June 3, 2010
Gizmodo’s plans to stop police from searching Jason Chen’s devices for information pertaining to the lost (or stolen) iPhone 4G appears to have failed — sort of. Lawyers for Gizmodo and the chief deputy district attorney for San Mateo County have come to an agreement to allow a third-party (called a special master) to search the devices and alert both sides of only information about the iPhone 4G.
After the search is concluded, the special master will send his findings of what he believes is relevant to the case on to the judge, who will then present it to Chen and his lawyers so they can make any objections. The judge will then decide what to forward to the district attorney. The process could take up to two months, Wagstaffe told CNET.
Court examining Gizmodo devices for iPhone info [CNET]
June 2, 2010
You may have heard that AT&T announced a couple of new data plans earlier today that essentially put caps on the amount of data that iPhone users can consume. Our friends at TUAW talked to AT&T today and have posted a Q&A from that interview.
Candid answers from AT&T on the new iPhone data plans [TUAW]
During his time at the D8 Conference on Tuesday, Steve Jobs went off a little on Flurry, an analytics company that collects data from mobile devices. The company gets developers to put the code in their apps and it sends data to Flurry. A vice president said they have been in touch with Apple to work out the problems.
Here’s what Jobs had to say last night:
“Some company called Flurry had data on devices that we were using on our campus; new devices,” according to Jobs. “They were getting this info by getting developers to put software in their apps that sent info back to this company! So we went through the roof. It’s violating our privacy policies, and it’s pissing us off! So we said we’re only going to allow analytics that don’t give our device info; only for the purpose of advertising.”“After we calm down from being pissed off, then we’re willing to talk to some of these analytics firms,” Jobs added. “But it’s not today.”
Flurry reacts to Jobs criticisms about device data [MacNN]
It’s interesting to watch the PC industry play catch-up with Apple’s iPad and make no mistake, that’s exactly what’s happening. The PC tablet has been out for some time, but they didn’t bring anything new to the game and they still don’t. (more…)
AT&T on Wednesday introduced new data plans to replace current iPhone unlimited data plans. The company also introduced the long-awaited tethering option for iPhone users. (more…)
I could write all day about what Steve Jobs said at the D8 conference last night, but why bother when you can hear from the man himself. Here are some clips on the topics we all want to hear Jobs’ views. (more…)
June 1, 2010
Music and Macs have been a huge part of my life, but I’ve never used them together like this. Those close to Stanford University can celebrate the integration of the two by seeing the final show of the Stanford Laptop Orchestra’s 2009-2010 season.
In a practice room on the Stanford campus last week, an ensemble of more than a dozen performing musicians gathered to rehearse for an upcoming chamber concert of student work. One young composer after another stepped to the front of the room, distributed scores, and started cueing entrances and ironing out details of coordination.Just another day in the chamber-music world, except for one key detail: Every musician in this ensemble was playing the same instrument – a MacBook.
Stanford Laptop Orchestra makes music with Macs [San Francisco Chronicle]
Following news earlier on Tuesday from Intego that it found some apps and screensavers that download spyware in the background when being installed, the company released a preliminary list of apps. According to Intego, the screensavers are all made by one company, 7art-screensavers. They will download an app to your system called PremierOpinion. (more…)
I am at Steve Jobs WWDC keynote and will provide live updates as they happen. The newest posts will automatically show up on the top of the feed. Enjoy the update! (more…)
Security company Intego on Tuesday issued a warning of a new spyware application that is installed by “a number of freely distributed Mac applications and screen savers found on a variety of websites.” (more…)
Adobe Systems and Apple may be at an impasse when it comes to allowing Adobe’s Flash technology on the iPad, but that’s not stopping Adobe from finding other ways to support the platform. On Tuesday Adbobe introduced new “digital viewer technology” that enables magazine publishers to bring their periodicals to the iPad. (more…)
We knew it would happen. The iPad competitors would come out of the woodwork to try to capitalize on the incredible sales Apple is seeing from its iPad. LG showed off its UX10 tablet at Computex, but even the specs show that Apple’s competition hasn’t learned a thing about what’s going to make a successful product in this market.
Boasting a 10.1-inch LED capacity touchscreen, the UX10 was one of the most solid tablets we’ve had the opportunity to touch. The prototype on the floor was equipped with an Intel Atom Z530 processor, 1GB of DDR2 RAM, Windows 7 Home Premium, a 1.3 megapixel front-facing webcam, an SD card slot, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, a 7200mAh battery and a micro-HDMI output.
Exclusive: LG UX10 tablet preview at Computex [Engadget]
May 31, 2010
Innovative Media is suing Apple over its use of the term “iAd,” which Apple uses to describe its new advertising system for the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad. (more…)
If anyone is wondering if the demand for iPads is slowing down, it appears not – Apple announced Monday that it has sold two million iPads in less than 60 days. This announcement comes less than a month after Apple announced that it had sold its first million iPads. (more…)
May 29, 2010
I never get tired of talking with Jordan Rudess about music and technology. Not only is he a creative force in the music industry, Rudess is also one of the leading influencers in adopting technology and meshing the two worlds together. I’ve had the pleasure of speaking with Jordan on several occasions, so it was great to read a new article about how he uses the iPhone and iPad to create and expand music.
How iPhone and iPad Apps Will Make You a Rock Star [Jetsetextra.com]
May 27, 2010
CCP has announced the release of EVE Online: Tyrannis, the 13th consecutive free expansion for its massively multiplayer online game EVE Online. The update is available when you log on to EVE Online from your Mac or PC, and will automatically be installed. (more…)
The day that many Mac gamers expected never to see has come at last – Valve has released Half-Life 2, the legendary action game, for the Macintosh. It’s available through Valve’s Steam online download service, which was released for the Mac earlier this month. (more…)
We were all wondering what surprises Steve Jobs would have for his WWDC keynote — how about Steve Ballmer on stage. (more…)
May 26, 2010
It’s funny, but I usually stay away from games that are based on movies because, like the first paragraph of this review says, they usually suck. I actually started reading the review thinking they were going to surprise me and say this app was different — it wasn’t.
It’s a sad fact of video gaming history that licensed movie games are almost always disappointments. Shallow gameplay, rushed graphics and pedantic storylines typically dominate all but a very select few of these releases. Still, the faithful masses (like me) always hope for the rare title that will break this chain of mediocrity and rise to unexpected greatness.Iron Man 2 for the iPad, alas, is not one of these games.
Iron Man 2 for iPad Review [148Apps.com]
The domination of Microsoft Windows may very well be coming to an end. I’m not saying that tomorrow we will wake up and nobody will know what Windows is, but the signs of its decline are all around us. The biggest of those signs is Microsoft’s inability to compete in the mobile market, especially against Apple, Google and HP, with its recent purchase of Palm.
Microsoft is trying to take a desktop operating system to mobile products. Its competitors are creating mobile operating system from the ground up. With the loss of one of its biggest proponents in HP, Microsoft’s mobile strategy took a big hit. It’s not quite clear how they will recover from that.
This has nothing to do with Apple passing Microsoft in market capitalization earlier today. It’s a simple fact that Microsoft is having a difficult time competing in a market that is becoming an important part of out computing experience.
The Windows era is over [Betanews]
Consumers are making their choice between an iPad and netbook and despite positive projections for netbook sales in 2010, things don’t look good for the category. I’ve said all along that you can’t compare an iPad to a netbook and that all the netbook did was prove that consumers wanted a compact device — it doesn’t mean it was the right device. Now, consumers are moving to the iPad. Not a big shock.
I’d observe this means the iPad has made netbooks lose their mojo — and as more tablets from other manufacturers reach the shops (including Sony’s possible future Android-powered tablet), what fate for the netbook category?
iPad Xmas? Apple’s iPad seizes netbook hearts [Computerworld]
It’s going back and forth by the minute, but Apple on Wednesday officially passed Microsoft in terms of market capitalization. The move puts Apple in second place behind only Exxon, who holds the top spot. Exxon’s market cap is $282.02 billion, Apple’s is $228.56 billion and Microsoft is $228.12 billion.
Wikipedia describes market capitalization as:
Market capitalization/capitalisation (often market cap) is a measurement of size of a business enterprise (corporation) equal to the share price times the number of shares outstanding of a public company. As owning stock represents ownership of the company, including all its equity, capitalization could represent the public opinion of a company’s net worth and is a determining factor in stock valuation.
Apple Passes Microsoft to Become Second-Largest U.S. Company by Market Capitalization [MacRumors]
Looking at Apple’s upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference, one industry analyst said it is unlikely Apple will release an iPhone compatible with the Verizon wireless networks. (more…)
Apple has been getting a lot of attention lately, but not all of it is good. The Department of Justice is reportedly investigating the company’s tactics in the online music business. (more…)
Apple late Tuesday said it would investigate the recent rise in suicides at Foxconn, one of the company’s manufacturing partners. (more…)
May 25, 2010
Google removed the beta moniker from its Chrome for Mac Web browser on Tuesday, indicating its ready for primetime. I’ve had Chrome installed for some time and use it every once in a while, but it hasn’t become my default. I have Firefox installed too, but I still count on Safari for my everyday Web browser.
Chrome for Mac out of beta [TUAW]
Apple on Tuesday launched its new Back-to-School offer: Buy a Mac and get a free 8GB iPod touch. The promotion runs through September 7. (more…)
FileMaker on Tuesday released its new Bento 3 Student Survival Kit, a free collection of templates designed for students that will be entering college in the fall and for new graduates commencing a job search.
(more…)
Considering everything that’s going on, I thought this was kind of amusing. Not that the products do the same thing, but two companies taking two different approaches end up with the same technology. It probably happens more than what we’ll ever know.
GoogleTV is manufactured by Logitech and Sony and contains a System on Chip (SoC) designed by Intel. The iPad’s SoC is an ARM design made by Apple (though manufacturing is outsourced to Samsung). However, both of these SoCs use a PowerVR graphics processor from a small UK-based company called Imagination.
GoogleTV and iPad share the same graphics processor technology [Fortune]
May 24, 2010
Wal-Mart is having a blow-out sale of Apple’s iPhone 3GS model beginning on Tuesday. The company will sell only the 16GB model and it requires a contract. With the iPhone 4G leaked by Gizmodo, it could be that Wal-Mart is selling the iPhone to get rid of existing stock before the new model is released.
Apple iPhone 3GS price drops to $97 at Walmart [ZDNet]
