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iOS7 jailbreak released

Written by Petteri Pyyny @ 22 Dec 2013 8:25

iOS7 jailbreak released After a relatively short wait, the latest version of Apple's iOS7 has been finally, successfully jailbreaked. The jailbreak is now available through evasi0n.com.

With the jailbreak, one can override the blocks Apple has put in place in its iPad / iPhone operating system. Thus, after installing the jailbreak, users can switch from the official App Store to alternative app stores, such as Cydia, that host material Apple wouldn't allow in its own App Store. Such material include violent (beyond the level deemed appropriate by Apple) games, pornography and apps that compete directly with Apple's own software.

Installing the jailbreak requires either a Windows or Mac computer, an USB cable and the jailbreakable device itself. Obviously, the device should be properly backed up before the process. And as always with jailbreaks, roots, etc the process itself should be done only by a person who knows what they're doing: jailbreaking, if gone bad, can "brick" your device and you'll most likely lose your warranty as well (depends on jurisdiction you live in).




AfterDawn: News

Jolla smartphone now available across Europe

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 21 Dec 2013 2:27

Jolla smartphone now available across Europe Finnish smartphone startup Jolla has launched its online store, making the Jolla smartphone available to all European customers after being available as a pre-order earlier this month.

The shop is open for EU customers as well as Switzerland and Norway, selling for €399 including VAT.

If you purchase via the new online shop, the expected shipping time is 2-4 weeks due to logistics issues, says Jolla.

The Jolla smartphone uses the Sailfish OS, which was created by former Nokia employees that had worked on the now defunct MeeGo operating system.

Featuring a 4.5-inch IPS LCD with 540 x 960 resolution (245 ppi), the device is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400, dual-core at 1.4 GHz, 1GB RAM, 16GB internal storage and dual 2MP/8MP cameras.




AfterDawn: News

Steam Holiday Sale now in full effect

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 21 Dec 2013 2:00

Steam Holiday Sale now in full effect Valve has announced that the Steam Holiday Sale is now in full effect, starting Thursday and ending at 10AM PST, January 2nd.

The company is offering huge sales on hundreds of games, and there will be specific eight hour "Flash" sales as well as "Community's Choice Voting Sales."

Deals refresh every 24 hours, so it is worth checking every day.

View the sale here, which include up to 80 percent off titles:

Steam Holiday Sale 2013




AfterDawn: News

Zuckerberg sells $2.3 billion worth of Facebook shares to pay off tax bill

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 21 Dec 2013 1:48

Zuckerberg sells $2.3 billion worth of Facebook shares to pay off tax bill Facebook creator and CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced on Friday that he sold 41.4 million shares of Facebook stock, worth over $2.3 billion, in order to pay a tax bill.

The stock was then offered to new investors as part of a 71 million share offering.

Zuckerberg's voting power in the company was slightly reduced, to 56.1 percent from 58.8 percent because his shares have 10 times more power than common A shares.

The executive will use most of proceeds to pay a massive 2013 tax bill.

Facebook's stock has risen 100 percent this year.




AfterDawn: News

It's finally here: Samsung to unveil first Tizen OS smartphone at next year's MWC

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 21 Dec 2013 1:34

It's finally here: Samsung to unveil first Tizen OS smartphone at next year's MWC According to new reports, Samsung will finally unveil its first commercial Tizen OS devices at February's Mobile World Congress event in Barcelona.

In fact, Samsung will have its own specialized event the night before the MWC is set to begin, on February 23rd, where attendees are expected to see "an exclusive sneak preview of the newest Tizen devices as well as an opportunity to learn about the major milestones that the Tizen project has hit since last year's event."

Samsung has been trying to break away from its dependence on Google's Android operating system, but its own Tizen operating system has been delayed multiple times.

Tizen OS 3.0 will be the first mature version of the software, and the first for commercial devices like smartphones. Carriers like Orange and DoCoMo have already signed agreements with Samsung to stock Tizen devices starting in the second half of this year.




AfterDawn: News

EU: Sorry Google, your anti-trust concessions are not acceptable

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 21 Dec 2013 1:17

EU: Sorry Google, your anti-trust concessions are not acceptable EU antitrust boss Joaquin Almunia has rejected Google's latest offer to settle a European Union anti-trust investigation, claiming there were not enough concessions.

The chief says the search giant is now quickly running out of time, and is risking a large fine if they do not satisfactorily settle soon. If they do not settle soon, the fine could be as large as $5 billion.

Google has been under investigation by the European Commission antitrust regulators since 2010 over complaints that they block competition, such as Microsoft and Foundem, from search results. The Commission asks 125 Google competitors for feedback on the settlement, and they have rejected each of the deals so far.

"The latest proposals are not acceptable in the sense that they are not proposals that can eliminate our concerns regarding competition," Almunia added. Google's latest offer apparently did not remove concerns about vertical searches, which are the specialized searches for individual products.

Read more...


AfterDawn: News

Oppo's N1 with CyanogenMod to launch on December 24th

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 21 Dec 2013 12:59

Oppo's N1 with CyanogenMod to launch on December 24th After being initially announced last month, Oppo's N1 smartphone running CyanogenMod has been blessed by Google and will go on sale on December 24th.

The handset will run CyanogenMod 10.2 and it has cleared Google's stringent compatibility test suite (CTS) meaning Google's Play Store and suite of apps will be pre-installed.

Says CyanogenMod: "It is still a bit surreal, but we are so proud of the effort the entire team took to make the CyanogenMod OS as solid as it is. We had a lot of fun with this video (provided below), showing the unique features of the N1 itself, and some of the many CM features many of you already know and love."

The N1 features a 5.95-inch 1080p display, a 1.6GHz quad-core Snapdragon 600, 2GB RAM, 3600 mAh battery and a very intriguing rotating camera that allows you to use the better rear camera for video chat and portrait shots, as well. Additionally, it has a rear touch panel for taking photos, scrolling and more. Unfortunately, the device does not support LTE but has GSM (850/900/1800/1900MHz) and WCDMA support (850/900/1700/1900/2100MHz).

Read more...


AfterDawn: News

Netflix will stream next House of Cards season in 4K, more 4K updates coming at CES

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 21 Dec 2013 12:48

Netflix will stream next House of Cards season in 4K, more 4K updates coming at CES Netflix has announced it will stream the second season of 'House of Cards' in 4K Ultra HD, and the company has promised more 4K updates for next month's CES event.

Chief Product Officer Neil Hunt says 4K content will be available through smart TV apps available on upcoming 4K TVs, and the manufacturers will be named at CES: "We're not naming specific manufacturers, but we have several of the major TV vendors who are going to be producing 4K capable TVs – they'll be announcing them at CES."

Unfortunately, your new PS4 and Xbox One will not have the functionality for the time being: "The new game consoles may eventually be 4K-capable but the ability to take 4K out of the box and drop it into a separate television is lacking some standards and HDMI 2.0, and it's just a little premature. So we probably will see that, but right now we're talking about 4K Netflix built into the smart TV."

Besides House of Cards, the company expects to have a large 4K category in the future, as well. "The trick here is that since it's going to take a while until there is a material catalogue in 4K, it's important for us to get out front and begin to push it," says Hunt. "We're one of the few folk working all the way through from soup to nuts – we've got the original content production on one end, and we're working closely with the CE manufacturers on the other end, and we've got the whole delivery pipeline in between. So I think we can be instrumental in beginning the shift of production towards 4K."




AfterDawn: News

Microsoft gives another 20GB of free SkyDrive storage to Windows Phone owners

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 21 Dec 2013 12:33

Microsoft gives another 20GB of free SkyDrive storage to Windows Phone owners Windows Phone owners have been given another gift by Microsoft.

Microsoft has emailed current Windows Phone owners an invite to activate a bonus of 20GB of free SkyDrive storage for the next year.

You will have until the end of January to activate the bonus, says the software giant.

SkyDrive has become a significant driver for Microsoft, with most promotions including free cloud storage. For example, The Surface 2 comes with 200GB free SkyDrive storage, which Microsoft hopes will keep customers around well into the future.




AfterDawn: News

BlackBerry reports massive quarterly loss, new deal with Foxconn

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 21 Dec 2013 12:17

BlackBerry reports massive quarterly loss, new deal with Foxconn BlackBerry yesterday reported their quarterly earnings, taking yet another massive writedown and awful results.

However, thanks to a new deal with Foxconn and an expectation that the worst is finally behind them, the company's shares surged 15 percent.

The deal, a five-year partnership with the Taiwanese manufacturer, will initially be for low-end devices that will go on sale in emerging markets such as Indonesia. Unconventionally, BlackBerry will not pay upfront for device components nor will it do its own inventory management, instead Foxconn will take a share of profit on each device and ensure that inventory is controlled.

Additionally, Foxconn will also help develop, design and distribute the handsets.

For the quarter, the company posted a $4.4 billion loss, as smartphone sales were almost non-existent. Overstock of BlackBerry 10 devices led to a $1.6 billion writedown for the quarter, as the company sold just 4.3 million handsets during the quarter, 3.2 million of which were BlackBerry 7 devices, some of which are up to three years old.




AfterDawn: News

Report: Amazon's oft-rumored smartphone coming in Q2 2014

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 20 Dec 2013 11:00

Report: Amazon's oft-rumored smartphone coming in Q2 2014 Yet another report has surfaced that Amazon is preparing to launch a Kindle smartphone in the Q2 2014.

A new report from hit-and-miss Taiwanese supply chain outlet Digitimes claims that Primax Electronics has received orders from the e-commerce giant
for compact camera modules (CCM) that include floating point technology, with each new smartphone includes six CCMs.

The new report gives credence to previous rumors that the Kindle smartphone will have four front-facing cameras allowing for 3D rendering and also motion control without needing to touch the screen. The other two cameras will be the standard front and rear for pictures and video chat.

Amazon is said to be working with HTC to build the upcoming devices.




AfterDawn: News

Winamp, Shoutcast live to fight another day

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 20 Dec 2013 10:26

Winamp, Shoutcast live to fight another day AOL, which announced last month to significant outcry that media player Winamp and its companion Shoutcast radio service would be shutting down forever, appears to have saved the companies.

The company is reportedly finalizing negotiations to sell the products, and leave them alive for the future. It was previously reported that Microsoft could be a willing acquirer, but there was no comment from the Redmond giant.

Winamp and Shoutcast came under the AOL umbrella in 1999 when AOL purchased parent company Nullsoft.

A visit to Winamp.com today proves the software is still available and the online platform is still up and running, as well.

TechCrunch says sources are extremely confident the deal will be announced soon.




AfterDawn: News

Sharp unveils Windows 8.1 tablet with 4GB RAM, WQXGA, LTE, more

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 18 Dec 2013 11:58

Sharp unveils Windows 8.1 tablet with 4GB RAM, WQXGA, LTE, more Sharp has unveiled their "Meibus Pad" today, boasting the best specs ever for a Windows tablet.

The Meibus has a 10.1-inch 2,560 × 1,600 IGZO display, an Intel Atom Z3770 "Bay Trail" processor, 4GB RAM, 64GB internal storage and pre-installed Windows 8.1 Office.

Additionally, the device will have built-in LTE support, a rare occurrence for a full Windows tablet.

Aesthetics are nothing too out of the ordinary, and the tablet is 9.5mm (0.37-inches) thick and weighs 1.3 pounds.

The tablet goes on sale in January in Japan.




AfterDawn: News

Sony said to be actively looking into sale of Gracenote

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 18 Dec 2013 11:44

Sony said to be actively looking into sale of Gracenote According to Bloomberg, Sony has hired Qatalyst Partners to look into a sale of its Gracenote audio-recognition software business.

Gracenote will become its own independent company, and has been owned by Sony since 2008.

The sources say Gracenote has revenues between $100 and $200 million per year.

Gracenote powers iTunes' track identifying software, and is also the basis for some song-recognition services and apps that rival Shazam. Gracenote tech is also used in most of Sony's consumer products, including TVs and smartphones/tablets.

Sony has been actively looking to trim the amount of divisions and the amount of products it offers.




AfterDawn: News

The Pirate Bay moves domains again, this time to Guyana

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 18 Dec 2013 11:18

The Pirate Bay moves domains again, this time to Guyana The infamous torrent tracker The Pirate Bay has moved domains again, just days after relocating to Peru.

Peru suspended the domain name with prior notice, killing off the thepiratebay.pe site. Peru's National Institute for the Defense of Competition and Protection of Intellectual Property (Indecopi) ordered the shutdown claiming "The use of thepiratebay.pe domain can help users avoid infringement by connecting, sharing files and downloading files."

The site can now be found at thepiratebay.gy, using Guyana's country code top-level domain.

Pirate Bay officials didn't seem to phased, and they did not seem too worried in the first place, adding "We have some 70 domain names left, so eventually we will find one that sticks. A few domains have been prepared so we can switch over whenever's needed."

In the last week, the site has been moved from their .SX domain, their .AC and now their .PE.

Read the company's very brief Facebook post.





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