I have bought and returned an iPhone 6 Plus 10 times, please send help

It's entirely possible this could be classified as an actual mental illness. But there's just something about the iPhone 6 Plus that draws me in about a week after I switch back to my iPhone 6. It goes something like this...

There's nothing wrong with the iPhone 6. It's the best smartphone not only in the world, but ever made. It's gorgeous, it's luxury-level premium, it's the phone Apple wishes they could have made 7 years ago — it is completely perfect. Though, as someone who has always bought the best available iPhone, it kind of hurts that there's one a bit better. Better is a relative term, obviously, but the screen on the iPhone 6 Plus is just perfection with its higher resolution display, and it's entirely noticeable to me. There's also optical image stabilization in the camera, though that's not the biggest deal as the regular iPhone's camera is a joy. You also get a bigger battery with the iPhone 6 Plus.

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Posted in 2014 at 03:40PM, December 20

Here’s what happens to your iPhone after it gets stolen

The world of contraband electronics probably isn't one that you're familiar with, but if you read about smartphones on a regular basis, you're bound to come across stories of black markets all around the world selling devices for hundreds of dollars more than they're worth. This is one of the most interesting we've ever read.

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Posted in 2014 at 03:00AM, December 20

T-Mobile forks over $90 million to settle ‘unfounded’ cramming charges

Remember how indignant T-Mobile got when it was accused by the Federal Trade Commission of profiting from scams against its customers? Well now T-Mobile has agreed to fork over $90 million to settle the FTC's charges, which it said were "unfounded and without merit" earlier this year. As part of the settlement, T-Mobile will have to provide full refunds to any affected customers.

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Posted in 2014 at 01:30AM, December 20

Google Maps has just made Christmas window shopping insanely better

Google has a new amazing perk that will make Christmas and holiday window shopping insanely better for Internet users, as the company has updated its Google Maps Business View feature to include detailed imagery of certain business locations in New York and London, decorated for Christmas.

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Posted in 2014 at 12:45AM, December 20

BlackBerry’s downfall illustrated with one devastating chart

Things have been going poorly for BlackBerry for a while now but the past quarter might have been its worst yet. Not only is the company losing money hand-over-fist, but its quarterly revenues collapsed to $1.2 billion, a stunningly low number for a company that was once at the top of the smartphone market. The Guardian's Charles Arthur has posted a chart tracking BlackBerry's quarterly revenue over the past several years and the sharp, rapid drop in revenues since their peak in 2011 is truly a sight to behold.



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Posted in 2013 at 11:15PM, December 20

Why Google scares Microsoft to death

Microsoft has bashed both Samsung and Apple in its ads this year but there is a very good reason why Microsoft fears Google above all other rivals. It basically boils down to this: Google is willing to practically give away hardware for Android-based and Chrome-based devices just to ensure they get into as many users' hands as possible. How can the company afford to do this, you ask? Well consider the following chart posted recently by Enders Analysis analyst Ian Maude.



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Posted in 2013 at 09:20PM, December 20

Credit cards stolen in Target breach now being sold on black market -- buy one for $20-$100... Bitcoin accepted too!

Target confirmed earlier this week that approximately 40 million credit card and debit card numbers belonging to patrons who shopped in the company's stores on or around Black Friday were stolen in a massive security breach that took place between November 27th and December 15th. Now, the reporter who broke the story is back with some more bad news for Target customers: Those stolen credit card numbers and associated data are now available for sale on several black market websites.



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Posted in 2013 at 08:05PM, December 20

Study: People are way more worried about hackers than online tracking

Nearly every action you take while online is monitored by advertisers, from the products you buy to the links that you click. Ads are tailor-made for each and every user, like a more accurate Pandora, but without the music. Despite all of this, people are still more concerned about hackers accessing their private information than they are about advertisers paying for it.



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Posted in 2013 at 07:20PM, December 20

This is really... REALLY... BlackBerry's last chance. Really.

BlackBerry managed to miss its sales consensus by 25% even with rock bottom expectations. Drama? Well, no. The share price was drifting up by 2% at the market open. Investors have effectively acknowledged the handset unit is dead and are now focussing on things like patents and the BBM mobile messaging software. And on this front, something truly fascinating is happening.



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Posted in 2013 at 03:40PM, December 20

BlackBerry waves white flag in high-end consumer smartphone market

BlackBerry has seen the writing on the wall and it realizes that practically no one is buying its high-end BlackBerry 10 devices. BlackBerry CEO John Chen said in an earnings call on Friday that the company would shift design for the majority of its handsets to Foxconn in the coming months and that the only handsets it would keep designing would be those targeted toward a more limited number of high-end enterprise users. Chen said that the company hoped it would be able to design its own high-end handsets for consumer markets at some point in the future but that the company needed to concentrate its resources on retooling its enterprise software strategy and that it would let Foxconn take the lead for most new devices that would be low-cost handsets targeted toward consumers in emerging markets.

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Posted in 2013 at 01:53PM, December 20

EU shoots down Google’s settlement proposal in anti-trust case

The European Commission investigating Google in the region has once again rejected the company’s proposals to settle a search-related antitrust case, Reuters reports. This is the second time the Commission has shot down Google’s proposals, citing competition concerns.



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Posted in 2013 at 01:10PM, December 20

ABI: Over 285 million big brand tablets in use by end of year

There will be over 285 million big brand tablets in use by the end of the year, a new report from ABI Research shows, from well-known devices makers including Apple, Samsung and others. Apparently the report does not include cheaper tablets made by less known players in the tablet business, also known as white-box tablets. In the U.S., more than 70 million tablets will have been purchased by the end of the year, “about one for every four persons."



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Posted in 2013 at 11:33AM, December 20

Samsung Android tablets reportedly going ‘Pro,’ cheap ‘Lite’ next year

Samsung will reportedly launch a variety of new Android tablets in the first quarter of 2014, including models that will get the “Pro” moniker, if Sam Mobile’s insider is to be believed. The company is working on three such Pro tablets that will be part of two families, the Galaxy Tab and the Galaxy Note, as follows: 8.4-inch Galaxy Tab Pro (SM-T320/T325), 10.1-inch Galaxy Tab Pro (SM-T520/T525), 12.2-inch Galaxy Note Pro 12.2 (SM-P900/P905). A “Lite” tablet is also apparently in the works, the 7-inch Galaxy Tab 3 Lite (SM-T110/T111).



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Posted in 2013 at 10:35AM, December 20

The BMW i8 might get the coolest key of all time

The eco-friendly BMW i8 may have one more feature that will impress potential buyers, a smart key fob that looks – and performs – like no ordinary car key. One BMW insider shared the image above with Bimmerfile , which shows what the i8 smart key could look like. According to the publication, the key will include its own high-resolution LCD screen which will reportedly be able to display various useful information such as charge levels, time on a charge and the distance the vehicle can travel before requiring recharging and/or refueling.



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Posted in 2013 at 05:30AM, December 20

New patent suggests Apple could follow Samsung’s lead for once

According to Patently Apple , Apple has received a patent for creating flexible sapphire displays using liquid metal. The patent describes wrap-around displays in various shapes including a hollow cylinder and elongated rectangle. They would be created by extracting a sapphire crystal seed from a crucible of molten liquid aluminum. The shape of the display would depend on the shape of the crystal seed. Apple has increasingly shown interest in advanced sapphire displays.



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Posted in 2013 at 01:45AM, December 20

The NSA’s rough week just got even worse

Back in August, not long after Edward Snowden began leaking details about NSA surveillance programs, President Obama created a panel to review the NSA's data surveillance practices and recommend changes. Yesterday, the panel released its 308-page report and recommended 46 changes, including ending the collection of phone call metadata, which the panel says "creates potential risks to public trust, personal privacy, and civil liberty." Instead, phone companies or other private entities should control the data, and it should only be accessed with an order from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC).



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Posted in 2013 at 12:30AM, December 20