News

Apple thinks the iPhone XR isn’t selling well, according to report

Reportedly cancels supply plans for the holiday season

Published

on

Without a doubt, Apple’s triple release experiment is benefiting the company this year. All three releases tap into the brand’s different markets. If one model falters, another can quickly pick up the pace. In fact, the previously launched iPhone XS and XS Max both sold well by market standards. Amidst that report, the iPhone XR expects to sell just as well.

However, objective results can often differ from subjective standards. Case in point, the iPhone XR supposedly sold out even before launch. Despite posting impressive pre-sales numbers, Apple isn’t as impressed as market analysts. We’re not doing as much as we want, Apple seems to say.

Considering this, Apple has reportedly cancelled additional production lines for the more affordable iPhone model. Main iPhone assemblers Foxconn and Pegatron are reducing their levels of production during the usually bombastic holiday season.

According to Nikkei Asian Review, Foxconn will produce “around 100,000 fewer units” than their daily average. Meanwhile, Pegatron is on standby, maintaining their current production for the moment.

Even stranger, Apple is reportedly ramping up production of the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus. The company expects older models to grow in popularity again, despite the launch of newer models.

On their own, 2018’s iPhone models are checking the right boxes across the board. However, Apple’s change in strategy signals the company’s lack of foresight and overall appeal to the plateauing smartphone market. Currently, Apple trails behind Samsung and Huawei in terms of global shipments. If anything, the company’s drastic strategy comes from a place of concern. Apple’s iron grip on the market is slowly loosening.

SEE ALSO: Apple iPad Pro (2018) Unboxing

Gaming

PlayStation announces a new duotone DualSense color

Can PlayStation finally stop making gaudy colorway options?

Published

on

The PlayStation 5 has been out for several years now. Despite how much time the console has had to marinate, the DualSense controller has honestly failed to impress with its variety of colors, especially when compared to the vibrant colors of the DualShock 4.

Of the nineteen available colors on the PlayStation website, only three options are, to me, worth the expensive price tag: Chroma Pearl, Chroma Teal, and the 30th Anniversary Edition. All the rest are either solid colors that clash horribly with the black panel or peppered with gaudy decals.

Just look at how terrible this looks.

If you have the same aversion to PlayStation’s creative choices as I do, the DualSense just got a new color option that might (or might not) appeal to you: the Icon Blue Special Edition.

Blue isn’t a new color for the controller. PlayStation has a healthy lineup of blue options such as Cobalt Blue and Chroma Indigo. However, in this case, the Icon Blue Special Edition lays it on thick on the duotone scale.

The main chassis is practically the same shade as Cobalt Blue. However, the touchpad, the bottom portion, the joysticks, and the PlayStation button are a lighter shade of blue.

For decals, the touchpad has translucent and subtle PlayStation buttons. On the back, the controller has “Pureisutēshon” written in katakana.

The design itself is giving off heavy Mega Man energy. In a sense, the colors do look loud. However, it’s a step in the right direction. It isn’t insisting on the black casing that clashes with everything except monochromatic colors. Hopefully, PlayStation develops more duotone options.

The Icon Blue Special Edition will become available in the United States starting on October 20. It sells for US$ 84.99.

SEE ALSO: Marvel’s Wolverine slashes onto PlayStation 5 in Fall 2026

Continue Reading

Apps

You can now connect your Spotify account to ChatGPT

Seamless integration for personalized picks, more

Published

on

Spotify is now available on ChatGPT, with users in 145 countries already able access the live feature. This gives listeners a new way to discover and enjoy music and podcasts.

With the integration,  both Free and Premium users can bring Spotify into their ChatGPT chats to get personalized recommendations. That goes from playlists that match your mood to podcasts based on your interests.

To get started, simply mention Spotify in your ChatGPT prompt, connect your account, and start discovering.

From there, simply ask for songs, artists, playlists, or podcast episodes. ChatGPT will automatically bring up the Spotify app in your chat and use relevant context to accomplish the task.

Alternatively, ask for recommendations based on a mood, theme, or topic, and Spotify will surface personalized picks seamlessly within the flow of your conversation.

Tapping a track will open the Spotify app, allowing you to listen and watch directly from there.

Furthermore, you can also extend an existing ChatGPT conversation, like planning a weekend road trip, by asking Spotify to create the perfect soundtrack.

For best results, add details like genre, mood, or artist for music, or a topic, host, or guest for podcasts.

Save steps

The way it all looks, the integration saves mobile users a few taps and switching from one app to the other. That’s if they’ve initially opened the ChatGPT app and decided to listen to music or podcasts via Spotify.

And like the aforementioned example, it saves users thinking about a curated playlist.

Or, when people are driving, they can just talk to ChatGPT for specific commands. It’s about the Spotify account access. You can start connecting by opting in; and you can disconnect at any time.

Throughout the experience, artists and creators’ work stays protected. Spotify will not share music, podcasts, or any other audio or video content for OpenAI training purposes.

The feature is now live for all ChatGPT Free, Plus, and Pro users on web and mobile.

It’s in early days, and both parties will continue to build, refine, and improve the experience over the coming weeks and months.

It’s intriguing if Gemini will come up with its own version for the music streaming app’s Google counterpart, YouTube Music.

Continue Reading

Entertainment

Is this baby Rosalina in The Super Mario Galaxy Movie?

The unnamed baby is wearing the same colors and has a wand.

Published

on

Less than a month ago, Nintendo announced a sequel to the widely lauded Super Mario Bros. Movie. The upcoming Super Mario Galaxy Movie will take audiences to outer space. It’s based, of course, on the game of the same name. Since the movie is coming out in the first half of 2026, Nintendo doesn’t have a lot of time to hype audiences for the sequel. However, the company might have just sneakily released its first teaser.

Right now, we don’t know much about the sequel’s story. All we know is that most of the main cast is coming back to reprise their roles, including Jack Black as Bowser. However, we still haven’t seen hints of a new character critical to the Galaxy series: Rosalina.

Today, Nintendo posted a mysterious video, titled Close to You, on its social platforms. The four-minute animated video shows an unnamed baby playing in their room. Suddenly, their pacifier starts floating away. The baby tries to get it back, but it floats to a mobile high up above the baby’s crib. The baby then presumably takes their first steps and falls before their mom catches them. Then, the video ends abruptly without so much as a title card.

Though the video is a mystery, there’s a high chance that the baby is Rosalina, Super Mario Galaxy’s space princess. The baby, who is also blonde, is coincidentally wearing the same colors as Rosalina. For a short time, they’re also holding what looks like a wand. Could this be a baby Rosalina?

Unfortunately, we’ll have to wait for Nintendo to confirm the baby’s identity… or even what this video is about. If it is a teaser for the movie, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie premieres on April 3, 2026.

SEE ALSO: I played Mario Kart World and it was a full-throttle race to the finish

Continue Reading

Trending