Wednesday, October 7, 2015
Tuesday, October 6, 2015
Monday, October 5, 2015
Gadget Ogling: Eyes on Google
Welcome to Gadget Dreams and Nightmares, the column that gladly steps far away from presidential debates to voice partisan opinions on the latest gadget announcements.
On the rostrum this week is a slew of new Google devices: a refreshed Chromecast; another Chromecast for audio; and the company's first completely in-house-created tablet. We also take a gander at a new LG smartphone that might cause double vision.
Note: These are not reviews. The ratings indicate only how much I'd like to use each item, and do not reflect how much of my life is wrapped up in Google services. That would rate at about a four.
Chromecast (pictured above, Chromecast Audio on the right) helps people easily stream whatever they want through their TV via a simple dongle. Now Google's adding a splash of color to the device, along with a string of new features.
Instead of resembling a USB stick, Chromecast 2 is more like a colorful button, and Google says it is easier to plug into an HDMI slot. It's built for speed, apparently, as it seemingly can stream videos faster and with less buffering.
It also can preload content -- for instance, start downloading a movie -- as soon as you open the Chromecast app, which Google also has refreshed.
On the content side, Chromecast users now can access Spotify and Showtime's latest app, as well as stream NBA and Major League Soccer games.
What's really useful is the option in the latest app to search for content across all the services you use. If you'd like to watch the latest season of Archer -- to use my current obsession as an example -- but don't know where to find it, this universal search can help. It's a great feature we're seeing more often, including in the new Apple TV, so I'm glad Google included it here.
Meanwhile, there's a new version of the device for music, called "Chromecast Audio" (pictured above with Chromecast). It connects to a 3.5mm auxiliary input, RCA jacks, or an optical input, and it can stream music from your favorite streaming services and your computer. It supports Google Play Music, Spotify, Deezer and BBC iPlayer.
What's especially neat is it can play audio from most sources on an Android phone. So if you don't have a TV and are streaming a movie to a tablet, you can cast the audio to your home speaker system and get an immersive surround-sound experience.
Chromecast already was a solid device, and these upgrades and the Audio version only enhance it. Best of all? Google's keeping the US$35 price tag of the original Chromecast, which is far less expensive than most other streaming hubs. Thumbs up all around.
Tuesday, March 3, 2015
Sunday, February 8, 2015
Xiaomi Redmi 1S
After entering India, Xiaomi has always been in the headlines for
anything and everything. The bulk selling process through e-retailer
website Flipkart has fetched huge business for them. After their
official appearance, every flash sale has gone viral.
The biggest reason behind this was the flaunted specifications.
People, particularly youngsters, who always crave for phone with lower
price and flagship smartphone-like configurations, rolled their eyes
with an "Oh My God" gesture.
The only question that appeared in most people's mind was, "how can they offer such configuration at a throw-away price? Are they making a profit? Are they featuring the same on-paper configuration on the phone?"
Here's our take on this, with every minute details.
Design and Built
Xiaomi has not experimented much on this segment, hence resulted
in a traditional rectangular handset with no conspicuous design
innovation. The traditional candy-bar shape with tapered edges makes it a
regular smartphone. But Xiaomi has put everything in place to get it
going.
We found Xiaomi Redmi 1S reasonably comfortable to hold. Measuring 137x69x9.9mm Xiaomi Redmi 1S weighs 158g, which is not quite light in hand. With 9.9mm thickness, Redmi 1S feels quite thicker as well.
The interchangeable back covers are made of matte plastic. The grey cover, came with our review unit looked durable and makes the device looks a bit better. Available in different colours those back covers are available across online stores, starting from ₹150 onwards.
The edge-to-edge AGC Dragontrail glass has occupied the major portion of the front. Below the 4.7-inch display there are three capacitive buttons with a red mark on them. Above the display there is a regular earpiece unit along with the light ambience, proximity sensor and a 1.6MP camera for making video calls and taking selfies.
The left side of the handset has left completely unoccupied while the right side of the device features the volume rocker and a power button with a silver finish. The 3.5mm port housed on the top and the regular mic and a micro USB port is on the bottom.
The 8mp camera occupies the top rear along with a single LED flash. It also has a speaker on top and the Mi logo has been placed on the rear bottom.
Display
The Xiaomi Redmi 1S' 4.7-inch HD IPS display has a resolution of 720x1,280 pixels with a density measurement of 312ppi. For added protection, Xiaomi has protected the display with an AGC Dragontrail glass.
We had no problem with gaming, movie watching, internet browsing or editing documents. The screen looks bright and crisp with excellent presence of colour, gamut and saturation. However, visibility under direct sunlight is a matter of concern for the high reflectivity of the protection glass. But it works well while protecting the display. Scratching with corks, coins or any other sharp element cannot create a dent and hence it is easy to keep it inside a jeans pocket or a handbag.
The phone features option for tweaking colour temperature and saturation and also for using the phone while wearing gloves.
Operating System & UI
Instead of using Kitkat, Xiaomi Redmi 1S uses Android Jellybean operating system with a customised interface, MIUI 5.0. However, Redmi users are now awaiting Xiaomi's update of MIUI 6.0.
Each screen has been designed with simple bars, buttons and options. Not a single window looks cluttered or exaggerated. The option bars and menu are logically arranged with a simple layout. Xiaomi has sacrificed the inside menu button and placed everything right on the first screen with an easy-to-use file explorer and a well-designed custom browser with all essential links.
All the essential features have been grouped according to their usage. For example, radio, torch, compass, clock and voice recorder are put together in Tools folder, while all Google features are in the Google folder. The file explorer supports compressed files and offers compressing and decompressing features by default.
There is a theme section on the home screen with heavy customisation
options. For downloading themes an Mi cloud account is necessary. After
logging in, there are plenty of options for tweaking the interface. The
essential apps like music player, video player or image gallery are
well-crafted with equal amount of simplicity.
Though the usage is flawless, we wish Redmi 1S will soon get updated to a newer version of MIUI, featuring Android Lollipop, which creates less hog on the system and makes the experience much better.
A special note on MI Cloud
Recently there was a huge brawl over Mi cloud's data transmission factor. But according to Hugo Barra, a patch was issued to fix the bug. It was found that the Cloud is off and nothing is syncing automatically unless initialised and asked to archive data in the Mi cloud.
Performance
The Xiaomi Redmi 1S runs on a Snapdragon 400 SoC with a quad-core processor clocked at 1.6GHz Cortex-A7 processor, Adreno 305 GPU coupled with 1GB RAM.
In our benchmarking test, Redmi 1S did fabulous, performing better than most of the Snapdragon 400 based SoC, for its higher clock speed (1.6GHz instead of 1.4GHz).
The processor is not outstanding, since several latest 64-bit processors would perform similar or better, but Redmi 1S gives an overall stable experience.
For general tasks like web browsing and document editing, we found Redmi 1S offers a decent performance. Apps and web pages gets loaded in a while even when the phone enjoys a WiFi connection.
We experienced a slight lag in heavy games, but logically those games are meant to be played with more powerful processors. The overall performance experience is decent and it would prove to be suitable for most users.
The box comes without an earphone, hence the users are free to choose a third party earphone for pairing up. However, Xiaomi has some set-up options while being paired with their own earphones. The bass and treble get tuned in a precise way.
Xiaomi Redmi 1S FaceIbtimes India
The only question that appeared in most people's mind was, "how can they offer such configuration at a throw-away price? Are they making a profit? Are they featuring the same on-paper configuration on the phone?"
Here's our take on this, with every minute details.
Design and Built
We found Xiaomi Redmi 1S reasonably comfortable to hold. Measuring 137x69x9.9mm Xiaomi Redmi 1S weighs 158g, which is not quite light in hand. With 9.9mm thickness, Redmi 1S feels quite thicker as well.
The interchangeable back covers are made of matte plastic. The grey cover, came with our review unit looked durable and makes the device looks a bit better. Available in different colours those back covers are available across online stores, starting from ₹150 onwards.
The edge-to-edge AGC Dragontrail glass has occupied the major portion of the front. Below the 4.7-inch display there are three capacitive buttons with a red mark on them. Above the display there is a regular earpiece unit along with the light ambience, proximity sensor and a 1.6MP camera for making video calls and taking selfies.
The left side of the handset has left completely unoccupied while the right side of the device features the volume rocker and a power button with a silver finish. The 3.5mm port housed on the top and the regular mic and a micro USB port is on the bottom.
The 8mp camera occupies the top rear along with a single LED flash. It also has a speaker on top and the Mi logo has been placed on the rear bottom.
Xiaomi Redmi 1S InterfaceIbtimes India
The Xiaomi Redmi 1S' 4.7-inch HD IPS display has a resolution of 720x1,280 pixels with a density measurement of 312ppi. For added protection, Xiaomi has protected the display with an AGC Dragontrail glass.
We had no problem with gaming, movie watching, internet browsing or editing documents. The screen looks bright and crisp with excellent presence of colour, gamut and saturation. However, visibility under direct sunlight is a matter of concern for the high reflectivity of the protection glass. But it works well while protecting the display. Scratching with corks, coins or any other sharp element cannot create a dent and hence it is easy to keep it inside a jeans pocket or a handbag.
The phone features option for tweaking colour temperature and saturation and also for using the phone while wearing gloves.
Xiaomi Redmi 1S Interface-UtilitiesIbtimes India
Instead of using Kitkat, Xiaomi Redmi 1S uses Android Jellybean operating system with a customised interface, MIUI 5.0. However, Redmi users are now awaiting Xiaomi's update of MIUI 6.0.
Each screen has been designed with simple bars, buttons and options. Not a single window looks cluttered or exaggerated. The option bars and menu are logically arranged with a simple layout. Xiaomi has sacrificed the inside menu button and placed everything right on the first screen with an easy-to-use file explorer and a well-designed custom browser with all essential links.
All the essential features have been grouped according to their usage. For example, radio, torch, compass, clock and voice recorder are put together in Tools folder, while all Google features are in the Google folder. The file explorer supports compressed files and offers compressing and decompressing features by default.
Xiaomi Redmi 1S UtilitiesIbtimes India
Though the usage is flawless, we wish Redmi 1S will soon get updated to a newer version of MIUI, featuring Android Lollipop, which creates less hog on the system and makes the experience much better.
A special note on MI Cloud
Recently there was a huge brawl over Mi cloud's data transmission factor. But according to Hugo Barra, a patch was issued to fix the bug. It was found that the Cloud is off and nothing is syncing automatically unless initialised and asked to archive data in the Mi cloud.
Xiaomi Redmi 1S -MI CloudIbtimes India
The Xiaomi Redmi 1S runs on a Snapdragon 400 SoC with a quad-core processor clocked at 1.6GHz Cortex-A7 processor, Adreno 305 GPU coupled with 1GB RAM.
In our benchmarking test, Redmi 1S did fabulous, performing better than most of the Snapdragon 400 based SoC, for its higher clock speed (1.6GHz instead of 1.4GHz).
The processor is not outstanding, since several latest 64-bit processors would perform similar or better, but Redmi 1S gives an overall stable experience.
For general tasks like web browsing and document editing, we found Redmi 1S offers a decent performance. Apps and web pages gets loaded in a while even when the phone enjoys a WiFi connection.
We experienced a slight lag in heavy games, but logically those games are meant to be played with more powerful processors. The overall performance experience is decent and it would prove to be suitable for most users.
The box comes without an earphone, hence the users are free to choose a third party earphone for pairing up. However, Xiaomi has some set-up options while being paired with their own earphones. The bass and treble get tuned in a precise way.
Friday, February 6, 2015
Monday, September 15, 2014
Google Launches Android One Smartphones With Micromax, Karbonn, Spice
The search giant announced the first Android One smartphones - the Karbonn Sparkle V, Micromax Canvas A1, and Spice Dream Uno - will be available from their respective online retail partners in India from 3:30pm on Monday, with physical retail store availability in early October.
All three smartphones are priced at Rs. 6,399. The Karbonn Sparkle V (already listed on Snapdeal) will be available in Magnum Blue, Mild Grey, Wild Red and Pearl White colour variants exclusively via Snapdeal, the Micromax Canvas A1 will be available in Black and White colour variants exclusively via Amazon, and the Spice Dream Uno will be available in Black and White colour variants exclusively via at Flipkart.
Google says the Android One phones offer a high-quality experience, running the Android 4.4 KitKat. The company added these phones will be the first to receive the Android L release, and update that Google says will offer the new "material design, improved battery life, enhanced security features, and smarter notifications."
All 3 smartphones bear similar features hardware specifications, as well as "features particularly important to Indians" - dual SIM card slots, a FM radio tuner, and a microSD card slot for additional storage. Google apps such as Gmail, Google Maps, YouTube, Google Search, and Google Translate will come pre-loaded on the phones.
Apart from those listed above, common specifications of the Micromax Canvas A1, Karbon Sparkle V, and Spice Dream Uno include: a 4.5-inch (480x854 pixels) IPS FWVGA display; 1.3GHz quad-core MediaTek processor; 1GB of RAM, 4GB of inbuilt storage; expandable storage support via microSD card (up to 32GB); a 5-megapixel rear camera with LED flash; a 2-megapixel front camera; Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, GPRS/ EDGE, 3G, and a 1700mAh battery.
Google also announced that Airtel is offering a promotion to reduce data costs for those who buy Android One phones. With an Airtel SIM card, Android One users will get free over-the-air (OTA) updates, and 200MB per month worth of app downloads from Google Play for the first six months - all without counting toward their mobile data plan. Additionally, Google is touting the a data compression feature on Android One's Chrome browser.
The search giant also announced that in the coming weeks the YouTube app will get offline video playback in India, allowing users to store videos via Wi-Fi on their Android device, and watch them later without data connectivity.
Sundar Pichai, Google Senior Vice President of Android, Chrome & Apps, said, "If we look at how people are getting online and accessing information today, increasingly it's through a smartphone. While 1.75 billion people around the world already have a smartphone, the vast majority of the world's population - over five billion more - do not. By working closely with phone and silicon chip makers to share reference designs and select components, we're making it easier for our partners to build phones that are not just great to use, but also affordable. With Android One, we not only want to help people get online, we want to make sure that when they get there, they can tap into the wealth of information and knowledge the web holds for everyone."
Pichai also announced an expanded set of hardware partners for the Android One initiative, including Acer, Alcatel Onetouch, Asus, HTC, Intex, Lava, Lenovo, Panasonic, and Xolo, as well as chipmaker Qualcomm. The company also announced that Android One phones will launch in Indonesia, the Philippines, and additional countries in South Asia by the end of the year.
Sunday, September 14, 2014
Windows 9 'Threshold' Update Leaked in Purported Screenshots, Video
The leaked screenshots for Windows Threshold shows a new search icon on the left of the taskbar (next to the Start Menu button) along with what appears to be an icon for the previously-leaked virtual desktop feature, as well as the earlier-tipped notification center.
The virtual desktop feature is also seen in action some screenshots and it appears to be with a pane at the bottom of the Windows desktop that should allow users to switch between the virtualized desktop areas.
The Start Menu button also opens up to reveal Modern UI apps with Live Tiles listed in a mini-Start Screen on the right, another feature that was previously leaked.
The Verge report also suggests that Microsoft seems to have flattened the UI slightly to match its Modern UI look and feel of the Windows 8, and it seems to be making 'slight adjustments to the jump list menus in the taskbar (available when you right-click) to flatten out the UI.' Some of the icons like File Explorer, Desktop, and more, also appear to be new. The desktop screenshots also show Modern UI apps running in windowed-mode (again, a feature that was previously leaked) along with commands for search, share, play, and settings available in context menu.
Last week, the Redmond giant
teased
the anticipated Windows 9 a.k.a Threshold update on Weibo, the
China-equivalent of Twitter.Microsoft China in a Weibo post teased the upcoming Windows version as "coming soon". The post said (in Chinese), "Microsoft's latest OS Windows 9 is coming soon, do you think the start menu at the left bottom will make a comeback?" Interestingly, the post was accompanied by a Windows 9 mock-up logo. While the Weibo post did not reveal any new feature of the next Windows version or even its official logo, it certainly did indicate the company was planning on revealing it soon.
Update: On Thursday, a 2-minute video has been leaked to the Web purportedly showcasing the Start Menu in action, running on an alleged early build of Threshold. The video was posted to YouTube by German site WinFuture. The video showcases how Modern UI apps and Live Tiles are listed alongside regular Windows desktop apps.
The Verge notes that sign-in and lock account options have been listed on the top of the Start Menu, while the shutdown and restart options are adjacent. Users can notably pin their desired Modern UI apps to the right pane of the Start Menu, and these tiles can be resized. An option to 'use the Start menu instead of the Start screen' was also spotted, in-line with the rumoured default Windows 9 setting for desktop form factors. Also showcased was the windowed-mode or floating mode for Modern UI apps.
Sony Xperia C, Xperia L, Xperia M, Xperia M Dual, Xperia SP Won't Receive KitKat Updates
It is worth mentioning that while the Sony Xperia M, Xperia M Dual and the Xperia SP (Review | Picture) currently run Android 4.3 Jelly Bean, the Xperia L would stay limited to Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, as seen on the Sony's official Xperia Care website.
All four smartphones feature 1GB of RAM and dual-core Krait processors, which on paper are sufficient to run Android 4.4 KitKat smoothly, so Sony's decision is a little puzzling.
On Tuesday, Sony rolled out Android 4.4.4 KitKat updates for its Xperia Z (Review | Pictures), Xperia ZL, Xperia ZR and Xperia Tablet Z (Review | Pictures) devices. However, Sony hasn't provided a detailed changelog or time frame for the Android 4.4.4 KitKat update as yet.
In May, Sony had rolled out Android 4.4 KitKat updates for the Xperia Z, Xperia ZL, Xperia ZR and Xperia Tablet Z. It had also brought the revamped Sony native app portfolio with the update which included upgraded versions of Messaging, Email, Smart Social Camera and Battery Stamina Mode apps, among others.
Last week, the Japanese giant announced the Xperia Z3, Xperia Z3 Compact, and Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact at its pre-IFA 2014 event in Berlin. The company also announced the two new wearables - the SmartBand Talk and SmartWatch 3 - in its SmartWear Experience range.
Two new lens-style cameras - the E-mount ILCE-QX1 and DSC-QX30, priced at $400 (approximately Rs. 24,000) and $350 (approximately Rs. 21,000), respectively - were also launched at the same event.
Update: Alongside the Xperia M, Xperia M Dual, Xperia L and Xperia SP, Sony has detailed that the Xperia C will also not receive an update to Android 4.4 KitKat, and will officially remain on Android 4.2.2. Jelly Bean. It was launched in India in October last with Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, and first unveiled in June with Android 4.1 Jelly Bean.
iPhone 5s Price in India Slashed Ahead of iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus Launch
Apple has slashed the price of 16GB and 32GB iPhone 5s variants in India
ahead of the expected launch of iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus next month.iPhone
5s (Pictures) 16GB variant is now priced at Rs. 44,500 (MRP) while the maximum
retail price of the 32GB variant is now Rs. 49,500. It's noteworthy that
the 16GB variant at least has been available online between Rs. 35,000
and Rs. 40,000 for quite sometime, so the price drop merely recognises
what has been a reality for a while. While this is the first 'official'
price drop since the iPhone 5s was launched in India last November,
there have been plenty of great deals available on the 16GB iPhone 5s
before Apple's move on Saturday, which was first reported by BGR.
(Also see: Great deals on iPhone, iPad, Big Screen TVs, Beat Headphones, and more)
The price of the 16GB variant is down Rs. 9,000, while the 32GB variant has seen a price cut of Rs. 13,000, having been launched at Rs. 62,500. It's worth pointing out that the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus will be available in 16GB, 64GB, and 128GB storage variants, so this may be your last chance to buy a 32GB iPhone, if you are specifically interested in that variant for reasons best known to you.
Interestingly, there's no mention of a price drop on the 64GB variant of the iPhone 5s.
The 8GB iPhone 5c (Pictures) is also available at significant discounts compared to its launch price, though NDTV Gadgets has learnt there's no official change in the MRP of the phone. Apple has in fact reduced the cost at which the phone is made available to its retail partners, so expect most of that benefit to be passed on to the consumers.
(Also see: Great deals on iPhone, iPad, Big Screen TVs, Beat Headphones, and more)
The price of the 16GB variant is down Rs. 9,000, while the 32GB variant has seen a price cut of Rs. 13,000, having been launched at Rs. 62,500. It's worth pointing out that the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus will be available in 16GB, 64GB, and 128GB storage variants, so this may be your last chance to buy a 32GB iPhone, if you are specifically interested in that variant for reasons best known to you.
Interestingly, there's no mention of a price drop on the 64GB variant of the iPhone 5s.
The 8GB iPhone 5c (Pictures) is also available at significant discounts compared to its launch price, though NDTV Gadgets has learnt there's no official change in the MRP of the phone. Apple has in fact reduced the cost at which the phone is made available to its retail partners, so expect most of that benefit to be passed on to the consumers.
Tuesday, August 19, 2014
Ravi Shastri Appointed Director of Team India for ODI Series vs England; Dhoni Captaincy Safe
Ravi Shastri will assist Team India chief coach Duncan Fletcher during the five-match ODI series against England starting on August 25. BCCI also includes Sanjay Bangar in support staff.
Ravi Shastri will be Team India director for the five ODIs vs England starting on August 25.
© AFP
The BCCI also ruled out axing Mahendra Singh Dhoni as captain. Dhoni's Test captaincy has been under the scanner for his poor overseas record. In 2011, India lost eight Tests on-the-trot in England and Australia. India's next Test series will be at home against the West Indies in October-November this year.
Former Australian batsman and NDTV expert Dean Jones welcomed Shastri's appointment. "Ravi will have to make a fair assessment on how the players are reacting to Duncan Fletcher. The players must enjoy playing for India. That's important," said Jones. Shastri, who played 80 Tests and 150 one-dayers matches between 1981 and 1992, temporarily coached the Indian team during the 2007 tour of Bangladesh. (Dhoni Saved India Further Humiliation: Gavaskar)
In its continuing efforts to re-energise the support to Mahendra Singh Dhoni's beleaguered team, the BCCI has given a break to the bowling coach Joe Dawes and fielding coach Trevor Penney for the one-day series. The BCCI has appointed Sanjay Bangar, former Indian all-rounder, and former India fast bowler Bharat Arun as assistant coaches of the team. R. Sridhar will join the support team as the fielding coach for the one-day series.
Bangar was the coach of Indian Premier League team King's XI Punjab. Arun has worked with the Indian under-19 team in recent times. Bangar's work was praised after Kings XI made the IPL finals. Ahead of the England series, former India captain Rahul Dravid worked as a consultant with Team India. He came in on a request from Fletcher. (India Need to go Back to Basics: McGrath)
India lost the five-match Test series against England 3-1. The BCCI said in a statement on Tuesday that it was mulling the changes for over two weeks. According to the BCCI, the changes are only for the limited overs series. Fletcher's contract with the BCCI is till the end of the 2015 ICC World Cup.
When Fletcher replaced Gary Kirsten following the 2011 World Cup, the Zimbabwean came with a fabulous track record and CV. He was the main man in masterminding a turnaround in the fortunes of the England team. But his success with Team India, especially overseas, has been horrendous. Out of the 20 Tests India played abroad under Fletcher, Dhoni & Co. won two and lost 13.
"If India have to sack Duncan Fletcher, they must do it now. They can't do it closer to the World Cup. Australia did the same with Mickey Arthur and brought in Darren Lehmann before the Ashes," explained Jones.
Jones also backed Dhoni to retain the captaincy. "Tough situations bring out the best leaders. Dhoni must lead by example and the fact is there is no one to replace him. Virat Kohli is out of form so Dhoni is the best man now," the Aussie said.
Shastri's introduction may see a change in India's ODI fortunes - Team Dhoni won the ICC Champions Trophy in 2013 beating England in the final - but how that will solve their travel illness in the longer format of the game remains to be seen. India travel to Australia at the end of this year. (Dhoni Proud to Wear India Cap: Laxman)
Latest Mi 3 Sale Sees 20,000 Smartphones Sold in 2.3 Seconds: Xiaomi
Do Ads 'Follow' You Around the Internet? New Tool Will Tell You Why
Have you recently seen an ad about depression online? It could be because you sent an email about being sad.Researchers
have developed a new tool that unveils which data in a Web account,
such as emails, searches, or viewed products, are being used to target
which outputs, such as ads, recommended products, or prices.
Roxana Geambasu and Augustin Chaintreau, both assistant professors of computer science at Columbia Engineering, along with PhD student Mathias Lecuyer created the tool called XRay to understand how personal data is being used on Web services like Google, Amazon, Facebook and YouTube.
"Today we have a problem: the web is not transparent. We see XRay as an important first step in exposing how websites are using your personal data," said Geambasu.
We live in a "big data" world, where staggering amounts of personal data - our locations, search histories, emails, posts, photos, and more - are constantly being collected and analysed by many other Web services.
While harnessing big data can certainly improve our daily lives, these beneficial uses have also generated a big data frenzy, with Web services aggressively pursuing new ways to acquire and commercialise the information.
"It's critical, now more than ever, to reconcile our privacy needs with the exponential progress in leveraging this big data," said Chaintreau.
"If we leave it unchecked, big data's exciting potential could become a breeding ground for data abuses, privacy vulnerabilities, and unfair or deceptive business practices," Geambasu added.
Determined to provide checks and balances on data abuse, XRay is designed to be the first fine-grained, scalable personal data tracking system for the Web.
For example, one can use the XRay prototype to study why a user might be shown a specific ad in Gmail. Geambasu and Chaintreau found, for example, that a Gmail user who sees ads about various forms of spiritualism might have received them because he or she sent an email message about depression.
"The theoretical results were encouraging, but seemed too good to be true. So we tested XRay in actual situations, learning from experiments we ran on Gmail, Amazon, and YouTube, and refining the design multiple times.
"The final design surprised us: XRay succeeded in all the experiments we ran, and it matched our theoretical predictions in increasingly complex cases," researchers said.
The current XRay system works with Gmail, Amazon, and YouTube. However, XRay's core functions are service-agnostic and easy to instantiate for new services, and they can track data within and across services.
The key idea in XRay is to use black-box correlation of data inputs and outputs to detect data use.
To assess XRay's practical value, the researchers created an XRay-based demo service that continuously collects and diagnoses Gmail ads related to a set of topics, including various diseases, pregnancy, race, sexual orientation, divorce, debt, etc.
Roxana Geambasu and Augustin Chaintreau, both assistant professors of computer science at Columbia Engineering, along with PhD student Mathias Lecuyer created the tool called XRay to understand how personal data is being used on Web services like Google, Amazon, Facebook and YouTube.
"Today we have a problem: the web is not transparent. We see XRay as an important first step in exposing how websites are using your personal data," said Geambasu.
We live in a "big data" world, where staggering amounts of personal data - our locations, search histories, emails, posts, photos, and more - are constantly being collected and analysed by many other Web services.
While harnessing big data can certainly improve our daily lives, these beneficial uses have also generated a big data frenzy, with Web services aggressively pursuing new ways to acquire and commercialise the information.
"It's critical, now more than ever, to reconcile our privacy needs with the exponential progress in leveraging this big data," said Chaintreau.
"If we leave it unchecked, big data's exciting potential could become a breeding ground for data abuses, privacy vulnerabilities, and unfair or deceptive business practices," Geambasu added.
Determined to provide checks and balances on data abuse, XRay is designed to be the first fine-grained, scalable personal data tracking system for the Web.
For example, one can use the XRay prototype to study why a user might be shown a specific ad in Gmail. Geambasu and Chaintreau found, for example, that a Gmail user who sees ads about various forms of spiritualism might have received them because he or she sent an email message about depression.
"The theoretical results were encouraging, but seemed too good to be true. So we tested XRay in actual situations, learning from experiments we ran on Gmail, Amazon, and YouTube, and refining the design multiple times.
"The final design surprised us: XRay succeeded in all the experiments we ran, and it matched our theoretical predictions in increasingly complex cases," researchers said.
The current XRay system works with Gmail, Amazon, and YouTube. However, XRay's core functions are service-agnostic and easy to instantiate for new services, and they can track data within and across services.
The key idea in XRay is to use black-box correlation of data inputs and outputs to detect data use.
To assess XRay's practical value, the researchers created an XRay-based demo service that continuously collects and diagnoses Gmail ads related to a set of topics, including various diseases, pregnancy, race, sexual orientation, divorce, debt, etc.
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