Apple to continue headphone jack killing spree with MacBook Pro?

After the decision to remove the headphone jack from the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, it seems Apple now has the urge to continue its villainous spree with attention now focused on the MacBook Pro with Retina display.

MacRumours has learned that Apple has been sending out a survey to users of the sharp-screened MacBook Pro model, asking them if they use the 3.5mm headphone port. Presumably, if the majority of people say they in fact don’t use it, it’ll face the guillotine and be gone.

But Apple may not be stopping at just the headphone port, as the company has also asked users if they use the SD card slot as well as questions regarding battery life. It’s been reported that the new MacBook Pro lineup, which is expected to be revealed in October, will come with four USB Type-C ports and the much-loved headphone port. This suggests any changes from the data Apple is collecting now, won’t have an immediate impact on the refreshed range of laptops.

The new models are expected to be quite bare in the connections department though, with no HDMI, SD card, USB Type-A or even a MagSafe connection.

Is this what the Google Pixel XL will look like?

We know that Google is planning to release two new smartphones this year and we’re pretty confident they’ll be called Pixel and Pixel XL. What we don’t know is what they’ll look like. Until now.

Or at least, we now have an idea what the larger Pixel XL smartphone will look like thanks to a render from Reddit user bndki, which has been picked up by Phone Arena. Bndki has taken a blurry photo, which also leaked online a few days ago, purporting to be the Pixel XL and turned it into a render to give us a better idea of what to expect come launch day.

The render doesn’t give too much away, other than that the Pixel XL will be a black rectangle shape, like most other phones, but there does appear to be very thin bezels, which is always nice.

Both the Pixel and Pixel XL are expected to be made by HTC and should be unveiled on October 4th at Google’s I/O event on October 4th. Specs are said to include a Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processor 5.5in 2560 x 1440 AMOLED display, 4GB of RAM and 32GB/128GB of internal storage. The rear camera should come in at 12-megapixels while the front will be 8MP and the battery should be a 3540mAh unit with USB Type-C charging.

White Amazon Echo in pictures, get it for £50 off

Along with finally announcing the Amazon Echo for the UK, the retail giant revealed a new colour scheme that is also new for the US.

Previously, the Amazon Echo voice-controlled speaker and smarthome system only came in black, and while that still looks nice, it doesn’t match the white version for sleek looks. You can take a look in our gallery above to check that out for yourself.

It also has a matt finish, so looks classy. Indeed, we couldn’t help feeling that it would be a fantastic match for the Xbox One S console, also recently released.

Like the black edition, the white version is available on Amazon.co.uk for pre-order now, priced at £149.99. However, if you’re quick, Prime members get £50 off for a limited period (so just £99.99). And if you’re not a Prime member yet, you can sign up for a month’s free trial and make use of the discount anyway.

• Amazon Echo UK pre-order discount gives Prime members £50 off, but be quick

The Amazon Echo is a tube speaker with multiple drivers and microphones. It connects to the internet and if you start voice queries with the term “Alexa” it will fetch information or play music through services like Spotify automatically. It can even control many smarthome devices, including Hue lighting and Nest thermostats.

There is also a version of the Amazon Echo without the speaker drivers. Called Amazon Echo Dot, it gives access to Alexa voice control and services, but you can hook it up to your own speaker system or AV receiver instead.

• Amazon Echo review: Ace assistant, average speaker
• Amazon Echo comes to Europe, UK customers can finally use Alexa
• Amazon Echo vs Amazon Tap vs Echo Dot: What’s the difference?
• Amazon Echo Dot (2016) preview: Alexa for those who use their own speakers

UK ISP rapped for disguising flyers as missed delivery slips

It’s fairly common for the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) to wag a finger at ISPs and mobile operators for misleading claims or poorly worded fine print. Every now and again, though, the watchdog deals with a slightly more unusual complaint. The latest company giving the ASA a headache is fibre broadband provider Hyperoptic, which is in trouble for a snail-mail marketing campaign that looked a little too similar to the cards you get through the door when you’ve missed a parcel delivery.

As the ASA ruling describes, the card was headed “SORRY, Your current broadband provider couldn’t deliver.” Alongside some seemingly handwritten info such as date and time (like you’d see on a courier’s card), the list of undelivered items included movies, games, music and cat videos. Cute, but perhaps a little too clever on Hyperoptic’s part, as one recipient complained to the ASA it wasn’t immediately apparent the correspondence was an advert.

Despite the flipside of the card (and the envelope it was delivered in) dropping various hints by way of logos, promotional terms and various mentions of broadband, the ASA agreed it could give a confusing first impression. That was almost certainly the whole point of the campaign, of course, but a breach of advertising code is a breach of advertising code. Typical of these rulings, Hyperoptic is escaping with only a light slap on the wrist. The ASA has simply told the ISP it can’t use the ad again without appropriate tweaks, and to not be so naughty in the future.

Via: Ars Technica

Source: Advertising Standards Authority

Kangaroo Notebook uses mini PCs to separate work and play

InFocus has unveiled the Kangaroo Notebook, an inexpensive laptop computer with an interesting concept: interchangeable mini-PC modules. Each is a completely self-contained Windows 10 PC, so you can dedicate one to important business functions, and another to family games, movies and apps. It comes as a package with the laptop dock and two modules, each equipped with Windows 10, 2GB of RAM, 32GB of storage (expandable to 256GB), and an Intel “Cherry Trail” CPU.

You’re not going to play Crysis on one, but they’re surprisingly well equipped. The mini PCs have Bluetooth 4.2 LE and 802.11AC Wifi, but use custom connectors, so they can’t be connected to separate monitors, keyboards or other peripherals. However, the laptop dock does have an 11.6-inch HD screen (1,366 x 768), full keyboard, Synaptics trackpad, battery, USB 2.0 and 3.0 ports, SD card reader, 3.5mm audio jack, microphone and speakers.

The disadvantage is that you can only use one module at a time because of the custom connectors. If Kangaroo could figure out how to stick a few ports on the modules themselves, like on its Kangaroo Pro mini PC, it would be a bit more useful. If that’s not an issue, it’s a clever way to keep your personal stuff firewalled from the kids’ Flash games without the need to pay for two PCs. The whole package runs $300, including both modules, and will arrive at Newegg.com in mid-October.

FBI chief James Comey recommends taping over your webcam

FBI director James Comey revealed during the Center for Strategic and International Studies conference that he knew he was mocked for admitting that he tapes over his webcam. But that didn’t stop him from recommending that other people do the same. “There’s some sensible things you should be doing, and that’s one of them,” he said at the event. He likened it to locking cars and doors at night, as well as setting up alarm systems for your own safety and security. He added: “You go into any government office and we all have the little camera things that sit on top of the screen. They all have a little lid that closes down on them. You do that so that people who don’t have authority don’t look at you. I think that’s a good thing.”

If hackers get a hold of your webcam, they can easily turn your life into a reality show without your consent. Back in 2014, someone put up a website that showed live feeds from people’s CCTVs, baby monitors and webcams, while a hacker live streamed footage from people’s computers on YouTube last year. In some instances, hackers use the victims’ webcams to take sensitive photos, like what happened to Miss Teen USA 2013 Cassidy Wolf.

Despite the dangers of leaving webcams uncovered, Comey was still mocked online because, as The Hill noted, people find it funny that the FBI’s head honcho takes extra care of his privacy. Some reference the agency’s efforts to force Apple into unlocking the San Bernardino shooter’s iPhone, in particular. If you’ll recall, Apple didn’t budge, and the feds had to pay a third party for a tool to unlock the device. Comey defended himself during his talk, however, telling attendees that “It’s not crazy that the FBI director cares about personal security as well.”

Source: The Hill, 9to5mac

Amazon Taking Pre-Orders For its Echo Smart Speaker in U.K. and Germany

Amazon yesterday announced its Echo connected smart speaker is now available to pre-order in the U.K. and Germany, signaling the end of a 14-month wait for the device to become available outside of the U.S.

For those unfamiliar with the device, the Echo’s array of microphones lets users query voice-based assistant Alexa, who can be asked to do things like play music, read the news, use apps, check the weather, turn on the lights, set timers, and more.

The Amazon Echo costs £150 in the UK and 180 Euros in Germany, while Amazon Prime members get a £50 or 50 Euros discount off the sale price if they pre-order today. The Echo ships on September 28 and October 26, respectively, and the device is available in black or white.

The company also made good on Tuesday’s deleted tweet and announced an “all-new” version of the Echo Dot, a smaller $49.99 speaker that allows existing Echo owners to extend the smart system around the house.

The Echo Dot, originally launched in March of this year at the price of $89.99, also lets existing Echo owners connect up their entertainment system and use Alexa to control streaming music services.

The new Dot includes a faster speech processor than the old one and feeds into its Echo Spatial Perception feature, which enables the device to identify which speaker is closest to the user when a query is put to it.

Otherwise, design differences between the first- and second-generation Echo Dot are subtle: the new Dot is marginally smaller and lighter, with an identical diameter but a height of 1.3-inches, compared to 1.5-inches, and weighs 5.7 ounces versus 8.8 ounces.

In addition, volume buttons have replaced the control slider on the top, and a 3.5mm audio cable is no longer included in the box. The device also comes with a 90 day warranty, as opposed to the original model’s one-year warranty, and is likewise available in the U.K. and Germany.

Tag: Amazon Echo
Discuss this article in our forums

iPhone 7 Series is Faster is Than Any MacBook Air Ever Made

Yesterday, John Gruber at Daring Fireball highlighted just how well Apple’s A10 Fusion chip found in its iPhone 7 stands up to the competition in terms of raw speed.

(Image taken from Daring Fireball.)
Looking at Geekbench results for single and multi-core performance across a range of smartphones, Gruber noted that the iPhone 7 series beats all newcomers on every score, including Samsung’s new Galaxy S7 and Note 7 Android phones.

More impressively perhaps, the A10 Fusion processor scores faster overall results than every MacBook Air Apple has ever made, only once falling behind a multi-core score recorded for the early 2015 MacBook Air, which is powered by an Intel Core i7 and scores 5650, just edging the iPhone 7’s result of 5630. Still, the laptop can’t keep up with the A10 chip’s raw single-core performance (2989 compared to 3261). Apple’s latest flagship phone also performs comparably to an early 2013 MacBook Pro, powered by an Intel Core i5.

Apple has invested heavily in its Ax-series of processors, with some commentators and rumors suggesting it could eventually transition an ARM-based processor to future MacBooks. You can learn more about the technology behind Apple’s A10 Fusion chip in MacRumors’ dedicated article on the subject.

Related Roundup: iPhone 7
Tag: A10 Fusion
Discuss this article in our forums