LG inks Sky deal for exclusive Now TV streaming access on smart TVs HD

When LG invited us to an event in (thankfully) sunny London, we thought we'd be hearing about 4K, curved OLED and huge price tags. It wasn't about hardware at all, in fact, as LG announced it has partnered with Sky to add the Now TV movie and sport streaming service to its smart TV line-up. Starting in August, Now TV content will be exclusive to LG sets for "a minimum of 12 months." Those purchasing new home entertainment kit will get three months of free access to Now TV's movie catalogue, as well as three free 24-hour sports passes. If you're in possession of an LG smart TV from this year or last, or a 2013 era Blu-ray player or home cinema system, you may miss the introductory offer but will still be able to download the Now TV app....

Read more »

Posted in: Computer

Lenovo's first Snapdragon 800 phone leaked as the K6 or X910 Mobile

Despite the fact that Lenovo hasn't yet embraced the Snapdragon 600 SoC, it looks like the Chinese company's finally giving Qualcomm a proper chance with the latter's more powerful Snapdragon 800. Starting yesterday, several cheeky images of an unannounced dual-SIM Android phone -- codenamed K6 or X910 -- popped up in Lenovo's official Chinese forum. The photo after the break shows AnTuTu indicating the presence of the relatively new MSM8974 chip (with Adreno 330 GPU) plus a 1,920 x 1,080 display (which looks like a 5-inch panel to us); so unless the app made a mistake, what we have here could be Lenovo's upcoming flagship device. While not much else has been said about the phone, one of the leaksters described it as thin and light,...

Read more »

Posted in: Computer

Geeksphone Peak+ up for preorder at €149 with Firefox OS 1.1, 1GB RAM Mobile

­ Interested in jumping on the Geeksphone Firefox OS bandwagon? Its first consumer-oriented device, the Peak+, is up for pre-order and we now know a lot more about it. It doubles up the RAM to 1GB over its Peak and Keon developer siblings, while packing the same 4.3-inch qHD display, 1.2GHz dual-core Snapdragon CPU, 4GB of storage (with a microSD expansion slot), 8-megapixel rear camera and 1,800 mAh battery as the original Peak. It's also boasting the latest Firefox OS flavor, version 1.1, which brings faster boot times and fewer bugs, along with 25GB of cloud storage. You can reserve one at €149 for a limited time with delivery promised by mid-September -- so, if you've been looking go above the usual smartphone OS fray, check the...

Read more »

Posted in: Computer

How would you change Samsung's Galaxy Note 10.1?

­DNP Samsung Galaxy Note 101 review  Samsung's Galaxy Note 10.1 promised plenty, but when we reviewed it, it didn't quite hit all of its marks. Maybe it was the high price when judged against its plastic chassis, or perhaps that our reviewer really wanted a better display than the 1,280 x 800 LCD that was provided. On the upside, the unit's multitasking prowess can't be dissed, but we did gripe that it was still using Ice Cream Sandwich rather than Jelly Bean. Still, we're sure plenty of people purchased this thing, so why not tell us what you liked and more importantly, what you would have changed? Samsung's Galaxy Note 10.1 promised plenty, but when we reviewed it, it didn't quite hit all of its marks. Maybe it was the high price...

Read more »

Posted in: Mobile Phones

WSJ: Apple testing larger iPhone, iPad screens with suppliers

Rumors that Apple is looking to super-size its upcoming iPhone and iPad lineups are gathering steam, thanks to a recent report from the Wall Street Journal. It cited Apple's suppliers in Asia, who said that Cupertino is testing a 12.9-inch iPad design and prototype iPhone screens larger than the current four inches. While Apple wouldn't comment, of course, that jibes with an earlier Reuters report, which claimed it was considering 4.7- and 5.7-inch iPhone screens. If accurate (and that's always a big if with such rumors), the report doesn't necessarily mean that products with larger displays will ever come to market -- Apple routinely changes specs and tests components during the development cycle. Still, it would be further...

Read more »

Posted in: Mobile Phones

Apple reveals that developer portal was hacked, announces system overhaul

Naturally, the company is taking the breach very seriously, and has said that it'll be rebuilding its entire developer system database and updating servers to prevent future incursions. Apple also assured developers whose developer accounts were up for renewal during the outage would not have their software pulled from the App Store. Furthermore, the company told MacWorld that customer information and app code was not compromised during the attack. Naturally, the company is taking the breach very seriously, and has said that it'll be rebuilding its entire developer system database and updating servers to prevent future incursions. Apple also assured developers whose developer accounts were up for renewal during the outage would not have their...

Read more »

Mozilla thinking about separating profile folders for Firefox editions

Firefox users have two options currently to run different editions of the browser side by side. They can use one profile for all editions, or use separate profiles for each edition. The first option may be more comfortable as changes made to one edition are automatically available in all other editions as well, but it is also increasing the likelihood of issues that arise when a single profile is shared.It is usually better to use individual profiles for each version of Firefox to avoid any issues that may otherwise arise from sharing profiles. While that means using the profile manager to make sure the right profile is launched each time, it is a one-time configuration change. I have detailed the process in this guide. What you need to do...

Read more »

Cyber attacks a threat to world's stock exchanges

NEW YORK — Around half of the world's securities exchanges were the target of cyber-attacks last year, according to a paper based on a survey of 46 exchanges released on Tuesday. The prevalence of attacks along with the interconnected nature of the markets creates the potential for widespread impact, said the joint staff working paper by the International Organization of Securities Commissions' (IOSCO) research department and the World Federation of Exchanges Office. "There could be systemic impacts ... from cyber attacks in the securities markets, especially considering that our financial system is relying more and more on technological infrastructure," the report's author, Rohini Tendulkar of the IOSCO Research Department, said...

Read more »

Japan:Talking Robot To Be Sent Into Space

Japan is to send a talking robot into space to see how machines that communicate are able to work with humans. The robot has been developed by scientists from the Kirobo project - named after "kibo" or hope in Japanese - and is capable of holding a conversation with people. It is scheduled to be launched from the Tanegashima Space Center on August 4. ...

Read more »

Microsoft Opens New Windows After System Revamp

Microsoft has released a preview version of an update to Windows 8 in an attempt to address users' concerns about the flagship operating system. The company has back-pedalled on its original concept for Windows 8, which was built on a radical tile-based "Modern" user interface. At a conference in San Francisco, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said the tech giant would now make it easier...

Read more »

Robot Footballers On The Pitch At RoboCup

More than 1,000 robots have rolled onto a football pitch in the Netherlands to show off their sporting skills. The machines might not be able to bend the ball like Beckham, their attacks lack the pace of a Barcelona charge and they struggle to stay on their feet as much as some professional players do. However, a WiFi internet connection allows them to communicate with their team mates...

Read more »