https://techxplore.com/consumer-gadgets-news/ en-us Tthe latest news on consumer electronics, electronic gadgets and electronics. Smartphone apps have become commonplace tools for travel and navigation. As technology becomes more integrated into transport networks, apps will continue to be indispensable. But many of those apps remain inaccessible to those with various disabilities. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-07-apps-people-disabilities-transit-accessibility.html Consumer & Gadgets Thu, 13 Jul 2023 18:30:01 EDT news608473859 In a new study, deepfake video clips of movie remakes that don't actually exist prompted participants to falsely remember the films—but simple text descriptions of the fake movies prompted similar false memory rates. Gillian Murphy of University College Cork, Ireland, and Lero, the Science Foundation Ireland Research Centre for Software, and colleagues presented these findings in the open-access journal PLOS ONE. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-07-deepfake-videos-prompt-false-memories.html Consumer & Gadgets Thu, 13 Jul 2023 12:52:03 EDT news608471521 Blake Smith was confused when his contractor told him at the end of June that the city of Dallas still hadn't approved his application for a new fence. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-07-ransomware-delays-dallas-ive-weeks.html Consumer & Gadgets Mon, 10 Jul 2023 16:35:03 EDT news608225701 Mark Zuckerberg's new social media platform, Threads, has been released in smartphone app stores (although not in the EU). Zuckerberg, who is chief executive of Threads' parent company Meta, says that at least 30 million users signed up in the app's first day. According to some speculative reporting, Threads might be a reliable alternative to Twitter. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-07-threads-twitter-rival-shrewd-meta.html Consumer & Gadgets Fri, 07 Jul 2023 13:33:04 EDT news607955581 Recently, a research team led by Prof. Kong Deyi from the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science of Chinese Academy of Sciences has invented an innovative product called the Automobile Brake Pedal Recorder to address the growing concern of accidents caused by braking problems, especially in electric vehicles. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-07-scientists-solution-accurately-actions.html Consumer & Gadgets Thu, 06 Jul 2023 17:02:02 EDT news607881721 Google users can now apply for their share of a $23 million privacy lawsuit settlement. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-07-google-million-privacy-settlement.html Consumer & Gadgets Thu, 06 Jul 2023 16:50:15 EDT news607881013 The South Australian government has announced a trial of AI technologies in eight public high schools. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-07-high-school-students-chatgpt-style-app.html Consumer & Gadgets Thu, 06 Jul 2023 14:20:04 EDT news607871999 Artificial intelligence (AI) can help people shop, plan, and write—but not cook. It turns out humans aren't the only ones who have a hard time following step-by-step recipes in the correct order, but new research from the Georgia Institute of Technology's College of Computing could change that. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-07-chef-dataset-ai-cooking.html Consumer & Gadgets Wed, 05 Jul 2023 16:49:02 EDT news607794538 With the recent spate of privacy-focused investigations, government regulators may be looking to send Big Tech a message—and it's landing in Seattle's tech-fueled backyard. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-07-ftc-child-privacy-amazon-microsoft.html Consumer & Gadgets Wed, 05 Jul 2023 15:36:28 EDT news607790181 Digital signage serves as an electronic bulletin board, displaying a range of information, including advertisements. However, with an inundation of visual information, such signage often gets lost in the clutter, making it hard for people to notice it—a phenomenon known as "display blindness." https://techxplore.com/news/2023-07-flicker-awareness-digital-signage-advertisements.html Consumer & Gadgets Wed, 05 Jul 2023 12:45:54 EDT news607779953 The history of television began long before millions of people gathered in front of their black-and-white sets and fiddled with the antenna and horizontal hold to watch Lucy, Uncle Miltie and Howdy Doodie. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-07-ohio-museum-tv-older.html Consumer & Gadgets Mon, 03 Jul 2023 11:50:34 EDT news607603795 A new virtual reality (VR) app which takes users on a journey back in time to ancient Greece where they are able to experience first-hand what it was like to consult with the Greek god Zeus at the Oracle of Dodona has been developed by a team of academics led by the University of Bristol. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-ancient-greece-virtual-reality.html Consumer & Gadgets Fri, 30 Jun 2023 10:11:46 EDT news607338700 Even though our computers are now better than 15 years ago, they still malfunction 11%–20% of the time, a new study from the University of Copenhagen and Roskilde University concludes. The researchers behind the study therefore find that there are major gains to be achieved for society by rethinking the systems and involving users more in their development. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-problems.html Consumer & Gadgets Thu, 29 Jun 2023 15:45:04 EDT news607272301 Financial services play vital roles in supporting economic activities. In Nigeria, though, a significant number of people don't have access to essential banking services. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-nigeria-mobile-money-dark-side.html Consumer & Gadgets Wed, 28 Jun 2023 11:47:03 EDT news607171621 When Apple announced its long-awaited augmented reality headset, Vision Pro, earlier this month, part of the pitch was that these "Ready Player One"-esque goggles would change how we consume entertainment. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-skeptical-vr-goggles-apple-disney.html Consumer & Gadgets Fri, 23 Jun 2023 13:24:20 EDT news606745457 Jackson Lefebvre isn't a software engineer or computer programmer, nor can he develop websites. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-dont-techie-app.html Consumer & Gadgets Fri, 23 Jun 2023 13:15:10 EDT news606744905 The Hajj—the annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, which Muslims are expected to make once in their lives if they are able—is expected to begin June 26 and last for five days. In 2023, approximately 2 million pilgrims will participate, close to the annual numbers of pilgrims in years before the COVID-19 pandemic. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-technology-heart-hajj.html Consumer & Gadgets Fri, 23 Jun 2023 12:12:51 EDT news606741168 Apple's recent unveiling of the Vision Pro, its first augmented reality and virtual reality (VR) headset, came as a surprise to no one who follows Apple news—rumors had been circulating for years. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-businesses-leak-product-benefit-rumors.html Consumer & Gadgets Thu, 22 Jun 2023 14:13:04 EDT news606661982 In the space of a few months generative AI models, such as ChatGPT, Google's Bard and Midjourney, have been adopted by more and more people in a variety of professional and personal ways. But growing research is underlining that they are encoding biases and negative stereotypes in their users, as well as mass generating and spreading seemingly accurate but nonsensical information. Worryingly, marginalized groups are disproportionately affected by the fabrication of this nonsensical information. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-generative-ai-encoding-biases-negative.html Consumer & Gadgets Thu, 22 Jun 2023 14:00:02 EDT news606645973 The first-ever Olympic-organized Esports Week kicked off in Singapore on Thursday, but an IOC official said there is currently no plan to include video games in the Olympic program. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-olympic-esports-week.html Consumer & Gadgets Thu, 22 Jun 2023 07:11:02 EDT news606636658 When it came to the way people listened to music at home, vinyl ruled until the 1970s. But technology doesn't stand still. Cassettes, which had poorer sound quality but were much more convenient, gave records a run for their money. In the '80s, CDs, with their improved audio quality and robustness, took over the market, and things were once again stable for a couple of decades. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-audio-quality-streaming-music.html Consumer & Gadgets Wed, 21 Jun 2023 11:31:03 EDT news606565861 Cyclists are one of the most vulnerable groups of people on our roads. Unlike car users, they are not protected by a metal exterior, and they tend to be harder for other drivers to see. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-touch-activated-laser-lane-cyclists-safe.html Consumer & Gadgets Mon, 19 Jun 2023 16:32:44 EDT news606411156 If every Australian household that uses gas went all-electric today, we would "save" more than 30 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions over the next ten years. That's because there are more than 5 million households on the gas network, and the avoided emissions per home ranges from 5-25 tons over the coming decade, depending on the location. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-all-electric-homes-wallet-planethere-gas.html Consumer & Gadgets Mon, 19 Jun 2023 12:40:03 EDT news606397201 New forms of artificially intelligent moderators that oversee 3D virtual spaces and intervene against bad behavior could help protect children from online bullying and harassment, a new study suggests. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-virtual-moderators-oversee-3d-spaces.html Consumer & Gadgets Mon, 19 Jun 2023 12:22:03 EDT news606396121 Google is bringing generative AI technology to shopping, aiming to get a jump on e-commerce sites like Amazon.com Inc. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-google-generative-ai-online-features.html Consumer & Gadgets Fri, 16 Jun 2023 13:23:53 EDT news606140631 In 2022, an AI-generated work of art won the Colorado State Fair's art competition. The artist, Jason Allen, had used Midjourney—a generative AI system trained on art scraped from the internet—to create the piece. The process was far from fully automated: Allen went through some 900 iterations over 80 hours to create and refine his submission. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-generative-ai-minefield-copyright-law.html Consumer & Gadgets Fri, 16 Jun 2023 12:39:04 EDT news606137941 Ask Amazon.com Inc.'s digital assistant, "Hey, Alexa, is Amazon a monopoly?' and it will profess ignorance. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-amazon-alexa-defends-company-honor.html Consumer & Gadgets Fri, 16 Jun 2023 11:59:01 EDT news606135535 A recent study has shed light on the issue of loot boxes in video games, raising concerns about their resemblance to gambling and the lack of transparency surrounding them. Loot boxes are virtual items that players can purchase in games, offering randomized rewards of varying value. The study suggests that this feature could have psychological similarities to gambling. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-reveals-loot-probability-disclosure-transparency.html Consumer & Gadgets Thu, 15 Jun 2023 02:02:33 EDT news606013348 Inside an Amazon facility in Sumner, Washington, a package falls 17 times. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-lab-amazon.html Consumer & Gadgets Wed, 14 Jun 2023 14:00:06 EDT news605969682 E-commerce may make shopping more convenient, but it has a dark side that most consumers never see. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-06-black-amazon.html Consumer & Gadgets Wed, 14 Jun 2023 13:41:03 EDT news605968861