Is it really worth upgrading your iPhone? Video pits every Apple handset ... - Daily Mail

• EverythingApplePro tested the iPhone 2G, 3G, 3GS, 4, 4S, 5, 5C and 5S
• All handsets were tested based on shut down and boot up times
• The video shows the original model booted faster than the iPhone 4

By Victoria Woollaston

PUBLISHED: 04:32 EST, 30 September 2013 | UPDATED: 09:02 EST, 30 September 2013

Apple has released a total of eight iPhone handsets since 2007 and each one has been released with the promise of faster speeds and improved performance.

But how different is the original model to the current 5S?

Fan site EverythingApplePro has created a video test of all eight handsets, from the original to the new model, plus the 3G, 3GS, 4, 4S, 5 and 5C.

Each of the handsets were 'freshly restored and not jailbroken' meaning they each had the same default settings and all applications were force closed beforehand. 

APPLE'S IOS 7 CAUSES 'MOTION SICKNESS AND NAUSEA'

Apple's new software has been slammed for causing users to feel sick.

Features on software including zooming screens and app windows, full-screen slide transitions, a 'faux-3D parallax effect' on the home screen.

As the phone is tilted, the icons appear to move independently from the wallpaper.

Stuff magazine investigated the effects these motion-based features had on users and discovered claims of nausea, motion sickness and even vertigo. 

In the first test, all the phones were powered off simultaneously and the 3GS shut down fastest, followed by 3G, then the 4, then the original model.

The newer handsets all took noticeably longer than the older models, but took exactly the same amount of time as each other, to the second.

The voiceover explained during the video that iOS 6 had a much faster shut down time than iOS 7 and this was highlighted in the test.

Each of the phones booted up at different times, but EverythingApplePro highlights that the models differ in the amount of processing power and RAM and software between the newest and oldest phones, meaning this was not unexpected.

The newer models all booted up first, and at almost the same time, yet the original phone booted up faster than the iPhone 4. Apple's iPhone 3G was the slowest to boost.

Fan site EverythingApplePro has created a video test of all eight handsets, from the original to the new 5S model, plus the 3G, 3GS, 4, 4S, 5 and 5C, pictured. Each of the handsets were 'freshly restored and not jailbroken' meaning they each had the same default settings and all applications were force closed

In the final tests, EverythingApplePro launched the Reddit.com, and Apple.com websites.

The male voiceover explained that the 5S loads sites 'instantaneously' adding: 'the extra processing power and the new Wi-Fi capabilities, its an amazing device'.

When launching Reddit.com, the iPhone 5 beat the 5 and the voiceover continued the loading times go 'downhill' from there.

In conclusion, the video maker claimed: 'I learnt that the amount of processing power is greater as the generation goes on, but it's marginally less noticeable the higher you go, so if you have a 5 I wouldn't really recommend upgrading to a 5S just based on the fact you want extra amount of power, because it has an amazing amount of power as it is.'

In the final tests, EverythingApplePro launched the Reddit.com, and Apple.com websites, pictured. During the video, the voiceover explained the 5S loads sites 'instantaneously'. When launching Reddit.com, the iPhone 5 beat the 5C but the rest of the handsets loaded the page slower than its successor

In a separate test, SquareTrade, a provider of protection plans for gadgets, compared five smartphones, including Apple's new iPhones, to see if they could withstand drops, dunks and other common hazards.

It found that while the iPhone 5C and 5S scored similar on the 'Breakability' scale, the latest models aren't as durable as last year's iPhone 5.

The biggest loser, however, was Samsung's Galaxy S4, which failed to work after being submerged in water and being dropped 5 feet off the ground, according to San Francisco-based SquareTrade.

The phone that withstood SquareTrade's torture test best was Google's Moto X.

New research by SquareTrade reveals that the iPhone 5s & 5c were outshone by their predecessor, the iPhone 5, and the Samsung Galaxy S4.

 

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The comments below have not been moderated.

seriously, coventry, United Kingdom, moments ago

yes get a samsung !

AlCapone00, south chicago, United States, 15 minutes ago

and err have u seen youtube videos comparing breakability and concludes the iphone is one of the most durable and well built phones

AlCapone00, south chicago, United States, 16 minutes ago

what an inaccurate ridiculous article, the DM once again hating on apple. just cause something boots faster doesn't mean it performs better. its like a ignorant author write this getting paid for junk.

Hugh Avonalaff, London, United Kingdom, 23 minutes ago

I was wondering whether to upgrade my 4S to a 5S. I'm glad I did. The 5S loads apps in an instant and acquires a wifi connection in a fraction of the time of the 4S. The camera starts up around thee times faster than the 4S. Who cares how long it takes to boot up once a month?

libertas, London, United Kingdom, 1 hour ago

the original model booted faster than the iPhone 4 ------------ OF COURSE it would. It has far less to load than later models.

Doug Johnston, New York NY USA, United Kingdom, 1 hour ago

Yep! The original iPhone OS didn't even support custom apps.

AIP, IRL, Ireland, 1 hour ago

Hardly a difinitve test considering that rebooting is the thing done most rarely on the iPhone - any type. For speed of use and usability my 4s rates way above my old 3s. My partner's 5 is better again. He owns every model from the original to the 5 and the difference is quite notable with the newer design and operating systems being a marked improvement, especially with regard to screen quality etc. my old Nokia 6330 which is my work phone also takes a bloody age to start up, but that's hardly worth an article!

rhubarb and custard, Kent, United Kingdom, 1 hour ago

Upgrade? should have called it down grade.

Neville, Norwich, 1 hour ago

Please DM! Don't upset the little boys and their toys..

Newtons 3rd Law, Tunbridge Wells, United Kingdom, 2 hours ago

Keep paying for your iphone upgrades you sheep... Bah!

MyOpinion, Coventry, United Kingdom, 22 minutes ago

For the record I do not have an iPhone, but just thought I should point out to you that Android outsold iPhone so are they sheep too? I guess everyone who owns a phone are by your standards.

LORNAO, LONDON, United Kingdom, 2 hours ago

Sort it out you Predictive Gee-Gee Upgraders:) I'm sticking with my Nokia 3310.

The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.

HTC To Sell Back Its Remaining Stake In Beats Electronics For $265M - TechCrunch

The writing was on the wall. It was bound to happen. HTC has sold its remaining stake in Beats Electronics for $265 million. This is likely nothing more than a desperate bid to improve the battered phone maker's cash balances.

According to Bloomberg, the deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter. By selling beck the 24.84 percent stake in Beats, HTC stands to gain a NT$2.52 billion ($85 million) pretax profit. Beats will also repay a $150 million promissory note, plus accrued interest.

Word of this deal started circulating in August. Since HTC bought into the hot audio brand in 2011, the phone maker's stock price plummeted 90 percent on the back poor sales. The stock price almost hit an eight-year low this month.

HTC originally purchased 50.1 of Beats in 2011, but sold half of that stack in mid-2012, which reportedly resulted in a net loss of about $4.8 million for the Taiwanese gadget maker.

As of right now, HTC is a perilous situation. The company's sales revenue is down, profits are down, operating cash flow is now negative and more than a few pundits have already written the company off (or are close to doing it). Worse yet, the HTC One is nearly universally praised as the best Android phone available, yet the sales numbers do not reflect the title. They built the phone everyone wanted, yet can't get anyone to buy it.

By selling back its remaining portion of Beats, the company bought a little more time out of the deadpool.

HTC Corp closed down 2.99% on the day, ending at NT$130 on the Taiwan Stock Exchange.

Microsoft extends iPad tradein program to include iPhone 4S and 5 - T3

Earlier this month, Microsoft launched a new scheme offering iPad owners the chance to gain min. $200 to use towards a Microsoft Surface tablet.

The company, in a bid to get people using Windows, has now extended its trade-in program to include any "gently used" iPhone 4S or 5's for the same min. $200, but in Microsoft Store Credit only.

TechCrunch reports there is also a deal in the works to offer a similar trade-in for iPad owners.

Microsoft's incentive behind the scheme; to get Apple customers handing over their Apple hardware and walking out with Microsoft, whether that's a Lumia Windows Phone such as the Nokia Lumia 925, Surface tablet, or other device.

"Precisely what Microsoft intends to do with all its accumulated Apple hardware remains opaque," TechCrunch reports.

Last week, Microsoft's Surface Pro 2 was officialy unveiled with Windows 8.1 alongside reports that a Surface Mini is on its way.

Microsoft has also recently acquired Nokia's mobile phone business paying out £4.6 billion to take over the reins.

According to a report in Bloomberg earlier this year, Apple are rumoured to be planning their own trade-in program offering Apple customers the chance to trade-in their current iPhone handsets and upgrade to a newer model.

Source: TechCrunch

See a speed test between every iPhone model ever made - CNET (blog)

Ready, set, shut down! You might be surprised which one wins the race.

(Credit: Screenshot by Eric Mack/CNET)

Logic and Moore's Law would seem to dictate that the newly released iPhone 5S should blow the original iPhone from seven years ago out of the water when it comes to which runs the fastest.

But as the video below illustrates with an eight-way speed test between all of the publicly released iPhone models since 2007, the truth is a little more nuanced.

Earlier-generation models, led by the iPhone 3GS and followed by the 3G, 3, and original iPhone turned out to be the quickest to shut down. As EverythingApplePro observes in the video, it seems that something in iOS 7 leads devices running it to take longer to shut down.

Another surprise comes when all eight models race to boot up. Predictably, the meatier hardware in the four newest models allows them to reach a home screen first, but interestingly, the original iPhone is quicker to boot than the iPhone 4, 3GS, and 3G. All the models shown have the latest updates, so it makes sense that the iPhone 4 might struggle to run iOS 7 quickly. Apparently differences in the earlier version of iOS run on the original iPhone make up for its hardware deficiencies when compared with its successors.

The conclusion reached in the video is that it's not worth upgrading to the iPhone 5S for its marginal speed improvement over the 5 alone. But to me it seems the real issue revealed (or reinforced) here is that you might want to think twice before upgrading to iOS 7 on your iPhone 4.

Did anything in this test surprise you? Let us know in the comments.

HP Slate 8 Pro boasts highest resolution of any 8-inch tablet - CNET

The HP Slate 8 Pro might garner some quick comparisons with other 8-inch tablets, like Apple's iPad Mini -- thanks to its 4:3 aspect ratio -- or Samsung's Galaxy Note 8 -- due to its sleek all-white body -- but the superficial resemblances end there. The HP tablet one-ups its fellow 8-inchers, with its sharp 1,600x1,200-pixel resolution IPS display, Nvidia's speedy Tegra 4 CPU, and a healthy 2GB of RAM.

In comparison to the Galaxy Note 8's average 1,280x800-pixel-resolution screen with 189 ppi (pixels-per-inch) (also the same resolution as Samsung's Galaxy Tab 3) and the iPad Mini's shamefully low 1,024x768-pixel display and 163 ppi, the Slate 8 Pro's 253 ppi blows them out of the water, making its screen the sharpest out of the high-end 8-inch tablet models.

According to HP, the Slate 8 Pro has a high color gamut, promising a wide range of color for a more dynamic multimedia experience. Unfortunately, thanks to its 4:3 aspect ratio, the 8-inch tablet is best used for browsing and reading rather than video watching.

The tablet houses a Micro-HDMI port and microSD card expansion slot, as well as an 8-megapixel rear- and 2-megapixel front-facing camera, and audio enhancement features courtesy of HP's partnership with Beats Audio.

Ports on the tablet include micro-USB and Micro-HDMI.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

Despite its slightly-bigger-than-7-inch size, the HP Slate 8 Pro manages to fit comfortably in one hand. The smooth texture of its back tactilely felt nice, but I personally prefer the grippy texture seen on HP's Slate 7 HD and Slate 10 tablets. To be sure, the pearly white matte finish does give the device a high-end luxurious feel that is perfectly accented by the Beats Audio-inspired red trimming.

Navigating between apps was smooth, with little lag time and the tablet quickly responded to touch. Text and video on the screen looked sharp, however, letter-boxing on widescreen video was unavoidable thanks to the screen's 4:3 aspect ratio.

The HP Slate 8 Pro has smooth, curved edges, which make it comfortable to hold.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

The HP Slate 8 Pro is expected to hit stores in November. Pricing information hasn't been announced, so check back with CNET for updates and a full review once the tablet becomes available.

Microsoft should buy BlackBerry. There, I said it - ZDNet

I'm not the only one who thinks so. Google the phrase, "Microsoft should buy BlackBerry". You'll see a lot of hits appear. And with good reason too—Microsoft should buy BlackBerry. It's a bargain of a deal and the technology is really good—so good that the government uses it. A lot of highly secure and data sensitive businesses use it: healthcare, security consultants, banks, and stock brokers. Why should Microsoft buy BlackBerry? There are plenty of good reasons but the best one is obvious: security.

It's no secret that security issues plague Android, Windows phones, and even iPhones but have you heard of any BlackBerry compromises? OK, there have been one or two over the past few years but nothing like their competitors.

So, if BlackBerry is so darn great, why is it available at a bargain price and yet no one seems to want it, especially consumers?

BlackBerry (fka RIM) had a few significant and unfortunate outages over the years and those outages left a lot of users cold. I was one of them. I loved my BlackBerry. To me, it was the best phone ever. No, it didn't have a lot of bells and whistles but it did what I needed for it to do: make phone calls, receive phone calls, receive alerts, respond to alerts, receive email, work with email, connect to the Internet, and stay secure while doing it all.

BlackBerry fell out of favor because of the outages and its visual appeal seemed to lag behind the iPhone. The iPhone was prettier and sleeker than my wide BlackBerry with the telescoping antenna. Then Android devices hit the market. It was one of those better mousetrap situations for BlackBerry. Although BlackBerry was the better mousetrap, its popularity waned due in part to its lack of aesthetic appeal. Envious BlackBerry users saw the cool swipey stuff and the ever-growing App Store and it was just too much for them. They'd rather switch than fight.

BlackBerry reminds me of another superior product that failed due to its lack of mass appeal and lack of marketing mojo: OS/2. Don't laugh. OS/2 was an awesome operating system that was far superior to its only real competitor at the time: Windows 3.x. I don't want to digress into a litany of defense of OS/2 but if you know anything about OS/2, you know that I'm right.

BlackBerry could help instill Microsoft into the Enterprise as a mobile provider. Right now, there is a mix of Windows phones, Android, and probably a minority of iPhones in corporate use. It seems that Apple sweeps consumer tech but not necessarily corporate tech. 

Businesses trust Microsoft. If you're an anti-Microsoft person, you can argue that point but I'm sorry but you're wrong. Businesses trust Microsoft because Microsoft is responsible. Who can you call when your Android device goes on the blink or when its security is compromised? The carrier? Nope. The device manufacturer? Maybe. Chances are good that you won't get very far either way.

Microsoft develops and supports the operating system. If there's a security breach, there's only one direction that you can point your finger to: Microsoft. They'll fix it too. And they don't rely on a community of disconnected but benevolent programmers to fix something.

Don't get me wrong. I think that open source or free software is great. I love Linux. I love Apache. I love OpenOffice.org. I love all things open source, free, GNU, etc. But, I'm also realistic. The reality is that corporations like Microsoft. You can't change that with any amount of foot-stomping, hand waving, or Guy Fawkes mask wearing. You'll never convince big companies that they should entrust their 99.999 percent uptime systems to anything but something that's corporate backed.

Red Hat has made inroads into the corporate world. SUSE has made some as well. But they're backed by corporations too. You'll find few, if any, big companies running Debian on mission-critical workloads. And before you kill the messenger, I love Debian. I love Ubuntu, which does have corporate support too, although for some reason, it hasn't really taken hold to a large extent in the U.S.

BlackBerry has government approval. It has the healthcare industry. It enjoys a large portion of the banking industry. It also is the mobile platform of choice for anyone who needs secure communications. Ask President Obama what kind of mobile device he uses. Well, of course it's a BlackBerry, otherwise it wouldn't be significant to mention it here. 

Many analysts besides myself have suggested that BlackBerry would be a smart purchase for Microsoft. They all have different reasons but the only meaningful one to me is to acquire the technology for the secure platform. Microsoft could use the technology, make the BlackBerry attractive again, and create a mobile device desired by businesses. They would have almost no legitimate competition in that realm.

BlackBerry's Security, Microsoft's interface, and a well-oiled marketing machine is just what the new CEO should order for the new Microberry device. Everyone will want one. It doesn't yet exist and I want one. President Obama will want one or two. How can you go wrong in that company?

What do you think? Should Microsoft buy BlackBerry? Or should BlackBerry just be buried? Talk back and let me know.

Related Stories:

• In the Middle East, BlackBerry and Nokia are still more popular than Apple and Samsung
• BlackBerry reports $965m loss, thanks to Z10 flop
• BlackBerry Z30: Hands-on with BlackBerry's flagship phablet

Why Microsoft needs small tablets - CNET

This is Microsoft's newly unveiled Surface 2 tablet. Should we expect a smaller sibling soon?

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

When Microsoft releases Windows 8.1 next month, there will surely be new swipe-friendly screens introduced to accommodate it -- and with good reason.

While Windows 8.1 includes some niceties for those who would rather stay in the desktop environment, Microsoft continues to stand firm on sending consumers to the Start screen with its mutated Start button and has introduced a number of enhancements to it and the Modern user interface. These include swiping down to reveal all apps, a way to select multiple Live Tiles, and support for up to three apps in resizable panes.

Following the lead of Android tablet makers and Apple, Microsoft will be enticing its hardware partners to produce smaller Windows tablets, particularly as it has left them an opening by keeping its own Surface tablets above 10 inches. We have already seen Acer jump in with the Iconia W3, along with a recent model announced by Toshiba.

The pricing waterfall among small tablets has challenges aplenty for virtually any competitor. For Microsoft, it's particularly challenging because much of what the company has put behind its tablet strategy becomes even less relevant on an 8-inch device. These include features such as support for external USB devices, keyboard docks, and Office. While Microsoft has allowed the latter to be bundled on smaller tablets, it has less appeal on a smaller tablet than on the current crop of hard-luck Windows tablets.

In short, the smaller the tablet, the less it conforms to notions of what a "PC" is and, indeed, how it's used; this throws off the company's central tablet marketing spin.

Nonetheless, small Windows tablets offer two advantages for Microsoft.

First, smaller tablets tend to be less expensive than larger ones. Although Windows tablets still won't go toe-to-toe with sub-$100 tablets at Walmart, going smaller would at least put them into iPad Mini territory. Second, without the contrivances of keyboards and other peripherals, smaller tablets are more likely to be pure slates. Because of this, there is a stronger incentive for Windows developers to support the Modern UI to reach customers using these devices. It's the flip side of the PC identity correlation.

The smaller the Windows device, the greater the relative value of touch on that device, as per Windows Phone. Indeed, rumors now persist that Microsoft will combine the app stores for Windows and Windows Phone shortly, and may even be working toward combining Windows Phone and Windows RT, the poorly received desktop Windows variant aimed at the same kind of ARM chips used in Windows Phones.

Smaller tablets are also more portable. And without many of the mobile apps shared with smartphones, the proposition for smaller Windows tablets will be weaker relative to the competition than it is for larger Windows tablets.

Still, to be a player in the tablet space, Windows has to have a presence in the middle ground between 10-inch tablets and 5-inch smartphones, even if it further tests the patience of the company and its partners. Tough love is never easy.

Apple isn't dead yet – iPhone 5S and iOS7 have a secret weapon - The Guardian

When Steve Jobs was still with us, many commentators – yours truly included – used to complain about the "reality distortion field" that surrounded Apple's charismatic leader. Those in attendance when Jobs launched the devices and services (iPod, iTunes, OS X, iMac, MacBook, iPhone and iPad) that blew such huge holes in the business models of established industries told of events that were more like religious revival meetings than corporate press conferences. As Apple's dominance grew, the man who led it came to be seen as a unique combination of visionary, guru, saint and mogul.

But then mortality intervened and His Steveness passed away. The reality distortion field persisted, however, though now in reverse. It led people to conclude that the death of the magician would inevitably lead to the end of the magic that made Apple the most valuable company in the world. In comparison to Jobs his successor, Tim Cook, was seen as charismatically challenged. And while we could expect Apple to thrive for a little longer, it was only because Cook would be unveiling innovations that were in the works when Jobs was alive. After that, the well would surely run dry.

It was against this background that the hapless Cook unveiled the new iPhones on 10 September. He announced a cheaper model (the 5c), the more upmarket 5s and a new version of Apple's mobile operating system (iOS 7). Although the event was accompanied by the usual hoopla, the overall media reaction was a barely stifled yawn. Sure, the 5c came in bright colours and was a bit cheaper, but it wasn't cheap enough to break into the lower end of the market.

And although the 5s came with a more powerful processor, a motion-sensing chip and a significantly better camera, it was really just more of the same. Well, except for the fact that it had a fingerprint sensor for user authentication. And as for iOS 7, well, the only really interesting thing about it was that it now had flat icons rather than the faux-3D ones of iOS 6. It all went to show (so the narrative implied) that Apple had lost its mojo.

As a case study in how a media narrative can miss the point, this one would be hard to beat. So here's an alternative one. What Apple did on 10 September was to release the first operational 64-bit hardware and software ever seen in a mobile device. The number of bits is important, because every mobile processor up to this has been a 32-bit chip, which means in essence that it can only address 4GB of working memory. This has hitherto been enough for mobile devices (and indeed most desktop machines) but it's not enough for more powerful computers. So the really intriguing questions raised by the iPhone 5s's A7 processor, with its ability to address colossal amounts of memory, are: why is it there? And what clues does it give as to what Apple is planning next?

Given that what Apple thinks today, the rest of the industry thinks next year, the answers to these questions will be interesting. (Readers with long memories will recall that Apple was the first to drop floppy disks, internal modems, CD/DVD drives and laptop hard drives, and that on each occasion the omissions were greeted by howls of derision from the industry, followed rapidly by shamefaced adoption.)

In the same vein, most of the media coverage of iOS 7 focused on the radically different "look and feel" of the user interface, the sparseness and minimality of which was widely attributed to Jony Ive, who is now in overall charge of both hardware and software design at Apple. This is fair enough: after all, for most people, the most important aspect of a device is its user interface. Is the thing easier to use after the latest "upgrade"? The answer for iOS 7 seems to be a qualified "yes".

But for geeks, two things about iOS 7 stand out. One is the fact that Apple could completely rewrite a complex operating system for a 64-bit environment – and ship it in a relatively bug-free state, on time. The other is the way iOS 7 solves a problem that has been bugging internet engineers for years – how to ensure that if one mode of connecting to the network fails, your device can seamlessly switch to another mode. The solution is called multi-path TCP and – guess what? – iOS 7 has it. But you'd have to read a lot of media coverage of the iPhone launch to learn that. Those who think that Apple has peaked ought to think again.

Two Things Apple Got Absolutely Right In The iPhone 5s and iOS 7 - Forbes

We've certainly had our fun around here with Apple's Apple's recent product announcements, noting, for example that iOS7 seems to trigger motion sickness in that small portion of the population susceptible to it. Others have noticed that the iPhone 5c, the cheap one, isn't actually all that cheap. But perhaps it's worth having a look at two technical developments that Apple have got absolutely right with, respectively, the iPhone 5s and iOS 7.

The first is that they've successfully moved over to a 64 bit architecture on the A7 chip. 64 bit isn't exactly new, it's been around on the desktop (and in other architectures in the mid-sized computing world) for some time now but this is the first time that anyone has managed to get it all into a mobile architecture. That 64 bit would come to mobiles was obvious, as it is also obvious that somewhere down the line it will move to 128 bit and so on. These things just do happen in powers of 2 over time. The major difference now being that the processor can directly address more than 4 GB of RAM, something that as ever more computing power devolves down to those processors in our mobiles is going to be most useful.

But as John Naughton points out that's not the real thing that is so remarkable here. Someone, somewhere, was going to make this move soon enough. What Apple should be congratulated upon is the manner by which they did it:

But for geeks, two things about iOS 7 stand out. One is the fact that Apple could completely rewrite a complex operating system for a 64-bit environment – and ship it in a relatively bug-free state, on time.

Given the nightmares that other companies have had even just trying to update an OS, let alone conduct an entire rewrite, yes, that is an impressive demonstration of Apple's technical chops and of their project management ability.

The second thing is in iOS 7 and is best explained here.

At present, if your phone or tablet is connected to Wi-Fi and a cellular network at the same time, it can only use one or the other connection to transmit data. But what if your Wi-Fi connection or your 3G connection drops? Whatever data was being transmitted—data for an app, a webpage, an iMessage—will fail to arrive, and you have to try again, usually after getting a frustrating error message or a blank page. Just as importantly, if one of your connections to the internet slows down, or speeds up, your phone has no ability to use its other connections to its advantage, leading to a poorer and slower experience overall.

The solution to this is:

MultiPath TCP (MPTCP) is an effort towards enabling the simultaneous use of several IP-addresses/interfaces by a modification of TCP that presents a regular TCP interface to applications, while in fact spreading data across several subflows. Benefits of this include better resource utilization, better throughput and smoother reaction to failures.

In the sort of language that most of us will understand our phones have a number of ways of interacting with the internet. WiFi, 3G, 4G perhaps, and if we start our phone off in performing some task then it will use the one we tell it to. But, as often happens, if that 3 G signal starts to fail, of the WiFi router goes on the blink, it won't then automatically switch to one of those other potential connections to finish the task. The decision on what connection to use is being taken by the meatspace object holding the phone in other words.

MPTCP is an attempt to get around this. It's putting the choice of which connection to use where it probably should be, under the OS and nothing to do with any human being holding the phone. Check what's the best way to connect at any moment and let the hardware/software do all of that work. Further, if a connection degrades at any point then automatically switch to the next best option. And finally, pick up the upload/download at the point it had reached rather than starting all over again.

This might seem trivial but it isn't: for people have been headscratching over quite how to implement this for 5 years or so and Apple are indeed the first people to have brought it to fruition. It's another testament to those technical chops.

So far, the only way that Apple's devices appear to be using this protocol is to communicate with Siri

Well, yes, for the processing being done on that voice recognition is indeed being done in the cloud, on Apple's servers, so better contact with said cloud is obviously going to improve Siri. But others will start to use it soon enough.

Another way of putting this is that sure, we've got that fingerprint thing, a better camera, a faster processor. But underneath the hood we've also had some very sophisticated engineering challenges met and solved. Maybe the iPhone 5s wasn't, on hte face of it, any great leap forward: but there's no doubting Apple's engineering and technical skills here.

iPhone 6 release date, specs, features: Android-sized screen and LiquidMetal ... - ChristianToday

The iPhone 5S and 5C have been big hits for Apple but fans are already eyeballing 2014 for the release of the iPhone 6. 

This topnotch smartphone is expected to go much bigger with its display size, with Apple possibly opting to create a phablet. 

It's a move that could steal away Samsung owners who have been loyal to the Galaxy smartphones precisely because of their more ample displays which make viewing and browsing much more comfortable.

It was a disappointment to some Apple fans that the company didn't already make that leap with the iPhone 5S, instead sticking with the cramped 4-inch screen - a full inch smaller than its rivals.   

There is speculation that the iPhone 6 will be launching in the first quarter of next year, possibly March.  

March has popped up on the radar because it was originally the launch month for the iPad but Apple ditched its hitherto calendar when it released its last iPad in October 2012.  

Apple could also choose to make the iPhone 6 superfast by combining a 64-bit processor with a M7 chip, and ramp up the storage to 128GB.  

Patently Apple reports that the casing could be made of new LiquidMetal after four patents for the technology were filed by Apple in Europe.  

The LiquidMetal technology would allow the casing to be extremely durable and the patent mentions a fastener that would make the device harder to tamper with.

There are reports elsewhere that Apple will shift from A7 to A8 processing chips using 20nm nodes.

DeviantArt user iNasko created a cool iPhone 6 concept with a 5-inch screen display that would take the iPhone much closer to the iPad design.  

iNasko explained: "For a long time I have been thinking how the next iPhone could be different from the 5, so people won't be complaining, and then I figured that the iPad (2010) offered a great design, which would also fit a phone. So, taking heavy inspiration from the first iPad, this is a concept for an iPhone with a bigger 5" screen."

HTC One Max Launch Set for 15 October - IBTimes.co.uk

New details of HTC's long-rumoured large-screen smartphone One Max have emerged indicating the launch date of the device. 

Several tech majors such as Samsung, Sony and Huawei have released their big-screen handsets and HTC's own version is also on its way with the launch date tipped for the middle of October. 

According to the Chinese social networking site, Weibo, HTC One Max is expected to be launched on 15 October. 

The One Max also appears on Teena, an FCC-like telecommunication regulatory authority in China. The site has posted a fresh set of photos of the HTC One Max. As noticed in the leaked photos, the One Max resembles the company's flagship HTC One and its compact version, the One Mini.  

The photos do not reveal much about the technical features, but confirm the fingerprint sensor feature, as rumoured earlier. Apple's newly released iPhone 5s includes a similar Touch ID feature, an innovative way to unlock the iPhone at the touch of the finger. Built into the home button, the Touch ID can be used as a secure way to approve purchases from the iTunes store, the App Store or the iBooks store.

As seen in the photos, the One Max has a large display which is likely to be 6in; also noticed is an UltraPixel rear-camera, reports PhoneArena.   

A Taiwanese site now claims that the One Max will reportedly be released on 17 October. Besides, the device might cost the same (23, 9000 yuan) as Samsung's newest Galaxy Note 3.   

As speculated earlier, the HTC One Max is expected to feature 5.9in full HD display. It will use the Snapdragon S4 Pro chip featuring a quad-core processor, clocked at 1.7GHz. Snapdragon also integrates 2GB RAM. The handset is expected to run on the latest version of Jelly Bean, Android 4.3. Like the HTC One and One Mini, the One max is likely to have an UntraPixel rear-camera.  

Also read: How to Fix Wi-Fi Hotspot Issue After iOS 7 Update [GUIDE]

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Making sense of Valve's Steam Box: Windows vs. Linux, OpenGL vs. DirectX - ExtremeTech

If Monday's announcement of SteamOS was greeted with a great deal of interest and speculation, Wednesday's announcement that Valve was getting into living room PCs with broad compatibility and a full range of supported hardware was a major letdown. The limited information available doesn't point to much of anything beyond "We're doing a cheap living room PC." So what are the options and potential for a Steam Box? To answer that, we need to consider three separate questions. Valve's just-unveiled controller, while interesting, is unlikely to be the peripheral that makes or breaks the device, particularly since it'll work on the Windows side of the equation as well.

Is Linux faster for gaming than Windows?

We're treating this question separately from the question of whether or not OpenGL is faster than DirectX. Gaming relies on a huge suite of supplementary technologies, from network I/O, storage performance, video drivers (separate from the graphics API), and how efficiently the operating system handles multithreading. The truth is, it's extremely difficult to find a solid answer to this question, partly due to the sheer variety of components in the Linux ecosystem.

To give one pertinent example: If you're running Windows, you're virtually certain to be using the NTFS file system. Microsoft hasn't offered an installation choice since Windows XP, and FAT32 has been pretty thoroughly deprecated at this point. But Linux supports a much wider range of file systems, each with its own strengths and weaknesses in certain environments. General storage performance between Windows and Linux, however, is pretty even. Is it possible that Gabe & Co have tweaked SteamOS to support a particular kind of operation with a file system picked to match the characteristics of gaming? Absolutely. But there's no clear, sustained advantage between I/O on your average Windows box and your average Linux system.

That theme is reflected in virtually every comparison between two systems. When you compare Linux and Windows, you aren't actually comparing Linux and Windows. You're comparing the relative strength of drivers and software support from Marvell, Intel, Broadcom, AMD, Nvidia, Asmedia, Samsung, and Realtek in two different operating environments. Most of the time, when components in one environment outperform the other, the deltas change following further software updates. This makes it nearly impossible to drill down and definitively say, "Yes, Linux is always faster than Windows when running X."

The bigger issue here is that while Valve might squeeze better performance out of a Linux-based OS running on specific hardware, embracing broad compatibility makes this more difficult. SteamOS may run Linux, but it still has to adhere to the same hardware standards as Windows. The SATA, PCIe, DDR3, and USB subsystems don't change just because the operating system does. That makes it harder to squeeze out broad gains, but using a custom Linux distro and specific software for something like video capture might still result in higher performance.

Verdict: Is Linux faster than Windows for gaming? Maybe, but not by much.

Next page: Is OpenGL faster than DirectX?

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Rare gold iPhone 5s goes up against 50 caliber high precision rifle - Register

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Video iPhone haters are a dime a dozen, but it takes an especially hearty helping of heated hostility towards Apple's latest shiny-shiny to go after one with a 50-caliber Barrett M82A1 high-precision rifle.

Actually, we have no idea whatsoever whether Richard Ryan harbors any personal animosity to Cupertino's new iPhone 5s, but we do know for a fact that he sure loves 'sploding, shootin', and otherwise savaging any number of inanimate victims, from tapping a beer keg with detonation cord to ridding the world of four cans of Coors Lite with an AK47, to eviscerating a Furby with an HK 416.

Now, lest you think Ryan is just your garden-variety gun nut enthusiast, know that he takes his destructive tendencies to the next level – approaching some weaponized variant of cinematic art, really – by filming his targets' demise in super slo-mo.

And thus was to be the fate of a brand new gold iPhone 5s.

The iPhone's opponent in this match was the M82A1, which Ryan describes as an "iconic" 50-caliber rifle. We'll certainly take his word for it about that designation, seeing as how M82s have been around since the early 1980s, and are used by over 40 countries (that we know of...). Prices for the M82A1 direct from Barrett range from $8,900 to $11,869.

A 50-caliber round traverses an iPhone 5s, in through the back, out through the front

According to the M82A1's Operator's Manual, the iPhone assassin has a muzzle velocity of about 2,850 feet per second when firing a standard 660-grain bullet, and a maximum range of about 4.25 miles.

The iPhone 5s, on the other hand, has a maximum acceleration of 32 feet/second² when dropped, and a maximum range that depends upon the strength of your throwing arm.

Doesn't seem like an equal match, if you ask us. But you didn't, did you?

After drop-testing the doomed iPhone 5s on dirt, concrete, and into a bowl of water – only the dirt drop caused any damage, counterintuitively – Ryan introduced it to the M82A1. It didn't fare well.

An unlocked gold iPhone 5s sold on eBay this Monday for $10,100. To Richard Ryan, however, his was just another too-tempting-to-pass-up target. ®

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REVIEW: The iPhone 5C - Business Insider

The iPhone 5C, the colorful new plastic phone from Apple, is the same phone Apple introduced last year.

It has the same processor, same rear camera, same screen (4 inches), and same glitzy new iOS 7 software that most iPhones and iPads updated to this month. For specs geeks, the only new things you'll see are a slightly larger battery and a slightly better front-facing camera for video chats.

But the iPhone 5C is really just the iPhone 5 covered in shiny plastic that comes in five color options.

However, that doesn't make the iPhone 5C a bad phone.

The Plastic

I'm not a fan of plastic phones. They often feel flimsy and not at all like the ~$600 premium pocket computers they're marketed as. Samsung is perhaps the biggest offender with the Galaxy S4, an unattractive device wrapped in creaky, cheap-feeling plastic.

But the "C" in iPhone "5C" does not stand for cheap. The plastic feels really good, almost like ceramic. It's polished with a shiny lacquered coating, to the point where the device is almost slippery. There aren't any bends, creaks, or squeaks when you grip it. The buttons (also plastic) feel like they're molded directly into the body. They're so sturdy that I was surprised I could even press them. 

Steve Kovach/Business Insider

The iPhone 5C may be the cheaper of Apple's two new iPhones, but it still feels like a premium product. 

I laughed out loud when Apple's design guru Jony Ive called the iPhone 5C "unapologetically plastic" in the device's promo video, but now I know what he meant. Apple doesn't do anything on the cheap.

It's attractive too. I'm personally not a fan of the color options, but I'm sure there are plenty of people looking for something beyond the black, white, and gold variants the iPhone 5S comes in. The 5C is a little thicker and heavier than the iPhone 5/5S due to the heavy duty plastic coating, but it's still plenty thin and light compared to other rival smartphones. 

Colorful Inside And Out

But other than the pretty colors, the iPhone 5C is still the same device Apple gave us last year. You get all the same apps, services, and features as any other iPhone running iOS 7. That means you also get Apple's refreshed software and redesigned apps right out of the box. In short, there's nothing the iPhone 5C can do that the iPhone 5 can't. It's that simple.

Steve Kovach/Business Insider

Each iPhone 5C ships with a wallpaper that matches the outside plastic. It's our first sign of how Apple now thinks about its hardware and software design. The two are interconnected, thanks mostly due to the fact that Jony Ive is now in charge of all design Apple. (Before he just designed hardware.) In a way, the colorful new iOS 7 feels more natural on the iPhone 5C than it does on the 5S or any other iThing. It's almost as if Ive and his team designed the software to fit the 5C first and just ported it to the rest of the iPhone/iPad family. 

Conclusion

You probably shouldn't buy the iPhone 5C. It's a great device, but you can get the best Apple has to offer for just $100 more. And the iPhone 5S will likely hold up much better in another year or two than the iPhone 5C will. Apple tends to only add the best new software features on its best phones, so there's a chance the iPhone 5C could be left out in the future because its hardware is too old.

So unless you really want to save $100 and really want a bright and colorful phone, the 5S is a better choice.

REVIEW: The iPhone 5S Is As Close To Perfect As You're Going To Get - Business Insider

For most people, the iPhone 5S is the best smartphone you can buy.

Yes, it looks nearly identical to last year's iPhone 5. Yes, there are plenty of other smartphones out there that are just as good and can do a lot more things. Yes, the screen is relatively tiny compared to a bunch of the giant Android phones out there. 

But that doesn't matter. 

What makes the iPhone 5S so great is that it hits the perfect balance of power, useful features, and great design. I can't name too many other devices that accomplish that.

The iPhone 5S takes what made the iPhone 5 so great and adds a bit more. There's a fingerprint sensor embedded in the home button that lets you unlock the device without a passcode. There's a better camera with an improved flash. And there are a few internal hardware improvements that will help future-proof the device as Apple and developers build in more goodies.

The iPhone 5S experience is nearly identical to the iPhone 5 experience, so I'm not going to waste time going over what you already know. Instead, it's more important to talk about the new stuff.

Here. We. Go.

The Fingerprint Sensor

I was worried this would be a gimmick, Apple's latest snafu a la Apple Maps or the not-so-helpful Siri assistant. I was wrong. The fingerprint sensor, which Apple calls Touch ID, works flawlessly. There's about a minute-long setup process, and after that, you're good to go. Just tap your finger on the embedded sensor on the home button and the phone unlocks itself, no passcode required.

William Wei, Business Insider

Apple isn't the first company to put a fingerprint sensor on a smartphone, but it is the first to get it right. In the past, fingerprint sensors required you to swipe your finger across it to get a read. Even then, they didn't always work. Apple's Touch ID is so sensitive and perfect that it can detect your fingerprint every single time. I never had a problem.

Now is Touch ID a game-changer? Is it something you need to run out and upgrade your older iPhone for right now?

No way.

Touch ID is something that's simply nice to have, a minor convenience. It's an iterative innovation, but one that is incredibly useful. 

The Camera

The camera is noticeably better. The iPhone 5S has a special dual LED flash that helps the phone take better photos in low-light settings. My photos looked better than the ones taken on my older iPhone 5. I also enjoyed the new slow-motion video feature, which lets you shoot video at 120 frames per second and slow down portions of your video clips. The 5S has only been out for a little over a week, and people have already figured out some really clever ways to use the feature.

The Guts

When Apple announced the iPhone 5S a few weeks ago, it spent a lot of time boasting about its new 64-bit processor, which is about twice as fast as the processor in the iPhone 5. The boost in speed is nice to have, but I didn't notice any improvement in performance over the iPhone 5. All my apps ran just as quickly as before. I felt like I was still using an iPhone 5.

William Wei, Business Insider

Yes, gadget geeks have tested the new iPhone 5S processor, and does make the device the fastest smartphone on the planet right now. But most people won't notice. Apple's iPhone software and most other apps are so lightweight that they don't even need that kind of power. 

What's Missing?

Apple is stubborn. As great as the iPhone 5S is, I still wish it had a bigger screen. There's clearly a demand for such big-screen devices, yet Apple refuses to budge, only giving us a modest bump in screen size last year with the 4-inch iPhone 5.

I've tested dozens of smartphones over the years, and every time I test one with a larger screen, I find myself dreaming of device that size that has Apple's great design and attention to detail in the operating system. There's still talk that Apple is noodling around with designs for a big-screen iPhone for next year, but that's not the device we got this year.

For now, the biggest drawback for iPhone owners is going to be big-screen envy.

Conclusion

Those who didn't make it this far into my review of the iPhone 5S and instead rushed to the comments to blast me because of my glowing headline shouldn't buy the iPhone 5S. They should buy the HTC One, Nokia Lumia 925, or Samsung Galaxy S4.

Everyone else will be perfectly happy with the iPhone 5S. Buying an iPhone gives you access to the best apps before anyone else. It gives you access to quick customer support at the Apple Store. It gives you beautiful design both in software and hardware. Unless you absolutely must have a giant screen, the iPhone 5S is nearly perfect. 

Microsoft boss Steve Ballmer dances at tearful send-off - BBC News

27 September 2013 Last updated at 09:54 ET

Departing Microsoft boss Steve Ballmer has hosted his last company meeting - bidding a tearful farewell to employees he has worked with for 33 years.

The 57-year-old danced to Michael Jackson's Wanna Be Startin' Somethin', and declared that the company would "change the world again".

More than 13,000 Microsoft employees had queued to be a part of the annual company-wide event.

The firm has not yet announced a replacement chief executive.

Mr Ballmer will retire within the next year and will leave the company in a strategically precarious position as it looks to claw back lost ground in the mobile sector.

While at the helm, he became known for his vigorous and enthusiastic presentations in which he would routinely declare his love for Microsoft and its products.

Dirty Dancing

Microsoft staff took to social media to share details of Mr Ballmer's last appearance as boss at the event described as being more like a "rock concert".

It was held at the 17,000-capacity Key Arena in Seattle, a venue usually used for basketball and ice hockey.

Steve Ballmer at Microsoft corporate event in 2000: "I love this company"

Service engineer Bob Ulrich posted a picture on Twitter of the snaking queue outside the building.

He added: "Must be the year to go to the @Microsoft company meeting. Insane line."

Charles Naut, a project manager at the company, posted an image of the "very moving" speech on Instagram - it showed Mr Ballmer ending his talk by saying, "I've had the time of my life!" as the famous Dirty Dancing song was played out in the arena.

Too slow

The Verge reported that Mr Ballmer had tears streaming down his face as he made his last remarks, telling employees: "We have unbelievable potential in front of us, we have an unbelievable destiny. Only our company and a handful of others are poised to write the future.

"We're going to think big, we're going to bet big."

He took aim at some of the company's rivals, calling Apple "fashionable" and Amazon "cheap". He said Google was focused on "knowing more", while Microsoft was about "doing more".

But it is those rivals that piled the pressure on Mr Ballmer to depart. In one recent meeting with Wall Street investors and analysts, he admitted the company had been too slow expanding into the smartphone market.

"I regret that there was a period in the early 2000s when we were so focused on what we had to do around Windows that we weren't able to redeploy talent to the new device called the phone," Mr Ballmer said.

"That is the thing I regret the most. It would have been better for Windows and our success in other foreign factors."

Goldfinger 2: Asian Site Leaks Rumored Gold - TechCrunch

It's not that much of a stretch of the imagination to believe that Apple might unveil gold, or "space gray," iPads in the upcoming month(s). That's why it's quite interesting that Chinese tech site DoNews has posted photos of a champagne iPad mini 2, complete with TouchID sensor.

Not enough evidence? Sonny Dickson, the same fellow who released the most accurate pre-release photos of the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c, has today tweeted out his own information regarding the inevitable iPad mini launch, as well as a photo of an unassembled iPad mini 2 in "space grey."

From the unconfirmed photos, as well as Dickson's predictions, it seems that there are quite a few similarities between the latest flagship iPhone and the forthcoming iPad mini. As you can see in the images above and below, the next-gen iPad minis will allegedly come in champagne gold and the same space grey we've seen with the iPhone 5s.

Dickson also tweeted, without revealing photos, that the iPad mini will be available in silver as well. Furthermore, we may see a TouchID fingerprint scanner on the Apple tablets, also shown in images.

No word yet on whether or not the iPad mini will sport a high-res Retina display.


As with any Apple leak, these images are far from confirmed, but Dickson has a solid track record and the details seem to make sense in terms of Apple's evolution. After the iPhone 5 came out in the anodized aluminum black "slate", so too did the iPad mini.

Dickson also mentioned that, according to his sources, the iPad mini 2 would include Apple's new A7 64-bit chip, the M7 motion coprocessor we're seeing in the iPhone 5s, along with 1GB of RAM. As for the 9.7-inch iPad 5, Dickson's sources revealed that it will pack 2GB of RAM under the hood, presumably sporting the same specs as little brother.

Again, we haven't even received an invitation to the iPad/iPad mini launch event (expected to go down sometime in October), so it's far too early to tell the legitimacy of these claims and/or photos.

Still, these aren't too far outside the realm of possibility.

[via PhoneArena]

• APPLE

Started by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne, Apple has expanded from computers to consumer electronics over the last 30 years, officially changing their name from Apple Computer, Inc. to Apple, Inc. in January 2007. Among the key offerings from Apple's product line are: Pro line laptops (MacBook Pro) and desktops (Mac Pro), consumer line laptops (MacBook Air) and desktops (iMac), servers (Xserve), Apple TV, the Mac OS X and Mac OS X Server operating systems, the iPod, the...

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Best Free iPhone apps for traders and investors - MarketWatch (blog)

• Commentary

• By Cody Willard

One of the most popular articles I've ever written on Marketwatch.com was called "Best iPhone and Android Apps for Investors" from back in 2010, when the word "apps" was still new lexicon for anybody who wasn't a computer nerd. And I remain an app addict, telling myself and my wife that I'm doing research when I'm on an app. And truly I am.

I  remain so bullish about the app world that I recently acquired Scutify.com that had my favorite iPhone app – Scutify iPhone app at https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/scutify/id673974489 (currently at #9 in the finance app category at the Apple App Store).

Back in 2010, there had been several hundred million smartphones out there that people wanted apps for. Fast forward to today, and there will be more than one billion smartphones sold this year alone, and units sold in the last quarter of this year will likely top the total number of smartphones in the market back in 2010.

I was adamant back in 2010 that this smartphone/app explosion was going to lead us into an "App Revolution Stock Bubble," and, boy, are we in one now. I don't know when the app bubble will pop or how big it will be by the time it's over, but the fact is that it certainly isn't over yet. Meanwhile, no matter what happens to the valuations and business models of the smartphone and app world in the next few years, there will still be billions of people downloading hundreds of billions of apps and opening those apps trillions upon trillions of times every year.

Full disclosure ahead of time, I would have put the Scutify iPhone App at #1 as well as the Marketwatch iPhone app in my top five.

Read on and download these apps to help you become more informed by (and more addicted to) your iPhone than you ever thought possible. And tell your spouse that you, too, are doing research for work when you're on one of them. It'll be true.

Scutify - Real-time tweet feeds for each symbol, quotes, newsfeeds, and my personal favorite part of the app — the "Latest Scuttles" which longer and better versions of market- and stock-related tweets.

And then -

Bloomberg — Bloomberg has built its brand on technology, and the Bloomberg app is reliable, though not as deep and easy to surf as I might like. Regardless, it's one of the main apps I open to read as I sip coffee in the morning.

TD Ameritrade Mobile – I use several different trading platforms, and this is my favorite broker app to trade on. It's quick, intuitive and unlike some of the other broker apps, doesn't try to be a Bloomberg Terminal in a box, when it never will be.

Yahoo! Finance — I stopped using this app as much after I downloaded the aforementioned Scutify app, but Yahoo! Finance remains a must-visit resource, and the app is pretty darn functional too. They need an update though.

StockTouch — Beautiful visuals of charts and stock quotes, but a bit lacking in depth of information under those visuals. I find I use the app mainly on extreme up or an extreme down day in the stock market to see if there are any major stocks out there going against the trend.

CNBC — I  sure feel like a sell-out citing the CNBC app, given that I was a mortal enemy of theirs while I was an anchor at Fox Business, but it's a good app and I take pride in trying to be objective, so what the heck.

Cody Willard writes Revolution Investing for MarketWatch and posts the trades from his personal account at TradingWithCody.com, which is not affiliated with MarketWatch. At time of publication, Cody was net long Apple and Google. Follow Cody on Twitter at twitter.com/codywillard.

BBM for Android and iPhone Not Launching This Week - Tom's Hardware Guide

It's been a bit of a bumpy road to BBM on all platforms.

Poor BlackBerry. Though the company announced major layoffs on Friday afternoon, things were supposed to look up on the weekend with the release of BBM for iOS and Android. Though the iOS roll-out started as planned, it was soon halted, and the Android roll-out never got off the ground at all. BlackBerry said that an unreleased version of the BBM for Android app that leaked early "caused issues" and that it would keep users posted on a release.

Unfortunately, it seems that release won't be anytime soon. Andrew Bocking, head of BBM at BlackBerry, has said he doesn't anticipate launching BBM for Android this week. Bocking says that the unreleased version of BBM for Android was an older version and that it contained an issue that resulted in higher than normal data traffic for each active user. This in turn impacted the system after one million people downloaded the unofficial app. The Saturday version addressed these issues, but BlackBerry wouldn't be able to block the users of the unreleased version if the new, official release was launched.

Bocking says there's a team working on blocking the unreleased version when the official BBM for Android app goes live and reinforcing the system so that something like this doesn't happen again in the future. The moral of the story is that good things come to those who wait. And we're going to be waiting a while. Unfortunately, Bocking didn't mention how or why this affects the launch of the BBM for iPhone application, just that it had to be paused as a result of the issue with Android, so it looks like iPhone users are going to be waiting too.

Follow Jane McEntegart @JaneMcEntegart. Follow us @tomshardware, on Facebook and on Google+.

'You want gold iPhone? I get you gold iPhone,' says Conan's Raffi - CNET

Raffi promises you a deal on a gold iPhone through a somewhat convoluted URL.

(Credit: Conan/YouTube/screenshot by CNET)

Can't find the golden iPhone? Don't worry. Raffi can get you a deal, at least if you're willing to go along with a sketch aired Wednesday night on Conan O'Brien's late-night talk show.

Fans of Coco first met iPhone salesman Raffi Jaharian a couple of weeks ago after Apple launched its two new iPhones. Sporting gold chains and gold rings and touting gold as "best, best, best," Raffi claimed that he was the man behind the gold iPhone.

In the latest sketch, Raffi is back and is now offering deals to iPhone customers eager to buy the hot-selling golden version. While a (faux) Apple exec says that more gold iPhones will be available in a few weeks, Raffi promises to deliver in a few days.

"You want iPhone gold? I get you iPhone gold," Raffi says. "Gold is best. iPhone gold faster, bigger, louder, quieter, smaller, sexier, wetter, taller. It's just best."

Another phony Apple exec advises people to just place their iPhone orders at a local Apple store and the phone will be shipped as soon as it's available. But Raffi has a different deal up his sleeve.

"Raffi got you. Here's what you do," says Raffi. "Go to your local Apple store. Not in front, but in back. Don't talk to Geniuses. Talk to one of my nephews. They all wear gold tanktops and gold sneakers. On eBay, they charge you triple. But for you, you only pay double."

And to counter the suggestion that customers go to Apple's online site to get an iPhone, Raffi has a slightly different Web site in mind -- ww.GiveMeGoldiPhoneNow/okIGotYou/ThanksRaffiYouTheMan_YouGotItManGoldIsBest.Yes#.

Fake iOS7 'waterproof' iPhone claims dupe some owners into destroying ... - Belfast Telegraph

A fake advert claiming that Apple users can make their iPhones waterproof by upgrading the device's software has reportedly tricked users into breaking their phones, writes By James Vincent

25 September 2013

The misleading rumour has circulated on social networks accompanied by a mocked-up advert that closely resembles Apple's official marketing.

"Update to iOS 7 and become waterproof" claims the ad (seen here) explaining that "In an emergency, a smart-switch will shut off the phone's power supply and corresponding components to prevent any damage to your iPhone's delicate circuitry."

Users who believed the advert reportedly upgraded their iPhones and dunked the devices to test the feature, only to find that they had broken the expensive gadgets.

Some have taken to Twitter to vent their displeasure at being tricked. One user wrote "Ok whoever said IOS7 is waterproof GO F*** YOURSELF".

The iOS 7 update was released by Apple last week and introduces many new features and a visual overhaul, but does not make iPhones waterproof.

The spoof advert reportedly originated on the notorious online forum 4chan, which regularly undertakes campaigns that hijack social media in order to trick the public.

One hoax from 2012  involved members of the forum hacking the official Twitter account of 'Entertainment Tonight' and broadcasting a message that popstar Justin Bieber has been diagnosed with cancer.

The message encouraged fans to shave their heads in support, with the the hashtag #BaldforBieber used to spread the hoax.

Video: Apple iPhone 5s unlocked by nipple 

 

Tweets about "#ios7 #waterproof"

Android 4.3 and Samsung Galaxy Gear compatibility coming to Galaxy S4 ... - Know Your Mobile

Android 4.3 is being prepped for the Samsung Galaxy S4, Galaxy S3 and Galaxy Note 2 and all three devices will be updated by the end of 2013. Part of the reason for the update, as well as ensuring the handsets have the latest software, is to introduce compatibility with the Galaxy Gear smartwatch.

Samsung representatives officially confirmed the plans to Korean news sources, the Galaxy S4 will reportedly be updated first with Samsung marketing president Lee Don-joo revealing Android 4.3 and Galaxy Gear compatibility would arrive "by next month", so expect a patch in early October.

At the same time, Samsung's reps said the Android 4.3 update and Galaxy Gear compatibility is currently in testing for the Galaxy S3 and Galaxy Note 2 and these updates would arrive by the end of the December. A report from SamMobile suggested the Galaxy Mega range, including the UK-facing Galaxy Mega 6.3, is also in testing for the update.

The devices require Android 4.3 to enable Galaxy Gear smartwatch compatibility because the smartwatch uses Bluetooth 4.0 Low Energy (LE) technology, something which is introduced at the software level in Android 4.3, the latest available build of Google's smartphone platform. Of course, Android 4.4 KitKat has now been announced but it may take some time before Samsung issues another update.

As an interesting addition, Korea Times reports that a Samsung representative hinted the company is now looking at developing a follow-up Galaxy Gear model. The unnamed rep reportedly said, "We've acknowledged that our Gear lacks something special. With more investment for user interface and user experience, Samsung devices will be better in terms of customer satisfaction."