by Jason Wilk on February 5, 2009
- In an effort to thwart off time-theft and loiterers, Apple has decided to add Facebook to the list of banned websites at retail locations nationwide. When I asked some of the genius’ today whether or not anyone noticed the change, they all said that Facebook stopped working sometime in the past week. One of the genius’ said “Apple Stores have become a regular Internet Cafe, so placing the most popular time-killer [Facebook] of them all on the banned-list will certainly help everyone get a chance to test out the computers”.
- As you may have heard, MySpace was banned in May of 2007 from all Apple Stores. When asked why, Apple said “Nearly 2 million people visit Apple Stores every week. We want to provide everyone a chance to test-drive a Mac, so we are no longer offering access to MySpace in our stores.” Apple Stores, which now total 251 worldwide, see an average of 15,744 visitors weekly per store (Q4, 2008). So, currently about 16 million people per month are now denied the right to jump on for a minute (or an hour) to update their status or do their daily stalking. It will be interesting if Facebook will see a slight dip in traffic this month due to the change.
Trying to stay up on Apple? Check out these recent articles:
Is Apple Secretly Working With Axiotron?
Video Conferencing Plans For The iPhone
Flash Coming To The iPhone: Says Adobe
iPhone 2 Rumors Get Some Hard Evidence
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by Jason Wilk on January 30, 2009
- GDrive is Google’s supposed cloud-based hard drive which offers unlimited space for all of your files. Descriptions of GDrive have appeared in newly updated code on the Google Pack site:
// Localized product category of GDrive
_CI_messages.CI_GDRIVE_CATEGORY = ‘Online file backup and storage‘;
// Localized short description of GDrive (1st
// of 2 description lines)
_CI_messages.CI_GDRIVE_DESCRIPTION_1 = ‘GDrive provides reliable storage for all of your files, including photos, music and documents‘;
// Localized short description of GDrive (2nd
// of 2 description lines)
_CI_messages.CI_GDRIVE_DESCRIPTION_2 = ‘GDrive allows you to access your files from anywhere, anytime, and from any device – be it from your desktop, web browser or cellular phone‘;
- Cloud services are getting huge. Being able to access all of your files from anywhere on any computer or phone is becoming a fast reality. The one company besides Google who I think has a chanceto master this technology is Conveneer. My friend Örjan Johansson who founded BlueTooth just launched Conveneer.com, which lives behind the concept that you can access any files directly from a personal server that has a designated URL unique to you. Check it out further to see, but I think that is the future with GDrive.
by Jason Wilk on January 29, 2009
- Rumors of a new iPhone are getting a little warmer today as there looks to be two iPhone 2’s out in the wild. Notice the product key discovered in the new iPhone update denotes 2,1 model. According to MacRumors, “Apple uses these models numbers to distinguish between different hardware models. The original iPhone carries the model number of “iPhone 1,1″ while the 3G iPhone is labeled “iPhone 1,2″. These numbers do not change for simple storage increases and instead represent functionally different devices. Similarly, the iPod Touch was originally introduced as the “iPod 1,1″ and the most recent hardware revision was labeled “iPod2,1″. The 2,1 iPod Touch added a speaker, volume controls, microphone support and a much faster processor than the 1st generation model. This new model number can be found in the USBDeviceConfiguration.plist in an unencrypted firmware”.
- The graph below the code represents an ad aserving graph from mobile advertising company PinchMedia. They wouldn’t show anyone the rest of their stats, but they were kind enough to show that they have served ads to 2 unique iPhones running “iPhone2,1″. Is this the nano or is this the next generation of the iPhone set to release @ the next keynote?
by David Heyerman on January 8, 2009
- CES has been crazy this year, with the launch of Palm’s new Pre, LG phones converting to watches, and thousands of other new products launching. One thing that’s consistently at the forefront of these announcements are new and improved green practices.
- CES, the show itself is working with Carbonfund.org to offset 20,000 tons of carbon and invest over $100,000 on environmental efforts. They’ve also devoted a portion of the show to cleantech and sustainable technologies. They’ve named the area Sustainable Technologies TechZone….clever. Companies displaying their work and practices include Dell, Voltaic Systems, Freeplay Energy and Meraki Networks among others.
- Three giants; Panasonic, Toshiba, and Sharp formed the Electronic Manufacturers Recycling Management Co. LLC (MRM). The organization will manage the collection and recycling of old electronics. MRM has been running for 5 months in Minnesota and has already collected over 750 tons. This year, they plan expansion to 280 sites throughout the US. This goes along with all the other green moves Panasonic has been making lately.
- Just following it’s announcement to enter the solar market, Toshiba continued to deliver the goods with a few notable green product announcements. They’re launching the Portégé laptop which is said to be the greenest laptop sold in the US (by EPEAT standards), a electric bicycle that goes 20-30 miles on a 5 minute charge (sick), a LED downlight that uses one seventh the power a normal light bulb, as well as some energy efficient LCD’s.
- Garmin made one of my favorite announcements with their free “ecoroute” software update. Before they only had “fastest time” and “shortest distance” as route options. The new update includes a “less fuel used” option by suggesting the most fuel efficient route….nice.
- Motorola seems to be doing all it can to stay current by introducing a new green phone to the mix. The MOTO W233 is made partly from recycled water bottle plastics and is 100% recyclable and carbon neutral. They make this claim by neutralizing the carbon emission from manufacturing and distribution with Carbonfund.org….one of the better announcements I’ve seen out of Motorola in while.
- Keep your eyes up for more updates from Vegas….
by Jason Wilk on January 6, 2009
- A very mild keynote to years past. Below we have confirmed or denied all of the Apple predictions and included a breakdown.
1. Unibody 17-inch MacBook Pro. Consider this a lock for being announced tomorrow. The Unibody design which is currently being used on the 13-inch MacBook and 15-inch MacBook Pro will finally make its way to the 17-inch MacBook Pro production line. Speculation is that it will be much thinner due to a ultra-slim non-removable battery. Status: Confirmed
- Longest battery life for a Mac notebook ever. Lasts 3 more hours and is the same size.
- Graphics and colors get a major upgrade from new NVIDIA GeForce Card
- 320 GB hardrive.
2. iWork Updates. Look for Apple’s famed application line to be getting updates. We have reasons to believe this will be the year that Apple makes the jump allowing documents to be saved and edited in the cloud. Status: Confirmed.
- Documents being written on Pages can now be saved to iWork.com, where they can be viewed, downloaded or commented on. No online editing yet.
- Technology updates to iPhoto such as auto face recognition, geo-tagging of photos.
- Download music lessons on GarageBand 09′ from artists like Norah Jones.
- Slideshows made with Keynote 09′ can use a synced iPhone to flip through presentations on a projector.
- iMovie gets some Hollywood updates. Scene stitching of multiple camera angles, easier to use, etc.
- Price: $79 for single user, $99 for the family pack, and $49 with a new Mac
3. Steve Jobs Appearance. Watch out for Steve Jobs to make a surprise appearance. As we have pointed out, the man has been out eating at his favorite Yogurt shop in Palo Alto. No one has heard from him in a month and it is perfect timing to come back around for a new product release. Status: Confirmed
- After all, he did show up on paper.
4. New iTunes. Updated iTunes with DRM Free music. Status: Confirmed.
- iTunes has sold 6 billion songs
- 10 million songs are available
- 75 million accounts have credit cards.
- The music store on the iPhone is now available over 3G
- Pricing for some songs will be lowered to $0.69
4. iPhone Update. First, we will see an upgraded applications store to help developers get more exposure to their creations. Second, if and when iWork gets announced going into the cloud, watch out for the update to include document editing and storage straight to the iPhone. What’s likely to not be included in the update: Flash (sorry Adobe) and Copy/Paste. Status: False
5. New iPhones. Apple will first release a new upgraded storage version of the iPhone, offering at least a 30 gig option. Second, its not likely but there is some hard evidence that shows the iPhone Nano could debut tomorrow. An iPhone Pro is not likely. Status: False
6. 60+ GB iPod touch. This seems to have been getting delayed all year. Tomorrow is the day it will see light. Status: False
7. Low Cost Offerings. We will potentially see an upgraded version of Mac’s most affordable computing member, the Mini. Look out for new specs and a large promotion around this if it launches. Apple needs something new to offer consumers with smaller pockets, protecting the margins on their current offerings. Status: False
8. New iPod shuffle. It will be the first shuffle to easily fit in your wallett. It’s the size of a credit card. Status: False
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