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jeudi 8 septembre 2022

These are the Best Apple Watch Series 8 Deals right now in 2022

In addition to the iPhone 14 and the Pro models, Apple also announced a trio of new watches at its “Far Out” event. As expected, we got the latest Apple Watch Series 8, a more rugged-looking Apple Watch Ultra, and a new affordable model dubbed the Apple Watch SE. All these watches look great on paper, but we’ll find out soon if they deserve a spot in our best Apple watch collection.

Unlike the new iPhones, the new smartwatches are already up for grabs, meaning you can order one right now and be one of the first ones to receive it. In this post, we’ll take a quick look at the best Apple Watch Series 8 deals for those who are interested in buying the regular variant of the watch:

The new Apple Watch Series 8 is available to purchase in two sizes — 41mm and 45mm, both of which come with either aluminum or stainless steel finish. The new watch starts at $399 for the GPS and $499 for the cellular version. You can visit the links mentioned below to find the best prices for this watch online right now:

Apple Store

Apple’s online store continues to remain one of the best places to buy all Apple products. The new Apple Watch Series 8 is also available to purchase from Apple’s online store in all sizes and finishes. The best thing about buying it directly from Apple is that you can either it delivered to your doorstep or pick it up yourself from the nearest Apple store. Apple is currently offering three months of Apple Fitness+ with each purchase of Series 8 smartwatches. Additionally, you can also trade in your existing Apple Watch to get up to $150 in credit.

Apple Watch Series 8

While purchasing the new Apple Watch Series 8 directly from the company's online store, you can choose to either pay the full amount upfront or opt for a 24-months installment.

Buy from Apple

Amazon

The new Apple Watch Series 8 is also available on Amazon. You can pre-order the watch right now and get it delivered when it goes on sale on September 16. Amazon isn’t offering any discounts on the new watch but we suggest you keep an eye on this listing as Amazon products are frequently discounted throughout the year.

Apple Watch Series 8

Amazon has both the GPS as well as the cellular version of the Apple Watch Series 8 up for grabs right now.

Buy Apple Watch Series 8 (GPS)

Buy Apple Watch Series 8 (GPS + Cellular)

Best Buy

Best Buy is also carrying the new Apple Watch Series 8 smartwatch. In fact, this particular retailer has a lot of finishes on offer for both the GPS as well as Cellular models. Unlike Amazon, Best Buy is offering a free Apple Fitness+ subscription with each purchase of this watch. In fact, you get four months of Apple Fitness+, which is better than Apple’s three months bundle on its online store. You also get the option to trade in your existing Apple Watch to save some money on your purchase.

Apple Watch Series 8

You can choose to pay the full price for the Apple Watch Series 8 upfront or get 12-month financing for the watch, starting at $33.25/month instead while purchasing from Best Buy.

Buy Apple Watch Series 8 (GPS)

Buy Apple Watch Series 8 (GPS + Cellular)

We’ll continue to scout the market for more deals and add them to this post once they are made available. In the meantime, you can browse through some of the best bands and cases to figure out ways to customize your Apple Watch.

The post These are the Best Apple Watch Series 8 Deals right now in 2022 appeared first on XDA.

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Apple’s SIM tray removal is anti-consumer and ruins the best smartphone for roaming

Apple unveiled the iPhone 14 series at its “Far Out” launch event on the 7th of September. Alongside it came a selection of other products too, including the next generation of AirPods, the Apple Watch Series 8, and the Apple Watch Ultra. However, one of the biggest surprises of the event is one that actively harms U.S. consumers, and that’s the courageous removal of the SIM tray.

Apple is no stranger to anti-consumer practices (and for that matter, nor are any of the other Fortune 500 companies), but this is a new low for the Cupertino-based firm. The company has offered eSIM as a just-as-good alternative for bewildered consumers who aren’t sure what to do next. The problem is that eSIM isn’t necessarily the bastion of standardization that Apple would want you to believe that it is.

The problem with eSIM

Apple iOS 16 shown off with eSim setup screens

There are carriers in the United States that don't actually support eSIM yet

eSIM is, in theory, a great solution to the digitization of physical SIM cards. It allows a carrier to instantly share connectivity details to your smartphone, it stops your SIM card from being lost or stolen, and you can quickly and easily change mobile operators — in a perfect world. The problem is that every carrier has its own hoops to jump through, and what’s more, there are a ton of carriers in the United States that don’t actually support eSIM yet.

Like seriously. Go look at the list of all the MVNOs in the US and then compare it to Apple’s list of supported eSIM carriers. It’s not perfect, since Apple is missing a few, but a *lot* of carriers don’t support eSIM.https://t.co/byFxayccoi https://t.co/EipQs3Dgj3

— Zachary Wander (@Wander1236) September 7, 2022

So, if you want to use a newer iPhone on your current carrier, and your current carrier happens to be one of the MVNOs listed above, you’re screwed. You’ll either need to push your carrier to introduce eSIM support or, more likely, you’ll have to switch carriers. Some carriers even only reserve eSIM support for higher-tier plans. If you break your phone, you also won’t be able to just quickly take the SIM card and stick it in an older phone. Your older phone mightn’t support eSIM, and even if it does, you’ll often need to wait on your carrier to distribute a new eSIM to you. What’s more, Ting has also been pretty transparent in the past that they aren’t being allowed support eSIM.

If it seems like this is a change that benefits the carriers with little-to-no consumer benefit, then you’ve seen nothing yet.

International roaming will be a pain with eSIM

The bigger problem with eSIM, and one that anyone who travels abroad will have realized very quickly, is that it’s going to be a lot harder to get a local data SIM card when traveling. Before the days of free EU roaming, when I traveled, I would pick up a local data SIM card and stick it in my smartphone as a means of accessing mobile data without paying crazy-high roaming fees. I picked up a local SIM card in Latvia a few years ago for about €4, and it had a month of unlimited data. A U.S. consumer no longer has that luxury.

Funny how it seems this change only benefits the carriers

Are there local eSIM options in many countries around the world? Absolutely! Apple even has a list. However, I know from experience in the Irish carrier market that while there is a listed option, it’s not quite as it seems. Vodafone is the only provider in Ireland that offers eSIM, but Vodafone is also significantly more expensive than any other carrier here. An American arriving in Ireland could pick up a local SIM card for €10 for unlimited data for a month here, but if you need an eSIM, you’re looking at a €20 minimum and potentially more hoops to jump through in a foreign country.

Nothing stopped Apple from keeping single SIM plus eSIM support, as you know, it still does for the rest of the world. If you wanted to use eSIM you could, and if your carrier supported it, you could gain from all of the benefits of eSIM without being locked into a particular kind of carrier. This instead acts as another roadblock to using a local SIM card, and for many, the hassle of jumping to another local carrier when on vacation won’t be worth it. This in turn will kick roaming fee profits back to the carriers. It even makes the phone difficult to import from the U.S. to some regions, which people may want to do as the prices have risen in Europe, India and so many other markets.

Funny how it seems this change only benefits the carriers.

It takes courage

What I found most peculiar about this ordeal is how there are essentially no tangible benefits to consumers. Every single anti-consumer action that Apple takes will generally have a consumer-positive spin on top of it. The removal of the headphone jack for example was touted as a way to increase the space available inside of the phone for other components, and it just so happens to be able to sell you the solution in the form of AirPods. The removal of the charging brick in the box was described as an eco-friendly change, yet consumers just end up paying more for a charging brick. Apple is a company, companies want to make money, and companies are not your friends.

There are essentially no tangible benefits to consumers

Having said that, the courageous move of removing the SIM tray still completely boggles my mind. There is no consumer-positive slant. I haven’t seen any argumentation from fervent Apple defenders that makes even a modicum of sense, as I saw with the removal of the headphone jack or the removal of the charging brick from the box. U.S. consumers will stick to their carriers, or jump through multiple arduous hoops trying to get away from them when roaming.

Even weirder is that this means Apple is producing three separate variants of the iPhone 14 series. There’s an eSIM-only version for the United States, an eSIM plus physical SIM version for most of the world, and a dual physical SIM version for China. U.S. travelers will know that the iPhone is arguably the best phone for roaming thanks to its support of a wide berth of 5G and other network bands, but now it’s both simultaneously the best and the worst.

If this is a move towards the long-rumored portless iPhone, then it’s a jump that I think comes too soon. I also hate what this signals for the Android community — we all know how it will eventually turn out to be. Android OEMs will mock Apple in the beginning, and then soon adopt the very same practices. In the end, its the consumer who loses.

The post Apple’s SIM tray removal is anti-consumer and ruins the best smartphone for roaming appeared first on XDA.

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Microsoft rolls out fix for issue preventing Windows 11 users from signing in

Microsoft has confirmed and issued a fix for a bug in Windows 11, which could have caused users to be unable to sign in after adding a new Microsoft account to Windows. The issue first appeared after the latest optional update for Windows 11 (labeled KB5016691, or build 22000.918,) which rolled out on August 25th, so unless you opted to install that update, you may not have noticed.

As Microsoft explains, the issue would only have affected users with Microsoft accounts – meaning Active Directory and Azure AD accounts aren’t affected – and it would only happen if you added a Microsoft account to Windows after installing the update. Additionally, the sign-in issue only occurs when signing in for the first time and only for a “brief time” after restarting or signing out of the PC, meaning it should go away in time.

Along with acknowledging the problem, Microsoft immediately issued a fix using a Known Issue Rollback, which is a common method used to fix problems with cumulative updates. This is a minor configuration change you won’t be able to see, but the problem should be fixed within 24 hours as long as you’re connected to the internet. Microsoft says the fix might be applied sooner if you restart your device, in case you can’t afford to wait.

If you’re in an enterprise environment and you need an immediate fix, you can use use the Group Policy Editor to apply the fix manually. You can install and configure the policy by going to Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> KB5016691 220722_051525 Known Issue Rollback -> Windows 11 (original release). This should allow you to sign in to Windows 11 with a Microsoft account again.

These kinds of issues aren’t exactly a rarity with cumulative updates for Windows. Just last week, Microsoft had to issue another fix – this time for Windows 10 – for an issue that may have prevented audio from working in certain situations. That one was actually a bit more concerning, considering the problem showed up in a mandatory update rolled out on Patch Tuesday.

Source: Microsoft
Via: Neowin

The post Microsoft rolls out fix for issue preventing Windows 11 users from signing in appeared first on XDA.

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What colors do the Apple iPhone 14 Pro and the iPhone 14 Pro Max come in?

In addition to the regular iPhone 14 and a bigger Plus variant, Apple has also introduced the Pro models dubbed the iPhone 14 Pro and the iPhone 14 Pro Max. We already know everything about the new iPhones so it’s now time to shift the focus toward the color options. In this article, we’ll take a look at all the iPhone 14 Pro colors to figure out which one looks the best out of the bunch.

Gold is perhaps the most elegant color you can pick for the iPhone 14 Pro. This year's Gold finish, as you can see, is similar to the one found on last year's model, so you know what to expect.

Buy from Apple

Buy from AT&T

Deep Purple

New to the Pro models this year is the Deep Purple colorway. This shade of purple looks darker than the one you get on the regular iPhone 14 units. This is the color to get if you've been looking to buy something new.

Buy from Apple

Gold, as we mentioned earlier, is one of the most elegant colors for the new iPhones. It makes the phone look very sophisticated, so you're sure to turn some heads with this one.

Buy from Apple

Buy from AT&T

Space Black

The Space Black iPhone 14 Pro Max looks very similar to the Graphite finish from last year. It looks a bit darker than the Graphite color in real life, but they're mostly identical otherwise.

Buy from Apple

Buy from AT&T

Closing Thoughts

Well, those are the colors you can pick for the new iPhone Pro models. We think Silver and the new Space Black are the safest colors to pick as they’ve been around for quite some time now. Gold is also an evergreen color that gives the phone a very sophisticated look. But if you want something new this year, then you’ll have to pick the Deep Purple finish. We’ve already seen a different shade of this particular color on other iPhones in the past but we think the new iPhone 14 Pro models also look slightly different due to the matte finish at the back.

The regular iPhone 14 models are available in different finishes. They’re also available in more fun colorways, so be sure to take a look at them as well before making a purchase decision. Regardless of how good the new finishes look, we always recommend buying one of the best cases to protect your smartphones. They can be a little expensive in the case of the new iPhones, so be sure to stop our best deals page to see if you can snag a deal on your purchase.

The post What colors do the Apple iPhone 14 Pro and the iPhone 14 Pro Max come in? appeared first on XDA.

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Blue

Apple's blue-colored iPhone is making a comeback for another year. This colorway has changed over time but it still looks very clean and stands as a solid choice for those who want something different. This year's blue color has a lighter shade compared to what we got last year.

Buy from Apple

If you want to stand out with a unique iPhone colorway but don't want to pick up the Product Red or the new Purple variants, then Blue is the way to go. It's a lighter shade of blue than what we saw on the iPhone 12.

Buy from Apple

Buy from AT&T

Closing Thoughts

Well, those are the iPhone 14 and the iPhone 14 Plus colors you can pick up this year. A lot of these, as you can see, are returning colors from last year. If you really want to pick up a new color then you’ll have to go with Purple. It’s the same shade of purple we saw on the iPhone 11, so you know what to expect. But if you are looking to pick up a safe option then we think you can’t go wrong with either Midnight or the Starlight colorways. They may not be the most exciting colors out there but they look great overall.

As much as you like showing off the colors of your new iPhones, we think it’s always best to protect them with one of the best cases on the market. A lot of the newer iPhone 14 cases are quite expensive, so you might want to check out our best iPhone 14 deals collection to see if you can save some money on your purchase.

The post What colors do the Apple iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus come in? appeared first on XDA.

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mercredi 7 septembre 2022

HTC adds face and eye tracking with new Vive Focus 3 accessories

HTC has announced two new accessories for its Vive Focus 3, the Focus 3 Facial Tracker and Focus 3 Eye Tracker. These two new devices will bring more natural experiences to VR, offering more immersive experiences with face and eye tracking.

Up until now, digital avatars in the VR world were pretty good, but one thing that they lacked was expression. Users could never relay facial expressions to digital friends because face and eye tracking wasn’t an option. With the Focus 3 Facial Tracker, users can convey a wide range of emotions thanks to the mono-tracking camera that can detect lips, jaw, cheeks, chin, teeth, and more. This tracking method will allow the camera to capture the most realistic facial expressions and mouth movements. Perhaps even more impressive is that with 60Hz tracking, users can synchronize mouth movements with their voice, so interactions look as real as possible in the VR space. Best of all, there isn’t much that needs to be done when installing the new accessory, just plug it into the VR headset via USB-C.

VIVE Focus 3 gets Facial Tracker, and Eye Tracker

Like the Facial Tracker, the Focus 3 Eye Tracker will introduce more realism into the world of VR with realistic eye movements like blinking and squinting. The device will have a dual camera setup with IR illuminators that will be able to capture pupil direction, size, and even position. The unit will attach via magnets, making it easy to take on and off the Vive Focus 3. Furthermore, it’s lightweight. Beyond the previously mentioned benefits, eye tracking will allow for “foveated rendering.” This is a great optimization technique where the headset directs the highest fidelity graphics where the user is currently looking. This not only improves the user’s experience but also allows Focus 3 to process graphics more efficiently.

HTC Vive Focus 3

Purchase from Amazon

The Vive Focus 3 VR headset comes priced at $1,300, with the Vive Focus 3 Facial Tracker currently priced at $99, while the Eye Tracker comes in at $249. This is certainly an interesting time for HTC to announce these accessories, as rival Meta has teased its own VR headset with facial tracking set to arrive in October.

Source: HTC Vive Blog

The post HTC adds face and eye tracking with new Vive Focus 3 accessories appeared first on XDA.

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Latest PlayStation 5 update brings 1440p support and a host of new features

A day after unveiling the PlayStation 5 Gray Camouflage collection, Sony has started rolling out a new software update for the console with several new features. The update includes 1440p HDMI output support, a new Gamelists feature, the ability to search YouTube using voice commands, and more.

A post on the PlayStation Blog highlights that the latest software release unlocks 1440p video output on the PlayStation 5. This means that gamers should now be able to enjoy games in 1440p resolution on 1440p/60Hz and 1440p/120Hz gaming monitors and TVs. However, the new 1440p output option doesn’t get variable refresh rate (VRR) support, which might result in screen tearing and other issues.

In addition, the latest PlayStation 5 software update brings support for Gamelists to help gamers organize their game library. The feature will let you create up to 15 Gamelists with up to 100 games each. Furthermore, the update brings the ability to request a Share Screen from fellow party members, easily view new friends’ profiles, and receive a notification to easily join a friend’s game from a party chat. But that’s not all.

The PlayStation 5 software update also includes support for voice commands in YouTube Search, allowing users to look up videos on the platform using just their voice. However, the feature is currently available as a preview for PlayStation 5 users in the U.S. and U.K. only.

Sony has also shared details about some new features coming to the PS App for iOS and Android, including the ability to launch a PS Remote Play session through the app and request a Share Screen. These features will roll out to the PS App later this month.

Have you received the latest software update on your PlayStation 5? Did you face any issues due to the lack of VRR support in the new 1440p output mode? Let us know in the comments section below.

Source: PlayStation Blog

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