In the first of its kind major crackdown in India ahead of the Lok Sabha Elections, social media giant Facebook said that it has taken down 702 accounts, pages and groups linked to political activity in India because of “coordinated inauthentic behavior”. According to Facebook, among the 702 pages and account taken down, 687 are …

On Sunday Microsoft quietly made a change to its Surface Book 2 line. An entry-level 13.5-inch model now comes with a quad-core eighth-gen Intel i5 processor.  This is a considerable power bump from the existing dual-core seventh-gen Intel i5 CPU but without any raise in price. The upgraded entry-level model starts at $1,499, while the older one has dropped $200 …

EDITOR’S NOTE: This article was originally published on December 8, 2014 and is being republished today to commemorate Apple’s 43rd anniversary (April 1, 1976).  At Apple, Bill Fernandez rode shotgun on the creation of the personal computer industry. He was on the original Mac team that made decisions that defined the modern user experience. He worked on QuickTime, which helped …

If Apple’s new iMacs don’t fit into your all-in-one budget, then you might consider a Windows-based all-in-one alternative for less. And right now is a good time for such considerations.  Best Best this week is running a sale on all-in-ones from Asus, Dell and Lenovo. Like the iMac, these systems boast a space-saving design that puts the PC components not …

By next year, 100 million consumers will shop using AR either online and in stores, market researcher Gartner predicted Monday. As part of that shift, 46 percent of retailers plan to integrate augmented reality or virtual reality tech into shopping experiences, according to Gartner’s Unified Retail Retailer Survey conducted last summer. The introduction of 5G wireless networks will help push …

Remember Snake? It’s back — in Google Maps form! Snake, the iconic Nokia game first introduced on the Nokia 6110 in 1997, has been reimagined for Google Maps in celebration of April Fools’ Day. You can play it on iOS and Android versions of the Google Maps app. Just touch the sidebar option on the left side of the search …

Apple has cut the prices of some of its most popular products — including the iPhone, iPad, AirPods and Mac computers — on its online store for Chinese consumers. Though pricing changes vary from product to product, most of the decreases are around 5 percent, according to CNBC, which first reported the news. For example, on Apple’s Chinese website, a …

Albany is the latest in a long list of cities ensnared by ransomware. On Saturday, the city government announced it was hit by a ransomware attack. In such attacks, hackers infect computers with malware that holds the content hostage unless the victims pay to free their machines. The attack took out several city services that remain impacted, including its ability …

Valve is known for making hit shooting games like Half-Life and Portal, and the battle strategy game Dota 2. It runs the popular Steam online game store. It’s pioneered new virtual reality technology.  Now Valve appears to be building a headset too. Enlarge Image Valve quietly announced its new Index headset last Friday. Screenshot by CNET The Bellevue, Washington, game …

Apple officially killed AirPower last week citing an inability to “achieve [Apple’s] high standards”, and I was crestfallen. I had been looking forward to finally trying AirPower, the wireless charging pad for iPhones, AirPods and the Apple Watch that would simultaneously charge multiple devices, up to three in Apple’s case. Uniquely, it would communicate with the devices to manage the power distribution among …

Kenny Long recalls that when the London Metropolitan Police first identified his talent for spotting faces, back in 2015, he had an interesting gut reaction to being called a “super-recognizer.”  “It sounds like a rubbish superhero,” he told his commanding officer. But in crime-fighting circles in London, and with British intelligence, it’s no joke. Long’s talent, the ability to put …

Qualcomm’s former CEO won’t take the company private after all. Paul Jacobs has dropped his attempts to buy the chipmaker, according to The Wall Street Journal. Instead, he plans to focus on his new wireless technology company, called XCOM, the publication said.  Qualcomm declined to comment. Jacobs couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.  Virtually every major handset maker — besides …

Google is no longer selling the Pixel 2 on its online store. A link for the phone will redirect you to the Pixel 3, Android Police noticed Monday. The Pixel 2 XL was also nowhere to be found under a list of phones on Google’s store, but a web search for the device still shows a link where you can buy …

One of the main selling points of the Apple Watch ($70 at Amazon) is how it can contribute to helping you live a healthier life by recording workouts, completing challenges or monitoring your heart’s health. For those who are just getting started with an Apple Watch, or those who have had one for a while but never used any of …

Chances are that when a website pop-up asks your permission to send you notifications, you don’t want to grant it. That’s a problem Firefox and Chrome engineers have begun trying to fix. Website notifications can be useful, for example, when you want your web-based calendar to alert you to an upcoming meeting or when an important message arrives on your …