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Wednesday, June 04, 2014

Facebook's New Feature Has Users Thoroughly Creeped Out

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/facebooks-new-feature-creeped-out-users-2014-6

Facebook Listens

Facebook recently rolled out a new feature that's leaving some users speechless and others running to sign a petition to have it removed, news.com.au reports.

The social network's new quirk allows its mobile app to turn on your smartphone's microphone, listen in on what's around you. Facebook identifies the music or TV shows it hears, and can tell the world you're currently "Listening to Iggy Azalea" if it hears you bumping "Fancy."

The opt-in feature has many users creeped out. More than half a million have flocked to sign a sumofus.com petition to have the new gimmick axed from the app.

"Tell Facebook not to release its creepy and dangerous new app feature that listens to users’ surroundings and conversations," the petition urges. "Facebook says it'll be responsible with this feature, but we know we can't trust it."

At a time when privacy concerns run rampant Facebook's new feature seems to go against the trend. In May Microsoft announced you'll be able to buy an Xbox One without the similarly creepy always-on Kinect watching and listening to your every move.

The sumofus.com petition is a little less than 200,000 signatures away from its goal: 750,000. Perhaps if it reaches that mark Facebook will actually listen to its users.

SEE ALSO: The most popular apps in the U.S. right now

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Non-Safari iPhone browsers will soon have access to Appleâs full-speed Javascript engine

Source: http://gigaom.com/2014/06/04/non-safari-iphone-browsers-will-soon-have-access-to-apples-full-speed-javascript-engine/

One of the most obvious drawbacks of Apple’s approach to iOS development has been the fact that no browser except for Safari could tap into Apple’s fastest Javascript engine. Not only did this decision prevent standalone browser apps like Chrome from running at full speed, it also hampered apps like Twitter that need to open a lot of URLs. As noted in Re/code, this is changing in iOS 8: Apps using the latest WebKit interface will have access to Apple’s Javascript engine. Hopefully, this means users will soon be able to also set a new default browser as well, but we’ll see: iOS 8 may be significantly more open than previous versions, but Apple’s not going to radically change overnight.

Related research and analysis from Gigaom Research:
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Lego's Getting Three More Female Scientist Minifigs

Source: http://lego.gizmodo.com/legos-getting-three-more-female-scientist-minifigs-1586081172/+ericlimer

Lego's Getting Three More Female Scientist Minifigs

Human girls can be scientist of all stripes, and they should have toys that encourage them to do so. That's why it's awesome that Lego ideas just greenlit three new female Lego scientist minifigs—an astronomer, a paleontologist, and a chemist—for an August 2014 release. Yay!

Bluetooth-Controlled LED Bulbs That Create Their Own Wireless Network

Source: http://gizmodo.com/bluetooth-controlled-led-bulbs-that-create-their-own-wi-1585962628

Bluetooth-Controlled LED Bulbs That Create Their Own Wireless Network

Coincidentally timed with Apple's WWDC HomeKit announcement, Samsung has revealed a new line of smart LED lightbulbs that communicate with your phone, and each other, using a mesh Bluetooth network they automatically create.

Monoprice Just Gave the 3D Printer a Crazy Price Cut

Source: http://gizmodo.com/monoprices-just-gave-the-3d-printer-a-crazy-price-cut-1586188765

Monoprice Just Gave the 3D Printer a Crazy Price Cut

With many machines well over the $2,000 mark, 3D printers are still mostly sequestered to use by professionals. Monoprice, the cut-rate technology powerhouse, is slicing more than a few hundreds off the price point with a 3D printer that costs $1,200.

Amazon's 3D Smartphone: Everything We Think We Know

Source: http://gizmodo.com/amazons-3d-smartphone-everything-we-think-we-know-1586225798

Amazon's 3D Smartphone: Everything We Think We Know

On June 18th, Amazon will announce a mysterious new device, and we're pretty darn sure it's going to be the crazy 3D smartphone that's been rumored for over a year. Here's what the reports suggest is coming our way soon.

Amazon's 3D Smartphone Is Coming June 18 (AMZN)

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-event-2014-6

Amazon is holding a product announcement on June 18.

It's probably for the long-rumored Amazon smartphone. Amazon posted a video to YouTube that teases the device. The video shows a bunch of people moving their heads around and getting super excited.

That's likely because Amazon's smartphone is said to have several front-facing cameras that can track your head's movement and display images on the screen in such a way that they appear to pop out in 3D.

The phone will likely run a heavily modified version of Android, just like Amazon's line of Kindle Fire tablets. That means you'll have to get all your apps and services from Amazon's own app store.

According to BGR, the Amazon phone may take advantage of AT&T's sponsored data plan, meaning streaming content from Amazon's video or music products won't count against your monthly data allotment.

Amazon has made a big push in hardware recently. In addition to its Kindle Fire line of tablets, it now has Fire TV, a set-top box that lets you stream video from Amazon and other popular services like Netflix. Fire TV doubles as a gaming system for some Android games if you buy an extra controller.

The event will be held in Seattle and appears to be open to the public. If you want to go, you can sign up here.

And that page shows what appears to be the edge of a smartphone:

amazon smartphone signup page

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The Most Popular Apps In The US Right Now

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/the-most-popular-apps-in-the-us-2014-6

With over 1.2 million apps in the Apple App Store and more than 1 million in Android's Google Play Store, apps are more popular than ever — but which ones are people using the most?

Internet-analytics company comScore just released the 15 most popular apps used in April in the U.S., for iOS and Android, and there are few surprises.

You can see the full list of rankings below.

Facebook is in the lead, reaching 74.1% of smartphone users, meaning 74.1% of people with smartphones used the app in April. Twitter clocked in with 20.4%, suggesting that only one in five smartphone users Tweet while nearly three of every four smartphone users surf Facebook.

YouTube leapfrogged Google Search for third place, coming in at nearly 50%.

Google Play and Apple Maps are, unsurprisingly, included in the rankings. Both are preinstalled on many Android devices and Apple phones. Smartphone users still prefer Google Maps to Apple Maps, however, though Android and Apple consumer can still choose between the two — both are available for both platforms.

comScore april 2014 U.S. smartphone market share

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Someone Created A Program That Can Disable Google Glass From Recording You (GOOG)

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-stop-glass-wearers-from-recording-you-2014-6

google glass ban

Now that Google is selling Google Glass to anyone who wants to shell out $1,500 to buy one, there could be an increase in backlash from people creeped out by the device.

So privacy advocate Julian Oliver, member of a group called "Stop The Cyborgs," came up with a clever new way to stop Glass from doing things like secretly recording video without permission.

He's published a simple computer program that can detect when Glass is being used and stop it from connecting to a network. That in turn means that Glass can't access cloud servers and apps.

Oliver tells Wired's Andy Greenberg:

"To say ‘I don’t want to be filmed’ at a restaurant, at a party, or playing with your kids is perfectly OK. But how do you do that when you don’t even know if a device is recording? ... This steps up the game. It’s taking a jammer-like approach."

The program isn't a commercially available product, so using it would require a bit of tech skill. It would need to be installed on something like inexpensive Raspberry Pi computer that has been hooked up with a USB network antenna. Once installed, the program searches for the unique network address that Google Glass uses and, when detected, refuses to allow Glass to connect.

While anyone can post signs declaring a Glass-free zone, this uses technology to enforce the policy.

Oliver tells Wired that he's working on an even more aggressive version, one that can move around with you, disconnecting Glass from any network. The legality of that is questionable, Oliver admits, and he plans to warn people to use it only "in extreme circumstances.”

SEE ALSO: The 20 Most Valuable Enterprise Tech Companies In The World

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Intel Wants to Make Your Office Entirely Cable-Free By 2016

Source: http://gizmodo.com/intel-wants-to-make-your-office-entirely-cable-free-by-1585879520

Intel Wants to Make Your Office Entirely Cable-Free By 2016

A rat's nest of cables at the back of a desk is truly the sign of the gadget-obsessed. But Intel plans to end all that, and soon: it wants your desk—hell, your entire digital life—to be completely wireless by 2016.

Cree's New 3-Step LED Bulb Brightens Better Than You're Used To

Source: http://gizmodo.com/cree-turns-on-its-new-three-step-led-bulb-1585550336

Cree's New 3-Step LED Bulb Brightens Better Than You're Used To

The last luminary holdout in your house, that lamp with the three-step socket, can finally join the 21st century. Cree just announced a new 3-Way LED bulb to provide just the right amount of light, no matter the occasion.

DuckDuckGo is going to be one of the default search engines available in iOS 8 and OS X Yosemite, ac

Source: http://lifehacker.com/duckduckgo-is-going-to-be-one-of-the-default-search-eng-1585622421

DuckDuckGo is going to be one of the default search engines available in iOS 8 and OS X Yosemite, according to iPhonehacks.com. The operating systems are still in beta, so things could change, but it's an exciting prospect for people who prefer the privacy-focused search engine.

AMD's New FX Chips Have Integrated Graphics Great for Gamers

Source: http://gizmodo.com/amds-new-fx-chips-have-integrated-graphics-great-for-ga-1585782621

AMD's New FX Chips Have Integrated Graphics Great for Gamers

It's Computex time, and that means new guts. While Intel's trotting out Broadwell for a spin , AMD's swinging back with its newest batch of mobile APUs—dubbed Kaveri—including the new FX-branded laptop-brains, which offer kick-ass integrated graphics that are bar none for gaming.

Cadmium Arsenide: A 3D Alternative to Graphene That's Way More Useful

Source: http://gizmodo.com/cadmium-arsenide-a-3d-alternative-to-graphene-thats-wa-1585844161

Cadmium Arsenide: A 3D Alternative to Graphene That's Way More Useful

There's no denying that graphene is a wonderful material —strong, flexible, and highly conductive—but it's taking a long time to become a commercial reality. Now, scientists working with a material called cadmium arsenide believe it offers many of the same benefits—but could actually be far easier to use in the real world.

Here Are The Apps Apple Just Killed With iOS 8

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/apps-apple-killed-with-ios-8-2014-6

Apple's newly announced operating system for iPhones and iPads, iOS 8, remedies a lot of things people have been complaining their iPhone can't do.

The problem is, a lot of successful apps out there have gained notoriety because of just that: they saw a hole that needed to be filled and people responded.

Apple has not-so-subtly incorporated many of these features into iOS 8, taking aim at these innovative apps and cherry-picking their most innovative features.

Here are the apps rendered obsolete by iOS 8.

Messaging apps such as Snapchat and WhatsApp: Apple's updated iMessage now allows users to send bite-sized multimedia messages and the option to display their location, longtime features of WhatsApp and Snapchat. WhatsApp CEO Jan Koum tweeted that it was "very flattering to see Apple 'borrow' numerous WhatsApp features into iMessage."

Dropbox and Google Drive: iCloud Drive means all your work is stored in the cloud and pushed instantly to any of your Apple or Mac devices, no app needed. Just like Dropbox, iCloud Drive users can monitor which documents or photos are being synced, and can even edit them online using Apple's iCloud productivity suite. iCloud Drive is free for 5GB of storage, with additional storage available starting at 20GB for $0.99 per month.

iCloudDrive

Skype: There are many applications which allow users to make phone calls over WiFi, but Skype is one of the most popular out there. The only downside is that you have to pay. Apple has revealed iOS 8 will allow you to make phone calls over WiFi to any device, which will be great if you have poor cell reception in ! your hom e or office.

iOS 8 wifi calling

Skitch: Ever need to point out a specific detail with an arrow or circle? Skitch has been the go-to app for annotating images, but Apple has added the same functionality to its Mail app, getting rid of the need to switch between an editing app and your inbox. Terrible at making arrows or incapable of drawing a non-sloppy circle? Apple has included a feature to recognize the basic shape attempted and seamlessly replace it with a more geometrically correct version.

WWDC

1Password: People have been itching for Apple to allow third-party apps to utilize their state-of-the-art fingerprint sensor, Touch ID, which acts as a unique and secure password to gain access to your iPhone. Until now, if you wanted to manage all your passwords, a manager like 1Password or LastPass were your best bets. Now, you won't even need to remember your passwords. All you'll need is your fingerprint.

SEE ALSO: The most important features in iOS 8 that Apple didn't tell you about yet

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