The Apple Core

July 24th, 2008

Mossberg: MobileMe Is Far Too Flawed To Be Reliable

Posted by Jason D. O'Grady @ 7:58 am

Categories: Opinion, MobileMe

Tags: Apple Inc., MobileMe, E-mail, Online Communications, Jason D. O'Grady

In a scathing indictment of Apple’s MobileMe service, the Wall Street Journal’s Walt Mossberg calls the service “far too flawed to be reliable.”

The US$99 per year service – which is supposed to push contacts, calendars and email from iPhone to computer – has been hobbling along on one leg since it’s admitted “rocky start” when it was launched two weeks ago.

The planned iDisk File Sharing featured was delayed and subscribers have reported email outtages and problems with syncing and uploading files to MobileMe galleries. Apple’s discussion boards have 1,756 pages of “discussions” about MobileMe. Things got so bad that Apple gave a free month of service to all MobileMe subscriber’s in a rare, conciliatory email.

We want to apologize to our loyal customers and express our appreciation for their patience by giving all current subscribers an automatic 30-day extension to their MobileMe subscription free of charge.

On Friday, 18 July 2008 Apple divulged that:

We experienced a serious issue with one of our MobileMe mail servers… Affected members are unable to send or receive email at www.me.com or access email using any email client software such as Mail on a Mac or Microsoft Outlook on a PC.

The MobileMe status page has been stuck on “1% of MobileMe members cannot access MobileMe Mail” for almost a week.

Now the pope of Mac journalism says that MobileMe “has too many flaws to keep its promises” and is “way too ragged.” Ouch.

I have only used MobileMe lightly since its launch, intentionally staying away from the service until things smooth out a little bit, but I feel for users that use it for their primary email service. Let’s hope that Apple gets all the bugs worked out soon. Maybe next time they’ll consider a larger beta testing pool and or a staggered/tiered rollout?

How’s your experience with MobileMe so far?

July 23rd, 2008

What is the “product transition” Apple alluded to?

Posted by Jason D. O'Grady @ 10:15 pm

Categories: Rumor

Tags: Apple MacBook, Apple Inc., Product Transition, iTablet, Notebooks, Hardware, Notebooks & Tablets, Jason D. O'Grady

During Apple’s Q3 2008 Earnings conference call with analysts, Apple’s Peter Oppenheimer (CFO) and Tim Cooke (COO) both mentioned a “product transition” that Apple is preparing for that will cut profit margins to help shut out rivals.

Both executives punted on several analyst questions for more “color” on the mysterious transition with the familiar refrain that they don’t comment on unannounced products.

Some hints can be found by reading the tea leaves though.

Apple announced that gross margin was 34.8 percent in Q3 2008 – down from 36.9 percent in the year-ago quarter. Apple also stated that it expects gross margin to drop to 31.5 percent in the July-to-September quarter, eventually settling at about 30 percent during Apple’s fiscal 2009.

Apple also released conservative guidance for Q4 2008 of earnings of US$1.00 per share and revenue of US$7.8 billion compared to Reuters estimates of US$1.25 per share on US$8.3 billion in revenue.

So what does this mean? Obviously lower margin products are coming, but will they be entirely new products or lower prices on existing products?

Piper Jaffrey’s Gene Munster thinks there’s “an 80% chance Apple will introduce redesigned MacBooks and possibly new MacBook Pros at lower price points” and “slightly redesigned iPods” including “lower-cost touch-based iPods.”

The MacBook and MacBook Pro are due for updates, as is the Mac mini. Cheaper and/or faster versions of the MacBook Air aren’t out of the question. iPods could easily go all-flash and all-touch, perhaps keeping one HDD-based classic model for music hoarders. The iTablet has been rumored forever. A Product Red iPhone?

Some of my favorite theories on the “product transition:”

MacBook touch – “Think MacBook screen, possibly a bit smaller, in glass with iPhone-like, but fuller-featured Multi-Touch. Gesture library. Full Mac OS X.”

The Cloud –  “Automatic sync over the air. For music, apps… not just calendars and bookmarks.”

What about you? Chime in…

July 23rd, 2008

Hands-on: App Store Ad Hoc distribution

Posted by Jason D. O'Grady @ 9:00 pm

Categories: Software, iPhone, Beta, Developer, App Store

Tags: Apple iPhone, Developer, Advertisement, Apple Inc., Identifier, Digital Music, Digital Media, Personal Technology, Consumer Electronics, Jason D. O'Grady

There’s only one official way to get “legitimate” software for the iPhone 2.0 and iPod touch – via Apple’s included App Store. The much-heralded service offers almost 1,000 free and paid application in numerous categories and has been well publicized over the last week.

I recently had to chance to beta test an upcoming iPhone application without downloading it from the App Store. Instead I was able to install it directly to my iPhone via iTunes and it’s 100 percent endorsed by Apple. Apple has provided their developers with an Ad Hoc mechanism to distribute their software directly to up to 100 users – circumventing the App Store entirely.

The procedure works like this: a developer will request your iPhone’s unique identifier. The Identifier is 40-character string that can be found in iTunes by clicking on the word “Serial Number” under the Summary tab when your iPhone is connected. You can copy the string by pressing Command-C (Control-C on a PC) for easy emailing.

The developer then uses the Identifier to compile a custom version of an iPhone application that will only run on that device. The developer then emails you the application and a special provisioning file named “adhoc_Dist.mobileprovision.” The application is installed by simultaneously dragging both the app and the .mobileprovision file to your iTunes library. The application then appears in Applications areas (under Library) and is synced to the iPhone on the next sync.

Very simple and well executed.

Update: Tech Cruch reports that Apple is preparing an App Store beta testing program, but according to the report, betas will be distributed through the App Store as opposed to directly.

July 22nd, 2008

The App Store’s buggy update process

Posted by Jason D. O'Grady @ 9:20 pm

Categories: Software, iPhone, Software Update, 3G, App Store, 2G

Tags: Apple iPhone, Apple iTunes, Computer, App Store, Update Process, Digital Music, Digital Media, Productivity, Personal Technology, Consumer Electronics

The application update procedure for iPhone is a complete and unadulterated nightmare. The App Store tells you you need updates with a nice little red bubble in the upper right of the App Store icon, simple enough, right. Unfortunately that’s where the fun ends.

The update process involves clicking into the App Store, then Updates, then Update All. On my iPhone I get an error like:

“Unable to Download Application. xxx will be available for download when you log into the iTunes Store on your computer. Done/Retry.”

-or-

“You’ve already purchased this item, but it hasn’t been downloaded. To get it, open iTunes on your computer, select Check for Purchases, then sync your device to your computer.”

Huh?

Then when I go into iTunes and select Store > Check for Purchases the status bar says “Purchasing “updateAllSoftwareButton”…” T hen it throws a seemingly random error message like:

“Your credit balance is out of date. Click OK to refresh and try your purchase again.”

-or-

“The application xxx was not installed on the iPhone “iPhone 3G” because an unknown error occurred (0xE8000002E).”

Then when seemingly everything is updated on iPhone, iTunes gives a message like:

“Downloads Completed. All downloads have been completed in iTunes on your computer. Dismiss.”

But the updates never get installed. I’ve resorted to deleting applications that won’t update and installing them from scratch - which only sometimes works. What’s the purpose of downloading App updates on your desktop machine when they should be downloaded directly to the iPhone? I wish that Apple would have taken a page of Installer.app’s book when it comes to application updates-they always worked smoothly, directly over the air. Or maybe they should license Sparkle’s updater code?

Have you updated any apps yet? What’s your trick?

July 22nd, 2008

Is this the New Apple?

Posted by Jason D. O'Grady @ 8:16 pm

Categories: Opinion, iPhone, 3G

Tags: Apple iPhone, Apple Inc., IRU, 3G, Cellular Phones, Wireless, Consumer Electronics, Personal Technology, Jason D. O'Grady

PowerPage podcaster Youngmoo Kim relays his experience with trying to get an iPhone 3G and on being an “IRU” Individual Responsible User.

Apple just doesn’t want me to have an iPhone 3G.  After a few half-hearted attempts (bailing at the sight of long lines), I spent about two hours in line at the Apple Store this morning (starting about 7:15am), only to find out that my account has somehow been tagged with the dreaded “IRU” (Individual Responsible User), signaling that it is tied to some kind of corporate plan (it’s not… nor am I receiving any discounts).In short, they told me I wouldn’t be getting 3G’d today, no way, no how, and I had to leave empty handed. Everyone who knows me knows I am pretty much an Apple fanboy, but to put it mildly, I’m quite frustrated with this experience. Given Apple’s recent troubles (unavailable iPhone activation servers, the MobileMe launch disaster, product delays, etc.), I am starting to wonder whether Apple is no longer the Apple of recent memory. Instead of under-promising and over-delivering, we’re starting to see broken promises and hedges. AirDisk can be used for Time Machine, right?  MobileMe “pushes” your contacts and calendar to the desktop, right Phil Schiller? Apparently not.

The longer version of my story is after the jump…

Read the rest of this entry »

July 22nd, 2008

Needed: iPhone radio toggle application

Posted by Jason D. O'Grady @ 1:29 pm

Categories: Software, iPhone, 3G, App Store, 2G

Tags: Apple iPhone, Radio, Battery, 3G, Advertising & Promotion, Engineering, Wireless LANs, Wireless, Cellular Phones, Consumer Electronics

It’s pretty well documented that the iPhone 3G can barely eek out a full day’s use on a single charge. So much so that a cottage industry is cropping up for external battery packs.

Here’s a free tip (that I previously mentioned) for an enterprising developer that would like to sell a bunch of software: build an iPhone application that toggles on and off the 3G, EDGE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and even the cellular radios to conserve battery.

The Pro version (US$0.99) would add a scheduling feature that enables the user turn on and off various radios at a certain schedule. The Ultimate version (US$1.99) could add location-based toggles (via GPS and/or Wi-Fi) to switch the various radios based on where you are. (Credit to Rob Parker for the location-based idea).

I’d buy that in a heartbeat.

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July 22nd, 2008

Smart backup battery pack for iPhone 3G

Posted by Jason D. O'Grady @ 1:10 pm

Categories: Accessory, iPod, Battery, iPhone, 3G, 2G

Tags: Apple iPhone, Light-emitting Diode, Battery, Backup, Apple iPhone 3G, Engineering, 3G, Cellular Phones, Consumer Electronics, Personal Technology

One of the biggest drawbacks of the 3G radio and GPS receiver in the new iPhone is the tax that it takes on the battery. Most people using the new iPhone have noted that it can be difficult making it through a full day on a single charge when using even a moderate amount of Wi-Fi, 3G or GPS.

Compounding the problem is that Apple makes it unnecessarily difficult to toggle iPhone’s various radios on and off. At minimum Apple should provide easy access to the radio switches by clicking on the battery icon, at best an enterprising developer will create a killer radio toggle app.

Sensing the problem, Richard Solo has stepped in to fill the void with their Smart Backup Battery Pack (US$50). Slightly smaller than an iPod nano the ingenious battery pack connects to the 30-pin dock connector on the bottom of the iPhone (2G and 3G) and most iPods. Simply keep the 1200mAh lithium ion pack charged, toss it in your bag and you’ve got backup power when you need it most.

The battery pack has three LEDs that indicate its charging status and capacity:

• A blue LED shows the current charge level
• A green LED illuminates when the iPod/iPhone is fully charged
• A red LED flashes when the battery has less than 10 percent of its charge remaining

The kit comes with the 1200mAh battery, retractable USB charging cable and a 110-240V wall adapter. As a bonus, you can connect the battery to your iPhone and charge both from A micro USB cable, convenient if you forget your iPhone cable. I’m told that it even charges the iPhone first, then the battery when plugged in. Sweet.

July 21st, 2008

WordPress client for iPhone released

Posted by Jason D. O'Grady @ 9:58 pm

Categories: Software, Blog, iPhone

Tags: Apple iPhone, Wordpress, Channel Management, Team Management, Marketing, Management, Jason D. O'Grady

Excellent news for bloggers came a few weeks ago when WordPress announced that they’re developing a client application for the iPhone.

WordPress posted a note on their blog yesterday stating that they’ve successfully uploaded the application to the iTunes Store, and that it’s in a status of “In Review” which means that Apple is conducting their testing procedures. The WP team notes that they haven’t been given an ETA but that it could get approved “any time.”

WordPress has posted a screencast and eight screen shots of the new application stating “We’ve worked to make WordPress for iPhone a great experience for anyone who’s familiar with the iPhone or using WordPress on the web. With future versions, we’ll continue to incorporate the little touches from the web interface that make WordPress great.”

Update: As of this morning the WordPress client for iPhone is available in the App Store and in iTunes.

(Tip: Rob Parker)

July 21st, 2008

Apple Q3 2008 earnings: revenue up 38%; Mac shipments up 41% (updated)

Posted by Jason D. O'Grady @ 6:49 pm

Categories: Announcement, Finance, AAPL

Tags: Revenue, Apple Macintosh, Apple Inc., Earnings, Sales Strategy, Desktops, Digital Music, Digital Media, Sales, Hardware

Apple announced their fiscal third quarter 2008 financial results today in a conference call with analysts. A press release and a re-broadcast of the audio webcast is available on Apple’s investor relations Web site and you can subscribe to the Apple Quarterly Earnings Call podcast in iTunes.

Apple announced that the company’s third quarter profit climbed 31 percent to US$1.07 billion on strong sales of Macs and iPods. Total sales rose 38 percent to US$7.46 billion. Apple shipped nearly 2.5 million Macs during the quarter, up 41 percent from a year earlier, while iPod shipments grew 12 percent to over 11 million.

As of this writing AAPL stock is down over 10 percent in after-hours trading due to Apple’s conservative guidance for the fiscal fourth quarter.

Apple forecast fourth-quarter earnings of $1.00 per share and revenue of $7.8 billion, compared with average Wall Street targets of $1.25 per share — out of a range of $1.13 to $1.41 — on $8.3 billion in revenue, according to Reuters Estimates.

July 21st, 2008

iPhone 3G Pwned

Posted by Jason D. O'Grady @ 9:42 am

Categories: Hack, iPhone, Jailbreak, 3G

Tags: Apple iPhone, Apple iPhone 3G, Firmware, Sparkle AppCast URL, PowerPage, Team Management, Management, Jason D. O'Grady

From the “It was only a matter of time” department…

Over the weekend, the iPhone Dev Team released PwnageTool 2.0.1, a free jailbreaking and unlocking tool for Apple’s iPhone and iPod touch devices – including the iPhone 3G. The new version, which can be downloaded from the iPhone Dev Team blog, offers the following fixes and changes:

• It auto-finds the bl39 and bl46 files better, if they’re on your computer.
• It creates the ~/Library/iTunes/Device Support/ folder if not present, which should help with some 1600 errors people have been having.
• Many people have reported the PwnageTool not starting up at all (the icon never stops bouncing). This issue should be resolved now.
• The Sparkle AppCast URL is fixed in this version, so automatic updates should work for future releases.

PowerPage’s Chris Barylick adds:

For Windows users, the creator of the ZiPhone utility has stated that he is “not leaving the scene,” according to iPodNN and is “still studying the situation.” Despite the fact that the ZiPhone utility apparently works on the iPhone 2.0 firmware, the creator has noted that his personal iPhone is still on firmware revision 1.1.4 and there is no word as to when a final version 2.0 crack will be released, despite the fact that it was originally promised for this month.