Friday, October 4, 2019

Upcoming change could fix a big problem with Google’s End of Life policy for Chromebooks


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16-Inch MacBook Pro May Ship With 96W USB-C Power Adapter

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Apple may be readying a 96W USB-C power adapter for the widely rumored 16-inch MacBook Pro, according to information received by Chongdiantou, the Chinese-language sibling website of ChargerLAB.

Chongdiantou received a blurry photo of the alleged power adapter from an unidentified source via Chinese messaging app WeChat. The source claimed the 96W power adapter has a model identifier of A2166 and will be around the same size as Apple's existing 87W USB-C power adapter for the 15-inch MacBook Pro.

Image: Chongdiantou

While the blurry photo is rather sketchy, Apple previously confirmed that its upcoming Pro Display XDR will be capable of up to 96W pass-through charging, which is more power than necessary for any portable device that Apple currently ships. Thus, perhaps the higher-power charger is for the 16-inch MacBook Pro.


Chongdiantou has an established track record in this area, having shared accurate photos of Apple's existing 18W USB-C power adapter in July 2018, nearly four months before it was included with 2018 iPad Pro models.

Apple plans to release a 16-inch MacBook Pro with an all-new design later this year, according to reputable analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. The notebook will feature a scissor keyboard, he said, after years of butterfly keyboard issues on MacBooks that prompted Apple to launch a worldwide repair program.

(Thanks, Duorou W.!)

Related Roundup: MacBook Pro
Buyer's Guide: MacBook Pro (Caution)

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Panasonic Launches New Range of 4K and HD Smart Android TVs in India with Netflix and Prime Video Support


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BSNL Partners with PayTM App to Allow Users Connect to Public Wi-Fi Hotspots in India


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John Hancock Offers Apple Watch Series 5 to Vitality Life Insurance Customers for $25

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Life insurance provider John Hancock has announced that it is expanding its Apple Watch program so that new and existing members of its Vitality program can receive a 40mm Apple Watch Series 5 for an initial payment of just $25 plus tax.


The cost of the Apple Watch is split up into 24 monthly payments, which can be paid off by walking, running, biking, swimming, or completing various other exercises.

Vitality members must earn at least 500 fitness-related Vitality Points per month over two years to avoid owing any of the instalments. Additional fees apply for customers who choose a cellular model or other more expensive models.

By connecting the Vitality Today app to Apple's Health app and confirming data sharing, customers can earn Vitality Points for Light, Standard, and Advanced Workouts towards the monthly goal.

Customers can also share steps measured by their iPhone or Apple Watch, as well as active calories from the Apple Watch.

The Vitality program is available with select John Hancock life insurance policies in the United States. The free Apple Watch Series 5 offer will be available starting this fall everywhere except New York and Puerto Rico.

John Hancock, owned by Manulife Financial, first started offering Apple Watches to a limited number of members in 2016, before opening the program to all Vitality members the following year.

In a recent survey of John Hancock Vitality members with Apple Watch, 84 percent stated they are motivated to exercise by their Apple Watch and 90 percent wear an Apple Watch seven days a week.

In addition, a RAND Europe study of over 400,000 people concluded that those who participated in Vitality's Global Apple Watch programs averaged a 34 percent sustained increase in physical activity compared to participants without an Apple Watch.

Related Roundups: Apple Watch, watchOS 6
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Buy Now)

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US, UK, and Australia Urge Zuckerberg Not to Extend Encrypted Messaging to Facebook and Instagram

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U.S., U.K., and Australian officials have contacted Facebook to request that it provides authorities with a way to access encrypted messages sent by users over the social network, it was revealed today.

Facebook-owned WhatsApp already uses end-to-end encryption to ensure only senders and recipients can read messages, but Facebook intends to extend the same protocols to its Messenger and Instagram Direct chat platforms.


However, government officials have penned an open letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg asking him not to go ahead with the plan – or if it does, to at least give authorities a way to read encrypted messages for reasons of law enforcement, and in particular to prevent child sexual exploitation.

A draft of the letter, obtained by BuzzFeed News, is set to be released in tandem with an announcement on a new data-sharing agreement between law enforcement in the U.S. and the U.K. aimed at removing barriers to cross-border surveillance.
"We are writing to request that Facebook does not proceed with its plan to implement end-to-end encryption across its messaging services without ensuring that there is no reduction to user safety," the letter reads.

"Risks to public safety from Facebook’s proposals are exacerbated in the context of a single platform that would combine inaccessible messaging services with open profiles, providing unique routes for prospective offenders to identify and groom our children."

"Security enhancements to the virtual world should not make us more vulnerable in the physical world. Companies should not deliberately design their systems to preclude any form of access to content, even for preventing or investigating the most serious crimes."
The letter, dated October 4, is signed by U.S. Attorney General William P Barr, U.K. Home Secretary Priti Patel, acting U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan, and the Australian minister for Home Affairs Peter Dutton.
"We believe people have the right to have a private conversation online, wherever they are in the world," a Facebook spokesperson said in response to the letter. "Ahead of our plans to bring more security and privacy to our messaging apps, we are consulting closely with child safety experts, governments and technology companies and devoting new teams and sophisticated technology so we can use all the information available to us to help keep people safe."

"We strongly oppose government attempts to build backdoors because they would undermine the privacy and security of people everywhere."
Zuckerberg also defended his decision to encrypt Facebook's messaging services, despite concerns about its impact on child exploitation and other criminal activity.

Speaking on Thursday in a livestreamed version of the company's weekly internal Q&A session, the CEO said child exploitation risks weighed "most heavily" on him when he was making the decision and pledged steps to minimize harm.

Apple has long opposed government attempts to gain access to encrypted communications through the use of backdoors in iOS devices.

In 2016, a U.S. federal judge ordered Apple to help the FBI hack into the iPhone owned by Syed Farook, one of the shooters in the December 2015 attacks in San Bernardino.

The FBI asked Apple to create a version of iOS that would both disable passcode security features and allow passcodes to be entered electronically, allowing it to then brute force the passcode on the device.

Apple announced that it would oppose the order in an open letter penned by Tim Cook, who said the FBI's request would set a "dangerous precedent" with serious implications for the future of smartphone encryption. Apple said the software the FBI asked for could serve as a "master key" able to be used to get information from any iPhone or iPad - including its most recent devices - while the FBI claimed it only wanted access to a single iPhone.

Apple's dispute with the FBI ended on March 28, 2016 after the government found an alternate way to access the data on the iPhone through the help of Israeli firm Cellebrite and withdrew the lawsuit.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.


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Apple Reportedly Increasing iPhone 11 Lineup Production by Up to 10% Due to Strong Demand

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Apple has asked suppliers to increase production of its new iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro lineup by up to 10 percent, according to Nikkei Asian Review. The bump in production would add up to 8 million units to the current production plans as Apple seeks to meet stronger-than-expected demand.

"This autumn is so far much busier than we expected," one source with direct knowledge of the situation said. "Previously, Apple was quite conservative about placing orders," which were less than for last year's new iPhone. "After the increase, prepared production volume for the iPhone 11 series will be higher compared to last year," the source said.
The report claims the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro are seeing the strongest demand, while Apple is actually revising orders for the iPhone 11 Pro Max down slightly as it seeks to balance production with demand.

Nearly every year, stories circulate about Apple cutting production in the months following the launches of new iPhones, but it's frequently unclear whether production cuts are due to weaker-than-expected demand or simply anticipated scaling back following the initial rush of orders. Regardless, an increase in production this year appears to be a good sign for Apple.

With the launch of three new iPhone models with improved cameras, Apple's iPhone lineup may be appealing to a broad array of customers ready to upgrade from older models, particularly with the iPhone 11 starting at $699, which is $50 less than its iPhone XR predecessor.

Those looking for an even more budget-friendly new iPhone may have some welcome news early next year, with multiple reliable sources indicating that Apple is planning to launch a new "iPhone SE 2" that would actually look very similar to the iPhone 8 but with upgraded internals such as Apple's latest A13 chip and 3 GB of RAM.

Related Roundups: iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro

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