Volkswagen iBeetle integrates the iPhone through a dock, an app... and that's it

Many see Apple and Volkswagen as two peas in a pod given their similar marketing, even if previous talk of collaborations amounted to little more than speculation. That purported dream team will soon become real through the iBeetle, an adaptation of the modern VW Bug designed with a little help from Apple. Don't get your hopes up for a tie-in on the level of VW's iPad-friendly Bulli concept, however. The integration mostly amounts to an iPhone dock as well as a car-optimized iOS app that can play music, read messages aloud, take photos and augment the instrument cluster. It's a solid idea, especially when a large number of us already use our smartphones this way, but it isn't very adventurous -- the iPhone won't coordinate extensively with the center stack, unlike smartphone-aware infotainment platforms such as GM's MyLink or Ford Sync. We'd still take a close look at the iBeetle when coupe and convertible models reach US dealerships in early 2014, but it may be best for those already bent on getting somefahrvergnügen from their next ride.

[Source: Engadget]

How Apple handles the data processed by Siri

After raising questions about Siri's privacy policy, Wired received a response from Apple spokeswoman Trudy Miller that confirmed Apple anonymizes Siri data and stores it for up to 24 months.

According to the Wired report, your iOS device records what you say to Siri and sends that clip to Apple's servers for analysis. As part of the voice recognition translation and response, Apple assigns a set of random numbers to the clip to identify the user from which it originated. This number is used during the back-end voice processing to make sure the response is sent back to the correct phone.

Apple stores this clip along with the random number for six months. After six months, the number is stripped from the file and the file is kept for up to 18 months.

The practice of storing anonymized data for several years is common among tech companies that handle large volumes of data. Wireless carriers, for example, keep select user data like text message history for up to five years.

[Source: TUAW]

Microsoft Hints It’s Working on 7-inch Surface

Microsoft CFO Peter Klein on Thursday confirmed the company is looking into smaller touch devices, further fueling speculation we’ll see a 7-inch Surface later this year. During an investor call, Klein said Microsoft is working closely with OEMs to create small touch-based Windows devices, which are expected to land with competitive pricing. Klein’s comments add more weight to a previous report from Intel CEO Paul Otellini about cheaper Windows 8 devices.

The Redmond-based company has been quietly inching its way toward smaller tablets, backed up by Microsoft changing its minimum tablet hardware requirements down to a resolution of 1024 x 768. Smaller tablets such as the Nexus 7, Kindle Fire HD 7 and iPad mini have all proved enormously popular over the traditional 9-inch and above size. They’re not only cheaper, but offer greater portability, making them easier and more pleasing to use in most cases.

Klein also noted during Microsoft’s earnings call on Thursday that he is departing the company at the end of the fiscal year.

Microsoft’s own Surface tablets haven’t exactly lit the market on fire, and OEMs have found it difficult to hock devices running Windows 8 and RT, so a change is definitely in order. While Klein’s comments don’t specifically call out tablets as a point of interest, it’s certainly a logical next step for the company to take. A Microsoft spokesperson said the company doesn’t have anything more to share right now, so perhaps we’ll see an announcement over the busy summer months.

[Source: TechnoBuffalo]

Twitter narrows TweetDeck AIR and mobile app shutdowns to May 7th

Twitter has been warning for weeks that it would shut down TweetDeck's AIR and mobile apps sometime in early May, but it didn't say exactly when loyalists would finally have to move on. The company now has a firm date: May 7th. In just over two weeks, Twitter will both pull the apps from their respective stores and stop existing installs from working as the service's version 1.0 API rides into the sunset. While the persisting native and web-based desktop apps will lessen some of the sting, we'd suggest that you pay your last respects if you have fond memories of TweetDeck's early apps.

[Source: Engadget]

TalkTalk fined £750,000 for calling you and hanging up

TalkTalk has been given a talktalking to for calling people and hanging up. Ofcom has fined the phone company £750,000 over excessive silent and abandoned phone calls.

Telecoms watchdog Ofcom slapped TalkTalk with the fine for making 9,000 silent or abandoned calls to potential customers during a telesales campaign in 2011.

TalkTalk blames two call centres, run by Teleperformance Limited and McAlpine Marketing Limited, that went over the limit for telemarketing calls on four separate occasions in two months. TalkTalk has cut ties with the companies and intends to get them to pay the fine.

If you have a landline you probably know the drill: you've just settled down to watch The One Show with some cold cuts and a flagon of mead, when the phone goes. When you answer, you're greeted by silence or a dead line.

Automated calls often fail to realise the phone has been answered by a real person. Thinking you're an answering machine, the robophone either ends the call -- an abandoned call -- or fails to play the intended message -- a silent call.

The maximum fine for abandoned calls is £2m.

[Source: CNET]

Chinese hackers launch pirate App Store, no jailbreak needed

Chinese hackers have launched a pirate app store that allows people to download pirated iOS apps with no jailbreaks needed. The online web store uses geolocation to determine a user's whereabouts. If the user is outside of China, he is not granted access to the store, instead being redirected to another page run by the hackers.

Out of respect for the hard work iOS developers do, we aren't linking to the store or revealing its name.

Piracy takes away from the development of apps on iOS. Many of the best apps today were created by a single developer or small development team that didn't initially have a lot of financial resources. If the apps being created are pirated and result in limited financial reward to the developers, why would they want to continue to come up with new and exciting apps? Some of the best apps in the App Store -- apps that are part of the reason your iPhone is so cool -- wouldn't exist.

So please, think before you pirate, because in the long run, you're hurting not just the developer, but the entire iOS ecosystem and yourself as well. And no, "I pirate an app to see if I'll like it and then buy it if I do" is not any kind of valid excuse.

[Source: TUAW]

NVIDIA May Launch GeForce 700 Series GPUs at Computex 2013

New graphics cards from Nvidia could be set for a summer debut.

Summer is just around the corner, and with it is the Computex computer expo in Taipei, Taiwan. Are you wondering what the event will introduce to the computing world? So are we, and word on the web is that Nvidia is planning to launch its next generation desktop GeForce700 Series graphics cards at Computex. In addition to pushing the performance envelope, the GeForce 700 Series is said to be in response to AMD’s aggressive game bundles.

We all know that the main reason to buy a graphics card is to improve game performance (or for design work), but for those on the fence in which direction to go, AMD has been tempting upgraders with its Never Settle software bundles consisting of AAA titles.

According to Fudzilla, Nvidia has seen enough and isn’t about to let AMD wrestle a larger share of the desktop GPU market than it already has. As such, the GeForce 700 Series might even launch ahead of Computex, the news and rumor site reports, though we’re skeptical Nvidia will be quite that ambitious. We’re also reluctant to get our hopes up of a summer release, as previous rumors pegged the launch to take place in 2014 sometime after the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), but we’ll cross our fingers nonetheless.

As for the actual hardware, most assume the GeForce 700 Series will be based on a refreshed version of Nvidia’s 28nm Kepler architecture.

[Source: TechnoBuffalo]

Will the Samsung Galaxy S4 be King of the Smartphones

The race has been going on for years … which smartphone would be the thinnest? the fastest? or perhaps highest resolution camera? And for 2013 it seems to be all about the screen resolution. With many smartphones all launching with 1920x1080 full HD resolution screens, what could be next?

At the end of April 2013 we will see the Samsung Galaxy S4. Yes, it is fast, has a a nice camera and a full HD screen to top it off. I personally remember when Samsung announced it. With their tongue on cheek presentation they showed us Smart Pause, where the video you are watching pauses when you look away. Next up is Air View & Gesture, where you greasy fingers do not even need to touch the screen to navigate your way around. And then we have S Health which tracks your activity, daily food intake and weight … promising a fitter you.

These features are just a few of the many new enhancements which I termed gimmicks when I first saw them. However, we all need to take a step back and think, what else could Samsung do to move this type of technology forward? And I think they are brave in trying to give us some really unique features. OK, so everyone will use S Translator every day, but if you find yourself in a foreign country, perhaps on holiday, you will be glad to have it at your disposal. I strongly believe that all manufacturers are beginning to realise that things like a high megapixel camera on a tiny phone sensor is not a cutting edge feature. Rest assured, when they react to the Galaxy S4 you will see them all squashing in tonnes of new features to their 2014 products. By then, Samsung may well have the lead that they need to take the top spot in this sector.

As with every new smartphone launch, a good selection of accessories always follow and one that caught my eye is official View Cover. Without even opening the cover you can see the current time & useful notifications, the contrasting colour of the display peeping through is awesome and… it looks very sexy too.

By now you should now that I try new smartphones out practically every day. I am an avid iPhone user, but have been tempted away with the likes of the Lumia 920 and a couple of years back, the Blackberry Bold 9900. I feel very strongly that Apple need to react to their competitors smartphones, with their lovely high res large screens. The App argument is no longer an issue either (at least where Google Android is concerned). With the launch of the Samsung Galaxy S4… of course I will be testing & reviewing it. Who knows, if it delivers on performance, as I am sure it will, the SGS4 might find its way into my pocket and if it does the View Cover is mine too.

Twitter #Music app helps you find tunes by who you follow

With so much competition already existing in the streaming music world, the Twitter #Music app faces the same problem as every new service -- how do they set themselves apart from the competition? The answer for Twitter is discovery; more specifically helping users discover new musical artists along the lines of the ones they already follow.

It takes a few minutes to learn how to navigate the app, but once you understand the ins and outs you'll be flying. There are four screens: Popular, Emerging, Suggested, and #NowPlaying.

Popular features the artists who are currently trending on Twitter. Emerging showcases smaller artists who are building twitter buzz, although at the moment it's not clear how they judge if someone is "emerging" or not. Suggested compiles artists based on who you already follow. And #NowPlaying is based on the music your followers are listening to.

Music is displayed on tiles with the artist's picture or logo. Simply click on the tile and hear the song by that artist. It's a little disappointing that you're limited to only one song per artist to listen to, especially if you're using the most basic function where the music is simply an iTunes preview clip. The service allows you to connect your Spotify or Rdio account to listen to full songs however. Using the app with just iTunes clips feels like a waste of time, but when given access to the full song the potential for music discovery increases dramatically. For instance, I had no idea M83 recorded new music for the upcoming film Oblivion and now I do. Thanks, Twitter #Music.

#NowPlaying is the most actively social component of the service. It shows you what your friends are listening to and specifically which friend recommended it. Given the limited use of the service right now there weren't a lot of recommendations available for checking out, but it was neat to see what one of the obscure rock bands I like was sharing at the moment.

Whether this service strikes you as merely a fun distraction or an exciting new way to discover music will probably depend on how much you use your Twitter feed to discover music. I tested it with two different Twitter accounts, one for a music blog I write for that mostly follows bands, and my own personal account that basically only follows a punk band and rappers I think are funny.

The end result is easy to predict. The more artists you follow on Twitter the better the suggestions proposed for you are going to be. Otherwise you're going to find the to-be-expected list of Top 40 and popular indie rock acts you find in every streaming services recommendations.

It's also worth noting that suggested songs tend to pick older tracks for some artists. The band Alkaline Trio is represented by their newest single "I Wanna Be a Warhol" while indie rocker Kevin Devine brings up his 2005 song "Cotton Crush." "Cotton Crush" is a great song, but Devine has put out three solo albums since then. On one hand I appreciate including deeper cuts in an artist's discography; on the other it seems strange for a new music discover service to reach that deep when it only offers one song by an artist at a time.

Twitter #Music is a clever new way to discover music based on the stuff you already like. It's hard to judge the suggestions too harshly when you take into account they are largely based on the suggestions of mainstream Twitter users. The app more than makes up for it with their personalization based on your own personal use. I'd like to see future updates add the ability to listen to more than one track by a single artist, but even in its current form Twitter #Music is going to be getting a lot of use on my iPhone.

[Source: TUAW]

Facebook launches real-time graphs to highlight its data center efficiency

Curious as to the effect that your poking wars are having on the planet? Facebook is outing power and water usage data for its Oregon and North Carolina data centers to show off its sustainability chops. The information is updated in near-real time, and the company will add its Swedish facility to the charts as soon as it's built. The stats for the Forest City, NC plant show a very efficient power usage effectiveness ratio of 1.09 -- thanks, in part, to that balmy (North) Carolina air.

[Source: Engadget]

Sky Go for Android now streams to the HTC One, Galaxy S 4 and Xperia Z

Brits accustomed to catching up on their shows with Sky Go likely don't want that seamless viewing experience broken just because they bought that latest 1080p-capable Android flagship. Thankfully, they won't have to. An update to the Android app now supports the HTC OneXperia Z and the upcoming Galaxy S 4: while none of them will stream in 1080p, the software will at last do more than take up space. Those on the "merely" 720p-native RAZR HD can also tune in with the upgrade. Swing by Google Play for the update if you're a Sky subscriber with a shiny new device.

[Source: Engadget]

LinkedIn ovehauls its iPhone app in version 6.0

The universal iOS LinkedIn app has been updated to version 6.0. The update brings a dramatic overhaul to the iPhone app, plus bug fixes and improved performance on the iPad.

According to the LinkedIn Blog, the iPhone app has a new interface, which makes using the app a lot easier to navigate and interact with. Now users can invite, follow, like, share and comment on content directly from the update stream, which is now the center of the app.

One particular new feature adds shortcuts to the new navigation area, accessed with a swipe to the right from the main homepage. This makes it quicker to get to certain features of LinkedIn, like connections or who's viewed your profile.

Finally, the app allows users to follow Influencers, and has added Dutch and Norwegian language support.

To celebrate the launch of the new app, LinkedIn has put together a video demonstrating the iPhone app in action. TheLinkedIn app is available now as a free download from the iOS App Store.

[Source: TUAW]