Techmeme
October 1, 2013, 7:15 PM

Top News

Ron Amadeo / Ars Technica:
Note 3's benchmarking “adjustments” inflate scores by up to 20%  —  We noticed an odd thing while testing the Samsung Galaxy Note 3: it scores really, really well in benchmark tests—puzzlingly well, in fact.  A quick comparison of its scores to the similarly specced LG G2 makes it clear …
Todd Bishop / GeekWire:
Microsoft Surface chief: ‘Multiple aspect ratios and sizes’ are in the works  —  Panos Panay was literally on the floor when I walked into Microsoft's Seattle store last night.  —  The vice president responsible for the company's Surface tablets was on his back, with a crowd of people around him …
Liz Gannes / AllThingsD:
Kevin Rose tops AngelList Syndicates leaderboard with over $1M per deal  —  Kevin Rose Is AngelList's Million-Dollar Man  —  Next time Kevin Rose makes an angel investment, he has more than $1.1 million at his beck and call to do it.  —  Rose is the current leading man on AngelList …
More: Valleywag and StrictlyVC.  Tweets: @bryce
Adi Robertson / The Verge:
Vlad Savov / The Verge:
Samsung Galaxy Gear review: poor software and design overshadow decent camera and speakerphone  —  Samsung Galaxy Gear review  —  The perfect companion for your life companion?  —  If you've ever seen a cycling race, you'll know that leading from the front isn't always a great idea.
Bloomberg:
Google Said to Avoid U.S. Antitrust Challenge Over Waze  —  Google Inc. (GOOG), owner of the world's largest search engine, won't be challenged by U.S. antitrust regulators over its purchase of mapping application Waze, people familiar with the matter said.  —  Federal Trade Commission …
Bloomberg:
Icahn Pushes Apple CEO for $150 Billion Share Buyback  —  Carl Icahn, who disclosed a $1 billion stake in Apple Inc. (AAPL) in August, said he had dinner with Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook and “pushed hard” for a $150-billion share buyback.  —  Talks will continue in about three weeks …
Laura Hazard Owen / GigaOM:
Scribd moves beyond document sharing with $8.99/month ebook subscription service  —  There must be something in the water: Just under a month after startup Oyster launched a Netflix-like subscription service for ebooks, the six-year-old document sharing site Scribd officially rolled out its own ebook subscription service on Tuesday.
Kevin Fitchard / GigaOM:
FreedomPop launches its smartphone VoIP service, giving away 200 minutes each month  —  Mobile broadband provider FreedomPop has officially become a full-fledged mobile operator.  On Tuesday it started selling its first smartphone, the HTC Evo Design, and began offering its first voice …
Kara Swisher / AllThingsD:
Former Twitter Platform Chief Sarver Joins Redpoint as Partner  —  Ryan Sarver, Twitter's former director of platform, who left the company in May, is joining Redpoint Ventures as a partner.  —  Sarver joined Twitter in 2009, after working at Skyhook Wireless and, previous to that, having founded real estate startup Blue Trim.
Anthony Ha / TechCrunch:
New Calls To Action In Facebook's Mobile App Ads Can Help Publishers Reconnect With Users  —  The purpose of Facebook's Mobile App Ads seems pretty clear.  They're supposed to drive installations, right?  Well, in a new blog post, the company says its ads can now help with what comes afterward …
Kim-Mai Cutler / TechCrunch:
Yahoo To Acquire Sports-Centric Mobile Developer Hitpost  —  Yahoo is set to acquire Hitpost, the maker of a handful of sports-centric mobile apps, to beef up its own sports offerings on iOS and Android, say sources familiar with the deal.  The company's team of seven or so is heading over to join Yahoo.
More: Mattermark.  Thanks:@ingridlunden
Joab Jackson / PC World:
IBM acquiring LTE analyzer Now Factory  —  Expanding its portfolio of data analysis services to better accommodate the mobile market, IBM is acquiring Dublin-based Now Factory, which offers customer usage analysis services and software for wireless telecommunications providers.

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More News

Juli Clover / MacRumors:

Earlier Picks

Richard Lawler / Engadget: