Archive for May, 2014

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Infographic: Mobile Phones: Then And Now – Nokia 1110 vs. Samsung Galaxy S5

Posted in Commentary with tags , , on May 22, 2014 by itnerd

 

Source: MobileFun

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iMessage Bug Causing Grief For Those Who Switch From iPhones

Posted in Commentary with tags on May 22, 2014 by itnerd

Let’s say for a second that you decide to dump your shiny iPhone to an Android phone, but you decide to keep your number. Besides horrifying the hordes of Apple Fanbois who would never approve of such a switch, you may be opening yourself up to a rather nasty iMessage bug that results in lost messages from other iPhone or iDevice users that are incorrectly delivered to their inactive iPhone, instead of their new phone or the message fails to get converted to a standard text message. Either way, the sender will see a “delivery failed” message when this happens and you don’t get your message. Now this is not a new bug and the Internet is filled with frustration regarding this bug.

The current workaround is to turn off iMessage on their phone and uncheck the number in other iMessage-compatible devices attached their iCloud account before switching devices. However this method doesn’t always remove the phone number from Apple’s iMessage server. That forces former iPhone owners to contact Apple to remove them from the iMessage system manually. Another option is to have family members and close friends delete your number from their phones and then add it again once you’ve taken the above steps.

I browsed around the Internet this morning and this story is really starting to get some attention in the broader press. Thus I suspect that Apple will be bringing out a fix for this to take the heat off. Hopefully that fix comes quickly for those who switch from iPhones to something else.

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Review: SONOS PLAY:3

Posted in Products with tags on May 22, 2014 by itnerd

I recently got the chance to try a SONOS PLAY:3 in my condo recently and got more than what I bargained for. In the process of testing the PLAY:3, I got the chance to test the following:

  • The BRIDGE which interfaces SONOS products into your home network so that you can place SONOS speakers anywhere you want and interact with them wirelessly.
  • The new SONOS app which controls your SONOS environment.
  • Google Play Music and its integration with SONOS products.

Now setting up the PLAY:3 was incredibly easy.

  • Plug the BRIDGE into my home network and provide it with AC power.
  • Plug in the AC power of the PLAY:3.
  • Download the SONOS Controller app for iOS onto my iPhone.
  • Follow the directions on the app to set everything up which involved pressing buttons on the BRIDGE and PLAY:3
  • Declare victory and have a beer while enjoying the fruits of my labours.

In under 5 minutes, I had everything setup. The bottom line is that anyone can set this up and do so quickly.

Now, when it comes to the sound quality, it is impressive. It’s not a single speaker. The PLAY:3 has three Class-D digital amplifiers and three drivers–one tweeter and two 3-inch midrange drivers, as well as one passive, rear-firing bass radiator. All of this conspires to give you superior room filling sound. The bass is relatively full and well-defined and the speaker is capable of playing music quite loudly without distortion at high volumes. One nice touch is that the PLAY:3 can be laid down horizontally or positioned vertically. An internal sensor detects which position the speaker is in and will switch from stereo mode (horizontal) to mono (vertical). That’s handy if you want pair two PLAY:3’s to give you true stereo separation.

The PLAY:3 itself has only three buttons: volume up, volume down, and mute. To control the PLAY:3 you need to use the SONOS App which comes in Mac, PC, iOS and Android flavours. The new version has a brand new user interface that makes it much easier to use. One thing that I really like is the fact that you can set an alarm and wake up to your favourite music from either the streaming service of your choice or from your music library. You can also build independent playlists within the app, store favorites and search easily for radio stations all over the world. The most significant new feature is universal search. For example, type in the name of an artist and you’ll find relevant tracks in your music library as well as across any streaming services you subscribe to. You might get pointed to Pandora, Spotify or something else. If you’re used to the layout of the old app, you will find the new layout takes some getting used to. But once you do, it is an easier and prettier app to use.

Now SONOS adds new music services all the time. But one of those additions is huge. Google Play Music is now available to SONOS users….. As long as you have an Android device. iOS users are sort of left out of the cold for the moment. More on that in a second. Now assuming that you do have an Android device, there are two options to stream music from the service:

  • Choose Google Play Music from the services menu on your Sonos app and log in with your Google Account.
  • Play directly to the SONOS system from within the Google Play Music App on your Android device by selecting the cast icon. If you think this sounds like ChromeCasting, you’d be right. When I tried it, it was very easy to do and the Google Play Music App is the first non-SONOS app that I am aware of that directly interacts with SONOS hardware.

Either way, you get access to thousands of tracks in a quick and easy manner. iOS users only get the option of using the SONOS app. Streaming currently doesn’t seem to work from the Google Play Music app. But the good news is that iOS users get the complete Google Play Music experience. So it’s not a total loss.

Negatives? Other than the lack of iOS streaming support for the Google Play Music app, I really don’t have any. The SONOS PLAY:3 goes for $329. You’ll also need the BRIDGE which is $59. My advice would be to try it out at your local store and I suspect you’ll be taking one home.

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Has iCloud Been Hacked? Hackers Say Yes… And There’s More….

Posted in Commentary with tags , on May 21, 2014 by itnerd

This can’t be good for Apple.

iPhoneincanada.ca is reporting that Dutch and Moroccan hackers have hacked iCloud to allow them to bypass the Activation Lock feature that is standard on every iDevice:

The hackers are on Twitter under the pseudonyms AquaXetine and MerrukTechnolog, and they are offering unlocking services via the doulci.nl website. According to information found on their website, doulCi is the world’s first Alternative iCloud Server, and the world’s first iCloud Activation Bypass.

As of writing, the server isn’t live yet, but when it is it will support all devices except GSM iPads, the iPhone 4s, and the iPhone 5c and 5s, which are currently in beta testing. For those who are skeptical, the hackers have posted a long list of already hacked iPhones, and according to the Telegram, the list contains up to 30,000 iPhones previously reported as stolen or locked by the user.

Now assuming that this is true, this is no minor hack. Apple advertises iCloud as being very secure so anybody who could get past whatever security they have would be able to cast significant doubt on those claims. Another piece of the puzzle that’s worth noting is that these hackers went to Apple in March but never got a response. Thus they went public. I think it’s a safe bet that they now have Apple’s full attention and however this hack works, is going to mitigated. Assuming that all of this is true of course. I suspect we are going to find out in the coming days.

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Google Envisions Ads Everywhere On Every Device

Posted in Commentary with tags on May 21, 2014 by itnerd

If you think that ads on the Internet or on your smartphone are getting out of hand, just wait until you hear what Google has planned for you. Via a letter that Google sent to the Securities and Exchange Commission, here’s what the tech giant has in store for you:

We expect the definition of “mobile” to continue to evolve as more and more “smart” devices gain traction in the market. For example, a few years from now, we and other companies could be serving ads and other content on refrigerators, car dashboards, thermostats, glasses, and watches, to name just a few possibilities. Our expectation is that users will be using our services and viewing our ads on an increasingly wide diversity of devices in the future, and thus our advertising systems are becoming increasingly device-agnostic.

That’s right. Ads, on every device everywhere. Seeing as Google is working with car companies to put their software in cars, they own Nest, they have a version of their OS for watches, and Google Glass is already out there, this isn’t too much of a stretch.

Is it just me, or is Google’s view of the future just downright scary?

 

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New Unpatched Bug In IE 8 Disclosed

Posted in Commentary with tags , on May 21, 2014 by itnerd

If you are still running Internet Explorer 8 for whatever reason, there’s an unlatched bug that exists that allows an attacker to run arbitrary code on vulnerable machines via drive-by downloads or malicious attachments in email messages. Here’s the scary part. Microsoft knew about this in October of last year, but there is no patch for this as of yet. So HP disclosed this today via their Zero Day Initiative. So, one has to wonder why Microsoft has failed to patch this. That’s a very interesting question that as I type this has no answer.

My advice? Run some other browser such as Firefox or Chrome until this is fixed. Hopefully, this is fixed quickly.

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Telus Bails Out Of Buying Mobilicity

Posted in Commentary with tags , on May 21, 2014 by itnerd

The Globe And Mail is reporting that the latest attempt by Telus to buy struggling carrier Mobilicity has come to an end:

A source said the Vancouver-based telecom firm sent word of its decision Mobicility on Tuesday, informing them it was withdrawing its offer because conditions of the deal had not been met.

Telus is now “no longer in the mix” to obtain Mobilicity, the source said.

The source did not say which conditions had not been met. However one of them was that Ottawa approved the transfer of spectrum between Mobilicity and Telus – a transaction the government has consistently opposed.

Well. That’s not good news if you’re on Mobilicity as that really puts the future of this carrier in doubt. Maybe someone will ride in and save the day? Maybe they cease to exist? It’s hard to say at this point what may happen. But one thing that I can say is that barring an 11th hour miracle, this will not help Canadians get more competition, lower prices, and better service in the wireless space.

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eBay Asks Users To Change Passwords Due To Cyberattack

Posted in Commentary with tags , on May 21, 2014 by itnerd

If you have an account on eBay, change your password right now. The company apparently has been the victim of a cyberattack and passwords were stolen. Here’s part of a statement that they released today:

Cyberattackers compromised a small number of employee log-in credentials, allowing unauthorized access to eBay’s corporate network, the company said. Working with law enforcement and leading security experts, the company is aggressively investigating the matter and applying the best forensics tools and practices to protect customers.

The database, which was compromised between late February and early March, included eBay customers’ name, encrypted password, email address, physical address, phone number and date of birth. However, the database did not contain financial information or other confidential personal information. The company said that the compromised employee log-in credentials were first detected about two weeks ago. Extensive forensics subsequently identified the compromised eBay database, resulting in the company’s announcement today.

The company said it has seen no indication of increased fraudulent account activity on eBay. The company also said it has no evidence of unauthorized access or compromises to personal or financial information for PayPal users. PayPal data is stored separately on a secure network, and all PayPal financial information is encrypted.

The hack is pretty bad, but seeing as this happened in February or March and we are just finding out about this in mid-May, that’s even worse. Clearly eBay needs to step up its game when it comes to the security of the site.

Color me seriously unimpressed.

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iTunes For Windows Users Have A Serious Password Bug

Posted in Commentary with tags , on May 21, 2014 by itnerd

If you’re a user of iTunes on the Windows platform, you need to pay attention to this rather serious bug that is being reported by a Dutch researcher. According to this website (Google Translated), iTunes users on Windows are vulnerable to a serious SSL certificate flaw that allows hackers to intercept their passwords which are transmitted via plain text. If this sounds familiar, there was a similar bug on iOS and OS X that was fixed by Apple. This is a major #fail as Apple really has not done any of the basic things it has to do to make iTunes for Windows secure. Now Apple is aware of this apparently, but no word when a fix is coming. After all, Apple isn’t exactly the most open company.

Perhaps Apple should start taking security more seriously. Just like Kristen Paget suggests that they should.

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Viewsonic Announces CDE845-TL 4K Display

Posted in Commentary with tags on May 20, 2014 by itnerd

Want a big screen with amazing detail? How about 84″ big? How about a 4K display? Viewsonic can hook you up. They announced the the CDE8451-TL, an 84-inch, six-point simultaneous touch, interactive large-format display with 4K Ultra-HD resolution.

With four times the detail of 1080p Full HD displays, the 4K Ultra-HD resolution of the ViewSonic CDE8451-TL is stunning. The large format LED-based screen and 4K (3840×2160) resolution delivers the finest in colour, clarity and image detail. It also features a six-point touch-enabled surface that allows up to six users to simultaneously write, draw or annotate with fingers or stylus devices. The combined touch-interactive performance and ultra-high resolution make the ViewSonic CDE8451-TL the ultimate large-screen display solution.

Aimed at corporate, government, science and medical sectors, the CDE8451-TL features a variety of connectivity options, including HDMI, USB and VGA, as well as RS232 for multiple display and device manageability. Fit with an ARM dual-core processor, 8GB storage and an Android 4.2 operating system, the CDE8451-TL provides smooth and fast computing and responsive touch capabilities, regardless of applications that are running. The onboard Android-based system allows users to experience the expanding range of Android applications for business and educational environments.

The CDE8451-TL comes with ViewSonic’s ViewBoard software that allows users to write and edit documents and images on the screen in real-time. With the optional ViewSonic NMP-708 slot-in PC, the CDE8451-TL can be converted into a dual OS interactive large format display. The NMP-708 utilizes an Intel® i5 processor and an NVIDIA GPU, ensuring accelerated video performance needed for 4K content. With a built-in Windows 8 operating system, the NMP-708 provides Windows-compatible touch functionality and access to MS Office Suite applications. The ViewSonic NMP-708 also delivers additional computing power for users requiring X86 PC architectures.

Available now, the CDE8451-TL MSRP’s for $18,999.99(USD). The NMP-708 Slot-in PC Network Media Player is also available for an MSRP of $1,199.99(USD).

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