Dave Overton

One might not thing these two are related, however it appears Apple may need to begin a reconsideration of the apparent correlation.

Apple Loses Another Unreleased iPhone

The errant iPhone, which went missing in San Francisco's Mission district in late July, sparked a scramble by Apple security to recover the device over the next few days, according to a source familiar with the investigation.

Maybe they need to consider a Vow of Sobriety for all Apple Employees who are testing the new iPhones.

iPad met its match in the TouchPad

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13924_3-20098165-64/ipad-met-its-match-in-the-touch...

If the Headline (Title) wasn’t enough, this quote from Roger Kay (not the author) takes it to the next level:

“So, it wasn’t really a product failure, it was a pricing failure.”

In an effort to reduce the impact of heavy users on their network, AT&T is implementing speed reduction mechanism for Unlimited Data Plan users who are in the top 5% of data consumption.

The company said the move to curb unlimited data plan users is designed to target those customers who typically use 12 times more data than the average smartphone customer.

12x is quite a large difference between average users and these targetted heavy users. The chart below shows average consumption by handset OS:

Interesting predicament that Motorola finds themselves in, as the once heavyweight in the mobile phone market tries to reinvent themselves. I agree with most of this statement in this report via bloomberg:

“This is the computer that I carry with me at all times,” Sanjay Jha (Motorola CEO) said in an interview, brandishing an Atrix. “If there is one bet we’re making going forward, that’s the core of it.”

Step one is the Atrix 4G. Jha says mobile phones, rather than complementing a laptop or desktop, will displace them as the primary computing device for most people. He says the phone will trump tablets too, whether Apple’s iPad or his own Xoom.

I agree that mobile technology is going to be the wave of the future, however I think that tablets and phones both have their role in the future. While the functions are similar, I see the market and demand for each as separate and unique for the moment. I haven't seem technology that could in essence bridge the gap in modern production. The "webtop" feature of the Atrix is trying to bridge the gap by allowing this mobile device to imitate a desktop computer, which is more of a replication of past computing experience and not moving into the future. It is nice to see mobile technology given permission to function in this role though. 

The bigger issue that I see for Motorola (and for other companies choosing to use Google's Android) is distinguishing themselves while using someone else's work as the basis:

Jha’s challenge is to distinguish Motorola from companies such as Samsung and HTC that also use Android, available for free from Google. Yet Motorola’s strategy risks alienating Google. As Jha strives to make devices stand out, the variations threaten to splinter the platform, said Jonathan Yarmis, an independent technology consultant.

Motorola may begin making phones with other operating systems, in addition to Android. The company is considering Baidu and software called Wophone from China Unicom (Hong Kong) Ltd., said Jha.

Tough challenge indeed, especially considering that Google's Open model continues to Be Open?

I sincerely hope that Motorola is able to succeed in this strategy, as competition is good. They have made some considerable steps in the past few years, namely the Droid and the Xoom. Considering the Xoom is one of the few iPad competitors to actually be available in the market, it is quite the success at the moment.

 

One of the most successful recent advertisements that highlights brand is the Verizon iPhone commercial. Check out the commercial below and let's discuss what they highlight after.

The key to this commercial and to most commercials that highlight brands well is that it highlights the best features of your content.

In this case:

1. iPhone - design of the phone is clearly the highlight
2. Verizon - a network that actually works

Apple has always been known for their design, and this commercial visually highlights that brand position very well. Again brand is not always about stating a message, it can be communicated very effectively through visual presentation of the product.

Verizon has a strong branding regarding the quality of their network, and for years has engrained the "Can you hear me now slogan?" into most of their advertisements. So why change that, especially when the one major complaint about the iPhone is in fact dropped calls via the carrier AT&T. They have beautifully woven the design of the iPhone and the strength of their network into this commercial. It serves as a great example for a quick advertisement (30 seconds) delivering a strong brand message to consumers.

Facebook 'should mimic Apple app security restrictions'

The App Review process of Apple's App Store has been hounded for years, now security company Sophos recommends mimicking it. /via the BBC

Now that Apple has officially launched the Mac App Store, I have been speculating about what is next. My speculation is not on the next product or OS feature per se, but further speculation about the possibilities that the Mac App Store have in that regard. The Store itself passed 1,000,000 downloads in the first day, and I concur with Shawn Blanc's post about the Simplicity that Apple is bringing to the OS. As I showed via the raw numbers in my previous post: Apple's Historical 1st Days. Apple has a history of using technology to create easy-to-use markets/platforms. In regards to this post, and probably to Apple in general, the terms Usability and Simplicity can be interchanged. Apple brought simplicity to the MP3 player. - You cannot deny the simplicity and success of the iPod & iTunes combination. Apple brought simplicity to the music purchasing arena. - Just think about this: Prior to the iTunes Music Store, how could you possibly purchase only a single song from an album that was not released as a single? Apple brought simplicity to the Phone & Mobile Software. - This is not about if Apple was first or if Apple is Best. Apple made it Simple. It is that simplicity that has given them a large market share. My mom uses an iPhone, and I am sure you have non-technical friends and relatives who do so as well. The iOS App Store has put a lot of amazing apps into the hands of both the technical and non-technical alike, with a simplicity that is astounding when you really consider what is going on behind the scenes. Apple now appears to be bringing that Simplicity to Mac OS X. As Shawn states:

It used to be that buying and installing an app was a chore. But now, with the Mac App Store, it’s as simple as finding an app you want and clicking a button. Just like buying a song or renting a movie in iTunes. The whole experience is familiar, easy, and even a little bit fun.

I completely agree. What if Apple does not just stop there? What if they bring the simplicity of the Mac App Store to updating your OS between major releases? (i.e. 10.6 -> 10.7) What if OS X 10.7 could be purchased and downloaded via the Mac App Store? Consider these items:

• Applications that are available in the iOS Store and now the Mac App Store can easily be downloaded, installed, & updated across multiple computers.
• Your iOS device's OS can be updated with relative ease and simplicity, even for major iOS releases.
• Apple recently released the Software Reinstall Drive with the MacBook Air. Further moving away from Optical Disc Technology, which is still the primary platform for OS distribution.

The primary drawback is an argument similar to other cloud computing services: if your Mac crashed, you had no backup or Software Reinstall Drive/Disc or Internet Access what do you do? Since your OS is now in the cloud waiting to be downloaded via the Mac App Store, it could be complicated. Presumably this is a marginal risk, but as opposed to just Applications, this is the core OS. Further, I feel that the Software Reinstall Drive will continue to be prioritized over Optical Discs, and hope that these drives will also be used for standard distribution of major OS releases, if the Mac App Store is not. Overall I think that providing Major OS X Updates via the Mac App Store does bring simplicity for the everyday Mac user who appears to be the primary target audience of the Mac App Store. I hope to see 10.7 launched via the Mac App Store.

iTunes Music Store - April 28, 2003 First 18 Hours - 275,000 Tracks Sold iPhone App Store - July 11, 2008 First 72 Hours - 10,000,000 Downloads Mac App Store - January 6, 2011 First 24 Hours - 1,000,000 Downloads (sources: Wikipedia, Apple PR, Apple PR)

Some good insight into the test by Consumer Reports here from Bob Egan.

Bottom line. From what I can see in the reports, Consumer Reports replicated the same uncontrolled, unscientific experiments that many of the blogging sites have done.

Consumer Reports has posted their full lab test and review of the iPhone 4. Of interest are the following quotes:

Our findings call into question the recent claim by Apple that the iPhone 4's signal-strength issues were largely an optical illusion caused by faulty software that "mistakenly displays 2 more bars than it should for a given signal strength."

The signal problem is the reason that we did not cite the iPhone 4 as a "recommended" model, even though its score in our other tests placed it atop the latest Ratings of smart phones that were released today.

On top of all other smart phones, sans the signal testing/issue. There still seems to be a lot of people without the issue, or better phrased, without a noticeable effect, but those that do have the issue are very outspoken about it. This review seems pretty thorough, and Apple has acknowledged an issue. The question is: will Apple be able to fix it in time?