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Updated Qi 1.2 standard makes wireless charging more wireless

The Qi-compatible Nexus 5 on the Nexus Wireless Charger. New chargers will be able to increase the space between the device and the pad. Andrew Cunningham The Wireless Power Consortium’s Qi wireless charging standard is wireless in that the phone is not physically plugged into anything, but it still requires your device and the wireless charging pad to be touching each other to work. Today, the WPC announced ( PDF ) that version 1.2 of the Qi standard will add support for resonant charging, making it possible for your phone to be charged when near a Qi pad rather than directly on top of it. A small image showing Qi 1.2 in action. WPC It’s a minor enough change that current Qi 1.1 receivers will be able to take advantage of it with no extra hardware, but it opens up a few different possibilities for companies that want to build Qi support into their products. The WPC says that Qi chargers can now be embedded within tables and desks rather than placed on the surface, making them less obtrusive. “New low power transmitter designs” will make it easier to build Qi chargers into cars, and a single Qi 1.2 transmitter will be able to charge multiple Qi devices simultaneously. Qi can also now supply up to 2,000 watts of power to household appliances (the release specifically mentions “kitchen applications”). Current Qi devices will be able to draw power from these new transmitters at distances of up to 30 mm (around 1.2 inches), while devices with purpose-build Qi 1.2 receivers increase the distance to 45 mm (about 1.8 inches). Engadget reports that the resonant version of Qi is roughly 70 to 80 percent efficient, while the old inductive version is around 85 percent efficient, and Qi 1.1 and 1.2 transmitters and receivers will be able to interoperate, so inductive charging pads like the Nexus Wireless Charger will still be able to charge Qi 1.2 phones. Just know that resonant charging will require a Qi 1.2 transmitter. Read 1 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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Updated Qi 1.2 standard makes wireless charging more wireless

Apple’s multi-terabit, $100M CDN is live—with paid connection to Comcast

dariorug Apple’s long-rumored content delivery network (CDN) has gone live in the US and Europe, delivering traffic directly to Comcast and other Internet service providers thanks to paid interconnection deals, Frost & Sullivan analyst Dan Rayburn reported today . The CDN can deliver multiple terabits of data per second and will help Apple more efficiently distribute new releases of iOS and OS X. Apple is still using Akamai and Level 3 CDN services for iTunes and app downloads, “but over time, much of that traffic will be brought over to Apple’s CDN,” Rayburn wrote. “It’s too early to know how much traffic will come over and when, but Apple’s already started using their own CDN much faster than I expected. The pace of their build out and amount of money they are spending on infrastructure is incredible. Based on my calculations, Apple has already put in place multiple terabits per second of capacity and by the end of this year, will have invested well more than $100M in their CDN build out.” Apple has been working on its CDN for about a year. Read 10 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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Apple’s multi-terabit, $100M CDN is live—with paid connection to Comcast

This thumbdrive hacks computers. “BadUSB” exploit makes devices turn “evil”

Saurabh R. Patil When creators of the state-sponsored Stuxnet worm used a USB stick to infect air-gapped computers inside Iran’s heavily fortified Natanz nuclear facility , trust in the ubiquitous storage medium suffered a devastating blow. Now, white-hat hackers have devised a feat even more seminal—an exploit that transforms keyboards, Web cams, and other types of USB-connected devices into highly programmable attack platforms that can’t be detected by today’s defenses. Dubbed BadUSB, the hack reprograms embedded firmware to give USB devices new, covert capabilities. In a demonstration scheduled at next week’s Black Hat security conference in Las Vegas, a USB drive, for instance, will take on the ability to act as a keyboard that surreptitiously types malicious commands into attached computers. A different drive will similarly be reprogrammed to act as a network card that causes connected computers to connect to malicious sites impersonating Google, Facebook or other trusted destinations. The presenters will demonstrate similar hacks that work against Android phones when attached to targeted computers. They say their technique will work on Web cams, keyboards, and most other types of USB-enabled devices. “Please don’t do anything evil” “If you put anything into your USB [slot], it extends a lot of trust,” Karsten Nohl, chief scientist at Security Research Labs in Berlin, told Ars. “Whatever it is, there could always be some code running in that device that runs maliciously. Every time anybody connects a USB device to your computer, you fully trust them with your computer. It’s the equivalent of [saying] ‘here’s my computer; I’m going to walk away for 10 minutes. Please don’t do anything evil.” Read 10 remaining paragraphs | Comments

Modbook’s next project is the convertible MacBook Apple won’t make

The Modbook Pro X would be an expensive entry in a crowded niche. Modbook Inc. Before the iPad, people who wanted an Apple tablet could buy something called the ” Modbook ” from a company named Axiotron. For $2,279, the company would take a regular white plastic MacBook, take it apart, and reassemble it inside a purpose-built tablet case with a Wacom digitizer and stylus installed. After some financial trouble and the launch of an actual Apple tablet , Axiotron became Modbook Inc. , and the company launched the Modbook Pro , which did for the 13-inch MacBook Pro what the Modbook did for the standard Macbook. Today the company is ready to announce the third iteration of the Modbook, kind of. The Modbook Pro X takes the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro (including the refreshed models introduced yesterday ), makes some modifications to its specs, and puts it into a tablet case. Like past Modbooks, the Modbook Pro X is designed to appeal to artists and other creative professionals who would like to draw directly on their tablet screens without having to use a separate drawing tablet. The catch? This project currently exists only as a Kickstarter project , with no guarantee the product will see the light of day if it doesn’t hit its $150,000 funding goal. The Modbook as a tablet. Modbook Inc. The Modbook Pro X will preserve all of the original ports and the CPU, GPU, and screen specs of the 2013 Retina MacBook Pro, crammed into a black tablet of indeterminate thickness and weight. The screen will be covered by a digitizer that supports 2,048 different pressure levels, and the Modbook will come with software installed to take advantage of the digitizer hardware. Optional “keybars,” small rows of keys mounted to the back of the tablet, will provide keyboard hotkey shortcuts that users can press without interrupting whatever they’re sketching onscreen. Read 6 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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Modbook’s next project is the convertible MacBook Apple won’t make

Podcasting patent troll: We tried to drop lawsuit against Adam Carolla

wasim muklashy Personal Audio LLC is an East Texas shell company that gleaned national attention when it claimed it had the right to demand cash from every podcaster. The company was wielding a patent on “episodic content,” which it said included anyone doing a podcast, as well as many types of online video. Now the company is trying to walk away from its highest-profile lawsuit against comedian Adam Carolla—but Carolla won’t let the case drop. In a statement released today, Personal Audio says that Carolla, who has raised more than $450,000 from fans to fight the case, is wasting their money on an unnecessary lawsuit. The company, which is a “patent troll” with no business other than lawsuits, has said Carolla just doesn’t care since his fans are paying his lawyers’ bills. Read 12 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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Podcasting patent troll: We tried to drop lawsuit against Adam Carolla

Chinese military “hacked” Israel’s Iron Dome

Iron Dome The technology behind Iron Dome, the missile defense system Israel has been using since 2011, was allegedly stolen by Chinese military hackers. That claim was made by Cyber Engineering Services to Brian Krebs of security news site Krebs On Security , and it identifies Elisra Group, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems as the three defense companies that were compromised during the cyber assault. The perpetrators, Cyber Engineering Services says, are the same ones behind a spate of attacks that have come to light in the past few years, all attributed to Unit 61398, a Shanghai-based arm of the Chinese army. The five Chinese military officers indicted by the US earlier this year for allegedly hacking energy firms in the country also belong to the same unit. The hacks took place from October 2011, some six months after Iron Dome became operational, and continued up until August 2012. Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has said that many hundreds of rockets fired from Gaza, particularly during the current military operation and a series of clashes in 2012, have been scuppered by the system, which is thought to be one of the most effective missile-defense technologies in the world. Read 7 remaining paragraphs | Comments

It’s not just Verizon: All major US carriers throttle “unlimited” data

Verizon Wireless One of the most common reactions to Verizon’s announcement that it will throttle the heaviest users of its “unlimited” 4G plans went something like this: “That’s the last straw, I’m switching to T-Mobile!” Unfortunately, switching to T-Mobile, AT&T, or Sprint won’t protect you from getting throttled, even if the carrier is claiming to sell you “unlimited” data. Let’s take a look at the relevant passages in each carrier’s terms and conditions. We’ll start with the Verizon Wireless announcement last week: Read 15 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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It’s not just Verizon: All major US carriers throttle “unlimited” data

Bose accuses Beats of using patented noise-cancelling tech

Bose Corp. filed a lawsuit on Friday that accuses popular headphone maker Beats Electronics of infringing upon several of its patents. The suit claims that Bose lost sales because Beats—which Apple announced it would acquire for $3 billion in May—used patented noise-cancelling technology in its Studio and Studio Wireless headphone lines. Beats’ products that allegedly use the technology “can also be used for noise cancellation when no music is played, a feature that Beats also advertises,” the suit states. “Thus, Beats specifically encourages users to use the infringing functionality. Beats advertises no method to turn off features that cause end users to directly infringe.” Read 5 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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Bose accuses Beats of using patented noise-cancelling tech

Robotic glove gives you extra fingers for grabbing

Melanie Gonick / MIT Four fingers and a thumb on each hand is pretty useful. Humans have gone from caves to sprawling cities in part because of our dexterous digits. But researchers at MIT think we could do even better if we had an upgrade. They have developed a glove with two extra robotic fingers that respond intelligently to your movements, allowing you to perform two-handed tasks with just one robot-enhanced hand. “You do not need to command the robot, but simply move your fingers naturally. Then the robotic fingers react and assist your fingers,” said the glove’s creator Harry Asada, of MIT’s Department of Mechanical Engineering . Read 10 remaining paragraphs | Comments

Ars editor learns feds have his old IP addresses, full credit card numbers

Jonathan Ryan In May 2014, I reported on my efforts to learn what the feds know about me whenever I enter and exit the country. In particular, I wanted my Passenger Name Records (PNR), data created by airlines, hotels, and cruise ships whenever travel is booked. But instead of providing what I had requested, the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) turned over only basic information about my travel going back to 1994. So I appealed—and without explanation , the government recently turned over the actual PNRs I had requested the first time. The 76 new pages of data, covering 2005 through 2013, show that CBP retains massive amounts of data on us when we travel internationally. My own PNRs include not just every mailing address, e-mail, and phone number I’ve ever used; some of them also contain: Read 24 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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Ars editor learns feds have his old IP addresses, full credit card numbers