We’ve been raving about it for weeks now. Other websites have already showered it with praise, presenting it with top marks in their gadget reviews. The TomTom GO 720 simply has everyone in the industry foaming at the mouth in anticipation of the impact it is set to create in the GPS world.

Now T3.co.uk, one of the UK’s leading tech news and reviews websites, has nominated the GO720 for its inaugural T3 awards 2007 under the “Most Useful Gadget” category. Up against the likes of the acclaimed Nokia N95, Sky Television’s new High Definition television service, the Blackberry, and the nifty Freeloader Solar Charger, the competition is certainly a tough one. However, given the fantastic range of features boasted by the GO 720, it is sure to fend off its competitors and prevail.

If you would like to vote for the GO 720, simply head over to http://competition.futurenet.com/t3awards/ and cast your vote. Better still, register your vote and you could be in with a chance of winning a free PS3 and a free PSP Slim and Lite for your efforts!

Nothing is ever good news these days!

Ars Technica warns of ‘evil twin’ attacks, where a hacker sets up an open wireless network in order to monitor the traffic and steal information. They inform us that it’s really easy to set up this sort of network, and in a modern society where free and open Wi-Fi is not a foreign concept, this could leave less-experienced users open to all sorts of attacks.

What’s the moral of the story? If you don’t use a Virtual Private Network, be very sceptical when you spot an open Wi-Fi network. My rule of thumb is if it’s open and free, don’t do anything more sensitive than read the news and your favourite websites. By no means should you ever log into anything, such as your email, or worse, your online banking service. And shopping is definitely a no-no.

It’s a bit worrying when a Microsoft engineer starts an article about mobile security with

“Security” and “mobile application development” rarely appear in the same sentence.

Never fear, it’s just his way of getting your attention. The convenience factor of handhelds makes the application of robust security procedures more than a little difficult. However, it should always be noted that a handheld is a computer, just like your desktop or laptop, and we all know what chaos ensues when an employee loses a laptop!

As author Marcus Perryman notes,

User interface design is very tricky for the restricted screen real-estate and the limited input of a numeric keypad. It’s important to get the balance right between the amount of information displayed and the number of key presses needed to access data. Passwords are an integral part of this challenge. Making users enter a 10 digit alpha numeric password every 30 seconds might mean the corporate security officer gets a good night of sleep, but it’s likely to make users simply switch the device off and use pen and paper. Plus there is always the risk of users taping the password to the back of the device (I’ve seen it happen!).

In these circumstances, the trade off might consist of removing some restricted data from the mobile application in order to allow for a shorter password. Or, consider a two stage lock in which the user is required to enter the full password at less frequent intervals and a short PIN number to confirm the user identity at more frequent intervals. Biometrics are available for some devices, and other two factor solutions such as a smart card or card swipe can also simplify user input.

Windows Mobile does provide applications for developers to write secure mobile applications — Cryptography Application Programming Interface (CAPI) and Data Protection Application Programming Interface (DPAPI). So, if you’re a business user, make sure that the applications you download contain the necessary security precautions!

One range of PDAs that uses biometric security is the HP iPAQ 2700 series.

If yuo plan to be in Hong Kong some time soon, the government’s transport department has announced a six-month trial of a free service making the department’s CCTV traffic coverage available to PDAs with 3G. Anyone who’s ever been to Hong Kong knows how bad the traffic can be, so this would be an extremely valuable service.

A UK survey has found (unsurprisingly) that mobile broadband is growing at a pace that is far outstripping that of WCDMA. The survey by ABI Research found that unless service providers embrace WiMAX and Wi-Fi, the energy required to supply subscriber demands for information will push past acceptable levels.

“From a pure coverage perspective WiMAX is twice as energy-cost-effective and metro Wi-Fi is 50 times more energy-cost-effective than WCDMA. When data traffic is factored into the equation, WiMAX can accommodate 11 times today’s average data consumption and still be more energy-cost-efficient compared to WCDMA or HSDPA.”

Via Mobile Magazine.

Three American contractors were recently found to possess Canadian coins with embedded tiny transmitters. While the technology isn’t quite there yet, we (that is, the intelligence gathering we) have certainly come amazingly far.

A very practical article in Inside Bay Area about the risks we take on when driving with gadgets galore on our dashboard:

A 2006 study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute determined that nearly 80 percent of crashes and 65 percent of near-crashes involved some form of driver inattention — and far and away the leading cause of driver distraction was a wireless device.

We should never underestimate how distracting all these in-car devices can be; the key is to use them as little as possible while driving, i.e. with your sat-nav, set it all up before setting off, avoid using your mobile as much as possible, definitely do not surf the Internet if your gadgets have that capability, and most importantly, do not take your eyes or attention off the road!

Although this report — Evaluating the pros and cons of municipal wireless — focuses on the US, it is definitely food for thought.

For that reason, municipal wireless should be considered an extremely high-risk endeavor, and local governments that are considering the deployment of publicly funded network technology must look ahead of the curve, attempt to anticipate every possible problem, and plan for massive budget overruns.

Cheap, public wireless access is definitely a very attractive proposition, but the notorious slowness of government bureaucracy in getting things done tells me that by the time they roll out a certain service, it will already be obsolete.

A more fully-featured Wi-Fi detector is up for sale at Think Geek (via Shiny Shiny), and it not only tells you if a signal is present, it gives you SSID, security information, and lots more:

* Backlight LCD screen shows signal strength, network ID (SSID), encryption status and channel
* Provides specific information about each network when multiple networks are present
* Detects Encryption (WEP and WPA)
* Shows channel used (1-14)
* Coverage: Up to 200 feet (60m) open environment
* Identifies 802.11b and 802.11g networks
* Dimensions: 2.5″ x 2.75″ x 1″ thick (65mm x 70mm x 24mm)
* CE approved and FCC compliant
* Auto power off

Getting broadband (and wireless) connected in the UK can take a long time, and I would have killed for one of these for the first month I got here.

The Ruckus MediaFlex Router was designed for IPTV systems, but is now gaining popularity for streaming video wirelessly. The review on PC Magazine pronounces the router “a fairly bare-bones device”, but when used with the compatible adapter (right), it provides an extremely reliable Wi-Fi signal, and “In virtually every room in my home, the video was rock-solid, with no pauses or pixilation.”

It’s available in the UK, but the price tag is quite a bit higher than other, more user-friendly Wi-Fi routers. It would be a good option for those who do spend a lot of time watching and streaming video over their wireless connection.

Via Electronista and Gearlog.