Gavin de Becker, Jeff Bezos’ security consultant, is accusing the Saudis of hacking into Mr. Bezos’ phone in order to harm him.
The Robot Uprising Started with a Mic Drop
All hail nerd humor! This little clip is funny, poignant, and well executed. Note the safety glasses perched atop the robot’s arm to better personify the device. And my favorite thing is the mic drop at the end. Definitely good stuff.
Chip Engineer Departure, RIP AirPower – TMO Daily Observations 2019-04-01
John Martellaro and Bryan Chaffin join host Kelly Guimont for a chat about staff changes on Apple’s hardware team and the AirPower’s demise.
Inside Apple's Private Media Cocktail Party Celebrating News+
Joe Pompeo provides some insider info about Apple’s private cocktail party for the media. Eddy Cue and other Apple execs schmoozed their way around the room.
Eddy Cue and other Apple executives worked the room, among editors and business-side people from participating publications like New York, GQ, Time, Esquire, The Atlantic, and others—a casual cocktail reception to welcome Apple’s new publishing partners. But as the guests munched on mini empanadas and potato bites, some of them couldn’t help but wonder if there was a Trojan horse in their midst. As one attendee later joked, “Are we at a party, or a wake?”
Z3N Over-Ear Bluetooth Headphones: $20.99
We have a deal for you today on a pair of Z3N Over-Ear Bluetooth Headphones. This is an inexpensive option to get into the over-the-ear headphone space, and this device features 40 mm drivers, plus the freedom of wireless connectivity. They’re $20.99 through our deal.
The UnPlugged 10K Charger is a Good AirPower Alternative
Extend the battery of your Qi-enabled phone with the Unplugged 10K wireless charging portable battery. This 10,000mAh wireless portable charger is not only certified to Qi standard but also meets the Apple and Samsung Fast Charge standard; delivering up to 10 Watts of power. The 10 Watts of powers ensures the absolute quickest wireless charge on the market. Ditch your cables and simply drop your smartphone on the powerbank and charging will start upon contact. Additionally, two USB-A ports allow you to charge up to three devices at a time. It offers features like Smart sense, Hyper-charge, Power-stay, Max-power, a high-density safe-cell battery with rapid recharging and pass-through charging. You can pick up an Unplugged 10K charger on Amazon for US$51.97.
New Cloudflare VPN Claims to Speed Up Your Browsing
Warp, a new Cloudflare VPN, claims to speed up your internet by using a Google-invented internet protocol called QUIC.
Mark Zuckerberg Launches His Tech Manifesto, Echoes Tim Cook's Call for U.S. Version of GDPR
After months of criticism, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg posted “four ideas to regulate the internet” Saturday. Like Apple CEO Tim Cook, he called on lawmakers to pass data protection legislation akin to the EU’s GDPR. Mr. Zuckerberg also said he wanted to see privacy legislation as well as third-party standards to judge harmful content.
I believe it would be good for the internet if more countries adopted regulation such as GDPR as a common framework. New privacy regulation in the United States and around the world should build on the protections GDPR provides. It should protect your right to choose how your information is used — while enabling companies to use information for safety purposes and to provide services. It shouldn’t require data to be stored locally, which would make it more vulnerable to unwarranted access. And it should establish a way to hold companies such as Facebook accountable by imposing sanctions when we make mistakes.
Apple Products in China Get Major Price Cut
Apple slashed the cost of products in China by as much as 6%, CNBC reported Monday. The price drop affected iPhones, iPads, Macs and AirPods. It followed a VAT price cut for manufacturers like Apple in the country. Apple’s revenue shortfall in the final quarter of 2018 was attributed to lower than expected sales in China.
The price cuts can be seen on Apple’s website. For example, the entry-level iPhone XR now costs 6199RMB, 4.6 percent lower than on March 29, when Apple listed 6499RMB as its price. Apple’s high-end iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max models each got a 500RMB price cut. According to Apple’s customer service, anybody who has bought an affected product from Apple in China within the past 14 days can receive a refund for the difference in price.
Grammarly Celebrates 10th Birthday With Mission to Help us Communicate Better
Grammarly, the spelling and grammar checking application, celebrated its 10th birthday Monday. It also happens to be one of my favorite productivity tools. After a decade saving users from embarrassing typos, the company told Fast Company’s Harry McCraken that it now has a wider mission – to help people communicate better.
Like every tech company, Grammarly sees itself as having a higher calling. “It’s important to write well; it’s important to write accurately,” says Brad Hoover, the company’s CEO. “But fundamentally, the problem we’re solving is so much bigger. Communication is something that most of us do from an early age, and it both binds us together as people and tears us apart. And a tool set that helps people bridge those gaps, and connect those dots, and communicate what they mean, really does have the promise to fundamentally change how the world works.”