September 25, 2023

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📱 iPhone 15 Pro Max durability test ends with big surprise

🎬 The Hollywood writers' strike could finally be over

🤖 Microsoft's Copilot sounds great. Here's why I won't use it

UP FIRST

iPhone 15 Pro Max durability test ends with big surprise

Apple released its largest and priciest iPhone just a few days ago

One of the first durability tests putting Apple’s new iPhone 15 Pro Max through its paces ended unexpectedly when its glass back shattered during a bend test.

Zack Nelson of popular YouTube channel JerryRigEverything conducted the test, subjecting the device to everything from scratching and scraping to burning and, yes, bending.

The 6.7-inch handset was coasting along and was even untroubled by having a naked flame held to the display for an absurdly long time.

But when Nelson embarked on his admittedly unscientific bend test (using his hands), the phone’s glass back quickly failed.

The YouTuber said he'd never experienced such a calamity with any of the iPhones he'd tested, and pondered whether it was to do with the phone's new titanium frame having nearly three times more tensile strength than aluminum, or half the elasticity, though when he performed the same bend test on the 6.1-inch iPhone, it stayed intact.

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ENTERTAINMENT

The Hollywood writers strike could finally be over

But the dispute involving actors continues to rumble on

After 146 days on strike, Hollywood writers have reached a tentative agreement with major studios on a new three-year contract, Variety reported on Sunday.

Negotiators for the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers were able to find common ground following five consecutive days of negotiations.

The deal includes improved royalty payments and assurances about the role of AI in future TV and movie-making, according to Sky News.

Details of the new contract agreement won’t be made public until its wording has been finalized, a process that’s expected to take several days.

The agreement means that picketing has now been suspended, but the strike itself remains effective until union members have voted on the final contract.

OPINION by Monica J. White

Microsoft's Copilot sounds great. Here's why I definitely won't use it

Some of the things that Copilot is capable of – while amazing on the surface – just don't sit well with me.

A lot of Microsoft’s September event was dedicated to Copilot, Bing Chat, and other AI-driven features. In a way, the updates made to laptops like the Surface Laptop Studio 2 almost felt like an afterthought. It was a real AI fest — and no wonder, as Microsoft has certainly created something bragworthy.

Despite how impressive Copilot seems to be, I can’t see myself actually using it. It’s a neat party trick, but my concerns with the AI outweigh any upsides it might have.

I’d heard a bit about Microsoft’s Copilot before learning more during the September event, but in my mind, it felt like yet another ChatGPT — fun, but I’ve seen it all before at this point. The last year has been oversaturated with new AI tech to the point where I can feel myself losing excitement at the thought of all these recent developments ...

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