Microsoft’s Eye Contact feature goes live on the Surface Pro X to keep your gaze focused in video calls

Update 1 (08/20/2020 @ 1:45 PM ET): This feature is now generally available for users of the Microsoft Surface Pro X. Scroll to the bottom for more information. The article as published on July 24, 2020, is preserved below.

At the Surface event late last year, Microsoft unveiled the new Surface Pro X — an ARM version of the Surface Pro 7 powered by a custom Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx processor (AKA Microsoft SQ1). During the Surface Pro X presentation, the company also showcased a new technology exclusive to the notebook, which utilized the power of AI to automatically focus a user’s gaze at the camera during video calls. However, the feature wasn’t available on the Surface Pro X when it first went on sale late last year in November. Now, almost a year after the original announcement, Microsoft has finally started rolling out the Eye Contact feature in the latest Windows 10 Insider Preview build 20175.

The all-new feature relies on the artificial intelligence capabilities offered by Microsoft’s custom SQ1 processor and automatically adjusts the user’s gaze during video calls. According to a recent blog post from the company, Surface Pro X users who are enrolled in the Windows Insider program can now enable the Eye Contact feature from within the Surface app on their devices.

Since the new Eye Contact feature makes use of Microsoft’s SQ1 processor, it will only be available on the Surface Pro X and won’t be released for other devices running the latest Windows 10 Insider Preview build. Along with the new Eye Contact feature, the latest Windows 10 Insider Preview build brings improvements to pinned sites in Microsoft Edge, new icons for stock apps like Sticky Notes and Snip & Sketch, and several dev-focused changes.

It’s worth noting that Microsoft isn’t the only company to offer such a feature. Apple has also been working a similar technology called FaceTime Attention Correction, which was briefly available in beta releases of iOS 13 last year. While the technology was pulled from the final iOS 13 release, it should make it to users with iOS 14 later this year.

Update 1: Eye Contact generally available

Microsoft announced today that its AI-powered Eye Contact feature, which automatically adjusts your gaze on video calls and recordings to make it look like you’re staring directly at the camera, is now generally available for all owners of the Surface Pro X. When this feature first rolled out last month, it was limited to Surface Pro X users in the Windows 10 Insider Preview channel. Eye Contact works on video calling apps like Microsoft Teams, Skype, and others. Here’s a very short demo comparing a person’s gaze with and without Eye Contact turned on:

According to Steve Bathiche, Microsoft Technical Fellow, Eye Contact uses the dedicated AI silicon in the Microsoft SQ1 processor, Microsoft’s customized version of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx. Since the processing required for this feature is offloading to the dedicated AI chip, Microsoft says Eye Contact won’t impact the battery life on the Surface Pro X. Microsoft says the Surface Pro X is the first Windows 10 PC to “fully offload AI onto a specialized chip,” but it’s no longer the only device on the market with the Snapdragon 8cx. As such, this feature won’t be available on other existing Surface devices.

The feature can be toggled on or off inside the Surface App, and once enabled, it’s automatically applied any time an app uses the camera. This feature is baked into the camera, so it doesn’t require apps to add support for it. Microsoft disabled the feature by default since the company believes that image-modifying features should be opt-in.

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Google beefs up its SOS alerts in Search and Maps with near real-time wildfire data

When you search for information about a wildfire in Google Search, you’ll now get results that show you key insights about the areas impacted by the disaster. Google today detailed its efforts to use satellite data to beef up its SOS alerts in Google Search and Google Maps. The search engine now shows wildfire boundary maps that allow the public to see exactly where a blaze is and how best to avoid it. Search results will also provide news articles and helpful resources from local emergency agencies.

Google is using satellite data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) GOES constellation of satellites and Google Earth Engine’s data analysis capabilities. This will allow Google to show the size of a wildfire in near real-time, with data refreshed hourly.

As Google explains:

NOAA’s satellites include infrared and optical sensors optimized for detecting “hot spots” or large wildfires on the Earth’s surface. We run computations on this data in Earth Engine to identify the affected area.

From there, we create a digital polygon—the red boundary shown on the map in Search and Google Maps—that represents the approximate wildfire impact area. If multiple large fires are active in the same region, people may see several polygons.

When a person searches for something broadly like “wildfire in California” or something specific like “Kincade fire”, they will see the approximate boundary, name, location, relevant news articles, and helpful resources from local emergency agencies that pertain to a nearby wildfire. In Maps, users will receive a warning if they approach an active blaze, with an ambient alert that points them to the latest information.

Google said it piloted the new feature in California to determine its usefulness and plans to roll it out to other areas in the world.

With heatwaves sweeping across parts of the U.S., the threat of fire to human life is high. Firefighters have already battled large blazes in Northern and Southern California, as well as in Colorado. With the help of satellite data, Google is hoping to provide the public with high-quality information, potentially saving lives across these regions.

In addition to providing near real-time wildfire data in Google Maps, Google recently detailed an initiative designed to use Android devices to detect earthquakes.

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Kernel sources for the OnePlus Nord and Realme X3 SuperZoom are now available

The OnePlus Nord has already received a taste of aftermarket development via an unofficial TWRP build and a pair of custom ROMs, but all of these builds were utilizing the pre-built kernel from the stock OxygenOS firmware. The unavailability of the official kernel source code for the Nord at launch is a bit strange, considering the fact that OnePlus has historically published day-1 kernel sources for many of their phones. The wait is now over, though, as OnePlus has finally refreshed its GitHub repo and uploaded the kernel source code for the OnePlus Nord.

OnePlus Nord XDA Forums

OnePlus Nord Review: Great Performance at a Great Price

The initial kernel source code release for the OnePlus Nord (code-name “avicii”) is based on OxygenOS 10.5.2 and not the latest OxygenOS 10.5.4. Nevertheless, the published sources should be useful to get the ball rolling on refining the stability of AOSP-based custom ROMs and aid in making custom kernels. You can take a look at the code by following the link below. Thanks to XDA Senior Member Some_Random_Username for the tip!

OnePlus Nord Kernel Sources

Besides OnePlus, Realme is another brand under BBK Electronics that maintains an admirable track record when it comes to publishing the kernel source code for the smartphones they sell. The company has now released the kernel source for the Realme X3 SuperZoom – an aggressively priced sub-flagship phone with some solid specifications like the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855+ SoC, a 120Hz display, and 30W Dart 3.0 fast charging.

Realme X3 SuperZoom: Kernel Sources ||| XDA Forums

Unlocking the bootloader of the Realme X3 SuperZoom is not a difficult task. And now that the kernel source for the phone is here, it should help kickstart third-party development for the device. Note that the base edition of the Realme X3 and the “SuperZoom” variant are almost identical except in their camera configurations, thus it could be possible that the aforementioned kernel source has been unified for both of them.

 

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Wireless Android Auto works on all Android 11 devices with 5GHz Wi-Fi

Google first rolled out wireless Android Auto all the way back in 2018 but, at the time, the feature was limited to Nexus and Pixel devices running Android 8.0 Oreo. Soon after its launch, a few users managed to enable wireless Android Auto on a few non-Google devices and the company also extended support to some Samsung Galaxy flagships. While Google has since rolled out wireless Android Auto support in more regions, the number of officially supported devices is still too small. However, that’s expected to change with the Android 11 rollout later this year.

According to a recent report from 9to5Google, Google has updated its support page for Android Auto with a new note which states that “Any smartphone with Android 11.0” can use Android Auto wirelessly. This means that all Android devices that are expected to receive the Android 11 update later this year will be able to connect wirelessly to Android Auto. But there’s one catch.

In order to connect to Android Auto wirelessly, devices will need to be able to connect to 5GHz WiFi networks. Google further adds that some EU residents may not be able to use wireless Android Auto even after receiving the Android 11 update, as the EU has specific requirements for 5GHz WiFi being used in cars. Similarly, users in countries like Japan and Russia won’t be able to use Android Auto wirelessly.

The update comes at a time when Google is actively extending Android Auto support to more car manufacturers and app developers. The company recently revealed that Android Auto is on track to be in more than 100 million cars in the coming months and the platform is set to receive a host of new features that will help users with navigation, parking, and electric vehicle charging.

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Source: Android Auto Help

Via: 9to5Google

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Google Chrome’s “Kaleidoscope” project aggregates video streaming services on one page

Google is reportedly working on a new feature for Google Chrome, which will aggregate content from various streaming platforms onto a single page. The feature, called Chrome Kaleidoscope, is currently available on the Canary version of Google Chrome, however, it isn’t functional yet.

As per a recent report from Chrome Story, the Kaleidoscope project can be accessed on Chrome Canary by visiting the URL chrome://kaleidoscope/ and the page displays the following message:

“Chrome Kaleidoscope is not currently available for your account. If you are a Googler check out go/kaleidoscope-not-available for more information.”

But Chrome Story was recently able to access two new pages for the feature before being redirected to this message. The first Chrome Kaleidoscope page states: “All your shows in one place…You can see all your favorite shows in one place, no matter where they’re hosted. Select the providers you use below.” The page also lists down a couple of streaming services, including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney+.

Selecting the services and clicking on the Next button on the bottom of the page redirects to the second page, which states: “Continue watching across all your devices.” The rest of the page, however, is blank. We believe that this page would list down content from the platforms selected on the previous page once the feature rolls out.

Chrome Kaliedoscope could prove to be a useful addition to the browser, especially for those of you who have subscribed to multiple streaming platforms. As of now, we have no further information about the feature or its release timeline. However, since Googlers have started testing the feature in Chrome Canary, we expect to learn more in the following weeks.

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Source: Chrome Story

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NVIDIA GeForce NOW’s latest additions include Black Mesa, a remake of Half-Life, and 5 other games

NVIDIA’s GeForce NOW game-streaming service enjoys its share in the now-crowded game streaming market on the fact that it was one of the first to appear for end consumers. The service started beta testing for Android last year and opened up for everyone in February. NVIDIA had pledged to announce new games for GeForce NOW every week, and over the past months, it has kept to that promise. This week, NVIDIA is giving GeForce NOW 7 new additions, including titles like a remake of Half-Life, and Mortal Shell and Peaky Blinders: Mastermind.

These are the titles that have made their way to NVIDIA GeForce NOW this week:

• Steam
  • Peaky Blinders: Mastermind
  • Black Mesa
  • Half-Life 2: Deathmatch
  • Half-Life 2: Episode 2
  • Steel Division 2
• Epic Games Store:
  • Mortal Shell
  • Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Wildlands

Of these, Peaky Blinders: Mastermind and Mortal Shell are new game launches, having launched on August 20 and August 18 respectively on their platforms.

Here are all the previous title additions to NVIDIA GeForce NOW:

• March 26, 2020
• April 24, 2020
• May 1, 2020
• May 7, 2020
• May 14, 2020
• May 21, 2020
• May 28, 2020
• June 11, 2020
• June 18, 2020
• June 25, 2020
• July 2, 2020
• July 9, 2020
• July 16, 2020
• July 23, 2020
• July 30, 2020
• August 6, 2020
• August 13, 2020

NVIDIA GeForce NOW incorporates technology that utilizes AI and RTX GPUs to enable “the next generation of performance and visuals.” It’s NVIDIA’s improved deep learning neural network that “boosts frame rates while generating beautiful, sharp images for games”. Since the base technology is game streaming, games begin playing instantly when you fire them up. They also include an experience that has been optimized for cloud gaming and includes Game Ready Driver performance improvements, managed directly by NVIDIA. The company also recently added support for Chromebooks, along with decent expansion of its Highlights feature over the past weeks.

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NVIDIA GeForce NOW (Free, Google Play) →

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Unofficial TWRP now available for the Exynos Samsung Galaxy S20, S20+, and S20 Ultra

Samsung’s Galaxy S20 series comes with Android 10 out of the box, and the OEM has now promised to give three generations of Android OS updates to them. As an owner of the latest flagship from the Galaxy S lineup, you might not be ready to opt for installing custom ROMs on your phone anytime soon, but our modding community thinks differently. Flashaholics should be delighted to know that a unified build of TWRP for the Galaxy S20/S20+/S20 Ultra has appeared on our forums.

Samsung Galaxy S20/S20+/S20 Ultra XDA Forums

XDA Senior Member geiti94 is the brain behind this unofficial TWRP port. The availability of the S20’s stock kernel source codes does play a crucial role behind the arrival of TWRP on these phones, but there is a catch. The current release, which is based on TWRP 3.4.0, can only be flashed on the international variants of the Galaxy S20 family that are powered by Samsung’s in-house Exynos 990 SoC. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 865-laden U.S. and Canadian variants of the smartphone do not allow bootloader unlocking, thus it is not feasible to build a TWRP image for them.

Buy the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra from Amazon.in

Even if you can unlock the bootloader of the Exynos Galaxy S20, keep in mind that the process irreversibly trips the KNOX warranty bit (hence voids the warranty) as well as disables subsequent OTA updates. Moreover, you have to wipe the whole userdata partition of your phone in order to get rid of the stock encryption, so do perform a backup beforehand. The developer has promised to provide an automated encryption remover in the near future to streamline this part.

If you want to check out the detailed step-by-step TWRP flashing guide for the Galaxy S20, head over to the thread linked below. It is worth mentioning that MTP is broken in the initial build, but you can disable MTP in TWRP Mount settings and use ADB to push files from computer to phone (or vice-versa).

Unofficial TWRP for the Samsung Galaxy S20/S20+/S20 Ultra

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