Articles by Quinten Plummer
Apple Shows Its True Color: Goes Red to Help Battle AIDS
Apple partners with app developers in a campaign that will divert two weeks of proceeds from 25 games to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS ahead of World AIDS Day. Apple will also gift a portion of its Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales to the fund.
iOS App Downloads Hit Record High, 42% Jump in One Month
App Store users downloaded a record-setting 7.8 million apps each day in October. The launch of the iPhone 6 series had a role in historic download mark, though iOS 8's adoption still trails iOS 7.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk Talking Batteries, Partnership With BMW
Tesla and BMW are in unofficial talks about collaborating to advance the tech behind batteries and charging stations. Tesla CEO Elon Musk is also interested in BMW's lightweight car parts.
Apple Gets Final Court Approval for $450 Million E-Book Settlement
Calling the settlement 'highly unusual,' a judge has agreed to let Apple pay $450 million to settle charges it conspired with several publishers to fix the price of e-books. There's a catch - the deal only applies if Apple's appeal of that original price-fixing ruling fails. If the appeal is upheld, Apple only has to pay a portion of that settlement.
Knightscope Security Robots Are Keeping Microsoft Campuses Safe (and They Look Really Scary)
Microsoft unleashes a fleet of Daleks, um, 'robots' to police its campuses. The company behind the policing robots says the revolution has already begun and it hopes law enforcement agencies will begin to adopt the autonomous machines soon.
Amazon Denies Report it Is Offering Netflix-Type Video-Streaming Service. Or Did It?
In response to reports stating it is preparing to release an ad-supported version of its streaming-video service, Amazon stopped shy of saying it isn't in the works. The company says it has nothing to announce right now, which deviates from its flat-out denial of similar claims raised months earlier.
iPhone 6 Plus Winning Hearts of Asia-Pacific Smartphone Buyers
Following market trends, the phablet version of the iPhone 6 is most successful in the Asia-Pacific region. Globally, the 4.7-inch version of the phone is still the most popular by far.
Amazon Moving Into Hotel, Travel Business? That's the Rumor
Hoteliers assert Amazon is preparing to launch a travel site. Amazon Travel would compile a curated collection of independent hotels, offering the e-commerce company another route into consumers' lives.
Amazon Prepping Video Streaming Service Boasting Ad Support
Amazon is rumored to be working on a new way to dethrone Neftlix. The e-commerce company is said to be preparing an ad-supported version of Instant Video, which could enable it to lower the price of the premium service.
Google Gifting Chromebook Buyers 1 TB Storage for Next Two Years
In the name of holiday cheer and gaudy sweaters, Google offers up two years of 1 TB storage to consumers who purchase a new Chromebook. Google values the storage space at $240.
AT&T Nexus 6 Bug Prompts Smartphone Returns to Motorola
AT&T's Nexus 6 has been sent back to Motorola for repair more than any other version of the smartphone loaded with the new Lollipop mobile OS, reports say. Problems with black-out screens and connectivity are due to use of old software.
Twitter in Sharing Mode, Tweeters Get Some Privacy
Seeking to capitalize on what its CEO calls the 'virality' of private messaging, Twitter is offering up a new sharing mode. Users can now share and discuss tweets in private messages.
Dropbox Updates Carousel, Finally. Android Phone, Tablet Users Cheering
Dropbox stretches Carousel's reach across new platforms to expand the photo app's install base. The latest version of Carousel includes several features that probably should have been there at the start.
Turn Off Those Webcams, Baby Monitors as the World Is Watching
A Russian website syndicates hundreds of thousands of feeds from webcams located in 152 countries. The site claims to point out a common security vulnerability, but privacy watchdogs want the site shuttered immediately.
IBM Bolsters Cloud App DevOps Tools, Features
IBM pushes its Bluemix PaaS software to enterprises that aren't in a position to entrust sensitive data to public clouds. The company's new Private API securely connects the platform to data housed on campus.
Mozilla Goes Yahoo in Firefox Browser Strategy. But Why?
Yahoo's Bing-powered Search earns a place in Mozilla's Firefox browser for the next five years. It's a declaration of Mozilla's independence from Google and a sign that Yahoo is prepared to act aggressively to shore up its revenue.
Crowd-Fueled Kickstarter Thursday: Innovations in Device Touch, Mobile Farming Tech
Born of a mouse and a stylus, a wireless peripheral seeks to bring gesture control to nontouch displays. Another campaign aims to take touch controls off-screen, while a third looks to keeps mobile farms running while farmers tackle chores and other real-world obligations.
Apple Flips 'Free' for 'Get' at App Store to Appease Regulators, Parents
Apple seeks to eliminate the confusion over in-app purchases by branding freemium apps as 'Get.' While 'Get' may be just as enticing as 'Free,' Apple is working to eliminate the assumption there are no charges associated with using freemium apps.
Amazon Fire TV Stick Shipping, But Few Will Find One Under the Tree
Amazon sells out of Fire TV Sticks well ahead of Christmas, as the first wave of preorders depleted its inventory. Consumers will have to wait until Jan. 15 for the next wave of Fire TV Sticks to ship out.
BitTorrent Prepping Sync 2.0, Watch Out Dropbox
BitTorrent offers another way to monetize its peer-to-peer network, taking aim at file storage services this time. Sync will include a number of premium features that will allow users to share and store an unlimited amount of data without having to hand over credentials to a cloud service provider.
Court, FTC Shutter Tech Support Scam Operators
The FTC is accusing two telemarketing firms of offering rigged software and charging consumers a premium to fix fabricated problems. Some consumers were coerced into paying up to $500 for technical support services they didn't need.
Steve Wozniak Steps in as Virtualization Startup's Chief Scientist
After leaving one chief scientist post, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak steps into another. This time, he'll help steer the technology of a startup's virtualization platform.
Google Strives to Make Mobile Search More Friendly
After extinguishing a lawsuit, Google starts to place stakes on websites that cater to mobile devices. Google's new "Mobile Friendly" tags could play into the search engine's website rankings.
Twitter Goes Full Search But Users Can Edit Tweet History
Sort of like the person who revives a forum post years after it has gone cold, Twitter is necroing tweets posted as early as 2006. While there was always a way to dig up old tweets Twitter is now making it very easy.
Nokia N1 Tablet Marks Just the First of New Nokia Devices to Come
While Microsoft works to extinguish the Nokia handset brand, the name lives on through a new licensing deal. The Nokia N1 is the first of many consumer products on which Nokia says it will stamp its name.
Amazon Whips up New Weapon in Battle for the Cloud
Seeking to maintain its dominance in the global cloud market, Amazon makes its cloud server more accommodating for app developers. Amazon's Lambda offers the scalability and responsiveness required for cloud-connected apps, but often unrealized on in-house servers.
Apple Debuts WatchKit. Let the App Making Begin!
After serving up a preview, Apple offers the Apple Watch software development toolkit in full. WatchKit will initially allow developers to create side-loaded apps, but it will eventually support the construction of native Watch software.
Microsoft Commissions Opera to Absorb the Nokia App Store
Further distancing itself from the Nokia brand, Microsoft prepares to transition the Nokia app store into Opera's hands. Microsoft says it still plans to support legacy Nokia devices.
Intel Woos Women With MICA, a Snazzy Shiny Smart Bracelet
While the wearable tech industry, in general, seeks to create products pliable enough to suit both men and women, the MICA is built for the female smart watch user. The MICA smart bracelet is the child of Intel's ingenuity and Opening Ceremony's design expertise.
Life After Nokia: Finland Oulu's Second Miracle Takes Shape
Microsoft's acquisition of Nokia dealt a solid blow to Finland's technology industry, but the country to the east of the Baltic Sea is poised for another economic boom. Tech Times speaks with the CEO of BusinessOulu to find out how the Nokia buyout affected Oulu and what the city's future looks like. This is part one of a two-part series on Finland's tech industry rebound.
