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Sassy Siri even performs musical duets

Everyone's talking to the iPhone 4S' personal assistant Siri and posting their favorite exchanges. From witty banter to borderline insults, Siri has us fascinated.

Musician Jonathan Mann, for example, managed to sing a hilarious duet with Siri, which is posted below. Mann uses some of the most popular questions people have been asking Siri, like "will you marry me?" and "what is the meaning of life?"

You'll have to watch the video to see Siri's snarky answers. … Read more

iOS 5 running on one-third of iOS-based devices

iOS 5 has been out for less than a week, but the mobile operating system has rapidly gained a foothold among iOS-based device owners.

According to mobile app analytics company Localytics, which examined iOS device usage between Wednesday and yesterday, 33 percent of all iOS-based devices, including the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch, are running iOS 5. If the new iPhone 4S is taken out of the equation, 31 percent of Apple's mobile products are running its latest mobile operating system version.

Apple launched iOS 5 last week. The operating system delivers a host of improvements, including a new … Read more

Should iPhone 3GS owners upgrade to iOS 5? (Ask Maggie)

Updating software on smartphones has become a scary proposition. It seems like you never know what glitch or bug might break your device.

But at the same time, new software updates promise all kinds of cool new features. And Apple's iOS 5 is no exception. So it makes sense that iPhone 3GS users, who aren't ready to upgrade to the iPhone 4S, would want to update their phones with the new software. But can two-and-a half year old iPhone 3GS handle the new software? In this week's Ask Maggie, I address this very issue.

I also offer … Read more

The 404 926: Where Siri ratted us out (podcast)

We didn't think it would take this long, but somebody finally exploited the iPhone 4S to catch a cheater using the new Find My Friend app on iOS 5.

The scary part of this story, though, is how easy it is to use GPS to lurk on your S.O. using Google Latitude or any one of these mobile spy apps.

In that same vein, today we're chatting about our favorite tech pranks along with the latest news headlines that include BlackBerry freebies, iPhone record breaking, cell phone bill shock, and a fishy story out of Sesame Street.

Big mo: In one week, Apple iCloud hits 20M users; 25M use iOS 5

In addition to announcing stellar iPhone 4S sales, Apple also revealed today that iOS 5 and iCloud are off to a running start.

According to the company, 25 million people are already using iOS 5, even though this version of the mobile operating system launched just last week. In addition, Apple's iCloud, a cloud-based data service, has added 20 million users in less than a week.

Although the iOS 5 user numbers are impressive, Apple's success with iCloud is most notable, considering that it's an entirely new product. The service allows users to sync and store content … Read more

The complete guide to iOS 5

Anyone who carries his or her life on an iDevice will run to iOS 5, Apple's new mobile operating system (compatible with the iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPad, iPad 2, and the third and fourth generation of the iPod Touch) that makes day-to-day tasks easier to complete on the go.

We're excited about it, too, so we dug our hands into iOS 5 and created dozens of tutorials to help you master the new apps (like iMessage and Reminders), customize the interface, control your privacy, and uncover some hidden features.

Bookmark this page for future reference, … Read more

How to activate your iPhone 4S

Whether you preordered, stood in line, or slept on the doorstep of an Apple store overnight, there's a good chance you forgot about all your troubles when you unboxed your new, shiny iPhone 4S.

But before you start taking high-definition videos and commanding Siri, you need to activate your iPhone. This process associates your phone with your Apple account (or gives you a new one), and ties your phone to its carrier.

Upon powering-up, the activation process will begin, and you'll be asked to configure several important settings concerning your account, privacy, and features. Follow the slideshow to … Read more

iOS 5 notifications: A deeper look

CNET has told you all about what's new in Apple's iOS 5 operating system and in the iPhone 4S that launched today, but this here's a deep dive into the Notifications Center, one of the new features to hit iOS 5 for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod.

Pull down notifications The new notifications center is one of the biggest changes to iOS 5, and also among the best. Previously, if you missed or dismissed an alert, that's it, it was gone. Now you can place a finger at the information bar at the top of the screen and pull down to reveal a whole collection of messages, e-mail, reminders, calendar events, and other notifications you may have missed.

Comparisons with the pull-down menu in Android's operating system have been plentiful, and I'll get to them later on. But yes, the surface similarities are apparent.… Read more

How to set up Wi-Fi Sync for iOS 5

One of the biggest changes iOS 5 brings for iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch users is Wi-Fi Sync. With it, you no longer need to physically connect your iOS device to your Mac or PC to sync its contents with iTunes. Instead, you need only to be on the same Wi-Fi network for iTunes to see your device and sync it. Here's how it works.… Read more

How to use the new Safari features in iOS 5

Safari in iOS 5 brings an entirely new experience for those who spend much of their time browsing the Web on their iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch.

The new OS introduces tools for better news reading, Twitter integration, and a new private browsing option.

Use Reader and Reading List to keep up with news Of the new features, Reader and Reading List take center stage; it makes reading news and blogs a more enjoyable experience on the new OS. Now, if you navigate to an article, "Reader" will appear in the address bar. Tap it, and an e-reader-style … Read more