Google to Acquiring WhatsApp for close to $1 billion

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According to a new report from Digital Trends, software giant Google is currently negotiating a deal to acquire WhatsApp for "close to $1 billion."

The deal began "four or five weeks ago," the article reports, with sources suggesting that WhatsApp is "playing hardball" and holding out for a higher price.

Aside from some legal controversy in Canada surrounding the app's privacy methods, WhatsApp has been a tremendously popular and well regarded service. Google has approached WhatsApp before, so this deal closing soon would surprise few. The acquisition would also help solve mobile messaging for Google, which Digital Trends describes as a "huge, gaping hole in Google’s mobile strategy."

Facebook acquired Instagram for $1 billion last year in a similar deal. But one key difference is that WhatsApp is fully monetized. It's a paid app that regularly tops app store charts in dozens of countries, which helps drive revenue of up to $100 million annually, Digital Trends estimates.

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Microsoft Surface Pro Tablet PC Rolls Out In Japan

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Microsoft’s global rollout of their Surface Pro tablet PC has been erratic to say the least. The company has met with considerable resistance to its first ever PC release, but it seems like there could be some good news on the horizon. The Japanese version of the Surface Pro is getting a storage bump, from 128GB to 256GB, that isn’t yet available anywhere else.

If there can be one complaint about the current generation of SSD-driven machines, it’s the cost of storage. You’d be hard pressed to find an ultrabook or a convertible laptop with more than 128GB… unless you’re willing to spend about $1500. In fact, it’s currently cheaper to buy a 1TB spinning disc than it is to make the jump from 128GB to 256GB with most off-the-shelf machines.

Despite being called overpriced by many, Microsoft did a great job beating the prices of ultrabooks with matching specs. A year ago, a Core i5 system with a 1080p screen would have little chance at being under $1000. Starting at $899 (with 64GB), the Surface Pro set a price point that the other manufacturers have been striving to undercut, and it looks like Microsoft is about to do it again with a 256GB version.

Kicking off in Japan, Microsoft appears to be releasing a double-capacity Surface Pro at the same price point that we have seen the system here in the US. After the intense negativity the company received when the 64GB Surface Pro was found to only have 46% of its storage available, it makes sense for MS to start off in Japan by only releasing 128GB and 256GB models. By pricing the two at the same levels as the US’ 64GB and 128GB offerings Microsoft is sure to get get things started on the right foot.

It’s not clear when, or even if, this 256GB Surface Pro will go anywhere other than Japan, but it is good to know that Microsoft is interested in improving the Surface. There’s yet to be any new accessories or companion products to the line since its release which is disappointing, especially after we learned that the Surface Pro was designed to allow for a custom battery pack to be attached through the ports on its bottom.

This storage bump could be part of a larger refresh planned by Microsoft, perhaps to offer some of these new accessories and encourage a wider adoption of their first ever in-house designed PC.

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Nokia Has lost Its Spot In Its Home Town Of Finland

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While While Nokia has been struggling recently to compete with other mobile companies across the globe, it has begun to lose popularity in a very important place: its home base of Finland. 

Nokia has continued to dip in the market, but this new development has a more painful resonance. Whereas last year Nokia held a comfortable position in Finland at 48 percent of the market, it now holds only 33.5 percent. Overtaking the company is not surprisingly Samsung, which moved from 28 percent in Finland to a whopping 36 percent currently. This nearly ten percent jump is likely largely accounted for because of the new Samsung Galaxy S4. This is extra painful for Nokia, which has dropped from a dominating 65 percent hold on the Finnish market in 2010. 

Now with only half of the market it held two years ago, Nokia is scrambling to even maintain competitiveness in its home country. Even the new Lumia phones operating Windows Phone have not been able to revive the Finnish company to its position last year, let alone its lead in 2010. Even so, Konia still has a potentially powerful opportunity in the developing markets with its Asha line. These feature phones bridge users in mostly developing countries to eventual smartphone use, and Nokia is positioning itself to be there for that transition as well. If Nokia manages to secure many of these markets such as within its current positions in India, it may be able to pick up some of its lost momentum in the future. been struggling recently to compete with other mobile companies across the globe, it has begun to lose popularity in a very important place: its home base of Finland. 

Nokia has continued to dip in the market, but this new development has a more painful resonance. Whereas last year Nokia held a comfortable position in Finland at 48 percent of the market, it now holds only 33.5 percent. Overtaking the company is not surprisingly Samsung, which moved from 28 percent in Finland to a whopping 36 percent currently. This nearly ten percent jump is likely largely accounted for because of the new Samsung Galaxy S4. This is extra painful for Nokia, which has dropped from a dominating 65 percent hold on the Finnish market in 2010. 

Now with only half of the market it held two years ago, Nokia is scrambling to even maintain competitiveness in its home country. Even the new Lumia phones operating Windows Phone have not been able to revive the Finnish company to its position last year, let alone its lead in 2010. Even so, Konia still has a potentially powerful opportunity in the developing markets with its Asha line. These feature phones bridge users in mostly developing countries to eventual smartphone use, and Nokia is positioning itself to be there for that transition as well. If Nokia manages to secure many of these markets such as within its current positions in India, it may be able to pick up some of its lost momentum in the future.  Retweet this story

Microsoft Xbox One Tracks User

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The reveal for the Xbox One had users across the globe excited for the new console, but some new privacy settings have users nervous. 

For those who hate to be tracked on the web or through their media actions, the Xbox One just got a little scary. Microsoft has requested a patent which reveals that the company intends on tracked every single view of a TV show, or even commercials, by consumers. Not only would these actions be tracked, but users would rack up "points" on some kind of system to redeem for rewards. With each Xbox One console coming with the new and improved Kinect 2 (which can monitor heart rate, user eye movements, and also work in the dark), the system will be able to know if a user is actually watching, or walked away when commercials come on. 

Game-ifying television (and commercial) watching is a new feature of the Xbox One that has never before been tried to this level. According to the patent request by Microsoft, users would be able to view their "scores" for watching TV shows, ads, sports games, and more as well as view the scores of their friends. Rewards for watching certain shows or commercials would also be given in the form of avatar upgrades or achievements. Time Vines, Civil Liberties Australia Head went as far as to call this "a twisted nightmare" for privacy, stating that "Microsoft's new Xbox meets the definition of a surveillance device under some Australian laws, so they need to be upfront and tell customers whether anyone else can intercept their information... the Xbox One continuously records all sorts of personal information about me... my reaction rates, my learning or emotional states." Whether or not users will be intimidated by the notion of their console constantly watching their activities may have a significant impact on how well the system will sell after its release this winter.  Retweet this story

PayPal Hacked in Singapore

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More users in Singapore are becoming theft victims of PayPal hackers every day, some losing more than $3,000. 

PayPal users in Singapore are increasingly experiencing fraudulent activity on their PayPal accounts. While PayPal denies that they have been hacked, more and more users are finding suspicious charges, some for thousands of dollars, which they did not make. PayPal has responded by suggesting that users are clicking on links or opening emails which allow access to their sensitive information online. Even so, this would not be the first time that PayPal has been hacked. Users are especially on-edge when something like this happens, however, because of their compromised finances. 

"I was shocked. My credit card was with me. How could it have happened?" stated Janice Leow, who discovered over $3,000 of charges which she did not make. "I had not used my PayPal account for online shopping for several months, so it couldn't be me making the purchases." Other accounts such as that of Jasmine Ser had charges which were traced back to a buyer in Indonesia to which Ser had no connections. For these and other similar cases, PayPal is sticking to its policy of refunding "the full amount of every eligible unauthorized transaction if a dispute is raised with PayPal within 60 days of the unauthorized transaction occurring," allowing users to have their stolen money returned. Even though the company is denying this as an official hack on PayPal, they have still released precautionary suggestions for user safety such as using complicated passwords that are changed regularly.  Retweet this story

Microsoft to Sell 25 Million More Xbox 360s

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Even after the reveal for the Xbox One, Microsoft is not giving up on the 360 just yet. 

Microsoft has a lot on its plate currently with the new Xbox One, but it hasn't forgotten about its predecessor, the Xbox 360. In fact, the company has a goal for the console: sell 25 million additional consoles within the next 5 years, bringing the Xbox 360 total sales to 100 million. While this may seem like a lofty goal, there are several reasons why it might work. One of the most likely reasons for users to go out and buy a 360 in lieu of the Xbox One (once the new console is actually released) would be price. Secondly, it is still months away from the release of the next-generation console, leaving some room for marketing to users who want a console now. 

Even though the Xbox One will come with many brand new features, Microsoft is still placing an amount of focus on the current-generation Xbox 360. This may be a good move for the company, because although pricing has not been announced for the Xbox One, it is safe to assume it will be as expensive as previous brand new consoles or more. This means that the Xbox One may very well be out of many users' price range initially, making the (now much cheaper) Xbox 360 a more attractive option. But for the Xbox One, Microsoft has even bigger future goals. Within the coming years after the release of its new console, Microsoft has announced a lofty goal of selling 400 million Xbox One consoles.  Retweet this story

Bidder to Pay $1.5 Million to get a Trip Into Space With Leonardo DiCaprio

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Money may not be able to buy you happiness, but it can buy you a seat in a rocket ship next toLeonardo DiCaprio. One fan won the opportunity of a lifetime with a bid of $1.5 million at the Cannes Film Festival during a charity auction on Thursday, May 23.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the winning bidder will get the chance to travel into space aboard the Virgin Galactic strapped into a seat next to theGreat Gatsby actor -- while also doing some good for the world.

A portion of the proceeds from the auction will go toward the AmFAR Cinema Against AIDS charity. A second pair of seats was also auctioned off on Thursday for a whopping $2.3 million.

The trip was initially listed in the auction booklet as a "once-in-a-lifetime trip to space with a mystery guest," and Harvey Weinstein later revealed that the mystery guest was DiCaprio himself.

"We're going to get someone to bid on a seat next to him," he told The Hollywood Reporter, adding as a joke that plenty of people in the film business probably wanted to see him fly into space as well, "but only on a one-way ticket."

DiCaprio would not be the first celebrity lined up for a journey into the beyond -- it was revealed in March 2012 that Ashton Kutcher was the 500th customer to sign up for Richard Branson's venture to launch tourists into space.

"I gave Ashton a quick call to congratulate and welcome him," Branson wrote on his blog at the time. "He is as thrilled as we are at the prospect of being among the first to cross the final frontier (and back!) with us and to experience the magic of space for himself."

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Huawei Windows Phones.

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Huawei is an often overlooked mobile phone company, but now it's pursuing a little more recognition through an exclusive app store for Huawei Windows Phones. 

Recently Nokia has been taking all of the Windows Phone hype with the Nokia Lumia smartphone line, but often-overlooked company Huawei has just made it clear that they are not disappearing. The company has now launched its own Windows Phone store, calling it "Huawei Selected," which concentrates on Huawei-centric apps selected by the business. Since the store was just launched, there is currently one app available entitled "Find Me." Unfortunately, the sole app, published by Seth Kigen, is not doing well and seems to be a rocky start for the store. Hopefully for Huawei, more apps and content will become available soon before the "Selected" store simply fades out of the spotlight. 

It is not uncommon for mobile phone companies to pursue exclusive apps for their users, for this emphasizes loyalty and has the potential to place a company apart from the rest. Other mobile phone companies with their own exclusive content stores are Samsung, HTC, LG, and Huawei's closest competitor: Nokia. If this store gets more attention and apps, Huawei could find itself on more level ground with Nokia. As far as its devices go, the phones are quite good. The new Huawei Ascend line was being advertised as a remote for your life because of its abilities to communicate with appliances such as refrigerators, cars, or even devices to water the plants. This may be a breakout time for this quiet company, so long as the opportunity isn't missed.  Retweet this story

Amazon.com plans Lower Prices Through Advertising

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To move prices even lower, Amazon.com may extend its already-powerful advertising into new and existing places, both advertising their own site and the sites of others. 

It's difficult enough to compete with Amazon.com in terms of pricing lately. In fact, Best Buy lost millions after establishing a price match guarantee in order to compete with Amazon. But Amazon may be raising the bar again through some clever advertising tactics. Not only could Amazon place advertisements for its own store across the web, it could actually bring in revenue by providing advertisements for others as well. Kristin Mariani, an Amazon spokeswoman, stated that the end-goal was to make Amazon.com store items cheaper. "It's something that over time could help us lower prices for the consumer." 

Amazon.com could be breaching a new market that is already well-worn by Yahoo, Microsoft, Google and others. But if the company gets an edge in the ad-selling market, it could significantly boost Amazon's existing revenue potential and allow the companies to further lower prices of their store items. One reason why Amazon may have this advantage is user information. Not only does Amazon own the basic user demographics from sales, but they also have past purchases information which they can utilize in order to build profile types, and respond with ads accordingly. However, this is always a fine line to tread between convenient and persuasive targeted ads, and those which make users feel as if they are being stalked. If Amazon could find this balance, the company might be on to an extremely profitable new venture.  Retweet this story

GoDaddy luches "Cup of Coffee," website in india

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In a new campaign entitled "Cup of Coffee," website creation companyGoDaddy is targeting small business owners in India, illustrating the ease of website creation and branding. 

"Get a Web presence in the time you finish a cup of coffee." That's the mission of the newest GoDaddy ad campaign, which is targeting small business owners in India. The one-month campaign garners the company more customers by pitching their services to users who may not know where to start in website creation, or who may feel that it is too complicated or difficult. Regions of operation for "Cup of Coffee" include Hyderabad, New Delhi, and Mumbai. The deal includes a web address, and 1GM email storage complete with the Google AdWords service to promote the website in Google searches. The deal costs Rs. 580 (Approximately $10.00) to start. GoDaddy India Vice President Rajiv Sodhi states that "while India represents a huge opportunity for GoDaddy, there is a clear industry need to undertake initiatives that expand the overall market in India and that's the reason behind this campaign." 

GoDaddy isn't the only company to shift focus towards markets in India. BlackBerry has also launched low-cost contracts in India in order to secure a quickly-growing market for the future. But this isn't the company's first move in the nation. GoDaddy first began offering website creation for the .IN domain in 2009. Just within the past year, however, has the most significant grown taken place. From 2012-2013, GoDaddy India's customer base has doubled in size. With this aggressive campaign, which is actually travelling door-to-door with personal representatives from the company, GoDaddy aims to grow that base even more.  Retweet this story

Samsung Galaxy S4 has set a World Record Sales

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In just one month, the Samsung Galaxy S4 can boast over 10 million sales. 

It's been a good moth for Samsung. After the release of the Samsung Galaxy S4, users went crazy for it. It was launched on April 27, and less than a month later the phone had set a new world record. Who held the record prior to this? Samsung, of course, not surprisingly with its Galaxy S3. That record had been hitting the 10 million sales mark within 50 days, a time which the S4 almost cut in half. "On behalf of Samsung, I would like to thank the millions of customers around the world who have chosen the Samsung Galaxy S4," stated Samsung chief executive J.K. Shin. 

On the official Samsung blog, the company celebrates with a post entitled "Galaxy S4 Hits 10 Million Milestone in First Month." The blog announced more rollouts in additional countries as well as new colors coming for the device, including "Blue Arctic and Red Aurora, followed by Purple Mirage and Brown Autumn." The closest rival of the S4, the HTC One, sold 5 million units within its first month, claiming only half of the sales of Samsung. This places Samsung in a very comfortable lead for the time being. It is also rumored that Samsung is developing a "Galaxy S4 Active" which will be hyper-durable, but there is as of now no official word from Samsung on this model.  Retweet this story

What Apple iphone 5S is all about.

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A "flatter" iOS 7? A new A7 processor? A fingerprint chip? Here, a handy guide to all the iRumors

The iPhone 5 is a pristine feat of engineering — the best in its class, per more than a couple tech publications. Critics gushed about the handset's feather-light brushed-aluminum chassis, and its larger 4-inch screen to compete with bigger, crowd-pleasing Androids. Now, the annual rumor mill is once again beginning to churn, and speculation naturally turns to this question: What will the next iPhone look like?

If history is any indication, we already have our answer: It'll probably look a lot like the iPhone 5. Here's what we know so far:

1. It might debut this summer
The latest reports claim Apple has already started production of the iPhone 5S. Previous versions of the iPhone were typically unveiled in the fall, but Apple could be looking to unwrap the 5S during the dog days of summer. According to MacRumors, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities — who boasts a pretty solid track record with this kind of stuff — says he expects Apple to debut the new iPhone in July. Such an effort would "avoid repeating the fatal mistake" made last year with the delayed iPhone 5 launch, "which gave competitors room to grab market share." Did someone say Samsung Galaxy?

2. More horsepowerThis is a no-brainer, but according to Kuo's sources, the iPhone 5S will include some incremental spec bumps, most notably a new quad-core A7 processor. Here's the full rundown of the purported specs:

3. 'Smart Flash'
The camera on the iPhone 5 has received excellent marks from reviewers, but Kuo insists the iPhone 5S will support a new feature called "Smart Flash." Essentially, the camera will automatically decide whether to use a white or yellow flash depending on lighting.

4. A new fingerprint chip
Nary a day goes by without a hacking story, and Apple could shore up the iPhone's defenses by potentially scrapping the four-number login. According to Kuo, the iPhone 5S will come sporting a first-of-its kind "fingerprint chip under the Home button, improving security and usability." Remember: Last July Apple bought AuthenTec, a security firm specializing in fingerprint-based technology.

5. The 5S could have a little siblingRumors have long persisted of a more affordable iPhone built from lower-cost parts like a polycarbonate shell. Tim Cook insists that Apple will never make a "cheap" product, and Apple already sells older models at steep discounts. Still, everyone from The Wall Street Journal toDigiTimes reports that a more affordable iPhone is likely on the way, mostly to help the company gain some much-needed traction in emerging markets. Kuo claims that when the curtains rise for the iPhone 5S this summer, we shouldn't expect it to shine alone.

6. It probably won't support wireless charging
Wireless charging technology has been around for a few years now. According to Taiwanese tech siteDigiTimes — which, let's remember, has a spotty record when it comes to iPhone rumors — Samsung and Apple's phones may soon be due for a wireless-charging upgrade. 9to5 Mac, however, says we shouldn't count on it, at least for 2013. While Apple has already filed several patents for magnetic inductive charging technology, senior vice president Phil Schiller recently downplayed the idea, admitting that the tech isn't at a point yet where it adds any notable convenience. "Having to create another device you have to plug into the wall is actually, for most situations, more complicated," said Schiller. In other words, don't get your hopes up.

7. iOS 7 will get a major redesign
iOS lead Scott Forstall was given the boot in December, so Apple's chief designer Jony Ive will get his first chance to revise the mobile operating system his way — with less tacky software design (orskeumorphism), and a more stripped-down UI. According to iMore's Rene Ritchie, "Ive's work is apparently making many people really happy, but will also apparently make rich-texture-loving designers sad." Daring Fireball's John Gruber adds that "iOS 7 is running behind," but engineers are already reportedly street-testing it with "some sort of polarizing filter on their iPhone displays, such that it greatly decreases viewing angles, thus making it difficult for observers to see the apparently rather significant system-wide UI overhaul."

Meanwhile, 9to5 Mac is reporting that iOS 7 will be "black, white, and flat all over." As it stands, "the current yellow notepad-inspired Notes app contrasts significantly from the silver-textured Maps, blue and white Mail, and casino-inspired Game Center apps."

Jony Ive has inspired the iOS design team to replace many of the linen and leather textures found in iOS, such as in the iPad Calendar app, with flat white and black coloring. For instance, Apple’s Notification Center drop-down panel currently has a dark linen background. In iOS 7, according to people familiar with the software, this design becomes a dark grey/black color with white text. [9to5 Mac]

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Lenovo Makes Massive Profit Increase

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Lenovo, a billion dollar technology firm, has reported a huge boost in profit last quarter, thanks to smartphone and tablet sales. 

Lenovo just ended out an incredibly profitable quarter, closing its first quarter with $127 million in earnings with socks at 1.22 cents. This places Lenovo not far behind the top company Hewlett-Packard. Even though the profits were largely because f mobile devices sales, Lenovo still makes the bulk of its total revenue from standard PCs. In fact, these computers account for 83 percent of Lenovo sales. But the edge that Lenovo has over competitors is its rapidly expanding mobile device market. The company already beat out competitors though its smartphone sales in the first quarter. Since PC sales are dropping dramatically in favor of their mobile counterparts, companies such as Lenovo are reaping the benefits of this shifting trend. 

Even though the market is moving away from PCs, Lenovo will not soon drop production of these computers. Yang Yuanqing, chairman for Lenovo, discussed the importance of continuing to grow the mobile computer division of the company, but not to abandon the PC market. "We will focus out investments on the fast-growing tablet, smartphone, and enterprise hardware areas," he stated, "while working to enhance the profitability of our core PC business." Lenovo has only been producing smartphones since 2010, but has seen record sales because of it. Ending out this past quarter, the fiscal year up to March 31 brought in new record for the company of $34 billion, placing Lenovo within the realms of possibly overtaking HP in the future.  Retweet this story

PS4 :Call of Duty

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Even though the game's reveal made it seem as if the new Call of Duty game was to be released exclusively for Xbox, Activision has confirmed that the game will also be released for the PlayStation. 

Loyal Sony users who are also fans of the Call of Duty series received what was almost a rude shock after the unveiling of the Xbox One. The reveal for the next CoD game was timed just in sync with the new console's event, leading some users to suspect the game to be an Xbox exclusive. Prior to now, Activision had not released any word on the status of the game for PS4. But PlayStations users need not panic. After the misunderstanding, Activision confirmed that Ghosts will be available for Sony's PlayStation 3 and 4 as well. 

Cued up for a November 5 release, the game will still get a pseudo "exclusive" (or at least prioritized) release for the Xbox One, as it will be released for Microsoft's console first and receive its downloadable content on Xbox before PlayStation. But this is no real change from the previous CoD games, in which the releases arrived with similar timing. Dan Amrich, community manager for Activision, acknowledged on his blog that knowing for sure whether or not the game would be released on Sony's console is extremely important to many gamers. "Even if you strongly suspected it to arrive on PS4," he wrote, "or thought there was no logical reason for it not to come to Sony's next-gen platform, it's always good to have confirmation from the source."  Retweet this story

Is Samsung Galaxy S4 the best?

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A month after being released to mostly positive reviews, Samsung's flagship phone is getting some validation from Consumer Reports. The publication has run all its tests, kicked the phone's tires, and named the Android-powered Galaxy S4 its top rated smartphone.
The previous list-topper was the Optimus G, a solid $100 4.7-inch phone from LG that held Consumer Reports' No. 1 spot for several months. The Optimus G is now ranked as the No. 2 smartphone, followed by the HTC One, the Samsung Galaxy S3 and the Apple iPhone 5.
Consumer reports bases its ratings on a number of extensive tests and rates the devices in categories including ease of use, display and voice quality, portability and battery life. The $200 Galaxy S4's weakest scores were in video quality and portability.
Like all the other smartphones on the list, it also had mediocre scores for voice quality, a sacrifice that seems common in the smartphone market. The publication also lamented the lack of one-button phone access.
Consumer Reports specifically called out the S4's 5-inch, 1080p touch-screen, multitasking in split view, and a built-in IR feature as some of the handset's standout features. The abundance of features were seen as appealing to more advanced users without complicating the phone for more entry-level users. The publication said the device's camera was "among the best phone cameras for photo quality."
 Tilt Samsung Galaxy S4 to scroll Tilt Samsung Galaxy S4 to scroll
The Galaxy S4 is an update to Samsung's wildly popular S3 phone, which was one of the best selling smartphones of the past year. Samsung was the leader in the smartphone market in in the first quarter of 2013, according to research firm IDC, and it looks like its latest offering will help it hang on to that top spot for the time being.
Last week, Google announced a new version of the Galaxy S4 that will run a pure form of the company's Android mobile operating system. That unlocked and uncluttered phone will cost $649 when it becomes available at the end of June.
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A device that Rechargies your cellphone in 30 seconds

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A tiny device that can recharge cell phone batteries in as little as 30 seconds won 18-year-old Eesha Khare a major science award that will help fund her college education at Harvard University.
Khare traveled from her California home to Phoenix last week for the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, where her invention was honored as one of two winners of Young Scientist Awards.
"I'm in a daze. I can't believe this happened," Khare, a senior at Lynbrook High School in Saratoga, told CNN affiliate KPIX 5.
Khare's device, a black, rectangular type of supercapacitor just over an inch long, can charge a cell phone battery in 20 to 30 seconds, she said.
"I developed a new supercapacitor, which is basically an energy storage device which can hold a lot of energy in a small amount of volume," she told KPIX 5. The technology may also be able to speed up charging of automobile batteries, she said.
A videotape of the award ceremony showed an ecstatic Khare trotting up to the stage when her name was announced in Phoenix, then standing with other winners as the audience at the fair applauded and confetti fell on them.
The award includes a $50,000 prize that will come in handy when Khare heads to Harvard in the fall, she told KPIX 5. With a laugh, she predicted that "I will be setting the world on fire."
In announcing the winners of what it billed as the "world's largest high school research competition," Intel cited Khare for recognizing "the crucial need for energy-efficient storage devices" as the world rapidly adopts portable electronics.
The other winner of a Young Scientist Award with Khare was Henry Lin of Shreveport, Louisiana, who received a $50,000 prize for "simulating thousands of clusters of galaxies" to allow scientists to "better understand the mysteries of astrophysics: dark matter, dark energy and the balance of heating and cooling in the universe's most massive objects," the Intel statement said.
The top prize at the fair went to 19-year-old Ionut Budisteanu of Romania, who used "artificial intelligence to create a viable model for a low-cost, self-driving car," according to an Intel statement. He received the Gordon E. Moore Award, named after the Intel co-founder, which includes a $75,000 prize.
According to Intel, more than 1,500 young scientists from around the world were chosen to compete in last week's fair.
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Scientists Develop Printable A3-Sized Solar Cells

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Solar energy sounds like a dream, but buying and installing the equipment necessary to harness the power of the Sun can be expensive. But what if you could print your own solar panels?

The researchers at Australia's Victorian Organic Solar Cell Consortium (VICOSC) — a collaboration between the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), the University of Melbourne, Monash University and industry partners — have managed to print photovoltaic cells the size of an A3 sheet of paper.

"There are so many things we can do with cells this size. We can set them into advertising signage, powering lights and other interactive elements. We can even embed them into laptop cases to provide backup power for the machine inside," said CSIRO materials scientist, Dr. Scott Watkins.

These cells produce 10-50 watts of power per m2, and could be used to laminate the windows of skyscrapers, giving them an additional source of power. Or they could be printed onto materials such as steel, meaning they could be embedded into roofs of buildings.

Photovoltaic cells — the building blocks of solar panels — have been printed before, but the printing process was different.

For their printable solar cells, the VICOSC team used photovoltaic ink, a $200,000 printer, and techniques similar to those you'd use "if you were screen printing an image on to a t-shirt."

One of the most important aspects of this approach, claims Watkins, is accessibility. "We're developing our processes to be able to use these existing printing technologies so that the barrier to entry for manufacturing these new printed solar cells is as low as possible," he said.

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Apple's App Store has hits 50 billion downloads

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At 4:54 pm ET on Wednesday, someone downloaded the 50 billionth app from Apple's online App Store.
Apple will give the lucky downloader a $10,000 iTunes gift card. The next 50 people to download an app after that will each receive a $500 gift card.
There was no immediate word from Apple on who won. Apple had a live countdown ticker on its iTunes Web page.
The promotion is yet another reminder of the massive success of Apple's App Store, which opened in 2008, added to the appeal of the iPhone and spawned many bad "there's an app for that" headlines. It also inspired online app stores by Google, BlackBerry and other companies.
The contest was open to entrants 13 or older in a country where the App Store is available. People also could enter without downloading an app by filling out an online form.
This marks the second time in three months that Apple has celebrated an iTunes milestone. In February, Phillip Lupke of Germany received a 10,000 euro (about $13,528) iTunes gift card for downloading the 25 billionth song.
How massive a number is 50 billion? According to Apple, counting to 50 billion would take a person 1,600 years.
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Rihanna Split From Chris Brown Again

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Getting over a breakup is never easy, but a good way to get a fresh new outlook on life is to rock a completely new look. Rihanna appeared to be doing just that as she stepped out on the town in New York on Monday.

The 25-year-old singer was spotted sporting a short platinum blonde bob following her recent breakup from on-again, off-again flame Chris Brown. She looked stylish and confident, but the sun-kissed look may only be temporary. The bob was reportedly a wig that she had worn earlier in the day while shooting a commercial for MAC Cosmetics, according to the Daily Mail.

"And that's a wrap on another #MAC shoot!! 2 in 1 day!! Thats my damn team!!!" Rihanna postedon Twitter.

RiRi's bodyguards did their best to give the singer some privacy as she made her way through the Big Apple by shielding her with umbrellas, but photographers quickly caught a glimpse of her new style, which also included a long denim coat, black leather pants, and a bright red clutch.

The busy star had also been shooting another campaign for U.K. clothing brand River Island earlier that day, tweeting, "2 day shoot for my upcoming Autumn/Winter collections with River Island was flawless! My models looked so damn good! Foreign chicks errwhere."

Meanwhile, Brown was on the opposite coast filming a tribute video for Aaliyah on a rooftop in Compton. The singer was recently spotted stepping out with his ex-girlfriend, Karrueche Tran, following his split from Rihanna last week.

This couldn't have been easy for Rihanna--but seems as if she's coping by throwing herself into her work and some very fashionable new looks.

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Google has increased its free cloud based storage capacity

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Search engine Google has surprised observers by stepping up the size of its free cloud based storage offerings from five to 15GB.

The three-fold leap will be shared across Google+, Drive, and Gmail and will roll out in a couple of weeks.

Writing in the company blog, a SpokesGoogle said that businesses using Google Apps will see their storage go up across Google Drive, Google+, and Gmail from 25GB to 30GB.

This makes Google services the most generous storage capacity of any player in the free online storage game. The nearest rival, Dropbox, currently starts free subscribers at 2GB, Microsoft SkyDrive users get 7GB, and Apple iCloud, Amazon Cloud Storage, and SugarSync offer 5GB for free.

The move has some analysts scratching their heads. While Google has shedloads of space which is not doing much at the moment, one of the reasons you don't want to offer enormous amounts of free data is that it spoils your own cloud based business offerings. Google has not actually said what its logic is in carrying out the move.

One theory is that Google is planning a new range of consumer products, such as multi-media which require more storage. The other is that it is just a way of giving Dropbox a good kicking. It would be very difficult to compete with Google because it has to offer something that large for free, something it might have difficulty doing.

If this is the case, this is Google using its size to do evil to a rival, even if it is eating its bottom line a little. The move does make Gmail, Google+, and Google Drive better.



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ISS Expedition 35 crew has landed safely in Kazakhstan

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Expedition 35 Commander Kevin Chris Hadfield and Flight Engineers Tom Marshburn and Roman Romanenko landed their Soyuz TMA-07M spacecraft in southern Kazakhstan at 10:31 p.m. EDT Monday.

Russian recovery teams were on hand to help the crew exit the Soyuz vehicle and adjust to gravity after 146 days in space.

The trio launched aboard the Soyuz TMA-07M spacecraft from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan in December and spent 144 days living and working aboard the International Space Station.

Romanenko was at the controls of the spacecraft as it undocked at 7:08 p.m. Monday from the Rassvet module.

The undocking marked the end of Expedition 35 and the start of Expedition 36 under the command of Russian cosmonaut Pavel Vinogradov, who is scheduled to remain on the station with Flight Engineers Chris Cassidy and Alexander Misurkin until September. Hadfield ceremonially handed command of the station over to Vinogradov on Sunday. Vinogradov, Cassidy and Misurkin arrived at the station aboard the Soyuz TMA-08M spacecraft in March 2013.

Vinogradov, Cassidy and Misurkin will remain aboard the orbiting complex as a three-person crew until the May 28 launch and docking of Expedition 36 Flight Engineers Karen Nyberg, Fyodor Yurchikhin, Luca Parmitano.

Hadfield, Marshburn and Romanenko spent their final morning aboard the station Monday packing some final items for return to Earth aboard their Soyuz spacecraft. Marshburn removed a sample canister from a Japanese protein crystal growth experiment and handed it off to his Russian crewmates to stow inside the Soyuz.

With the successful completion of the Binary Colloid Alloy Test-6, or BCAT-6, Hadfield stowed the experiment hardware in the Zarya module. BCAT-6 took a look at how gasses and liquids come together and separate in space. Results from this experiment may lead to improvements in the shelf-life of household products, food and medicine.

Hadfield also assisted Cassidy with a periodic fitness evaluation as flight surgeons keep track of the crew’s health during these long-duration missions. Cassidy exercised on the station’s exercise bike -- the Cycle Ergometer with Vibration Isolation and Stabilization – while Hadfield collected blood pressure measurements.

Cassidy also installed a new HD camera in the Destiny lab and upgraded a video encoder card in an associated computer.

Astronaut Shannon Walker, who served as an Expedition 24/25 flight engineer in 2010, talked about the preparations crew members make before leaving the station during a Space Station Live interview on Monday.

The spare Pump and Flow Control Subassembly (PFCS) box installed Saturday by Cassidy and Marshburn during their 5-hour, 30-minute spacewalk continues to be checked out by flight controllers, but is showing no signs of ammonia leakage at this point and is functioning normally.



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Wow: Blizzard Gives a Thumbs Up to World of StarCraft

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After World of StarCraft Youtube videos the world over went dark a couple days ago, fans immediately began to bury the ambitious mod under proclamations of “six feet under.” Turns out, however, that Blizzard's rooting for this little MMO that could just as much as you are.

“We’re looking forward to seeing the continued development of this mod, and as part of our ongoing discussion, we’ve extended an offer to the developer to visit the Blizzard campus and meet with the StarCraft II development team,” said Blizzard in a statement to GameFront.

So then, why'd everyone need to believe that it was the end of the World of StarCraft as we knew it?

“With the name so closely resembling that of World of Warcraft, we wanted to discuss the title of the mod with the developer, and as part of our routine procedure, we contacted YouTube to request the video be removed while that discussion took place. We were also curious about the project and wanted to discuss with the developer what the mod entailed,” Blizzard continued.

In other words, it was a misunderstanding as big as Starbucks' new drink size – and equally unnecessary. Oh well, though; Blizzard's words of encouragement are better late than never. Hopefully, after a quick name change (we suggest something innocuous and lawsuit-free – how about “War of the Stars”?), the mod will be back and better than ever. Of course, that's assuminga certain job offer doesn't put the WOS dream to bed before it can even begin to become a reality.

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Setting DHCP Reservations on Your AirPort

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In a previous tutorial, you learned how to set a static IP address in Mac OS X to create a permanent, private IP address for your Mac that doesn't change from one day to the next. But if you own an AirPort Extreme, AirPort Express, or Time Capsule base station, you can use something called DHCP reservations to do essentially the same thing.

What's the difference between a static IP address and a DHCP reservation? The end result is the same - your Mac will be assigned a static IP address when it connects to the AirPort network. But DHCP reservations are easier to set up. Since all configuration is performed in the AirPort Utility application, you can quickly and easily assign static IP addresses to multiple computers and devices without reconfiguring them individually.

How it Works

You'll use the AirPort Utility application to assign a static IP address to your Mac's MAC address. After you create a DHCP reservation, the AirPort will monitor the network for your Mac. When it detects that your Mac has connected to the network, the AirPort assigns the static IP address you specified in the AirPort Utility application. Since the AirPort base station takes care of everything, you don't have to worry about setting up Network Locations in OS X.

How to Set DHCP Reservations on Your AirPort

Ready to take the plunge? Here's how to set DHCP reservations on your AirPort:

1. Find your Mac's MAC address for the Wi-Fi network interface. See How to Find Your Mac's MAC Address for instructions.
2. Open the AirPort Utility application. (It's in Applications → Utilities.) The window shown below appears.

3. Click the AirPort Extreme's icon. The status pop-up window appears.
4. Click Edit. The settings window appears.
5. Select the Network tab. The window shown below appears.

6. Click the + button under the DHCP Reservations field. The window shown below appears.

7. Enter a descriptive name for your Mac in the Description field.
8. From the Reserve Address By menu, select MAC Address.
9. Enter your Mac's MAC address in the MAC Address field.
10. Enter the static IP address you want to assign to your computer. For more information, see step 9 in How to Set a Static IP Address in Mac OS X.
11. Click Save.
12. Click Update. The AirPort will restart to apply the changes.

Now your Mac will be assigned the static IP address every time you connect to the wireless network. You can repeat this process to assign static IP addresses to all of the computers and devices connected to your network.

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