Posts tagged: New Releases

Did you order a new Apple TV?

appletv

 

 

You can now place  online orders for the new-look Apple TV set-top box! Wahay! Those who have already ordered are looking to receive their shiny new devices shortly after they ship at the end of this week. The earliest of these deliveries will ship on October 30th.

 

So what will you be getting? Let’s take a little look-see:

 

The new Apple TV comes equipped with a full App store (including support for 3rd party apps), Siri, a waaaaaay better search feature, an A8 chip with 2GB RAM, allowing for up to 1080p video at 60 frames per second and and a touch-based remote that supports Siri’s good self AND an accelerometer and a gyroscope that allow it to serve a game controller,

 

The 32 GB Apple TV comes in at $149, or the 64 GB device comes in at a neat $199. Extra Siri remotes sell at $79 and Remote Loop wrist straps are $12.99. 2 year AppleCare coverage is $29.

 

Did you guys order one? Want to? Get your booty over here then silly!

 

 

 

 

Say hello to your new friend: iOS 9

ios9

 

iOS 9 will be coming at your phone this Fall, and with it comes an array of improvements designed to make your life better! Here’s what you need to know:

 

For the iPad exclusively, iOS 9 brings a function called Slide-over, which will let you open apps without leaving the one that you’re in,  a brand-new QuickType keyboard, and a picture-in-picture feature that allows you to watch video from another app while you do something else.

 

There’s also a multi-tasking function called ‘Split view’ which lets users use 2 apps at the same time, on the same screen. This is a yay moment for iPad users everywhere – except it’ll only be available on the iPad Air 2… Bummer. Kudos to you iPad Air 2 owners.

 

For both iPhones and iPads, we get a better looking and more helpful Siri, a brand new Search window, which offers commonly used apps or contacts, one-tap links to nearby locations and breaking news, and – finally- transit directions in Maps and integrated with Siri.

 

*Siri will now react to context, which is a little scary – offering to play music when headphones are plugged in, or searching email when an unknown phone number calls and displaying it if found.

 

*There’s a new ‘News’ app for reading news stories, sourced from (so far) ESPN, Politico, the New York Times, Conde Nast publications and local news.

 

*A new optional iCloud Drive app on iOS that will let users access files stored in iCloud Drive.

 

* Passbook has been renamed Wallet.

 

*Notes has a bunch of shiny updates and additions, including new formatting options,the ability to add links, maps, and photos directly into the app, checklists, and sketching tools.

 

* iOS 9 brings us the ability to browse through images quickly using the new scrubber for iOS Photos.

 

* Find My Friends and Find My iPhone are both default apps in iOS 9 and come installed automatically.

 

*When setting a Passcode in iOS 9, you’ll be required to enter six digits instead of four for increased security.

 

* Exciting video stuff! .With iOS 9 you’ll have way more options-  720p HD at 30 fps, 1080p HD at 30 fps and 1080p HD at 60 fps for standard video and 720p HD at 120 fps or 720p HD at 240 fps for Slo-mo.

 

* THIS ONE IS REALLY EXCITING TO US but may not be for others… with iOS 9 you’ll have the ability to add email attachments to messages in the Mail app, which sources documents from iCloud Drive. SWEET! BECAUSE WE LOVE ATTACHING THINGS TO MAIL.

 

*Extended battery life. 1 hour additional battery life for the iPhone 6, PLUS a Low Power mode that will extend battery life for 3 hours. The time it takes to download its latest software updates is reduced and AWESOMELY  and ABOUT TIMELY, downloading iOS 9 will only require 1.3 Gb of spare space on your device.

 

*In order to save battery power, if your iPhone is facedown on a table, it will not turn the screen on, even when a Notification is received.

 

To sum things up-  a pretty solid if unexciting update to the iPhone and iPad operating system. Sign up here if you’re interesting in testing out the public beta which will be available in July, however we’d recommend waiting until after the public release of the more stable version in the Fall.

 

iOS 9 will be available for iPhone 4S and up, as well as iPad Air 2 and iPad Mini 2/3.

 

 

Watch OS 2

watch

 

 

 

The Apple Watch! Soon to be updated to SUPER APPLE WATCH! Or, in laymen’s terms, Apple Watch OS 2.

 

*The most exciting thing about this update in our minds is that with it, the Apple Watch will support native apps (meaning apps that don’t have to go through the iPhone first). Booyah.

 

*There will also be third-party ‘complications’, which means that you can change and add to the data you see on the clock face, as well as new apps that will have access to the Taptic engine, microphone, accelerometer and heart rate sensor as well as the crown.

 

*The Watch will naturally be benefited by the device-wide Siri improvements, Apple pay updates as well as the transit directions in Maps.

 

*The Watch will be able to play videos as well as – very exciting- the ability to make FaceTime Audio calls.

 

* The Watch will also have a bunch of different Watch faces to choose from, including iconic locations around the world shot over 24 hours and the user’s own photo albums. When you select an album, every time you raise your wrist a different photo form the album will show.

 

* Users will be able to add more than 12 friends and have the ability to send sketches in multiple colors.

 

* The Apple Watch will, with OS 2, come with Activation Lock which, as in iPhones, will prevent another user from wiping or activating the Apple Watch if it is lost or stolen.

 

WatchOS 2  will be available to the public in the fall alongside iOS 9 and will be FREE.

 

 

Apple Music & Beats 1 Live Radio Station.

Apple-Music-iOS-9

 

 

Apple Music is here! Well, not yet, but all the information about it is!

 

Come June 30 users will be able to use it to  stream songs, access curated playlists, and tune in to a 24-hour, live worldwide radio station called Beats 1.

 

Apple Music can be split up into 3 different facets that Apple hopes everyone will use and enjoy (D’uh), as well as making the music world a fairer and more creative place to be.

 

First, there’s the streaming service. Your own collection of music, as well as tens of millions of tracks in the Apple Music library. Handpicked by a ‘dedicated team of experts’ just for you, (not too sure yet on the logistics of this) and a bona fide way to discover new music.

 

Unlike some of their biggest competitors like Pandora and Spotify who use Algorithms to select songs in their product, Apple Music will have human curation, which, in Jimmy Iovine’s words,

 

“Algorithms alone can’t do that emotional task,” argued Iovine. “You need a human touch.”

 

Next, there’s the radio station – Beats 1.  24/7 radio broadcast to over 10 countries, and headlined by former BBC radio DJ Zane Lowe alongside other famous DJs from Los Angeles, New York and London such as Ebro Darden and Julie Adenuga. Beats 1 will offer exclusive interviews, guest hosts and other music world gossip and goings-on.

 

Third, we have Apple Music Connect, a social platform for Artists ( both known and as-yet-unknown) to interact with listeners and fans, with extra multimedia offerings such as lyrics, videos, photos etc.

 

So what do we think? Looks like a pretty solid service with a likely very big boost from grandfathered in Apple customers and the offer of a 3 month free trial. It will work, and it will be a strong and exciting competitor. It will add to the way that we listen to music. Even so, Pandora already has 80 million users, Spotify 60 million – so even with the boost, Apple might have a fight to the top.

 

Apple Music will be available for iPhone, iPad, Mac and PC on June 30, with support for Apple TV and Android coming in the fall. For full membership, you’re looking at a monthly fee of $9.99 or $14.99 for a family plan for up to 6 family members, although there will be a 3 month free trial available for all.

 

If you’re not down for commitment, you can still listen to Beats 1 radio, see what artists are posting on Connect, and hear ad‑supported stations on Apple Music (with limited skips) without a membership.

 

Check out the Ad for Apple Music here for the ‘feel good about the world with Apple’ feeling!

 

 

How do you buy an Apple Watch?

apple watch

 

April 10th is SUPER close!

 

For those playing at home, April 10th is when you can start seeing for yourself what all the fuss is about the Apple Watch, try one on, and if you like it and have some spare cash sitting around, pre-order it!

 

 

You’ll need to make a try-one appointment at a retail store, which you can do through Apple.com or the Apple store App beginning April 10th. Most try-on appointments will be maximum 15 minutes, with the exception of the Apple Watch Edition appointments which will need to be made at select stores and will last up to 30 minutes.

 

 

When you get your appointment, get thee to the Apple Store! There, you can decide exactly what kind of watch you’ll want (Apple Watch Sport, Stainless Steel Apple Watch, Apple Watch Edition), which of the 2 size options,  and with what kind of band.

 

 

So here’s the dealio: Apple will not be letting customers mix and match multiple watches with multiple bands, or re-size links on bands at their try-on appointments. Bummer hummer, but kind of makes sense, as that seems chaotic even just to type. So, they’ll instead have 18 specific Apple Watch combinations on display at the try-on tables, and 10 specific combinations at the in-store display cases.

 

 

If you see what you like, you can pre-order it on the 10th and during the next couple of weeks, but the Apple Watch won’t be launching until April 24th. That is also the date when the first deliveries of the pre-orders will occur.

 

 

Now, when it comes to the 24th, you apparently won’t be able to just pop on in to your closest Apple store and buy one, as they won’t be selling them to walk-in customers. 

 

 

You’ll actually need to make an ‘Online Reservation’ to hold a specific model at a retail store. If you walk in to a retail store wanting to buy a watch after the 24th, you’ll be invited to try one on, and then an employee will walk you through how to order it online or through the Apple Store App. This also makes sense as there is apparently going to be low inventory of the Apple Watches both in real life and kept at the store, at least initially. Supply and demand people!

 

 

If you are interested in buying an Apple Watch, you should check out the Apple website to try and get an idea of what kind of Apple Watch you might be after before your (very short) try on appointment.

 

 

 

 

 

Play cards against humanity online!

s-1

 

 

Have you guys played Cards Against Humanity yet? If you haven’t, get on it! (but only if you’re not super politically correct?)

 

If you have, and you loved it, you’ll FUR REALZ welcome, as we did, the introduction of a new way to play.

 

Online B*itches!! Woop!

 

Yup, you read right, you can now play the game for horrible people online.

 

Here’s how: when the game was first created, it was created under a creative commons license, which meant that anyone could recreate their own copy of the game. Any spinoffs are perfectly fine as long as they’re not for profit.

 

Dawson Whitfield, a designer and a genius, has now turned it into an online browser based web app. You can play it on your smartphone, iPad or computer against your friends. You do however have to be in the same room, so it’s not perfect yet. Skype cards against Humanity is coming, though, we swear.

 

Featuring all the original cards along with the five expansion sets, all you need is for one player needs to set up a new game and then send its custom link to everyone else who wants to play.

 

It’s called Cards against Originality. Get on it horrible people!

 

 

 

 

Apple Special Media Event Part 2 – The new MacBook

macbook

 

 

Today, Tim Cook announced a new Macbook, and it is very, very shiny and pretty and new.

 

 

What, you wanted more information? Okay, okay. Here’s what you can expect from the new member of the Apple Family.

 

* It weight 2 Pounds. That’s less than a 1 liter bottle of soda pop. It’s lighter than our iPhone Antidote Guinea Pig, Papa Nu.  It’s really light.

 

* It’s the thinnest Macbook, coming in at a anorexic 13.1 mm thick, 24% thinner than the previous skinny-minny, the 11-inch Macbook Air.

 

*The enclosure is, for the first time, all metal.

 

* The keyboard is full size, and is actually an entirely new keyboard, with  a butterfly mechanism instead of the usual scissor mechanism, making it 4 times more stable than before. The keys are 40% thinner and 17% larger, and now come with an LED light each. The new Keyboard and the new track pad (see below) apparently will take some getting used to.

 

 

keys

 

 

 

 

* The trackpad has also been redesigned, with 4 force sensors and a new ‘force’ click with a range of different applications, from bringing up the Wiki page for a word you force click, to opening up the calendar for force clicking a date in a message.

 

 

track pad

 

 

 

 

*It comes with a new 12-inch edge to edge Retina, 2,304 by 1,440 pixel resolution display that uses 30% less energy.

 

*It’s the first fanless Macbook. It wasn’t actually explained how the new macbook will keep itself from overheating, but we assume (hope) that detail will be forthcoming.

 

*The logic board is super tiny, coming in at 67% smaller than previous logic boards.

 

 

logic

 

 

 

*They will have the new intel core M with 1.3 ghz and turbo to 2.9 ghz

 

* The Battery life has improved, thanks to terraced battery contours helping you to get all day battery life.

 

* The new Macbook will be almost entirely cable-less, with one port to RULE THEM ALL. Or, just one port, really, for Power, USB and video output. The USB cable/port is a new industry standard that we will see more and more of, called USB-C.

 

Cool, but definitely something that will get some users fired up, as to gain USB compatibility you will need to use an USB-C Digital AV Multiport Adaptor with included HDMI, USB 3.1, and USB-C inputs located on the device. This adaptor, currently unavailable, will come in at a rather large $79 clams.

 

 

 

port

 

 

 

 

* The Macbook is the most environmentally friendly and the most efficient Macbook.

 

* They will come in Silver, Space gray, and Gold option. Is the Gold option a little too flashy? We think maaaaybe. Time will tell. They will come with 8GB memory, and 256 GB storage space.

 

* Shipping  April 10th, you’re looking at $1299 big ones, or if you have a couple more big ones handy, there’s also a slightly more powerful model for $1,599 with a 1.2GHz processor and 512GB storage space.

 

 

See what we mean? Apart from needing another adaptor Apple, this new Macbook sounds like a definite step forward in notebook technology.

 

Next: Part 3 – Apple Watch in all it’s shiny detail!

 

 

 

Apple earnings call & Apple Watch release update

 

apple

 

 

 

Tim Cook has had a busy day. But – a pretty good one by all accounts. He had to make the earnings call which covered the first fiscal quarter of 2015. In it, he told financial analysts and investors that not only did Apple sell about 9 million more iPhones than what was expected and forecast, but that they also had reported earnings of $3.06 per share on revenue of $74.6 billion which is way more than anyone was expecting.

 

According to a consensus estimate from Thomson Reuters, analysts had actually expected Apple to report earnings of about $2.60 a share on $67.69 billion in revenue.

 

Yeesh.

 

The iPad was the only soft note in the earnings call, with sales hitting a quieter 21.4 million units instead of the 22.2 million unit estimate. However, Apple’s cash rose to almost $178 billion, up 15 percent from the prior quarter.

 

Again – Yeesh.

 

So – to the best news! Straight from the Sauce, Mr Cook himself –

 

“Development for Apple Watch is right on schedule, and we expect to begin shipping in April… My expectations are very high on it. I’m using it every day and love it and can’t live without it.”

 

Bam. Bam. Bam. April. Early April, Apple Watch, tech we apparently can’t live without. Excellent! And with a battery that can be charged just by thinking good thoughts. Right Tim?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Apple Watch release!

apple

 

 

When the Apple Watch was announced back in September, all that was said about a release date was ‘early 2015’. Well, it’s early 2015, Apple. You know it, I know it, our company Guinea pig knows it…

 

But. When a company says a product will be released in ‘early 2015’, that really could mean anything. Even if it turns out to be mid 2015 (unlikely) Apple would be forgiven for their mis-speech, because the anticipation for said new product would be elevated to such a height that when people finally got their hands on it they would forget that they were supposed to be able to have their hands on it months ago.

 

We probably won’t have to wait that long, however. Here’s what we know about when the Apple Watch may be released.

 

It’s said that Apple have been trying to perfect a number of small features on the Apple Watch in preparation for release, most importantly the charging mechanism. They want the charge to last on these things, because people and critics are already amping up to call them out over it after the battery didn’t display such great stamina at the announcement.

 

Developers are already working on iOS  apps that will support Apple Watch and iPhone interaction.

 

Most rumors have pinpointed March for the release in the first wave of countries. Don’t worry, The U.S.A. is always in the first wave. Wouldn’t that be weird if it wasn’t? Weird and unhappy.

 

There have been almost-shaped-like concrete rumors that say that retail training for the Apple Watch will begin early February, which would support the March release date rumors. Apparently in the week of February 9th-16th, high level retail store representatives will be sent to main Apple offices (Cupertino for example) to be trained, and will then go back and share their training with their little Apple underlings. Aw. Makes them sound so cute.

 

So, what kind of holiday is there in March that we can celebrate by getting an Apple Watch as a present…? St Patricks Day? Does it come in Green? Google tells me that March 3rd is I Want To Make You Happy Day. Well, Apple, a nice green Apple Watch that we can wear fancy for St Patricks day,  that’s what’s gonna make us happy.

 

Thanks in Advance, iPhone Antidote.

 

 

 

Apple Watch updates

prettyiwatch

 

We have a quick round up for you on the recent rumors and updates regarding the (hopefully) super awesome Apple Watch.

 

When it was announced, Tim Cook advised that the Apple Watch would be seen ‘early in 2015’. There have been a few updates on that since, but nothing too specific.

 

A secret sauce has leaked that we would be pretty lucky if the watch was released by Valentines day (14th February for the unromantic amongst us) next year.

 

According to the guys over at 9to5Mac, a more reliable sauce – Apple’s Senior Vice President of Retail and Online Stores Angela Ahrendts – revealed to retail employees in a video message that the Apple Watch will be launching in the Spring of next year.

 

Back in September when the watch was announced, Apple advised that the starting price would be $349. This price is most likely for the Apple Watch Sport Edition.

 

French website iGen.fr has recently come out predicting (with the help from some secret sauce no doubt) the price of the stainless steel Apple watch ($500) and the gold Apple Watch ($5000!).

 

Other estimates have the gold Apple Watch at a more wallet friendly $1000- – $2000.

 

Let’s just say that Valentines Day might be an expensive one next year.