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News, reviews, walkthroughs, and real-life application of Apple products
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iOS 4 on iPhone 3G: Fake Email Offers Real Hope
It appears that we have a new “Fake Steve Jobs” in our midst. And this time ‘Steve’ is claiming via email that the apparent performance issues witnessed on iPhone 3G devices running the latest iOS 4 software will be addressed in an upcoming update to iOS 4. Regardless of whether the email did in fact come from the Real Steve Jobs or not, there are plenty of reasons to believe that Apple is serious about getting iOS 4 working properly on iPhone 3G devices.

Next Gen Customers on Previous Gen Devices

The most likely recipients of older iPhone 3G devices will be the siblings of the owners of the devices which have replaced them with the new iPhone 4. This is a very important class of user that Apple cares a lot about. The new owners of these older iPhone 3G devices will be potential Apple customers throughout their academic life. And it appears that students are serious about Apple. Providing a less than awesome experience now could jeopardize their loyalties later.

One iOS to Rule Them All

The current burden on developers targeting Apple’s mobile devices is that there are too many software versions to manage; 3.1, 3.2, and 4.0, to name a few. The number of devices on each of these three major platforms is still significant. With the upcoming iOS 4.1 update, Apple has the opportunity to converge more of these devices to just one OS platform. That is, if they can convince iPhone 3G owners that performance is no longer an issue.

Focusing on multiple platforms does take time away from adding features and releasing new titles. Giving developers the tools they need is only part of the equation. Switching between simulators and managing several different devices takes time. Cutting down on the number of device and OS combinations that developers need to support will only strengthen the quality of the apps for devs that don’t test across the matrix of combinations, and give back some development time to those that do.

Engineering Pride

Apple has been quite public about the engineering capabilities of other software development shops. Apple was also adamant all along that iPhone 3G devices would be supported on iOS 4, minus some features. Nonetheless, Apple proclaimed support for these devices. Taking on its own challenge, stepping up to the plate and delivering an awesome experience to its next generation of customers is what Apple’s core values are all about.

Related GigaOM Pro Research: Rogue Devices: The Consumer Influence on Enterprise Mobility, Part 1

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The New Yardstick: If You're Not Apple, You Lose
For 2009 and 2010, the clear winner in consumer electronics is Apple. Its mindshare among analysts and consumers is far beyond any other company. I’d even go so far as to declare Apple the most successful tech company of this decade. That’s why I feel sorry for every other company in this space.

No matter what your company did in the past two years, Apple did it better. It reminds me of Sony in the 80s and Microsoft in the 90s. Companies were afraid of Microsoft in the 90s. All Microsoft had to do is decide to enter your space and you’d be out of business, if you weren’t lucky enough to be bought by the company. That’s not the case anymore. In this sense, Apple is the Microsoft of this decade.

Let’s take a look at RIM’s BlackBerry Torch, just released last week. Gizmodo had a great post on why the Torch launch was an utter failure, with only 150K units sold in the first week. In that article, they said:

The hordes are proclaiming the Torch a massive failure, and they’re right — but not because of how many units they sold. 150,000 handsets is a lot of phones. In fact, it’s totally in line with other major launches of the last couple of years: Sprint sold that many Evo 4Gs in its first three days, and it’s three times as many as the Palm Pre managed at launch.

Who it didn’t compete with, of course, is the iPhone. The 3GS and 3G both moved a million over their opening weekends, and 1.7 million people took home an iPhone 4 at launch. And that’s where RIM got into trouble.

They’re right. 150K units is a great number, but it doesn’t compare to Apple’s 1+ million numbers every time a new iPhone comes out. That’s the point. The Blackberry Torch, HTC Evo and Palm Pre all look like complete failures when measured against Apple.

Recently, Asus said they’re lowering production of netbooks due to a lower sales forecast. Nowhere in that quote did their CEO say Apple’s iPad is to blame, but it didn’t stop every blogger from making that causal link. What about the fact that netbooks have had the same Intel Atom processors, same form factor, same low-resolution monitors and same version of Windows XP on them since 2006 as the reason for lower sales? Maybe it’s time for Asus to actually innovate instead of putting the same stuff inside a different color case and throwing a $299 price tag on it.

The specifics of how other companies are doing doesn’t really matter. The issue is that, no matter what any tech company does, they’ll be compared to Apple in some way. Tech companies can’t release a mouse, display, keyboard or television-connected device without being compared to Apple. I’d like to see Microsoft release a battery charger at this point without drawing a negative comparison. Wait, never mind, they have one of those.

My point is, Apple is the yard stick by which all others are measured. There are better products out there with zero visibility and meager sales. In fact, the next Apple is probably out there somewhere. Let’s hope manufacturers don’t just throw up their hands and scale back in the face of stiff competition from Cupertino, and as consumers let’s keep an eye out for the next little guy swimming bravely upstream.

Related GigaOM Pro Research: Apple Company Analysis

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Apple Now Allows Magazine Subscriptions on the iPad
If you’re a devoted subscriber to a print magazine, but you just got an iPad and want to read the digital edition instead, the only option to date has been paying full newsstand cover prices all over again for the same content. Now, though, Apple has relented, and free digital access for traditional subscribers should arrive for many in the near future.

Time Inc. is the publisher that finally convinced Apple to bypass the pay-per-issue model and allow existing subscribers to reap the benefits of their iPads. As of Thursday, People magazine allows existing subscribers to download and view current content on their iPads for free. Subscribers forced into paying twice for the same content had previously contributed to extremely negative reviews for apps like Sports Illustrated and others.

Apple’s reluctance is understandable. In allowing existing magazine subscribers to essentially bypass its own in-app purchasing system, it gives up a considerable share of revenue. Magazines and other publications now have a precedent for charging users outside of the App Store itself for content delivered within, which could pose a considerable threat to Apple’s bottom line.

On the other hand, Apple fought hard to win over the magazine publishers prior to the launch of the iPad, and it wasn’t exactly doing itself any favours in terms of fostering good will by alienating the magazines’ subscribers. Allowing for external subscriptions to apply within the App Store should pay off in that it will allow a pool of new users a way into the iPad through traditional media avenues.

Other Time Inc. properties like Sports Illustrated and Fortune are expected to follow suit with free content for subscribers in the near future. I’d expect other publishers to be shortly behind them. Even better for iPad users, this should prompt a number of fence-sitting magazines to jump on the iPad bandwagon, since it allows them to expand their customer base without requiring they buy into a revenue-sharing model.

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New Apple Store Section Allows Mac Comparisons
It can be difficult to decide which model is for you when it comes to purchasing a new Mac. Apple has tried to make the process a little less painful by adding a Mac comparison feature to the online Apple store.

The comparison page lets you choose up to three Macs via a popup window, select their individual specifications, and then compare each side-by-side. You can compare anything from the amount of hard drive space to physical dimensions. You can even view the environmental status reports.

Also handy is the ability to save the Macs you set up in the comparison to use later. All the options you choose are remembered once you sign into your Apple account, and you can restore them using the ‘select a Mac’ popup window. You can have any number of different set-ups stored in your account.

The addition of this useful feature should make the purchase of a new Apple computer go much more smoothly, especially for those new to Mac.

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