A Week After Balmer's Pending Resignation: Nokia Sells Mobile Biz to Microsoft

You have to assume that Nokia's $7+ (some say $7.1 billion and other say $7.2 billion) sale of its mobile business to Microsoft, allowing Microsoft access to its name, some mobile tech like mapping, and licenses to use its patents, had been in the works long before Steve Balmer offered (or pushed out) to resign as CEO of Microsoft.  Still, the announcement was likely timed to avoid getting bumped off the front page by Balmer's news.

And this is probably part of new plan at Microsoft to compete against the likes of Apple's iPhone/iPad and Android which has thoroughly dominated the mobile market - with Android taking around 70% of global smartphones shipped and Apple selling over 50% of tablets while Windows based Surface caused Redmond to write down nearly $900 million and forcing Microsoft to permanently cut the price of the ARM-based version by $150 and the Intel version by $100. 

I'm thinking there's going to be additional write-downs for Microsoft in the coming quarter. 

Now, there have been rumors and suggestions from all corners of Wall Street, media, and armchair bloggers that Microsoft should be Nokia for one reason or another.  These flood of articles has paid for many meals, mortgages, and college tuitions for dozens if not hundreds of writers because they were at the same time making sense and also polarizing.

Made sense because Nokia was going nowhere with its own effort prior to Windows Phone and only managed to tread water after the Lumia brand came out.  Imagine what would have happened had Nokia gone with Google's Android instead.  Maybe they should have been the ones to buy Web OS instead of HP.

At the same time these posts were polarizing is because Microsoft fans and supporters did not want talk about potential Windows Phone failures or how Microsoft had to bribe Nokia with hundreds of millions to get them to use it.  And in a sense, it was this or nothing for both companies.  If Windows Phone fail, it was pretty much it for Nokia and Microsoft likely would have to forget about being a mobile player and would have only its Windows and Office biz to milk from. 

What's scary is that it has happened - Microsoft with a large part of Nokia.  It's likely this was forced upon Redmond.  Nokia was sunk and Microsoft was told to hold the bag that is the Windows Phone market.  For a while now,  Nokia wanted out of the market.  Lumia phones were decent but had many shortcomings while providing an interesting new UI offered almost nothing new that the iPhone or Android devices didn't. 

And oh, no apps in the phone store.  No good apps I wanted (I have a Lumia device too).

So, Microsoft was forced to spent more than $7 billion to remain a player fast and brutal mobile market.  I agree it had to make this move but we're here today because of the news from a week or so ago:  Steve Balmer.

Balmer, genius and brilliant in his own right, was the reason why it cost Microsoft $7 billion today.  And the sooner he is able to leave and give a new CEO more time to come in and make the necessary changes, which will take time and even billions more, the better off Microsoft is in the long run regardless of whether Windows Phone will catch on or not. 

iPhone 5S: Weibo Thinks There Is A Fourth Charcoal Color

Given the sickly candy colors that are making rounds for the less expensive iPhone that is likely going too go on sale next month, it is good to know that Apple is giving the top line iPhone 5S (or iPhone 6) extra care when it comes to new colors.

While I am ready to accept that gold will be an addition ad a color, looks like Weibo, China's Twitter/Facebook, could well have uncovered a fourth color.

How's a gray or metallic shade for you?

Why Can Apple's new iPhone With Colors Look Like This? Look, Apple!

Source:  Appleinsider, Cult of Mac.

Mophie, a top Apple iOS accessory maker, is known for its battery case.  I'm sure they do great business because, let's face it, we all can use more power regardless of how long the iPhone 5 or the iPhone 6 battery life are going to be.

However, they also know their colors as is evident from these new Mophie battery cases for the iPhone 5. Meet these colorful Mophie Juice Pack Helium.



These are awesomely deep rich colors - unlike the sickly yellow, green, or pink ones that we are seeing from various overseas websites.  Frankly, I think (hope) those colors aren't real (On Apple).

When CNet asked whether users what they want most from Apple for the next iPhone, 60% wanted longer battery life.  So, I reckon Mophie will sell tons of these good looking battery cases.  If Steve Jobs was around, he might even say they're so pretty you wanna lick them.

They retail for $80 - it's a good investment that will make your mobile experience longer and better.  It's got a 1500mAh battery that provides up to 80% of additional battery life.  Well worth it.  There may be cheaper options like external batteries but they don't provide the convenience or look this Helium case does.

May Not Be The Best Deal But Apple Provides Convenience of iPhone Trade-In

Source:  Appleinsider.

Today, Apple started a long-rumored iPhone trade-in program that allows the customer to use the credit towards another iPhone purchase.  I'm gamed.  I've got an iPhone 4 that I love for them to take off my hand.  It's a Verizon one so I reckon there is limited use for anyone of my family members (and plus, they don't deserve it).

Here's the thing, customers can get up to $280 for the trade-in. So you know that you're not going to be getting the best deal in town.  For that, I would still look else where.  However, the convenience of this is just too much to pass up for me.

And there's one further restriction.  You can only use your particular trade-in gift card to buy the iPhone of your choice for the same carrier.  A big "doh" if you ask me.  It totally makes no sense to me.  I have since begun migrating away from Verizon towards T-Mobile and I want an unlocked version.

However, for most users, this probably isn't an issue.

Recommendation?  Shopping around if you know your way around trade-in programs.  For convenience, it doesn't get any better than this.

For Apple, this offers a very valuable customer experience.  It allows the customer seamless exchange of iPhone.  At the same time, it allows Apple to control and monitor the flow of iPhones.  It's likely Apple will reintroduce these devices in emerging markets where it has almost to negligible exposure that will do nothing to hurt its high-end iPhone sales.

For users, you get convenience and for Apple, they sell two iPhones - the one to you and the one you sold back to Apple that they then sell to someone who buys it and doesn't buy an Android phone.

Apple TV And iTunes Glitch - Ordinarily A Bad Thing But I Can't Help But Speculate About New TV services

I wasn't at home when Apple's TV shows disappeared for many users on Apple TV and iTunes.  That's a bad thing.  No doubt about it.  It's probably a pre-iOS 7 and OS X Mavericks, next version of OS for the Macs, thing - beta and someone did something, caused folks inconvenience, and now it's back up and fixed.

However, like Mac Daily News, I wonder...

Well, the thing is that recently, the Apple TV gain a few apps - Disney, ESPN, Weather Channel, etc.  It's all great.  However, you do need a participating cable or SATTV services for those apps to be of any use.  But it has lead many of us to speculate that Apple is steadily gaining some ground in trying to get studios and content owners to loosen up a bit.  It's an uphill battle but Apple could be near the apex where it's about to reach a deal with cable or content providers.

From there now, it's all downhill.

And could this glitch be a part of any of this?  Some kind of a content announcement that should see the light of day, probably not on September 10th when Apple unveils the next iPhone but later in October when Apple is expected to announce new iPads and iPods?

October would make more sense.

I'll be honest with you.  We are in the last week of August and, after that, an excruciating long 10 days until Apple executives unveil their latest and greatest iPhones.  So, if this Apple TV glitch had happened at any other time during the year, I would not be indulging this at all.

It's hot, we're bored, and we're eagerly waiting for Apple's onslaught of products.  This includes not only the iOS devices but also the Mac Pro and Haswell based Macbook Pro.

However, in October, and some kind of new content service does get announced by Apple (I'm not saying we could see a new Apple TV or even the unicorn Apple HD panel), I like for us to look back on this post and just smile.

iPHone 5S or iPhone 6: Readers On CNET Overwhelmingly Ask For Better Battery Life On Next iPhone

Here's the link to the CNET page that showed results from readers about what they want to see on the iPhone and what features they like best so far as we know and you can read it and think it over yourself or come back and I'll give you my two-cent.  But take a look at the new features pie chart and look at what CNET readers are asking for from Apple on the next iPhone 5S or iPhone 6:

BETTER BATTERY LIFE!!!  60% Of the readers want Apple to figure out a way to give the next iPhone longer battery life.  Seriously, for me, that's the biggest issue.  And if you're a mobile warrior reading this post and other ones on this blog, battery life is a recurring theme here.

Yes, Apple.  We want longer battery life for our next iPhones.

Samsung's Galaxy Watch or Apple's Non-Existent iWatch: Think Past Dick Tracey's Watch and Maybe More of Star Trek NTG's Comm Badge

Consider this.  A watch that doesn't immediately tell you the time but if you ask it or install an app on it, it'll tell you.  That may well be what Apple, Google, Samsung, or any of the consumer tech giants are working towards.  A watch that isn't a watch.  That may be key to the wearable device buzz going on right now - convince consumers and a new generation of mobile warriors who don't wear watches to wear a device on their wrist or body that has other helpful benefits other than telling time or getting notifications from their smartphones which is likely on their persons anyway in their pockets or bags.

A watch that is not a watch.  In fact, any thinking of a wearable computer has to be very much removed from the idea of a watch.  Consider what Dick Tracy has to do to access his watch.  Or remember Michael Knight in Knight Rider?

Our heroes always have to move their watches close to their mouth to do anything.  I think that's so dorky.

Rather, any wearable devices that is going to change or augment how we work or play will need to work more like the comm badges in Star Trek The Next Generation.  They wore the badges on their chests and tap it when they need to access the computer or speak with another crew member.

In fact, such a wearable device, say from Google, may have an always-on feature where the device's microphone is ready to pick up a command.  (Privacy issues aside of course.)  Thereby, bypassing the need for the user to activate or tap the device to access it.

And there are two main factors that is going to be very important if they want people to wear these in one fashion or another.

The first one is battery life.  No need to go into this too much because the reasons why such a device to sip power is obvious. It needs to have an insanely long battery life.

The other is weight.  I use a Jawbone Up.  I also use a Nike Fuelband which is bulkier and heavier than the Up band. I don't use both simultaneously if you're wondering about that. Both are sufficiently light enough that I I don't mind wearing them on my wrist or clipping them to my belt all day.

It wasn't like that with a phone.  Since I started carrying around a phone, a flip phone all the way to the smartphones today, I don't like that I have to carry one because they're still kinda heavy.  They've gotten lighter and lighter but you can still feel it.  And at times, I felt compelled to take it out and leave it at home, in a bag, or just not on me.

A wearable device cannot be so heavy that weight is a consideration or bother.  As light as the iPod nano is, I still consider it to be too thick, bulky, and heavy.

So, a small, thin, and light Star Trek comm badge-like wearable device would be ideal.  And one last thing, it needs to be operable with just one hand.  But you're probably asking one very important question.

How well can your comm badge idea instead of a watch work?  Well, three 24th Century-based Star Trek series, seven years each,  and 524 episodes later, the comm badge was just as important in each story plot as the warp drive, probably more so.

And it worked flawlessly.