Opinion

Buying a New PC? Wait Until Windows 8, New Intel Chips

Upcoming “Ivy Bridge” chips from Intel and touch-screen PCs running Windows 8 are reasons to hold off on your next PC purchase. And even if you can’t afford the latest, you’ll love the bargains that are sure to come.

Is Apple Changing Its Enterprise Tune?

Even while touting its success in the enterprise, Apple hasn’t publicly courted CIOs or really pushed iPads into companies. But CEO Tim Cook is well-suited to do just that.

Most Disappointing Mobile Apps: Spring ’12 Edition

CIO.com blogger James A. Martin takes a look back at the most disappointing applications he’s encountered during the past few months. Thankfully, at least one of them appears to be on the road to redemption.

New iPad Wireless Keyboard is Also a Super-Sleek Cover

The brand new Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard Cover is a functional Bluetooth wireless keyboard for the iPad 2 and new iPad that also magnetically attaches to your tablet and transforms into a sleek protective cover.

Enterprises Can Now Test Prerelease BlackBerry Software

RIM’s new BlackBerry Beta Zone for Business lets enterprises test beta BlackBerry software, to help those businesses prepare for software releases and improve future products.

How Much Longer Can Microsoft Be a Viable Consumer Company?

Microsoft announced surprisingly solid quarterly earnings last week, but once again its enterprise products saved the day while its consumer goods sputtered.

Get Military-Grade Protection for Your Gadgets with ZAGG InvisibleSHIELD

The ZAGG invisibleSHIELD clear-protective coating is a great way to protect your gadgets and electronics from scuffs and scratches, and it’s available for a variety of smartphones, tablets and computers, among other devices. But seamlessly applying i

CISPA to Get House Approval, Move on to Senate

The Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) should be passed by the U.S House of Representatives by Friday. Next up, the Senate, where dysfunction rules.

Note to Android Handset Makers: We Want Removable Batteries

The latest wave of high-end Android handhelds packs a variety of cool new features and speedy, 4G wireless connections, but most of the handsets suffer from the same universal problem: Poor battery life. An unfortunate trend has Android smartphone ma

Hackers’ Next Target: Your TV

More and more of us are buying Internet-connected TVs. They’re lots of fun, but did you know that hackers can hijack them as easily as they can drop a virus on your PC?rnrn

Kensington Ultra Slim Keyboard for iPad Frees Up Valuable Display Space

The Kensington KeyLite Ultra Slim Touch Keyboard Folio is a wireless Bluetooth keyboard, stand and case for your iPad. The keyboard-case combo uses, sleek touch-sensitive keys to eliminate your tablet’s on-screen keypad and maximize valuable tablet-s

Free iPad App Turns Facebook Friends into Tour Guides

The new social-travel app Jetpac uses photos from your Facebook friends to help you decide where to travel next. And as a bonus, the app could also cause you to brush up on your photography skills.

CIOs Can Strengthen Your Board of Directors

Boards can gain critical technical and strategy expertise while CIOs get career benefits – and a nice side income

How CRM Data Updates Lead to Data Corruption

They say the road to hell is paved with good intentions. One of those good intentions is ‘always keeping your data updated.’

Turn Facebook Into Pinterest With This New App

Take the design element from Pinterest, add your content from Facebook and you have Pinview — a new Facebook app that gives you an alternative way of viewing your friends, News Feed, Timeline and more.

Cybersecurity Roundup: Support for CISPA, Instagram Malware and More

This week’s cybersecurity roundup features stories on the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA); a new Android Trojan that hides inside the popular Instagram photo-sharing app; Javascript-related malware that could have infected as ma

The Personal/Professional Blur

FileMaker Go: Database Magic on Your iPhone, iPad

The latest version of FileMaker Go for iOS devices, coupled with the associated desktop software, puts a whole lot of database power in mobile users’ hands. And the new iOS apps for iPhone and iPad are free.

Logitech’s $400 UE Air Speaker for Apple Gadgets is Worth Every Penny

The Logitech UE Air Speaker is a great-looking, AirPlay compatible wireless speaker that delivers surprisingly high-quality sound.

US, China Try to Ease Tension with Cyber War Games

The United States and China are performing a set of cyber war “games” to examine how each side would respond to a Stuxnet-type attack, as well as attacks on each other, in an effort to ease ongoing tension between the two sides.

Android Security Threat of the Week: Angry Birds?!?

If you downloaded the latest version of Angry Birds for Android from an unofficial app store, the software could have compromised your device and granted system control to the Bad Guys, according to a security research firm.

Mad About Facebook/Instagram? Pixlr-o-matic Is for You

Have you lost respect for Instagram now that it has been acquired by the mighty Facebook? Not to worry: Pixlr-o-matic from Autodesk is a solid choice on iOS and Android for photo editing and sharing.

HELO TC Assault: Your Own Personal iOS, Android-Controlled Helicopter

The Griffin HELO TC Assault is a redesigned version of the popular HELO TC mini helicopter, and it’s remotely controlled by your iOS or Android device. The tiny chopper also packs a new “weapon system” to help win your next cubicle war at the office

Windows 8 Versions: Microsoft Simplifies, But Boots Tablet OS Name

Microsoft gets points for streamlining the number of Windows 8 versions to half that of the cluttered Windows 7. But it committed a marketing blunder by naming its tablet version “Windows RT.”

New Table Stakes for the CIO

The “big five” tech megatrends–cloud, mobile, social, consumer IT and big data–will render the CIO obsolete, or so they say. CIO magazine’s editor in chief Maryfran Johnson says we’ve heard this before. The CIO role isn’t going away, but there are

Apple vs. Amazon: Who Is Really Fixing E-Book Prices?

A brouhaha is shaping up: Apple and book publishers square off against Amazon and the DOJ over the price of an e-book. Who’s right? CIO.com’s Tom Kaneshige looks back to a Whiz Kid from the ’90s for answers.

Nokia Lumia 900 TV Ads: We Know It Looks Different, But Is it Better?

The new Microsoft-Nokia Lumia 900 TV ads tell us too gently that the smartphone is “beautifully different” instead of urgently yelling out why it’s beautifully better than Android and the iPhone, and that it is beautifully cheaper.

Mint App for iOS, Android Puts Finances at Your Fingertips

You’ve done your taxes, right? Now that you’ve got all your financial records together, this is an optimal time to create a budget, and Mint.com’s iPad and Android apps are ideal for the job, according to CIO.com blogger James A. Marti

Latest Version of US Info-Sharing and Protection Act Still Tramples Bill of Rights

A recent rewrite of the Cybersecurity Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) says the U.S. government can’t search through data on cybersecurity threats that it obtains from private firms…unless the feds use the magic phrase, “nationa

Help Create a BlackBerry World ’12 Session—and Ask RIM Anything You Want

Here’s your chance to ask BlackBerry reps anything you want. CIO.com’s Al Sacco is hosting a session with RIM staffers at the upcoming BlackBerry World 2012 conference, and he’s reaching out to readers for details on what they want to know about the