Take a look at Ars Technica!

"Given the huge number of exoplanets discovered in recent years, the discovery of two new planets would come as no surprise—except that these two, discussed in a new study, may be part of our Solar System.

The presence of the closer of the two planets had already been suggested in a previous work. The new study provides more evidence for its existence and adds a second planet. Both studies are based on observations of objects far beyond Neptune’s orbit, called extreme trans-Neptunian objects (ETNOs). These ETNOs display shared patterns in their orbits, which suggests they’re all being influenced gravitationally by heavier objects, much further away from the Sun.

While this conclusion is based on a small sample (13 bodies), the authors confirm that their results are statistically significant and that at least two planets, orbiting far beyond Pluto’s orbit, are the most likely explanation for the observations."

Extreme trans-Neptunian objects

The Two-Day Laptop Battery Is Here - WSJ

In the span of two days last week, I traveled back and forth to the office twice, wrote this column, streamed two episodes of “Sherlock,” drank seven cups of coffee and recharged my phone four times. I never once plugged in my laptop.

Laptops have a new talent: ultra-marathoning. Computers coming this winter can last up to 22 hours on a single charge. That’s enough battery for two full days of work…or one really, really bad day.

The Two-Day Laptop Battery Is Here - WSJ

T-Mobile vs. AT&T: Which rollover data plan is right for you?

Microsoft Surface Pro 3 review | The Verge

"The Surface Pro 3’s hardware is undoubtedly impressive. Although Microsoft calls it a tablet, it’s better to think of this Surface as a full-fledged PC that can work as a large tablet in a pinch. More than anything else, the Surface Pro 3 is the ideal physical form for Windows 8.1. Both the OS and the hardware feel like a computer with some (occasionally great) tablet features tacked on top. It’s as though the bits that make up Windows prayed really hard and created a physical version of themselvesThe Surface is so PC-centric, it’s hard to even think of it as being in the same category as the iPad. Instead, Microsoft is very clearly taking aim at the MacBook Air, but beating the most popular laptop on the market is a very tall order. Taking everything into account, the hardware is now very competitive between the two. So whether you think the Surface Pro 3 is a better alternative depends almost entirely on what you think of Windows and the Microsoft ecosystem."

Inside Scoop: What to expect from Microsoft's Windows 10

Microsoft Surface Pro 4 Release Date, Specs, Features & Price: Device To Be LTE-capable? : Tech : Latinos Post

"Christian Today reported that it is likely that the new device would be available on two sizes a 13-inch or 14-inch one and an 8-inch one. The report also noted that an upgrade in the device's RAM is expected. Note that the current Surface Pro 3 has an 8 GB RAM. The Surface Pro 4, just like its predecessor Surface Pro 3, will still boast of its laptop and tablet capabilities. Master Herald said the device is called a "laplet" as it is more of a laptop and tablet packed into one."

Pocket : Bigger Settlement Said to Be Reached in Silicon Valley Antitrust Case

Apple, Google, Intel and Adobe are offering a joint payment of $415 million to settle the case, according to a source close to the negotiations, up from the $324.5 million they offered in the spring.

The case is scheduled to go to trial this spring in San Jose.

Lawyers for the 64,000 software engineers who are the class-action plaintiffs have already agreed to the new figure, but that does not automatically end the case. The earlier amount was acceptable to the plaintiffs’ lawyers, but it was rejected by the judge overseeing the case as inadequate.

The suit asserts that the companies had illegal agreements that they would not directly solicit one another’s employees. That limited the engineers’ mobility and their pay, to the benefit of the companies, the suit said. The case grew out of reported actions by the companies that centered on a period that began in 2005, when Google was ascendant and Apple was trying to defend its turf

Pocket : Bigger Settlement Said to Be Reached in Silicon Valley Antitrust Case

Intel's diversity goals face many challenges - CNET

"LAS VEGAS -- Intel CEO Brian Krzanich's bold call this week for greater diversity in the tech world provides one of the biggest opportunities in years to affect a stubbornly unchanged problem in the industry.

But, while many diversity advocates applaud the new initiative, they -- and Krzanich -- readily admit that achieving success will be very difficult.

"It will be hard. I think it's going to be like what we do every two years -- invent Moore's Law," Krzanich said in an interview Wednesday, referring to the company's overarching goal of doubling computer chips' processing power every other year. "We don't know how we're going to do it. We go and put in the engineering effort and do what it takes. We'll do the same thing here."

Intel's diversity goals face many challenges

USB Type-C hands-on: It's here and it's great

"If you haven't heard of USB Type-C, I laid out its details here. To quickly recap, apart from the fact that with Type-C there's no need to worry about which side of the cable to plug in (it works either side up), it also packs the USB 3.1 standard, which comes with a top speed of 10Gbps, twice the current speed of USB 3.0."

iPhone 6 Plus vs. Nexus 6 - CNET

iPhone 6 Plus vs. Nexus 6 - CNET

How to find your car with Google Now - CNET

How to find your car with Google Now - CNET

The best Chromebook of 2014 | ITworld

"So which is the best? It's clearly the Toshiba Chromebook 2. For its specs, overall build and features, you can't do better. At $330, it's quite affordable -- and the 13.3-inch 1080p IPS screen is a beautiful display that you'd expect from a much more expensive machine. (Note: There are two versions of the Toshiba Chromebook 2, a $249 version with a 1366 x 768 screen, and the 1920 x 1080-pixel 1080p version for $330. The more expensive one is the one to buy.) Not only are the colors bright and bold, but it has a wide viewing angle. This is a Chromebook that you can truly use for watching videos as well as for work.

It's also got great Skullcandy speakers that you certainly don't expect on a Chromebook, and certainly not one in the low $300 range. So it's great for listening to music as well as watching videos.

Unlike many other Chrombooks, it comes with a full 4GB of RAM, which is important because its processor, like many Chromebook processors, won't knock your socks off. But the 4 GB of RAM gives the machine enough oomph to make up for that."
"

Retina 5K iMac: Powerful Proof of the PC Renaissance - NYTimes.com

"Enter Apple and the new iMac it unveiled in the fall, an expensive desktop with a beautiful, high-resolution screen. If Chromebooks are cars, the new iMac is the world’s best truck. It’s a device optimized for professionals, not casual users, and it blazes a path forward for the once-beleaguered PC industry.

Chromebooks run an operating system based on Google’s Chrome web browser, and their low prices have helped make them a hit.
MARK LENNIHAN / ASSOCIATED PRESS
As phones and tablets become more powerful and useful, and as they begin to occupy more of our time, PC manufacturers will have to create computers that take advantage of PCs’ shape, size and power. They’ll have to find new features that can’t be mimicked by smartphones. With a display unmatched by any other computing device you can buy today, the new iMac does just that. That’s why, of the dozens of new tech devices I tried this year, it was my favorite."

German researchers discover a flaw that could let anyone listen to your cell calls. - The Washington Post

NYTimes: U.S. Said to Find North Korea Ordered Cyberattack on Sony

Apple Wins Decade-Old ITunes Suit - NYTimes.com

" OAKLAND, Calif. — A jury took about three hours to reject an antitrust lawsuit — 10 years in the making — that accused Apple of using a software update to secure a monopoly over the digital music market.

The eight-member jury in federal court here unanimously determined that Apple had, in fact, used an update of the iTunes software that it issued eight years ago to deliver genuine improvements for iPods sold between 2006 and 2009. "



Apple Wins Decade-Old ITunes Suit - NYTimes.com

Book Review: “The Science of Interstellar” | Ricochet

"The Science of Interstellar by Kip ThorneChristopher Nolan’s 2014 film Interstellar was eagerly awaited by science fiction enthusiasts who, having been sorely disappointed so many times by movies that crossed the line into fantasy by making up entirely implausible things to move the plot along, hoped that this effort would live up to its promise of getting the science (mostly) right and employing scientifically plausible speculation where our present knowledge is incomplete.

The author of the present book is one of the most eminent physicists working in the field of general relativity (Einstein’s theory of gravitation) and a pioneer in exploring the exotic strong field regime of the theory, including black holes, wormholes, and gravitational radiation. Prof. Thorne was involved in the project which became Interstellar from its inception, and worked closely with the screenwriters, director, and visual effects team to get the science right. Some of the scenes in the movie, such as the visual appearance of orbiting a rotating black hole, have never been rendered accurately before, and are based upon original work by Thorne in computing light paths through spacetime in its vicinity which will be published as professional papers."