Trump immigration ban: “If we stand and say nothing, we become a part of it,” Apple CEO Tim Cook

Image: Reuters

By tech2 News Staff /  09 Feb 2017 , 14:38

Speaking at the University of Glasgow in Scotland, Apple CEO Tim Cook took a clear stance against Donald Trump’s immigration ban saying, “If we stand and say nothing, we become a part of it, our company thrives on diversity.”

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If we stand and say nothing we become a part of it, our company thrives on Diversity! @tim_cook on @realDonaldTrump executive order.

8:27 PM - 8 Feb 2017 · Glasgow, Scotland

 
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Cook was at the university to receive an honorary degree.

Just a few weeks ago, US President Donald Trump issued an executive order banning the entry of refugees and that of citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries. The ban extends to US visa holders from those countries.

The order faced immediate backlash from Americans and Silicon Valley. Almost 100 tech companies, including Apple, Facebook and Google have signed an amicus curiae brief in support of a lawsuit fighting the order.

US Federal Courts have since halted the order.

Despite the statement, Cook assured everyone at the university that Apple wasn’t a “political company”, reports Cnet.

Cook adds that “I don’t believe Apple is an activist and I don’t view myself as an activist.”

Stating that Apple is not shy, he went on to state that Apple will continue to address issues that it feels very strongly about, but that these issues are based on Apple’s beliefs and nothing else.

Xiaomi launches Redmi Note 4X in China with Snapdragon 653 and special Miku edition

Image Credit: Xiaomi

By tech2 News Staff /  09 Feb 2017 , 12:56

Xiaomi officially launched the updated version of Xiaomi Redmi Note 4, the Redmi Note 4X in China. As all the product launches, officially, this will be limited to China in terms of availability. One important thing to note is that design-wise the Redmi Note 4X is same as the Redmi Note 4. The only difference is the availability in Teal Green which is being termed as the limited edition Hatsune Miku edition, on the occasion of Valentine’s Day.

Image Credit: Xiaomi

For the uninitiated, Hatsune Miku is an extremely popular singing synthesiser app primarily popular in Japan. The popularity is such that people attend concerts where the holographic avatar of Miku is performing on stage. In addition to the ‘Hatsune Gree’, the company has also launched a variant in ‘Cherry Pink’ colour as reported by GSMArena. The entire package comes along with a stylised package, protective case and limited edition Mi Power bank.

Image Credit: Xiaomi

The company has not published detailed specs of the smartphone along or the pricing but the company is expected to release these details prior to the sales day. However, as reported by GSMArena, the internals of the Redmi Note 4X are exactly the same as the internals of Redmi Note 4. In terms of hardware, the phone will be powered by a Snapdragon 653 chipset internationally and a MediaTek Helio X20 in China (the same as on the Chinese Note 4). The current international edition of the Note 4 uses the Snapdragon 625 chip, which is slightly less powerful than the 653, but more power efficient.

Storage options will now include variants with 3GB RAM / 32GB storage, 4GB RAM / 32GB storage and 4GB RAM / 64GB storage. Unlike the Note 4, there will be no 2GB RAM variant.

Amazon rolls out free smart-home consultations to kill the confusion behind home automation

By tech2 News Staff /  09 Feb 2017 , 12:40

If you attended the Consumer Electronics Show this year, it was easy to tell that Amazon’s Alexa was present almost everywhere. From smartphones, to appliances and even little robots. So it’s easy to say that Amazon is gunning for AI with Alexa. But for that to happen, it needs more devices to be available around its customers in order to conveniently use the service.

They key idea here is to take the confusion out of the shopping experience and allow customers to quickly buy what they think is right product without pondering over anything. And Amazon’s new service helps it accomplish just this.

The Amazon Echo

The Seattle Times reports a new smart-home consultation service that will have Amazon employees come to your home and demo smart home products. After that the representatives will make personalised recommendations on what you need to buy (smart thermostats, linked plugs etc.) to make your home smarter.

While one would conclude that it adds to the confusion, it’s a win-win for Amazon here. Amazon not only gets to sell its home automation products like the Echo (and others) but its voice assistant will also make it easier for its customers to shop.

The win for the consumer here is that they get personalised recommendations on what products they need to purchase to make their homes smarter and even get to try them out. At the same any confusion regarding the possibilities of home automation are also cleared in the process.

The web page shows the three step Smart Home Consultation process which includes booking an appointment, a 1-on-1 with an expert and getting recommendations.

The Smart Home Consultations by Amazon are free and for now seem to only be available in the US market.

Amazon has yet to bring its Echo speakers to India. One of the smaller problems associated to this could be the internet bandwidth as it also happens to be one of the check boxes for US customers before anybody gets to jump on to the smart home bandwagon.

Galaxy Note 7 battery supplier Samsung SDI factory in China catches fire

By tech2 News Staff /  09 Feb 2017 , 09:23

The factory of Samsung SDI, one of the battery suppliers for the dangerously explosive Samsung Galaxy Note 7, caught fire in China. Pictures of the fire were circulated on Weibo, a social networking and micro-blogging platform known as the Chinese alternative to Twitter. The fire was relatively minor, was at a waste disposal facility, and did not affect production, according to a report in Bloomberg.

Samsung SDI was responsible for providing about 60 percent of the batteries to the discontinued Samsung Galaxy Note 7 smartphones, the other supplier being Amperex Technology Ltd. Following the explosions of the smartphones, Samsung SDI investigated their batteries in other smartphones, and found them to be safe. Samsung SDI is expected to provide at least a portion of the batteries in future Samsung phones. An executive of the company said that the issue was restricted to just the batteries used in the Galaxy Note 7.

Samsung recently revealed the results of its investigation into the cause of the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 fires. The company identified the battery as the problematic component that caused the fires. Independent investigations have showed that the body of the smartphone, and its curvature, left little space for natural expansion and contraction of the batteries, compressing them when charged and leading to the fires. South Korea also investigated the issue, and is fortifying the regulations for lithium-ion batteries, in the interest of consumer safety.

50,362 cyber security related incidents were logged in 2016, says CERT-In

Image Credit: Venture Beat

  09 Feb 2017 , 08:56

Over 50,300 cyber security incidents like phishing, website intrusions and defacements, virus and denial of service attacks were observed in the country during 2016, Parliament was informed today. “As per the information reported to and tracked by Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In), a total number of 44,679, 49,455 and 50,362 cyber security incidents were observed during the year 2014, 2015 and 2016, respectively,” Minister of State for Electronics and IT P P Chaudhary said in a written reply to Lok Sabha.

He added that the types of cyber security incidents included phishing, scanning/probing, website intrusions and defacements, virus/malicious code and denial of service attacks. “With the proliferation of Information Technology and related services, there is a rise in instances of cyber crimes in the country like elsewhere in the world,” he said.

As per the data maintained by National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB), a total of 5,693, 9,622 and 11,592 cybercrime cases were registered during the years 2013, 2014 and 2015, respectively, showing a rise of 69 per cent during 2013 to 2014 and 20 per cent during 2014 to 2015. “This includes cases registered under the IT Act, 2000 and related sections of Indian Penal Code and Special and local laws involving compouter as a medium/target. Similar data for the year 2016 is under collection,” he said.

Also, RBI has registered a total of 9,500, 13,083, 16,468 and 8,689 cases of frauds involving credit cards, ATM/debit cards and internet banking during the year 2013-14, 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17 (upto December 2016), respectively. Further, CBI has registered a total of 87 cases during 2014 to 2016. Out of these 87 cases, charge sheets have been filed in 36 cases, status report filed in copmpettent court in 4 cases, 6 cases were closed and 41 cases are under investigation by CBI.

Besides, 4,699 and 6,266 cases were registered during the year 2014 and 2015, respectively for stalking women (Section 354D IPC) during 2014-15, as per data maintained by NCRB. This is a rise of 25 per cent during 2014 to 2015. The Minister said a total number of 28,481 websites were hacked in 2013, 32,323 (2014), 27,205 (2015) and 33,147 (2016).

“It has been observed attacks are launched through compromised computer systems located in different parts of the world. Masquerading techniques and hidden servers are also used to hide the identity of the actual systems being used by malicious actors,” he said. The attacks are observed to be originating from various countries including China, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Romania, the UK, the US, Syria, the UAE and Italy, he added.

PTI

Microsoft is now selling Surface Hub as a service, and has introduced a try before you buy option

By tech2 News Staff /  08 Feb 2017 , 18:11

In the nine months since the Surface Hub has launched, 2,000 customers have ordered the device in 24 markets. Each order ranged from one to 1,500 units, and Microsoft is gearing up for 2017 by introducing new ways to purchase the device, considering the strong demand for the product.

A survey by IDC shows that 73 percent of businesses hope to move to a subscription based model for IT procurement over the next three years. Customers in the UK will be able to get Surface Hubs soon from Microsoft’s partner, Maverick. There are twenty six partners spread across Europe, Asia, US, Canada and the UK. Microsoft is also launching the Surface Hub Value Added Distributors Program for Opportunity Resellers (VAD-OR) program, to allow Surface Hub distributors to deliver the same quality of service to opportunity resellers.

Jon Sidwick, VP of Maverick Europe, says, “This service is a real channel game changer for the collaboration market. Many companies offer various forms of leasing; our process will be far more sophisticated and accessible. We will be kicking off this service in partnership with Microsoft this year on a country by country basis to offer Surface Hub as a Service. This will enable resellers to access a subscription model then only have the Hub in place for as long as they need. The successful implementation of this type of program will create a far quicker sales cycle with more sophisticated solutions.”

Additionally, the Surface Hub will also be available as a try and buy product in certain markets through select retailers. Customers will be able to use a Surface hub for 30 days before placing an order. The program is intended for enterprise clients to try out a device before placing large orders.

Apple’s BeatsX wireless earbuds to launch this week

#APPLE

By tech2 News Staff /  08 Feb 2017 , 16:59

US tech giant Apple announced that BeatsX wireless earbuds will be available globally later this week.

BeatsX earphones deliver up to eight hours of battery life and with “Fast Fuel”, a five-minute charge gives you two hours of playback.

“The earbuds come with unique flex-form cable that provides all-day comfort and easy pocket portability, while eartip options provide a personalised fit and secure-fit wingtips offer added stability,” Apple said in a statement.

BeatsX features optimised noise isolation, RemoteTalk allows you to take calls with a built-in mic, play music, adjust volume and activate Siri and also comes with variety of eartip options to offer personalised comfort.

The BeatsX headphones use Apple’s proprietary W1 audio chip to deliver audio wirelessly from the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus models. The chip also allows for a seamless set up and come with a lightning connector on the cable. The port works works with Beats Audio’s Fast Fuel charging technology that will allow users up to 2 hours of playback with with just 5 minutes of charging.

The headphones are priced at 149.95 USD which is roughly Rs 10,000. This pegs them below Apple’s pricey AirPods that currently retail in India at Rs 15,000.

With inputs from IANS