Author: Danielle

The smart home security company, Ring, has responded to claims that it allowed employees to access the camera feeds of customers using its smart video doorbells and other security camera devices.

A statement from a Ring spokesperson reads: “We take the privacy and security of our customers’ personal information extremely seriously. In order to improve our service, we view and annotate certain Ring video recordings.” 

“These recordings are sourced exclusively from publicly shared Ring videos from the Neighbors app (in accordance with our terms of service), and from a small fraction of Ring users who have provided their explicit written consent to allow us to access and utilize their videos for such purposes. Ring employees do not have access to livestreams from Ring products.”

A report by The Intercept claimed that Ring gave its employees full access to its customers’ live camera feeds – inside, and outside the home – with some Ring employees having seemingly unfettered access to customers’ live camera streams. Apparently, one team was set up to improve object-based recognition capturing “people kissing, firing guns, and stealing.”

Alarming news

The spokesperson went on to say that” We have strict policies in place for all our team members. We implement systems to restrict and audit access to information. We hold our team members to a high ethical standard and anyone in violation of our policies faces discipline, including termination and potential legal and criminal penalties.” 

“In addition, we have zero tolerance for abuse of our systems and if we find bad actors who have engaged in this behavior, we will take swift action against them.”

The company hasn’t yet responded to the claims that a team of Ukrainian engineers had access to a folder containing “every video created by every Ring camera around the world”, as well as a “corresponding database that linked each specific video file to corresponding specific Ring customers.”  

Ring also hasn’t shed any light on the claims that Ring employees only needed a customers’ email address to gain access to their camera feed.

A source told The Intercept that, “I can say for an absolute fact if I knew a reporter or competitor’s email address, I could view all their cameras”. The source went on to talk about engineers “teasing each other about who they brought home” after romantic dates. 

The news follows a triumphant week for Ring at CES 2019 , where it revealed a total of 13 new products, showcasing everything from its latest peephole camera to a new range of outdoor smart lights.

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If you’re regularly making presentations in your line of work, then making sure you buy the best business projector that suits your needs will be essential.

Getting the right business projector can help transform your presentations and meetings, making them more engaging, interactive and professional.

In our list of the best business projectors of 2019, we’ve selected a large range of projectors, from compact devices that are easy to pack away and take with you on the road, to full-featured business projectors that feature a range of connectivity options and boast stunning image quality.

As well as listing the best business projectors, we also have our very own price comparison tool that will help you find the best prices as well.

Buying a projector for work means you’re looking for different features than if you were buying a projector for entertainment purposes, so super-high resolutions and millions of inputs aren’t going to be high on your ‘must have’ list. 

Unfortunately, plenty of offices often cheap out in when buying business projectors, or not doing their research, and investing in headaches for years to come. So now is a good excuse as any to review our favorite options for your office’s projector unit.

1. Epson EB-1795F

Projection system: 3LCD | Resolutions: 1920 x 1080 | Brightness: 3200 lumens | Contrast ratio: 10000:1 | Projection distance: 0.7 m – 6.8 m | Video inputs: Composite, HDMI, VGA | Dimensions: 292‎ x 213 x 44 mm

With Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked 2019 event scheduled for February 20, it’s always been assumed that the company’s upcoming Galaxy S10 smartphone range would be officially revealed at the conference.

Now, it seems it won’t be alone – thanks to some not-so-cryptic billboards installed at the famous Place de la Concorde in Paris, France, it appears that Samsung’s highly-anticipated foldable phone will also be officially unveiled at the event. 

Written in Hangeul, which is the South Korean alphabet, the billboards read “미래를 펼치다” and “이월 이십일”, which translates to “The future unfolds” and “February twentieth.”

Samsung’s delightfully unsubtle messages back up previous claims that the Galaxy X (or Galaxy F, as it’s also known) would be making an appearance at the event, which will be held just one week prior to MWC 2019.

As clear as all of this may seem, we can’t confirm anything at this stage – you’ll have to tune in to Samsung’s live stream, which will be hosted on its website, at 11am PT (2pm ET, 7pm GMT) on February 20 to see what Samsung truly has in store for us. 

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A car dashboard that can display information, directions and points of interest as holograms was demonstrated behind closed doors at the CES tech show in Las Vegas.

UK firm Envisics gave the BBC’s Chris Fox an exclusive look at the technology in action.

While the system is difficult to demonstrate in action on camera, Chris said it was like something out of a futuristic movie.

The company is now hoping to see its new system adopted by car manufacturers.

Read and watch all our CES coverage at bbc.com/ces2019

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Eager to take the fight to Chinese smartphone manufacturers, Samsung is planning to launch a new range of budget Galaxy M series phones in 2019, with the handsets expected to arrive in India first, as reported by Reuters. 

Samsung’s decision to debut the new budget handset line in India is believed to be a direct result of the South Korean company’s market share having recently been overtaken by Xiaomi in the region. 

Expected to arrive in India by the end of January (or around a month before the flagship Galaxy S10 is revealed), the Galaxy M10, M20 and M30 will be sold exclusively through Samsung’s online store and Amazon’s Indian site, with plans for a full global rollout to come shortly after.

Cheap… but good

 “The M series has been built around and incepted around Indian millennial consumers,” said Asim Warsi, head of Samsung’s mobile business in India, telling Reuters that the new phones are expected to bring about a doubling in online sales of Samsung phones in the country. 

Though specs for the M Series are still unconfirmed, Warsi has stated that the phones will feature large batteries and fast charging, backing up previous rumors that the M20 would feature a massive 5,000mAh battery – the largest of any Samsung handset to date.

Developed and made in India, the M Series handsets will be priced from 10,000 rupees (around $142 / £110 / AU$197) to 20,000 rupees (around $284 / £220 / AU$394).

Photo credit: Patently Apple

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For subscribers of Nintendo’s Switch Online service, the platform allows for online multiplayer as well as offering a capable emulator of the gaming company’s debut console – the NES (Nintendo Entertainment System).

Eagle-eyed Twitter user Kapu has spotted some clues hidden within Nintendo Switch Online’s coding that lists 22 SNES (Super Nintendo Entertainment System) titles that Kapu expects will be arriving with the service, joining the existing 20 NES games already on offer. 

The list is full of classic titles such as Super Mario Kart, Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past, Yoshi’s Island, Star Fox, F-ZERO, Super Metroid and more, and if it proves accurate, will help boost the value of the Online service considerably.

I was finally able to look around NES Online’s strings a bit myself and noticed the sheer amount of SNES games planned.Here’s a list for you folks out there:#NintendoSwitchJanuary 13, 2019

• Super Mario Kart
• Super Soccer
• Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past
• Demon’s Crest
• Yoshi’s island
• Stunt Race FX
• Kirby’s Dream Course
• Pop’n Twinbee
• Star Fox
• Contra 3
• Kirby Super Star
• Super Ghouls ‘n Ghosts
• Kirby’s Dream Land 3
• Super Metroid
• Super Mario World
• Pilotwings
• F-ZERO
• Star Fox 2
• Super Punch-Out
• The Legend of the Mystical Ninja
• Super Mario All-Stars
• Breath of Fire 2

Obviously we don’t know if this list is accurate, let alone when these games will actually arrive on the service, or if they will at all, but the promise of having both a NES and SNES library on the portable Nintendo Switch is certainly alluring. 

While the NES emulator arrived with all 20 titles playable at launch, Nintendo may well take a different approach with these SNES games, releasing them sequentially over a period of weeks or months.

Either way, we’ll have to wait and see what Nintendo has in store for us with its revival of the SNES and its games, but in the meantime, be sure to check out our list of the best online Nintendo Switch titles. 

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What better way to bring in the new year than to get that fit and healthy feeling with tennis? Yup, Grand Slam tennis is back for 2019 with the Australian Open from Melbourne. That means big prizes and fierce competition – and you can get an Australian Open live stream from absolutely anywhere that you are with this handy guide.

The favorites to take away the silverware this year on the men’s side of the draw are (as ever) Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, while Serena Williams is the woman to watch once again – the seven-time champion will want to let her tennis do the talking after that melt down in last season’s US Open final.

This may also be the last time we see Brit Andy Murray in big tournament action, with injury threatening his career. But the pros should be well catered for Down Under, with Australian Open Director Craig Tiley saying: “The players will see huge changes onsite in January, with what we believe are the best player facilities in world sport.

“We have a new ‘Player Pod’ – a massive new four-storey structure beside Rod Laver Arena – and we can’t wait to unveil it in 2019. Everything from new locker rooms, restaurants and lounges, medical, treatment and training facilities have been designed with the players’ comfort and convenience in mind.”

Here’s how you can live stream all the Australian Open 2019 tennis action from wherever you are in the world. 

How to live stream Australian Open tennis for FREE in Australia

Channel Nine has secured the rights to broadcast all the action from the Australian Open for 2019 – a change from the norm, as Seven has had it up until now. So for those with access to the channel it’s as easy as switching on the TV or using the app to enjoy all the action. 

There’s also the option of using a VPN if you’re away from home and still want to catch that Australian Open coverage. There are more details on how to do that immediately below.

Live stream the Australian Open tennis 2019 from anywhere in the world 

For watching options in the UK, US, Canada and New Zealand, we have more details below – just scroll down the page.

Where can I watch the Australian Open 2019 tennis using a VPN?

A VPN will enable you to get the Australian Open live stream from literally anywhere. So that obviously includes: Switzerland, Spain, Serbia, Romania, Russia, India, Pakistan, China, France, Japan, Italy, Poland, Germany, Mexico, Czech Republic, Austria, Thailand, Denmark, South Africa, Argentina, Singapore, Turkey and many more!

How to watch the Australian Open 2019: US live stream

For US residents, the Australian Open action will be broadcast by ESPN. That means those with access can enjoy it on TV as part of their usual subscription package.

Don’t already have ESPN or are a cable cutter that still wants to watch the Grand Slam tennis action? Then you have the option to go for ESPN+ instead for a mere $4.99 per month. So that gets you all of the best action from Melbourne, including the finals. As well as watching on your laptop or desktop computer, supported devices include Fire TV, PS4, Roku, Xbox One, Apple TV and Chromecast, with apps for Android and iOS as well.

What’s more, ESPN+ also has a FREE 7-day trial option. So if you’re only interested in the all-important second-week action, you could always just wait until next Monday and then sign up to live stream absolutely free of charge.

How to live stream Australian Open tennis in the UK

This year UK residents will be able to catch the Australian Open action via Eurosport which has secured the broadcasting rights to the tennis Grand Slam event. That means you’ll need to have a subscription to enjoy everything from your TV. This can be attained via Sky, Virgin Media, TVPlayer and the Eurosport app to name but a few options. It costs £9.99 per month, or £4.99 if you commit to a whole year.

Alternatively, if you already have an Amazon Prime Video subscription (or fancy getting one), then it has an offer where you can get six months of Eurosport for just 1p per month. Outstanding value if you’re a big tennis fan, as the service also has the rights to show the French Open later in the year. Plus, if you haven’t used it before, you can get a 30-day FREE trial to Prime Video, too!

Not in the UK this fortnight? Then don’t panic, as downloading and installing a VPN as described above will let you watch via the above services as if you were back in blighty.

The best way to stream the Australian Open 2019 in Canada

In Canada the rights to all the Grand Slams are owned by TSN, and the 2019 Australian Open is no exception. So that means you can access this via your TV, online or on the TSN app if you have access to the service.

The best way to stream the Australian Open in New Zealand

In New Zealand you’re going to be able to catch all the action on Sky NZ, although this is obviously a paid-for service. It includes access on mobile and tablets via the Sky Go app.

If you want to catch it but are out of New Zealand over the fortnight, you can use a VPN to access the tennis coverage. 

Image courtesy of Amazon