Hasta La Gadget!

As Google’s Chrome browser supports extensions, this has led to the creation of a variety of different ad blocking extensions and services. However those extensions may soon no longer be necessary because according to a report from The Wall Street Journal, it seems that Google could be building an ad blocker directly inside Chrome itself.

According to the report, the ad blocker will be enabled by default and it will block and filter ads that are deemed to provide bad experiences to users. While this sounds like good news, we should remind you guys that Google is part of AdBlock Plus’ “Acceptable Ads” program, meaning that Google pays to have its ads whitelisted by the ad blocker. What this means for Chrome’s rumored built-in ad blocker is that it will just be selective about what ads can or cannot be displayed, and that it won’t be completely blocking ads like current ad blockers.

Instead it is expected to block ads deemed unacceptable by the standards set by the Coalition for Better Ads, which includes formats such as pop-ups, videos that play automatically, or ads with countdown timers. Basically annoying and intrusive ads will be blocked, so if you believe that websites (such as ours) have the right to earn money through ads as long as they’re not annoying, then this rumored feature could come in handy.

The report claims that Google could announce the feature within weeks, and given that Google I/O 2017 takes place in May, we wouldn’t be surprised if the feature were to be announced then.

Google Could Build An Ad Blocker Into Chrome , original content from Ubergizmo. Read our Copyrights and terms of use.

At MWC 2017 back in February, Samsung took the wraps off the Galaxy Book which is basically a 2-in-1 device that runs on Microsoft’s Windows 10 platform. If you liked what you saw and wouldn’t mind getting your hands on it, you’ll be pleased to learn that Samsung has officially announced and confirmed the device’s availability.

According to Samsung, the tablet will be available for purchase starting on the 21st of April via Verizon. Note that the availability on the 21st of April is for the 12-inch LTE model which is priced at $1,300. However if you have no use for LTE and just want the WiFi model, the 10.6-inch and 12-inch Galaxy Book WiFi models will be available for pre-order via Samsung’s website on the 21st of April, with general availability starting on May 21 and will be priced at $630 and $1,130 respectively.

In case it wasn’t already clear, there will be no LTE option for the 10.6-inch model, so if LTE connectivity is an absolute must for you, then you’ll have to pony up for the 12-inch model from Verizon which admittedly doesn’t come cheap. For those unfamiliar with the Galaxy Book, you could call this Samsung’s answer to Microsoft’s Surface Pro tablets or the iPad Pro.

It will come bundled with an S Pen stylus as well as a keyboard cover that lets you prop up the tablet and use it almost like a laptop.

Samsung Galaxy Book Will Be Available April 21 , original content from Ubergizmo. Read our Copyrights and terms of use.

The S-Cradle (aka Security Cradle) is an upcoming product from a Korean company called Saintioe. I bumped into them at the Startup Launchpad within the Global Sources electronic expo in Hong Kong, in the Startup Launchpad section. The idea isn’t new, but S-Cradle may succeed where others failed.

You may remember that in 2015,  some apps aimed to turn old phones into home surveillance cameras. Since the recycling rate of phones is relatively low, we know that there are a lot of old phones waiting to have a second life. However, previous solutions where only software-based and this is where S-Cradle brings some fresh air, with a small hardware addition that can make a big difference.

“A SMALL HARDWARE ADDITION THAT CAN MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE”As its name indicates, it’s a cradle that will host the phone and power it through a simple cable. The cradle itself is powered by USB, just like any phone. The cradle needs power because it can rotate and tilt to expand the phone’s video coverage area to 350 Degrees. That’s important because cameras are often not that wide, and this allows many times the coverage area of a static camera.

S-Cradle will also cut the power to your phone when the battery is at 100%, thus managing better the overall life-cycle of the phone’s battery, which could be shortened if it was always plugged to a charging source.

The phone needs to have the S-Cradle app installed, and a two-way communication will be established. The cradle knows states such as the phone’s battery life, and the phone will receive wake-up commands from the cradle when the cradle’s IR sensor detects a presence (it’s the white dot on the cradle). This allows the phone not to be ON at all times and relying on image analysis to know if someone is around.

It makes it also unlikely that false-positive triggered by moving shadows or change in lighting triggers the cradle IR sensor. If you have home cameras, you know this happens all the time. The small and cheap IR sensor wakes up when it sees the heat from a living being (cats will trigger them too), so the false-positive should be lower.

The phone’s app can send notifications, and it’s up to you to choose if the phone connects to WIFI or cellular data. Live streaming will be available, but there is no cloud recording option – for now. You will need an Android 4.4+ phone. The cradle has a humidity sensor and a temperature sensor, which can be used to remotely control an Air conditioning unit with the cradle built-in IR emitter (it’s very common in Asia to have an AC remote)

Interestingly, the cradle-S will cost around $40 (300 HKD) and will be available in Korea in the summer, then elsewhere after that. If you don’t have a phone laying around, you can pick up a brand-new LG G2 for about $100. The whole package would still cost less than a new Nest camera. Depending on the phone you use, the image quality could just blow away many home surveillance cameras.

At the moment, I don’t think that you can attach this cradle to a wall, and the retention system relies on gravity, although that may change in the final design.

The S-Cradle Turns Old Smartphones Into 350 Degrees Cameras , original content from Ubergizmo. Read our Copyrights and terms of use.

Google is planning to add a built-in ad-blocker to Chrome, according to sources, and it will target the Internet’s most obnoxious types of advertisements. These sub-standard advertisements include things like videos that automatically start playing and advertisements that won’t disappear until a long countdown timer is finished. The sources indicate that Google hasn’t ironed out all of the details yet, … Continue reading

A judge in Arkansas has blocked the state from using its supply of a drug used in lethal injections, due to the drug supplier objecting that the state misleadingly obtained its product.

Pulaski County Circuit Judge Alice Gray on Wednesday granted a temporary restraining order that drug supplier McKesson Corp. filed Tuesday. The temporary restraining order is the second one the company has filed related to Arkansas’ use of pancuronium bromide for its death penalty protocol. The drug, which paralyzes the prisoner, is the second step in the state’s three-drug cocktail for the procedure. 

Wednesday’s court order effectively blocks the state from carrying out any executions for as long as it’s in place. The state is trying to execute eight prisoners in 11 days before its supply of midazolam, the first lethal injection drug, expires by month’s end. 

A spokesman for Attorney General Leslie Rutledge (R) said in a statement her office will appeal Gray’s order to the Arkansas Supreme Court.

The state has already been thwarted in its attempt to carry out what have been criticized as “conveyor belt”-like executions between April 17 and April 27.

The state has not held an execution in 12 years.

Two prisoners received individual stays before the execution timeline started; a third was granted a stay within 24 hours of his death warrant expiring.

A fourth prisoner, who is scheduled for execution Thursday night, was granted a stay on Wednesday just minutes before Gray’s order was handed down. 

McKesson Corp. last week filed a nearly identical temporary restraining order, which was upheld by a different Pulaski County Circuit judge. The drug supplier filed to dismiss its temporary restraining order just days later following an order by a federal appeals court judge to halt the executions. The company said the federal ruling made their order unnecessary.

The federal order was later reversed, putting the executions back on track. Meanwhile, the judge who granted the company’s first temporary restraining order was removed from all capital punishment-related cases in Pulaski County after his participation in an anti-death penalty demonstration drew criticism.

McKesson does not approve of its drugs for use in executions. On Wednesday, the company said in a statement that it wants to “prevent the use of our product for something other than a legitimate medical purpose. McKesson is committed to ensuring that its property is only used in a manner consistent with our supplier agreement.”

In its filing, McKesson demanded the Arkansas Department of Corrections return the 10 vials of the drug it has. The company said it has already refunded the department and demands the drugs be impounded.

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