| iPhone 5S and 5C sales hit 9 million in three days Sep 23rd 2013, 13:56, by Marc Chacksfield 
Apple has announced that its latest iPhone launch is the most popular yet, with 9 million new iPhones sold in just three days. According to Apple, the launch of the iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C was a record breaker for the company and downloads of iOS 7 have been impressive too, clocking in at 200 million. Speaking about the popularity of the new iPhones, Tim Cook said: "This is our best iPhone launch yet - more than nine million new iPhones sold - a new record for first weekend sales. "The demand for the new iPhones has been incredible, and while we've sold out of our initial supply of iPhone 5S, stores continue to receive new iPhone shipments regularly. We appreciate everyone's patience and are working hard to build enough new iPhones for everyone." Touchy subjectWhile Apple hasn't announced what the split is between iPhone 5S and 5C sales, asking around the networks in the UK, TechRadar found that the demand for the iPhone 5C wasn't anywhere near as strong as for the more powerful and somewhat less colourful iPhone 5S. News of a successful iPhone launch for Apple couldn't have come at a better time. The company is currently battling a spot of negativity over its Touch ID technology which is said to have been infiltrated by hackers - although the outrage may be getting just a little over the top. That said, it seems other manufacturers are still getting involved with biometrics on their phones, and it hasn't stopped Apple topping the sales charts worldwide.        |  | LG's warped-looking Vu 3 is officially official Sep 23rd 2013, 09:17, by Kate Solomon 
After unveiling its new animation-friendly cases last week, LG has now given the Vu 3 the official nod with its 4:3 stylings set for release by 27 September. Not in the UK, US or Australia, mind you - the Vu 3 seems set for a limited release with the company focusing its efforts on its home turf. So we'll be missing out on the 5.2-inch screen with a 4:3 "textbook" style aspect ratio, which LG describes as "monolithic", with a stylus coming as standard. TextbookThere's a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 on board, with LTE 4G connectivity and a 13MP camera rounding out the specs. We've already seen the see-through QuickView smart cases that display animated notifications when the phone is encased within. LG's not letting much more slip in its announcement release, however, so we're in the dark as to what version of Android it launches with and other details. - We were underwhelmed by the LG Vu 2; will the new generation fare any better?
       | | Updated: Nokia's iPhone 5C Twitter taunt paid off Sep 23rd 2013, 08:45, by Patrick Goss 
Update: And the cheeky gambit paid off: Nokia's sardonic thank you tweet received over 38,000 retweets which, a Twitter insider says, makes it one of the top marketing tweets in the history of Twitter. Original story continues: Nokia UK was quick to joke on Twitter about the latest iPhone 5C being an 'imitation' of its bright Lumia phones. Within minutes of the announcement of the iPhone 5C and iPhone 5S, Nokia UK's official Twitter feed posted a cheeky message aimed squarely at the Cupertino company. The message, accompanied by a picture of its Nokia Lumia Windows Phone range and the phrase 'imitation is the best form of flattery' simply added 'Thanks, #Apple ;)' TimingObviously the tweet was timed to pick up some free publicity from the stream of Apple tweets as its launch event took place - and given that we've written about it, it's clearly worked. Nokia's mobile arm was recently snapped up by Microsoft, with chief executive Stephen Elop moving back under the Microsoft umbrella. Apple's iPhone 5C is a plastic version of the iPhone 5, aimed at the more budget end of the market and it is likely to be a competitor with many of the Lumia range. Good natured rivalry or real fear of competition? Whatever the case, there's no denying that a real rivalry has already brewed and is now going public.        | | Telstra joins roaming push, slashes prices for international data packs Sep 23rd 2013, 06:56, by Farrha Khan 
Telstra has finally caught up with Vodafone and Optus in revealing today its international roaming price cuts for data use. Roaming has long been a sore point for Aussie customers, with the Australian Media and Communications Authority introducing a new international roaming standard for Aussie telcos earlier this year. Vodafone announced that it would introduce three new Roam Like Home plans that would allow customers to roam for $5 in the US, UK and New Zealand, with more countries to be later included, so long as you stay within your plan inclusions. Optus then announced that it would be re-zoning roaming countries into two zones to simplify its charges and give customers better prices and understanding of costs across calls and data, as well as introducing $10 a day traveller packs with unlimited calls and texts, and 30MB of data. Revealed through a Telstra Exchange blog post today, Telstra is the last to announce its data travel packs, and is seemingly the most expensive of the trio. Just keep roamingTelstra customers will be able to activate 30-day data packs either in Australia or on the go to be used in 50 countries. Available from October 14, $29 will give 100MB of data, instead of the 20MB you'd get today, while $85 will include 300MB instead of 65MB. For $160, you'll be getting 600MB instead of 120MB, and you'll get 1.5GB for $350 instead 300MB today. It's also reduced its pay-as-you-go data roaming rate from $15 per 1MB to $3 per 1MB. Telstra is making it a point to note that the data packs will have the same prices across all 50 countries, which include countries like Fiji, Indonesia, New Zealand, Thailand, the US and UK, and users will still receive an SMS for every 20MB used. Of course, if these data charges are still too high, you could always go with options like Globalgig for data-only. It should also be noted that Telstra's blog post did not provide any information on if international call charges would remain the same or would also receive cuts. - Don't have a holiday booked for any time soon and more concerned about the state of the local network? Check out our guide to the best 4G network in Australia.
       | | Optus introduces new smartphone trade-in scheme Sep 23rd 2013, 06:10, by Farrha Khan 
With prices for new iPhone and Samsung phones being closer to the $1000 mark, and monthly phone repayments still causing a sting to wallets, it's hard to decide what to do to get the shiny new smartphone that you want. Optus is hoping to alleviate that problem with a new Trade In, Trade Up offer that will give you credit towards your bill when you sign up for a 24-month contract. "Nothing like this has ever been done by an Australian telecommunications carrier," said Rohan Ganeson, managing director of sales at Optus. "This offer puts our customers' front of mind by making it cheaper for them to upgrade and making it easier for them by saving time and hassle of selling their old phone themselves." Eligible phones include all iPhone models from the 3S and up, as well as a number of Samsung Galaxy phones, LG Optimus phones, Nexus, HTC One range and Nokia N8. A full list can be found on Optus' site. Phone swapAvailable to new and existing customers, you can bring in your eligible old phone, some ID, and as long as it is able to power on as a minimum requirement, an Optus team member will give you a trade-in credit offer. You'll be able to trade-in your old phone up to 7 days from when you sign your new contract, with the credit going to your next bill. However, the website does note: "The trade-in value is only guaranteed on the same day." This means that the trade-in value could be different at a later stage, whether it be a week or just a day later, if you don't take Optus up on their initial credit offer. Of course, we'd suggest that before you head in to Optus, check out what other buy back sites may be offering, then seeing if Optus gives you a better deal. You should also remember that you'll have to sign up for a 24-month contract to be able to trade-in your phone.        | | iPhone's TouchID fingerprint reader hacked by German group in days Sep 23rd 2013, 03:03, by Farrha Khan 
With the weekend winding up across the globe, the iPhone 5S with Apple's new Touch ID fingerprint reader has only been available for only a couple of days since its release last Friday. Which is apparently all the time that was needed for German group Chaos Computer Club (CCC) to hack the new iPhone's fingerprint reader. "A fingerprint of the phone user, photographed from a glass surface, was enough to create a fake finger that could unlock an iPhone 5s secured with Touch ID," the group wrote in a blog post on September 21 at 10pm. The post then suggests that the hack, discovered by CCC member Starbug, can be done using household materials. The methodDescribed in just a paragraph on CCC's blog, the first step is photographing the enrolled users fingerprint in 2,400 dpi resolution. The image then needs to inverted and laser printed on to a transparent sheet in 1,200 dpi resolution and thick toner setting. This is apparently where the difficult part ends. Latex milk or white wood-glue can be used to create a mould by spreading it onto the transparent sheet and letting it dry. Then you breathe on the mould for moisture and place it on the sensor to unlock the phone. Here's a video of the latex in action: YouTube : https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=HM8b8d8kSNQFingerprint cautionAlthough you'll still need to have a good quality photo of the fingerprint first to be able to use CCC's method, there are those that argue that while passcodes can be kept secret or changed, fingerprints are public and cannot be changed. "We hope that this finally puts to rest the illusions people have about fingerprint biometrics," said CCC spokesperson Frank Rieger. "It is plain stupid to use something that you can´t change and that you leave everywhere every day as a security token," he added. Of course, the counter argument is that passcodes can be hacked as well or someone can simply look over your shoulder, and Apple has spoken about Touch ID security concerns, saying it has everything under control. Also, a Control Centre bug was revealed last week on the newly released iOS 7, which could leave open the iPhone 5S despite the fingerprint scanner, though Apple is working on a fix. - Here's our review of the iPhone 5S, including what we think of the Touch ID.
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