At 2015’s Mobile World Congress Chinese electronics brand Xiaomi launched the tiny Yi action cam, a GoPro-like camera with high-end features at a bargain price. It was only available in China, though you could pick one up easily enough through import sites like GearBest.com and BangGood.com. The camera itself is actually made by Yi, and …

Dear Samsung, Congratulations on the appointment of Dongjin Koh as the new head of your mobile communications business. Judging by his experience in software and services, Koh looks like he will bring a new perspective to creating smartphones. And let’s face it, after two years of declining profits and waning consumer interest, you probably need it. A stronger focus on …

Here’s a neat trick I didn’t realize Siri was capable of until recently: providing business hours for both big-box retailers and smaller, local businesses on demand. The feature was recently covered on OS X Daily. Asking Siri for business hours, or more simply, when business opens or closes saves you from having to search for a website, or — even …

The launch of the Apple Watch and new devices from luxury brands like Tag Heuer has made 2015 seem like a massive year for wearable tech, and now the latest sales figures are confirming it as fact. Sales of wearable tech worldwide shot up 200 percent in the last three months compared with the same period in 2014, according to …

Avoiding the toil required to find a better phone plan? A new online tool may be able to help. The tool, launched Wednesday, throws a number of questions at you in an attempt to narrow down the best mobile phone plan for you or your family. The phone plan search is the latest tool from Cinch Financial, a company that …

Facebook’s live video-streaming isn’t just for the rich and famous anymore. The social network said Thursday it has begun testing Live Video, a feature that lets people share video of events as they unfold in real time. It is an extension of the Live feature that Facebook began offering to celebrities and public figures in August and lets people choose …

Yesterday, I showed you how to cover your holiday-shopping tracks on Amazon. If you use Safari to shop for gifts on an iOS device, then you wouldn’t want your browsing history to spoil a holiday surprise. Thankfully, it’s easy to delete individual sites or larger time blocks from your Safari history. Or you can use the nuclear option and delete …

Anyone with a self-balancing scooter atop their wish list this season may be disappointed come the big day. Border officials have already impounded more than 15,000 of the devices, commonly called hoverboards, at UK ports in the lead up to Christmas, and major British retailers have issued recall notices for versions of the product they have been selling. Trading Standards …

I’m standing on a balcony in San Francisco’s SoMa neighborhood with a sweeping view of the Bay Bridge, and I have to crane my neck to take in the whole view. It’s a stunning sight that the employees at Google’s offices here see often. The search giant now wants to make moments like this accessible to everyone, and it’s decided …

You may know Snapchat, WhatsApp and Google’s Gchat. But do you remember Yahoo Messenger? It’s the venerable chat service from the bygone era of buddy lists and screen names, much like AOL’s Instant Messenger. Introduced in 1998, Yahoo’s service has languished in recent years as new chat apps have drawn buzz. (To be fair, an informal poll at my office …

Come this Saturday, you’ll be able to buy the OnePlus 2 smartphone without an invitation. On December 5, the company will totally dissolve the pesky protocol system that made the unlocked Android phone available only to those who had an invitation. With global customers becoming more comfortable buying unlocked phones directly from vendors, the OnePlus offers an interesting alternative to …

First it was smartphones. Then it was wearables. Next, the connected revolution could be about to change the clothes you wear. That’s according to Clothing+, a company looking to help fashion and sportswear brands add technology to our clothes to create connected, data-collecting smart garments. Clothing+ has come up with Peak+, a blueprint for smart clothing that seamlessly monitors our …

Virgin Mobile has announced a data bonus for customers keen to stream content direct to their mobile, offering an extra 2GB per month thanks to a new partnership with Presto. From today, customers on selected Virgin plans will be able to sign up for Presto and take advantage of an extra 2GB per month for every consecutive month that they …

Samsung on Wednesday revealed new versions of three midrange phones with features designed to give the company an edge over the competition. The 2016 editions of the Galaxy A3, A5 and A7 sport different screen sizes, high-resolution displays and advanced cameras. Two of the models also offer the Samsung Pay mobile payment system. The new Galaxy A phones are due …

Rumors have been flying since September: Samsung’s exiting the camera business, it reassigned the NX camera staff elsewhere in the company, it told salespeople in some countries that the NX1 had been discontinued (see summary at Petapixel). I generally pay little attention to rumors, but I strongly believe that this latest one is likely true. No confirmations, either on or …