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 …