Facebook Inc.'s shares are surging after the social network reported a 53% increase in revenue and strong advertising growth in the second quarter.

The social network reported profit of $333 million, or 13 cents a share, on revenue of $1.81 billion. For  the second quarter of 2012, Facebook reported a $157-million loss on revenue of $1.18 billion.

After adjusted for one-time events, Facebook earned 19 cents a share.

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That's better than Wall Street expected. Analysts had forecast earnings of 14 cents a share on revenue of $1.62 billion, according to FactSet.

The results sent Facebook's shares up 20% to $31.70 in after-hours trading.

Advertising revenue rose 61% from a year earlier to $1.6 billion, accounting for 88% of Facebook's total revenue. Mobile ad revenue represented about 41% of all advertising revenue.

FB data by YCharts

The company said it averaged 699 million daily active users in June, up 27% from June 2012. Monthly active users...

Google Inc. is making a splash in the world of digital TV receivers with its tiny, $35 Chromecast device.

The new Google gadget rivals the Apple TV and all Roku devices. However, each digital receiver has its benefits and downsides. Here's how the three gadgets compare.

Content

By far the most important part of any digital TV receiver is the amount of content it has access to and the quality of that content.

If you look at numbers alone, then Roku is far and away the clear winner. Its digital receivers can access hundreds of channels. These include Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon Instant Video, Pandora, HBO Go and a number of sports channels. There's a lot to watch and listen to on Roku, but there's also one major channel missing: YouTube. With no YouTube, you lose access to a lot of great content.

Apple TV doesn't have as many channels as Roku, but it does have basically every channel you need. It too can access Netflix, Hulu Plus, HBO Go, Pandora, a number of sports channels and YouTube....

The Nokia Lumia 1020, which is set to go on sale this weekend, has been getting great reviews thanks to its 41-megapixel rear-facing camera. It can capture photos with more details than its rivals.

Join me and my Times colleague Michelle Maltais at 2:30 p.m. as we unbox the new Nokia smartphone and get our first look at the device.

LIVE DISCUSSION: Join us at 2:30 p.m. as we unbox the Lumia 1020.

The iPhone 5 and Galaxy S 4 feature 8-mp and 13-mp cameras, respectively, but the Lumia 1020 has taken smartphone photography to a whole new level with its camera.

Besides its impressive camera, the Lumia 1020 features a 4.5-inch 720p HD screen and 32-gigabytes of storage.

The Lumia 1020 will go on sale Friday exclusively from AT&T for $299 with a two-year contract.

ALSO:

Google unveils Chromecast for $35, a rival to Apple TV

Google confirms earlier reports of a new Nexus 7 tablet

Best Buy reveals new Nexus 7 tablet ahead of Google's unveiling

Michael Dell, facing the possibility that he would lose the company he founded to billionaire Carl Icahn, announced a last-minute increase to his buyout offer.

Under the new proposal made public Wednesday, Michael Dell and investment firm Silver Lake would acquire the PC maker for $13.75 per share in cash, up from the group's previous offer of $13.65 per share. That bumps the value of the bid to $24.6 billion, up from $24.4 billion.

In another twist, Michael Dell is seeking to change the shareholder voting rules in an effort to better secure the success of his bid. Currently, a share not cast counts as a "no" vote; the company founder wants the outcome of the vote to depend solely on actual votes cast.

The group said it was not willing to discuss any further increase to its bid without the change to the voting rules.

"This is our best and final proposal," it said in a letter to members of Dell's special committee. "There is simply no rational basis for shares that are not voted to...

It was a busy day for Google, which announced the second generation of its Nexus 7 tablet, the latest version of Android and a new device for the TV called Chromecast.

We'll be discussing all of the announcements at 12:30 p.m. PDT, but here's what you need to know.

Google is hoping to follow the success of the 2012 Nexus 7 tablet with a thinner, lighter and more narrow version. The 2013 Nexus 7 features an all black design and has been outfitted with a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera and dual stereo speakers.

More importantly, though, the second-generation Nexus 7 tablet features a 1080p HD screen. The Nexus 7's 7-inch screen now has a 1,920 by 1,200 pixel resolution and a 323 pixel density, which Google says is the highest of any tablet. Additionally, the tablet runs on a quad-core 1.5Ghz Snapdragon S4 Pro processor.

The improved Nexus 7, however, is going to cost more than its predecessor, which has a base cost of $200. For a 16-gigabyte version of the new Nexus 7,...

Google on Wednesday announced Chromecast, a jump-drive-sized gadget that lets users watch content from their smartphones, tablets or laptops on their TV.

Users will be able to plug the Chromecast into their TV using an HDMI input. To make it work, they'll also have to connect to their home WiFi network.

Once the device is set up, users can control their TV and the content they watch by simply using their smartphone or tablet like a TV remote.

PHOTOS: Six things rich tech execs splurge on

The device works, for example, by finding a YouTube video on a smartphone and tapping on a new "Cast" icon to tell the device to send the video to the TV through Chromecast.

But while Chromecast talks to smartphones and tablets to figure out what content to play, the content itself is being pulled from the cloud. That means users can keep using their smartphone for other tasks while playing video on Chromecast.

The new Chromecast device works similarly to the Apple TV's AirPlay feature, which lets...

Google and Asus have teamed up again to create and launch the second-generation Nexus 7.

The Mountain View, Calif., company formally unveiled the new Nexus 7 on Wednesday morning, saying the device now features a "black on black" design on a body that is now slimmer, narrower and lighter than its predecessor.

"It fits easily into your purse or your jacket pocket," said Hugo Barra, Google's Android director of product management.

PHOTOS: Top smartphones of 2013

Prior to Google's press event, Best Buy revealed the new Nexus 7 tablet by making it available for pre-order through its online store early Wednesday morning.

The new Nexus 7 will be the first device to run Android 4.3 Jelly Bean, the latest version of Google's mobile operating system.

The tablet also has an improved 7-inch screen that can now display 1080p HD videos. The Nexus 7 has a 1,920-by-1,200-pixel resolution with a 323-pixel-per-inch density, the highest of any tablet on the market, according to Google.

The company also...

Google is hosting a big press event at 9 a.m. PDT in San Francisco, and you can watch it live right from your computer, tablet or smartphone.

The Mountain View, Calif., company will be streaming its event through YouTube. Google's Sundar Pichai, the head of the company's Chrome and Android teams, will be the key speaker.

Thanks to Best Buy, we already know Google will announce a new Nexus 7 tablet and the latest version of its Android mobile operating system, 4.3 Jelly Bean. The second-generation Nexus 7 tablet has a new, rear-facing 5-megapixel camera, and its 7-inch display now has a higher resolution than the original Nexus 7 tablet that came out last year, according to Best Buy's website.

PHOTOS: Top smartphones of 2013

The new Nexus 7 tablet will cost $229.99 for a 16-gigabyte model and $269.99 for a 32 GB model.

Google might not have many surprises left to reveal, but just in case the company does announce something extra, you can watch the event right here on this post.

We'll...

Poor Google. Best Buy stole its thunder.

Prior to Google's press event, Best Buy revealed the new Nexus 7 tablet by making it available for pre-order through its online store very early Wednesday morning.

The tablet is no longer available for purchase -- the website now says "Coming Soon" -- but users can still visit Best Buy's website to see what exactly Google plans to announce. Sam's Club and PC Connection are now displaying the new Nexus 7 tablet through their online stores too.

PHOTOS: Six things rich tech execs splurge on

So what exactly will Google reveal?

Well, according to BestBuy.com, the new Nexus 7 tablet will run the brand new Android 4.3 Jelly Bean software and have a 5-megapixel rear camera. Additionally, the tablet's 7-inch screen will have a 1,920 by 1,200 pixel HD resolution -- higher than the resolution on last year's Nexus 7 tablet.

"Enjoy your media on the go with this Google Nexus 7 tablet, which features a 7" 10-finger capacitive touch screen with IPS technology...

A trio of former Pomona College students are declaring war on the password, and they’re enlisting consumers to put pressure on technology companies to adopt a more secure log-in process.

Brennen Byrne, Mark Hudnall and Jesse Pollak through their start-up Clef launched Petition Against Passwords on Wednesday. Though it’s already being viewed as a toothless publicity stunt, industry experts said the initiative should help consumers start to come to grips with a future in which the password isn’t at the foundation of logging into websites.

Passwords can easily be cracked and they’re being stolen by hackers daily through email phishing attacks, computer viruses and snooping over shoulders.

PHOTOS: Top smartphones of 2013

Although some cybersecurity experts have called on people to create smarter passwords or use password managers, surveys have found low adoption of these techniques and tools. Clef and dozens of other companies and academics are developing new ways...

Apple Inc. reported solid fiscal third-quarter earnings Tuesday, with profit and revenue that beat expectations, and said it set a new June quarter record for number of iPhones sold.

The Cupertino, Calif., tech company posted profit of $6.9 billion, or $7.47 a share, on revenue of $35.3 billion.

Analysts had expected earnings of $7.34 a share on revenue of $35.18 billion, according to consensus estimates compiled by Thomson Reuters. They also had predicted Mac sales of 3.9 million, iPhone sales of 26 million and iPad sales of 18.3 million.

Apple's own guidance had revenue coming in between $33.5 billion and $35.5 billion.

The company sold 31.2 million iPhones compared with 26 million in the year-ago quarter. It sold 14.6 million iPads, down from 17 million; and 3.8 million Macs, down from 4 million.

The news sent Apple's shares up 4.7% to $438.70 in after-hours trading shortly after earnings were released. During regular trading, shares fell 1.7% to $418.99.

“We are especially...