With Lion And iOS 5, Apple Still At Snail's Pace With Social Strategy

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 in someday.  

And while this may not see like it, iOS devices are not PC-free.  Get an iOS capable device like the iPod touch, activate it without first having to go home and hook it up to your home computer, and you're mobile.  

Also, notification enhancements in iOS should also serve as a good foundation for future social network endeavors.  It can display stocks, messages, and even weather information.  I'm sure Apple can easily add more capabilities in future improvements.  

So far, there doesn't seem to be anything that ties all of the separate features with social potentials together.  Could it be iCloud?  Maybe. So far, we know about the six main iCloud apps Steve Jobs introduced on Monday's WWDC keynote event but I walked away thinking there are a few things about it that they were not ready to share with the world just yet.  Regardless, I don't know about you but I'm pretty excited right about now for iOS 6 and iOS 7 to see what social apps and functions Apple come up with.

As for Lion, well, a few podcasts I listened to today mentioned that it stands to gain from missing iOS 5 features.  Well, like Steve Jobs has said when they first showed us Lion months back, they've learned quite a few things from iOS like Mission Control.  So while we won't see notification, iMessage, or deeper Twitter in Lion, we probably will see more iOS features.  

iOS 5 References iPad 3 and Next iPhone

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.

Voice And Mobile Payment A No-Show At WWDC Keynote As Expected

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 in the developer iOS versions.

iCloud and iWeb

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.

Mac Doing To PC What iPhone Did To Smartphones

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 Windows at all anymore.  And perhaps, it is just an issue of perception that Microsoft no longer innovates (which they do quite a bit).  

And the difference is that while Android devices are still growing in numbers, PC sales are down.  So what is going on here?  I know there is the thing about the halo effect from the iOS devices and iPod but there has got to be more than that.  Apple has consistently said that 50% of Mac buyers were former PC users.

I think it's the idea that we could be in a post-PC era.  People are buying smartphones and tablets instead of personal computers and for those who continue to buy computers, Macs has been granted the perception, true or not, that is has more value than your standard HP and Dell.  

Whatever the reasons are, something has changed in the last five years in the PC market that has, for the duration, shift the wind in Apple's favor

Apple's iCloud, iOS 5, And Lion

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 Mac, they are now being meshed with a renewed cloud focus.

My hope is that we are witnessing glimpses into the future than just incremental improvements.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPod touch

Some iOS 5 Features Worthy of A Steve Jobs Keynote

Here's an excellent post from TIPB on what we want from iOS 5 but probably won't get - hey, it's what blogs are for right?

My needs are simple.  I don't need wireless firmware upgrade.  Download half a gigabyte of information is seriously going to sap the battery life.  I don't want to have to download a big file and then having to plug my iPod touch back into the wall just so I have enough juice to enjoy new features.  Besides, updates from Apple are few and between.  

What I really like is the suggestion to just outrigth steal from WebOS' Synergy.  Twitter and other social integration would be appreciated as  Siri on steroids.  

More at TIPB.