Articles about iPhone

Two days ago Apple rolled out its latest mobile operating system offering, iOS 7. To compliment this new release, Microsoft is making sure to keep up with the latest version of the OS, by pushing out a brand new version of the Bing app. The company is hitting Apple hard with integration right into the heart of the platform.

"With the release of iOS 7 this week, you can now experience Bing search results in Siri", the software giant announces. The Bing search within Siri aims to deliver various types of results, keeping you from going to the web browser to view the same list of results. Microsoft explains, "for example, when you ask Siri a question, you will either see a specific answer or search results from Bing, including web links, related searches, images and video".

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The iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c are now here -- or they will be in a bit. Anyone with an older device that isn't too old is able to update to iOS 7 -- the jury is out about whether it is a step in the right direction or not -- but if you're looking for the full iOS 7 experience running on the latest hardware, the new iPhones are a must-buy.

Even on launch day it looks as though buying direct from your mobile provider, or joining the queue at your nearest Apple store might be the quickest way to get your hands on a new phone. Opt to make a purchase direct from Apple's website and you'll probably find that you have quite a wait on your hands.

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Like my colleague Mark Wilson, I was excited about the launch of iOS 7 yesterday, but the update to the new mobile operating system took hours and hours to complete. Starting, failing, doing nothing… When the upgrade finally began -- for real -- it did so at a glacial pace. I have a 100Mbps connection, but the iOS 7 download was at dial-up speeds.

Eventually though, the install was complete, and after a few seconds of setting it up (choosing a PIN in case someone stole my iPad, etc.), I was good to go. By this time I’d read a lot of negative comments and was expecting the worst… but actually I really like iOS 7.

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So… it's here. iOS 7 has lumbered its way onto hundreds of thousands of iPhone and iPads all over the world -- mine included. My iPad 2 may be slightly aging, but it still does the job for me. I've yet to find a compelling reason to upgrade to a more recent model, but the prospect of a major OS upgrade is always exciting.

I'd read great things about iOS 7 previously, but having never taken the step of jailbreaking my tablet, I had not been able to try it hands-on. The download from Apple's servers was going to be my first proper experience of the update.

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The first new iPhone reviews are in, and there is increasing buzz about how 5s supplies will be greatly limited, as in "severely constrained". Something everyone should keep in mind about iPhone 5s availability. There is huge, as in humongous gigantic, benefit to Apple.

In business perception is everything, and supply shortages generate blogs and news stories and the appearance that the product is super hot-in-demand. No preorders and buzz about coming supply shortages should get people to stores, standing in line -- a phenom not really seen since iPhone 4. Waiting lines -- longer the better -- create perception a product is wanted and result in more blogs, news stories and social network shares.

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Anyone who manages to get their hands on an iPhone 5c or iPhone 5s on Friday will find that it comes with iOS 7 pre-installed. But if you’re not planning on investing in new hardware, head over to Apple's update server right now and you can grab yourself an upgrade free of charge.

The OS revamp is available as of 10am PST / 6pm BST, and if you jump on the download straight away you may well find it a slow and frustrating experience as the world and its dog tries to do exactly the same. But hang on in there... it'll be worth the wait.

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Today is iOS 7 day! But there is more than just a new operating system for your iPhone, iPad and iPod to look forward to; Apple also has a redesigned iCloud website for you to use. Unsurprisingly the new design takes heavy inspiration from the look of iOS 7, mimicking the floaty, layered styling that graces the new mobile OS.

Log into your account and you'll immediately be greeted by a muted, blurry background, over the top of which various icons appear to float. Apps including Mail, Contacts, Calendar, Notes, Reminders and Find My iPhone all now sport the iOS 7 look, but the beta editions of Pages, Numbers and Keynote retain their older design. It looks as though there might still be a little work to do -- not all icons have been redesigned, for instance.

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Today Bump becomes the latest addition to Google's portfolio. In a blog post, Bump CEO David Lieb reveals that the company has been acquired by the search giant. Bump is known for two tools -- the eponymous Bump file transfer service, and Flock for sharing photos.

But it is the Bump transfer app that is most famous, making it possible to shift files from one device to another with a gimmicky bump together -- using "a matching algorithm" rather than NFC. The blog post assures users that "Bump and Flock will continue to work as they always have for now", and it is the "for now" part of this announcement that is intriguing. Google has yet to make an announcement of its own, so it is not yet clear whether Bump's tools will live on under the same name, get rebranded, or disappear into Google's fat folds.

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On Friday, Microsoft uploaded a series of seven videos to its Windows Phone channel on YouTube. The videos, headed "A fly on the wall in Cupertino" poked fun at the new iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c’s features and were, depending on your point of view, hilarious, genius, spot-on, unfunny, pathetic, and wide of the mark.

My colleague Alan Buckingham watched them all and then started to write a story, adding all the videos for your viewing (dis)pleasure. Unfortunately, before he got to post it, Microsoft switched all the clips to private in yet another of its now frequent U-turns.

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Big news came from Apple and Microsoft this week. Microsoft seemingly had a change of heart; having previously said that Windows 8.1 RTM would not be made available before its official launch date, the company announced that it would be released to people with TechNet and MSDN subscriptions.

The same group of people also gained access to the pre-release version of Skype. Microsoft was clearly in a very giving mood this week as the company also announced that it was giving free copies of Office 365 to non-profit organizations.

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Earlier today Apple opened up pre-orders for one of its latest devices -- the iPhone 5c. Right on queue the attacks began, though several comedic videos beat the product even to this early stage. But, in honor of this day, rival Microsoft is chiming in with a series of videos of its own, taking time away from the usual modus operandi -- attacking Google.

The series of seven videos plays off of the old "fly on the wall" saying, though this fly is deep within the bowels of the fruit-logo company's Cupertino, Calif.-based headquarters.

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Shortly after Apple unveiled its iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C, the company's online store displayed the on-contract pricing for the two smartphones at three US mobile operators: AT&T, Sprint and Verizon. The cost when opting for T-Mobile, which is one the four largest carriers in the country, was yet to be revealed.

Today, T-Mobile decided to shed some light on the matter and announced that it will officially offer the new iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C under its "Un-carrier" financing deals, with sales to kick off on September 20 (same day as at other local mobile operators).

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One of the key features of the new Apple iPhone 5S is the fingerprint sensor built into the home button. This allows users to unlock the device, and even authorize iTunes purchases, simply by pressing a digit against the laser cut sapphire crystal. So now when someone steals your phone, they’ll have to also steal one of your fingers at the same time.

It’s another attempt to replace the password and PIN, and we’ve seen a few of those over the years. Windows 8 even lets you sign in using a picture as an alternative. But the truth is, as exciting as fingerprint scanners and other forms of futuristic security measures seem, the password is here to stay for a while yet. And that’s a problem.

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Today, Apple announced two new iPhones, the 5S and 5C. Sadly, through various leaks and rumors, the wind was taken out of the fruit logo company's sails; the element of surprise was lost. Surprise or not, either way, both new smartphones look really well made, attractive and full-featured. There is only one problem -- no one cares.

Well, "no one cares" is an exaggeration. I'm sure existing iPhone users care and these phones will sell well. Unfortunately, it won't be enough to lure the people Apple really needs to target -- first-time smartphone buyers and Android users. In other words, Google will continue to erode Apple's market-share, one chomp at a time.

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There were so many leaks prior to today's announcements at Cupertino that we pretty much already knew what to expect. Apple has taken the wrapper off the latest version of the iPhone and the company has stuck to its recent release schedule of following up a major iPhone with an S edition -- the iPhone 5S. Visually, things are very much the same as before, but in addition to black and white models, there's also the light gold colored model -- colors we now know should be referred to as space gray, silver and gold.

The promise to "brighten everyone's day" seems to have meant not only an addition to the color options for the iPhone 5C and 5S, but also new features. While the 5C retains the same processor as in the 5, the 5S boasts a new A7 processor which is the world's only 64-bit chip in a smartphone. iOS 7 has been re-engineered as a 64-bit operating system, but the chip is capable of running 32-bit and 64-bit apps. Apple claims the processor is double the speed of the iPhone 5 according to the graph they showed. And the processor now supports OpenGL|ES 3.0, the same as Nexus 7.

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