News

Android vs. iOS – Why Google Wins No Matter What

Cody Lee ∙ April 15, 2011

Android vs. iOS is a popular debate topic, but it might just be happening at the consumer level. 9to5 Mac ran an interesting story this morning about some comments made by Google's Asia-Pacific president, Daniel Alegre."When the iPhone succeeds, Google succeeds," he mentions in an interview with AdNews.

This alone shouldn't catch anyone off guard. With over 100 million iPhones out in the wild using Google's little search bar built into Safari, why wouldn't Google be pleased with the iPhone's success?

iPhone App Prints a 3D Model of Your Face

Cody Lee ∙ Updated June 25, 2016

We've seen some pretty cool ideas come from software developers and engineers involving the iPhone. Although many of these technology demos never make it to consumer products, it's always fun to see what people dream up.

This time we have an application that's already made it to the App Store, but the innovation it uses is still astounding. Trimensional is an app for the iPhone that has the ability to scan 3D objects. While that alone might seem boring, it's what you can do with the scanned image that's so interesting...

iPad Rocking U.S. PC Market

Cody Lee ∙ Updated February 24, 2017

We talked last month about the problems that popular PC maker, Acer, was having hitting sales forecasts. The main issue seemed to be that the emerging, easy-to-use tablet market has been seriously appealing to consumers who are looking to replace older PCs.

Tablets are extremely portable, and aren't plagued by previous mobile device flaws like bad battery, poor performance, and small screens. An entry level iPad also costs the same amount as your typical entry level laptop or computer, so affordability isn't an issue.

The tablet revolution, which has been spearheaded almost single-handidly by Apple's iPad line, has certainly taken PC makers by surprise. According to the IDC, several major PC brands have seen a drop in sales this year as the iPad 2 continues to flourish around the globe.

In fact, Toshiba is the only company that has posted growth this year out of all of the PC manufacturers. Acer seems to have suffered the biggest drop in sales, as the company saw a drop off of nearly 40% in the first quarter of this year versus 2010.

The struggling PC manufacturer seems be having serious problems adapting to the major shifts in technology the industry has seen over the recent years. Although they do have tablets on the way, the are almost destined to become lost in the ever-growing stack of Android-toting tablets.

Are PC makers going to be forced to take a more Apple-like approach to compete with them head-on? Should they look to design and build both hardware and software in house? I don't know, but as Apple has proven time and time again, innovation seems to be the key to success in this industry. and everyone else seems to be playing catch up.

What do you think? What will PC makers need to do to compete in a post-PC era?

[BGR]

iOS 4.3.2 Goes Live, Fixes iPad 2. Jailbreakers Beware!

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 24, 2016

We reported a few days ago that iOS 4.3.2 would be released within the week. Well it looks like BGR's sources were right on the money. The latest version of the firmware went live today and was said to fix multiple issues.

It corrects a known FaceTime glitch for the iPhone, but more importantly appears to correct the 3G connectivity issue with Verizon iPad 2s. The problem had been plaguing Verizon iPad 2 adopters for nearly a month.

What's also interesting is that the update also lists that it contains the latest security updates. Jailbreakers should beware of updating to any new iOS software without official word from the Dev Team or Chronic Dev.

These guys need to test the current jailbreak with the new software to make sure everything still works. It's very possible that Apple patched the exploits that made the jailbreak work.

A re-tweet by Comex today said "So 4.3.2 was originally built the same day @i0nic's untether was released .... what can we conclude from this info?"

If you have an iPad 2, there is no jailbreak available, so you can update if you want. However I only recommend that you do so if you need the fix for 3G connectivity, otherwise you could endanger yourself of not being eligible for a future jailbreak.

If you have an iPad 1 and are jailbroken or are planning to be, stay away from this new firmware until we receive official word that it's compatible. Stay tuned and we'll keep you updated on the latest iPad jailbreak news.

Were you experiencing the Verizon iPad 2 glitch? Did 4.3.2 fix it?

They Got Poisoned While Making Your iPhone

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 24, 2016

We told you last year about the workers in Suzhou, China suffering from health problems due to toxic chemicals. The employees were poisoned in 2009 using a hazardous chemical to clean iPhone LCD screens.

Their employer is a subsidiary of Wintek corporation and is the number one producer of small to medium sized LCD screens in the world. Although Apple has since released information that the workers have fully recovered, a special report by PBS Newshour scheduled to air tonight tells a different story...

New AutoAnswer App Now Available in Cydia

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 24, 2016

Ever wanted the ability to set your iPhone to automatically answer incoming calls? Auto answer is a feature I've seen requested several times, across multiple iPhone message boards. If your iPhone is jailbroken, you have a handful of options.

Applications like CallControl are nice, but have limited auto answering capabilities. If you have been looking for an auto answer app with more features, you need to check out AutoAnswer. The new Cydia app promises to handle all of your auto answering needs for your iPhone...

More iPad 2 Jailbreak Updates

Cody Lee ∙ April 13, 2011

Some people believe that media outlets misinterpreted tweets from p0sixninja the other day, stating that he and the Chronic Dev team were almost done with an iPad 2 jailbreak. Even MuscleNerd sent a message out on Twitter, trying to stop the hype.

"Despite recent rumors, the only iPad 2 JB close to reality is Comex, patience please."

His message came in light of dozens of tech blogs (including us) reporting that the Chronic Dev team was getting close to finishing an iPad 2 jailbreak. The new Apple tablet has been out almost a month now and iDevice hackers have yet to produce a viable solution to jailbreak it.

While we aren't sure of Comex's latest jailbreak status, it appears that MuscleNerd was wrong about the Chronic Dev team's progress. p0sixninja tweeted yesterday,

"A lot of progress has been made in the past few days, but we're still working on dumping iPad 2 BootROOM."

Although he mentions that there is no ETA, he does mention that his iPad 2 has already been jailbroken, and gives a shout out to Comex for all of the help.

A Twitter follower asked p0sixninja if he and Comex were working together, to which he replied

"That's up in the air right now. We'll see how things progress between me and @MuscleNerd in the next few days."

It doesn't matter who finishes first, I just hope we see a jailbreak solution for the iPad 2 before Apple releases iOS 4.3.2. For those unaware, Apple patched Comex's original iPad 2 exploit in iOS 4.3.1, delaying a jailbreak solution for the new tablet for a month (and counting). As always, we'll keep you updated on the latest iPad 2 news.

What do you think, are we getting close to an iPad 2 jailbreak?

iPad 2 Demand Up 40% From Its Predecessor

Cody Lee ∙ April 13, 2011

RBC Capital Markets' Mike Abramsky issued a new report today sharing his expectations for Apple's quarterly earnings report next week. The analyst is predicting that the Cupertino company will handily beat market expectations.

Abramsky's looking for Apple to post a revenue of $24 billion and an earnings per share of $5.75 for last quarter. The boost in revenue is said to be a product of strong iPhone 4 and iPad sales.The note also included results from an interesting survey of over 2000 consumers.

Of those polled, 28% said that they were "very likely" or "somewhat likely" to purchase the latest version of Apple's tablet. That's 40% higher than their previous polling in May of 2010, where respondents were questioned in a similar fashion about the original iPad.

The research also revealed a survey of potential iPad 2 purchasers before it launched. The poll showed that out of customers who were planning to purchase a 3G model, 46% wanted Verizon service.

Abramsky's report should not only please investors but help eradicate rumors of a 2011 iPad 3 launch. Apple is making too much money on its current iPad 2 model to even think of shipping an update this year.

What do you think?

[MacRumors]

No iPad 3 Coming Later This Year?

Cody Lee ∙ April 12, 2011

Even before the iPad 2 was launched, speculation that an iPad 3 would be released later this year has been rampant. It was rumored that the iPad 2 was more of a bridge between the original iPad and a more powerful version to launch this fall.

DigiTimes is refuting the gossip, reporting that their sources inside a major component manufacturer say a fall release of the iPad 3 would be nearly impossible. They claim they were only recently visited by Apple regarding the next version of their tablet.

They went on to say that it appeared the product was still in early planning stages, as Apple was inquiring about panels that supported higher image quality. It's believed that Apple has been looking for an AMOLED-type display with full HD capabilities for the next iPad.

Honestly it wouldn't makes sense to see another iPad release this year. I can see why Apple would want to move the iPad's release cycle out of March (so soon after Christmas), but a fall release this year seems so unlikely.

I would think if anything new was to come out of Cupertino regarding their iPad line, it would be the addition of LTE or other 4G technology. Their iPad 2 sales are too hot to extinguish with another model built from the ground up.

What do you think?

More Analyst Claim Apple-Branded TV Set Coming

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 30, 2016

If you recall, we reported on a rumor last month that Apple was looking to turn their TV product into something more than just a hobby. Well it looks like the gossip mill is turning again as more analyst chime in on a possible TV set from the Cupertino company.

9to5Mac is reporting today that Gene Muster, of Piper Jaffray, has predicted we will indeed see a new Apple-branded television set by 2012 accompanied by a host of unique features.

Obviously Apple TV services would be built in, but he predicts it will also have DVR capibilities, live programming and television channels via iTunes, and 1080p gaming via the App Store.

The prophecies don't stop there. Analyst Peter Misek believes a Netflix-like $10 a month subscription could be in the works for future iTunes programming. He also believes that networks removing channels from iPad apps could be a clue that they are "negotiating some sort of deal with Apple."

A subscription service could be likely, considering all of the data storage Apple has acquired in the past year. They just ordered 12 Petabytes (12 million gigabytes) of storage from Isilon Systems, and let's not forget about that large data center they've been building in North Carolina.

While an Apple-branded TV doesn't seem feasible, they've certainly managed to surprise me before. I just don't see them taking a big risk with such an expensive product. Hopefully we'll get some more details at this year's WWDC.

You think we'll see an Apple TV set anytime soon?

iOS Virus Lurking Behind Shady Jailbreak and Unlock Ads?

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 24, 2016

Those of us who enjoy Apple products also enjoy a sense of security. In the 4 years I've been carrying an iPhone, I've yet to have to worry about security on my phone, other than maybe a passcode. Apple's tight grip on iOS and 3rd party developers has actually done well to keep security threats at bay.

I'm not saying those days are over, but there is an interesting story floating around the internet that surfaced sometime over the weekend. I brushed it off at first, but when a Google search returned over 100 results, I started reading. Smooth Blog, among many others, is reporting that a virus has been infecting iPhone users around the globe...