Advertising a product can be as important as the quality of the product itself, and in the run-up to the holiday season, every company wishing to capitalize on the frenzy of shoppers will need to deliver a bunch of enticing TV commercials. We already know that the kids of today have their eyes firmly on an Apple product this holiday, but despite what Santa might say, it's not all about them.
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.
The talk of Apple delving further into the television market is something the blogosphere cannot seem to shake off. Analysts continue to reignite the fire, and although nobody seems sure enough to offer any specifics on the venture, it is widely presumed to be happening in the near future. Much like the iPad mini prior to a couple of months ago, not everybody is convinced this is something Apple will be doing just get, but undeterred, Apple analyst Gene Munster has once again delivered his projections on how many of the mysterious device he forecasts the Cupertino as selling.
Over the years, the want lists of children have gotten more and more gadgetry, and according to a recent study by Nielsen, it's those of the Apple variety kids looking to receive this year. It's not a new trend, either. Over the past few years, it's become increasingly clear the devices most sought by American youngsters between the ages of six and twelve are those Designed by Apple in California, with half of those studied pining for the larger Apple iPad.
The Nexus 4 has, as with nearly all Nexus devices before it, delivered a host of great specs for a the price of a mid-range smartphone, and with most vendors offering at least a black and a white version of each handset, it looks as though LG will be doing the same with the Nexus 4.
Mozilla's popular Firefox brings a new release almost every month, and following the October release of Firefox 16 and the subsequent Firefox 17 beta, the latest version has crept out of beta stage and is ready to rock. Available on the official download page, those keen to get the update as soon as possible can grab it right now via 17 Mozilla’s FTP servers - download details at the bottom of the page.
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.
Apple's market-leading iPad is becoming increasingly difficult for consumers to keep up with. At the beginning of this year, we were up to the iPad 2, but as 2012 draws to a close, we are already - rather extraordinarily - talking about the iPad 5. Apple dropped a bombshell on iPad 3 owners by announcing the iPad 4 last month, but ever since the tear-downs of the A6X device concluded Apple's rather wasteful design techniques, it has seemed only a matter of time before a thinner, lighter iPad emerged.
As any software developer specializing in UI elements will vouch, the journey from early concept stage to final design can be as time-consuming as it is frustrating. As with any creation, the initial idea sees many changes as caveats and design constraints mean an idea or concept doesn't work, doesn't look write, or isn't workable. In getting to the final Metro design of Windows 8, Microsoft - the world's foremost software outfit - had to go through this stage of trial, error and deliberation to get to the final look, and Jensen Harris, a member of the Windows design team, has given a glimpse of some of the company's earlier Windows 8 concepts in a presentation for UX Week.
Today’s smartphones are arguably the best portable media players in the market, beating at times even dedicated offerings from renowned manufacturers. Don’t believe me? Pitch the iPhone 5’s audio chip with decent earphones against anything that the competition might offer, or bring in the HTC Sensation series with its Beats Audio offering for some really heavyweight competition. With powerful hardware and capable software to go along with it, mobile phones provide massive digital music libraries that we can carry around anywhere with little or no hassle.
