Heads up, Apple users! After much anticipation, the tech giant’s artificial intelligence feature, called Apple Intelligence, is finally here!

Apple Intelligence is now officially available through a free software update with the release of iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, and macOS Sequoia 15.1. The AI features, however, are only available on selected devices: iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, iPhone 16 Pro Max, iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, iPad with A17 Pro or M1 and later, and Mac with M1 and later.

For those who are curious, below are some of the most notable Apple Intelligence features.

Smart Writing Tools

Don’t know what to write in your emails or how to respond better to your besties? Fret not, because the new Apple Intelligence brings with it various writing tools, available across all apps where you write, such as Mail, Notes, Pages, and Messages.

One of the features is Rewrite, which allows users to rewrite texts in different versions and adjust their tone, whether professional or friendly, to suit their needs. There’s also Proofread, which checks your grammar, sentence structure, and word choice and gives you suggestions on how to write your texts better.

If you don’t prefer reading long texts, you can also have them summarized in the form of a digestible paragraph, bulleted key points, a table, or a list.

More Ways to Manage Your Photos

We all know how annoying it is to have the perfect photo taken but ruined by a distracting background, or, as we call it, a photobomber. Apple Intelligence users can now say goodbye to this, as it also brings a Clean Up tool, which allows users to remove a distracting element from a photo and replace it with something that matches the background.

No need to scroll hard when you’re looking for a photo or video, too, because the new Photos app is now equipped with a Natural Language search. This feature lets users look for a photo or video by typing a description of the media they are looking for.

The Photos App also now has a Memories feature, which lets you create a movie or a video reel. This feature will pick out the best photos and videos based on a description you will input, then create a storyline with chapters and arrange them into a movie with its own narrative arc. Less manual editing!

Apple Intelligence Helps You Be More Productive

Stressed over work or study? Apple Intelligence got you! In Mail, for example, there’s a new section called “Priority Messages,” which shows you your most urgent emails, such as same-day lunch invitations or your boarding pass for your upcoming trip. There’s also a Smart Reply feature, which will identify all the questions in an email and suggest quick responses that you can send based on those queries. Talk about convenience!

Not only that, but you can also now record, transcribe, and summarize audio, particularly in a phone call. When a user initiates a recording while on a call, participants will automatically be notified and once the call ends, Apple Intelligence will generate a summary of the call.

A Smarter Siri

Our friendly Apple assistant Siri has become friendlier, too! With richer language-understanding capabilities, Siri can now follow along with your words even when you stutter or stumble and maintain context from one request to the next. Siri can now also answer all your questions about your Apple device, like how to record your screen or how to share your Wi-Fi password, among other things.

It also sports a new look, too! The glowing ball of light is gone and is replaced by an elegant glowing light that wraps the edge of your iPhone, iPad, or CarPlay screen. Siri can also be placed anywhere on Mac devices, so users can access it easily.

All these features are only the first wave of offerings from Apple Intelligence, with plans to roll out more in the coming months.

“Apple Intelligence introduces a new era for iPhone, iPad, and Mac, delivering brand-new experiences and tools that will transform what our users can accomplish,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, in an announcement.

To learn more about Apple Intelligence, click here.

The iPhone reveal month is here! Tech enthusiasts always get ready for September, as tech giant Apple is expected to release the latest iPhone and iPhone Pro models (and the latest Apple Watch too!) during this time.

The buzz is real, with leaks and rumors on what the new iPhone 16 will look like. They're just enough to keep us on the edge of our seats. And while last year’s iPhone 15’s biggest change was the switch from lightning to USB-C port, everyone’s talking about what Apple might surprise us with this time.

To excite us further, the tech company has announced a new Apple event taking place this Sept. 9, with an Apple logo that mimics the design of that little circle that appears when you call Siri and a tagline that says “It’s Glowtime.”

In case you’re wondering what to expect from the upcoming Apple event, we’ve gathered some of the most talked-about leaks and rumors regarding the new Apple iPhone 16 and 16 Pro lineups.

AI: Apple Intelligence

While other smartphone brands like Samsung have made their own moves towards artificial intelligence (AI), Apple seems to be lagging in this aspect. But maybe not anymore – as the company has recently announced the integration of such technology into its upcoming iOS 18 during the WWDC 2024 last June.

Apple’s AI, also called Apple Intelligence, is said to be an upgraded version of generative AI, which is used in text and image generation. This feature is expected to proofread or summarize texts for its users and even write long messages for them.

In terms of image generation, Apple AI can be used to generate custom emojis (also called Genmojis). There’s also an Image Playground experience, which creates an entirely new image using descriptions, concepts, or even a person from the user's Photos gallery, and an Image Wand, which transforms a rough sketch from the Notes app into a related image.

Pretty cool, right? That’s not all, because the new iPhone might also have a Clean Up feature, which can remove unwanted background elements on photos — no more photobombers!

Don’t worry, though, because iOS 18 will also be supported in phones with at least an A12 Bionic chipset (iPhone XS, XS Max, XR, and up). However, the AI features will only be available in iPhone 15 Pro models and up.

A Smarter Siri

Siri, Apple’s trusty smart assistant, is also getting an upgrade. According to Apple, the new Siri will become “even more capable, integrated, and personal.” One of the upgrades to look forward to includes a richer language understanding, which will make communicating with Siri easier and more natural.

Siri will also be able to work across apps! For example, users will be able to ask Siri to edit a photo using the Photos app or send someone a text on the Messages app. Siri also ditches the glowing ball of light at the bottom of the screen when it is activated; instead, the edges of the devices will light up to signify when Siri is in use.

New Look: Camera Layout and Colors

In terms of aesthetics, not much has changed in the iPhone's design from iPhone 11 up until 15, aside from the change from the Notch to the Dynamic Island and the switch to titanium material. This year, however, there might be a few distinct changes, one being the camera layout. According to Apple Insider, the cameras of iPhone 16’s base models will be vertically stacked instead of diagonally, which dials back to the design of iPhone 11 base phones.

Apple is also reportedly debuting new colors for its new iPhones. According to a social media post by tech reviewer Sonny Dickson, which shows a photo of iPhone 16 prototypes, the Pro models will drop the Blue Titanium variant and replace it with a metallic bronze-like color. This is in addition to the White Titanium, Black Titanium, and Natural Titanium colors that are already available for the 15 Pro variant.

Meanwhile, the base models are expected to come in five colors: a deep, rich blue shade, a sleek black, a soft pink hue, a clean white, and a vibrant green color.

Capture and Action Buttons

Last year, the Action Button made its appearance in the iPhone 15 Pro phones — a button that can be programmed to a specific function that can be accessed with just one click. This year, the Action button is rumored to be making its way on the base models as well, replacing the Silent toggle at the side of these phones.

Another button that is expected to be on the new iPhones is the Capture Button. It is said to be located at the lower right side of all iPhone 16 phones and will be able to open and control the camera app. This is supposed to make taking selfies and photos easier, no more struggles in looking for the app when you’re in a hurry!

The Bigger, The Better?

One other rumor that’s been going around is that the iPhone Pros will have slightly bigger display sizes. This means the new phones could have thinner bezels or bigger sizes. Recently, MacRumors said that the iPhone 16 Pro will have a display size of 6.3 inches, a 0.2 upgrade from the iPhone 15 Pro’s 6.1 inches.

Similarly, the iPhone 16 Pro Max will have a 6.9-inch screen, a bit bigger than the iPhone 15 Pro Max’s 6.7-inch display. We can also expect a slight change in these phones' weights, with the 16 Pro being 7 grams heavier and the 16 Pro Max being 4 grams heavier than their counterparts.

Meanwhile, no changes in size are expected from the iPhone 16 and 16 Plus phones.

Prices

Given the rising costs, the increasingly competitive smartphone market, and the upgrades done to the iPhone 16 lineup, a price increase may be expected. Several sources say that the iPhone 16, the most basic model, will still have a starting price of US$799, while some say that a US$100 increase is possible.

On the other hand, the 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max models may have a base price of US$1,099 and US$1,199, respectively, but mainly because Apple is reportedly ditching the 128GB variation.

Now, the ultimate question — is it worth upgrading to the iPhone 16? Sure, there are quite a lot of things to look forward to, but we still have to watch out for what will be unveiled at the upcoming Apple event. If you’re anything like us who are pumped to find out, make sure to watch the event via Apple’s website, Apple TV+, or YouTube channel!

In our world where Artificial Intelligence (AI) exists, more tech companies are incorporating the latest developments into their products, much like Microsoft’s newest AI-powered personal computer.

In an event, the tech giant unveiled the Copilot+ as their “fastest and most intelligent” PC yet. Priced at US$999, the device has powerful new silicon capable of an incredible 40+ TOPS, all-day battery life, and access to the most advanced AI models – enabling you to do things you can’t on any other PC.

Copilot+ PCs can last 15 hours for web browsing and 22 hours for local video playback on a single charge, which is 20% more battery compared to other brands. These devices also have built-in AI models that can run even without an internet connection.

One of the cool features of the new PC is the Recall feature, which allows users to access what they previously saw. Another thing to expect is Cocreate, an AI-powered image creation and editing tool where you can combine text prompts and ink strokes to generate new images for free.

Microsoft will start rolling out Copilot+ on June 18 with a set of thin, light, and beautiful devices from Microsoft Surface and our OEM partners Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo, and Samsung. For more information about Copilot+, check here.

OpenAI has announced the launch of its latest artificial intelligence model, Chat GPT-4o, marking a significant advancement in AI technology. Building on the success of its predecessors, Chat GPT-4o introduces several features designed to enhance user interaction and expand its capabilities.

Among the most notable improvements is the model's enhanced conversational abilities, which provide a more natural and coherent flow in interactions, making them feel smoother and more human-like. Additionally, Chat GPT-4o now supports real-time collaboration, allowing users to work together seamlessly on documents and projects, benefiting from the AI's quick processing and problem-solving skills.

Another standout feature is the improved multimodal integration, enabling Chat GPT-4o to process and generate content that includes text, images and even videos. This capability allows for richer and more versatile interactions, catering to a wider range of applications from creative projects to detailed technical analyses. Furthermore, the model boasts an expanded knowledge base, providing more accurate and up-to-date answers with access to the latest information and a broader range of sources.

The release of Chat GPT-4o represents a significant step forward in the field of artificial intelligence, promising to revolutionise how users interact with AI and leverage its capabilities across various domains. To learn more about the update, visit OpenAI’s official announcement.

Tech giant Apple recently unveiled the latest of their iPad Pro series in an unbelievably thin and light design and has the most advanced display and the best performance yet.

The new iPad Pro is available in black and silver finishes and comes in 13-inch and 11-inch sizes, allowing users to take them anywhere. The 13-inch model is 5.1mm thin, while the 11-inch device is 5.3mm – both are enclosed with 100% recycled aluminum.

The new models offer the most advanced display that utilizes the Retina XDR display – providing a top-notch visual experience for users. The Retina XDR display features the latest OLED technology which uses two OLED panels to bring out an impressive full-screen brightness and enable sub-millisecond control over the colour and luminance of each pixel – which means, users can experience extreme brightness, incredibly precise contrast, and brilliant colours.

Professionals working with high-end, colour-managed workflows or under challenging lighting conditions can also opt for the nano-texture glass to maintain image quality and contrast while scattering ambient light for reduced glare.

The new design and display are made possible by the M4 chip – the newest generation of Apple silicon that delivers a huge leap in performance. Built on second-generation 3-nanometer technology, the M4 chip allows the new models to be more power-efficient and to pioneer technology for the stunning precision, colour, and brightness of the Ultra Retina XDR display.

Offering up to four performance cores and now six efficiency cores with next-generation machine learning (ML) accelerators, the new CPU can deliver up to 1.5x faster performance over M2 in the previous-generation iPad Pro. Now, users can expect powerful features like dynamic caching and hardware-accelerated mesh shading and ray tracing – for the first time ever in iPads.

The new iPad Pro’s camera system has a 12MP back camera that can capture vibrant Smart HDR photos and videos with better colour, improved textures, and detail in low light, along with four studio-quality mics. Meanwhile, the front camera has an ultra-wide and TrueDepth 12MP camera.

The release also featured the newest Apple Pencil Pro which features a new sensor in the barrel, making every user’s experience better. Find out more about the latest drops here.

Meta just introduced a new and improved Artificial Intelligence (AI) assistance with Llama 3 across all their applications, including Facebook and Instagram. According to Meta, users can get help with planning meals, organising parties, and even studying for exams for free.

Claimed as “the most intelligent AI assistant,” the Meta AI can be used in feed, chats, searches, and more in-app to get things done and access real-time information – which makes things more convenient since you no longer have to switch apps when doing so.

Aside from the in-app AI assistance, the tech giant will also be launching a new website called meta.ai, so you can access the same features on your computer. There will also be a Meta AI Imagine feature, which will only be available on the website and WhatsApp. This feature will let you create images from text in real time.

How will it work? Just type in whatever you are thinking of. An image will appear as you type and it will change with every few letters typed – bringing your visions to life. You can also ask the smart assistant to turn images into an animation or GIF.

Meta will also be rolling out AI assistance in English outside of the US, including in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Jamaica, South Africa, Malawi, Uganda, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, and Zambia. Find out more information here.