Techmeme: Easy Unlock feature in Chrome OS may potentially skip password prompt when phone is nearby (Bertel King, Jr/Android Police)

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April 18, 2014, 5:45 AM

Top News

Liz Gannes / Re/code:

Dropbox acquires two more startups: collaborative document tool Hackpad and photo sync app Loom — As It Becomes an App Platform, Dropbox Gobbles Up More Than One App Startup Per Month — Once a simple way to move stuff around between devices and people, Dropbox now wants to be a platform …

More: Engadget, TechCrunch, VentureBeat and Gigaom

Tweets: @bluechoochoo, @dmac1 and @jessicamckellar

Jan Senderek / Loom:

Dropbox acquires Loom, will shut it down and migrate users to Carousel by May 16 — Loom is joining Dropbox — We have some exciting news that we wanted to share with you. Loom is now officially part of Dropbox, and we couldn't be happier to join forces!

More: The Next Web, I4U News, Tech City News, Y Combinator Universe, TUAW, VatorNews, Wall Street Journal, Cult of Mac, iDownloadBlog.com, iPhone Hacks, The Verge, ReadWrite, Macworld, SlashGear, ZDNet, MacStories, ParisLemon, Electronista, App Advice and VentureBeat

Tweets: @spencerchen and @roidrage

Taylor Soper / GeekWire:

UberX adds $1 ‘Safe Rides Fee’ for passengers, reinstates 20% commission fee for drivers — UberX customers, take note: Your rides are about to cost a little more. In an email sent to UberX Seattle drivers, the company notes a new “Safe Rides Fee,” that takes effect today.

More: Uber Blog, PandoDaily, Gigaom, CNET, The Technology Chronicles, The Next Web and Engadget

Tweets: @mulligan, @caseynewton, @hunterwalk, @owenthomas and @dsilverman

Josh Constine / TechCrunch:

Facebook Launches “Nearby Friends” With Opt-In Real-Time Location Sharing To Help You Meet Up — Today Facebook begins rolling out a new opt-in feature called Nearby Friends. It lets friends see approximately how far away you are from them, and you can share your exact, on-going location with them for a limited time.

Kim Zetter / Wired:

Grams, a Tor-accessible search engine for contraband, aims to be the Google of Dark Web — New ‘Google’ for the Dark Web Makes Buying Dope and Guns Easy — The dark web just got a little less dark with the launch of a new search engine that lets you easily find illicit drugs and other contraband online.

More: TechSpot, The Verge, Gizmodo and SC Magazine. Tweets: @wired

Bertel King, Jr / Android Police:

Easy Unlock feature in Chrome OS may potentially skip password prompt when phone is nearby — Unfinished ‘Easy Unlock’ Feature Creeps Into Chrome OS Dev, Will Potentially Skip The Password Prompt If Your Phone Is Nearby — A new feature has snuck into the Chrome OS dev channel that …

More: 9to5Google, TechCrunch, VentureBeat, Pocketnow and SlashGear

Jonathan Kizer / 9to5Google:

Try before you buy: Google launches home try-on program for Glass — Google is allowing potential Explorers to try Glass before they shell out the $1,500 to actually buy the device, according to a Reddit user by the name of clide. He posted various images of a home try-on kit …

More: Google Glass Fans, TechCrunch, Gigaom, TechnoBuffalo, VentureBeat, Glass Almanac, Electronista, Phandroid, SlashGear and Ubergizmo

Parmy Olson / Forbes:

Connected device companies like Nest And Fitbit start side businesses selling data to utilities and health insurers — The Quantified Other: Nest And Fitbit Chase A Lucrative Side Business — The real value in smart gadgets may be not in what they tell you but in what they say to your doctor, insurance company and utilities.

Tweets: @fitbit, @forbestech, @bupbin and @jeffbercovici. Thanks:@parmy

Jon Brodkin / Ars Technica:

Ubuntu 14.04 will power “first commercially available Ubuntu tablets” — From May 2013, a tablet running an early version of Ubuntu Touch. — Andrew Cunningham — Canonical today is releasing Ubuntu 14.04, a Long Term Support (LTS) edition for desktops and servers and an update to the versions of Ubuntu for phones and tablets.

More: Engadget, eWeek, BetaNews, Softpedia News, Computerworld, insights.ubuntu.com, Electronista, Inquirer, eWeek, V3.co.uk, ZDNet and Liliputing

Brian Krebs / Krebs on Security:

3 Million Customer Credit, Debit Cards Stolen in Michaels, Aaron Brothers Breaches — Nationwide arts and crafts chain Michaels Stores Inc. said today that two separate eight-month-long security breaches at its stores last year may have exposed as many as 3 million customer credit and debit cards.

More: VatorNews, Business Wire, ZDNet, Arts & Crafts, Electronista, The Verge, Reuters and Los Angeles Times

The Sonos Blog:

Sonos software update lets it connect completely wirelessly, $50 Bridge unit no longer needed — Our Vision for Rock-Solid Wireless, Evolved — From the archives: drawing of the original Sonos architecture, 2003. — We created the Sonos Wireless HiFi System to provide music lovers …

More: TechnoBuffalo, App Advice, Digital Trends, Gigaom Research, TechCrunch, Electronista, CNET, The Verge, Gizmodo, TechSpot, SlashGear and Engadget

Chris Velazco / Engadget:

GoogolPlex intercepts Siri commands, lets it control third-party apps like Spotify and Google Maps — College kids gave Siri new powers and now you can too — We already know Apple is working on improving Siri, but gosh dangit, the folks in Cupertino just aren't moving as fast as some would like.

More: Wired, LAPTOP Magazine, Gizmodo, NEWS.com.au, BGR, SlashGear, iPhone Hacks, iPhone in Canada Blog, CITEworld, Lifehacker, TechSpot, TechCrunch and 9to5Mac

Martyn Williams / PC World:

Exclusive: Google's Project Loon tests move to LTE band in Nevada — Google has expanded its Project Loon tests to the Nevada desert and, for the first time, into licensed radio spectrum. — Google declined to comment on the secret trials, but a local official confirmed they are related to Project Loon …

More: VentureBeat

Ryan Lawler / TechCrunch:

Instacart Could Raise A Big New Round Of Funding Valuing It At $400 Million — On-demand grocery startup Instacart is fielding term sheets for a big new round of funding, according to sources. We've heard the new financing could be led by a non-VC investor, and according to one source it would value the company at up to $400 million.

Thanks:@loyalelectron

Matt Buedel / Journal Star:

Twitter account impersonating Peoria, Illinois mayor leads to police raid, arrests — Fake Peoria mayor Twitter account prompts real raid of West Bluff house — Police searched a West Bluff house Tuesday and seized phones and computers in an effort to unmask the author of a parody Twitter account …

More: TechEye, Digital Trends, Ars Technica, Business Insider and Gigaom

Tweets: @sarahgfink, @tjangelo and @jonathanwpeters

Brad Chacos / PC World:

Apache OpenOffice hits major 100 million downloads milestone in under 2 years — Microsoft's Office may be the go-to productivity suite in the business world, but there's apparently plenty of room out there for challengers to thrive: On Thursday, the Apache Software Foundation announced …

More: The Apache Software … and Softpedia News. Thanks:@bradchacos

Alex Hern / Guardian:

Tor may be forced to cut back capacity after Heartbleed bug — The secure service may have to remove vulnerable servers affected by the bug, the network's co-founder warns — Tor, the secure networking service, may have to close down an eighth of its capacity as a result of the Heartbleed flaw.

More: SiliconANGLE, Threatpost, Ars Technica, Engadget, ITworld.com, BetaNews, The Register, Inquirer and Help Net Security. Tweets: @briankrebs

Emil Protalinski / The Next Web:

Microsoft starts letting Windows Phone developers respond to app reviews — Microsoft today announced the launch of a pilot program that lets Windows Phone developers respond to app reviews. The company says the roll-out will begin this week with a small group of developers who have been pre-selected …

More: The Windows Blog, Softpedia News, The Windows Blog, Neowin, WMPoweruser and WinBeta

Greg Sterling / Marketing Land:

Could “Liking” A Brand On Facebook Waive Your Legal Rights? — There is a very disturbing trend in the world of corporate terms and conditions. Consumers (and small merchants) are increasingly being forced by fine-print clauses into binding arbitration to resolve disputes with companies.

More: New York Times, Naked Security, eWeek, Gizmodo, Mashable, Gawker, Rex Hammock's RexBlog.com and Business Insider. Tweets: @binarybits

Leena Rao / TechCrunch:

One Medical Group Raises $40M To Help Reinvent The Doctor's Office — Disruptive primary care medical practice One Medical Group, is announcing $40 million in growth capital led by Redmile Group, with participation from current institutional investors. The company previously raised $77 million …

More: VentureBeat, PE Hub Blog, Re/code, silicontap.com, VatorNews and Forbes

Josh Ong / The Next Web:

Microsoft's Xbox One passes 5M units sold to retailers, but Titanfall boost not enough to beat Sony — Microsoft today announced that it has sold over 5 million Xbox One consoles to retailers around the globe, but sales of the system have still lagged behind rival Sony's PlayStation 4.

More: PlayStation.Blog, Xbox Wire, The Verge, VentureBeat, WinBeta, DualShockers, MCV: Home Stream, SlashGear, Ubergizmo, Joystiq, The Official Microsoft Blog, Polygon, CNET and Forbes

Tweets: @heyheyesj and @xboxp3

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