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Buying a Samsung Galaxy S22? You Should Probably Wait

The Galaxy S23 is likely only weeks away, meaning your Galaxy S22 won’t feel new for very long.

If you’re eyeballing a new Galaxy S22, you should probably think twice.

Samsung’s Galaxy S23 lineup is expected to launch in Feburary, meaning the Galaxy S22 you’re thinking about purchasing could feel outdated in just a matter of weeks. Even if you just want to score a discount and don’t necessarily care about having the latest phone, there are good reasons to wait.

The biggest one, of course, is that the Galaxy S23 family will likely have Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor, which should bring perks like better graphics and power efficiency. Reportedly leaked images published by the blog WinFuture also indicate a slightly different design might be in store.

The most significant update, however, is expected to arrive on the Galaxy S23 Ultra, which is rumored to get a 200-megapixel camera, according to often-correct leaker Ice Universe. Samsung’s new 200-megapixel image sensor should provide both high resolution and solid performance in challenging conditions, as my colleague Stephen Shankland reported. However, we won’t know whether that chip will be in the Galaxy S23 Ultra until Samsung announces the phone.

Those changes might not sound like much, especially when it comes to the regular Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S23 Plus. But it’s still a good idea to wait if you can.

You’ll get more longevity out of the Galaxy S23 compared with an older phone like the Galaxy S22 for two simple reasons. One is that the processor is newer, so performance will remain speedy for a longer period of time. But the more important point is that it will likely get an extra year of software and security updates.

Samsung committed to offering four generations of Android updates and five years of security updates for the Galaxy S22 last year, and it will probably do the same for the Galaxy S23. The Galaxy S22 is already one year into that upgrade cycle.

You might be tempted to buy the Galaxy S22 anyway, since there are plenty of deals available through Samsung and other retailers. I’d encourage you to consider that similar discounts on the Galaxy S23 lineup may surface once the devices launch. Last year, for example, AT&T shaved $800 off the Galaxy S22 even when trading in an older, broken phone. Samsung also offered some bargains last year to promote the Galaxy S22 family at launch. Those who preordered the device before Feb. 24 were eligible to upgrade to the next storage tier and gain Samsung credit that could be applied toward the Galaxy Watch 4 or Samsung Freestyle projector.

There’s also a chance that we may see some Galaxy S22 discounts after the Galaxy S23 launches. Samsung released the Galaxy S21 FE in 2022 as a slightly cheaper alternative to the Galaxy S22, targeting the audience that would typically opt to save a few bucks by going for the prior year’s model. Since Samsung didn’t release a Galaxy S22 FE, perhaps it’ll keep a version of the Galaxy S22 around at a lower price.

Regardless, it’s a good idea to wait if you’re in a position to do so. Learning about what the Galaxy S23 has to offer and seeing which discounts are available will help you make a more informed decision. And of course, CNET will have plenty of advice on whether the Galaxy S23 is worth the upgrade once it launches.

Technologies

Fitbit Launches Luffu, AI-Powered Health Tracking for the Whole Family

Soon, you may be able to access every family member’s health data in one place.

If you’ve ever wanted a way to keep all of your family’s health records in place, Fitbit may have come up with a solution. Fitbit, well-known for its fitness wearables, announced the launch of its own health care system on Wednesday.  

Luffu, which translates to the Old English word for «love,» uses AI to create what it calls an «intelligent family care system.» The platform allows family members to share all their health information through an app.

It’s unclear when Luffu will be officially available, but you can sign up for the waitlist to get access to the limited public beta. Pricing or other details have not been announced.

Luffu will allow families to keep track of everyone’s doctor’s appointments, test results, vaccine records, medications, symptoms, diet and more. The platform uses AI to learn your family’s health history and patterns, and to alert you to any changes that should be addressed, such as missed medications or abnormal vitals. The AI function organizes the data submitted into the system. The app will also connect to third-party apps and wearables, such as the Fitbit.

Luffu is meant to lighten the mental load of family care by organizing all this health data in one place, its co-founder said.

«I was caring for my parents from across the country, trying to piece together my mom’s health care across various portals and providers, with a language barrier that made it hard to get a complete, timely context from her about doctor visits,» said Luffu co-founder James Park.

Luffu will include alerts and a space to log health and medication information via voice, text, photos, and other health portals and devices. The key medical information can be shared across the platform with spouses, caregivers and parents.

A representative for Fitbit did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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Technologies

These New AI Transcription Models Are Built for Speed and Privacy

Mistral AI’s new Voxtral Mini Transcribe 2 and Voxtral Realtime are intended to run on your device, meaning your conversations never find their way to a data center.

Sometimes you want to transcribe something, but don’t want it to be hanging out on the internet for any hacker to see. Maybe it’s a conversation with your doctor or lawyer. Maybe you’re a journalist, and it’s a sensitive interview. Privacy and control are important.

That desire for privacy is one reason the French developer Mistral AI built its latest transcription models to be small enough to run on devices. They can run on your phone, on your laptop or in the cloud.

Voxtral Mini Transcribe 2, one of the new models announced Wednesday, is «super, super small,» Pierre Stock, Mistral’s vice president of science operations, told me. Another new model, Voxtral Realtime, can do the same thing but live, like closed captioning. 

Privacy is not the only reason the company wanted to build small open-source models. By running right on the device you’re using, these models can work faster. No more waiting on files to find their way through the internet to a data center and back. 

«What you want is the transcription to happen super, super close to you,» Stock said. «And the closest we can find to you is any edge device, so a laptop, a phone, a wearable like a smartwatch, for instance.»

The low latency (read: high speed) is especially important for real-time transcription. The Voxtral Realtime model can generate with a latency of less than 200 milliseconds, Stock said. It can transcribe a speaker’s words about as quickly as you can read them. No more waiting two or three seconds for the closed captioning to catch up.

The Voxtral Realtime model is available through Mistral’s API and on Hugging Face, along with a demo where you can try it out.

In some brief testing, I found it generated fairly quickly (although not as fast as you’d expect if it were on device) and managed to capture what I said accurately in English with a little bit of Spanish mixed in. It’s capable of handling 13 languages right now, according to Mistral. 

Voxtral Mini Transcribe 2 is also available through the company’s API, or you can play around with it in Mistral’s AI Studio. I used the model to transcribe my interview with Stock.

I found it to be quick and pretty reliable, although it struggled with proper names like Mistral AI (which it called Mr. Lay Eye) and Voxtral (VoxTroll). Yes, the AI model got its own name wrong. But Stock said users can customize the model to understand certain words, names and jargon better if they’re using it for specific tasks.

The challenge of building small, fast AI models is that they also have to be accurate, Stock said. The company touted the models’ performance on benchmarks showing improved error rates compared to competitors. 

«It’s not enough to say, OK, I’ll make a small model,» Stock said. «What you need is a small model that has the same quality as larger models, right?»

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Technologies

Don’t Miss Out on Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for $25 Per Month

With this StackSocial offer, you’re getting access to hundreds of games for either $25 for one month or $74 for three months.

Right now at StackSocial, you can get a three-month membership for just $74, which brings each month to $25. Normally $30 per month, you can also opt for a single-month plan for $25. I’ve been following Xbox Game Pass pricing for a while, so this is a great deal. Just keep in mind, once you get your download code via email, the purchase cannot be changed or returned. 

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate lets you access games not only on your console but also on a PC or mobile device. Basically, you can play what you want, when you want, where you want. Game Pass adds new games all the time, with not only older titles making their way to the service but also brand-new Xbox games, including releases from Microsoft’s own studios on the day of release.

Hey, did you know? CNET Deals texts are free, easy and save you money.

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is a brilliant way to save cash while playing fantastic games, including Black Ops 6, Halo: Infinite, Hellblade 2, Starfield and tons more. While the lineup changes each month, more than 500 games are available to play. It’s the closest thing to a Netflix for games.

Please note that Microsoft allows prepayment for up to 36 months of access, so 12 is the maximum number of subscriptions you should purchase. You can check out our full roundup of all the best Xbox deals for more savings on games and accessories.

Why this deal matters 

The last time we saw the Game Pass subscription discounted was around the holiday season. Right now, you can get access to hundreds of games for essentially the price of one. Whether you choose the one- or three-month option, the price is the same at $25 per month. Since most games aren’t usually priced below $25, this is a steal. 

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