Mobile-related technologies for the past week, in 3 (or almost) words: Lollipop, Are You Safe, No Network

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THE WEEK IN 3WORDS

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WEEK #45

3. LOLLIPOP
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Lollipop, the latest Android release, is out for public, shipped with the
Nexus 9 tablet. Its main (visible) update is its layout and look & feel:
Google introduced the “material design”, which is supposed to mimic
real life materials (paper and ink) for a more intuitive user experience.
But there are a lot of other improvements under the hood.
So far so good, critics are quite enthusiastic. The new design is applauded, and
is said to relegate the previous version to a kind of prehistoric design. Features
such as the automatic screen unlock in presence of a second trusted device
(such as a smartwatch) or the encrypted data, the new keyboard layout, etc.
are innovative and definitely facilitate the usage of the device.
The Lollipop version, coming with critical acclaim and following the rather
tedious launch of iOS8 – which wasn’t really disruptive – may propel Android
even further ahead in the mobile OS market.

5. ARE YOU SAFE?
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Are the apps you’re using because they claim your safe with
them really safe?
The EFF, Electronic Frontier Foundation, has released the
results of a survey* where they tested popular messaging
applications against a set of security practices or potential
threats. Those results don’t always look great…
Despite all recent issues regarding privacy (from social
networks sharing users’ personal information w/ NSA to
hacking of iCloud or Snapshat), the app makers do not
yet prioritize encryption and other security measures
over features.
It’s only when we’re sorry that we understand that we should
(h*) ahttvpse:// wbwwe.eeff.onrg /sseacurfee-mre…ssaging-scorecard

7. NO NETWORK…
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Frequently annoyed with your smartphone telling you
there is no network when you dramatically needs one?
Apple has patented a new method to keep track of end-users’
connectivity: when the smartphone looses its
connection, the last antenna it was connected to is
recorded. This allows to identify quite precisely the
mobile network blind spots and… help fix them?
This technology is definitely aiming at providing carriers
with information about their networks. But will mobile
operators use such information to actually improve their
network, given the fact that blind spots are very likely to
be in areas with few consumers?