cell phones

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If Your Cellphone Was Useless Today, You're Not Alone

Major carriers appear to have resolved most of the outages, but the cause is still unclear

(Newser) - It's been a lousy day for a lot of smartphones, but the trouble is mostly over: AT&T said late in the afternoon that its network was back again for an hourslong outage across the country, reports the AP . The trouble began overnight, leading to nearly 60,000 outages...

Judge Who Sent 500+ Texts During Murder Trial Resigns

DA had called Traci Soderstrom's behavior 'shocking'

(Newser) - An Oklahoma judge caught on surveillance footage texting, scrolling through Facebook, and sending GIFs, all while she was presiding over a trial regarding the beating death of a toddler, has stepped down from the bench, per the AP . A proposed settlement was filed Thursday agreeing that Lincoln County District Judge...

Fan Throws Phone at Show, Injures Singer Bebe Rexha

Pop star has to cut short her concert in New York City after being struck in the face

(Newser) - Singer Bebe Rexha had to cut short a concert in New York City on Sunday night because she was injured on stage by an oh-so-modern threat to performers: a tossed phone. Tweeted video shows the phone striking the pop star in the face and causing her to fall to the...

Christopher Walken: I've Never Sent a Text, Email
Christopher Walken Has
a Surprising Confession
in case you missed it
Dec 19, 2020 7:00 AM CST

Christopher Walken Has a Surprising Confession

77-year-old actor says he's never sent a text or email

(Newser) - Christopher Walken says he doesn't have any moral or philosophical objections to modern communications technology—he just doesn't use it. The 77-year-old actor told Stephen Colbert on The Late Show on Monday that he has never owned a computer or sent an email or text message. "Somebody...

As Jogger Lay Dying, Someone Stole Her Phone

St. Louis man Brian Davenport arrested based on surveillance video

(Newser) - A man is facing charges for allegedly stealing a cellphone from a collapsed jogger who was dying on a St. Louis sidewalk, per the AP . Brian Davenport, 35, was arrested Monday and is charged with felony stealing, authorities said. He does not yet have a listed attorney. The 64-year-old jogger...

Founder of Electronics Dynasty Has Died

Lee Kun-hee transformed Samsung

(Newser) - The man who turned Samsung into a tech powerhouse—and nearly lost it all amid white-collar crime convictions—died Sunday in Seoul, the Washington Post reports. Lee Kun-hee was 78. "Chairman Lee was a true visionary who transformed Samsung into the world-leading innovator and industrial powerhouse from a local...

Nokia Gets 4G Lunar Contract
Nokia Gets 4G Lunar Contract
Oct 18, 2020 12:30 PM CDT

Nokia Gets 4G Lunar Contract

NASA wants a cellular network up there

(Newser) - To the moon, Alice! And call me when you get there. Yes, NASA is giving Nokia $14.1 million to install a cellular network on that big rock in the sky, Mashable reports. The idea is to deploy a 4G/LTE network—and later move to 5G—to "support lunar...

Kayaker's Lost Phone Ends Up Saving Him

Mark Miele, 67, didn't return Jan. 29 as planned

(Newser) - A kayaker who went missing during a solo trip in the Florida Everglades was found alive after his cell phone washed up on a riverbank and authorities were able to recover data showing where he'd been. A helicopter crew then spotted Mark Miele, 67, and led a marine unit...

Ex-CIA: Russia Knows Way More Than We Do

And that's allegedly because of President Trump's cell phone use

(Newser) - Seems President Trump is ignoring his staff and continuing to make calls on his personal cell phone—which experts say can easily be overheard by foreign powers like Russia, CNN reports. This according to several current and former US officials who say he still uses his old cell phone rather...

How a Blogger's Death Led to a Criminal Phone Company
Why Drug Traffickers Ran
Their Own Phone Company
longform
Nov 17, 2019 2:40 PM CST

Why Drug Traffickers Ran Their Own Phone Company

It's all tied to the murder of Dutch crime blogger Martin Kok

(Newser) - A Dutch crime blogger got into his Volkswagen Polo one night in 2016 and boom, he was shot dead—a crime that led authorities to a phone company allegedly run by violent criminals, Joseph Cox writes at Vice . Why a phone company? That's what makes it interesting. As for...

Cops Go Undercover in Georgia
Cops Go Undercover in Georgia
Jul 21, 2019 6:15 PM CDT

Cops Go Undercover in Georgia

Police hand out tickets under the state's hands-free law

(Newser) - Drivers in Cobb County, Georgia got a little surprise this week when construction workers turned out to be undercover cops, CBS News reports. The helmet-wearing officers aimed to stop drivers from using smartphones behind the wheel, and wrote 170 tickets at one crossing alone in only a few hours, mostly...

Phones May Take Weird Toll on Young Skulls
We're Growing Little Skull
Horns Because of Our Phones
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Jun 23, 2019 3:35 PM CDT

We're Growing Little Skull Horns Because of Our Phones

Peer-reviewed research finds spikes at back of the skull, just above the neck

(Newser) - It sounds like a crazy tabloid headline—humans are growing little horns in the back of their skulls. Except it comes not from a tabloid but a peer-reviewed study in Scientific Reports . Australian researchers say more people, young ones especially, are showing up with what's known as an "...

For Some, a Missed WhatsApp Call Had Scary Consequences

Company uncovered spyware that could hijack a phone via a missed call

(Newser) - Spyware crafted by a sophisticated group of hackers-for-hire took advantage of a WhatsApp flaw to remotely hijack dozens of phones, the company said late Monday. The Financial Times identified the actor as Israel's NSO Group, and WhatsApp all but confirmed the identification, describing hackers as "a private company...

Is Your Cell Phone Trying to Kill You? New Study Says 'Maybe'

Study links blue-light emission with two kinds of cancer

(Newser) - Love that blue light? You might want to back away, according to a sobering new study . An international team of researchers led by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health has found that exposure to blue light at night may increase your risk of developing breast or prostate cancer, reports Science ...

Missing Phone That Prompted Brawl Found Soon After

In the meantime, 20 people went at it in a pizza restaurant

(Newser) - Before instigating a brawl over a missing cell phone at a pizza restaurant it's probably best to see if it's waiting for you in the lost and found. Someone likely learned that lesson this weekend in the Bay Area city of Newark, Calif., where at least 20 people...

Restaurant Sees 'Remarkable' Change After Diners Disconnect

They're actually talking to each other, says Marco Canora of Hearth

(Newser) - "We want people to have an experience that is calm," says Chef Marco Canora of his revamped Hearth restaurant in New York City. Apparently that means phones should be out of the picture. After noticing how often diners appeared more engaged in their phones than in their company...

Teen Electrocuted While Using Cellphone in Bath

Madison Coe was 14

(Newser) - A cautionary tale out of Lovington, NM, where a 14-year-old girl died while using her cellphone in the bathtub. KCBD reports it's unclear exactly how Madison Coe was electrocuted: It may have occurred as she was plugging the phone into a bathroom outlet or in the course of reaching...

Officials: Trump Has Been Giving Out His Private Number

Breach of protocol worries security experts

(Newser) - President Trump has been handing out his cellphone number to world leaders and urging them to call him directly, an unusual invitation that breaks diplomatic protocol and is raising concerns about the security and secrecy of the commander in chief's communications. Trump has urged leaders of Canada and Mexico...

Smartphone's Trick: You Can Squeeze It

Pressure sensors on HTC U11 can be used to open apps

(Newser) - HTC may have just unveiled the new favorite phone of selfie lovers. Instead of having to fumble for a button to snap a photo, users of the new U11 can simply squeeze the phone to open the camera app, and squeeze again to take a selfie. But that's just...

Airplane Phone Restrictions: Safety or Manners?

'Many passengers would prefer that voice calls not be made on airplanes'

(Newser) - Overhearing some loudmouth's phone conversation is bad enough on the street or at a restaurant, but nobody wants to be sitting next to that person for the duration of a flight. And that may be the real reason the FCC continues to ban voice calls on phones, even though...

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