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iPhone vulnerability announced

Researchers at Independent Security Evaluators have announced at least two exploits that take advantage of the way the Apple iPhone opens a specially crafted Web page in Safari. Exact details of the vulnerability exploited will have to wait until a presentation at the end of next week's Black Hat conference in Las Vegas. However, some general information has been offered here.

In a preliminary draft of the Black Hat presentation, ISE researchers Charlie Miller, Jake Honoroff, and Joshua Mason note that there are "serious problems with the design and implementation of security on the iPhone," and they … Read more

6G iPod interface leaked?

MacRumors.com recently posted (and subsequently removed) some convincing clips of a possible sixth-generation iPod interface. DapReview.net was able to collect some of the yanked clips together into a YouTube video (visible below, hopefully). Could this be a taste of what the future holds for the next iPod? If so, I'll be somewhat disappointed. After the iPhone teased us with Cover Flow navigation and widescreen video, it'll be hard for Apple to put that genie back in the bottle. What do you guys think? Real or fake? Anyone else spot Boards of Canada on the Artist list? … Read more

Zune barely registers on Microsoft's financials

On Microsoft's fourth-quarter earnings call yesterday, the company noted that it had reached its goal of shipping one million Zunes to retailers by June 30. (I don't know why Microsoft's fiscal year ends June 30, but it's always been that way.)

Looking at the Entertainment and Devices (E&D) section of the accompanying financial release, one can derive that the combination of Zune, consumer hardware (keyboards and mice), consumer software (Office for the Mac, Encarta, and so on), and TV platforms (Microsoft IPTV) earned about $315 million during the quarter. Microsoft doesn't break down … Read more

Arrivas arrive: First look at "wireless" iPod Shuffle headphones

A couple of months ago, I posted a Photoshop mockup of a new pair of "wireless" headphones for the second-generation iPod Shuffle that Arriva, a startup based in Colorado, was working on. The irony was that the headphones weren't wireless in the traditional sense (Bluetooth, IR, or RF), but they simply had a tiny Shuffle II integrated into the headphones at the back of your neck. It's a concept that Monster has also seized upon with its iFreePlay headphones, which houses a Shuffle dock in the left earpiece. … Read more

Make your iPhone look like a 1970s wet suit

iPhone owners looking to personalize their handset can now send off their precious device to Colorware, the folks who will paint just about every electronic device under the sun. $150 gets you a new paint job, which includes two color choices for the back of the phone. For a little extra, you can also customize the shiny metal and Home button on the front of the phone, the Apple logo on the back, and the earbuds and dock.

Similar to Colorware's other offerings, you can also buy a prepainted iPhone in both the 4GB and 8GB capacities. One thing … Read more

Future Implications: Apple's complete home dominance

In a report that is guaranteed to make Apple fanboys proud and Apple haters scoff, the market research firm IDC has released a study claiming that Apple has officially become the third-largest computer vendor in the United States.

According to the study, Apple shipped 960,000 units in the second quarter of 2007, and the Cupertino, Calif.-based company now commands 5.6 percent of the U.S. market--a jump of 0.8 percent from the same time last year.

On the Windows side of things, Dell, while still firmly entrenched as the nation's No. 1 computer vendor, witnessed … Read more

Memory Lane

The Macalope's friend the basilisk forwarded him this heart-warming link (while they can turn you to stone with one glance, basilisks are really old softies) to Thought Different, which is a nostalgic collection of all the versions of Apple.com's front page for the past 10 years.

Yes, relive those wonderful hits of yesteryear such as "eMate 300", "Macworld Expo/Boston" and "Newton Internet Enabler". And who can forget "OS 8", "bondi blue iMac", and "tangerine iBook"?

You get all these and so many more. So … Read more

Buzz growing about scaled-down iPhone for the holidays

If you like the iPhone but can't swing the purchase price, you might not have to wait long for a cheaper alternative.

AppleInsider is reporting that Apple has a second iPhone in the works for later this year that won't be quite as capable as the one currently out in the wild, but that will cost less and resemble the iPod Nano. The site based its report on the word of "extremely reputable sources" that declined to be named, presumably for fear of losing their jobs.

This rumor cropped up last week with the back-and-forth between … Read more

News of a Mac OS X worm incites death threats and intrigue

A soap opera is playing out on the mailing lists of several security newsgroups this morning, complete with people hiding behind pseudonyms, people "outing" one another and rumors of death threats against the major players. At stake? A possible worm for Apple's Mac OS X operating system.

Over the weekend, someone using the name Infosec Sellout posted on the BugTraq mailing list news of a worm exploiting a vulnerability in mDNSResponder, a component of Apple's Bonjour automatic network service. Apple patched the mDNSResponder vulnerability in May, but the author claims there remains an unpatched vulnerability. The … Read more

Analyst: Apple gets a cut of AT&T iPhone revenue

Apple's not just getting revenue from iPhone sales, it's also receiving a portion of the monthly fees from AT&T's iPhone data plans, according to a financial analyst.

Gene Munster, an analyst with Piper Jaffray, issued a report Thursday in which he lays out his belief that Apple has a monthly revenue-sharing deal with AT&T. The report estimates that Apple is receiving $3 a month from AT&T for each iPhone user, and an additional $8 a month for new subscribers to AT&T's network lured by the iPhone.

AT&… Read more