French Security Firm Warns Of Apple IOS / PDF Vulnerability

French security firm Vupen has reported a vulnerability targeted at Apple products running IOS, namely the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch, that could allow hackers to take control of your device. The scam is an old one, lure users to a malicious website planted with an infected PDF document. It's been done before on PCs but this is the latest in a string of attacks aimed at Apple's popular mobile devices. It would seem as though Apple is feeling the pain long suffered by Microsoft, it's tough being at the top!

Apple is looking into the claim.

Credit: The Globe and Mail

Air Canada Launches iPhone App

Air Canada has released an iPhone/iPod Touch application that, according to the CBC, allows passengers to "check in with their device, select their seat, retrieve electronic boarding passes and keep track of real-time flight status and information."

"This is only the first iteration of our app, and we will continue to add new features in response to customer demand." Air Canada executive vice-president Ben Smith said of the application developed for the airline by IBM Canada.

iPhone - iPod Touch Becoming Part Of Soldiers Kit

According to News Week the U.S. military is turning to Apple to help equip it's soldiers with portable computing devices in the form of heavy duty iPhones and iPod Touches.

"Using a commercial product for such a crucial military role is a break from the past. Compared with devices built to military specifications, iPods are cheap. Apple, after all, has already done the research and manufacturing without taxpayer money. The iPod Touch retails for under $230, whereas a device made specifically for the military can cost far more. (The iPhone offers more functionality than the iPod Touch, but at $600 or $700 each, is much more expensive.) Typically sheathed in protective casing, iPods have proved rugged enough for military life. And according to an Army official in Baghdad, the devices have yet to be successfully hacked.

The iPod also fulfills the U.S. military's need to equip soldiers with a single device that can perform many different tasks. Apple's online App Store offers more than 25,000 (and counting) applications for the iPhone and iPod Touch, which shares the iPhone's touchscreen. As the elegantly simple iPods—often controlled with a single thumb—acquire more functionality, soldiers can shed other gadgets. An iPod "may be all that they need," says Lt. Col. Jim Ross, director of the Army's intelligence, electronic warfare and sensors operations in Fort Monmouth, New Jersey."

And let's not forget you can play all of your tunes and movies too...

Voip Enable Your iPod Touch

It may not be an iPhone but with the addition of a freeware application called truphone and a clip on microphone you can turn your iPod Touch into a Wi-Fi powered Voip phone. "There are a slew of new features we're rolling out for the iPod Touch that will let users call landlines, Skype users or send instant messages. We're talking weeks, not months, before these go live." said Geraldine Wilson - Truphone's CEO. You won't be able to make calls from anywhere like you can on the iPhone, you'll have to be in range of a Wi-Fi hotspot, but then again you won't be locked into a rediculously high priced cell phone contract either... cool!

BBC Story here.

Slim Is In At Apple

Preparing for the holiday season, Apple has introduced new thin iPods including a new Nano that features a "shake to shuffle" mode allowing you to give the device a shake in order to shuffle the play list. According to the BBC "...Mr Jobs unveiled Apple's new Genius function which allows users to create automatic playlists from the iPod's library with the click of a button." the genius function is available on both the Nano and on a new improved iPod Touch that also includes volume buttons on the outside of the case and an external speaker for casual listening. "These are evolutionary products with some revolutionary new features," Michael Gartenburg, vice president of Jupiter Media told the BBC. "Apple has done it again. They have reinvented the line in a way to capture mainstream consumers' hearts and minds and doing at a price point that is extremely affordable."

Engadget reviews the iPod Touch

Engadget has written a lengthy review of the new iPod Touch and while I'm envious that they've been able to get their hands on one, I'm left a little disappointed in the approach that they chose for their review. It seems to me that they liked the device but criticize it for not being an iPhone, it is after all a portable media device and not a personal organizer and that seems to be Engadget's biggest criticism. I wonder what they might have written if they had not had the chance to use the iPhone prior to using the Touch? I think we'll see Apple release some of these capabilities at a later date when it makes sense to from a business stand point, after all the iPhone just barely beat it to market. If Apple were to release the iTouch with all of the features of the iPhone, minus the phone, it would most likely impact iPhone sales. Just my 2 cents. I'm not saying Engadget is off base completely, just think they chose the wrong Apples to compare (pun completely intended).

PC Mag reviews the iPod Touch

PC Magazine's Tim Gideon provides a round up of the iPod Touch's features and it's evident that he's a fan. Gideon says "This is probably the best portable media player ever made." If you are contemplating a purchase this is a decent in depth look at the features including photos of the interface / screens. It's one man's opinion, but it's obvious that the new device has some great features.

A better touch based technology?

From Apple's iPhone / iPod Touch to Microsoft's Surface PC, everyone is striving to change the way we interact with our devices and it seems that touch screen is the way to go. One big drawback to touch screen is that your hand momentarily obscures your view as you invoke action on the screen. Researchers at Mitsubishi, Microsoft, and the University of Toronto have teamed up to tackle this problem. Their answer appears to lie in a new technology dubbed LucidTouch, "users can choose to manipulate objects by touching a sensor pad on the back of the device; this allows users to resize images and text, as well as navigate around any graphical user interface without their hands getting in the way of the display." ars technica had an opportunity to view the prototype and has an article chronicling the experience.

New iPods

Here are a couple of pics of the new iPod Touch and the new iPod Nano, Courtesy of Apple.

Jobs announces new iPod Touch and other enhancements to the line

It turns out that most of the speculation was correct, Apple is launching an iPhone like iPod called the iPod Touch. It functions similarly to the iPhone with a touch screen that orients in portrait or landscape mode, plays music and video, and features WiFi for web browsing capabilities using the Safari browser. The iPod Touch will come in two versions, 8 or 16 gigabytes, and will cost $299 and $399 US respectively. Steve Job's keynote speech is available on the Apple site here or see the BBC's take on the device. It's pretty interesting, I'd have to say that I'm most excited about the WiFi! You'll probably want to get one quickly if you are thinking Christmas gift...