You can stop nuisance calls with just one text message, here’s how
There’s now a number you can text to stop getting nuisance calls.
The Telephone Preference Service (TPS) has partnered with Ofcom in the UK to launch a “text-to-register” service that adds your mobile phone number to an official “do not call” database. It’s illegal in the UK for organisations to make unsolicited sales and marketing calls to any number registered in the TPS database (unless of course they have consent).
Ofcom said only 40 per cent of Brits are familiar with the TPS and that they can add their mobile numbers to the TPS database for free. However, 88 per cent of Brits have realised they can register landline phone numbers. Only 3 per cent of mobile phone numbers (about 2.9 million) are therefore registered in the TPS database, compared to 18.5 million landline numbers.
Ofcom wants to raise awareness, so it’s introduced an easy text-to-register process with the TPS. And this is how you can ensure you block nuisance calls.
How does ‘text-to-register’ work?
To register your mobile phone number in the TPS database, text TPS and your email address to the shortcode 78070.
You should receive a text reply from the TPS that confirms your mobile number has been added to its database.
Do the nuisance calls stop immediately?
You should notice a “gradual reduction in unsolicited sales and marketing voice calls after a few days”, according to Ofcom. But it can take up to 28 days for the service to become fully effective. A study commissioned by Ofcom and the Information Commissioner’s Office found mobile phone customers registered with the TPS saw a 31 per cent reduction in nuisance calls.
Will registering stop spam text messages?
No. Registering with the TPS does not prevent spam text messages. You can report spam texts to your mobile network operator however by simply forwarding the text to the shortcode 7726.
Are there other ways to stop nuisance calls?
Ofcom has offered some tips that could also help prevent you from receiving nuisance calls in the future. Be careful who you give your contact details to, for instance, and be sure to look carefully at any marketing “opt-in” and “opt-out” boxes in small print. Also, ask your phone provider to see what privacy services are available such as a call-blocker service.
You can also make a complaint about nuisance calls to the Information Commissioner’s Office.
‘The Force Awakens’ vinyl soundtrack is etched with holograms
If you haven’t already emptied your savings account on Star Wars memorabilia, Disney is back to tempt you once more. Another version of The Force Awakens soundtrack is on the way as a two LP set that has 3D holograms etched onto the surface of the records. Of course, you’ll need to find the proper viewing angle in order to catch a glimpse of the spinning illustrations of a TIE Fighter and the Millennium Falcon. Disney recommends that you just shine your phone’s flashlight on the vinyl to reveal the animated artwork.
Etched records aren’t a new development, but that doesn’t make them any less fun. Jack White’s so-called “Ultra LP” that was released in 2014 featured similar etched art from Infinity Light Science’s Tristan Duke. The illustrations on this new Star Wars set were also created by Duke. You’ll have to wait until June 17th to nab it from Disney’s Music Emporium or Amazon. When the time comes, expect to part with $50 to secure your copy. If the John Williams score doesn’t do it for you, there’s a Star Wars Headspace album full of remixes and songs inspired by the films.
Via: Gizmodo
Source: Disney Music Emporium
Twitter will serve up Spotify links as 30-second clips
When Twitter first announced Audio Cards that would put songs in your social feed, SoundCloud was the music service of choice at launch. After the feature has been available for well over a year, Spotify tracks will now show up in a similar fashion. Any tweet that contains a link to a song from the streaming service will offer a 30-second preview in your timeline. Spotify clips will also appear in that curated Moments feed, which is how the company broke the news today.
Now that Spotify has amassed 30 million paying users and over 75 million folks are listening for free, it makes sense for the Twitter feature to tap into that audience. As you might expect, these cards will show up in the social network’s website in addition to its Android and iOS apps. Although most tracks should display as cards now, Twitter says the full rollout should be complete in about a week.
You’ll want the volume up for this #SummertimeSoundtrack. Tweets with @Spotify tracks now play in your timeline! 🎧https://t.co/93avzwiQbs
— Twitter (@twitter) May 26, 2016
Source: Twitter
ForcePhone software makes any mobile device pressure sensitive
A team from the University of Michigan have developed a novel means of giving any mobile device the same sort of force-sensitive capabilities found on Apple’s flagship iPhone 6s. Dubbed ForcePhone, the software leverages two features that literally every smartphone has — a microphone and a speaker — do to what very few OEM device manufacturers have managed.
It causes the phone to continually emit an 18kHz buzz, which is too high for the human ear to detect. However, it’s not too high for the phone’s microphone to detect. When the user presses a finger against the screen, the pitch changes slightly. Pressing harder causes the pitch to shift further, which the mic picks up and translates into commands for the software. With it, users would conceivably be able to dial their phones or navigate through menus simply by squeezing their screens in different patterns.
“Having expensive and bulky sensors installed into smartphones can solve every problem we have solved, but the added cost and laborious installation prevent phone manufacturers from doing it,” University of Michigan doctoral student Yu-Chih Tung said in a statement. “Our sound-based solution can fill this gap, providing the functionality without making any hardware modification. Everything is just software.” The system isn’t quite ready for public consumption just yet, however. Its inventors will demo the ForcePhone June 27-29 in Singapore at MobiSys 2016.
Source: University of Michigan
Now anybody can register a ‘.game’ top-level domain
The menagerie of content-specific top level domain (TLD) names grew once again on Tuesday when registry service, Uniregistry, opened up .game to the public. It joins other custom TLDs like .beer and .nyc, which have already been around for years.
Of course, don’t expect big or brand name domains to still be available. Uniregistry held a week-long early access enrollment last week and virtually every major studio, including Nintendo, EA and Microsoft, has already claimed their own intellectual properties. Blizzard, for example, nabbed domains for Warcraft, StarCraft, Hearthstone, Diablo and Heroes of the Storm. That said, there are still plenty of domains available, assuming you can afford the annual $318.88 fee to maintain it.
Via: Polygon
Source: Uniregistry
Snapchat aims to make over $1 billion in revenue in 2017
Snapchat has raised another $1.8 billion in funding, TechCrunch reports today, making the platform’s current valuation somewhere in the neighborhood of $18 billion to $20 billion. While the company isn’t profitable just yet, it has some very high hopes to break $1 billion in annual revenue by 2017.
According to an internal presentation deck leaked to TechCrunch, Snapchat’s revenue jumped from $4 million to $33 million per quarter last year, to finish 2015 with $59 million total. For 2016, the company estimates it will bring in anywhere from $250 to $350 million. Next year, however, Snapchat expects to do half a billion in revenue on the low end, but could double that figure if its meets some aggressive sales goal. In other words: Snapchat may have finally figured out how to make money and it’s not by making users pay to revisit snaps, it’s by selling Discover tab spots to publishers and allowing anybody to buy a sponsored geofence.
That same deck also says Snapchat had about 110 million daily active users as of December 2015, or 50 percent growth over the 74 million users the platform boasted around the end of 2014. While that growth was likely fueled in part by the sudden wave of interest from age groups other than teenagers, it’s not exactly an explosive, exponential growth chart.
Also important to note here that these numbers were dated before Snapchat rolled out a number of new features like faceswapping, upgraded chat and video doodles — not to mention purely commercial features like selling movie tickets and cosmetics directly though the Discover tab. A switch to a more ad-friendly, algorithmic content feed is also rumored to be in the works.
‘LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ season pass detailed
LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens is coming to a galaxy near you this June, and it’s bringing a bevy of downloadable content with it accessible via Season Pass.
The Season Pass itself will come packing three brand new Level Packs to further extend the LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens story with situations not seen in the movie. These packs include Poe’s Quest for Survival, following Poe Dameron’s treacherous journey back to the Resistance base after escaping the First Order.
Additionally, the First Order Siege of Takodana and Escape from Starkiller Base Level Packs offer additional interactions between characters like Kylo Ren, Rey, BB-8, and a swath of vehicles to manuever with. Strus Clan Speeders, Jakku Freighters, Assault Walkers and Jedi Interceptors are available for starters, if you needed yet another reason to get excited.
The Season Pass doesn’t just include Level Packs, however. The Jedi, Prequel Trilogy, Freemaker Adventures, Star Wars: Rebels and Clone Wars Character Packs add favorites like Aayla Secura, Anakin Skywalker, Darth Maul, Jango Fett and Ahsoka Tano. The Jedi Character Pack is a Season Pass exclusive, and it’ll be available beginning June 28th.
LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens releases for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Wii U, Nintendo 3DS and PC on June 28th.
Oppo Sonica Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET
Oppo Digital
Just when you thought that all of the players had showed their hands, where all of the companies that were going to release proprietary wireless speakers already had, along comes Oppo Digital.
Most well-known for its line of videophile disk players, and then a bunch of mobile phones through its sister company, Oppo is now extending its AV know-how into every room of your house. The Oppo Sonica is a thoroughly 2016 version of the wireless speaker with a host of connectivity options in addition to built-in room correction.
The Sonica was designed by Igor Levitsky, who was also behind the Oppo PM-3 planar magnetic headphone. This is a stereo speaker with two wide-band drivers mated to three (!) separate bass drivers — a 3.5-inch “long displacement bass driver” and two 3-inch balanced bass radiators. This speaker takes its bass very seriously.
In addition to Bluetooth, the speaker includes Wi-Fi — with AirPlay and iOS and Android support via the Sonica app — as well as USB and a 3.5mm auxiliary input.
If you want to play music in high-res, the app features 24bit/192kHz playback of most file formats (though not DSD). It currently includes streaming from Tidal while other services have yet to be announced.
Related Links
- Oppo BDP-105: Not your average Blu-ray player
- Oppo PM-3 headphones review
- The best Wi-Fi music systems for 2016
The speaker will enable multiroom playback to other Sonica speakers (only at this stage) as well as enable you to hook up two speakers side by side as a stereo pair.
At $299 the Oppo Sonica speaker is relatively affordable for its size and the number of features it has. While we’ve yet to confirm which system the speaker uses, it appears they’ve chosen not to go with Play-Fi, and this is kind of mysterious; if any company is going to be successful at taking Sonos on at its own game, it’s surely through compatibility with other stuff you already own. No one likes DRM or the walled garden approach. Your music should just play. And Play-Fi is the largest and best alternative to Sonos yet.
If you are a fan of Oppo’s headphones and Blu-ray players, and don’t mind a lack of intercompatibility or streaming services, the Sonica could be worth a look.
Oppo has yet to announce pricing or availability in the UK or Australia, but at current conversion rates this equals £203 and AU$415.
2016 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid review – Roadshow
The Good The 2016 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid’s powertrain offers good midrange torque and respectable fuel economy. The plug-in model adds 27 miles of electric range to the mix. The sedan’s driver aid suite is highlighted by one of the smoothest adaptive cruise control systems I’ve tested in a while.
The Bad The Sonata Hybrid seems to lack the Android Auto and Apple CarPlay connectivity that is boasted by the non-hybrid model.
The Bottom Line Whether you go plug-in or self-contained, the 2016 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid is a solid performer in this class and an excellent tech value.
Hyundai follows up its redesign of the Sonata midsize sedan with a one-two-punch combo of efficiency. First is the jab that is the hybrid variant, followed up with right cross of a plug-in hybrid model that boasts fantastic EV range. Like the opener, these electrified models boast excellent dashboard tech, a very modern suite of available driver aid and safety systems, and a more mature design that — while maybe a bit less exciting than the previous generation — is sure to appeal to a broader audience.
A solidly performing hybrid
Just behind the more mature fascia of the 2016 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid, the engine room is home to a 2.0-liter Atkinson-cycle gasoline powerplant making 154 horsepower and 140 pound-feet of torque. It’s not alone; the combustion engine is mated to a 38 kW e-motor that adds 51 horsepower and 151 pound-feet of torque to the mix, bringing total system output to 193 horsepower. The hybrid power flows through a six-speed automatic transmission before meeting the road at the front wheels.
The 2.0-liter hybrid powertrain boasts really good midrange torque, which makes the sedan feel responsive around town and allows for smooth passing without much drama. The six-speed automatic transmission can be a bit of a fun-damper. The gearbox can take a second or so to downshift when more immediate passing power is required and seems to get a bit confused when asked for spirited performance on twisty B-roads. To be fair, most owners don’t buy hybrids for their performance chops, so I won’t knock the Sonata too much here.
In its defense, toggling the Drive Mode selector to the Sport mode tunes a bit of the hesitancy out of the electronics, and slapping the transmission into its manual shifting mode and forcing it to stay in, for example, third or fourth gear for a twisty bit eliminates the gear hunting altogether. If you choose the ratios yourself, the Sonata Hybrid can feel surprisingly alive, thanks to its torquey electric assist, but even then the gearbox can be sluggish to change speeds, and without paddle shifters, it’s a little more trouble than it’s worth.
Tested at 38.5 mpg, I got close to the EPA’s fuel economy estimates even with a significant number of my miles tested miles being spent sussing out the sedan’s performance envelope on back roads. The stated numbers are 39 mpg city, 43 mpg highway and 41 mpg combined. It’s no Prius, but those are respectable numbers that I believe I could have easily met with less-aggressive driving.
Antuan Goodwin/Roadshow
At the Limited trim level that I was able to test, the Sonata Hybrid rides on 17-inch wheels shod with 215 mm wide all-season tires. Between the body and the wheels is a MacPherson strut suspension at the front end and an independent multi-link rear.
Handling is pretty good, with a nice and planted feel. The steering is direct enough but lacks engagement and feeling. The Sonata’s fraternal twin, the Kia Optima, has slightly better fingertip feeling, while Ford’s newly refreshed Fusion Hybrid feels significantly better than either. That said, the Sonata’s steering isn’t bad, merely uninspired.
Plug in, turn on, green out
Hyundai doesn’t just offer a traditional gas-electric hybrid — there’s also a plug-in model available. With an MSRP starting at $34,600, it’s only a couple of hundred dollars more expensive than the top-trim gas model, the Limited 2.0T. If you want that same Limited trim level, the price jumps to $38,600.
Packing an enlarged, 9.8kWh battery, the Sonata plug-in promises 27 miles of all-electric range. And it’s easy to achieve that figure, so long as you’re not cranking the HVAC system on the highway. In fact, the highway was not kind to the Sonata Plug-In’s range. I regularly saw two miles of range disappear for every mile driven.
If you’re limited to short trips in the city or suburbs, though, the Sonata Plug-In is a peach. If you don’t have the infotainment system set to display the real-time distribution of power between battery, electric motor and gas engine, you’ll have a hard time telling when the gas engine kicks in. It’s a seamless, quiet transition.
There are multiple modes available, depending on what you’re after. You can max out your range in EV-only mode, keep more of a balance between gas and electric in hybrid mode, or put the gas engine to work charging the battery. The latter mode is nice when you know you’ll be transitioning from highways to city roads, where electricity will get you a fair bit farther.
The engine revs up to charge the battery, which does lead to some strangeness as you might only be going 25 mph, but the engine sounds like it’s racing along at a higher RPM. Not that you can tell what the engine’s speed is, because the car lacks a tachometer, replacing it with a gauge that displays current charge status and power output.
In a mix of charge-building mode and pure EV mode, I achieved approximately 53 mpg, with most of my miles being on the highway. I spent the first few days in EV mode alone, so the computer constantly displayed average fuel economy as 99.9 mpg (the readout doesn’t go any higher — although I wish it did, like in the Chevrolet Volt). Had I been driving a more balanced route, there’s no doubt I would have seen my economy rise to 60 mpg, if not more.
One downside about the larger battery, compared to the Sonata Hybrid, is the space it requires. It eats up a fair bit of trunk space, but I still managed a trip to the garden center just fine, bringing home several bags of mulch and a whole load of perennials of various shapes and sizes without issue.
Dell 43 Ultra HD 4K Multi-Client Monitor Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET
The Dell P4317Q.
Dell
You’ve always wanted a desktop covered with monitors — your own personal command center to control multiple computers, watch the game, and play Xbox all at the same time. But actually hooking up multiple monitors could be a logistical nightmare. Enter the Dell P4317Q: a 43-inch, 4K screen with four video inputs so you can have four screens in one.
While the new $1,350 monitor (roughly £918 or AU$1,876) is primarily targeted at financial traders and software developers who need charts, graphs or a whole lot of code on screen at any given time, it’s got the ports for other use cases as well: two HDMI 1.4 sockets; DisplayPort and Mini DisplayPort; and a VGA jack for legacy applications. You can assign each port to any corner you want, place two side by side or even fill the entire screen with the push of a button, according to Dell’s product page.
Audio is piped to a pair of 8W speakers, and there’s a headphone jack if you need. If you use the DisplayPort, it should support 4K resolution at 60 hertz, fast enough for many PC games.
That’s a lot of charts.
Dell
With a fairly average 8 millisecond grey-to-grey response time and an 82 percent color gamut, the P4317Q likely won’t be terribly impressive visually, but Dell does claim wide-viewing angles of 178 degrees in any direction.
We’ve never seen a monitor quite like this, and it’s a smart idea from Dell. You may or may not know that every 4K screen is technically the same as four 1080p screens — but you’ve never been able to put four separate video sources in each corner of a giant 4K screen until now.
AIVAnet 