WWDC: Naming Next OS X And Pics

Okay, I don't have pics but 9to5Mac has a few of them as Apple start putting up banners for their WWDC event next week.  And while every new iOS and OS X release is very important, this one stands out because of the pressure put upon Apple, Tim Cook in particular, by an out of control media and pundits with agendas (some are as benign as click-baiting).

So, visit the site if you want to try to play armchair detective and discern from the details on the banners what Apple will have in store for us next week.

However, I do want to mention one thing about OS X.  I've seen a few posts and listened to a couple of podcasts about which feline will Apple bestow upon by naming the next OS X version, 10.9, after.

I think "Sabertooth" is rather awesome.  However, I think it's time for Tim Cook to change that and it's a grand opportunity.  It'll take Apple further away from the Steve Jobs era however symbolic it is.  It could also signal a dramatic shift in the iconic OS away from PC and perhaps one day towards more of a PC-tablet hybrid for the Mac, assuming that's where Apple is headed.

After all, iOS already uses the core of OS X and a hybridization isn't out of the question.

This is why I think WWDC 2013 is a grand opportunity for Apple to change the naming scheme for OS X.  Let's not forget that while we have yet to see anything new from Apple in terms of product refresh or totally new products, all future products from Apple will in some way be affected by the coming OS updates.

Social: Facebook App Source of Battery Drain On iPhone, Pose Privacy Risks Too

Source:  TUAW.

Facebook Apps At Root of iPhone Battery Problems – Wonder What Information it’s Gathering

By using Apple’s iOS development tools, a developer in Germany found out the Facebook app is a major source of battery drain.  So chances are that if you’re a Facebook user on your iPhone, if you hold and tap the Home button and then disable the Facebook app from the multi-tasking panel, you should be able to solve this particular battery issue.

The same can be said about Facebook’s dedicated messaging app as well.

However, it goes to the issue of why Facebook apps are behaving radically different from other apps.  According to Apple’s rules, certain apps like Spotify that has audio and voice features are allowed to continue to work in the background.  Makes sense.  However, why does Facebook apps need to be working on the background, particularly the main Facebook app?

It’s unlikely a major of users are using any of its audio or voice features.  In fact, I’m not aware of any such features.  According to the developer, Sebastian Düvel, Facebook apps would stay active for 10 seconds in the background and then go into sleep mode but it would wake for another 10 seconds.  This happens as long as Facebook apps remain sitting in the multi-tasking panel.

Again, the question is why does Facebook apps need to be active at all when they’re not being used.  Obviously, one has to think that its active so it can try to know what the user is doing, where the user’s at, and  gather and use these information to push out ads.  Of course, I can’t say with any great certainty this is happening.  I’m willing to entertain other theories but this is one that fits given Facebook’s past of playing fast and loose with user privacies.

I have a Facebook account with only a couple of friends that I use to keep myself in the loop about what Facebook is doing.  For the most part, I don’t use it unless there is a major new feature – which is far and in between.  Most Facebook announcements are actually ways in which the company can get users to share more information, which is really disguise for the company to gather more information to sell to advertisers.

So, I don’t have Facebook apps installed on any of my iOS or Android devices.  I’ve recently picked up a Windows Phone device and I did install Facebook on it to see how it works compared to others.  I’ll be looking at the battery life in light of this development.  Eventually, I’ll uninstall it as well.

Social: Google Maps and Other Maps Soon To Be Social In Ways Facebook Cannot Compete With - More Engagement, How Apple's Own Social Maps Could Benefit Users

Here's an interesting Forbes take on how Google Maps is also a social network but not on the traditional sense that Facebook, Twitter, or even Google+ is.  I see this taking place in a manner that should be very interesting in how companies, not just Google, interacts with its users.

See, with more and more users on the move and the increasing in mobile consumption and computing, the traditional sense and take on maps has changed as is evident in how Google is positioning its maps app at Google I/O.

Google and others like Facebook (maybe it'll come out with its own maps) will overlay more and more information based on the user preferences - places they've checked in, places where their friends/families have been to, recommendations based on user information, and, of course, ads.

Of course, in the Forbes post, it made references to how Google has been forcing Google+ on users which its execs deny.  Of course, Google has been integrating Google+ with its services in an attempt to drum up numbers and compete publicly with Facebook and Twitter in terms of raw numbers.

However, with Maps, because it has the best mapping service as perceived  by most users, Google has never had to force anyone to use it.  And by overlaying social features, ads, and other services on top of it, it has creating a social interaction in ways that no other social networks can with its linear timelines and gimmicks to keep users engaged.

With maps, we want to stay engaged when we open up the app on our iPhones, Android devices, or tablets.

And here may be where the central strategy in devices like Google Glass fits in.  And to a larger extent, other wearable devices that will soon come on the market.

For Android users, because Google has control over the platform, you can always expect Android to receive the best and latest quickly.  However, that is not to say that iOS users won't.  Google has realized just how important iPhone users are given their likelihood to be monetized.

I'm sure Apple has also noticed - it many not have its own social network but with its own Maps app, it many not have to once it adds social features to it.  Right now, Yelp is featured prominently but look for other social data to appear in the future.

This leaves Facebook and Twitter without maps services of its own.  Facebook was rumored to try to buy Waze, a socially engaging maps with data contributed by users, but that likely isn't going to work out.  It's like Facebook will be forced to work with Microsoft's own mapping services going forward.

For iOS users, this should be a whole new frontier for both Apple and users.  Advertising is not something that Apple is particularly good at or have experience with.  It's unlike it will play a prominent part in any social maps engagement from Apple.

The first step for Apple will probably involve a more robust mobile payment system beyond what Passbook currently offers.  With what it has learned from Yelp integration and a willingness to integrate social networks more deeply with within iOS, the Mapps app will see more integration beyond Yelp reviews.

For instance, without its own maps service, Facebook could work with Apple on checkins (I just Foursquare instead of Facebook) and give users the benefits of knowing where family/friends have been there or not and what they may have said about it.

It's also likely that deals can pop up when a user search for a particular location.  For instance, supposedly I look for pizza.  It'll find not only the nearest pizza parlor but also which ones currently offer a special deal.

As an avid user of Groupon and Living Social, I would not mind see a map overlay of where the deals that interest me are in my city.  The linear format right now in these deals apps just aren't engaging at all.

To be sure, we'll see Apple and Google move in this direction to be sure.  However, Apple will be more cautious than Google will given Google's vast amount of information about users and its willingness to throw things out there and see what works.

In this past year, we saw Apple's first attempt going at it alone as the map app provider with Yelp integration.  Melted buildings in flyovers aside, Apple has improved its maps greatly even with some claiming Apple has better accuracy than Google.  Year two could see one or two other social services added to the mix - be it a third party service or even one of its own.

It would be nice to see Apple allow users to update and provide information in the way that Waze engages its users.  One service I particularly like is Google allowing users to post pictures to contribute to Streetview.

At the end of the day, Apple will do Maps the Apple way.  It'll be simple with some approved social engagement.  It'll only do things that it sees that could add value to users and help it sell iOS devices.

Apple Has Sold 100 Million iPod touches; Should Position Device As A Social Device To Continue Momentum

Source:  The Loop.

You know a guy is connected when he gets information directly from Apple in ways that not even the press can. Apple told Jim Dalrymple, not the AP, CNN, or Reuters, that it has sold 100 million iPod touches since its introduction in 2007.

That's a lot of touches.  How much compared to other gaming devices?

Nintendo's wildly successful Game Boy and Game Boy Color (wiki) sold a combined 118.69 million units since its introduction in 1989 in Japan.  It took Nintendo 12 years for the GB to sell almost 120 million while .  It was eventually displaced by the Gameboy Advance in 2001 which went on to sell about 81.5 million units in in seven years.  Sony only managed to sell 76 million PSP (wiki) units in eight years.

For the iPod touch, Apple managed 100 million units in 5.5 years.

As a mobile fan, I love the fact that Apple's iPod touch is finding this level of success.  However, where does Apple go from here?  Today, it introduced a base 16 GB iPod touch for $229 without the rear camera.

On the surface, that looked pity and like a bad move.  However, Apple is trying to get users to go with the $299 touch with a rear camera and 32 GB of storage for $70 more.  I think it would help Apple's effort if it also market the $299 iPod touch as a social media device in addition to the gaming and music playing device it is now.

The rise in popularity of Twitter and, specifically, social and sharing apps is undeniable.  And with the youth turning away from Facebook due to its loss of coolness and possibly the encroachment of adults, Apple can position its device as one that allow anyone to enjoy all the benefits of iOS without paying for monthly fees.

Tim Cook Might Have Lied: New iPod touch (Without Rear Camera) with 16 GB for $229

Source:  The Loop.

here's my try to see how it feels about turning something that Apple do, as benign as introducing a 16 GB iPod touch without the standard rear 5MP camera for $299, into something bad like WSJ, NYT, and haters are so apt at doing.  So here goes.

Tim Cook lied.  He said no new hardware and what's this?!

Okay...I suck at it.  I think it's news about this new iPod touch variant but it is neither good or bad.  And without the rear camera, it's not for me either.  However, as The Loop said, it's the perfect gaming machine.

I was considering getting one for my niece but I would want her to be able to take photos.  For $70 more, you get the iSight camera (the rear camera I'm talking about) as well as doubling of the memory to 32 GB at $299.  Another $100 will get you the 64 GB model which I understand isn't for everyone.

I'm sure Apple has its reasons for coming out with the new 16 GB model - it now serves as its base iPod touch.  And it's like I said above, Apple wants you to spend a $70 to get the version with the camera and twice the storage.

Brilliant placement of product and pricing.

Wait...doh!  I tried so hard to start off the post with negativity towards Apple and I end up complimenting them!!!

Did Apple Design Itself Into A Corner By Focusing On Thinness And Weight For the iPhone? Probably.

Tim Cook talked about trade-offs that currently exists that is prevent Apple from release an iPhone with a bigger screen.  And until some of these trade-offs are addressed, that'll never happen.  Some of these trade-offs are technical while others are related to the what kind of a mobile experience a 5" iPhone can bring to the user.

Let's focus on the technical ones here and discuss why I think that by releasing the iPhone 5 in the form factor it is in, Apple may have painted itself into a technical and design corner that is preventing it from releasing a 5" or bigger screen iPhone.

With each successive iPhone update, Apple focused on how they were able to shave off a few grams here and there while making the iPhones thinner and thinner.  This was especially apparent with the iPhone 5 because it had a bigger 4" screen while managing to weigh considerably less.

Should Apple be thinking about a 5" iPhone, the expectation for thinner and lighter will remain.  However, there is only so much Apple can continue to do that given the technical restraints.  And this will be especially difficult with a 5" iPhone because of the battery that will be needed to power the light up the screen. It would also mean more pixels for a CPU to drive.

And even if Apple doesn't make a 5" iPhone thinner and lighter but keeps it around where the iPhone 5 is now, might may not be enough to give the iPhone user the same or greater level of mobile experience because of the battery constraint.

Maybe Apple will find a way to come close.  However, had Apple kept the iPhone 5 thickness the same as the iPhone 4/4S, battery life for a 5" iPhone might not be an issue at all.

So, where does that leave us as far as a 5" iPhone goes?  Well, Apple could reverse years of practice of releasing thinner and lighter iPhone and, in fact, maybe make the 5" iPhone thicker and heavier to commodate a bigger battery.  Well, since this issue itself in the trade-off, it's not going to happen.

So, Apple has no choice but to wait until their engineers find a way to design a vastly more efficient CPU and more power friendly 5" Retina Display while accommodating Jony Ives' designs.  It would also mean that we could be a year or more away from see such an iPhone.

Meanwhile, yes, Apple's competitors like Samsung and its Galaxy lines, from the S 4 to the Note, continue to sit unmolested by Apple's mobile devices.  Sure, these devices have many of the trade-offs that Tim Cook is talking about but they are also sales that Apple is missing.

Personally, I would not want Apple to make compromises to the whole mobile experience.  However, I think I am speaking for many Apple fans that if Apple does release a 5" iPhone that is slightly thicker and heavier than the iPhone 5, we would not mind at all.

Mobile: Steelcase Chair "Gesture" For Tablet Uers - Pricy But Looks Promising And May Be Worth It To Keep Good Postures

Source:  Steelcase, Popular Science.

We text, watch videos, and consume information on our mobile devices quite a bit more now.  On our Android or iPhone devices.  Especially on our tablets like the iPad.  And it has changed the posture of our bodies.  Quite a few more postures than working on a desktop with a laptop, according to Steelcase, maker of office furniture.  Which is why they came out with Gesture for mobile and tablet users.

And Gesture looks like.

The website has more information about it but what I like it most is the built-in fundamentals for adapting to what the users wants and how the user sits when using a device.  Steelcase did their research based on 2000 individuals to craft the Gesture.

My only issue is that it doesn't come with a head rest.  I suppose given what it is suppose to do, the head rest doesn't apply.  Too bad.  It would have been nice to see it come as an option (I'll be writing them to find out if they could incorporate that in as an option).

It ain't gonna be cheap.  It retails at $978.  I'm hope it'll come down quite a bit more before I jump at it.  And the reason I'm considering it is because it's my body.  When it comes to that and my health, I don't want to go cheap.  I've skipped cable and other stuff like eating out.  The bucks I've saved is worth investing in something like this.

What do you think?  Here's a video of the Gesture from Steelcase.