Apple [AAPL] didn't mention the iPhone 5 during WWDC this week (though see the image below for current speculation) and only introduced a single Mac model equipped with a Retina Display, but there's more to come.
[ABOVE: A fragment of the WWDC presentation got attendees muttering: Was that phone in the picture illustrating future in-car integration a 4-inch iPhone 5? Answers on a postcard, please...]
Retina Display, the beginnings
Apple likes to tease us with new features. Remember the original iPhone which lacked support for 3G? That was a feature which appeared in the next release. Now the company is doing it again, upgrading its MacBook Pro and Air ranges, but introducing one new killer feature within the high-end Retina Display MacBook Pro.
That's what's available now, but in future it doesn't stretch the imagination to believe the company will introduce the screen across its Mac range.
Doing so will demand the cost of production shrinks. These displays are (apparently) expensive. A Digitimes report this morning tells us they cost $150 each, which is likely why they're only available on the high end model.
However, the way the company does its business is to introduce a high-end feature and then to slowly bring it to the rest of its product range. It's about encouraging consumers to spend that little bit more -- as indeed they are: availability for the new high-end model has already slipped to 3-4 weeks from 5-7 days, according to the company's own online store.
Apple also upgraded its Mac Pro during WWDC. The company didn't announce the improvements to the machine, they're fairly inconsequential -- so much so that Apple has removed the "New" tag which appeared on the Mac Pro's Apple Store description.
Does the company still have love for its professional Macs? I don't believe they're the company's main focus any more, but Apple CEO Tim Cook emailed one customer to promise jam tomorrow, saying:
"Although we didn't have a chance to talk about a new Mac Pro at today's event, don't worry as we're working on something really great for later next year."
The email -- confirmed as genuine by Macworld -- also appeared on a Facebook group called "We Want a New Mac Pro".
It's open to question whether 2013 is soon enough for Apple's professional users.
Also missing from this week's announcements, the iMac. This seems due an upgrade of some sort, but the Mac Pro 2013 promise suggests we won't be seeing a Retina Display on the consumer desktop just yet, though perhaps this might in future first appear as an option at the high-end of that range.
That Retina Display Macs are coming is a certainty, once the cost of the screens begins to shrink. Perhaps this move to HD displays (including within Apple's standalone Mac Pro monitors) requires production capacity and cost improvements. But will customers wait until 2013? I'm not so sure.
"We also announced a MacBook Pro with a Retina Display that is a great solution for many pros," Cook added in his email.
As Apple focuses on the mobile segments I'm wondering if it hasn't once again become time for the company to license out its OS and technologies to hand-picked firms in order they produce high-end Mac desktop clones. After all, last time Apple licensed its systems to other manufacturers, the Mac was all of the company's business. These days, well, these days it's not.
iPhone 5 hints
Apple's all but told us when the iPhone 5 is going to ship, and sure enough we'll be waiting until Fall for the new smartphone to appear, as that's when iOS 6 is set to ship.
This puts all the bets firmly on the September/October time frame if these things are to ship in quantity in time for Christmas, and with the second Tuesday in September being the 11th, I'm guessing we'll see it launch in the third week of that month at the earliest.
What else did we learn? Apple kind of mapped it out. The new Maps feature offers turn-by-turn navigation and the new 3D Flyover emulation, but only on the iPhone 4S, iPad 2 and iPad 3. Why aren't these new features supported on the iPhone 4 or original iPad? I think it's about the processor.
The iPhone 4 is powered by the A4 chip while the iPhone 4S uses the A5 processor. The iPad 2 also uses the A5 while the iPad 3 exploits the more recent A5X processor. This suggests the iPhone 5 will offer an even faster chip, most likely the A6.
When describing Maps Apple's Scott Forstall showed us a slide in which you see an iPhone in a car (above). This seems to show a longer iPhone model. This could be much ado about nothing, but hints that the chorus of claims predicting a 4-inch model may turn out to be true.
Then there's these images purported to be of the iPhone 5 which appeared online this morning.
Then there's Passbook. This is a location-aware folder for electronic tickets: boarding passes, gig tickets, shopping vouchers and so on. When it works you'll find the ticket you need is shown on-screen when you arrive at the appropriate location. Some may not its similarity to Google Wallet, which does some of these things on those few devices running the latest Android OS.
Inclusion of Passbook could suggest Apple intends deploying NFC support in the new iPhone. The company doesn't need to do this. After all, since 2011 it has sat on the Bluetooth Special Interest Group and has helped create the standard that is Bluetooth v4.0.
The new MacBook Pro supports Bluetooth v4.0, joining the new iPad, the iPhone 4S and the MacBook Air range which also support this standard. All these products can potentially connect to any Bluetooth Smart device. That's good for all sorts of peripheral devices, but also supports technologies enabling secure device-based payments.
Will banks choose to support this? The signs are good. A new UK app called GetCash allows Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and NatWest customers to withdraw cash from cash machines using an app and their iPhone.
So, what do we have so far:
- iPhone 5 announcement in September/October;
- A faster processor;
- A 4-inch display;
- Payment support;
- New Bluetooth options.
That's not so bad for a keynote in which the company didn't once mention the iPhone 5. Did the company offer any other potential hints at the new device? Please let me know in comments below.
Also read:
WWDC 2012: Facebook integration, Apple Maps for Fall's iOS 6
WWDC 2012: With Facebook integration OS X Mountain Lion -- $19.99, ships July
WWDC 2012: Retina Display reaches MacBook Pro
WWDC: iPhone in the wings, expect software surprises
Apple WWDC: iOS 6 says farewell to Google Maps
iPhone 5 release: Apple's September launch, what to expect
Apple TV: exec says it's coming 'soon'
Computerworld's WWDC 2012 topic page
Got a story? Drop me a line via Twitter or in comments below and let me know. I'd like it if you chose to follow me on Twitter so I can let you know when these items are published here first on Computerworld.
T-Mobile may be sunsetting 2G, but its M2M biz keeps growing - Gigaom.com
T-Mobile’s M2M services provider Raco Wireless announced today at the Connected World Conference that it has landed one of the biggest fish in the M2M industry, point-of-sale (POS) transaction manager Apriva Wireless, which processed $7 billion in sales last year through wireless payments terminals.
Apriva isn’t shifting all of its business to T-Mobile. But, in a carefully worded press release, Raco, T-Mobile and Apriva said that they would be replacing the terminal SIM cards of Apriva’s current carrier in areas where that carrier is shutting down its 2G network. They didn’t name that mystery provider but it’s easy to read between the lines.
AT&T is one of Apriva’s current M2M network partners, and AT&T plans to shut down its GSM network on the 1900 MHz PCS band in New York City (it’s keeping GSM up on the cellular band) devoting that spectrum to its HSPA network. That means Apriva will need to find a replacement network for its PCS-only payment terminals in the country’s biggest commercial center. T-Mobile and Raco may have won the contract by default – there aren’t any GSM alternatives besides T-Mobile in the NYC — but a win is a win.
Raco President John Horn said there would be many more wins in same vein. As carriers – again he wouldn’t name Ma Bell by name – start refarming more of their 2G spectrum for mobile broadband, they’ll be abandoning their M2M customers, who are counting on 2G networks being around for years to come, Horn said.
So why is T-Mobile any different? Of the four Tier I operators, T-Mobile has been the most aggressive when it comes to cannibalizing its 2G spectrum for mobile broadband. While its true T-Mobile is refarming its airwaves, Horn said, T-Mobile is only shutting down GSM to a point. It’s committed to keeping that remaining quarter of its 2G capacity running for the “foreseeable future,” which is more than enough to support a robust a M2M business.
“That 25 percent of its PCS spectrum will support hundreds of millions of [M2M] subscribers,” Horn said. “Not millions, not tens of millions, but hundreds of millions of connections.”
While the big ticket items like tablets and cars get all of the attention, Horn said, 90 percent of M2M devices consumer only the most miniscule amounts of data – smart meters, vehicle tracking modules, field sensors, etc. For the most part, those connected car and tablet computing platforms are moving to 3G and LTE networks, which have the capacity to support their applications, while all of that low-capacity traffic is staying on 2G.
Photo courtesy of Shutterstock user Maitree Laipitaksin
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Rihanna’s iPhone nail test: How the pop star checks her manicure is just right - Daily Mail
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Pop sensation Rihanna is known for her extreme style from the top of her dollar embellished baseball cap to the tips of her uber-manicured talons.
But how does she know if she's gone just a smidgeon too far?
Her manicurist, LA based nail artist, Kimmie Kyees, revealed all this week in an interview with People.
She's got it nailed: If she can still use her trusty iPhone, Rihanna's manicure is the perfect length
'She loves her long nails,' Kyees explained, continuing, 'She does the iPhone test - if she can still type then [they're] OK.'
Kyees first worked with Rihanna in 2007 on the Barbados born star's Umbrella video.
She also divulged that while some stars just sit back and let her get on with it, Rihanna is 'involved with everything about her look and style — she’s a trendsetter'.
Hard to believe but Rihanna can still use the iPhone she's holding...
The style the Where Have You Been star currently favours is a 'narrow square shape acrylic' and, according to Kyees, Rihanna actually came up with this one herself.
Rihanna is designing a new clothing range for Armani and also recently revealed that she has ambitions to create her own label in the not too distant future.
So nails are as good a place as any to start!
Kyees has also worked with Jennifer Lopez and the Kardashians but her most recent job involved Katy Perry's ying yang mani.
This is the one the Part Of Me star sported at Capital FM's Summertime Ball last week, as she filmed with Cheryl Cole for the Graham Norton Show and even falling out of Soho's Cirque de Soir night club.
According to Kyees, 'She said they’re her favourite ones that I’ve ever done for her!'
And they've certainly stayed the distance! Kyees used gel: 'super easy to get up and go because there’s no dry time and you have versatility'.
'You can put a pair of press-ons over the gels, and when you take them off you still have a perfect manicure.' So that's how Katy's manicure lasted so long. Shame Kyees couldn't work similar magic on her marriage to Russell Brand...
Ying Yang: Katy Perry (right) loves her Kimmie Kyees manicure so much she even tweeted this picture of it (left)
She may be a little unsteady on her feet but at least the mani's going strong
Motorola’s Droid RAZR Maxx Now Top Seller at Verizon - Gotta Be Mobile
It appears that Apple’s iPhone is beginning to lose momentum at Verizon Wireless where Motorola’s Droid RAZR Maxx smartphone is now the top selling smartphone as of the June quarter, edging out Apple’s iPhone models. Though the Android-powered Droid RAZR Maxx has gained the top seat at Verizon Wireless, the iPhone is still the top selling devices at other U.S. carriers where it is available.
According to Barron’s, analyst Anil Doradla continues to recommend people buy Apple’s stock as Doradla believes that the next iPhone to launch this fall will have 4G LTE network capabilities and will level out the playing field.
Since Apple’s iPhone launch in North America, we believe this was the first quarter where the iPhone was not the best‐selling smartphone at a North American mobile operator (where it was available). While Apple continued to maintain its top position at AT&T and Sprint, Motorola’s Droid RAZR MAXX was the best‐ selling smartphone at Verizon. Our checks also indicate that at this stage consumers are not pausing in front of the iPhone launch as it is not influencing their purchasing decisions (but we expect it to start impacting over the next couple of months). Despite the “increased competitive landscape from 4G devices (and the iPhone 4S is not 4G),” Doradia is “not worried” as the next iPhone model, a true 4G phone, “will be an important catalyst for the company,” he believes.
That device has also been rumored to have a slightly larger display to compete in an era where Android smartphones are getting bigger and bigger screens.
According to that analyst, Samsung holds the third spot at Verizon Wireless with the Android 4.0-powered Galaxy Nexus trailing the Droid RAZR Maxx and the iPhone.
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T-Mobile Offering Free iPhone Support to Customers - iPhone FAQ
T-Mobile has a strange relationship with Apple. They're the only major U.S. carrier who doesn't officially carry the iPhone, but they're very proud that over one million T-Mobile subscribers are iPhone users. T-Mobile has even went as far as to offer free iPhone micro SIM cards, and are working on building a "iPhone compatible" network. Now they're offering free iPhone support to their subscribers.
T-Mobile recently launched an iPhone support webpage to teach users how to optimize their iPhones. An iDownloadblog reader received an email announcing the new service:
"FREE T-Mobile Msg: Help speed up your iPhone. Free up memory to keep it running at its best. Learn how: m.t-mobilescoop.com/memory/iphone”
Perhaps T-Mobile is just preparing its customers for the arrival of the next-generation iPhone this fall, or they're just trying to find a way to survive after the failed AT&T merger. Either way, T-Mobile has made it clear that they're ready to support the iPhone, and are working towards bringing 3G and HSPA+ speeds to their customers who prefer to use iDevices.
It will be interesting to see if T-Mobile officially becomes an iPhone carrier this year, or if they will avoid taking a huge gamble on Apple like Sprint did with the iPhone 4S last year.
Now there's a girl who never has to do any washing up...
- Jacs, London, 13/6/2012 22:12
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