Whilst the idea of controlling all elements within the home from one device is a concept with futuristic overtones, it's not as though the tech isn't already in place, and one can easily find an app for a smartphone or tablet to open curtains, unlock doors, or more recently, control colorful lighting. With this in mind, Savan Kotecha - music producer for the X Factor, has laden his home in gadgets and contraptions that play nicely with his favorite iOS device - the iPad. He's spent a sum total of $80,000 (and counting) to turn his Hollywood pad into what looks like a geek's dream, and a great deal of his electrical compliances are now controlled from the comfort of his iPad.
This Black Friday, Apple's iPad and iPhone dominated when it came to buyers' choice of which device to sit down with in order to place their orders, according to a new report.
Both LG Display and AU Optronics are currently supplying the displays for Apple’s new iPad mini tablet, but with AU reportedly having some production issues, it's looking as though LG is carrying much of the burden. The report surfaces from the hit-and-miss DigiTimes citing the usual "sources familiar with the matter," and although the two companies are considered the “main display suppliers," it would seem the vast majority of iPad minis are packing a screen manufactured by LG.
The iOS App Store is home to pretty much every genre of apps a user can think of, but if mashing up different types of music is your thing and creating new tracks from old, then the iMashup universal app could be worth serious consideration. Music lovers of all levels can use the app to experiment with music stored directly on their iOS devices to create unique and interesting mashups that should only take minutes to create. With powerful features that are almost bordering on professional lines, iMashup should provide entertainment for any sort of music lover.
With Thanksgiving day, followed by Black Friday, and inevitably, Christmas, the consumer electronics market will be abuzz with savings, as each vendor and retailer looks to attract additional custom at this most lucrative time of year.
First-person shooters offering rich, immersing multiplayer experiences are recognized mostly as suited to the PC, as well as consoles like the Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3. However, the rise of mobile as a respectable gaming platform has seen many popular titles gain significant fan bases on iOS and Android. Dead Trigger and Archetype are prime examples of multiplayer games you can enjoy online, on the fly, and joining them today comes another great offering in the form of SHADOWGUN: DeadZone.
We have seen instances in the past of resourceful developers throwing together various pieces of work and technologies to create clever ways of controlling lighting levels at home or office as well as creating make-shift home automation systems that may not have the same power as a premium system, but still gets the job done. The SiriProxy-Hue project is yet another example of how community driven projects can interact with Apple's own software and hardware to create a usable system for the average user.
It may have been relatively quiet on the patent front in comparison to the no-holds barred playground that we have been used to over the last twelve months, but Samsung is ensuring that the litigation surrounding alleged patent infringements will continue well into next year. We all remember the major Apple victory earlier this year in a San Jose courtroom, but it appears that Samsung is now going on the offensive side by ensuring that a number of Apple's recently released products are added through a court filing that should see the two technology powerhouses duking it out once again in another bitter legal battle.
The iPad is quickly staking its claim as one of the most capable gaming devices on the market. With quad-core graphics and an A6X processor, it already has the PS Vita in its pocket in the graphic performance benchmarks, but whilst titles are becoming more realistic and gameplay is improving year on year, the iPad itself isn't getting any easier to hold.
Analyst Gene Munster has been relatively reliable in accurately forecasting Apple's major product releases, and having concluded the Cupertino company would be releasing a connected TV sometime next year, he also gave his insight into what other new products and upgrades would be arriving in the next twelve or so months. Among them, a new radio service, Retina iPad mini and MacBook Airs, iOS 7 and a new version of OS X.
