Kiran Upadhyay

AT&T yesterday began offering “double the data for the same price” to new customers and existing customers who sign new contracts, apparently forgetting that its network is so congested that speeds must be throttled when people use too much data. Like other carriers, AT&T slows the speeds of certain users when the network is congested. Such network management is a necessary evil that can benefit the majority of customers when used to ensure that everyone can connect to the network. But as Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler has argued, the carriers’ selective enforcement of throttling shows that it can also be used to boost revenue by pushing subscribers onto pricier plans. AT&T’s throttling only applies to users with “legacy unlimited data plans,” the kinds of customers that AT&T wants to push onto limited plans with overage charges. Initially, the throttling was enforced once users passed 3GB or 5GB in a month regardless of whether the netwo

For years, local law enforcement agencies around the country have told parents that installing ComputerCOP software is the “first step” in protecting their children online. Police chiefs, sheriffs, and district attorneys have handed out hundreds of thousands of copies of the disc to parents for free at schools, libraries, and community events, usually as a part of an “Internet Safety” outreach initiative. (You can see the long list of ComputerCOP outlets here.) The packaging typically features the agency’s official seal and the chief’s portrait, with a signed message warning of the “dark and dangerous off-ramps” of the Internet. As official as it looks, ComputerCOP is actually just spyware, generally bought in bulk from a New York company that appears to do nothing but market this software to local government agencies using shady information. The way ComputerCOP works is neither safe nor secure. It isn’t particularly effective either, except for generating positive PR for the l

Some words just make other words seem cooler. Add "rocket" to just about anything—car, backpack, toast—and suddenly you've made those words way more interesting. Rocket car! Rocket backpack! Rocket toast! That was my thinking when I decided to try out RocketSkates, an upcoming product from Acton that cleared $550,000 in Kickstarter funding over the summer. While they aren't actually propelled by rockets, the motorized and battery-powered skates will scoot you along at speeds of about 12 miles per hour, and creator Peter Treadway has high hopes that they'll compete with skateboards, bikes, regular skates, and plain old feet as a form of urban transit. We met with Treadway earlier this week to talk about the skates and to take them for a test run. RocketSkates began as a school project that Treadway began working on while he was getting his master's degree in industrial design. For him, "wearable transportation" was a natural way to combine his

In San Francisco today, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said something that was more than a little surprising: Microsoft loves Linux. The operating system once described as a "cancer" by Nadella's predecessor, Steve Ballmer, is now being embraced with open arms (if not extended), at least when it comes to Redmond's Azure cloud platform. Nadella told us that some 20 percent of VMs on Azure use the open source operating system. The San Francisco event served a dual purpose. First, it was an opportunity for Microsoft to tell the world just how much Azure had grown—Microsoft may not have been first to the cloud computing scene, but a ton of investment and development means that the company is now credible, and, if Gartner's magic quadrants are to be believed, world-leading. Second, the event served to introduce new features and partnerships. Microsoft's major sales pitch for Azure is essentially a three-pronged argument that Microsoft is the only company that ca

When it comes to corporate IT, revolution is in the air. The way companies buy, build, manage, optimize and secure information technology is changing dramatically. From cloud computing to big data analytics to ubiquitous mobile connectivity, corporate IT systems are getting faster, more efficient, cheaper to operate and easier to use. In the process, a new wave of tech companies has emerged to challenge established players. Venture investors are pouring money into enterprise computing like never before. The sector attracted a record $5.4 billion in capital in the first six months of 2014 alone. Fueling that enthusiasm are the successful multi-billion-dollar IPOs for companies like Workday, Palo Alto Networks, FireEye, ServiceNow and Splunk. There will be many more in the quarters ahead. Here’s a look at 10 important trends changing the face of enterprise computing: 1. Cloud computing: According to Morgan Stanley, nearly one-third of all workloads run on the cloud today. What

If you’ve been in the market for OnePlus One, the hugely impressive $299 Android smartphone that is available by invite only — thus far — then your luck is in. The startup has announced that it will make its first smartphone available to all members of the public, but for a one hour window only. The impressive device will be available to buy for an hour on October 27, starting from 15:00 GMT — that’s 08:00 PST, or 11:00 EST. The company is allowing would-be customers to pre-order their phone from today, so there’s no need to stand still until then. Those who pre-order now but manage to grab an invite before October 27 can skip the queue and order their device right away, so there’s no danger of being stuck waiting. OnePlus says the new public sale window will not replace its invitation system altogether, but — having suffered delays in the past — this step is evidence of greater confidence in its ability to reach larger numbers of people with its devices. The company has been

Why wait for an official Android TV? Android boxes designed for connecting to a TV have been around for ages – the Probox2 EX is the latest and most powerful model in the market. How does it perform, and does it serve a genuine need in the living room? Read on to find out, then enter to win your own at the end of the review. What’s in the box? Probox2 EX unit and wireless antenna Standard Remote Remote+ (in a separate box, with USB dongle) and generic media remote Power adapter (ours included a UK plug adapter) HDMI, and composite cable Read More