Will your device survive trip down the toilet? What does ‘IP67’ actually mean, and how do smartphones fare against waterproof watches?Apple launched the iPhone 7 on Wednesday, the first of its waterproof devices, which joins a collection of similar water resistant smartphones from Samsung’s Galaxy S7 to Sony’s Xperia XZ. But just how waterproof is “waterproof�
The Electronic Frontier Foundation is calling for the labelling of products encumbered with digital rights management – an increasingly important issue as we trust technology with our livesDigital products are weird: they are inert without software to animate them, and software is so technologically and legally weird that it can be very hard to know exactly what you’re buying.But there just might be some clarity on the horizon, thanks to documents I recently filed with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), signed by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), several publishers and public interest groups and 20 EFF supporters with important (and alarming!) stories to tell. Continue reading...
John Lewis says sales of wireless headphones have climbed 60% this week after Apple axed its headphone jackRetailers are braced for a surge in sales of wireless headphones after Apple scrapped the headphone jack on the new iPhone 7.Related: iPhone 7 launch: Apple gambles on headphone jack and introduces new Apple Watch Continue reading...
Designed to keep temperature-sensitive vaccines stable in transit in remote regions, Will Broadway’s Isobar is based on invention from early 1900sA portable cooling system for temperature-sensitive vaccines which could save millions of lives in developing countries has won its 22-year-old designer a prestigious James Dyson award.
Andrew House also discussed relevance of physical media in gaming, following launch of Sony’s Ultra 4k streaming serviceThe head of Sony Interactive Entertainment, Andrew House has claimed there is not enough consumer interest in 4K UHD discs to support the format on the new PlayStation 4 Pro.Speaking to the Guardian after the company’s PlayStation Meeting event in New York, House said it would not be possible to add support for UHD discs in a later firmware update, but argued that such support was unnecessary.
Sony has revealed the mid-generation update for its latest PlayStation console, featuring doubled graphics performance and support for HDR and 4K technologiesSony has announced a new, more powerful version of its PlayStation 4 console. Named the PlayStation 4 Pro, the machine features 4K compatibility, faster processor and enhanced graphics capabilities. It will launch on 10 November with a price point of $399, £349 and 399 euros.PlayStation boss Andrew House said the new machine is, “targeted to the hardcore gamer or those who have invested in high end display technologyâ€. System architect Mark Cerny promised that the new model has twice the graphics processing power, with a GPU based on – and exceeding - AMD’s new Polaris tech. Continue reading...
Lloyd would like to upgrade his old Sony television but doesn’t want one with ‘smart’ features that go out of dateI’m still running a 12-year-old Sony LCD TV and fancy something a bit bigger, but I don’t want “smart†features that that will be dead before I buy another TV. I am a Virgin TV subscriber so my TiVo is smarter than most TVs, and I use an Amazon Prime TV Stick for streaming. I prefer to be able to upgrade these external devices as and when I please, rather than upgrade the whole TV when the smart part is no longer smart. LloydAs the co-owner of another old but good Sony LCD TV, I feel your pain. It seems obvious to us that the TV industry should offer some reasonably priced, high-quality TV displays with lots of HDMI inputs and – hello Sony – a simple way to switch between feeds using a remote control. But if it does, they are hard to find in the UK. Continue reading...
Shares in Berkshire-based firm surge 21% after it announces one of the biggest takeovers by a UK company in recent yearsOne of Britain’s largest technology firms has announced a multibillion-pound deal to buy part of Hewlett Packard’s business in what will create one of the world’s leading software companies.Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) will spin off and merge its non-core software assets with Berkshire-based Micro Focus International in a deal worth $8.8bn (£6.6bn). Continue reading...
New colours, faster processor and longer battery life for the smaller iPhone 7, and dual-cameras on the back for the iPhone 7 Plus – but as predicted, the headphone jack is no more
Consumers are perplexed by Apple’s new iPhone 7 AirPods because of one obvious oversight: that string is there so they don’t get lostApple’s new wireless AirPods, introduced today at the launch of the iPhone 7, deliver a “magical experience,†the senior vice-president of marketing, Phil Schiller, promised.Related: Apple iPhone 7 launch event: key points at a glance Continue reading...
‘People with disabilities deserve a choice,’ disability awareness worker tells hearing, saying Uber changed his world ‘forever’Uber should be given government subsidies to make it more accessible to people with disabilities, a Victorian inquiry has been told.The company’s Victorian general manager, Matthew Denman, and the director of the disability awareness business Centre for Access, Thomas Banks, gave evidence to the inquiry into ride-sourcing services on Thursday. Continue reading...
In a victory for Uber, a federal court says drivers for the most part must resolve claims against the company individually, meaning they’ll have less leverageIn a victory for Uber, a federal appeals court says drivers for the most part have to resolve claims against the company individually and not through a class-action lawsuit.The ruling by the ninth US circuit court of appeals on Wednesday came in a lawsuit by Uber drivers over the company’s background checks. Continue reading...
Apple unveiled the new iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus on Wednesday. The biggest change in the new model was the decision to remove the audio jack in favor of wireless AirPods. The phone is also water resistant and dust-proof and has a dual-camera system with 2x optical zoom. The iPhone 7 will be available in four colors starting 16 September Continue reading...
The journey to Wednesday’s Apple event raises important questions: was the OneRepublic song really about Steve Jobs? And why Sweet Home Alabama?The Apple event that saw the unveiling of the iPhone 7 and AirPods opened with a short film of CEO Tim Cook in a Carpool Karaoke session with Late Late Show host James Corden. It was just about as awkward as it sounds.The video of Corden escorting Cook to the event in San Francisco, opens with the pair belting OneRepublic’s I Lived, which includes the lyric: “Hope when the crowd screams out, they’re screaming your name.†Continue reading...
Apple CEO Tim Cook sang Sweet Home Alabama during a ride with James Corden on his way to the launch of the iPhone 7, and Pharrell joined the special edition of Corden’s popular Carpool Karaoke. Apple recently announced that it has acquired the streaming rights to Carpool Karaoke, a spinoff segment from Corden’s The Late Late Show Continue reading...
According to our readers, there will be dual cameras and colours for the iPhone, a new iPad and the Apple Watch will gain GPS – but you can forget about seeing an Apple car anytime soon iPhone 7 launch: key points from Apple’s event There will be a new iPhone without a headphone jack launched on stage in San Francisco Wednesday, as well as an Apple Watch with GPS and at least one speed bump to the iPad – if the collective wisdom of over 1,800 Guardian readers is to be trusted.
by Rebecca Smithers Consumer affairs correspondent on (#1SYDS)
Limited edition version of sports car maker’s all-electric EV3 costs £52,500 and aims to promote British craftmanshipThe world’s first zero-emissions, all-electric three-wheel car will go on sale in November – in the unlikely setting of a London department store, where it will jostle for shoppers’ attention alongside Louis Vuitton handbags and Tiffany jewellery.Hand-built by Morgan, the British bespoke sports carmaker, the two-seater will cost £52,500 and is the result of a collaboration with retailer Selfridges that aims to promote craftsmanship within British manufacturing and sustainability. Continue reading...
From a hurricane to Brock Turner’s release, a lot happened last week. But Facebook calculated that a celebrity losing some weight was more importantLast week, I decided to spend an entire day getting my news solely from Facebook’s trending topics. Surely the wisdom, culture and intellectual curiosity of the people of the world – the great global public – will be reflected in this collection of their favorite diverse and engaging news stories?Here’s what greeted me at 8.15 that morning: the world, as defined by Facebook’s trending news stories: Continue reading...
Demand for wearable gadgets hasn’t lived up to the hype, and a report suggests things are only getting worse ahead of the company’s expected Watch rebootThe Apple Watch looks set to get a reboot on Wednesday, but is it already too late? Even before its announcement in 2014, the Apple Watch was seen as the device that would ignite a boom for wearable technology the way the iPhone had for smartphones and the iPad for tablets. It would, in effect, create a new consumer tech category by itself.Two years later, the anticipated craze for wearable devices – from smartwatches to fitness bands to smart eyewear and clothing – has yet to materialize. Not only has demand not lived up to the hype, but consumer excitement around wearables appears to be waning.
Broughton, Byrne, Leslie and Unsworth head up autumn media eventsWith autumn comes a round of media events hosted by the London Press Club, the Media Society and Polis, the LSE’s media think-tank. Continue reading...
South Korean firm launches top-end smartphone looking to capitalise on rival Samsung’s trouble with exploding Galaxy Note 7sLG has unveiled the first new smartphone, the V20, to come with Google’s latest version of Android 7 Nougat.The South Korean firm, which was responsible for manufacturing last year’s Nexus 5X for Google and the recent modular G5, hopes that shipping with Nougat onboard will be enough to tempt buyers away from Samsung’s high-profile Galaxy Note 7. The Samsung phablet runs last year’s Android 6 Marshmallow and recalls have been prompted by exploding batteries. Continue reading...
Shadow treasurer says automation and technology to blame for job losses and slow wage growth, not open economyThe shadow treasurer, Chris Bowen, has warned against erecting barriers to trade and immigration when automation and technology are more to blame for job losses and slow wage growth.In a speech defending an open economy at the Crescent Institute on Wednesday, Bowen called for policies to combat inequality, which he said would help policymakers defend globalisation and its benefits. Continue reading...
Swipe left and right to guide your kingdom to victory or die trying, in a simple, charming but sometimes infuriating mobile gameThe best mobile game in the world is Tinder. It has a blissfully intuitive control scheme and, if you win, you make an actual emotional connection with a real-life human being, and maybe find happiness for the rest of your life. That’s a pretty strong deal.Aside from the chance of emotional (or maybe purely physical) satisfaction, that simple swiping control scheme is perfect for one-handed mobile operation. It reduces the entirety of the app to a series of simple binary choices on single screens of information. It’s surprising that so few actual games have taken inspiration from it. Continue reading...
The NHS.uk website is intended to be ready by the end of next year and will allow patients to compare their NHS trust’s performance with that of othersA one-stop NHS website where patients book appointments, order prescriptions and access medical advice is being developed, health officials have announced.Related: Abandoned NHS IT system has cost £10bn so far Continue reading...
JK Scheinberg, who masterminded major innovation during his 21 years at company, was snubbed for in-store tech support roleAn engineer credited with changing the way in which Apple computers work was turned down for a job at one of the company’s Genius Bars.JK Scheinberg left Apple in 2008 after 21 years, having masterminded the top secret Marklar project to run Apple’s operating system on Intel chips. Continue reading...
Two comedians and a bit of star power have brought the gaming show back to British television, hoping to draw in gamers and non-gamers alikeVideo games don’t work on television. That’s the nugget of unquestionable wisdom that’s been passed down from producer to producer over the last 30 years as gaming noisily became one of the world’s most popular pastimes.Sure, there have been exceptions, people will grudgingly concede. In the early 90s, Games Master bought all the chaotic fun and competition of teenage Mega Drive fanaticism to children’s TV for several glorious series. The late 90s and early 2000s saw Bits and Thumb Bandits, both starring one-time Guardian games columnist Aleks Krotoski. Continue reading...
Intense rumours surround Apple’s event on Wednesday, but nothing will be confirmed until the day. Complete our quick survey and we’ll post the results before the launchApple’s executives are expected to unveil the iPhone 7 on Wednesday, along with whatever else the tech company has planned.Like most major Apple launches, the event is preceded by intense (and increasingly accurate) rumours, though nothing will be confirmed until the day. Where does the gossip end and the new tech begin? We’ll post the results on Wednesday, shortly before Apple’s event. Continue reading...
Psyonix’s combination of football, motor racing and combat has attracted 20m players. Yet the online sports game’s surprise achievement is built on years of hard work“What a Save!†The words echo long after the desperate lunge that sent a wide shot into the top corner of the stadium. Rocket League: light of so many lives, killer of free time. This beautiful video game seems, like everything that appears perfect, to have arrived fully-formed.While some things take time to appreciate, Rocket League hits you like a boosted dumper truck. Developed by San Diego-based studio Psyonix, it is a game that hooks within seconds and, hundreds of hours later, keeps getting better. Imagine football played by blisteringly fast, flight-capable cars and you’re pretty much there. Since release, the game has attracted over 20 million players, and has just seen its first world cup tournament – over 20,000 people took part. But behind the overnight success lie several false starts and, to channel Alan Hansen, a decade of grit and determination. Continue reading...
From Lolcats to keyboard cat, have the grumpy, complicated and just plain weird felines lost ground to their cute, friendly canine sworn enemies?Somewhere in the history of the internet, cats became its rulers.Simultaneously aloof, amusing and a bit weird, cats seemed the natural choice as the web’s unofficial mascot. From Lolcats to keyboard cat, our feline friends were quickly everywhere. But as the internet has aged and changed, another animal has gained ground. Could the cat finally be dethroned, and at the paws of its sworn enemy no less? Is the dawn of the dog upon us? Continue reading...
Disguised as a calculator on smartphone screens, I Protect alerts contacts and a local human rights group if the user is arrestedFor Egyptians, the risk of being snatched from the street and forcibly disappeared by the country’s security forces has never been greater.In the first eight months of 2015, 1,250 people disappeared, according to a report by the Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms (ECRF). Continue reading...
Samsung tells owners to return smartphones after reports of batteries catching fire or explodingSamsung has told Australian Galaxy Note 7 owners to turn off their phones and return them to stores after reports the phone’s batteries caught fire or exploded while charging.About 51,000 phones were voluntarily recalled in Australia on Monday by Samsung Electronics Australia, following similar moves overseas, citing “isolated battery cell issuesâ€. Continue reading...
Men cite being harassed about religion, sexual orientation and disabilities, whereas women report abuse and threats based on genderMore Australian men than women report experiencing online abuse or harassment, a new study shows – though some are significantly more likely to be targeted than others.The digital security firm Norton released the results of an online survey of just over 1,000 Australian men on Tuesday, which showed that 54% of respondents had experienced some form of abuse or harassment online. Among men under 30, the reported incidence was 78%. Continue reading...
The singer opens up over the tragic death of his 15-year-old son, airing his raw grief in this unconventionally directed documentary“I think I’m losing my voice,†says Nick Cave, early on in this documentary, directed by Andrew Dominik of The Assassination of Jesse James renown. Cave certainly sounds a little croaky at the time, but the metaphorical ramifications are not in the slightest bit lost on the spindly, silk-shirted poet of ruination and loss.And so begins the transformation of this film from a hagiographic, but essentially standard-issue, promotional film for Cave’s upcoming album, into an undeniably moving contemplation of shattering loss and – as Cave repeatedly terms it – “traumaâ€. For hovering in the background of this film – and the album it documents – is the death of Cave’s 15-year-old son Arthur, midway through recording, in July 2015. Continue reading...
Consumer Reports calls for firm to initiate full-scale recall involving US consumer safety commission, to stop resale of dangerous phones after some explodedUS product safety and testing non-profit organisation Consumer Reports has called for Samsung to initiate an official recall of all of its Galaxy Note 7 smartphones, following a halt in sales caused by some phablets exploding while charging.Samsung suspended sales of its new flagship smartphone on Friday, the day of its official launch in the UK, after 35 confirmed explosions led to a fault being identified within batteries supplied by one of a few companies used in the Note 7. Continue reading...
Rumour is Apple will announce the end of its analogue audio connector at the iPhone 7 launch, in favour of either Lightning or USB-C. But is it a good idea?When you want to hook your headphones up to your smartphone you could soon find yourself searching for a non-existent socket if certain manufacturers – including possibly even Apple – get their way.The sad thing is, the headphone jack – that 3.5mm analogue three or four pole plug – is a very good connector. It’s a universal connector: it can plug into your smartphone, your tablet and computer, your TV, hi-fi, radio, Game Boy or console. And it has been used widely for decades, more or less replacing the larger 1/4-inch jacks (which dated from the 1870s) since the 1960s for all but specialist applications, such as electric guitars and some more powerful amps. Continue reading...
The outraged and disappointed have dominated the conversation about the space exploration game. But could it ever really have met their expectations?In the near-olden days, when entertainment media were bought in shops rather than beamed on to the constellation of screens that light up our homes, the walk home was always the sweetest. Clutched in a crinkly bag we held the perfect product. Reality cannot compete with the imagined novel, film, album or video game. Our imaginations, worked to frenzy by marketing magicians, summon the best possible version of the work. In the idealised fantasy, dull chapters are trimmed away, duff performances are wiped. Our imaginations free the creators of financial or technical restraints too. There is no special effects budget. No expense is spared. As such, that walk home from the shop, when the box was tangible but the portal to its cloistered reality untraversed, was often the most potent moment in the journey.Video game-makers struggle in unique ways when it comes to raising audiences’ expectations and then matching them in reality. A novelist can promise anything because it costs nothing to conjure a dinosaur, a spaceship, a toppling Eiffel Tower or a galaxy of bees on to the page. Film directors must speak more carefully: their visions come with a price tag. And game-makers, for whom the simplest features can prove inordinately challenging, face the greatest risks. The reputation of Peter Molyneux, a veteran British video game designer, toppled after he habitually promised alluring features (knock an acorn off a tree and over the course of the game you’ll be able to watch it grow, he once claimed of Fable) that never surfaced in his games. Continue reading...
Brett Smitheram, from east London, beat fellow Briton Mark Nyman in the 2016 final held in Lille, FranceThe new world Scrabble champion has described his elation after a word for a type of wasp secured victory in an all-British showdown.
Electronic wristbands among measures to keep expected 2 million pilgrims safe from crowd crushes and extremist threatA year after the worst hajj disaster in a generation, Saudi Arabia is issuing pilgrims with electronic bracelets and using more surveillance cameras to avoid a repeat of the crush that killed hundreds of people and damaged already strained ties with Iran.The Muslim pilgrimage, which starts on Friday and will bring 2 million people to Islam’s most sacred sites in Mecca, will also be a focus of concerns about militant violence after a suicide bomber killed four soldiers in early July in the nearby city of Medina, Islam’s second holiest. Continue reading...
Fashion journalist Derek Blasberg is a professional friend to the stars. Gareth McLean discovers the man behind the glittering feedBlasberg beams as he greets this woman who apologises for missing his birthday. (It’s 22 April which is also World Earth Day, a coincidence, Blasberg jokes, because “I’m so grounded.â€) The woman tried to send flowers but she’s so unsure of where he is these days that she wasn’t certain of the best address to send them to. Blasberg demurs: that doesn’t matter. It’s a lovely surprise to see her here, given there are no wedding dresses on show anywhere, he teases, impishly. But he’s forgetting himself; he introduces me to the woman. And this, he says, is Vera.And that’s how I met Vera Wang. As we head off – after Blasberg’s invited Wang to a party later at his friend Lauren Santo Domingo’s house, naturally – I tell him I’m impressed: not everyone gets called Honeybear by Vera Wang. Self-deprecating as ever, Blasberg shrugs. Maybe Vera calls everyone that. Maybe she’s forgotten his name. Continue reading...
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