AI, Mobile, and Eveything Around the Cloud

Okay, I didn't know who they are but I do now. The Ducati motorcycle team shot a short film using entirely an iPhone 4. Frak! That's amazing. I watched the video twice and I'm simply amazed by what the little mobile device can do. Apple has really created a monster here and I'm not judging it by the 1.7 million units sold in 72 hours. Plus, after waiting on the phone with ATT for 90 minutes last night without accomplishing anything, I was ready to say no to the iPhone 4 if it means using ATT. But watching what it can do and the other awesome features, I am once again wavering. Enjoy the clip. You will be amazed by the quality of the HD film. More at TUAW .

Yesterday, I went into what the next iPod Touch will look like. Now, let’s have fun with what I think the next iPod Touch will have in terms of features might migrate from the iPhone 4. I’m going to try to be realistic about what features we’ll see and not a whole wish list of what I like to see. FaceTime . So, let’s start with FaceTime. On the surface itself, I would say forget about it. But as many have pointed out, including Dave the Mobile Warrior, Steve Jobs declared that there will be millions of FaceTime devices for people to chat with by the end of the year or something like that. I specifically remembered him saying something along that line. Camera or cameras? Also see the next section on iMovie for the iPod Touch. By now, it’s likely we’ll see two cameras. One for taking pictures and another for FaceTime if Steve Jobs’ words are correctly interpreted. And while I like to think that Apple will be forced to subjugate iPod Touch users with lesser cameras, I don’...

Conventional wisdom tells us that the iPod Touch isn't going to follow everything the iPhone is. Soon upon us will be the next iPod Touch upgrade and while it's likely going gain a lot of the upgraded features from the iPhone 4, my question is what will it look like? So far, the Touch is a thinner version of the iPhones for the last three years. I don't see a lot of that will change. If there is change to the body of the iPod Touch, we might see is a thinner version of the current iPhone 4 but with only the same glass faceplate as the iPhone 4 but still keep the same aluminum back. The reason for this is probably because iPod Touches are generally bought and used by kids who are more likely to drop them during use and transport. As for the buttons, it is difficult for me to see the depth of the iPod Touch deep enough for those round buttons. So it's likely we will see the same volume controls as on the current Touch. There is a chance that the iPod Touch might gain s...

The iPhone 4 has the ability to shoot 720p video but the less advertised feature is the iMovie app that allows the iPhone to edit video and sound as well. Here is a short movie called "Apple of My Eye" by Michael Koerbel of Majek Picture. It is entirely amazing. That does it. I'm not waiting. I will get the next iPhone, black or white, when it comes available to me. This is just too amazing and cool. One might even call it "magical". If you go to the Vimeo page for the movie, there are explanations about how the movie and sound was edited. Amazing once again. "Apple of My Eye" - an iPhone 4 film from Michael Koerbel on Vimeo . More at Vimeo .

In Star Trek, away teams don't exactly communicate with one another or their starships through vid chat. It has almost always been through a video-less communicators or other communication devices. And in our "reality", there have always been devices with video conference abilities. But the idea of chatting via video has always been plagued by a multitude of hurdles. Apple's iPhone 4 isn't the first mobile device with to have a frontal camera for video communications but it is the first to overcome the hurdles I mentioned: quality of the video chat, lack of market saturation in the market, ease of use, and other technical and, likely, social obstacles. We don't know if Apple's iPhone 4 will usher in a new paradigm in social communication through video but we should begin to talk about it now. Apple posted a video of a father way from his family but being able to view his baby live from his hotel room. Staying in touch. That is going to be the key fo...

I don't know what rating this video from iFixYouri should get in the mobile world but it was gruesome as far as the desecration of an iPhone goes. But it does show you how fragile the iPhone is or isn't. I've dropped my 2G iPhone countless number of times and the iPhone 4 does seem much more fragile than any of the other iPhones. Anyway, here you go. If anything, I will be getting a case for my iPhone 4, whenever my order comes through. Video from 9-to-5 Mac .

Thanks to Macrumors, they've found a link for video taken by the iPhone 4. As you may know at this point, some lucky folks already have their iPhone 4s in hand. And thanks to this individual, we now have a sample of the quality of the HD recording capability of the iPhone 4. What do you think? Directly below it, I've posted another video with the iPhone 3GS compared to a Samsung handset. I'm not say that we should be comparing the iPhone 4 with the 3GS but we at least can know what's possible. And the video quality taken by the Samsung NV8, a camera seems better than the one taken by the 3GS. Hey, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, right? Plus, this is Apple we're talking about here. It's about quality after all. Lots more at Macrumors . Note: Be sure to selection "720p" for the Youtube quality.

As you know by now, iOS4 is out. Unlike when iPhone OS 3 was released last year, I am no hurry to rush home to download it. Why? Because I have no iPhone to install it on. Rather, I don't have the right iPhone or iPod Touch to install it on. I am a guy but I can see this as an analogy where a girl has the perfect dress for a party but no shoes to go with it. Are you one of the lucky ones? Well, I'll know on Thursday if my iPhone 4 order from Radio Shack came through as I hoped. And if get the call to go down and pick it up, I'll have the perfect dress and shoes to go to the party with. Ah...that's if I was a girl. Which I'm not. I know nothing about dresses and shoes and match. Damn, I shoulda thought of a better analogy. But for those if you who have a 3G or a 3GS version of the iPhone, I envy you. For everyone else, sorry. Apple is going to support officially us. Unofficially, I am waiting for jailbreak solutions. And for slower iPhones like ...

First, ATT is confirming iPhone shipments have begun. I read over the weekends that Apple was doing the same but I did not want to get into it but with a secondary source like ATT, it's a lock. As a matter of fact, MacRumors has a screen shot of the matter. This is fantastic news despite the dismal day everyone had trying to order the iPhone last Tuesday. This Thursday is going to be wild. As a matter of fact, iOS4 is suppose to be released today. So be ready to be flooded with Apple and iDevice news. If you have not order one, I feel for you. I went through Radio Shack because there was no line and I was the second person to have ordered that day in person. I noticed that many of the Radio Shack folks were ordering for themselves and friends. FaceTime .  Although I anticipated as much it's good to have confirmation that users will not be charged their cell minutes for using FaceTime. It would have been moronic for ATT to charge mobile users who use their own Wi...

Here's a clip of how 3D can be done on the iPad.  Last week, the rage was all about Nintendo's 3DS. Of course, this video coming up is a simulated 3D. I don't know how the 3DS will actually look like since we'll have to see it in person. For now, this works for me.

I don't have kids but I am in the fortunate position of being an uncle to a few little and adorable nephews and nieces. The best part about being an uncle is the absolution of any real parental responsibilities. However, I am concerned about the mental and educational development of these kids. Instead of yielding their development to the Disney gang, Dora, and clueless blue dog, I tried to get them to work with games and puzzles. Of course, that doesn't always work. But they were highly interested in my iPhone. And now, with my iPad. So, i make it a point to load up a page of apps suitable for their use. Of course, it isn't just replace the TV with an iPad. A lot of it involves adult supervision. My three-year old nephew is adept with the home button and the swiping. I think there is an inherent advantage to this. Not only I am able pull these kids away from the TV, which is the biggest win of all, they are learning something. At least, that's what I am hoping. So...

Unless Apple can make some arrangements, it looks like there is going to be shortage for unfilled iPhone 4 demands for the rest of 2010 as Apple is unable to get enough of the touchscreends. This is information from MacObserver . Their source is thestreet.com . While I don't take too seriously (they report 4M planned production a month. Only Apple has that number. No one else does), the current shortage does give some credence to their report. So if I were you and you want an iPhone 4, just pre-order, and go into the store on launch day and every day after that to see if you can get your hands on one.  That's my absolute best suggestion.  May ATT orders were cancelled and orders from Radio Shack such as mine are no longer guaranteed to come in on the 24th. At least I've got my iPad.  Oh, there's a waiting list for that too.

I would like to thank Ron Artest's psychiatrist for a job well done. -- Post From My iPad

We know that Apple will take down MobileMe for a few hours tonight. It could just be something routine. Regular maintenance. Lord knows that there is still a lot of work to be done. But there have been talk about this being something more than just working out the kinks. I don't know. But I hope that parts of the MobileMe will be made free like e-mail at the very least. Bur more needs to be offered to iPhone users. This would an opportunity for Apple to show case more of it's technologies and innovations to traditionally non-Mac users. You know, the PC guys. -- Post From My iPad

I'm on the camp that T-Mobile is likely to get the iPhone next before Verizon. Two reasons why. T-Mobile uses GSM like ATT and that really says it all. Plus, T-Mobile is the smallest of the major national networks in the US and they're usually pretty open to "experimentation" if you will. And another point. T-Mobile's HSPA+ network is live now for 80 million users and will expand to 180 by the end of 2010. Going this route is easier than the CDMA route. The other reason is that Steve Jobs probably doesn't like the way VW spurn Apple in the past and the Droid campaign last year didn't help much. Having said that, Apple will have VW iPhones because as much as Apple like to hold grudges, it knows it is in a major mobile with multiple competitors with one or two with as much innovative energy as it does. Still, moving T-Mobile ahead of VW for a quarter of two just to sting Verizon a bit is fine by me. So, I'm still betting on T-Mobile because of ...

It isn't unusual for Apple to change names of a product. And Game Center, being billed as a social gaming network, can grow beyond gaming and Apple is likely to change the name as it becomes a full fledged social network. That's what it is going to become over time. A full network but likely much with more to offer than anything we have in existence today. You want a couple of examples? Look at what Apple has done to the mobile market. And also look at what it plans to do with iAd in advertising. One of the reasons I started thinking about this is because I've made a couple of long distance friends while playing Chess With Friends and Words With Friends. Even with such a rudimentary set of social interactions, I come back to it again and again. It is absolutely rare such happens now but as more developers integrate Game Center into their gaming apps, developers will discover that it is not only gaming apps that can benefit from a social network. And users wil...

Okay, when I mean social interaction, I don't mean a hot girl at Starbucks coming over to have her with me, well, no, I mean my iPad.  No, I'm talking about the iPad as a vehicle to break people away from their laptops with its keyboard and using the iPad as a means for sharing. Imagine trying to show someone sitting next to you a website or a doc, you'd have to turn over the laptop that may be tethered to an outlet. But with an iPad, it's like handing over a piece of paper, book, or a notepad.  It's that easy. Also, I imagine more games that are like digital board games where families and friends an kind of gather to play together.  This is also implied in this USA Today article and it hit it on mark.  And as the article said, it's not just about gaming.  It's about interacting.  People can flip things back and forth, handing the iPad from one person to another. When I was in college, we used to take breaks from studying for finals or meetings by p...

Apple and its partners have pretty much exhausted its initial allotment of the new iPhone 4. However, if you're still interested in getting one on launch day, stay tuned to what Apple may have to say.  I wager many of the pre-orders may have be claimed. Furthermore, if history is any indication, there may be a limited supply of the iPhone for walk-ins.  When the iPad launched, there was "enough for everyone" who wants one. T-Mobile in Germany suffered through the same issues in the US after seeing a 10X increase in demand compared to last year's largely popular 3GS. T-Mobile USA .  Here's an interesting tidbit.  T-Mo announced it will be bringing HSPA+ (21Mbps) to close to 80 million users by the end of June and will blanket 180 million users by the end of 2010.  Many, including myself, strongly believe Apple will being bring the iPhone over to T-Mobile. It would make sense now that T-Mobile has also suggested their 3G network is highly scalable and ha...

It's pretty much hit and miss for anyone trying to order an iPhone 4 online.  Mostly, it's misses as the server connection would time out. So the best way is likely to go to Radio Shack if you're fortunate enough to live or work near one.  And if you don't but really want an iPhone 4 on launch day, drive there. I decided to go there after having issues with both Apple and ATT's online ordering.  It's just brutal.  Then around 10AM PST, I drove to the strip mall where there was an ATT store as well as a Radio Shack. The ATT store had a long long line.  I was in despair.  So I decided to see if Radio Shack was accepting pre-orders.  Before I left for the little iPhone pre-order trip, some folks were saying Radio Shack would not be part of the retail stores accepting pre-order.  Maybe this is why there was no line there. When I walked in there was one guy in front of me.  He had just came from being the second to the last person at the ATT store...

In reading a CNet article about how iOS features can make it on to the Macs, I thought of how Apple can use the iPhone to sell more Macs than the halo-effect the iDevices have already generated for the rest of Apple's business. Allow anyone who owns an iDevice, including the iPhone, iPad, or the iPod Touch, to use their apps on the Mac and only the Mac. For the hundreds of thousands if not millions of Macbook owners, wouldn't it be great to use our apps with our Macbooks with the multitouch trackpads? This would sell tons of Macbooks. But hey,I don't to leave out iMac, Mac mini, and the Mac pro either. There was talking last week of some sort of a multitouch pad for the desk-bound Macs. This pad will enable every Mac to use iOS4 apps. Once more, Apple will be smart to make this a Mac specific feature. The question is how likely is this to happen? Not likely. But as the saying goes, improbable but not impossible. At D8 and during his WWDC keynote, Steve Jobs s...

In the title of this post, what is almost there?  Well, I'll get into that a bit. Right now, Appleinsider is reporting that the iPhone 4 will be getting VGA-out just like the bigger brother (or cousin).  And as the article aptly pointed out, there is no HDMI support.  Yet.  I'm sure Apple will get it to eventually once whatever it is that is holding things back for Apple are worked out.  I'm guessing it might have something to do with the power use. Of course, I don't have a device that supports HDMI and even if I did, I don't have an output device (HDTV) to use it with.  So, I can't attest to how well such a device might work or how the battery life will end up being. Having said that, this is a very incredible development.  This is where I get to the "amost there" part.  And for Mac campus, relax.  Take a deep breath.  Here goes. The iOS4 and iDevices are progressing towards the natural mobile evolution of becoming computing un...

A developer from China goes to Apple's Worldwide Developer Conference at Cupertino's invitation. So he comes to SF and ends up getting mugged and his IPad gets damaged during the commission of the assault. So what does Apple do? They hooked him up with a new iPad never mind that the iPad isn't even officially available on the Chinese market. That right there is create PR. I am sure this was leaked to the Chinese and international media. Great for the developer and even better for Apple right? It's not over. Steve Jobs emailed the guy to wish him a safe journey home. Contrast this to when an ATT subscriber emailed ATT's CEO and got a cease-&-desist letter for his trouble. So, Chinese developer dude, on behalf of all peace-loving and mild-mannered Americans, I apologize for your experience. But you certainly picked the right mobile platform to develop for and, while I rather see no one s victim of this kind or any other kind of crime, I am glad this happened ...

I don't want to get ahead of myself here but there is something I want to share with you. Tmo-News got a hold of what looks like a comparison chart between three of T-Mobile's top existing mobile devices and the iPhone 4 (except in the picture, it is that of the 3GS). Now, that could be just what is it: a comparison chart. Or is it? It doesn't seem to be making any disparaging remarks about the iPhone. Rather, it seems to be playing up both the strengths of iPhone 4 and iOS4. The three devices also in the chart are myTouch Slide (lame because it's using two-year old tech), HTC HD2 (lame because it's using last decade's OS), and Garminfone (no comment because I honestly know nothing about it but welcome it to the market because more competition, the better). As with other comparisons released by, say, Verizon, Verizon make sure not to make the iPhone sound good at all (like what "Droid does"). Not one single good thing about the iPhone at al...

All everyone has been talking about is the FaceTime feature and the sexy new look of the iPhone. So, let's talk about the new display. 960X640 Officially called by Apple as the "Retina Display" 4X the pixels in the same 3.5" screen. 4X the contrast 326 pixels per inches, make it virtually difficult for the human eye to see from 18 inches away.  It's about the right range when one holds the iPhone from one's face. IPS - same technology as in the iPad:  in-plain switching More durable, scratch-resistant glass - used in helicopters and high-speed train Finger-print resistant - sort of There are other technical details that we don't need to bother ourselves with other than that it's just absolutely gorgeous.   However, in the last week, there have been back and forth debate about the quality the Retina Display and whether Steve Jobs' claim at 326dpi is higher than the 300dpi is more of his reality distortion field. Does that matter? It...

With just the iPhones, Apple should easily sell anywhere between 15 to 18 million iPhones through the the rest of 210. However, his tone at WWDC seems to indicate that he means more than the iPhones. Listen go a podcast today, they said Steve Jobs specifically said iOS4 devices when he referred to the number of devices people can use FaceTime to chat with using video, not iPhones. If we aren't getting ahead of ourselves, which iDevices is up next for this upgrade? The natural pick is the iPod Touch. Apple is in the midst of their back-to-school deal where you can get a free iPod with a Mac purchase. Historically, this is followed by an iPod refresh in the fall. That is likely when we might possibly see iPod Touch equipped with a frontal comera for FaceTime use. As for the iPad, we may have to wait another year since the iPad was just released. Apple typically has annual refresh cycles for their iDevices. This may apply to the iPad as well. What will be interesting is whether t...

Is 2GB of monthly allotment enough for myself? That's what I endeavored to find out tonight. And why 2GB a month? Well, that's what whacky ATT decided on recently by killing off their previous unlimited data plan. With my G1 acting as a Wi-Fi access point, I linked up my iPad and put both devices through a series of apps just to see how the G1 handled the load and how much data was downloanded and what the real world speed is. Skype, Slingplayer, ABC video app, and Netflix. I came away with some interesting conclusions. More at Onxo .

On Monday's WWDC keynote given by Steve Jobs, he promised iPhone 4 users will have a lot of folks to talk to using FaceTime because he promised Apple will sell tens of millions of iPhone 4. Based on past quarter experiences, it's not a lofty goal but it's the manner in which he said it.  So how many iPhone 4 can Apple sell? I am calling this now.  No FaceTime for the new iPod Touch that will come out this fall.  We might see a camera but that's about it.  We aren't likely to even see a 5MP camera like iPhone 4 but just the currently one on the iPhone 3GS.  That will be about it.   2010 Will be about Apple selling iPhone 4 and trying to dominate the mobile market.  For Apple to sell 20 million iPhones for the rest of second half of 2010 would be a walk in the park  How about 25 million?  30 Million? We'll have to see just how popular features like FaceTime is and whether it will take off given the artificial limitation placed on it by carriers...

I can enough about Safari. Version 4 was pretty good when it came out but with Google doing a great job innovating with Chrome and, let's be honest, really out paced every veteran browser on the market. But with Safari 5, Apple has signaled to the world that it intends to compete in the browser market. Forget about extension support. Been here, done that as far as the browsing experience goes. It's the Reader feature that has changed to game now. And it has the markets backpedaling. And I do mean markets. Reader basically strips away the nonessentials like ads and visual distractions on a webpage and intelligently displays the main article or content in a pop-up screen. In Apple's words, "Safari Reader removes annoying ads and other visual distractions from online articles. So you get the whole story and nothing but the story. It works like this: As you browse the web, Safari detects if you’re on a web page with an article. Click the Reader icon in the Sma...

Is it possible for the iPhone 4 to get 3G speed on T-Mobile's network? We'll need someone with technical or expert engineering skillz on this one. Towards the end of the WWDC 2010 keynote today, I kept hoping Steve Jobs would tell us about this "one more thing" in stored for us. That one more thing being that the iPhone 4 is coming to all the other networks in the US. At the very least, given that T-Mobile uses GSM as does ATT and my current network, I had hope that to be the case. No go. The disappointment was not as acute as the Lakers loss last night but it weighed in me a bit into the afternoon. So this is what I tweeted: iPhone: no iPhone for T-Mobile...sniff, sniff, sniff...AT&T, guess I'm gonna have to be your bitch... T-Mobile tweeted me back about myTouch Slide. Right. iPhone 4 or myTouch. I am not that stupid. So I trolled the Internet for more details and I came across an interesting comment about the iPhone 4 and T-Mobile's ...

By now, you're pretty familiar with FaceTime. If not, FaceTime is a new video chat feature on the iPhone that uses the frontal VGA camera on the iPhone. Here's my question. Does it work with iChat? If not, why not? Should Apple make it work with the iChat? I can understand if Apple won't make it work with the iChat until the next OS X update but eventually Apple should. It will really make the whole platform more compatible as well as signal Apple's support for the open source protocols used to make iPhone video chat possible. I suppose it is possible Apple may update iChat before the next OS update. However, given Apple's past update behavior, it isn't likely. Plus, by bundling FaceTime compatible iChat with the next OS, people will be forced to upgrade en mass. Right now, I also want to know if it's possible for non-iPHone 4 users to install the FaceTime app as well. I know the other iOS devices have no frontal camera but at least the m...

Facebook is the new video chat app for the iPhone 4. Here is a demo of what it can do. Note that users can toggle between the frontal and back camera. Brilliant. A reporter's dream if you ask me.

Here is the video on the new iPhone 4. A lot of updates coming tonight after we've got some time to digest the information. All is good except one thing. We're still stuck with AT&T. will be availabe on June 24th. Pre-order June 15th.

It isn't wishful thinking on my part hoping MobileMe will be free. I have MobileMe and I want you to have it as well. And I think given the chatter today about MobileMe, it might happen. Users have bee reporting changes in their status in the MobileMe Preference Panel. For the most part, users are labeled as "Individual". However, users saw the label changed to "Full Member" in the last few days. What does this mean? No one can say for sure until official word comes from Apple, if it comes at all. On the Macbook, my status is "Full Member" but on Safari, the MobileMe preference still has me as "Individual". Steve Jobs will be giving the keynote at WWDC on Monday at 10AM PST. We may know the answer then. More At 9-To-5 Mac . -- Post From My iPad

CNet is reporting users can google for apps on their mobile devices, iPhone or an Android device, through mobile search to find the app they're looking for. It is a unique and pretty neat feature but CNet is a bit perplex as to why Google is indexing app search when users can simply go into the App Store or Marketplace to find the app through the built in search. I can think of a few reasons. First, Google is about search. So it makes sense for Google to offer its services in this respect. Second, Google is trying continuing to improve mobile services as well as mobile presence. That means offering app search for Android as well as the iPhone. There really is no redundancy on Google's part in offering search for the iPhone. If Google can do a better job for searching for the right app in the store's own search function, users, particularly iphone users, will rely more on Google. However, another likely possibility is that Google, who we all know is prepping an webapp s...

I don't get it. The President while running to be the Democratic nominee for the office of POTUS didn't hear a lapel pin with the US flag until the media made a big deal about it. Maybe we need to make a big deal of the fact that he's got a Blackberry instead of an iPhone. What do you say? Blackberry is made by RIM, a Canadian firm. So why isn't the President using an iPhone made by an American company. Plus, it's night and day when it comes to the mobile experience using the iPhone versus the Blackberry. Case in point. After ATT announced the new mobile data plan, I heard more than a couple of posts saying that Blackberries might have something to gain because it doesn't use as much data as the iPhone. Duh! It's because the Blackberry isn't even in the same class as the iPhone. The iPhone is a true mobile computing device that happens to be able to make calls. The Blackberry is a smartphone that is struggling to do more than make calls ...

It's not all juicy information. We find out that the iPad was a tablet before it gave way to the iPhone. Enjoy. Orgin of the iPad: Getting Back Stolen iPhone and Gunning For Gizmodo: On Google, Android, iPhone: Everyone Can Blame Flurry For iAd Restriction:

At D8, Steve Jobs was asked about competition with Google. Steve Jobs said Google went to mobile to compete with Apple. And that Apple will not go into the search business to go after Google. While that is technically correct with search as we know it, I believe Apple's recent purchase of Siri represents a direction which no search engines will be able to follow. Apple will be going one step (many steps as a matter of fact) beyond search and into virtual personal assistant (VPA). With a VPA, it will reside on your mobile device and basically do things for you that no calendar or search engine along can do. I never had a chance to play with the Siri app but with a sophisticated AI system, it will help the user provide a richer mobile experience and, over time, it gets better with use as it learns the user's habits and needs. And should you ask your VPA to do a few searches, well then, it'll just have to search. Maybe it'll involve Apple creating its own search...

I think there could be a number of reasons why Apple has yet to offer a viable solution for wireless syncing of the iPhone, Ipod Touch, or the iPad. My guess is as good as the next guy but I'm gonna say mine's better - because, well, they're my guesses. The most talked about reason for no wireless sync is bandwidth. ATT isn't going to be able to support millions of iDevices trying to sync their movies, music, and mail. The network would be killed. However, there's WiFi you say. I agree. Which brings me to my next point. WiFi ought to work just fine. I agree but even with gigabytes of data, it can take a while. And it would mean battery life expended. Why use up battery life when you can connect your iDevice to your PC or Mac that also charges your iDevice at the same time? So, that could be why but I'm not so sure. Here's the reason why I think Apple is partially keeping wireless sync from taking place. iTunes store. When you plug in your ...