iPad Air review: worth the upgrade vs old iPad models?

The iPad Air is significantly thinner than the previous iPad models and carries several upgrades and improvements compared to its predecessor, the iPad 4. This article reviews the most important features in the iPad Air which will be helpful for those considering an upgrade from a previous iPad model.

Img: http://www.flickr.com/photos/johnkarakatsanis/

The iPad Air (iPad 5) is the successor of the iPad 4 and was released on November 1, 2013. As with every new iPad generation, several upgrades and improvements are made, most which will be found under the hood. For the iPad Air, just as the name suggests, it is significantly thinner and lighter than the previous iPad models. However, the improvements on the hardware should not be neglected either.

For those that already own an iPad model, a clear question is if upgrading to the new iPad Air is worth it. Depending on the individual user preferences, the answer will certainly vary. This article aims to review some of the most significant upgrades and improvements made to the iPad Air that can be useful to decide if the iPad Air is worth the upgrade.

Smartphone security exploits caused by manufacturers

With smartphones becoming more advanced, concerns of security risks and exploits also increases. A recent study by North Carolina State University shows that most security risks are actually caused by the smartphone manufacturers and not the core operating system.

Smartphones are becoming increasingly popular penetrating more and more in the cell phone market. Similarly, smartphones are also becoming very sophisticated with advanced operating systems underneath. Currently the Apple iOS and the Google Android operating system clearly dominates the market. Apple iOS can only be used on Apple iDevices and has so far managed to keep the security rather tight. However, Google Android is used by multiple smartphone manufacturers due to its open-source and license nature. This results in the, so called, Android fragmentation issue. With Google Android having a market share of approximately 80%, it is therefore also a highly attractive platform for hackers and malicious users to attack.

iOS 7.0.4 released: Summary changes in iOS 7.0.4

iOS 7.0.4 was released November 14, 2013 by Apple. This point release only carries minor changes and updates, summarized in this article.

Apple has been working very hard on improving the iOS system since its release and already within 2 months of the initial iOS 7.0.0 release the fourth point release has arrived. This time, however, the iOS 7.0.4 release brings very few changes and users who are affected by outstanding bugs may be disappointed. For example, the iOS 7 wifi problems are not fixed or mentioned in the release notes, something which Apple has deliberately kept quiet through censorship on their forums. Hopefully, outstanding bugs such as the above will be fixed in the next point release that should not be too far away.

The changes of this iOS 7.0.4 update for iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch devices are summarized below, and anyone on iOS 7 should update their devices as soon as possible. Updating can be accomplished by either going to Settings -> General -> Software Update or through iTunes from a computer. As always, before updating the users should make sure that they have a full backup of their phone first!

iOS users prefer Apple Maps over Google Maps

Apple Maps replaced Google Maps iOS 6 and has had its great share of problems. Initially users flocked to Google Maps due to large inaccuracies with Apple Maps. However, now, it appears that most users are choosing Apple Maps over Google Maps.

When Apple Maps was released and replaced Google Maps as the default Maps app, users criticized it for being largely inaccurate and downright embarrassing in many contexts. As a result, users flocked to the competing Google Maps, even though initially the users had to use it through the Safari web browser. Now, however, it appears that Apple Maps has regained its lost users.

During the last year, the number of Google Maps users has decreased from 29 millions to 9 millions while Apple Maps has went from 10 millions to 35 millions, according to Comscore. These numbers show clearly that the users has given up Google Maps in favor of Apple Maps.

Apple censors iOS 7 wifi problem discussions in forum

iOS 7 brought many good changes but also some bugs. One such bug causes some users who upgrade to iOS 7 to completely lose wifi functionality on their phones. However, Apple apparently wants to pretend that there is no problem and even censors forum posts concerning the issue.

New major releases and changes of most software always introduces bugs. Usually, such introduced bugs and quirks are nothing to be ashamed of and the developers are quick to release fixes and communicate the issues with the users. Apparently, Apple is having some problems with this common practice that is seen as respect and courtesy to the users.

As reported previously, some users are having wifi problems after upgrading to iOS 7. iPhone 4S users seem to constitute the largest group of users experiencing problems, with some reporting wifi becoming completely useless, regardless of the strength of the wifi signal. However, when the users report on the wifi problems in the forums, Apple apparently deliberately censors (removes) posts with fixes and answers that suggest the users to claim a new phone through the warranty program. 

Google Apps blocks Internet Explorer 9

Google has announced that Internet Explorer 9 will be blocked from Google Apps within the next few weeks due to it considered to be a too old version.

Google has a policy to only support the newest version and two major versions back of the dominating web browsers, being Internet Explorer, Chrome, Safari and Firefox. Since Internet Explorer 12 has now been released, this means that support for Internet Explorer 9 will end in the coming weeks. 

While it makes sense for Google to focus on the newest web browser versions, the drop of Internet Explorer 9 is in particular troublesome for users using Google Apps. The reason being that Internet Explorer 9 is the newest Internet Explorer version for Windows XP and Windows Vista users. Essentially, by blocking Internet Explorer 9 from Google Apps, Google is simultaneously shutting the doors for Windows XP and Windows Vista users. 

Apple's Report on Government Information Requests shows that 33% result in data disclosure

It is known that governments request information from various companies around the world. Now Apple has published a report on how it has handled the information requests by the governments around the world in the period of January 1, 2013 to June 30, 2013.

More and more people store an increasing amount of personal information on their smartphones. When such smartphones are subsequently linked up to various cloud storage services, such as the Apple iCloud for Apple iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch devices, all of the sudden, private companies will have a wealth of personal information about their users. Governments around the world of course knows this and therefore requests information from the companies in, so called, appropriate cases. The companies, subsequently may disclose personal information on their users if legal support exists.

Sapphire glass on future iPhones and iPads?

The screen on a modern smartphone or tablet is the most fragile component and cracked or broken screens have been seen by most people. Now Apple appears to intend to remedy the fragility of screens by introducing the super hard sapphire crystal glass instead of using the currently used Gorilla Glass.

Apple and many other smartphone manufacturers have so far been relying on Gorilla Glass to make scratch resistant and sturdy monitors. However, Gorilla Glass itself is definitely not unbreakable and there are plenty of devices out there with cracked or partially broken monitors. Now, it looks like Apple is going to take the next step through a partnership with GT Advanced Technologies Inc. who specializes in creating sapphire glass surfaces. According to GT Advanced Technologies Inc., the interest and investment by Apple should be considered as advanced payment for the development and production of the Advanced Sapphire Furnace factory, which can produce high-quality sapphire crystals at low costs.

Touch ID security more elaborate than we thought?

The security of the Touch ID fingerprint sensor in iPhone 5S has been a controversial topic with plenty of discussions around it. New data, however, reveal that Apple may have paid more attention to secure the technology than what was initially thought by locking each Touch ID sensor with one single A7-CPU.

When the iPhone 5S was launched, one of its main features was the incorporated fingerprint reader technology known as Touch ID. Using Touch ID, the users could, for example, unlock the phone and approve app purchases in the App Store. However, the security of the Touch ID fingerprint sensor has been a very controversial topic. Apple claims that the fingerprint data is stored locally on the phone inside the A7 CPU securely with no possibilities to retrieve it remotely. However, for privacy concerned users who have to take Apple's word for it, this is not enough. In addition, the security itself offered by the Touch ID is questionable and the Touch ID itself is relatively easily bypassed through the use of fake fingerprints (provided that this is done within the Touch ID active period of course). 

Google Chrome panic button resets the settings

Since Google Chrome 30, a panic button now exists which users can use to reset the browser settings. Its primary use is to restore the functionality of the browser if addons, extensions or toolbars have hijacked the browser and modified the settings without user control.

Extensions, themes, toolsbars and addons are indispensable for many users who may have several active at the same time. Unfortunately, not all extensions are safe and while some may cause troubles as an indirect effect of being poorly written, others could actually purposely trick users into installing them to hijack the browser for their own gain, such as user-data collection or directing users to alternate websites and search engines.