Microsoft's Windows Phone 8 event takes place later today -- where we expect to find out exactly how the integration between WP8, Microsoft's new mobile OS, and its new desktop OS Windows 8 will work. In the meanwhile, the Verge has spotted a companion app that's surfaced on the Windows Store which will allow WP8 users to sync content with a Windows 8 PC. Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/G2LR9q3I6mw/
In conjunction with the anniversary, we're pleased to announce that we'll be releasing an Anniversary Edition of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City for select iOS and Android devices later this fall. This upcoming version will bring the full experience to mobile devices, featuring native high-resolution graphics and several enhancements unique to the iOS and Android platforms. Stay tuned for more details in the weeks ahead including a list of compatible iOS and Android devices.
To celebrate the 10th anniversary, there will be a series of commemorative assets released, including never-before-seen artwork and a brand new anniversary trailer highlighting some of the most iconic scenes and music from the game. In addition, a limited run of collectable promotional items will be made available for purchase through the Rockstar Warehouse, with select items also available via online giveaways.
This is certainly exciting news for anyone who is a fan of the platform. If Rockstar’s last GTA iOS port is anything to go by, expect the game to be hugely entertaining, graphically excellent and above all very true to the original. Let’s hope we don’t have to wait too long for it to arrive; Rockstar say this fall so hopefully in the coming weeks. We will keep you posted as soon as we know more!
Source: Rockstar Games
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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/1UvRnnnNWUc/story01.htm
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There may be an app for almost everything, but there still isn't one for controlling Mother Nature. Google this morning officially canceled the Android event that was scheduled to occur on Monday, October 29 in New York City due to Hurricane Sandy, which is expected to hit the city on Sunday evening. Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/x5_i_C8vEF4/
Windows 8 hit physical and electronic store shelves this morning, and Mobile Nations' own WPCentral was up early grabbing Surfaces and giving everything a look. For iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad users, however, you can also now get your hands on Microsoft’s latest and greatest operating system. If you are a Windows user, like most of us, you can download Windows 8 Pro and install it straight onto your PC as an upgrade to an existing Windows installation or set up your computer as a new PC and wipe it clean.
Windows 8 comes with an upgrade compatibility wizard which will check your hardware and software and let you know what is compatible and what isn’t. It looks like the current version of iTunes is compatible -- but there's something you need to be especially aware of.
You need to de-authorize iTunes on your computer BEFORE you upgrade to Windows 8. If you don’t do this, it will be authorized as an additional machine and use up two out of your five allowed computers.
If you decide to upgrade to Windows 8, you can download the update from Microsoft for $39.99 or buy it on physical media for $69.99. If you want to discover exactly what Windows 8 is all about, Microsoft has you covered with a dedicatedWindows 8 portal right here.
I will be updating my computer over the weekend so should have some more information on using your iPhone or iPad with Windows 8. If anyone else does the update, let us know how it goes in the comments!
Source: Microsoft
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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/FarS7vjgVtc/story01.htm
During Apple's Q4 2012 conference call today, when asked about Microsoft's new Surface tablet, Tim Cook said he hadn't had a chance to play with one yet, but based on everything he'd read, he found it to be compromised and confusing.
Cook went on to say that one of the toughest things to do when designing a product was making hard tradeoffs and deciding what a product should be. He said that's what Apple had done with the iPad, and what made the iPad user experience incredible.
While not exactly citing Home Simpson's car, Cook did liken Microsoft's Surface to making a car that could also fly and float, but not do any one of those things particularly well.
The use of the word "compromised" is interesting, since "no compromises" was Microsoft's buzzword for Windows 8. That translates into two versions of the Surface, one that's releasing now and runs Windows RT for ARM, and one that's being released early next year and runs Windows 8 Pro on Intel. It also translates into two modes, the Metro/Modern/Windows 8-style of higher-level apps, which is more like iOS, and the full-on Windows mode, which is more like traditional Windows, of course. It also comes with two versions of Internet Explorer, one for Metro and one for Windows. They also have two kinds of keyboard-covers, one that's multitouch and one that has physical keys. And the bifurcation goes on and on.
Optimistically, it can be viewed as Microsoft trying to best serve the needs of both new, iPad-generation users and old, Windows-generation users both, and transition the latter towards the former. Pessimistically, it can be viewed as Microsoft failing to make any choices of their own, and offloading all those choices to the users.
Pragmatically, it can seen as living somewhere in between the iPad and the laptop, the way the iPad mini lives somewhere between the iPhone/iPod touch and the iPad.
It's personality is undeniably split, and that will seem compromised and confused to most Apple users, made only worse by the inarticulate way Microsoft has handled their messaging. But it might also be exactly what traditional Windows PC users need to help move them into the post-PC era.
The Surface isn't a product Apple would ever make, but it's also more than the Tablet PCs Microsoft has allowed to be made in the past. So whether or not history ultimately judges it as a misstep, for Microsoft, it remains a step, and that's interesting.
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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/L9-xRrOumCE/story01.htm
Source: http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2012/10/recollect-gives-social-media-ephemera-a-permanent-home/
OK, boys and girls on the East Cost. Listen up. Hurricane Sandy's on her way, and she's liable to make a mess of things next week. Just how bad depends on who you're reading, but regardless it's time to start getting ready. As we tend to do when storms like this pop up, let's review how our Android phones can help.
And as of this writing, Google's "Playground" event is still on for Monday morning. If that changes, you'll hear it here first. Stay safe out there, people.
More: Hurricane Sandy updates from NOAA
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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/r4NJYoXpQGQ/story01.htm
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Last night Apple reported Q4 fiscal 2012 earnings. In what seems like a case of deja-vu, the stock slipped by a few percentage points in after market trading. What’s knocking Apple down this time? Well, they shipped a lower number of iPads than Wall Street expected in the quarter, and guidance for the holiday quarter is lower than expected. And the sooner we learn to ignore the short-term nature of Wall Street thinking, the better.
Just to recap, last quarter the stock dropped 5% in after market trading because of perceived weak iPhone sales and weak guidance. Then, within a few weeks, the stock had climbed from about $575 up to $700. Subsequently, it has now dropped back down to about $609. It’s a volatile stock and that’s just something you have to accept if you participate in the stock market.
Let’s take a quick look at the key numbers: Apple delivered $36 billion in revenue and $8.66 in earnings per share (EPS). Gross margin was 40%. This is significantly better than guidance, but then again Apple is notorious for giving conservative guidance. Nothing has changed.
Apple’s largest product is the iPhone. In Q4 they sold 26.9 million units, which is up slightly from 26 million units last quarter. Customers knew the iPhone 5 was coming, and people obviously held off on iPhone purchases until it launched, considering the 5 million units sold in the first week after launch.
iPad sales were only 14 million units. This is down from 17 million last quarter, and Wall Street is a bit worried about this. Analysts expected more iPad sales, despite the fact that Apple says sales exceeded expectations. I wonder if people held off buying because of such huge anticipation for the iPad Mini, which Apple just announced this week. Still, iPad sales are up nicely on a year-over-year basis and are bound to be up dramatically in the December quarter. So I’m not worried.
Mac sales and iPod sales were solid, as usual. Macs continue to outgrow PCs, which means Apple is gaining on Microsoft in terms of OS market share. This is a trend that has been ongoing for many years, and shows now signs of slowing down. That’s great news for Apple shareholders.
During the Q&A session of the conference call, one analyst pointed out that if Apple’s guidance plays out, it will mean an earnings decline year-over year. Why would Apple tell Wall Street to expect the December quarter to be less profitable than last year’s comparable quarter?
CFO Peter Oppenheimer had a well-scripted and quite reasonable answer to this question. First of all, Apple’s December quarter will only be 13 weeks this year. Last year it was 14 weeks, so we should expect a 7% headwind from that alone.
But far more important is the huge refresh of products that Apple just threw at us. The iPhone 5 will be shipping for the entire quarter. The new 4th generation iPad and iPad Mini will ship for the bulk of the quarter. We’ve also got new 13” Macbook Pros and iMacs hitting us. I think Apple is correct in saying that they’ve never had a quarter with so many new products hitting all at once.
Here’s the thing about new products - they cost more to make than the prior generation of product. They have better screens, faster processors, and other component enhancements. This cost hits Apple, yet they don’t raise prices. Instead, they work their way down the cost curve over the life of the product. So the gross margin takes a hit. It’s a step change. And because Apple is launching so many products at the same time, it’s a lot of step changes in the wrong direction.
Apple is also introducing the iPad Mini, with a significantly lower price point versus other iPads. It has a lower gross margin. So profitability goes down.
As an investor, none of this bothers me so long as Apple can do two things. First, it has to prove that it can get costs down on new products just as it always has. This shouldn’t present much of a challenge. Second, they need to show me that the iPad Mini expands the overall market for iPads. If the Mini doesn’t accelerate iPad unit growth, then Wall Street can correctly say that Apple either canibalized its own profits, or was forced to take this step due to pricing pressure from competing 7” tablets.
If iPad sales improve with the new form factor, I look at is as Apple gaining more share and capitalizing on a portion of the market that was shopping elsewhere, or not buying tablets before. But if iPad sales don’t grow then Apple has simply lost profit, which is bad. For the record, I expect the former situation to unfold.
I’m pleased with Apple’s quarterly performance and I understand the reason for their guidance falling below Wall Street expectations. I take a longer term perspective on the business than most analysts and investors. I love the products they’ve just unveiled and it’s obvious to me that I’m more likely to increase my spending on Apple products than slow it down. If others feel the same way I do, that’s good for the stock.
In the mean time, if you are an Apple shareholder, learn to stomach the volatility. It’s not going away.
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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/k-3HXZMm0no/story01.htm
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