May - 2016

Companies could use 'intermediate' web security certificates to spy

A certificate authority (CA) is a trusted entity that issues electronic certificates (duh) to verify identity on the Internet. They're a key part of secure communications online -- and thus super important. Then there's intermediate CAs, signed by a root CA, making certificates for any website. However, they're just as powerful as those root ones. Worse still, there's no full list for the ones your system trusts because root CAs can make new ones whenever it wants, and our co

ZTE's Axon 7 is a $450 alternative to pricey Android flagships

Last year, ZTE surprised us with the Axon, an all-metal Android phone with surprisingly high-end specs for just $450. But while it was a noble attempt at an affordable flagship, we had issues with its slightly chunky design and lack of storage. Enter the Axon 7, ZTE's follow-up that once again aims to take on much more expensive Android phones. It has a luxe-feeling unibody metal case, loads of storage options and a sharp 2K display. And best of all? It's still just $450. As

Report: Next Apple TV might be an Amazon Echo competitor

It seems Apple is finally gearing up to make Siri useful. Following a report from earlier this week about Apple developing a smart Bluetooth speaker similar to the Amazon Echo, now Venture Beat is reporting that the next Apple TV could also have the Echo in its sights. "They want Apple TV to be just the hub of everything," a source told the site. Siri was a big part of the recent Apple TV, but it also requires holding down a button on the remote. The next Apple TV will suppos

Apple invests $1 billion in Chinese ride-hailing service Didi

In a bid to better understand China, Apple has announced a $1 billion investment in Chinese Uber-like service, Didi Chuxing. The country's homegrown ride-hailing service already has plenty of cash, and was recently valued at over $25 billion. According to Reuters, it has 87 percent of the market of private car hailing across China. Apple CEO Tim Cook said the investment would help the company better understand the Chinese market -- oh and it's about cars. "We are making the i

Android VR' confirmed by Google developer site

It looks nearly certain that Google will launch an Android-powered VR headset that works without a phone or PC. Android Police spotted an "Android VR" placeholder in Google's Play Developer Console, and Engadget co-founder Peter Rojas (now an entrepreneur at investment firm Betaworks) tweeted that "Android VR will be definitely be announced next week" (at Google I/O). Rojas added that the device will be a "standalone" headset that doesn't require a phone, and will obviously b

YouTube will offer classic NFL games as part of a new deal

The National Football League and YouTube have expanded a deal that allows the site to play previews, highlights and recaps. In 2016, YouTube will not only carry more content and expand its search options, but also show entire classic games. "Three of the most memorable games for each of the 32 clubs in the NFL will be posted to the NFL's official channel on YouTube prior to the start of the 2016 season," according to the NFL's blog. In other words, the site will soon host doz

Paris looks to Instagrammers to boost city museum visits

Maybe you've heard the term "influence." It's the moniker marketers have given to the heavy hitters of social media with considerable follower counts (often in the tens or hundreds of thousands). You know, the Kendall and Gigis currently dominating our world. Well, Paris Musées, the public institution that oversees 14 of the city's municipal museums, has cottoned on to this new media wave and is turning to Instagram as a platform to raise awareness and boost museum attendance

Smartwatch concept puts two screens on your wrist

There's something wrong with smartwatches. We all feel it, deep down. "This is not as cool as I thought it would be!" we constantly yell to anyone who will listen. Well, good news: science is on it. Thanks to the power of magnets and duct tape, Doppio offers up a humble solution: "Bro, what if there were two screens?" The Doppio concept is a collaboration between Teddy Seyed of the University of Calgary, Xing-Dong Yang of Dartmouth College, and Daniel Vogel from the Universit

Facebook is testing a 'discover' feature for Groups

Groups on Facebook have evolved from being things you joined because they had dumb names and you were in college, to being legitimately useful ways to find new information. As a reflection of that, The Social Network is apparently testing a new feature on the iOS and Android apps,International Business Times writes, dubbed "Discover." That also lets you peruse public and private groups and see which friends are in local groups,according to Mashable. The groups are cordoned of

NVIDIA's GTX 1080 GPU is faster than Titan X, lands May 27

NVIDIA gave us a taste of its new Pascal architecture with the P100 graphics card last month, which is aimed at servers for heavy duty computing. Now, it's ready to show off how that technology will be adapted for consumers with its new GeForce GTX 1080 GPU. As you'd expect, it's fast: NVIDIA CEO Jen-Hsun Huang revealed that it's faster than its current performance king, the $1,000 Titan X, as well as three times as power efficient. That's particularly impressive since it's t