Hackers concoct most devious way yet to deliver Android malware

Phil Schiller recently tweeted a link to a report that said 99% of all mobile malware is directed at Android. Usually the malware comes through the web in the form of phishing or other tactics but it usually doesn’t come from PCs. However, that’s not the case with a particular piece of malware uncovered by Symantec that installs malware onto Android devices when they are connected to Windows PCs. The malware, called Trojan.Droidpak, installs a fake version of the Google Play store when the Android device is connected to PCs in “USB debugging mode.” That mode is usually only used by developers, but is also sometimes necessary for rooting Android devices or installing alternative Android firmware.



Continue reading...

Read More [...]

Posted in 2014 at 11:15PM, January 24

Scientists find that people can literally smell how sick you are

If you come down with the flu this winter, don't be surprised if people avoid you without even thinking about it just from the way you smell. New research published in Psychological Science claims that "humans are able to smell sickness in someone whose immune system is highly active within just a few hours of exposure to a toxin," which the scientists speculate is a biological mechanism for warning others within your species that you're sick and that they should keep away from you.



Continue reading...

Read More [...]

Posted in 2014 at 08:45PM, January 24

You’ll download full movies in a second on South Korea’s 5G network

South Korea plans to further upgrade its cellular data speeds in the coming years, and has announced that it will invest 1.6 trillion won (or $1.5 billion) in a 5G wireless network that will be 1,000 times faster than current 4G technology and will let users download full length movies in under a second, Agence France Presse reports.



Continue reading...

Read More [...]

Posted in 2014 at 08:10PM, January 24

How one country is fighting for your right to delete smartphone bloatware

One thing Android smartphones are highly criticized for is the amount of bloatware – whether it comes from OEMs or carriers – that can clog the overall experience, not to mention take up precious storage space on the device. Such software that’s preloaded on devices can’t be deleted by users in most cases – at least not in an easy, user-friendly fashion – but starting with April that’s about to change, at least in South Korea, ZDNet reports.



Continue reading...

Read More [...]

Posted in 2014 at 06:55PM, January 24

We are about to see some incredibly sweet smartphone deals

Samsung's fourth-quarter earnings report showed a 9% decline in mobile device sales from Q3, mirroring eerily the Nokia smartphone volume decline from autumn to holiday quarters. Of course, the two companies could not be more different... but that's the point. Both the vibrantly strong, massive Samsung and the tiny, struggling Nokia delivered Christmas quarters that were far weaker than industry expected two months ago.



Continue reading...

Read More [...]

Posted in 2014 at 06:23PM, January 24

Samsung’s biggest fear illustrated in just one graph

Every report we've read about Samsung's corporate culture paints the company as being in a constant state of panic, as its CEO refuses to let his employees rest on their laurels and is always pushing them to think of new ways to increase its operating margins. If Samsung was in a state of panic back when the company was still posting record profits, then we can't imagine what the atmosphere is like now that the company posted worse-than-expected earnings over its last quarter.



Continue reading...

Read More [...]

Posted in 2014 at 04:45PM, January 24

Video: iPhone 6 parts purportedly shown in new leak

Now that the larger iPhone is all but confirmed, it shouldn't be long before we start seeing our first glimpses of the iPhone 6. Earlier this month C Technology posted what appeared to be the backside of the chassis for the iPhone 6, and now a video on YouTube from user ConceptsPhone claims to show the front. As with any early leaks, there is no telling whether or not this video is legit, but the leaker claims that the video was filmed at "the Apple Factory." Unfortunately, without any other objects in the video with which to compare the parts, we can't determine whether or not the chassis is larger than that of the current generation of iPhones. Check out the video for yourself below.



Continue reading...

Read More [...]

Posted in 2014 at 04:17PM, January 24

These are the 5 games that could win the console war for the PS4

The PlayStation 4 and Xbox One launched to a great deal of fanfare in November. Thousands of anxious consumers lined up at their local retailers at midnight to be among the first to experience the next generation of video games. Over 7 million consoles have already been sold, anticipation is at an all time high...but we haven't had a great reason to turn on our new consoles in almost a month.



Continue reading...

Read More [...]

Posted in 2014 at 03:35PM, January 24

The burning question on everyone’s mind ahead of Apple’s earnings report

The iPad sales number is the one that's most likely to surprise us in Apple's Christmas quarter report, which will be released on January 27th. The consensus expectation has recently converged to around 25 million units, with several analysts exhibiting a herd mentality as they seek safety in numbers. As usual, Wall Street analysts are about 2 million units below the indie analysts. But the thing that is fiendishly hard to forecast is what sort of iPads Apple sold during the quarter.



Continue reading...

Read More [...]

Posted in 2014 at 03:00PM, January 24

Samsung wants to dial down mobile marketing for a change

Samsung on Friday told analysts that it plans to cut its mobile marketing this year in order to keep it relative to revenue, Reuters reports, a move which may mark a change from the company’s marketing spending sprees that have significantly surpassed similar efforts from competitors in previous years. “We'll actively leverage global sports events such as the Sochi (Winter) Olympics and our retail channels... but we will try to raise the efficiency of our marketing spend and lower our overall mobile marketing budget to revenue this year compared with last year," Samsung senior Vice President Kim Hyunjoon said.



Continue reading...

Read More [...]

Posted in 2014 at 12:45PM, January 24

Video: Apple celebrates 30 years of Mac innovation

Apple on Friday hosted a special home page on its website and a short video on YouTube to celebrate 30 years of Mac innovation. On January 24, 1984, the Macintosh, its first computer was launched, “with the promise to put the creative power of technology in everyone’s hands.” The company has also created a special section on its website dedicated to the 30 years of Mac. A side scrolling menu lets users pick any year from 1984 to 2014 and further explore each period, which has its own page containing a story, relevant pictures, quotes from various personalities as well as a section that shows what people did with their Macs in each year.



Continue reading...

Read More [...]

Posted in 2014 at 12:15PM, January 24

Samsung posts weaker Q4 2013 earnings, says smartphone and tablets still strong

Samsung on Friday posted its earnings report for the fourth quarter of 2013, missing estimates and confirming the unaudited numbers it revealed a few weeks ago. The company reported record revenues of 59.28 trillion won ($54.95 billion), but operating profit was at 8.31 trillion won ($7.7 billion) for Q4 2013, an 18% dropped compared to the previous quarter when it reported 10.16 trillion won profit ($9.40 billion) – comparatively, the company reported 8.84 trillion ($8.18 billion) won operating profit for the same period in 2012.



Continue reading...

Read More [...]

Posted in 2014 at 11:30AM, January 24

Microsoft’s bold plan to beat the NSA

Microsoft is tired of waiting for the United States government to rein in the National Security Agency so it's taking matters into its own hands. The Financial Times reports that Microsoft "will allow foreign customers to have their personal data stored on servers outside the U.S.," a move that other tech companies such as Google have so far resisted due to cost concerns.



Continue reading...

Read More [...]

Posted in 2014 at 05:30AM, January 24

Scammers slap Apple logos on floor tiles, sell them as iPads

Everyone's heard of getting your iPad bricked but what happens when your iPad gets tiled? The answer, it turns out, isn't that it becomes a Windows tablet but that it's actually a floor tile that has been not-so-cleverly disguised to look like an iPad. SFGate reports that scam artists in the Central Valley area are selling people fake iPads that are actually floor tiles with an Apple logo slapped across the back. The scammers have wrapped the tiles in bubble wrap and put them in boxes so that interested buyers will believe that they're iPads if they only casually glance at them before buying. The lesson here seems to be that if you're going to spend hundreds of dollars buying a gadget from someone on the street, you should probably ask to try it out before handing over your cash.

Read More [...]

Posted in 2014 at 01:45AM, January 24

EU court says Nintendo can’t stop users from hacking its consoles

There has been plenty of discussion lately on how Nintendo can recover from its downward spiral, but none of the potential solutions have included allowing users to hack their consoles. Nevertheless, this might be a future Nintendo has to face if a recent European Union court ruling is upheld. Europe Online Magazine reports that the EU's top court ruled on Thursday that "Nintendo cannot prevent its consoles from being tampered with to play multimedia from other providers, except in the case of illegally copied video games."



Continue reading...

Read More [...]

Posted in 2014 at 12:30AM, January 24