First man-made biological leaf to make oxygen for space travel

London: An inventor in the UK has developed the world's first synthetic biological leaf that absorbs water and carbon dioxide to produce oxygen just like a plant, and it could enable long-distance space travel.

The leaf, created by Royal College of Art student Julian Melchiorri, consists of chloroplasts suspended in a matrix made out of silk protein. "The material is extracted directly from the fibres of silk," Melchiorri said. "This material has an amazing property of stabilising molecules. I extracted chloroplasts from plant cells and placed them inside this silk protein. As an outcome I have the first photosynthetic material that is living and breathing as a leaf does," he said. Like the leaves of a plant, Melchiorri's Silk Leaf needs light and a small amount of water to produce oxygen, 'Dezeen' reported. "Silk Leaf is the first man-made biological leaf. It's very light, low energy-consuming, it's completely biological," Melchiorri said.

"Plants don't grow in zero gravity. NASA is researching different ways to produce oxygen for long-distance space journeys to let us live in space. This material could allow us to explore space much further than we can now," said Melchiorri. The Silk Leaf project was developed as part of the Royal College of Art's Innovation Design Engineering course in collaboration with Tufts University silk lab. Melchiorri said the leaf could also be used for outdoor applications. "So facades, ventilation systems. You can absorb air from outside, pass it through these biological filters and then bring oxygenated air inside," he said.

Source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com/140731/technology-science-and-trends/article/first-man-made-biological-leaf-make-oxygen-space-travel

Using unoriginal batteries can burn down your house

A Samsung Galaxy S4 reported caught fire due to a third party battery; Snap grab from Fox4 Youtube

Mumbai: Ariel Tolfree, a thirteen-year-old youngster woke up with her burnt Samsung Galaxy S4. She had placed her smartphone under her white pillow and fell off to sleep and after a couple of hours, she found it burning.

Seeing the unrecognisable condition of the Samsung Galaxy S4, her parents contacted the company. Samsung investigated on this and claims that the reason for this is the use of a cheap quality battery and not the original Samsung battery. The third battery overheated throughout the night and swelled, thus causing the Galaxy S4 to burn through the pillow under which it was placed. As reported by Fox4 news, Samsung has agreed to replace the Galaxy S4 as well as the mattress and the pillow.

Source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com/140731/technology-mobiles-and-tabs/article/using-unoriginal-batteries-can-burn-down-your-house

Samsung Z Delay Prompts Tizzy Over Tizen

Samsung has delayed the launch of its Samsung Z smartphone running theTizen OS, which was scheduled for Q3 release in Russia. The move, just short of two months after the Samsung Z's launch at the Tizen Developers Conference, sparked a death watch for the device. However, Samsung reportedly said it needed to further enhance the Tizen ecosystem. Samsung has had several setbacks with the Tizen smartphone. NTT DoCoMo, Japan's largest carrier, and another key backer, French carrier Orange, canceled plans to carry a Tizen smartphone earlier this year.

Hell, No, We Won't Go!

"What we're facing now is an extremely competitive market with a number of platforms that have decently developed ecosystems, and bringing in a new ecosystem, whether from someone brand new or established, is going to be extremely difficult," said Tuong Huy Nguyen, a principal research analyst atGartner.

"Consumers already have an ecosystem they're comfortable with," he told LinuxInsider. "You're asking them to make a leap to something that they're not familiar with, and that's not as well established in terms of applications and hardware as some of the other players out there."

What's a Tizen?

Tizen is an OS based on the Linux kernel and the GNU C Library. It is geared toward embedded devices, including smartphones, tablets, in-vehicle infotainment devices, smart TVs, laptops and smart cameras.

It aims to offer a consistent user experience across devices -- something Microsoft is gunning for under CEO Satya Nadella, who wants to create one version of Windows for PCs, laptops and mobile devices.

Tizen was developed by Samsung, then handed over to the Linux Foundation. It is now governed by a Technical Steering Group whose members include Samsung and Intel. Samsung already offers smart TVs, a smartwatch, and smart cameras running Tizen.

In fact, Tizen is Samsung's second stab at extending its own smart devices OS; Bada, which has been incorporated into Tizen, was the first.

Planet of the Apps

Tizen lacks apps, which are the lifeblood of any mobile ecosystem. "Every time [Samsung tries] to bring the Tizen smartphone out it doesn't get great reviews, primarily because there are no apps for it," Rob Enderle, principal analyst at the Enderle Group, told LinuxInsider. "Samsung's never been good with developers." Tizen "is reasonably robust, but it's so young -- and it doesn't have an installed base," Enderle pointed out.

More Than It Can Chew?

Samsung was largely responsible for Android's strong showing in the market -- it sold 65 percent of all Android devices, Localytics reported earlier this year -- but it essentially put all its eggs in one basket. Meanwhile, Google strongly supported competitors such as HTC.

So, Samsung began extending Tizen's reach, not only into smartphones but also into embedded processors, through Intel. Had it succeeded, Tizen would have posed a serious threat to Google, which is pushing Android into the connected car market.

"Samsung has been trying to give themselves and their customers -- operators and channel partners -- an option beyond iOS and Android, but I see this as a much tougher proposition than anyone realizes," Nguyen said.

"It's even more difficult for Samsung," he added, "because their competency seems to lie in hardware and not so much on the software side."

Source: http://www.technewsworld.com/story/80812.html?google_editors_picks=true

Runtastic’s $120 Orbit Fitness Tracker Prizes Function And Features Over Fashion

Runtastic is doing the reverse of what many startups are doing these days: it’s going from being a software platform provider to becoming a hardware maker with the Runtastic Orbit fitness tracker. The Orbit is similar in concept and execution to the various trackers from Fitbit, Jawbone and Nike already available, but with a number of features designed to set it apart from the competition. Runtastic succeeds in terms of utility, but this is ultimately a take on wearables that will probably appeal most to existing Runtastic fans or those who aren’t that concerned with the fashion aspects of wearables.

The Orbit boasts an impressive feature list, including a built-in OLED display, vibration feedback, ambient lighting detection, a full week of battery life and waterproofing for up to 300 feet of submersion. It can track steps, distance, calories burned, total active minutes, sleep and it can provide regular inactivity vibration alerts as well as wake up alarms. In the box you get not one but two straps for the Orbit, which is itself a small Fitbit-style pill-shaped device, and a smaller clip for wearing in a less obvious place.

Orbit is comfortable enough to wear, I found, thanks to the soft rubberized material of the band, and its waterproofing means that you never really have to take it off if you don’t want to. Over long periods, however, I wasn’t thrilled about the Orbit’s comfort levels – especially when worn to bed as a sleep tracker. Essentially the Orbit feels more like a watch than some of the other wearables out there, and that meant I generally preferred to take it off overnight than keep it on, despite the gadget’s impressive sleep tracking abilities.

Runtastic’s companion hardware for the Orbit, Runtastic Me, is well-designed and clearly benefits from their years of experience building health tracking software for mobile devices. The Me app syncs with the Orbit via Bluetooth Smart (so no pairing required) and it lists your steps, active minutes, calories burned, distance and sleep. You can tap on each of these for any given day to drill down and see more about each category displayed in a nicely designed graph, as well as manage your device from the Me app’s settings page.

The Orbit also works with Runtastic’s existing fitness tracking apps, so I was able to use it with Runtastic Pro to track my runs, and as a second screen device that provides feedback throughout your activity. It changes modes when used with the fitness tracking software, and is detected automatically, starting things off with a countdown until your run begins, and then providing you with updates along the way including time elapsed, distance travelled and more. While the feature is currently only available for Runtastic and Runtastic Pro, the company says it will roll out support for Orbit across its suite of software in the future.

 

While the Orbit is about as feature-laden as you can get in an activity tracker that’s similar in styling to the Fitbit Flex or Jawbone UP24, in the end it also sports a design that is decidedly uninspiring. The big silver button is handy in terms of using the device easily while you’re running or participating in other activities, but it does little for the overall aesthetics of the device. In the end it seems like design was an afterthought to function and features, which is why this is a great tool for those who want a wearable that offer the most in terms of utility, but not necessarily for those also concerned about fashion.

The Runtastic Orbit is available from the Runtastic Online Store for $119.99, and ships by August 11. In the end it isn’t drastically different from the existing crop of similar devices, but with its easily readable display, feature set and hardware control, it’s a good option for active users looking for something to complement their exercise routine, especially if you’re already a fan of Runtastic’s software and services.

Source: http://techcrunch.com/2014/07/31/runtastic-orbit-review/

Hackers can tap USB devices in new attacks, researcher warns

German crypto specialist and and chief scientist with Berlin's SR Labs Karsten Nohl is reflected in a computer screen as he looks at photographs of USB sticks in his office in Berlin. USB devices such as mice, keyboards and thumb-drives can be used to hack into personal computers in a potential new class of attacks that evade all known security protections, Nohl revealed on Thursday
Image by: THOMAS PETER / REUTERS

USB devices such as mice, keyboards and thumb-drives can be used to hack into personal computers in a potential new class of attacks that evade all known security protections, a top computer researcher revealed on Thursday.

Karsten Nohl, chief scientist with Berlin's SR Labs, noted that hackers could load malicious software onto tiny, low-cost computer chips that control functions of USB devices but which have no built-in shields against tampering with their code.

"You cannot tell where the virus came from. It is almost like a magic trick," said Nohl, whose research firm is known for uncovering major flaws in mobile phone technology.

The finding shows that bugs in software used to run tiny electronics components that are invisible to the average computer user can be extremely dangerous when hackers figure out how to exploit them. Security researchers have increasingly turned their attention to uncovering such flaws.

Nohl said his firm has performed attacks by writing malicious code onto USB control chips used in thumb drives and smartphones. Once the USB device is attached to a computer, the malicious software can log keystrokes, spy on communications and destroy data, he said.

Computers do not detect the infections when tainted devices are inserted into a PC because anti-virus programs are only designed to scan for software written onto memory and do not scan the "firmware" that controls the functioning of those devices, he said.

Nohl and Jakob Lell, a security researcher at SR Labs, will describe their attack method at next week's Black Hat hacking conference in Las Vegas in a presentation titled: "Bad USB - On Accessories that Turn Evil."

Thousands of security professionals gather at the annual conference to hear about the latest hacking techniques, including ones that threaten security of business computers, consumer electronics and critical infrastructure.

Nohl said he would not be surprised if intelligence agencies like the National Security Agency have already figured out how to launch attacks using this technique.

Last year he presented research at Black Hat on breakthrough methods for remotely attacking SIM cards on mobile phones. In December, documents leaked by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden demonstrated that the U.S. spy agency was using a similar technique for surveillance, which it called "Monkey Calendar."

An NSA spokeswoman declined to comment.

SR Labs tested the technique by infecting controller chips made by major manufacturer Taiwan's Phison Electronics Corp , and placing them into USB memory drives and smartphones running Google Inc's Android operating system.

Similar chips are made by Silicon Motion Technology Corp and Alcor Micro Corp. Nohl said his firm did not test devices with chips from those manufacturers.

Phison and Google did not respond to requests for comment. Officials with Silicon Motion and Alcor Micro could not immediately be reached.

Nohl said he believes hackers would have a "high chance" of corrupting other kinds of controller chips besides those made by Phison, because their manufacturers are not required to secure software. He said those chips, once infected, could be used to infect mice, keyboards and other devices that connect via USB.

"The sky is the limit. You can do anything at all," he said.

In his tests, Nohl said he was also able to gain remote access to a computer by having the USB instruct the computer to download a malicious program with instructions that the PC believed were coming from a keyboard. He said he was also able to change what are known as DNS network settings on a computer, essentially instructing the machine to route Internet traffic through malicious servers.

Once a computer is infected, it could be programmed to infect all USB devices that are subsequently attached to that PC, which would then corrupt machines that they contact.

"Now all of your USB devices are infected. It becomes self-propagating and extremely persistent," Nohl said. "You can never remove it."

Christof Paar, a professor of electrical engineering at Germany's University of Bochum who reviewed the findings, said he believes the new research will prompt others to take a closer look at USB technology, and potentially lead to the discovery of more bugs. He called on manufacturers to move to better protect their chips to thwart any attacks.

"The manufacturer should make it much harder to change the software that runs on a USB stick," Paar said. 

Source: http://www.timeslive.co.za/scitech/2014/07/31/hackers-can-tap-usb-devices-in-new-attacks-researcher-warns 

UK Government Approves Self-Driving Cars on UK Roads From 2015

The dream of fully autonomous cars may promise a less stressful commute, reduced congestion and hopefully improve air quality too, but obtaining regulatory approval to allow self-driving cars on public roads is a hurdle that must be overcome before robotic cars become commonplace.

The UK test program will test regular cars fitted with autonomous drive technology as well as ‘driverless’ cars.

Luckily for self-driving car fans in the UK, the island nation has become the latest in a growing list of countries where semi or fully autonomous cars are welcome on the public highway.

Announced yesterday by UK Buisness Secretary Vince Cable, two new regulatory measures will legally allow self-driving technology to be developed and tested on public roads from January 2015. The measures not only allow for the development and testing of conventional cars with autopilot or self-driving features, but will also pave the way for fully autonomous vehicles where there are no conventional driving controls fitted.

Under the new scheme, the UK Government says it has set aside £10 million in funding to help up to three cities around the UK host driverless car trials. Carried out in collaboration with local businesses and research organisations, the test programs will start in January next year and last between 18 and 36 months.

“The excellence of our scientists and engineers has established the UK as a pioneer in the development of driverless vehicles through pilot projects,” said Vince Cable. Today’s announcement will see driverless cars take to our streets in less than 6 months, putting us at the forefront of this transformational technology and opening up new opportunities for our economy and society.”

It isn’t clear if cars like Google’s autonomous pods will be used in the program

In addition to announcing the series of self-driving test programs throughout the UK, Mr. Cable said that a new Governmental review had been launched to look at the impact of self-driving technology on road law.

The review will look at how autonomous vehicles can be designed with current road regulations in mind, as well as the licensing, liability and insurance questions raised by having cars piloted by computers — rather than humans — on the road. The review is expected to be published by the end of 2014, just before the first self-driving trials start in January 2015.

Source: http://transportevolved.com/2014/07/31/uk-government-approves-self-driving-cars-uk-roads-2015/

Apple winks at parents: C'mon, get your kid a tweaked Macbook Pro

Apple has updated its MacBook Pro notebook line, adding a slightly faster processor and more memory for the cheapest models.

The company said the update will double the memory for models Apple describes as "entry-level" MacBook Pro Retina screen notebooks. The systems will retain their starting price of $1,299 and will now sport a dual-core Intel 2.6Ghz Core i5 processor (turbo boost to 3.1GHz) and 8GB of memory. They originally sported 2.4GHz CPUs.

While the low-end MacBook Pro will now sport a cheaper price tag, the notebook will not be Apple's lowest-priced. The MacBook Air starts at $899 (£749).Additionally, Apple said that it is lowering the price on its cheapest (non-Retina) MacBook Pro model from $1,199 to $1,099.

The updated notebook models will arrive just in time for the back-to-school shopping season and could win over parents. Apple credited strong Mac sales with helping the company log record quarterly results.

Apple has quietly overhauled a number of its hardware offerings this summer. In addition to Tuesday's MacBook Pro update, the company has in recent weeks updated its iPod Touch and added a cheaper option to the iMac desktop line.

The company is also gearing up for the release of a new edition of OS X. The Yosemite, version 10.10, update has been pushed into a rare public beta phase after drawing huge interest from developers following its unveiling at WWDC. ® 

Source: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/07/29/apple_updates_macbook_pro_retina/

Amazon Fire Phone not enticing enough to leave Apple, Android

Amazon.com made its boldest move yet into the electronics hardware business by entering the fiercely competitive smartphone market earlier this month with the release of the Amazon Fire Phone.

The Amazon smartphone is suited with top-of-the-line components and priced to compete with other high-end devices. The Fire Phone is a perfectly capable gadget, but it isn’t so remarkable that Apple or Android owners will jump ship. At best, the device is a convenient choice for devout Amazon shoppers, but at worst, it’s just another fish in a sea of smartphones.

The Amazon Fire Phone looks like an oversized black iPhone with front and back glass panels, curved corners, and a narrow, rectangular build. But it diverges in a couple of ways. The Fire Phone has rubber side edges, prominently features the Amazon logo on its back and it includes a speaker on both its top and bottom sides for stereo sound -- a rarity among smartphones.

But the Fire Phone’s most distinguishable feature is its four infrared LED sensors located on each corner of its front panel. These “ultra-low power specialized cameras,” as Amazon calls them, work together to detect where a user’s head is relative to the phone. Amazon calls this feature Dynamic Perspective, and it’s used to add 3-D effects to the device’s interface as well as give users another way to control their gadget. For example, with the photo app, users can prompt the Fire Phone to display the date of each picture and video by moving their head to the left or right of the device. Third-party developers can also implement Dynamic Perspective into their apps, and some already have. In the video game “Lili,” users can look around the 3-D world by moving their faces around the screen in real life. It’s a neat feature, but it’s very gimmicky. Unless more developers find useful ways to implement it into their apps, most users will likely forget Dynamic Perspective exists.

Another unique feature on the Amazon Fire Phone is called Firefly. It uses the device’s camera and microphone to detect text, products, movies, TV shows and music. The feature is activated by holding down the camera button on the left side of the device. Once on, users point the phone at whatever they want to detect. You can aim it at a business card to add a phone or email address to the phone rather than typing it out; using Firefly while watching a TV show will pull information from IMDB.com; and if you aim Firefly at a product, the Fire Phone will call up the Amazon Web page for the item, making it easier for you to buy it.

And that takes us to the most annoying part about the Fire Phone -- its main purpose is to spur more Amazon sales. The Fire Phone’s interface is designed so that it is constantly recommending more things for you to buy. Swipe to a recently used app, and you’ll find app suggestions. Go to a recently heard song, and the device will offer other songs it thinks you’ll like and should buy. Amazon makes similar recommendations on its Fire TV streaming player and its Fire tablets, but they don’t feel so invasive on those devices because you have a lot of real estate to work with. On the Fire Phone, you’re only looking at 4.7 inches of screen, and though it is a crystal clear screen, it feels cramped. The recommendations are on by default, but fortunately, users can go turn them off in their settings, giving their home screen some breathing room.

If you’re not sure how to turn off the recommendations, you can swipe down from the top of the screen then tap the Mayday icon to turn on Amazon’s helpful customer service. Mayday will kick off a video call with an Amazon representative who is trained to answer any question you may have about the device. Amazon introduced this feature in 2013 with some of its tablets, and it’s nice to see the company carrying it over to more devices.

The Fire Phone runs on Amazon’s version of Android, meaning it looks and feels nothing like the software Google makes. Instead, the main screen features a carousel that displays apps and content in the order you most recently used them. You can “pin” your favorite items to the front, but navigating this way isn’t too effective. Fortunately, there are other ways to get around. Swiping up from the bottom will pull up your apps, which can be rearranged however you want. If you quickly tilt the left side of the phone toward you, you’ll prompt a menu that offers shortcuts to content apps, like your Amazon music, movies and audiobooks. Tilt the right side of the phone toward you, and you’ll see another menu containing information Amazon thinks you’ll find helpful. Mine included the weather in Los Angeles and the status of my latest Amazon order. These tilt gestures were included to make it easier for users to navigate their device using one hand, and they play a prominent role in Amazon’s various apps. Tilting from the right while in the text messaging app will pull up recently shot photos, speeding up the process of sending a picture.

Those pictures are also very high quality. The Amazon Fire Phone uses a 13-megapixel rear-facing camera that shoots sharp videos and photos, but that’s standard for a high-end smartphone. What’s unique is that Amazon will automatically back up every picture you shoot with the Fire Phone in the cloud. This is very helpful when you’re at an event, like a music festival, and you run out of space on your device -- you can delete your photos knowing Amazon’s got a copy you can access later and keep snapping more. This is also a money saver. By comparison, Apple only offers customers 5 gigabytes of cloud storage for free. After that, Apple users have to pay for more space.

Users who buy the Fire Phone also get a year’s membership to Amazon Prime, which includes access to Amazon Instant Video, Prime Music and free, two-day delivery on certain items -- worth $99. But the gadget itself won’t come cheap. Consumers can buy the phone with no contract for $649 with 32 gigabytes of storage or $749 with 64 GB. The device is available on a two-year contract from AT&T for $199 for 32 GB or $299 for 64 GB. Customers can also pay for the device on a monthly basis using the AT&T Next payment system.

If you love shopping on Amazon, the Fire Phone might make sense for you. But if you shop from various websites and you’re already entrenched in the Apple or Android ecosystem, none of the Amazon Fire Phone’s features -- not Dynamic Perspective, Firefly, or even the unlimited photo backups -- are enough to warrant a switch.

Source: http://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-amazon-fire-phone-review-20140729-story.html

Windows Phone 8.1 update unleashes Cortana on the UK

Microsoft has officially unveiled its first major update toWindows Phone 8.1 since it launched the latest version of its mobile platform.

The big news is that the update will see Cortana - Microsoft's answer to Siri - break out of the US, with the Beta version hitting China and the UK, while an Alpha opt-in version of the personal assistant will touch down in Canada, India and Australia.

Cortana herself is also been given a few extra features in the update, and Microsoft is encouraging US users to ask her to "do an impersonation" once they've updated.

Another feature coming with the Windows Phone 8.1 update is the inclusion of "Live Folders" allowing users to group apps together on their homescreens.

The lack of folders is something which has been a bug bear since the arrival of Windows Phone 7, and it's good to see Microsoft finally providing this functionality.

More, more, more

Microsoft is also promising a faster, better performing Xbox Music application with the WP 8.1 update, plus it's added more features to it including Kids Corner support and a new "quickplay" function of recent activity.

There's a range of other additions in this update including enhanced security, a new Apps Corner for businesses to lock down various applications and new functionality for the Store Live Tile providing updates on the latest apps.

Developers will be able to get their mitts on the new Windows Phone 8.1 update from next week, while any of you currently rocking a WP 8.1 device can expect it to land on your phone "in the coming months."

Source: http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/windows-phone-8-1-update-unleashes-cortana-on-the-uk-1259585

What the Cellphone Unlocking Law Means for You

A bill that will make it legal to unlock your cellphone is headed for U.S. President Barack Obama's desk. This is great news, but what does it mean for you? Will it actually impact how you can use your devices?

The ability to "unlock" your cellphone or tablet — that is, provision the phone to run on a different carrier network — gained visibility in early 2013, after a Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) exemption that made the practice legal in the U.S. expired.

That means that under U.S. law, it is now illegal to unlock a cellphone without a carrier's permission. Consumers, advocacy groups and even the White House came out in favor of legalizing phone unlocking. The wireless industry, which was initially against reinstating the copyright exemption, even had a change of heart, of sorts.

Last week, a piece of bipartisan legislation, dubbed the "Unlocking Consumer and Wireless Competition Act," was unanimously approved by both the House and the Senate. This means that consumers will once again be able to legally unlock their cellphones without running afoul of copyright laws.

The law will only restore the exemption until the Librarian of Congress makes its next ruling(which is scheduled to happen sometime in 2015), but as activist Sina Khanifar notes, this is the first time Congress has ever acted to reverse an exemption.

Alright, so you'll soon be able to unlock your phone again. What does this mean for you, the regular phone user?

Will this make my phone work on all carriers?

A common misconception is that unlocking a cellphone will make it compatible with all other cellular networks. In other words, if I unlock my Verizon handset, I can use it on AT&T or Sprint.

The reality is a lot more complicated. In the United States, wireless carries have historically run on two types of technology: GSM or CDMA. AT&T and T-Mobile use GSM for the underpinnings of its network, while Verizon and Sprint use CDMA. The two technologies are incompatible with one another, which means that many (though not all) CDMA phones will not work on a GSM network.

With CDMA devices, even being unlocked doesn't guarantee a Sprint phone will work on Verizon's network. The networks still have to provision different phones and in most cases, a Sprint phone won't be provisioned to run on Verizon's voice network and vice versa.

But let's assume you have a "world phone" — that is, a phone that has both CDMA and GSM support. Does that mean your Verizon device can now be used on AT&T? The answer sadly, is, "it depends."

Some phones, such as Verizon's iPhone, are also unlocked to work on GSM networks. That means that you can use your Verizon iPhone 5S on AT&T and T-Mobile, and you'll even get LTE speeds. If you have a Verizon iPhone 5, however, the unlocked phone will only get HSPA+ speeds on T-Mobile and AT&T.

An AT&T or T-Mobile phone, unlocked or not, will not work on Sprint. Some AT&T and T-Mobile unlocked phones will work on Verizon's LTE network, but that's only for data, not for voice.

We should also point out that because LTE has so many different bands, you can't guarantee that an LTE device made for one network will work on LTE on another network. Phone makers are starting to build in support for more bands into their devices, but it's far from a perfect match.

If you're an iPhone user, you can find out what networks your phone will work on by looking atthis chart from MacRumors.

Can my unlocked phone work overseas?

As long as it is a "world phone," the answer is yes. Unlike the United States, the rest of the world has almost entirely standardized on GSM. That means that as long as your Verizon or Sprint phone is designated a "world phone," it can be unlocked and used in Europe and many other countries.

Keep in mind, however, that just because you can pop in a SIM card and get voice or SMS service doesn't mean you can get LTE data service on your phone overseas. LTE support is based on what band is supported by your phone and the carrier in a specific country. More often than not, your phone will get HSPA+ at best if you are trying to use it someplace else.

It's also important to know that China uses a different standard than the rest of the world. If you're going to China, plan on just using your phone on Wi-Fi and maybe on 2G. Plan to buy a local replacement if it's going to be a long stay.

Can I unlock my tablet too?

The cellphone unlock bill only covers phones. The bill did say, however, that the Librarian of Congress should consider whether other wireless devices, like tablets, are also eligible for unlocking.

With tablets, the unlocking scenario is actually less complex, if only because we're only talking about data networks, Increasingly, modern tablets in the United States are sold to work on T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon networks for LTE (and Verizon models can fall-back to CDMA for 3G data).

What does this mean for bulk unlockers?

Early supporters of the cellphone unlock movement expressed their displeasure with an early version of the bill, which denied legal protections to "bulk unlockers" — that is, companies and services designed for unlocking your phone. This group also includes phone recyclers and resellers.

As a result, the language concerning "bulk unlockers" was removed for the bill. That means that bulk unlocking services or recyclers or resellers, should feel free to unlock phones just like anyone else.

Will we have to do this whole exemption dance again?

Yes, but hopefully it won't take as long next time. The Library of Congress meets again in 2015 to decide on the next set of DMCA exemptions. With Congress and the Senate approving the bill — and with the overwhelming public support — we can only hope it will be passed again.

There is talk to bring a bill forward that would permanently exempt cellphone unlocking from the DMCA, in order to avoid this every two-years song and dance.

Source: http://mashable.com/2014/07/29/cellphone-unlock-law-faq/

HTC One M8 OS update starts next week

Taiwan-based smartphone maker HTC pleased their users as their One M8 handsets have started rolling out its software to the Android v4.4.3 KitKat upgrade with the Sense 6 UI.

Mo Versi, Vice President of HTC, announced via Twitter that the Android 4.4.3 OTA update will be received soon by HTC One M8′s users. Earlier last week, he said that the update will come with incorporated security fixes from Android 4.4.4.

However, this update will be applicable for the users of HTC One M8′s international variant. Those with the locked variants will be receiving it later on, although no schedule has been said from HTC.

It was reported that this Android 4.4.3 KitKat OTA upgrade would be 592.17 MB in size. HTC One M7′s OS has also been kept up to date with the same OS upgrade. HTC tweeted the Kernel source code last Tuesday, along with the One M8′s source code for Sprint wireless devices.

Nonetheless, this OS update would surely benefit the users of HTC One M8. However, when Versi was asked as to when One M7 will be receiving the Android 4.4.4 update, he replied, “M7 will go directly to L release for next update.”

This may likewise be concluded for the HTC One M8 and other variants of the device.

It was back in February when HTC rolled out an upgrade on Android 4.4 KitKat OS for its One M7, followed by the Sense 6 UI sized with 670MB in May.

Source: http://www.thehoopsnews.com/2014/07/29/363/htc-one-m8-os-update-starts-next-week/

Apple acqui-hiring Swell app for $30M

Rumor has it that Apple, is about to spend $30 million to swallow Swell, a news and podcast curation app. A lot has been going on for Apple, and this seems to be their next goal.

Swell is an app that is considered by some as the “Pandora of the talk radio.” Anything that has been said over the microphone, there’s a great chance that Swell has it. It also offers first rate content from the likes of NPR, ABC, iTunes, ESPN, CBC and BBC.

After spending $3 billion for acquiring Beats, Apple is trying to make a broad ecosystem of audio products. It sounds a lot like Apple is trying to win over the world’s ears. What Beats is to music, Swell is to podcasts.

Swell will be shutting out their app this week. But most of its employees will be joining Apple, and some will be mingling with the people from Cupertino Borg. This seems like Apple is acqui-hiring for the algorithms and and the talents who developed it. They truly are farming out talents on the software side of things.

What’s more interesting is how Google, the search engine giant and Apple’s nemesis, is one of the original investors in the aforementioned app.

On the other hand, this may seem as a good move for Apple since their current podcast app is rated 1.5 out of five stars.

“Swell provides fast, easy access to quality streaming content with zero effort. Our algorithms effortlessly connect listeners to content given their preferences and the wisdom of the community. In the U.S. alone, commuters spend 500 million hours per week getting to and from work. People often feel disconnected or bored when driving, exercising, or in the kitchen, and terrestrial radio doesn’t give people any choice, or control over time and place. Swell solves this problem. We respect the time people choose to spend with us,” stated Ram Ramkumar, co-founder and CEO of Swell.

Despite their ability to zero in on news and information, the app’s downside is their lack of stable customer base. By the looks of it, Apple thinks the problem is solvable.

Aside from these, Apple also purchased BookLamp, a company that devises recommended book reading lists for users. This is undoubtedly, the Pandora for books.

Apple is definitely on the rise to ensure that their music streaming services won’t go obsolete, just like what they did to CDs a decade ago.

Source: http://www.thehoopsnews.com/2014/07/29/367/apple-acqui-hiring-swell-app-30m/

FTC Wants Fix for 'Perfect Scam' of Mobile Cramming

Trade Commission has issued new guidelines for mobile carriers aimed at better protecting consumers against “mobile cramming,” a practice that adds unauthorized third-party charges to customers’ mobile phone bills. The guidelines are recommendations only, and do not come with any new regulatory teeth. However, further government actions on the practice may still be forthcoming.

The FTC guidelines, outlined in a staff report on mobile cramming, recommend five best practices for mobile carriers. These include giving consumers the option of blocking all third-party charges on their phone accounts, avoiding deceptive advertisements for products or services billed to mobile accounts, seeking informed customer consent for any charges, disclosing clear and non-deceptive information on charges for third-party services and providing a straightforward dispute resolution process for customers with cramming complaints.

While the FTC describes carrier billing as a “multi-billion dollarbusiness ,” it notes that the full cost of mobile cramming to consumers is unknown. However, just three cases brought against mobile crammers by the agency last year resulted in more than $160 million in judgments. Speaking at an FTC roundtable on the practice in May 2013, John Breyault, vice president of public policy, telecommunications and fraud with the National Consumers League called it “almost the perfect scam.”

A ‘Step Forward’ for Customers

We reached out to Breyault to ask for his reaction to the latest recommendations from the FTC. He said the guidelines are “certainly a step forward” in providing “rules of the road for industry.” While they don’t come with enforcement powers, the recommendations do suggest to mobile carriers that these are good steps to follow if they don’t want to be sued by the FTC, he added.

Still more needs to be done, however, to ensure consumers aren’t taken by mobile billing scams, Breyault said.

“Most consumers aren’t looking at third-party charges,” Breyault said. “Our position on this is that the third-party platform itself is inherently an insecure payment [method].”

For example, he said, consumers can be tricked into unknowingly adding third-party charges to their bills when they visit some Web sites that request a phone number during registration. They can also unwittingly incur third-party fees through direct carrier billing that uses an app, for example, rather than a text message that requires an explicit OK from the customer.

A Game of ‘Whack-a-Mole’

Earlier this month, the FTC filed a complaint against mobile service provider T-Mobile USA Inc. that alleged the company was making “hundreds of millions of dollars” through so-called premium SMS subscriptions that in many cases had not been authorized by customers. Those subscription services included horoscopes, celebrity gossip and flirting tips with typical charges of around $9.99 per month.

In a response posted in its online newsroom, T-Mobile called the complaint “unfounded and without merit.” The company also noted that it had stopped billing customers for such premium SMS services in 2013.

We reached out to T-Mobile for a reaction to the latest recommendations from the FTC, but a spokesperson declined to comment.

T-Mobile and two other carriers -- AT&T Mobility and Sprint -- agreed last November to stop charging customers third-party charges for premium SMS services. The announcement followed discussions with 45 states led by Vermont and Vermont's Attorney General Bill Sorrell.

The practice of mobile cramming is also getting attention from the U.S. Senate, which has scheduled a committee hearing on the subject for Wednesday, July 30. Led by Sen. John D. (Jay) Rockefeller IV, chairman of the US Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, the hearing will examine ways of protecting consumers as the carrier billing industry continues to evolve.

Breyault said he plans to attend the hearing, although he will not be testifying. He added that continued action will be needed as technology keeps changing and mobile fraudsters move on to new territories.

“It seems to be a game of whack-a-mole,” he said, referring to the popular carnival game where the goal is to hit the pesky troublemaker wherever it pops up next.

Source: http://www.toptechnews.com/article/index.php story_id=131009VIBGE4

BlackBerry launches cybersnooping counterattack

With controversy still swirling around government snooping efforts, BlackBerry has announced a deal to acquire German anti-eavesdropping specialist Secusmart.

In addition to its anti-eavesdropping technology, the Dusseldorf-based firm touts high-security voice and data encryption. The company provides its technology to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is at the center of a controversy over an alleged National Security Agency phone tap.

The NSA’s snooping scandal, the spying furor that recently engulfed the UK’s Government Communications Headquarters, and the continued high profile of Edward Snowden have kept the issue of consumer privacy in the spotlight.

Set against this backdrop, the acquisition could be a smart move for BlackBerry, according to experts.

In the past couple of years, it has become apparent that eavesdropping and security are more rampant than anyone had previously thought, reputation management expert and BlackBerry user Ken Wisnefski said.

“If Blackberry can create capable devices that people want, this serious effort to reassure folks that someone is looking out for their mobile security could generate huge value and win them back a sizable share of the market,” Wisnefski, the CEO of Mount Laurel, N.J.-based Internet marketing firm WebiMax, wrote in an emailed statement. “People are becoming more aware that as they move more of their life online, they become more and more vulnerable.”

With most voice communications sent over IP data streams, voice security is particularly vulnerable, added Jack Gold, president and principal analyst at Northborough, Mass.-based tech industry analyst firm J. Gold Associates.

“The amount of corporate information transferred via voice as opposed to email/data is very large and subject to interception,” he wrote in an email to FoxNews.com. “The need to include enhanced encryption/security of voice is becoming mission critical, even though many users and organizations don’t recognize this requirement yet.”

In 2013, Germany’s Federal Office for Information Security selected Secusmart’s SecuSUITE for BlackBerry 10 product to secure classified communications of the top German public officials.

BlackBerry’s deal to acquire Secusmart is subject to regulatory approval.

Source: http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2014/07/29/blackberry-launches-cyber-snooping-counter-attack/