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The mobile payments technology just took a big leap forward with Verizon Wireless, AT&T and T-Mobile announcing Isis Mobile Wallet. This "tap to pay" technology can turn many of your credit cards and loyalty cards into virtual versions that will only require a tap at Isis-compatible merchants. To get started, you'll need one of the 15 Isis-ready smartphones, including the Samsung Galaxy S4 and several Droid devices, with Near Field Communication, or NFC, and an enhanced SIM card. You'll also need the free Isis Android app from the Google Play Store and have an idea of which cards are participating in the new technology, such as American Express and Chase. You'll also have the option of adding money to your Mobile Wallet by linking a bank account or debit card. The NFC technology on your smartphone will allow an Isis Mobile Wallet short-range wireless communication feature, known as "SmartTap," between the Isis app and the Isis terminal at the ...

Now that iOS 7 is available, lots of iPhone users are anxious to get Apple Inc.'s latest operating system on their older devices, such as the iPhone 5, iPhone 4S and iPhone 4. While some are having good luck with the iOS 7 download and install process, the Apple discussion forums are filled with users have problems with the install or the behavior of their iPhone after the update. To ensure a problem-free update,there are some actions to be aware of that might make the process a little smoother. The No. 1 thing you need to do before attempting to install iOS 7 is to backup your iPhone through iTunes. This will ensure that you don't lose your valuable contacts, photos and other things of importance on your iPhone. Some users are getting a "restore to factory defaults" message during the download process for iOS 7. If you haven't backed up beforehand, that's not a good feeling. Then you're going to need at least 3.1 gigabytes of free space o...

As expected, the 5S and the 5C iPhones were unveiled on Tuesday, Sept. 10 with a splash of colors. In the past, a new iPhone announcement was always a magical moment, thanks to all the hype created Apple Inc., the media and Apple fans all around the world. The magic continues with these two devices. The initial excitement surrounding iPhone announcements started on Jan. 9, 2007, at the Macworld Conference & Expo in San Francisco, when the late Apple CEO Steve Jobs pulled an iPhone 2G out his pocket. The hoopla surrounding Apple smartphones announcement has been gaining traction every since and there seems to be no end in sight. The true Apple fans can probably name them all, starting with the 2G in 2007, the 3G in 2008, followed by the 3GS in 2009 and the 4G in 2010. We're not done. Then we had the 4S in 2011 and the evolutionary, if not revolutionary, iPhone 5 just a year ago. Now we have the iPhone 5S, a souped-up doozy of a device with fingerprint reader techno...

Well now, just when it seemed that Apple's innovation has slowed down, as the Android camp was full-steam ahead, the guys from Cupertino dealt what could be a winning hand at the start of the Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco. Apple unveiled the mysterious and tightly-held-to-their-chest iOS 7 software update, stamped with the work of the possibly soon-to-be-famous Jony Ive, Apple's senior vice president of design. Already, it is being called "the most significant iOS update since the original iPhone that took the stage in 2007. After watching the video, I believe them, or they did a good job of snookering me and probably a lot of other Apple fans. I can't keep this to myself any longer; this update that is due this fall is going to be one fine upgrade, as every nook and cranny of the current iPhone software has been redesigned. The appearance is clean, minimalist, simplistic and very appealing. The icons for apps look fresh and not overdone, with cr...