Photographers, meet your camera phone 

 

The good: The Nokia Lumia 1020 smartphone's camera captures extremely high-resolution images with fine detail, and puts creative controls at your fingertips.

The bad: A niche device, the Lumia 1020 is $100 pricier than most high-end smartphones. The lens makes it a little bulky. Multiple camera apps are confusing. It lacks manual f-stop control and presets for common shooting scenarios.

The bottom line: Avid mobile photographers will love the Nokia Lumia 1020's exact controls, but casual users should stick to cheaper camera phones.

You can sum up the Nokia Lumia 1020 in three words: 41, megapixel, camera.
It's the Lumia 1020's high-octane shooter -- along with Nokia's custom camera app -- that defines this next marquee Windows 8 phone, and that gives mobile photographers a reason to salivate. In the 1020, Nokia pushes the smartphone camera envelope with a combination of raw image-capturing prowess and close-cropping capability that makes it one of the most artistically able smartphone cameras we've tested.
Would we ditch our point-and-shoot cameras and rely on the Lumia 1020 instead? For day-to-day and weekend events, absolutely; the 1020 is the ultimate in convenience and approaches point-and-shoot quality. However, based on our tests so far, Nokia still has a ways to go before it can completely supplant the need for a higher-level standalone camera. We'd take it away for the weekend, but wouldn't use it to shoot our kid's first birthday.
The 1020's $299.99 on-contract price with AT&T is too steep for casual users, who can capture high-quality everyday stills and videos with handsets that cost $200 or less. Serious photographers, however, will appreciate the phone's genuine two-in-one capabilities. The Lumia 1020 also is sold globally.

Design and build

The first thing you're probably asking yourself is if owning the Lumia 1020 is like carrying a bulky point-and-shoot camera in your pocket. Blessedly, it is not.
Compared with the chunky Galaxy S4 Zoom and bulbous Nokia 808 PureView (the company's first attempt at a 41-megapixel phone), the Lumia 1020 seems only slightly thicker than the Lumia 920 and 928, both of which it physically resembles.

(Credit: Blake Stevenson/CNET)

Dimensions of 5.1 inches tall by 2.8 inches wide are pretty standard, and the 1020 measures 0.4 inch thick throughout most of its body. It's that large camera module on the back (about 1.75 inches in diameter) that protrudes a full 0.51 inch from the phone's face.
That means the phone won't lie flat on its back, which is surprisingly sometimes helpful when the face tilts toward you as if on a stand. Amazingly, I did carry the phone around in my back pocket for long stretches without noticing it too much. When I held it, my fingers adjusted to grip the 1020 below its bulge.
Keeping the phone this slim was quite the design feat, especially when you compare the 1020 with the chunky S4 Zoom, which is shaped more like a point-and-shoot with a smartphone attached.

A huge camera module defines the Nokia Lumia 1020.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

At 5.6 ounces, the matte yellow, white, or black 1020 is hefty, sturdy, and undeniably solid. I'm used to carrying heavy bags and backpacks, so the weight didn't particularly bother me, but those who travel light will notice the 1020's density right away. We tested the phone in all three colors; the white version picked up smudges most readily, but they wiped off easily enough from the polycarbonate material.

Nokia pulled off a design feat in keeping the large camera mount from sticking out too far.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

Like all the Lumia 920-series phones, the 1020's 4.5-inch display features a 1,280x768-pixel resolution (WXGA) and pixel density of 334ppi. Its AMOLED screen is also supersensitive, which means you can operate it with fingernails or gloved fingertips. Gorilla Glass 3 helps resist cracks, though smash any screen hard enough or often enough and it'll break.
In keeping with the Lumia design philosophy, you'll find oblong volume, power/lock, and camera shutter buttons on the right spine, and the headset jack and micro-SIM card slot up top. In addition to the front-facing camera there are three capacitive navigation buttons on the front, and the Micro-USB charging port is down on the bottom edge. On the back, the massive camera module includes a wide xenon flash and a six-lens Carl Zeiss lens, plus an LED sidekick that's mainly used for focus.

The Lumia 1020 does not lie flat.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

A completely sealed unibody device, the Lumia 1020 doesn't have a removable battery or microSD card storage, which may make avid photographers jittery about storage limits, especially with large photo files.

Understanding the camera

The most important thing to know is that the Lumia 1020's 41-megapixel shooter doesn't actually give you 41-megapixel pictures. In fact, not much about the camera or its software is particularly straightforward.
Here's what's essential:
1) The Pro Cam app creates 5-megapixel photos. In addition, it also saves a high-resolution image of each one. If you crop in tightly, your photo looks even more detailed. I recommend CNET camera guru Joshua Goldman's must-read explanation of what's going on with this particular type of lossless zoom.

Nokia Pro Cam is the 1020's default camera app, but you can also switch among other apps, or change the default in Settings.

(Credit: Screenshot by Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

2) By default, the Lumia 1020 takes photos using Nokia's Pro Cam app. Not to be confused with Nokia Smart Cam, Pro Cam gets you sliding controls for flash, exposure, ISO, and focus among other settings. Nokia Pro Cam is technically a "lens," a separate camera app that supplants the native camera. You can only capture the higher-resolution images using Pro Cam.

Choose resolution and aspect ratio in the Pro Cam app settings.

(Credit: Screenshot by Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

Making matters more confusing still, the size of the high-resolution photo you shoot depends on your camera settings. Pick a 16:9 aspect ratio, and the phone saves a 34-megapixel shot in addition to the 5-megapixel picture you eventually see and share. A 4:3 aspect ratio gives you a 38-megapixel file in addition to the smaller snap. You won't see these choices -- or any resolution options -- when using the native camera app.
You'll only be able to upload and share the smaller file size from the 1020; if you want all 34 or 38 megapixels, you can access the raw files through a computer connection.
In some cases, the 1020's creative settings are no big deal. Most smartphone cameras have many of these within submenus. The difference here is that surfacing them on the app's top layer makes them a lot quicker to access, set up, and change from shot to shot.
One setting is conspicuously absent for serious photographers, and that's the power to manually change the depth of field. It also threw CNET's photographers that the "live preview" of manual controls that you see on the screen before taking a picture often didn't represent the actual image once it was captured.

CNET editors help demo the Nokia Pro Cam app.

(Credit: Screenshot by Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

In the menu, you can switch to the front-facing camera, get at settings, and launch the tutorial. Unlike the Galaxy S4 Zoom, there aren't mode presets for night shots, sports, or other common scenarios, so it helps to know what you're doing, or have the patience to play around.
I'm not sure why there's no onscreen control for the front-facing camera; digging into the menu just seems like an unnecessary step. It's also a little strange that there are two buttons for reviewing your photos. One reviews the last shot you took, the other lets you get at your whole photo stream. Unfortunately, you can't swipe to the left as you can in the phone's native app to access your camera roll.

I don't like having to dig into settings to use the front-facing camera, but I do like having easy access to the tutorial.

(Credit: Screenshot by Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

There are cursory editing tools you can access when you review a photo, including rotation and a sort of cropping tool that changes the aspect ratio to 4:3, 3:2, 1:1, and 16:9. I wish that Nokia had included a more robust suite of editing features here. Instead, you'll have to swap to a different editing app if you want to crop or auto fix. Luckily, the 1020 makes this fairly easy to do from the settings when you access photos through the review strip.

Sliding controls let you adjust exposure, ISO, brightness, and white balance.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

Image quality

To test how well the Lumia 1020 backs up its claims of photog greatness, I shot dozens of pictures with both the Pro Cam app and the native app, using a combination of automatic modes and fancier settings. Full disclosure: I'm a completely casual photographer, so my photos here represent the perspective of an average user. For the more-artistic shots, I enlisted the help of CNET photographer James Martin and CNET camera editor Joshua Goldman, who independently called the Lumia 1020 a "really good smartphone camera" after taking their own rounds of test shots.
Many pictures I took looked fantastic in terms of color, contrast, and detail -- especially fine detail like a visible background cobweb. When an image was focused correctly, the camera's lossless digital zoom also produced terrific detail, just as Nokia promises.
I never took a bad photo with the 1020. That said, not every photo was a complete hit. Of course, even good cameras can take the odd bad picture if conditions are off. Sometimes, I wasn't sure that another high-end smartphone couldn't have taken the photo just as well.
Edges usually appeared sharp to my eyes, but then some centers sometimes lacked shadows, detail, and depth. I also had a hard time nailing great portraits. Lighting was sometimes off, and faces often appeared a tinge out of focus. That can cause problems when taking photos of a group. Overall, my photos of objects were a lot more beautiful than my pictures of people. James and Josh had much better luck with portraits; photo enthusiasts should take my results with a grain of salt.

This kid clearly loves his snack. Click to enlarge.

(Credit: James Martin/CNET)

I also noticed that the 1020 seems to color-correct a couple of seconds after taking a picture. When using the flash, photo color also grew warmer, yellower, which can be a little weird. Then again, yellow is better than the blue cast you sometimes get when taking photos with a flash.
Since the Pro Cam app saves pictures in one small and one large resolution, the camera takes longer to reload. Instead of shot-to-shot times about 2.5 seconds apart, it's about a 6-second wait before the Lumia 1020 is ready for the next round.
I will say that I got some terrific pictures of objects even in the Pro Cam app's automatic mode. That and being able to crop in tight on an element without losing detail definitely made me want to take a lot more photos than I normally would.
Unless otherwise specified, the following pictures were taken using automatic settings, and have been resized. To see more of what this camera can do, check out this Lumia 1020 photo gallery and a camera showdown between the Lumia 1020, Samsung Galaxy S4, and iPhone 5.

Shoot outdoors using Pro Cam. Click to enlarge.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

Taken with the 1020's native camera app. Click to enlarge.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

Full-resolution crop.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

This grape cluster, shot with the native camera app, was one of my favorites of the bunch. Here it is at full resolution, no cropping.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

Despite focusing on the palm trees, this landscape shot, taken on an overcast day, looks a little soft. Click to enlarge.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

Words to live by. Click to enlarge.

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The text looks great even cropped close. Click to enlarge.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

Keep cropping ever tighter, but know that once you save an image this way, you can't revert.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

I've cropped in so tightly on this text, the 100x112-pixel image below is as large as it gets:

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

This full-resolution crop of the leaf and grass looks great.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

Here's a full-resolution crop of the same image, drawing from the 1020's saved higher-resolution image.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

The Lumia 1020 was fantastic at switching focal points. This picture snaps onto the foremost cluster. Click to enlarge.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

Here, the rear cluster is the photo's main subject. Click to enlarge.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

Here's another exercise in playing with focus. Click to enlarge.

(Credit: Kristina Rosa/CNET)

Click to enlarge.

(Credit: Kristina Rosa/CNET)

Tacos, anyone? Click to enlarge.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

The Pro Cam app made the appetizer appear yellower after I took the photo. The fried shallots look focused, but the yellow sauce isn't as well defined.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

This flower bouquet was shot indoors at night using the native camera app. It's sharp, but the blooms lack depth, especially the white ones. Click to enlarge.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

Shot outdoors at night using the Pro Cam app: 1/400s shutter speed, ISO 800.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

Full-resolution crop, shot at 1/800s shutter speed and ISO 4,000.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

Once again, the Lumia 1020 is good enough to abandon your point-and-shoot for much of the time, but it still lacks some manual controls that more serious photographers will want for momentous occasions.
You can compare some smartphones' image performance in our periodically updated gallery of studio shots.

Video and front-facing camera

The Lumia 1020 shoots clean, smooth 1080p HD video -- once you change the default from 720p HD video in the settings. The same clear zoom the Nokia boasts for its still camera extends to video as well when you use the 3x digital zoom in the Nokia Pro Cam app. Nokia has hidden zoom gestures in the app. You can pinch to zoom while shooting, but you can also swipe up to zoom in and swipe down to zoom out.

Zooming in actually worked pretty well in my tests; for instance, patterns in rugs and faces showed up pretty clearly when I zoomed. Audio capture was my one complaint with taking video using the native camera app; my voice rang loudly -- almost too loudly -- while my subjects standing a few feet away were hard to hear. Nokia's "rich recording" in its Pro Cam app seems to have captured clearer sound.
Reviewing the Pro Cam video prompts you to install Nokia Video Trimmer from the app store. This is yet another tool that boosts Nokia's Windows phone capabilities, though it would be far more valuable to include that in the photo apps from the start.
For its front-facing camera, the Lumia 1020 plugs in the same 1.2-megapixel wide-angle lens we get on the Lumia 920 phones. Its 720p HD video recording is a boon for video chats. I was impressed with front-facing image quality on this camera, which was wide enough to take in my surroundings and tell a vibrant visual story when I shared photos with friends.

Documenting the food truck scene with the front-facing camera using the Pro Cam app.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

OS and features

The Lumia 2010 runs a version of Windows Phone 8 that's been slightly modified to accommodate the phone's enormous 41-megapixel camera.
You won't notice any difference on the front end, though, which looks and behaves like any other Nokia Windows phone. The usual complement of Nokia apps includes Nokia Music, Here-branded maps and driving apps, and a couple of extra photo tools in Nokia Pro Cam (of course), Nokia Smart Cam, Panorama, and Cinemagraph. AT&T also has its say with a suite of apps that include AT&T Radio and a family map.
Other key features include NFC for Tap + Send, and Bluetooth 3.0 (which could soon turn into 4.0). There's no integrated wireless charging on the 1020, but you can buy an aftermarket back cover if that's your jam.
Shutterbugs will more likely seek out other camera accessories, like a tripod case, or the camera grip case ($79) that really does convert your 1020 into a point-and-shoot camera, hand grip included.

A Nokia Lumia 1020 accessory turns your phone into a point-and-shoot.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

A closer look at the 1020's camera case.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

Performance

Call quality
I tested the Lumia 1020's call quality (GSM 850/900/1800/1900) using AT&T's network in San Francisco.
When speaking in a quiet spot indoors, I kept volume at level 5 of 10, but pumped it up when it was noisier outdoors. Voices didn't sound completely natural. Instead, they came across a little flat, robotic, and lispy. There weren't huge distortion spikes or blips, but the audio weirdness persisted throughout my calls. I could still carry on conversations, but I definitely noticed that my caller sounded off. One high point is that the 1020's sound was absolutely clear, with no background noise.
On his end of the line, my test caller says I sounded a little distorted on the peaks, with occasional gargling. Otherwise, I sounded clear and comfortably loud, though my voice also sounded overly sharp in almost an uncomfortable way. The muddiness and crispiness made the call OK overall for my main test caller, but it wouldn't be his top choice. He gave it a B to B-.
Nokia Lumia 1020 call quality sample Listen now:

Speakerphone was impressive on my end when I tested it at hip level; I could tell I was shooting out audio through the speaker, but it mostly sounded good. Volume was the biggest problem: I had to boost it to the highest level to hear conversation clearly, even indoors. Still, the phone wasn't echoey for me. I could see myself using this to take a conference call or to talk while driving.
Unfortunately, speakerphone quality tanked for my caller. He called it "muddy" and said it emphasized rather than reduced that telltale speakerphone echo. He said he would have a hard time hearing amid any ambient noise.
Data, processor, battery
AT&T's 4G LTE blazed on the Lumia 1020 in my San Francisco tests, consistently delivering speeds in the double digits.
I often saw diagnostic results ranging from 15Mbps to 38Mbps down and 5Mbps to 15Mbps up. In real-world tests, even graphically rich desktop versions of Web pages loaded pretty quickly and completely. Apps and photos downloaded fast as well, and status updates and pictures uploaded without much wait.

Some diagnostic test results using the Free Speed Test for Windows Phone.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

Like other Lumias, the 1020 has a 1.5GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 processor. Although it isn't as fast as Qualcomm's quad-core processor, this is as speedy as you get in a Windows Phone, and it's a plenty quick chipset. Gameplay was engaging with Xbox games and others.

Nokia Lumia 1020 (AT&T)	Performance
Download Endomondo (3MB)	19.5 seconds
Load up Endomondo mobile app	4.1 seconds
CNET mobile site load	5 seconds
CNET desktop site load	13.7 seconds
Boot time to lock screen	30.7 seconds
Camera boot time	2.8 seconds
Camera, shot-to-shot time	Pro Cam: 6 seconds with flash and focusing; Native: 2.5 seconds

The Lumia 1020's 2,000mAh battery has a rated talk time of 13.3 hours over 3G. We'll conduct independent battery drain tests as well. This is the same battery capacity as the Lumia 920 line, and just like those phones, this one should continuously last a full workday before needing a charge. Keep in mind that batteries do degrade over time.
There are 32GB of memory on the Lumia 1020, which is enough for most people. The Nokia Pro Cam's large photo format will suck up more space than others, so that might make some jittery. Still, I took and kept dozens of shots without running close to the barrier. The 1020 does come with 7GB of free SkyDrive cloud storage, though, with an option to upgrade to more. The 1020 has 2GB RAM, rather than the other Lumias' 1GB RAM.
FCC tests measure a digital SAR of 0.82 watts per kilogram for this phone.

Buy it, skip it, or hold out?

This is clearly a camera phone that helps define a new era of smartphone photography. Its larger sensor, up-front creative controls, and incredible lossless cropping really make it stand out from the crowd. However, for casual users, there may be more camera -- and bulk and a higher price -- than necessary, especially when smartphones like the Nokia Lumia 920 models, the iPhone 5, the Samsung Galaxy S4, and the HTC One produce some really great snaps to upload and share.
For purists, the Lumia 1020's sensor size may be smaller than Nokia's Symbian-running 808 PureView antecedent, but that helps it achieves a pocket-friendliness it may not otherwise have had. I have some complaints about the Pro Cam app's look and layout, but these are minor issues at the end of the day.

Samsung's Galaxy S4 Zoom has a 10x optical zoom lens.

(Credit: James Martin/CNET)

Although I won't be able to compare image quality with Samsung's 16-megapixel Galaxy S4 Zoom until my review unit arrives, I can say that when I handled it briefly, the Zoom's settings didn't strike me as being as ambitious about absolute image control as Nokia demonstrates here. That said, I do expect that its 10x optical zoom and easy-access shooting modes (like night, portrait, and sports) will challenge the Lumia 1020.
If you're deciding between the S4 Zoom and the Lumia 1020, you're investing in a pricier-than-usual two-in-one device either way. Hold out for our Zoom review if you think you may prefer this Galaxy S4 version's optical zoom. Ditto if you value preset shooting modes for common scenarios, like night mode, and don't mind a smartphone the size of a point-and-shoot camera.
Buy the Lumia 1020 if you:
- Subscribe to AT&T
- Are a photography enthusiast willing to invest in a pricier two-in-one device
- Crave precise control over exposure and other settings
- Often carry around a point-and-shoot or dSLR
- Consider yourself an avid photographer
Skip the Lumia 1020 if you:
- Are looking for a slim or budget smartphone
- Prefer preset scenarios to help photograph a scene
- Highly value fast shot-to-shot times
- Are happy with your current smartphone camera
- Dislike Windows Phone OS

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Leap Motion controller now shipping, coming to Best Buy on July 28

The Leap Motion 3D gesture controller is now shipping following an unexpected delay. It was initially scheduled to ship on May 13, but CEO Michael Buckwald said back in April they simply needed more time to test the device before deploying it in the wild.
In a post on the company blog, Leap said they started shipping pre-orders last week and some have already received the device. They are dispatching hundreds of thousands of units to more than 150 countries but due to high demand they are still processing pre-orders at this time. The company promised not to rest until all placed orders are delivered.
If you are not familiar with the Leap Motion controller, it’s a flash drive-sized module that is able to track the movement of all 10 fingers on both hands in an area of eight cubic feet. It’s much more sensitive than the Kinect as it can detect movements of just 0.01 millimeters although it's designed for close quarters operation rather than room-filling fun like Microsoft's solution.
The device works with specialized apps found in the Leap Airspace Store. At present, there are 75 or so apps to choose from including games, productivity apps and creative tools. Most are either free or cost a couple of bucks to purchase.
If you’re the type that likes to check out a product in person before making a purchase, you can head to your local Best Buy starting July 28 to pick one up. Otherwise, you can order through the company’s online store for around $80 plus shipping.

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Download VLC for iOS, now with AirPlay and Dropbox support

Undoubtedly, one of the most popular open source media players available today is VLC, and it's been that way for quite some time now. As a project backed by many well versed contributors it's available in a wide range of platforms: Windows, Mac, Linux, Android and now once again iOS.
Being an open source project, as long as you oblige the GNU license agreement, it's perfectly fine to distribute and port to practically any environment. Based on that premise Applidium posted a port of VLC on the App Sore a couple of years back, but due to an incompatibility of licensing terms it was ultimately removed by Apple. Fortunately, for the millions of us who use software and are interested in taking its functionality on the go, VLC is back on the App Store, this time officially backed by the VideoLAN team.
The new version 2.0.1 can handle all major video formats including MKVs, as well as audio tracks and subtitle tracks. It also includes support for network streams like HLS and MMS, Bluetooth headsets, AirPlay and Dropbox integration. For more details on features and requirements, as well as the download link for the App Store and Jailbroken devices running iOS 5.1 or later, just click here.

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TV station taps copyright law to erase embarrassing broadcast

After racist gaffe following San Francisco plane crash, KTVU uses the Digital Millennium Copyright Act to have clips of the event removed from the Internet.

 

A San Francisco Bay Area television station that became world famous for a racist gaffe during a news broadcast about a deadly plane crash is apparently trying to erase the event through copyright law.
Six days after Asiana flight 214 crashed at San Francisco International Airport on July 6, KTVU morning anchor Tori Campbell said the station had just confirmed the names of the pilots and proceeded to read them out loud as they were simultaneously displayed on viewers' screens. The names read by Campbell -- "Captain Sum Ting Wong," "Wi Tu Lo," "Ho Lee Fuk," and "Bang Ding Ow" -- were confirmed by an intern at the Federal Aviation Administration but apparently not read out loud at the station until the broadcast.
While Campbell and the station quickly issued an apology, that did not stop clips of the broadcast from flooding video-sharing sites and social networks. But the Fox TV affiliate has arrived at a novel solution to its embarrassing moment: the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which requires Web sites to remove copyrighted material at the copyright holder's request.
Some of the videos uploaded by viewers have vanished from the Internet, replaced by messages that say, "This video is no longer available due to a copyright claim by KTVU."
While the station certainly has the legal right to protect its copyrighted materials, that is not the primary goal behind the clip-removal campaign, according to Tom Ramponi, the station's general manager and vice president.
"The accidental mistake we made was insensitive and offensive," Raponi told MediaBistro today. "By now, most people have seen it. At this point, continuing to show the video is also insensitive and offensive, especially to the many in our Asian community who were offended. Consistent with our apology, we are carrying through on our responsibility to minimize the thoughtless repetition of the video by others."
Three people died and more than 180 were injured when Asiana's Boeing 777 crashed into the runway while attempting to land at San Francisco International Airport.
A clip of the broadcast is embedded below. Please note that racially insensitive content is included.

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How to spot and avoid Facebook 'Like' scams

When you click or press the Like button, you may be disclosing more about yourself than you imagine. You may also be contributing to the bank accounts of Internet scammers.

Facebook "likes" mean money. Individuals and businesses of all types -- legitimate and otherwise -- use various techniques to persuade you to click that ubiquitous thumbs-up button.
Begging for Facebook "likes" has become epidemic. "If I get a million likes I'll be cured of my terminal disease and I'll be able to implement my sure-fire plan for world peace!"
"If you don't like this picture you hate your mother, America, and apple pie."
Yeah, right.
Scammers prey on Facebook users' propensity to respond emotionally by clicking "Like" when an image or plea tugs at their heart strings or piques their ire.
Scam sites offer to sell you likes clicked by real-live humans. The buyers intend to convert the clicks into traffic for their Facebook page, which translates to increased ad revenue. Several such sites I visited appear to be owned by the same anonymous party and are registered in Panama.
The Facebook Help Center states unequivocally that you cannot buy likes:

Certain websites promise to provide large numbers of likes for your Page if you sign up and give them money. These websites typically use deceptive practices or are scams. People who like your Page this way will be less valuable to your Page because they won't necessarily have a genuine interest in what your Page is about. If Facebook's spam systems detect that your Page is connected to this type of activity, we'll place limits on your Page to prevent further violations of our Statement of Rights and Responsibilities.

(Earlier this month, CNET's Jennifer Van Grove reported on the U.S. State Department's questionable attempt to generate "likes" for its Facebook pages.)
At the same time, Facebook allows developers to reward the people who like their pages. The company's Platform Policies site describes its referral-based rewards program for tying in-app rewards to its Social Channels.
For example, users can't be rewarded for sending invitations to their friends, but they can be rewarded based on the number of their friends who accept such invitations. Also, people who like a page can be given coupons, rebates, exclusive content, a chance at a promotion, or the ability to donate to a charity. The only caveat is that the bonus be available to all users, not just new ones.
Pepsi recently offered attendees at a Beyonce concert in Antwerp a free drink in exchange for liking the company on Facebook, as Mashable's Todd Wasserman describes.
Facebook "fan" pages are bought and sold. Buyers are promised access to hundreds of thousands of "friends." Last May, Becky Worley reported on the Yahoo News site that a Facebook page followed by 500,000 hamburger fans was offered for sale at an asking price of $5,000, while another for cuddling aficionados was listed at $7,000.
One popular Facebook scam is a variation on the old "download the player" ploy. You're checking out your Facebook news feed when a post appears that says simply "You gotta see this!"
Oh, no you don't. You click the link only to be informed via a pop-up window that you need to install a media player to view the video. Of course, the download is actually malware that infects your system, steals your data, and uses your account to send out even more virus-bearing spam.
What happens when you click the 'Like' button
According to the Facebook Help Center, when you click "Like" or "Recommend," a story appears on your timeline, ticker, and/or news feed.
Another Facebook help page explains that when you click "Like" on a Facebook Page, in an advertisement, or on a page outside Facebook, "[y]ou may be displayed on the Page you connected to, in advertisements about that Page or in social plugins next to the content you like."
You may also receive updates and messages from Pages you like, and the connection might be shared with apps on the Facebook Platform.
To unlike a page, hover the cursor over the page's Like button and select Unlike on the menu that appears, or simply select the blue Liked icon.
Clicking the Like button can be revealing
Facebook loves it when you share. It is a social network after all. As with much of the information you volunteer to Web sites, what you like on Facebook may disclose more about yourself than you realize.
As reported last March by the Guardian's Josh Halliday, researchers at Cambridge University who studied the "public" likes clicked by 58,000 Facebook users were able to discern their IQ, emotional stability, sexuality, and other personality traits with a high level of accuracy, without knowing anything else about the people.
The complete study is published on the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences site.
The act of liking an article, post, or other item influences the future. Two years ago, the Wall Street Journal's Neil Strauss decried the tyranny of the Like button and its cohorts the +1, tweet, and StumbleUpon, pointing out that we judge content based on the number of likes it has received.
Strauss compares the failure to generate likes for an item to a comedian's joke that is met with silence. Just as the comedian is unlikely to repeat that joke, the person posting an item that generates no likes may be disinclined to post similar items in the future.
According to the Wisemetrics blog, the Like count that appears above items doesn't represent the number people who have clicked the button for that item. The number includes the times the URL has been shared whether or not the sharer clicked "Like," as well as the number of Facebook comments about the item.
On the lookout for Facebook hoaxes
Facebook scams proliferate so quickly it can be difficult to keep up with them. The Hoax-Slayer site provides an overview of like-farming scams as well as a compendium of Facebook-related scams reported as recently as today and dating back more than three years.
In a post from last October on his DaylanDoes blog, Daylan Pearce described the mechanics of several Facebook Like scams. The Facecrooks site maintains a list of Facebook-related scams, including a revival of the old chestnut that promises to reveal who viewed your profile. As the Facebook Help Center explains, the service doesn't let you track who views your timeline or posts, nor does it allow third-party apps to do so.
Several sophisticated Facebook hoaxes were revealed by Digital Trends' Francis Bea in a post from last May. One of the trickiest is a notice purporting to be from Facebook instructing you to log into your account to re-activate it.
Last March, CNET's Steven Musil described a scam that promised free iPad Minis and other expensive personal electronics in exchange for Facebook likes. If you spot a Facebook-related scam, you can report it by clicking the Report link that appears near it. The Facebook Help Center provides information for reporting all types of abusive content.
At this point, you may be wondering whether you should "Like" this post. After having written close to 600 separate items for this blog since 2007, I know certain topics generate more likes than others. It's no surprise that posts relating to Facebook, Twitter, or another social network are shared more frequently than items about Windows or Microsoft Office, for example. If I chose my topics based solely on sharing frequency, this would be the Facebook and iPad Blog.
No, thank you.

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T-Mobile slams AT&T, Verizon's 'deceptive' early upgrade plans

T-Mobile says its Jump program is materially different than early upgrade programs its larger rivals offer and it wants to educate the customer.

In the latest wireless war of words, T-Mobile appears to be having the most fun.
In an advertisement debuting on Tuesday, T-Mobile takes a juicy quote from technology news site The Verge and runs with it. The quote, "AT&T's reaction to T-Mobile's transparency is to be more deceptive than ever," touches off a cheeky follow-up line from the company.
"We wouldn't call it deceptive, exactly. Calculating, sneaky, underhanded, maybe, but not deceptive," reads the ad (see below).
The advertisement is the most direct response yet to the early upgrade programs unveiled by AT&T and Verizon Wireless. Those plans came a week after T-Mobile offered up its own early upgrade program, called Jump. With all of the options providing customers the ability to change to a new phone, T-Mobile wanted to make it clear that there was a financial difference between its plan and what its larger competitors offer.
"What we're doing is materially different than these so-called upgrade programs," T-Mobile Chief Marketing Officer Mike Sievert told CNET on Monday.
Verizon Wireless and AT&T declined to comment.
The ad is also part of a broader advertising war that's been brewing. T-Mobile has become increasingly sharp and pointed with its attacks, but AT&T got into the mix last week when it claimed the nation's "most reliable network," a title long held by Verizon. Verizon offered up its response on Monday, a more subtle note touting its track record and investment in its networks.
T-Mobile, meanwhile, has been anything but subtle, particularly on the early upgrade issue.
"We feel strongly that these programs they've introduced borderline on the deceptive," Sievert said.
Sievert mocked AT&T and Verizon calling their early upgrade programs "a breakthrough," when it really only takes more money away from customers. T-Mobile argues that AT&T and Verizon's respective upgrade plans, Next and Edge, essentially charge customers twice for a phone. The customer first pays for the entire cost of the device, and then pays for a pricier service plan normally associated with a subsidized phone.
Before T-Mobile introduced Jump and switched to a no-contract offering, it cut the price of its service plan.
"We taking a big financial risk to give customers a breakthrough benefit," Sievert said.
T-Mobile has been far more aggressive in pursuing customers as the last-place national carrier. The company still battles the perception that its network and service is inferior, something it has tried to change with its more colorful promotional efforts.
Updated at 6:53 p.m. PT: to include a response from Verizon and AT&T.
Here's the ad:

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When notebooks squeeze Intel out

commentary Devices based on ARM chip designs tend to be thinner, cooler (thermally, at least), and cheaper than those based on Intel designs while offering longer battery life.

Thanks to many ad campaigns over the years, most people know that their notebook PCs are powered by processors from Intel (or its chief rival, AMD). Those companies use a chip architecture known as x86, named for the the last two digits of the Intel chip model number in the first IBM PC.
But while Intel may be the best-known PC chip company, designs from ARM (Advanced RISC Machines) serve as the basic architecture behind chips from Apple, Samsung, Qualcomm, and Nvidia that power almost every smartphone on the market. All current Apple iDevices use Apple chips based on ARM designs; the same is true for Samsung Galaxy devices using Samsung Exynos chips. Most other Android devices in this class use ARM-based Tegra chips from Nvidia or Snapdragon chips from Qualcomm.
Despite the great progress that Intel has made with its new Haswell design, products based on ARM chip designs tend to be thinner, cooler (thermally, at least), and cheaper than those based on Intel designs while offering longer battery life. In fact, these days you can get a notebook -- or something that functions as one -- using your choice of four different operating systems. Many of these products offer touch screens and can detach from their keyboards to function as tablets as well.
Windows RT
Best bets: Dell XPS 10 with keyboard dock, Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga RT, Asus VivoTab RT with keyboard dock
Even though Windows RT-based systems haven't sold well, they have spawned a fairly broad array of true ARM-based notebooks that ship with a version of Office that keeps most of the key features from the x86-based version. And particularly now, prices have become pretty aggressive on the Dell XPS 10 which, when paired with a keyboard dock, offers an amazing 19 hours of battery life. Of course, when compared to iOS or Android, you'll find a dearth of touch-friendly apps and no backward compatibility with old Windows apps, but there's a touch version of Internet Explorer included and the user interface is about to get a bit of relief with Windows 8.1.
iOS
Best bet: iPad plus Brydge, iPad plus CruxSkunk
Unlike Microsoft, which has been aggressive about bringing Windows into the tablet form factor, Apple has kept Mac OS out of its tablets and iOS out of its laptops. In fact, iOS doesn't support mouse or trackpad input and, unlike with Windows or Android, there are no true docking options so you have to rely on Bluetooth. Folio cases have been a popular option for pairing keyboards with the iPad. However, there have been a few add-on hinged keyboard accessories funded through Kickstarter that let you roll your own closest thing to an "iNotebook" this side of the Macbook Air, the oddly named CruxSkunk and Brydge. The latter is available in both polycarbonate and aluminum and optionally includes speakers for better quality sound than you'd get from the iPad's speakers. Too bad there's no version for the iPad Mini for now.
Android
Best bet: Asus Transformer Prime series
Android is the most popular operating system for phones and you can get it on a range of tablets, but Google hasn't really done much to push it for notebooks, where it's been focused on Chrome. Still, a couple of companies have turned Android tablets into clamshells. Asus was the first to popularize the concept via its Transformer series. Its top of the line is the Transformer Pad Infinity,which offers a high-resolution display and beefs up the sound. Hewlett-Packard will also step into the detachable Android clamshell market with the 10-inch SlateBook x2 with keyboard dock next month for its back-to-school season.
Chrome
Best bet: Samsung Chromebook
Similar to Apple, Google has one OS for smartphones and tablets (Android) and another for notebooks (Chrome). Unlike Apple's OS X, though, Chrome doesn't rely on native apps, just about everything happens within the browser. Still, most of the Chromebooks out there -- including Google's own touch-screen Chromebook Pixel -- run on Intel processors. That said, the exception, the latest Samsung Chromebook (technically, the Series 3 XE303C12-A01US), is a great alternative. At $249, the slim 11.6-inch device runs about 6.5 hours on a charge. That's a bit underwhelming for an ARM device, but pretty favorable compared to other Chromebooks. Also, the screen supports neither touch nor being detached, but at less than $250, it can be a great extra PC option. particularly if you plan to use it in an area blanketed by Wi-Fi.

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Great tech-spectations: What's next in tech for 2013

A boring summer for tech is about to get a lot more exciting. Here's what to expect.

The dog days of summer are here, and with them, a certain ennui seems to have washed over the tech world. But as July becomes August, things will begin to kick into high gear.
The big dogs of the tech industry -- Apple, Google, Microsoft, Amazon, and a host of others -- know that the all-important fourth quarter is when shoppers get serious. Last fall's go-to products -- Kindle Fire and Nexus tablets, iPads, iPhones -- are getting long in tooth, and ready for a refresh. Not coincidentally, a lot of the back-to-school sales are 2012 models, sold at blowout prices to clear shelf space for the all-important Christmas season.
The parade of new products starts this week, with launch events from Google and Verizon. Here's what we have to look forward to -- starting now, and continuing into September.

Verizon

2012's Droid Razr Maxx HD boasted unparalleled battery life

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

We don't think of Verizon as a tech powerhouse on the scale of Google or Apple, but Big Red is the No. 1 wireless provider in the U.S., so any new Verizon-friendly devices are a big deal.
What to expect: Last September, Motorola announced a trio of Verizon-exclusive Droid Razr phones -- the Droid Razr HD, the Droid Razr Maxx HD, and the Droid Razr M. Don't be surprised if we see their successors unveiled this week. (Verizon may finally officially announce the launch date of the HTC One on its network, having already confirmed that it's on its way.)
Mark your calendar: July 23, 9 a.m. PT (confirmed)

Google

Sindar Pichai is not a gadget -- but he may unveil one or more on Wednesday

(Credit: Seth Rosenblatt/CNET)

May's Google I/O developer event came and went without any big hardware reveals. But we expect Google's just-announced July 24 event -- billed as a breakfast with Android and Chrome head honcho Sundar Pichai -- to be considerably more eventful.
What to expect: The next Nexus 7 tablet is all but confirmed, along with Android 4.3. A Chrome OS upgrade (or new Chromebook) is possible, too. We may even see a successor to the ill-fated Nexus Q, or possibly a watch or video game console.
Mark your calendar: July 24, 8:30 a.m. PT (confirmed)

Motorola Mobility

This appears to be the first official glamor shot of the Moto X intended for the press.

(Credit: theunlockr.com)

The Moto X may be the worst-kept secret in tech right now, but the few remaining questions about the first Motorola smartphone produced under Google's stewardship of the company it purchased in 2011 will be wiped away on August 1. That's when the phone gets its grand unveiling in New York City.
What to expect: We already know quite a bit about the X, but we'll finally get the full list of details -- including price, availability, and supported carriers -- once the phone becomes official.
Mark your calendar: August 1 (confirmed)

Amazon

Jeff Bezos introducing the Kindle Fire HD in 2012

(Credit: James Martin/CNET)

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos unveiled the current line of Amazon Kindle Fire tablets (and Kindle e-ink readers) on September 6, 2012. While a 2013 event has yet to be announced, it's a safe bet that the e-commerce giant isn't going into the fall buying season without a full refresh of the line.
What to expect: Amazon's hardware strategy is less about groundbreaking tech and more about delivering amazing value. So while the new Fire tablets and Kindle readers will no doubt offer worthwhile tech upgrades over last year's models, we expect the real news here to be the price: don't be shocked to see a 32GB Fire HD clock in at $199, for instance. Among the wildcards we could see: an Amazon video streaming box (a la Roku or Apple TV) and maybe -- maybe -- the long rumored smartphone.
Mark your calendar: late August or early September (likely)

Microsoft

The original Surface -- poised for improvement.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

Microsoft has had a rough time of it lately, with a company wide reorganization, a $900 million writedown on the Surface RT and a very public 180 on the DRM policies of its upcoming Xbox One console. But if you step back, there may be some reasons for optimism.
What to expect: Microsoft already has two keystone products on deck for a fall refresh: the Xbox One is coming in November for $499, and Windows 8.1 is likely to hit in September or October.
Could Microsoft prime the Windows 8.1 pump with a Surface 2? The company has certainly learned some painful lessons with the original model, but a few well-placed tweaks -- and a Haswell upgrade -- could make the product a serious tablet/PC competitor, if not an outright success.
Meanwhile, while Windows Phone remains a fringe player, marketshare has been ticking upward. With solid devices (Lumia 925, Lumia 1020) from Nokia and others, Microsoft's mobile OS seems to be in a better place than, say, BlackBerry. But whether Microsoft is going to release its own phone or perhaps a watch (another watch, that is) remains strictly rumor mill fodder for now.
Mark your calendar: Xbox One releases November (confirmed); Windows 8.1 hits in late Q3 or early Q4; if we get a Surface 2, expect a September or October announcement

Apple

A mockup showing what an Apple iWatch might look like.

(Credit: Sarah Tew and Christopher MacManus/CNET)

Apple's last big product announcement was the iPad Mini back in October of 2012. So far in 2013, it's been very quiet, with only a cameraless iPod Touch, a T-Mobile iPhone, and MacBook Air upgrades hitting stores.
What to expect: Apple has already shown iOS 7 and Mac OS X Mavericks, and the company already previewed a long overdue update to the Mac Pro -- all of them will hit in the third quarter, along with Apple's free iTunes Radio streaming audio service.
The big questions revolve around the iPhone and iPad. The safe bets are a "budget" iPhone (don't be surprised if it's only sold in developing markets like China), an iPhone 5S, and a thinner, lighter iPad 5. In addition to the annual iPod refresh, expect additional Mac upgrades -- the Macbook Pro with Retina Display, iMac, and Mac Mini are still due the upgrades to Intel's Haswell CPU that have already been incorporated into the Air.
Beyond that, the Magic 8 Ball says "Reply Hazy -- Try again." While a refreshed iPad Mini is likely, it's unclear if Apple can squeeze a high-res Retina screen into the Mini's 7.9-inch display in time for the holidays. There are also rumors of a larger-screen iPhone. And the Apple TV box should see some additional apps -- Time Warner Cable and the CW Network -- but whether they'll hit before year's end is anyone's guess.
What about actual new products, rather than upgrades of existing models? Collective wisdom puts the rumored iWatch and Apple HDTV into 2014 (at the earliest, if at all). That said, CEO Tim Cook quipped in April: "I don't want to be more specific, but I'm just saying that we've got some really great stuff coming in the fall and across 2014." Investors and consumers alike are no doubt hoping he and Team Apple will deliver as they transition into the post-Steve Jobs era.
Mark your calendar: mid-September to mid-October (likely); could be one or two events

Best of the rest

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

Beyond the confirmed and likely events listed above, look for the Sony PlayStation 4 this holiday season. And Intel's secretive streaming TV box, allegedly dubbed OnCue, may see the light of day later this year -- if and when Intel can get a quorum of TV networks to sign on the dotted line. In the meantime, upstarts like Fan TV will be nipping at their heels.
Of course, that's only the stuff we know about, and can reasonably infer. A corporate merger or two could always shake things up. And the tech world is only a Kickstarter away from something truly disruptive.
Stay tuned.

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Apple developer site targeted in security attack, still down

Apple says its developer site was targeted in an attack, and that any information that was taken was encrypted. The site remains down.

Apple's site for developers was attacked by an intruder last week, the company said Sunday.
In a note to developers, the company said that an "intruder" tried to gain access to developer information, prompting the company to take the service down. Sensitive information on that site was encrypted, Apple said, however it's keeping the site down while security is being hardened. No estimate was provided for when it will be back up.
Apple sent the following to developers on Sunday, detailing some of what happened:

Last Thursday, an intruder attempted to secure personal information of our registered developers from our developer website. Sensitive personal information was encrypted and cannot be accessed, however, we have not been able to rule out the possibility that some developers' names, mailing addresses, and/or email addresses may have been accessed. In the spirit of transparency, we want to inform you of the issue. We took the site down immediately on Thursday and have been working around the clock since then.
In order to prevent a security threat like this from happening again, we're completely overhauling our developer systems, updating our server software, and rebuilding our entire database. We apologize for the significant inconvenience that our downtime has caused you and we expect to have the developer website up again soon.

An Apple spokesman told IEN that the company's developer Web site is "not associated with any customer information" and that "customer information is securely encrypted."
Apple's developer site is home to software downloads, documentation and forums for third-party software developers. The site became inaccessible to registered developers last Thursday, causing angst for users who could not access those features. On Friday the company noted that it would be extending membership periods to cover the outage, and that any published software would not be removed.

The attack comes as Apple's gearing up for two new major releases of iOS and OS X. Developers have been readying their software for the new versions of those operating systems in time for their official release, which Apple has said will come in the fall.
The outage sparked some concerns about there being a larger, behind the scenes security issue. Those concerns, which turned out to be well-founded, were amplified by scattered reports from users saying they had received password reset e-mails, suggesting others were attempting to gain access to their Apple ID accounts.
IEN will keep you updated with additional details as they come.

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