Speculation is again swirling about how much the upcoming Palm Pre, the new smart phone we called a “game changer” when it was unveiled, might cost and how many might be available. The phone is expected by June or so.
According to FierceWireless.com, Palm will limit production to about 375,000 units to create a buzz when supplies run out. Analyst iSuppli says each new Pre will cost $170 to build and will be sold to Sprint for $300, which will offer it to customers for $200 with a two-year contract. .
Of course, as most smart-phone followers know, success in today's market rests as much or more on software, rather than hardware, as the New York Time's Matt Richtel writes. —Mike Gikas
As summer approaches, you may find yourself shooting in many different lighting scenarios, including low light. For example, you might be photographing an evening party where there just isn’t that much available light. One solution is to turn on your flash. But if you don’t want to do that, you might opt for increasing the camera’s ISO setting. If you’re not familiar with the term ISO, here’s some help:
ISO stands for International Standards Organization, the association that developed this specification for film many years ago. As with film, an ISO setting measures how sensitive a camera is to light.
A lower number, 100 or 200 ISO, means that the camera is less sensitive to light than at 1600 or 3200 ISO. When the lighting is less than ideal, using a higher ISO setting gives you more flexibility in adjusting other exposure settings (such as aperture or shutter speed) to capture a well-exposed photo or freeze action. It also lets you avoid having to use your camera’s built-in flash.
Modern science may not yet have saved us from the swine flu virus (aka H1N1), but modern technology can help you to track it. Here’s how:
Sign up for text message updates. The website CellPhones.org will text you up to three times a day with swine flu info from the CDC, WHO, and other authorities. The service is free, but your standard text message rates apply.
Follow the CDC on Twitter. Do you tweet? If so, follow the Center for Disease Control as they post short, frequent swine flu news updates, information, and reminders (“CDC reminds you that you can NOT get swine flu from eating pork”).
Watch the virus spread. Not the prettiest picture, but you can track confirmed flu cases across the U.S. at PandemicFlu.gov. Click on your state for local flu-related information and resources.
Get e-mail alerts. You can have Google monitor the news for “swine flu” and e-mail you whenever a story or blog of interest surfaces.
Check the WHO and CDC websites. Both organizations are regularly posting updates on the swine flu: WHO provides a daily, world-scope briefing, and the CDC has travel notices, infection reports, and guidance for health professionals.
Subscribers to Alltel, the relatively small cellphone carrier acquired by Verizon Wireless last January, will be able to keep their Alltel plans as Verizon takes over their accounts, according to a Verizon spokeswoman. And they probably should do so, according to our head-to-head analysis of comparable Alltel and Verizon plans.
In fact, our numbers suggest that Alltel’s 11 million customers will be able to get more minutes of talk time and save $60 to $420 a year by hanging on to their old plans rather than switching to a Verizon one, as they are allowed to do, if they wish.
Since Verizon's and Alltel's wireless national-plan rates don't vary by city, we picked a representative city, Cleveland, in which both Verizon and Alltel (available in 118 metro areas and 259 rural and other markets) are active. We then compared what Alltel customers there would gain and lose if they switched their existing one-line or family two-line national voice plans to the most comparable Verizon plans.
A new variant of the swine flu is looking to make your computer sick. E-mail phishers are now sending unsolicited messages using subject lines like “First US swine flu victims” and “Swine flu worldwide” to entice readers to follow harmful links or open malicious attachments.
If you receive such an email, delete it immediately. McAfee’s Avert Labs Blog has a list of other known subject lines, including ones claiming that Madonna and Salma Hayek have been infected.
(Related: Can you spot a cleverly disguised phishing e-mail? Take our quiz and find out. For more on Internet safety, visit our Guide to Online Security.)
That's just as well. While Zunes are competent MP3 players, they lack the panache to help a phone go toe-to-toe with iPhone, with its superb, touch-based interface. (Complete details in our Ratings of MP3 players, available to subscribers.) Besides, Verizon is also reportedly working on lassoing an iPhone, or at least Apple phone of some sort, for its customers.
Moreover, Verizon, one of the few carriers seemingly not yet hurt by the recession, already has phones that run on Microsoft's Windows Mobile operating system, including a touch-screen model called the Samsung Omnia. Windows Mobile phones generally do well in our tests. They allow you to easily create and edit documents, run multiple programs, and switch easily between them. Those advantages are likely to improve when Microsoft finally releases Windows Mobile 6.5. —Mike Gikas
As we've previously noted, sales of plasma TVs have waned as LCDs have become a more popular choice, so that nine out of every 10 TVs now sold in the U.S. are LCD models. Given that the best plasma TVs (available to subscribers) are still great choices, we've been wondering: Can plasma sales rebound?
Based on the latest numbers from Austin-based market research firm DisplaySearch, the answer is apparently no. Blaming the poor economic climate and the exit by several brands from the business, DisplaySearch reports that shipments of plasma panels—the glass panels used to make plasma TVs—fell 22 percent in the first quarter of the year compared to the same time last year.
The next time you use an ATM, look before you swipe. There’s a good chance the machine was tampered with, say an increasing number of experts.
Savvy crooks are once-again trying to attach skimmers—phony card scanners that fit over the ATM’s real card swipe—in hopes of reading your debit or credit card and send its data to the criminal. A cleverly concealed spy camera, records your secret PIN code. Increased awareness of ATM skimming scams have banks doubling their efforts to protect their customers, reports ABC News.
Here are some safety tips to keep in mind when you use an ATM:
1. Beware of your own bank’s ATMs. Earlier this month, three skimmers were found in one week, all at ATMs located within Chase bank lobbies or vestibules. Criminals know that well-known bank machines are trusted and highly trafficked. But, they're not closely monitored—especially during off hours, when thieves can place their very cleverly-crafted and –concealed contraptions.
2. Know what to look for. Scam artists are adroit at camouflaging their devices to look legitimate. (See how convincing these doctored ATMs look by checking our sister blog, The Consumerist.) If you see an extra mirror or shoddy looking card-reader, give them a tug. They might pop right off. If you see something suspicious, don't use the machine and alert the bank branch's manager. If it's after hours, call your bank and alert them to the problem. Many ATMs will also have a local or toll-free number (printed on the machine itself) to call if you're having problems or issues with a particular machine.
3. Make safe ATM use a regular practice. Cover your hand when entering your PIN. Take your receipt (if you opt to have one printed) and always make sure your session has ended before you walk away from the machine.
"Skimming" and other forms of ATM fraud are a growing, worldwide concern. Australia’s Commonwealth Bank has released a great visual guide to identifying skimmers at ATMs. Download the PDF here. Also check out the embedded video, above, from the BBC show The Real Hustle.
Do you have other ATM safety tips and practices? Or an experience with a compromised ATM? Share it here. —Nick K. Mandle
Speculation of a Verizon/Apple deal for a phone spiked again this week, with some new information emerging via a host of reports. The upshot: Such a deal is more alluring than ever to consumers, and may happen sooner than was once thought—though no sooner than next year, at the earliest.
Here's a roundup of what's creating buzz and a growing sense of tangibility about a Verizon/Apple cell phone:
Consumers like Verizon. The proof is not just the company's perennial high standings in our Ratings of cellphone service (available to subscribers). In spite of a recession, the company this week announced it had snagged 1.3 million new customers in the first quarter of the year. That's more than AT&T, a middling performer in our Ratings, who said they added 1.2 million customers, most of whom got iPhones (AT&T having exclusivity over the Apple smart phone).
When it comes to energy consumption, you might be surprised how much more expensive a plasma TV can cost compared to an LCD. It’s a fact Consumer Reports knows well. Our lab techs measure the energy consumption of each TV we test. How? With a nifty little device called a “watt-ammeter,” at right. (Click to zoom in.)
One of our testers, Chris Andrade, rigged one to a 46-inch, 1080p LCD for me. The box on the bottom (with the gauge) provides a controlled voltage. The left number on the top box—the watt-ammeter—indicates the energy consumption of the TV, about 177 watts. A typical 1080p plasma of the same size would average about 400 watts.
How much will each set you back? Depending on how much you TV watch, the LCD could average more than $50 a year. The plasma, more than $120. For more sizes, see our chart on what it costs to run a big-screen TV. Fortunately, it’s likely those numbers will come down. Energy consumption should probably drop in TV models released later this year, as editor Paul Reynolds discusses in our video from CES 2009.
(If you really want to see how much juice your appliances are quaffing, check out our claim check on plug-in energy monitors.)
Energy costs shouldn’t be the only deciding factor when buying a TV. Big-screen plasmas do tend to cost less than similar-sized LCDs, and are generally better for theater-like viewing. There are plenty of other considerations before buying. Check out our TV Buying Guide for more on TV types, brand profiles, and shopping tips. —Nick K. Mandle
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