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A lot has been stated about the Apple iPhone 4. For all of you non-AT&T users or Apple haters there has been some very exciting news in the Verizon and Droid world. For those of you who haven’t heard on the news or who don’t watch tv commercials, the Motorola Droid is a smartphone which runs Google’s Android operating system. The brand name “Droid” is a trademark of Lucasfilm and is licensed to Verizon Wireless and originally was released back in November of 2009. Various other devices are running the Android operating system and labeled as “Droid” phones.

Enough about the history lesson and onto the Motorola Droid X. Jump to July 16, 2010. The successor to the original Motorola Droid went on sale and completely sold out, despite Verizon’s reassurance that there would be more than enough phones to go around. Verizon’s website shows a ship date by August 3rd.

Similar to the iPhone 4 launch, the Motorola Droid X is having its share of defects and complaints. The defects include some units have flickering or banding displays as well as a Wi-Fi bug where we connection signals are being reported. The numbers of issues for the screen defect and affected users are small and replacements are being issued currently.

The Motorola Droid X has an impressive feature list and understandably contributed to its success on launch day.

Features

• 8 Megapixel camera with dual LED flash
• 720p HD video camera
• 4.3-inch screen in 16:9 ratio
• Wi-Fi & Bluetooth
• 8GB internal storage with 16GB microSD preinstalled expandable to 32GB
• Push email support for Gmail & Exchange & Yahoo
• Unified Google Calendar and Exchange Calendar
• Unified inbox
• 480 minutes usage time
• 220 hours of standby time

I will add in one thing that I don’t think many people are aware of. Verizon’s network currently doesn’t support simultaneous voice and data. What that means is that if someone calls you and says “take a look at the email I just sent you.” Unfortunately, unlike AT&T you will need to get off the phone to do so. The same goes for pulling up a web browser and being on the phone. There are times when I may be on a phone call and I need to Google a phone number or an address and being on AT&T’s network definitely comes in handy.

Starbucks is now offering free Wi-Fi for everyone for all customers in its company-owned stores in the United States and Canada as a part of an ongoing commitment to enhancing customer service. No Starbucks card required, no username or password needed, no time limits, and unlimited usage. Starbucks is working with AT&T in the U.S. and Bell in Canada as its Wi-Fi providers.

Starbucks was one of the first chains to offer Wi-Fi, using T-Mobile some years ago. Customers were allowed 2 hours of free Wi-Fi access provided with use with a Starbucks Card to login.

So much daily business is done currently within the walls of a Starbucks with a coffee in hand and to have free Wi-Fi seems fantastic. However, is it safe?

As with other public Wi-Fi networks, there are risks involved with connecting to public hotspots. To minimize your exposure you should be aware of several basic items. Following all of these items does not mean you are entirely protected against malicious attempts and personal exposure.

When you are on a public network you should turn off your file sharing and public folder sharing. In Windows it is located in the Control Panel and then Network and Sharing options. For Mac it is located under System Preferences and Sharing.

As for web surfing it isn’t a big deal (to me) to surf the web, in a general sense. However, be cautious to entering in usernames, passwords, credit card info, etc. to websites that are not encrypted. As a general “rule of thumb” you can tell by looking at the website address and if it starts with an “https” instead of “http.” However, there are sites where you enter login information on a website starting with “http” that submits securely to “https” and that is fine as well. As always, make sure you have your anti-virus and malware software up to date.