Tech news, analysis, culture, business, security, and more
Since the iPhone’s launch in 2007, Apple has kept screen sizes simple, offering only four options. Now, the company may be taking a different approach. Bloomberg reports that Apple will launch a 12.9-inch iPad in early 2015, citing anonymous sources familiar with the matter. This a pretty significant jump from the 9.7-inch iPad Air that’s…
The latest versions of Android include a handy feature that you might not know about: the option to display your contact information on the lockscreen, which can be used if you misplace your phone or tablet. You can access the feature from the Settings app by tapping Security and then Owner info. Tick the box…
iPhone 6 day is (probably) right around the corner and we’re all aching for as much early detail as we can scrape up. DOLDO411 is the latest to bust out an in-depth (and hilarious) scoop, but this is one that not even TMZ could confuse for the real thing. https://gizmodo.com/tmz-thinks-this-is-the-iphone-6-bless-its-heart-1622149808 Made of plyvar (or maybe…
The internet is filled with plenty of photo fakery. And we here at Factually are here to help you distinguish the true from the too-good-to-be. Today we have six more images you may have seen floating around recently. None of them is precisely what it claims to be. 1) Is this a Soviet-era beach? The…
John Malkovich is a great actor, no doubt about it. That’s why it’s not surprising to see him nail the role of a vampire in this cinematic–and quite funny—TV commercial for a French video streaming service. SPLOID is a new blog about awesome stuff. Join us on Facebook
Sick of seeing all the ice bucket challenge videos on Facebook? Too bad, my friend, you’re stuck with them until the end of time. That is, until Facebook creates the one option it needs most: A real mute button. Twitter has a mute feature that lets you unfollow a specific user without actually unfollowing them.…
Yesterday, the Los Angeles Times reported that its sprawling hometown’s school system, the second largest in the US, would be withdrawing from last year’s ambitious promise to supply all 640,000 students with an iPad. Good. The Los Angeles United School District just dodged a $1 billion, tablet-shaped bullet. When the iPad premiered four years ago,…
A garden skyscraper. A sidewalk library. A floating pool. A DIY bike park. These are some of the finalists in the Place By Design competition announced today by SXSW Eco, a new sustainability conference by the organizers of SXSW. Which one makes the greatest impact on a city? Finalists for the competition were selected across…
Last week, as asked you to photograph a cloud hallucination—you know, when you look at a cloud and see something else. A few of you were brave enough to put your sanity on the line and share the shapes you’d spotted. https://gizmodo.com/shooting-challenge-crazy-things-you-see-in-clouds-1625050768 Winner: Zeus This was one of those times you think you see something,…
DNA sequencing is crucial for identifying and tracking nasty viruses like E. coli and the flu. But current tabletop-size DNA sequencing machines aren’t readily portable. Researchers at the University of Otago in New Zealand have a solution in a brick-sized DNA sequencer that connects wirelessly to a smartphone or laptop. The device, called Freedom4, brings…
If there are any two things that define the tech-minded modern millennial, they are his operating system and his porn preferences. Fortunately for our inquiring minds, our data-crunching friends over at Pornhub have to access to both. As with the browser battle that came before, we asked the Pornhub Insights team how each operating system’s…
We usually have a gift card deal or two to report on every day, but eBay has a nice roundup going on with deals from 8 popular stores and services. Some of the best include $100 at StubHub for $85, a year of PlayStation+ for $40, a $50 Jiffy Lube card for $40, and 30%…
The Javits Center is a 2.1 million square foot behemoth convention center located on the west side of Manhattan. It’s host to some of the largest events that occur in New York City, opening its doors to two million visitors every year. And as of this spring, it’s home to the largest green roof in…
Instagram just launched Hyperlapse, a super quick and easy way to make timelapse videos with your phone. It’s an exemplar of simplicity, allowing even the shakiest of individuals access to smoothed out video in a flash. Apps don’t come much more minimal than this. There are literally only two screens making up the entire experience.…
Yesterday, we shared the amusing case of the cross-country trip that was diverted when two passengers got in a battle over a reclining seat. But the real villain here isn’t our travel-addled selves. It’s that we still let airplane seats recline at all. Yes, the story of two middle-aged adults grounding a plane because they…
iPhone rumor season is just days away from becoming iPhone reality season, and a new leak from a usually reliable source appears to confirm some basic details. The French tech blog Nowhere Else just published images of an iPhone 6 Quick Start guide. The document includes the rumored iPhone 6 name as well as the…
As more and more cities battle urban sprawl by building taller and more densely-packed buildings, threats from fire, terrorism, or similar calamities become more pronounced, especially for people living and working on the upper floors where the designated exits are their only options. But this lifesaving device aims to gently lower its wearer to safety…
Crowdfunding isn’t the same as preordering. It’s a gamble at best. And with the Keryos Meteor coming out as one of the biggest crowdfunding fails in recent memory, we got to thinking: What other crowdfunding disasters have managed to slip under the radar? What projects have you backed that just didn’t follow through, either because…
Wired is reporting that later today Instagram will announce an all-new standalone app called Hyperlapse, which allows the creation of stabilized moving timelapse videos. It’s a feature previously only available to those with more advanced photographic gear and know-how. Update: Here’s our hands-on! The app prompts you to record a video, after which it uses…
Despite being small enough to fit in your pocket, a tape measure is one of those tools that is almost impossible to use by yourself. Laser measuring devices are far easier to wrangle if you don’t have an assistant—even with just one hand—but it’s taken decades for a company like Bosch to finally create a…