Apple iPhone 5 Review

Pros :
Sleek Apple design; 4G support to come; larger, vibrant display; powerful performance; nearly the same great snapper as on the 4S; Siri proves her worth now.

Cons :
Steep price; OS looks dated; Maps limited and suffer from bugs; Most apps have ugly borders; Lack of memory card slot; Fragile feel.

Verdict:

We’re not surprised that this is the best iPhone to date. It’s thin, light and has a roomy 4-inch Retina screen. But the operating system feels dated and there are some major issues. Plus, Apple has brought nothing major new to the show. Of course there are the usual iPhone issues too – that fragile feel and the lack of a memory card slot, along with the wallet-busting price.

iOS users use 3rd party browsers more than Android users

The browser war on the desktop is very heated, but in the mobile space things are pretty calm – the overwhelming majority of Android and iOS users use the default browser on their device.

Here’s something you might not have expected though – Chitika, an ad network and data analytics firm, found out that iOS users are more likely to install and use a 3rd party browser than Android users.

A hair over 91% of Android users stick with the Android stock Browser that comes as part of the OS. The number of iOS users who use Safari is “only” 85%. These numbers come from Chitika‘s ad network, measuring a week of US and Canada web traffic.

Apple limits third-party browsers on its iOS platform – basically, they have to use Safari’s rendering engine and a slower version of Safari’s JavaScript engine (it’s the same engine, but third-party apps don’t get to use JIT).

So, almost all third-party browsers on iOS are just repackaged Safari with a different UI and some extra features (the exceptions being mostly Opera Mini-likew compression browser, which render the sites on a remote server) and yet 15% of iOS owners would rather have that than pure Safari.

Chitika found something else that’s quite interesting – of the 15% share of third-party browsers on iOS, only Chrome has a significant share (at 3%) and the other 12% are split between many different browsers, none of which has any statistically significant share.

On Android, however, only the big names have a measurable share. Surprisingly, Opera is the biggest non-default browser on Android, with Chrome having only half its share. The third player, with barely over half a percent share is Firefox.

Users are less happy with iOS6

A survey conducted by research company On Device shows that users who upgraded to Apple’s iOS6 mobile OS aren’t as less happy with their smartphones than they were before the update.

The survey included 16,000 people, and On Device says this is the first time it is seeing such a drop in user satisfaction after an update. The analysts found this pretty surprising, considering how well users reacted to the transition from iOS4 to iOS5.

Here’s what On Device CEO Alistair Hill told TechCrunch:

We have always seen an increase in device satisfaction as consumer upgrade their mobile operating system from one version to another.

The main reason for the drop in the happiness of iOS users when they started using its latest version is the dismissal of Google Maps in favor of Apple’s own Mapping service.

Apple Iphone5 Review

The Apple iPhone 5 brings the long anticipated larger screen and more capable internals that we already know are ready to trade blows with the most powerful chipsets out there.

   
Apple iPhone 5 official photos

There's also the new slender, slimmer body that no photos really do justice to. If all of Apple's claims are true then the iPhone 5 is a real engineering masterpiece - double the performance in a more compact package without sacrificing anything in terms of battery life.

They could've done worse. A lot worse. But this is Apple telling you to prepare to be wowed. So you have every right to play hard-to-please.

Pros:

• Quad-band GSM and quad-band 3G support with 14.4 Mbps HSDPA and 5.76 Mbps HSUPA
• LTE support where carriers support it and CDMA support when sold by CDMA carriers
• 4" 16M-color LED-backlit IPS TFT capacitive touchscreen of 640 x 1136px resolution
• Scratch-resistant screen glass, fingerprint-resistant coating
• 1.2GHz dual-core custom-designed CPU, PowerVR SGX543MP3 GPU, 1GB of RAM, Apple A6 SoC
• iOS 6 and iCloud integration
• 8 MP autofocus camera with LED flash and touch focus
• 1080p video recording at 30fps
• 1.2MP secondary front-facing camera
• Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n, Wi-Fi hotspot
• GPS with A-GPS connectivity; digital compass
• 16/32/64GB storage options
• Accelerometer, proximity sensor and a three-axis gyro sensor
• Active noise cancellation with a dedicated secondary microphone
• Standard 3.5 mm audio jack, stereo Bluetooth v4.0
• Excellent audio output quality (though worse than 4S)
• Apple Maps with free voice-guided navigation in 56 countries
• Voice recognition, Siri virtual assistant
• Supports HD Voice (needs carrier support too)
• FaceTime video calls over Wi-Fi and cellular
• Impressively slim and light
• Great battery life

Cons:

• Aluminum body looks cool but is easy to scratch
• Proprietary connector, incompatible with previous-gen accessories (needs adapter)
• The new display is not proportionally bigger, but only taller
• Unadapted apps run letterboxed due to the unusual resolution
• nano-SIM support only
• Apple Maps app not up to scratch
• No USB Mass Storage mode
• No FM radio
• No stereo speakers
• No microSD card slot
• No NFC connectivity (though that may be nitpicking)
• Stuck with iTunes for loading content
• Mono audio recording in videos

Should the iPhone 5 be worried about not doing quite enough in terms of new design and features? That question sounds ridiculous considering the sales numbers. But there's a long-term perspective that goes beyond a record-breaking opening weekend.

   
The Apple iPhone 5 live photos

People who thought the iPhone 4S was a half-hearted effort, are rightfully expecting the iPhone 5 to be the real upgrade of the brilliant iPhone 4. In the end, though, there's more to a smartphone's real worth than dry specs. Apple has, on multiple occasions, been able to produce devices that are better than the sum of their parts and few will be surprised at the iPhone 5 pulling off a similar trick.

Apple adds new alternative maps

Tim Cook penned a letter to iOS 6 users, apologizing for the sorry state of their new Maps application and promised that they are working hard to make it better. While most would have stopped at that, Cook went on to suggest alternative mapping services that users can use till Apple Maps becomes usable.

Now, Apple has gone one step ahead and created a section in the App Store that can you can find on your iPhone, titled ‘Find Maps for your iPhone’. Clicking on it will show you a bunch of different mapping services, free and paid, that you can download and install on your iOS device.

What’s missing from the list are Google and Nokia’s services, but that’s because they don’t have a dedicated application for iOS. Apple has, however, provided a dedicated page, where you can find out how to access their web services and save it as an icon on your homescreen for quick access.

Apple Maps is not "the most beautiful and powerful ever"

Hot on the heels of the new alternative Maps apps section in the AppStore, Apple has also toned down the elated iOS6 Maps app copy as keen visitors to its website have spotted.

As the screenshot conveniently points, the previous copy called the new Maps app “the most beautiful, powerful mapping service ever”. The new wording turns the attention to another key feature – “the beautiful vector-based interface that scales and zooms with ease” and certainly takes a more modest stance.

I wonder when is Apple going to change the messed up icon as well.

It clearly shows a navigation route making a sharp left off a bridge.

Samsung to pursue iPhone 5 sales ban over LTE patents infringement

It was a long time coming, but now it has been officially confirmed - Samsung is going to pursue a ban on the US sales of the Apple iPhone 5. The Koreans believe that the latest iOS smartphone infringes on at least 8 of their LTE patents.

The official statement goes as following:

Samsung anticipates that it will file, in the near future, a motion to amend its infringement contentions to add the iPhone 5 as an accused product. On September 12, 2012, Apple announced that it will release the iPhone 5 on September 21, 2012. Based on information currently available, Samsung expects that the iPhone 5 will infringe the asserted Samsung patents-in-suit in the same way as the other accused iPhone models. Samsung plans to file a motion to amend its infringement contentions to address the iPhone 5 as soon as it has had a reasonable opportunity to analyze the device. Because Samsung believes the accused functionality of the iPhone 5 will be similar to the accused functionality of other accused Apple products, Samsung does not believe that amendment of its infringement contentions should affect the case schedule.

In other words - Samsung doesn't have proof that the iPhone 5 infringes on anything, but it believes the realization of the LTE connectivity in the iPhone 5 is identical to that in other Apple products (the latest iPad). It's yet to analyze the device and extend its claim if its suspicions come out correct.

Apple is not sitting still either. The lawyers of the Cupertino-based company have identified Android 4.1 Jelly Bean as their next target and will try to deal a major blow to the platform, by proving that Android's core functionality infringes Apple-owned patents.

Judge Koh, who is in charge of the lawsuit, will hold a hearing on Wednesday (September 26) to discuss its further management.

Apple iPhone 5 aluminum shell plagued by chipping issues

It seems to have become a routine now. Every year Apple releases a new iPhone and while most of the customers are delighted a subset of buyers pull the short end of the stick. With the iPhone 4, it was the antennagate issue, with the iPhone 4S it was the battery life problem and now some iPhone 5 buyers are noticing dents on their prized possession.

Yes, many owners, particularly of the Black & Slate colored model, are reporting dents and scratches along the chamfered edges of their new iPhone right out of the box. We haven't seen many reports from owners of the White & Silver model, but that just might be because the color isn't particularly popular.

Now, anodized aluminum is known to pick up scuff marks easily. Because the color is painted on top, even a minor scuff can make it come off, revealing a shiny silver spot below. Also, aluminum is a soft metal, so it dents very easily, especially along thin edges. You'll find scuffs and dents on practically every anodized aluminum object that has been used for a while.

Which is why it wasn't a shock to us when we saw the iPhone picking up dents along the edges in this drop test. However, it is surprising when the device comes with scuff marks out of the box and points to poor quality checks at Apple's end.

Of course, Apple will readily replace any such device for you. But if you're importing this device to a different country (and we know many do), you will need to be careful and hold on till the issue gets sorted.

Update: Apparently, white units have the same issues as the black ones. We are really hoping Apple makes an official statement soon enough and explain the cause.

Steve Jobs: Good artists copy great artists steal

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CW0DUg63lqU

Steve Jobs: Good artists copy great artists steal

Uploaded by Christoph Dernbach 

Interview with Steve Jobs (1994) about the creation of the Apple Macintosh. Did Steve Jobs steal from Xerox PARC?
Read this article: http://bit.ly/pdzoaa

Interview with Steve Jobs (1994) about the creation of the Apple Macintosh. Did Steve Jobs steal from Xerox PARC?

Apple iPhone 5 display isn't the "Most advanced display"

Back at the Apple iPhone 5 announcement event, Phil Schiller claimed that the new iOS flagship has the world’s most advanced display yet. It appears, however, that this might not be entirely true, as one Nokia fan is keen to point out. He did a spec-by-spec comparison of the iPhone 5 and the Lumia 920 and the latest Apple smartphone didn’t really manage to impress there.

The PureMotion HD+ screen on the Nokia Lumia 920 packs some impressive technology and it’s hard to argue with the facts listed in the following slides.

This is not the first case of the Apple’s iPhone 5 announcement event writing checks that the smartphone cannot cash, either.

Apple iPhone 5 turns isn’t “the world’s thinnest smartphone”

Apple’s Phil Schiller called the new iPhone 5 “the world’s thinnest smartphone”, but many makers have made that claim for many phones. It happens often and sometimes it’s not true. So, how does the new iPhone stack up against the competition?

Phone	Thickness	Weight	Availability
Apple iPhone 4S	9.3mm	140g	Yes
Apple iPhone 5	7.6mm	112g	In a week
Samsung Galaxy S III	8.6mm	133g	Yes
HTC One X	8.9mm	130g	Yes
HTC One S	7.8mm	120g	Yes
Samsung Ativ S	8.7mm	135g	Soon
Nokia Lumia 920	10.7mm	185g	Soon
Nokia Lumia 820	9.9mm	160g	Soon
Motorola RAZR	7.1mm*	127g	Yes
Motorola RAZR HD	8.4mm*	146g	Soon
Motorola RAZR M	8.3mm*	126g	Soon
Huawei Ascend P1s	6.7mm	130g	Soon
Panasonic Eluga DL1	7.8mm	103g	Yes
Oppo Finder	6.7mm	125g	Soon
Fujitsu Arrows F-07D	6.7mm	105g	Yes
NEC Medias N-04C	7.7mm	105g	Yes

I’ve prepared a table with every “world’s thinnest” smartphone we could dig up plus various high-end phones that are competing with Apple’s latest flagship.

* At the thinnest part

So, no the iPhone 5 isn’t the thinnest smartphone in the world. As far as currently available devices go, the Fujitsu Arrows F-07D takes that title. Sure, it’s not an easy phone to get hold of, but it exists.

And there are at least a couple of other phones that will soon be available and are thinner than the iPhone 5. Note that I’m not counting the Motorola RAZR because the top part of the phone is much thicker than the claimed 7.1mm (even though the part where you actually hold the phone is really that slim).