As Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference is scheduled to commence Monday, the mobile manufacturing giant is expected to make public its new products which may include virtual and augmented reality headsets.
The reality devices are generally called mixed-reality headsets that overlay virtual images on live video of the real world.
Its AR/VR headsets would mark its biggest launch since the smartwatch in 2015. The unveiling may mark a new era for the company and for its customers about how they interact with computers and reality.
The California-based giant is also to reveal a long list of updates in its already popular products such as the iPhone and Apple Watch, including its plans on how it is going to make artificial intelligence (AI) technology in its products to keep up with the arms race.
Here are some things to expect:
AR/VR devices
CEO of Apple Tim has shown keen interest in AR technology.
Bloomberg reported that the new headset, which could be called Reality One or Reality Pro, will have an iOS-like interface, display immersive video and include cameras and sensors to allow users to control it via their hands, eye movements and with Siri.
The device is also reported to have an outward-facing display that will show eye movements and facial expressions, allowing onlookers to interact with the person wearing the headset without feeling as though they’re talking to a robot.
The report also underlined that Apple’s new headset is expected to pack apps for gaming, fitness and meditation, and offer access to iOS apps such as Messages, FaceTime and Safari.
With the FaceTime option, for example, the headset will “render a user’s face and full body in virtual reality,” to create the feeling that both are “in the same room.”
As per the reports, Apple is considering a $3,000 price for the device, far more than most of its products and testing potential buyers at a time of lingering uncertainty in the global economy.
15-inch MacBook Air
According to CNN, Apple is expected to launch a new 15-inch MacBook Air packing the company’s M2 processor. The current size of the MacBook Air is 13 inches.
Earlier, users who required a large Apple laptop would need to buy a higher-end MacBook Pro.
New upgrades
It is expected that in this software event, the company’s executives will underline changes and upgrades that are about to come in next-generation mobile operating systems, iOS 17 and iPadOS 17. It is also expected that there are minor changes to be done compared to last year’s design overhaul.
Apple is also eyeing further health trackers in its devices to monitor users’ moods and the change in their vision over time.
Wall Street Journal reported that Apple will also launch a journaling app not only as a way for users to log their thoughts but also activity levels, which can then be analysed to reveal how much time someone spends at home or out of the house.
AI arms race
The company is also expected to announce its AI incorporation plans at its tech event.
There are reports about Apple planning to preview an AI coaching service. It will encourage people to exercise and make their eating and sleeping habits better.
As technology behemoths announced their AI plans in the wake of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Apple is also to follow the course.
The New York-based cybersecurity firm Wiz has discovered a cache of sensitive data from the Chinese artificial intelligence business DeepSeek that was mistakenly exposed to the public internet.
In a blog post released on Wednesday, Wiz reported that examinations of DeepSeek’s infrastructure revealed that the company had inadvertently exposed over a million lines of unencrypted data. The materials were digital software keys and chat logs that seemingly documented prompts transmitted from consumers to the company’s complimentary AI assistant.
The chief technical officer of Wiz stated that DeepSeek promptly safeguarded the data following the notice from his organisation.
“It was removed in under an hour,” stated Ami Luttwak. “However, this was exceedingly easy to locate, leading us to believe we are not the sole discoverers.”
DeepSeek did not promptly respond to a request for comment.
DeepSeek’s rapid success after the introduction of its AI helper has exhilarated China and incited concern in America. The Chinese company’s evident capacity to rival OpenAI’s skills at a significantly reduced cost has raised concerns regarding the viability of the business models and profit margins of U.S. AI behemoths like Nvidia and Microsoft.
By Monday, it surpassed the U.S. competitor ChatGPT in downloads from Apple’s App Store, prompting a worldwide decline in technology stocks.
WhatsApp has initiated testing of a bulk channel administration feature on iOS for select beta users, enabling the simultaneous selection of many channels, hence enhancing the efficiency of managing following channels.
This essential update enables users to perform bulk activities, including muting many channels simultaneously, designating them as read, and altering notifications. If the chosen channels are muted, users will now have the option to activate notifications. Users can swiftly silence unmuted channels in one action.
Additionally, this feature enables users to unfollow many channels simultaneously, thereby optimizing the process of decluttering their channel list. This change is particularly beneficial for users that oversee numerous subscriptions, as reported by WABetaInfo.
Previously, users were required to manage each channel individually, rendering tasks such as muting or designating channels as read laborious and time-consuming.
The functionality provides enhanced flexibility and control over channel subscriptions, enabling users to efficiently manage notifications. The solution streamlines laborious operations for consumers who subscribe to numerous channels, hence enhancing their entire experience.
Accessibility The bulk management feature is presently accessible exclusively to a limited number of beta testers who installed the latest WhatsApp beta for iOS using the TestFlight application. WhatsApp, owned by Meta, plans to expand the feature’s availability to a larger user base in the next weeks.
This update demonstrates WhatsApp’s dedication to enhancing user experience by offering a clear and efficient method for managing channels and notifications.
Even after two weeks, the global submarine cable AAA-1 problem that was discovered on January 2 near Qatar has not been fixed, causing sluggish internet connection in several Pakistani towns.
According to a representative for Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL), the issue has affected customers’ capacity to effectively access social media applications and browse the online. Even with initiatives to fix the problem, social networking sites still lag during busy times.
Internet traffic has been redirected via alternate channels to lessen the impact, and more capacity has been set up to stabilize the service.
The PTCL representative promised that “Internet service across the country is operating normally, and there will be no issues with web browsing,” noting that social media applications’ lag is common during