Your Phone Since Microsoft formally announced that it has abandoned its smartphone division late in 2017, it has been working on making smartphones running Android and iOS work better with Windows 10. To help you integrate your phone with your Windows 10 experience, Microsoft has developed an app called Your Phone. Your Phone is primarily meant to work with phones running Android OS, letting you sync your photos and text messages. Some features include the ability to paste photos taken from your mobile device right from the PC, and the ability to send SMS messages from your PC, via your phone number. Microsoft has been trying to get these features to work with iOS-run phones, but Apple has restricted access to SMS data in iOS limiting iPhone?s integration with the Your Phone app. Timeline Outside of the development of mobile phone integration, Timeline is the major new feature for the 2018 update. Timeline is a more detailed version of Task View; a feature Windows 10 has had since its inception that lets people see what software they are currently running. Timeline shows you what apps and activities you?ve used on your Windows 10 PC in the past 30 days. Since this information syncs across all machines you are signed into with the same account, you can see when you worked or completed a task for up to 30 days on multiple machines. This feature also works with Microsoft Edge Apps on Android and iOS, which allows users to see their progress and keep their productivity up while on mobile. Enhanced Dictation Microsoft has had some form of integrated dictation for some time, but in this year?s Windows 10 upgrade, they?ve added an easy way to launch the dictation tool. To get it to work, you first have to turn on speech services. To do so, go to Settings > Privacy > Speech, inking, & typing. On this screen you will want to turn on speech services using the button. Once it is initialized, you only need to hit the windows key + h to launch the dictation service. Windows 10 is gaining more and more functionality as major updates are rolled out. To learn more about what is capable with Windows 10, call our knowledgeable IT technicians today at (603) 889-0800.

Naturally, this scenario is one that we all wish to avoid. To do so, it may help to look at why a Google account (and for that matter, any online account) needs to be secured, and a few ways to get you started. Why Your Security is On You (Including Your Google Account) Considering the relatively short time it has been around, the Internet has undergone a major image shift as its purpose has grown more complicated. Initially, the plan for the Internet was to create a means of sharing information. Even its name reflects that, combining inter (which means reciprocal, or shared) with a shortened version of network (defined as a system of connected things). When MIT?s J.C.R. Licklider composed the memos that described, as he called it, the ?Galactic Network? in 1962, this purpose of sharing was displayed in full force. Described as a system of computers that were all connected – despite stretching across the entire world – to provide access to data and helpful programs, the Galactic Network is a dead ringer for the Internet that we know today. Later on, Sir Tim Berners-Lee credits the concept of a decentralized and open environment as the framework upon which he developed the World Wide Web. As he put it: ?Had the technology been proprietary, and in my total control, it would probably not have taken off. You can?t propose that something be a universal space and at the same time keep control of it.? The Modern Internet Today, the Internet retains many of these qualities. Think about the popularity of social media today, and how much we rely on collaboration in our places of work. Having what is a largely unrestricted network available to us, enabling us to share and cooperate, has allowed us to expand and flourish. These qualities are what have inspired the development of safeguards like open-access information and net neutrality, adopted in most of the industrialized world. Having said this, an exclusively laissez-faire approach has since been rendered impractical, simply because of how the Internet is used. There is a large discrepancy in how the Internet is used now, as compared to the dream of the Galactic Network?s purpose. Rather than spreading education, exclusively, the Internet has become a conduit that can be (and is) used to transmit data of all kinds. This is important to recognize, as the data that is now transmitted is precisely the kind that requires intense security to protect it – and this is precisely why businesses like Google have devoted time to sculpting services that meet this balance. Growing from what was once a Stamford doctorate dissertation project known as BackRub, Google is now a household name. Many businesses rely on the solutions developed by Alphabet Inc., as do a large portion of the general population. One of Google?s most common offshoots is Gmail, with businesses and private users alike using it for everything…including as a means of opening other online accounts. This is exactly why a Google account is so incredibly important to protect. Assuming that you have one, consider your own use of your Gmail account – have you used it to create any other online accounts? How much of your inbox is private information? Putting the Pieces Together This is the crux of why […]

That said, this hasn?t stopped manufacturers from developing new offerings that take previous models and significantly innovate on them. With the majority of the western smartphone market dominated by Apple and Samsung, we thought that we would look at their new flagship devices, as well as three devices we?ve found to be comparable. Without further adieu we present this year?s top flagship smartphones: Huawei Mate 20 Pro What if we told you that what could be the best phone on the market this holiday season may not be available on your carrier? The Chinese electronics giant currently isn?t available through carrier-sponsored deals in the U.S., but that doesn?t stop the Mate 20 Pro from being one of the best smartphones ever developed. The Mate 20 Pro is built on an aluminum chassis and features a 6.4-inch AMOLED display with a Kirin 980 processor. It has four cameras: 40 MP fixed wide-angle lens 20 MP ultra-wide-angle lens 8 MP telephoto lens with 5x optical zoom 8 MP front-facing lens Other options include a first-in-class in-display fingerprint reader and Qi-enabled device charging from the device. It is available in Emerald Green, Midnight Blue, Twilight, Pink Gold, and Black and can be found for $1,100 on the Internet. Specifications Build – Aluminum frame with Glass Front/Back Display – 6.4? AMOLED with ~538 ppi Chipset – HiSilicon Kirin 980 Memory – 6/8GB RAM Storage – 128/256GB with Nano Memory slot up to 256GB Software – Android 9.0 Pie, Huawei UI Cameras – 40 MP (27mm); 20 MP (16mm); 8 MP (80mm) with 5x optical zoom and optical image stabilization. Front facing 24 MP. Battery – 4,200 mAh (85 hours) Additional Features – Face ID, In-display fingerprint scanner, Qi wireless charging broadcasting, 40-Watt fast charging Samsung Galaxy Note 9 Samsung has done it again. Two years after its biggest debacle, the newest iteration of the Galaxy Note, the Note 9, is probably Samsung?s best phone to date. With an octa-core Snapdragon 845, six or eight GB of RAM and 128 or 512 GB of onboard storage, the Note 9 matches up with about any handset available on the market. The device is shipped with Android Oreo 8.1. Onboard the Note 9 has two lenses, a 12 MP wide angle lens, and a 12 MP telephoto lens with optical zoom. The battery checks in at 4,000 mAh and produces an industry-best 97 hours endurance rating. It has an onboard ?S Pen? that provides a lot of additional functionality including remote control over many of the phone?s applications. It is available in Metallic Copper, Lavender Purple, Midnight Black, Ocean Blue, and Pure White, and carries a $1,100 price tag. Specifications Build – Aluminum with Glass Front/Back Display – 6.4? Super AMOLED with ~516 ppi Chipset – Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 Memory – 6 or 8 GB of RAM Storage – 128 or 512 GB of onboard storage and microSD up to 512 GB Software – Android 8.1 Oreo Cameras – 12 MP (26mm); 12 MP (52mm) with 2x optical zoom; optical image stabilization; 8 MP front-facing Battery – 4,000 mAh (97 hours) Additional Features – Samsung S Pen, rear-mounted fingerprint scanner, iris scanner. Apple iPhone XS Max Once again Apple has the most popular device in the U.S. market. This year?s iPhone, the iPhone XS Max is the […]

In particular, the cloud can be used to make your business much more mobile, scalable, and dynamic with enhanced features and more choices than ever before. The Cloud is Flexible The cloud can help your business? employees be much more flexible with the devices that they can work with. For example, let?s say that your employees have a Voice over IP application on their desktop and their mobile device. It can be used either with a headset on-site, or on the phone like a traditional handset. This kind of choice empowers employees to test the boundaries of the workplace and be as productive as possible wherever (and whenever) they happen to be. The Cloud is Scalable The cloud allows you to easily control how many employees have access to a software or piece of data that?s stored in the cloud. For example, in the above scenario with Voice over IP, you might have ten employees at first. Before you know it, you?re starting to experience growth. You have to hire new employees to handle the workload, but the traditional office space would require wires and handsets for each new number. You can instead simply make an account and add a user, eliminating one of the many roadblocks. The Cloud is Feature-Rich The cloud can give your business the boost it needs through the use of additional features in your cloud-based applications. For example, in regards to Voice over IP, you can take advantage of all of the traditional features of voice calling in addition to more modern communication techniques, such as instant messaging, video conferencing, and so on. Depending on the kind of business you run, a public or private cloud solution will be preferable. If you don?t mind having your data be on a shared cloud infrastructure, then public is a fine way to approach cloud computing. If you?d like more control over your cloud solution, then a private cloud hosted on your own in-house infrastructure can offer more enhanced security and functionality at the expense of having an in-house IT department managing it. Of course, the option for a hybrid solution that allows for both high customization and lesser responsibilities on your part can be quite helpful for your organization–particularly if you don?t have an in-house IT department. To learn more, reach out to the outsourced IT experts from White Mountain IT Services at (603) 889-0800.

The Stakes Are High A lost smartphone can have serious consequences in today?s modern environment. While the most immediate issue might seem like the price of the device, you also need to consider what the smartphone provides for users: access to accounts, access to data, and access to anything else stored on the device, including the ability to unlock any accounts (or your business? network) that might have two-factor authentication set up using that particular device. All of this combines to create a situation that is far from ideal, and one that Android developers have planned for with built-in device tracking features. Auto-Location While the features are there, you still need to take some proactive measures to enable them. In your Settings, you need to navigate to Find My Device. Next, you?ll need to turn this setting on. Your Location should be set to High Accuracy. Once this is done, enable Google to Use Location History. This might seem like a privacy issue, but it will make your phone much easier to find if you ever lose it. Once you?ve done this, you can access the same Google account that is used by your device from your web browser. Google will then give you an idea of where your device was last located. It can even detect which Wi-Fi network it?s connected to. If you need to, you can use the Find My Device application to accomplish the same thing for a secondary device. Find My Device also gives you the ability to remotely lock a device and display a message to anyone who might find it. This gives them the opportunity to locate you and return the device. Once you?re in the vicinity of your device, you can also tell the device to ring. It?s notable that this command will override your volume settings so that you?ll be guaranteed to hear the device when it rings (assuming you?re close enough to hear it). Also, of note is that the device can be remotely wiped through the Find My Device feature. Granted, this option is a bit on the extreme side, so try to avoid doing this unless you truly think the device has been stolen. In order for these features to work like you want them to, you need to enable them. Otherwise, you can forget about using them to find your device if you ever lose it or misplace it. Act Fast It?s incredibly important to keep these features in mind, but it?s even more important to understand their limitations. For one, the features only work when the device is on. While you can check its last known location, there?s no guarantee it will be where you left it. If you think your device was stolen, be sure to let your local authorities know and clue them in on what you know about it. For help with managing your mobile devices, reach out to White Mountain IT Services at (603) 889-0800.