Techmeme: The NSA Is Building the Country's Biggest Spy Center (Watch What You Say) (James Bamford/Wired)

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March 16, 2012, 1:55 PM

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Lukas Mathis / ignore the code:

The New iPad's Screen Under the Microscope — Like any self-respecting UI designer, I have a cheap digital microscope sitting on my desk.1 Here are some pictures comparing a bunch of different screens. They're all taken at approximately the same magnification.2

More: The Next Web, iDownloadBlog.com, BuzzFeed, TUAW and ignorethecode.net

Josh Lowensohn / CNET:

Will Retina-ready iPad apps explode in size? Not necessarily — In case you hadn't heard, the sky is falling. iPad apps as we've known them are about to get super-sized and are now on a collision course with whatever space you thought you had on your iPad—old or new.

MG Siegler / TechCrunch:

The Retina iPad Apps To Test Tonight And Tomorrow — The new iPad nears. Apparently Walmart will be selling them in just a few short hours, well before Apple itself does tomorrow morning. Meanwhile, the first direct-to-consumer shipments should be hitting anytime now.

More: Business Insider, MacNN, The Next Web, Gizmodo, GadgeTell, IntoMobile, Softpedia News, Evernote Blogcast, VentureBeat, Gizmodo UK, everythingiCafe, 9to5Mac, The Verge, GigaOM, BetaNews and MacRumors

Jonny Evans / Computerworld:

Collected video: the whole world wants an iPad in its hand — The new Apple [AAPL] iPad briefly hits store shelves across ten countries this morning and the video evidence shows thousands are rushing to get hold of the new device, demand for which is “off the charts”.

More: Los Angeles Times, CNET, The Apple Core Blog, blogs.forbes.com, Mercury News, Shiny Objects, TechEye, Montreal Gazette, Fortune, IntoMobile and TUAW

Jenna Wortham / Bits:

Crowds Gather for the Latest Version of the iPad

Shira Lazar / What's Trending with Shira Lazar:

EXCLUSIVE: Steve Wozniak in Line for iPad 3 at Apple Store (VIDEO)

More: CNET, Bloomberg, Pocket-lint, Electronista, Mashable!, PhoneArena, Gizmodo, Appolicious Advisor and Engadget

Kevin Rose / Google+:

I'm beyond excited to announce that the Milk crew (+Kevin Rose +Daniel Burka +Chris Hutchins +Joshua Lane) is joining Google! It's been a privilege to use Google products over the years (I still remember begging for a Gmail invite) and I can't wait to be a part of the amazing team that is shaping the future of the web. :)

More: VentureBeat, AllThingsD, Bradley Horowitz, SocialTimes, SlashGear and The Next Web

Tweets: @om, @jason and @elatable

Chris O'Brien / SiliconBeat:

Hiring of Kevin Rose by Google sends all the wrong signals to Silicon Valley

More: GeekWire, SiliconANGLE, Forbes, Dice Blog Network, the Econsultancy blog, The Register, Softpedia News, InvestorPlace, TechnoBuffalo and Friending Facebook Blog. Tweets: @pkedrosky

Eric Slivka / MacRumors:

New Verizon iPad Runs on AT&T 3G Networks with AT&T Micro-SIM — One of the major selling features of the new Verizon iPad Wi-Fi + 4G LTE is its compatibility with GSM networks for international roaming purposes. But what hasn't been clear is whether users could insert an AT&T micro-SIM card …

More: Ars Technica, 9to5Mac, The Next Web, iDownloadBlog.com and TechnoBuffalo

Sean Hollister / The Verge:

The new iPad is a beautiful reminder of how stupid data plans are

More: iPhone Alley, TechnoBuffalo and PadGadget

James Bamford / Wired:

The NSA Is Building the Country's Biggest Spy Center (Watch What You Say) — The spring air in the small, sand-dusted town has a soft haze to it, and clumps of green-gray sagebrush rustle in the breeze. Bluffdale sits in a bowl-shaped valley in the shadow of Utah's Wasatch Range to the east and the Oquirrh Mountains to the west.

More: Gizmodo, dailywireless.org, The Awl, The Verge, Techrockies.com and Betabeat. Tweets: @anonymousirc

Ira Glass / This American Life Updates:

Retracting “Mr. Daisey and the Apple Factory” — I have difficult news. We've learned that Mike Daisey's story about Apple in China - which we broadcast in January - contained significant fabrications. We're retracting the story because we can't vouch for its truth. This is not a story we commissioned.

More: The Verge, MacRumors, CNET, mocoNews and JIMROMENESKO.COM. See also Mediagazer

Jay Yarow / Business Insider:

This American Life Retracts Its Damning Episode About Apple and Foxconn — This American Life has retracted its episode on Apple and Foxconn. — The episode detailed life at Foxconn and painted a damaging picture of life for employees. — This American Life says the show was “partially fabricated.”

More: Mike Daisey, This American Life Updates, SplatF, GigaOM, The Next Web, SlashGear, kottke.org and Poynter

Tweets: @hotdogsladies, @pkafka and @anildash

See also Mediagazer

Julia Angwin / Wall Street Journal:

Google in New Privacy Probes — Regulators in the U.S. and European Union are investigating Google Inc. for bypassing the privacy settings of millions of users of Apple Inc.'s Safari Web browser, according to people familiar with the investigations. Google stopped the practice last month …

More: Digital Trends, InfoWorld, Computerworld, The Verge, The Register, Ars Technica, Inquirer, CNET, SiliconANGLE, InvestorPlace, Softpedia News, MacNN, Digits, Gizmodo UK, Mashable!, Law Blog, Ed Bott, Washington Post and Business Insider

Bloomberg:

Microsoft Said to Plan Debut of New Xbox in 2013 at Earliest — Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) will release the next version of its Xbox console in 2013 at the earliest, as the company squeezes at least one more year of sales out of its current model, said two people with knowledge of the matter.

More: VentureBeat, VatorNews, Ars Technica, TechSpot, The Next Web, ITworld.com, MCV: Home Stream, WinBeta, Kotaku, VG247, Neowin.net and Joystiq

John Paczkowski / AllThingsD:

Satisfaction, Thy Name Is iPhone — Here's a data point sure to get prominent mention during Apple's next big media event. The iPhone has once again claimed the top ranking in J.D. Power's semiannual smartphone satisfaction study. — For the seventh consecutive time.

More: eWeek, Internet2Go, The Register, Daring Fireball, CNET, Fortune, The Next Web, 24/7 Wall St., SlashGear, parislemon, PhoneArena, The Next Web, J.D. Power and Macgasm

Tim Rowe / AllThingsD:

The New Law That Will Turn the Start-Up World Upside Down: Crowdfunding — Remember that special moment when we all realized that the Web was going to remake yard sales and auctions, but we didn't know yet who was going to win? (And then eBay left the rest in the dust?)

More: BostInno

Bobbie Johnson / GigaOM:

Groupon UK told to clean up after record complaints — Over the last year, the U.K. arm of Groupon has been the subject of a record number of complaints about the way it advertises deals to users, makes claims about products on sale and treats users. — Now the company has been told …

More: BBC, GROUPON LIFESTYLE UK, The Verge, Inquirer, internetretailer.com, Guardian, Softpedia News, Office of Fair Trading, The Register, Gizmodo UK, The Drum, The Next Web, the Econsultancy blog and PE Hub Blog

Brooke Crothers / CNET:

Evidence of Apple chip design change in iPad teardown — Apple needs some serious silicon to drive that gorgeous, pixel-dense display. — (Credit: Apple) — Apple has changed the design of the main chip in the new iPad with tweaks to accommodate a higher-performing chip, according to teardown analysis.

More: BGR, Recent Teardowns, AnandTech, VR-Zone and TUAW

Brian Caulfield / Shiny Objects:

Inside The New iPad: Samsung, Broadcom, Elpida, Qualcomm, Toshiba

More: PC World, AppleTell, Geek.com and Reuters

Eric Slivka / MacRumors:

Slimmer 13-Inch and 15-Inch MacBook Pros Reportedly in Production — Claims of redesigned MacBook Pro models continue to surface ahead of the official launch of Intel's Ivy Bridge chips, and Digitimes now reports that slimmer versions of the 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro are currently in production.

More: DigiTimes and Techland

Florian Mueller / FOSS Patents:

Mannheim court halts Apple's second slide-to-unlock case against Samsung — It's taking Apple and Samsung time to win any decision against each other in Mannheim. Two weeks ago, Samsung lost its third 3G/UMTS-related case in a row and Apple saw the first one of its two German slide-to-unlock cases against Samsung thrown out.

More: PC Magazine, Engadget, Reuters, Inquirer, PhoneArena, The Register, CNET, The Loop, Electronista and TUAW

Matt Brian / The Next Web:

Confirmed: Sprint pulls the plug on LightSquared 4G contract, repays $65 million — Reports suggested it was imminent but today Sprint has officially confirmed that it has pulled the plug on its LTE 4G contract with LightSquared, which will return $65 million in repayments to the struggling wireless company.

More: GeekWire, BetaNews, AllThingsD, TechCrunch, BGR, The Verge, Engadget, The Register, Business Wire, Bloomberg, PhoneNews.com, SlashGear, IntoMobile, FierceWireless and The Tech Trade

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