Apple Introduces iPhone X (Ten)

In an effort to mark the 10th anniversary of the iPhone, yesterday Apple introduced the iPhone X (ten) and currently skipping over an iPhone 9. They finally dropped most of the storage sizes which hopefully will become the standard for all devices across the board as 16GB and 32GB anything is rather stupid and overly cheap of companies. The phones come in just two storage sizes - 64GB and 256GB. Most people will not need more then 64GB. They also showed off the Apple Watch 3 which might actually be worth buying now along with Apple TV 4k. Below are the highlights. You can watch the 2 hour event in 13 minutes here. Also iOS 11 will be released on September 19 for new devices and old.

iPhone X
- Price: $1000 (64GB)
- Release Date: November 3 (pre-orders start on October 27)
- Screen: 5.8" Super Retina OLED display that goes edge to edge of the device, removing the home button (replaced with swipe up motion)
- FaceID - replaces Touch ID by using facial recognition that uses multiple sensors and data including infra-red, to detect a face.
- Other: A11 processor, 12-megapixel camera with image stabilization, and Qi wireless charging
- Summary: its an iPhone Plus for those that really deeply care about screen quality and don't mind paying for it.

Apple Announces the iPhone 7

Yesterday Apple official announced the iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, and Apple Watch 2. In short, as rumored, they have eliminated the headphone jack in favor of bluetooth solutions, a dongle, and waterproofing the device. To early to say if the trade off is worth it. In general, just like in the last few years, all the devices are just the usual incremental improvements in CPU, camera and other features. If you are currently using an iPhone 6, the bump to 7 is minor at best but for older devices you might see a real improvement in overall quality. One thing to consider is how often you use wired headphones. If you almost never use them, then the iPhone 7's lack of headphone jack probably will not matter to you but otherwise its something you will need to consider in your upgrading decision. I signed up for the iPhone upgrade program last year but the differences are so minor that it doesn't seem worth bothering with. I can easily get three years or more out of my iPhone 6. While I use bluetooth devices heavily, I also do occasionally switch to headphones either out of convenience or because of dead batteries so the lost of that port is actually giving me pause. Maybe once can touch and feel it in a store I can make a final decision. Below is the highlights, click the links for more details.

iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus
- Headphone jack removed: replaced with an adapter that plugs into lightening port (replacement dongles are $9) with expectation of users moving to Bluetooth for sound needs

- Home Button Removed: replaced with Force Touch sensitive spot that acts as the home button

Apple Announces New Lineup of iPhones and iPads

Today Apple held their press conference to announce their updated line up of iPhones, iPads, and iWatch accessories. Over all the iPhone 6s and iPad mini 4 are just another incremental in processor speed and camera capabilities while the Apple TV is getting a performance boost and OS upgrade. The regular size iPad didn't get any bump in favor of a new model called the iPad Pro which is really just the regular iPad with a larger screen and ability to work with an Apple only stylus pen along with adding the iWatch's Force Touch (now called 3D Touch) to all the new iDevices. 3D Touch allows for the apps and the screen to provide options based on a tap vs press vs deep press. Also they will all come out with iOS9 which will be released to older devices on September 16th. On to the overview.

Apple Updates iPad Line-Up

As expected Apple has announced its updated line of iPads with the iPad Air 2 and the iPad Mini 3. Like the iPhone, they are really just a marginal update for those that have the previous generation of each device. The Air 2 just have a slightly faster chip and Touch ID while the iPad Mini 3 is really the Mini 2 with Touch ID added (for $100 more). In addition they officially released the next OS X update called Yosemite, announced that Apple Pay begins next Monday, the iOS 8.1 update features and showed up their refreshed Mac Mini and iMac. For anyone rocking an iPad that can already handle iOS8, the news is meaningless. Unless you are a hard core gamer, the slight boost in chip power is irrelevant. You are not going to notice the different in speed. Its the equivalent of buying a porsche to sit in traffic all day while living in a city full of speed traps. Technically the car can go fast but when will you actually use all that expensive power?

Ironically, the real tech news comes from Apple's decision to start moving away from the SIM card with their reprogrammable SIM card called "Apple SIM" that can be used from carrier to carrier simply by using software instead of swapping SIM cards. Basically it would give consumers greater latitude to go "month-to-month" with which ever carrier they choose for that month. The carriers still hold a lot of the power so classic SIM card tray still exists but this is the first of probably a bunch of smaller moves to hopefully eventually retire this tired 20 year old "technology" that really exists to give carriers the power as it acts as a form of DRM protection on their mobile hardware while providing no real benefit to consumers. Now to the announcement highlights.

Apple Introduces the iPhone 6 and Watch

Today Apple held a press conference to show off the iPhone 6 which will go on sale at the end of next week in two screen sizes. In addition they showed off the Apple Watch which is essentially the same take on the Android watches that have been on sale for over a year now only their version will not be available until Spring 2015. Overall much like in the last two or so years, the new Apple products are really about the companies attempts to catch up to Android which continues to dominate the mobile market and with features that Apple tends to introduces years later. The advantage to Apple being last (instead of leading the charge like they use too) with new features is they get to see the mistakes everyone else is making and correct for them resulting in a final polish and approach that maintains their sterling reputation for quality products.

As for the release of iOS 8, it will be out on September 17. If you were hoping for iPad details nothing was mentioned but Apple will probably do another press conference in October. A final note is the iPod Classic has officially been discontinued by Apple. If you are a fan of it, keep on eye out for clearance deals but once the remaining stock is sold, that's it except for getting it used. On to the new product details and analysis.

Apple Announces iOS8 and OS X Yosemite

Monday Apple started their week long 2014 World Wide Developers Conference (WWDC). For the last few years the conference has not been used to announce new hardware but to announce new features, updates, and changes that will be made to the software that will be running on future hardware. Pundits will complain about the lack of hardware announcements...but the pundits are either morons or liars cause they knew there wasn't going to be any hardware announcements. So on the software front, the iPad and iPhone (aka iDevices) will get the iOS8 update in the fall, likely to come with the now traditional hardware refresh of the i-line sometime in October or so in time for Christmas. For their laptops, the next iteration of operating system will be OS X Yosemite. Both will bring a bunch of new features that have, to be blunt, been legally stolen from Android and other apps. They have the usual slight alteration in implementation to avoid law suits but almost none of it is original. Except maybe their new Apple only programming language to replace Objective C called Swift. Still if use Apple products (like me), the changes will be welcome. Highlights below or can watch the keynote here.

Apple's October Event Introduces iPad Air

Tuesday Apple introduced the next iteration of their iPad, iPad mini, Macbook Pro and Mac Pro. As expected, most changes will not particularly big, just small hardware improvements that only graphic intensive gamers will enjoy. For the iPad, its gets another new name called the iPad Air to highlight that its now at just a pound in weight while the iPad mini enjoys a solid boost with Retina Display but its comes with a $70 increase in price tag. In addition to the hardware tweaks iOS X update, called Mavericks, is free along with new hardware buyers able to get most of Apple's suite of programs for free (iLife, iWorks, etc.). Currently the release date is November 1st for the iPad and later in the month for the mini.

iPad Air
- 20% thinner at 7.5mm, 1 pound in weight, screen resolution and battery life same as previous gen.
- Cameras same but now front camera can shoot at 1080p instead of previous 720p
- Contains the A7 chip, same as iPhone 5s with its 64-bit architecture
- Smart cases now cover entire iPad, not just screen but now at double the price for $80.
- Price: $499 ($16GB), $599 (32GB), $699 (64GB), $799 (128GB) and add $130 for mobile equivalent
- Comparison
- Hands-on: Engadget | Verge | Gizmodo

New iPhones 5c and 5s Announced

Tuesday Apple announced the next iteration of their iPhone line of devices. Only the iPhones and iOS 7 were discussed so its assumed the next iteration of the iPad line will likely be introduced next month in time for Christmas shopping season. Below are the details on the two models but the gist is the iPhone 5 has been discontinued. Instead you can get the iPhone 5c which really is the iPhone 5 put in a strong plastic shell with 5 different color options. After that you have the iPhone 5s that has next generation A7 chip, has a fingerprint scanner, other hardware improvements and constructed as the old iPhone 5 was but now has two additional styles of gold and white. If you are interested in watching the full presentation, you can find it here.

Apple's WWDC 2013 Introduces iOS 7

Today Apple held their WWDC (Worldwide Developers Conference) that is used to introduce their next six months of products to the world. The keynote address showed off their updated late of laptops, new Mac Pro desktop, OS X Maverick update and iOS 7 for iPhone and iPads. The biggest news is for iOS 7 which is a radical change (for Apple) in how iOS 7 looks and feels. The over all result clearly takes design cues from Android and Windows 8 but with few flourishes from Apple. The announcements did not provide updates to iPad, iPhone, or iPod line of products as that will likely come in October when iOS 7 is expected to be ready for release. Lets get into some of the details.

iOS 7

Apple's New October Announcements

Today Apple announced their next slate of product refreshes just in time for Christmas. The iPad mini with 7.9" screen was officially announced. The iPad 3, just announced back in April, has been discontinued and replaced with the iPad 4. The Mac Mini, iMac and MacBook Pro also received updates. Below is summary with links to more details.

iPad Mini The iPad 2 in a smaller shell with different power port and improved front camera - Screen: 7.9", 1024 x 769 pixels
- Size: .68 pounds, 7.78" x 5.3", 7.2mm thick
- Other: dual band Wi-Fi, bluetooth, Lightning port, 10 hour battery life, 1.2MP front camera, 5MP camera, A5X chip
- Price: $329 (16GB), $429 (32GB), $529 (64GB), +$120 for cellular

Apple Announced iPhone 5, new iPods

As expected, today Apple announced the iPhone 5 with a refresh of the iPod Touch, iPod Nano, and iPod Shuffle. While the iPad mini was not announced there is enough evidence to indicate that it will probably come in a separate announcement to avoid stealing the iPhone's thunder. The video of the keynote can be found here. Below are the highlights with links to more details.

iPhone 5
- Lightest (3.95 ounces) and thinnest (7.6mm) yet
- 4", 1136 x 640 resolution screen, adds 5th row of icons, sort of a 16:9 ration screen, may have to letterbox (black bars like on TV) for some apps
- adds LTE connectivity worldwide
- iSight: new 8-megapixel camera, improved low light performance, 40% faster photo, Panorama mode, 1080p resolution video but still take photos
- A6 with improved speed, better graphics, better use of battery
- new Lightning dock connector (80% smaller) with reversible design.
- Battery life: Apple gave stats but it looks like it’s about the same
- Colors: Black, White
- Improved Siri, ships with i0S6
- Price: $199 (16GB), $299 (32GB), $399 (64GB)
- Release date: pre-orders start September 14th, out September 21st
- Comparison to other mobile phones
- Hands-on

Linkfest - GOP's Legitimate Rape

It has been an interesting week for the GOP. They are coming off of the unexpected press blowup over the term "legitimate rape". A concept the party has quietly supported for decades and often spoken of by the GOP even if not quite such stark terms. Then you have the GOP convention that had the VP candidate get called out for a speech of lies by every news organization including Fox News and a speech from Romney that was remarkable for how unremarkable it was. Other topics include the Samsung vs Apple lawsuit and the end of Nintendo Power.

Legitimate Rape
It is weird how all it takes is a poor phrase to get people to wake up to a truth that has been around for a very long time. GOP's Rep. Todd Akin made the mistake of saying exactly what he thought of the idea of there being exceptions to abortion for rape or incest by saying in an interview "...from what I understand from doctors [pregnancy from rape] is really rare. If it's a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down." He later said he "misspoke" for the phrase he used but never apologized for what he meant which is if a woman got pregnant, she wanted the sex and therefore could not have been raped. The idea that pregnancy is proof of no rape has been around for literally centuries. At one time the victim by law would be forced to marry her rapist if she had got pregnant. That thinking is also shared by almost the entirety of the GOP who have made the concept of no exceptions central the the RNC platform for Romney's election and was part of a bill that his VP candidate Paul Ryan write and tried to push through Congress. Below are a few videos that illustrate just how stupid the whole concept is.

Linkfest - New Apple, Microsoft Tech

Time for more stuff that grabbed my interest (or linkfest to keep it simple). This week found the cool image of a Lego mini-fig, Apple and Microsoft has new toys that might be worth buying (but not really), some Game of Thrones fun and upcoming movie trailers. What do you know, another week without politics.

Anatomy of a Lego Man
Hit the link to view images and breakdown of how this kind of creepy split section of a Lego man was produced by carving and painting polyurethane foam. The final result from artist Jason Freeny is a little over a foot tall but pretty cool looking. His equally bizarre art of the anatomy of a gummy bear can be found here.

Apple WWDC 2012 Announcements
Last week Apple held a developer's conference to announce a refresh of MacBook Pro and Macbook Air along with an update to OSX and iOS6. Over all it was a ho hum event. The Macbook Air is getting a speedier processor and tweaks but essentially the same product. The MacBook Pro is improved with a much thinner look and Retina display (whose resolution is so tight that it reaches point where can't really read the text). That small size and screen resolution level you will never use or need will set you back around $2200. The iOS6 update, which will not work on first gen iPads and first three generations of phones, is really nothing major. The big changes is Siri to iPad, Facebook integration, phone tweaks, safari update, and removal of Google Maps for Apple's own solution. Most of which jailbroken iOS and Android devices can already do.

iPad 3 Officially Announced

Today CEO Tim Cook announced the iPad 3. As I predicted, the iPad follows the iPhone 4S in just being an incremental improvement over the previous model. Video of the event is here or the 99 second highlights here.

The improvements (comparison, other tablet comparisons) are really only important if truly anal about graphics and image quality. The device comes with "Retina Display" which is a 2048 x 1536 pixel range which means very crisp quality of images and video. Most programs and movies will not really benefit from this but games will. The CPU is dual core, so faster with improved graphics card and the camera is now 5 megapixels so great improvement there. Again most existing programs will not benefit but games might. The iPad 2 will get a $100 price drop. Hands-on video here.

Linkfest - iPad 3

This bi-weekly list of links that grabbed my interest include a prediction for the iPad 3, a valuable comic collection, death of a hatemonger, some funny, some cool CGI, and two movie trailers.

Apple's iPad 3 Announcement Predictions
Wanted to get my guesses down for what Apple will announce on Wednesday. I think the iPad 3 will simply be a retread of the iPhone 4S release. By that, I mean the improvements will be minor and for most with a previous generation device, it will not really be worth upgrading for. Basically the hardware will just be a little bit better. The chip will be a little faster, the cameras a little better, the screen resolution a little better, the battery life about the same and it will have Siri. The price will remain the same. There will be no smaller model to compete with the Kindle Fire and Nook. The price of the iPad 2 will drop by $100 but mostly to get rid of stock, not to create a new long term price point. The availability will be mid to late March. In addition, Apple will announce something related to rumored Apple TV. I think at most that will just be their existing monitors getting a boost in size and resolution with Apple TV built in that allows for more flexibility on what apps can be installed. Anyone looking for a leap forward in TVs will be disappointed. Bsically to sum it up, those with an iPad 1 may need to make a decision on upgraded but those with iPad 2 probably do not have much to worry about.

Nook Tablet vs Kindle Fire vs iPad 2

Today Barnes & Noble officially introduced the Nook Tablet, successor to their Nook Color. Running Gingerbread (Android 2.3), the 7 inch tablet has 1 GIG of RAM and 16GB of storage with microSD slot to add more for a $250 price. All this sounds promising but really for most people, especially with Christmas around the corner, is what is the best tablet to buy - Kindle Fire, Nook Tablet or Apple iPad (or any tablet really like Xoom, Galaxy Tab 2, etc.)?

Linkfest - iPhone 4S

iPhone 4S RevealedToday Apple held its press conference, minus Steve Jobs, to announce the next iteration of their iPhone and iPod lines. Unlike the hype from the blogosphere, the result is just an incremental improvement to the existing devices. Almost all the improvements are software related, in part due to the iOS 5 getting released on October 12th. For the iPod line, the Nano is getting around a $30 price drop and a minor software update. The iTouch will get the new iOS 5 update.

As for the main event, the result is same looking phone with faster dual-core chip (so better gaming experience), same RAM (so unlikely to feel that much faster even if technically it is), slightly improved internet download speeds (but only if on AT&T), new camera (8 megapixels with 1080p video camera) and about the same battery life.

Linkfest - Endings

The last week has been a series of ending it seems both big and small. Libya might just experience democracy for the first in generations as Gaddafi has seemingly been overthrown, Steve Jobs steps down as CEO of Apple, a memorial finishes and a legendary hacker joins the team he often defeated.

The End of the Gaddafi in Libya
Hit the link for an interesting explanation on how Libya uprising succeeding in potentially toppling the current dictatorship. The story is how a determined people, with solid planning, ingenuity and sacrifice can overcome impossible odds. It is also a story of how true democracy must succeed. Not handed to the people as a "gift" like it was done by the United States in Iraq and Afghanistan but an organic hard fought decision by the people themselves, sadly earned with the literal blood of family and friends.

Steve Jobs Resigns as CEO of Apple
One of the most successful CEO's in history has officially resigned his position, many believe due to his continued fight with cancer. It is no small exaggeration to say that Steve Jobs is one of the most important people in the history of computers, an invention that literally changed how society operates in just a few short decades. His achievements in technology development changes how we perceive information, enjoy entertainment, learn and so much more. While I may not like how Apple operates, there is no doubting that the things Jobs spearheads has literally changed the world for the better. Few people can make such a claim.

Linkfest

Lego Princess Ceinwyn
Hit the link for a gallery of images of the Princess Ceinwyn created by Luke Hutchinson out of Lego. Very pretty with cloth sails and a nice Lego ocean base to complete the look. (via Brothers Brick)

Warren Buffet - Stop Coddling the Rich
In an article in the NY Times, super rich Warren Buffett makes the rather obvious argument that it is time to tax the rich. The 10 year experiment of constantly cutting taxes on the "job creators" that the GOP has been advocating has simply not worked. Two recessions and negative economic growth for the poor and middle classes have proven this. The only people that have seen growth in these last years from the GOP policies? The super rich of course. Thanks to the multitude of tax loopholes that the GOP refuse to close, the rich actually pay less a percentage of taxes than any other group. Buffett points out he paid 17.4% while other people in his office averaged 36%. I am lower middle class and my burden came out to about 27%. I think the national average is something like 24%. Net result is all this crap about "being fair" that the GOP advocates fails to point out that the rich actually are paying less than everyone else. The article is worth reading and it sums succulently as tax cuts for the rich ("job creators") does not equal job creation as the rich do not allow tax policy to interfere with their efforts to invest and make more money.

Meet Comex, iOS Hacker Supreme
Forbes has posted a great article that covers hacking genius of 19 year old Nicholas Allegra who has 3 times now hacked the Apple's iOS used in iPhone and iPad to create incredibly easy jailbreaks for those devices. A jailbreak allows you to use your paid for device in whatever way you see fit on whatever carrier you choose without big brother (Apple) having to approve it first. Hats off to Comex for his outstanding efforts, may he continue to be successful in thwarting Apple's iron fist of control.

US Patent System is Killing Innovation
An interesting op-ed piece on Gizmodo that points out how the new era of "Civil War" between tech companies will likely stifle innovation. What is currently happening is in the billion dollar markets of smart phones and tablets various companies is trying to use patents to squash the competition and become the only real provider of a certain type of product. The main culprit is Apple who is attempting to use courts to block the sale of any tablet device that isn't an iPad. This leads to other companies going over their lists of patents and using Apple in return saying their iPad violates patents and shouldn't be sold either. This goes back and forth until an agreement is reach. The problem though is this kind of fierce legal fighting (besides being the opposite of capitalism), means that some bright guy in his garage will likely be sued into oblivion or just bought up before some new product that might be better than the iPad could ever reach the public much less the market. When that happens, innovation ceases to occur.

Top 100 Sci-Fi and Fantasy Books
NPR compiled a list of the top 100 books of all time based on the votes of their readers (apparently a paltry 60k). The list isn't definitive nor is the number order that important but as a list of fantastic books to read it works as a great resource.

Apple's WWDC Introduces iOS 5

Today Steve Jobs held the key note address for Apple Worldwide Developers Conference 2011 that did not introduce the iPhone 5 as hoped but instead introduced iOS 5 with iCloud. The emphasis on the update is to try to put data "in the cloud" so easily accessible from any iOS device (iPad, iPhone, etc). iOS 5 is being released sometime this Fall.

The key new feature is the replacement of the now defunct MobileMe called iCloud. The idea is a hub to store all data might use on an iOS device such as music, videos, photos, etc. It sounds a whole lot like Dropbox with an auto sync feature. All users will get 5GB free, not sure how much it costs for more. However, if you have music, Apple is introducing something called iTunes Match that will have you "upload" your music collection to iCloud and does not count to the 5GB limit. The reason for the quotes is it’s not really uploading your music but matching your music library to iTunes. This works for music already purchased from iTunes or music ripped from CD collection. If like me and didn't rip your collection at a good bit rate, this is a solid way to "upgrade" your collection to 256 kbps AAC files without going through the trouble of re-ripping everything. Just note that ACC is not as universally accepted a format as mp3.