Archive for September, 2011

Here's how Steve Jobs describes his vision for iCloud during his Q&A session with developers at WWDC 1997.

Well, this is just amazing. Samsung indeed released a phone and a tablet that look similar to Apple's iPhone and iPad. Similar, but not a 100% copy. We cannot say the same about the USB AC power adapter from Galaxy S II. It is almost an exact replica, within a millimeter in every direction. I guess Apple will have one more reasonto ban Samsung products in courts all over the worls. By the way the previous Samsung USB power adapter looked very different.

Take a look at more photos:

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John Paczkowski at AllThingsD claims that the next keynote, where Apple is rumored to announce its next-generation iPhone, will be held on Apple Campus in Cupertino, rather than the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, where Apple usually holds its fall media event. We’ve heard various rumors that Apple might work on two iPhone models: completely redesigned device and a minor update unofficially dubbed “iPhone 4S”. It is widely believed the new device will come with iOS 5, pre-installed and ready to be configured with iCloud.

Perhaps, the company felt a more intimate venue was best for newly installed CEO Tim Cook’s first media event. Perhaps YBCA was simply already booked. Whatever the reason, the world will get it’s first look at the next iPhone at Apple’s Town Hall Auditorium in early October.

Apple has already used Town Hall Auditoriumon several occasions to preview upcoming versions of iOS, OS X, Lion, iLife ’11 and announce updated MacBook Air models.

Comcast, the U.S. largest internet and cable provider, plans to release a television streaming service for iPads. The company will compete in this market segment with Time Warner and Cablevision. The details of this product and its release dates haven’t been disclosed until now.

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Electronic Arts iPad games are on sale now. Here is the list of games and prices:

• Scrabble - $9.99 → $2.99
• Risk: The Official Game – $6.99 → $2.99
• Sim City Deluxe - $6.99 → $2.99
• Monopoly – $9.99 → $2.99
• Monopoly Here and Now: The World Edition – $9.99 → $2.99
• Shift 2 Unleashed – $4.99 → $2.99
• Command and Conquer: Red Alert – $4.99 → $2.99
• Max and the Magic Marker – $2.99 → $0.99

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Apple has joined the Digital Due Process coalition, which is focused on pressing Congress to update the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA).

ECPA was passed by Congress in 1986, before the World Wide Web was even invented and when cell phones were still a rarity. Yet to this day, ECPA is the primary law governing how and when law enforcement can access personal information and private communications stored by communications providers like Google, Facebook, your cell phone company or your ISP.

The aim of the Digital Due Process group is to "simplify, clarify, and unify the ECPA  standards, providing stronger privacy protections for communications and associated data in response to changes in technology and new services and usage patterns, while preserving the legal tools necessary for government agencies to enforce the laws, respond to emergency circumstances and protect the public." Digital Due Process highlights email, mobile location, cloud computing and social networking as new technologies that need to be included in the law. Other coalition members include Amazon, Intel, AT&T, Google and many more.

Multiple sources suggest that Apple is facing constant production and design delays that can result in shortages of iPhone 5 all the way into 2012. DigiTimes has reported additional information which corroborates these rumors and lays the blame on touch panel producer Wintek that is said to supply one-quarter touch panels for iPhone 5. According to the report:

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Scott Sutherland of Wedbush Securities issued updated projections for Apple predicting that the company would release an LTE device with an improved user interface in 2012. Barrons reports:

Sutherland expects the newest iPhone to debut in October, along with "an iPhone targeting emerging markets and an LTE iPhone in 2012 with a "materially improved user interface," without explaining any further. The iPad's competitors, moreover, will continue to struggle, he writes.

While Apple has made some improvements with its notifications center to iOS 5, the iPhone's basic interface has remained the same since the introduction of iOS. We doubt that 'material' improvements to the iPhone's operating system interface will be released anytime soon.

Research firm Gartner has published sales forecasts for the tablet market, stating that a lack of momentum from competitors will allow iPad to be absolute leader during the holiday shopping season. Looking further ahead, Gartner predicts that Apple will maintain more than 50 percent share of this market segment through 2014 even as Research in Motion’s QNX and Microsoft's Windows 8 platforms are expected to build up some momentum. Research vice president at Gartner Carolina Milanesi explains:

“This is because Apple delivers a superior and unified user experience across its hardware, software and services. Unless competitors can respond with a similar approach, challenges to Apple’s position will be minimal. Apple had the foresight to create this market and in doing that planned for it as far as component supplies such as memory and screen”.

Gartner has lowered its estimates for sales of Android tablets in 2011 by 28% over second quarter’s projections, noting very weak adoption due to its interface issues, high prices and limited app availability.

The company expects that Android will see growth as Google releases its next-generation Android’s "Ice Cream Sandwich" and addresses fragmentation across the Android ecosystem. However, according to Gartner's sales forecasts, Android tablets will not catch up the iPad by the end of projection period of 2015.

We are receiving more and more questions about JailbreakMe supporting particular iOS version and device. Here is a useful table that shows which firmwares can be jailbroken by JailbreakMe and which are not supported. Take a look:

Here our step by step JailbreakMe tutorials:

• iPad 1
• iPad 2
• iPhone 3GS
• iPhone 4
• iPod Touch 3G
• iPod Touch 4G

Other jailbreak tutorials including iOS 4.3.5 jailbreak can be found here.

Investment research firm UBS conducted a study of 515 iPhone and Android users in order to judge consumer loyalty based on whether they plan to make their next purchase from the same manufacturer as their current handset. 89% of iPhone users report that they will purchase another iPhone. For other vendors such percent is falling rapidly. The second place was taken by HTC with 39% and the third one – by Samsung with 28%. Android phones in general are at 55 percent. 31% of Android users plan to switch to iPhone. Only 33% of current BlackBerry users planning to purchase another BlackBerry, down from 62% a year and a half ago. In overall 50% users of smartphone plan to move to Apple and only 10% of iPhone users prefer to stitch from Apple. The survey may not be terribly accurate due to a small sample size, but it helps understand market trends, demonstrating high loyalty of iPhone users.

Taiwnese company VIA Techologies has reportedly filed a patent lawsuit against Apple. VIA Technology accuses Apple of infregement of patent rights by using processors in Apple’s iOS devices.

Via, a semiconductor maker based in Taipei, seeks a jury trial and an order to prohibit Cupertino, California-based Apple from selling products containing the inventions in the U.S., according to a complaint filed yesterday in federal court in Wilmington, Delaware.

“The products at issue generally concern microprocessors included in a variety of electronic products such as certain smartphones, tablet computers, portable media players and other computing devices,” Via said in the complaint.

The lawsuit is targeting Apple’s ARM-based A4 and A5 processors used in iPad, iPad 2, iPhone 4, iPhone 4 CDMA, iPod touch 4th generation, and Apple TV 2nd generation.

@Chronicwire posts new images of Otterbox case boxes specifically labeled for the "iPhone 4S". Cases have volume buttons on the right side above the SIM-card slot rather than on the left as in the iPhone 4. But, as far as we know the iPhone 4S leaked parts have not revealed such a change, so it is unclear which one is the correct depiction of the forthcoming device. AT&T stores are reported to have refreshed iPhone 4 cases with a change in the back opening for the camera that may be the rumored 8-megapixel camera. But these new cases may be a revision of the existing iPhone 4 cases. Moreover, earlier this month, there appeared information that several Apple stores had received iPhone bumper cases that didn’t fit right. Customers returned cases suggesting that they might be an early batch of modified cases for the new iPhone. Anyway, a clear light will be shed upon the situation only in October, then Apple reportedly plans to release its next-generation iPhone or iPhones (there are lots of controversial rumors claiming that Apple might release several models of the device: the iPhone 4S alongside the iPhone 5).

Keeping to the Apple’s schedule, the company opens six more stores on this weekend. It starts with the Nanjing East store in China opening tomorrow (Friday, September 23) and then the IFC (Hong Kong), Hornsby (Australia), Centro Sicilia (Italy), New Haven (Connecticut) and Metrotownn (Canada) Apple Stores will open on Saturday. The Nanjing East store (shown above) is the third Apple in Shanghai. IFC store is the first store that locates in Hong Kong. ifoApple Store notes that this store features a unique design:

The rear wall of both levels are glass windows looking out towards the city. On the inside, the lower level has two wide stainless steel walls, with a visitor entrance in the middle. The walls include back-lit display cases promoting Apple’s products. The upper level has an all-glass front window visible from the mall hallway.

BGR claims that Apple will introduce only one new iPhone model, the so-called "iPhone 4S", at its October 4th media event. It sounds reasonable because we still have not seen any sights of a redesigned iPhone 5 coming through supply chain. More specifically, there is a complete lack of such new iPhone 5 parts, suggesting that Apple may be planning to launch only the iPhone 4S as its next-generation iPhone model.

“We expect the focus of the new iPhone will be iOS 5, a speedier A5 processor and a higher resolution 8 MP camera with a small possibility of a larger 4 inch screen. We believe the casing will be largely similar to the iPhone with some particular modifications to the antennae [sic]. We don’t expect a second, dramatically different iPhone to accompany this as we don’t think Apple needs to have 3 models in the market to address the high end, mid-tier and low end since the iPhone 4 (with memory lowered to 8 GB) will drop to $99 and effectively attack those markets.”