Microsoft introduces 4 practical tools to empower content creators

by Hansraj Agrawal | Oct 14, 2022 | Technology

As the content creators’ economy grows, Microsoft has launched four new practical tools for content creators to unleash their creativity.

The new tools are called Microsoft Designer, Microsoft Clipchamp, Microsoft Create and Image Creator.

The ‘Microsoft Designer’ is a graphic design app in Microsoft 365 (formerly Office 365) that allows creators to create social media posts, invitations, digital postcards, graphics, and more.

Microsoft Designer is powered by AI technology, so creators do not need to create cards or social media posts from scratch, according to the company.

Meanwhile, ‘Microsoft Climpchap’ is a free video editor by which content creators can create all types of videos (vlogs, reels, etc) in no time.

With Climpchap, creators can make professional-grade videos, without needing to be an editing expert, said the company.

Moreover, a new website called ‘Microsoft Create’ has been developed to help people create videos, graphic designs, documents, presentations and more.

The website brings together the content creation apps from Designer to Clipchamp to PowerPoint to Word and beyond.

“The ‘Microsoft Create’ website is live and available for anyone to use. We’ll continue to build new functionality and content into the site over time,” the company added.

With ‘Image Creator’, content creators will be able to create images that don’t yet exist.

Image Creator will let creators bring their ideas to life. Simply type in a description of something, any additional context like location or activity, and an art style, and Image Creator will make it for you, the tech giant added.

–IANS

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(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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Google rolls out Maps, Search widget update for iOS 16 Lock Screen

by Hansraj Agrawal | Oct 14, 2022 | Technology

Tech giant Google has completed iOS 16 lock screen widgets rollout with Maps and Search update.

The company announced to update six lock screen widgets on iOS 16 launch day, out of which, four widgets were updated recently.

Google Maps’ 6.40 update adds two iOS 16 Lock Screen widgets – Frequent Trips and Search, reports 9To5Google.

“Frequent Trips” give directions and expected time of arrival for frequent trips. Whereas, the “Search” option helps to find restaurants, gas stations, and more.

The updated Search adds 4 new widgets to iOS 16 – Search, Voice Search, Lens and Lens Shortcuts, the report said.

“Search” gives access to Google Search from the Lock Screen, whereas, with the “Voice Search” you can ask a question, hum a song, or search for content with the voice.

“Lens” helps to search with the camera or any image. Meanwhile, “Lens Shortcuts” provide easy access to any lens.

Recently, the company rolled out “Passkey” support to both Android and Chrome for better safety.

Passkeys are a safer alternative to passwords and other phishable forms of authentication.

“They cannot be reused, don’t leak in server breaches, and protect users from phishing attacks,” the company recently said in a blog post.

–IANS

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(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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Sony electronics unveils its 1st over-the-counter hearing aids in US

by Hansraj Agrawal | Oct 14, 2022 | Technology

Tech giant Sony Electronics has announced the availability of its first over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids for the US market.

The company said it is re-imagining the hearing device space with a focus on innovation, accessibility and personalization.

“With the unique products, developed in partnership with WS Audiology (WSA), a leading innovator in hearing aid technology for more than 100 years, Sony will enhance the lives of consumers by combining its unique premium technology, ultimate ease of use, and uncompromised comfort and wearability,” it said in a statement.

The first two products to debut from the partnership are the CRE-C10 and the CRE-E10 self-fitting OTC hearing aids, designed to understand that one size does not fit all and that people deserve options that best fit their unique needs, situations, and lives.

Utilizing the app, the CRE-C10 and CRE-E10 intuitively adapt to each user’s speech and surroundings, blending the latest technology with comfort to meet each individual’s hearing goals.

Created for daily use, Sony’s goal with these new devices is to break down the current barriers faced by those with signs of mild to moderate hearing loss and provide a simple, app-enabled, do-it-yourself solution that can allow for a better hearing experience.

While each device features an easy-to-navigate app interface with customizable options for the wearer’s specific hearing needs and preferences, the two models coming to market will provide more choices regarding the look and capabilities of high-end hearing devices.

Each device can be used soon after purchase by following an easy set-up with the Sony | Hearing Control App. Users are guided through a step-by-step process, answering a few brief questions to quickly set up and start using either device in a matter of minutes.

The user-friendly app allows each device to communicate with the user’s smartphone, letting them quickly personalise settings, including volume control and more to ensure the wearer hears exactly what they intend, in multiple environments.

The app also allows the wearer to “self-fit” each device. During the in-app self-fitting process, each Sony device self-adjusts to the most appropriate of pre-defined hearing profiles, which are based on thousands of actual, real-life audiogram results.

–IANS

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(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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After US, Instagram brings age verification options to India: How it works

by Hansraj Agrawal | Oct 14, 2022 | Technology

Meta-owned social media platform Instagram on Friday announced that it is expanding the testing options for age verification to India. Initially limited to the US, the new options for age verification are now being tested by Instagram in Brazil too. The social media platform is planning to expand the test to the UK and the EU before the end of the year.

This new options will require users to verify their age, if they attempt to change their date of birth on Instagram from under the age of 18 to 18 or more. To verify age, Instagram users need to either upload their identity document or submit a recorded video selfie. In some countries, Instagram requires people to be at least 13 years old to sign up.

“We’re testing this so we can make sure teens and adults are in the right experience for their age group,” said the company.

Instagram says users ID will be stored on its servers and will be deleted within 30 days, if users choose to verify their age by uploading ID. Alternatively, users can choose to upload a video selfie to verify their age. They will be guided by the on-screen instructions. Once the video selfie is recorded, the image will be shared with Yoti — a company that offers privacy-preserving ways to verify age. Yoti estimates the user’s age based on their facial features and shares that estimate with Instagram. Both Meta and Yoti then delete the image. The technology cannot recognise users’ identity – just their age, according to Instagram.

Besides the above two mentioned options, Instagram is also testing social vouching option for age verification.

What is Social Vouching?

Social Vouching allows users to ask mutual followers to confirm their age. The person vouching must be at least 18 years old and must not be vouching for anyone else at that time. That person will be needed to meet other Instagram safeguards too. Users have to select three people to vouch for them, the selected people will receive a request to confirm the user’s age and will have to respond within three days.

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Xiaomi launches MediaTek Helio A22-powered Redmi A1+ smartphone in India

by Hansraj Agrawal | Oct 14, 2022 | Technology

Chinese electronics maker Xiaomi on Friday launched in India the Plus variant of its entry-level Redmi A1 smartphone. Named the Redmi A1+, the smartphone is identical to the non-plus variant in terms of design and features. It, however, gets a rear mounted capacitive fingerprint sensor as part of the upgrade. The Redmi A1+ is priced at Rs 7,499 and Rs 8,499 for the 2GB+32GB and 3GB+32GB variants, respectively. It will be available online on Flipkart and Mi online store, and offline at Mi Home and select stores from October 17.

Xiaomi Redmi A1+: Specifications and features

This entry-level smartphone from Xiaomi features a leather textured back, which comes in black, light green, and light blue colours. The smartphone sports a capacitive fingerprint scanner on the back for phone unlock mechanism. It has a 6.52-inch HD+ screen, which supports up to 120Hz touch sampling rate. The smartphone boots Android 12 operating system with select pre-installed apps from Xiaomi such as FM Radio. It has a 3.5mm headphone jack for wired connectivity. A 5,000mAh battery powers the smartphone.

A dual-camera set-up on the back, featuring an 8-megapixel primary sensor and a depth sensor, covers imaging. There is a 5MP camera sensor on the front for selfies and video calls. The phone comes with up to 3GB RAM and 32GB storage. It has a microSD card slot for storage expansion (up to 512GB). Powering the device is MediaTek Helio A22 system-on-chip.

The Redmi A1+ ships with a 10W charging adaptor, USB cable, SIM eject tool, quick start guide, and warranty card in the box. It is a 4G smartphone with single-band 2.4GHz Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5.0 wireless connectivity. It supports both voice-over LTE and Wi-Fi for high definition voice calling experience.

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Google passkeys for password-less future: Know what is it and how it works

by Hansraj Agrawal | Oct 14, 2022 | Technology

Ahead of final rollout, Google has announced the release of its passkey support for developers on Android and Chrome. The American software giant says ‘passkey’ is a safer substitute for passwords and other phishable authentication factors. It will be integrated with the Google Password Manager to simplify sign-ins across devices, websites and applications — no matter the platform. But what is Google passkey and how does it work? Let’s find out:

Passkeys: What is it

Passkeys are a new type of login credential that replaces passwords. The authentication requires either biometric authentication — such as a fingerprint or facial recognition — or a PIN or swipe pattern used with Androids for access. According to Google, they are built on industry standards and work across different operating systems and browser ecosystems, and can be used for both websites and apps. They follow familiar user experience patterns, and build on the existing experience of password autofill.

Passkeys: How it works

Google says its passkeys work similar to using a saved password in the Google Password Manager. To prevent lockouts in the case of device loss, passkeys are backed-up and synced through the cloud on users’ phones and computers. The passkeys can be used to sign in to apps and websites on other nearby devices via users’ phone.

Users can create and use passkeys on Android devices, which are synced through the Google Password Manager. On Android and other supported platforms, developers can build passkey support on their sites for end-users using Chrome via the WebAuthn API. Currently, developers can use Chrome Canary and sign up for the Google Play Services beta to test this.

How to create passkeys:

Step 1: Through settings on Android 9 device and later, click on Create a Passkey

Step 2: Confirm the passkey account information

Step 3: Present fingerprint, face, or screen lock when prompted

Earlier, Apple released a similar Passkey feature with its iOS 16 update that allows users to use their Apple devices to log in to websites and services without requiring passwords. Apple, Google and Microsoft partnered with the FIDO Alliance and the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) earlier this year, for removing passwords for user authentication across the platforms.

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