Apple is giving away U2’s next album, exclusively on iTunes and coming out sometime in October 2014. In the days since that conference, the U2 album “Songs of Innocence” has been downloaded approximately two million times. That’s the equivalent of an album going double platinum in a few days. This doesn’t include the people who are sampling the songs by streaming them through iTunes or iTunes radio. And if that isn’t enough, their 1987 historic album Joshua Tree ranks #12 on the iTunes top 100 charts.
This is interesting to me, and it goes to show the music business is changing. But I thought it would have been better if they had given away only one or two million and then stop the giveaway. My concern is that by October, people won’t get this album because they already downloaded it. And U2 is one of the most respected bands of our generation, if not all time. I’m almost certain other musicians will follow their example. It’s just a question of when. Who will be the next musician to partner with Apple in this way?
I will be giving a live updated play by play of the keynote address by Apple. Since you cannot stream it live unless you have an apple device with Safari I will be here for you guys! Applelive will be broadcasting from the Flint Center in Cupertino, CA, and Computer Geeks will bring it all to you as it happens. Refresh our technology blog real time for updates!
1:07 iPhone Kicks it off!! 98% customer satisfaction, #1 phone in the world. Tim Cook Doesn’t want to go through the new updates, just says EVERYTHING IS GREAT. He starts talking about how great the phone has been. From the original iPhone setting the standard for touch screen phones, to the latest iPhone 5S technology we see today.
1:14 And now for the reveal!! The Thinnest iPhone ever made. There are 2 versions iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 plus! The Sleep wake button is now on the right side, making it easier for you to do things with just one hand.
1:19 Landscape mode for homescreen looks very nice
1:24 Faster processor!
1:26 ?Faster Graphics able to give you AMAZING PICTURES
1:27 ?Some of the top game developers like EA Games, Epic Games, SquareEnix and more have committed to having new games out for the iPhone6 before the year is out!
1:30 The new iPhone6 will be able to play games in higher definition that NextGen Game consoles like XboxOne
1:31 Stephan Sherman of Super Evil Megacorp gives a demo of Vainglory on iPhone6
1:32?iPhone?6 has a resolution of 1334 by 750 with 326 pixels per inch. For a more than 720p Retina?HD?display. ?iPhone?6?Plus has a resolution of 1920 by 1080 with 401 pixels per inch. That?s full 1080p HD?resolution. And now for the Screen size!
1:37- iPhone?6 now supports Voice over?LTE.
1:38 iPhone 6 Camera time! iPhone?6 has an 8MP iSight camera, 1.5? pixels, ?/2.2 aperture. And an all-new?sensor.
More camera goodies
iPhone?6 is better at detecting faces near and?far.
Burst mode detects smiles and blinks, then recommends the best?picture.
Shot on iPhone 6 Plus using optical image stabilization.
1:44 Even the video has gotten better with Continuous autofocus shot, Time-lapse video shot and cinematic video stabilization for you adventurers!
1:46 You can now add voice, video and location details to any message
1:47 The New Health app give you a detailed look at your health and fitness data!
1:48 Notification Extensions from your favorite apps
1:49 Even some stats for you people concerned with the environment
1:50 AND NOW FOR THE iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 plus prices, all prices are with 2 year contract
1:52 - iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 plus are available to preorder on September 12th and for purchase September 19th, 2014
1:53 Now introducing Apple Pay, never need your wallet again! As you can keep
Pay with the simple touch of your finger using Touch?ID.
Apple?Pay is more secure than keeping cards in a?wallet.
If you lose your iPhone, you won’t have to cancel cards. Simply use Find?My?iPhone to suspend payments just for that?device.
Today is the big day for Apple. It could even be make or break for them. Today is their long awaited press conference, where they’re expected to reveal long awaited new products. But the products aren’t the only things that determine whether these things go great or go bust.
You see, these conferences have a lot to do with the speakers themselves and the format. Since 2007, there has been at least 27 such events. They average about an hour and a half, and they have slide demos, live presentations, and videos explaining the manufacturing process. The keynote speaker is usually the Apple CEO. In fact, When Steve Jobs was alive and well, he dominated most of the conferences, only inviting high ranking partners to add their insight. Eventually, he gave such officials more time behind the mic. So is current CEO Tim Cook. He gives others so much time Cook only takes 20 minutes, less than a fourth of the conference, talking.
Other verbal weapons Apple use are humor and confidence. During it’s Worldwide Developers Conference in June 2014, 50 outburst of laughter were recorded. That’s more outbursts than a sitcom taped before a live audience. Nobody is spared. They often make fun of rivals Google, Microsoft, and even their own people. History shows they’re not above playing a prank either. But if you listen closely, there’s a lot of swagger in these conferences. Today, listen to phrases like, “Only Apple…”. That phrase tells the consumer they are the only one that can deliver these goods; don’t even think about seeing our competitors. Whether that’s true or not, well…
It’s a very Smart move on Cook’s part to talk less and let other people talk more. You keep people more engaged and keep their interest up that way. It always helps to lure them in with humor. I applaud them for that part. But whatever they do, they better make sure the product works and delivers. What good is putting on a great show when the product is a major failure?
Netflix, the friendly folks that brought you Orange is the New Black, House of Cards, and more movies than you can ever watch,? may be bringing you short videos for those little boring moments of every day life, light waiting in line or wating for a bus.
Netflix is considering adding two to five minute short video clips to add to it’s growing arsenal and further appease it’s growing fan base. They’re not looking for new content for these mini-videos. We don’t want to compete with You Tube, do we? But Netflix is more likely to take video pieces from movies, stand-up comic shows, and it’s original programming. They’re testing this on their mobile app called, ‘Got Five Minutes?’.? So far, according to Netflix design manager Dantley Davis, this experiment is getting very positive results. While the majority of Netflix is consumed in homes on big screen TV, mobile app use is rising fast. Stats show Netflix’s mobile app sessions is less than 10 minutes a pop 87% at the time. As of now, the entertainment giant don’t have any content that short.
Now yes, one could keep pausing movies and replay them when you get home. For example, you’re watching Orange is the New Black in line at the grocery store until it’s your turn. You could come back to it when you get home. But there’s something really neat about watching five to ten minute clips or your favorite movies or comedians while dallying around on your smartphone. But Netflix has the burden of convincing the American and global consumers of that. I would suggest show five minute nuggets of favorite movies or original programming, like they do in the movies right before the feature presentation. That way, you get the hook in the jaw, making them want more. Should Netflix have short videos?
Maybe you’ve been vacationing in a very remote place over the weekend. If so, the technology and celebrity world came together under some of the worst possible circumstances.
Over the weekend, revealing pictures of A-List celebrities like movie star Jennifer Lawrence were released into the Internet by a computer hacker. It’s reported these celebrities’ iCloud accounts were hacked into and their intimate pictures are stolen. The iCloud is supposed to help Apple product users move data between their devices. Ms. Lawrence reported the cyber attack to authorities as soon as she got wind of it. Now the FBI is involved, only claiming they know about the incident and are seeking the hackers behind this incident.
We’re only within a week Apple’s big announcement. Now, that announcement could be in jeopardy. They may have to turn their excitement about a new iPhone or iWatch into cleaning up this iCloud hacking mess. Looks like Tim Cook and company are going to have to keep the champagne on ice a little while longer. And see what happens when you let a cloud keep floating without proper security protection? Jennifer Lawrence herself tweeted a complaint about it’s complications months before this happened. What lesson can Apple learn from this to keep not only celebrities, but the general public at large safe?
And don’t even get me started on the perverts…ahem…hackers who perpetrated this crime. And that’s exactly what this is, a crime. What these hackers are doing aren’t cool, sexy or revolutionary. It’s just plain wrong and sick. Some will say, “You shouldn’t be putting that online.” Let’s not blame the victims here. The hackers shouldn’t be violating people’s privacy. So if anyone whose reading this getting some sinister ideas, think twice. One guy who thought it was fun to hack people’s accounts and put their risque photos online is now serving ten years in prison. So what can we do to keep ourselves safe?
You hear it out there in the wind every time a new iPhone is coming out, “it’s gonna have a bigger screen!” In the end, Apple makes the screen .01 inches bigger and tells you that it is because the measurements are ideal to fit in your hand. The iPhone6 comes with the same rumors, BIGGER SCREEN. But we have an image of claimed Foxconn schematics of the iPhone6 with a 4.7 inch screen. This makes it far more comparable to the HTC One M8?and the Galaxy S5. The picture below shows the comparable rumored size courtesy of another tech blog.
Although it will still be slightly smaller than those two, we here at our Boston office are a mixed bag of iPhone, HTC and Galaxy users, each one claiming superiority. But the one constant has been that the iPhone always had a tiny screen, now the difference is fairly insignificant, that argument will be out the door with the iPhone6. Not only will the iPhone6 apparently have a larger screen, but should end up 1mm thinner than it’s competitors giving it a more dynamic feel.
Now I will warn everyone not to get too excited, as we have been duped before. I know I was excited about the iPhone5 only to find out the major revelation was that they put the headphone jack on the bottom so I can’t use my Beats By Dre headphones without breaking my Otterbox on the bottom or buying an extension (thanks for nothing Apple) We will all have to wait for the rumored September 9th press conference where we are assuming they will unveil the new iPhone6 and all our prayer can be answered, or all our hopes and dreams crushed like we were 5 year olds who were jilted by Santa…..
