Needham & Company analyst
Charlie Wolf believes that the
iPhone could emerge as the big survivor as
Android and
Windows Phone 7 battle it out in a race to the bottom. Wolf expects that
Google and
Microsoft will be battling aggressively to keep phone makers building devices with their respective software platforms and those manufacturers will probably slash prices in an attempt to get market share. The result is expected to be significantly decreased margins for everyone but Apple. This could mean a scenario similar to the computer market where commodity Windows computers hold the vast majority of the market, Apple uses its highly polished products to stay far and away the most profitable computer maker.
In a new research note to investors, Wolf declared that the launch of Microsoft's new phone OS has been successful despite what appears to be very slow sales after less than two months on the market. According to Wolf there were 135,000 active users of the Windows Phone 7 Facebook app, which he sees an indicator of sales in the absence of actual numbers from Microsoft. Wolf expects the Windows numbers to grow as a result of Microsoft spending a substantial amount of its $500 million phone marketing budget on keeping phone manufacturers and developers in the fold.
While Android is roaring along with 300,000 activations a day right now, it is expected to take a hit if and when the iPhone arrives on Verizon's network. However, what Wolf doesn't really address is how AT&T will respond to losing Apple exclusivity. It's possible that it will put more of a push behind rival systems, helping them to increase their share at the expense of some profitability for the manufacturers and OS developers.
iPhone could be the financial survivor in Android and Windows Phone 7 war originally appeared on TUAW on Sat, 11 Dec 2010 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
iPhone could be the financial survivor in Android and Windows Phone 7 war originally appeared on TUAW on Sat, 11 Dec 2010 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Analyst Shaw Wu sent out his latest investor note on Monday, and unsurprisingly, he says an iPhone for Verizon Wireless is imminent, but he has added a new twist on this long-running story. Wu is claiming that Verizon will give Apple a larger than usual cut of sales in order to be the exclusive carrier for the CDMA iPhone, leaving Sprint and T-Mobile out in the cold. Wu claims his sources have told him that Android has begun to "lose some of its luster" as the number one carrier in the U.S., and BlackBerry OS6 doesn't look as promising as it once did.
Most of the recent speculation has centered around an early 2011 launch for the first non-GSM iPhone, but it remains unclear if it would simply be announced at that time or actually go on sale then. Launching early in the year would either cut short Apple's typical annual product cycle for the iPhone and bring iPhone 5 to market early, or else it would leave a CDMA iPhone 4 with a short life cycle. Given the rapid pace of iteration for Android phones, either option for the CDMA iPhone is a possibility.Rumor: CDMA iPhone to be carrier exclusive in with Verizon originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 07 Dec 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Rumor: CDMA iPhone to be carrier exclusive in with Verizon originally appeared on TUAW on Tue, 07 Dec 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Perhaps the only department at Apple that works longer hours than engineering these days is legal. The most recent legal dust-up in Cupertino has just expanded, as Apple has amended a patent lawsuit against Motorola to include 12 more claims. This particular fracas began in October when Motorola sued Apple, claiming infringement of 18 patents relating to hardware and services.
Apple subsequently counter-sued, claiming that Motorola's Android phones infringed on a number of Apple patents, mostly covering multi-touch technology. The filing last week adds 12 more patents to the mix, including nine phone patents and three patents that cover set-top box and DVR technology. These patents will probably also get added to Apple's complaint before the International Trade Commission.
While Apple has 24 patents on the table to Motorola's 18, that doesn't necessarily mean much; any number of the patents on either side could be of dubious validity. The most likely outcome is that the two sides will go back and forth filing motions for summary judgements for the next several years. At some point, shortly before either a court or ITC hearing, the lawyers will probably sit down and hammer out a cross-licensing deal that allows both sides to walk away claiming victory, so they can move on to other battles with HTC, Nokia and Microsoft.
[via Electronista]
Apple expands lawsuit against Motorola originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 06 Dec 2010 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Apple expands lawsuit against Motorola originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 06 Dec 2010 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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In addition to the
functional changes like AirPlay and AirPrint that we already know about in
iOS 4.2, there are also under-the-skin changes that impact the way
iPhones interact with cellular networks. The results of
tests run at Nokia Siemens' Smart Lab in Espoo, Finland indicate that Apple has implemented a new control strategy that complies with the 3rd Generation Partnership Project's (3GPP) Release 8 specifications. The new fast dormancy feature in iOS 4.2 is said to significantly reduce signaling traffic between phones and the networks they operate on.
The way previous iPhones communicated with networks has been a topic of discussion for some time. Specifically, it was claimed that the way Apple's phone is controlled causes a lot more network traffic than other phones. Smartphone designers used an earlier version of fast dormancy that frequently shut down and restarted data connections to the network in order to preserve battery life. However, each time the connection changed state, signals were exchanged between the phone and network. The new protocol is controlled by the network rather than the phone, allowing operators to manage network traffic by slowing down the switching rate when things get busy. It's not known what impact this will have on phone battery life, but given that the phones were designed to optimize it with the old approach, it will probably be a bit worse when operating on busy networks. The change only applies to the iPhone 4, but any relief will probably be welcome on our increasingly crowded cell networks.
iOS 4.2 lightens the load on cellular networks originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 02 Dec 2010 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
iOS 4.2 lightens the load on cellular networks originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 02 Dec 2010 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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While capacitive touchscreens have a lot of wonderful qualities when it comes to precision and sensitivity, the need for skin contact can be a problem in cold climates. MobileBurn has tried out three different solutions that help protect your digits from frigid air while still letting you manipulate your iPhone or iPad without resorting to some kind of sausage.
Gloves from Isotoner and Agloves and a retrofit kit from GloveTips.com gave a decidedly mixed set of results in MobileBurn's testing. Fleece smartTouch gloves from Isotoner feature capacitive pads on the tips of the index finger and thumb. While the gloves are warm and the pads work well, their position means that your finger or thumb have to be straight on to make contact. If you often use the side of the finger tip or thumb, you're out of luck. The Agloves are infused throughout with silver, meaning that you can touch the screen any way you want and still control it. However, the knit construction means they don't keep your hands as warm as the Isotoners, and they are apparently very slippery, making it hard to keep a grip on your phone unless it is in some kind of case.
Finally, the GloveTips let you retrofit your favorite gloves with capacitive tips. Unfortunately, the contact points are very small, and if you don't get them in exactly the right spot for the way you hold your phone, they aren't very reliable. If you've tried out any gloves that let you control a touchscreen, let us know how they worked out in the comments. Check out MobileBurn's video in the second part of the post.
Continue reading Three touchscreen-capable gloves tested
Three touchscreen-capable gloves tested originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 29 Nov 2010 11:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Three touchscreen-capable gloves tested originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 29 Nov 2010 11:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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With the release of iOS 4.2.1, Apple has again gained the upper hand in the ongoing cat and mouse battle against iPhone unlockers. While the U.S. Library of Congress has decreed that users who choose to unlock their mobile devices for use on alternative networks cannot be prosecuted under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), there was unfortunately no prohibition on companies locking phones in the first place.
As a result, Apple has continued to tweak its locking mechanisms with every new release of iOS, including the one released earlier this week. Starting with iOS 4.2.1, the main part of the operating system checks the baseband firmware at startup, and if it doesn't match an expected signature, the phone will not boot. In the event of a failure, the iPhone will be stuck in recovery mode until it is restored to its original form. The baseband firmware is the portion of iOS that actually controls the cellular radio hardware, and this is what must be hacked in order to allow iPhones to be used on carriers other than AT&T (or whichever overseas provider sold the phone).
This change could potentially make things much more complicated for developers creating unlocking tools. However, if past history is anything to go by, it will be more a matter of when and not if they succeed. In the meantime, those that are using iPhones on T-Mobile USA or other non-original carriers will want to sit tight on iOS 4.1 or earlier.
[via TiPb]
iOS 4.2.1 brings baseband signature check, unlockers warned to wait originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 25 Nov 2010 07:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
iOS 4.2.1 brings baseband signature check, unlockers warned to wait originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 25 Nov 2010 07:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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The era of the Blackberry's dominance in the corporate communicator market may be drawing to a close, and Apple is recruiting staff to speed that process along. Over the past year and a half, Apple has hired at least five senior enterprise sales reps from Research in Motion (RIM), the Canadian manufacturer of the BlackBerry.
In April 2009, Geoff Perfect joined Apple from RIM as Head of Enterprise iPhone Sales, and he has since been joined by four colleagues with contacts in the business. It's unknown how much of the increasing corporate adoption of iOS devices is due to the efforts of this crew and how much would have occurred organically as a result of employees bringing in their own iPhones. Either way, there has certainly been no love lost between Apple and RIM in recent months.
In recent months, Apple has claimed that the iPhone is outselling the BlackBerry and that smaller seven-inch tablets are a bad idea. In response, RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie has accused Apple of playing fast and loose with the numbers and spreading disinformation about devices like its upcoming PlayBook tablet. Ultimately, RIM's biggest problem is unlikely to be either staff poaching or executive sniping. Instead, it is the lack of any real innovation or even keeping pace with its products. Hiring Perfect and his colleagues is probably just a bonus for Apple.
[via Electronista]
Apple hiring BlackBerry enterprise sales staff originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 25 Nov 2010 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Apple hiring BlackBerry enterprise sales staff originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 25 Nov 2010 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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If you invariably find yourself arriving at a travel destination missing one or more critical items left sitting on your desk or bed, Packing Pro from Quinnscape may be the app for you. Creating a packing list on a slip of paper is great as long as you don't leave anything off or lose the list. Most users tend to be more careful about keeping their electronic devices close at hand than they are with random lists.
This universal app includes a number of handy features, including a catalog of some 800 items you might need when traveling. It also includes a variety of pre-built lists for various types of trips that you can use as a starting point.
The Expert List tool lets you enter information about how many people are traveling (including how many adults and children), the length of the trip, temperature at the destination, domestic or foreign and whether you need to prepare food. The tool will then automatically populate a list which you can then customize.
Version 5.1 of Packing Pro is out now in the App Store and is currently on sale for a very reasonable US$2.99. A basic version that contains fewer items in the catalog and fewer sample lists is also available for $0.99.
Continue reading App beat: Pack like a professional with Packing Pro
App beat: Pack like a professional with Packing Pro originally appeared on TUAW on Sun, 21 Nov 2010 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
App beat: Pack like a professional with Packing Pro originally appeared on TUAW on Sun, 21 Nov 2010 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Once upon a time, it was possible to dial a cell phone in cold weather without removing your gloves, provided the gloves weren't too fat and the physical buttons on the phone weren't too small. In this modern age of smartphones dominated by capacitive touchscreens, it takes either bare skin or perhaps a refrigerated sausage in order to activate the virtual controls.
That may change as soon as next summer when the iPhone 5 is expected to arrive. It's entirely possible that the next iPhone (and its iOS companions) will utilize a new touchscreen technology that's being developed by Hitachi Displays. The new touch display can detect both capacitive elements, like fingers, and insulators, like fabric and plastic. That means a gloved finger or even a stylus could be used for input. The new Hitachi sensors are expected to be available in sizes from 3 to 10 inches, so they could be used for iPods, iPhones, and iPads.
Next-gen touchscreen displays may support gloves originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 11 Nov 2010 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Next-gen touchscreen displays may support gloves originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 11 Nov 2010 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Software developers have been able to do some amazing things with games on portable devices like the
iPhone and
iPod touch, but just as some people prefer to type on a physical keyboard, gamers occasionally miss using a gamepad. A Japanese company has come up with a stick on plastic nubs that you can apply to your touch screen device to "replicate" the feel of the buttons on a game pad.
While the transparent appliques are applied like a screen protector, they really seem to be of dubious benefit. While having tactile feedback is helpful when playing on a console or computer and looking up at the display and having the pad out of your line of sight, it doesn't seem helpful in this case. On a touchscreen handheld you are already looking at the controls on the display and the controls may not be in the same place for different games.
If you still feel like trying out the Tactile+Plus stick-on gamepad controls, they can be
ordered from Japan for ¥630, or around $7.80.
Turn your iPhone or iPod touch into a gamepad with stick-on buttons originally appeared on TUAW on Sun, 07 Nov 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Turn your iPhone or iPod touch into a gamepad with stick-on buttons originally appeared on TUAW on Sun, 07 Nov 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Among the four national mobile phone carriers in the United States,
T-Mobile is clearly the laggard in terms of subscriber numbers. This comes despite low prices and highly-regarded customer service. Rene Obermann, CEO of Deutsche Telekom, T-Mobile USA's parent company,
lays the blame squarely on the lack of an iPhone to sell.
The U.S. remains one of the few major markets with a single iPhone carrier, and T-Mobile isn't it. In the third quarter of this year, T-Mobile USA gained just 137,000 new customers. Most of those went for prepaid service rather than the smartphones.
T-Mobile has no shortage of good smartphones with a wide array Android devices available. Despite this, growth for the carrier has been slow to non-existent while Verizon has had tremendous success with Android phones. Of course, AT&T has the iPhone.
It's probable that T-Mobile would see an influx of new business if it had the Apple superphone to sell, but the real problem with T-Mobile isn't selection, it's the network. T-Mobile has made strides with its HSPA+ rollout, but it still has too many voice dead zones, making it an even worse choice than AT&T for many users. Perhaps Mr. Oberman should invest more in solidifying his company's voice coverage and less time complaining about what it doesn't have.
T-Mobile blames lack of iPhone for poor US sales originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 05 Nov 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
T-Mobile blames lack of iPhone for poor US sales originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 05 Nov 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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There are few things more annoying than opening up your shiny new electronic toy only to find one or more misbehaving pixels. While dead or stuck pixels are less of a problem than they were a few years ago, it does still happen. Manufacturers and retailers rarely go public with what their warranty policies are on these display anomalies, preferring instead to deal with issues on a case-by-case basis.
Our friends at
Boy Genius Report gave the lowdown Wednesday on an internal Apple document that specifies exactly how many bad pixels must appear on a device before it will be repaired or replaced for no charge. There are a number of thresholds that depend on the display size and the density of the anomalies. For displays up to 3.5 inches, which includes all iPods and iPhones, no bad pixels will be tolerated; even a single instance will get you a replacement. On the other hand, your iPad needs three or more dark or bright spots before a replacement will be offered. Likewise, that gorgeous 27- or 30-inch Cinema display would have to show at least nine bright, 11 dark or a total of 16 bad spots.
Anyone that has dealt with the Geniuses at the Apple store knows that they have some discretion with repairs and can opt to replace a component that doesn't exceed the threshold in the table. However, if they do and the new unit is worse, but still within spec, a second replacement is ruled out. You might want to open the box in the store and check it before you leave (at least for the smaller gear; opening your Cinema Display or iMac in the store may be an issue).
Apple dead pixel policy: one for iPhone, three for iPad originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 05 Nov 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Apple dead pixel policy: one for iPhone, three for iPad originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 05 Nov 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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The day all iPad users have been waiting for is just about upon us; iOS 4.2 has finally gone Gold Master. Apple is giving developers the go-ahead to download what will likely be the final release version of its latest mobile operating system and SDK. While all but the first generation iPhones and iPod touches will be eligible for the update, the big news is that the iPad will finally move up to the fourth generation of iOS, gaining multitasking and app folders.
All the iOS 4.2 devices will be adding two marquee features: Air Print for remote printing via a networked Mac or compatible HP hardware, and Air Play to hand off video playback to the iOS-based Apple TV.
The new OS should be available for general download sometime in the next couple of weeks.
Thanks to everyone who sent this in.
iOS 4.2 Gold Master release seeded to developers originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 01 Nov 2010 21:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
iOS 4.2 Gold Master release seeded to developers originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 01 Nov 2010 21:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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For consumers, unless you jailbreak your iPhone, the only effective way to get apps onto it is via Apple's own App Store. From the beginning of the App Store, Apple has offered an alternative method of distributing apps that is meant for use by businesses to their employees. Unfortunately, that approach is cumbersome. It requires setting up servers and internal "app stores" for managing who gets those apps and pulling them back from lost or stolen phones or employees who leave.
Ondeego has expanded its AppCentral distribution system from its original Blackberry and Java mobile roots, and it now supports iPhones. AppCentral is essentially a hosted enterprise app store service that allows businesses to create an account, then easily open a private iPhone app distribution channel.
For smaller companies or those with only a few apps, this can make a lot more sense than going through the effort of setting up and maintaining their own systems. AppCentral allows managers to see and control who gets which apps and disable them remotely if needed. Only businesses in the iPhone Developer Enterprise Program can use AppCentral, because the special security certificate provided by Apple is required. The AppCentral for iPhone program is currently open for beta testers. Read on to see a video describing the service.
Continue reading Enterprise iOS app distribution made easier by Ondeego
Enterprise iOS app distribution made easier by Ondeego originally appeared on TUAW on Sun, 31 Oct 2010 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Enterprise iOS app distribution made easier by Ondeego originally appeared on TUAW on Sun, 31 Oct 2010 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Based on the latest comments from VLC media player lead developer Rémi Denis-Courmont, it seems likely that the iOS version of the app probably won't be available much longer. Denis-Courmont claims that Apple is violating the GNU public license (GPL) under which VLC is released by applying DRM to it.
While VLC is available free of charge for the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad on the App Store, it's not possible to copy it from one device to another. Every copy of an iOS app is tied to a specific user account when it is downloaded, regardless of whether you pay for it or not. The GPL requires that any software using that license and any derivative works be able to be freely copied and distributed.
Apparently the developers that created the iOS version of VLC made a mistake in submitting the app, because the GPL is incompatible with Apple's App Store rules. Earlier this year, an iOS version of the game GNU Go was removed from the store because of the GPL incompatibility. It's a shame that VLC will be going away, because it is one of the best media players available on the App Store, with support for virtually every conceivable audio and video codec. On the bright side, the end of VLC for iOS may be good news for those waiting for an Android version as resources are redirected.
[via iLounge]
Grab your iOS version of VLC now... it may be gone soon originally appeared on TUAW on Sun, 31 Oct 2010 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Grab your iOS version of VLC now... it may be gone soon originally appeared on TUAW on Sun, 31 Oct 2010 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Now that iPhone 4 sales in Germany have passed from the exclusive realm of T-Mobile to O2 and Vodafone as well, AppleInsider reports that customers there can also opt for a carrier-free version of the superphone. Apple has previously offered unlocked iPhones in some other countries, including France where the option is required by law. However, this is the first time that Germans have been able to order the iPhone from the Apple store there and pop in whatever SIM card they want.
Unlocked and contract-free phones are common in Europe, and SIM cards with prepaid voice and data buckets are readily available. People that travel overseas on a regular basis often buy unlocked GSM phones and local SIM cards to avoid extortionate roaming rates. Of course, avoiding a carrier commitment doesn't come cheap. An 8GB 3GS will run about $715 in the German Apple online store or at any of the four brick and mortar outlets in Germany. Fourth generation models will cost $866 or 41,017 for the 16 and 32GB versions respectively.
Apple offers unlocked, carrier-free iPhone in Germany originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 29 Oct 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Apple offers unlocked, carrier-free iPhone in Germany originally appeared on TUAW on Fri, 29 Oct 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Apple CEO Steve Jobs has made a point in recent keynotes to mention the fact that the iPhone and iPod touch are the world's best selling portable gaming devices, well ahead of longtime champion Nintendo. Nintendo America president Reggie Fils-Aime has acknowledged the threat and
sees Apple as a bigger problem for his company than either Microsoft or Sony.
While hardcore gamers generally prefer the higher-powered Xbox and PlayStation platforms, far more consumers have bought into the casual gaming approach enabled by Nintendo's Wii and DS. The high quality and easy-to-play-in-short-burst games available on Apple's handheld devices combined with their wireless capabilities have made them even more compelling than Nintendo's offerings.
At first unconcerned, Nintendo's anxiety gradually
grew into Reggie Fils-Aime's admission.
So far, the Apple incursion into the gaming space has mostly
hurt the DS, but that could soon change. The surge in popularity of the new generation Apple TV could end up taking a big bite out of the Wii. Since the Apple TV runs on iOS and has already been jailbroken, the expectation is that, before long, Apple will make an app market available for the set top device. When that happens, we are likely to see games running on it that could possibly feature Wii-style motion controls for use with the iPhone or iPod.
[Via
Joystiq]
Nintendo sees Apple as bigger threat than Microsoft and Sony originally appeared on TUAW on Wed, 27 Oct 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Nintendo sees Apple as bigger threat than Microsoft and Sony originally appeared on TUAW on Wed, 27 Oct 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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When Apple introduced the
fourth generation iPhone last June, Steve Jobs made a lot of hay about the 326 pixel-per-inch density of its 960 x 640
Retina display. To date, that's the highest pixel density found on any portable device, but it may not be for long.
Casio and Toppan have a joint venture called Ortustech that has just announced a 4.8-inch diagonal display with a resolution of 1,920 x 1,080. For the mathematically challenged among us, that works out to a massive 458 ppi density, meaning that no human (at least) is likely to be complaining about being able to see individual pixels.
The first applications for the new display are likely to be monitors for HDTV cameras and other equipment, with phones and game machines coming later. The current 4.8-inch size is definitely at the large end of the scale for a phone, so we may see a slightly smaller 720p variant of this technology in our pockets first.
[Source:
New Launches via
Electronista]
Ortustech launches 4.8-inch 1080p display originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 25 Oct 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Ortustech launches 4.8-inch 1080p display originally appeared on TUAW on Mon, 25 Oct 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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