Samsung has also found that no one—and I mean no one—cares for its me-too services and solution-in-search-of-problem software addons to Android. What's a shameless IP thief to do? Well, if you're Samsung, you come out with an innovative service called Samsung Pay, a mobile payment solution that will launch with the Galaxy S6 sometime this…
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The Digital Betrayal of the Consumer is Officially Out of Control
There is officially no such thing as computer security. At least from the most sophisticated attackers. Our only hope is that our profile is so low and are activities so mundane that we're off any entity's radar. If you disagree, I present several stories that came to the surface this week. 1. First, at least…
Digital Music: Can You Hear Above 16-bit/44.1kHz?
At best you'd think, “My TV doesn't display UV or IR so it won't make any difference since I can't see those frequencies anyway.” At worst you'd be concerned about getting a sunburn or a heat rash. Now imagine I said, “You should listen to my special audio version of Miles Davis's Kind of Blue…
Logitech Harmony Universal Remote Finally Gets It Right
Episode #103 For years I’ve been searching for the perfect universal remote control, one that was: Easy to set up and manage Able to control all aspects of all of my audio and video components Reliable enough that I could throw the device’s original remote in a drawer and never miss it Over the past…
iOS 8: Fixing Bluetooth Headset Connection Issues
Here's how to force your iPhone to use your Bluetooth headset when answering incoming calls: Tap Settings Tap Accessibility Tap Call Audio Routing Choose Headset Change Call Audio Routing to Headset to cut down on lost headset connections The default setting for Call Audio Routing lets your iPhone automatically choose where to send your calls,…
iOS 8: 3 Very Nice Weather Apps With Widgets for Notification Center
_________________ All three of these apps have some very nice features when used as a stand alone app: They're full-featured weather apps in themselves Their widgets vary in extent and design, so you will want to check each widget to see which one gives you the data you prefer. (For a refresher on how to…
Shellshock Flaw Poses Big Security Threat for Mac, other Unix Systems
Bash's Shellshock flaw poses big security threat for Macs and other Linux systems Shellshock is about a 25 year old security flaw in the Bash shell that lets code held in certain variables to be executed immediately and without the victim's knowledge. That code could give attackers deep level access to the system as well…
Rokform Sport v3 Case for iPhone 6: Serious Protection and Mobile Options
There is no way around it. Most any case for the iPhone will change its look, feel and heft. The question is, given that you want some good protection, what kinds of options do you want? Rokform provides a boatload. _______________________ There are many different philosophies of iPhone case design. Some are almost decorative in…
WSJ Lines Up Tim Cook to Kick Off Inaugural WSJDLive Conference
The Wall Street Journal announced Friday that Apple CEO Cook would headline its inaugural WSJDLive conference, the apparent successor to D, the conference that was headed by tech journalist luminaries Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher. Mr. Cook will be interviewed at the event, which takes place from October 27-29 at the Montage in Laguna Beach,…
How to Check Your AT&T iPhone Upgrade Eligibility
___________________ Method #1. Perhaps the easiest way to check is to call the number *639# (*NEW#) directly from your iPhone. Shortly, you'll receive a text message from AT&T. Here's how it looked on my iPhone 5s. Method #2. Another way to check is to use Apple's Apple Store app. On the home (Featured) page is…
An iPhone Veteran Evaluates an Amazon Fire Phone
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos announced the Fire Phone on June 18 with several novel features and a 4.7-inch display. This TMO review takes a close look at the Fire Phone from a technical perspective that steers away from politics and towards what the iPhone or any potential owner would want to know about this very…
A Mad Magazine Experiment with iPad Gone Sour
___________________ In September of that year, I wrote: … I’ve started a pilot project to eliminate most of my paper magazine subscriptions and convert to digital format on the iPad. Of course, this has been possible previously on the Mac in some cases, but the size and portability of the iPad creates a critical psychological…
Hilton to Turn Your iPhone into Your Hotel Room Key
Hilton is turning your iPhone into a hotel room key Hilton CEO Christopher J. Nassetta said, “Travelers can use their smartphones as boarding passes to get to their seats on an airplane, so it is only natural that they will want to use them as a way to enter their hotel rooms.” The new room…
Ink and Slide: Adobe's Stylus Revolution
Adobe is finally making its first venture in to the hardware market, and it's doing so with the highly anticipated stylus and ruler combo it first teased a year ago. That combo, Ink and Slide, work together to turn your iPad into a full-on art tablet, but not like any stylus that's come before. At…
3 Free Do It Yourself Apps for iPhone and iPad
That's when I ran into a huge list of stuff I should have done over the years, but haven't for some reason. (Laziness is likely the real reason). There's a door that needs to be trued, a bathroom that needs painting, some patches on the lawn that defies every attempt to keep it sodded, a…
Samsung Galaxy S5 Misses Sales Targets, Disappoints Korean Securities Firms
Analysts sour on Samsung over missed Galaxy S5 shipment goals Analysts had expected the Galaxy S5 to give Samsung's smartphone sales a big boost, but that hasn't been the case. With declining faith in Samsung's ability to compete with the iPhone and other smartphone makers, analysts are becoming more critical of the company. Shipping 15…
NSA Eavesdropping: Your iPhone isn't Safe Even when it's Off
Think your smartphone is safe when it's off? The NSA may still be able to activate it's mic. The idea that the NSA, or National Security Agency, can remotely activate your iPhone's microphone and listen in on your conversations surfaced when Edward Snowden leaked secret government documents a year ago documenting widespread surveillance on U.S.…
WWDC14: Why No New Hardware Was Announced
Tim Cook at WWDC keynote. Credit: Apple First, when we look at Apple's traditional line of products, the dates of the last updates are as follows, from oldest to newest. Mac mini – October 2012 Apple TV – March 2013 iMac – September 2013 MacBook Pro – October 2013 iPad Air – October 2013 iPad…
The Most Important Thing to Know About Apple Makes All the Difference
________________________ There are many things that a company can do with technology these days to make money. In fact, the Internet age seems to be about nothing else than dreaming up new software schemes to make money even if it means deceiving the customer, say, in a EULA or probing into people's lives to make…
How to Make the iOS 7.1.1 Touch ID Fix Work For You
Touch ID is capable of scanning and storing up to five fingerprints With the release of the iOS 7.1 update last March, Apple acknowledged these issues by including an “improvement of Touch ID fingerprint recognition.” While I continued to enjoy flawless access via Touch ID on my iPhone 5s, I was indeed aware of several…
Why Apple Didn't Try to Copy Google Glass
Google Glass had a nifty sci-fi feel to it when the product first came out. Along the way, however, Google apparently failed to fully appreciate both why the product should exist in the chosen form and the social aspects of the device. Calls for Apple to quickly follow Google's lead now look silly. ______________________ The…
Microsoft Word for iPad Gets Touch Word Processing (Mostly) Right
Through the decades, we've never known anything else but Microsoft Word for Windows and Mac. In late March, however, Microsoft brought its monolithic word processing software to the iPad, a totally new paradigm from its PC legacy. Right away we see the familiar workings of Word, including cross-platform file compatibility. But it's also developed with many of the key…
A Next Generation Stylus: TruGlide Apex Uses Electronic Magic
Introduction – Why a $60 Stylus? Apple's iOS devices are designed to work without a stylus. There's a reason for that: Steve Jobs didn't believe in them. “God gave us 10 styluses, let’s not invent another,” he told Walter Isaacson, his biographer. And yet. There are times when a stylus is useful. Indeed splendid. It…
3 Free iOS Apps For Those Who Love To Read
Unlike the skill of cursive writing, reading appears to be an ability we must have even as the technology that supports and present the text we read is changing. In fact, it is because of rapidly evolving technology that being able to read and read quickly has become almost as essential to our social lives…