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At GDC 2023, I sat down in gaming accessory company Razer’s office and felt something I’d never experienced before: playing a video game and having my controller and headphones vibrate at different intensities that I could adjust to my liking. Then I watched a blockbuster superhero film with headphone vibration tuned to the action — all powered by the same software.
The software development kit, or SDK, created by tech studio Interhaptics, which was acquired by Razer last year, lets companies easily add vibration to their games, films and other media. Interhaptics founder Eric Vezzoli, now Razer’s general manager of Interhaptics, walked me through a demonstration of what the software can do.
He noted that the software takes just a day to be implemented into a game, and then vibration will be automatically added for any feedback device, be it a controller, smartphone, headphones, haptic vest or other device. Even if a developer is adding peripherals with different vibration frequency ranges, the software can add haptic feedback that’s suited for each device. That simplifies the process when, say, trying to set vibration levels to be similar on iPhones and Android phones, which have very different vibration ranges.
“We take the designer’s intention and we translate it to machine capability,” Vezzoli said.
The haptic composer software, as it’s properly called, also puts vibration control in gamers’ hands. In the game demo I played, I was able to toggle whether vibrations would happen when triggered by my character, enemies or the environment, as well as tone them down if they were too intense. The software put control of vibration feedback in my hands.
The software SDK launched with support for PS4, PS5, Meta Quest 2 and X-input controllers, as well as iOS and Android phones. Developers can set up custom vibrations for potentially any number of different peripherals with haptics, allowing them to pulse or vibrate at different intensities to convey whatever emotion or action fits the game or movie scene.
That list of peripherals includes the Razer Kraken V3 HyperSense headphones, which have haptic motors spread around both earcups and are the headphones I wore for the demo. While I was playing the simple dungeon-crawling game that Vezzoli and his team built to show off the SDK, every sword swing by my character pulsed vibration around my ears, while enemies hitting my character buzzed my ears in a noticeably different way.
Then I watched scenes from films with headphone vibration coinciding with exciting moments — buzzing along while a superhero used their powers, or, during a suspenseful silence, pulsing at a low frequency that subtly alternated between ears, like a heartbeat.
If I’m being honest, it felt weird to have headphones buzzing around my ears with dynamic patterns — the pitter-patter of heartbeats or triumphant vibrating bursts of superheroes clashing, which I’m used to hearing via sound effects, not feeling on my skin.
But I could see how, if I were to get used to dynamic vibrations around my ears — or with future devices, elsewhere on my body — they could make entertainment more immersive. I remember discovering how much listening to footsteps made me better at finding enemies in first-person shooters, and dynamic vibrations about explosions or activity could similarly point me in the right direction. Movies and shows, which rely on visuals and soundscapes to convey tone and mood, could add a new layer with haptics — and the technology seems ideally suited for VR developers to add texture to their immersive worlds.
Razer and Interhaptics’ software is admittedly a bit future-facing, since controllers and smartphones are far more common than vibrating headphones or other peripherals. But the company is sending out developer kits with the Razer Kraken V3 HyperSense headphones for developers to try adding the SDK software to their game.
“It’s a different type of experience, and we believe we can generate enormous value from a user experience playing these games,” said Vezzoli.
This story is part of Focal Point iPhone 2023, CNET’s collection of news, tips and advice around Apple’s most popular product.
The iPhone 14 lineup introduces a number of improvements, such as car-crash detection and a 48-megapixel main camera on the Pro models. That might make it tempting to upgrade, but doing so might not make sense for everyone. Above all else, the answer to whether you should upgrade depends on which phone you currently own.
If you have a recent model like the iPhone 13 or maybe even 12, it would be wise to wait. If your phone is older though, it’s worth figuring out what you stand to gain by jumping to a newer iPhone.
The $799 ( 849, AU$1,399) iPhone 14 brings modest improvements but not game-changing ones. Those changes include nitty-gritty camera improvements and the support for satellite-based emergency messaging. The iPhone 14 also has a new internal design, with simpler access to internal components, making it easier to repair than previous models. iFixit, a website that disassembles tech products and assesses how easy they are to fix, called it “the most repairable iPhone in years.” And if you want these features in a larger size, the iPhone 14 Plus starts at $100 more, at $899.
Now playing:Watch this:iPhone 14 Review: A Decent Upgrade for Most
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The iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max’s upgrades are more dramatic, but you still don’t need to upgrade unless you can score a great trade-in deal. Apple saved its most interesting new features for the Pro lineup, including the Dynamic Island that replaces the notch, the new A16 Bionic processor and a 48-megapixel main camera sensor.
It’s important to remember that you don’t have to buy the iPhone 14 to get camera, battery and performance improvements over an earlier iPhone.
The recently discounted $699 iPhone 13 or the smaller $599 13 Mini could be a good option if you still want more storage, faster performance and an improved camera, especially if you’re coming from a phone that’s 3 years old or more. It’s also the only option if you want the smaller Mini and its 5.4-inch screen, since the iPhone 14 line eliminates that size in favor of the new $899 iPhone 14 Plus with a 6.7-inch screen.
Purchasing decisions will always vary depending on budget, how well your phone works right now and your personal needs, so there’s no simple answer that works for everyone. But here are the biggest differences between the iPhone 14 lineup and previous iPhone generations, to help you make a decision.
The iPhone 14 lineup introduces new features such as car-crash detection, the removal of the physical SIM card for US phones, and enhanced cameras on the rear and front. Despite those changes, iPhone 14 isn’t different enough to justify upgrading from the iPhone 13. And even though Apple finally got rid of the infamous notch in the Pro models, the 14 and 14 Plus still have one — it’s the same smaller notch that debuted on the iPhone 13 series. In fact, the iPhone 14 represents “one of the most minimal year-over-year upgrades in Apple’s history,” according to CNET’s Patrick Holland, who reviewed Apple’s latest phones.
The iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus have the A15 Bionic chip from last year’s iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max. The 14’s screen looks exactly like the one on the 13. Perhaps the most prominent change this year is the introduction of a larger version of the iPhone 14 called the iPhone 14 Plus, which has a 6.7-inch screen like the Pro Max. That means you no longer have to splurge on Apple’s most expensive iPhone if you want the largest screen possible.
Of course, the iPhone 14 is still highly rated, but we recommend saving your money and skipping the upgrade. If you’ve made up your mind to upgrade, we suggest going for an iPhone 14 Pro or iPhone 14 Pro Max if you can afford it. These phones are expensive, but buys you access to some salient changes — namely a high-refresh rate display, Apple’s new Dynamic Island multitasking bar, an always-on display as well as better cameras among other features.
The bottom line: If you have an iPhone 13 or 13 Pro, don’t upgrade. But if you are determined to get a new phone, go for the iPhone 14 Pro or 14 Pro Max, especially if you must have the Dynamic Island right now.
Even though the iPhone 12 lineup was released two years ago, it still shares many similarities with Apple’s latest phones. Both the iPhone 12 and iPhone 14 support 5G, run on fast processors, offer great cameras and include MagSafe accessory compatibility.
Since the iPhone 14 is more of a refresh than a major upgrade, we recommend hanging onto your iPhone 12 if it’s still in good condition. You can take advantage of the iPhone’s latest software features such as lock screen customizations, widgets and the ability to unsend text messages by upgrading to iOS 16.
The iPhone 14 received a few notable camera upgrades, like a larger sensor, a new lens with a faster aperture, improved photo processing and Action Mode which makes the movements in videos look smoother when you record them.
But the iPhone 12’s cameras remain excellent even though they are 2 years old. The iPhone 12 has a 12-megapixel dual camera system, while the iPhone 12 Pro includes a third camera with a telephoto lens. Check out our iPhone 12 review to see how the cameras held up when CNET put them through the paces.
It’s worth remembering that you get more noticeable upgrades with the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max. These include everything that’s new in the 14, as well as an upgraded main camera with a larger 48-megapixel sensor, an ultrawide camera that allows you to take Macro photos and a third camera with a telephoto lens. If you can get a good trade-in deal that significantly knocks down the iPhone 14 Pro’s price, upgrading from the regular iPhone 12 is a decent step-up.
The bottom line: Hold onto your iPhone 12 for another year since the iPhone 14 isn’t dramatically different. However, the iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max bring more significant changes that could be worthwhile if you can snag a good trade-in deal.
If you’re using an iPhone 11, we recommend upgrading to an iPhone 14 (or even an iPhone 13). In the last three years, Apple has made enough changes to features including battery life, performance, screen quality, cameras and durability to merit buying a new iPhone.
Upgrading to the iPhone 14 will get you 5G support, more storage (128GB at the base level versus 64GB) a better main camera with a wider aperture lens, new video shooting options like Action mode and Cinematic mode, a better selfie camera with Night mode and Apple’s Photonic Engine processing, compatibility with Apple’s MagSafe accessories, longer battery life and faster performance. That’s in addition to car-crash detection and Apple’s new emergency satellite messaging feature.
Most of the photography and videography improvements are dramatic changes compared to the iPhone 11. And the longer battery life and additional storage space are welcomed upgrades that you’ll notice on a daily basis.
As previously mentioned, if you go for the 14 Pro instead, you get a new 48-megapixel main camera, a closer 3x optical zoom versus the 11 Pro Max’s 2x zoom, the Dynamic Island instead of the notch and numerous other upgrades like an always-on display.
The bottom line: The iPhone 14 lineup includes enough changes to justify upgrading from the iPhone 11. But if your phone is still in good condition and you’re satisfied with it, install iOS 16 and hold onto it for another year.
The iPhone XS.
Josh Miller/CNET
iPhone 14 vs. iPhone XS, XS Max, XR
If you bought the iPhone XS, XS Max or XR at launch, that means your phone is roughly 4 years old and may be starting to feel sluggish. That alone makes a strong case for upgrading, but there’s plenty more to gain.
Compared to the iPhone XS, the iPhone 14 provides six hours of additional battery life (according to Apple’s estimates). In addition to everything that’s new in the iPhone 14 specifically, you’ll also get other upgrades Apple has added to the iPhone over the past few years.
Those include 5G support, more storage (again, you get 128GB versus 64GB), faster performance and a better camera. The iPhone XS generation lacks Night mode for taking clearer pictures in the dark, and it also doesn’t have Deep Fusion, which is Apple’s name for its image processing technique that improves detail and clarity in darker environments. The XS’s front camera has a lower 7-megapixel resolution compared to the larger and newer 12-megapixel sensor on the iPhone 14. If you’re upgrading from an iPhone XR, you’ll also get an additional camera with an ultrawide lens for taking broader group shots for the first time.
The iPhone 14 also has a larger 6.1-inch screen compared to the iPhone XS’ 5.8-inch display (the iPhone XS Max has a 6.5-inch screen, while the XR’s screen is also 6.1 inches). The design has also changed quite a bit over the past four years; newer models have flat edges, a slightly smaller notch, different finishes and a new “squircle”-shaped camera module that replaces the pill-shaped rear camera cutout. So your phone will not only feel more modern, but it’ll look newer, too.
The bottom line: If you have an iPhone XS, XS Max or XR, it’s definitely worth upgrading. You get a noticeable boost in camera quality, battery life and performance among other areas.
The iPhone X.
James Martin/CNET
iPhone 14 vs. iPhone X
The iPhone X is about 5 years old, which means it probably feels slow and its battery life isn’t what it used to be. With an iPhone 14, you’ll notice a major upgrade in both categories, as well as design, improved durability, connectivity and camera quality.
Let’s start with performance. The iPhone X runs on a much older A11 Bionic chip that’s now 5 years old, while the iPhone 14 runs on Apple’s A15 Bionic processor. The iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max run on Apple’s newer A16 Bionic chip. Both new processors are way ahead of the A11 chip, which only has a two-core neural engine compared to the A15 Bionic’s 16-core neural engine.
The iPhone’s neural engine powers tasks that rely on machine learning and artificial intelligence, which are becoming a bigger part of the iPhone experience. Things like app suggestions in the App Library and Apple’s Translate app rely on machine learning to function, which indicates that the iPhone X may struggle to keep up with newer capabilities.
The iPhone X also has a dual-lens camera similar to that of the iPhone XS, meaning it’s missing the iPhone 14’s camera hardware improvements in addition to Night mode, Deep Fusion and the ability to control depth-of-field and blur levels in Portrait mode. Like the iPhone XS, you’re only getting a 7-megapixel front camera compared to a 12-megapixel selfie camera on Apple’s newer phones.
Apple’s five-year-old iPhone also has shorter battery life, with Apple estimating it should last for 13 hours when playing back video compared to 20 hours on the iPhone 14. The iPhone 14’s 6.1-inch screen is bigger than the 5.8-inch display on the iPhone X, and it should also be brighter since it can reach 800 nits of max brightness compared to the iPhone X’s 625-nit screen.
The iPhone 14 supports Dolby Atmos and spatial audio playback, while the iPhone X just has stereo playback. That’s probably not a deal-breaker, but might be crucial if you watch a lot of video on your phone without headphones.
And of course, there’s the benefit of getting car-crash detection, Apple’s new emergency SOS messaging via satellite option, better water resistance (up to 6 meters for 30 minutes versus 1 meter), 5G support, more storage space, Ceramic Shield for the display, a refreshed design and the option to use MagSafe accessories on the iPhone 14.
The bottom line: If you have the iPhone X, it’s time to upgrade. The iPhone 14 will feel new in just about every way, from the camera to performance, battery life and the way it looks and feels.
The iPhone 8 and 8 Plus.
Gabriel Sama/CNET
iPhone 14 vs. iPhone 8, 8 Plus
The iPhone 8 generation has Apple’s legacy iPhone design, which is fitting for a phone that’s now 5 years old. If you have an iPhone 8 and are considering an upgrade, many of the reasons to do that are the same as the reasons to upgrade from the iPhone X. The processor is getting old, which could make it harder to use newer iPhone features that rely on machine learning. The cameras are outdated and lack features like Night mode (the smaller iPhone 8 doesn’t have Portrait mode either, since it only has one lens). By upgrading, you’ll get more storage, significantly longer battery life, support for 5G connectivity and MagSafe accessories, too.
But the biggest difference is in the iPhone 8’s design, which is much more than just an aesthetic upgrade. Phones with Apple’s more modern edge-to-edge screen trade Touch ID for Face ID, which lets you unlock your phone and authenticate payments just by looking at your device. If you prefer Touch ID over Face ID, especially since it’s difficult to use Face ID while wearing a mask, you might want to at least consider upgrading to the $429 iPhone SE, since it has the same processor as the iPhone 13, 5G compatibility and plenty of photography improvements inside a similar body to the iPhone 8.
Upgrading to the iPhone 14 has a noticeably large jump in display size and quality. Since newer phones like the iPhone 14 don’t have a home button, there’s more room for Apple to expand the screen without making the device feel cumbersome. The iPhone 14’s screen is even larger than the iPhone 8 Plus’ 5.5-inch screen despite the device itself feeling more compact. (And for more perspective, consider that the iPhone 13 Mini has a 5.4-inch display). If you go for the 14 Pro you get another big change: the Dynamic Island, which transforms the notch area into an area for viewing alerts, system notifications and apps running in the background like Spotify or Apple Music.
From personal experience, switching from an iPhone 8 (which has a 4.7-inch screen) to the iPhone 12’s 6.1-inch display makes reading, checking email and watching videos much more comfortable. The screen isn’t only larger, but it’s also more vibrant with better contrast since it uses an OLED display rather than LCD.
The bottom line: The iPhone 14 is a huge jump from the iPhone 8. Everything about this phone will feel fast and new: the much larger and bolder screen, Face ID, the speedier processor, its longer battery life and of course the substantially upgraded cameras. Of note however, if you really want to get a newer iPhone but keep the iPhone 8’s design, trade up to the current 2022 iPhone SE.
The iPhone 7 Plus and iPhone 7.
Sarah Tew/CNET
iPhone 14 vs. iPhone 7, 7 Plus
If you have an iPhone 7, it’s time to upgrade. It is 6 years old, and it shows in everything from the processor to the camera and storage space. The iPhone 7 doesn’t support iOS 16, providing even more incentive for acquiring a newer device.
While we generally recommend choosing the iPhone 14 Pro over the iPhone 14 in most cases, coming from a phone this old, means you’ll find plenty that’s new in the iPhone 14.
The iPhone 7 runs on an aging A10 Fusion processor, which doesn’t even have a neural engine and is years behind Apple’s latest technology. It has a single-lens camera without Portrait mode, while the 7 Plus has two cameras. But those cameras lack many modern features like Night mode and Portrait Lighting, which adds specific lighting effects to your portraits.
Similar to the iPhone 8, the iPhone 7 series includes Touch ID and comes in either 4.7- or 5.5-inch screen sizes. But since the iPhone 7 is a year older than the iPhone 8, it’s also missing wireless charging, which means you must plug it in to charge.
If you’ve owned an iPhone 7 for several years, it’s probably bursting at the seams since it has substantially less storage space. The entry-level iPhone 7 only came with 32GB of space, which is a quarter of capacity available on the cheapest iPhone 14.
The iPhone 14 brings major gains in nearly every aspect. The standard model has a larger, bolder and brighter bezel-free 6.1-inch screen that still feels compact since it doesn’t have a home button. It runs on Apple’s A15 Bionic processor, which is better equipped to handle newer iOS features. And it has a drastically improved dual-lens camera with a larger main camera sensor and advanced features like the new Cinematic mode for video and Night mode. Plus, Apple’s estimates indicate it’ll offer seven hours of additional battery life during video playback, which is a huge bump.
The bottom line: If you’re still holding onto your iPhone 7, there’s no question that you’re due for an upgrade. A better screen, compatibility with iOS 16, longer battery life and more advanced cameras are just a few of the gains the iPhone 14 has to offer over the iPhone 7. And similar to my recommendation with the iPhone 8, if you really want to keep the home button and save some money, consider the iPhone SE. It gives you more recent performance upgrades while keeping a similar phone style.
Now playing:Watch this:X-AR: Seeing Through Walls With Augmented Reality
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X-ray vision might not be strictly for superheroes much longer, thanks to a new application of a familiar technology.
Augmented reality offers a layer of virtual content that usually goes on top of the picture of the world taken in by our eyes, but researchers at MIT are using AR to help us see beyond barriers in a kind of “X-ray vision” they’re calling X-AR.
The flexible X-AR antenna on Microsoft’s HoloLens.
MIT
X-AR is powered by a flexible antenna that adds a sort of “sixth sense” to the HoloLens, allowing it to locate specific objects that are outside the wearer’s line of sight, as long as they’re marked with a widely used item known as a radio frequency identification tag and less than 15 feet away.
The prototype of this system is built as an add-on to Microsoft’s HoloLens, but researchers say it could be applied to other augmented reality headsets down the line.
X-AR being tested in a warehouse-like setting.
MIT
The research team developed their own HoloLens app that directs the wearer toward the desired object and alerts them whether or not the correct object has been picked up using the HoloLens’ built-in hand tracking features.
Potential applications for this technology right now include use in warehouses, shipping, retail and other places where RFID tags are commonly used. However, researchers say the potential applications of this sort of technology goes much further — including determining whether food is safe to eat, and aiding search and rescue efforts in the event of a disaster.
To watch X-AR in action and see our interview with members of the research team that created it, check out the video in this article.
If you picked a top seed to win it all, consider your March Madness bracket busted. For the first time in NCAA men’s basketball tournament history, not one of four No. 1 seeds has advanced to the Elite Eight. Purdue and Kansas lost earlier, and on Friday the final two top-seeded teams, Alabama and Houston, were upset by a pair of No. 5 seeds, San Diego State and Miami.
The stage is set for the four Elite Eight games this weekend, starting tonight. The highest remaining seed is a No. 2, Texas, while the lowest is No. 9 North Florida Atlantic. If you picked half of this bracket, you probably won your pool already.
Here’s everything you need to watch and livestream March Madness, from the Elite Eight to the Final Four and the national championship game.
What is the March Madness TV schedule?
The schedule and channels for this weekend’s Elite Eight games are listed below (all times ET).
Saturday, March 25
No. 3 Kansas State vs. No. 9 Florida Atlantic, 6:09 p.m. on TBS
No. 3 Gonzaga vs. No. 4 UConn, 8:49 p.m. on TBS
Sunday, March 26
No. 5 San Diego State vs. No. 6 Creighton, 2:20 p.m. on CBS
No. 2 Texas vs. No. 5 Miami (Fla.), 5:05 p.m. on CBS
Here’s the remaining schedule afterward (all games are on CBS):
Final Four: Saturday, April 1
NCAA championship game: Monday, April 3
Christian Bishop scored 18 points in Texas’ win over Xavier, helping propel the Longhorns into the Elite Eight.
Jamie Squire/Getty Images
What does the March Madness bracket look like now?
One No. 2 seed (Texas) is still alive, along with two No. 3 seeds (Gonzaga and Kansas St.) and one No. 4 seed (UConn).
No. 9 Florida Atlantic and No. 6 Creighton, along with No. 5 Miami and No. 5 San Diego State, round out the Elite Eight.
The rest of the tournament will be shown on CBS and TBS.
Which channel is broadcasting the Final Four?
The Final Four and national championship game will air on CBS and stream on Paramount Plus.
Can I stream March Madness for free?
Go to the NCAA’s March Madness Live site or use its March Madness Live app and you’ll be able to watch games for free. You can watch March Madness Live on iOS and Android devices along with Apple TV, Roku, Fire TV and Xbox One. The app also supports AirPlay and Chromecast.
As with most things that are free, there’s a catch. Without proving you’re a pay-TV subscriber, you get only a three-hour preview, after which point you’ll need to log in to continue watching.
What are my other streaming options?
You can use a live TV streaming service to watch March Madness. Three of the five live TV streaming services offer the two channels needed to watch every tournament game, but keep in mind that not every service carries every local network, so check each one using the links below to make sure it carries CBS in your area.
You can also use Paramount Plus to watch some, but not all, of March Madness. Only the games shown on CBS are available on Paramount Plus.
Hulu with Live TV costs $70 a month and includes CBS and TBS. Click the “View channels in your area” link on its welcome page to see which local channels are offered in your ZIP code. Read our Hulu with Live TV review.
YouTube TV costs $73 a month and includes CBS and TBS. Plug in your ZIP code on its welcome page to see which local networks are available in your area. Read our YouTube TV review.
Paramount Plus costs $10 a month for its Premium plan and will show March Madness games broadcast on CBS, including the Final Four. You can’t, however, watch the rest of the tournament shown on TBS with Paramount Plus. Read our Paramount Plus review.
FuboTV’s basic plan costs $75 a month and includes CBS but not TBS. It’ll let you watch half the Elite Eight games and both Final Four games as well as the championship game. Click here to see which local channels you get. Read our FuboTV review.
Sling TV’s $40-a-month Blue plan includes TBS, but none of its plans include CBS, which means you can’t watch the culmination of March Madness on Sling. Read our Sling TV review.
All the live TV streaming services above offer free trials, allow you to cancel anytime and require a solid internet connection. Looking for more information? Check out our live TV streaming services guide.
The world’s biggest metaverse may, arguably, be Roblox. The platform my kids play almost daily is a continuous playground of increasingly evolving experiences with a vast marketplace. It’s also going to become a space where generative AI emerges. Roblox released two new AI tools in the past week, but both are only showing up in the creator-focused Roblox Studio: a coding tool that lets anyone use conversational AI to generate code on the fly; and a way to create material designs just by describing what you want.
I watched demos of the new Roblox tools in action, and they’re very much in line with what generative AI tools like Midjourney, DALL-E 2 and ChatGPT can already do, as Microsoft and Google have expanded these tools elsewhere. In the case of Roblox, however, these tools are focused on particular uses. Both of the tools are also, for the moment, separate from each other and trained differently.
Beyond conversational AI and rapidly evolving art tools, it’s the way AI is moving into being a copilot for coding that grabs me the most. I don’t know how to code, and I’ve often found game creation tools, even ones like Sony’s Dreams on PlayStation, to be intimidating. It looks very much like this emerging wave of AI is turning into a coding assistant… I’d hesitate to say complete coding tool, because it sounds like you’d very much want to see what errors and results come from whatever you think you’ve discussed into being. But much more so than in any other capacity, it looks like a way to quickly enable complicated creations.
Stefano Corazza, former VP of Adobe’s Augmented Reality division and now head of Roblox Studio, says Roblox’s new AI features are targeted at “someone who is familiar with coding, and we just want to make them more productive.” But another initiative is coming for complete creative newcomers, too.
“We also have a parallel effort to help people that are completely new to coding,” Corazza says. “But if you are targeting people that are completely new to coding, we may need a different type of interface like ChatGPT that are a little bit more useful, because they explain to you what the code does, and then they write the code, and then they help you debug things. So I think we will have to think about an approach where the goal is learning, as opposed to writing a bunch of code.”
I’m curious about when these tools will emerge in the everyday Roblox app. There are already developers hooking in ChatGPT into Roblox now, but Roblox aims to eventually have some of these creative tools come outside of Studio.
“I think generative AI is really easier onboarding in the game development space overall, where people are less sophisticated in terms of, ‘Hey, I need something that gives me like, the Absolute Truth,’ right? It’s more of an iterative process,” Corazza says.
Is Roblox readying its platform to be able to more spontaneously generate worlds?
Roblox
Someday, players may have these generative AI tools right inside Roblox. And along with that future possibility comes parental guidance concerns.
“In the future as this becomes a superpower of players, we will have to implement more real-time moderation. It also needs to be not only age appropriate, but also context appropriate. Things that you may say with your close group of friends may not be OK in a public setting, for example, or during a concert on Roblox. We are trying to develop a more contextual type of moderation because we think that will be a big deal in the future,” Corazza adds.
Coding and creation is the focus now, but what I see after that is how these quick AI assistants can generate environments on the fly for metaverse environments. The “build and someone will come” idea behind large social VR worlds like Meta’s Horizon Worlds and AltSpace VR haven’t worked. Will more instantaneous AI-driven invocations be a way to make future AR and VR feel like an instant holodeck?
“I think what we have seen is a transformation where a lot of the strictly technical skills will be picked up by AI, and then it will leave creators more high-level controls,” Corazza says. “We will enable a lot more people to just manifest their ideas in the metaverse.”
Corazza refers to Roblox’s own metaverse, and its hundreds of millions of users, as an example. “Until now, just the scale of content that was needed was not met,” Corazza says, referring to metaverse platforms. “Very few companies in the world could actually afford it. If we lower the barrier, and now everybody can generate a city by just saying ‘create the city of San Francisco, it’s sunset and it’s raining,’ and poof, you see the city in front of you, the cost of creation gets really low, then people can start doing really fun things and can experiment.”
Roblox isn’t actively in VR and AR yet, although Corazza says the company’s exploring many different types of platforms. But it’s pretty clear that these beginning steps for generative AI in 3D worlds are going to make a big impact on the metaverse, VR and AR soon enough.
“VR was always starving for content, right? It was like, a great game was made, and then it’s like, ‘OK, try to make an experience, you know, good luck.’ That has been a very difficult process. There was one inflection with user-generated content that was really powerful, and then the second inflection point, now that we are seeing with generative AI, is going to be another order of magnitude of how much content is available,” Corazza adds. “Even things like VR and AR will flourish, will really have like a second wave. Because now people can do stuff in those worlds and they can be much faster. I think that’s going to be a big game-changer.”
Editors’ note: CNET is using an AI engine to create some personal finance explainers that are edited and fact-checked by our editors. For more, see this post.
Nothing’s second-gen earbuds — the Ear 2 — have arrived. I’ve used them and found they offer good sound quality and solid active noise cancellation. They replace the first-gen Nothing Ear 1 buds, which were launched back in July 2021, and they’ll cost $149 ( 129, which converts to roughly AU$275) when they go on sale on March 29.
Nothing is the fairly fresh tech firm founded by Carl Pei, who’s better known for having co-founded OnePlus. I’ve been impressed many of OnePlus’s products since day one, so I was excited to see what its former CEO might cook up next. Nothing’s first products including the Ear 1 buds and the Nothing Phone 1 echoed OnePlus’ philosophy of not having “to choose between performance, quality and price.”
Andrew Lanxon/CNET
When they launched, I admired the Ear 1 buds’ stand-out design, decent sound quality and fair pricing. To be honest, not a lot has changed for the newer version. Physically there’s very little difference. The Ear 2 buds come with an almost identical (although slightly smaller) clear perspex charging case and the buds themselves are almost indistinguishable from the previous model.
If you’re hoping for wild new looks from Carl Pei’s design team with every generation, you may be disappointed. But I like the look, even if it’s not a departure from the Ear 1. The buds are small and lightweight which makes them comfortable to wear for long periods. I even found them unobtrusive enough to sleep in.
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The touch controls have been adjusted, so you now need to squeeze the stems rather than tap them. This makes it less easy to accidentally change tracks — a small update but one I found to be helpful in everyday use. They’re also IP55 rated for water-resistance, so you don’t need to worry about wearing them in the rain or during a particularly sweaty workout.
The case charges the buds, providing a total of up to 36 hours of battery life (with noise cancelling turned off) which is a slight improvement over the 34 hours of the last model. It also has fast charging giving 8 hours of use from just 10 minutes of charging.
The Ear 2 bud (left) and the Ear 1 bud (right). Spot the difference.
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So what about that all-important sound quality? Nothing says its audio engineers worked hard to upgrade performance, and indeed I noticed an improvement over the last model. Don Broco’s track Pretty was handled well, for example. I could hear crystal clear cracks on the snare in the opening beats, and brightly ringing cymbals with a deep bass when it really kicked in.
The buds are a talented all-rounder, so if you tend to bounce between genres on your playlists then they’ll likely suit you well. I found the buds to perform optimally, though, with rock and indie genres, with songs like Atreyu’s Baptize sounding punchy and detailed, while Cage The Elephant’s In One Ear struck a satisfying balance between the warmth of the bass and the crunch of the guitars.
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There have been key updates on the software side, with the Nothing X app (available on both Android and iOS) offering sound tests to check you’re wearing the right sized ear tips and a sound profile mode that aims to automatically tune the audio to your personal needs. I tried it but for the most part found I’d rather just use the “Balanced” mode in the app’s equalizer.
Using the app to perform setup also allows you to tailor the active noise cancelling function to the frequencies you can — or can’t — hear. I found the resulting cancellation effect to be excellent. It easily removed the background hum of my computers and fans and the road noise outside my window.
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If you own the first-generation model already then there’s little need to upgrade to the the Ear 2 buds. They perform similarly and look identical. But if you’re in the market for a new pair of ANC earbuds, and you’ve been curious about the Nothing brand, then the Ear 2 buds are a solid option to consider.
Valve’s Steam Deck essentially gives you a gaming PC in the palm of your hand, but it’s not without its flaws. Out of the box, the Steam Deck is an interesting but limited handheld gaming platform. To take advantage of its sometimes hidden features, from a highly functional Linux desktop mode to support for many non-Steam gaming platforms, adding some Steam Deck accessories can help.
Steam Deck users can personalize their experience with the handheld console by adding Steam Deck skin designs, getting a protective carrying case and more. You can also connect peripherals. I’ve definitely spent a good amount of my time to date with the Steam Deck using the device on a stand, with a wireless keyboard and mouse. I’ve spent less time connected to an external display, but I’ve also already ditched my first 256GB microSD card for a larger 512GB version.
I recently wrote an update about Steam Deck, a year after its release. These are some of my current suggestions for the best Steam Deck accessories — if you’re into 3D printing, be sure to scroll to the end.
The Steam Deck itself has only one USB-C port for both power and video output. This small docking station adds both HDMI and DisplayPort outputs, plus three USB-A ports and an Ethernet jack. Yes, it can technically output to your TV at 4K/60Hz, but the Steam Deck GPU isn’t really built for high-res gaming. The best thing about the official Valve dock is that it’s small and packed with ports. The downside is that at $89, it’s pretty expensive for a simple dock.
This dock is bigger, heavier and more expensive than the official Valve one, but it adds a useful extra feature — an M.2 drive slot inside. The advantage of having extra storage is that it gives you a place to offload and store large games to make more room on the Steam Deck itself, rather than constantly redownloading big game files.
With a power supply, dock and maybe some cables, a generous carry case for the Steam Deck is a must-have. I find the default case from Valve too small (and at least in my case, the zipper snagged right away), so after trying a few other models, I settled on this soft-sided Tomtoc carry bag.
It’s bulky, but has a separate area for accessories, a pocket for microSD cards and the main section has extra padding for the screen and padded V-shaped wings that follow the shape of the Steam Deck’s grips.
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Buying the base-model 64GB Steam Deck is like buying the smallest-capacity iPhone. You know you’re going to run out of space — and quickly. Unlike an iPhone, however, it’s easy to add a microSD card to the Steam Deck to use as secondary storage. The Steam Deck supports UHS-I (ultra-high speed) cards of the SD, SDXC and SDHC varieties, and adding one is very similar to doing the same on a Nintendo Switch. My advice is to go for capacity and price. The 512GB card above hit that sweet spot for me, but keep an eye out for sales on other models.
Doing a lot of digging around in the desktop mode of the Steam Deck, I knew right away I’d need a keyboard. I went with this very compact gaming keyboard that felt like an excellent match for the Steam Deck’s size. It connects via Bluetooth and charges via USB-C; just be aware that it lacks a number pad, and some of the layout is a little scrunched because it’s so small. Read our hands-on with the Razer BlackWidow Mini Hyperspeed.
As I went through my box of gaming mice, looking for the perfect Steam Deck companion, I took an immediate liking to the $40 Logitech G305. It’s reasonably small, isn’t overly burdened with extra buttons or gimmicks, and it’s wireless, which is key here. I was pleased to find it on our list of the best cheap gaming mice, and you can also find other suggestions here in our overall best mouse roundup.
You can output the video signal from the Steam Deck via the system’s USB-C port (which is also its power port, so keep that in mind). I hooked up a 27-inch 4K Acer Predator X27 display, which looked great, but note that you don’t really need the 4K resolution or G-Sync, so a less expensive display would work, too. With the system’s relatively weak graphics optimized for 1,280×800-pixel resolution, blowing things up to 4K and 27 inches is just going to highlight those limitations. But it also makes working in the desktop mode much easier.
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The unofficial CNET DIY Steam Deck stand
Best low-cost stand
Yes, Valve is making its own stand for the Steam Deck that will also act as a docking station. But the date, price and even exact details on that are all TBD. Not wanting to wait, I tweaked some tablet stand designs and created both 3D printed and lasercut Steam Deck stands, perfectly sized to the device. You can download the designs here, and this list of the best 3D printers should get you started making one of them.
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3D-printed Steam Deck clip-on stand
Best portable kickstand
I love the DIY 3D-printed kickstand. Unlike the lasercut stand I made before, this design, which I found on the Printables.com 3D model repository, stays clipped on to the Steam Deck and pops open as needed. This is a three-part design, with a clip-on base, the kickstand and a hinge. The three parts took about four hours to print on a 3D printer, and two 6mm M3 screws are required, which I was able to pick up at my local hardware store.
Stargazing with a friend or partner is a relaxing nighttime activity. But if you’re wanting to relax under dark skies and look at the stars, how will you know where to look? Or what you’re seeing? If you want to check out the celestial bodies and star clusters visible in a clear night sky, you should consider downloading a stargazing app. The best stargazing apps can give you a better map of the sky and more details about what you’re seeing.
My husband and I are far enough out in the country to see stars, but we haven’t completely escaped the city’s light pollution. Every so often before we turn in for the night, we’ll step out onto the back porch if the sky is clear, and look up. We’ve seen a shockingly bright Venus, the ISS streak by and a few shooting stars — thanks in part to help from some astronomy apps. If you want to take a look at some of the best stargazing app options, read on. These apps should help you spot planets, stars and constellations — and some of them have a free version.
Google Sky lets you explore the reaches of space through the “eyes” of the Hubble Space Telescope, the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and the Digitized Sky Survey. You can explore the wealth of information available free on mobile or desktop.
Click through the tray at the bottom of the screen to learn more about the solar system, constellations, galaxies and nebulae, views of the universe in X-ray, ultraviolet and infrared. You can also use sliding bars to see drawings of the sky by Giovanni Maria Cassini.
Plus, find where the planets are in the sky at a given time by typing the name of a planet in the search box.
The SkySafari astronomy app, which starts at $2 on iOS and free on Android, lets you hold your phone to the sky to identify planets, constellations, stars and satellites. You can also use the app to see what the sky might’ve looked like thousands of years ago, or what it will look like in the future.
Simulate past meteor showers, approaching comets and celestial events, like eclipses. SkySafari also has a constellation illustration overlay feature in case you can’t quite visualize the lion or bear that everyone else claims to see. The app also offers history, mythology and science information to accompany the images.
If you’re not sure where to get started, you can tap Tonight’s Best in the app to check out which object in the sky you could get the best look at.
The Star Tracker app works on iOS (lite) and Android to show you 88 constellations, over 8,000 and deep-sky objects, and the sun, moon and planets, all in real time. The app uses a 3D compass in AR mode that indicates the position of objects you’ve searched for. Think of it as a mobile planetarium.
To enhance constellations, Star Tracker has a graphics feature for the 12 zodiac signs and six famous deep-sky objects.
The app is free, but there’s a full version with more features for $3 and a no ads version for $1. In addition, Star Tracker Pro offers a Time Machine feature and night mode.
The International Space Station (ISS) app, available free on iOS and Android, doesn’t technically show you stars, but you can check out planets and the ISS itself. The app tracks where the in-space laboratory is currently located above the world at any given time.
Once you plug in your location — the only permission the app asks for — it can tell you how often you can expect to see the ISS in the sky. For example, residents of Louisville, Kentucky will typically be able to see the ISS between about 7:57 p.m. and 9:37 p.m. each night for about 30 seconds to a minute and a half. It’s a fleeting window — the ISS is traveling at about 17,100 miles per hour.
The app also keeps track of how long until the ISS will pass over your location again, and how long it’ll be visible. On average, it looks like the ISS is visible in a given area one to two times per day over the course of a week.
The Skyview app is $3 on iOS and $2 on Android, but both platforms have a free lite version. To use Skyview, just point your device at the sky and you can get started identifying galaxies, stars, constellations, planets — even the International Space Station. The app has night mode and an AR feature, so you can use it comfortably any time.
The app’s Sky Path’s feature lets you track objects in space to see exact locations at any date and time. In addition, Skyview has a time travel option to observe what the sky looked like in the past and might look like in the future.
No at-home space adventure is complete without the free official NASA app, which you can download for iOS or Android. Although technically you can’t use the app for stargazing in the same vein as some of the others on this list, you can still get up close and personal with space.
Check out a photo library with thousands of images constantly being updated and watch live NASA TV. In addition, the app has on-demand videos from around the agency and live streaming from the High-Definition Earth Viewing experiment on the ISS.
The app also keeps you in the know about NASA missions, launch information, upcoming sightings, news and tweets from the agency.
Star Walk 2, $3 for iOS and free for Android with in-app purchases, uses your phone’s sensors and GPS to show you a map of the night sky in real time, pinpointing the location of stars, planets, constellations, comets, the ISS and satellites.
Like SkySafari, you can tap Visible Tonight if you’re not sure where to start. The feature will tell you all upcoming astronomical events and celestial objects visible for your location. The What’s New section will also keep you posted on upcoming events. You can also view the astronomy calendar or tap the clock-face icon to select any date and time and watch the sky of different periods.
Spectacular ISS shots of cities at night (pictures)
