Tech Industry

4,113 'Tech Industry' stories June 2007 - March 2013

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Tech Industry

Apple’s Schiller takes more jabs at Android ahead of Samsung Galaxy S4 event: ‘4x as many iPhone switchers’

Seth Weintraub Mar 13 2013 - 2:46 pm PT

Just last week, Apple Worldwide Marketing SVP Phil Schiller was tweeting a warning out to Android users to be safe in light of a recent F-Secure report which said the overwhelming amount of mobile malware floating around was on Android.

Today, the WSJ reports that Schiller has more tough words for the Android platform (which today saw a change in leadership). Beyond the 4X switching rate to iPhone vs to Android, he also said that Android users are often running old operating systems and that the fragmentation in the Android world was “plain and simple.”

He added that “Android is often given a free replacement for a feature phone and the experience isn’t as good as an iPhone.”

Mr. Schiller said the Android service suffers in part because different elements come from multiple companies, where Apple is responsible for all its mobile hardware and as well as its iOS operating system.

“When you take an Android device out of the box, you have to sign up to nine accounts with different vendors to get the experience iOS comes with,” he said. “They don’t work seamlessly together.”

Interesting words from Schiller ahead of the Galaxy S4 launch. On one hand the timing makes Apple seem defensive as the WSJ notes. On the other, most of these stats, while widely known for the most part, are indicative of Apple success.

Schiller gave the same ‘interview’ to Bloomberg:

[ooyala code=”xneXQ1YTo4_akx4MNTb_4Ro1fZwFMoBL”]

The Galaxy S4 launch is tomorrow and will be covered on 9to5Google.
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Andy Rubin leaves Android for new role at Google

Jordan Kahn Mar 13 2013 - 10:14 am PT

From 9to5Google:

Google posted an Update from the CEO on its Official Google Blog today where Larry Page announced that Android chief Andy Rubin will officially be leaving the Android team to take up a new role at the company. Taking his place to lead the Android team at Google is Sundar Pichai, who will also continue his work with Apps and Chrome.

https://twitter.com/arubin/status/211939156451012609

Full story on 9to5Google.com.

Regional carriers supporting new cellphone unlocking bills in hopes of attracting iPhone customers

Jordan Kahn Mar 13 2013 - 7:07 am PT

Earlier this month we told you that lawmakers were working on introducing new legislation to legalize cellphone unlocking following a statement from the White House confirming that it would support “narrow legislative fixes.” The new laws would attempt to reverse a decision was made by the Library of Congress in October to make the act illegal that resulted in a petition from consumers and prompted a response from the White House. We already knew that most of the big carriers including Verizon and AT&T are not in support of unlocking, but today Bloomberg reports smaller, rural carriers are backing new bills in hopes it will attract new iPhone customers:

“Smaller carriers have a very difficult time getting access to smartphones and handsets,” said Steven Berry, president of the Competitive Carriers Association, which represents such companies as U.S. Cellular Corp. (USM) and Bluegrass Cellular. “The unlocking is one way the consumer can make the decision that I can try someone else who has better coverage in the area where I live or play.”

While the Senate bills are “excellent first steps,” Congress needs to go further, Carri Bennet, general counsel for Rural Telecommunications Group, a Washington association representing rural carriers with fewer than 100,000 subscribers, said in an e-mail.

Many of these smaller regional carriers, including Bluegrass Cellular, typically offer the latest iPhone for a price lower than Apple and the major carriers in order to attract customers. Bloomberg also reports that a number of lawmakers have committed to introducing or supporting bills to legalize unlocking phones:

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, a Vermont Democrat, and Charles Grassley of Iowa, the panel’s top Republican, introduced a bill March 11 to overturn the Library of Congress’s decision and direct the agency to consider adding tablet computers to devices that consumers can unlock.

Democratic Senators Ron Wyden of Oregon and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota have also introduced bills to unlock mobile phones. House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte, a Virginia Republican, and John Conyers of Michigan, the panel’s top Democrat, have also announced plans to sponsor such legislation.

ChronicUnlocks.com has been a solid provider of iPhone unlocks for our readers and us for a while now if you are looking for a good place to unlock an iPhone

Samsung’s ad budget exploded past Apple and the rest of the field in 2012

Jordan Kahn Mar 13 2013 - 6:06 am PT

We have been hearing much about Samsung’s advertising efforts in recent months including its efforts crafting the now well-known ad campaign mocking iPhone line sitters, to some of the companies recent marketing tactics used to target iPhone users. Last night The Wall Street Journal published a new piece outlining Samsung’s increasingly aggressive advertising thanks to new data from research firm Kantar Media. According to the report, Samsung passed Apple in 2012 for ad spending by around $68M in the US:

Outspent by rival Apple Inc. more than three to one in advertising for mobile phones in the U.S. in 2011, Samsung responded with a marketing blitz on TV, billboards, the Internet and print media that moved the Korean company into the pole position last year… In 2012, Samsung spent $401 million advertising its phones in the U.S. to Apple’s $333 million, according to ad research and consulting firm Kantar Media.

Apple spent more than three times Samsung on marketing its mobile devices in 2011. If a slew of recent media reports is any indication, including one from Apple’s own former ad man Ken Segall, many seem to think Apple is losing its advertising momentum to Samsung.

The Wall Street Journal added that executives at carriers said Samsung “also spends more on “below the line” marketing than any device maker. Those funds help pay for in-store advertising, promotions and training for carrier sales representatives that help close the sale.”

To put the spending in perspective for the global smartphone market, Tech/telco analyst Benedict Evans noted the figures above account for around 10% of Samsung global ad budget compared to 1/3 of Apple’s, which also somewhat reflects sales proportions.

Tech Industry

Apple and Google both release some iOS maps info

Seth Weintraub Mar 12 2013 - 8:41 pm PT

It’s an interesting evening for Maps on iOS. First up, Google released a rudimentary iOS Google Maps video that feels circa 2007 and includes all the gestures that made Steve Jobs go thermonuclear on Android. We’re not sure who the intended audience is, but this was just released. Maybe it is for the people who’ve never used a smartphone before?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RpTqpjT6ZM0&feature=player_embedded

Rounding things out, Jim Darlymple from the Loop posts what appears to be a roundup of new Apple data on improvements in mapping (supporting the stance that it’s rapidly improving):

In the last few months, Apple added or expanded flyover support for:

Baltimore, MD

Providence, RH

Portland, ME

Cleveland, OH

Green Bay, WI

Minneapolis, MN

Albany, NY

Indianapolis, Indiana

Cologne, Germany

Glasgow, Scotland

Buffalo, NY

Vancouver, BC

Tulsa, OK

Hoover Dam

Modesto, CA

Stockton, CA

Portland, OR

Boston, MA

Houston, TX

Stockholm, Sweden

Munich, Germany

London, England

Madrid, Spain

Rome, Italy

Copenhagen, Denmark

Berlin, Germany

Lyon, France

Birmingham, AL

Toronto, ON

Barcelona, Spain

Maps has also updated 3D buildings for standard view and turn-by-turn navigation. Read the rest at The Loop

Google Now for iOS promo video leaks to YouTube

9to5 Staff Mar 12 2013 - 3:18 pm PT

[viddler id=a66cf352 w=704 h=400]

Google Now, the prediction software that debuted on Android’s Ice Cream Sandwich last year, may be crossing over to iOS in the very near future. A promotional video posted on YouTube today—but was pulled minutes later—showed Google Now on the iPhone and iPad.

A tipster for Engadget recorded the video and re-uploaded it online, which is now available above. The speaker in the video seems to be the same female voice found in the original Google Now promotional video from last year (below). Unless this is a very elaborate hoax, it would seem that a Google Now update is in store for Google Search app.

Perhaps the delay in going live is due to App Store approval.

We’ll update when/if the app update to the Google Search app goes live.

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Honda R&D’s Senior iOS Architect controls iPhone using brainwaves and custom Siri API (Video)

Jordan Kahn Mar 11 2013 - 11:30 am PT

The video above came from Senior iOS Architect at Honda R&D Americas Duane Cash, and he is claiming to have come up with a method of controlling Siri through “a brainwave-reading device.” This isn’t the first video that has popped up online claiming to show brainwave activity controlling an iOS device, but many past videos have been faked. Duane’s role as senior iOS architect at Honda R&D in Silicon Valley seems to provide a little more credibility to the project.

Hello, my name is Duane Cash. I am an iOS developer working on the project to produce a mind-controlled virtual assistant on the iPhone. This is a one of my initial tests using a brainwave-reading device to control some custom Siri functions on a iPhone.

We talked to Duane, and he confirmed it isn’t a project that Honda is officially working on. Duane said he is researching various brainwave-reading methods, but he told us he is using a Neurosky MindWave and “the iOS SDK for the software implementation” in the prototype above.

As you’ll see in the video, Duane explained he uses “mental commands from the EEG signals to command the iPhone to open a map, open a menu and close a menu with voice feedback from Siri.”

(via SlashGear)

Gogo: Apple and its iPads dominate in-flight internet usage

Seth Weintraub Mar 8 2013 - 3:52 am PT

Gogo published the above infographic yesterday on the state of devices using its in-flight network that covers the air over much of North America.

Interestingly, Google’s Chromebooks currently offer free usage of Gogo’s in-flight wireless service yet tablets out number laptops (and by tablets we’re talking iPads). While Apple still owns 84 percent of the device market, Android is gaining some ground after climbing from a 3.2-percent low in 2011 to a 16-percent share in 2013.

Blackberry and Windows Phone? Combined, they don’t make up .02-percent of the share.

(via Daring Fireball)

iPhone 5 coming soon to regional carrier Strata Networks covering Idaho, Utah and Colorado

Jordan Kahn Mar 6 2013 - 5:42 am PT

It looks like another regional carrier is set to receive the iPhone 5. While it has yet to post pricing or exact availability dates, Utah-based Strata Networks recently started advertising that the device is “coming soon” to its network. In November, Strata officially rolled out its LTE network, the first in the Uintah Basin covering several counties in Utah, and the carrier also has local coverage in Idaho, Utah, and Colorado. A map of the carrier’s LTE coverage in Utah is below, while a full map of nationwide coverage can be found here.

Many other regional carriers have been known to offer the device at a discounted price compared to Apple and the major carriers with the iPhone 5 starting at $149 on a two-year contract through many. We’ll update when Strata confirms pricing and availability.

Verizon CFO talks iPhone: Free iPhone gains, incentivizing employees to sell lower subsidy devices & Share Everything plans

Jordan Kahn Mar 4 2013 - 2:41 pm PT

Verizon CFO Fran Shammo spoke at the Duetsche Bank Annual Media, Internet & Telecom conference this morning, where he was asked a few questions related to the iPhone. Verizon reported its fourth quarter 2012 earnings last month with 9.8 million smartphone activations—a record 6.2 million of which were iPhone. We knew about half, or 3.1 million, of those iPhone sales were driven by the first full quarter with the iPhone 5, but today Shammo talked about just how important getting the free iPhone 4 was during the quarter:

But this past fourth quarter you had a couple — you had really one thing happen that never happened before, especially with Verizon Wireless, and that was for the first time ever, because of the iPhone 5 launch, we had the 4 at free. So it was the first time ever you could get a free iPhone on the

Verizon Wireless network. So that produced a lot of volume for us. We had a lot of new customers come into Verizon who took that free phone, and that was great for us because again if you think about — we sold a lot of LTE product in the fourth quarter. We sold a lot of 3G product from the iPhone products in the fourth quarter.

But that is key for us, because if you think about our two networks it is important for me as I migrate people into the 4G network I still have this very large 3G network that operates very efficiently. We are not investing any more capital in that network other than to keep it up and running, so no more coverage capital, no more capacity capital. If I can keep that network up and running that just generates more contribution margins for us. So it is critical for us to balance that. But, again, I think you had one point in time where you had a free phone, a free Apple phone that never happened before with us and that generated a lot of volume.

While noting that 53 percent of the carrier’s smartphone activations were iPhones in 2012, Shammo was asked about the opportunity to incentivize employees to sell non-Apple devices that would also come with lower subsidies for Verizon:

The answer is, no, we don’t and it is critical that we don’t do that. The reason for that is because what is more important for us is when a customer walks into a store that customer walks out with a phone that they will be happy with and not return under our 30-day guarantee. Because the worst thing that can happen for us is for me to incentivise a salesperson to get you into a phone that you walk out the door with thinking you are going to like and in three days you come back because you don’t like it. Therefore, now I’ve just subsidized two smartphones because that phone you used I can’t resell as a new phone.

You can read more from Shammo’s presentation and where he discusses the growth of Share Everything plans, tablets, and more here.

Fool me twice: Apple releases Java update for the latest Zero Day

Jordan Kahn Mar 4 2013 - 2:40 pm PT

Following a number of reports of new zero-day vulnerabilities in the Java browser plug-in, Oracle has today released an emergency update to Java 7 as Apple updates Java SE 6 to version 1.6.0_43.

Today Oracle released Security Alert CVE-2013-1493 to address two vulnerabilities affecting Java running in web browsers (CVE-2013-1493 and CVE-2013-0809). One of these vulnerabilities (CVE-2013-1493) has recently been reported as being actively exploited by attackers to maliciously install the McRat executable onto unsuspecting users’ machines. Both vulnerabilities affect the 2D component of Java SE. These vulnerabilities are not applicable to Java running on servers, standalone Java desktop applications or embedded Java applications. They also do not affect Oracle server-based software. These vulnerabilities have each received a CVSS Base Score of 10.0.

Researchers from security firm FireEye warned users last week of yet another new Java zero-day vulnerability and recommended users disable Java until Oracle addresses the issue. Today, Oracle said it knew about the flaw since Feb. 1 but didn’t get around to patching it in the last release:

Though reports of active exploitation of vulnerability CVE-2013-1493 were recently received, this bug was originally reported to Oracle on February 1^st 2013, unfortunately too late to be included in the February 19^th release of the Critical Patch Update for Java SE.

The company intended to include a fix for CVE-2013-1493 in the April 16, 2013 Critical Patch Update for Java SE (note that Oracle recently announced its intent to have an additional Java SE security release on this date in addition to those previously scheduled in June and October of 2013). However, in light of the reports of active exploitation of CVE-2013-1493, and in order to help maintain the security posture of all Java SE users, Oracle decided to release a fix for this vulnerability and another closely related bug as soon as possible through this Security Alert.

White House agrees with consumers that criminal penalties shouldn’t be levied for unlocking phones

Jordan Kahn Mar 4 2013 - 10:41 am PT

Unlock your phones at Chronicunlocks.com

Following a petition on whitehouse.gov that urges the Library of Congress to change its decision on making unlocking cellphones illegal, the White House has issued an official response agreeing with the over 110,000 people who have signed the petition (via AllThingsD). White House Senior Advisor for Internet, Innovation, and Privacy R. David Edelman issued the official response, admitting the White House agrees “consumers should be able to unlock their cell phones without risking criminal or other penalties.”

He said the policy should also extend to tablets, while devices still under contract should be allowed to function on other networks:

And if you have paid for your mobile device, and aren’t bound by a service agreement or other obligation, you should be able to use it on another network. It’s common sense, crucial for protecting consumer choice, and important for ensuring we continue to have the vibrant, competitive wireless market that delivers innovative products and solid service to meet consumers’ needs.

The decision was made by the Library of Congress in October to make unlocking cellphones illegal, and that policy officially took effect in January. The Library of Congress issued a statement today in response to the White House, stating it agrees that “the question of locked cell phones has implications for telecommunications policy and that it would benefit from review and resolution in that context.”

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski also published a statement following the White House’s response to consumers today, explaining the FCC is investigating the decision by the Library of Congress to make unlocking illegal. He added that it didn’t “pass the common sense test.”

“From a communications policy perspective, this raises serious competition and innovation concerns, and for wireless consumers, it doesn’t pass the common sense test. The FCC is examining this issue, looking into whether the agency, wireless providers, or others should take action to preserve consumers’ ability to unlock their mobile phones. I also encourage Congress to take a close look and consider a legislative solution.”

Edelman said the Obama Administration will work with the FCC and others to implement legislative fixes that prevent consumers from risking criminal penalties related to unlocking:
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Leap Motion controller shipping May 13, Pre-order now at Best Buy

9to5 Staff Feb 27 2013 - 7:56 am PT

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXKindguPTI&start=20]

Leap, creators of the Mac and PC 3D motion-tracking device, announced this morning that it will begin shipping its Leap Motion on May 13. Last May, Leap announced it would open up pre-orders for the device for $69.99.

With today’s announcement, Leap raised the price of the controller $10 dollars; $79.99 is the new retail price. Leap also announced that starting today Best Buy would take pre-orders for the device with a May 19 delivery date…

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Samsung steals Apple’s wallet

Jordan Kahn Feb 27 2013 - 5:53 am PT

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From 9to5Google:

Samsung is today officially unveiling its “Samsung Wallet” mobile app solution, and it is quickly gaining attention for similarities to Apple’s iOS 6 ticket, card, and coupon solution known as Passbook. For those familiar with Apple’s app, Samsung Wallet appears to work much the same way. The app will allow users to store event tickets, membership cards, coupons, and boarding passes in one central app. From there, users will be able to present the digital passes. Companies supporting the standard can also scan a barcode included for each digital ticket.

Full story and video of the app in action is available on 9to5Google.

MLB increasing Passbook support from 4 to almost half of all Major League stadiums in 2013

Jordan Kahn Feb 27 2013 - 5:28 am PT

On top of just recently updating its At Bat 13 iOS app for Spring Training with a ton of new features, MLB announced at an event last night in New York that it will increase the number of stadiums accepting Passbook this season. According to a report from GigaOm, the number of stadiums accepting tickets through Apple’s wallet app will increase from just four to 13:

The teams that will start accepting Passbook tickets for the first time are the Minnesota Twins, Baltimore Orioles, Milwaukee Brewers, Oakland A’s, Pittsburgh Pirates, Detroit Tigers and Chicago Cubs. The New York Mets, San Francisco Giants and Kansas City Royals, which began accepting Passbook last September, will again offer the service this season. MLB says there are three more teams that will enable iOS tickets this season, but that are not yet ready to make an official announcement.

CEO of MLB’s Advanced Media Office Bob Bowman told GigaOm that iOS users currently make up approximately 70 percent of all At Bat users and around 85 percent of paid subscribers. The updated iOS At Bat app includes a classic games video library archive, re-architected app navigation, and searchable video highlight library expansion to include access to complete video archives.

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Google’s new Chromebook Pixel Thinks Different about vertical touch surfaces, puts touch on the display

Jordan Kahn Feb 21 2013 - 11:57 am PT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=j-XTpdDDXiU

The rumors were true: Google just announced the Chromebook Pixel. It’s a 12.85-inch touchscreen Chromebook with a 2,560-by-1,700 display that packs in “the highest pixel density (239 pixels per inch) of any laptop screen on the market today.”

Let’s start with the screen. This Chromebook has the highest pixel density (239 pixels per inch) of any laptop screen on the market today. Packed with 4.3 million pixels, the display offers sharp text, vivid colors and extra-wide viewing angles. With a screen this rich and engaging, you want to reach out and touch it—so we added touch for a more immersive experience. Touch makes it simple and intuitive to do things like organize tabs, swipe through apps and edit photos with the tip of your finger.

Go to 9to5Google for all the details.

As for the chances of Apple ever making a touchscreen notebook, Steve Jobs made it very clear at the 2010 MacBook Air refresh event that Apple did “tons of user testing” and concluded “it doesn’t work. It’s ergonomically terrible.”

We’ve done tons of user testing on this and it turns out it doesn’t work. Touch surfaces don’t want to be vertical. It gives great demo. But after a short period of time you start to fatigue, and after an extended period of time your arm wants to fall off. It doesn’t work. It’s ergonomically terrible. Touch surfaces want to be horizontal. Hence, pads.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmlH59yKpqY&start=690]

Report: Apple snags Rolls Royce exec to strengthen corporate communications for EMEIA

Jordan Kahn Feb 20 2013 - 1:42 pm PT

According to a report from PRWeek, Apple has strengthened its European communications team with the hiring of Rolls-Royce’s director of external comms Josh Rosenstock in a newly created executive position. The report claimed sources close to the situation said the hire was based on “Apple’s desire to grow its corporate affairs capabilities as it becomes increasingly drawn into global regulatory and political issues.” Rosenstock will reportedly join the company in the coming weeks as the Director of Corporate Comms for the Europe, Middle East, India and Africa (EMEIA) and report to Apple Senior Director of Corporate Comms for EMEIA Alan Hely.

One source with knowledge of the move said the ‘heavyweight’ hire was a reflection of Apple’s desire to grow its corporate affairs capabilities as it becomes increasingly drawn into global regulatory and political issues… Another senior comms source added: ‘This is an acknowledgement from Apple there’s a need for wider horsepower when it comes to links with Whitehall stakeholders. ‘As Apple becomes an institution in its own right it needs to upskill in this area.’… It is thought Rosenstock will report to Alan Hely, senior director, corporate comms, EMEIA, Apple Europe.

Apple and Rolls-Royce declined to comment on the report.

Opera joins Apple and Google in its move to WebKit browser rendering engine

Seth Weintraub Feb 13 2013 - 12:22 pm PT

Big news from Oslo:

To provide a leading browser on Android and iOS, this year Opera will make a gradual transition to the WebKit engine, as well as Chromium, for most of its upcoming versions of browsers for smartphones and computers.

“The WebKit engine is already very good, and we aim to take part in making it even better. It supports the standards we care about, and it has the performance we need,” says CTO of Opera Software, Håkon Wium Lie. “It makes more sense to have our experts working with the open source communities to further improve WebKit and Chromium, rather than developing our own rendering engine further. Opera will contribute to the WebKit and Chromium projects, and we have already submitted our first set of patches: to improve multi-column layout.”

That means there are now three major browser engines: Mozilla’s, Microsoft’s, and now the WebKit engine that Apple adopted from KHTML/Konqueror. With Apple and Google (with its WebKit adaptation Chrome) dominating mobile and now tablets, it is no secret which engine is poised to dominate in the coming years. Good call, Opera.

Opera is already contributing code to WebKit and expects to start rolling out products at MWC this month.
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iOS 6.1.1 build 10B145 being rushed to address 3G performance and enterprise concerns, some carrier testing completed

Jordan Kahn Feb 11 2013 - 8:58 am PT

Following reports about some carriers in Europe issuing warnings not to upgrade to iOS 6.1 due to issues with 3G performance, it seems a fix is already in the works. The issue was not just with 3G through carriers such as Vodafone and three in Austria, many users in Apple’s own forums complained of similar problems, degraded battery life, and more. Users have also had problems with Exchange support, causing AOL corporate to temporarily disable the ability to manage mobile meetings from iOS devices running iOS 6.1.

Today, a report from German language blog iFun claimed that carriers have already completed testing a 6.1.1 update to address the bugs and a 23MB update carrying build number 10B145 should be available over-the-air soon:

After ifun.de this information is already in version 6.1.1 of the night on Monday as “Testing Complete” and should be offered the iPhone community with little flow as a wireless update. Sources which are applicable in the past on the issue dates of iOS 6.0.2 and iOS 6.1 as well as the eradication of the “SMS spoofing problem” have informed, indicate the large 23MB update with UMTS-compatible.

Apple’s first beta release for 6.1.1 was released last week with build number 10B311.

Tech Industry

Smarterflo opens Smarter Stand for iPhone project on Kickstarter

Mike Beasley Feb 11 2013 - 8:38 am PT

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=vGJYz7JmvQc]

Smarterflo, the company that successfully launched the Smarter Stand for iPad on Kickstarter last year, has announced a new project focused on the iPhone. The new project, the Smarter Stand for iPhone, is a kickstand that uses the headphone jack on the iPhone as a mounting point, making it possible to use it with or without a case.

The Smarter Stand also set out to solve a secondary issue: tangled earbud cords. The stand has an earbud cord wrap that keeps them from being tangled, and it fits in your pocket so you can take it with you on the go.

The Smarter Stand will work with the iPhone 4, 4S and 5, as well as the iPod touch. The project can be found on Kickstarter, and it is trying to reach a funding goal of $15,000. There are a limited number of early bird rewards that were gone within 24 hours of the iPad version’s début on Kickstarter, so act fast if you want to get any.

Founder of Apple’s Human Interface Group talks potential for an iWatch

Jordan Kahn Feb 8 2013 - 8:28 am PT

Bruce Tognazzini, Apple employee #66 and founder of Apple’s Human Interface Group, published his thoughts on a potential smart watch product from the company (via MG Siegler) yesterday. While we have seen the launch of several Bluetooth smart watch products from startups this year, Tognazzini thought a watch from Apple could “have a profound impact on our lives and Apple’s fortunes.” One of the many interesting ideas Tognazzini has about how Apple might take advantage of a wearable device is the ability to build better maps:

Using pressure data from millions of watches, Apple could build a precision altitude map of the world. This map would indicate true altitudes everywhere that iWatch wearers travel. The granularity would be several orders of magnitude greater than ever before attempted for a wide-area map at a cost several orders of magnitude less than Flyover.

In the article, Tognazzini explained what he thought will be the standout features of an iWatch from Apple. While outlining the some of the apps you might expect like fitness and remote control applications, he said Passcodes and enhanced Find My iPhone features would be the two killer apps:

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Adobe releases emergency Flash security update to address malware attacks on OS X

Jordan Kahn Feb 7 2013 - 4:40 pm PT

.

As noted by ArsTechnica, Adobe just released an unscheduled patch to address two vulnerabilities that could be the source of malware attacks on both OS X and Windows. Apple has also issued a KB urging users to update. According to the advisory posted by Adobe, the attacks targeted Firefox or Safari users on Mac:

Adobe is also aware of reports that CVE-2013-0634 is being exploited in the wild in attacks delivered via malicious Flash (SWF) content hosted on websites that target Flash Player in Firefox or Safari on the Macintosh platform, as well as attacks designed to trick Windows users into opening a Microsoft Word document delivered as an email attachment which contains malicious Flash (SWF) content.

The update is available through Adobe’s website here.

Amazon compares Kindle Fire HD to iPad’s Retina display in new TV ad (Video)

Jordan Kahn Feb 5 2013 - 6:58 am PT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=XtJBQHLdcM4

Amazon has not been shy about comparing its Kindle Fire devices to iPads. When it released its earnings report in October, Amazon compared the two devices spec by spec and noted the 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HD has 193 percent more pixels than the iPad mini. Amazon’s latest advertisement for its Kindle Fire boldly put the 8.9-inch HD model up against a full-sized Retina iPad. While noting both offer “stunning HD” and “you may not be able to tell the difference,” Amazon ended the ad by highlighting the $299 price point of the Kindle Fire as being significantly under the latest $499 iPad with Retina display. With Amazon knocking an additional $30 to $50 off the Kindle Fire HD this week, you can grab one for $250 less than an iPad 4.

While the price might be compelling, most reviews (including our own) agreed the Kindle Fire’s software is keeping it from being a true competitor to the iPad and pure Android tablets.

Our newest commercial shows iPad with Retina Display and Kindle Fire HD 8.9″ side-by-side. Both have large, stunning HD screens. In fact, you may not be able to tell the difference… but your wallet definitely can. Meet the new, larger Kindle Fire.

Java browser plug-in on OS X re-enabled with update to Java 7

Jordan Kahn Feb 1 2013 - 2:02 pm PT

Reports from earlier this week noted Apple had recently blocked Java 7 browser plug-ins again on OS X. While the exact reason was unclear, a terminal workaround is no longer required. Oracle released update 13 for Java 7 for Mac OS X today. The critical patch brings over 50 new security fixes for Jave SE products, in addition to re-enabling plug-ins on OS X.

The original Critical Patch Update for Java SE – February 2013 was scheduled to be released on February 19th, but Oracle decided to accelerate the release of this Critical Patch Update because active exploitation “in the wild” of one of the vulnerabilities affecting the Java Runtime Environment (JRE) in desktop browsers, was addressed with this Critical Patch Update.