Apple iOS 15.4 has exited beta and started arriving on iPhone users' phones.
The update, which brings new and useful features like the ability to unlock your phone with a masked face, a new assortment of emojis, and important AirTag safety upgrades, arrived without much fanfare on Monday.
The release of the updated iPhone operating system coincided with the retail availability of the new iPhone SE (2022 edition) , Apple's retro-looking (relatively) affordable 5G phone.
In release notes on the update, Apple lists the changes to Face ID that allow iPhone 12 and newer phones (which means not all Face ID-supporting iPhones) to unlock your handset even if the device can't see your nose and mouth. The feature even extends to authentication for Apple Pay and password autofill in Safari.
After completing the iOS 15.4 update, we can confirm that the updated Face ID registration verbiage we encountered in the beta remains. Apple reminds users that "Face ID is most accurate when it's set up for full-face recognition only". It adds that the system is using features around the eye area for authentication.
Basically, Apple is asking you to make a choice between allowing Face ID to recognize you with a mask or only with your unadorned face.
The feature arrives just as many in the world are starting to put aside masks, but could come in handy during the next, inevitable Covid variant surge.
Emoji town
There are 37 new emojis in iOS 15.4 including a melting face, a nest, crutches, a lotus flower, and some cool new skin tone options. The highlight here is the ability to change skin tones in a single emoji. Now a handshake can represent two different skin colors in a hearty embrace. To choose the colors, you select and then tap on the emoji, and then select the first hand color and then the second one.
Apple's release notes don't mention it, but the promised AirTag privacy update is part of iOS 15.4, though you'll only see it if you install a new AirTag.
AirTags, which are coin-sized tracking devices that help you find and keep track of your stuff, came under fire after reports appeared of people using them to surreptitiously track or stalk other people.
During installation, a message pops up stating:
"AirTag is intended solely to track items that belong to you. Using AirTag to track people without their consent is a crime in many regions around the world. AirTag is designed to be detected by victims and to enable law enforcement to request identifying information about the owner."
You can't complete the AirTag setup without agreeing to that statement.
Siri's new Fifth American voice option is also here, because everyone needs more intelligent assistant choices. Apple doesn't describe the voice as male or female, but in the release notes says the voice "expands the diversity of options".
There are a handful of other iOS 15.4 enhancements, including support in Apple Wallet for EU Digital Covid-19 vaccination cards, Safari Webpage translation support for Italian and Chinese (Traditional), the ability to use the camera to add scanned text to Note and reminders, and the Magnifier app now uses the iPhone 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max's ultra-wide camera to get closer to tiny objects.
Basically, this update has a lot to explore, so check back for more tips and guidance on how to get the most out of iOS 15.4.
Xbox Game Pass is getting another great racing game
Update: Microsoft has confirmed the next games coming to Xbox Game Pass are F1 2021 (March 24), The Dungeon of Naheulbeuk: The Amulet of Chaos (March 17), Tainted Grail: Conquest (March 22), Zero Escape: The Nonary Games (March 22), Norco (March 24), Crusader Kings 3 (March 29) and Weird West (March 31).
Shredders, The Dungeon of Naheulbeuk, Zero Escape and Weird West will be available on Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X/S, F1 2021 and Tainted Grail will be available on console, Crusader Kings 3 will be available on Xbox Series X/S and Norco will be available on PC. Original story below:
Original Story: The next slate of games coming to Xbox Game Pass have seemingly been leaked and racing fans will no doubt be pleased about the potential lineup.
According to Dealabs user billbil kun (via VGC ), Xbox Game Pass subscribers can expect F1 2021, The Dungeon Of Naheulbeuk, Tainted Grail: Conquest, Weird West, Shredders, Zero Escape: The Nonary Games and Norco to join the Game Pass library before the end of March.
While it's worth being skeptical of all leaks, billbil kun does have a solid track record of leaking the PS Plus free games and Xbox Game Pass games ahead of their official announcements. What's more, the official Shredders website has already confirmed the game is coming to Xbox Game Pass on March 17, suggesting this could be the date we see all these titles arrive in the library.
It's likely we won't have to wait long to find out if this is indeed the next Xbox Game Pass lineup, as we expect Microsoft to announce the new games imminently.
Analysis: another solid lineup
This is another good-looking lineup from Microsoft. F1 2021 is not only one of the best racing games available right now, but it happily sits on our best Xbox Series X games list thanks to its brilliant story mode and dazzling graphics. What's more, F1 2021's inclusion in the Game Pass library would bolster the library's already impressive racing game offering, which includes Dirt 5, Forza Horizon 5 , GRID and more.
When it comes to the other games that will potentially be on offer, there's sure to be one that suits your tastes. The Dungeon Of Naheulbeuk is sure to please tactical RPG fans, Tainted Grail: Conquest is a roguelike deck builder, Weird West is a stylish action RPG from the creators of Dishonored and Prey, Shredders is an adrenaline-fuelled snowboard game, Zero Escape: The Nonary Games is a visual novel adventure and Norco is a Southern Gothic point & click narrative adventure.
If these games are due to arrive in the Xbox Game Pass library on March 17, we imagine Microsoft will officially announce them either on March 15 or March 16.
Want to get access to all Xbox Game Pass has to offer? Check out the best deals for Game Pass in your region, below:
'An intriguing mess': the Halo TV show reviews are in
Given our passion for gaming here at TechRadar, we’ve been eagerly awaiting the arrival of Paramount Plus ' Halo TV show – and the initial critical reactions are in.
Suffice to say, the first bona fide small screen adaptation of the beloved Xbox franchise hasn’t set the world alight. Among a smattering of praise for the show’s action sequences, most outlets have suggested that a pre-existing knowledge of Master Chief and company is a necessity for its narrative to make any sense to viewers. Conversely, though, it seems like existing Halo fans may not find enough here to warrant the time investment, either.
Below, we’ve rounded up the critical responses to the first episode (and in some cases, first two entries) of the Halo TV show. We’ll be publishing our own impressions of the series very soon, too, so stay tuned to TechRadar for the low-down.
Let’s kick off with The Hollywood Reporter . Eager to assess how Halo “functions as a television series, nothing more or less,” reviewer Daniel Fienberg said the show “has a generic story, limitedly engaging characters and a clearly high special effects budget that yields respectable but unremarkable results. In the absence of prior attachment, that’s insufficient for ongoing interest.”
Even on the matter of special effects, Fienberg wasn’t bowled over. “If you’re making a sci-fi world-building comparison, there isn’t a second here that comes close to what something like Apple TV+’s Foundation delivered on a weekly basis,” he wrote.
Variety ’s Caroline Framke was a little more forgiving, leading with the opinion that Halo “feels less awe-inspiring than familiar.”
“It isn’t the fault of [the show],” she wrote, “that it comes on the heels of a plethora of TV and streaming options that look and feel similar enough to lessen its ability to shock and awe.”
Still, Framke had kind words to say about certain camera techniques used: “Director Otto Bathurst periodically swoops behind [the Spartans] and into their helmets [...] This viewfinder perspective mimics that of what Halo players have seen for more than 20 years now when stepping into Master Chief’s enormous, armored shoes, and is a clever way for the show to bring in the look and feel of the video game without losing itself inside of it.”
Polygon ’s staffers had a particularly interesting take. Initially, the team were critical of the show’s haphazard connection to its source material: “Halo is like an adaptation of a video game series as handled by someone who played a few levels of it once in college.”
But one Polygon reviewer suggested Halo could actually benefit from ditching the big-budget facade and becoming a full-blown CBS-style show. “This is not the Halo show I expected, but it might be the Halo show I keep watching, in hopes I latch on to the characters and the low-key plot-of-the-week drama of it all,” they wrote. "The story is a bit fuzzy early on, but one can imagine Halo clicking into a SWAT mold, or even becoming truly deranged in the mode of Paramount Plus’ Evil.”
Both Collider and IGN , however, were more optimistic about the show as it exists now. “Halo doesn't reinvent the wheel,” the former’s Chase Hutchinson wrote, “though it is solid enough to break the video game adaptation curse.”
Similarly, IGN’s Jesse Schedeen said the show “doesn't disappoint,” though added that “this isn't to say the series sets out to dramatically reinvent every facet of the Halo mythos.”
And finally, Entertainment Weekly ’s Darren Franich published perhaps the most damning take of the lot. “I don't know what I expected from Halo,” he wrote, “but this drama comes on strong with ambient techno-babble and bureaucratic realism. It's as thrilling as a meeting.”
“Everywhere looks like green screen,” Franich added, “It's like The Mandalorian without the pucks. What is The Mandalorian without the pucks?”
So there you have it, folks. Again, it’s worth clarifying that the above reactions were all based on the show’s earliest episodes, so none should be taken as totally indicative of the quality of Paramount Plus’ Halo series overall.
Still, it’s not a promising sign that almost every reviewer had more bad things to say than good. Here's hoping Master Chief ups the ante as the Halo TV show heads towards its conclusion.
