miércoles, 28 de noviembre de 2012

iPad By Davis: “Every single Apple ad now unofficially available in an iTunes playlist” plus 14 more

iPad By Davis: “Every single Apple ad now unofficially available in an iTunes playlist” plus 14 more


Every single Apple ad now unofficially available in an iTunes playlist

Posted: 28 Nov 2012 12:24 AM PST

Every single Apple ad now unofficially available in an iTunes playlistApple has always produced amazing adverts that are often as cool as its products. Thankfully one loyal Apple follower has taken the time to create a YouTube playlist that he claims includes every single television ad that Apple has created. Apple has created a lot of great ads for its products, the playlist contains a massive 485 videos.

YES, EVERY APPLE TV ADS EVER BROADCASTED! There's a lot to discover in the Playlists - Go watch! Ads missing? Let me know.

Who could forget the classic iPod ads featuring dancing silhouettes and rhythmic music, the multitude of ads based on the Mac versus PC war. More recently Apple has focused on features like the iPhone's ability to take panoramic photographs and of course the ability to access all corners of the screen on the iPhone 5's larger screen with one hand. Of course not all of them have been great, the recent Genius ads were a bit of a fail but there are certainly many more great ads than bad.

You can see them all over at YouTube although we don't know how long they will last as it is not an official Apple source. If you have some time to kill and love all things Apple, you can do a lot worse than sit back and enjoy some or all of these ads. If you watch any, make sure to let us know which ones you liked best.

Source: YouTube via TNW




Beyond Ynth for iPhone and iPad review

Posted: 27 Nov 2012 11:19 PM PST

Beyond Ynth for iPhone and iPad review

Beyond Ynth for iPhone and iPad is a cute little platformer game with great graphics that is unique, fun, and challenging. It's about a little bug named Kribl who's on a big journey to bring light back to the Kingdom of Kriblonia. In order to do so, you must move, turn, and traverse labrynth boxes which help you reach the end of each level.

The controls for Beyond Ynth are very basic and simply include 4 buttons, two on each side of the screen. The bottom buttons move Kribl left and right and the top buttons make Kribl jump left or right. Beyond Ynth includes interactive tutorials that teaches you all the tips and tricks to having a successful journey including slamming down Ynths, climbing, moving objects and more.

Beyond Ynth includes 80 levels that are displayed on a map. You start out in the forest and as you complete levels, new ones become available. All the levels have amazing graphics that compel me to choose my Retina iPad over my iPad mini even though I typically prefer to play games on my iPad mini.

During your journey with Kribl, you will encounter a wide variety of habitats including dusty deserts, volcanic valleys, dark forests, and icy mountain peaks. Each habitat has its own special trait and thus it's own tutorial. For example, in icy levels, you may encounter slippery sections of your blocks and Kribl will only survive outside of a Ynth for a few seconds at a time.

The good

  • Fun, addicting, and challenging
  • 80 levels
  • Storybook with hand-drawn illustrations
  • Realistic physics gameplay elements
  • Original music and songs, recorded in a studio
  • Super-smooth dimensional scrolling
  • High-score lists and achievements
  • Helpful rewind feature
  • Solution videos
  • 15 hours of gameplay

The bad

  • Addicting enough to kill a significant amount of productivity. Wait, is that really a con?

The conclusion

Beyond Ynth is a fantastic casual platformer puzzle game that will easily have you hooked after just a few minutes. Each level is unique in its own way and look amazing on Retina screens. This is another one of those games that I can't believe I'm only discovering now, because it really is quite awesome.

$1.99 for iPhone - Download Now

$2.99 for iPad - Download Now




George R. R. Martin’s A World of Ice and Fire – A Game of Thrones Guide for iPhone and iPad

Posted: 27 Nov 2012 10:27 PM PST

I have mixed feelings about A Song of Ice and Fire, and the TV show adaption, Game of Thrones. On one had, they're brilliant, genre-pushing stories that create a rich, wonderfully textured world and weave together an incredibly intricate web of characters and plots. On the other hand, the world is so sprawling, the characters so numerous I've almost gotten to the point where I've stopped caring. A little discipline, a little restraint, and a lot more focus, I think, would help enormously. Absent that, however, there's now George R. R. Martin's A World of Ice and Fire – A Game of Thrones Guide for iPhone and iPad.

George R. R. Martin's A World of Ice and Fire – A Game of Thrones Guide for iPhone and iPad literally puts the entire world -- 540+ people and 380+ places, in the palm of your hand. The interface is decent, which is more than you can say for a lot of official apps from official publishers, and the content is detailed enough for anyone this side of Sheldon Cooper.

The free app includes 8 characters from the first book of the series, A Game of Thrones, and maps for the north and south. You can buy information packs via in-app purchase for $0.99 a pop, or $4.99 for the entire series to date. You can also set a "spoiler" level, so if you haven't read all the books, you can lock out characters and events you haven't gotten to get.

There are the usual big brand annoyances, of course. You can favorite articles but you can't copy any text or share any entries, socially or otherwise. Also, while the maps are movable and zoomable, they didn't take the time to nail the animation, so it's jerky and janky.

But if you simply want to look up characters and locations to better keep track of the Song of Ice and Fire / Game of Thrones universe, this companion app has you covered.




MacBreak Weekly 237: Watch Your Girlfriend Sleep

Posted: 27 Nov 2012 08:44 PM PST

Leo Laport returns from the Geek Cruise to talk the geek tech, namely new Mac rumors, old Mac rumors, the iPhone 5, and more, with Andy Ihnatko, Alex Lindsay, John Moltz, and yours truly.

My pick of the week was Pad & Quill and their new iPhone 5 and iPad mini cases.

And the interviews I mentioned with Letterpress' Loren Brichter and Tapbots' Paul Haddad can be found in the Debug show feed

Subscribe or download: TWiT.tv




iOS 7 wants: Better email attachment handling

Posted: 27 Nov 2012 08:10 PM PST

iOS 7 wants: Better email attachment handling

Almost 6 years after it was introduced, you still can't attach files to emails in iOS. While iOS 6 has introduced a method to attach photos and videos to in-progress emails, it suffers from poor discoverability, and only works with content from the Photos app. If you want to attach any other file to an email, it's a usability disaster.

How iOS file handling breaks down

Emailing, and including attachments in emails, is a common task and something that takes only a few seconds on the Mac with OS X. On an iPhone or iPad with iOS, it takes an annoying amount of time and causes an unreasonable amount of frustration. Here's some blog-theater by way of example:

"Hey, Rene, can you email me the dates for that trip?"

"Sure, Kevin." I grab my iPhone, open the Mail app, add Kevin as the recipient, add the subject "trip", paste in the dates, then--

"Could you also attach that outline for discussion topics?"

"Um..."

My only option now is to copy the contents of the email, trash it, go to the app I wrote the topics in, find the file, tap share, tap email, add Kevin again, add the subject again, paste in the dates again--

Shit. I deleted the app I wrote the topics in. A hotter, newer app came out and I started using that instead, and even though both use iCloud, neither has any idea the other exists so... I re-download the old app and pray the data is either still there, or magically comes back from the cloud.

"And those two PDF files about that thing?"

Double shit. Both those PDF files are in different PDF apps, one in a simple reader, the other one in an app that supports annotation. Now I have to send the discussion topics from one app, and each of the PDF files from their apps.

Now Kevin is laughing his ass of at me and asking me to tell him again how the iPhone is easy to use, and I want to punch things.

And the reason for all this is that Apple forgot a cardinal principle of design: unreasonable drives for simplicity sometimes lead to inane levels of complexity.

Right now, adding photo or video attachments to in-progress emails is done via the same pop-up menu originally introduced in IOS 3 for cut, copy, and paste. You have to tap the screen to get the popup, tap a tiny, obscure arrow button to get more options, and then tap to add the attachment.

An easy to find, easy to use attachment button would be simpler. It's a solution employed by third-party apps like Facebook, email clients like Gmail and Sparrow, and the official Twitter app and Tweetbot.

Some of these are more elegant than others, but all of them are more discoverable. Apple already uses a blue + button to add contacts. Something like that for attachments could work for attachments as well. I did a mockup just like that for a pre-iOS 6 article on higher hanging fruit, but I'll update it below.

Tapping the attachment button could bring up a Share Sheet that includes the Photos icon, so you could attach photos as normal, but also any other app icon that contains documents. Tapping an icon would bring up a list view of all the files associated with that app. It's a bit overwrought, but it fits with the existing iOS constructs, including the binding of files to apps, and has the advantage of familiarity-as-a-feature.

Depending on how many file-capable apps are installed, it could create a very dense Share Sheet. It also still requires the user remember which app contains which file.

That's why, for the last couple of years, I've been asking for a simple, flat document repository for iOS -- a Files app that works the same way as the Photos app (or Passbook app for that matter). A Files app for iOS would remove unnecessary cognitive load from users and solve a wide swathe of current usability problems with iOS, including email attachments.

With a document repository, any user file could be attached to any in-progress email, without the need for a Share Sheet, or for the user to remember app ownership. And it would do so in a way that's consistent with how iOS already works, increasing simplicity at the same time.




How to view, create, and update notes using Siri

Posted: 27 Nov 2012 03:06 PM PST

Complete guide to Siri commands for notes and memo taking

Being a virtual personal assistant, of course Siri can take a note! In fact, Siri can not only take a note, but update them as well. If you need something that's more permanent than a reminder, something more like an idea you don't want to forget, or a draft you want to get down while you're driving, Siri and the Notes app are the perfect combination.

How to view a note with Siri

You can use to find notes store in the Notes app. Siri can either list all your notes, or you can ask Siri to search based on date or keywords in the contents of the note.

  • Press and hold down the Home button to activate Siri.
  • Tell Siri to show you your notes. For example: "Show all my notes", "Show my notes from today", or "Show notes about iPad".
  • Tap the note you want from the list Siri provides, and Siri will open the note for you in the Notes app.

How to take a note with Siri

If all you want to do is quickly jot down an idea, memo, draft, or just a long string of text, Siri can do that for you.

  • Press and hold down the Home button to activate Siri.
  • Tell Siri to take a note: Literally: "Take a note".
  • Dictate the the text you want added. For example: "I'm staying in room 342" or "In the final scene, I should make sure Batman is treated like the world's greatest detective, and not some moron who falls for every idiot plan in the movie."

If you want to keep adding to the same note, and you haven't done anything else with Siri since creating the note, just say "Add" followed by what you want to add.

How to update a note with Siri

Siri can also update older notes. This comes in handy if you have separate notes for separate types of material, or if an idea occurs to you long after you dictated the original note.

  • Press and hold down the Home button to activate Siri.
  • Tell Siri you want to update a note. For example: "Update last note" or "update note".
  • Choose the note you want to update from the list Siri provides.
  • Dictate the text you want added to the note.

How to get more help with Siri

If you still need help with setting up or using Siri with your iPhone Calendar, or any other Siri feature, head on over to our Siri Forum and ask away!




Pocket for Mac updates with improved sharing, new keyboard shortcuts, and more

Posted: 27 Nov 2012 11:38 AM PST

Pocket is one of the popular read-later services for iPhone, iPad, and Mac its Mac version has been updated with improved sharing, new keyboard shortcuts, and more. In Mountain Lion, there is now native support of Twitter and Facebook, and Twitter sharing supports multiple Twitter accounts. Additionally, Evernote sharing has been rebuilt for easier tagging, commenting and improved authentication.

The new keyboard shortcuts include the ability to open items in the background and toggle between Home, Favorites Archives, and Content Type. Pocket also added support for Evernote China Yinxiang Biji, enabled printing, and added Pocket for Mac URL scheme - pocket://.

The most popular read-later services available to Mac and iOS users are Pocket, Instapaper, and Readability. Which of these do you prefer? And if you're a Mac user who prefers Pocket, what do you think of this update?

Free for Mac - Download now

Free for iPhone and iPad - Download Now




Apple reportedly fires head of iOS 6 Maps team

Posted: 27 Nov 2012 11:22 AM PST

Apple reportedly fires head of Maps team

Apple has reportedly fired the manager in charge of iOS 6 Maps, Richard Williamson. Williamson lead the mapping team that was responsible for the new, heavily criticized maps app that debuted in September. The dismissal of Williamson is one of Eddie Cue's first major actions since being put in charge of maps in the management shakeup last month. Cue is said to be looking to TomTom to fix its landmark data as well as talking to mapping experts outside of Apple about how to be improve the experience. Apple has been hard at work fixing problems in Maps since the release of iOS 6. In a report from Bloomberg reports:

A team at Apple has been working to fix the mapping mistakes, focusing first on some of the most glaring problems, one person said. The satellite imagery over the U.K. has been improved and labels for popular U.S. landmarks such as the Washington Monument have been corrected.

A shakeup of this kind is not unexpected. When Scott Forstall was ousted last month, many speculated that it was due to the issues with Maps, but ultimately it was more to do with internal politics than one issue with one piece of software, as serious as those issues were. As the leader of the Maps team, Williamson was responsible for making sure Maps was done on time. Yes, Maps is a 1.0 product, but there is a minimum level of quality that a product this important has to have before it's released to the public, and Maps wasn't there for a lot of people. The mapping team needs to be able to make improvements to Maps rapidly in order to turn it into the product that it should be, and if Williamson wasn't the right person to lead this team, then Eddie Cue needed to let him go and find someone that he could count on to get the job done.

Source: Bloomberg




Review: Apple’s iPad mini Smart Cover

Posted: 27 Nov 2012 10:22 AM PST

iPad mini Smart Cover

Ever since I first used an Apple Smart Cover on my iPad 2, it has become a near-constant companion for my iPad 2 and now iPad 3. I've often written here about how the Smart Cover plus an ultra-thin Gelaskin have tended to be my favorite 'outfit' for the iPad.

So I when I bought the iPad mini on launch day a few weeks ago I purchased a Smart Cover for it right away, hoping it would become just as great a companion for the iPad mini as its bigger cousin has for my other iPads.

The short story here is that there's a happy ending. The iPad min Smart Cover is proving to be every bit as much of a 'bestie' for my smaller iPad as hoped for. It is very rarely ever off the iPad mini. Hit the break for a few more photos and some further thoughts on the mini Smart Cover …

(...)
Read the rest of Review: Apple's iPad mini Smart Cover (488 words)


© patrickj for iPad Insight, 2012. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: , ,


This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

How to fix an unresponsive Home button in an iPhone 4S

Posted: 27 Nov 2012 09:45 AM PST

How to fix an unresponsive Home button in an iPhone 4S

The iPhone 4S has been around for a little over a year now and as with any device, normal wear and tear can cause components to fail over time. The Home button is the most used hardware function on the iPhone which means it's typically the first one to give out. While Apple changed the Home button design slightly from the iPhone 4S's predecessors, the flex cable can still wear over time leading to misfires when single and double tapping or even worse, the Home button can give out altogether.

If you're out of warranty and your Home button is giving you a headache, we can help you DIY repair it for much less than the price of a new iPhone.

Disclaimer: As with any repair, neither iMore nor The Pod Drop can be held responsible for any damage you may do to your device. It's also worth considering that opening up your device to perform any repair or modification can and will void your Apple warranty. If you don't feel comfortable opening your device, don't. Use extreme care and caution when performing a repair on any device.

Not comfortable with DIY repair? Leave it to the pros

If you aren't comfortable performing a DIY repair on your own, don't. It is possible to cause more damage or run into issues you aren't ready for. In this case, it's probably better to either pay the money for a replacement device from Apple or use a local or mail-in service that will handle the repair and any issues that may arise for you.

The Pod Drop has many locations in the midwest and is a rapidly growing company. You can check for a Pod Drop location near you, mail it in, or use another third party repair service. For more information on mail-in repairs or possible Pod Drop locations near you, you can visit their website.

If you are comfortable with repairing your own device, put your ninja pants on and keep reading!

What you'll need to DIY replace an iPhone 4S Home button flex cable

We recommend using only quality and genuine parts from a reputable supplier like eTech Parts. They have quality parts, tools, and much more for all your repair needs. You will find links to the specific parts you'll need for this repair in the list below.

Video walkthrough

Our video guides are simply a breakdown of the main disassembly steps minus small components. Depending on what you're replacing, the video teardown may not cover everything. It it means to be a supplement to the written steps for each guide. We highly recommend reading ALL the directions below before proceeding with the video walkthrough.

Power off your iPhone 4S

Before performing any repair you should always power off your device before opening it up.

Remove the back plate

  1. Using your security screwdriver, remove the 2 screws on either side of the dock connector port.
  2. iPhone 4S dock connector screws
  3. Set them aside. They are both the exact same size and length so it does not matter if you mix them up. They are interchangeable.
  4. Gently slide up the back plate by applying a bit of pressure along the bottom with your thumbs and sliding upwards.
  5. iPhone 4S remove back plate
  6. Now lift off the back plate and set it aside.
  7. iPhone 4S back removal

Remove the battery and grounding clip

  1. Using your #00 Phillips screwdriver, remove the two screws holding the battery in place.
  2. iPhone 4S bottom battery screw
  3. These screws are different lengths so make sure you remember which one goes where. The one that is slightly larger is the bottom screw.
  4. There is a tiny grounding clip underneath the battery clip where the first screw is located. Use your spudger tool or finger to remove it before prying the clip up. Many times it can go flying if you don't remove it first and then you'll have difficulty locating it so it's best to remove it first.
  5. iPhone 4S grounding clip removaliPhone 4S grounding clip
  6. Now use your spudger tool and at the bottom of the battery clip, gently pry upwards so the clip pops up.
  7. iPhone 4S battery clip
  8. Move to the edge of the iPhone where the volume buttons are located and use your spudger tool to carefully pry up the battery. It is stuck down with a good amount of adhesive so be careful when prying upwards that you don't bend the battery. This is why I do not use the plastic tab that is provided. It typically rips or bends the battery. If one part is resistant move your pry tool a little further down and gently start prying it up in different places taking care not to come too close to the volume button cables towards the top.
  9. iPhone 4S battery removal
  10. Once you've gotten the battery pulled out of the iPhone 4S we can move on to inserting the replacement battery.

Remove the top logic board shields

  1. Using your #00 Phillips screwdriver, remove the four screws that hold the top silver shield in place and the one screw that holds the small black shield in place.
  2. iphone 4s logic board shield removal
  3. Now use your spudger or pry tool to gently lift the silver shield out of the iPhone.
  4. Use your spudger or pry tool to lift the black shield out of the iPhone.
  5. Set both shields aside and make sure your screws are organized for reassembly later.

Unclip the top logic board cables & remove the rear-facing camera

Using your spudger or pry tool carefully disconnect all the cables at the top of the logic board. There are seven cables total. One of the cables lies underneath the bottom most cable so you'll need to disconnect the cable over it before folding it back and revealing the shorter cable underneath.

Once you unclip the seven cables, you can lift the rear-facing camera directly out of the iPhone. It was only connected by one cable.

Disconnect the dock connector

  1. Using your #00 Phillips screwdriver remove the shield that is covering the dock connector cable towards the middle left of the iPhone. Remember which screw came from where as they are different sizes. Gently lift the shield out of the iPhone and set it aside.
  2. Remove dock connector shield iPhone 4 CDMA
  3. Take your spudger tool and gently pry up the dock connector cable and peel it back as shown below. Perform this step with caution as there is adhesive on the underside of the cable. Take care not to rip the cable by pulling up to quickly.
  4. Remove dock connector cable iPhone 4 CDMA
  5. Leave the cable in this position and move on to the next section.

Pry up the cellular antenna

  1. Using your spudger toolcarefully pry up the round connection for the cellular antenna. It should come up easily so pry up gently.
  2. Unclip antenna cable iPhone 4 CDMA
  3. You'll notice that it is wrapped around a metal clip. Gently unwrap it so it's sticking upwards and leave it in this position.

Remove the SIM card and tray

Using a SIM removal tool or a bent paper clip, eject the SIM tray and set it, and the SIM card aside.

Remove the logic board

  1. Remove the three #00 Phillips screws at the top, middle, and bottom left of the logic board with your #00 Phillips screwdriver. The top screw has a piece of tape over it you'll need to peel back. After removing it you'll also notice a gold grounding clip underneath it. Make sure you don't lose it as you'll need it for reassembly.
  2. There are two more screws holding the logic board in place and you'll need to remove them with your flat head screwdriver. They are located at the top right and bottom of the logic board.
  3. Now you should be able to lift the logic board out of the iPhone. Use the area that the rear-facing camera was located and the bottom of the logic board to lift it straight out.

Remove the loud speaker assembly

  1. The loud speaker is held in with two screws that are located on both sides of the assembly. Use your #00 Phillips screwdriver to remove them.
  2. The screw on the left hand side of the assembly has a black triangular spacer underneath it. Make sure you don't lose it and set it aside for reassembly.
  3. After the two screws are removed you can gently lift the speaker assembly out of the iPhone.

Remove the vibrator assembly

The vibrator assembly is only held down with a bit of adhesive. Use your pry tool or metal spatula tool in order to loosen the adhesive and remove the vibrator assembly. Just make sure you are careful not to bend it.

Remove the digitizer and LCD assembly

For this section, we highly recommend watching the teardown video above as it will show you the technique for removing the display that will best compliment the written steps much better than pictures can.

  1. Hold the iPhone so the screen is facing you and insert your pry tool or metal spatula into the top left corner and slowly start breaking the adhesive underneath the display by moving your tool gently back and forth taking care not to bend the front panel as it can damage the LCD and/or digitizer.
  2. Once the top left is free, move over to the top right corner and repeat.
  3. After the top of the assembly is free, move towards the bottom on either side of the Home button and repeat the same process.
  4. Once all the adhesive is broken, carefully pull the front assembly off the iPhone taking care to make sure the digitizer and LCD cables don't get caught up in the frame.

Replace the Home button flex cable

Typically the Home button flex cable, not the actual button itself is what causes issues. It wears down over time and then doesn't make contact or not enough which causes misreads for single and double taps. In this step, we'll replace the problem cable.

  1. Hold your iPhone 4S midframe so you can see the inside of where the dock connector assembly sits. You'll notice there is a tiny bracket holding the Home button cable in place. Pop up the single clip using your pry tool holding it in place.
  2. You can now use your fingers or the edge of a pry tool to back the Home button cable out of the clip.
  3. Turn the frame over and push the old cable through the front.
  4. The remaining part of the Home button cable is only held down with adhesive. Simply pull it up.
  5. Replace the old cable with the new one.

Reassemble your iPhone 4S

To reassemble your iPhone 4S, you can either follow all these directions in exact reverse order or view our reassembly video guide above which will walk you through how to reassemble it from screen to turning it back on and testing it.

And ...done!

Now that you've completely reassembled your iPhone 4S you can go ahead and hold down the power button in order to turn it back on. After it boots up make sure to test the Home button functionality as well as the digitizer since we removed that as well. It's always a good idea to place a few test calls and test all functionality including the loud speaker just to make sure everything was put back together correctly.

Once you've verified that everything is back to working order, give yourself a high five for completing one of the more difficult DIY repairs we've dished out to you!

Want to know how to perform another type of iPhone repair or modification? Send me suggestions to ally@imore.com.

For questions or to inquire about mail-in repairs through The Pod Drop, you can follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook or e-mail us directly!

Additional resources:




The Magazine, sub-compact publishing, and going digitally native

Posted: 27 Nov 2012 09:33 AM PST

The Magazine, sub-compact publishing, and going digitally native

If Apple had created an iNewsstand store, like the iBookstore, App Store, and iTunes Store, we'd likely have gotten a more consistent, more controlled experience, rather than the mixed bag of hurt that are PNG-prints of traditional magazines by traditional entities, unwilling and unable to embrace digitally native formats. But we might not have gotten some of the truly creative, truly inspired apps that have come to Newsstand. Craig Mod takes a look at the quiet revolution that's going on in digitally native publishing right now.

Our current tools are a bit kludgey, a bit clunky, a bit too tied to the past. The Magazine is a great first example of a subcompact publication, utilizing Newsstand — an existing under-leveraged tool — to indigenously and ingenuously deliver content.

I'd be shocked if there weren't a dozen other publishers prepping to launch similar magazines. Or, even better: someone building a system by which anyone could launch a Newsstand app like The Magazine — for minimal cost with minimal complexity.

Mod argues that when you strip everything away, when you get down to only the most essential of parts, everything from the sub-compact car that revolutionized the auto industry, to the sub-compact publication which may well revolutionize the periodical industry, becomes possible for those brave and bold enough to see seize it.

That it took a developer like Marco Arment to make The Magazine, with the perfect confluence of development skills, reading app experience (Instapaper), and connections to authors who could feed his first few issues, shouldn't be underestimated. I like that The Magazine was hard. If it hadn't been, it might not have been good.

I also like that traditional publishers like The New York Times are breaking with legacy media preconceptions to do something authentic with their Newsstand app.

If I had my druthers, there'd still be an iNewsstand store proper, where Apple controls the experience, and users enjoy the consistency of the rest of iTunes. But there'd also be Newsstand-style functionality -- background downloads, easy subscription processing and management -- would be available to all apps, unconstrained by the conventions of the periodical format.

Then the potential for both digital magazines, and things well beyond magazines, would really be unlocked.

Now go read Mod's entire essay, it's a fascinating look at a medium truly in need of disruption.

Source: Craig Mod




iOS takes top marketshare spot from Android on iPhone 5 enthusiasm

Posted: 27 Nov 2012 09:33 AM PST

iOS takes top marketshare spot from Android on iPhone 5 enthusiasm

iOS on phones (i.e., the iPhone) has reportedly overtaken Android on phones (i.e. dozens and dozens of different phones) in marketshare, accounting for 48.1% of US smartphone sales, ahead of Android's 46.7%. This follows the release of the iPhone 5, and not coincidentally, the last time Apple saw this share of the market was after last year's iPhone 4S launch. The numbers come by way of study conducted by Kantar Worldpanel ComTech. Kantar's global consumer insight director, Dominic Sunnebo, expects Apple to beat its previous record of 49.3% of US marketshare.

Sunnebo comments: "Apple has always managed to maintain loyalty levels far above the competition, and this has clearly played a part in driving sales of its new device. An impressive 92% of existing Apple owners in the US said they will choose an iPhone the next time they upgrade."

Kantar's study also notes that a large portion of iPhone 5 sales are new iPhone users. While a significant majority, 62%, are existing iPhone users upgrading their devices, 38% of iPhone 5 customers are either buying their first smartphone or switching from another platform, with 13% of new customers switching from an Android device and 6% switching from BlackBerry. Additionally, 92% of existing iPhone users said they plan to choose an iPhone the next time they upgrade their phone.

These numbers are good news for Apple. To have that sort of customer satisfaction is the wish of any company. It also goes to show that despite what some may say, excitement for the iPhone is as palpable as it's ever been. With almost 20% of new customers coming from other devices, the iPhone remains an attractive device for a wide range of people. Or maybe they just like boring things.

Source: Kantar Worldpanel ComTech




iPad at Work: Replacing Laptops in the Texas Legislature

Posted: 27 Nov 2012 08:20 AM PST

Texas Legislature iPad

Photo Credit: Ricardo B. Brazziel

The Texas Legislature is replacing laptops with iPads for the new session that starts in early January of next year. As my hometown newspaper – the Austin American-Statesman – reports,

.Each lawmaker's office in the Capitol will be offered two iPads for the session that begins Jan. 8. Each committee will get one, too. And the Legislature's website has been upgraded to be readable on mobile devices for members of the public wishing to track legislation or find out about where and when committees are meeting.

The Statesman article quotes Chris Griesel, House parliamentarian (shown above) on some of the key reasons why the iPad is being adopted. These include:

– It's viewed as a natural progressive step in the legislature's technological development. Over the years they've gone from mainframe computers to desktops to laptops. "And now, Griesel said, it's all about iPads and mobile computing." Hello, Post-PC era.

– Members have made clear their preference for the iPad – with growing numbers of them choosing to use their personal iPads instead of state-issued laptops over the last couple of years.

(...)
Read the rest of iPad at Work: Replacing Laptops in the Texas Legislature (192 words)


© patrickj for iPad Insight, 2012. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:


This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

New, ultra-thin iMac available starting November 30

Posted: 27 Nov 2012 06:12 AM PST

Apple's all-new, all thin iMac will be available for your purchasing pleasure starting November 30. The 21.5-inch model will be available through Apple Online, Apple Retail, and select Apple resellers, while the 27-inch model will be available for order through Apple Online and will ship sometime in December (no word on in-store availability for that model). Lest we forget the details, originally announced over a month ago at the October iPad and Mac event, Apple has issued a press release to remind us:

Redesigned from the inside out, the new iMac packs high performance technology into an aluminum and glass enclosure that measures just 5 mm thin at its edge and features a reengineered display that reduces reflection by 75 percent. The new iMac includes 8GB of 1600 MHz memory, a 1TB hard drive, third generation quad-core Intel Core i5 processors that can be upgraded to Core i7, and the latest NVIDIA GeForce graphics processors that deliver up to 60 percent faster performance. Fusion Drive is an innovative new storage option that gives customers the performance of flash and the capacity of a hard drive by combining 128GB of flash with a standard hard drive to create a single storage volume that intelligently manages files to optimize read and write performance.

The 21.5-inch iMac is available with a 2.7 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.2 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GT 640M for a suggested retail price of $1,299 (US); and with a 2.9 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.6 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M for a suggested retail price of $1,499 (US). The 27-inch iMac is available with a 2.9 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.6 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660M for a suggested retail price of $1,799 (US); and with a 3.2 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.6 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 675MX for a suggested retail price of $1,999 (US).

Apple is using a process called "friction stir welding" to adhere the iMac front panels to the casings at the molecular level, and rumor has it that's not the easiest thing to do at commercial scale. Supplies might be constrained going into the new year, so if you've been waiting on the new iMac, shop early and shop fast.

Anyone planning on picking one up?

Source: Apple




General Motors set to be the first car manufacturer to integrate Siri into its new cars

Posted: 27 Nov 2012 04:29 AM PST

General Motors set to be the first car manufacturer to integrate Siri into its new carsGeneral Motors has announced that it will be the first vehicle manufacturer to integrate Siri into its cars. It will include support for Siri in its new Chevrolet Spark and Sonic models which will be available in early 2013. Siri Eyes Free was announced back in June at WWDC and offers an easy way for car manufacturers to integrate Siri into their vehicles; the new comes from The Next Web

Owners of the Spark and Sonic will need an iPhone 4S or iPhone 5 (there's no reference as to whether the iPad will be supported) which will enable them to use an "Eyes Free mode" that allows interaction with their iPhone using just their voice, while the device's screen remains unlit.

It all centers around a MyLink radio connection via Bluetooth, which pairs with the iOS device and allows users to interact with the steering wheel voice activation button to interact with Siri in Eyes Free mode. From this mode, users can make hands-free calls, play songs from their iTunes library, listen and compose messages, but Siri will not be able to perform more complex requests that require the opening of a web page while in that mode.

The move by General Motors to integrate Siri into its lower priced models is certainly a welcome one. Usually integration like this is saved for the more premium models in the range where a high priced extra is required to get everything to talk. This time, the expensive part of the system is already built into your iPhone 4S or 5. The important part is driver safety, the ability to do all of the things that Siri can do without the need to take your eyes off where you are going, has to be a really positive thing.

Other car manufacturers are also believed to be working on similar systems to integrate Siri into their vehicles. Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Toyota, Audi and Honda have all confirmed that they will be offering Siri integration in the future.

Source: The Next Web




No hay comentarios:

Publicar un comentario