Apps

Android now supports AirDrop!

It’s been a long time coming.

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For years, there was an insurmountable wall between Apple and Android. One ecosystem’s features were constantly unavailable on another’s. However, times are changing. Previously, Apple started supporting RCS messaging, bridging the messaging between the two platforms. Now, Android is getting support for an even major iOS-only feature: AirDrop.

In a world where file sizes keep getting bigger, efficient file sharing services, such as AirDrop, are invaluable. AirDrop allows iOS users within proximity to share files seamlessly with one another. Technically, Android has its own version called Quick Share. However, the feature did not work with AirDrop, creating another rift between the two platforms.

Today, Android has dropped a surprise feature. Quick Share is now compatible with AirDrop. For now, the feature will start with the Pixel 10 series. But Google hopes to roll it out for other devices in the future.

To enable interoperability between the two platforms, the receiver, regardless of Android or iOS, must set their visibility to “everyone for 10 minutes,” meaning including those outside of their contact list. For those who are conscious about security, Android says that the feature will use the Rust programming language to ensure that security remains a priority.

Unlike the vocal spate for RCS messaging, there hasn’t been a comparatively huge clamor for AirDrop on Android. Everyone just seems to take it as granted. However, that doesn’t mean that it’s not a welcome feature. Despite being a complete surprise, it’s a huge boon for Android users with a lot of friends on iOS.

SEE ALSO: Android 16 is here!

Apps

Apple Creator Studio: Creative apps bundled into single subscription

All the tools you need, one payment

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Apple has officially streamlined its popular creative apps into one single subscription suite with the introduction of Apple Creator Studio.

The collection includes some of the most useful apps for today’s creators: Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, Pixelmator Pro, Motion, Compressor, and MainStage.

New AI features and premium content in Keynote, Pages, and Numbers also make the Apple Creator Studio an exciting subscription suite. Freeform will eventually be added to the lineup.

The groundbreaking collection is designed to put studio-grade power into the hands of everyone. It builds on the essential role Apple devices play in the lives of millions of creators worldwide.

The apps included cover video editing, music making, creative imaging, and visual productivity to give modern creators the features and capabilities they need.

Final Cut Pro introduces exceptional new video editing tools and intelligent features for Mac and iPad.

For the first time, Pixelmator Pro is also coming to iPad with a uniquely crafted experience optimized for touch and Apple Pencil.

Logic Pro, meanwhile, for Mac and iPad introduces more intelligent features like Synth Player and Chord ID.

Apple Creator Studio will be available on the App Store beginning January 29. In the Philippines, the rates are PhP 399 a month or PhP 3,990 annually.

There is also a free one-month trial which includes access to:

  • Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, and Pixelmator Pro on Mac and iPad
  • Motion, Compressor, and MainStage on Mac
  • Intelligent features and premium content for Keynote, Pages, Numbers, and later Freeform for iPhone, iPad, and Mac

College students and educators can subscribe for a discounted price of PhP 149 per month or PhP 1,490 per year.

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Apple gives up on making AI, inks a deal with Gemini to power Siri

Gemini gets another feather in its cap.

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In the not-too-long-ago past, the biggest names of the tech industry competed to build their own AI software. Now, though some brands are still on the hunt, it’s easier to name certain software that have more successfully drowned users in a flood of AI-powered features. Today, Google gets another win by adding Apple’s Siri to its Gemini cap.

In the past, Apple peddled Apple Intelligence, an upcoming AI-powered system to compete against the giants of the industry. However, much like other features from other brands, Apple Intelligence came out half baked with features still lacking months after the initial launch.

Now, Apple has signed a deal with Google to use Gemini for a revamped Siri. The former plans to launch a new version of Siri later this year. Because of the deal, the voice assistant will start using Gemini as a foundation for its own services. Currently, Samsung’s Galaxy AI already uses Gemini.

Formerly a battleground between so many competing brands, it’s now looking like a battle between two major companies: Google and OpenAI. Google now has a huge grip, though. Both Samsung and Apple are no slouches when it comes to owning market share in the world’s smartphones.

Now, as consumers, Apple’s deal probably doesn’t mean much besides the continued influx of features that add little to no value to a smartphone.

SEE ALSO: Google paid Samsung a lot of money to install Gemini on Galaxy

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Apps

Microsoft continues to shove Copilot where it’s not wanted

This time, it’s reportedly coming to File Explorer.

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If you look at a modern keyboard, you’ll find that the Copilot button is the cleanest one on the entire panel because no one ever willingly presses it. And yet, Microsoft still believes in the feature’s value. To show their odd commitment, the company is reportedly adding Copilot to File Explorer.

According to @phantomofearth from X (via Windows Central), a new Windows 11 preview build will add a button beside File Explorer’s navigation menu. Currently, the button is invisible and doesn’t do anything. However, the report says that the feature is tied to something called “Chat with Copilot.” It’s becoming clear that the system aims to add the AI software right inside the file organization app.

Besides revealing the potential addition of the egregious feature inside File Explorer, @phantomofearth also added mock-ups of a desktop with Copilot right on the taskbar, hinting at a potential nightmare of the feature lording itself over where it’s not wanted.

Thankfully, the preview build doesn’t always represent a final version of the system. There’s still a chance that Microsoft will not add the AI to the File Explorer.

As of late, Microsoft has received a lot of flak for persistently pushing Copilot onto users, regardless of how they feel about the feature. The company is also facing criticisms in the background for being a major proponent of AI data centers in the United States, which, in turn, have caused the prices of tech to skyrocket this year.

SEE ALSO: Dell admits AI PCs were a mistake

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