512 Pixels

“Device and content choice key to Apple iTV success.” No shit, Sherlock.

Myke Hurley:

We want to put together an awards show for 2011 that features awards for your favourite shows, episodes, hosts, etc for the network. We have created a questionnaire for you – our adoring fans – to complete to tell us your favourite things about the network this year.

Go here to vote, but don’t vote for Brett Kelly. Seriously, I’ll disown you.

This little machine deserves a lot more credit than it gets.

Creating in OmniGraffle: a five-step introduction attempt in less than 140 words.

Desired outcome: a new mockup of WebsiteThing.

1. Start it up. Download OmniGraffle here. Choose “Blank” from the template window.
2. Frame it. Stencils→Software→Konigi Wireframes. Designing for an iPhone? Drag out the iPhone browser. Lock object in place with ⌘+L.
3. Build it. Check out what else the Konigi stencil offers: position placeholders, buttons, and forms on your canvas. Turn on Snap to Grid (Arrange→Grid→Snap to Grid) for quick alignment.
4. Fine-tune it. Replace Konigi elements with real copy or graphics if ready. Add labels for the benefit of others.
5. Share it. Email, show off to colleagues via AirPlay, and more.

It’s all possible on the iPad, too. If you’d like, explore a bit more.

Devir Kahan:

If we are only reading things that interest us, we’ll never find anything new. We’ll never try something a little bit outside of our comfort zone, and we’ll never grow as humans.

I think he’s right.

I think I’m going to join David Sparks on this challenge.

It seems like Cult of Mac’s tip worked on my iPhone 4, but it might just be the placebo effect clouding my judgement.

Jonathan S. Geller at BGR:

For starters, we can now confidently say that Apple’s next iPhone will launch in the fall next year, around the same time that this year’s iPhone 4S launched. We have also learned that Apple is planning to use a rubber or plastic material — similar to the material used in the company’s bumper cases — that will be built into the new iPhone case.

The site also says this phone would sport an iPad–2 like back case and a 4-inch screen.

Oh, and they’ve got “iOS 6” and “iPhone 6” as tags on the story. Someone shoot me now.

Come on, TUAW. You can do better than this.

When Steve Jobs unveiled the original iPhone in 2007, it blew every other phone out of the water.

However, some complained that the device lacked 3G connectivity, leaving EDGE and Wi-Fi as the only two options for data connections.

Apple executives said that the power required to use 3G didn’t make the technology worth it. Here’s Steve Jobs, speaking at the O2 iPhone release:

The 3G chipsets that are available to semiconductors work reasonably well except for power. They are real power hogs. So as you know, the handset battery life used to be 5–6 hours for GSM, but when we got to 3G they got cut in half. Most 3G phones have battery lives of 2–3 hours (of talk time).

In 2008, Apple shipped the iPhone 3G. Here’s how the battery life stacked up ¹ between the two models:

iPhone (original)iPhone 3G
(on Edge)iPhone 3G
(on 3G)_Talk Time:_8 hours10 hours5 hours_Standby Time:_250 hours300 hours300 hours_Internet Use:_6 hours(not given)5 hours_Video Playback:_7 hours7 hours7 hours_Audio Playback:_24 hours24 hours24 hours

It seems that Apple attempted to balance out 3G’s hit on battery life by improving 2G battery life, and including the option to disable 3G on demand.² Even so, it’s clear that 3G did take a significant chunk of talk time away while in use.

Fast forward three years, and some people are clamoring for Apple to include 4G³ in the next iPhone (Heck, some wanted it with the release of the iPhone 4S this fall.), but I’m not convinced Apple is going to do so — for the exact same reason it held out on 3G connectivity.

Battery life is important.

In fact, I’d argue that great battery life is one of the features that continues to set Apple’s hardware apart. Here’s Shawn Blanc in his review of the Galaxy Nexus:

If you’re on a road trip and want to use the 4G LTE network to provide you with driving directions, your drive had better be shorter than 4 hours because even when plugged into a car charger, the battery will not last.

That’s just pathetic.

Apple doesn’t do pathetic; it would rather wait something out until the performance is right for an excellent customer experience.

I don’t have any problem with that.

A Brief Footnote Concerning a Possible Solution

I was discussing this the other evening with a friend of mine who has owned several Android phones over the years. He isn’t upgrading from his Motorola Droid X yet because of this battery issue.

A solution he suggested — and that I quite like — is smart 4G. Such a system would use 3G (or even EDGE) to pull data in the background, and only step up to 4G when downloading a large file or streaming video. That way, the user isn’t having to deal with battery issues all day, every day, but still gets the crazy speeds 4G can offer.

Still, I think this solution is probably too complex for Apple to want to include it in an iPhone, but it is an interesting compromise to think about.

If you have some time off this week, watch these videos.

Mikey Campbell at AppleInsider:

A study by retail analysis firm RichRelevance released on Friday notes that iOS devices accounted for the bulk of all online non-desktop sales in 2011, holding just over 92 percent of the market, reports Market Watch.