Kindle iOS app enhanced for the blind and visually impaired

Amazon has enhanced its Kindle iOS app with new features of benefit to anyone but especially to those who are blind or visually impaired.

Released Wednesday, the latest version of the app supports Apple's VoiceOver technology, which reads aloud text that you've selected. More than 1.8 million books in the Kindle store are compatible with VoiceOver, according to Amazon. More than 900,000 of them are less than $4.99, while more than 1.5 million are less than $9.99.

You can turn on VoiceOver through the Accessibility options in the Settings menu on your iOS … Read more

Can technology improve the sound of 300-year-old violins?

David Segal Violins is located just a few blocks from Lincoln Center and the Juilliard School in New York City. I stopped by the showroom to learn how the technology of violin making has changed, but that wasn't the main story. Today's violins may look similar to the ones made 300 years ago by Stradivarius or Guarneri, but they get used in different ways. Where before violins were only played in concerts, now they're also recorded. Segal tells me that a great concert violin might not work all that well to accompany a vocalist.

The "technology&… Read more

Correction: Monotype and Google fonts

This story has been corrected to note that the Google fonts are available for free use through the SkyFonts technology.

Read the updated story here.

LG Optimus G Pro comes to U.S. on AT&T (hands on)

Today at an event in New York we got a chance to spend some hands on time with the new LG Optimus G Pro for AT&T. We can say that the 5.5-inch, quad-core superphone feels just as quick, nimble, and powerful as the international model. Our experience makes us even more eager for the device's launch date of May 10. The handset will cost $199.99 with a two-year contract, but AT&T will begin taking preorders of the phone starting May 3.

The device marks the company's second attempt at a "phablet&… Read more

Legal online poker site goes live -- for Nevada residents

Nevada has become the first state to allow its residents to legally play poker online for money.

The state on Tuesday announced (PDF) that UltimatePoker.com is now live for its residents. In order to play, participants must be 21 years old and reside in Nevada. For now, the site will offer nightly games with prizes of $1,000, though a higher-stakes game with a $10,000 pool will run on Sundays. Other poker sites are expected to go live eventually.

Nevada is breaking down a barrier in the online world of gambling. In 2006, Congress made Internet-based betting illegal, … Read more

New Yorkers can pay for taxis via e-hailing apps within 60 days

NEW YORK--New Yorkers will be able to hail -- and pay -- for taxis via smartphone apps within 60 days, a New York Taxi & Limousine Commission executive said Wednesday.

Taxi-hailing apps help potential passengers locate a ride in real time. They simply put their location into an app, which is then sent to designated cars nearby. The first to arrive on the scene gets to pick up the customer. In many locations, users can also pay for their ride using the app, but New Yorkers currently have to pay for their ride in the traditional manner, either with cash … Read more

Facebook, bankers want IPO lawsuit thrown out of court

Facebook and the banks that financed its IPO want a judge to put the brakes on a slew of lawsuits filed by unhappy investors.

In court documents released Wednesday, Facebook claimed it was not required to reveal its own forecasts on how its mobile and product strategy might affect future sales, Reuters said today, even if that information had been disclosed to its underwriters.

Facebook is facing a host of lawsuits claiming that it misled investors about its financial health before it went public last year. Morgan Stanley and other underwriters are also targeted in many of the suits, blaming … Read more

Apple, Verizon earn poor marks in EFF privacy report

The Electronic Frontier Foundation is warning that some companies should not be trusted with your data -- but some should, and actively fight on the user's behalf.

Out of the 18 major Web and technology companies listed in the latest report from the U.S. privacy and civil liberties group, only six firms had five out of six stars rating how far they will go to either protect users from the government or even fight on their behalf in court.

The report published by the EFF (PDF) ranks the selected firms based on their privacy policies and law enforcement … Read more

Get a 10.1-inch Toshiba Excite tablet for $199.99 shipped

About a year ago, the Toshiba Excite 10 LE debuted to somewhat lukewarm reviews. Priced at a whopping $530 for the 16GB model, it was praised for its thin, lightweight design, but dinged for its so-so screen and proprietary charger.

With today's deal, let's see if our perspective changes at all. Today only, and while supplies last, 1SaleADay has the refurbished Toshiba Excite 10 LE Android tablet for $199.99 shipped. That's one of the lowest prices I've seen on a 10.1-inch tablet, especially one with this design.

Quick note before I proceed: 1SaleADay continues … Read more