Amazon’s Alexa and Prime Music service arrive in Canada

The absence of Amazon’s Alexa and Prime Music services in Canada has been a strange oversight, given that the nation’s share a border and (one of two) common languages. That has now been corrected, as Amazon has finally launched the Echo family, Prime Music and Alexa Voice services and skills in the land of hockey and poutine. “We’re excited to bring [Alexa] to Canada with an experienced designed from the ground up for our Canadian customers,” said Amazon Senior VP Tom Taylor in a statement.

Amazon has introduced a new English voice for Alexa with a Canadian accent, though even we Canadians aren’t exactly sure what that is. However, Alexa doesn’t seem to be available yet in French, which is bit surprising considering that it’s one of Canada’s two official languages (Engadget has reached out for more information).

It will also gain local knowledge and skills from Air Canada, TD Bank, Telus, CBC, Manulife and around 10,000 others this year. Canadian developers can build their own skills and apps using Amazon’s Alexa Skills Kit (ASK). Alexa will also be available in Canada for any third-party products that support it, like the CoWatch shown below.

Better still, Amazon also launched Prime Music in Canada, meaning users with an Amazon Prime account will automatically get the ad-free service. That lets you stream music from a lot of different devices, with apps available on iOS, Android, Mac, PC, the new Fire TV Stick Basic Edition and the web. Like Spotify and other services, Prime Music offers offline listening, curated playlists and more.

Prime Music plays well with Alexa, letting you choose music by playlist, song, album title, artist name, and criteria like tempo, popularity and genre. For instance, you can say “Alexa, play Feist,” and the assistant will choose a song from the Calgary-based indie artist. If you’re not sure exactly who you want to hear, you can also ask it to play music by genres like rock, hip-hop, or “relaxing pop music,” says Amazon.

Considering the popularity of Echo and Alexa and how it drives sales to Prime and other services, Amazon has been pretty slow to launch it in new countries. So far, it’s only available in the US, Germany, the UK, Japan, India (in English) and now Canada. Other popular Amazon countries in Europe, including France, Spain and Italy, have yet to see it. Canada’s launch helps explain the long delays, though, showing that Amazon wants to fine-tune the language and services for each nation.

Amazon will start pre-selling the Echo, Echo Plus and Echo Dot in Canada today for the introductory prices of CAD $100, $170 and $70, respectively. Shipping will start by December 5th, and Alexa will presumably be available at that point. Prime Music, as mentioned, is available today with a Prime membership, and if you don’t have that you can do a 30-day free trial.

Source: Amazon (1), (2), (3)

Sprint bundles free Hulu with its Unlimited Freedom plans

Sprint has launched its answer to T-Mobile’s free Netflix offering and AT&T’s free HBO. It took the Now Network a couple of months to cook up a response, but it’s worth the wait if you’re a Hulu fan and have been thinking of signing up for a Sprint subscription anyway. Starting on November 17th, an Unlimited Freedom plan will come with a free Hulu Limited Commercials subscription. And, yes, you can get the perk whether you’re a new or an existing customer, so long as you sign up for the offer on Sprint’s website.

Hulu’s Limited Commercials option has access to all the streaming service’s programming, including its original shows like The Handmaid’s Tale. You do need to sit through some (well, maybe a bit more than some) commercials, but hey, it’s free. Sprint’s Unlimited Freedom plans will set you back $60 per month for one line, but five lines will only cost you $100 until January 31st, 2019.

The carrier has updated the plans’ details from the time they launched, boosting their max streaming resolution from 480p to 1080p. Each line also comes with 10GB of data, so you can put that free Hulu sub to good use. The companies promise to give Unlimited subscribers the chance to upgrade and get access to Hulu’s sports-centric live TV offering, as well, though you’ll have to wait for more details on that one.

Source: Sprint

Apple reluctantly agrees to help India solve its phone spam problem

Apple and India’s telecoms regulator have been at loggerheads for more than a year over privacy concerns, but now it seems a tentative compromise has been reached, with the tech company agreeing to help the Indian government develop an anti-spam app for its iOS platform.

The original argument concerns the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) and its unsuccessful push to get Apple to include its ‘Do Not Disturb’ software in the App Store. The app allows people to share spam numbers with TRAI, which passes the data on to carriers so that spammers can be blocked. Spam calls are a huge problem in India, but Apple claims such an app would violate its privacy policy — the same privacy policy that says that the company is able to share user data with affiliates and strategic partners.

According to documents seen by Reuters, Apple — keen to continue its expansion in India — has now relented, albeit marginally. Executives are said to have flown to New Delhi last month and agreed with TRAI that the company would help develop the anti-spam app in question, but with limited capabilities. Some functions — such as making call logs available within in the app to report calls as spam — may not be approved on Apple’s side, with a spokesman for the company saying Apple had not changed its stance on privacy.

Nonetheless, it’s unusual to see a tech titan of this size back down on an issue it’s usually prepared to play hardball with, but Apple has ambitious plans for India — where half a billion smartphones will be sold by 2020 — and it can’t execute them without TRAI onside.

Source: Reuters

Scientists make first attempt at editing genes inside the body

Brian Madeux became part of medical history on November 13th after receiving a special kind of IV medication. It contained copies of a corrective gene paired with a genetic tool that can cut his DNA, you see, in an effort to cure a rare genetic disorder called Hunter syndrome. According to the American scientists who performed the procedure, it’s the first ever attempt at editing a gene inside the human body.

Scientists working on gene therapy usually alter cells in the lab with the intention of re-incorporating them back into the patient’s body. In Madeux’s case, the editing itself will happen inside his body, not in a lab. The researchers used a gene editing tool called zinc finger nucleases, which isn’t quite as popular as CRISPR, for this procedure. They paired the corrective gene with two zinc finger proteins that act as some sort of molecular scissors responsible for cutting off a specific part of DNA where the new gene has to insert itself.

The instructions telling both components what to do are coded into a virus that was modified to carry them into Madeux’s liver cells. While the researchers inserted billions of those gene-zinc finger pairs into his vein, they only need to correct one percent of Madeux’s liver cells for the treatment to be considered a success.

Hunter syndrome is caused by a missing or malfunctioning enzyme needed to break down some complex molecules. Those molecules could then build up in the body in massive, harmful amounts and lead to a variety of issues, including enlarged head and liver, hearing loss, joint stiffness, thickening of heart valves, difficulty in breathing and even severe organ and mental impairment. There is no treatment for the condition, and a lot of those who have it die between the ages 10 and 20. At 44 years old, Madeux is one of the exceptions. Unfortunately, no gene therapy can fix the issues his body already has, but it could eliminate the need for weekly enzyme treatments and improve his quality of life going forward.

Since we’re far from perfecting gene therapy, there are still many things that could go wrong with a procedure like this. For incurable diseases like Hunter syndrome, though, it’s worth taking a chance despite the risks. The researchers involved in this experiment won’t know if Madeux’s treatment is successful until they get the results in three months. If the procedure does what it’s supposed to do, the team will repeat the experiment in adults until they’re sure that the treatment can be used on kids who’ve yet to feel the worst possible effects of the disease.

Source: AP

Strong Demand for MacBook Pro Increases Apple’s Notebook Market Share in Last Quarter

Apple continued to see strong worldwide sales across its MacBook line-up in the third quarter of 2017, according to new market research conducted by TrendForce. Apple’s laptop sales once again exceeded ASUS to rank fourth in global notebook shipments, which overall saw a “remarkable” quarterly increase of 6.8 percent and a year-on-year increase of 0.9 percent, reaching 42.69 million units.

Apple continued the strong shipments of 12-inch products in the second quarter, and focused on the new models of MacBook Pro in the third quarter, recording the third quarter shipments of 4.43 million units and an increase of 11.3%. It exceeded ASUS to rank the fourth in this third quarter.

HP recorded a new high in its quarterly shipments, which increased by 17.6 percent, reaching a single-season shipment of 11 million units for the first time. HP is expected to achieve the annual goal of 40 million units, which will secure its first place in 2017 global notebook shipments ranking.

Lenovo recovered somewhat from a poor first half of the year, recording 8.58 million units for third quarter shipments and a 6.5 percent quarterly growth. In the fourth quarter, it is estimated to have another 1 to 3 percent growth.

Dell shipped 665 million units in the third quarter with a quarter-on-quarter increase of 1.4 percent, maintaining its third place in the rankings. ASUS and Acer ranked fifth and sixth, shipping 3.82 million and 3.31 million units respectively.

During a recent earnings call, CEO Tim Cook revealed that Apple’s Mac division set a new all-time revenue record of $25.8 billion for fiscal 2017. Apple sold 5.4 million Macs during the September quarter, up 10 percent over last year, and gained significant market share as the global market contracted by one percent, according to IDC’s latest estimate. The performance was reportedly fueled by big demand for the MacBook Pro, said Cook, and Mac revenue grew 25 percent to a new September quarter record.

“We had outstanding results all around the world in each of our geographic segments, growing Mac revenue by 20 percent or more,” said Cook. “We were also very happy with the success of Mac in the education market, where customer purchases grew double digits year over year.”

Related Roundup: MacBook ProTag: TrendForceBuyer’s Guide: MacBook Pro (Neutral)
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AT&T Announces Plans to Launch 5G Network in Parts of Minneapolis for Super Bowl LII

AT&T this week announced that it plans to launch its “5G Evolution” network in parts of Minneapolis over the next few months, intending to provide next-generation cellular coverage to customers at Super Bowl LII. AT&T didn’t mention which specific areas of Minneapolis would be covered by February 4, 2018, but confirmed “areas near the host stadium” will have 5G at the time.

Minneapolis is the next leg in AT&T’s 5G rollout, and one of 20 markets where the carrier is planning to bring 5G Evolution by the end of 2017. The technology is already available in parts of Austin and Indianapolis, and allows customers access to much faster speeds on compatible devices, which as of now does not yet include any iPhone model.

“We’re excited about launching this new wireless network in Minneapolis in the coming months as we move towards standards-based mobile 5G,” said Marachel Knight, senior vice president, Wireless Network Architecture and Design. “The upgrades we’re making today in Minneapolis are the foundation for the future of next generation connectivity in this city.”

“Minnesota is in a great position to welcome 5G Evolution wireless technology, with a climate that encourages the deployment of small cells – an integral building block for 5G,” said State Senator Bobby Joe Champion. “Good public policy can help put Minnesota on the map and attract investment that will prepare our state for the next generation wireless economy.”

In addition to the upgraded network in and around Minneapolis, AT&T will also upgrade the Distributed Antenna System (DAS) at the U.S. Bank Stadium in downtown Minneapolis, where Super Bowl LII will be held. The company said this means the stadium will be “overloaded…with wireless capacity and boosted LTE capacity” by an increase of 150 percent compared to last year, thanks to more than 800 antennas.

AT&T mentioned that Minneapolis is a “major step” on its journey to make 5G a standard for mobile networks “as soon as late 2018.” In total, the locations focused on AT&T’s 5G rollout will result in “smarter cities,” according to the company, as well as support for higher quality augmented and virtual reality experiences on smartphones.

U.S. Bank Stadium via Darb02 / Wikimedia Commons
Right now, 5G-capable devices include LG V30, Moto Z2 Force Edition, Samsung Galaxy Note 8, Samsung Galaxy S8, Samsung Galaxy S8+, and the Samsung Galaxy S8 Active. These smartphones can take advantage of ultra-fast LTE Advanced features including 256 Quadrature Amplitude Modulation, 4×4 Multiple-Input and Multiple-Output, 3-way carrier aggregation, and other 5G-related upgrades, to provide faster network speeds to users.

Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon have also announced interest in 5G networks, with Sprint saying its own wide-scale 5G network will launch by 2019, and T-Mobile aiming for nationwide 5G coverage by 2020. Of course, all of this progress hinges on the 3rd Generation Partnership Project first completing the 5G Release 15 standard. According to AT&T, once Release 15 is out then 5G-supported “commercial equipment” will be available within six months.

Earlier this year, Apple submitted an application to the FCC for an experimental license to test next-generation 5G wireless technologies, which it was then granted in July. While the exact purpose of Apple’s tests remains unclear, the company could be looking to prepare future models of its iPhone and iPad devices to take advantage of 5G network speeds.

Tags: AT&T, 5G
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Telegram Messenger 4.5 Update Brings Albums, Saved Messages, and Better Search

Encrypted messenger app Telegram received an update today that brings additional features and enhancements to the platform, including media albums, saved messages, and an improved search function.

Starting with Telegram 4.5, whenever users send multiple photos or videos they will be grouped into albums. Each album can include up to 10 photos or videos, which are displayed in chat threads as “elegantly proportioned thumbnails”, the upshot being that recipients will be notified just the once instead of ten times over.

The order in which the photos are sent can now be controlled within the app, too. Photos selected for sharing get a sequence number, so users can send “before and after” pictures in the correct order. In addition, users should find profile photos easier to navigate, thanks to thumbnails that show in the lower part of the screen.

Elsewhere, Telegram users can now bookmark important messages and media by forwarding them to a personal cloud storage area called Saved Messages. Each saved message also has a “go to” button that takes users to the place in the chat where it was originally posted. Saved Messages can be found in the Chats list and in Settings.

The developers have also improved the global search algorithm used for finding public channels, groups, and bots. It’s now possible to search for public channels and bots by their titles, and most popular items will always be displayed first.

Lastly, Channel admins can now pin messages to focus their subscribers’ attention on important announcements, while the settings screen and context menu has been redesigned. The app has also been tweaked for iPhone X.

Telegram is a free download for iPhone and iPad from the App Store. [Direct Link]

Tag: Telegram
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Drill down on your dream job with Google’s updated search widget

Google streamlined job searches earlier this year with a feature that pulled data from popular online job boards and laid them out in a widget for easy viewing.

Accessible via its Search page, you can begin your job hunt with a term like “jobs near me.” After that, it’s a simple case of tapping your way through the widget’s custom filters to find jobs of interest. Options include job category, title, date posted, and type (e.g., full- or part-time). For some positions it will even show you the approximate commute time.

Based on feedback from some of the “tens of millions” of job seekers that Google says have so far used the service, the web giant said on Wednesday it’s introducing some new features to make finding your next job even easier.

Notably, it will now show estimated salary information for the posts you’re interested in. This kind of important data can often be absent from job listings, but algorithms will now build pay estimates based on the specific job title, location, and employer using data from sources such as Glassdoor, PayScale, and LinkedIn.

“For those jobs that do have a salary listed, we’ll show a comparison to the estimated range for that job, if available,” Google promised.

Google’s updated job widget will also include a location filter allowing you to select a workplace up to 200 miles away. While you certainly wouldn’t want to commute that far, you may be willing to make a move if a particular job strikes your fancy. There’ll also be an “anywhere” filter so you can peruse postings across the country.

Google also wants to smooth out the application process. It notes that sometimes the same job is posted by multiple job listing sites, and many job hunters are signed up to a few — but by no means all — of these sites. So now a job listing will show you which sites you can find it at so you can choose which one to apply through.

Finally, the widget now lets you save listings of interest in case you don’t have time to knock out an application  there and then, or just so you can do some more research later. “With a bookmark button alongside each posting, saving is as simple as a single tap. Then that job will appear in your ‘Saved jobs’ tabs on Google, which is accessible across any of your devices,” the company said.

According to Google, 60 percent of employers in the U.S. now show their jobs via its widget, and it’s making continued efforts to assist more listing sites and company employers to bring even more into the fold.

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Drill down on your dream job with Google’s updated search widget

Google streamlined job searches earlier this year with a feature that pulled data from popular online job boards and laid them out in a widget for easy viewing.

Accessible via its Search page, you can begin your job hunt with a term like “jobs near me.” After that, it’s a simple case of tapping your way through the widget’s custom filters to find jobs of interest. Options include job category, title, date posted, and type (e.g., full- or part-time). For some positions it will even show you the approximate commute time.

Based on feedback from some of the “tens of millions” of job seekers that Google says have so far used the service, the web giant said on Wednesday it’s introducing some new features to make finding your next job even easier.

Notably, it will now show estimated salary information for the posts you’re interested in. This kind of important data can often be absent from job listings, but algorithms will now build pay estimates based on the specific job title, location, and employer using data from sources such as Glassdoor, PayScale, and LinkedIn.

“For those jobs that do have a salary listed, we’ll show a comparison to the estimated range for that job, if available,” Google promised.

Google’s updated job widget will also include a location filter allowing you to select a workplace up to 200 miles away. While you certainly wouldn’t want to commute that far, you may be willing to make a move if a particular job strikes your fancy. There’ll also be an “anywhere” filter so you can peruse postings across the country.

Google also wants to smooth out the application process. It notes that sometimes the same job is posted by multiple job listing sites, and many job hunters are signed up to a few — but by no means all — of these sites. So now a job listing will show you which sites you can find it at so you can choose which one to apply through.

Finally, the widget now lets you save listings of interest in case you don’t have time to knock out an application  there and then, or just so you can do some more research later. “With a bookmark button alongside each posting, saving is as simple as a single tap. Then that job will appear in your ‘Saved jobs’ tabs on Google, which is accessible across any of your devices,” the company said.

According to Google, 60 percent of employers in the U.S. now show their jobs via its widget, and it’s making continued efforts to assist more listing sites and company employers to bring even more into the fold.

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• Bumble Bizz proves the traditional job hunting process is outdated

OnePlus responds to privacy fears after hacker mode found on its phones

A special app has been discovered installed on OnePlus smartphones that, in the hands of a skilled hacker, could allow unauthorized access to the entire device. The app, which is produced by Qualcomm, is known as EngineerMode, and is designed to assist with tests, fault finding, and other prerelease checks while the phone is at the factory. With some code and a password, however, hackers could treat EngineerMode as a “backdoor,” to your phone, making it a serious security problem.

The app was discovered on OnePlus phones by a mobile security researcher on Twitter, who goes by the pseudonym Elliot Alderson (also the name of the main character in USA Network’s hacker series Mr. Robot). With the assistance of researchers at NowSecure, Alderson cracked the password to EngineerMode, demonstrating its weaknesses and the relative ease anyone familiar with the app, and Android’s workings, could gain root access to a OnePlus phone.

EngineerMode has been found on the OnePlus 3, OnePlus 3T, and OnePlus 5 phones. Since the app became widely known, threads have appeared about it on OnePlus’s community forums. Some owners with firewalls installed on their phones report EngineerMode requesting access to the network multiple times per day. Most question why a tool primarily made for prerelease testing is still present on the device after it’s sold.

OnePlus responds to fears

It’s not just OnePlus owners that may have phones with EngineerMode installed, as the Qualcomm tool is likely used by many manufacturers, and has already been found on smartphones produced by Xiaomi and Asus, according to Alderson’s Twitter feed. However, should you be concerned? Does EngineerMode pose a serious security risk?

OnePlus has responded to the situation in a post on its community forums. A member of the OxygenOS — the name given to OnePlus’s version of Android — team wrote:

“Yesterday, we received a lot of questions regarding an apk found in several devices, including our own, named EngineerMode, and we would like to explain what it is. EngineerMode is a diagnostic tool mainly used for factory production line functionality testing and after sales support.

“We’ve seen several statements by community developers that are worried because this apk grants root privileges. While, it can enable adb root which provides privileges for adb commands, it will not let 3rd-party apps access full root privileges. Additionally, adb root is only accessible if USB debugging, which is off by default, is turned on, and any sort of root access would still require physical access to your device.

While we don’t see this as a major security issue, we understand that users may still have concerns and therefore we will remove the adb root function from EngineerMode in an upcoming OTA.”

It’s not the first time OnePlus has needed to respond to security concerns. In October a data collection program was discovered on OnePlus devices, which the company claimed was used for diagnostic and customer service needs, but owners were automatically enrolled into the program. Changes were made to OxygenOS so owners could opt-out of the data program during setup.

OnePlus is currently preparing to launch the OnePlus 5T, an updated version of its current OnePlus 5, which launched earlier this year.

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