 | Apple's bitcoin snub has got people smashing their iPhones Feb 7th 2014, 14:10, by Hugh Langley 
Apple's no fan of bitcoin, it seems, with Cupertino having just blocked the final bitcoin wallet app from the App Store. Apple's taken down a number of bitcoin wallet apps but the final one to go, Blockchain, has caused a fair amount of backlash from the cryptocurrency community. Apple gave no notice that it was going to remove the app from the iOS App Store and Mac App store, despite the fact it's been around for over two years. One Reddit user even promised to give away a Nexus 5 to the first five people to smash their iPhone. Sure enough, people got smashing. Smashy smashy"The only thing that has changed is that bitcoin has become competitive to Apple's own payment system," said a response from Blockchain on the matter. Meanwhile Android still has a number of bitcoin wallet apps available, so Google's still in the good books of cryptocurrency fans. Apple better hurry up with those sapphire screens before the iPhone smashers get too carried away. Or just reinstate the apps.        | | Apple fires up new furnaces for iPhone 6's sapphire screen Feb 7th 2014, 10:01, by Hugh Langley 
Going on the latest evidence, it looks very much like Apple is on course to put sapphire-crystal displays in its future iPhones, including, quite possibly, the iPhone 6. The gang over at 9to5Mac uncovered evidence that Apple placed a big order for furnaces and chambers designed for building sapphire displays. According to the report, Apple will have enough machines to build between 103 million and 106 million displays every year, with more machines said to be on their way that would push that number up to 200 million. Apple's not getting smashedThis certainly isn't the first we've heard about Apple's possible plans to go big on the tougher material on its next iPhone, and the TouchID fingerprint sensor on the iPhone 5S already uses laser-cut sapphire crystal. By using a sapphire material, Apple's screens could become highly scratch-resistant and a lot less likely to break from any unfortunate drops. We could also see sapphire used on the iPad Air 2, of course. in the meantime, here's a video to show just how touch a sapphire screen could be. YouTube : www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdRaQhLD4x8- Everything else you need to know about the iPhone 6
       | | Redesigned HTC One 2 homescreen takes a twirl in the leak limelight Feb 6th 2014, 23:30, by Michelle Fitzsimmons 
The HTC One 2 is all but confirmed, thanks to a veritable truckload of leaks from every corner of the internet. Among the more prolific M8 minstrels has been none other than @evleaks, and today the Twitter tipster is back at it with an image that may reveal the forthcoming phone's redesigned homescreen. True to form, evleaks has a short caption to accompany the pic, though this one may be one of its curtest: "M8" is all we have to go on to identify what device this screen calls home. The overall design matches the scheme of HTC BlinkFeed, though the Flipboard-like tiles have been tweaked. The most notably addition though is the virtual navigation buttons, a feature we've heard rumored before. 
HTC One 2 in sightOf course, the image sources from an anonymous internet entity, so the final product could look very different from this find. Images purporting to show the HTC One 2 leaked earlier today, and they don't line-up with what evleaks has posted. However, Blinkfeed can be disabled, so the earlier images may in fact reveal what the standard screen looks like. The HTC M8 (internal codename for the One 2), should be here in the coming weeks, either at this month's MWC or at a late March event. Unfortunately for HTC and those who like surprises, if bits and pieces of the new HTC One keep appearing the way they have been, there may not be too much to be gobsmacked by when the phone is finally revealed.        | | Verizon HTC One is about to get Android 4.4 KitKat Feb 6th 2014, 23:00, by Kevin Lee 
Verizon HTC One owners, your Android 4.4 KitKat ship has come in. Mo Versi, HTC product manager, announced on Twitter that Verizon has approved a KitKat over-the-air update for the One that will begin rolling out shortly. Coming with the update is a slew of Sense 5.5 improvements to the phone. Sense 5.5 already made its way to the HTC One on with the Android 4.3 update, but it was curiously left out for Verizon customers. One of the more notable Sense 5.5 changes is an off switch for BlinkFeed. Shutting off this unified news and social network feed will return the device to a standard widget- and app-filled Android homescreen. For those who would rather keep it on, the update will also allow BlinkFeed to finally source posts from Google+, international news and RSS feeds. To help users sort through all the content, HTC added a sideswipe filters menu and improved search. All new and shinyOther improvements include some camera adjustments with a new dual shot mode for taking a picture with the back sensor and simultaneously capturing your reaction with the front snapper. Another camera upgrade is Zoe's new-found ability to make GIFs on top of short movie clips. On the some more basic level UI improvements, HTC has revamped the notifications area to be a customizable space for 12 different options. It's also added a few new options for this pull down menu such as Do Not Disturb and a data roaming toggle. Up until now, only the global GSM, Developer Edition and Sprint's versions of the outgoing HTC flagship have received the Android KitKat update. Hopefully the other carriers will follow suit and quickly break off a piece of that KitKat bar for the HTC One. Verizon also announced that the Android 4.4 is now being pushed out in stages to the HTC One, so keep clutching that metal clad handset for the latest. - Want a phone that already has Android 4.4? Check out our review of the Motorola Moto G.
       | | Samsung denies forcing athletes to cover up iPhones at Winter Olympics Feb 6th 2014, 22:32, by Michael Rougeau 
Samsung has denied it's demanding athletes cover up their iPhones and other non-Samsung logos during the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics. Samsung is heavily involved in the games, giving every athlete a Galaxy Note 3, sending a "Galaxy Team" of 80 athletes around the world on a large-scale marketing campaign, flying student bloggers to Sochi and releasing a Samsung Wireless Olympic Works app for fans. But the Swiss Olympic team says the gift of a new Galaxy Note 3 comes with a catch: That no other logos, iPhone or otherwise, appear on-camera during the Opening Ceremony. Athletes - and only athletes - have even been instructed to physically cover their iPhones during the ceremony, SlashGear reported (the team originally spilled its guts to the German site Bluewin). But Samsung has informed TechRadar that it has nothing to do with that. Samsung responds"Samsung has not been involved in any decisions related to branding on products used by athletes to the Games," a Samsung spokesperson told TechRadar. "All commercial marketing around the Games is overseen by the International Olympic Committee (IOC)." Whatever's really going on here, we'll know for sure when the Olympic Opening Ceremony kicks off Friday. If all you see is Samsung logos, you'll know who to blame - according to Samsung, at least. - The Galaxy S5 could soon steal the spotlight.
       | | Galaxy Note 3 gets a lick of paint with red and gold shades now available Feb 6th 2014, 21:56, by Chris Smith 
If the giant Samsung Galaxy Note 3 doesn't stand out enough in its native shades for some flashy smartphone fans, those phablet fanciers can now pick it up in new red and gold hues. The Korean mobile giant has now unleashed the new colours in the UK after announcing their impending arrival just before Christmas. The rose gold white (pretentious much?) and merlot red (now that's more like it) handsets can be snapped up from Carphone Warehouse. However, there's no sign of the rose gold black (what?) version also announced in December, but the smart money is on that showing up relatively quickly hereafter. Bigger and betterThe Galaxy Note 3, announced at IFA 2013 last autumn is the largest and highest spec device in the successful big-screened range yet. Alongside its 5.7-inch, 1080p display, there's also a nifty 2.3GHz quad-core Snapdragon 800 processor and a 13-megapixel camera. In our TechRadar review, we praised the device for it's speedy performance, solid battery life and excellent full HD display. Points were knocked-off off for it's tacky faux-leather rear casing, hefty price point and the tricky grip.   | | New Apple Retina displays may boast richer colors thanks to quantum dots Feb 6th 2014, 20:50, by Kevin Lee 
Apple's Retina displays have helped the iPhone and iPad reach new resolution limits, and soon Cupertino might do even more with the help of some sci-fi sounding dots. The US Patent and Trademark Office published four new patent applications from Apple that were first spotted by Patently Apple. The most interesting of these new documents describes using quantum dots in tandem with Apple's microelectromechanical systems shutter control. As noted in the patent, quantum dots may provide a way for enhancing the color gamut of displays. By replacing the regular LED phosphor, which often leaks out too much light and washes out colors, quantum dot screens can emit a much narrower and more specific spectrum of light. Without getting into the scientific minutiae of nanocrystals, a quantum dot display, if used, would create richer and more accurate colors. It's all about the backlightBesides improving color, the other two patents suggest fine tuning the backlight with quantum dots. More accurately, a dot-laden backlight sub-stack would produce a module with a mix of prisms, diffusers and light guides. Despite the added items it could be both thinner and more accurate. Finally, a backlight dimming invention would fine-tune the enhanced backlight system using a stack of red, blue, and green quantum dot sheets to correct for any LED color shift. Poppycock you say?Before you blow off the concept as patent pipe dreams, quantum dot technology is already being used in the Amazon Kindle Fire HDX 7. When Apple first introduced the Retina display in the iPhone 4, it grabbed eyes around the tech world. Since then though, other device makers have been catching up with 1080p capable smartphones and even higher resolution 4K tablets. It seems now Apple is looking into newer technologies to put its Retina display back on top, and better color accuracy could be the edge it needs. - How do Retina displays look right now? Find out in our review of the iPad Air.
       | | Wozniak pitches an Android iPhone, hell reports zero snowball sightings Feb 6th 2014, 19:47, by Chris Smith 
Apple Co-Founder Steve Wozniak has suggested a novel way for the company to combat the march of the Android army ... start building Android phones! Speaking to Wired, the outspoken computing whiz Wozniak said there's nothing keeping Apple from making Android phones that would out-style options from best-selling manufacturers like Samsung. "There's nothing that would keep Apple out of the Android market as a secondary phone market," he said. "We could compete very well. People like the precious looks of stylings and manufacturing that we do in our product compared to the other Android offerings. We could play in two arenas at the same time." Being Steve WozniakNaturally, there's no chance of that ever happening unless things take a serious turn for the worst at Cupertino, or Eric Schmidt totally Malkovich's Tim Cook. It's also unlikely the brazen statement will bother too many folks at Infinite Loop. Wozniak, whose only real involvement with Apple these days is collecting his dividends cheques, is known for his occasional jaunts to the other side of the tracks when it comes to toeing the company line. In the past, he's urged Apple to bring iTunes to Android, criticised the new range of iPads, asserted that the iPhone had fallen behind the competition and called Windows Phone 'more beautiful' than iOS. Beyond his latest wind up, Woz was super positive about the company's recent times, refusing to criticise the company's decision for the slow bleed of new iPhone features, amid Samsung's desire to cram their handsets with everything but the kitchen sink. "If you have something really good, don't change it; don't screw it up. You pick up a Samsung phone and say, 'Smile' and it takes a picture, but how much innovation is that? That's just throwing in a lot of features," he said.        | | The LG G Pro 2's speakers may just blow the competition out of the water Feb 6th 2014, 19:35, by Michael Rougeau 
The latest LG G Pro 2 leak suggests that the upcoming flagship will sport impressive 1W speakers and a "thickened bass booster" that will blow the competition away. This tidbit comes from ETNews, a Korean site that's spilled similar beans more than once in the past. The speaker improvements will reportedly result in a stronger, fuller sound than other smartphones in general, and a 30% stronger sound compared to the LG G Pro 2's predecessor, the LG Optimus G Pro. The G Pro 2 will reportedly also have a dedicated "Smart Listening" app to control sound output settings. Other LG G Pro 2 specsLG will unveil its G Pro 2 at MWC 2014 in Barcelona this month. In addition to the awesome speaker, the new LG flagship is rumored to have a razor-thin bezel that will enhance its 1080p screen. That display is reported to be anywhere from 5.7 to 6 inches, and with such a thin bezel it will look even bigger. On top of that LG has confirmed that the G Pro 2 will sport a 13-megapixel camera with optical image stabilization and 4K, slow-mo video capabilities. Other expected specs include a Snapdragon 800 processor, 3GB of RAM and Android 4.4 KitKat - but the rest is still a mystery. Watch out for more as Mobile World Congress gets closer and closer.        | | Apple goes big on fitness as it drops another iWatch hint Feb 6th 2014, 17:17, by Hugh Langley 
2014 is the year that Apple gets fit, and it just published evidence of its intentions. Apple put up a job advert for a "User Studies Exercise Physiologist" which could very well be tied to a little thing currently known as the iWatch. There are a number of requirements for the role, including "Good understanding of physiological monitoring equipment, measurement techniques and interpretation of results." However, the most interesting part comes at the end where Apple says the candidate will also need to apply knowledge to the "design of products and their testing/validation through user studies." The job posting appears to have vanished but 9to5Mac managed to get a screenshot before it did. On trackApple's rumoured plans have been hitting the headlines a lot as of late. It has reportedly hired a sleep expert from Philips Research, and we've heard that the company has a health app called Healthbook in the pipeline for iOS 8. Apple's ideal candidate for the new job will be carrying out research for "cardiovascular fitness & energy expenditure, including calories burned, metabolic rate, aerobic fitness level measurement/tracking". The iWatch is still in a state of speculation - there's a chance that this new job could relate to nothing more than the iPhone and its fitness-friendly M7 chip. But evidence of Apple's wearable plans is mounting up, and with both iOS 8 and the iWatch expected to arrive at some point in 2014, it looks like this is the year that Apple hopes to get us off the sofa and into the gym. - Does the iWatch even exist, and what do we know about it so far?
       | | Travel tech a bridge too far for UK businesses Feb 6th 2014, 16:20, by Stu Robarts 
A new report suggests that over half of the UK workforce is traveling further to work than five years ago, but is not necessarily being provided with the right tools by employers for communicating on the go. Research carried out on behalf of consumer electronics firm Plantronics found that 47 per cent of employees use their own smartphone and 22 per cent use their own laptop when travelling. Survey findings also suggested that firms may not be educating employees about data security risks. It found that 81 per cent of respondents were not concerned about connecting to free Wi-Fi and only 23 per cent of employees are provided with a secure internet connection when on the go. Severe implications"Business travel is increasing and organisations can no longer ignore the need to provide technology solutions that facilitate this," said Paul Clark, General Manager of Plantronics. "For those that do ignore it, the security implications and missed opportunities can be severe." Of the respondents surveyed, 60 per cent said their business travel was for client meetings and 45 per cent for internal meetings. Plantronics points to technologies such as VOIP, video conferencing and noise-cancelling headsets as means of minimising travel and reducing subsequent time and costs expended. Where travel is necessary, Clark says that appropriate technology can improve efficiencies is these areas. "The right technology can help make the most of your employees travel time, easing communication disruptions and helping them stay connected no matter their location."        | |
No comments:
Post a Comment