Consumer Reports Won’t Recommend the iPhone

 

Consumer Reports has released testing results of the new iPhone 4 and has confirmed the alleged reception problem is indeed a function of the design of the phone’s antenna. The organization goes as far as refusing to recommend the iPhone 4 to consumers due to the severity of the problem. This flies in the face of Apple’s claims that the problem involves the software displaying the network signal strength, and not an actual reception problem.

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Apple’s iPod is Not Dead and Not Dying

Apple’s iconic iPod digital music player is credited for reviving the company and helping the it dominate consumer mind share and spending over the past decade. It still amazes me when I think about all of the MP3 players and companies who failed and the music stores that are now on life support and how badly Apple has hurt Sony, Microsoft and other companies who bet millions on defeating the iPod. One of my greatest fears has started to come true where analysts are now throwing the notion out there that the iPod is dead or dying.Read more...

Steve Ballmer Announces That There Will be Tablet Announcements

At the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference today, Steve Ballmer promised tablets in a variety of form factors would arrive by the end of the year from partners including Asus, Dell, Samsung, Sony and Toshiba - but offered no specifics. ASUS has already announced ASUS Eee Pad and MSI has announced the WindPad, but previous Windows tablet projects such as the HP Slate and the Microsoft Courier are vaporware thus far. Microsoft is said to be targeting IT managers with its tablets.

Microsoft will be entering a competitive marketplace in which enterprises will have several options. The iPad is gaining in the enterprise, Cisco is entering the tablet market with an Android tablet, and RIM is rumored to be releasing a BlackBerry tablet. Also, Dell has already released a consumer focused Android tablet and Intel and Nokia have demoed a MeeGo tablet.

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iPhone 4 to Get First Mobile Video Relay Service for Deaf Users

Apple's face-to-face video chat for the iPhone 4, FaceTime, has been the word on the lips of many people recently, for reasons from its (ahem) innovative uses to its touching commercials. But beyond showing off haircuts and braces, the service is creating a lot of buzz in another community entirely: the deaf.

Video relay service provider ZVRS has announced what it says is the world's first mobile VRS using Apple's FaceTime app - a move that is likely to make the iPhone 4 the smartphone of choice for the deaf community. For the first time, deaf and hearing-impaired callers will be able to communicate not only with each other, but also with hearing individuals while they're on the go.

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5 Big Questions About Google's New App Inventor

Google has announced the pending availability of App Inventor, a visual development software for the Android platform. Depending on your perspective, Android is the most or second most exciting mobile operating system on the market - and an easy and popular platform for everyday people to make apps is big, big news.

What does it mean? Where will this go? There are five specific questions we'd like to ask about this potential game changer.

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Ben & Jerry's: How a Big Brand Explores Augmented Reality

As we have mentioned previously, the success of augmented reality depends partly on its exposure through major mainstream brands. Late last week, the Ben & Jerry's ice cream empire took its first steps into the world of AR by adding the functionality to its iPhone app - but not in the way you might immediately assume. Today, I had the opportunity to chat with Katie O'Brien from Ben & Jerry's about the app and how a large brand approaches unique and niche emerging technologies.

Usually when a large brand experiments with mobile AR, they immediately think to provide the heads-up navigator that helps people find store locations. We saw this earlier this year when the popular sandwich chain Quiznos partnered with Layar to provide this exact functionality, but the company peppered in a bit of its own brand of fun as well.

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