ShinyShiny snippets: Oppo Find X6 and X6 Pro launch with cameras galore
We were left impressed with Oppo’s Find X5 Pro last year, so naturally, we have high expectations for its successor. As announced earlier, the upcoming Oppo Find X6 Pro meets the basic requirements you’d expect from a 2023 flagship: Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor, Sony’s IMX989 “1-inch” sensor for the main camera, a bright 6.82-inch 3,168 x 1,440 AMOLED screen, a generous 5,000mAh battery, an IP68 ruggedness rating and up to 16GB of RAM plus 512GB of storage. As a bonus, Oppo also brought back a periscopic telephoto camera — a missing feature since the Find X2 Pro from 2020 — to make full use of its photography partnership with Hasselblad. Engadget
For single people, dating fatigue is a universal phenomenon. Hours of swiping left can lead to despair at the potential matches in your area. One city in Jiangxi, a province in eastern China, reckons that it has come up with a solution for the lovelorn or love-weary: a state-sponsored matchmaking service. Guixi, a city of about 640,000 people, has launched an app that uses data on single residents to build a matchmaking platform. The app is known as “Palm Guixi” and includes a platform for organising blind dates… The app is part of a province-wide initiative to boost the marriage rate, which has been falling nationwide for the past decade. The Guardian
Amazfit has unveiled the T-Rex Ultra (pictured above), its most expensive T-Rex series smartwatch. According to the company, the T-Rex Ultra measures 47.3 x 47.3 x 13.45 mm, weighs 89 g without a strap attached and features a stainless steel bezel with a polymer allow middle frame. Additionally, the smartwatch comes in Abyss Black and Sahara colourways, as well as four physical buttons and 10 ATM water resistance. Moreover, Amazfit has included a 500 mAh battery that should last up to 20 days or as little as 28 hours with ‘accuracy GPS mode’ activated. Notebook Check
Google and Microsoft are on a mission to remove the drudgery from computing, by bringing next-generation AI tools as add-ons to existing services. On March 16, Microsoft announced an AI-powered system called Copilot will soon be introduced to its 365 suite apps including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Teams. The news came about two days after Google published a blog explaining its plans to embed AI into its Workspace apps such as Docs, Sheets, Slides, Meet and Chat. The Conversation
The UK tech sector reacted with shock at the demise of Tech Nation, an industry body once regarded as key to nurturing British start-ups, until the government withdrew its funding. For many entrepreneurs who had passed through its programmes, the move in January to instead hand grant money to Barclays bank after a competitive tender felt out of keeping with the stated ambitions of Downing Street. These had been all about fostering a vibrant tech scene that would underpin British successes in industries such as life sciences and fintech. Now, founders are concerned that warm words over the importance of tech from chancellor Jeremy Hunt are not being backed by policies and financial incentives. FT.com
Online retail giant Amazon plans to cut another 9,000 jobs as it seeks to save costs. The firm, which employs 1.5 million people worldwide, said the cuts would fall mainly in areas including cloud computing and advertising. It did not say which countries would be affected but said the positions would be closed in the next few weeks. Boss Andy Jassy said it was a “difficult decision” but it would be best for the company in the long term. The firm already axed 18,000 jobs in January. BBC
