Apple seeks preliminary injunction against the Samsung Galaxy Nexus in the U.S. Posted: 11 Feb 2012 11:01 AM PST Apple has filed an injunction against the Android 4.0 flagship Samsung Galaxy Nexus in California, claiming the Nexus violates at least four of Apple’s recently-claimed patents. According to FOSS Patents, these include: The “data tapping” patent which resulted in an import ban of HTC devices A patent related to Siri and unified search The infamous (and highly criticized) slide-to-unlock patent Apple recently won A word completion patent which provides major speed improvements for touchscreen text entry FOSS Patents speculates that Apple will easily win the first patent, as this is the patent Apple used to score a difficult-to-obtain victory against HTC in the ITC, where only 1 in 20 smartphone patent cases are deemed to be in violation. In fact, Google has willingly violated this patent, choosing to keep the infringing technology in Android 4.0. If Google is deemed guilty in this aspect, they will likely need to make a few changes in Android 4.0 if they’re going to continue to put Android 4.0 in smartphones. The other patents are a bit murkier, and we recommend you heading over to the FOSS Patents site to  read more about them and their potential implications for Google’s future business. Though Apple was denied a preliminary injunction against the Galaxy Nexus (and the Galaxy Tab 10.1N) in Germany, that case was based on a different set of patents. The current charges are based on patents earned after September 2011, and are certainly much more important as they relate to core features of Android 4.0 itself, such as the slide to unlock functionality in Google’s lockscreen, as well as the way Google is and plans to handle mobile search in the future. We’ll likely learn more about this case in coming months; The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California is expected to rule on this case sooner rather than later.

Solve for X: spray-on antenna solution could revolutionize mobile industry Posted: 11 Feb 2012 08:46 AM PST Rhett Spencer, CTO at Chamtech Enterprises, recently took to the stage at Google’s Solve for X event to talk about a new nano spray-on antenna material which could revolutionize the way service providers deploy cell towers. It could also increase cellphone energy efficiency by 10 percent. The spray-on antenna was originally conceived when Chamtech was contacted by the US Military to help them create a conforming antenna for special ops since traditional antenna systems were bulky and hard to hide from the enemy. Chamtech came up with a solution which could be painted on to nearly any surface (trees, buildings and even existing antenna) which transmits and receives radio frequencies much better than standard copper wire solutions. The end result is a technology which can enable a cell phone to transmit twice as far with the same amount of power or transmit the same distance with only half the power. This spray-on antenna solution has been tested on RFID tags (increasing the effective range from 5 feet to 700 feet) and even an iPhone which saw an increase of 20 dBm (roughly a 40 percent increase). Chamtech is looking to collaborate with multiple industries and already has its spray-on antenna solution available for purchase. How long do you think it’ll be before a smartphone manufacturer starts using Chamtech’s spray-on antenna technology to enhance handset signal strength?

Google Wallet team responds to hacks, “We are safe enough for mobile phone payments” Posted: 11 Feb 2012 06:32 AM PST This week the Google Wallet team was surprised when two different vulnerabilities were discovered. One hack revealed a user’s PIN number on a rooted phone and the other allowed anyone to reset the PIN and gain access to funds on a Google Wallet prepaid card. Google quickly responded to the first hack by saying users should not use Google Wallet on a rooted device, and late last night they also responded to the second hack by saying they would temporarily disable provisioning of prepaid cards. Many Android users are now questioning if Google Wallet is safe enough for mobile phone payments. Google responded, “The simple answer to this question is yes. In fact, Google Wallet offers advantages over the plastic cards and folded wallets in use today.” I’ve included Google’s full statement they sent me below. It’s nice to see them address the recent issues so quickly, but I’m still wondering what you guys think. Are you comfortable with using your phone for mobile payments? Over the last few days we've received questions and concerns about issues related to the security of Google Wallet. People are asking if Google Wallet is safe enough for mobile phone payments. The simple answer to this question is yes. In fact, Google Wallet offers advantages over the plastic cards and folded wallets in use today. First, Google Wallet is protected by a PIN — as well as the phone's lock screen, if a user sets that option. But sometimes users choose to disable important security mechanisms in order to gain system-level "root" access to their phone; we strongly discourage doing so if you plan to use Google Wallet because the product is not supported on rooted phones. That's why in most cases, rooting your phone will cause your Google Wallet data to be automatically wiped from the device. Second, we also take concrete actions to help protect our users. For example, to address an issue that could have allowed unauthorized use of an existing prepaid card balance if someone recovered a lost phone without a screen lock, tonight we temporarily disabled provisioning of prepaid cards. We took this step as a precaution until we issue a permanent fix soon. And just like with any other credit card, you can get support when you need it. We provide toll-free assistance in case you lose your phone or someone manages to make an unauthorized transaction. Mobile payments are going to become more common in the coming years, and we will learn much more as we continue to develop Google Wallet. In the meantime, you can be confident that the digital wallet you carry provides defenses that plastic and leather simply don't.Osama Bedier, Vice PresidentGoogle Wallet and Payments