Tour the icy surface of Mongolia’s Khuvsgul Lake via Google Street View Google I can’t say I’ve ever thought about visiting Mongolia. But now with Google’s latest Street View journey, I can at least make a virtual visit. In October 2014, the Google Street View team journeyed to Mongolia, an Asian country sandwiched between China …

Future remote controls could sport a fingerprint sensor, as envisioned by Apple. Apple/USPTO Apple has envisioned a TV remote that can access your personal profile and settings based on your fingerprint or retina. A patent application called “Device Configuration for Multiple Users Using Remote User Biometrics” published Thursday by the US Patent and Trademark Office lays out the technology for …

Despite a shrinking market share and sluggish sales, Samsung remains the smartphone leader. CNET Apple may have sold 47.5 million iPhones last quarter, but Samsung still took home a bigger slice of the smartphone market, according to a report released Thursday by IDC. During the second quarter of 2015, Samsung bit off a 21.7 percent slice of the global smartphone …

The Apple Watch owns three-quarters of the smartwatch market, says one research firm. Josh Miller/CNET Analysts are divided over how many smartwatches Apple sold last quarter, and the company hasn’t revealed any numbers. But at least one research firm believes Apple is now the dominant smartwatch maker. Apple Watch shipments hit 4 million units last quarter, according to a forecast …

Google+ Photos is retiring though the service will still be accessible. Google Google+ Photos is technically retiring, but that doesn’t mean your photos or the service itself are actually going away. Google is far from the only company that offers online photo storage. In this area, it competes against such rivals as Flickr, Amazon Prime Photos, Snapfish and Photobucket. So …

You can now catch 120 years of historical footage on YouTube. YouTube Looking for video of the San Francisco earthquake in 1906, the crash of the Hindenburg in 1937, or the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941? You can now catch all of that and much more on YouTube. Culling their collection of newsreel footage from over the past 120 …

Hey Twitter, why did you kill off our background images? screenshot by Lance Whitney/CNET Does Twitter look a bit more plain now? It’s not just you. On Monday, Twitter started removing the background image or wallpaper from the pages of Twitter users. Specifically, your Twitter timeline and Notifications page no longer sport whatever background image you may have set up. …

Apple has invented a way to move objects onscreen by tapping the side of your device. Apple/USPTO Do you sometimes find it frustrating trying to move your cursor and other small objects on a mobile device screen using your finger? An Apple patent may have a solution. A patent application dubbed “Fine-tuning an operation based on tapping,” which was approved …

Twitter has rolled out a new Safety Center to help you deal with online abuse. James Martin/CNET Twitter has unveiled a new Safety Center page as the company strives to cut down on abusive behavior on the site. Launched on Monday, the Safety Center page is described as the company’s commitment to “building a safer Twitter.” Organized by different topics, …

You can grab the Microsoft Band for 25% off at Target, but only this week. Sarah Tew/CNET Consumers interested in the Microsoft Band fitness tracker can save $50 via a Target sale that runs this week. Normally selling for $200, the Microsoft Band is now on sale at Target for $150, a full 25 percent off the regular price. The …