iOS devices refer to any of Apple’s hardware that runs the iOS mobile operating system which include iPhones, iPads, and iPods. Historically, Apple releases a new iOS version once a year, the current version is iOS 10. Here is the complete list of iOS 10 compatible devices.
In May, the ACSI report, which surveys over 70k US consumers, showed Apple continued its lead for customer satisfaction, but Samsung was quickly closing the gap. The new ACSI report covering only smartphones shows Samsung has since been able to surpass iPhone thanks to strong scores from its Galaxy S III and Note II:
Samsung’s flagship model for 2012, the S III, receives an ACSI benchmark of 84 (on a 0 to 100 scale), beating Apple’s iPhone 5 at 82, the company’s most recent smartphone offering. Another Samsung model, Note II, shares the top of list at 84. Galaxy S4 is not included because the ACSI study was fielded just prior to its launch.
Apple still takes the top spot in many countries, including Samsung’s home territory, and also continues to lead in overall customer satisfaction outside of the smartphone category:
While U.S. customers give Samsung’s smartphones the top scores, Korean consumers prefer Apple. According to the National Customer Satisfaction Index (NCSI) in South Korea, which uses the same technology as the ACSI, the iPhone 5 has higher customer satisfaction than Galaxy S III… Unlike Apple, which has a smartphone-only lineup, Samsung offers both feature and smartphones. At 76, Samsung continues to lag Apple for overall customer satisfaction. Nevertheless, the company’s 7% gain in 2013 is a clear reflection of the strength of Galaxy S III.
Celebrity endorsements can be cheesy, but this is a well-themed tie-in to the popular franchise. For a limited time, you can buy Usain Bolt as a playable character. Each character in Temple Run have different special abilities and Bolt is no exception. Bolt has a shield, providing invincibility for a short time as well as attracting coins, like a magnet. Imangi, the game’s developers, has warned that this is a limited-time promotion so eager fans should not wait if they want to play as an Olympian in the game.
Temple Run 2 is free; Usain Bolt is available, for a limited time, as an in-app purchase for 99cents.
We reported a couple of months ago a proof-of-concept allowing a modified phone charger to inject malware into a non-jailbroken iPhone without user intervention.
While there is no evidence that the method has ever been used in the wild, Reutersreports that iOS 7 beta 4 contains a fix for the vulnerability … Expand Expanding Close
While Apple is using an A6 processor for this new iPad mini, developer Nick Frey has shared with us that Apple is also developing a new A7 processor. A reference to an s5l8960x (likely A7) processor, which is a leap over the s5l8950x (A6) and s5l8955x (A6X), was located inside of the iOS 7 filesystem. Based on recent chatter, it seems plausible that this will be the chip powering the new iPhone 5S.
Interestingly, it appears that Apple will again work with Samsung for this new chip. The main system-on-a-chip will include some Samsung components- at least to power the display, according to analysis of the above code by a person familiar with Apple’s chip design process. This contrasts with a rumor from earlier this year (like every year) claiming that Apple will switch to TSMC on the A7 processor.
This source also says that over the past couple of years, Apple has hit roadblocks (in relation to processing speed) with both the upcoming A7 and A8 chip, but it appears those that issues have been resolved.
Apple is testing a new iPad mini that includes a faster processor but not a Retina display, according to references in the iOS 7 SDK sent to us by a developer.
The references were located inside of a hidden file that lists all supported iOS 7 devices, and the information has been corroborated with details found within the iOS 7 beta operating system itself… Expand Expanding Close
According to a local Chinese report, Apple CEO Tim Cook was recently back in China hoping to jumpstart relations with Chinese carriers this week. Cook met with China Telecom, already a strong Apple partner. The topic of conversation wasn’t revealed but likely on the plate is Apple’s lower cost plastic iPhone, perhaps called the iPhone 5C, and overall flattening growth in Apple’s second biggest market.
Apple CEO Tim Cook in China, visited with China Telecom, possibly to talk about declining iPhone sales, say local reports.
The article speculates that he probably met with the other local carriers including partner China Unicom and the world’s biggest carrier, China Mobile who has around 700M subscribers – none of which have direct access to Apple’s iPhone yet.
As first noted by MacRumors, Apple TV customers will be pleased to know that the $99 “hockey puck” will soon fully support Netflix’s newly announced user profiles. While Netflix says that a complete rollout to all supported devices will be complete by the end of August, it appears that the feature is partially available today for certain Apple TV and Netflix users.
Netflix’s user profiles allow subscribers to create personal viewing accounts that track individual ratings, recently viewed movies/showes, and recommendations. Each account can also set different parental controls to differentiate viewing capabilities between parent and child accounts.
The latest beta version of iOS 7 for mobile devices and Apple TV introduces a new method of pairing your iOS device’s Remote app with your Apple TV. Previously, the pairing procedure required the use of the regular infrared remote that comes with the Apple TV. Today’s beta allows the user to simply tap the phone on the Apple TV to connect using Bluetooth. The feature requires a Bluetooth 4.0-capable device, which means only more recent iOS devices are supported.
Looks like the rumors are true: iOS 7 beta 4 has leaked a new folder called “BiometricKitUI.” Based on the description, sent to us by Hamza Sood,it seems pretty clear that Apple is preparing a new iPhone with a fingerprint sensor.The interface is described above, pointing to a user being able to swipe the sensor on the iPhone’s home button.
Photo of a person holding an iPhone with their left hand while touching the Home button with their thumb_;
A fingerprint that changes colour during the setup process._
iPhoto of a person holding an iPhone with their right hand while touching the Home button with their thumb_Recognition is
Sood tells us that the above strings are what an iPhone with VoiceOver on would read to a user. According to a source familiar with the development of the new iPhone, the user-interface for the fingerprint scanning system has been complete. This person also says that the technology is focused around unlocking the phone, so it is unclear if it is built for a payment system (as rumored) in the next iPhone. We previously reported that Apple’s iWatch will include some biometric related hardware/software features.
The report on working conditions at Chinese iPhone manufacturer Pegatron appears to confirm that the low-cost iPhone does indeed exist, is plastic and is not yet in mass production.
The introduction to the report (PDF), which provides a background to Pegatron, contains this statement:
Its assembled products include iPhone 4, iPhone 4s, iPhone 5, and low-priced plastic iPhones
A day-in-the-life report on page 27 of the report states:
Today’s work is to paste protective film on the iPhone’s plastic back cover to prevent it from being scratched on assembly lines … Expand Expanding Close
WeiPhone forums (via Macotakara) has what appears to be a bin full of ‘iPhone 5C’ packaging (above). There is no way to verify if these are from an Apple production line or simply some knockoffs.
If these belong to Apple (big if), the assumption would be that the C will stand for “Color’ or ‘plastiC’ or ‘polyCarbonate’ or ‘China’ or ‘Cheap’ or ‘Consumer’ or something else in the same way that ‘S’ stands for speed. Theoretically, the aluminum model would be the iPhone 5S which of course would be speedier and have other upgrades.
As an example of Apple’s packaging, the 5G iPod touch looks to have a similar but thinner enclosure, right.
iLounge had previously gone on record with the prediction that the budget iPhone would be called the 5C.
If you watch a lot of videos on your iPad 4, you’ll definitely want to check out Belkin’s new Thunderstorm Home Theatre iPad case. We previously reviewed the 30-pin version for iPad 2 and 3, which integrates a powerful front facing speaker, amplification system, and integrated air channels that give you that rumble of the big the screen moviegoing experience. Today the Lightning version of the product is finally available to order and, if you’d prefer not to lug your favorite Bluetooth speaker around, it’s worth every penny Belkin is asking.
App developers may soon be asked to tell us what data they collect and how it is used under a set of government proposals released today (via TNW).
The US government’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration today issued its first draft of what will be a mobile apps code of conduct intended to better protect consumers and their privacy. If made final, policy states that publishers must provide consumers with “short-form” notices in multiple languages informing them of how their data is being used […]
Just so that there’s no doubt about what “data” means, the government entity specifically says it includes biometrics, browser history, phone or text log, contacts, financial info, health, medical, or therapy info, location, and user files …
There is doubt, however, about how effective the proposals might prove … Expand Expanding Close
In reality, we are looking at two different ways of looking at place-shifting content. Apple’s is directly from an iOS device or a recent Mac’s display. The Chromecast is sending instructions to the dongle to start playing content from the cloud (meaning you need a pretty healthy Internet connection).
In its present state, the $35 Amazon/Best Buy (in stock) Chromecast is a convenient way to show Netflix, YouTube and Google Play content on a TV. But a lot of the good programming lies outside of this sphere. Sure you can ‘Chromecast’ videos from your Chrome browser as you watch Hulu, Amazon Instant Video, or just about anything else that works in a browser including .MKV, MP4, AVI files, etc, but that’s not elegant (and Chrome/Android chief Pachai says websites, like Hulu, could turn off the functionality at any time)! Also, you get no dedicated remote with the Chromecast (though Android devices can be found pretty absurdly cheap) like with the AppleTV.
You can’t help but wonder if the Apple TV could be put in the Dongle format and perhaps given some more content sharing options. Google reached across the aisle and built Chromecast to provide Apple Mac and iOS users the same compatibility as Chrome and Android users. Sure Chromecast needs external power such as that provided by a USB port, but the form factor and, more importantly, the price, seem very compelling. If Apple could squeeze its current format Apple TV into a dongle and cut the price in half, why shouldn’t it?
The latest numbers from IDC, ABI and Strategy Analytics (the latter not yet online) paint an interesting picture of where the smartphone business currently stands, and where the iPhone sits within it.
The overall picture for smartphones is, of course, strong. IDC reports:
In the worldwide smartphone market, vendors shipped 237.9 million units in 2Q13 compared to the 156.2 million units shipped in 2Q12. This represents 52.3% year-over-year-growth, the highest annual growth rate in five quarters. Second quarter shipments were up 10.0% when compared to the 216.3 million units shipped in 1Q13.
While ABI pegged the year-on-year growth at a significantly lower 44 percent, it’s clear that much of the traditional featurephone market is switching to smartphones.
The high-end also remains strong, with both the iPhone and Samsung S4 outpacing the smartphone market as a whole, though both sets of figures show iPhone growth at a long-time low … Expand Expanding Close
Previously, we covered Apple’s announcement that it had won a large contract to supply iPads to LA Unified School District. The program will equip students across the nation’s second biggest school district with iPads that include the Pearson Common Core System of Courses delivered via a new app as part of the integrated solution. Additionally, each iPad will come preloaded with Apple’s iWork (Pages, Keynote, Numbers) and iLife (iMovie, iPhoto, GarageBand) suites in addition to a range of educational third-party apps. Apple noted that the $30 million commitment is only the first phase of a larger roll out for Los Angeles schools.
The first 31,000 iPads are only the initial phase of the program, which plans to buy and distribute iPads to all 640,000 students in the nation’s second-largest school district by late 2014, Mark Hovatter, the chief facilities executive for the LAUSD, told CITEworld.
“The most important thing is to try to prepare the kids for the technology they are going to face when they are going to graduate,” said Hovatter. “This is phase one, a mix of high school, middle school, and elementary students. We’re targeting kids who most likely don’t have their own computers or laptops or iPads. Their only exposure to computers now is going to be in their schools.”
That’s a huge number to add to Apple’s iPad numbers over the next year. As it stands, if Apple reaped $400 of revenue from each iPad, it would receive $256M for the deal. More importantly, it lays the groundwork for other school districts that may want to emulate this adoption.
Best of all, it exposes a massive amount of children to Apple’s technology that might not already have access to it.
Following the attempted breach into Apple’s iOS and Mac Developer Center and its subsequent closing, Apple has posted an iCloud-like Status Page so developers can track Apple’s work for re-implementing Developer Portal Features. Additionally, Apple has outlined its approach to restoring these features.
We apologize for the significant inconvenience caused by our developer website downtime. We’ve been working around the clock to overhaul our developer systems, update our server software, and rebuild our entire database. While we complete the work to bring our systems back online, we want to share the latest with you.
We plan to roll out our updated systems, starting with Certificates, Identifiers & Profiles, Apple Developer Forums, Bug Reporter, pre-release developer libraries, and videos first. Next, we will restore software downloads, so that the latest betas of iOS 7, Xcode 5, and OS X Mavericks will once again be available to program members. We’ll then bring the remaining systems online. To keep you up to date on our progress, we’ve created a status page to display the availability of our systems.
Apple will first restore Certificates and Provisioning, forums, bug reporting, documentation, and videos so that developers can continue developing apps at their old pace. Later, the iOS, Mac, and Xcode seeds will become available for download online.
Notably absent have been new iOS seeds, though many developers have speculated that this is due to the current inability to download the corresponding Xcode files.
Google just wrapped up its breakfast with Android/Chrome chief Sundar Pichai and, on top of the expected next-gen Nexus 7 and Android 4.3 announcements, announced new products and services coming to iOS. It also launched a new Game Center-like service today for Android users called ‘Google Play Games’.
Google’s new iPad mini competitor will be coming with a new 1920×1200 display (323 pixels per inch), a 1.5GHz Snapdragon chip that’s 80% faster, and a 2mm thinner and 50 grams lighter frame while introducing smaller bezels. All that and more for considerably cheaper than the iPad mini at just $229 for the 16GB model when it launches this month.
When it comes to iOS announcements, Google showed off a new textbooks service as part of Google Play Books that will arrive on iPhone and iPad next month. It also unveiled its new $35 “Chromecast” HDMI streaming stick that allows users to send video content from mobile devices to a TV, and an SDK that will allow iOS developers to implement the Airplay-like streaming capabilities. Mac users will be able to take advantage of the device by sending tabs from Chrome to the big screen via the new Chromecast hardware.
Head below for full coverage of the event from our sister site 9to5Google: Expand Expanding Close
Michael Kukielka, otherwise known as the DetroitBorg, posted the excellent video above showcasing one of the plastic iPhone shells that has been leaking all over the web like crazy. Besides the focus on the thinner ‘iPhone’ font on the back, we’re not seeing too much in the way of new stuff here, but it is nice to see the comparison, especially with the iPod touch and the plastic iPhone 3GS (which was alluded to many months ago).
Sprint announced today that it will now be offering its Wireless CapTel service to iOS device users, enabling the hearing impaired to read “real-time word-for-word captions” of conversations on their iPhone, iPod, or iPad.
Wireless CapTel by Sprint users place a call in the same way they would when using a traditional phone – by dialing the number directly on the device. The revolutionary application then connects callers directly to the CapTel service when the phone is dialed. When the receiving party answers, callers can listen to what the other person is saying and also read captions on the phone’s display screen.
Incoming calls will be routed through the service as well for users with a CapTel by Sprint number, allowing customers to receive the real-time captions for every conversation. Previously, the service was only available on select Android devices, including the LG Optimus G, HTC Evo 4G, and Samsung Galaxy SIII, and a few others.
On its Podcasts page in the iTunes Store, Apple has announced that there have been one billion iTunes podcasts subscriptions since since the company launched its Podcasts section in 2005 as an alternative to radio shows. Podcasts allows anyone from individuals to companies to create their own shows and offer them for download/streaming to Apple’s iTunes customers. Apple has also made the announcement via Twitter:
There’s a likable trend brewing. Affordable home automation used to be complicated and the equipment was generally ugly. Nest made the humble thermostat both smart and beautiful, Jawbone made door locks smart and iPhone-controlled, and now a new Indiegogo project Canary aims to do the same for home security .
A two minute SIM card hack could allow an intruder to listen to your phone calls, send text messages from your phone number and make mobile payments from your account. The vulnerability, discovered by a German security researcher, is present in an estimated 750 million SIM cards – around one in four of all SIM cards.
Give me any phone number and there is some chance I will, a few minutes later, be able to remotely control this SIM card and even make a copy of it … Expand Expanding Close
As the site puts it, “every bloody designer on the planet has had a go, so you might as well try too.” This tongue-in-cheek interactive design tool lets you create your own take on iOS by selecting from a range of backgrounds, fonts, colors, corner shapes and shadows.
Here’s our own Seth Weintraub’s application for the post of deputy to Jony Ive:
