Tag Archive for iPhone

Your Smartphone Can Kill

Your Smartphone Can KillWe all love our smartphones. But did you know that your phone can kill you? And not only texting while driving can kill you and other people. A man in Uganda reportedly contracted Ebola from a mobile phone. Reports say he stole the smartphone from a quarantined ward of a hospital, near the site of a recent Ebola outbreak.

Next time you come down with the flu or Ebola, blame your cell phone. According to the London DailyMail, researchers have discovered there are more bacteria on the average smartphone than you will find in a toilet.

Tests at the University of Arizona by microbiologist Charles Gerba found there was up to 10 times the amount of bugs that can cause nausea, stomach problems, or even death on cell phones than are present in a lavatory.

The expert explains that germs are spread by phones that are often passed between people but are never cleaned which allows the germs to keep on building up. The University of Arizona researcher says the bugs get on a phone because it is so close to our hands and mouths. When somebody lets a friend or a stranger use their smartphone their bacteria easily gets on the device too.

Add to this frenzy of activity that germs thrive in warm places. Not only does your smartphone generate its own heat, but it also gets some help from your own body heat by spending time in your hands and next to your mouth.

ProGerms on your cellfessor Gerba added that because mobile devices are electronic some people are reticent about cleaning them. He says that phones are just not part of our cleaning routine whereas we should think about giving them a wipe with an antibacterial substance now and then.

In order to clean your iPhone, Apple (AAPL) says:

  1. Unplug all cables and turn off iPhone (press and hold the Sleep/Wake button, and then slide the onscreen slider).
  2. Use a soft, slightly damp, lint-free cloth. Avoid getting moisture in openings.
  3. Don’t use window cleaners, household cleaners, aerosol sprays, solvents, alcohol, ammonia, or abrasives to clean your iPhone. The front and back glass surfaces have an oleophobic coating.
  4. To remove fingerprints, simply wipe these surfaces with a soft, lint-free cloth. The ability of this coating to repel oil will diminish over time with normal usage, and rubbing the screen with an abrasive material will further diminish its effect and may scratch the glass.

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Yick… I also wrote about the filthiness of keyboards here. Clean your mobile phone before it kills you!

 

Ralph Bach has been in IT long enough to know better and has blogged from his Bach Seat about IT, careers, and anything else that catches his attention since 2005. You can follow him on LinkedInFacebook, and Twitter. Email the Bach Seat here.

Tablet Info

ComputerWorld defines post-PC devices like a tablet with four characteristics;
1. It’s an appliance.
2. It’s got a multi-touch UI,
3. It doesn’t have file management,
4. Apps function on the app-store model.

Big Drop in Tablet Average Selling Price

Big Drop In The Average Selling Price Of TabletsThe Business Insider has documented the average selling price (ASP) of tablets keeps falling. The ASP fell 17 percent from 2010—when it was pretty much just the Apple (AAPL) iPad—to 2011. Through the first six months of this year alone, the ASP has fallen another 17 percent.

The drop is driven partly by the introduction of $200 mini tablets like the Amazon (AMZN) Kindle Fire, but also a fall in the price of the dominant large-screen devices.

rb- No wonder Apple is suing everybody in sight to prevent competition. They need to protect their profit margins. Way to go USPTO.

Tablet Average Selling Price

Are We in the Post PC Era

Are We in the Post PC EraKevin C. Tofel at GigaOM recently wrote that by looking at the numbers, it’s difficult to argue that the Apple (AAPL) iPad is anything less than a success. The company sold more iPads — 15.4 million — than any traditional computer maker sold PCs in the last quarter of 2011. Mr. Tofel argues what is debatable, however, is whether the iPad will take us to the “post-PC” era, as Apple calls it. Former Apple director Michael Mace suggests that the PC isn’t going away, agreeing with Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, who recently saidI don’t predict the demise of the PC industry, I don’t subscribe to that.

Michael Mace observed on his personal blog that. “I think the ‘PC era’ meme from Apple is self-serving hype. Of course, they want to convince you that the world is shifting away from a market where Apple has less than 10% worldwide share to a market where Apple has well over 50% share.

“... My thought is that PCs aren’t going to suddenly disappear, but people will continue to opt for capable tablets or hybrid devices in the place of future, new PC purchases. The mobile market is shifting traditional tasks away from PCs of old, and for people who need a PC occasionally, they will likely be able to access one remotely.

Apple is simply calling out the post-PC era because it has successfully transformed its business lines ahead of the curve and before its peers.

Mr. Tofel points out that when all is said and done, Mace makes one last salient point worth noting: How will Microsoft (MSFT) respond to the iPad? We know the answer is Windows 8, but there’s still an open question about how well the platform will do on tablets. Perhaps, Mace notes, we’re not exactly on the cusp of a post-PC age, but instead, a post-Microsoft era.

Related articles:

  • Amazing Stats from Apple Q3 Earnings Prove Yet Again We’re In A Post-PC Era

Magic Cable Trio All-in-One USB Simplicity

Magic Cable Trio All-in-One USB SimplicityTested.com points out the handy Innergie Magic Cable Trio which solves an age-old problem. You never have the right USB connector when you need it. The Magic Cable Trio combines mini USB, micro USB, and 40-pin dock tips into a single cable. The handy-dandy cable will play ball with your tablet, or just about any USB device you can get your hands on according to Tested. It won’t work with printers, but the Magic Cable Trio is meant for plug-and-play accessibility, not languishing behind a desk collecting dust.

The tips are all attached and fold out-of-the-way when not in use. Tested says the extra tips could be a bit of a nuisance, but you’ll never have to worry about losing the adapters in the bottom of a backpack. The Magic Cable Trio costs $20 at Innergie’s store.Innergie Magic Cable Trio

Related articles

Polycom on iPad

Polycom logoAnalysts are forecasting that the tablet market will grow five-fold by 2015 to 320 million units sold annually. The cumulative number of tablets in use by that point will be about 900 million. Many are predicting that the tablet will continue to gain in functionality and take over the laptop in the coming years.

Polycom is pioneering high-definition video collaboration for tablets called Polycom® RealPresence™ Mobile. Polycom RealPresence Mobile is the first enterprise tablet software that lets mobile users enjoy HD video collaboration from anywhere. It is available now on the Apple (AAPL) iPad 2, MotorolaXOOM, and Samsung (005930) Galaxy Tab 10.1—with more mobile devices to follow.

RealPresence Mobile extends Polycom’s HD video collaboration technology beyond the office and conference room. Iy bringing a high-quality, secure, reliable experience to tablets that is comparable to desktop and room systems.

RealPresence Mobile delivers enterprise video collaboration for the business tablet market and delivers provisioning, management, system interoperability, firewall traversal, and scalability that CIOs need, and the reliability, security, rich features, and lifelike quality that users demand.

RealPresence Mobile scales, supporting up to 75,000 devices and 25,000 concurrent calls.

You can find download a free end-user application from the Apple Store, Android Market, and Samsung Apps.

Related articles

 

Ralph Bach has been in IT long enough to know better and has blogged from his Bach Seat about IT, careers, and anything else that catches his attention since 2005. You can follow him on LinkedInFacebook, and Twitter. Email the Bach Seat here.

SNL Slams Apple & Tech Press

NL Slam Apple & Tech PressRemember when Saturday Night Live was funny? Super Bass-O-Matic, Killer Bees, Hot Tub, Joe Cocker, Samurai Delicatessen, Coneheads, or Schweddy Balls. Well SNL hit another home run with it jab at Apple.

In the clip below, they take up the hypocrisy of tech journalism. They poke fun at the nit-picking they are famous for versus the real human toll that Foxconn (2038) and Apple (AAPL) take on Chinese workers that churn out the latest igadget.

Saturday Night Live Pokes Fun at iPhone 5 Tech Pundits from Ahmad Nazir Afiq on Vimeo.

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LOL at the classic Chinese satirical dance. Too bad nobody in China will ever see this.

 

Ralph Bach has been in IT long enough to know better and has blogged from his Bach Seat about IT, careers, and anything else that catches his attention since 2005. You can follow him on LinkedInFacebook, and Twitter. Email the Bach Seat here.

IPv6 Compromise Smartphones Users’ Privacy

IPv6 Compromise Smartphones Users' PrivacyNow that the IPv4 address pool is depleted and the IPocalypse is at hand, wrinkles are emerging in IPv6.  One of the wrinkles is with mobile devices. Most of the cool mobiles devices have been able to handle IPv6 for a while. Apple’s (AAPL) iPhones, iPads, and iPods have been capable of handling IPv6 Since version 4 of the iOS operating system and most Google (GOOG) Android devices have been capable since version 2.1. H  Security is reporting that these mobile operating systems send information about their users to the network.

Smartphone risksA device on an IPv6 network usually determines half of their address (the “interface identifier”) themselves, but H Security says that smartphones are sloppy with this task. According to the article, smartphones simply add the same two bytes to their globally unique MAC address and use it as their identifier. As a result, they transfer a unique hardware ID whenever they communicate with an IPv6-enabled server.

The basic problem isn’t an IPv6 issue because there are other methods for generating the address. The article says that a device can generate a random interface identifier and replace it on a regular basis. This is called the Privacy Extensions method and is the factory-set option in Windows; it can also be enabled in other operating systems. The article points out that devices running Apple’s iOS or Android offer neither the option to enable Privacy Extensions nor the option to disable IPv6, anyone who uses an affected device on an IPv6-enabled wireless network will send their ID.

IPocalypseThe only thing the smartphones are lacking is a control option in the user interface, as the Privacy Extensions do come as part of their kernel. For instance, on a (jailbroken) iOS 4 device with root access, they can be enabled with the same command that enables them on a desktop device running Mac OS X:

sysctl -w net.inet6.ip6.use_tempaddr=1

The blog claims the problem is only affecting a small number of users because IPv6 is not yet in widespread use. However, more ISPs plan to offer IPv6 in addition to the old IPv4 in the future. In addition, there are routers like the Cisco (CSCO) Linksys E3000, which will automatically set up an IPv6 connection via a 6to4 conversion when their internet access is purely IPv4.

The author concludes that the issue is particularly sensitive because such devices tend to be used by one specific person. As a result, the MAC address, which is accessible to any server operator and network monitor, allows this user to be identified.

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If this sounds familiar, it is I wrote about mobile apps uploading  UDID’s here.

Ralph Bach has been in IT long enough to know better and has blogged from his Bach Seat about IT, careers, and anything else that catches his attention since 2005. You can follow him on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter. Email the Bach Seat here.

BYOD Notes

90% of Employees Use Personal Devices for Work

90% of Employees Use Personal Devices for WorkA survey by DELL Kace (DELL) found IT managers feel they lack the necessary tools to properly manage BTOD personal devices. In the study, IT managers revealed they are unable to effectively protect corporate data and intellectual property as well as ensure compliance. Help Net Security says key survey findings include:

  • 87% of companies have employees that use a personal device for work including laptops, smartphones and tablet computers.
  • 82% citing their concerns about the use of personal devices for business use
  • 64% revealed they are not confident that they know of all personal devices being used for business purposes
  • 62% specifically concerned about network security breaches
  • 60% reported a greater demand for support of Mac OS X since the introduction of the Apple (AAPL) iPad and iPhone
  • 59% reported their personal devices have created the need to support multiple operating systems (OS’s).
  • 32% revealed employees use unauthorized personal devices and applications to connect to their network

On the governance side:

  • 88% said they believe it is important to have a policy in place to support personal devices, and another 62 percent revealed their organization lacks the necessary tools to manage personal devices.

It’s absolutely essential that IT teams deploy a strategy that provides end-to-end management capabilities on a variety of operating systems to effectively protect networks and address the consumerization and personalization of IT,” said Rob Meinhardt, general manager and co-founder for Dell KACE.

Related articles

Security Monitoring for BYOD Environments

Security Monitoring for BYOD EnvironmentsUnlike other BYOD security solutions that force organizations to install software on every new device, Lancope’s StealthWatch System provides security for any device entering the network, without having to install more software on the device or deploy expensive probes. Help Net Security reports that StealthWatch performs behavioral analysis on flow data from existing infrastructure to deliver end-to-end visibility and security across an organization’s entire network.

Net flow data already exists in network infrastructure devices to monitor network and host activity. Since net flow is already in most network equipment, it provides a cost-effective tool for monitoring mobile devices. The article says flow-based monitoring can uncover external attacks like botnets, worms, viruses or APTs, as well as internal risks such as network misuse, policy violations and data leakage. It can also be leveraged for other efforts including regulatory compliance and capacity planning, and for ensuring high levels of network and mobile device performance.

Related articles

IT is Embracing BYOD

IT is Embracing BYODIT is Embracing BYODCisco says that IT is accepting, and in some cases embracing, “bring your own device” (BYOD). Help Net Security reports that the networking giant found that some of the pros and cons associated with allowing employees to use their own mobile devices on their employers’ networks has become a reality in the enterprise.

The Cisco (CSCO) study BYOD and Virtualization (PDF) found most enterprises are now enabling BYOD.

  • 95% of responding firms permit employee-owned devices in some way in the workplace.
  • The average number of connected devices per knowledge worker will grow from 2.8 in 2012 to 3.3 by 2014.
  • 76% of IT leaders surveyed categorized BYOD as a positive for their companies and challenging for IT.

The survey says employees are turning to BYOD because they want more control of their work experience:

  • 40% of respondents cited “device choice” as employees’ top BYOD priority (the ability to use their favorite device anywhere).
  • Employees’ second BYOD priority is the wish to do personal activities at work, and work activities during personal time.
  • Staff wants to bring their own applications to work: 69% of respondents said that unapproved applications, especially social networks, cloud-based email, and instant messaging, are more prevalent today than two years ago.
  • Employees are willing to invest to improve their work experience. Cisco employees pay an average of $600 out-of-pocket for devices that will give them more control over their work experience the report says.

The article says these findings underscore that BYOD is here to stay, and managers are now acknowledging the need for a more holistic approach, one that is scalable and addresses mobility, security, virtualization, and network policy management, to keep management costs in line while simultaneously providing optimal experiences where savings can be realized.

Related articles

 

Ralph Bach has been in IT long enough to know better and has blogged from his Bach Seat about IT, careers, and anything else that catches his attention since 2005. You can follow him on LinkedInFacebook, and Twitter. Email the Bach Seat here.