The U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team warned this week of a security flaw in a popular tool intended to make it easier to add additional devices to a secure Wi-Fi network. GearXS On Tuesday, the organization, known as US-CERT, cited findings from security researcher Stefan Viehbock, who uncovered the security hole in the so-called Wi-Fi …

Nearly a year and two months after its launch, Microsoft’s Windows Phone Marketplace has hit a new milestone. The collection of apps and games that run on Microsoft’s Windows Phone devices now sits north of 50,000 applications, according to a count by the blog All About Windows Phone. More than a third of those were added in the past three …

With just two weeks until CES, most of the wireless industry is busy making final plans. We’ve already told you what we think will happen with tablets and smartphones in Las Vegas, and if carriers and manufacturers have their way, we won’t know anything official until the show begins. Forgive me, but patience is not a virtue in this case. …

Samsung dropped a bit of bad news last Friday when it announced on one of its Korean promotional blogs that it wouldn’t be bringing Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4.0) to its Galaxy S smartphone or its 7-inch Galaxy Tab. Users understandably cried foul and chatter of Android fragmentation surfaced again, and the company may be feeling the heat. Though Sammy …

People unwrapping new smartphones with Google’s Android and Apple’s iOS as part of the Christmas holiday once again led to record activations and app downloads this year, says mobile analytics firm Flurry. In a report issued today, Flurry says that the number of Android and iOS devices activated on Christmas Day jumped 353 percent over the number of activations from …

After briefly mentioning it yesterday in its Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade plans, LG spilled more details today on its upcoming LG Prada 3 Android smartphone. Like the Prada and Prada 2 before it, the Prada 3’s calling card is its sleek (0.3-inch), “look at me!” profile. Though relatively minimalist by Prada standards, the handset’s glossy black skin, “Saffiano” pattern on …

The other week, The Oatmeal posted a comic titled “Why 3D movies need to die”, which got us thinking: how often have people watched 3D content on their 3D-capable TVs? If it was up to this writer, 3D is something that would be banished to deepest, darkest, ickiest depths of hell to be kicked around by the gods and then …

Strap yourselves in. We’re about to hit another Android year at full speed. 2012 is breathing down our neck, which means that CES, Mobile World Congress, and even CTIA are fast approaching. In other words, get ready for an onslaught of new Android announcements. Looking ahead at some of the rumored devices, consumers are in for some seriously powerful smartphones …

LG unwrapped more details about its Ice Cream Sandwich software upgrade schedule for existing LG Android smartphones. The news, which popped up today on LG’s Facebook page, confirms much of what we already knew–that Optimus phones like the Optimus LTE and Optimus Black (known in the US as AT&T’s Nitro HD and Sprint’s LG Marquee, respectively) will indeed receive the …

To the horror or relief of workers everywhere, a major company has put the kibosh on after-hours e-mail, at least for some employees. A Volkswagen union in Germany has struck an agreement with management under which the company’s e-mail server will stop sending messages to VW-issued BlackBerrys a half hour after a worker’s shift ends, the Financial Times reported this …

Earlier this month I took the Republic Wireless smartphone and service for a test-drive. Quick refresher: You pay $199 for an LG Optimus S (a small but sweet Android 2.3 phone), then $19 per month for “unlimited” voice, texting, and data. Why the quotation marks? Republic tweaked the Optimus to use Wi-Fi whenever possible for calls and data, thereby keeping …

Did you get a notice recently from AT&T stating you use more than your fair share of wireless data? Ask Maggie explains why this is happening and offers some advice to help you keep the data flowing. Ask Maggie also offers some advice on deciding between an iPad and a MacBook. Throttled by AT&T Dear Maggie, I have an unlimited …

Owners of Samsung’s Galaxy S smartphone and the 7-inch Galaxy Tab won’t be getting the latest and greatest version of Android. In a blog posting on a Korean promotional site run by Samsung, the company noted that the two devices would not receive the update to Android 4.0, the most up to date version of Google’s mobile operating system. The …

For AT&T, it’s been a week of lose some, win some. The wireless carrier said late Thursday that it now has the green light from the Federal Communications Commission to acquire 700MHz licenses from Qualcomm, in a deal valued at $1.9 billion. The companies expect to complete the transaction, which was originally announced a year ago, “in the coming days,” …

Research In Motion could once again face a legal fracas over the name of one of its software products. Broadcast measurement firm BBM Canada has taken offense with RIM’s use of the “BBM” shorthand moniker for its BlackBerry Messenger service, Reuters reports. That’s RIM’s software that lets BlackBerry users communicate with one another, and comes pre-installed on many of the …