Google is making it easier for emergency services to find you when you need them
Google is using your Android phone to make it easier for emergency services to find you when you need help. With support from mobile networks, the Emergency Location Service sends your location of your phone to emergency services when you call an emergency number.
From Google:
This feature, when supported by your network, sends location from your phone to emergency services when you dial an emergency number. This uses the same location technologies available to apps on your phone, including Wi-Fi, GPS, and cell towers, to produce a more reliable emergency location both indoors and outdoors.
Your location is only sent to emergency services, and is never seen by Google, nor sent through their servers. The Emergency Location Service will be available as a part of Google Play Services for phones running Android 2.3 Gingerbread or later, which Google says covers around 99% of Android phones.
Emergency Location Service is already live in the UK and Estonia through carriers like BT, EE, Vodafone, O2, Tele2, and Telia. Google is working with other countries and carriers in order to facilitate an faster international rollout of the feature.
Essential accessories for Moto G4 and Moto G4 Plus
What are the essential accessories for the Moto G4 and Moto G4 Plus?
The Moto G4 and Moto G4 Plus are awesome. We know it, you know it. And awesomeness deserves, well, more awesome. We’ve rounded up all the very best essentials for your favorite new phone.
- Screen protectors
- Cases
- Headphones
- Bluetooth speakers
- Car mounts
- Charging accessories
Screen protectors
For some added protection and security, a tempered glass screen protector is an excellent investment. No need to worry about cracks or shattered glass with one of these in place.
Jasinber tempered glass screen protector
A quality tempered glass screen protector won’t interfere with the touch screen on your Moto G4 or Moto G4 Plus, and that’s true of the screen protector from Jasinber. For good measure, your purchase comes with two.
The adhesive on the back of the tempered glass spreads automatically when applied to the surface of your phone, so installation is precise and simple. It offers exceptional clarity; you won’t even realize it’s there, but you’ll be glad it is.
See at Amazon
OMOTON tempered glass screen protector
OMOTON’s tempered glass screen protector offers a lifetime warranty; pair that with the two-for-one pricing and you’ve got security and a great deal.
Application is bubble-free and it won’t leave behind any gooey residue if or when you remove it. It’s clear, oleophobic, hydrophobic, and completely scratch resistant, which means you don’t have to worry about fingerprints, oils, and all the daily crud that tries to get onto your phone screen.
See at Amazon
Cases
Make a statement or enhance the look of your Moto G4 or Moto G4 Plus with a case that protects and fits like a glove.
Orzly FlexiCase
Orzly’s FlexiCase has a non-slip gloss finish so your Moto G4 or Moto G4 Plus will be easier to grip. It’s a slim fit that won’t bulk up your phone, and it’s made of a flexible silicone gel that won’t move around or let dirt and dust get it.
The case allows you access to every port, button, and screen feature you want, and it’s available in black, blue, red, purple, or a simple clear finish that shows off the hardware on your Moto G4 or Moto G4 Plus.
See at Amazon
Abacus24-7 flip cover wallet
Odds are, if you’re leaving the house with your Moto G4 or Moto G4 Plus, you’re also leaving with cash and cards. The flip cover wallet case from Abacus24-7 will keep all of your essentials in one convenient place.
Take your pick from four colors of vegan synthetic leather that feels like the real thing. Your phone stays safe and the screen stays protected while you get space for three credit cards (one with a clear window that’s perfect for your ID), and separate compartment for some cash.
See at Amazon
Headphones
Take your tunes and your talk on your daily run, walk, or commute with the right headphones for the Moto G4 and Moto G4 Plus.
Jaybird X2 Sport Bluetooth headphones
There are six color variations of the Jaybird X2 Sport Bluetooth headphones, and they start at under $100. That’s a good buy, folks.
You can choose an under-ear or over-ear fit, and either way they’re not going to budge no matter how active you are. They ship with multiple tips so you’re virtually guaranteed to find the perfect, comfortable fit. You’ll have up to eight hours of music or talk time, and the sweat proof lifetime warranty is a huge bonus.
See at Amazon
SoundPEATS Bluetooth headphones
For HD sound, noise cancellation, and a low price point to boot, SoundPEATS Bluetooth headphones are where it’s at. The nine vibrant color variations give you plenty to pick from; maybe match a pair to your favorite case?
You’ll get up to six hours of play or talk time, and they’re sweat-resistant, so run all you like and don’t worry about a thing. SoundPEATS include several different sizes for the ear tips which means you can find a comfortable fit that won’t move on you.
See at Amazon
Bluetooth speakers
Bring the party with you wherever you go with portable Bluetooth speakers. Your Moto G4 or Moto G4 Plus has the soundtrack, and you can have the ultimate sound system to match, wherever the party may be.
UE Boom 2
The waterproof, shockproof UE Boom 2 is an impressive Bluetooth speaker. Its six color options range from the vibrant to the subtle, and they’re among the best-reviewed portable speakers out there.
With a 15 hour battery life and a 100-foot range, they suit virtually any environment. You get 360-degree sound with excellent bass; no one will believe all that sound is coming from such a tiny speaker. The Blockparty feature allows you to go between three friends’ devices on one speaker, or you can choose to pair a second speaker to your Moto G4 or Moto G4 Plus.
See at Amazon
JBL Flip 3 portable speaker
If you want quality and a speaker that stays under the $100 mark, the JBL Flip 3 portable speaker is right up your alley. It’s splash proof (because water happens) and comes in eight different color options.
The bass radiator creates sound that will keep the party going long into the night. If you feel like sharing, you can connect up to three devices to the same speaker (but everybody knows your playlist is the best).
See at Amazon
Car Mounts
Always on the road? Keep in touch and get where you’re going safely with a car mount that will keep your Moto G4 or Moto G4 Plus secure and hands-free.
iOttie Easy One Touch XL
You can choose a dashboard or a windshield mount with the iOttie Easy One Touch XL car mount. The XL will fit your Moto G4 or Moto G4 Plus even with a case on, so you don’t have to constantly take it out of the case to install it.
The car mount really is a one-touch device to lock your phone into place or to remove it. It’s fully adjustable with 360 degrees of rotation, which is necessary if you’re using your Moto G4 or Moto G4 Plus as a GPS device.
See at Amazon
New Trent Arcadia magnetic car mount
The New Trent Arcadia car mount offers an alternative to windshield or dashboard mounting by using your car’s air vents and a powerful magnet. The mount is available in black or blue.
The slim magnet adapter will fit inside virtually any phone case and hold your Moto G4 or Moto G4 Plus securely in place. The car mount allows you to fully rotate your phone without the need for an extended arm, and there’s no cradle; just pop on your phone and go.
See at Amazon
Charging accessories
Keep your Moto G4 or Moto G4 Plus charged to the max no matter where you are with some handy charging accessories for home, office, or the road.
APLUS desktop charging cradle
The APLUS desktop charging cradle is specifically designed to fit the Moto G4 and Moto G4 Plus. It keeps your phone propped up and plainly in sight while it charges, which is perfect for speakerphone calls or video watching.
The charging cradle can also become the regular resting place for your Moto G4 or Moto G4 Plus, even when it’s not charging. Keeping it up off of a flat surface means you won’t misplace it or lose it under papers and other desk junk again.
See at Amazon
AUKEY 30W 2-port USB car charger
When you’re going to be on the road for a good stretch, why not use that time to charge your Moto G4 or Moto G4 Plus? The car charger from AUKEY allows you to charge two devices at once at equal speeds.
It includes a 3.3-foot USB cable, so you can charge your phone and use it in a car mount for speakerphone or GPS purposes. There are built-in safeguards to protect your Moto G4 or Moto G4 Plus from overheating and overcharging so you can be mindful of the road and not worry about how the charging is going.
See at Amazon
Moto G4 and G4 Plus
- Moto G4 Plus review
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- Join our Moto G4 and G4 Plus forums!
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FBI to investigate Russia’s involvement in DNC email leak
On Monday morning, the FBI confirmed it is investigating the Democratic party’s email hack that made its way onto WikiLeaks in advance of the party’s national convention in Philadelphia this week. Although WikiLeaks has not identified a source, previous reports claimed the emails to and from top DNC officials were leaked by Russian hackers to bolster Donald Trump’s campaign.
“The FBI is investigating a cyber intrusion involving the DNC and are working to determine the nature and scope of the matter,” the agency wrote in a statement. “A compromise of this nature is something we take very seriously, and the FBI will continue to investigate and hold accountable those who pose a threat in cyberspace.”
The statement was the first time the FBI acknowledged the hack, which also led the resignation of DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz over the weekend. According to CNN, the FBI has also sent experts to audit the Republican party’s own security measures, although so far no one has reported a similar hack at the RNC or within the Trump or Clinton campaigns specifically. As James Trainor, the assistant director of the FBI’s cyber division told CNN, there has been a recent uptick in the number of attacks on Washington DC-based political organizations and think tanks.
The DNC’s private cyber security investigators traced the breach back to two known Russian hacking groups, although the FBI has yet to officially attribute the attack to anyone working for the Russian government, whether directly or indirectly. Based on malware left behind in the attack, however, security experts believe that at least one of the attackers is also responsible for other breaches of non-classified data within the US government.
Full Moto E3 specs finally confirmed
Motorola has finally lifted the lid on the full specs of the 2016 Moto E. And, as expected, the feature list pretty much lines up with the budget price point, but could still make for one of the best affordable smartphones around this year. With a few pence change from £100, the spec-list still makes for good reading from Motorola’s latest cheap offering.
Starting things off on the front is one feature we knew already: a five-inch 1280 x 720 resolution display with a pixel density of 294ppi. Powering that is a 1.0GHz quad-core processor from MediaTek which is paired with 1GB RAM and 8GB internal storage. Thankfully, you can expand the storage using a microSD card, up to an extra 32GB.
As for cameras; the rear eight-megapixel snapper is equipped with HDR, panorama and 720p video recording, and is partnered by an LED flash. The front selfie camera is a basic 5MP sensor.
Joining the camera and earpiece on the front is a single front-firing speaker, as well as a couple of mics (one for noise cancelling). It also has LTE connectivity, 802.11 b/g/n 2.4GHz Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0 LE, ensuring you have a good range of connectivity options.
- Motorola Moto E3 (2016) vs Moto E (2015): What’s the difference?
- Motorola launches third-gen Moto E, confirms Moto G4 Play for UK
Rounding off the internal components is a relatively generous 2800mAh battery which should easily be enough to get you through a full day, especially given the low-powered processor, 720p screen and Android 6.0 Marshmallow’s battery-saving optimisations.
All these components are packed in to a device which measures 8.55mm thin and 71.6mm wide, and weighs just 140.6 grams, which also happens to be coated in a water repellant nano-coating. While it’s not waterproof, it is protected against accidental spills, splashes and drizzle.
On the whole, it certainly seems good value for money, but we’ll reserve our judgement until we get one in to review.
The Moto E3 was launched alongside the revamped Moto G4 Play earlier this month, and is expected to hit the market in September and will be available from Tesco, O2, Argos and Amazon.
Apple’s 2016 iPhone could be called iPhone 6SE, not iPhone 7
If the latest rumours are anything to go by, the next iPhone will be called iPhone 6SE, suggesting that the bigger model(s) will be iPhone 6SE Plus and iPhone 6SE Pro. The latter model is still up for debate, but yet another leak suggests the dual-camera and smart connector-equipped “Pro” model is still in Apple’s plans.
The information comes through ApfelPage.de’s Chinese manufacturer sources who claim to have received accessory packaging already marked up with the new moniker. With that said, accessory makers can often predict incorrectly and have – on more than one occasion – printed either vague, or incorrect names on their case packaging. In short: Take it with a pinch of salt, as with any rumour.
- Apple iPhone 7 Plus vs iPhone 6S Plus vs iPhone 6 Plus: What’s the rumoured difference?
- Apple iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus: Release date, rumours and everything you need to know
- Apple iPhone 7 in pictures: Renders and leaked photos gallery
It’s long been rumoured that Apple is saving its next major iPhone redesign for next year in order to celebrate the phone’s 10th anniversary in style. All digital and physical leaks published online so far have gone along with that rumour so far. All case and design leaks look virtually identical to the current generation of iPhones, except for the minor changes around the antenna bands and the camera protrusion.
Naming it the 6SE fits in with those rumours. It looks like an iPhone 6, and so keeping the 6-series branding works, and adding the “SE” distinguishes it from the 6 and 6S ranges. Critically, it also ties the lineup in nicely with the iPhone SE which Apple launched earlier this year.
As for the aforementioned leak, yet again it shows three different models. There’s the regular and “Plus”-sized models as well as a third model which has a dual camera system as well as the three connector dots. The connection points would presumably be used for accessories like the smart keyboard currently available for the iPad Pro.
Apple is expected to show off the new iPhones at an event at some point in September. It’s more than likely that the Cupertino-based company will go with a retail launch during the week of the 12 September, specifically, “it should happen on Friday, Sept. 16th” according to a tweet from Evan Blass.
NFL Network and RedZone are coming to PlayStation Vue
PlayStation Vue just became much more enticing if you’re a fan of American football. Sony has announced that both NFL Network and NFL RedZone will be available by the time the regular NFL season kicks off this fall. It’s not clear what packages will include the channels, but you will get typical Vue features (such as a cloud DVR and simultaneous streams) and access through the NFL’s dedicated apps and websites. Combined with ESPN and other sports coverage on Vue, you may not have much reason to hold on to a conventional TV subscription if you’re all about the gridiron.
Source: PlayStation Blog
Twitter finally figures out what Twitter is (maybe)
Since its inception, Twitter has seemed like a 24/7 global cocktail party; the sort of thing that would appeal to information-addicted media types. But the service has evolved into a platform where news unfolds in real time. It’s where the #BlackLivesMatter hashtag and subsequent movement began in 2013, following the shooting of Trayvon Martin. It’s where the world turned to follow the Ferguson protests in 2014 — and even before that, Michael Brown’s death was being discussed on Twitter. There’s no doubt that the service is a valuable tool for reporting, but how do you sell its benefits to the wider public? That’s something Twitter is hoping to solve with a new marketing campaign.
“Starting today, we’re taking steps to express what we’re for and what we’ve always been,” Twitter’s CMO, Leslie Berland, wrote in a blog post today. “Twitter is where you go to see what’s happening everywhere in the world right now.” That revamped branding starts with two new video ads, which also premiered this morning:
See what’s happening: https://t.co/ChbWRrSJyKhttps://t.co/r9AZd9rzI3
— Twitter (@twitter) July 25, 2016
See what’s happening — politics on Twitter.https://t.co/xaJo3PmYn5
— Twitter (@twitter) July 25, 2016
Berland claims the company is now recognized by 90 percent of people around the world (I sure would love to see the specifics of that study), but Twitter also found that many people were confused by what it actually offers. Some thought it was just another social network for connecting with friends, while others felt they were “supposed to Tweet every day,” but didn’t have that much to contribute.
These two ads are, of course, just a start. But they’re the product of a company that’s slightly more self-aware of what it actually is. Twitter is a great platform for broadcasting just about anything, but it needs to get better at communicating that fact. It’s also shown some signs at making itself a safer space from harassment. Last week, it finally banned one of its most controversial users, conservative commentator Milo Yiannopoulos, after he kicked off a trolling campaign against Ghostbusters’ star Leslie Jones.
Source: Twitter
Apple picks a well-known executive to lead its electric car team
There’s been a lot of talk about Apple’s not-so-secret Project Titan electric car project, but… who runs it? We now have an idea. Wall Street Journal sources understand that Apple has picked Bob Mansfield, one of the company’s better-known executives, to helm its EV efforts. He’d effectively left the company in 2013 and only made a partial return after Apple scrambled to keep him (the Apple Watch is partly his baby), but he’s reportedly back in the swing of things now that Titan is ramping up — all senior managers in the car initiative have to report to him.
Neither Apple nor Mansfield are commenting on the apparent leak.
If accurate, the move might inspire some confidence. You may only remember Mansfield as the man who dove into technical details in Apple promo videos, but he led the hardware engineering behind some of the company’s biggest hits, such as early iPads, the iMac and the MacBook Air. He may not be an automotive expert, but he has a knack for making the company’s hardware visions become reality. That’s particularly important when Apple is entering an unfamiliar field and needs every bit of help it can get.
Source: Wall Street Journal
Hillary Clinton’s mobile game lets you run your own campaign
The Democratic National Convention opens today in Philadelphia and there has been some serious inner-DNC turmoil the past few days involving a ton of leaked emails. WikiLeaks published messages that show party officials rallying up against Bernie Sanders, and even making fake Craigslist ads to to target Donald Trump. But the Hillary Clinton campaign is moving full-steam ahead the only way it knows how: by releasing a mobile game.
It’s blatantly inspired by popular social-based games, like the crazy successful Kim Kardashian: Hollywood. Called Hillary 2016, the app is currently only available on iOS. Each user is provided with a new barebones campaign headquarters. You can build your HQ by completing “fun” challenges and earning credits (stars) that you can use to buy stuff in the virtual shop. There’s some real-life swag for grabs, like a Hillary Clinton autograph.
The more challenges you complete, which include Trump or False quizzes, the more a challenge meter fills up. Oh, and you also have to water a lovely plant because you never know when Hillary might stop by.
Source: iTunes
Donald Trump hosting Reddit AMA during DNC on Wednesday
If you’ve ever seen Donald Trump on Twitter, you probably have questions for him. Questions like, “how do you plan to force Apple to make iPhones in the US,” or “do you really think Edward Snowden deserves the death penalty?” Later this week, you’ll be able to ask him yourself: the Republican presidential nominee is slated to host a Reddit AMA at 7PM ET on Wednesday.
In case you were wondering, yes, that time slot does coincide with something big at the Democratic National Convention. Trump’s AMA is slated for the same block of time President Obama and VP Biden are scheduled to speak, leaving followers of politics with the same choice they’ve had all year: Clinton or Trump? Still, don’t expect too many divisive questions to get through the AMA — the event is being hosted and moderated by /r/The_Donald subreddit, a well-known forum for Trump supporters. The event starts at 6:30 PM ET on Wednesday, with answers coming half an hour later. Check out the official announce post for details.
Source: Reddit
