The iPhone 5: What you need to know

Apple is generous with information when it releases a new product, but some of those product’s details may be difficult to ferret out of Apple pronouncements and presentations. Confounded by the what, how, why, and where of the new iPhone 5? We spare you from having to waste your time digging by answering your every iPhone 5 question with clarity.

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When can I get the new iPhone 5?

You can start pre-ordering the phone online as of 12:01 PT a.m.on September 14. The phone will be available beginning September 21 in the U.S. Doors at Apple Stores will open at 8 a.m. local time on that day. In addition to this country, the new iPhone also goes on sale in Canada, UK, France, Germany, Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, and Singapore on September 21.

Apple says that the iPhone 5 will be available in 20 more countries starting September 28, and in 100 countries by year’s end.

Which carriers are offering the iPhone 5?

We’re going to assume you’re asking that question from within the borders of the U.S. (And if not and you’re wondering which telecoms offer LTE outside the U.S. see this Apple document.) If that’s the case, then AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon are your wireless service providers for nationwide coverage, just like they were when the iPhone 4S debuted. Note that the Big Three are going to want you to sign a two-year service agreement. Assuming you’re not obligated to stick with your existing carrier, you should check the coverage maps for AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint—particularly for LTE coverage—to get a sense of which carrier best serves your needs before you commit to them for the next two years.

Any no-contract carriers or regional carriers?

Yes: Cricket, which jumped into the iPhone fray earlier this year with no-contract, prepaid service for the iPhone 4 and 4S, will be doing the same with the latest iPhone. The catch is, you’ll have to wait, though not terribly long. Cricket will begin offering its no-contract plan for the iPhone 5 on September 28. That’s a week after AT&T, et al start selling the phone. Note that since Cricket can’t count on two years of service fees from you, it makes you pay up for an unsubsidized iPhone. The company hasn’t announced pricing yet, but in the case of the iPhone 4S, that was $500 for a 16GB model.

Can I use FaceTime over cellular with the iPhone 5?

It’s up to your carrier. Sprint and Verizon place no limits on the feature, which lets you video chat even when you don’t have a Wi-Fi connection. AT&T requires that you purchase a Mobile Share plan to use the feature.

Can I talk and use data at the same time on Verizon?

“iPhone 5 was designed to allow simultaneous voice calling on the Verizon Wireless network while browsing the Internet over Wi-Fi,” Verizon spokesperson Brenda Raney told Macworld. “This is no different from the current iPhone 4S.” So it seems that even if you’re using Verizon’s cellular network (including its LTE service) you can't use voice and data at the same time.

How much does the iPhone 5 cost? How many models are there?

Like the iPhone 4S, the iPhone 5 comes in three different capacities, available in two color options. The colors are just a smidgen different this time around: There’s black with a slate back, and white with an aluminum silver back.

Pricing and storage options match the iPhone 4S: $199 for 16GB, $299 for 32GB, and $399 for 64GB. Of course, all those prices require two-year carrier contracts. At this writing, Apple hasn’t yet offered details on pricing for an unlocked iPhone 5. The unlocked iPhone 4S cost $649 for the 16GB version, $749 for 32GB, and $849 for 64GB.

How much will it cost me to upgrade from my existing iPhone?

Great question. You can check your upgrade eligibility at Apple’s website. AT&T customers can also dial *639# from their iPhones to receive a text message with upgrade details. Note that if you bought an iPhone 4S at the time of its year-ago release, those $199-$399 pricing options aren’t likely to be available to you; you’ll have to pay full price for the new phone.

How big is the screen?

The iPhone 5 sports a 4-inch screen. That’s a change from every prior iPhone, which used a smaller 3.5-inch screen. Screen measurements look at the diagonal length, and the iPhone 5’s screen isn’t any wider than its predecessors—just taller. As a result, Apple packed a fifth row of icons onto the iPhone 5’s home screen.

The screen also packs in a lot of pixels—326 pixels per inch, as a matter of fact, on a 1136x640 display. And that means more room for your apps: Apple is redesigning all of the built-in apps that ship with the iPhone to fit more data on the new model’s larger screen.

Does that mean my current apps are going to need to be rewritten to work on the new iPhone?

Only if they want to also get more information on the screen. Wednesday’s press event, for example, featured demos of an updated OpenTable app for the iPhone that brought in a lot of elements from the iPad version’s interface. As for existing apps, they’ll work just fine on the new iPhone, even without an update. But they will feature black bars around the edges—on the side for apps running in landscape mode, on the top and bottom in portrait orientation—to fill in the extra screen space. On the bright side, old apps won’t need to be stretched or scaled when they run on the iPhone 5.

With the bigger screen, the iPhone 5 must be awfully heavy, right?

Not so! It’s actually slimmer and lighter than the iPhone 4S, Apple says. The iPhone 5 is just 7.6mm thick, and weighs 112 grams.

Is that it? Just taller? No other under-the-hood changes?

No no, dear reader. Plenty of under the hood changes. The iPhone includes Apple’s new A6 chip, which the company says is twice as fast as the A5 chip inside the iPhone 4S. (That twice-as-fast claim applies not only to the processor itself but also how the A6 handles graphics compared to its predecessor.)

Both cameras—the front- and rear-facing ones—are updated on the iPhone 5. The networking—both wireless and cellular—is improved, with new LTE support and Bluetooth 4.0. The audio’s better, and there’s a new dock connector port called Lightning, too.

Break it down for me. Start with the cameras: What’s new there?

The rear-facing camera gets an update with a new dynamic low-light mode and sapphire lens cover, and leverages image processing technology new to the A6 chip. The front-facing camera gets an upgrade, too; it’s now a FaceTime HD 720p HD camera.

The iPhone 5’s camera allows you to take photos while you’re shooting video, which is a first for an iPhone. That sapphire lens cover should not only protect the lens, but also make images look cleaner and sharper, Apple claims. And, along with the iPhone 4S in iOS 6, the iPhone 5 offers a built-in option called Panorama, for taking stitched-together panoramic shots.

You mentioned improved networking and LTE support?

Indeed, we did. New to the iPhone 5 is support for LTE. That’s on top of the GPRS, EDGE, EV-DO, HSPA, HSPA+, and DC-HSDPA options the iPhone 4S already offered.

With LTE support, the iPhone 5 can connect to the fastest cellular networks in the U.S. Apple offers a webpage detailing the precise breakdown of which U.S. carriers support which LTE networks. The AT&T iPhone 5 supports only two LTE bands; the Sprint and Verizon model supports five. If you plan to travel internationally and want your iPhone to work on European or Asian cellular networks, note that AT&T’s model won’t do for you.

LTE partners for the iPhone 5 include Sprint, AT&T, and Verizon in the U.S, and Rogers, Fido, Bell, Telus, and more in Canada. Schiller said there are “plenty” of LTE partners in Asia, Australia, the UK, and Germany, with lots of DC-HSDPA support in Europe as well.

Any Wi-Fi improvements?

That’s a very prescient question. The answer is yes. The iPhone 5 supports 802.11 a/b/g/n standards, and works on both the 2.4GHz and, for the first time, 5GHz spectrums. Apple claims that gives the iPhone 5 a maximum theoretical download speed of 150Mbps.

That LTE technology and larger screen must be a massive battery drain. What’s battery life like?

We haven’t yet gotten our hands on an iPhone 5 to put the battery through its paces. But Apple claims that the iPhone 5’s battery actually lasts longer than the iPhone 4S’s. The company says that you can expect eight hours of 3G talk time, browsing, and LTE browsing; ten hours of Wi-Fi browsing; ten hours of video; 40 hours of music; and 225 hours of standby time.

What’s this Lightning thing?

Lightning is Apple’s name for the new 8-pin, all-digital connector in use by the iPhone 5 (along with several new iPods). It replaces the 30-pin dock connector of old.

Apple says that the Lightning technology is more durable than the dock connector it replaces. The plug is reversible, like a MagSafe adapter, meaning you don’t have to worry about which way is up.

So I guess my old accessories are worthless now?

Depends on what you’re willing to spend. Apple’s offering a pair of Lightning adapters: A $29 dongle that plugs into a Lightning port on one end, and offers a dock connector port on the other, and a $39 cable that does the same thing.

Without at least one of those, yes, your old docks, chargers, and cables are about as useful as a SCSI terminator. Obviously, AirPlay speakers will continue to work with the iPhone 5 just fine.

If you have any old iPhone 4/4S cases lying around, unsurprisingly, those won’t fit the taller iPhone 5.

What if I want to output iPhone 5 video to a TV? What are my options?

As with the 30-pin connector, the Lightning connector supports video output; Apple told Macworld that Lightning-to-HDMI and Lightning-to-VGA cables will be available “in the coming months.” In the meantime, you’re restricted to AirPlay. Until those cables appear, if you want to show pictures or video from your iPhone on the big screen, you’d better have an Apple TV hooked up.

You mentioned something about audio improvements?

The iPhone 5 is the first iPhone withthree microphones: One on the front, one on the back, and one on the bottom. Apple says that they work in tandem to improve noise cancellation and voice recognition. The earpiece includes better noise-cancellation now, too, Apple says.

The iPhone 5 still, like its predecessors, sports a mono speaker, but Apple says that speaker is improved, with better frequency response and better sound.

With certain carriers—though none in the U.S. so far—the iPhone 5 will support wideband audio, which should make your voice sound more normal to folks on the other end of the conversation, unlike the typically compressed sound associated with most cellphone calls.

And I think I heard something about new headphones, too?

Apple announced that it finally has a replacement for those fiddly white earphones it’s included with iPods and iPhones since the beginning, and they’re called EarPods. Apple says that EarPods sound better and fit better too. You’ll get a set in the box with your iPhone 5. (Note that Apple has moved the headphone connector to the bottom of the device.)

Updated at 3:53 PT to add Verizon comment about simultaneous voice and data use.

iPhone, iPod touch cameras should appeal to photogs of all types

 / THE APPLE ECOSYSTEM

iPhone, iPod touch cameras should appeal to photogs of all types

iPhoneographers rejoice over better low-light shooting, panorama mode.

by Chris Foresman - Sept 14 2012, 3:40am SEAST

• IOS & IDEVICES
 
• PHOTOGRAPHY

90

The iPhone 5 has refined hardware compared to the iPhone 4S.

Nathan Mattise

Apple introduced the iPhone 5, as well as a colorful major upgrade to the iPod touch, during a specialmedia event on Wednesday. The new hardware boasts notable upgrades for both devices with respect to the built-in camera hardware. The iPhone 5 has a refined version of the 8MP camera in the iPhone 4S, while the iPod touch gets a serious shot in the photographic arm with a 5MP autofocus camera. Both devices also get a backside-illuminated, 1.2MP, 720p FaceTime HD front-facing camera and a new automatic panorama shooting feature in the Camera app.

We thought it might be helpful to break down all the updates in more detail for the avid shutterbugs in our audience.

iPhone 5: 8 megapixels refined

The iPhone 4S had very respectable camera hardware. The front-facing camera was the same old VGA-quality FaceTime camera we knew from previous iOS devices, but the rear-facing 8MP "iSight" camera was one of the best on any smartphone we've ever tested. Apple not only increased the resolution over the iPhone 4's 5MP, but it did so while improving sensitivity to light by employing a backside-illuminated, full-well CMOS design. It coupled the sensor with a noise-reducing hybrid IR filter and a new five-element, f/2.4 autofocus lens.

The iPhone 5's camera is still 8MP, but it is further refined. The new sensor and lens combination is thinner, to fit within the thinner iPhone 5 casing, and the focal length is ever so slightly wider (4.13mm versus 4.28mm). Otherwise the hardware specs are nearly identical: 3264x2448 pixel resolution, backside illumination, hybrid IR filter, five-element f/2.4 lens.

Specifically, Apple claims to now be using micron-level alignment for the lens, which should help improve critical sharpness. (Such precision is likely also required to fit the camera module into the thinner iPhone 5 body.) The lens is protected by a sapphire crystal cover for improved protection, which should also carry less potential aberrations compared to the glass cover used on the iPhone 4S.

These are minor refinements, however; most of the improved capabilities are due to the better processing capabilities of the A6 processor and improved software. The dual-core A6 processor—likely built on a 32nm process and employing A15 ARM cores and updated PowerVR GPUs—can capture photos 40 percent faster than the iPhone 4S, according to Apple. The iPhone 4S was alreadypretty fast in our experience, so this is a significant improvement.

Additional signal processing capabilities also allow Apple to employ advanced imaging improvements comparable to those of high-end digital cameras. Spatial noise reduction helps keep noise from the tiny sensor in check, and the camera will now use dynamic pixel-pinning to boost images captured in low light. A new "smart filter" also analyzes images before applying noise reduction, selectively reducing noise in areas of uniform color or tone, while using less noise reduction in areas that should retain texture and detail.

Sample images provided by Apple should show some evidence of this smart filtering. For instance, compare the areas in the skin of this cute snap of a little girl enjoying a sno-cone to those around the eyes, mouth, fingers, and hair. You may notice that areas around edges, or areas of more texture, have more noise than the larger areas of skin such as the cheeks. There's also less noise in the yellow wooden slats behind her, except in areas of texture or around the edges.

Enlarge / A sample iPhone 5 image shows signs of adaptive noise filtering.

Apple, Inc.

The iPhone 5 continues to capture 1080p stabilized video, same as the iPhone 4S.

The hardware for the front-facing camera has also been significantly improved over the first generation "FaceTime" cameras on previous iOS devices. A new "FaceTime HD" camera retains the fixed-focus lens, but now uses a 1.2MP backside-illuminated CMOS sensor. Stills can be captured at 1.2MP, while video is upgraded from SD to 720p HD. The camera can also use face detection to bias exposure for portraits and FaceTime video chats.

iPod touch: finally a worthy contender

The iPod touch got a more serious update to its camera hardware, which was barely useable in its previous incarnation. Our examination of the fourth-generation iPod touch revealed snapping abilities that were just this side of better-than-nothing, and the sub-2MP images captured with a fixed focus lens weren't good for much more than changing Facebook avatars or snapping a pic to quickly illustrate some point. These images were never going to be printed or saved for posterity; by contrast, a 5MP image straight from my iPhone 4 was printed on stretched canvas at 16x20" and now hangs over the mantel.

The iPod touch now includes seriously useful camera hardware.

Nathan Mattise

The good news is that Apple seriously beefed up the iPod touch's camera. It now features a 5MP backside-illuminated CMOS sensor similar to the one used in the iPad 3. It also has a hybrid IR filter and five-element f/2.4 autofocus lens from the iPhone, and now includes an LED "flash." Coupled with an A5 processor, the camera doesn't have the same spatial noise reduction, smart filter, or dynamic low-light capture as the iPhone 5. However, its capture quality should be as good as the iPhone 4S, with resolution comparable to the iPhone 4 or third-gen iPad. That's a pretty good standard—vastly improved over the old iPod touch, and good enough for many to consider ditching a dedicated point-and-shoot digicam.

In addition, the iPod touch now includes the FaceTime HD camera included in the iPhone 5, so self portraits and FaceTime chats will be comparably improved.

Easy panoramas: just follow the arrow

The major new software feature added to iOS 6's Camera app is the touted automatic "Panorama" feature. This feature, compatible with the iPhone 5, new iPod touch, and the iPhone 4S, makes it easy to capture wide, panoramic views of up to 240 degrees and up to 28MP in resolution by simply rotating the camera.

Apple SVP Phil Schiller discussed the new Panorama feature in iOS 6 at a special media event.

Nathan Mattise

Simply hold your iPhone or iPod touch in vertical orientation and sweep it across the view in the direction indicated on the screen. The camera app uses input from the gyroscope to figure out how to align a series of images, even if you don't use a smooth, linear motion. "Behind the scenes, in real time, it's taking slices of photos, finding the edges, stitching them together, creating seamless transitions between photos," Apple SVP of Worldwide Marketing Phil Schiller explained during the iPhone 5's introduction on Wednesday.

So far the demonstrations have been impressive, and we look forward to testing the feature further once iOS 6 and the newer hardware is released.

Miscellaneous software tweaks

The Camera software has also gotten a few other software tweaks. With the iPhone 5's beefier A6 processor, the camera has improved video stabilization and face detection. One feature we think will be quite popular is the ability to take still photos while shooting video; this capability has been migrating from high-end digital cameras to smartphones over the past few months, and it was smart of Apple to add the feature. It's not clear if these stills are full resolution or just 1920x1080 pixel captures, but either way it could come in handy.

We are a little disappointed that Apple doesn't appear to have added any manual overrides to settings like white balance, ISO, exposure compensation, or exposure. It's clear that Apple wants the camera to be super easy to use, and therefore limits its features. But with other advanced options like HDR and a grid overlay, as well as the new panorama feature, we see no reason not to at least make them available as an optional ability that experienced photographers could use.

Overall, though, the iPhone 5 appears to offer significant and useful updates for existing owners of the iPhone 4 or earlier hardware. If you have an iPhone 4S, the refined camera may not be enough on its own to justify an early upgrade. We'll definitely dig into image quality comparisons when we have hardware to review, and should be able to offer a clearer picture—pun intended—of the value to both casual and serious photographers.

Users with older iPod touches who want to take better pictures should definitely be pleased with what Apple is offering with the $399-and-up fifth-gen models. In this case, if picture quality is a large concern for you, I honestly have no qualms about recommending an upgrade, even without having touched the new hardware.

Apple Promises iPhone 5-Compatible HDMI and VGA Cables Coming Soon

There has been some consternation over the lack of backwards compatibility with the newLightning dock connector in the iPhone 5. The Lightning to 30-pin adapter doesn't pass any video and may not work with all audio docks.

One MacRumors reader expressed particular concern over the lack of video support, noting that many in-car aftermarket entertainment systems use the video out function of the 30-pin connector to display and control apps from head units. It seems, however, that Apple does have at least a partial solution.


As The Verge reports, Apple is building Lightning to HDMI and Lightning to VGA adapters and quotes an Apple spokesperson as saying they "will be available in the coming months." Without these adapters, iPhone 5 owners' only option to output video from the device would be AirPlay.

The Verge doesn't reveal pricing, but the Apple Digital AV Adapter -- the 30-pin to HDMI adapter for the iPad and iPhone 4S -- is $39 direct from Apple.

Rumor: Authorized AT&T retailer sells iPhone 5 pre-order early

A pair of AppleInsider readers claim they were able to procure an iPhone 5 pre-order directly from an AT&T authorized reseller in New Jersey some 12 hours before official pre-orders are set to go live on Friday morning.
According to readers Chris and Justin, all it took to nab the purported pre-order was a quick in-person price check at the nearest "AT&T Product Center," which sold them the delivery guarantee well ahead of the official 12 a.m. Pacific start time.

The receipt obtained by AppleInsider appears to be legitimate, however an AT&T representative confirmed that the shop looks to be an authorized retailer, not a company-operated store. Multiple calls to replicate the buy with similar local AT&T resellers bore no fruit.

It is not clear if the alleged sale is merely a placeholder or an actual legitimate order processed through AT&T's supply chain, thoguh the $399 total shows that at least the telecom's customer information server was accessed to grant the subsidized price.

AT&T reiterated that it is not granting pre-orders before the Apple-mandated start time, noting that the incident is likely a isolated case. 

ASP.NET 4 SEO Improvements (VS 2010 and .NET 4.0 Series)

Why SEO?

Search engine optimization (SEO) is important for any publically facing web-site.  A large percentage of traffic to sites now comes from search engines, and improving the search relevancy of your site will lead to more user traffic to your site from search engine queries (which can directly or indirectly increase the revenue you make through your site).

ASP.NET 4 SEO Improvements

ASP.NET 4 includes a bunch of new runtime features that can help you to further optimize your site for SEO.  Some of these new features include:

• New Page.MetaKeywords and Page.MetaDescription properties
• New URL Routing support for ASP.NET Web Forms
• New Response.RedirectPermanent() method

Below are details about how you can take advantage of them to further improve your search engine relevancy.

Page.MetaKeywords and Page.MetaDescription properties

One simple recommendation to improve the search relevancy of pages is to make sure you always output relevant “keywords” and “description” <meta> tags within the <head> section of your HTML.  For example:

One of the nice improvements with ASP.NET 4 Web Forms is the addition of two new properties to the Page class: MetaKeywords and MetaDescription that make programmatically setting these values within your code-behind classes much easier and cleaner. 

ASP.NET 4’s <head> server control now looks at these values and will use them when outputting the <head> section of pages.  This behavior is particularly useful for scenarios where you are using master-pages within your site – and the <head> section ends up being in a .master file that is separate from the .aspx file that contains the page specific content.  You can now set the new MetaKeywords and MetaDescription properties in the .aspx page and have their values automatically rendered by the <head> control within the master page.

Below is a simple code snippet that demonstrates setting these properties programmatically within a Page_Load() event handler:

In addition to setting the Keywords and Description properties programmatically in your code-behind, you can also now declaratively set them within the @Page directive at the top of .aspx pages.  The below snippet demonstrates how to-do this:

As you’d probably expect, if you set the values programmatically they will override any values declaratively set in either the <head> section or the via the @Page attribute. 

URL Routing with ASP.NET Web Forms

URL routing was a capability we first introduced with ASP.NET 3.5 SP1, and which is already used within ASP.NET MVC applications to expose clean, SEO-friendly “web 2.0” URLs.  URL routing lets you configure an application to accept request URLs that do not map to physical files. Instead, you can use routing to define URLs that are semantically meaningful to users and that can help with search-engine optimization (SEO).

For example, the URL for a traditional page that displays product categories might look like below:

http://www.mysite.com/products.aspx?category=software

Using the URL routing engine in ASP.NET 4 you can now configure the application to accept the following URL instead to render the same information:

http://www.mysite.com/products/software

With ASP.NET 4.0, URLs like above can now be mapped to both ASP.NET MVC Controller classes, as well as ASP.NET Web Forms based pages.  You can even have a single application that contains both Web Forms and MVC Controllers, and use a single set of routing rules to map URLs between them.

Please read my previous URL Routing with ASP.NET 4 Web Forms blog post to learn more about how the new URL Routing features in ASP.NET 4 support Web Forms based pages.

Response.RedirectPermanent() Method

It is pretty common within web applications to move pages and other content around over time, which can lead to an accumulation of stale links in search engines.

In ASP.NET, developers have often handled requests to old URLs by using the Response.Redirect() method to programmatically forward a request to the new URL.  However, what many developers don’t realize is that the Response.Redirect() method issues an HTTP 302 Found (temporary redirect) response, which results in an extra HTTP round trip when users attempt to access the old URLs.  Search engines typically will not follow across multiple redirection hops – which means using a temporary redirect can negatively impact your page ranking.  You can use the SEO Toolkit to identify places within a site where you might have this issue.

ASP.NET 4 introduces a new Response.RedirectPermanent(string url) helper method that can be used to perform a redirect using an HTTP 301 (moved permanently) response.  This will cause search engines and other user agents that recognize permanent redirects to store and use the new URL that is associated with the content.  This will enable your content to be indexed and your search engine page ranking to improve.

Below is an example of using the new Response.RedirectPermanent() method to redirect to a specific URL:

ASP.NET 4 also introduces new Response.RedirectToRoute(string routeName) and Response.RedirectToRoutePermanent(string routeName) helper methods that can be used to redirect users using either a temporary or permanent redirect using the URL routing engine.  The code snippets below demonstrate how to issue temporary and permanent redirects to named routes (that take a category parameter) registered with the URL routing system.

You can use the above routes and methods for both ASP.NET Web Forms and ASP.NET MVC based URLs.

Video footage reveals armed raid on MegaUpload founder's home

New Zealand-based news channel 3News hasreleased new video footage of the armed raid launched against Kim Dotcom, MegaUpload's former head man. The video was courtesy of an "elite officer" involved in the operation and supports Dotcom's criticism of the "aggressive" raid performed on his $30 million New Zealand mansion.

The bust was comprised of about 100 officers, some of which wielded glock handguns and automatic assault weapons like the Colt Commando M4. The initial assault team was swiftly dropped in by helicopter at the front of the home. Moments later, additional forces surrounded the mansion on foot, complete with ground vehicles and canine units.

Inside the home were roughly a dozen people: former employees, friends, Dotcom's wife and children. 

Not knowing what was happening, Dotcom claims he isolated himself inside a large, unlocked room with his hands in the air. His goal, he recollected, was to avoid being shot by startling one of the armed invaders. Once authorities found Dotcom, he purports they applied questionable force, punching him in the face, kneeing  his ribs, kicking him to the ground and rupturing one of Dotcom's fingernails by standing on the man's hand.

I have to admit, for capturing a non-violent copyright criminal, the show of force sounds quite excessive.

During the raid, police managed to seize 18 vehicles and roughly $42 million in suspected ill-gotten gains. Confiscated vehicles included such extravagant makes Maserati, a Lamborghini and Rolls Royce. The Rolls Royce had a license plate that read, "GOD".

Regardless of feelings for Kim Dotcom, his truly excessive lifestyle and MegaUpload's supposed "business" model, it does appear authorities overstepped their boundaries. Recently, a New Zealand judge ruled that the warrants given to authorities were too vague to have legally carried out the operation. It also appears New Zealand officers managed to miss their mark of "matching the threat level" of Kim Dotcom and his crew.

During the hearing, authorities were criticized for brandishing such force without wearing full body armor -- a sign that officers knew to expect little resistance. When asked about this, an officer responded:

"We wanted to match the threat level, in this case a low threat with our dress," he added "We made that conscious decision not to wear full tactical kit."

The officer also stated that the team's primary objective was to "secure [the] suspect as soon as possible to prevent destruction of evidence". However, according to Dotcom's defense, the FBI had already secured the data they needed at the data center before the raid unfolded. Dotcom insisted, "there was no chance of anyone doing anything to that evidence."

Ouya console available for pre-order starting at $109, ships in April

Ouya ended their Kickstarter campaign less than 24 hours ago with an impressive $8.5 million haul from over 63,000 backers. If you missed the opportunity to secure a console during the fundraising event, fear not as the company is now taking pre-orders directly on their website.

Buyers in the United States can pre-order a single console and controller for $109 which includes $10 for shipping. If you need more controllers, there are console + controller packages that include two or four controllers for $139 or $199, respectively. International customers are offered the same controller packages with a $10 premium per selection to cover shipping.

Expected delivery date is listed as April 2013 regardless of which configuration you purchase. That is, of course, assuming there are no hiccups in the manufacturing process between now and then. It’s worth pointing out that there aren’t any money-back guarantees following a successful Kickstarter campaign.

If you aren’t familiar, Ouya is an Android-based gaming and media hub that is powered by an Nvidia Tegra 3 processor, 1GB of system memory and has 8GB of onboard storage. The wireless controller that ships with the console features a familiar button layout with two analog sticks, a directional pad, eight action buttons and a touchpad. Both the console and the controller were created by designer Yves Behar of One Laptop per Child and Jawbone Jambox fame.

Does the Ouya console look like something you’d be interested in or are you content to stick with your Android phone / tablet for media consumption?

Using 3D technology to enhance customer experience

Lingerie brand Empreinte has been pushing the boundaries of in-store technology with 3D holographic models

Empreinte has been using holographic models to enhance the experience of the customer.

What was the thinking behind the hologram campaign?

The idea of the campaign was to create a real buzz around the brand and our new concept store. The hologram was actually just one piece in an otherwise global communication strategy, which had two main objectives – create awareness and drive people to the store.

This global strategy also included meeting with bloggers, advertising on fashion blogs and with social media insiders, posting a hologram video on YouTube, and a PR strategy targeting consumers and women's magazines

How does the hologram work?

It's an advanced form of photography that allows an image to be recorded in three dimensions – it's in fact a recording of an interference pattern made by the interaction of two beams of light.

Holograms work by creating an image composed of two superimposed two-dimensional pictures of the same object seen from different reference points. Holography requires the use of light of a single exact wavelength, so lasers have to be used.

Basically, when viewing any object, the human eyes each receive a distinct image but from slightly offset reference points. The brain combines them into a three-dimensional image – the hologram just produces the effect artificially.

How have customers and consumers reacted?

We've had great feedback so far and for two main reasons. Firstly, because using technology in this way helps create a new brand experience, one that allows customers to engage and interact with the brand and its products in a sensorial way.

We have also received good feedback because consumers are looking for innovation online and in real life too – that's what we tried to give them by using something new and unique.

Why did you choose to display the hologram after 9pm? Why not in the day-time?

It's a projection (with a video projector) so it works only in a dark room or a similar environment – the hologram needs to be played after 9pm, during sunset.

Do you think 3D technology will change the way retailers interact with customers?

Brand value has increasingly been defined, not through the narrow lens of price, but in terms of the total experience that consumers have when they interact with a given brand. That's why l'Atelier lingerie Empreintehas developed a total digital experience thanks to this hologram and to a touch-screen interactive table that gives product and service presentations.

Retailers are working to redefine the shopping experience with new technologies, such as 3D. In any case, technology must be useful and feed the brand content – shoppers don't want technology just for the sake of it.

Alexandre Rostaing is strategic planner at Groupe Carlin International

How to avoid being hacked like Honan

A tech writer has just had his digital life erased by one or more hackers. Sarah Taylor would like to know what the rest of us should do to avoid a similar fate

Hackers used an iCloud account to perform a remote wipe on Mat Honan's iPhone, iPad and MacBook, deleting all his data. Photograph: M4OS Photos/Alamy

I read about Mat Honan, the journalist who had his email hacked and his devices wiped. What should we all be doing to avoid this kind of thing?
Sarah Taylor

For those who missed the story, Wired journalist Mat Honan had hisGmail and Twitter accounts hacked, which is not all that unusual. What made the story "epic" was that the hacker(s) used his Apple iCloud account to perform a "remote wipe" on his iPhone, iPad and MacBook, deleting all his data. Worse still, he didn't have backups.

It was evident that something had gone wrong from the tweets the hacker sent from Honan's Twitter account and Gizmodo's account, to which it was linked. (He used to work there.) Honan went public on 3 August 2012 in a blogpost: Yes, I was hacked. Hard. At the time, he blamed his old seven-digit alphanumeric password.

Honan followed up on Monday 6 August with a full account in Wired: How Apple and Amazon Security Flaws Led to My Epic Hacking. It turned out that it was not a password crack but "social engineering". The hacker had phoned AppleCare technical support and been given a temporary password to Honan's .Me account. Honan says: "It did this despite the caller's inability to answer security questions I had set up. And it did this after the hacker supplied only two pieces of information that anyone with an internet connection and a phone can discover … a billing address and the last four digits of my credit card."

The billing address came from the Whois data that Honan had used to register his domain name, and the credit card numbers from Amazon. (See Apple and Amazon patch security flaws exposed by hack heard round the world for more details.)

Once the hacker had control of Honan's email, he could get the passwords reset on other accounts, such as Twitter.

There are several things that will help prevent this from happening to you. These include: (1) use two-factor authentication; (2) don't put all your eggs in one basket; and most of all (3) backup, backup, backup.

Two-factor authentication

With two-factor authentication, security depends on two different things. Often these are something you have, such as a credit card, and something you know, such as a four-digit pin (personal identification number). The "something you have" could also be a dongle or, with biometrics, your face, fingerprints, or iris patterns. With online services, it's usually a mobile phone. Set up two-factor authentication with Gmail, for example, and when you ask for your forgotten password to be reset, Google will send a verification code to your mobile.

Google's Matt Cutts has posted a video on how to do this: Please turn on two-factor authentication.

Facebook introduced a similar system in May 2011. For instructions, seeIntroducing Login Approvals: "[It] requires you to enter a code we send to your mobile phone via text message whenever you log into Facebook from a new or unrecognized computer. Once you have entered this security code, you'll have the option to save the device to your account so that you don't see this challenge on future logins."

But two-factor authentication can be somewhat tedious, and also there's the risk of losing your mobile. Perhaps it might be worth using an old smartphone with a prepaid (PAYG or "pay as you go") account for this single purpose.

Eggs in multiple baskets…

I've given this advice numerous times, but it's risky to put all your eggs in one basket. Honan was an extreme case in his dependence on Apple's iCloud, but many people are dependent on Google or Microsoft or even Yahoo. The question is, if you lost access to your account, would you also lose access to your calendar, contacts, online photos, documents, and other data?

Apple, for example, wants you to use a single ID (identity) for iCloud, its App Store, buying things from iTunes etc. This is a bad idea. As far as possible, you should use different IDs, passwords, and even different credit cards for different purposes. Google, Microsoft and Yahoo have also been pushing people towards using the same account for multiple services on multiple devices, and this will get worse when a Microsoft ID is used to log on to Windows 8.

Your stuff will be more secure if you spread it around.

If you must use a single supplier, make sure you have backups elsewhere. For example, most email services provide "mail forwarding". Set this up so that every email that reaches (say) your Gmail inbox is automatically sent to a Yahoo, Hotmail or other inbox as well.

Microsoft has just launched an improved email service at Outlook.com to replace Hotmail. Register and you can get your new Outlook inbox to fetch all the emails from your Gmail or other account, providing a backup. You've missed the opening "land grab" but plenty of good outlook.com names should still be available.

… and multiple email accounts

I hadn't considered this before, but Honan's case also shows that there is a risk in using the same email address for all your online accounts, which is exactly what I do. I must have a couple of dozen accounts for Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Quora, Bitly and so on, but all the password reset tokens would end up in the same email inbox.

It would be more secure, but not as handy, to use a different email address for each service. This isn't impractical if you use a desktop email program such as Thunderbird, Windows Live Mail, or Microsoft Outlook, because a single "send/receive all mail" will collect email from multiple email accounts. If these addresses are only used for passwords and similar purposes, there should not be much email to collect. I'm now thinking about setting up WLM for this purpose.

Creating programmatic email addresses (xyz4twitter@outlook.com, xyz4quora@outlook.com etc) would make things simpler, but if you take this approach, think of a format that's less easy to guess.

Backup, backup, backup

Schofield's Second Law of Computing says data doesn't really exist unless you have two copies of it. Preferably more. And the only person who can be held responsible for that is you.

A simple solution is to have a desktop or laptop PC backed up to an external hard drive and synchronised using a program such asFreeFileSync, which is what I happen to use. There are lots of alternatives. Ideally, you should also store copies of important things online, using a service such as Dropbox, Carbonite or Mozy.

Since your online storage can be hacked and deleted, it is vital to have physical backups on one or more external hard drives, thumb drives, SD cards, CD-Roms or DVDs. For more on this topic, see an earlier answer:CD, DVD or SD: what's best for backups?.

One extra advantage of having 16GB of data on an SD card or USB memory stick is that you can keep it "off site" in a trusted friend or relative's house. This provides some protection from physical threats such as earthquakes, flooding, fire and theft.

If you use a service that allows devices to be wiped remotely, this increases the need to have separate backups. Honan fell victim to Apple's optional Find My Mac feature, which allows users to locate and wipe a stolen device. There are similar services such as Prey, which also works on Windows, Linux and Android. Use with care.

A cloudy future

There's clearly a trend towards keeping data online ("in the cloud" is the new jargon) and accessing it from numerous devices including PCs, tablets and smartphones. While this can be convenient, it also brings risks. As Schofield's Third Law of Computing states: "The easier it is for you to access your data, the easier it is for someone else to access your data."

Strong passwords don't protect you if someone using the same public Wi-Fi can easily hijack your session cookies with Firesheep and get instant access to your email and Facebook accounts. (See my previous answer, Using a VPN to protect your web use.)

Also, it's now scarily easy to add a cheap, inconspicuous keylogger to any publicly accessible computer, as I was recently reminded by DJ Walker-Morgan.

Honan wrote: "My experience leads me to believe that cloud-based systems need fundamentally different security measures. Password-based security mechanisms – which can be cracked, reset, and socially engineered – no longer suffice in the era of cloud computing."

Until we come up with something better, always use secure https connections rather than http, when available. We now need all websites to support https all the time.