Energizer Presents A Dual USB Auto Charger

The new Dual Universal USB Charger from Energizer, plugs into any auto cigarette lighter outlet and offers two USB ports, so that you can recharge two of your USB powered devices at the same time. It works with most devices, meaning it will not recharge an iPad. The charger is three inches long and two…

Microsoft Disables Lion Mail Import in Office Update

Office 2008 12.3.1 updated Entourage’s timezones feature to match Outlook 2011, and fixed language display issues for Word Help.Office 2011 14.1.3 also addressed display issues in Outlook, fixed stability issues in Excel and PowerPoint, and corrected a display issue with citations in Dutch.The Office 2008 12.3.1 and Office 2011 14.1.3 updates are available through in-app…

Intel Chip Promises 24 Hour Use, 10-Day Connected Standby

In addition to extended battery life, the company showed off a prototype of a computer running off of a solar cell the size of a postage stamp. The figure below shows both the prototype and the intense interest in that prototype. Intel Prototype Computer Running on a Solar CellSource: Intel(Click the image for a larger…

Apple Moves to Stay Motorola Lawsuits During Google Acquisition

Apple moves to stay patent lawsuits with MotorolaThe agreement Google and Motorola have as part of the merger, according to Foss Patents, limits Motorola Mobility’s ability to defend its patents. Because of those restrictions Motorola Mobility doesn’t have the right to sue, argue Apple’s lawyers.“Apple should not have to face the threat of an injunction…

Analyst Finds No Hint of Redesigned iPhone 5 in Channel

At issue is whether Apple would seek to leave the so-called antennagate controversy behind by completely dropping the form factor of the iPhone 4, at least that was the way some reports were couched back when anyone still cared about the issue of Apple’s external antenna design. This would have made the iPhone 4 the…

Droplets Patent Lawsuit Targets iTunes, Apple Web Sites

Along with Apple, the lawsuit also names Google, Yahoo!, and Facebook.The patent (6,687,745) describes a “system and method for delivering a graphical user interface of remote applications over a thin bandwidth connection,” and was filed in 2000.Droplets sells its own product called Droplets User Interactive Server for delivering Web and network-based applications, and lists companies…

Adobe Delivers Flash Video to iPhone & iPad

We should note right at the top that Adobe is not announcing (or delivering) Flash support on iOS devices. Apple has chosen not to support Flash on its mobile devices, citing a variety of issues centered around performance and battery life. Instead, Apple supports HTTP Live Streaming, which is what YouTube and other video streaming…

Yahoo: For Sale, Maybe

News that the Internet search company is open to buyout offers came courtesy of anonymous insider sources, according to the Wall Street Journal.Ms. Bartz lost her job as the company’s performance continued to decline and revenue from a deal she brokered with Microsoft for search ads never met expectations. In that deal, Ms. Bartz gave…

QuickBooks 2012 to Focus on Users, not Windows Parity

QuickBooks 2012 targets user needs, not Windows feature parity“Most of our [Mac] users are service businesses and small businesses,” QuickBooks for Mac group product manager Pranay Kapadia told The Mac Observer. “So we’re giving them the features they’ve been telling us they want.”The new version of QuickBooks includes a new setup assistant and a setup…

Apple Seeks “Product Security Managers”

The job could be one of the most high stress positions at Apple. According to the description, “The candidate will be responsible for overseeing the protection of, and managing risks to, Apple’s unreleased products and related intellectual property. The individual will collaborate with other security managers by contributing to, and managing execution of, strategic initiatives…

iPad Competitors: Begging for a Black Eye

Don’t Cross the Streams Apple, earlier this week, released an iTunes beta to developers that included “Scan and Match,” the service that scans a users music library, matches it to music it’s already got stored in the cloud, then makes it available for multiple computers and iOS devices for US$25 a year. All of that…

Bono on Jobs: He’s Generous, but Private

In his letter to the NYT, Bono stated:As a founder of (Product)RED, I’d like to point out that Apple’s contribution to our fight against AIDS in Africa has been invaluable. Through the sale of (RED) products, Apple has been (RED)’s largest contributor to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria — giving tens…

I’m Not Liking Google Much These Days

I don’t know about you, but being a fan of Apple, I’ve grown accustomed to feeling good about companies I do business with. I like companies that earn my business with products I like, then treat me well as a customer. I’m not feeling that about Google these days.1. Google+ as National Identity Service. For…

iPhone Tracking Helps NZ Police Nab $17,000 in Toilet Paper

In a similar case, a truck valued at over $51,000 (US) was discovered missing. The owner activated the tracking feature on their iPhone and called police with the location where the truck was found inside a barn. An arrest was made. In another iOS-involved case, a man had his iPad stolen. He activated the MobileMe…

Anonymous Sri Lanka Attacks Apple & Others, Reveals Name Server Records

Anonymous Sri Lanka (ignoring the irony of the lack of anonymity such specifics impart) posted lists of all of the name server records with names like, “APPLE.COM – World’s Largest Consumer Electronics Leader DNSi,” and “FACEBOOK.COM – The World’s Social Media Giant – DNS R00T3D, Fuck3D and Leaked.” To that effect, the group offered a (vaguely…

Apple to Some Guy: We Want Our MacBook Pro Prototype

Macbook Pro prototype from Ebay listingThe prototype laptop, according to CNET, is currently in the hands of Carl Frega in North Carolina. Mr. Frega said he bought the laptop off of Craigslist for parts, but kept the computer together because he was able to get it working again.Exactly where the laptop came from before it…

Apple Launches iTunes Match Developer Beta

This basically matches what Apple offers users for all content purchased from iTunes, including apps, music, TV shows, movies, and iBooks ebooks. Once a user has purchased content from iTunes, they can access it from any of their devices and download it without actually syncing to a Mac or PC. That fantastic ability is available…

A Breaking Fever: Apple, Lies and Videotape

It must be frustrating for Apple. Here’s a company that’s supremely good at dealing with the psychology of the customer, but it’s up against a brick wall when it comes to competing with cable and satellite. To be sure, it’s clear now that customers will drop their cable or satellite subscription at the drop of…

Analyst: Amazon Can Compete with iPad by Losing Money

By doing so, the company’s goal would ostensibly be to make money by selling the company’s vast array of digital content that is already available on Amazon, including movies, TV shows, Android apps, and ebooks. Never mind that Apple’s substantially larger iTunes and App Store runs just above breakeven, according to Apple, and that both…

Steve Jobs’s Biological Father Regrets Adoption

Abdulfattah John Jandali(Click the image for a larger version) “This might sound strange, though, but I am not prepared, even if either of us was on our deathbeds, to pick up the phone to call him,” Mr. Jandali said. “Steve will have to do that, as the Syrian pride in me does not want him…

The Amazing Resilience of Apple Stock

“This was it,” thought APPL speculators looking to cash in on the inevitable carnage.  Everyone knew that Steve Jobs would leave Apple and that it was just a matter of waiting for the when. Easy money could be had in shorting Apple and holding on for the ride, as the stock would inevitably tumble down…