AI, Mobile, and Eveything Around the Cloud

There seems to be confusion going on about the T-Mobile version of the new 2013 iPhones.  I've personally bought two of them.  One of them will be used with T-Mobile itself.  The other will be for my brother who has an AT&T sim card.  I bought him the T-Mobile version because I was unable to buy the AT&T iPhone 5s outright. On Apple's order page last night, the T-Mobile version was said to be unlocked.  Today, that's a different story.  Even so, perhaps, there was an omission one way or another.  No one seems certain whether the T-Mobile version of the new iPhones, 5c or 5s, is unlocked at this time. It makes sense that the T-Mobile version would be locked into its network.  However, if the iPhone is bought at a full price, it should be unlocked no matter what.  However, it appears that T-Mobile is looking to get users to sign up for service. What also adding to my confusion on this issue is that on my iPhone, the order confirma...

Source:   Marketwatch . Apple and Google showed that you can disrupt the norm by offering new services that solve problems, creating new industries, or create chaos in existing ones.  Anyone can do that.  Look at Twitter and how it has become so ingrained in society today.  Then there are companies that show that if you don't try to get out ahead of everyone else and feel safe about your situation like Palm did, you can find yourself quickly relegated to nothingness. Today, that company is Blackberry.  When the iPhone hit the market back in 2007, no one including Nokia, Palm, Microsoft, and RIM (before they became just Blackberry) thought Apple could offer anything in the phone market that they did not already offer that was better, including the fact that many smartphones then had physical keyboards while Apple's iPhone did not. Steve Balmer, "ousted" CEO of Microsoft, famously suggested that he looked at the situation, what Microsoft had to offer, and...

Last night, I took a small nap and woke up just before midnight Friday to order my iPhones.  As I've said before, it was seamless for me.  Maybe it's because I'm in the same time zone as Apple.  But as I was waiting to order and even after for about an hour or so, I followed many of the online forums and Twitter to gauge what's going on outside - in the hundreds if not thousands of retail locations where people were lined up, waiting for that moment at 8 am or whenever the Apple or reseller stores would open, and get inside and buy the iPhone of their choice. Once, I lined up at the Manhattan Beach, California Apple store to pick up my original iPad pre-order.  A couple of friends went with me.  That was fun but I got there at 5 am which was nothing like what others have done to get ahead of the line.  Lining up even day before.  Or days. Another time, I went at 3 am to line up at the Pasadena store for the iPhone 4S.  But that was not on laun...

Source:   iMore . iOS 7 has a new feature that isn't as sexy as the new camera or Touch ID but it is still pretty neat.  It's called Multipath TCP. Multipath TCP allows users to maintain connectivity between WiFi and cell signals so when the mobile warrior move from one network to another, say you're at a coffee shop and you walked out into the parking and loses the cafe's WiFi signal, iOS 7 knows to pick right off using your LTE or whatever cell signal you've got. It works by staying connected to both networks at the same time.  My question is then about what the battery life?  It's great that there is no interruption but you have to think that there is always power being drawn when the cell antenna has to work in this fashion. I lack the technical background to answer this, I do believe this is a fair question to ask. Then comes my second question.  Who gets this new ability?  Any with iOS 7 installed?  Apparently, that is the case.  N...

I was able to order a silver 64 GB iPhone 5s for my brother who has courageously served this country.  He deserved it.  And after that, I was happy.  I also got one for myself.  If there's anything I don't cut back in, it's my mobile devices. And even now, you can still get iPhone 5s (iPhone 5c models as well if that's your color) with a 7-10 day ship time if you go with a carrier.  The unlocked T-mobile models, ones that I bought, will take a bit longer. All in all, it was a wonderful ordering experience not seen in previous years.  Getting the iPhone 4s was an ordeal and I don't even want to talk about the iPhone 5. I still have a mind to see if I can get to an Apple store to get one and cancel my online order if there are still stock left this even or sometimes this weekend.

I was able to order a silver 64 GB iPhone 5s for my brother who has courageously served this country.  He deserved it.  And after that, I was happy.  I also got one for myself.  If there's anything I don't cut back in, it's my mobile devices. And even now, you can still get iPhone 5s (iPhone 5c models as well if that's your color) with a 7-10 day ship time if you go with a carrier.  The unlocked T-mobile models, ones that I bought, will take a bit longer. All in all, it was a wonderful ordering experience not seen in previous years.  Getting the iPhone 4s was an ordeal and I don't even want to talk about the iPhone 5. I still have a mind to see if I can get to an Apple store to get one and cancel my online order if there are still stock left this even or sometimes this weekend.

Nothing more to say... - Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Thanks to Dave the Mobile Sage, he sent  this website (mixpanel)  that tracked iOS adoption.  Specifically, iOS 7 is what we're interested in.  In less than 24 hours, it's already at 1/3 of the iOS market. That's fast.  Can you imagine this kind of adoption for any other platform.  Certainly not Android and, even with closed ones like Blackberry, Web OS, or Windows Phone, you can't get this kind of adoption rate. It's good for the platform.  Great for the end users.  And all around high-fives for developers.  

This  CNET post  about binge watching of TV shows seems to suggest that its a Netflix only phenomenon but it's not.  It's happening on other online video services as well. (Nielsen Chart) This should not come as a surprise.  Folks are watching shows on Netflix, Hulu, and others through their phones and tablets.  Maybe on their TV too.  And the ability to watch these shows anywhere, at home, on the go, or even at work makes this new video watching behavior easier. But while mobile is important, what's more important is that online services makes the whole season of a show available at the same time.  With all two seasons of Scandal on Netflix, I would not have been able to binge watch it since Sunday night.

Source:   Wired . Here is an interesting Wired post about what Microsoft should do about its mobile situation, which is bad, and maybe to turn things around, it should open up Windows. The post has a thing or two to say about past attempts at open source.  It's likely, in my opinion, Steve Balmer, current and outgoing CEO, didn't go for it.  Just like he didn't go for projects that could have put Microsoft ahead and put the iconic software company in a stronger position. It's why the post believes a new CEO could utlimately do what Balmer was too afraid to do.  It's unlikely.  I'm tell you that now.  But even if somehow, the new CEO was brave enough to try, it would only be the first step.  It may slow the bleeding but won't stop it. Microsoft will still need something new that convinces hardware makers, software developers, and, more importantly, businesses and consumers that it has something new and innovative.  The new CEO will need its...

Starting today, anyone with an iOS device that can install the brand new iOS 7 will also get a special new treat and feature:  iTunes Radio. I'm assuming that Apple will release the iPad version of iOS 7 as well. Essentially, iTunes Radio is Apple's new modern answer to give users the ability to stream music that they like and, hopefully, discover new ones.  There's word that Apple is also hiring special human curators for this new feature. Did I also mention that it's free?  This is significant because this will really hit some music streaming services hard.  Today's music streaming services like Pandora, often used as the service most likely to be hurt by Apple's entry into the radio streaming biz, offer limited free services and rely on paid services in order to generate revenue. And even if Spotify doesn't directly compete with Apple's iTunes Radio because Apple doesn't let users picks specific songs to stream like Spotify, free is going to...

A Trojan file for the OS X on the Mac has been found.  Right now, the threat is benign because the backend server where commands are send to and from is down. Still, it does mean that the threat of this and future malware is very real ( Macnn ). Essentially, the image file is a real app that will try to install itself but will require admin permission.  It could mean that the user will be prompted to enter a password for their account. The Macnn does try to point out and sell that the threat is low but I think it's overdoing it.  Threat is a threat no matter what it is supposed to do, damage or not.  This Trojan and others all depend on element of social engineering and lack of smart computing practice. I did read a post a few weeks ago regarding such threats.  Best line of defense is to think before you click.  Second, for general day-to-day use, your account does not need to be an admin level account.  Without it, such malware would not no wher...

This pic says it all.  Not sure what iPad app the guy is using to fire the mortar.  Maybe it's Angry Birds.  More  speculation here at MacDailyNews .

Source:   Phandroid . As you know by now, Google Glass is a very neat idea but also controversial because of the privacy nature of the device.  However, unlike what stuff like Facebook is doing, Google is actually advancing technology and a potentially useful device in society.  But this isn't about privacy here now.  It's about the technology itself. See, Glass need a data plan to work.  Carriers are more than happy to accommodate user's hunger for data. As long as you pay a separate plan for it.  Stupid right?  Because they won't just let you tether it off your mobile devices, your Android smartphone. Until now.  Google made a gutsy move by releasing an app that would allow Glass to tether to the smartphones running Android.  In the latest Glass update, you can pair Glass to the dedicated app on your device and have it pull information that way. Neat.  It's a tether to an app so carriers cannot object, right? We'll see. ...

There is something about Apple's method of upgrading its iOS devices that has made me upgrade each and every single year since the original iPhone except for the 3GS.  What is it about each year's upgrade that compelled me to do this?  And it's not just me.  Others I know as well. Granted that for those locked into contracts, I get that your upgrade cycle might be different.  Of course, you can still upgrade like I do by buying the iPhone outright from Apple or your carrier, paying for the full price.  I do this by convincing myself that I'm worth it.  And for the most part, I'm frugal and I hardly splurge.  On top of that, my $30 T-Mobile plan likely has your $70+ plan beaten. Still, once the iPhone 4 came out, I have said to myself, "5 megapixel camera.  That's good enough.  And it's retina display.  How much better can it be for the next one?  What? 4S?" I think it over and this was even before the 4S is close to being out....

Lots of chatter this weekend about No more beta references about Siri on Apple's digital assistant's page. Frankly, I had always assumed that Siri will stay in perpetual beta because of the nature of the service and its on-going learning process. So with Apple giving the official work, I thought there was only one way to find out. - Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

I'm willing to give Tim Cook the benefit of the doubt. It's why I am undecided about last week's iPhone 5s and 5c event. And as far as I'm concerned, I'm still iffy on the Cook era so far in areas of innovation, Apple's influence on mobile, and Apple's role as a technology leader. Here is the thing. We elect president to a four-year term in the United States. Through all the crap that cable TV says about this and that, the American electorate doesn't make its final judgment until the whole term had nearly been served. And Cook is still early in his term. So, I'm still digesting the 9-10 iPhone event. It was rather boring. Nothing that left us on the edge of out seats as we sat at our desks reading the live blogs. Even so, there is much to look forward to. If not for leaks, Touch ID, new colors, iOS 7, and even the 64-bit A7 with the M7 coprocessor would have brought some excitement to Appledom. And let's not forget there at iOS features, less wel...