Microsoft releases May 2015 firmware upgrades for Surface Pro 3, Pro 2
After a brief hiatus, Microsoft has released new firmware upgrades for its Surface Pro 3 and Surface Pro 2 Windows 8.1 tablets. The May 2015 releases feature updated drivers and UEFI, which, as expected, are meant to refine the user experience.
There are no new firmware upgrades available for the original Surface Pro, however, nor for Surface RT, Surface 2 and Surface 3, the last of which Microsoft unveiled in late-March. Now, let us take a close look at what the latest Surface Pro 3 and Surface Pro 2 firmware updates bring to the table.
Tech giants asking Obama to support effective encryption, block backdoor requests
Several huge technology firms have come together to urge US President Barack Obama not to pass legislation demanding backdoor access to encrypted devices.
More than 140 companies and prominent figures in the tech industry, including the likes of Apple and Google, have sent an open letter to the White House proclaiming that "strong encryption is the cornerstone of the modern information economy’s security".
Adblock Browser launches for Android
Adblock Plus, the maker of the popular ad-blocking tool for desktop web browsers is taking a major step today in offering similar services on mobile devices. The company releases Adblock Browser for Android, which blocks ads while also offering features like the ability to block adware, boost browsing speed and save data and battery life.
Adblock Browser for Android is powered by the same popular ad-blocking tool that has been downloaded over 400 million times. The company claims that by blocking the annoying elements -- which includes ads among other annoyances -- it is able to speed up browsing as well as save data usage.
What every small business needs to consider when buying a PC
Today’s small business requires PCs that drive productivity and collaboration without the premium price tag. Whether it’s the clarity from visualizing data, the smoothness of streaming media or the responsiveness of modern apps, every detail matters to effectively run a small-to-medium-size organization.
When searching for a PC that best suits a small business, whether it’s a desktop or a laptop, be sure to consider the following features and capabilities.
Sadie's Apple Watch arrived two weeks early
This is Sadie the Dog wearing her new Apple Watch. The watch actually belongs to my young and lovely wife, Mary Alyce, but she was unwilling to be photographed this morning while Sadie will pose anytime, anywhere. This is the Sport model of the Apple Watch in space gray with a black band. What makes this picture interesting is the watch was delivered last Friday two weeks early.
I ordered the watch on the first day Apple was taking orders but didn’t do so in the middle of the night so I missed the first batch of watches that were delivered in April. It was promised for delivery June first. Since then there have been stories about faulty sensors and other suggestions that watch deliveries might be later than expected -- stories that I’d say are belied by this early delivery.
Just about everyone thinks Internet.org is a terrible idea
Mark Zuckerberg probably thought the world would bow down to him when Facebook announced the Internet.org project. The idea of bringing internet access to those in developing parts of the world seems, on the face of it, to be something of an exercise in altruism. Of course, it's not quite that simple.
Many companies complain that the project goes against the idea of net neutrality -- a claim that Zuckerberg vehemently denies. But now the vocal opposition to Internet.org is getting louder. Privacy group Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has several concerns with the project, and a collective of 67 digital rights groups has signed a letter to the Facebook founder expressing concerns about the approach Internet.org is taking.
Your smartphone is too big
I love my Nexus 6. This morning, while waking to the rush of caffeine from steaming coffee, I read headlines on the device. "I’m Phed Up With Phablets: They're too big to prevail" caught my attention. The short commentary, by Brian Rubin for ReadWrite, rails against the bigger-is-better-smartphone trend. Screen on my cellular is massive: 6 inches, and I forever promised myself to never use a phone so large -- until I did and converted. Much as I enjoy using the N6, for which I can still manage many operations one-handed, smaller would be my preference. Perhaps yours, too.
Here at BetaNews, we first raised doubts about ever-expanding screens four years ago. I still remember the discussion about the story, and more importantly the headline, before Ed Oswald wrote "Is that the Samsung Galaxy S II in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me?" In 2015, what seemed large then -- a 4.3-inch screen -- is puny. Even iPhones are bigger. Rubin rightly raises alarm about choice: "The real problem isn’t so much that there are too many phablets, but that there aren’t enough non-phablets these days -- at least none that are truly interesting".
Popular music streaming service MixRadio arrives on Android and iOS
Popular music streaming service MixRadio, which was earlier exclusively available on Microsoft’s Windows Phone, today arrives on Google’s Play Store and Apple’s App Store. BetaNews had exclusively reported about the company's plan to release the app to other platforms in March earlier this year.
MixRadio offers free music streaming curated in a radio-like way. Available in 31 countries including US, China, and India, the on-demand music streaming is estimated to have millions of users -- though the exact numbers have never been disclosed. The service offers more than 12,500 playlists and a catalog of over 35 million songs.
Panda Global Protection 2016 beta now available
Panda Security has announced the first public beta of Panda Global Protection 2016, a revamp of its comprehensive all-round security suite.
The new release provides enhanced Wi-Fi protection, detecting and alerting you to potential vulnerabilities. An extended PC Tuneup module frees up hard drive space, cleans the Registry and gives control over your Windows startup programs.
Apple resurrects the iPhone dock, adds Lightning connector -- still stupid
When I bought my first iPod, a click-wheel model, I excitedly bought some accessories too; a silicone case and the official dock. Docking the iPod was such an elegant thing, I was excited to do it. I connected the dock to my Windows PC, put the case on my iPod and...FAIL.
Yes, with the case on, my iPod would not fit in the dock. I had to decide between elegant docking and protecting my investment. Fast forward to today, and Apple introduces a dock for the lightning-connector iPhones and iPods. While it may work with some thin cases, once again, users will have to decide between the dock and protection, which is surely foolish.
Security researcher allegedly takes control of airplane, demonstrates security risks
A security consultant is at the centre of a media storm following claims that he hacked into the computer systems on board airplanes on a number of occasions, and during one of those he allegedly managed to take partial control of the craft.
Chris Roberts was picked up by the FBI last month following tweets about hacking into the plane’s systems on a United Airlines flight from Chicago to Syracuse, and upon landing he had his kit -- a MacBook Pro and iPad Air -- seized in order to be scrutinized by their techies.
Security is the major challenge to enterprise mobility goals
More and more companies are turning to apps to improve business mobility, but 67 percent cite security as the top challenge to achieving their goals.
This is among the findings of the 2015 Enterprise Mobility Report from app management specialist Apperian. Although security is the major challenge others include determining return on investment, lack of budget and reaching BYOD or unmanaged devices.
The 10 countries with the fastest Internet speeds -- is yours on the list?
The Internet has become such a necessity for hundreds of millions of people worldwide, it is hard to believe that billions still live each day without scrolling through a Facebook feed or watching a YouTube video.
That said, a lot of the people that have Internet connection do not enjoy the speed offered by Internet service providers, especially in parts of the world where oligopolies rule the web pipes.
New enterprise file management suite takes mobile first approach
According to research by IDC the number of enterprise applications optimized for mobile is set to quadruple by next year as businesses seek to improve workflow across the organization.
Adaptive enterprise file services specialist Egnyte is unveiling its new enterprise mobile suite that's optimized for business users. It allows them to seamlessly access, manage and share online and offline data from both cloud and on-premises storage.
Process Hacker gains new features
Fabulous PC monitoring tools Process Hacker and Process Hacker Portable have been updated to version 2.35 with some welcome extras and enhancements.
One major addition is support for viewing the load time and load reasons for process modules, on Windows 8 and above. If a long-running process like Explorer.exe is developing problems, you can now sort its modules by load time to get clues about the cause.
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