Posts Tagged: HandsOn

Hyper Light Breaker hands-on: I’m here for the hoverboard

Hyper Light Breaker is a hoverboard sim. Technically, it’s a third-person roguelite adventure set in a luminous fantasy-cyberpunk universe, but after playing a 30-minute preview, it’s clear to me that Hyper Light Breaker is all about the hoverboard. Vicious beasts, secret alcoves and shiny weapons are secondary to the feeling of gliding over green hills and shallow waters on my glowing blue slab, finding joy in narrowly avoiding enemy encounters.

Intentionally skipping battles was probably the opposite of what lead animator Chris Bullock wanted me to do during the first public hands-on opportunity with Hyper Light Breaker — but if that were the case, then he shouldn’t have told me about the hoverboard.

Hyper Light Breaker
Heart Machine

Hyper Light Breaker is set to go live in early access on Steam this summer, complete with three-player online co-op. Developers at Heart Machine are letting people play it for the first time at Day of the Devs: San Francisco Edition, which is held in conjunction with GDC this week. I played a remote preview of the game at home, solo style, while Bullock watched on Discord (and probably cringed a whole lot).

Breaker is an open-world game with a hub station called the Cursed Outpost, a futuristic strip mall with shops, upgrade stations and NPCs. I briefly explored the outpost, but the bulk of the game plays out in the Overgrowth, a landscape of ever-shifting biomes, and I focused on diving into these. Biomes in the Overgrowth are built with hand-crafted and procedurally generated elements so that players will never enter the same realm twice, and each one has a boss to defeat called a Crown. Despite my desire to peacefully hoverboard through the half-hour demo, I messed around with two loadouts, took out a few slime hordes and twice tried to slay one of those Crowns — a huge bipedal wolf warrior with a golden sword named Dro.

In both of my battles with Dro, she started attacking instantly and with incredible force, swinging her blade wildly as she leapt in a giant arc across a temple and directly onto my head. I dodged and attempted to fill up her stagger meter by landing basic attacks with my sword and firearm, but the wolf was relentless, especially compared with the basic enemies I easily dispatched around the biome.

Hyper Light Breaker
Heart Machine

Dro defeated me twice. At the end of each fight, I heard the game’s siren song luring me in, making me believe I could beat the big bad wolf next time, if I just employed an updated strategy. Parrying was key in this fight, according to Bullock.

“Her first opening attack, you immediately went for the parry on that,” Bullock said as I prepared to fight the boss again. “I love that you picked that up right away; that was the intention on that one.”

The parry had been an accident on my part, but I’d immediately noticed how effective it was, giving me a half-second at the very beginning of the encounter to step back and strategize. What I’d experienced with the parry was a fury attack, Bullock explained. Some beasts in Hyper Light Breaker glow red and then perform big moves that have to be perfectly parried in order to cancel out the damage, reverse a projectile or stun the enemy. With a fury attack, a non-perfect parry will mitigate some damage only.

“That is definitely the design goal, to make the combat clear, know when you're doing something well,” Bullock said.

These moments of tactical clarity are exactly what makes a roguelike or roguelite addictive. I can see how to beat the boss; now I just have to get good enough at the game to implement those moves before I'm killed.

Hyper Light Breaker
Heart Machine

There’s no dialogue in Hyper Light Breaker, much like its predecessor, Hyper Light Drifter. Drifter was an incredibly stylish 2D action RPG that came out in 2016 after a few years of crowdfunding and significant hype, and it solidified Heart Machine’s reputation as a stellar indie studio. Hyper Light Breaker is technically a prequel to Drifter, since it's set 15 years before the events of that game.

Drifter co-designer Teddy Dief went on to found Team OFK and release the musical visual novel We Are OFK, while lead developer Alx Preston stuck with Heart Machine and released Solar Ash in 2021. Much like Breaker, Solar Ash is set in the same general universe as Hyper Light Drifter, but it’s a vastly different game and it’s not a direct sequel. Solar Ash is a third-person action platformer built around an incredibly satisfying glide-step mechanic, and its world is filled with alien environments, massive monsters and vaguely threatening deities.

Hyper Light was a way for me to get started, it was a way for me to be more grounded and put together a crew and understand, can I do this? Can I actually make games?” Preston told me in 2021, during the lead-up to Solar Ash’s release. “And so having answered that question, then the natural next step for me was something in 3D. Can I put something out there that really opens up the world and makes you feel like you can truly escape into something, a creation that is otherworldly, that you otherwise wouldn't have the experience of? A lot of my childhood was spent escaping into those bigger experiences.”

Hyper Light Breaker
Heart Machine

Breaker feels like the perfect amalgamation of Hyper Light Drifter and Solar Ash. Replace the Solar Ash ice skates with a hoverboard, add some friends and you’re set. Developers at Heart Machine plan to keep Hyper Light Breaker in early access for about a year, though they noted that this timeline might change with player feedback.

The full release of Hyper Light Breaker will support up to three players in online co-op, and it will have a handful of characters to choose from, each with customizable loadouts. I tried out a basic, slashy blade and a hefty buster sword, plus a standard rifle and a shotgun-type firearm, and they each performed well, though I ran out of ammo quickly and often. The heavy sword was slower than the simple blade, but it moved smoothly and hit hard. In the Cursed Outpost before loading up a new biome, I was also able to select four abilities called Holobytes from about a dozen options, such as increased armor or faster healing. My favorite trait was the blooming corpse seed, which planted an exploding AOE flower on the bodies of slain enemies.

But once Bullock told me that hoverboarding was an option, it was all I wanted to do. I spent a good chunk of my Hyper Light Breaker demo time gliding along the bright green grass, landing small jumps and occasionally falling into a pond. I’m still itching to find Dro again and fine-tune my parrying abilities across a range of weapons (and corpse flowers). Mostly though, I’ll be dreaming of that bright blue board until Hyper Light Breaker hits early access this summer.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/hyper-light-breaker-hands-on-im-here-for-the-hoverboard-210045970.html?src=rss
Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

Hands-on with the Belkin iPhone Mount with MagSafe for Apple TV 4K

Belkin’s MagSafe Mount for the iPhone makes video calls on Apple TV 4K that much easier. Call your mother. She misses you.
Digital Trends

Logitech MX Anywhere 3S hands-on: A nearly ideal travel mouse

Logitech already makes some of the best productivity peripherals around, but with a few key upgrades, the company may have just created an almost perfect travel mouse. And after using the new $ 80 MX Anywhere 3S for the last week and a half (including on a trip of my own), I’m not sure I want to use anything else ever again.

On the outside, the MX Anywhere 3S features the same basic design as its predecessor, including a similar palette of color options (graphite, pale gray, and rose). The differences are on the inside, where the mouse features a new 8K DPI optical sensor that’s more accurate than before and works on practically any surface you can think of (wood, cloth, glass, et cetera). You also get a new set of super quiet mouse buttons similar to what you find on its larger sibling – the MX Master 3S – which might not sound all that important, but it’s very a welcome feature for families where multiple people are studying/working from home. Finally, as part of Logitech’s efforts to increase the sustainability of its products, the MX Anywhere 3S is made from up to 78 percent post-consumer recycled plastic (though that figure is around 61 percent for the gray and pink models).

Priced at just $  80 and with a battery life of up to 70 days, the Logitech MX Anywhere 3S might be the perfect travel mouse.
Photo by Sam Rutherford/Engagdet

Between its new features and the already fantastic foundation, the MX Anywhere 3S is simply a delight to use. Weighing just 95 grams, it’s lighter than pretty much everything aside from a handful of gaming mice while boasting a rechargeable battery that lasts up to a whopping 70 days. You still get the ability to pair the mouse with up to three different devices (PCs, laptops, tablets and more), and thanks to a very travel-friendly ambidextrous design, it works great in tight situations. And while Logitech’s free-spinning MagSpeed mouse wheel isn’t new, scrolling actually feels a tiny bit smoother than before too.

The one big departure from previous MX Anywhere mice is that the 3S doesn’t come with a dongle. Instead, for this model (and likely going forward), Logitech is relying entirely on Bluetooth. One reason for this change is that Logitech believes modern Bluetooth connectivity has gotten good enough that a dedicated wireless receiver simply isn’t necessary, and after using this thing for more than 10 days, I get it. I haven’t had a single laggy mouse stroke or delayed reaction the entire time I’ve used it and even on Bluetooth you still get support for Logitech’s multi-device Flow software. Besides, for frequent travelers, a dongle is just one more thing to keep track of (or lose entirely).

The MX Keys S is a slightly refreshed version of its super slim desktop keyboard which now comes with more customization options for its backlight and an updated function row.
Photo by Sam Rutherford/Engadget

That said, the main reason why the MX Anywhere 3S doesn’t come with a dongle is because Logitech’s Bolt receiver is still only available as a USB Type-A receiver, and with most new laptops these days only having USB-C, it doesn’t make a ton of sense to include something requires an adapter to use. Logitech says that because USB-C ports are so small, there isn’t enough room to fit the electronics without making the whole thing unusually bulky. Meanwhile with USB-A, Logitech is able to build tiny circuit boards that fit inside the connector itself. So while the company is still trying to figure out a solution, we’ll have to wait a little longer for a USB-C version of Logitech’s Bolt receiver. That said, while there are situations where having one would be useful, I haven’t missed having a physical dongle at all when using the MX Anywhere 3S.

The new MX Keys S combo bundle includes the keyboard, and MX Master 3S mouse and the MX Wrist Rest for $  200 -- $  30 less than what everything would cost if purchased separately.
Photo by Sam Rutherford/Engadget

Aside from its new mouse, today Logitech also has a couple of other refreshed devices. On the $ 110 MX Keys S, new features include more control over backlighting brightness and automatic activation settings, an updated function row with additional videoconferencing controls (and that always handy emoji key), and a fresh pale gray model to match the rest of the MX family. Alternatively, for people who need a new suite of office peripherals, Logitech has created a productivity bundle called the MX Keys S Combo which includes the MX Keys S, an MX Master 3S mouse and the MX Palm Rest – all in one box for $ 200. And while the MX Master 3S and the wrist wrest aren’t new, considering that those three devices would typically cost $ 230 if purchased separately, this bundle is a nice way to get a discount.

Here's what the new Smart Actions tab look like in the Logi Options+ app.
Screenshot by Sam Rutherford/Engadget

Lastly, while it’s been in beta for some time, today alongside the MX Keys S, Logitech’s Smart Actions feature is finally getting an official release. Available inside the Logi Options+ app, Smart Actions is a neat tool for automating various repetitive tasks across multiple programs with a single keystroke. That means you can create a silence command that will do stuff like mute zoom, turn off your microphone and pause your favorite music app all with a single tap. By default, there are a number of basic templates you can browse, though they can also be customized as needed. And while I’m still testing out the limits of Smart Actions, so far my favorite way to use it has been creating what I call my “game time” command, which opens apps like Steam, Discord, Battle.net and more all with a single shortcut. And the nice thing is that if you don’t want to create your own Smart Actions, Logitech made them easy to share and import. So if you see someone else with a shortcut you like, you can just ask them to send it to you.

The MX Anywhere 3S, the MX Keys S and the MX Keys S Combo are all available today priced at $ 80, $ 110 and $ 200, respectively.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/logitech-mx-anywhere-3s-hands-on-a-nearly-ideal-travel-mouse-specs-price-availability-070134836.html?src=rss
Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

Microsoft’s new Bing and Edge hands-on: Surprisingly well-integrated AI

The age of generative AI is upon us, and this week alone Google and Microsoft made major announcements around their respective products for the masses. While Google unveiled an "experimental conversational AI service" called Bard yesterday, Microsoft had a fuller slate of news to share at its event in Redmond, WA today. Through a partnership with ChatGPT maker OpenAI, Microsoft is adding more advanced AI conversation models to power updates to Bing and Edge

The company's keynote today happened at breakneck pace, with demos whizzing by so quickly there was barely enough time to make sense of the updates. Thankfully, I was able to briefly check out a full demo here with Dena Saunders from Bing Engineering. It was nice to see everything at a more comprehensible pace, but it was unfortunately restricted to a set of scripted examples. I'll be getting access to the preview through my own whitelisted accounts in a bit so I will be updating this post with my personal impressions, but for now, I can break down at least what the updates look like on a demo computer.

Bing improvements

In general, there are four new areas of change coming to Bing (and we'll get to Edge later): Search, Answers, Chat and Create. The first update is the new search box. Instead of your typical long, one-line bar, there is now a box more similar to those on Twitter or Facebook that prompts you to ask Bing anything. The character limit is now 1,000. The idea is to make the process of looking for answers something more conversational — similar to Google's approach for years now. 

When you submit your query, results are now displayed a bit differently. On the left is a column with your typical "answers" just like how you see it on Bing now. On the right, however, is a box that explains how the system found those answers. I initially thought this was similar to what Google does in its "About this search" panels, but I was wrong. This box is a home for the AI and fills up with text that appears in real time, complete with animation and a "Stop responding" button in case you don't have the patience to see the AI's explanation. 

Chat and create in Bing

The third and fourth parts are the more interesting updates. Chat, for example, is a new way you can get solutions to the problems you're looking to solve. You can access the Chat page from the Bing results page by tapping the Chat button above the answers or by scrolling up (swiping down on touchscreens). When you're there, you can continue the conversation about your ongoing search, or use the Broom icon next to the text input field to clean the slate. 

This page is a more practical manifestation of the notion of an AI copilot — it's basically ChatGPT or any other chat bot you may have interacted with while getting tech support from your bank or shopping website. But the results Bing's Prometheus model has been able to return are definitely more impressive. The outputs it can return along with the inputs it can understand make it much more versatile and therefore more useful. 

For example, you can tell it to create travel itineraries or meal plans with specific parameters and it'll actually give you lists with what to do or make each day. The demos I saw included coming up with "3-day itinerary for Snoqualmie" or "vegetarian meal plan with chocolate included in the dessert" and each time Bing delivered the requested plans in plain, legible English that not only met the requirements but also cited its sources. It also didn't take very long for the system to produce the results — we only had to wait between five and ten seconds on the demo Surface laptop. When the system is processing, you'll also see the "Stop responding" button to give up waiting for results, just in case you're running short on time. 

Like other conversational assistants, Bing's chat is capable of understanding context. In the demo, Saunders asked for spots to take photographs after first requesting a 3-day itinerary for Snoqualmie, and Bing replied with scenic locations in the same region. 

This story is developing, please refresh for updates.

Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

Pixel 7a hands-on leak reveals a 90Hz display

Google’s affordable Pixel A series of smartphones has been well received since its inception and this year will see the Pixel 7a being launched – likely during Google I/O which is usually held in May. While we are still a good few months away from the Pixel 7a being announced there is already a hands-on […]

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Hands-on Galaxy S23 photos show off its striking new design

After months of speculation, we’ve finally gotten our first unofficial hands-on photos showcasing the Galaxy S23’s new design.
Digital Trends

Nomad Base One MagSafe charger hands-on: Beautiful, pricey

The Nomad Base One MagSafe charger is big. It’s beautiful. And it’s going to take a bite out of your wallet.
Mobile | Digital Trends

Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra hands-on: Ultimate superphone mashup

Holding and using the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra is confusing at first. You wonder, is this the latest S Series, or a new Note? The good thing is, it’s both.
Mobile | Digital Trends

24 hours hands-on with the iPhone 13, Pro, Max, and Mini: Refinements all around

I spent 24 hours with the iPhone 13, Pro, Max, and Mini. Here are my first impressions and key takeaways.
Mobile | Digital Trends

Samsung’s Galaxy S21+ gets manhandled in an early hands-on video

We’ve seen leaked images and partial specifications for the upcoming Galaxy S21 but now we have something a little more substantial – a hands-on video of the middle member of the series. The Galaxy S21+ gets shown off in a video that shows everything from the new rear camera housing to the extremely thin bezels. […]

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Olive Union Smart Ear hands-on: A stylish hearing device with tradeoffs

As wearable technology becomes the norm, there's still one gadget that carries a stigma: the hearing aid. You can wear wireless earbuds and no one flinches, but for some, a behind-the-ear device can still seem awkward. Invisible hearing aids are an o…
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Leaked hands-on video unfolds the Samsung Galaxy Fold’s crease

Samsung made a huge deal about the Galaxy Fold when they announced it during the Galaxy S10’s launch event in San Francisco on February 20th, although they frustrated tech press to no end during MWC 2019 by placing the foldable smartphone behind a ton of reflective glass. Despite this, a hands-on video has leaked showing […]

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Razer Phone 2 hands-on: Closer to flagship

Last year, Razer introduced its first-ever smartphone and, as you might've guessed, it was built for gamers. With a 120Hz screen refresh rate, a gorgeous display and a powerful processor, the Razer Phone was definitely impressive when it came to…
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Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 hands-on: The Android tablet for multitaskers

Good Android tablets are increasingly hard to find, maybe because so few people actually buy them anymore. But for those who are looking for one, Samsung's Galaxy Tab line remains one of the best in the category. It's nice to see, then, that the comp…
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Leaked hands-on video details the Huawei P20 Lite

Huawei’s P20 Lite is one of the phone’s opting for a questionable display notch, which we saw a ton of at MWC 2018. What’s really interesting about this device, though, is that Huawei has not officially announced it. It’s supposedly already available at some retailers, so this was a really quiet launch, if those retailers aren’t just […]

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Hands-on: Samsung Gear S3 Classic and Gear S3 Frontier

Samsung has two new smartwatches for 2016: The Gear S3 Classic and Gear S3 Frontier. Here’s everything you need to know about them, including our in-depth first look at the watches, and how to pre-order one.

The post Hands-on: Samsung Gear S3 Classic and Gear S3 Frontier appeared first on Digital Trends.

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Huawei MateBook hands-on impressions

Huawei made its first ever 2-in-1 tablet PC that runs full Windows 10. It’s called the MateBook, and it’s ready to go toe to toe with Samsung’s Galaxy Tab Pro S. Here are our hands on impressions, specs, and pricing info.

The post Huawei MateBook hands-on impressions appeared first on Digital Trends.

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Moto 360 (2015) hands-on impressions

Motorola’s new Moto 360 turns heads with unique customization options and excellent specs. We took the Android wear smartwatch for a spin to see how it compares to the competition. Here are our hands-on impressions.

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Android M Hands-On: A first look at the biggest new features

We take a quick look at the recently released Android M developer preview. Highlights are a new app drawer, improved permissions management, and tweaked volume controls.

The post Android M Hands-On: A first look at the biggest new features appeared first on Digital Trends.

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