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News

• UAE says BlackBerry data handling violates the law

  The offshore storage of data by Research In Motion for its BlackBerry smartphones conflicts with a 2007 law passed in the United Arab Emirates, the country's telecommunications regulator has said.

• Microsoft: Solid Today, Shaky Tomorrow

  Microsoft's quarterly earnings announcement on Thursday painted a rosy picture of a healthy and vibrant tech company. Revenue from Windows sales jumped 28 percent versus the same quarter a year ago.

• Apple rolls out free case program for iPhone 4 owners

  As promised last week, Apple today rolled out its free case program for iPhone 4 owners who are having reception problems with the popular new smartphone.

• MagicJack femtocell misses planned launch date

  The magicJack femtocell, a product unveiled to much excitement earlier this year, has not launched as expected during the second quarter, although the company says it will still become available this year.

• New Nook for Android e-reader tool supports Android 1.6 and higher

  Barnes & Noble Thursday launched Nook for Android, a version of its free e-reading app for devices running Android 1.6 or higher, which include smartphones such as the Droid X.

• 5 makers for Windows Phone 7 now official

  Microsoft has officially divulged names of at least five manufacturers for its coming Windows Phone 7 devices, with Asus recently added to a list of four revealed at the company's Worldwide Partner Conference on July 13.

• New 'Kraken' GSM-cracking software is released

  The GSM technology used by the majority of the world's mobile phones will get some scrutiny at next week's Black Hat security conference, and what the security researchers there have to say isn't pretty.

• Motorola, Verizon make quick fix on Droid X display problems

  Verizon Wireless and Motorola today said fewer than one-tenth of 1% of the new Droid X <a href="http://www.computerworld.com/s/topic/75/Smartphones">smartphones</a> that have been sold have experienced a "flickering" or "banding" on the display, and that Motorola has resolved the problem.

• AT&T adds mobile services for business, government users

  AT&amp;T Tuesday announced that it's offering three new mobile services, including text messaging and encrypted mobile voice products, aimed at business and government users.

• iPhone halo effect shores up AT&T

  iPhone owners may grouse about AT&amp;T's service, but the "halo effect" of Apple's smartphone significantly boosts the U.S. carrier's customer satisfaction levels, not just its revenue, an analyst said today.

• App Store security record unblemished after 2 years

  While the rest of the world focuses on the perceived issues surrounding the iPhone 4's antenna reception, I thought I'd bring us back to something that really matters to iPhone users, namely, the security of Apple's App Store, which just marked its two-year birthday.

• Motorola deal may end mobile-gear consolidation

  Nokia Siemens Networks' acquisition of most of Motorola's cellular networks business may be the last move in a long game of consolidation in the industry, which has been hammered by price pressures.

• iPhone 4 antenna problem spooks Apple customers, says IDC

  The iPhone 4's antenna and reception problems have given pause to two out of three current iPhone owners, who said they would postpone upgrading to the new model, said research firm IDC.

• Nokia Siemens buys Motorola wireless network unit for $1.2B

  Motorola has found a buyer for its wireless network equipment unit: Nokia Siemens Networks will pay US$1.2 billion for most of that business, the companies announced Monday.

• Mobile speed cameras send 'security' info back to base

  The introduction of mobile speed cameras in NSW is aimed at reducing the number of fatalities on our roads, but they will also transmit unidentified information back to the RTA for processing.