All About the iPhone
We all know that iPhone users can be a little crazy, but is it their fault or should AT&T take the blame?
On Monday, the network experienced a glitch in its web sales. If you tried ordering an iPhone on AT&T’s website with a New York City zip code, you were rejected. As much as this goes against everything my economics teacher taught me, the seller actually turned down the customer. If you were turned down, the website recommended that you go to an actual store in your area where they would gladly sell you a new phone. The only comments that AT&T made were by Fletcher Cook, a spokesman for AT&T, when he told The Consumerist, “We periodically modify our promotions and distribution channels.”
What does that mean? Next, will you shut down every AT&T store to “modify” those channels too? The truth is that New York has a very large and concentrated population and AT&T’s network can’t handle all the data from so many iPhones. The New York Times says, “The average iPhone owner can use 10 times the network capacity used by the average smartphone user.”
By using iPhones so intensely, customers are only making it harder on themselves. Browsing the Web, streaming music and videos, all the things that the iPhone is so good at doing, only make the network slower. This, in turn, frustrates the customers who were promised amazing cell phones. It’s the new circle of life for iPhone users.
The website started allowing people with New York City zip codes to purchase iPhones later the same day.
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Posted by Angela | 0 Comments
A New Way to Watch TV
Apple had a lightbulb moment about a week ago when they heard the estimated profit for online television shows and movies for 2010. Predicted to earn $1.2 billion by 2013, online movies and shows are an exponentially growing market. Realizing the potential it has to break into this market, Apple has decided to tackle cable TV.
Alongside CBS and Disney productions, Apple wants to create a subscription based Internet TV service to compete with the cable companies. Said to be available on iPods and even Apple’s new tablet, this service will make television portable and easily accessible. The service could cost up to $30 a month for a subscription, according to Yahoo. But because of all the advantages it will provide, $30 a month isn’t all that bad, especially if the new service promises no advertisements. That’s right, no commercials!
Television is an entirely different field than what Apple is used to. And honestly, Apple isn’t used to not getting their way when it comes to new projects. They pushed the music industry into selling songs online through iTunes even though they didn’t initially want to. Network providers aren’t necessarily going to react the same way. And cable providers definitely won’t let Apple do this without putting up a fight first. The Apple Blog talks about the conflict that will ensue between Apple and cable companies if this idea becomes a reality.
Apple is just living up to all the other cross-over companies hitting up new markets, like Google when they created their own browser. No one is ever satisfied with one thing; they have to keep evolving and expanding.
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Rumors Spread: An Apple Tablet or Another E-Reader...
The much rumored Apple Tablet is starting to shed its “rumor” title for something a little more concrete. When we found out about the tablet back in July, we fell for one rumor that Apple’s new product would be available for the Christmas season. Obviously, that was far from true. New rumors say the tablet won’t be officially revealed until Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in late June of 2010. These same rumors, from TheAppleBlog.Com, also say that the tablet might not be what everyone is expecting. Maybe it won’t be a computer at all. It could take a completely different direction and be an e-reader similar to the Amazon Kindle. Talk about a curve ball.
Through all these rumors, Apple remains nothing short of mysterious. They have not commented at all. Sources other than the ones claiming the tablet is really an e-reader maintain that the tablet will be officially revealed as early as January, despite delays.
TechCrunch did some intense research on the Apple Tablet and found a lot of dead ends. However, when they researched Trademarks on the two possible names (iSlate and iGuide), they found both with Apple written all over them. It is still too early to tell, but it probably means that both will have to do with the tablet, like the tablet name and maybe an external service.
Even though the rumors may not agree on the name or release date or even the general use of the tablet, the overwhelming buzz about Apple’s new product confirms that it is worth talking about.
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A Magic Mouse for Your iMac
Apple has recently updated their iMac line, including the (often forgotten) mouse. Just in time for the holiday season, Apple’s new updated iMac is bigger, faster, and sharper than the older version. However, the new mouse is what has grabbed the most attention since its release.
Apple’s Magic Mouse is a computer mouse with a multi-touch surface that gives the user many shortcuts that a normal mouse cannot provide. The user can click the mouse anywhere on its surface instead of only on the left or right. The Magic Mouse can also be set up for a left handed user in the System Preferences window.
The multi-touch surface is also used for scrolling, zooming, and swiping through pictures in iPhoto. There is a video here that shows examples of each feature. With scrolling, all you have to do is run your finger along the multi-touch surface to scroll up or down the page. And since the entire surface of the mouse can be used for scrolling, you can scroll in a full circle, 360 degrees! To zoom in on the page you’re viewing, all you have to do is hold down the control button on the keyboard and drag your finger across the mouse. Also, in iPhoto, instead of clicking through each picture, just slide two fingers horizontally and the mouse will allow you to swipe through pictures like in a book. This swiping feature can also be used to look through your albums in iTunes. Each of these features, including more, can be turned on or off inside the System Preferences.
With the release of this mouse and updated desktop line, Apple has tried to keep the buyer in mind by reducing prices. Inside the updated line of iMacs, the top-notch model is now $200 cheaper than before! Also, the lowest models of the iMac and the MacBook have been updated without any increase to their prices. The Magic Mouse is for sale on its own at $69 for any of you who want to hook it up to your current iMac.
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No Credit Cards? No Problem! Use Your iPhone!
Since the iPhone may be making a move to the Verizon community, it has also adopted some tremendously advanced applications.
Even Starbucks has recently entered the app field with a myStarbucks app and a card mobile app. The myStarbucks application is helpful in finding any local Starbucks, not to mention a list of amenities in each store, and a feature allowing you to list you or a friend’s favorite coffee so it is not forgotten. There is also a menu of all the items they sell and a guide to creating your own concoction. Even calorie counting is available.
However, the card mobile app is definitely the more impressive of the two. This application allows a buyer to buy a coffee or special drink by using his or her phone instead of actual, plastic credit card. The face of the iPhone will display a barcode when it comes time to pay for the drink and will act as a gift card with a prepaid amount that the purchase is subtracted from.
This app is a doorway to many more possibilities in the mobile purchasing field. Think about it… Not having a wallet anymore, only carrying your cell phone for monetary purposes. Even thought this app is a huge step towards a credit card-less future, it is still in the baby phase. Currently, the application is only being used in select Starbucks along the West coast of the US to be “tested.” Starbucks is not saying whether or not they will be using the app in other stores or when they will take it out of this testing phase.
Starbucks junkies around the country will be hopping on the iPhone bandwagon and downloading the app before they finish reading this article. Lucky for them, the app doesn’t inform its user when they have had too much coffee.
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