Geek-Squared this week sees Apple take top honors with a mention in three of the top four stories. So without further ado…
1. Apple iO6 Release Plagued by Problems 
Seriously, this shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who has an Apple product or follows tech news. When the 1st generation iPhone was released it was plagued by problems (including screens that cracked under very little pressure). So, users (and pundits) should have expected problems with iO6. And (not surprisingly) those of us with the foresight to expect problems were not disappointed, as a variety of problems have been reported — not the least of which has been a serious wi-fi issue. Considering that many people who have drunk the iPhone ‘kool-aid’ value their phones for the wi-fi capability (which, let’s face it, is far cheaper than using a data plan), a wi-fi failure becomes a major problem.
Really Apple — it is time to do some better beta-testing with REAL people before releasing your products so that you might be able to avoid some of these silly problems.
2. iPhone 5 Released 
Apple announced on Sept. 17 that within 24 hours of the iPhone 5 going on sale for pre-orders, over two million phones were sold — more than doubling their prior record of one million for the iPhone 4S. Early reports suggest that the iPhone 5 is a product that finally gives users all of the features they want at a price they can afford (although I would vehemently debate the whole ‘affordability’ argument — but that is another article entirely). While early press reviews of the iPhone 5 were less than stellar, according to CNN some analysts suggest that the criticism will not deter buyers, with some waiting in line since Monday to be one of the first to purchase the new phone.
Call me a cynic, but I’ll wait another couple of months to see if any ‘cracks’ begin to appear in the ‘perfection’ that is touted as the iPhone 5.
3. Here a Lawsuit, There a Lawsuit, Everywhere a Lawsuit
Apple features yet again in this ongoing geek-troversy that, funnily enough, relates to the iPhone as well! In recent developments, Samsung failed at a bid to get Apple’s judgment against them overturned, so they are now considering a new lawsuit against Apple. The new lawsuit is rumored to be based on the fact that Apple is using LTE technology, originated by Samsung, in the new iPhone 5. It is worth noting that the International Trade Commission has handed down a preliminary ruling that rejected Samsung’s claims that Apple violated their patent. This ruling is outside of the proposed lawsuit, but could have had a significant impact, as the ITC has the ability to ban the importation of products that are in violation — so had Samsung’s complaint been accepted, the import bad would have been as effective as an outright sales ban.
So really, Apple and Samsung are just toddlers in a sandbox fighting over toys — and each is as ‘dirty’ as the other.
4. Social Media…Insurance? 
Yes, it has finally happened. We all know identity fraud, libel and bullying happen online, but now an insurance company in the UK is offering ‘social media insurance’. The insurance, offered by ALLOW, an information privacy company:
…will offer up to £10,000 ($16,250 USD) in fees and costs for any one incident or £3,500 ($5,690 USD) towards any reputational damage for around £3.99 ($6.50 USD) a month, and will offer new customers 30 days of free coverage.
According to ALLOW, the insurance is designed to protect users from, “reputational damage, account jacking and other forms of ID theft.”
About Dani Lawson
Mild mannered Assistant Professor of Communication by day; geek culture maven, gamer, medieval re-enactor, fanfic author and sci-fi/fantasy freak by night. Who needs sleep, right?! She has an enduring obsession with Spike from 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer', as well as being crazy for 'Firefly', 'Eureka' and the Goblin King. In addition to raising GeekGurl2.0, she has a loving (and infinitely tolerant) hubby who patiently listens to random rantings about the need for 'more fangy vampires' and the fact that 'only the Goblin King should sparkle'. When not torturing students (or her hubby) she can be found blogging at http://geekgirlmanifesto.blogspot.com/
