Monday, September 24, 2012

Is there a problem here? Apple on a hiring spree for its iOS Maps

Source says Apple is aggressively recruiting former Google Maps staff
Posted by Shane McGlaun on September 24, 2012.

Apple has been catching a lot of flak over the quality of its maps for iOS 6. Apple replaced Google Maps data in the latest version of its operating system with its own maps. According to a source cited by TechCrunch, Google has been aggressively recruiting people with experience working on Google Maps.


Apple is reportedly aggressively recruiting these people to get them to come work on its own mapping product. Apple is using recruiters to lure away Google Maps employees who work for the search giant on contract. The source says that many of those individuals appearing eager to take Apple up on its offer in part for the opportunity to build a new product rather than perform “tedious updates” on the mostly completed Google Maps.

I’m sure the allure of working for one of the most valuable companies in the world, and a behemoth in the tech industry doesn’t hurt. According to the source, when attention at Google Maps turned to indoor mapping, workers at Google were less interested, and a lot of the staff began looking for other opportunities.

Apple is said to be offering great competitive salaries, and some positions include full coverage of moving expenses to come to Cupertino. If Apple is successful in landing multiple ex Google employees, it will certainly help to improve its currently lackluster map offering. I wonder how Google feels about Apple hiring away workers familiar with its Google Maps application.

Publishers blame ad agencies for poor mobile sales.

Frustrated with poor mobile sales, publishers blame ad agencies

By Robert Andrews
Sep. 23, 2012, 7:01pm

Publishers are seeing mobile audiences growing fast – but revenue is yet to catch up, and it’s the ad industry taking the blame.

Mobile makes up a fifth of reader traffic for 87 percent of publishers, but only 29 percent of them are seeing the same proportion of revenue come from mobile, according to respondents to a census issued by the UK’s Association of Online Publishers (AOP).

Asked to name the main inhibitors to mobile revenue generation, a majority blamed “agencies’ attitude toward mobile” (55 percent) and dependency on low-yield ad networks (52 percent).

Clearly, the two groups have much work to do if they are to realise the platform’s full potential. This can’t go on forever – many publishers are becoming worried about migrating their audience from web to mobile in lieu of the latter offering an equivalent business model.

AOP director Lee Baker says:
“We are going to see some fundamental changes to the mobile ad market over the coming year as ad agency attitudes catch up with publisher investment and mobile audience size.

“Ad revenues will experience massive growth, doubling within 12 months of agencies recognising the opportunity in the mobile market.”

For many readers, mobile news consumption means disaggregated consumption through apps like Flipboard and Pulse. Some publishers are concerned about effectively giving away their ad sales to those apps in this way. The New York Times, for example, has struck a partnership with
Flipboard.

The fear isn’t stopping publishers from ploughing ahead with mobile content developments. Of AOP census respondents, 91 percent and 85 percent of them said tablets and mobiles, respectively, represent their greatest opportunities for revenue growth in the year ahead, with 62 percent saying they would make the majority of their sites optimised for mobile.

The census was completed by 90 percent of the AOP’s membership, comprising publishers of over 1,500 digital brands.

Scratches. Is the new iPhone 5 that bad?


CHATROOM
Does Your New iPhone 5 Scratch Easily?

By Jamie Condliffe, Sep 24, 2012 5:02 AM
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So, you've got the new iPhone. You've been downloading apps all weekend. It's a joy to use. But... we're hearing some reports that suggest the latest iPhone picks up scratches faster than data flows through its new Lightning connector.

Some folks are saying that their phones have picked up plenty of scratches on the back and sides after just a weekend's use. Others are even claiming that there are scratches on the handset straight out of the box, lurking beneath the protective film wrapper.

Ever wonder the difference's between iOS 5 and 6?

Lab Tests: iOS 6 and iOS 5 performance differences
We test the latest operating system against its predecessor to see whether it speeds up our devices
By James Galbraith | Macworld.com | 24 September 12

We've heard a lot about the 200-plus new features in iOS 6, but how will this upgrade affect performance? To find out, I grabbed a stack of iOS devices from the Macworld Lab and did some before-and-after testing to see whether iOS 6 performance was faster, slower, or the same as under iOS 5.1.1.

See also: iPhone 5 unboxing



iOS 6 benchmarks: Geekbench



Results are scores. Longer bars are better.

iOS 6 benchmarks: Page Load



Results are in seconds. Shorter bars are better.

I ran a series of six tests on an iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPad 2, and a third-generation iPad. I found subtle performance differences between the two versions of iOS. GeekBench scores with iOS 6 were within one percent of the iOS 5.1.1 scores. Page load times were less than half a second faster using the new version of iOS.

iOS 6 benchmarks: SunSpider JavaScript Benchmark



Results are in seconds. Shorter bars are better.

There were, however, three tests that showed larger differences. The iPhone 4S, iPad 2, and third-generation iPad were all 20 percent faster at the SunSpider 0.9.1 JavaScript benchmark when running iOS 6. The iPhone 4 was 17 percent faster on this test in iOS 6.

iOS 6 benchmarks: GLBenchmark Egypt Offscreen



Results are in frames per second. Longer bars are better.

iOS 6 benchmarks: GLBenchmark Pro Offscreen



Results are in frames per secon. Longer bars are better.

The GLBenchmark test also showed real performance differences, but the results werent as cut and dried as the JavaScript results. The iPhone 4 displayed the same number of frames per second in the Egypt Offscreen Test, regardless of the version of the iOS. The Pro test, also run offscreen, showed iPhone 4 performance that's practically identical. The iPhone 4S was less that 1 percent faster on the Egypt test, but 2.5 percent faster on the Pro trials when running iOS 6. The iPad 2 was 4 percent faster in the Egypt test running iOS 5.1.1, but the Pro test results were nearly identical.

See also: Should I buy an iPhone 5? Here's what you will, and won't get

The third-generation iPad showed the biggest performance difference, unfortunately, it wasnt in the ideal direction. iOS 5.1.1 outperformed iOS 6 by just under 3 percent in the Pro offscreen test, the Egypt offscreen test was nearly 11 percent faster under the old OS.

iOS 6 benchmarks: WebVizBench



WebVizBench, an HTML 5 benchmark, showed identical performance for the iPhone 4 and iPad 2, but significant gains in performance for iOS 6 on the iPhone 4S and third-generation iPad: 20 percent and 7 percent, respectively.

While these results may sway your decision to upgrade your iOS, at least we now know that there is no significant performance downside to doing so.

Check back soon for battery life results for these devices, as well as test results for the new iPhone 5.

How RIM's CEO sees the upcoming BB10 OS


“One Touch, One Finger” Is How Thorsten Heins Describes BlackBerry 10 Usability
Sep 24th, 2012 by Ronen Halevy


Its days like this that I wish I could understand Italian. Paul let us know that Corriere Della Sera had an interview with RIM CEO Thorsten Heins where he talked about RIM and BlackBerry 10. One of the most interesting quotes he used was calling the BlackBerry 10 experience “One hand, one finger” in explaining the “incredible ease of use” of the OS. It has been designed to be used with one hand using one finger. Its sort of a nice simplification of the “BlackBerry Flow” concept RIM has been using as a description for BlackBerry 10 usability.

Sunday, September 23, 2012

iPhone 5 video camera review


iPhone 5 video camera review
By Leanna Lofte, Monday, Sep 24, 2012 a 1:48 am


The iPhone 5 is not only equipped with an iSight camera that takes great 8 megapixel, f2.4 pictures, but also records incredible 1080p HD video as well. The FaceTime camera has also been improved and will finally record 720p HD video. Of all the improvements to video recording with the iPhone 5, however, the ability to take photos while simultaneously shooting video is definitely the cherry on top.

To see examples of the iPhone 5's cameras in action, check out the video above! Then follow along after the break for my full review of the iPhone 5 video cameras.

Video recording with the iPhone 5



One of the noticeable changes you'll see when recording video with the iPhone 5 is that the UI has been adjusted to take advantage of the screen's 16:9 aspect ratio. The video you're recording will completely fill the screen and all your controls will appear as transparent buttons so that you can see everything that's being recorded. While recording video, there are only 3 items on the screen, the record button, the elapsed time, and a new button for taking pictures.

Simultaneously recording video and taking photos with the iPhone 5

One of the special features of the iPhone 5 is the ability to take photos while simultaneously shooting 1080p HD video. To do so, simply tap the camera icon while recording video. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that the camera shutter was very fast even when recording video at the same time. As is demonstrated in the video, it's super easy to rapidly take photos while recording video.

Personally, I have opted out of recording video in the past because I didn't want to miss out on a great photo, but now that I can take photos while recording video, that'll never happen again.

Front facing camera quality of the iPhone 5

Although the main iSight camera on the iPhone 5 didn't receive any big upgrades in quality, the front-facing camera has greatly improved. For the first time, the iPhone's FaceTime camera now records in 720p HD video. It's definitely not as good as the rear-facing iSight camera, but compared to it's predecessor, the new FaceTime camera does a phenomenal job. In the past, I've just recorded myself with the rear-facing camera even though I couldn't see myself just because I hated the poor quality of the front-facing camera. Not anymore. If I need to record myself talking to the camera, I'll use the front-facing camera from here on out.

Low-light video recording with the iPhone 5

A big weakness of every iPhone's video camera has been the quality of video that was recorded in low-light scenarios. Unfortunately, but as expected, this continues to be a weakness with the iPhone 5. Although special situations, like the clip of the burning candle, can produce stunning results, everyday poor indoor lighting will result in low-quality, grainy videos. You can still capture memories, but the quality won't be anything to brag about.

The bottom line

The iPhone 5 may not have received a huge boost in quality over the iPhone 4S, but since the iPhone 4S does a great job at recording 1080p HD video, that's ok. The beauty is that the same great quality is delivered in a much thinner package. Additionally, the larger screen with a 16:9 aspect ratio improves upon the video recording experience. Although the rear-facing iSight camera didn't receive significant improvements over the iPhone 4S, including in low-light, there's no denying that the front-facing FaceTime camera on the iPhone 5 blows the iPhone 4S away. Of all the changes, however, my absolute favorite is the ability to take photos while recording video.

Is the iPhone 5 capable of recording professional-quality video? No. Is it the best portable video camera I've ever owned? Absolutely.

Leanna Lofte

Foxconn? Oh, that Foxconn.

Riot disrupts work at Foxconn iPhone 5 parts factory in China

SEPTEMBER 23, 2012 10:11 PM • DEAN TAKAHASHI

A riot has closed down one of Foxconn Technology’s largest plants in China, according to published reports.

Riot police came into the factory to break up a fight among factory employees, and several people were hospitalized and detained by the police after the riot, the New York Times said. The riot could make a lot of people nervous since Foxconn is the assembly giant that makes many products for Apple, Hewlett-Packard and a number of other electronics giants.

The Foxconn plant in the city of Tiayuan in central China employs about 79,000 workers. Foxconn declined to say to media whether the facility made the iPhone 5, which went on sale last week. Foxconn has more than 1.1 million employees in China. Foxconn is a division of the Hon Hai Group in Taiwan. Over the past year, the company has been hit with labor abuse allegations and worker safety violations. Apple and Foxconn have worked together to improve conditions and pay. The Tiayuan site was part of a dispute last March.

Engadget said the Taiyuan facility focuses on magnesium alloy components for consumer electronics, heat conduction products, LED lighting products, and magnesium alloy automotive components. All of those products are commonly used in computers and mobile devices. One report said it made the back casing of the iPhone 5.

Foxconn told Reuters that the fight involved a couple of thousand workers and may have happened in the workers’ dormitory. The Foxconn spokesman confirmed that the factory made parts for the iPhone 5.