Valve has announced plans to release a Downloadable Content (DLC) pack for Portal 2, its recently released hit video game for Mac, PC and game consoles. Valve plans to release the new content this summer, and will offer it free of charge for all users. (more…)
It’s interesting listening to people talk about Android and all of the manufacturers that have adopted the operating system. But what would happen if there was an alternative? (more…)
A new report released on Friday by market research firm IDC shows Apple’s iPhone had substantial growth in the first quarter of 2011. (more…)
I saw a link on Twitter to a new ad campaign from RIM that states “Amateur Hour is Over.” (more…)
RIM on Thursday issued a warning to Wall Street that the company would not meet guidance for the first fiscal quarter of 2012. (more…)
This past week’s “LocationGate” imbroglio has left many iPhone users wondering how, exactly, the iPhone gathers the information it does about cell phone tower locations, Wi-Fi networks and other data. While Steve Jobs and others at Apple have explained it their way, Glenn Fleishman takes a closer look at the technology.
“Typically, you see a large blue circle appear nearly instantly, a result of what must be a consultation of the local database. The circle becomes smaller as more information is used, still from cellular and Wi-Fi sources, to create a better trilateration. This data is also used to provide more clues into decoding the best GPS satellite information, allowing the use of quite small fragments of data or even raw signals to get a better lock. Finally, the circle becomes a single dot when iOS is confident it has a solid GPS lock.”
Fleishman provides an overview of how “true” GPS location tracking works, what assisted GPS is, and how Apple uses a combination of those technologies to help your iPhone figure out where it is in the world.
How the iPhone knows where you are [Macworld]
There is an endless stream of reports coming out these days about how Android stacks up against the iPhone. The problem is, most of them are flawed. (more…)
Apple CEO Steve Jobs is speaking publicly about how his company doesn’t use location data. (more…)
Apple is reportedly testing its iPhone to work on T-Mobile’s network. (more…)
The white iPhone 4 has been promised by Apple for almost a year — today the announcement of its officially release arrived. (more…)
Apple on Wednesday answered questions on claims that its iPhones and iPads collects user’s location data. (more…)
Amazon on Tuesday responded to Apple’s trademark lawsuit filed last month. (more…)
Sony’s PlayStation Network (PSN) serves as the intercommunications backbone for multiplayer games on the PlayStation 3, as well as an e-commerce system for downloadable content for PS3 and the PlayStation Portable (PSP) handheld console. So a protracted PSN outage of almost a week is setting off alarm bells around the game industry, especially because Sony, perhaps taking a page from Apple, is remaining Sphinx-like and offering very few details.
Matt Peckham offers some perspective on speculation that the problem is related to a recent tool that unlocks development features of the PS3, which may have enabled users to steal content and possibly even credit card information.
If we just take Sony at its word, all we know for sure is that the trigger was someone (or a group of someones) gaining illicit access to the PlayStation Network. We don’t know which aspect of the PSN Sony’s referring to, or whether the developer version intertwines in some fundamental way with the public version. We don’t know when it happened, or what exactly went down, or what sort of information the ‘external intrusion’ may have extracted.”
Update, 5:10 PM ET: Turns out that the PSN outage is bad news – really bad news. Sony confirms there was a security issue that caused them to take down the network. User account information has been compromised, including, quite possibly, credit card numbers. Sony’s latest comments on the issue can be read here.
Did Custom ‘Rebug’ Firmware Kill Sony’s PlayStation Network? [Time Techland]
Audio software-maker Nomad Factory on Tuesday released a new plug-in for musicians and engineers called Echoes. (more…)
We know from Apple’s earnings conference call last week that businesses and organizations are deploying iPads in great numbers. You can now add hospitals to that list. A hospital in Ottawa, Canada ordered 1,800 iPads for its staff and developed a special application that will be used in the hospital.
The application’s primary objective is to get as much patient info into the clients hands while at the bedside. Doctors will have access to lab results, patient histories, and medication information in front of them.
Ottawa hospital jumps into the future with 1,800 iPads [Macgasm]
Apple’s iOS continues to be a bright spot among mobile app developers, while disappointing tablet sales and fragmentation are causing developers to pull away from Google. (more…)
Privacy concerns among U.S. Senators have prompted Senator Al Franken to ask Apple and Google to participate in a hearing with the Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy. (more…)
It was only a matter of time before it happened and here it is — two Apple users have filed a lawsuit against the company for tracking user location. (more…)
We at The Loop are unabashed South Park fans, so we’re waiting with bated anticipation for the 15th season premiere of the offbeat, absurd (and frequently obscene) cartoon on Comedy Central this Wednesday, April 27th. What’s caught our eye, however, is the title: “HUMANCENTiPAD.” (more…)
Some people prefer to let their Wi-Fi networks go without a password, either as a matter of convenience or to support their ethical convictions. Either way, they can run the risk of being misidentified by law enforcement officials, as underscored by three recent cases noted by Ars Technica’s Jacqui Cheng. While such cases are clearly the exception to the rule, they may give you pause the next time you consider setting up your own Wi-Fi network without locking it down with a password.
“The three stories all fall along the same theme: a Buffalo man, Sarasota man, and Syracuse man all found themselves being raided by the FBI or police after their wireless networks were allegedly used to download child pornography … In all three cases, the accused ended up getting off the hook after their files were examined and neighbors were found to be responsible for downloading child porn via unsecured WiFi networks.”
A nasty neighbor downloading kiddie porn isn’t the only risk, either – if someone within range of your Wi-Fi network is downloading copyrighted content using BitTorrent, you run the risk of being implicated because it can be traced back to your router’s IP address. What’s more, some ISPs measure bandwidth usage and reserve the right to shut you down (permanently) if you dramatically exceed your quota.
FBI child porn raid a strong argument for locking down WiFi networks [Ars Technica]
Apple has clearly been upping its game when it comes to making the iPhone the most popular device on the market, but RIM is still making noise saying how good it is. I decided find out who was selling the most smartphones. (more…)
Barnes & Noble announced Monday that it has enhanced its Nook Color e-reader with support for applications, improved Web browsing and new rich content. It’s still $249. The new features are available to existing Nook Color users through a v1.2 software update download. (more…)
Apple hasn’t officially responded to reports that the iPhone and iPad track user movements, but CEO Steve Jobs apparently has. (more…)
The elusive white iPhone 4 could be in stores by the end of April, according to a new report on Saturday. (more…)
It didn’t take long for U.S. Senators to demand an explanation from Apple CEO Steve Jobs about why the company was collecting user location data on its iPhone and iPad. My question is, are they asking Google too? (more…)
Apple has reportedly finished work on its iTunes cloud music service and will launch it ahead of Google, its main competition in this market. (more…)
The good news just doesn’t stop for Apple. New research shows that Apple has become the world’s largest handset vendor based on revenue. (more…)
According to a new study by market research firm comScore on Thursday, Apple’s iOS is far outreaching that of Google’s Android. (more…)
Researchers on Wednesday discovered a file on Apple’s iPhone and iPad that contained location information of its user. However, the file is not new and the discovery of the file was written about months ago. (more…)
Apple on Wednesday reported a fiscal second quarter profit of $5.99 billion. Apple said it did $24.67 billion in revenue for the quarter. (more…)