A short history of text messaging
The text message has become such a key part of our modern lives that it's hard to believe that the concept behind it dates back 31 years. Email to SMS gateway service Neon SMS has produced an infographic tracking how SMS has evolved.
The first text message was sent in 1992, although it had to be from a PC because it was the following year before Nokia introduced the first SMS-enabled phone. In 1997 the Finnish company produced the 9000i Communicator, the first mobile phone to feature a full keyboard.
HTC One (M8) will get Android M
HTC is sticking with its promise to offer quick updates, with the vice president of product management Mo Versi confirming that the HTC One M8 will receive Android M.
Versi didn’t give any dates for the update, and it doesn’t look like HTC are sticking to the 90 day policy it promoted in 2014. The company had various issues fulfilling this promise, including carrier blocks in the United States and some parts of Europe.
New process removes the risk from accepting bitcoin payments
One of the things that inhibits merchants from accepting bitcoin payments is that there’s a time lag in receiving cleared funds. A bitcoin payment can take around 10 minutes to be verified and confirmed on the blockchain.
Even then most payment processors will wait for 2-6 confirmations (taking 20-60 mins) before guaranteeing to the merchant that the transaction is complete and the merchant will receive the funds. For merchants used to accepting card payments which are verified in seconds this is a problem.
Banning encrypted messaging apps is a stupid idea
In light of the recent news that the UK government is pushing harder for a legislation which would allow it to monitor all digital communications, and ban those apps that use encryption, a huge debate has sparked on whether the government should be allowed to do this or not.
Professor of Law at the London School of Economics, Andrew Murray, has had his say on the matter in a Huffington Post article, arguing that banning communications apps to curb the work of terrorist groups would be similar to banning cars in order to stop terrorists from using them.
DataSift brings machine learning to analyzing social data
Information from social media is becoming more and more important to many companies. But extracting data and getting something useful from it can prove difficult.
Business intelligence specialist DataSift is launching a new technology called VEDO Intent, which aims to take social analysis further, gaining more nuanced insights into markets and customers using machine learning.
Jolla finds first licensee for its Sailfish 2.0 in Indian smartphone maker Intex Technologies
Jolla, the Finnish developer of Android-based Sailfish OS, has roped in Indian smartphone vendor Intex Technologies as the first licensee for its mobile operating system, it announces today at the ongoing Mobile World Congress event in Shanghai.
As part of the collaboration, the two companies plan to build an ecosystem for Sailfish OS in India. Intex, the second largest Indian smartphone vendor, announces that it will be launching the phone later this year at a price point near Rs 10,000 ($150).
AndroMouse is a smart Android remote control for your PC
Your PC’s large screen, quality sound card and speakers make it great for viewing and sharing media, but having to control the system via a keyboard and mouse isn’t always convenient.
AndroMouse provides a versatile alternative, with a comprehensive collection of tools which allows you to remotely control a PC from your Android device.
US consumers losing interest in smartphones, but Microsoft 'delights'
Despite the introduction of some impressive smartphones in the past year it appears that the market is showing signs of contracting in the US.
According to a new report from Argus Insights, following a strong holiday season, US smartphone demand in Q2 (ending June 30 2015) dropped steadily and is down 8 percent compared to June 2014. While Samsung and Apple remain the top smartphone brands, Samsung appears to have failed to woo consumers with its two new flagship devices, the Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge.
Apple's App Store is host to 1.5 million titles
Apple’s App Store has passed another huge milestone, 1.5 million total apps.
It is an enormous amount of active projects on one platform, considering Apple’s Mac OS X store only has 25,000 apps. The only platform to rival iOS is Android, which has a large app library but lower revenue.
UK government launches voucher scheme to boost small business security
For smaller businesses cyber security isn't always their highest priority which means they can be left vulnerable to attacks.
In an effort to beef up protection for small and medium businesses, the UK government is launching a voucher scheme as part of a package of measures designed to increase the resilience of UK businesses to cyber-attacks.
Living with Amazon Echo
There's no reason to give you a full review of Amazon's Echo, my colleagues have already said plenty on that score. Instead I wanted to explain what living with Echo is like after one day. Yes, that's how long I've had the device, so this is a "first impressions" in the truest sense, and they run all over the place.
First, Echo has very solid build quality; it's a hefty device and it's very easy to set up -- plug it in, download the Android app and you're on your way. The app walks you through the process and there isn't a whole lot to it.
Huddle launches desktop app for easier collaboration
Business collaboration specialist Huddle is launching a new desktop app for Windows and Mac aimed at improved productivity and greater integration with other products.
Huddle Desktop comes with plug-ins for Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook to deliver deeper integration into the user's existing desktop applications. Documents stored within Huddle can be opened, edited, and saved natively from within Office programs. Users can also view team members' comments and sync their own comments back to Huddle.
HP to ship Windows 10 PCs on July 28
In the run-up to the launch of Windows 10, there has been some confusion about whether it will be possible to buy a system running the latest OS on the big day. Dell has already made its position clear, and now HP has done the same.
If you want to pick up an HP computer running Windows 10 from a store, you'll have to wait until the beginning of August. But if you order ahead of time, systems will be ready for customers on July 28.
Malwarebytes Anti-Malware for Mac 1.0 is a simple on-demand scan-and-remove tool
Security developer Malwarebytes has unveiled Malwarebytes Anti-Malware for Mac 1.0, the company’s first Mac product.
The new app hasn’t been coded from scratch, but is a rebranded (and updated) version of AdwareMedic, which was acquired by Malwarebytes back in March.
HTC One M9+ flagship coming to Europe
Originally announced in April, One M9+ is HTC's most-impressive Android smartphone of the year so far, besting the One M9 global flagship. However, for some reason, HTC decided that it would only sell the device in a couple of Asian markets, forcing interested buyers in other parts of the globe to, basically, import the device.
Fortunately for those looking to get One M9+, HTC just announced that it is also making the Android device available in European markets. It looks like those in US will have to wait a bit longer for its official debut -- if it ever happens.
© 1998-2026 BetaNews, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy - Cookie Policy.