Email app lets you ‘leak’ your secrets without owning up to them
“I drank all the coffee on purpose, so you’d have make a new batch.” That’s the first missive I received from Leak, an anonymous email service, which is — so far — not as barbed (or arguably, as interesting) as what Secret‘s social stream has offered up. However, the web-based Leak requires no sort of registration. You type in your pent-up resentment, shy confession and send it to away. There’s no reply option, you’re just sending an anonymous message from the internet ether, tagged with your relationship to the sender: friend, co-worker, family, friend of a friend or simply, most mysteriously, “someone.”
“It’s about saying the truth you’re ashamed to say”
When Leak’s creator, Laurent Desserrey talked to Fast Company, he said he wanted to create a “really positive and exciting tool”. And, due to its simplicity, it only took a weekend to build. While users can (and probably will) send negative leaks, Desserrey added that it “really not what the product is about. It’s about saying the truth you’re ashamed to say.” There’s a well-intentioned ‘Dos and Don’ts‘ guide right next to the send button: it outlines how you should be respectful, not spam, and not expose people’s private information – the typical gentle rules of the internet. While lack of any login means it’s more open than other services (there’s no lack of anonymous email services), there’s also inherent risk. Barring IP addresses, it could prove hard for the service to stop (or ban) anyone that doesn’t follow the site’s philosophies.
Source: Leak
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Google email scan helps police arrest a sex offender
Google has long used automatic image scanning to fight online child exploitation, but it’s now clear that this monitoring applies to email, too. Houston police have arrested a registered sex offender after Google tipped them off to illegal photos of children in his Gmail account. The notice only led to a warrant at first, but it helped the cops discover locally stored images that they wouldn’t have found otherwise.
The bust is notable in that there were no public clues to the offender’s activity, such as a website; besides the people he contacted, only Google would have known what he was doing online. That will undoubtedly raise concerns for some, since it wasn’t immediately apparent that Mountain View’s servers were checking Gmail images. However, the activity isn’t a complete surprise. Google’s terms of service already indicate that the company is analyzing Gmail for both targeted ads and security — while illegal pornography isn’t explicitly mentioned in the terms, it only makes sense that this content would be considered as well.
Via: Business Insider
Source: KHOU
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How would you change Samsung’s Galaxy S4?
Samsung’s Galaxy S4 is one of the most popular smartphones on the market, and we’d wager that a hefty proportion of our readers use it as their daily driver. When we placed the device in front of our mobile expert Brad Molen, he was full of praise, with one or two exceptions. In his mind, the only thing that kept the Galaxy S4 from a perfect score was a tired design and some user interface decisions that didn’t really work. But what about you? Did you love this device as much as he did, and if not, why not tell us? You can share your opinions by crafting a product review of your own, or why not discuss what you’d have done differently on our forum?
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Samsung
Source: Engadget Product Forums, Engadget Reviews
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New Photos Claim to Show Purported Rear Shell of iPad Air 2
Taiwan-based accessory maker Yi Lin Enterprises has posted new photos on Weibo showing the purported rear shell of Apple’s iPad Air 2 (Google Translate, via Mac Otakara). The images show off a gold housing with a number of design changes, including a new speaker grille with larger holes and a relocated rear microphone alongside the iSight camera.
Last month, an alleged “perfect replica” of the iPad Air 2 surfaced, showing off a Touch ID home button for the device and recessed volume buttons along with the same refined speaker grille. The prototype followed the leak of a supposed front panel from the iPad Air 2 this past April, which showed an integrated display that may hint at a thinner form factor for the tablet.
Apple’s iPad Air 2 is expected to launch alongside the iPad mini 3 later this year, and is expected to include a faster A8 processor in addition to the aforementioned Touch ID fingerprint sensor and refined physical features. Rumors have also suggested that Apple is working on a larger, 12.9-inch iPad Pro, however recent reports have indicated that plans for the tablet may be on hold for the foreseeable future.
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San Francisco airport beacons help the blind get around using their phones
San Francisco International is about to make life decidedly easier for blind and visually impaired travelers. The airport has teamed up with Indoo.rs to unveil a Bluetooth beacon system that will help these passengers find their way through Terminal 2 using only their phone. When users walk past one of the 500 transmitters, their devices will announce nearby points of interest; they can find flight gates, ATMs, information desks and power outlets without asking for help. An early version of the necessary app also has a directory for sighted visitors.
The guide technology only works on iOS devices so far, but The Verge understands that it will eventually support Android-toting guests as well. Indoo.rs expects the service to be available either late in the third quarter or early in the fourth (think September or October), although you won’t want to plan trips around that estimate — it’s up to SFO to flip the switch. Whenever the beacons are ready for action, they should give many fliers a new level of independence.
[Image credit: Thom Watson, Flickr]
Filed under: Cellphones, Transportation, Mobile
Via: The Verge
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So long @evleaks, and thanks for all the Leaks
One man has made reporting technology leaks very interesting the last two years, and that man is @evleaks. @evleaks, who’s real name is Evan Blass, has been a reputable source of leaks for all technology media and has played a big part in hyping up (and sometimes the opposite) devices that have yet to be announced. Unfortuantely, Blass has made the decision to hang up his boots and today took to Twitter to announce his retirement, which is fitting seeing as this is where most of his leaks have been posted:
All good things must come to an end. Thank you for an amazing two years. [RETIREMENT]
— Evan Blass (@evleaks) August 3, 2014
Blass also took the time to do an interview with The Next Web (which you can read here) to say a few last words in the limelight, saying his favourite leak was for the HTC One M8 Prime for the beauty of the concept, despite the fact the device is reportedly canned. Blass also mentions that now that he is stepping away from leaking, he’s going to try and get back to enjoying devices. Blass has had an unspeakable impact on tech media and even tech companies over the last two years, so we just want to say: so long @evleaks, and thanks for all the leaks.
Source: Twitter, The Next Web via Android Police
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Apple Constructing Second Retail Store in Turkey, May Open This Fall [Mac Blog]
Work has begun on Apple’s second retail location in Turkey, reports Turkish website ElmaDergisi (Google Translate, via ifoAppleStore).
According to the report, the store will open in Istanbul’s Akasya Shopping Center and may coincide with the launch of the iPhone 6 this fall. Photos of the store’s construction show workers laying out flooring and wooden tables, as the store’s front glass exterior and trademark logo already appear to be put up.
Apple’s first location in Turkey opened this past April at Istanbul’s Zorlu Center, and features a unique cubic design with glass sides and a glass ceiling. Apple’s manager of retail stores Steve Cano also led a press tour of the store before its opening.
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Well known leaker Evan Blass (aka @evleaks) announced he’s retiring
If you’ve been reading tech news even for a short while you’ve probably heard of @evleaks. His real name is Evan Blass and he’s been feeding the tech world with all sorts of smartphone, tablet and other gadget-related leaks from his website evleaks.at. @evleaks actually started feeding us all sorts of leaks from his Twitter handle… Read more »
The post Well known leaker Evan Blass (aka @evleaks) announced he’s retiring appeared first on AndroidGuys.
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Spray-painted solar cells promise cheap power on seemingly any surface
Scientists have dreamed of painting solar cells to generate energy on just about any surface, but efficiency has been a problem; researchers were happy to get one percent just a couple of years ago. At last, though, it looks like viable paint-on power is close at hand. A team at the University of Sheffield has developed spray-on cells that should be both cheap and capable. The trick is to coat an object in perovskite, a calcium titanium oxide mineral — it’s inexpensive like organic solar cells, but absorbs light nearly as well as silicon.
In the lab, the technology isn’t quite ready for prime time. A spray-based cell gets about 11 percent efficiency versus 19 percent at perovskite’s ideal performance. However, it’s still early days. Scientists believe that their approach could scale up to the same manufacturing techniques used for spray painting vehicles. If that happens, it’s conceivable that your future car (and virtually any other device) could harvest the sun’s rays without the steep costs and awkward product designs that are frequently involved when you use old-fashioned solar panels.
Filed under: Science
Via: ExtremeTech
Source: University of Sheffield, Royal Society of Chemistry
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