Music lovin’ grampas here and in Europe will be doing The Charleston when they hear about Rara.com, a cloud-based music service with them in mind, which launched today. Powered by Omnifone, the same whitelabel service behind Sony’s Music Unlimited, Rara hopes to appeal to the 70 percent of people its research shows “do not ‘do’ digital music.” There’s access to the same ten-million-strong music library as other services, and pricing starts at a frugal 99c/p for the first three months (rising to 4.99 from there on in) for the web-only option. Those with a little more tech-smarts can use an Android service too, which launches at 1.99 (going to 9.99) with the web-service bundled in. Those directly north and south of the border can look forward to access later this week, with Hong Kong, Taiwan, Australia, New Zealand and Singapore lighting up before Christmas. An iOS app will complete the set soon. Tap the PR after the break for more.

Continue reading Rara.com: a new music service for the techno techno technophobe (video)

Rara.com: a new music service for the techno techno technophobe (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 13 Dec 2011 21:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Critics have called out the Kindle Fire for some of its hardware and software shortcomings, which is not unexpected for a new device but hasn’t seemed to slow sales. But a bigger concern is emerging for parents who are thinking of buying the Kindle Fire: it has almost no restrictions to prevent children from accessing inappropriate content or buy whatever they like on the device.

Caryn Talty, a blogger with HealthyFamily.org, wrote about how she was able to access R-rated content on Amazon Prime Instant Videos, which is free for a limited time to new Kindle customers. She also noted that with one-click buying, which comes as the default option on the Kindle, users are not prompted to give a password with each purchase.

“I wish Amazon would install parental controls for their devices so that movies which are rated “R” can be blocked on the Kindle Fire as easily as they can on AT&T Uverse. We need to protect our kids from inappropriate materials online, and this includes electronic readers as well. Amazon should give Kindle Fire owners the option to install a 4-digit pin for content not appropriate for kids,” Talty wrote.

It’s not just movies: The Amazon Silk browser also has no controls for access, so parents can’t disable it for children. In fact, all of the magazines, books and comic books can be purchased with one click. There is a screen lock for the device with a password but almost everything is accessible once inside.

Amazon told Reuters earlier this week that it does provide controls for in-app purchases. But it’s still working on adding additional safety features. The company said it hasn’t had a problem with the way it sends devices pre-registered for one-click purchases.

“Customers tell us they love that Kindle Fire arrives registered to their account and ready to go,” Amazon told Reuters. “Those who prefer to have their Kindle Fire arrive unregistered can select ‘gift’ during the checkout.”

Apple has long had controls that allow parents to restrict access to iTunes, the App Store, Safari and YouTube. And it installed new controls on in-app purchases after parents and some legislators complained about the ease with which children were making app purchases and buying items inside apps. Barnes & Noblealso requires users to confirm a purchase on Nook devices.

Some of the problem is that Amazon is still on its first version of the Kindle Fire and it needs to patch up some rough spots on the device. But it also comes down to the central philosophy of the Kindle Fire, which is basically a big store front for Amazon. Amazon expects to sell a lot of goods through the Fire and as we’ve seen already with the iPad, tablets making very good shopping devices. That’s likely why Amazon is able to offer the device at such a low price with no profit, because it can make up for it on other transactions. Amazon’s trademark one-click checkout is part of the appeal for many consumers and it’s made some of my purchases easier on the Fire. But I’ve also caught myself a little worried that it’s actually too easy to buy something on the Fire. That can be bad for parents with children or people with bad impulse control.

I think Amazon needs to come up with more controls quickly. It may not be an issue with most consumers, but at the price the company is pitching it at, the Kindle Fire has a chance to be the first tablet in a lot of homes. Consumers want to feel safe handing their children a Kindle just as much as an iPod Touch. But it needs to come with more safeguards. I’m sure Amazon is working on this, but it would have been better to ship with those controls in place to show that it cares not just about selling but also respecting the different needs of its users.

Amazon is still going to sell a boatload of content legitimately on the Fire, but it doesn’t need to invite an uproar when parents find their children doing far more with their new tablet than they’d like.

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As the legal drama between Apple and Samsung drags on around the world, US District Court Judge has rejected Apple’s request to block the sales of Galaxy devices. Reuters reports the ruling came out late Friday, with the judge deciding “It is not clear that an injunction on Samsung’s accused devices would prevent Apple from being irreparably harmed,”. This isn’t the first rejection for the folks from Cupertino either, after a request to speed up the trial was also denied back in July. The case itself will of course go on, but this means you’ll still be able to get your hands on those Galaxy Tabs, Galaxy S IIs, and the like in the meantime.

Apple’s request to block Samsung Galaxy tablet, phone sales in the US is denied originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 03 Dec 2011 00:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You know that tweet you just wrote about your innermost emotions and the tasty sandwich you just ate? It’s about to become that much more secure. Adding to its list of available resources, Twitter has acquired Whisper Systems, a two-man security outfit specializing in mobile device security and data scrambling on the Android operating system. Whisper, founded in 2010 by security industry mainstays Moxie Marlinspike and Stuart Anderson, has garnered a reputation for exposing high-profile vulnerabilities in systems that encrypt data over the Internet and WiFi networks. An exact buyout price for the company has yet to be released publicly — though Marlinspike has released tools like SSLStrip that demonstrate vulnerabilities in supposedly secure web sites and has been working on a tool known as ‘Convergence’ — which helps point out unreliable web certificate authorities. Not a bad find for Twitter, a company that has yet to switch over to a default HTTPS option for its 100 million active members’ posts.

Continue reading Twitter acquires dynamic duo at Whisper Systems, works to beef up privacy / security

Twitter acquires dynamic duo at Whisper Systems, works to beef up privacy / security originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 29 Nov 2011 09:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Looks like the tablet that wouldn’t die is finally dead — well, kind of sort, for now. HP sent out a note to let the world know that it’s “officially out of stock” of the zombie TouchPad. It’s not all bad news, however — apparently you can still pick one up at Best Buy, so long as you buy an HP computer at the same time. Mourn another quasi-death for the webOS slate with Boyz II Men after the break.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Continue reading HP ‘officially’ out of TouchPads, Best Buy can still help you out

HP ‘officially’ out of TouchPads, Best Buy can still help you out originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Oct 2011 20:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s the plane so nice, they unveiled it twice. Boeing once again presented its long-awaited and much-delayed 787 Dreamliner to client All Nippon Airways, but this time the goods were officially delivered. After taking the wraps off the airliner early this August, the aerospace company managed to get a flight-ready unit over to its Everett, Washington production plant for a celebratory hand-off. Despite a fit of stops and starts for the line’s rollout, Boeing expects to meet ANA’s order of its future 55-strong fleet, producing an additional 20 craft for the Japanese airline by 2013′s end. If you want to be among the select few to call “First!,” you might want to consider booking that Japan-bound vacation now.

Boeing officially delivers 787 Dreamliner to ANA, future of air travel finally arrives originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 27 Sep 2011 02:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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