As developers for tablets and smartphones we like to keep abreast of the latest mobile technology developments . This is a daily digest of mobile development and related technology news gathered from the BBC, the New York Times, New Scientist and the Globe and Mail to name a few. We scour the web for articles concerning, iPhone, iPad and android development, iOS and android operating systems as well as general articles on advances in mobile technology. We hope you find this useful and that it helps to keep you up to date with the latest technology developments.
- Nuclear alchemy: Thorium promises power from waste
Reactors driven by particle accelerators could eat nuclear waste – and generate power at the same time. Does this mean thorium’s time has come at last?
- Stocks and Bonds: Overall Market Turns Up While Facebook Slides
Shares of the social networking company are now down 24 percent from their initial public offering earlier this month.
- New ‘Digital Divide’ Seen in Wasting Time Online
As access to devices has spread, children in poorer families are spending considerably more time using them for purposes other than for education.
- Apple boss: Not trying to be Jobs
Apple’s new chief executive Tim Cook says Steve Jobs was a “visionary” and his role “was never to replace him”.
- Apple’s iPhone, iPad ‘engine’ made in U.S., says Cook
iPhone and iPad have some key U.S.-made components, according to Apple’s CEO.
- Iran Confirms Attack by a Virus That Steals Data
Though newly identified, the virus, called Flame, could be five years old, experts say. It is designed not to do damage, but to collect information from sources.
- Tim Cook Offers Cryptic Clues To Huge Apple Secret
Gather ’round, Apple enthusiasts. It’s time for some iTV talk. Apple CEO Tim Cook took the stage on Tuesday night at AllThingsD’s D10 conference in…
- Tim Cook at D10: Hints at Facebook Integration, and Siri Improvements
At this year’s All Things D conference, Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher interviewed Apple CEO Tim Cook about a range of topics. We offer a transcript of the entire interview. During the talk, Cook provided hints at two upcoming features for Apple customers.
The first has to do with the possibility of Facebook integration into iOS. Apple and Facebook are believed to have previously been in tough negotiations about Facebook integration into Apple’s products. As a result, tight Facebook integration has been absent in iOS while Twitter has seen service-level support.
When asked about Apple’s relationship with Facebook, Cook suggests that there will be news in the near future:
For us, we want to provide customers simple and elegant ways to do the things they want to do. Facebook has hundreds of millions of customers. So, anyone that has an iPhone or iPad, we want them to have the best experience with Facebook on those platforms. So stay tuned.
Next, when questioned about Siri, Cook reports that customers love the voice assistant feature on the iPhone 4S, and that its one of the most popular features on the device. He goes on to report that they have a lot more coming:
But, there’s more that it can do. We have a lot of people working on this. You’ll be really pleased with the things you’ll see over the coming months. The breadth that you’re talking about — we’ve got some cool ideas about what Siri can do. We have a lot going on on this.
Cook goes on to say that he thinks they’ll be “really happy” with where it’s going.
- New display tech making its way to iPad, says analyst
Apple’s iPad is getting Sharp’s “IGZO” display — a technology that was slated to appear in the iPad when it launched.
- Tim Cook at D10: Dodges Questions about TV, Is an Area of "Intense Interest"
At this year’s All Things D conference, Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher asked Apple CEO Tim Cook about the Apple TV and the company’s interest in making a full fledged television set. Rumors of such a product have been persistent but with increasing frequency over the past few years.Cook reiterated the relatively small success of the current Apple TV set top box. He notes that the device has been selling at twice the rate of the previous year with 2.7 million units sold in the first 6 months of 2012. As he has in the past, Cook reports that there is incredibly high customer satisfaction with the current Apple TV set top box, and it’s an area they have intense interest in:
This is an area of intense interest for us. Many of us, the TV that we do watch, is almost exclusively on [the Apple TV]. That’s what my TV watching is. All of my movies, everything is coming through Apple TV.
So, the customer satisfaction with that product is incredible. We’re going to keep pulling this string and see where it takes us. Many people would say “this is an area in their life that they aren’t pleased with.” They might not be pleased with many things about it. The whole TV experience. It’s an interesting area. We’ll have to see what we do. Right now our contribution is Apple TV.
A bit later in the interview, Mossberg comes out and asked Tim Cook directly “Are you making a television”, to which Cook replies that he’s not going to answer that question.
Cook does discuss their general approach to product design in response to Apple’s possible contribution to the television market:
We would look at this and say can we control the key technology? Can we make a significant contribution beyond what others have made in this area? Can we make a product that we would all want? That’s all thing we would ask about any new product category. It’s the ones we ask about products within families we’re thinking about now.
- Tim Cook at D10: "We’re going to double down on secrecy on products."
Image from AllThingsD
Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher spent time interviewing Apple CEO Tim Cook tonight on a range of topics. The interview took place at the All Things D conference in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. We have a full transcript of the interview available.When asked about what Cook has changed at Apple, he discusses that he plans on doubling down on secrecy on products.
We’re going to double down on secrecy on products. I’m serious.
Cook, however, does goes on to say that he is going to be the most transparent company on other topics such as social change and supplier responsibility.
Apple’s secrecy surrounding its product line is legendary. Apple cofounder Steve Jobs even identified secrecy as one of the specific tenets at Apple that has been responsible for its success. Apple’s ability to keep products secret has been hampered in recent years by Apple’s reliance on Foxconn and other 3rd party manufacturers. Just earlier today, part leaks seem to have revealed the look of the next generation iPhone.
- Police Blackberry plan criticised
A £71m government scheme to cut the cost of paperwork by giving police forces smartphones and other devices makes only “woeful” savings, a report by MPs suggests.
- Experts dispute threat posed by backdoor found in Chinese chip
A Cambridge University researcher warns that a security bypass could allow third parties to take control of weapons and nuclear power plants. Another expert calls those claims “bogus.”
- VIDEO: New chapter for indie bookstores
Can e-books save independent book stores?
- Dan Solin: What Facebook Stock Is Worth
Facebook’s much discussed IPO has generated a lot of discussion about the "real value" of the stock. Much of the information being disseminated is both inaccurate and harmful to investors.
- DealBook: Research in Motion Projects a Quarterly Loss
Research in Motion, the beleaguered BlackBerry maker, disclosed that it had tapped J.P. Morgan Securities and RBC Capital Market to assess its business, and said it expected a loss for its current quarter.
- Douglas Crets: Designing a Life, Making Meaning: Simple Design Choices
Inside the second floor design studio, I found a white board shown above. I have been looking at that phrase written across the bottom, written down by a student trying to figure out a design thesis: "Deep existential search for meaning."
- Adam Kirr: Twitter’s ‘Freedom of Expression’ Is a Privilege; Not a Right
Given that some celebrities and public figures are deciding to leave Twitter because of hateful, racist, or threatening attacks from "Twitter Trolls"; is it completely unreasonable to speculate that Twitter may enact measures to mitigate this problem?
- What Impact Will Facebook Have On Organ Donations?
By Larry Greenemeier (Click here for the original article) Since launching in February 2004, Facebook has proved highly effective at creating opportunities for the average…
