Tim Cook: Apple will not budge on encryption
With many U.S. lawmakers calling for an end to encryption, Tim Cook has decided to reiterate Apple’s stance on the matter. Apple’s CEO believes that when it comes to encryption there is no trade-off between privacy and national security.
During CBS’ program 60 Minutes, on Sunday Cook defended the need for encryption and how it important it is to Apple and its consumers. According to Cook, there is no reason why Americans should not be able to have privacy while simultaneously protecting America’s national security.
Apple wants the UK government to rein in snooper's charter
Tim Cook is a vocal opponent of any form of encryption weakening, and now Apple has spoken out against the UK government's Investigatory Powers Bill -- otherwise known as the snooper's charter. Currently in draft form, the bill would require ISPs to retain customers' browsing histories for a year, and would require technology companies to implement backdoors that would allow encryption to be bypassed.
Apple says that it has serious concerns about the proposed bill in its current form, and calls for sweeping changes to be implemented. The company has famously refused to allow access to encrypted iMessage chats, and this is a stance it is reiterating.
Cortana for Android loses its raison d'être
When Cortana made its way to the Windows 10 desktop, lots of users were excited by the prospect of a Microsoft version of Siri. Moving to Android as well as Windows 10 Mobile devices, Cortana could really compete with not just Siri's voice control options, but also OK Google.
Now this has changed -- at least for Android users in the US. The latest update to the app strips out the voice activation options leaving users questioning whether or not there is any point in having the app installed.
Ericsson suckles on Apple's massive teat thanks to multi-billion dollar patent deal
Some companies innovate, while some imitate. Other businesses make money from patent deals. There is nothing wrong with protecting patents, but sometimes a company that truly moves the dial ends up paying a lesser company as a result.
The latest such case of this, is Ericsson signing a patent deal with Apple, ending years of legal battles. The latter company is forward-thinking and one of the most important tech companies in the world; the former, while important, is not on the same level as Apple. I am not saying Ericsson doesn't deserve to profit from Apple's arguable use of its patented technology, but the deal is yet another another example of a company seemingly suckling at Apple's massive teat.
BlackBerry's privacy stance is yet another reason to avoid the company
We are living in a post NSA-world (and I am a post-NSA girl...) and privacy is in the public consciousness more than ever before. After the government surveillance revelations that came courtesy of Eddy Snowden, most tech companies have been trying to stress to customers and clients just how willing they are to stand up for privacy.
But not BlackBerry. Company CEO John Chen has used a blog post to lash out at his contemporaries for supporting strong encryption. He makes a thinly-veiled reference to Apple, accusing that an unwillingness to comply with law enforcement requests put us all in a "dark place". Chen says that "our privacy commitment does not extend to criminals", seemingly failing to recognize that privacy is very much an all-or-nothing concept.
To truly innovate, Apple needs a lot more than a new COO
Back in April 2013, when Forbes ran a commentary asserting it was time for Tim Cook to go, I forcefully responded that "Apple needs a COO, not new CEO". The day has arrived, with the company announcing this morning that Jeff Williams fills the vacant chief operating officer position. Eh, that's not what I had in mind, and Apple investors should question the wisdom of the appointment, too.
I mean no slight towards Mr. Williams, who looks more than adequately competent to handle the job. Like Cook, when COO, Williams is a manufacturing and logistics leader—excellent credentials to manage day-to-day operations over the world's wealthiest tech company as measured by market cap and quarterly net income. The problem: Cook and Williams are questionable pairing, because their backgrounds and skillsets are too much alike. You got an electron circling another electron in the atom's nucleus.
Apple and IBM partnership reaches 100 enterprise apps milestone
Apple and IBM today announced that they have reached the 100-app milestone in their mobile partnership, covering 60 professional roles across 14 different industries including government, transportation, healthcare and telecommunications.
Maribel Lopez, principal at Lopez Research said: "I think [Apple] brings the concept of simplicity (direct to task) and beauty to enterprise apps. IBM on the other hand understands business workflow, what generates productivity and back-end integration".
Apple Watch will rule the smartwatch market for years to come
Apple Watch will be the most popular smartwatch in 2015, according to a new forecast from IDC. The firm expects shipments of the device to reach 13 million units, which would give it a market share of 61.3 percent. IDC says that 21.3 million smartwatches will be shipped this year.
Shipments of Android Wear devices will reach 3.2 million units, giving the operating system a market share of 15.2 percent. Pebble is expected to come in third place, with 1.8 million units shipped and a market share of 8.6 percent.
iPhone sales will decline in 2016
According to a recent report by Morgan Stanley, iPhone sales are set to drop for the first time ever in 2016.
An analyst at the firm named Katy Huberty, who worked on the report, is responsible for this prediction. She said that Morgan Stanley thinks that unit sales of the iPhone will decline by six percent during this fiscal year.
Apple spams users to promote iPhone 6s
Microsoft managed to irritate a lot of people with its heavy-handed pushing of Windows 10, and now Apple has taken a leaf out of the company's book. December may be the time when many people think about getting a new phone -- and Apple is likely to fare very well out of upgrades -- but some iPhone owners have been upset by the appearance of spam in the App Store.
We're not talking about a mass mail-out inviting people to upgrade to the latest iPhone, but ugly, unsolicited popup ads used to push Apple's mobile. Describing the iPhone 6s as 'ridiculously powerful' the ads have been seen by those running iOS 9.1 and 9.2. It's something that could be dismissed, but spamming is unchartered waters for Apple.
Griffin Survivor Play will protect your Apple TV Siri Remote while improving ergonomics
This year has been quite an Apple-themed affair for me. I bought the new iPad mini 4, iPhone 6s Plus and the newest Apple TV. While I love all three, the TV-connected box has been the most surprising. What do I mean by this? Well, while I expected it to be great, I didn't realize just how much fun it would be. Besides being a very capable media box, it is quite the enjoyable gaming console, and I adore the intuitive Siri Remote.
While the Siri Remote works well and feels pretty great in my hands, it is obviously fragile. If I was to fall asleep watching a movie or something, and it fell out of my bed onto the hardwood floor, I am not confident that it would survive. The glass trackpad would probably shatter. Today, however, Griffin announces the availability of the Survivor Play protective case for the Siri Remote. This inexpensive accessory will help prevent damage.
Apple loses ground to Android in Europe
Google is succeeding in keeping Apple at bay in Europe. The latest figures from Kantar show that Android is growing in popularity in the UK, Germany, France, Italy, and Spain (known collectively as EU5), while iOS growth is slowing.
The data covers smartphone sales in Europe's five largest markets in the three months ending October 2015. Android's popularity had been falling over the previous year, but sales in the last quarter see a return to growth that Google will hope to see continue into 2016 and beyond.
Apple hardware gains popularity in the enterprise
Apple devices are becoming an integral part of today's enterprise environment, with nearly all enterprise IT professionals saying that their internal teams provide support for Mac, iPhone and iPad devices.
This is among the findings of a survey amongst IT professionals by Apple device management company JAMF Software. It shows that 96 percent of teams support Macs, 84 percent iPhones and 81 percent iPads.
Apple releases iOS 9.2, OS X 10.11.2 El Capitan, watchOS 2.1 -- here's what's new
Apple must believe that all good things come in threes, because it just released new updates for its three major operating systems, bringing iOS 9.2, OS X 10.11.2 El Capitan and watchOS 2.1 to its users.
The updates are quite extensive, packing lots of bug fixes, performance and stability improvements, and new functionality. Most changes are brought by iOS 9.2 and watch OS 2.1, while OS X 10.11.2 El Capitan is more focused in the areas it is designed to improve upon.
Apple releases Lightning to SD Card Camera Reader for iPhone and iPad
My iPhone 6s Plus is a wonderful smartphone -- long battery life, great performance, and strong security. One of the biggest benefits, however, is the class-leading camera, which takes amazing photos. While I use the iPhone for day-to-day shots, I also own a fairly nice camera (Nikon 1 S2) that I use for more serious work. The problem, you see, is that the camera does not have built-in Wi-Fi, so uploading and sharing the photos means carrying my laptop.
Today, this changes, as Apple releases the Lightning to SD Card Camera Reader for iPhone and iPad. I can now connect the storage card from my camera to my iPhone for easy backup and sharing. I totally need this, and I bet many of you do too.
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