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Flip Goes Wireless For Next-Gen Camcorder

J.R. Bookwalter — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:26:04 -0600

Pocket-lint.com is reporting that Cisco will be adding Wi-Fi to its popular, pocketable Flip digital camcorders as early as the first part of 2010.

According to a Cisco representative, the new model will feature “a large screen that slides to reveal the record and men buttons underneath,” allowing users to see what is going on when they are recording video. However, the new, larger screen won’t be touch-enabled, not surprising given the low-cost nature of the cameras.

Such a move would be the first to leverage Cisco’s networking technology since they acquired Flip creator Pure Digital earlier this year in a multi-million dollar deal.

The concept behind adding Wi-Fi is to enable owners of the next-gen models to record video footage and then upload it right from the camera over either private or public Wi-Fi networks, which is becoming increasingly common with point-and-shoot digital still cameras.

Google Gives Free Wi-Fi for the Holidays

Cory Bohon — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:01:33 -0600

Google is hoping to make the upcoming holidays a little better by offering free Wi-Fi access at 47 airports.

On the promotional website, Google mentions, "When you’re traveling this holiday season, you can enjoy free WiFi at 47 participating airports and on every Virgin America flight. Just bring a WiFi-enabled laptop or mobile device and stay connected to family and friends for free while you travel now through January 15, 2010."

We're sure that this deal will make waiting in the long airport lines a bit easier to bear. In addition to free Wi-Fi at the 47 select airports, Google is also giving free in-flight wireless on all Virgin America Flights from now until January 15, 2010. Check out the FAQ for details.

So when you're stuck at the airport this holiday season, just thank Google for helping you pass the time without pulling your hair out.

via Electronista

Cradlepoint PHS300 Personal Wi-Fi Hotspot

David W. Martin — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:53:48 -0600

If you're like most people, you probably spend a great deal of time away from your home Wi-Fi network. Free open Wi-Fi networks can be few and far between these days so if you have an iPod touch, a MacBook, or even an iPhone this can be inconvenient to say the least. There are solutions available to help (like the MiFi 2200) but if you already have a USB 3G modem or a phone that supports tethering, there's no reason to pay twice for data access.

The Cradlepoint PHS300 personal Wi-Fi hotspot can take your existing 3G device and create a personal WiFi hotspot to connect other devices to the Internet.   The CradlePoint is a compact, rechargable-battery powered Wi-Fi router.   The device works with practically any USB modem or tethered cell phone. We tested our PHS300 with a Sprint Sierra Wireless Compass 597 USB 3G dongle. We plugged it in and the CradlePoint automatically recognized our device and created a WiFi hotspot. No additional software is required to use or access the CradlePoint, which is administered via a web interface like a standard router.

Security can be as simple as a password or more advanced using WEP/WPA/WPA2 security. The replaceable Li-ion battery can pump out a Wi-Fi signal for a little more than three hours. It can also run off AC power, with or without a battery connected. A case ($15), extra batteries ($25), and car power adapter($25) are available as optional accessories.

The form-factor was a bit cumbersome, with the USB modem hanging out of the side, but certainly not a deal-breaker. And we definitely like the ability to change cellular providers or 3G devices without having to buy a new Wi-Fi device. Cradlepoint frequently updates the firmware, so it works with a growing number of 3G modems and cell phones. We're still waiting for AT&T's mythical tethering plan to materialize, so no word yet on iPhone compatibility.

Apple will 'Vigorously' Defend Itself in Nokia Lawsuit

Andrew Villa — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 15:38:48 -0500

In Apple's 10-K annual report filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that was posted yesterday, it notes that Apple plans to "Vigorously" defend itself from a lawsuit filed last week by Nokia.

Nokia is claiming infringement of different cellular and Wi-Fi patents by Apple's iPhone.

"The complaint alleges that these patents are essential to one or more of the GSM, UMTS and 802.11 wireless communications standards, and that the Company has the right to license these patents from plaintiff on fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory ("FRAND") terms and conditions. Plaintiff seeks unspecified FRAND compensation and other relief. The Company's response to the complaint is not yet due. The Company intends to defend the case vigorously."

In Nokia's press release announcing the lawsuit, they noted that about 40 other companies, including "virtually all the leading mobile device vendors," had licensed the intellectual property, but Apple had refused to agree to the terms for licensing.

Decisions, Decisions - Do You Really Need an iPhone 3G?

Mac|Life Staff — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 07:08:00 -0500

Do you really need an iPhone 3G? We give you 5 reasons it’s the world’s best cell phone—and 5 reasons to wait to buy one or just keep rocking your 2G iPhone.

We admit it—after hearing Steve Jobs’s keynote at the Worldwide Developers Conference on June 9, we all wanted an iPhone 3G. Badly. There’s plenty to like about the iPhone’s second coming, but we wouldn’t be doing our jobs if we didn’t show you both sides of Apple’s newest smartphone, the good and the bad. In fact, the original working title of this article was “10 Reasons You Need an iPhone Now,” but in researching the story, we couldn’t look past the device’s clear downsides.

So in the spirit of the proverbial angel and devil that sit on either shoulder when you’re weighing a decision, we present both the good and the bad news about the iPhone 3G, so you can you make the most informed choice possible.

{Good}
5 Reasons to Buy an iPhone 3G

First let us say that despite a few misgivings (see p26), many of us at Mac|Life opted to buy iPhone 3Gs in the end. These five reasons in favor of the device ultimately proved too compelling to ignore.

{Reason 1}
3G: Because faster is better.

A lot of people got very excited about a 3G iPhone, but for some, the question remained: What exactly is 3G? On a purely technical level, AT&T’s 3G network is a third-generation HSDPA (High-Speed Downlink Packet Access) data network. AT&T’s 3G network has been available for users of a variety of smartphones and other 3G-capable handsets. With the release of the iPhone 3G, iPhone users are gaining feature parity with users of other smartphones on AT&T’s network. As Steve Jobs illustrated during the WWDC keynote, AT&T’s 3G network can be quite fast, often several times the speed of its previous EDGE (Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution) network, and coming remarkably close to speeds you might expect from a Wi-Fi network.

AT&T’s older EDGE network gives you download speeds in the neighborhood of 100Kbps, although it can vary widely. In our recent tests with an original iPhone, we were able to connect to the EDGE network at 29Kbps on the low end, all the way up to just over 100Kbps, although AT&T claims EDGE speeds up to 135Kbps. On the 3G network, AT&T is boasting speeds up to 1.4Mbps. While real-world usage varies considerably, the 3G network offers an undoubtedly improved Web-browsing experience.

All this speed means several things. Email and Web browsing is easier on the iPhone 3G. Beyond that, however, the improved network makes the iPhone an attractive platform for developers, as well as for cellular carriers overseas, where 3G networks are often more well-developed than they are in the United States. The bottom line is an increase in user base that promotes more innovation on the iPhone as a platform, resulting in better user experiences for all iPhone owners, in addition to the faster Net connection.

{Reason 2}
Game On: Because nobody hates fun.

The iPhone 3G plays sophisticated games with 3D hardware-accelerated graphics and 3D positional audio—think PlayStation 2 or GameCube quality, beyond anything possible on the tiny screens and wimpy processors of most mobile phones. The iPhone has a touchscreen like the handheld Nintendo DS, plus an accelerometer for gesture-based controls, like the Nintendo Wii controller. Players can tilt the phone to steer race cars, tap the screen to shoot enemies, drag body parts to build Spore creatures, and so on.

Cro-Mag Rally ($9.99 in the App Store) lets you steer your caveman’s car by tilting the iPhone around.

The iPhone’s unique features should lead to some creative game development too. Since it’s got an Internet connection, it’s plausible that a game could send data back to a central server and then down to a companion game on your computer, combining at-home and on-the-go experiences. The iPhone’s camera and GPS could also combine gaming with social networking based on players’ real-time locations.

The current handheld game devices, the Nintendo DS and Sony’s PlayStation Portable, also offer Wi-Fi, and the PSP can play MP3s and make VoIP calls with Skype—and of course, there’s no monthly fee to AT&T. But each is still another gadget to carry around, plus you have to drag along removable game discs and cartridges, which range from $20 to $40 a pop.

Pangea Software’s Enigmo ($9.99 in the App Store) won Best iPhone Game at the 2008 Apple Design Awards.

iPhone game prices vary too, but Super Monkey Ball, Enigmo, Wingnuts Moto Racer, and Cro-Mag Rally cost just $9.99, and Tap Tap Revenge, Blip Solitaire, and Arcade are free. Some developers could give away games to build a user base and monetize by showing in-game ads, but even if that model never catches on, the lack of physical game discs or cartridges to manufacture and ship should help keep prices low. We expect a rash of accelerometer-based action titles and multitouch casual games to litter the App Store’s Most Popular lists by the time you read this, perfect for quick bursts of gaming in waiting rooms and train stations everywhere.

{Reason 3}
GPS: Because wherever you go, there you are.

Sure, other mobile phones have GPS receivers built in. There are even some phones, like Garmin’s nüvifone, whose sole purpose, other than making calls, is to function as portable navigation devices (PNDs). But this, after all, is not just any mobile phone—it’s the iPhone.

Those who make portable navigation devices have reason to fear the iPhone 3G’s impact on their business. iPhone 3G users have everything to gain, including a better sense of where they are and how to get where they’re going.

The original iPhone isn’t completely devoid of location-based features, of course, but Apple says that the A-GPS (the “A” stands for assisted) in the iPhone 3G uses a unique approach to finding the closest satellites, which means Google Maps on the iPhone 3G can tell you almost instantly where you are—and, of course, how to find what you’re looking for (Pizza? Coffee? Sushi? Leather goods?) or get where you’re going.

The iPhone 3G can also put you on the map by triangulating your position using Wi-Fi and cellular towers—you know, just in case the satellites are on the blink. Combine that with its Wi-Fi capabilities, and you’ve got a very powerful pocket tour guide to any new city you visit. In the typical Apple style of couching a techie explanation in “Isn’t it amazing?” simplicity, Steve Jobs demonstrated at the June 9 keynote how the iPhone 3G could track a user’s location as they drove down San Francisco’s famously zig-zagging Lombard Street. In our tests, the iPhone3G’s GPS feature worked well in most locations. Tap Maps and the phone “sees” your location and shows your movement in real time (this works best in a moving vehicle, of course)—pointless fun if you know where you’re going, but immensely useful if you’re lost.

Parks Associates Research Director Harry Wang says it remains to be seen how much of the PND market the iPhone 3G bites into, but “PND manufacturers should be concerned about iPhone’s GPS functions and the trend it will lead.” It comes down to apps that call on the phone’s GPS function, Wang says. “Apple developers hold the key to successful adoption of the GPS function on the device, because GPS technology is no differentiator, the applications and content are.”

Finally, built-in GPS means photos shot with the phone’s camera are automatically geotagged with the shot location’s latitude and longitude—a feature with negligible everyday usefulness for the average user, but a fun nice-to-have function, especially for Flickr nuts.

{Reason 4}
Exchange Support: Because you work, so the iPhone should too.

Out of the box, the iPhone 3G comes ready to connect to most corporate networks. By adding support for Microsoft Exchange, Apple is making a play to put an iPhone into the pockets and briefcases of business users everywhere. If you currently carry a BlackBerry for access to work-related resources, in addition to your personal cell phone, the iPhone 3G could be everything you need in one slick package. And thanks to Apple’s inclusion of enterprise-level security tools, convincing your IT department to support the iPhone just got a whole lot easier.

For business users, the iPhone 3G’s push features are what make it a must-have device. Changes made to your contacts and calendars, as well as new email messages are sent to your iPhone in real time. This is in contrast to the old system where you had to manually check for new email, or wait for the next sync for recent changes to show up across your devices. This makes using email on the go much easier and allows mobile workers to keep important information in sync with colleagues back at the office.

Via MobileMe (www.me.com), Apple has also created a way for individual users to take advantage of most of the features available to enterprise users. Using the $99-per-year service that Steve Jobs calls “Exchange for the rest of us,” your contacts, calendars, and email will still sync automatically via “the cloud.”

From a security standpoint, iPhone 3G also comes ready to handle enterprise-class security. A built-in Cisco VPN supports IP-based encryption, and the iPhone 3G also supports IMAP email, bulk device-configuration, and a Remote Wipe option, allowing enterprise users to remotely erase confidential information when company iPhones get lost or stolen.

{Reason 5}
The App Store: Because a smartphone without apps ain’t so smart.

When Apple announced that third-party developers could write native applications to be sold via a wireless App Store on every iPhone and iPod touch, the response was huge—the SDK was downloaded more than 250,000 times in three months, 25,000 developers applied for the paid iPhone Developers Program, and this June’s Worldwide Developers Conference, featuring 62 iPhone sessions, sold out. Mobile development is exploding, with the 500-plus apps in the App Store leading the way.

Third-party apps mean your iPhone can be a true computing tool, not just a call-making iPod. And getting apps is as easy as buying a new song in iTunes—on your Mac or over the air. No typing a credit card number, no discs, no emailed license codes. You tap “Install” in the App Store on your iPhone, then your iTunes account (linked to your credit card) is charged and the app is loaded on your phone.

Don’t worry about someone else going on an App Store spending spree if you ever lose your phone—the Store prompts you for your iTunes account password when you want to install any app, paid or free. The apps are synced back to iTunes 7.7 when you dock your iPhone, so you should be able to load them to another iPhone in case you end up upgrading later. While Apple touts Remote Wipe as a key feature of the iPhone 2.0 software, it appears that feature applies only to enterprise customers (whose IT departments can set up and remotely manage a group of iPhones across a company), but we hope Apple provides some way for regular Joe customers to de-link a lost or stolen iPhone from their iTunes account over the Internet.

But do you even need an iPhone 3G to take advantage of the App Store? Not at all—it’s open to iPhone users as well as owners of the iPod touch (which uses Wi-Fi). Apps smaller than 10MB can be downloaded to an iPhone over the 3G or EDGE networks, which means the iPhone 3G, in a 3G network area, grabs them about twice as fast. Apps larger than 10MB can be purchased over Wi-Fi on either iPhone or the touch, or bought within iTunes and synced to the device. At launch, more than half the apps were $5 or less, with entries in nearly 20 categories, and more will be added in the coming months. This phone is starting to look pretty smart indeed.

Still Can’t Commit?

If the iPhone 3G sounds too risky (not sure if you’re in a 3G coverage area? Don’t know if 16GB is big enough for your needs?), don’t worry too much about getting locked into a two-year contract—as long as you remain vigilant. After signing up for your iPhone 3G data and voice plan, you still have 30 days to change your mind before you’re subject to the $200 cancellation fee. To get out of your contract within those first 30 days, bring your iPhone in its packaging and all your receipts and paperwork to an AT&T store. You won’t get to keep your iPhone 3G, though—the purchase price will be refunded. So take heart, commitment-phobes, but don’t space on the date: We suggest setting multiple reminders for yourself in iCal, Google Calendar, or whatever you use, starting a week before the deadline and increasing in urgency until zero hour.

{The Bad}
5 Reasons to Wait

If you earmarked 200 bucks for an iPhone 3G on June 9 when it was announced, you’re not alone. But you know what Mom would say: ”If all your friends jumped off a bridge, would you do it too?” Mom’s got a point. So before you take the leap, here are five key points to consider.

{Reason 1}
Size Matters: Because we all know a 32GB iPhone is coming.

Of course it is. It must be. A 32GB iPod touch is available today for $499. And the price of flash memory has fallen sharply in the past year. In fact, if you search Google for the terms “flash memory” and “Apple effect,” you’ll find dozens of articles about how Apple’s massive orders for NAND flash memory chips have been one of the main forces driving growth in the industry. (Besides the iPhone, flash memory is used in the iPod nano, iPod shuffle, iPod touch, and in  the solid-state disk drive available as an option for the MacBook Air.)

Recently, prices have been slipping—an 8Gb memory chipset (which is equivalent to 1GB of memory) was down to $2.28 at the end of June 2008. That’s a 31 percent drop from its price of $3.26 at the end of May, and a whopping 72 percent less than its $8.25 price in June 2007. And in early July, the first sign of these lower costs being passed on to consumers in the form of price drops hit Apple’s retail line: The solid-state disc option in the MacBook Air dropped to $599 for a 64GB drive—when the Air was first introduced, that same upgrade cost $999.

Samsung Electronics, which supplies the NAND chipsets to Apple, told its other customers to expect reduced supplies in July so Samsung could fill Apple’s latest order for 50 million 8Gb-equivalent chipsets, which is enough to make 3 million 16GB iPhones, 6 million 8GB iPhones, or some combination. Apple needs to move at least 7.7 million iPhones from the 3G launch to the end of 2008 to hit its goal of 10 million sold, which shouldn’t be too tough since it’s debuting in dozens of new countries. But a late-year refresh could provide a welcome boost, turning July’s hot product into the must-have holiday gadget. Think of all the extra apps, movies, and music a 32GB iPhone could hold—that’s a lot of extra coin jingling around in the iTunes and App Store coffers to boot.

Of course, Apple doesn’t comment on its future product plans, but we expect to see a 32GB iPhone on the market by the end of 2008.

{Reason 2}
Money Matters Too: Because it’s not really cheaper.

Sure, the $199 price tag on the 8GB iPhone 3G looks great, especially compared to $399. And Apple certainly did its part with the “Half the price” tagline. But what does the iPhone 3G really cost? Turns out, the new “half price” isn’t really half the price. Worse, in the United States, over the life of the required two-year AT&T service contract, the new iPhone is actually more expensive than the original.

The 8GB iPhone was most recently selling for $399, with a minimum monthly plan of $59.99. That put total cost of ownership at $1,838.76 for the mandatory two-year contract. The iPhone 3G sells for $199, but AT&T has increased the cost of the data plan by $10 over the cost of the old EDGE plans. With a monthly cost of at least $69.99, the iPhone 3G will cost $1,878.76 over the same 24-month period, and that’s without any text messaging. To get the same 200 texts that are included in the older plans, you’ll have to add a $5-a-month text plan. Over the course of a two-year contract, the new “half-price” iPhone 3G will cost at least $1,998.76, or $160 more than the original iPhone.

Current iPhone owners are eligible to upgrade to 3G at the $199 price. If you’re an AT&T customer with a different phone, however, you’re subject to some secret AT&T math that takes into account how far you are into your existing contract and how good you are at paying your bill on time. If you don’t quite make the cut, you can still get an iPhone 3G, but you’ll have to pay an additional $200 for the privilege.

Of course, those piles of extra cash are getting you GPS capabilities and data speeds approaching Wi-Fi, but the truth is the iPhone 3G is not half the price of the original and is in fact more expensive, despite what Apple’s marketing department would have you believe.

{Reason 3}
Apps for everyone: Because you don’t need 3G, or even 2G, to shop the App Store.

Just to be clear, the iPhone 2.0 firmware update, which includes the App Store, is free and available on all iPhones—you don’t need the new iPhone 3G. In fact, if you don’t want to be saddled with a monthly AT&T bill, you could buy an iPod touch, upgrade to the 2.0 firmware for $10 if needed, and hit up the App Store over Wi-Fi. An 8GB iPod touch is $299, just $100 more than a subsidized 8GB iPhone 3G, but after two years the iPhone will cost almost two grand in phone bills.

If you stick with the iPod touch, you’ll miss out on any apps that require the iPhone’s camera (the touch has none), but if you opt for the original iPhone 2G over the new iPhone 3G, the biggest hardware upgrade that’s missing is the GPS. But no real-time navigation applications that would rely on the GPS chip were announced in the first several days after the App Store launch. Apple could be planning its own, of course—“real-time route guidance” apps are forbidden by the SDK license agreement. Navigation services often charge monthly fees for access to updated maps and data, and the App Store is set up for one-time payments only.

Plus, the iPhone 3G uses A-GPS, rather than pure GPS to determine the phone’s location. For A-GPS to get a location lock, the unit needs signals from at least three satellites, which can be tricky if you’re indoors and/or surrounded by tall buildings.  The iPhone 3G uses uses GPS satellites plus cell towers and Wi-Fi access points to determine your position. Since the original iPhone also uses cell towers and Wi-Fi hot spots to find your position (see “iFaux GPS Put to the Test,” Apr/08, p18), location-based recommendations and social-networking apps work pretty well on either phone.

One more note: If you performed a jailbreak on your iPhone 2G, don’t upgrade to the iPhone 2.0 firmware without first restoring your phone to its non-jailbroken state. We’ve got friendly directions online at www.maclife.com/article/how_to_restore_your_hacked_iphone.

{Reason 4}
Let Freedom Ring: Because the 2G iPhone is more easily jailbroken.

If you’re a card-carrying Libertarian, or you just feel that once you’ve purchased a gadget with your hard-earned cash, no one should be able to tell you what to do with it, you might think three times before stepping up to an iPhone 3G. The original 2G iPhone remains a known quantity when it comes to jailbreaking, not to mention the fact that if you want to remove your GSM SIM card and use the iPhone solely as a portable Internet device (or use a card from a service provider other than AT&T), you maintain those options. In the United States, iPhone 3G buyers are required to activate the phone in-store—or sign a binding contract requiring them to activate a new two-year service contract within 30 days.

{Reason 5}
Who Needs Speed: Because in the age of Wi-Fi, 3G isn’t always necessary.

Obviously, the 3G networking is the biggest new feature of the new iPhone—so big, in fact, it’s the No. 1 best reason to buy one. 3G Web access takes your iPhone from Net-connected smartphone to 3G Net-connected super-smartphone. But is it worth the added cost? Owners of the original iPhone—and new owners of hand-me-down iPhones—are able to keep their cheaper data plans, and for many users, that may be a better option.

iPhone 3G owners in 10 states will pay a premium for 3G data service they can’t even use.

Currently, AT&T touts 3G-network availability “in 280 leading metropolitan areas” and plans to reach 350 metros by the end of the year. Sounds good, unless you happen to live where there is no 3G service. Currently, that means that iPhone 3G owners in 10 states will be paying a $120 yearly premium for 3G data service that they can’t even use. Residents of Alaska, Iowa, Maine, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, and Wyoming—we’re talking about you. And states where 3G is available still have huge swaths where coverage isn’t built out yet. There’s a reason AT&T’s website won’t (easily) display a 3G-coverage map the same way it shows voice coverage: the 3G network is almost comically spotty.

Aside from network gaps, consider your average day. For a lot of people, that means going from home (where there’s Wi-Fi) to work (where there’s Wi-Fi), and back again. And even when you’re out and about, finding an open Wi-Fi network isn’t too difficult. If you’ve got Wi-Fi access nearly everywhere, how much time will you spend utilizing AT&T’s 3G network anyway?

GPS is Apple’s other big feature for the iPhone. But remember, reasonably good “faux-GPS” triangulation already exists in first-gen iPhones. Using cell tower and Wi-Fi network data, the old iPhone can already give you a pretty good idea of where you are. And then there’s the old stand-by: looking up at the street signs. Between the location services and Google Maps, you should be able to figure out where you’re going. You might not get pinged instantly when your friends show up at the bar around the corner, but you could always—gasp!—call them and find out where they are.

AT&T Customers: Are you eligible to upgrade to iPhone 3G?

No one could accuse AT&T of being straightforward about its iPhone upgrade policy. If you already have a first-gen iPhone, you’re in the best position. Existing iPhone customers can buy an iPhone 3G at the fully subsidized $199/$299 price points—with a two-year service contract, of course. AT&T will also charge an $18 upgrade fee to existing iPhone customers. At that point, you can pass on your original iPhone to a friend or sell it on eBay. The original (non-3G) plans will remain in effect for first-gen iPhones.

If you’re an AT&T customer using anything other than an iPhone, things get a bit more complicated. Depending on the amount of time remaining on your original contract and your payment history, in addition to some other factors AT&T is keeping mum about, you might be eligible for an upgrade at $199/$299. Check your upgrade eligibility by logging in to your AT&T account and clicking on Check Upgrade Eligibility under Phone/Device.

If it turns out you aren’t eligible yet, AT&T will be happy to sell you an iPhone 3G…for $399 for the 8GB and $499 for the 16GB model. And if that offer doesn’t float your boat, you can always just bide your time for a few more months. By the time you qualify for an upgrade, there will be a newer 3G anyway.

And then there’s the “no contract” version of the iPhone 3G. AT&T has announced that the 8GB version will sell for $599, and the 16GB for $699. It’s not going to be an unlocked iPhone, so you’ll still need AT&T service, but even AT&T customers ineligible for an upgrade could buy an 8GB iPhone 3G for $399, then cancel their contract and pay the $175 early termination fee, making their total cost $574—$25 less than AT&T’s “full-fare” iPhone 3G.

Apple Airport Express

Susie Ochs — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 14:55:34 -0500

The AirPort Express makes it a breeze to set up a wireless network or extend an existing network farther—say, all the way out to the pool.

Perhaps the greatest part about the new AirPort Express is simply that Apple brought back the AirPort Express—the previous edition had all but disappeared from store shelves, and Internet message boards buzzed with worry that Apple was discontinuing it altogether. Luckily, those fears were unfounded: The new AirPort Express does everything the old model can, and it features the fastest Wi-Fi standard (802.11n) and ProxySTA, which acts as a bridge between wireless and Ethernet networks without requiring you to set up a Wireless Distribution System (WDS). Both the 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequencies are supported, and 802.11n offers transfer speeds up to 5 times faster than older 802.11g networks (we clocked downloading speeds of 4935 KB/sec, versus 1530 KB/sec with an 802.11g AirPort Express).

Setup is incredibly easy: The AirPort Utility app walks you through configuring the Express as a network router or bridge—it can share one Internet connection with up to 10 wireless clients, and AirPort Utility even lets you provide PIN-based access to guests (so you don’t have to share your network password) or limit clients’ access by time. The compact Express is less than 7 ounces, easy to tote in a laptop bag. And it can save up to five profiles, so you can create a wireless network from a wired Internet connection at home, at work, or in a hotel room without having to redo the settings.

Connect the Express to your home stereo or powered speakers with an audio cable (the 3.5mm port supports both analog stereo and optical digital audio), and you can stream music from iTunes to play over the speakers, a feature called AirTunes. This requires no software setup at all, and if you have multiple Express-equipped stereos in the house, you can stream the same music to all of them, or just some of them. The Express has a USB port, too, but only to share a USB printer with the computers on your network—you can’t connect an external hard drive and back up to it, as you can with the AirPort Extreme (4 out of 5 stars, May/07, p54).

Wireless Printing with Time Capsule

Scott Rose — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 09:52:00 -0500

Holding down the Option key will reveal several hidden options to choose from in your AirPort Utility’s Radio Mode pop-up menu.

We had an AirPort Extreme wireless network that our HP LaserJet 1022nw was wirelessly connected to, and it was working fine until we switched to a Time Capsule as our wireless router. Now our printer can no longer see our wireless network in its SSID list, and when we manually type in the SSID information and WPA password information, it still can’t connect.

As of press time, there’s an incompatibility between some HP wireless printers and Apple’s implementation of the 802.11n wireless protocol built into the Time Capsule’s firmware (currently at version 7.3.1). By the time you read this, a Time Capsule firmware update should be available.

In the meantime, go into your AirPort Utility (located in Applications/Utilities), connect to your Time Capsule, click the AirPort button at the top, select the Wireless tab, and then hold down the Option key while you click the pop-up menu for Radio Mode. This will reveal several hidden options, including the one that you want: 802.11b/g compatible. Choosing this option will result in speed degradation on a network of all 802.11n devices, but it will enable your HP printer to see your wireless network once again.

Roam - The Road Warrior's Survival Guide

Robert Strohmeyer — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 11:19:14 -0600

It’s awful to be stuck without the tools (or skills) you need to stay productive with your MacBook or MacBook Pro. Here’s everything you need to keep you and your Mac in gear.

Whether you’re packing for a business trip thousands of miles away, or you just want to get out of the house for a few hours, sometimes you need to take your Mac on the road. While it’s debatable whether “getting there is half the fun,” keeping your MacBook (and your workflow) running smoothly, both in transit and when you arrive, is an absolute must. And we hate to break it to you, but with a more-mobile Mac comes increased responsibility—like making sure your precious ’Book doesn’t get stolen, broken, or disconnected from the world. We’ve got the latest tricks for keeping your precious cargo safe, secure, and connected—and some advice for coping with accidents you can’t avoid.

Hotspot Hunter

If a hotspot is out there, the WiFi Finder Plus can sniff it out.

Away from your home or office, a wireless hotspot is your best bet for getting online. Because free wireless hotspots seem to be a dime a dozen at airports, cafes, and hotels, finding one in a major city is usually fairly easy. But if you’re outside of an urban center, you may have to sleuth around to find a connection you can use.

T-Mobile HotSpot (www.tmobile.com/hotspot) offers a nationwide network of wireless hotspots in partnership with Starbucks, FedEx Kinko’s, Borders, and other chains. But with connection fees ranging from $6 for one hour to $40 per month, it’s way more expensive than free.

A better bet for the frugal surfer is to hunt for free Wi-Fi elsewhere. Online directories like JiWire (www.jiwire.com) and Wi-Fi Free Spot (www.wififreespot.com) offer nationwide listings of free wireless providers, so if you find yourself headed for Cascade, Idaho, you’ll know there’s free Wi-Fi at the Water’s Edge RV Resort.

Of course, if you’re already in the town where you need access, an online directory won’t do much good. In that case a Wi-Fi detector, such as Kensington’s WiFi Finder Plus ($29.99, www.kensington.com), will help you suss out a signal as you cruise the main drag.

Be smart when you use open hotspots, though. By virtue of that lovely, free openness, hotspots expose all of the traffic that runs across them, so anyone can snoop through the files you send and receive. If you’re emailing sensitive files, be sure to encrypt them first. StuffIt ($49.99, www.stuffit.com)not only compresses your files to make them more email friendly, but can also protect them from prying eyes by requiring a password to uncompress them. And if you’re logging in to your online banking service, be sure the site uses HTTPS security by looking for the little padlock in the status bar and checking that the address begins with “https” rather than just “http.”

Fast Connection Via Mobile Phone

Sprint’s AirCard 597E by Sierra Wireless ($329.99, www.sprint.com) slides into the ExpressCard/34 slot of your MacBook Pro for always-available broadband surfing over Sprint’s cellular network.

For on-the-go access in most metro areas, cellular broadband—aka 3G or mobile broadband—is the next best thing to a DSL connection. AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon all offer nationwide broadband service over their respective cell phone networks, making it easy to add high-speed mobile Internet service to your existing cellular account by buying a mobile broadband card and subscribing to a data plan.

The MacBook Pro’s ExpressCard/34 slot is ideal for using any of the leading 3G data cards, because you can leave the card installed and it won’t stick out of the slot too far. But if your notebook bag is a tight fit, you should remove the card when you’re in transit to make sure it doesn’t get damaged. MacBooks don’t have ExpressCard/34 slots, but users can still use 3G data cards with a USB adapter. (Your cellular provider will give you the right cable for your card.) And if you have a PowerBook, you can still find plenty of PC Card options to fit the ’Book’s PC Card slot. Most mobile broadband cards, regardless of how they connect to your Mac, cost between $80 and $130 with a two-year service agreement.

With your cellular broadband card installed, you can set your Internet connection to start automatically every time you boot your Mac, and you’ll surf the Web at speeds up to 1.4Mbps. And even if you’re outside of a 3G service area, you’re not out of luck. The card will still connect to your carrier’s lower-speed network so your essential email and Web traffic can get through.

Internet Over Bluetooth

Bluetooth dial-up networking uses your cell phone as a wireless modem to access the Net.

If you have a Bluetooth phone, you don’t necessarily need to buy a separate cellular broadband card to access the Internet. Phones that support dial-up networking (which most newer Bluetooth phones do) can serve as high-speed modems for your Mac.

The best phones for dial-up networking are those using 3G mobile broadband services, such as Verizon’s VCAST or Sprint’s Mobile Broadband, because they allow you to surf at DSL-like speeds. These phones will require you to run special software provided by your carrier in order to use the network, so check with your cellular provider to see if your phone supports broadband dial-up networking. Non-3G phones can still use dial-up networking the old-fashioned way: Obtain a dial-in number from your Internet service provider, then open the Bluetooth dial-up networking controls under System Preferences > Network > Bluetooth. With your Bluetooth phone paired with your Mac, enter the dial-in number and your account name and password, and then click Connect.

Note that many carriers require you to subscribe to their broadband service in order to use your Mac on the network, so you may still have to pay extra for the ability to use the connection.

DIY Networks

AirPort lets you create your own wireless network, with your Mac acting as a wireless hub.

No matter how much of a hotspot ninja you think you are, sometimes there just isn’t a hotspot around. And a wireless broadband card won’t help if you’re in an area with no cellular reception. But that doesn’t mean you can’t buddy up to share files—it just means you have to be more creative.

When there’s no way to get to an Internet connection, computer-to-computer networking—or creating an impromptu connection between two or more computers within a limited range—can make it easy to transfer files to someone nearby. This comes in handy when you can’t connect to the Internet but want to give a large Illustrator file to a colleague without burning it to a CD, for example. To create a computer-to-computer network (also called an ad hoc network), click the AirPort icon in the menubar and select Create Network. By default, the network will bear the name of your Mac, but you can change the name to anything you like. You can also check the box next to Enable Encryption (Using WEP) and designate a password to make your network private. Once other machines join your network, you can use file sharing to transfer files between them.

File Sharing

Mac OS X can turn any MacBook into a miniature server with File Sharing.

To enable file sharing from your Mac running Leopard, go to System Preferences > Sharing and check the box next to File Sharing. Then select Options and check “Share files and folders using AFP.” To make your files accessible to Windows users, also check “Share files and folders using SMB” and be sure to select an account from your Mac to enable sharing from. You can share the data on an external hard drive by clicking the plus sign under the Shared Folders box in the main Sharing pane. Then browse to the drive you’d like to share and click Add.

If your Mac is running Tiger, the directions are almost the same: Go to System Preferences > Sharing, and select the Services tab. Then check the Personal File Sharing box to share with Mac users, and/or check the Windows Sharing box (and specify an account when prompted) to let Windows users share your files.

Lock It Down

The $40 Kensington ComboSaver Notebook Lock Ultra is one of the easiest ways to protect your $2,500 MacBook Pro.

Unless you somehow still live in the 1950s, you wouldn’t think of leaving a bicycle unattended on a street corner or asking a stranger to watch it “just for a minute” while you run into a store. Yet every day you see otherwise intelligent people leave their laptops sitting unattended on café tables while they refill their lattes. In urban centers, laptop theft has reached pandemic proportions as savvy system snatchers have caught on to the easy money of a quick grab-and-run.

To keep your MacBook from running away, you can’t be too cool for school—or for locks. Simple cable locks, such as the Kensington ComboSaver Combination Notebook Lock Ultra ($39.99, www.kensington.com), attach to your MacBook’s Kensington cable-lock slot in seconds, so you can secure your ’Book to a table leg, a chair, or any other nearby object. If a thief is trying to make off with your computer and a table’s attached to it, someone will probably notice. (Note: If you’re securing your MacBook to a table leg, be sure to run the cable through a closed opening, like a support between the table top and the leg. Otherwise the thief can simply slip the cable out from under the leg and go.)

Getting It Back: LoJack

LoJack for Laptops places hidden software on your Mac’s hard drive so you can track it down if it’s stolen.

There’s a not-so-fine line between sensibly safe and paranoid, and you can’t keep your MacBook locked down all the time—when it’s in the trunk of your car that’s just been stolen, for example. But even when your laptop isn’t strapped to an immovable object, you can still protect it from theft. Computrace LoJack for Laptops ($49.99 per year, www.lojackforlaptops.com) is a simple but sneaky little program that hides in a low-level area of your Mac’s hard drive just in case someone steals your computer. Each day, when you’re connected to the Internet, the software secretly contacts Computrace’s server and checks in.

If your Mac goes missing, all you have to do is file a police report with your local precinct, then fill out a simple form on the LoJack for Laptops website. The next time the thief goes online—even if he or she has deleted and reinstalled OS X—the hidden software will reveal the location through the IP address, and Computrace will contact the police to nab the thief and recover your machine. While a mere 7 percent of all stolen laptops are ever recovered, Computrace claims a 75 percent recovery rate for its customers. That’s nothing to sneeze at.

Rejuvenate Your Battery

Do yourself a favor by using your power adapter to condition your hard-working battery.

A properly calibrated battery is the foundation of maximum power efficiency on the go. To keep your battery functioning at its best, follow these steps once a month.

First, plug in your MacBook’s power adapter and charge it until the light on the adapter turns green. Once it does, continue to work with the adapter plugged in for a
few hours. This will let your battery rest while fully charged before you begin to discharge it.

After a few hours, unplug the power adapter and continue using the MacBook
until you’ve drained the battery. After a couple more hours, you’ll get a low-battery warning, which is your cue to save any work in progress. Keep working until the system goes into sleep mode.

Once the system goes to sleep, leave it unplugged overnight (or for at least five hours) to fully discharge the battery. Then plug it back in and fully recharge the battery until the light on the adapter turns green again, which will leave it calibrated for optimum performance.

Live Long and Prosper

To get the most battery life from your ’Book, adjust your power settings aggressively in the Energy Saver preferences pane.

If you’re lucky enough to spend only a couple of hours per day working without a power outlet, you may not give much thought to your notebook’s power consumption. But frequent travelers sometimes need to make serious concessions to energy efficiency by adjusting their Energy Saver preferences and turning off unnecessary wireless components.

Unless you’re actively connected to a wireless network or a Bluetooth device, your ’Book’s built-in transmitters make it hemorrhage power. Turn AirPort and Bluetooth off by clicking their icons in the menubar and selecting the appropriate option. That’ll go a long way toward making your battery last all day.
Connected devices, such as USB drives and even CDs in your optical drive, draw power from the system. Eject optical discs and disconnect drives to eliminate the unwanted drain.

To really stretch out your Mac’s battery life, set your sleep options to zealously efficient levels. Under System Preferences > Energy Saver, select the settings for Battery and set the display to sleep when the computer is inactive for five minutes, and have the whole computer sleep after 10 minutes of inactivity. Under Options, be sure to check “Automatically reduce the brightness of the display before display sleep.” That way, you won’t be wasting juice while you’re waiting in line for the bathroom on a transcontinental flight.

Even with the most aggressive Energy Saver settings, you’ll be hard-pressed to get more than five hours out of your MacBook’s battery. If you really need to get a full day’s work done without a power outlet, carry a fully charged spare battery in your bag. FastMac’s TruePower Extended-Life Battery ($99.95, www.fastmac.com) lasts slightly longer than a stock battery, and costs less than a spare battery sold by Apple ($129, www.apple.com).

Keys to Success

Regardless of whatever other backup measures you may take, you should never head off on an important trip without putting your most essential files on a USB thumb drive. That way, even if your MacBook Pro is stolen 20 minutes before your big presentation, you’ll still have your mission-critical PowerPoint or Keynote files ready to plug into a borrowed computer. And just in case you can’t get your hands on another presentation-ready machine, you should also save copies of your presentation as
PDF files that you can readily print at any nearby Kinko’s, or present in a pinch with Preview or even Adobe Reader. To make the PDFs, go to the Print dialog, click the PDF button, and choose Print As PDF from the drop-down menu.

.Mac Backups

One of the easiest ways to keep your data at hand is to back it up online with a .Mac account. (The downside, of course, is that you must be online to back up.) For $99.95 per year, you get 10GB of storage on your iDisk, which you can use to back up your home folder, contacts, iCal, and any other files you like. Once you have a .Mac account, download the latest version of Backup from www.mac.com and set it to back up the data you care about most. That way, whether you’ve left your MacBook on the train or simply at home, you can always get to your latest backup from any Web browser. Your iDisk also has a Public folder to let you share files with friends and colleagues.

Back to My Mac

Get back to your home or work desktop machine from anywhere with Leopard’s awesome Back to My Mac feature.

Leopard, aka Mac OS 10.5, makes it easier to access your Mac back at the compound from another Mac on the road. You’ll need two Macs with Leopard installed and a .Mac account. On each machine, go to System Preferences > .Mac and select Back To My Mac. Click Start, then Open Sharing Preferences, and enable File Sharing. Now whenever you want to access either machine from the other, you can open a Finder window and look for Back To My Mac under the Shared section in the Sidebar. Cool, huh?

Time Machine

Gotta go back in time to before you trashed that important file? Use Time Machine.

As you travel through space, you may occasionally need to travel through time as well, and especially if you’ve lost or somehow unintentionally overwritten an important file. Leopard’s Time Machine feature makes hourly backups of your system so you can look back in time and recover older, less ruined versions of your files. Provided you have a large enough external drive attached, Time Machine will retain hourly backups from the last 24 hours, daily backups from the past month, and weekly backups until it runs out of space to store them. So there’s virtually no limit to how far back you can reach.

For use on the road, we suggest a high-capacity, rugged external drive like the 250GB LaCie Rugged All-Terrain Hard Disk ($199.99, www.lacie.com), which has USB and FireWire. Its ample capacity and sturdy, shock-resistant construction will ensure that you always have plenty of Time Machine backups on hand. Or you can just connect your laptop to the drive each evening (or morning) when you’re at home and let it back up overnight. (Only if your external drive is connected via FireWire will you be able to start up your Mac from it. To restore from these backups using a USB drive, you must have your Leopard Mac OS X Install Disc with you.)