Face off: shadowy data theft, and Ellen Page wants her ID back

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Week in tech
Face off: shadowy data theft, and Ellen Page wants her ID back
 

It's been a shadowy old week, with pointy fingers emerging from all sorts of quarters. First up, actress Ellen Page accused PS3 game The Last of Us of stealing her face. Some of us think that Ellie (the character in question) looks more like Ashley Johnson, who plays her. But we appreciate that seeing what looks like your face chewed off could be uncomfortable.

Elsewhere, patron saint of the internet Sir Tim Berners-Lee advised against complacency in the face of government and corporate "online spying". Meanwhile, Facebook has found yet another way to get all up in our business - through our friends. Even if your profile is blank, Facebook can still "shadow profile" you by nabbing your contact details from a friend's address book or recording searches of your name. It’s legally murky and pretty terrifying.

In among this depressing news, the good stuff: we took a hands-on look at the Xperia Z Ultra, Sony's new tiny-tablet-massive-phone mash-up, and liked it. Sony also unveiled the SmartWatch 2 this week. Finally, an alternative to the soon-to-be-late Google Reader is on the cards - from Digg. Keep an eye on TR for our round-up of the best Reader alternatives.

Read the full story
 
 
In this week
Week in Tech: Face off: shadowy data theft, and Ellen Page wants her ID back
Talking points: Xbox One, iPhone 5S leak, Windows 8.1 hands on and the quest for a decent Android tablet 
Competition: WIN! One of 25 EVAP Smartphone Rescue Packs
The week's best buys: Intel Core i5-4670K, Panasonic Lumix GF6 and Windows 8
Top 20: Best Android phones
 
Talking points
1
10 overlooked Xbox One features you should know about
 
Microsoft finally backed away Xbox One's stringent used game policy and daily check-ins, but in the firestorm, many of the most exciting features were overlooked. Change that now with our run-down of the reasons to want an Xbox One. Read more
 
 
 
2
Possible iPhone 5S pictures show an incremental update
The iPhone 5S is shaping up to be an incremental update to Apple's smartphone line, not a major revision, with newly leaked photos adding support to that theory. Compiled by SlashGear, the pictures of an unassembled supposed iPhone 5S reveal a device with similar dimensions and features to the existing iPhone 5 model. Read more
 
 
 
3
Hands on: Windows 8.1 review
 
We've finally had some hands-on time with an official build of Windows 8.1 - and yes, many of the rumours and leaks are accurate. The Start button is back, you can boot to the desktop and SkyDrive is built in to sync files. Read more
 
 
 
4
Seriously, why is a decent Android tablet so hard to find?
Have you any idea how hard it is to buy the perfect Android tablet (asks TR columnist Phil Lavelle)? This is where Apple fan boys say: "Buy an iPad." But what if you don't want an iPad? What if you prefer Android or just fancy something a little bit different? There's loads of choice. But there are also loads of boxes left unticked. Read more
 
 
 
Competition
WIN! One of 25 EVAP Smartphone Rescue Packs
 
Water is a smartphone’s worst enemy. The innovative new EVAP Rescue Pouch safely removes moisture from soaked electronics, and has been shown in lab tests to save up to 90 per cent of water-damaged devices.
Enter competition
 
WIN! An Orange Micro Terror Guitar stack worth £158
Enter competition
 
 
 
WIN! A Mac mini and a bundle of MacPaw apps
Enter competition
 
 
 
 
Your tweets this week
 
 
 
The week's best buys
 

The i5-4670K is faster than the old 3570K, and only costs slightly more, so surely it's a worthy successor? Well, yes and no. The improvements are too small to be truly exciting, but even so the new Intel Core i5-4670K is our new favourite all-round gaming CPU.
View offer
Read review
 
 
 
 

Panasonic is known for quickly refreshing its cameras lineup. The GF series, which is the company's beginner option, was last upgraded roughly 12 months ago, so it's no surprise to see the replacement Panasonic GF6 making an appearance now.
View offer
Read review
 
 
 
 

This is the fastest, most secure, most battery friendly version of Windows 8. It's also a bold move to head off the danger of Windows becoming irrelevant in a tablet future, by giving you the best of both worlds. Keep an open mind and we defy you not to be impressed by Windows 8.
View offer
Read review
 
 
 
What could tempt an iOS fan to Android?
@Giles_Lewis I've had my ASUS Transformer for a couple of years now and I'm still very happy with it. Using it less now I'm on the Note 2 tho.
 
 
@onybhoy610 Nexus 7.
 
 
@Mr_Rob_Johnson The Xperia Z, made even better with a Sony TV to flick media through the air to. I got the Sony S!
 
 
 
Top  10  best Android phones
We've rounded up the best Android handsets out there today, rating the phones on hardware performance, OS upgrade potential and, of course, how shiny and nice they are.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
View top 20
 
 
 
   
TechRadar promotion
TechRadar deals of the week: Samsung 42-inch F4500
 

We've been patrolling the internet for tech bargains, and those of you looking for a quality flat panel TV a bargain price need look no further. The Samsung 43-inch F4500 plasma TV is on offer at a pretty tasty price of only £299 from ebuyer.com. With HD-ready (1024 x 768) resolution, 600Hz refresh rate and a Freeview tuner, you're sure to get a quality picture, and it won't leave you weeping into your wallet.

View promotion
Lenovo IdeaPad Z500 Touch
 

Haswell, Intel's fourth-generation Core processors refresh, is a chip family looking to redefine Ultrabooks once again. Where does this leave normal laptops, though? Is there still room for a machine that focuses on actually getting a job done? Enter, if you please, the Lenovo IdeaPad Z500 Touch..

View promotion
new issue out now
Now that iOS 7 has finally been introduced to the world, this issue of tech. magazine answers the big question: which is better, Android or Apple?

Download now
 
 
 
 
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