Archive for the ‘Figures’ Category
Friday, December 3rd, 2021
It used to be that the new phones come with chargers in the box, but phone makers are now beginning to exclude the charger in the box. So we’ll begin to shop more for 3rd-party chargers.
Do you remember these different plugs for different chargers, not to mention different power ratings for each device?
I remember years ago when I was writing for the Straits Times Digital Life about what tech to pack when travelling, I’d lamented that the charger for different phones used proprietary chargers that were not interchangeable – in terms of the plugs and the power ratings.
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Tags:accessories, chargers, trends
Posted in Accessories, gadgets, Opinion, Trends | 2 Comments »
Sunday, November 21st, 2021
Here are some gift ideas that I’ve curated for X’mas 2021. I’ll be adding to this list over the next few weeks, so check back daily for new gift ideas as I collate them.
The tech4xmas gift guide is meant to provide ideas to start you off, so do check out some of them online and in the shops if they are what you think would bring a smile to your loved ones this Christmas. Start by shopping (on Redbubble) for accessories (phone cases, mouse pads, T-shirts, mugs etc) based on this lovely watercolour painting painted by my wife.
It’s now time to shop for presents for Christmas 2021, and bring some cheer to two years living under the shadow of COVID-19.
Cover Art for tech4xmas 2021
This year’s cover art for tech4xmas 2021 has been painted by my wife. Check out her other paintings on Instagram at @kkmakesandbakes.
This cutie in a Christmas sweater is a watercolour painting that she did for this year’s Christmas and has kindly agreed to be used as the tech4xmas 2021 banner.
Around this time of year, I’m usually inundated with requests from readers and friends on Christmas gift ideas for their loved ones or themselves.
So here are some tech that I would use myself or get for MY loved ones, based mostly on those gadgets that I’ve tried or reviewed.
Not all are the latest and newest, but they are what I think are some of the best-in-class in their category of products.
Happy Christmas Shopping!
tech4xmas 2021 Gift Guide below.
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Tags:accessories, Christmas, Christmas 2021, Erin’s Garden, gadgets, painting, reviews, tech4xmas, tech4xmas 2021, watercolour, Xmas
Posted in Accessories, Gadgets, Holiday, Lists, Opinion, Shopping | 4 Comments »
Thursday, November 4th, 2021
Cyberattacks on online retailers and shoppers are projected to rise in November in conjunction with Singles’ Day, Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Here are some protective measures that shoppers and retailers can practise.
According to the Imperva’s “The State of Security Within eCommerce 2021” report, threats are escalating for the retail industry.
Imperva has released a new eCommerce report and issued advice around safe retailing in conjunction with the world’s biggest online shopping event on Nov 11 − Singles’ Day.
“The 2021 holiday shopping season is shaping up to be a nightmare for both retailers and consumers. With the global supply chain conditions worsening, retailers will not only struggle to get products to sell in Q4, but will face increased attacks from motivated cybercriminals who want to benefit from the chaos. Retailers and consumers alike need to take the necessary steps to protect themselves,” says Peter Klimek, Director of Technology, Office of the CTO, Imperva.
The company helps organisations protect their data and all paths to it – securing their applications, data and websites from cyber attacks.
Last year, Chinese e-commerce giants Alibaba and JD.com racked up around US$115 billion in sales across their platforms during the Singles Day shopping event, setting a new record.
Singles’ Day online sales in China usually surpass the US Cyber Monday sales, Black Friday or any other 24-hour shopping campaign by a wide margin making it the biggest shopping holiday in the world.
Scams typically rise in tandem with the number of online shoppers, and Imperva’s 12-month analysis on cybersecurity risks in the retail industry suggests that the 2021 holiday shopping season will be no different.
In fact, in Imperva’s “The State of Security Within eCommerce 2021” report, the number of victims this year is projected to surpass that of last year’s.
More details below from the report
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Tags:cybersecurity, eCommerce, Imperva, security, shopping
Posted in Announce, Figures, Internet, Press Release, Security, Shopping, Study, Trends | No Comments »
Thursday, September 23rd, 2021
Livinguard’s face masks passed tests by the Indian National Institute (NII) of Immunology, showing an average of more than 99% effectiveness against viruses and bacteria. The test report can be found here.
The positive results are timely as the spread of the COVID-19 Delta variant drives new mask wearing requirements worldwide
The tests reinforces the efficacy of Livinguard’s patented technology in protecting wearers of its masks at a time when face masks are again at the frontline of the fight against COVID-19.
How it Works
The principle underlying the Livinguard technology is the deactivation of microbes including bacteria and viruses.
The technology applies a positive charge at the molecular level to textile surfaces, making them more powerful than the negative charge of microbes.
Therefore, microbes are deactivated when they encounter textiles treated with Livinguard Technology.
In Singapore, Livinguard recently partnered with Grab Singapore to provide 22,000 masks for the company’s private car hire and delivery drivers to protect them from COVID-19 virus microbes.
This will provide them with the comfort that they are protected in the course of their work, where they encounter a variety of commuters, F&B staff and home diners, even as Singapore sees an ongoing tally of infections as it moves into managing COVID-19 as endemic.
In addition to being available for purchase online, Livinguard’s selection of antiviral masks is also now available at selected Guardian outlets island-wide, making it easier for those who prefer to shop in person.
More details below from the press release.
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Tags:COVID-19, Health Tech, healthcare, Livinguard, masks, Med Tech, technology
Posted in Accessories, Announce, Healthcare, News, Press Release, Study | No Comments »
Friday, March 19th, 2021
Today is World Sleep Day, so here are five tips on how to get a better night’s sleep from sleep expert Fitbit.
Sleep like a baby with 5 sleep tips from Fitbit. Photo by Tara Raye on Unsplash.
Getting our eight hours of quality sleep every night is important as adequate sleep and regular sleep patterns help rejuvenate our mood regulation, cognitive function, and overall health.
According to Fitbit’s data in 2020, Singaporeans were sleeping more last year.
However, Singaporeans still had one of the lowest sleep durations in the region, indicating there is still room for us to improve our quality of sleep.
So here are five tips for ways you can sleep longer and get a better quality shut eye.
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Tags:Fitbit, howto, sleep, tips
Posted in Fitbit, Healthcare, Howtos, Lifestyle, Lists, Medical, Tips | No Comments »
Thursday, March 18th, 2021
The Philips 2021 global sleep survey finds that Singaporeans now average 6.8 hrs of sleep per night, down from 7 hours in the 2020 survey.
A year since the start of COVID-19, Singaporeans’ sleep issues loom large.
The Philips 2021 global sleep survey, in its sixth annual installment, is being released to mark World Sleep Day tomorrow.
Online Sleep Quiz and Home Sleep Test
In conjunction with World Sleep Day, Philips has launched an Online Sleep Quiz and Home Sleep Test for individuals to assess their sleep issues and get diagnosed for OSA.
Participants who are assessed as having a high risk of OSA through the online sleep quiz will be offered a home sleep test at S$39 (U.P: S$350).
Should they be diagnosed with OSA, they will be referred to a sleep specialist for a follow-up.
The study also found that over half (57%) of Singaporeans’ ability to sleep well has been directly impacted by the pandemic, with more than a third experiencing negative impact on their stress, ability to sleep well, mental/emotional health, sleep and work routines.
With telehealth on the rise, Singaporeans are open to online means to address sleep-related
concerns, yet fear hinders many from getting tested for obstructive sleep apnea.
More details below from the study.
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Tags:apnea, Philips, sleep, study
Posted in Figures, Healthcare, Infographic, infographics, Lifestyle, Medical, Philips, Reference, Study | No Comments »
Monday, March 15th, 2021
Did you know that sex toys could be connected to the Internet, to a smartphone or to another sex toy? Along with the technology that makes sex toys smart, vulnerabilities are introduced that could endanger the user’s data, privacy and even safety!
Architecture of a smart sex toy.
With the emergence of the IoT, many manufacturers have entered the sexual pleasure market by integrating the ability to control devices through mobile apps as well as adding web-based interconnectivity.
There are currently numerous different apps available, each of which offers the ability to control a wide range of models.
In terms of their architecture, most of these devices can be controlled via Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) from an app installed on a smartphone.
Sex in the Digital Era
ESET has published a White Paper on their study on the potential security and safety flaws of connected sex toys.
The title of the report is “Sex in the Digital Era – How secure are smart sex toys?” and here is an excerpt on the characteristics of sex toys.
The main advantages of this protocol are that it has very low power requirements, communications are within an acceptable range, there is interoperability among chipset manufacturers, and it all comes in a very compact size.
As a result, a lot of smart devices for the home, health, car, and even sex toy fields, use BLE between the device and the app that controls it.
Like Bluetooth, BLE operates on the 2.4 GHz ISM band.
However, unlike standard Bluetooth, BLE stays in sleep mode all the time, except when a connection is initiated.
Also, the actual connection times themselves are just a few milliseconds, unlike Bluetooth, which takes more than 100 milliseconds.
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Tags:Bluetooth, ESET, IoT, security, sex, study, toys, vulnerabilities, White Paper
Posted in Accessories, ESET, Gadgets, gadgets, Reference, smartphones, Study | No Comments »
Sunday, March 14th, 2021
ESET has published a White Paper on their study on the potential security and safety flaws of connected sex toys. The title of the report is “Sex in the Digital Era – How secure are smart sex toys?” and here is an excerpt on the evolution of sex toys.
“Sex in the Digital Era – How secure are smart sex toys?” is an ESET Research White Paper published by Denise Giusto and Cecilia Pastorino.
As IoT (Internet of Things) devices continue to seep into our homes and offer an increasingly wide range of features, new concerns are beginning to arise about the security of the data processed by these devices.
Though they have been subject to countless security breaches leading to the exposure of people’s login details, financial information, and geographical location, among others, there are few kinds of data with more potential to harm users, if published, than those relating to their sexual behavior.
Sex in the Digital Era
So, how secure are adult toys right now?
Have the necessary precautions been taken to protect people’s data and privacy?
These are some of the concerns addressed in this whitepaper.
We will analyse the increasingly important role played by these types of devices and the vulnerabilities in some of them, placing an emphasis on the importance of demanding—as informed consumers—that best practices and standards are applied to these products in order to ensure that our data is secure and we are unharmed.
With new models of smart toys for adults entering the market all the time, we might imagine that progress is being made in strengthening the mechanisms to ensure good practices in the processing of user information.
However, our research shows that we are a long way from being able to live out our sexuality through digital media without exposing ourselves to the risk of cyberattack.
Today, these findings are more relevant than ever, since we are seeing a rapid rise in sex toy sales as a reflection of the current health situation around the world and the social distancing measures related to COVID-19.
Though many experts have devoted time to identifying and reporting security flaws within this industry, with every passing year these devices incorporate an ever wider range of features: Group chats, multimedia messages, videoconferencing, synchronisation with lists of songs or audio books, and much more.
Each time their code is re-engineered, some vulnerabilities are corrected, new vulnerabilities may be created, and many more remain unchanged in the updated versions.
Read about the evolution of sex toys below.
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Tags:ESET, IoT, security, sex, study, toys, White Paper
Posted in Accessories, ESET, Gadgets, Internet of Things, IoT, Security, Study | No Comments »
Saturday, March 13th, 2021
Vulnerabilities in smart sex toys could leave users at risk of data breaches and attacks, both cyber and physical, according to a new white paper from global cybersecurity experts at ESET.
The We-Vibe Jive (left) and Lovense Max (right) analysed in the study.
The “Sex in the Digital Era – How secure are smart sex toys?” report explores the potential security and safety flaws of connected sex toys and includes an in-depth analysis of two popular devices.
Amidst ongoing social restrictions due to the pandemic, sales of sex toys has risen rapidly, and associated cybersecurity concerns mustn’t be overlooked.
Sex in the Digital Era
“Sex in the Digital Era – How secure are smart sex toys?” is an ESET Research White Paper published by Denise Giusto and Cecilia Pastorino.
Stay tuned over the next few days as I feature interesting extracts from the White Paper.
As newer, technologically advanced models of sex toys enter the marketplace, incorporating mobile apps, messaging, video chat, and web-based interconnectivity, devices become more appealing and exploitable to cybercriminals.
The consequences of data breaches in this sphere can be particularly disastrous when the information leaked concerns sexual orientation, sexual behaviors, and intimate photos.
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Tags:ESET, IoT, Lovense, security, sex, study, toys, We-Vibe, White Paper
Posted in Accessories, ESET, Gadgets, gadgets, Internet of Things, IoT, Press Release, Security, Study | No Comments »
Friday, March 12th, 2021
In an IDC survey commissioned by ASUS, SMBs are more inclined to equip their employees with laptops rather than desktop computers – compared to prior to COVID-19.
Hmm, still somewhat behind Japan I suppose. I recall, when attending a senior management & leadership course in Japan in the late 90’s, the staff at the college were already equipped 100% with laptops, while fellow-attendees of the year-long course were issued with a personal laptop. It was a cultural mindshift – coming from a work environment at home when it was still 100% desktop.
Presented during the IDC & ASUS Webcast 2021 Singapore – Digital Transformation for the Next Normal in Asia/Pacific, ASUS revealed that 45% of Singapore SMBs are likely to convert to a 100% laptop setup post COVID-19, underscoring the importance of mobility in a hybrid workplace model.
The finding is among other strategic insights to SMB technology use and how COVID-19 has affected related decisions.
Three suggestions from IDC that Singapore SMBs can implement with regard to technology implementation.
Considering the survey findings, IDC advised that equipping employees with the latest devices that can support both a remote and hybrid work environment will have a significant impact not only on employee productivity and experience, but also will provide a competitive edge to organizations to attract and retain talent.
More details below from the press release.
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Tags:Asus, computing, COVID-19, IDC, laptops, mobility, study, survey, work
Posted in Asus, Brief, Business IT, events, Figures, Gadgets, gadgets, Infographic, Notebooks, notebooks, Online, Opinion, Press Release, Seminars, Study, Trends | No Comments »
