BBC supervision should be transferred to Ofcom, says report

At the end of 2016, the BBC will get its next Royal Charter, giving it set of rules and expectations it must meet as a public service broadcaster over the next 10 years. The UK government put a call out last year for feedback on what the public, and also its rivals, think the Beeb should do to best serve licence fee payers.

The BBC has already set out ways it can cut costs and streamline operations, but a new independent report from David Clementi, the former chairman of Virgin Money and Prudential, has called for the broadcaster to be split from its overseeing body, the BBC Trust, and have that power transferred to communications regulator Ofcom.

The BBC Trust model as it is now “is flawed,” claims Clementi. “It conflates governance and regulatory functions within the Trust. However re-structured, it would still leave two Boards within one organisation, with the likelihood of confused responsibilities.” With the BBC unable to “achieve a clear separation,” Clementi says “regulatory oversight should pass wholly to Ofcom, which has capacity to look at the BBC in the context of the market as a whole.”

The former financial chairman’s reasons are clear: Ofcom already acts as a broadcasting regulator and has experience governing a number of the BBC’s services. As an independent body, it would have a greater overview of the market as a whole and apparently already has the resources to undertake such a challenge.

In a statement, a BBC spokesperson said: “We share his view that external regulation and a unitary board for the BBC will bring greater clarity to the corporation’s governance. If delivered, these proposals will bring about the most significant change in governance and regulation of the BBC in its lifetime. That is why it is important they are implemented in a way that strengthens the BBC’s editorial independence and ensures that future decisions about the corporation are made very clearly in the best interests of audiences, who own the BBC.”

Regarding editorial independence, the report suggests that the BBC should retain its “Broadcaster First” rule, which allows it to deal with complaints and assess them against its own editorial guidelines. Ofcom would then be able to handle any appeals thereafter.

Under the proposals, the BBC’s “unitary board” would be comprised of between 12 and 14 people. The government can appoint roughly half of the seats with each non-executive member holding “a balance of skills to deal with the significant responsibilities placed upon them.” Those members would decide the best interests of licence fee payers, not Ofcom: “the relationship between Licence Fee payer and Licence Fee recipient should be direct, not via a regulator,” says Clementi.

So what’s Ofcom’s view of it all? “We note Sir David Clementi’s review, which has considered a range of different options,” it said in a statement. ‘We await the government’s decision on the future regulation of the BBC.”

Source: A Review of the Governance and Regulation of the BBC (PDF)

24 hours with Sony’s A6300 mirrorless camera

Last month, Sony introduced its A6300 mirrorless camera, a follow-up to the sought-after A6000 from 2014. As expected, the company’s latest compact Alpha shooter brings top-of-the-line specifications. That includes a 24.2-megapixel APS-C sensor, a Bionz X image processor, 11-fps continuous shooting, ISO up to 52,000 and 4K video in Super 35mm. In particular, Sony is emphasizing the A6300’s newly developed 4D Focus, which is capable of locking in on a subject in a ridiculous 0.05 seconds. That’s speedier than basically every other camera available right now.

In my time so far with the A6300, I can already tell you that I’m impressed. The camera’s autofocus system is as fast as advertised, and it works for both stills and videos. Coming from someone who’s used to the higher-end A7R II or A7S II models, the A6300 feels like an upgrade. Best of all, it’s going to cost a relatively reasonable $1,000 (body-only) when it launches later this month. We’ll follow up soon with a deeper dive, but for now check out these sample images taken with Sony’s A6300.

To view the photos in high-resolution, click here.

Windows 10 now protects against cyberattacks

Windows Defender has offered a baseline level of PC security for years, but that’s not really going to cut it in an era when data breaches and other large-scale cyberattacks are virtually commonplace. That’s why Microsoft is stepping up its game: it’s launching Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection, an optional Windows 10 enterprise service that flags signs of cyberattacks in time to prevent a bad situation from getting much worse. It looks for telltale clues on individual PCs, such as exploit attempts and unusual system file access. If something’s up, it’ll recommend a response to the IT staff — they may not have to sift through activity logs to know what’s causing grief on their network.

ATP is already in use by a few early adopters right now, and it’ll be more broadly available later in 2016. You probably won’t see how this works unless you’re managing a network, but it could make a big difference in your life if you’ve ever been notified of a compromised bank account or health care file. Instead of waiting months for the company to even realize that there was a problem (long after fraudsters have a field day), you could get a heads-up much sooner. That, in turn, could speed up the fix and reduce the chances that someone raids your sensitive info.

Source: Windows Experience Blog

Watch live as Apple makes its case against the FBI

Apple is testifying today in front of the House Judiciary Committee as part of hearing called “The Encryption Tightrope: Balancing Americans’ Security and Privacy.” It’s an opportunity for the company to formally make its case before members of Congress. FBI director James Comey will testify alongside Apple SVP and general counsel Bruce Sewell. Apple released its introductory comments yesterday, but we expect that both the FBI and Apple will be subject to some pretty serious questioning regarding the fight that’s been playing out in the media over the last few weeks.

Follow along here for all of the courtroom drama — it kicks off at 1PM ET today. And if you want to get caught up on the story thus far, just click here.

Pebble drops price of Time and Time Round by $50

If you’ve been holding out on getting your very own Pebble Time, congratulations, because your patience has been rewarded. Today, the company is dropping the price of two its Time smartwatches — both the Time and the Time Round — by $50, which means they’re both now $149.99 and $199.99 respectively (the Time Steel remains the same at $249.99). Also of note is that the Time Round (arguably the better looking of the two) is now available at several retail locations in the UK and the EU. Oh, and that price drop should be reflected in those countries as well.

And no worries if you just got one: if you bought it on or after January 21st this year, the company will match the difference. Just email order@pebble.com with “Price Adjustment” in the subject along with your original order number and the price will be adjusted, says Pebble.

Aside from the lower prices, Pebble has also released a couple of new stats about its Pebble Health app, the built-in fitness tracker it launched last December. Seeing as it’s a baked in feature, it’s no surprise that over 90 percent of Time watches have activated it and two-thirds of devices are using it on a weekly basis. Pebble said that the app will get more features going forward too; expect more info from running plus a new section in the main Pebble app that shows activity history.

Source: Pebble

NYU says Craigslist sucks at spotting fake rental listings

Researchers at New York University claim that Craigslist has a serious problem identifying fraudulent listings. After digging through two million of ’em, a team from the Tandon School of Engineering thinks that the site misses anything up to 55 percent of scam entries. They normally work by offering a juicy property for rent, but forcing users to undergo a credit check or pay cash straight to see the full listing. Naturally, both are designed to separate would-be renters from their money, but apparently they’re pretty easy to spot. Despite this, Craigslist stands accused of leaving fraudulent entries linger online for anything up to 20 hours.

The team’s analysis found that there are actually a variety of scams that are all part of the Craiglist property pantheon. Credit Report scams work as mentioned, but there’s also Clone Scams, where desirable pads are offered at a heavy discount if money is wired across up-front. In addition, Realtor Service scams ask users to sign up to a paid-for mailing list with a monthly subscription in exchange for advance information about pre-foreclosure properties.

As for conclusions, the team believes that the data it’s gathered could be put into developing a new filtering system that’s much more effective than what’s in place. In addition, the findings suggest that credit card providers could — and should — be doing more to insulate its users from handing over their money. Also, you know, if someone’s asking for money on a free listings site, don’t give it to ’em.

Source: NYU, Study (.PDF)

The best electric kettle

By Tim Barribeau, Winnie Yang and Michael Sullivan

This post was done in partnership with The Sweethome, a buyer’s guide to the best things for your home. Read the full article here.

Over the past three years, we’ve spent dozens of hours researching and long-term-testing electric kettles, and we think the Cuisinart CPK-17 is the best electric kettle for most people. This temperature-variable model is ideal for brewing a myriad of teas, making pour-over coffee, or simply boiling water for instant oatmeal. Its winning combination of speed, accuracy, and ease of use allowed it to best all of the other electric kettles we tested.

How we tested

We tested the accuracy of the temperature-variable kettles using a Thermapen thermometer. Photo: Michael Hession

We tested kettles by measuring how long a liter of water took to come to a boil, as well as how accurate the internal thermometer was for non-boiling temperatures. We tested the internal thermometer of the kettles by heating the water to one of the specific temperature settings (below boiling) and measuring it with a Thermapen thermometer. We did this multiple times for various temperatures available on each kettle, with ample time for cooldown in between sessions. Some models we tested had a warming feature that could hold set temperatures, so we checked their accuracy after letting them rest for an extended period of time.

Our pick

The speedy, easy-to-use Cuisinart CPK-17. Photo: Michael Hession

The Cuisinart CPK-17 is the best electric kettle for most people, thanks to its ease of use, quick boil time, and temperature accuracy. It has six preset temperature settings and is simpler to operate than its competitors. You add the water, hit the temperature you want, and wait for it to beep when it’s done. It then kicks into an automated keep-warm cycle, where it maintains temperature for up to 30 minutes. On average, in our tests it brought 1 liter of water to a boil in 4 minutes, 4 seconds. After the kettle held a set temperature of 185 Fahrenheit for 30 minutes, the water measured just 2 degrees over. The CPK-17 didn’t lead in every test, but it did rank highly in all of them, and it lacks any appreciable drawbacks.

Runner-up

The Bonavita kettle had the most accurate internal thermometer of all the kettles we tested, and it offers a long gooseneck spout for precision pouring. Photo: Michael Hession

If you love coffee, the Bonavita Gooseneck Kettle represents an excellent compromise between a traditional tea kettle and one better suited for making pour-over coffee. It’s extremely accurate, designed to provide excellent pouring technique, and easy on the eyes. This kettle had the most precise temperature control out of all the models we tested: In our tests it impressively measured just 1 degree off regardless of the temperature setting, so it gives you the freedom to set it in single-degree increments from 140F to 212F. Tea lovers will geek out over its spot-on temperature accuracy, too, but it took almost three minutes longer to boil water than the Cuisinart, and its 1-liter capacity is probably best for smaller households.

Budget pick

The Chefman kettle had one of the fastest boiling times of all the models we tested. Photo: Michael Hession

If you prefer something more affordable, we recommend the Chefman RJ11-17-GP Precision Electric Kettle. It quickly brings water to a boil, has preset temperature controls, and offers a warming feature that shuts off after one hour. It had one of the fastest boiling times of all the models we tested (3 minutes, 50 seconds), and it was one of the only kettles in its price range that had variable temperature controls and didn’t seem cheaply made. Impressively, after being set to a holding temperature of 180F for one hour, it measured just 4 degrees off. Operating this kettle involves one minor quirk: It precisely heats the water to the desired set temperature, but the residual heat causes the water to rise about 10 degrees higher. To compensate, we recommend setting the temperature 10 degrees below the temperature you want to hit.

If you drink a lot of tea

The Zojirushi CV-DCC40XT VE Hybrid Water Boiler and Warmer.

If you can spend more, and you drink a prodigious amount of tea, you might want to look into the 4-liter and 5-liter Zojirushi VE Hybrid Water Boilers and Warmers. These models cost significantly more and take up more space than regular electric kettles, but they’re ideal for keeping a large volume of water at a specific temperature for an extended period of time. In our tests, the 4-liter Zojirushi CV-DCC40XT did well at holding temperatures for a long time, but it measured about 10 degrees over the preset temperature. Although it’s a well-made boiler, we recommend it only for offices, restaurants, or larger households with young children that need a lot of warm water ready throughout the day.

Wrapping it up

After spending dozens of hours researching and testing electric kettles over the past three years, we think the Cuisinart CPK-17 is the best electric kettle for most people. It quickly brings water to the temperature needed for optimum flavor from teas and coffee, and it offers the best combination of speed, accuracy, and ease of use of all the electric kettles we tested.

This guide may have been updated by The Sweethome. To see the current recommendation, please go here.

LMcable Aims to Be World’s First USB Charging Cable With 2-in-1 Lightning and Micro USB Connector

LMcable is a new Kickstarter project aiming to be the world’s first cable containing a 2-in-1 connector that can charge both Lightning and Micro USB devices.

One side of the 2.4A charging cable has a Lightning connector for iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and other Apple products, while the reverse side has a Micro USB connector for devices like select Android, BlackBerry, and Windows Phone smartphones.

The stitched leather cable is about 1 meter long and designed with tin-plated copper wires for increased durability. A basic brass buckle is included that allows you to coil the cable neatly so that it remains untangled.

Perhaps the biggest caveat of the LMcable is that it lacks MFi certification. Apple’s MFi Program has strict guidelines, so it remains questionable if a custom Lightning-Micro USB connector would ever be approved as an official accessory.

Another design tradeoff is that the cable lacks the reversibility of an official Lightning cable, meaning it can only be plugged into an iPhone in one direction like Apple’s old 30-pin docking cable or a traditional USB Type-A connector.

Nevertheless, LMcable is an interesting novelty that has exceeded its $5,000 AUD funding goal by nearly tenfold as of Tuesday morning. Like many other Kickstarter projects, however, there is no guarantee the cable will ever ship to customers.

Those interested can pledge $21 AUD on Kickstarter to receive one cable, or $43 AUD to receive three cables, in Sunlight White, Vintage Brown, Moonlight Black, or Cowboy Blue. LMcable aims to begin shipping in mid-April barring any unforeseen delays.

Tags: Kickstarter, Lightning, Micro USB
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Apple Seeds Fifth OS X 10.11.4 El Capitan Beta to Developers and Public Beta Testers

Apple today seeded the fifth beta of an upcoming OS X 10.11.4 update to developers and public beta testers for testing purposes, just over a week after seeding the fourth OS X 10.11.4 beta and more than a month after releasing OS X 10.11.3. OS X 10.11.4 has been in testing since January 11.

The fifth OS X 10.11.4 beta, build 15E56a, can be downloaded through the Apple Developer Center (developers only) or via the Software Update Mechanism in the Mac App Store (for developers and public beta testers).

OS X 10.11.4 offers a couple of new features, such as Live Photos support in Messages, the ability to password protect notes in the Notes app, and an option to import notes from Evernote, but like the recent OS X 10.11.3 update, it appears to focus primarily on under-the-hood bug fixes and performance improvements. Almost all of Apple’s OS X updates to date have been smaller updates that improve performance rather than introduce new features.

We’ll update this post with any features or significant changes that are discovered in the fifth beta of OS X 10.11.4. OS X 10.11.4 is likely to see a spring release alongside iOS 9.3, tvOS 9.2, and watchOS 2.2, with the new software coming as early as March 21, the date of Apple’s planned spring event.

Related Roundup: OS X El Capitan
Tag: OS X 10.11.4
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Apple Seeds Fifth Beta of tvOS 9.2 to Developers

Apple today provided developers with the fifth beta of an upcoming 9.2 update to tvOS, the operating system that runs on the fourth-generation Apple TV and powers its built-in App Store. Today’s tvOS 9.2 beta 5 comes just over a week after Apple released the fourth beta of tvOS 9.2 and more than a month after the release of tvOS 9.1.1, a minor update to tvOS 9.1. tvOS 9.2 has been in testing since January 11.

tvOS betas are more difficult to install than beta updates for iOS and OS X. Installing the tvOS beta requires the Apple TV to be connected to a computer with a USB-C to USB-A cable, with the software downloaded and installed via iTunes or Apple Configurator. Those who have already installed the first four tvOS 9.2 betas will be able to download the fifth update over the air.

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tvOS 9.2 is a significant update for the tvOS operating system and new features have been added continually throughout the beta testing process. It brings support for Bluetooth keyboards, allowing a keyboard to be paired to the Apple TV for text entry. Bluetooth keyboard support is a major feature that was missing from previous versions of tvOS and its addition should make it much easier to do tasks like entering passwords on the fourth-generation Apple TV.

Along with Bluetooth keyboard support, the tvOS 9.2 update introduces support for grouping apps into folders on the Home screen like on iOS devices, plus it includes a new look for the App Switcher interface and it brings support for iCloud Photo Library and Live Photos. There’s an update for the Apple TV Remote firmware, adding improved motion sensor performance and support for additional sound bar and receiver hardware.

Support for dictation allows Apple TV users to dictate text and spell user names and passwords rather than typing them in. Dictation capabilities are available in all countries where Siri is available on the Apple TV. With tvOS 9.2, Siri also gains the ability to search for App Store apps, improving app discovery. Siri can search for a specific app or bring up a category of apps, such as games.

tvOS 9.2 also introduces MapKit so developers can incorporate maps into their tvOS apps, and it adds Siri support for US Spanish (in the US only) and French Canadian (in Canada only). UK English, Australian English, and US English are also now available as Siri options in the UK, Australian, and US Storefronts when English is set as the tvOS language.

We’ll update this post with any new features that are discovered in the fifth beta of tvOS 9.2.

Related Roundup: Apple TV
Tag: tvOS 9.2
Buyer’s Guide: Apple TV (Buy Now)
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