Gamers Who Spend Money on 'Loot Boxes' Twice as Likely to Gamble, Research Shows

Gamers who pay for "loot boxes" in games are twice as inclined to bet, according to research findings based on 1,600 adults in Canada published in the peer-reviewed journal Addiction Research & Theory. The findings call into question the hypothesis that psychological factors cause the link between gambling and loot boxes, according to the researchers.

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Apple VRAR headset could reportedly get delayed: Heres when you can expect them

Recently, Apple rechristened his VR/AR system as xrOS, and this spurred plenty of speculation about the piece of tech launching soon. Even with rumours of delays emerging recently, this tech is still believed to launch in the second half of 2023. According to Ming-Chi Kuo, these delays have happened due to software-related issues. 

“My latest survey indicates that the mass shipment schedule of Apple's MR headset may delay to 2H23 because of software-related issues (vs. the previous estimate of 2Q23).” he tweeted, as a part of a larger thread talking about the upcoming products.

“The mass shipment schedule of components is still likely 1H23/2Q23, but due to the postponed mass shipment schedule of the end product, Apple MR headset shipment forecast in 2023 will likely be less than 500k units, which is lower than the market consensus of 800k-1,200k units.” he elaborated.

(4/8) It's already a market consensus the AR/VR headset device will be the next critical growth driver for optical industry. The market previously expected Apple's MR headset, which will start mass shipments in 2Q23, would be a spotlight in the low season of the optical industry.

— 郭明錤 (Ming-Chi Kuo) (@mingchikuo) December 4, 2022

When will the Apple VR/AR headsets launch?

Even with these delays, it is believed that the product will launch sometime in 2023. The delay in shipment does not necessarily mean that there is a just cause for worry - VR/AR headsets are a fairly new type of tech that is still in its infancy, and it's bound to take some time for manufacturing companies to iron out software issues and determine the product to be ready for the masses.

Representational image

The brand had scheduled a media launch event in January 2023. However, it is unclear whether this event will be pushed forward. 

“It still needs to be determined whether the media event schedule (previously estimated in January 2023) will also delay, but usually, if the time frame between the media event and end product mass shipment is too long, it's detrimental to promotion and sales.” tweeted Ming-Chi Kuo.

The headsets will enable users to enter the metaverse and interact with it, and will certainly help usher in a new world of digital communication and entertainment.

For more technology news, product reviews, sci-tech features and updates, keep reading Digit.in or head to our Google News page. 

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Government Said to Plan Regulation of All Real-Money Online Games, to Include Games of Skill and Chance

The government is said to be planning to regulate all real-money games, including both games of skill and games of chance. The Prime Minister's Office is said to have overruled a proposal that would only allow the regulation of games of skill.

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MIUI 14 changelog tips details about the new features for Xiaomi phones

The Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi will soon announce MIUI 14, the next generation of its MIUI operating system. Ahead of the launch, details about MIUI 14 have surfaced on the internet. It is expected that the operating system will be revealed during the Xiaomi 13 launch event, the date for which has not been confirmed by the company yet. From what it looks like, MIUI 14 will be a significant upgrade for all Xiaomi users. 

MIUI 14 new features

#MIUI14 changelog! pic.twitter.com/YFfWoFqLOc

— Kacper Skrzypek (@kacskrz) November 30, 2022

The company will release the new MIUI 14 for multiple models, including Redmi and POCO phones. Overall, the MIUI 14 takes less space and remains swift and responsive for users. Here are the features listed in the image uploaded by the tipster, which is believed to be the MIUI 14 changelog. 

1. Basic experience: Per the image, MIUI 14’s improved system architecture boosts the performance of third-party and pre-installed apps. 

2. Personalisation: MIUI 14 has a new widget format that allows more user combinations. Additionally, the OS has a new Super Icons feature that refreshes users’ home screens. 

3. Privacy protection: As mentioned in the image, “more than 30 scenes now support end-to-end privacy with no data stored in the cloud and all actions performed locally on the device.”

4. Interconnectivity: The new operating system features a faster MI Smart Hub and faster connectivity within devices. 

5. Family services: MI Family Services are getting an iOS-like update where users can now share photo albums with their family group. 

6. Mi AI voice assistant: Last but not least, the MI AI voice assistant has also received multiple upgrades. Users can use the AI voice assistant as a scanner, translator, call assistant and more.

For more technology news, product reviews, sci-tech features and updates, keep reading Digit.in or head to our Google News page. 

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Here are Google CEO Sundar Pichais thoughts after winning Padma Bhushan from Indian Government

Sundar Pichai, the Indian CEO of the world's most popular search engine, Google, was presented with a Padma Bhushan Award on December 2, 2022. For those who didn't know, Pichai joined Google back in 2004 as a product manager for Google Toolbar, a product that turned out to be critical for the company. To recall, Pichai was named the company's Chief Executive Officer in 2015, i.e., seven years ago. 

Sundar Pichai receives India’s third-highest civilian honour

In an official blog post, the Google CEO writes, "I want to thank Ambassador Sandhu and Consul General Prasad for hosting me to receive the Padma Bhushan." Adding to it, Pichai says, "I am deeply grateful to the Indian government and the people of India for this immense honour." Padma Bhushan is India's third-highest civilian award, and Pichai got it for bringing immense changes in trade and industry. 

In the blog post, Pichai talks about how he grew up in a family that cherished learning and knowledge. He also mentions that the rapid pace of technological change in India amazes him, praising the Indian Prime Minister's Digital India vision. Google has recently announced that it will invest $10 billion in India's digital future, "working to enable more affordable internet access, building products for India's unique needs, helping businesses of all sizes in their digital transformation, and using AI to table big societal changes."

The rest of the blog post talks about the company's contributions towards helping people access knowledge and opportunity, adding new languages to Google Translate to lessen the barriers among people, and Google Maps, which helps connect customers with small businesses. Sundar received the Padma Bhushan award in the presence of family members in San Francisco.  

For more technology news, product reviews, sci-tech features and updates, keep reading Digit.in or head to our Google News page. 

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Samsung Galaxy S23 series to reportedly launch in February as per the company executive

Samsung’s Galaxy S-series is one of the most anticipated lines of smartphones every year. The next in line in this series is going to be the Samsung Galaxy S23 family of phones. A new report by Korean JoongAng Daily claims the Galaxy S23 series will go official in February of 2023. Well, it has sourced this scoop from Samsung officials with knowledge of the matter.

Let’s see what else the report says:

Samsung Galaxy S23 series: Expected launch details

The Samsung Electronics executive says, “The S23 series will be shown during our own Unpacked event in the United States, which will be held in February”.

This falls in line with some earlier rumors that the S23 phones could come out in San Francisco in the first week of February.

Samsung Galaxy S23 series: Expected specs and features

At the core of all Galaxy S23 models, you could expect Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC. This was something hinted at by Qualcomm CFO Akash Palkhiwala as well in a conference call earlier this month.

Other highlights of the Galaxy S23 Ultra model could include satellite communication, a triple camera design similar to the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 5G, but with a 200MP primary shooter, and a Super AMOLED display on the front with over 2,200 nits of luminance.

You can read more about our Samsung Galaxy S23 leaks and rumors coverage here. 

For more technology news, product reviews, sci-tech features and updates, keep reading Digit.in or head to our Google News page. 

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PMO decides all real-money online games will be regulated by the government: What this means

Indian Government is reportedly mulling regulations for real-money online games. Both skill-based and chance-based games will come under this. As per Reuters, Prime Minister’s Office has decided to classify all online games as one activity or service with no distinction between skill and chance. In case you are wondering what all this is about, here’s a rundown of what happened so far:

Real-money online games regulations: The story so far

In August of this year, an Indian panel responsible for real-money online games regulation proposed a new body to discern between skill-based and chance-based games. 

The skill games would then be required to follow federal rules like the registration process, know-your-customer verification, and grievance redressal solution. 

Meanwhile, chance-based games (similar to gambling) would fall under the gambit of individual state governments. Each state would be free to regulate them as they deem fit.

However, on October 26, a PMO official raised an objection to this and sought supervisory control over all games, skill-based or otherwise. Reuters learned this from the confidential minutes of the meeting it got hold of.

The meeting minutes apparently underline the murky legality of this matter and had concluded how a differentiation between skill-based and chance-based games for the matter at hand is difficult.

To give you an example, Supreme Court of India considers the card game rummy as skill-based and legal, but many state high courts don’t hold the same view.

Finally, the regulation aims to bring in ‘de-addiction measures’ such as periodic warnings and limits on usage and finances.

In time, we will know how it all pans out.

For more technology news, product reviews, sci-tech features and updates, keep reading Digit.in or head to our Google News page. 

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