AI, Mobile, and Eveything Around the Cloud

Why aren't there more pocket watch accessories for the Apple Watch?  That's what I want to know.  And for that matter, just something that you can loop around your belt or pant loop would suffice. The only accessory I can find is this one that started off as a  Kickstarter project .   Bucardo , the company behind these pocket watches that allow you put use the inserts for the bands that let you substitute the top for the cover and the bottom for the chain.  For $199 each, it's more than I'm willing to pay for.  It's not bad but I feel there could be less expensive options.  Unfortunately, there are none after a couple of Web searches months apart. if anyone knows of other designs and options, please us all of us know.  I'm sure there are quite a few who would love this optional use of our Apple Watches.

By all accounts, the 11 month-old 12" Retina Macbook is an engineering and design marvel from Apple.  And by most accounts, the Macbook is an adequate computer that performs to the likely of most owners and reviewers.  However, there are more than a few who found the Macbook to be underpowered at times.  How that is the case varies and certain tasks may not have been the intended use from Apple.  Saying that, with this Macbook now in need and likely close to being updated with new Intel chips, the Skylake chips, the best recommendation is to way.  Not just for the new CPU muscles but also the boost in graphics performance. According to Intel (by way of  Macworld ), its integrated graphics processors can hold their own against 80% of discrete graphics cards on the market.  This could not have been the case even a couple of years ago.  And Apple likely has an influence on this advance from Intel.  More and more, consumer class PCs require more ...

Apple and the FBI, and, by extension, the rest of the federal government has been locked in an epic battle that will define what privacy in America means. Parsing through the carefully worded statements from both sides and smoke created by the media and tech pundits, the government does want a backdoor or a key to the whole iOS walled garden so they can access user data whenever they want while Apple is fighting to prevent that from happening. Despite claims to the contrary, making tech companies build backdoors to their devices or platform is the ultimate goal of the government. However, a recent development in the fight between Apple and the FBI shows that the government cannot be trusted to use the technology correctly much less responsibly. The government has a tough job fighting crime and keeping the public safe in light of the recent events of terror on both sides of the Atlantic. With both the Paris and San Bernandino attacks fresh in minds of the public, the governme...

Source:   Bloomberg . When the mobile phone companies owned every aspect of their customers' experiences, it was a blissful world.  They get to maximize their investment, squeeze every last cent out of their customers, and hardly had any competition.  Along came Silicon Valley, and the struggle continues to this day over the mobile experience which has largely been revolutionary.  So, what else is new when telecoms complained about Whatsapp, a $20 billion buy by Facebook, that continues to be one of the top go-to app for messaging and voice calls. Here is the real news alert:  telecoms don't like Skype, Facebook, Google Hangout, iMessage, Line, and any dozens of messaging and voice apps that exist.  No longer can companies charge 10 cents per  message or charge users a monthly allotment of texts.  No longer are voice calls metered (most plans anyway). And here is the shocker to come:  mobile payment.  More control will be wrestled ...

Just works is the mantra many attributes to Apple and its products and services.  For the most part, it is a very true statement.  But because of the nature of its successes, when something does not just work as advertised, it gets amplified in the media -  traditional and social. First, it is important to state that with more than 1 billion devices in the wild still being used and who knows how many Macs there are, it's quite obvious that people are using Apple's products and services including, yes, iCloud and other cloud related services.  Now, it does not mean that Apple's implementation works as well as, say, when Apple introduced the world to the iPod and iTunes. Back then, yeah, it just works.  It was air tight as far as what Apple wanted the iPod and iTunes to do for the user.  Today, with more services, it is a much harder task to accomplish.  Many still do not care for Apple's native mail app for instance.  While vastly improved, other a...

Apple is the richest company in the world by valuation and wealth it has on hand in terms of cash, product profolio, and, more importantly, the following that is the envy of just about everyone in the world. So, when two high-profile Apple executives go onto a popular fan/Apple centric podcast instead of CNBC, Bloomberg, BBC, or another national news organization, you have to wonder who Jon Gruber is and why he was selected for this interview that is a must-listen episode even if you're not a fan of his blog, Daring Fireball, or his podcast, The Talk Show. Here is the link for this week's episode where Gruber interviewed Eddy Cue and Craig Federighi. I love to get into it more when I listen to the podcast again. It was a very unique experience for Gruber and the listeners. Apple fans are familiar with the top echelon of Apple who brought us so many of today's best consumer products but it is almost always in a setting that is carefully controlled and choreographed. I...

Source:  9To5Mac . This is a great tip from 9to5Mac and while the name implies Apple, iPhone, and all things iOS, it applies to Android devices as well.  Get rid of your Facebook app if you want your battery life to last longer.  And I've stop using the Facebook app on my mobile devices for years and have not suffered the battery debilitating drainage that many millions have reported and suffered from. When absolutely, I do download it on the quick and do what I need to do and delete the sucker again.  And surprisingly, my friends on Facebook have not disappeared and they continue to exist in the mobile version of Facebook in my browsers.  And the browser version of Facebook works just fine for addicts.  Think of it this way, you can stay on Facebook longer and satisfy your addiction with the browser version than if you were using the Facebook app.  It's a win-win if you're that hooked.