Archive for March, 2009

Skype launches iPhone app

Mar 31, 2009 Technology

Skype logo
Voice-over-Internet company Skype is expected later today to make available an application to allow its service to be used on iPhones. The app adds to Apple's smartphone a calling option that's been available for some time for phones that use the Windows Mobile and Google Android operating systems. A Skype app for Blackberry devices is expected in May.

Early reviews of the app—from blogs on USA Today and CNet, among others—have been generally positive, while pointing out that the iPhone Skype doesn't offer everything that the service offers when used on computers.

The takeaway: Don't start spending the money you hope to save by dropping your iPhone voice plan after you get Skype on the device. The new app will be usable only from Wi-Fi hotspots, not on the AT&T data network—where it might allow you to skip running up minutes on your voice plan.

Also, where video-calling is the killer app for Skype on a computer, the iPhone service will not allow you to make video calls. And Skype's mobile version doesn't allow you to phone anyone and everyone; recipients must also be running Skype to receive calls.

Despite those drawbacks, the app could be a real cost-saver if you often use your iPhone for international calls, since those aren't included in the standard minutes of voice plans. Also, the app will allow owners of the iPod Touch—an iPhone without the phone, essentially—to use the Skype app provided they buy a microphone for their device.

For more on the iPhone, see our Ratings of smartphones (available to subscribers) and the smartphones coverage in our blog. We've also prepared this overview of home phone technologies, including voice-over-Internet calling.

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Cellphones aimed at texters: LG Versa, Pantech Slate, Samsung Delve and Propel

Mar 31, 2009 News

Versa
Four new phones now in our labs offer intriguing new advances to help aid typing or editing, which remain challenging activities on many phones. Challenging yet increasingly common: In the latest survey of cell phone use and service by the Consumer Reports National Research Center, more than 60 percent of  readers said they send or receive text messages from their phone and more than 25 percent use their phone for e-mail. (For more on cell service, see our guide and, for subscribers, our Ratings of cell phone providers.)

Here are details on those models, all of which are conventional phones, rather than smart phones. All are also now in our labs and will soon be posted to our cell phone Ratings:

LG Versa, $200 with two-year contract from Verizon. This touch-screen phone that offers intriguing approach to solving the real/virtual keyboard dilemma.

Samsung Delve, $50, Alltel. A touch-screen phone that’s chock full of advanced multimedia features. Thinner than most phones in our Ratings, its handwriting recognition feature lets you jot down numbers, letters, symbols, and punctuation, which is then converted to typed text.

Pantech Slate, $30, AT&T. This is a pancake-thin phone with a QWERTY keyboard. So far in our tests, the Slate’s shaping up to be a solid, affordable choice for texters. It’s not a great choice, on the other hand, for use with headphones or hands-free, as it lacks voice-activated dialing.

Samsung Propel, $50, AT&T. A sturdy phone with a slide-out keyboard for easier texting. It’s also one of the few conventional phones that can view Office documents such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. — Mike Gikas

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Motorola Tundra cellphone: Fine sound, rugged look

Mar 31, 2009 Technology

MotorolaTundra
The new Motorola Tundra, $200 with a two-year contract from AT&T, is one of a growing number of cellphones that emphasize their toughness; "you can drop it, use it in the rain, or get it dirty," according to the manufacturer.

But more interesting to us in our preliminary lab tests on the Tundra was whether the phone would measure up to its claims of superior sound quality.

The Tundra boasts Motorola’s latest noise-reduction technology called CrystalTalkPlus, as we noted when the phone was announced in January at the Consumer Electronics Show.

We were unimpressed with the noise-reduction abilities of Motorola's earlier version of CrystalTalk, which can be found on the company's Moto Z9, RAZR2V8 and RAZR2V9 phones. But this time Motorola's claims are ringing true—at least for the Tundra. In our tests, it produced very good voice quality when talking, good when listening, in part because it did indeed reduce unwanted noise. That voice performance is noticeably better than that of most GSM phones in our Ratings.

We continue to test the Tundra and will post it soon to our full Ratings of cellphones, (available to subscribers). — Mike Gikas

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How do I… Benchmark USB drives with CheckFlash?

Mar 31, 2009 Whitepapers

CheckFlash is an easy to use USB flash drive benchmarking tool that can handle a few important tasks for those administrators who have a need to know their devices are up to the task. In this introduction to CheckFlash, Jack Wallen shows you how to run a both the Read Stability test and the Write/Read test on your USB flash drives.

Here is the original:
How do I… Benchmark USB drives with CheckFlash?

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CTIA: AT&T launches six new phones

Mar 31, 2009 Technology

NokiaE71X

As the cellular industry’s annual gathering gets underway here in Las Vegas, AT&T has announced six new phones—two of them smart models—that highlight the growing trend toward mobile messaging.

Available over the next several weeks, the lineup includes the Nokia E71X (right), the company’s first smart phone—at least from a U.S. carrier—that sports a keyboard. Priced at $100 with a two-year contract and rebates, the phone will also be one of the lowest-priced smart phones on the market, as well as one of the thinnest: measuring just 10mm. The E71X will support AT&T’s proactive GPS navigation application as well as Wi-Fi and corporate e-mail, the latter via Microsoft’s Exchange server. It has a 3.1-megapixel camera.

We’ll have more details on the E71X as the show unfolds. In the meantime, here’s a peek at the other five new AT&T models:

Samsung Propel Pro, $149, a business version of the Samsung Propel, a slider that is already in our labs. It runs Windows Mobile 6.1 and has built-in Wi-Fi. Available on April 14.

Samsung Impression, $199, which claims a bright and clear display with help from a technology called active-matrix organic light-emitting diodes (AMOLED). Underneath its 3.2-in touch-screen display is a keyboard for easier messaging. It has a full Web browser and 3.0-megapixel camera.

The other three models are conventional phones with keyboards. They are: the LG Xenon, LG Neon, and the Samsung Magnet. The Xenon will go on sale on April 8 for $99. The Neon and Magnet will be available in a few weeks for an undisclosed price. — Mike Gikas

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Netflix raises Blu-ray rental fees

Mar 31, 2009 Technology

If you’ve turned to the Netflix movie rental service for viewing high-def videos without having to buy pricey Blu-ray DVDs, hold on to your wallets! CNet, the Consumerist, the Los Angeles Times, and Reuters are among the many web sites reporting on Netflix’s planned 20 percent increase to its monthly Blu-ray subscription fees. Netflix’s vice president of marketing, Jessie Becker, posted to the official Netflix blog yesteday that the price hikes were necessary to help expand the company’s library of expensive Blu-ray titles and meet its growing subscriber demand for the high-def discs. More details about the new rates, which go into effect on April 27 and won’t affect subscribers of standard definition DVDs, can be found on the Netflix blog post, Price update for access to Blu-ray movies.

The takeaway: In our most recent Ratings of movie rental service (available to subscribers), Netflix was a well-regarded option among respondents to a Consumer Reports survey. (For more information, click on the player at right and watch our free video,  Netflix vs. Blockbuster Total Access.) But Netflix’s pending fee increase during these rough economic times for consumers has already touched off a firestorm of comments on the official Netflix blog. And while Blockbuster’s Total Access service has generally been more costly than comparable Netflix plans, and recently downgraded its supplementary in-store-rentals, it looks like it might now be the cheaper option for at least some people who rent Blu-ray discs, given that Blockbuster does not charge extra for Blu-ray rentals. Netflix is also facing an ever growing list of competitors—from Apple’s iTunes to TiVo and Blockbuster to possibly Amazon, all of whom are or will soon offer HD movies. If you’re a Netflix subscriber, will this price hike change your plans?

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Internet crime up 33 percent

Mar 31, 2009 News

Is it a sign of these tough economic times or something much more sinister? The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) says it received over 275,000 complaints last year—up from nearly 207,000 reported cybercrime complaints in 2007. (The complete IC3 report is available as a downloadable PDF.) As reported by many web sites (including the Associated Press, Reuters, CNN and even geeky Scientific American), the top complaints were non-delivery of promised merchandise, followed by auction fraud, credit card fraud and investment scams. The estimated loss from such online fraud was nearly $265 million in the U.S. last year—up nearly 11 percent from 2007 ($239 million).

The takeaway: Safeguarding the data on your personal computer (and thus protecting your privacy and identity) doesn't have to be hard—or expensive. Consumer Reports tested the performance of several popular security software programs, and found a few free computer protection programs, easily accessible from the Net. We also offer free tips and advice in our Guide to Online Safety and our Online Security Blog, which warns of the possible dangers of the Conficker worm on April Fools' Day. And if you've been a victim of a cybercrime, we'd like to know. (See: Hit by cybercrime? Tell us your story.)

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iMovieLocationEditor 1.02 (Mac)

Mar 31, 2009 Free Downloads

While you can rename existing locations in iMovie '09 you can't add new locations. You can edit a text file hidden within the application yourself, or you can use iMovieLocationEditor to do it for you.

Go here to download:
iMovieLocationEditor 1.02 (Mac)

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iLocalize 3.8.2 (Mac)

Mar 31, 2009 Free Downloads

iLocalize is a powerful and intuitive application designed to help developers localize their applications.

Download:
iLocalize 3.8.2 (Mac)

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Editra 0.4.75 (Mac)

Mar 31, 2009 Free Downloads

Editra is a multi-platform text editor with an implementation that focuses on creating an easy to use interface and features that aid in code development. Currently it supports syntax highlighting and variety of other useful features for more than 60 programing languages. It can also be easily extended through plugins written in Python.

Download:
Editra 0.4.75 (Mac)

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