Ian Barker

If you want to send images, videos or music to your TV from another device the obvious choice might seem to be Google's Chromecast. However it's not the only game in town, the Tronsmart may not be a name you've heard of but at $24.09 it's around $10 cheaper than Google's alternative, so is it worth considering?

First impressions are good, it's made of a nice smooth matt plastic and the design is tidy if unexciting. The unit plugs directly into the HDMI port of your TV or projector and it offers 1080P resolution, though can be switched to 720P for older TVs. The T1000 will work with Android (including Kindle Fire HDX), iOS or Windows devices, you just need to download the right software.

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Effective sales campaigns are all about personalizing the message so that it's relevant to the customer. But generating this content can be time consuming.

Sales communication specialist Tellwise is launching a new Smart Message feature that helps sales professionals to more effectively communicate in a multi-channel and multi-device world.

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The increased demand for solutions based on big data has led to something of a shortage of data scientists, which means in many cases companies are struggling to unlock the information they already have.

A new tool from data specialist GraphLab provides enterprise-grade machine learning to simplify and automate the handling of big data. By bringing together ease of use and computing scale the software makes it possible for one data scientist to do the job of many.

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In the past IT departments have always been about crunching numbers and processing data. But emerging technologies are beginning to take IT into unfamiliar areas that in turn have an impact on the wider operation of the business.

Research specialist Gartner has identified six areas that it sees as potentially being adopted by business and which CIOs need to consider.

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There are a number of reasons why businesses might move data to the cloud. To reduce storage costs, improve accessibility or simply reduce the need for on-site equipment. But how can you be sure that moving data to the cloud is the correct decision?

We looked at how businesses can approach this earlier today. Now archiving specialist DocuLynx is using the Microsoft Worldwide Partnership Conference in Washington to launch a new product aimed at making cloud storage decisions easier.

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Mobile security specialist Lacoon has released details of a new vulnerability in the Gmail app for iOS that may allow hackers to view or modify encrypted communications.

It allows attackers to use a Man-in-the-Middle (MitM) technique to impersonate a legitimate server using a spoofed SSL certificate.

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An international operation involving law enforcement and private sector organizations has been set up to combat the Shylock banking trojan. Shylock, which gets its name because the code contains lines from Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice, is thought to have infected at least 30,000 Windows computers worldwide.

To date Shylock has targeted the UK more than any other nation so the country's National Crime Agency (NCA) is coordinating the international effort. This also includes the FBI, Europol, BAE Systems Applied Intelligence, GCHQ, Dell SecureWorks, Kaspersky Lab and the German Federal Police.

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Cloud storage is an increasingly popular way of storing and sharing data, but when using public services there's always a concern about how safe your information is.

But now a new startup aims to provide controlled sharing of data via an intelligent private cloud network. Sher.ly integrates your existing hard drives into a private, tightly controlled cloud network. Rather than have to send out open links to files or share copies across a public cloud, organizations and individuals can have the security of invite-only, limited-access file-sharing that keeps data on the devices that produced it.

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Allowing employees to use their own devices is an increasingly popular trend, but BYOD opens up security threats that can leave company data vulnerable. A new survey commissioned by security specialists Webroot looks at the reality of mobile security.

In particular it focuses on the difference in perception between companies and employees when it comes to securing mobile devices. Whilst there are some areas of agreement there are also signs that some employees don't take adequate steps to protect company data.

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Ransomware has proved to be a successful business model for cybercrooks and a recent study shows that IT professionals still see it as a major and growing area of concern.

In a study by security awareness training specialist KnowBe4 88 percent of the 300 professionals surveyed said they expected ransomware to grow over the rest of this year. Attacks are also shifting from desktops to mobile devices, leading to problems for BYOD users.

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Earlier this week we covered the debate on whether Android users need malware protection. If further fuel for the argument was needed it comes in the form of Russian security firm Dr.Web's monitoring of Android threats.

Until recently embedded advertising modules have topped Dr.Web's malicious program rankings, but statistics for recent months indicate that an Android SMS bot Trojan has been spreading at an alarming rate.

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All businesses insure against risks like fire, flood and theft. Insuring against cyberrisks though is a relatively new field and it's hard to know how much cover is adequate.

According to a new report from NSS Labs, US retailer Target had $100 million worth of cybersecurity coverage at the time of its breach last year. But with losses estimated at $88 million by May this year and a number of lawsuits still pending it looks like that cover won't be enough.

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Where would we be without innovation? In the dark most probably. It's what drives the commercial world forward, in particular the "disruptive technologies" that radically change the way that the world operates.

Marketing specialist Pulp-PR has put together an infographic from a number of data sources showing the effect these technologies have and highlighting what it thinks are the currently most innovative tech companies.

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We're all familiar with software licenses. It's the bit you ignore when installing a new program, right? But what's less understood is the difficulty they cause for businesses. New research by IDC sponsored by Flexera looks at the latest trends in software licensing, virtualization and the compliance issues involved.

The report points out that the software license supply chain is one of the most opaque, difficult to understand and complex to manage. As a result, the relationship between application producer and customer has often suffered in the past.

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The hotel and leisure industry is based on understanding and meeting customer needs. But new research from network hardware company NETGEAR suggests that this doesn't stretch to the importance guests place on good Wi-Fi connections.

The study finds that 76 percent of hospitality venues are convinced that their quality of service and facilities are far more important to customers than Wi-Fi. As many as 43 percent believe customers think poor or non-existent wireless access is a price worth paying for the experience on offer.

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