Yahuui Blog: October 2012

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Apple : iPad 4 more than twice as fast as iPad 3, benchmarks reveal

iPad 4 more than twice as fast as iPad 3, benchmarks reveal

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The fourth-generation iPad, or iPad 4, appears to be a major upgrade over the third-gen iPad 3, according to new benchmark tests.

Apple executives including CEO Tim Cook took the stage at a special press conference last Tuesday to introduce the new iPad, along with the iPad Mini and other new devices.

"This 4th generation is a powerhouse," Apple's Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing Phil Schiller told the audience and viewers. "What's inside it? A new chip, the A6X. It doubles the performance of CPU tasks."

That's a big promise, but according to the latest report, Schiller's claim that the iPad 4 has double the power may have even been a little conservative.

The numbers don't lie

In TechRadar's side-by-side comparison of the iPad 4 and iPad 3, we noted that the new Apple tablet, dubbed the "iPad with Retina display" despite the last iPad carrying the same screen, might not be a significant upgrade.

But according to a new report from Slashgear, the iPad 4 has more than twice the processing power of its predecessor.

That may in fact be due to Apple's new A6 chip. The benchmark results indicate that the iPad 4's A6 chip clocks in at 1.4GHz, up from the last iPad's 1GHz A5 processor.

The iPad 4's quad-core graphics likely don't hurt, either, and the device doesn't appear to suffer from having the same 1GB of RAM that the last iPad did.

Apple's new A6 chip is also found in the iPhone 5, where it clocks in at 1.3GHz, and according to the same benchmark report, the latest iPhone more than doubles the iPad 3's power as well.

Is it worth an upgrade?

Apple revealed some interesting figures during the iPad press conference, including that 100 million iPads have been sold, and that iPads make up 91 percent of all tablet web traffic.

Apple's previous iPad, the third-gen model with Retina display, was released in March, so some users might be understandably hesitant to upgrade to the iPad 4.

The fourth-gen Apple tablet is priced starting at $US499/£399/AUD$539 for the 16GB Wi-Fi version, while $US629/£499/AUD$679 is the starting price for the same size iPad 4 with LTE data.

TechRadar also compared the iPad 4 to the Microsoft Surface RT, the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1, and the Asus Tranformer Prime.

Executive shakeup at Apple sees head of iOS leaving in 2013

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An Apple executive considered one of the founding architects of the Mac OS X operating system and leader of the company's iOS division is leaving the company next year.

According to an Apple press release, Scott Forstall will depart in 2013. Until then, he will serve as an advisor to CEO Tim Cook.

The senior vice president of iOS will see his responsibilities taken over by Craig Federighi, whom Apple said will lead both iOS and OS X.

Forstall has hit some rough spots recently, most notably overseeing the flop of Apple's native Maps feature. No reasons for his leaving were provided by Apple.

Earlier this year, an unofficial biography marked the overtly ambitious Forstall as a "CEO-in-waiting" at the Cupertino firm.

Shuffling the deck

Apple also announced John Browett, head of retail, is also departing. A search for his replacement is underway, though until a suitable fit is found, the division will report directly to Cook.

While Forstall and Browett are making their exits, three other Apple executives were bestowed with new responsibilities.

Jony Ive, senior vice president of industrial design, will add the leadership and direction of "Human Interface" to his to-do list.

Siri and Maps now fall under Eddy Cue, chief of internet software and services, a move that Apple said placed "all of our online services into one group."

Those online services include the iTunes Store, App Store and iCloud.

In keeping with the coalescing theme, Bob Mansfield, a senior vice president, will lead Technologies, a new group that "combines all of Apple's wireless teams across the company in one organization."

"This organization will also include the semiconductor teams, who have ambitions plans for the future," Apple almost teased in its release.

TechRadar has reached out to Apple for comment and will update this story if and when the company responds.

Software : Microsoft releases Windows Phone 8 syncing app as OS debuts

Microsoft releases Windows Phone 8 syncing app as OS debuts

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Microsoft's big October Windows push started with the release of Windows 8 last week, and continued Monday with the official unveiling of Windows Phone 8.

Launching on smartphones like the HTC Windows Phone 8X, the Nokia Lumia 920 and Lumia 820, and the Samsung Galaxy Ativ S, Windows Phone 8 debuted in 191 different countries.

Microsoft's two operating systems share some core similarities, which should further unify the Windows 8 branding across PCs, tablets and smartphones.

In an effort to make all the new products easier to use, Microsoft released a new Windows Phone 8 syncing app, one that serves as a companion for consumers using multiple W8 devices.

Seamless syncing

The Windows Phone 8 app will work on both Windows 8 and Windows RT, which makes it ideal for use with new tablets like Microsoft's Surface tablet.

With the free app, users will be able to transfer digital media like photos and music between devices with speed and ease.

The app will even automatically save photos and videos from a smartphone to a PC when syncing, meaning there won't even be a need to open the app at all to micromanage transfers.

Detailed breakdowns of how much space each type of content is taking up on a given phone will also be made readily available in the app.

Unfortunately for users still relying on a Windows 7 phone, those devices are left out of the loop as the app isn't compatible with the older OS.

Monday, October 29, 2012

Software : Xbox SmartGlass app lands on Android

Xbox SmartGlass app lands on Android

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Microsoft has pushed out the Xbox SmartGlass app for Android, somewhat earlier than expected.

The second-screen application, which arrived on Windows RT on Friday, allows users to control features like Internet Explorer and Bing by typing and zooming on the handset, rather than the awkward gamepad.

Users can navigate around the user interface with swipe and tap gestures and select from the vast arsenal of entertainment content now available to enjoy on the Xbox 360.

The app also acts as a remote control, allowing users to play, pause, rewind and forward audio and video content, while it can also be used to track achievements, edit profiles and message Xbox Live friends.

Surprise launch

The timing of the launch is somewhat surprising as it had not been expected on Android until early 2013.

Xbox SmartGlass will be a piece of the Windows Phone 8 operating system, which will not be available until early next month, so Android users get a head start over Microsoft's own mobile user-base.

Microsoft also plans to launch the SmartGlass app for Apple's iOS platform, but that is yet to see the light of day.

Sunday, October 28, 2012

Apple : Phil Schiller: Optical drives were holding us back

Phil Schiller: Optical drives were holding us back

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Apple's Phil Schiller has explained the company's reasons for removing the optical drive from the new iMac desktop computers.

Apple surprised some folks by ditching the optical drive within the sleek new 5mm-thin iMacs, as it has on the MacBook Air and the new Retina Display MacBook Pro.

However Schiller, Apple's senior VP of global marketing, says older technologies like disc drives are holding the industry back and have now exceeded their shelf life.

He told Time: "These old technologies are holding us back. They're anchors on where we want to go.

Competitors are afraid

"We find the things that have outlived their useful purpose. Our competitors are afraid to remove them. We try to find better solutions - our customers have given us a lot of trust."

"In general, it's a good idea to remove these rotating medias from our computers and other devices. They have inherent issues — they're mechanical and sometimes break, they use power and are large. We can create products that are smaller, lighter and consume less power."

Bye-bye Blu-ray

Schiller also said customers have stopped asking Apple about Blu-ray, a technology the company now looks certain to by-pass completely, having never featured it on a single product.

He added: "Blu-ray has come with issues unrelated to the actual quality of the movie that make [it] a complex and not-great technology…So for a whole plethora of reasons, it makes a lot of sense to get rid of optical discs in desktops and notebooks."

Naturally, Schiller said that it's much better to buy movies from iTunes and have them available to watch on all of the user's Apple devices.

Software : Tutorial: How to automate tasks in Windows

Tutorial: How to automate tasks in Windows

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Every day when we turn on our PCs, we find ourselves firing up the same software and reading the same websites.

But instead of launching apps manually or typing in the URLs, Windows opens them up automatically for us. While we're away from our computers, it sometimes performs routine maintenance by defragging the disk or scanning for viruses.

The tool that turns your docile computer into a caring virtual nanny is the Windows Task Scheduler. All you have to do is make a list of tasks you'd like to automate and configure the Task Scheduler to handle them for you.

Task Scheduler can launch any app you have installed, and gives you extensive options to specify the time intervals when you want these tasks to run.

1. Launch Task Scheduler

Automate tasks in Windows

The easiest way to get to the tool is by typing Task Scheduler into the Start menu search. The main interface gives you an overview of the tool and lists all the active tasks. Before you create your own tasks, right-click on the 'Task Scheduler' library and select the 'New Folder' option to create a folder that will house all your custom tasks.

2. Create a task

Automate tasks in Windows

Select the folder you've created and go to 'Action>Create Task'. This will open the Create Task dialog box, which helps you define the task. Start by entering the name of the task. While it's safe to continue with the default Security options, which run the task as the current logged-in user, you also have the option to run the task as another user.

3. Set triggers

Automate tasks in Windows

Now switch to the Triggers tab and click the 'New' button to define the conditions that will trigger your chosen task. You can either start a task at a particular time of the day or during particular events, such as the computer booting up. For now, just select 'At log on' from the drop-down list, which will start the task when a user logs in.

4. Specify an action

Automate tasks in Windows

Head to the Actions tab and click the 'New' button to define the action that will take place when the task is triggered. The tool can perform three types of action. For now, select 'Start a program' from the Action drop-down list and point to an app (Internet Explorer, for example) in the space provided below, with the name of a website in the optional 'Add arguments' box.

5. Different action, same time

Automate tasks in Windows

You can also set multiple actions to occur at the same time. After adding the action in step 4, click the 'New' button again and ask the tool to launch another program that you want to run at start-up. We set it to start Excel, along with our to-do list, by pointing to excel.exe in the Settings section, along with the name of the file in the 'Add arguments' box and its location in the 'Start in' box.

6. Defrag disk when idle

Automate tasks in Windows

Now let's create a new task that will defrag the hard drive with the Windows Disk Defragmenter whenever your computer is idle. When creating this task, under the Action tab, point to the app you want to launch (usually C:\Windows\System32\Defrag.exe). Then head over to the Trigger tab and make sure you select the 'On idle' option when creating the trigger.

7. Set additional conditions

Automate tasks in Windows

When you select the 'On idle' option, you have to define additional settings that alert the Task Scheduler when the computer is idle. To set the idle settings, head to the Conditions tab and select one of the preset times from the drop-down list. For laptop users, there's also a checkbox that will ensure this task only runs when the computer is plugged in.

8. Display a message

Automate tasks in Windows

For any task that runs in the background, it's always helpful to create an action that displays a message to alert the user. For our defrag task, create a new action, but this time select the 'Display a message' option from the drop-down list and enter a message describing the event. We also use this feature to display messages reminding us to take care of chores during the day.

9. Control task behaviour

Automate tasks in Windows

You can further tune the behaviour of a task from the Settings tab. In most cases, the default settings should suffice, but some might require tweaking. For example, if you've set up a virus scan at a particular time and day, and your computer isn't switched on at that time, there's an option here that will run the task the next time the computer is on.

10. Export the task

Automate tasks in Windows

It might sound like a challenge at first, but once you've set up Task Scheduler, it will improve your Windows experience considerably. We've just scratched the surface and shown you how we use it every day. If you have multiple computers with the same programs installed, you can right-click on a task to export it, then import it into a custom folder on another computer.

Tutorial: How to go under Android's hood

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Smartphones represent the pinnacle of mobile technology, but they're not without their flaws. For example, we still communicate by texting when really we should be doing it another way. Although most people are happy to accept convention, that doesn't mean we're doing things as well as we can.

Enlightened types, however, understand that the great thing about smartphones - Android phones in particular - is that they can be upgraded to address certain bad habits. A phone's usability can be dramatically improved with a few minor changes to the way we do things.

One great way of cutting down on the amount of typing you have to endure each day is to download the nifty Swype app for Android. Once installed, it integrates with your keyboard settings and replaces the standard Android keyboard with Swype's own, enabling you to - as the name implies - use swipes of the keyboard to form words, instead of having to press individual keys.

It's much faster and surprisingly accurate. Swype is still in beta so it's not yet available on the Google Play store. It comes pre-installed on some Android phones.

Security pattern

Unfortunately, Swype doesn't play nicely with the Android lock screen, so if you want to use its swiping text predication to unlock your screen each time, you'll have to look elsewhere.

Make Android easier

Thankfully you won't have to go too far, because you can set a Swype-esque security password using Android's own settings, which enable you to use a pattern instead of a PIN.

In the Settings menu, go to 'Location & security' and tap on 'Change screen lock'. If you already have a password for your phone, enter this and then choose 'Pattern' from the menu. Tap 'Next' and 'Next' once more, then draw your chosen pattern and repeat it to confirm it.

Now, each time you wake your phone from sleep you can simply draw the lock pattern you chose instead of typing words and numbers.

Make Android easier

If the thought of using your fingers to type more than a couple of words makes you want to hide, there are ways to cut down on your tapping time.

By using Voice Search - which, again, is built into your Android phone - you can do away with your current method of text input and use speech instead.

Make Android easier

It's easy to use, and can be used in a variety of situations. For example, when you're searching for something online, just tap the voice button and say what you want to find.

When you're composing a text message, you can say the recipient's name.

You can even dictate sat nav directions to the Navigation app, enabling you to get from A to B quicker.

If you're looking for a more visual way of searching, Gesture Search is the perfect app.

Instead of looking through various menus to find the file or app you want, you simply draw the name of what you're looking for.

Make Android easier

Obviously, it's easier to find what you want if you know the full name, but if you don't, the app will learn what you search for regularly, so you'll get more accurate results over time.

Similarly, SwipePad gives you easy access to all the rest of the apps on your phone no matter where you are - whether you're browsing the web, playing a game or adjusting your settings.

Just swipe from a preset corner of your screen towards the centre and your apps magically appear on top of whatever you're doing.

To select one, simply release your finger while you hover over its icon.

Control your talk time

Beyond simple ways of speeding up common tasks on your phone, there are many things you can do to make life with your smartphone easier.

If you find yourself regularly picking up your phone to handle incoming calls, an app called Super Missed Call can seriously cut down on the amount of time you spend dealing with a ringing phone thanks to the way it enables you to control your talk time.

When you want to ignore a caller, you can simply rest your phone on its screen. When you pick it up again, Super Missed Call will automatically phone that person back for you, meaning there's the bare minimum of intervention on your part.

Make Android easier

You can even schedule missed calls so that you'll get a reminder to call people back - which is useful if you tend to be forgetful or you just lead a very busy life.

Another way of dealing with all notifications - not just phone calls - is to channel them away from your actual phone to another device so that you can deal with them more efficiently.

When you use Android Notifier, which sends your messages, phone calls or emails from your phone to your desktop or laptop PC, there's no need to get your phone out while you're busy at work - you can deal with everything on one machine.

If you really must have your phone in front of you at all times, Smart Screen is a neat way of making it easier to check what's on the screen. This app enables you to wave your hand over the screen to turn it on or off.

No, it's not a Jedi trick - it works by using the phone's built-in proximity sensor. In case you were wondering, you can adjust the sensitivity of the app so you don't accidentally set it off while it's in your pocket.

Get a handier home screen

The standard home screen on an Android phone isn't really designed with usability in mind. Apps and functions are hidden away in off-screen menus, so there's no way of getting quick access to the things you need.

With a couple of modifications you can make your home screen work the way you want it to. For starters, you can move your favourite apps to the home page so you can access them without delving into the main menu.

If that's not enough, you can go a step further and install LauncherPro, which enables you to fully customise your home screen for maximum usability. This tool enables you to do some really useful things, such as categorising your apps by type (much like on the iPhone). Moving applications into specific folders makes them much easier to find - especially if you have a lot of them installed.

Make Android easier

Widgetsoid is another great tool that enables you to add functionality to your home screen, giving you access to tools such as Aeroplane mode at the top of the screen.

When you need to manage all the files stored on your phone, X-plore is another great app to speed things up. It shows you all the files and folders as if you were looking at them in Windows Explorer on a PC, making it easy to move things around, rename files or delete folders. You can even open up files and choose which program to access them with.

How to install Swype

1. Get the beta

Make Android easier

Go to the Swype website and click on the 'Register' button. Enter your details and shortly afterwards you should receive a confirmation email. Make a note of your one-time account activation code and copy the download URL into your phone's browser to go to the Swype Beta download page. The Swype app will automatically download to your phone - once it's done, find and open it.

2. Unknown apps

Make Android easier

Swype will now start the installation process. If you get an error message saying that the app has been blocked, you need to go to 'Settings>Application settings' and check the tick box next to 'Allow installation of non-Market applications' underneath Unknown Sources. Press 'OK' when asked if you want to allow non-Market applications to be installed - you can trust Swype not to damage your phone.

3. Download Swype

Make Android easier

Now that you've completed this step, you can install the Swype beta. Go back to the installation screen and tap 'Install'. When it's finished, tap the 'Open' button followed by 'Log in', using your Swype email and password to sign in. On the next screen enter the five-digit key from the registration email and tap 'Submit', then tap 'Download Swype' on the following screen.

4. Final install

Make Android easier

Once again, tap 'Install' to complete the installation process and then tap 'Done' to be taken to the app. Tap 'Enable Swype' and then select 'OK' at the next prompt. Check the tick box next to Swype Beta in the following menu. A warning prompt appears where the Android OS informs you that the app might be collecting password data, but the Swype website assures you that this will never happen, so tap 'OK'.

5. Almost done

Make Android easier

Hit the back button on your phone to return to the main menu. Tap 'Select Swype' and tap 'OK' at the prompt. Choose 'Swype Beta' from the input method menu, and that's it. Tap 'Finish' if you want to try Swype immediately. Otherwise, tap 'Swype settings' to change your preferences, such as vibration on keypress, or connecting to services such as Facebook.

6. Use it

Make Android easier

You can now write with just one hand. Simply swipe your thumb over the letters that make up a word and it'll appear - you don't even need to press the space bar each time. Swype can help you write even faster once you learn its shortcuts, such as swiping from a single letter to the space bar to capitalise it, or copying text by swiping from the Swype key to [C].

Saturday, October 27, 2012

Apple : Apple VP: Apple does what PC competitors are 'afraid' to do

Apple VP: Apple does what PC competitors are 'afraid' to do
Pandora investors shake after Apple internet radio rumors strengthen
Tim Cook: We'll never make a 7-inch tablet

Apple VP: Apple does what PC competitors are 'afraid' to do

Posted:

Apple has become the world's most valuable company because, when it comes to making hard decisions that its PC competitors refuse to make, it puts the "hard" in hardware.

That's according to Apple's Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing, Phil Schiller, in a recent interview with Time magazine.

"Old technologies [like rotating discs] are holding us back," Schiller said. "They're anchors on where we want to go."

"Our competitors are afraid to remove them. We find the things that have outlived their useful purpose."

iTunes, not Blu-ray, is the future for Apple

Optical drives are a relic that Apple has left to PCs. This week, a redesigned iMac was unveiled and its all-in-one components didn't include an archaic disc tray.

"In general, it's a good idea to remove these rotating medias from our computers and other devices," Schiller said.

"They have inherent issues - they're mechanical and sometimes break, they use power and are large. We can create products that are smaller, lighter and consume less power."

This is in contrast to the PC market, which is filled with notebooks that offer Blu-ray drives for a "home theater on the go." Apple doesn't feel left out.

"Blu-ray has come with issues unrelated to the actual quality of the movie that make [it] a complex and not-great technology…So for a whole plethora of reasons, it makes a lot of sense to get rid of optical discs in desktops and notebooks."

In the eye of Apple, netbooks were not-books

Apple has a history of ditching components that rival PC makers see as essential hardware for another decade, starting with the floppy disk drive in the 90s.

However, the company hasn't dropped so much weight from its slimmed-down computers that they're barebones in quality or price like netbooks.

"There were these products being created called netbooks," Schiller recalled to Time.

"People said they were the future. We rejected them because we thought they were poor. Even if the market was going there, we weren't going to chase everybody downhill."

Instead, he told Time that the iPad has become Apple's answer to the $500 (UK£310, AUD$482) computer.

"And now 100 million people agree that the iPad is a great computer."

Apple seems to have the same stance when the company says it won't make a 7-inch tablet. Schiller thinks consumers will pay $329 (£269/AUD$369) for the 7.9-inch iPad mini instead.

Apple's products priced on value

Surprisingly, Schiller thinks that economic woes aren't a hindrance to sales - they actually make people want Apple's more expensive products.

"When the economy is difficult, people care a great deal about the things they spend their money on," he says.

"Customers have come to understand that Apple's products aren't priced high - they're priced on the value of what we build into them."

"We wouldn't make something cheap or low quality," said Schiller. "Our approach at Apple has always been to make products we're proud to own and use ourselves."

Pandora investors shake after Apple internet radio rumors strengthen

Posted:

Earlier this year, reports circulated that Apple was on the verge of launching its own streaming music service.

At one time it was believed Apple was readying the purported internet radio service to release alongside the iPhone 5, but the smartphone's launch has come and gone with nary a mention of such a program from the company.

In early October, rumors surfaced indicating the delay in the launch was caused by a dispute between Apple and Sony over the amount of royalties to be paid per stream.

Sources close to the matter at hand reported to the New York Post that Apple's potential plan wouldn't just serve tracks up based on algorithms like Pandora, but rather would push the tracks music producers wanted to promote.

It appears the delay was shortlived, and Apple's talks with the music industry have resumed, as investors in Pandora are rapidly abandoning the internet radio service at an alarming rate.

Pandora panic

Pandora's stock fell 12 percent Friday, after the shares fell 13 percent to $8.08 (UK £5.02, AUD$7.80) on Thursday.

Since the rumors of Apple's own internet radio service began circulating in September, Pandora's stock has fallen 40 percent overall.

Vivendi SA's Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group Corp and Sony Corp's music division have reportedly visited with Apple in recent weeks, and a deal could potentially be reached as early as mid-November.

According to Bloomberg, Apple is eyeing a first-quarter 2013 launch for the service, which would be contingent on deals with music publishers being wrapped up quickly.

But focused

Despite the troubles Pandora is facing, Eric Brown, the company's vice president of communications, told Reuters, "We remain focused on our listeners and delivering the best internet radio experience for them."

Pandora already faces competition from services like Spotify, Sirius XM Radio and the just-launched Xbox Music, though Apple's close ties to the music industry could make it Pandora's biggest threat to date.

TechRadar has reached out to Apple, and will update this story if and when a request for comment is returned.

Until a more official announcement is made, investors and consumers alike will have to wait and see just what kind of potentially game-changing service Apple has in store.

Tim Cook: We'll never make a 7-inch tablet

Posted:

Apple CEO Tim Cook moved to clarify his position on 7-inch tablets, vowing the company will never make one during an earnings call Thursday.

Apple's decision to launch an iPad mini drew some derision and allegations that the company had become a "trend follower," given the late Steve Jobs' infamous claim that 7-inch tablets were "dead on arrival".

However, Cook said there's a huge difference between the 7.9-inch iPad mini and tablets like the Nexus 7 and Kindle Fire, slates with displays that measure 0.9-inches smaller but offer around a third less real estate.

The CEO said: "Referencing all comments Steve made before about 7-inch tablets: Let me be clear, we would not make one of the 7-inch tablets."

'A different league'

Cook went on to reinforce the highly disparaging comments made by Phil Schiller, senior vice president of global marketing during Tuesday's launch event.

"We don't think they are good products, and we would never make one. Not just because it's 7 inches, but for many reasons," Cook said.

"One of the reasons…is size. I'm not sure if you saw our keynote. The difference in just the size between 7.9 - almost eight - versus seven is 35 percent. And when you look at the usable area, it is much greater than that. You know, it is from 50 percent to 67 percent.

"The iPad mini has the same number of pixels as iPad 2 does. You have access to all 275,000 apps in our App Store. So, iPad mini is a fantastic product. It is not a compromise product like the 7-inch tablets. It is a whole different league."

Apple has certainly been on the offensive since launching the iPad mini, with Cook also offering choice words for the Microsoft Windows Surface RT tablet.

However, some folks may question: If the bosses at the world's biggest, most successful company have so much faith in their products (or, in this case, the precise dimensions of their products), then why are they being so defensive?

Software : Rumour: Microsoft considering Netflix bid

Rumour: Microsoft considering Netflix bid

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Wall Street is awash with rumours that Microsoft is preparing an offer for video streaming giant Netflix.

Netflix stock rose 13 per cent on Friday following chatter that Redwood is willing to pay $90 a share for the rental company.

Although the speculation is likely just that, and perhaps a sneaky bid by investors to jolt stock prices, the timing is quite telling.

Netflix CEO Reed Hastings has just vacated his seat on the Microsoft board, which according to Forbes, might be an indicator that there's more to this than just Wall Street gossip.

Disappointing quarter

A Netflix acquisition would give Microsoft control of a streaming service they could use to compete with the likes of Amazon, Google and Apple in the tablet and smartphone game, but also for its growing Xbox Live entertainment portfolio.

From that standpoint it would seemingly make sense, but Netflix didn't exactly set the world on fire with its latest quarterly earnings report last week and isn't the attractive, can-do-no-wrong titan it once was.

The company had forecast 7 million new subscribers in 2012, but those expectations have now been lowered to 5.4m. Before yesterday's surge shares were at less than half of the company's 52-week high.

Microsoft currently has $69 billion in cash and investments burning a hole in Steve Ballmer's pocket so, with a market cap of $3.7 billion, snapping up Netflix wouldn't put too much of a dent in that stash.

Pandora investors shake after Apple internet radio rumors strengthen

Posted:

Earlier this year, reports circulated that Apple was on the verge of launching its own streaming music service.

In early October, rumors surfaced indicating the delay in the launch was caused by a dispute between Apple and Sony over the amount of royalties to be paid per stream.

It appears the delay was shortlived, and Apple's talks with the music industry have resumed, as investors in Pandora are rapidly abandoning the internet radio service at an alarming rate.

Pandora panic

Pandora's stock fell 12 percent Friday, after the shares fell 13 percent to $8.08 (UK £5.02, AUD$7.80) on Thursday.

Since the rumors of Apple's own internet radio service began circulating in September, Pandora's stock has fallen 40 percent overall.

According to Bloomberg, Apple is eyeing a first-quarter 2013 launch for the service, which would be contingent on deals with music publishers being wrapped up quickly.

But focused

TechRadar has reached out to Apple, and will update this story if and when a request for comment is returned.

Until a more official announcement is made, investors and consumers alike will have to wait and see just what kind of potentially game-changing service Apple has in store.

Friday, October 26, 2012

Apple : Survey finds 45 percent of respondents ticked off at iPad 4

Survey finds 45 percent of respondents ticked off at iPad 4
Week in Tech: Apple's little wonder and Microsoft's big baby
Apple CEO lays smack down on Microsoft Surface
Updated: Apple revenue at $36B last quarter, 26.9 million iPhones sold

Survey finds 45 percent of respondents ticked off at iPad 4

Posted:

While a lot of excited surrounded Apple's iPad 4 announcement, a recent survey found that nearly half of current iPad owners are livid.

According to a study conducted by Toluna QuickSurveys of 2,000 iPad owners, 45 percent of respondents were disgruntled by the iPad 4's announcement so soon after the launch of the iPad 3.

The third-gen tablet, often called the "new iPad," launched in March.

While the survey didn't poll for reasons why users were angry, a common sentiment seems to be the feeling that older iPads are rendered obsolete by the new tablet.

The iPad 4, by the way, improves on the iPad 3 with its A6X processor, which Apple claimed is twice as fast as the chips found in older iPads.

It also features a 1.2-megapixel HD camera for FaceTime over the previous 0.3-megapixel lens and makes use of the new 8-pin Lightning port that launched with the iPhone 5.

iPad mini changes minds

Of course, while the iPad 4 improves on its predecessors in some ways, iOS 6 continues to work on existing iPads along with all iPad apps. The iPad 2 and iPad 3 are still just as functional as they ever were.

In fact, they are so functional that the brand new iPad mini is nearly spec for spec a miniaturized iPad 2.

As for attitudes towards the iPad mini itself, the survey found that attitudes toward the smaller tablet are more positive.

Fourteen percent of respondents said that they will definitely buy an iPad mini, while 32 percent said that they probably will.

That makes 46 percent who are interested in having an iPad mini of their own, while 21 percent of the total expressed plans to buy one as a gift.

Despite the chagrin, chances are most Apple customers won't stay mad long enough to keep away from the latest launches.

Week in Tech: Apple's little wonder and Microsoft's big baby

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Some predictions never come true. Just because the Mayans say that the world will end in December 2012 doesn't mean it'll happen, and just because Liam Gallagher says he can make music that's better than Oasis doesn't mean he will.

Many people had filed predictions of an iPad mini in the same category, but it turns out that that one's the exception. The iPad mini lives!

As with many Apple launches, iPad minis may be scarce at first - so is it worth queuing up for? We've compared it to its most obvious rivals, the Google Nexus 7 and the Kindle Fire HD 7-inch, and the results were... inconclusive. It's a lovely bit of kit with an excellent ecosystem, but it's also considerably more expensive than Google and Amazon's offerings.

The price difference is partly because Apple doesn't do cheap and plasticky, and it's mainly because Apple isn't interested in a bargain basement battle. Apple's own Phil Schiller is firmly on message: he says that customers are already choosing normal iPads over Google and Amazon tablets, "and now you can get a device that's even more affordable".

The iPad mini wasn't the only new product: there was a new full-sized iPad too. That means the new iPad is now an old iPad because the new iPad with a retina display has been replaced by the new iPad With Retina Display. We hope that's clear.

So what does the iPad 4, as everybody's going to call it, have to offer? Not much: it's faster, it's got better wireless, and it's got a lightning connector, and it's going to annoy some existing iPad owners. Susie Ochs explains that some iPad 3 owners will be miffed: "We know a lot of people will feel betrayed, having thought they were getting the best Apple has to offer for at least a year".

Gary Marshall reckons iPad 3 owners should stop moaning. "The complaint isn't that Apple has killed anyone's iPads," he says. "It's that Apple has killed some iPad owners' bragging rights. I'm not sure we should be too concerned about that."

YouTube : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39JuCg9uFLU

And then there's Surface

Microsoft has also had a tablety week, of course, with the release of Microsoft Surface alongside Windows 8.

Microsoft is clearly pumped about the new OS and understandably so as it prepares to launch its first Windows tablet alongside the new OS – Microsoft Surface.

Microsoft Surface

"We're very excited at reaching [this point], it's a pretty significant milestone for us," said Windows 8 marketing head Tami Reller in an interview with this very site. "As we look at this project, as we look at this product, we think it's the most ambitious thing since Windows 95.

"I know you've heard us say this before, but Windows 8 is Windows 7 but even better. And it is, whether its boot time, whether it's security, performance, whatever. There is a fairly stunning difference between Windows 7 – which was great – and the performance of Windows 8.

Upgrades and new PCs are available today - and the cheapo upgrade offer is available though January 31 - check out Windows 8 release date and price: all the latest details

The future is fusion

By the way, Apple's event wasn't just about iPads: in a single event we saw not one, not two, but five new products: refreshed iPads and Mac Minis, a new MacBook Pro, a new iMac and of course the iPad Mini. Our columnist was particularly taken by the new, super-skinny iMac: "Thanks to the new one, my iMac looks so fat that it should probably dress in a velour tracksuit and hang around Gregg's eating pasties."

Some of the new Macs get some new technology too. Mac Minis and the new iMac have the option of adding a Fusion Drive, which makes us wonder if Apple's working on an Infinite Improbability Drive somewhere in Cupertino.

iMac

As we discovered, the Apple Fusion drive combines solid state storage and a traditional hard disk to deliver "the benefits of both kinds of storage without the downsides". We can't wait to test the Fusion drive to see if it's as fast as Apple claims.

For Gary Marshall, Apple's event was one in the eye for the Apple doom-mongers. "Now that Apple's well into the post-Steve era, it should be a mess. It should be releasing rubbish, trying to copy every rival, attempting to hit every price point and undoing all of Jobs' good work." It isn't doing any of those things, and the iPad event was an extraordinary show of confidence.

"Apple isn't perfect - anyone who used iOS 6's maps to get to the Apple event probably ended up in Norway - but it doesn't appear to be panicking either."

Apple CEO lays smack down on Microsoft Surface

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Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook - the man in charge of a company that brought in over $8 billion in profit last fiscal quarter - isn't worried about a stream of new products "cannibalizing" one another.

His main focus is taking on the world of PCs, and perhaps one slate in particular.

When asked to comment on the impending launch of Windows 8 and Surface RT tablet, both by Microsoft, during an investor call Thursday, Cook said he hasn't spent any time with the Softies' tab.

That did not, however, keep him from commenting on it.

"What we're reading about it is it's a fairly compromised, confusing product," Cook said, immediately setting Apple's tablet line apart from the new offering.

"One of the toughest things you do is make hard tradeoffs and decide what a product should be, and we've done that with the iPad."

iPad army

Cook and company are clearly locking their sights on making the PC market grovel by offering devices that work in tandem with each other, not against.

Responding to another investor query, he said new slates like the iPad mini and iPad 4 aren't destined to cannibalize one another or other products.

What's more, he has faith customers can choose between the mini, fourth-generation iPad, iPad 2 and products like the iPod touch - or buy all four.

The real decision, he said, comes down to picking between an iDevice and a PC.

"We've learned not to worry about cannibalizations," Cook said. "The far bigger opportunity [is] the 80-90 million PCs sold every quarter.

"I think a great number of those people would be much better off buying an iPod or a Mac. There's a much bigger opportunity there for us than people buying a PC."

Updated: Apple revenue at $36B last quarter, 26.9 million iPhones sold

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Apple revealed its fiscal year 2012 fourth quarter earnings results Thursday, covering the 3-month period ending Sept. 29.

The company, which hosted an investor call after the markets closed, posted quarterly revenue of $36 billion for a net profit of $8.2 billion.

During the same time a year ago, Apple posted $28.3 billion in revenue and a net profit of $6.6 billion.

International sales accounted for 60 percent of the company's quarterly revenue.

iPhone leads the charge

Last quarter alone, Apple sold 26.9 million iPhones, a 58 percent unit growth from the same time last year.

The iPhone 5 demand continues to outstrip supply, said Peter Oppenheimer, Apple CFO, and the company is moving to fill customer need.

The phone's figures were only counted for nine days during the quarter, bleeding expectations for its sales into the next fiscal reporting period.

While the company mentioned its iOS 6 launch, it said work hasn't stopped on fixing one lampooned feature.

"We've made a number of improvements to Maps over the last month and we will not stop until Maps reaches our incredibly high standards," Oppenheimer said.

Fourteen million iPads were moved, jumping 26 percent from the same sales figure in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2011, though still below investor expectations.

Nearly 4.9 million Macs were sold in the quarter (a 1 percent unit increase over last year), while 18 new stores opened worldwide.

Apple recorded a significant drop in iPod sales, selling 5.3 million units, a 19 percent unit decline from last year.

iTunes brought in $2.1 billion in revenue, while the company sold 1.3 million Apple TVs in the fourth quarter.

Five million units of the TV - Apple's "beloved hobby" - were moved during fiscal year 2012, up from 2.8 million the year before.

Looking ahead

For the fiscal year, the Cupertino company generated over $156 billion in sales, netting $41 billion in income. Operating cash flow reached more than $50 billion.

As for total cash reserves, Apple is sitting on a little over $121 billion.

Moving into the December quarter, the company expects about $52 billion in revenue.

The iPhone 5 and iPad mini will lead the new product charge, Cupertino claimed, while lower pricing for the iPhone 4S and third-generation iPad will help the company chop its margins and increase revenue.

"We're dedicated to making the best products in the world," CEO Tim Cook said during the conference call. "We are managing the company for the long run and will continue to make great long range decisions."