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iPhone Responsible for Half of All Mobile Traffic, Globally

Pulkit Chandna — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 16:37:42 -0600

Where is half of the world's mobile data bandwidth disappearing? The avaricious Apple iPhone is devouring more than half of the global mobile data bandwidth, according to a new report published by mobile advertising company AdMob. The report details the mobile internet usage trend during the month of October. This is the first time that the iPhone's share of the global mobile internet traffic has gone past 50 percent. It stood at 43 percent at the end of September.

The iPhone is almost performing out of its skin when it comes to hogging mobile data bandwidth. This is because its share of the global smartphone market is just a third of its contribution to the world's mobile internet traffic. Symbian smartphones came in a distant second in October with a 25% share, down 4% from the previous month. While RIM and Blackberry smartphones lost a bit of their share, Android's share rose to 11% during the month.

Image Credit: AdMob

Cisco Cranks Out iPhone Security App for IT Managers

Paul Lilly — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 07:04:06 -0600

Cisco set out to put defense capabilities of Cisco Security Intelligence Operations (SIO) in the hands (literally) of IT managers, and has done so with the availability of Cisco SIO To Go, an Apple iPhone app.

The software gives IT pros real-time access to various actionable global security information, while also serving up several customization options for security information that could potentially help protect a business network.

Cisco's app includes real-time alerts and threat mitigation solutions from sources that include more than 700,000 globally deployed Cisco secuirty devices. It also includes Cisco IntelliShield, a historical-threat database of 40,000 vulnerabilities and 3,300 IPS signatures, and more than 600 third-party threat intelligence sources capable of tracking more than 500 third-party data feeds and 100 security news feeds 24/7, the company said.

Image Credit: Cisco

First Malicious Worm Hits the iPhone

Paul Lilly — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 11:20:07 -0600

It didn't take long for hackers to take advantage of a potentially dangerous exploit affecting jailbroken iPhones. The vulnerability first gained notoriety earlier this month when a hacker from the Netherlands took control of modified iPhones and sent the owners an SMS requesting a fee for instructions on how to protect thier device. He later backed down and posted the fix for free, but by then, the cat was out of the bag.

Fast forward a few weeks and we now have the first malicious worm making the rounds on jailbroken iPhones and iPod touch devices. According to reports, the worm uses command--and-control like a traditional PC botnet. it configures two startup scripts, one of which is used to execute the malicious worm during boot, and the other to make a connection to a Lithuanian server in order to upload stolen data and hand over control to the bot master.

The worm works by changing the root password from the default of "alpnie" that Apple put in place in the factory firmware. It attacks IP ranges from a wider range of ISPs, including UPC, Optus, and T-Mobile.

The recommended fix is to restore jailbroken iPhones to the current Apple-supplied firmware.

Is Apple Using a Technicality to Avoid 3G License Fees?

Ryan Whitwam — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:10:29 -0600

You may not be aware, but Qualcomm holds a number of patents on modern 3G cellular technology. Any company making a 3G cell phone has to pay patent royalties to Qualcomm. Analyst Sanford Bernstein pointed out in a report this week that Apple appears to be taking advantage of a licensing loophole to avoid paying all those fees for the iPhone. The loophole is estimated to save Apple $290 million in fiscal 2009 alone.

Licensees must pay 5% of the wholesale price of a 3G device to the patent owner. Qualcomm’s website lists over 145 companies that have licensed their 3G technology. The list includes all major makers of 3G handsets. The one notable exception? Apple. One surprise on the list is Foxconn, the Taiwanese manufacturer of the iPhone.

The Bernstein report says that Qualcomm is being paid royalties not on the price Apple charges (average $590), but on the unit price Apple pays Foxconn, a mere $244. So instead of making $23.60 per iPhone, Qualcomm is only seeing $9.70. Apple is able to get away with this because the entire manufacturing process is done externally. Qualcomm seems fine with the arrangement. After all, $9.70 per iPhone is pretty good considering how they fly off the shelves.

Trillian Now Available for iPhone, iPod Touch

Paul Lilly — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 12:40:01 -0600

Better late than never, and while it took a long time, iPhone and iPod touch users can now download Trillian, the multiprotocol IM client, through Apple's App Store.

The $4.99 app comes with many of the same features as its desktop counterpart, including grouped and sorted contacts. Tabbed chat windows also find their way onto the iPhone and iPod touch version, and so does the ability to copy and paste, which is more a credit to Apple than Cerulean Studios, the company responsible for Trillian.

Users can also synchronize content across multiple IM clients, so that changes made on the iPhone version will appear in real-time on the Windows client.

In a nod towards cloud computing, Cerulean Studios says that all chats are stored on the company's server, which means they won't be lost if you suffer a dropped connection. The app can also be set up to send IM alerts when Trillian is shut down.

Image Credit: Cerulean Studios

Microsoft: Smartphone App Numbers are Meaningless

Bart Salisbury — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 14:31:51 -0600

One might be tempted to think that Ray Ozzie, chief software architect for Microsoft, spent a prior life at Apple. In a chinwag with technology developers at Microsoft’s Professional Developers Conference he maintained that the number of applications available for a smartphone platform isn’t all that big a deal. After all, he says, “All the apps that count will be ported to every one of them.” Wasn’t that the Apple mantra about ten years ago?

The crux of the matter, says Ozzie, is that mobile apps are pretty simple to crank out. “Mobile apps require very little development, so it’s much easier to bring them onto every platform,” he told his audience. If a particular app isn’t available now it probably will be in the future, so that shouldn’t be a crucial factor in deciding which smartphone, or smartphone platform, to buy into.

Ozzie’s comments suggest Microsoft is keenly aware of the all the apps currently available for the iPhone. It would hard not to be aware, the way Apple touts this as an advantage. A cynic would conclude that Ozzie is dismissive of app numbers because of Windows Mobile’s current disadvantage in this respect. An optimist might counter that Ozzie has a point: do you really need ‘an app for that’?

Image Credit: Microsoft

Belgian Thieves Steal $3M Worth of iPhones

Pulkit Chandna — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:44:19 -0600

This past weekend, thieves made away with $3 million worth of iPhones from a warehouse in Willebroek, Belgium. The warehouse is owned and managed by a logistics company CEVA Logistics. Initial reports suggest that the thieves had done their homework quite well. Apparently, the heist wasn’t really a tall order for the thieves as they had a fire ladder with them, which they used to climb the roof.

They entered the building by drilling a hole in the roof. Initial reports differ on the number of iPhones pilfered, with the number hovering between 3,000 and 4,000. The thieves have compounded wireless carrier Mobistar’s woes: the carrier is finding it hard to keep pace with the huge demand for the iPhone.

Mobistar says it has already blacklisted the serial numbers of the stolen phones, effectively staving off their use on its network. However, it may prove to be a futile attempt as the iPhones sold in Belgium don’t feature a SIM-lock and so can be used on another network. There is still no breakthrough in the case.

Image Credit: CommittedSardine

Google Releases Google Earth App 2.0 for iPhone

Paul Lilly — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 11:15:03 -0600

It's been a little over a year since Google first unveiled its Google Earth app for the iPhone and iPod touch, and it took just six months for the app to become the most-downloaded free application overall. Now there's a new version available -- Google Earth 2.0 -- with a few new features, improved icon selection, and better performance, Google says.

Users who log directly into their Google Maps account can now view the same maps that they or others have created, using the My Maps interface.

"Maybe you're on a trip and want to see where Tony Wheeler, the co-founder of Lonely Planet, most likes to travel," Google wrote on its blog. "Or perhaps you're walking around looking for a restaurant and you want to see where world-famous chef Ferran Adrià likes to eat. All you have to do is click 'Save to My Maps,' open Earth on the iPhone, log in with the same account information, and voilà, you have your same collection of My Maps right in your pocket."

Google says it's also easier to discover new parts of the globe. In version 2.0, just touch an icon and small glow appears under your finger to let you know which one you picked.

Any iPhone or iPod touch owners play with the latest update yet?