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If youre one of the people out there making calls with Metas Messenger app, its latest update adds a bunch of new features for making video and audio calls, according to the official Meta blog. When you make a video call, you can add an AI-generated background to your screen by tapping on the effects icon in the sidebar and selecting Backgrounds. So instead of showing your friends and family your grungy apartment or your car that you havent cleaned out since you bought it, you can replace the background with a field of sunflowers or an alien landscape as one of its suns is setting. Thats something weve seen from basically every other video calling platform, so its not a big surprise to see Meta add it here. Meta also added some new features for video calls including high definition video, background noise suppression and voice isolation to help you make clearer, higher-quality calls directly from Messenger, according to the blog. The HD video feature will be the default mode for Messenger calls made over W-iFi connections. HD calls can also be made on cellular data in settings by turning on Mobile data for HD video. Background noise suppression and voice isolation can also be turned on and off in Messengers call settings section. You can also leave voice and video messages for your contacts beyond just a line of text and maybe a cheeky emoji or two. Simply tap the record message button on the lower right side of the screen to leave a video or audio message if the person you are contacting doesnt pick up the call. Finally, if you dont have a free hand but need to make a call, iPhone users can ask Siri to make calls and messages for them on Metas Messenger app. Simply activate Siri and say Hey Siri, send a message to [contact name] on Messenger and dictate the message you want to send them.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/metas-latest-features-for-messenger-calling-include-ai-backgrounds-200047824.html?src=rss
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Marketing and Advertising
The battle over who will get all of Xs users now that its an utter cesspool continues. Threads just began rolling out its own custom feeds feature to compete with rival Bluesky. Custom feeds have long been a hallmark of Bluesky and now Threads users can get in on the action. Meta announced it was testing custom feeds just last week, so those tests must have been successful. Its either that or they want to stall Blueskys continuing momentum. Simply put, the feature allows users to pin topic-based feeds to the home screen of the app. This gives people the option to scroll through additional feeds beyond the algorithmic for you feed. This is a very good thing, as Threads current for you algorithm can be easily manipulated by just posting stuff like who likes cats? I have seen quite literally 400 posts like that in my feed, all looking for engagement. I like cats but, come on. In any event, users can create a custom feed by searching for keywords and taping the ... menu to get started. A feed will be created based on the keyword, though the toolset allows for more granular adjustments. For instance, users can add specific profiles to customize each feed. Threads aficionados can create up to 128 custom feeds. Threads has one significant advantage over Bluesky when it comes to custom feeds. Making one on Bluesky is something of a process. It took me around two seconds to make a Star Trek feed on Threads. Lawrence Bonk / Threads Despite Blueskys continued growth, its still a minor player when compared to Threads. Bluesky just announced 20 million users, which is great, but Threads has more than 275 million users. Threads has also been growing by around a million users a day, according to a recent post from Instagram chief Adam Mosseri.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/threads-rolls-out-its-custom-feeds-tool-after-a-quick-testing-phase-195012720.html?src=rss
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Marketing and Advertising
Sony offered a sneak peek at its PlayStation Black Friday deals, which start on Friday. In addition to some (currently nebulous) deals on hardware and games, the sale will include up to 30 percent off PlayStation Plus memberships. The deals will run from November 22 through December 2. PlayStation Plus subscriptions will be up to 30 percent off for a 12-month membership. If youre already a PS Plus Essential Member, you can save 25 percent on the remainder of your plan when upgrading to PlayStation Plus Extra. Or, you can shave off 30 percent if youre upping your membership from PS Plus Extra to PS Plus Premium / Deluxe. Sony Less specific (as of now) are the PlayStation Black Friday deals on hardware and games. Direct from PlayStation and through Sonys retail partners, there will be sales on PS5 gear, including the Fortnite Cobalt Star Bundle. PS VR2 headsets, DualSense wireless controllers, Pulse headphones or earbuds and PS5 console covers will also be discounted. What we dont know yet is how much savings Sony will offer on any of it. Sony didnt mention the PlayStation Portal, which is about to get a lot more interesting. This week, the company said the handheld will soon run a beta test for cloud streaming. The portable devices inability to do anything but stream your local PS5 games at launch was a bit baffling, to say the least. Select games for PS5, PS4 and PC will also see price cuts. Sony mentions digital titles like Star Wars Outlaws, Madden 25 and Hogwarts Legacy, so we at least know a few on-sale games to look out for. But similar to the hardware deals, we dont know how juicy the deals will be (or which other titles will be available). You can check back on Friday morning to learn more.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/the-playstation-black-friday-deals-will-cut-25-to-30-percent-off-ps-plus-subscriptions-193815734.html?src=rss
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Marketing and Advertising
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