While new features in Safari, Camera, Photos, Notes, Weather, Messages, and other Apple apps may steal the show on iOS 17, there are some impressive new features you need to know about when it comes to FaceTime audio and video calls. A step beyond mere upgrades, Apple nudges ...more
Your iPhone has a powerful feature that can keep your secrets hidden from other people, and you'll never have to worry about sharing or showing someone something embarrassing or incriminating ever again. No matter who you are, you likely use your iPhone's Photos app a lot sin ...more
Facebook recently implemented "Vanish Mode" into Messenger and Instagram, which lets you have an end-to-end encrypted conversation in a chat that will disappear as soon as you leave the thread. As cool as it sounds, it's easy to enable accidentally, and a friend could force yo ...more
Browser extensions are extremely useful since they can expand web browsers like Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox beyond their built-in features. However, we don't always know who's behind a browser add-on or what it's doing beyond what's advertised. That's where ExtAnalysis c ...more
Directing a message at a specific person in a group conversation, or to a select few people in the group, can be difficult if you're in a particularly active or hectic chat. Notifications and badges on your iPhone can help you keep track of important messages, but it's still e ...more
As a meeting host on Zoom, you can't control what a participant does during your live video call, but you do have the power to turn off their camera so that other people aren't subjected to distractions. So if you catch someone in your call purposely making obscene gestures or ...more
The COVID-19 pandemic has created a frenzy for news and information that is nearly unprecedented in the smartphone era, with a major side effect of misinformation. Now, major tech companies are making it easier to ask for advice about novel coronavirus from their respective di ...more
When it comes to cybersecurity, one layer isn't enough. A complex password (or one created with a password manager) does a good job of protecting your data, but it can still be cracked. Two-factor authentication strengthens this by adding a second layer of security, giving you ...more
With a cheap computer, smaller than the Raspberry Pi, an attacker can create a remote hacking device. The device can be attached to a target router without anyone's knowledge and enable the hacker to perform a variety of network-based attacks from anywhere in the world. As th ...more
Learning Chinese is hard, but it can be a lot easier with the help of a few great apps. As a native English speaker who's currently living in China, this is a process I've recently gone through. After playing the field, here are the three apps I personally think will help you ...more
While photography usually gets all the love, our phones have gotten really good at capturing video. Think about it — when was the last time you needed a camcorder for a vacation? With mobile cameras getting better each year, we're now at a point where smartphones can be used f ...more
A lot of people still trust their web browsers to remember every online account password for them. If you're one of those users, you need to adopt a more secure way of managing passwords, because browser-stored passwords are hacker gold mines. With a USB Rubber Ducky and physi ...more
Android's settings menu is actually pretty daunting. There are options for nearly everything, so in the sea of various menus and submenus, it's easy to overlook important privacy and security settings. On Google's Pixel phones in particular, there are 20 such settings that you ...more
Stories are everywhere in social media today, but that wasn't always the case. In 2013, Snapchat introduced the world to these temporary windows into our daily lives. Since then, stories have infiltrated other popular apps. However, to stand out, you can't solely rely on the a ...more
These days, using Reddit on your iPhone is just as good, if not better, than Redditing on a desktop browser. While there's an official Reddit app for iOS, there are plenty of third-party clients that have similar features as well as custom perks to enhance the experience. But ...more
Whether it's an ex you can't stand, that annoyingly political friend of a friend, or good old fashioned trolls, the block feature on Facebook can be a great way to de-stress your feed. It will keep people from contacting you, and it will also prevent them from viewing your pro ...more
Kali Linux is probably the most well-known hacking distribution among penetration testers. However, there are alternative distros which offer versatility and advanced package management systems that are absolutely worth considering. One such distribution is Pentoo, a Gentoo-b ...more
You've had your fun swiping, but now it's time to walk away from all of your online dating apps. Whether it's because you found someone you're interested in or just need some time away, it's important to know how to permanently erase your online dating footprint — and that inc ...more
It's not easy staying fit and healthy these days with addicting phones, oversized portions, and long workdays, to name just a few things. To succeed, it takes work, commitment, and an understanding of your mind and body — and your iPhone can help you with some of that. While A ...more
Any real Star Wars fan knows that fear is a path to the dark side, as it leads to anger, and then suffering. For players of Star Wars Jedi Challenges, though, access to the antagonistic side of the Force is now available through their mobile apps. The new Dark Side expansion, ...more
While iOS 12 is arguably the best iteration of Apple's mobile operating system yet, one major fault so far is security. On Sept. 26, Videosdebarraquito discovered a passcode bypass that gave access to contacts and photos from the lock screen. Apple has since patched that secur ...more
Royal Dutch Airlines (KLM) is making it easier for its passengers to travel by employing an incredibly practical new augmented reality feature included an update to its iOS app. Now, iPhone and iPad users can place a translucent virtual suitcase over their own real world lugg ...more
Welcome to the first annual Next Reality 30, our list of people who've made the biggest impact on the augmented reality space in the last 12 months — and what a 12-month roller-coaster ride it's been. Apple introduced ARKit-powered apps last fall, Google launched ARCore for An ...more
The gig economy is thriving, and if you aren't already making money with your phone, you could be missing out on easy residual income. Some people just want extra cash, and some even manage to completely ditch the 9–5, enabling them to work at their own pace and set their own ...more
When you've had enough of someone's annoying baby videos or cat photos on Instagram, you would have to either unfollow them or even block them outright. Now, you don't have to cut ties with them completely — you can just mute them instead, a feature that Instagram's parent com ...more
Smartphones are still "phones," which means communicating with others is usually a primary use. Ranging from a simple "hi" to a more personal conversation and even sharing passwords, our messages should remain private so that only the intended recipient sees their content. Whi ...more
Last month, we told you about U2's new augmented reality-powered music tour. But if you don't have the means to travel to the show, the group recently revealed an inside look at what it will be like and what inspired the band to dive into immersive technology. Sitting for an ...more
With an ordinary birthday card, we can introduce a physical device which contains malicious files into someone's home and deceive them into inserting the device into a computer. In my last series, we used a Post-it note to trick a neighbor into visiting a website that we cont ...more
On Wednesday, Apple released a new batch of Animoji characters that gives iPhone X users more virtual masks to play around with, but what many have been waiting for is an app that lets you put on a virtual mask of another person, not an animated emoji. Well, that day has final ...more
It finally happened. Magic Leap has given the world its first glimpse at its debut device, the Magic Leap One Creator Edition. At 9 a.m. ET, the company flipped the switch on a huge website update that splashed the homepage with images of what is now confirmed to be an augmen ...more
What happens when somebody sends you Apple Pay Cash inside of an iMessage? Do you have to add it to your Apple Pay Cash card on your iPhone manually or does it miraculously appear there automatically? By default, your iPhone will accept incoming payments from your contacts, n ...more
Hashtags are the backbone of Instagram. They connect photos from users all around the world and give visibility to users who don't have many followers. Now, Instagram has added more functionality to this indispensable tool, and this new feature lets you follow hashtags in your ...more
From media insiders to the halls of politics, news travels fast on Twitter, making it one of the most powerful social media channels for disseminating or collecting information. Now, for better or for worse, you can immerse yourself in the data firehose of Twitter in augmented ...more
The iPhone X is sure to be a hot seller this holiday season. You probably know someone with the $1,000 iPhone on their wishlist, and with a price tag that high, Black Friday is probably the best chance of them getting one. But there's only one store we've found so far that's e ...more
If building with Lego blocks in AR appeals to you, rest assured that an app is on the way for iPhones, iPads, and Android devices. We were tipped off to Lego's dip into AR development because the software was briefly demoed at the ARKit unveiling at WWDC and at Google's Pixel ...more
Since the very first moment I saw the iPhone X track a human face and display the results in real-time on an Animoji character, I've been waiting for the first great hack of this new iPhone feature. Not only do we now have that first great demonstration, it's so impressive it ...more
Going live on Instagram is a fun way to interact with your followers. It lets you forgo the usual meticulous editing and framing in exchange for giving your friends and fans a glimpse into your real, unfiltered life. Now, your followers don't need to be separate from that expe ...more
If you want to take your iPhone or Android photos to the next level, Snapseed is one of the best options. When it comes time to share pictures with friends and family, you want them to look as good as possible, so a little post-processing is in order. The problem is that Snaps ...more
One of the more meme-able characters from the animated series Rick & Morty will be able to beckon iPhone owners to "show them me what you got" thanks to ARKit. A demo from Immersion VR simulates an invasion of the Cromulons (from episode five of the second season), or, to som ...more
James Ashley, Atlanta-based Microsoft MVP and author of Beginning Kinect Programming with Microsoft Kinect, has been running monthly challenges since around the release of the HoloLens Developers Kits. Each month, those of us who follow what happens in the community can look f ...more
Winter is here, which means we have a lot of questions about the coming season of Game of Thrones. It's hard finding someone who cares enough to listen to you rant about why Jon Snow is the rightful ruler of Westeros. It's also hard to figure out who exactly everyone is and is ...more
Every morning I head on over to my gym to start storying away classes full of people dripping in sweat. This always makes me feel super awkward because it's not exactly the most photogenic time to take a picture, and if it was me, I would probably give that person a dirty look ...more
3D Touch is only available on the 6s and 7 series iPhones right now, and likely future models, so those with older devices are missing out on all the cool "Quick Actions" available for app and settings icons. But the new iOS 11 is finally bringing some of those helpful shortcu ...more
More details about Google's latest Taimen device have been revealed all thanks to Geekbench. We already know that Google has been working on a tablet-like third device next to its original Pixel 2 lineup. Though, Taimen is not confirmed to be part of the Pixel 2 lineup. Taime ...more
We're all passionate about something. Maybe it's the environment. Stopping poverty. Finding the best taco joint ... Whatever your cause, the last thing we want is to support companies whose practices go against what we believe. After all, you can't trust someone who doesn't li ...more
It looks like Samsung was thinking about slapping a little nub of a home button on the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus. This is according to a patent published by the European Trade Mark and Design Network, uncovered by Android Headlines. Despite having a nearly bezel-less display on th ...more
How can bacteria that lives in the throat of 10%–35% of people—without causing an infection—cause life-threatening meningitis and sepsis in others? A new study published in the journal PLOS Pathogens by scientists from Stockholm University in Sweden, led by Sara Sigurlásdótti ...more
Osterhout Design Group just announced the upcoming release of the newest addition to their smartglasses lineup, the R-7HL, short for R-7 Hazardous Location. ODG worked directly with customers who work in extreme environments to come up with a durable solution that fits their n ...more
For all of its drama, Uber's driverless program has states like Arizona excited for the future of self-driving vehicles. But it's not Arizona alone that supports the driverless craze; the Illinois House of Representatives will hear a bill that would allow driverless cars on th ...more
As a society, we seem to be moving backwards toward communicating by pictures only. Emojis and GIFs are today's cave paintings, and I, for one, am totally okay with that. To make this transition even more amazing, photo-editing app Facetune created a tool that lets us change o ...more
During the last few months, WhatsApp's Google Play Store ratings have been tanking—all the way down to an average of 3.4 stars from the instant messenger's usual average of 4.1. Within the last week, though, WhatsApp has received thousands of seemingly fake 5-star reviews that ...more
Meta's long-awaited Meta 2 development kit finally began shipping in late-December last year, after having been delayed about six months. While very few have received a dev kit at this point, some more information about the headset has just been announced; Depth-sensing techno ...more
I am often asked about getting started with HoloLens development and most of the time my answer, in short, is: Install Unity, install Visual Studio, install the HoloLens emulator, and make something. I suspect most of the time this advice is ignored, since the idea of develop ...more
In 4.74 seconds, I can barely bend over to tie my shoes, and somehow this guy managed to crush the human world record for solving the Rubik's Cube in that time exactly. Update: Rubik's Cube World Record Gets Beaten... Again. New Record Is 4.737 Seconds! Video: . Mats Valk, a ...more
Every recipe on the face of this planet (okay, maybe a slight exaggeration there) ends with the same six words: "Add salt and pepper to taste." And so, we've dutifully followed those asinine words: at the end of everything cooked, we add a bit of salt, we add a few cracks of ...more
During the summer, fresh strawberries are everywhere: at your neighborhood farmers market and in many desserts like strawberry shortcake and strawberry rhubarb pie, to name just a couple. Bringing home a few baskets of the ruby red fruit always seems like a good idea... until ...more
While it may not sound scary right off the bat, Blue Coat Systems now has an intermediate certificate authority. If you don't know what a certificate authority (CA) is, or who Blue Coat is, who cares, right? But you should... whether you use Mac or Windows. Blue Coat is notor ...more
If you like having Siri available to answer a quick question every now and again but don't want everyone who picks up your iPhone to also have access to your personal assistant, there's an easy way to disable her from working on your iPhone's lock screen. This is also somethin ...more
Hello Intro Today its another installment of my series which is something many of you enjoy, so here is part 4. Provide False Information: Many things fall into place when one has to successfully become a ghost hacker, and one of the key things is what you're telling peopl ...more
Researchers at MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory have created Wi-Fi technology that identifies where you are, which may eliminate the need for passwords. Video: . The system, called Chronos, can determine where a user is with an accuracy of "tens of ...more