gps

Supreme Court invokes '1984' fears with GPS car tracking

Several U.S. Supreme Court justices hearing arguments in a case today suggested that allowing warrantless GPS tracking of citizens' cars could lead to a Big Brother scenario of constant computerized government surveillance.

"What is the question that I think people are driving at, at least as I understand it and certainly share the concern, is that if you win this case, then there is nothing to prevent the police or the government from monitoring 24 hours a day the public movement of every citizen of the United States," Justice Stephen Breyer told a Justice Department attorney. "… Read more

Device & Conquer: Is your phone spying on you?

After the recent phone tracking/tracing revelations around Apple, Google, and Microsoft, a lot of you got understandably freaked.

Did you opt in to constant surveillance just because you bought a smartphone? The answer is "somewhat," but at least when it's your own device doing the tracking you can do something about it.

In this episode of Device & Conquer, I'll lay out how your phone can track you, dispel a few myths about that, and about GPS satellites, and give you a few tips for taking back what privacy you still have.

CNET Roadside Assistance 027: iTunes and the goat

Welcome to Roadside Assistance, in this week's show, a user has some insight into our issues with the Bluetooth streaming in a VW, we help one of you add new tunes to a goat, and we explain just what's so "HD" about TomTom's HD traffic.

Subscribe with iTunes (audio) Subscribe with iTunes (video) Subscribe with RSS (audio) Subscribe with RSS (video) EPISODE 027 SHOW NOTES

• LOLcars (photos)

TomTom Go Live 1535 M searches the Web, tweets your trip (review)

Testing GPS devices can be a grind--a dull, boring grind. So when a device comes along promising to revolutionize portable navigation devices, I tend to perk up and take notice. The TomTom Go Live 1535M is one of those attention-getters.

When this portable navigation device (PND) was announced a few weeks ago, I was intrigued by its integration of travel apps that enable the user to tap into Yelp, Trip Advisor, Expedia, and Google Local Search services for up-to-date point-of-interest data and reviews via the same Live data service that beams in its HD Traffic data. I was even more … Read more

LightSquared's GPS fix could cost industry $400M

SAN DIEGO--It could cost the the GPS industry as much as $400 million for gear to protect its precision devices from interference caused by LightSquared's planned wireless network, although the company believes the figure will be ultimately be lower.

LightSquared Chief Marketing Officer Frank Boulben told CNET on Wednesday that there are roughly 500,000 commercial precision GPS devices in the U.S. He said his partner Javed GNSS has developed a device that costs between $300 and $800 and will protect GPS devices from such disruptions.

Boulben said Thursday that the cost could be dramatically lower, noting that … Read more

TeleNav GPS Navigator updating to 7.1 for Sprint Android users

TeleNav announced this morning that its GPS Navigator app for Android phones is getting a major update soon.

Designated version 7.1, this new update starts with a new My Dashboard home screen that presents a local map, commute times and traffic, shortcuts and a search bar at the user's fingertips upon launching the app. Users may not immediately notice once their trip is under way, but behind the scenes the maps feature a revised rendering engine that TeleNav claims is both smoother and faster.

Of course, no good Android app would be complete without a widget, so TeleNav … Read more

TomTom Top Gear Edition quotes Jeremy Clarkson, so you don't have to

It would seem that you couldn't swing a cat these days without hitting something with the "Top Gear" logo on it. Assets from the madly popular automotive show--including the colorful commentary of the show's most popular presenter, Jeremy "Jezza" Clarkson--are featured in both Gran Turismo 5 and the upcoming Forza Motorsport 4 racing games for the PS3 and Xbox 360, respectively, and even in an iOS game. Today brings the news that you can now put ol' Jezza on your dashboard with the announcement of the TomTom Go Live Top Gear Edition, the first &… Read more

The 404 918: Where a phone by any other name would smell as sweet (podcast)

The band is back together again, just in time for the release of the Apple iPhone 4S. Like everyone else in the first world, we have our share of complaints, but to whine about its aesthetics is to downplay the exciting changes to iOS 5, so we'll try to keep it posi without coming off as fanboiz.

We'll review CNET's First Take of the iPhone 4S at the start of the episode, beginning with a pedestrian explanation of its network connectivity options, and go over some of the more exciting features about iOS 5, things like Newsstand, iCloud with Find My Friends, Cards, and a new AppleCare+ accidental protection package.

And just to explore the playful side of yesterday's announcements, we'll tell you why Japanese customers are chuckling at the name Siri and show you a Steve Jobs Soundboard that could offer useful buying suggestions for potential upgraders.

After the first bathroom break, we'll move onto the general tech stories of the day, including a money dispute that could finally kill "The Simpsons" after 23 seasons, Google's first adult daycare center, a batch of rereleased Disney movies in 3D, and NASA seeking applicants for its next astronaut class in 2013.

The 404 Digest for Episode 918

CNET's complete coverage of the Apple iPhone 4S. Get $200 back for your iPhone 4. Money dispute may end 'Simpsons' Google opens first retail store for Chromebooks. Seriously, Apple? In Japan, Siri fans bottom jokes.

Are Disney's 3D rereleases helping people change their minds about 3D? NASA seeking applicants for next astronaut candidate class. Bathroom break 1: Nancy Grace might have farted on last night's Dancing With the Stars. Bathroom break 2: The Museum of Obselete Objects Presents: The Fax Machine.

Episode 918 Subscribe in iTunes (audio) | Subscribe in iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

Privacy cases slated for U.S. Supreme Court's new term

When police in the District of Columbia decided to use an automobile GPS bug to surreptitiously track the movements of Antoine Jones, a suspected cocaine dealer, they set in motion a legal challenge that will end before the U.S. Supreme Court.

The court's fall term, which begins today, includes a review of Jones' attempt to overturn his conviction. His attorneys argue that such precise turn-by-turn tracking requires a search warrant signed by a judge--a step that D.C. police chose not to take.

It's one of a handful of technology cases that, in addition to a high-profile … Read more