Day: November 18, 2020

technology

Apple cuts commissions: Industry reacts, regulators watch

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As regulators watch closely, Apple announced today it would cut its App Store commission for small businesses, taking its cut down from an industry standard 30% to 15% for those app and game developers who make less than $1 million a year.

The move could earn Apple points from small app makers who are hurting during the pandemic. But its critics were quick to point out that it wasn’t a big concession or one that would cost the tech giant much money.

Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney is suing Apple for antitrust violations and has said that Apple’s 30% take is excessive.

“This would be something to celebrate were it not a calculated move by Apple to divide app creators and preserve their monopoly on stores and payments, again breaking the promise of treating all developers equally,” Sweeney said in a statement to GamesBeat. “By giving special 15% terms to

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new technology

Canada’s opposition parties urge Trudeau government to ban Huawei 5G, say China is threat

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OTTAWA (Reuters) – Canada’s opposition on Wednesday called on Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government to get tougher on China, including by officially banning Huawei Technologies Co Ltd’s 5G technology from being used in the country.

FILE PHOTO: A smartphone with the Huawei and 5G network logo is seen on a PC motherboard in this illustration picture taken January 29, 2020. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic

Opposition parties passed a non-binding motion put forward by the Conservatives calling China a threat to Canadian interests and values, and urging the government to draft a plan to “combat China’s growing foreign operations” in Canada.

“We call on the Liberal government to finally grow a spine and make a decision on Huawei’s involvement in Canada’s 5G network,” Conservative leader Erin O’Toole said.

5G networks offer data speeds up to 50 or 100 times faster than 4G networks and are expected to power everything from telemedicine and

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modern technology

Technology lets clinicians objectively detect tinnitus for first time — ScienceDaily

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A technology called functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) can be used to objectively measure tinnitus, or ringing in the ears, according to a new study published November 18 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Mehrnaz Shoushtarian of The Bionics Institute, Australia, and colleagues.

Tinnitus, the perception of a high-pitched ringing or buzzing in the ears, affects up to 20% of adults and, when severe, is associated with depression, cognitive dysfunction and stress. Despite its wide prevalence, there has been no clinically-used, objective way to determine the presence or severity of tinnitus.

In the new study, researchers turned to fNIRS, a non-invasive and non-radioactive imaging method which measures changes in blood oxygen levels within brain tissue. The team used fNIRS to track activity in areas of the brain’s cortex previously linked to tinnitus. They collected fNIRS data in the resting state and in response to auditory and visual stimuli in 25

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computer gaming

Best Black Friday 2020 Gaming Monitor Deals

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Asus TUF 27″ 1440p 165Hz monitor

$310 (was $400) with code BFRDAY78 + $40 rebate | Nov. 23-27


See at Newegg

Acer Nitro 27″ 1080p 240hz curved monitor

$250 (was $300) | Nov. 23-27


See at Newegg

Legion 27″ 1440p 165Hz monitor

$369 (was $630) with code CLEAR10 | live now


See at Lenovo

Samsung 27″ 1440p 240Hz curved monitor

$500 (was $700) with code BFRDAY49 | Nov. 23-27


See at Newegg

LG 27″ 4K 60Hz FreeSync monitor

$280 (was $430) | starts Nov. 22


See at Best Buy

Gaming monitors always see great deals during this time of the year, but Black Friday 2020 offers the best opportunity to find some seriously good discounts. If you’re in the market for a new gaming display, then you’ll want to keep your eye on these Black Friday deals. From high refresh rates and resolutions to FreeSync support and fast response times,

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camera

Halide developer calls iPhone 12 Pro Max camera improvements ‘mind-blowing’

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Halide developer Sebastiaan de With has published an in-depth look at the iPhone 12 Pro Max camera and the “mind-blowing” photographic improvements that it brings.

The developer and photographer typically shares his thoughts on Apple camera technology when the company releases a new device, and this year is no different. In his evaluation, de With breaks down the new camera features on Apple’s latest 6.7-inch handset and puts them to the test.

For example, one of the main differences between the iPhone 12 Pro and the larger iPhone 12 Pro Max is the addition of a larger sensor. It’s about 47% bigger than the previous generation, and allows the device to bring in more light to reduce noise and bump up sharpness.

The iPhone 12 Pro Max's sensor versus the iPhone 11 Pro Max sensor. Credit: Sebastiaan de With

The iPhone 12 Pro Max’s sensor versus the iPhone 11 Pro Max sensor. Credit: Sebastiaan de With

Daylight comparisons between the two Pro models don’t show a significant

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information technology

Why now is the time for businesses to invest in information technology

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GUEST OPINION by Steve Singer, ANZ Country Manager, Talend: Amid the confusion and uncertainty that has marked the COVID-19 crisis, many organisations have been hesitant to invest in new IT infrastructure. Preferring to wait until conditions become clearer, they are opting to stick with what they already have in place.

While such an attitude is perfectly understandable, it’s unfortunately misguided. There has never been a better time to invest in technology and use it to drive business performance and growth.

The need for IT investment is also rising because firms are having to do more with less. Many have had to reduce headcounts and shift some staff to part-time positions to help keep a lid on operational costs. This means remaining teams need to boost their productivity to maintain expected levels of customer service.

Thankfully, the message appears to be finally getting through to senior management within Australian businesses.

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technology articles

London steps up charm offensive for $4 billion Deliveroo listing: sources

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LONDON (Reuters) – The London Stock Exchange and British government and banking officials have launched a charm offensive to persuade British online food delivery business Deliveroo to list in London early next year, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Deliveroo has appointed Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan to manage an initial public offering (IPO) of between 35-40% of the business in the first half of 2021, the sources said. London and New York are the main options for the deal.

The London-based firm could be valued at more than 3 billion pounds ($3.99 billion), the sources added, after a boost from the COVID-19 pandemic when many restaurants turned to Deliveroo for home delivery services.

Deliveroo and JPMorgan declined to comment. The LSE and Goldman did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Historically, European tech companies such as Spotify have chosen a New York listing to access the world’s

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science

Texans Want to Put a Telescope on the Moon

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luminous pierazzo crater

NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University

  • Astronomers from the University of Texas at Austin want to build a telescope on the moon.
  • Scientists already proposed that idea to NASA years ago, to no avail.
  • This telescope, nicknamed the “Ultimately Large Telescope,” could be different.

    In 2008, a group of astronomers from around the world came to NASA with a wild idea: Why not put a giant telescope on the moon?

    🌌 You love badass space stuff. So do we. Let’s nerd out over the universe together.

    The unbelievably large telescope, called the Lunar Liquid Mirror Telescope (LLMT), would have used a large spinning mirror made of liquid and be placed on one of the moon’s poles to study the earliest stars born in the universe.

    The telescope was ahead of its time—so much so that NASA scrapped the idea because there wasn’t enough supporting evidence for the existence of the ancient stars

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    new technology

    Apple will pay $113 million to settle a ‘batterygate’ investigation into its practice of intentionally slowing down old iPhones

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    Tim Cook wearing glasses and smiling at the camera: Tim Cook in Cupertino in September 2019. Christoph Dernbach/picture alliance via Getty Images

    © Provided by Business Insider
    Tim Cook in Cupertino in September 2019. Christoph Dernbach/picture alliance via Getty Images
    • Apple will pay $113 million in a settlement for an investigation into its past practice of intentionally slowing down people’s iPhones.
    • The payout is the latest Apple has made in regard to the matter — the company paid $500 million to settle a class-action lawsuit in May.
    • Apple admitted to slowing phones down in 2017 and said it was to prevent old batteries from randomly shutting devices off, not to force customers to buy newer smartphone models, as some believed.
    • Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.

    Apple will pay a $113 million settlement in an investigation into the company’s practice of intentionally slowing old iPhones down, a move that some customers perceived as a tactic to force them into purchasing new, more expensive models. The Washington Post first reported the news.

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    future technology

    The Future of Kitchen Design Is Hands-Free and Smartphone-Activated

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    Douglas Gilman put a new designer kitchen in his Manhattan apartment last year with entertaining in mind. He placed the sleek marble-accented Dada kitchen, from Italy’s Molteni&C, at the center of the airy 2,800-square-foot home that he created from combining two adjacent units in a former West Village printing house. He figured it would give him easier access to his guests.

    But the arrival of Covid-19 restrictions has meant much more cooking, and next to no entertaining, and it’s his high-tech German appliances that have come to the rescue, including an induction cooktop that can sense where he places a pan, and a speed oven that combines convection and microwave technology.

    “My ovens are almost more advanced than my computer,” says the 39-year-old financial-services professional of his $30,000 set of appliances from Gaggenau, Miele, and the U.S. brand Sub-Zero.

    Eating may still be analog, but kitchens have taken up residence

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