News
- Audio-Technica has revealed a new limited edition version of the ATH-M50xSTS
- It's in collaboration with virtual singer Hatsune Miku
- It will be available later this week
Esteemed audio brand Audio-Technica has unveiled a cute limited edition version of its best gaming headset in collaboration with virtual idol Hatsune Miku.
Officially called the ATH-M50xSTS-USB MIKU, it's a new variant of the excellent ATH-M50xSTS. The headset, which is based on the professional ATH-M50X monitoring headphones, scored close to full marks in our ATH-M50xSTS review.
It offers sublime audio quality that's particularly impressive for its upper mid-range price point, plus multiple comfortable ear-cup types in the box. Paired with a strong boom microphone, it's a fantastic option for gamers or streamers that want to get away from the usual gaming brands.
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The ATH-M50xSTS-USB MIKU comes in a special limited edition colorway inspired by the singer. This includes blue details on the headband meant to mimic her iconic hair and a colorful green ring on the outside of each earcup.
The headset is covered in little details, like the bright Hatsune Miku emblem on the inside of its ear cups and the futuristic-looking blue ring around the microphone module.
They come in special packaging featuring an illustration by the artist LAM created for the collab. It features a USB Type-A connection, so is definitely geared towards PC users, but does come bundled with a USB Type-C adaptor.
The headset will be available from August 22 for $279 / £239.
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- Windows 11's Copilot app just got an update for testers
- This introduces a powerful new natural language-based search
- There are also some useful changes for the app's home page
Windows 11's Copilot app is getting a deeper and more powerful search functionality, and more besides – although this is only in testing for now.
The Verge reports that Microsoft is rolling out an update for the Copilot app to Windows Insiders (those running test versions of Windows 11) who have Copilot+ PCs.
Those devices have the necessary NPU to drive this new AI search, which allows you to use natural language in queries, and will dive into files to find results for you.
So, as Microsoft points out, you can ask a conversational query such as 'find the file with the tiramisu recipe' and the Copilot app will hunt through the files on your PC to locate it. Or similarly, you could ask 'find pictures of my dog on the beach' and the AI will pick out those images specifically. Microsoft calls this functionality a 'semantic file search'.
Microsoft is also bringing in a rejigged home page for the Copilot app which surfaces recently used files, apps, and conversations, a move designed to make it easy for you to jump back into whatever you were doing previously.
You can also click on those recently-used files to query them with Copilot, or elect to get help with apps via a specific 'guided help' pane – this fires up a Copilot Vision session to guide you through said app.
Testers who want to give the new Copilot app a whirl should grab the latest update from the Microsoft Store in Windows 11.
(Image credit: Microsoft)Analysis: AI end gameYour immediate concern here may be privacy, and Microsoft has been quick to allay any fears along those lines in its blog post introducing these changes. The company makes it clear that Copilot surfaces recently-used files simply via the standard 'recent' folder that Windows 11 maintains – so the AI app isn't digging into your system any more deeply than the records which the OS keeps itself.
Microsoft clarifies that: "Copilot doesn't scan your entire system or upload anything automatically." However, when you're directly querying a file with Copilot, in that case it is uploaded for processing, but "nothing is shared unless you explicitly do so".
As for the semantic file-search capability, I assume that it functions similarly to the AI-supercharging of Windows 11's search itself on Copilot+ PCs (when Microsoft introduced natural language queries via the search box on the taskbar).
Microsoft seemingly wants to beef up search with AI across the board, and so on Copilot+ PCs we have that powered-up Windows 11 search, as well as Recall (a screenshot-based AI search leveraging the activity on your PC), and now an improved natural language search within the Copilot app itself.
What's the end game with pushing AI in search so strongly? Well, search is an obvious use case for AI, and I'd speculate that eventually, Copilot will take over all Windows search duties entirely.
There will be no basic Windows search at all, in other words – if you want to find stuff on your PC, you'll ask Copilot, end of story. And hopefully it'll complete the search without showing you 15 related 'suggestions' or 'recommendations' about what else you might need to complete whatever task the AI thinks you're carrying out.
You might also like- Asus announced and unveiled a Tandem OLED gaming monitor at Gamescom 2025
- The monitor will have two layers of pixels for better brightness, power efficiency, and OLED lifespan
- It will have a 520Hz refresh rate at 1440p and 720Hz at 1080p
Gamescom 2025 is well underway, after Opening Night Live hosted by Geoff Keighley revealed world premieres and updates to highly anticipated titles. However, Asus, known for some of the best monitors, is the star of the show so far with new hardware set to enhance gaming experiences – and no, it's not the ROG Xbox Ally.
As reported by The Verge, the new Asus ROG Swift OLED PG27AQWP-W was announced and unveiled at Gamescom 2025, a gaming monitor that offers users a 540Hz refresh rate at a 2560x1440 display resolution and a 720Hz refresh rate at 1080p. Both the Swift OLED PG27AQWP-W and LG's 4th Gen OLED are the fastest OLED and arguably the best gaming monitors on the market.
It's not just regular OLED either; Asus' new gaming monitor will use Tandem OLED technology, which is essentially two layers of pixels used to produce higher and (theoretically) more consistent brightness, deeper black levels, and a reduced risk of burn-in on its 'TrueBlack Glossy' display.
(Image credit: Future / Rob Dwiar)Most importantly, this should result in lower power consumption compared to other OLEDs, since each pixel isn't working as hard as usual to produce high brightness and deep blacks. Asus claims that the Tandem OLED panel results in '15% higher peak brightness, 25% larger color volume, and 60% longer OLED lifespan'.
If these claims are accurate, this should address one of the biggest issues that OLED monitors suffer from, which is an Auto Brightness Limiter (ABL). Brightness limiting occurs whenever viewing brighter content in HDR or, for example, browsing on a pure white screen, which is done to control power consumption, and of course, reduce burn-in risks.
Since Tandem OLED is used to address OLED lifespan and brightness, it sounds like the ideal solution for ABL issues, and this could further widen the gap between OLED and mini-LED monitors, with the former in the lead.
Analysis: I was gradually getting frustrated with OLED care...(Image credit: Asus)The use of Tandem OLED technology may very well be used by a wide range of other monitor manufacturers, and that's fantastic news for me. For a long while, OLED care with constant pixel refreshes and ABL left me considering mini-LED, where neither of those issues (except for ABL, but it's a lot less common compared to OLEDs) exists.
Losing out on consistent high brightness and constantly worrying about burn-in with pixel refresh alerts shouldn't be an issue with Tandem OLED. Of course, it's very dependent on how manufacturers implement this technology on monitors, and whether the claim of a 60% longer OLED lifespan means OLED pixel refreshes aren't required as often.
However, it's already a step in the right direction in terms of the added benefits of deeper black levels and brightness (whether that's with ABL or not), without the cost of using more power.
There's no word on pricing or a release date yet, but I have no doubts that this will cost a fortune, so get your wallets ready if you're interested.
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