Android

Why Dumbphones Still Dominate, For Now 618

Posted by timothy from the dumbbells-are-everywhere dept.
Velcroman1 writes "Androids are awesome, iPhones impressive ... but dumbphones still dominate. Of the 234 million cell phone users in America last year, a dominating 73 percent own traditional (aka non-smart) devices, according to market researcher comScore. Despite their more popular mindshare, intelligent devices like the Apple iPhone and phones based on Google's Android operating system own barely a quarter of the market."
Image

Vatican Bans IOS Confession App Screenshot-sm 323

Posted by samzenpus from the get-your-iabsolution-somewhere-else dept.
An anonymous reader writes "Despite all the hype that a lowly priest had approved the new confessional app hitting the app store, the truth has now revealed itself. According to today's Daily Mail, a spokesman for the Vatican, Federico Lombardi said: 'It is essential to understand that the rites of penance require a personal dialogue between penitents and their confessor. It cannot be replaced by a computer application. I must stress to avoid all ambiguity, under no circumstance is it possible to confess by iPhone."
Iphone

iPhone Attack Reveals Passwords In Six Minutes 186

Posted by samzenpus from the what-took-so-long? dept.
angry tapir writes "Researchers in Germany say they've been able to reveal passwords stored in a locked iPhone in just six minutes and they did it without cracking the phone's passcode. The attack, which requires possession of the phone, targets keychain, Apple's password management system. Passwords for networks and corporate information systems can be revealed if an iPhone or iPad is lost or stolen."
Government

Gov App Detects Potholes As Your Drive Over Them 181

Posted by samzenpus from the bump-in-the-road dept.
An anonymous reader writes "The City of Boston has released an app that uses the accelerometer in your smartphone to automatically report bumps in the road as you drive over them. From the article: 'The application relies on two components embedded in iPhones, Android phones, and many other mobile devices: the accelerometer and the Global Positioning System receiver. The accelerometer, which determines the direction and acceleration of a phone’s movement, can be harnessed to identify when a phone resting on a dashboard or in a cupholder in a moving car has hit a bump; the GPS receiver can determine by satellite just where that bump is located.' I am certain that this will not be used to track your movements, unless they are vertical."
Iphone

Verizon iPhone Also Haunted By the Death Grip 191

Posted by samzenpus from the here-we-go-again dept.
adeelarshad82 writes "Turns out that the Verizon iPhone 4 is also plagued with the same problem as the AT&T version, the 'Death Grip.' This isn't completely surprising since Apple has made no significant changes in the antenna design to warrant a permanent fix. As a result, the 'Death grip' causes a drop in 3G data performance as well as the Wi-Fi performance. What's strange is that the Death Grip gives inconsistent results which is why analysts don't view this as a big problem for Apple, chalking up the news as 'bloggers looking for something to write about.' Analysts also argue that Apple sold millions of AT&T iPhone 4's last year and despite the media-furor, consumers did not line up at Apple Stores demanding refunds."
Apple

iPad 2 Rumored to be in Production 192

Posted by CmdrTaco from the milling-away dept.
Stoobalou writes "The normally sober and sometimes accurate Wall Street Journal is claiming that Apple's iPad 2 is currently in production. Foxconn might be producing a limited number of prototype samples of the Second Coming of the iPad but we're pretty sure full production won't start until Steve Jobs (or whoever will be donning the black turtleneck in his sickly stead) strides onto the stage at the official launch keynote."
Image

Furry Cartoon Critters Debate: Tablet Or Laptop? Screenshot-sm 2

Posted by Roblimo from the furry-doesn't-mean-stupid dept.
ericatcw writes "Despite the strong inroads that mobile devices are making (see this online list of mass iPad rollouts), many skeptics remain unconvinced of their usefulness. That's true even when confronted with news of Microsoft's fear, reasoned arguments, or even old-timey anti-laptop rants that, hilariously, echo all of the same criticism today against tablets. Will this Xtranormal cartoon video depicting two furry woodland creatures on opposite sides of the 'Tablet or PC?' debate sway your mind?"
Iphone

Confession: There's an iPhone App For That 192

Posted by Roblimo from the Does-Apple-get-30%-of-each-confession? dept.
slshwtw writes "Pope Benedict XVI has recently encouraged priests to blog and promoted Christian Netiquette. Now apparently the Roman Catholic church has sanctioned a 'Confession App,' available through iTunes for $1.99. Apparently it doesn't replace 'traditional,' in-person confession, but walks one through the process, even suggesting sins you may wish to confess."'
Apple

NFL Teams Considering IPads To Replace Playbooks 289

Posted by samzenpus from the there's-a-bone-crushing-app-for-that dept.
bonch writes "Pete Walsh, technology head for the Dallas Cowboys, says he and other teams are considering iPads and other tablets as a replacement for paper playbooks, saving about 5,000 pages of printouts per game. Not only is it a huge savings in paper, but a lost iPad might also be remotely wiped to prevent a team's plays falling into the wrong hands. One concern is security and whether or not a tablet could be wirelessly hacked."
Businesses

Shareholders Push Hard For Apple Succession Plan 233

Posted by timothy from the oh-and-one-more-thing-aaaaaaaaaghhhh dept.
eldavojohn writes "Apple has been a couple weeks now sans their iconic fearless leader and the shareholders are getting restless without a succession plan. Essentially the Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) is saying that there hasn't been enough disclosure in why exactly Steve is absent and they'd like an annual succession plan delivered to shareholders. Apple is recommending that on February 23 at its annual company meeting, its shareholders vote against the proposal for a succession plan. Apple may have a plan for life after Steve Jobs but if they do they are not sharing it with anyone — not even their financiers!"
The Media

News Corp's The Daily Is Doomed 246

Posted by CmdrTaco from the always-the-naysayers dept.
rsmiller510 writes "After all of the hype, it was surprising how much The Daily, the new News Corp. iPad daily newspaper, looks like a conventional news magazine. Ultimately, though, it's an old model in a new package and as such will fail."
Piracy

Pirated App Sold On Mac App Store 334

Posted by CmdrTaco from the pay-better-attention dept.
iDuck writes "When Wolfire Games released their animal martial arts game, Lugaru HD, on the Mac App store, they could be forgiven for thinking they were seeing double. A counterfeit version of the software is currently available on the app store at a much lower price point under the name Lugaru. The best bit: as yet Apple have not responded to Wolfire's emails to rectify the situation. While the source to the game was GPLed, 'the license made it very clear that the authors retained all rights to the assets, characters, and everything else aside from the code itself.'"
Media

News Corp. and Apple Unveil The Daily 249

Posted by samzenpus from the foxy-apps dept.
RedEaredSlider writes "The Daily, the digital publication designed specifically for Apple's iPad, is now available on the App Store. The publication's launch came during a press event at New York's Guggenheim Museum. News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch and Apple Vice President of Internet Services Eddy Cue were joined by The Daily's Editor-in-Chief Jesse Angelo. The Daily, which copies the look and feel of a newspaper or magazine, is aimed at embracing the multimedia capabilities of Apple's iPad. Rupert Murdoch said that The Daily offers 'unthinkable innovations' to the world of publishing."
Sony

Apple eBook Rules Changing For Sellers 584

Posted by CmdrTaco from the and-you'll-like-it dept.
An anonymous reader writes "In a 'pray I don't alter it again' moment for eBook sellers on apple iPad and iPhone devices, Apple is now requiring third-party eBook sellers like Amazon to also make their titles available through the Apple store, wherein the empire will take an additional 30% cut. 'Apple confirmed Tuesday that it would require app developers that sell e-books outside of their iPad and iPhone apps — through a Web site, for example — to also sell the books inside those apps. And purchases that originate in the app must be made through Apple, which keeps a 30 percent cut.'"
Crime

AT&T Sued For Systematic iPhone Overbilling 265

Posted by timothy from the so-android-users-are-left-in-the-cold? dept.
Hugh Pickens writes writes "UPI reports that AT&T is facing a lawsuit that says AT&T routinely bills for 7 percent to 14 percent more data transactions than normally take place, which could blossom into a costly class-action case. Court papers claim that attorneys set up a test account for an iPhone, then closed all of its apps and left the device unused for 10 days. AT&T still billed the account for 2,292 KB of usage. 'A significant portion of the data revenues were inflated by AT&T's rigged billing system for data transactions,' say court papers filed on behalf of AT&T customer Patrick Hendricks. 'This is like the rigged gas pump charging you when you never even pulled your car into the station.' Attorneys say they would file to have the case moved to class-action status, which makes the outcome relevant to all of AT&T's iPhone accounts."
IOS

Apple Changes Stance On Water Damage Policy 155

Posted by Soulskill from the customer-is-occasionally-right dept.
tekgoblin writes "It appears Apple has changed its stance on whether an iOS device is actually water damaged. If you remember when the 13-year-old girl sued Apple in December, it was because her iPhone's moisture sensors had gone off and Apple voided her warranty. Those sensors have also been triggered by simply exposing the phone to low temperatures. Now Apple says that if the moisture sensors are red but the customer disputes and says no liquid has come into contact with the device, the warranty may still apply."
Businesses

Netgear CEO Says Jobs's Ego Will Bite Apple 500

Posted by CmdrTaco from the even-egos-go-on-vacation dept.
AcidAUS writes "The global chairman and CEO of home networking giant Netgear has launched into a scathing attack on Apple and its founder Steve Jobs, criticising Jobs's 'ego' and Apple's closed up products. At a lunch in Sydney today, Patrick Lo said Apple's success was centred on closed and proprietary products that would soon be overtaken by open platforms like Google's Android."
Iphone

Apple Hints At Near-Field Payments System In Next-Gen iPhone, iPad 164

Posted by timothy from the please-swipe-this-spot-on-your-screen dept.
An anonymous reader writes "The smartphone seems to be well on its way to becoming the next wallet; and Apple could be pushing that movement along. Reports from several outlets suggest the Cupertino, Calif.-based electronics giant has plans to put a near-field communications chip in the next versions of the iPhone and iPad for contactless payments technology. The latest report, from blog Apple Insider, says Apple has put up two job postings for two global payment platforms managers."

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