Apple still negotiating with Sony over iRadio terms

By Cody Lee on May 9, 2013

For months we’ve been hearing rumors regarding iRadio, Apple’s upcoming streaming music service. It was initially supposed to launch in Q1 of this year, but the company has reportedly been having trouble reaching royalty terms with the record labels.

Then in April came word that it had locked up a deal with Universal, putting the project on track for a summer release. But it seems to have hit another snag this week, as a new report claims that the other record labels are still looking for better terms… Read More

 

How to create a makeshift gaming console with a jailbroken iPad mini, an Apple TV, and a Dual Shock 3

By Jeff Benjamin on Mar 13, 2013

I had the privilege of testing out Matthias Ringwald and Roger Wetzel’s excellent update to one of my favorite jailbreak apps. The app is called Blutrol, and it allows you to use external Bluetooth controllers like the iCade, and now, Sony’s Dual Shock 3 (Sixaxis) controller, to control iOS games.

Their decision to add Sixaxis support to iOS is a very big step in the right direction for gamers who use Blutrol. Version 3.0 brings support for it, analog controls, and the 3rd party Duo Gamer controller as well.

In the past, I only used Blutrol when using my iCade arcade cabinet. While that’s nice, there’s something to be said about using a handheld controller, especially when it’s a legendary controller like Sony’s. As you can probably imagine, the features included with Blutrol 3.0 open up a whole new playing field when it comes to iOS gaming on jailbroken devices. Check inside for a configuration guide and video walkthrough showcasing my setup. Read More

 

App Store and Google Play games top handheld entertainment

By Ed Sutherland on Feb 22, 2013

Is it game over for Nintendo, Sony and other handheld entertainment companies? That’s the question as a report released Thursday shows consumers spent more on games downloaded from app stores than those designed for dedicated handhelds. Indeed, during the fourth quarter of 2012, more than 20 billion games were downloaded to smartphones and tablets. Perhaps anticipating today’s finding, Sony announced Wednesday its new PlayStation 4 will support used games… Read More

 

Sony announces PlayStation App for iOS and Android

By Cody Lee on Feb 21, 2013

Sony held a pretty big press conference last night, where it talked about its next-generation gaming console. And although the PlayStation 4 itself didn’t actually make an appearance, the company offered a plethora of details about the system.

And shortly after the event, it added to the day’s announcements by unveiling its official PlayStation mobile application. The app, which will land on both iOS and Android, will expand PS4 gameplay by offering a ‘second screen’ experience…  Read More

 

Sony “unveils” its next-generation gaming console, the PlayStation 4

By Cody Lee on Feb 20, 2013

After months of teaser videos, and years of speculation, Sony has just unveiled its next-generation gaming console, the Playstation 4, at its “See the Future” event in New York City.  That’s right, it’s supercharged, it’s intuitive, it’s social, and it’s finally here.

This might seem a bit off topic for iDB, but with growing rumors that Apple’s looking to add apps and games to its set-top box, you don’t have to work very hard to create the connection. Not to mention, we love games too. So without further a do, here’s the PS4… Read More

 

NPD: Apple now one-fifth of U.S. consumer tech sales

By Ed Sutherland on Feb 19, 2013

Apple was responsible for one out over every five dollars spent on consumer electronics in the U.S. during 2012, a market research firm announced Tuesday. This while overall consumer electronics sales fell for the second year in a row.

The iPhone and iPad maker also ranked as the third largest U.S. consumer electronics retailer, just behind Best Buy and Walmart. Amazon and Staples rounded out and industry where only smartphones and tablets saw revenue gains last year… Read More

 

Poll: my next cell phone will be…

By Christian Zibreg on Jan 21, 2013

These days, it’s all but impossible to escape Apple hate speech. You know who to blame: big media. I mean, stock manipulators played even the credulous Wall Street Journal. It’s not just WSJ – or NYT or Reuters, for that matter.

Anti-Apple Forbes hit new lows with clickbait headlines like this one or this one. And as crazypants analysts voice their concern regarding “Apple’s lack of a strategy in the lower-end phone”, they at the same time continue to hallucinate about a happiness or time travel machine from Apple.

And all of them get an assistance from traffic-hungry journalists like Dan Lyons whose write-ups sound bitter and idiotic. But in spite of all that FUD talk, Apple is demolishing Android in every metric that matters. None of this frenzy should matter when considering your next cell phone.

But real life can be a bitch and with so much negative publicity mounting ahead of Apple’s earnings report, no wonder some of the faint-hearted fans are beginning to question their faith in the California firm. I know where my heart stands, but I want to know one thing: do you know where your heart stands? So, what’s your next phone gonna be? Read More

 

Garage sale: ailing Panasonic, Sharp, Sony sell off $3B worth of property

By Christian Zibreg on Dec 10, 2012

You can put Panasonic, Sony and Sharp on your list of once mighty Japanese consumer electronics giant that are now forced to sell off billion dollars’ worth of property in an embarrassing move deemed absolutely unavoidable if these dinosaurs want to survive winter. Panasonic, the maker of the Viera brand of TVs, was previously reported as wanting to exit the television business to focus on churning out displays for portable electronics, especially Apple’s iPad.

These days, the company is working to raise $1.34 billion from offloading property and shares in other Japanese companies by end of March 2013, Reuters reported Monday. We’re talking land holdings, plants and even a 24-storey staff dorm in central Tokyo which has more than 47,300 square meters and houses about two thousand workers. Sony and Sharp, once the biggest names in electronics, are planning to follow suit… Read More

 

Sony is still dreaming about dethroning the iPhone

By Christian Zibreg on Nov 18, 2012

SonyEricsson, the Japanese giant’s partnership with the Swedish telecommunications equipment company Ericsson, for most part has failed to make a splash in the highly competitive smartphone market. Deciding enough was enough, Sony at last acquired Ericsson’s share in the venture in February. Sony Mobile Communications, a wholly-owned subsidiary, was born. And as the battle for smartphone supremacy intensifies, Sony’s new mobile arm is adamant to produce a much-needed iPhone killer. But why stop there? According to its mobile chief, an upcoming flagship handset will as well take direct aim at Samsung’s Galaxy S III.

A badass Sony phone that can compete with both the iPhone and Galaxy S III, each super-popular in its own right? That’s a tall order. Sony’s killer phone is officially due early next year and looks like it’s gonna pack some serious oomph. The question is, will folks care? Read More

 

Patent troll hits Apple with iPhone screen rotation suit

By Christian Zibreg on Nov 10, 2012

A Boston University study from July pegged the cost of lawsuits filed last year by nonpracticing entities – that’s the code word for patent trolls – at an unbelievable $29 billion. Patents and lawsuits are their ‘products’ and Apple is among their favorite targets. You need look no further than Lodsys or VirnetX, which has expanded claims against Apple after winning $368 million in FaceTime case damages.

You can now add MobileMedia Ideas on your list of Apple patent trolls. Thanks to a Delaware federal judge, its suit against Apple over the iPhone screen rotation and call rejection features can proceed. What’s really peculiar about MobileMedia Ideas, apart from the obvious patent troll innuendo in its name, is that it’s a proxy for Sony and Nokia… Read More

 

Sony launches free e-book app to contend with iBooks

By Cody Lee on Nov 5, 2012

The e-book market on iOS is pretty crowded. There’s Apple’s iBooks, of course, and then there’s Amazon’s Kindle app and Nook by Barnes and Noble. And all of these services have extremely large e-book offerings and millions of users.

But apparently that isn’t enough to stop Sony from throwing its hat into the ring. The electronics giant released its own free e-book app in the App Store today, entitled Reader — eBooks from Sony, for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch… Read More

 

Sony/ATV reportedly nixed Apple’s music-streaming plan

By Ed Sutherland on Sep 28, 2012

It isn’t news that Apple wanted to create a streaming-music service that would compete against Pandora. But now we are learning the back-story of why the idea was nixed – and it is a familiar refrain. According to a Friday morning news report, music publisher Sony/ATV wanted larger royalties for its songs… Read More

 

Samsung: we went public with excluded exhibits because you asked for it

By Christian Zibreg on Aug 1, 2012

As we reported yesterday, Samsung has gotten itself in some hot water with Judge Lucy Koh who strongly condemned its attorneys’ decision to influence the jurors by publicizing previously excluded evidence. Samsung was hoping to sway the court of public opinion by releasing a set of slides and a media release which it hoped to use in the litigation to establish that Apple sough inspiration for the iPhone’s design from Sony, as its product chief suggested in a pre-trial interview.

The Judge demanded that Samsung’s legal team reveal who exactly drafted the press release and who authorized it. The Galaxy maker today filed a brief responding to Judge Koh’s request which explains Samsung’s reasoning behind the unusual move…
Read More

 

2005 Purple iPhone prototype proves Apple didn’t lift iPhone’s design from Sony

By Christian Zibreg on Jul 30, 2012

Remember Apple’s Sony-infused iPhone prototype that Samsung recently showed in its pre-trial brief? The one done by designer Shin Nishibori whom Apple hired from Sony to create one of the early iPhone prototypes? As you know, Apple fought hard to keep the jury from seeing that evidence that, Samsung hopes, establishes that the Cupertino, California company lifted the iPhone’s design from Sony.

That may not have been the case as Apple offers in its brief a look at a 2005 iPhone prototype code-named Purple (nothing to do with color, it’s white actually) which the company says predates the original iPhone… Read More

 

Samsung shows Sony-inspired iPhone mockup

By Christian Zibreg on Jul 26, 2012

The latest in the Apple-Samsung legal drama: according to court documents filed by Samsung, Cupertino has indirectly ripped off Sony for its handset’s aesthetics by adopting the Japanese giant’s design language. The Galaxy maker points to a 2006 Businessweek interview with Sony’s product designers Takashi Ashida and Yujin Morisawa in order to establish prior art and prove that Sony’s design philosophy influenced the iPhone’s original design direction.

The iPod Godfather Tony Fadell apparently showed the Businessweek article to Apple’s late CEO Steve Jobs and design chief Jony Ive who then allegedly approved use of some of the ideas outlined in the interview for early iPhone mockups… Read More

 

More evidence that next iPhone will feature in-cell touch panels

By Cody Lee on Jul 3, 2012

Information regarding the next iPhone has been fairly scarce over the past few weeks. Which is kind of odd, considering that the handset is believed to already be in full production.

But there is a new report out this morning on the upcoming smartphone. And it adds weight to previous rumors that the next iPhone will feature all new in-cell touch panels… Read More

 

Rumor: Sony tapped to provide in-cell displays for next iPhone

By Cody Lee on May 21, 2012

AppleInsider points to a new report from the Taipei Times today claiming that Sony has been tapped to manufacturer displays for Apple’s upcoming smartphone, joining Sharp, Toshiba Mobile and LG.

The most interesting part of the report is that these display panels are going to be using in-cell technology, something we touched on a bit last month, as it could have major implications for the handset… Read More

 

Sony’s Music Unlimited streaming app hits iOS, children run scared

By Christian Zibreg on May 21, 2012

As rumored back in January 2012, Sony has brought its music streaming app to the iOS platform. A newly-released iOS client works in tandem with the Japanese giant’s own online music service dubbed Music Unlimited, enabling you to stream Sony’s catalog of fifteen million of songs to your iPhone, iPod touch and iPad.

The program arrives on the heels of Spotify for iPad, which landed on the App Store on May 2, 2012. Of course, to fully enjoy the Music Unlimited iOS app, you’ll need to pick a Basic or Premium subscription. Luckily, a 30-day free trial Premium subscription is available, allowing you to sample the service and the iOS app before committing to a monthly subscription, which starts at $3.99 a month… Read More

 

Sony taps Aaron Sorkin to write screenplay for Steve Jobs film

By Cody Lee on May 15, 2012

Sony’s biopic of late Apple CEO and co-founder Steve Jobs is shaping up to be quite a film — much better than the indie flick that Ashton Kutcher is starring in.

Not only does the studio own the rights to Jobs’ widely-popular biography, but Variety is reporting that it has just tapped Aaron Sorkin to write the script for the movie… Read More

 

Sony to Bring Music Unlimited Service to iOS

By Oliver Haslam on Jan 11, 2012

Spotify, Rdio, Rhapsody, and even iTunes itself could be set to get some new competition later this quarter, according to Venturebeat, with the news that Sony is set to join the already burgeoning music streaming market with a new iOS app in the works.

Sony’s “Music Unlimited” service offers music lovers a way to listen to tracks using a subscription model, with streaming music being the order of the day. The iOS app that is expected to be released during the next three months will support offline playback via caching, just as the competition does, negating the need for a constant internet connection.

The Music Unlimited service currently comes in two monthly flavors: a $3.99 basic option and a $9.99 premium one, with the latter offering unlimited playback and more advanced features… Read More

 
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