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We're in the tail end of winter here, but it's snowing as I write this. Not a lot, but just enough to be a potential frustration to the move I have planned for later this week. Basically, winter weather sucks, and one of the worst things about it is how unpredictable it can be. The Weather Company, owners and developers of the Weather Channel app (but not the TV station) know this, and have just released a feature to try and make planning for storms a little easier.
It's called probabilistic snowfall, and it aims to give you greater insight into just how severe or impactful a storm might be. You'll still see the standard "50 percent chance of snowfall" in your forecasts, but in the 72 hours leading up to snow, you'll also see the percent change for specific snowfall amounts. For example, you'll see that there's an 80 percent chance of snow overall, but you'll also see bars detailing how likely more specific snowfall amounts are. In this screenshot from the app, you can see that five to eight inches is the most likely outcome, followed by eight to 12 inches — enough snow that you might want to change your plans to deal with it.
According to Rachel Chukura, head of product at The Weather Company, that was precisely the vision behind the feature. "The idea is that users can see the different probabilities and know there could be variations, she said. "That's important because of all the decisions we make in terms of what weather we think is coming. What time do you need to leave for your commute, will there be a school delay, and so on." And while the company is starting with snowfall forecasts, they also hope to bring it to more forecasting tools over time.
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How do you follow up a product that has reigned as the king of mirrorless cameras for the last four years? For Sony, the answer with the A1 was simple: just improve everything. The result is the $6,500 A1 II, a powerful pro-level hybrid mirrorless camera that's Sony's best to date.
The A1 II is equipped with a 50-megapixel stacked sensor, not a global sensor like the A9 III, so it's not quite as fast. However, its blend of speed and resolution makes it the most versatile camera in Sony's lineup. It also impresses on the video side with 8K 30 fps 10-bit capture, along with 4K slo-mo at up to 120 fps.
I expect a lot out of a Sony flagship camera, though, and while the A1 II has lots of small improvements, there's nothing terribly innovative. It's also up against impressive (and cheaper) competition like the $4,300 Canon EOS R5 II and $4,000 Nikon Z8. Plus, there's the similarly priced pro-level Canon R1 and Nikon Z9. So despite its strengths, I found Sony's new flagship to be slightly disappointing.
Body and handling
The A1 II is Sony's best-handling camera to date. In terms of design and control placement, it's nearly identical to the company's high-end A9 III. At 743 grams (1.64 pounds), it's heavier than the 617-gram (1.36 pound)
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I used to charge just $25 per article. Those days are gone.
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Google Maps now officially shows the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America if you open the app in the US. In a blog post, Google said it rolled out the named change because the government has already updated the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), which decides the "federal and national standard for geographic nomenclature." One of the executive orders President Donald Trump signed in January when he took office renames the body of water, but Google previously explained that it's the company's longstanding policy to wait for official government resources to be updated before applying any name change.
The Gulf of America label will only be visible if you use the Maps app in the US, or if you open Maps on the web and your device's location is set to the region. If you're in Mexico, the label still shows Gulf of Mexico. And if you're elsewhere, you'll see it marked as both, specifically: Gulf of Mexico (Gulf of America). It's also longstanding policy for the company to show official local names when they vary between countries. Trump's executive order also renames Denali, the highest mountain peak in North America, to Mount McKinley. So far, the location is still being shown as Denali on Maps.
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If the audio playing through your Apple Watch Series 10's speaker becomes harder to hear after repeated use, you are not alone.
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