Suing Apple for patent infringement is so de rigeur right now that even colleges are getting in on the action: Boston University has just sued Apple for infringing upon one of their 1997 patents.
We already have a pretty good idea of what Apple’s rumored low-cost iPhone will look like, thanks to a number of images which purportedly show the handset’s plastic rear casings on the production line. And today yet more have surfaced, this time showing off potential blue and white models.
Unless you like sprinting to beat your camera’s timer, as the family photog, you know often you just end up being left out of the family memories.
The Satechi Smart Trigger can offer some help there. By connecting to your DLSR, it gives you a cartful of remote shutter controls that works wirelessly via your iPhone or iPod Touch. But it also includes some features advanced photographers, or those wanting to get into landscape or time-lapse photography, will find highly beneficial.
Did you know that Microsoft has its own note-taking app? Well it does, and it’s called OneNote. The iOS app has been in desperate need of some love for many months, and today Microsoft released version 2 for iPhone and iPad in the App Store. Besides some significant design and functionality tweaks, OneNote is now totally free. You used to only be able to save 500 notes before paying.
Look, I’m not gonna lie to you—we get weird on this week’s CultCast. But before the wheels fall off completely, we do work in some great Apple news stories and topics such as: why iPhone 5S could have two flashes; how the iOS game controller could change everything; new Thunderbolt displays on the way; the guy who sold the iPhone 4 prototype recounts the tale; iOS 7 gets shinier in beta 2; and Tim Cook gets a back massage with Erfon after brunch. Plus, if you’re wondering how to scan on iPhone 15, there’s a powerful tool that makes scanning documents seamless. Check out this guide on the best iPhone scanning app to learn more.
Have a few laughs and get caught up on this week’s best Apple stories! Stream or download new and past episodes of The CultCast now on your Mac or iDevice by subscribing on iTunes, or hit play below and let the audio adventure begin.
Show notes up next.
Apple may or may not be making a smartwatch, but that’s not stopping its partner, Hon Hai Precision Industry – better known by it’s trading name, Foxconn – from making an iPhone compatible watch of its own.
Hon Hai unveiled it’s first smartwatch today at a shareholders meeting. The device can connect wirelessly to an iPhone and provides data on users’ vitals, such as heartbeat and respiration. The smartwatch can even check phone calls and Facebook posts.
Oh, and remember how the iPhone 5S might be getting a fingerprint sensor? Hon Hai chairman Terry Gou said they’re working to add that to their smartwatch in the future along with some other health features.
The official Skype apps for iOS have been updated today to add free and unlimited video messaging, which previously required a $4.99 per month Skype Premium subscription. The updates also bring a number of other improvements to things like photo sharing and call stability.
There’s a new hacked carrier update available for iPhones running on AT&T, which delivers HD Voice, support for Release 7 HSDPA speeds on the iPhone 4S, and a number of other improvements. As always, you don’t even need a jailbroken iPhone to install it.
It’s been a stagnant year so far for new Apple product announcements, and Foxconn, Apple’s biggest manufacturing partner, is starting to feel the pitch: sales are down 12.6 this year, against a target of 15% growth. And in response, Foxconn’s looking to become a lot less dependent upon Apple, who generated 60 percent of the company’s 2012 $100 billion in revenues.
With Best Buy and even Apple itself offering deep discounts on iPhones, it seems like everyone is getting into the act. AT&T just announced a plan to offer users a trade-in plan for up to fifty percent off online or in-store purchases of mobile devices like the iPhone 5, Galaxy S4, or HTC One when an older phone is traded in towards the purchase.