Nintendo has confirmed that the Nintendo Switch 2 will be backwards compatible
It will also support Nintendo Switch Online
More details to come at a later date
We now know for sure that the Nintendo Switch 2, our tentative name for a Nintendo Switch successor, will be backwards compatible with Nintendo Switch software.
In a new post to the official Nintendo investor relations X / Twitter account, CEO Shuntaro Furukawa said that “at today's Corporate Management Policy Briefing, we announced that Nintendo Switch software will also be playable on the successor to Nintendo Switch.”
The post then goes on to explain that “Nintendo Switch Online will be available on the successor to Nintendo Switch as well” with more details set to be “announced at a later date.”
This is Furukawa. At today's Corporate Management Policy Briefing, we announced that Nintendo Switch software will also be playable on the successor to Nintendo Switch. Nintendo Switch Online will be available on the successor to Nintendo Switch as well. Further information about…November 6, 2024
Backwards compatibility could be hugely important for existing Nintendo Switch owners thinking about an upgrade, as it will allow them to play some of the best Nintendo Switch games on their new system right out of the box.
Hopefully, any software played on the Nintendo Switch 2 will be able to benefit from its almost inevitably improved technical specs, with smoother frame rates and potentially improved resolutions. Just bear in mind that this is pure speculation at this time and we’ll just have to wait and see what Nintendo has in store.
The confirmation that Nintendo Switch Online will be coming to the platform is rather interesting too, suggesting that the transition between the two platforms could be quite smooth compared to be previous generations.
In case you need a recap, in May this year Nintendo confirmed that a "successor to the Nintendo Switch" will be announced, "within this fiscal year". As the Japanese fiscal year ends on March 31, 2025, there’s a strong chance that we will learn even more about the system in the coming months.
More than 50 games are to receive PS5 Pro enhancement patches on launch day
Titles includeAlan Wake 2, Demon's Souls,andDragon Age: The Veilguard
PS5 Pro launches this week on November 7
With PS5 Pro arriving in just a couple of days, you might be curious to know exactly which games you can expect to receive PS5 Pro enhancement patches especially if you've put down a PS5 Pro pre-order of your own.
Thankfully, Sony has you covered with an official PlayStation Blog post which confirms more than 50 PS5 games are set to receive PS5 Pro enhancement patches when the mid-gen console launches on November 7.
These enhancement patches will typically allow for better performance and image quality overall, offering framerates of 60fps - 120fps with no compromise to resolution as we often see on the base PS5 console. PS5 Pro will also make use of PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (or PSSR) - a dynamic resolution solution like Nvidia's DLSS that helps to keep images and performance crisp and smooth during gameplay.
Sony has already prepared bite-sized showcase videos for some of its games including Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart PS5 Pro trailer as well as one for Marvel's Spider-Man 2. The full list of PS5 Pro enhanced games arriving on day one can be viewed at the PlayStation Blog post above, but we've also included it here below for your convenience.
In the IT world, repatriation is when businesses bring back their services, applications or data from public clouds to in-house, be it to private cloud or on-premise. After years of companies leveraging offerings from large cloud computing service providers like AWS and Azure, the evidence – both anecdotal and research – suggests the tide has turned and companies are wanting to regain full control.
The Barclays CIO Survey, for example, revealed that the “proportion of respondents planning repatriation rose from 49% in 1H21 to 69% in 2H2”. By 1H24 it had increased to 83%, which is “the highest reading since the survey has been conducted”. Interestingly, storage and databases were the most likely assets to be moved back to private cloud or on-prem.
But why now are companies choosing to repatriate? And how hard is it to do effectively?
A costly service running out of power?
One of the key reasons for the move to repatriation is, naturally, cloud cost management. Cutting back on fees paid to service providers has become a necessary step, especially in an uncertain economic landscape. Yet this isn’t the only factor. The hype around the cloud was building so greatly that it too is naturally starting to level off. Why be tied to the cloud with managed services or serverless offerings when you can now run it on your own hardware and have full ownership?
The continuing evolution of cloud services and the methods cloud providers use to expand their services are generating even more costs for customers. This ongoing change to services to match what customers might want and need also means organizations are having to alter how their own services work to make the most of the new provisions – but crucially, without interrogating just how much this will add to their monthly cloud subscription bill. The fear of falling behind by not adopting new products inevitably results in higher cost structures, even when the new services might not be necessary.
But, if using the public cloud is starting to run out of power, what do organizations need to achieve repatriation effectively?
A move requiring careful considerations
Again, cost – and capital investment – is the first item on the agenda. Quite simply, do you have enough investment accessible and ready to go? Cloud costs generally fall under operational expenditure. However, building or re-implementing on-premise cloud is likely to be capitalized and therefore needs to be budgeted for appropriately.
What’s more, organizations need to adopt a proactive approach to training, learning and skills enhancement. In today’s businesses, on-premise clouds are evolving at the same rate as the public ones – they necessitate a similar level of skill sets, cloud management and tools to operate them. CIOs therefore need to frankly assess whether they can provide the investment in people and skills to do this in-house. If this isn’t the case, repatriating by themselves might not be the best course of action.
An assessment of these areas must take place before embarking on any repatriation, not only to ensure CIOs have buy-in from senior level but also to mitigate any risks – and this is something requiring serious consideration.
Before withdrawing from the cloud, companies need to decide if they will just run on the mainframe or if they are still after the benefits of cloud. If the latter is the case, then careful thought is required to map out how IT will still deliver these benefits, including facilitating virtualization, containers and adopting these technologies in house.
Is the future hybrid?
With the vast majority of CIOs now looking to repatriate, how will this trend evolve over the next few years and what will a typical structure look like?
Just as remote working was followed by many companies settling for hybrid, flexible arrangements, a similar occurrence may occur between cloud and on-prem solutions. From costs to security to flexibility, customers are considering these factors and concluding that self-ownership of the base metal and adopting on-prem approaches isn’t necessarily a bad strategy.
When it comes to cloud, it’s all about having the ‘right fit’ approach. If it makes sense and gives the company the agility and scalability required, use it – and the same applies to on-prem. In this light, having all of one or the other isn’t always a necessary solution. That is why many are opting for hybrid approaches because, just like with work patterns, it suits them best and gives them the benefits from both worlds.
The right fit approach
Increasing costs and falling hype around the cloud are key reasons driving the growing trend to repatriation. Companies are looking to regain control and manage their services in-house, be it on private clouds or on-premise. However, careful consideration is required by CIOs to honestly assess whether a repatriation is both possible and beneficial. If they don’t have the budget or skills, it can bring more risk than good.
As more CIOs look to repatriate, what is emerging is a hybrid approach, where self-ownership isn’t seen as a bad thing but the benefits of both cloud and on-prem are explored and integrated into operations. Like with any decision, it’s wise to do it if it's well thought through, the right fit and suits you best.
This article was produced as part of TechRadarPro's Expert Insights channel where we feature the best and brightest minds in the technology industry today. The views expressed here are those of the author and are not necessarily those of TechRadarPro or Future plc. If you are interested in contributing find out more here:https://www.techradar.com/news/submit-your-story-to-techradar-pro
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The film industry is renowned for vividly depicting an imagined near future. Think humanoid robots (I, Robot), memory erasure (Eternal Suns...
The film industry is renowned for vividly depicting an imagined near future. Think humanoid robots (I, Robot), memory erasure (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) or even life extension (Vanilla Sky). Inevitably, some portrayals and predictions are wide of the mark; others, however, give viewers a glimpse of what technology is to come.
While we still haven’t unlocked the full potential of fully automated cars or jetpack transportation, Steven Spielberg’s adaptation of the novel, Minority Report, managed to correctly anticipate some aspects of the future – such as personalized digital ads, iris recognition software and kinetic virtual interfaces. Subtly, though, the film’s most central theme has become its most prescient: technology capable of predetermination.
Set in 2054, the sci-fi whodunnit imagines a world in which a trio of ‘precognitive’ humans can foresee violent crimes before they’re committed. Tom Cruise stars as a detective accused of ‘future-murder’, with the narrative following his attempts to acquire the titular ‘report’, alleged to contain information integral to the incriminating prophecy.
In reality, it’s fair to say we tend not to rely on clairvoyants as credible sources for identifying impending issues. However, the film’s ‘pre-crime’ measures do share similarities with the ways we now use AI tools to protect our digital ecosystems – coincidentally bringing Gartner’s premonition to life that ‘there is no future of IT operations that doesn’t include artificial intelligence for IT operations (AIOps)’.
Perhaps the modern-day relevance of the 22-year-old Minority Report is why a stage adaptation was launched in the UK this year…
Back to reality
Today, IT managers have a big task on their hands. They’re responsible for keeping their business operational and secure – while striving to constantly improve the digital experiences (DEX) they provide.
Alongside their teams, IT leaders are expected to deal with the flood of notifications and alerts that occur as a byproduct of managing huge numbers of applications within unnecessarily complex digital estates. On top of this, they’re also tasked with triaging and remedying a varying severity of incoming help desk tickets.
According to market research, over a third of managers (38%) feel overwhelmed by this mounting burden of information – showing it’s not unusual for IT infrastructure to become so overloaded with data that it begins to obstruct operational efficiency and clarity.
This presents a challenge that requires IT teams to seamlessly juggle their time and people – but unfortunately, the majority of businesses don’t have a full armory of Hollywood technology at their disposal. The best way to address these problems is to get ahead of them.
“Now, the system can work for you”
What today’s businesses need, then, is software capable of identifying and resolving issues before they escalate into notifications, alerts or tickets. Or, to use a term from Minority Report: ‘precognitive’ technology.
AIOps can be that solution. Platforms are available on the market today that proactively manage IT operations on behalf of IT managers and their teams – taking the burdens of resource and cost away from human labor, and towards digital autonomy. This empowers the IT estate to run more self-sufficiently, allowing IT leaders to refocus on bigger issues, like delivering superior DEX or maximizing commercial opportunities.
The added flexibility and freedom this permits IT managers is surely why 45% of those polled in Riverbed’s Global DEX Survey identified AI as being increasingly business-critical – the most of any new or familiar technology expected to reshape digital experiences in the next eighteen months.
“We see what they see”
Imagine a scenario in which a well-respected retailer experiences higher volumes of digital traffic during peak times. If their website lacks the agility to cope with this increased demand, they risk encountering issues like downtime or transaction failures. Similarly, the applications, devices and networks they rely on to deliver exceptional service in-store or in the customer contact centre might also falter, with employees contacting support teams in their droves. Altogether, insufficient and outdated IT could affect their sales, reputation and customer satisfaction.
This hypothetical organization could avoid these issues by embracing AIOps, which uses AI and machine learning to conduct an ongoing appraisal of performance metrics and network patterns – IT’s very own ‘minority report’ if you will. By analyzing the historical evidence they collect, these platforms can then identify anomalies and predict forthcoming issues, such as overwhelmed servers, disk space shortages or application incompetency's.
These ‘pre-visions’ – to borrow more jargon from the film – offer the kind of data-driven insights that support the strategic interests of IT teams. Decision-makers can rely on this added end-to-end visibility to develop a comprehensive image of their organization's digital vulnerabilities, before then targeting the relevant changes. To make things even simpler, many intelligent automation platforms can even implement these fixes without the need for human intervention.
A new age
By proactively surfacing fledgling issues and automatically remediating them before they develop into active problems, AIOps relieve IT teams of the responsibility of finding and fixing these concerns themselves. Harnessing these added capabilities empowers businesses to increase their uptime and deliver accelerated network performance – providing their customers with exceptional digital experiences.
Eliminating emergency error resolutions and avoiding digital downtime also considerably reduces IT team workload. In this way, the extra security and efficiency granted by AIOps enable organizations to unlock substantial cost savings.
While the progress we’ve made in the tech industry might not have realized Steven Spielberg’s full cinematic vision quite yet, the emergence of sophisticated AIOps has ushered in IT’s very own Minority Report era.
Not only are businesses experiencing enhanced network reliability, but their newfound time, money and resources can now be reallocated towards embracing the next phase of digital innovation – whatever that might be.
This article was produced as part of TechRadarPro's Expert Insights channel where we feature the best and brightest minds in the technology industry today. The views expressed here are those of the author and are not necessarily those of TechRadarPro or Future plc. If you are interested in contributing find out more here:https://www.techradar.com/news/submit-your-story-to-techradar-pro
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The iPhone 17 Pro probably won’t land until September 2025, but this being a high-profile handset we’re already hearing leaks and rumors ab...
The iPhone 17 Pro probably won’t land until September 2025, but this being a high-profile handset we’re already hearing leaks and rumors about it – along with the rest of the iPhone 17 series.
The Pro will likely slot in just below the iPhone 17 Pro Max, and just above the iPhone 17 and perhaps the rumored iPhone 17 Air or iPhone 17 Slim.
And while we don’t know loads about it yet, early rumors suggest the iPhone 17 Pro will have a new button, new cameras, and a new chipset, making this a potentially major and exciting upgrade. Below, you’ll find everything we’ve heard about the iPhone 17 Pro so far.
Cut to the chase
What is it? The next smaller Pro iPhone
When is it out? Probably September 2025
How much will it cost? Likely upwards of $999 / £999 / AU$1,849
Expect it in September
The iPhone 16 Pro(Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)
Likely to land in September of 2025
Will probably cost at least $999 / £999 / AU$1,849
We haven’t heard any iPhone 17 Pro release date leaks yet, but based on Apple’s usual patterns we can say that it will probably be announced in the first or second week of September.
More specifically, it will probably be announced on the Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday of that week. Apple more often goes for the second week of September, leaving the most likely announcement dates as September 8, September 9, or September 10.
Pre-orders then typically open on the Friday of the announcement week, which would mean September 12, and the iPhone 17 Pro will most likely ship the following Friday, which would be September 19.
But it’s possible the various stages of the launch will happen a week earlier, or that Apple will break with its usual patterns.
There aren’t yet any iPhone 17 Pro price leaks either, but the iPhone 16 Pro starts at $999 / £999 / AU$1,849, so you can expect to pay at least that much for the next model.
Can you trust these rumors?
So far there aren't any release date or price leaks, but based on past form we're almost certain that the iPhone 17 Pro will be announced in September.
A new button and a new color
The iPhone 16 Pro(Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)
Might include a new button
Expect the same screen size but possibly upgrades to the tech
A Teal Titanium shade is possible
The biggest iPhone 17 Pro design leak we’ve heard so far is that the volume buttons and the Action button might all be replaced by a single new key that can do the job of all those things. Exactly how it would do all those things is uncertain, but it may well have a similar design to the Camera Control button, meaning it can register different strength presses as well as swipes, and respond in different ways to each.
The iPhone 17 Pro will probably also be available in at least one new shade, with one leak suggesting Apple is considering using one of the three colors pictured below. From left to right these are Dark Green Titanium, Teal Titanium, and Green Titanium, and the source says Teal Titanium is the most likely to get used.
We fully expect the iPhone 17 Pro to have a 6.3-inch screen, since Apple only recently upped the display size with the iPhone 16 Pro. The other design and display leaks so far are worth taking with a pinch of salt though, as not many sources have weighed in.
Two upgraded cameras
The iPhone 16 Pro(Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)
So many sources have talked about a 48MP telephoto camera that this upgrade seems likely. We haven't heard as much about the other cameras though, including the rumored 24MP selfie snapper upgrade, so we're less sure of those specs. We also wouldn't count on the phone having a mechanical aperture, as that seems a bit niche for how much work it might involve.
The most powerful iPhone chipset yet
The iPhone 16 Pro(Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)
Not only is an A19 Pro chipset an obvious upgrade, but it has also been mentioned by multiple sources.
Beyond that, there’s a chance that the iPhone 17 Pro will get 12GB of RAM, which would be an increase on the 8GB in the iPhone 16 Pro. However most current leaks suggest that only the iPhone 17 Pro Max will get this upgrade.
One of the few things we're almost certain of is that the iPhone 17 Pro will have a new chipset, since that's a standard yearly upgrade for Apple's phones. We hope it will also get a RAM upgrade, but so far it looks more likely to stick at 8GB.
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We're getting closer to the expected January launch of the Samsung Galaxy S25, and the latest rumor around this phone series suggests it'll be getting an upgrade in terms of how updates are applied at the most fundamental level.
As per tipster @chunvn8888 (via SamMobile), the Galaxy S25 phones will get A/B updates, also known as seamless updates. These updates cover new Android versions as well as more minor security patches and fixes.
The A/B name refers to the way the next software update (B) is downloaded and set up on a separate storage partition while the current software (A) carries on running. Most of the heavy lifting is done behind the scenes while you carry on using your phone.
A reboot is still required to apply the update, but the restart happens more quickly – a lot of the installation work is already done, so you don't have to spend as much time watching a progress bar move across the screen.
Google introduced the option of A/B updates for Android all the way back in 2016, so it's taken some time for Samsung to get around to introducing it on the Galaxy series – if the prediction turns out to be accurate.
However, the Galaxy S25 wouldn't be the first Samsung phone to get this functionality: it's also available on the Samsung Galaxy A55 that launched earlier this year. It would be the first time it had shown up on a flagship Samsung phone, however.
As SamMobile points out, A/B support needs to be built in at the hardware level – it's not something that can be added to a handset at a later date. Either a phone has A/B capabilities or it doesn't, for the lifespan of the device.
We should see three Galaxy S25 phones show up in January, if Samsung copies its 2024 launch schedule in 2025. There have been plenty of leaks already, covering everything from the predicted color options to key internal specs.
Nvidia has rebranded its flagship Blackwell Ultra products, in what appears to be a strategic shift at the chipmaker aimed at promoting the B300 and GB300 lines, both of which leverage CoWoS-L technology.
The move, first reported by TrendForce, will see the B200 Ultra series now be known as the B300, while the GB200 Ultra is known as the GB300.
The B300 series from Nvidia is expected to launch any time between the second and third quarters of 2025, with the B200 and GB200 series in particular set to begin shipping in the fourth quarter of 2024.
Nvidia’s shift has broader long-term implications
TrendForce noted Nvidia is in the process of refining chip segmentation across its Blackwell series in a bid to meet growing performance demands from CSPs, improve supply chain flexibility, and meet cost-performance needs among server OEMs.
The B300A series, for example, is aimed primarily at OEMS. Production of this series is expected to begin during the second quarter of 2025 as shipments of the H200 series begin winding down.
Notably, TrendForce said Nvidia had originally planned to launch the B200A series to specifically cater to server OEMs. The chipmaker later shifted to the B300A series during the design process, however, which the market research firm suggested indicated a “weaker demand for downgraded GPUs than anticipated”.
This shift in product strategy from Nvidia could have long-term implications, with TrendForce suggesting the move “reveals a clear pivot toward AI models that promise greater revenue in 2025”.
“The company is making significant investments in improving NVL rack solutions, assisting server system providers with performance optimization and liquid cooling for NVL72 systems,” analysis from TrendForce noted.
“Companies like AWS and Meta are being urged to transition from NVL36 to NVL72.”
Notably, shipment trends point toward Nvidia’s high-end GPU offerings surging in the year ahead, with overall shipment share anticipated to hit around 50% in 2024.
This, TrendForce said, marks a sizable 20% increase compared to the year prior - and it’s expected to continue. The Blackwell platform is projected to drive this further to a share of around 65% in 2025.
Nvidia driving CoWoS demand
In the year ahead, Nvidia is expected to play a “crucial role” in driving demand for CoWoS technology, according to TrendForce.
With the Blackwell series beginning to gain widespread enterprise appeal, CoWoS demand is forecast to increase by around 10% year-on-year.
“In light of recent changes, NVIDIA is likely to concentrate on supplying B300 and GB300 products to major North American CSPs—both leveraging CoWoS-L technology,” TrendForce said.
Running parallel to this, HBM procurement is also anticipated to rise, TrendForce found. Current projections for the year ahead suggest the chip maker will account for more than 70% of the global HBM market.
This once again marks an increase of around 10% annually. A key factor here is that all models across the B300 series will feature HBM3e 12hi.
With production expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2024 and the first quarter of 2025, this will drive demand, TrendForce said. Suppliers could be left waiting, however.
This marks the first mass production of a 12hi stack product by Nvidia, analysts noted, therefore the company could take at least two quarters to “refine processes and stabilize production yields”.
Cyfirma Research recently discovered a serious security vulnerability affecting users of iTunes on Windows systems.
This local privilege escalation vulnerability, classified as CVE-2024-44193, allows attackers with limited access to elevate their privileges, potentially compromising entire systems.
The vulnerability, present in iTunes for Windows version 12.13.2.3 and earlier, poses a critical threat to the security of systems, making timely updates and patching essential.
Urgent iTunes update addresses this escalation risk
The core issue behind CVE-2024-44193 lies in improper permission management, specifically related to the AppleMobileDeviceService.exe.
Attackers can exploit the CVE-2024-44193 vulnerability by manipulating the files within the C:\ProgramData\Apple\Lockdown directory. With inadequate permission settings, even low-privileged users can write arbitrary files to this directory, enabling attackers to create opportunities for privilege escalation.
This vulnerability is not difficult to trigger, and thus makes its exploitation particularly concerning, as attackers can use various tools, such as NTFS junctions and opportunistic locks, to craft sophisticated exploit chains resulting in the execution of arbitrary code with elevated privileges.
The exploitation of CVE-2024-44193 follows a structured sequence of steps, allowing attackers to manipulate the AppleMobileDeviceService.exe and gain elevated privileges. First, attackers create arbitrary files within the Lockdown directory, leveraging tools like Oplock to halt processes at key moments. They can then exploit NTFS junctions, which redirect file deletions to critical system areas.
These actions culminate in the deletion of essential system files, giving the attacker administrative access. The ease of exploitation, combined with the widespread use of iTunes, particularly in enterprise environments, increases the vulnerability's risk profile. Organizations are urged to update iTunes to version 12.13.3 or later to mitigate the risk.
The impact of this vulnerability is severe, as it grants attackers administrative-level access to the targeted system. With SYSTEM-level privileges, attackers can manipulate system files, install malware, access sensitive data, and even disrupt services. This makes CVE-2024-44193 a critical risk for organizations, particularly those with large numbers of unmanaged or outdated systems running vulnerable versions of iTunes.
At the moment, there is no confirmed evidence of this vulnerability being actively exploited in the wild and there is also no active discussion of this vulnerability in underground forums. However, its potential for widespread use remains high due to the low complexity of the attack.
CVE-2024-44193 affects iTunes for Windows globally, impacting a variety of industries that rely on Windows-based systems. Media and entertainment, education, government, and corporate environments are particularly vulnerable due to the widespread use of iTunes. Additionally, organizations handling sensitive data or operating in high-risk environments may face increased exposure to attacks.
While we gave it plenty of praise in our iPhone 14 Plus review, the iPhone 14 Plus is apparently susceptible to a certain rear camera flaw, Apple has admitted – and if it's affecting you, you can get your handset repaired free of charge.
It's been three years since we had an iPhone service program (where Apple admits an issue and will sort it out for you), but as 9to5Mac has spotted, there's now officially one for a "rear camera issue" on the iPhone 14 Plus – which Apple still sells online.
The good news is this is only going to apply to a "very small percentage" of iPhone 14 Plus models, according to Apple. Specifically, the problem is having no preview shown on screen when you're using the rear camera on the handset.
iPhone 14 Plus handsets manufactured between April 10, 2023 and April 28, 2024 are the ones that may have the glitch: Apple has provided a serial number checker so you can quickly see whether or not your iPhone is included.
What happens next
The problem is with the rear camera on the iPhone 14 Plus(Image credit: Future)
If you do have an iPhone 14 Plus that's flagged up as problematic via the serial number checker, you can take it into any Apple Store or any Apple Authorized Service Provider to get your phone repaired, free of charge.
Alternatively, you can contact Apple about sending your phone in for repair through the post. Follow this link to find the relevant page on the Apple Support website, which gives you options for scheduling an in-store repair or sending off your handset.
If Apple determines your iPhone 14 Plus is one of the devices affected, and you've already paid to have the issue fixed, you can get a refund (follow this link for that). You can make a claim up to three years after the first purchase of the iPhone.
There are some steps to follow if you're sending your iPhone in to be repaired, whether for this or any other issue. You need to make sure everything is backed up, and turn off the Find My service, as well as removing active cards in Apple Wallet.
This week we announced the TechRadar Choice Awards 2024 winners, Apple launched a slew of M4 Macs, and Marvel outlined its MCU TV line-up (and boy are we excited).
To catch up on all this and more we've rounded up the top seven tech news stories from the week below, with links to the original articles if you want to find out more.
The TechRadar Choice awards returned for 2024, and we've crowned our winners across over 100 categories.
Taking the Reader's Choice award (which is 100% chosen by our readers) was the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, with the Samsung S95D being crowned the best OLED TV, the Apple Watch Series 10 being declared best smart watch, Nvidia winning computing brand of the year, and Balatro winning game of the year.
Halloween fell on a Thursday this year, meaning you’d be forgiven for throwing a party at the beginning of November. We’re encouraging it, in fact, thanks to TechRadar’s Halloween Week. Experts from all across the site have contributed streaming recommendations, recipes, gaming thoughts, AI tips and more, to help you enjoy the spookiest time of year to the fullest.
Don’t worry if you’re not a huge horror fan, because there’s plenty of animation, comedies, or general seasonal content if you’d rather have a more relaxed celebration. Halloween is for everyone and so is our guide, so make sure you check that out over the weekend.
With iOS 18.1 we finally got our hands on the first wave of Apple Intelligence features including Writing Tools for proofreading and rewriting, Smart Replies to reply to messages quickly, Notification Summaries, Cleaning Photos, and a redesign of Siri. You'll also get these experiences on an iPad or Mac courtesy of iPadOS 18.1 and macOS Sequoia 15.1, which also began rolling out this week.
Unfortunately, Apple Intelligence tools such as Genmoji, Image Playground, and ChatGPT-integration for Siri, and the iPhone 16’s Visual Intelligence won’t arrive until iOS 18.2 later this year.
To use Apple Intelligence on iPhone, you need an iPhone 15 Pro, 15 Pro Max, 16, 16 Plus, 16 Pro, or 16 Pro Max, and make sure your device is set to US English. On a Mac, you'll need an M-Series chip and on iPad you'll need either the A17 Pro, M1, M2, or M4 chips to get Apple Intelligence (with the same language restriction as iPhone).
Sonos’ latest high-end soundbar is the Sonos Arc Ultra, and it’s now officially on-sale – but some lucky buyers received it before the street date, and took to the internet to share their experience. And it’s good news for Sonos hopefuls, with one early tester who upgraded from the Arc to Arc Ultra saying “I hoped that the Ultra [would] be better than the Arc but it is significantly better in every regard.”
The star is the bass, driven by an innovative new Sound Motion speaker – it’s way beyond what the previous model is capable of, and actually is beyond what almost any other sub-less soundbar can do. We’re in the middle of testing the Arc Ultra for our review, and can say this part is a big for Sonos, for sure.
People don’t seem to be having any problems with setting it up in the Sonos app either, which is a good sign given what a tough few months the company’s had when it comes to software.
Every week is a busy week for Marvel, but the past seven days have been particularly packed for the comic book giant – and not just because Agatha All Along’s two-part finale spooked us all on Disney Plus (read more about it in our Agatha All Along ending explained article).
It’s been a bumper week for Apple, with a slew of new M4 Mac product reveals that kicked off with the new M4 iMac on Monday. The new iMac has an updated processor, new color options, and a lower starting price than the M3 version – all good things.
The second (and perhaps best) reveal was the new Mac mini with M4 and M4 Pro – a powerhouse computer crammed into an absolutely tiny five-by-five-inch chassis. The redesign didn’t just make the Mac mini smaller and faster, it also brought audio and USB-C ports to the front of the chassis, a much-needed addition.
We also saw new versions of the 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro featuring the M4, M4 Pro, and M4 Max chips, plus updated Magic Mouse, Magic Keyboard, and Magic Trackpad peripherals for Mac users. Finally, 16GB is now the standard base configuration for all Mac products – thank heavens – which retroactively includes the M2 and M3 MacBook Air.
OpenAI’s ChatGPT chatbot has taken the world by storm, introducing millions of people to AI for the first time, but now it’s striking out beyond its chatbot origins and competing directly with Google in search.
Searching the web in ChatGPT isn’t like using Google. Instead of pages of web links in response to a query, you get a nicely considered series of AI text responses, with the option to click through to a web page if you like.
ChatGPT search is great for asking questions, but it can also deliver answers to local searches like “What is the best pizza restaurant near me?“, and can show results on a map. From our initial testing it looks like ChatGPT search is a very efficient way to search the web.
I am more excited about the Samsung Galaxy Ring than any other recent new product from a big tech company. Surpassing my interest in the Apple Vision Pro as a product that people will actually find a purpose for, the Galaxy Ring has found a place in my daily routine for one very simple reason: I don’t like wearing a watch all the time.
Samsung is onto something here with a device that fits into its health and wearables ecosystem in a very interesting way. Down to the core, the Galaxy Ring takes the health smarts of the company’s great range of smartwatches and crams them into a tiny ring. There are some health features the Ring can’t provide that the Galaxy Watch can, but it covers the bases; heart rate, body temperature monitoring, sleep and steps. For me, the best feature is its sleep tracking, particularly because it’s much more comfortable to have a ring on my finger in bed instead of a smart watch.
But it’s not a complete device and though it matches the feature set of the Oura Ring 4, it is very distinctively first generation. Though I’m enjoying my time with it (and it’s successfully made me care about my health and fitness) and I agree with TechRadar’s Samsung Galaxy Ring review, we’re talking about what is quite an expensive device without much practical functionality. It’s tempting to say that the reason for its high price and low feature set is because it’s niche by design, but I think there are changes that could be introduced to make it more palatable and ultimately a more attractive device altogether.
Let’s put it down to three points.
Why does it look like this?
(Image credit: Zachariah Kelly / TechRadar)
Smart devices, inclusive of phones, are largely fashion statements in the right contexts. Of course, some people are more interested in good functionality, but you can’t discount the style points and aesthetics of any product you have to wear. The Samsung Galaxy Ring is, pointedly, a fashionable piece of technology, much more so than any other Samsung device preceding it… So why does it look so basic?
I’m not disputing the style of the ring; the thick shape is necessary for its smart features, and the concave design is a smart way of avoiding scratches, but the black and silver colorways look like plastic. The ring itself is made of titanium and coated in a similar paint to that of the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra (with comfortable and partially transparent plastics on the inside), but while the Ultra looks especially premium with its epic colors, the Galaxy Ring looks almost cheap in Titanium Black and Titanium Silver.
The Titanium Gold colorway looks fine; it has a lovely polish to it. The Silver and Black look almost like pieces of a Hasbro toy lightsaber. It’s likely a non-issue for many, but we’re talking about a new product that takes strides into the jewelry space. It needs to look the part.
It wasn’t going to take long before we got into this, but the Oura Ring 4, the closest competitor to the Galaxy Ring, looks especially premium. Silver, Black, Gold and Rose Gold colorways are available at the checkout, along with a matte black color dubbed Stealth and a raw-looking Brushed Silver color. The variety is greater, albeit with some options priced higher than others, and they’ve aced the assignment; the Oura Ring 4 looks premium. It looks like jewelry.
Why is it priced like that?
(Image credit: Zachariah Kelly / TechRadar)
This criticism applies equally to the Oura Ring 4, and admittedly it goes in tandem with my third criticism that we’ll get into below, but it can’t be skipped over. The Samsung Galaxy Ring is a $399 / £399 / AU$699 device, which positions it on par with (or slightly above) the Galaxy Watch 7 44mm LTE in most markets, above cheaper Watch options, and above the lowest price Oura Ring 4 ($349 / £349 / not available in AU).
Samsung justifies the higher price over this competitor by not having a subscription service, while Oura charges its customers a $5.99 per month bill for all features and health insights in its app (charged in USD in all regions irrespective of local currency), but we can head these pricing strategies off at the pass; the unique form factor and intent of these smart rings allow them to charge a significant amount. Development costs would have also been considerable, and ultimately there’s just not strong competition in this tiny market. If Apple, OnePlus, Oppo and Google got in at the same time, things would likely be a bit different.
For a dedicated user obsessed with health tracking, this device can be justified, but at this price, against accessories like earbuds and smart watches, it’s too niche for a casual user to be this expensive. Perhaps if, as written above, it was somewhat more attractive or had the ability to add engravings or markings it’d be a different story.
Why doesn’t it do much?
(Image credit: Zachariah Kelly / TechRadar)
When I’m talking to people about the Samsung Galaxy Ring, they’re obviously immediately interested in what it actually does – and perhaps unsurprisingly, as much as I can gas the Galaxy Ring up, the takeaway they’re typically left with is “not much”.
Make no mistake, Samsung’s health tracking tech is brilliant and it’s had a positive impact on the way I see my own wellbeing; step tracking, sleep tracking and heart rate monitoring are all things the Galaxy Ring is capable of. I have no trouble recommending it as a device that can positively impact your health, but consumers will also likely want to consider the competition.
The Oura Ring 4 has all the same features and health trackers, minus the deep integration with Samsung's Health suite, though it is compatible with iOS – the Galaxy Ring only works with Android devices.
But as far as a casual user goes when it comes to big tech products, health features are expected in tandem with… Normal features.
The Galaxy Ring does have gestures, which are awesome – pinch your thumb and your ring finger, and you’ll stop alarms or trigger the camera to take a shot. At the time of writing, those are the only two gesture options. No answering calls, media controls or integration with any specific apps, just those two things. It doesn’t help that gestures are exclusive to Galaxy smartphone users, and were also a celebrated feature of the Galaxy Watch 7 and Watch Ultra which launched at the same time as the Galaxy Ring, making it even more of a tough sell for watch owners.
And that’s kind of it! Before the Galaxy Ring launched I joked about being able to use different finger gestures to control my home smart lighting like waving a magic finger, expecting the feature set to be somewhat more fleshed out, but there’s not much going on here. I’m not sure why, but I’ve also picked up an extremely strange habit of checking my ring for the time as if it were a watch – there’s no clock on it, but perhaps a digital readout would be helpful for some. Other features a future iteration could sport include NFC for payments, automatic phone unlocking based on proximity, capacitive buttons for quick functions, and hell, how about an RGB light strip (though perhaps that last one we’ll leave to ASUS with its ROG range).
But this grates so heavily against my other two points; if you cram any more features into this gadget, you risk making it thicker and much less attractive. Any more neat tricks, and you invite price bumps.
So can we hit the right balance?
(Image credit: Zachariah Kelly / TechRadar)
I’ve been wearing the Samsung Galaxy Ring every day since I first received it and it’s really complementing my suite of Samsung devices. At the same time, I just wish it did a little more. Samsung knocked it out of the park all throughout 2024 with its newly released gadgets and the Galaxy Ring is definitely the most exciting, but when the Watch already does so many of the same things, why would even a health-minded Samsung user pick it up?
It’s a situation that no doubt many companies encounter when entering a new product category. The Apple Vision Pro for instance received a significant amount of criticism for its limited VR app support, and if the last year of crummy AI hardware has taught us anything, it’s that sometimes a new product isn’t any better than just having an app.
But Samsung’s on the right track with the Galaxy Ring. I’m very much looking forward to what the company has next in store with this device.
A popular online animation tool was abused to trick people into handing over access to their cryptocurrency wallets, with at least one individual losing close to $700,000.
LottieFiles is a platform that provides tools and a library for creating, editing, and sharing lightweight, scalable animations in the Lottie format. These animations, together with the plugin LottiePlayer, are commonly used in websites and mobile applications with 94,000 weekly downloads and has been downloaded more than 4 million times since its launch.
Recently, an unnamed threat actor somehow obtained a session cookie from one of the developers of LottieFiles, and used that access to push three new versions of LottiePlayer (2.0.5, 2.0.6, and 2.0.7) to npmjs. Websites that use LottiePlayer and were configured to always use the latest version have had the malicious versions downloaded automatically.
New version released
These new versions prompted website visitors to connect their cryptocurrency wallets, which basically gives the site access to the stored funds. We don’t know how many people fell for the trick and connected their wallets, but we do know that at least one person did, and it cost them 10 BTC, which is $696,960 at press time. This information came from Scam Sniffer, a Web3 anti-scam platform.
"On October 30th ~6:20 PM UTC – LottieFiles were notified that our popular open source npm package for the web player @lottiefiles/lottie-player had unauthorized new versions pushed with malicious code," the project’s co-founder and CTO, Nattu Adnan, wrote on GitHub. "This does not impact our dotlottie player and/or SaaS services. Our incident response plans were activated as a result. We apologize for this inconvenience and are committed to ensuring safety and security of our users, customers, their end-users, developers, and our employees."
The attacker was quickly ousted, and a new version - 2.0.8, pushed live. This is a copy of the last safe version, which was 2.0.4.
"We have confirmed that our other open source libraries, open source code, GitHub repositories, and our SaaS were not affected."
Teasers for the upcoming Fortnite Remix live event have started to come out, with the latest from Epic Games being an image of a butterfly. This butterfly resembles a rift portal, suggesting that players will be warping around the event, likely set to music. We'll have to wait and see how things play out, but it looks like we're in for a portal-hopping adventure.
A Fortnite Remix live event will lead into the next season, which is going to be a throwback to Chapter 2. This live event has been revealed as Fortnite Remix: The Prelude, and it'll give players the chance to come together to witness what's set to be a musical-themed blockbuster showing.
Now that we know that the next Season of Fortnite is another throwback in the vein of Fortnite OG, we can start looking ahead to the next month of action. Epic Games has been keeping fairly quiet on the full details regarding Fortnite Remix, however, we do know that things will start to ramp up later today (November 1).
Here's everything we know about the next Fortnite live event so far, including all of the confirmed details on Fortnite Remix: The Prelude. We'll break down the release date in your time zone, and update with new info as it drops.
Fortnite Remix live event start time for your timezone
(Image credit: Epic Games)
FortniteRemix: The Prelude goes live on November 1 at 6:30PM ET / 3:30PM PT / 10:30PM GMT. You'll be able to load into the game at this point, though we don't yet know exactly what we'll be doing. Stay tuned for updates!
Fortnite Remix: The Prelude live event - what to expect
(Image credit: Epic Games)
Epic Games hasn't revealed any details on Fortnite Remix: The Prelude just yet, other than the time it'll be going live. A Tweet from the Fortnite account does provide a slight clue, however, telling players that they will want to have their "volume up".
The countdown begins! Join us for Remix: The Prelude in-game on November 1. When the timer hits zero, be there with the volume UP. pic.twitter.com/nah5aXPedzOctober 29, 2024
Given the Remix theming of Fortnite Chapter 2, it's likely that the upcoming live event will feature a musical element front and center. This could mean a performance of a remixed Chapter 2 track, a collaborative Fortnite Festival gameplay style, or something else entirely. We'll have to wait and see. For now, you can visit Restored Reels to see the countdown screen. It's likely that this is where the event will start.
Security experts have recently uncovered a Windows Themes spoofing zero-day vulnerability that allows threat actors to steal NTLM credentials.
Earlier in 2024, Microsoft discovered, and patched, CVE-2024-21320 - a similar vulnerability with a 6.5 severity score (medium). The patch did not address the issue entirely, and could be bypassed, resulting in the discovery of CVE-2024-38030. Microsoft released the fix for this hole in July 2024.
Now, security researchers from Acros Security revealed how, as they were tinkering with the patch for CVE-2024-21320, they found “an additional instance of the very same problem that was still present on all fully updated Windows versions, up to currently the latest Windows 11 24H2.”
Micropatch available
NTLM (NT LAN Manager) is a suite of security protocols used for authentication, integrity, and confidentiality in Windows networks. It’s an older protocol, primarily replaced by Kerberos in modern systems, but it is still supported for backward compatibility.
The Register reached out to Microsoft regarding this discovery, and was told the OS maker was looking into it: "We're aware of this report and will take action as needed to help keep customers protected," a Microsoft spokesperson told the publication.
In the meantime, 0patch has developed a micropatch that fixes the issue, so those of you who are worried about the bug and don’t want to wait for Microsoft, can install this one in the meantime.
"Exploitation of this zero-day is identical to the previous ones previously reported by Akamai," Acros said.
The vulnerability can be exploited rather easily, although it does require some user interaction, the researchers explained. "The user must either copy the theme file (e.g., from an email message or chat) to a folder or desktop on their computer, or visit a malicious web site that automatically downloads the file to their Downloads folder. It's not entirely without user interaction,” they told the publication.
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