Hasta La Gadget!

One of the changes Apple made to mobile security with iOS 7 was with Activation Lock, which is basically where the person who has reported their phone lost/stolen will have to enter their Apple ID and password to reenable it. The goal was to deter thieves from stealing phones since a stolen phone would essentially be rendered useless if the thief does not know the person’s Apple ID and password. We have seen lawmakers put Activation Lock to the test in which the results were fairly positive, but what’s the point of having a security feature if no one uses it, right?

George Gascon, the San Francisco district attorney, is now calling on Apple to enable this feature on all their smartphones by default, and requiring users to choose to opt-out as opposed to opting-in. We can see the merits of this proposal, especially since not all iPhone users might know about the feature, and having it enabled by default will offer them peace of mind, even if they don’t know about it, as opposed to them losing their phone and getting upset and frustrated because of a service they had but did not bother activating. What do you guys think of Gascon’s proposal? Do you think that features like Find My iPhone and Activation Lock should be enabled by default?

San Francisco District Attorney Wants Activation Lock To Be Enabled By Default original content from Ubergizmo.

In the past we have seen many products that have tried to capitalize on the popularity of Apple’s iPhone, such as using “i” in front of its products or naming their products in such a way that made it sound close to “iPhone”. In fact this is exactly what one man from New Zealand did when he named his invention the “driPhone”, which in reality is not a phone, ut rather a series of waterproof cases which could be used to protect a variety of smartphones from getting wet. Unfortunately this naming did not sit too well with Apple, who was obligated by trademark law to protect its trademark or be risk losing them.

Given the way the product was named and spelt, it would seem quite obvious that it was attempting to cash in on the iPhone’s popularity, and Apple sued over concerns that customers might confuse the accessory with their product. Unfortunately the New Zealand courts decided otherwise, ultimately ruling in Hayden Crowther’s (the inventor of the case) favor. Apple has since been ordered to pay Crowther’s costs for defending himself in court, which is typically the case for court cases not from the US. What do you guys think? Would anyone have confused the driPhone for the iPhone?

Apple Loses New Zealand Court Case Against “driPhone” Name original content from Ubergizmo.

We’re not sure if it is because Battlefield 4 truly is a buggy game beyond playability, or if it is because some people are just opportunists, but it wasn’t too long after we reported that EA could face a lawsuit over Battlefield 4 that we have learnt that another law firm, Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP, have filed for legal action against EA over claims that the publisher might not have been compliant with federal securities laws when issuing statements about Battlefield 4 during the period of July 24th to December 4th. (more…)

Second Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against EA Over Battlefield 4 original content from Ubergizmo.

Apple has been in hot water with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) over its policies on refunds and replacements of faulty Apple gadgets. The ACCC has found that … Continue reading

The chance of being able to make voice calls on planes is looking increasingly slim, with the Department of Transportation chief weighing in with his own concerns that in-air chatterboxes may not be in anybody’s best interest. The DOT’s stance is an important one, following an FCC vote discarding a technical ban on voice calls […]