News - page 2323

A hip purveyor of denim goods in New York called Self Edge has launched an iPhone payment system.

Code named (ironically?) “Square,” it consists of a small, plastic card reader that fits into headphone jacks of iPhones (or iPod Touches) and transfers swiped credit card info to an app.

According to coolhunting, it works like this: a store employee totals up merchandise,  then the customer adds a signature with their finger via touchscreen. The customer then adds the email address where they want the receipt sent to.
Kiya Babzani, co-owner of Self Edge, told Cult of Mac that Square has plenty of plusses for retailers in a system “expected to expand beyond retail and credit card use.”

“There are no recurring fees for Square, so it costs nothing to sign up. Current fees are 2.5% (+.50 cents) per transaction, extremely low compared to regular credit card rates, they normalize the fees so even if the payer uses an AmEx card, you still pay the same 2.5% which is unheard of in the credit card processing world.”

Another nifty feature: the receipt includes a map showing where the purchase was made, nice if you have to prove those distressed denims were somehow a business expense.

What’s the customer reaction to the iPhone system so far?

Babzani says: “Most people are loving it and are interested in where the product will go once it’s rolled out on a large scale.”

Meanwhile, Apple stores still have those comparatively clunky Windows-based mobile devices, rumored to be replaced by an iPhone-based system in September 2009.

In the meantime, what do you think of iPhone payments?

Images courtesy Coolhunting

Being somewhat old of years and gray of hair, I remember the good ol’ days of gaming, before all this new-fangled 3D nonsense. Entire games would be smaller in size than a thumbnail JPEG, controllers didn’t have 56,000 buttons, and games weren’t always sequels to sequels to sequels to [that’s enough of that—”Ed]

Clearly, I’m not the only one, because retro games are hot properties for all current gaming systems, and Apple handhelds are no exception. The App Store is peppered with clones and ‘tributes’ to ancient games, along with a slew of official remakes from the likes of Atari and Namco. Recently, though, Manomio—developers of Flashback for iPhone—went a stage further, aiming to bring an entire retro system to iPhone: the Commodore 64.

The build of C64 we played with was quite impressive. Although frameskipping was evident (which is no longer the case for C64 emulation on desktop Macs), the small selection of games sent over with the demo were perfectly playable. Surprisingly, the controls also worked nicely, which is quite a feat when you consider that the C64 was a distinctly ‘digital control’ platform, and that virtual joysticks don’t often work well on Apple handhelds.

Sadly, the public at large has yet to experience the app, because Apple unceremoneously rejected it, citing issues regarding its built-in BASIC (App Store apps aren’t allowed to launch executable code), and, presumably, ignoring the fact that Frotz—a Z-Machine interpreter—has been happily living on the App Store for ages, despite there being no practical distinction between it and C64.

Stu from Manomio was kind enough to offer his thoughts on this and other issues surrounding C64, along with talking about why Manomio developed the app in the first place, and why the organization considers it important to fully license content for the App Store (a position that, ironically, puts them at odds with at least several dozen rip-off apps already for sale for Apple handhelds).

You can’t turn around without stubbing your toe on another iPod dock. We’ve seen the solar-powered, the flat-panel and last week a gentle alarm with soothing light and sounds of the forest. But today’s dock is simply a cool-looking slab of technology meant to pump up the volume for your playlist. The Onkyo ND-S1 is for iPod and video home theater fans why a costly tricked-out stereo was to vinyl audiophiles.

The device takes tunes from your iPod, transforms them into a 16-bit analog equivalent and sends them to your stereo. The ND-S1, due out sometime this fall, also connects via USB to your computer and will also massage your iTunes collection.

No price was announced.

[Via Gadget Labs and Akihabara News]

Today’s deals include Apple iPods starting at $39, MacBooks starting at $599, a MacBook Pro with AppleCare and many more.

Details of these and other Daily Deals can be found on the CoM Daily Deals page.

Apple’s tablet, which may be on sale as soon as November, will be the best computer you ever bought. It will be better even than the beloved iPhone.

It will be an entirely new kind of computer that will usher in a new kind of computing.

It will be a horizontal iMac: a touch-screen computer that you use horizontally, in your lap or lying on the couch.

It will be a complete rethink of the computer for play, not work, and it use the original pointing device — your finger.

It will be really easy to use — a pleasure in fact, because it will be magical.

Google CEO Eric Schmidt has resigned from Apple’s board of directors, Apple announced Monday.

“Eric has been an excellent Board member for Apple, investing his valuable time, talent, passion and wisdom to help make Apple successful,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “Unfortunately, as Google enters more of Apple’s core businesses, with Android and now Chrome OS, Eric’s effectiveness as an Apple Board member will be significantly diminished, since he will have to recuse himself from even larger portions of our meetings due to potential conflicts of interest. Therefore, we have mutually decided that now is the right time for Eric to resign his position on Apple’s Board.”

Some believed Schmidt’s presence on Apple’s board gained early favoritism for Google’s voice-search app in the App Store and much speculation in recent months centered around Schmidt’s continued effectiveness on the board — for many of the reasons Jobs referred to in this morning’s announcement.

Some began to question the relationship between the two companies even more seriously with Apple’s recent rejection of Google’s Voice application for the iPhone, but at least now, with ties between the two companies severed at the directors’ level, their status as competitors has a more legitimate public face.

If you are accustom to waking with a blaring radio or the blinding light of early morning, the new wake-up light by Philips may be the perfect solution. The gadget, which includes an iPhone/iPod dock, promises a gradual wake-up routine by increasing the light gradually in your bedroom.

“Light falls on your eyes and positively affects your energy hormones, preparing your body to wake up,” according to Philips. For heavy sleepers, the light can reach 300 lux.

Replacing that obnoxious jolting alarm are natural sounds or tunes supplied by your iPod or iPhone. If you go with the built-in sounds, you can choose between “morning birds in the forest, a relaxing beep, the sounds of the African jungle or soft chimes in the wind,” according to the company. If you pick your favorite iPod or iPhone tunes, the sound level will increase over 90 seconds until reaching a preset maximum.

The Philips Wake-Up Light will cost $200 when it is released Aug. 22.

[Via Philips]

Apple on Friday afternoon released a firmware patch for the iPhone to fix a dangerous SMS security hole.

The 3.0.1 firmware update is available now through iTunes. The 300MB update is available for the iPhone, iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS. It doesn’t appear to contain any other features or bug fixes except for the SMS patch, according to Apple’s security advisory.

As previously reported, noted security experts Charlie Miller and Collin Mulliner revealed a major security exploit in the iPhone’s SMS system on Thursday at the 2009 Black Hat Conference in Las Vegas.

The exploit takes advantage of memory hole in the SMS system, allowing hackers root access to the device. Programs could theoretically be sent to any iPhone, through multiple SMS messages if necessary, and take over all functions, including the camera, phone and microphone. The only indication of the hack would be a SMS message containing a single square character.

Miller and Mulliner reportedly chose to reveal the exploit, which is applicable to all mobile platforms including iPhone OS, Android and Windows Mobile, at Black Hat after Apple had been unresponsive in the wake of their showing it to company officials earlier in July.

Looks like Apple woke up fast. The patch was issued in about 24 hours.

UPDATE: Google also patched its Android system on Friday, and Microsoft says it is investigating, according to BusinessWeek. To be fair, Microsoft was just informed of the vulnerability, while Apple was warned weeks ago, which may explain the speed of its patch.

I just visited Apple’s flagship store on Fifth Avenue for the first time — you know, the subterranean one with the glass cube on top that was co-designed by Steve Jobs.

While the architecture is fabulous, the most notable thing was the huge crowd in there at 6.30 PM in the evening on a weeknight. The stores in San Francisco and Los Angeles are often crowded, but the 5th Ave store was heaving. I don’t mean just crowded; it was literally packed, wall to wall.

There were lines for the Genius Bar (OK, expected); there were lines for the checkouts (also expected); there were lines for the iPhone 3GS (not expected); and there were lines for the new MacBooks (set up at a special stand. Also not expected).

There were lines for all the machines in the store. People were hanging about the tables for a chance to use the demo iMacs, MacBooks and iPhones.

It was hard to look at anything on the shelves without asking someone to get out of the way. It was almost impossible to move down some of the aisles because of the crowds.

It more resembled a hip NYC nightclub than a premium consumer electronics manufacturer in the midst of an economic downturn.

Color me genuinely surprised.

BTW: The Fifth Ave locale is one of the five Apple stores to see before you die.

Apple plans to release a security patch on Saturday to address a security issue for iPhone users that had some worried third party criminals could gain control over their phones remotely, the BBC reported on Friday.

Noted security experts Charlie Miller and Collin Mulliner revealed a major security exploit in SMS technology Thursday at the 2009 Black Hat Conference in Las Vegas. The exploit sent shockwaves through the wireless world and caused owners of mobile phones no end of terror over the prospect that bad guys might gain control over their devices by sending a series of simple SMS messages, including one containing a single square character, which would be the only indication of the hack.

Miller and Mulliner reportedly chose to reveal the exploit, which is applicable to all mobile platforms including iPhone OS, Android and Windows Mobile, at Black Hat after Apple had been unresponsive in the wake of their showing it to company officials earlier in July.

It was not immediately clear whether the patch reported by the BBC would be available to all iPhone users or just to those in the UK. Calls to Apple PR were unreturned at press time, but we’ll update the story as more information becomes available.

Chinese regulators have approved a modified iPhone for the giant Chinese market, which uses the speedy GSM/WCDMA chipset but has no WiFi.

Why no WiFi? Hit the jump for an explanation (It’s partly business, partly snooping).

Today’s deals include Apple iPods starting at $39, MacBooks starting at $599, a MacBook Pro with AppleCare and many more.

Details of these and other Daily Deals can be found on the CoM Daily Deals page.

In sharp contrast to Apple’s largely upbeat recent quarterly earnings announcement, Microsoft reported “a number of grim statistics, including a steep decline related to its Zune portable media player,” highlighted in a report Thursday at MarketWatch.

The portable music player sector seems to have reached a general level of saturation, as even Apple’s iPod — a device that spawned the resurgence of an entire industry when it was introduced nearly a decade ago — suffered an 11% drop in sales during the most recent quarter. But that is nothing compared to Microsoft’s copycat gadget, the Zune, which saw a 42% drop in year-over-year sales.

“If Zune were going to make a strong move against the iPod, it already would have,” said IDC analyst Susan Kevorkian, and some analysts are now looking for Microsoft to admit defeat and announce termination of its ill-fated hardware venture.

When the company launched the Zune in 2006, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer believed its 802.11 wireless functionality would take out the iPod by creating a “community of entertainment aficionados” who’d enjoy being able to connect with one another and with other 802.11-enabled devices, but apparently there’s a reason devices such as the iPod and the Zune are often called personal media devices.

As late as March of this year, Ballmer still maintained the Zune is not going away, but unless the tepidly anticipated touch screen Zune HD is somehow a huge hit, declining numbers like the ones highlighted by MarketWatch foretell a grim future for the little PMP that couldn’t.

The long-standing tiff between Apple and the iPhone jailbreaking community reached new heights of absurdity in a recent filing Apple made with the US Copyright office, in which the company all but claimed granting iPhone jailbreakers an exemption from the Digital Millennium Copyright Act would invite terrorist attacks on the nation’s wireless network infrastructure.

In a written response (PDF) to questions from the Copyright Office, Apple claimed that jailbroken iPhones could be used by drug dealers to avoid authorities, by hackers to skirt carrier-enforced limitations or even by attackers to crash the software at cell phone towers. “Technological protection measures were designed into the iPhone precisely to prevent these kinds of pernicious activities,” said the Apple statement, which added, “if granted, the jailbreaking exemption would open the door to them — to potentially catastrophic effect.”

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), representing consumer interests and arguing in the case for the jailbreaking exemption, dismissed Apple’s claims. “This is all just a lot of fear, uncertainty and doubt,” said Fred von Lohmann, an EFF senior staff attorney and the organization’s expert in intellectual property law.

Von Lohmann called Apple’s claims that jailbroken iPhones could bring down a carrier’s network a hypothetical game. “None of this has ever happened [with jailbroken iPhones],” he said. “You don’t see the independent iPhone stores filled with malicious software tools. Instead, they’re filled with the software that Apple has refused to offer in its App Store.”

The Copyright Office is expected to make its final ruling in the case by October.

[via PCWorld]

The iPhone has been an utter disaster in Russia, according to an interesting report penned Thursday by Svetlana Gladkova at Profy.

The Russian experience suggests that, despite howls of complaint by some consumers in markets where Apple has exclusive distribution agreements with a single or perhaps a pair of wireless carriers, where the device is sold unlocked and unsubsidized by carriers, its price simply puts it beyond the means of all but a tiny number in the current global economy.

Three major carriers sell the iPhone in Russia, having collectively agreed with Apple to sell 3.5 million units over a two year period. But they have managed to move barely 250 thousand phones in the first six months of availability, according to Gladkova, and market players there a feeling distinctly glum about prospects for meeting their goal.

Unlocked phones in Russia — where service contracts are not nearly so common as in markets such as the US and UK — sold initially for the dollar equivalent of $1000, though the market price has dipped currently to $700 – $800, which is still hardly affordable to a populace with per capita GDP of around $15,000.

Corruption also hampers legitimate iPhone sales in Russia, where some 400,000 black market devices made it into circulation before the official release, according to Gladkova, soaking up early demand and deflating the impact of continued heavy advertising by the country’s three service providers.

Now, carriers and their retail partners — local distributors on the hook for millions of dollars in ancillary distribution agreements — are playing hot potato with millions of unsold phones while the carriers scramble to rewrite their contracts with Apple.

The chaos in the Russian market makes things here in the West seem downright orderly, where, ironically, an 8GB iPhone 3G can be had for under $100.

Image – Russian exclusive SimaPhone by Denis Simachev

With Apple’s tablet computer rumored to be just weeks away, CoM reader Sean sent us another take on what he thinks it’ll look like.

Instead of more or less an overgrown iPod Touch, his latest mock-up version has more of a tablet feel sporting a 7 – 10″ multi-touch glass display, all the better to video AIM your pals about dinner plans.

Other specs follow what he imagined for the much-awaited Apple netbook in his previous prototype: 1.6GHz Intel Atom Processor, 512MB – 1GB of RAM, 64GB flash memory, bluetooth, WiFi and a reduced version of OS X Snow Leopard to fit the device.

What do you think?

Apple on Thursday unveiled a beefier 2TB Time Capsule backup box and WiFi router.

The new arrival is $499, while the older 1TB version drops to $299.

The Time Capsule box combines a 2TB hard drive with a wireless AirPort Extreme router to provide backup storage, plus a printer and file server.

The new Time Capsule is accessible to MobileMe subscribers and provides a Guest Network which allows users to set up separate network without having to expose the main WiFi password.

[Via AppleInsider]

Today’s deals include refurbished iMacs starting at $999, a PowerBook G4 for $699, $99 8GB iPod nanos and many more.
Details on these and other Daily Deals can be found at CoM’s Daily Deals page.

Zacuto, maker of camera gear for professionals, has introduced a gadget designed for pro (or wannabe pro) Apple iPhone 3GS shooters. The $69 Zgrip iPhone Jr. includes a cradle to which the iPhone attaches, along with multiple “fingers” to grasp the phone. The device also attaches to a tripod. The Zgrip iPhone Jr. is the consumer version of the $295 Zgrip iPhone Pro from Zacuto.

The iPhone 3GS has become popular with porn movie producers. Director Matt Morningwood employed the iPhone to shoot some scenes included in the first adult movie to use the 3GS. Meanwhile, porn movie maker Pink Visual pronouced itself “the most ‘iPhone-centric’ porn company around.”

[Via Zacuto]

UPDATE: The WSJ has corrected its story to say it is “not clear” Apple will attend CES in 2010. However, we were told in January that Apple will attend. “It’s a done deal,” our source said.

Apple has definitely ditched Macworld in favor of the giant Consumer Electronics Show, the Wall Street Journal reports — confirming news first reported by Cultofmac back in January (and later by Apple Insider).

“Apple plans to attend the show’s 2010 version, marking the first time in memory the Cupertino, Calif., consumer-electronics giant will be there,” said the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday.

The WSJ says that Steve Jobs has been invited to be a CES keynote speaker but hasn’t returned calls. Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and Intel CEO Paul Otellini are on tap to deliver the speeches at the show.

Neither Apple nor CES has made any official announcements. Apple last year said it would no longer attend trade shows, saying it could better reach its customers through its retail stores.

CES is held in January in Las Vegas, often conflicting with Macworld. It’s a giant zoo, but nonetheless attracts most of the world’s consumer electronics makers, who show off their wares for the upcoming year.

Apple is now more of a consumer electronics company now than a computer company, making CES a much better fit than MacWorld, the source told CoM back in January.

The celebrity website TMZ has bagged the first photograph of Steve Jobs back at work on Apple’s campus. Appropriately, the picture was taken with an iPhone.

“It’s the first time we’ve seen Jobs back in action since January, when he took a leave of absence for a liver transplant,” says TMZ. “Jobs has reportedly been back at work for about a month.”

The picture was taken at 3PM on Wednesday at Apple’s campus in Cupertino. Jobs looks very thin — but, hey, he’s back at work!

Jobs is crossing the road that loops around the campus — Infinite Loop. He’s walking towards one of the car parks that surround the buildings. The photo was taken from inside a vehicle as Jobs crossed in front of it.

The person walking in front of Jobs is likely a bodyguard, but one that looks remarkably like Jonathan Ive, Apple’s head designer. Jobs is reportedly guarded these days, and is driven around in a big black SUV.

The bodyguard is pretty burly, so he’s not the best person to be photographed with if you’ve lost a lot of weight.

Via 9to5Mac.

The iPhone jailbreak community, famous for stepping into the breach when Apple’s incomprehensible App Store approval process fails to give users what they want, now offers GV Mobile on Cydia, just one day after Apple thumbed its nose at Google Voice apps for the iPhone.

While some outlets remain comfortable blaming AT&T for Apple’s rejection of Google Voice apps, despite the fact that it’s demonstrably wrong to do so, the jailbreak community was pleased to offer up developer Sean Kovacs’ GV Mobile app, which had been available on the App Store before being yanked in the larger decision to separate Apple from Google with respect to voice services.

Google itself has a Voice app, presently in beta and available by invitation only, but Kovacs’ GV Mobile brings the power of Google’s revolutionary voice product to the iPhone, allowing users to:

* dial numbers via the iPhone address book or typing on the keypad
* Full SMS support (view historic, reply, send new)
* retrieve and delete recent call history
* playback and delete voicemails
* take calls from different phones other than your iPhone
* enable or disable the phones that Google Voice forwards calls to
* add or delete phones that Google Voice forwards call to.

Users must already have a Google Voice account and a working wireless phone plan in order to take advantage of the app’s features, but it seems clear – with millions of numbers in reserve and broad interest in the convenience and configurability of Google’s Voice product – some may find access to GV Mobile something worth jailbreaking their phone for.

When’s the last time you’ve heard the gadget world go ga-ga over a camera mount? Well, the folks behind the outrageously orange Monsterpod seem to have hit the mark. “We’re hooked,” raved Wired’s Gadget Lab Wednesday.

The makers are a bit less dramatic. The Monsterpod is “only the coolest freaking, gravity-defying, mind-boggling tripod ever created!”

The excitement stems from the nearly unpronounceable Viscoelastic Polymer, allowing the mount to stick to anything – walls, roofs, whatever – just attach your 20-ounces or less camera and you’re good.

The gadget costs $30 plus $10 for a zip-up bag.

[Via Photojojo]

Microsoft will open its first two retail stores in ritzy malls in Scottsdale, Arizona, and at The Shops at Mission Viejo, California — two locations where Apple already has stores, CNet reports.

A few days ago, it was revealed that Microsoft is considering many of the same features that make Apple’s stores so successful, including a rival to the Genius Bar called the “Guru Bar.”

One of the key factors in Apple’s success is the location of its stores. Apple chooses upscale malls, or shopping streets in tony neighborhoods, with lots of foot traffic and easy freeway access.

Microsoft has obviously learned the same lesson. Its first two shops will be at the Scottsdale Fashion Square in the heart of Scottsdale, one of the richest satellite towns of Phoenix area. Apple opened an architecturally stunning store at the nearby Scottsdale Quarter mall in June.

Microsoft’s other store will be at The Shops at Mission Viejo, another rich town south of Los Angeles in the heart of Orange County. Apple already has a store in The Shops mall.

“Over a billion people use our products every day yet we don’t always have a way to directly connect with them,” Microsoft spokeswoman Kim Stocks told CNet. “We see the physical stores, as well as a consistent online experience, helping that.”

Like Apple, Microsoft also intends to take its shops global, the company told CNet, though declined to give details.

Microsoft has reportedly hired former Apple real estate chief George Blankenship as a consultant to help securing locations for its stores. The company has confirmed that it hired Wal-Mart veteran David Porter to head up its stores initiative.

The stores will open in the fall, just before Microsoft launches Windows 7 on October 22.

Apple has started re-issuing promo codes for +17 apps on iTunes. It’s unclear whether the lack of promo codes for these apps — which range from adult-oriented pics to eReaders which allow unfiltered content — was a glitch in the system or a ban.

One thing’s for sure, no promo codes hurt these +17-rated apps since journalists couldn’t try them out and therefore often avoided writing about them. One sex game app developer CoM spoke to said the lack of promo codes effectively hog-tied sales of saucy apps and discouraged them from making more.

The + 17 rating is supposed to act as a filter for adult content, according to the iTunes rating system. You must be over age 17 to purchase them because they “may contain frequent and intense offensive language; frequent and intense cartoon, fantasy or realistic violence; and frequent and intense mature, horror and suggestive themes; plus sexual content, nudity, alcohol, tobacco and drugs which may not be suitable for children until the age of 17.”

Many ratings are subjective: the Cannabis app, which helps users find medicinal pot, is OK for anyone over the age of 12, and some sex dice apps are approved for players over age nine.

Via PC World