Apple is evil! Or so say the folks at iFixIt. Probably, the folks at Nokia say it too, since Apple’s suing them. Again. And AOL is trying to be funny, though it’s up in the air whether that’s ha-ha funny or funny in the sad, ironic way. Thank goodness that we can cover all these stories for you in your Thursday, January 20 remainders.
Apple’s Diabolical Plan to Screw Your iPhone (iFixIt)
The Internet was all atwitter (though, oddly, Twitter wasn’t all aInternet) with reports that Apple is evilly switching to using tamper-resistant Pentalobular screws on iPhones, MacBook Airs, and MacBooks, all in a supposed attempt to keep users from easily accessing the non-user-serviceable parts. iFixIt says that all new U.S. iPhones ship with the Pentalobe, and that folks who take their traditional screw sporting iPhones into Apple for repairs return to discover their phones’ screws have gone all screwy. Perhaps even more shocking than the news that Apple has chosen a new screw is the revelation that iFixIt just so happens to sell a kit that lets you unscrew Pentalobe screws. So either Apple is especially dastardly, or they like to help the guys at iFixIt make money. I see no other explanation.
AOL Is Launching A Flipboard-Killer, “Editions” (Business Insider)
AOL, or Aol, or whatever that company wants to be called these days, is releasing an iPad app for content consumption. The app—a Flipboard competitor that aims to offer you a magazine with content customized to your interests—sounds interesting, but it’s worth reading the linked article just to watch the profanity-laced promotional video that the company’s using to hype the app. With in-jokes about Michael Arrington and Joshua Topolsky and repeated references to using the iPad whilst on the toilet, the trailer is a little funny, and a lot painful. I’d prefer AOL promote the app by shipping iPads out like so many America Online disks.
Apple sues Nokia over iPhone scrolling patent (Cnet)
Apple and Nokia sue each other like the tweens on Facebook “poke” each other. (Note to self: find out if the tweens still do that on Facebook.) Apple is suing Nokia in the United Kingdom this time, claiming a Nokia patent for scrolling on touch-screen devices is invalid. It’s nice that this particular lawsuit focuses on fingers, since these two companies spend so much time giving theirs to each other.