Link

Apple Gets New Project Titan In-Vehicle Device Location System Patent

Charlotte Henry ·

Apple received a new patent related to its Project Titan automated vehicle project. Patently Apple reported it is for a device location system for vehicles.

In this Project Titan granted patent, Apple notes that passengers in vehicles may carry mobile devices into the vehicles. Once inside, a passenger may place the mobile device at a location inside the vehicle cabin. Occasionally, the mobile device may move, fall onto the floor, or slide into a location on the vehicle that is difficult to see or access. As a result, mobile devices are often lost inside vehicles. Current methods for locating a mobile device in a vehicle require some degree of manual intervention, which can be tedious and cumbersome.

ZAGG Introduces 10.2 iPad Keyboard Case ‘Messenger Folio’
Cool Stuff Found

ZAGG Introduces 10.2 iPad Keyboard Case ‘Messenger Folio’

Andrew Orr ·

During CES 2020 ZAGG introduced three keyboard cases for the 10.2-inch iPad, and today the Messenger Folio is available for purchase. It has laptop-style keys with optimal travel, backlighting, Apple Pencil holder, a rechargeable battery that lasts up to 2 years between charges, and a built-in stand.

The Messenger Folio combines protection and productivity in a slender case that fits neatly in your bag or backpack. Laptop-style keys, a long-lasting battery, and a tab for the Apple Pencil let you get down to work, and the protective case and magnetic lock let you get back up and on the move again.

It’s available for US$59.99 with free shipping.

Link

Negotiations to Launch Apple Pay Taking Place in Israel

Charlotte Henry ·

Apple has begun talks with Israeli banks and credit companies in Israel, as it works to bring Apple Pay to the country. However, the commission fee could cause a problem.

Israeli financial institutions were not keen on Apple’s commission fee, which falls somewhere between 0.15% and 0.25% of each transaction. This works out to roughly one quarter to one-third of the credit card issuer’s revenue from the transaction, a hefty cut from an already relatively small fee. “It is disproportionate, and constitutes an exploitation of its status and power,” says a source familiar with the situation. While this may slow down talks, it should not be seen as definitive in any way.

Link

FCC Unsure Whether to Punish Carriers for Selling Location Data

Andrew Orr ·

Two years ago we found out that US carriers were selling real-time location data of its customers. The FCC has wrapped up its investigation, and maybe it will punish the carriers…or maybe not. Who knows? Chairman Ajit Pai doesn’t.

Pai’s statement went on: “Accordingly, in the coming days, I intend to circulate to my fellow Commissioners for their consideration one or more Notice(s) of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture in connection with the apparent violation(s). We are unable to provide additional information about any pending enforcement action(s) beyond what is stated in the letter.”

If that seems unusual vague: that “one or more” mobile operators “apparently violated” the law by selling location data, you’re not the only one.

Podcast

Science Communicator Dr. Kiki Sanford (#8) - TMO Background Mode Interview

John Martellaro · · Add Comment

Dr. Kiki Sanford makes her eighth appearance on Background Mode. Kiki is a neurophysiologist with a B.S. in conservation biology and a Ph.D. avian neurophysiology from the University of California. She’s a popular science communicator and creator/co-host of This Week in Science (TWIS) podcast and radio show.

In this episode, we spend the entire first segment discussing the coronavirus. Kiki fills us in on the details you don’t hear about on the nightly news. In segment #2, Kiki tells us the real reason why people under stress get grey hair, how Mars used to have surface water, how the Earth’s sea level is rising faster than expected, and how zebra strips seem to provide good protection against biting insects. As always, Kiki makes science fun and interesting.

Link

Amazon Will Sell Your Face for as Low as 40 Cents for Facial Recognition

Andrew Orr ·

Reporters at The California Sunday Magazine recently published an overview of facial recognition technology. It’s a long read and it provides a lot of information on this technology and how it works. Among the tidbits that caught my eye I wanted to share this one:

Why has the use of facial recognition become such a hot-button issue now? The most obvious answer is that the technology has been improved, streamlined, and commercialized to the point that it has become widely accessible, available for purchase for as low as 40 cents an image if you opt for Amazon’s facial-recognition software plan.

TMO Deals

This Tech Gear Bag Has Multiple Compartments, Durable Construction, Cable Port, More: $59.99

Bryan Chaffin ·

We have a deal on the Incase ICON Backpack, a bag designed for all your tech gear. The main compartment provides space for larger items and organization for flat documents and small accessories, the secondary compartment offers a series of organizer pockets to hold tech accessories, the dedicated side-access pocket is for your iPad, and the hip-side power pocket with integrated cable port to allow access to portable power or audio. This backpack is $59.99 through our deal.

Link

Microsoft Cancels Launch of Surface Hub 2X

Charlotte Henry ·

Microsoft has cancelled the launch of the Surface Hub 2X, The Verge reported. However, it has insisted it will rollout many of the previously announced features.

In a leaked webinar to Surface Hub 2 sellers, Microsoft says it’s still committed to developing tiling and rotation but it’s not clear when these features will arrive. “They might not require an upgrade for Surface Hub 2S customers, or they might not require a paid compute cartridge swap,” says a Microsoft spokesperson in the webinar. “We don’t have plans to release a compute cartridge in 2020, because the best way to release those capabilities — tiling and rotation — may not require us to take that path.”

Link

Wistron to Assemble iPhone Parts in India

Charlotte Henry ·

Wistron, a key Apple supplier, is set to assemble iPhone components in India, Reuters reported. It is part of a bid from Apple to expand its manufacturing in the country.

The local assembly of PCBs by Wistron’s India unit will be a first for the contract manufacturer, which began making Apple’s low-priced SE model in the southern tech hub of Bengaluru in 2017. It currently assembles the 6S and 7 iPhone models there as well. A PCB is a bed for key components such as processors, memory and wireless chip sets that are the heart of an electronic device. Once assembled, or populated with components, PCBs account for about half the cost of a smartphone. Wistron’s second iPhone plant, some 65 km (40 miles) from Bengaluru, is expected to become operational by April, the sources said, adding that it will make iPhone 7 and 8 models, some of which will be exported.

Link

HomePod And Other Products That Need Attention

Charlotte Henry ·

Apple regularly rolls out product updates, but that doesn’t mean some products couldn’t benefit from a little TLC. Dan Moren at MacWorld suggested which products he’d like to receive some attention, including the HomePod.

What is the HomePod to Apple? In the almost two years since its release, the company still hasn’t quite landed upon an answer. It’s a wireless smart speaker, to be sure, but when it comes to what differentiates it from its competitors from Amazon, Google, and Sonos, there hasn’t been a particularly compelling argument—beyond the fact that as an Apple product, it’s simply better. (An assertion that even numerous HomePod owners, including myself, would challenge.) If Apple does want to continue down the HomePod road, then the company needs to make some decisions. Is the HomePod simply a premium product? While it started out at a pricey $350, it’s become more and more common to see it floating around the $200-$250 range. Frankly I can’t remember the last time I saw an Apple product with that kind of deep discount.

Link

Location is One of The Big Factors in Advertising

Andrew Orr ·

Jennifer Jolly wrote an article wondering if Siri was spying on her because she began to see ads in Spanish after her husband began speaking Spanish at home, within “earshot” of her iPad. The answer is, of course, no. In her buried lede she tells us that she had just moved to a predominantly Spanish-speaking part of Oakland California. It seems reasonable to me that you would see Spanish ads in a Spanish area. Although I’m sure the device’s language is a factor. We did have news last year that contractors listened to some snippets of Siri recordings, but that was to improve the service and not sell ads. Meanwhile, if you turn on Limit Ad Tracking in Settings, your advertising identifier is zeroed. After that, location becomes one of the big factors in advertising.

And Apple says it engineers its devices to protect user privacy. When it comes to Siri, which is integrated in nearly every Apple device, the assistant is designed to activate only after the wake word (“Hey, Siri”) or a waking action is completed, Apple says.

Podcast

One Eight Hundredth Geek Out! – Mac Geek Gab 800

John F. Braun · · 2 Comments

What to do for the eight hundredth episode? Share tips, answer your questions, and solve your problems, of course! Today learn about HDMI adapters, iOS backups, mounting network shares, Copying from Screenshots, and a cool edit to the iOS Share Sheet. What more can you ask for? Well, maybe a rant about Neil Young, too! Listen and learn five new things with John F. Braun and Dave Hamilton, that’s what!

Link

CERN Replaces Facebook Workplace With Open Source

Andrew Orr ·

CERN is ending its trial of Facebook Workplace and replacing it with open source alternatives, like Mattermost and Discourse.

Facebook Workplace is Facebook’s corporate-focused product for internal real-time communication and related communication needs within organizations. CERN had been making use of Facebook Workplace and in addition to data privacy concerns, they were recently confronted with either paying Facebook or losing administrative rights, no more single sign-on access, and Facebook having access to their internal data. But now they have assembled their own set of software packages to fill the void by abandoning Facebook Workplace.

I hope to see more of this. Facebook is the Fox News of social media. Like The Mac Observer’s editor-in-chief Bryan Chaffin says: “Death by a thousand paper cuts.”