iPhone 5 Sleep Button Replacement Program

iPhone 5 owners experiencing issues with their device’s sleep button can now get a free replacement from Apple.

On 4-25, Apple launched the iPhone 5 sleep/wake button replacement program. The Cupertino, Calif.-based tech giant admitted that a “small percentage” of iPhone 5 models have faulty sleep buttons - an issue folks have complained about on Apple’s support forum and elsewhere since the iPhone 5′s launch in late 2012 - so the company has decided to replace the troubled component for free, even if your iPhone 5 is out of warranty.

“Apple has determined that the sleep/wake button mechanism on a small percentage of iPhone 5 models may stop working or work intermittently,” reads the Apple replacement program webpage.

“Apple will replace the sleep/wake button mechanism, free of charge, on iPhone 5 models that exhibit this issue and have a qualifying serial number.”

iPhone 5 devices manufactured through March 2013 may be affected by this issue, said Apple. Typically, the button still clicks, but the device no longer registers the input.

To participate in the replacement program ..... Read the rest of the story HERE.

A direct link to Apple Support's web page for Sleep Button replacement is HERE.

Credit:
venturebeat.com

Apple Reports Second Quarter Results

Yesterday Apple® announced financial results for its fiscal 2014 second quarter ended March 29, 2014. The Company posted quarterly revenue of $45.6 billion and quarterly net profit of $10.2 billion, or $11.62 per diluted share. These results compare to revenue of $43.6 billion and net profit of $9.5 billion, or $10.09 per diluted share, in the year-ago quarter. Gross margin was 39.3 percent compared to 37.5 percent in the year-ago quarter. International sales accounted for 66 percent of the quarter’s revenue.

“We’re very proud of our quarterly results, especially our strong iPhone sales and record revenue from services,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “We’re eagerly looking forward to introducing more new products and services that only Apple could bring to market.”

“We generated $13.5 billion in cash flow from operations and returned almost $21 billion in cash to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases during the March quarter,” said Peter Oppenheimer, Apple’s CFO. “That brings cumulative payments under our capital return program to $66 billion.”

Apple is providing the following guidance for its fiscal 2014 third quarter:

• revenue between $36 billion and $38 billion
• gross margin between 37 percent and 38 percent
• operating expenses between $4.4 billion and $4.5 billion
• other income/(expense) of $200 million
• tax rate of 26.1 percent

Security Bug That Affects Most Of The Internet

You trust your banking or Web mail sites to protect your communications when you see the little lock icon in your Web browser. This is why you're OK with typing passwords into Hotmail or your credit card numbers into Amazon.

A popular piece of software called OpenSSL is used by Internet companies to provide this kind of security. On March 14, 2012, someone introduced a bug that would allow an attacker to get the "crown jewels," the encryption keys used to protect your communications directly from the companies themselves.

With those keys, an attacker could eavesdrop on your communications with that company and/or impersonate that company, making it possible for them to harvest things like credit card numbers or passwords with relative ease.

Why is this so devastating? It's devastating for several reasons. First, OpenSSL is used very broadly, from big companies like Yahoo to small companies and mom-and-pop shops with shopping carts provided by a vendor. And it's hard for you to tell who's affected or when they've fixed it because companies don't broadcast which versions of OpenSSL they're running to people like you and me.

Second, in order to fix the bug and guarantee secure communications with you, each company has to update OpenSSL on every Internet-facing computer that they own. Worse, they also ought to revoke their SSL certificates — the "crown jewels" mentioned above — and generate new ones, based on the assumption that they could have been stolen at any point since March of 2012. This process could take a company days or even weeks to do.

Finally, since the bug in OpenSSL has existed since March 14, 2012, there are more than two years of your communications that could have been intercepted by an attacker. Anything you've done — shopping at online stores, logging into your bank or your Web mail — could possibly have been compromised in the past. Because of the nature of the attack, you wouldn't know anything about it.

What can I do about it? Sadly, you're at the mercy of the individual Internet companies to get their software patched and their SSL keys revoked and regenerated. Once you feel certain this has been done at a particular company, you really ought to change your password, since this could easily have been fished out of your communications at any point in the last two years.

Additionally, it would be best to avoid things like shared Wi-Fi networks whenever possible as well, since attackers have their best access to your communications when you're sharing a network with them.

But generally, the burden is on Internet companies and not you. That's what makes this so frustrating.

Credit: npr.org

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   You can test the vulnerability of any website by using this link:
ssllabs.com/ssltest

iOS 7 Tips and Tricks, Part 2

How to make text larger and easier to read on iPhone and iPad

If your eyesight is on the wane you don't necessarily have to switch to a larger phone. That's because Apple has included a 'Dynamic Type' mode that makes text larger in supported apps.

To adjust the setting go to Settings > General > Text Size and adjust the slider as you see fit. Not all apps support it, but they should increase in number as apps are updated to support iOS 7.

How to search your apps, emails, contacts, messages, music and more on iPhone and iPad

iOS has had universal search, known as Spotlight, for ages and it hasn't changed much for iOS 7. The only difference is how you access it. In previous versions it had its own 'screen' to the left of the main homescreen.

In iOS 7, Spotlight search is accessed by swiping down on the icon grid on any homescreen. This shows the search box and on-screen keyboard, and it works the same whether you're using an iPhone or iPad.

By default it searches for a huge range of things: pretty much anything that has a native app. It even searches for podcasts. You can customise what it searches for by going to Settings > General > Spotlight Search and selecting what you want.

How to check your shelves are level using the Compass app

The actual Compass app has always been oddity as it's more useful in actual apps than on its own. But Apple has added somethig a little extra for iOS 7: a spirit level. It's not the stuff of legend, but it's bound to come in useful some time, surely?

How to set the default direction type in Apple Maps

Setting aside the merits of Apple's Maps for the moment, one neat new addition is the ability to set the default directions type: driving or walking. To do so, head to Settings > Maps then scrolls down to the 'Preferred Directions' section.

How to enable 'Do Not Track' in Safari

The new version of Safari adds support for the, still voluntary, Do Not Track protocol. Websites that respect Do Not Track won't use cookies and so forth when this is enabled. To do so, go to Settings > Safari and toggle the option under 'Privacy & Security'.

How to toggle Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and open apps using Siri

It's now possible to toggle these settings using Siri. So, for example, "Turn on Wi-Fi" will do exactly that. You can open first and third-party apps well using the obvious command, "Open Facebook app" or similar. "Take a photo" opens the camera app, too.

You can even go deeper into the Settings app, so saying "Open Mail settings" will take you to that section of the Settings app. It's worth experiementing with what you can do, or you can tap the '?' symbol in the bottom left of the Siri screen.

How to get a quick view of your day on iPhone and iPad

Apple has revamped the Notification Center for iOS 7 to include what it calls Today View. Today View can show you a number of different things, but by default it shows you the date, a summary of the weather where you are, and the appointments you have on any given day.

Scroll further down and you can see your calendar for the day, up-to-date stocks and shares info and a short summary of your schedule for the next day. As with Notification Center before, it's accessed by swiping down from the top edge of the screen and it's accessible from the lockscreen, homescreen and from within any app.

How to customise the Today View

You can also customise the Today View to a limited extent, something we hope Apple expands on to allow third-party apps to appear here.

Head to Settings > Notification Center again and scroll down to the Today View section highlighted above. The options are quite limited at present, but unless you really need it we recommend getting rid of the Stocks updates. Not only do few people genuinely need, it drains battery as it has to be kept up-to-date. To change the order of what appears, select 'Edit' and drag the available items up and down.

Credit:
trustedreviews.com

iOS 7 Tips and Tricks, Part 1

How to correct Siri's pronunciation on iPhone and iPad

We don't want to pick on Siri, but it sometimes mangles the pronunciation of names. You can fix this just by saying "Siri that's not how you pronounce that". It will then ask you to say it again to learn the name better.

How to block messages and calls from people you don't like on iPhone

While we're sure you get on with everyone just fine, sometimes it might be necessary to block certain people from calling you. iOS 7 finally allows this. It's easy to activate. All you have to do is go to their entry in the Contacts app and scroll down to the 'Block this contact' option.

How to turn-off parallax wallpapers and movement on iPhone and iPad

Getting motion sickness, or just don't like 'parallax' effect in iOS 7? No problem, it can be turned off. It's tucked away in the Accessibility section, so head to Settings > General > Accessibility and find the Reduce Motion option.

How to use the LED flash for notifications on iPhone

The Accessibility section of the Settings app has long been a source of useful tweaks, and it's still the case in iOS 7. This is an oldie but a goodie. Prefer a light to vibrations? You can make the LED flash... well... flash when you have notifications. Go to Settings > General > Accessibility and scroll down to 'Hearing' where 'LED Flash for Alerts' resides.

How to save money by using FaceTime Audio calls

Those of you lucky enough to have unlimited data plans but limited minutes will like this one. iOS 7 adds the ability to have audio only calls using FaceTime. Just go to the desired contact and press on the phone symbol next to FaceTime. Alternatively, you can search for your contact in the FaceTime app itself.

How to switch and close apps on iPhone and iPad

One of the more noticeable, and very welcome, changes in iOS 7 is the new way to switch to and close apps running in the background. Instead of a poky app tray of icons, double clicking the home button reveals scrollable previews of each app open in the background. Just tap to open, or swipe up to close the app. If you own an iPad and have Multitasking Gestures enabled (head to the Settings > General) then you can bring this up by swiping up with four fingers.

How to quickly toggle Airplane Mode, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Brightness and more

This is arguably the most requested feature of iOS 7. It's taken Apple long enough to act on it, but Control Center in iOS 7 finally delivers. Moreover, all the above features (and more) are accessible from the lock screen.

Control Center is accessed by swiping up from the bottom edge of the phone, the opposite from the Notifications Center. Along bottom edge are four icons: Flashlight, Timer, Calculator and Camera. All but the Flashlight one open the respective apps. Above these are music controls, and above these is quick access to the screen brightness controls. Finally there's the five icons at the top starting with Airplane Mode on the left, then Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Do Not Disturb and Lock Orientation or Mute.


How to stop people seeing your messages and notifications
The new Notification Center is a nice addition iOS 7, but it does throw up one obvious problem: as it's accessible from the lock screen, anyone could view your appointments and excerpts of your messages without your pass code.

Luckily Apple has thought of this and it is possible to customise the Notification Center available from the lock screen, or even turn it off entirely.

To do so, go to Settings > Notification Center and under 'Access on Lock Screen' disable the features you want to limit or turn off both 'Today View' and 'Notifications View' to turn off the Notification Center from the lock screen entirely.

Credit:
trustedreviews.com