AI, Mobile, and Eveything Around the Cloud

One of the best examples of survival of the fittest, evolutionary pressure, or natural selection can be seen in how the mobile market is evolving. And with the introduction of iMessage in iOS 5, due this fall, we are seeing a lot of changes, or talk of changes in SMS, and how others like RIM's messaging implementation will be affected. iMessage is already being herald as a winner. In the past couple of weeks, I have tried a few multi-platform messaging apps that served well enough. However, as with anything Apple, they can encroach at any moment into an field or function, that apps served, not previously available in its OS. Developers of Whatsapp, Kik, KakaoTalk, and probably a couple of dozens others face a difficult choice this fall. Innovate or attempt to survive on other mobile platforms and leave iOS mostly to iMessage. Like I've mentioned before regarding iCloud's impact on other cloud storage solutions, incumbents like Dropbox can see a silver lining in t...

Google offers Android for free (for now since an Oracle win against Google could mean billions in damage and Google may have to start charging for Android ) is an incredible strategy that hardly anyone else can duplicate.  It puts Microsoft in a bind with respect to Windows Phone 7.  And with Google offering Chrome OS for free, it could one day rival and put a dent into Microsoft's Windows revenue.   However, that is years if not decades away and from the looks of things for Chrome OS, that just isn't going to happen at all.  But Apple may have taken a page of the Android strategy and offer OS X Lion for dirt cheap at $29.99 against Microsoft's $80 to $220 price range with a new copy of the Pro version at $200. Could Apple have offered Lion for free?  The answer is yes but it doesn't have to.  It's about making a statement against Microsoft's dominance in the PC market and debunking the myth that Mac costs more than a PC. It sends a signal to buyers if fut...

Here's an interesting read on iOS integration with Twitter that was unveiled at the WWDC keynote on Monday. What was surprising was the deep level of integration that no one had expected Apple to do.  In one post I read, the blogger said Apple essentially gave Twitter  immortality Take the meaning as you will, this is a relationship that benefits both firms. Also, I was listening to a podcast, 5 By 5 , where John Gruber guessed that the relationship between Apple and Twitter is different from say Apple and Facebook, which is on the rocks, hence, its exclusion from iTunes, resulting in Ping's failure. This came back to when Apple and Google broke their marriage.  Apple has learned from it.  Gruber said just as much and in the deal, there probably was a clause in which Apple would have the rights to veto any takeover of Twitter by another company or that Apple will have the first chance to purchase Twitter should the need arise.  Such a clause would provide Apple ...

The following couple of points are what I've found most interesting from today's host of topics: The iOS can display up to 1080p and even record at that resolution And Apple TV is like to display video at 1080p should it get updated to using the latest custom chip used in the iPad 2.  Also, while we don't see evidence of this yet, it looks like Apple TV should gain some more apps and even access to the app store. Knowing all this, I find it perplexing that this post from T3 automatically equate 1080p with 8MP.  By being able to record at 1080p, they assumed that this means the next iPhone will get 8MP.  While I sincerely hope that they are right, 8MP is still pretty new in the smartphone market.  Apple certainly does have an interest in making sure the next iPhone can go toe-to-toe with Samsung's Galaxy S II and giving the iPhone an 8MP camera would help for customers who only looks at specs to help them make puchasing decisions. As for Apple displaying video at 1080...

As expected, though disappointing nonetheless, there was no new iPhone announced on Monday at Apple's WWDC Keynote.  Steve Jobs did not reach into his pocket and pull out the next best shiny mobile device.  Perhaps, it pertains to something that Apple wants to do.  In past summers, Apple has a back-to-school deal that gives a student who bought a Mac credit for a free iPod or iPod touch.  Perhaps, Apple is trying to drum up sales for the iPhone 4, which despite being a year old, is still one of the best mobile computing device on the market. If Apple does include the iPhone as a part of the deal, the iPhone 4 can continue to propel sales figures for Apple despite the lack of hardware refresh.  And this would give Apple a huge advantage over its competitors.   A back-to-school mobile deal is not something that easily be duplicated by its competitors.  Microsoft has given away an Xbox in the past but it is geared towards a subset of a PC market.  Ho...

Maybe this is something or not.  For some Verizon iPad buyers, their orders are being delayed mid-delivery for some reason.  My initial speculation is that there is some quality issue.   If true, I am surprised that has not happened already or in the past.  Of course, there could be other reasons or that this is simply nothing more than a logistical thing. Hopefully, this will be cleared up by Apple and Verizon.  Waiting for the iPad 2 order is agonizing at best but having it snatched away from just when you're about it get it is kinda cruel. From Cult of Mac .

Steve Jobs always has a way to make sure the spotlight is on Apple and its visions.  And sometimes, this is bad for competitors.  Other times, it could be a good thing because Apple creates a mindset in the consumer that was not there before.  Take the iPhone.  Before the iPhone was introduced and sold in 2007, the smartphone market was very stagnant.  Then with the App Store, things just exploded.  And what does iCloud mean for Box.net, Dropbox, and others? It does mean competition to some extent.  And that's what a free battlefield in every market means.  You've got established players and once in a while a new guy comes in and plays by a different set of rules.  The incumbents will have to decide a deal to deal with things.  Either innovate  and adapt or get wiped out.  The current crop of cloud storage solutions will have to find a way to provide value in ways that Apple's iCloud isn't.  And here's the thing to know ab...

When Apple debut the iPhone in 2007, there was already 1 billion phones sold worldwide.  However, that include regular phones that just made calls.  Since then, smartphones like the iPhone, Blackberries, and those based on Android have grown to become a large share of the global phone market.  According to IDC, there we will see 1 billion smartphones ship by 2015. What's interesting is that I was going to extrapolate the numbers based on today's marketshare.  However, IDC had their own ideas.  Windows Phone 7 will come out of nowhere and take second pace from Apple while Android remains at the top. With one billion smartphones in 2015, 440 million of them will be Android, 200 million will be WP devices, 170 million iOS phones, and 130 million Blackberries.  Essentially, IDC has WP growing from about 2 to 3 million shipped so far to 200 million in 48 months.  Or a 100x growth.   Obviously, I am not one to put it past Microsoft to suddenly have a sp...

The iPad usher in the post-PC era for Apple and the iPad 2 pretty much put an exclamation point on that.  Back in April of 2010, the iPad launched with iOS 3.  It was not until November that we finally were graced with iOS 4 on the iPad.  And now, with iOS 5 not even out, we still expect the iPad to enjoy every single feature of Apple's latest iOS. However, developers are claiming that the gesture feature is not available on the iPad.  If true and this feature does not return this fall when the final version of iOS 5 is released, it means that less than a year after the iPad got the iOS 4, it is pretty much outdated as far as iOS features goes.   That kinda sucks to me if you think about it.  So I don't think it's time for us to panic just yet.  The feature might return when iOS 5 finally ships.  A few months back, a beta version of iOS 4.3 included gesture that worked well on the iPad.  So if there is any kind of a limitation, it would be an...

On Saturday, I went to help some friends with their first endeavor into selling food at a small stand they set up.  It was one of the more interesting experiences I've had.  I've done retail before for our family business but never sold food.   I found that it was hard work but could mobile tech have made it easier?  Maybe even some kind of a bulletin or blog to help understand what's going on and how to go about becoming or efficient? After all, we all had iPhones except for one and her job was to look pretty and pass out samples.   And after this week's WWDC, I reckon that for our next food fair, I think iCloud can play a larger role in all this.  For instance, we had a schedule that we could keep and allow everyone to see who was showing up to help out.  Tweeting and updating on Facebook could probably be a way to keep everyone updated as well though I think I rather stay away from Facebook if I can. Ultimately, we want to be able to use mobile to d...

Apple instituted a draconian set of rules for in-app purchases, pricing, and some seemingly anti-competitive barriers in spring.  However, it looks like that walled-off part of the already walled garden is coming down.   Some changes include not requiring publishers to charge the same price or less for subscriptions between iOS and non-iOS deals.  Now, publishers can set whatever price they well are pleased to do.  Publishers can sell them cheaper for the iOS or make it so expensive that no one will buy subscriptions through the app except through other means.   One thing that does stay in the app is that there has to be a way for iOS subscribers/readers to buy it in the app.  it is unclear just what this all means for content.  i like to think that we'll see a lot more of it than expected.   So, why the sudden change of heart?  Competition.  Probably.  Apple has received some input from publishers and worked out an equitable deal. ...

Did you get everything you wanted from iOS 5 so far?  Yeah, me neither.  I had expected widgets to make an appearance on stage at Apple's WWDC keynote presentation on Monday.  It wasn't a game breaker for me but would be nice to have.  I have widgets on Android but I don't interact with it all that much.   The other feature missing feature I would have like to see is a total voice command system.  One that can allow me to verbally unlock my iOS devices, dictate mails or messages, make calls, do searches.  I guess I was looking for a super-buff Siri. What else was missing for you?   Insider has seven that they would have liked to see.

In days like what we have when carriers are cutting back on data access like AT&T and Verizon or T-Mobile messing around with what "unlimited" means, Sprint seems to be going the other direction for the moment.  "Unlimited" does appear to be unlimited and now, they're doing even one better. Starting today, upload speed will reach 1.5Mbps up from 1Mbps.   This is definitely something to consider going forward for those not happy with the artificial limitations carriers play on our mobile needs i the name of financial games. More at Phandroid . Note: Of interest is that there is evidence Apple is working on a Sprint version of the iPhone .  WiMax?  Don't know.  This is confirmed but it's also one of those things Apple do that might never see the light of day. 

It's said that iTunes Match is a great way for music labels and publishers to recoup some money lost from pirated music.  For the monent, let's say that's true.  It also means that some music sharing folks, pirates to some, have issues with Apple's new "one more thing". They argue that Apple, after matching the music, ends up owning all the data.  One day, music listeners will no longer own any music of their own.  Certainly, I see that things leading into that direction.   After all, I had thought that with iCloud and iTunes Match, Apple can release a less expensive iPhone with smaller data storage to keep the cost down.  Both of these services would be geared towards this market.  And in this Forbes post, some music execs believe that iTunes Match will eventually head to subscriptions for iOS users and propagate to to other mobile platforms. I don't know if we're quite there yet or if we ever will be.  Apple has been a staunch defender of music ...

If you live in a country, not the US, where carriers are more liberal with their 3G connection and you have an iPhone 4, got some great news for you. FaceTime over 3G is enabled. Here's a video from 9to5mac that shows it working. I run my iPad and iPod touch off a Clearwire iSpot over WiMax and let me tell you, being able to FaceTime and not be tethered to a WiFi router is awesome. FaceTime was meant for that kind of use. Unfortunately, that has been been possible in the year since the iPhone 4 came out in the US. See, ATT and Verizon Wireless doesn't allow it. So, we'll see if the next iPhone comes out for Sprint and T-Mobile and if they're more likely to allow FaceTime over 3G than their bigger US competitors. Finished watching the video? Awesome, isn't it? More at 9to5mac .

Many folks have been clamoring for Apple to provide wireless sync and other updates via the air or cloud as far back as iPhone 3G.  Until Monday with iCloud, Apple has never talked about it once.  And the timing of it could have not been any better. First, MobileMe, to summarize Steve Jobs, was a disaster.  And I hope with iCloud, things will change.  We'll know soon enough. Second, I believe Apple's mobile strategy is near completion.  Sure, we won't be able to stream our music even after Apple has match what's in our music library to what is on the cloud but most people blame dismal state of our cellular Internet than on Apple's unwillingness to do that.   And lastly, today, Gartner released some pretty bad PC numbers and they attribute it to the iPad.  In fact, they don't mention "post-PC" the way Apple execs do but the writing is there  And they don't give iPad the whole credit but let's face it, the whole tablet market is the iPad.  I d...

Apple and Facebook supposedly had a falling out over Ping.  It was probably why Ping launched without the rumored ability for users to tie it into Facebook.  It was over some API stuff but I think I know the deeper reason why Facebook was not a part of Ping. And it's the same reason why Twitter is a part of iOS 5 but not Facebook.  It has nothing to do with personality clashes. A few months back when Apple announced its subscription plans, publishers were upset.  Most people wrongly thought it was over the 30% cut that Apple wanted from each subscription iOS user bought.  Rather, it was the private user information lockdown that Apple instituted that publishers had no access to.  It was about the publishers' inability to resell or exploit the user information.  While it would be scary for a company like Apple to have such a fast database on its users all to itself, Apple has so far not demonstrated that they will give out that information to others th...

We know by now that Apple is allowing Twitter to ride shotgun on the iOS platform and Ping is likely going to get shown the door.  But it's hard to see just what Apple has planned for its social plays.  While I had hoped to hear something more substantive from Apple regarding social networks, it appears Apple will take its time.  After all, Google has throw effort after effort against Facebook and nothing has stick so far. Here's what we know right now beyond Twitter.  We know that Game Center will gain more social features.  Turn-based support is added as is icons.  I thought I heard support for messaging is added but I can't find that anywhere on Apple's iOS 5 website. Also, iMessage will bring messaging to iOS users.  This is a big play.  A very big play in fact.  Analysts are talking about Apple killing of SMS plans or RIM but it could be the foundation for something more.  Should Twitter piss Apple off in any way, iMessage may step ...

This isn't a rumor but a fact: iOS 5 has references to unreleased iPads and iPhones.  Now, take a deep breath.  We always knew that newer hardware is coming.  It's a fact of life.  Apple will always be upgrading and planning ahead. Earlier, I mentioned that we can look at iOS 5 API for clues to any mentioned features like voice control or mobile payment.  I did not think hardware could so easily be found.  What does this all mean? Nothing at the moment.  Steve Jobs has said that 2011 will be year of iPad 2.  And by the time iOS 5 is finally released this fall, the iPhone 4 will be 15-16 months old.  So, safe bet is that we'll see an updated iPhone before iPad 3.   More at Macrumors .

Techcrunch has been at the forefront of a rumored Nuance deal to power iOS and Mac's voice control scheme but there was not a peep about it at Apple's WWDC keynote yesterday.  Nor was any mention of NFC or mobile payment.   Both of these were not expected to be announced.  If they had, things would have gone through the roof.  So, we'll have to rely on the folks who would dig through the new API in iOS 5 and see what they come up with.  In the past, such efforts have yielded new information about hardware and new features. I have been making my coffee and pastry purchases at Starbucks with the SB card app and I found that to be very convenient so I don't have to pull out my wallet.  Between voice control and a more robust Siri or NFC, I rather with with voice.   We'll know in the fall after Apple releases the final version of iOS 5 and what new hardware will appear in the next iPhone.  Until then we'll eagerly wait to see if there are hidden gems ...

As expected, we got the bulk of what Apple has planned for iCloud.  At the same time that many questions were answered, quite a few remains unanswered.  For instance, what happens to iWeb and to people who build their websites around MobileMe?  For instance, like myself with my Greenjava site.   Just a couple of weeks ago, I took an Apple survey just on the subject of iWeb.  Had that not taken place, I would have thought that iWeb, which was not updated in the last iLife upgrade, is being kept around in the same way iDVD is. I'm sure we'll get the answers regarding iWeb and hosting by September.  I just would like to know as early as possible in case Apple plans on doing away with any kind of hosting.

One key question I came away from the WWDC keynote is if the Mac is on the way to reignite the PC war that Apple has lost in the 90s.  After all, Mac sales has outgrown the general PC market each quarter for the last five years and in the latest quarter, while the market shrank 1%, Macs have grown 28%.  Is something going on here?  Is the Mac doing to the PC what the iPhone did to the smartphone market? Granted the smartphone market is now dominated by Android because of Google's effort and it is a very good platform, Apple continues to play a big role in shaping it.  Not to mention that Apple has a majority of the profit in the smartphone business.  But Apple will never be able to dominate the phone market the way its iPod did to the MP3 market. With PC, however, there is almost a staleness to Windows that people don't get too excited over even with new versions.  People get excited about new Android devices and new OS updates but that is not the case with...

What about Apple's big day on Monday? Steve Jobs came on to the stage and helped introduced the next upgrad to its mobile and computing strategy for the future. What does it really mean? I don't know. It was fantastic to see many pieces come together. At the same time as I followed the various live blogs on the WWDC keynote, I can't help but wonder just what is it that Apple showed us today. Was this the future or was it just another lead change between Apple and its competitors? You have to look at the three main pieces of Apple's mobile, Mac, and cloud products but see it as a whole that is more than the sum of its parts. After all, isn't this always the case with Apple anyway? When Apple licensed the Mac OS to others, the Mac clones while mostly ran the OS adequately, it just never felt the same as a real Mac from Apple. The hardware, software, and services all worked together. With iOS running on the iPhone, iPod touch, and the iPad and OS X running on the M...