The Internet is all abuzz with talks of near-field communication (NFC) chips in mobile phones and the newest and (and thinnest!) forms of payment. Apple is particularly interested in NFC with rumors stating the company may equip the upcoming iPhone 5 with such capabilities. New reports show the interest is still there, but it’s unclear which phone will utilize the technology. Forbes magazine reported Apple ...

Google's accused the Chinese government of blocking its Gmail service, making it difficult for local users to access the site. People within the country have been complaining in recent weeks that they've had difficulty accessing their accounts or sending email. Even the Person Finder application, set up to help people locate missing relatives in the aftermath of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami, appears ...

Just a generation ago, the British on vacation were happy as clams sitting on a rain-lashed Cornish beach with some fish-paste sandwiches and a thermos of tea. Not so these days, it seems. Online travel agent has conducted a survey of where its customers expect to be going over the next few years, and discovered that many are aiming somewhat higher. More than one in ten reckoned that holidays to the moon wi ...

Iranian scientists are claiming to have build a functioning flying saucer, state news service Farsnews reports. As you'll see from the photograph, they're a little further behind in the development of a functioning camera. But Farnas Aerospace Company and Iranian Aviation and Space Industries Association (IASIA) say that the unmanned device, named Zohal - Arabic for Saturn - has been successfully demonstrat ...

Asus, one of the biggest companies to embrace the world of netbooks and tablets, has announced the completion of its first tablet to be powered by Android 3.0. The Eee Pad will begin selling this Friday, but only in the company's home country of Taiwan. It is expected to roll out to other parts of the world at a later time. The Eee Pad joins an exclusive group of devices to use the so-called "Honeycomb" ver ...

Sprint has struck gold with its 'Evo' brand of 4G smartphones, and it looks like it's about to throw glasses-free 3D technology into the mix. One of the biggest mobile trade shows, the CTIA Wireless convention, is set to kick off this week in Orlando, and according to Boy Genius Report, one of the big items it will be showing off is the HTC Evo 3D. According to the speculation, the device will come equipped ...

Acknowledging that the majority of phones sold around the world are on-smartphone models, Facebook has agreed to buy Israeli start-up Snaptu, which offers social networking services on simpler phones. As many as four in ten Facebook users currently connect from their mobile phones. But with IDC data showing that smartphones account for less than a quarter of worldwide mobile phone sales, Facebook's keen to ...

Apple's coming under fire from gay rights groups over an app that claims to be able to 'cure' homosexuality. The app is produced by Floridan anti-gay group Exodus International, which claims to 'address the issue of homosexuality with grace and truth'. It's aimed at 'curing' homosexuals by telling them God disapproves. Its website includes such graceful statements as 'homosexuality is associated with dysfun ...

An electric bicycle inspired by a city scooter or a city scooter inspired by an electric bicycle? That's the Voltitude Bike from Switzerland, a cute little folding e-bike/scooter designed to take the best of both worlds in getting you from Point A to Point B. How Green Works reports that this street-legal ride re-charges in just four hours, a definite advantage over many battery-powered bikes. Despite the f ...

The Mac App Store, Apple's attempt at making a computer software download service as easy as the App Stores on iPhone and iPad, is already pulling in about half as many downloads as the iPad. Getting computer users to switch over to the new platform will be a difficult task, but apparently users are catching on quickly. According to research firm Distimo, the Mac App Store raked in nearly $150,000 in Februa ...