Apple Fact of the day!

Did you know that Apple was one of the first companies to launch a consumer digital camera? And that their 1993 device the Newton originated the term “personal digital assistant” as well as being  the first to feature handwriting recognition?

The Quicktake came out in 1994 was one of the first consumer digital camera lines but was a smidge before it’s time – being discontinued in 1997. The QuickTake cameras had a resolution of 640 x 480 pixels maximum and was ranked by Time Magazine as one of it’s “100 greatest and most influential gadgets from 1923 to the present”

The Newton was also before it’s time – with production only running from 1993 until February 27, 1998, with price and handwriting recognition problems blamed for lack of sales.

The more you know, right?

iPhone trick of the week!

See microbes with DIY iPhone microscope!

Ever wonder what’s floating around in that puddle of <insert name of whatever weird liquid you have at your house here>?

Wonder no more!! Simply grab your iPhone and follow the instructions in this neat video and you’ll be wiser in minutes!

Tim Cook joins board of Directors for the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights

Apple CEO Tim Cook has joined the board of directors for the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights. He has long supported the organization and counts Robert F. Kennedy as one of his personal heroes.

From the Sauce, himself:

“Growing up, I was inspired by Robert Kennedy’s infinite hope for humanity and his belief that people at their core are good, sharing universal goals for themselves and the world in which we live,” said Cook. “Robert Kennedy spoke to our highest aspirations, calling Americans from all walks of life to fight for something better. He was and is a hero and role model to me, and I am honored to serve alongside Kerry and the rest of the board to advance his message of justice and equality.”

The Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights aims to reach Robert F. Kennedy’s goal for a just and peaceful world by advancing corporate responsibility, teaching social justice, and partnering with human rights leaders.

From the other sauce, Kerry Kennedy, President and CEO of Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights,

“Tim knows the importance of advocating for and representing people who have not been heard. He has integrity and does not shy away from challenging issues when he knows they are right and just. Tim is deeply committed to the social justice work that he is helping Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights accomplish.”

Congrats Mr. Cook!

Google Fi expanding

Google’s Project Fi is expanding.

Previously only supported by the Nexus 6, now, users can order a data-only SIM card for devices including the Nexus 7, Nexus 9, iPad Air 2, iPad mini 4 and Galaxy Tab S.

Data price and range remains the same at $10 per gigabyte in over 120 countries. and users can have up to nine data-only SIM cards on their account.

Buy Apple for $2 Billion? Naaaaah…?

Nah. That’s what then GE chairman and CEO Jack Welch said to the offer to buy Apple for $2 Billion dollars back in 2006.

This info was given to The New York Post by Bob Wright in an interview about his book The Wright Stuff: From NBC to Autism Speaks.

Cast your minds back to 1996 – Antonio Banderas married Melanie Griffith, the first flip phone, (the Motorola StarTAC,) goes on sale, Apple was having a hard time, and the CEO was Michael Spindler.

From the Sauce:

“The stock price was $20, and [Spindler] was explaining he couldn’t get the company moving fast enough and the analysts were on his case,” Wright told The Post in an interview on Tuesday. “He was sweating like mad and everybody said, ‘We can’t manage technology like that.’ We had a chance to buy it for $2 billion.”

Apple would certainly have been a different (if still existent?) company if that sale had gone through. Instead, Apple bought NeXT for $427 million and Steve Jobs returned to lead the company in 1997. YAY STEVE JOBS! Then came the iPod, the iPhone, the iPad, allllll the i’s that we have come to know and love.

Right now,  Apple is worth more than $600 billion clams. Lotsa clams made between then and now.

App of the week! Virtual Reality edition! Super rad.

We are ALL ABOUT VR. CAPS INTENTIONAL. It’s not just the next big thing, it’s here, and it’s massive. 

Our app of the day is an uber exciting part of that. It’s called vTime and it helps users create full VR character avatars that can interact with each other, in virtual environments, in real-time.

Now, that’s a cool sentence. Also perhaps slightly scary, if you’ve read sci-fi. ‘Ready Player One’ come to mind for anyone else? We’ll just stick to the massively exciting part for now.

Imagine yourself, with up to 4 others, on a tropical beach, by an arctic campfire, at a dinner party in Paris, in a forest setting, in a private jet, on a mountain climbing rig, or on a space station. Skype parties just got so much sexier.

All you need is a smartphone, the app, and a Google Cardboard or Samsung Gear VR headset. GIANT CAVEAT**

The Gear VR version of the app has been out since December,  and now the company is welcoming in limited users for early access to the Google Cardboard version. If you don’t have a headset, you can get Google Cardboard here, or you can use it on your phone as is.

You can download the app from the Google Play store or the Oculus Store.

Watch the demo below and get excited! Long distance party time excited!

** The app is currently only available on the following devices, but more will follow. Nexus 5, Nexus 4, Nexus 6P, Nexus 6, Samsung Note 4, Samsung Note 5, Samsung Galaxy S6, Samsung Galaxy S7, Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+, Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge, LG G3, Samsung S3, HTC One M9.

Beginning last Monday, Verizon customers charged an extra $20 fee for upgrading

As of Monday the 4th of April, Verizon customers looking to upgrade will have to pay a new $20 upgrade fee.

Boooo-urns!

The $20 flat rate charge will be applied to all smartphones purchased on a Device Payment financing plan, at full retail price, or Apple’s new iPhone Upgrade Program.

This leaves T-Mobile, (the ‘uncarrier’) as the only carrier that doesn’t charge an upgrade fee, with AT&T charging $15 per smartphone added or upgraded with AT&T Next, and Sprint charging an upgrade or activation fee up to $36 per device.

Sorry, Verizoners.

iPhone Battery life extender a myth !

Uh Oh. So a bunch of people have lied to you, faithful iPhone user. They said that you could extend iPhone battery life by closing down background apps.

Apple’s senior vice president for software engineering, Craig Federighi, has confirmed that this piece of info is not true.

Just keep that brightness down, and put it on Airplane mode, yo!

But, if this is enough to push you over the Apple edge into the Android camp, we understand. Peace be with you, guy… and we’d love to buy that stinky old iPhone from you….

More next gen iPhone Rumors

2017 will bring an iPhone with some major updates that, some might say, people have been waiting for for a while.

We’re looking at getting an iPhone with a possibly curved AMOLED display, wireless charging, and biometric recognitions more complex than the Touch I.D.

Probably slightly dependent on the success of the iPhone SE and the 2016 new models will be the size of the 2017 iPhone models, with some venturing a guess that they will stick with the smaller models, and others obviously, debating that guess.

So here’s what we have – significant changes are usually reserved for the full number models, which means that based on history, we’d be looking at significant changes this year for the iPhone 7. However, the rumor mill is pretty certain that the changes that are predicted won’t be able to occur until the model released in Fall 2017.

So whatsup Apple? What can we expect with this  year’s new iPhone models? AND WHERE IS OUR LINE OF SIGHT TELEPORTATION FEATURE?

Tesla Model 3

Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveiled the much talked about Tesla Model 3 last Thursday night  in LA. This car is legit.

This is a 5 seater, super slick mass market electric car that will only cost you $35,000 clams. It’ll cover at minimum 215 miles on one charge, can go 0-60 in less than 6 seconds, and will include autopilot for assisted driving.

Sound like the best thing ever yet?

Charging will be free of charge and by the end of next year the number of charging stations will double worldwide. End of next year is also when the Tesla Model 3 will ship.

You can reserve on now for $1000 clams here, or watch the unveiling here.

Meet Model 3 – Make your reservation at https://t.co/8uVlhvzpu5#Model3https://t.co/NdyGLgoW0D

— Tesla Motors (@TeslaMotors) April 1, 2016