Save a bundle on PC security software
The New Year is almost upon us and for many people this means it’s time to think about making New Year’s resolutions. Whether you subscribe to the idea of setting yourself such goals or not, the arrival of a new year is as good a time as any to consider the security of your computer. And with Christmas only just around the corner, you could head on over to the BetaNews Downloadcrew Software Store to buy a present for yourself and your computer -- you’ll find all manner of essential security tools available at heavily discounted prices.
If there is one piece of security software that everyone should have installed it is an antivirus tool. It is possible that you already have the free version of AVG’s virus protection tool installed, but for a mere $6.95 you could upgrade to the full commercial edition of AVG Anti-Virus 2012 -- a huge saving of 83 percent off the MSRP. Offering protection not only against viruses and malware, the program can also check links for malicious downloads, scan incoming emails and protect against identity theft. In addition to this, you can benefit from instant messaging protection, priority support and more frequent program updates.
Kindle Fire is the cost-conscious buyer's first choice for tablets
Apple's iPad leads the tablet market. It's a fact supported by extensive market research, and you'd have to split hairs to try to refute it.
However, the tablet market has matured and segmented over the last two years, and data continues to roll in showing that Amazon has effectively capitalized on that segmentation with the Kindle Fire.
Can CES survive without Microsoft?
It is a move sure to change the dynamics of the Consumer Electronics Show, and one the tech media may not have expected so soon. Microsoft announced Wednesday that CES 2012 is the last it will maintain a significant presence. After this January? No keynotes, no booth. Attendees won't even know the Redmond, Wash.-based company is there in 2013. If you want to gawk at a CEO Steve Ballmer CES keynote, next year's show is your ticket, and the last.
"We won’t have a keynote or booth after this year because our product news milestones generally don’t align with the show’s January timing", says Frank Shaw, head of corporate communications at Microsoft. "It feels like the right time to make this transition".
It's the Google-Microsoft snow ball fight!
This holiday, Google has delighted searchers with Easter Egg "let it snow", which spread virally across blogs and social networks over the weekend. Type "let it snow" into a Google search box and watch the flakes fall. It's a wonderful HTML5 demo.
Snow ball fight! Microsoft couldn't let Google's demo go unanswered, offering its own, which is best for the minority of people running Windows 8 Developer Preview on a PC with touchscreen display. Rob Mauceri, Internet Explorer group product manager explains in post "Let it snow.. faster!" Say, Google, are you going to let Microsoft throw more snow?
Hark the Herald Androids Sing
So-o-o-o-o, I'm trying to get into the holiday spirit here at BetaNews, which explains posting the Team CoCo video mocking Amazon Kindle Fire. That's one for all you iPad lovers and Apple fans. Retrevo has redone two classic Christmas carols, and, it only seems fair after giving iPad idolaters a present the Android army should get one, too.
Sing along for Android "our newfound king". Given Android's recent market share rise against iOS, that's no idle claim.
Verizon's LTE network returning to normal after second outage
Verizon 4G customers are experiencing issues with connectivity for the second time this month as the carrier struggles to restore the network. Issues are being reported throughout the company's nationwide 4G LTE network, although the cause is not immediately known.
"Verizon Wireless 4G LTE service is returning to normal this morning, after company engineers worked to resolve an issue with the 4G network during the early morning hours today", the company says. "Throughout this time, 4G LTE customers were able to make voice calls and send and receive text messages. The 3G data network operated normally".
Amazon apologies for Kindle Fire (comedic video)
If you ever wondered what tablet comedian Conan O'Brien uses, perhaps this video about Amazon Kindle Fire will tell you. One commenter to the comedic segment asked: "I wonder how much Apple paid TBS for this one?" I wouldn't go that far.
You will laugh. Surely iPad fans will chuckle most.
Be among the first to get Paragon Backup & Recovery 2012 Free
Paragon Software has debuted the latest version of its excellent free-for-personal-use drive imaging tool, Backup & Recovery 2012 Free. The program is essentially a maintenance release, but there is one immediately obvious addition in the Express Launcher, a front-end menu which enables you to launch Backup & Recovery’s easy-to-use backup or restore wizards with a click.
Other minor interface reorganizations help to further improve ease of use. And the program uses the very latest version of Paragon’s core backup engine, so you’ll benefit from any bug fixes and performance tweaks taat have been applied over the last year.
Google activates 486 Androids per minute
That's 700,000 a day, 21 million a month or 63 million per quarter. What about iOS? Apple won't likely reveal numbers until January, when announcing holiday quarter results. Don't expect them to be anywhere near as high, but not trailing way far behind, either. Android activations are lopsided, mostly from smartphones, while iOS sees traction on handsets and media tablets.
Android head honcho Andy Rubin revealed the activations last night in a Google+ post: "There are now over 700,000 Android devices activated every day". He later qualified, and this is important: "For those wondering, we count each device only once (ie, we don't count re-sold devices), and 'activations' means you go into a store, buy a device, put it on the network by subscribing to a wireless service".
Line95 is simple, retro and addictive
As we wrote last week, you don’t need flashy graphics to create a great game: there’s plenty of retro entertainment to be had from the ideas behind old classics like Command & Conquer and the X-Com series.
If you prefer something even simpler, though, it’s a good idea to install Lines95. The Color Lines-based game may look about as visually exciting as the old Windows Minesweeper, but it gets everything else right, being simple to learn, yet with real strategic depth that could take a very long time to master.
Google is Firefox's Christmas Miracle
It's no secret that Mozilla needs Google. The Mountain View, Calif. search company provides a significant source of revenue for the software company, as it is the default search in Firefox. That deal has been extended an additional three years, the two companies announced on Tuesday.
"Mozilla has been a valuable partner to Google over the years and we look forward to continuing this great partnership in the years to come", Google's search chief Alan Eustace says. Specific terms of the deal were not disclosed, but it may be safe to assume that it will contribute somewhere in the neighborhood of $100 million yearly to Mozilla's bottom line.
Apple is a patent troll now
In August, I called Apple a "patent bully". Whoa, was I wrong. Apple is a patent troll of the worst kind, if reports from Australia are true. Apple is filing a claim alleging that Samsung violates 10 patents for smartphone and tablet cases. Right, not legal cases but the skins you wrap your devices in.
Have you seen Samsung's device cases? It's one thing to assert Galaxy Tab looks like iPad 2, but Samsung device cases are petty generic, and I've got pictures to prove it. Wow, what amazing innovations are Apple trying to protect? Has Apple invented some new stitching technique? Developed leather that won't offend vegans? Wrapped iPhone in Bumpers that diminish an antenna design flaw? (It's yes to the last one.)
T-Mobile USA customers are big winners in failed merger
With details emerging on what exactly T-Mobile USA gets as a result of the dissolution of the merger between it and AT&T, it appears in at least the short term the struggling carrier will receive a much needed boost. AT&T is entering in to a seven year roaming agreement with T-Mobile that dramatically increases the carrier's coverage area.
"Coverage will be extended to many regions of the U.S. in which T-Mobile USA previously had neither its own high-speed mobile communications network nor the associated roaming agreements", Deutsche Telekom says. AT&T will award T-Mobile USA a significant amount of AWS spectrum, which will help T-Mobile USA dramatically accelerate its 4G deployment.
Samsung serves up Ice Cream Sandwich
Owners of Samsung's Galaxy line of tablets and smartphones won't wait long for Android 4.0 "Ice Cream Sandwich", according to an announcement the company made today. Galaxy S II and Galaxy Note will receive ICS in the first quarter of next year, followed by other Galaxy devices throughout 2012.
The new version of Android's operating system is a significant upgrade over previous releases, including enhancements such as "face unlock", improved multitasking and notifications support, and a updated user interface.
Comodo Internet Security 5.9 offers faster scanning, little else new
Comodo Internet Security has been upgraded to version 5.9, in what the company unexcitingly calls a “minor maintenance release”. Don’t fall asleep just yet, though. It may not be packed with new features, but this build does have a few very interesting additions.
Top of list is the new Smart Scan, which the company claims is “one of the smartest quick scans in the world”. And it proved very speedy on our test system, scanning more than 41,000 objects in a mere 83 seconds. Time will tell how useful this really is -- not scanning things is easy, making sure you can still identify all malware is the real problem -- but the new technology is off to a good start.
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