iPhone

iPhone robot is an alarm clock with attitude

For the snooze kings and queens of the world, an even more annoying alarm clock is a must. Well, here's a droid with a "hilarious personality" that looks like it needs a good kick.

Tim-e is an iPhone dock with arms and legs. It wriggles and dances and is generally annoying. But that's the whole point.

The subject of a Kickstarter campaign that's aiming for $150,000, Tim-e (pronounced "Timmy") uses your iPhone screen as an animated face.

In the promo video below, it has a blue, animated mug and puts on a snarky routine. It recalls the genie from Disney's "Aladdin." … Read more

The 404 1270: Where it's like comparing apples and googles (podcast)

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- CNET's full coverage of today's Google I/O 2013 event.

- Get out of the sun!

- Follow Jill on Twitter.

- Check out Jill's new site.… Read more

Lawsuit claims Apple sold iPhone 4 with bad on-off button

A lawsuit has been brought against Apple for allegedly selling iPhone 4 smartphones with faulty power buttons. The suit, which seeks class-action status, claims that Apple knew about the issue and failed to fix the problem.

Debra Hilton filed the lawsuit in San Jose, Calif., alleging that she and "thousands of iPhone 4 users" were sold the device with on-off buttons that stopped working shortly after the 1-year warranty was up. The problem purportedly had to do with a defective flex cable that controlled the power button.

"The Apple iPhone 4 is plagued by a latent defect … Read more

The 404 1269: Where rad goes viral (podcast)

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- Follow Spotify's Shanon Cook!

- More on the Deadpool videogame.

- The story goes deeper on The Bureau: XCOM Declassified.

- Nvidia's Project Shield comes closer to reality.

This week's Viral Top 10 list from Spotify:

1. "Royals" by Lorde 2. "#Beautiful" by Mariah Carey 3. "Alone" by Falling In Reverse 4. "The One" by Tamar Braxton 5. "Rattle (Sexy Lady)" by Bingo Players 6. "Blurred Lines" by Robin Thicke 7. "Young And Beautiful" by Lana Del Rey 8. "Spring Break Anthem" by The Lonely Island 9. "Get Lucky - Radio Edit" by Daft Punk 10. "Dear Mama" by 2Pac… Read more

Apple wants you to scratch and claw your iPad

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on Tuesday granted Apple nearly three dozen patents, including one that covers how a device responds to acoustic signals such as scratching and tapping.

Patent No. 8,441,790, or "Electronic Device Housing as Acoustic Input Device," focuses on tech that would allow a device to detect and react to sound resulting from an impact with the housing, such as dragging a finger along the surface of the device. The sensors send information to a microprocessor, which can distinguish between different types of input as well as interpret what each input … Read more

Apple looks to add Galaxy S4 to Samsung lawsuit

Although a federal judge has requested that Samsung and Apple pare down the number of infringements in their lawsuit in California, the iPhone maker actually wants to pile on.

According to FOSS Patents' Florian Mueller, Apple on Monday requested that U.S. District Court Judge Lucy Koh allow it to add the Samsung Galaxy S4 to the list of Samsung products that Apple believes violates patents it owns. Apple currently has 22 products that it claims violate its patents. The Galaxy S4 would be added to that list.

According to Mueller, Apple analyzed the S4 and "has concluded that … Read more

Defense Department to let Apple devices onto Pentagon network

Pentagon employees may soon start using Apple mobile devices, like iPhones and iPads, on the U.S. Defense Department's secure network.

The department expects to clear the devices for use on its network early next week, Bloomberg reported Friday.

It's a space that's normally dominated by BlackBerry, but with other smartphone brands gaining popularity, the federal government is considering other options. Those options include Samsung, which officials cleared last week.

Approval means employees using government-issued iOS 6 devices can access military networks after the department builds a mobile-device management system to secure the phones and … Read more

The 404 1,268: Where we buy beats behind bars (podcast)

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- The future of television lies in the greasy, gaming hands of the "lost boy generation."

- "Pinterest stress" is a real problem for moms who worry they're not crafty or creative enough.

- The source of Pinterest stress is probably sites like Lunchbox Awesome, a year-long project from an overachieving mom.

- The digital music business in America's prisons.

- NSA's secret Google tricks revealed in declassified guidebook.… Read more

Why Apple should develop Android apps

Back in March, I read a story by The Wall Street Journal's Walt Mossberg titled "How Apple gets all the good apps." It was mostly about why Apple's rivals -- Google, Microsoft, and others -- have brought their apps to the iOS platform while Apple didn't reciprocate the gesture.

Mossberg described the situation as obviously lopsided in Apple's favor and that it "stemmed from the different business models of the big rivals." Apple, after all, makes the "vast majority" of its money through hardware sales while Google, Microsoft, and Amazon, … Read more