Adobe tries using AI to fix blurry video footage

https://www.engadget.com/adobe-sharp-shot-213047501.html

Between things like camera shake and poor lighting, the videos you take with your phone, DSLR or mirrorless camera can end up blurry for any numbers of reasons. Worse yet, it’s difficult to sharpen a photo or video after the fact, and more often than not, the results don’t look great. However, with the help of AI, Adobe thinks it may have the solution for blurry photos and videos.  

During the Sneaks portion of its Max 2020 conference, the company showed off an experimental feature called Sharp Shots that’s powered by its Sensei AI. It uses machine learning to deblur each frame of a video. The results can be a bit hard to appreciate in a compressed YouTube clip, but they mostly speak for themselves. You can see in the videos that Adobe shared that there’s a significant difference in image clarity. It’s most noticeable in the final example, with the facial features of the two friends in the clip much easier to make out in the AI-processed video.

One thing to keep in mind is we may not see Sharp Shots ever make its way to an Adobe product. It’s also worth pointing out we’ve seen other companies promise a lot with AI and then not deliver. In one of its most famous I/O demos, Google showed off a Photos feature it was working on that would allow you to remove objects from images. The company never ended up shipping that feature.

That said, AI is enabling some of the most compelling new features coming to Adobe’s products. In Photoshop, for example, AI will soon allow you to add more dramatic skies to your photos. That’s something that won’t change even if Adobe doesn’t end up shipping Sharp Shots.   

via Engadget http://www.engadget.com

October 21, 2020 at 04:36PM

PayPal will soon let US users buy, sell and shop with cryptocurrency

https://www.engadget.com/paypal-venmo-cryptocurrency-bitcoin-ethereum-litecoin-payments-143927447.html

PayPal is leaping into the cryptocurrency market, Starting in the next few weeks, users in the US can buy and sell bitcoin and several other digital currencies on the platform. 

Early next year, you’ll be able to use cryptocurrency to pay for goods at more than 26 million merchants who use PayPal. They won’t receive payment in bitcoin, ethereum, bitcoin cash or litecoin, though. PayPal will instead settle payments in fiat currencies, such as the dollar. 

The company will provide information to help account holders understand blockchain tech, the digital currency ecosystem and “the risks and opportunities related to investing in cryptocurrency.” It won’t charge users service fees to buy or sell cryptocurrency through the end of the year, and you won’t have to pay any fees for holding it in your PayPal wallet.

PayPal also plans to bring cryptocurrency to Venmo in the first half of 2021. It hopes to allow users in some other countries to buy and sell cryptocurrency next year too. The New York State Department of Financial Services has granted its first conditional "Bitlicense" to PayPal.

The company’s CEO Dan Schulman told Reuters that PayPal hopes the move will encourage global uptake of cryptocurrency. The service is also preparing for central banks and corporations to set up their own virtual currencies. PayPal cited a survey of central banks suggesting a tenth of them are aiming to roll out digital versions of their currencies within the next few years.

PayPal is joining other major digital payment companies such as Square in supporting cryptocurrency. However, PayPal did note that virtual currencies can be volatile, while transactions can be slower and more expensive than with other payment methods. So, it’s probably worth exercising some caution when it comes to dealing in cryptocurrency on PayPal (or anywhere else).

via Engadget http://www.engadget.com

October 21, 2020 at 09:42AM

GMC Hummer EV revealed as a 1,000-hp, 350-mile, fast-charging beast

https://www.autoblog.com/2020/10/20/2022-gmc-hummer-ev-reveal/



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October 20, 2020 at 07:00PM