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Will your headphones work with the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X? – Polygon

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4 years ago

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The last two console generations from Microsoft and Sony — spanning from the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 all the way to the PlayStation 4 Pro and Xbox One X — have been transformative in terms of audio quality. Consumers have been able to move away from high-fidelity tuners and sprawling surround-sound speaker systems to relatively inexpensive and high-quality headphones. That means many consumers, myself included, have laid out some serious coin for new cans. But will your audio investment pay off with the next generation of consoles? We talked to four major manufacturers to get some answers.

Turns out, things are still a little bit up in the air.

“We’re dependent upon [Microsoft and Sony] to kind of tell us that [our] products are forward-compatible,” said John Moore, head of marketing and sales for growth peripherals at Razer, in an interview with Polygon last week. That’s because his company, like every other manufacturer we’ve spoken with, still hasn’t gotten final console hardware yet. SteelSeries’ Brian Fallon, senior product manager for audio, told a similar story.

“Obviously we’ve been waiting with bated breath to figure out all the final details of everything,” Fallon told Polygon. He said that Microsoft has so far been the most forthcoming.

Kington’s HyperX Cloud Mix will work with both next-generation consoles, since it attaches via 3.5 mm audio jack into the controller.
Kingston

“We found out a couple months back that everything that we had [on the market] was just going to work [with the new Xbox],” Fallon continued. “That was amazing news to us, and to our customers. […] And it’s all just plug and play. No firmware updates needed, none of that. It’s all just gonna function.”

Unfortunately, the same can’t be said of Sony and its PlayStation 5.

PlayStation has its own wireless headphone technology, or course. There’s a new Sony-branded set of headphones on the way with the PS5. In addition, older peripherals like the Platinum and Gold wireless headsets will also be compatible. Sony has also announced that “third-party headsets that connect via USB port or audio jack” will be compatible with the PS5. Beyond that, all the third-party manufacturers we talked to said things are still up in the air.

“On the PlayStation side,” Fallon said, “it’s a little bit of a mixed bag.”

The new PS5 won’t feature an optical audio connection, commonly referred to as S/PDIF or TosLink. Manufacturers like Astro, SteelSeries, and others use that optical connection to split in-game audio off from voice chat. That allows you to have digital surround sound and low-latency, high-fidelity voice chat coming through the same speakers. It’s also what allows you to balance the levels between those two different streams.

“If we don’t have optical, obviously we don’t have a way to do that,” said Fallon. “We only have a single audio source, which will be from USB. So the SteelSeries Pro Wireless [Polygon’s top headphone choice for the PlayStation 4 in last year’s round-up] will still work on the PS5. By just plugging in the USB and you’ll be able to get get your full audio from that. The the one thing you won’t be able to do is adjust your your mix between game and chat.”

Presumably a menu within the PS5 dashboard would let you do that, but no one can be sure until reviewers get their chance to boot up the device for the first time. It’s also a lot less convenient than just turning a physical dial on your headset.

The Astro A50 for Xbox and PC shown here in its charging cradle.

The Astro A50 for Xbox and PC will require a firmware update for the next-generation Xbox consoles. For PlayStation 5, you’ll need to purchase a dongle.
Logitech

Astro has made a name for itself with these kinds of high-quality physical interfaces that allow users to fiddle with their levels on the fly. Their wireless A50 headset — Polygon’s top performer for the Xbox One in last year’s roundup — will only require a firmware update to be compatible with the next-generation Xbox consoles. It’s likewise a different story for the PS5. Astro says it’s coming out with a dongle called the Astro HDMI Adapter that will solve the problem. It will be available for $39.99 through the Astro website, as well as select retailers.

“It enables game sound + voice chat mixing and features lagless 4K HDMI video passthrough while adding a TosLink optical jack,” the company said in a news release dated Sept. 1. “Registered owners of Astro products will be able to submit their serial number and receive a $15 discount online.”

The good news is that both of the next-generation console controllers still feature a 3.5 mm audio connector in them, which will enable you to connect the vast majority of products from companies like Astro, Kingston’s HyperX brand, Razer, and SteelSeries. In fact, both consoles have been designed with that kind of stereo interface in mind.

“Back in the Xbox 360 days, consoles actually didn’t decode [digital] audio for you,” Thadeus Cooper, head of brand at Astro Gaming, told Polygon in an interview. “The reason that MixAmp and the A50 was so popular with people is because [the consoles] would output that signal over optical or over HDMI, but you had to have a device that does Dolby decoding.”

In the current generation, only Microsoft’s console was capable of decoding that digital audio and outputting surround sound via stereo output on its own, in the form of either Windows Sonic or Dolby Atmos. Now, with the PlayStation 5, Sony is bringing its own new technology to bear. Its Tempest 3D AudioTech solution should be able to do similar things with positional audio. Manufacturers tell us that means de facto audio parity between the two console brands.

It also means that the next generation of third-party headsets will need to differentiate themselves in a whole different way. No longer will they be able to depend on bells and whistles like adjustable in-game audio levels and custom sound profiles to set themselves apart. Instead, expect them to try to compete on things like sound quality, comfort, cross-platform compatibility, and price.

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The Internet is Littered in ‘Educated Guesses’ Without the ‘Education’

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1 week ago

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October 8, 2024

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Although no one likes a know-it-all, they dominate the Internet.

The Internet began as a vast repository of information. It quickly became a breeding ground for self-proclaimed experts seeking what most people desire: recognition and money.

Today, anyone with an Internet connection and some typing skills can position themselves, regardless of their education or experience, as a subject matter expert (SME). From relationship advice, career coaching, and health and nutrition tips to citizen journalists practicing pseudo-journalism, the Internet is awash with individuals—Internet talking heads—sharing their “insights,” which are, in large part, essentially educated guesses without the education or experience.

The Internet has become a 24/7/365 sitcom where armchair experts think they’re the star.

Not long ago, years, sometimes decades, of dedicated work and acquiring education in one’s field was once required to be recognized as an expert. The knowledge and opinions of doctors, scientists, historians, et al. were respected due to their education and experience. Today, a social media account and a knack for hyperbole are all it takes to present oneself as an “expert” to achieve Internet fame that can be monetized.

On the Internet, nearly every piece of content is self-serving in some way.

The line between actual expertise and self-professed knowledge has become blurry as an out-of-focus selfie. Inadvertently, social media platforms have created an informal degree program where likes and shares are equivalent to degrees. After reading selective articles, they’ve found via and watching some TikTok videos, a person can post a video claiming they’re an herbal medicine expert. Their new “knowledge,” which their followers will absorb, claims that Panda dung tea—one of the most expensive teas in the world and isn’t what its name implies—cures everything from hypertension to existential crisis. Meanwhile, registered dietitians are shaking their heads, wondering how to compete against all the misinformation their clients are exposed to.

More disturbing are individuals obsessed with evangelizing their beliefs or conspiracy theories. These people write in-depth blog posts, such as Elvis Is Alive and the Moon Landings Were Staged, with links to obscure YouTube videos, websites, social media accounts, and blogs. Regardless of your beliefs, someone or a group on the Internet shares them, thus confirming your beliefs.

Misinformation is the Internet’s currency used to get likes, shares, and engagement; thus, it often spreads like a cosmic joke. Consider the prevalence of clickbait headlines:

  • You Won’t Believe What Taylor Swift Says About Climate Change!
  • This Bedtime Drink Melts Belly Fat While You Sleep!
  • In One Week, I Turned $10 Into $1 Million!

Titles that make outrageous claims are how the content creator gets reads and views, which generates revenue via affiliate marketing, product placement, and pay-per-click (PPC) ads. Clickbait headlines are how you end up watching a TikTok video by a purported nutrition expert adamantly asserting you can lose belly fat while you sleep by drinking, for 14 consecutive days, a concoction of raw eggs, cinnamon, and apple cider vinegar 15 minutes before going to bed.

Our constant search for answers that’ll explain our convoluted world and our desire for shortcuts to success is how Internet talking heads achieve influencer status. Because we tend to seek low-hanging fruits, we listen to those with little experience or knowledge of the topics they discuss yet are astute enough to know what most people want to hear.

There’s a trend, more disturbing than spreading misinformation, that needs to be called out: individuals who’ve never achieved significant wealth or traded stocks giving how-to-make-easy-money advice, the appeal of which is undeniable. Several people I know have lost substantial money by following the “advice” of Internet talking heads.

Anyone on social media claiming to have a foolproof money-making strategy is lying. They wouldn’t be peddling their money-making strategy if they could make easy money.

Successful people tend to be secretive.

Social media companies design their respective algorithms to serve their advertisers—their source of revenue—interest; hence, content from Internet talking heads appears most prominent in your feeds. When a video of a self-professed expert goes viral, likely because it pressed an emotional button, the more people see it, the more engagement it receives, such as likes, shares and comments, creating a cycle akin to a tornado.

Imagine scrolling through your TikTok feed and stumbling upon a “scientist” who claims they can predict the weather using only aluminum foil, copper wire, sea salt and baking soda. You chuckle, but you notice his video got over 7,000 likes, has been shared over 600 times and received over 400 comments. You think to yourself, “Maybe this guy is onto something.” What started as a quest to achieve Internet fame evolved into an Internet-wide belief that weather forecasting can be as easy as DIY crafts.

Since anyone can call themselves “an expert,” you must cultivate critical thinking skills to distinguish genuine expertise from self-professed experts’ self-promoting nonsense. While the absurdity of the Internet can be entertaining, misinformation has serious consequences. The next time you read a headline that sounds too good to be true, it’s probably an Internet talking head making an educated guess; without the education seeking Internet fame, they can monetize.

______________________________________________________________

 

Nick Kossovan, a self-described connoisseur of human psychology, writes about what’s

on his mind from Toronto. You can follow Nick on Twitter and Instagram @NKossovan.

 

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Tight deadlines on software projects can put safety at risk: survey

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1 week ago

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October 8, 2024

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TORONTO – A new survey says a majority of software engineers and developers feel tight project deadlines can put safety at risk.

Seventy-five per cent of the 1,000 global workers who responded to the survey released Tuesday say pressure to deliver projects on time and on budget could be compromising critical aspects like safety.

The concern is even higher among engineers and developers in North America, with 77 per cent of those surveyed on the continent reporting the urgency of projects could be straining safety.

The study was conducted between July and September by research agency Coleman Parkes and commissioned by BlackBerry Ltd.’s QNX division, which builds connected-car technology.

The results reflect a timeless tug of war engineers and developers grapple with as they balance the need to meet project deadlines with regulations and safety checks that can slow down the process.

Finding that balance is an issue that developers of even the simplest appliances face because of advancements in technology, said John Wall, a senior vice-president at BlackBerry and head of QNX.

“The software is getting more complicated and there is more software whether it’s in a vehicle, robotics, a toaster, you name it… so being able to patch vulnerabilities, to prevent bad actors from doing malicious acts is becoming more and more important,” he said.

The medical, industrial and automotive industries have standardized safety measures and anything they produce undergoes rigorous testing, but that work doesn’t happen overnight. It has to be carried out from the start and then at every step of the development process.

“What makes safety and security difficult is it’s an ongoing thing,” Wall said. “It’s not something where you’ve done it, and you are finished.”

The Waterloo, Ont.-based business found 90 per cent of its survey respondents reported that organizations are prioritizing safety.

However, when asked about why safety may not be a priority for their organization, 46 per cent of those surveyed answered cost pressures and 35 per cent said a lack of resources.

That doesn’t surprise Wall. Delays have become rampant in the development of tech, and in some cases, stand to push back the launch of vehicle lines by two years, he said.

“We have to make sure that people don’t compromise on safety and security to be able to get products out quicker,” he said.

“What we don’t want to see is people cutting corners and creating unsafe situations.”

The survey also took a peek at security breaches, which have hit major companies like London Drugs, Indigo Books & Music, Giant Tiger and Ticketmaster in recent years.

About 40 per cent of the survey’s respondents said they have encountered a security breach in their employer’s operating system. Those breaches resulted in major impacts for 27 per cent of respondents, moderate impacts for 42 per cent and minor impacts for 27 per cent.

“There are vulnerabilities all the time and this is what makes the job very difficult because when you ship the software, presumably the software has no security vulnerabilities, but things get discovered after the fact,” Wall said.

Security issues, he added, have really come to the forefront of the problems developers face, so “really without security, you have no safety.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 8, 2024.

Companies in this story: (TSX:BB)

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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Beware of scams during Amazon’s Prime Big Deal Days sales event: cybersecurity firm

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1 week ago

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October 8, 2024

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As online shoppers hunt for bargains offered by Amazon during its annual fall sale this week, cybersecurity researchers are warning Canadians to beware of an influx of scammers posing as the tech giant.

In the 30 days leading up to Amazon’s Prime Big Deal Days, taking place Tuesday and Wednesday, there were more than 1,000 newly registered Amazon-related web domains, according to Check Point Software Technologies, a company that offers cybersecurity solutions.

The company said it deemed 88 per cent of those domains malicious or suspicious, suggesting they could have been set up by scammers to prey on vulnerable consumers. One in every 54 newly created Amazon-related domain included the phrase “Amazon Prime.”

“They’re almost indiscernible from the real Amazon domain,” said Robert Falzon, head of engineering at Check Point in Canada.

“With all these domains registered that look so similar, it’s tricking a lot of people. And that’s the whole intent here.”

Falzon said Check Point Research sees an uptick in attempted scams around big online shopping days throughout the year, including Prime Days.

Scams often come in the form of phishing emails, which are deceptive messages that appear to be from a reputable source in attempt to steal sensitive information.

In this case, he said scammers posing as Amazon commonly offer “outrageous” deals that appear to be associated with Prime Days, in order to trick recipients into clicking on a malicious link.

The cybersecurity firm said it has identified and blocked 100 unique Amazon Prime-themed scam emails targeting organizations and consumers over the past two weeks.

Scammers also target Prime members with unsolicited calls, claiming urgent account issues and requesting payment information.

“It’s like Christmas for them,” said Falzon.

“People expect there to be significant savings on Prime Day, so they’re not shocked that they see something of significant value. Usually, the old adage applies: If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.”

Amazon’s website lists a number of red flags that it recommends customers watch for to identify a potential impersonation scam.

Those include false urgency, requests for personal information, or indications that the sender prefers to complete the purchase outside of the Amazon website or mobile app.

Scammers may also request that customers exclusively pay with gift cards, a claim code or PIN. Any notifications about an order or delivery for an unexpected item should also raise alarm bells, the company says.

“During busy shopping moments, we tend to see a rise in impersonation scams reported by customers,” said Amazon spokeswoman Octavia Roufogalis in a statement.

“We will continue to invest in protecting consumers and educating the public on scam avoidance. We encourage consumers to report suspected scams to us so that we can protect their accounts and refer bad actors to law enforcement to help keep consumers safe.”

Falzon added that these scams are more successful than people might think.

As of June 30, the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre said there had been $284 million lost to fraud so far this year, affecting 15,941 victims.

But Falzon said many incidents go unreported, as some Canadians who are targeted do not know how or where to flag a scam, or may choose not to out of embarrassment.

Check Point recommends Amazon customers take precautions while shopping on Prime Days, including by checking URLs carefully, creating strong passwords on their accounts, and avoiding personal information being shared such as their birthday or social security number.

The cybersecurity company said consumers should also look for “https” at the beginning of a website URL, which indicates a secure connection, and use credit cards rather than debit cards for online shopping, which offer better protection and less liability if stolen.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 8, 2024.

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