AI, Mobile, and Eveything Around the Cloud

Apple recognizes the importance of the Chinese market to its mobile and computing focuses.  Mac sales are doing pretty well, growing faster than the US and Europe while mini-riots break out for iOS launches. Oh, let's not forget about the gray market for Apple goods because Chinese launches lag US and EU launches by months. So, when Apple release the Mountain Lion beta, few were surprised that Apple integrated some popular social network and email services popular in China and most agree it makes a lot of sense for Apple to make it easier for the Chinese mobile warriors to integrate their contacts, calendars, and social needs into their iOS devices and Macs.   As a Weibo user (because I'm trying to learn Chinese), this is perfect.  At this time, I'm unable to figure out how to access Weibo but if you're a fluent Chinese speaker and uses this Chinese version of Twitter, you'd find it very useful.  I know I would, again, if I can figure out how to access it fr...

The winner of the 25 billionth app downloader from the App Store is Chunli Fu of China.  Rumor is that he downloaded Where's My Water?, which he didn't pay for since it was the free version.  Nevertheless, I want to congratulate the dude for it.  He deserves it.  Fu won $10,000 as well as a lot of recognition. Now, comes the part that I wonder if this is just too much of a coincidence that with China being such an important market and opportunity, an iOS winner from China wins this prize.  I mean, seriously, you cannot ask for a better PR campaign than this.  It's likely that with all things Apple, this is getting a lot of positive press. On top of that, there is the iPad trademark battle with Proview.  I'm not sure whether if Apple or Proview has a more positive image in China.  I read a post that many Chinese on Weibo believe Proview is attempting to extort money from a cash rich company like Apple.  So I reckon Fu as winner of ...

We know that social networks like Facebook to Google+ to Foursquare love to boast their number of citizens (users). It sounds great and in Facebook's case, it helps to let the financial community know that they've got about 700 million users as they go IPO. There are also reports that Google+ is like a ghost town and only Googlers are the ones still using it after the initial interests from the media and the curious. Then there is location-based social networks like Foursquare. Personally, I can say that the number active users among my friends list has dropped by 2/3. So, what exactly is going on here? And while Facebook claims to have hundreds of millions of daily users, not quite near the 700 million users that they have, many of them are what I called "lurkers". They're people who sign up for social networks or other services but rarely participate in general or as the network as it is mean to be. After all, according to Wikipedia on lurkers , lurkers ac...

Meet Terry Myerson, head of Windows Phone at Microsoft, needs to talk less and work more on giving us clear answers about the future of WP phones, upgrades, and who can or cannot use Windows Phone 8. See, WP7 and WP8 are entirely different OSes and current WP7 phones are unlikely to ever see WP8. At the Mobile World Congress, Mr. Myerson bashed both Apple's iPhone and Andoid for having shoddy updates. For one thing, he accused Apple of making older iPhones slower thrrough new iOS versions so users will be forced to buy new iPhones. Meanwhile, he said Android devices hardly ever get upgrades. I can't say that Android devices hardly get upgrades. They're slow in coming and only one or too units that I can think of, the original Samsung Galaxy S, isn't slated for Android 4, Ice Cream Sandwich, but that matter still has not been quite settled yet. As for Apple purposefully making older iPhones slower through updates, I've often often about that. As a matter of fact, ...

News now that iPhones made in Brazil are on the market. With the statements made that jobs like manufacturing consumer electronics not coming back to the US, specifically attributed Steve Jobs to President Obama, we have to wonder how is Brazil about to get Apple and Foxconn to invest in a local manufacturing plant? Now, let me put this out: can Apple do something like this in Mexico? Or maybe the US? We can forget about blue states like California but how about red states like Texas? Foxconn likely received a large incentive from the national and local government to do this. At the same time, we have to wonder just how they can achieve the infrastructure to do this. Labor issues aside, I like to see government officials look into seeing how this was achieved and how feasible is this go duplicated in the US. My guess is that even with the technology and logistics solved, special interests like labor is going to make things very difficult to convince Apple or others to invest in an i...

We have an old Apple IIc in the garage. Last I checked, it still booted up. Also, last I checked, it was still running BASIC. And yet, someone found a way to get OS X to run on it. HOW?! There is a G4 Mac Mini in there. Not sure why they didn't fit the newer and slimmer Mac mini in there if they're going to go through all this trouble. Anyway, this has me thinking about dusting off the old IIc and fire it up and relive my childhood. More at Mental Hygiene .  

It's been a while sense we added a Friday movie.  This week, it's none other than the Avengers, 2nd Trailer! If you've not seen the first one, go duckduckgo it your self.  Okay.  I'll post it for ya.  This is the first must see 3D movie, since, well, Avatar really.  One that I will eagerly pay whatever the amount they'll be charge us this summer. Enjoy! The Avengers - Official Trailer 2   by  DailymotionTrailers Here's the first trailer! The Avengers   by  teasertrailer    Have a great weekend!!! Note:  sorry about the ads at the beginning of the video. I think it's kinda dumb...what can you do?

Let me be very clear.  Unlimited in my world, presumably yours as well, means just that:  unlimited.  However, in the wireless industry, especially for our esteemed GSM carriers, AT&T and T-Mobile (they deserve each other by the way - not in a merger but when you wish them ill) has a very different definition of unlimited.  However, if users are throttled from 4G down to 3G, will you be pissed? I read this  GiGaom post  on the possibility that AT&T might sunset EDGE.  So, if that happens, does it mean that users who get the nasty text from AT&T are forced to go at a slower 3G speed when EDGE goes away? T-Mobile is doing something similar as it attempts to move from its current 3G (not buying the 4G nonsense) to LTE by 2014 - there were reports in late 2011 that some users were getting 3G speed on the T-Mobile network when they ought to be getting EDGE only. Time will tell just how this plays out.  I'm more interested in how the ...

Is this Google's Nexus tablet?  Probably not but we all know it's coming.  There are rumors abound.  I reckon it's something that we will be paying a lot of attention to.  So far, Android tablets have had their collective butts handed to them by Apple's iPad. It was only Amazon's Kindle Fire that has found some success in blunting Apple's dominance in the tablet market by finding a sweet spot, $200 to be exactly, that many consumers found palpable.  There is talk that Google is looking to enter that portion of the market with its own 7" Nexus tablet rather than go head-on with Apple's 10" iPad. Android Community  is asserting that Google could possibly call the tablet "Nexus Play".  I wonder how RIM will feel about that. I look for Play to come out by summer to fall.  However, keep in mind that many other tablet players, including Android competitors to the Play will likely be unveiling their own 7-8" tablets around that time...

It’s hard not to get into the he said/she said battle going on between Apple and its competitors in the smartphone and tablet market.  Above all, I’m a mobile tech fan.  I’m not an Apple or a Google can do no wrong kind of fan.  They can and they do all the time and I try to point it out when possible.  Still, you have to be skewed to not think Apple’s iPhone and iPad has not given birth to some copycat devices.  As for the copying part, I'm with Apple on this one. Yeah, Samsung quickly comes to mind.  In fact, I have to say that Microsoft’s Windows Phone and upcoming Windows 8 is as different from the iPhone, iPad, and iOS as they come.  So, I’ve got a plan that could really put a hurt on Apple’s copycat competitors. On March 7th when Apple unveils the next iPad, there is a chance that Apple will unveil the next upgrade to its Steve Jobs’ hobby, Apple TV.  Go one step further.  Announce it’s forth coming iTV, Apple own HDTV, if all the ...