Thursday, February 1, 2007

Apple Iphone - What Is It?

The Apple Iphone offers so much that it’s difficult whether to call it a cell phone, music/TV/movie player, camera, texting device or internet device-for it’s all of those! Here is an overview of the unique services Apple Iphone offers:

Cell Phone/Mobile Phone: In addition to providing standard cell phones features, the iphone’s function as a cell or mobile phone is activated by the user simply pointing at a name or phone number listed under favorites, address book, or call logs. It is Bluetooth compatible, and the battery will allow up to 5 hours of talk time.

Music Device: Besides supplying quality sound, the Apple Iphone’s Ipod features are utilized by a flick of the user’s finger while skimming through a playlist. (Plus, if Cover Flow is used, the music collection will include album artwork.) There is also a quad-band GSM radio, and 16 hours of battery time can be used in this mode.

TV/Movie/ Player: With the iphone’s 3 ½ inch screen display, it’s easy to watch the ITunes Store’s variety of TV shows and movies. An additional bonus is the ability to control volume, pause, and speed forward or backward. A sensor saves battery usage by accommodating existing light conditions with appropriate screen brightness.

Camera: Apple’s Iphone offers 2-megapixel digital photography and management application, usable in conjunction with a PC or Mac. Accessing photos from their storage area and emailing them is completed with one touch activations. Another feature is the camera’s automatic sizing of screen images from portrait to landscape.

Texting Device: I-phone has a keyboard that is termed “soft” and “predictive”, correcting errors and preventing handling difficulties. It’s easier to send out SMS messages, since typing is less awkward than with the smaller keys found on standard cellphones.

Internet Device: The Apple Iphone’s rich HTML email client allows users to read web sites while downloading email from most POP3 or IMAP services at the same time (with Wi-Fi or Edge). The Safari browser allows Google and Yahoo searches, including Google maps with zoom in capabilities, and automatically synchs bookmarks. Another feature is visual voicemail, allowing users to skip to any message without reviewing prior ones first. In addition, Iphone offers access applications of widgets (real-time helpful data such as weather reports), as well as either 4GB or 8GB of storage.

Physical Description: The iphone is 11.7 millimeters deep, 2.4 inches wide and 4.5 inches long.



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Sunday, January 21, 2007

iPhone or LG: Which Came First?

Plans for the new Apple iPhone were recently revealed at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. LG also recently released their new model, the KE850 (pictured). Both look very similar. Can you spot the similarities? Which phone actually came first?

Although there has been phenominal interest shown in the new Apple iPhone, many forget that Korean firm LG had dreamed up an almost identical device not too long ago. LG announced plans for their latest mobile phone(the KE850), designed in conjunction with fashion label Prada, late last year and have already won a design award for their efforts. This sort of puts them one step ahead of the Apple iPhone, right?

Both the iPhone and KE850 sport a very similar slim & sleek design. The list of features read virtually the same. Both are buttonless and have touchscreen, mp3 player, bluetooth and internet capabilites onboard. So the big question is.... Is there enough room in the current market for both these phones?

LG should count themselves lucky in that they plan to release their phone four months before the official launch of the iPhone. Although both phones are very similar in look and support almost identical featues, the iPhone is definitely destined for greater success; much to do with the confidence Apple installed in consumers when they wiped out the MP3 player market with their IPOD. You can't buy the sort of hype Apple has created over the last few years and I honestly believe that Apple will continue to suprise us and end up being one of the key players in the Consumer Electronics Industry.

The LG KE850 is scheduled for release next month and will sell for $US780.

The Apple iPhone will be released to the US market in June with a cost of just $US499.


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The untold part of the iPhone story and FairPlay to get fairer?

The untold part of the iPhone story and FairPlay to get fairer? by ZDNet's David Berlind -- Between CES (last week), a holiday weekend, and Mashup Camp and Mashup University this week, I've been too distracted to circle back to Apple's iPhone that many said upstaged all of the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. From a press perspective, that may indeed be true. Almost in shock, my father who is by [...]



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Friday, January 19, 2007

5 Things To Hate About Apple iPhone

Please don't take this post the wrong way. I will be first in line to pick up the new Apple iPhone as soon as it becomes available to the general market. However there has been much hype over the iPhone of late and so I feel it only fair to balance out the arguement with a few 'downsides' to this brilliant device.

Here are my top 5 things to hate about the Apple iPhone:1. Battery Life
As you can well imagine, any device that has so many bits on board is really go to chew up the battery. You will definitely want to make sure you have a charger at home, at work, in your car, and anywhere else you frequent on a daily basis.

2. Touch Screen
Those familiar with touchscreens, like the ones we now use at banks, airports and shopping malls, know how hard it can be sometimes to have the touchscreen understand and register your commands. I can't help but feel a regular style keypad would have been far more reliable than the new touch-screen technology. No doubt Apple has spent alot of time and money perfecting this part of the phone however I still think the touchscreen will end up causing more problems than it solves. Prove me wrong Apple!

3. 2 Megapixel Camera
Ok, come on Apple, you must be kidding! I hate to think how much time and money Apple has invested in the new iPhone. To have come up with such a 'James Bond' type device and then let it down with a measily 2 megapixel camera is beyond me. There have been phones out on the market for months now that have cameras of much higher quality (even some as high as 4 megapixels). I don't know what Apple was thinking by doing this. If you are going to shoot for the stars then you may as well go all out. Right?

4. Network Limitations
Since Apple is a new player in the billion dollar mobile phone market, it is going to take them some time to build their reputation and form alliances within the industry. For this reason it appears the iPhone will initially only be made available for use on certain carriers. Apple has already announced that their exclusive partner in the U.S will be Cingular. What about everyone else?

5. Inbuilt Battery
We all know how hard it was to replace the battery on our IPODs. Well foolishly Apple has gone and done the exact same thing with the iPhone. Unlike every other phone on the market where users are able to easily access and remove the battery from their phone, the iPhone uses a built in battery much the same as the IPOD. This means big hassles when your battery finally dies and you need a replacement. Who wants the inconvenience of sending their phone away just to change the battery? What were Apple thinking with this one?

Conclusion
Although there are some clear downsides to the new Apple iPhone, all in all it looks to be a real hit! I think the positive aspects of this phone clearly outway the negative and I will most definitely be picking up my new Apple iPhone as soon as they hit the market!


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Apple iPhone Profit Margins

Although the long awaited Apple iPhone will not be released for another 5 months, it certainly looks like it is going to be a real hit amongst cell phone users worldwide. This new phone has received a lot of coverage in the media of late, and Apple fans continue to blog and chat about how badly they want to get their hands on one of these phones.

But what exactly will the iPhone mean for Apple? Is this going to echo the success of the IPOD?
Investigations conducted by some of the world's leading market research companies seem to suggest the iPhone will be a very profitable product for Apple. Early reports suggest Apple will make a profit margin of around 50% on each unit sold.

The iphone will be available in two different versions; the 4GB version and the 8GB version. The 4GB iPhone will sell for $499 and will cost Apple only $230 to build. The 8GB version will sell for around $599 with a build cost of only $265. Apple admits the most expensive part of both phones will be the touchscreen technology.

Apple suggests that although the price will be in the high end of the mobile phone market to begin with, consumers can eventually expect prices to fall as the costs of making the phone reduce and other similar products begin to hit the market.

The iPhone is due for release in the United States in June 2007.



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Thursday, January 18, 2007

Feature Packed iPhone from Apple



The more and more I here about the Apple Iphone, the more I realise that this single piece of technology is really going to reinvent the mobile phone as we know it today and turn this billion dollar industry upside down. For years we have watched mobile phones become smaller, smarter and lighter.
I knew that someday down the track we would eventually arrive at a cell phone that could be everything to everyone. I must admit I did not think we would be looking at such a phone so early on in the evolution of cell phones. Short of sticking a toaster in it, I really think the Apple Iphone has hit the nail on the head. What more could you possibly desire in a mobile phone?

Is there anything you think the Apple Iphone doesn't do that you really want in a mobile phone. Let's hear what you have to say. Post your comments below...


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New iPhone Comes At A Price?

With plans for the new Apple iPhone finally revealed to the world, much debate has begun as to whether or not the I-phone will indeed be priced for the average cell phone user.

I am pleased to announce that the latest price estimate released by Apple itself is $499 per unit.
This may seem like a lot of money to some but in comparitive terms it is a fairly reasonable price considering the amount of technology and features Apple has managed to jam into this one-of-a-kind 'cell phone'.

When you consider that the phone includes either a 4GB or 8GB Ipod, which usually sell for upwards of $300 alone, I think this phone represents great value for money.

Image having your cell phone, Ipod and 2 megapixel camera all in one small device. I will definitely be first in line to pick up one of these phones.

What do you think about the price? Post your thought below...


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New Apple iPhone Revealed

Apple recently announced their latest addition to the Apple army of technology toys. After the phenomenal success of the IPOD, much debate arose over whether or not Apple would try and squeeze in on the billion dollar a year mobile cell phone market. As predicted, Apple has been hard at work behind closed doors and finally revealed all at the recent Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Apple Inc's Phil Schiller shows John Blackstone the many features of the iPhone:


The Apple iphone is due for release in June 2007. Units will initially be made available to the American markets only with plans to later rollout the Iphone in the UK, Asia and Australia in late 2007/early 2008.


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