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- ⚡️ Google Pixel takes aim at Apple
⚡️ Google Pixel takes aim at Apple
PLUS: Nintendo burns retro gamers with shutdown
Rowan Cheung
October 05, 2023
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Welcome, Tech enthusiasts.
Google has officially unveiled its latest Pixel lineup, packing major AI upgrades and features.
But is it enough to convert Apple loyalists? Let’s dig in…
In today’s tech rundown:
📱 Google unveils new Pixel phones, watch, buds
🎮 Nintendo shutting down Wii U and 3DS Online in 2024
😀 Job satisfaction bounces back for EU tech workers
🛠️ 7 New products
📰 8 quick stories
Read time: 3 minutes
TODAY’S HEADLINES
Image source: Google
The Rundown: Google held its annual fall hardware event ‘Made by Google’ on Wednesday, featuring a series of major reveals including new Pixel 8 phones, the Pixel Watch 2, and new Pixel Buds Pro colors.
The details:
The Pixel 8 and 8 Pro feature upgraded cameras and screens powered by a new Tensor G3 chip, with prices starting at $699 and $999.
New AI-powered features include Background Noise Remover, ‘Best Shot’ for group photos, as well as Google Assistant integrations.
Pixel Watch 2 adds robust health/fitness tracking like continuous heart rate monitoring and crash detection.
Existing Pixel Buds Pro get software upgrades like gaming mode and improved call quality alongside new color options.
Why it matters: Google is clearly positioning itself as an AI-first company with these launches — and this cycle could be the start of a new age of smart devices.
NINTENDO
Image source: The Verge
The Rundown: Nintendo announced it will discontinue online services for Wii U and 3DS games in early April 2024, with multiplayer and other online features going dark.
Details:
The shutdown comes 10 years after Nintendo ended online support for Wii/DS in 2014 — angering loyal fans of the retro products.
Patches can still be downloaded, but eventually, games may become "abandoned software" with unfixed issues.
Multiplayer and online leaderboards will also disappear, though many older games have found a second life with updates on Switch.
While disappointing, the shutdown is unsurprising given the outdated hardware and codecs — and Nintendo's focus likely will shift firmly to the Switch.
Why it matters: As Nintendo grapples with poor sales over the last few years, this shutdown could further alienate a dwindling user base of fans still longing for the company’s old products.
Will the shutdown make them upgrade to newer platforms, or switch (no pun intended) to a different console competitor?
RESEARCH
Image source: Midjourney
The Rundown: A new survey from the Young Generation in Tech found that job satisfaction is on the rise amongst young tech workers in Europe — spiking this year after high disappointment in 2022.
Key points:
48% say they are "very satisfied" in their roles, up from 35% dissatisfied last year — with 63% planning to stay at their current job.
Breaking down by country, Dutch and Swedish tech workers reported the lowest satisfaction at 18-25% and felt insecure in their roles.
Top priorities included pay, promotions, company growth, and flexible working, though 56% prefer to be in-office 4-5 days a week.
78% are confident in AI's impact on their jobs, seeing it as a productivity booster rather than a threat.
Our thoughts: The turbulent year of layoffs and hiring freezes left its mark, but optimism is recovering. Firms will likely need to keep leveling up compensation and flexibility to retain young talent in the current macro environment.
NEW PRODUCTS
🧑 Enterpret- Make customer feedback work for you (link)
🖼️ Reverse Image Search- Find similar products to your own quickly (link)
🦄 Screen Story- Create video demos, tutorials, education videos, gifs, and promo videos (link)
🦾 Fine Tuner- Build AI agents at scale (link)
⭕️ Circleback- Never take notes again with AI-driven meeting notes (link)
🙊 ChatNode- Train ChatGPT on your own data (link)
📷 HeadshotPro- Professional headshots with AI (link)
Browse the most popular tools ever featured with our tool database.
SNIPPETS
Moungi G. Bawendi, Louis E. Brus, and Alexei I. Ekimov won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their pioneering work on quantum dots.
Apple released iOS 17.0.3 to fix an overheating issue in the iPhone 15 Pro line.
Uber introduces a 'Return a Package' feature for prepaid parcel drop-offs at post services, available in the U.S. for a fee, amid increasing online shopping returns.
Campbell Brown is leaving her role at Meta after six years, during which she led efforts to improve relations with news publishers and launched the Facebook News Tab.
Google announced a "generative AI" feature for the Fitbit app, providing insights on user fitness performance through chat and visual feedback, set to trial before its official launch.
The tech giant is also integrating its Bard AI chatbot into Google Assistant to offer more contextually aware responses, aiming for a deeper and more personalized user experience.
Estonia's ESTCube-2 satellite aims to demonstrate "plasma brake" technology using an electric sail to deorbit satellites faster, aiding in space debris reduction.
Contradictory figures have emerged regarding daily posts on platform X, with Elon Musk stating 100 to 200 million daily posts, while X CEO Linda Yaccarino claimed 500 million posts per day.
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THAT’S A WRAP
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