Samsung-Google Gemini AI to 800 Mil. Galaxys; Alexa Plus Website Now Open to All; Kodiak Incorporates Bosch Tech for Self-Driving Semi-Trucks; Anker Smart Lock Uses Face ID
Posted: January 5, 2026 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: AI, Artificial Intelligence, chatgpt, Tech, technology Leave a commentA big announcement from Samsung Co-CEO TM Roh at CES…and not about a specific device. Androidheadlines.com reports that the CEO says the company will double the number of Gemini-powered mobile devices it makes this year, bringing the total to 800 million. Samsung is adding these features to TVs and home appliances as well. The “Galaxy AI” brand is known by 80% of consumers. But there is a global memory chip shortage that could cause prices for smartphones and other electronics to go up in 2026. With the majority of Samsung smartphones featuring Google’s Galaxy AI, and with Apple now going with Google as well, that means about 80% of smartphones will be running Google’s Galaxy AI. This should send shock waves through the halls of OpenAI, maker of ChatGPT, Anthropic…maker of Claude, and at Microsoft too. I will go out on a limb and say I won’t be surprised if an antitrust suit gets filed by Google’s competitors over this. Apple can point out that they have used ChatGPT and find Google to be better…will that fly? We won’t know for a while…but if a suit is filed, I called it.
A few users have already gotten Alexa Plus, but now it is officially available to anyone under an early access program. According to theverge.com, you can sign up at alexa.com and start using the new web interface for Amazon’s new AI chatbot. The Plus is baked in on all new Echo devices and as an update to older ones. As with a number of AI tasks, it is still much easier and faster to use a keyboard and mouse or trackpad to the task than trying to get the chatbot to do it via voice commands. Here’s a cool feature though. You can upload documents, email, and images to the Alexa Plus website, and the AI will pull out important info for you. It can automatically add appointments to your calendar, or spit out your kids’ activity schedules or grocery lists.
Self-driving truck company Kodiak AI is partnering with Bosch on a system of hardware and software that can be fitted to standard big rigs and give them autonomous driving capabilities. TechCrunch.com notes that Kodiak has already developed and designed a self-driving system with redundant systems for braking, steering, sensors, and computers. In January 2025, Kodiak’s self-driving trucks began making driverless deliveries for Atlas Energy Solutions in the oil-rich Permian Basin of West Texas and eastern New Mexico. So far, Kodiak has delivered 8 self-driving trucks out of an order of 100 to Atlas. The Bosch deal is intended to turn semi trucks — regardless of manufacturer — into driverless ones. Bosch will supply Kodiak with a variety of hardware components, including sensors and vehicle actuation components such as steering technologies.
A flood of new items and announcements flowing out from the CES…Consumer Electronics Show this week. Macrumors.com reports that Anker has dropped a number of new products under its Eufy and Soundcore brands. One of interest is a $300 Matter-enabled smart lock…the E40. Now, there are plenty of smart locks, and some that use your fingerprint or your nearby smartphone to unlock your door. This one integrates with Apple Home, and uses a cam for a face scan using Apple’s Face ID. The cam also doubles as a security camera, and has night vision and wide-angle coverage. I haven’t upgraded my smart lock in years, but this one is tempting.
I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.
Samsung Bows Trifold Galaxy Z; Amazon Releases New AI Chip; Apple AI Chief Retiring; Your Boss May See Your Google Messages
Posted: December 2, 2025 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: AI, Samsung, Smartphone, Tech, technology Leave a commentSamsung has rolled out its Galaxy Z Trifold smartphone. The three panel phone will be available in Korea on December 12, and also will be released in China, Taiwan, Singapore, and the UAE. It won’t drop in the US until the first quarter of 2026. No pricing yet but it is widely expected to be over the $2000 price of the Z Fold two panel model. Interestingly, if you fold it improperly, it will vibrate and show an on screen alert to warn the user. It has a 10 inch inner screen, and a 6.5 inch outer screen when folded. It is a fat 12.9 millimeters closed, but a thin 3.9 mm…not counting camera bump…when unfolded. It is powered by a custom Snapdragon 8 chip, and has a 5600 mAh battery. The cameras? There’s a rear 12 MP ultra wide, a 200 MP wide angle lens, and a 10 MP telephoto lens. The main screen and cover screen both have 10 MP front cameras.
Amazon Web Services, which has been building its own AI training chips for some time now, just introduced a new version known as Trainium3. According to TechCrunch.com, the 3 nanometer process chip brings a big performance jump from the last generation. Amazon says it is 4 times faster, and has 4 times more memory. The chips are also 40% more energy efficient. Also important…the Trainium4 chips are in development. That future generation will be able to interoperate and extend their performance with Nvidia GPUs while still using Amazon’s homegrown lower-cost server rack technology.
Apple’s head of AI John Giannadrea is leaving the position, and will retire from Apple in 2026. Macrumors.com notes that he will serve as an advisor until his retirement. His replacement is an AI researcher that used to work for Microsoft…Amar Subramanya…who will step in as Apple’s VP of AI. Besides Microsoft, Amar spent 16 years at Google, where he was head of engineering for Google’s Gemini Assistant. This all comes in the wake of iOS 18’s major Siri failure. Apple is reportedly partnering with Google for a more advanced version of Siri and other planned Apple Intelligence features.
Google has added a new app to company-managed Pixel phones that allows IT administrators to see all the RCS messages sent and received on specific devices. Androidpolice.com reports that this only applies to Pixels that are owned by companies. The purpose is a bit less nefarious than at first glance. It is to satisfy regulatory requirements that make businesses archive business messages in the event of a legal discovery situation or a freedom of information requests. In the past, the info was archived by carriers, and companies didn’t have to mess with this. Now that RCS apps encrypt, that isn’t an option…so Google has rolled out this archival application. To avoid the encryption issue, the messages are archived on the phone…and IT can see them remotely. You want to avoid your private messages being seen? Use your personal phone if you are messaging your sweetie.
I’m Clark Reid and you are ‘Technified’ for now.
Galaxy S26 Price Hike Rumor; Apple-Budget MacBook in 2026; OpenAI Launches Sora on Android; Norway Wealth Fund Thumbs Down on Elon Billion $ Payday
Posted: November 4, 2025 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: AI, Apple, Elon Musk, Samsung, Tech, technology, Tesla Leave a commentSamsung is expected to goose prices on the Galaxy S26 models. Bgr.com reports that no exact money amount has been leaked, but with suppliers struggling to crank out memory and storage chips due to AI, it is looking more and more likely. Samsung upped prices in 2024 by $100. Apple effectively did this with its iPhone line…although Apple just quietly dropped lower memory options, which was an effective price hike…but needed, since the cheaper phones wouldn’t run their AI backed systems. With mobile chip prices up about 12% year over year, and camera modules up 7%, some sort of increase seems highly likely. Since they raised last year by $100, maybe we will see something like just a $49 increase if you preorder. We should know something before the end of the year.
A contingent of users of Windows, led by gamers, is not happy with a lot of Windows 11 features…Copilot for one, but especially the intrusive Recall feature that saves screenshots of everything you do. Some users have bailed for Linux, but a lot of people don’t have the tech knowhow or inclination for that. With the possibility of Windows 12 being subscription based, even more folks will be unhappy. There’s always Chromebook…and now, another option may be coming for those that want to ditch Windows. According to macrumors.com, Apple may launch a budget MacBook in the first half of 2026. A Bloomberg report has it coming in at ‘well under $1,000,’ which puts it in direct competition with reasonably priced Windows and Chromebook laptops. Right now, the cheapest Mac is $999, with $100 off for educational buyers. You can always get a Mac Mini for $599…but have to tack on a monitor, keyboard, and mouse…so no bargain there. The cheaper MacBook will allegedly have a 13 inch display and an A series iPhone processor instead of the beefier Mac processor….probably the A18 that came out in the iPhone 16 Pro. Bright colors are forecast like with an iMac…Silver, Blue, Pink, and Yellow. If they are able to do it for…say, $600, it might be a really big hit for Apple.
Android is finally getting OpenAI’s video app, Sora. Theverge.com notes that this will let users on Android create, share, and remix AI generated videos. You can download it from the Google Play Store now. The app has been out since September on Apple’s iOS. The app has gotten flack for its approach to deepfakes and copyright protections. OpenAI had to reverse its opt-out policy for rights holders and go to opt-in. OpenAI has also introduced the ability to create “character cameos” with reusable avatars, and eventually plans to give rightsholders the ability to “charge extra for cameos of beloved characters and people.”
Norway’s wealth fund has given a ‘thumbs down’ to Elon Musk’s trillion dollar pay package. TechCrunch.com says that at a bit over 1% of Tesla stock, this alone may nt be enough to defeat the proposal, but it will add to the recommendations of ISS and Glass Lewis that have recommended votings against the ludicrous package. Musk insists the compensation isn’t so much about money as control. Tesla doesn’t throw off near the profit to cover this kind of pay over a 10 year period, and Elon’s promise of robots and an upcoming ‘flying electric car’ hasn’t really moved anyone to throw strong support towards making him the first ‘Trillion Dollar Baby.’
I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.
Samsung Galaxy XR Takes on Apple Vision Pro-at Half the Price; OpenAI’s New Atlas Browser; GM Looks other Launch Eyes-Off Driving with Google AI; Netflix ‘All In’ on Generative AI
Posted: October 22, 2025 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: AI, Artificial Intelligence, chatgpt, Tech, technology Leave a commentWhile Apple never planned on the Vision Pro headset being a mass consumer item, Samsung may have other ideas. The Galaxy XR is Samsung’s answer to the Vision Pro, at a much more marketable $1800..about half the price of Apple’s offering. The Samsung headset runs Google’s new Android XR platform, and heavily emphasizes AI and Gemini based voice controls. It actually looks much the same as Apple’s Vision Pro, dow to the connector wire to its external clip-on battery pack. One big difference…the Galaxy XR doesn’t have an outward facing display, so you won’t be able to project your face onto the outside of the headset…which is a bit creepy anyway. The Galaxy is not only less money, it’s lighter, coming in at 1.2 lbs, compared to the new M5 Vision Pro at 1.6 lbs. The Galaxy XR is available now at samsung.com for $1800.00.
OpenAI has released the MacOS version of its new Atlas web browser. According to arstechnica.com, the browser includes Agent Mode preview to ‘use the internet for you.’ OpenAI is hoping the Atlas browser will be as big as success for them as Chrome was for Google. The Atlas browser will let users ‘chat with a page,’ helping ChatGPT become a core way that users interact with the place ‘where a ton of work and life happens,’—online. At least that is the vision of CEO Sam Altman. A Windows and mobile version are due to come out quote ‘as quick as we can.’
General Motors CEO Mary Barra was at the Wall Street Journal’s Future of Everything conference, and said that the General is targeting a suite of new software initiatives for its vehicles over the next three years, including an in-vehicle artificial intelligence assistant from Google and a driver-assistance system that can largely control the vehicle without human interaction or monitoring. CNBC.com notes that the CEO said conversational Google Gemini AI will begin launching in its vehicles next year, followed by the new driver-assistance system, which will allow drivers to be hands-free and take their eyes off the road under certain circumstances, in 2028. Remember the old slogan about driving ‘Watch Out for the Other Guy?’ Well now, you’re going to have to watch out for the other vehicle…the other guy might be literally asleep at the wheel in 2028!
Many in the entertainment industry are skeptical about using generative AI in filmmaking, but not Netflix. Techcrunch.com reports that while Netflix isn’t planning to use generative AI as the backbone of its content but believes the technology has potential as a tool to make creatives more efficient. CEO Ted Sarandos said in an earnings call “It takes a great artist to make something great.” He did say quote “We’re confident that AI is going to help us and help our creative partners tell stories better, faster, and in new ways. We’re all in on that, but we’re not chasing novelty for novelty’s sake here.”
I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.
Apple Bows New M5 Chip & MacBook Pros; US Charges Cambodian in Huge Crypto Scam; Microsoft Rolls Out Image Generator; ‘Pixnapping’ Hack for Android
Posted: October 15, 2025 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Apple, laptop, Mac, Tech, technology Leave a commentApple has introduced its latest greatest system…the M5 chip, with their next generation GPU. The new system will be the brains of the MacBook Pro, iPad Pro, and Vision Pro goggles. Macrumors.com reports that the new chip has 10 cores with a ’Neural Accelerator’ for each individual core…which enables GPU based artificial intelligence workloads to run dramatically faster. Apple claims graphics performance up to 45% higher than the M4 chip. It is worth noting that the new 14 inch MacBook Pro doesn’t really have any new major features, besides the more robust chip. The higher end 14 inch and 16 inch MacBook Pro models with M5 chips are yet to come…expect them in early 2026.
A Cambodian executive masterminded a huge crypto scam, but now is on the run and the US government has seized more than $14 billion in Bitcoin, and indicted him. According to NPR, Chen Chi and his Prince Holding Group have been charged with wire fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering conspiracy. The US and British authorities have also placed sanctions on his company, which has operated in real estate development, financial services, and some other businesses. Chen is accused of sanctioning brutal violence against workers, authorizing hundreds of millions of dollars in bribes to foreign officials and using his other businesses, such as online gambling and cryptocurrency mining operations, to launder illicit profits. He is on the run and at large. He is a native of China and has gone by the alias of ‘Vincent.’ He had compounds in Cambodia, where workers were held captive and beaten, while they were forced to contact thousands of victims through social media or online messaging platforms, build rapport and entice them to transfer cryptocurrency with hopes of big investment returns. The money was just stolen from them.
Microsoft has rolled out its own image generator, and Redmond claims it is faster than rival generators. Bgr.com notes that the clunky named MAI-Image-1 is better than OpenAI’s Sora2 and Google’s Nano Banana. Both those apps raced to the top of app stores, with Sora being the most downloaded app on iPhone in less than a week. Microsoft hasn’t released the generator yet, saying it will take into account feedback from early users before releasing it in Copilot and Bing Image Creator.
A new kind of hacker attack for Androids. Mashable.com reports that it lets bad guys snag your private chats, text messages, emails, and even two-factor authentication codes. It has been named ‘Pixnapping’, and it can be used to grab info from any data displayed on your screen. The victim has to have downloaded a malicious app. After that, the screen grabs can happen without any permissions or without being noticed. Google released an early patch for it already, but there is a work around to evade the patch. Pixnapping was uncovered by a group of researchers collaborating from University of California, Berkeley, University of Washington, University of California, San Diego, and Carnegie Mellon University.
I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.
Amazon-AR Glasses like Meta’s Coming; Samsung Might Launch a Wider Z Fold Next Year; Microsoft Distances from OpenAI & Uses from Anthropic; Pfizer-Latest COVID Booster 4x Positive Results
Posted: September 10, 2025 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: AI, chatgpt, News, Tech, technology Leave a commentThe tech companies have seen the future, and it apparently has all of us walking around, looking nerdy in augmented reality glasses. Yahoo.com reports that Amazon is working on AR glasses for consumers that would go head to head with Meta’s Ray-Bans. The glasses are code named ‘Jayhawk,’ which makes this former Kansan think that someone high on the development team is a Jayhawk themselves…an alum of Kansas University. At any rate, Amazon is aiming to have the AR glasses out by late 2026 or early 2027. Amazon has already been working on specialized glasses for delivery drivers. Those specs would provide turn by turn navigation on a small screen along routes and at each stop. The AR glasses allegedly would have a full-color display and a sleeker, less bulky design than the delivery model already in the works. Those ones should be out by the 2nd quarter of 2026…and Amazon plans to produce some 100,000 units.
With almost every phone maker either putting out a folding phone or working on one now, early leader Samsung is apparently working on a second Z Fold, to go along with the present Galaxy Z Fold 7 and its Z Flip 7 folding phones. According to bgr.com, Samsung is not only working on a tri-fold phone, but also on a wider Fold. The wider fold would have a flatter, square appearance when open, and a shorter overall design…something like an early Pixel fold design that was considered. The wide Fold would have an aspect ration of 18:18. Some speculators think the wider Fold might be related to the rumored Apple folding iPhone that may drop next year.
Microsoft, which was an early large investor in Open AI, has now taken steps to distance a bit from that artificial intelligence firm. Techcrunch.com says that Microsoft will pay for Anthropic’s AI in Office 365 apps. That means that Anthropic’s tech will help power new features in Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint alongside OpenAI’s, marking the end of Microsoft’s previous reliance solely on the ChatGPT maker for its productivity suite. Microsoft is presently negotiating a new deal with Open AI to secure access to its AI models after a pending for-profit restructuring. Apple has been using OpenAI’s ChatGPT as an extension of its flailing Siri, but lately, there is word that Apple is working on a deal to use Google’s Gemini AI. It appears that no one wants all their AI eggs in one basket.
Pfizer has announced that the 2025-26 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine boosts antibody levels by at least four times in older people and those with underlying medical conditions. Arstchnica.com notes that even with the patchwork of state-by-state access caused by Bobby Kennedy Jr’s nuttiness at Health & Human Services, this is some good news. The Kennedy/Trump FDA now limits COVID-19 vaccine approvals to people 65 and older or those under 64 if they have an underlying medical condition. Those conditions include asthma, diabetes, heart conditions, HIV, mental health conditions, Parkinson’s disease, obesity, or smoking.
I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.
Recap of Apple iPhone, Watch & AirPods Event
Posted: September 9, 2025 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Apple, iPhone, Smartphone, Tech, technology Leave a commentApple remarkably kept this presentation to under an hour and 15 minutes. No, there wasn’t a surprise amazing ‘one more thing.’
Starting out, they bowed new Air Pods Pro 3
New ANC noise reduction and new ear tips give twice the ANC of previous ones, 4X better than original Air Pods Pro.
The new models have Live Translation to your ears, so you can understand the person speaking in your native language, and then the iPhone can show them on screen or tell them in a voice what you say in their language.
Apple analyzed 10,000 ears and now have 5 sizes of tips to stay in ears in all conditions. They claim better sweat protection too for workouts.
Heart Rate sensing is now built in.
New obnoxious and obsequious ‘Workout Buddy’ that has been available on iPhone now cheers you on in the ear buds. Good job, buddy! Rah, rah, you are great.
The Pro 3 has longer battery life….8 hours at a time…up from 6. It has 10 hours for hearing aid use….not bad, but actual good hearing aids have 30 house of battery life.
The price stays $249 no increase from the previous model… preorder today, and they’re available Sept 19th.
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Apple Watch…
First, Series 11…it’s thinner, and the screen is twice as scratch resistant.
Watch 11 has 5G if you get the one with its own phone…you should get better coverage and lower power consumption than the previous model.
For heart health, it tracks for high blood pressure. As predicted, it will look for higher blood pressure and will notify you of possible hypertension. It will NOT give you actual blood pressure readings.
Like other smart watches, Watch 11 will score quality of sleep. This was touted as a big deal, but competitors have had this feature for years.
Series 11 will have 24 hours of battery life…ok, that really is a big deal. With fast charging, you can almost wear it day and night.
Watch SE3…The cheapie. It gets an always on display now. It will also play media through the speaker. The Se gets 18 hour battery life, and new fast charging…charging twice as fast as the old model.
Watch Ultra 3-New display is brighter and has thinner borders. Largest display of all Apple Watches. (This corrects the embarrassment of last year’s Ultra 2 not having a bigger display than the Watch. It has the Workout Buddy and Satellite connectivity. You get Emergency SOS & Messages, and
42 hours battery life.
Base Pricing:
$249 for the SE3
$399 for the Series 11
$799 for the Ultra 3
Preorder today, all are available Sept 19th
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iPhone—4 models…
Apple said 4 new models, but really it is one new model and 3 freshened ones.
iPhone 17 gets alarger 6.3 inch display, and has pro motion like the pro models. It now has always on display, and a More readable brightness for the display outdoors in bright light.
The display has new Ceramic Shield 2….three times harder and better anti-glare than before.
The 17 is powered by the A19 chip…it’s faster and more efficient that last year’s phone.
Apple Intellegence runs on the 17 with iOS 26…including Live Translation.
The phone has 8 more hours of battery time and faster charging.
48MP dual fusion cams …a main and 2x telephoto.
The front selfie cam has Center Stage, as well as a sensor that is is twice size of last model. a new Square picture aspect ratio for the selfie cam gives higher resolution shots in any orientation. It will automatically adjust the picture field if you have a couple friends step into the frame so no one is cut off.
iPhone Air–
This is the actual new model. It is insanely thin. Titanium super thin edges, and ceramic shield 2 on both sides. The phone is a svelte 5.6mm thick, and has a 6.5 inch display
It runs on the A19 Pro chip. Each GPU core has MacBook Pro levels of computing in a phone.
It also has the new N1 chip…WiFi and Bluetooth designed by Apple.
As expected, you get the new C1x modem chip which is faster than the iPhone 16 Pro and is more power efficient.
The cam system: 48MP Fusion camera, but it has two cams with one lens. 24 MP default photos, portrait control, and basically 4 focal length lenses built in. The selfie cam is 18 MP.
As rumored, new Dual capture video uses both back cam and selfie cam at same time. You can insert yourself in a box on screen basically doing play by play of what’s being videoed on the main camera.
The Air has an eSIM…no physical SIM card, and it works worldwide.
Battery life…It has new Adaptive Power Mode to intelligently manage power. They claim all day batter life. New low profile Mag Safe battery pack will allow 40 hours total with phone when attached.
iPhone 17 Pro–
It has a new aluminum case and interior structure. It’s unibody, and allows for biggest battery ever. Apple says they went to the aluminum from titanium in order to get better heat dissipation, which they say is needed when you use the on device AI or are doing heavy duty gaming. The A19 Pro chip does generate more heat, so in addition to the aluminum unibody to help dissipate it, the phone also has a vapor chamber to help with temperature management.
The aluminum unibody has 20 times the thermal performance of the titanium.
Like the Air, the antennas are in the bump. They claim 40% better performance than 16 Pro…for gaming and for AI.
Like the Air, the both the screen and the back are Ceramic Shield 2 so you get better protection than the glass that’s on on older phones.
The Pro Max has the biggest battery ever, it can do 39 hours of video playback.
Cameras- The Selfie Cam is 18 MP like the Air.
The Rear main cam system ….all 3 cams are 48 MP. All are fusion cameras. New 4x zoom at 100 mm or 8x zoom tele at 200 mm focal length. That is a huge jump from before…and about time. Both zoom powers use machine learning to help reduce noise and get better color. The fusion system is the equivalent of 8 different lens focal lengths! It’s like carrying around 8 different lenses with your old DSLR in your camera bag, but in your hand.
For video, Apple has added Pro Res Raw Capture, and Also Gen Lock, which lets you move between video and graphics, among other things like switching seamlessly between shooting angles without doing hours of editing.
The Pro models come with 256 Gigs base storage, and you can order up to 2 TB. Apple didn’t hit us with predicted $50 price bump…
$599 16e
$799 17
$999 Air
$1099 Pro
$1199 Pro Max
Preorders start Friday, available Sept 19th.
I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.
Court- Google Can Keep Chrome, But No Exclusive Search Deals; Waymo Expands to Denver & Seattle; iPad Gets Instagram App That Fits Screen; Starbucks Getting Automated Counting Tech for Inventory
Posted: September 3, 2025 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Apple, Google, productivity, Tech, technology Leave a commentIn what can only be described as a victory of sorts for Google, a court has ruled that Google doesn’t have to spin off Chrome. It also doesn’t have to divest of its search business…although it will have to make some changes there. Engadget.com reports that Judge Amit Mehta ruled that the government had ‘overreached’ in its request for the sale of Chrome. What the search giant will have to do though is give up exclusive deals around the distribution of search, Google Assistant, Gemini, and Chrome. They will no longer be able to require device makers to preload Google apps in order to get access to the Play Store. They WILL still be able to continue to pay partners like Apple to pre-load search and other apps into their products. I’m sure Apple is relieved about this too, as they take in over $20 billion a year in such a deal!
Waymo is moving into a couple of new markets…Denver and Seattle will get the self-driving cars this week. Techcrunch.com notes that both the Jaguar I-Pace SUVs and the Zeekr vans will be showing up in the two cities. For now, the vehicles will be manually driven. Waymo hopes to start offering robotaxi trips in Denver next year and in the Seattle metro area quote: ‘as soon as we’re permitted to do so.’ Waymo has a fleet of over 2,000 vehicles on the streets now…800 in the San Francisco Bay Area, 500 in LA, 400 in Phoenix, 100 in Austin, and several dozen in Atlanta. Miami and Washington, D.C. are in the future plans. We just reported days ago that Waymo has a permit to test in New York City…although that one is for driver-operated cars only for now.
Anyone that uses an iPad knows that there are numerous apps that just show up on the iPad with a little box in the middle…displaying the iPhone version of the app. They are hard to use, and very frustrating. Now, after a mere 15 years, Meta has finally released an optimized Instagram app for the iPad. According to theverge.com, effective today, you can download the new app that is actually made for the iPad. There are a couple of notable differences…first, the app opens directly to a feed of Reels…the short form videos Meta desperately wants to compete with TikTok. Other features will be there, though…at the top of the home page, you can switch to a ‘following’ tab where you can swipe between feeds that look like that on the phone. The DMs page will have your inbox alongside chats, much like Messenger looks like on your desktop version.
I would bet a few of you who are watching or reading this have had to do inventory in some sort of retail establishment. It is a task that truly sucks. I had to do it as a kid and teen, then later as an adult at my family’s car dealership. Nothing more fun than handling and counting greasy car parts! You just wore old clothes, then pitched them afterwards. No washing was helpful! Now, Starbucks is getting help from a startup called NomadGo to streamline how employees take inventory in the stores. Geekwire.com reports that Starbucks is setting employees up with mobile devices and NomadGo’s software that uses computer vision technology, spatial computing, and augmented reality to automate inventory counting. The system is already deployed in more than 11,000 Starbucks locations across North America and will be live in all company-operated stores by the end of September. The company’s tech runs on-device and counts each item within rows. It displays results on the device and syncs data with existing inventory management platforms. How I wish I had had that tech when counting a box of automotive widgets years ago!
I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.
Samsung Snares $16.5 Billion Deal for Tesla Chips; iPhone 17 Pro May Get 8x Zoom & Pro Cam App; Microsoft Dropping China Based DoD Support Teams; Amazon Refund Text Scam
Posted: July 28, 2025 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, News, Samsung, Smartphone, Tech, technology, Tesla Leave a commentSamsung has inked a deal to build the Tesla A16 chip. The pact is worth some $16.5 billion. Engadget.com reports that the deal runs through 2033, and that the chips will be produced at Samsung’s huge new plant they are building near Tyler, Texas. Until this deal, Samsung had been thinking about delaying opening the plant due to not enough business. Samsung makes the A14 chips that run Tesla’s Full Self-Driving platform, but the A15 contract went to their competitor, Taiwan Semiconductor. The deal does come with a short leash for Samsung…”Samsung agreed to allow Tesla to assist in maximizing manufacturing efficiency,” Elon Musk stated in a post on his X platform.
The camera apps have become a banner feature for all smartphones, and as they have gotten better across the board, major upgrades have gotten less common. According to macrumors.com, the iPhone 17 Pro models will be getting some cool cameral upgrades. A tipster has apparently seen a commercial for the handsets that shows the telephoto zoom will go from 5 power to 8 power optically…and may even have a moving lens, allowing for continuous optical zoom at various focal lengths. On top of that, there is apparently a new pro camera app for both photos and videos. There are already some pro camera apps available from third parties, but this would be a first from Apple. A third rumor…which seems a bit dubious…is that there will be an additional cameral control button on the top edge. Since case makers are already producing cases for the phones, and none seem to have an opening for such a button, take this one with a grain of salt. Finally, Apple will allow shooting video with both front and rear cameras at the same time. As with the pro apps, you have been able to do this with third party software, but not with Apple’s own until now.
From the ‘why were they doing this in the first place’ department…Microsoft is going to stop using China based teams to support the Department of Defense. Ya think? Propublica.org notes that Redmond had been using the teams to support the Defense Department’s cloud computing systems. The support supposedly was for information that is not classified…BUT is nonetheless sensitive. As you might figure, this was a fertile area for spying and espionage. With the increasing amount of data in the cloud servers and AI to analyze it fast, Microsoft is moving away from these China based teams.
Here’s a new scam you may not have heard about. It’s a text proported to be from Amazon about a refund. Zdnet.com reports that the texts may say it was due to the product being recalled, or it is below Amazon standards, or maybe failed a routine inspection. You don’t even have to return it to get the refund…just click the link. You are correct….DON’T click that link! It goes to a phishing page where you are prompted to enter your Amazon credentials, payment info, and contact info. It’s always good practice to refrain from clicking links in texts and emails. Go to the site saved in your bookmarks and check there to see if there are any messages from the merchant like Amazon.
I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.
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