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We already knew that the aerospace company Firefly successfully maneuvered its Blue Ghost lander onto the surface of the Moon, but now we have some gorgeous video proof. The lander captured footage throughout the touchdown, complete with a cinematic finale. Check it out below. The POV footage shows the lander descending toward the Moon and the subsequent landing. It ends with a striking view of Blue Ghost emerging from a cloud of dust as its shadow stretches across the lunar surface. Its pretty darn cool, with surprisingly-crisp HD visuals. The touchdown happened Sunday at 3:30 AM ET and Blue Ghost made its home in a region known as Mare Crisium. This isnt the first commercial lander to make its way to the Moon, but was the first one to land properly. The mission was a joint effort between Firefly and NASAs Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program, an organization that hopes to pave the way for an increased commercial presence on good ole Luna. Since landing, Blue Ghost has begun its surface operations. These include deploying payloads, sampling local regolith and capturing a bevy of images. The stationary lander will spend around two weeks on the lunar surface as it conducts various tests. Its packed with ten NASA instruments designed to probe the ground and to test subsurface drilling methods.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/space/aerospace-company-firefly-released-fantastic-pov-footage-of-blue-ghost-landing-on-the-moon-195821368.html?src=rss
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In an effort to make movies and TV shows more accessible on Prime Video, Amazon announced that it's testing an AI dubbing system that will translate select content on the company's streaming service into other languages. Amazon says that "AI-aided dubbing" will be available in English and Latin American Spanish on 12 licensed movies and series available through Prime Video, including "El Cid: La Leyenda, Mi Mamá Lora and Long Lost." That the company describes it as "AI-aided dubbing" rather than just AI dubbing appears to be key here. Amazon says it's taking a hybrid approach where "localization professionals collaborate with AI." A safe guess would be that Amazon's AI system takes a first pass at generating dubs and then professionals edit them for accuracy and fit. Creating captions, subtitles and dubs is a fairly big business, especially now that streaming has increased the number of films and series that are made every year and licensed to be viewed around the world. It makes sense that streamlining the process of making content more accessible would be of interest to Amazon. The possible problem is, at least for film and television, dubbing is done by professional actors. AI-generated voices have gotten more lifelike over the years, but it remains to be seen whether the average person will be okay with a large portion of their media diet being delivered by something human-adjacent rather than the real deal. Of course, maybe we'll be trained to accept it because it will be all over social media first. Amazon isn't alone in leveraging AI to squeeze more out of the videos on its platform. YouTube released a tool in 2024 that lets creators automatically dub their videos in other languages when they upload them, and more recently, Meta announced plans to automatically dub and lip-sync Reels on Instagram into other languages. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/prime-video-is-beginning-an-ai-dubbing-pilot-program-for-select-movies-and-series-190252188.html?src=rss
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The first time you make anything, it probably wont come out perfect, so it wasnt a huge surprise when MSIs debut gaming handheld struggled out of the gate. And thats before you consider the unorthodox choice to go with an Intel chip instead of one from AMD like practically all of its rivals. However, MSI didnt give up, and now its back with not one but two versions of its second-gen handheld, headlined by the Claw 8 AI+. Not only is it bigger than before, it has twice as many Thunderbolt 4 ports, a way bigger battery and some of the best performance weve seen from any device in this category. But more importantly, as the follow-up to a device plagued by lackluster software and unfinished drivers, it feels like the Claw got its bite back. Design and display: The desert cat With its 8-inch screen, the Claw 8 AI+ is bigger than its predecessor and a number of its rivals like the ROG Ally X, though it's still smaller than Lenovos chunky 8.8-inch Legion Go. MSI also zagged by giving it a two-toned black and sandstone chassis. Ergonomics are generally fine, but if Im nitpicking, I would prefer slightly larger grips for increased comfort. But aside from that, the handheld features a relatively straightforward mix of premium components strewn across a familiar blueprint. It has Hall Effect sensors for its joysticks and triggers along with some embedded RGB lighting, the latter of which has become sort of an unspoken requirement among portable gaming PCs these days. You also get two Thunderbolt 4 ports that support both data and charging which are especially handy if you ever plan on using this thing for productivity and a microSD card slot for expandable storage. I appreciate that unlike Lenovos handhelds, MSI included a built-in fingerprint reader that makes unlocking Windows-based devices like the Claw a lot more convenient. That said, you dont get a touchpad, though MSIs software does let you control your cursor with the joysticks, so its not a complete pain in the butt anytime you have to switch between games and apps. And finally, around back, theres a single pair of paddles. As for the display, while it's an IPS panel instead of the super-rich OLEDs on some handhelds, the Claws screen offers above-average brightness (up to 500 nits), a solid 120Hz refresh rate (with VRR) and the perfect resolution for a system this size (1,920 x 1,200). So all told, theres very little to gripe about when it comes to its visuals. Plus, thanks to some surprisingly punchy front-facing speakers, it has solid audio too. Performance and software: A low-key beast Sam Rutherford for Engadget Perhaps the biggest surprise is that after lackluster results from MSIs first attempt, the Claw 8 AI+ pumped out strong performance that was easily able to keep up with and sometimes surpass what Ive seen from its competitors. Some of that is assuredly due to more polished software and recent driver updates from Intel, but still, between its Intel Core Ultra 7 258V chip, 32GB of RAM and 1TB of SSD storage, the Claw produced framerates that were often 10 to 15 percent higher than what we got from the Ally X. For example, when set to its 30-watt preset, in Cyberpunk 2077 at 800p on medium settings the Claw hit 75 fps versus 65 fps for the ROG Ally X at the same TDP (thermal design power). Meanwhile, in Returnal at 800p on medium, the Claw also bested the Legion Go by reaching 56 fps compared to just 46 fps for the Lenovo. Now its important to note that MSIs midrange power for the preset on the Claw (which is what I used to get those figures in Returnal) is 17 watts instead of 15 watts like on most of its rivals, which may be MSIs attempt to skew benchmarks in its favor. But even after you account for that, the Claw still comes out ahead. Another nice thing about the Claw is that if you dont want to fiddle around with settings all the time, theres what MSI is calling its AI Engine mode, which will automatically adjust things to optimize performance or battery life depending on what you want. Its a nice option for quickly changing how much horsepower you need, though as always, youre going to need to tweak things manually for the best results. The rest of the MSI Center app feels somewhat spartan. There are sections for launching games, performing software updates, changing the RGB lighting and more. You can even install game stores like Steam directly inside the program. But aside from that, the app isnt very fancy or all that pretty to look at. All the important stuff is there though, which is what really counts since Windows 11 as a whole still feels way clunkier to use than more bespoke platforms like Valves SteamOS. Battery life: Surprisingly good Sam Rutherford for Engadget The Claw 8 AI+ features an 80Whr cell, which is one of the largest battery packs in this category and allows for prodigious longevity. In Elden Ring on medium settings, the handheld lasted just over three hours on a single charge. That aint too shabby, especially after my recent testing with the Lenovo Legion G, which only lasted for two and a half hours at best, and that was when playing a much less demanding game in Metal Slug Tactics. Wrap-up After the original bombed, a lot of companies would have simply called it quits. Sure, a lot of the first systems issues may have been caused by Intels chip and unpolished drivers more than anything MSI did (or didnt do). But with the Claw 8 AI+, MSI came back and totally redeemed itself. Not only is it a very competent gaming handheld, this cat offers a solid design, great performance and above-average battery life. Sam Rutherford for Engadget However, even though it pushes out slightly fewer frames, the $800 ROG Ally X remains a better value (especially if you can find it on sale) and its smaller screen makes it a more portable pick for people planning to game on the go. When it comes to larger competitors, Lenovos Legion Go offers similar horsepower for even less money with starting prices of $700 (or less, now that it regularly receives discounts). But if youre looking for top-notch performance from a portable PC with an assortment of premium components, the Claw 8 AI+ makes an interesting case as an upgrade pick among gaming handhelds.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/msi-claw-8-ai-review-this-cat-got-its-bite-back-184526430.html?src=rss
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