The stolen iPhone business is booming in New York City, but in Indiana thieves ended up with a more disappointing haul. And what will fashion make of wearable computers? (My guess: wearable computer-ade.) The remainders for Monday, December 19, 2011 have forsaken a life of crime.
‘Hot’ iPhone buyers busted (New York Post)
Sorry to get your hopes up: It’s not the iPhone buyers that are hot, but the phones themselves. The NYPD arrested 141 folks buying stolen iPhones through more than 600 supermarkets, bodegas, newsstands, pawn shops, and barbershops. Apparently, there aren’t a lot of places in New York City where one can’t buy a stolen iPhone.
Truck carrying pricey tablet computers stolen (The Herald BulletinOnline)
Speaking of crime not paying, a pair of thieves in Chesterfield, Indiana stole a semi-tractor trailer carrying a full load of tablet computers. Sadly, it appears the tablets in question weren’t much sought after iPads, but BlackBerry PlayBooks. Since the truck had no tracking equipment, authorities may have a hard time apprehending the thieves until the market is flooded with cheap RIM tabl—doh.
Disruptions: Wearing Your Computer on Your Sleeve (New York Times)
A story at the Times says that Apple and Google are both working on wearable computers. As if I don’t have enough trouble getting dressed already—how am I supposed to know what kind of shoes go with my wrist-mounted iPhone?
Santa (Apple)
Apple’s latest Siri ad shows jolly old Saint Nick taking advantage of the iPhone 4S’s virtual assistant features to make his Christmas Eve deliveries. Which explains why far too many kids are going to wake up to Pickled Feet Elmos under the tree.
iPhone 4S displays ‘No Service’ or ‘No SIM Card Installed’ (Apple Support)
Apparently that minor update to iOS 5.0.1 that appeared last week actually brings a fix for iPhone 4S owners whose phones show ‘No Service’ or a ‘No SIM Card Installed’ error: Now, it just doesn’t display the error. HAPPY HOLIDAYS.
Product News:
Weather Underground 1.0 – The long-running weather site has released an iPhone app, with an interactive map of conditions, multi-day and hourly forecasts, Twitter integration, and National Weather Service Radio support. It’s backed by more than 22,000 local weather stations around the U.S. Free.
VoxOx Call 1.1 – VoxOx is a free unified-communications service that combines voice, text, chat, email, and other tools in a single online interface. An updated version of its VoxOx Call iOS app adds faxing to its bag of tricks: You photograph a document using your iPhone’s or iPad’s camera and the VoxOx service then sends that image to the fax number of your choice. The new app also adds the ability to translate SMS messages to and from three dozen languages.
Facebook 4.1 – The social networking service has updated its iOS app, bringing access to the new Mobile Timeline feature on the iPhone (iPad support will follow soon). Users also now have access to friend lists, subscribers, and subscriptions, and photos are easier to view, upload, and comment on. Better and faster performance rounds out the update. Free.
SampleTank 1.1 – IK Multimedia’s music sampling iOS app is now universal, with support for the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. It also adds a 4-track MIDI recorder, an enhanced drum pad interface, and a total of 136 instruments (after registering), as well as additional instruments via in-app purchase. $20.