GoKawiil
Tech News
OpenAI now offers users a choice between two ChatGPT modes: one geared toward casual conversation and one designed for structured work tasks. Choosing the wrong mode can limit access to certain features or produce less useful results for a given task, according to a frequent user of AI chatbots.
Discord confirmed on X that an experimental Game Mode, spotted in leaked screenshots over the weekend, will begin rolling out to users next week. The toggle is designed to reduce Discord's CPU and GPU usage while a game is running, and the company says it plans to add more resource-saving features over time.
Google has released version 1.0.981607934 of the Pixel Buds app, adding Gemini-powered voice control over earbud settings such as EQ presets, ANC mode, conversation detection, and touch controls. The feature requires the Gemini app and is rolling out now via the Play Store.
Several Android features—including Clear Calling, Wi-Fi calling, VoLTE, Adapt Sound and Mic mode—can be adjusted to improve call audio clarity. These settings vary by device and manufacturer, since Android does not have a single unified interface across phones. Physical mic cleanliness also affects call quality.
Ahead of iPhone Duo's October 23 release, leaker pdfu found code in the iOS 27.1 simulator pointing to five StandBy views Apple hasn't announced: Home Camera, Home Modular, Flow, Fade, and Snoopy. These would join already-revealed StandBy options like Analog, Digital, Weather, and Photos, which appear when the foldable device is set in its standing configuration.
Google's March Pixel Drop update for Android 16 introduces Desktop Mode, a feature that lets Pixel 8 and newer phones connect to an external monitor to run a PC-like interface. The feature had been in beta testing for several months before this official release.
Spotify has launched Running Mode, a new feature available to Premium subscribers in select markets on both iOS and Android. The AI-powered tool builds playlists around song BPM to match a chosen run type, offering structured intensity curves, voice guidance and a Prompted Playlist option for further customization. Unlike the earlier Spotify Running feature discontinued in 2018, it does not track pace but instead lets users select their preferred run style upfront.
Google is testing a feature that lets some Indian users buy Flipkart products directly within Gemini and AI Mode, using a 'Buy' button that leads to Flipkart's checkout without leaving the AI interface. The trial currently covers a limited set of items like smartphones and accessories, and Google plans a wider rollout in October ahead of the festive shopping season.
Apple's iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max introduce a variable-aperture 48-megapixel main camera that can switch between f/1.48, f/1.8, f/2.8 and f/4.0, unlike the fixed f/1.78 lens on last year's iPhone 17 Pro. The new models also add manual controls for shutter speed and white balance, an on-screen histogram, rear-camera Cinematic mode video up to 4K/60fps, and a feature called Apple Reference Image that stores sensor-signed RAW data alongside processed photos. Ultra Wide and Telephoto camera specs remain unchanged from the prior generation.
Apple's support guidance explains how MacBook power states differ: a full shutdown closes all apps, clears RAM and stops power draw, while sleep and restart preserve more system state. Shutting down via the Apple menu includes a one-minute cancellable countdown and an option to reopen previous windows, and holding Option skips that countdown. Holding the Touch ID or power button for several seconds forces an unresponsive system to shut down, though this risks losing unsaved work.
The creator of the AI coding app Nuanced has written that plan modes, once central to their product's approach, are losing relevance as AI models improve. They argue plan modes historically served two purposes: giving agents precise enough instructions, and helping humans understand what was being built, but that the first purpose is fading as models advance while the second still matters, just not through plan modes.
Code inside version 17.61.19.sa.arm64 of the Google app shows Gemini building its own light/dark mode switch that would override the phone's system-wide setting, without affecting the rest of the Google app. The same teardown also reveals work on a new notification history screen for Gemini.