Older Kiwis are fast approaching full vaccination but first dose bookings are dwindling among younger generations, a Herald analysis can reveal. Data supplied by the Ministry of Health show at least 90 per cent of people aged 65…

A Sydney nursing home has come up with an ingenious way to allow their residents to connect with loved ones until in-person visits are allowed.

A visitor's pod has set up in the car park of Ashfield Baptist homes which separates people by a pane of glass but is a little more personal than a video call.

The pod is set up with comfortable chairs and the residents and visitors can chat to each other on the phone while just a few metres apart.

READ MORE: Ambulances forced to queue outside Melbourne hospitals under strain of COVID-19

Sister Eileen Hardman and Trish Yelland have been catching up like this until they are allowed to hug again.

"We got our menu planned and everything," they told 9News.

Watch the full story on 9News at 6pm.

Powerball was not struck tonight, meaning the big prize has rolled over to $20 million on Saturday.However, two lucky New Zealanders won $500,000 with Lotto First Division.The winning tickets were sold at Paper Plus Waihi & Toyworld,…

Supermarket chains have been shot down in a long-running court battle over Auckland’s liquor sales policies.A new Court of Appeal decision in Auckland Council’s favour has been delivered during intense national debate about alcohol…

A primary school teacher from the Kāpiti Coast asked her husband over lockdown what he most wanted in a burger. His “random list of things” became one of 400 creations made by home cooks around the capital, and the winning…

Xbox gamers can now take advantage of enhanced visuals with Dolby Vision while gaming on the Series X and S consoles.

The Xbox Series X|S is the first to fully support Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos for the console's gaming.

Xbox says there is more than 100 next-gen HDR titles available now or coming soon in Dolby Atmos.

READ MORE: Crash Bandicoot's creators speak to 25 years of the beloved character

Thousands of classic HDR10 and Auto ADR games will also get a picture quality bump through Dolby Vision on the Xbox Series X|S.

But what is Dolby Vision?

It's the next step, while small, above a 4K display – a full-spectrum, visual boost.

While it's not adding any pixels or the like, Dolby Vision boosts the vibrancy on compatible TVs, creating more vivid colours, brightness and contrast support.

Xbox previously enabled Dolby Vision for its streaming apps in 2018, but this is the first time we've experienced Dolby Vision through gaming.

Xbox owners are the first of the next-gen gamers to take advantage of the upgrade, but only if their TVs allow it.

READ MORE: Lost Judgment is the perfect trip to Tokyo

To check if your TV is compatible with Dolby Vision you'll need to check your Xbox's settings.

Here's how to check if your TV is compatible:

Head to Settings > General > TV & display options > 4K TV details then Enable Dolby Vision on Xbox Series X|S.

If you don't see it there you may need to check your TVs display settings and make sure its gaming mode or low-latency mode is enabled.

You can also check out the Dolby website to see if your TV supports Dolby Vision.

TikTok has hit one of the most exclusive milestones in the tech industry.

The company said in a blog post on Monday that it now has more than one billion monthly active users around the world, making it the rare social media application not owned by Facebook or Google to claim an audience of that size.

The short-form video app's popularity surged as people spent more time on their phones during the pandemic.

LIVE UPDATES: Illegal AFL gathering blamed for an explosion in cases

It has also both benefited from and fuelled the growth of the creator industry, as more people look to make a living from posting content to social media sites.

The growth of the Chinese-owned app comes despite an effort by former President Donald Trump's administration last year to shut down TikTok in the United States.

And while Trump's effort ultimately fizzled, the app has been banned in India and faces scrutiny from European regulators over its data protection practices and children's safety.

READ MORE: Ambulances forced to queue outside Melbourne hospitals under strain of COVID-19

TikTok has also maintained its popularity despite rivals launching copycat products, including Instagram's Reels, YouTube's Shorts and Snapchat's Spotlight.

The app's monthly active users in August were up 25 per cent compared to the same month last year, according to app store intelligence firm Sensor Tower.

The announcement solidifies TikTok's place among the competitive ranks of legacy social media platforms like Facebook, YouTube and Facebook-owned Instagram, the latter of which hit one billion monthly users in June 2018.

READ MORE: Queensland outbreak has 'hallmarks of something very significant'

By contrast, Snapchat, which has been around nearly twice as long, said earlier this year that it had reached 500 million monthly active users.

When Twitter last reported this metric in 2019, it had 330 million monthly active users.

During the pandemic, TikTok was successful in drawing in more millennials and high-profile creators from Instagram and other sites.

TikTok also launched a $1.38 billion creator fund last year to encourage users to create content on the platform.

Te Pāti Māori is threatening a hīkoi if “transformational change” does not result from a major review of child protection agency Oranga Tamariki released today. Meanwhile some advocates have called the Government’s…

The Government is poised to announce a long-awaited policy to fast-track tens of thousands of residency applications for migrant workers stuck in limbo throughout the pandemic. Immigration Minister Kris Faafoi has been under pressure…

A severe storm warning has been issued for central New South Wales, with large hail listed as one of the hazards.

Rain has begun falling in south-eastern and eastern parts of the state as the storm season officially got underway today.

Today will see heavy rain and storms roll through, lasting an expected three days.

Weatherzone says the rain will become widespread from central Victoria up to southern Queensland from today, drenching large areas inland and some coastal regions.

LIVE UPDATES: Victoria records 950 new local cases

https://twitter.com/BOM_NSW/status/1442947055261872130?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

The Bureau of Meterology this afternoon issued a severe storm warning for parts of the North West Slopes and Plains, Central West Slopes and Plains, Riverina, Lower Western and Upper Western Forecast Districts.

A supercell had been detected southwest of Barringun and Enngonia on the Queensland-NSW border.

Destructive winds, flash flooding and giant hail have all been predicted for this afternoon.

https://twitter.com/BOM_NSW/status/1443067256871731200

Northern Victoria, western NSW and southern and central Queensland will experience thunderstorms that have the potential to be severe.

They will include heavy rain, large hail and damaging winds.

https://twitter.com/weatherzone/status/1442942918390517761?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Supercell thunderstorms could develop over far northern NSW and southern inland Queensland, bringing destructive winds with gusts above 125km/h and hail measuring more than five centimetres in diameter.

READ MORE: Queensland's outbreak has 'the hallmarks of something very significant'

https://twitter.com/BOM_Qld/status/1442976165942095877?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

A severe storm warning for Adelaide and Mount Lofty districted in South Australia has also been issued, with warnings of heavy rainfall.

A flood watch has been issued for a number of river catchments in Victoria with the heavy rain having the potential to cause minor flooding in Victoria and southern NSW.

Yesterday, Miriam Bradley from the Bureau of Meteorology said the storms have the potential to be "severe".

Ms Bradley said the storms could "produce damaging wind gusts, heavy rainfall that could lead to flash flooding or large hail".

"All of those are quite significant risks. The damaging winds can bring down powerlines and trees and cause other damage.

"The heavy rainfall can lead to flash flooding and make hazardous driving conditions and even just conditions for being outdoors.

"It is definitely very important to stay aware of the risks and the forecast for your area."