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How Apple's iPhone, iOS 12, and RapidSOS could save your life in an emergency
Pixel 2 vs. OnePlus 6: Which Android phone is best?
US Supreme Court to Review Whether Lawsuit Accusing Apple of App Store Monopoly Should Proceed

How Apple's iPhone, iOS 12, and RapidSOS could save your life in an emergency

Posted: 18 Jun 2018 03:34 AM PDT

The United States' 911 service is in its 50th year, and has saved countless lives over the last half-century. AppleInsider digs deeper into Monday's reveal that iPhones on iOS 12 will provide a wealth of data allowing emergency services to respond much faster after a 911 call.

While the diffuse and mobile cell phone network is part of the problem, it can be part of the solution for precise location information, when properly utilized. Apple and RapidSOS have a solution for the sometimes imprecise pinpointing of a caller, and it was announced early Monday morning.

How it works today

The 911 service generally works well for a system that was conceived and executed in the '60s. But, like any older technology, it needs a little work to come up to more modern standards.

When a user on a mobile call places a 911 call, the first stop is the wireless carrier. The wireless company routes the voice information to a 911 center, and the cell tower address to a local location database which may not be up to date.

While the operator is on the call, what the center has for information on that particular tower is passed to the operator, and then passed to the emergency responders. At some point in the process, the user's data is passed back to the carrier for a more precise location, and the specific location of the phone is queried.

This process takes time, and sometimes necessitates an on-the-fly update by the 911 center to the emergency responders, in data packets smaller than the first international telegram. And, at present, it can be off by more than 50 to 300 meters depending on which location technology is used, which can be a problem involving a dense neighborhood, a wilderness rescue, or any other situation where the emergency isn't heralded by a burning vehicle or something else obvious.

On the following map, the darker blue circle is 50 meters, and still encompasses about 20 houses. The larger 300 meter radius circle encompasses hundreds.

Aware of the problems, the Federal Communications Commission has a link textseries of guidelines for citizenry, suggesting that the first words out of a 911 caller's mouth should be a specific location of the crisis. Additionally, the FCC has mandated that by 2021, wireless carriers must provide location information within 50 meters 80 percent of the time. By 2023, this information must include vertical location information so emergency services can tell what floor a caller is on.

"It's really low-tech systems that have been the mainstay of emergency location for centuries," said International Association of Fire Chiefs' communications committee chief Gary McCarraher when the rules were announced. "For every passing second [in an emergency], we push up the numbers of deaths, injuries and dollar loss to the public."

How RapidSOS technology works

With the new technology, the 911 call is sent through the RapidSOS clearing house. At the same time that the voice call is being routed through the 911 center, what the company calls a "hybridized emergency location" is being sent in real-time to the 911 center, including constant position updates in the case of a kidnapping or other moving emergency scene.

There is no pass back to the carrier, and no polling of other databases to find out where the user is. Many steps are removed from the process, cutting back not only on time to get the location information, but also taking possibilities of error out of the equation.

All of the information is encrypted while in motion from the caller's iPhone to the clearing house. RapidSOS says that its technology delivers more accurate data to 911 dispatchers with faster location detection, both indoors and outdoors from all different sensors on modern devices, including not just GPS, but nearby WiFi Access Points, cell towers, Bluetooth beacons, and info from the user's barometric pressure sensors —all through the 911 infrastructure.

The data provided by RapidSOS is free to public safety. And, it can be provided directly to first-responders headed to a scene in the case of that mobile emergency discussed earlier.

This isn't Advanced Mobile Location

Advanced Mobile Location, or AML, is a different solution, using existing infrastructure. In the case of an emergency services call in in Austria, Estonia, Lithuania, Belgium, Iceland, Finland, Ireland, and New Zealand, the phone will automatically turn on mobile data, connects to a network time protocol server and sends an unencrypted SMS message to the emergency service.

While this is clearly far better than no location assistance, it is subject to the same inaccuracies as the current 911 service in the US —but in practice is a bit faster.

An iPhone running iOS 11 already sends AML data in countries that support the protocol.

Deployment

As with any other technology, there are many vendors providing 911 software and hardware. The RapidSOS technology that will be baked into iOS 12 "later this year" is compatible with a host of leading 911 call center solution providers with what RapidSOS calls a "simple upgrade" to software.

As far as the user goes, there is no action required other than upgrading to iOS 12. The feature is on by default, but the user can turn it off, if so desired. But, frankly, we're not sure why you'd want to, as it broadcasts no data unless the user has actively made a 911 call.

At present, the feature has only been announced for iOS 12. It appears that at least for now, users of the Apple Watch Series 3 with LTE are out of luck.

RapidSOS and Apple told AppleInsider that the solution to be rolled out later in the year exceeds the 2021 requirements, more than two years early.</span>

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Pixel 2 vs. OnePlus 6: Which Android phone is best?

Posted: 18 Jun 2018 05:00 AM PDT

When it comes to choosing an Android phone, it may seem like the go-to option is the Samsung Galaxy S9 (or S9 Plus). But there are plenty of others that don't cost as much, including the Google Pixel 2 from 2017 and the OnePlus 6, which was released in May.

The Pixel 2 is Google's marquee phone, and starts at $649, £629 and AU$1,079 for the 64GB variant. Meanwhile, the OnePlus 6's price is notably cheaper at $529, £469 and AU$702, and is made by a darkhorse of a company whose inexpensive and powerful phones have garnered a loyal fan base.

Both are top-caliber phones, but each have different benefits and disadvantages. If you're torn between the two, we're here to make it easy for you. We pit them head-to-head against each other to see which one is the better phone based on their design, cameras, software features and performance.

Design: Pixel 2's water resistance or OnePlus 6's headphone jack?

Neither phone stands out when it comes to design. Aside from their one-off color variants (the Pixel 2 in blue and the OnePlus 6 in white and rose gold), both look bland. But the Pixel 2 is waterproof. Similar to the move Apple and Samsung made with their flagships, waterproofing the Pixel 2 not only makes it truly competitive to the top-tier phones, but it's just more durable for users too.

The OnePlus 6 has a large screen and barely-there bezels.

Josh Miller/CNET

I wish the OnePlus 6 had followed suit. (OnePlus does claim that the OnePlus 6 is more water resistant than past iterations, but because it's not IP-certified for water protection you can forget about dunking it safely underwater.) But in every other design aspect, the phone has the upperhand. It has a bigger 6.28-inch screen, ultra-thin bezels and a headphone jack. The latter is particularly beneficial to me since it means I can still use my beloved headphones without carrying around a dongle.

Winner: OnePlus 6. Its bigger screen and headphone jack make up for the fact that it isn't waterproof.

Camera: It's called 'Pixel' for a reason

The Pixel 2 has one of the best cameras out there, and that still holds true months after its launch. Even with just a single rear-camera compared to the OnePlus 6's dual-camera, I found images to be a hair sharper on the Pixel 2. Its HDR+ enhanced feature rendered scenes with tricky lighting and different exposures better, and it handled low-light environments excellently, capturing darkened details that the OnePlus 6 didn't retain.

Lastly, while both phones have optical image stabilization, only the the Pixel 2 uses it for video (while the OnePlus 6 uses electronic image stabilization, or EIS, for video). On top of that, the Pixel 2 integrates gyro-based EIS with its OIS. In the end, the footage recorded on the Pixel 2 was way smoother and steadier.

You can see more details in the bricks and shadows with the Pixel 2 (left) compared to the OnePlus 6 (right).

Lynn La/CNET

The Pixel 2 (left) and the OnePlus 6 (right) capture an image in indoor lighting.

Lynn La/CNET

The fur in this closeup shot is more refined in the Pixel 2 (left) than the OnePlus 6 (right).

Lynn La/CNET

Taking a portrait shot with the Pixel 2 (left) and OnePlus 6 (right).

Lynn La/CNET

This isn't to say the OnePlus 6 takes terrible pictures or anything. It's quite the opposite -- pictures were vibrant and sharp. In addition, it offers 240fps at 1,080p (like the Galaxy S9 and iPhone X) while the Pixel 2 has 120fps at 1,080p. OnePlus 6 slow-mo video looks more dramatic and buttery smooth. But when it comes to which phone takes the better photos, I have to hand it to the Pixel 2.

Winner: The OnePlus 6 takes fantastic pictures, and some are up to par with the Pixel 2 -- no easy feat considering how much cheaper it is. But, I prefer the Pixel 2 when it comes down to it.

Software features: Pretty equal, but with one small difference

On the surface, both phones appear neck-and-neck when it comes to software. After all, they both come with a near-vanilla version of Android Oreo out of the box and they both can run the beta version of Google's latest mobile OS, Android P, which adds features like gesture navigation and an updated notification menu.

Launching the Google Assistant on the Pixel 2.

Jason Cipriani/CNET

But if you dig a bit deeper, there are a few differences. OnePlus has useful add-ons that the Pixel 2 doesn't, like a Shelf page on the homescreen for top contacts and memos, an LED notification light and individual app lock.

On the Pixel 2, you can access the digital assistant, Google Assistant, by squeezing on the sides of the phone. (You can launch Assistant on the OnePlus 6 by long pressing the home button.) It also has the Google Lens built into the camera's photo app and Assistant. Lens uses Google's vast search database to call up information on a visual object like a landmark, book cover or piece of art. However, the LG G7 has Lens too and other Android phones are will follow suit.

Overall though, none of these features are very compelling. But what truly gives the Pixel 2 an advantage is the fact that it's Google's phone, and it'll receive fresh updates the moment they roll out from the company.

Winner: It's a close one but the Pixel 2's prompt updates gives it a slight edge over the OnePlus 6.

Performance and battery: OnePlus 6 dominates

As the newer phone by nearly seven months, the OnePlus 6 has a faster and more efficient processor. Packed with a Snapdragon 845 chipset from Qualcomm, the OnePlus 6 flies by the Pixel 2 (which has last year's Snapdragon 835) in our benchmark tests.

Geekbench v.4.0 single-core

Note:

Longer bars indicate better performance

Geekbench v.4.0 multi-core

Note:

Longer bars indicate better performance

3DMark Ice Storm Unlimited

Note:

Longer bars indicate better performance

Its higher-capacity battery also milks more hours of usage time. In our battery life lab tests for continuous video playback on Airplane mode, the OnePlus 6 lasted an average of 15 hours and 28 minutes -- exactly two hours more than the Pixel 2.

This doesn't mean the Pixel 2 is a slouch by any means. Though the OnePlus 6's better hardware make it faster on paper, the Pixel 2 is still as zippy and reliable today as it felt when I first took it out of its box. And while numbers don't lie, you won't feel much of a difference in speed when it comes to day-to-day use.

Winner: With its updated hardware and longer battery life, the OnePlus 6 rises to the top.

And the winner is...

With their superb hardware and performances, the Pixel 2 and OnePlus 6 are unsurprisingly tied two-for-two, albeit for different reasons. So how do you choose? It really comes down to which of these features is most important to you.

For me personally, I'd go with the Pixel 2. That's because 80 percent of why I use my phone is to take photos of my friends and family. I've also gotten used to using a dongle for my headphones (though I wish I didn't have to), and because I can be clumsy with my phone, water protection is important to me. This makes the $120 difference (for the 64GB variants) worth it for me.

Both the Pixel 2 (top) and the OnePlus 6 have their unique pros and cons.

James Martin/CNET

Of course, if you'd rather have a longer battery life, a larger screen and more money in your pocket (all of which are completely reasonable things to want), definitely buy the OnePlus 6. It has all the better specs of the two and a lower price tag to boot.

Whatever phone you end up going with, keep in mind that their successors are likely not too far behind. True, "wait for the next one" can be said for every major phone, but it's especially relevant for these two. If everything holds steady, the rumored Pixel 3 will launch in only four months, and the assumed OnePlus 6T is expected a month after, in November based on OnePlus' track record.

That being said, if you're undecided but don't need a new phone ASAP, consider waiting to see what Google has in store in October. Being on a one-year cadence schedule, it's safe to assume that the Pixel 3 will be more of a major update as well (compared to the expected jump from the OnePlus 6 to the 6T), and rumored specs include wireless charging and two front-facing cameras.

Tech Culture: From film and television to social media and games, here's your place for the lighter side of tech.

Smart home compatibility tool: Find out what smart home platforms work with your existing kit and vice versa.

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US Supreme Court to Review Whether Lawsuit Accusing Apple of App Store Monopoly Should Proceed

Posted: 18 Jun 2018 07:44 AM PDT

In 2011, a class action lawsuit filed against Apple accused the company of operating an illegal monopoly by not allowing iPhone users to download mobile apps outside of its own App Store, reducing consumer choice.

The antitrust case was eventually dismissed in 2013 by a U.S. district court in Northern California, due to errors in the complaint, leading to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit allowing it to proceed in 2017.

That decision led to Apple's petition for a writ of certiorari, which was granted today, meaning that the U.S. Supreme Court will now review the appeals court's decision to reinstate the case last year, according to Reuters.

Last month, the U.S. Department of Justice filed an amicus brief in support of Apple, urging the Supreme Court to reverse the Ninth Circuit's decision, arguing that it misapplied precedent from Illinois Brick Co. v. Illinois.

From the start, Apple has argued that it doesn't set prices for paid apps, and that charging a 30 percent commission on the distribution of paid apps and in-app purchases does not violate antitrust laws in the United States.

Apple will now hope the Supreme Court agrees that the case should be dismissed again. No date has been disclosed for the hearing.

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