iPhone 5s First Impressions

 

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The iPhone 5s launched this morning and I was lucky to to get my hands on the device so I thought it would be a good idea to share some first impressions!
Design
The design of the 5s is almost exactly the same. The only changes is the space gray in replacement of the back and addition of gold. The home button is yes changed to a circle where the fingerprint scanner or Touch ID is. Overall the space gray is very nice and it was the model I wanted.

Software

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The software of iOS 7 is 64bit for the iPhone 5s and trust me you can tell. With the advanced processor it flies running software better than ever before. As for iOS itself I love 7 and just not the safari icon.

Hardware

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The hardware is what this model is all about. The hardware of the 5s is what the phone is all about. The biggest change – Touch ID actually works very well if you calibrate it correctly. It recognizes mine and only mine so in terms of security it’s your best option – of course you also need a passcode with it. The processor is blazing fast and while apps right now don’t take advantage of the system’s 64 bit system but when they do it will be amazing. For the motion sensor I don’t know about it yet I haven’t tested it.

Battery

I cannot tell because I haven’t used it normally but I would say an improvement over the iPhone 5.

Accessories

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All iPhone 5 accessories work with the iPhone 5s. This year Apple gave us back the dock connector and even a bunch of leather cases, I got the red one which is pictured above. Overall the case is great to the touch and looks very nice I recommend getting one for an iPhone 5 or 5s because it fits both… Also it has an Apple logo!

Those are just some quick impressions. Were you able to grab an iPhone 5s today?

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iOS 7 Myths

I am tired of getting text messages and twitter messages about iOS 7 and the myths popular twitter’s have made about it to get more followers so I am going to post them here and hopefully you will help me spread the word.

  1. Text Screenshot Notifications- No you cannot do this. I have friends running 7 and they cannot see when I take a screenshot of their texts.
  2. iOS 7 does not come out at midnight. It doesn’t even come out tomorrow. Apple has never released any update let alone a major without developers seeing the GM seed first.

Right now those are the top myths. Help spread the word by retweeting on twitter and please realize that twitter pages tell you this stuff for publicity. Thanks

~Matthew Jagiela

iPhone Event Rumor Roundup! [Video]

(iOS 7 myths below)

We are less than 24 hours away from Apple’s iPhone event and that calls for a rumor roundup. Instead of making a very long post on everything we have learned about what is going to be at the event I decided to make a video of everything we learned. My show notes are below but here comes some linkage for live blogs tomorrow and where I get some of my news.

9to5mac

iMore

Engadget

Gizmodo

Macrumors

Plus the special home button design.
Notes!!!!!

Continue reading “iPhone Event Rumor Roundup! [Video]”

iOS 7 and the “Ghost” Usage Problem

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Anyone running iOS 7 will tell you battery life is worse than iOS6. Well of course it is there are more animations and functions that take a roll on the battery life. However ask someone running it how much worse someone could say “I only get 2 hours of battery now” where others would say “I get almost the same only a half an hour off.” There is a very distinct reason for this and it’s called “Ghost” usage. Now what is basically when running iOS 7 apps actually run and sometimes update in the background which is real multitasking. Sometimes (yes I realize this is a BETA but it has been 1-6 now) the app will get stuck running in the background always being used by the phones software even when you restart or RAM flush. There is no way to tell what is running in the background but you can tell something is by going to usage settings and Usage and Standby will be the exact same time. Now I have experienced it for the first time and I can’t get rid of it without a full restore. However what I think sets it off is when you make an alarm and set it to go off on weekdays or more than once I started getting ghost usage. Even turning the alarms off now doesn’t work and that is the only change I have made sense running 7 which I have been sense the release. Apple needs to fix this problem but so far they haven’t even explained anything to us or fixed the problem itself. However I wanted to let anyone know who’s running iOS 7 that this could be a cause of your battery being dead. If you’re having ghost usage then check your alarms for one that repeats. Hope this helps.

7 Interesting Features in iOS 7

I thought I would share some interesting things I have found in the beta for iOS 7.

– The Clock app not only shoes the correct time but the second handle actually moves around the clock

-Maps has a night time viewer.

– When you have set a timer the time remaining will be on the lock screen under the time signature.

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– Twitter/Facebook sharing from notification center is gone

– Spotlight search has changed from the most left of the home screen to being pulled down from any home screen for navigation.

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– You can use your camera to redeem iTunes Gift Cards much like you can in iTunes For Mac.

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-iTunes Radio is censored to all cursing words. (May change in an update).

I am still playing around with the update and there is no doubt things will be changed and added in the releases to follow such as improved battery life and maybe quick reply for iMessage like in the new Mac OS X Mavericks.

What I Want To See in Future iPhone’s

20120921-235025.jpgThere is no denying the iPhone is an amazing phone I have had one since 2008 with the iPhone 3G and it has evolved much over the years (in terms of hardware). However there are some things I like about the Galaxy SIII ( and the soon to be announced Galaxy SIV) that I love (yes I like something about an android phone hate me all you want) that I want to be on my iPhone in a few years because they won’t have time to have it in the new iPhone coming out this year. Remember this is from a hardware standpoint as the software stand point will be coming later.

The design of the iPhone is fine, I really like that Apple brought back the Aluminum design of the original iPhone and merged it with the form factor of the iPhone 4 and 4s. It keeps the feel we have all come to love and took what I wanted, the Aluminum design of the original iPhone and put it into something that is wonderful to use. The design is for me right now perfect and doesn’t need to be messed with in the sense of a form factor standpoint. For changes to the design I would love to see them add some color to at least the Aluminum part exactly like Apple did with the new iPod Touches this year that come with the multicolor. However if I were to say get a blue iPhone I don’t want the white screen because for me I feel it takes away from the amazing quality of the screen, however I can’t think of a workaround for this at the moment except to make one with a white screen and one with a black screen and color.

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The Galaxy SIII has something really cool to it that Samsung will be adding to the Galaxy SIV this March and that is the eye sensors. The phone detects when you are looking at it and when you aren’t so it can lock the phone when it doesn’t see your eyes anymore. Samsung is rumored to be taking this to the next level for the new Galaxy SIV by making it so your eyes can scroll a page. So say you were reading this on your phone when your eyes got to the end of the screen the phone would be able to sense that and scroll so you could see the next part of the article for you. Of course this has to be enabled in the settings but it is an amazing idea and one that I would love to have on the iPhone.

There is another thing I would take from the Galaxy SIII is the quick sharing. I think in this day an age the iPhone just doesn’t cut it for sharing anymore. I think Apple struggles with the fact we want to share more than just words and very short videos and that they can’t just keep depending on the App developers for sharing. The reason I am saying this is a hardware thing is because you would need a chip to detect the phone when it is in range and to tell it where and when to share it. You know the samsung “bump” it knows where the other phone is and then it transfers something instantly to it in almost instant. I would love to be able to do that and I think Apple needs to find a smart way to put it in a future iPhone.

NFC is a cool concept. I don’t fully understand it but maybe that’s because I don’t have a device that works with it. I may be wrong here but I think it goes something like: I have my iPhone at a Starbucks and then with my phone enabled I can touch it to a pad and it will charge it directly to a passbook card. I think thats a great concept but I think Apple can do something really unique with this. I think they could make it so when you enter say a restaurant with your phone you could get the menu as an app and then order and pay using it using some sort of NFC style maneuver and then when you leave the app is just gone and deleted. I don’t know if that could happen but I think that would be remarkable and change the way we think.

Battery life is always key. It is what every device needs to strive and what everyone hates because it runs out so quickly. Don’t get me wrong the iPhone 5 for me has an amazing battery life one that lasts all day and I remember always to charge it at night because I have been for so long, but to the average teenager they play games all day on a battery that doesn’t have a full charge because they didn’t plug it in the night before or maybe they are in a school with no service making the phone constantly search for service. All of this uses battery life and I think Apple could make the battery so much better. They have amazing batteries in their MacBooks that I don’t see and Microsoft Running laptop having (I’m sure there are some out there I just don’t know about them). When they announced the MacBook with a 7 hour battery the world went insane. I want them to innovate the battery more than anything else on this entire thing because if they can extend the battery they can make sure it can handle so much more as well.

Those are just some quick hardware thoughts I could think of off the top of my head. I am sure I will eventually think of more but for now those are the main things I want to see in a future iPhone.

 

Apple: A Year In Review

2012 was a big year for Apple and us all. As the year of 2012 draws to a close I thought we should take a look back at what Apple did this year because there was a LOT. In 2013 I will post about what I hope Apple does in 2013. Lets get started

iPad With Retina Display (3/4)

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Apple surprised as all by releasing 2iPads this year. The iPad 3 was announced regularly around February with launch shortly after. The iPad 3 was the first iPad with a retina display, had a new A5x processor, and kept the same design as the iPad 2. However that would not be the only full sized iPad seen in 2012. We saw the iPad 4 come out with the iPad Mini on November 2nd. The iPad 4 featured a new A6x processor, and a new lightning connector as well. Some like myself were a little disappointed with this as I wish Apple waited to make a new design for the iPad as the iPad 2 design is getting old. However this was done to have a new iPad people could buy for the holidays and hopefully Apple is working on a new design for us to see next year! Read Our iPad 3 Review

iPhone 5

iPhone 5

The iPhone 5 might be the most hyped product of iOS. The iPhone 5 came and it is wonderful. A new A6 processor, LTE, 4 inch screen, and new design all contribute to the success it has. The iPhone 5 is an amazing phone the best phone I have ever had. The iPhone 5 was rumored to come out last year but instead a 4s was announced. However the iPhone 5 is here and it’s wonderful. Read our iPhone 5 review.

New iPods

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iPods seem to be a second thought for Apple now. The product that once defined the company seems to be lost as Apple focuses more on the iPhone. However the iPod line (except for the classic) got an upgrade this year. The new iPod touch got a 4 inch display along with the iPhone 5, a new design, colors, a 5 megapixel camera, and even a little strap for your wrist. The iPod nano got a redesigned body and a bigger screen. The shuffle got upgraded colors I think.

iPad Mini

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Ever sense Steve Jobs held up the first iPad on stage in all it’s glory there have been rumors for a smaller iPad. Steve stated that a smaller iPad would not be needed and users would not enjoy one in a conference call. That didn’t stop rumors from spreading madly through the internet. I too thought a smaller iPad would be pointless until they really announced it. Apple unveiled the iPad mini in October with an 8 inch display, thin design, Slate and Silver back, A5 processor, and even more. The iPad Mini came out with the iPad 4 on November 2nd and it is growing with consumers. It is a little bit of a better fit then the iPad. However there does need to be a better screen, however this is only the first generation and I have hopes for the future. Read the iPad Mini Review.

Retina Macbook Pro

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There is no denying the Retina Macbook pro is a gorgeous machine. The retina display makes anything else look low class. Not only does the Retina Macbook pro have a higher resolution screen it was the first MacBook pro to ditch the CD/DVD drive. The MacBook air had ditched this a long time ago and now the MacBook pro has joined. Everything really you want is downloadable on the developers website or the Mac App Store. Plus if you can’t live without one then well just buy the drive for $80. The MacBook pro also got an HDMI out connector and a much thinner design.

The New iMac

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I have the first Aluminum iMac from around early 2007 I want to say and I love it. I still use it for games and even this site from time to time so I am excited they sort of changed the design a little bit. The iMacs before were basically the same 2007 rendition just a little bit thinner with an SD card reader added to them which really nobody needs (I have one on my MacBook air and I haven’t even touched it). The new iMac is crazy thin. It’s somewhat incredible to think they can still fit the entire iMac into it. However thin does come with compromise. You will have to give up your CD/DVD drive but that’s not such a problem because again you can download everything. I like the new iMac a lot. I would defiantly recommend it for someone who wants a desktop computer though.

iOS 6

I am going to be completely honest. iOS 6 was a big disappointment and I think Apple knows it. Maps doesn’t bother me because well it get’s me where I need to. However there was too little. Passbook? Okay. Redesigned UI for some Apps? Ehhhhh boring. Panorama is cool. LTE Facetime? Should not be a major feature. Siri? Siri was with the 4S and still needs developer support. I hope Forestall getting fired means we will see change and soon. I have hopes for iOS 7.

So that was 2012 for you. Amazing products and more are to come in 2013. I will be posting getting started guides for iPads, iPhones, and Macs for Christmas in the following days. Happy Holidays!