Samsung Is the Next… Acceptable Apple
So you have two superlatives: biggest phone manufacturer and biggest TV manufacturer. Add in some tablets, some washing machines, and some acceptable software and you have a real and vibrant ecosystem.
Adding crap on top of even the greatest thing makes it crap too. So, at most, you get an acceptable ecosystem.
Steve Jobs and the Sound of Silence
Some men dream the future. He built it.
Om Malik about Steve Jobs.
Apple Products: It's Not Magic, It's Brilliantly and Patiently Engineered
Lex Friedman:
As fond as Apple may be of promoting its products using terms of enchantment, I think it misses the point—and actually sells the company’s efforts a bit short. Instead of “magical,” it’s more accurate to describe Apple’s products as brilliantly and patiently engineered, with meticulous attention to detail.
Android Gingerbread Ported to iPhone
Hilarious:
And, yes, this once again means that the iPhone has gotten the latest version of Android before many Android devices have.
iOS, Flash, Apple, and Adobe
There way too much being written and said about the missing Flash on the iOS devices (iPhone, iPad, iTouch). And the solution is simple. Really simple. I’m pretty sure smarter people than me have pointed it out already. It is called:
Flash on demand
How it works? If you are familiar with ClickToFlash for Safari that’s pretty much about it. But let me briefly describe it for those that are not familiar with it.
Flash is disabled by default. But the browser is presenting it (look no more empty spots on the page!). On a user triggered action the Flash plugin is loaded and plays it (look no annoying ads slowing down the browser!). The user can also trigger the unload. (look, I’m not worried anymore about Flash).
The fact that Apple and Adobe do not work on such a simple solution is a clear sign they do NOT care. They don’t care about you and me, the web, or anything. It is just about money and PR.
What apps are on the Apple’s VP iPhone?
Anyone using an iPhone must have heard already of Phil Schiller, the senior VP of worldwide marketing at Apple, the first Apple figure that went out and spoke about the iPhone AppStore admission process.
Such people are very careful about getting their names associated with any 3rd party tools, software or anything, so I have found it quite interesting when The New York Times published an blog article: ☞ What’s on Phil Schiller’s iPhone?
Unfortunately if you look at the list that’s extremely short:
- Shazam: the app that tries to identify a song by “listening” to it
- CNN app
- MLB.com at Bat, NBA Game Time, ESPN ScoreCenter
- Facebook app (nb the app with the largest number of installs)
- Best Camera: a photo app
- a couple of games:
- Eliminate
- geoDefense
So, no surprises or new discoveries here… You will find more interesting apps in my iPhone apps for geeks series.
A $15 External Battery for iPhone
That’s what I’d call a perfect gift for the iPhone addicts out there. I just wish Santa is hearing me now!
Myth Busters: Why No iPhone Videochat?
The Gizmodo guys, disguised as the ☞ myth busters, are destroying all possible explanations of not having videochat support on the iPhone:
- AT&T overloaded 3G network: make it work on WiFi first
- limited processing power: nonsense
- required VGA camera too expensive or big: other phones already have it
Conclusion:
My only guess: They just want to milk the hell out of their user base. They know their game, these Cupertino boys and girls. They know they have the market by the balls. They know they can keep churning out marginal upgrades …
And to confirm the conclusion I have found a ☞ videoconferencing kit for iPhone (nb: that’s a very good joke).
The App Store review process is not evil
I think these guys may be a bit confused. In my opinion, I’d say they should be ashamed they used their media position to pull some strings to get in front of the line. And Apple probably knew that they will get back this sort of cheap PR. Bad, bad, bad!
Best iPhone Apps For Creativity According to Forbes.com
Read more articles from the iPhone apps reviews series.
The AppStore Broken for Non-US Accounts?
For the last couple of days I’ve been having problems getting any new paid apps on my iPhone 3GS from the AppStore. My account worked for a long while with no problems, but there seems to be something broken right now (I have double checked that my account/card/etc is correct, so that’s definitely not the problem).
I have contacted Apple support, but according to this ☞ thread they doesn’t seem to care about it too much.
If you have any idea how to fix this problem or if you have any connections at Apple please let them know about this issue.
Update 1: I have created a new account using the same credit card info but a different email address and it looks like gettings apps is working now.
Update 2: I went to an Appple store to figure out if they know anything about it. Unfortunately they are absolutely clueless. Even worse they pretty much don’t have any idea how their AppStore is work internationally. I got back funny (read stupid) explanations like: it doesn’t work as you are using a different carrier than your home country one (what about iTunes on the laptop then?) or it doesn’t work as you are now in a foreign country. I would have preferred a direct “we don’t have any idea” kind of answer.Extremely disappointed.
Update 3: Just got an official reply from Apple. I’ll follow up shortly.
