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Acer CEO: Better to make an imperfect smartwatch than none at all
Acer is in trouble, but that's not Jason Chen's fault. The CEO, who's only been on the job five months, inherited an organization besieged by a shrinking PC market and record losses. So how is he doing? Too soon to say, really, but there are signs Acer might be turning over a new leaf: The company this week unveiled a tablet, a bunch of smartphones and its first smartwatch, the Liquid Leap. No PCs, though. If nothing else, it's clear the firm is eager to branch out beyond cheap laptops.
The saga of the leaked iPhone 4 prototype comes to an anticlimactic end
It's been a long, weird and winding road, but it appears that the saga surrounding the leaked iPhone 4 prototype that got Gizmodo editor Jason Chen's home raided is finally over. The two men accused of selling the device to Chen, Brian Hogan and Sage Wallower, pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge of theft of lost property. The two were sentenced to a year probation, 40 hours of public service and told to pay $250 in damages to Apple. The rest of the $5,000 they received for the prototype is theirs to keep. Through it all Chen and Gizmodo have escaped prosecution and, with the two who found and sold the device receiving barely a slap on the wrist, it looks like its time to close the book on this tale. Perhaps crime doesn't pay, but it doesn't appear to cost a whole heck of a lot either.
iPhone 4 prototype sellers charged in California, plead not guilty
The San Jose Mercury News is reporting that two people involved in last year's "iPhone 4 prototype found in a bar" fiasco are being charged in San Mateo County Superior Court for their respective roles in the incident, which led to numerous photos of the upcoming iPhone model being posted online months ahead of its official release. Brian Hogan, the individual who is credited with finding the iPhone, is being charged with one count of misappropriation of lost property, a misdemeanor in the state of California. Sage Wallower, Hogan's friend who assisted him by contacting a number of tech blogs and offering to sell the device to them, is also being charged with possession of stolen property. Neither of the two individuals appeared at the hearing regarding the charges, and the attorneys for both men entered not guilty pleas on their behalf. A second hearing on the case is expected on October 11th, and a trial date has been set for November 28th, although Hogan's attorney has indicated that his client has taken responsibility for his actions, and he plans to work with prosecutors to strike a plea bargain. It was reported earlier this month that the blog responsible for purchasing the iPhone and releasing the pictures, Gizmodo, will not be charged in the incident. Jason Chen, the blogger who facilitated the exchange and wrote the post, will also not be charged. Chen's house was searched early in the investigation, and several items were seized, but later returned. [via KSL News]
Gizmodo won't be charged in iPhone 4 case
Gawker Media has issued a statement saying that the District Attorney of San Mateo County will not be pursuing charges against Gizmodo nor Jason Chen, Gizmodo's editor, over the leak of the iPhone 4 in April 2010. A prototype of the iPhone 4 was reportedly found in a bar in Redwood City, California, in March 2010 and sold to Gizmodo, who then took it apart, confirmed it was indeed the upcoming iPhone 4 and showed it to the world. Needless to say, wackiness ensued. You can see all the events that played out on this handy flow chart. Today's statement by the San Mateo Country DA said that, while no charges were being filed against any employee of Gizmodo, the DA "has filed misdemeanor charges against two individuals for the misappropriation of an iPhone 4 prototype that was lost by an Apple employee and subsequently recovered in a Redwood City establishment by the defendants on March 25, 2010. Brian Hogan, 22, of Redwood City, was charged with one count of misappropriation of lost property, and Sage Wallower, 28, of Emeryville, was charged with misappropriation of lost property, and possession of stolen property." Their arraignment is scheduled for August 25. Gawker Media replied with the statement: We are pleased that the District Attorney of San Mateo County, Steven Wagstaffe, has decided, upon review of all of the evidence, that no crime was committed by the Gizmodo team in relation to its reporting on the iPhone 4 prototype last year. While we have always believed that we were acting fully within the law, it has inevitably been stressful for the editor concerned, Jason Chen, and we are glad that we can finally put this matter behind us. They might be off the hook, but something tells me Gizmodo still isn't going to be invited to any Apple press events for a long time to come.
Lost iPhone warrant withdrawn, Gizmodo agrees to cooperate in investigation
The search warrant against Gizmodo editor Jason Chen has been withdrawn, the EFF reports today. Chen's house was searched a few months ago after the Gawker blog reportedly purchased the lost iPhone 4 prototype, but the San Mateo District Attorney has decided to drop the warrant and return all seized items to Chen. Gizmodo tells the Wall Street Journal that it has "reached an agreement" with authorities, and they confirm that the site will "cooperate with our investigation." That means, says the EFF, that the matter isn't completely over. There was some back and forth about whether the materials seized by authorities could have been so taken under journalist protection laws, and it's possible that the San Mateo DA simply withdrew the warrant in order to keep from violating any California shield laws. If the police still felt there was worthwhile evidence in Chen's possession, they could subpoena that material separately, thus going around any questions of journalistic protection. Indeed, as Gizmodo has already agreed to give the authorities materials that the court "deems relevant to the case," the investigation into the lost iPhone is not yet entirely over. But it doesn't seem likely that Gizmodo would face any charges -- if the police are still pursuing a case at this point (and that's a big if), it would seem to be against the iPhone's original finder, who may have broken the law by selling the iPhone to Gizmodo. We'll have to wait and see if any more charges are filed. [via TechCrunch]
Investigation moves forward in Gizmodo iPhone leak case
Over a month ago, police seized a pile of equipment from Gizmodo editor Jason Chen's home in order to investigate the case of the misappropriated prototype iPhone. Gizmodo (and about ten million armchair lawyers on the internet) claimed the seizure was illegal because of "shield laws" intended to protect journalists from being compelled to reveal their sources. After a month of figuring out how best to proceed, the investigation against Chen and Gizmodo is moving forward. A "special master" has been appointed to search Chen's seized belongings... but only for those items related to the iPhone prototype. This special master, who under court order will remain anonymous, is an impartial, unpaid volunteer, likely a former judge or law professor. The special master is supposed to be unconnected to the case in any way other than being a court-appointed agent seeking evidence in the case -- in other words, no matter how some may try to spin this, no one connected to Apple is rifling through Chen's family photos, credit card info, or lolcats archives. Once the special master's investigation concludes, he will present his evidence to a judge; the judge will then hear any objections Chen and his lawyers may have. After that, the judge will decide what evidence, if any, to forward on to the district attorney. No charges have been filed as of yet in this ongoing saga, and the special master's investigation could take as long as two months. If the special master finds enough evidence to support a criminal investigation, there's no doubt Apple will push for a civil lawsuit even in the unlikely event San Mateo County decides not to file criminal charges independently. At the recent All Things Digital conference, Steve Jobs said many people encouraged him to "let it slide," but Jobs said he'd "rather quit" than do so. [Via The Loop]
Gizmodo editor's house searched by police last Friday
Gizmodo editor Jason Chen came home last Friday to find police going through his house in California, according to a just-posted report on the blog that purchased Apple's prototype iPhone, originally lost in a bar a few weeks ago. We posted an analysis over the weekend about Gizmodo's possible liability after a report that police were starting up an investigation into the matter, but it looks like the case struck home quite literally for Chen. The editor had his house broken into (as per a search warrant) by police and multiple computers, hard drives, and an iPhone seized as evidence. Chen was told by officers that he was not under arrest or detainment, and that they were looking for material that may have been "used as a means of committing a felony." Gizmodo's legal representative, COO Gaby Darbyshire, filed paperwork with the officers that claims the search warrant was executed erroneously according to California penal code, which gives journalists fairly wide latitude for protection from seizure, especially regarding the identity of sources. Darbyshire also took issue with the search's time -- it wasn't approved as a "night search" according to the warrant, but took place at 9:45pm local time. As we said last week, it's unclear what liability Gizmodo might have for purchasing the lost iPhone, and uncertain what actions Apple might take in terms of civil or criminal prosecution. But it looks like the police investigation is underway, and if they find anything on the materials procured from Chen's house (as well as defend the complaint against the search's legality) that makes them think a felony took place, then it means this case isn't over. Update: Legal code (quoted in the comments below) says the search can take place between 7am and 10pm, which means the "night search" argument is already invalid. Darbyshire's other argument is questionable as well -- there's some legal dissension over whether the journalist protection extends to warrants like this or not. We likely won't find out whether this evidence stands until the sheriff's office decides to proceed with the case or not -- our legal analyst says that complaints like Darbyshire's should be filed with the judge, not the sheriff.
