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10 tech stories you missed this week: Jeep hacking recall, iTunes sale, and more

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In the tech world, a lot happens in a week. Too much, in fact, for mere mortals with real lives to keep track of everything. That’s why we’ve compiled a quick and dirty list of the top 10 tech stories from this week. From Grooveshark’s co-founder Josh Greenberg passing away at 28 to cheating site AshleyMadison.com being hacked, and Google announcing it’s shutting down Google+ Photos on August 1, it’s all here.

Grooveshark co-founder Josh Greenberg found dead at 28

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Josh Greenberg / Facebook.com

Josh Greenberg, co-founder of the music streaming service Grooveshark, was found dead in his Florida home on Sunday. He was 28 years old. According to the Gainesville, Florida police department, there was no evidence of foul play or suicide. Josh’s mother Lori Greenberg told The Gainesville Sun that her son was in good health and good spirits: “He was excited about potential new things that he was going to start.”

Read the full story here.

AshleyMadison site hack means your cheating ways could be revealed

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The popular dating site for cheaters AshleyMadison.com was hacked on Sunday by a group claiming to have access to user profiles, usernames, passwords, emails and more. Security expert Brian Krebs first reported that the hackers, who call themselves The Impact Team, published a range of user data they snatched from ALM — which is the parent company behind Ashley Madison, Cougar Life, and Established Me. While the hacker had a problem with AshleyMadison.com, the main issue was with a feature called Full Delete, which was supposed to remove a profile and personal details from the company’s site and servers – for a fee of $19.

Read the full story here.

Google+ Photos shuts down on August 1: Here’s how to save your photos and videos

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Google announced it will shut down its Google+ Photos service, starting on August 1, the company said in a Google+ blog post on Thursday. While the Android version will be the first to be shut down, the iOS and web version will happen soon after. Google is encouraging its users to transition to its new Google Photos service, which allows users to upload unlimited photos for free. Here’s how you can manually upload Google+ Photos to Google Photos.

Read the full story here.

Massive 1.4 million car recall over hacking

Massive 1.4 million car recall over hacking
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Like everything else that’s connected to the Internet, new cars are vulnerable to hacking. But when a car is hacked, things can get dangerous, fast. In an article posted on Wired earlier this week, a pair of software engineers demonstrated the ability to hack not only a Jeep’s entertainment system, but also cut the breaks and perform a number of horrible, life-endangering acts. On the same day the article premiered, July 21, Senators introduced The Security and Privacy in Your Car Act, a bill intended to set up benchmarks and security standards for connected vehicles. But the damage has already been done. FCA, the parent company of Jeep, has issued recalls for 1.4 million Jeep, Dodge, and Chrysler vehicles deemed vulnerable to the hack.

Read the full story here.

Spotify’s Discovery Weekly serves up new tunes tailored just for you

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Jessica Lee Star/ DigitalTrends

Spotify introduced a ton of new features with its latest update, and now it’s looking to help discover new music. Among them is a new tool called Discover Weekly, which builds a playlist based on your listening history and the tastes of people who like the same genres and artists as you. The new feature appears at the top of Spotify’s playlist tab on both mobile apps and the Web. The feature highlights new releases, making sure you get access to albums and artists you haven’t listened to before.

Read the full story here.

Facebook gets taste of its own medicine, forced to hand over user information to court

Facebook gets taste of its own medicine, forced to hand over user information to court
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Earlier this week, Facebook lost its appeal looking to block some New York search warrants. A ruling by five judges found that the social media giant “does not have the power to ask a judge to throw out search warrants before they have been executed.” Facebook says this decision may force the company to hand over data to the law enforcement officials, which will affect more than 381 users information.

Read the full story here.

Next page: 5 more tech stories you might have missed this week

Apple continues to make a boatload of money, but questions surround the iPad and Apple Watch

Apple continues to make a boatload of money, but questions surround the iPad and Apple Watch
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Apple announced its third quarter earnings on Tuesday, and as a whole, the company generated $49.6 billion and net profit of $10.7 billion, all record figures for the third quarter of any given year. According to Apple, “the growth was fueled by record third quarter sales of iPhone and Mac, all-time record revenue from service and the successful launch of Apple Watch.” 

Read the full story here.

GoPro is working on a new mobile app that will let you edit and share videos

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GoPro president Tony Bates had plenty of good news to share in a meeting with investors on Tuesday. Bates discussed everything from GoPro working on a new mobile app to its cloud service, and the unveiling of a new content licensing portal for creative professionals. he also told investors that the firm has been working on a new mobile app that will allow users to edit and share videos from their mobile devices. While Bates didn’t give out too many details on its features, he said the app is in its final phase of testing and should launch by the end of the summer.

Read the full story here.

Her, the dating app for lesbians and bisexual women, goes national

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Her, the mobile dating service that caters to lesbian women, has announced that it’s available nationwide. The app promises there are “No men, no fakes. We provide a safe space for gay and bisexual women, so you know you’re talking to real people.” Previously, Her was only available in seven cities across the United States, including San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Boston, Chicago, Phoenix, and Miami.

Read the full story here.

Microsoft launches Send its email-based messaging app

Microsoft launches Send, its email-based messaging app
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Microsoft launched a new standalone email app called Send, which is available only for iPhone users in the U.S. and Canada. Previously, the app was leaked as Flow by Outlook. Microsoft said in a blog post that it wanted to “make conversations fast and fluid while keeping the people who are important to you at its core.”

Read the full story here.

Great Deal: 100 cool apps that cost $1 on iTunes right now

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If you’re looking to discover some cool apps and games on sale, you’re in luck because Apple has launched one of its biggest iTunes App Store promotions, discounting more than 100 apps to $1. Many of the popular apps on sale include Pixelmator, Facetune, Retromatic, and GoodReader. Games on sale are titles like Badland, Shadowmatic, Goat Simulator, and more. We’re not sure how long this promotion will last, so you might want to head on over to the App Store.

Read the full story here.

Karen Tumbokon
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Karen is a technology, music and entertainment writer. Originally from New Jersey, Karen began her writing career in music…
Juiced Bikes offers 20% off on all e-bikes amid signs of bankruptcy
Juiced Bikes Scrambler ebike

A “20% off sitewide” banner on top of a company’s website should normally be cause for glee among customers. Except if you’re a fan of that company’s products and its executives remain silent amid mounting signs that said company might be on the brink of bankruptcy.That’s what’s happening with Juiced Bikes, the San Diego-based maker of e-bikes.According to numerous customer reports, Juiced Bikes has completely stopped responding to customer inquiries for some time, while its website is out of stock on all products. There are also numerous testimonies of layoffs at the company.Even more worrying signs are also piling up: The company’s assets, including its existing inventory of products, is appearing as listed for sale on an auction website used by companies that go out of business.In addition, a court case has been filed in New York against parent company Juiced Inc. and Juiced Bike founder Tora Harris, according to Trellis, a state trial court legal research platform.Founded in 2009 by Harris, a U.S. high-jump Olympian, Juiced Bikes was one of the early pioneers of the direct-to-consumer e-bike brands in the U.S. market.The company’s e-bikes developed a loyal fandom through the years. Last year, Digital Trends named the Juiced Bikes Scorpion X2 as the best moped-style e-bike for 2023, citing its versatility, rich feature set, and performance.The company has so far stayed silent amid all the reports. But should its bankruptcy be confirmed, it could legitimately be attributed to the post-pandemic whiplash experienced by the e-bike industry over the past few years. The Covid-19 pandemic had led to a huge spike in demand for e-bikes just as supply chains became heavily constrained. This led to a ramp-up of e-bike production to match the high demand. But when consumer demand dropped after the pandemic, e-bike makers were left with large stock surpluses.The good news is that the downturn phase might soon be over just as the industry is experiencing a wave of mergers and acquisitions, according to a report by Houlihan Lokey.This may mean that even if Juiced Bikes is indeed going under, the brand and its products might find a buyer and show up again on streets and trails.

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Volkswagen plans 8 new affordable EVs by 2027, report says
volkswagen affordable evs 2027 id 2all

Back in the early 1970s, when soaring oil prices stifled consumer demand for gas-powered vehicles, Volkswagen took a bet on a battery system that would power its first-ever electric concept vehicle, the Elektro Bus.
Now that the German automaker is facing a huge slump in sales in Europe and China, it’s again turning to affordable electric vehicles to save the day.Volkswagen brand chief Thomas Schaefer told German media that the company plans to bring eight new affordable EVs to market by 2027."We have to produce our vehicles profitably and put them on the road at affordable prices," he is quoted as saying.
One of the models will be the ID.2all hatchback, the development of which is currently being expedited to 36 months from its previous 50-month schedule. Last year, VW unveiled the ID.2all concept, promising to give it a price tag of under 25,000 euros ($27,000) for its planned release in 2025.VW CEO Larry Blume has also hinted at a sub-$22,000 EV to be released after 2025.It’s unclear which models would reach U.S. shores. Last year, VW America said it planned to release an under-$35,000 EV in the U.S. by 2027.The price of batteries is one of the main hurdles to reduced EV’s production costs and lower sale prices. VW is developing its own unified battery cell in several European plants, as well as one plant in Ontario, Canada.But in order for would-be U.S. buyers to obtain the Inflation Reduction Act's $7,500 tax credit on the purchase of an EV, the vehicle and its components, including the battery, must be produced at least in part domestically.VW already has a plant in Chattanooga, Tennesse, and is planning a new plant in South Carolina. But it’s unclear whether its new unified battery cells would be built or assembled there.

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Nissan launches charging network, gives Ariya access to Tesla SuperChargers
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Nissan just launched a charging network that gives owners of its EVs access to 90,000 charging stations on the Electrify America, Shell Recharge, ChargePoint and EVgo networks, all via the MyNissan app.It doesn’t stop there: Later this year, Nissan Ariya vehicles will be getting a North American Charging Standard (NACS) adapter, also known as the Tesla plug. And in 2025, Nissan will be offering electric vehicles (EVs) with a NACS port, giving access to Tesla’s SuperCharger network in the U.S. and Canada.Starting in November, Nissan EV drivers can use their MyNissan app to find charging stations, see charger availability in real time, and pay for charging with a payment method set up in the app.The Nissan Leaf, however, won’t have access to the functionality since the EV’s charging connector is not compatible. Leaf owners can still find charging stations through the NissanConnectEV and Services app.Meanwhile, the Nissan Ariya, and most EVs sold in the U.S., have a Combined Charging System Combo 1 (CCS1) port, which allows access to the Tesla SuperCharger network via an adapter.Nissan is joining the ever-growing list of automakers to adopt NACS. With adapters, EVs made by General Motors, Ford, Rivian, Honda and Volvo can already access the SuperCharger network. Kia, Hyundai, Toyota, BMW, Volkswagen, and Jaguar have also signed agreements to allow access in 2025.
Nissan has not revealed whether the adapter for the Ariya will be free or come at a cost. Some companies, such as Ford, Rivian and Kia, have provided adapters for free.
With its new Nissan Energy Charge Network and access to NACS, Nissan is pretty much covering all the bases for its EV drivers in need of charging up. ChargePoint has the largest EV charging network in the U.S., with over 38,500 stations and 70,000 charging ports at the end of July. Tesla's charging network is the second largest, though not all of its charging stations are part of the SuperCharger network.

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