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Apple retains mobile ad lead, but Samsung getting more clicks

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

A mixed-message on the state of mobile advertising is out today. In an announcement expected to hearten both the iOS and Android camps, a UK ad firm reports Apple retains its lead in mobile ad share, while mobile ads rendered on devices by rival Samsung are increasingly being clicked.

Combined, Apple's iPhone and iPod touch account for more than a third of all ad requests handled by the UK-based Adfonic. However, Samsung - with just twelve percent of the mobile ad share - finds the first quarter 2013 click-through-rate on ads served by its Android devices increasingly stronger than Apple...

New pricing tactics is working: iPhone sales in India surge 400 percent

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated April 11, 2018

India has become Apple's test bed for emerging markets, with the company rolling out a series of discounts and payment plans in order to entice purchases and improve its market standing in the 1.24 billion people market.

These efforts are paying off as iPhone sales have risen 400 percent over the past four months.

That's a dramatic increase over prior iPhone numbers in India, where sales only reached a meager 70,000 to 80,000 handsets a month. The key to such a notable jump: Apple has "figured out" the Indian market, which until now has viewed the iPhone as out of the reach of most of that nation's consumers...

Apple criticizes TransMedia CEO for saying users are platform-agnostic

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 31, 2013

We all know the great lengths Apple will go to nurture and preserve its developer ecosystem and user experience on its platform.

One developer, however, has tested Apple's patience by issuing an iPhone app press release that suggests users don't really care which mobile platform they happen to be using.

That drew an interesting response from a representative from Apple Worldwide Developer Relations, who cautioned the comment is at odds not just with Apple's primary marketing messaging, "but the entire reason Apple exists"...

iPad has grown three times faster than iPhone

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 28, 2017

It's easy to get caught in the trap of assuming the iPhone is Apple's fastest-growing product. Although the iPhone sold more units than the iPad - after all, it's been available since 2007 whereas the iPad debuted three years later - the Apple tablet is growing three times faster than the iPhone.

This is just one of the many interesting factoids from Internet Trends, an annual report on the state of the Internet, mobile and social by Mary Meeker, one of the world's top Internet analysts. Read on for more tidbits...

Change the way you ‘slide to unlock’ with FXOSLock

Cody Lee ∙ May 31, 2013

Are you getting tired of the old 'slide to unlock' bar on your iPhone's Lock screen? Tough. It's been like that since Apple unveiled the original handset back in 2007, and I doubt it's going to be changing it anytime soon.

But the good news is, if your iPhone is jailbroken, Cydia has hundreds of slider replacements to choose from. In fact, a new one just recently hit the store called FXOSLock that completely changes the way the slider looks...

Apple Web OS: a theme that mimics Apple’s online store

Cody Lee ∙ May 31, 2013

If pressed, I would say that I consider myself an Apple fan. I love my iPhone, and my iPad, and I'm typing right now on a MacBook Pro. But even I cringed a bit when I first laid eyes on this new DreamBoard theme called Apple Web OS.

As the title states, Apple Web OS essentially gives your iPhone a complete 'Apple web store' makeover. Instead of icons it has product photos, and instead of pages it has tabs. It's actually very authentic, which can either be a good thing or a bad thing...

Swipe to call, text or email in the Contacts app with QuickGestures

Cody Lee ∙ May 30, 2013

When a fan war breaks out over what the 'best mobile platform' is, I usually try to stay out of it. I like iOS better than Android, and believe it to be the superior of the two. But I know that's just my personal opinion, and not a fact.

Truth be told, I actually like quite a few things about Android. The way it handles contacts, for instance, is great. You can text, email or call someone with a quick swipe or tap. It's too bad I can't do that in iOS. Or can I?

Alaska Airlines updates app with Passbook support

Cody Lee ∙ May 30, 2013

Good news future travelers. Alaska Airlines has updated its official iPhone app today to allow its customers to access digital boarding passes using their iPhones. The update, which brings the app to version 2.6, includes support for Passbook.

Alaska is listed as the 7th largest US airline, by passenger traffic, and it joins several other major airlines in backing Apple's digital wallet platform. Earlier this month, both Easy Jet and Qantas updated their apps with Passbook support...

CEO confirms Siri uses Nuance voice recognition tech

Cody Lee ∙ May 30, 2013

In the months leading up to 2011's WWDC event, there were numerous reports that Apple would announce a major partnership with voice recognition giant Nuance. Obviously, the gossip never materialized, and Apple didn't even end up unveiling Siri until that fall.

But despite the fact that no one has ever come out and said it, Nuance has long been given credit for powering Siri's speech recognition capabilities. And today, the company's CEO Paul Ricci confirmed the theory while speaking at AllThingsD's D11 conference...

Adobe releases new Kuler color-picking app for iPhone

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 22, 2018

I guess the title could have read: "Adobe finally releases Kuler color-picking app for iPhone," because the company announced it nearly 2 years ago. Adobe introduced the app as part of a suite of new touch-friendly applications back in October of 2011.

But better late than never. Kuler hit the App Store this morning as the color-picking app Adobe originally promised. You can capture colors using your iPhone's camera, or previously downloaded photos, and you can create and save your own color themes...

After Samsung makes Smart Scroll popular, Apple renews gaze detection work

Ed Sutherland ∙ May 30, 2013

Apple apparently is renewing efforts to add the ability for the iPhone to detect whether or not it has your rapt attention. It's not enough that you're holding the smartphone, the company now wants to be sure you are looking at the phone's screen.

Originally seen as a way to save battery life, iPhone gaze detection may be Apple's latest bid to keep up with rival Samsung.

Apple's patent application, filed in 2013, adds to an earlier 2008 filing and describes 'Electronic Devices with Gaze Detection Capabilities.'

The technology uses the iPhone's front-facing camera along with the device's accelerometer to detect when you look away from the screen or put the phone down. Glancing away would automatically pause any running videos while also dimming the screen...

Apple pushing interactive flexible displays

Ed Sutherland ∙ May 30, 2013

So far, Apple devices with touch screens react to taps and swipes. Future applications could also respond to pressure. The iPhone maker has applied for a patent on technology which would detect when you press your finger.

The invention may further expand how consumers interact with technology, particularly with wearable devices. The patent application, filed in 2011 and published Thursday by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, provides the popular GarageBand music app.

The ability to sense increasing finger pressure could allow virtual pianists to play notes louder, Apple writes. Although GarageBand on iPhone and iPad already imitates pressure by measuring device vibration via the accelerometer sensor, Apple's invention calls for a new force detection layer on mobile screens...