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After a widely hyped and successful Kickstarter campaign, Valerions 4K VisionMaster Max laser projector has finally arrived. Its the companys new flagship model in the VisionMaster series, offering better image quality and more convenience than its other models. However, its quite expensive and has some stiff competition from Ankers Nebula X1 and XGIMIs Horizon 20 Max. I was eager to see how it compared to those models and if it delivers on Valerions promise of pure cinema. It does offer better image quality, but the difference isnt quite enough to justify the big jump in price for most users. Features and design The VisionMaster Max has a classy squarish design with a glossy black finish up front and chrome fins on the side that house two 12W speakers. Its smaller and fit my decor better than Nebulas tall, plasticky X1, though to be fair the latter is also designed for outdoor use. The VisionMaster Max has a similar form factor to XGIMIs Horizon 20 Max, but that model pivots on its stand, while the Valerion uses a kickstand-like support. For setup, the VisionMaster Max is quite flexible. It comes with a 0.9-1.5x optical zoom, so it can be installed between 7.8 and 13 feet away for a 120-inch screen size, which covers a wide range of scenarios. It also features a +/- 105 percent vertical shift option that helps you get an optically perfect screen fit without moving the projector or employing digital keystone adjustments that affect picture quality. If that still doesnt work, you can swap out the included lens with a long-throw 0.9-2.0:1 option once it becomes available. The company has even promised an anamorphic lens for users with CinemaScope screens. Both of those items will be available for purchase separately with the prices yet to be disclosed. Steve Dent for Engadget For my space, I placed the VisionMaster Max on a table about 12 feet from my 120-inch screen and centered it horizontally as theres no horizontal shift option (it can also be ceiling mounted, of course). Then, I went into the auto-alignment setting, made sure that the projected image was larger than my screen and hit start alignment to get a perfect fit to my screen. Though it lacks a motorized lens gimbal like the Nebula X1, the lens shift option provides the same flexibility, so setup was just as easy. For inputs, the VisionMaster Max comes with three HDMI 2.1 ports, including one with eARC for a sound bar, along with S/PDIF optical and 3.5mm audio outputs. Impressively, it includes a gigabit ethernet connection so you can either hardwire it to the internet or connect via Wi-Fi. The VisionMaster Max lacks liquid cooling like the Nebula X1, but Valerion claims a similar fan noise level of 28db. When I compared them side by side, it was only a touch louder than the X1 and not at all bothersome. Google TV is built in for streaming and projector control via the high-quality, partially backlit remote. It provides a large library of apps via Google Play along with a familiar interface. You get certified versions of Netflix, YouTube, Prime Video, Disney+, Max and others, plus Chromecast and AirPlay support, and Google Assistant for voice control. With 4GB of RAM and 128GB of ROM, the software felt a bit more responsive than Google TV on the Nebula X1. Image quality Steve Dent for Engadget The VisionMaster Max has a number of features designed to optimize image quality. Its one of the few consumer projectors with a dynamic iris and a feature called Enhanced Black Level (EBL) for improved contrast. It uses an RGB triple-laser light source (rated for 25,000 hours) paired with a 0.47-inch DLP chip that projects 1080p natively or 4K video via pixel shifting. This same chip is used on almost every consumer-level 4K projector, but XGIMIs upcoming Titan Noir Max projector will pack a much larger 0.78-inch DMD chip that should deliver a sharper picture. The VisionMaster Max also supports every HDR format, including Dolby Vision and Samsungs HDR10+, along with Valerions own tone-mapping HDR setting. You can choose from seven picture modes for SDR, eight for HDR, three for Dolby Vision and four for HDR10+. The projector handled most HDR content well, though it occasionally lost detail in extra-bright shots. However, that can largely be fixed using the extensive manual color controls. With all those features, the VisionMaster Max can output 4K 60 fps video at up to 3,500 ANSI lumens with a 50,000:1 contrast ratio, easily besting its main rivals. On top of that, it promises an impressive 110 percent of the Rec.2020 HDR color spectrum, with a delta E (color accuracy) value of less than 0.8 straight out of the box (any delta E less than 2 is undetectable by the human eye). Another key feature is reduction of the rainbow effect that can occur with DLP projectors. After some fine-tuning thats typically required with new projectors, I was highly impressed with the image quality. Brightness was high enough in standard mode to watch content like sports or TV shows without lowering the blinds, and can be increased if you dont mind compromising color accuracy. When used in ideal conditions like a darkened room, the VisionMaster Maxs image quality is the best of any projector Ive tested to date. In Filmmaker mode (with the EBL setting enabled), contrast levels are outstanding, with true blacks showing in dark-lit scenes instead of the washed-out greys seen on most projectors. However, I kept the EBL mode at the minimum setting as I noticed it caused some color shifting at the other levels. Dynamic iris projectors can cause excessive pumping or sudden changes in light levels, but after adjusting the iris to a medium setting, I saw no signs of that. The famously dark Game of Thrones Night King battle scene was easy to see on the VisionMaster Max. Steve Dent for Engadget Color accuracy is outstanding straight out of the box both in HDR and non-HDR modes, particularly, again in Filmmaker mode. Visually, I couldnt detect any anomalies when looking at color bars or other chats, though my Calibrite Color Checker told me that the gamut of hues was slightly less than what Valerion claims (under 100 percent of BT.2020). Still, the Maxs high color accuracy allowed me to see TV series and movies exactly as the filmmakers intended for a range of HDR and non-HDR movies including White Lotus season 3, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Andor and Dune 2. The projectors excellent dynamic range and contrast revealed shadow details in Game of Thrones Night King battle, which has famously dark scenes that are difficult to see on some TVs. I have a slight amount of sensitivity to the rainbow effect, but the RBE Reduction feature effectively eliminated that visual artifact for me. However, it also introduced a slight amount of noise, so I disabled it. The feature might be a godsend for some users who are particularly susceptible, but it still needs a bit more refinement. Audio and gaming Of all the luxury projectors Ive tested to date, the VisionMaster Max is the best for gaming even compared to some dedicated models. It delivers latency as low as 4ms and a refresh rate up to 240Hz at 1080p, and 15ms for 4K at 60Hz. I tested a couple of PC titles including Cyberpunk 2077 and Hollow Knight: Silksong and found them to be as responsive as Ive seen on any TV, but with far more immersion thanks to the huge, bright and color-accurate image. Steve Dent for Engadget You can output audio via the S/PDIF optical output, 3.5mm headphone jack, HDMI 2.1 ports and even USB 3.0 Type A ports. The built-in 12W stereo speakers work well and are fairly loud, so you can use them in a pinch. However, since it supports both DTS:X and Dolby Atmos, youll ideally want to connect it to a nice home theater audio system with support for at least 5.1 surround sound. In comparison, the Nebula X1 doesnt have Dolby Atmos support, but it does give you the option to purchase and easily connect stereo Bluetooth speakers at a relatively cheap price. For around the same cost as the Valerion Max, Anker is also offering the Nebula X1 Pro that comes with a giant outdoor sound system and does support Dolby Atmos. Wrap-up The Valerion VisionMaster Max is a highly capable indoor projector that offers the best image quality Ive seen thanks to the dynamic iris and Enhanced Black Level features. However, its also a lot more expensive than rival models at $5,000. Its pretty hard to justify that extra money, unless youre really fussy about picture accuracy and gaming performance, or need other features like the 1Gbps ethernet port. Most buyers would be better off spending a lot less on Valerions own $2,699 VisionMaster Pro2, Ankers $2,999 Nebula X1 or the $2,999 XGIMI Horizon 20 Max. Again, the difference in picture quality is too slight to justify the huge price jump to the VisionMaster Max. You might also want to wait to see how much XGIMIs incoming Titan Noir Max 4K costs, as it also offers a dynamic iris but has a much bigger DLP chip.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/home-theater/valerion-visionmaster-max-projector-review-near-perfect-image-quality-comes-at-a-price-140045939.html?src=rss
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President Trump has signed a proclamation imposing a 25 percent tariff on certain advanced computing chips, the White House has announced. As The New York Times notes, the administration previously threatened much bigger and broader tariffs for chips. Trump even said that he was going to impose a 100 percent tariff on companies unless they invest on semiconductor manufacturing in the United States. The new tariff will only affect advanced chips imported into the US and are meant to be re-exported to other countries to sell. In its announcement, the White House specifically named AMD MI325X and NVIDIA H200 as two products that will be affected by the tariff. The president recently approved H200 for export to China, saying that it isnt NVIDIAs most advanced AI chip anyway and that the company now has newer and more powerful products, such as its Blackwell semiconductors. [W]e're going to be making 25 percent on the sale of those chips, basically, Trump said. Semiconductors imported into the US for use in products to be sold in America or for use in data centers in the country, will not be affected by the new tariff. This tariff will not apply to chips that are imported to support the buildout of the US technology supply chain and the strengthening of domestic manufacturing capacity for derivatives of semiconductors, the White House wrote. But that could still change: The administration said that it may still impose broader tariffs on semiconductor imports and the products that use them in the near future. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/trump-administration-imposes-a-25-percent-tariff-on-high-end-chips-140000138.html?src=rss
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OpenAI has debuted a dedicated ChatGPT-powered translation tool. While folks have been using the main chatbot for translation for some time, you can now find ChatGPT Translate on its own webpage, as Android Authority spotted. The tool can translate text, voice inputs and images into more than 50 languages in seconds, OpenAI says. Theres an automatic language detection function too.Most interestingly, ChatGPT Translate can rewrite the output to take various contexts and tones into account, much in the same way that more general text-generating AI tools can do. With a single tap, it can rewrite the translation into something "more fluent," for a business formal audience, to make it more child-friendly or for academic purposes. The tools webpage says ChatGPT Translate understands "tone, idioms and context."While those tone and context considerations are intriguing, ChatGPT Translate is a little underbaked compared with the likes of Google Translate which has been around for decades and just got its own Gemini-based makeover with better support for understanding idioms and slang. The desktop version of ChatGPT Translate does not yet allow for voice inputs, though the mobile one does, as Android Authority notes. Despite claims that ChatGPT can translate text in an image, theres currently no way to upload one to the tool. Theres no website, document or handwriting translation support as yet either. Perhaps most crucially, ChatGPT Translate lives on a webpage right now and theres no dedicated app. So using it offline appears to be out of the question as things stand. No app with on-device translation support could make ChatGPT Translate a no-go for travelers in rural areas with no Internet access. Theres no support for translating real-time conversations as yet either. Googles Pixel 10, on the other hand, now supports voice translations for calls.Its not exactly clear when ChatGPT Translate debuted it arrived with zero fanfare from OpenAI. Theres a snapshot of the webpage from November on The Internet Archives Wayback Machine that looks just like the current one, but that may have simply been a case of OpenAI testing a live version of the tool. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/openai-quietly-rolls-out-a-dedicated-chatgpt-translation-tool-133000974.html?src=rss
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