iGeneration

June 30th, 2009

Can Firefox 3.5 wean universities off their IE addiction?

Posted by Zack Whittaker @ 2:07 pm

Categories: Multimedia, Next-generation technology, Open source, Productivity, University

Tags: Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Internet Explorer, Web Browsers, Internet, Zack Whittaker

I considered some time ago as to why Internet Explorer had such a dominance over the market, even with the growing number of open-source users turning to Firefox. After I ended my rocky relationship with the controversial browser, Firefox continues to develop and grow ever stronger. With the release of the latest version, Firefox 3.5, I now question whether universities and other workplaces can wean themselves off their Internet Explorer dependency.

I wrote:

“The reason is updating and security. Updating Internet Explorer is far simpler for university departments which control the IT systems, because it can be updated using Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) with little effort. Updating Firefox or other browsers isn’t as easy due to the lack of installation files (apparently).”

In my experience, there is no particular other reason as to why Internet Explorer is default, and you’ll find many computers offer Firefox in the Start menu. But what’s actually new in Firefox 3.5 and what should we start looking out for?

Aesthetically very little has changed on the face of things. The interface still looks, feels and reacts as it should do and as it previously has done. Add-ons have caused some people problems with a number of additional features which can be installed don’t seem to be compatible with this version. However, as Firefox is a growing force in the browser war, developers of these add-ons will no doubt be updating their programs relatively soon.

Personally, I had almost no problems. There was one add-on which wasn’t compatible, but out of the eight that I had, this isn’t too bad.

HTML 5 standards are part of Firefox 3.5’s release which adds storage facilities to web applications to enable them to work offline. With web applications, such as GMail or WordPress, being common in usage on the web nowadays, the need to keep these applications going whilst an Internet connection isn’t present can be vital to productivity.

Privacy controls have been “snatched” from Internet Explorer, competing almost with their InPrivate mode, with a new feature which prevents history from being recorded and cookies from being added, ensuring you can surf in anonymity. I do hope though, people aren’t too naive to believe that they can truly browse in anonymity…

TraceMonkey runs JavaScript with better efficiency and speed, enabling web applications to run faster than before. Originally appear in version 3.1, TraceMonkey, even with its strange name will enable the overall experience of rich HTML based applications to run faster than before.

Even with these new features in consideration - can universities wean themselves off Internet Explorer in favour of alternative browsers? I think not. The reason I feel to be the kicker is the bi-perspective of the public facing view and the behind-the-scenes view, in that the network administrators would prefer an easier life to that of the user getting the full experience they want. If the mentality of, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” is itself broken, perhaps the shift in browser dominance will shift quite dramatically.

June 30th, 2009

Micro-USB to be universal EU phone charger

Posted by Zack Whittaker @ 4:35 am

Categories: Apple, Breaking news, Government, Hardware

Tags: Phone, Mobile, Cell Phone, Agreement, European Union, Telecom & Utilities, Advertising & Promotion, Marketing, Zack Whittaker

In a brave move, the vast majority of mobile phone manufacturers in Europe have signed an agreement which sees future mobile phones across a variety of brands and models all sharing the same charger port - the micro-USB. This means every phone you will find in Europe, starting next year apparently, will be fitted with the same charging port and be compatible with any charger. One charger for every EU mobile phone - this is fantastic news.

Picture the scene. You’re on your way back from a club in town, rather inebriated and feeling rather cocky. You met yourself a beautiful woman, just as hammered as you were, but in the two-and-a-half minutes you spent together before her boyfriend came over, you really connected. You managed to get her mobile number and are on your way back to your friends halls’. You’re in the mood for loving, and decide to text her to see if she wants to hook up there and then.

But your phone’s had the wireless enabled all evening and it’s just ran out of juice. What’s worse is your friend doesn’t have a charger which will fit your phone. That story, my dears, is true: it happened to me only a few months ago.

If you’re in north America, you’ll be going home that evening (or morning as by now it’ll probably be late) with nobody to keep you company except Mrs. Palm and her four lovely daughters. However, if you are in the EU, there’s a good chance your friend’s charger will fit yours due to the adapter’s standards and you’ll be going home with a lovely lady that evening; only to be smashed in the face by her boyfriend soon-after down the line.

As of yet, the agreement is undertaken by such names as Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Motorola, Research in Motion who make the BlackBerry (which most BlackBerry devices already have this port - did RIM see this coming?), Samsung, and even Apple which make the iPhone. What is surprising about the last company is that this may cause the end and death of the almighty Dock connector.

However, there is no legal reason why these companies can go ahead with using other ports. The agreement undertaken by these companies is not legally binding and only voluntary. On the other hand, this port agreement could open up different levels of possibility, as the micro-USB port is not only a charging port but can also be used as a data connector.

With over 30 different types of charger available for mobile phones throughout the EU, according to the BBC, this is to set a precedent unlike any before. This could well roll out to laptops, netbooks and other devices. But still nothing through for north America yet.

If this was offered where you were, say the United States, would you opt for it?

June 28th, 2009

Ground breaking surgery "eliminates" neuro-illnesses

Posted by Zack Whittaker @ 4:04 pm

Categories: Major breakthroughs, Next-generation technology, Research

Tags: Transmitter, Wireless, Wi-Fi, Wireless And Mobility, Zack Whittaker

This article goes off the usual beat and track with this emerging and controversial technology. This new application doesn’t run on Windows or Mac, it is actually relatively simple and the ones using the technology actually have no idea why it works.

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is an experimental development used by neurologists and neuroscientists to counteract the damaged synpases in the brain, which give the effect of curing some neurological conditions such as Parkinson’s disease, dystonia and Tourette’s syndrome. The effects of this technology has been hailed as “marking the beginning of a revolution in psychiatric and neurological treatment”.

On a side note, from my understanding of neurosciences research over the years (see the biography), neurological conditions are those which “can’t be helped” - Parkinson’s being a good example, where the patient suffers uncontrollable muscle spasms and shakes which they have absolutely no control of. These are hard-wired conditions which are biological and physically exist, in comparison to psychological illnesses which can be manipulated by a third-party - a psychologist, for example. Also, to put into some context, it is believed psychological illnesses cannot be cured one-hundred per cent whereas neurological illnesses can be; the difficulty exceeds those of curing psychological illnesses due to the inability to explore the physical brain.

This is how it works. Two probes are entered into a specific area of the subthalamic nucleus and in the internal pallidum which is part of the basal ganglia - very deep inside the brain, almost level with where your eyes and ears meet if the lines crossed over in the center. These probes have fork-like endings which increase the surface area on the brain which gives better target accuracy without the need to re-perform surgery. The probes are fed underneath the skin, behind the spine and connect to a nuclear-battery powered neurostimulator or “pacemaker”. The pacemaker often sits in the clavicle: the empty area just beneath your shoulder in your collarbone.

This essentially feeds an electric current deep into the brain, pulsing dozens if not hundreds of times a second, stimulating a part of the brain which counteracts the effects of certain neurological conditions. If surgery is successful, by turning on and off the pacemaker, the patient can turn on and off their condition.

For those with neurological conditions which are constantly apparent, such as Parkinson’s, the patient is kept awake during the surgery which can last a few hours, to physically test the patient to see if their symptoms subside or not.

Wikipedia, helpfully, explains how DBS works:

“It has been shown in thalamic slices from mice that DBS causes nearby astrocytes to release adenosine triphosphate (ATP), a precursor to adenosine (through a catabolic process). In turn, adenosine A1 receptor activation depresses excitatory transmission in the thalamus, thus causing an inhibitory effect that mimics ablation or ‘lesioning’.”

The truth of the matter, after speaking to a number of neurosurgical consultants during my own consultations, is that they don’t quite know why it works - they just know that it does. They have a number of theories and have done extensive studies and research over a number of years, to ensure that long term usage of DBS doesn’t cause adverse effects later on in life.

For dystonia or Tourette’s sufferers, such as myself, having the surgery is one step towards success. Over the course of a few months, using a wireless transmitter which, when used is held over the skin where the pacemaker lies, the modulation, voltage and the “on/off” switch can be used. In some cases, the pacemaker can be fitted with a cellular transmitter so doctors working at the hospital 100 miles down the road can remotely alter your pacemaker’s settings if the current configuration does not have the desired effect.

This example shows the effects of when DBS is turned on, off, then on again. The man in this video starts mid-way through, and appears to suffer from Parkinson’s disease. As he sits down, he disables the DBS using the wireless transmitter and the effects of his condition appear instantly. When he enables it again, within a second or two every symptom of uncontrollable shaking disappears.

Check this. Forget the language barrier, just watch:

DBS is risky, and involves invasive brain surgery. Not everybody with neurological illnesses such as the aforementioned are suitable for DBS, and even if the surgery goes ahead, there is no guarantee that the patients’ symptoms will subside entirely, if at all. In some cases, the doctors have told me, it can exacerbate symptoms when disabled.

However, it has been proven to work on occasion, roughly 50% of the time with Tourette’s sufferers, even though the number of successful operations carried out worldwide still run in two-figures. The other uses for this surgery have advanced research beyond copeable levels, with it being a possible gateway to a number of other illnesses which have doctors stumped.

My job here is not only to bring you the news of emerging and developing technology, but it’s also to try them out and see what it can bring the next generation. If someone sends me a device to play with, I’ll play with it, then write about it if I do so choose. With this, I can’t really just “pop down to the hospital” and try it out… or can I? Hat tip to the first person who works that one out.

June 26th, 2009

Parents bought me an Apple fruit, not Apple computer: FML

Posted by Zack Whittaker @ 10:37 am

Categories: Apple, Social networking, University fun

Tags: Phone, Apple Inc., Boyfriend, Computer, FML, Productivity, Zack Whittaker

After the news this week, I think the vast majority of us could do with a cheer-me-up post. The FML craze has been spreading like wildfire since the start of this year: the website, Twitter and Facebook especially. “FML”, stands for “f*ck my life”, has its own dedicated website which I am sure you’ve seen.

The idea is simple: you start your anecdote with “today…”, say your painful and embarrassing message, then end with a simple “FML” at the end. It becomes apparent once you get into the flow of it. With a book now released of “the best of”, I thought I’d take the opportunity to post some of my favourites in hope it’ll put you in a good mood for the weekend.

• Today, I graduated from college and my parents gave me an apple. Not the computer, the fruit. FML.
• Today, my hard drive on my computer crashed with all of my files on it. I took it to my Dad, who is a computer analyst, to see if he could recover anything. The only thing that he could salvage was my illustrious collection of porn. FML.
• Today, is my boyfriend and my 3 year anniversary. We decided to give each other something that we really needed. I bought him the $300 worth of books that he needed for college. He surprised me with a workout video and exercise equipment. FML.
• Today, while reading some chemistry notes I came across the term “solid water”. Completely stumped, I asked myself “what the hell is solid water?”. Then I heard my little cousin say “ice”. I’m a 4th year science major in university. He still checks the closet for monsters. FML.
• Today, I had to log in to my computer on a projector in front of business associates at my dad’s architecture firm. I typed in my username and apparently didn’t hit the tab key hard enough, so I typed my password in the username box. The entire firm now knows my password is “tits123″. FML.
• Today, I was writing a huge paper for a class as our last grade. My dog starts scratching himself. He hit the power button on the computer. Nothing was saved. FML.
• Today, was my graduation from a prestigious university. In two days I start working at a hot dog stand. FML.
• Today, I was rejected from the University of Washington. My dad has been a professor there for 30 years, and is on the board of admissions. FML.
• Today, I spent the entire morning downloading a 600 megabyte computer game. I will be spending the entire night fighting a 600 megabyte computer virus. FML.
• Today, I was giving a lecture to my class I heard a phone go off. Aggravated and exhausted, I asked everyone to turn their phones off. Then the phone rang again. I lost my stuff and spent the next half hour calling my students a bunch of “technology whores”. Then I realized the phone was mine. FML.
• Today, I was at the library. I went near the computer section when I saw this man cursing and pounding his fists on a computer. He left. I thought I’d check it out. As I sat down, a librarian came over with the security guard and pointed at me. I’m now being fined for destroying public property. FML
• Today, my dad told me he has been dating my boyfriend’s mom while I was away at college. They have gotten pretty serious, and are thinking about getting married. I might be dating my stepbrother. FML.
• Today, I text my college boyfriend to tell him how terrible I felt about cheating. He replied saying he was so relieved because he had been cheating on me with a girl in his dorm. I was talking about my math exam. FML.
• Today, my boyfriend of two years asked me to marry him so that we can consolidate our student loans. FML.
• Today, I was writing an exam when the student sitting behind me finished and left, kicking his water bottle under my chair. I paid no mind to it. Later, I receive a call from the school that I’ve been suspended. Apparently that water bottle had cheat notes written all on the inside of the label. FML.
• Today, I was fixing some photos for a client. I spent 20 minutes trying to Photoshop an unusual black dot out of a picture. Only then did I discover it was a black dot on my computer screen. FML.

Happy weekend, kids.

June 26th, 2009

Hands on with Outlook Live: universities choose Microsoft over Google

Posted by Zack Whittaker @ 8:27 am

Categories: Cloud computing, Google, Microsoft, Productivity, University, e-Learning

Tags: Google Inc., Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Corp., E-mail, Online Communications, Zack Whittaker

Universities are increasingly moving away from in-house email and communications systems, and moving towards externally hosted systems. While that may have sounded like utter garbage and geek speak, it means universities can’t afford or cope with their own email systems, so they’re letting Microsoft and Google do it for them for free.

For free? Yep. Absolutely free. What to Google and Microsoft get out of it? Very little; if anything it actually causes them to lose money, but it really pisses the other one off by getting an upper hand over the other one.

I’ve been hounding my contacts at Waggener Edstrom for weeks now in an attempt to gain access to the software, to experience first hand how it works and what students are to benefit from it. My contacts prevailed and yielded a test account.

Google have yet to get back to me with information or details… or a reply for that matter.

Gallery
To see an exclusive, hands-on screenshot gallery of Outlook Live through “student-eye view”, take a look over here.

You can also see my previous screenshot gallery which was demonstrated by a Microsoft employee, which has a more biased approach in my opinion.

It’s important to note, for reasons of bias, Google’s rival service, Google Apps Edu, which provides much of the same features including email, calendar, and an online office suite for holding, sharing and storing documents. Personally, I wouldn’t mind which one I end up using following the consideration that my own institution, the University of Kent, will be outsourcing 19,000 students’ email to either Microsoft or Google.

However, after speaking to the university staff and college IT departments around the world over the last week, because the two services are almost identical in what they offer, the final decision has been the administrative side behind-the-scenes, that of which the students don’t see. The installation, configuration and technological bureaucracy seems less with Google than that of Microsoft’s email service, with Google’s service being “less of a headache short-term”, to quote one administrator.

However, recent press announcements from Microsoft say universities worldwide are more likely to select Live@edu instead. Some of these universities include Washington State University, University of Sydney, Australia and Alexandria University, Egypt, with some anticipating saving more than $100,000 for their students across their campuses.

But screw what Microsoft and Google say - their opinions and press releases aren’t important. They’re not the ones using it at the end of the day.

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June 25th, 2009

Michael Jackson dies: Twitter's good luck

Posted by Zack Whittaker @ 3:13 pm

Categories: Breaking news, Discussion, Events, Social networking

Tags: Twitter, Michael Jackson, Construction, Zack Whittaker

Update: title changed to reflect developing news. Michael Jackson has died at aged 50.

Yes, yes and yes. The difference between citizen journalism and professional journalism is relatively simple: one isn’t paid to report what they see and hear, and the other is trusted and paid accordingly to report what they see and hear.

Facebook and Twitter, on my end, are rife with comments, statuses and wall posts already stating that Michael Jackson could well be dead, whilst professional sources are not yet claiming such a thing (at time of posting, anyway). Here’s the example I see on my screen:

Twitter is absolutely crazed with this news. Just by looking at my main feed of what everyone is talking about, it’s awash with rumours, quotes and stories being banded round left, right and center. This makes me consider whether Twitter and similar engines are nothing more than rumour machines.

Two examples I have given before include the Hudson River plane crash and the terror arrests at a UK university. These were reported by citizen journalism before professional journalists got the chance to report. However, once they did, you saw the steady stream of information trickle out as accurate as it was. When you attempt to gain the credibility of some random person posting a thought on a public forum such as Twitter, it opens up the possibility of massive repercussions for others along the process.

Even at the moment, the BBC News channel is claiming that these comments on Twitter are “unconfirmed” and still stating only facts. But for the fact that they are still reporting unconfirmed reports from a public which it doesn’t know, just goes to show the spread that social media has. However, the BBC are especially pointing out that at this moment in time, it is important to base news reports on facts alone, by using official sources and those not of Twitter. (23:10 BST).

From my perspective here, is regardless of whether Twitter, Facebook and other citizen-built online communities are right or wrong; only yesterday I would have said, in the wake of the aforementioned examples as well as those in Iran this past week, that Twitter is a brilliant way of keeping up to date with breaking news. Now, I’m not so sure. It doesn’t matter whether he has passed or not, the amount of unconfirmed news spread in regards to this current event has put the reputation of social media into disrepute.

Update 1: one of my friends said, “a heart attack didn’t kill Michael Jackson, it was Facebook status’“.

Update 2: it is looking increasingly likely that Jackson has indeed died. Nevertheless, sad as it may well be, doesn’t detract from my point. Statuses and tweets from hours ago have been stating that he had died. According to my benchmark, BBC News in London, stating that he died at around 15:20 PST. If this is the case, then how did people know before hand?

Update 3: my benchmark, BBC News in London, has confirmed it. See above point: still sticks.

Is Was Twitter lying? Are people taking advantage of public online spaces to spread their own gossip to perpetuate a rumour-mill society? Leave a comment and prove me otherwise.

June 25th, 2009

Cybercrime doesn't pay: well it does, and very well

Posted by Zack Whittaker @ 12:24 pm

Categories: Careers, Discussion, Government, Money, Research, Security

Tags: Cybercrime, Web Site, Hacker, Cybersecurity, Attack, Security Industry, Web Site Development, Government, Phishing, Web Technology

A large part of me is worried about writing this post because in some way, I could be considered as promoting the idea or inciting people to commit cybercrime. Well, that’s not my intention as such - instead I’m taking a more back seat approach to denounce why people commit cybercrime and what people get out of it.

As a criminologist and sociology student, the way people interact with society, other people and how society lives and works together, whilst comparing that to crime and the law gets my juices flowing nicely. If it didn’t provoke my academic mindset, it would most certainly give me the horn instead.

The considerations of cybercrime

Where do you start… it doesn’t take much work or effort to start your basic cybercrime campaign. If you wanted to start off on a basic level, phishing still works relatively well. Between May 2004 and May 2005, nearly $1 billion was stolen in phishing attacks, with it escalating every year since. You create a fake website which looks like an online banking interface, buy a list of emails from a marketing company (consider this an “investment”) and mass email out a fake email claiming that you are their bank, link to that website and harvest the account details as they come in.

Relatively simple really. Get someone with the know-how and split the profits… or kill them and take it all (after all, if you’re going to be a criminal, you may as well go whole-hog).

You could consider pornography as a easy way to make a shed load of cash.Forget copyright and intellectual property; you’re a cybercriminal, you don’t need to worry about things like that. Download a fine selection of grainy, jumpy porn from a selection of free websites, host it on a web server, lock the front page with a few free tasters to get people enticed, then put a PayPal screen up to exchange access for money. Use the aforementioned spam technique to promote yourself, or invest in online advertisements to draw in the viewers.

Cybersquatting is a costly yet intriguing concept. Find the next best thing online - take Cuil, for example, the search engine which got a lot of news coverage at the time but never took off. Take the supposed website name, in this case it would be www.cuil.com and go about buying very similar domains which sound or look similar. This could include:

www.ciul.com - www.kewl.com - www.seeuil.com - etc.

From there, you can laden your websites with high-paying advertisements or referrals for products to download. The more press coverage and the stupider the person wanting to try it out in hope they get the address wrong is the main factor to making this work. One postman from Cardiff, Wales, spent around $35 on a website domain only to demand in excess of $16,000 from companies before they hand it over.

The anonymity factor

Most people seem to think that having this aura of anonymity on the web gives us the excuse to say things we wouldn’t normally say in person. Criminals also use this theory because they see people on the Internet as “not real people”;instead they are screenames, aliases and avatars. Because of this, an ailing conscience of those purporting attacks and committing cybercrime is a lot less than in real life, in thery there anyway.

An essay which I wrote for my core criminology module this year consisted of the differences between online and offline crime. Those who commit fraud in person, seeing the faces of their victims, will have a different level of effect on their conscience than that of those who commit online crime and see no faces - again, in theory.

The white hat approach

Now this is what I really wanted to get round to. Something closer to home for me, as an example which works quite well: the UK (as well as the US) are under constant fire and electronic attack from other nations such as China and Russia. In turn, these nations are under attack from other countries themselves; it’s a constant, on-going battle.

The US cyber-security industry has expanded rapidly over the last decade, with government and non-governmental organisations working together in forming not necessarily a single solution, rather a mesh of preventative measures to protect the electronic infrastructure of each respective countries. When Obama took office, this was one of the main steps he wanted to take in his presidency.

By working with these people; once hackers and cybercriminals are now turning “white hat” - working towards defeating their once-were colleagues and tightening up security using their background knowledge. For example:

“Launching the strategy earlier Lord West, who has been appointed as the UK’s first cyber security minister, said the government had recruited a team of former hackers for its new Cyber Security Operations Centre, based at the government’s secret listening post GCHQ, in Cheltenham, to help it fight back.”

What did make me giggle when reading through this was what it said afterwards:

“They had not employed any “ultra, ultra criminals” but needed the expertise of former “naughty boys”, [Lord West] added. “You need youngsters who are deep into this stuff… If they have been slightly naughty boys, very often they really enjoy stopping other naughty boys.”

He also confirmed that the government had developed the capability to strike back at cyber attacks, although he declined to say whether it had ever been used.”

Become a hacker, then a spook - to become a hacker spook: pays well, government pension, save the world every day, sounds alright to me.

Which side to stick with

Cybercrime does pay very well, if you get it right; not only for the criminals starting the attacks but also for the security industry aiming to seal up breaches and minimise fallout as a result.Considering that cybercrime awareness and law enforcement departments are opening up to the new waves of online crime, including fraud, phishing, child abuse imagery and media and suchlike and the sort, you might want to consider staying on the good side of the security industry. At least this way, you can make money out of cybercrime without any of the side-effects of criminality… such as being buggered in the showers at prison.

Would you try and get a job in the security industry, with no guarantee you’ll get it or stay there, or head over to the dark side and live life in a dark shadow of crime?

June 25th, 2009

If my Mac did this...

Posted by Zack Whittaker @ 3:07 am

Categories: Apple, Multimedia, University fun

Tags: Apple Macintosh, Computer Graphics, Productivity, Zack Whittaker

Clearly the work of computer graphics or God himself (pick one, there are a few), who knows, but if my laptop decided to do that, I’d probably go and check with the doctor to see if I haven’t got a brain tumour eating away at my cerebral cortex.

June 23rd, 2009

Microsoft wants students for Office 2010 test

Posted by Zack Whittaker @ 4:32 pm

Categories: Breaking news, Microsoft, Offers, Office 14, Skills development, University

Tags: Student, Microsoft Corp., Microsoft Office, Office Suites, Software, Zack Whittaker

Microsoft, in an effort to try and get something right, or in an attempt to publicise themselves to the relevant markets, are asking students along with families and small businesses to participate in a test of Office 2010 before its release.

Not only that, this gives the lucky selected few not only access to a loaner laptop for six months, access to the Office 2010 software (if you haven’t downloaded it illegally already) but also access to the highly sought after Office Web Applications (OWebA).

I can almost see Mary Jo foaming at the mouth just thinking about that. I don’t blame her; I want access to the OWebA’s more than anyone.

All they ask in return is that they use you in “features Microsoft public relations and marketing activities”. God only know what that means but I can all but guarantee it involves signing your soul away to a suspicious looking man flipping a nickel.

However, they will give you 24 hour a day unlimited email support (between Monday to Friday, so already there’s a slight catch) but they’ll give you a copy of Office 2010 once it ships for absolutely free.

Under “who they are looking for”, they mention college/university students as one of their primary audiences, stating as one of the types they want to hear from:

“This is a person who attends school part-time or full-time as a teacher or student. They use productivity suite like Microsoft Office, Google Docs or Open are technologically savvy, use computers regularly for school, and collaborate on projects or assignment with other students.

They use the computer to help them with their schoolwork or to stay organized. They may also use the computer to prepare for the working world or getting a job. This person is good in front a camera and is a great communicator.”

Personally, I read into that as student, techno-geek, Microsoft lover, assignment-oriented, relatively attractive and doesn’t wear braces. My interpretation, my opinion.

You have to be a US citizen and (at least) a student with less than five machines. They hint it could well open up to other markets at a later time, but no prior experience with Office is required.

You can sign up here to fill out an application online, and they close on June 30th 2009, so get in quick.

June 22nd, 2009

iPhone 3G S: most extortionate iPhone yet?

Posted by Zack Whittaker @ 1:00 pm

Categories: Apple, Hardware, Money, University fun

Tags: Apple iPhone, Handset, Apple iPhone 3G, Zack Whittaker, Cellular Phones, 3G, Manufacturing, Wireless And Mobility, Consumer Electronics, Personal Technology

Zack Whittaker is currently knee-deep in paperwork, so covering for today is his good friend, Elliot Harrison, so don’t send death threats regarding this post to the usual address.

News has been tearing around all over the place about the new iPhone 3GS and after commenting on one of my more recent articles stating that I was a little unhappy about my BlackBerry 8900’s build quality, (comment #1.3 for you’re own reference), I thought it might be a good idea to take a look and see how much a new iPhone would cost me.

I don’t normally rush into things like this, I could never simply click “add to basket” and hope and pray that I can afford both the handset and the contract, so I do a little research and add up the costs for both the handset and the cost of the contract. I am a poor university student, after all. The single service provider who has the monopoly of the iPhone in the UK is O2.

I went straight to the costs of an iPhone 3G S on pay as you go, and the figures seemed to be a little high to me:

• iPhone 3G 8GB - £342.50 ($560.03)
• iPhone 3G S 16GB - £440.40 ($720.17)
• iPhone 3G S 32GB - £538.30 ($880.26)

Personally, I find the 8GB model somewhat restricting in terms of memory considering it is designed not only to be a phone, but also a media device for me to view my videos and listen to music. So from there it is a tot-up between the second and third options; both of which are more than I am likely to earn in a month, or at least a good portion of it.

A no go there then. After this I take a look at the pay monthly options available through O2 and find a equally saddening story. Not only is the 3G S only available on 18 and 24-month contracts (a little too long for myself) but on certain tariffs I still have to pay for the handset outright. To be more specific, it is only on the £73.41 ($120.03) monthly payment on a 24-month contract that I can choose any handset for free. The breakdown of the costs/length of contract can be found here.

Suppose I choose to go for this contract I would end up paying for the 24 months, assuming I keep within the limitations my contract provides, and without some form of insurance for the handset a total of:

• £73.41 multiplied by 24 (the amount of months) = £1,761.84 = $2,882.57

A little too much for a student, I am sure you will agree.

To be fair though, it is a mobile network’s prerogative to charge as they please for their services. But frankly I expect little of mobile networks, in terms of value for money and quality of service given the previous exchanges I have had during my short life. Despite this, for the handset alone I still believe that £342.50 for the basic iPhone 3G S is a great deal of money.

I felt further research was in order. I know that there is no chance of Apple PR providing me with some of the build costs for the new iPhone 3G S or any previous model for that matter, so I researched futher and found that similar stories have been released in the past. I found some interesting articles detailing some of the manufacturing costs for the iPhone 3G and even though they do not purport to what I am saying about the 3G S, they can still be used as a guideline for the rest of this article’s content.

An article I found was published on phonesreview.co.uk detailing some of the manufacturing costs for the iPhone modelcurrent to the time. This was information reported across the Internet at the time, so I assume its validity is pretty accurate.

“Portelligent has told EETimes, that based on what they now about the components that Apple are using in the iPhone 3G, the actual bill for materials could be as low as $100.00 as compared to the original iPhone’s material cost of $170.00.”

If indeed, this can be used as a guideline for the manufacturing costs with future models, even supposing that it might even cost $100 more than previous models to manufacturer, then I would like to know how it is possible to cost me a great deal more money, simply for some more memory. Perhaps this is a problem which lies with the phone network’s pricing or Apple, or more likely a mixture of both.

In short, Apple, in my opinion, do believe that they provide value for money (and I know there are some of you who would disagree) however it is for the reasons I have detailed above, that for now, I will stick to the BlackBerry.

Do you feel the prices of the iPhone 3G S are far too great compared to that of the supposed manufacturing costs? Would this deter you from buying one or would you still happily microwave a hamster just to get your hands on one? Have your say; it’s free, you know.