Apple's iPad mini announcement was only two days ago, but the consumer reaction on the Cupertino company's decision to release a second iPad in almost seven months has been nothing short of damning. The main, 9.7-inch Apple slate was expected to be given one or two menial updates - the main one perceived to be the Lightning Dock connector, but by doubling up the speed of its flagship slab in adding an A6X, dual-core processor, many current third-gen iPad owners feel somewhat cheated.
Although it hasn't been officially confirmed yet, it is widely expected that Google will make a number of hardware / software announcements at their Android event that is due to be held at the end of this month. We have already seen leaked information suggesting that we will be seeing a new Nexus smartphone, as well as an update to the Android operating system and a mysterious tablet that is currently only known by the internal Samsung codename of "Mantra".
Apps on mobile platforms like iOS and Android that allow users to save content for viewing offline have proven to be extremely popular over the last few years, none more so than the fantastic Pocket app that started out life known as Read It Later. Pocket is an extremely well used and loved app for mobile devices, but things have been taken a step further with the introduction of the official Pocket app on the Mac App Store.
If you aren't happy with just getting your hands on the perhaps unexpected fourth-generation iPad as well as the new 7.9-inch iPad mini then Apple have followed their own recent trend by releasing the technical schematic drawings of each of their new tablet releases. It was largely expected that Apple would be unveiling a new miniature iPad during their Californian press event, but it may of come as a rather large surprise to most that a new fourth-generation iPad was also on the agenda, coming just seven months after the release of the iPad 3.
Apple announced multiple products at their event on Tuesday including the all-important iPad mini, an unexpected 9.7-inch iPad refresh, specs bump for the Mac mini, all new iMacs and, of course, the rather exciting 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display. Apple today has released the first TV ad for the new MacBook Pro showcasing its amazing display. Check it out after the jump.
Microsoft's Surface RT will hit the retail market tomorrow, and with Apple having just made quite a few changes and improvements to the iPad range yesterday, comparisons are naturally going to be drawn. While the form factor, tech specs and software have been compared on numerous occasions, one of the key aspects specific to the new Microsoft tablet is that of the multiple-user accounts support in Windows RT.
We all remember when Apple introduced their Siri digital assistant software with the iPhone 4S and iOS 5 back in October of last year. The immediate aftermath of that announcement saw a number of voice activated/guided apps landing on the iOS App Store as well as the Google Play Store for Android devices, but nothing really came close to matching Siri. If anyone could produce software to rival Apple’s offering then it was going to be Nuance Communications Inc. and that is exactly what they have tried to do with the initial beta release of Dragon Mobile Assistant.
The next big event this week is coming our way courtesy of Microsoft, and it is being held in New York City tomorrow. Not wanting to be outdone and to make sure that they generate the maximum amount of interest possible, the Microsoft Newsroom has confirmed that the event will be streamed live to viewers around the world.
Apple threw consumers and analysts a bit of a curveball yesterday by unveiling a surprise fourth-generation iPad complete with the new Lightning dock connector and a twice as fast A6X processor. It left many people pretty annoyed - particularly those who'd recently purchased an iPad 3. If you thought grabbing the fourth-gen iPad would keep you running the very top model for at least 10-12 months however, you might well be sadly mistaken.
This last week of October is jam-packed with really exciting media events from the personal computing industry. Apple revealed awesome new products like the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display, all-new iMacs, “iPad 4” and, of course, the iPad mini at their event yesterday. Microsoft’s Windows 8 and Surface RT launch event is set for tomorrow and Google’s event is scheduled for October 29th.
