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The most notable feature of Nothings latest phones may be its combo of distinct hardware design and Android software tweaks. However, after using the Nothing Phone 3a for a few weeks, the Essential Space app has kept me hooked on what is ostensibly a lower-mid-range smartphone. Its also a hard app to explain in a single sentence. Its a little bit of a screenshot gallery, a little bit of a notes app, a little bit of a to-do list app, a little bit of country, a little bit of rock-and-roll. Its all sewn together with similar AI features to what we've seen on most new smartphones. However, compared to the disjointed apps and features of Google AI, Galaxy AI, or Apple Intelligence, Essential Space keeps everything in one place. The utility is helped by having a dedicated launcher button (the Essential Key): A single press will screenshot your phone (and file it in Space), while a long press starts recording your voice and files it away in Space, too, initiating AI-powered transcription. A double press of the Essential Key launches the app, which seems odd. The screenshot should also be a double press, but maybe thats just me. Its not an entirely new premise. We raved about Googles Pixel Screenshot app, which also does a good job of organizing your screenshots to make things easier to find. However, Googles Screenshots app is limited to only that screenshots. Nothing, on the other hand, already announced itll bring a similar-seeming Smart Collections feature to the Space app in the future. Inside Nothings Space app, the phone extracts dates, attempts to create to-do lists, analyzes screenshots and associates them with time, date, and location data. In short, it makes it easier to remember why I took a screenshot when I did, and it even attempts to create actionable items and reminders. Ive started taking voice notes and mulling over everything I must do on a workday morning. It'll summarize it into a to-do list with goals I can check off when completed. With Essential Space, Nothing doesnt seem to be meddling with AI for the sake of it. While image generation, rewriting emails, and writing guidance on my smartphone are occasionally fun, Essential Space removes many roadblocks to using these functions. I dont have to ask the Phone 3a to transcribe your voice recordings; it just gets to work. There are limitations, perhaps predictably, given the middleweight processor of a mid-range phone, and AI processing happens on the cloud. Nothing says it deletes processing requests from its servers after theyre completed. However, phones that cost over twice as much as the Phone 3a can handle AI processing on-device for most things that Essential Space can do. There is also no way to share something with Space, whether a photo or a recording unless you initiate the recording through that pesky Essential Key. Of course, you can take screenshots of old screenshots, photos, and websites, but then youre back to the same disjointed process as other Android devices and iPhones. Nothings Essential Space manages to streamline AI into many of the features I use most, like transcription and reminders. The company has teased further functionality, like a focused search for use inside the Space app, and cutesy gimmicks like flip-to-record for your voice notes, which should only bolster what I thought would be weird software curio. It isnt earth-shattering, but put all together, it's one of the best integrations of AI aimed at making your life easier.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/nothing-phone-3a-essential-spaces-ai-powered-app-done-right-163042976.html?src=rss
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The PlayStation 5 release date for Indiana Jones and the Great Circle has been revealed. MachineGames' latest Nazi-thwacking simulator will hit Sony's console on April 17, just four months after it debuted on Xbox and PC. If you pony up for the digital premium edition or physical collector's bundle, you'll get early access to the game on April 15 (plus some other goodies). Digital pre-orders are open now and physical pre-orders go live tomorrow, March 25. Microsoft confirmed last August that it would bring a port of the tremendously enjoyable blockbuster to Sony's console this spring as part of its shift away from platform exclusivity. We've seen a number of notable former Xbox exclusives come to PS5 (and Switch in some cases) over the last year or so. Among them are Sea of Thieves, Hi-Fi Rush, Pentiment and Grounded. Forza Horizon 5 is also PS5-bound on April 29. Meanwhile, Doom: The Dark Ages will hit PS5 on May 15, the same day it's set to land on PC and Xbox. Rumors suggest that a remastered collection of the first three Gears of War games is coming to Sony's system. The rebooted Fable and even Xbox's flagship Halo series could make the leap over to PlayStation as well, as the walls around Microsoft's gaming garden continue to crumble.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/indiana-jones-and-the-great-circle-hits-ps5-on-april-17-150021622.html?src=rss
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DNA testing company 23andMe has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, following a tumultuous few years that included significant layoffs and a wide-ranging data breach. It plans to find a buyer and continue operations throughout the process, with the company's CEO, Anne Wojcicki, resigning to bid for the company independently. The Board of Directors' Special Committee previously rejected a proposal from Wojcicki. "We expect the court-supervised process will advance our efforts to address the operational and financial challenges we face, including further cost reductions and the resolution of legal and leasehold liabilities. We believe in the value of our people and our assets and hope that this process allows our mission of helping people access, understand and benefit from the human genome to live on for the benefit of customers and patients," said Mark Jensen, chair and member of the Special Committee, in a release. Jensen added that the company is committed to safeguarding customer data and that "being transparent about the management of user data going forward, and data privacy will be an important consideration in any potential transaction." There was a time when 23andMe was all the rage, with everyone you knew sending samples of their saliva. However, things have declined since the company went public. It was once valued at $6 billion, but this month that number was less than $50 million. The company also laid off over 200 employees late last year. But, the largest hurdle came in 2023 when hackers accessed the information of 6.9 million customers the breach started in April of that year, but 23andM3 noticed it five months later, in September. The company announced the leak that October. One year later, 23andMe settled a class action lawsuit for $30 million, following claims such as that the company failed to tell plaintiffs that they were specifically targeted for being of Chinese or Ashkenazi Jewish heritage.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/23andme-has-filed-for-bankruptcy-and-ceo-anne-wojcicki-has-stepped-down-144629683.html?src=rss
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