Computer Connections � January 2011
iPad 2 � this is big! Apple is rumored to be coming out with a second-generation iPad. An anonymous report says that over 60% of 2010 iPad sales were for 3G models. Since there are a majority of users who want their iPads always connected when they are using them, Apple may have three versions of the iPad 2. There may be: a Wi-Fi only version, Wi-Fi + 3G for GSM networks (AT&T and T-Mobile) and Wi-Fi + 3G for CDMA networks (Verizon and Sprint). We don�t know yet if there will be separate CDMA models for Verizon and Sprint. With the first generation iPads, their 3G models only allowed users to connect to the AT&T GSM networks. The iPad 2 hardware rumors are: better screen resolution, wide range speakers, front and back cameras and a dual core processor. Look for an official announcement (if there is one) in later January 2011, followed by the supposed release in late March/early April 2011.
Another story, also unconfirmed, is that Apple will release a CDMA version of their wildly successful iPhone. That has been a GSM only device since its introduction in 2007.
Just a note � iPad sales between April and September 2010 totaled over 7.45 million units. We will hear about October thru December sales in the January quarterly financial report. Predictions for 2011 iPad sales could be as high as 45 million! Buy that Apple stock
Skype will be unveiling an addition of video calling to its Skype for iPhone app. It�s version 3.0, and users will be able to place video calls using Skype on the iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS and the 4th generation iPod touch. Video calls can be received only on the iPad, and the 3rd generation iPod touch. According to Skype, you can use 3G and Wi-Fi to place and receive calls. Users can place calls to others using the app or to users having Skype on their computers. The Skype app offers text messaging, instant messaging, audio-only chats and the capacity to call mobile phones and landlines at low rates. Apple has their FaceTime software but is now limited to Wi-Fi calling only.
Skype for iPhone is free. The app can run on any device with iOS 3.0, but needs 4.0 or later for video calling.
http://www.skype.com/intl/en-us/home
Google Earth 6 adds new street view capabilities. Comparable to the way Google Maps works, when users are looking at an aerial view of a location, the blue outlined areas signal that a street view is available. You can drag Pegman to any one of the blue areas and will be taken to a street level view of that area. One can also walk down the streets using the cursor keys on a keyboard or the scroll wheel on a mouse. When you are in street view, you can see buildings and now trees in 3D. Google has included 3D models for a variety of trees to give it authenticity. 3D trees allow you to see tree species in parks, neighborhoods and forests around the world. There is a sort of time machine feature in Google earth. Now you can view an area where historical imagery is available. The date of the oldest scenes will be seen in the status bar at the bottom of your screen. Click on that to go back in time and view that imagery. Google Earth is the next best thing to being there. Need OS 10.5 or later to use the desktop version or the browser plug-in.
AT&T is the worst cell phone carrier in the U.S. (according to Consumers Reports). Their latest ranking of mobile operators puts them dead last among the more than 57,000 readers surveyed. iPhone users can start cheering now. They have griped about coverage, dropped calls and slow data throughput since the iPhone was introduced with the AT&T-only carrier option. Other complaints have been: voice service, data service, overall value, customer support using the phone or Website or e-mail, resolved issues and knowledge of the employees. While AT&T says that they have the most people choosing AT&T for some parts of last year that probably has to do with iPhone sales being so great. It�s a captive audience. We all hope for the iPhone/iPad Verizon option sometime in 2011!
Verizon plans a 2011 rollout of its LTE 4G network. They will offer over 100 million Americans in the initial 38 city launch download speeds from 5-12 megabits per second. That is up to 10 times faster than the current 3G networks. They should have coverage in the whole USA by 2013. Sprint has had WiMax 4G out for a while now and they have speeds of 3-6 Mbit/second on their smartphones. AT&T also has plans for a 4G rollout sometime in 2011. Verizon will announce that they will have phones ready in February 2011. The LTE network will reduce network latency and increase speeds making full motion video and other hi-speed operations from device to device a reality. Verizon is busy upgrading their 38 city networks to handle the additional service.
Oh please Apple � do the Verizon thing for iPhone and iPad!!!!
http://www.verizon.com
Samsung, in the second half of 2011, will have a new 8GB dual inline memory module (DIMM) that stacks chips on top of each other so the density of each DIMM is increased by 50%. This chip will be aimed at enterprise and server markets. They use a three-dimensional chip stacking process that saves up to 40% of the power taken by regular memory chips. For all you engineers out there � this technology (called TSV) creates micron-sized holes through the chip silicon vertically instead of horizontally. This makes for a more dense construction. Glad you asked
http://www.samsung.com
Mozilla patches 13 Firefox security bugs to its browser versions 3.5 ad 3.6 (I always wait when new software is introduced. Glad I stuck with 3.0!) Eleven of those 13 were deemed critical � bugs that hackers could use to infect or hijack computers. Patched versions are Firefox 3.6.13 and Firefox 3.5.16. Mozilla had instituted a patch in March of 2010 for version 3.5. However, they found that that patch had a work-around that hackers could use to nullify its� effectiveness. This update also: fixes 70 non-security flaws including: crash and stability bugs, buffer and integer overflows, and browser engine memory bugs. Firefox 4 will not be released until sometime after January 2011. Firefox has been losing market share, showing 22% global share (a low that they had in August 2009). Update to Firefox 3.6.13 by downloading the new version from the Website or select �check for updates� from the Help menu in the browser. Firefox 3.5 users can get version 3.5.16 wit the update tool.
http://www.mozilla.com
iTunes 90 second preview is now available at the iTunes Store for songs longer than two and a half minutes. Apple had been working on this back in September, but had to get necessary licensing for the longer samples. These 90 second previews are available for most of the songs only using the U.S. desktop and iOS versions of the stores. Songs shorter than 2 1/2 minutes will have the standard 30 seconds samples.
Happy previewing!
http://www.apple.com/itunes
I WISH ALL OF MY COMPUTER CONNECTIONS READERS A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR!
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