White iPhone 4 Confirmed by Apple!

It looks like the white iPhone that is always delayed for reasons never explained by Apple will be coming out this Spring.

Ten months after the release of the iPhone 4, Apple has confirmed the release with The Wall Street Journal that is, without a doubt, coming this Spring. Apple never specified a release date or what carrier(s) the phone will be available on.

When the iPhone 4 first unvieled, Steve Jobs held in his hand a white iPhone 4. But when pre-orders started for the device, only the black model was available for order. At that time, Apple released a statement saying that the white iPhone was "more challenging to manufacture than expected" and they would have to delay the release for that version. This hasn't been the first time this has happened though. All iPhone owners know of the continuous delays for this model with every unviel of the iPhone.

At this point, with all the rumors of the delay of the iPhone 5, many are convinced that Apple is doing this to distract attention from the delay of the 5th generation iPhone. Especially since they WWDC seems to be more of a software release than a product release, this is looking more likely to be a distraction.

Steve Jobs hid iPad Development from Google's Eric Schmidt

Courtesy of MacTrast

There is no doubt that Jobs was furious when he saw Android's "pinch to zoom" feature while on a trip to Google's headquarters. Jobs reportedly hid Apple's iPad development from Google CEO, Eric Schmidt - even though Schmidt was on the board of directors at the time.

Steve Levy recently published a book about the complex relationship between Apple and Google. It specifically describes the battles between CEO's Steve Jobs and Eric Schmidt. In the book, you will be able to read about the in's and out's of Google and how they started as a company and how they started to get involved with Apple, Inc.

Now back to the original post:

Jobs was fairly upset towards Google because he felt they were "ripping off" some of the iPhone's best features and incorporating them into the Android OS. After the news of this, Jobs felt he wasn't able to trust Schmidt any longer, who, at the time, held a seat on Apple's board of directors, each of which held details of Apple's innovations in technology. Eventually, Schmidt stood down for Apple's board, and the iPad was released only 6 months later.

The book is available for order from Amazon and includes Jobs referring to Google's "Don't Be Evil" motto as "Bullshit".

Apple in the Process of an HDTV?

There has been some past talk about Apple going into the HDTV business, but nothing has made it evident that it's a possibility, until now. Brian White, an analyst with Ticonderoga Securities, was recently at a China electronics trade show. He mentioned in a not to investors that he was able to get "data points" that show the production of a "Smart TV" release by Apple, as soon as the end of the year. Here is a quote by White:

"Our research suggests this Smart TV would go well beyond the miniature $99 second-generation Apple TV that the company released last fall and provide a full-blown TV product for consumers"

He continued on to say that Apple has been suspected to enter the HDTV market by company watchers, the Mac maker now appears to be "movind down this path at a faster pace than the market expected."

"The combination of Apple's powerful ecosystem, industrial design savvy, powerful brand and ability to reinvent product categories could make Apple a powerful force in the TV world over the next few years"

Courtesy of MacTrast

One analyst of Piper Jaffray, Gene Munster, seems to continually insist that an Internet-connected HDTV from Apple is expected. He has repeatedly forecast that Apple will introduce such a product in the years to come, with a price around the $2,000 range.

A product as expected form Munster, could have a lot of possibilities, such as a subscription service to iTunes which could allow users access to content at a flat-rate price. This possibily could very well negate the need for any kind of cable box or DVR. Although, White's public not gave no indication of any of the possibilities to come along with the TV, Apple has had a great amount of experience with HD displays on it's iMac desktop, which includes their first release of their 27-inch iMac in 2009.

Earlier in this year, Apple announced that they have invested $3.9 billion of their cash reserves to secure key components for their multiple products. At the announcing of this, many assumed the money would have gone toward securing displays for their products, including the iPhone and iPad. But Munster believes that the multi-billion investment is just more evidence of an Apple HDTV release. As he said in February, he believes that Apple would be able to build a TV up to 50 inches, though he predicted that a product of such size wouldn't launch until the early calendar year of 2012, at the earliest.

A Possibly Carbon Fiber Housing For The Next iPad?



iPad Carbon Fiber Mock-up. Courtesy of Gizmodo

 Last November, news rose quickly about Apple's patent for a carbon fiber casing for the iPad. Although the carbon fiber would make the iPad a lot lighter than with the aluminum housing, the carbon fiber can crack or break if it's bent or too much pressure is put on it. Within the patent, they describe a way to create a "reinforced device housing" that will help against those problems.

Well, just recently, Apple hired Kevin Kenny, a Senior Composites Engineer. Kenny started work at Apple this month after working for fourteen years at Kestral Bicycles, where he built and designed carbon fiber bicycles. The question is now, where is he going to direct his attention, and what products is he going to be working with? Will he be working on the MacBook? the iPad? or what about the iPod? Who knows... maybe he's working with multiple iProducts!?

But I can assure you one thing! There's no way that Apple is going to be coming out with an iBike!

iPhone 5 Not Released Until Early 2012?

Everybody is used to the "norm" when it comes to Apple's releases of products. One of the most known release is the iPhone at the WWDC, which will happen June 6-10 this year, is the next-generation iPhone. Each year since the first iPhone came out, an announcement has been released at WWDC for the newest iPhone release. This year, there are more rumors than usual expecting the iPhone release to be delayed this year or maybe even into the beginning months of next year. Analysts Avian Securities are making a pretty big claim that the iPhone 5 won't be into production until September. With production not starting until September, this would probably lead into a late-2011 or early-2012 release.

This claim was brought up by a conversation that Avian Securities had with a "key component supplier". The conversation is below, in full:

Supporting out comments over the last month, conversations with yet another key component supplier indicates that production for iPhone-5 will begin in September. This is consistent with Avian findings in the supply chain in recent months and we believe the consensus view is moving towards this scenario. In addition, our conversations also indicate the existence of a lower-spec/lower-priced iPhone in Apple's roadmap.
However, while our contacts have seen the placeholder in the Apple roadmap, they do not yet have insight into specs or production timing. This leads us to believe that any launch is likely a very late 2011 or more likely a 2012 event.
As a reminder, Avian has uncovered several data-points in recent months pointing to the existence of a lower-spec/lower-price iPhone. A lower-spec/lower-price iPhone has also been speculated in the press and gadget blogs, though we do not believe consensus currently discounts the existence of such a model.

While nobody has anybody clear evidence as to why the above conversation isn't true, there is no evidence showing that this information is false. Even though Apple has had consistent summer releases of the iPhone at WWDC, when you add up all of the rumors and and current events that can harm production of certain aspects of the phone (such as the Japan earthquakes), an end of the year release seems more and more likely. I guess one positive thing mentioned in the above conversation is the lower-spec/lower-priced iPhone possibility. It will be interesting to see what Apple does to make the iPhone more affordable.

A New Update of Final Cut Pro May Add iPad, Thunderbolt Support

Okay, so this article is very interesting to me, as I am an avid FCP user. I originally saw this article over at Apple Insider. All I know is that I need to get me this update if the rumors are correct.

So here it is:

Comments given from an industry insider offered us a glimpse of what is expected to be released at the unviel, with possiblities of support with high-speed Thunderbolt, and possibly even iPad.

The details of the unviel came from Mark Raudonis, the head of post production at Bunim/Murray Productions. He was given an advance look at the anticipated software update, scheduled to be unvieled tomorrow, April 12th. His comments that were given were collected by FilmMaker Magiazine.

Speaking at the PreNAB Editor's Lounge 2011, Raudonis quoted hockey legend, Wayne Gretzky, in which he said he would "skate to where the puck will be" (which was also cited in the past by Apple CEO, Steve Jobs). Raudonis said the new version of FCP illuminates Gretzky's philosophy.

Here are some remarks mad by Raudonis:

"Where is the puck headed? Again, I can't speak specifically, but I think the rest of the time here will be very interesting. File-based workflows, Thunderbolt, iPad, competition, it's a moving target. Adobe, Avid, Lightworks. There's a lot of other stuff out there. And they (Apple) are certainly not ignorant of what's going on in the market at the moment. Apple is very good at going their own way and figuring out where things will be. They may not ask you what you want. They are going to tell you 'We're going to invent something different.'"

Raudonis commented and said that he was impressed with the new update for FCP. He also stated that Apple is planning on a release in Spring 2011.

The actual unviel of the update became known because Apple required some of the sponsors' presentations to be cancelled in or to have the appropriate amount of stage time neccessary to show off... I mean, demonstrate, the new update.

Steve Jobs Finally Approves Of Biography

A great announcement came from Simon & Schuster that one of their authors, Walter Isaacson, has actually gotten permission from Steve Jobs to write a biography on his life. This may be a bigger deal than you think, as Jobs has never authorized of any biography that has been released yet.

The book by Isaacson has been given the appropriate title: "iSteve: The Book of Jobs", making a play on words with, not only his name, but also all of the products at Apple. It has already been rumored that Isaacson, since 2009, has been interviewing Jobs, his family, colleagues, and even competitors of Apple. Simon and Shuster spokeswoman, Tracy Guest, made the first announcement about the book on Sunday (April 10, 2011) by announcing that the book will be published sometime early 2012. She also went ahead and stated that niether Isaacson or Jobs will be commenting on the announcement.

Many biographies of Jobs' life has been writter, but none have ever been authorized by himself. One biography, "iCon: Steve Jobs, The Greatest Second Act in the History of Business," actually got his active disapproval. In 2005, Apple banished works by John Wiley & Sons from its stores because the publisher had signed up the unauthorized biography by Jeffrey S. Young and William L. Simon.

"This is the perfect match of subject and author, and it is certain to be a landmark book about one of the world's greatest innovators. Just as he did with Einstein and Benjamin Franklin, Walter Isaacson is telling a unique story of revolutionary genius." - Jonathan Karp, publisher of Simon & Schuster

Steve Jobs, currently 56, has had numerous health problems and just released, in January, that he will be taking his third leave of absence at Apple, Inc. While he was away, he amazingly survived a rare, but curable, form of pancreatic cancer. He was able to re-appear at a press-conference in early March to make the announcement for the iPad 2.

iPhone Notifications

Notifications on your iPhone can be a great thing, but can also lead to some very annoying sounds and unwanted updates. Most apps in the App Store now come with a notifications feature that automatically is turned on.

To turn off notifications for an app or two, simply got to you Settings >Notifications and then select the apps that you want to turn notifications off for. If you don't want to turn off all notifications for an app, you don't have to! You do have the option to turn off some of the different ways to notify you, while keeping others on. There are three different options for this: badges, alerts, and sounds.

Badges:

Badges are what you see on your home screen on the top right corner of an app when there is a notification for that specific app. I like to keep this option turned on mainly for my apps that I use but aren't important enough to have be alerted by a sound or something that'll pop up on screen.

Alerts:

Alerts are like what happens when you recieve a text, just without the sound. An alert will show up on your screen whether you phone is locked or you are in the middle of doing things. I use the 'Alert' option mainly for my social networking apps that I tend to use more.

Sounds:

This option is exactly what you think it is: sounds. Leaving this option on will alert you with a quick sound (or vibrate, depending on your ringtone volume) to let you know that you have a notification awaiting. Again, I mainly use this option for my social networking apps that I tend to use a lot more. I don't feel like this option is necessary for apps that I rarely use.

Quick iPhone Tips and Tricks

Everybody that has an iPhone knows that it has some amazing features that come along with it! But some people may not know all of the tips and tricks that make everyday use of their iPhone even easier than it already is. Check out these tips and tricks that I find most useful on a daily basis:




Photo Courtesy of Apple.com

1. Cut, Copy, and Paste

The cut, copy, and paste feature came to the iPhone in the iOS 3.0 software update. Most (if not all) apps actually support this feature between different apps. To use this easy feature, simply touch and hold any text until the "Select" and "Select All" buttons appears. After those two buttons appear, you can lift your finger off of the screen and select which button you would like. If you use the "Select" button, you can edit how much text is selected by using the blue brackets on each side of the selected word. After you have your text selected, simply go to where you need to post your text, hold down where you need it, and select the paste button. You can cut, copy, and paste almost any thing you may want: from text to even photos!

2. Screen Shots

Ever see an iPhone screenshot of an app or anything and wonder how they did that? It's surprisingly easy, but almost impossible to find out on your own. With the screen shot function, you can take pictures of exactly what your screen shows and automatically saves to your photos. To use this feature, simply navigate to that spot that you want to take a screen shot of. Once at the desired point, simply press both the HOME and SLEEP buttons at the same time. You will see a flash of white on your screen to show you that the screen shot has been taken. After you take the shot, if you go into your photos, it will be the last photo in your camera roll. From there you can share it however you want.



Photo Courtesy of Apple.com

3. Jump to top.

I use this trick A LOT when I'm surfing on the web or even in my Facebook app. Have you ever scrolled so far down a page or in an app that it takes you forever just to get back to the top? To make a quick jump back to the top of the page, simply just tap your status bar (the bar running across the top of the screen) and the page that you are on will automatically jump back to the very top of the page.

4. Text Character Count
If you text iPhone to iPhone, character doesn't really matter; it'll deliver the message all at one almost no matter how long it is. If your friends don't have an iPhone, it may be a good idea to watch the character count so you don't end up sending them multiple messages. To turn on the character count, simply go to Settings > Messages > Character Count. Once you tap the character count on, you will now see how many characters you have used in your text.

Photo Courtesy of Apple.com

5. Batterly Percentage Indicator
It's nice to know how much battery life you have on your phone, especially when you're out and about. The 20% warning that Apple has worked in is a nice feature that was added in but sometimes isn't enough. Since the iPhone 3Gs update, you are now able to see the percentage of battery life you have on your phone. To turn the indicator on, go to Settings > General > Usage > Battery Percentage. Once you tap the Battery Indicator switch, you will start to see the batter percentage at the top of your status bar right next to the normal battery indicator.

Well I hope these tips and tricks helped you out if you didn't already know about them. More tips and tricks will be coming soon! And if you need help with something, leave a comment about it below and I'll do my best to help you out!





WWDC 2011 Dates Announced!

If you were hoping to be at the Wolrdwide Developers' Conference this year, hopefully you acted fast when Apple announced the dates and opened up sales for tickets! The ticket prices this year were $1,599 each and, even at that price, sold out in less than 12 hours! For those of you that heard the news late, you're going to have to wait until 2012. While it isn't unusual for these conferences to be sold-out, it is a bit unusual for it to sell out in one day. The 2010 conference took eight days for the conference to sell out, while the year before in 2009 took the whole month to sell out. For those people that were lucky enough to get their ticket right away, the event will be taking place June 6 through June 10. During those days, there will be over one-hundred technical sessions for both iOS and Mac OS.

Courtesy of: Apple.com

In a press-release early Monday morning, Apple Senior VP, Phil Schiller, announced that this conference will have a 'double-focus' on iOS and Mac OS and will 'unviel the future' of the two. This year's event is expected to be much more spectacular than previous years as they have never focused both on Apple's mobile products and Mac OS.

Jesus Diaz, a blogger with tech enthusiast site Gizmodo, thinks that Schiller's statement says it all as he writes: "Obviously, the future of iOS and Mac OS X are iOS 5 and Lion." While I can't see the complete justification for Lion, I can completely see why he thinks they will unviel iOS 5. It seems to be a yearly tradition for Apple to introduce it's new iOS device at the WWDC, the spring before the release. (See models and release dates here.) Partly for developers to be able to use the new iOS to be able to support it when it is officially released, and partly, I think, so the consumers (you and I) will build up anticipation and won't want to wait weeks after it's released to go out and buy it.

But what if Apple breaks the traditions of it's past? Only time can tell, as one analyst, Michael Gartenberg says:

You get caught up in the patterns, and it holds true, until it doesn't. There is no reason for Apple to follow a predictable yearly pattern, and it keeps their competition off gaurd a little bit.

So we'll see what happens. I personally don't think it will come any later than the WWDC. I don't think that Apple would want to upset all of their consumers of one of their biggest products!

But what's your opinion? Sound off in the comments below!

64GB iPhone Prototype or is it Fake?

An iPhone recently surfaced the streets out in Hong Kong, probably a week or two ago. Looking from the pictures of the iPhone 'prototype', it does seem like it could be a possible prototype for Apple as they have used an 'X' on their prototypes as seen on their iPhone 4 prototype that surfaced some time before it was announced. The newly surfaced prototype does look exactly like the iPhone 4, so this new discovery can mean a couple of things:

1. This could be a real prototype.

Apple may have actually tried make the iPhone 4 available in 64GB but for some reason ditched it. It may have been simply that it would have cost too much and the price they would have to sell the device for would be unrealistic. If this is the case, then it is very plausible that we might see a 64GB iPhone 5. Whatever they do, I hope the memory goes up because I know my 32GB iPhone is maxed out easily.

2. The image was photoshopped.

If this photo was photoshopped, it was done by a professional! It would have taken somebody that has a lot of experience using photoshop to carefully edit this so that they didn't square off any of the light reflections on the back of the phone. And to space out the words above and below the 'XXGB' addition would have been a challenge as the current iPhone 4's don't show the capacity on the back of the phone like previous generations. Lastly, when looking in the settings to see the 'About' section of the phone, you can see that it clearly states it has 59.1GB of storage left on the phone. When comparing to the previous phones, this does seem about right as you would have to compensate for the extras that have been put into the phone just to add all of that memory.

These photos really seem more real than fake if you ask me. It seems to me as though Apple has tried to make a 64GB version of the iPhone 4 but then left it for another generation of the phone for whatever reason. It could have been something even just that they didn't want to emplament it on this generation. Either way, I really do hope and pray that Apple does come out with an iPhone with a higher capacity. 32GB just isn't doing it for me anymore!

But of course we're going to have to wait and see until the next WWDC to see what Apple has come out with! But what do you all think, is it real or fake? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!

New Apple Jobs Means New Online Store?

Sometime last week, a new job listing was listed on the Apple Jobs website in the "Core Services" of the online store. The online store at Apple.com has been a trademark of Apple that has barely been changed in years. The job listing (photo below) shows that this may be happening in not too long.



Credit: MacRumors.com



It's stated in the first sentence of the job description:

"Help build the next-generation Apple Online Store"

If Apple was trying to keep this new only store "under wraps", they did a horrible job doing it as the job description was found almost the same day it was posted. It'll be interesting to see what the new Apple employees come up for the new store. All I know is that it better be over the top, as everything else is with Apple!

iPad 2 Review

With Apple’s recent announcement of the iPad 2 coming out on March 11th, many are waiting for the doors to open that day and be one of the first one’s to get their hands on the iPad 2. Until the launch, nobody will be able to know how it actually measures up to Apple’s description of it. On the Apple website, it seems to be an amazing product with it being 33% thinner, up to 15% lighter, a dual-core A5 chip, and front- and rear-facing cameras. But are these differences going to make the iPad 2 that much different than the first generation iPad? Here are some of the things that I found that I think you should know before purchasing one:

1. iPad 2 is lighter and thinner.
   
   Apple called this the all-new design for the iPad. The main physical appearance is that it is 33% thinner than before coming in a 8.8 mm. (That’s thinner than the iPhone 4.) You’ll also notice that it is 15% lighter than the first generation.
2. iPad 2 has FaceTime.
   
   It was expected that the iPad 2 would have the front-facing camera like the iPhone 4. (As well as the one on the back.) The rear-facing camera has the same resolution as the iPhone 4’s rear camera taking pictures in 720p. The only downside to the rear-facing camera is that it doesn’t have a flash like many other tablets contain.
3. iPad 2’s battery life stays the same.
   
   Even after the add-ons that Apple packed into the new sleek design, they were able to keep the same 10 hour battery life, with the also stated month-long stand-by time from Apple. (But who’s not gonna touch their iPad for a month?!)
4. iPad 2’s display stays the same as the first generation.
   
   While everybody was hoping for a larger-scale retina display, their hopes were put down with this iPad launch. The new iPad still has the same 9.7-inch display. It would definitely be expected for the third generation to have a better display.
5. iPad 2’s graphics will be amazing!
   
   During the much awaited announcement, Steve Jobs said the graphics capability will be 9 times that of the first generation iPad. That promises the improvement of games on the iPad as well as the fact that is now has the same gyroscope the iPhone 4 and latest iPod touch has.
6. iOS 4.3!
   
   The latest version of iOS ships with the iPad and will be available for iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS and iPod touch on 11 March. There’s faster Safari browsing performance; iTunes Home Sharing and thankfully an enhancement to AirPlay. Let’s hope it works now. (By the way, iPhone 4s can act as Wi-Fi hotspots too).
7. HDMI out.
   
   Like the HTC Evolution, the iPad will also have an HDMI out. Plug it into any HDTV and not only will it mirror what you do on your iPad, it’ll charge it while you do it. This feature will be great for those of you that like to use your Apple products for presentations and the like.
8. Shipments start on March 11th.
   
   You can order your iPad 2 on March 11th and it will be shipped to you from Apple for free! If you like to go into the stores to purchase your new product and not have to wait for it to arrive on your doorstep, Apple stores won’t start selling the device until 5pm on the 11th. But one advantage of getting it in-store, they offer free personal setup when you make your purchase.

So those are just some things that I found that helped me to make my decision to purchase the product. I’m excited to wait in line to buy mine and start using it! So what do you guys think? Is it worth the money to buy it or wait until iPad 3?