Intel debuts 335 Series SSD, sports 20nm MLC NAND

Anthony Garreffa | Storage | Oct 30, 2012 5:30 AM CDT

Intel have begun shipping their latest SSD, which the chipmaker describes as the most efficient multi-level cell (MLC) NAND flash currently available. Intel's 335 Series SSD are also the first to use 20nm NAND flash which was built in a joint effort between Intel, Micron and IM Flash Technologies.

Intel's 335 Series SSD use the now-standard SATA 6Gbps interface, sports a SandForce SF-2281 controller running custom Intel firmware. The only drive available at the moment is a 240GB model, which comes with 500MB/sec read, 450MB/sec writes and ramps up to 42,000 read / 52,000 write IOPS using 4KB data.

The 20nm IMFT NAND uses a new cell structure that is said to enable more aggressive cell scaling than conventional architectures. Hi-K/metal gate planar cell technology is used to get around problems that come with this advanced process tech, enabling performance and reliability that we enjoyed with the 25nm process.

Continue reading: Intel debuts 335 Series SSD, sports 20nm MLC NAND (full post)

Top 5 things you'll want to use in Android 4.2 Jelly Bean

Anthony Garreffa | Software & Apps | Oct 29, 2012 9:33 PM CDT

Android 4.2 was just announced, but you'll need to have the skinny on those features, right? Well, I'm an avid Android user and there's a bunch of new features that look great, so let's go through a few of them.

Android 4.2 is going to arrive on the freshly announced Nexus 4 smartphone and Nexus 10 tablet, and should be quite the OS from Google. Android 4.1 really ramped it up with Project Butter, but there are some features in Android 4.2 to be quite excited over, so here we go.

5.) Daydream - This is something that will have its specific users, who want to use this feature, but it is something nice to see as a tiny feature on an otherwise huge release from Google. Daydream will allow your tablet to display photos, news and more while the device is idle, or docked.

Continue reading: Top 5 things you'll want to use in Android 4.2 Jelly Bean (full post)

Amazon take a swing at the iPad mini with new ad on their homepage

Trace Hagan | Mobile Devices, Tablets & Phones | Oct 29, 2012 2:33 PM CDT

Amazon has started the tablet wars. On their homepage, you will see the ad, pictured below, which compares the Kindle Fire HD to the newly released iPad min. Sure, they pick on a few features where the iPad mini is weak, but what is even more interesting is the quote they picked up from Gizmodo. Take a look for yourself:

Pretty funny, right? Everything about that ad is factual. The Kindle Fire HD does feature a higher resolution screen and pixel-per-inch count. It also picks on the iPad mini for not featuring stereo speakers, though I imagine most people use headphones when watching a move or listening to music as the built-in speakers of most mobile devices are pitiful.

I had to laugh at the quote Amazon pulled from Gizmodo: "...Your 7.9-inch tablet has far fewer pixels than the competing 7-inch tablets! You're cramming a worse screen in there, charging more and accusing others of compromise? Ballsy." However, what Amazon is forgetting to compare is the "cool factor" of the iPad mini, something that famous UK judge noted about the original iPad.

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Google still outs new Nexus 7, Nexus 4, Nexus 10 even though they canceled press event

Trace Hagan | Mobile Devices, Tablets & Phones | Oct 29, 2012 1:44 PM CDT

Google has unleashed a new wave of Nexus devices upon the world, even after canceling their press event due to Hurricane Sandy. Get ready for some great new devices because that is what Google has on offer. Out is the old Nexus 7 8GB, in is a 16GB at the same price. Also new to the Nexus 7 is cellular network capability.

The new Nexus 4 is not quite for sale, at least not yet. However, a sign-up page has been put online for users to be notified when the device is actually available. It comes in two models, an 8GB version for $299 and a 16GB version for $349. Noticeably lacking from the devices is LTE capability. Instead, they both feature unlocked HSPA+ radios.

The nexus 7 has seen a price cut along with some new features. The 16GB version will set you back $199, the 32GB version, $249, and a new 32GB model with mobile data will set you back $299, though this model isn't available yet. It has the same sign-up form that the Nexus 4 has. Google is no longer offering an 8GB model.

Continue reading: Google still outs new Nexus 7, Nexus 4, Nexus 10 even though they canceled press event (full post)

One person has purchased the data of 1.1 million Facebook users for just $5

Anthony Garreffa | Business, Financial & Legal | Oct 28, 2012 11:35 PM CDT

Bulgarian blogger and digital rights activist, Bogomil Shopova, recently purchased 1.1 million Facebook users' data, including names, IDs and e-mail accounts. Shopova has said that he has no intentions of spamming or hacking those on the list, but is using the acquisition of data to highlight just how easy it was to gather personal information from Facebook.

Where would you buy the data to 1.1 million Facebook accounts in the first place? Well, I thought that too, but Shopova reportedly found the data for sale on the social market website Gigbucks. The seller went by the username "mertem", claimed that the data had been collected through third-party Facebook applications, consisting mostly of active accounts in the US, Canada, Europe and the UK.

The advertisement for the data stated it had "great potential" if you were offering a Facebook, Twitter of other social media-related product or service. Forbes has been told by a Facebook spokesperson that they were looking into the security breach. The representative said that the social network had dedicated security engineers that take aggressive action on reports such as this.

Continue reading: One person has purchased the data of 1.1 million Facebook users for just $5 (full post)

Microsoft's Xbox SmartGlass reaches Android, offers Android users Xbox 360 control and integration

Anthony Garreffa | Software & Apps | Oct 26, 2012 11:21 PM CDT

Microsoft have been kind to Android users, providing SmartGlass integration on the Google Play store. The companion app is a bit of a change from the My Xbox Live app for Android, which let you control some of the Xbox 360's features from Android-based devices.

Windows Phone-based users get the best integration of all the OS', but it's good to see Microsoft not letting Android users cry in the dark alone. The Android app lets you look through the Dashboard, input text, browse the web (with zooming), search for local content, and control media playback.

The app requires an Android device sporting a resolution of at least 800x480, and a full list of features can be found below:

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Google employee leaves prototype Nexus 4 at San Francisco bar, oops or clever marketing?

Two years ago, a prototype iPhone 4 was left at a San Francisco bar, which lead to huge waves going through the Internet and technology industry - Apple was pissed, Gizmodo were flooded with hits for one of the most exclusive stories ever.

Well, it looks like it has happened again, with the Nexus 4 coming from LG. Wired reports that Jamin Barton, a bartender at the 500 Club in San Francisco, ended up with an unclaimed smartphone at the bar sometime last month. The smartphone didn't have a SIM card installed, sported the Google logo on the back as well as a sticker saying that the phone was "not for sale".

Barton says that a friend who is only referenced as "Dave", saw the phone and thought it was Google's next Nexus handset, and agreed to contact the Mountain View-based company. The next day, Dave was upset, saying that Google had gotten in contact with him regarding the prototype Nexus 4, threatening him as being an accessory to what is considered a crime.

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LeakedTT: Google Nexus 10, sports Android 4.2, dual-core CPU, 2560x1600 resolution

Google took the world by storm by releasing the Nexus 7, which has been incredibly popular but the larger screen size end of the market doesn't really have anything in the same league without talking about the iPad.

Well, the Nexus 10 is set to change that with a 10-inch 2560x1600-pixel display, a dual-core 1.7GHz Samsung Exynos 5250, Mali-T604 GPU, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage (no word on expandable storage via microSD), a 5-megapixel rear-facing snapper, NFC, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0.

We're talking "Retina"-like screen res here, at 298.9 pixels per inch, baby. The tablet will be used to usher in Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, meaning that this is just a slight jump in the OS and not a leap like some were hoping. Android 4.1 is still the best Android OS out to date, so Android 4.2 will be a nice evolution of that.

Continue reading: LeakedTT: Google Nexus 10, sports Android 4.2, dual-core CPU, 2560x1600 resolution (full post)

Google exec Vic Gundotra outs the Nexus 10 tablet with pictures from his vacation

Trace Hagan | Mobile Devices, Tablets & Phones | Oct 26, 2012 2:32 PM CDT

That's right, the Nexus 10 tablet has been officially outed through pictures posted on Google+. And it was no slip-up either. Google exec Vic Gundotra is on vacation somewhere incredibly gorgeous (who knows, maybe Google paid for the vacation so he could do this "stunt") and has taken photos with a Nexus 10 and posted them on his Google+.

Of course, these pictures then went out to his 3.3 million followers. We're only 3 days away from when the Nexus 10 is supposed to be unveiled. Now, that in and of itself isn't that big of a deal, or at least it wouldn't be until you learn some of the specifications of the new device. Most important is the screen resolution, 2560 x 1600.

This is notable because it is higher than both the iPad 3 and iPad 4's Retina displays, an impressive feat. And, with the pictures that have been posted, we can also comment on the shooter, which is clearly a good camera specimen. It took some incredible shots of what I imagine to be an incredible vacation.

Continue reading: Google exec Vic Gundotra outs the Nexus 10 tablet with pictures from his vacation (full post)

Unencrypted boarding pass barcodes damage US air security

Trace Hagan | Current Affairs | Oct 26, 2012 1:28 PM CDT

With the ever-increasing pervasiveness of technology, it was only time until someone figured out that airplane boarding passes could be read by smartphones and the data displayed to the user. Unfortunately, it was discovered that these boarding passes lacked any sort of simple security, such as encryption.

Users who use the PreCheck system can decode their barcodes and find out whether or not they would be randomly checked before they ever left home. The US PreCheck system allows frequent flyers and people willing to pay $100 to sometimes skip some parts of security, though it is random whether or not you will be checked.

This "randomness" is decided ahead of time and encoded in the barcode. A quick scan with a smartphone, or a quick look with your eyes, divulges whether or not you've been randomly selected. "The disclosure of this information means that bad guys are not going to be kept on their toes anymore," Christopher Soghoian, principal technologist at the American Civil Liberties Union, said.

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