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  • I Tried Google Home's Biggest Update and Was Unimpressed
    October 12, 2025, 6:36 AM EDT. Redesigned Google Home app delivers a faster, more useful interface with features that feel front-and-center, but the deeper shifts are modest. The headline change is the integration of Gemini into the Home experience, and Google vows to update every device since 2015 to Gemini support. Crucially, only three older speakers get Gemini Live (Nest Audio, Nest Hub Max, Nest Hub 2nd gen), while many legacy devices remain dependent on Assistant. Google's stance on Google TV streaming devices remains murky, leaving uncertainty about Android 14 devices receiving Gemini. For me, the upgrade rekindles usage only superficially: I still rely on Assistant for Chromecast control, and I'm not convinced the long game justifies the churn. A polished shell; not a revolution. Redesign matters, but functionality feels largely unchanged.
  • TAG Heuer replaces Wear OS with in-house OS on Connected Calibre E5, secures Made for iPhone certification
    October 12, 2025, 6:35 AM EDT. TAG Heuer unveils the Connected Calibre E5, swapping Google's Wear OS for an in-house TAG Heuer OS designed to improve iPhone compatibility. The watch remains Android-based underneath, but the new OS aims for a more fluid experience across iOS and Android. It carries Apple’s Made for iPhone certification to ensure reliable notifications and cross‑platform use. Google has pulled Wear OS support for iPhone, and the iOS Wear OS app has seen little maintenance. The Calibre E5 ships in 40mm and 45mm sizes, uses Qualcomm's Snapdragon Wear 5100 Plus, and features redesigned efficiency algorithms. Pricing starts at $1,600 with material and edition upgrades (including New Balance and Golf editions).
  • UC Wins 5 Nobel Prizes in 3 Days as Federal Science Funding Faces Deep Cuts
    October 12, 2025, 6:34 AM EDT. UC's historic run—five Nobel Prizes in three days—highlights American scientific leadership even as policy threats loom. The piece explains how federal funding disruptions in 2025 canceled or delayed thousands of research grants across U.S. universities. While some UC projects have had funding restored, interruptions and uncertainty threaten vital work on aging, addiction, obesity, maternal and fetal health, and Alzheimer’s disease. The Trump administration's budget proposals call for deep cuts to science agencies—potentially up to half—deepening anxiety among researchers about the trajectory of discovery. Experts warn that, regardless of Congress, the disruptions could reverberate for a decade, hampering innovation and the ability to compete globally.
  • Apple Pauses Vision Pro and Vision Air Development Amid Shifting Spatial Computing Roadmap
    October 12, 2025, 6:33 AM EDT. Recent reports suggest Apple has paused redesigned headset work and shifted its focus to smart glasses. After unveiling the Vision Pro in 2023 at a $3,499 price, Apple reportedly pursued a lighter, cheaper Vision Air to broaden spatial computing beyond premium users. A redesigned Vision Pro 2 was planned for after the Air, but insiders said development stalled by mid‑2024 as resources shifted to the cheaper model. The Information claimed Vision Pro 2 was suspended and the team aimed to launch the Air by late 2025, with a two‑tier lineup echoing iPhone and iPad strategies. In October, leaks cited weaker demand and excess components, and Bloomberg later reported further pauses on the Vision Air. Taken together, the roadmap appears unsettled, with focus shifting toward affordability and glasses‑style devices.
  • Meta Metaverse Team Told to Work 5x Faster Using AI, Internal Memo Reveals
    October 12, 2025, 6:32 AM EDT. Meta's metaverse team was told to work five times faster by leaning on AI, with Vishal Shah declaring, 'Think 5X, not 5 percent.' The internal memo frames adopting AI as essential, aiming to make AI a habitual tool rather than a novelty by prioritizing training and company-wide adoption. The effort seeks to embed AI into metaverse projects so using it becomes second nature, according to notes obtained by 404 Media.