November 1, 2012
“Apple’s innovation is sputtering,” [Trip] Chowdhry wrote in a research note to clients. “Why is that Apple, the company that brought touch to phones and tablets, stopped just there and did not bring touch to notebooks and iMacs? Why is it that Apple brought high-resolution screens to…some MacBooks and not to all devices? High-resolution screens are a commodity today.”

Well Trip, people tend to use computers in a different way than they use tablets and phones. It makes no sense to push out touch enabled displays on products that people expect to use a keyboard and mouse.

Apple does use high-resolution displays, but Retina displays are not a commodity. With a price conscious customer in mind, Apple has to balance its products to offer the best it can for a reasonable price.

I hope that answered your question Trip.

Of the 412,222 Android apps evaluated from Google Play, Bit9 says more than 290,000 of them access at least one high-risk permission, 86,000 access five or more and 8,000 apps access 10 or more permissions “flagged as potentially dangerous.”

Great news for Android… oh wait.

Evan Ackerman for Dvice:

What happens if you give a thousand Motorola Zoom tablet PCs to Ethiopian kids who have never even seen a printed word? Within five months, they’ll start teaching themselves English while circumventing the security on your OS to customize settings and activate disabled hardware. Whoa.

OK, just kidding about the NORAD part. Regardless, it’s a pretty remarkable story. Just don’t read the comments, most of them totally miss the point.

I thought the letter was brilliant.

Speaking to TV channel RTE, Sean Walsh of The Original Rudeboys said: “Even though it’s a huge opportunity to play in the O2 with a major hip-hop star and a substantial fee was offered, we are completely against Chris Brown’s assault on Rihanna… In addition, with our latest single ‘Blue Eyes’ being about domestic violence, it goes against everything we are about as a band and supporting Chris Brown would send out the wrong message to our fans.”

Much respect to The Original Rudeboys. I met these guys in Dublin, Ireland last year and even got to play a song on stage with them. Great bunch of guys that deserve your support.

Twelve South intros HiRise stand for MacBook

Twelve South’s newest Mac accessory is the HiRise for MacBook, a new stand for MacBooks from the 11-inch MacBook Air to the 15-inch MacBook Pro. It costs $69.99.

The HiRise is height-adjustable up to six inches thanks to a spring-loaded stem, and is made from brushed metal. The laptop sits on a v-shaped arm equipped with soft silicone to keep it from getting scuffed. And teflon rails on the bottom also help your desk from getting marked up in the process.

October 31, 2012

Some interesting thoughts on the Apple executive shakeup from Don Lehman.

Good for Om for asking what the deal was between them (twice).

Launching in the last week, Microsoft’s Windows 8 and Windows Phone platforms are already the subject of legal complaints, after a Portland-based OS development company called SurfCast sued the company for allegedly infringing on its patents with the use of Live Tiles in its desktop, tablet and mobile software.

I wonder if they were in touch with Microsoft before the release or waited until it was publicly available.

Today we are launching AMBER Alerts coordinated by National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) in the Google Public Alerts platform. Public Alerts are designed to bring you emergency alerts when and where they’re relevant to you, and AMBER Alerts aim to help bring abducted children home safely.

Good move, thanks Google.

iPad mini fits in your back pocket

I tried this today out of necessity because I was carrying too many things. The iPad mini easily fit into my back pocket and was comfortable to walk with it in there.

Jim and Dan talk about Jim’s review of the new iPad mini with comparisons to other 7 and 8-inch tablets, Jim’s new Retina MacBook Pro 13-inch, the recent Apple executive restructuring, and more.

Sponsored by Lynda, Shutterstock (use code “dansentme10” for 30% off), and Shopify (use code “5by5” and get 3 months free).

Borderland Legends game debuts for iOS

2K Games announced Wednesday the release of Borderland Legends for iOS, a game based on the popular first person shooter franchise for Mac, PC and console. It costs $4.99 for the iPhone version and $6.99 for an “HD” version optimized for iPad.

While the setting is the same – the harsh, hostile world of Pandora – and the setup is similar – you control “vault hunters” looking for loot as they are set upon by hordes of dangerous alien wildlife, bandits and other baddies – Borderland Legends eschews the first person perspective in the original game for an isometric overhead view designed especially for mobile devices. The game combines RPG and strategy elements for a tactical gameplay experience.

The vault hunters from the first game are back: Brick, Mordecai, Lilith and Roland, each with unique characteristics. Features include randomly-generated maps, the ability to purchase skills and randomly-generated weapons, shields and utilities.

October 30, 2012

Review: iPad mini

I was wrong. I have wondered publicly whether or not a smaller tablet would fit into my workflow and even suggested the larger iPad would be better. I was wrong.

I picked up my iPad mini and iPad 4 from Apple just after the special event ended last week in San Jose and have been using them ever since. I haven’t used the mini to the exclusion of my iPad, but I wanted to see where this new device would fit into my lifestyle without being forced.

What I found was surprising to me. I actually used the iPad mini more than my iPad.

It’s important to understand how I use my iPad. My iPad is the device I use at the end of the day when I put my computer down, but still have a few things to do. I’m winding down at that point in the day.

I answer emails, check the site and basically get things ready for the next day. Since all of my information is kept in iCloud or services like Instapaper, I have access to everything I need on all my devices. For instance, any links I save using Instapaper are also on my Mac, so I don’t need to worry about where I work or what device I use.

Of course, things are a little different when I travel — the iPad gets more use than normal in airplanes, hotels, airports and meetings.

In addition to using the iPad mini in my normal daily tasks, I also found that I would pick up the mini and use it where I normally wouldn’t use the iPad. For instance, if I’m on a phone call, I would typically use my iPhone to look things up while I walk around or type notes, look at Web sites and things like that. Now, I’m using the iPad mini because it’s compact enough to carry around, but not so large that it’s cumbersome.

The iPad mini has technologies that help you use the device too. For instance, when you hold the mini with one hand your thumb naturally touches the screen on the side of the device. There is no way to stop that from happening — it’s going to happen.

Now, when you’re reading a book and you touch the side of the screen, the book will think you want to change pages. And it would do that, if the iPad weren’t smart. But it is smart, so it recognizes that you are resting your thumb on the device and don’t actually want that touch to do anything. So it doesn’t. Smart.

If you tap your thumb on the screen, it will immediately change the page for you. Smart. Apple worked out how people were going to use and even hold the device and made sure iOS and the iPad didn’t interfere with what you want to do. Those are the types of details we expect to see from Apple.

This isn’t even something I noticed on the larger iPad because I didn’t walk around holding it with one hand. I didn’t have to worry about accidental taps on the screen. However, it’s something I do quite a bit with the mini.

Unlike my iPad 4 that I typically use in landscape mode, I find myself in portrait almost all the time with iPad mini, even when I’m not on the move. It just feels more natural to be in that orientation than holding it in landscape.

Perhaps part of that comes from typing. With the iPad mini in portrait, I can type with two thumbs, much the same way I do with my iPhone. I don’t know if everyone will be able to do this as comfortably as I can, but I suspect they will. My hands are not abnormally large, so it should work fine.

I use my iPad mini for tasks rather than watching videos or playing games, but I use it a lot. This is a Wi-Fi model, which was on all the time and I have yet to see anything cause a significant drain on the battery. The battery is lasting days for me and it is on 24/7.

If there was one thing I was surprised with, it would be that the iPad mini doesn’t have a Retina display. It surely gives Apple some room to upgrade the device if they want to next year, but that’s the only thing I would really add to the mini.

I suppose the decision makes sense if it keeps the cost down. It’s not like you are shocked looking at the existing screen, it is very nice.

About those other tablets

I’d like to get back to the very beginning for a minute. I said that I didn’t know if I would like the smaller form factor tablet and it bothered me a bit when I did. I wondered how I had missed the mark so badly.

I wanted to find out.

I went to a local big box retailer and used every tablet they had in the store, including the Asus Windows 8 tablet. The difference was immediately clear. The quality of these other tablets is so inferior to what Apple manufactures that they felt like plastic toys in your hands.

All of the tablets, all of them, bend when you hold them. They are made of cheap plastic parts and the casing felt like it would snap. Until now, these were the only mid-sized tablets I have ever used and they were awful. That’s what I was basing my opinion on.

I tapped on a link four times on the Asus before it would do anything. After it finally went to the page, I only had to tap the back arrow three times to get back.

I am a firm believer in “you get what you pay for.” The iPad mini is a perfect example of that. If you want to save $50 and buy a cheap-ass tablet, go ahead. If you want quality the iPad mini will be waiting for you when you come to your senses.

iPad 4

There’s not really much to say about the iPad 4. It’s really fast in both processor speed and graphics, but we knew that. For me, the iPad 4 gives developers more headroom to continue pushing the envelope of what they can produce. That in turn, gives us better products to buy for the iPad. It’s good anytime that happens.

Bottom Line

I was really surprised with how much I used the iPad mini in my daily routine — more than the 10-inch iPad. There are a couple of things you have to remember with the iPad mini. First, it isn’t just a smaller iPad, but rather it feels like its own device.

Anything that is simply shrunk down or scaled up feels amateurish. The iPad mini feels like an iPad, it’s something you can have fun with and accomplish tasks on.

The second thing is that what seems like a little bit of extra screen real estate on the iPad mini makes a huge difference. Everything just works on the mini — all of your old apps, iCloud, everything. It works.

The iPad mini is a well thought out device and it’s exactly what you would expect from Apple.

Update: I mistakenly said that I used the Microsoft Surface tablet. In fact, it was an Asus Windows 8 tablet. The review has been changed to reflect.

Google did a great job with this.

Recent smartphone sales data from Kantar Worldpanel ComTech shows Android continuing to gain share across Europe in latest 12 weeks of sales increasing its share to 67.1% share, up from 50.9% a year ago. However, its rate of growth has slowed as week one of iPhone 5 sales show iOS gaining in the US and Great Britain.

iMessage is apparently down for some users, while others report the outage also affects iTunes Match, Game Center, and the App Store. Everything is fine with all of my services.

Apple delays iTunes 11

Unfortunately, Apple is delaying the release of iTunes 11. Apple spokesperson Tom Neumayr told The Loop why today.

“The new iTunes is taking longer than expected and we wanted to take a little extra time to get it right. We look forward to releasing this new version of iTunes with its dramatically simpler and cleaner interface, and seamless integration with iCloud before the end of November.”

The Atlantic:

With Hurricane Sandy, the nation’s eyes are turning to its largest city. Photos of storms and flooding are popping up all over Twitter, and while many are real, some of them — especially the really eye-popping ones — are fake.This post, which will be updated over the next couple of days, is an effort to sort the real from the unreal. It’s a photograph verification service, you might say, or a pictorial investigation bureau. If you see a picture that looks fishy, send it to me at alexis.madrigal[at]gmail.com. If you like this sort of thing, you should also visit istwitterwrong.tumblr.com, which is just cataloging the fakes.

Ballmer’s Windows 8 upgrade numbers aren’t that good

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said on Tuesday that the company sold 4 million Windows 8 upgrades. While Ballmer may want you to think that’s a good number, it’s actually not.

Ballmer said today that Apple was a low-volume player in every market, except the iPad (Notice that Ballmer didn’t mention the iPhone even though that one product is worth more than all of Microsoft). He really should be careful what he says.

Microsoft’s has an installed base of 1.25 billion users. According to Ballmer’s own numbers, 4 million upgraded to Windows 8 in the first four days. That means that one-third of one percent of Microsoft’s user base upgraded.

Now let’s take a look at Apple. In its first four days on sale, Mountain Lion sold 3 million copies. Apple has an installed base of 66 million, meaning that 5 percent of Apple’s user base updated in four days.

It’s kind of like people don’t really care about Windows 8.

Steve Ballmer’s response when asked how the reception for the Surface was in the first few days:

Numerically there’s not really much that’s interesting to report.

Well that is interesting. After the first three days on the market Apple announced the iPad 3 sold three million units.

“In every category Apple competes, it’s the low-volume player, except in tablets.’

Oh, and that iPhone thing that’s as big as your entire company. Stay classy Ballmer.

The exit of Apple Inc’s longtime mobile software products chief may be a surprise, but a band of able executives led by Tim Cook and a bigger role for design boss Jonathan Ive meant the company was in good hands, analysts said on Tuesday.

And that’s why Tim Cook put Ive in that position. It instantly calmed everything down.

This has always been my favorite app for screen recording. I haven’t used the new version yet, but I’ll take a look in the next little while.

Some interesting thoughts from Cuban on what it will take to win in the TV market.

I’ve been hearing similar things.

October 29, 2012

Conan spoofs the iPad mini… again

Conan is having fun with this.

The video auto plays when the page loads, so I took it off. You can watch it on Conan’s site.

Ballmer narrates new Microsoft ad

Not as crazy as the first ad Ballmer did.

[Via Engadget]

“Wednesday was the $199 Kindle Fire HD’s biggest day of sales since launch and up 3x week over week.”

Does that mean they sold 20 Kindles? Could be, who knows. Without the numbers, Amazon’s word means nothing.

Adam Lashinsky for CNN:

I also heard that Forstall refused to sign the letter apologizing for the mapping fiasco, sealing his fate at Apple.

Lots of speculation going around tonight.