Apple ‘Excited’ About HomeKit Partners Despite Slow Rollout
It’s been more than six months since Apple first introduced HomeKit at its June 2014 Worldwide Developers Conference, but HomeKit-compatible products have yet to hit store shelves and may not do so until this spring, almost a year after Apple first detailed its home automation system.
HomeKit’s launch has gone slower than expected, and according to sources that spoke to Re/code, the two major reasons were a “slower-than-expected” launch of the HomeKit MFi program, which began in November, and the late launch of chip specifications, which weren’t sent out to chip makers until October. Apple’s high performance standards for hardware manufacturers and chip makers are also said to be a factor.
Elgato’s upcoming line of HomeKit-compatible products
January’s Consumer Electronics Show saw the debut of several HomeKit-compatible products, including the iDevices smart plug, Elgato’s range of connected home devices, and the Schlage Sense smart lock, all of which may begin hitting store shelves in a few months. Apple gave a statement to Re/code on the upcoming HomeKit products, expressing the company’s excitement.
“We are excited to have a growing number of partners committed to bringing HomeKit products to market, including several announced at CES,” said Apple spokesperson Trudy Muller. “HomeKit offers a set of common protocols making it easier for customers to control HomeKit-enabled accessories using Siri or iOS apps. HomeKit is built on a secure foundation with end-to-end encryption which provides customers a secure connection between their iPhone or iPad and HomeKit accessory. “
HomeKit was announced more than six months ago, but many details about the home automation platform remain murky on the consumer end. It is not quite clear if and how it will interface with existing products or if consumers will be expected to purchase all new connected home items to take advantage of HomeKit. Details about the HomeKit MFi specification that leaked out earlier this week, however, suggest few existing products will be able to be used with HomeKit. 
We’re podcasting live at 4 p.m. EST!
Friday already. And that means it’s time for the Greatest Android Podcast in the World! Coming up today we’ll have the latest on these supposed HTC One M9 leaks and what we think of all of Microsoft’s Windows 10 announcements (and what they mean for Android), the Three/O2 Euro Mega Merger™, and whatever else you guys manage to come up with. (Let us know in the comments here if there’s something you want us to cover.) Plus, we’ll answer your questions live on air!
So join us at this link at 4 p.m. EST — that’s 9 p.m. in London — as we get this thing done!
MakerBot Mobile for Android brings 3D printing to your phone
MakerBot has released its official app for Android on Google Play. MakerBot Mobile adds convenience to the 3D printing process. You’ll be able to access designs from your MakerBot Cloud library, or download designs from the MakerBot Thingiverse and print them wirelessly from the app.
Major Nelson takes us on a tour of the Xbox app for Windows 10
If you want to see the brand new Xbox app for Windows 10 but haven’t got it installed yet, fear not! Xbox’s Larry Hyrb, Major Nelson to you and I, has posted a video tour of the new app with Richard Irving from the engineering team. It’s the first time we’ve had the pleasure of a dedicated Xbox gaming app on Windows – not counting Smartglass, of course – and is something we’re really excited to put through its paces.
While there’s still a ton of work to be done, there’s a lot of good stuff in this early build. Here’s what we’ve got.
Following HTC’s lead, Huawei sets MWC event for March 1st
HTC isn’t the only Android manufacturer kicking off MWC with a March 1st press event, as Huawei has now sent out the invites for its own shin-dig, which the company promises will bring “surprises that will empower you to set your dreams free”. While it isn’t so clear what Huawei actually means by that, the rumor mill suggests will see a followup to the MediaPad X1 tablet, and there has also been whispers about the Huawei P8 — which could reportedly drop the Ascend branding from its name.
As for what both devices bring to the table? The MediaPad X2 will supposedly have a 1080p display, a Huawei Kirin processor and 3GB RAM. Not many other specifics are known. The details for the P8 are equally vague, with reports suggesting it will have a 5.2-inch slightly curved display and Kirin 930 processor.
It is true that Huawei isn’t nearly as much of a superstar as HTC, at least when it comes to brand recognition, particularly in the western markets. Still, Huawei remains one of the biggest players in the mobile world and we look forward to seeing what they introduce during MWC in March. Regardless of what happens, know that the AA team will be on the ground covering the event live and bringing you all the latest and greatest announcements.
U.K.’s Three and O2 to marry
Hutchison Whampoa Ltd, which is run by Asia’s richest man, Li Ka-shing, has announced that they will be purchasing the O2 mobile carrier from Telefonica for 10.25 billion pounds ($15.4 billion USD). Hutchison already owns the Three Mobile network in the U.K., so the merger of the two entities under one umbrella will create a new number one mobile operator in the country.
Hutchison’s announced purchase of O2 comes a few weeks after BT announced that it had entered into exclusive talks with EE, currently the largest mobile operator, to purchase the company as part of a strategy to create a company that provides fixed phone service, mobile phone service, and internet service.
Hutchison has started working on a strategy to revamp its mobile business in Europe where it already operates in six countries. Li has not been happy with the business though as returns have lagged behind other parts of Li’s portfolio of business ventures. This is not the first deal between Hutchison and Telefonica as Hutchison bought Telefonica’s Irish business last year. Hutchison is expected to work on revamping their Italian operations next.
For Telefonica, the company will use the proceeds to cut debt and focus more on reorganizing their business operations in Latin American countries. Telefonica believes there is more opportunity for growth in that part of the globe than in the more mature European economies, although Telefonica has made significant investments in the Spanish and German markets.
Although it remains to be seen how Britain’s telecommunications regulator Ofcom may view the deal, the markets have reacted positively with shares of both Telefonica and Hutchison rising on the news.
source: Reuters
Come comment on this article: U.K.’s Three and O2 to marry
Game Design Bundle: Name your own price and learn to craft beautiful games
Do you have what it takes to make the next Flappy Bird? If you’re on the brink of greatness with your game idea but need a nudge to get over the creative hump, this deal is tailored to fit your needs. The Name Your Own Price Game Design Bundle will help you learn the ropes, design stimulating games, and put you on a path to achieving your goals.
The Name Your Own Price concept is simple: You decide what you want to pay for an individual course and if you pay more than the average price, you’ll unlock the bundle and receive all 4 courses! These programs are put together by world class instructors and have been curated to help you accomplish your development dreams. We’re talking hundreds of lectures and countless hours of quality content. You’ll learn everything you need to craft your masterpiece from scripting and sound design to 3D drawing and gamification. The best part is that you’ll also be helping a good cause. You get to choose between three charities (Child’s Play Charity, World Wildlife Fund, and Creative Commons) that will receive 10% of your purchase price as a donation. There’s no reason not to grab this bundle, develop your game, and make a difference!
Check this deal out, and many others at deals.androidguys.com!
The post Game Design Bundle: Name your own price and learn to craft beautiful games appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Apple’s OS X 10.10.2 to Fix Security Vulnerabilities Exposed by Google’s Project Zero
Google’s security team, Project Zero, this week disclosed to the public several security vulnerabilities in OS X, some three months after the issue were shared with Apple (via Ars Technica). While Apple has not commented officially on the issues, it appears one has already been patched and iMore reports the remaining two are fixed in OS X 10.10.2, which is currently in developer testing.
Project Zero works to discover security vulnerabilities of various operating systems and software, giving their owners 90 days notice to patch the issues before publishing their findings to the public. In their markup of Apple’s OS X, problems involving memory corruption, kernel code execution, and a sandbox escape were all discovered by the team. Ars Technica notes:
At first glance, none of them appear to be highly critical, since all three appear to require the attacker to already have some access to a targeted machine. […]
Still, the exploits could be combined with a separate attack to elevate lower-level privileges and gain control over vulnerable Macs. And since the disclosures contain proof-of-concept exploit code, they provide enough technical detail for experienced hackers to write malicious attacks that target the previously unknown vulnerabilities.
As the 90-day deadline hit during the week, the group began posting its findings online. Google’s notes suggest one of the vulnerabilities was fixed with the release of OS X Yosemite, while the other two remained unaddressed.
But as pointed out by iMore, Apple’s incoming OS X 10.10.2 update does indeed include fixes for the remaining two vulnerabilities exposed by Project Zero.
[B]ased on the latest build of OS X 10.10.2, seeded [Wednesday] to developers, Apple has already fixed all of the vulnerabilities listed above. That means the fixes will be available to everyone running Yosemite as soon as 10.10.2 goes into general availability.
Google’s Project Zero has been disclosing significant security vulnerabilities for a number of months now, previously discovering a few significant Windows issues and sharing them online. The project shines light on much-needed fixes to various operating systems, but sometimes undercuts the point of security, as in that Windows case that’s left users’ systems more vulnerable with the publicized knowledge before Microsoft could properly fix it. Still, the 90-day window before public disclosure is intended to give companies time to fix the issues while also giving them incentive to do so in a timely fashion.
First drone operator fined by the FAA settles for $1,100
The Federal Aviation Administration vs. Raphael Pirker legal roller coaster has finally come to an end, years after the latter allegedly flew a drone for commercial purposes in a reckless manner. Pirker, who has reached a deal with the FAA to settle his $10,000 fine for $1,100, was sued by the agency for using a Zephyr drone to capture aerial shots of the University of Virginia in 2011. In court, he argued that the Zephyr was but a model airplane and that the FAA had no right to regulate something not officially and legally classified as an aircraft. A National Transportation Safety Board judge initially sided with him and warned the FAA to be careful of what it calls a drone. But the decision was eventually overturned, effectively classifying small UAVs as aircraft (“any contrivance invented, used, or designed to navigate, or fly in, the air”) falling under the FAA’s jurisdiction.
Pirker was the first drone operator fined by the FAA, and his case gives us an idea of how similar ones could go in the future. His lawyer said Pirker settled because the amount of time it’s taking to finish the case has “diminished [its] utility… to assist the commercial drone industry in its regulatory struggle.” Even so, he and his company, Team BlackSheep, are thankful that it has sparked significant talks about drone use.
Here’s Team BlackSheep’s statement issued on his behalf:
We are pleased that the case ignited an important international conversation about the civilian use of drones, the appropriate level of governmental regulation concerning this new technology, and even spurred the regulators to open new paths to the approval of certain commercial drone operations.
According to the terms of the settlement, Pirker isn’t admitting guilt despite paying up, and the FAA will drop some of its accusations against him. As to when the agency will finally come up with a full set of regulations for drone use, well, we can’t say, but that’s likely still far off.
Source: The Wall Street Journal
OnePlus One launches in Indonesia through Lazada partnership
Following its troubled launch in India, OnePlus is expanding to the second country outside its original markets, Indonesia.
OnePlus announced today it’s partnering with Southeast Asia retail powerhouse Lazada to bring the OnePlus One to Indonesian users. Like everywhere else in the world, the OnePlus One will be available through an invite system. Just like in India, the invitations will be country-specific.
OnePlus is teaming up with a local online retailer in order to provide proper customer support and aftermarket services. Indonesians will be able to bring their devices in for servicing at one of the “walk-in service centers located strategically throughout the nation.”
For now, only the 64GB Sandstone model of the OnePlus One is listed on Lazada, with a price tag of approximately 4.5 million rupiah ($360). The device will start shipping from next month, but pre-orders begin January 27. As usual, OnePlus will dish out invites through its forums and social channels. A range of accessories will be made available alongside the OnePlus One.
With a fast growing population of around 250 million and a low penetration of smartphones, Indonesia is a prime target for companies looking to tap into the next wave of growth coming from developing markets. BlackBerry used to dominate the Indonesian market, but in recent years, Android has taken over as the dominant platform. Before OnePlus, Xiaomi chose Indonesia as one of the first markets to expand out of China.
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