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Today — 9 March 2025Tech News

Colossal CEO Ben Lamm says humanity has a ‘moral obligation’ to pursue de-extinction tech

9 March 2025 at 12:03

The CEO of Colossal, a startup that aims to use genetic editing techniques to bring back extinct species, including the wooly mammoth, assured audiences at SXSW that the company has no plans to create a real-life Jurassic Park — lest there was any doubt. “Modern conservation isn’t working […] and we’re gonna need a ‘de-extinction’ […]

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Forza Horizon 5 will require a Microsoft account on PS5

By: Wes Davis
9 March 2025 at 11:25

The PS5 version of Forza Horizon 5 will require you to link a Microsoft account to your PlayStation Network account in order to play the game, according to a FAQ on the game’s official website.

The FAQ says that players will be prompted to link the two the first time they load the game. And if you unlink later, you “will be constrained to relinking to only that specific and originally linked” Microsoft account.

The requirement stings given that there’s no cross-platform saving, so the progress you make in the PS5 version isn’t reflected in the Xbox version. It’s the same situation for the Steam version, as the FAQ points out. As the page also notes, Horizon 5 players will need a PlayStation Plus subscription to access the game’s multiplayer feature, and there are “no plans for a disc release.”

When Forza Horizon 5 releases on the PS5 on April 29th, it will be the latest Xbox exclusive to make the leap to Sony’s console, joining games like Sea of Thieves, which also requires you to link a Microsoft account before you can play.

Gamers haven’t been keen on required account linking when Sony has done it in the past. The company actually removed a requirement for you to sign in with your PSN account for some PC versions of some games, including Helldivers 2 and, more recently, God of War Ragnarök and Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered.

Retroid says it will accept limited Pocket Mini returns due to screen scaling issue

After months of Retroid Pocket Mini buyers reporting issues with the appearance of games when using shaders, Retroid has opened a new return window for people seeking a refund. But there are limitations. Per a screenshot shared by Retro Game Corps, the China-based company said in a Discord message that the return window will be open only from March 8 to March 14, only 200 overseas returns will be accepted and customers will have to pay for shipping. As consolation, the company is offering all owners “a $10 stackable coupon for the upcoming Retroid Flip2 and Retroid Classic.”

Retroid released a statement about the RP Mini screen issue:

- March 8-14 return window for those affected
- Returns capped to 200 units to limit a flood of returns for unrelated reasons
- Asking customer to pay return shipping
- $10 stackable coupon for all RP Mini customers pic.twitter.com/UpLN9rPL3a

— Retro Game Corps (@RetroGameCorps) March 8, 2025

Retroid Pocket Mini owners have been trying to get to the bottom of the issue since shortly after the device’s release last fall. As RetroHandhelds explains, “The shader issue is mostly only noticeable when specific CRT shaders are applied to older games. Users can expect to see misplaced scanlines, uneven pixels, or a slightly distorted image” in such cases. After much back and forth, the company recently said the issue can’t be fixed, linking it to the screen driver, Discord screenshots shared by RetroHandhelds show.

Prior to the latest update from Retroid, some buyers said their return requests were denied. In the Discord message this weekend, the company said, “Please note that this is a large and costly endeavor for our team, and we expect a lot of return requests outside of screen-related issues.” Further down, it added, “For users who do not heavily rely on CRT shaders or pixel grid effects, we encourage you to reserve this opportunity for those who genuinely need it.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/retroid-says-it-will-accept-limited-pocket-mini-returns-due-to-screen-scaling-issue-183143391.html?src=rss

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© Retroid

Five Retroid Pocket Mini handhelds of different colors displayed fanned out

Apple’s new A16 iPad may have a special trick up its sleeve

9 March 2025 at 10:26

Last week, Apple hit us with a little bit of a surprise, and introduced the with an A16 chip. The new iPad wasn’t much of a surprise, but the A16 chip certainly was. Rumors had long suggested that we should expect an A17 Pro chip, but that never came to fruition.

However, the A16 chip might provide a special perk, one that assures the product can stay around at its $349 price tag in the short term.

more…

Tammy Nam joins AI-powered ad startup Creatopy as CEO

9 March 2025 at 08:53

Creatopy, a startup that uses AI to automate the creation of digital ads, has brought on a new CEO: Tammy Nam. Nam was previously COO and CMO at photo-editing startup PicsArt, and before that the CEO of video streamer Viki. She told TechCrunch via email that Creatopy was looking for a US-based executive who knows […]

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Apple’s rumored smart home hub has reportedly been delayed

It may be a while still before we see the smart home hub Apple is rumored to be working on. According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, the company has postponed the announcement of the upcoming product due to the issues it’s run into developing its “smarter” Siri. Gurman reported last month that the release of Apple’s upgraded Siri may be delayed, and Apple confirmed as much in a statement to Daring Fireball last week, saying it expects to roll out Siri’s more personalized features “in the coming year.” The smart home hub, according to Gurman, “to an extent, relies on the delayed Siri capabilities.”

Gurman previously reported that the first version of the smart home display could be revealed as soon as March. It would be a competitor to Amazon’s Echo line of devices and Google’s Nest Hub. While a March release is looking unlikely, Gurman reports that Apple is now allowing some employees to test it at home.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/smart-home/apples-rumored-smart-home-hub-has-reportedly-been-delayed-151515192.html?src=rss

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© Apple

The colorful Siri icon shown against a black background

Apple’s smart home hub reportedly delayed by Siri challenges

9 March 2025 at 08:03

Apple announced this week that the “more personalized” version of Siri that it promised last year has been delayed — and according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, that’s also postponed the launch of the company’s planned smart home hub. In a statement, Apple said the upgraded Siri features, which are part of its broader Apple Intelligence […]

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Musk may still have a chance to thwart OpenAI’s for-profit conversion

9 March 2025 at 08:00

Elon Musk lost the latest battle in his lawsuit against OpenAI this week, but a federal judge appears to have given Musk — and others who oppose OpenAI’s for-profit conversion — reasons to be hopeful. Musk’s suit against OpenAI, which also names Microsoft and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman as defendants, accuses OpenAI of abandoning its […]

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How to stop doomscrolling

9 March 2025 at 07:00

The world is bad sometimes, but it feels even worse if you can’t stop staring into the all-consuming abyss that is the 6-inch screen of a smartphone, following you through space and time. It taunts you with its compact, light build that’s small enough to slip into your pocket and take anywhere, and its siren […]

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