Today, Apple confirmed a new event. Taking place on 8th March (that’s next Tuesday), Apple is expected to launch a few things including a new iPhone SE. Here’s what’s rumoured to feature on that phone if you’re thinking of making a purchase.
A Quick Intro To iPhone SE
Generally speaking, what is the iPhone SE? Simply put, the iPhone SE is Apple’s budget smartphone. They first launched an SE in 2016. It was largely based upon the flagship iPhone 5s with some upgrades. In 2020, Apple revamped iPhone SE and based this new model on the iPhone 8. For Apple, it’s a great way to rejig their line-up when removing older, but still very popular phones. Essentially, the last iPhone SE was an iPhone 8 but used the chipset from an iPhone 12.
Next week, Apple is expected by many to launch a new iPhone SE. This will then take up the mantel of being Apple’s entry-level smartphone. So what can we expect to see?
iPhone SE 2022: The Name
When Apple first launched the iPhone SE, they didn’t explain what SE even stood for. At least, not to my knowledge. Nor has it ever been clarified. It most likely means “Special Edition”, but could also mean “Small Edition”. In 2020, when the second iPhone SE was launched, it was expected Apple would adopt something like “iPhone SE 2”.
However, Apple instead opted to make “iPhone SE” a line of its own. The iPhone SE launched in 2020 was simply referred to as “iPhone SE” while the 2016 model was retired.
I fully expect Apple to retire the current iPhone SE, launched in 2020, and replace it with the new one under the name “iPhone SE”. You’ll likely see some retailers and online news sites refer to it as the “iPhone SE 2022”. Some might even go for the uglier “iPhone SE 3”. But Apple will absolutely call it the “iPhone SE” and nothing else.
iPhone SE Spec Changes
With the name almost nailed on, what can we expect to see in terms of specs and design?
iPhone SE Design
I fully expect the new iPhone SE to retail the same design as the iPhone 8 and the existing iPhone SE launched in 2020. Apple brought this phone to market to keep costs down. TouchID, Apple’s fingerprint sensor and home button, is an important part of the cost-effective approach to making the iPhone SE. So I would be surprised to see FaceID feature.
The iPhone SE 2022 will be more iPhone 8 in design than iPhone 13.
Almost guaranteed not to happen is an under-display fingerprint reader. The SE won’t bring anything that excitingly new for Apple to the table. For this reason, you can more or less rule that out.
TouchID and a physical home button are almost guaranteed.
There’s always speculation around other form factors emerging too. Questions start being asked as to whether or not Apple will release an iPhone SE Plus or not. It’s extremely unlikely and I’d imagine Apple will keep things simple with a single phone launch.
iPhone SE Now With 5G
5G is blisteringly fast mobile internet for your phone. Perhaps the fastest thing about 5G is how quickly it became normal. I’d argue even more so than 4G did. This is down to the fact 4G was a game-changer, while no one really benefits from 5G. Or at least the jump to 5G just wasn’t as big as 4G was.
Ultimately, all this means is that customers are starting to expect 5G. Last year, Eir started to offer 5G for free to all customers. This left Apple in a bit of a bind. While both the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 support 5G, the iPhone SE 2020 only supports 4G.
In my humble opinion, I would guess that support for 5G is the primary reason Apple is launching a new iPhone SE. And this is why I’m convinced that the new iPhone SE will support 5G networks.
2022 iPhone SE To Feature A15 Bionic
Back when Apple launched the second iPhone SE, I was a bit surprised to see it feature the A13 Bionic Chip. At the time, this was the same chip that featured in the iPhone 11 which was just a few months old. Applying the same approach would mean Apple’s new iPhone SE should feature the A15 Bionic. That’s the same chip that features in their ultra flagship iPhone 13 Pro Max. It features in all of the iPhone 13 range, but powers the best of the best too.
It’s a great chip that strikes a balance between power and efficiency. In a phone like the new iPhone SE, it should be incredibly impressive.
You’ll be able to follow the full Apple event next Tuesday at 6PM Irish time.
So maybe we are going to get a new iPhone SE. I'm guessing…
📱 It'll look like the iPhone 8/current iPhone SE ☝️ TouchID will remain 🧠Will have A15 Bionic (same as iPhone 13) 🐰 5G support the main reason for revamp
— Marty | Gadget Reviews (@martinmeany) March 2, 2022
There are few things in this world I’m as protective towards as my Wordle streak. I’ve lost a streak once, purely because I missed a word one day. I survived the New York Times takeover and, today, have a streak of 55 games, 95% won and a current streak of 45. But my partner just changed her phone which left us with a dilemma, asking how do I transfer my Wordle stats to a new phone.
Transferring Wordle To A New Phone
You’re more than likely aware that Wordle isn’t an app, despite some clones appearing. To play the daily Wordle, you simply open the website in your mobile or desktop browser and play. The barrier is minimal, adding to the game’s appeal. But by being simple, there’s nothing to identify you or let you log in. The problem that brings is when you need to transfer to a new phone, browser or, for some other reason, after losing your stats.
Initially, it seemed that there was no solution here. Until I found a developer out there who has built a solution.
The Wordle Stat Transfer Tool developed by Seth Michael Larson
To use the tool, just open this website on your new device or fresh browser you want to use going forward. Enter the stats from your old device in the fields provided. Tick the box and tap “Import statistics into Wordle”.
That’s it. You’re done. It worked absolutely seamlessly for my partner’s phone.
How To Save Your Wordle Streak
This is great as long as you know your Wordle streak. If your phone was lost or stolen, you might have no idea what your stats are. So it’s a really good idea to either take regular screenshots of your Wordle stats or store them somewhere so you can look them up again.
Naturally, you could just enter anything into the fields within the tool. You could give yourself a perfect streak if you really wanted to. Just like, today, you could play Wordle on your laptop, then get your first guess right every day on your phone. Basically, if you have no honour!
Realistically, it doesn’t really matter if you lose your stats. The game is still a brilliant teaser to pass a few minutes with your morning coffee. Countless people around the world are enjoying it. But it’s good to know that if your streak is important to you, changing your phone doesn’t have to mean losing your streak.
The world is standing stunned right now as Russia has invaded Ukraine. Personally, I’ve never felt so European. I’ve never felt like something was happening to someone we have a shared connection with. I hate the idea of war. I hate the idea of dying for your country or that it should ever come to that. So, it sits uneasily with me that it’s now possible to donate directly to the Ukrainian army from abroad.
Yet I do feel like I want to support in some way. Supporting the Irish Red Cross is one way you can help. You can donate directly to the Irish Red Cross on their website. Revolut has also launched direct ways for you to support through their app’s Donations section.
How Does The Irish Red Cross Help Ukraine?
A tragic by-product of war is the displacement of civilians. Already, hundreds of thousands have fled Kyiv and other areas of Ukraine, seeking safety. The Red Cross is on the ground in Ukraine helping families with the basics they need. By donating to the Irish Red Cross Ukraine Appeal, you’re helping to repair Ukrainian infrastructure and supply health facilities, food and hygiene supplies to families that desperately need them.
How To Donate To The Irish Red Cross Ukraine Appeal
Humans are so weird, right? There’s a guy standing outside Heathrow Airport right now, filming planes trying to land during Storm Eunice. Ah, who am I kidding, that’s awesome viewing. And at the time of writing, over 165,000 other people in the world are watching too. They’re all tuning into Big Jet TV on YouTube Live, a channel for aviation enthusiasts.
Jerry Dyer is the man on the mic. “That is insane man” and “Get it down mate” are just some of the excellent quotes from him today. He’s calling out the plane models and the airlines and can spot the bigger ones going to have a tough time. He’s even keeping track of the planes that’ve gone around a few times.
Who knows what motivates us as humans to watch this, but it’s gripping viewing. The skill of the pilots on view is just amazing. Many have gone around and had to attempt landing several times. Three failed attempts and they have to divert. It’s the definition of pressure.
You can watch the Big Jet TV Livestream below. I’ve just watched a Singapore Airlines Boeing 777 drift down the runway. In the words of Jerry, “that was insane man”. An eagle-eyed Twitter user grabbed a gif from that very landing!
It’s no secret that Halo Infinite, the latest installation in the now 20-year-old series has had a launch window full of ups and downs. From some classic game modes not being present or not working at all to a host of awful monetization practices there was every indication that this could be one of the worst positioned Halo games ever. However, in the two months since its launch, developers 343i have done an almost complete overhaul on every non-gameplay system the game has. So how is it now? Is it worth picking up if you haven’t got Gamepass? How does it fare when compared to the more venerated titles in the series like Halo 3 or Reach?
The Storm Before the Even Bigger Storm
Ever since Infinite was first revealed the community suspected there was going to be trouble. Initially poised to be a launch title for the Xbox Series consoles (I mean, Halo is Microsoft’s flagship franchise, how could it not be?) it was delayed indefinitely after a reveal event showed off less than next-gen graphics. Textures were off, lighting was all wrong, even the characters just didn’t look…right (just look at poor Craig here). After massive fan backlash 343i made the decision to hold off on launching the game in the state it was in. Bear in mind this was July of 2020 when the new Xbox console was due out in November. Units were in production, branding and packaging had been signed off on. This led to the awkward situation of Master Chief being on the box of Xbox consoles, but without a game to show for it. Yikes.
This is why you always have a Plan B. Always!
To give credit where credit’s due delaying the game was absolutely the right call, all unfortunate marketing aside. The game we got one year later looks absolutely stunning by any measure. There’s also something to be said for the fact that while they didn’t hit the Xbox launch window 343i was able to soft launch the game on the 20th anniversary of the franchise. I say soft launch because on the fifteenth of November we got the free-to-play multiplayer component, with the campaign set to launch in December.
What was our First Impression?
Initially, the game we got was lacking. While 343i tried to describe it as a large-scale beta test we were given a paltry six game modes to choose from and 10 maps to play those games on. This might be a good amount of content for some franchises but for something like Halo with 20 years of history it simply wasn’t enough. Especially when you consider the fact that Infinite was constantly billed as being the culmination of everything the series had done previously. The Halo series has seen 110 maps and over 20 different game modes in its time and for a game like Halo Infinite to include practically none of them is a bit of a tough pill to swallow for long-time fans. How much would you love to see Blood Gulch or Valhalla be included in the current offering?
How fun would it be to be launched out of those glorious man-cannons one more time?
Again, to be fair, the 343i PR team went into overdrive pretty quickly and promised that more playlists and game modes would be added soon (and they were) and that our patience would pay off. I personally take issue with this for one simple reason. This is a promise to fix a problem that with almost a year’s extra development time, seems to have been created intentionally. That statement is something that I see as being the unofficial motto of Halo Infinite.
The launch of the campaign rolled around, and the second bombshell was about to drop. While you could buy a physical edition of the game, there was no game data written to the disc. Essentially what this means is that when you inserted the disc into your console, you’d be prompted to download the game instead of transferring it from the disc to your Xbox hard drive. This means that if players have a poor internet connection or no connection, they can’t play Halo Infinite at all. I realise that these types of scenarios are few and far between, but they do exist, and I cannot think of why an alternative wasn’t considered.
343i have explained that this was necessary due to the split-launch of the Campaign and the Multiplayer aspect, but I fail to see how something like a “Campaign Only” disc or some other solution couldn’t be arranged. Again, this is a problem that seems to have been intentionally created to satisfy a launch window commitment (can you tell I’m building to something here?).
Pay Up to Level Up
I have never been shy about the fact that I think microtransactions are one of the worst things to happen to gaming. In my opinion, they are a greedy, predatory practice that exist only to pad the wallets of publishers at the expense of the players. This is why I believe the Halo Infinite store is currently its biggest problem.
At launch, players could expect to pay €10 for a single weapon skin or a pair of cat ears for their helmets with full armour sets coming in at even higher prices. They were charging players for colour swaps for their armour. Absolutely outrageous stuff.
Yes, that’s €20 for a single armour set.
Now there were freebies that could be unlocked by playing the game and progressing through the game’s Battle-Pass. Fair enough. Except, most of the time what you unlock for leveling up is an XP boost, or the ability to swap one of your weekly XP challenges. Or nothing. Seriously, if you reach level 39 you get nothing for doing so. Unless you pay! That’s right, Halo Infinite is the latest in a long line of games to feature a Premium Battle Pass for the low, low price of €10. Then you get far more content as well as a new template for your armour. Yes, 343i have locked the armour from Halo Reach (the second-best-selling Halo game to date) behind a paywall.
Now, in fairness, 343i have reduced their store prices by at least 50% across the board and have promised that we will be able to earn their in-game currency through gameplay when the next season rolls around in May. They have even suggested that players will be able to earn enough credits to buy the premium Battle Pass which would, honestly, be a happy medium for me. I realise that since the game is technically free to play, they can’t offer everything totally free for everyone but giving players the option to “buy or earn” is appreciated. However (sing it with me) this is a solution to a problem that seems to have been created by the publishers in order to wring more money out of the player base.
So as things stand, if I can only earn a limited number of cosmetics, and 343 have made it very clear that I should pay up or shut up then why do I bother to play this game at all?
Yeah, Why Bother Playing?
Because it’s fun. Seriously, like, outrageously fun. This is, hands down, the best Halo gameplay I have ever experienced. And I’ve been around since the beginning! The movement speed is spot on, the gunplay is as tight and precise as ever, the Warthog and Mongoose still bounce around as if they have tyres made of bedsprings. The in-match experience has been refined to near perfection and it truly does feel like the culmination of those two decades of work. Halo 2 helped put online gaming on the map and Infinite has shown up to make sure the floundering Call of Duty and Battlefield franchises that they’re just there to keep the throne warm.
I’ve spent many a night with my friends roaring into my microphone to gloat about sniping someone with the Skewer. I’ve sweated buckets in a close match of SWAT. I’ve raged at being the last man to die in a match of Team Slayer. I haven’t felt this way about a Halo game in over a decade and for Infinite to elicit those feelings makes it truly special to me.
How it all Comes Together
Note I said the gameplay has been tuned to “near perfection”. There are one or two things that bug me. There’s no collision detection between Spartans, for one so, you can pretty much phase through an ally or enemy player as opposed to bumping into them. That one’s just weird and annoying. Another issue I’ve seen is that the plasma pistol, a mainstay of the series, no longer paralyzes a vehicle with a fully charged shot. This has always been the way so why change it now? Well, it’s because there’s a new sidearm called the Disruptor which is a fully automatic pistol that can disable vehicles. This right here is everything wrong with this game. 343i seems to have created a solution for a problem that doesn’t exist, necessitating them to create a problem in the first place so the solution can stand on its own.
Behold! The symbol of 343i’s greed!
Why not get rid of the disruptor and let the plasma pistol keep doing its thing? Why not have launched the store with low prices in the first place? Why not launch the game with a handful of game modes or maps from other games in the series? Why not aim to make the game as good as it possibly can be for the players? The game isn’t on-disc because the multiplayer component is free to play. The multiplayer is free to play so items can be expensive. The battle-pass is threadbare to encourage players to cough up their money. This is all a cycle we’ve seen before and we’ll no doubt see it again. Charge players for content that used to be free and drip feed that content to create an artificial sense of longevity for your product (I’m not saying for a second that Infinite wouldn’t have longevity if everything dropped on day one, to be clear) all the while slowly siphoning more and more money away from the players.
Old Man Yells at Cloud
At this point I know that I sound like a grumpy old man, complaining about how things have changed and how I don’t like it. The reality is, though, I am a grumpy old man. At least in gaming terms. There are 16-year-olds who are playing Infinite who have only known a landscape like this. To whom the notion of playing a game to earn content or just getting it for free at launch is completely foreign. There are returning veterans who are just too tired to care about it and don’t think twice about buying stuff like that. Remember when $5 Horse Armour in Oblivion was literally the biggest controversy in gaming? That’s literally been going on for over a decade now and it’s become normal, if not regarded as a pretty good deal. This is just how things are now, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it!
Pictured: Me
So, do I dislike or even hate Halo Infinite? No. Not one bit. I fucking love this game, and that’s why I’m so harsh on it. I don’t care that CoD is doing the exact same thing from a monetisation and content standpoint. I don’t care that Battlefield is totally broken. I don’t even care that GTAV is still making money hand over fist from Shark Cards 9 years after launch. I don’t care about those games at all. But to see something you love come so tantalisingly close to perfection only to get distracted by the promise of riches does hurt a little.
I got into a wee discussion with someone on Twitter this week. Despite being an iPhone user, they were looking for wireless earbuds that weren’t AirPods. Yep, there are tech users out there like that. I’m one of them. Sure, I’ve used Mac for years, grabbed an iPad and even moved to iPhone, but I’ve never found the Apple Watch and AirPods appealing. If you’re looking for the best alternative to AirPods, Huawei and OPPO offer some of the best audio accessories. I’ve been testing out the incredible OPPO Enco X and here’s why they should be on your shortlist if looking around the shops of Ireland.
Excellent Audio
I’ve got a few things to cover here, but I better start with the audio. From making calls, both on the phone and laptop, to listening to music on a flight or in the gym, the OPPO Enco X are excellent. Tech companies know that alignment with big brands works, so OPPO has been smart here. They’ve teamed up with Danish company Dynaudio to show they’re taking sound seriously. Think Huawei teaming up with Leica for their lenses; this is a similar level of wow partnerships.
There I am now, wearing the OPPO Enco X
No matter what I threw at the buds, came out clean and powerful. Clarity is maintained because you don’t have to crank up the volume. This is all down to some great noise cancelling.
Indeed, noise cancelling in buds has come a long way in a relatively short period of time. While over-ear cans still dominate in terms of being the absolute best, buds like the Enco X offer a great, lightweight alternative.
Actually, I’m going to take this opportunity to move on to design. Just be sure the sound quality is nothing to worry about.
Near Perfect Design
I think the goal for tech is to get to a point where you don’t even know you’re using it. For example, with a pair of buds, it should feel, in the words of Ned Flanders, like wearing nothing at all. The OPPO Enco X nail this. I remember the first time popping them into my ears and just having this amazing feeling of nothing. That might be hard to understand without feeling it, but OPPO clearly went through pains to ensure these buds were incredibly well designed.
Everything about these earbuds is neat and tidy
One of the key reasons they feel great in the ears is the simple fact that the Enco X buds weigh just 4.8g each. What really surprised me is that they’re heavier than the Huawei Freebuds 4, but somehow feel lighter. I’m putting this down to just how secure the buds feel in your ear. You can really just forget the buds are there and get on with your life.
The buds come in a neat little charging case too, which is wireless charging compatible as standard; a nice inclusion. Battery life is respectable too. While it falls short of OPPO’s advertised specs, I was easily getting 4 hours of ANC use from my buds, but I was pairing them with iPhone which can use the battery quicker.
They’re also IP54-rated which means they’ll survive getting caught in the rain or a bit of sweat getting on them.
A Great AirPod Alternative?
The basics work well. Bluetooth 5.2 means, at the very least, you get a solid connection. I do think the iPhone to Enco X connection drained the battery a little faster than you would experience with Android. It’s also a pity that there’s no dual connection option here. In a world where I’m listening to music on my laptop when my phone could ring at any second, it’s nice to not worry about my buds. I couldn’t get any such thing to work on the OPPO Enco X and to the best of my knowledge, it’s not possible.
But at the end of the day, why are you buying earbuds? Verdict time.
OPPO Enco X: Verdict
These are the most comfortable earbuds I’ve ever worn. They work really well with every gadget I have, from iPhone and Android to iPad and laptop, or even my new Oculus Quest 2. I can’t fault them on the basics of great sound, decent battery, solid connectivity and great comfort.
They’re also available on the high street in Ireland. They are available in Eir stores, nationwide, for €169. While it’s a bit on the pricey side, considering we’re in the “best alternatives to AirPods” price range, these are a good price.
The first week back in work and there’s one thing every call will mention at some stage; “Did you do today’s Wordle”. Wordle is a simple viral word game taking the internet by storm. It’s a love note as the creator made it for his other half before releasing it into the wild. The beauty of the game is that you can only play once, but that one puzzle is enjoyed by the world at the same time. But despite the creator keeping Wordle pure, a knock-off version of the game appeared in the iOS store and caused quite a stir.
Is There A Wordle App?
The easiest way to remember which app you should be using for Wordle is to know there is no app. The creator developed Wordle as a web app. That means you have to navigate to the website to play it. You’re progress and everything is saved here. There’s no need for an app which is why there isn’t one.
But an app did appear in the iOS store. Another developer saw the opportunity to flip the concept into an app and strip out some of the features likely making Wordle enjoyable to many such as the limitation of Wordle to a puzzle a day, the fact it’s clean and free with no ads. But when opportunity strikes…
The Wordle Ripoff
There have been a few clones of Wordle to appear since the app grew in popularity. Katherine Peterson created a version of the app because her brother was enjoying the original so much he just couldn’t live with one puzzle a day.
My brother's been playing Wordle every day, and he asked me to build him a version that he could play more than once a day.
This flipped version of the app didn’t cause any stir at all beyond a few people, myself included, highlighting how the scarcity of Wordle puzzles is part of the attraction. Twitter reacted very differently to Zach Shakked’s story.
Shakked launched “Wordle – The App” into Apple’s App Store on Monday. His version of the game let players play more than one puzzle per day and even let them choose between four, five, six, and seven-letter words. Going a step further, and perhaps breaking the camel’s back, Shakked monetised the game too, adding a €30 annual subscription for unlimited play.
Twitter, where the original Wordle has really grown quite the following with shares upon shares being sent daily, wasn’t happy with Shakked’s efforts.
This guy shamelessly cloned Wordle (name and all) as an F2P iOS game with in-app purchases and is bragging about how well it's doing and how he'll get away with it because Josh Wardle didn't trademark it. So gross. pic.twitter.com/kIs8BypuRA
The story raises loads of questions about tech in general. On the surface, it’s hard not to feel like Shakked ripped off the Wardle Wordle. But Wordle itself isn’t a unique name nor is it, more importantly, a new concept. If you tune into ITV you’ll find a very familiar-looking game called Lingo, based on the same idea that’s been running since 1988.
It also highlights how vicious Twitter can be. I do somewhat feel for Shakked here. He got an idea, had the skills to do something with it, and went for it.
Here were my calculations: a) Wordle is a ripoff of another game b) Wordle the word isn't trademarked and there's a bunch of other unrelated word apps named the same thing c) Wow, I'll hack together something on the weekend and see if I can make a buck
Shakked had previously founded an app generating $5 million per year. Once you’re the kind of person who sees money-making ventures, it’s easy to get stuck in the idea before really considering right or wrong. Also, right or wrong simply wasn’t as black and white here as Twitter’s outrage would have you believe.
The biggest mistake Shakked made was trying to make a buck off something wholesome that many people are enjoying on a daily basis. But going by the short-lived success of his launch, people were more than happy to part with their money for more Wordle. That’s hardly his fault, is it?
I’m a touch obsessed with Wordle, the online daily word game taking the world by storm. I know I’m in love with the game because I’m already focused on strategies and approaches to improve my overall win percentage. From which word I pick first to a strategy my other half has deployed, here’s how I take on Wordle every day.
You could say there are some spoilers ahead. If you just love Wordle, keep playing without caring about others and don’t read how I do it.
Picking Your First Wordle Word
The first time I played Wordle, I was amazed at how tough it can be to pick a five-letter word from my brain. As a result, every game since has started the same way. I always start with “mouse”. This might not be statistically the best word to kick things off with, but I prefer to get a guess in and learn what I don’t know. Other’s suggest words like “weird” are good to start with but I’m a numbers man and that “w” just puts me off. Here’s why.
Think Scrabble Scores
As soon as the Wordle screen opened on my phone for the first time, I had Scrabble scores in my head. Scrabble, the best-known word game in the world, gives you points based on words created. The longer the word and the tougher the letters to use, the more points you score. Here’s how much each “tile” gets you in Scrabble:
Tiles/Letters
Points
A, E, I, O, U, N, L, S, T, R
1
D, G
2
B, C, M, P
3
F, H, V, W, Y
4
K
5
J, X
8
Q, Z
10
Scrabble’s letter scoring system
Why does this matter? Well, before Wordle becomes a test of your word knowledge, it’s really a numbers game. There are only about five five-letter words in English without vowels so your Wordle word is going to have some of these. But your early guesses should then shift towards words with “d” or “g” because statistically, they are the next most popular letters to appear in words. You guessed it, next is “b”, “c”, “m” and “p” and so on and so forth.
As you can see, the reason “w” wouldn’t typically feature in my first, or maybe even second, guess is because there are plenty of more regularly occurring letters to cover off.
The creator of Wordle should really get onto the Scrabble creators because I’ve already bought the board game purely based on how much I’m enjoying Wordle.
Back to the game. What do you do if you just get stuck or draw a total blank?
The Haymaker
My other half is also loving Wordle. It’s fast becoming a daily ritual that we play our game together in the morning over a coffee. The genuine joys of working from home with your partner. She has come up with one of my favourite strategies that just didn’t make sense to me initially; I’m calling it The Haymaker.
Early in your Wordle game, when you feel like you’ve got guesses to burn, don’t be too worried about sticking to the letters you know are in the solution for sure. If your first guess gives you one right letter in the correct or wrong position, guessing a new word with none of the letters from your first guess will teach you something new about five new letters.
Remember what I said earlier; before Wordle is a word game, it’s a numbers game.
Grab A Pen And Paper
Another approach I’ve picked up from my better half. Around guess three or four, particularly if you’ve learned a few letters and their positions, pick up and pen and paper. Once you jot down your five dashes and what you know for sure, you can start writing down possible variations. If you have a more visual brain this can be really helpful and even trigger some inspiration. On more than one Wordle, this has been the difference between being lost and getting an answer for me.
It also really reminds me of playing hangman back in school!
How are you approaching the game? What strategies work for you? Let us know on Twitter, Facebook or TikTok.
Ok, I’m reluctantly ready to admit that VR is about to have its big moment. It’s impossible to ignore that Meta (formerly Facebook) and Mark Zuckerberg’s ploughing forward with VR is dragging the entire industry with it. Even I’m reluctantly thinking about grabbing an Oculus, my only hang-up being that I deleted Facebook and WhatsApp last year. So much more palatable for me is PSVR, the virtual reality headset for Sony’s PlayStation. The Japanese games console giant has just announced PSVR 2 and here’s what you need to know.
What Is PSVR?
PSVR stands for PlayStation Virtual Reality. PSVR refers to both the physical headset you wear to immerse yourself in virtual reality games and the eco-system of games and controllers that go with it. It was back in 2016 when Sony launched PSVR here in Ireland and now nearly six years later it’s getting a refresh.
What Is PSVR 2?
PSVR 2 is the second generation of PlayStation Virtual Reality. More importantly, it’s the first that will be built especially for the PlayStation 5. In a blog post published today, Hideaki Nishino, Senior Vice President at Sony for Platform Experience, announced the new name, PlayStation VR2, a new VR controller and confirmed some new games too.
The New PlayStation VR 2 Headset
I came close to buying a PSVR headset a few times but kept telling myself I should wait for the PSVR 2. The original PSVR was built for the older PlayStation, so what’s the point I feel that’s going to pay off as the new specs are impressive.
More Immersive
Nothing destroys a VR experience more than low-grade and laggy visuals. Not something the previous PSVR suffered from, but if it happens it can literally make you feel sick. The flip side is that great graphics and display setups can be insanely immersive. PSVR 2 will offer 4K HDR viewing on an OLED display with a resolution of 2000 x 2040 per eye at either a 90Hz or 120Hz refresh rate.
From a standing position, you’ll have a 110-degree field of view with eye-tracking technology promising a mega smooth experience. The eye-tracking also doubles up as a game controller to a certain extent. With a glance, you’ll be able to move your in-game character slightly.
Adding to your immersive experience is 3D audio too. So just start thinking Resident Evil but you’re really there. Terrifying.
Single Cable Connection And No External Camera Needed
PSVR 2 will remove two of the annoying factors from the original PSVR. You’ll now be able to connect with just one USB-C cable. Also, no longer will there be a need for an external camera sitting atop your TV. PSVR 2 will have headset-based cameras tracking the room around you to calculate your movements.
This is a clever bit of progress, showing Sony understands that removing barriers to regular use is important for PSVR 2 to gain momentum.
PSVR 2 Headset Specs
Display method
OLED
Panel resolution
2000 x 2040 per eye
Panel refresh rate
90Hz, 120Hz
Lens separation
Adjustable
Field of View
Approx. 110 degrees
Sensors
Motion Sensor: Six-axis motion sensing system (three-axis gyroscope, three-axis accelerometer) Attachment Sensor: IR Proximity sensor
Cameras
4 cameras for headset and controller trackingIR camera for eye tracking per eye
Feedback
Vibration on headset
Communication with PS5
USB Type-C®
Audio
Input: Built-in microphoneOutput: Stereo headphone jack
The New PlayStation VR 2 Controller
Alongside additional control from eye-tracking, Sony confirmed there will be an all-new PSVR 2 controller too. This will be called the PlayStation VR2 Sense controller. This isn’t particularly breaking news given Sony announced quite a lot about the controllers already last year.
The confirmed PSVR 2 Sense Controllers
Adaptive Triggers
One of the best features of the PS5 controller is the Adaptive Triggers. This technology translates push pressure into your game while also adding resistance based on the task. While they add plenty to games like Spider-man, they promise to bring next-level immersion to PSVR 2. In theory, you could play a VR shooting game where guns or different weapon categories have different resistances.
Haptic Feedback
As you explore the word or take hits in combat, the action you’re seeing will be translated into vibrations on the controller. Again, this is all about adding to the immersive nature of PSVR 2.
Finger Touch Detection
How popular this grows will depend on the gaming developers, but it’s potentially powerful. The new PSVR 2 controllers will be able to detect where your digits are without contact. This paves the way for more natural, gesture-based, control.
The controller will also be directly tracked by the PSVR 2 headset.
Buttons And Sticks
On the left controller, you’ll find one analogue stick, triangle and square buttons, a “grip” button, also known as “L1” button, trigger button, or “L2” button and Create button. The right controller contains one analogue stick, the cross or “X” button along with the circle buttons, a “grip” or “R1” button, trigger or “R2” and an Options button. The “grip” buttons can be used to pick up in-game objects and take on an important role in VR.
Motion Sensor: Six-axis motion sensing system (three-axis gyroscope + three-axis accelerometer) Capacitive Sensor: Finger Touch DetectionIR LED: Position Tracking
Feedback
Trigger Effect (on R2/L2 button), Haptic Feedback (by single actuator per unit)
Port
USB Type-C® Port
Communication
Bluetooth® Ver5.1
Battery
Type: Built-in Lithium-ion Rechargeable Battery
PSVR 2 Games
It’s still quite early in the release news rollout of PSVR 2 but Sony has confirmed some games that will feature first on next-gen console VR. The much anticipated February release of “Horizon: Call of the Mountain” will also be getting a full PSVR 2 rebuild. That’s the entire game, reimagined for the world of VR.
A quick glance at Horizon’s VR world.
The brief demo at the end of this clip might just suggest how early we are in the release cycle of PSVR 2.
PSVR 2 Release Date In Ireland
And now for the sad bit. PSVR 2 still doesn’t have an official release date. It does, however, become increasingly apparent PSVR 2 will launch in 2022, likely before Christmas. As I said at the outset, VR is just about to have its moment and I don’t think Sony will want to miss the wave.
I’d hope that this means a 2022 launch date for PSVR 2 in Ireland too along with being hopeful that PSVR 2 won’t hit the same supply chain issues as the PS5 console.
For now, that’s all we know. I have loads of questions. I’m particularly interested to see if Meta/Facebook will cross into Sony’s realm and vice versa. Meta has no interest in selling hardware but it needs people with VR headsets. It would make sense for there to be some sort of cross over. I could see people doing some work in VR in the next few years and there’s no reason your PS5 can’t help be a work tool as well as your place to destress afterwards!
I love when this happens. I see something random on Twitter but I keep scrolling. Moments later I feel deja vu as the same thing appears again, but from a different account. Ah! Something has gone viral. This time around it’s a word game called Wordle. Here’s everything you need to know to get up to speed.
What Is Wordle?
Wordle is a word game. You start the game with six guesses to work out a random five-letter word called the “Wordle”. Each time you guess a word, you’ll learn which letters are not in the secret word and which letters are. For the letters that are in the “Wordle” you’ll also learn which are in the correct place and which are in the word but in the incorrect position.
With all of this information, you have six guesses to work out the puzzle.
That’s what Wordle is in a nutshell, but there’s more to the story than that.
Who Created Wordle?
This is where the story gets awesome. I like the game. It’s one puzzle per day and it stretches the brain without you losing hours to it. But the background to the game is even more impressive. Wordle was created by Josh Wardle, a US-based software engineer. His partner loves word puzzles so he created this game for her, the name being a play on his own surname. Isn’t that romantic?
After a while of playing the game, it was expanded to the family WhatsApp group before it grew and grew and grew. According to an interview with the creator, Wordle had 90 players in November but last Sunday had over 300,000 players. I’m certain that number has been dwarfed now.
How Do You Make A Wordle?
There are a few strategies you can deploy to try and beat your round of Wordle. Starting with a letter-rich word is a great way to kick off. Avoid words with duplicate letters like “motor”, instead, try “urban”. This will let you check the max number of letters in your first go. From there, it’s really important you pay attention to the coloured blocks. The only thing you need to remember is that you can only guess words. You can’t just fire in random letters and every guess is checked against a dictionary.
Green means you’ve nailed a letter. Not only is it in the word, but it’s in the correct position too.
Yellow means the letter is in the word, but you’ve got it in the wrong position.
Grey means you’ve found a dud. Forget about it. Stop trying out words containing this letter at all.
Here’s the guide from the game itself:
The instructions from the Wordle game.
How To Save A Wordle
You can’t really save your progress in a round of Wordle. However, your browser will remember you. Once you don’t clear cookies, don’t use private browsing, change browser or device you’ll be able to pick up where you left off should you need to go get some inspiration.
Once you keep the same device and browser, the game will also track your stats including total games played, game won, your current win streak and best win streak.
How To Share A Wordle
And here’s the clever viral part that’s made Wordle blow up on Twitter. The creator noticed that once the game started to spread, people were sharing their daily progress in a grid of emojis. So he updated the app in December. To share, tap the gear icon in the top right and click share. This will copy your grid to your clipboard so you can paste it on your social feed.
The paste will include the Wordle game number, the number of guesses you needed and your progress grid showing your process.
Describing it as a “letter based fight club” is just perfect.
How Do I Get A New Wordle?
The beauty of it all. We live in a world where people like Mark Zuckerberg is spending billions on virtual reality in order to increase platform engagement. Wordle is very much designed to get you in, puzzle you briefly and let you along your way. You have one puzzle per day. That’s it. Once completed, you have to wait for the clock to reset and the next day’s word to load.
