Carlo Ople

CES 2024 Is All About Generative AI, But Is It Ready?

Tech brands have used Artificial Intelligence (AI) h as a marketing ploy for the past six years. We have been hearing AI since the days of the Mate 10 Pro, but all of this AI marketing involves “improved” scene recognition when taking photos. The term is getting a resurgence since late 2023 when Google announced the Generative AI features […]

The New York Times Thinks ChatGPT is a Threat to Journalism

Despite all the upgrades ChatGPT got in the past few months, which include being more human, developer OpenAI has been on a rollercoaster ride. The highlight of its crazy 2023 involved co-founder and CEO Sam Altman, who was hired and rehired in one week. The insane series of events showed the politics and power play behind […]

President Marcos Signs SIM Card Registration Act

SIM Registration is the Most Searched in the Philippines for 2023

Google has just released its most search keywords and terms in the Philippines as part of its Year in Search 2023, and SIM Registration is among the terms that topped the list. It’s the most searched term in Google in 2023 as everyone is mandated to register their phone numbers under the country’s SIM Registration […]

You Can Finally Edit Messages on Facebook Messenger

Meta has announced several quality updates to Facebook Messenger in its efforts to make it a robust messaging platform. While the rollout of these updates will take some time, the updates that Meta will be implementing to Facebook Messenger are useful. To start things off, Meta is improving the privacy of Facebook Messenger by enabling […]

Aftersales Service for the Nintendo Switch Should be Better

Despite being 6 years in the market (including revisions like the Switch OLED), Nintendo does not have an official distributor in the Philippines for its handheld console. While you can buy the Switch in stores like Datablitz and Toys ‘R Us, details about aftersales service is not clear. That is set to change, as VSTECS […]

Filipinos Are Especially Gullible to Shopping Scams

No need to be surprised why Filipinos are vulnerable to shopping scams like the fake Marshall ads you’d often see on Facebook: according to the 2023 Asia Scam Report, the Philippines has the highest scam rate among 11 Asian countries at 35.9%. The Philippines’ 35.9% rating for Filipinos being victims of shopping scams is exceptionally […]

DICT has Second Thoughts on Possible TikTok PH Ban

There are recent talks of the National Security Council (NSC) calling for the ban of TikTok in the Philippines, citing spying allegations from China. While countries like the US are pushing for the ban of TikTok at least in government offices, the DICT has second thoughts about the move. In an interview with Philippine Star, […]

BSP Wants to Waive Transaction Fees for Under Php 1k Payments

BSP is still confident that it can achieve 50% of transactions being cashless by the end of 2023: according to BSP’s latest study, around 42.1% of retail payments are already digital in 2022, and 4 out of 10 Filipinos already use eWallets. This corroborates with Visa’s 2023 Consumer Payment Attitudes Study, where around 50% of […]

Apple Finally Succumbs to Google’s RCS Appeal

After years of Google persuading Apple to use the RCS (Rich Communications Service) standard, Apple has finally announced that it will adopt the messaging standard soon. Apple said that it will roll out an update in 2024 across all its devices, where it aims to bring iMessage features to messaging between iPhone and Android users. […]

Apple Hasn’t Given Up on the iPhone SE

The 3rd-Gen iPhone SE is already showing its age: it is the only iPhone in Apple’s lineup with a home button, thick top and bottom bezels, and a single camera. The current design of the 3rd-Gen iPhone SE will be close to 4 years old by 2024 (it received a processor bump in 2022), and […]