Xiaomi's new ultrabook goes up against Apple's MacBook Air
Xiaomi is entering the laptop market with a device that looks to carry on the company tradition of delivering high specs at low cost.
The model has not yet been named, but is available for pre-order via Chinese retailer Banggood for £490.50.
Fitbit announces Blaze smartwatch, investors aren't taking the news well
Fitbit's stock has taken a dive after the company announced a smartwatch at CES 2016, sending shares from $30.21 at the stock market's opening yesterday, to just $23.73 at the time of writing this article. It would seem that investors were not too keen on Fitbit going after the likes of Apple Watch with its upcoming Blaze.
Fitbit is focused on fitness trackers, and is actually the largest vendor in the wearables market, having shipped 4.7 million units in Q3 2015. The smartwatch market is dominated by Apple Watch; although there are no official sales numbers, IDC says that Apple sold 3.9 million units in the same time frame.
Apple announces record App Store revenue -- will that be enough to boost its falling share price?
Apple's stock has taken a huge hit in the past couple of months, with shares now trading close to the $100 mark. Investors seem to be overly concerned with the iPhone's performance in the last quarter of 2015, after analysts have delivered mixed sales estimates, and a so-called report of a 30 percent production cut for the first quarter of 2016 is only making things worse.
So, unsurprisingly, Apple is looking to reassure investors that it's in good financial health, revealing today a "record-breaking holiday season for the App Store". Is this the company's way of suggesting that hardware sales have actually been strong during the holiday season?
Does this secret tapping tip speed up your iPhone or iPad?
Do you feel the need, the need for speed? If your phone's feeling a little sluggish, you might think it's time to hit the stores and invest in a new one, but if you're an Apple fan, you might want to hold off making a new purchase until you try this little trick.
A sneaky tip is doing the round that purports to speed up iPhone performance after nothing more than a few taps. It is real? Is it an early April Fool? Is it wishful thinking? That's for you to decide. Try out the tip for yourself and see what you think.
Windows doesn't top the vulnerability list for 2015, but Microsoft as a whole does
Software vulnerabilities are a daily event it seems, but some systems just have more of them. When we think of this a couple of names usually spring to mind -- Flash and Java. However, according to the new list being published by CVE Details, they aren't quite at the top, nor is Microsoft's oft-maligned operating system.
Basing its numbers on "distinct" vulnerabilities, the security firm has released its top 50 naughty list of 2015. Leading the way was, in fact, Apple, which claimed the top two spots -- Mac OS X with a number of 384 vulnerabilities, closely followed by iPhone OS (or iOS as most people like to call it) with 375.
China passes law requiring tech firms to hand over encryption keys
Apple may have said that it opposes the idea of weakening encryption and providing governments with backdoors into products, but things are rather different in China. The Chinese parliament has just passed a law that requires technology companies to comply with government requests for information, including handing over encryption keys.
Under the guise of counter-terrorism, the controversial law is the Chinese government's attempt to curtail the activities of militants and political activists. China already faces criticism from around the world not only for the infamous Great Firewall of China, but also the blatant online surveillance and censorship that takes place. This latest move is one that will be view very suspiciously by foreign companies operating within China, or looking to do so.
Santa brought you a 4th generation Apple TV? Here's what to do first
As far as I'm concerned, Apple won 2015 -- feel free to disagree. According to yours truly, the privacy-focused company holds the crowns for best smartphone (iPhone 6s Plus), best tablets (iPad mini 4, Air 2, Pro), best smartwatch (Apple Watch) and, of course, the best streaming media box of the year. Yes, I am talking about the amazing 4th gen Apple TV.
Did Santa bring you one for Christmas this year? Well, you must have been good, because it is a wonderful steaming media box. Actually, it is much more than that; it is also an incredible gaming console -- the Siri remote doubles as a passable gamepad. Ready to use the Apple TV? Here is what you need to do first.
Apple deems iPhone 6s too expensive for India, slashes prices
In some markets, consumers who want to get an iPhone 6s can expect to pay about $1000 just to get their hands on the base model. In India, for instance, the 16 GB version of Apple's smaller flagship officially arrived with a price tag of $935 (Rs 62,000). At the other end of the spectrum, an iPhone 6s Plus with 128 GB of storage could be had for a whopping $1390 (Rs 92,000).
The high barrier of entry seems to have been too much for many prospective buyers because Apple has just slashed the prices of its latest flagships by at least 10 percent across the board in India. A price cut so soon after an iPhone launch -- keep in mind, iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus were officially announced in September -- is unheard of.
Tim Cook: Apple will not budge on encryption
With many U.S. lawmakers calling for an end to encryption, Tim Cook has decided to reiterate Apple’s stance on the matter. Apple’s CEO believes that when it comes to encryption there is no trade-off between privacy and national security.
During CBS’ program 60 Minutes, on Sunday Cook defended the need for encryption and how it important it is to Apple and its consumers. According to Cook, there is no reason why Americans should not be able to have privacy while simultaneously protecting America’s national security.
Apple wants the UK government to rein in snooper's charter
Tim Cook is a vocal opponent of any form of encryption weakening, and now Apple has spoken out against the UK government's Investigatory Powers Bill -- otherwise known as the snooper's charter. Currently in draft form, the bill would require ISPs to retain customers' browsing histories for a year, and would require technology companies to implement backdoors that would allow encryption to be bypassed.
Apple says that it has serious concerns about the proposed bill in its current form, and calls for sweeping changes to be implemented. The company has famously refused to allow access to encrypted iMessage chats, and this is a stance it is reiterating.
Cortana for Android loses its raison d'être
When Cortana made its way to the Windows 10 desktop, lots of users were excited by the prospect of a Microsoft version of Siri. Moving to Android as well as Windows 10 Mobile devices, Cortana could really compete with not just Siri's voice control options, but also OK Google.
Now this has changed -- at least for Android users in the US. The latest update to the app strips out the voice activation options leaving users questioning whether or not there is any point in having the app installed.
Ericsson suckles on Apple's massive teat thanks to multi-billion dollar patent deal
Some companies innovate, while some imitate. Other businesses make money from patent deals. There is nothing wrong with protecting patents, but sometimes a company that truly moves the dial ends up paying a lesser company as a result.
The latest such case of this, is Ericsson signing a patent deal with Apple, ending years of legal battles. The latter company is forward-thinking and one of the most important tech companies in the world; the former, while important, is not on the same level as Apple. I am not saying Ericsson doesn't deserve to profit from Apple's arguable use of its patented technology, but the deal is yet another another example of a company seemingly suckling at Apple's massive teat.
BlackBerry's privacy stance is yet another reason to avoid the company
We are living in a post NSA-world (and I am a post-NSA girl...) and privacy is in the public consciousness more than ever before. After the government surveillance revelations that came courtesy of Eddy Snowden, most tech companies have been trying to stress to customers and clients just how willing they are to stand up for privacy.
But not BlackBerry. Company CEO John Chen has used a blog post to lash out at his contemporaries for supporting strong encryption. He makes a thinly-veiled reference to Apple, accusing that an unwillingness to comply with law enforcement requests put us all in a "dark place". Chen says that "our privacy commitment does not extend to criminals", seemingly failing to recognize that privacy is very much an all-or-nothing concept.
To truly innovate, Apple needs a lot more than a new COO
Back in April 2013, when Forbes ran a commentary asserting it was time for Tim Cook to go, I forcefully responded that "Apple needs a COO, not new CEO". The day has arrived, with the company announcing this morning that Jeff Williams fills the vacant chief operating officer position. Eh, that's not what I had in mind, and Apple investors should question the wisdom of the appointment, too.
I mean no slight towards Mr. Williams, who looks more than adequately competent to handle the job. Like Cook, when COO, Williams is a manufacturing and logistics leader—excellent credentials to manage day-to-day operations over the world's wealthiest tech company as measured by market cap and quarterly net income. The problem: Cook and Williams are questionable pairing, because their backgrounds and skillsets are too much alike. You got an electron circling another electron in the atom's nucleus.
Apple and IBM partnership reaches 100 enterprise apps milestone
Apple and IBM today announced that they have reached the 100-app milestone in their mobile partnership, covering 60 professional roles across 14 different industries including government, transportation, healthcare and telecommunications.
Maribel Lopez, principal at Lopez Research said: "I think [Apple] brings the concept of simplicity (direct to task) and beauty to enterprise apps. IBM on the other hand understands business workflow, what generates productivity and back-end integration".
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