Bloomberg: AT&T considering a halt on Galaxy Note 7 sales
Reports that a Galaxy Note 7 issued as a replacement caught fire on an airplane may be too much for at least one carrier. Bloomberg cites a single unnamed source claiming that AT&T is “considering” stopping sales of the troubled phone based on that incident. Although AT&T (along with Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon) have already issued statements indicating that customers can return or exchange their replacement phones, this would go a step further. The rumored deadline for the decision is Friday, which would put pressure on Samsung to figure out what’s going here.
Source: Bloomberg
Snapchat ends our long nightmare by killing Story Auto Advance
Before Instagram copied it, Snapchat’s rolling 24-hour Story feature was a quick way to keep up with anyone you follow on the app. There was just one problem: Viewing a new Story would play not only that person’s post, but any other new posts in the queue. That means a (completely theoretical) viewing session could jump between a random celebrity selfie, video from a concert, something X-rated and then a video of someone’s kids playing with their pets, and there was no way to know for sure what would be next. Now, Snapchat is pulling back on the Auto Advance feature in favor of Story Playlist.
https://snapchat.tumblr.com/post/151484999099/story-playlist
With the Playlist, you can choose which videos to watch together, just hit the thumbnail to the left of a friend’s name to add them to the list, then hit play. Otherwise, when you view a Story, it will just play that Story and then stop. The new feature is rolling out today to “select” Snapchatters on Android, and will soon be available for everyone on Android and iOS.
Source: Snapchat (Tumblr)
New York’s busiest railways now accept Apple Pay
New York has been in the process of rolling out a mobile solution for the Metropolitan Transit Agency’s super-busy Long Island Railroad and Metro North Railroad lines over the summer, and this week the app was updated with support for both Apple Pay and Mastercard’s Masterpass payment systems. With that addition, the app appears to be feature complete: you can use it to basically any flavor of ticket for those MTA lines, including one-way, round trip and monthly passes.
Surprisingly, New York is a bit ahead of schedule here. Originally, the MTA eTix app wasn’t going to be fully ready to go until the end of 2016. But earlier this summer, the MTA said that it was accelerating its mobile ticketing rollout, with “full system-wide implementation” scheduled for the end of August.
That should certainly make things easier for customers of the LIRR and Metro North — they’re the two busiest commuter railway systems in the country. Of course, we’re still waiting for mobile payment and ticket options for most subway systems, but we’ll take what we can get in this traditionally slow-moving industry. While these updates only apply to the iOS app, Android users can also use the MTA eTix app on their phones — they’ll just have to put in their credit card details the old-fashioned way.
Via: 9to5mac
Source: Mastercard
Google Duo is pushing Hangouts off Android
It looks like Hangouts is being sent to the big office suite in the sky. According to Android Police, starting on December 1st, phone makers like Samsung and HTC will no longer be required to add Hangouts to their handsets. Instead, Duo will be the mandatory video-calling app on Google-powered devices.
This isn’t that surprising, Google has said that it will focus on making Hangouts more of a business app and after December 1st, users will be able to download it from the Play Store.
Meanwhile cross-platform Duo is geared more towards the masses with a simpler interface and “fun” features like Knock Knock which shares a video of a person before a call is answered.
But don’t be surprised if come December you see both apps on your new Android phone. Just because Hangouts is no longer a mandatory part of the default OS bundle doesn’t mean phone makers will pull it right away.
Via: The Verge
Source: Android Police
The FBI wants to crack another iPhone after Minnesota stabbings
The FBI and Apple might be headed for another fight over the case of a locked phone. Last night, FBI special agent Rich Thorton confirmed that the agency is trying to crack an iPhone belonging to Dahir Adan, a 20-year-old Somali immigrant who stabbed 10 people in a Minnesota mall last month. Per Wired, Thorton said the bureau was already sifting through some “780 gigabytes of data from multiple computers and other electronic devices,” but unlocking Adan’s phone could shed valuable light on why he did what he did and help figure out who (if anyone) helped him on his path.
But cracking the phone isn’t a matter of course — the FBI’s currently weighing its “legal and technical” options to get inside the unspecified device. A lot of the FBI’s work here depends on what kind of iPhone they recovered, too — the introduction of iOS 8 two years ago meant not even Apple could decrypt the contents of a locked device running that software.
“Unlike our competitors, Apple cannot bypass your passcode and therefore cannot access this data,” the company wrote in 2014, referring to photos, messages, contacts and more. “So it’s not technically feasible for us to respond to government warrants for the extraction of this data from devices in their possession running iOS 8.”
Still, that didn’t stop the FBI cracking from iPhone 5c owned by Rizwan Farook, one of the San Bernardino shooters who killed 14 people in late 2015. The road to that crack was a winding one — the FBI originally pushed Apple for support to unlock the iOS 9-powered device, and got court orders compelling the company to assist. Apple resisted, but the FBI ultimately found a way to crack Farook’s iPhone without Apple’s assistance, a move that apparently cost the bureau a tidy sum. At the time, FBI director James Comey said he hadn’t decided if the bureau would reveal that crucial backdoor to Apple out of concerns it would be closed.
While the FBI might still have that particular ace up its sleeve, the process of sifting through Adan’s data might be way more difficult. Farook’s iPhone 5c lacked the secure enclave that was baked into newer models with the A7 chipset and beyond. It’s unclear at this point how much progress the FBI has made — only time will tell if it’ll try to force Apple to help somehow, or how Apple will response if the government comes knocking.
Source: Wired
Top Russian officials authorized the DNC hack and others, US says
Russia directed the hack of the Democratic National Committee and other recent invasions of political organizations, according to the US Department of Homeland Security and Office of the Director of National Intelligence on Election Security. The collective US Intelligence Community says that the attacks were intended to disrupt the on-going US presidential election, and given the scope of the intrusions, only the most senior Russian officials could have authorized them.
“The recent disclosures of alleged hacked e-mails on sites like DCLeaks.com and WikiLeaks and by the Guccifer 2.0 online persona are consistent with the methods and motivations of Russian-directed efforts,” the USIC writes.
Russia has long been accused of orchestrating the hacks, but top officials have just as often denied their involvement. In early September, Russian president Vladimir Putin said, “On a state level Russia has never done this,” but then followed it with a caveat, saying, “Listen, does it even matter who hacked this data? The important thing is the content that was given to the public.”
The USIC also addressed recent foreign attempts to swipe data from state elections systems, noting that even though the attacks stemmed from servers operated by a Russian company, it wasn’t clear if the Russian government was involved. However, since voting machines are not connected to the internet and there are other safeguards in place, hackers wouldn’t be able to directly influence the election with an attack on these systems, the USIC says.
“The USIC and the Department of Homeland Security assess that it would be extremely difficult for someone, including a nation-state actor, to alter actual ballot counts or election results by cyber attack or intrusion,” USIC says. “This assessment is based on the decentralized nature of our election system in this country and the number of protections state and local election officials have in place.”
Still, the DHS is helping some states improve their cybersecurity systems and it urges officials to ask for assistance in running scans, assessing risks and establishing best practices.
Source: Office of the Director of National Intelligence
The Pixel’s release doesn’t mean your Nexus is completely toast
Google unveiled its fancy new Pixel phone during a press event on Tuesday. If you haven’t seen it yet, it’s an impressive handset, with VR capabilities, a fast-charging battery, supposedly the best-ever phone camera, a super-smart AI assistant and Android 7.1. It’s also the harbinger of death for the current line of Google Nexus smartphones.
As soon CEO Sundar Pichai announced the Pixel on-stage, Google set about scrubbing listings for the Nexus 5X and 6P from its online store. If you want to buy one of them direct from Google now, you’re out of luck. You can however still get one through Google Fi if you don’t mind switching carriers. So what are consumers who have recently purchased these phones (*raises hand*) to do? Does the introduction of the Pixel mean that Nexus owners are on their own, hemmed in by a Nougat 7.0 ceiling, relegated to the technological sidelines until our service contracts expire and we’re free to upgrade?
Turns out, the situation isn’t quite as dire as I feared. Per Google, the company will continue to support existing handsets (think: customer service, software updates and the like), but the company has no plans to build any more Nexus-branded products.
Although there are definitely some features that will remain exclusive to the Pixel handsets themselves, a Google rep told me that a number of them will eventually spread to the rest of the Android ecosystem. Assistant, for example, will start off as a Pixel exclusive and probably won’t be porting to other devices any time soon. Daydream VR support, though, will be available on day one for any Android device new enough to accept the Nougat 7.1 upgrade.
All told, the Pixel will ship with the following exclusives: the Pixel launcher, Google Assistant, screen sharing and various UI/wallpaper tweaks. It will also be the only one to offer the Pixel camera (obvs) as well as Smart Storage, and unlimited space on Google Photos. Plus the Pixel is the first Android phone to offer a quick switch adapter that ports content from your old phone, so of course that’s an exclusive too. Again, some of these features will eventually find their way to other phones, some will not. It depends on a litany of marketing and technological factors so Google isn’t publicly saying what or when just yet.
That said, our Nexuses are not chopped liver. When Nougat 7.1 arrives, you can look forward to a slew of new software features. These include Night Light, touch and display performance improvements, Daydream VR mode and a new manual storage manager that will allow users to see which apps are using the most onboard memory. The update will also enable Moves: an opt-in gesture-based feature that will open or close the notifications slider.
So, no, Nexus owners aren’t going to get Assistant or a fancy new camera — those are the perks of riding the early-adopter train — but we’re not being left in the wilds to fend for ourselves either. Plus, no matter which handset you have, Nougat 7.1 is going to give us VR and that’s something everyone can get excited about.
AT&T, Sprint will exchange replacement Note 7s after airplane incident (updated)
A replacement Samsung Galaxy Note 7 started smoking and burned through the carpet on board a Southwest flight this week. Following the incident, one US carrier is allowing owners to exchange those replacement devices even though the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) hasn’t issued a formal warning or recall yet. Sprint confirmed to Engadget it will allow customers to return their replacement Note 7 for another device at its retail stores “during the investigation window.” The carrier says that it’s working with Samsung “to better understand the most recent concerns” with the handset.
Here’s Sprint’s full statement on the matter:
“Sprint is working collaboratively with Samsung to better understand the most recent concerns regarding replacement Samsung Galaxy Note 7 smartphones. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is also investigating the Note 7 replacement device. At this time, CPSC has not specifically said if customers should or should not use the replacement model. If a Sprint customer with a replacement Note 7 has any concerns regarding their device, we will exchange it for any other device at any Sprint retail store during the investigation window. We will provide additional information when the investigation has concluded.”
So, what if you’re on T-Mobile, AT&T or Verizon? Well, Recode reports T-Mobile will accept returns so long as they fall within its normal 14-day “remorse” policy. The carrier began offering replacement Note 7s to customers on September 21st, so if you got one that day, the return window has already closed. T-Mobile began selling the phone to new customers this week, so they still have time to take it back. We’ve asked the carrier for more info on the return process and we’ll let you know when/if its responds.
AT&T confirmed to Engadget that it will also allow customers to exchange replacement Galaxy Note 7s for another phone. We also reached out to Verizon on the matter and haven’t heard back. When or if we do, we’ll update this post with more information. Both carriers have 14-day return policies similar to T-Mobile, but again, if you picked up a replacement on the 21st, that exchange period has already run out.
Update: This post has been updated to reflect AT&T confirmed that it too would offer exchanges.
Via: 9to5 Google
Source: Recode
The Engadget Podcast Ep 9: What’s he building in there
Managing editor Dana Wollman and senior editor Devindra Hardawar join host Terrence O’Brien to dig through all the big Google news from the week, including the launch of the Pixel phones. Plus they take a brief detour to talk about what makes the PlayStation VR better than its competitors.
The Flame Wars Leaderboard
Wins
Loses
Winning %
Chris Velazco
3
1
.750
Christopher Trout
2
1
.666
Devindra Hardawar
9
7
.563
Dana Wollman
5
4
.555
Cherlynn Low
6
7
.461
Nathan Ingraham
4
6
.400
Michael Gorman
1
2
.333
Relevant links:
- With Assistant, Google is becoming a lot more like Apple
- Google’s ‘Assistant’ is at the core of its new hardware
- Google baked its AI ‘Assistant’ into the new Pixel phones
- A look back at Google’s Android flagships: the Nexus family
- Google’s play for the living room starts with Home
- Google’s AI-powered ‘Home’ hub ships next month for $129
- PlayStation VR review: Great games outweigh limited specs
- With the Pixel line, Google finally takes control of its phones
You can check out every episode on The Engadget Podcast page in audio, video and text form for the hearing impaired.
Watch on YouTube
Subscribe on Google Play Music
Subscribe on iTunes
Subscribe on Stitcher
Subscribe on Pocket Casts
Google puts fitness playlists in Runtastic’s Android app
If Google Play Music and Runtastic are your favorite running companions, this collab was meant for you. The Big G’s Play Music division has teamed up with Runtastic to put free workout playlists within the Adidas-owned fitness app itself. All you need to do is fire up its music section to access, say, a collection of 130-beats-per-minute tracks that can match your steps, electronic dance music or high-energy rock tunes. You’ll be able to pause, play and skip within Runtastic, so you won’t need to switch apps anymore.
Now, if you’ve been using Play Music mostly as a free, ad-supported service, this partnership also gives you the chance to try out the features only available to paying subscribers. You can get two months Play Music subscription for free if you’re a Runtastic user, whether you have an iPhone or an Android device. 
Source: Google, Runtastic (Google Play)
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