iOS 7, Apple’s newest edition of its mobile operating system, is coming to devices near you on September 18th. With a new, more colorful look and some pretty substantial changes under the hood, some people are calling this release the biggest change to the operating system since the release of the original iPhone. And, as with all the updates to iOS, the newest version is totally free. So whether you want the new look and feel, want to be on the cutting edge of the new features and security updates, or are just really excited about the new filters on the camera app, here’s what you need to know before you can make the change.
Category: Top Story
How to Choose Between the Samsung Galaxy and the new Apple iPhone 5S/5C
Galaxy vs. iPhone
One question we’re getting a lot is, “How do I choose between the new iPhone 5S/5C and the Galaxy phones?” Well, it’s a bit more complicated than that. There are two current Galaxy phones, the 5” Galaxy S4 which is the most direct competitor to Apple’s offerings. But there’s also the 5.7” Galaxy Note 3, which was just announced and is the latest gen “Phablet” which includes a stylus.
There’s also two top-of-the-line Apple devices now. The slightly-cheaper iPhone 5C is colorful and comes in an array of bright plastic designs. The high-end 5S includes all the latest whizzes and bangs and even comes in the excludive, blinged-out gold (or “champagne” or whatever you want to call it). Read More
This is how the new iPhone 5S and 5C will impact your life, business, and family
Today’s iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C announcements were big news, but you can’t just look at a spec sheet and get the full picture of what Apple is releasing in the coming weeks. The two new iPhone models announced today, the 5S and 5C, represent more than just the most advanced tech and the most affordable top-of-the-line smartphone to come out of Cupertino, they suggest a major shift in how consumers protect their data, shop for phones, and use mobile technology.
Samsung Galaxy Gear Smart Watch: Brand New, Pretty Awesome
All eyes (including ours) have been on Apple’s upcoming September 10th release announcements. But yesterday, Samsung debuted their newest offerings, including a smart watch that has a lot of people excited. Last month, we reviewed some of the more popular smart watches on the market, and at that time, we only just heard that Samsung had filed for a trademark for Galaxy Gear. But the watch is here, and it looks pretty amazing.
Smart watches have labored under the impression that they’re a needless accessory: it’s hard to imagine what we’d want on our wrist that isn’t better done with the phone in our pockets. The niche they seem to fill is as a kind of notification device: if you’re inundated by emails or text messages or phone calls or push notifications, your watch will let you know about it first before you feel the need to dig into your pocket and pull out your phone.
It’s understandable if this doesn’t seem like that big of a deal to everyone. But maybe combine that feature with easy updates to the weather or stock tickers and maybe a couple of other apps, and the proposition becomes a little more appealing. Recognizing the limited scope of current smart watches, the Galaxy Gear packs in a few additional toys: there’s a 1.9-megapixel camera, a microphone, two speakers, and a gyroscope and an accelerometer to keep track of your workouts. Read More
The Future of Publishing: Ebooks, E-Singles and Their Potential for Business
Davar Ardalan is the Senior Producer of NPR’s Tell Me More, and author of the recent iBooks-exclusive title, The Persian Square, a digital book that culls together over 30 media files including audio and video, weaving a modern, multimedia tapestry of Iranian American history going back to the 1800s. Ms. Ardalan contributed the guest post below.
It’s hard to define today’s media architecture, but the success of Amazon’s Kindle Singles and steady sales for the digital publishing start-up Byliner prove that Americans are ever more eager to dive into an electronic book for their reading pleasure or for some in-depth news.
In 2012, ebook sales made up over 22 percent of the U.S. publishing industry’s net revenue, according to The Association of American Publishers. Media companies looking to diversify their revenue stream might want to take note. According to The New York Times, Amazon sold five million copies of Kindle Singles since it opened in January 2011. Amazon created an e-singles digital platform back in 2011, allowing writers of non-fiction and fiction to publish original writings between 5,000 and 30,000 words. These e-singles also known as e-shorts or Quick Reads by Apple are meant to be read in one sitting.
The New York Times has also entered the ebook business. In December 2012, The Times teamed up with Byliner, a leading publisher in the e-shorts space and launched it’s own line of ebooks featuring The Times culture, sports, business, science and health stories. The Times/Byliner collaboration seemed like a “perfect fit” says Byliner Co-Founder and Editor-in-Chief Mark Bryant. “Byliner is all about ambitious storytelling that lives in the space between magazine and books, and the opportunity to tap into such a deep, smart talent pool at The Times has made our partnership all the better.”
Two examples of successful Times/Byliner collaborations in the past six months include David Leonhardt’s Here’s the Deal, detailing the ever-contentious debate over the deficit, and Adam Liptak’s To Have and Uphold, on the struggle over same-sex marriage.
Bryant says both of these original Times/Byliner productions have been particularly well received, “There is a sweet spot for these types of stories — original, well written, ambitious narratives on some of the most compelling issues of the day.” He notes that declining newspaper and magazine revenues have meant fewer and fewer opportunities for writers to publish ambitious narratives.
Bryant says the addition of the mobile reading experience and it’s new subscription reading service or “streaming reading” make digital short stories even more relevant and accessible.
“Stories are being squeezed into tighter and tighter spaces,” Bryant notes, adding that readers are looking for great personalized recommendations that help them “cut through all the clutter and noise and also takes into account how much time they have to read.”
The iPhone 5C: Newer, Cheaper, More Colorful
Apple’s new product announcements are expected on September 10th, and we already talked about what to expect from the upgrade of Apple’s iPhone 5, which, if tradition holds, will be known as the iPhone 5S. But maybe the bigger news is that Apple is likely to announce a totally new addition to its iPhone product line, probably known as the iPhone 5C.
If the leaked pictures are any indication, you’d think the C stands for color—unlike the subdued glass and aluminum casings of the current iPhone models, the iPhone 5C looks a little more like the old iPhone 3s, sporting a curvier form factor with a plastic back, and, for the first time in an iPhone, available in a variety of vibrant colors. As of now, we’ve seen leaked pictures of white, green, pink, blue, and yellow cases (but no black). But the C might also stand for Cheap. Or at least Cheaper. The iPhone 5C will probably have the same specs as the original iPhone 5, making it a little less pricey than the new 5S, and the plastic case will save consumers a bit, too. Read More
iPhone 5S Rumor Roundup
In case you haven’t heard, the new iPhone will be announced on September 10th. We think. And it’ll be available for purchase on Friday, September 20th. Well, again, we think. Apple is one of the most secretive companies on the planet, and the precise specs of new products are subject to rumors months before we have any real evidence about what’s going on.
But that’s half the fun these days. Let’s take a look at what we think we know, what we don’t know, and what we hope for from the newest iPhone. Read More
4 Ways To Reach New Customers, Wherever You Are
Lisa Durrett is Lead Marketing Communications Manager, Small Business at AT&T. You can find more blog content from Lisa and other experts on emerging technologies on the AT&T Networking Exchange Blog. AT&T has sponsored the following blog post.
I’m in awe of my yoga instructor. She takes the word flexibility to a whole new level. This mother of five owns four yoga studios, manages a staff of instructors, has a blog that she updates daily, writes a fitness column for the local newspaper, and even has time to volunteer at her kids’ school.
I’m equally impressed by her ability to keep her classes consistently full. She always finds time to reach out to new customers, whether by responding to inquiries in between classes or posting offers to her website through her smartphone while on the treadmill. An expert multitasker? With today’s need for speed, entrepreneurs don’t really have much of a choice. Small business expert and entrepreneur Bill Rancic says it’s imperative to always take advantage of technology, so you are able to work smarter, not harder.
If you’re not as innately flexible as my yoga instructor, here’s how being fully connected in the wireless age can help you grow your business:
1. Don’t miss a lead.
Respond to prospects anywhere. Yes, you can say you’ll carve out time to do nothing but respond to customer inquiries, but, the reality is, something always comes up. If you have a smartphone that allows you to easily monitor and respond to email, your social channels, and consumer review sites, you can get this off your to-do list while also better serving your customers. If you network your team’s devices wirelessly, you can share Internet access, files, printers, and more, which can help you to delegate some of these important tasks.
End of Summer Sweepstakes: Enter to Win a Free New Smartphone from AT&T
Happy end of summer! To celebrate, AT&T is giving away 10 free smartphones before 9/2/2013, including two Samsung Galaxy S4, 2 Samsung Galaxy SIII, 3 LG Optimus G Pro and 3 HTC First.
Entering to win is easy – just go to AT&T Premier’s page and enter your email. Plus you can improve your odds by sharing with your friends: for every 5 friends who enter using the link you share you’ll get another entry.
Can Bunkr Kill PowerPoint?
We’ve written before about the ubiquity of Microsoft Office products and their transition to mobile environments. Admittedly, they’ve been a little slow on the uptake, which created an opportunity for a number of companies to develop software meant to replace these seemingly irreplaceable office tools.
Bunkr is one such of those tools—a new product from a French startup that explicitly wants to be a PowerPoint killer. Whether it can dethrone the reigning champion of the slideshow is a separate question, but it does offer a lot of nifty features if you’re looking for an alternative to Office. For starters, Bunkr looks and feels a lot like PowerPoint. If you’re familiar with using that, making a switch to something new shouldn’t feel that weird. But Bunkr offers a few features that make it stand out. Read More