Bend? or just bending the truth?

As everyone is probably more then aware, in recent times, iPhone releases have come hand in hand with some type of controversy, the iPhone 4, had antennagate, the iPhone 5 was coming out of the box with dings and scratches (scratchgate), and now the iPhone 6 seems to suffer from bendgate.

The first two issues were verified and dealt with accordingly by Apple, but at the moment it is too soon to suggest that bendgate is a real issue that Apple will need to target head on. From the videos flooding the internet, one thing which is clear is that the forces that are being applied to iPhones to get them to show any signs of bending would be impossible to replicate if the phones were being used for their intended purposes. Although some users have suggested that such bending has occurred while their phones have been in their pockets, looking objectively at how and where the devices are giving way and how reviewers have replicated such bending on their videos, what becomes questionable is the ability for such forces to be applied while an iPhone is contained within a pocket.

All materials have weak points, I am pretty sure I could also bend an iPhone 5, a samsung galaxy, or a HTC one, if I really tried. Bearing this in mind one should look pragmatically at the claims that the iPhone 6 is bendy, especially when the persons facial expression from trying to bend an iPhone seems to replicate a person desperately trying to induce bowl movements while having a severe case of constipation...    

Here come the newbies... iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, Apple Watch, and a U2 freebie

Behind the curve but ahead of the game -

While Apple has been accused of playing catch up by a host of competitors and early on Apple stock has taken a 1.5% dive, what remains beyond doubt is the fact that Apple is a game changer, unless you go back to the Apple I  everything in Apples modern history has been a reincarnation of some technology that failed to launch. Smart phones existed prior to the iPhone, MP3 players before the iPod and tablets before the iPad. But with the release of each of these products a market was defined and consumer wants were turned into consumer needs.

What Apple have a knack for is building products that people want. It's true that NFC has been included in numerous high and mid range android devices over the past few years, but the fact remains that using mobile phones to make payments at a point of sale never really took off, but with Apples drive towards using NFC for its Apple Pay platform, we are sure to see a surge in the number of people using the technology for this purpose.

A perfect example of this resonates in the newly uncovered and well received Apple Watch. Its fare to say that smart watches existed prior to the unveiling of the Apple Watch yesterday yet, Apple have finally legitimised the market for such a device, a year ago, the device category existed, yet I'm pretty sure that you would have been hard pressed to find someone who owned one, and even if on a rare occasion you did come across someone with one, I'm also pretty sure you would have written off the experience to the person being an eccentric. What this tells us is that the clout that Apple has far outweighs the power of its competition, just because the competition adopt a new technology does not mean that they are able to make game changing moves, this therefore reveals not Apples ability to give consumers new technology when they want it (as many commentators suggest) but rather Apples ability to tell consumers exactly what they want.

Many businesses succeed because of the excellence of their services - they simply do everything better then everyone else, others because of the simplicity of their products and finally the last group because they bring products and services into the market that change our lives so much that we systematically change the way we live our lives and therefore are bound to such advancements. What Apple does is all of the above but at the same time their focus remains on telling us what we need, so long as the company can woo the masses and create a desire for its products the company will remain at the pinnacle of the industry.

I guess in light of all the press, the good and the bad,  one is always reminded of the little but impactful story of the tortoise and the hare...

Annnnddddd the dates set... 9/9/2014 - Apple drop clue on iPhone 6 release

Apple have confirmed that they will be holding an event on the 9th of September, plenty have been waiting patiently and we all know whats coming, the real question is what else is coming?

In the meantime checkout this video thats surfaced on the internet with what seems to be a working iPhone 6.

Stay tuned...

UPDATE: 31/08/2014 -

So plenty of speculation and iPhone insides aren't really whats making the headlines, but just a quick update, NFT seems to be a hot favourite in the new phone lineup and also Apple seem to be sticking with 16gb as their entry lineup, obviously all of this is down to speculation so don't quote me on it :)

The real headlines are in relation to the upcoming release of some form of wearable device, call it an iWatch or whatever Apple will end up calling it, but many speculators believe that the grand unveiling will happen on the 9th of Sep, while many seem to think that Apple will not drop this product in time for the christmas rush I think otherwise. If a wearable device is unveiled then expect it to hit the shelves by mid to late October...

anyway peeps... stay tuned, the next week is going to include mountains of speculation but only time will tell...

Some Thought On Apple

Apple is evolving, some may over look its discounted MacBook Pro’s as still being too expensive but if you look objectively at each lineup they have become hardware leaders in their class and are also massively competitive. $1099 for a 13" MacBook Pro would rank amongst the best bargains when comparing, build quality, longevity, and user experience.

Apple have a simple equation when it comes to product design, its marketing is equally simple, It focuses on what the world wants and then builds the best product that it can. Sometimes this takes time, other-times its quite obvious that an iteration has been held back for a future release, as long as it does not make a habit out of the second point it will continue to prosper. As the company matures its strategy has been slightly modified but on a whole it would be easy to suggest that Apple has been able to do something that most could only dream of, this is of cause is moulding the perfect customers. Apple is great at telling its customers what they want, such is its influence that the products of other manufactures hang in the balance until Apple make their move. A clear example of this is the currently sluggish take up of smart watches. One can almost certainly guarantee that as soon as Apple begins to sell its highly anticipated iWatch sales for all other types of smart watch will soar through the roof.

As a company, having the ability to convince customers that they are making lifestyle choices when they purchase your products is an extremely fortunate position hold, while the market is flooded with functional equivalents, in the world of business, fortune does not bestow itself upon anyone, fortune needs to be worked for, and Apple work damn hard, hence the reason why Apple is still able to charge hundreds of dollars above competitors prices, and we could go as far as to suggest that it is also the reason why it has been able to single handily created the fortunate market of premium products that its competitors now also occupy.

If one was to take a step back and question why anyone would pay over $500 for a mobile phone when one could also be bought for $100, to most the idea would sound ludicrous, but Apple has been able to fashion perceptions as far as making people believe that there is rather then a material want, a material need for the consumption of its products. The technology industry has always been about wowing people into believing in the necessity for the products and services that it produces, Today we have no iWatch, there is no real reason why we would need a smart watch, but nevertheless in years to come people will question how they lived their lives without such a device.

Over the years Apple have gone from being a quirky, artsy, or hippy company, to a a company that nearly went bankrupt, the genius commitment to music, helped shoot the stock price through the stratosphere, and kickstarted its journey to dominance. What has carried through its whole journey has been its dedication to a slogan that it first used in the 1970's. Apples dedication to simplicity has always been well founded and as long as it maintains its focus on this ethos, its dominant run can continue to march forward.

Q3

As Q3 edges closer, the time has come to revisit the Apple lineup and put our predictions in.

After a hubris statement for WWDC, our hardware prediction were rather then being wrong, incorrectly timed. With hindsight it is easy to say WWDC was always going to be about the software, and now that we know this, and with iOS 8 poised to be released in Q3 a shiny new handset is guaranteed to join it on release day.

We stand by our predictions of a larger iPhone 6  with many similarities to the iPad mini. Along with this Apple is due to release newer versions of its MacBook's and MacBook Pro's with the only differences being beefed up insides.

The iPad lineup is expected to see new insides and Touch id on the outside.

Stay Tuned

iPhone 6... about time I said something...

So the rumours have been flying around for a while now, and with WWDC 2014 only a few months away, I thought it only worthwhile to have a look at whats been floating around.

Firstly our predictions:

I definitely expect to see a larger gorilla glass screen size but, nothing phablet sized, if you look back to my post on iOS 7.0 then you can see how Apple have been subconsciously pushed the need for a bigger screen on its customers. Apart from the new screen size, I expect to see a redesigned outer housing, as a scaled up version of the current lineup would look and feel very cumbersome, with that in mind, I lean towards believing that the next generation of iPhones will sport a very similar look and feel to the current line of iPad mini's. Furthermore the usual, hardware upgrades of beefing up the CPU / GPU offerings, a camera upgrade that rather then increasing the resolution provides better low light functionality and of cause providing a battery which will keep your new powerhouse working all day.

As I have said in the past if you are looking for a more then pragmatic revision to the current lineup then be prepared to be disappointed. The update will be more then capable of keeping you up to speed with the newest apps & games over the coming two years but i you expect your new iPhone to be able to teleport you to another galaxy then unfortunately not...

On other notes, NFT has to be included right? I'm really not sure on this one but, the incorporation of an Apple made health app seems prophesied and will most probably work with an additional accessory, will this be an iWatch? too soon to say but if all the rumours are true then why not.

anyway stay tuned and for now, bask in the glory of some images (thanks MacRumors) that have been floating around the WWW.

Stay tuned...
            
 

Tick Tock...

The one with the iPhone 5...

The good people at All Things Digital have enlightened us to some pretty information that has got iPhone fanatics bouncing of the walls. October 4th 2011 marks the date where CEO Tim Cook get to step into that lime light that Jobs has been hogging for the past decade. What better way to make an entrance then with the reincarnation of Apple's most adored baby.

For now all we can say is watch this space.....

Iphone v4 - a small case of deja vu

Yep so now that its official, you know that you saw it here first folks.

As Steve Jobs shows off the official Iphone 4 at its launch we get some more gory details, being 24% lighter this lightweight packs a punch, with a much improved 5MP main camera with 720p high definition video recording also making an appearance other multimedia smartphones beware. The new iPhone also has a second camera to allow for those 3G video calls bringing the Apple up to par with other manufacturers. This makeover has been long overdue and after being revealed by Steve Jobs at Apple's World Developers Conference in San Fransisco fans are impressed and are now just waiting to get their hands on Apples new helping.

The usual goodies are thrown in, but the hardware updates which were long overdue will be welcomed by all Apple fans.

Old horses beware, the new kid on the block just upped the game again!!

US and UK release on the 24th June, let the waiting game begin!!

The Apple Model = A Beautiful War

Thoughts On Flash:

Apple has a long relationship with Adobe. In fact, we met Adobe’s founders when they were in their proverbial garage. Apple was their first big customer, adopting their Postscript language for our new Laserwriter printer. Apple invested in Adobe and owned around 20% of the company for many years. The two companies worked closely together to pioneer desktop publishing and there were many good times. Since that golden era, the companies have grown apart. Apple went through its near death experience, and Adobe was drawn to the corporate market with their Acrobat products. Today the two companies still work together to serve their joint creative customers – Mac users buy around half of Adobe’s Creative Suite products – but beyond that there are few joint interests.

I wanted to jot down some of our thoughts on Adobe’s Flash products so that customers and critics may better understand why we do not allow Flash on iPhones, iPods and iPads. Adobe has characterized our decision as being primarily business driven – they say we want to protect our App Store – but in reality it is based on technology issues. Adobe claims that we are a closed system, and that Flash is open, but in fact the opposite is true. Let me explain.

First, there’s “Open”.

Adobe’s Flash products are 100% proprietary. They are only available from Adobe, and Adobe has sole authority as to their future enhancement, pricing, etc. While Adobe’s Flash products are widely available, this does not mean they are open, since they are controlled entirely by Adobe and available only from Adobe. By almost any definition, Flash is a closed system.

Apple has many proprietary products too. Though the operating system for the iPhone, iPod and iPad is proprietary, we strongly believe that all standards pertaining to the web should be open. Rather than use Flash, Apple has adopted HTML5, CSS and JavaScript – all open standards. Apple’s mobile devices all ship with high performance, low power implementations of these open standards. HTML5, the new web standard that has been adopted by Apple, Google and many others, lets web developers create advanced graphics, typography, animations and transitions without relying on third party browser plug-ins (like Flash). HTML5 is completely open and controlled by a standards committee, of which Apple is a member.

Apple even creates open standards for the web. For example, Apple began with a small open source project and created WebKit, a complete open-source HTML5 rendering engine that is the heart of the Safari web browser used in all our products. WebKit has been widely adopted. Google uses it for Android’s browser, Palm uses it, Nokia uses it, and RIM (Blackberry) has announced they will use it too. Almost every smartphone web browser other than Microsoft’s uses WebKit. By making its WebKit technology open, Apple has set the standard for mobile web browsers.

Second, there’s the “full web”.

Adobe has repeatedly said that Apple mobile devices cannot access “the full web” because 75% of video on the web is in Flash. What they don’t say is that almost all this video is also available in a more modern format, H.264, and viewable on iPhones, iPods and iPads. YouTube, with an estimated 40% of the web’s video, shines in an app bundled on all Apple mobile devices, with the iPad offering perhaps the best YouTube discovery and viewing experience ever. Add to this video from Vimeo, Netflix, Facebook, ABC, CBS, CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, ESPN, NPR, Time, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Sports Illustrated, People, National Geographic, and many, many others. iPhone, iPod and iPad users aren’t missing much video.

Another Adobe claim is that Apple devices cannot play Flash games. This is true. Fortunately, there are over 50,000 games and entertainment titles on the App Store, and many of them are free. There are more games and entertainment titles available for iPhone, iPod and iPad than for any other platform in the world.

Third, there’s reliability, security and performance.

Symantec recently highlighted Flash for having one of the worst security records in 2009. We also know first hand that Flash is the number one reason Macs crash. We have been working with Adobe to fix these problems, but they have persisted for several years now. We don’t want to reduce the reliability and security of our iPhones, iPods and iPads by adding Flash.

In addition, Flash has not performed well on mobile devices. We have routinely asked Adobe to show us Flash performing well on a mobile device, any mobile device, for a few years now. We have never seen it. Adobe publicly said that Flash would ship on a smartphone in early 2009, then the second half of 2009, then the first half of 2010, and now they say the second half of 2010. We think it will eventually ship, but we’re glad we didn’t hold our breath. Who knows how it will perform?

Fourth, there’s battery life.

To achieve long battery life when playing video, mobile devices must decode the video in hardware; decoding it in software uses too much power. Many of the chips used in modern mobile devices contain a decoder called H.264 – an industry standard that is used in every Blu-ray DVD player and has been adopted by Apple, Google (YouTube), Vimeo, Netflix and many other companies.

Although Flash has recently added support for H.264, the video on almost all Flash websites currently requires an older generation decoder that is not implemented in mobile chips and must be run in software. The difference is striking: on an iPhone, for example, H.264 videos play for up to 10 hours, while videos decoded in software play for less than 5 hours before the battery is fully drained.

When websites re-encode their videos using H.264, they can offer them without using Flash at all. They play perfectly in browsers like Apple’s Safari and Google’s Chrome without any plugins whatsoever, and look great on iPhones, iPods and iPads.

Fifth, there’s Touch.

Flash was designed for PCs using mice, not for touch screens using fingers. For example, many Flash websites rely on “rollovers”, which pop up menus or other elements when the mouse arrow hovers over a specific spot. Apple’s revolutionary multi-touch interface doesn’t use a mouse, and there is no concept of a rollover. Most Flash websites will need to be rewritten to support touch-based devices. If developers need to rewrite their Flash websites, why not use modern technologies like HTML5, CSS and JavaScript?

Even if iPhones, iPods and iPads ran Flash, it would not solve the problem that most Flash websites need to be rewritten to support touch-based devices.

Sixth, the most important reason.

Besides the fact that Flash is closed and proprietary, has major technical drawbacks, and doesn’t support touch based devices, there is an even more important reason we do not allow Flash on iPhones, iPods and iPads. We have discussed the downsides of using Flash to play video and interactive content from websites, but Adobe also wants developers to adopt Flash to create apps that run on our mobile devices.

We know from painful experience that letting a third party layer of software come between the platform and the developer ultimately results in sub-standard apps and hinders the enhancement and progress of the platform. If developers grow dependent on third party development libraries and tools, they can only take advantage of platform enhancements if and when the third party chooses to adopt the new features. We cannot be at the mercy of a third party deciding if and when they will make our enhancements available to our developers.

This becomes even worse if the third party is supplying a cross platform development tool. The third party may not adopt enhancements from one platform unless they are available on all of their supported platforms. Hence developers only have access to the lowest common denominator set of features. Again, we cannot accept an outcome where developers are blocked from using our innovations and enhancements because they are not available on our competitor’s platforms.

Flash is a cross platform development tool. It is not Adobe’s goal to help developers write the best iPhone, iPod and iPad apps. It is their goal to help developers write cross platform apps. And Adobe has been painfully slow to adopt enhancements to Apple’s platforms. For example, although Mac OS X has been shipping for almost 10 years now, Adobe just adopted it fully (Cocoa) two weeks ago when they shipped CS5. Adobe was the last major third party developer to fully adopt Mac OS X.

Our motivation is simple – we want to provide the most advanced and innovative platform to our developers, and we want them to stand directly on the shoulders of this platform and create the best apps the world has ever seen. We want to continually enhance the platform so developers can create even more amazing, powerful, fun and useful applications. Everyone wins – we sell more devices because we have the best apps, developers reach a wider and wider audience and customer base, and users are continually delighted by the best and broadest selection of apps on any platform.

Conclusions.

Flash was created during the PC era – for PCs and mice. Flash is a successful business for Adobe, and we can understand why they want to push it beyond PCs. But the mobile era is about low power devices, touch interfaces and open web standards – all areas where Flash falls short.

The avalanche of media outlets offering their content for Apple’s mobile devices demonstrates that Flash is no longer necessary to watch video or consume any kind of web content. And the 200,000 apps on Apple’s App Store proves that Flash isn’t necessary for tens of thousands of developers to create graphically rich applications, including games.

New open standards created in the mobile era, such as HTML5, will win on mobile devices (and PCs too). Perhaps Adobe should focus more on creating great HTML5 tools for the future, and less on criticizing Apple for leaving the past behind.

Steve Jobs
April, 2010

Iphone v4

Courtesy of Taovite:

A sneek peek at what could be the next gen iphone!!

Check out that A4 Powerhouse in that first picture

Enjoy

A case of sibling rivalry? or does Apple now predict tough competition??

A new update available from Apple for its popular iTunes application has now done away with the hole which allowed non Apple devices to pretend to be iPods. Thus these devices can no longer use the program to sync music and other content. Apple suggested in June that it did not support non Apple media devices and that changes could be made in the the future to its software which would prevent such devices from syncing with iTunes.

The newly updated version of iTunes (8.2.1) does just that. Apple will obviously stress the fact that this is done with the best customer experience in mind, but skeptics such as myself see it as a direct response to the popularity of Palms new helping the Pre, currently selling in the USA on Sprint and due out in the UK exclusively on 02 in time for the holiday season the Pre is turning heads on both sides of the Atlantic. The Pre offers users the ability to seamlessly jump from application to application with the convenience of not having to close each application. The Pre allows for multiple application to be open at the same time, and apart from looking dashing the Pre is also equipped with a full slide out qwerty keyboard, as well as a multi-touch screen.

The Palm Pre does sound like a dashing offering, and Apple seem to know it, what other reason would there be for Apple to block of such a large selection of potential iTunes users.

From the looks of it, the battle stations are manned, and the war paint has been applied, will Apple continue to dominate? only time will tell.

The New iPhone 3GS

The iPhone 3GS was not what manic Apple fans expected when Apple announced that it would be updating its iPhone range. So called leaked images that appeared on iPhoneHacks.com suggested an updated shell which seemed to follow a path of common sense, but when Apple reveled the iPhone 3GS on the outside it in no way differed from the previous model (the 3G iPhone). A deeper look into the iPhone reveals, where the time has gone, the hardware upgrade has been significant, with the new iPhone 3GS now boasting speeds twice as fast as its predecessor, and with a software update the ability to use quirky functions such as voice commands and the much needed MMS functionality.

The real question which is still unanswered asks how well the iPhone 3GS stacks up against is many rivals, with the likes of Nokia, Palm and even Samsung and LG all wanting to get in on the iPhones action, one must question if Apple has done enough to fight off its rivals to maintain the iPhones must have appeal.

My personal opinion suggests that a physical reconstruction of the iPhone could have helped increase the length of those lines outside the many Apple stores early on release day, but by only changing what is on the inside of the iPhone, many consumers decided to stay at home. Another dilemma that pre-existing iPhone customers face is the fact that networks such as o2 (in the UK) have told customers that the only way they can upgrade their iPhones is if they either see out their full contracts or if they buyout their existing contract, and therefore then start a new one with o2. With the average customer on a 18 month mobile contract the first option can seem like a long wait and the second option a huge waste of money. Both of these reasons may obviously in the future lead to a fall in consumer satisfaction and thus in the long run could hurt Apples profits.

Nokia set to Dampen Palm's mood

Just as people in the industry thought Palm had finally created a mobile device that was worth talking about, Nokia have come along and blown the touch screen mobile phone industry out of the water. Nokia's new installment the N97 out on the 27th of June is sure to dent Palms chances of an unprecedented level of success in Apples domain.

The fact that the Palm Pre still does not have a confirmed release date in Europe and also the fact that Nokia has always seemed to dominate the European market should be listed amongst some of the concerns that Palm should have.

On looks alone I personally believe that the N97 wins hands down, this coming from a person who held out on buying a iPhone after seeing the Pre at CES. Again I seem to have changed my mind and at the moment I expect to get myself a N97 when my contract eventually roll overs.

The most favorable thing about Nokia is it generally provides its mobile phones to all UK network operators, so it will also be a hassle free device. This compared to Apples allegiance to O2 and and Palms agreement to provide the Pre exclusively to Vodaphone...

As each day passes the mobile industry provides us the consumer with an ever increasing number of exciting products, the only let down in the industry now remains the problem of exclusivity, why can't Apple, Palm and any other manufacturer who only provides to certain networks provide freely so that customers may shout rejoice!!

A Mobile Revolution

"A research group has claimed the Palm Pre will cost $170 to make."

With claims that networks will provide the Pre to customers at around $200, will this mobile device become an iPhone Killer??

If Apple was not going to update the iPhone, this is a reason why they should maybe rethink their decision.

After looking at the specifications of the Palm Pre I was sold, I have so far held back from buying what seems like the must have mobile device on the planet. In Feb I was an inch away from accepting the penalty for exiting my current mobile phone tariff, but after seeing the Palm Pre for the first time during CES I chose not to waste my money.

With rumors of a new iPhone to hit our shelfs in the second half of 2009, I'm sure happy my current mobile tariff runs to October. The Palm Pre, does seem like a revolution, by taking the good that Apple introduced in the market of touchscreen mobile devices, Palm has added user functionality, which I'm sure will make the end user experience amazing, but now the question of what Apple can bring to the market looms in the air. Will the new Apple iPhone be a step above the rest or will it only fix the problems that are apparent in the current model (mainly the lack of a high quality camera, MMS), along with a faster processor. I do not believe that Apple needs to totally redesign the iPhone, from a design prospective it works, its sleek, follows a simple logic and is loved by the public. But if Apple want to keep their strangle hold on this new mobile device market, it will have to step up the user experience...

All we can do is wait and see what the eventual outcome will be, for all of us on the sideline it is sure to be entertaining.

A step in the right direction?

Apple plots course for middle of mobile

Is it a step in the right direction? is this really want people want? Apple seem to think so.

With the help of the iPhone, Apple's profits rose 15% this year, so it seems that right now Apple do know exactly what the consumer wants. The problem that Apple and all other mobile device firms face is the constant battle to create a new product that differentiates them from the rest of the market, Apple did make the touchscreen market cool, but now it is overcrowded, this means a split in market share, and at hard economic times such as now, also means that budget models have a large advantage over any $300+ devices.

A market that one can think about, which is between the iPhone category and the MacBook category naturally falls into the domain of a new type of netbook, maybe the device would have a touchscreen, thus eliminating the need for an external keyboard, and mobile communications also built in, allowing for an internet experience on the go, without the necessity of needing a USB mobile broadband dongle, plus if they threw in a bluetooth headset then maybe they could also provide a talk/text and surf mobile tariffs...

All that is clear right now is the fact that people are looking to move into the smartphone market, but with the iPhone still priced relatively high, Apple could lose its strangle hold on the market and soon the likes of LG, Samsung or even Nokia could easily take over the touchscreen market with their cheaper but cheerful offerings.

But with the prospect of a new offering from Apple, I would not contest the presence of Apple fever, and thus another year of 15% profits.