check out more news from CES 2022 here.

Images credit: Asus

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Heinz Ketchup Canada is giving away coupons to sad BlackBerry users

If you’re mourning the death of your beloved BB10 BlackBerry device, there might be a silver ketchup-filled lining.

Heinz Ketchup Canada’s official Twitter recently posted that it’s giving away coupons to the first 57 people that post their BlackBerry pin in the “comments.” While unconfirmed, I assume by “comments” @heinz_ca actually means replying in that specific thread.

For all the Ketchup heads out there, the number 57 is reportedly the company’s founder’s lucky number. It was also at one point a slogan used by the condiment maker and today, ties to a specific sauce it sells.

While you might be excited to drown your sorrows in free ketchup, it seems this could just be an elaborate joke on the brand’s part. As of right now, no one has responded to Heinz’s pleas for would-be ketchup couponers to post their BB pin publically, so perhaps we’ll never know for sure.

On January 4th, 2022, BlackBerry shut down support for BB10, BlackBerry 7.1 and BlackBerry PlayBook OS 2.1 and earlier devices.

This means that iconic BlackBerry devices like the BlackBerry Classic, Q10, Bold, 9720 and more, no longer have access to mobile data, phone calls, text messages or 9-1-1 functionality.

If you send your BB pin to Heinz and receive coupons, please let us know in the comments below. Together we can get to the bottom of this mystery.

Source: @heinz_ca

Categories
Mobile Syrup

TikTok testing new ‘repost’ feature among select users

Smart phone with TIK TOK logo, which is a popular social network on the internet.

TikTok is currently testing a new Twitter-like feature among a group of its users.

The “repost” feature allows select users to instantly share clips with their followers. Users already have the ability to directly share clips with individual accounts.

According to Engadget, the yellow “repost” button is housed in the same place as the app’s other sharing features.

“Currently, we’re experimenting with a new way for people to share TikTok videos they enjoy,” a company spokesperson told Engadget.

TechCrunch reports the reposted videos show up on “For You” feeds, where content is displayed from accounts the user directly follows.

Users are currently able to share clips from other accounts to a larger audience by remixing and putting clips together, but this new feature will allow for original videos to be directly shared for the first time.

Image credit: ShutterStock

Source: Engadget

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Fossil unveils new Gen 6 smartwatches with exclusive Razer and Skagen styles

Fossil announced two partnerships at CES 2022 that will see unique versions of its new Fossil Gen 6 smartwatch made available.

First up is a partnership with gaming accessory maker Razer. The two companies will release the Razer X Fossil Gen 6 smartwatch with three exclusive Razer watch faces (‘Analog,’ ‘Text’ and ‘Chroma’) and two interchangeable straps. The Razer X Fossil watch will launch globally but in a limited quantity of just 1,337 units.

The Razer X Fossil smartwatch will be available starting January 10th, 2022, on Razer’s website, Fossil’s website and at select retail stores for $329 USD (about $417.91 CAD). MobileSyrup has reached out to Fossil for more details about Canadian availability and pricing.

The second partnership is with Danish-inspired watch and jewelry brand Skagen. It will see the launch of the ‘Falster’ Gen 6 smartwatch, available in six styles with a 42mm case size. The Flaster watch will have silver-tone, rose-gold tone, charcoal and black case colours, as well as straps made with Skagen’s iconic stainless steel mesh, silicone and leather.

Each Falster Gen 6 smartwatch style will retail for $295 USD (about $374.72 CAD) and be available for purchase on Skagen’s website. MobileSyrup has reached out to Fossil for more details about Canadian availability and pricing.

While both of these special editions of the Fossil Gen 6 smartwatch look great, it’s worth noting that aside from the unique straps and watch faces, these smartwatches essentially provide the same core experience as Fossil’s new Gen 6 smartwatch. That means the watches still run on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Wear 4100+ platform, sport fast-charging up to 80 percent in 30 minutes, have heart rate and SpO2 sensors, and more.

It also means the watches will be compatible with Google’s upcoming Wear OS 3 update slated to arrive sometime in 2022. However, some of the information Google has shared so far suggests upgrading to Wear OS 3 could be a rough process.

Still, if you like Wear OS and Fossil’s smartwatches but want something unique, both the Razer and Skagen models look like excellent options.

You can check out more news from CES 2022 here.

Images credit: Fossil

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 receives Android 12 update in Canada

Android 12 is now available on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Z Flip 3 in Canada.

According to Rogers’ update schedule, the update is still “coming soon,” and it doesn’t even appear on the Telus update schedule; however, my unlocked Z Fold 3 on Koodo’s network just received the update.

While I don’t have a Z Flip 3 to check for the update, Android 12 was released simultaneously on both devices in other countries. Additionally, the Z Fold 3’s update page shows images of the Z Flip 3 as well, though we’ll reach out to Samsung for confirmation.

One UI 4.0 adds new theming options, a refreshed keyboard and new privacy settings. There are also more emojis, GIFs and stickers available directly from your keyboard, and new home screen icons, menus, buttons and backgrounds.

Samsung says that it’s also adding new privacy and security features to its devices with One UI 4.0. For example, you’ll be notified when an app attempts to access your camera or microphones.

The South Korean company seemed to have quite a few issues rolling out Android 12 to its smartphones. After several delays, Canadian Samsung Galaxy S21 series devices finally received their One UI 4.0/Android 12 updates on December 7th. The expected release date was November 15th.

Samsung started rolling out the update to its third-gen foldables on December 6th in other countries but paused it and had to roll out another version of the update at the end of December.

One UI 4.0 will also be on the following devices: Galaxy S20, S20+, S20 Ultra, S20 FE, Note 20, Note 20 Ultra, S10, S10e, S10+, Note 10, Note 10+, Z Fold 2, Z Flip, Z Flip 5G, Galaxy A82, A72, A52, A52s, A42, and Galaxy Tab S7 and Tab S7+.

If you purchase Samsung’s new Galaxy S21 FE, the phone will sport Android 12/One UI 4.0 pre-loaded.

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Qualcomm, Microsoft partner to develop custom chips for AR glasses

Qualcomm and Microsoft announced at CES 2022 that they would go beyond working on PC chips and partner on a series of augmented reality (AR) initiatives. That includes developing custom chips for AR glasses.

Qualcomm detailed the partnership in a blog post (via Engadget), although it didn’t share much about the chips or the end products. All we got was a promise of “lightweight” and energy-efficient glasses.

Aside from developing chips, there was also a focus on software. The collaboration will use Microsoft’s ‘Mesh‘ virtual collaboration tool and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Spaces XR development platform. The companies didn’t specify which platforms they would support, but chances are the support will include Windows and likely Android.

The Microsoft-Qualcomm team-up shouldn’t be much of a surprise. The two companies have partnered on things like ARM chips for PCs (although rumour has it that deal may end soon) and Microsoft uses custom Qualcomm chips in its Surface Pro X devices. Plus, Microsoft already has its HoloLens AR tech, and it has wanted to make that more accessible for a while.

Couple that with the ongoing hype about the metaverse and the push to AR technology to fuel meetings, and it seems like the right time for Microsoft and Qualcomm to partner on AR tech.

You can check out more news from CES 2022 here.

Source: Qualcomm Via: Engadget

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Black Widow lost over $600 million in PVOD revenue due to piracy: report

For a long period earlier during the pandemic, all eyes were on Disney to see whether the company would bring Marvel’s Black Widow to Disney+ and theatres on day one, as it did with 2020’s live-action Mulan remake.

Eventually, Disney did indeed go this route in July 2021, in which Disney+ subscribers could pay $34.99 CAD to stream the movie. Now, we’re learning just how much that ‘Premier Access’ has cost the company.

In a larger feature about Hollywood’s approach to day-and-date theatrical/streaming releases, Deadline reports that rampant online piracy cost Disney around $600 million USD (about $762 million CAD) on the Scarlett Johansson-led superhero flick in premium video on demand (PVOD) revenue alone. That’s because people were quickly able to snag 4K-quality copies of the film in several languages and post them online.

This doesn’t count how much less money the movie earned in theatres due to the Premier Access release, or the $40 million-plus (about $51 million CAD) settlement it reached with Johansson over a high-profile Black Widow contract dispute.

Of course, a company like Disney will be more than fine after this, but it’s nonetheless interesting to see how much financial impact piracy can have.

The big takeaway from Deadline‘s feature, though, is that the hybrid cinema-digital release, in general, went out “like a dud.” Even movies that were offered day one at no cost in the U.S. on HBO Max, like King Richard, Reminiscence, In the Heights, Malignant and Judas and the Black Messiah, are said to have had “underwhelming” streaming audiences of two million or less.

That, coupled with the solid box office performance of films like Spider-Man: No Way Home, No Time to Die and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, is encouraging more studios to stick to theatrical-first releases. It remains to be seen whether the Omicron variant — which has already led to theatres closing in Ontario and Quebec — will alter these plans.

Image credit: Marvel Studios

Source: Deadline

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Asus ROG announces a variety of laptops and gaming peripherals

Asus’ Republic of Gamers brand has announced a new line-up of gaming products that includes monitors, headsets, keyboards and gaming laptops.

Firstly, there are the ROG Swift OLED PG42uQ and PG48UQ gaming monitors, which offer 4K visuals at a 120Hz refresh rate. Meanwhile, the ROG Fusion II 500 and 300 gaming headsets will sport virtual 7.1 surround sound and 50mm Asus Essence drivers for thumping bass and true-to-life sound.

Additionally, ROG is launching the Chakram X Gaming mouse, which sports ROG AimPoint, an optical sensor featuring quicker speeds and accuracy with up to 36,000 dpi and true 8000Hz polling rate.

Further, ROG is releasing a new laptop with a 12th-gen Intel Core i9 processor and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 GPU. This laptop is called the ROG Strix SCAR.

Additionally, Asus has unveiled the Zephyrus Duo 16 laptop that offers a ScreenPad Plus, which is a secondary screen for extra productivity and streaming.

ROG also revealed the Zephyrus ultra-portable gaming laptop featuring a new Nebula display.

You can check out all of these products and more here, and you can check out more news from CES 2022 here.

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Samsung’s 55-inch Odyssey Ark is even bigger than the Neo G9

As far as computer monitors go, Samsung’s new 55-inch Odyssey Ark is rather stunning looking, measuring in at slightly larger than its 39-inch Odyssey g9 monitor.

Revealed during its CES 2022 presentation, the next-gen monitor features a 16:9 display and can be used horizontally and vertically thanks to its specially designed stand. It also features a new multi-view adaptable screen to shift the screen size to the content you’re consuming, whether it’s watching movies or playing video games.

It’s a little unclear what the monitor’s specs are given Samsung’s keynote was light on details, so, unfortunately, we don’t know what the display’s resolution, what ports it features or even its refresh rate. In fact, it’s unclear if the Odyssey Ark is targeted at gamers or productivity.

Samsung says that the Ark will go on sale in the second half of 2022 in the United States. It’s unclear how much the monitor will cost or if it will release in Canada.

Earlier this week Samsung revealed a 4K version of its Odyssey Neo G9 monitor called the Odyssey Neo G8.

You can check out more news from CES 2022 here.

Image credit: Samsung 

Source: Samsung