The $1 billion Apple spent on Intel’s modem business is the second-largest acquisition in the company’s 42-year history.
Still, while a huge amount of money by most normal standards, rival tech giants regularly dwarf Apple’s big spend on Intel. For a variety of reasons, Apple just doesn’t roll that way.
Google has confirmed plans to eliminate Chrome extensions that steal too much of your data.
Its new policy, which goes into effect on October 15, no longer allows extensions to freely collect browsing activity. Those that do must be transparent in how they use it, and transmit it securely.
Stock prices of the major U.S. stock companies all took a tumble in after-hours trading today after the U.S. Justice Department revealed that it is launching a broad antitrust investigation into tech companies.
The department has not said which companies will be investigated specifically but it’s pretty likely that Apple, Amazon, Google and Facebook will be swept up in the case.
DuckDuckGo is a private search engine. Unlike Google, it doesn’t track your internet use, save your searches, or track your location. DuckDuckGo’s reason for existing is to protect your privacy on the internet, but it’s also a great search engine. And when it doesn’t find the results you want, it’s easy to run that search in Google.
Today we’ll see how to switch all your searches to DuckDuckGo, and how to add a one-tap Google backup search.
The good news is that you don’t have to do anything weird or difficult to switch to DuckDuckGo. Both iOS and macOS offer it as a default option in their settings. On the Mac, this setting is in Safari. On the iPhone and iPad, you’ll find it under Safari in the Settings app.
Google plans to make its AdSense apps on iOS and Android worse over the next few months before killing them entirely at the end of 2019.
Instead of using mobile apps, Google plans to invest more in its mobile web interface for Adsense to deliver a more uniform experience that is supported on all platforms.
Google’s latest Waze update on iOS makes it easier for drivers to prepare for toll roads during their next journey. Users in the U.S. and Canada will now see exactly how much they’ll have to pay at tolls on their route.
Apple fans are no longer caught in a long-running tiff between Amazon and Google. The Amazon Prime Video iOS app has been updated with support for Google’s inexpensive Chromecast player.
When you talk to a Google Home smart speaker, you might have an unsuspected eavesdropper. The company admitted today that it uses humans to review a small percentage of voice interactions.
This is true for all types of voice-control systems, like Amazon Alexa and even Siri. But Apple’s system has some crucial differences.
Google has decided it will no longer support the Nest app for Apple Watch. The move means you can’t control Nest smart devices from your wrist anymore. The Nest app for Google’s own Wear OS platform has also been ditched.
HomePod owners are becoming increasingly frustrated with the latest AirPods ad. The full version of the “Bounce” commercial keeps triggering “Hey Siri” on Apple’s pricey smart speaker.
Some say they end up hearing the “crappiest” music, while others say their HomePod randomly calls out “I’m here.”
Google is working to deliver an AirDrop clone that will allow Android users to quickly share files with nearby devices.
Its new “Fast Share” feature, which will also make its way to Chrome OS, can be used to send images, videos, links, and other files without an internet connection. It can already be enabled on some Android Q devices.
3oogle is taking the folding phone concept to the extreme. It dreamed up a concept design reminiscent of a book with several pages, each of which is a flexible display.
You can now ask the Google app on iOS to automatically wipe your location and activity history.
The new feature, which was showcased during Google I/O in late May, takes the hassle out of covering your tracks. You only have to set it up once and it will take care of itself going forward. Here’s how to get started.
Microsoft is rumored to be working on a new dual-screen Surface tablet that will run Android apps.
The slate, which is codenamed Centaurus, will reportedly pack two 9-inch displays that fold together like a book. Supply chain sources expect it to launch in the first quarter or first half of 2020.
UPDATE: See the statement received from Google at the bottom of this story.
You might want to think twice about buying used Nest security cameras.
A new report reveals that secondhand models can allow previous owners to spy on new users — even if they correctly follow Nest’s instructions on resetting the device. There’s currently no fix for the security flaw.
Apple is now the world’s fourth-largest gaming company, according to a new report.
It is ranked higher than gaming giants like Nintendo, EA, and Activision — thanks mostly to the popularity of mobile gaming on iPhone. Apple is estimated to have earned $9.453 billion from games during 2018 alone.
If you’re itching to get your hands on a foldable phone and you thought choosing Huawei over Samsung would be a good idea following the Galaxy Fold’s delay, think again.
Huawei has confirmed that it, too, is delaying its first foldable handset. The Mate X is now pegged for a September debut so that extra tests can be carried out to avoid another Galaxy Fold fiasco.
Google’s latest desktop app makes it easier than ever to build 3D games on your Mac. The aptly-named Game Builder doesn’t require you to write a single line of code — and it’s completely free to use.
Square camera bumps are shaping up to be one of the biggest smartphone trends of 2019.
Leaked images of Google’s upcoming Pixel 4 smartphone surfaced online today, revealing some surprising design changes for the handset, including a square in the back that packs multiple cameras. It looks awfully similar to the leaked iPhone 11 renderings we’ve seen so far.
Take a closer took:
Apple is developing its very own Night Sight feature for the next-generation iPhone lineup, according to a new report.
Google’s Pixel handsets have been well and truly beating rivals on low-light camera performance for years now. But it is claimed Apple has a similar feature up its sleeve called “Night Mode” — and we should see it this year.
Dropbox wants to be the only app you use on your Mac to access your most important files — wherever they are stored.
Its overhauled desktop client brings all your favorite cloud services together inside an all-new design with a bunch of awesome new features. It’s more than an app, Dropbox says, “it’s a completely new experience.”
Amazon has overtaken Apple in terms of market cap, and now it’s overtaken it in terms of brand value as well.
At least, that’s according to Kantar’s latest BrandZ list of the world’s most valuable brands — which shows an amazing leap ahead by Jeff Bezos’s retail titan.
Two of Apple’s biggest competitors revealed they’ll debut their own streaming games services at about the same time as the launch of Apple Arcade.
This isn’t the first we’ve heard of Microsoft xCloud and Google Stadia, but their developers have revealed new details about pricing and release dates.
Sign in with Apple could give Facebook and Google some serious headaches when it launches as part of iOS 13 this fall, however, Apple’s strict rules could bring some pushback.
Not only will Apple require all apps that use third-party login services like Facebook to also support Apple’s privacy-focused login service, but it is also asking that the button be placed above competitors’ options.
Update: Apple says “Sign in with Apple” will be mandatory for third-party apps that require sign-ins, according to these new App Store guidelines. That means apps that currently use Facebook or Google to sign in will also have to support “Sign in with Apple.”
“It will be required as an option for users in apps that support third-party sign-in when it is commercially available later this year,” the new guidelines say.
Apple is targeting Facebook with a new privacy feature in iOS 13 that privately logs users into third-party apps and services.
Called “Sign in with Apple,” it aims to replace popular cross-web login services like ones offered by Facebook and Google.
The new privacy feature prevents third-party apps and web services from tracking users via their logins. It creates private, disposable logins for every service or app.