For something that’s supposed to help us recharge, weekends can feel surprisingly high-pressure.

There’s always that underlying expectation to do something meaningful, especially when it comes to family time. Maybe it’s taking the kids out, planning an enriching activity, or just making sure the time feels “well spent.” 

But between busy schedules and rising costs, not every weekend can (or should) be a complicated outing. 

Instead, fostering routines that are easy to replicate on a weekly basis is more sustainable in the long run. Because the truth is, making weekends special doesn’t always mean doing more. 

Sometimes, it’s just about doing something consistently.

One thing family plans have in common

More often than not, that “something” revolves around food.

Let’s face it, the stereotype is true. You’d be hard-pressed to find a Malaysian that does not enjoy having a meal together with friends, partners, or family. Even if your tummy is not rumbling, the gathering will involve food somehow.

And there’s a simple reason for that. Shared meals (like reunion dinners) have always been at the centre of family time in Malaysia. 

They don’t require complicated logistics, they naturally bring everyone to the same table, and they create space for conversation in a way few other activities do. It’s also why familiar go-to spots tend to work best, like your neighbourhood mamak or kopitiam. 

When there’s no need to overthink the decision, it becomes easier to turn something into a habit. Plus, it’s always nice to have a good meal to look forward to at the end of a tiring week.

Making simple routines feel a little more special

For families looking to keep things simple yet still special, KFC Malaysia is offering a new Family Weekend Deal. Available every Friday to Sunday, the bundle starts from RM39.90, and it’s priced in a way that feels accessible for regular family meals, not just occasional treats. 

And because it’s available across dine-in, takeaway, drive-thru, and even kiosk or scan-and-order, it fits into various occasions, whether you’re having a family day out or grabbing something on the way home.

KFC also added an extra thoughtful layer here, where kids get to eat for free with any Family Weekend Bundle.

It’s a simple perk, but one that changes the dynamic in subtle ways. For kids, having their own meals creates a sense of excitement, whereas for parents, it’s a small but meaningful saving that makes the outing feel more worthwhile. 

Sometimes, that’s all it takes

These are the kinds of moments that don’t look like much on paper, but end up being the ones kids remember. Sitting around the table, sharing food, talking about the week, and most importantly spending quality time together.

At the end of the day, not every weekend needs to be a big production.

Sometimes, it’s enough to have one simple thing to look forward to. A familiar place, good food, and a reason to pause and be present with each other.

And if that also happens to come with good value and something a little extra for the kids, KFC’s Family Weekend Deal might just be an easy tradition to ease into.

Featured Image Credit: KFC Malaysia

Google Photos on Wednesday announced a new AI-powered feature that will soon turn photos of your clothes into a digital closet where you can create new outfit ideas, and even virtually try on your creations. Yes, the idea takes obvious inspiration from Cher’s iconic virtual wardrobe featured in the movie “Clueless,” where she could scroll through her various ensembles while deciding what to wear.

Google says the new feature will leverage AI technology to automatically create a copy of your wardrobe that’s based on the pieces of clothing appearing in your Google Photos library. From the app, you’ll be able to filter items by category — like tops, bottoms, jewelry, and more — then mix and match them to create different outfits.

The idea of a digital closet in “Clueless” was meant to highlight Cher’s life of privilege. As a result, the fashion industry and various startups have long sought to recreate the feeling of easy outfit creation. Google is betting that AI technology will make it possible for anyone to have access to a similar tool, one that could improve over time as AI advances.

Those outfit ideas can either be shared with friends or saved to a digital moodboard, where you could save ideas for different occasions, like travel, events, date nights, work, and more.

In addition, another feature will let you virtually try on items to preview the looks.

The feature is not yet live, but Google says it will roll out to Google Photos on Android later this summer, followed by iOS, where it will be found under “Collections.” It will compete with existing apps like Acloset, Combyne, Pureple, Wearing, Alta, and others. 

The company didn’t go into detail about how the AI works, but notes it will recognize the clothing and accessories featured in your library to create its individual snapshots. Of course, while the AI may be able to pull images from well-lit, full-body photos, we imagine you would get better results by taking the time to photograph your clothes yourself, much as Cher had.

SenseTime, a Chinese AI company best known for its facial recognition technology, released a new open source model on Tuesday that it claims can both generate and interpret images far faster than top models developed by US competitors. SenseNova U1 could help the company reclaim lost ground after it slipped from its place among the leading players in China’s AI development race.

The model’s secret sauce is its ability to “read” images without translating them to text first, speeding up the process and reducing the amount of computing power required. “The model’s entire reasoning process is no longer limited to text. It can reason with images as well,” Dahua Lin, cofounder and chief scientist at SenseTime, said in an interview with WIRED.

Lin, who is also a professor of information engineering at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, says that models capable of processing images directly will enable robots to better understand the physical world in the future.

Like DeepSeek’s latest flagship model, SenseTime says U1 can be powered by Chinese-made chips. “Several Chinese domestic chipmakers have finished optimizing compatibility with our new model,” Lin says. On release day, 10 Chinese chip designers, including Cambricon and Biren Technology, announced their hardware supports U1.

That flexibility matters because US export controls restrict Chinese firms from accessing the world’s most advanced AI chips, particularly those used for training, which at this point are primarily developed by Western companies like Nvidia. “We will continue to push for training on more different chips,” Lin says. But he also acknowledges that SenseTime “may still need to use the best chips to ensure the speed of our iteration.”

SenseTime released U1 for free on Hugging Face and GitHub, another sign of how Chinese companies are becoming some of the most active contributors to open source AI.

SenseTime was founded in 2014 and became a world leader in computer vision, which is used in applications like facial recognition and autonomous driving. But when ChatGPT and other AI systems powered by natural language processing became the hottest thing in the tech industry, SenseTime began struggling to turn a profit and fell behind newer Chinese startups like DeepSeek and MiniMax.

SenseTime says it hopes that releasing SenseNova-U1 publicly for anyone to use will help it catch up with both domestic and Western AI players. Lin says the company finally made the decision last year to focus on open source because of the helpful feedback it gets from researchers, which enables the company to iterate faster. “In this day and age, being open source or closed source is not the winning factor; the speed of iteration is,” Lin explains.

Going open source also helps SenseTime continue collaborating with international researchers without the interference of geopolitics. The company has been sanctioned repeatedly by the US government in recent years over allegations that its facial recognition technology helped power surveillance systems used to monitor and detain Uyghurs and other minority groups in China’s Xinjiang region. As a result, US firms are restricted from investing in SenseTime and selling certain technologies to it without a license. (SenseTime has denied the allegations.)

A sample image created using SenseNova U1. Generated using AI

Courtesy of SenseTime

Seeing Clearly

In an accompanying technical report, SenseTime claims that SenseNova-U1 generates higher-quality images than all other open source models currently on the market. Its performance is comparable to leading Chinese closed source models like Alibaba’s Qwen and ByteDance’s Seedream, but it still lags behind industry leaders like GPT-Image-2.0, which came out just a week ago.

But the model’s main selling point is its ability to generate images much faster than all of those models. It relies on an innovative technical structure called NEO-Unify that SenseTime previewed earlier this year.

Google is adding another AI-powered trick to Translate — this time focused on how you sound, not just what you say.

A new Pronunciation feature, powered by Gemini, is rolling out to help users practise speaking foreign languages more naturally. In addition, you’ll also receive real-time feedback on delivery.

The update slots neatly into Translate’s existing Practice mode, which launched in late 2025 with tools like Listen and Roleplay. Now, when you translate a phrase and tap Practice, you will see a new “Pronounce” button alongside those options. Tap it, and the app will show a phonetic version of the phrase. Then it will activate your microphone, and ask you to read it aloud.

A key driver for the rise in medical device cyberattacks, according to RunSafe, is the prominence of legacy tech in healthcare environments.

Cyberattacks on medical devices are becoming more frequent and more disruptive, according to a report released by US cybersecurity company RunSafe Security today (29 April).

The 2026 Medical Device Cybersecurity Index, based on a March 2026 survey of 551 healthcare professionals throughout the US, UK and Germany involved in device purchasing decisions, found that 24pc of surveyed healthcare organisations experienced a cyberattack on a medical device – a rise of 2pc compared to last year.

Of those that experienced an attack, 80pc reported moderate or significant patient care impact as a result, with a quarter of the cohort reporting significant impact.

According to the report, the most commonly affected systems included electronic health record systems (cited by 35pc of affected organisations), patient monitoring devices (23pc), laboratory and diagnostic equipment (18pc), networked surgical equipment (10pc) and imaging systems (8pc).

The most dominant cyberattack methods seen in these incidents were malware infections requiring device quarantine – which were responsible for nearly half of the incidents (48pc) – and network intrusion requiring device isolation (41pc), with both of these incident types maintaining their dominant popularity from 2025.

However, one incident type that RunSafe noted as emerging particularly in 2026 was remote access exploitation, which was seen in 38pc of incidents. RunSafe stated this signalled that attackers are “adapting to the growing remote access footprint of connected devices”.

“Organisations that have not implemented network segmentation, access controls and runtime protections are exposed,” said the company.

For those organisations that experienced a cyberattack on a medical device, recovery was not so simple.

Nearly half (49pc) of reported incidents caused “extended stays or required manual workarounds”, according to the report, with the most common recovery scenario – experienced by 39pc of impacted organisations – involving five to 12 hours of downtime. Meanwhile, 5pc of affected organisations experienced downtime of more than three days.

Legacy issues

A key driver of the growing medical device cyberthreat, according to RunSafe, is the prominence of legacy devices that cannot be patched or easily replaced.

The report found that three in 10 responding organisations operate medical devices that are past the manufacturer’s end-of-support date. A significant proportion of those devices carry known, unpatched vulnerabilities, according to RunSafe.

The reported reasons as to why these healthcare organisations continue to operate at-risk legacy devices spanned clinical, financial and structural constraints.

38pc of respondents said there was no “acceptable” replacement available yet for the legacy device in question, while 36pc said they cannot afford a replacement.

34pc cited regulatory or approval constraints as a barrier, 33pc said replacing the device or system would cause too much disruption and interestingly, 17pc stated that the risk presented by this legacy tech has been formally accepted by leadership.

“The inability to patch, combined with continued clinical reliance on vulnerable devices, creates a structural security gap that cannot be closed solely through procurement alone,” said RunSafe in an analysis of the topic of legacy devices.

“This gap is almost certainly a key driver behind the rise in runtime protection adoption seen in 2026. Runtime protection technologies – which defend devices without requiring a patch – act as a compensating control for a problem that buying new devices cannot solve.”

As recognised by the report, runtime protection technologies are emerging as a critical “compensating control”, with 82pc of respondents stating that they have widely deployed or are piloting runtime exploit protection.

A vulnerable sector

The rise of medical device cyberattacks highlighted by this report comes as the healthcare industry continues to experience breaches and attacks ranging in severity, as noted by RunSafe founder and CEO Joseph M Saunders.

“The findings land against a backdrop of large-scale healthcare cyber incidents that have disrupted care delivery and revenue flows, underscoring how quickly attacks on device-adjacent systems can translate into patient harm,” he said.

“Medical device cybersecurity is increasing in importance to healthcare buyers as they see it as a patient safety and regulatory imperative.”

Last month, medical equipment manufacturing giant Stryker was hit by a cyberattack that caused a global network disruption. Reports at the time suggested that the company’s Cork plant, which employs more than 4,000, was affected by the attack – which pro-Iranian cyber group Handala claimed responsibility for.

Meanwhile, just a few weeks ago, Dublin recruitment platform Healthdaq – which is used by Northern Ireland’s health trusts – reportedly suffered a cyberattack from the relatively new hacker group XP95, which claimed to have accessed hundreds of thousands of files.

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Samsung might finally be ready to shake up the look of its flagship phones, but don’t get too excited just yet.

A new leak suggests the Galaxy S27 could bring a redesigned rear camera setup. However, the details are still early and far from locked in.

According to the report, Samsung is supposedly reviewing a potential overhaul of the phone’s camera module, along with broader design changes. This could include tweaks to layout, hardware and overall aesthetics. In fact, these are the areas where the Galaxy S series has felt a little too familiar in recent years.

That said, this isn’t a done deal. The same source notes that progress on the redesign is moving slowly internally. Cost pressures are reportedly playing a role in delaying decisions. In other words, even if Samsung is exploring a new look, it may not make the final cut in time for the S27.

If anything, this sounds more like early-stage planning than a confirmed direction. Samsung has offered users the option of subtle refinements over major visual changes in recent generations. This is particularly true around the camera design. Therefore, a bigger shift would mark a notable change in approach.

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There’s also a small but interesting hint buried in the leak. The tipster claims that another upcoming Samsung device has already adopted a redesigned camera layout similar to what’s being considered for the S27. While that’s vague, it could mean Samsung is testing the waters elsewhere. In other words, Samsung might want to do this before committing to its flagship line.

Still, it’s worth keeping expectations in check. The leak comes from a single source with a mixed track record, and even they admit the information isn’t final. Plans like this can evolve quickly or be scrapped entirely, especially when cost and production timelines come into play.

For now, the idea of a fresh Galaxy S design is more of a “wait and see” than anything concrete. But if Samsung does follow through, the S27 could finally break away from the safe, iterative look the series has stuck with for years.

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The Record Store Day (RSD) release of a 3LP set of 1978 archival live recordings by tenor saxophone legend Joe Henderson titled Consonance is yet another excellent discovery from the good folks at Resonance Records (championed by producer Zev Feldman).

As with others in Resonance’s recent Jazz Showcase series which we have reviewed here at eCoustics, the original master tapes seem to have been recorded in mono. However, the sound quality is quite good, capturing a well balanced performance with all the instruments are in enjoyable listening proportion: saxophone and piano appear a little more up front with the bass tucked in neatly below them, locking in with the clear but not overwhelming drums. 

A recording certainly worthy of its pressing on 180 gram black vinyl — something I can’t always say for many archival releases — the vinyl pressing lacquers for this release were cut by Matthew Lutheran’s at The Mastering Lab and the final discs were manufactured at Quebec’s Le Vinylist. 

Consonance finds Mr. Henderson backed by Johanne Brackeen on piano, Danny Spencer on drums and a young future bass legend in his own right, Steve Rodby. The latter was part of the Chicago jazz scene at the time and effectively was one of the regular house musicians at that club before he joined Pat Metheny’s group in the early 1980s.

In fact, the album features compelling liner notes including recollections from Rodby who offers nuance into why it was special to play with Henderson — as well as from Brackeen and Spencer, co-producer John Koenig plus Wayne Segal (son of Jazz Showcase founder/owner, Joe Segal). 

Mr. Henderson was no doubt a very special force on the jazz scene — just check some of your favorite classics by Lee Morgan, Horace Silver, Herbie Hancock, Miroslav Vitouš, Freddie Hubbard, Alice Coltrane and others and you’ll find him on many legendary sessions. However, original pressings of his solo works are elusive and very collectible these days. Fortunately, many of his early albums are being reissued and along with that demand, archival live recordings like Consonance help round out the portrait of this artist’s life work. 

That said, Consonance opens with a side-long version of John Coltrane’s “Mr. P.C.” Henderson also pays homage to the legendary Charlie Parker with an expansive reading of “Relaxin’ at Camarillo.” And a 16-minute journey explores Thelonious Monk’s “‘Round Midnight.” You’ll also hear some of Mr. Henderson’s originals such as “Inner Urge” — which takes up another full album side — and the show closer “Isotope.”

Even though Record Store Day is over, I suspect you will be able to find copies of this excellent set online as well as in your favorite stores. In fact, you can get it at Amazon for $75.99 and if you can’t find the LP or simply want a less pricey option, the CD version is available for $23.56.

Where to buy: $75.99 at Amazon (3LP) or $23.56 at Amazon (CD)

Mark Smotroff is a deep music enthusiast / collector who has also worked in entertainment oriented marketing communications for decades supporting the likes of DTS, Sega and many others. He reviews vinyl for Analog Planet and has written for Audiophile Review, Sound+Vision, Mix, EQ, etc.  You can learn more about him at LinkedIn.

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