Verizon is planning a big marketing push for the launch of Windows Phone 8 later this year, giving the struggling OS momentum to take on Apple and Android.
Apple unveiled iOS 5.1 for the iPhone, iPad and iPod, hoping to fix bugs and perfect its signature operating system to please loyal fans and draw new users to the new tablet.
The software update is largely focused on fixing ongoing problems like shortened battery life, and tweaks the platform's interface with new shortcuts and features.
Complaints about poor battery life on the iPhone 4S continue to plague Apple, and earlier updates didn't seem to fix the problem. But with the new iPad's release, the company is attempting to fix past problems and prevent new ones to keep its record-breaking sales momentum.
Apple is quick to apologize for bugs and issue updates, shown by the company's handling of dropped call reports on the iPhone 4 and its successor's battery issues. Timely reaction is important for Apple, which boasts a strong base of devoted fans who propel its devices to market success, and is especially crucial now.
Apple's competition is barking at its heels, with soaring sales of the Amazon Kindle Fire tablet and rival Google announcing the release of its first tablet computer this spring. In order to maintain its devoted fan base and draw new customers, the Cupertino, Calif.-based company is aiming to quell past problems.
The software update isn't all about bug fixes, however. Siri, Apple's voice assistant, can now understand and talk back in Japanese, speaking four languages total: Japanese, English, French, and German. Siri, which debuted on the iPhone 4S, will also move to the new iPad in a modified version.
The update also includes a shortcut to the camera on the lock screen at all times, allowing users to reach the camera with one quick swipe, a handy feature when a photo op happens unexpectedly. Photo Stream users will also gain the ability to delete photos from the application, an option they didn't have with iOS 5.
Other upgraded functions include clearer audio when streaming television shows and movies, improved podcast controls, and a "4G" network indicator for AT&T subscribers.
IOS 5.1 is available today over-the-air or by connecting an Apple device to iTunes.
Twitter disclosed it uploads and saves iPhone address books with its mobile app, raising questions about how much personal information apps collect without user knowledge.
When iOS users use the "Find Friends" feature in Twitter's mobile app, the social media site gathers contact information from the phone and stores it for 18 months, the L.A. Times reported.
There's no evidence Twitter sells the contact lists it collects or uses them in any way, but the recent revelations speak to deeper privacy concerns about mobile app use and underscore a need for clear privacy policies among app developers and tech companies.
App use is on the rise, and research shows people spend more time engaging with mobile apps than surfing the Web. For the most part, users may never suspect their favorite apps might silently collect data from their devices.
Twitter's admission sheds new light on potential privacy issues about app activity and raises questions about how many popular apps collect data from devices, and how they store, share or use that information.
The news also echoes this week's controversy around the Path iOS app, which was found to upload and store users' contact lists. Congress is interrogating Apple over its app security policies, and the inquiry could expand to include other platforms and mobile apps as well.
Lawmakers have already demonstrated a growing concern over mobile data and privacy. Last year, Sen. Al Franken (D., Minn.) wrote to Apple and Google asking them to clarify app privacy policies, calling for "clear and understandable" language and requiring developers to divulge how apps treat users' personal information.
Since then, companies such as Google and Facebook overhauled their privacy policies and reached settlements with the Federal Trade Commission agreeing to periodic reviews of their overall privacy practices.
Apps, however, could slip through cracks in privacy policies. Some apps might also violate Apple's rules, which say developers must disclose what activities their apps perform, including data collection.
Twitter says it will adjust the app's language and will allow people to delete their address book from its servers if they so choose. Updates will retool the "Find Friends" feature to clarify what information it collects and stores. For example, new language will replace "scan your contacts" with "upload your contacts" for iOS and "import your contacts" for Android.
Promised fixes by Twitter and Apple will remedy the immediate issues about contact lists, but larger concerns about how apps treat personal data remain and will likely come under increasing lawmaker scrutiny.
Japan's version of iOS 5 is expected to have an earthquake notification system, another example of how Apple is fulfilling its pledge to help the country in the wake of the devastating earthquake and tsunami this past spring.
A special widget will appear on the Japanese version of the new operating system. It uses the iPhone's old notifications, but uses a screen that is reportedly easier to read and stores the last few messages. When activated, it will connect the device to Japan's earthquake early warning system.
Reportedly, the system is so sensitive that it may reduce battery life when turned on, as it polls the warning servers constantly.
Apple took many steps to help its Japanese customers after the twin disasters earlier this spring. Apple's flagship store in Tokyo remained open, providing survivors with a place to stay and offering them use of iPhones and FaceTime to check in with friends and family, as well as devices to follow the news and check e-mail, Facebook and Twitter.
Apple also made provisions for its employees by allowing them and their families to remain overnight in the store, which was stocked with food and supplies. For those who chose to leave, Apple reportedly picked up the transportation cost.
After its immediate response, the Cupertino, Calif.-based company urged Japanese users to contact local Apple retail stores and schedule appointments to drop off their damaged devices, rather than making appointments online, speeding up repair rates.
Along with providing aid during the earthquake, Apple created a donation page on its Web site allowing people to send money to those in need. The iTunes creator also sells the Sichuan Earthquake Relief album, with profits going to the relief as well.
But Apple isn't the only tech company that came to Japan's aid in the trying post-earthquake times. Google dispatched Google Maps' Street View cameras to photograph tsunami-ravaged streets in Japan, recording both the devastation and reconstruction efforts. In addition, Google's "Person Finder" also helped Japanese track down missing people, and the company's YouTube and Picasa websites assisted in sharing and distributing photos and video of the missing.
Apple wants app developers to stop using identity trackers in their software, which may appease many privacy proponents but also potentially make it difficult for developers to sell advertising.
According to leaked documents, the Cupertino, Calif.-based company said it will phase out access to the unique device identifier, or UDID, on iPhones and iPads and does not plan to enable it in iOS 5.
The UDID is specific to each mobile device and gives information about how apps are being used on devices. Apple hasn't set a deadline for the change, but the Wall Street Journal reported Apple told developers the feature "has been superseded and may become unsupported in the future."
Apple did not give developers a reason for making the change. However, in recent months, the company has faced an onslaught of complaints from privacy advocates, as well as lawsuits from around the world, seeking damages for iPads' and iPhones' location tracking capabilities. Apple may well be taking steps to bring privacy concerns under control.
This past week alone, 27,000 South Korean Apple users sued the company because of its devices' location tracking software. In the U.S., two separate groups of IPhone and iPad users have also sued Apple, saying certain apps pass user information to advertisers without their consent.
Several Congressional hearings have also been held not only about how Apple devices collect data, but also about Google's Android OS-powered smartphones and tablets.
But while privacy advocates may embrace Apple's decision to limit UDID, apps developers may not be happy with the decision. App developers market their programs to advertising companies, social gaming networks and others with data gathered through the UDID. Advertisers use the data to target their ads, so they rely and support app developers in return for the personal data. If there is a break in this chain, app developers may find it difficult to convince advertisers to support their programs.
This problem may eventually trickle down to apps buyers. Many apps now sell for $1 or less, but their prices are kept low through advertising. If the advertising revenue declines, developers may have no choice but to pass higher prices along to consumers.
Apple is not stopping its app developers from creating their own tracking devices or methods. Developers may require users to sign up for an account, or could use a Media Access Control address to link networks with devices, for example. However, app developers may also face additional charges if they have to come up with their own tracking devices, an expensive proposition that may also drive app prices up.
With so much financially at stake, app developers may likely refuse to give up their programs' tracking and data-gathering capabilities up without a fight. However, as privacy advocates continue to fight for further security on mobile devices, companies such as Apple may have little choice but to place even further limits on how their devices track users' habits.
Apple today acknowledged a security flaw in iOS, as the company deals with more threats to users' personal information.
The security flaw allows attackers to infect users' iOS devices with malicious software that would give them administrator privileges just by displaying infected PDF files. The Cupertino, Calif.-based company says it will address the security concern in a forthcoming update.
"Apple takes security very seriously; we're aware of this reported issue and developing a fix that will be available to customers in an upcoming software update," said Alan Hely, senior director for corporate communications in Apple's London office, in a statement.
JailbreakMe.com, a website that teaches users how to hack their Apple products to give them a more customizable interface, discovered the flaw, claiming it did not create the malicious files.
"I did not create the vulnerabilities, only discover them," the website said. "Releasing an exploit demonstrates the flaw, making it easier for others to use it for malice, but they have long been present and exploitable."
In a twist of irony, jailbreakers are the only group that may be able to fix the flaw at the moment. Cydia, an alternative app marketplace used by jailbreakers, published a fix for the security flaw called "PDF Patcher 2." The patch only works for iOS users with jailbroken devices, which Apple discourages.
"Until Apple releases an update, jailbreaking will ironically be the best way to remain secure," JailbreakMe's website said.
The German Federal Office for Information, known as BSI, issued an alert to iOS users in the country after learning of the security threat. The BSI described the flaw as a "critical weakness" that affects the iPhone 3G and devices running iOS versions up to 4.3.3.
The BSI hasn't reported any attacks but the agency did outline potential risk areas. The BSI said cyber-attackers could target confidential information like passwords, online banking data, e-mail and contact information, as well as gain access to a person's camera or intercept phone calls. The agency also said hackers can learn of a person's location with the malware because of the phones' built-in GPS.
Apple has lately come under fire in regards to keeping its users' information safe. Several iOS users have sued Cupertino, Calif.-based company for allegedly storing user encrypted data on its devices. The resulting uproar drew rebukes from Senate and consumer outcry.
The company's security was also breached recently by hackers. AntiSec, a group formed by hacktivists Anonymous and the now-defunct LulzSec, said that it broke into an Apple server, collecting 26 administrative user names and passwords.
The anonymous hackers claim they accessed the Cupertino, Calif.-based company's systems through a security flaw in third-party software, once again putting security issues in Apple's platform under the lens.
A changing mobile landscape is bringing new risks to enterprises, according to a report that highlights the security problems with the two rising smartphone platforms, Apple's iOS and Google's Android.
As corporations branch out from RIM's BlackBerry, which is designed from the ground up for enterprise security, the report by security firm Symantec found that more consumer-focused platforms are exposing companies to unwelcome risk.
"While more secure than traditional PCs, these platforms are still vulnerable to many traditional attacks," said Carey Nachenberg of Symantec. "Moreover, enterprise employees are increasingly using unmanaged, personal devices to access sensitive enterprise resources, and then connecting these devices to 3rd-party services outside of the governance of the enterprise, potentially exposing key assets to attackers."
The report fingered both iOS and Android for the way they sync with home devices, potentially leaking sensitive corporate data.
It dinged iOS's encryption, which has been shown to be eminently breakable, but noted that while version 3.0 of Android supports strong encryption, the lion's share of devices run earlier versions with no encryption at all.
It also noted that Android's more open ecosystem, which allows apps from any source, caused more security problems than iOS's locked-down approach, with all apps coming through Apple's App Store. The platform has had more than its fair share of malware outbreaks, some right in Google's official Android Market.
The report touches on the risks posed by jailbroken iPhones, whose owners have decided to escape the confines of the App Store for a more Android-like experience. That opens the door for Android-like malware issues, though the small number of jailbroken iOS devices, when compared next to the massive pool of Android devices, makes the customized OS a low-interest target for hackers.
Though any report playing up mobile security risks from a company that sells security software needs to be viewed with an appropriately critical eye, it's clear that Android has certainly been drubbed by malware and people lose iPhones, potentially laden with sensitive secrets, all the time.
As these civilian devices consolidate their position in the business sector, their makers will likely provide more enterprise-friendly management tools that simplify security.
But any tightening of leashes may also get push-back from users. Part of the reason these devices are ending up in the enterprise environment is because they're what people use anyway -- and people are used to doing what they want with their own handset.
Apple yesterday announced it will integrate Twitter into its iOS 5 update, giving people a more streamlined way to stay connected on their mobile devices.
The Cupertino, Calif.-based company, which announced its partnership with Twitter at its Worldwide Developers Conference, or WWDC, in San Francisco, plans to integrate the popular social media platform into iOS apps and features including Photos, Safari, contacts and maps.
For example, customers will be able to take photos and articles from Safari and tweet them to Twitter followers all with one click.
In addition, Twitter's integration into iOS 5 will offer Twitter users a one-time sign in to all their Twitter apps, eliminating the need to sign in to several different applications.
"Building Twitter into iOS 5 truly creates the easiest way to share everything that's happening in your world," wrote Jack Dorsey, Twitter co-founder, in a blog post. "Take a picture, tap 'Tweet.' Tweeting has never been simpler."
Apple's iOS 5 will also integrate Twitter into contacts, allowing users to view profile pictures and the latest tweets from people in their contact list. IOS users will have the ability to send tweets to their friends directly from the contact app as well.
"People send more than a billion tweets per week," said Scott Forstall, Apple's senior vice president of iOS software. "And we hear from a lot of our customers on iPhone and iPad and iPod Touch that they love Twitter. And so we want to make it even easier for all of our customers to use Twitter on iOS products."
Bringing Twitter into iOS is part of Apple's larger movement towards new cloud- and mobile-based technology, which will see consumers gravitating away from traditional desktop and laptop PCs towards mobile devices like smartphones and tablet devices. It also acknowledges the widespread presence that social media outlets like Twitter and Facebook hold now.
Along with having Twitter built into iOS devices, Apple yesterday also launched its cloud-based storage server, which will allow customers the ability to access files, photos and music on all of their devices without needing to connect each device to a desktop or laptop computer.
If users take photos on their iPhones, for example, they will now have immediate access to them on their iPad or iPod Touch, thanks to Apple's iCloud. The two features help streamline the experience for users migrating away from traditional PCs to mobile devices, since a user's data, photos and music will travel with them through the iCloud -- meaning staying connected with friends and family is now a click away.
Apple today unveiled iOS 5, a beefed up version of the company's software, to push ahead of RIM and Android in the fiercely-competitive mobile market.
Scott Forstall, the Cupertino, Calif.-based company's senior vice president of software, took the stage at the World Wide Developers Conference, or WWDC, to detail 10 of the 197 updates in its new software for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch -- expected to be available this fall.
IOS 5 has a newly-improved notification system, which no longer interrupts active apps and pop-up menus, after a downward swipe across the top of the screen. It also integrates Twitter so users can send messages from within Safari, YouTube and other built-in apps.
Publishers also get a digital newsstand service, which offers a "hub" for newspapers and magazines. Content can be downloaded to a separate location and stored for offline reading, clearing up the burgeoning field of iPad publications so customers can easily find apps and games.
Another convenient feature is "iMessage," which lets users send messages from iPhones, iPads and iPod Touches, and even support popular BlackBerry features like delivery receipt. Users will be able to tell if a message has been read, and when a recipient is typing a reply.
Apple is also adding new search capabilities and new features to its e-mail service, including encrypted data -- another BlackBerry hallmark -- for certain contacts. Encryption may make the iPhone more competitive to the growing number of businesses that are using the handset, in a move to BlackBerry devices in a traditional RIM stronghold.
Location-based reminders will also debut on the new software, triggering a reminder when the user reaches a certain pre-specified location.
Apple, seemingly taking a page from the Windows Phone 7, is also upgrading the camera app with a system that lets users get straight to the camera from the lock screen, using the volume button to snap a photo.
?We are making it way faster to just get in and take photos,? Forstall said, adding there are also new camera features, like one-tap enhance, and cropping and editing controls.
Also, users will be able to set-up a new iPhone or iPad directly from the device and receive over-the-air updates, and another ease-of-use feature is the split keyboard, which is intended to make thumb typing on a tablet simpler.
Finally, there are several of the 200 new features that gamers will appreciate -- its Game Center, which is designed to allow for turn-based apps integration, is one Forstall specifically mentioned. Considering mobile gaming is on the rise, this nod to that constituency is a smart one.
Many of the features maintain and strengthen the platform's favorable position at a time when Android OS is flooding the market, BlackBerry is fading and Microsoft, in its partnership with Nokia, is planning a splashy rebound.
Forstall also announced that Apple has sold 200 million iOS devices, 15 billion songs, 130 million books and 14 billion apps, which generated payments to developers in the $2.5 billion ballpark.
Apple said IOS 5 will roll out this fall on the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4, iPad and iPad 2, and the third- and fourth-generation iPod Touches.
WWDC has historically been the event for new iPhone unveilings, but this year Apple may delay the iPhone 5 to the fall.
Apple CEO Steve Jobs will be the keynote speaker at his company's conference next week, making an appearance during his medical leave.
Jobs, who has been on medical leave since January 17, will join a group of Apple executives to debut Apple's iCloud music service, which allows users to stream their music directly from Apple's servers rather than storing files on a hard drive at the company's Worldwide Developer's Conference, or WWDC, on June 6.
In addition, the company is expected to announce the iOS 5 update, which will improve the iPhone and iPad's mobile operating system, and OS X Lion, an update to the iMac and Macbook operating systems.
Health concerns have plagued Jobs since 2004, when he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and had a tumor removed later that year. In 2008, Jobs appeared at the WWDC looking frail on stage, but Apple said little beyond Jobs' condition was private.
Jobs said that it was worse than a "common bug," but assured that his condition wasn't life threatening. Then in 2009, Jobs underwent a liver transplant.
Although Jobs has been on medical leave, sources say he is still involved with strategic decision-making at Apple, even while COO Tim Cook has been controlling the day-to-day operations.
Since going on medical leave, Jobs' appearances have been sporadic. In February, Jobs was present at a meeting with industry leaders with President Barack Obama. A month later, he went on stage at the iPad 2's exuberant product launch.
Rejoining Apple in 1996 after a 12 year absence, Jobs has been credited with saving the company from the brink of bankruptcy by turning around the company with the iPod, iPhone and iPad.
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