Simon Hendery: S is for speed - New Apple iPhones arrive

The new version of Apple's much revered iPhone, the 3GS model, officially lands in the New Zealand market next Friday.

Vodafone has yet to reveal details of mobile plans for the data-hungry device, but has said customers can buy the 16GB version of the phone without a plan for $1179 or the 32GB device on its own for $1379.

The "S" suffix tacked on to this version of the smartphone stands for "speed", meaning its ability to run faster is one of a number of useful improvements Apple has made.

Many mobile Apple-ites around the world have clearly been saving their pennies and waiting for the opportunity to upgrade to the latest version.

Apple said it sold a million units within three days after last month's global launch.

PIPPED AT THE POST

Rival phone maker Nokia, meanwhile, will be able to claim a smug local marketing victory next week.

It is launching its own flagship super-pricey smartphone, the N97, in New Zealand on Tuesday, three days ahead of the iPhone. More on the battle of the top-end devices in next week's Connect.

VIRAL MARKETING

What is it with Google and influenza? Just a few weeks after the web behemoth launched a New Zealand version of Google Flu Trends, its clever tool for tracking illness by monitoring what people are searching for online, Google and pandemic are again being mentioned in the same (hopefully mask-covered) breath.

Local technology company Fronde Systems, which sells Google's online business software tools, Google Apps, in the local market, says Apps is a great antidote for companies that find themselves struck down by the effects of a pandemic.

If the office is out of bounds due to widespread sickness, those colleagues still well enough to work can keep in touch from home using Google's Gmail and the suite of other Apps tools that allow online instant messaging, document sharing and collaboration, Fronde says.

And Fronde's general manager, Rob Old, has clearly been thinking about all scenarios, even how clients would cope if their own company IT guy comes down with the bot.

"During a pandemic situation a business' own IT staff are likely to be impacted as well," says Old.

"Fronde provides specialised services to help set up Google's productivity applications, and gives New Zealand businesses the comfort of a trusted local support partner."

My advice: Best to think ahead and call them in to set things up before you, or they, come down sick.

THRILLER FOR SPAMMERS

The Michael Jackson mega-hit Don't Stop'Til You Get Enough could be the evil spamming community's anthem.

Jackson's passing is the latest fodder for spammers, who IT security firm Symantec says have used it to launch a wave of nasties aimed at capitalising on manic levels of interest in the celebrity and his music.

"We expect that spam and malware will keep coming in, given Michael Jackson's popularity and following," Symantec's Vivian Ho says in a blog post.

"Recipients should be extra cautious about messages that appear to be related to Jackson's death, especially any email that comes from an unknown or unexpected source."

EMAIL EXHAUSTION

Feeling stressed at work? It could be your inbox. Not the number of emails it contains, but their poor quality.

New Zealand psychology researcher Rowena Brown, who studied the email ingestion habits of 218 staff at the University of Queensland, concluded that having to interpret ambiguous emails from colleagues can be just as stressful as receiving large volumes of messages.

"Our study found poorly crafted and complex emails can contribute to work-related stress, such as feeling overloaded as well as impacting on job satisfaction and working relationships.

"Employees reported that poorly written emails can also create confusion and disagreements over work-related activities and responsibilities."

In fact, while many of us freak out at a rapidly filling inbox, Brown's study concluded a tide of emails can actually increase job satisfaction. "This may suggest that receiving workplace emails enables users to feel connected and important within their work environment."