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Verizon iPad 2 Displaying Strange Roaming Behavior

If some 11,000 page views and counting is any indication, a discussion at Apple Support suggests that at least a small number of Verizon iPad 2s are having difficulties accessing Verizon’s network.

The problems begin as soon as iPad 2 owners activate an account with Verizon. Up until then, “Verizon” will be displayed in the menu bar for the 3G network, but after a data plan is set up and activated that changes to “Roaming.” Further, the affected iPads will not be able to access 3G unless “Data Roaming” is turned on in Cellular Data settings. Finally, some iPads also exhibit problems if 3G is switched off, or if the iPad is shut down with 3G off, requiring 3G to be turned on and the iPad to be restarted to regain network access.

Reported conversations with Apple and Verizon tech support give varying answers on the problem and which party is to blame, but the issue may have to do with the Preferred Roaming List. The PRL is a database for determining how the device connects to the network, including provider identifiers. For some reason, some iPad 2s are not recognizing Verizon towers. According to Verizon, consumers are not charged for data roaming in the U.S., so arguably this aspect of the problem is minor.

However, Apple appears to be taking it very seriously. Users are reporting Apple Stores exchanging affected Verizon iPad 2s for new ones, and that was my experience. In the Apple Store I visited, I noted Verizon iPads that had no problem correctly connecting to the 3G network, while mine remained in roaming mode. Apple tech support personnel were polite and helpful, but were unable to fix the problem. Apparently, Apple is now “capturing” iPads exhibiting this behavior and replacing them, though I was told that a replacement iPad would not necessarily work correctly, either.

It did not. After calling Verizon and transferring the cellular data account to the new iPad 2, the same behavior manifested. I was transferred to Verizon tech support, where the process of resetting network settings and re-provisioning the account was repeated, but again without success. It was suggested I update to iOS 4.3.1, which, of course, I was already running. There were no other suggested fixes.

At this point impacted iPad 2 owners can try either returning their devices, or hope that Boy Genius Report is right concerning a rumored update to iOS. Version 4.3.2 supposedly will be launched in the next two weeks. The update will “include a few enhancements, address security issues, and it will also fix several bugs that have affected users.” Those considering a Verizon iPad 2 might want to wait and see if the network issues are resolved with this update, or reconcile themselves to the idea of an ever-roaming iPad 2. Anyone having this problem? Share you stories and possible fixes in the comments.

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Bing for iPad Begs the Question: Who Needs Search Apps?
Microsoft introduced its new dedicated Bing iPad search application Thursday, and my first impression is that it offers more useful features than Google’s iOSapp in a better package. Yet while it may outclass the competition, I also doubt I’ll ever use it again.

Microsoft did a nice job with the iPad Bing app. I’ve included a gallery below so you can see for yourself just how pretty the free app is. The sweeping vistas that make Bing so visually distinctive on the web look great on the iPad’s screen. The dynamically updated section thumbnails along the bottom of the interface not only look good, but they also offer some pretty great centrally located useful features as well. You can call up news headlines, weather, movie trailers and more with a single tap from the home screen. And everything transitions beautifully from one screen to another with the help of snappy and smooth animations.
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As is often the case with Google offerings, its own dedicated universal iOS app looks bare-bones and more a case of all function, no flash by comparison. Microsoft even includes a voice search feature like Google, too. But despite its many virtues, I predict it’ll suffer the same fate as the Google app has on my iPhone and iPad: I’ll probably only open it a couple more times, and eventually I’ll delete it from my home screen.

Why? Because search is not something I need all that often on my tablet or smartphone, thanks to the wide availability of narrow-focus single speciality apps. And even in those instances where I do want to search the web, I can access Google or Bing in my device’s mobile Safari browser in just as many clicks as it would take me to get to it in a dedicated app, and the apps will kick me out to Safari to track down my results anyway. Search apps may use a dedicated browser by default, which Bing does, but that’s just another problem since in-app browsers don’t offer Apple’s recently-introduced WebKit optimizations.

Bing would probably work kind of nice as a sort of always-on picture frame/desk clock/info center, but that’s not how I use my mobile devices, and I’d much rather open Reeder, Flipboard or Zite to go hunting for news, or use Google Maps for directions. Bing does a bunch of things adequately, but in the age of apps, I’ve come to expect and prefer software that does one thing and does it very well instead of Swiss Army-style titles that tries to do too much.

The fact is, the only real search I need is built-in to my iOS device thanks to Apple’s own Spotlight search, which is always just a swipe or two away. More often than not these days, if I’m searching on my mobile device I’m looking for something local, and that’s something no third-party offerings can provide, and even if they did I’d probably just use Spotlight anyway.

Do you use third-party dedicated search apps on your device, and if so, what for?

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Patents Point to Hybrid Displays, Smart Bezels in Future iOS Devices
Apple may be working on hybrid displays that have all the benefits of e-ink and LCD, with none of the downsides, and interactive bezels that increase the usable surface area of iOS devices. That’s according to two newly published patents (via Patently Apple and AppleInsider) that provide tantalizing glimpses behind Apple’s aluminum and glass curtain.

Hybrid Displays

You may have seen Amazon’s commercials for its Kindle e-reading device. In the ad spots, we find a frustrated iPad user who can’t enjoy the device outside under the bright sun. The premise of the commercial is accurate enough: reading on a backlit LCD or LED display under sunlight is much more difficult than reading an e-ink screen like that found on the Kindle. The problem, of course, is that current generation e-ink screens don’t have refresh rates high enough to display video, don’t work in the dark and don’t display color (or don’t do it well, at least, though that is changing). A newly published patent filed by Apple in 2009 would solve that problem by combining the best of both worlds into one intelligent hybrid display.

The display would apparently feature “composite display regions” where it could alternately show content using either e-ink or video display modes, depending on the type of content being viewed. The patent describes settings for switching between the two display modes, and for selecting how it is automatically triggered. For example it could be automatically switched from one to the other by calculating the rate of change or color composition of the content being displayed on the iOS device.

Not only would such a system combine the benefits of both types of displays mentioned above, it would also provide more power savings for iOS devices by switching to the less power-hungry e-ink tech when that’s all circumstances required. Doing could considerably extend iPhone and iPad battery life, since the Kindle with its e-ink display can go weeks without charging.

Smart Bezels

The second newly published patent describes an interface system that includes a “smart bezel” that would act as a secondary display for information and user guidance purposes. Illuminated icons could then appear on an iOS device’s bezel, and change based on what’s going on with device software. These would provide instructions for using the app or system, while also staying out-of-the-way of the actual content being displayed on-screen. The patent describes simple yet flexible configurations for these indicators that can be used by developers to issue custom instructions to a device user.

Another part of the patent describes how controls positioned on the backside of an iPad might use this sort of secondary display configuration to provide visual cues of how to use the controls with the software being displayed on the front screen. Obviously a user wouldn’t be able to see these at the same time as they use the app, but they could check quickly and easily for reference before going back to using the device. Sony’s upcoming successor to the Playstation Portable has touch-sensitive control surfaces on the back of the device, but a secondary display would help make such a feature easier to use.

One possibility not mentioned specifically in the patent is that Apple could also use this secondary display for system or app notifications. iOS notifications is an area that a lof of users aren’t happy with, and one where a flexible secondary display system seems to have ample potential.

Patents Aren’t Products

As with any patent, it’s a good idea to keep in mind that these technologies may never see the light of day. But they do provide an unparalleled glimpse at the kinds of things Apple is and has been working on away from the prying eyes of the public and the media. And these two particular patents make sense for Apple, because they either solve existing usability complaints for its devices, or introduce elements that could potentially make its devices even easier to use.

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Guardly Turns iPhone into Personal Security Guard
A new app launching today provides a single-tap, multi-target alert system for your iPhone or iPod touch. Guardly automatically alerts contacts of your choosing if you feel you’re in danger or have reason to quickly and easily alert a group of people to your location and current situation.

With the free version, you’ll be limited to just creating groups and assigning contacts to them. These could include friends in your immediate geographical area, for instance, or maybe a special selection of friends and relatives who know your medical history and allergies. You can send alerts (phone, email and SMS text) to these groups of contacts with one click from within the app, but in order to get the full Guardly experience you have to pay up for either a monthly ($9.99) or a yearly subscription ($99.99), which you can do through in-app purchase. Remember that Apple sees 30 percent of that revenue, but Guardly seems more than willing to pay in order to use iOS as a platform for distributing its subscription-based, software-as-a-service offering, something I anticipated as a possible trend following Apple’s introductions of in-app subscriptions.

Subscribing also adds the ability to call 911 with a single tap of the app’s icon from the homescreen (after a brief countdown in case of accidental presses). Auto-alerts can also be set to send to any other emergency contact of your choosing, too. Other premium features include in-app conference calling with your group of responders, the ability share map views and instant messages with your contacts in real time, real-time location tracking and the ability to share photos you take with your device with your emergency contacts.

Guardly is also smart about how and when it calls emergency numbers. It will detect any network failures and automatically call once a signal is reestablished, and it detects your current country using location services and automatically dials the correct emergency number based on that info. The app also offers a loud siren that can be activated in case of emergency.

This is an incredibly sophisticated app that makes amazing use of the iPhone’s built-in capabilities to provide as comprehensive a personal safety solution as you can find in an app. It even sets up your Guardly app’s outgoing caller ID to be that of your iPhone, making it much easier for emergency services and contacts to track you down should you fail to actually get through.

Guardly doesn’t offer much in the free version of its app, but it provides such a polished, thorough experience from beginning to end in terms of app functionality that I won’t be surprised to see people eager to sign up for paid Guardly subscriptions. A SaaS model will also help ensure that the app has a consistent, sustainable revenue stream, which should go a long way towards ensuring the lights don’t go out at a company that many may come to depend on as a personal security resource.

I’m reminded of the emergency call buttons posted at lamposts around campus at colleges and universities when I think of Guardly, only the app model works better because it’s available everywhere and seldom leaves your person. I’m actually surprised more smartphones don’t offer more of this sort of thing as a built-in option, but I expect to see more similar solutions pop up from all sources now that Guardly is making waves.
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How To Connect iChat to MSN, Facebook, and More
iChat is a great little chat client, especially considering it comes baked right in to OS X. However, a common complaint is that it doesn't support some IM networks such as MSN or Facebook chat. Here’s a way to chat to friends on networks which aren’t technically supported by iChat.

In the latest developer’s preview build of Lion, it’s been reported that iChat now supports Yahoo! Messenger, but there’s still no sign of being able to use iChat with other networks, including MSN messenger. Also noted is the fact that iChat now consolidates contact lists into one window, like third-party multi-protocol client Adium does, so you only need one window open.

In order to use other networks like Facebook chat, you can use Jabber, a chat protocol which iChat does support, as a kind of intermediate connection. To do so, you’ll need to download Psi, an application which will allow you to create a Jabber account and connect it to other chat networks.

Once you’ve downloaded and opened Psi, the application will ask you to either sign into an existing account or register for a new one. Assuming you haven’t done this before, click Register new account. You’ll then be asked to enter a server name. The server I use is headcounter.org, which isn’t in the drop down list, so you’ll have to enter it manually. It’s free, open to all and it works. Don’t worry about the other settings, and click Next. Once Psi has contacted the server, you’ll need to create a username and password.

The next thing to do is link your Jabber account with MSN (or any other chat protocol). To do so, first sign in to Jabber by right clicking your username and choosing Status > Online. Now right-click your username at the top of the Psi window and choose “Service Discovery” from the contextual menu. This will open a new window.

In the new window will be a list of services available to connect to. Find the one called MSN Transport and double-click it. Then enter your MSN credentials and click OK. You should see a message saying that the registration was successful, and another new window should open with a system message from msn.headcounter.org. In this window, click Add/Auth and your Jabber account will be connected to MSN. If everything went as it should, you should see your MSN contacts appear in the Psi window.

The final step is to connect iChat to your Jabber account. Open up iChat’s preferences under the iChat menu and navigate to the Accounts tab. On the left is a list of accounts you have set up in iChat. At the bottom of this list, click the + button to add a new account. In the new account window, select Jabber from the drop down list and enter your Jabber details, including the @headcounter.org part of your username. Leave the server settings to auto. Click OK, and the account will be added to iChat.

The first time you connect to Jabber in iChat, you will see a whole bunch of pop ups asking you to authorize your contacts. Unfortunately there is no way to get around this, and you’ll have to authorize each contact separately. However, that’s only a one-time problem, so you’ll never have to do it again. You also don’t have to keep Psi running all the time. Once the account is set up in iChat, you don’t need Psi at all; it was just for the initial setup.

One final thing: iChat can connect directly to Facebook chat without using another Jabber account, since Facebook’s chat service is based on Jabber. Go through the new account process in iChat, choosing Jabber again, and enter the following details:
- Username – this should be in the form username@facebook.com. Your username is the end part of the URL of your facebook profile. For example, if the URL of your profile page was www.facebook.com/fred then your username would be fred@facebook.com.
- Password – your usual Facebook password.
- Under Server Settings, the Server should be chat.facebook.com and the port should be set to 5222. Leave the ‘use SSL’ box unchecked.
Click OK and you should be signed into Facebook chat. This can sometimes take a while, so be patient.

Got any other tips for getting the most out of iChat? Share them in the comments.

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Fotopedia Bets Big on Virtual Vacations
App maker Fotopedia released a new title Wednesday, Fotopedia Paris, which takes users on a virtual tour of the City of Lights. The idea is that it’s a vacation on your iPhone or iPad, with no passport required. Fotopedia already has some noteworthy success under its belt, and a former Apple executive at the helm (Fotopedia CEO Jean-Marie Hullot was the CTO of Apple’s Applications Division), so is it on to something with the idea of travel-less trips?

The success of Fotopedia’s earlier apps in this genre seem to suggest that consumers are attracted to the idea of virtual vacations. The company’s prior titles: Memory of Colors, Heritage and National Parks (each of which presents a photo exhibit around a particular set of locations or themes) have been downloaded more than 2 million times to date, and the apps attract around 600,000 unique visitors each month. And Fotopedia Senior Vice President Christophe Daligualt thinks those visitors are spending quality time with the app.

“People spend on average 22 minutes per session in our apps,” Daligault says. “This tells us there is huge potential. Think of it as entertainment. Not as addictive as games but probably more satisfying and certainly less frustrating.” Fotopedia’s worldwide appeal is fairly broad, too, with nearly even distribution across North America (32 percent), Europe (33 percent) and Asia (23 percent).

But the new Fotopedia Paris app is different. While it resembles the others in interface and layout, this time around you can choose from a number of pre-selected tours or build your own “excursions” by selecting your favorite photos. The app then builds an interactive map that provides some geographical perspective of your virtual tour, which is handy in case you ever want to make the trip for real. And Paris is only the start. Daligault explained that “Paris is only the first city,” and that Fotopedia has plans to “expand in ways most people would not expect.” When asked about additional possible social features, such as the ability to share directly through the app, Daligault admitted this is an option they’re pursuing, but that Fotopedia wants to be very particular about the way it works that angle:

Saying that there are many photo sharing apps today would be an understatement. The questions we are trying to answer is what is it that is so personally relevant to you that you’d want to share it with the world, what is it that you’d really want to see from others and how to make that interaction smooth and satisfying without merely replicating things that already exist.

As with the company’s previous apps, the photography in Fotopedia’s apps is top-notch. You can also share photos (outwards only, unlike the features Daligault hints at above) from the app to your contacts via email, Facebook and Twitter, and save them to your device in the Photos app for use as wallpaper or however else you wish to use it. That assumes, of course, you respect the Creative Commons license that governs the use of each photo featured in the app. All images featured in the app are contributed by people through Fotopedia.com, which offers open community photo sharing. Daligault says that Fotopedia is hoping users who enjoy the Paris app will be inspired to join up and “contribute photos of their own city, neighborhood or country and share their favorite spots and sights.”

Positioning the iPad as a coffee table book replacement is an easy sell, and Fotopedia’s apps work very well in that capacity. But the iPhone and iPad are more than just digital book replacements, and Daligault is quick to point out why they represent the perfect platform for Fotopedia’s apps:

We are building a brand, we care a lot about all the interactions people will have with our apps. Apple gets media, they are driving profound changes throughout all the media industries and everything is very well thought through. This is the ideal platform. The quality of the display and the touch interface are superb. But it's not just the OS or the devices, it is the entire eco-system and customer experience, from the Apple store, to the App Store.

Daligault admits that the Fotopedia team is a bunch of “fan boys,” and that a number of other former Apple staffers are among their ranks, in addition to ex-CTO Hullot, but the fact remains that iOS devices are still the best way to reach audiences. And the revenue potential that represents is not something that’s lost on Daligault, either. He closed our email interview with a few words regarding the company’s business model, by noting that Fotopedia’s audience is “becoming very appealing for certain brands,” and that the company is “currently exploring different possibilities for partnerships and sponsoring but we are very careful as we want to do it right.”
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Is Apple Wrong for Breaking Its Own App Store Rules?
Apple released an app dedicated to showcasing iAd campaigns from key advertising partners Tuesday, and a blog post at inneractive points out that Apple reportedly rejected a similar app from a third-party developer (called Ads Tube) intended for release around the launch of iAds. Many also point out that Apple’s new app is in violation of its own guidelines governing the approval of titles for release in the App Store. Specifically, guideline 2.13 states that “apps that are primarily marketing materials or advertisements will be rejected.”

Leaving aside the fact that movie tie-in apps are almost all “primarily marketing materials or advertisements,” did Apple do anything wrong in rejecting an iAds showcase app and then releasing its own? No, for a few very simple reasons:
1. Apple is often exempt from its own rules. For example, it’s allowed to access APIs that other developers don’t have access to. Try finding a third-party app that plugs into Find My iPhone and you’ll come up empty-handed.
2. Apple has a responsibility to advertisers regarding the use of iAds. If they were presented in a way that a brand might perceive as damaging in the third-party showcase app, that could be very bad for Apple’s advertising relationships.
3. We don’t know the full story behind Apple’s rejection of Ads Tube. There could be other reasons behind its dismissal, and even if there aren’t, it’s still in violation of Apple’s App Review Guidelines, to which Apple itself is exempt (as mentioned above).
Before waving a finger at Apple, consider that by rejecting the Ads Tube ad it was enforcing a policy that keeps a lot of spam out of the App Store, and also that in releasing a similar app itself, it provides a solid, dependable experience that offers the same functionality from a known and trusted source. The specific developer behind Ads Tube may not have intended anything malicious with the app, but if I’m going to be using an app designed solely around marketing, I’d rather it comes from a company I trust than someone I know nothing about.

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Apple Co-Creator Says iPad is a Computer for "Normal People"
Speaking at a event Tuesday in Santa Clara, CA, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak said that the “iPad is for the normal people of the world.” He was speaking at the Storage Network World conference (via The Telegraph), and made a distinction between his tech savvy audience and the average consumer. Wozniak’s statement has the ring of truth, but is it really accurate?

According to Wozniak, it has always been Steve Jobs’ dream to create a computer that was easy enough for anyone to pick up and use, but “but it was just hard to get there, because we had to go through a lot of steps where you connected to things.” Anyone who’s had the pleasure of trying to set up a wireless network even just five to ten years ago can probably attest to this. If you remember connecting to the web in its earliest days, then you probably don’t need any more convincing.

Anecdotally, the iPad is the first computing device my mother has ever enjoyed being able to use. It’s also the only computer my girlfriend needs; she’s completely abandoned her aging Windows laptop (I actually haven’t even physically seen it in around six months) in favor of my first-gen iPad. And it’s the only computing device my luddite friend living in the wilderness of northern Ontario has ever asked me about with genuine curiosity. And of course, there’s the now famous story of the 100 year-old woman who was thrilled with her first computer purchase: a first-generation iPad:

Yet, many of the numbers detailing the average iPad user seem to go against such anecdotal findings. A November 2010 survey performed by SAI found that just 28.9 percent of respondents indicated that the iPad was their primary computing device. It’s an impressive number, but it still suggests that for the large majority, an iPad is a secondary device. Then there’s a December 2010 study performed by the Reynolds Journalism Institute that found that the average iPad owner is a college-educated 48-year old man, earning more than $100,000 per year. That’s hardly a picture of normalcy in the U.S., where 75 percent of the population earn less than $50,000 a year, and women make up a little more than half the total population, according to the latest census data.

Of course, the iPad has only existed for a little over a year. Global adoption, especially among demographics that are traditionally slow-moving when it comes to new tech uptake, will take time, so it makes sense that early iPad owner statistics would be more indicative of what constitutes an early adopter than what best represents the target market of the iPad itself.

Wozniak may be over-generalizing when he says that the “iPad is for the normal people of this world,” but it still represents the best attempt we’ve yet seen to make computing easy enough for users who don’t have extensive computer-using experience. And the price of entry for ownership is on the low side not only for tablets, but also for computing devices in general. I suspect that the picture of the average iPad user depicted above won’t be the same one we see in two or three years, and that Woz’s statement will make even more sense as Apple continues to refine the iOS experience with the general computer user in mind.

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Fresh Apple

Thursday, April 7, 2011

GigaOMApple (8 сообщений)

Hybrid Displays

Smart Bezels

Patents Aren’t Products

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