Paul Lilly
Paul is a seasoned geek who was first seduced into the world of computers and technology by the Commodore 64, and through the years he’s courted a number of OSes and platforms from DOS on up to the latest version of Windows. Having joined the HotHardware team in 2011, Paul is now a mainstay of the site covering the news beat and reviews, and resident wiseguy who keeps the mood light. He’s also an experienced freelance technology writer whose work has appeared in a number of online and print publications.
Opinions and content posted by HotHardware contributors are their own.
Recent posts
The iPhone 5 is on pace to become the best selling smartphone model of all time, but even though that's the case, wireless carriers won't see any real gain for several months. Unlike Android phones, the subsidies on iPhone models are much higher. Barclays analyst James Ratcliffe estimates that the iPhone subsidy is...
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The power of the Internet makes us wonder how we ever got along without it. Case in point: Kevin Burke, an independent developer, discovered a major security hole that left six million Virgin Mobile USA customers vulnerable to a relatively simple brute force attack. After alerting Virgin Mobile of the flaw a month ago and seeing no fix in...
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Kickstarter, an increasingly popular crowd funding site that's helped developers and inventors raise millions of dollars for their projects, wants to clear the air. First and foremost, "Kickstarter is not a store," the site stated in a blog post. "It's hard to know how many people feel like they're shopping at a store...
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After months and months of rumors, followed by an official announcement and a little over a week of waiting, Apple's much heralded iPhone 5 is finally here. Depending on where you live, however, don't expect to leisurely trot on down to your neighborhood Apple store and walk away with a new generation iPhone model...
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AT&T claims it has the nation's largest 4G network, a claim that's based largely on its HSPA+ infrastructure. But what about 4G LTE (Long Term Evolution)? The wireless carrier's working on it. Leading up to the iPhone 5 launch, AT&T flipped the 4G LTE switch on in almost a dozen new major cities across the...
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The television market isn't growing as fast as display makers would like, and as we reported earlier in the month, global TV shipments actually declined for the second consecutive quarter, dropping 8 percent yer-over-over in Q2. That's bad news for companies like Sharp, who have made a living selling TV sets. Enter...
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You don't buy an iPhone device with the intention of tearing it open and modding the handset in any significant way. In fact, most of Apple's products are a bear to service and/or mod, but would you believe things are getting better? Perhaps you've heard, Apple launched a new smartphone, and believe it or not, the iPhone 5 isn't a complete...
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One current and two former Hewlett-Packard employees have been named in a criminal bribery case brought on by German prosecutors. According to the indictment, a three-year investigation found that HP executives issued $10 million in kickbacks in order to secure a contract worth four and a half times as much with...
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Samsung is certainly feeling spunky these days. After launching a pretty hilarious ad campaign poking fun at Apple users who wait in long lines to purchase every new iPhone iteration, the smartphone maker is again going on the offensive, but in a more serous manner. Reportedly, Samsung said it expects to sue Apple for...
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Not even a week after Apple held a press event to announce the iPhone 5 (and new iPod models), the company's share price has shot up and above the $700 mark, ending the day at $702.10 on Wednesday. Apple's market capitalization now sits at $658.15 billion, an obscenely high valuation that underscores the legacy Steve Jobs left behind. Credit...
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If Apple wasn't worth over half a trillion dollars, we'd almost feel bad about Samsung's comically disparaging ads aimed at the iPhone maker. Sometimes the truth hurts, however, and far be it for us to discourage Samsung from making us laugh by pointing out how silly the whole Apple culture has become. The latest ad (embedded below) once again...
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Intel is leveling up its Wireless Display (WiDi) technology that was first introduced two years ago. The newest iteration -- version 3.5 -- adds a bunch of nifty new features that expand its capabilities, and of course implements support for Windows 8 and its touch-friendly interface. Before we dive into the new...
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Nokia is desperately trying to reestablish itself as a major contender in the mobile phone space, but it's no easy task going up against the likes of Apple and Samsung. There's also a lot riding for company CEO Stephen Elop, who could find himself looking for a new job if the Lumia 920 fails to excite customers the way he envisioned. Elop...
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A number of prominent online companies have joined forces to create The Internet Association, the nation's first trade association claiming to represent the interests of the Internet economy. Led by President and CEO Michael Beckerman, IA consists of Amazon.com, AOL, eBay, Expedia, Facebook, Google, IAC, LinkedIn...
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It just wouldn't be an Apple product launch without a shortage of inventory to meet the frenzied demand, would it? The iPhone 5 is no exception. Apple's latest and greatest smartphone launches to retail two days from now -- September 21, 2012 -- but if you place your pre-order online, Apple says you can expect shipment in 3-4 weeks. That's...
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Not feeling the iPhone 5 or Galaxy S III? That's okay, there are no shortage of smartphones to choose from, and one of the latest happens to be from Motorola. Remember Motorola Mobility? The company hasn't garnered as many headlines recently as its two previously mentioned competitors, but lest anyone forget Motorola's still a major...
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Think you've seen it all? Think again. We'd bet the farm you've never witnessed a popcorn machine that shoots those delicious popped kernels into your mouth on command. The Popinator Project, conceived by Popcorn Indiana, is a wonderfully geeky device touted as the "world's first automated voice activated popcorn...
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Manipulating photographs on smartphones and tablets is becoming an increasingly important proposition for mobile users. Along with the social benefits that tie into such tasks, it's the reason Facebook forked over $1 billion to acquire Instagram, a free app that essentially makes good photos look old and crappy...
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Still clinging to Internet Explorer? If so, be aware of a recently posted security advisory (2757760) alerting IE users of a vulnerability that could allow attackers to execute malicious code from a remote location. According to Microsoft, the the vulnerability affects affects IE6, IE7, IE8, and IE9 (IE10 is...
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Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, a division of News Corporation, announced today the launch of Digital HD, a new initiative designed to make hundreds of Fox movies available to purchase digitally on a number of connected devices. That currently equates to 600 Fox films, all available immediately to download...
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Sanjay Dastoor, co-founder of Boosted Boards, claims that 50 percent of all trips people take in cars are under 5 miles, and that's 20 percent of all commutes. Considering the average automobile weighs several thousands pounds, it seems like overkill for all those short trips, doesn't it? Hence the reason Dastoor and...
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Samsung may have lost its patent dispute with Apple, but it's winning the war of words with clever advertising. The mobile carrier took out a full page ad to highlight the differences between its own Galaxy S III smartphone and Apple's recently announced iPhone 5 device, the latter of which is racking up pre-orders at a feverish pace. Lest...
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