NOAA drops BlackBerry, embraces iPhone and iPad

The Loop is reporting that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is taking RIM BlackBerry devices off of the list of officially supported mobile devices. What's taking the place of the trusty old BlackBerry? iPhones and iPads running iOS 5 and newer versions of the mobile OS.

While a February 3rd memo from NOAA Chief Information Officer and Director for High Performance Computing and Communications Joseph Klimavicz noted that support for BlackBerrys will continue until May 12, 2012, it does not say when the government organization will actually start providing workers with the new Apple devices.

According to the memo from Klimavicz, NOAA will now support employees with iPhone 4 and newer smartphones running iOS 5 or later, as well as iPad 2 or newer tablets running iOS 5 or later.

NOAA drops BlackBerry, embraces iPhone and iPad originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

NOAA drops BlackBerry, embraces iPhone and iPad originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Satechi’s Cup Holder Mount keeps your iPad and iPhone close at hand

So, your Family Truckster is loaded with sixteen cup holders in various places. Since you already have a place to stash your hot coffee while driving, wouldn't it be nice to use one of those cup holders for something really useful, like holding your iPad or iPhone within arm's reach? Satechi yesterday delivered the SCH-121 Cup Holder Mount (US$29.99), which comes with two cradles, one for 7" - 10" tablets and the other for your smartphone.

While you don't exactly want to be going down the road watching movies on your iPad, this is perfect for the back seat crowd, front row passengers, or for those who need access to an iPad when they're stopped at a worksite.

Being able to swap out the cradles for iPad and iPhone provides a lot of flexibility. I can see using one of these to keep the spouse happy with her iPad on long driving trips, while the iPhone cradle will keep me on the right track with GPS apps while keeping the phone out of the hot sun on my dashboard.

The Cup Holder Mount is available either from Satechi's website or Amazon.com, although it hasn't shown up on the former yet. I'll be doing a review of the mount in the near future.

Satechi's Cup Holder Mount keeps your iPad and iPhone close at hand originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Satechi's Cup Holder Mount keeps your iPad and iPhone close at hand originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Former Apple employee recounts how Jobs motivated iPhone team

Bob Borchers used to be an iPhone product marketing engineer for Apple. Part of the team that brought the first iPhone to market in 2007, he's now a venture capitalist with Opus Capital. Borchers recently gave a talk to students at a California school talking about the thought processes that were involved in the iPhone's development.

Borchers says that Steve Jobs didn't have a specific device in mind, but instead gave the team a mission: create a phone that people would love so much that they'd never leave the house without it. Borchers believes that Apple has been so wildly successful with the iPhone because the company focused on fundamentals -- breaking the rules, but in an exceptionally well manner; paying attention to details; and making people focus on the relationship they have with their device.

Jobs wanted the phone to be revolutionary, the best iPod the company had ever designed, and allow users to access the internet easily from a pocket-sized device. What the iPhone has become -- a device with downloadable apps, GPS capabilities, video and photography features, and voice integration -- wasn't part of the original concept.

Borchers noted that the original iPhone almost shipped with a plastic touchscreen, but Jobs was concerned that the plastic would scratch if users put the phone in a pocket with keys and other metallic items. The team improvised, convinced Corning to re-start production of the abandoned Gorilla Glass, and the iPhone has had a fairly scratch-resistant display since day one.

Apple's obsession with product packaging was mentioned by Borchers, who said that the company spends "way too much time" on presenting products, but he conceded that it is ultimately worthwhile to do so since it communicates the special nature of Apple products to consumers.

With future "insanely great" products in the pipeline, we can only hope that the Steve Jobs obsession with details remains part of Apple's DNA.

Former Apple employee recounts how Jobs motivated iPhone team originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Sat, 04 Feb 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Former Apple employee recounts how Jobs motivated iPhone team originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Sat, 04 Feb 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Apple rollin’ in the dough: 75% of cell phone profits

The news just keeps getting better for Apple in the mobile phone business. Just yesterday, IDC reported that the company is in third place in terms of worldwide mobile phone sales. Today, Asymco analyst Horace Dediu announced that with a relatively small piece of the pie (IDC said 6 percent of market, Dediu says 8.7 percent), Apple is pulling in a whopping 75 percent of profits in the industry.

Philip Elmer-DeWitt at Apple 2.0 notes in an analysis of Dediu's numbers that out of the top eight manufacturers, only five are showing meaningful profits. Samsung has about a 16 percent profit share, while "Nokia, Research in Motion, and HTC are just scraping by. Motorola, LG and Sony, which bought out Ericsson last month, are still in the red."

As Elmer-DeWitt points out, this is for all mobile phones, not just smartphones. And these numbers are for the worldwide market, not just the United States. He concludes that "This doesn't bode well for the manufacturers who have hitched their wagon to Google's Android or Microsoft's Windows Mobile 7."

Apple rollin' in the dough: 75% of cell phone profits originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 03 Feb 2012 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple rollin' in the dough: 75% of cell phone profits originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 03 Feb 2012 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Apple becomes world’s third largest mobile phone manufacturer

In just five short years, Apple has become the third largest mobile phone manufacturer in the world. International Data Corporation (IDC), as part of the continuing Worldwide Mobile Phone Tracker survey, noted that the overall mobile phone market is still growing despite a major decline in numbers for low-priced "feature phones."

Despite fierce competition from both Apple and Samsung, Nokia retained its spot as the leader in mobile phone shipments. The company is transitioning from the Symbian OS for smartphones, having recently launched the Lumia line of Windows Phone-powered smartphones. IDC notes that Nokia's worldwide distribution and manufacturing presence will make it difficult for other companies to knock the Finnish company from its perch on the mobile phone throne.

Not surprisingly, Samsung was the number two manufacturer, selling more than 300 million phones in 2011. The company's Android smartphone line and new Windows Phone smartphones, along with a growing line of feature phones, inched Samsung even closer to Nokia's coveted number one spot.

Apple jumped from third position after being in fifth place in the previous quarter. The third-place finish is the highest ever for Apple, and the strong launch of the iPhone 4S was listed as the primary reason that the company leapfrogged over competitors LG and ZTE in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Rounding out the top five were Korean manufacturer LG, which has seen a drop in sales for the last year. Chinese vendor ZTE almost took over the fourth place position, moving from low-cost feature phones to increasingly powerful smartphones. ZTE has recently entered the North American market with Android and Windows Phone-powered smartphones.

The most fascinating number, however, was the year-over-year change in shipments. While arch-rival Samsung saw a 17.6 percent change in sales volume over the previous year, Apple saw a whopping 96.2 percent increase. Apple now has 6 percent of the total mobile phone market based on 2011 unit shipments; recall that Steve Jobs noted during the 2007 introduction of the iPhone that he'd be happy with a 1 percent share.

Apple becomes world's third largest mobile phone manufacturer originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 02 Feb 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple becomes world's third largest mobile phone manufacturer originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 02 Feb 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Foxconn stock climbs on Apple projections

This just in from the "not surprising since a rising tide lifts all boats" department -- stock in Apple's primary manufacturing partner, Foxconn, climbed to a recent high on speculation that Apple might be using metal casings for the next-generation iPhone.

The speculation is in line with what Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty noted last month. Huberty believes that Apple is moving away from the glass casing used on the iPhone 4 and 4S and moving to a metal casing instead. Foxconn spokesman Cheng-Kuang Liu, of course, wisely declined to comment about the rumors.

The use of metal in the new iPhone benefits companies like Foxconn that not only assemble Apple's products, but produce the metal casings as well. The company's share price surged almost seven percent yesterday on what so far is baseless speculation.

Foxconn stock climbs on Apple projections originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Foxconn stock climbs on Apple projections originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

To-do list manager Clear demoed at Macworld iWorld 2012 (video)

There are tons of to-do list managers in the App Store, so many that you'd need another list manager just to keep track of them. Fortunately, a collaboration between Realmac Software, developer Milen Dzhumerov, and developer Phill Ryu's new studio Impending Inc. has created a to-do list management app that looks like it will make the rest of 'em obsolete. In the video embedded below, you'll see a quick demo of the gesture-driven UI that makes Clear so different from the competition.

TUAW App Editor Megan Lavey-Heaton and I spent a few minutes with Realmac Product Manager Nik Fletcher on the floor at Macworld | iWorld 2012, and we have since had the thrill of putting Clear through its paces. While this isn't a review, let's just say that I wish every developer put this much time and attention into making apps that are intuitive and simple to use.

Clear should be "shipping soon" at an as-yet undisclosed price. You'll hear about the release of the app as soon as it's in the App Store, and a review will follow close behind.

To-do list manager Clear demoed at Macworld iWorld 2012 (video) originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 30 Jan 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

To-do list manager Clear demoed at Macworld iWorld 2012 (video) originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 30 Jan 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Apple lists iPhone 4S as “in stock” in most online stores

Those TUAW readers who haven't yet caught Siri fever and purchased an iPhone 4S won't have to wait if they finally decide to buy one. Electronista reports that the device is finally listed as "in stock" at the Apple Store for most countries.

As recent as two weeks ago, availability times were still in the three to five day range, but now the 4S is available immediately in every color and capacity. It appears that Apple has managed to get a good handle on iPhone 4S production, with 37 million devices reported as being shipped in just over three months during the first quarter results call. Part of the improvement is most likely due to the addition of Pegatron as a second manufacturer of the popular smartphones.

With supply finally meeting or slightly exceeding demand, Apple now has to keep a close eye to make sure that inventories of the phone don't start piling up. The company has a reputation for keeping minimal product inventories, so production is probably being tweaked to more precisely match demand for the iPhone 4S.

Apple lists iPhone 4S as "in stock" in most online stores originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple lists iPhone 4S as "in stock" in most online stores originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Pad & Quill’s cases: Classy covers for iPhone, iPad and MacBook Air

Pad & Quill has been making book-bound iPad and iPhone cases for a couple of years. By book-bound, I mean that the cases made using traditional book-binding materials and techniques. Like DODOcase, the cases have evolved a bit over the years to meet the requirements of new devices; unlike DODOcase, Pad & Quill has created a complete line of cases to protect many of your Apple mobile devices. In this review, I'll take a look at Pad & Quill's Little Black Book for iPhone, the Contega and Octavo iPad cases, and the new Cartella case for the MacBook Air.

Little Black Book for iPhone 4/4S

Let's start with the smallest member of the Pad & Quill family, the Little Black Book case for iPhone 4/4S (US$44.99). A number of small book-type and wallet cases have been announced for the iPhone 4S in the last few months, but of those I've reviewed, I feel that the LBB is the best made product out there.

Like all of the Pad & Quill cases, the device sits nestled in a CNC-machined wood frame with small pads in the corners that make sure that your iPhone isn't going to plop out. Unlike the DODOcase products (which don't include an iPhone case), you don't have to send off for additional pads -- Pad & Quill includes extra material for cutting your own pads.

The case also has the standard Moleskine-like elastic cord for securing the cover when you're on the move, as well as a unique feature -- a red ribbon "bookmark" that is used to help pop out the iPhone when you want it in your hand.

You probably want to use that lovely 8 MP camera on the iPhone 4S, so the Little Black Book includes a port for the camera to look out of. That's not the case with the Twelve South BookBook ($59.99) or Hex Code Wallet ($49.95), where you need to remove the iPhone from the case to take a picture.

Using the Little Black Book as a wallet really means that you're only going to be carrying a minimal amount of stuff, like a driver's license and a credit card or two. These items slide into a little "envelope" in the front inside cover of the LBB.

The Little Black Book is well-built, less expensive than its competitors, and just plain cool. Now let's take a look at its bigger brothers.

Gallery: Pad & Quill Cases for iPhone, iPad 2, and MacBook Air

Octavo iPad 2 Case

The Octavo iPad 2 case ($59.99) is extremely similar to the DODOcase, even priced the same as the San Francisco treat. However, like the Little Black Book it has the "bookmark" to make removing the iPad from the case fast and easy, adds a hole for the iPad 2 rear camera, and includes a folder on the inside front cover of the case for important papers.

Doing a side-by-side comparison with the DODOcase, I have to say that I think the Pad & Quill Octavo shows much more expertise in construction. While the DODOcase is basically wide open on the top and bottom, the Octavo provides more protection by just providing openings where needed. For the top microphone of the iPad, there's a sound-conducting channel. For the speakers on the bottom, there's a nicely-machined slot that directs sounds to the front. The wood frame extends more into the back of the Octavo, giving the case a bit more stiffness.

I've placed some comparison photos in the gallery that show the DODOcase and Octavo side by side. I think the pictures tell the story of just how well-made the Pad & Quill cases are.

Contega iPad 2 Case

Pad & Quill's Contega iPad 2 case ($89.99) is a hybrid of a standard iPad folio case with a built-in stand and the Octavo. Think of the Octavo with a cover that folds into a handy landscape-mode stand, and you've got the Contega.

Since the front cover is used for helping prop up the stand, there's no folder pocket as there is on the Octavo. Still, I'd much rather have the convenience of the stand than a folder pocket that I'd stuff with old receipts and product brochures. As with the other cases, the Contega features Italian bonded leather on the exterior and that nicely-machined wood frame on the inside.

Check out the gallery for images of the Contega in all of its stand-up glory.

Cartella MacBook Air case

The Pad & Quill line wouldn't be complete without the Cartella ($79.99 for the 11" model, $89.99 for the 13"), their MacBook Air case. Pad & Quill sent an 11" model for testing with my 11" MacBook Air, and once again the design is excellent. The bottom of the MacBook Air is placed into the Cartella's wood frame with the trackpad pointing "out". The back of the wood frame is carefully sculpted to allow the hinged display to have free movement and there are cutouts on either side for the various ports.

Twelve South also sells a book-like MacBook Air case -- the BookBook ($79.99). It has one feature that is missing from the Cartella case, that being a pair of elastic bands that hold the cover onto the display on the MacBook Air. The BookBook uses a zipper to close up the case; I felt that the Cartella's elastic band made it much easier to open and close the case.

Conclusion

If you have a hankering for a book-like cover for your iPhone, iPod touch, iPad (either first-generation or iPad 2), or MacBook Air, you owe it to yourself to take a look at the Pad & Quill line. The quality of these cases is outstanding, the prices are reasonable, and if being made in the good ol' USA means something to you, they're a product of the grand state of Minnesota.

All of the Pad & Quill cases used in the review will be part of the giveaways at the TUAW Meetup at Macworld | iWorld 2012 next Thursday night, so be sure to drop by if you're in San Francisco to have a chance at winning one of these classy protectors.

Pad & Quill's cases: Classy covers for iPhone, iPad and MacBook Air originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 19 Jan 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Pad & Quill's cases: Classy covers for iPhone, iPad and MacBook Air originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 19 Jan 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Lantronix xPrintServer brings networked printers within reach of iOS devices

For enterprises and small businesses that are embracing iOS devices to empower employees, printing from those devices can be problematic. The solution for many organizations with scads of networked printers and armfuls of iPads and iPhones is to set up one or more Macs or PCs to handle print sharing via apps like Printopia. The app makes networked printers visible to AirPrint-enabled devices.

To complement the software-only solutions, Lantronix has developed the xPrintServer (US$149.95), a device that automatically discovers networked printers and makes them all available to your iOS devices for quick and easy printing.

Why would you want such a device? Well, to enable printing you could replace all of your existing printers with AirPrint-enabled units, print to shared printers (Mac-only), or use something like Printopia as described above. You could also sync documents to your Mac or PC and then print them, but that's time-consuming and you need a personal computer available for printing.

The device I received for review was still a beta version, and the company plans to start shipping the real thing sometime in the first quarter. The xPrintServer is about the size and shape of an iPhone, and is plugged into power and an Ethernet connection. At that point, it automatically discovers printers on the network, and then translates the iOS print format to a PDL (page description language) specific to each printer.

Gallery: Lantronix xPrintServer

How many printers does the xPrintServer support? Well, I didn't feel like counting, but it's a very long list -- over 4,000 and growing. Considering you can find everything from the Apple ImageWriter to the latest and greatest laser and inkjet printers from major manufacturers on the list, chances are very good that your office printers are covered. Lantronix says that if your printer is not currently on the list, you can email them the brand and model number and they'll provide support where possible.

The printers need to be network-connected (wireless or wired) with one of three protocols: JetDirect (AppSocket), LPD, or IPP. The iOS devices must be running iOS 4.2 or later, covering the iPad, iPad 2, iPhone 3GS and later, and the iPod touch 3rd-generation and later.

Setup

Setup of the xPrintServer is drop-dead simple. Once you've plugged in the power brick and then attach the device to a router, switch or hub, it auto-discovers and auto-provisions the printers. The xPrintServer can't auto-detect printers that are on subnets different from the one that it's connected to, but those printers can be added later via the xPrintServer's web GUI.

A note for our non-North American readers: the xPrintServer comes with a boxful of adapter plugs, so using the device probably won't require the purchase of a separate adapter.

Once the device is done with the discovery and provisioning, the X on the word Lantronix pulses an orange color. At this point, you're ready to print. Lantronix notes that the xPrintServer can support an unlimited number of concurrent printers on a network, but recommends one device for every 7 to 10 network printers on the same subnet. That means that in many office buildings, you might need one or two per floor.

Usage

In actual usage, the auto-discovery on a network with a single wireless printer on the same subnet took about 15 seconds. Not bad, considering that there was no other configuration required -- the xPrintServer is truly plug-and-play, and even a corporate deployment would be fast to implement. The printer that was discovered is a rather old HP DeskJet 6800 series, and it was up and running quickly.

Printing from both a Wi-Fi connected iPad 2 and iPhone, the print times varied depending on what app I was printing from. In my initial tests, before I updated the firmware on the device, selecting a printer would sometimes take 30 - 40 seconds, and printing would take a while longer. After updating the firmware, selecting the printer and printing a single page took less than 10 seconds.

There was one issue I ran into: although the xPrintServer worked flawlessly in terms of discovery and printing, everything I printed from the iPhone and iPad came out as grayscale on a color printer. Once again, I want to emphasize that this was a beta device. The Lantronix tech support team responded immediately to my queries about this issue, and I expect it to be fixed quickly.

For businesses using a number of xPrintServers, there's a built-in web-based administrative tool for setting security, naming the devices, installing firmware updates, and capturing diagnostic information. The firmware update process was simple and took about a minute.

Conclusion

Whether you're a network administrator for an enterprise using a lot of iOS devices and networked printers, the owner of a small business with a couple of printers and a dozen iPads, or even an individual with a several networked printers and a desire to print without keeping a Mac running all the time, you're going to love this product. Lantronix has done a fantastic job at making the xPrintServer easy to install for the novice, and yet provides enough tools to keep any network administrator happy.

The xPrintServer is available for pre-order now, and will ship later in the first quarter. If my gizmo intuition is correct, Lantronix is going to sell a ton of these things. As they used to say on those late-night TV ads, "order now to avoid bitter disappointment."

Lantronix xPrintServer brings networked printers within reach of iOS devices originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 13 Jan 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Lantronix xPrintServer brings networked printers within reach of iOS devices originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 13 Jan 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

LiftMaster uses your iPhone as a remote garage door opener

Sometimes I begin to wonder if the entire "let's control your life from your smartphone" thing is going a little too far. We've seen iPhone-powered barista tools, ADT sells a smartphone-connected security system, and now garage door opener manufacturer LiftMaster is selling two openers that can use your iPhone or computer to open and close your garage door.

From the marketing materials on the LiftMaster website, it's apparent that they want you to be able to open or close your garage door from any room in your house, from your backyard, or while you're on vacation thousands of miles away. Call me old-fashioned, but why can't you just walk a few feet and punch the wall-mounted garage door button to open and close it?

The system, which LiftMaster refers to as MyQ, uses an internet gateway that connects to the garage door opener. Install the LiftMaster Home Control app (free) on your iPhone, and now you're opening and closing your garage door from that internet café on Novaya Zemlya.

Sure, MyQ can also turn on and off lights in addition to opening and closing that garage door, but what ever happened to the good old days when you either a) used timers on lights, and b) had your neighbors check on your place? That's certainly less expensive than this system, which ZDNet reports has a price tag of $350 - $500, plus a $15 annual fee for the privilege of using your phone to operate your garage door.

Seriously?

LiftMaster uses your iPhone as a remote garage door opener originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 13 Jan 2012 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

LiftMaster uses your iPhone as a remote garage door opener originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 13 Jan 2012 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

iPhones accounted for almost half of October, November smartphone sales

Market research group NPD is reporting some good news for Apple ahead of the January 24 earnings call. The three models of the iPhone that are currently for sale -- the iPhone 4S, iPhone 4 and iPhone 3GS -- accounted for 43 percent of US smartphone sales in October and November.

Android phones saw a significant drop of 13 percent of share during that same period, while Apple's share bumped up 17 percent. Where are RIM and Windows Phone handsets in all of this insanity? Well, RIM saw a 6 percent share in the US, while Windows Phone and "all others" were barely above the zero line.

At least in the American market, iOS and Android have the market and mind share for smartphones. As noted on Macgasm, the iPhone 3GS outsold every model of Android, BlackBerry, and Windows Phone handset during the October-November timeframe. Of course, the 3GS is now free from AT&T, so it's hard to compete with a no-cost handset and an application base of over half a million apps.

iPhones accounted for almost half of October, November smartphone sales originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 10 Jan 2012 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

iPhones accounted for almost half of October, November smartphone sales originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 10 Jan 2012 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Video shows face recognition unlock for iPhone

One of the features that graces the screens of many Android 4.0 phones is FaceUnlock, which uses facial recognition technology to unlock a phone rather than a simple swipe or swiping and entering a passcode. Now some devs have ported that capability to iOS and are promising that the capability will be available soon in the form of an app.

In the video below, there's a demo of this app-in-progress. It's pretty cool and seems to work well, although at least at this point it seems to be a bit slower than just swiping the home screen and tapping a four-digit code. What do you think, TUAW readers? Is this just an Android-y gimmick or the wave of the unlocking future? Tell us in the comments.

[via Engadget]

Video shows face recognition unlock for iPhone originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 10 Jan 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Video shows face recognition unlock for iPhone originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 10 Jan 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

TeleNav launches free Scout “daily personal navigator” for iPhone

Last month, TUAW reported on GPS navigation vendor TeleNav's plans to launch an HTML5-based free navigation system that would work on any browser. Yesterday, TeleNav introduced Scout, which is another free personal navigation product. The new service comes with a Scout by TeleNav iPhone app (free) and a companion website (scout.me), and will soon integrate with Ford Sync-equipped vehicles.

The idea is that you can use the app across platforms for discovery of new locations and to get directions, and share the same information wherever you may be. If you use your personal computer to look up restaurants and add one to a favorites list, that list is then available on your iPhone and soon in your Ford vehicle.

Gallery: Scout

It's a noble idea, and I have to admit that the app looks nice. One sweet feature of Scout is that it takes into account current traffic conditions when determining the time to your destination. The cleanly-designed Dashboard screen shows the current temperature at your location, that location is pinpointed on a strip map displaying traffic, and there's a continuous display of how long it's going to take to get from home to work or vice-versa.

The scout.me website shows a handy "beta" tag, and that's well-deserved. I ran into some problems during my initial tryout. When trying to set a default work location, the app kept defaulting to an incorrect place that is miles away from the actual spot. The app would not let me change the address, insisting that the other spot was correct.

Likewise, I had issues figuring out how to actually sync the scout.me site and my iPhone, finally resorting to asking the TeleNav PR team -- it's actually simple, and done through the Scout.me button at the bottom of the dashboard page. Tip to TeleNav -- perhaps you should have the app walk users through the sync process during the first launch.

The variety of different offerings from TeleNav is somewhat perplexing. As I mentioned, they have an HTML5 web app that's supposed to be coming soon, there's Scout and Scout.me, and then there are the Navigation By TeleNav / GPS by TeleNav apps. The AT&T Navigator app is also a TeleNav product. This kind of scattershot approach will serve to do nothing but confuse the public about what the company is trying to do in the GPS navigation app market.

A short video from TeleNav touting the service is embedded below.

TeleNav launches free Scout "daily personal navigator" for iPhone originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 10 Jan 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

TeleNav launches free Scout "daily personal navigator" for iPhone originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 10 Jan 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Elmer-DeWitt: Apple in “no hurry” to settle iPhone patent lawsuits

To Apple-watchers -- in particular tech bloggers -- it seems like Apple is taking forever to settle the lawsuits that are pending against Samsung and other smartphone manufacturers for allegedly infringing on the company's intellectual property. On Fortune's Apple 2.0 site today, long-time Apple analyst Philip Elmer-DeWitt explains why a slow, measured march through the patent courts of the world might work out to the company's advantage.

Elmer-DeWitt cites a recent analysis by Deutsche Bank's Chris Whitmore that outlines four possible outcomes to Apple's legal attack against the Android ecosystem:

1. A settlement, with a per-unit license fee paid to Apple;
2. a "more favorable outcome" where Apple is able to have certain features removed from Android handset or can limit the distribution of Android phones, resulting in capturing 25 percent of Android's future market share;
3. neutral with no winner; and
4. Apple loses and must pay a counter claim to Android manufacturers.

As Elmer-DeWitt notes, Whitmore apparently doesn't think outcomes 3 and 4 are very likely, as he spends the majority of his analysis trying to figure out just how much Apple could reap from the first two outcomes.

Whitmore thinks that a license fee could cost competitors about US$10 per handset, which would add about $35 to the value of each share of Apple stock. However, if Apple holds out and fights for outcome 2, it could easily a growth in share price closer to $260 per share.

That's why Whitmore believes that "Apple is unlikely to settle cheaply." His advice to investors? Hold tight and let the legal drama play out, as investors are "gaining exposure to a potentially very lucrative favorable IP outcome for little or no cost."

Elmer-DeWitt: Apple in "no hurry" to settle iPhone patent lawsuits originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 09 Jan 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Elmer-DeWitt: Apple in "no hurry" to settle iPhone patent lawsuits originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 09 Jan 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

TUAW Best of 2011 wrap-up and editor picks

It's January 6th, 2012, and today marks the end of the TUAW Best of 2011 awards. This was a massive undertaking, with 25 separate categories all requiring their own nominations and voting from our readers. We've learned some lessons for next year's event -- start earlier, watch for astroturfing in the nominations, drop some unpopular categories -- and the Best of 2012 will be even better.

The editorial staff here at TUAW agreed with many of the reader picks, but we had our own opinions on some others. We want to thank all of the thousands of TUAW readers who took time to consider their favorite accessories and apps, nominate them for an award, and then vote in the competition.

Without further ado, here's the full list of winners as well as our picks for the TUAW Best of 2011:

Mac Categories in the TUAW Best of 2011

Best Mac Hardware from Apple: 13" MacBook Air
Editor picks: 13" and 11" MacBook Air, 13" MacBook Pro

Best Mac Peripheral or Accessory: OWC Data Doubler and OWC Mercury 6G SSD
Editor picks: Magic Trackpad, OWC Mercury Extreme Pro SSD

Best Mac Utility App: Alfred
Editor picks: Growl, 1Password, Grand Perspective

Best Mac Productivity App: Evernote
Editor picks: OmniFocus, Scrivener, Evernote

Best Mac Game App: Machinarium
Editor picks: Civilization V, Full Deck Solitaire

Best Mac Music App: Reaper
Editor picks: Simplify, Rdio, djay, Capo, GarageBand, iTunes

Best Mac Photo App: Flare
Editor picks: Pixelmator, Aperture, Adobe PhotoShop, FotoMagico

Best Mac Video App: Final Cut Pro X
Editor picks: Wirecast, Video Monkey

iPhone Categories in the TUAW Best of 2011

Best iPhone Accessory: Apple TV (2nd Generation)
Editor picks: Mophie Juice Pack Air, Mophie Juice Pack Powerstation, iChair

Best iPhone Game App: Jetpack Joyride
Editor picks: iMAME, Infinity Blade 2, Mage Gauntlet, Dungeon Raid, Jetpack Joyride

Best iPhone Photo App: 360 Panorama
Editor picks: Camera+, Instagram

Best iPhone Video App: iMovie
Editor picks: FiLMiC Pro, Reeli

Best iPhone Social Networking App: Tweetbot
Editor picks: Tweetbot, Instagram, Twitter

Best iPhone Productivity App: Dropbox
Editor picks: Siri, CardMunch, CalenGoo, OmniFocus, Mint, 2Do, Reminders

Best iPhone Utility App: 1Password Pro
Editor picks: LastPass, Groceries, Grocery IQ, Find My Friends, 1Password Pro, TripIt

Best iPhone Navigation App: Navigon
Editor picks: Navigon, Waze, MotionX GPS Drive

Best iPhone Music App: Spotify
Editor picks: Guitar Toolkit, Radio Paradise, Pandora, Shoutcast, Rdio

iPad Categories in the TUAW Best of 2011

Best iPad Case: DODOcase
Editor picks: Apple Smart Cover, AViiQ Smart Case,Twelve South BookBook, ModulR System, OtterBox Defender

Best iPad Accessory: BubCap
Editor picks: Apple TV, iCade, Mophie Juice Pack Powerstation

Best iPad Game App: Osmos for iPad
Editor picks: Battleship, Anomaly Warzone Earth HD, Jetpack Joyride, Sword & Sworcery, Scribblenauts Redux

Best iPad Photography App: flickr hd
Editor picks: iStopMotion for iPad, Photogene, PhotoSync, Snapseed, iMovie

Best iPad Social Networking App: Skype for iPad
Editor picks: Twitter, FaceTime, Skype, Zite

Best iPad Productivity App: OmniFocus for iPad
Editor picks: OmniFocus for iPad, 2Do, Pages, Pocket Informant HD, Evernote

Best iPad Utility App: 1Password Pro
Editor picks: AirPort Utility, Skitch, Air Display, Codea

Best iPad Music App: GarageBand
Editor picks: Planetary, 5-0 Radio HD

TUAW Best of 2011 wrap-up and editor picks originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 06 Jan 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

TUAW Best of 2011 wrap-up and editor picks originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 06 Jan 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

China Unicom offers free iPhone 4S on contract

Want a free iPhone 4S? If you're a customer of China Unicom, you're in luck -- the company announced today (one week from the first day of iPhone 4S availability in China and 21 other countries) that they'll give users a free iPhone 4S for signing a multiyear service contract.

It gets better. The promotion offers the 32 GB iPhone 4S on a three-year contract for as little as 286 yuan (about US$45) per month, or customers can commit for only two years and get the 16 GB model for 386 yuan per month.

Several industry analysts think that the subsidy, which is designed to attract high-end subscribers who will also buy up expensive data plans, is a bad idea for China Unicom. Hong Kong-based analyst Steven Liu of Standard Chartered Bank noted in a Bloomberg article that "After subsidizing the iPhone, the operator will have less money for subsidizing other smartphone users that could be more profitable."

China Unicom's costs for 3G phone subsidies and related marketing expenses were nearly 6 billion yuan in the first half of 2011, almost four times the same period in 2010. The popular iPhone handsets are sure to hit the carrier's subsidy costs even more, but customers don't appear to want to purchase lower priced and less capable smartphones.

China Unicom offers free iPhone 4S on contract originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 06 Jan 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

China Unicom offers free iPhone 4S on contract originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 06 Jan 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

iPhone 4S owners use almost twice as much data as iPhone 4 users

A new study by telecom network tech firm Arieso shows that owners of Apple's new iPhone 4S are using almost twice as much data with their devices than iPhone 4 users, and almost three times as much as iPhone 3G users.

The report, covered by Reuters, shows that the primary driver of the data usage is the Siri intelligent assistant. iPhone 4S users are even consuming more data than iPad 2 users, who are probably more tied to Wi-Fi networks for their consumption of a steady diet of web pages, email, and media.

Arieso's CTO, Michael Flanagan, noted that "I use the iPhone 4 myself and when I first heard of the iPhone 4S features I was not compelled to rush out and get one. However, the data usage numbers I am seeing make me wonder what I am missing."

Since Apple's introduction of the original iPhone in 2007, the usage of mobile data has roughly doubled each year. Cloud-based services like Siri are widely expected to boost growth of data usage, which will be an issue until more efficient and speedy LTE networks become more widespread worldwide.

At this time, Siri is still in beta and has limited functionality outside of the U.S. That's expected to change in 2012, as AppleInsider reports that Apple is hiring software engineers to help with porting Siri to other languages and to work on an API that will expand the natural-language interaction to other applications.

iPhone 4S owners use almost twice as much data as iPhone 4 users originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 06 Jan 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

iPhone 4S owners use almost twice as much data as iPhone 4 users originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 06 Jan 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

iPhone 4S to launch in China, 21 other countries on January 13

Friday, January 13th is going to be a lucky day for iPhone fans in China and 21 other countries. On that day, the iPhone 4S becomes available in those countries around the world.

In a press release this morning, Apple CEO Tim Cook reported that "Customer response to our products in China has been off the charts." Cook went on to note that with the launch next week, iPhone 4S will be available in over 90 countries, making this the fastest iPhone rollout ever.

The list of countries where the iPhone 4S will begin to be sold includes Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Bolivia, Botswana, British Virgin Islands, Cameroon, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, China, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Grenada, Guam, Guinea Conakry, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Kenya, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritius, Niger, Senegal, St. Vincent and The Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos, and Uganda.

[via BGR]

iPhone 4S to launch in China, 21 other countries on January 13 originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 04 Jan 2012 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

iPhone 4S to launch in China, 21 other countries on January 13 originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 04 Jan 2012 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Newer Technology’s NuTouch Gloves are a warm way to use your mobile devices

Going outside to get some exercise doesn't necessarily mean I leave my techie toys at home. In fact, I take my iPhone 4S with me everywhere so that I can keep track of how many steps I'm taking, the distance I'm walking, and so on. In the winter, I need a way to keep my hands warm and still be able to use the iPhone without taking the gloves off, and that's where the NuTouch Gloves (US$19.99) from Newer Technology might come in handy (no pun intended).

These gloves are made of a dark gray cotton/Spandex mix that gives them a light feel and a lot of flexibility. Since cotton isn't conductive itself, the gloves have a conductive fiber woven into all 10 fingertips so that you can continue to use multi-touch gestures even while wearing them. NuTouch Gloves come in four sizes, so you can get a glove that fits perfectly on your hands.

The gloves are warm enough for some brisk days, but won't work on their own in extremely cold weather. That's fine -- they're thin enough that they'll work as a liner inside full cold weather gloves.

How do they work? Perfectly. My previous "iPhone gloves" were made by Freehands, and feature folding fingertips that reveal your thumb and forefinger when you need to touch the screen. The only problem is that this exposes your fingers to the cold during those moments when you're using the device. Not so with the NuTouch gloves, which keep those fingertips and hands warm even when you're dialing your iPhone in the freezing cold.

There are other gloves of this type: TUAW blogger Michael Grothaus reviewed a similar pair of gloves from Mujjo a few weeks ago and was quite happy with them. However, the Mujjo gloves cost about $32 and don't appear to be much different from the much less expensive NuTouch Gloves.

I had only one complaint about the NuTouch Gloves -- the pair I was sent for review had a rip atop the right thumb. Despite that cosmetic flaw, the gloves worked wonderfully in testing on the iPhone 4S. I've even worn them on cold days in my house, since they work great with the Magic Trackpad.

I'm giving the NuTouch Gloves a warm two thumbs-up!

Newer Technology's NuTouch Gloves are a warm way to use your mobile devices originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 29 Dec 2011 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Newer Technology's NuTouch Gloves are a warm way to use your mobile devices originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 29 Dec 2011 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments