Month: April 2023

Enlarge / Buying one of these Nvidia cards is a big commitment, both in dollars and case space. Most people who buy them do turn on DLSS and ray tracing, according to Nvidia. So ... what's going on with the folks who don't? (credit: Andrew Cunningham)

As part of its push for the RTX 4070, Nvidia's new $600 entry point into its Ada Lovelace GPU series, Nvidia has some statistics that, depending on how you look at them, are either completely baffling or entirely believable.

In a blog post and in press materials sent out before the 4070's debut, Nvidia offers stats pulled from "millions of RTX gamers who played RTX capable games" in February 2023. They show that:

• 83 percent of 40 series gamers "turn RT on" (ray tracing)
• 56 percent of 30 series
• 43 percent of 20 series

As for DLSS, Nvidia's AI-accelerated upscaling and frame-generation tool for games that support it, Nvidia writes that 79 percent of 40 series, 71 percent of 30 series, and 68 percent of 20 series owners turned the feature on.

Enlarge / Buying one of these Nvidia cards is a big commitment, both in dollars and case space. Most people who buy them do turn on DLSS and ray tracing, according to Nvidia. So ... what's going on with the folks who don't? (credit: Andrew Cunningham)

As part of its push for the RTX 4070, Nvidia's new $600 entry point into its Ada Lovelace GPU series, Nvidia has some statistics that, depending on how you look at them, are either completely baffling or entirely believable.

In a blog post and in press materials sent out before the 4070's debut, Nvidia offers stats pulled from "millions of RTX gamers who played RTX capable games" in February 2023. They show that:

• 83 percent of 40 series gamers "turn RT on" (ray tracing)
• 56 percent of 30 series
• 43 percent of 20 series

As for DLSS, Nvidia's AI-accelerated upscaling and frame-generation tool for games that support it, Nvidia writes that 79 percent of 40 series, 71 percent of 30 series, and 68 percent of 20 series owners turned the feature on.

Enlarge / The plain-looking IoT grid of icons looks better when it's merged into Google's multi-panel home screen layout. (credit: Google)

Android Auto is getting a new app category. Google has announced that Internet of Things apps (or smart home apps) for cars are now supported by the Play Store. Developers can now build smart home apps, and after an enhanced car safety check by Google, they'll be available for car screens. This has been in early access for a while, but now the feature is hitting general availability.

As usual, the Android for Cars app program covers two different platforms: Android Auto and Android Automotive OS. The redundant branding means people always get these confused, but Android Auto is an app that runs on your phone. Just like Apple's CarPlay, you plug your phone into your car's dashboard (or it wirelessly connects), and the phone software takes over the car's in-dash display, using it like an external monitor. Instead of seeing the car's built-in infotainment system, you see a UI made by Google, along with any compatible Android Auto apps installed on your phone.

Android Automotive OS (AAOS), on the other hand, is the car's infotainment system. Google signs deals with car manufacturers to make the car run Android instead of a basic Linux or QNX or another car system, and that includes killer apps like Google Maps and Google Assistant. The car becomes a computer that runs Android, and you can never remove it. Today, you'll find Android Automotive OS on new cars from Polestar/Volvo, GM, and soon Honda and Ford. While AAOS and Android Auto are totally different platforms, they mostly support the same third-party apps. For Android Auto, you install the app from your phone's Play Store, while for AAOS you use your car's built-in Play Store to install the app directly to your car storage.

Enlarge / It's not fast, expensive, or particularly luxurious, but we keep being very impressed with the Kia Niro. (credit: Jonathan Gitlin)

The Kia Niro is one of those cars that just continues to impress us. It's now in its second generation, with slightly bolder—definitely more angular—styling but still the same highly efficient powertrain options. There's a fully electric version, and a plug-in hybrid, too, but today's review is of the parallel hybrid variant. Ars spent an hour or two driving one last October, but we've now had a week of living with a 2023 Niro at home, and if anything, our respect for this solid little hybrid has only grown.

Kia calls the Niro a crossover but parked next to a neighbor's Volvo XC40, it's obvious how much lower the Niro rides. For all intents and purposes, you can think of it as a family hatchback, the kind of car that conquered Europe in the '80s but always struggled here in the US. Kia's design team opted for more straight lines for their second take on the Niro, but it's not a design that looks or feels threatening, unlike so much of the metal that comes from Detroit these days.

It's 174 inches (4,420 mm) long, 71.8 inches (1,824 mm) wide, and 60.8 inches (1,544 mm) high if you count the roof rails. The wheelbase is 107 inches (2,720 mm) long. (credit: Jonathan Gitlin)

There are some interesting design details that kept catching my eye. The headlight cluster has some rather intricate detailing, as does the turn signal embedded in the end of either side mirror. Our test car came with a contrasting color on the bodywork behind the rear doors—more than just cladding, this also houses a functional aeroblade that sends air through it to clean up the flow at the rear of the car. I've started seeing Niros around town with body-colored aeroblades now, so you always have that option if you're not into two-tone cars.

Enlarge / Artist's conception of Bethesda slamming Denuvo protections on a game that has been widely pirated for over a year. (credit: Bethesda Softworks)

Denuvo no longer provides the kind of uncrackable, piracy-protecting armor that it used to. Still, publishers often pay for the protection in an attempt to extend a "piracy-free" time window around a game's release, when most legitimate sales occur for most titles.

So it's a bit odd that Bethesda Softworks has just quietly added Denuvo protections to Ghostwire Tokyo, a game that was quickly cracked after its Denuvo-free release just over a year ago.

The late addition was confirmed by DSOGaming, which says it triggered the new Denuvo protections in the game's latest Steam update by simulating frequent changes in the CPU. While fresh Denuvo protection seems unlikely to impact piracy for the long-cracked title, it could serve as a shield for new DLC and expansion content.

Enlarge / Artist's conception of Bethesda slamming Denuvo protections on a game that has been widely pirated for over a year. (credit: Bethesda Softworks)

Denuvo no longer provides the kind of uncrackable, piracy-protecting armor that it used to. Still, publishers often pay for the protection in an attempt to extend a "piracy-free" time window around a game's release, when most legitimate sales occur for most titles.

So it's a bit odd that Bethesda Softworks has just quietly added Denuvo protections to Ghostwire Tokyo, a game that was quickly cracked after its Denuvo-free release just over a year ago.

The late addition was confirmed by DSOGaming, which says it triggered the new Denuvo protections in the game's latest Steam update by simulating frequent changes in the CPU. While fresh Denuvo protection seems unlikely to impact piracy for the long-cracked title, it could serve as a shield for new DLC and expansion content.