The Daily Roundup: here's what you might've missed

iPhone OS 3.0.1 update released, fixes SMS vulnerabilityLooks like Apple pulled the trigger on patching that nasty iPhone SMS vulnerability a little earlier than we expected. It's not some lightweight, either: you're looking at 280MB of love here, so get downloading, friends. Take Back the Beep: how to disable voicemail instructionsThanks to some helpful comments we've got instructions for Sprint, AT&T and Verizon for lopping off bits of the message, and, in Verizon's...

iPhone OS 3.0.1 update released, fixes SMS vulnerabilityLooks like Apple pulled the trigger on patching that nasty iPhone SMS vulnerability a little earlier than we expected. It's not some lightweight, either: you're looking at 280MB of love here, so get downloading, friends. Take Back the Beep: how to disable voicemail instructionsThanks to some helpful comments we've got instructions for Sprint, AT&T and Verizon for lopping off bits of the message, and, in Verizon's case, speeding up the talking. TASER X3 video hands-on: watch out, baddiesthe appeal of a "non-lethal" deterrent is understandable (and certainly preferable to the alternative variety). Other news of import CrunchPad coming in November with built-in 3G connectivity, says Straits Times LG's magical sliding fridge drawers: how did we ever live without them? Netflix Watch Instantly coming to Windows 7 Media CenterNo hard release date yet or big surprises here as Vista owners got this access some time ago and Extenders still don't support Silverlight. Nokia Surge review Some might say that this is the most un-Nokia-like Nokia device produced in quite some time (if not ever), but remember, this one was custom made for US consumers and AT&T's audience Modern Warfare 2, Halo 3: ODST are both not-quite HD games Paramount flicks to see Blu-ray purchase, DVD rental availability ahead of DVD sale date 3D TV channel coming to UK next year, 3D-ready set and glasses required Motorola Sholes Android phone for Verizon appears in the flesh China Unicom's iPhone gets regulatory approval, pictured HTC Hero coming October 11th to Sprint? LG's BL40 "Chocolate" phone sashays its way through new ad The Daily Roundup: here's what you might've missed originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 31 Jul 2009 22:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments

  • 50 of the Most Burning Apple Questions Answered

    You asked for help with the thorniest problems facing Mac, iPhone, and iPad owners, and we answered, providing 50 foolproof solutions that’ll come in handy for anyone who uses Apple gear. For months now, we’ve been asking you to send us your most burning Apple questions, and to put it mildly, you came through. The queue in our inbox looked longer than the lines that curled around NYC’s 5th Avenue Apple Store for the launch of the very first iPhone. And when we dug into the meat and potatoes of your queries, we could only marvel at the insightful list of vexing technical issues and twinkle-in-your-eye trivia tidbits that you challenged us with. We distilled all those inquiries down to the 50 best, most burning questions about Macs, iPhones, iPads, and Apple itself. Then we put our crack team of experts on the job of coming up with this ultimate answers guide for all things Apple. Struggling with iTunes syncing? iPhone backups? RAID cards? iPad printing? Or just wondering exactly what Steve actually wears every day? The answers await, backstopped and bulletproofed by the pros at Mac|Life. 1. Duplicates in iPhoto I can’t find any options in iPhoto for removing all duplicate pictures in one fell swoop, and I don’t want to find and delete them all myself. Any ideas?iPhoto lacks iTunes’ duplicate-deleting prowess, but the shareware app Duplicate Annihilator can fill this gap and free your photo library of clutter. Despite the name, it identifies and tags duplicate pictures with a keyword so you can collect them in a Smart Folder to review and annihilate at your leisure. 2. Wi-Fi DropoutsSince upgrading to Snow Leopard, my Wi-Fi connection randomly drops for no reason. I still get Wi-Fi reliably on my iPhone, and my wife gets it on her PC. Any advice?This problem seems to be affecting many Snow Leopard users, so we’ve come up with a series of steps that should resolve it. Start with the first and work down until the problem goes away:» Update to Mac OS X 10.6.3 or later.» Restart your modem and router.» Upgrade your router’s firmware to the latest version, particularly if it’s a non-Apple router.» Turn AirPort off then on again from your menu bar.» In your Network System Preference, create a new location and delete all of the previous locations.One of our best tips for troubleshooting Wi-Fi connection problems is to create one brand-new location and then delete all of your previous locations.» Within your new location, drag AirPort to the top of the service order by clicking on the gear icon and choosing “Set Service Order.”» Delete all of your preferred networks. To see your preferred networks, click on AirPort in the left margin, then the Advanced button, then the AirPort tab.» Within that Advanced area, click on the TCP/IP tab and turn off IPv6. Then, go into the DNS tab and make sure that your DNS servers are correct. If in doubt, try Google’s DNS servers of 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4.» Run Keychain First Aid in Keychain Access, which is located in your Utilities folder.» Manually change your router’s wireless channel to another channel to avoid interference with other wireless networks. See which channels are being used by other networks with a utility like AirRadar ($20, koingosw.com).» Turn off 802.11n mode on your router, leaving it in 802.11b/g mode only.» Change the security settings on your router from WEP to WPA/WPA2.» Zap the PRAM on your Mac (get instructions here). 3. Multitouch Gestures Why can’t I do the one-finger double-tap to open documents in Snow Leopard?You can absolutely use the one-finger double-tap on your Multi-Touch trackpad to open documents in Snow Leopard. Simply go into your Trackpad System Preference and make sure that “Tap to Click” is checked. Your confusion may also stem from the fact that your Multi-Touch trackpad is capable of understanding many gestures. So if you’ve enabled “Dragging” or “Drag Lock,” you might be holding down your finger too long after the second tap. If you’ve enabled “Secondary Click,” you might be tapping in the wrong area of your trackpad. 4. Syncing iPhone Photos When I sync my iPhone, all 6,000 of my MacBook Pro’s photos move to the iPhone--very uncool! How do I remove them from the phone and ensure one-way photo transfers to the Mac in the future?That’s at least 5,950 pictures too many. Just connect your iPhone to your MacBook, then select the iPhone in the iTunes sidebar. Click the Photos tab, where you can choose to transfer none of your pictures or just specific iPhoto Albums, Faces, and Events to your iPhone. Re-sync to apply your new settings and get back a few gigabytes on your iPhone. 5. Uninstalling My Mac still runs processes from a program I deleted. How do I delete an application entirely and prevent this from happening?Unfortunately, there’s no standard way to remove a program from your Mac, but some developers simplify the job by including an uninstaller with their application. It may lurk in the main folder of the app you want to terminate--check those subfolders!--or it might be in the original installer itself. Launch the installer and proceed through it carefully. An uninstall feature may be obvious, or it could be hidden among options to customize the installation process. Be sure to quit the program you want to delete before uninstalling it.If an application didn’t come with an uninstaller, then the only way to delete it is to drag it to the Trash. However, this won’t remove preferences and other support files left behind on your Mac. You can use Spotlight to search for the deleted application’s name to find these strays, but if you have a lot of applications to remove, consider investing in a dedicated uninstaller like CleanApp, AppZapper, or AppCleaner. These programs automate the process of zapping unwanted programs--and their stuff--off your drive for good. 6. File Compression I’d like to save hard drive space with the Finder’s Compress command, but I’m not getting useful results. I recently compressed a 117.4MB file to just 116.7MB. Am I doing something wrong?Not all file types can be compressed with the same space-saving results. For example, compressing a ZIP archive won’t make a significantly smaller ZIP file. Some files, such as JPEGs, MP3s, and other media formats, have a certain level of compression already built in, but the sizes of text files and uncompressed image file formats can be dramatically reduced with ZIP compression. 7. Remote Control When I use my iPod touch as a remote for my Apple TV, it appears to only give me access to the Apple TV’s library as if it were an iPod. Is there a way to use the iPod touch like the traditional Apple remote? For example, can I use the touch to navigate to the YouTube app and search for videos, or to browse the movie rentals?Apple’s Remote app for the iPhone and iPod touch lets you control the playback of media that you’ve already purchased or downloaded. But for content that doesn’t live on your Apple TV, such as YouTube videos or the iTunes Store, you’ll still need your traditional Apple remote to navigate to those screens. However, the good news is that whenever an onscreen keyboard appears on your Apple TV, the Remote app will display its own keyboard, which lets you quickly type what you’re searching for. 8. Photo Migration Can Faces and Places data in iPhoto ‘09 be moved to another Mac, or do I have to click on all those faces and enter all those locations again?All your vacation sites and friendly faces will transfer to another Mac with OS X’s Migration Assistant, or you can drag your iPhoto library file from your Pictures folder to the same location on a new Mac. When you launch iPhoto on the new machine, you’ll be told the locations of pictures containing GPS data must be retrieved again, but custom locations you’ve entered yourself (for pictures taken with older cameras, say) will remain intact. 9. Gmail, Behave! I sync Gmail with OS X’s Mail, but when I delete a message from Mail, it remains in Gmail’s All Mail folder in the sidebar. What’s the right mailbox setting to move a message deleted in Mail to Gmail’s Trash?All your Gmail goes into the All Mail folder, whether or not it’s been recently deleted and no matter which Gmail folder label is attached to the message. Google’s default IMAP Mail settings (available here) are correct, but to send a Mail message directly to Gmail’s Trash, you’ll have to drag it to the [Gmail]/Trash folder in Mail’s sidebar. 10. Crash-Tastic It always happens at the worst possible time: I’ll be using my PowerBook G4 when the screen suddenly dims and shows a Rosetta Stone’s worth of languages telling me to restart the computer. Why does this keep happening, and how can I stop it?Ouch. What you’re describing is a kernel panic, a cute name for a not-so-cute problem. An operating system’s kernel acts as a bridge between applications and the computer’s hardware, and kernel panics are the last-ditch efforts of the operating system to recover from serious conflicts between them. The chief causes of kernel panics are faulty RAM and software incompatible with the operating system you’re running. Unfortunately, that range could include any number of bad things that may be happening on your poor PowerBook.Happily, even a kernel panic isn’t the end of the world, and we can offer some pointers to help you figure out what’s wrong. The first step is to look at your Mac’s history. Was there a time when it didn’t get kernel panics? Think back to any (and we mean any) new hardware or software you installed before the panics began. Update or uninstall them one item at a time to isolate the panics’ cause until you narrow down the trouble. Also note which hardware and software you’re using just before they strike--there may be a pattern. Whatever the issue, your Mac isn’t happy, so be sure to back up important files and verify your hard drive with Disk Utility regularly.Next page: Answers Guide continued >> 11. Get Zippy iPhone Backups How can I speed up iPhone backups so I’ll never have to cancel mid-backup again? They seem to take forever when a couple minutes really should do it.A. First off, keep your iOS software current. Not only will the latest updates squash bugs and add features, they can improve backup times. To update, sync your iPhone, select it in the iTunes sidebar, then go to the Summary tab.B. Pare down the number of applications on your iPhone. Application data like in-app purchases, saved games, and new documents are all backed up when you sync, and that can add up to a long wait while the backup progress bar creeps by. To start cleaning house, connect to iTunes, select the Apps tab, then delete your most infrequently used applications. You’ll lose the data saved in these apps, but you’ll gain speedier backups.Ask yourself this: Are those apps you never use on your iPhone really worth slowing down your backups?C. Sync often. If you sync at least once or twice a day, fewer applications will have new data to back up when you reconnect to iTunes. If you can’t bear to part with any of the applications on your Home Screen, making multiple faster backups will let you keep all your favorite apps at your fingertips.D. Keep Camera Roll clean. While the contents of your iPhone’s photo library aren’t backed up during a sync, the photos, movies, and screenshots in Camera Roll are. Transfer this media to iPhoto as soon as you begin a sync, and delete the files from Camera Roll when the transfer is complete to get this data copied onto your Mac while excluding it from being backed up in iTunes.More photos = slower backups.E. Connect to a USB port on your Mac instead of an external USB hub. Not all USB ports are created equal, and connecting to a powered, full-speed USB port that’s built into your Mac will ensure the fastest possible transfer speeds during backups. That means you can be off to your next port of call quickly, secure in the knowledge that your iPhone data is safe on your computer.F. Before you sync to iTunes, purge unnecessary SMS messages, old call histories, and non-essential files downloaded by apps that store data on your iPhone. For example, if you regularly copy files to your iDisk app or productivity apps like DocsToGo, make sure you’re only carrying what you need before a backup. Odds are these files live elsewhere on your Mac or iDisk, so there’s no need to back them up again.Junk your old, unused files, too. 12. Time Travel I’ve been running Time Machine for months in Mac OS 10.6.3, but I’ve never seen instructions about how to go back in time and retrieve information. Help!Mount your backup drive, then launch Time Machine from your Mac’s Applications folder. Your desktop will be replaced by a timeline and Finder windows showing your Mac’s contents as they were in the past. Just click a Finder window (or click within the timeline) to return to a specific date. You can also search within Finder windows for specific filenames, and more. When you find a missing file, select it and click Restore to return to the present with your document. 13. Rip Encrypted Movies I want an easy way to download a DVD to my computer so I can put it on my iPod or iPad. I used to use HandBrake, but that no longer works for encrypted DVDs.HandBrake (free, handbrake.fr) is still the quickest and most reliable tool for directly converting DVDs into video files that will play on your iPod or iPad. But you’ll also need to install VLC (free, videolan.org) if you want to decrypt commercial DVDs. Place both HandBrake and VLC into your Applications folder, and you’ll be able to convert encrypted DVDs with HandBrake once again. 14. Dump Discs I want to go disc-free on my MacBook, but a few of my games require a CD or DVD to play. Is there any way to make OS X think the disc is in the drive when it’s not?OS X’s Disk Utility can make a duplicate of your game’s CD or DVD and save it to your Mac as a file called a disk image. Once created, disk images can be double-clicked to open and mount on your desktop just like a conventional disc (you’ve already seen them in software installers downloaded from the internet). But there are two things to remember: copy-protection schemes on the disc may prevent duplication, and you should have plenty of room on your MacBook’s hard drive before you begin. A DVD’s disk image will take up several gigabytes.To get started, insert the disc you want to dupe, then launch Disk Utility from your Utilities folder. Select the disc in the sidebar, then click New Image in the Disk Utility toolbar, set the image format to DVD/CD Master in the resulting sheet, and save the disk image to your Mac. Next time you want to play your game, double-click the image file, then launch your game normally once the virtual game disc mounts. When you’re finished, you can drag the mounted disc to the Trash to eject like any conventional media, leaving the disk image on your Mac for the next time you want to get your game on. 15. Branching Out Which operating systems—and I mean all of them, not just Mac versions—will run on a PowerPC-based Mac?The PowerPC processor has become something of a museum piece since Apple abandoned it for Intel’s chips, but these Linux distributions can help you breathe new life into G5- and G4-powered Macs. Ubuntu, Yellow Dog, and Fedora all maintain builds that run on PowerPC hardware. When you’re looking to run a worthwhile alternate operating system on older Mac hardware, the penguin has you covered. 16. The $1M Question When will Adobe Flash content be viewable on iPhones and iPads?Never. In April, Steve Jobs had this to say about Flash on Apple’s website: “Flash was created during the PC era--for PCs and mice. Flash is a successful business for Adobe, and we can understand why they want to push it beyond PCs. But the mobile era is about low-power devices, touch interfaces, and open web standards--all areas where Flash falls short.” 17. iLife Oops I accidentally deleted iMovie and the Apple Loops that came with GarageBand. Can I reload them from the original disc without losing all my other iLife files?Sure! First, launch the iLife ‘09 installer from your disc. At the bottom of the final screen is a Customize button that lets you install iLife components individually. Click it, then select the items you want to reinstall. The installer will insist on installing GarageBand along with your missing loops, but your missing applications and files will return to your Mac without affecting other iLife applications and documents, including GarageBand preferences. Just remember to run Software Update afterward to ensure that everything’s up to date. 18. iPad Printing What are the best ways to print from the iPad?Until Apple decides to build printing into iOS, there unfortunately isn’t a “best” way--although there are several apps in the App Store that might meet your needs.Canon’s Easy-PhotoPrint for iPhone runs on the iPad and will print photos to certain Canon printers. And the App Store is full of plenty of third-party apps that promise printing from your iPad, although in our experience the results are decidedly mixed. PrintBureau ($12.99) searches your network for shared printers. It reliably printed to one--but not another--of the printers on our home network without any intervention. There’s an optional free helper application you can run on a Mac to give PrintBureau access to your printers (a solution common to several iPad printing apps), but we’d hardly call that true iPad printing.We also had success with Air Sharing HD ($9.99), which is packed with features for moving and sharing files with your iPad. It didn’t work immediately with our Wi-Fi–enabled printer, but turning on Printer Sharing on our Mac made all our printers visible to the app. But--like using a companion app--that also requires that you have a Mac running. Ultimately, the least fiddly solution often ends up being emailing yourself a document and printing from a computer. Hopefully Apple has something better in the pipeline
 19. Tame Bookmarks I have tons of Safari bookmarks on my Mac. I don’t want them all on my iPhone, but Apple only allows syncing of all or none. Is there a fix?It’s almost elegant. Xmarks (xmarks.com) syncs bookmarks across multiple browsers, and its profiles let you decide which bookmarks appear on specific devices, including your iPhone. Best of all, you can view (and even search) them in a layout formatted for Mobile Safari. Just sign up for Xmarks, follow their instructions, and disable iPhone bookmark syncing in iTunes. Unfortunately, Xmarks doesn’t sync new bookmarks made on your iPhone back to your Mac. Like we said
almost elegant.Next page: Answers Guide continued >> 20. Stay Safe How can I tell if someone is using my Wi-Fi? Elementary, my dear Wi-Fi user! The mystery’s solution lies in MAC (Media Access Control) addresses, which are unique codes that identify network devices. Different routers have different ways of showing which addresses (and thus, devices) are accessing your network. If you have an AirPort router, launch AirPort Utility from your Utilities folder, double-click your router’s icon, then click the Advanced icon in the resulting window. Click Logging and Statistics, then Logs and Statistics. In the Wireless Clients section, you’ll see a graph showing the address of each device connecting to your network. The list will include your Mac, the AirPort router itself, and any other computers, iPhones, game consoles, or other devices using your Wi-Fi connection. Next, match the MAC addresses to your network devices. We’ll get you started: your computer’s address can be found in the Network section of System Profiler. When you’re finished, you’ll know the addresses of devices you want on your network, so you can tell when something with a foreign address is using your Wi-Fi. Then the game’s afoot! 21. Sim-plify I have a 1G iPhone that I want to use as a simple iPod touch, leaving aside the phone features entirely, but I don’t have the original SIM card. What are my options?Your options are slim. Unlike later models, the 1G iPhone requires a SIM card to operate as a basic iPod, even after AT&T service has been terminated or transferred to another phone. You can get a new SIM card from AT&T, but this will require signing up for a new phone service contract. Unfortunately, there’s no way around this limitation besides jailbreaking your iPhone with one of the methods floating around on the internet. 22. Merge Partitions Is there any way to un-partition a non-boot hard drive in OS 10.6 without wiping the data?You’re in luck. Since 10.5, OS X’s Disk Utility has been able to add and remove partitions from disks without affecting other data on the drive. However, Disk Utility won’t merge data from the deleted partition to another partition on the drive, so back up all your data--especially files on the partition you’ll be removing--before you begin.Once all your data’s securely backed up, launch Disk Utility from your Mac’s Utilities folder, then select the drive in the sidebar (be sure to choose the icon noting the drive’s capacity, not just its name). Click the Partition button, then in the shaded box showing the drive’s Volume Scheme, select the partition you want to remove. Click the minus button below the Volume Scheme chart to remove the partition (don’t worry, it won’t disappear right away). Click and drag other partitions to resize them and fill the empty space that will be left behind by the deleted partition. You can also click the plus button to add a new partition that can also be resized. Click Apply to commit your changes and begin Operation: Un-partition. 23. No Scratching I just bought a new 21.5” iMac (late 2009 model) and found a serious design flaw: the CD slot has sharp aluminum edges that can inflict permanent, irreversible scratches to valuable CDs. Help!These days, Apple’s really into razor-sharp edges. For example, the unibody MacBooks also famously have sharp edges where users rest their wrists, and those very same sharp edges have made it onto the slot on the side of the iMac where CDs are loaded. Luckily, those sharp edges are just on the outside, not on the internal drive itself. So if you carefully and slowly slide in your CD without touching the outside edges, you may avoid scratching your CD. But here’s a more practical solution: Put electrical tape around the edges of the slot. This isn’t the most beautiful thing to look at, but it’s almost guaranteed to keep scratches at bay. Another option would be to purchase an external CD drive to either use as your primary CD drive or to make copies of your valuable CDs. That way, if a CD gets scratched, at least it’s not the original. 24. Font Fixes When using Mail, any font that I use in my outgoing email always shows up on recipient PCs as Courier--that archaic, typewriter style font. How can I get my Mac fonts to translate onto PCs?In order for a font to be successfully seen on somebody’s computer, they need to already have that particular font installed on their machine. If your recipient doesn’t have the same exact font as you, their computer will substitute your font with a font that is already installed on their system. This applies to emails, websites, Word documents, almost anything. If maintaining the integrity of fonts is important to you, you’ll need to create PDF files or images and attach them to your outgoing email message. 25. App-Update Errors When I try to update apps from my iPhone, I get a “Cannot Connect to iTunes Store” error, yet I have no problem downloading new apps, and no problem updating them in iTunes on my computer. What gives?Assuming the problem is reoccurring and not a freaky networking accident, it sounds like your iPhone (or the problematic apps themselves) may be confused about the status of your iTunes account. This could be because a different user has logged into your iPhone, because you have multiple usernames or passwords tied to your iTunes account, or even because your billing information was recently changed on another device. The easiest place to start is by navigating to Settings, tapping Store, and confirming that yours is the currently active account on your iPhone. If it is, try signing out and signing back in with your most recent iTunes account information, then verify that your address and billing information are correct. If the problem persists, the apps may the culprit. Try updating them in iTunes, then deleting them from your iPhone. Reconnect your iPhone to your computer to sync the updated apps back to the phone. If, down the road, these same applications refuse to update from your iPhone again, deleting them from your Mac and re-downloading them from the iTunes Store may fix this. 26. Make Windows Behave I have various finder windows set to appear in different views depending on their content. But certain windows stubbornly--and randomly--refuse to remember my preferences. Is it a bug, or am I missing a setting?Setting a specific folder to open in a particular view (such as columns, icons, or lists) can make browsing files in the Finder a lot easier. Just open and set each folder to your preferred view, then select View > Show View Options in the menu bar and check the topmost button in the resulting window to force the Finder window to always open in that view. Unfortunately, the Finder has ignored these helpful preferences since the earliest days of OS X. Your stubborn folders aren’t the first!Your folders may be confused by corrupt .DS_Store files, the invisible files created by the Finder to store icon sizes, window backgrounds, and more. System utility apps like TinkerTool and Cocktail can reveal or delete these files for you, or you can use the Terminal to delete them yourself if your UNIX Fu is strong.If those options don’t do the trick, your Mac may think you don’t have permission to reset the view options of certain folders. Some, like the Applications folder, don’t technically “belong” to any user except the system itself, and only the system (also known as the root user) can make permanent changes to these directories. What looks like random stubbornness may be OS X remembering that it’s in charge of these folders, not you.To show your Mac who’s boss, log in as the root user, then set uncooperative folders to the view setting you prefer. Just be careful, and remember to log back into your normal user account and disable root access when the job is done. Moving or deleting the wrong files while logged in as root can have serious consequences for your Mac. Apple explains how to log in as root here. 27. Just Open! I used to double-click any photo, and it would open in Photoshop. When I installed 10.6, this feature disappeared. Now I have to drop the photos onto the Photoshop icon.Snow Leopard ignores “creator codes,” which changed its file-opening behavior--it’s all about file extensions now. Right-click a JPG, choose Get Info, and under Open With, choose Photoshop, and click Change All. Do this again for PNG, PSD, TIF, and any other photo file types you want Photoshop to get first dibs on. 28. iPads Kill Wi-Fi When enough of us use iPads on the office Wi-Fi, it can crash the Wi-Fi itself! I’ve heard this is a common problem--is there a fix?You’ve heard right, and it’ll take an OS and/or firmware update from Apple to vanquish this annoying glitch. Until then, know that the issue is caused because an iPad can stop renewing its DHCP lease when it goes to sleep, so if you set your iPad to never sleep (Settings > General > Auto-Lock > Never), you’re good. That’s hardly ideal, and at Mac|Life HQ, we set up an iPad-only Wi-Fi network, which creates a smaller pool of DHCP leases and keeps the main Wi-Fi network safe. Interestingly, iPads are also prone to other Wi-Fi glitches, like sketchy signal strength, frequent drops, and slow speeds. Bizarrely, one of the first things you should do is increase the brightness upward and turn off the Auto Brightness option (Settings > Brightness & Wallpaper). We can only guess that something’s screwy with iPad power management
 29. Mac Pros Are Hot I just wanted to bring to your attention a widespread, frustrating issue that exists with all 2009 Mac Pros. Whenever you play any audio, the CPU rapidly heats up (core temperatures as high as 90ÂșC, CPU heat sink 60ÂșC). This problem exists in 10.5 and 10.6, but does not happen in Windows running in Boot Camp, so it appears to be a Mac OS X bug. And after spending $8,000 on Apple’s top machine, I feel like I have been had.Yes, this seems to be a prevalent problem with the 2009 Mac Pros. Playing any type of audio heats up the Pro precariously close to--but not quite at--dangerous heat levels. If your Mac actually reached dangerous heat levels, it would shut itself down. This increased heat also causes decreased performance. Unfortunately, we don’t have any solutions for you, but we’re publishing your letter in the hopes that greater publicity on this issue will help get a speedy resolution from Apple.Next page: Answers Guide continued >> 30. What a Mess!One of my co-workers spilled juice on his older MacBook Pro, and now the keys are sticky (when pressed down, they don’t pop up right away). What’s the best way to clean up?Sounds nasty! Although this particular spill has long dried, we’ll start these cleanup instructions from the moment right after spillage to make them more widely useful. So: Immediately power down, disconnect the power cord from the MacBook, and remove the battery (if it’s removable). After doing as much as you can with paper or cloth towels, turn the machine over with the lid partly open to allow the liquid to drain, making sure that the laptop doesn’t close all the way. Give it about 72 hours to completely air dry and then take apart the machine to thoroughly clean the innards. The website iFixIt.com has great step-by-step guides to taking the keys off and getting your MacBook back to normal. When dabbing at disassembled keys and other parts, we recommend a bit of gauze lightly dampened with rubbing alcohol. 31. Airport Fizzles I stream my music from iTunes to an AirPort router, but it frequently cuts out. What can I do?First, make sure your iTunes and AirPort software are up to date. If the problem persists, move your router away from possible sources of interference. Wi-Fi is convenient, but it’s not an exact science. Signals can be impeded by microwaves, wireless phones, thick masonry, and more. If dropouts continue, try changing the channel on which your AirPort broadcasts in the Wireless tab of the AirPort section of AirPort Utility. 32. Family Planning My wife and I have our own iPhones and iTunes accounts, and we’re adding an iPad to the happy family. Can we sync both iPhones and the iPad (plus our Apple TV) to a single iTunes account, and share our apps on all devices without affecting our current library and future purchases?Bad news first: there’s no way to merge multiple iTunes accounts into one, so your family will have to keep juggling separate accounts and purchases from your iPhones, Apple TV, and bouncing baby iPad. The good news is that apps, like DRM-protected movies and TV shows, can be used on up to five authorized computers and the iDevices that sync to them. Just open iTunes, select Apps in the sidebar, then drag iPhone applications you want to share from iTunes to a networked computer or removable hard drive. Select File > Add to Library in iTunes on the second authorized computer, then choose the exported apps to load them into that computer’s library. These apps won’t retain saved data from the original computer, but otherwise they’ll be fully operational and can be updated normally. Apple TV purchases, however, will still be tethered to one of your computers. But even these files can be synced and transferred to multiple computers and iDevices.Here’s the better news: Home Sharing, introduced in iTunes 9, simplifies this process by allowing users to drag and drop media to shared computers within iTunes. Activate Home Sharing by selecting Advanced > Turn On Home Sharing. Repeat this step on all your computers, entering one iTunes account username and password on each. Then you can drag media from shared libraries in iTunes’ sidebar into a computer’s local library at will. Future purchases can be shared automatically by clicking the Settings button at the bottom of Home Sharing iTunes library, then selecting which media you’d like to share. Once you set up all computers on your network, syncing works automatically, zapping new media off to each machine. 33. Double the Addresses Why do I have duplicate Contact entries on my iPhone but not on my Mac?Odds are your iPhone has gained multiple groups of contacts after syncing them both wirelessly through MobileMe and through iTunes when you connected your iPhone to your Mac. Whatever the cause, check your iPhone Contact app’s Groups. If you see a group named From My Mac in addition to groups you’ve created in OS X’s Address Book, it’s a sign your iPhone thinks you have two distinct sets of friends.It's hard enough to find the contact you're looking for--who needs duplicate entries?To fix the problem, first back up your Mac’s contact data. Connect your iPhone to iTunes, uncheck Sync Address Book Contacts in the Info tab, then re-sync. If that doesn’t remove the extra contacts, turn off MobileMe contact syncing in Settings on your iPhone, choosing to delete the existing contacts on your phone. Next, turn Contact syncing back on, and choose to merge MobileMe’s data onto your iPhone if asked. Now you should have just one set of contacts shared between your iPhone and Mac. You’ll have half the friends, but half the hassles. 34. Conquer Syncing What's the most elegant way to sync iTunes libraries between work and home computers?We use SuperSync, a program that lets you sync your iTunes library among multiple computers on local networks or over the Internet. SuperSync’s busy interface can seem a little daunting, but in just a few quick steps, you can start copying music from your crib to your cubicle and back again. Casual Fridays will never be the same.A. Buy the SoftwareSuperSync looks and feels kinda like iTunes, but is a whole different beast.To get started, you’ll need a copy of SuperSync running on both your home and work computers. Two licenses will set you back $24, or you can snag ten for $34 and give one to your manager for Boss’s Day.B. Make the ConnectionsWhen you first launch SuperSync on your home Mac, it loads and displays your iTunes library in an iTunes-alike window organized by genre, artist, and playlist. While SuperSync may look a little like iTunes (and it can even play some unprotected audio files), it’s really a conduit and control panel for syncing, not a jukebox. Your DRM-protected files must still be played by an authorized copy of iTunes, although SuperSync will transfer them just fine.SuperSync can even keep metadata updated across different Macs.If your music collection doesn’t live in your Mac’s Home folder, you can point SuperSync to a library stored on a remote or network drive and share from there. To set up sharing, just check the obvious boxes and enter a password in the application’s Network preferences. While you’re there, you can fine-tune what you sync and how. For instance, you can keep specific media types--all videos, for instance--out of your shared library and pick which metadata changes will be synced back to your home machine. Whether you simply want to copy files or meticulously update their play counts, ratings, and more across your computers, SuperSync has your back.C. Start the SyncTo sync your library, install and launch SuperSync on your work machine, then turn on sharing and connect to your home computer. This is easiest (and fastest) on a local network, but you can sync your music over the internet by manually forwarding ports on your home router, or by using a UPnP (Universal Plug and Play) router and letting SuperSync do the work for you.When the syncing starts, SuperSync's interface gets pretty busy.Once you get both computers talking to each other, you can synchronize your entire library in one go, sync individual files, or transfer albums, artists, and whole genres at once. You can even sync your playlists--both their music files and the lists themselves in the iTunes sidebar. Naturally, files added to iTunes on your work computer can be synced back to your home Mac. Just finish your download in iTunes, then phone home with SuperSync. New files will be noted automatically and can be transferred with a click. 35. Hot Flash My MacBook Pro has been acting strangely. It will become sluggish, get hot, and the fans will come on at full speed. Activity Monitor shows that a process called “PTMD” is taking over 60 percent of my CPU. How do I prevent PTMD from taking over my Mac?This may not be a common question, but it certainly is a burning one! According to Apple’s Mac OS X Reference Library, PTMD stands for “platform thermal monitor daemon,” and it communicates any OS notifications effecting thermal conditions to your hardware. This daemon is supposed to automatically quit itself when it’s done communicating, but apparently your Mac erroneously thinks that its thermal conditions are continuously changing, so it’s trying to let your hardware continuously know this incorrect information.This seems to be a new problem that has cropped up for some users in Mac OS 10.6.3, so hopefully it will be fixed in a future update to the operating system. In the meantime, you can manually quit out of PTMD in Activity Monitor (launch it from your Utilities folder) whenever it starts acting up. You may also try resetting your Mac’s System Management Controller, which is responsible for thermal management (follow the directions here). 36. It's a RAIDI have Apple’s RAID card in my Mac Pro, and it always pops up this error message: “Write cache disabled due to insufficient battery charge.” But...what is a RAID card, and what should I do?Apple's Mac Pro RAID Card improves RAID performance and reliability.RAID stands for Redundant Array of Independent/Inexpensive Disks, and it’s a tech that lets you combine multiple hard drives so they appear as one. RAIDs can either be mirrored or striped--in the first, each drive is an exact copy (or mirror) of the other drives, so if one fails, you’ll still have all of your data intact on another (known as redundancy). If you configure your drives as a striped RAID, the storage space of all of your drives is added together into one larger drive. This will give you increased performance and increased storage space, but no redundancy unless you’ve configured your RAID with parity handling (which uses a portion of each drive to hold identical copies of data from one of the other drives). RAIDs can be controlled by software like Apple’s Disk Utility or the excellent SoftRAID ($129, softraid.com), or they can be controlled by hardware like your RAID card. The main advantages of a hardware-controlled RAID are increased performance and reliability. With the error message you’re receiving, it sounds like the battery on your RAID card has died, so take it into Apple to get replaced. 37. iPad 2 What upgrades will we see in the next version of the iPad? (We emailed a trio of well-known tech experts for their predictions.)  Daniel LyonsNewsweek"I'd guess the following:» Front-facing camera for videoconferencing» Multitasking (duh, already announced)» Higher-resolution screen» No Flash» Gorgeous ads that will change your life» Unicorn tears"    Christopher NullYahoo! News, Technology"Dual cameras--a front-facing camera for videoconferencing will be huge for opening up a whole new market for the iPad."        Dylan TweneyWired"One of the things most obviously missing from the current iPad is a webcam. This would instantly transform the iPad into a videophone, and its size—just slightly bigger than the human face—would be perfect for face-to-face video chats. It’s also likely that the next iPad will have more memory and a faster processor. If we’re lucky, it might have an HDMI port too, so you can hook it up to a TV to show off photos, videos, and apps. One thing it definitely won’t have, though, is support for Adobe Flash. That door is closed, probably forever."   38. Mac Van Winkle When I wake my MacBook Pro from sleep, it doesn’t connect to my Wi-Fi. Sometimes it even forgets the Wi-Fi password. How the heck do I get it to remember?First, check out the extensive troubleshooting steps that we gave in Question #2 to see if any of those ideas solve your problem. Beyond that, your problem may be caused by one of the following issues:» Two Wi-Fi networks with the same SSID (wireless network name). For example, do you connect to one wireless router that’s named “Linksys” at work and then another router that’s named “Linksys” at home? If so, your Mac may be trying to apply the password from one router to the other router. Rename one of the wireless networks.» Keychain problems. Launch Keychain Access (in Utilities) and delete any AirPort Network password entries for the wireless networks that are giving you problems.» Preferred Networks problem. Go into your Network System Preference, click on AirPort, then the Advanced button, then the AirPort tab. Delete any unused networks, and drag your current network to the top of the list.» Corrupt preference file. Trash the file located at Macintosh HD/Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration/com.apple.airport.preferences.plist and restart your Mac.» Security incompatibilities. Try changing the type of wireless security on your router (for example, WPA instead of WEP).» Wireless interference. Turn on interference robustness on your router or change the wireless channel.» Your system may need a general maintenance. Run Disk Warrior on your machine, repair permissions with Disk Utility, empty the caches, and run the UNIX maintenance scripts with Cocktail. 39. Style Manual What exactly does Steve wear on a daily basis?We asked our team of fashion experts, and they said, “The same dang thing no matter what.” So we made them stalk the streets of Cupertino and watch hours of keynote footage to bring you the scoop on Steve’s sartorial secrets. That’ll show ’em.Next page: Answers Guide continued >> 40. Sad Mac My iMac flat-out freezes when I try to wake it from sleep. I ran DiskTools Pro, which verified and repaired my hard drive, but it still hangs after waking from sleep.This is often a symptom of a failing graphics card or a failing logic board inside your Mac, in which case you would need to take your Mac into an Apple Authorized Service Provider for repair. However, before assuming the worst, you can perform a series of basic troubleshooting steps to rule out other variables that may be causing this symptom.» External devices: When your Mac fails to wake from sleep, try unplugging any external hard drives or peripherals to see if doing so makes your Mac suddenly wake from sleep. If so, those external devices may be to blame. » RAM: You may also have bad RAM inside your machine. You can try to pinpoint bad RAM by either removing one of your RAM chips and see if the problem continues, or by running the Apple Hardware Test to see if it can identify any bad RAM. To run the Apple Hardware Test, take a look at the DVDs that came with your Mac; one of them will say that the Apple Hardware Test is on it. Insert that DVD and restart your Mac while holding down the D key on your keyboard. » Reset your Mac’s System Management Controller (get instructions here).Next, try to rule out the software problems: » Trash the following files and then restart your Mac: Macintosh HD/Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration/com.apple.AutoWake.plist and Macintosh HD/Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration/com.apple.PowerManagement.plist » Reboot your Mac in single-user mode and run fsck (file system check)--get instructions here. » Back up your Mac, then erase and install Mac OS X.If all of these steps fail, it's time, sadly, to bring your Mac into an Apple Authorized Service Provider. 41. Stop Time When Time Machine is running, my Mac virtually comes to a stop. What is happening, and what should I do?Any time an application such as Time Machine is actively reading or writing to a hard drive, you may notice a tiny bit of a speed loss if you’re also trying to access your hard drive as well because the read/write heads take time to physically move to different locations on the hard drive platter.However, the key phrase is “a tiny bit of a speed loss,” meaning that the speed loss should be negligible to most computer users. Time Machine is designed to be fast and extremely lightweight, so if your computer is actually coming to a standstill, then something else is going on. The best way to troubleshoot this is by eliminating variables. First, make sure that you do not have any virus software scanning your backup drive. This is a known factor that could slow down your Time Machine backups to a crawl and that may affect your computer’s overall speed as well.Then, eliminate the possibility that your backup drive has a hardware problem by swapping it out with a different backup drive. If you don’t have another drive handy, a utility such as Drive Genius ($99, prosofteng.com) or Disk Warrior ($99, alsoft.com) can help you sniff out failing hard drives. Your backup drive must also be partitioned properly, as explained at tinyurl.com/3zne68.Next, use a different backup program like ChronoSync to see if the slowdowns continue. If they do, ChronoSync will let you see which file is actively being backed up while the problem is happening. It could indicate a problem with that particular file or with your internal hard drive.Other than that, you can try some general tips to speed up your Mac overall: Upgrade from Leopard to Snow Leopard; purchase faster internal and external drives (7200 RPM or SSD); use a faster connection interface (eSATA or FireWire 800); add more RAM to your Mac; and turn off hard disk sleep in the Energy Saver System Preference (this last one has a huge impact if your hard drive is powered via USB only and has no separate AC power). 42. Display Despair Why has Apple used so many display interfaces recently, and is the current Mini DisplayPort standard the best tech for the job?Mini DisplayPort meets VGA with this adapter.Apple’s flirtation with different video interfaces makes it seem like a puppet of the International Dongle Cartel, but it’s really all about doing more with ever-shrinking video ports. That includes today’s Mini DisplayPort, which can carry video and audio and connects to VGA, DVI, or HDMI displays at resolutions up to 2560x1600. We’re not sure if that makes it the best technology, but if it lets us carry just one small adapter that works on both MacBooks and iMacs, we’re happy. 43. Feelin' Social Does Apple have a Twitter account or Facebook page of any sort whatsoever?YouTube has your favorite Apple commercials.Steve may be cool with answering emails, but the company isn’t too keen on Twitter. There is no official Apple Twitter account. Facebook is a bit more complicated. While Apple hasn’t set up an official company page, it has created an App Store Facebook page: facebook.com/AppStore. Our preferred destination, though, is the Apple YouTube channel, which lets us check out all of our favorite Apple commercials: youtube.com/apple. 44. Feelin' Blu When will Apple include USB 3.0 and Blu-ray in Macs? What’s taking so long?USB 3.0 gear is already trickling onto the market, so it’s probably just a matter of time before the first computers sporting the blazing new standard roll out of Cupertino. Unfortunately, Blu-ray is another story. Apple’s interest in promoting its HD iTunes movie downloads and Steve’s declaration that bringing Blu-ray to the Mac is “a bag of hurt” don’t bode well for Blu’s chances on the Mac. 45. Photo Downloads There seems to be no way to download my photos from my iPhone directly to my Mac without using iPhoto. Even then, I have to drill down through some crazy iPhoto directories in the Finder just to copy the photos somewhere else. Can’t I just pull these photos off my iPhone and put them wherever I want?Any photos that are in iPhoto can be easily and quickly copied somewhere else on your Mac simply by dragging and dropping them out of iPhoto. For even more control over the size, format, and name of your photos, use the File > Export command in iPhoto. You don’t need to--and you really shouldn’t--be drilling down into any iPhoto directories on your Mac.Now, onto your next question of bypassing iPhoto altogether. In Mac OS 10.6, the Image Capture application gives you a significant amount of control over what happens when you connect your iPhone. If you have multiple cameras or iPhones, Image Capture even lets you set different preferences for each individual camera.Image Capture is the place to go to directly download photos from your cameras or to set what happens whenever you connect your cameras.You could have your iPhone launch Image Capture itself, which lets you manually download your photos into the directories of your choice and then delete those photos from the iPhone. You could have your iPhone launch Preview, which lets you import iPhone photos from the File menu. You could have your iPhone run an AppleScript.But perhaps best of all, your iPhone could launch AutoImporter, a hidden application that automatically imports photos to the directory of your choice, without you intervening at all. It’s located at Macintosh HD/System/Library/Image Capture/Support/Application/AutoImporter, and you can set this application’s preferences by choosing AutoImporter > Preferences. 46. Tame MobileMe I have four Apple devices: two MacBooks, an iPhone, and an iPad. It would be wonderful if MobileMe would do its job and sync all of my calendar and contact information, but I continually have glitches. One of the devices will often stop syncing, and then I have to wipe out data and start all over again. Is there any way to alleviate these problems?We’ve heard from an Apple support representative that syncing problems with MobileMe are very common because the MobileMe servers are not yet robust enough to handle more than 1,000 synchronizations before everything needs to be reset from scratch again. While 1,000 synchronizations might sound like a lot, consider that a sync takes place every single time you make a change to a contact or a calendar. The good news, however, is that this same representative told us that Apple is aware of its MobileMe syncing shortcomings and is continuously working to increase the competency of its servers.In the meantime, if you want to stick with MobileMe syncing, your best bet for solving the glitches you’re experiencing would be to follow our extensive guide from our November 2009 issue (or find it online here--scroll down to #37) on how to reset your MobileMe syncing from scratch on all of your devices.Alternatively, you may want to ditch MobileMe altogether and explore alternatives such as the web-based calendaring and contact solutions from Google, which can synchronize to your iPhone and iPad using Google Sync (google.com/mobile/sync). On your Mac, you can synchronize to Google using Spanning Sync ($25 for one year, spanningsync.com) or use the built-in (but more limited) syncing tools within Snow Leopard’s Address Book and iCal.If you have an extra Mac that you can use as a server machine, you can even take syncing into your own hands by using a product like Apple’s Snow Leopard Server ($499, apple.com) or the outstanding Kerio Connect ($540, kerio.com). 47. The Other Team I’m running Windows 7 on my Mac using Boot Camp. How do I maintain my computer so both the Mac and Windows platforms stay healthy? And how can I make a clone of my computer that captures both?For tips on how to keep your Windows 7 partition healthy, you’ll want to turn to our sister magazine Maximum PC (this is a good place to start), where you’ll find the experts on all things PC-related. Although conventional wisdom about PCs dictates that you’ll want to defragment your Windows hard drive regularly and immediately install antivirus software on your Windows partition, those are two things that Mac users are not required to do.Your Mac will continue to maintain its health as long as all those hundreds of thousands of Windows viruses can’t reach your Mac files from within the Windows 7 environment. And they won’t be able to since Boot Camp only allows you to read your Mac partition but not write to it.If you gotta run Windows 7, Boot Camp can get it done on your Mac.However, if you install a program like MacDrive 8 ($49, mediafour.com), you’ll have full read and write access to your Mac partition...and so will all those Windows viruses. So be doubly sure to have antivirus software on your PC side.To clone your entire computer, you’ll need to make two clones: one for your Mac partition and one for your Windows partition. For the Mac partition, use a tool like SuperDuper ($28, shirt-pocket.com) or Carbon Copy Cloner (donations requested, bombich.com). For your Windows partition, we recommend Winclone (donations requested, twocanoes.com). 48. Log Me OutMy iMac has separate user accounts for my wife and me, plus a Guest Account for when we have parties and people are drawn to the 27-inch screen to play. Can the Mac automatically return to the login screen after some period of inactivity? I don’t want guests to have access to our accounts, and I don’t want my wife to have to remember to log out when she’s finished. I just want it to go back to the login screen to force the next person to log in as a user or guest.No problem--head to System Preferences > Security and check the box for Log Out After X Minutes of Activity, setting X to be any number you like. While you’re there, make sure Disable Automatic Login is checked too. That way, the login screen always appears when you start up, instead of a default administrator account.The auto-logout option is in System Preferences > Security.It’s also easy to lock down the Guest Account with System Preferences > Parental Controls, which lets you select which applications will be available. By default any files in a Guest Account’s Home folder are deleted when they log out, but you could park an alias in the Dock to a shared folder on your hard drive, called, say, “Save Stuff Here.” While you’re sprucing up the Dock, add some big, pretty icons for party-startin’ apps like Photo Booth and Camera Bag.Set up a Guest Account with System Preferences > Accounts, then manage--or spy on--it with Parental Controls. 49. Silence How do I disable voice control on my iPhone 3GS? I never use it, and it's annoying when it's in my pocket and accidentally activates.Good news: You can shut off Voice Control dialing. Bad news: Voice Control everything else stays on. To shut down Voice Control dialing, you need to turn on the Passcode Lock option for your iPhone. To do this and turn off Voice Control Dialing, navigate to Settings > General > Passcode Lock. Once you turn on Passcode Lock, you can turn off Voice Dial. 50. Behind the Black Shirt What does it take to become a Genius Bar technician?There are fewer great occupations in life than working at the Genius Bar. Think about it: When someone asks you what you do for a living, you get to tell them that you’re a Genius. On top of that, you get to manhandle Apple computers all day long, dealing with situations like figuring out what in the heck is going on with a MacBook that a carpenter impaled with his drill (remember to tell him it’s no longer under warranty). Check out our handy chart to see what it takes to become a Genius Bar employee. A. Get Smart! First things first: You gotta have plenty of knowledge about past and present Apple products. Geniuses must know hardware ranging across entire generations of Apple products, as well as software offered for all of the latest operating systems. After all, you never know what to expect when you work at the bar. For all you know, a customer might bring in their Performa 460 and ask you to transfer their hard drive data to one of those newfangled Mac Pros. B. Be Happy--and Discreet Employees at the Apple Store must be like employees at Disneyland--you’re in the Happiest Place on Earth, so smile
and keep your lips zipped tight about any advance knowledge of upcoming Apple products you might have. Or else. C. Magic Hands Before you can get your hands on customers’ gear, you need to get trained. A lot. Applying to be a Genius begins with a battery of tech questions--and we’re not talking the ins and outs of GarageBand, either. Applicants are expected to have deep knowledge about how to diagnose and fix serious hardware and software issues--after all, most of their job involves coping with damaged or seriously broken gear. Survive that hurdle, and it’s off to Cupertino for four weeks of sessions that include acquiring three Apple certifications (OS, Desktop, and Portable) and practice time with fake customers who are really good at being a pain in your backside. After that, the apprenticeship continues in a real live Apple Store for as much as another month before you become true blue Genius material. D. Black is Boss The shirt color is an essential part of working in the Apple store. The shirt depicts what department you work in and makes it so that customers know who exactly the Geniuses are who can help them with their waterlogged iPhone. E. Load-Bearing Can you diagnose a problem and solve it within 15 minutes? The Geniuses at the Bar can. Appointments taken at the back of the store are only supposed to take as long as it takes to get you halfway through your favorite sitcom, which ensures that even stores with heavy traffic volumes have a chance to help everyone out.

  • The daily roundup: here's what you might've missed

    Motorola Droid stands in for glamorous photo shoot What a difference two months make. Remember those renders? (See also:Verizon's anti-iPhone gets its first commercial: 'Droid Does') The Engadget Show: Inside Ben Heck's magic kingdom Don't forget, our next full length Engadget Show is happening this Thursday, and our guest is Steve Ballmer! Apple reports fiscal Q4 earnings: $1.67b profit, Mac sales way up, iPod sales down, 'great new products' for 2010 Great new products, you say? Would one of them happen to include some sort of, say, tablet PC? Other news of import Verizon confirms: Palm Pre hitting Big Red "early next year" Microsoft Store opening Thursday with Ashley Tisdale Dell's $2,000 Adamo XPS launching October 22 with heat-sensing open latch Plastic Logic teases QUE proReader with 8.5 x 11-inch touchscreen Bang & Olufsen's BeoVision 10: something awesome in the state of Denmark A wall-mounted LCD flat screen that boasts 40-inches of real estate, a brushed aluminum frame, and bottom mounted speakers that are available in a variety of color. LG BL40 New Chocolate review Where we found LG's watchphone lacking that extra bit of pizzazz to make it compelling, the BL40's design exudes just the right amount of eccentricity and flair to make it an aesthetically drool-worthy device. Poll: Where do you buy your Blu-ray discs now, if you buy them at all? Samsung develops first chip for US mobile digital TV transmission, provides no release date SamyGo project aims to add new features Samsung HDTVs Original BlackBerry Storm to get flick scrolling, better browsing through firmware update? RIM's BlackBerry watch pictured, possibly called 'inPulse?' HTC Tilt2 now available on AT&T The daily roundup: here's what you might've missed originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 19 Oct 2009 22:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments

  • The daily roundup: here's what you might've missed

    A visual recap of the day's articles Dec 4th 2009 | 39 Articles http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/the-daily-roundup-heres-what-you-mightve-missed/ 12:46 am 0 Comments The daily roundup: here's what you might've missed http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/creepy-robotic-heads-serenade-your-wallet-from-deep-inside-the-u/ 1:33 am 58 Comments Creepy robotic heads serenade your wallet from deep inside the uncanny valley http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/thermaltake-level-10-now-shipping-ready-to-rock-your-socks-and/ 2:31 am 48 Comments Thermaltake Level 10 now shipping, ready to rock your socks and wallet off http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/atom-n450-netbook-torrent-undammed-on-january-11-next-year/ 4:12 am 21 Comments Atom N450 netbook torrent undammed on January 11 next year? http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/asus-eee-box-eb1501-gets-unboxed/ 3:29 am 35 Comments Asus Eee Box EB1501 gets unBoxed http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/asus-eee-pc-seashell-1201n-ion-based-ready-for-500-amazon-pre-o/ 4:57 am 21 Comments ASUS Eee PC 1201N Ion-based Seashell ready for $500 Amazon pre-order http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/captain-piccards-solar-impulse-takes-flight/ 5:41 am 35 Comments Captain Piccard's Solar Impulse takes flight http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/some-geek-squads-to-start-driving-plug-in-mitsubishi-i-mievs/ 6:49 am 28 Comments Some Geek Squads to start driving plug-in Mitsubishi i-MiEVs http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/nokia-n900-teardown-reveals-smartphone-semantics/ 8:01 am 25 Comments Nokia N900 teardown reveals smartphone semantics http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/hearst-corp-creating-kindle-competitor-by-publishers-for-publ/ 7:41 am 10 Comments Hearst launching Skiff distribution system and Kindle competitor 'by publishers, for publishers,' thinks you'll want it too http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/hp-lets-ipaq-glisten-out-of-the-box/ 7:21 am 23 Comments HP lets iPAQ Glisten out of the box http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/olympus-e-600-reviewed-lives-up-to-its-billing-as-a-top-notch-e/ 9:02 am 30 Comments Olympus E-600 reviewed, lives up to its billing as a top-notch entry-level DSLR http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/dlo-walldock-iphone-charger-shoots-for-minimalist-practicality/ 8:30 am 27 Comments DLO WallDock iPhone charger shoots for minimalist practicality http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/epson-unleashes-picturemate-show-photo-frame-thats-also-a-print/ 9:52 am 27 Comments Epson unleashes PictureMate Show photo frame that's also a printer http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/harvard-and-mit-researchers-working-to-simulate-the-visual-corte/ 9:29 am 40 Comments Harvard and MIT researchers working to simulate the visual cortex to give computers true sight http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/nearly-two-million-mobile-wimax-subscribers-worldwide-by-years/ 11:11 am 25 Comments Nearly two million mobile WiMAX subscribers worldwide by year's end, most eyeing LTE suspiciously http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/nintendo-loses-ds-flash-cart-case-in-french-court/ 10:47 am 48 Comments Nintendo loses DS flash cart case in French court http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/kodak-selling-oled-display-business-to-lg-cross-licensing-like/ 10:20 am 6 Comments Kodak selling OLED display business to LG, cross-licensing like there's no tomorrow http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/verizon-commits-to-newer-android-for-droid-eris-with-google-ma/ 12:01 pm 39 Comments Verizon commits to 'newer' Android for Droid Eris with Google Maps Navigation in Q1 2010 http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/nook-ship-date-pushed-back-to-january-15th-no-nooks-in-stores-b/ 11:41 am 39 Comments Nook ship date pushed back to January 15th, no Nooks in stores before Christmas? http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/screen-grabs-house-md-likes-a-little-psp-go-between-his-high-r/ 11:32 am 54 Comments Screen grabs: House, MD likes a little PSP Go between his high-risk medical procedures http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/nokia-booklet-3g-review/ 1:10 pm 33 Comments Nokia Booklet 3G review http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/fusiongarage-plans-media-event-to-tell-its-side-of-the-crunchpad/ 12:47 pm 18 Comments FusionGarage plans media event to tell its side of the CrunchPad story http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/smartsynch-intros-gridrouter-for-smart-meters-and-the-electric-c/ 12:24 pm 6 Comments SmartSynch intros GridRouter for smart meters and the electric companies that love them http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/engadgets-holiday-gift-guide-televisions/ 2:09 pm 14 Comments Engadget's Holiday Gift Guide: Televisions http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/fcc-gives-verizon-the-third-degree-over-350-advanced-device-e/ 1:46 pm 67 Comments FCC gives Verizon the third degree over $350 'advanced device' ETF http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/core-values-whats-next-for-nvidia/ 3:00 pm 11 Comments Core Values: What's next for NVIDIA? http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/apple-adds-3-33ghz-xeon-2tb-hard-drive-options-to-mac-pro/ 2:41 pm 24 Comments Apple adds 3.33GHz Xeon, 2TB hard drive options to Mac Pro http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/the-engadget-podcast-live-at-2-45pm-est/ 2:21 pm 5 Comments The Engadget Podcast, live at 2:45PM EST! http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/wsj-confirms-apple-purchase-of-lala/ 10:54 pm 29 Comments WSJ confirms Apple purchase of Lala http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/barnes-and-nobles-nook-gets-a-brief-and-early-hands-on/ 9:54 pm 19 Comments Barnes & Noble's Nook gets a brief and early hands-on http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/psixpda-3g-umpc-hits-the-uk-reminds-us-of-a-pda-we-had-14-years/ 8:39 pm 18 Comments PsiXpda 3G UMPC hits the UK, reminds us of a PDA we had 14 years ago http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/dell-reorganizes-creates-communications-group-with-focus-on-mob/ 7:36 pm 34 Comments Dell creates communications division for push into handheld market http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/caption-contest-ellen-degeneres-and-her-oou-giveaway/ 6:41 pm 81 Comments Caption contest: Ellen DeGeneres and her ʞoou giveaway http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/apple-looking-to-buy-lala-get-into-streaming-music/ 5:40 pm 48 Comments Apple looking to buy Lala, get into streaming music? http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/htc-exec-promises-hero-successor-in-2010-debut-at-mobile-world/ 5:06 pm 53 Comments HTC exec promises Hero successor in 2010, debut at Mobile World Congress http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/ftc-moseys-into-intel-nvidia-dispute/ 4:22 pm 26 Comments FTC moseys into Intel / NVIDIA dispute http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/nook-early-adopters-promised-a-december-9th-shipment-10-online/ 3:52 pm 27 Comments Nook early adopters promised a December 9th shipment, $10 online gift certificate http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/04/motorola-prepping-la-jolla-low-end-android-clamshell/ 3:28 pm 46 Comments Motorola prepping 'La Jolla' low-end Android clamshell? Top stories on Engadget Core Values: What's next for NVIDIA? Creepy robotic heads serenade your wallet from deep inside the uncanny valley Nokia Booklet 3G review Top mobile stories Dell creates Communications group for handheld market FCC gives Verizon the third degree over $350 ETF HTC exec promises Hero successor in 2010 Top HD stories Engadget's Holiday Gift Guide: Televisions Hell freezes over, the FCC admits that CableCARD is a failure The daily roundup: here's what you might've missed originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 05 Dec 2009 01:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

  • The daily roundup: here's what you might've missed

    Dell Adamo XPS coming 'in time for the holidays' for $1799 (unboxing and hands-on video!) Make no mistake, this is a quintessential aspirational product. Verizon's DROID ERIS by HTC does Android and keeps it cheap Starting Friday for $99.99 on contract after a $100 mail-in rebate (See also: hands-on and unboxing!) Netflix shipping out PS3 instant streaming discs! Looks like our friend Jonathan here has a Friday delivery in store for him, while the lazier ones among us hunker down for an XMB software update late next year to let us stream Netflix to the PS3 disc-free. Other news of import BlackBerry Bold 9700 hands-on and impressions Olympus E-P2 official, patches over E-P1 problems and jacks up the price Mavizen's electric bike hits 130 MPH, ships with Linux and WiFi TwitterPeek review VUDU brings Pandora, Picasa and Flickr to connected HDTVs, promises more apps soon And you thought HDTVs were made for watching TV. iPhone vs DROID multitouch keyboard showdown (video) For now just know that no amount of hoping, wishing, or booze is going to make the stock keyboard register more than one press at a time. (See also: DROID on sale a little early at Best Buy Mobile) Ready for the first all-HD Winter Olympics? NBC is Dolby's spreading the word, reaching out to eyes and ears Verizon broadband data goes prepaid Verizon's LG Chocolate Touch skips on the BL40 influence BlackBerry Curve 8530 brings optical trackpad to Verizon The daily roundup: here's what you might've missed originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 05 Nov 2009 23:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments

  • The daily roundup: here's what you might've missed

    Netflix coming next month to PlayStation 3 Turns out a disc will be required for streaming, and that's the only solution available until a PS3 software update sometime in late 2010. Palm Pixi on sale November 15 exclusively at Sprint for $100 on contract Throw this thing on Verizon, AT&T or T-Mobile, and you've got a whole new wave of Palm customers; as it stands, who's really buying this with the Pre just $50 away? Verizon chief says offering the iPhone is Apple's call Remember how in grade school, you usually made fun of the people you had crushes on? Other news of import HTC You ad campaign unveiled (update: video!) Apple Tablet rumor roundup: NYT speaks of 'impending Apple slate,' new SIM tray leaks (video) Microsoft borrows Apple Store blueprint, manager (video) Ready or not, the latest 3D technology is coming home Before you knock the new technology before it's even out, read about the technologies that might bring us a real 3D revolution. Samsung Moment review Being able to stuff Android, AMOLED, QWERTY, and 800MHz all into one sentence certainly sounds like a winning combination, but does the Moment deliver? Toshiba's BDX2000 Blu-ray deck hits Best Buy for $199, sour grapes also on sale ZilionTV expands pilot program, delays product launch Verizon Storm2 on October 28th, BlackBerry OS 5.0 for original Storm out now HTC Dragon coming to Verizon as the Passion? Sony Ericsson looking ready to come clean with Android-powered Rachael on November 3 The daily roundup: here's what you might've missed originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 26 Oct 2009 23:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments

  • The daily roundup: here's what you might've missed

    A visual recap of the day's articles Jun 18th 2010 | 45 Articles http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/acer-comes-clean-with-new-aspire-one-availability-and-pricing/ 12:01 am 17 Comments Acer comes clean with new Aspire One availability and pricing http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/the-daily-roundup-heres-what-you-mightve-missed/ 1:00 am 0 Comments The daily roundup: here's what you might've missed http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/apples-a4-is-like-samsungs-s5-except-where-its-not/ 1:53 am 67 Comments Apple's A4 is like Samsung's S5, except where it's not http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/samsungs-spintpoint-f4-320gb-is-fast-and-quiet-we-think/ 1:34 am 31 Comments Samsung's Spinpoint F4 320GB is fast and quiet, we think http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/palm-confirms-new-devices-webos-upgrade/ 2:36 am 84 Comments Palm confirms new devices, webOS upgrade http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/apple-launches-find-my-iphone-app/ 4:05 am 125 Comments Apple launches 'Find My iPhone' app to remotely wipe and find your lost treasure http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/kin-skin-for-windows-mobile-6-5-leads-to-more-questions-than-ans/ 3:21 am 32 Comments Kin skin for Windows Mobile 6.5 leads to more questions than answers http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/new-xbox-360-gets-a-proper-teardown-analysis-power-and-noise-re/ 5:10 am 90 Comments New Xbox 360 gets a proper teardown analysis: power and noise reductions confirmed http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/apples-mobileme-mail-gets-a-refresh/ 4:45 am 141 Comments Apple's MobileMe Mail gets a refresh http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/onlive-turns-sentient-now-beaming-gaming-goodness-over-the-ethe/ 4:28 am 98 Comments OnLive turns sentient, now beaming gaming goodness over the ether http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/steelseries-shows-off-ultra-durable-spectrum-headset-we-fail-to/ 5:52 am 20 Comments SteelSeries shows off ultra-durable Spectrum headset, we fail to rip it a new one (video) http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/how-to-figure-out-the-best-value-iphone-4-contracts-in-the-uk/ 6:49 am 126 Comments How-to: figure out the best value iPhone 4 contracts in the UK http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/evigroup-paddle-gets-specced-and-splayed-now-available-from-59/ 6:26 am 13 Comments eviGroup Paddle gets specced and splayed, now available from €599 http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/audis-sound-concept-cabin-defines-auditory-excess-62-speaker-s/ 8:03 am 78 Comments Audi's Sound Concept cabin defines auditory excess: 62 speaker surround-sound http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/developer-gets-sonys-remote-play-working-on-non-vaio-machines/ 7:29 am 55 Comments Developer gets Sony's Remote Play working on non-VAIO machines http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/casios-slim-xj-a-projectors-repurposed-for-gaming-we-take/ 8:59 am 31 Comments Casio's slim XJ-A projectors repurposed for gaming, we take a gander http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/microsoft-small-basic-gets-a-stable-release-aims-to-inspire-a-n/ 8:33 am 68 Comments Microsoft Small Basic gets a stable release, aims to inspire a new generation of programmers http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/rayqual-adapters-bring-leica-nikon-and-canon-lenses-to-sonys/ 10:12 am 31 Comments Rayqual adapters bring Leica, Nikon, and Canon lenses to Sony's NEX cameras http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/razer-starcraft-ii-and-xbox-360-peripherals-hands-on/ 9:49 am 25 Comments Razer Starcraft II and Xbox 360 peripherals hands-on http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/jumpstart-dual-usb-charger-sports-an-integrated-rechargeable-bat/ 9:24 am 44 Comments JumpStart Dual USB charger sports an integrated rechargeable battery http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/joby-gorillapod-focus-and-ballhead-x-review/ 11:14 am 33 Comments Joby Gorillapod Focus and Ballhead X review http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/white-htc-evo-4g-coming-exclusively-to-best-buy-on-july-11th/ 10:48 am 285 Comments White HTC EVO 4G coming exclusively to Best Buy on July 11th, pre-orders start today http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/hello-kitty-engine-oil-because-not-everyone-can-drive-electric/ 10:34 am 36 Comments Hello Kitty engine oil: because not everyone can drive electric cars http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/canonical-hearts-tablets-but-its-not-making-a-special-ubuntu-f/ 12:02 pm 23 Comments Canonical hearts tablets, but it's not making a special Ubuntu for them http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/olympus-cranks-out-two-point-and-shoots/ 11:38 am 15 Comments Olympus cranks out two point and shoots: X560 WP and T100 http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/htc-aria-slipping-out-early-into-atandt-stores/ 1:04 pm 85 Comments HTC Aria slipping out early into AT&T stores http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/orange-begins-hd-voice-trial-in-southern-england-leaves-out-buc/ 12:42 pm 42 Comments Orange begins HD Voice trial in Southern England, leaves out Buckingham Palace http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/3-pin-british-plug-go-ahead-and-yank-it/ 12:21 pm 61 Comments 3 Pin British Plug: go ahead and yank it http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/logitech-revue-gets-official-google-tv-companion-box-coming-thi/ 2:11 pm 44 Comments Logitech Revue gets official: Google TV companion box coming this Fall http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/new-xbox-360-head-to-head-with-the-360-original-ps3-slim-and/ 1:40 pm 191 Comments The new Xbox 360 is here -- we go head-to-head with the 360 Original, PS3 Slim, and Wii http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/nao-robots-get-together-to-get-down-video/ 1:26 pm 60 Comments Nao robots get together to get down, put a ring on it (video) http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/motorolas-split-plan-calls-for-a-debt-free-cash-heavy-mobile-u/ 2:55 pm 14 Comments Motorola's split plan calls for a debt-free, cash-heavy mobile unit http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/googlecl-command-line-tool-might-be-the-nerdiest-product-google/ 2:53 pm 48 Comments GoogleCL command line tool might be the nerdiest product Google has ever made http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/diy-tablet-kit-is-less-than-400-more-complicated-than-an-ipad/ 2:29 pm 64 Comments DIY tablet kit is less than $400, more complicated than an iPad http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/nvidia-ion-2-based-acer-aspire-532g-netbook-canceled-for-now/ 4:14 pm 30 Comments NVIDIA Ion 2-based Acer Aspire 532g netbook canceled for now http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/navigon-shows-off-new-release-for-iphone-with-multitasking-compa/ 3:53 pm 100 Comments Navigon shows off new release for iPhone with multitasking compatibility http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/nintendo-3ds-game-cart-pictured-wireless-ebook-reader-on-tap/ 3:34 pm 40 Comments Nintendo 3DS game cart pictured, wireless ebook reader on tap? http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/google-replaces-hints-of-chrome-os-hardware-from-acer-dell-and/ 3:16 pm 74 Comments Google replaces hints of Chrome OS hardware from Acer, Dell, and HP with even better hints http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/panasonic-gf1-gets-1080p-video-recording-via-firmware-hack/ 5:11 pm 21 Comments Panasonic GF1 gets 1080p video recording via firmware hack http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/meego-handset-ui-guidelines-offer-details-aplenty-suggestion-of/ 4:36 pm 38 Comments Meego handset UI guidelines offer details aplenty, suggestion of WebOS, Android influences http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/nokia-says-all-of-its-smartphones-will-support-nfc-starting-next/ 5:57 pm 27 Comments Nokia says all of its smartphones will support NFC starting next year http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/turtle-beach-ear-force-z2-ears-on/ 6:38 pm 19 Comments Turtle Beach Ear Force Z2 ears-on http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/mac-mini-mid-2010-review/ 8:00 pm 84 Comments Mac mini (mid 2010) review http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/ipad-mouse-pad-allows-owners-to-surf-to-flash-sites/ 7:24 pm 40 Comments iPad mouse pad allows owners to surf to Flash sites http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/18/forcetek-xio-the-gaming-controller-that-hurts-you-not-the-tv/ 9:03 pm 8 Comments ForceTek XIO: the gaming controller that hurts you, not the TV (video) Top stories on Engadget The new Xbox 360 is here -- we go head-to-head with the 360 Original, PS3 Slim, and Wii White HTC EVO 4G coming to Best Buy on July 11th, pre-orders start today How-to: figure out the best value iPhone 4 contracts in the UK Mac mini (mid 2010) review OnLive turns sentient, now beaming gaming goodness over the ether Other news of import Palm confirms new devices HTC Aria slipping out early to AT&T Apple launches 'Find My iPhone' app to remotely wipe and find your lost treasure Navigon shows off new release for iPhone with multitasking compatibility Google replaces hints of Chrome OS hardware from Acer, Dell, and HP with even better hints Apple's MobileMe Mail gets a refresh for some reason The daily roundup: here's what you might've missed originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 18 Jun 2010 23:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

  • The daily roundup: here's what you might've missed

    Nokia vs. Apple: the in-depth analysis Nokia can't compete against Apple, so obviously it's abusing the hopelessly-broken patent system get a little payback, Espoo-style -- right? Well, wrong. ICANN set to allow non-Latin characters in domain names, half the world rejoices Pending approval this Friday, the first new domain names will start coming out in 2010, when we can expect a whole new wave of internet land grabbing. Nintendo DSi LL goes large in Japan on November 21 DSi XL coming to US and Europe Q1 2010. (See also: Nintendo profits sink on declining console sales, weak game selection) Other news of import Ubuntu 9.10 'Karmic Koala' released, could decide your OS fate TomTom Car Kit for iPhone review iTunes goes 9.0.2: adds support for Apple TV 3.0, kills Pre sync Broadcom's new DVR chip could make all our dreams come true The sad news is that there's no way to know how long we'll have to wait before a DVR is released that'll actually take advantage it. Best Buy offering DROID pre-orders as of today, automates the mail-in rebate Best Buy also seems to be the first place to offer pre-orders of the phone, so if you're worried about a sell out or just generally averse to affixing stamps to things, go forth. Transformers 2 tops chart, best selling Blu-ray of all time? Apple TV 3.0 software update is out, with iTunes Extras, LP & Genius in tow Ask Engadget HD: Is it (still) a good time to buy a TiVo? HTC CEO says he could but won't make HD2 an Android phone, has to take care of Windows Mobile DROID Phone Holder and Multimedia Station go for $30 apiece The daily roundup: here's what you might've missed originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Oct 2009 22:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments

  • The Daily Roundup: here's what you might've missed

    New York Times: Palm Pre to launch in the first week of June Guys, guess what? The Palm Pre is really, seriously, totally coming out, like, super soon. Slim PS3 update: mysterious Chinese firm issues a cease and desist... to Engadget You know, one of these days, someone at one of these big companies is going to get this right. Apple may (or may not) be mulling background apps for the iPhone Whether it be case materials and design, native iPhone app development, or video support on the iPod, Apple's not a company to apologize for drastically (and suddenly) changing course. Other news of import Napster relaunching, again: $5 per month streaming plus five free downloads AT&T considering cheaper iPhone plans? Microsoft's Virtual WiFi will make Windows 7 wireless adapters do a double-take How do you like your TiVo, with bleeps & bloops or without? This isn't one of our polls but it's a worth question: TiVo users, do you leave your unit's distinctive bleeps and bloops on, or turn them off? Nokia rolls out 2720, 2730, and 7020 on the low end Nokia has a tendency to roll out its low-end fare in big batches -- you might think of it as the polar opposite of, say, an NTT DoCoMo launch -- and the trend continues today. Linksys discontinues Media Center Extenders, hardly anyone notices Coraline Blu-ray disc brings home 3D & 2D versions July 21 T-Mobile USA delays Android 1.5 rollout by a few days Samsung i7500 to be renamed Galaxy, released in France in early July LG enV Touch set for June 5 Verizon debut The Daily Roundup: here's what you might've missed originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 18 May 2009 23:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments

  • The Daily Roundup: here's what you might've missed

    Sony unveiling UMD-less PSP with slide-out buttons at E3? Whispers of a new or revised PSP have been growing decidedly louder as of late, and now 1UP's gotten a ton of new details from what it claims are "sources directly involved with the new system" -- our favorite kind of people, actually. iPhone OS 3.0 beta 4, iTunes 8.2 pre-release now live Just two weeks after the last revision went up, Apple's released iPhone OS 3.0 beta 4 to the developer community alongside an iTunes 8.2 pre-release. Windows 7's virtual XP has intangible system requirements Microsoft tickled our meta-OS fancies last week by talking up the virtualized version of Windows XP included with Windows 7 Professional and Ultimate Edition. Other news of import Canon EOS Rebel T1i vs. Nikon D5000... fight! TiVo's Jim Denney responds to Engadget! Palm Pre: $138 to build according to iSuppli Samsung's 23-inch OLED TV coming in 2010, others following suit Given just how long we've been looking at prototype OLED panels at trade shows (and trade shows alone), we're understandably skeptical about a few new claims regarding availability. Motorola's first Android phone(s) to have sliding QWERTY? Motorola needed to release an Android set about six months ago, but we know these things take time -- and if it's any consolation, it sounds like the first fruits of the labor could be pretty awesome. Marvel vs. Capcom 2's HD upgrade explained Samsung intros drop-dead gorgeous SMX-C14 and SMX-C10 camcorders Nokia Music veep addresses slow Comes with Music sales in the UK New webOS screenshots pop courtesy of SDK's emulator Microsoft reiterates what we knew: no first-party handset, no Zunephone The Daily Roundup: here's what you might've missed originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Apr 2009 23:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments

  • Will Google's Android Play DOS to Apple's iPhone?

    Daniel Eran Dilger Today's broad array of smartphone operating system contenders are offering lots of potential answers to a problem that only requires one. It appears the market has two options ahead: either pool generic hardware makers behind a single operating system and deliver a smartphone marketplace that resembles the Windows PC market, or watch them fall to a dominant leader and have a smartphone market that resembles Apple's iPod ecosystem. This decision isn't going to be made by a class of intellectual elite, or by government mandate. it's going to be made by the market itself. Here are the factors that will influence the outcome, either marginalizing Apple's iPhone into a niche as the company has twice experienced previously at the hands of DOS in 1981 and Windows in 1991, or positioning it as the dominant leader as Apple has achieved for itself with the iPod since 2001. The third segment in this series looks at Google's Android and the Open Handset Alliance as a possible “DOS-attack” against Apple's iPhone. Subsequent segments will look at Nokia's newly opened Symbian and other mobile contenders challenging the iPhone. Will the iPhone Meet its Match from a Modern Day DOS? Will Windows Mobile Play DOS to Apple’s iPhone? Will Google's Android Play DOS to Apple's iPhone? Will Symbian Play DOS to Apple's iPhone? Google Acquires Android. In 2005, Google purchased a startup named Android, which had been in business for nearly two years. The secretive startup was known only to be working on software for mobile phones. It was being run by a who's who of mobile industry veterans, including Andy Rubin, the founder of Danger. Rubin had earlier worked at WebTV along with Chris White and Andy McFadden, both of whom had also joined Android. Richard Miner of Orange and Nick Sears of Tmobile also brought their mobile provider experience to Android. At the time of the acquisition, Google didn't announce any plans for Android and instead only told BusinessWeek, “We acquired Android because of the talented engineers and great technology. We're thrilled to have them here.” It appeared that Google was only going to be expanding its search services for mobile phone users, along the lines of the Google SMS answer system it had recently released. Google Buys Android for Its Mobile Arsenal - BusinessWeek Windows XP Media Center Edition vs Apple TV: The Fall of WebTV The GPhone Myth. As reports began to leak out about talks between Google and hardware makers throughout 2007, rumors began to fly about “the GPhone,” a competitive offering that was supposed to take on the iPhone. Some phone enthusiasts hoped Google would jump in to rescue the struggling OpenMoko project and turn it into a viable project that could attack Apple's new smartphone. In October 2007, I printed the Great Google GPhone Myth, taking apart the idea that Google would be directly competing against the iPhone, and describing that Google was really working on a free alternative to Windows Mobile as a conduit for getting its search and related services on a broader variety of mobiles. Google's services were already on the iPhone. In November, Google played its hand: it had organized a consortium of companies called the Open Handset Alliance to develop open standards for mobiles. The first product from the group would be Android, a mobile operating system built on the Linux kernel. Google wasn't getting into the phone handset business at all; it was only making sure that its mobile search products would not risk being marginalized by the threat of Windows Mobile on phones in the same way Microsoft had been working to leverage its PC monopoly to push Google search off the Windows desktop. The Great Google gPhone Myth Introducing Android: Leader of Linux. Two weeks later, Google released an early version of the Android software. On top of a Linux kernel, Android uses a specialized version of a Java Virtual Machine that takes Java language code and turns it into what Google calls “Dalvik bytecode” rather than Java bytecode as a standard JVM would. This allows Google to leverage existing and familiar Java language tools without paying Sun for a Java license. Like Mac OS X and its fraternal iPhone OS, Android includes a variety of open source libraries, including SQLite and WebKit. On top of that, Google developed a series of frameworks that handle the tasks Cocoa Touch does on the iPhone. Android also bundles a set of applications. While Apple adapted its existing Mac OS X to work in a mobile environment to create the iPhone OS, Android is more like a customized Java environment running on a specialized mobile Linux variant: elements of maturity in an otherwise experimental new platform. What is Android? -Google Android was by no means the first mobile OS using Linux. Both Palm and its amputated ACCESS software arm have Linux-based mobile platforms. Nokia has Maemo, which it uses in its Internet Tablets, and also recently acquired Trolltech and its Qtopia mobile Linux platform. Motorola has teamed up with MontaVista Software to use its Mobilinux. Intel created the Moblin project for mobile Linux, aimed at Internet devices. Google's OHA also isn't the first consortium to attempt to standardize a mobile Linux platform. The OSDL started the Mobile Linux Initiative to define requirements for hardware; the Consumer Electronics Linux Forum (CELF) then worked to define various phone profiles aimed at the Japanese market; the Linux Phone Standard (LiPS) Forum tried to do the same thing in Europe. In 2007, LiPS was folded into the new LiMo Foundation, along with the OSDL. All of these committees have had some overlap and some complementary features. Several of Google's OHA partners are also LiMo members, including NTT DoCoMo, Wind River, and Motorola. So why didn't Google just join LiMo? “LiMo, very candidly, wasn't moving fast enough,” OHA board member John Bruggeman told CNET. Google hopes to herd the Linux cats into a progressive, structured platform that can battle against Symbian and Windows Mobile to succeed as the new DOS of smartphones. Will Google fracture or unify mobile Linux? The Presumption of the Necessity of DOS. The previous segment examining Windows Mobile pointed out how the PC industry as a whole assumed that Microsoft's desktop Windows monopoly would easily take over dominance in the MP3 player market, pushing Apple into a niche position. This was expected because DOS had pushed Apple's early computers into a reduced role starting in 1981, and Microsoft had repeated this again in 1991 when the DOS world migrated to Windows, effectively pruning Apple's Macintosh into a Bonsai platform. The inability of one company to dominate any product category has been frequently repeated by PC industry pundits as a given, despite the fact that history is full of examples of this happening. Sony dominated personal music players for two decades under the Walkman brand even while equally large competitors tried to push it from this position; Nintendo has similarly owned handheld gaming despite ill-fated efforts to grab a piece of its pie by products running a generic platform such as Microsoft's WinCE (Gizmondo), Linux (GP32), and Symbian (N-Gage). In fact, outside of the Windows/DOS PC, there are actually few examples of a generic platform taking over an industry. Nearly every other consumer-facing product uses proprietary platforms: car makers, stereo equipment, appliances and so on typically all use designs custom to their maker. The paradox of the Windows PC market has been that Microsoft's broadly licensed software supposedly saves hardware makers from investing in software development while ensuring compatibility, when in reality it adds significant costs to PC makers while limiting their ability to differentiate themselves. That explains why PC makers have been perpetually merging together and going out of business while Microosft has rolled in money over the last two decades. Parallel efforts to copy Microsoft in broadly licensing an operating system have regularly failed: IBM's OS/2, Apple's Mac OS, Palm's PDA OS, even Microsoft's own efforts to duplicate Windows dominance in other markets, from copy machines to PDAs to smartphones to SPOT watches to music players. The closest copy may be Symbian, but its customers are partners, not simply consumers of a generic third party's operating system as Windows licensees are. That indicates it is not necessary to duplicate the dominance exercised by Microsoft over the PC industry in the smartphone market. Google's Android and Symbian exist more as technology sharing pacts among manufacturers, but both aspire to take Microsoft's DOS role among smartphones. However, the idea that Apple's iPhone must be dethroned by a modern-day DOS, whether Windows Mobile, Android, or Symbian, is not just debatable, but does not sync with the reality of more recent events. Apple's recent history of the iPod further refutes the idea that a software analog to Microsoft is needed. The iPod Emergence: Apple & Pixo vs IBM & Microsoft. Apple's iPod in 2001 made no effort to clone the DOS business model; it actually did the opposite. When Apple entered the market, there were a number of existing MP3 devices using custom software, hardware designs, and DRM codecs. The iPod used off the shelf components to deliver a custom MP3 player using third party software, but Apple also added its own technologies: easy to use sync with iTunes, a fast Firewire interface that made uploading music far faster than the prevailing USB 1.0, and an attractive industrial design. With the iPod, Apple played the role of IBM in 1981, using Pixo's embedded operating system to enter the market quickly, just as IBM had used DOS. The difference was that Apple didn't direct any market attention toward Pixo and added a lot of value on top of that core embedded OS. A modern day Compaq couldn't simply clone the hardware and license Pixo to run on it in order to compete against the iPod, because the iPod was much more than just generic hardware running Pixo software. As the iPod developed, Pixo's role diminished and was eventually displaced. Just like IBM, Apple jumped into a new market just as demand was beginning to explode. Apple made MP3 players far more attractive to a general audience by delivering greater playback capacity than most entry level devices offered, along with an ease of use that encouraged buyers to jump in at the higher end of the market. That left Apple with not only the lion's share of the market, but also by far the most profitable segments of the market. Two decades prior, IBM badly fumbled its play with the early PC and ended up irrelevant in the PC world by the late 80s, sideswiped by Microsoft's DOS and the cloners who were licensing it in parallel, notably Compaq and later HP and Dell. Steve Jobs had witnessed that happen, and was determined to not let it happen again to Apple. Rather than being manipulated by a software middleware vendor as IBM had, Apple worked to incrementally develop the iPod market itself. After consuming the hard drive-based player market, Apple took on the Flash RAM-based market with a tiny hard drive system used in the iPod Mini, and followed up with Flash-based devices of its own in the Nano and Shuffle. This allowed Apple to progressively serve an increasingly wider market, incrementally growing upon an established foundation. With the iPod, Apple became, in effect, an IBM with its own internal Microsoft. Microsoft's Failure Despite Features. In contrast, Microsoft entered the music player market by promoting music player hardware reference designs around WinCE. However, it was unable to ship a finished design until the iPod had become firmly established around 2005. Later branded as PlaysForSure, the devices were sold by various hardware makers and all purported to support the same DRM and the same music subscription services while also offering a broader array of hardware that presented video before the iPod did, supported wireless before the iPod, and so on. Despite these unique features, all of those PFS designs still failed. Microsoft blamed the failure of PFS upon its music store and hardware partners and decided to take Apple on itself in 2006. It relaunched a Toshiba PFS player as its own device under the Zune brand, adding WiFi music sharing features and a larger display than the current Pods had. It failed dramatically as well. Did Microsoft's attempts to float a new DOS among music players fail because of Apple's success, or due to Microsoft's own problems? The failure of the Zune, which followed the iPod model rather than the DOS model, seems to suggest that Microsoft itself was to blame. Consider too that Microsoft's Windows Mobile phones, which use the same underlying operating system as its failed PlaysForSure music players and the Zune, had similarly flopped even before Apple could release a charismatic phone equivalent to the iPod. Of course, when the iPhone was released, it hit Windows Mobile hardest. The iPhone made Windows Mobile Smartphones look ridiculous and underpowered, and made Windows Mobile Pocket PC phones look clumsy and awkward, despite the fact that they both supported a variety of features the iPhone didn't, including the ability to edit documents, capture video, send MMS, and so on. Simply adding on features did not enable Microsoft to compete against Apple. The only conclusion that can be drawn from all this is that competing against Apple requires more than just having a feature arsenal. Microsoft's failures in themselves do not necessarily mean that Google's Android will fail in its attempts to float its own smartphone platform. Why Microsoft’s Zune is Still Failing Microsoft’s Zune, Vista, and Windows Mobile 7 Strategy vs the iPhone Will Google Succeed where Microsoft Failed? Microsoft's demonstrated inability to successfully enter consumer markets for MP3 players and smartphones has given observers little faith that the company will somehow turn things around in late 2009 when its next generation of devices are expected to be released. However, prior to that the first fruits of Google's efforts to build its own smartphone operating environment will arrive. Will Google's Android take over Microsoft's crown as the “DOS vendor” among smartphones? Supporters of Google's Android project point to some parallels between Android for smartphones and Windows on the PC: Android will allow hardware makers to differentiate in ways that can offer features Apple can't (or doesn't want to); it should allow software developers to offer features Apple does not allow on the iPhone; it embraces open, hobbyist experimentation in ways that Apple currently isn't; and it opens the potential for content providers that Apple is not interested in allowing. Openness is Android's key competitive feature. Will all this openness allow Google to unseat the iPhone to become the primary platform developers want to participate in, and subsequently soak up the market for third party hardware makers that Windows Mobile serves? While Google currently has no market share due to the fact that no Android phones have yet shipped, it does have broad vocal support from a variety of the same kinds of hardware manufacturers that supported DOS and Windows and helped to make those platforms successful in the desktop PC market. HTC and Android. The first Android phone is expected to be the HTC Dream; Taiwan's HTC (High Tech Computer) also manufactures Palm's Treo Pro phone as well as many of the most visible Windows Mobile devices. In addition to models produced under its own name, HTC also sells Windows Mobile devices under the Dopod brand, as well as no-name phones branded by providers, such as AT&T, Orange, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless, Vodafone, and others. HTC will also be building the XPERIA X1 Windows Mobile phone for Sony Ericsson. HTC was quick to throw its support behind Android despite its long term alliance with Windows Mobile. Why would it so enthusiastically support an unproven platform from a company that has no experience in consumer hardware platforms? One can only assume that HTC is not happy with the current state of Windows Mobile, and desperately wants another “DOS” to succeed where Microsoft's has so spectacularly failed. As an Original Design Manufacturer for Palm, HTC watched as Palm adopted Windows Mobile in place of the Palm OS and subsequently fell even deeper into crisis. Palm's only successful phone since has been its Palm OS-based Centro. HTC undoubtedly sees Android as its ticket to becoming the next Dell, but without a similar dependance upon Microsoft. Android for mobile phones is essentially playing the role of Linux for PCs, except that it has the backing of a major company behind it. Can Android Take on the iPhone with Openness as its Feature? As great as this sounds, it's important to consider that Linux on the desktop has made no significant progress in eating into Windows dominance after a decade of trying. Being open, free, flexible, and decentralized hasn't been enough of an advantage to get consumers to migrate from Windows to Linux in any fraction of significance. Similarly, in the music business, Linux-based MP3 players have had no impact on the iPod, despite offering more features, flexibility, support for additional codecs, and so on. In the mobile phone area, Linux enjoys a sizable portion of the smartphone market, but this is almost entirely due to phones sold by Motorola in China, where the advantages of Linux' openness are void. Motorola's Linux phones offer nothing to users in terms of openness or flexibility, and are really no different in terms of features than other appliance 'feature phones' based upon closed operating systems. And again, a key problem with assaulting Apple in a feature war is that neither the iPod nor the iPhone became popular by being “highly featured.” They both delivered perhaps 80% of the functionality found in all other devices in the market. Rather than trying to match every feature and cater to every niche as Microsoft had with Windows Mobile, Apple's devices did a few things very well at launch, and incrementally developed into full featured devices that still lack some of the more unique features of their competitors. Further, in terms of openness, the demographic that embraces Linux' characteristic freedoms is not the same as the demographic that buys smartphones in quantity and then pays for data service. This is a critical fact to consider because a big part of the iPhone's success stems from the fact that it is being pushed by mobile providers who want to capture the cream of the market willing to pay a premium for data services. The Frankenphone. Combining the fractured aesthetic of HTC's Windows Mobile phone hardware with Android's software, based upon Linux' perpetually unfinished DIY openness and Google's Java-like development platform, will not result in a product similar to the iPhone. Instead, it will look a lot like phones that have already failed in the market. Apple's advantage comes from slick hardware designs with a close attention to detail, combined with software that purposely does less so that it can do what it does better. Even Apple's own conservative attempts to broaden its software capabilities with iPhone 2.0 have resulted in instability problems that can be blamed upon both Apple's early releases of its phone operating system and software from inexperienced third party developers new to the platform. Would the current frustrations with iPhone 2.0 be somehow mitigated by additional openness that also embraced all kinds of variables from different hardware makers with less quality control than Apple, a loose committee of additional cooks working to serve up operating system features targeted at every possible conceived need, and a wider third party software group with fewer constraints on illegal behaviors? The Failure of Open. While it is politically unpopular to criticize the well meaning efforts of open source contributors, the failure of Linux on the desktop, the failure of the vaporware Indrema game console, and the failure of the OpenMoko project to deliver a workable phone within a year of its deadline all underline the serious problems open development faces in the world of consumer oriented devices. Open has simply failed to deliver on its promises in the world of consumer hardware. OpenMoko was supposed to release its first mobile phone to consumers for $250 several months in advance of the iPhone. When the iPhone shipped, the group then announced new plans to get its phone out by the end of 2007. Instead, this spring the group announced new plans to move to an entirely different development platform, and ship its phone mid year for $400 with limited functionality and incomplete software outside of basic GSM phone features. Linux's notable successes, from Motorola's Linux phones to the Tivo DVR to Linksys Routers, have often come without any associated openness or freedom, and were instead delivered simply to provide their manufacturer with a free kernel to build upon. This indicates that while Linux may find its way into an increasing number of smartphones, it will likely not be accompanied by the glorious freedom of an open development environment Google has said it would offer with Android. Apple iPhone vs the FIC Neo1973 OpenMoko Linux Smartphone Can Google Succeed Where Open Has Previously Failed? Despite “openness” being Android's strongest competitive feature compared to Apple's iPhone, Google recently revealed that its wide-open development model is intentionally gravitating towards a closed association of top tier partners due to practical considerations. In July, Google accidentally sent out a notice that revealed that it had been seeding private SDK updates to only a subset of its contributors, angering those who believed that Android would be as open as Linux on the desktop or the OpenMoko project. Further, Google has restricted initial development to higher level APIs just as Apple did, further indicating that Google itself realizes that being wildly open to impress a minority of hobbyists will not result in the commercial success of its new platform. That serves to neuter Android's primary advantage over the iPhone. Without delivering on the premise of being wide open, Android is really just a less mature set of Java libraries used to create a specialized binary that runs on a Linux foundation. Unlike Apple's iPhone, Android phones won't have a slick user interface developed by professional artists, nor the iPhone's legacy of mature software development frameworks crafted over the last thirty years, nor the iPhone's tightly integrated hardware with award winning industrial design, nor its marketing power tied into the iPod and Apple's retail stores. Android won't be an open iPhone, it will only be a Windows Mobile phone with a better kernel that runs specialized Java software instead of Win32 or .NET code. Don't expect consumers to be impressed by that. The Biggest Missing Feature. There is one remaining factor that strangles to death any last remaining hope that Android might assassinate the iPhone and assume the crown of the “DOS of smartphones.” That is: Android delivers zero price advantage to consumers. In 1981 and 1991, consumers who wanted Apple computers faced the sticker shock of a somewhat arrogant price tag. Apple sold its computers, as it still does, at the higher end of the market, but there was simply far more range in prices available. In 1981, that meant the Apple II was $2600 and the new Apple III was $3500, even before you added a monitor. On the low end, Commodore sold its far less powerful, but “still a computer” Vic-20 for $300, while IBM entered the market with the IBM PC at $3000. Over the next few years, Apple focused on delivering additional sophistication at the same price, releasing the $10,000 Lisa and then the $2,500 Macintosh. IBM continued selling PCs in the same $3,000 to $10,000 range, but other DOS PC vendors began selling machines at prices that ranged as low as $1500. That left Apple with a roughly $1000 price premium over low end PCs. The products weren't really comparable, but consumers only saw the huge price difference. In 1991, Apple was still selling moderate to high-end Macintoshes for $3,800 to $10,000; the crippled Mac LC was $2500, and obsolete-at-birth Mac Classic ranged from $999 to $1500. Windows allowed PC makers to ship a functional $1500 PC and claim a rough approximation to Apple's $2500 entry level system, maintaining that apparent $1000 price premium. Today, pundits are lucky to find a Dell or HP system that is even a couple hundred dollars less than a comparable Mac. However, in the smartphone business, the iPhone 3G is now the same price, if not less, than generic competing phones on the market. Even more significant is the fact that the price of the phone hardware is nearly nothing compared to the cost of the service plan. This fact simply eases any price premium that could cause buyers to flock to a smartphone running a generic operating system over buying the iPhone 3G, regardless of whether it runs Windows Mobile or Android. 1990-1995: Planting Software Seeds Android Partners Have Already Failed. That same pricing principle similarly prevented buyers from considering many of the alternatives to the iPod. While Apple's original iPod models were more expensive than many of the first MP3 players on the market, they were price competitive with models offering similar features. By 2004, it was Apple who was undercutting MP3 competitors on price. Microsoft offered zero price advantage when it began selling the Zune, a major factor in its failure, but Microsoft simply couldn't out-price the iPod; it was already losing money offering the Zune at the same price as the iPod. Apple now has tremendous market power in buying RAM and other components that will prevent any competitors from being able to offer a huge discount over the iPhone's $199 price tag. Even if competitors were to give their phones away, they would only offer a $200 discount to users who would then still need to pay the same mobile fees to use the phone. Android's other partners, including Samsung and LG, have already failed to capture any significant market share in the music player market. Are they going to maintain their position as smartphone makers now that they face similar competition from Apple, its iPod ecosystem, its iTunes Music and Apps Store, Apple's retail store experience, and other factors that are pushing the iPhone? If they can, it is not obvious how partnering with Android will help. Other Problems for Android. Android was announced in early November 2007 and was followed with an early preview SDK within a couple weeks, a month ahead of Apple's initial announcement of the iPhone 2.0 SDK. However, between March and July 2008, Apple delivered nine progressive releases of its SDK, opened its App Store, and sold 60 million apps, raising $30 million to support iPhone software development in just the first month. It has since released three more SDK updates to developers related to iPhone 2.1, which is expected next month. Android just published its first open SDK beta update earlier this week, warning developers that “applications developed with it may not quite be compatible with devices running the final Android 1.0.” Additionally, Android still has no phones available. By the time the HTC Dream is expected to launch, Apple will have an installed base of around ten million iPhone (and iPod touch) users supporting software development through iTunes. The business model for selling Android apps is no better than that for selling jailbreak iPhone apps: there is no iTunes Apps Store to promote them, so users will have to track them down on their own. Android developers also have no real freedom that jailbreak iPhone developers lack. The only difference is that there are ten million iPhones to sell jailbreak apps to, and currently zero Android phones. If selling a jailbreak iPhone app sounds like more trouble than its worth, imagine trying to sell Android apps to a non-existant audience. Now add the official iPhone App Store into the mix, where publicity, promotion and profits are booming. What platform is going to have the most applications? How many users will flock to a smartphone platform with no apps? The wisdom of releasing a desirable phone and achieving a significant installed base before releasing an SDK makes a lot more sense in retrospect. Additionally, while Apple has a decade of experience in shipping regular updates to Mac OS X and its Xcode developer tools, Google has only shipped a random assortment of web-oriented SDKs (a number of which have been abandoned) as a tangent to its core business of selling advertisements. When the Android SDK 1.0 is finished later this year, developers will not only lack an installed base to sell their apps to, but will also have no high profile market for selling their apps in, and subsequently no financial incentive to develop applications that add value to the Android platform, just like Linux on the PC desktop. Around the same time, possibly within the next month, Apple will be shipping its second major OS release: iPhone 2.1. Apple will also be upgrading its entire user base to the new software so that developers will have a cohesive platform to target. This mirrors the efforts Apple has taken to upgrade its Mac OS X users to the same reference release. Mobile developers will be seeing money pouring in via iTunes while crickets chirp in the Android section of various mobile online stores. Apple’s iPhone Vs. Other Mobile Hardware Makers: 5 Revenue Engines Same Same, But Different: DOS Model Problems. Android developers will also have a series of other problems to manage. Like Windows Mobile, Android is intended to support everything, from BlackBerry-style keypad phones with a small touchscreen to the simple Windows Mobile Smartphone form factor lacking a touch screen to iPhone-like full size touch screens. Also like Windows Mobile, Android phone makers will have the option to leave off Bluetooth, WiFi, GPS location services, graphics hardware acceleration, and so on. Each Android phone will also have unique camera hardware, support for different video and audio codecs, and varied support for other differentiating proprietary services demanded by mobile operators. This will force developers to to make complex decisions regarding the lowest common denominator they choose to support. So while the iPhone will have a cohesive feature set, a managed software environment, and a functional market, Android will be a loose federation of hardware makers selling the same random features found on Windows Mobile today, with a chaotic development environment that lacks any central market for users or developers. And it will be run as an experiment by a company with no experience in consumer hardware or platform development. The Missing Tap. One specific example of the “DOS model problem” is that Android currently does not support multitouch. It's not touched on in the API, and Google quietly tap dances around its omission. Why no multitouch? Because multitouch screens are expensive, and most OHA hardware members are more interested in making a profit in a competitive phone market rather than impressing consumers as Apple did with the iPhone. Most existing smartphones, even those trying to directly rival the iPhone, use a stylus driven, pressure sensitive tap screen or a simpler, cheaper touch technology that lacks support for sensing multitouch. The iPhone's screen can actually sense up to five fingers at once, but the primary feature multitouch offers on the iPhone is the two fingered tapping and the pinching effects everyone associates with it. Android could certainly support multitouch if there were a demand for it, but that's the point: Google knows that its hardware partners are cheap and unlikely to put out hardware that actually competes with the iPhone. Instead of using expensive technologies that deliver clever yet largely invisible functionality, OHA members, just like PC makers, are far more likely to add flashy, impractical gadgety fluff that's cheap to tack on, such as slide out keyboards, neon tubes, and scratch and sniff stickers. That's how you impress gullible nerds on the cheap. Google itself is blowing smoke and erecting mirrors to distract from the reality that it being a “DOS vendor” means supporting bargain basement hardware from penny pinching duplicators. Android has been demonstrating some “wow” features such as a Street Maps app that pans around based on an internal compass in the demonstration phone. The problem is that that kind of thing only makes for a fun demo. Nobody needs to twirl around their phone in the air to see a view of the other side of the street, but everyone who has used an iPhone will wonder why they can't pinch to zoom out. Even worse, most Android phones aren't going to have a compass built into them, so Google is demonstrating features most Android users won't be able to use. That Sounds Like Microsoft… Google's design decisions are beginning to look a lot like Windows Vista; rather than actually working to make laptops boot faster, Microsoft came up with the idea of adding a small screen to the back of Vista laptops so users could check their email without having to wake the system up. But this was a stupid idea for a number of reasons, the most obvious being that most users just want a laptop that boots up quickly. Few laptops got the mini screen, but every user who tries Vista on their laptop will wonder why it doesn't boot up as fast as Mac OS X Leopard. In the same way, Google is advertising features for Android that most users won't ever see in their actual phones while ignoring things people will expect based on their exposure to the iPhone. Android is simply selecting the wrong features. Android will offer the advantages of supporting MMS, recording video, and the list of other features Windows Mobile already supplies. Those features didn't stop Apple from firing past Microsoft in the smartphone arena however, just as the Zune's highly touted WiFi and screen didn't phase iPod buyers. Incidentally, just months after the Zune, Apple had not only demonstrated a larger display but a higher definition multitouch screen, and not only WiFi, but functional WiFi that could be used to browse the web or check email. This suggests that Apple, with its faster release schedule, won't stay behind any of the leading features potentially offered by Android for very long. Android partners, however, will find it as difficult to catch up with Apple's unique features, just as Microsoft has been stymied to keep up with Mac OS X, the iPod, and the iPhone. The underlying reason: both Google and Microosft are tasked with maintaing support for a huge variety of hardware options demanded by all their partners. Apple has the unique circumstances to do only what it needs to do itself. Android in Windows Mobile's Shoes. Like Windows Mobile, Android faces a difficult market. In the US, it competes against the popular BlackBerry in corporate markets and the iPhone among consumers. Worldwide, it competes against entrenched market leader Nokia. The difference is that Google, unlike Microsoft, has no in. Windows Mobile was adopted by Windows-bound IT shops despite its weaknesses. Nobody has any preexisting reason to try an Android phone apart from hobbyists and open software enthusiasts, a demographic that has done little to move Linux on the PC desktop. Google also lacks Microsoft's installed base; it's starting from zero. The smartphone industry initially doubted Apple's chances of making much progress with the iPhone, despite the company having the Mac platform, the iPod, retail stores, platform development experience, marketing savvy, industrial design prowess, and so on. Google doesn't have any of those things. Mobile Providers vs Android. Apple also started with an exclusive partnership with AT&T, a three legged race that demanded effort from both. Google is hoping that hardware makers handle the hardware details and that mobile providers will be excited to sell its Android phones. While hardware makers such as HTC clearly appreciate having found a free alternative to Windows Mobile, it's not obvious why providers would be excited about Android, as it promises an openness that most mobile providers strongly oppose. AT&T took a big risk in getting behind the iPhone, as the phone encouraged users to use email rather than fee-based SMS and MMS, it supported WiFi for data access, and it bypassed AT&T's MEdia Net services to plug into iTunes instead. Verizon refused to parter with Apple and grant it those kinds of concessions. Is AT&T going to take a similar risk to partner with a phone that is not exclusive to it, and is Verizon now going to open its arms to support phones that do not exclusively support BREW, VCast and its other proprietary services? While Android may well eat into Microsoft's Windows Mobile business by stealing away its hardware makers, it seems unlikely that Android will ever serve as more than free alternative to Windows Mobile in a market where Windows Mobile is increasingly irrelevant. Android may have the dubious distinction of swallowing Microsoft's mobile business the same way Microsoft ate up the Palm OS, but even if it accomplishes that goal, Google will likely find itself unsustainably hungry immediately afterward. It will also find itself swimming in a shark tank of hungry rivals, including Nokia's Symbian, RIM's BlackBerry, and Apple's iPhone. Symbian is the final generic platform vying for the opportunity to play DOS in the smartphone market. The next article will examine Nokia's chances in its bid to match Microsoft's PC dominance in the mobile market while setting out in a new venture to copy Android's open software model. Did you like this article? Let me know. Comment here, in the Forum, or email me with your ideas. Like reading RoughlyDrafted? Share articles with your friends, link from your blog, and subscribe to my podcast (oh wait, I have to fix that first). It's also cool to submit my articles to Digg, Reddit, or Slashdot where more people will see them. Consider making a small donation supporting this site. Thanks!

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