Google Pixel 8 Pro vs HONOR Magic6 Pro

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In this article, we’ll be comparing the Google Pixel 8 Pro vs HONOR Magic6 Pro. These are the very best smartphones from their respective companies. The Pixel 8 Pro has been around since October last year, while the global variant of the Magic6 Pro launched at MWC 2024 in Barcelona last month.. Both devices are quite large, and also quite powerful at the same time. They are quite different, though, which should make things rather interesting.

These two phones are different in many ways, and the design aspect is just one of them. They do have considerably different internals, on top of everything else. Before we get down to comparing the two phones across a number of categories, we’ll list their specifications. Following that, we’ll compare their designs, displays, performance, battery life, cameras, and audio aspects. That being said, let’s get this party on the road, shall we?

Specs

Google Pixel 8 Pro vs HONOR Magic6 Pro, respectively

Screen size:
6.7-inch Super Actua AMOLED display (flat, 120Hz LTPO, HDR10+, 2,400 nits)
6.8-inch LTPO OLED display (curved, 120Hz LTPO, HDR, 5,000 nits)
Display resolution:
2992 x 1344
2800 x 1280
SoC:
Google Tensor G3
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3
RAM:
12GB (LPDDR5X)
12GB (LPDDR5X)
Storage:
128GB/256GB/512GB/1TB (UFS 3.1)
256GB/512GB (UFS 4.0)
Rear cameras:
50MP (f/1.68 aperture, 82-degree FoV, 1.2um pixel size, OIS), 48MP (ultrawide, f/1.95 aperture, 125.5-degree FoV, 0.8um pixel size), 48MP (telephoto, f/2.8 aperture, 0.7um pixel size, 5x optical zoom)
50MP (wide, f/1.4-f/2.0 aperture, OIS, PDAF, Laser AF, 23mm lens), 50MP (ultrawide, f/2.0 aperture, 122-degree FoV, 13mm lens), 180MP (periscope telephoto, f/2.6 aperture, 2.5x optical zoom, OIS, PDAF)
Front cameras:
10.5MP (f/2.2 aperture, 1.22um pixel size)
50MP (f/2.0 aperture, 22mm lens), ToF 3D camera
Battery:
5,050mAh
5,600mAh
Charging:
30W wired, 23W wireless, reverse wireless (charger not included)
80W wired, 66W wireless, reverse wireless, reverse wired (charger not included)
Dimensions:
162.6 x 76.5 x 8.8mm
162.5 x 75.8 x 8.9mm
Weight:
213 grams
225/229 grams
Connectivity:
5G, LTE, NFC, Wi-Fi, USB Type-C, Bluetooth 5.3
Security:
In-display fingerprint scanner (optical) & facial scanning
In-display fingerprint scanner (optical) & 3D facial scanning
OS:
Android 14
Android 14 with MagicOS 8.0
Price:
$999+
€1,299+
Buy:
Google Pixel 8 Pro (Best Buy)
HONOR Magic6 Pro (HONOR)

Google Pixel 8 Pro vs HONOR Magic6 Pro: Design

The moment you look at these two phones, you’ll realize how different they are. That actually goes for both their front and back sides. The Pixel 8 Pro features a flat display with a centered display hole at the top. The bezels around this display are uniform. The HONOR Magic6 Pro has a curved display, while it also includes uniform bezels. Instead of a punch hole, this handset has a pill-shaped cutout at the top of the display. That’s because it packs 3D facial scanning tech in there, along with a front-facing camera.

If we flip them around, you’ll see further differences. The Pixel 8 Pro has a camera visor on the back. That visor is covered by metal, most of it is, and it connects to the metal frame on the left and right sides. It does protrude on the back quite a bit. The HONOR Magic6 Pro includes a centered camera island on the back. That camera island also has a rather unique look, and it hosts three cameras. That is the same number of cameras as the Pixel 8 Pro. Both smartphones feature curved backplates towards the edges, but they’re mostly flat.

The physical buttons sit on the right-hand side of both phones, though they have different placements. The Pixel 8 Pro includes a power/lock key above the volume rocker keys. It’s the exact opposite on the HONOR Magic6 Pro. The two phones are almost equal in terms of height and thickness, while the Pixel 8 Pro is slightly wider. The HONOR Magic6 Pro is a bit heavier than Google’s handset, however. It’s 12-16 grams heavier, depending on the variant. The HONOR Magic6 Pro comes in both glass and vegan leather models, the latter is lighter. The Pixel 8 Pro is made out of metal and glass.

Both smartphones do come with IP68 certification for water and dust resistance. The glass models of both phones are very slippery, so keep that in mind. The vegan leather HONOR Magic6 Pro does add some grip to the equation.

Google Pixel 8 Pro vs HONOR Magic6 Pro: Display

The Pixel 8 Pro features a 6.7-inch 2992 x 1344 LTPO OLED display. That panel is flat, and it has an adaptive 120Hz refresh rate. It also comes with support for HDR10+ content, and it goes all the way up to 2,400 nits of brightness at its peak. The display aspect ratio on this panel is 20:9, and the display is protected by the Gorilla Glass Victus 2. The screen-to-body ratio here is around 87%.

Google Pixel 8 Pro Review AM AH 09
Google Pixel 8 Pro

The HONOR Magic6 Pro, on the other hand, includes a 6.8-inch 2800 x 1280 LTPO OLED display. That display is curved, and it supports HDR content. It can project up to 1 billion colors, and it has an adaptive 120Hz refresh rate. The theoretical maximum brightness of this panel is 5,000 nits, while the display aspect ratio is 19.5:9. Jurhino glass protects the display, while the screen-to-body ratio is around 91%.

Both of these displays are fantastic, to say the least. They’re not only very vivid and very sharp, but they have great viewing angles. The blacks are deep on both panels, and the touch sensitivity is also great. The HONOR Magic6 Pro panel does get a bit brighter, but both displays are more than bright enough for everyday use. Do note that one panel is flat, and the other is not, so that should probably be your main guiding point.

Google Pixel 8 Pro vs HONOR Magic6 Pro: Performance

Google’s flagship comes with the Google Tensor G3 processor. That’s the latest chip from Google at the time of writing this article. The phone also includes 12GB of LPDDR5X RAM and UFS 3.1 flash storage. The HONOR Magic6 Pro, on the flip side, is fueled by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor, the best of Qualcomm. The phone includes 12GB of LPDDR5X RAM globally, and it uses UFS 4.0 flash storage.

HONOR’s flagship does have more powerful specs, technically. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 is a more powerful processor, while the phone also comes with faster storage. The Tensor G3 is made for Pixels, however, and it enables a ton of AI features. In day-to-day use, both smartphones are quite snappy. In direct comparison, the Magic6 Pro is snappier, however, and it has fewer stutters, but generally speaking, both are great in that regard.

Their software builds are very different, though. The Pixel 8 Pro has stock Android, while the HONOR Magic6 Pro comes with MagicOS 8.0, which is a mix of iOS and Android, in a way. When it comes to gaming, both devices do a great job, though in terms of graphically-intensive titles, the HONOR Magic6 Pro is the clear winner. It can handle titles like Genshin Impact better than the Pixel 8 Pro, without a doubt. Both phones do get quite warm during longer gaming sessions, though not too warm. The Magic6 Pro is better when it comes to heat management, though.

Google Pixel 8 Pro vs HONOR Magic6 Pro: Battery

Google’s flagship comes with a 5,050mAh battery on the inside. The HONOR Magic6 Pro includes a 5,600mAh battery. HONOR is using a second-generation silicon carbon battery, while the Pixel 8 Pro utilizes a regular Li-Ion battery. The HONOR Magic6 Pro does have more capacity to work with, and it does offer noticeably better battery life than the Google Pixel 8 Pro. Pixel 8 Pro battery life is not bad, but it doesn’t come near what the Magic6 Pro can provide.

The Pixel 8 Pro got us around 7 hours of screen-on-time, on average. The HONOR Magic6 Pro went above and beyond that at 8-9 hours of use. The Magic6 Pro was also more consistent when it comes to battery life, in case you were wondering. Your mileage may vary, though, of course. Do note that gaming was not really a part of our use, outside of testing. We did use both phones for pretty much everything else. Both devices were used mostly on Wi-Fi, with some 5G on a day-to-day basis.

In terms of charging, the HONOR Magic6 Pro completely destroys the Pixel 8 Pro. The device supports 80W wired, 66W wireless, 5W reverse wired, and also reverse wireless charging. The Pixel 8 Pro, on the flip side, supports 30W wired, 23W wireless, and 5W reverse wireless charging. Neither smartphone comes with a charger in the box, but with the right charger, the Magic6 Pro does charge a lot faster. In fact, its wireless charging is much faster than the Pixel 8 Pro’s wired charging.

Google Pixel 8 Pro vs HONOR Magic6 Pro: Cameras

Google’s handset has three cameras on the back. A 50-megapixel main shooter is backed by a 48-megapixel ultrawide unit (126-degree FoV), and a 48-megapixel telephoto camera (5x optical zoom). The HONOR Magic6 Pro has a 50-megapixel main camera with variable aperture, a 50-megapixel ultrawide unit (122-degree FoV), and a 180-megapixel periscope telephoto camera (2.5x optical zoom, 100x digital zoom).

AH HONOR Magic6 Pro image 55
HONOR Magic6 Pro

Both of these smartphones have great camera setups, there’s no denying that. They do provide considerably different results, though. The Pixel 8 Pro prefers contrasty shots, that do look processed, but also great at the same time. The HONOR Magic6 Pro also goes for that processed look but in a different way. It prefers warmer tones, and it also likes to keep scenes a bit brighter in comparison. Both ultrawide and telephoto cameras on the two devices do a great job of keeping similar color profiles to the main shooters, especially during the day.

When the light goes away, both devices yield good results, and the photos do look more similar than during the day. They both pull a lot of detail from the shadows too. The colors are good on both phones. That periscope telephoto camera is great on the HONOR Magic6 Pro, but the two phones are trading blows from one scene to the next. Both of these smartphones are great for taking photos.

Audio

You will find stereo speakers on both of these smartphones. Those speakers are well-balanced, and good overall, but the ones on the HONOR Magic6 Pro are louder. The distortion is barely noticeable at the very highest of volumes.

You will not get a 3.5mm headphone jack on either of these two smartphones. They do include Type-C ports, however, so you can connect your wired headphones that way if you want. Alternatively, Bluetooth 5.3 connectivity is enabled on both devices.


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MediaTek outsold Qualcomm in Q4 2023

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From underdog to top dog, MediaTek has come a long way since being regarded as the “Cheap Chinese Chip Champ.” The numbers from Q4 2023 are coming in, and we’re seeing how some major tech brands performed during that three-month period. Well, it appears that MediaTek shipped the most chips in Q4 2023.

Years ago, the tech world would not have predicted this. Flagship phones wouldn’t typically ship with MediaTek processes. The MT and Helio processors would power devices that cost $300 or below. Also, the performance was never anything to write home about.

However, in recent years, MediaTek has been putting a ton of effort into making high-quality chips. Its Dimensity chips power some upper-level mid-range and flagship-level devices. Even some of our favorite devices we’ve reviewed at Android Headlines used MediaTek Dimensity processes. They include the Lenovo Tab Extreme (Review), OnePlus Pad (Review), and Tecno Phantom V Flip (Review).

MediaTek shipped the most chips in Q4 2023

The last quarter of 2023 ran between October and December. In that time, MediaTek was able to ship a whopping 117 million units. This made it the top chipmaker of the quarter in terms of shipments. This showed a significant increase over its shipment in Q4 2022. During that quarter, it was not able to reach the 100 million mark

Qualcomm, on the other hand, trailed behind with 69 million units. That’s 41% lower than MediaTek’s number. What’s also unfortunate is that this is only a 1% increase over its shipment in Q4 2022.

In between them, we have Apple. The company launched its iPhone 15 series rather close to Q4 2023, so it was able to ship a whopping 78 million. This is 7% higher than its Q4 2022 numbers

Continuing down the line, we have another surprising entry, UNISOC. Not too many people know about UNISOC, but this is a company that also manufactures smartphone chips. At this point, UNISOC seems to occupy the same spot that MediaTek occupied years back. It’s regarded as a cheaper and less powerful alternative to other chipmakers. However, it was able to ship 27 million units during the quarter. That number is 24% higher than its Q4 2022 numbers. So, we might have another rising star in the future.

Trailing behind them, we have Samsung with 13 million units, HiSilicon with 7 million units, and Google with 3 million units.

Chip numbers Q4 2023

Revenue

In terms of overall revenue for Q4 2023, some of the company’s trade places. Apple, of course, held the top spot by a large margin. The company racked up $87 billion. That’s a 20% increase over its Q4 2022 performance. In second place, we have Qualcomm with $30 billion in revenue, (-2% compared to Q4 2022). Dragging behind it, we have MediaTek with $23 billion (+22% compared to Q4 2022).

Going down the list, we have HiSilicon with 7 billion (+24,471%), Samsung with $5 billion (-44%), UNISOC with $3 billion (24%+), and Google with $2 billion (+22%).

So, it appears that MediaTek is working its way up in the smartphone chip world. It’s planning on implementing Google’s Gemini Nano into the Dimensity 9300 and Dimensity 8300. This will bring advanced on-device generative AI to the devices that ship with these chips. So, we are definitely going to see MediaTek make more games in the smartphone chip market.


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Google Fi Wireless increases pricing for those with more than three lines on “Simply Unlimited” plan

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Google Fi Wireless, the MVNO wireless phone plan brought to you by Google, has announced changes to the pricing of its “Simply Unlimited” plan. Starting today for new customers, and rolling out to existing customers after April 4th, 2024, the prices for plans with three or more lines will be increasing as follows:
  • Three lines: The cost for three lines on the Simply Unlimited plan will increase from $80 to $90 per month.
  • Four lines: Accounts with four lines will go up from $80 to $100 per month.
  • Five and six lines: There are also increases for five-line accounts (going up to $125/month) and six-line accounts (going up to $150/month).

New pricing structure for the “Simply Unlimited” plan on Google Fi Wireless

If you have one or two lines active on the Simply Unlimited plan, not to worry, your pricing will remain unchanged. Additionally, Google Fi Wireless is not changing the core features of the Simply Unlimited plan, which still include unlimited high-speed data (which slows down after 35GB), unlimited calls and texts in the US, Canada, and Mexico, 5GB of hotspot tethering, connectivity for select smartwatches, automatic encryption of your data using a virtual private network (VPN), as well as some family safety features such as spam blocking, location sharing, and contact controls.These pricing adjustments begin for new customers starting today, March 5th, 2024. Existing customers will see the change reflected on their first bill after April 4th, 2024. Google Fi Wireless also clarifies that existing accounts with long-term promotions or device financing agreements activated before March 5th, 2024, will maintain their original pricing until those commitments end. Pricing will also not change on the Flexible or Unlimited Plus plans.

Google Fi Wireless states this change in pricing is necessary “to continue delivering high-quality product offerings and features.” This marks the first price increase for the almost three year old “Simply Unlimited” plan since the service was rebranded from “Google Fi” to “Google Fi Wireless” last year.


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Threads finally gets intuitive swipe controls for iOS app

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Meta’s text-based social media platform, Threads, has released a convenient update to its iOS app. The latest version, v321.0, introduces a new swipe control feature that simplifies navigation through the “For You” feed. It provides a more intuitive and efficient way to interact with content.

This new feature allows users to easily like or hide posts with a simple left or right swipe. A right swipe likes the post, while a left swipe hides it from the feed. This makes Threads a more streamlined experience, similar to other social apps like Twitter and Mastodon that use gesture controls.

While the update has not been officially announced by the Threads account or Instagram head Adam Mosseri, several users have taken to social media to share their excitement about the addition. Screenshots have been circulating showing the functionality of the swipe controls.

threads in app swipe controls

Threads introduces useful swipe controls in the latest update

However, it’s important to note that the swipe controls currently have a limitation – they only work within the “For You” feed, which presents content curated by the Threads algorithm. The Following tab, which displays posts from accounts the user actively follows, does not yet support these swipe gestures.

The “For You” feed is said to be the preferred browsing setting for most people. Expanding swipes there could tweak the way people experience posts from close contacts. Instagram is likely evaluating how swipes impact engagement before rolling them out more broadly.

For users who want to try out the new swipe controls, the process is simple. Navigate to the App Store and install or update to the latest version of the Threads app. Once the update is complete, you can immediately start exploring the “For You” feed and experience the convenience of the new gesture-based interactions.

On the other hand, Meta was confident that Threads’ fortunes would turn around. And it seems that is happening. According to new reports, Threads has regained some momentum in terms of app downloads and active users. In fact, Threads was able to break into the top 10 most downloaded apps in December 2023.


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FOX CEO thinks New Sports Streamer will get to 5M subs in First 5 Years

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FOX is keeping things relatively modest when it comes to projections for its new joint venture sports streaming service with Disney and Warner Bros Discovery. The company’s CEO, Lachlan Murdoch, said on Monday at the 2024 Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference that he believes the service will land five million customers in the first five years. And also believes that the total addressable market is only 60 million customers.

While five million doesn’t sound super ambitious, that would put the streamer as the second-largest vMVPD on the market, behind YouTube TV. Google recently announced that it has 8 million subscribers, while Hulu + Live TV is currently second at 4.6 million subscribers.

Keep in mind that Disney is included in this sports venture, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see it bundled with Hulu in some aspect, which could help boost the numbers of the joint venture.

A total addressable market of 60 million is nothing to sneeze at either, as that is roughly half of the television households in this country. Murdoch also stated that “we know that sports is the number one driver of viewership and subscriptions.” That’s mainly because sports are best enjoyed live versus on-demand, like a lot of other shows.

This new streamer could be a massive competitor to the likes of YouTube TV

YouTube TV is currently the largest streaming live-TV service in the industry right now, but that’s only eight million subscribers. And a big reason why the majority of users are subscribed is for sports. This new streamer could be a big competitor to YouTube TV, since it’s really the only thing keeping a lot of people with a live TV subscription.

However, this service would still be missing two things at this point. That’s local sports and NBC Sports. NBC Sports is going to be a big deal since this is an Olympic year – though the Olympics will be over before this launches. The flip side is that NBC Sports is mostly all available on Peacock, which would be far cheaper than keeping YouTube TV. The bigger issue here is local sports.

In the past year or so, we’ve seen a lot of trouble for local sports from the likes of Sinclair with Bally Sports, who did declare bankruptcy and has decided to drop some coverage of teams already.

The big question for this sports streaming service still remains – price. Streaming sports is not cheap. Sports, in general, is not cheap. If we look at Bally Sports Plus, it was priced at $20 per month, and that only gets you the local teams. This service would include about 14 national channels, including FS1, FS2, Big Ten Network, ESPN, ESPN2, TNT, TBS, and many more. So it would not be surprising to see this jump to a much higher price.

If there’s one streaming service that customers will cancel and re-up during certain times of the year, this would be it. For example, I’m a big basketball and football fan. From June to August, I wouldn’t need this service, since the sports I watch are in the off-season. That’s something else that FOX, WBD and Disney will need to combat.


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TIDAL lowers pricing of its HiFi lossless music subscription to match Spotify

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While every other video and audio streaming company is either battling it out or raising its subscription costs sans ads, Tidal today made a surprising move: slashing the price of its high-quality lossless audio plan. This bold change positions Tidal as a truly compelling option alongside streaming giants like Spotify and Apple Music.Previously, Tidal’s HiFi lossless subscription cost $20 per month—almost double the price of Spotify’s popular $10.99 plan. Now, Tidal is dropping the price to match Spotify’s exact cost. With the HiFi and HiFi Plus tiers gone and combined into one TIDAL tier, the service will now cost you $10.99 USD a month for an individual subscription.

Tidal’s current HiFi plans, which will not exist after the pricing shift

Families will be transitioned to the new TIDAL Family plan, which will cost $16.99 USD a month. Additionally, Tidal will offer its DJ Extension as an add-on for individual plans, which will cost an additional $9 USD a month and allow users to access, stream, and mix music from the service’s DJ partners.But it’s not all great news, particularly for those that were on TIDAL’s free tier, which will no longer exist. As per the company announcement, anyone on the free tier will now need to sign up for a paid plan in order to continue using the service. You gain some. You lose some.

It is important to note that, while both TIDAL and Spotify now share a price point, their offerings differ. Spotify boasts a huge music catalog and excellent music discovery features. It’s a crowd favorite, especially for casual listeners who love finding new tunes. However, Tidal’s edge lies in its superior lossless audio quality, making it irresistible for serious audiophiles with high-end equipment.

Until recently, music lovers wanting lossless quality had a clear choice: Tidal or Apple Music. Spotify’s continued delays in rolling out their promised lossless tier have left users frustrated. Tidal’s pricing shift, effective April 10th, puts serious pressure on Spotify to step up.


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Report Uncovers Massive Sale of Compromised ChatGPT Credentials

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Report Uncovers Massive Sale of Compromised ChatGPT Credentials

Group-IB report unveils: compromised ChatGPT accounts sold on dark web, highlighting AI security risks, ransomware surge, macOS vulnerabilities. Take action to stay safe.

Group-IB’s Threat Intelligence has released a “Hi-Tech Crime Trends 23/24” report highlighting a dramatic surge in ransomware attacks, macOS system threats, and the growing use of AI by cyber criminals.

The report revealed Asia-Pacific being the primary target for advanced persistent threat groups in 2023, with 523 attacks worldwide. APAC organizations accounted for 34% of global attacks, with Europe and the Middle East ranking second and Africa third.

A 70% rise in public ads selling zero-day exploits was recorded during 2022-2023. Threats like the CVE-2023-38831 zero-day vulnerability in ZIP file format remained popular among advanced cybercrime groups and nation-state actors for cyber-espionage activities. 

The report also warned of a growing interest in AI systems, particularly ChatGPT credentials, for reaching sensitive corporate data as public Large Language Models (LLMs) often do not protect accounts with multi-factor authentication.

AI systems can let attackers access confidential information, including internal source code, financial data, and trade secrets, and access communication history logs between employees and systems, allowing attackers access to sensitive data.

Over 225,000 infostealer logs containing compromised ChatGPT credentials were detected between January-October 2023. Four ChatGPT-style tools were developed since mid-2023 to facilitate such activities, including WolfGPT, DarkBARD, FraudGPT, and WormGPT. FraudGPT and WormGPT are popular for social engineering and phishing, while WolfGPT focuses on code or exploits.

Researchers detected around 130,000 compromised hosts with ChatGPT access between June and October 2023, marking a 36% increase from the previous year. The LummaC2 information stealer breached most logs.

Researchers also detected 4,583 companies with their information, files, and data published on ransomware Distributed Leaks (DLSs), marking a 74% growth from the previous year, with North American companies being the biggest victims. 

Report Uncovers Massive Sale of Compromised ChatGPT Credentials

Global threat actors, primarily APT groups, are targeting Apple platforms more, with underground sales of macOS information stealers increasing fivefold. Most concerning cyber risks for 2024 include zero-day exploits and malicious service use.

Cybersecurity firms have long been raising alarm over the continuous expansion in the global cyber threats spectrum. In June 2023, Group-IB researchers discovered a trend of over 100,000 devices infected with stolen ChatGPT credentials, with 26,802 compromised accounts recorded in May 2023. The Asia-Pacific region had the highest concentration of compromised credentials. ChatGPT’s default settings store user queries and AI responses, exposing confidential information.

In January 2024, Kaspersky Digital Footprint Intelligence reported threat actors exploiting AI technologies for illegal activities, sharing jailbreaks and exploiting legitimate tools for malicious purposes, particularly ChatGPT and LLMs, which can be used for malicious purposes, including malware development and illicit language model use.

The latest report highlights a significant rise in ransomware attacks targeting manufacturing, real estate, healthcare, government, and military sectors, the growing sophistication of cybercriminals targeting macOS systems, and the potential misuse of AI by cybercriminals to automate tasks, personalize attacks, and bypass security measures.

Businesses should invest in robust security solutions like firewalls, endpoint protection software, and intrusion detection systems, along with offering employee training on cyber threats to stay protected.

  1. OpenAI’s ChatGPT Can Create Polymorphic Malware
  2. Malicious Abrax666 AI Chatbot Exposed as Potential Scam
  3. Malicious Ads Infiltrate Bing AI Chatbot in Malvertising Attack
  4. Following WormGPT, FraudGPT Emerges for AI-Driven Cyber Crime
  5. Researcher create polymorphic Blackmamba malware with ChatGPT

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Apple Music doesn’t like rooted Android devices

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We’ve known for a while that Google does not like rooted Android devices. This is one reason why the company is blocking RCS for rooted phones. However, it’s not the only company that’s against rooted in the devices. Apple Music does not work on rooted Android devices.

Rooting your device brings several benefits to the Android smartphone experience. It allows you to tweak the software to your liking, uninstall certain services, get rid of bloatware, use modded versions of Android that extend the life of your phone years past the manufacturer’s cut-off date, and many more. However, not everyone sees it that way. Google, along with other companies, doesn’t like when you root your device. So, certain Google services and apps are blocked on rooted devices.

Apple Music does not work on rooted Android devices

This isn’t a case similar to Google blocking RCS messages. When trying to send a message, users should get zero feedback as to why their messages are not sending. This leads people to be very confused. However, in the case of Apple Music, the app will flat-out tell you that it is not available on rooted Android devices.

When you open the app on your rooted Android device, you will get an error message letting you know that Apple Music only works on unrooted Android devices. After that, the app will promptly crash. This was discovered in Apple Music beta version 4.7. So, if you are using the latest data version of Apple Music, and you rooted your device, then you’re going to have to either switch to an unrooted device or use some sort of workaround.

One popular workaround is using the MagiskHide tool. This is a tool that basically hides the fact that your phone is rooted. So, to any app or service you have installed on it, it will look like your phone is completely unaltered.

It’s unfortunate that there is so much animosity toward rooted devices. They unlock more avenues to improve the smartphone experience.


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Microsoft Surface Pro 10 and Surface Laptop 6 could launch soon

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Microsoft is tipped to launch the Surface Pro 10 and Surface Laptop 6 laptops, with two variants each. It seems that Microsoft is positioning its laptop as a rival to the recently launched M3 MacBook Air devices. Additionally, these laptops will be the debut platform for Snapdragon X Elite chips, positioned by Qualcomm as a competitor to Apple silicon. Crucially, Qualcomm has touted significant performance advancements, and these devices will demonstrate the extent to which they fulfill those promises.

Microsoft Surface Pro 10 and Surface Laptop 6 might launch soon

Windows Central reports that there will be two variants each. The one that releases later this month on March 21, will run Intel Core Ultra processors. Meanwhile, Microsoft will announce the much-anticipated Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite-powered Surface devices in June. This hints that these will be the first laptops powering the Snapdragon X Elite processor. Reportedly, the Intel Core Ultra-powered Surface laptops could be better suited for businesses.

Delving more into details, Microsoft will move the Surface Pro 10 to an OLED screen for a more premium experience. Additionally, the upcoming Surface Pro 10 (X Elite) version will have a wide webcam, NFC reader, and a screen that shows better colors. Meanwhile, the Surface Laptop 6 gets a minor design overhaul with thinner bezels and rounded corners. Plus, there’s a new haptic touchpad with two USB-C and one USB-A on the left, along with the magnetic Surface Connect charger port on the right.

However, both the variants will have a special Copilot key allowing users to jump to Copilot with just a press. Microsoft is also planning to add more AI features to Windows 11, which they might discuss at the Build conference. What’s more in the pipeline includes an AI explorer similar to Windows 10’s Timeline feature. You could search for stuff by using keywords, but smartly. It’ll likely come with the Windows 11 24H2 update.


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Threads gets in-app swipe controls to like and hide posts on iOS

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Instagram rolled out several DM features yesterday to improve the user experience. However, it wasn’t the only Meta app that got some love, as its sister app, Threads, also got a small but convenient update designed to streamline how you interact with it.

The latest Threads iOS update (v 321.0) introduces new in-app swipe controls, making it easier than ever to navigate through the “For You” feed. Several Threads users have mentioned this new feature, along with screenshots and screen recordings of how it is currently working for them. However, neither the @Threads account nor Instagram Head @Mosseri have made an official announcement.

That said, from what we can see, it appears to have similar functionality to what iOS Twitter apps back in the day—like Tweetbot—and current iOS Mastodon apps—like Ivory—offer. Swipe right to like the post, and swipe left to hide it. Simple.

However, there is a small caveat to this nifty little addition: the swipe gestures only work in the “For You” feed, leaving room for ample speculation on why it wasn’t implemented anywhere else on the app. In addition to the algorithmic “For you” feed, Threads has a “Following” tab, which includes the posts from those you actually follow. This was added to the app following outcries from the users upon the app’s launch, and from what we can tell, it is the preferred way to browse the app’s content.

We hope the feature’s current limitations are eventually expanded to allow for a more customizable experience. Threads has rolled out features before as a test, so there’s a possibility that this will happen in the future. Meanwhile, if you’d like to give this a try, head on over to the iOS app store and install or update to the latest version of the app. Once you’ve done that, you can start using the new features and provide feedback based on your experience.


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