Apple's iPod Touch versus Nokia's N800 Internet Tablet

Jack Schofield / Apple / Digital music & movies / Internet / Mobile computing 12:56pm

Nokia's N800 Internet Tablet and Apple's iPod Touch are similar devices with very obvious differences. The Nokia, for example, has a bigger touch screen (4.1in v 3.5in), built-in FM radio, and is open (runs Linux), so you can install applications. It comes with Skype so you can use it as a VoIP phone. The iPod Touch has much more storage (8GB or 16GB v 128MB) and is a much better music player, but it's a proprietary system and lacks the Nokia's communications features. Which to choose?

At TabletBlog.com, ThoughtFix has done an interesting comparison complete with photos, videos, tests and a table. To skip to the conclusion:

The winner here depends on which application is more important to the consumer. If you want a richer internet experience, installable applications, and a wider variety of functionality, get the N800. If you want a slim, attractive media player with occasional light web browsing thrown in, get an iPod touch. For me, neither will replace the other.

As people point out in the comments, ThoughtFix doesn't comment on sound quality, which is a significant factor for people buying a music player. Also, it would have been even more interesting to include one of the new big-screen Archos 4GB to 160GB devices such as the 605 (4.3in screen) or 705 (7in screen).

Rumour kicks off nostalgia for Apple Newton

Kevin Anderson / Apple 12:06pm

photo by oskay Some Rights Reserved.

Last night, I was checking out Engadget when a post took me back to the future. They were flagging up a rumour on AppleInsider that Apple is working on a PDA, a modern-day Newton, about "1.5 times the size of the iPhone".

This is one of those Apple rumours that just won't die (see number 6), but I have difficulty thinking that even in the Jobs-ian reality distortion field at 1 Infinite Loop that Apple would enter a dead, or at least the dying market for stand-alone PDAs. Besides, as Bobbie Johnson noted in our water cooler discussion, a couple of tweaks and the iPod Touch is there.

I think more likely is that this is a sub-notebook, tablet type UMPC-killer, rather than a PDA, which is how AppleInsider characterises the device later in its article. There are plenty of rumours floating around about a small notebook to replace the 12-inch iBooks and Powerbooks in the MacBook lines, the so-called MacBook Thin (with a later post that it has been delayed). Ah the Kremlinology of the Apple rumour mill.

The rumour did bring about a wave of techno-nostalgia. About 10 years ago, a co-worker was raving about his Apple Newton 2000, even though his Steve-ness would kill it soon after. The early versions of the Newton were slated for their poor handwriting recognition, even entering popular culture in the comic strip Doonesbury and the Simpsons. I got so nostalgic. I bid on one on eBay.

What old tech do you miss or better yet still use?

Apple bricks some hacked iPhones

cx

Jack Schofield / Apple / Gadgets / Mobile phones 12:23pm

Photo: Gizmodo

Apple released its second iPhone software update yesterday -- iPhone 1.1.1 -- to fix bugs and plug some serious security holes, while also adding new features. However, "Users are reporting that [the update] is making previously unlocked iPhones unusable," reports IDG News. But as Apple said:

WARNING: Apple has discovered that some of the unauthorized unlocking programs available on the Internet may cause irreparable damage to the iPhone's software. IF YOU HAVE MODIFIED YOUR IPHONE'S SOFTWARE, APPLYING THIS SOFTWARE UPDATE MAY RESULT IN YOUR IPHONE BECOMING PERMANENTLY INOPERABLE. Making unauthorized modifications to the software on your iPhone violates the iPhone software license agreement, and the inability to use your iPhone to unauthorized software modifications is not covered under your iPhone's warranty.

Some users of hacked iPhones are getting "Incorrect SIM" lockdown messages, and some are having to re-activate their iPhones with the original AT&T SIM card. Gizmodo has a great blow-by-blow account of the scramble.

I expect a very large proportion of the world will now be saying "serves you right". However, a few people with "legal" non-hacked phones have also had problems, including Robert Scoble's son, Patrick.

Patrick's iPhone lost all of its data. Made worse because his Mac had a bunch more problems (this is the second time it's been in the shop) and so he's praying now that Apple didn't delete everything off of his hard drive.

[in a comment, Scoble says he backed up everything except contacts.]

Whether the update will have any long-term impact is open to doubt. Seems to me that Apple is entirely within its rights. It's selling a proprietary phone that's locked to a specific service with a legally binding contract (and there's no get-out clause to say it doesn't apply if you work for a prominent blog). If you don't like it, don't buy it.

Gizmodo says Don't buy an iPhone

Gizmodo says Don't buy an iPhone

Jack Schofield / Apple / Gadgets / Mobile computing / Mobile phones 01:57pm

Graphic from Wired, used by Gizmodo

This week's Apple iPhone update may have bricked a few hacked phones, but this is the least important part of the problem. What probably upset many more early adopters was the way Apple wiped out their applications, reducing their phones to the "official" software. This sent out a very clear message: The iPhone is for dummies. It's not for gadget freaks, who only represent a tiny minority of the market.

The Gizmodo gadget blog has therefore changed its iPhone recommendation to Don't Buy. It says:

Screw the unlock for a second. Let's talk about the those third-party apps. While my 4GB iPhone is a brick, and the 8GB phone, which I kept on a totally legit AT&T contract, is now stripped down. Programs like the faux-GPS, IM clients, Flickr Upload, and NES emulator -- what did they ever do but make the iPhone far better than the stock original? They made it far more competitive with open-platform superphones like the Nokia N95, to which I will now be switching.

As someone remarks in a comment to the post, Gizmodo has gone from "Jesus Christ himself owned one of these (prove he didn't)" to "It's crap, don't buy it" in the time it took to update firmware.

The interesting question is whether Apple cares. It's stopped being a computer company and become a consumer electronics company, and while most computer companies love hackers and geeks, consumer electronics companies hate them. They want absolute control of their products. They don't want people messing them around.

In fact, this has always been Steve Jobs's aim. The Apple II -- designed by Steve Wozniak -- was an open system, for its day: it had expansion slots, so you could take the lid off and use it for thousands of applications that Woz had never even imagined. The Mac, developed under Steve Jobs's control, was a closed system. It was intended to be an appliance, like a washing machine, and Jobs quipped that there were no user groups for Maytags. It was only after Jobs was kicked out of Apple that the Mac was opened up with the Mac II, launched in 1987. (The Mac II was like a standard PC: it didn't have a built-in monitor, and it did have expansion slots.)

After the Second Coming, when Jobs resumed control of Apple, he dramatically reduced the number of models and launched the iMac. Since then he has consistently moved the Mac line towards locked-down systems more and more like the 1984 original. (You don't like the limited built-in graphics? Tough.)

Everything about Steve Jobs's history and character says "it's my way or the highway." He demands absolute control. That hasn't worked very well in the computer industry but it's standard in the mobile phone business.

Now Jobs has finally moved into an industry where control freakery is the norm, why would you expect him to give it up?

Greenpeace hammers iPhone's hazardous chemicals

Jack Schofield / Apple / Gadgets / Mobile phones 12:59pm

Greenpeace has been attacking Apple for its environmental record with its Green my Apple campaign, and its analysis of the iPhone suggests the company still hasn't cleaned up its act.

Greenpeace says its analysis "revealed that the iPhone contains toxic brominated compounds (indicating the prescence of brominated flame retardants (BFRs)) and hazardous PVC. The findings are detailed in the report, Missed call: the iPhone's hazardous chemicals" (PDF).

Greenpeace adds:

Dr David Santillo, Senior Scientist at the Greenpeace Research Laboratories, commented, "Two of the phthalate plasticisers found at high levels in the headphone cable are classified in Europe as 'toxic to reproduction, category 2' because of their long-recognised ability to interfere with sexual development in mammals. While they are not prohibited in mobile phones, these phthalates are banned from use in all toys or childcare articles sold in Europe. Apple should eliminate the use of these chemicals from its products range."

Other criticisms include the iPhone battery being glued in place, which "makes separation for recycling, or appropriate disposal, more difficult," and Apple's failure to have a global take-back policy like Nokia and Sony Ericsson.

Nokia is top of Greenpeace's green list while Apple is close to bottom.

Greenpeace hammers iPhone's hazardous chemicals

Jack Schofield / Apple / Gadgets / Mobile phones 12:59pm

Greenpeace has been attacking Apple for its environmental record with its Green my Apple campaign, and its analysis of the iPhone suggests the company still hasn't cleaned up its act.

Greenpeace says its analysis "revealed that the iPhone contains toxic brominated compounds (indicating the prescence of brominated flame retardants (BFRs)) and hazardous PVC. The findings are detailed in the report, Missed call: the iPhone's hazardous chemicals" (PDF).

Greenpeace adds:

Dr David Santillo, Senior Scientist at the Greenpeace Research Laboratories, commented, "Two of the phthalate plasticisers found at high levels in the headphone cable are classified in Europe as 'toxic to reproduction, category 2' because of their long-recognised ability to interfere with sexual development in mammals. While they are not prohibited in mobile phones, these phthalates are banned from use in all toys or childcare articles sold in Europe. Apple should eliminate the use of these chemicals from its products range."

Other criticisms include the iPhone battery being glued in place, which "makes separation for recycling, or appropriate disposal, more difficult," and Apple's failure to have a global take-back policy like Nokia and Sony Ericsson.

Nokia is top of Greenpeace's green list while Apple is close to bottom.

Apple's next version of OSX, "Leopard", to ship Friday Oct 26

Charles Arthur / Apple

Apple has done what many expected - put out a press release on Tuesday (its favourite day for releases; perhaps it gives the people the weekend to sort everything, and then a day to check it all) saying that OSX 10.5, aka "Leopard", will ship on Friday October 26. At 6pm. Giving you just enough time to hurry home, install it, and stay up all night posting comments on the web saying "Wow, it's snappier!"

Hang on, though, what's this? "Leopard, the sixth major release of Mac OS X, is the best upgrade we've ever released," said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. "And everyone gets the ‘Ultimate’ version, packed with all the new innovative features, for just £85."

Yes, we're sure he stood there and said it for the benefit of the person with the clipboard.

But what's this on Apple's site? "Leopard, the sixth major release of Mac OS X, is the best upgrade we’ve ever released," said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. "And everyone gets the ‘Ultimate’ version, packed with all the new innovative features, for just $129."

Hmm, at current exchange rates $129 = £65, add VAT = £76.38. Who's walking away with the extra £9? Discuss.

Meanwhile, one gets the feeling that this has been quite a tight piece of management. As announced in April Leopard was already delayed from June to this month by the iPhone's introduction, as Apple diverted people from the computer OS team to the phone OS team. One suspects that they stayed a bit diverted, or distracted, having to do fixes (which bricked some iPhones). All in all, the "Gold Master" version of Leopard didn't circulate until last Friday evening, according to all the usually (un)reliable sources. That leaves ten days in which to sign off, create the master, duplicate the master, duplicate, box and ship the millions of copies that are surely going to ship. (If anyone knows precisely what order one does this stuff on a major operating system, enlighten us.)

However this also leaves a lingering doubt that there will be various, um, issues remaining in the software which will have to wait for a .1 fixup before everything's sorted. It's always thus - in the end, you can't make money without shipping something. (This is true of previous versions of any operating system, of course; they're all moving targets.)

There are lots of new things in Leopard; I've realised in the past week or so that I'm quite looking forward to Spaces, which gives you virtual desktops for different (user-defined) groups of applications.

Two questions for you, the reader:
-will you buy Leopard at once, or wait for the .1 release?
-what, if anything, are you looking forward to in it?

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Computer threat - Network Security

Every TCP package have 'flag bit’ defining content and intention of each package.
Example:

A package with flag bit contain "SYN or SYNCHRONIZE" will undertake to conduct initiation connection from sender to recipient. A package with flag bit contain "ACK" will undertake to inform receiver about sender information.
While a TCP package with beet flag contain "FIN" or "FINISH" undertaking to stop connection from sender to recipient.

To build a TCP connection, need data transfer package between two host, transfer of this data recognized by the name of "TCP Three-Way Handshake" as below picture.

Computer Network Threat

Threat is very harmful to the entire system and also by application at internal and external network.

The threat as follows:

Remote Login - this matter happened when someone capable to connect to a computer and have ability to control to several things related to resource found on the host or computer.

Application Backdoors - some program have special ability to access with long distance (remote access). Some bug program, exactly contain a backdoor or hidden access providing level control the computer and program.

SMTP session hijacking - SMTP is most commonly method used to deliver E-mail. By getting E-mail mailing-list, someone can deliver undesirable E-mail to thousands of or more users. This matter is called unsolicited junk mail or spam.

Spamming conducted with joining SMTP server which not suspect, then deliver thousands of E-mail called redirecting process, so that complicate to detect who is the real sender of the Mail Spam.

Operating system bugs – In application, some operation system have conducive security gap to be exploited illegally.

E-mail bombs - is an Individual attack, someone send hundreds or thousands of E-mail to one address so the victim E-mail cannot accept E-mail anymore.

Macro - To make simple or facilitate procedure an application, many application program permit us to make command which can be run by the program (script). By exploiting ability of script or macro, attacker can cause damage of data at computer.

Virus – Most known to make trouble at computer. The growth of virus from method, way of, making, effectiveness, damage storey, and also speed of spreading is different each other.

Redirect bombs – Hacker or Cracker can use ICMP to change direction of information and attack to other router.

Source routing - At many case, a data package which work through one or some network determined by router pass to route information by the router, but sometime hacker used the package as the real sender.

Another type of computer attack are from (next posted about this) :

Denial of Service (DoS)
Spoofing
Broadcast Amplification
TCP SYN

The method to run the threat above, can be conducted variously including using virus

Nokia Siemens Networks drops the axe on 9000 jobs

Nokia Siemens Networks drops the axe on 9000 jobs

While this doesn't come as a huge surprise -- this layoff was predicted last year -- it still hurts to see such massive cutbacks in an industry held so near and dear to our hearts. Apparently 2,900 jobs in Germany and 1,700 in Finland will be cut on the road to finding savings to the tune of $2 billion by 2010. The final cut will be about 9,000 employees which is roughly 15 percent of the joint venture's workforce of 60,000. The joint venture was founded to help both companies compete with the likes of Ericsson and Alcatel-Lucent with 5 major business units focusing on Radio Access, Broadband Access, Service Core and Applications, IP / Transport, and Operations Support Systems. Of course, the verdict is still out on how successful this venture will ultimately be, but Nokia's track record in the mobile space has been strong for as many years as we care to remember.

$500 million underwater fiber network to link Asia, America

$500 million underwater fiber network to link Asia, America

Unfortunately for most, traversing back and forth to Asia from America on a regular basis isn't exactly in the cards, but thanks to a $500 million project agreed upon by a 17-member telecommunications consortium, visiting via fiber will soon be a whole lot snappier. Telekom Malaysia, along with 16 other firms, have awarded a half billion dollar contract to Alcatel-Lucent and NEC to construct a 12,428-mile link between the west coast of America and Southeast Asia. The aptly-dubbed Asia-America Gateway will connect the western US with Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Guam, and Hawaii, while also offering "seamless interconnection" with Europe, Africa, and Australia. Moreover, the project is being designed to provide a "more secure link for traffic" across the seas, as it avoids the hazardous Pacific Ring in hopes of dodging massive internet outages due to unexpected earthquakes. Best of all, the wait time for the undersea cabling to make an impact is fairly reasonable, as users should see "faster and more reliable service" when it becomes operational in December of next year.

Turn your OS X and Linux-based machine into a FON Spot

Turn your OS X and Linux-based machine into a FON Spot

Not one to dwell too heavily on the past, FON is apparently already moving beyond its newfangled partnership with Time Warner, and has now caved to giving Mac and Linux users the ability to get in on the action. The latest FON Spot software now appears in a beta form for OS X and Linux (preferably Ubuntu) users, allowing Ethernet-connected machines to share excess bandwidth with others via WiFi. Notably, it's even supposed to work if connected via 3G, but we can't imagine your carrier being all too pleased with such a scheme. Per usual, the company warns of its beta nature and insinuates that problems could arise, but if you're still not deterred, be sure to hit the read link and get your respective download on.

The Next Social Network? It's Web 2.0, And It Knows Where You Are

The Web 2.0 Summit kicks off next week here in San Francisco. Epicenter's Julie Sloane and I will be there, blogging and passing out cards (and just plain passing out).

The official theme this year is "The Web's Edge," whatever that means. But based on murmurings I've read recently, I'd like to propose a less official theme: "The Socialization of Presence."

I got to thinking about this after reading Chris Messina's thought-provoking blog post riffing on Google's acquisition of the social messaging service Jaiku. If you're not familiar with the news, see our coverage on Compiler.

Chris' post refers to a meme started earlier this year by Web 2.0 conference co-chair Tim O'Reilly called the "Web 2.0 Address Book," a nebulous product (yet to be invented) that's basically a location-aware contact list. The idea is that all of our real social apps already exist in the form of e-mail, your phone, IM and Twitter. We just need some glue to make everything work together.

Messina extends the idea to a possible scenario: Rather than calling somebody or sending an e-mail or a Twitter or an IM, you just open up your contact list and click on their name. Wherever they are, your communication reaches them via the most convenient and appropriate means. So, they're walking on the beach, their iPhone rings. If they're in a meeting, they get a text message. If they're at their desk, they get an e-mail. If they're in Asia, they're probably asleep, so they get a voicemail.

Another name for it is the "presence-enabled phone book."

Last month, Jaiku's Jyri Engeström argued that this location-aware utility is the key piece of functionality missing from the iPhone. Not a surprising point of view considering it's pretty close to where his company is headed. Jyri points to O'Reilly's post which makes the same point.

Messina, however, argues on the iPhone's behalf. He asserts that Apple's browser-centered "dumb device" is the perfect tool with which to surf the social presence web. He brands the iPhone the Sputnik of this new frontier, the first of many devices to come. Logically then, since Google bought Jaiku and since the company is rumored to be building its own mobile platform, this is one of the holes we can expect the so-called GPhone to fill.

And for anyone weary of joining yet another social networking platform in order to participate, worry not. You're already a member. This new presence-aware social network is the web.

In Messina's vision of the future, your "presence" doesn't just exist on Facebook or Google. Rather, it lives in that layer of information which can be assembled from the pieces stored on every service you're a part of. Obviously, microformats would play a key part in such a scenario. Standards like hCard and hCalendar can be used to track where you are and what you're up to. OpenID can verify your identity, making your location data accessible to you and your group of friends. Instantly, anyone who wanted to get in touch with you could just look you up in their contact list and see where you are, what you're doing, what you'll be doing this afternoon and the best way to get in touch with you right now.

Actually, I should amend that last sentence -- anyone you trust would be able to get in touch with you. That's one of the complicated caveats here, and one that Messina touches on in his post. In order for this presence network to properly blossom, we need to overcome the hurdle of privacy. Not only do we need more secure and innovative ways of safely establishing and maintaining our identities, but we all need to get more comfortable with putting our information out there in the first place.

More importantly, we also need to free up all of our personal data that's already out there, languishing in closed networks like Facebook. Sadly, that might prove to be the most difficult hurdle.

Photo: Heyjules via Flickr

Google's Zeitgeist Speakers Even Wowed Googlers

Miguel Helft of the NYT has already detailed some of the speakers who headlined Google's Zeitgeist conference this week: Bill Clinton (teleconference), Al Gore, David Cameron (Britain's Conservative Party leader), Dick Parsons, Fred Smith, Tom Brokaw, and the decidedly un-digital Yvon Chouinard (founder of Patagonia). What Miguel didn't mention was how impressed even dynastically wealthy Googlers in attendance were by this line-up. The admiration, by the way, extended to Google's own Eric Schmidt, who is a shoo-in to be the next billionaire-turned-national-politician.

One interesting tidbit: A conference attendee says that Bill Clinton was full of praise for Al Gore (who deserves it), and even went out of his way to mention Gore several times in a short presentation. Gore, meanwhile, whose celebrity (and influence?) arguably now exceeds that his former boss, did not mention fellow-speaker Clinton once.

We're interpreting here, but we assume that Gore is still ripped about the Monica incident. If so, we have some advice for the Nobel winner: Let it go, Al, let it go! (And some more: Run for president!)

Ooprint's Blogger Business Cards

I love it! Business cards with a tag cloud:

I don't think I am going to switch from Moo cards, but I like the ooprint designs, and the tag cloud could actually be helpful as a way to forestall that quintessential American cocktail party question, "What do you do?" (My usual answer, by the way, "As little as possible."). You could just hand the interrogator a card and let the tag cloud explain. Maybe I could craft a tag cloud, and get it on the back of my next batch of moo cards? Or maybe the design geniuses at moo will just offer this as a service. Or ooprint could start offering moo-sized cards with the tag cloud on the back? Looks like a looming global competition for the all-important technoid geek business card market!

Yahoo Messenger For Vista

I got a demo of the new Yahoo Messenger for Vista, which has been redesigned to take advantage of Vista-specific features. Since it was the first time I was seeing Vista, I must admit that I was operating at a disadvantage, but what I saw suggests that Yahoo is continuing its Messenger strategy of developing the Messenger client that best takes advantage of the specific operating system, like Vista's transparent windows.

Yahoo has introduced tabbed windows for IM in this version, which means you can drag one independent chat window onto another, and wind up with one chat window with two tabs. Or you can drag a tab off to create a new window.

Yahoo is also trying to integrate other services more closely with Messenger. For example, Fantasy Football is supported by the automatic creation of a group in the Messenger contact list.

The product is not in beta yet, but Yahoo plans to roll that out as soon as possible, and to continuously be rolling out new functionality as more user roll onto Vista.

My sense is that the adoption of Vista will be much slower than Microsoft would have us believe, but Yahoo is being sensible, building a Vista version of Messenger with basic functionality immediately. I just hope that Yahoo continues the push on the Mac client as diligently, since that client is woefully behind the curve relative to the Windows client.

Cultural Dissonance

Cultural Dissonance

I have taken the DLD conference off my upcoming events. The request for me to speak has been withdrawn.

I have never attended the DLD conference, which is managed by Hubert Burda Media, a German publishing company I have had no contact with, so there is little social capital involved. But I think this is an interesting case in cultural dissonance: since this has occurred in the past few years with two European conferences. In both cases I was asked if I would like to speak, to which I responded, yes. And in those cases, subsequently, the offer was taken back. With apologies, etc., very politely. Nonetheless this has never happened in the US, where I have spoken countless times. Maybe it is some subtle interpretation of 'would' that I am missing, as in 'would you do this if we ask you to?' with emphasis on the if.

Or perhaps it is just a different model of developing conference programs. I have served on dozens of US program committees, and people are solicited for proposals, but once you accept them as speakers you do not reneg later.

Well, I am scaling way back on conferences in general, and I can happily forego yet another travel opportunity. But being called 'Steve' in the last email rankled more than being told there were far, far too many wonderful speakers vying to participate.

Sony Walkman A910 Series Players

Sony Corp. has announced a new Walkman series which will hit the Japanese shores in the first week of November. The A910 Walkman series has a large 2.4” display and plays music, video and also broadcasts TV (1Seg, Japan’s equivalent to DMB) and FM. There’s also an Electronic Programming Guide (EPG) which can help user to schedule upcoming TV shows and also record them.

As for the storage, it will come in 4, 8 or 16GB options and can play 36 hours of music, watch 6 hours of TV or record for 16 hours. Regarding the price: NW-A916 (4GB) for 30,000 Yen ($261), NW-A918 (8GB) for 35,000 Yen ($305) and NW-A919 (16GB) for 45,000 Yen ($392).

Palm unveils low cost Centro

Palm has finally announced its Centro device to be available from October 14 exclusively on Sprint network. Centro is till date Palm’s lightest and smallest smartphone. It runs on Palm OS and features a touchscreen display (320X320 pixels) along with a QWERTY keyboard making it ideal for messaging, web surfing and IMing. The phone also has a 1.3 megapixel camera, microSD expansion slot, music player, Google Maps and a bunch of Sprint apps.

Apple Sells One Millionth iPhone

It took just 74 days for iPhone to reach the magical milestone of 1 million. Yup, Apple’s target of selling 1 million iPhones by September has been achieved and nonetheless we can say that the recent price drop helped it to reach faster.