HOUR 1:
Tech News & Commentary
Vince in Albuquerque, New Mexico listens to the podcast and asked: “I have the Bold 9650 and I’ve had it for a while. The thing I like about the BlackBerry is it’s secure. But, I know they had that crazy stuff happening last week. I’ve considered jumping over to the Droid or iPhone. My concern is security. I’m not an enterprise person, I just use the phone for personal use. I just like the security. Is the Droid secure? Wondering how security is on these phones compared to the BlackBerry. I use Microsoft documents and I can encrypt those documents on the BlackBerry. Can I do that on a Droid?”
Vince, nothing on the market is as security oriented as BlackBerry. iOS supports a certain level of encryption, Android is a little behind of iOS, but both of them are still far behind BlackBerry.
Both Apple and BlackBerry control what 3rd party applications can be installed on their devices, that adds another layer of security. Android and jailbroken iPhones behave more like PCs and let users install programs that have not been vetted by anyone and can sometimes have less than honorable intentions. Android is also meant to run on a lot of very different hardware platforms, so implementing hardware level encryption isn’t easy.
Now, to put all the in perspective … the device-wide encryption, secure email servers, and all the other features that make BlackBerry more secure, don’t matter all that much outside of an environment where security is a huge concern. Even corporations that deal with sensitive data are allowing their employees to move away from Blackberry and onto Android and iOS. For most people, the level of security offered by Android phones is enough. It may not be airtight, but it’s enough for personal emails, and it’s not much different from what you could expect from a computer that doesn’t have it’s entire hard drive encrypted and that doesn’t only get emails from a server that requires an RSA key from the client.
Unless you’re dealing with super sensitive data, Android will probably serve you well. Just don’t download questionable applications and you probably won’t face too many nasty problems.
For more information, tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast.
Consumer
Reports Feature with Jim Wilcox
High-definition Blu-ray players are steadily gaining favor and new 3D-capable models are making a splash. Consumer Reports Senior Editor Jim Willcox tells us about three quality 3D Blu-ray players that are also very affordable.
The “Into Tomorrow” team discussed the latest apps that they
have been playing with recently.
For Android:
• Mark recommends: Juice Defender, AutoKiller Memory Optimizer and AutoRun Manager, FREE
“This week, I’m recommending a trio of apps that work together. I’d been experiencing some terrible battery life on my Droid 2 phone despite the extended battery, and often I’d find that the phone was running quite hot and the battery nearly dead even though I’d not touched it in hours. That told me I had some apps going rogue, so I downloaded JuiceDefender, which is a battery life extender. That app recommended two more apps, AutoKiller Memory Optimizer and Autorun Manager. I installed all three apps on my phone and since that time I have yet to see a yellow battery indicator, even when the phone is off the charger for an entire day. Autorun lets you see what apps are starting automatically on your phone and disable the ones you don’t want running all the time. AutoKiller watches for tasks it knows doesn’t need to run and shuts them down. And JuiceDefender shuts off bits of the hardware that aren’t needed. It prevents the 3G radio from running when you’re on Wi-Fi, for example, and it controls radio use when the lock screen is on or when the screen is turned off. Despite all this, I’ve yet to miss a single email, text message, or phone call. As an added bonus, my phone is much more responsive now. JuiceDefender, AutoKiller Memory Optimizer, and Autorun Manager are all available free in the Android Market. I highly recommend them.” — Mark
For iOS:
• Chris recommends: Breast Cancer: Beyond The Shock, FREE
“I know I’ve become known mostly for useless time wasters. But since we are in the middle of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, this week I’m highlighting an app that just may save a life. It’s called: Breast Cancer: Beyond The Shock. They’re calling it a comprehensive online guide to understanding breast cancer. It is a resource for women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer, a place for loved ones to gain a better understanding of the disease, and a tool for doctors to share information. This app was created by the National Breast Cancer Foundation, with the support of medical experts, doctors, and researchers from around the world. You can explore parts of the app and learn more about breast cancer, You can ask questions and get answers from expers in the field and watch videos of personal stories of women who have battled the disease.”
Tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast for more details.
What are your favorite apps?Let us know!
George In Murfreesboro, Tennessee listens to WTN 99.9 FM and called to help other listeners, he said: “A few weeks ago you had a caller asking about his Internet ‘kicking on and off.’ I have Comcast and the same problem was happening. They told me that my router reset a bunch of times. They said a lot of times that’s caused by your power surge protector going bad. I replaced it and it worked just fine.”
Thank you for your tip George!
If you’d like to help your fellow listeners call 1-800-899-INTO (4686) anytime 24/7!
For more information, tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast.
Guest in this hour:
Sally Smith Clemens, Product Manager – Olympus America
Do you like to take magical pictures without carrying a heavy camera around? Then, we may have something for you … and especially for two lucky listeners … for FREE.
Anthony in Edmunton, Alberta Canada listens online and shared his experience with iOS 5, he said: “Hi Dave, Anthony here. I listen to the podcast on iTunes. This is for the iDork regarding iOS 5. I’m really disappointed in it, first impression. It’s only been 12 or 15 hours since I downloaded it, but, so far, I’ve noticed that all of my folders of apps, that were so nice and neatly arranged, are not in folders anymore, they’re scattered alphabetically throughout the 10 or 12 pages of apps that I have.
Originally, my wallpaper wouldn’t allow for customization, as in photos for both my home and my lock screens. I think I solved that kind of in my sleep last night or was kind of playing with it during the night, during a brief bout of insomnia. Got that looked after, so we’ll scratch that off, but my contacts are form a sync that I did several phones back and not a current one like the one that I performed right before I did the upgrade. I think I may have lost my most recent contacts.
Also, my videos are not on my camera roll, and they’re not even to be found in the new separate Videos bin. I’m really choked about that, I have a lot of videos that I’ve taken with my iPhone, especially of my grandchildren, and this beautiful place we live in out at Antler Lake.
After 3 hours I gave up and went to bed last night, and my laptop (which is another problem that I’ll make another call about some other time) is running so slow that my iPhone is taking one picture at a time from my sync and putting it into my phone, as I mentioned the Camera Roll didn’t come on with pictures in it.
So my first impression is, not impressed really with the first go, however the couple of pluses that I’ve found so far are the instant messaging or iMessaging for iOS devices seems to be really cool, I don’t have to wait for my regular cell service to wander around through the air and find me here, like I would normally would put my phone in the window, try and send a message and come back in a couple of minutes, now it’s gone right away to other iDevices. Unfortunately, my work still won’t be able to get a hold of me any faster *laughs* Have a good day guys, I’ll keep you updated as stuff develops up here.”
There are other people who experienced those issues when they updated their iDevices on the iOS 5 release day. It sounds to us that your iCloud might have overwritten your backup from your computer. Be sure to check your iCloud Settings, to make sure you’re only syncing info that you want.
Did you setup your phone to sync from the cloud or your computer? And, if your computer is having some issues, that might have prevented iTunes from syncing your phone properly. But, you can find your iPhone backup files in the iTunes folder on your computer. Look for your backup in the C Drive > Documents and Settings > YOUR USERNAME > Application Data > Apple Computer > MobileSync > Backup. Under that Backup directory is a directory that looks like a GUID, and in that, are the files that iTunes uses to backup your phone and all the settings. See if that works for you, unless it has already been overwritten. Couldn’t hurt to try.
Now, the videos missing from your camera roll … that’s very strange. We don’t really know what went wrong there. Do you transfer those video files to another folder on your computer? If you don’t, we suggest you start copying iPhone pictures and videos to a folder on yoru computer you can label as “iPhone Backup”. Rob’s been doing that since he first got his hands on the first iPhone.
For more information, tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast.
“Wireless Update” Weekly Feature with Chuck Hamby
Looking to make the jump into 4G but wondering what products are abailable that actually take advantage of the blazing speeds? Verizon’s Chuck Hamby is here to shed some 4G light.
This Week’s Prizes for Our Listeners
Energizer: Several Weather Ready 2 LED Flashlights
Otterbox: Several protective cases, including: Defender for Amazon Kindle & Defender for iPad 2
Philips: Sonicare AirFloss (interdental cleaner) … Experience a microburst of clean in-between.