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Iphone

Apple Isn't the Next Microsoft (and That's a Good Thing) 269

Posted by Soulskill from the microsoft-also-not-the-next-apple dept.
Nerval's Lobster writes "In a new Gizmodo column, Andreas Goeldi calls it the 'frosted glass' effect: when a prominent tech company's latest upgrade to its flagship operating system features frosted-glass highlights as its primary innovation, you know that company is facing a period of severe stagnation. That's what happened to Microsoft around the time of Windows Vista, Goeldi wrote, and Apple's going down the same road with iOS 7. In light of what he views as Apple's sclerosis, it wasn't difficult for him to abandon his iPhone in favor of a Google Android ecosystem. But is Apple really becoming the next Microsoft? In short: no. Apple seems to recognize everything that seemed to elude Microsoft's corporate thinking six years ago: namely, that even the most successful companies need to keep breaking into new categories, and keep innovating, if they want to stay ahead of hungry rivals. Rumors have persisted for quite some time that Apple is prepping big pushes into wearable electronics and televisions, both of which could prove lucrative strategies if executed correctly. Goeldi faults iOS 7 for its frosted-glass effects, which he compares to those of Vista; but similar graphical elements aside, it's unlikely that iOS 7 will run into the same complaints over hardware requirements, compatibility, security, and so much more that greeted Vista upon its release. In fact, iOS 7 isn't even finished."

Comment Re:hasty (Score 1) 719

by MrHanky (#44284093) Attached to: Edward Snowden Nominated For Nobel Peace Prize

Bullshit. Last year, it was awarded to the EU, the year before that to some African women you never heard about, and then a Chinese dissident you also never heard about (funny how it's usually the Western elite and non-Western dissidents). One exception doesn't prove shit.
United States

NSA Spying Hurts California's Business 277

Posted by timothy from the solution-is-obvious-everyone-spies dept.
mspohr points out an opinion piece from Joe Mathews that "makes the argument that California's economic life depends on global connections. 'Our leading industries — shipping, tourism, technology, and entertainment — could not survive, much less prosper, without the trust and goodwill of foreigners. We are home to two of the world's busiest container ports, and we are a leading exporter of engineering, architectural, design, financial, insurance, legal, and educational services. All of our signature companies — Apple, Google, Facebook, Oracle, Intel, Hewlett-Packard, Chevron, Disney — rely on sales and growth overseas. And our families and workplaces are full of foreigners; more than one in four of us were born abroad, and more than 50 countries have diaspora populations in California of more than 10,000.' It quotes John Dvorak: 'Our companies have billions and billions of dollars in overseas sales and none of the American companies can guarantee security from American spies. Does anyone but me think this is a problem for commerce?' It points out that: 'Asian governments and businesses are now moving their employees and systems off Google's Gmail and other U.S.-based systems, according to Asian news reports. German prosecutors are investigating some of the American surveillance. The issue is becoming a stumbling block in negotiations with the European Union over a new trade agreement. Technology experts are warning of a big loss of foreign business.' The article goes on to suggest that perhaps a California constitutional amendment confirming privacy rights might help (but would not guarantee a stop to Federal snooping)."
Cellphones

New Analysis Casts Doubt On Intel's Smartphone Performance vs. ARM Devices 94

Posted by Soulskill from the keep-on-marking-those-benches dept.
MojoKid writes "A few weeks ago, the analyst company ABI Research published a report claiming that Intel's new CloverTrail+ platform (dual-core Medfield) for smartphones was significantly faster and more power efficient than anything ARM's various partners were shipping. If you follow the smartphone market, that was a very surprising claim. Medfield was a decent midrange platform when it launched in 2012, but Intel made it clear that its goal for Medfield was to compete with other platforms in its division — not seize the performance crown outright. Further investigation by other analysts has blown serious holes in the ABI Research report. Not only does it focus on a single, highly questionable benchmark (AnTuTu), the x86 version of that benchmark is running different code than the ARM flavors. Furthermore, the recently released Version 3.3 of the test is much faster on Intel hardware than on any of the other platforms. But even with those caveats in place, the ABI Research report is bad science. Single-source performance comparisons almost inevitably are."

Comment Re:Is it just me... (Score 1) 227

by MrHanky (#44259633) Attached to: Hands On With the Nokia Lumia 1020

Only stupid people make emotional decisions regarding tools, there are far better reasons than "because you want to".

Nonsense. When buying a simple mechanical tool like a hammer, it's much better to try holding it, swinging it and see what it feels like than going through a list of specifications. Same with smartphones, in that there's a real difference in how you physically interact with them. If it gets the job done with a minimal amount of stress, you'll be happy with it. The need for special apps as front-ends to every little web page (which is what most smartphone apps are) is there mainly because phones in general are deficient in this area.

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