Pervy Repairman Added Spyware to Laptops

Hold off if you can on TVs, iPhones, and laptops: Wirecutter

(NEWSER) - Good things come to those who wait, and technology is no exception. At the Wirecutter , Brian Lam lists a few hot items not to buy yet, or you'll be kicking yourself later.

• TVs and home theater equipment. The reviews for the latest TVs will be available around mid-year, and Samsung's new plasma offering won't be around until next month.
• iPhones. Hold off about five or six months, and you'll be the first to get the next generation.

Tommy Jordan, daughter Hannah Marie appear on 'Today'

(NEWSER) - Life has "changed a lot" since Tommy Jordan shot up his daughter's laptop and gained immediate infamy, and the dad says his family has been under "a lot of scrutiny" for the past month. But despite the fact that, "in hindsight," it may have been better for him to rebuke his daughter in private, he says he can't change the past: "I did what I did, and I stood behind what I did. I still do," he told Matt Lauer this morning on Today . Daughter Hannah Marie says she knows her original Facebook rant against her parents, which sparked the unconventional form of discipline, was wrong. As for the punishment, "I think he overreacted a little bit, but I understand," she said. More»

Laptop-shooting dad heralds a new era: Meghan Daum

(NEWSER) - Remember the dad who shot up his daughter's laptop, posted the video on YouTube , and set off a fevered debate on why he was either the best or worst parent in the world? At the Los Angeles Times , Meghan Daum isn't much interested in hashing out those "culture wars." Instead, she points out that Tommy Jordan's video might just herald the "end of shame." To understand why, recall that all this started when Jordan's daughter humiliated him by complaining about her parents on Facebook. More»

And the gap is growing, new report finds

(NEWSER) - The most voracious mobile users are hogging the majority of the world's mobile broadband traffic—and the gap between them and non-power users is growing, according to a new report. Arieso, an English company that advises mobile operators, believes that the top 10% of mobile users generate 90% of the traffic, and the top 1% alone account for half of all traffic, the New York Times reports. Of those heavy users, 64% used laptops, while one-third used smartphones and 3% used iPads. More»

Apps silence 'click,' black out screen to shield photo snapper

(NEWSER) - Cell phone apps that allow "peeping Toms" to secretly snap photos of unsuspecting targets are causing major headaches in Japan, and are bound to head to closer shores. The apps mute the sound of a photo click, and can also make it appear that the cell phone user is checking out an innocent email, rather than, say, grabbing an illicit photo up a skirt or around the corner into a dressing room, reports the Daily Mail . "We can't help but think these apps are designed specifically for taking sneaky photos," a police investigator tells the Mercury News. More»