French Consumer Fraud Group Investigating Apple for ‘Alleged Deception’ and ‘Planned Obsolescence’

French consumer fraud group DGCCRF, part of the country’s economy ministry, last week launched a preliminary investigation into Apple over “alleged deception” and “planned obsolescence” of Apple products, reports Reuters.

The investigation follows Apple’s admission that it slows down some older iPhones with degraded batteries during times of peak power usage in order to prevent unexpected shutdowns.

Apple introduced the power management feature in iOS 10.2.1 following complaints of unexpected shutdowns in the iPhone 6s, but Apple did not make it clear to consumers that it was due to battery deterioration nor did Apple inform customers that it could cause occasional performance slowdowns.

Apple has since apologized for its lack of communication and introduced a new policy that allows iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 6s, 6s Plus, 7, 7 Plus, and SE owners to receive a one-time no-questions-asked $29 battery replacement for their devices, as a device with a depleted battery that is affected by throttling will return to normal performance with a battery replacement.

According to Apple, the power management features that prevent unexpected shutdowns by occasionally throttling older iPhones with batteries in bad condition are designed to preserve the life of the iPhone for as long as possible and were not implemented to force upgrades. From Apple:

First and foremost, we have never — and would never — do anything to intentionally shorten the life of any Apple product, or degrade the user experience to drive customer upgrades. Our goal has always been to create products that our customers love, and making iPhones last as long as possible is an important part of that.

Despite Apple’s efforts to correct the issue, in addition to the French inquiry, the company is now facing more than two dozen lawsuits accusing it of intentionally slowing down older iPhones and failing to disclose the changes that it introduced in iOS 10.2.1. One of those lawsuits also stems from France, filed by French consumer group “HOP,” which translates to “Stop Planned Obsolescence.”

The French watchdog’s investigation could take months to complete, and based on the findings, the issue could be escalated to a judge for a more in-depth inquiry or dropped all together.

If Apple is found guilty of planned obsolescence in France, the punishment could be a fine of up to five percent of its annual sales.

Related Roundup: iPhone 6sBuyer’s Guide: iPhone 8 (Buy Now)
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Canary’s new security cam offers simpler features for a low price

Canary announced today that two new camera features as well as one new product are coming to its home security line. First up, Canary said last month that with the help of its new AI-powered intelligence, its cameras would soon be able to differentiate people from other moving objects. Soon, those with Canary Flex will also be able to receive notifications when packages arrive, courtesy of Canary’s new Package Detection feature. Users will get alerts when packages arrive and they’ll be able to keep monitoring those packages until they or someone they trust can secure them.

There’s also an Alexa integration in the works. It will be available on all Canary devices and will work with the Echo Spot, Echo Show and compatible Fire TVs. To bring up a particular live video from one of your Canary devices, just say something like, “Alexa, show me the front door,” and those Alexa-enabled devices will show you what your Canary device is streaming.

Lastly, Canary is adding a less expensive product to its lineup. While Canary Flex costs $199 and Canary All-in-One comes in at $169, Canary View is priced at just $99. Like its counterparts, Canary View includes intelligent alerts, one-touch access to local authorities, automatic arming and disarming as well as end-to-end encryption. However, there are some features that aren’t included in Canary View such as HomeHealth Technology, a loud siren and outdoor monitoring. The lower price point means fewer functions, but it also means more people may try out Canary’s system or expand one they’ve already begun to set up.

Package Detection will be available for Canary Flex users in the coming months. Alexa integration will start to roll out in the next few weeks. Canary View is available for purchase now through Canary’s website and will become available through Canary’s retail partners later this month. Canary expects to roll out View internationally in the spring.

Click here to catch up on the latest news from CES 2018.

Source: Canary

Asus Chromebox 3 announced with 8th Generation Intel Core processors

The Chromebox 3 has a new Intel Core processor, USB Type-C, Google Play Store support, and more.

Chromeboxes didn’t see nearly as much love as Chromebooks did in 2017, but so far in 2018, we’ve already gotten two big Chromebox announcements from HP and Asus. HP took the wraps off its Chromebox G2 ahead of CES 2018, and just a couple days later, we have the Asus Chromebox 3.

Asus didn’t reveal all of the Chromebox 3’s juicy details, but there’s still enough here to get us excited. For starters, it’ll ship with 8th Generation Intel Core processors. We aren’t sure which specific Core processors will be present, but if Asus follows in HP’s footsteps, we should see Core i5 and i7 options. DDR4-2400 RAM will be used for “faster, smoother and more energy-efficient performance”, and there will also be a USB 3.1 Type-C port.

Other specs include dual-band 802.11ac Wi-Fi, Gigabit LAN, and ports for HDMI and DisplayPort. Along with this, the Chromebox 3 will support a wide array of Android apps and games via the Google Play Store.

There aren’t any details on price or availability, but Asus says these will become available upon release in the second half of 2018.

HP Chromebox G2 has a Kaby Lake Core i7 and 16GB RAM

Allo and Duo Head of Product leaves Google for Facebook

Amit Fulay is no longer leading the Allo and Duo charge.

If you’re a frequent user of Google’s Allo and/or Duo, there’s a good chance you’re familiar with Amit Fulay. Fulay has been serving as the Head of Product for Real-Time Communications at Google since back in 2010, and along with the more recent Allo and Duo, Fulay also played a big part in creating Hangouts.

However, Fulay’s time at Google has come to an end. On his Twitter account, Fulay said that today, January 8, 2018, is his first official day working at Facebook. His Twitter bio has been changed to indicate that he’s now “Product @ Facebook”, but it’s unclear what his exact position within the company is.

Here’s Fulay’s full message:

Today is my first day at Facebook – accepted their friend request 🙂 Excited about the opportunity to serve so many users.

— Amit Fulay (@amitfulay) January 8, 2018

Although they may not be Google’s most popular services, I personally love using Allo and Duo. Google’s yet to say who will be filling Amit Fulay’s shoes, and it’ll be interesting to see how these two platforms grow and possibly change throughout the year.

Facebook’s M virtual assistant is being shut down on January 19

CNBC: GoPro is putting itself up for sale

Hot on the heels that GoPro is firing up to 300 people and pulling out of the drone business is the news that the company may put itself up for sale. CNBC is reporting that the action-camera maker has enlisted the services of JPMorgan Chase to help it find a potential buyer. Earlier in the day, the outlet reported that CEO Nick Woodman would “look at” opportunities to “unite with a bigger parent company.” At this time, it’s not clear if other parties are interested or how much it would cost to swallow the brand.

We’ve reached out for comment but have yet to hear back from GoPro or any of its representatives, and the rumor may be little more than a fever dream. But the company has seen several loss-making quarters and celebrated a slender $15 million profit in late 2017. Despite the company’s return to the black, investors were displeased, and its stock dropped around 10 percent at the time. Since then, its Karma Drone project has been closed down and GoPro was forced to cut the price of its Hero6 Black camera by $100 to spur sales.

Click here to catch up on the latest news from CES 2018.

Source: CNBC, (2)

Hisense plans to launch more versions of its Laser TV

At the end of last year Hisense launched the $10,000, one-hundred-inch 4K Laser TV projector we saw at CES 2017, and this year it’s continuing to push that home theater in a box. According to President Liu Hongxin, it has more sizes in development (80- and 88-inch sizes will be in its booth) and already owns 60 percent of the market share for 85 inches and above.

As far as regular TVs go, the company once again has a wide range of LED-lit LCD televisions ranging in size and price. However, the biggest change is that there’s no mention of Roku built in. This time around the high-end H10E (above, which features more than 1,000 zones of LED lighting) and H9E Plus series will feature Android TV, while its other models come with the Hisense TV Platform. It’s not clear what Hisense is using for that, but it will have apps for Netflix, Amazon, Pandora, YouTube and Fox Sports Go. All of them are Amazon Alexa-enabled with voice control access, while the Android models also support Google Assistant. What we don’t see in the lineup is any mention of Roku, which isn’t too surprising, since those TVs were hard to find last year.

Hisense 100″ 4K Ultra HD Smart Laser TV
● 4K Ultra HD resolution
● 3,000 Lumens for optimal brightness (typical)
● Built-in Harman/Kardon® audio system with separate wireless subwoofer (total of 110 Watts)
● 100″ ambient-light-rejection screen
● Texas Instruments DLP® 4K UHD digital micromirror device (DMD) chip
● Built-in TV tuner
● Hisense Smart TV Platform
● Works with Amazon Alexa
● 20,000-hour light source (typical)
Hisense H10E Series 4K Smart ULEDTM TV
● 4K Ultra HD resolution
● Quantum dot wide color gamut
● Dolby Vision HDR and HDR-10
● 1,000+ backlight zones
● Full-array local dimming
● Motion rate: 480
● Bluetooth™ audio
● Android TV with voice control
● Google Assistant compatible
● Works with Amazon Alexa
● Available in 75″ screen class
Hisense H9E Plus Series 4K Smart ULEDTM TV
● 4K Ultra HD resolution
● Dolby Vision HDR and HDR-10
● Wide color gamut
● Local dimming
● Motion rate: 240 for 55″ class and 480 for 65″ class TVs, respectively
● Bluetooth™ audio
● Android TV with voice control
● Google Assistant compatible
● Works with Amazon Alexa
● Sleek bezel-less design
● Available in 65″ and 55″ screen class
Hisense H9E Series 4K Smart ULEDTM TV
● 4K Ultra HD resolution
● HDR-10 compatible
● Wide color gamut
● Local dimming
● Motion rate: 120
● Bluetooth™ audio
● Hisense Smart TV Platform
● Amazon Alexa enabled
● Slim design
● Available in 86″, 75″, 65″, 55″ and 50″ screen class
Hisense H8E Series 4K Smart TV
● 4K Ultra HD resolution
● HDR-10 compatible
● Local dimming
● Motion rate: 120
● Bluetooth™ audio
● Hisense Smart TV Platform
● Amazon Alexa-enabled
● Slim design
● Available in 65″, 55″, 50″ and 43″ screen class

Click here to catch up on the latest news from CES 2018.

Source: Hisense

Hyperloop One and Here made an app for imaginary Hyperloops

Virgin Hyperloop One has teamed up with mapping company Here to build an app that lets you pretend that Hyperloops are real. The app is designed to be your transportation portal in a future where vacuum tubes are connecting all of our major cities as one. Imagine a version of Citymapper that let you choose between cars, planes, trains or Hyperloops as you jump between, for instance, Las Vegas and LA.

In this future, passengers can schedule their entire journey, from their front door to their destination, from inside the same app. So you could get a Lyft to the Hyperloop portal, and then have another ride-sharing vehicle waiting for you as soon as you disembark. The app also offers turn-by-turn directions, letting you navigate airport terminals and public buildings quickly and efficiently. On that subject, users can pick their journey based on one of three criteria: speed, cost or the amount of carbon emissions.

Right now, the app is little more than demonstration of Here’s software development platform that will act as a one-stop shop for all your transport needs. Imagine a single place where you can build out journeys, and pay for them, without lots of needless fuss, and you’ll be about there. It’s also a neat way of both selling would-be users on the idea of Hyperloop and seeing how much demand there is for each route. At least, it will be when it’s made available to the public at some point this year.

Here at CES, Virgin Hyperloop One is also letting members of the public gawp at its XP-1 test pod for the first time. The pod famously managed to reach speeds of 240 miles per hour in the DevLoop, the company’s 500 meter long test track in the Nevada desert. We don’t expect that figure to get much bigger, since there’s only so fast you can travel in a tube that’s just 500 meters long. But the company’s Josh Giegel told us earlier this year that he sees no need to extend the DevLoop, since the next tube to be built will be a real one.

Click here to catch up on the latest news from CES 2018.

Linksys introduces the first router that prioritizes Xbox One gaming

This week at CES, Linksys is debuting a new gaming router, the WRT32XB, which is the first (and only) device that’s specifically optimized for the demands of the Xbox One. It’s basically an Xbox One-specific model of the WRT32X Gaming Router, and it retails for a similar price: $300. It will be available in February.

The WRT32VB is designed to auto-detect any Xbox One model on its network in order to prioritize and accelerate traffic to and from the console. This means that users will have an optimal online gaming experience, as the bandwidth needs of the console will be placed above any other traffic on the network thanks to the Killer Prioritization Engine (KPE). The KPE will also reduce peak ping by over 65 percent and extreme lag spikes that originate from the router. Both the firmware and router interface have been designed specifically with gaming in mind.

The router features a 1.8 GHz dual-Ccore ARM CPU, 802.11ac Wave 2 dual-band 3 x 3 wireless radio, 256MB flash and 512MB of DDR3 memory and a5-port SOHO-grade Gigabit Ethernet switch with TCAM. It’s built on AC3200 MU-MIMO Wi-Fi technology, with AC3200 speeds. It features one USB 3.0 port and one combo eSATA/USB 2.0 port.

This prioritization isn’t just limited to the WRT32XB, though. Linksys is collaborating with Rivet Networks to expand the KPE to cover more devices across gaming platforms (PC, consoles and mobile), and applying updates to all of its WRT gaming routers. It’s not really clear how well this prioritization tech works, but if you’re a big gamer and in the market for a new router, it’s worth taking a look.

Click here to catch up on the latest news from CES 2018.

Hisense’s exclusive World Cup TV app will stream games in 4K HDR

Along with its latest TV and word of more Laser TV to come, Hisense just announced that its World Cup sponsorship will snag it an exclusive version of the Fox Sports Go app. On Hisense TVs, customers will be able to stream 2018 World Cup Games in 4K and HDR, with access to as many as 37 camera angles. Hisense brought out the Men in Blazers, along with soccer greats like Brandi Chastain to make the announcement, and said that its app will also feature Fox’s “Phenoms” soccer documentary.

According to Hisense, the app’s live viewing features will debut on June 14th, just in time for Russia’s opening match against Saudi Arabia.

Click here to catch up on the latest news from CES 2018.

Hisense:

The Hisense soccer experience will be centered around the exclusive World Cup application, a dynamic content hub for everything soccer that will be available in select regions across the world. In the US, this application will be the FOX Sports GO: 2018 FIFA World Cup™ Edition app, which will be available exclusively preloaded on new Hisense Smart TV products. The application will feature multiple FOX Sports digital feeds, including the ability to choose from a variety of live viewing angles during games, such as feeds that focus on specific teams or aerial views. The app will feature live games and near-real-time highlights from 37 customizable camera angles and original soccer content – all in stunning 4K. Hisense Smart TV users will also have access to a bevy of pre-produced content including “Road to the World Cup” features and PHENOMS, the exhilarating documentary series that chronicles the journey of the next generation of hopeful World Cup stars on their quests to represent their countries.

Click here to catch up on the latest news from CES 2018.

Source: Hisense

MyLiFi lamp delivers secure internet via LEDs

MyLiFi is a lamp that provides a secure, wireless, radiowave-free internet connection to nearby devices, all through the data-transferring power of LEDs. It’s a simplistic, industrial-style desk lamp that beams broadband to a dongle, which users connect to their laptops or mobile devices — and boom, they have secure, fast internet. Data is transferred between the bulb and the dongle via invisible, blinking LEDs, which means the lamp doesn’t need to be on in order to provide a connection.

LiFi is a fairly new concept, but it promises to provide faster speeds than Wi-Fi and it’s unhackable, unless the intruder has a direct line of sight to the actual connected light bulb. MyLiFi, for instance, hits up to 23Mbps, compared with an average of 10Mbps for Wi-Fi.

MyLiFi comes from French company Oledcomm, and CEO Benjamin Azoulay envisions multiple use cases for this kind of technology. LiFi can be handy in hospitals, which demand a radiowave-free environment and tight security over patient information. Or, it can be good for gaming fans, since the connection is faster and more stable than Wi-Fi.

MyLiFi ships with an app that lets users control the lamp and turn off internet connectivity whenever they want. The lamp is available for pre-order now via Indiegogo, starting at $700.

Click here to catch up on the latest news from CES 2018.