Daily Tech Bits

Lost Laptop? Explode Your Data

As more people have laptops, security becomes a bigger issue. There have been a couple of cases in the UK recently where tens of thousands of sensitive files have ended up in the hands of thieves. OK, it’s true that people should take better care, but who can have a laptop chained to their arm 24 hours a day? There are a couple of solutions that help with this tricky issue.

The ‘exploding laptop’ trick wipes your data remotely, but the laptop has to be on for it to work. There’s also another solution which works even if the laptop is turned off. More on that from GrowthBusiness.

Androids Due By End Of 2008

One day, you’ll be able to do anything on your phone. If you think you’re already there with mobile browsing, playing music and recording video, then think again. Google has been instrumental in the Open Handset Alliance, and has produced a new operating system, called Android for use on the next generation of mobile toys.

Developer Andy Rubin says the system will be open source, so that developers can produce a wide range of devices and applications. He showed the BBC a demo of an Android based handset which can successfully run Google Earth. Google expects that Android enabled handsets will make their first appearance by the end of 2008, signalling a change in the mobile marketplace. More on that story here.

Cheap, Small And Wireless

The future is cheap, the future is small, the future is wireless.  Small devices that connect to the web are becoming more and more popular, says the Times Online (not that we didn’t know that already.) It cites the Ipod Touch and Nokia 810 as harbingers of the future - and one thing that the future holds is a small, cheap laptop. Chip manufacturers are making chips that give you the same batterly life as a Centrino but need much less housing, while many have been inspired by the cheap laptops sent to the developing world and want to do something equally affordable at home. Who knows, one day you may be able to fit a computer in your Christmas stocking.

A Phone That’s Just A Phone

Hop-On has released a $10 GSM phone, the HOP 1800. If you’re waiting for me to tell you about all the gadgets and gizmos that go with it, then you could be waiting for a long time. This phone is just a phone. It has no screen and you can’t send text messages. All you can do is make phone calls. The keypad buttons include a Braille interface.

If this seems a bit low-tech, consider this. How many times have you paid whopping roaming charges with your regular cell phone company? With the Hop 1800, all you need to do is charge it up, buy a local SIM card and make calls.  This prepaid, disposable phone has been called the ‘anti-phone’. At $10, you can afford to throw it away and you don’t need to have a fit if you use it. However, the company does have a recycling scheme which gives you back $5 if you turn a used phone in.

This phone works with more than 40 domestic carriers and is also available in dual band form for the European and Asian markets. The company says that the phone does one thing and does it well.

‘I challenge anyone to make a call faster than with the HOP1800,’ says Hop-On CEO Peter Michaels.  ‘With the cost of living and roaming fees going though the roof, the HOP1800 is also the perfect iPhone traveling companion.  Just buy a local SIM card and you can use the HOP1800 with over 40 domestic wireless carriers,’ Michaels said.

US Shoppers Look Online, But Don’t Buy

The Pew Internet & American Life Project has revealed that many Americans look online rather than buying. Some 40 to 55 per cent of Americans use the internet for product research, but that does not translate into making a purchase. The study followed people who were buying music, cell phones and houses.

According to associate director John Horrigan, the internet is ‘used in a very technical way to help people eliminate options that aren’t useful for them.’ Once they’ve done that, most people end up in a brick and mortar store to make the purchase.

Those buying houses do a lot of preliminary research online, especially when considering moving to a new area, but finalise the purchase offline. The survey results make interesting reading.

In other shopping news, a shopping center in Portsmouth, UK is using consumers’ cell phones to track their behavior while in the mall. Using a receiver, which costs £20,000 (roughly $40,000) a month, they are able to see what route their customers follow through the mall, where they stop and look, and how long they spend in stores. More on that story here.

CSI Goes Mobile

Ready to do some digging? Then you need the Cell Seizure Investigator. With a handy adaptor, this little stick will let you leech the data from a variety of mobile phones. Yes, that’s right. You can copy the entire contents of a mobile phone onto the stick, and then examine it at leisure on your PC. Intended for anyone needing to do ‘forensic analysis’ on a mobile phone, the device will also be useful for suspicious boyfriends, girlfriends, husbands and wives. At the moment, you will need a Samsung or Motorola cell phone to use it, but watch this space …