#most of my followers followed me when i was in my soc era so i get it but i haven’t socposted since like. the show came out i think

[rithmeres]

i should have made my Special Guys poll into a tournament. that would have been 10x funnier

[ell0ra-br3kk3r]

I posted 3,986 times in 2022

723 posts created (18%)

3,263 posts reblogged (82%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@romanticvampire

@1989tv

@fyodarling

@ell0ra-br3kk3r-writes (not me boosting my own fics)

I tagged 1,881 of my posts in 2022

#hp - 224 posts

#el.talks - 185 posts

#soc - 165 posts

#tay - 134 posts

#as a writer... - 87 posts

#self reblog - 85 posts

#q - 84 posts

#ask games - 82 posts

#athena<3 - 79 posts

#hi! im the problem its me - 66 posts

Longest Tag: 84 characters

#its crazy when people say they remember that and then some people didnt know me then

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

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68 notes - Posted October 7, 2022

#4

gotta go my own way from hsm but it's kanej

75 notes - Posted December 1, 2022 (bahahahaha)

#3

i- wow... this was super quick haha thank you guys so much<3 i was missing my old blog a few days ago but then i realized i probably wouldn't have met a few of you so i'm grateful for getting the fresh start and a chance to meet some of you guys<3 so we're at 500 followers and it's christmas (kinda sorta almost there)! let's do this!

fandoms for this event are the grishaverse and the wizarding world both golden and marauders era (please specify if you want marauders or golden). please let me know if you have a prefrence for pronouns, otherwise i'll default to she/her.

anyone and everyone can participate! please keep it to one event per ask. thank you!

navi. | masterlist | character list

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80 notes - Posted November 30, 2022

#2

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98 notes - Posted September 4, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

400... that's a lot of people haha y'all are amazing for putting up with me for this long *mwah* y'all are amazing for supporting all my intrests and little side hobbies, and i really really really appreciate all the love and support so thank you

you may notice that i don't have any blurb or writing options on here... that's because i have wayyyy too many requests in my inbox already, haha, but if you want to send an idea in then you can send it to my writing blog @ell0ra-br3kk3r-writes where i have a song fic event still open!

fandoms for this event are the grishaverse and wizarding world both golden era and marauders era, and here are the characters i write for. please let me know if you have a prefrence of pronouns, otherwise i'll default to she/her.

anyone can participate! please make sure it's one event per ask. thank you

NAVIGATION

CLOSED

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116 notes - Posted November 4, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[pressednpeeled]

5 ways rap has influenced your life.

     “She's dead! She's gone forever, and YOU killed her!” cried out an angry old hip-hop head at a young man cruising by bumping new music labeled “mumble rap.” In This colorful age of constant change, there is no room for ignorance and discrimination of art, it is all after all, art. Leaning on being a sport today, rap and hip hop communities have divided  themselves by confusing themselves with an old school new school divide. Old school considering “good hip hop and rap” to only be music done by the pioneers, new school being more attached to a feel or vibe of the musical context. While many rap veterans did drop the first wave of  influence, nothing will ever go unchanged, especially social expression outlets.That being said we have to understand that the older fans relate so loyally to older music, because it paints memories of a very alive, important time in their lives.

     In this listicle I will cover the significance of raps influence on American culture.  I will go over some history of hip-hop, and its political influence that has influenced the nation culture deeply. We will touch on rap not only being a genre, but a verb as well. We will cover it's subcultures and the competitive side of the art that has kept this genres heart beating.

     The corporate world catalyzed the culture into economical prevalence, in turn officially commercialized rap. With rap on the rise due somewhat to corporate influence, the topics began to degrade and became financially arrogant. The newest artists were getting views based on flashy appearances and being antagonistically controversial, not for honed skills.  Like a blessing in disguise, this allowed bad examples to be displayed and criticized, suddenly,we were able to truly appreciate skilled Artists again. One could understand how the older generations opinions became  judgmental, then stagnant as they fell into the generational cycle and fulfilled their destiny. We must also consider that older listeners are generally less familiar with technological advances and therefore decline to discover newer rhyme that isn't negatively publicized.

     When Nas label the genre “dead” in 2006 many older fans were confused: they simply couldn't accept the fact that culture (and along with culture, music) does not stay the same forever; it outgrows us; it outruns us. Furthermore sub genres that confuse older crowds are what make up a lot of prevalent music today. That being said, rap has had some awful productions in recent years, experimenting with new technology, motivations, styles and of course corporate influence. The record labels saw financial opportunities and began taking over artistic moves and filtering genuine content as if they designed the artists. As time goes on new artists emerge that remind us what great hip hop or rap are.

     Here are 5 reasons Hip-Hop is alive, well, and actually doing better than ever before.

Rap is a verb.                                                                                                           performance, a sport, an activity a past time, rap has been considered all of these things at some point or another. It was a way to express or deliver a message to others that conveys energy intelligence, and creativity. Writer Doran Rosenberg talks about how hip hops basics evolved culturally and organically. People rapped for the love of expression, to explore uncharted artistic depths, and to paint a beautiful portrait with words. Then unfortunately Rap was exploited by corporations seeking financial success over artistic quality. This is the main reason the genre has struggled lyrically over the last few years with the addition of some psycho social implications that began to shift the reason artists began making music in the first place. While people began wanting to do it for the glory, riches and fame,  the love for the craft and unique self expression became unpopular sadly.

           .https://www.elitedaily.com/music/music-news/critics-are-crying-the-                 decline-of-rap-is-hip-hop-really-dead.

     2. Rap is a part of america's political history and a beacon for social issues

     Rap is not only is an artistic venue, but also serves as a political beacon for inner city  communities to express things going on that the rest of the world, doesn't see. On theodysseyonline.com Bailey Marshal speaks on the old rap coming back threw new, rappers like Kendrick Lamar, who proved rap is merely a reflection of society and a true form of art.

https://www.theodysseyonline.com/why-hip-hop-isnt-dead

      Lamar is one of the few rappers in a very very long time to use the power of politics threw his works. Comparable to N.W.A. in the way they reflected on police brutality and social problems when racial injustice in Ghetto communities began to catch attention during the 1980′s. Most of the country had no idea these issues were happening until  N.W.A made The problems public in 1988 with the song “Fuck The Police,” loud, offensive and boisterous but these Hero were actually doing a great job of exposing police racial profiling African and Hispanics Americans in the inner cities. It wasn't until the 1991 police beating of Rodney King that was broadcaster that these issues had gained more attention, later. Hip Hop gave us a voice that we could raise when the racial discrimination was a bigger problem, setting the beginning mark of a revolutionary time in history for many Americans. Americans cultural involvement in rap is deep rooted within freedom of speech and the reform of racial and social injustice. So why how could it die when it has nurtured the american society in so many social ways.

3. Rap will live on because of the social side of it.

      Rappers have not always been the best role models, and beginning in 2000 the confusion of rap started with the transition of the era that affected the sport almost totally. Overly Explicit shock material or irrelevant topics began arising to only receive attention as quickly as possible. While some music did seem outrageous we still must understand that some artist were only attempting to convey intense strong feelings into words, not worried about making the listeners uncomfortable or offended, like Eminem. Many rappers around this time also fueled career off rivalry like Soldier boy, and 50 cent, taking shots at any already successful artist simply to stir up fan bases of the known artist to create controversy about them,  generating free advertisement for them. These rappers seemed desperate for financial success and fame even though some did already have tasteful artistry to them. Angered by the perpetuated success of some of these braggadocios bonafide clowns, slowly, but surely the minds that Tupac Shakur spoke of, began to spark up, into the world. These heroes began checking new foo foo artist, reminding us of the important values of this poetic craft.

     Kendrick Lamar single handedly reignite the passion for hip hop with a message to rappers of today to get up and realize the loss of control within the industry as an artists. Kendrick re raised the bar in the song “Control”. He compares himself to the greats and calls out all the top players in today's hip hop industry and even a few friends on the song with him!. Stating that we must not forget that hip hop is a sport and everyone should know, right now,  hes the king of it.

“I heard the barbershops be in great debates all the time, 'Bout who's the best MC: Kendrick, Jigga, and Nas, Eminem, André 3000; the rest of y'all new n*ggas just new n*ggas, don't get involved! And I ain't rockin' no more designer shit! White T’s and Nike Cortez, this red Corvettes anonymous,I'm usually homeboys with the same n*ggas I’m rhymin' with, But this is hip-hop, and them n*ggas  should know what time it is, And that goes for Jermaine Cole, Big K.R.I.T., Wale, Pusha T, Meek Millz, A$AP Rocky, Drake,Big Sean, Jay Electron', Tyler, Mac Miller, I got love for you all, but I'm tryna murder you n*ggas! Tryna make sure your core fans never heard of you n*ggas They don't wanna hear not one more noun or verb from you n*ggas.

What is competition? I'm tryna raise the bar high!”

       This is important to understand because the craft is still so sought after now by more people than ever. we could never dismiss it because we have grown to love it as a nation just like we love our controversy and sports.

4. Rap is poetry

      Teachers refer to Shakespeare in school to understand language. As time passes we find more monumental lyricist like 2pac. Pacs impact on the world went as far as schools quoting and studying his works to teach,  like we have before with Shakespeare. Colleges around the world offers entire courses on Tupac Shakur's work today. In this article by Micah Mattix, he talks about how rap is not generally considered poetry because it's grammatically incorrect and it “has to have music behind it”. He goes on to say that rap is less serious than poetry and is more profane. All these things said are entirely false and are refuted in the comments by multiple people defending the poetic craft. Comparing other artist like Beck and Bob Dylan to poetry, writing it out in sonnet form to show that it reflections of poetry. Consider the following words from Beck:

Walking to the other side

With the Devil trying to take my mind

And my soul’s just a silhouette

On the ashes of a cigarette

Illusions never fake their lives

Trick cards fool the eyes

Carry zeros over till they add up

Bury tears in the chapters you shut

Sometimes the jail can’t chain the cell

And the rain’s too plain to tell

All alone by a barren well

Scarecrow’s only scaring himself

Consider the following words from Bob Dylan:

In a little hilltop village, they gambled for my clothes

I bargained for salvation an’ they gave me a lethal dose

I offered up my innocence and got repaid with scorn

“Come in,” she said, “I’ll give you shelter from the storm”

https://www.theamericanconservative.com/prufrock/is-rap-poetry/

     5. Rap could never expire because its saved on file

       Hip-hop has been influencing pop culture for years. As lingo becomes more socially accepted, the crossover appeal is inevitable for rap to get the recognition it deserves.

       In 2000 Lil’ Wayne coined the word “bling bling” to the oxford dictionary, forever validating his permanent mark on the rap game. Then the next year Beyonce added the word “bootylicious” to the dictionary. Although Snoop Dogg was the originator of the word in 1992, destiny's child took the term to the top with the release of their song that still is one of their highest selling hits to date. Unless someone can destroy every single copy of the dictionary physical and digital then maybe they can put an end to this rap thing but unless that happens hip hop will be right here just like revolutions in history textbooks are. https://www.xxlmag.com/news/2016/05/hip-hop-words-in-oxford-english-dictionary/

      Rap is an art form and when is put on display its subject to judgment and an interpretation from the side that is appreciative and the side that isn't. Our parents aren't totally wrong about new bad music, but they need to understand hip hop and rap will never die, for it has only began forming major sub genres like rock formed punk, and jazz formed acid. More and more people are becoming involved in the rap culture every day. The culture involves itself within our society more and more everyday . Weather it be politics or social issues, rap ingrains itself into us organically and electronically. The concept is comparable to saying that singing is dying, or comedy is dying, it just doesn't make any sense at all. Hip hop and rap will remain strong in our societies all over the world, continuing to cycle through history as it has since it  began.  Because rap culture is socially tied to us it creates our history, our texts and our lives. it is a self sufficient competitive art and therefore will forever evolve with new topics,  problems, and people. Music is simply a reflection of the high energy human existence.  regardless of its spelling, and bold topics, hip hop and rap will remain abrasive to political foul play, acting as a beacon for untapped issues that the genres people will never let it slide by unnoticed.So to all those embittered old hip hop heads that idolized artist they grew up, please understand that you don't understand, change in inevitable and if it wasn't, everything would be the same. Variety is the spice of life my friend, until you understand that, please go find a cave to cry in, But remember,  “I ain’t mad atcha”-Tupac Shakure. 

[simplyoriginalcharacters]

The Bystander

So, I’ve been trying to write a story with a narrator, but the story spans many generations and so the narrator must either be immortal or have time powers. As you know, it is extremely hard to make an OC with time powers not be a Mary Sue. So…. help. Please. 

Saying “she” because in appearance, she resembles a girl, but falls more under the “it” category. 

Name: Her real name has been lost in time, but do to the nature of her job, she is known by “The Narrator” or “The Bystander.”

Appearance: White long, flowy hair. Pale skin, and grey eyes. Completely devoid of most color. However, doesn’t really resemble a “human”. She appears slightly…off, as if she isn’t human, but not completely alien. Because she doesn’t have the same ‘feeling’ as a human, a person wouldn’t feel entirely safe near her. Also, nobody could physically fall in love with her, as the human race is only able to fall in love with other humans. (Thanks, biology!)

Things to Know: 

Doesn’t age. Is biologically immortal and can control time in her realm.

 Is stuck in an layered version of reality. She can see, hear, and live as if she was in the real world, yet nothing there is affected by her actions. So no communication, or action. This is where the alias “The Bystander” comes fro; she can only  watch human history from the sidelines, yet can’t influence it in anyway. 

Personality: 

Strength:  She is calm, cool and collected. 

Weakness: She is apathetic, shy, and has no social skills what-so-ever (not like she’ll need them). 

Weakness > Strength.

Overall, she is calm and doesn’t display emotions, but doesn’t really have them due to being in isolation for eons and seeing countless wars, battles, and bloodshed. 

Backstory: 

Her sole purpose, ever since she popped into existence, was to record history. She writes everything that will ever happen, has tapped, or is happening due to her time powers. The book i am writing takes place in one small chapter of the chronicles she has devoted all of eternity writing. 

Setting:

This takes place in a world, similar to our own, but magic is available to only a few people, and those few people are sometimes persecuted because of magic. The time is the Medieval Era, so regular humans have lances, armor, and castles (but not proper hygiene). During this time, people were bloodthirsty, and this creates more tension between people with magic and no magic. People with magic are very limited to certain types, whether it be a certain element (ice), a skill (cooking), or a transformation (pig).

Hi there! You may not be aware of this, but we don't use the term "Mary Sue" on SOC - we don't find it helpful to either readers or writers, since what exactly makes a Sue a Sue can be pretty subjective. Instead, I'll be focusing on how to make this character feel interesting and fresh to your readers.

One of the first things that jumped out of this profile at me was this sentence: "Also, nobody could physically fall in love with her, as the human race is only able to fall in love with other humans." This may simply be an attempt on your end to tell me that this is how you've decided it works in your setting, but I can't be sure of that. In reality, human beings fall in love with non-human entities all the time - with animals and books and views and concepts without physical form and all sorts of other things - and love is not "physical". Lust is a physical reaction; love is mental and emotional. To reduce love to a mere physical reaction is to imply that, for example, asexuals can't fall in love because they don't experience physical attraction, and I think you can see that that's just ridiculous. You may want to alter your wording here to make your meaning more clear.

Your appearance section other than that, though, has a good foundation but is actually pretty vague. It's clear that you know the basics, but I'd like to see some more specific information here, particularly about the ways in which this character seems "off" to other humans. Are her teeth just a little too sharp? Her ears a little too pointed or perhaps nonexistant? Do her cheekbones slant at an unnatural angle? Tell me something interesting about what this character actually looks like so that I can get a real picture in my head. Telling me how people react to her is fine, but telling me why they react that way is better.

Her personality section is similarly lacking. There's no real detail here. I don't get any idea of who this character is as a person. Anyone could be described as "cool and collected". Anyone could be described as "apathetic, shy, and [having] no social skills what-so-ever". Tell me what makes those traits apply to THIS character and what makes her interesting enough for me to want to read about her. There's no personality in your personality section, and that's a huge issue, because personality is what makes us care about a character's story. You can find a lot more information about fleshing this section out in our SOC Originals, especially under the 5WH series.

The backstory continues to show the same problem. There's a foundation here, but there's no real information in it. Does this character have feelings? Does she ever want to get involved and get frustrated because she can't? Does she, I don't know, sometimes get really interested in the doings of a particular person for no apparently reason and follow their life through history, and if so, does she get sad when they die? Does she ever check up on their descendants? How has she been changed by the things she's seen, if she has been changed? How has she been affected? At which points did she most wish she could step in? How does she feel about her lot in life? There are so many interesting things you could be doing in this section, and you're not doing any of them. Change that!

Last, but not least, you would most likely be surprised as how clean people were in the Medieval Era. It may not be what we'd consider "proper" hygiene, but do your research and you will find some really interesting cultural norms surrounding personal cleanliness, especially when it comes to daily routines.

Overall, your worst enemy in this profile is a lack of detail. You've got a good skeleton, but it's time to put some meat on those bones! Think outside the box and I really do believe that this could be a fascinating character. She has a lot of potential, and you need to tap into that and express it in your work. If you ever decide to revise and resubmit, I'd be happy to take another look, but until then, good luck!

-Kyo

[altechml1-blog]

Audit: Apple's $329 iPad is for individuals who have never updated their tablet Macintosh doesn't generally assemble midrange contraptions, however when it does, they're good.

Apple isn't timid about letting it be known: the greatest component of its most up to date iPad is the cost. At $329, it's $70 less expensive than the iPad Air 2 used to be, $270 less expensive than the littler iPad Pro costs now, and $170 less expensive than the underlying beginning cost of the iPad in 2010. It's a major move, particularly following 18 months where bigger and more costly iPads were Apple's principle center.

That is evidently where the clients are. Mac revealed to us that the iPad Air 2 was its most famous iPad, and it had been since its presentation in October of 2014. It was the most well known with undertakings, the most famous with private companies, the most prominent in schools, and the most mainstream with individuals who were new to the iPad by and large (the greater part of all iPad Air 2 purchasers were getting their first iPad). Furthermore, even after the presentation of the iPad Mini in 2012 and the enormous iPad Pro in 2015, the 9.7-inch screen measure has remained the most mainstream of the three.So one of the $329 iPad's objectives was to supplant the maturing iPad Air 2 for those gatherings of people. Its second objective was to lure the a huge number of individuals who got one of the initial four iPad eras or the principal iPad Mini to purchase an iPad once more. The vast majority of those tablets don't run iOS 10, and the one that runs iOS 10 needs bolster for the greater part of the iPad's multitasking highlights and a pack of other stuff.

But at the same time there's a third objective Apple didn't chat with me about, the glaring issue at hand at whatever time Apple does anything with the iPad: we're currently entering our third straight year of offers decrease, both as far as units sold and in income earned. The iPad Pro hinted at some assisting with the issue a year ago, however none of the iPads Apple has put out since 2014 has stopped the item's descending slide.

This unassuming iPad has a considerable measure of parts to fill. The uplifting news is that it fills them all, and it does as such truly well. The terrible news is that it doesn't talk extremely well about any of the additional stuff the iPad Pro conveys to the table, especially the 9.7-inch demonstrate.

iPad Air 1.5

In case you're attempting to clarify the new iPad (formally named the fifth-era iPad, grabbing the mallet that the fourth-era iPad dropped years back) to somebody effectively acquainted with the lineup, any reasonable person would agree that its plan sits some place in the middle of 2013's iPad Air and 2014's iPad Air 2. It feels less like another tablet and more like a moment, more moderate break at refreshing the principal Air.

That is incompletely in light of the fact that its outline is almost indistinguishable to the first iPad Air. Its size, weight, and general look and feel are all basically the same with a modest bunch of little changes: the quiet switch is gone, the chamfer around the edges is presently matte rather than sparkly, and there's a Touch ID catch on the front at this point. The two tablets are similar to the point that Smart Covers and numerous adornments intended for the primary Air will work fine and dandy with the iPad 5, contingent upon how the cases suit the little contrasts in catches and switches. Covers made for the Air 2 likewise work with the iPad 5; the 9.7-inch iPad Pro moved the inside magnets around enough that Apple needed to change the Smart Cover plan for that tablet, however the iPad 5 works consummately fine with more seasoned spreads (and new covers will work superbly fine with your more established tablets).

The screen is a blend of new and old. From one perspective, it's brighter—Apple says it has a greatest brilliance of 500 nits, 25 percent brighter than the iPad Air 2. Utilizing a Spyder colorimeter, I gauged the splendor of the iPad 5's screen at around 420 nits with the auto brilliance sensor incapacitated and the shine wrenched to greatest (in numerous contraptions, the most extreme brilliance with the auto splendor sensor empowered is higher than the shine with the sensor killed, so this shouldn't be taken as proof that Apple's figures aren't right). As indicated by my estimation, the iPad 5 is 16.7 percent brighter than the iPad Air 2 (360 nits), 9.7 percent dimmer than the 9.7-inch iPad Pro (465 nits), and 26.1 percent brighter than the first iPad Air (333 nits).

Brilliance aside, the presentations on the first iPad Air and the iPad 5 are physically tradable. In the event that your iPad Air screen breaks, iFixit says you can even pop an iPad 5 screen into the more seasoned tablet and advantage from the brighter board. We saw a similar thing with the iPhone SE's screen, which is completely good with the iPhone 5S and bad habit versa.But shine isn't all that matters, and the screen is a stage down from the Air 2's and the Pro's in two or three ways. For one, it does not have an against intelligent covering—the brighter screen helps when you're utilizing it outside or in brutal office lighting, however the distinction is recognizable. What's more, the LCD board and the tablet's front glass aren't combined, implying that there's a little air crevice between the glass and the show itself. This implies hues pop somewhat less and differentiation is a little lower.

The air crevice additionally adds to a sort of empty sound and feeling when you tap on the screen, something that makes the tablet feel less expensive than the Air 2 or Pro. This shouldn't imply that that the iPad 5 (and the iPad Air before it) isn't well-manufactured, quite recently that it feels less strong than either the Air 2 that it replaces or the top of the line iPad Pro or most different gadgets with covered screens.

At last, it's significant a couple of alternate lines Apple draws between the iPad Pro and the iPad 5:

Execution is a major one, and we'll investigate that in more detail later on.

Beside not being covered, the show doesn't bolster the DCI-P3 shading array (or "wide shading," as Apple calls it), however it can at present show near 100 percent of the sRGB shading space.

The camera utilizes an indistinguishable 8MP sensor from the iPad Air 2, does exclude a LED streak, and can't take wide shading pictures.

The Apple Pencil and Smart Connector (and, by augmentation, the Smart Keyboard) aren't bolstered.

The radio wire set pattern on the LTE models is bigger and clumsier looking by examination.

The Pro has enhanced speakers on each corner, where the iPad 5 simply has them on the base.

The iPad 5 must be connected to for dependably on Hey Siri support to work, which is odd since the A9 should have the low-control equipment important to make the component chip away at battery power (it's bolstered in the iPhone 6S). My best figure is that the more established iPad Air plan's receivers are some way or another deficient and that Apple didn't refresh them in the iPad 5, however Apple wouldn't fill me in on the subtle elements when I inquired.

That is not a deficient rundown, however it's dependent upon you to choose whether those elements are justified regardless of an additional $270 to you (the math will get a little less demanding when the year-old iPad Pro is revived, which we'd expect before the finish of the year). It's additionally significant what the iPad 5 can do:

Touch ID and Apple Pay are completely bolstered.

It has 2GB of memory, same as the Pro, which implies that all of iOS' current multitasking highlights (and, at any rate, any new ones presented in iOS 11) are completely bolstered.

Same screen measure, same determination.

Comparable, if not indistinguishable, size and weight. It's somewhat bigger and heavier yet there's no place a Pro can go that an iPad 5 can't go.

Its battery life is truly awesome, which we'll get to soon.

Its Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and LTE abilities give off an impression of being comprehensively indistinguishable to the Pro's.

Starting at right now, the iPad Pro backings a couple of additional peripherals and offers somewhat more speed, yet there's next to no it can do that the iPad 5 totally can't. That is at the same time an incredible thing for iPad 5 purchasers and a sign that the iPad Pro needs to accomplish more to separate itself.Camera

Apple has a 8 megapixel camera sensor that it utilizes as a part of a considerable measure of its less expensive items (and in items where the camera isn't as indispensable to the experience as it is in, say, the iPhone). Up until this point, it's showed up in the iPad Air 2, the 6th gen iPod Touch, the iPad Mini 4, the 12.9-inch adaptation of the iPad Pro (however not the 9.7-inch rendition, which utilizes the 12MP sensor from the iPhone 6S) and now the iPad 5. One lovely symptom for camera-knock haters: the lesser camera sits flush with the body of the tablet.

Apple affirmed to us that it is in reality a similar camera and sensor, however contrasted with those more seasoned items it ought to even now advantage to some degree on account of the enhanced picture flag processor (ISP) in the A9. Video adjustment, clamor decrease, and tone mapping ought to all be somewhat enhanced; in our specimen low-light photographs particularly, the upgrades are unpretentious yet noticeable. In case you're originating from a 5MP iPad Air camera or anything more established, it'll be a decent update.

Execution

The iPad 5 utilizes the Apple A9 SoC initially presented in the iPhone 6S eighteen months prior (it's likewise present in the iPhone SE). Its double center CPU is an indistinguishable design from what Apple utilizes as a part of the iPad Pro's A9X, quite recently timed a bit lower: 1.8GHz contrasted with around 2.1GHz in the 9.7-inch Pro and 2.25GHz in the 12.9-inch Pro. The A9 has about a large portion of the GPU bunches that the A9X has—Anandtech reports that the A9 utilizes six groups and the A9X utilizes 12—and it has a 64-bit memory transport contrasted with the A9X's 128-piece bus.Unsurprisingly, the year-old iPad Pro figures out how to fundamentally outflank the iPad 5, yet the numbers look truly great as a substitution for the iPad Air 2. The A8X in that tablet had three CPU centers, which implies that applications that can utilize each of the three centers without a moment's delay will perform about the same on the iPad 5 and the Air 2. In any case, the A9 has altogether better single-center execution, valuable for assignments (like perusing) that can't without much of a stretch be multithreaded.

[viralhottopics]

Hands on with Samsung’s Galaxy S8 and S8+

No more leaks, guys. Samsung’s next flagship phones, the Galaxy S8 and S8+, are officially official.

It’s easy to look at the Galaxy S8 as just another annual phone release. The phone’s definitely prettier, the screen’s larger, and there’s the very interesting Bixby AI assistant onboard. But it’s not just another phone launch.

The Galaxy S8, which launches on April 21, is Samsung’s first major phone launch since the Galaxy Note 7 explosions that ultimately ended with two global recalls and the device’s discontinuation.

The Galaxy S8 will be judged not only by how it competes with the iPhone 7, but its ability or inability to restore consumer trust in Samsung.

SEE ALSO: Say hi to Samsung Bixby, the new voice assistant in the Galaxy S8

Ten years after Apple unveiled the iPhone and and ushered in an era of touchscreen-equipped pocket computers, it’s difficult to get excited for any new version of an established smartphone. At the end of the day, phones are phones (even if they don’t have headphone jacks). These are a bit different, though, with an impressive screen and other unique featuresbut they come with a few disappointments at first glance.

More screen, less bezel

Samsung pioneered the modern phablet with the Galaxy Note and has embraced bigger screens for yearsand it’s finally killing the “small” option. The Galaxy S8 and S8+ have the largest displays of any Galaxy S (and Galaxy Note phone, for that matter) ever created, measuring 5.8 and 6.2-inches, respectively, with a resolution of 2960 x 1,440.

The S8 and S8+ have an 83% screen-to-body ratio.

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Those rounded display corners and curved edges…

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The Super AMOLED “Infinity Displays” have an unusual 18.5:9 aspect ratio, which is taller than typical 16:9 screens and just a hair wider than the new LG G6’s 18:9 Full Vision display. Like the G6, the S8 and S8+’s display corners are rounded, and they look pretty hot. The screens are as vivid and sharp as you’d expect from a Samsung display, and they’re HDR-ready.

Left to right: 5.5-inch iPhone 7 Plus, 6.2-inch Galaxy S8+, 4.7-inch iPhone 7, and 5.8-inch Galaxy S8.

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The screen is HDR-ready.

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Though the displays are physically taller (or longer in landscape mode), the two phones don’t feel overwhelmingly huge, thanks once again to Samsung’s signature curved edges, which help make the phones narrower.

Same glass and metal sandwich design.

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There’s a headphone jack, at least!

Even though the S8 has a larger screen, its dimensions are about the same size as the S7 Edge, and the S8+ is only a little larger. In hand, Samsung’s new phones feel just as solid as its previous flagships. The S8 and S8+ still sport the same iconic glass-and-metal sandwich designs, but the curved edges (both front and back) are now symmetrical like they were on the Note 7, making them easier and comfier to grip.

With 83 percent of the S8 and S8+’s front dominated by the display, there’s no room for a physical home button like there is on the S7/S7 Edge. Instead, the phones have a virtual home button located on the bottom portion of the display that vibrates when you press on it. It remains to be seen if that’ll work as well as a mechanical button.

Yep, the fingerprint sensor’s in a terrible new spot.

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But, wait, where’s the fingerprint sensor if there’s no physical button? Unfortunately, the rumors are true, and Samsung moved it to the back of the phone, right next to the camera. The new back-positioned fingerprint sensor just reads your fingerprint, and isn’t a pressable button. And yes, unless you have super long fingers, the fingerprint sensor’s not easy to reach, and you will end up smudging the back camera a lot.

Both the S8 and S8+ are IP68 water and dust-resistant.

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On the plus side, like the S7, the Galaxy S8 and S8+ are IP68 dust and water-resistant, which means they’re submergible in up to five feet of water for up to 30 minutes.

Fast and safe

What’s a new flagship phone if it’s not faster? As we’ve known since last year, the S8 and S8+ come with Qualcomm’s newest Snapdragon 835 system-on-a-chip (SoC), 4GB of RAM and run Android 7.0 Nougat with a redesigned TouchWiz skin. Both phones come with 64GB of storage and a microSD card slot for adding an additional 256GB more.

While the Snapdragon 835 offers roughly 27 percent faster performance than the 821 chip found in phones like the Pixel/Pixel XL and LG G6, it has another advantage: it’s more efficient and uses about 40 percent less power than before.

Same Samsung “Edge” features you know and love.

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This increased power efficiency means the S8 and S8+ can last longer without needing higher capacity batteries. As such, Samsung’s equipped the S8 with a 3,000 mAh battery and the S8+ with a 3,500 mAh battery. The phones also come with the same built-in wireless and Fast Charging that you’ve come to expect from Samsung’s flagships.

And while it’s impossible to verify, Samsung says it’s taking extra precautions with a new eight-point battery safety check to ensure no S8 batteries explode. Samsung can’t afford to have another phone literally go up in flames, so that better check out.

Sharper selfies

Same 12-megapixel f/1.7 camera on the back with Dual Pixel autofocus as the S7.

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Perhaps more disappointing than the fingerprint sensor’s terrible location is the lack of any significant update to the rear camera. There’s no dual camera setup to compete with the iPhone 7 Plus or the LG G6; Samsung’s sticking with the S7’s 12-megapixel camera with f/1.7 aperture and Dual Pixel autofocus system. While the camera’s imaging hardware is the same, Samsung says it’s made several software improvements to speed up image processing and help reduce motion blur.

The S8 camera didn’t feel any quicker than the S7, but our time with it was limited. That said, the S7 camera is quite good, especially in low light, so no big deal if it’s an incremental improvement.

The selfie camera got bumped up to 8-megapixels.

The camera that did get an upgrade, though, is the front-facing one. It’s now 8 megapixels compared to the 5 megapixels on the S7, and it has a “smart autofocus” feature to lock onto faces and subjects.

I can’t be certain since I didn’t get to do any proper comparisons with other phones, but the selfies at least on the S8’s screen looked a little crisper. I’ll know for sure when I do some

Bixby brains

Meet Bixby, the S8’s new AI assistant.

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The most important new addition is none other than Bixby, the built-in AI assistant. Samsung sees Bixby as such a key part of the S8 and S8+ that it’s got a dedicated activation button on the left side of the phone below the volume buttons.

Unlike assistants like Siri or Google Assistant, which are designed to answer common questions and perform simple actions, Samsung says Bixby is more intelligent and designed for “completeness,” allowing you to use your voice for everything you would otherwise do by tapping your screen. In its current state, Bixby can control tens of thousands of complex actions within select Samsung apps, but the eventual goal is to have voice control for all apps there’s gonna be a Bixby API for third-party developers to work with.

In addition to more advanced voice controls, Bixby’s also got super vision. Using image recognition in conjunction with the camera, the AI is able to identify objects and provide either additional information or suggest where you could purchase it. The feature resembles the Firefly feature on the ill-fated Amazon Fire Phone.

It’s an ambitious project, and there are still many unanswered questionslike what Bixby’s voice sounds like, how well it really works and where all of the data it collects is storedbut it feels like the right step towards making phone assistants actually useful. You can read more about Bixby’s features here.

Unlock with your face

On the Note 7, Samsung offered two biometric ways to unlock the phone: fingerprint or iris scanner. The new S8 phones follow suit, and they add a new facial recognition feature that works well.

You can unlock the S8 with facial recognition, but it’s not as safe as with the iris scanner.

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That feature unlocks the device when you look at the phone. It’s a good alternative and functions well, but Samsung says it’s less secure than the iris scanner.

The iris scanner is more secure, and now you don’t need to line your eyes up with the two eye holes, or even have the eye preview on at all.

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There are even cartoony masks you can set up if you hate looking at your irises.

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There’s also an iris scanner as well. Unlike on the Note 7, you no longer need to line your eyes up with the circles on the screen. It’s much better and faster this time around.

Growing pains?

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A year ago, when I got a preview of the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge, my first impression was that Samsung had finally made phones with virtually no compromises. Even before reviewing the S7 and S7 Edge, I said they already felt like the best Android phones ever made (and they were when I reviewed them).

I can’t say I had the same first impression for the S8 and S8+. Samsung’s newest are certainly gorgeous, fast, and feature-packed they’ve got headphone jacks, yes! but they seem to be full of trade-offs. To get the bigger screen and slimmer bezels, the fingerprint sensor’s moved to a weird spot; the rear camera’s the same old one; there are no stereo speakers, and the new facial recognition unlock system is convenient but not as secure as the iris scanner, etc.

It’s possible these initial quibbles will be non-issues in everyday use, but that they exist at all worries me a little.

The S8 and S8+ will be available worldwide on April 21. In the U.S., the phones will be available in three colors: Midnight Black, Orchid Gray and Arctic Silver. In South Korea, Maple Gold and Coral Blue will also be color options.

Pricing varies between carriers. Verizon’s selling the S8 for $730 and the S8+ for $840. AT&T and T-Mobile are selling the S8 for $750 and the S8+ for $850. And MetroPCS will sell the S8+ for $730. You can find full details on installment plan details here.

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from Hands on with Samsung’s Galaxy S8 and S8+