If you take away the fantastic customer service which I have always received, the wonderful quality and usability of their products, and the sense of fairy tale that has surrounded the company over the last few years, the one thing that I have always loved about Apple is their ability to produce wonderfully simplistic commercials that show off their products in the best light. Apple has a pretty decent history when it comes to advertising campaigns, with their 'Crazy Ones' commercial holding an iconic status around the world.
Although the Samsung vs. Apple trial has a decent amount of show time left before the jury is sent to deliberate on what they have heard during its entirety, it seems that Apple has a lot to be positive about. Although judge Lucy Koh has been less than happy so far with the behavior of both legal counsels, it has been the Samsung representatives that have taken most of the judicial negativity thus far, but we should know by now that anything can - and usually does - happen in cases such as these.
When it comes to mobile smartphones and the operating systems that power them, there is always going to be a great divide from users who prefer one platform over the other. We all know that the two largest mobile OSes in the game are iOS and Android, with each one having its own set of pros and cons when compared against the other. Apple fans will argue that iOS is a more powerful and intuitive OS, whereas Android fans love the control they have over their devices as well as the ability to have live widgets on their home screens.
Even before the well-documented IPO a few months back, Facebook had been placing increasing emphasis on improving its mobile prowess, and the purchase of Instagram for a cool billion dollars outlined this desire even further. Despite acquiring the most formidable social image app on the planet, Zuck and his team has continued without relent to improve its range of apps, while also bringing forth some new ones at the same time.
The Apple vs. Samsung court case has vacuumed the lion's share of the blogosphere's attention over the past couple of weeks, and with the key figures of both companies now getting involved, it's simply impossible to to be intrigued by the constantly-moving sequence of events. Scott Forstall, Senior Vice President of iOS Software and regular speaker at the WWDC keynote speeches, testified in the case last week, and now NetworkWorld has latched on to some intriguing information mentioned by Forstall months ago.
I don't know about the rest of you, but for me there is nothing more exciting than experiencing the anticipation of waiting for an Apple media event to begin to see exactly they have in store for the technology loving public. As time passes by and the event draws in closer, we generally have a pretty decent idea about what is going to be on offer thanks to numerous leaks and educated guesses, but part of the excitement is the fact that we just never know for sure until Tim Cook takes to the stage and introduces us to the topic of the event.
Windows 8 has always been highlighted as the point when Microsoft's main products would unite as one, with desktop, tablet, smartphone and gaming all intertwined in one way or another by the new operating system. With that in mind, it should be of no surprise that Microsoft has based the structure of gaming on Windows 8 around the flagship Xbox platform, and the built-in games within the upcoming version of the Redmond company's operating system will be branded as "Xbox Windows."
If you are one of the many who religiously follow the release of any iOS device and are sitting patiently waiting for Apple to announce the next-generation iPhone, then it has been pretty much agreed upon that you don’t need to wait much longer. It is widely expected that the Apple media event that is planned for September 12th will be iPhone-centric and possibly introduce the new device for sale approximately nine days later.
Android 4.1 Jelly Bean has been something of a revelation among those using Google's mobile operating system, since it's the first time Android has seemed as though it can compete with Windows Phone and iOS in terms of smoothness. Ice Cream Sandwich was a vast improvement on Gingerbread / Honeycomb, but even with some devices packing in quad-core processors, Android smartphones and slates were still susceptible to more than their fair share of lag.
The Microsoft Surface is the company's first delve into the increasingly popular tablet market, and it's fair to say the Redmond outfit has a fair bit of catching up to do. The iPad has been retailing for two-and-a-half years, and although Android tablets haven't managed to make as much of an impression on consumers, the companies behind them are now seeming to push forth some genuine contenders to the Cupertino company's dominant slate.
