Techno Babble

New version of the most popular iPad starts shipping tomorrow

2019-09-24T14:46:00.001-07:00

New version of the most popular iPad starts shipping tomorrow
Featuring a 10.2-Inch Retina Display, Smart Keyboard and Apple Pencil Support
iPadOS Now Available With Powerful Multitasking and Creative Capabilities
The new seventh-generation iPad starts shipping on Wednesday, September 25 and will arrive in stores beginning later this week.¹ Starting at just $329, the new iPad brings more screen area and support for the full-sized Smart Keyboard,²as well as a new iPad experience with iPadOS. The upgrade packs even more value into the most popular and affordable iPad, featuring a stunning 10.2-inch Retina display and the latest innovations including Apple Pencil³ support, the fast A10 Fusion chip, advanced cameras and sensors, unmatched portability and connectivity, ease of use and great all-day battery life.⁴ iPadOS is available today as a free software update for iPad Air 2 and later, all iPad Pro models, iPad 5th generation and later and iPad mini 4 and later.
Bigger Display in a Powerful and Portable Design
The new 10.2-inch Retina display iPad has nearly 3.5 million pixels and a wide viewing angle making it a vivid canvas for creative expression and perfect for immersive augmented reality (AR) experiences that take advantage of its enhanced cameras and advanced sensors. Featuring the powerful A10 Fusion chip, the new seventh-generation iPad brings up to two times faster performance over the top-selling Windows PC⁵ for powerful multitasking and smooth gameplay in Apple Arcade.
Designed to be ultra-portable and durable, iPad weighs about one pound and for the first time features an enclosure made from 100 percent recycled aluminum with the same strength, durability and beautiful finish as the aluminum in all Apple products.⁶ Staying connected is easy on iPad with ultra-fast wireless performance and support for Gigabit-class LTE connectivity — delivering three times faster⁷ cellular data connections.⁸With Touch ID, unlocking iPad is simple and secure using just a finger, to keep important information safe.
The Most Complete iPad Family Ever
The newest, most affordable iPad joins iPad mini, iPad Air and the most advanced iPad Pro models, offering the best, most versatile iPad lineup ever. The complete lineup includes Apple Pencil support, best-in-class performance, advanced displays and all-day battery life for an experience unmatched by any other tablet. Whether customers prioritize portability, screen size, power or price, there’s an iPad for everyone. Learn more about the iPad family at apple.com/ipad/compare.
New iPadOS Available Today
iPadOS is a powerful operating system designed with new capabilities and intuitive features for the large display and versatility of iPad. iPadOS brings new ways to work with apps in multiple windows, more information at a glance on a redesigned Home screen and more natural ways to use Apple Pencil. iPadOS also gets a dramatic new Dark Mode, a simple way to sign in to websites that protects your privacy with Sign in with Apple, and new tools to edit and view your photos.
New Home Screen
The Home screen has been redesigned with a new layout to show more apps on each page. Today View can now be added to the Home screen, allowing quick access to widgets for at-a-glance information, including headlines, weather, calendar, events, tips and more.
Do More with Split View and Slide Over
iPad users can now work with multiple files and documents from the same app simultaneously with updates to Split View, or can quickly view and switch between multiple apps in Slide Over. For example, customers can compose an email while viewing another email side by side or access multiple apps like Messages or Calendar with just a swipe. App Exposé provides a quick view of just the open windows for any one app with a simple tap.
More Ways to Use Apple Pencil
With iPadOS, Apple Pencil is even more integrated into the iPad experience. Customers can now mark up and send entire webpages, documents or emails on iPad by swiping Apple Pencil from the bottom corner of the screen. A redesigned tool palette gives quick access to tools, color palettes, shapes, object eraser, a new pixel eraser for removing any part of a stroke and a ruler for drawing perfectly straight lines. Apple Pencil feels even more natural, using advanced prediction algorithms and optimizations to reduce its industry-leading latency to as low as 9 milliseconds.
More Powerful Files App
The Files app is a central place to quickly access and manage documents, and with iPadOS, it gets even better with iCloud Drive support for folder sharing.⁹ Anyone with access to a shared folder will see it in iCloud Drive and will always have the ability to access the latest version. iPadOS also supports external drives, allowing users to easily plug in USB drives, SD cards or log into an SMB file server, all from within the Files app. A new Column View with high-resolution previews helps users navigate directories, while support for Quick Actions such as mark up, rotate and create PDF make it easy to be more productive on iPad. iPadOS also introduces local storage, zip and unzip, and new keyboard shortcuts.
Desktop-Class Browsing with Safari
Safari is more powerful than ever on iPad. iPadOS automatically presents the desktop version of the website, scaled appropriately for the iPad display, and optimizes it for touch, so web apps like Google Docs, Squarespace and WordPress work great in Safari on iPad. Safari also delivers new features such as a download manager, 30 new keyboard shortcuts and enhancements to tab management.
Improved Text Editing
Text editing on iPad receives a major update with iPadOS, making it easier and faster to point with even more precision and speed, select text with just a swipe and use new gestures to cut, copy, paste and undo.
Learn more about iPadOS at apple.com/ipados.
Pricing and Availability

The new seventh-generation iPad comes in silver, space gray and gold finishes in 32GB and 128GB configurations. iPad starts at $329 (US) for the Wi-Fi model and $459 (US) for the Wi-Fi + Cellular model from apple.com, in the Apple Store app and Apple Stores, and is also available through Apple Authorized Resellers and select carriers (prices may vary).

The new iPad is available to order from apple.com and in the Apple Store app in the US and more than 25 other countries and regions. iPad will start shipping on Wednesday, September 25 and be available in stores beginning later this week (varies by country and region).

iPadOS ships for free with the new seventh-generation iPad and is available as a free software update for iPad Air 2 and later, all iPad Pro models, iPad 5th generation and later, and iPad mini 4 and later.

Apple Pencil (1st generation) is available for purchase separately for $99(US).

The Smart Keyboard is a full-size keyboard that connects to the 10.2-inch iPad with the Smart Connector. It is available for purchase separately for$159 (US) with layouts for over 30 languages, including simplified Chinese, French, German, Japanese and Spanish.

Schools can purchase iPad starting at $299 (US) and Apple Pencil for $89(US).

Polyurethane Smart Covers are available for $39 (US) for iPad in charcoal gray, white, pink sand and a new Alaskan blue.

Customers in the US can trade in their eligible device for an Apple Store Gift Card or a refund on their purchase. If the device isn’t eligible for credit, Apple will recycle it for free.¹⁰

When customers buy online from Apple, they can make their new iPad their own with free engraving.

Customers get 3 percent Daily Cash when they buy iPad from Apple with Apple Card.

Customers can extend their limited warranty with AppleCare+ and get 24/7 priority access to technical support.

Every customer who buys iPad from Apple can enjoy free Personal Setup in-store or online, and receive guidance on how to customize their iPad, set up email, find new apps from the App Store and more.

Apple Arcade on the App Store is available with iOS 13 as a subscription for $4.99 per month and is launching with a one-month free trial.¹¹ Users get unlimited access to the entire catalog of over 100 new, exclusive games, all playable across iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac and Apple TV.

Apple TV+ will be available on the Apple TV app on iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, iPod touch, Mac and other platforms, including online (tv.apple.com), for $4.99 per month with a seven-day free trial. Starting today, customers who purchase any iPad can enjoy one year of Apple TV+ for free.¹²

Apple Arcade on the App Store and Apple TV+ on the Apple TV app join Apple’s breakthrough services that include Apple Music, Apple News+, Apple Pay and iCloud.

Anyone who wants to learn more or go further with iPad or iPadOS can sign up for free Today at Apple sessions at apple.com/today.

Welcome To Marwen: Trailer #1 (2018) Steve Carell, Janelle Monáe, Diane Kruger

2018-06-22T15:17:00.001-07:00

Creed 2 Trailer (2018) Michael B. Jordan, Sylvester Stallone

2018-06-22T15:16:00.001-07:00

Apple offers $50 credit if you paid for a new iPhone battery last year

2018-05-25T16:22:00.002-07:00

After admitting that it was sometimes slowing processor speeds on older iPhones, Apple discounted its out-of-warranty battery replacement from $50 to $30 starting at the tail end of last year. But for anyone who bought one at any point in 2017 for iPhone 6 or later devices, the tech giant is offering a $50 credit.

The replacement battery had to have been purchased from an 'authorized service location' -- an Apple Store, repair center or authorized service provider. Customers who are eligible for a refund will get an email from Apple between today and July 27th with instructions to redeem it.

Facebook and Qualcomm are bringing super-fast WiFi to cities

2018-05-23T20:08:00.001-07:00

Facebook wants to be everywhere on the planet, even if that means building the internet itself. To that end, it recently unveiled Terragraph, a millimeter-wavelength, 60Ghz wireless system that can blast the internet through buildings in urban areas. Now, its plans to use the tech just go more, well, concrete. Qualcomm will put Terragraph tech in its upcoming chipsets, paving the way for manufacturers to build 60GHz broadcast equipment. The companies plan to start running trials of the tech in mid-2019.

Facebook and Qualcomm's tech is base on the 802.11ay WLAN standard, which uses the 60Ghz frequency and offers transmission rates up to 20-40 Gbps over 300-500 meter distances. However, Qualcomm and Facebook have tweaked it with enhancements like massive antenna arrays, channel bonding, time synchronized nodes and TDMA protocols. That tech will help the signals get past urban obstacles, serve more users and reduce upfront costs, Facebook said.

The companies didn't mention where they planned to run the trials, though Facebook previously said that it would test Terragraph tech in San Jose. The idea is to bring high-speed internet to areas where laying fiber, for instance, is prohibitively expensive. Facebook is also developed the Antenna Radio Integration for Efficiency in Spectrum (ARIES) system that can broadcast over longer distances in less-dense rural regions.

Google has also adopted millimeter wireless tech to use in the "last mile" of its Fiber internet service. It's not clear whether Facebook would use the tech to provide straight-up internet service like Google Fiber, or its current offering, Free Basics.

That no-cost service offers a much-reduced choice of web services including, of course, Facebook. It's now available in up to 50 nations via 81 mobile providers, the company has noted. The problem is, it's often the only choice for a lot of people, and fake news abounds on the site. As a result, Facebook recently pulled it from Myanmar and other markets where it has become a source of propaganda and misinformation.

Qualcomm's new hardware will help mobile 5G get off the ground

2018-05-23T20:06:00.002-07:00

If mobile 5G is going to become more than a nice idea, it needs the thorough coverage you expect today -- and that means putting it in the small cell sites that boost coverage in busy areas. And Qualcomm might just play a pivotal role in making that happen. The company is launching the first 5G New Radio platform (the catchily named FSM100xx) that brings gigabit data speeds to small cells. It can handle 5G on both regular frequencies and millimeter wave, and it promises to be helpful both indoors, where 5G's high frequencies don't always penetrate, as well as the great outdoors.

It'll be a while before you can actually connect to a 5G network using Qualcomm's new tech. Samples won't even reach customers until 2019, and it'll take a while after that for the platform to reach real-world networks. That's not such a problem when many carriers won't even launch mobile 5G until that same year, but it does help explain why the 2018 launches are limited -- the hardware just isn't there to offer widespread 5G coverage.

Platform.sh raises $34 million

2018-05-23T17:41:00.001-07:00

French startup Platform.sh has raised a $34 million funding round. The company wants to help you manage your cloud infrastructure by handling the most tedious part of the job.

When you use Platform.sh for your application, the startup is going to handle testing and deployment to your cloud infrastructure. Every time you want to iterate and update your application to a new version, deployment is as easy as a git commit.

Partech is leading the round, with Idinvest Partners, Benhamou Global Ventures, SNCF Digital Ventures and existing investor Hi Inov also participating.

Platform.sh targets big clients. The company is currently working with 650 enterprise clients, such as Magento, Gap Inc. and The Financial Times. In 2018, revenue has more than doubled compared to the same period last year.

Platform.sh can create new instances and deploy clones of your web applications in less than 60 seconds. That’s how you can deploy with confidence and save time.

The idea is that Platform.sh helps you deploy 10 times or 20 times per day. Your users won’t see a difference as your website will remain available during the entire day. Behind the scene, Platform.sh uses multiple cloud vendors for its infrastructure, including Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure and Orange Business Services.

HTC’s new flagship smartphone has a translucent back, dual front cameras

2018-05-23T17:34:00.001-07:00

Facebook Marketplace adds section for home service professionals

2018-05-23T17:13:00.001-07:00

A lot of home service pros already advertise their services on Facebook's Marketplace, but now the social network wants to make their presence on its Craigslist rival official. Facebook will roll out a dedicated Services section within Marketplace in the US starting today, and you can visit it whenever you're looking for home service pros like plumbers, cleaners and renovators. The social network is populating the category with providers from Handy, HomeAdvisor and Porch, which presumably means they're all background-checked and vetted by those companies.

Providers' listings will show you their ratings, reviews, credentials and location, so you can quickly decide which ones to contact. You can then send your project description to several professionals at once to get a quote and then discuss the details in Messenger. Facebook has been expanding Marketplace over the past months, opening it up to retailers, auto dealers and even landlords. By doing so, it's also turning the portal into a more organized classified ads section

Dish's new AirTV broadcasts over-the-air channels to all your devices

2018-05-23T17:12:00.001-07:00

Dish's first AirTV was an intriguing set-top box that combined over-the-air (OTA) channels with Sling TV's streaming interface. The downside? It only worked with one TV at a time, and that set had to be near a good antenna reception spot. Today, the company is introducing an even more ambitious $120 AirTV (the previous device is now the AirTV Player), a home server that connects to your antenna and broadcasts OTA content to all of your gadgets. Even better, it'll also let you watch live TV when you're away from home. You can think of it as a completely legal alternative to Aereo, the defunct OTA streaming startup.
AirTV is clearly targeted at existing Sling TV customers who've already committed to the cord-cutting lifestyle. It's a better option than paying for local channels through Sling TV, since the service doesn't yet cover every market. And by tuning into live over-the-air content, you've also got a wider assortment of local channels to choose from, all broadcast in bitrates much higher than you'd see from Sling or cable. It's also helpful if your TV is stuck somewhere that an OTA antenna won't reach.
Once you've set up AirTV, you'll be able to watch your live OTA channels from within the Sling TV app. There will also be a separate AirTV app for buyers without Sling service. In a brief demonstration at Dish's New York City office, tuning to new OTA channels typically took around two to three seconds. It's a bit slower than tuning to different Sling TV stations, but not annoyingly so (especially since it doesn't cost you any extra monthly fees). AirTV has dual tuners, so you and a family member will be able to watch different shows at the same time.
Of course, your over-the-air experience will depend heavily on the quality and placement of your antenna, as well as the availability of channels in your area. Dish reps say it's looking into ways to simplify the setup process for new cord cutters. While the $120 AirTV isn't exactly cheap, it's far less expensive than the $400 TiVo Roamio Vox, which also combines streaming video with live OTA channels for a single set.

Thousands of Apple ID Passwords Leaked by Teen Phone Monitoring App Server

2018-05-21T17:16:00.001-07:00

ZDNet reports that a server used by an app for parents to monitor their teenagers' phone activity has leaked tens of thousands of login credentials, including the Apple IDs of children.

The leaked data belonged to customers of TeenSafe, a "secure" monitoring app for iOS and Android that allows parents to view their child's text messages and location, call history, web browsing history, and installed apps.

The customer database was reportedly stored on two servers hosted by Amazon Web Services, where it remained unprotected and accessible without a password. The discovery was made by a U.K.-based security researcher specializing in public and exposed data, and the servers were only taken offline after ZDNet alerted the California-based company responsible for the TeenSafe app.

Comcast is leaking the names and passwords of customers’ wireless routers

2018-05-21T16:45:00.003-07:00

Comcast has just been caught in a major security snafu: revealing the passwords of its customers’ Xfinity-provided wireless routers in plaintext on the web. Anyone with a subscriber’s account number and street address number will be served up the wi-fi name and password via the company’s Xfinity internet activation service.

Security researchers Karan Saini and Ryan Stevenson reported the issue to ZDnet.

The site is meant to help people setting up their internet for the first time: ideally, you put in your data, and Comcast sends back the router credentials while activating the service.

The problem is threefold:

You can “activate” an account that’s already active
The data required to do so is minimal and it is not verified via text or email
The wireless name and password are sent on the web in plaintext

This means that anyone with your account number and street address number (e.g. the 1425 in “1425 Alder Ave,” no street name, city, or apartment number needed), both of which can be found on your paper bill or in an email, will instantly be given your router’s SSID and password, allowing them to log in and use it however they like or monitor its traffic. They could also rename the router’s network or change its password, locking out subscribers.

This only affects people who use a router provided by Xfinity/Comcast, which comes with its own name and password built in, though it also returns custom SSIDs and passwords, since they’re synced with your account and can be changed via app and other methods.

Adobe to acquire Magento for $1.68 Billion

2018-05-21T16:41:00.001-07:00

Adobe announced today that it was acquiring Magento for $1.68 billion. The purchase gives Adobe a missing e-commerce platform piece that works in B2B and B2C contexts and should fit nicely in the company’s Experience Cloud.

It should also help Adobe compete with Salesforce, which offers its own marketing, sales and service offerings in the cloud and which bought Demandware for more than $2 billionin 2016 to provide a similar set of functionality.

Brent Leary, who owns CRM Essentials and keeps a close eye on the intersection between marketing and CRM, says this fills an obvious hole in Adobe’s Experience Cloud. “Now they have an offering that allows them to close the loop with consumers, who are able to finalize a digital transaction that started online with digital marketing tools Adobe already offered,” Leary explained.

Leary also sees this deal bringing Microsoft and Adobe, who have already announced partnerships in the past, closer together. “But maybe even more interesting may be how this may further the relationship Adobe has with Microsoft. As they also are missing an e-commerce piece to their customer engagement platform [as well],” he pointed out. Leary speculates this could lead to an even deeper relationship between the two companies as they are each battling Salesforce.

FCC investigates site that let most US mobile phones’ location be exposed

2018-05-20T17:39:00.002-07:00

The Federal Communications Commission has taken preliminary steps to examine the actions of LocationSmart, a southern California company that has suddenly found itself under intense public and government scrutiny for allowing most American cell phones’ locations to be easily accessed.

As Ars reported Thursday, LocationSmart identifies the locations of phones connected to AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, or Verizon, often to an accuracy of a few hundred yards, reporter Brian Krebs said. While the firm claims it provides the location-lookup service only for legitimate and authorized purposes, Krebs reported that a demo tool on the LocationSmart website could be used by just about anyone to surreptitiously track the real-time whereabouts of just about anyone else.

AT&T launches its LTE-powered Amazon Dash-style button

2018-05-20T15:58:00.001-07:00

Unlike the product-branded hunk of plastic you can presently pick up from Amazon to refresh your supply of Goldfish crackers and Tide Pods, this one’s currently open to developers at companies looking to build their own. What it does have going for it, however, is LTE-M, a cheaper, lower cost version of 4G that’s set to power a future generation of IoT devices.

That means it can be used for your standard Dash-like activities — letting customers replenish items with a press — and it can also be implemented in some more interesting scenarios, out of the bounds of regular WiFi. AT&T offers up a couple of case uses, including customer feedback in public venues and use in places like construction sites where home/office Wifi isn’t an option.

Of course, without the direct retail feedback loop, it’s not really a Dash competitor — and besides, AWS is helping power the thing, so Amazon’s still getting a kickback here. Oh, and then there’s the price — the buttons start at $30 a piece, which amounts to a lot of Tide Pods. As such, we likely won’t see them take off too quickly, but they do provide an interesting usage as AT&T looks to LTE-M to push IoT outside of the home.

Longtime LG Group chairman Koo Bon-Moo dies at 73

2018-05-20T15:57:00.001-07:00

South Korean electronics conglomerate LG Group announced this morning that the company’s longtime chairman Koo Bon-Moo has passed away at 73. Koo’s death follows a year-long battle with brain disease, for which he had undergone surgery, according to Reuters.

The executive stepped into the role in 1995 and served as a driving force in establishing LG as an electronics powerhouse. His tenure focused on electronics, chemicals and telecom, and Koo also oversaw the company’s transition from Lucky Goldstar to the more streamlined LG, a name change that occurred the year he took power.

Bloomberg notes that the company more than quintupled sales under Koo’s near quarter-century tenure atop LG.

Elon Musk tweet-announces a $78,000 performance Model 3

2018-05-20T15:55:00.003-07:00

On Saturday night Tesla CEO Elon Musk made a few announcements via Twitter about new options for the Tesla Model 3. Specifically, the CEO said that in July the Model 3 would be available with options for a dual-motor and all-wheel drive. On a normal Model 3, that addition will come at a cost of $5,000.

Musk also announced a "performance" Model 3, which will also have dual-motor, all-wheel drive. That model will cost $78,000. What you get for all that extra cash will be the ability to go 0 to 60 miles per hour in 3.5 seconds, with 155 mph top speed and at range of 310 miles. "Cost of all options, wheels, paint, etc is included (apart from Autopilot)," Musk tweeted.

In 2016, Tesla announced similar upgrades for the the Model S and Model X in the P100D version. The Model S P100D offered 0 to 60 in 2.5 seconds and a 315-mile range. The Model X had a similar option available, though the heavier car went from 0 to 60 in 2.9 seconds and had a 289-mile range. Upgrading those already-pricy cars cost $10,000 at the time. In November 2017, Tesla announced a new Roadster that it says will take 1.9 seconds to go from 0 to 60 miles per hour, with a 620-mile range. That performance vehicle has yet to make it to production.

Orbital ATK is launching a cargo rocket for the ISS

2018-05-20T15:43:00.004-07:00

Wake up in the wee hours of the morning on the East Coast, and you might get a chance to watch a rocket launch more than three tons of cargo for the International Space Station. Set for a 4:39 ET liftoff from NASA’s facility on Wallops Island, West Virginia, if the weather holds, this will be Orbital ATK’s ninth cargo delivery to the ISS.

The Antares launch, which is the company’s first since November, was initially scheduled for today, but was ultimately pushed back in favor of inspections and better weather. The ship will carry supplies, parts, gear and a trio of CubeSats (mini-satellites), designed for ISS science studies. CBS notes one particular quantum physics study that “will attempt to cool atoms to a billionth of a degree above absolute zero.”

If you’re already up that early on the East Coast and have a decent vantage point, look up. Things will start off small and build to something potentially spectacular. Space.com describes it as akin to a shooting star at first, building to something more like a comet, with the sun catching the rocket’s smoky trail around four and a half minutes after liftoff.

The launch is one of 11 planned under a NASA contract, with potential to add six more supply missions for the ISS. SpaceX, for its part, is currently under contract for 20 such missions.

After tens of thousands of pre-orders, 3D audio headphones startup Ossic disappears

2018-05-20T15:43:00.001-07:00

After taking tens of thousands of crowd-funding pre-orders for a high-end pair of “3D sound” headphones, audio startup Ossic announced this weekend that it is shutting down the company and backers will not be receiving refunds.

The company raised $2.7 million on Kickstarter and $3.2 million on Indiegogo for their Ossic X headphones which they pitched as a pair of high-end head-tracking headphones that would be perfect for listening to 3D audio, especially in a VR environment. While the company also raised a “substantial seed investment,” in a letter on the Ossic website, the company blamed the slow adoption of virtual reality alongside their crowdfunding campaign stretch goals which bogged down their R&D team.

“This was obviously not our desired outcome. The team worked exceptionally hard and created a production-ready product that is a technological and performance breakthrough. To fail at the 5 yard-line is a tragedy. We are extremely sorry that we cannot deliver your product and want you to know that the team has done everything possible including investing our own savings and working without salary to exhaust all possibilities.”

eBay again tries to personalize its marketplace

2018-05-18T18:58:00.001-07:00

eBay’s personalization efforts involve a new “Interests” feature.

The tactic is to walk consumers through a customization experience in its mobile app where you manually tap on what sort of things you’re interested in, like “biking” or “boho chic” fashion, for example. This sort of demand for explicit input implies that, despite how much shopping you may or may not have done over the years on eBay, it just doesn’t have enough data on its shoppers to create the ideal personalized storefront.

It’s the equivalent of eBay going, “okay, fine, why don’t you just tell me what your interests are then?”

And it’s not like recommendations are working that well elsewhere either. (Walmart and Amazon still lean heavily on “customers also viewed” and “related to this item” suggestions. And, of course, Amazon continues to think that buying an item once means you’re just really into that thing, even when it’s a toilet seat. So it shows you more of them.)

With eBay’s Interests, you tell it your particular tastes, and it then curates items from its 171 million buyers to create a personalized version of its store, where you can browse collections of a sort related to those interests you indicated across areas like “passions, hobbies and style,” the company says.

Assuming you return to the site regularly, these suggestions will get better in time. But this at least gives eBay a head start on showing you things you may like.

Ebay touts its marketplace advantage as to why shoppers should turn to its site for discovery, instead of major retailers who have their own agendas.

“When it comes to personalization at scale, most retailers merchandise the items that they are trying to sell,” an eBay spokesperson said. “As an agnostic platform, eBay Interests helps sort through the 1 billion items available from sellers on eBay to find the items that are most relevant and interesting to you.”

Jirnexu raises $11 Million for its financial comparison service

2018-05-18T18:56:00.004-07:00

The new investment comes courtesy of Japan’s SBI Group — a returning investor which led the round having co-led Carro’s $60 million raise — alongside new backer SIG Asia Investments. The deal takes Jirnexu to $17 million from investors to date.

The startup was founded in 2012 and it is based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It operates financial comparison services in its native Malaysia (‘RinggitPlus‘) and in Indonesia, under the ‘KreditGoGo‘ brand, that aggregate offerings from banks and financial companies that include Citibank, HSBC, Standard Chartered, and UOB. In short, the company acts as a user acquisition channel for financial organizations that want to reach consumers and maintain a dialogue with them.

Cambridge Analytica files for bankruptcy

2018-05-18T18:54:00.001-07:00

Cambridge Analytica LLC, the American arm of the London-based data analytics firm of the same name, filed for bankruptcy in federal court in New York on Friday.

The company submitted a voluntary formal petition for Chapter 7 bankruptcy—liquidation. That document reveals the company has between $1 and $10 million in debt with very little assets. On May 2, SCL Elections Ltd. and its other British affiliates filed similar "insolvency" documents with UK authorities.

It was revealed last month that a 2014 survey app created at the behest of Cambridge Analytica required Facebook login credentials and provided the survey creator access to their friends' public profile data. In the end, this system captured data from 87 million Facebook users. This data trove wound up in the hands of Cambridge Analytica, the British data analytics firm, which worked with clients like the Donald Trump presidential campaign.

Alphabet’s Verily has a “smart diaper“ design that distinguishes pee from poo

2018-05-17T15:03:00.001-07:00

Tech companies are always hoping to clear out the competition with their latest wearable. But Alphabet's life sciences division, Verily, is likely expecting a blow-out with this one.

The company, formerly known as Google Life Sciences, has a patent-pending plan for a wirelessly connected “smart diaper” that would not only alert a caregiver when there’s a new “event” but also analyze and identify the fresh download—i.e., is it a number one or number two? The connected, absorbent gadget will sound the alarm via a connected device and potentially an app, which can catalogue and keep a record of events.

Verily is not the first to try to plumb the potential of derrière devices for babies. Many companies have come before with simple to high-tech moisture sensors—from color-changing strips to wireless alarms. But, Verily argues in its patent application, the market is lacking a convenient, affordable, all-in-one design that can differentiate between a wee squirt and a code brown. While both require attention and a change, a festering or explosive diaper bomb often requires more urgency, particularly if a baby is dealing with diaper rash.

PayPal confirms that it is buying payments startup iZettle for $2.2 Billion Dollars

2018-05-17T15:02:00.001-07:00

PayPal is taking its biggest bet yet on point-of-sale transactions, small businesses and markets outside of the U.S. as it looks to raise its game against Square, Stripe and others in the world of payments: The company has confirmed that it is buying iZettle — the Stockholm-based payments provider commonly referred to as the “Square of Europe” — for $2.2 billion in an all-cash deal.

The deal — which is expected to close in Q3 2018 — will see iZettle’s co-founder and CEO Jacob de Geer stay on to lead iZettle. He will report to PayPal’s COO Bill Ready. Others in iZettle’s exec team will also stay on to run the business, which will become a “center of excellence” for in-store and offline payments in Europe, PayPal said.

The timing of the deal is notable: It comes on the heels of iZettle filing for an IPO earlier this month (just nine days ago, in fact) in its own bid to scale out its business: iZettle had planned to raise $227 million on the Stockholm Nasdaq exchange, which would have valued the company at around $1.1 billion.

Ring's Video doorbell flaw lets others watch after password changes

2018-05-12T18:33:00.004-07:00

The Information has learned that the app for Ring's video doorbell wasn't forcing users to sign-in after password changes, regardless of how much time had elapsed -- in one case, an ex-partner had been watching the camera for months. Ring said it started kicking people out in January, after receiving word of the incident, but that window of opportunity still lasted several hours in an Information test.

The issue, as you might guess, is that the window exists in the first place. Someone with a still-valid login could not only spy on whatever's happening, but download videos. The same incident that prompted the change also included phantom rings in the middle of the night.

The flaw provides something of a headache for Amazon, which only acquired Ring in February. If it's going to use Ring's doorbells as part of delivery solutions like Amazon Key, it needs to know that the devices are reasonably secure against exploits like this.