cell phones

Sweeping Review Finds No Link Between Cell Phones and Cancer

The theory that holding a radiation-emitting device to your ear for hours could cause cancer certainly feels true, but decades of study has found no link.

Health Adam Kovac Sep 4

Photo of Computer Keyboard Smashed Through Screen

All the Ways Everyday Gadgets Injured Us Last Year

Accidental penis punches, embedded earbud tips, and avoidable lightning strikes are among the maladies we've brought upon ourselves.

Gadgets Todd Feathers Aug 30

Helena Bonham Carter and Sam Neill Star in a Short Film About a Sentient Cell Phone

One thing that global isolation has been good for (other than not getting sick) is the wave of lo-fi homemade short films from the sort of people who would normally be starring in, y’know, big expensive movies instead of making silly movies for Twitter. This untitled short, created by Sam Neill and posted on his…

Movies Julie Muncy May 24

A Single Court-Authorized Wiretap Order in 2018 Swept Up 9.2 Million Intercepts

A single court-authorized wiretap order resulted in authorities in the Southern District of Texas scooping up more than 9.2 million communications—becoming “the federal wiretap with the most intercepts in 2018,” TechCrunch reported on Saturday, citing the federal government’s annual wiretap report. There’s not much more information on the case in the report, other than that…

Privacy & Security Tom McKay Jun 30

The Battle Against Mobile Demonic Possession Rages in the Trailer for Nekrotronic

Have you ever wondered what would happen if demons could possess you through your phone? Of course you haven’t! It’s a ludicrous idea that borders on parody. And yet, the film Nekrotronic takes that idea and runs with it, hoping to create something wild and surprising. Directed and co-written by Australian filmmaker Kiah Roache-Turner, Nekrotronic…

Trailers Germain Lussier Jun 25

The Feds, Police Are Using Google’s Location History Feature to Track Down Suspects

Law enforcement queries of Google’s massive mobile device Location History database, which employees call Sensorvault, has “risen sharply in the past six months,” the New York Times reported on Saturday, citing sources at the company. It’s not clear how often police ask Google to produce results from the database, which can be used to narrow…

Privacy & Security Tom McKay Apr 13

India’s BJP Is Reportedly Using Data From a State-Funded Free Phone Program to Hit Up Voters

India’s right-wing, arch-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is using government-subsidized cell phones that have been handed out to millions of people as a campaign tool, the New York Times reported on Sunday, with the BJP using a $79 million free-phone program in the state of Chhattisgarh to appeal directly to voters. According to the Times…

Politics Tom McKay Nov 18

How Horror Movies Get Around Cell Phones

Cell phones have changed the way people think, act, and communicate. They’ve also been hell on the horror genre. Smartphones have rendered many classic horror movie tropes ridiculous, or even implausible. However, they’ve also provided opportunities to scare us in new and inventive ways. Let’s look at where modern horror has succeeded, and failed, to…

Movies Beth Elderkin Oct 24

This Phone Tracking Company’s ‘Demo’ Tool Let You Track Almost Anyone in the U.S. in Real Time

A troubling flaw in phone tracking company LocationSmart’s demo tool, used to advertise its services, let anyone take advantage of an easily exploited flaw to track phones from America’s top four carriers without the user’s consent or knowledge, according to KrebsOnSecurity. The demo site was reportedly taken down yesterday after Krebs contacted LocationSmart. LocationSmart is…

Tech News Patrick Lucas Austin May 18

My Dreams of Owning The Matrix Phone Can Finally Be Fulfilled

When I was a girl, I had a simple dream. I wanted to own the phone from The Matrix. You know the one, right? It has a spring-loaded cover that slides off with a button press. In the sequels, it’s replaced by a self-consciously high-tech looking Samsung model, but in the original Matrix film it’s…

Movies Julie Muncy Feb 25

The History of Wireless Everything

Halfway between Brooklyn and Montauk, a steel cupola propped up on wooden legs once looked out over the Long Island Sound and beyond the horizon. Built in the first years of the 20th century, Wardenclyffe Tower served as the centerpiece of a real-life mad scientist’s laboratory. Lever pulling, lightning bolts, maniacal laughter—this is where that…

Tech News Adam Clark Estes Dec 12

FCC Chair Ajit Pai Wants to Cap a Program to Help Poor People Afford Phones and Internet

Federal Communications Commission chair Ajit Pai is aiming to impose new caps on funding for Lifeline, a program to assist impoverished people living in the U.S. afford phone, cellular and internet access. The Lifeline program imposes small fees on phone bills to pay for $9.25/month subsidies towards low-income Americans’ telecoms bills (the payments are made…

Tech News Tom McKay Oct 30

ICE Says It Doesn’t Track Down Undocumented Immigrants Using ‘Stingray’ Devices

Acting head of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement Thomas Homan told Sen. Ron Wyden the agency does not use cell-site simulators—a type of surveillance gear often referred to as a “Stingray” that can track down a specific mobile device by emulating cell phone towers—to locate undocumented immigrants. Per Ars Technica, the August 16th letter states ICE…

Tech News Tom McKay Aug 20

This Smartphone Microscope Lets You Play Games With Microbes

Introducing the LudusScope, a 3D-printed, open-sourced system that lets you control and play games with living microbes on your smartphone. Tormenting single-celled organisms has never been so much fun. LudusScope was developed by Stanford engineer Ingmar Riedel-Kruse, and he envisioned it as a new way of interacting and learning about common microbes. It’s meant for…

Tech News George Dvorsky Oct 6

Airlines Now Verbally Warning Passengers Not to Use Samsung Galaxy Note 7 on the Plane

Airlines and airports are beginning to crack down on explosive Samsung Galaxy Note 7 phones. This morning, New York Times reporter Mike Isaac tweeted that his airline verbally warned passengers to power off and stow the recalled device. In a direct message, Isaac clarified that he was flying American Airlines. Several others have said they’ve…

Tech News Rhett Jones Sep 11

These Self-Assembling Phones Are Refreshingly Low Tech

MIT’s self-assembly lab has created cell phones that build themselves, in a manner of speaking. There’s no fancy nano- or bio- technology involved, nothing theoretical or suggestive of a near-future Singularity. It’s devilishly simple, because the whole project boils down to throwing phone parts into a rock tumbler. The group—which previously made self-building furniture—took a…

Tech News Avery Ellis Aug 22

Google Wants to Make Landlines Relevant Again with Its New Fiber Phone

If you’re living with high-speed internet in one of Google’s Fiber cities, your landline telephone might yet live to see another day. Today, Google announced Fiber Phone, a cloud-based phone number you can use from any tablet, laptop, or phone—including a landline. It’s like Google Voice on bad steroids. The proposition is fairly straightforward. You…

Tech News Bryan Lufkin Mar 29

House Lawmaker Wants to Make it Illegal to Buy a Burner Phone Without ID

House Representative Jackie Speier (D-San Francisco/San Mateo) has put forward a bill that will require retailers to ask for identification from anyone buying a prepaid cellphone. The bill, called Closing the Pre-Paid Mobile Device Security Gap Act of 2016, is designed to “close one of the most significant gaps in our ability to track and…

Privacy & Security Andrew Liptak Mar 27

NYPD Admits To Using Cell Phone Spy Tool More Than 1000 Times Since 2008

The New York Police Department has admitted to using controversial cell phone spying systems known as Stingrays—which can be used to track the location and intercept personal communications of nearby cellphone users. In a report from the New York Civil Liberties Union, the NYPD confirmed using the Stingray more than 1,000 times between 2008 and…

Tech News Michael Nunez Feb 11

Now Homeland Security Will Also Need a Warrant to Spy on Cellphones Using StingRays

Last month, the Department of Justice announced that investigators would require a warrant to use a tool called a StingRay that mimics a cell tower to spy on phones. There were a few exceptions listed, however, including issues of homeland security. But now the Department of Homeland Security says it will also require a warrant.…

Tech News Alissa Walker Oct 21

cell phones

Sweeping Review Finds No Link Between Cell Phones and Cancer

All the Ways Everyday Gadgets Injured Us Last Year

Helena Bonham Carter and Sam Neill Star in a Short Film About a Sentient Cell Phone

A Single Court-Authorized Wiretap Order in 2018 Swept Up 9.2 Million Intercepts

The Battle Against Mobile Demonic Possession Rages in the Trailer for Nekrotronic

The Feds, Police Are Using Google’s Location History Feature to Track Down Suspects

India’s BJP Is Reportedly Using Data From a State-Funded Free Phone Program to Hit Up Voters

How Horror Movies Get Around Cell Phones

This Phone Tracking Company’s ‘Demo’ Tool Let You Track Almost Anyone in the U.S. in Real Time

My Dreams of Owning The Matrix Phone Can Finally Be Fulfilled

The History of Wireless Everything

FCC Chair Ajit Pai Wants to Cap a Program to Help Poor People Afford Phones and Internet

ICE Says It Doesn’t Track Down Undocumented Immigrants Using ‘Stingray’ Devices

This Smartphone Microscope Lets You Play Games With Microbes

Airlines Now Verbally Warning Passengers Not to Use Samsung Galaxy Note 7 on the Plane

These Self-Assembling Phones Are Refreshingly Low Tech

Google Wants to Make Landlines Relevant Again with Its New Fiber Phone

House Lawmaker Wants to Make it Illegal to Buy a Burner Phone Without ID

NYPD Admits To Using Cell Phone Spy Tool More Than 1000 Times Since 2008

Now Homeland Security Will Also Need a Warrant to Spy on Cellphones Using StingRays

Picture Perfect: Artemis 2 Returns Home After a Stellar 10 Days in Space

Artemis 2 Day 10: Follow the Mission With Our Live Updates 🔴

It Sure Looks Like This Is the End for the Current Era of ‘Star Trek’

Before ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Blew Up, Disney Scrapped a Pixar Movie With a Similar Vibe

‘Doomsday’ Asteroids Could Have Kickstarted Life on Our Planet

LEVOIT Air Purifier Now at All-Time Low in a Limited Allergy Season Deal, Filtering Out 99.97% of Dust, Pollen, and Dander for Less

What on Earth Is Happening With ‘Doctor Who’?

France to Ditch Microsoft Windows as Europe’s War on American Tech Rages On

Asus Zenbook A16 Review: Start Considering Snapdragon on PC, for Real

Aqara Thermostat Hub W200 Review: Almost Better than My Ecobee

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Ecovacs Winbot W3 Omni Review: Window Cleaning Robots Have a Long Way to Go

AirPods Max 2 vs. Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen): Which ANC Headphones Win?

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