The augmented reality (AR) market is expected to generate global revenue of $152 billion by the end of 2030, making it the hottest selling mobile device, according to a new report by GlobalData, a data analytics company. The increasing interest in AR is a sign that the technology is maturing, experts say. “In the not-too-distant future, we could all be wearing AR glasses, which companies like Apple and Facebook hope will replace our computer screens, TV screens, and well, screens in general,” Aaron Gordon, the CEO of video production company Optic Sky, told Lifewire in an email interview....

When news of Bethesda joining the Xbox family first broke several months ago, many were concerned about what it could mean for the future of Bethesda’s games on non-Xbox platforms. Now that the deal officially has gone through, we have finally received an answer. In the future, some Bethesda titles could be available on Xbox and PC only, which means PlayStation fans could find themselves missing out. “The Bethesda deal is a huge move for Microsoft and Xbox,” Josh Chambers, an editor at HowtoGame, told Lifewire via email....

SpaceHey has gotten recent attention since it was modeled after the MySpace platform, which debuted in 2003 and peaked between 2005-2008. Even if it would be nice to customize your profile and pit your friends against each other for the coveted top eight spots again, experts say nostalgia can only go so far. “The retro aspect is going to be good for a short while, but I don’t think it’s going to be enough to be the next TikTok or Clubhouse,” Tom Leach, co-founder and director of Hike Agency, told Lifewire in a phone interview....

Recent lobbying by AT&T pushes back against recent proposals to subsidize fiber-to-home deployment across the United States. In a blog post published on the company’s website, Joan Marsh, executive vice president of federal regulatory relations, claims that pushing fiber would only lead to “overbuilding,” and that service options of 50 Mbps down/10 Mbps up, or even 100/20 Mbps, is more than sufficient. Furthermore, Marsh says it isn’t practical to assume fiber can or even should be used to service every home in rural America....

Phones and smartwatches make it trivially easy to track our habits and run apps that are supposed to help us keep to those habits until they stick. But often, these apps and services favor forcing us to comply via rigid enforcement, whether we’re counting calories, counting steps, or following a workout plan. These tactics may work for some people, but for the rest of us, a gentler approach might be a lot more effective....

Cheap camera lenses used to be terrible. Soft images, poor construction, and middling specs meant you only bought one if you were on a super-tight budget. But ever since the dawn of mirrorless cameras, cheap, capable lenses have streamed out of China. Many models have design flaws, and in some brands the quality control can leave you with a bad unit, but they’re getting better and better. TTArtisan is one of the better lens makers, and I have its 35mm ƒ1....

The Magic Keyboard with Trackpad transforms Apple’s tablet into a more-than-credible laptop alternative. All apps work with the trackpad, but when apps are redesigned to take full advantage, everything works better.. “iPad with keyboard and trackpad is a whole new experience and much more productive in our view,” founder of Ulysses app Max Seelemann told Lifewire via direct message. “Productivity is all Ulysses is about, so this is a required feature for us....

Facebook for Newbies Facebook can be thought of as your little piece of personal real estate on the internet where you get to customize your profile and make status updates to communicate with your friends. You even get current and personalized news of friends’ updates as well as updates from brands, blogs, and public figures delivered to you via the news feed. Use Facebook if You Want to Stay in the Know If you have friends or family members that are very active on Facebook, or if you like to follow breaking news stories online, then connecting with those people and public pages is a great way to stay right on top of what’s happening as it happens....

I owned and loved the first generation Moto 360 watch, which I still think is the most attractive wearable ever made. Unfortunately, it barely worked and quickly ran out of juice. as well. The news that Google is revamping the Wear OS in conjunction with Samsung makes me long for an alternative to the Apple Watch Series 6 that I’ve got on my wrist. It’s not that there’s anything wrong with the Series 6....

According to YouTube, picture-in-picture (PiP) is coming to the iPhone any day now (for YouTube TV users anyway). PiP video has been built into the iPad since iOS 9 in 2015. And, just seven years later, YouTube will finally support it, albeit in a limited manner. But why has it taken so long? And can’t you do this already? “Also, this is not the only area in which Google has dragged its heels when it comes to embracing iPhone and iPad features....

Ford CEO Jim Farley recently caused a ruckus with the statement, “We got to go to non-negotiated price.” A statement in relation to selling cars online. That’s a huge deal for the automotive world. It’s not a new idea, but coming from Ford, it’s not something to be taken lightly. Especially in a world where some dealerships are marking up Ford Broncos over $40,000. As a fun reminder, the Ford Bronco starts at around $30,000....

Do You Need to Encrypt Your Emails? Many people suspect that security is mostly hype. You don’t really need to bother with all those complicated passwords, antivirus software, firewalls and such. It’s all just security software vendors and security consultants trying to scare everyone so they can sell their products and services. There are common sense steps everyone should take to secure their computers and networks, but there is certainly no shortage of hype in the news....

Users under 18 are turning away from streaming services in favor of social media and gaming, according to a new study by Deloitte. Nearly half of US respondents say they watch more user-generated content than they did six months ago, and half say they always spend more time watching it than they had planned. “The appeal of social media and games are obvious; it’s where their friends are, and it’s how they communicate,” Mike Metzler, a senior digital marketing manager at Conviva, which monitors streaming media, told Lifewire in an email interview....

Some may see Mojang making an official statement saying they’ve stopped the development of Minecraft or have started a sequel to the game (spin-offs like Minecraft: Story Mode do not count) as the ending to the core game. In this case, Minecraft, from the perspective as a standalone-title (and not a franchise) would end. From that point, whether or not Mojang decided to make a Minecraft 2 or something of the sorts, the core game would be definitively over, finished, and called a final product....

What Is an X_T File? A file with the X_T file extension is a Parasolid model part file. They’re also known as Modeller Transmit files. Different CAD programs can export to, and import from, the X_T format. The files are text-based and composed essentially of numbers, which some CAD programs can read to identify the 3D model’s geometry, color, and other details. Parasolid model parts stored in binary are saved with the X_B file extension....

What Is an XTM File? A file with the XTM file extension is most likely a CmapTools exported map. These files use the XML format to store graphics and text for use in the IHMC CmapTools (concept map tools) software. The Xtremsplit software uses XTM files, too, but they are unrelated to maps. Instead, they are used to split a large file into smaller pieces, and also to join said pieces back together, so that they’re easier to send online....

While competing smartphones use USB-C cables that handle faster charging and speedier data transfer, Apple’s continued use of Lightning means speeds top out at around 480Mbps (60MBps). That means anyone who takes a lot of high-resolution photos on an iPhone 14 Pro or Pro Max will find themselves waiting a bit when offloading them to a computer for editing. “I have definitely heard some murmurs about Lightning-based syncing bottlenecking file transfers,” camera app developer Sebastiaan de With told Lifewire via direct message....

Throughout the 1980s and beyond, Tascam’s PortaStudio was the best—if not the only—way for home musicians to record their work. It was a standalone recorder that used standard audio cassettes in a non-standard way to capture four tracks at high quality. Today, we are spoiled with all kinds of amazing hardware and apps that can do way more than record and overdub on four tracks, but there’s never really been a good successor to the PortaStudio....

The advantage of having your data backed up off-site, away from your home or office, is that it’s safe from theft, fire, and other local disasters. You can buy Backblaze for $7 /month, or less if you order it for a year or two at once. We also like that there are no file size limits, meaning you can finally back up your 100 GB virtual machine files and 3-hour 4K videos....

What started as a simple puzzler eventually turned into a marketing juggernaut, spinning off into countless sequels and sister releases. As much fun as some of those may have been, though (Angry Birds Transformers, we’re looking at you), none has managed to live up to the high bar set by the original two versions. If you’ve never played an Angry Birds game, start here. To play, you farm for resources that you can spend on new buildings, defenses, or troops, all of which are of the utmost importance if you want to ransack other players’ bases while defending your own....