WWDC 2010: What Apple missed (but shouldn’t have) in the iPhone 4 show
As expected, Monday’s WWDC Keynote included the long-awaited announcement of the iPhone 4. After a presentation that lasted almost two hours, though, many are left wondering about the things that did not make it to the show. Although we did get to officially see the next generation iPhone, several rumored topics that spread across the internet over the last several months were left unmentioned.
Obviously, the rumors were exactly that…rumors. This doesn’t mean they didn’t actually constitute sound business concepts and plain-old, good ideas that gave many tech aficionados a sense of hope going into the program.
Full Speed ahead with Google Chrome Beta Version 5
Google Chrome labs quietly released yesterday the beta version 5 of its internet browser Google Chrome, which claims to be 30-35% faster than previous beta channel releases. The results were posted on the official Google Chrome Blog and cite tests conducted using V8 (30% faster) and SunSpider (35% faster) benchmarks. The same tests were also used to estimate that, since the initial beta release, the performance of the Google browser has increased by 213-305%.
Chrome is currently in third place in the browser race, behind Microsoft Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox. Surprisingly, it ranks ahead of Apple’s Safari in terms of overall browser market share. Known in the industry for its simplicity and speed, the latest beta also includes a few useful additions that might make it more attractive to the everyday computer user.
Reviewing the Latest Smartphone Leak: Dell Unleashes Thunder, Lightning, Flash and Smoke
At first glance, the names following the familiar Dell brand name sound like a list of special effects from the next Sci-Fi Summer blockbuster, right? It seems that hot on the heels of Apple’s now infamous and inadvertent iPhone 4G leak by Gray Powell, Dell has had the misfortune of experiencing a product leak of their future smartphones. This time, not one, but four devices, have been revealed.
Reportedly Dell has been hard at work on reentering the smartphone market with a bang, since the untimely death of the Dell Axim line of Windows Mobile PDAs some years back. Fortunately for us all, this leak involved no beer, no bar, no apologetic employee, no “give us back our unit”, or any other semblance of drama. It all happened with a good, old-fashioned direct leak of pictures, specifications, and description of features, to the perennial tech news outlet, Engadget.
Dell Lightning (Photo Credit: Engadget.com)
Against All Odds, Opera for iPhone Hits the App Store
News about Apple’s approval of the long-awaited Opera Mini browser for the iPhone started spreading through the Twitterverse early Monday evening. Tech sites all over the internet reported that in a surprising twist of events, Apple had given the green light to Opera to have its own small share of the App Store. Considered direct competition for the iPhone’s native browser, many assumed Apple would find a way to disapprove the submission, based on some sort of technicality.
No iPhone 4G in sight: Can the HTC Evo 4G and Windows Phone 7 gain smartphone market share?
Now that we know that Apple has been working on a software upgrade to take iPhone 3GS users, with Version 3.2 to iPhone OS 4.0, we’re left with a number of questions. Mainly, many wonder why Apple’s event didn’t include the unveiling of the iPhone 4G (or whatever they decided to name it). Where was the enhanced multi-touch? Where was the front-facing camera? On top of these gadget disappointments, current iPhone owners who don’t have the 3GS version of the popular smartphone also wonder why they were left out of the June 2010 update. So, at this point, we may not be happy with them, but we do know Apple’s plans short-term plans for the iPhone. The question that remains is how the smartphone giant’s plan stacks up to those of competitors like Microsoft and HTC, who promise to bring some pretty exciting new toys to the playground.
TomTom USA v1.3 for iPhone Hits App Store with Live Traffic and Local Google Search
March 15, 2010 – As promised last month at Macworld 2010, TomTom International BV made available for download, on March 13, 2010, the newest version of its popular navigation app for the iphone. Aside from the newest version of USA maps that TomTom claims includes one million more miles of U.S. roads than the competition, version 1.3 includes Real-time Live Traffic, via in-app purchase for $19.99 for 12 months of service. The service receives updates every 3 minutes of current traffic conditions in your area and automatically provides alternate and faster routes, if available.
Google Ads find their way into YouTube Mobile
March 11, 2010 – Google ads, particularly the ones we get to see while watching our favorite clips on YouTube, may finally begin pay for the bandwidth bill for the mobile site (m.YouTube.com) as well. On March 10, 2010 Google announced, on their Official Blog, the addition of advertising on the home, search and browse pages of their YouTube mobile website.
With the rapid adoption of smartphones and YouTube-capable feature phones, Google is wasting no time in positioning YouTube as the primary means for mobile users to find, view and share video. At the same time, Google will help advertisers (and themselves by proxy) in reaching viewers across multiple platforms. At the point of launch, this will constitute one of the largest audiences ever seen for an ad campaign on the mobile web.
2010 and Beyond: Is AT&T the Network to Beat?
March 9, 2010 – Since mid 2007, when Apple launched the iPhone under an exclusive contract with AT&T, complaints have abounded about the inability of the wireless carrier’s network to handle the load. Tech related blogs regularly include complaints from customers, who either have the iPhone on AT&T or would love an iPhone but aren’t willing to switch to them. Complaints regarding lack of service, dropped calls and slow connections are mainstream topics, whose only positive outcome has been in the form of funny sketches on late night comedy shows.
Reviewing the Prospects for the TiVo Series 4 Premiere and Premiere XL
March 3, 2010 – Since TiVo first revolutionized the TV viewing experience some ten years ago, their brand name has reached the point of becoming a “verb” and eventually landed their acclaimed software on hardware boxes from providers like Direct TV. Yesterday, TiVo announced the debut of its new Series4 Boxes, signaling their intention to take traditional television viewing to yet another level.
Branded as the TiVo Premiere and Premiere XL, the new offerings feature a new HD interface, based on Flash, which is capable of integrating content from a variety of available sources. Like many others technology manufacturers, TiVo hopes to become the premier media content aggregator for the big screen-connected crowd. Both models will be HD and capable of displaying full 1080p. Additionally, they will have storage capacity to record 45 and 150 hours of HD content, respectively.
Microsoft Windows 7 RC Users to begin Experiencing Odd Behavior beginning March 1, 2010
February 26, 2010 – It looks like the ride’s not over yet, but it is about to get bumpy. If you are among the many who have been “testing” Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate free of charge, since it was released in Beta last year, you know that play time is about up. As previously announced by Microsoft, the current “FREE” release candidate (RC1) version, build 7100, is set to expire on June 1, 2010. Okay, it’s only February 26th, so there’s plenty of time, right?
While there are technically three months remaining, the catch is that starting Monday, March 1, 2010 your precious “no cost to upgrade” Windows 7 Ultimate PC will start shutting down every two hours and will conveniently not give you a chance save your work before doing so. You’ll also see an annoying “Pay Up, Buddy” message on the desktop that will change your desktop from your last vacation picture to an all black background. On top of these small annoyances, you’ll probably also experience issues with Microsoft’s Windows Validation feature, which means new updates won’t be downloaded and installed. Unfortunately, everyone knows what happens when you can’t install a critical security update. You run the risk of being turned into a zombie by a Botnet!
Your options, as Microsoft indicates on the announcement posted on their website, are to either roll back to Vista or XP (if you can stand it) or buy a copy of Windows 7 and activate it. Either way, a clean install is required, since Microsoft doesn’t allow users to simply upgrade the beta to a licensed version. As I and many others will tell you, the improvements in Windows 7, even in the Beta and RC versions, are definitely worth upgrading to, from both Windows Vista and XP.
Like many grateful Geek, I will be backing up my data before March 1st and installing the new copy of Windows 7 Home Premium Edition that I’ve had for a while but never got around to installing on my go-anywhere Samsung NC-10 Netbook. Hopefully, we’ll see the same reliability, stability, and functionality in the Beta versions of Microsoft Office 2010 and other future Microsoft products, that we’ve enjoyed with the Windows 7 RC.
