CBS News
T-Mobile, the country’s No. 3 wireless carrier, will pay $48 million for not clearly telling customers how “unlimited” data plans weren’t really, well, unlimited. The FCC said Wednesday that T-Mobile had a policy to slow down the speeds of customers who were the heaviest data users. But the agency said the company didn’t let customers know what the data-use threshold was for triggering the lower speed.
Wall Street Journal
Apple is reportedly working with Australian startup Sonder Design to give future MacBook owners the power to personalize their keyboards. By 2018, “The new keyboards will be a standard feature on MacBook laptops, and will be able to display any alphabet, along with an unlimited number of special commands and emojis,” The Wall Street Journal reports.
The Verge
In light of Google’s Pixel launch, there are no longer two tech giants in control of the high-end smartphone market, declares Walt Mossberg. “Google has come out of the gate with a top-flight phone and suddenly, there’s no longer an Apple-Samsung duopoly in premium handsets,” he writes in The Verge. “If you’re an Android fan, willing to buy a premium phone, the Pixel is your answer.”
Business Insider
Apple is apparently hiring engineers from the British chip designer Imagination Technologies, which provides the graphics processor for the iPhone 7. “Apple confirmed in March … that it had discussions to buy Imagination Technologies, but that it ultimately did not make an offer,” Business Insider reports. “But since then, Apple may have gotten what it wanted anyway, hiring several senior employees … as well as a handful of engineering talent.”
VentureBeat
Tinder just unveiled Smart Photos -- a new feature that automatically alternates the profile photo visible to potential matches. “Tinder’s algorithms test a number of photos to establish which one(s) perform best, and switch the photos around to display those that solicit the most right-swipes,” Venture Beat writes. “So, if that photo of you posing with your cat garners 10 percent more positive responses than the one with you caressing a beer, Tinder will switch the images around.”
Business Insider
Apple is apparently hiring engineers from the British chip designer Imagination Technologies, which provides the graphics processor for the iPhone 7. “Apple confirmed in March … that it had discussions to buy Imagination Technologies but that it ultimately did not make an offer,” Business Insider reports. “But since then, Apple may have gotten what it wanted anyway, hiring several senior employees … as well as a handful of engineering talent.”
The Verge
After officially killing its Galaxy Note 7, Samsung just significantly adjusted its earnings forecast. “Operating profit for the third quarter of 2016 is now estimated to come in at 5.2 trillion won ($4.6 billion), down 33 percent from the previous figure, while revenue expectations have been slashed by 2 trillion won to 47 trillion ($41.8 billion),” The Verge reports.
Bloomberg
Samsung is officially ceasing production of its Galaxy Note 7 smartphones. Bloomberg calls the decision a “drastic step,” but likely necessary given that the device has “became a major headache for South Korea’s largest company.” Previously, “Samsung had already recalled the Note 7 once last month after early models exploded and the latest move comes after customers reported that replacement phones were also catching fire.”
TechCrunch
TechCrunch catches up with Hinge -- a new “relationship app” that aims to save singles from what it calls the “dating apocalypse.” For $7 a month, “Users will build out their profile with pics, answers to questions, and general information,” TC writes. “Hinge is calling this user profile a ‘story’ (super original!) because users can build out their story with more and more content over time.”
Re/code
Amid reports that Samsung Note 7 replacement phones are as combustible as their predecessors, AT&T and T-Mobile have stopped selling the devices. “It’s been more than a month since Samsung first issued a global recall of its Galaxy Note 7 phones and began replacing them as a result of a battery flaw that caused the devices to explode,” Recode notes. “As of today, at least five of those replacement phones have overheated or caught fire.”