Goodbye iTunes Single of the Week?

from studio soda

It's been my habit to check the iTunes store every Tuesday to see its Single of the Week.  This feature on the store offers a free download of music from different artists old and new, and from different genres.  

I noticed just this week that there have been no new Single of the Week since the start of 2015. A quick surfing of the Internet bolstered that it has indeed been discontinued. Offered since 2004, it's here where I first heard of Cobbie Calliat and most recently the fabulous boys from Alabama, St. Paul and the Broken Bones.

But not all of the Single of the Week offered to us were outstanding.  Some really invited the "what were you thinking" reaction to the really hurtful comments left by some users of the service.  I'm beginning to think that these sometimes nasty comments might have contributed to the decision of the Apple honchos to end the service. 

Whatever the reason for its apparent demise, it is still disappointing that another source of free music for my iPod is gone.   I will surely miss this weekly treat (or trick) from the iTunes Store.  For the artists and their companies, there will always be Spotify and YouTube to let us sample their new music.

Apple Adds Two Items to My Christmas Wish List: iPad Air 2 and Mac Mini

I just finished watching the Apple Event this morning (it's 2 AM here in Manila) and I am stoked with two things that the guys in Cupertino unveiled today.  The company just released the latest models of their flagship iPhone last month and now, they released what could be the last of their gadgets for this year in time for the holidays.

Apple introduced this morning the iPad Air 2, which they say is the thinnest and most powerful iPad ever. In introducing the new iPad, Phil Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing can't help gushing about the latest model of their gadget.  He described it as the thinnest tablet in the world and that two of the new gadget stacked on top of each other would still be thinner than the first generation iPad.  

fortune,com

iPad Air 2 has a new Retina display with anti-reflective coating, second generation 64-bit A8X chip, all-new iSight and FaceTime HD cameras, faster Wi-Fi and LTE wireless.  It also includes my favorite Touch ID fingerprint identity sensor.  

It's open for pre-order on the U.S. Apple Online Store starting later today. The Wi-Fi models are priced at $499, $599 and $699 for the 16, 64, and 128 GB capacities, respectively.  It will be available in gold, silver, and space gray.

Initial impressions of the new iPad Air 2 are very favorable.  Most are raving about how thin it is and the better screen resolution.  The Verge noted  the big improvement on the camera:

 "One thing that is definitively better is the new camera, which is now 8 megapixels; it's a lot faster and shots seemed a lot clearer, at least in Apple's hectic demo room. "

I am not yet sure how much iPad Air 2 will cost in the Philippines and when it will be available here but I hope just before the Christmas Season.  Apple also unveiled the iPad Mini 3 but I prefer the 9.7 inch iPad Air.  I am eyeing the 64GB wifi model owing to the experience of the on-air update of iOS a few months ago when I need to delete some files to get some space on my 16GB gadget.

Another good news at the event was that Apple has finally updated the Mac mini.   Nothing much change in the design of the  Mac mini, but many changes happened inside.  It now features fourth-generation Intel Core processors, faster integrated graphics, 802.11ac Wi-Fi, and Thunderbolt 2.  The new machine will be shipping with the latest iteration of OSX, Yosemite which was also released this morning and now available for download for free.  It also has a new lower starting price at $499, making Apple’s most affordable Mac an even better value.  Below is a screenshot from the Official Philippine Apple Store of the pricing for the new Mac mini.

I checked our online forum during the event and the most common complaint about the new Mac mini model is that it doesn't come with a quad core CPU. Nevertheless, I am glad there's a new Mac mini and that means I can change my hardworking Mac soon.

In fact, the new Mac mini is now available on the official Philippine Apple Store.  Shipping time is 2 to 3 weeks at the moment.

So these are too items on my Christmas wish list. I'm still thinking which of them I will finally get. I might get lucky though and ultimately get both of them. Happy Holidays, indeed!

Apple Gives Free U2 Album: People Freak Out

I woke up one morning and found U2's new album, Songs of Innocence, ready for download to my iTunes library.  At first, my sleepy head had to make sense of the event. I didn't pre-order or purchase any U2 album recently, so it must be a mistake.  I downloaded it anyway, and while waiting for it to finish, I scoured the Internet for information.

I found out it was a gift from Apple as a way of thanking its 500 million iTunes clients. Besides, the guys from Cupertino must still be giddy over their recent announcement of the iPhone 6 and 6Plus, as well as the Apple Watch – which of course, deserves another post.

So back to the album. Who doesn't like music that's given free legitimately?  Well, it turned out there's a lot of them.   After a couple of hours, I started getting posts on my Twitter feed from angry iTunes users who were disgusted with the free download.  Apparently, many of those who received the gift took it as an invasion of their privacy, and/or Apple made a decision for them to download and listen to the album.  Others were simply non-U2 fans.  They want the music out of their devices pronto. 

There was so much clamor against the download that the band's manager even said in an interview that if people do not want it, they could just delete it, which I agree with.  In fact, I still do not understand what the too much anger was for.  Maybe they also hated that they have to manually delete the contents from their gadgets.  Anyway, the din must have been too loud and reached the Headquarters in Cupertino that the people there developed a tool for people who want to delete the album from their devices. Here's a link if you're one of those not thrilled about this gift.

This just proves that one cannot please everybody – not even with the gift of free music.  I think the comic strip from The Joy of Tech sums up the situation very well. As for me, I am keeping the album. It may not be as great as the earlier outputs of the band, but there are still some that are above the average music one hears every day.  I just hope the experience doesn't stop Apple from surprising us with another gift in the future.  

Apple Introduces New iPod Touch Sans Back Camera

Apple quietly began selling in the US a new iPod Touch at US$229 yesterday.  At the same time, it stopped selling the fourth-generation 16GB iPod Touch which comes with a 3.5-inch screen and costs $199.

The new model does not come with a rear camera.  Although the front camera is still there, it does not offer 1080p video.    

The new 16GB iPod Touch features a 4-inch Retina Display and is powered by a dual-core A5 processor.  

It has only one color combination: black front and silver back.  It also does not have the loop wrist band that comes with its higher-cost sibling which were released 8 months ago.

PH Finally Gets its iTunes Store

Apple announced this week the launch of iTunes in several Asian countries including the Philippines.  This is good news for us who have an iOS device or two as we now have access to songs, apps and movies that were previously unavailable to us.  These include music from local artists, of course.  Not only that, we can now also shop for books under the iBookstore.

It is only about time that we have our own iTunes Store.  Before this, I can only populate my iPod through ripping my CD.  The only way I can download music and books from iTunes is to ask my sister to get me an iTunes Music Store prepaid card or buy one from an online seller at a higher price.  Now, I can use my local credit card to gain access to all of the goods.

Moreover, Asia is one of the fastest growing markets for Apple products.  Since many of their gadgets now come sans optical drives, Apple users here have no option but to download iOS and Mac OSX software from iTunes or the Appstore.  

iTunes music store has been online since 2003 and after almost ten years, it's here.  Well, better late than never.  Welcome to the Philippines iTunes!

Apple WWDC 2012

In a few hours, Apple CEO Tim Cook will deliver his keynote address at the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2012,  The keynote address during the WWDC has always been anticipated part of the event and I suppose will also be this year.  It's when the late great Steve Jobs usually revealed what the company will release in the succeeding months.

Since a few months ago the Apple blog universe has been full of rumors of what Cook will reveal this year.  Apple itself has revealed at least two products that will be announced during the keynote and these include:

Mac OSX Mountain Lion.  The latest iteration of the Mac's operating system.  It will reportedly include the following features: Notification Center, iMessages, iCloud, Airplay and more.  Apple touts the new Mac OS X as inspired by the iPad and re-imagined for the Mac.  I won't be downloading this one immediately though and perhaps just wait for it to be available in the next generation Macs which I intend to buy anyway.

iOS6. This one is expected.  Photos of banners for  iOS 6 being put up circulated in the Internet days ago.  What it includes are still up in the air but rumors are rife with Facebook integration like Twitter in iOS 5, a Siri for iPad. The biggest addition to the iOS would be Apple's own mapping solution which could replace google maps in all our iOS devices.

from cnet

Because of iOS 6, many speculate that Cook will also announce the next generation iPhone. Also, there have been sightings of alleged parts of the next iPhone which led people to believe the announcement more likely to happen.   I highly doubt it though.  The announcement for Apple's smartphone has its own event usually in September or October.  So I think Apple will stick to that schedule.

There are also stories about updates of several Macs including the MacBook Pro, MacBook Air , the iMac and the Mac Pro.  Aside from thinner MacBooks, there are rumors about Retina Display on the iMac and all Mac portables.  I am not an expert on this one and I will wait for Cook's announcement.  But Retina Display and touch capability on the iMac are features that will definitely make me get one.

These are the things that I will be waiting for later.  I might stay up late tonight and hang around the sites that will have a live coverage of the event.

Introducing the new iPad

Apple®  introduced earlier the new iPad®, the third generation of its category defining mobile device, featuring a stunning new Retina display, Apple’s new A5X chip with quad-core graphics and a 5 megapixel iSight® camera with advanced optics for capturing amazing photos and 1080p HD video. iPad with Wi-Fi + 4G connects to fast networks worldwide, including AT&T’s and Verizon’s 4G LTE networks, and still delivers the same all-day 10 hour battery life  while remaining amazingly thin and light.

The new iPad’s Retina display delivers four times the number of pixels of iPad 2, so dense that the human eye is unable to distinguish individual pixels when held at a normal distance, making web pages, text, images and video look incredibly sharp and realistic.

from apple.com

With iOS 5.1, the latest update to the world’s most advanced mobile operating system, the new iPad has a number of new features and enhancements including: a redesigned Camera app with video stabilization technology; the ability to delete photos from Photo Stream; support for dictation in English, French, German and Japanese; and Personal Hotspot.

The new iPad also supports dictation, another amazing way to get things done just using your voice. Instead of typing, tap the microphone icon on the keyboard, then say what you want to say and the new iPad listens. Tap done, and iPad converts your words into text. You can use dictation to write messages, take notes, search the web and more.

iOS 5 is Here!

 

Apple released iOS 5 this morning, its most anticipated mobile operating system for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.  It brings 200 new features and enhancements including Notification Center, iMessage, Newsstand, Reminders, and systemwide Twitter integration.

The update requires iTune 10.5 which was released last Tuesday.  To download, connect your device to iTunes and you'll be prompted with the download.  If not, click on Check for Updates button.  iOS 5 is compatible with the iPad 2, original iPad, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, and third- and fourth-generation iPod touch.

A good number of fellow members of an online Mac users forum stayed all night to wait and be the first ones to download and run this new OS.  Some of them are reporting problems and difficulties with upgrading to iOS 5, as Apple's servers have been acting up perhaps due to high demand for the new release. I am downloading it right now and hopefully the glitches experienced by early adaptors have been addressed already.  I will make a more detailed post about it in the next few days.

Apple Unveils the iPhone 4S

Apple announced earlier this week the latest member of the iPhone family - the iPhone 4S.  While it disappointed some iPhone fans who were expecting an iPhone 5, a closer look at the features of the latest device shows improvement in its processing power and camera quality, as well as a new nifty application called Siri.

The iPhone 4S looks a lot like the iPhone 4 but there’s one small difference: a SIM card slot on the phone’s right side. Since the iPhone 4S supports both GSM and CDMA networks all models feature a small tray along the right side of the frame for a GSM SIM card. 

It also  has a faster processor—an Apple-built A5 chip, which also happens to be the processor that powers the iPad 2. It’s a dual-core processor (compared to the iPhone 4’s single-core A4 processor), which should mean improved performance not only for the CPU, but for graphics on the device as well.

As for battery life,  Apple promises some eight hours of talk time on 3G, six hours of 3G browsing, nine hours of Wi-Fi, ten hours of video, and 40 hours of listening to music. This is due to the more power-efficient A5 chip, according to Apple.

Perhaps still reeling from the "antennagate", Apple put two in the iPhone 4S.  It now switches back and forth between the two when its transmitting and receiving data. Apple says the aim is better call quality and faster download speeds, and obviously holding the phone in any way shouldn’t have any effect on your signal. The iPhone 4S also supports  faster cellular data transfer which  Apple claims can reach maximum transfer speeds of 5.8Mbps for uploads and 14.4Mbps for downloads.

I said earlier that the iPhone 4S supports both GSM and CDMA networks, prompting some quarters to call this a world phone. This is particularly convenient for world travelers as they will be able to connect to a local network and just work. You may either apply for roaming services from your network or get a pre-paid micro SIM in the country you're in.

The iPhone 4S’s rear-facing camera now has 8 megapixels compared to 5-megapixel in the iPhone 4. The camera also has a wider f/2.4 aperture to allow in more light—that means brighter colors and better lowlight performance. Apple says you can print 8.5-by-11-inch iPhone 4S photographs, and that they’ll be literally pixel-perfect.   Thanks again to the A5 processor which, Apple says, should help you take pictures faster, with more vivid colors and better white balance. The processor also helps focus and balance exposure as you snap photos, with the ability to detect up to ten faces in a group shot.

Alongside this, new features in the Camera and Photos apps give you instant access to the camera right from the lock screen, and you can also use the volume-up button to quickly snap a photo. Optional grid lines help line up your shot and a simple tap locks focus and exposure on one subject.  The new Photos app also lets you crop, rotate, enhance and remove red-eye, and organize your photos into albums right on your device to share them on the go.  How about the front facing camera, you ask.  Sadly, it is still a low-resolution VGA camera.

Phone 4S can also now record video in full 1080p HD resolution and with the new video image stabilization feature, you can take richer, smoother videos. Other iPhone 4S video camera improvements include increased sensitivity, sharpness and an increased ability to capture video in low light conditions. With the new iMessage service in iOS 5, you can now instantly share videos with family and friends.

The iPhone 4S feature that got everyone talking is Siri, an intelligent assistant that helps you get things done just by asking. Siri helps you make calls, send text messages or email, schedule meetings and reminders, make notes, search the Internet, find local businesses, get directions and more. You can also get answers, find facts and even perform complex calculations just by asking.  To date, however, Siri is an iPhone 4S exclusive feature.  Many speculate that this is due to hardware limitation, that perhaps Siri needed the processing power of the A5 chip. 

Here’s another amazing way to get things done using the iPhone 4S: just use your voice. That's right, this thing can take Dictations.  Instead of typing, tap the microphone icon on the keyboard. Then say what you want to say and iPhone listens. Tap Done, and iPhone converts your words into text. Use dictation to write messages, take notes, search the web, and more. Dictation also works with third-party apps, so you can update your Facebook status, tweet, or write and send Instagrams

 The 4S comes in both black and white and in 16GB, 32GB and the new 64GB models.  It will be released on October 14 in the US and in 22 other countries by the end of the month.  As usual, the Philippines is not included in the list of countries in the initial roll-out.  The 'net however is abuzz that it might come to our country in November, just in time to get it under the Christmas tree for someone special or for yourself.  As for the price, I would speculate that it will take the same price as the iPhone4 when it was first released here.

 all images from apple.com

Steve Jobs, 56

STEVE JOBS

1955-2011

Thanks for making computing fun. Your legacy will live forever.

Instantly turn the Magic Trackpad into Mobee's Magic Numpad

If you're one of those who miss the number keys in the Apple Keyboard, fret no more.  Mobee intoduces a solution to your problem, the Magic Numpad.

from mobeetechnology.com

The Magic Numpad is a set of three films with custom number layouts that you attach to your Magic Trackpad.  Yes, you need a Magic Trackpad for this to work.  It is compatible with both Mac OS X Snow Leopard and Lion.  

Mobee says all you need to do is to stick the magic film of your choice on the trackpad, install the application and voila! You instantaneously have a magic trackpad and numpad in one single device.  You can easily switch between the trackpad and numpad in three ways: tapping on the upper right button; use the F6 key on the keyboard; or use the menu on the software.

A downloadable software also allows the Magic Numpad to display an onscreen calculator that can do simple calculations.  Mobee also included a textile for cleaning your Magic Trackpad and the films, an application card to reduce bubbles, as well as a marking pen so you could customize the look of your numpad.

The device is now available for pre-order on Mobee's site at $29 each and will be available in October 2011.

Apple Releases iTunes Match on Beta for Developers (UPDATED)

Apple released today a developer beta version of its upcoming iTunes Match.  Steve Jobs already announced this service during his introduction of the iCloud at the WWDC in June.

As explained by Apple, the system "stores your complete music library in iCloud, allowing you to enjoy your collection anywhere, anytime, on any iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch or computer."

from apple.com

iTunes Match will scan your iTunes music library and checks which of these songs are available in the iTunes Store.  It will include music you bought from the store, ripped from your CD collection, and even those obtained from other sources.

The company boasts of more than 18 million song titles in its catalog so most likely, the songs you have in your collection are already available.  Otherwise, you will have to unload those unavailable to iCloud.  You can then listen to your music anytime, anywhere at 256 kbps iTunes Plus quality,  as long as you are connected to the Internet.

At US$25 per year, the service will allow you to free a lot of space on your devices since you won't need to store your music on your iPad, iPod Touch, or MacBook to enjoy them.  At the moment, only developers have access to this feature and those who would participate in the beta testing will have a bonus of three months free access to iTunes Match.  It is set for release in the fall alongside iCloud.

UPDATE 9/1/11:  Apple vehemently denies that iTunes Match will stream music to your devices.  Initial reports from Beta testers seem to confirm this. It appears that once you listen to your music via iTunes Match, it automatically downloads and stores then to your iPad, iPod Touch or Mac.

Steve Jobs resigns as Apple CEO

from apple.com

The biggest news of the day in the techworld is the resignation of Steve Jobs as Chief Executive Officer of Apple.  Tim Cook who has heretofore served as Chief Operating Officer has been elected as Jobs's replacement.  Don't be sad though, Apple fans. Steve will stay on with the company as its "Chairman of the Board, director and Apple employee."

In his resignation letter addressed to the Apple Board of Directors and Apple Community, Jobs wrote "I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple’s CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come."  

The online community believes that it has something to do with his health.  Jobs filed a medical leave of absence in January this year but has made an appearance at the WWDC in June to introduce the upcoming iCloud service.  He was also present during the event to introduce the iPad2 earlier this year.  In 2004, he took a 6-month leave of absence and underwent a liver transplant.

Although the shares of the company dived by as much as 7 percent after the announcement, industry analysts believe that the company will continue to dominate the IT industry under the helm of Tim Cook who has been considered heir apparent as Apple's top man.

Under Jobs stewardship, Apple released some of the most innovative products in the industry.  These include the iconic iPod and its companion application, iTunes which revolutionize the way we listen to and buy our music; the iPhone which raised the bar on what a smartphone should be; and of course the iPad, which still in unrivaled in the tablet industry.

Many IT experts also believe that the company will go ahead with Steve's plans for the company's hardware and software projects.  The iPhone 5 is scheduled to be released next month and the next generation iPad is expected to come out in 2012.  The iCloud service and the next iteration of the iOS is also due to debut this fall.

Steve's resignation letter is available here.

Apple Rolls Out Lion, along with new MacBook Air and Mac Mini

Apple today released Mac OS X Lion their most advanced operating system.  It's now available on the Mac AppStore and I am currently downloading this.  It says that my download will be finished in 8 hours! Ugh... thanks to my DSL connection.

And it's not only Lion that Apple rolled out today but also a refresh of MacBook Air and Mac Mini.  Both machines come pre-loaded with Lion and now sport the latest Thunderbolt technology which promises connections speed of up to 20 times faster than that of USB 2.0. With this new technology, you can connect up to six devices to your Mac. 

The new Mac Mini and the MacBook Air now sport the dual Intel Core i5 processors.  This makes this new generation 2 times faster than the last.  It will prove very helpful when using processor intensive applications.

With release of the new generation MacBook Air, Apple chose to "kill" the white plastic MacBook.  They also decided to make the entry-level 11 inch MacBook Air more affordable, at USD999 on the US Online Store or PhP49, 999 from the Apple Philippines Online Store.

from apple.com

I am looking closer at the MacMini though, priced at PhP30,990 on the Apple Philippines online store (with 3-day free shipping).  In this new machine, storage will not be a problem since they decided to bump up the hard drive to a hefty 500GB.  So we can stock our pictures, videos and music in the Mini.  Should this be not enough for your needs, you can further upgrade your hard drive to 750GB without affecting the speed of your machine.

Oh, and just like in the previous generation, upgrading your RAM is a cinch with the removable bottom panel.  You can upgrade your memory to up to 8GB! 

Apple decided to remove the superdrive from the MacMini.  Yup, just like with the MacBook Air, the optical drive is now an option with this new generation.   I wonder if they will also do this with the other desktops like the iMac or the MacPro.  Perhaps the decision was reached because  you can now download from the AppStore the applications you want to install on your Mac. You can back up your files in the iCloud or in an external drive that has either USB or Thunderbolt connection.  Movies and music are also available and downloadable from iTunes.  In other words, Apple does not see the need for an optical drive anymore so they dispensed with it in the new MacMini.

Unlocked iPhone 4 on US Apple Online Store

from apple.com

I think I blinked that's why I didn't see that Apple has unlocked the iPhone 4.  It was only when I visited the Apple Online Store (US) this morning that I discovered about it.

The unlocked iPhone 4 works with a micro-SIM from any, yes any, supported GSM wireless carrier.  Since it is sold without any contract commitment, you can use it even with your current telco.  You can also decide to change telcos if you want to.  The unlocked units also have all the features as the locked ones, including FaceTime, Retina display, and HD video camera.

For those of us in the Philippines, the unlocked iPhone 4 will work with any of our wireless carrier as long as they have a micro-sim card.  No more locked in period of 24-months needed, so we don't have to live with poor customer service.

As expected, the unlocked units are more expensive than the AT&T units (US$679 for the 16GB ones). That's because in the US, iPhone prices are typically subsidized by their carriers.  But they're still less pricey than those sold in Greenhills.  Bad news for us, it's not available on the Apple Philippine store. :-(

I really wonder what made Apple to unlock the iPhone.  Their move seemed to be targeted towards those who want to use their unit while in another country.  I doubt if that group, however, comprise a large chunk of their clientele.  My hunch though is that this is a precursor of something big that will happen with the upcoming iPhone 5.  Let's wait and see.

Will Mac OS X Lion Kill the Mouse?

When Apple announced the release of OS X Lion next month, one of its new features that really caught my interest was the multi-touch gestures function embedded in the OS and its applications.  It's a new way to interact with your Mac, says Apple.  You now pinch, swipe, scroll. tap on your trackpad or magic mouse to control what's on your screen.

No need to click on the mouse buttons to select, highlight or scroll something on the page you're viewing. Oh, speaking of scrolling, Apple has also decided to hide the scrollbar in Lion to give us a bigger screen space when using any application.  It will only re-appear when the you scrolls down the page and quickly fades out when you stop.  That means, we will not run out of space when scrolling just like we do when using a mouse.

from apple.com

Now how does this kill the mouse?  Of course, every MacBook has a multi-touch trackpad that would recognize these gestures.  But it's a different scenario with desktops.  You see, aside from the Magic Mouse, one has the option to use a Magic Trackpad with the MacPro, iMac or Mac Mani.   There's a little bit of learning involved with the multi-touch gestures but it wouldn't take a lifetime I believe.

So come July, the days of the mouse and its buttons are numbered.  At least with the Mac for now.

iCloud: The Future in the Mac Friendly Skies

Along with the announcement of the coming MacOS X Lion last Monday, Apple announced its new service called iCloud, which is coming in Fall this year (around September).

The Mac community has been abuzzed with speculations about this new offering for months before the WWDC.  It was finally introduced by Steve Jobs himself at last Monday's event.

In his address, Jobs explained that ten years ago, their big idea was to make the PC/Mac the center of users' digital life where music, videos and photos are stored.  But all's that changed now because of the new devices that could also store and play music, video and photos.

So Apple's new big idea is to make the PC/Mac as just another device and put all media files in the cloud they named iCloud.  But this cloud is not just a harddisk in the sky, as Steve pointed out. iCloud automatically uploads, stores and pushes your contents to all of your devices. It is also completely integrated to all apps so everything happens automatically and there's nothing to learn.  As Steve puts it, "It just works."

Jobs said that they at Apple love iCloud so much that they're giving the service to their clients for free!  Everyone is given a 5GB space in the iCloud where you can store your Contacts, Mail, Calendar and yes, even your Documents.  No need to bring a USB drive to bring your Keynote presentation or Pages papers.

Of course everything you buy from the AppStore, iBookstore and iTunes store are automatically uploaded to your iCloud.  What more, your apps, books and music are not counted against your free space as long as they remain in their respective stores.

You can already try this service in beta.  If you are an iTunes user like me,  if you buy something from the store, you can make your other devices to download your purchase automatically at no extra cost.  Just go to the settings of your iPad or iPhone and make them automatically download your purchases.      Yes, it just works!

Has the iPhone been following you?

from apple.com

The biggest story among Apple fans last week was the report by two researchers that the iPhone could track the movements of its user through a secret file embedded within it.  The file, according to the researchers named Peter Warden and Allasdair Allen, is unencrypted and gives a detailed account of the comings and goings of the user.  

The initial reaction was fear and then indignation at the possible breach of security among iPhone users.  There was a lawsuit filed against Apple because of this.

After the initial outburst, however, people realized that the report was nothing new and is not something to lose sleep on.  One analyst even went to as far as using the same application that the researchers used and found its readings a bit off.  Steve Jobs, when asked through email by an iPhone owner, said in his usual brief reply that  "... The info circulating around is false."

Just this afternoon, someone gave me a link to an official statement from Apple that finally addresses the issue.  The statement is in Q and A form and on whether the iPhone and other iOS this is what the company has to say:

"Apple is not tracking the location of your iPhone. Apple has never done so and has no plans to ever do so."

By the way, just as the dust on this issue starts to settle, Apple updated its site to announce that the White iPhone 4 is coming out today.

The iPad 2 is coming next week!

I woke up yesterday with the news the Apple has finally announced the new iPad.  No less than Steve Jobs who is on medical leave,  introduced the second generation of their wonder tablet.

photo from apple.com

So what's new with this baby?  Cameras! Two of them, one each in the front and back of the device.  This only means one thing: Face Time!  But aside from Face Time, the front camera can also be used for Photo Booth, the fun way to take a snapshot of yourself and be playful with it.

iPad 2 is also thinner and lighter and comes in two colors - black and white!  However, if you think that the changes are all cosmetic, Apple made sure that the inside of this tablet is also ground breaking.  It comes with Dual Core A5 chip that will make multi-tasking smoother and the apps load faster.

Apple also gave it a more powerful video chip to accomodate a new app for the iPad, iMovie (to be sold on the app store at US$4.95).  A separate accessory for this new device is a cable that connects to a TV or a projector.  They call it video mirroring because the image on the iPad screen will be magnified on an HDTV as seen on the tablet.  This will be great for presentations, watching videos created with the iMovie App and even playing games.

Apple also created a great looking cover for this iPad.  It's a magnetic cover for the front of the device.  When this cover is pulled off , the unit automatically wakes up from sleep and when it is reattached, it puts the iPad to sleep.  It can also be folded so that it becomes a stand when you're typing or surfing the Internet.

photo from apple.com

Faster, lighter and thinner.  The updates are so substantial that reportedly, some of Apple's competitors are rethinking their tablets.  Will I buy the new iPad?  Well my iPad will be one year old in May.  Admittedly, the updates on the iPad 2 will help me a lot especially at work, especially that video mirroring and airplay printing.  I love FaceTime but I already have an iPod Touch for that.  So may be I will pass on this one for now.  If the rumors were true that an iPad 3 is coming later this year, then I'll just wait for that.   My options are still open though.  Besides, the iPad 2 is coming out on March 11 in the U.S.  If past experience is a gauge, then I expect it will come to our shore after 3 to 4 months like its older sibling.  Still plenty of time to think about it.

Why I've Been Away

Whew... It's already February and I still have only one post for the year.  So many things have happened already and I've been silent.  Let's see why.

My sister gave me a Magnavox Blu Ray player last Christmas and I've been very busy with it.  The first Blu Ray Disc I bought was the Disney Pixar movie UP (4 disc set) and can't get over it.  I love this movie and all those added features.  The first disc contained the movie and some bonus features, including two short features.  The second contained documentaries about the making of the film.  The third is a DVD version of the film.  The fourth disc enabled me to download a digital copy of the movie through the iTunes store so now I have the movie in my iPod Touch and iPad.  Blu Ray is a thingamagig! The clarity of the image and the sound are superb that you wonder what you've been missing all these years.  By the way, to get the maximum effect, you must also have a good HD TV and of course, a HDMI cable.

Another gadget I've been busy with the last two months is my iPod Touch 4th generation.  Although I already have an iPad, I was enticed to get this baby because of FaceTime! I can't get over this app because now, not only can I talk with my sisters, I can even see them. One time, I was even speaking to my sister and her kids while they were having dinner.  It as almost like being there with them.  I am really excited what technology will come out this year.  There are already talks about the second generation iPad which will also have both front and back facing cameras.  Does this mean that we'll be able to do FaceTime on the iPad soon? I can't wait!