Ed Oswald

If you've heard less Verizon iPhone users complain about their phones dropping calls than AT&T ones, that's probably rooted in some semblance of fact. The latest survey from ChangeWave Research shows that AT&T iPhone customers are three times more likely to drop a call than those with a Verizon iPhone.

4.8 percent of those on AT&T had experienced a drop call in the past 90 days, versus only 1.8 percent on Verizon. While the latter model has not been out for the full three months that the survey period covers, the numbers do match up fairly close with that of dropped call percentages across all devices.

Continue reading →

Antivirus software maker Symantec said Tuesday that attacks increased some 93 percent from 2009 to 2010, with a staggering 286 million new threats reported last year alone. An increase in the number of attacks on enterprise systems was noted, as well as the use of social networks as an attack vector.

The firm also noted that there was an increase in attacks using vulnerabilities within the Java framework, as well as the beginning of a shift towards exploits aimed at mobile devices. While many of these attacks come in the form of malicious apps aimed at stealing personal information, Symantec said attackers were beginning to find and exploit security vulnerabilities.

Continue reading →

Lawsuits filed against the Federal Communications Commission by both Verizon and MetroPCS earlier this year over its new net neutrality rules were dismissed by an appeals court on Monday. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia said the lawsuits had been filed too early.

Both wireless companies seemingly had hoped to make the issue about protection of rights to its respective spectrum holdings, but judges appeared to lean on rules surrounding how FCC regulations can be challenged. Legal action can only be filed in the 30 days following the publishing of the policies in the Federal Register.

Continue reading →

Microsoft's ribbon interface was considered a pretty drastic change when it debuted as part of Office 2007 five years ago. Its inclusion helped to bring more of the program's features into the forefront however, many of which users apparently didn't even know existed.

This same concept is about to make it into the Windows 8 Explorer interface, according to pre-beta builds seen by Windows bloggers Paul Thurrott and Rafael Rivera. The ribbon appears set to become a Windows UI staple if Microsoft decides to move forward.

Continue reading →

Security researchers are watching a mass SQL injection attack that is quickly spreading throughout the web, possibly already compromising over one million URLs by Friday afternoon. The attack injects a line of code into compromised sites than will trigger malicious pop-up ads.

Those affected may see a popup appear that informs them that there is malware on their computer and urges them to use a web-based antivirus program called "Windows Stability Center." However, first the victim is asked to pay for the scan, which obviously would do nothing more than install malware on the users computer.

Continue reading →

Taiwanese electronics maker Acer faces another struggle: finding a new CEO. Gianfranco Lanci abruptly resigned on Thursday over disagreements on the future of the company. The announcement comes just a week after Acer was forced to lower sales and revenue projections.

Lanci had been with Acer since 1997 following its acquisition of Texas Instruments' notebook division, which he worked for. He was named president of the company in 2005 and CEO in 2008, and oversaw Acer's purchases of Packard Bell and Gateway.

Continue reading →

Nokia has filed new patent infringement clams with the US International Trade Commission against Apple, the company disclosed on Tuesday. At issue are seven additional patents which Apple is accused by the Finnish phone maker of infringing in "virtually all products."

This latest move comes after the ITC ruled in Apple's favor on Friday, saying the Cupertino company was not committing infringement on five Nokia patents. Those patents were part of an earlier suit filed in October 2009. Nokia said it did not agree with the judge's decision, and has yet to decide its next steps.

Continue reading →

Intel debuted the third generation of its consumer solid state drives on Monday, promising increased reliability while at the same time lowering the price by as much as $100 or more in some capacities. The 320 series drives replace the X25-M drives which the company began to push in earnest last year.

Prices on average dropped about 30 percent, which came as a result of advancements in the manufacturing process. Overall drives are expensive, however -- about $1.80 per gigabyte -- which some analysts believe is still higher than most consumers would be willing to pay.

Continue reading →

Google is said to be working on a mobile payments solution with Citigroup and MasterCard which would bring so-called near-field communication (NFC) technology to Android smartphones, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday. The announcement would only be the latest announcement in what seems to be growing momentum for the technology.

NFC support was enabled in December as part of the Android 2.3 "Gingerbread" update. Currently the only widely available Android phone with support built in is the Samsung Nexus S, although several NFC-equipped devices are expected this year.

Continue reading →

Aiming to clear remaining stocks of the original iPad from their shelves, Verizon on Friday began a sale at its retail stores which lowers the price of the entry-level 16GB Wi-Fi only model to $299. This would be $130 less than AT&T's current offer.

AT&T sells the 16GB model for $399, however it also offers a free month of data to any customer purchasing the tablet. Prices range from $429 to $629 in store (although the 64GB version is on sale for $529 online where it is the only one available), and checks seem to indicate the sale is having its intended effect of clearing out the older models.

Continue reading →

An FCC official told the Wall Street Journal that AT&T's effort to acquire T-Mobile may face steep resistance to gain approval from the regulatory body. The comments echo similar concerns of some on the left who are leery of less competition in the wireless market.

"There's no way the chairman's office rubber-stamps this transaction," the source said, declining to be named in the story. "It will be a steep climb to say the least." That said, the FCC has done little to block recent blockbuster mergers -- most notably Sirius and XM Satellite Radio's $13 billion merger in 2007.

Continue reading →

Startup mobile application developer Color Labs launched a new social networking app Wednesday night, while simultaneously announcing that it had secured a staggering $41 million in funding for its project. Called Color, the application shares your photos and videos with those within 150 feet of you.

It's not like other social networking services, where you find and connect to friends on your own. Instead, by using the integrated GPS within smart phones, Color decides what pictures and videos you see based on two variables: your location and how often another Color user is near you.

Continue reading →

Oracle further muddied the future of Intel's Itanium platform, saying late Tuesday that it had decided to discontinue all development for the server chip. It is only the latest to do so, behind Microsoft last year, and Red Hat in 2009.

"Intel management made it clear that their strategic focus is on their x86 microprocessor and that Itanium was nearing the end of its life," the company said in a statement. Intel disagreed with Oracle's claim however, saying it remained "committed" to the platform.

Continue reading →

The "father" of Mac OS X is leaving Apple, the company announced Wednesday. Bertrand Serlet, Apple's senior vice president of Mac software engineering, will be replaced by Craig Federighi, who worked under Serlet and managed the Mac OS team for the past two years.

Serlet is believed to be leaving the company to pursue career options in science after Apple. One of the crowning achievements of his 14 years with Apple is the development of Mac OS X. He is widely credited with being the driving force behind the creation of the platform back in the late 1990s.

Continue reading →

A federal judge rejected a proposed $125 million class-action settlement between Google and book publishers and authors on Tuesday, saying the deal was "not fair, adequate and reasonable." US District Court Judge Denny Chin said that it would have allowed Google to still profit on books without getting the permission of the publisher.

Google was sued by the Author's Guild in September 2005 and by the Association of American Publishers the following month, claiming its plans to digitize books to create a massive online library violated copyright. The two sides decided to settle out of court, negotiating a deal they saw as beneficial to both sides.

Continue reading →