Phone Case Encrypts Phone Calls

There are many cases for smartphones in the electronics market. But not many offer the features that this cover does. As you may know, computers are vulnerable to malicious programs that can steal your personal information, well, cell phones are also victims of this type of robbery. A San Antonio start-up claims to have the solution to such problems. Today Vysk Communications announced a protective cover that makes it impossible for anyone to seep into your conversations. This case can encrypt calls, messages and photos by incorporating a proprietary encryption processor and its own microphone in it. The Vysk QS1 also has two mechanical camera shutters that blocks your phone's front and back camera, preventing the access from hackers.

When you put this case on your phone, you have two options, private call mode and lock-down mode. Private Call mode gives you a variety of security features as long as you're subscribed to a monthly fee of $ 9.95. With the application of QS Vysk installed you will be able to make private calls to other people who are subscribed. The company ensures that no one can hear your calls and that no information will be recorded, such as phone numbers, call time and caller ID. If you want to make calls to people who are not part of the subscription, Vysk QS1 also generate untraceable numbers, so if a hacker tries to hack your call, he will meet a sharp an annoying and sharp sound buzz. Other features includes private messaging, voice mail and pictures, remote wipe and password protection, among other things.

 

In the other hand, the Lock-down mode jams your phone's microphone, and also blocks your phone's camera (no subscription is required for this feature). The company believes that this case is the best alternative on the market since the applications available in the store continue to be vulnerable to hacks. The case will cost $229 and will be compatible with the iPhone 5 and 5s, the Samsung Galaxy  S4 and Samsung Galaxy S5. What do you think about phone security? Do you think this case's worth it?

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Transparent memory

Just when we thought the transparent electronics were far in the future... A Korean research team announced a completely transparent memory that could perhaps be used in smart phones and computers. The Department Of Electrical Engineering of Korea have been working on this clear memory that exceeds the 80% of the visibility across it.

This transparent memory is made of reduced graphene oxide. Maybe this sounds familiar since graphene can be found recently on flexible displays and processors. The Korean researchers have been the first to successfully make a transparent memory module that can be used as RAM memory. The team is expecting to use their product as core technology in all electronic devices.

 They have already tested on the memory, and they say it last more than 100,000 seconds in high-temperature environments. The product's still in early theory-development but, hey we did not thought that this technology was so close right? Eventually this technology will take over computers and mobile devices. So, what do you think about this technology? Would you fall for a completely transparent phone?

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Project Ara

Remember this video that went viral a few months ago?

For this time this idea was just a concept of what could be the future of phones. As we se this device really far from reality, well its not that far. After the popularity of this video Google bought the idea "Phonebloks" and convert it to Project Ara.

This concept phone will change the mobile phone industry forever. Imagine that you had a broken screen on you phone, and fixing it could be as easy as going to the store and buying another screen. With Project Ara this can be possible.  The phone will be running on Android OS and well the rest of the features depends on what you like on a phone. There are a lot of obstacles in the way, but none of them can prevent Google from completing this task.

In my opinion, this project is very important for the future of mobile phones. This gives us the ability if making our phones more customizable and make the phone become part of the story of our lives.

What do you think? Would you have one?

Leave your opinions below.

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Wireless power charger

     How many times have you wanted to take the phone with you and you can't because it's charging and there's no plug near you? Well a group of Korean scientists say they are close to achieving this fantasy with an innovative way that can charge your devices from 15 feet away. This new system is based on the theory of magnetic resonance. The korean team of the institute of science and advanced technology managed to manipulate this theory to the point that expanded wireless power transfer to 15 feet away. This is carried out using two boxes 10 ft long of compact ferrite core rods with some coils of wire in the middle. One of these boxes acts as a magnetic field, while the other induces the voltage. In other words, anything in between these boxes can access the power of the system that actually generates wireless electricity.

     The researchers note that this project is in early state of comercialization, but this will be a reality soon enough. They also indicate that just like today there is Wi-fi zones, there will be Wi-power zones on every restaurant, street and country. Here's a video where the team shows how they turn a tv, and three fans with this innovative technology.

     This technology sounds really promising! Is true that having this kind of technology makes our lives easier. But, what impact this will have for us? If you look carefully at the video there's no person near the boxes that emit the voltage. Perhaps the exposure to this will increase the amount of cancer in the population? Tell us what is your opinion in the comments below!

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Google Contact Lens

  

     Here we have Google Contact Lens which is a smart contact lens project announced by Google on January 2014. The project aims to assist people with diabetes by constantly measuring the glucose levels in their tears. Among medical uses for this contact lens there are many more projects on the way. This is being carried out by Google X and it is currently being tested using prototypes. 

     Now we are going to talk about what is going on right now with this project. Google recently applied for a patent to fit a tiny camera into the contact lens. Reports say that this could be used to collect data from user's surroundings, including light, colors, objects, faces and motion.

 

     Another great feature is that the camera also could expand the user's eyesight. This means it could give users a wider view or be able to zoom in on anything they want. People with no eyesight can use this technology too. The camera could give relevant information about their surroundings and even in the future connect directly to our brains and portray the image the camera is capturing.

     The possibilities are endless with such device. It could change how we see the world, literally. Will this device be vulnerable to hackers?

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The smallest laptop power adapter

     Have you ever wished that your computer charger was smaller? Well, better get ready because your wish has come true.  Check out Dart, a new and innovative product that will captivate your attention. Dart is a compact charger that uses a high-frequency power conversion, which provides up to 65 watts of power. Everyone knows it's uncomfortable to have a small laptop with a brick for a charger. That's why this group of people have devoted themselves to create what appears to be the world's smallest laptop charger. For small as it seems, this charger provides enough power to keep most laptops working perfectly. In the other hand, mac users must pay a higher amount for this charger; because of the magnetic power connectors on newer MacBooks.

   How small and lightweight is this charger? This new project is four times smaller and 6 times lighter than normal power adapters. It really seems that is for tablets or smartphones, but it is really for laptops; this technology is here to stay. Another interesting fact about this product is that it's not limited to charging a laptop, but also has a USB adapter with 10.5 watts that is capable to charge your mobile devices. Here's a video that shows more about Dart:

    The team of this project believed that increasing the switching frequency was the key to reducing size, weight, and cost. Although it is very hard to reach that amount of frequency on such a small size, these people made it real. This Kickstarter project reached almost $200,000 for their funding goal on the very first day. This shows the impact that the Dart project has on laptop users. If you are willing to get one of these innovative power adapters, you can get one early for $89, the first round of orders has already gone for $79. The team expects to deliver the first stack of the product by November for $119 each; mac users retail price will be $199.  Will you go for this innovative product? What are you waiting for? Let's get rid of those power bricks now!

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Radioshack iPhone 5s price drop

     This is your chance to get the new iPhone 5s at a lower price!($99) Yesterday Radioshack began selling the 16gb iPhone 5s with two year contract on AT&T, Verizon and Sprint. It's unclear if the price drop will be permanent, since the offer does not have a current end date. Radioshack has been selling these phones since 2009 but this is truly one of the lowest iPhone price i have seen. 

Will you take this offer? Or will you stick with the new pay-by-the-month phone financing plan? 

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Iphone 6 leaked images, rumors and expectations

     It has been 7 months since the launch of the latest iPhone, the iPhone 5s. Now, there are some rumors about the release of the next version of apple's acclaimed phone. It is rumored that the iPhone 6 would have a bigger screen, with dimensions of 4.7 inches diagonal.

     These recently leaked photos seem to confirm the rumors, presenting what could be the front panel of the phone. The images come from what appears to be a factory, and show a woman holding the iPhone 5s next to the iPhone 6 panel, having a much larger screen. As we can see the front panel shows holes for the camera, sensor, ear speaker and home button. The iPhone 6 is expected to be announced  this June 2 or 6, during the company's annual developer conference (WWDC) in San Francisco. 

     Some companies have produced cases for this unannounced phone. This once more confirms the rumors of the enlarged screen of the phone. In addition, this image of the case shows how the audio and lock buttons have been changed in size and position. The sound buttons, instead of round are long with round corners, while the lock button has been moved to the upper right side of the phone.

     According to South Korean brokerage KDB Daewoo Securities, the iPphone 6 is expected to come in two models, with full scratch-free sapphire crystal glass screen. They say that these models may have a 4.7/4.8 inch or 5.5 inch retina display with a 1920x1080p (440ppi), or a 2272x1280 (510ppi), powered by the A8 chip (64bits) and running IOS 7.2.

     Many sources says that this new phone will have a great impact in the market, but it will also have a great impact to our pockets with an increment of $100 of the price. The company is currently negotiating this increment with the phone carriers. What impact do you think this will have on the market? Will the iPhone 6 beat the new Samsung Galaxy s5? Tell us what do you think in the comments below!

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Apple CarPlay

With all new kinds of technologies being implemented in cars, Apple has come up with one of their own. It is called the CarPlay, this device is iOS in you car. The device comes with different features including, Siri, Maps, Spotify, Messages, etc. This simply brings the simplicity of the iphone to you car. The CarPlay uses Siri to navigate, but it does not control all the features in the car.

Today many cars come with their own voice assistant software, and they wont change their car software for Apple, so what they are doing is that the CarPlay is a side-feature of the cars software, so CarPlay is not completely integrated with the car but this is just the beginning. In my opinion I see a really good future for this protect, and a new era of technology from Apple.

2014 Geneva Auto Show:

Apple getting involved in a whole new kind of technology, What does this mean for the company? Will they succeed?

Tell us what do you think.

http://www.apple.com/ios/carplay/

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Galaxy S5 Hacked

     Here we have the new Galaxy S5 and after only 4 days of being released to the public, staff from Security Research Labs have found security flaws on the fingerprint scanner of this device. They claim to have hacked and fooled the fingerprint scanner using a mould made out of glue and other components. This security flaw can be exploited by hackers all around the world and trigger money transfers via PayPal and other similar services. This also leaves a window open for hackers to steal users personal information and cause significant damages.

     Something that caught my attention was that this same mould, made out of glue, was the same one used to bypass the fingerprint scanner on the Iphone 5. This shows us that companies are not taking this security flaws seriously. They already knew this would happen, they take years in development of their technology, how can something like this have slipped away unnoticed on their testing? Why make people that pay a hefty amount of money for this handsets to go through this? There are many questions to be answered. 

     "While we take the findings from Security Research Labs [SRL] very seriously, we are still confident that fingerprint authentication offers an easier and more secure way to pay on mobile devices than passwords or credit cards," Samsung said. It added that even if users were hacked it would cover their losses. A spokesman for Samsung was unable to comment.

Here is the video of the actual bypassing of the fingerprint scanner in the new Galaxy S5:

Tell us what you think about this on the comments below!

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