Apple's USB power adapter takeback program is in effect, $11.00 for Apple adapter

Some counterfeit and third party iPhon, iPod Touch and iPad adapters may not be designed properly and could result in safety issues like fires. While Apple acknowledges that not all third party adapters have an issue, they are announcing a USB Power Adapter Takeback Program starting on August 16th to enable customers to acquire properly designed adapters. Below is an excerpt from Apple's statement.

Customer safety is a top priority at Apple. That’s why all of our products — including USB power adapters for iPhone, iPad, and iPod — undergo rigorous testing for safety and reliability and are designed to meet government safety standards around the world.

Starting August 16, 2013, if you have concerns about any of your USB power adapters, you can drop them off at an Apple Retail Store or at an Apple Authorized Service Provider. We will ensure that these adapters are disposed of in an environmentally friendly way.

If you need a replacement adapter to charge your iPhone, iPad, or iPod, we recommend getting an Apple USB power adapter. For a limited time, you can purchase one Apple USB power adapter at a special price — $11 CAD. To qualify, you must turn in at least one USB power adapter and bring your iPhone, iPad, or iPod to an Apple Retail Store or participating Apple Authorized Service Provider for serial number validation. The special pricing on Apple USB power adapters is limited to one adapter for each iPhone, iPad, and iPod you own and is valid until October 18, 2013.

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Review: ASUS MeMO 7 HD

Text and photos by Gadjo Cardenas Sevilla

The 7-inch tablet space is surging right now. Prices are diving down and features are becoming increasingly more impressive and useful. Many of the key PC manufacturers have a dog in this fight and some like ASUS, have many. The maker of the two previous Nexus 7's has also released a cheaper and more consumer friendly model in the ASUS MeMO 7 HD which is now selling in Canada for $159. 

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BlackBerry Q5 launches today in Canada

At long last, the mid-range, Curve successor BlackBerry Q5 is available for sale in Canada. The full-QWERTY device comes featuring a 3.1-inch IPS  display, a dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor clocked at 1.2GHz, 2GB of RAM as well as 8GB of onboard storage space that can affordably be expanded with up to a 32GB microSD card slot.

The pricing is roughly $350 outright or $49 on a 2-year term and to learn more about it, you can read our official review here

Skype adds HD video calling support for iOS apps

While high-definition video calls have been a feature in Skype’s Windows Phone app since March, Apple users are only now being introduced to the said feature with the version 4.10 update of the app. iPhone and iPad users can now see their Skype video callers in HD. 

The latest update also gives a hand to international callers with a drop-down menu that lets you select a specific country code instead of needing to type it. Improvements in terms of call quality and stability have also been included. You can download the Skype app for the iPhone 5 here and for the fourth-generation iPad one here.