iOS Devices

As we reported late last week, Honda just announced that it’s finally rolling out the promised Siri Eyes Free update that will enable hands-free use of Siri from a connected iOS device in select Accord and Acura models. This feature isn’t to be confused with Honda’s new implementation of iOS in the Car, which sources told us was slated for a December 3 unveiling.

The new Siri Eyes Free feature is available via a dealer installed accessory for the 2013-2014 Honda Accord and the 2013 Acura RDX and ILX, but we’re hearing the new iOS in the Car features, which will likely be branded under Honda’s Hondalink brand, will be limited initially to the just unveiled 2014 Civic.
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The same photograph with the focus point changed retrospectively (image: lytro.com)

A patent granted to Apple today for a Light Field camera – a camera with zero shutter delay and where the focus point can be changed after taking the photo – covers the precise technology Steve Jobs told biographer Walter Isaacson he wanted to use to “reinvent photography.”

He had three things that he wanted to reinvent: the television, textbooks and photography.

Jobs met with Lytro CEO Ren Ng in the summer of 2011, was shown a demo of the company’s Light Field camera and said that that he wanted the company to work with Apple … 
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This review has been updated a year in, with an improved thermostat with built-in display and touch-sensitive controls, and new fuel-saving figures.

Affordable home automation has been a long time coming. Frankly, I’m a bit disappointed that it’s the 21st Century and homes still don’t have Star Trek style swishy doors as standard.

But iPhone-controlled heating and lighting is here today. Nest hasn’t yet made it to the UK, so I decided to try out competitor system Tado, which is available in Europe now.

In the UK, it costs £199 if your system already has a wired thermostat, or £278 if it doesn’t. Alternatively, you can rent Tado for either £4.99 or £7.98/month. Looking at my own energy usage before and after, the payback time is a little under three years.

The concept

The idea behind Tado is three-fold. First, automation. As well as the programmable timer you have in any heating system, it also monitors the locations of everyone in the household via their iPhones (or Android phones). If everyone is out, it turns down the heating even if the timer says it should be on.

How much it turns it down depends on how far away you are, because it aims to have it back up to temperature by the time you return. Nip out to the local grocery store, and it won’t adjust it much, drive an hour to work and it’ll turn it down a lot … 
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With its wide-range of applications, touchscreen capabilities, portability, and fast processing, the iPad Air has been regarded by many users as a tablet capable of content creation. Coming from a dedicated laptop, however, the Multi-Touch keyboard is a weakness. Not because it is incapable, but because it is sometimes slower to type with, less accurate, and less comfortable.

This is why several iPad accessory makers have created solutions: keyboard attachments in the form of cases. For the past few weeks, I have been testing the latest keyboard case offerings for the iPad Air from Logitech, Belkin, and ZAGG. Below, I have put together a review and comparison of the Logitech FabricSkin Keyboard Folio, Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard Folio, Belkin Slim Style Keyboard Case, Belkin Ultimate Keyboard Case, and the ZAGG Folio Keyboard:

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Software developer Winocm has managed to port the core elements of Apple’s iOS operating system to non-Apple devices. This core is known as the “XNU Kernel” and this is what Apple developed over a decade ago to create the foundation of OS X (and later, iOS). As can be seen in the image above from Steven Troughton-Smith, the system is successfully running on a Nokia N900 smartphone…

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Update: A source close to the company tells us the feature is “more than just simple mirroring” and indeed part of Honda’s implementation of iOS in the Car. Collaboration with Apple first started in 2011 and Honda initially announced Siri Eyes Free, but the new 2014 Civic will be the first of its vehicles to expand its collaboration with Apple to the new iOS in the Car features. We’re told Honda plans to announce new iOS integration features the first week of December and that the hardware will enable a full roll out of iOS in the Car for the 14 Civic when Apple is ready with the feature later this year. We’ve reached out to Honda for an official comment and we’ll update if we hear back.

Update 2: It’s official.

After announcing back in January that it would begin supporting the Siri Eyes Free feature as an option in some of its 2013 Accord and Acura models, Honda will become the first major car manufacturer to support iOS mirroring on December 4. That could mean drivers of its new 2014 Civic just unveiled yesterday will be able to control their iOS devices using the 7-inch multitouch display built into the dash of the car. Honda confirmed mirroring technology would be available in the Civic when it goes on sale next month on its Twitter account (pictured below). It also noted that the promised Siri Eyes Free updates will be available at the beginning of December.

Earlier this year Apple unveiled a new strategy to further integrate its mobile platform into vehicles with the introduction of iOS in the Car at WWDC in June. The new features will see Apple working with car manufacturers to allow users to place calls, have more control over Siri, and view maps, but it’s unclear exactly what mirroring technology Honda will be using using in its new Civic Coupe. iOS in the Car is expected to make an appearance in new vehicles in 2014, while Apple is already working with Audi, BMW, Chrysler, General Motors, Jaguar, Land Rover, Mercedes-Benz, and Toyota to implement Siri Eyes Free.
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Regional carriers are starting to announce availability for cellular models of Apple’s new Retina iPad mini just as the company today started offering the device to walk-in customers.

Bluegrass Cellular announced today that it is now offering the iPad mini Wi-Fi Cellular models in-store and online. Available on the carrier’s website now starting at the usual $530 for the 16GB model, the carrier is also offering all three models (16GB, 32GB, and 64GB) on its no-contract “Freedom, Expanded” plan. That allows customers to make 12 monthly payments to get the device they want with the ability to trade-in and upgrade to a new device after a year. That plan will run $26.50/month for the 16GB model on Bluegrass, $31.50/month for the $630 32GB model, or $36.50/month for the $730 64GB model. The carrier appears to only have Space Gray models of the device available, at least online, and the Freedom Expanded plans are only available in-store. Another regional carrier, C Spire Wireless, will begin selling the Retina iPad mini over the next week. Update: U.S. Cellular has also begun cellular iPad mini with Retina Display sales today on its website.

In other Retina iPad mini news, we’ve just received word Apple has just started selling the device to walk-in customers in its retail stores following an initial launch for Personal Pickup orders only.

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Apple’s iBeacon system is to get its first retail launch in Macy’s branches in Union Square, San Francisco and Herald Square, NYC, within the next few weeks, reports TechCrunch.

Apple will of course be using the system in its own retail stores, though likely after the Macy’s launch. Macy’s is already operating a closed trial of the system.

Offers now will be pinged to users right when they are walking past them, or past a department that contains products that users have shown interest in before. And for those who have opted in, the iBeacon technology will also automatically open the app and can trigger other actions when you enter a participating store, such as telling users how many loyalty points they currently have to redeem towards a purchase … 
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According to a report from The Times of India, Apple is kicking off an aggressive new trade-in program in India after a successful pilot of the program earlier this year. The new offer will see customers trading in the iPhone 4 for big discounts on the new iPhone 5C and the iPhone 4S. The news comes from sources that say Apple met with executives from its retail partners in the country last week to discuss the new program.

Apple is going to be offering a minimum Rs 13,000 (approx. $207) in trade-in value for the iPhone 4, allowing customers to get their hands on 16GB and 32GB iPhone 5C for Rs 28,900 (approx. $460) and Rs 40,500 (approx. $650) down from the Rs 41,900 and Rs 53,500 the devices normally sell for. Users can also get an iPhone 4S for Rs 18,500 (approx. $300), down from the usual retail cost of roughly $500. 
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Following the announcement for Moga’s new iOS 7 game controller yesterday, Logitech today officially announced its new MFi controller, the PowerShell. Like Moga’s controller, Logitech’s also doubles as a battery pack with a built-in 1500mAh battery (slightly smaller than Moga’s 1800 mAh) and will sell for the same $99 that Moga is asking.

Both of the new controllers are using Apple’s new MFi iOS 7 game controller program, which offers accessory makers and developers one standard framework for implementing support for iOS compatible game controllers. Apple allows two types of game controllers and two configurations all with pressure sensitive buttons and consistent layouts. The first type of controller is the form-fitting controller (like the Moga and the new Logitech), which allows your iOS device to be docked right into the controller. There will also be standalone controllers that connect over Bluetooth.

Logitech is using Apple’s standard MFi configuration, which gives you a D-Pad, A/B/X/Y face buttons, and left and right shoulder buttons. Moga, on the other hand, is using Apple’s extended layout, which adds an extra set of shoulder buttons and left and right thumbsticks.
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FiftyThree, the company behind the drawing and painting iPad app Paper, has launched a Bluetooth stylus which appears to have all the style and simplicity you’d expect from the people behind the iPad App of the Year 2012.

Great tools inspire great ideas. Pencil is the most natural and expressive tool for getting ideas on Paper. Advanced technology meets beautiful design to keep you in the flow, without needing to switch tools. With Erase, Blend, and adaptive Palm Rejection, Pencil puts creative possibility in your hands …

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FreedomPop, the wireless service provider offering free and cheap no-contract plans on Sprint’s network, today announced it’s now allowing customers to bring their old Sprint phones to activate on its $0/month wireless plans. We’ve confirmed with the company that will also soon include iPhones.

The company has been around since 2011 with various hotspot products and recently launched its first smartphone direct to customers alongside the world’s first completely free mobile service. A guaranteed 500 MBs of data, 500 text messages, and 200 anytime voice minutes for free each month would sound enticing to anyone, but previously customers would have to pay $99 for an almost two-year old HTC Evo Design to get it. Despite that, FreedomPop says it “immediately sold out” of stock when it launched last month.

That’s about to change today as FreedomPop will now let Sprint customers bring their own device to activate on its free and cheap plans. Although there is no mention of it in the carrier’s press release and some are reporting iPhones aren’t supported, we’ve confirmed FreedomPop will support the iPhone 4 and 4S as well as 20 other Sprint devices initially. Stephen Stokols, FreedomPop’s CEO, tells us it will be another few weeks before the iPhone is compatible, and eventually all Sprint smartphones will be supported. Around 600 devices, including iPhones, will be supported by the end of the month. 
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<a href="http://www.t3.com/news/exclusive-t3-render-of-the-apple-ipad-pro">Mockup by T3</a>

The Korea Times is reporting that a “first tier display supplier” is already manufacturing a 12.9 inch panel for iPads. According to the report, Apple is looking to bring the bigger iPad to market sometime “early next year”…

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MOGA have been making gamepad accessories for Android devices for a while. Today, they have announced on their website an adapted version compatible with iPhone and iPod touch. The company is the first to officially announce availability of an accessory that works with iOS 7’s GameController API (but not the last this week ;).

Logitech, ClamCase and others have hinted that they have competing accessories nearing release, but MOGA is the first company to openly announce available. The accessory will be available  tomorrow — priced at $99 — from the Apple retail stores and the Apple Online Store in addition to MOGA’s site.

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