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  • iOS 4 privacy policy updated: Apple can anonymously collect location data, you can take away iAds’ cookies

    iOS 4 privacy policy updated: Apple can anonymously collect location data, you can take away iAds’ cookies

    Posted on June 21, 2010 | No Comments
    It may not be a big deal -- Android's done it for years -- but some will no doubt be interested to learn that Apple can monitor your GPS. In the latest revision of its privacy policy, presumably updated for iOS 4, it revealed the company can anonymously track the "real-time geographic location" of devices and is free to share that data with "partners and licensees" as well. In a nutshell, that means Cupertino could potentially sell location data, but don't get in a tiff just yet -- the company says it will do so anonymously and for location-based services only.

    Speaking of sales and personally identifiable data, another addition to iOS 4 is the ad network iAd, which monitors your browsing habits and interests and serves up targeted advertisements respectively. According to the updated privacy policy, however, you don't need to let the OS do that. Simply navigate to http://oo.apple.com to shut down automated cookie collection, and you'll see boring, generic ads instead.

    iOS 4 privacy policy updated: Apple can anonymously collect location data, you can take away iAds' cookies originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 21 Jun 2010 22:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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  • Homefront is an exercise at in-game advertising

    Homefront is an exercise at in-game advertising

    Posted on June 11, 2010 | No Comments
    Look at that pic. Lumber Liquidators, eh? That’s some major in-game advertising right there and there’s more. In fact, Lumber Liquidators is in four of the eight pics Joystiq featured in their preview post making me think that something big goes down in the shadow of a huge ad. I’m all about keeping the retail [...]

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  • Want Safari Reader functionality in Firefox or Google Chrome? Try Readability (it’s quite good).

    Want Safari Reader functionality in Firefox or Google Chrome? Try Readability (it’s quite good).

    Posted on June 8, 2010 | No Comments
    Aside from the usual under-the-hood improvements, Safari 5 ships with a new feature called Safari Reader. The concept is simple enough: you're reading text on a Web site but don't want to be distracted by terrible page layouts and extraordinarily annoying animated advertisements. You activate Reader, then the browser isolates the text and applies a far more readable formatting to the text. The result is much cleaner text, and text that doesn't destroy your eyes trying to read. The best part is that you don't need the new Safari to replicate the same functionality. I speak, of course, about Readablity.

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  • People like mobile ads, says JiWire

    People like mobile ads, says JiWire

    Posted on May 12, 2010 | No Comments
    JiWire has been watching mobile and in-app advertising, and says that "Advertisements in mobile applications are especially effective." Their new report, released today, "examines device use, consumer adoption of Wi-Fi and consumer preferences for mobile content and advertising delivery." Interesting take-aways from the report include the fact that iPhone has surpassed iPod Touch in number of ads delivered, and that the iPad has had a non-trivial effect on WiFi usage, indicating that people really do want to access content on-the-go but might not want to do so with a phone or a laptop.

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  • Microsoft Kin One and Two review

    Microsoft Kin One and Two review

    Posted on May 5, 2010 | No Comments
    Make no mistake: the Kin One and Two are coming into the world as the black sheep of the phone industry, and Microsoft would have it no other way. Straddling the fence somewhere between a dedicated smartphone and high-spec featurephone, they've been tricky to understand since the day they were first leaked (even Microsoft seemed unsure of what the devices meant until very recently). Billed as a Gen-Y (the "upload generation") social networking tool -- and sold in advertisements as the gateway to the time of your young, freewheeling life -- the Kin phones have admittedly been something of head-scratcher to those of us in the gadget world. Built atop a core similar (but not identical) to the Windows Phone 7 devices coming later this year, manufactured by Sharp, and tied into partnerships with Verizon and Vodafone, the phones dangerously preempt Microsoft's reemergence into the smartphone market. Hell, they're even called Windows Phones. But the One and Two aren't like any Windows Phones you've ever seen. With stripped-down interfaces, deep social networking integration, and a focus on very particular type of user, Microsoft is aiming for something altogether different with Kin. So do these devices deliver on that unique, social experience that Redmond has been selling, or does this experiment fall flat? We've taken both handsets for a spin, and we've got all the answers in our full review... so read on to find out!

    Continue reading Microsoft Kin One and Two review

    Microsoft Kin One and Two review originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 May 2010 00:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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  • Google warns about phony anti-virus software that infects you with malware

    Google warns about phony anti-virus software that infects you with malware

    Posted on April 28, 2010 | No Comments
    Google has warned THE INTERNET to be on the lookout for phony anti-virus software. The deal is that malicious software makers have started "hiding" malware inside software that purports to be anti-virus software. But it's not anti-virus software!

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  • National Geographic reprints every issue to an external drive

    National Geographic reprints every issue to an external drive

    Posted on December 30, 2009 | No Comments
    Over the past 120 years, National Geographic Magazine has been one of the most important publications ever printed. From the insightful articles to the brilliant photography, NatGeo has been the benchmark that other magazines compare themselves to. Now, you can own a copy of every single issue without having to build a new addition to your house to store it.

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  • The Mag+ shows how we might one day read magazines, if mags don’t die first

    The Mag+ shows how we might one day read magazines, if mags don’t die first

    Posted on December 17, 2009 | No Comments
    See that tablet concept thing designed by design agency BERG? Yeah, that might be the future of print publications. But you probably already knew that. For the past 20 years tablets have been deemed the next-gen magazine, but so far nothing has been produced that actually steps up to the task. And don’t get excited, [...]

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  • Blinking LEDs transmit information to cell phones via light

    Blinking LEDs transmit information to cell phones via light

    Posted on November 23, 2009 | No Comments
    I'm not really sure if this is good or bad news for end consumers, but a couple of Japanese companies have developed a technology that makes it possible to transmit information from blinking LEDs fixed on advertisements to cell phones - using only light. The companies involved in the development include some big names such as Toshiba or NEC. With this new system, Japanese cell phone users don't have to scan the ubiquitous QR codes anymore to access more information on a certain product or to get coupons but can obtain the data without being physically close to the ads. If you have an ad measuring 1sqm and place LEDs on it, for example, the target user can stand as far as five meters away (the distance can be longer in the case of larger ads). If the users are interested in what's being offered, it's enough to point the cell phone to the ad to instantly view the information on the screen.

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  • Now blinking LEDs can transmit information to cell phones via light

    Now blinking LEDs can transmit information to cell phones via light

    Posted on November 23, 2009 | No Comments
    I'm not really sure if this is good or bad news for end consumers, but a couple of Japanese companies have developed a technology that makes it possible to transmit information from blinking LEDs fixed on advertisements to cell phones - using only light. The companies involved in the development include some big names such as Toshiba or NEC. With this new system, Japanese cell phone users don't have to scan the ubiquitous QR codes anymore to access more information on a certain product or to get coupons but can obtain the data without being physically close to the ads. If you have an ad measuring 1sqm and place LEDs on it, for example, the target user can stand as far as five meters away (the distance can be longer in the case of larger ads). If the users are interested in what's being offered, it's enough to point the cell phone to the ad to instantly view the information on the screen.

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  • Verizon responds to AT&T’s Map For That lawsuit: ‘the truth hurts’

    Verizon responds to AT&T’s Map For That lawsuit: ‘the truth hurts’

    Posted on November 16, 2009 | No Comments

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    Sure, Verizon's doubled down on the 3G map ads in response to AT&T's false advertising lawsuit, but eventually the company's lawyers had to file a response and, well, ain't nobody backing down in this one. Here's the freaking introduction:
    AT&T did not file this lawsuit because Verizon's "There's A Map For That" advertisements are untrue; AT&T sued because Verizon's ads are true and the truth hurts.
    Yeah. It's gonna be like that. Verizon goes on to argue that even AT&T concedes the maps are accurate, and that pulling any of the ads off the air without proof that they're misleading consumers would be unfair, and that at the very least both parties need time to investigate further. Honestly? We've read it over a couple times now and while the legal arguments are certainly interesting, it's hard not to get the impression that Verizon drafted this response with publication in mind -- check out this quote:
    In the final analysis, AT&T seeks emergency relief because Verizon's side-by-side, apples-to-apples comparison of its own 3G coverage with AT&T's confirms what the marketplace has been saying for months: AT&T failed to invest adequately in the necessary infrastructure to expand its 3G coverage to support its growth in smartphone business, and the usefulness of its service to smartphone users has suffered accordingly.
    See what we mean? Now, we still think there's some merit to the idea that Verizon's ads improperly conflate 3G coverage area with 3G service quality, but that's really not what AT&T's arguing -- hell, it's busy pimping EDGE. We'll see if these two can solve their differences and get back to work, but we've got the feeling this thing ain't over yet.

    Update: Here's the PDF, in case you're interested.

    Verizon responds to AT&T's Map For That lawsuit: 'the truth hurts' originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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  • Google Maps for iPhone now serving up ads

    Google Maps for iPhone now serving up ads

    Posted on October 3, 2009 | No Comments
    The free ride is over, ladies. Go ahead and fire up the Google Maps Apps for your iPhone (or iPhone touch), and you may well run into something you've avoided for so, so long: an ad. That's right: Google Maps now shows advertisements. Things fall apart.

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  • Review: Curse Client for World of Warcraft

    Review: Curse Client for World of Warcraft

    Posted on July 9, 2009 | 1 Comment
    World of Warcraft players are a notoriously picky bunch. They know what they like, what they don't like, and have absolutely no issue with telling you exactly how they feel. Loudly, and with many many petitions and forum postings. And that's just the basic game. When you get into modifications, you're into a whole new ballgame. And just making sure you have the most up to date software installed can turn into a major undertaking.

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  • Olidata Conte ultraportable finally shows itself, looks mighty good

    Olidata Conte ultraportable finally shows itself, looks mighty good

    Posted on May 31, 2009 | No Comments

    My, my Olidata -- why on Earth have you been depriving our wandering eyes from this beauty for so long? After being originally introduced at CES, we've heard precisely nothing since... until now, obviously. At long last, the striking Conte ultraportable has found its way outside of the lab over in Italy, sporting an ultrathin frame, chiclet-style keyboard, a bezel that's a bit too wide for our tastes, an HDMI output and a price tag starting at just €799 ($1,129). From what we can gather, a few versions of the machine will be available, one of which sports an SU2700 CPU, 13.3-inch LED-backlit display, a 120GB hard drive, 3GB of RAM, Bluetooth, WiFi and a multi-touch trackpad. Another variant is slated to include a Core Solo SU3500 CPU and a 120GB HDD, while yet another gets a Core 2 Duo SL9400 and a 128GB SSD. Peek the read link for a few more looks, including one of the most bizarre advertisements we've ever seen for a mere laptop.

    [Thanks, Andrea]

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    Olidata Conte ultraportable finally shows itself, looks mighty good originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 31 May 2009 11:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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