Apple Needs Memory Toshiba Has It; 1GHz iPhone Processor In The Works

Sources confirm that Apple Inc. is seeking flash memory for its future handhelds. Samsung is currently developing technology that will increase the speed of future iPhone models.

The Toshiba corporation may face an overwhelming task of fulfilling all of the memory requests by Apple.

Toshiba is rumored to have taken a large order for flash memory from Apple. It has been verified that the two companies have agreed to a $500 million contract.

Industry sources say that the Toshiba manufacturing division is running on all cylinders and that it will increase it's current output by 85 percent of its current level over the next 30 days. This focus on the Apple orders may hurt other companies who have smaller memory demands for their products, since Apple will require most of Toshiba's resources.

This is not the first time Apple has caused a flash memory shortage. Insiders speculate that this happens practically every time a new Apple product hits the market.

On to other somewhat related news...

Samsung shares details on the 1GHz Advanced RISC Machine micro-processor

Last week, Samsung upped the ante in the race for fastest mobile micro-processor. It went public with the news that it is producing the first ARM-based micro-processor based on the 45 nanometer assembly process.

As of now the micro-processor has been named the "Hummingbird", which speaks to the smaller size, and cooler running design. These changes will maximize the overall speed of the upcoming micro-processors to 1GHz, that will propel the speed well past Samsung's current 830MHz. It will hopefully achieve this new speed-record while not heating up and draining our iPhone 3GS batteries.

Who knows if the "hummingbird" processor will actually make it to future Apple devices. Apple which in the past has exclusively used Samsung micro-processors, is rumored to currently be courting the services of other similar companies.

Foxconn Gives Dead Engineer's Family $44,000 In Compensation

The saga of the suicidal Foxconn engineer, who misplaced an iPhone 4G prototype, moves on. The New York Times has reported that Sun Danyong’s family has received, a sum of money which equals $44,000-U.S., and that his girlfriend also was given a Mac laptop from Foxconn.

Foxconn has admitted to the "slight" manhandling of Danyong during a heated interrogation. They were trying to ascertain the whereabouts of the new iPhone prototype. They acknowledged that they, "became a little angry" after Danyong said he "Lost" then subsequently found the newly designed iPhones.

James Lee, the GM of Chinese operations at Foxconn maintains:

“Several times he had some products missing, then he got them back … We don’t know who took the product, but it was at his stop”

Foxconn did not go public with the scale of compensating payment to the family and girlfriend, Danyong's brother broke the story to the news outlets.

Danyong's job at Foxconn was to ship the new iPhone prototypes to Apple in the United States. As hes was transporting the 16 iPhones he had noticed, and then subsequently told Foxconn, that the unit became misplaced. It has been reported that once he was in custody of Foxconn security he was violently worked over as they rummaged through his apartment.

Apple and AT&T Are Unloading Old iPhones - $49

Remember the old 8GB 3G iPhones from back in the day (sure you know months ago), well AT&T has quite a few in surplus and is unloading the refurbed smartphones for as low as $49 a pop

A recent scan of the iPhone 3GS availability tool shows that many of the Apple stores are stocked with plenty iPhone 3GS models , this availability is probably the reason for the older phone's price drop. If you want the reduced price 3G better act fast, $49 might be a little to hard to resist for most people.

Palm Pre VS. Apple iTunes: Round 2

Earlier in July Apple put forth a software update for the music downloading service iTunes. The update prevented the Palm Pre from syncing with the popular service. Prior to the update, iTunes recognized the Palm Pre as an iPod within your computer. At that point you were able to easily perform the same exact file downloads as the iPhone could.

Once this iTunes 8.2.1 update took place which required "verification of Apple devices", one of Plam pre's main functions went away.

Presently Palm is battling back with its current update ,1.1.0. This will reverse Apples update. By allowing Pre users to enter the menu, then hit the gift box icon with the "update" label to begin download. A quick Wi Fi network is recommended for this action.

The 1.1.0 update will once again let Palm Pre users to sync with iTunes.

If Apple throws out another checkmate in the future Palm users may want to try a free web based PC service named "Dazzboard" it claims to be able to do the job of the 1.1.0. update

I have a feeling that this is far from over between the two companies.

iPhone's Link to AT&T May Lead to Diminished Growth

Apple and AT&T's exclusive agreement is probably not the best way to sell the maximum amount of iPhones.

Apple made a deal with AT&T to lock down the iPhones so that they would solely run on the company's network. The agreement has opened the door for 'hacks' to create software so the phone can be unlocked from the network.

The result of numerous consumer questionnaires suggest that more folks would purchase the iPhone if it were made available through a different wireless company.

More specifically the results of those mentioned polls showed that over 10% of the participating cell phone consumers would purchase an iPhone if was made available with another network. Dropped calls and limited coverage may be the number one and two reasons for such discontent.

Chief Operating Officer of Apple Tim Cook has stated:

"the relationship with AT&T is strong and he is happy."

So while not every customer is thrilled with this agreement, Apple does not seem to be hurting, they are still scoring record profits.

Happy Birthday Apple App Store

The Apple App Store is just over a year old today. A statement that the company released last week states that the App Store has received over 1.5 billion downloads from over 65,000 available apps. Pretty startling numbers from such a young service.

Oddly, there are about 100,000 app developers for the 65,000 available. A few things may be going on here, either this points to a 35,000 app rejection rate or many app developers are waiting on the sideline to submit their product. Can't count out multiple submission from developers as well.

Palm Pre Unable To Sync With iTunes 8.2.1.

Consider your wrist slapped Palm Pre.

The supposed iPhone killing smartphone will no longer sync directly with the latest version of iTunes software, 8.2.1.

Apple's world leading music platform has been working on this development for quite a while. The move turns out to be both strategic and political, in that one will no longer have the ability to transfer music and video to their Palm through a simple plug in method.

The news of this issue first hit the UK on July 15 before Apple released their official statement on the matter the company stated that iTunes 8.2.1:

“disables devices falsely pretending to be iPods, including the Palm Pre. As we’ve said before, newer versions of Apple’s iTunes software may no longer provide syncing functionality with unsupported digital media players.”

The Palm company spokesman retorted:

“If Apple chooses to disable media sync in iTunes, it will be a direct blow to their users.”

The general consensus from Palm to their customers is to skip the upgrade and stay with iTunes 8.2.

This is another clear case where Apple feels as if their intellectual property is being infringed upon.

Apple working on new iPhone 3.1 and Snow Leopard betas

Apple on Tuesday evening provided iPhone developers with a second beta of iPhone 3.1, the first update to its third-generation mobile operating system, while Mac developers saw a new incremental build of Snow Leopard.

iPhone Software 3.1 beta 2

Beta 2 is only accessible to those with an existing developer account. Released to developers Tuesday evening, the latest beta provides a number of fixes and features, including the ability to connect to and work with a system wirelessly, without the tether of a USB cable.

Developers who spoke with ArsTechnica confirmed the new WiFi connection feature, with one unnamed developer calling the addition “huge.”

No official information is available regarding the upcoming iPhone OS 3.1 as developers are currently under a non-disclosure agreement. The second beta is available at the iPhone Dev Center Web site.

Though the new feature does free up a USB port and allows more flexibility for developers, Apple has reportedly warned that physically tethering is still the preferred method, as it is faster and consumes less power.

As revealed with the first release, 3.1 also adds Bluetooth and video features. Users can now invoke Voice Control using a Bluetooth headset rather than a wired headset or the built-in microphone. When editing video clips, users can save a copy of the trimmed video instead of permanently losing the discarded ends.

ArsTechnica reports that developers cannot install applications from Xcode or debug them via WiFi.

Further additions appear to improve battery life, greater access to video recording features for developers, and possible preparation for adding MMS support for AT&T subscribers.

First seeded to developers at the end of June, the first beta and SDK reportedly included roughly a dozen new extensions for the OpenGL ES graphics library, allowing developers to improve graphics on the iPhone 3GS. Beta 2 reportedly includes fixes for the OS Xcode, as well as other facets of the software.

Mac OS X 10.6 build 10A411

Separately, developers testing Snow Leopard received build 10A411 of the operating system over the next-gen system's Software Update mechanism.

"This Snow Leopard Developer Preview Update is recommended for all users running the Snow Leopard Developer Preview Build 10A402 or later," Apple reportedly told developers. "This update includes general operating system fixes for stability, compatibility, and security."

The latest update weighs in at roughly 730 MB, about half the size of build 10A402a distributed last week.

article source: http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/09/07/14/apple_seeds_iphone_3_1_beta_2_to_developers.html

Medical Apps for iPhone

Prescriptions, X-Rays, Even Eye Tests on a Smart Phone Screen

By DEVIN POWELL, Inside Science News Service
July 13, 2009 —

Doctors are increasingly bidding farewell to their classic sidekick -- the pager -- and opting for smartphones that do more to help them practice medicine.

A recent report by the healthcare market research firm Manhattan Research in New York shows that 64 percent of doctors are tech-savvy, using mobile devices made by BlackBerry, Palm, and Apple.

Although medical applications are a small fraction of the myriad of "apps" available for smartphones, they are one of the fastest growing categories and are finding their way into hospitals, clinics, and medical schools.

Medical apps make up a little more than one percent of all apps, but the downloadable medical apps are becoming so useful to doctors that the Georgetown University School of Medicine in Washington, D.C., now requires all of its students to carry an iPhone or iTouch.

Here's a look at some of the more popular and unusual apps developed for medicine and public health for the iPhone and other mobile devices:

Pocketing Prescriptions
The most popular medical application for the iPhone by number of downloads is Epocrates, a free portable database that contains pictures of and information on 3,300 pharmaceutical drugs. It has been available for several years on mobile devices like BlackBerrys and Palm Pilots and was downloaded 50,000 times during the first three months after it was released for the iPhone.
Physicians at hospitals such as Georgetown University Medical Center carry around the app to double-check for potentially dangerous drug-drug interactions when prescribing treatments for their patients. An expanded version also provides information about diseases and laboratory tests.

Itty-Bitty X-rays
Featured in Apple's commercials, OsiriX allows radiologists to view and carry around their patients' X-ray scans on an iPhone. The X-ray images can be sent from phone to phone via iChat.

While the iPhone's tiny 480 by 320 pixel screen is small for making a diagnosis, physicians can zoom in and out or transfer the images to a Mac computer to study them in full detail.

OsiriX also displays PET, MR, and CT scans, as well as ultrasounds. To ensure confidentially, the images can be stripped of information that could be linked to a patient.

EyePhone
Brazilian ophthalmologist Renato Neves has adapted seven eye exam tests to be administered from the iPhone's screen. The chart of letters that tests vision acuity, usually mounted poster-sized on a wall, has been scaled down for the small screen held at an arm's distance.

Standard tests for color blindness have also been reformatted for the iPhone, as has Amsler's grid, a field of crossing lines used to check for problems like macular degeneration.

Zapping Cancer
The "level" application on the iTouch -- normally used to hang a picture properly -- has been adapted to help radiologists aim X-rays and destroy tumors.

During chemotherapy, radiologists often use beams of X-ray energy to kill cancerous cells inside the body. But many cancers -- especially those of the lungs, livers, pancreas, and breast -- become hard-to-hit moving targets when a patient breathes in and out.

Two radiologists at the University of Michigan Health System in Ann Arbor figured out how to use data gathered by the iTouch accelerometer strapped to their chests, which measures the angle of the devices, to calculate their breathing rates.

They will present the app, which could be used to time X-ray blasts to coincide with exhaling, at a medical physics conference this month. It is called "iBreathe" (which happens to be the name of another app that turns the iPhone into a breathalyzer).

Tracking Swine Flu
As the H1N1 influenza virus ("swine flu") swept across the globe, IntuApps in New York, New York developed a public health app that allows people to track its spread. The app, which is still awaiting approval by Apple, brings together information drawn from a range of different sources on the web.

A Google Maps plug-in shows the locations of outbreaks, while feeds from the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provide information about how the virus works, the current threat level, and government advisories.

article source: http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/Story?id=8054939&page=1

Apple Bringing iPhone To China

According to an Apple Insider report, Apple may finally be in the closing stages of bringing the iPhone to China.

The report says the company as applied for a Network Access License, meaning a release could be just months away.

The news comes through Wedge Partners analyst Matt Mathison who says the application was filed this week but notably lacks any mention of onboard Wi-Fi, meaning the wireless will not be available on the Chinese version of the phone.

It has been long rumored that Wi-Fi would have to be dropped to "appease the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, which would prefer that iPhone owners use local networks," says AI.

Mathison says he is confident now that the Wi-Fi issue is settled that the phone will go on sale in China before the Chinese New Year, on February 14th 2010. The phone will likely be available through carrier China Unicom , the only carrier in the nation that has available compatibility "with the iPhone's existing 3G standards."

article source: http://www.afterdawn.com/news/archive/18442.cfm

Apple iPhone Applying For More Patents

Apple has filed for a brace of patents that give some insight about what could be in future iPhone smartphones. The July 9 patent application came a week after Apple applied for touchscreen-related patents.

One of the patents is called ID App, and it would enable an iPhone, or other portable device, to display various amounts of data on nearby objects. The device could use the camera, an RFID reader, or a GPS chip to identify objects, and then compare those against multiple databases. For example, a user could take a picture of a landmark, and the app could use meta-data along with GPS to determine what it is, and then bring up the landmark's Wikipedia page.

"After an object has been identified, the portable electronic device can provide additional information about the identified object," the patent application said. "In some embodiments, the portable electronic device can search for the additional information based on the previously defined mode. In some embodiments, the portable electronic device can provide additional information with incrementally increasing levels of detail."

Nokia (NYSE: NOK) has released something similar with its Point & Find program. Users can snap a picture of a movie poster with their phone's camera and then receive a movie trailer, information, or directions to the nearest theater playing the film.

Another filing suggests future Apple devices could have facial-recognition technology. This could be used for security purposes by limiting who can authorize the device. Most Macintosh laptops already come with built-in cameras. For this to be effective with the iPhone, a future version would likely have to have a front-facing camera.

The company also filed for patents that could filter text messages for obscene content, better manage visual voicemails, and changing the voice output on iPhones. The patent application may be seen here.

article source: http://www.informationweek.com/news/mobility/business/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=218401418

iPhone not the best choice when work needs to get done

by Joshua Topolsky, posted Jul 10th 2009 at 3:10PM

The other day, whilst sitting in the waiting room of a doctor's office, awaiting the inevitable bad news to come down the pipeline (you're dead, you're dying, no that rash can't be treated), I attempted to do something daring with my iPhone 3GS. I attempted to work. I say attempted, because what dawned on me -- separated from my laptop, a netbook, or any viable computing system -- was that I couldn't really get much of my work done on Apple's bundle of joy. It wasn't the first time I tried to get work done on my phone, but it was one of the first times that I really thought about how frustrating the experience is. What follows is my heartbreaking tale of staggering lameness. Or staggering tale of heartbreaking lameness. Your pick.

Before I even got to the "work" part of my experience, I realized I had serious problems. AT&T's service is never anything to write home about in New York City (in fact, it's usually embarrassingly bad), but I found that my 3G connection seemed especially weak in this Manhattan doctor's den. Oh, I had five bars all right, but trying to load just the iPhone-formatted version of Engadget tested my will to live. After nurses denied my requests for assisted suicide, I resigned myself to dealing with the network issues. Honestly, a lot of what I do during the day (namely, hanging out in a chat room and commanding the team to help me pick the perfect pizza toppings) doesn't require the highest-test connection -- though I certainly put pedal to floor at times.

So, stoically accepting the fate of thin 3G, I set about firing up the apps I would need to actually tend to Engadget. First up, I required an IRC session. That's no problem, because the App Store is filled with useful tools for chatting with good buddies. I prefer Mobile Colloquy, so away I went, happily bounding into the Engadget chat room to direct the editors and get the latest gossip about Gyllenspoon. Of course, it took an exorbitant amount of time to actually connect, but once I did it's a reasonable experience... save for one big issue. The iPhone keyboard truly sucks if you're trying to type words it might not be familiar with. You know, like tech terminology which isn't exactly part of its native dictionary. Additionally, typing quickly during a conversation with lots of people is severely hampered by the inaccuracy of the on-screen keyboard.

I would have left it at that, but my work requires that I use a bunch of web tools, look at lots of news sites, and have a feed reader open... basically, things that would require some level of multitasking. Imagine the frustration of having to constantly break the connection in chat to go look at a site or work on a post. It's frustrating, let me tell you. The idea of jumping into and out of applications -- of having to actually quit an app to move to another one -- is "We don't work like this on our computers -- why does Apple think we want to work like this on our phones?"
an incredibly outmoded and foreign idea in 2009. Additionally, the email experience on the iPhone is brutal -- and to get anything done in a day as Editor-in-chief of Engadget, you need your mail. As a Gmail user, the way the native iPhone mail application handles messages is counterintuitive at best. Google presents a lovely browser-based solution for email, but it is markedly hampered by the browser environment itself. It's slow and inaccurate to navigate, though obviously better if you need to bounce between an open page and your mail. Funnily, the Safari experience provides better multitasking than the phone itself. Adding insult to multiple injuries, the system of notification for SMS, calendar events, or even push IM messages (which still gives you limited options) is intrusive, productivity-stalling, and frankly upsetting. It doesn't aid productivity if you're constantly being hammered with pop-ups.

The whole, painful experience set me thinking. Is this really what Apple wants me to be doing with my phone anyhow? The company has added lots of features -- like decent Exchange support -- so that its phone will appeal to enterprise and business users, but can these users really get what they need out of the device? Basic functionality, like calling people, email, and certainly document editing still feel inelegant and clunky due to the onscreen keyboard, and the lack of multitasking makes moving around through those typically important tasks difficult to say the least. The experience on an Android device, S60, the Pre, a BlackBerry, or even Windows Mobile just makes more sense. Let me say that again: those experiences make more sense. Now I'm not saying the execution of those experiences is better across platforms, but the philosophy of letting users multitask is more natural to us. The iPhone doesn't even have a method for switching between recently used or favorite applications.

We don't work like this on our computers -- why does Apple think we want to work like this on our phones?

Well that's the thing -- maybe they don't really care about how we work. Maybe they don't want us to work at all. If you take a look at the App Store, it's fairly obvious where the cash is going -- and it's not to productivity or enterprise apps. Where is it going? To Doom Resurrection, frankly (sorry, not for me -- I hate games on rails). At the end of the day, it's nice to stick the "we love business users" line into your PR, but it's quite another thing to make it real.

Keep this in mind: I'm not a Wall Street lifer -- I'm a guy in new media who needs to get things done. I should be part of Apple's target market.

So, what's the fix here? Well for Apple, the solution is simple -- the virtual keyboard problem is annoying, but not a deal breaker necessarily. The lack of multitasking is. The fact that Apple won't let end users decide to run down their battery with these dangerous, experience-ruining background tasks is galling, but the fact that the company doesn't seem to recognize how important the concept is is even worse. Giving users the option to select even a few apps to juggle would alleviate this problem instantly, but you've still got the hurdle of notifications which are difficult to manage, and an email platform which feels woefully behind the curve. Until the company finds some new paths to beat in those departments, the iPhone -- for all its apps and all its uses -- still doesn't hit the sweetspot for a lot of users who need to work.

For me? Providing this heart holds up the way doctors say it will, I'll be keeping a keen eye on Android developments. But seriously guys... put a keyboard on those things.

article source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/07/10/editorial-taking-the-iphone-3gs-off-the-job-market/

America Movil To Launch IPhone 3GS In Six Nations By End Of July

America Movil SAB (AMX), ,largest mobile operator, said Friday it will launch Apple Inc.'s (APPL) iPhone 3GS in six countries in the region at the end of the month.
In a press release, the company said starting July 31 the iPhone 3GS will be available in Mexico, Colombia, Guatemala, El Salvador, Uruguay and the Dominican Republic.

America Movil said the iPhone 3GS will be made available in the rest of the region at a later date.

The Mexican wireless carrier launched an older version of the popular handset, the iPhone 3G, in July of last year.

America Movil, which is controlled by Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim, had 186.6 million wireless clients in 17 countries in the Americas at the end of March.

-By Ken Parks, Dow Jones Newswires; 52-55-5001-5723, ken.parks@dowjones.com

Apple Files For iPhone Touchscreen Tactile Feedback Patent

Apple has filed a patent application with US patent office
called Multi-touch display screen with localized tactile feedback.
As the name suggests, the patent application reveals that Apple wants to bring haptic tactile feedback to iPhone's touchscreen.

If you are a long time iPhone user and are used to its virtual keyboard, you might find the need of a physical keyboard unnecessary. However, some folks insist that its one of the deal breakers.
Apple's patent application suggests that they are looking at improving the user experience of iPhone's virtual keyboard with the help of haptic feedback using “piezoelectric actuators", which will make it easier to use while you are driving the car etc with the help of non-visual hints so you don't have to see the screen while typing.

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According to the patent application:

The haptic feedback can take any form, including vibration, and can be paired with other non-visual feedback such as audible noise...

The display screen can be used to present a visual display which includes a virtual button. A haptic feedback response can be associated with the virtual button. The haptic feedback response can be provided while the virtual button is included in the visual display, or in response to a touch event. For example, the virtual button can vibrate when a touch event occurs in proximity to the virtual button. In addition to virtual buttons, the display can include other user-selectable display elements.

For example, the visual display can include a virtual click wheel associated with a haptic feedback response. For example, the virtual button at the center of the virtual click wheel can vibrate at a different frequency than the virtual wheel surrounding it. The virtual wheel and the virtual button at the center can vibrate while they are included in the visual display, or in response to a touch event. By providing dynamic, localized, haptic feedback at the location of the virtual click wheel, the present invention enables a user to find and operate the virtual click wheel non-visually.

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It will be interesting to see if the improvements mentioned in the patent application will convince users who believe that lack of a physical keyboard is one of the deal breakers.
It is also important to note that Apple's patent applications generally reveal a very wide-range of possibilities but might never see the light of day though its interesting to get a glimpse of Apple's recent research effort.

In addition to the tactile feedback patent application, MacRumors has revealed that Apple has also filed patent application for Fingerprint Identification and RFID reader for iPhone.
As always, let me know your thoughts in the comments section

article source: http://www.iphonehacks.com/2009/07/apple-might-bring-tactile-feedback-to-iphones-touchscreen.html

iPhone releases OS 3.1 in Beta

Apple this week released a beta version of the iPhone 3.1 software. At the moment the beta is intended only for app developers and isn't really recommended for the rest of us. A number of blogs have already begun digging around in the software already, of course, and have uncovered a handful of new features.
Among them are Bluetooth integration for voice control, non-destructive video editing, AT&T profile 4.2, an update of the modem firmware, and vibration when the user moves icons around.
No word from Apple when the public version of the new OS will be available, because, well, this is Apple we're talking about.

article source: http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2349581,00.asp

Steve Jobs returns to Apple job -- whence iPhone 4G

Steve Jobs is back at work on the Apple Cupertino campus, in part to guide iPhone 4G development. In IT Blogwatch, bloggers debate the significance of his return to Infinite Loop.
Richi Jennings is your humble blogwatcher: he has selected these bloggy morsels for your enjoyment. Not to mention a list of Konami-code sites...

Kicking us off today, it's Jacqui Cheng:
Apple has confirmed that Steve Jobs is back at work on a somewhat reduced schedule. Jobs is now working on Apple's campus for a few days per week and making up the rest of the time while working from home....Apple had stated earlier this month that the CEO was still expected to make a timely return at the end of June, despite months of speculation that Jobs might not ever come back. We're glad that Jobs has managed to prove the rumor mill wrong this time around, though COO Tim Cook has proven himself quite capable of running the ship in Jobs' absence.

Next, Erick Schonfeld asks what it all means:
Steve Jobs is officially back at work, according to Apple PR. Even though he had a liver transplant earlier this year, a detail which was leaked to the Wall Street Journal and conveniently reported on a Friday night after the markets had closed....What is all of this messaging about? When Jobs took his medical leave of absence in January, he said he would return by June 30. This is Apple’s way of telling investors that he kept to that deadline despite the seriousness of his operation. The official story is that he is back, even if only part-time. But honestly, if he took another six months, would anyone blame him?

Our mate, Ryan Tate, has a deep throat:
Apple won't say whether Steve Jobs was at the office today as part of his official return to the company. But a Valleywag spy spotted the CEO on his company's Cupertino campus. Jobs apparently left early....Earlier today, Apple declined to tell Bloomberg News whether Jobs was on campus. The company had good reason to avoid such a discussion: Entertaining that line of questioning might have led to a discussion of Jobs' itinerary and unwelcome question about why the CEO had to leave early, and about his health. More practically, it also would open the company up to endless questions from reporters about where Jobs is on campus that day. Of course, there's a good chance Apple is going to be getting those queries anyway, whether it answers them or not.

Comparing Jobs to Bill Gates, it's Stuart Miles:
The return of Jobs as promised, is likely to be a relief to stock holders who were, it seems, starting to get worried that the visionary wasn't at the helm....It is not sure though how long Steve Jobs will last in his postion with some experts suggesting that his reign at the company as CEO will be shortly over perhaps taking on a chairman or more "senior architect" role similar to Bill Gates at Microsoft before he finally stepped down from the company last year.
And Dean Takahashi dreams of insectitude: [Is that even a word? -Ed.]
This is one of those days when I’d love to be a fly on the wall at the secretive Cupertino company, which has mastered the art of operating in stealth. ... How many other CEOs can make the news just by going to work?.

Meanwhile, Harry McCracken asks the big questions:
Others will blog (endlessly) about Jobs’ health, how many hours a week he’s really putting in, questions of shareholder disclosure, etc., etc., etc., etc. I have only one question: When will we next see a Steve Jobs keynote? Maybe soon; maybe not so soon. And maybe never, although I have no reason to think he’s done with them, and I certainly hope he isn’t....I’m a bystander, not an Apple cheerleader. But I’m in favor of the tech world being interesting, and it would be a more boring place without Jobs keynotes.

In case you hadn't noticed, Dan "fakesteve" Lyons is back, too:
Palm, which has reinvented itself with a business model that basically involves doing whatever Apple does, only two years later, announced today that its CEO, Jon Rubinstein, is planning to receive a liver transplant. No official date -- they just say it will happen sometime in the next 12 to 18 months.

Palm says Rubinstein's liver will have features that my liver lacks, though they won't say what those features are. Meanwhile Roger McNamee has been posting Facebook updates saying he has seen a working prototype of Ruby's liver and it totally blows my liver away. Just like the Pre blows away the iPhone, right?

article source: http://blogs.computerworld.com/steve_jobs_returns_to_apple_job_whence_iphone_4g

Sirius XM Rolls Out iPhone App, But No Stern or NFL on the Go

Oprah Winfrey and Martha Stewart fans got a tiny bit of good news yesterday. Sports followers and Howard Stern listeners, not so much.
Sirius XM Radio rolled out a new software application, giving subscribers the ability to tune in to 120 of the satellite radio service's stations via an iPhone or iPod Touch.
However, some early takers were annoyed to find that several of Sirius XM's biggest draws -- channels devoted to baseball, football and Stern -- are not available.
"Laughable and pathetic," grumbled one Stern fan, in a typical complaint, posting on the iPod discussion site iLounge.com. "It's almost like Sirius is trying to fail."
A spokesman for Sirius XM declined to elaborate on the omissions, but this is not the first time stations have not been available on the company's Internet streams. In some cases, Sirius XM doesn't own the rights to stream its standard content on the Web. And when the New York-based Sirius merged with XM Satellite Radio of the District last July, some programming unique to each provider was not readily accessible.
Satellite radio has faced a slowdown in sales in the past year as consumers hold off on buying new cars and after major electronics retailer Circuit City went out of business. Analysts who follow Sirius XM rated the new iPhone software, which requires a paid subscription, as mildly positive for the company.
"I don't think it's a game-changer in the sense that it will drive mass subscriptions, but it's good for them to be there," said James Goss, a media and entertainment analyst with Barrington Research Associates. "They might generate extra subscriptions."
The company's stock, which had been trading around 35 cents, opened at 42 cents yesterday but ended the day at 34 cents.
With its entry into the iPhone "App" space, the company will be competing for attention against popular free services such as Pandora and Slacker.
Although the download is free, only Sirius XM subscribers are able to use the application. Owners of Sirius XM radio devices typically pay about $13 per month; to listen via the Internet, or through the new iPhone software, listeners pay an additional $3 a month.
Sirius XM, which has about 20 million subscribers, recently announced that it will raise its subscription rates, since its royalty dues have increased. Beginning in August, users will have to pay an additional $1.98 a month.

By Mike Musgrove Washington Post Staff Writer

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/18/AR2009061804004.html

Michael Jackson's death won't affect any Beatles-iTunes deal

Michael Jackson's position in long-time efforts to make the much-coveted Beatles catalog available digitally is one of the most misunderstood aspects in the very complicated negotiations.
The sudden death of one of the world's best known entertainers on Thursday will have no impact on whether songs from the Fab Four will finally make it to iTunes and other Web music stores. Rumors aside, no deals are imminent, music sources told CNET News.
Jackson bought ATV Music Publishing, the company that owned the words and music to 250 Beatles songs, nearly 25 years ago. He sold a 50 percent share in the company to Sony in 1995 and together they operated Sony/ATV. The actual recordings of the Beatles playing their songs is owned by EMI, one of the four largest music labels, and Apple Corp., the company that looks after the Beatles' business holdings and rights.
What that means is that if you want to record and release a version of "Help," then you need to compensate Sony/ATV. A filmmaker wishing to add a recording of the Beatles performing the song to a soundtrack must negotiate with EMI and Apple Corp.
In the latter scenario, Sony/ATV would collect a share of that deal and could veto it since the company owns the copyrights to the music and words. That typically doesn't happen, and to be clear: Sony/ATV has never stood in the way of a digital deal for the Beatles catalog, according to sources with knowledge of the negotiations. Indeed, the sources said that Jackson and Sony/ATV welcomed it.
The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that Jackson was in financial trouble at the time of his death. Jackson borrowed twice against his Sony/ATV stake, according to the Journal story. How that will affect Jackson's stake in Sony/ATV, which was held in trust, is unclear.
"Jackson was incredibly proud of his association with Sony/ATV Music Publishing and his role in the company," said a company representative. "He was a great partner."
Correction: Michael Jackson borrowed against his stake in Sony/ATV, and how that will impact the company is unclear.

Greg Sandoval
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10273698-93.html

Apple iPhone 3GS- where does it get its speed?

So, where does the Apple iPhone 3G S get its claimed "2x faster" leap in speed? Rumors are rampant that Apple is using a new chip to crank up the performance.
Why rumors when Apple has already announced the iPhone 3G S? Apple doesn't disclose chip-level hardware specifications. Moreover, Apple clearly wants to convince any prospective buyer than it's not the iPhone's individual parts that matter but the Apple-branded whole.

Apple claims a speed jump up to two times faster than the previous iPhone: a lot of that may be due to the new processor.(Credit: Apple)
The fact is no one will know for sure until teardown specialists like iFixit and iSuppli actually disassemble the iPhone 3G S. "Until we actually decap those chips, we won't know exactly which chip it is," according to Francis Sideco, senior analyst for wireless communications at iSuppli.
Kyle Wiens, one of the founders of iFixit, said Wednesday he is flying to Europe to get his hands on the iPhone 3G S and take it apart.
So, what does Apple claim exactly? Here's the Apple ad copy on its Web site. "The Fastest iPhone Ever. The first thing you'll notice about iPhone 3G S is how quickly you can launch applications. Web pages render in a fraction of the time, and you can view e-mail attachments faster. Improved performance and updated 3D graphics deliver an incredible gaming experience, too. In fact, everything you do on iPhone 3G S is up to two times faster and more responsive than iPhone 3G."
Technology Web site Anandtech claimed Wednesday that it knows what the chip is. "Although unannounced, the iPhone 3GS uses (again) a Samsung (system-on-a-chip) but this time...it's got a Cortex A8 and PowerVR SGX; just like the (Palm) Pre," according to an analysis published Wednesday at Anandtech by Anand Shimpi, editor in chief .
Most smartphones today--including the previous versions of the iPhone--are based on some version of an application processor design from U.K.-based ARM. The Cortex A8 is a newer, faster version of the ARM design.
A T-Mobile Netherlands' Web page has published features that specify "256 RAM" and "600 MHz-processor." The link is cited in a report published Wednesday by AppleInsider.
"My gut tells me the Cortex A8 is very possible," said IFixit's Wiens, responding to an e-mail query. Though he emphasized that he is simply guessing. iSuppli's Sideco said that the 600MHz speed cited on the T-Mobile Web site doesn't necessarily mean that Apple is using the latest and greatest ARM design. "I wouldn't necessarily make that connection," he said, adding that there are 600MHz ARM processors available based on older designs.
That said, if the Anandtech report is true, this means the iPhone 3G S's application processor--essentially the brain of a smartphone--is similar to the processor used in the Palm Pre. The Texas Instruments' chip in the Pre is also a Cortex-A8 design core from ARM.
Here's what ARM says. The Cortex-A8 processor "is the highest performance, most power-efficient processor available from ARM. With the ability to scale in speed from 600MHz to greater than 1GHz." And using argot probably lost on many readers, it is an in-order, dual-issue, superscalar microprocessor core. Over-simplified translation: it can do more than one thing at a time.
These specifications compare favorably to the processor used in the previous iPhone: an older-generation ARM chip running at 412MHz.
The Palm Pre chip also integrates a Powervr SGX 2D/3D graphics accelerator based on a design from Imagination Technologies. The Anandtech report claims that the iPhone 3G S also uses this graphics silicon.
One of the big mysteries is how much tweaking Apple does to the basic ARM chip design. In one respect, this question is answered very visibly since Apple stamps its brand on the iPhone processor. And for future iPhones, Apple is expected to tap proprietary technology from the recently acquired P.A. Semi. "With their acquisition of PA Semi, the apps (application) processor is the most likely slot to get internalized," according to Sideco, referring to the likelihood that Apple will focus in-house development on the main processor inside the iPhone.
Marion Morales, vice president of IDC's semiconductors research program, said last month in a phone interview that though Apple uses Samsung chips, "when you look at the processor itself, they're designing the processor and using Samsung as a foundry (factory)," he said, underscoring the fact that Apple emphasizes internally developed technology and de-emphasizes external suppliers, even large companies like Intel and Samsung.
Originally posted at Nanotech - The Circuits Blog
article by:
Brooke Crothers is a former editor at large at CNET News.com, and has been an editor for the Asian weekly version of the Wall Street Journal. He writes for the CNET Blog Network, and is not a current employee of CNET. Contact him at mbcrothers@gmail.com. Disclosure.

Apple iPhone Users Can Now Use TeleNav's Turn-by-Turn Navigation Service

TeleNav's turn-by-turn GPS navigation application is now available for the iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS. This service -- which is being re-branded as AT&T Navigator -- offers features not available on the Google Maps app that ships with the iPhone.
"AT&T Navigator has been one of our most popular and best-performing apps since we launched it last year," said Mark Collins, a VP at AT&T Mobility. "With the new iPhone OS 3.0 software, we're expanding the advantages of true turn-by-turn navigation -- both voice and on-screen directions -- to millions more customers."
This service for iPhone models includes real-time voice and visual guidance, including street names, automatic re-routes, ETA and total mileage updates. Drivers can also choose among multiple route options, including 'traffic optimized'; 'fastest'; 'prefer streets'; 'prefer highways' and 'pedestrian mode'.
AT&T Navigator also offers traffic Alerts, with route monitoring and proactive searches every five minutes for traffic congestion or crashes.
Pricing & AvailabilityThis app is available for $9.99 a month from Apple's App Store on iPhone and iPod touch, or at www.itunes.com/appstore/.
As with AT&T Navigator subscriptions on other devices, the app will be billed directly by AT&T and included on the customer's monthly statement

article source: http://www.brighthand.com/default.asp?newsID=15383&subject=TeleNav+Apple+iPhone