UK telecommunications company Vodafone is among the many unhappy with the recent vote to leave the European Union, and has dropped a couple serious hints that it's considering a relocation of its London-based headquarters. While nothing has been made final yet, the firm notes that it won't be abandoning its services or customers in the UK, however most of its earning and operations are found outside England.
OnePlus proudly announced before launching the OnePlus 3 that they were finally doing away with invitations once and for all. The teething pains that necessitated that queuing system no longer exist. Or so OnePlus thought. It seems, however, that OnePlus still has a few lessons to learn in supply and demand. It has just apologized for and explained the delays that its UK customers are going through and offering discounts for their next purchase as compensation for the delay and stress it has caused.
Apple may have scored somewhat of a victory in the name of security and privacy in the UK just as it somewhat did in the US just recently. December last year, Apple voiced out its concerns over the UK's proposed Investigatory Powers Bill that would require companies to have backdoors to encrypted systems so that government access could be granted any time. That bill has now been passed by the UK's House of Commons but removes the sections that make such backdoors necessary, thanks partly to the opposition of companies like Apple, Google, Microsoft, and many others.
Even with Google's clout behind it, Android Pay's international rollout hasn't exactly been progressing as blazing fast speed. Still, any new territory covered means more opportunities for Android Pay, and more chances of competing with Apple Pay (or even Samsung Pay). The newest territory to join Google's mobile payment kingdom is, well, the United Kingdom, allowing Android users to pay for coffee or transportation with just a tap of their phone. But as might have already heard, Barclays has opted not to join that party and set up one of its own.
Entertainer Will.i.am has dabbled in everything from music to fashion, but it's in technology where he's had the least success. That hasn't deterred him, however, as his latest wearable device, a smartwatch called the Dial, will be launching in the UK soon and is now available for pre-order. As a follow-up to Will.i.am's previous smartwatch, the Puls, the Dial now voice recognition and digital assistant features, plus it can still work without being tethered to a smartphone.
While Google's Android Pay and its rival Apple Pay have had a fairly comparative start in the US, Apple's mobile payments system has had a big head start in the UK. It seems Google has been aware of this fact as well, as the company has announced that Android Pay will finally be coming to the UK, with a timeframe promise of within "the next few months."
Now that Google's little self-driving pod cars are making their way to more cities in the US for testing, overseas metropolises are starting to show an interest. Transportation officials in London revealed this week that they've begun early discussions with Google to bring their autonomous cars to the UK capital. This new comes right after the vehicles have made Washington State their third testing ground, following cities in Texas and California.
There's a reason e-ink (also known as e-paper) technology is such a great fit for e-readers like Amazon's Kindle: it uses very little power and offers high visibility in a variety of lighting conditions. It's no wonder that the black and white digital displays are starting to be used for traffic signs and other real-time information posted outside. Now London started to adopt the technology for its bus stops, launching a trial that has four locations display real-time arrival schedules and more.
Unless you live in London, you might not have a clue what a Santander Cycle is. These are bicycles that people needing to get around the city can rent from kiosks and pedal to their destination where they can be turned in at another kiosk. This week London Mayor Boris Johnson MP, TfL, and Santander UK have announced that all 11,500 Santander Cycles will be fitted with Blaze Laserlights.
UK authorities have revealed that police have made their first arrest in relation to the hacking scandal surrounding VTech, an electronic toy maker, which was disclosed late last month. The 21-year-old man was taken into custody on suspicion of being involved with the unauthorized breach of the company's servers, resulting in the theft of personal data on over 6 million children.
The UK is currently in the midst of a boom in popularity of the self-balancing scooter-type of "hoverboards," and with the holidays here, that means cheaper variants appealing to shoppers. However, the nation's authorities are warning consumers to stay away from cheap, knock-offs, as an alarming number of the hoverboards are being seized because they don't meet safety standards. The National Trading Standards says that out of 17,000 hoverboards imported in recent weeks, 15,000 have failed inspections.
It's been a few weeks since we've heard from UK officials investigating the hacking of telecom company TalkTalk. The cyberattack, and subsequent ransom demand, occurred in late October, with police making the first arrest several days later. The Metropolitan Police have now revealed they've made a fifth arrest, with the suspected hacker being yet another teenager. With a search warrant in hand, officers visited the 18 year old boy's home in Wales, arresting him on suspicion of blackmail.
