Mitchel Broussard

Apple Music's Beats 1 radio host and creative director Zane Lowe has been announced as a keynote speaker for 2017's South by Southwest music and film festival (via Billboard). Lowe has been tapped to give a presentation for the music portion of SXSW, which runs March 10-19 next year and also includes areas that branch into interactive media technologies. Other than Lowe, speakers at next...

Smart thermostat company Ecobee today announced the launch of a cheaper "Ecobee3 Lite" device that will deliver Ecobee's expected "superior comfort, control and energy savings" at $80 less than similar products from competitors, according to the company. Similar to the flagship Ecobee 3 model, the Ecobee3 Lite has the same touchscreen controls and black aesthetic, and can be controlled from a...

Approximately 18 million iOS users in the United States have turned on Apple's "Limit Ad Tracking" feature in settings, effectively preventing advertisements within apps from being targeted directly at them and their browsing habits. Based on a recent report from Adjust (via Advertising Age), that's now 20 percent of total iOS users in the United States who have LAT turned on. Although it's...

Apple and Huawei will be the biggest beneficiaries following the discontinuation of Samsung's Galaxy Note 7 line, according to research conducted by KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. The two companies will mainly see orders increased by users looking for a smartphone with dual camera support, including Apple's iPhone 7 Plus and Huawei's upcoming Mate 9. While Kuo believes Apple will benefit ...

While on a trip that's taken him to Shenzhen, China and Nintendo's offices in Kyoto, Japan, Apple CEO Tim Cook today met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe discussing topics related to the importance of the country in Apple's ongoing market strategy. Specifically, Cook was said to confirm that an advanced R&D center in Yokohama was on track to complete construction by December (via Xinhua). ...

Sony today confirmed that it is working on creating more than five smartphone games for iOS and Android, all expected to launch before March 2018 (via CNBC). The games will be created through Sony's ForwardWorks subsidiary, which it formed earlier in March of this year as a way to craft "full-fledged game titles" for smartphones. At the time of that announcement, the company hadn't detailed...

Apple recently updated the Apple Watch Nike+ section of its official website with a launch date two weeks from today, on Friday, October 28, for the anticipated device (via Watch Generation). When announced alongside the other Apple Watch Series 2 models on September 7, Apple did not divulge a specific debut besides sometime in "late October." Anyone interested can pre-order the wearable in...

Twitter is opening up a new "Explore" tab on iOS and Android to a select group of users of its service. The new section is aimed at "content discovery" and showcases trending topics and simplified search tools in addition to "Moments," which the tab was previously dedicated to (via Mashable). Moments launched a year ago this month with the purpose of showing users stories and conversations...

Yesterday, a Redditor with the username Foxconninsider posted about a new Smart Keyboard claimed to be a working prototype potentially coming to both iMac and MacBook devices sometime in 2018. Created by Australian startup Sonder and displayed at an event in Tsinghua University in Beijing, the keyboard uses an e-ink display behind the keys of the board to dynamically change the input of the...

Thanks to a boost from supplying parts for the increasing demand of the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company has raised its forecast for 2016. Specifically, the manufacturer expects a revenue growth of between 11 and 12 percent, whereas it was previously holding out only for an increase of between 5 and 10 percent for the year (via Reuters). Third quarter net...

Online radio service Pandora today announced a rebranding of its iOS and Android apps, complete with a new logo that includes a "vibrant and bold color scheme" that the company says will showcase "the next phase of the product and the music experiences Pandora brings you." The app's icon has transitioned from a gray background with a navy blue "P" to an all-white background a lighter, bolder "P." ...

Following confirmation that Samsung has discontinued the Galaxy Note 7 amid its well-publicized fire-catching problems, the company today gave the first indication of how much the move will cost it for the third quarter of 2016. In a report by Bloomberg, Samsung is said to have cut its third quarter operating profit by $2.3 billion and adjusted profit expectations from 7.8 trillion won ($6.9...

Accessory manufacturer Netatmo has launched its home monitoring system, called the "Healthy Home Coach," which connects to a smartphone app to inform users of their home's air quality, humidity, temperature, and noise level (via Engadget). As a plus, users of the company's smart indoor climate monitor will be able to integrate the system with Apple's HomeKit and use Siri to interact with the...

The United States Patent and Trademark Office today granted Apple another patent that could help the company create a bezel-free, edge-to-edge display for future generation iPhones. The new patent describes "electronic devices with display-integrated light sensors" and specifically refers to methods by which the company could stack the iPhone's ambient light sensor underneath the display, instead ...

In the midst of stories surrounding the hacking of at least 500 million Yahoo user accounts and the secretive scanning of private emails at the behest of the government, Yahoo Mail users are now finding it difficult to leave the service after the company "temporarily disabled" email forwarding earlier in the month. According to several users speaking to The Associated Press, the ability to more...

Apple today added a banner to its United States website, iTunes Store, and App Store asking customers to provide donations to individuals affected by the recent devastation from Hurricane Matthew. Like its usual relief efforts, all donations collected will go to the American Red Cross. Donation tiers available include $5, $10, $25, $50, $100 and $200, and will be processed as normal iTunes or...

Nearly six years after the legal battle over smartphone design similarities began between Apple and Samsung, the two companies are now about to take the case to the United States Supreme Court on Tuesday, October 11. At stake is the outcome of how much of a combined $548 million patent infringement ruling Samsung will be required to pay to Apple (via Bloomberg). That amount is taken from...

Google has announced that an update coming to its website browser, Chrome, will include an upgraded JavaScript engine to aid in reducing the memory usage on websites that were programmed using JavaScript (via CNET). Planned for launch on December 6, Chrome 55 will see performance improvements predominantly if a device doesn't have much memory to start with (such as low-cost smartphones), and...

A new case might lead the FBI and Apple into another fight over security and privacy on smartphones, following a confirmation yesterday by FBI special agent Rich Thorton that the FBI has the iPhone of Dahir Adan in its possession (via Wired). Adan was the culprit behind the stabbing of 10 people in a Minnesota mall in mid-September, and was eventually shot and killed by police. After the...

In the face of waning popularity, developer Niantic recently announced a few updates to Pokémon Go that aim to make the game easier for players, with a focus on training at friendly Gyms and capturing wild Pokémon (via Engadget). The updates are for "trainers of all levels," but they appear to mostly benefit newcomers who might have given up on the game prior to the changes. The first update ...