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Tesla Model S and the Top 5 electric cars: CNET (On Cars, Episode 20)

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We round up and update a bunch of favorites this episode, including a look at the Tesla Model S that, since we first saw it in fall 2012, has gone on to become about the most celebrated car in the world.

We have also updated our Top 5 Electric Cars list with two cars getting bumped by new entrants in the market; six months from now we'll do it again as more solid EVs are in the wings. It's … Read more

Judge: Child porn suspect doesn't need to decrypt files

Jeffrey Feldman has won a reprieve from a federal court order that had given him until Tuesday to decrypt his hard drives for the FBI -- or face contempt of court.

A federal judge in Wisconsin today granted an emergency motion filed by Feldman's attorney for additional time to establish that her client's Fifth Amendment right to self-incrimination would be violated.

U.S. District Judge Rudolph Randa lifted the threat of contempt of court and jail time, at least temporarily, and asked for additional briefs from Feldman's attorney and Justice Department prosecutors. A hearing is likely to … Read more

Look, no hands: Feds urge safety measures for self-driving cars

If Google and many auto manufacturers have their way, we'll be ditching our steering wheels and letting computers take control of our cars in the not-so-distant future. And if the thought of robots taking the place of humans on the road makes you nervous, you're not alone.

With this new technology needs to come regulations -- or so says the U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which on Thursday released its new policy on autonomous, or self-driving, cars. The agency said self-driving vehicles show promise but urged safety regulations and recommended that states … Read more

Send self-destructing messages from your work computer

Much like the vanishing photos sent with Snapchat, a new Web app lets you send self-destructing messages from your work computer.

New York-based app maker Lamplighter Games last week launched OTR -- for "off the record" messaging -- a browser plug-in that lets you send messages that disappear within 5 seconds of being read.

"We both love using Snapchat, so we thought it would be fun to put Snapchat in the browser," according to Kris Minkstein, who co-founded the company with his brother Andy. "We figured since you're in front of your computer all day at work that you're going to end up sending a lot of these photos to probably the guys sitting next to you at your cubicle." … Read more

Google I/O: What we didn't get

The Google I/O keynote for 2013 is here and gone, but not without a fight; at nearly 4 hours, it was enough to challenge even the most rapt attention span.

Yet, Google I/O's central keynote event had precious little of the things we dreamed of and even downright expected. Instead, all most of us can seem to discuss is what we didn't get. Well, for starters:

No new Android OS: Despite a preshow rumor that Android Jelly Bean 4.3 would be unveiled, there wasn't any news. No Android 5.0, not even Android 4.… Read more

Six reasons to love, or loathe, autonomous cars

The technical reality of autonomous cars is coming sooner than you think, but societal acceptance of autonomous cars may be some way off. Technologies such as adaptive cruise control and lane-keeping assist make the tip of this iceberg among production cars, while Google has already done extensive testing of an autonomous car system. Automakers are beginning their own self-driving car programs, and the Department of Transportation is running tests of vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communication, an important safety technology that will also play a key role for autonomous cars.

But not everyone likes the idea of self-driving cars. CNET editors Wayne … Read more

Tesla eyes 'autopilot' partnership with Google

Tesla, the electric car maker, has been in talks with Google about the development of a self-driving car, the former's CEO revealed Tuesday.

In a Bloomberg interview, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said that his company has "had some technical discussions with Google" about the search giant's self-driving car technology. However, he pointed out that the technology that Google uses, which is based on laser sensors to detect what's around, is too expensive to be feasible anytime soon.

Instead, Musk told Bloomberg, he'd like to see a camera-based system that "sees" what's … Read more

When your airbag is your enemy (CNET On Cars, Episode 17)

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Way back in May 2005, I did what I believe was our first car tech video: a look at the 2005 Acura RL. It was like this thing from Mars had dropped on the CNET building. Today, the RL is gone, the RLX takes its place, and its first job is to put Acura back on the map in terms of a high-tech flagship sedan that sells in greater numbers than you can count on two hands. We'll show you … Read more

Robo-cars face a new threat: Lawyers

STANFORD, Calif. -- Self-driving cars are expected to save lives: a vehicle driven by a human will experience, on average, a crash every 160,000 miles or so. It's only a matter of time, advocates say, before robots become better drivers than us.

That is, if the lawyers let them. Industry insiders are already fretting about a host of legal problems that could bedevil robot car makers once a sufficient number of their creations take to the roads. Product liability, tort law, negligence, foreseeable harm, patent encumbrance, and design defects are only some of the concerns.

"The longer … Read more