Technology - Google News

Consumer Reports names iPhone 11 Pro the best smartphone, praising battery life and camera - 9to5Mac
Apple reverses ban on HKmap.live app tracking Hong Kong protests & police - Boing Boing
The Morning After: A Darth Vader dutch oven - Engadget

Consumer Reports names iPhone 11 Pro the best smartphone, praising battery life and camera - 9to5Mac

Posted: 05 Oct 2019 05:08 AM PDT

Consumer Reports has updated its smartphone rankings with the new iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max. This year, the iPhone 11 Pro models are able to edge out competition from Samsung, while the iPhone 11 ranks in the top 10.

Ecobee HomeKit Thermostat

For the iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max, Consumer Reports praises the battery life improvements. In testing, the organization says the iPhone 11 Pro Max was able to run 40.5 hours, which is "a big turnaround" compared to the iPhone XS Max that latest 29.5 hours. Meanwhile, the iPhone 11 Pro lasted 34 hours, while the iPhone 11 ran for 27.5 hours.

Here's how Consumer Reports tests smartphone battery life:

To find out how long a phone's battery can go, Consumer Reports uses a robotic finger programmed to put the phone through a range of tasks designed to simulate a consumer's average day. The robot browses the internet, takes pictures, uses GPS navigation, and, of course, makes phone calls.

What about camera quality? Consumer Reports doesn't go into much detail here, but says that the devices earned "some of the highest scores" in these categories. For rear image quality, all three iPhone 11 models earned "very good" ratings, which puts them in line with the competition.

Our testers say the 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max notched some of the highest scores in our ratings for still-image quality. The iPhone 11 also earned a Very Good score in this category. And all three phones received an Excellent rating for rear-video quality.

Apple also says the iPhone 11 series feature improved durability. All three phones survived a water resistance test, but the iPhone 11 Pro couldn't make it through a durability test:

The tumbler is a rotating chamber that repeatedly drops a phone from a height of about 2.5 feet. The phone is checked for damage after 50 drops and then again after 100. The goal is to expose it to impacts from a wide variety of angles.In

the case of the iPhone 11 and 11 Pro Max, the phones we tested made it through all 100 drops with just minor scratches. But when we checked the iPhone 11 Pro after 50 drops, we found that its display was broken and not working. A second sample also broke.

Ultimately, Consumer Reports rated the iPhone 11 Pro Max at an overall score of 95, followed by the iPhone 11 Pro at 92. The iPhone 11 earned an overall score of 89, putting it in eighth place overall.

iPhone 11 Pro Max – 95
iPhone 11 Pro – 92
Samsung Galaxy S10+ – 90
iPhone XS Max – 90
Samsung Galaxy S10
Samsung Galaxy Note10+
iPhone XS
iPhone 11
Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ 5G
Samsung Galaxy Note 10

Let's block ads! (Why?)

Apple reverses ban on HKmap.live app tracking Hong Kong protests & police - Boing Boing

Posted: 04 Oct 2019 03:00 PM PDT

A bit of good news for pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong, and the app developers trying to help them not get injured or killed by police.

Apple has reportedly reversed its decision to ban the app HKmap.live, which allows users to track protests and police activity in Hong Kong. The earlier move to ban the app was seen by many as acquiescence to China's foreign policy, over the urgent needs of Apple users.

Thanks everyone, @Apple finally made the right decision. Will update later as things are going crazy in #HK now. pic.twitter.com/PsnNry0V21

— HKmap.live 全港抗爭即時地圖 (@hkmaplive) October 4, 2019

(Our Cory Doctorow has written about the app previously here at Boing Boing.)

As Cory explained when Apple yanked HKMapLive:

Hkmap Live is a crowdsourced app that uses reports from a Telegram group to track the locations of protesters, police, and traffic, as well as the use of antipersonnel weapons like tear gas, mass arrests of people wearing t-shirts associated with the protest movement, and mass transit closures in proximity to demonstrations (it's a bit like Sukey, the British anti-kettling app).

The escalation of indiscriminate violence by Hong Kong's police has driven mainstream opposition to the Chinese state and the Hong Kong authorities. The protests continue to grow, the the police continue to attack families, elderly people, bystanders, and the main body of protesters, with no mercy or quarter -- including the on-camera, point-blank shooting of an unarmed, nonviolent protester. In this context, Hkmap isn't just a way for protesters to evade police, it's a survival lifeline for innocent people facing an occupying army of sadistic armed thugs.

Mark Gurman at Bloomberg News reports on today's decision by Apple to restore HKMapLive to the App Store:

On Friday, Apple reversed the decision and the app has been approved for sale in Hong Kong. "Apple finally made the right decision," the developer said.

The developer said the app is built to "show events happening" in Hong Kong, but what users choose to do with that information is their choice. "We don't encourage any advice on the map in general. Our ultimate goal is safety for everyone."

On Twitter, the developer had argued that the rejection was unfair because other apps, such as Google's Waze, help drivers avoid traffic cameras and police. Apple is assuming that HKmap.live users are lawbreakers "and therefore evading law enforcement, which is clearly not the same," the developer wrote on Twitter. By contrast, the app was approved for download on Android phones via a "quick process," the developer added.

HKMapLive says they're still not live yet in the store, however...

Looks like it's not yet available for download
"Congratulations! We're pleased to let you know that your app, HKmap 即時地圖, has been approved for the App Store. Once your app has been released, it can take up to 24 hours before your app becomes available on the App Store."

— HKmap.live 全港抗爭即時地圖 (@hkmaplive) October 4, 2019

Let's block ads! (Why?)

The Morning After: A Darth Vader dutch oven - Engadget

Posted: 05 Oct 2019 08:13 AM PDT

Sponsored Links

Hey, good morning! You look fabulous.

Welcome to your weekend! After Microsoft's whirlwind Surface event, New York Comic-Con is now in full swing. We'll recap some stories from the past week as well as a few highlights from Friday, including some Star Wars-related cookware that might find a place on your holiday wishlist.

A weekly news show chronicling our crippling collective addiction to technology.The Engadget Podcast returns!

Get your headphones ready folks, because the Engadget Podcast is back in action! Early next week, Devindra Hardawar and Cherlynn Low will host our first new episode in nearly two years, diving in with reactions to Microsoft's massive Surface event. After everything that we've seen, is Microsoft making better PCs than Apple now? Subscribe now to listen in as soon as it drops.

Coming to a Williams-Sonoma near you.Le Creuset's Star Wars collection includes a $900 dutch oven

The "Han Solo in Carbonite Signature Roaster" is only $450.

Our dual-screen future is here... next year.Surface Neo and Duo

Microsoft's Surface Neo, the larger laptop-sized device, and Surface Duo, a more svelte phone, are bets on the future of dual-screen devices. They hearken back to the original Surface, which paved the way for the plethora of 2-in-1 and convertible PCs we see today. Devindra Hardawar even got some hands-on impressions of both -- unfortunately they weren't turned on for him to use.

The Surface Duo will run Android across two 5.6-inch screens that provide a total 8.3 inches of space for multitasking or comfortable thumb typing. It can fold 360 degrees to help you take a phone call, too. Currently scheduled to ship for the 2020 holiday season.

The Surface Neo tablet packs two 9-inch screens that combine into a 13-inch area that helps with multitasking. And if you need to type a long message, there's a compact wirelessly charging keyboard that effectively turns the Neo into a laptop. This is the first known device to use Intel's Lakefield processor, too, and it'll be the flagship hardware for Windows 10X. It's also scheduled to ship late next year.

More stable than iOS 13, too.Apple iPadOS review: More like a laptop than ever

Beyond a handful of visual changes, the platform's biggest improvements come in the form of desktop-class web browsing in Safari, key changes to Apple's multitasking tools, a new approach to file downloads and more. According to Chris Velazco, "We're still not at the point where iPadOS turns iPads into full-blown computer replacements for most people, but the update is a big step down that path."

Avoid installing strange apps.Google found a serious Android flaw affecting Pixel, Samsung and Huawei phones

Google researchers have discovered an unpatched vulnerability on its own Android OS that affects the Pixel 1 and 2, Huawei P20, Samsung Galaxy S7, S8, and S9. It disclosed the problem just seven days after finding it, as the exploit is a "zero-day" that is already being exploited in the wild. Other devices affected are the Xiaomi Redmi 5A, Xiaomi Redmi Note 5, Xiaomi A1, Oppo A3 and the Moto Z3.

This is the series' first new entry since 2014.Microsoft 'Flight Simulator' hands-on

Microsoft is now accepting applications for a pre-alpha Flight Simulator Insider program due to kick off later this year. The full game will launch on PC in 2020 and on Xbox after that. To find out what the ultra-realistic sim has to offer this time around, read Jessica Conditt's impressions.

"Flight Simulator offers a new perspective on the world, period. Developers are committed to holding a mirror to reality, researching and recreating accurate atmospheres, cockpits, wind patterns, flight maneuvers, weather and locations. Even the stars in the night skies are accurate."

But wait, there's more...

The Morning After is a new daily newsletter from Engadget designed to help you fight off FOMO. Who knows what you'll miss if you don't Subscribe.

Craving even more? Like us on Facebook or Follow us on Twitter.

Have a suggestion on how we can improve The Morning After? Send us a note.

In this article: entertainment, gadgetry, gadgets, gaming, gear, home, internet, mobile, personal computing, personalcomputing, themorningafter, transportation

All products recommended by Engadget are selected by our editorial team, independent of our parent company. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Comments

Let's block ads! (Why?)