All posts tagged: audio

I changed how I prompt NotebookLM and my audio overviews immediately sounded more interesting

I changed how I prompt NotebookLM and my audio overviews immediately sounded more interesting

Published by skeptic

I’ve been tempted to subscribe to book summarization apps like BeFreed. They turn nonfiction into byte-sized audiobooks and make learning on the go easier. Taking that idea further, I thought about “duplicating” that utility by prompting NotebookLM’s Audio Overview more intentionally. I tested this on a specific NotebookLM book that compiles research on how intentional noticing combats emotional numbness. I didn’t go with the default Audio Overview; instead, I dove into its Customize field under the hood. It’s not a spoiler to say that I got better results. Related I’ve been using NotebookLM’s Audio Overview wrong — this is what it’s actually good for You’ve been selling Audio Overviews short this whole time. The default overview is a missed opportunity Give your podcast a detailed brief Saikat Basu/MakeUseOf NotebookLM’s Audio Overview generates a podcast-styled summary of your sources without your intervention. The default output has a host chatting in a breezy style. Think of this as a rough cut, which gives you reasonable coverage of your sources. The customization field is one of NotebookLM’s settings …

Google’s 2026 Display and Audio Smart Glasses First Look

Google’s 2026 Display and Audio Smart Glasses First Look

Published by skeptic

Google’s recent collaboration with Gentle Monster and Warby Parker has introduced a new chapter in wearable technology: smart glasses powered by the Android XR platform and Gemini AI. As demonstrated by Shahram Izadi during a live Google I/O 2026 event, these glasses are designed to merge advanced functionality with everyday usability. For example, the in-lens displays provide glanceable navigation instructions or calendar reminders, while the audio-focused variant enables hands-free communication and real-time updates. This dual-variant approach ensures that the glasses cater to diverse user needs, whether prioritizing visual data or discreet audio interactions. Explore how these smart glasses integrate real-time assistance and cross-platform compatibility to enhance daily routines. You’ll gain insight into the role of Gemini AI in delivering live translation and context-aware notifications, as well as the practical applications of the Android XR platform in dynamic environments. Additionally, discover how partnerships with Gentle Monster and Warby Parker ensure that these devices prioritize both functionality and style, making them a versatile choice for professionals and casual users alike. Android XR Platform: The Core of Smart …

Google’s new open source Gemma 4 12B analyzes audio, video — and runs entirely locally on a typical 16GB enterprise laptop

Google’s new open source Gemma 4 12B analyzes audio, video — and runs entirely locally on a typical 16GB enterprise laptop

Published by skeptic

While many AI open source model providers are pursuing larger and more powerful models, Google is still giving attention to the smaller, more local side of the market. Today, the tech giant released Gemma 4 12B, an 11.95-billion-parameter open-weights model with permissive Apache 2.0 license optimized to execute locally on a standard enterprise laptop using just 16GB of VRAM or unified memory. That means those enterprise users looking to keep working with AI while on a flight without WiFi, or trying to keep it offline for security reasons, can now do so far more easily and at far less cost (free to download and operate). Gemma 4 12B’s most notable breakthrough is an encoder-free “Unified” architecture, which allows raw audio waveforms and visual patches to flow directly into the core LLM backbone without the latency or memory overhead of secondary processing modules. Available immediately for download on Hugging Face and Kaggle and for use on Google AI Edge Gallery, Gemma 4 12B packs a 256K token context window, native agentic tool-use capabilities, and an explicit …

Flush With Cash From OpenAI, Opal Is Making an AI-Powered Audio Gadget

Flush With Cash From OpenAI, Opal Is Making an AI-Powered Audio Gadget

Published by skeptic

A small San Francisco startup known for making well-appointed, beautifully designed webcams is now vying to become the AI hardware company of the moment. Opal Camera is rebranding to Opal Electronics and will expand its product portfolio beyond webcams to a broad range of consumer devices, some of which will be AI-focused. It aims to emulate Sony Electronics as a wide-ranging consumer gadget brand by focusing on design and culture, not just tech. The transition was possible thanks to a $40 million Series B funding round from OpenAI. Some details about the investment were first reported in 2024, but the deal was closed in the first quarter of 2025. Other investors in Opal include Samsung, Peter Thiel, Seven Seven Six (Alexis Ohanian’s venture capital firm), and noted tech YouTuber Marques Brownlee (known as MKBHD), among others, according to a source close to the deal. Opal is now valued at around $275 million. Opal Electronics declined to comment. OpenAI did not respond to WIRED’s request for comment. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was an early customer and …

Universal Audio Volt 876 USB Audio Interface Review: Pro-Level Polish

Universal Audio Volt 876 USB Audio Interface Review: Pro-Level Polish

Published by skeptic

In the fall of 2006, I decided emo was out and IDM was in. Fueled by the hope of becoming the next Four Tet or Aphex Twin, I marched into my local Guitar Center and purchased an audio interface to convert my guitar and vocals into ones and zeroes, then mangle them in Ableton Live. When I got home, I plugged a brand-new M-Audio Fast Track Pro into my Windows desktop and immediately hit a brick wall of audio driver configuration hell. I eventually got the thing to work after hours of troubleshooting, but latency—the gap between when you make a sound and when it hits your computer—rendered the box unusable. I was tempted to throw the Fast Track out the window and sample the sound of it hitting the pavement with an analog tape recorder. Instead, I went back to Guitar Center, traded the interface for a Line 6 DL4 delay pedal, and set my sights on ripping off Explosions in the Sky in a proper band setting. Had something quick and painless like …

I’ve been using NotebookLM’s Audio Overview wrong — this is what it’s actually good for

I’ve been using NotebookLM’s Audio Overview wrong — this is what it’s actually good for

Published by skeptic

If you haven’t used NotebookLM much yourself but have heard of it in passing, chances are the feature you heard about was Audio Overviews. The two-AI-hosts-turn-your-PDF-into-a-podcast thing. Depending on if you’ve always been a podcast person, it likely went one of two ways: you got obsessed and began turning everything into an Audio Overview, or tried it once, thought “that’s cool I guess,” and never really opened it again. Well, chances are you were simply not using it to its full potential. Or at the very least, not for what it’s genuinely good at. You have a lot more control over Audio Overviews than you think Audio Overviews are only as good as you make them By now, I’m sure you’ve had enough people lecture you on how the quality of the prompt you send a LLM determines the quality of the output you get. The same thing applies here, and a lot of people don’t really realize it! Given how much I use and write about NotebookLM, I’ve seen how a lot of people …

M-Audio M Track Duo HD Producer Pack Review: Hot Takes, Cold Opens

M-Audio M Track Duo HD Producer Pack Review: Hot Takes, Cold Opens

Published by skeptic

Photograph: Pete Cottell M-Audio has packaged everything this person would need in a tidy little box with its M Track Duo HD producer pack. It includes a two-channel class-compliant audio interface, an M100 condenser mic, a pair of HD41 headphones, a mic clip, a USB-C cable to connect the interface to your computer or mobile device, and an XLR cable to connect the mic to the interface—all for the low price of $200. Aside from a mic stand (we love this desk clamp boom arm stand from Innogear) and the unearned confidence necessary to speak into a mic for hours about a wide variety of esoteric topics, you need nothing else than what’s in this box to get started. Plug a few things in, fire up OBS or your favorite DAW, adjust the gain on the mic preamp, and get to work. The interface is a lightweight box of plastic that’s about the size of a VHS tape or a self-help book you’d buy at an airport bookstore. The front panel has two combo XLR …

NTSB scrambles to keep cockpit audio private in era of AI : NPR

NTSB scrambles to keep cockpit audio private in era of AI : NPR

Published by Sam Flores

Chris Babcock, an engineer at the National Transportation Safety Board, in one of the audition rooms at the agency’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. Joel Rose/NPR hide caption toggle caption Joel Rose/NPR WASHINGTON — What began as an inquiry into a mysterious sound in the background of an airplane cockpit voice recording escalated into an unexpected challenge for the nation’s top safety investigators. The National Transportation Safety Board temporarily pulled down public documents for thousands of investigations last week after the agency inadvertently allowed the reconstruction of audio recordings from the cockpit of UPS flight 2976, which crashed shortly after takeoff in Louisville, Ky. last year, killing 15 people, including all three pilots. Recent advances in artificial intelligence have made it easier to reconstruct audio from digital images that were published as part of the NTSB’s investigation. And that’s making it harder for the NTSB, which is forbidden by law from releasing those recordings, to stop them from being made public. As investigators at the NTSB listened back to the cockpit voice recording from the crash …

Sony’s most premium ANC headphones yet made luxury audio click for me

Sony’s most premium ANC headphones yet made luxury audio click for me

Published by skeptic

pros and cons Pros Comfortable Detailed sound Stylish and practical Cons Expensive Weak battery life Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google. To commemorate a decade of acclaimed flagship over-ear headphones, Sony released a special-edition version, aptly named 1000X The Collexion. Sony looks back from 2016 to now, and its 1000X-series headphones went from proving they could outdo competitors to becoming industry frontrunners. Also: I’ve tested dozens of Sony headphones – these 4 tweaks get me the best sound quality Typically, Apple’s $549 price tag for its AirPods Max 2 is where I consider the ceiling for consumer headphones. Anything beyond, such as Bowers & Wilkins’ $800 Px8 S2, I put in the luxury category. Sony just entered said category, pricing its 1000X The Collexion at $650, in exchange for its design and audio upgrades, which build on the WH-1000XM6, released one year ago. Thus, 1000X The Collexion shares a similar silhouette to its more affordable sibling, but debuts with a sleeker appearance, more premium materials, and higher-quality internal audio components. Best headphone deals …

I demoed Sony’s new modular theater system, and the audio quality was next level

I demoed Sony’s new modular theater system, and the audio quality was next level

Published by skeptic

Kerry Wan/ZDNET Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google. ZDNET’s key takeaways Sony debuts the Bravia Theater Trio as its latest flagship home theater speaker system. It features dedicated left, right, and center channels. At $2,199, it’s geared toward enthusiasts. Shortly after adding several new additions to its Bravia home theater lineup, Sony reappeared with an all-new flagship product to lead the pack. The Bravia Theater Trio serves as an audio companion for ultra-large at-home screens, catering to those who want a faithful theater experience at home. Also: Sony’s new theater system lets you upgrade your TV setup gradually – how it works Just last month, I visited Sony in New York City and demoed the Trio, along with some of the brand’s other Bravia TV companions. Here’s the lowdown. The three-speaker experience The Bravia Theater Trio system is a three-speaker system with dedicated left, right, and center channels. This system forgoes the typical soundbar physique, instead opting for three separate bodies for allocated sound.  During my demo, we watched the scene from Dune: …