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Apple confirms: iPhone X users might experience "burn-in"

Written by Matti Robinson @ 04 Nov 2017 2:06

Apple confirms: iPhone X users might experience "burn-in" Apple finally started officially selling the iPhone X yesterday, and some elements of the device are coming to light for the first time. Some of the more important features of the phone have been reviewed over and over again in the past few days but some aren't going to unveil themselves for long time.

Face ID has been one of the more closely inspected features, and it seems that excluding a few problems with the face detection most impressions have been positive. Another important feature is of course the new 5.8 inch display, a first OLED panel in an iPhone.

Now Apple has released a document that details some of the features of an OLED display. This includes explaining the many pros of the first ever iPhone OLED but also a few cons that might affect your viewing pleasures.

According to the document you may experience shifts in colors when viewed off-angle. This is of course normal for an OLED display, and according to reports nowhere near as bad as with the Pixel 2 displays, which have been criticized heavily.

The second one is another one of OLED's typical shortcomings, "burn-in". The burn-in, or "image persistence", is a phenomenon where a static image may burn a ghost image in the display that will be permanent.

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AfterDawn: News

Apple beat expectations, net income topping $10 billion

Written by Matti Robinson @ 03 Nov 2017 6:41

Apple beat expectations, net income topping $10 billion Apple released the earnings report of the last quarter of fiscal year of 2017 yesterday, and if you've seen how the stock market responded you might already have an inkling to what kind of results Apple unveiled.

The revenue increased 12% year-over-year to $52.6 billion and the Cupertino giant racked in a whopping over $10 billion in net profits, an increase of nearly 20% from fall last year.

All this after a rather slow start for the new iPhones as the iPhone X hit the stores officially only today. The iPhone 8 and 8 Plus haven't been flying off the shelves quite like its predecessors but seems like that hasn't made much of a difference. Apple still increased the iPhone numbers over last year albeit a small bump.

Apple's Mac sales improved surprisingly well. A 25% increase in Mac revenue was only topped by 34% and 36% revenue growth in services and "Other Products" respectively. Other products includes the likes of Apple TV and Apple Watch.

Also iPhone's 2% YoY growth was bested by iPad's growth numbers, 14%, but you can expect better iPhone results in the first quarter of the next fiscal year with iPhone X first sales numbers.

Expectations for the holiday quarter are high as iPhone X joins the already impressive repertoire. According to the company the revenue should be somewhere between $84 billion and $87 billion. That would be first time in Apple's history over $80 billion.




AfterDawn: News

Bitcoin hits new high on Thursday

Written by James Delahunty @ 02 Nov 2017 12:25

Bitcoin hits new high on Thursday Bitcoin peaked at an all-time high of over $7000 on Thursday, following an exciting week for the cryptocurrency.

CME Group, the largest derivatives exchange operator in the world, announced that it would launch a Bitcoin futures product before the end of 2017. This news drove the surging cryptocurrency to an all time high of $6,450 on Wednesday. Today, Bitcoin soared again, jumping over $7000 on the Bitstamp exchange. Bitcoin has seen seven-fold price increase this year, doubling since September.

Back in August, the BitCoin Cash spin-off had prompted fears that it would disrupt the persistent rise of the cryptocurrency, but instead its price had risen sharply compared to the USD.

Bitcoin is growing in popularity around the world too. Coinbase, which can be used to trade BitCoin, gets between 35,000 and 50,000 new users per day. It is also in the news more often, most recently due to the interest in Bitcoin on the Korean peninsula as tensions mount.

Source: >Reuters




AfterDawn: News

Amazon Prime Video lands on Xbox One

Written by James Delahunty @ 02 Nov 2017 12:19

Amazon Prime Video lands on Xbox One Xbox One owners can now install an Amazon Prime Video app on the Xbox One family of consoles, including the upcoming Xbox One X.

Amazon Prime Video provides exclusive access to popular content including The Grand Tour, American Gods, Mozart in the Jungle and Transparent. Prime Video also has content available in 4K UHD resolution, which is supported by the Xbox One S and Xbox One X.

Amazon Prime Video is available in more than 200 countries around the world. Existing subscribers only need to visit the Microsoft Store to download the Prime Video app.

For others, visit PrimeVideo.com for more information.




AfterDawn: News

Facebook reports more than $10 billion in ad revenue

Written by James Delahunty @ 02 Nov 2017 12:16

Facebook reports more than $10 billion in ad revenue The world's largest social network sees profits soaring in the third quarter driven by a large increase in ad revenue.

In the three months to the end of September, Facebook brought in more than $10.1 billion in advertising revenue. Overall, revenue was up year-on-year by 47 percent to $10.3 billion. Profits jumped 80 percent compared to the same period of last year, reaching $4.7 billion.

However, an increasing focus on security and integrity of the platform will impact future profits, according to CEO Mark Zuckerberg. He told investors that Facebook is attempting to eradicate "false news", hate speech and bullying on its platform, which will be a considerable investment.

The social network has more than 2.07 billion users as of the end of September.

It is currently facing the scrutiny of lawmakers in the United States who are eyeing more regulation in the area to prevent propaganda from being used as a tool to influence elections. Facebook has reported that over 150 million people may seen some Russian propaganda efforts on its platform.

Zuckerbeg had previously described the hypothesis that fake news on Facebook had influenced the result of the U.S. Presidential electon as "pretty crazy".

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AfterDawn: News

WATCH: The Grand Tour returns to Amazon Prime Video in December

Written by James Delahunty @ 02 Nov 2017 12:12

WATCH: The Grand Tour returns to Amazon Prime Video in December Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond return to Amazon Prime Video in The Grand Tour Season 2 next month.

The Amazon Prime Video exclusive comes back to screens on December 8. The first episode of The Grand Tour broke Amazon Prime Video's previous records in the days after it landed on the platform beginning November 18, 2016.

Earlier this year, a short teaser trailer for Season 2 was released. However, both Richard Hammond and Jeremy Clarkson had some difficult times in 2017, with the former being involved in a vehicle accident and latter being hospitalized for a life-threating case of pneumonia.

Another trailer was released by Amazon today giving us a taste of what is to come with Season 2.

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AfterDawn: News

Air pressure disrupts TV in the UK

Written by James Delahunty @ 02 Nov 2017 12:09

Air pressure disrupts TV in the UK Some TV viewers in the UK are having signal problems due to atmospheric conditions, according to Freeview.

Freeview allows TV viewers to pick up TV signals in the UK using antennae. Yesterday, viewers started reporting problems with signal. One consequence for many users was the inability to watch The Great British Bake Off final because of the disruption. Freeview responded to the affected viewers today, urging them not to attempt retuning to alleviate the issue.

We're aware that high air pressure is currently affecting TV and radio signals for some viewers in England and Wales. We're unable to prevent or remedy this. We recommend that you do not retune your equipment as reception will return to normal once the weather changes.

TV and radio signals can be affected by atmospheric conditions, including high air pressure (which brings fine weather), heavy rain or snow.

More Info: freeview.co.uk




AfterDawn: News

GameStop's PowerPass offers used video game rentals

Written by James Delahunty @ 30 Oct 2017 4:47

GameStop's PowerPass offers used video game rentals GameStop has detailed its new PowerPass service, which will allow subscribers to rent used video games from GameStop stores for a fee.

PowerPass will cost a subscriber $60 for six months. For the fee, the subscriber can visit their local GameStop and "rent" a different game at any time during the subscription period. There is a one game at a time limit.

At the end of the six month period, the customer can pick a title to keep at no additional cost.

There is one prerequisite however; you need to be a free or paid member of GameStop's Power-Up Rewards program to sign up for PowerPass.

Is such a "used game rental service" worth the typical cost of a single blockbuster title for six months?

Via: Engadget




AfterDawn: News

YouTube TV app now available for Android TV devices

Written by James Delahunty @ 30 Oct 2017 4:45

YouTube TV app now available for Android TV devices YouTube is now offering a YouTube TV app designed for Android TV devices, including NVIDIA SHIELD, Xbox One and TVs with Android TV built-in.

Over the new few weeks, apps will also roll out for Smart TVs oif major brands, including LG, Samsung, Sony, along with Apple TV. YouTube TV launched in April this year, streaming live sports, local and national news to phones, tablets and computers. More than half of the time spent using YouTube TV includes the use of Chromecast, so it's a no brainer to release an app for Android TV devices.

YouTube TV is currently available in all top 50 metro areas in the United States, and will continue to quickly expand to other markets.

The features you can expect from the YouTube TV app for Android TV include:

  • Control your live TV experience with your TV's remote control or game controller.
  • For a more cinematic look, we made the background dark on your TVs.
  • A new Live guide made for your big screen so you can get a sneak-peek at what's airing soon.
  • Never miss the action with our background playback experience built for your big screen.
  • Easily pick up where you left off on another device when you get home.
More Info: YouTube TV




AfterDawn: News

How much are you willing to pay for a screen repair? Apple reveals iPhone X pricing

Written by Matti Robinson @ 30 Oct 2017 11:48

How much are you willing to pay for a screen repair? Apple reveals iPhone X pricing Many modern smartphones aren't easily repairable, and even if you are handy with electronics you might be in for a pickle replacing a broken screen. Getting them repaired professionally, though, might equal highway robbery.

This is especially true if you've just pre-ordered the new iPhone X, as we've found out due to Apple releasing their pricing for iPhone X repairs. As MacRumors first noted the non-warranty service pricing for the iPhone X are definitely up there.

If the problem is not covered by the one-year limited warranty, i.e. a manufacturing defect, a screen repair (read: screen replacement) will cost you a flat fee of $279. Everything else? You'll pay $549, more than 50% of the original price of the phone. So expect to see a lot of broken and probably never to be repaired iPhone X backs.

You can, of course, anticipate these problems and buy the one off $199 AppleCare+ which will cover up to two incidents with a $29 deductible for screen damage and $99 for other damage.

It does sound like AppleCare+ might be worth the investment if you have slippery fingers but adding another $200 to an already crazy starting price of $999 is a tall ask. Have you pre-ordered the iPhone X, and what do you think?

Read more...


AfterDawn: News

WhatsApp updates emoji set in latest version

Written by James Delahunty @ 29 Oct 2017 9:48

WhatsApp updates emoji set in latest version Facebook's WhatsApp has gotten around to pushing out the upgraded emoji set it showed off several weeks ago.

The new emojis are available starting with version 2.17.395 (stable) on Android. Whether they are better is entirely up to each user, but they do appear to be more "expressive" of emotion and several non-facial emojis look much better than before (e.g. the "mouse" emoji is now clearly a computer mouse!).

When WhatsApp pushed the new emoji set to the beta build earlier this month, they were immediately compared to several emojis used in Apple's iOS because some do bear a striking resemblance.

If emojis are your thing, the new set should be available as long as you have the latest WhatsApp version on your device. WhatsApp also recently announced the "delete for everyone" feature, which allows WhatsApp users to delete text messages they have sent to a recipient, as long as they do so within a seven minute window and all participants in the conversation have a version with the feature present.




AfterDawn: News

WhatsApp added one of the most anticipated features

Written by Matti Robinson @ 28 Oct 2017 5:26

WhatsApp added one of the most anticipated features World's most popular instant messaging platform has announced a new feature. WhatsApp, a mobile messaging platform that has attracted over one billion users, has added a deleting feature to its app.

New feature is as simple as it sounds: it allows users to delete sent messages. However, you've been able to remove the messages from your app even before but now the messages can be removed from even the recipients devices.

The new delete function can be found within the post editing tools. Now when you long press the message and select the delete function (the trashcan icon) you'll be hit with a dialog asking whether you want it deleted from all devices or your device only. Previously you didn't have the former option.

There are some limitations, obviously. You can only delete – or perhaps cancelling would be a more apt term – messages from all devices if they've been sent within seven minutes. After that you'll only be able to remove the post from your own apps.

Also to not confuse people, WhatsApp replaces the message with one saying the original message has been deleted.

The feature will hit your iPhone or Android device in the coming weeks so you might not have the update yet on your mobile device.




AfterDawn: News

YouTube is the new TV, time to move on cable

Written by Matti Robinson @ 27 Oct 2017 12:16

YouTube is the new TV, time to move on cable Streaming TV has come to stay, just accept it Comcast. Obviously online on-demand services like Netflix are hugely popular but YouTube might be an even bigger player if it manages to combine the on-demand side of things with live TV.

According to new figures from the parent company Alphabet, YouTube is watched more than 100 million hours every day. And maybe even more importantly, way more people are watching it via their TV sets.

The use of TV when watching YouTube has increased around 70 percent since last year. This includes all TV devices that are somehow connected to the internet, be it a smart TV with a YouTube app or a dumber one with a Chromecast dongle or an Apple TV.

Earlier this year Google announced that YouTube is being watched a billion hours every day. That means that watching on TV is grabbing a fairly nice slice of the entire YouTube watching pie. Obviously computers and probably especially mobile is still where it's still at.

As internet based solutions are grabbing marketshare cable companies are fighting back by raising prices. At the same time Google has been improving their Google Fiber availability with the first location without TV subscription and supporting YouTube TV.

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AfterDawn: News

WSJ: New iPhone 8 sales disappointing, pressure on iPhone X

Written by Matti Robinson @ 27 Oct 2017 11:54

WSJ: New iPhone 8 sales disappointing, pressure on iPhone X Apple's iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus have been available for over a month but sales might have not been what Apple wanted. According to Customer Intelligence Research Partners, a consumer research company, Apple's new iPhones are far behind last years models.

CIRP told Wall Street Journal that iPhone 8 and 8 Plus have accounted for only 16% of iPhone sales in the quarter ending in September. That is a huge difference to last years 44% accounted by iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus.

This time around things were different, though, so there's a lot that can change after the iPhone X in released next week. However, iPhone X supply is rumored to be very limited so that is probably not going to change percentages in favor of Apple.

What will change is that Apple's marginals increase tremendously with the more expensive device. It might also make customers waiting for the iPhone X switch to iPhone 8 and 8 Plus after the long waiting times are exposed.

According to analysts many customers are currently waiting for the iPhone X. How many of them are in the end willing to pay the rather hefty price, starting at $999, and possibly wait weeks or even months for the device remains to be seen.

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AfterDawn: News

Apple claims Bloomberg's Face ID report "completely false"

Written by Matti Robinson @ 26 Oct 2017 11:54

Apple claims Bloomberg's Face ID report "completely false" Apple has released a statement regarding yesterday's Bloomberg report on Face ID and its problems. According to the Cupertino company the reports is "completely false."

As we reported yesterday, Bloomberg had received information that suggested Apple had loosened some quality control in their Face ID technology that is heading to the new iPhone. According to the report there were several problems within the manufacturing process, and thus Apple had to drop quality in order to get sufficient amount of components in time for the launch of the iPhone X.

This, according to a short statement by Apple, is entirely false. Apple clarifies that unlike Bloomberg suggested the 3D camera remains the same accuracy it was when first introduced. This means that there's a "1 in a million probability of a random person unlocking your iPhone with Face ID."

However, if you want to split hairs, and of course we do, then that specific claim still doesn't invalidate the report about manufacturing problems just the fact that accuracy has been reduced from 1 in a million since the unveiling. Perhaps before September 12, the unveiling, it was more accurate.

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