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Seven ways AI may improve meetings, per Microsoft

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Seven ways AI may improve meetings, per Microsoft

The schedules of the majority of working professionals are packed with meetings, which frequently act as a barrier to productivity because they require excessive amounts of time or don’t really need you in the first place. Microsoft says its AI products can help you optimize your meetings.

According to a recent Microsoft Work Trend Index research, “inefficient meetings” was cited by respondents as the biggest productivity impediment. Microsoft thus noted meeting failure points and the ways in which Copilot and other AI technologies can be helpful in a recent blog post.

It can help you stay current

Everyone has experienced being late for a meeting they didn’t want to miss, despite their best efforts to be on time. Nothing is worse than quickly jumping on a call when it’s too late, not knowing what you missed, and not wanting to ask a question that has already been answered out of fear. Alternatively, perhaps you dozed off and missed crucial information throughout the discussion.

Copilot in Microsoft Teams can quickly summarize the main points of the meeting to assist you and the others stay on the same page and close the information gap. If you are still unclear, you can just ask Copilot for more details rather than interjecting queries into the middle of the discussion.

It can allow you to miss events

If you have a full schedule of meetings, you will probably have to prioritize which meetings to attend in order to finish your task. But that doesn’t mean you have to rely solely on notes from others or lose out on the knowledge completely.

Users of Copilot will soon have access to automatically generated meeting recaps that include notes and recommended tasks for follow-up instead. Users will also have the ability to “follow” a meeting in March, which will cause the host to log it on Teams. A summary and the recording are later available to users.

It can offer guidance to you in meetings

If you have ever conducted a video conference presentation, you are aware of how uncomfortable it may be to wait for participants to unmute, join in, and offer feedback. Frequently, this discrepancy results in meetings taking longer than necessary.

You may now discuss in private how to further the Copilot conversation with Teams using Copilot in Teams. You can ask questions like “What can I ask to move the meeting forward?” or “What issues are still unresolved?” as Microsoft provides examples. After that, Copilot will go through the transcript of the meeting and recommend possible things for you to say.

It can help you turn off background noise

While at work, scheduling a meeting room for your video conference can be difficult because you and your coworkers are fighting for the same small amount of space. As a result, you probably have to attend meetings from your noisy desk quite a bit.

Teams includes a noise suppression feature to help with that, which can help keep meetings focused on speech while eliminating background noise. Teams will “soon” have a voice isolation function that will identify your voice and muffle background noise, according to Microsoft.

It’s sort of clean enough for your office

While your room isn’t ready for the meeting, are you? Teams Premium has a “Decorate your background” function that lets you employ generative AI to improve your real-world environment.

Generative AI can be used, for instance, to virtually decorate your space or clear clutter. By not needing to display your space in its entirety, this function can assist you avoid utilizing unrealistically large backdrops and maintain the atmosphere of your room.

It can provide you with presenting skills coaching

Like any skills, presenting well is a skill that needs to be practiced. Microsoft’s Speaker Coach may assist with that by analyzing your voice for things like tempo, pitch, filler words, repeated vocabulary, and more. It can also provide you with real-time feedback and a comprehensive analysis later.

It can eliminate communication gaps

Meetings can occasionally involve people whose language is different from yours, which can make it difficult to carry on a conversation. With real-time translations in up to 40 spoken languages that participants may read via captions or transcripts, Teams Premium’s live translation tool can help keep the conversation flowing.

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Lenovo’s Most Recent Laptop Features a Rollable OLED Display

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Laptop screens often feel cramped, but Lenovo’s ThinkBook Plus Gen 6 Rollable AI PC is here to change that. This cutting-edge device features a rollable OLED display that expands from a standard 14-inch screen to an elongated 16.7-inch display with the press of a button. The extended screen offers double the vertical space, perfect for stacking applications or viewing long documents. While the unusual aspect ratio may take some getting used to, the added real estate is a game-changer for productivity.

The rolling mechanism is activated either by a palm gesture or a keyboard button—the latter being much quicker. Lenovo has tested the rolling function 30,000 times to ensure durability, though repairing this futuristic feature might be challenging. Weighing just 3.7 pounds and measuring 19.9 mm thick when closed, the laptop is portable, albeit slightly top-heavy when open. Despite these quirks, it’s a sleek alternative to carrying an external monitor.

Launching in the first quarter of 2025, the ThinkBook Plus Gen 6 Rollable AI PC comes with a hefty $3,499 price tag. It’s powered by Intel’s Core Ultra 7 Series 2 processor and offers up to 32 GB of RAM and 1 TB of storage, making it a high-performance machine ideal for demanding users.

Lenovo’s Legion Go S: SteamOS Gaming on the Go

As handheld gaming gains popularity, Lenovo has entered the arena with the Legion Go S, the first SteamOS handheld gaming console from a licensed manufacturer. Available in both SteamOS and Windows versions, the Legion Go S bridges the gap between desktop gaming and portability. Unlike other consoles, this device lacks dual-boot functionality, so users must choose their preferred operating system at checkout.

SteamOS offers seamless integration with cloud saves and game streaming from your PC, while the Windows version provides broader compatibility. Both variants share the same hardware: an 8-inch LCD display with a 1,920 x 1,200 resolution and 120 Hz variable refresh rate, powered by AMD’s Ryzen Z2 Go or Ryzen Z1 Extreme processors. While the screen is smaller than the original Legion Go, the compact size and a 55.5 watt-hour battery significantly improve battery life.

Priced at $730 for the Windows version and $500 for the SteamOS model, the Legion Go S launches this month, with additional configurations arriving in May starting at $600.

ThinkCentre M90a Pro Gen 6: Private Audio with AI Precision

Lenovo’s ThinkCentre M90a Pro Gen 6 is an all-in-one computer with a twist: its innovative “Lenovo Focus Sound” technology. Using a machine-learning algorithm and the built-in camera, this feature directs audio exclusively to the user sitting in front of the screen. This means coworkers nearby won’t hear a thing—even if you’re secretly streaming a show.

In practice, the effect is almost eerie, as if someone is whispering directly to you. The sound disappears entirely if you move away from the screen. While headphones are a practical alternative, this technology could redefine office audio privacy. The ThinkCentre M90a Pro Gen 6 is set to launch this quarter with a starting price of $2,539.

From rollable screens to private audio and handheld gaming innovations, Lenovo’s CES 2025 lineup demonstrates the company’s dedication to pushing technological boundaries. Whether you’re a multitasker, a gamer, or a privacy-conscious professional, there’s something for everyone in this bold new lineup.

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Threads uses a more sophisticated search to compete with Bluesky

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Instagram Threads, a rival to Meta’s X, will have an enhanced search experience, the firm said Monday. The app, which is based on Instagram’s social graph and provides a Meta-run substitute for Elon Musk’s X, is introducing a new feature that lets users search for certain posts by date ranges and user profiles.

Compared to X’s advanced search, which now allows users to refine queries by language, keywords, exact phrases, excluded terms, hashtags, and more, this is less thorough. However, it does make it simpler for users of Threads to find particular messages. Additionally, it will make Threads’ search more comparable to Bluesky’s, which also lets users use sophisticated queries to restrict searches by user profiles, date ranges, and other criteria. However, not all of the filtering options are yet visible in the Bluesky app’s user interface.

In order to counter the danger posed by social networking startup Bluesky, which has quickly gained traction as another X competitor, Meta has started launching new features in quick succession in recent days. Bluesky had more than 9 million users in September, but in the weeks after the U.S. elections, users left X due to Elon Musk’s political views and other policy changes, including plans to alter the way blocks operate and let AI companies train on X user data. According to Bluesky, there are currently around 24 million users.

Meta’s Threads introduced new features to counter Bluesky’s potential, such as an improved algorithm, a design modification that makes switching between feeds easier, and the option for users to select their own default feed. Additionally, it was observed creating Starter Packs, its own version of Bluesky’s user-curated recommendation lists.

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Apple’s own 5G modem-equipped iPhone SE 4 is “confirmed” to launch in March

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Tom O’Malley, an analyst at Barclays, recently visited Asia with his colleagues to speak with suppliers and makers of electronics. The analysts said they had “confirmed” that a fourth-generation iPhone SE with an Apple-designed 5G modem is scheduled to launch near the end of the first quarter next year in a research note they released this week that outlines the main conclusions from the trip. That timeline implies that the next iPhone SE will be unveiled in March, similar to when the present model was unveiled in 2022, in keeping with earlier rumors.

The rumored features of the fourth-generation iPhone SE include a 6.1-inch OLED display, Face ID, a newer A-series chip, a USB-C port, a single 48-megapixel rear camera, 8GB of RAM to enable Apple Intelligence support, and the previously mentioned Apple-designed 5G modem. The SE is anticipated to have a similar design to the base iPhone 14.

Since 2018, Apple is said to have been developing its own 5G modem for iPhones, a move that will let it lessen and eventually do away with its reliance on Qualcomm. With Qualcomm’s 5G modem supply arrangement for iPhone launches extended through 2026 earlier this year, Apple still has plenty of time to finish switching to its own modem. In addition to the fourth-generation iPhone SE, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo earlier stated that the so-called “iPhone 17 Air” would come with a 5G modem that was created by Apple.

Whether Apple’s initial 5G modem would offer any advantages to consumers over Qualcomm’s modems, such quicker speeds, is uncertain.

Qualcomm was sued by Apple in 2017 for anticompetitive behavior and $1 billion in unpaid royalties. In 2019, Apple purchased the majority of Intel’s smartphone modem business after the two firms reached a settlement in the dispute. Apple was able to support its development by acquiring a portfolio of patents relating to cellular technology. It appears that we will eventually be able to enjoy the results of our effort in four more months.

On March 8, 2022, Apple made the announcement of the third-generation iPhone SE online. With antiquated features like a Touch ID button, a Lightning port, and large bezels surrounding the screen, the handset resembles the iPhone 8. The iPhone SE presently retails for $429 in the United States, but the new model may see a price increase of at least a little.

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