---------------------------------------------------------------------- Message-ID: <5D444F72-DA51-484E-AF13-7F209565E795@roscom.com> Date: Thu, 17 Nov 2016 19:59:54 -0500 From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com> Subject: Xiaomi Mi Mix review - This is what the future of smartphones looks like Xiaomi elegantly solves a lot of problems to create a more screen-centric smartphone. By Ron Amadeo Smartphone design has stagnated. If you're using Apple as a measuring stick for the industry, we're going to have three years of iPhones that use an identical case design. If you're going by Samsung, the company hasn't tweaked its front design since the Galaxy S5 in 2014. Google just produced its first self-branded smartphone hardware ever, and it didn't have anything significant to say when it comes to smartphone design either. Not everyone in the industry seems so content with the status quo, though. For a different take on smartphone design, we look to China, where Xiaomi has just introduced a phone with a jaw-dropping design that maximizes screen real estate above all else. The Xiaomi Mi Mix is the company's look at "the future of smartphones." While it's being called a "concept phone," it's actually for sale for the shockingly low price of $516. Forget about buying it, though - Xiaomi is selling the Mi Mix in China only. Even if you could pay a premium to import it, it sadly lacks important LTE bands for service in the US. http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2016/11/xiaomi-mi-mix-review-this-is-what-the-future-of-smartphones-looks-like/ ------------------------------ Message-ID: <F8B7B438-2761-4B76-AB90-D4DED9893B1A@roscom.com> Date: Thu, 17 Nov 2016 20:51:50 -0500 From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com> Subject: Chinese company installed secret backdoor on hundreds of thousands of phones Chinese company installed secret backdoor on hundreds of thousands of phones In "mistake," AdUps collected data from BLU Android phones in US. By Sean Gallagher Security firm Kryptowire has uncovered a backdoor in the firmware installed on low-cost Android phones, including phones from BLU Products sold online through Amazon and Best Buy. The backdoor software, initially discovered on the BLU R1 HD, sent massive amounts of personal data about the phones and their users' activities back to servers in China that are owned by a firmware update software provider. The data included phone number, location data, the content of text messages, calls made, and applications installed and used. The company, Shanghai AdUps Technologies, had apparently designed the backdoor to help Chinese phone manufacturers and carriers track the behavior of their customers for advertising purposes. AdUps claims its software runs updates for more than 700 million devices worldwide, including smartphones, tablets, and automobile entertainment systems. The surveillance feature of the software was developed specifically for the Chinese market, the company says, and was unintentionally included in the software for BLU devices. http://arstechnica.com/security/2016/11/chinese-company-installed-secret-backdoor-on-hundreds-of-thousands-of-phones/ ------------------------------ Message-ID: <1594F10D-B14A-4EB3-83B7-DDB45E7A7CD5@roscom.com> Date: Thu, 17 Nov 2016 19:56:06 -0500 From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com> Subject: Apple will fix iPhone 6 Pluses with touchscreen problems, but it will cost you Apple will fix iPhone 6 Pluses with touchscreen problems, but it will cost you By Andrew Cunningham If you've been having touchscreen problems with your iPhone 6 Plus, Apple has a fix for you if you're willing to pay for it. The "iPhone 6 Plus Multi-Touch Repair Program" is for phones that are either having trouble registering touchscreen input or that are have flickering displays as a result of "being dropped multiple times on a hard surface and then incurring further stress on the device." Unlike past iPhone repair programs - a list which includes the power button and battery in the iPhone 5 and the camera in the iPhone 6 Plus - Apple is charging a $149 service fee to replace iPhones affected by the problem. Even then, Apple says your phone needs to be "in working order" and can't have a cracked or broken screen. If you have previously paid for a repair related to these problems, Apple says that you can contact the company to be reimbursed for whatever you paid beyond $149. http://arstechnica.com/apple/2016/11/apple-will-fix-iphone-6-pluses-with-touchscreen-problems-but-it-will-cost-you/ ------------------------------ Message-ID: <o0lnjo$338$1@news.albasani.net> Date: Fri, 18 Nov 2016 02:04:40 +0000 (UTC) From: Bob Prohaska <bp@www.zefox.net> Subject: Re: FTC Do-Not-Call web page redesigned Pete Cresswell <PeteCress@invalid.telecom-digest.org> wrote: > > Now I'm torn between spending the big bucks on CallerID/Simultaneous > Ring/NoMoRobo and moving my incoming calls to the VOIP service I already > use for outgoing and implementing Challenge/Response ("Press 1 > for.....") on same. With a GoldList, of course, for known CallerIDs of > frequent callers. > > I am thinking that challenge-response on the VOIP service will do the > job for now - until the robocallers get up to speed on voice recognition > and AI... which might not be *too* far in the future. [Moderator snip] This seems a little overthought. What's wrong with using an answering machine to pick up the line, recite the number reached and invite the caller to leave a message? If somebody hears a recognized caller, they can always pick up. One does have to delete the recordings, but that's relatively easy, as very few robocalls actually leave a message. bob prohaska ------------------------------ ********************************************* End of telecom Digest Sat, 19 Nov 2016