Red BlackBerry Passport

BlackBerry releases Passport in red, white

More than two months after it introduced Passport in black, BlackBerry today announces that its latest smartphone is now also available in red and white. The two new color options were introduced for pre-order in late-November, but are only just now shipping.

Both the red and white Passport are officially available from Amazon and BlackBerry's own online store. Both companies list the smartphone as being in stock; taking the Amazon route coupled with one-day shipping will get you a new Passport tomorrow, December 9.

By Mihăiță Bamburic -
windows update

What to look out for in 2014's last Patch Tuesday

After last month's blizzard of patches tomorrow's last round of Windows updates for the year looks set to be rather quieter.

Only seven bulletins have been announced, of which three are rated Critical and four Important. Of the Critical patches one is for Internet Explorer, one for Office and one for Windows itself -- likely to be for a remote code execution vulnerability.

By Ian Barker -
mous

Mous Musicase: The iPhone case that puts an end to lost and tangled headphones [Review]

I use headphones to listen to music and games on my iPhone a lot. As a result, I often have headphones with me, either wrapped around my phone or just shoved in a pocket. Sometimes though I’ll forget to take them when I go out, which can be a pain.

The successfully Kickstarter-backed Mous Musicase aims to solve this problem by integrating Apple EarPods into your iPhone so they’re always at hand and you don’t have to worry about them getting tangled or lost.

By Wayne Williams -
Sony-logo-header.jpeg

Sony data breach: how not to protect your passwords

Sony Pictures Entertainment faces being left completely red-faced after reports began to emerge that it contributed to its latest data breach by storing thousands of passwords in a folder entitled "Password".

Personal details of some 47,000 employees and actors have been leaked online in recent days and the much-publicized leak contains confidential details including social security numbers and reams of other tidbits, according to The Telegraph.

By Jamie Hinks -
ps_network_hack

PlayStation Network and Store hacked and taken offline by Lizard Squad

Gamers today found that they were unable to connect to the PlayStation Network. In what appears to be a hack attack, the gaming network as well as the PlayStation Store were knocked offline. Claiming responsibility this time is the hacking outfit Lizard Squad.

Sony has not revealed any details about what has happened yet, but it's clear that the outage did not come as a result of routine maintenance. Lizard Squad tweeted a message that seemed to claim responsibility for the downtime: "PSN Login #offline #LizardSquad".

By Sofia Elizabella Wyciślik-Wilson -
data_breach-800x450.jpeg

It's your fault for the huge rise in data breaches

New information which was obtained via a freedom of information request in the UK has found that there has been a worrying increase in the amount of data breaches which are caused by human error.

The figures were brought to light by an FOI request made to the Information Commissioner’s Office by Egress Software Technologies, an encryption provider.

By Darren Allan -
PasscapeISOBurner200-175

Manage disc images anywhere with Passcape ISO Burner

It’s generally very easy to work with ISO files on a modern PC. Archiving programs can extract their contents, mastering software will burn them to disc, even Windows has offered basic support since Windows 7.

If you sometimes work on other people’s PCs, though, it’s wise to bring your own ISO application with the portable Passcape ISO Burner.

By Mike Williams -
Windows 10 Build 9888 includes Cortana -- but so bloody what?

Windows 10 Build 9888 includes Cortana -- but so bloody what?

It's not long since Windows 10 build 9879 was released and more recently build 9888 leaked online. I'm not going to link to the download as it's not an official release, but it's easy enough to get hold of -- you know where to look, I'm sure. So far the builds that have seen the light of day, officially or unofficially, have been rather light on features, but build 9888 includes what everyone has been chomping at the bit for: Cortana.

Was it worth the wait? Is a voice activated digital assistant appropriate for the desktop? Should anyone care? My answer to all three of these questions is a resounding 'no' -- with some possible exceptions in the case of the last question. Let me elaborate.

By Sofia Elizabella Wyciślik-Wilson -
Xbox is snubbed as Street Fighter V becomes a PC and PS4 exclusive

Xbox is snubbed as Street Fighter V becomes a PC and PS4 exclusive

The Street Fighter franchise is one that has been quiet for a while now, but Street Fighter V is on the way. Capcom has confirmed that work is currently underway on the latest instalment of the game, bringing an end to months of speculation and rumor. But that is not the end of the news.

It has been revealed that Street Fighter will appear exclusively on PS4 and PC. Owners of Microsoft's Xbox One console will miss out this time around, but there's an interesting feature for anyone who does buy the game on the two supported platforms -- cross-platform play.

By Sofia Elizabella Wyciślik-Wilson -
sat

DirecTV shoots satellite into space to bolster 4K Ultra HD offering

This holiday shopping season, 4K televisions are all the rage. With that said, buying a 4K TV is arguably silly, as there is not much content, and prices will only go down. Sure, if you need a TV, it might make sense from a future-proofing perspective, but replacing a perfectly good 1080p set is probably wasteful. Currently, the best case for 4K technology is computer monitors, where the ultra-high resolution can be put to immediate use.

Of course, 4K content will be growing more and more in 2015, and DirecTV is aiming to be on the forefront of the Ultra HD game. You see, the television provider has fired a satellite into space to bolster its future 4K capability. In other words, we may soon get to see "Crazy Hairy Rob Lowe" in 4K.

By Brian Fagioli -
courtroom gavel

Idaho nurse gains backing of EFF and ACLU in fight against the NSA

Usually it's the big guys, or at least national and international organizations, that stand up to fight against the government. But on Monday, a nurse from Idaho will continue to fight the case she brought against Barack Obama and government intelligence agencies. Anna Smith says her Fourth Amendment rights were violated when the NSA collected data about her from phone records.

A district court ruled against Smith when she first started to fight the case, but now she has the backing of the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the American Civil Liberties Union of Idaho.

By Sofia Elizabella Wyciślik-Wilson -
gchq_surveillance_eye_key_hole

Government surveillance does not breach human rights -- Amnesty International disagrees

Amnesty International hit out at a court ruling that found communication surveillance carried out by UK secret services did not breach human rights. Amnesty UK and Privacy International brought the case to court following revelations by Edward Snowden that showed GCHQ (UK secret services) and the NSA had been spying on people by monitoring their correspondence.

But a panel of judges found that the actions of GCHQ do not contravene the European Convention of Human Rights. Amnesty said the result was "disappointing if unsurprising" and indicated that it will appeal at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.

By Sofia Elizabella Wyciślik-Wilson -
skype_mac_icon

Skype for Windows 7.0 sports redesigned, touch-friendly interface

Microsoft has released Skype for Windows 7.0, unveiling a major redesign of its Skype desktop client in the process. Many of the new features debuted in a Preview pre-release that coincided with the release of Skype for Mac 7 back in October.

The final release adds several new features not present in the original preview build, including two new compact view options and support for touchscreen displays.

By Nick Peers -
Broken-TV

Fewer people now watching traditional TV due to online streaming growth

The number of people watching television is continuing to plummet as many migrate towards online streaming.

The latest report by Nielsen suggests that traditional content providers are being heavily impacted by new, more consumer-centric services.

By Barclay Ballard -
eyefly

EyeFly3D Nanoglass: Convincing 3D on your iPhone -- no silly glasses required [Review]

3D movies might not be as popular (or ubiquitous) as they were a few years ago, but people still enjoy viewing media with a degree of depth. The massive success of the Nintendo 3DS is testament to this.

If you own an Apple iPhone, and want to view images or video in 3D (without having to wear special glasses), you now can thanks to EyeFly3D Nanoglass. This is a screen protector that you attach to your iPhone and which delivers a convincing 3D effect.

By Wayne Williams -
Load More Articles