Latest news

Amazon has become the second firm to reach a $1 trillion market valuation after Apple reached the milestone a month ago.

The online retail giant's shares briefly reached a high of $2050.2677 as its total market value soared over $1 trillion. At the current rate, Amazon is set to overtake Apple which reached the trillion dollar valuation milestone on August 3 this year.

In the past 15 months, Amazon's stock price has doubled as investors have been impressed by the company's diverse business success. Amazon has pushed into almost every area of retail as well as digital streaming, financial services and cloud computing. Amazon's cloud services accounted for 20 percent of total revenue (55 percent of operating income) in Q2, 2018.

It took Amazon 21 years as a public company to reach a $1 trillion valuation, having gone public in 1997 at $1.50 on a split-adjusted basis. Jeff Bezos originally founded Amazon as an online book retailer in 1994 and ran it out of his garage.

Apple was a public company for 38 years before reaching last month's historic valuation. Amazon's revenue is expected to grow by 32 percent this year, ahead of a 14.9 percent prediction for Apple.

WhatsApp, the more-than-billion-users messaging app, updated its iOS version today. But this is the first update that wont be available to iPhone 4 users.

WhatsApp stated that the new update is the first that will require iOS 9 or newer, meaning that iPhone 4 is now officially one of the unsupported devices from now on.

WhatsApp has also stated that the messaging platform's support for iOS 8 and iOS 7 will cease completely by February 1st, 2020. This means that while users of iPhone 4 and earlier models can still install previous versions of WhatsApp, even those will cease working in 2020.

The latest WhatsApp for iOS version is now v2.18.90. New version adds warnings about suspicious links, bigger preview for GIF animations and ability to search from status updates.

Skype is working to simplify the user experience again by removing new social media-like features that didn't catch on with users.

Over time, Skype expanded from being a voice call service to adding support for video chats, group chats and more. It also incorporated features similar to social media giants like Snapchat and Instagram. For example, "Highlights" resembled Snapchat's Stories.

However, these features didn't really resonate with many Skype users. Those who would be interested in such features were probably already using them on other platforms and saw Skype as a messaging, voice and video chat service exclusively.

Skype has cut the features in its latest update, though users have until September 30 to download their Highlights if they want to. On Mobile, the new update focused on the fundamentals of why most people use Skype--to make a call (often with video) and/or send a message.

"Our new navigation model removes redundant and underused features that create clutter--making it much easier to find the people you want to talk to and contact them in an instant. On mobile we are moving to three buttons at the bottom of the app--Chats, Calls, and Contacts. Removing Highlights and Capture provides a cleaner and more efficient user interface (UI) that is easy to navigate while still providing all the functionality Skype customers want."

Microsoft has confirmed that the next major update for the Windows 10 operating system will arrive in October this year.

This is a month later than had been predicted, which isn't so bad. The update will be Windows 10 OS version 1809, with the official name being "Windows 10 October 2018 update", unsurprisingly.

Among the known feature changes or additions in the forthcoming Windows 10 update are a cloud-powered clipboard which will synchronize content copied to the clipboard across multiple devices.

It also introduces a dark-theme for File Explorer and improvements to the Windows Game Bar and Microsoft Edge web browser.

There will of course be fixes for common issues, such as the green screen error reported on logout or shutdown reported with some versions of the OS.

Development of the update is scheduled to finish in September.

It may be the biggest selling games console in history, but Sony Japan has finally said goodbye to the PlayStation 2.

The PlayStation 2 (PS2) console was released in Japan in March 2000. Production of the classic console ceased fully in 2012, but in Japan Sony was still servicing the aging console for its customer base at the PlayStation Clinic center in Iwate Prefecture.

Recently, Sony reached out to PS2 owners in Japan to fill out online forms by August 31 to have their console fixed one last time. Customer support for the PS2 officially ended the same date.

PS2 consoles that do not arrived by September 7 will not be serviced.

Given the PS2 is now 18 years old, it is admirable that Sony centers in Japan kept up repair and servicing operations until now.

Source: Kotaku

The music industry has its sights set on the high number of websites and mobile apps that enable users to download the music from YouTube videos.

Such sites and apps can take a YouTube URL and provide a download link directly for an MP3 file. These tools can be used to make unauthorized copies of music from music videos on the world's largest video portal. Some sites include support for others including SoundCloud, DailyMotion and Vimeo.

Last week, MP3Fiber was one such service that shut down due to legal threats, but many options are still available. Services an apps tend to carry advertising, which some in the industry say allows them to earn money by enabling copyright infringement.

"Although coordinated action by the record industry is delivering results, with major platforms like YouTube-mp3 closed down, we must continue to act against illegal sites that build huge fortunes by ripping off artists and labels," Geoff Taylor, head of the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), told The Independent.

"We hope that responsible advertisers, search engines and hosting providers will also reflect on the ethics of supporting sites that enrich themselves by defrauding creators."

Redbox has been blocked from selling digital download codes for some of Disney's movie releases.

Last week, a federal judge sided with Disney in a dispute with Redbox. The firm has clashed with Disney in court in the past over sales of Disney's download codes for digital copies of films. Initially, Disney argued that Redbox was engaged in copyright infringement by encouraging customers to make unauthorized copies of its films.

Redbox acquired the download codes in coupons after it mass purchased Disney DVD combo packs. It would sell the digital download code separately. Disney protested that the DVD boxes come with a clear message that the codes are not for re-sale or for transfer.

In February, Judge Dean Pregerson found that the wording on the packs was not explicit enough to prohibit Redbox from re-selling the codes after it purchased the DVDs.

With the release of Black Panther, Disney has updated the wording to assert that Disney owns the digital copy and licenses it to the buyer of the DVD only. On Thursday, Judge Pregerson granted an injunction against the resale of the codes.

Apple has quietly added a new page to their support site which issues a replacement program for iPhone 8 devices. The callback is issued specifically for a small percentage of normal-sized iPhone 8 models suffering from a defect in the logic board.

According to Apple, a very small percentage of iPhone 8 devices, not including any iPhone 8 Plus devices, contain logic boards with a manufacturing defect. The company will fix, by replacing, the faulty devices for free.

Devices with faulty logic board may experience sudden reboots and freezes or might not turn on. Apple's assessment about the percentage is easy to believe since we haven't had a massive outcry on social media about such problems.

If you've bought your device between September 2017 and March 2018 in Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Macau, New Zealand, or the U.S., you should head to the support page where you'll be able to enter the serial number to check whether yours might be affected by the defect.

Google's upcoming Pixel event has yet to be announced officially, so there is still time for some rumors and speculation. We of course already know that Google will unveil the new Google Pixel 3 phones, but what else might we be getting?

Rumors from few months back have suggested that Google would be releasing the Pixel Watch, a smartwatch to accompany Pixel smartphones. This wouldn't be a surprise at all, especially since Apple is planning to announce new version of theirs in less than two weeks.

Apparently this isn't the case after all. Google has put down the rumors for good in an interview with Tom's Guide. Google's Miles Barr has said that Google is not going to unveil their own smartwatch this year, and instead is just focusing on developing Wear OS.

Wear OS is of course Google's mobile operating system for wearables, so mainly smartwatches, activity trackers, and such.

According to Barr Google is not ready to join the race because there doesn't seem to be a way to make a single product for everyone. Reading between Barr's lines also seems to reveal that Google might want a more advanced Google Assistant before jumping into smartwatches.

Apple's upcoming iPhone launch event has been confirmed for September 12, and in fact we've already seen the first pictures of the upcoming iPhones.

However, there are more than iPhones to be released. Apple is preparing the launch of a new Apple Watch and perhaps even new iPads. The latter we haven't seen yet, but a leaked picture revealed what the upcoming new generation of Apple Watches has in store.

The picture doesn't reveal everything about the new device but it does give us a few details about the smartwatch. First of all is the most obvious difference: the display. Apple has enlarged the display to more or less meet the edges unlike the previous generations.

This means probably not only larger display but better resolution which is why the watch face looks so much more busy. There will be other watch faces, as we know, but thankfully this one gives us a glimpse of a new feature that we haven't seen before.

Apple seems to have implemented a UVI gauge into the watch face. UVI stands of course for UV index, or ultraviolet index, and measures how much ultraviolet radiation reaches the surface of the earth at any given time or place. UVI is an important tool to determine when it is necessary to apple sunscreen to avoid sunburn.

Microsoft is preparing another significant update to its desktop operating system. According to Microsoft's appearance at Berlin's IFA conference the update should be shipping in October.

The version, formerly known as Redstone 5, has been named, well what do you know, October 2018 Update. The aptly named update will be bringing all kinds of changes to Windows 10, including new features, some UI updates, and of course plenty of fixes.

We, of course, are most interested about the new features. Those include a long-awaited cloud-based clipboard, that helps you store clipboard contents and move them across devices. Another new feature is the dark theme for File Explorer, which is probably going to make a lot of people happy.

The Snipping Tool and Microsoft Edge will also get major updates, and the Xbox Game Bar will be improved with new performance details.

Microsoft has also already started developing the update after this one, which is codenamed 19H1, and is thus expected in the first half of 2019, aimed for a April release. There are, however, no details about what that might bring along.

Once upon a time the browser known as Firefox was one of the hottest tech companies in the world. It was on its way to dethroning the great Internet Explorer, and it seemed inevitable.

Now a decade later the Mozilla browser seems to be a blip on the radar while Chrome, a browser that wasn't even on the radar when Firefox was starting its rise to the top. There are some signs of life within Mozilla, most notably perhaps the "super-fast" Quantum CSS engine.

Now Mozilla has revealed their latest, and perhaps most radical approach to claw back marketshare: anti-tracking. New blog post details how the company is looking to preserve the browsing experience in the face of websites tracking their users' every move (read: ad tracking).

In fact, Mozilla is going to be offering a complete block to all tracking from advertiser by default. This means that you won't have to download, or even turn on, an ad blocker. All third-party cookies trying to track your browsing will be blocked by default, straight out of the box.

A Tesla Model 3 owner has uploaded dashcam footage to YouTube showing the moment where he claims the car's autopilot system saved his life.

YouTube user 'Tesla Canuck' was driving home when he was almost involved in an incident due to the behavior of another driver on the road. He explains that he was driving in the right lane when another car a much higher rate of speed tried to squeeze in between his car, and the car in the left lane.

Tesla's Autopilot system detected the imminment collision and took evasive action to avoid the other car, while it was driving along at around 102km/h.

The all-electric carmaker has been the subject of headlines for many reasons in recent times. Some of those reasons have been negative as unfortunate incidents of the autopilot being involved in accidents or failing to prevent them have been reported. Typically, when the autopilot system prevents an accident, it doesn't make news.

In this case, the YouTuber was recording with a dashcam at the time and posted the video to show the close call. He claims that the Autopilot system saved his life, and given how quickly the car's automatic system reacted, he could absolutely be correct.

A new version of CCleaner has been released that rolls back some of the changes in the controversial v5.45 update while addressing some data collection concerns.

On the privacy side of things, the new CCleaner v5.46.6652 now allows for the Monitoring feature and reporting of anonymous usage data can now be controlled separately (previously both were controlled by the 'Active Monitoring' checkbox). A separate control is also added for the reporting of anonymous usage data.

Additionally, there is now a Data Factsheet on what exactly is reported back to the developer and why. You can read it at the CCleaner website.

In the previous version, users also noted that trying to close the program minimized it to the system tray and the option to exit the app had been removed. This meant that to exit the previous version, you would need to use Task Manager or a similar tool to manually kill the process.

In the new update, the prior minimize behavior has been restored to the application, while the Exit option has also be added to the Tray menu again.

Apple has announced a keynote address for September 12 where it is expected to unveil three new iPhones, but images have already leaked.

The iPhone-maker announced on Thursday that it will hold an event at the Steve Jobs Theater at its Cupertino, California campus on September 12. Not long after this was reported, 9to5Mac published a leaked image of two of the devices that Apple is expected to unveil.

Rumors had suggested that Apple would launch two new iPhones with OLED displays, respectively with a 5.8-inch and 6.5-inch display. A third low cost iPhone would measure 6.1-inch and pack an LCD display instead. The OLED-packing iPhones are considered a followup to the iPhone X.

An invitation sent out to the media by Apple used the color Gold heavily, fueling speculation that the firm was prepping a gold-colored iPhone for launch. The leak reported by 9to5Mac seems to confirm this suspicion: