Logi ZeroTouch from Logitech is a smart car mount for Android smartphones
People are seemingly addicted to their smartphones nowadays. You know what I am talking about. Everywhere I go, I see people glued to their phones like zombies. You know what? I am guilty of this too. While I am texting and tweeting while walking or eating in a restaurant, I never do so while driving -- that is just plain stupid. Unfortunately, many people are guilty of texting and driving. It became so prevalent here on Long Island, that some rest stops on the expressway were re-purposed as "text stops", so people can pull over to interact with their tech.
If for whatever reason you need to interact with your phone while driving -- texting, making phone calls, playing music, etc. -- Logitech has a new solution so that it can be done more safely. The Logi ZeroTouch is a car mount for your Android phone, but it is more than that. It is "smart", meaning that your phone knows when it is in the mount, enabling a hands-free experience.
Facebook panders to European privacy concerns by stripping facial recognition from Moments app
Facebook has rolled out its photo-sharing app Moments around the world, and users in Europe have been treated to a modified version. Specifically, the European version of the app lacks the facial recognition feature that allows for automatic tagging of people.
In many ways, Facebook has been forced to release a degraded version of Moments to its EU audience because of the varying privacy laws that exist in different countries. The hobbled app will not attempt to identify individuals in photos, but will group together images that "appear to include the same face".
Android devices suffer higher failure rates than iOS
People have become increasingly reliant on smartphones and as a result they have become less tolerant of poor performance and device problems.
Blancco Technology Group has released a report based on the latest results from its SmartChk diagnostic platform, showing higher failure rates in Android devices than in iOS ones, and revealing some interesting trends.
Xiaomi unveils 6.44-inch Mi Max smartphone, MIUI 8
Chinese maker Xiaomi has announced a new Android phablet, called Mi Max, and officially showcased MIUI 8, the latest version of its Android distribution. The handset is large even for its class, featuring a 6.44-inch display that is more typical of a small tablet than of a phablet.
That is not the only thing that is big about it though, as Xiaomi has also added a 4,850 mAh battery inside Mi Max. This is one of the largest capacities we have seen in a smartphone and, with the help of MIUI 8, it should translate into great battery life -- 76 percent better than iPhone 6s Plus, the company claims.
Think Android security updates take too long to roll out? So do the FTC and FCC
Both the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) are starting to ask the questions that Android users have been asking for years: why do updates and upgrades take so long to roll out?
If you're in possession of a flagship or recent handset, the chances are you're in line to receive timely updates for the foreseeable future. But Android's fragmentation means that older handsets quickly drop off the radar, get forgotten and remain unpatched. The FCC and the FTC both want to know why security patches are slow to hit phones, and the agencies have launched separate, but parallel, investigations.
New security vulnerability affects one in four Android devices
A security vulnerability on Google’s Android OS has exposed users’ text messages, call histories and other sensitive data for the past five years.
The security firm FireEye has released a blog post detailing how it affects smartphones running Android 4.3 Jelly Bean as well as earlier versions of the OS. The bug, which has been indexed as CVE-2016-2060, allows apps to access sensitive user data by taking advantage of Android’s permission system.
US government certifies LG's G5, V10 for enterprise and military use
LG today announced that the US government has certified its G5 and V10 flagship Android smartphones for enterprise and military use. The testing was conducted by the National Information Assurance Partnership (NIAP), which verifies the compliance of products with the "Common Criteria" international security standard, which is said to be recognized by 25 countries.
Although LG is only boasting about the two aforementioned handsets, NIAP's test results show that G4, its flagship from last year, is also fit for use in enterprise and military sectors, when running Android 6.0 Marshmallow. NIAP's stamp of approval was received on April 14.
SCOSCHE unveils MagicMount PowerBank for Android and iPhone
Removable phone batteries used to be a very important thing to me. It is one of the reasons, at least initially, I shunned the iPhone for Android smartphones. Over time, however, this became less important, thanks to USB battery packs. Ultimately, I bought an iPhone and couldn't be happier.
The problem with these battery packs, however, is that the cable creates a bit of a mess; it looks unsightly to have a wire dangling from your pocket. Meanwhile, battery cases are often bulky, ruining the svelte nature of the phone. Now, SCOSCHE unveils its MagicMount PowerBank for Android and iPhone. By utilizing magnets, it can be easily affixed to the rear of the phone when needed, and removed when not. The super-short cable will prevent tangling too.
Marshmallow now runs on 7.5 percent of Android devices
In just two months, Marshmallow has more than doubled its usage share in the Android market, thanks to the introduction of new devices and the availability of more software updates for older but popular handsets.
According to Google's latest figures, which are based on data collected during the seven days ending March 7, 7.5 percent of Android devices now run Marshmallow. When I last covered the distribution numbers in March, its usage share was at just 2.3 percent and it looked like its rise towards the top would be a very slow one.
Having a 5-incher means you spend more time in apps
It seems that size really does matter -- at least when it comes to the size of the screen on your smartphone. New research shows that people spend more time in apps if they have a larger screen.
The study from mobile engagement platform Localytics shows that 5-inch devices show 23 percent more app engagement than smaller screens. They also show 3.53 percent higher average session length than 4-inch screens.
New platform uses machine learning to streamline mobile development
Businesses are under increasing pressure to create mobile apps, but often lack the resources to do so effectively. Workplace mobility specialist PowWow Mobile is launching a new platform that lets users build apps faster and with less code.
SmartUX Studio is designed to easily transform functional web-based or Windows business applications into intuitive, modern mobile app experiences.
After the death of @MagicRecs, Twitter Connect makes it easier to find people to follow
It was a sad day on Twitter when one of most useful accounts, the @MagicRecs bot, was closed down. The experimental service had been firing account recommendations at users based on who they follow, but the experiment came to an end.
As something of a replacement, Twitter is introducing a Connect tab to its iOS and Android clients. The company says it will make it easier to find people to follow, and will come up with recommendations based on who you already follow, how you use Twitter, and what's proving popular with other people.
Facebook Messenger to gain privacy-enhancing self-destructing messages
With the ongoing debate about privacy and encryption, the rollout of end-to-end encryption to Facebook-owned WhatsApp came as little surprise. Now Facebook Messenger is set to gain a couple of privacy-enhancing features including self-destructing messages.
Already found in other messaging tools such as SnapChat and Telegram, self-destructing messages have been unearthed in Messenger for iOS version 68.0. As you would expect, the feature makes it possible to place a time limit on how long messages are visible for, making it ideal for communicating sensitive information.
Microsoft makes Xamarin SDKs for Android, iOS and Mac open source
Microsoft's embracing of the open source movement grows ever tighter, and today the company announced that its Xamarin SDKs (available for Android, iOS and Mac) will be open sourced. It's not long since Microsoft bought Xamarin, and just weeks later the SDKs are being opened up.
Announced at the Xamarin Evolve 2016 event, the move sees Microsoft trying to encourage mobile developers. The company says it has already made great strides in this area: "we helped nearly 3.5 times more developers get started building great apps with Xamarin than ever in our history as a company".
Google antitrust: Getty Images files complaint against search giant for image scraping and piracy promotion
Google is already embroiled in one antitrust case in Europe where the company stands accused of abusing Android's dominance. Now photo agency Getty Images is accusing Google of promoting piracy and engaging in anticompetitive behavior by 'scraping' images from third party sites.
In a familiar-sounding complaint, Getty Images also says that Google skews search results in favor of its own services -- such as Google Images. The photo agency says that this directly impacts upon rival services, but perhaps the big charge is that a change made to Google Images provided access to copyrighted material and "promoted piracy, resulting in widespread copyright infringement".
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