Faulty iPhone 6 Plus Cameras to Be Replaced Free by Apple

Apple has launched a replacement program for malfunctioning rear cameras on some iPhone 6 Plus models. The affected iPhone 6 Plus devices have a camera component failure which causes photos and video taken with the devices rear camera to appear blurry rather than focused (note Apple calls the rear camera on iPhones the iSight camera, and the front camera a FaceTime camera). Not all iPhone Plus models are impacted, and some iPhone 6 Plus devices with a repair-eligible serial number appear to take normal focused pictures.

Officially called the “iSight Camera Replacement Program for iPhone 6 Plus”, users who have the device can check their serial number on an Apple website to see if they are eligible for a free rear camera repair, which is done by replacing the malfunctioning camera unit. Apple states the devices impacted by the program were mostly sold between September 2014 and January 2015.

Determining if your iPhone 6 Plus is eligible for the free camera repair program is quick and easy:

• Retrieve the iPhone 6 Plus serial number from the device by going to Settings > General > About
• Go to the iSight Camera Replacement site on Apple.com and enter your serial number to check eligibility

Assuming an iPhone 6 Plus with its camera falls within the impacted serial number range, a message stating “The serial number you entered is eligible for this program. Please choose one of the service options below.” will appear, offering you three choices to have the camera component replaced: taking the iPhone 6 Plus to an Apple Retail Store, calling Apple Technical Support, or going to an Apple Authorized Service Provider. Each option will replace the defective rear camera free of charge.

If your iPhone Plus falls into the eligible range, it is a good idea to get it repaired by Apple for free – even if the camera is currently taking normal appropriately focused photos – since it’s possible the camera could later malfunction. Additionally, as we’ve mentioned in the past, Apple often repairs other malfunctioning components at the same time as a courtesy, though that’s by no means a guarantee, and any device malfunctioning due to user abuse or damage will likely not be covered by the repair programs.

If you’re going to send your iPhone in for repair, don’t forget to back it up first, ideally to both iCloud and iTunes.

The degree of the rear cameras failure to properly focus seems to vary per effected iPhone 6 Plus, but it can range from severe inability to focus the rear camera adequately at all, to mildly blurry images in conditions where the photo taken should be crisp. An example of a blurry iPhone 6 Plus with a camera eligible for free replacement is shown below:

Another even more extreme example of a failing iPhone 6 Plus rear camera is shown below, recording an incredibly blurry and strangely out of focus video at an Apple Store, apparently taken before a repair was offered:

(Above blurry camera image from yours truly at OSXDaily.com, video from a user on Apple Support Forums)

Apple states the camera replacement program will be effective for three years after an iPhone 6 Plus first retail sale.

Why iPhones Are More Secure Than Android Phones

Here’s a dirty secret: Most Android devices never receive security updates. Ninety-five percent of Android devices can now be compromised via an MMS message, and that’s just the most high-profile bug. Google has no way to apply security patches to these devices, and manufacturers and carriers just don’t care.

The Android ecosystem is becoming a toxic hellscape of unpatched devices riddled with security holes. For comparison, when Apple’s iOS has a security hole, Apple can just update all supported iPhones with a new version. Even Windows phones are better than Android here.

Android Phones Aren’t Guaranteed to Get Security Updates

The recent Stagefright MMS bug gives us a good case study, demonstrating what happens when someone discovers a security hole in Android. Google creates patches and applies them to the main Android open source project code. Google then sends these patches out to hardware manufacturers — Samsung, HTC, Sony, LG, Motorola, Lenovo, and others. Google’s involvement ends here. They can’t force manufacturers to actually release these patches. This often seems to be where the process ends.

If a manufacturer does want to apply these patches, they have to apply them to a device’s Android code and build a new version of Android for that device. This is a separate process for every single phone and tablet that manufacturer supports. Each manufacturer then has to contact the carrier it sold the phones through and provide every individual device-specific patch to each carrier around the world. The manufacturer’s involvement ends here. Even if they go crazy and patch every single device they’re still supporting — very unlikely — they can’t force carriers to actually apply these patches

Carriers can then choose to send the new, patched build of Android to their devices, or not. If they do, there’s a good chance it’s after an extensive testing period where the security holes will continue to stick around. Even if a carrier does want to do this, there’s a good chance they’ll only want to test the update on a few flagship phones, and not older devices.

In practice, most Android devices just don’t receive security updates and are left vulnerable. Google hasn’t chosen to enforce the delivery of security updates like they enforce other things in contracts with manufacturers. Manufacturers create many, many different devices and don’t want to do the work of updating them all. Carriers ship many, many different devices and don’t want to bother testing them. Rather than delivering updates and maintaining old phones, they’d rather push customers to purchase new devices. Those security holes were fixed in the latest builds of Android, so a new device will be secure — at least until more holes are found and not patched.

Yes, that “check for updates” feature on your Android device just checks if there’s any manufacturer-and-carrier-approved updates. It’s not a reliable way to ensure you have security updates.

iPhones Are Guaranteed Timely Security Updates

The Android update model is horrifically broken. It’s not just about receiving the latest and greatest features. Instead, there’s no way to guarantee you have the current security patches. There’s really even no way to tell exactly which security holes have been patched in your device, as you depend on the manufacturer adding the patch to their custom build of Android and rolling it out to your device.

Google has tried to avoid this with Google Play Services, which automatically updates on all Android devices. But it can only do so much. All Android devices running Android 4.4.4 and older — that is, most Android devices — currently have a web browser full of security holes because Google can’t update it. And now, almost all Android devices can now be compromised with an MMS.

Really, this is terrible. Imagine if Windows laptops never received security updates from Microsoft. Instead, Microsoft would issue patches to Dell, Lenovo, HP, and other manufacturers. The manufacturer might choose to patch it or not, and if they did choose to patch it, that patch would have to be approved by the store you bought the laptop from before it reached you. Microsoft would be rightly raked over the coals for this. Instead, Microsoft releases a patch and it’s provided to users of all models of Windows PCs via Windows Update. Even Google’s own Chrome OS works this way without manufacturers getting in the way.

Want an actual guarantee of security updates for your smartphone? You pretty much have to buy an iPhone, although even Microsoft’s Windows phones are ahead of Android here. When a security hole is discovered in an iPhone, Apple can release a patch to every iPhone user all at once — even carriers don’t get in the way.

Permissions and Privacy Controls Are Better on iOS, Too

App permissions are another case where iPhones trounce Android phones. Android started out strong, offering “app permissions” — you can see what an app requires before you install it and choose not to install it. iPhones now have an improved permission system where you can actually pick and choose which data an app gets access to. Need to use an app, but don’t want to give it access to your contacts or other sensitive data? You can do this on iOS.

On Android, app permissions are more like demands — take it or leave it. Apps often ask for many more permissions than they really need to function, and you never really know whether that game you installed is uploading your contacts list to a remote server. Google is working on adding a permission control to future versions of Android, but that’s too little, too late. Such functions are currently only available in third-party custom ROMs after Google removed Android’s hidden permission manager.

iPhones actually give you control over what apps can do on your phone, exposing app permissions as helpful privacy controls anyone can understand. This helps keep your private data secure. On Android, it’s really just up to the app — you can only control whether you use that app or not.

Apple’s locked-down app store has gone overboard in banning specific types of content, but only allowing apps from an approved source does provide some additional security against malware. Most malware on Android comes from outside Google Play, often when a user downloads a pirated app and installs it. This isn’t possible without jailbreaking an iPhone. The iOS app store approval process is also a bit more rigorous, involving a person who actually tests the app rather than an automated algorithm.

iPhone 6S to Launch on September 9, According to New Report

Apple will unveil the next iPhone at an event “likely” scheduled for September 9, according to a new report from Buzzfeed. Additionally, the report claims Apple may launch an iPad Pro with a 12.9″ display, and a new Apple TV product at the iPhone event.

The next iPhone, presumed to be called iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, is said to include a faster processor, more RAM, an improved camera, and a Force Touch display. The device will likely be offered in the same screen sizes as the existing models, available in 4.7″ and 5.5″.

The same Buzzfeed report also mentions that Apple may debut a new Apple TV product with Siri voice control on the new iPhone launch day, though it should be noted that Buzzfeed had previously claimed the new Apple TV would launch in June earlier this year, which came and went without the products unveiling.

Earlier in the year, a report from reputable Wall Street Journal and New York Times suggested that a subscription service with Apple TV would arrive in September of this year, which would better align with the new reporting from Buzzfeed. Nonetheless, these are mostly rumors, so it may be wise to take the iPad Pro and new Apple TV claim with somewhat of a grain of salt, though the likelihood of a early to mid September unveiling for the next iPhone is very high, as it follows the precedent Apple long ago set for new iPhone releases in the early fall.

As Apple usually unveils the final version of new system software along with new iPhone hardware, this also suggests that iOS 9, OS X El Capitan 10.11, and WatchOS 2 will also be launched to the public on or around September 9. Previously, Apple has stated new trio of new OS releases would be available in fall of 2015. Each of those operating systems will be available as free downloads for compatible hardware.

iOS 8.4.1 Beta 2 Released

The second beta version of iOS 8.4.1 has been released to users in the registered developer program. The 12H318 build arrives a few weeks after the first beta of iOS 8.4.1, and the public release of iOS 8.4

No notable features or changes are mentioned with iOS 8.4.1 suggesting the final release will be a simple update focused on bug fixes, security enhancements, and other minor changes to the operating system for iPhones, iPads, and iPod touch.

Users who are eligible to receive the beta build can find it available now from the Software Update mechanism in iOS Settings. IPSW files for a manual update can be downloaded from the iOS Developer Center at Apple.com as well.

There is no known timeline for iOS 8.4.1 final release, though typically betas go through several versions before a final version is available.

Separately, iOS 9 betas are available for public beta users and developers, versioned as public beta 2 and developer beta 4. iOS 9 includes a variety of new features and other notable changes, making it a much more significant update when it arrives as a final version later this year in the fall.

New BlackBerry Venice render shows up: Android Lollipop and curved screen visible

BlackBerry might soon release a high-end Android slider with a curved Quad HD display. Currently known as BlackBerry Venice, the device is expected to be officially introduced in November, with AT&T being one of the carriers to offer it. 

Last month, we saw a few images that reportedly showed the Venice running BlackBerry OS 10, and today we can take a look at a new render, this time showing the handset running Android Lollipop. 

Posted by @evleaks, the new render reveals the Venice when it's closed (thus without its sliding keyboard out). The handset's display - possibly a 5.4-inch one - is curved on the right and left sides, similar to the screen of the Samsung Galaxy S6 edge. We can also notice a front-facing speaker, a microUSB port, a 3.5 mm audio jack, and two volume buttons on the right side of the device. 

Yesterday, we showed you a render of what could be another one of BlackBerry's upcoming Android smartphones. However, that was likely just a Passport running a modified version of Lollipop.

BlackBerry has yet to confirm that it's planning to release Android smartphones. However, John Chen, the company's CEO, didn't shot down all the rumors about this, saying that BlackBerry would launch an Android smartphone if it could make it "secure enough."

Take a look at the alleged BlackBerry Venice below, and let us know if you like what you're seeing.

One of BlackBerry's upcoming Android phones may look like this

What we're seeing below might be the lower half of one of BlackBerry's upcoming Android smartphones.Recent rumors have it that the Canadian company is getting ready to launch at least two Android-based handsets this year. One of them, codenamed BlackBerry Venice, should be a high-end slider with a curved Quad HD screen, while another one, codenamed BlackBerry Prague, is expected to resemble the low-end BlackBerry Z3.

But the device seen in the render below - posted today on Twitter by @evleaks - doesn't look like a slider, and neither like the Z3. Instead, it seems to resemble the BlackBerry Passport, which, just like this new handset, has a 3-row hardware QWERTY keyboard. If this is indeed a Passport-like handset, it's probably going to be a pretty wide device with high-end features (and also a high price). 

The software buttons that can be noticed on the handset's display suggest that this BlackBerry is running Android Lollipop. Unfortunately, for now there's not much else that we know about the device. 

Last month, BlackBerry CEO John Chen talked about the possibility of launching Android smartphones, mentioning that it would build one only if it could make it "secure enough." Seeing all the latest rumors, and now this new render, we're inclined to believe that BlackBerry managed to make Android as secure as it wanted to. We assume BlackBerry will soon announce something about all this.

Quad-HD Windows 10 phone, possibly the Lumia 940 XL, confirmed through ad network

Smartphones running on Microsoft's Windows software have been noticeably adrift of their Android-based competitors when it comes to tech. specs. Octa-core chips and several gigs of RAM -- commonplace among devices running KitKat and Lollipop -- aren't so abundant in the Windows Phone market, which is largely attributable to the fact that the software doesn't support such grandiose hardware. But with Windows 10 Mobile, things will be changing, and as well as higher-powered innards, better-than-FHD displays will exceed the 1080p output of most current Windows Phone high-enders. After numerous rumors of Windows 10's first quad-HD smartphone, we now have evidence to suggest that such a device is in development, and it could well be the enigmatic Lumia 940 XL. 

We've seen a number of concept renders of the would-be flagship Lumia 940 XL, and have also heard that it may pack an iris scanner. But while rumors and concepts are great and all, solid evidence is a lot easier to get excited about, and AdDuplex has confirmed that a device with a quad-HD, 1440 x 2560 resolution is in the works.

The new 'Microsoft RM-1100' was picked up on AdDuplex's ad network a few days back, but while we do know of the apparent resolution, there are no dimensions at this point. It has been suggested, however, that the Lumia 940 XL will include a 5.7-inch display, which is in line with most other phablets on the market. There will also, as per the rumor mill, be an octa-core processor. 

AdDuplex's findings also point to a device named 'Microsoft RM-1104', which has a 5.2-inch 1080p display. This is almost certainly the standard Lumia 940, and underlines the notion that the larger handset be the king amongst men in the Windows space. 

Aside from the heavy processor and super-sharp display, the Lumia 940 XL may also bundle a stylus of some description. There could also be a 25-megapixel rear-facing PureView shooter with 4K video, and whatever happens with the rest of the device, you can bank on the camera being a top-notch affair. 

Samsung Galaxy S5 Neo rumored specs include Exynos 7580 SoC, 16MP rear camera

According to a new report published today, the Samsung Galaxy S5 Neo is already being made available for pre-orders by some Czech retail stores. As we wrote earlier this month, the device is a mid-ranger powered by Sammy's new Exynos 7580 SoC. The chipset comes with an octa-core CPU featuring eight Cortex A-53 cores and a maximum clock speed of 1.6GHz. The Mali-T720 GPU crunches the graphics. Despite the higher model number, this is not quite as powerful as the octa-core Exynos 5422 SoC or the quad-core Snapdragon 801 SoC that poweres the Samsung Galaxy S5.

The Galaxy S5 Neo will also come with a 5.1-inch Super AMOLED screen with a 1080 x 1920 resolution. 2GB of RAM is inside with 16GB of expandable memory. A 16MP camera adorns the back of the handset, and a 2800mAh battery keeps the lights on. Android 5.1 is pre-installed. 

As we noted, the phone is available to be pre-ordered in the Czech Republic priced at the equivalent of $490 USD. One retailer in the region is listing a delivery date of July 3rd.

BlackBerry 10.3.2 update starts to surface

Earlier this month, we told you that all BlackBerry 10 models would soon start to receive the BlackBerry OS 10.3.2 update. Based on images published this morning, it would appear that the latest build of BlackBerry 10 has started rolling out. Weighing in at 369MB, the file contains BlackBerry 10.3.2.440 to be precise, and includes a number of new features and bug fixes.

The update brings enhancements to your Berry's rear camera. With the update, the camera will take better pictures under low-light conditions even when the auto-mode setting is employed. Face detection is improved and you should notice a reduction in blurs caused by motion. The update allows you to specify the events that will activate the Meeting Mode feature that silences your 'Berry during a meeting. You can add events listed on your calendar to the ignore list. And in month view, the calendar will show big and small date numbers depending on how heavy or light your schedule is for a particular date. This tells you at a glance how busy you will be for a particular month. 

The BlackBerry OS 10.3.2 update adds a new UI for BlackBerry Blend, making it easier and faster to view the content of your phone over a desktop PC. There is a new spell check feature and the update gives you the ability to directly respond to a pop up notification from Blend. BlackBerry Protect will now allow someone with a lost or stolen BlackBerry to disable the device so that it can't be wiped and re-used. The owner of a lost Berry will be able to write directions on the screen so that someone honest who stumbles across a lost unit, can return it to the rightful owner. And a new feature will allow the owner of a lost or stolen BlackBerry to remotely send a signal to the device that will result in the phone making a loud noise, helping you find it.

It appears that those who purchased their BlackBerry from the company's own shop.BlackBerry.com website are getting first crack at BlackBerry 10.3.2. If you bought your 'Berry directly from BlackBerry, keep your eyes peeled for the notification telling you that the OS update is ready to be downloaded and installed on your phone.

Android Is “Open” and iOS Is “Closed” — But What Does That Mean to You?

If there’s something everything seems to agree on, it’s that Google’s Android is more “open” and Apple’s iOS is a more “closed” operating system. Here’s what that actually means to you.

“Open” vs. “closed” means a lot of things, from the source code to the app store to how much the operating system allows you to customize and tweak things.

Open-Source (Partially) vs. Closed-Source

Android is “open” in a variety of ways. For one thing, the Android operating system is based on code from the “Android Open Source Project,” or AOSP. It’s open-source, so people can take that source code and create custom operating systems from it. CyanogenMod is a custom ROM based on this code, for example. Amazon’s Fire OS, used on the Kindle Fire and Fire Phone, is also based on this open-source Android code.

However, more and more of Android comes in the form of closed-source applications and APIsfrom Google Play Services. “Android” can mean several things. It’s an open-source operating system (AOSP), yes. But what most people think of as “Android” complete with all the Google bits is only a partially open-source operating system. And most phones ship with a locked bootloader — some may not let you unlock it without taking advantage of a security vulnerability, so installing your own preferred Android OS may be harder than you might think.

On the other hand, Apple’s iOS is closed-source. Yes, it has some open-source bits, but the vast majority of the operating system is closed-source. There’s no real possibility of making a new operating system from it.

What This Means To You: If you desperately want custom ROMs for your phone and want to mess around with this sort of thing, Android is for you. If you don’t, iOS is fine. And here’s an unfortunate truth: one of the big reasons to install a custom ROM is to get a more modern version of Android on a phone no longer being supported by its manufacturer. This isn’t a concern with iOS.

On Android, you can flip a switch to install apps from “unknown sources.” This lets you install applications from outside Google Play, which is Google’s app store. Even if Google doesn’t approve of an app, you can install it from elsewhere. Google is also less restrictive about apps in their own app store.

On iOS, you can only install applications from Apple’s App Store. If Apple doesn’t want to approve an app or they remove it from the app store, you just can’t use it. “Sideloading” unapproved apps require jailbreaking, which is a headache.

What This Means To You: Depending on what you want to do on your phone, this can be an actual concern. For example, Apple’s app store doesn’t allow video game emulators, BitTorrent clients, and other types of apps they consider controversial. For example, Apple bans games with controversial content from the app store.

Realistically, most people probably won’t run up against these limitations. But if you plan on using video game emulators and other sorts of controversial apps, you’ll probably want to get an Android phone instead of an iPhone.

Customizability and Flexibility

Historically, Android phones have been more flexible. Android apps have access to a full file system, can communicate each other via the Share feature, change the home screen launcher, swap out your keyboard, set themselves as default apps, and do many, many other things. For example, some apps can actually run over top of other apps. You can place widgets all over your home screen. You could install a third-party launcher and an icon theme to totally change how your home screen and the app icons on it appear.

iOS is more limited. Apps don’t have as much power available to them and are restricted from communicating with each other. Over the years, Apple has improved on this. Apps can do more in the background and iOS 8 adds a share feature, third-party keyboards, and widgets that run in the notification center rather than on the home screen.

What This Means To You: iOS is still more limited, but features like widgets, sharing between apps, apps running in the background, and third-party keyboards have now arrived in iOS. If you want to make your entire home screen and lock screen work in a different way, you’ll need an Android phone. But iOS offers a lot of flexibility without going completely overboard.

However, Apple’s iOS still doesn’t allow you to choose your default web browser, email client, mapping app, and other default apps — that’s still a bit of an annoyance if you prefer other apps.

Rooting vs. Jailbreaking

Despite all the power Android offers, lots of features are locked behind “rooting.” You’ll need root access to really take advantage of all the power Android enthusiasts trumpet. On most phones, rooting actually requires taking advantage of a security vulnerability. On some phones — Google’s Nexus phones, for example — it’s easy to bypass the security and do what you like. But Google still doesn’t like rooting, and Android updates will remove your root access.

Apple users who want unapproved apps, tweaks, and more in-depth access to iOS have to “jailbreak” the operating system. This is actually similar to rooting in some ways — it requires exploiting a security hole in iOS. Once you’ve performed a jailbreak, you can’t necessarily upgrade to a new version of iOS. You’ll need to wait for a jailbreak to be released for it first or you’ll lose all your jailbreak tweaks.

What This Means to You: It’s usually easier to root Android than jailbreak iOS. Be sure to choose a phone that’s easy to root if this matters to you.

So, ultimately, what does it matter? For most people, it honestly doesn’t matter much. iOS is offering more and more flexibility with each passing version. Google’s Android isn’t a completely open platform — for something completely open-source, you might want to look at Ubuntu for phones or Firefox OS.

On the other hand, if you’re someone who wants to customize every little thing about your device, tweaking low-level things, and installing random apps Apple may not approve of, an Android phone is still a more flexible platform for that.

It’s impossible to cover every aspect of this debate in a single post, but this gives you some idea of what “open” and “closed” means here. Over the years, Android and iOS have grown closer to each other — with Google’s entire Android platform becoming less open-source as more things are subsumed into Google Play Services, and iOS offering more power and flexibility to apps and users.

Microsoft to buy BlackBerry for $7 billion?

Last week, we told you that rumors have started up once again concerning a possible acquisition of BlackBerry. This time, prospective suitors include Microsoft, Xiaomi, Huawei, and Lenovo. Back in January, it was Samsung that was said to have the hots for the struggling manufacturer and a price of $7.5 billion was even bandied about. But BlackBerry denied that it had been approached, and an offer from Samsung never materialized.

Today, there is speculation that Microsoft is about to make a $7 billion offer for BlackBerry. That would amount to a 26% premium for the stock, or a price of $13.23. BlackBerry's shares closed Friday at $10.48. 

Recent reports indicate that the BlackBerry Passport and BlackBerry Classic aren't selling well and the company has just instituted a round of job cuts. Any buyer would be interested in BlackBerry for its reputation in secure communications and for the company's enterprise sales.

Back in 2013, BlackBerry's largest shareholder, Fairfax Financial, agreed to take the company private in a $4.7 billion deal. But the deal fell through which lead to the removal of Thorsten Heins as CEO. Heins was replaced by John Chen.

Apple talks with musicians about exclusive streaming deals for its revamped Beats Music service

When the next iOS update is released, it should come with Apple's revamped Beats Music feature. Apple purchased Beats for $3 billion in May of last year, and speculation has the tech titan offering a $9.99 a month streaming music service for individuals and a $14.99 plan for families. Looking to compete against such popular music streamers as Spotify, Apple is hoping to sign up certain musicians to exclusivity deals.

For example, a report is circulating that Apple is in talks with Florence and the Machine to get the limited streaming rights to a track off the group's next album, which will drop in June. Other artists like Taylor Swift are said to be in talks with Cupertino about a partnership. Swift pulled her latest album, "1989," off of Spotify when the streaming service refused to restrict cuts from her album to its paid service. Of the 60 million people subscribed to Spotify, 25% pay $9.99 a month for ad-free streaming. The paid service also includes some features not found with its free tier of service. YouTube also started an ad-free streaming service called Music Key which also is priced at $9.99 monthly.

Apple is hoping that consumers will be willing to shell out the monthly fee for Beats Music to hear certain tunes that won't be streamed anywhere else. Besides facing competition from Spotify, YouTube and others, Jay Z's new Tidal is also looking to take advantage of exclusivity deals with popular artists. The streaming music service has a big advantage over Apple since its co-owners include Rihanna and Beyonce. Both stars are promoting exclusive tunes for Tidal subscribers. The streamer charges $9.99 a month for a standard subscription, with a special high-fidelity stream offered for $19.99 a month. Singer Alicia Keys is also a part owner in Tidal which she says, "puts the power back in the artists’ hands."

Where Apple has an advantage is with the large installed base of iPhone, iPad and soon Apple Watch owners who could be called upon by Apple to subscribe to the new Beats Music. Apple is apparently looking to push its revised streaming service at the right time. Streaming music revenue was higher than CD sales for the first time ever this year. By next year, streaming revenue should exceed music downloads, which has been in a steady decline.

Samsung Galaxy Blade edge is the world's first smart knife, phone capabilities included

Samsung today introduced the Galaxy Blade edge, a smart knife (the first in the world) that offers smartphone capabilities. The Blade edge comes with all the features of the Galaxy S6 - including Android, the latest TouchWiz UI, and a great camera that's always ready to take photos of your delicious food. With its ceramic body and its razor-sharp diamond edge, the new Galaxy can be successfully used as a kitchen knife. It comes with a foldable handle that can, upon request, be made out of premium olivewood, ceramic, stainless steel, or even mammoth tusk.

Thanks to Samsung Knox, the Blade edge is a safe knife. It's got a finger detection mechanism that prevents it from cutting human skin, while anti-virus protection alerts you whenever unwanted germs are detected in your ingredients. In addition, the Galaxy Blade edge is waterproof and fireproof, and includes a stylus that can function as a thermometer, or as a baking tool. Samsung designed an Ultra 4D Curved Flash to be used as the main memory of the Galaxy Blade edge. 

All in all, Samsung believes that the Galaxy Blade edge should be the ultimate kitchen tool for modern chefs who, thanks to the new device, no longer need to buy smartphones and knifes as separate products. 

It's already April 1 in South Korea, which means the Galaxy Blade edge is just one of Samsung's April Fools' Day pranks. Or at least that's what the company wants us to believe (you can never know what's really cooking in its secret R&D labs).

BlackBerry Reports Fiscal Q4 Net Profit of $28 Million

BlackBerry Ltd posted better-than-expected quarterly earnings on Friday, offering signs its turnaround efforts may be beginning to gain traction, but a larger-than-expected drop in revenue worried investors.

The stock seesawed in premarket trading, reflecting the mixed investor sentiment. The stock initially rose sharply, then fell into negative territory. It was up 4.8 percent at $9.75 at 8 a.m. EDT (1200 GMT) on Nasdaq.

Waterloo, Ontario-based BlackBerry reported net profit of $28 million, or 5 cents a share, in the fourth quarter ended February 28. That compared with a year-earlier loss of $148 million, or 28 cents a share.

Excluding one-time items, quarterly profit was $20 million, or 4 cents a share. Analysts, on average, expected a loss of 4 cents a share, according to Thomson Reuters.

Quarterly revenue, however, slid to $660 million from $793 million, and was well below Wall Street expectations of $786.4 million.

"BlackBerry continues to do a good job controlling operating expenses and eliminating its cash burn during its business transition, but the total revenue was still a big miss and we still have concerns about the demand side of the equation," said Morningstar analyst Brian Colello.

Software revenue rose 20 percent from a year earlier to $67 million. Analysts view this an important metric, given the ongoing transition to a more software-driven revenue stream, from its more traditional hardware- and services-driven model.

"It's a good start, they are looking for a more meaningful ramp in the middle of the fiscal 2016, but certainly it's a good start," Colello said. "It's an early good sign."

The company reported positive cash flow of $76 million in the quarter, compared with a cash burn of $784 million a year ago. Its cash position rose to $3.27 billion in the fourth quarter, from $3.1 billion in the third quarter.

Samsung Galaxy S6 edge gets thrown on the floor but survives this violent drop test

Samsung built its new flagship phone from scratch after the Samsung Galaxy S5 was deemed a disappointment by phone buyers. The Samsung Galaxy S6 edge has a metal frame sandwiched by two pieces of Gorilla Glass 4, one in the front and one in the back. While giving the Samsung Galaxy S6 edge a new cool design, it does mean that the phone could be in pretty bad shape if it is dropped. How much protection can Gorilla Glass 4 provide? Perhaps a new video gives us the answer.

A low-resolution clip has been uploaded to YouTube showing a woman apparently taking out her frustrations on a Samsung Galaxy S6 edge. Perhaps she is upset with the news that Zayn Malik has left One Direction. Or maybe she's pissed that her local McDonald's stopped serving the McRib. Whatever the reason, she throws the handset to the ground with a speed that makes us recall Bob Gibson in his prime.

Despite the rather hard throw, a quick test shows that the Galaxy S6 edge has survived. It is hard to tell from the video, but it appears that there is no damage to the phone whatsoever. As we get closer to the launch of the device on April 10th, we probably will see more elaborate drop tests and water tests. Remember, because of the new build the Samsung Galaxy S6 lost the IP67 certification that it had last year, meaning that the Galaxy S5 could survive being submerged in up to 3.3 feet of water and emerge unscathed. That is not the case with the new models.

Have butterfingers and worry that if you buy the Galaxy S6 edge it will end up shattered on the floor? Perhaps watching the embedded video below will help you get over this thinking.

BlackBerry releases official video showing off the new BlackBerry Leap

Earlier this month, the BlackBerry Leap was introduced. This is a handset with a 5-inch screen offering a resolution of 720 x 1280. A dated dual-core 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 Pro CPU is under the hood with the Adreno 225 GPU handling graphics. 2GB of RAM is inside along with 16GB of native storage. Those who need additional memory can turn to the 128GB microSD slot on board. The back and front-facing cameras weigh in at 8MP and 2MP, respectively and a 2800mAh battery keeps the lights on for up to 25 hours. BlackBerry 10.3.1 is pre-installed to keep you "secure and productive."

This is certainly not a new high-end model, and BlackBerry has produced a video showing off the features of the handset. The unit offers the latest and greatest build of BlackBerry 10. BlackBerry Assistant is included as is the BlackBerry Blend app that allows you to view the content of your phone on a PC. The BlackBerry Leap is expected to be launched as soon as next month, priced at roughly $200 unlocked.

For those waiting for BlackBerry's next flagship model, there is talk about a new device being prepped with hideable QWERTY keys. But this model could still be quite a ways down the road. If you want to see something that is official and will soon be launched, check out the BlackBerry Leap by clicking on the video below.

Apple granted patent for a breakthrough camera invention – future iPhones may have zoom lens, more efficient OIS

Apple hasn't been neglecting the camera in its iPhones, making it noticeably better with each next iteration of its flagship. The snapper of the iPhone 6 and especially the iPhone 6 Plus, which is a bit better at photography, is among the top performers in the field, though, bested by Samsung's Note 4 (and we are expecting great things from the Galaxy S6). However, Cupertino will not be giving up on the race, it seems, as it has applied for, and has been granted, a patent on a new type of tech that will allow for zoom lens to be sticked into the small body of a smartphone, and could possibly employ an innovative take on optical image stabilization (OIS).

In order to achieve this, Apple's engineers came up with an L-shaped camera module – the sensor does not face directly outwards, as it does in today's smartphones, rather – the light first enters a pyramid-like polyhedron glass piece, which has a reflecting surface at its very bottom. This component will be redirecting the light down the tube of the L-shape where it will be met by the zoom lens. Finally, a light splitter behind the lens will split the incident light from the shot scene into three colors, which will then be picked up by three separate sensors – one for each color.

As for OIS – Apple has noted that the reflector behind the polyhedron could be a folding mirror, which would mean that the reflector itself could be moved around in order to make up for camera shakes, instead of the sensor.

When would we see this tech? It's still too early to say, but if we had to wager, we'd say – not on 2015's iPhones, for sure.

Apple iPhone 6 was the most popular device last quarter says new report by Good Technology

Good Technology's Mobility-index report for the fourth quarter has some interesting revelations. The report says that led by the Apple iPhone 6and Apple iPhone 6 Plus, iOS accounted for 73% of new activations in the fourth quarter of 2014. That is up from the 69% share that the platform scored in the third quarter. Android activations accounted for 25% of the total during the three month period, down from the 29% share the platform had in the third quarter. Windows Phone and Surface activations continue to represent just 1% of the total.

Keep in mind that Good Technology's numbers come from its customers, which are businesses and governments. The data used in the report came from its clients who activated five or more handsets during the quarter. Because BlackBerry uses only the BES corporate email service, the report does not offer any trends related to BlackBerry handsets.

According to the report, the Apple iPhone 6 is the most popular handset. Together with its big brother the Apple iPhone 6 Plus, the pair accounted for 30% of all smartphone activations during the last three months of 2014. The 4.7-inch iPhone 6 remains more popular than the 5.5-inch iOS phablet, capturing 77% of fourth quarter activations between the two.

Samsung dominated the Android landscape in the fourth quarter, producing nine of the top ten Android powered handsets activated during the period. The Samsung Galaxy S4 mini topped the Android activations list from October through December, with other Samsung Galaxy S4 and Samsung Galaxy S5 variants high on the list.

As you might expect, each platform had different pockets of strength. Apple's iOS was strong in industries that are regulated. For example, during the quarter Apple's mobile OS had a 95% share in the Legal industry, owned 82% of the Public Sector and 81% of the Financial industry. During the same time frame, Android captured a 45% share of phones activated in High-Tech, 39% of the handsets in Manufacturing and 35% in Transportation. The Microsoft Surface Pro 3 has helped the Surface line pick up some interest in Finance, Professional Services and Insurance. The report notes that the top three industries that "lightly" adopted Windows Phone in the quarter were Business and Professional Services, Financial Services and Manufacturing.

The report also says that Secure IM was the leading app by usage on smartphones during the fourth quarter of 2014, followed closely by Secure Browser apps. On tablets, Document Editing was on top followed by Document Access. App adoption was up 65% sequentially and 300% year-over-year.

Here’s How an Attacker Can Bypass Your Two-Factor Authentication

Two-factor authentication systems aren’t as foolproof as they seem. An attacker doesn’t actually need your physical authentication token if they can trick your phone company or the secure service itself into letting them in.

Additional authentication is always helpful. Although nothing offers that perfect security we all want, using two-factor authentication puts up more obstacles to attackers who want your stuff.

Your Phone Company is a Weak Link

The two-step authentication systems on many websites work by sending a message to your phone via SMS when someone tries to log in. Even if you use a dedicated app on your phone to generate codes, there’s a good chance your service of choice offers to let people log in by sending an SMS code to your phone. Or, the service may allow you to remove the two-factor authentication protection from your account after confirming you have access to a phone number you configured as a recovery phone number.

This all sounds fine. You have your cell phone, and it has a phone number. It has a physical SIM card inside it that ties it to that phone number with your cell phone provider. It all seems very physical. But, sadly, your phone number isn’t as secure as you think.

If you’ve ever needed to move an existing phone number to a new SIM card after losing your phone or just getting a new one, you’ll know what you can often do it entirely over the phone — or perhaps even online. All an attacker has to do is call your cell phone company’s customer service department and pretend to be you. They’ll need to know what your phone number is and know some personal details about you. These are the kinds of details — for example, credit card number, last four digits of an SSN, and others — that regularly leak in big databases and are used for identity theft. The attacker can try to get your phone number moved to their phone.

There are even easier ways. Or, For example, they can get call forwarding set up on the phone company’s end so that incoming voice calls are forwarded to their phone and don’t reach yours.

Heck, an attacker might not need access to your full phone number. They could gain access to your voice mail, try to log in to websites at 3 a.m., and then grab the verification codes from your voice mailbox. How secure is your phone company’s voice mail system, exactly? How secure is your voice mail PIN — have you even set one? Not everyone has! And, if you have, how much effort would it take for an attacker to get your voice mail PIN reset by calling your phone company?

With Your Phone Number, It’s All Over

Your phone number becomes the weak link, allowing your attacker to remove two-step verification from your account — or receive two-step verification codes — via SMS or voice calls. By the time you realize something is wrong, they can have access to those accounts.

This is a problem for practically every service. Online services don’t want people to lose access to their accounts, so they generally allow you to bypass and remove that two-factor authentication with your phone number. This helps if you’ve had to reset your phone or get a new one and you’ve lost your two-factor authentication codes — but you still have your phone number.

Theoretically, there’s supposed to be a lot of protection here. In reality, you’re dealing with the customer service people at cellular service providers. These systems are often set up for efficiency, and a customer service employee may overlook some of the safeguards faced with a customer who seems angry, impatient, and has what seems like enough information. Your phone company and its customer service department are a weak link in your security.

Protecting your phone number is hard. Realistically, cellular phone companies should provide more safeguards to make this less risky. In reality, you probably want to do something on your own instead of waiting for big corporations to fix their customer service procedures. Some services may allow you to disable recovery or reset via phone numbers and warn against it profusely — but, if it’s a mission-critical system, you may want to choose more secure reset procedures like reset codes you can lock in a bank vault in case you ever need them.

Other Reset Procedures

It’s not just about your phone number, either. Many services allow you to remove that two-factor authentication in other ways if you claim you’ve lost the code and need to log in. As long as you know enough personal details about the account, you may be able to get in.

Try it yourself — go to the service you’ve secured with two-factor authentication and pretend you’ve lost the code. See what it takes to get in. You may have to provide personal details or answer insecure “security questions” in the worst case scenario. It depends on how the service is configured. You may be able to reset it by emailing a link to another email account, in which case that email account may become a weak link. In an ideal situation, you may just need access to a phone number or recovery codes — and, as we’ve seen, the phone number part is a weak link.

Here’s something else scary: It’s not just about bypassing two-step verification. An attacker could try similar tricks to bypass your password entirely. This can work because online services want to ensure people can regain access to their accounts, even if they lose their passwords.

For example, take a look at the Google Account Recovery system. This is a last-ditch option for recovering your account. If you claim to not know any passwords, you’ll eventually be asked for information about your account like when you created it and who you frequently email. An attacker who knows enough about you could theoretically use password-reset procedures like these to get access to your accounts.

We’ve never heard of Google’s Account Recovery process being abused, but Google isn’t the only company with tools like this. They can’t all be entirely foolproof, especially if an attacker knows enough about you.

Whatever the problems, an account with two-step verification set up will always be more secure than the same account without two-step verification. But two-factor authentication is no silver bullet, as we’ve seen with attacks that abuse the biggest weak link: your phone company.

DisplayMate: Galaxy S6 has the best smartphone display ever

The Samsung Galaxy S6 is probably the most anxiously anticipated Android smartphone of the year. Samsung’s device releases are always a big deal, but this year the company has rethought how it makes smartphones. The Galaxy S6 is slimmer, faster, and more attractive than its predecessor. Part of that is a new generation of Samsung’s industry-leading AMOLED panels with a resolution of 2560×1440 at 5.1-inches, which Raymond Soneira of DisplayMate has had a chance to evaluate. The verdict? It’s the best display you can get on a smartphone.

AMOLED screens have overcome a myriad of challenges over the last few years to catch up to LCDs in clarity, reflectivity, and color accuracy. Screens like the ones used on the original Galaxy S were noticeably too warm and had low maximum brightness. The high reflectivity of AMOLED screens also made them almost useless outdoors. Samsung has been solving these problems step-by-step with each new generation of screen tech, and the Galaxy S5 from last year was a breakthrough. Still, the Galaxy S6 improves on its numbers markedly.

The logical resolution of the Galaxy S6’s screen is 2560×1440, but as Soneira points out, Samsung is using a PenTile array to get there. That means there are only half the number of red and blue sub-pixels compared to green ones, but the extremely high density of the panel combined with Samsung’s use of diamond-shaped sub-pixels makes the individual elements almost completely invisible. According to the analysis, you’d need to have perfect vision and hold the phone six inches from your face to see even a hint of the individual pixels.

Samsung builds several rendering modes into its software to tweak the colors. There’s adaptive mode, photo mode, and basic mode. Adaptive mode uses the device’s light sensors to adjust the display performance to look more vivid. This knocks it out of line with the calibrated RGB gamut, but some people are into that. Photo mode gets as close to the Adobe RGB values as possible, and DisplayMate’s analysis shows it’s an almost perfect match. It’s even a little better than the iPhone 6’s LCD. Basic mode is a little more dull, but produces more true-to-life colors.

When it comes to a mobile device, battery life is often the usage bottleneck. You can have the best screen in the world, but it won’t matter if it drains too much power. AMOLEDs used to be notorious for guzzling electrons like there was no tomorrow, but Samsung has dramatically improved matters. Average display power on the GS6 is a mere 0.65 watts. That’s down from 0.82 watts for the Galaxy S5 and compares quite favorably to the 1.52 watts of average power used by the iPhone 6. That’s 23 percent better power efficiency for Samsung.

As LCD resolution increases, it takes more light to shine through the smaller pixels. Light from AMOLED screens is produced in the pixels themselves, so they don’t suffer from the same problems. Samsung manages above average brightness of 348 cd/m2. That’s better than the GS5, but still short of the iPhone’s 566 cd/m2 brightness.

Soneira suggests that LCDs are falling behind in the technological arms race, and manufacturers need to adopt new technologies like quantum dots and dynamic color management to stay competitive with Samsung’s AMOLED panels. You can’t argue with the numbers, and by most metrics, the Galaxy S6 is going to have the best screen around.