ICT news

• Roku Raises Prices of Streaming Devices By Up To 60%

  24-07-2026 23:00 via news.slashdot.org
  Roku has raised prices on several streaming devices, blaming memory and component shortages tied to the AI data-center boom. The Roku Ultra jumped from $100 to $150 and the basic Streaming Stick rose from $30 to $40. The Desk reports: In a phone call with The Desk on Friday, a Roku executive said the company made the tough decision to raise prices on its streaming hardware to address shortages in computer memory and other components caused by the artificial intelligence rush. [...] Still, the ex
  
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• Nvidia, Microsoft, Meta Warn Against 'Premature Restrictions' of Open-Weight Models

  24-07-2026 22:00 via meta.slashdot.org
  Nvidia, Microsoft, Meta, Palantir, and more than 20 other tech companies signed an open letter urging policymakers not to impose "premature restrictions" on open-weight AI models, warning that broad limits could "stifle competition or drive innovation overseas." CNBC reports: They wrote that open-weight models strengthen competition and ensure that the benefits of the technology are "broadly shared rather than concentrated in a few hands." "Relying solely on closed models is not inherently safe:
  
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• Anthropic's New Opus 5 Model Rivals Fable 5 For Half the Price

  24-07-2026 21:00 via slashdot.org
  Anthropic has released Opus 5, a new Claude model that it says comes close to its higher-end Fable 5 model at half the price while improving on Opus 4.8 in knowledge work, coding, and scientific research tasks. "At the same time, Anthropic says it has managed to make the model more resistant to being tricked," notes Engadget. Additionally, the company says Opus 5 "exhibits the lowest rates of deceptive behavior." From the report: One important distinction between Opus 5 and Mythos, which is curr
  
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• John C. Dvorak, an Early and Influential Technology Journalist, Dies At 80

  24-07-2026 19:00 via news.slashdot.org
  Longtime Slashdot reader sandbagger shares the passing of John C. Dvorak, an early and influential technology journalist for PC Magazine. He was 80. Talking Biz News reports: Aric Mackey writes, "Widely recognized for his profound impact on the technology industry, John's career spanned decades of rapid digital evolution. He was perhaps best known for his influential, long-running column in PC Magazine and his groundbreaking work on the No Agenda podcast. Through his prolific writing, broadcasti
  
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• Stripe Eyes $10 Billion Deal For AI Model Marketplace OpenRouter

  24-07-2026 18:00 via slashdot.org
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from PYMNTS.com: Stripe is in talks to buy OpenRouter, an artificial intelligence (AI) startup that could sell for roughly $10 billion, according to The Wall Street Journal. The move would mark a significant step outside payments for a company that processes transactions for much of the internet. It also lands while Stripe pursues a far larger target: a bid for PayPal that would value the payments giant at about $53 billion.The Journal reported Thursday (July
  
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• Astronomers May Have Discovered First Moon Outside Our Solar System

  24-07-2026 17:00 via science.slashdot.org
  Astronomers studying the star system CD-35 2722 may have found the first known moon-like object outside our solar system. The classification is unusually tricky, however, because it orbits a brown dwarf rather than a planet, making it clearly an "exosatellite" but forcing scientists to rethink where the line between planet, moon, and failed star should be drawn. Space.com reports: The star CD-35 2722 is located around 73 light-years away and has around half the mass of the sun. It is orbited by
  
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• Humans Can Learn To Echolocate In Just 10 Weeks, and It Rewires the Brain

  24-07-2026 13:00 via science.slashdot.org
  alternative_right shares a report from ScienceAlert: A study published in PLOS One in 2021 by researchers from Durham University in the UK showed that with 10 weeks of training, both blind and sighted people could learn to echolocate using verbal clicks. While the technique is already used by a number of people with impaired vision -- sometimes using the taps of a cane instead of clicks made by their mouth -- those findings suggest that many of us can learn the necessary techniques.Some of the s
  
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• World's First Wave Power Generator Receives Certification For Regular Use

  24-07-2026 09:00 via hardware.slashdot.org
  "The Norwegian certification agency DNV has certified the commercial wave-driven power generator Corpower C4 for regular use," writes Longtime Slashdot reader Qbertino. "German news site heise.de has a detailed write-up. See a CGI video of the power station and its internals, as well as the company's website [at their respective links]." From the report (translated to English): According to the manufacturer Corpower Ocean, it is the first DNV prototype certificate for a wave energy converter. Th
  
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• Google Adds Selfie Video As a Log-In Option

  24-07-2026 05:30 via yro.slashdot.org
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from Engadget: You'll now be able to use selfie videos to log into your Google account. It has long been possible to log into Google using your face, via your phone's face unlock or if your passkey login uses biometrics for verification. This is yet another option to get into your account using your face to authenticate your identity, which could be especially useful if you don't have access to the phone or computer you typically use or if you got locked out o
  
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• Oracle Signs 10-Year Software Contract With Pentagon Worth Up To $7 Billion

  24-07-2026 01:00 via developers.slashdot.org
  Oracle has signed a 10-year Pentagon contract worth up to $7 billion to provide on-premises software, licenses, maintenance, and consulting for branches of the military. CNBC reports: The contract covers the use of Oracle software in on-premises data centers for branches of the military, the U.S. intelligence community and the Coast Guard, according to a statement. The Central Intelligence Agency was Oracle's first customer. A five-year base period for the contract includes perpetual and subscri
  
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• Microsoft Responds to LG Monitors Installing McAfee Ads On Windows

  24-07-2026 00:00 via tech.slashdot.org
  LG is removing a McAfee pop-up ad from its LG Monitor App Installer after criticism that some LG monitors were silently installing the app through Windows Update and showing ads on every boot. Microsoft says LG agreed to disable the McAfee pop-up, but the broader issue remains: Windows allows certain peripheral companion apps to install automatically without notifying users. Ars Technica reports: Following Gamers Nexus' video, a Microsoft representative stated that the LG Monitor App Installer w
  
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