As reported on TechCrunch. by MATT BURNS Microsoft is in a tough spot. Windows RT is all but dead in the water. But Microsoft has approximately a zillion and a half Surface RT tablets collecting dust in warehouses. And so Ballmer and Co. continued its ignorant fight against Apple and the far more successful iPad with another TV spot that pits the two against each other. Spoiler: The Surface RT is declared the winner. Like in…
As reported on TechCrunch. by GREGORY FERENSTEIN The Internet is not a perfect meritocracy, where the best ideas naturally rise to the forefront of the national conversation. It is easy to game the popularity of some ideas by exploiting the fact that Internet users are overly optimistic sheep who blindly rate the value of stories positively if they first see that others already liked it. In a brand-new study, one of my favorite researchers, New York University’s…
As reported on Engadget. By Timothy J. Seppala Ever read your car’s instruction manual? We didn’t think so, and apparently, neither did the folks at Audi. Not too long ago, the firm introduced a unique twist on vehicle documentation, offering A1 owners an augmented reality app that could tell them about the car’s basic functions at a glance. The eKurzinfo app’s initial release only recognized 65 elements of the vehicle — but has since been improved and is now…
As reported on Engadget. By Nicole Lee Those BlackBerry Z30 rumors (which was known previously as the A10) might turn out to be for real after all, if this early hands-on video from Vietnamese outletCellphone S is to be believed. The footage shows what is presumably the BlackBerry Z30 in all its glory, with what is apparently a 5-inch AMOLED display with 295 ppi and 720p (1,280 x 720) resolution. Purported specs include a dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor,…
As reported on The Verge. By Bryan Bishop The director of ‘District 9’ turns Matt Damon into man and machine Four years ago District 9 hit theaters, heralding the arrival of a new voice in contemporary science fiction. Writer-director Neill Blomkamp’s alien-invasion film impressed visually, portraying a gritty, realistic world that seamlessly blended humans and digital creations. More importantly, it carried on in some of the best traditions of the genre by serving as intriguing social commentary…
As reported on TechCrunch. by SARAH PEREZ Google AdWords customers can now better target mobile device owners via an updated ad experience within the Google Maps app on Android, iPhone, and iPad, Google announced today. This news follows a recent update to the Google Maps app, which previously saw a number of changes and additions, including an updated user interface, integrated traffic reporting, Zagat reviews, changes to how business ratings display, and more. In the updated Google Maps application, advertisers…
As reported on TechCrunch. by GREGORY FERENSTEIN The alleged email provider of National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden has suddenly shut down, leaving just an ominous message in its absence. “I wish that I could legally share with you the events that led to my decision,” writes Lavabit owner Ladar Levison on the company’s front page. “I would _strongly_ recommend against anyone trusting their private data to a company with physical ties to the United States.” The…
As reported on Engadget. By Zachary Lutz Bet you wouldn’t have guessed that the answer to more efficient storage might exist in a Chubby Checker song. Yep, by doing the twist, scientists are thinking it’ll be possible to store up to 20 times more data in the same space, which could lead to much smaller (or vastly more spacious) hard drives for consumers. The work revolves around twisted magnetic fields known as skyrmions, which can retain their structure…
As reported on Engadget. By Sharif Sakr This isn’t a huge shock, given that ASUS has already publicly expressed woes about poor sales of its Windows RT products, but CEO Jerry Shen‘s latest comments have a surprising edge of finality to them. Speaking to the Wall Street Journal, he repeated that “Windows RT has not been very successful” and said that the company took a writedown on its stock of RT tablets, although he didn’t reveal the size of the…
As reported on Wired. BY DAMON LAVRINC Photo: Jim Merithew/WIRED Tesla Motors’ second-quarter numbers are out, and depending on how you figure profit, the electric automaker either made $26.2 million or lost $30.5 million. Also, Elon Musk regrets ever mentioning theHyperloop. First, let’s talk profit. Tesla’s net income for Q2 was $26 million, an increase of 70 percent from Q1. However, that’s not using the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) math — or non-GAAP. If you…