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Find Out When That Email You Sent Was Read  our inbox will never look the same after this. A San Francisco-based startup called Streak has developed a free Google Chrome browser extension that's changing the email game: the extension lets email senders see when recipients open an email. Using the extension with a Gmail account, senders will be notified when someone opened their email and who opened the email. See also: It's Not Just You: Gmail Is Slow If that's not useful — or for some, disturbing — enough, Streak will also tell you where the email was opened. The extension will put the email on a map, giving the user real-time location updates about the recipients. An eye icon will appear when a user views an email sent with Streak. When the recipient opens the email, the eye icon will turn green, signaling the sender that their email has been read. The recipient doesn’t need to have Streak installed for the email sender to be notified that the email...

Tech Retrospect: Facebook buys WhatsApp and Google launches Project Tango Miss a few stories this week? We'll get you up to speed with this rundown of all the tech news. The big, multi-billion dollar acquisitions just keep rolling in -- and they keep getting bigger, too. The latest comes courtesy of Facebook, which paid a total of $19 billion in cash, stock, and options for WhatsApp. At first glance that seems like an absolutely preposterous amount of money for an app that many in the US still haven't heard of. But, roll up the numbers plus the angles, and it starts to make a little more sense. If you're unfamiliar with WhatsApp, it's a heavily messaging-focused social network that has approximately 450 million users, 70 percent active on any given day. That's about one-third of the total users that Facebook can count, but the growth of WhatsApp far outpaces that of Facebook or, really, any other social network out there. By making this acquisi...

2014 Audi A7 TDI review: Efficient diesel engine meets connected tech $66,900.00   The good: A diesel drivetrain gives the 2014 Audi A7 TDI impressive fuel economy for a large car. Connected features include Google local search and Google Earth integrated with navigation. Bang & Olufsen audio delivers detailed and balanced music reproduction. The bad: The A7 TDI requires additional maintenance in the form of 10,000 mile AdBlue fill-ups. Audi's proprietary audio port requires adapter cables for external devices; a standard USB port would be preferable. The bottom line: The 2014 Audi A7 TDI includes some of the best connected tech available today in an automobile, and those inclined to put up with a few diesel drivetrain quirks will be rewarded with significantly higher fuel economy than from the gasoline equivalent. In heavy traffic on the freeway, I let the 2014 Audi A7 TDI's cruise control handle braking and accelerating, and gave...

Samsung teaser video hints Galaxy S5 is happy when wet A video published three days before Samsung's Mobile World Congress press conference hints that its new flagship phone might well be waterproof. A Samsung teaser video suggests the Samsung Galaxy S5 will indeed be waterproof, as one rumor about the flagship Android phone has it. (Credit: screenshot by Stephen Shankland/CNET) In case the rumors, leaks, and Unpacked event invitation hadn't convinced you that Samsung is on the verge of announcing its new Galaxy S5 smartphone, a new teaser video should. The Korean electronics giant's video, published Friday, gives a starring role to the number 5 in the video then concludes with the words "the next Galaxy." That broad a hint doesn't leave much to the imagination, though unlike many teaser videos, the phone itself doesn't make an appearance even in silhouetted form. By showing a boy on a waterslide with the words "Wet 5 ...

his is where you'll find your next smartphone Mobile World Congress is the biggest and most important smartphone party of the year. And unlike a lot of tech trade shows, most of the gadgets appearing here are ones that you'll actually be able to buy.   Mobile World Congress takes place at Barcelona's Fira Gran Via. (Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)  "Congress" usually isn't a word that inspires excitement, but the Mobile World Congress is anything but usual. Held every February in Barcelona, Spain, it is the the premier global event for the wireless industry. Think of a smaller CES, but pack it with only smartphones, tablets, and everything mobile, and you'll get the idea. Then, drop it all in one of the world's most seductive cities -- sorry, Las Vegas -- and you wind up with a most exciting tech show.   But there's another very good reason why Mobile World Congress (MWC) is worth your attention: ...