Articles by David Nield, Freelance Contributor

Gemini now lets you turn off the visible watermark on your AI creations — here's how to do it, and how your content is still flagged as AI

By David Nield Published 16 August 26

Now you can choose whether or not images, video, and music created through the Gemini app will have watermarks.

Think Flock is bad? This new tech is coming to link license plates with your phone — and it could be another death knell for privacy

By David Nield Published 16 August 26

New SignalTrace tech is designed to help in crime investigations, but there are questions about privacy.

Two phones showing the Google Health app.

The latest Google Health update lets you hide the AI Coach — and I'll be glad to take a break from its advice

By David Nield Published 15 August 26

Users have been requesting that the AI Coach wouldn't be quite so forward, and Google has listened.

The Nokia 9000 Communicator next to the Nokia E7

'We were five years ahead': the Nokia 9000 Communicator launched 30 years ago today — and squandering its smartphone lead will forever haunt Nokia's former CEO

By David Nield Published 15 August 26

The Nokia 9000 Communicator was a device ahead of its time, and we're exactly now three decades on from its debut. Here's how the world reacted, before Apple stole its crown.

A Flock camera covered with a 3D-printed cover, next to a Flock license plate reader

Flock CEO says 'we're not Big Brother' in the face of surveillance allegations — as 3D printing enthusiasts share 'Flock Sock' camera cover to help protestors

By David Nield Published 14 August 26

Flock is introducing some extra controls over how its cameras can be used, to counter claims of unnecessary spying.

11 Comments

After taking on Whoop, Garmin could come for Oura with its own smart ring — and as a Garmin fan, these are the 3 features I want to see

By David Nield Published 13 August 26

The Cirqa fitness tracker could soon be followed by a Cirqa smart ring, according to a new leak.

A hand holding the Google Pixel Tag and an Apple AirTag

The Pixel Tag is here — but it won't be an AirTag for Android until Google fixes these Find Hub issues

By David Nield Published 12 August 26

A new Bluetooth tracker isn't as exciting if the tracking network that it's part of needs improving.

Watch out, Waze fans — there's a bug that means reports of police aren't showing up for many

By David Nield Published 12 August 26

It appears that a select number of Waze users aren't getting police alerts on the map, even though they're being submitted.

A British Transport Police offer at a station next to live facial recognition cameras

London Underground is trialing live face scanning from today as privacy groups say it 'treats the public like suspects' — here's how to avoid it

By David Nield Published 11 August 26

The British Transport Police are putting facial recognition cameras in Tube stations, but face a backlash against the tech.

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 on a wooden table, in an upside-down 'V' shape.

'The wobble is so annoying': one Galaxy Z Fold 8 user has resorted to an extreme fix to ensure their foldable lies perfectly flat

By David Nield Published 10 August 26

Someone has hacked off the cameras on their Galaxy Z Fold 8 just so the handset lies flat on a surface.

DJI Mini 5 Pro in flight with trees in the background

The FCC could start banning DJI drones that have previously been approved, and DJI isn't happy about it

By David Nield Published 9 August 26

Drones that have previously been approved for sale in the US might soon be removed from stores.

Gmail is killing off one of its best features — and now I can't use it as my favorite email hub

By David Nield Published 8 August 26

Gmail won't play as nicely with other third-party email accounts as it used to, so I'll have to change my email habits.

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A still of Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn in The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King

'You'll own nothing and you'll like it': Google pulls the Lord of the Rings digital editions from one user's library, our latest reminder that digital purchases aren't always forever

By David Nield Published 8 August 26

One unfortunate user no longer has access to the Lord of the Rings Extended Edition after buying it from Google.

Two kids on their phones next to a photo of Mark Zuckerberg

New Mexico judge calls Meta a 'public nuisance' that's like a factory emitting 'noxious pollution' in record $567 million fine — and even Meta's own attorneys agree

By David Nield Published 7 August 26

In the second phase of the landmark New Mexico case, the judge says Facebook and Instagram are major polluters.

Heatwaves are getting so bad you can buy this portable 'human fridge' in Japan to save you from heatstroke — and it'll blast you with 41F air

By David Nield Published 6 August 26

So it's come to this: a portable cooling box for use in warehouses, on construction sites, and on campuses.

Google Assistant will shut down for good on Android and Wear OS in September — here's what you need to do next

By David Nield Published 5 August 26

Google has confirmed that Google Assistant will stop working on Android and Wear OS in the near future.

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The 78.4 kWh Base Core battery can keep your home running during an outage, installs in under an hour, and gives back to the grid — as home battery installations reach a record high

By David Nield Published 4 August 26

Base Power just raised $1 billion for its Base Core battery, amid a significant uptick in home energy solutions.

Two Casio ABL-100WE watches on a white background next to the Casio CRW-H001 smart ring on a finger

Casio is going all-out on retro fitness trackers — as two vintage watches with Bluetooth step-tracking join a new version of its wild smart ring

By David Nield Published 3 August 26

Casio's latest products shift the company further towards the health and fitness market.

Google pulling Nano Banana from Google Earth after one day shows how bad our AI misinformation problem has got

By David Nield Published 2 August 26

Google rolled out its AI image editing trickery to Google Earth on the web, but it didn't take long before it was misused.

I logged 250 miles testing Android Auto vs Apple CarPlay and there's one I'm going to stick with

By David Nield Published 1 August 26

Which of these competent dashboards deserves to take priority in your vehicle? I put in the miles to find out.

3 Comments

A laptop on a table showing a Plex video library

I built a personal Netflix in three hours using the free Plex app — and I’m convinced it’s the future for Blu-ray and DVD fans

By David Nield Published 30 July 26

It's got to the stage where I'm getting back into my Plex library because streaming apps have too many frustrations.

A laptop screen showing Claude and Chrome extensions made with Claude

Can’t find the Chrome extension you want? I used Claude to make me two personalized ones — and they’re working flawlessly

By David Nield Published 27 July 26

One of the ways you can use your AI chatbot of choice is to customize your web browser to better suit your needs.

Google's data center in Council Bluffs, Iowa

'How we build is just as important as what we build' — Google reveals how it's going to solve the AI data center water problem by 2030

By David Nield Published 26 July 26

Google says it'll be giving rather than taking water when it comes to data center use within four years.

Now might be a good time to get yourself a Roku: prices are set to rise by up to 60%, and the memory shortage is to blame

By David Nield Published 26 July 26

The prices on all of the Roku streaming sticks and boxes have gone up — though only in the US for now.

OpenAI quietly signs letter from Nvidia, Microsoft, and Meta warning about dangers of 'premature restrictions' on open-weight AI models — as the White House accuses China of stealing from Anthropic

By David Nield Published 25 July 26

With China's open-weight AI models continuing to improve, US companies want to see a free market for all.

David Nield

Articles by: David Nield

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