Ed Sutherland - page 67

We kick-off the last week of February with two hardware deals and one software bargain. First up is a Mac Pro for $2,649. The desktop unit has 4 cores and pumping at 2.66GHz. Next is a fresh batch of App Store freebies, including geoLocals 3, a location-based search search application. The final top deal is the CiragnoTV Mini USB media device. You can take video stored on USB or a memory card and display it all either on a TV with HDMI or a simple AV connection.

As always, for details on these products plus many others, be sure to check out CoM’s “Daily Deals” page right after the jump.

Apple ranked third in a recent BusinessWeek customer service survey, jumping from last year’s 20th spot. Like 2009, however, the company had high marks for “quality of staff” and “efficiency of service.” The Cupertino, Calif. company trailed No. 2 USAA, an insurance company, and No. 1 L.L. Bean.

Dell, the only other computer maker to reach the list’s top 25, was ranked No. 23.

Apple has produced two new television commercials aimed at disputing rival claims the smartphone cannot accomplish everyday tasks. The two commercials – On Hold and First Steps – attempt to show consumers the iPhone and the AT&T wireless network are up to the job.

In On Hold, an iPhone owner receives an electric bill by email. After placing the call and being put on hold, the person downloads a game and whiles away the time until an operator is available. The commercial is seen as Apple’s way of showing the iPhone’s exclusive network, AT&T, can handle voice and date simultaneously. In a series of ads, rival carrier Verizon had claimed the iPhone was unable to juggle voice and data at the same time.

When CBS CEO Les Moonves Thursday told analysts episodes of “certain shows” would be sold for $1 on iTunes, then a network spokesman emphasized no deal with Apple had actually been signed, it only reinforced the skepticism silently being voiced toward the Cupertino, Calif. firm.

Caught between the anticipated ire from affiliates for selling popular programming online and the siren song of Apple customers with 125 million credit cards, networks don’t want to say ‘no’ – not just yet.

Joby, maker of the Gorillapod flexible camera tripod, Thursday unveiled two more innovative products for photographers seeking the best shot in trying circumstances. The Gorillapod Magnetic flexible tripod is perfect for those times when you just can’t find a flat surface for a traditional tripod. Meanwhile, the Ballhead X for Gorillapod Focus will help professionals when that standard tripod would fail under the weight of a heavy body plus zoom lens.

The Gorillapod Magnetic tripod is equipped with magnetic feet, along with the usual flexible legs. This permits you to shoot from a metal bar – even a tree limb. The Gorillapod Magnetic can support camera or mini video cameras weighing up to 11.5 ounces. Yet, the tripod itself weighs only 2.5 ounces and is just six inches tall; just right for the crowded gadget bag and long treks. The tripod will be available in April, according to the company.

We close out another week with a trio of Apple deals. First up, the Apple Store is selling a 27-inch iMac powered by a 3.06GHz Core 2 Duo for $1,449. Next is another round of App Store bargains, including the RemixMonkey Pocket DJ application for your iPhone or iPod touch. Last on our list of top deals is the iHome, a pair of 15w stereo speakers for your iPod.

Along the way we’ll take a look at more Apple hardware (like Belkin’s car stereo kit for your iPhone), software (such as EasyBurner 3 for your Mac) and storage options.

As always, for details on any of these items plus many others, check out CoM’s “Daily Deals” page after the jump.

The online video service Hulu probably will not be available on the iPad when Apple’s recently-introduced tablet begins shipping in March. Along with technical hurdles due to the device lacking Flash support, lawyers may need to become involved to reclassify the iPad as a mobile device.

Additionally, when Hulu does become available for the iPad, don’t expect the service to be free. “The most likely scenario is one where access to Hulu on the iPad comes as part of a subscription package,” according to the Wall Street Journal’s All Things Digital, citing “multiple people familiar” with the situation.

Apple’s claims of patent-infringement against Nokia will be reviewed by the U.S. International Trade Commission, the Washington, DC-based agency announced. The commission could decide in just over a year whether imports of handsets made by the Finnish company should be banned from the United States.

The announcement comes on the heels of the ITC agreeing to investigate claims by Kodak against the Cupertino, Calif. electronics maker. In January, Kodak sued Apple, claiming the iPhone infringed its patent on previewing images.

We wind down the week with a deal on four iMacs from the Apple Store, including a 22-inch 3.06GHz model for $999. Also, there is a deal on a 22-inch iMac with 3.06GHz processor, along with 6GB of memory and a three-year AppleCare contract for $1,328. Finally, there is a deal on an 8-core Mac Pro 2.26GHz workstation with 8GB memory for $3,299.

Along the way, we check out bargains on iPod classics, Time Capsules and the latest batch of App Store price drops. As always, details on these and many more items can be found on CoM’s “Daily Deals” page after the jump.

After a Reuters reporter began taking photos outside the factory, Foxconn guards grabbed him and tried to drag him into the factory. Police later told the reporter: “This is Foxconn and they have a special status here. Please understand.”

Details are emerging on Apple’s pricing plans for e-books sold for its new iPad tablet device. The $12.99 to $14.99 range often cited as a reason publishers are using to defy Amazon is seen only an “option.” Instead, the Cupertino, Calif. electronics maker would sell best-selling titles as low as the often-disparaged $9.99 price.

“Apple inserted provisions requiring publishers to discount e-book prices on best-sellers — so that $12.99-to-$14.99 range was merely a ceiling; prices for some titles could be lower than Amazon’s $9.99,” the New York Times reported Thursday.

Apple, yet again, is being painted as the reason for a predicted shortage in flash memory, used in everything from digital cameras to iPhones. The iPhone and iPad, along with a predicted avalanche of imitators, could create “insatiable demand” for flash (or NAND) memory in 2010, according to research firm iSuppli.

Analyst Michael Young forecasts the average iPhone sold in 2010 will use 35.2 GB of flash memory. Multiply that by the 33 million iPhones expected to sell this year (up from 25.1 million in 2009) and it is “likely to lead to some periods of under-supply for the year.”

The New York Times, one of the iPad’s most vociferous and earliest proponents, now seems split on how much to charge for a version of the ‘newspaper of record’ for the tablet. The newspaper is split on pricing, with the print side and digital side at odds. The publication is considering charging iPad owners between $10 and $30 to read its paper, claims a report.

Citing an unnamed source, Gawker writes the print side wants to charge $20 to $30 per month for an iPad version of the daily newspaper. The argument is that the iPad would cut into subscriptions of the print edition, thus requiring the higher price tag. Currently, the newspaper offers much of its print content online for free, although that may end next year. New York Times Media Group president Scott Heekin-Canedy reportedly sides with the print division.

Apple sales of Mac computers jumped 36 percent in January, potentially signaling 2.8 million will be sold for the first three months of 2010, according to retail sales figures released Tuesday. If on target, sales would beat a Wall Street estimate for 2.6 million Macs sold during the first quarter, one analyst said.

Although Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster in December proclaimed 2010 the “Year of the Mac,” he said it is “way too early” to predict how the quarter will end. Many expect Apple to introduce new or updated MacBook Pro notebooks, a move that could boost sales.

Timing is everything, they say in comedy. Amazon probably isn’t laughing after reading a financial analyst’s prediction the online bookseller will see its share of the e-book market nosedive to 35 percent by 2015 at a time when revenue for electronic reading is expected to nearly triple. Why? Two words: Apple iPad.

Credit Suisse analyst Spencer Wang expects Amazon’s share of the e-book market to be more than halved by the iPad, falling to 35 percent by 2015, down from 90 percent in 2009. Just as Amazon’s market share for e-books shrinks, revenue from e-books is expected to explode; hitting $775 million by 2015, up from $248 million last year. The skyrocketing demand could also be helped by a number of big-named publishers – Macmillion, HarperCollins and Hachette – using the iPad to force Amazon to drop its $9.99 flat-price on e-books.

We start today with a deal on MacBooks, including $849 for a 2.26GHz Core 2 13.3″-inch white model. Also on tap: a new round of App Store price drops, including an iPhone, iPod touch adaptation of the classic PAC-MAN video game. Finally, Adobe Photoshop Elements image manipulation software is available for $50.

Along the way, we’ll look at many other Apple-related bargains, including the Air Mouse Pro for the iPhone, Altec Lansing speakers for the iPod and a Philips Transdock II FM transmitter and car charger for the iPod.

As always, details on these and many more items can be found on CoM’s “Daily Deals” page after the jump.

The first step in Apple taking on netbooks without releasing a netbook was the iPad with cheap 3G support from AT&T. Now comes word the carrier may start selling iPads in its stores – and pushing out netbooks to make room. The rumor comes on the heels of reports European carriers will subsidize the iPad’s price for a two-year contract.

“We’re told the general plan is to convert one or two existing netbook display sections in each corporate AT&T location into a pretty substantial iPad display area,” according to Boy Genius Reports, citing a carrier source “down South” indicating the company will sell the 3G iPad.

If Apple CEO Steve Jobs is to realize his vision for the iPad as an information-sharing device, he may have to win-over newspapers to that idea, a new report suggests. Although talks between Apple and newspapers are described as “friendly,” the head of one major daily calls Cupertino’s demands a potential “dealbreaker.”

The key sticking points in the discussions are two-fold: Apple’s desire to share subscriber information and other data viewed as valuable by publishers, as well as how revenue-sharing applies to newspaper and magazine publishers. Publishers have amassed subscriber names, addresses and credit cards often used to develop marketing campaigns, even newspaper content.

First Apple used higher prices to get book publishers to consider the company’s iPad. Now comes word the Cupertino, Calif. electronics firm will offer FairPlay DRM to make them feel safe from e-book pirates. The move seems to extend Apple’s use of DRM for movies and television episodes to its latest consumer tablet device.

However, unlike movies and TV show sold through iTunes, Apple plans to give book publishers the option to lock-down their titles with DRM. “No doubt some publishers, including O’Reilly Media — which has vociferously argued that digital locks are harmful to sales — will opt not to deploy FairPlay,” according to Monday’s Los Angeles Times.

We start the week off with a passel of puzzles for your iPhone, plus a speaker for your iPod from Logitech. Alchemize is a puzzle game for your iPhone or iPod touch being offered free for a limited time. Next up is a number of App Store titles marked down to the low, low price of free. Lastly, Logitech has their rechargeable speaker system for the iPod or iPhone. The $60 system gives you 20 hours of tune between charges.

As always, details on these and many other items (such as the Western Digital 1TB USB 2.0 external hard drive) are available after the jump.

Chip-making giant Intel and mobile phone giant Nokia Monday announced a partnership of sorts, melding their two mobile operating systems into one platform: MeeGo. “Simply put, MeeGo heralds a new era of mobile computing,” claimed Nokia CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo.

The Linux-based Meego targets a range of mobile companies, including Apple’s iPhone, Google’s Android handsets and even Microsoft. In a slam against Android, Intel vice president Renee James told the New York Times the Google-made platform is too “specific” to be used on a wide range of devices.

Ever since carriers became just a pipe for Apple’s iPhone, they’ve attempted to regain some of their lost control over customers. Now comes word that two-dozen major carriers – including AT&T, Verizon and Sprint – want to build an App Store rival, enticing developers with an unspecified “open technology platform.”

Analysts are already sounding warnings, cautioning with so many sharks swimming so close together, there’s bound to be trouble. “I do question whether such a large group of mobile operators will be able to achieve the level of cooperation and integration required to make this initiative a success,” said Informa Telecoms analyst Mark Newman.

It appears Apple has stepped-up its battle with hackers, reportedly banning at least two App Store accounts for “security reasons.” The action comes after a long-running tug-of-war between the Cupertino, Calif. company and hackers releasing ways to avoid iPhone security.

Monday, a hacker known as “Sherif” told his Twitter followers Apple had banned his ID. “They must be really angry, he wrote, following the comment by a smiley face emoticon. Another hacker, known as “iH8sn0w,” and the person behind the XEMN tool said to unlock iPhone 3.1.3 baseband for the 3G and 3GS, also reported being banned from the App Store.

We cap the week with a trio of top deals. First is Apple’s 802.11n Airport Extreme wireless base station for $129 from the Apple Store. Next up: Mac Pro Xeon Workstations starting at $2,549 for a 2.93GHz quad-core. Finally, a new batch of App Store freebies, including AmAze, a GPS worldwide turn-by-turn app.

Along the way, we’ll look at other bargain gadgets, such as the 4 Door Media Road Mouse and Low Grav Racer 2. As always, details on these and many other deals are available on CoM’s “Daily Deals” page right after the jump.

Although the iPad’s introduction was greeted by some with a ho-hum attitude, Apple’s new tablet device has sparked developer interest, in January nearly tripling the number of applications created, researchers said Friday.

As iPad frenzy reached a crescendo, development for the App Store nearly tripled, with more than 1,600 applications created in January compared to under 600 in December, said Flurry Analytics. The company’s “Smartphone Industry Pulse” for January 2010 tracked more than 20,000 mobile applications.