Articles about Amazon

My household cut the cord in July 2014; the cable box is gone. In the process, I have been testing various streaming set-tops and sticks, and the latter is today's topic. Google opened up the category with $35 Chromecast in July 2013, and the device gets better with age. Roku Streaming Stick, at $49.99, is priciest choice, while Amazon Fire TV Stick is the $39 in-betweener.

Briefly, before deep diving, Chromecast is easiest to use and offers more commercial programming support. Roku delivers broadest streaming channel selection. Fire TV fits tightly into the broader Amazon Prime ecosystem, while offering satisfying, but incomplete, content options compared to either of the other devices.

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We always knew that the US government would have a very tough time stopping civilians from using drones -- formally known as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). First of all, they are easily available and can be had for very little money. You can order one today from Amazon for less than $100. And, second, flying does not require the operator to have any special skills, as proven by numerous videos posted by enthusiasts all across YouTube.

So, instead of taking on that Herculean task, the Federal Aviation Administration has come up with a proposed set of rules that aim to regulate the use of small UAVs, weighing less than 55 lbs (or 25 kg), by the civilian sector. And under this new set of rules, Amazon might have to ground its package delivery drones for good. What's more, operators will have to meet certain requirements just to get theirs up from the ground.

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Sling TV has just come out of private testing and no longer requires an invitation -- anyone can now use it. The next step is, logically, getting set-top box makers on board. One of those would be retail giant Amazon which produces the Fire TV. It's a growing platform with more options being added seemingly daily.

Now Amazon can count Sling TV among it growing list of entertainment choices. In fact, the retail giant claims its offerings have gone up markedly since the device launched in 2014.

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For both software and data, there is a relentless move to the cloud. But with so many different cloud services to choose from, it can be difficult to decide which one is best. To help make things a little easier, Google today launches PerfKit Benchmarker.

The open-source tool makes it possible to run benchmarks across a variety of cloud platforms, and a dedicated visualization tool, Perfkit Explorer, has been created to help with the interpretation of results. The tool provides essential data to developers who are creating applications in the cloud.

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Amazon, originally known as a book seller, has become an all-around retail super store with a growing list of its own electronics. Sales are not infrequent as the company tries to push its devices, in many cases selling them at a loss with plans to make up the money once the customer is ensconced in the ecosystem. It's a plan that seems to pay off.

Now, if you're looking for that special gift for Valentine's Day, which fast approaches, Amazon is holding yet another of these sales. Discounts are available on many of the products produced by the company.

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Ads are pretty much universally hated; in the list of lovable things in the world, ads rank pretty far down. On TV, in movie theaters, in magazines and online, ads are forced upon us and are impossible to avoid. Except that's not true online. Ad-blocking software can be used to filter out the stuff you don’t want to see, making for a happier web browsing experience.

However, it turns out that installing an ad-blocking tool like, ooh... I dunno... AdBlock Plus... is not enough to prevent the appearance of unwanted advertisements. Some time ago we learned about the whitelist operated by AdBlock Plus and now the Financial Times reports that big companies like Google, Microsoft and Amazon have paid to be included on the list so their ads are no longer blocked.

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It is common practice for companies to take steps to reduce their tax bills. One common technique is to channel money through overseas branches, taking advantage of countries that require payment of little or no taxes. If the President's plans to pull in taxes from multinational companies' overseas earning, the likes of Amazon, Apple, Google and Microsoft could be facing hefty bills.

While the proposed 14 percent tax rate is far lower than the usual 35 percent, it could still top up US coffers by up to $238 billion. In addition to a one off tax payment on money currently held overseas, Obama is looking to slap a 19 percent corporation tax on earnings moving forward.

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The humble drone has something of a poor reputation. If it's not seen as a tool for surveillance, then it's a silly toy for those with too much time on their hands to strap a GoPro to and record aerial footage. More recently Amazon has trialled fast deliveries by drone, but a new competition aims to show the incredible things than can be achieved with the unmanned devices.

Drones for Good is an international competition which offers a prize of $1 million for the best and most innovative use of drones. The competition was announced at the Government Summit 2014, hosted by the United Arab Emirates, and has attracted interest from around the world, with entrants from dozens of countries. The list of semi-finalists includes some incredible ideas for how drones could be used to make the world a better place.

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If you're fond of watching TV, and most folks are, then you likely have some accounts with online services to supplement your viewing options. Several good choices exist, one of which is provided by online retail giant Amazon. Prime includes video streaming that competes with rival Netflix and now it's beefing up the original content available from this service.

13 new shows are debuting on the service, though they are pilots only. Amazon prefers to let the viewers decide what becomes a series and what gets shelved. So, your viewing and comments help here.

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You just gotta love Amazon. This morning, at long last, I received my invitation for Echo, the sizzlingly voice-controled streaming speaker that I raved about just two months ago. As a Prime member, I pay half-price, just $99. What a deal! Since then, I jealously waited while reading what others blogged about how much they enjoyed their Echoes. The device fits squarely where I contend is the next iteration in user interfaces: voice. Touch is just so passé.

In retail, customer impressions are everything. My first reaction was excitement, but the second turned it to dust. This thing won't ship until sometime between May and July? Seriously? It's like a bad Consumer Electronics Show joke, where the hottest tech device in this solar system debuts in January, but sales don't start until November. Don't sell me something I can't get for at least five fraking months!

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Amazon usually produces TV pilots before deciding which ones to turn into full series. Unsurprisingly, its union with critically-acclaimed writer/director Woody Allen, won’t be going through this process.

The company has already ordered a full season of the Untitled Woody Allen Project, which will premiere exclusively on Prime Instant Video.

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Sling TV, yes from the folks who brought you the Box, has launched and it's heading in many directions all at once. Earlier we heard that Xbox One would be the first gaming console to feature the service, now we're learning of the set-top box makers also partnered with Sling.

The new internet TV and video service has also teamed up with two of the most popular device makers currently in this market -- Roku and Amazon. Both companies plan to carry this new internet-based video service.

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Looking back on this last day of the year, I wonder how my daily tech changed so much since the first. On Jan. 1, 2014, my core computing comprised Chromebook, Nexus tablet, and Nexus smartphone. Midyear, I switched out to all Microsoft—buying Surface Pro 3 and Nokia Lumia Icon. While commendable the effort, Windows poorly fit my lifestyle. Today, I'm all Apple—13-inch MacBook Pro Retina Display with 512GB SSD, iPhone 6 128GB, and iPad Air 128GB. I can't imagine using anything else.

Following the lead of my BetaNews colleagues Mihaita Bamburic, Ian Barker, Alan Buckingham, Brian Fagioli, and Wayne Williams, I review my year in tech, and unlike 2013 focus on products that released during the year. I present my 2014 personal tech alphabetically, from company name, rather than order of importance—because they all matter. Note: While the list looks like four, it's five because the first is two combined.

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2014 is quickly winding down and the calendar will soon turn over to 2015. But it was a good year for technology, which began, as always, in Las Vegas with annual CES. Of course, that's when we get a glimpse of products that may or may not ever see the bright lights of a store showroom. But we aren't here to talk about what could have been, but instead, what really is on the market. Nothing fancy here, just solid pieces of equipment.

Over the course of the past year I was fortunate enough to try out many products. There were really no duds in the batch, but some managed to distinguish themselves from the competitors. Now we've reached that time where it can be revealed. And, just so you know, it goes in no particular order.

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This year, I did all of my Christmas shopping online. More specifically, I did all of my shopping on Amazon.com. I wasn't opposed to going to a physical store, but every time I drove by the mall, the parking lot was full and people were fighting over parking spots. Sorry, I am not going to get involved in all of that.

Since I have a Prime membership, I was able to wait until the last minute for much of my shopping, as the included 2-day shipping got things to me fast. Not only does Prime come with free expedited shipping, it also includes free video streaming and more -- a great value. Hell, a Prime Membership makes a great gift to give too. Today, Amazon announces that it has achieved a record-breaking 10 million first-time memberships over the holidays.

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