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Month: June 2018

  • Ongoing Security Measures from Apple May Not Be Enough

    Ongoing Security Measures from Apple May Not Be Enough

    Apple’s newest moves to protect their users from data tracking were on showcase at their WWDC conference. Privacy experts largely praised their attempts to block “device fingerprinting” and keep users from being tracked by sites. Sadly, many say, their efforts likely aren’t enough. The biggest issues are logistics. Consumer data is a huge target and covering it adequately would be like making sure no trees were ever cut down. Not to mention, companies like Facebook and Google make billions of dollars by tracking users for targeted advertising. While criminals tracking users are a problem, they’re largely piggybacking on techniques made by legitimate companies. As such, Apple is largely fighting a losing battle. 

    The Age of Paranoia 

    People are quite aware of the ways their data is being collected and used against them now. Namely, Facebook’s notorious Cambridge Analytica breach is a prime example. In our age, people are paranoid of any misuse of their data. Yet, they’re not taking advantage of the tools that could protect them. Companies that create counter-tracking software report that there are depressingly few people using their countermeasures.  

    Similarly, Apple’s counter-tracking measures, while valiant, aren’t enough to truly hinder the vast number of different tracking devices on the web. Google’s Android operating system is more popular by number of users and offers no such protections. This allows the trackers to propagate and refine themselves even though most users are aware of them. 

    The Age of Apathy 

    The worst part? The average users don’t even care that their data is being tracked. Nearly every website has Google or Facebook trackers embedded. And there are hundreds of companies you’ve likely never heard of that are also tracking you. As such, it’s easy to get overwhelmed and feel apathetic in the face of the countless ways your data is being collected. And it’s that very apathy that empowers these companies to keep harvesting your data and targeting you with ads.  

    Companies like Apple Aren’t the Norm 

    Even worse, Apple is nearly alone in Silicon Valley in opposing these practices. Their biggest direct competitor is Google, and Google is the most egregious offender in data collection. As much as Apple tries to defend their own consumers, they’re fighting an uphill battle. Thankfully, smaller companies like Ghostery are on the case, too, but they’re vastly outnumbered.  

    Ghostery, for their part, has turned to artificial intelligence to help shore up countermeasures for tracking software. Perhaps Apple will take a similar track and use the strongest tools of the data harvesters against them? In the meantime, be careful with your sensitive data, and consider getting a plug-in like Ghostery for your browser! 

  • Vivo Nex: A Phone from the Future

    Vivo Nex: A Phone from the Future

    Vivo has announced their Nex phone, a futuristic and incredible concept. The phone features a massive display, coming in at an astonishing 6.59 inches. The phone also has no notch and an in-screen fingerprint scanner. How cool is that? Let’s get into some of the details. 

    Who’s Nex? 

    The Nex phone has a lot of interesting and innovative technologies in play. The first is the in-screen fingerprint scanner. Vivo has had varying degrees of success with such scanners in the X20 and X21 phones. The scanner in the X20 was superb, but the one in the X21 left something to be desired. The second innovation is the lack of a screen notch. 

    The screen notch seen on phones like the iPhone X is used to house the camera and speaker for phone calls. The Vivo Nex accomplishes this in two unique ways. The first is by using the screen itself as a speaker. This is a very interesting innovation that hasn’t been seen in any mass-production smartphones before. Early reports say that this speaker actually sounds pretty good, despite its unusual position under a phone screen. 

    Odd-Looking Selfie Camera 

    The second innovation allowing for a notch-free screen? That weird looking little nub coming out of the top corner of the phone. It’s the selfie camera! Yeah, it pops up when you activate the selfie feature. It’s about the quaintest thing going on with this complex, high-tech phone. I don’t know if this is a better option than just having a notch, but it’s certainly amusing. 

    Flagship Processor 

    The phone is also packing some serious power. It uses a Snapdragon 845 processor, which is top of the line, and sports 8 GB of RAM. It also sports 256 GB of internal storage and a huge battery, clocking in at 4,000mAh. All-in-all, this is an impressive-looking piece of hardware. 

    When Can We Try the Vivo Nex Hands-On? 

    Sadly, we don’t have a release date or a price for the Chinese smartphone yet. However, when it does launch, expect to import it, as Vivo’s phones are sold almost exclusively in China. 

    Feature Image Credit: NDTV Gadgets 

  • Looking to Start Investing? Our Ten Picks for Best Investment App

    Looking to Start Investing? Our Ten Picks for Best Investment App

    Investing in the Stock Market can be daunting. There are a ton of moving parts and the big players all seem like Wall Street types. The good news is, the age of the smartphone has made investing super simple and easy. Where once you might have had to contact a broker to be your proxy on the exchange, you can now just use an app. There are a ton of options out there, though. How do you know which investment app is the best? Well, we’ve got our ten favorites for you to check out! 

    Bloomberg 

    Photo Credit: Bloomberg 

    A well-known name in money management, Bloomberg’s app is great for investing. Combining breaking money news and investing tips, Bloomberg has it all. The app even offers personalized news, so you can watch the companies you invest in.  

    If you’re as interested in the “why” of the stock market as you are in making money off of it, try Bloomberg. 

    Benzinga

    Photo Credit: iTunes 

    Benzinga is great for investors who want insatnt information. By opening the app, you get immediate stock quotes, no need for waiting or skimming over news you don’t want. Acting as something of a punchy investment app, Benzinga is good for those who want to forge their own way. It has social media options, too, letting you share trending stock info to sites like Twitter.  

    Benzinga can also give you push notifications when news relevant to your investments breaks. It also offers some premium features for those who want a more in-depth experience. If you get the subscription you access features like live analysts to answer questions and audio news. 

    CNBC

    Photo Credit: DownloadMyMobileApp.com 

    CNBC is a great news app for those who want to see a little bit from every source. Their app is clean and user-friendly, presenting data in an immediate, digestible format. Many investors swear by the process of synthesizing news from as many sources as you can stand to read. CNBC’s app is a fantastic way to achieve such wide-ranging research without having to dig across the internet. A great resource for novices and veterans alike! 

    Fidelity Investments

    Photo Credit: iTunes 

    Fidelity Investments’ app is great for more experienced investors looking to move to something more in-depth. The app offers in-depth charts and daily video coverage of market trends. It also offers notifications for when prices go above or below certain thresholds. It has a comprehensive news section and offers multiple money-management tools. This is a great choice for those who have become more adept in their online investing! 

    Motif Explorer

    Photo Credit: The Divided Ninja 

    Motif is a cool way to introduce the stock market to people who are curious about the exchange. The app’s creators track various world events to see which could cause the market to shift. Portfolios, or motifs, based on those observations are generated. For instance, they might have a profile on clean energy, and if you invest in that motif your money would be invested in various clean energy companies. The app works to find which motifs are trending upwards and help you invest accordingly.  

    While Motif Explorer isn’t the best for large, serious investing, it is interesting for newcomers. Consider this one if you’re interested in dipping your toe in investing. 

    TD Ameritrade 

    Photo Credit: TD Ameritrade 

    This app gets a nod for being a great, bare-bones app with no frills. If you’re looking to not have your hand held and just start investing, check this one out. It offers real-time view of the stock exchange, mobile trading, fund exchange and other basic features.  

    Most notably, this app has a feature called Snapstock. This feature lets you use your phone camera to take a picture of a barcode. Then, the app pulls up the company that makes the product that barcode is attached to. That way, if you see an item in a store and think “this is going to be huge,” you can find them and invest on the fly from your phone. 

    Yahoo! Finance

    Photo Credit: Geeky Gadgets 

    Surely, you’ve heard of these guys? Jokes aside, Yahoo! Finance has a great app for beginner investors. The app has a gorgeous, clean design reminiscent of Apple’s native iPhone stocks app. The design is personalized to your investments and offers a great dashboard to see what stocks are trending. It also features news and trending stocks at a glance. All in all, this app is great for those just starting out who want to get their stock info at a glance.  

    Stock Market Simulator

    Photo Credit: APK-DI.com 

    This mock investment app is a stress-free simulator to show newbie investors the ropes. You start with $10,000 in virtual money with no value and can mock invest in an echo of the real stock market. The echo updates fifteen minutes behind the real exchange. While this isn’t meant to be a tool to predict actual investment trends, it is useful to show newcomers what the exchange looks like. It allows them to experiment without risking their actual money. 

    SigFig

     

    Photo Credit: Apptentive 

    This investment app is quite good for newcomers. SigFig offers advanced optimization tools for portfolios, helping you manage your money. You take a profile quiz to tell the app the ways you like to take risks with your money. You get a personalized investment plan, put money in the account, and off it goes. It’s like a digital broker! 

    The app also offers investment advice for first-time investors. The only downside is that it only shows you three years back of your investment, where most apps opt for five- or even ten-year retrospectives. That said, this is still an awesome choice for newcomers. 

    Our Favorite Beginner Investment App: Acorns

    Photo Credit: Cult of Mac 

    The Acorns app is pretty awesome. This investment app works by investing your loose change into a diversified portfolio. The idea is that you set it up with your credit or debit card, and then the app rounds up your regular purchases and invests the small amounts of money in accounts recommend by Harry Markowitz. Markowitz, for his part, has won a Nobel Prize for his work as an economist, so you know your money is in good hands. 

    Acorns is meant to be a “set it and forget it” service, in their COO Jeff Cruttenden’s own words. The service does have a small monthly fee, but as long as you keep small amounts of money in it, you probably won’t notice it. This service is great for those who’d like to invest but don’t know where to start. 

  • Apple’s Cryptocurrency Ban

    Apple’s Cryptocurrency Ban

    Apple is cracking down on cryptocurrency on its platform,Yes it is time for a BitCoin Panic. The new rules for Apple’s cryptocurrency ban are aimed mainly at limiting the shadier side of cryptocurrency like unregulated ICOs and mining coins on your Apple hardware. The rules apply to both computers and phones, but are more restrictive on phones because of Apple’s secure and down right oppressive mobile ecosystem.

    Apple sights the reason for Apple’s cryptocurrency ban is the excessive tool it takes on the resources of your device. The new guidelines may have been imposed over concerns regarding the longevity of the hardware and the battery. Cryptocurrency mining is a processor intensive activity that puts great demand on the hardware and the power supply. This could affect the life of both. Users casually running these applications after hearing about the cryptocurrency craze may probably have no idea the toll on their devices this mining it taking. Apple more then likely is already had to face devices damaged by mining, this would be a good prompt for  the company to decided to act so strictly on the matter.

    Apple’s cryptocurrency ban, What it Means

    So you are probably asking the big question Why? It’s part of wider restrictions against apps that drain battery, generate excessive heat, or strain a device’s resources. All of which take place during cryptocurrency mining.

    “Apps, including any third-party advertisements displayed within them, may not run unrelated background processes, such as cryptocurrency mining,” states the new policy.

    I do want to clarify that Your favorite crypto wallet app is still in the clear. Even after an update to Apple’s developer guidelines for iOS and macOS. Apple’s ban on cryptocurrency will only affect mining for cryptocurrency. Not apps that allow you to manage, hold or spend cryptocurrency.

     

    The Final Thought

    Mining on your phone or tablet is futile and utterly impossible. Bitcoins value is dropping by the hour. This is a hard hook to the jaw to Bitcoin by Apples’s ban on cryptocurrency. Not that this will have any actual effect on bitcoin other then the perception of Apple bans cryptocurrency.

  • Tech Throwback: America Online

    Tech Throwback: America Online

    I like to take a look at where I’ve been to evaluate where Im going. Technology is cyclical after all… wait no its not. That said I still like all the feels that come rushing back like a flood of nostalgia every time I get my hand on the tech I grew up with. Im going to go back periodically and take a looking at the stuff that used to blow our hair back and get our minds rolling. Some of these device blew up and changed the world, some where ahead of their time and some just fell flat and became colossal failures. Today we have not just a tech throwback, not a device or toy, but an internet revolution. The name even says it all… America Online, and that is just what happened. America went on line.

     

    And so it was America On Line or AOL as we came to designate this revolution first started out in 1983 as an online video game service for the Atari 2600. Shortly after that founder and CEO  Bill von Meister wanted to converge in to a music on demand service. The idea was squashed by Warner bros music department…

    Later in the decade, these innovative thoughts and dream has merged into an online portal for the commador 64 and apple II, called q-link. Then in August 1988, Quantum launched PC Link, a service for IBM-compatible PCs developed in a joint venture with the Tandy Corporation. After the company parted ways with Apple in October 1989, Quantum changed the service’s name to America Online. Case promoted and sold AOL as the online service for people unfamiliar with computers, in contrast to CompuServe, which was well established in the technical community.

    Its now 1991 and AOl Charged its users an hourly fee, mostly gamers where using the platform and it hosted 2 exclusive dungeons and dragons, title called Neverwinter Nights from Stormfront Studios; which was one of the first Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games to depict the adventure with graphics instead of text. Gaming was still the backbone of America Online.

    America Goes on Line With America Online

    In 1996 America Online changed its billing and pricing from an hourly rate to a 19.95 monthly fee. America responded. During this time, AOL connections would be flooded with users trying to get on, and many canceled their accounts due to constant busy signals.

    What We Remember

    BEEEEEEEE DEEEEE DEEEEE. We all remember the sound to connect, the little guy running across those little boxes to get on the line. They after a few eternal minuets, You’ve got mail… With only a handful of boxes to click on, we were blown away by all the endless information we now had at our finger tips.

    Then the Chat Rooms, oh we spent weeks of our lives during the late 90s in those rooms. The connections we discovered to random people validated our very existence. We had reached a pinnacle of society and were all now connected.

    And all those free trial disks and cds. We collected them, used them to create new account for temporary or incognito service, then

    The World at Our Finger Tips

    America Online brought us on the line, all of us, on the line. Now we are all here, what do we do with this unprecedented power? Globalization. AOL is the backbone of our world today, it set it up and paved the way for Amazon, Ebay, Napster and all of the internet companies that could turn minuet transnational profits to worldwide unimaginable wealth.

     

    The Final Thought

    It would take the world almost a decade to catch up to Americas latest boom. Instantly, due to our ingenuity, desires and “why cant we” bravado made another giant leap in society. Much like everything else in america, their was a meteoric rise, unprecedented success, and the world was forever changed overnight. The following year would see mergers and purchases, evolving in to a giant conglomerate. Today AOL is nothing more then a small branch in Telecom giant Verizon’s portfolio, but for a time it was a revolution.

     

  • Microsoft Announces Xbox Scarlett

    Microsoft Announces Xbox Scarlett

    Taking the stage at the E3, Microsoft was quickly confirmed that it was designing new Xbox hardware. Microsoft Xbox Scarlett, but when can I play it? looks like it will be a lot sooner then originally planned. Our sources have claimed that the next-gen Xbox, nicknamed Scarlett, should launch sometime in 2020. I’m guessing probably late q3 early q4 for the holiday rush.  We havent got any technical details yet, however it’s they are touting this as a “family of devices”. I hope they can find a way to bridge the console with PC gaming and make it a one stop experience.

    What Could Xbox Scarlett Be?

    The timing, if accurate, may seem unusually quick given that the Xbox One X only launched near the end of 2017. Microsoft has done slot to improve the Xbox One but it falls short of driving sales, most xboxers would just as easily go with an upgradeable gaming PC then buy a new xbox every 2 -3 years.  A Xbox Scarlett launch in 2020 might be necessary to keep pace. If Microsoft can complete that bridge and supplying me with the solo immersive and higher quality of pc gaming, with the flexibility of moving to the TV for multiplayer action and gathering, while facilitating the component upgrading to keep systems current, They may just stumble upon the next generation of inspiring gamers.

     

    While we don’t know when Sony is planning to release PlayStation 4’s successor. The company’s current system continues to far outsell the Xbox One. Recent sales estimates put the system’s total sales at around double that of the Xbox One, which can be attributed to a better library of exclusive games and the PR struggles Microsoft had with the Xbox One back in 2013.

     

    The Final Thought

    We know Xbox Scarlett is a working coded name. I’m really hoping they through us a left hook and just name it Xbox 2. I wish we had something more concrete to bring you. Specs, picture leaks, Rumors and speculations.. But relax, we will feed you baby birds, as soon as the info develops. As for now we wait…impatiently might I add

  • The Ten Coolest Games Showcased at E3 2018

    The Ten Coolest Games Showcased at E3 2018

    With Nintendo’s Direct in the books, the E3 2018 press conferences have now wrapped. There were some huge reveals from all the major players. Let’s check out some of the hottest games showcased during the show! 

    Gears of War 5 

    Photo Credit: NDTV Gadgets 

    As one of Microsoft’s flagship franchises, Gears of War has had some serious longevity. The newest entry focuses on Kait Diaz, pictured above. Kait was first introduced in Gears 4 and is a refreshing change from the monotonous macho-man mayhem the series is known for. The trailer Microsoft showed featured colorful new vistas and an arctic environment. Previous entries were criticized for their gray-and-brown color pallet, so it’s nice to see some color in the series. The trailer also showed off some interesting new monsters for the protagonists to chew through. Get ready for war! 

    Fallout 76 

    Photo Credit: ComingSoon 

    Few franchises command as much fanatic devotion as Fallout. After a teaser before the show, Bethesda unveiled more details during E3 2018. This time around, players will work together to make a settlement and defend it from monsters. Oh, and other players. In Fallout 76, all NPC are replaced by players. Those marauders looking for nuclear launch codes to wreck your settlement? Yeah, those are players. Go get ’em, hero! Or join them, if you want. Bethesda is giving players the freedom to adventure how they wish. 

    Spider Man 

    Photo Credit: GameSpot 

    Insomniac’s amazing-looking Spider Man game got a new trailer. In this game, things look rough for the web-slinger. The Raft, a floating prison for super-criminals, has had a prison break. Rhino, Scorpion, Vulture, Electro and Mister Negative are all teaming up to take down Spidey. The trailer showed off some Arkham Asylum-esque combat and fluid, fast-paced web-slinging. If any game is going to make you feel like Spider-Man, this is the one. Another killer exclusive for the PS4! Spider Man hits September 7th. 

    Super Mario Party 

    Photo Credit: VG 24/7 

    One of Nintendo’s surprise reveals this year was Super Mario Party. Showcasing board game-like play with multiple Switch systems, the game seems perfect for the hybrid console. While it has been a few years since the last Mario Party, this one seems poised to revitalize the series. This outing will be bolstered by the flexible “go-anywhere” Switch hardware. Mario Party while camping? Sure! Game night at a friend’s house? Bring your Switch! Meeting some friends for lunch one lazy Sunday? Bring Mario Party and make an afternoon of it! Nintendo is really bringing the heat to Switch this holiday season. Super Mario Party is landing on October 5th. 

    Halo Infinity 

    Photo Credit: VG 24/7 

    Halo, Microsoft’s juggernaut first-person shooter, was due for an appearance. The cutscene shown at the show looked absolutely incredible, but scant details about the story were shared. Apparently, the game will run in a new “Slipspace” Engine, designed from the ground up for Halo. The cutscene shown ran in that engine, which is assuring. While the game is likely still a year or two away, it looks exciting! Here’s hoping developer 343 Industries doesn’t repeat the narrative mistakes of Halo 5. 

    Anthem 

    Photo Credit: EA 

    BioWare’s newest project looks like a serious contender for Bungie’s Destiny. The gameplay shown looks fast-paced and exciting, and the game is gorgeous. Many have reservations about the explosions-first direction, as developer BioWare has a history of story-based games. However, the trailers shown certainly reaffirm the tight, explosive gameplay looks fun. And why else play video games than to have fun? Not to mention, the latest attempt at a story-based game by the studio was a disaster. Mass Effect: Andromeda will forever remain a black spot on developer BioWare. Hopefully they can forge a new legacy with the promising-looking Anthem. 

    Death Stranding 

    Photo Credit: Wccftech 

    Hideo Kojima-led project Death Stranding still makes no sense, but it looks awesome. Featuring Norman Reedus of Walking Dead fame as the apparent protagonist, the game seems to be a horror-exploration hybrid. The trailers so far haven’t exactly explained the plot or why exactly the main character has a baby in a tank in stasis. That said, the trailers have all been quite gripping and intense. The trailer shown at Sony’s press conference showed gameplay footage that involved traversing a gorgeous, desolate open-world. The protagonist was also shown hiding from an invisible monster with hands for feet (apparently) and avoiding shadowy, human-like monsters. And those monsters have umbilical cords, for some reason. Yeah, the game looks weird. And I can’t wait to see more. 

    Assassin’s Creed Odyssey 

    Photo Credit: Ubisoft 

    The latest entry in the long-running open-world series takes place in Hellenic Greece. Like, all of it. And a huge swath of the Mediterranean. It looks downright stunning, as one would expect from this series. This entry also introduces new RPG-like elements, allowing the player to shape the unfolding story. There are also now quests to engage in romance with NPCs, instead of just, y’know, stabbing them. With wrist-mounted knives. But don’t worry, there will still be tons of badies to shank. 

    Beyond Good and Evil 2 

    Photo Credit: Gematsu 

    Cult classic Beyond Good and Evil is finally getting a sequel! Well, a prequel, but, hey, we’ll take it. No gameplay or release dates yet, but the trailers confirm Jade and Pey’j will both return. Aside from the amazing-looking cinematic, though, we have scant few details on the game. However, Ubisoft seems dedicated to providing awesome experiences and really knocked it out of the park at E3 2018. 

    The Star of E3 2018: Super Smash Bros Ultimate 

    Photo Credit: The Verge 

    Easily the biggest game of the show, Smash Bros Ultimate promises the return of every character to ever grace the legendary series. Even Solid Snake and Pichu are back this time! Additionally, developer Masahiro Sakurai has promised this will be the biggest Smash Bros yet. The game has been made from the ground-up with new animations and mechanics for every fighter. Truly, the development team has been putting in crazy amounts of work. It looks like the game is walking the razor-thin balance of appealing to both competitive and casual players. Super Smash Bros Ultimate is sure to break records when it drops on December 7th. 

  • Washington First State to Pass Net Neutrality Laws

    Washington First State to Pass Net Neutrality Laws

    Washington put new laws into effect on Monday with the federal repeal of net neutrality. The laws Washington put forth stop ISPs from blocking or slowing lawful internet traffic. It also prevents ISPs from charging online services a fee to make themselves a higher priority. This means that ISPs will have a hard time making their services look as convoluted and anti-consumer as cable services. 

    Ahead of the Curve 

    Washington actually approved the law in March, following the FCC’s repeal of federal net neutrality in December. While there are currently no lawsuits challenging the law, they are likely to come soon. Many telecom companies opposed the legislation, as it effectively continues the federal regulations that were just repealed.  

    Washington isn’t alone in this fight, but they were the first on the field. California has a similar law in the pipe, and it’s awaiting approval by the State Assembly. After passing the Assembly, it would go to Governor Jerry Brown. It seems unlikely that either will have any qualms with the bill. 

    Net Neutrality Alternatives 

    Washington and California aren’t the only states taking steps, either. They are to be joined by Hawaii, Montana, New Jersey, New York and Vermont. Those states governors have issued executive orders to enforce net neutrality rules on ISPs that serve their state governments. While these orders aren’t as broad as those in Washington or California, they are still steps in the right direction. 

    It seems that, in the wake of the federal repeal, many states will be issuing their own regulations over what ISPs can do in their states. It seems likely that this situation will get very complicated very quickly. No two states will likely allow the same things of any given ISP, which could result in serious operational headaches for ISPs. Hopefully the companies who lobbied for the repeal of consumer protections find themselves caught in a maze of regulations as thanks.  

    Who knows, maybe those companies will miss the days when they could just meet a federal standard and not worry about the myriad of rules they must follow. It would be just deserts for their haphazard repeal of what were considered mild protections. 

  • Tesla Updates Autopilot to Insist on Safer Driving

    Tesla Updates Autopilot to Insist on Safer Driving

    Following three crashes involving Autopilot since the start of the year, Tesla is pushing out an update called 2018.21.9. This new update shortens the time a driver can have their hands off the wheel of their vehicle before it begins to warn them to return their hands to the wheel. These measures seek to reduce the number of accidents that involve Autopilot by making sure the driver stays aware of the road while using the technology. 

    The Tension of Safety and Convenience 

    Tesla CEO Elon Musk is convinced that Autopilot increases safety on the road. This claim is dubious at best, and Tesla’s own safety regulations somewhat undercut it. If Autopilot is meant to be so safe, why are drivers encouraged to stay razer-sharp and aware while it is online? Truly, what is the point of an autopilot feature if you’re supposed to stay as aware and ready to intervene as you would if you were just driving anyway?  

    Tesla’s current update now alerts the driver once their hands have been off the wheel for thirty seconds. This begs the question: is the technology even ready yet? Elon Musk seems convinced that it is safe, and that true self-driving technology is just around the corner. Yet, it doesn’t look that way from the outside looking in. Every few months another autopilot-related accident occurs, and then Tesla issues another update. At what point does that update involve simply disabling Autopilot?  

    Walter Huang’s Case 

    The most recent fatality involving Autopilot was Walter Huang. Huang’s vehicle veered into a concrete lane divider while using Autopilot and he was killed by the impact. While Tesla maintains that Huang would have had to be ignoring the road in order for the crash to occur, a report from the National Transportation Safety Board suggests otherwise. The report holds that Huang last touched the wheel about six seconds before the crash. 

    This suggests that Tesla’s 2018.21.9 update would have had no effect on Huang’s death. Should the Autopilot function alert the driver five seconds after they release the wheel? At what point do we simply say that this experiment has failed? 

    Tesla and Ambition 

    There is something truly inspiring about a company trying to push the limits of technology. And, truly, Tesla seems to be on the edge of some amazing breakthroughs. However, when the safety of the public is compromised, any and all bets are off. Pushing technology through despite its glaring safety holes is irresponsible. Musk’s insistence on its safety in spite of the accidents is frustrating at best, and negligent at worst.  

    Maybe there will come a day when Tesla is the leader in self-driving car technology. Maybe one day we’ll look back at these days as the growing pains of a new form of transportation. But today, Walter Huang is dead. Whether or not he was paying attention to the road, his Autopilot steered him to his death, literally. This technology clearly still needs some serious work. 

  • Wishlist Roundup: Ways We Wish Apple Would Update Mac

    Wishlist Roundup: Ways We Wish Apple Would Update Mac

    WWDC has come and gone without a whiff of a new design for Apple’s iconic Mac brand of computers. While there were many incremental changes to iOS teased, it’s still disappointing to see one of the world’s leading tech brands leave questions unanswered. When will they address some of the most pressing issues plaguing the current generation of Macs? That all said, what issues are we talking about? What aspects of Apple’s MacBook line need addressing? 

    The Butterfly Keyboard 

    The current keyboard design is just straight-up bad. If you get the slightest crumb or piece of debris in the keyboard it can cause a stuck key. Those stuck keys are incredibly difficult to correct and often require taking the MacBook in for costly repairs. This issue seems to have cropped up only recently with the “butterfly” design keyboards. 

    Even when they aren’t sticking, the keys are notoriously hard to type on. Their small size and incredibly short travel time make it very easy to make typos, and they are quite noisy. Hopefully Apple gives their MacBook keyboards a full redesign soon. 

    Just a Few USB-A Ports, Apple, Please 

    The USB-C port is a wonder, we get it. Google and Apple both swear by it, and for good reason. It’s a wonderful advancement, capable of handling tons of roles and sporting a reversible design so that you don’t bend pins by trying to slot it in upside-down. But the new MacBooks having only USB-C ports is downright absurd. Plenty of people still have thumb drives and accessories that use USB-A.  

    Sure, there are companies that sell reasonably-price USB-A to USB-C dongles. But it’s a step we shouldn’t have to take to use basic functionality on our computers. Come through on this one, Apple! 

    Optional Touch Bar 

    While the 13-inch MacBook has the option for Touch Bar or not, the 15-inch has no such choice. The 13-inch without the Touch Bar costs a full $500 less than the Touch Bar-sporting version, which is quite a bit for a glowing AMOLED bar. Handy as it is, it should be treated as an optional design, not a mandatory part of high-end MacBooks. If Apple were to offer a less-expensive, Touch Bar-free 15-inch Macbook, they would certainly earn some goodwill. And certainly some new customers, to boot! 

    Better Mac Pro Support 

    Not every Mac user has a laptop. There are dozens of desktop Mac users! Dozens, I tell you! Unfortunately for them, the Mac Pro hasn’t seen any substantial updates since 2013. What was meant to be the high-end for Mac has ended up being a disappointment. Serious video/photo editing, graphic design and other creative tasks are handled well by Mac. However, professionals who once turned to Mac are now opting for PC’s instead. 

    What could Apple do to reverse this? Well, they could start by acting more like normal computer manufacturers and allow users to customize their own rig. This could also allow them to sell lower-priced, entry-level Macs and appeal to a wider audience. As it stands, Apple’s closed-ended design is great for phones but a hindrance for their computers.