Right, 'cause Arrington definitely knows security theory better than Google engineers do.
In short: there are far more than 10000 possible patterns (the max for a 4-digit numeric unlock code) available with the Android login screen. I haven't looked deeply enough to insure that there isn't some minor error, but the analysis here looks fairly convincing:
It's actually quite a basic problem with the unlock screen and shows why ethnographic research is so important -- real world scenarios are very different to the lab. I can often see the smear of where I unlock my iPhone. It is not a stretch by any means to imagine you could see the unlock pattern quite easily on the G1.
In short: there are far more than 10000 possible patterns (the max for a 4-digit numeric unlock code) available with the Android login screen. I haven't looked deeply enough to insure that there isn't some minor error, but the analysis here looks fairly convincing:
http://beust.com/weblog/archives/000497.html
So, we get a 40-fold increase in the key space, plus an easy spatial mnemonic? Sounds like an improvement in both security and usability to me.
Sorry, Mikey, stick to business plans and rumors. Leave the security to the pros.