Innholdsfortegnelse for #680 i Techlife News

It’s no surprise that students are pushing back on cellphone bans in classrooms. But school administrators in one South Florida county working to pull students’ eyes away from their screens are facing some resistance from another group as well – parents. Since the beginning of the 2024 school year in August, students in Broward County Public Schools, the country’s sixth largest district, have been barred from using cellphones during the school day, including during lunch and breaks, unless given special permission. The schools are some of the many across the country wrestling with how to crack down on cellphones, at a time when experts say social media use among young people is nearly universal – and that screen time is linked to higher rates of anxiety and depression among kids.…

The first time China faced Donald Trump in the White House, there was a trade war, a breach of protocol involving Taiwan’s former leader, and a president-to-president bromance that turned sour. As President-elect Trump prepares to start his second term in office, China is bracing for unpredictability in its ties with the United States and renewed tensions over trade, technology and Taiwan. A NEW TARIFF WAR LOOMS Perhaps the biggest consequence for China — if Trump stays true to his campaign promises — is his threat to slap blanket 60% tariffs on all Chinese exports to the U.S. Tariffs like that would be a blow to China’s already unstable economy, which is suffering from high youth unemployment, a lengthy property slump and government debt. A 60% duty on Chinese imports…

Apple has launched its latest lineup featuring the cutting-edge M4 chip family and the all-new Apple Intelligence system. Equipped with M4, M4 Pro, and M4 Max chips, the new MacBook Pro models integrate advanced machine learning capabilities, enhanced processing power, and a suite of improvements tailored to creatives, data scientists, engineers, and more. INTRODUCING M4 At the core of the new MacBook Pro lineup is the M4 family of chips, meticulously crafted using second-generation 3-nanometer technology, setting new standards for efficiency and power. Apple says that the new M4, M4 Pro, and M4 Max chips boast an industry-leading performance per watt ensuring that even the most demanding tasks can be handled without sacrificing battery life. The M4 family doesn’t merely iterate on its predecessors; it leaps forward in efficiency and…

Apple snapped out of a recent iPhone sales slump during its summer quarter, an early sign that its recent efforts to revive demand for its marquee product with an infusion of artificial intelligence are paying off. Sales of the iPhone totaled $46.22 billion for the July-September period, a 6% increase from the same time last year, according to Apple’s fiscal fourth-quarter report. That improvement reversed two consecutive year-over-year declines in the iPhone’s quarterly sales. The iPhone boost helped Apple deliver total quarterly revenue and profit that exceeded the analyst projections that sway investors, excluding a one-time charge of $10.2 billion to account for a recent European Union court decision that lumped the Cupertino, California, company with a huge bill for back taxes. Apple earned $14.74 billion, or 97 cents per…

SUVs are popular in part due to their elevated ride height, commanding view of the road, and roomy interiors. Yet many midsize and large SUVs feel cumbersome in city driving. Smaller and more agile vehicles are a great alternative to help make city driving less of a chore. Edmunds’ experts have brought together five city-friendly SUVs that are right at home navigating busy traffic and squeezing into curbside parking spots. All pricing below includes the destination charge. KIA SOUL City living can mean space is at a premium. With this in mind, car shoppers who want a spacious vehicle with a small footprint would be smart to put the Kia Soul on their shopping list. The Soul is Kia’s smallest vehicle, but its boxy shape allows for a generous amount…

CVS Health fell short on third-quarter profit, but it posted strong sales and the health care giant shook up leadership under new CEO David Joyner after a rough year that has sent shares plunging. Shares jumped this week along with markets as a whole surged on an election that will send Donald Trump back to the White House. Joyner named UnitedHealth executive Steve Nelson as the leader of the company’s troubled health insurance wing, Aetna. That appointment is effective immediately. Prem Shah, who joined the company in 2013, will lead CVS Caremark, CVS Pharmacy, and the company’s Health Care Delivery businesses. CVS Health runs one of the nation’s largest drugstore chains and a huge pharmacy benefit management business that operates prescription drug coverage for employers, insurers and other big clients.…

South Korea’s privacy watchdog this week fined social media company Meta 21.6 billion won ($15 million) for illegally collecting sensitive personal information from Facebook users, including data about their political views and sexual orientation, and sharing it with thousands of advertisers. It was the latest in a series of penalties against Meta by South Korean authorities in recent years as they increase their scrutiny of how the company, which also owns Instagram and WhatsApp, handles private information. Following a four-year investigation, South Korea’s Personal Information Protection Commission concluded that Meta unlawfully collected sensitive information about around 980,000 Facebook users, including their religion, political views and whether they were in same-sex unions, from July 2018 to March 2022. It said the company shared the data with around 4,000 advertisers. South Korea’s…

Canada announced this week it won’t block access to the popular video-sharing app TikTok but is ordering the dissolution of its Canadian business after a national security review of the Chinese company behind it. Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne said it is meant to address risks related to ByteDance Ltd.’s establishment of TikTok Technology Canada Inc. “The government is not blocking Canadians’ access to the TikTok application or their ability to create content. The decision to use a social media application or platform is a personal choice,” Champagne said. Champagne said it is important for Canadians to adopt good cybersecurity practices, including protecting their personal information. He said the dissolution order was made in accordance with the Investment Canada Act, which allows for the review of foreign investments that may harm…

For some television viewers, size apparently does matter. Forget the 65-inch TVs that were considered bigger than average a decade ago. In time for the holidays, manufacturers and retailers are rolling out more XXL screens measuring more than 8 feet across. That’s wider than a standard three-seat sofa or a king-size bed. Supersize televisions only accounted for 1.7% of revenue from all TV set sales in the U.S. during the first nine months of the year, according to market research firm Circana. But companies preparing for shoppers to go big for Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa have reason to think the growing ultra category will be a bright spot in an otherwise tepid television market, according to analysts. The 38.1 million televisions sold with a width of at least 97 inches…

Elon Musk’s X has been modified so that accounts you’ve blocked on the social media platform can still see your public posts. X updated its Help Center page over the weekend to explain how blocking now works on the site. While you can still block accounts, those accounts will now be able to see your posts unless you have made your account private. They won’t, however, be able to reply to them or repost them. Blocked accounts also won’t be able to follow you and you won’t be able to follow them, as has been the case before the policy change. In addition, if the owner of an account you blocked visits your profile on X, they will be able to learn that you have blocked them. X indicated that…

Shares of Tesla soared following an election that will send Donald Trump back to the White House, an outcome that has been strongly backed by CEO Elon Musk in the closing months of the race. Tesla stands to make significant gains under a Trump administration due to its size, with the expectation that subsidies for alternative energy and electric vehicles will be threatened. While that would be a negative overall for the industry, it could give Tesla an advantage because of market share. Shares of rival electric vehicles sank sharply Wednesday. Tesla shares jumped 14% at the opening bell. Trump has proposed tariffs of 10% to 20% on foreign goods that would also impact electric vehicle maker’s outside the U.S., especially in China. “Tesla has the scale and scope that…

Originally built to store crops from peasant farmers, the Tithe Barn on the edge of the English village of Abbots Langley was converted into homes that preserve its centuries of history. Now, its residents are fighting to stop a development next door that represents the future. A proposal to build a data center on a field across the road was rejected by local authorities amid fierce opposition from villagers. But it’s getting a second chance from British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government, which is pursuing reforms to boost economic growth following his Labour party’s election victory in July. Residents of Abbots Langley, 18 miles (30 kilometers) northwest of London, worry the facility will strain local resources and create noise and traffic that damages the character of the quiet village, which…

Corning is facing European Union antitrust scrutiny after the bloc’s watchdog said this week it’s investigating the speciality glass maker’s exclusive deals for its Gorilla Glass used in cellphones. The European Commission, the 27-nation EU’s top antitrust enforcer, said it opened a formal investigation to determine whether Corning Inc. abused its dominant worldwide position for the toughened glass used in smartphones, tablets and other portable devices. The commission, which is the EU’s executive branch, said it was concerned about “anticompetitive exclusive supply agreements” requiring device makers to source all or nearly all of their glass from Corning. Under these deals, manufacturers got rebates for buying only Corning glass, and could only take competing offers from rival glass makers if Corning couldn’t match the price. Strong competition “is crucial to ensure…

Nissan reported Thursday a loss for the latest fiscal quarter as its vehicle sales sank while costs and inventory ballooned, prompting the Japanese automaker to slash 9,000 jobs. Chief Executive Makoto Uchida said he was taking a 50% pay cut to take responsibility for the dismal results, while promising that a turnaround was coming. Nissan Motor Corp. announced a global workforce reduction of 9,000 people, or about 6% of its more than 133,000 employees, as well as a plan to slash global production capacity by 20%. Uchida declined to say which regions will be affected by the cuts or give specifics. For the latest quarter through September, Nissan racked up a 9.3 billion yen ($60 million) loss, a reversal from the 190.7 billion yen profit recorded the same quarter a…

Amazon reported a boost in its quarterly profits and exceeded revenue estimates, sending the company’s stock up in after-hours trading. For the three months that ended on Sept. 30, the Seattle-based tech giant posted a revenue of $158.9 billion, higher than the $157.28 billion analysts had expected. Amazon said it earned $15.3 billion, higher than the $12.21 billion industry analysts surveyed by FactSet had anticipated. Amazon earned $9.9 billion during the same period last year. Earnings per share were $1.43, higher than analysts’ expectations of $1.14. Net sales increased 11% compared with the third quarter of 2023, Amazon said. The report offers a last look at Amazon’s business before the start of the holiday shopping season, the busiest time of year for the retail industry. “As we get into the…

It’s one of the most under-publicized policies of some of the biggest U.S. retailers: sometimes they give customers full refunds and let them keep unwanted items too. Returnless refunds are a tool that more retailers are using to keep online shoppers happy and to reduce shipping fees, processing time and other ballooning costs from returned products. Companies such as Amazon, Walmart and Target have decided some items are not worth the cost or hassle of getting back. Think a $20 T-shirt that might cost $30 in shipping and handling to recover. There are also single-use items, such as a package of plastic straws, that might be difficult to resell or medicines that could be unsafe to market again. Analysts say the companies offering returnless refunds do it somewhat sporadically, typically…

Google Maps is heading down a new road steered by artificial intelligence. The shift announced last week will bring more of the revolutionary AI technology that Google already has been baking into its dominant search engine to the digital maps service that the internet company launched nearly 20 years ago as part of its efforts to expand into new frontiers. Google Maps recently surpassed 2 billion monthly users worldwide for the first time, a milestone that illustrates how dependent people have become on the service’s directions during their daily commutes and excursions to new places. With the introduction of Google’s AI-powered Gemini technology, the maps are now being set up to become entertainment guides in addition to navigational tools. Starting this week in the U.S. only, users will be able…

Nintendo, the Japanese video game maker behind the Super Mario franchise, said Tuesday that its profit fell 60% in the first half of the fiscal year, as demand waned for its Switch console, now in its eighth year since going on sale. Kyoto-based Nintendo Co. reported a 108.7 billion yen ($715 million) profit for the April-September period, as sales slipped 34% from the previous year to 523 billion yen ($3.4 billion). More than 74% of its sales revenue came from overseas, according to Nintendo, which didn’t break down quarterly numbers. Global Switch sales during the period dropped to 4.7 million machines from 6.8 million units the previous year. But Nintendo said in a statement that Switch sales were still growing and vowed to stick to its goal of selling a…

Chinese online retailer Temu is facing a European Union investigation over suspicions it’s failing to prevent the sale of illegal products, the 27-nation bloc’s executive arm said. The European Commission opened its investigation five months after adding Temu to the list of “very large online platforms” needing the strictest level of scrutiny under the bloc’s Digital Services Act. It’s a wide-ranging rulebook designed to clean up online platforms and keep internet users safe, with the threat of hefty fines. Temu started entering Western markets only in the past two years and has grown in popularity by offering cheap goods - from clothing to home products — that are shipped from sellers in China. The company, owned by Pinduoduo Inc., a popular e-commerce site in China, now has 92 million users…