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News

Recap of the services and products released at Apple’s big event

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On Tuesday Apple held an event broadcast over the internet to the entire world. Information is still coming in fast and subject to change. Here are some of the highlights in case you missed the excitement:

The Apple Watch, a brand new wearable smart device, will be launched in 2015 and priced at $349. It will be used in conjunction with iPhones, but only starting with the iPhone 5 model and up. The Apple Watch will have Siri voice commands and a new “taptic” function that gently buzzes the user’s wrist for multiple uses. The Apple Watch will also have an earphone jack, wifi connectivity, a customizable HUD and full app usability, among other features. More information on the product, including a final release date, are expected in future updates.

Two new iPhones will be released on September 19; the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus. The iPhone 6 will retail in the United States for $199, and the iPhone 6 Plus will retail in the United States for $299. No word yet on pricing in other countries. Apple increased the price of its iPhones higher that ever, reflecting confidence that consumers are hungry for the product and will meet demand. Apple’s iPhone is more expensive than nearly all other competing smartphones. Estimates for the final selling price of an iPhone, plans and peripherals add up to around $657 this year, compared with $254 for Android smartphones.

The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are announced to have bigger screens, at 4.7 and 5.5 inches each, respectively. They will also contain 128 Gigabytes of internal memory. Traditionally, Apple has stuck with a small display for its iPhone, while competitors were making larger screens for high-end phones. Larger screens are desired in Asia, where the smartphone is replacing the personal computer as a person’s main computing device. The lack of a large screen was fast becoming a liability for Apple. Smartphone rival Samsung Electronics has pushed hard into large-screen smartphones and used the bigger screen as a positive difference away from the iPhone. Samsung is currently the market leader of large smartphone displays.

Apple Pay, a brand new contact-less payment program, has been announced. Instead of traditional debit and credit card transactions, Apple Pay will allow users to directly scan and purchase goods and services with their iPhones at a registered business. Details will be forthcoming on where Apple Pay can be used; the current list of Apple Pay vendors are McDonalds, Subway, Whole Foods and Sephora. More businesses are expected to announce their support in future updates.

To celebrate the Apple Watch and the newest iPhone release, legendary rock band U2 has announced their new album will be free to download for all iTunes users. More than 500 million users have been given day-one access to the music, which is the largest record debut in the history of the music industry.

Expect more details about Apple’s new products to emerge in the weeks ahead.

How-To

How to enable Apple’s two step verification

Image 09/09/2014 Macmint Leave a comment

Last week’s hack of Hollywood photos was a wake-up call to the general public and the Apple Corporation about being lax with internet security. Apple’s devices can all enable two-factor authentication now, and these steps will show you how it’s done, so you can protect yourself all the more effectively.

First, long into the Apple ID system. You can either go to https://appleid.apple.com or just find the “Manage your Apple ID” listing in your device. If this is the first time you’ve heard of it, you should know that you can also do billing and update contact information from this listing as well.

Second, find “Password and Security” from the options menu, and answer the security questions that it provides. Then scroll to the “Two-Step Verification” listing and click the “Get Started” link.

Third, Apple will send you an SMS with a verification code to the phone number you’ve assigned on your Apple ID. If your phone number is out of date and needs to be changed, you’ll have to wait 72 hours before being able to change the number—this is another Apple security measure that prevents hackers and other people from immediately locking you out of your own device.

Fourth, after you have the SMS and entered the verification code, you can register an iPad, iPhone, or iPod on which you’ve already used your Apple ID, to enable “Find my iPhone”. Currently these are the only devices you’ll be able to receive future codes with, sent as a special push notification from Apple. Apple may add more devices to the security list in the future.

Lastly, Apple will generate a unique recovery master key that can be used to unlock your account if you forget your password or don’t have access to any of your devices. Apple strongly recommends you write down the recovery key and store it in a secure place—like a bank deposit box or a gun safe.

Now a general warning: If you manage to forget your password, throw away your recovery master key AND lose access to all of your “trusted” devices, you will not be able to login to the Apple ID system, period. No exceptions. Apple Corporation will officially not be able to help you, but a customer service representative can recommend replacement devices for you to buy.

Anyway, when you’ve finished your verification process, you’ll be asked for a code when you try to go online. Apple will be installing more two-step verification for more tasks, like restoring backups on a new device, later this year.

News

5 different ways Apple’s iWatch must succeed

Image 09/08/2014 Macmint Leave a comment

Next week, Apple is expected to announce new products, including a brand new wearable called the iWatch. Unlike most smart devices, wearable watches and the like have not been widely accepted by the public in daily use. If the iWatch is to be a success, there are five conditions that Apple needs to improve and change in order for the product to be a success.

1. The iWatch needs to be considered similar to fashionable jewelry

Unlike smartphones, which can be mounted on a wide variety of devices and hidden inside clothing, a smart watch is designed primarily to be laced around a person’s wrist. In order for a person to put up with extra weight and bulk on their wrist, the iWatch must be completely aesthetically pleasing, with color, material, shape and function all adding up to a product that a customer is willing to wear every day.

2. The iWatch needs to have practical and good uses

Apple is fighting to win two kinds of customers: those who use a smart phone to look up the time of day, and those who prefer to wear luxury watches like Rolex and Tag Hauer to make a statement. The iWatch should at least have a clear and readable display, a battery lifespan similar to any common watch on the market, and the same wireless connectivity and function of a smart phone.

3. The iWatch needs to cater to activities where a regular watch or a smart phone aren’t practical

Most watches are waterproof and most smart phones play music, but the iWatch should be a device where you can do both and monitor your heart rate and pulse while swimming in a pool. Being able to access all kinds of information in a wide variety of environments makes the iWatch practical far beyond other smart devices. (And it should be pointed out that the iWatch needs to be ruggedly built and waterproof, otherwise customers won’t bother buying the device on launch day.)

4. The iWatch should offer a new user experience and interface

Apple’s user interfaces have been a part of the brand: the one-button Macintosh mouse, the iPod’s clicking wheel, and the iPhone’s Siri voice command are all examples of a great, memorable user interface. However, these devices may be too big and clunky to implement on a wrist watch using current technology, and most customers would rely on their existing smart phones for such service instead. A touchscreen interface would make the most sense and be the most intuitive on an iWatch, although having voice command could have some useful benefits.

5. The iWatch must make people excited for Apple products again

When the iPod was released early in the 21st century, it wasn’t just seen as a portable music player, but as a device that captured the imagination of the world. The iPod was seen as the dreams of the future made into reality, a technological leap forward for mankind. Watches and phones once seen as magical are now viewed as old hat by many global customers, with better selections of similar products by other companies out there for anyone who wants to buy one. The iWatch has a major obstacle to confront next week; that like the Apple products before it, the iWatch must prove the ambition and capability of a company who wants to position themselves in the forefront of public consciousness. Time will tell if the iWatch succeeds.

News

4 things to expect from Apple’s iPhone 6 event

Image 09/07/2014 Macmint Leave a comment

Next week, Apple is expected to reveal a host of new products to its fans and the world. The company created a countdown timer on its website, telling viewers to watch for a live webcast event on Tuesday, September 9, held at Apple’s headquarters in Cupertino California.

30 years ago on the same day, Steve Jobs revealed the first Macintosh personal computer to the world. Fans and the media have been speculating what could be launched on that special day. Here are four products you can probably expect to see:

1. The official release of an iWatch

Ever since Pebble’s 2011 Kickstarter campaign sold customers on the idea of strapping a mini iPod to a wristband, and raised over $3 million and the official backing of Apple itself, customers have been bombarded with smart watches from other manufacturers. On Tuesday, Apple may announce the creation of an official wearable device. The iWatch is currently listed as having a curved LED display, the ability to sync with iCloud and HealthKit services to track exercise and medical routines, and an initial price tag of $400. There’s no word on when it ships to stores, however.

While customers have been traditionally hesitant or unwilling to “wear” smart devices on their wrist, expect Apple to discuss the iWatch and attempt to make a wearable device into a cool marketing brand on Tuesday.

2. The ability to make online payments with an Apple device

While iPhones have been able to conduct everyday consumer banking for years–including depositing a check by taking a picture with the built-in camera–having the ability to pay for something in a grocery store just by tapping your phone has been a long-time dream for consumers. Apple has been rumored to be in partnership talks with credit card companies American Express and Visa on a possible Apple-brand payment platform. Instead of carrying around credit cards and cash, a customer might be able to digitally pay for everything through their Apple device instead.

While other smart phones use “near field communications” chips that can be used at a grocery checkout service, Apple has preferred to rely on its Passbook application for its customer base. That could also change on Tuesday.

3. The iPhone 6, with a larger screen

Current iPhones have a display that measures 4 inches across diagonally. By contrast, many phone manufacturers like Samsung and Nokia have developed products with much larger and easier to read screens, and those manufacturers have enjoyed comparatively higher demand for those products than Apple’s customer base.

Long-time loyal fans have been asking Apple for years to develop larger screens; Apple is widely expected to release a product on Tuesday with a larger screen, or at least discuss the feasibility of future iPhones with larger screens.

4. Apple’s giant, public emphasis on strong security

Expect a 90% chance of mentioning this in the webcast, not only for the recent hacking of Hollywood actresses’ iPhones, but also if Apple discusses their new iCloud, new products and payment systems. Public scrutiny is something Apple management has always tried to avoid, and mentioning security will only win them points on Tuesday.

News

Apple releases OS X Yosemite beta 7 to developers

Image 09/06/2014 Macmint Leave a comment

Apple Computers released their newest update to OS X Yosemite on Thursday. The new build, 14A343f, includes new app icons for the dashboard and several graphical tweaks to help Apple users customize their screen. Apple also released updates for OS X Sever 4.0 Developer and the Apple Configurator 1.6.

Yosemite will be shipped apart from iOS 8. Here’s a list of tweaks to the latest version:

– New icons in the System Preferences app

– A new dark menu and dock mode with thinner font

– New icons for the Dashboard, Keychain, Disk Utility, and Migration Assistant

– A new Spotlight search for Dark mode

– File versions browser are now the same as current Time Machine user interface

– Software Update removed from Apple menu, replaced with update notifications from the App Store

– Yosemite now allows Skype calls by default

– New icons for the ColorSync Utility

Yosemite is currently slated for release in mid to late October.

1. The iWatch needs to be considered similar to fashionable jewelry

2. The iWatch needs to have practical and good uses

3. The iWatch needs to cater to activities where a regular watch or a smart phone aren’t practical

4. The iWatch should offer a new user experience and interface

5. The iWatch must make people excited for Apple products again

1. The official release of an iWatch

2. The ability to make online payments with an Apple device

3. The iPhone 6, with a larger screen

4. Apple’s giant, public emphasis on strong security

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