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Apple suspends sales of its new LG 5K monitor

February 14, 2017 Dianne Jacobs

Apple has reportedly halted sales of LG’s 5K monitor following well-publicised interference issues with the display, which is affected by being in close proximity to Wi-Fi routers. According to Business Insider, the UltraFine 5K Display is no longer being sold in Apple stores – while the monitor is still on display in the firm’s many shops, if a customer wants to make a purchase, they won’t be sold one. The Business insider reports that the tech giant Store employees were instructed this weekend to continue to display the LG monitors…

Leveling the playing field for women in tech is vital for emerging industries

February 13, 2017March 3, 2017 Staff Writer

The Technological industry’s playing field is devised and maintained mostly by men leaving women at an inherent disadvantage. This is simply not a fight for equality but a reality that the industry should acknowledge to improve consumer adoption. The bias is hardwired into the very building blocks of the system, making it hard for men, who enjoy the upside of that same bias, to see the problem. Tech Crunch reports that it’s not a conspiracy, but an error on the part of the architects who don’t realize that diversity has…

Microsoft celebrates 20 years of Visual Studio

February 10, 2017March 3, 2017

Microsoft announced that it’s celebrating 20 years of Visual Studio, and in doing so, introduced a launch date for Visual Studio 2017, which will be available on March 7 Neowin reports. According to the Neowin, Visual Studio 97 was the first version of the IDE, and it launched in, you guessed it, 1997. Back then, it was a suite of applications, such as Visual Basic 5.0, Visual C++ 5.0, and more. It was followed by Microsoft Visual Studio 6.0, which included a similar suite, and then .NET was launched. Visual…

Apple’s next iPhone may come with wireless charging

February 10, 2017 Dianne Jacobs

KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has reported that Apple is developing wireless charging features for three new iPhones coming in 2017. Apple is reportedly working on over-the-air charging, a function that would allow a device to charge without needing to be directly connected to anything. The company already uses wireless charging for the Apple Watch, but it is still unknown how Apple plans to implement wireless charging in the iPhone. Kuo doesn’t say exactly how Apple plans to implement wireless charging. The company already uses wireless charging for the Apple Watch, so it’s…

Google Assistant on the Pixel can now control your smart home devices

February 10, 2017 Dianne Jacobs

Google is rolling out a new voice-controlled hub in Pixel phones so you can manage your smart home devices straight from Google Assistant reports The Verge. The search giant appears to be rolling out a “Home control” center in the Google Assistant settings, from which you can send out commands to your smart home devices using just your voice, as spotted by Android Police. According to The Verge, the feature called Home Control, lets you use voice commands to control products like Belkin’s WeMo, Nest, Philips Hue, and Samsung SmartThings.…

Apple’s 10th anniversary iPhone could cost over $1,000

February 9, 2017 Dianne Jacobs

Apple is expected to debut an ultra high-end version of the iPhone alongside its next scheduled update to mark its 10 years of metal and glass slabs. According to a report from Fast Company, Tim Cook and company will likely roll out three new phones this year: the incremental iPhone 7S in the 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch sizes, as well as a slightly larger, even more expensive 5.8-inch iPhone 8 with an edgeless OLED display and a few completely new features. To really play up the 10th anniversary bit, Apple may…

Smart TV company accused for massive privacy violation

February 7, 2017March 3, 2017

A top smart TV manufacturer will pay state and federal authorities $2.5 million to settle claims it illegally tracked and sold data on customer’s viewing habits without their consent, reports IT News. Vizio, which was acquired by Chinese electronics maker LeEco last year, has agreed to pay the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the New Jersey Divsion of Consumer Affairs a total of US$2.5 million (A$3.27 million) for the privacy violation, US$300,000 of which was suspended. Authorities claim that the company sold televisions loaded with software that, by default,…

The state of internet connectivity around the world

February 7, 2017 Dianne Jacobs

The internet is becoming more accessible. The price of mobile service is falling, with developing countries seeing costs fall by between 15% and 25% from 2013 to 2014. But service still remains more expensive for developing and least developed countries when looking at the cost as a percentage of their gross national incomes (GNI) per capita, a metric the ITU uses to make a more apples-to-apples comparison across countries with vastly different economies. This week, the International Telecommunication Union, an arm of the United Nations, released a report on global…

Samsung Pay to launch in India in first half of 2017

February 6, 2017February 6, 2017 Dianne Jacobs

Samsung plans to launch its Samsung Pay mobile payment solution in India in the first half of 2017, according to a person familiar with the matter Mashable Reports. For bringing Samsung Pay in India, the company has partnered with American Express (Amex), said the person, adding that the company may be exploring opportunities with giants such as Visa and MasterCard as well. American Express has been one of the partners of Samsung for the epayment solutions in several other regions including the USA, South Korea and Australia. Elsewhere, Samsung has…