Latest news with #installation
.png%3Ftrim%3D0%2C0%2C0%2C0%26width%3D1200%26height%3D800%26crop%3D1200%3A800&w=3840&q=100)
The Independent
5 days ago
- Automotive
- The Independent
Cybex's new anoris T2 car seat has a built-in airbag – I put it to the test
Installation and usability My husband and I were enthusiastic about the anoris T2 from the get-go, thanks to the ease of installation – it took just a few minutes to affix the seat's ISOFIX base to our car. To do this, you simply pull out the load leg until it locks into place, then insert the seat's base into the car's anchorage points. Finally, you extend the leg so it presses down securely onto the floor of the car. There's no need to worry about whether you've set the seat up correctly, either, thanks to an LED display that indicates whether or not everything is as it should be – highlighting in red if there's an issue with any of the key areas (just remember to remove the battery protection label when you unbox the seat). The headrest and impact shield are also blissfully straightforward to adjust, requiring just the click of a button. If, for whatever reason, the shield isn't buckled in properly, this will also flag up in red on the LED display. If in doubt, you can find helpful video tutorials on the Cybex website or YouTube, which walk you through each step of the installation process. Safety Some parents may not be aware of official advice recommending children remain in rear-facing car seats until at least the age of four, as placing younger children in front-facing seats can significantly increase the child's risk of suffering serious injury in the event of a crash. While most forward-facing car seats rely on a harness system to strap the child securely in place, the anoris T2 uses an 'impact shield' – essentially a chunky belt that crosses the child's stomach. This belt contains an airbag, which, in an emergency, inflates across the child's abdomen in milliseconds, to protect the child's head, neck, and body. The seat is also equipped with side wings, which provide extra support and reduce impact forces. Ultimately, the most comforting thing anyone can say about the anoris T2 is that it outperformed all other car seats (including rear-facing ones) during independent testing by safety organisations. Comfort Despite my glowing first impressions of the anoris T2, my daughter was initially less convinced. Naturally quite anxious, she was suspicious of the impact shield, which she didn't want wrapped around her abdomen. Her wariness wore off, though, when she realised it clipped in 'just like Mummy and Daddy's' belt; had cool lights on the bottom, and was considerably more comfortable than her previous seat. The anoris T2 i-size plus is, in fact, so comfortable that despite being doggedly resistant to naps, my daughter can't help but fall asleep in it, even during short trips. We don't even have to recline the seat (although a handy adjustment handle means you can easily move it into one of three possible reclining positions) – within minutes, she's out for the count. Another of the anoris T2's key advantages from the child's perspective is it lets them move around much more freely than a conventional five-point harness does. The impact shield sits around their stomach, leaving most of their upper half unhindered, unlike a harness, which pins down their entire torso. Cybex has improved on the anoris T by making the impact shield on the anoris T2 25 per cent smaller than its forerunner. The new design also uses a spacer system, which means the impact shield no longer places any weight on the child's abdomen. In addition, the anoris T2 is made using a fabric that is six times more breathable than that of the anoris T (according to the brand), which we found helped keep our young tester cooler, especially in the summer. The seat also comes with a large retractable sun canopy, which not only shields them from the sun's glare but also acts as an extra layer of protection in the event of an accident. Ultimately, the best thing about the anoris T2 is that it affords the child all the advantages of a forward-facing seat – more legroom than a rear-facing one and the ability to enjoy eye-contact with whoever's sitting up front – without any compromise on safety. Design With its game-changing in-built airbag, the anoris T2 sets the standard for all future car seats, so it's only fitting that it looks the part. Its design is not only futuristic but slick, available in six different colours, from 'sepia black' to 'platinum white'. My 'mirage grey' model blends in seamlessly with my car's interior, though I know my daughter would be incensed to learn that we could have gone for a 'peach pink' option instead. What's more, it will still be suitable for your child up to a year longer than the Anoris T, thanks to an increased height limit, from 115cm (about six years old) to 125cm (about seven years old). This also means it will last your child about three years longer than comparable forward-facing seats.
The Verge
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Verge
The photographer using AI to reconstruct stories lost to censorship
Video screens glow softly from the floor, looping footage of salt lakes, steppe villages, and decaying nuclear test sites. Suspended above them is a large handwoven textile map, crafted by artisans in Kazakhstan. The tapestry maps 12 significant sites across Kazakhstan and the surrounding region, each corresponding to one of the flickering videos below. This is Posthuman Matter: The Map of Nomadizing Reimaginings #3, the latest large-scale installation by photographer and multimedia artist Almagul Menlibayeva. Recently unveiled at the VRHAM! Digital & Immersive Art Biennale in Hamburg, Germany, the work is part of Menlibayeva's ongoing series of 'cyber textiles,' which offer a striking blend of craft and code. It imagines an alternative cartography of Central Asia, with each video in the installation infusing the locations with erased histories and traditions, putting forth an alternative future for them. While the tapestries are created by hand, the videos are a mixture of real and replicated, built from documentary footage captured by Menlibayeva and then augmented with AI to infuse feminist rituals, nomadic storytelling traditions, and whispers of endangered languages. Menlibayeva's approach to artificial intelligence isn't rooted in fascination with high-tech innovation for its own sake. Rather, it's part of a deeper reckoning — with history, with loss, and with the systems that shape how stories are remembered or erased. She engages with AI not as a neutral tool, but as a terrain of power, ideology, and potential transformation. 'Perhaps my interest in artificial intelligence is rooted in the traumatic history of Kazakh nomads,' she says, recalling how Soviet-era collectivization dismantled her ancestors' way of life under the guise of technological progress. Born in Kazakhstan and educated in the Soviet art system, Menlibayeva's early training in folk textiles and Russian futurism is evident in her layered, hybrid works, which centered on photography and multichannel video installations for many years. Since 2022, she has expanded her practice to include AI, marking a pivotal evolution in her decades-long engagement with themes of historical erasure, cultural survival, and ecological trauma. Across these mediums, Menlibayeva critiques the lingering impacts of Soviet rule in Central Asia — from ecological degradation to cultural erasure — while reviving Indigenous and nomadic histories long overwritten by empire. With AI, she's found a way to confront and reanimate these stories. AI Realism: Qantar 2022 was Menlibayeva's first project to incorporate AI. It's a visceral example of how she uses AI to build counternarratives. Created in response to the Bloody January protests in Kazakhstan — mass demonstrations that were violently suppressed by the state and subsequently censored in national media — the project constructs a synthetic memoryscape from collective trauma. During the protests, the Kazakh government imposed a near-total internet blackout, plunging the nation into an information vacuum. Faced with this blockade, Menlibayeva began collecting protest-2related stories from friends and social media, extracting key phrases in Kazakh and Russian, as well as voice messages sent via landlines and mobile networks. These fragments of real speech became the raw material for AI Realism: Qantar 2022. 'The situation itself pushed me, because when these political events happened, the internet was shut down in the whole country,' she recalls. 'I used audio recordings of voice messages, words these people used, to generate images of this work.' Working with text-to-image and voice-to-image models via Google Colab, Menlibayeva assembled a series of AI-generated images from those crowdsourced stories. The resulting artwork, a 24-minute video and a series of haunting stills, is nonlinear and emotionally charged, confronting the erasure — both state-sanctioned and otherwise — of the events from memory. 'I knew that the conditions, the events, would be forgotten or deliberately erased,' she says. 'In this work, the people's words are the main material. That is why the project is called AI Realism.' The image Search and Seizure. History of Kairat Sultanbek. Kazakh January (2022), which is part of this series, reveals a chaos of bloodied surfaces and fragmented bodies. But it resists straightforward interpretation: there is no clear sequence of events and no clear heroes. 'AI machines have a large limit, but sometimes system errors give rise to interesting results,' Menlibayeva says. In AI Realism: Qantar 2022, those glitches evoke the ruptures in history itself: the erasures, silences, and distortions enforced by both state violence and data-driven platforms. Menlibayeva's process often starts analog, with her own photographs or video stills — or even embroidered motifs passed down from older generations. These materials are transformed using Stable Diffusion, Midjourney, and Perplexity. For video-related work, tools including Deforum, Runway, and Kaiber AI are used, but not without friction. 'My first stage is to find the right prompt. Then I choose the most suitable platform based on how well it performs for that specific idea. Each platform has its own strengths, limitations, and biases, so I adapt my approach accordingly,' she says. While some celebrate AI's democratizing potential, Menlibayeva remains wary. 'AI is a complex tool with both democratizing potential and the risk of reinforcing new hierarchies,' she warns, noting that 'AI systems are often controlled by large corporations, which influences access and power.' So, why use them at all? Menlibayeva doesn't believe AI creates anything truly new, only what data makes possible. But by inserting her own images, myths, and archives, she sees it as opening a dialogue between algorithmic systems and human history. 'AI acts both as a tool and a distorted mirror, reflecting the hidden codes, preferences, and limitations of its creators: data, culture, and power,' she says. 'I consciously engage with these biases, embedding my personal mythologies into the process.' To Menlibayeva, 'humanizing AI' doesn't mean teaching machines to mimic empathy. Instead, it means embedding human stories, memories, and resistance into their logic. In her art, AI becomes a way to recover what state archives, history books, and dominant media refuse to hold. 'That is why, as an artist, I try not to obey this logic, but to transform it. Humanizing AI is not the task of programmers, it is the task of artists,' she says.
Irish Times
23-06-2025
- General
- Irish Times
‘I paid Three and Sky for broadband services but got neither'
Pity the poor reader who ordered and ended up paying for broadband with two different providers and still wound up with no service. First up, Caoimhe ordered from Three given that she was a Three mobile customer and she was happy with a monthly charge of €20. 'I was told on the phone that I had a 30 day cooling off period in which I could cancel my subscription – which I did,' she writes. She cancelled the subscription not because she was unhappy with the service, the customer service or the size of her bills but because her landlord said they would not permit the drilling required for the installation to be completed. READ MORE 'The internet was never even installed,' she writes. But despite that, her account was not cancelled 'and I am now paying for a service that they are not even providing. I just want that to be cancelled as requested,' she writes. After her landlord put the kibosh on her Three plans, Caoimhe ordered Sky Broadband, which was due to be installed in the middle of last month. 'Sky have called me a few times to schedule installation. However, the sky box for broadband which was supposed to be delivered never arrived. Sky told me to track the package with DPD. When I tracked the package it said it was delivered to this address but it never came. None of my neighbours had the package either. I called the DPD helpline but no one picked up and their mailbox is full.' We contacted both Three and Sky to find out if we could get Caoimhe her broadband sorted. Three explained that after our reader made contact to explain that she could not proceed with the service an email was sent to her with some questions surrounding the validation of the account. The details the company was looking for were the name, address and date of birth of the account holder. We were told that the company had not heard back from Caoimhe. [ 'Have I any rights at all?' Virgin leaves one customer without broadband and chases another for two cent Opens in new window ] We put this to our reader, who said she had 'told them it couldn't be installed because my landlord hadn't given the permission, yet it was first put in for a reschedule and then after that I emailed to cancel and then I called them'. It would appear then that there was a breakdown in communication – and such things happen. We went back to Three and, in a statement, a spokeswoman said Caoimhe 'requested a cancellation by email, and as per Three's standard data protection processes, was asked by our customer care team to validate the account by providing additional information, in order to progress the cancellation. 'As the customer did not respond to this request for validation, we were unable to process the cancellation without this. The customer's account has now been cancelled, and all associated charges have been waived.' And as for Sky, a spokeswoman said the company was 'sorry for the inconvenience caused for this customer. We have since confirmed with them that a replacement has been ordered, with installation scheduled in the coming days.'
Android Authority
20-06-2025
- Android Authority
The Linkind EP6 Smart Hexagon Panels turn boring walls into amazing light shows
Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority Have you ever seen those cool hexagon lights that YouTubers love to adorn their walls with? They look fantastic, and I always wanted some, but they can get a bit pricey. Thanks to the folks at Linkind, I finally got to test some, and the best part is that its EP6 Smart Hexagon Panels won't break the bank. Let's dive right in. Setting things up Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority First things first, you have to get these lights installed. Let me start by warning you that this process is a bit tricky and time-consuming, but that's true of basically all decorative smart lights. Making sure these are aligned perfectly and working properly takes patience, so make sure you keep your schedule clear for a while if you're going to set up these awesome-looking lights. It took me about three hours to plan, install, and set up two sets of seven hexagon lights (so, 14 hexagon panels). The good news is that the process becomes second-nature once you know what to do. Essentially, you'll have to grab the cardboard alignment boards and tape them to the wall in the order you want the lights set up. There is an alignment tool included to help you get the angles right. Then, you'll have to grab the bases, install the two-sided tape on them, and then use the other side of the tape to stick them to the wall, using the cardboard cutouts to put them all in place. Once all is set up, put the connectors in place, making sure all panels are linked. Also, make sure the power connections are hooked in; you'll need one power brick per seven light panels. Also, make sure the controller is connected somewhere. Once all that is done, you lock in the panels, connect the controller, and plug the brick (or bricks) into a wall outlet. If all goes well, they will light up, and you can connect to the system using the AiDot app. As you can see, this isn't rocket science, but it takes careful alignment, patience, and a lot of repetition. Once you get in the zone, though, it is a simple process — it just takes time. I liked that the power and controller connections can go anywhere, and the system figures things out on its own. The app will even recognize your pattern and let you customize its orientation for easier management. You can also easily expand your setup later. Simply add the new EP6 Smart Hexagon Panels and connect them to the current system. Each controller can manage up to 21 panels; again, you need a power brick per seven panels. Here's an essential piece of advice: Be careful with the connectors! They feel a bit fragile, and I damaged one of them in the process. Getting a replacement will be a time-consuming process. I can't find them on sale, so you will likely have to contact support to get extras and then wait for them to ship. Let there be light! Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority Once set up and plugged in, the lights should turn on immediately. You can control them using the physical controller, but getting the AiDot app set up will let you make the most out of the Linkind EP6 Smart Hexagon Panels. You can pick between any colors, customize light panels individually (or even use different colors in a single one), choose from a wide set of presets, or even create your own. In addition, you can use the built-in mic or your device's audio to sync the lights with media. These look quite gorgeous, honestly. The colors are bright and vibrant. In fact, they do a perfectly good job of dimly lighting up my whole room. I often leave them on when awake at night. And it helps that they create a gorgeous, colorful ambiance in the room. You can see what I mean in the image below. Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority While you can use the AiDot app independently, you can also link the panels to Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. Then you can control them within those apps, or use a smart speaker powered by a digital assistant. This means you can also set routines, have them interact with other smart home devices, and more. Linkind doesn't mention Matter or Thread support, however. We've asked the company about this and will update if we get a response. I do have one complaint, though. There is a buzzing electrical hum that won't go away. I've tried placing the electrical inputs in different locations, switching panels around, rebooting, and more. The hum is louder the brighter the lights are. That said, it isn't a huge deal. I usually only notice it when it's silent, but it gets easily overpowered when listening to music or playing anything on my computer. I do live in a very quiet place, though, so it can get annoying sometimes. Should you buy the Linkind EP6 Smart Hexagon Panels? Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority Whenever I look at cool gadgets like these, I wonder if I would spend my hard-earned money on them. That's kind of how I measure how good they are. The Linkind EP6 Smart Hexagon Panels pack comes with seven panels and costs $139.99 MSRP at Walmart. This means that if you want something like my setup, that would be nearly $280. Discounts are common, though, so look into those. For example, at the time of writing, they are currently on sale for $94. With that in mind, I find it hard to justify paying $140 or more for cool lights. They do look amazing, though, and they work great. The biggest competitors are the Govee Glide Hexa Light Panels, which cost $189.99 for a 10-pack, or the Nanoleaf Shapes, which cost $189.99 for nine panels. Not only are the Linkind EP6 Smart Hexagon Panels cheaper from the get-go, but they are often found on sale. If you can catch a good discount, these offer more bang for your buck, and I have been enjoying them very much. In short, if you are looking for decorative wall lighting, you'll save a good chunk of change with these; they look and work great! Linkind EP6 Smart Hexagon Panels Affordable • Solid build • Bright and vibrant lighting MSRP: $139.99 Bright and affordable. The Linkind EP6 Smart Hexagon Panels are an affordable way of adding some bright and vibrant decorative shape lighting to any space. See price at Walmart Positives More affordable than competitors More affordable than competitors Solid build Solid build Bright and vibrant lighting Cons Installing a bit tricky and time-consuming Installing a bit tricky and time-consuming Slight hum at higher brightness
Arab News
19-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Arab News
Ahaad Alamoudi presents ‘The Social Health Club' in Basel
RIYADH: This month, Saudi artist Ahaad Alamoudi is turning up the heat at Basel Social Club — which runs until June 21 in the Swiss city — with her latest installation, 'The Social Health Club.' For the latest updates, follow us on Instagram @ Freshly conceived, but rooted in the artist's past works, the yellow-drenched installation offers a layered, sensory experience — and sharp cultural commentary — as well as a first for the artist: a live-performance element. Jeddah-based Alamoudi is known for creating immersive multimedia installations drawing from and exploring the complex dynamics of her evolving homeland. 'The Social Health Club' is built around pieces found in Jeddah's Haraj market in 2018 — a range of exercise equipment including a rowing machine. 'These are pieces I collected from thrifting. I like the fact that no instructions came with the machines — I don't have their name or the source of where they came from or who made them. But they've become part of the urban landscape that I've been in. And I was trying to create fun within the space,' Alamoudi told Arab News. In 'The Social Health Club,' the equipment, painted predominantly in vibrantly-saturated monochrome yellow, stands untouched, serving as symbols of a culture obsessed with self-optimization. At the core of the installation is a cameo from a yellow-painted iron previously featured in her 2020 video work 'Makwah Man.' (Makwah means iron in Arabic.) 'A lot of my pieces stem from a narrative I create within a video. In 'Makwah Man,' this man wearing a yellow thobe is ironing a long piece of yellow fabric in the middle of the desert. And as he's ironing, he tells us how to live our lives. But in the process of him telling us how to live our lives, he also starts questioning his own in the process — understanding the role of power, understanding the pressure of change, adaptation,' Alamoudi explained. 'The yellow exists within the video piece, but he's also wearing yellow thobe in the video piece. And (in this iteration at Art Basel) there's also a rack of yellow thobes twirling in the exhibition. For me, the yellow thobe is like a unifying symbol. I'm trying to say that we're all experiencing this in different ways. So in the performance (for 'The Social Health Club') a man (a local body builder) in a yellow thobe will be performing on these machines. He has no rule book. He doesn't know anything; he doesn't know how to 'properly' use the equipment. He's going to go into the space and do things with the machines. 'The performance will be recorded. But I think it's more like an activation,' she continued. 'It's not the piece itself. The piece itself exists as the machines.' 'The Social Health Club' was shaped through close collaboration with curator Amal Khalaf, who combed Jeddah's market with Alamoudi in search of 'machines that were a little bit abnormal, like not your typical machines that people would directly know what it is in the gym,' Alamoudi said. 'She's quite incredible,' she continued. 'And we really built the space together. Essentially, the main thing that I created was the video; everything else was built off of that. She really helped. She really looked at social change and how we navigate that. Our collaboration was perfect.' Yellow dominates every inch of the piece—deliberately and intensely. 'I obsess over symbols within certain works I create. And with that also comes a color,' Alamoudi said. 'I wanted to showcase something that was luxurious, colorful, almost like gold, but it's not gold. It's quite stark in its appearance.' Yellow is both invitation and warning. 'I think that yellow is also quite deceptive. I like it as a color to get people excited to come closer and see what's happening, but at the same time question what it is — it's so aggressive that it becomes a bit uncomfortable.' The viewer's interaction is critical to the piece's meaning. 'I think the machines represent something and they carry something, but they really are activated by the people — what people are doing with them,' Alamoudi said. 'And that's why I'm encouraging a lot of viewers to engage with and use the pieces, or try to use them without any instruction. A lot of people entering into the space (might) fear even touching or engaging with them. Having the performer there activating the structures is going to add another layer to the piece itself.' She hopes visitors feel free to explore, unburdened by expectations. 'People are meant to use it any way that they want to use it. They can sit on it, stand on it, touch it — they can leave it alone,' she concluded with a laugh.
