news

TV in Ultra HD, new designs at CES 2013

Wednesday's CNET Update bends it like Samsung:

Today's roundup looks ahead to the International Consumer Electronics Show, which kicks off next week in Las Vegas. Many companies are already teasing to what will be unveiled:

- Samsung is touting a new TV design, which could be vertical.

- Ultra HD 4K TVs will be big, literally. Westinghouse will be showing its 110-inch 4K LED TV.

- Future LG televisions will no longer have florescent backlights, making LED the standard across all of the company's LCD TVs. LG will also showcase new smart TV features, including voice commands. … Read more

Press for Android wraps Google Reader in a slick package

Editors' note: Price of the app has been corrected.

Meet Press, a slick new app for keeping up with your RSS subscriptions on your Android device. It syncs to your Google Reader account and presents all of your articles in a well designed package, with an attractive typeface and dead simple navigation.

Perhaps the best thing about Press is its interface. The open layout and six different font choices make it a pleasure to look at. And just like Google Reader it's really easy to navigate.

Once you sync Press to your Google Reader account, the app opens up … Read more

Share Karma's Wi-Fi, get free data

Friday's CNET Update is counting megabytes:

Today's tech news roundup looks at the Karma hotspot, which rewards owners with free data for sharing access with others. Karma gives 100 megabytes of data for every person who taps into the network, plus the owner gets another 100 megabytes that do not expire. Adding more data costs $14 for 1 gigabyte. Frequent travelers might find Karma appealing. FreedomPop is offering a similar concept for home broadband, giving free data every month and adding more to those that recommend friends.

Another startup wants to change how we watch broadcast television. Aereo … Read more

Google settles copyright dispute with Belgium newspapers

Google has settled a long-running dispute with Belgian newspaper publishers that accused the search giant of copyright infringement over its practice of linking to French- and German-language Belgian newspapers.

The group, Copiepresse, sued Google in 2006, alleging that the search giant's use of headlines and snippets of Belgian newspaper articles in its Google News aggregation service, and its practice of providing links to cached copies of the articles in its main Web search results, violated copyright. A Belgian court sided with Copiepresse last September, ordering Google to remove the links.

Google complied with the order, but the two parties … Read more

Google Maps returns to the iPhone

Thursday's CNET Update is following directions:

Apple users can have more peace of mind while traveling thanks to the new Google Maps app. The app includes turn-by-turn directions and public transit information. Within a few hours after going live, Google Maps was the top free app on the iPhone.

Apple kicked Google's map off iOS 6, but Apple's version has been plagued with errors and even caused some people in Australia to be stranded in the wilderness. Some iPhone owners have avoided upgrading to iOS 6 to avoid using Apple Maps. Having Google as an option again … Read more

FreedomPop offers free home broadband

Wednesday's CNET Update wants to break free:

Freedom Pop is offering 1GB of free home Internet service every month with purchase of its router, which costs $90. Those that stream video or need more data can upgrade to 10GB for $10 a month, or pay-as-you-go for $5 a gigabyte. The service uses Clearwire's 4G WiMAX network. Free home Internet service can shake up the broadband industry, much like Skype changed the voice industry.

Also in today's news roundup:

- Facebook added new ways to access privacy settings.

- Microsoft's Surface tablet is now sold at Best Buy and Staples. … Read more

Twitter takes on Instagram with filters

Tuesday's CNET Update has no filter:

The CNET 100 has arrived. We've complied 100 of the most influential technology stories, trends, gadgets and people of 2012. A few may surprise you: we ranked the Galaxy S III ahead of the iPhone 5.

Also in today's news roundup:

- Twitter added photo filters in it's latest move against Instagram. But Instagram also updated its app with new camera options.

- Twitter's new profiles will roll out to every user on Wednesday. So if you don't already have a header photo, your icon will just sit … Read more

People young and old enjoy getting news on mobile devices

Maybe today's youth aren't as different as older generations when it comes to tech.

A new report by Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism looks at how different people use their smartphones and tablets to consume news. It finds that younger users are just as likely to get news on those gadgets as older folks.

"While they are much lighter news consumers generally and have largely abandoned the print news product, young people get news on mobile devices to similar degrees as older users," the report reads. "And, when getting news through … Read more

Police Down Under rescue Apple map users

Monday's CNET Update shoulda taken that left turn at Albuquerque:

It's no secret that Apple's Maps are bad. But using the app could be hazardous to your health. Australian police had to rescue several people who were stranded in the wilderness after being directed 70 kilometers off-course by Apple's directions on iOS 6. Police have urged residents to use other mapping apps in the meantime.

Today's tech news roundup also looks into the continued drama between Twitter and Instagram. You'll no longer see a photo automatically load inside of a tweet -- you have … Read more

YouTube gets channel-surfing makeover

Friday's CNET Update is channel surfing:

YouTube has a new design that puts a greater focus on subscriptions and channels. YouTube hopes it will get more users to stay on the site longer by flipping through channels -- similar to how folks lose themselves while browsing television stations.

Also in today's tech news roundup:

- Foursquare added event listings, so a business can post about when there's something unique going on, such as a trivia night, book signing, or wine tasting.

- You can now create repeat events on Facebook. Handy for people with regularly-scheduled meetups.

- … Read more