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Nao is a humanoid robot created by Aldebaran Robotics. He wears a jaunty orange headpiece, moves his limbs, dances, and interacts with humans. Nao has held jobs ranging from human-machine interaction research subject to synchronized show dancer at events. His new role, however, may be one of the most impactful yet. ASK Nao is a special version designed to work with autistic children.

ASK stands for "Autism Solution for Kids." The robot is programmed with games and applications geared toward helping autistic kids develop social and learning skills. "Most children on the autism spectrum have a natural attraction towards technology and Nao's humanoid shape creates a perfect link between technology and humanity," said Olivier Joubert, autism business unit manager at Aldebaran.… Read more

The Samsung Galaxy S4 is sure to be one of the hottest selling smartphones of the season. And it's great news for consumers that it's available on all four major wireless operators. But unfortunately, every operator isn't selling all versions of the phone.

That's right, even though Samsung announced three versions of the Samsung Galaxy S4, with three different amounts of internal storage, some carriers are offering only one option. Is 16GB of on-device storage enough? In this edition of Ask Maggie, I offer some advice to a reader deciding if she should buy the only … Read more

Aside from monopolistic cable providers that force their customers to buy expensive bundles of TV channels they might never watch, wireless operators may be the only other businesses I know of that often force their customers to buy expensive services they don't really want.

In this edition of Ask Maggie, I answer two questions from readers who highlight this point. In the first question, a reader asks if he can avoid hefty international roaming fees by getting his brand-new Samsung Galaxy S4 phone unlocked so that he can use a foreign carrier's wireless service while he is abroad … Read more

There is no question that Samsung's Galaxy line of smartphones are giving Apple's iPhone a run for its money. In fact, some loyal iPhone fans, disappointed with the incremental updates in the iPhone 5, already are looking for something new.

Smartphone aficionados agree that when it comes to innovation, Samsung has surpassed Apple. The Samsung Galaxy S4 in particular is a real standout in the smartphone market. Its bigger screen, higher resolution camera, and lots of bells and whistles are likely to attract a lot of consumers who are fed up waiting for Apple to reset the standard … Read more

For most consumers in the U.S., price is not a factor when buying a new smartphone, since most devices with a two-year commitment cost roughly the same. But when you are in the market for an unlocked smartphone, the dynamic drastically changes.

High-end devices, such as the Samsung Galaxy S4 or the HTC One, are still attractive to just about any consumer. The features are top-of-the-line, and the devices are sleek. But what many consumers don't realize is that a cutting-edge smartphone does not actually cost $200 or $250. In fact, if consumers were to pay the full … Read more

The lines may not be as long as they typically are for the launch of a new iPhone, but T-Mobile customers and those looking to jump ship to the maverick wireless carrier are excited that the iPhone is finally coming to T-Mobile.

The company began selling the iPhone 5 in retail stores and online today. The carrier is selling the device at a discount compared to Apple and its other carrier rivals. The full price of the device from T-Mobile is $580, compared to the full price of $650 from Apple and other carriers. T-Mobile is also letting people finance … Read more

Facebook wants to take control of your smartphone. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? And what the heck is Facebook Home anyway?

Facebook, which has been rumored for more than a year to be building a new so-called "Facebook phone," made a big announcement yesterday at its headquarters in California. The company took the wraps off Facebook Home, a set of apps that can be installed on your smartphone and integrate your whole experience with Facebook. Following the big announcement, I started getting questions from readers, friends, and other reporters about what this new software … Read more

T-Mobile shook up the wireless industry this week with the introduction of its new no-contract service plans. But is the service really a good value for consumers compared to what the other big guys are offering?

In this edition of Ask Maggie, I answer that very question. A reader wants to know if he should ditch Verizon's wireless service for T-Mobile. While some people seem to balk at the notion that wireless consumers will have to "pay"for their smartphones under these new T-Mobile plans, I do the math to explain why even buying a device at … Read more

A free iPhone sure sounds like a sweet deal. But when that iPhone is already three years old, is it really such an awesome deal?

That's the question I answer in this edition of Ask Maggie. A reader writes to me about an awesome offer from Verizon Wireless. She can get a new iPhone for nothing. All she has to do is sign up for another two-year contract. The problem is that iPhone is the iPhone 4 and that model is nearly three years old.

Also in this Ask Maggie, I help a reader figure out the best option … Read more