Maccast 08.15.2012 - Show #406

Links

Opening

Opening Music

Music is Say Anything by Manda and the Marbles

Mandaandthemarbles.com

Sponsor: Squaretrade

So you'll be getting that brand new iPhone 5 and showing it off to all your friends, but what happens when your buddy butterfingers Bob drops it on your kitchen tile?

squaretrade.com/maccast

You don't panic because you got a SquareTrade warranty right?

Replacement iPhone's aren' t subsidized so the replacement cost could be up to $650 to $850 bucks

A SquareTrade extended warranty covers you for drops and water damage including 'full immersion' which sometimes isn't covered by other plans

The coverage is also very affordable. Carriers offer coverage, but at $10/mo your looking at $240 by the end of your 2-year contract,

SquareTrade offers 2 years of coverage for just $124 and if you use the Maccast link and sign up now it's just $99.00

And if you have other devices you want coverage for like ipads, laptops, cameras, tvs, appliances SquareTrade has plans for those things too.

News

iPhone 5

Physical features

Height: 4.87 inches (123.8 mm)

Width: 2.31 inches (58.6 mm)

Depth: 0.30 inch (7.6 mm)

Weight: 3.95 ounces (112 grams)

Aluminum and glass

Back is anodized 6000 series aluminum, same stuff used in Apple's notebooks

Inlays along the top and bottom made of ceramic glass (on the white and silver model) or pigmented glass (on the black and slate model)

The inlays are set in the back by photographing the metal frame with two 29MP cameras and then selecting from 725 unique inlays to find the perfect fit. Measured in microns of accuracy

Diamond cut beveled edge.

Screen

1136 X 640 pixels

4-inches

Retina

326 PPI

sRGB 44% more color saturation

Like iPad 2 which is nearly perfect to the sRGB standard according to Display Mate

Most accurate display in the industry

30% thinner

Integrated touch technology combines display pixel and touch layer

iSight Camera

In most respects the same specs as the iPhone 4S

8MP, 3264x2448 pixel resolution, backside illumination, hybrid IR filter, five-element f/2.4 lens.

It is thinner to fit into the new case

Precision micron-level lens alignment for better sharpness

Sapphire crystal lens cover. Clearer and harder than glass

The A6 chip brings most of the camera improvements though

Faster signal processing

Spatial noise reduction to reduce sensor noise

dynamic pixel-pinning to boost images captured in low light

Smart filter to selectively apply noise reduction so you don't get it in areas that have textures

Can take stills and video simultaneously

A6 Processor

Apple says up to 2x the graphics and CPU performance

22% smaller

Apple doesn't share chip specs, but Infinite Loop did some speculating at what they came up with makes sense

Moving to a 32NM design would allow the room to shrink the chip

Likely doesn't have a quad core, but a clocked up dual core based on newer tech

Based on low power ARM Cortex A15 processor architecture, which is said to be 40 percent faster than older Cortex A9 on a clock for clock basis

One reason is the A15 uses a High-k Metal Gate (HKMG) technology along with that 32NM design

Likely based on Samsung Exynos 5250 design which offers up to 2GHz performance, but most accounts believe it may be clocked down for battery/heat reasons

with the 40% jump that means probably clocked at 1.2GHz up from 800 MHz

Lets current dual core optimized apps perform the same without modifications

So how do the achieve the performance gains with only 2 cores? Anandtech first thought Apple actually used 2 dual core A15s squeezed into A6 chip. Two dual cores, not technically a "quad core", but would give the stated performance gains, maintain app compatibility, and maintain battery life specs.

Part of this speculation was that to date Apple has used licensed ARM technology for the cores of it custom silicon

Now Anandtech seems to think it's something even cooler

They believe this is the core designed by Apple for Apple

An Apple ARMv7 based design to be specific.

To clear confusion ARM licenses processor cores (A8, A9, A15) and instruction set architecture for custom implementation(ARM v7 ISA)

They have no idea how many cores apple is using nor clockspeed. Assumption is 2 cores though.

On the GPUs side AnandTech is guess Apple used a higher clocked PowerVR SGX 543MP3

The RAM also appears to have been updated to 1GB

I think it's very smart of Apple to not play the marketing "name game". Just like the MHz myth, and the MP myth, this new "Number of Cores" spec is just a tool to dupe folks into thinking more is better and as we know that's not always the case.

Apple is also in the unique position to control the hardware and software and getthe best power and performance out of both. They don't have to ramp up CPU cyles to overcome inefficiencies in code they can go back and optimize the core OS.

Lightning Connector

8-pin, orientation free.

3 different adapters

Lightning to 30-pin, USD, $29.00

8" Lightning to 30-pin female cable, USD $39.00

Lightning to micro-USB in the EU, €20

There was confusion during launch because an up-sell message during checkout made it sound like a Lightning to 30-pin adapter might be included with the iPhone 5, it's not.

Does not support “video and iPod Out”, so some older speaker docks may not work even if you have the Lightning to 30-pin adapter.

This is because lightning is all digital, so old analog stuff is out

Apple does have Lightning to VGA and Lightning to HDMI adapters planned

I prefer Reflection App and my Mac for presentations now though

The cable currently appears to still be a USB 2, not 3 cable

Macotara.jp believes the Lightning cable will also be capable of USB hosting. The feature like the camera connection kit USB adapter that allows USB devices like keyboards, mics, speakers, and MIDI to be connected and work. Since the iPhone isn't here yet this purely speculative at this point.

Wireless

LTE

UMTS/HSPA+/DC-HSDPA, GSM/EDGE

CDMA EV-DO Rev. A and Rev. B

Different models for AT&T vs. Sprint/Verizon. Also a separate GSM version for China

802.11a/b/g/n Wi-Fi (802.11n 2.4GHz and 5GHz)

Dual band

Bluetooth 4.0 wireless technology

Wideband audio to support better voice calls

Also know as HD Voice.

Requires carrier support

Cult of Mac says the US carriers may never support it

GSM providers have to change codecs and they are too busy rolling out LTE

CDMA providers would use a codec that isn;t supported by the iPhone 5

Sprint will not be supporting it according to MacNN

9to5 Mac was able to confirm the CDMA iPhone 5 on Verizon will NOT support simultaneous voice and data on LTE.

Reason? Apple says is not yet possible to do simultaneous voice and data on networks that use CDMA for voice and LTE for data in a single radio design.

The feature would require adding a third antenna

LTE will eventual support both on single radio, but not currently.

According to Cult of Mac though the iPhone 5 doesn’t support voice over LTE, so maybe the 6?

Sprint uses the same LTE iPhone 5 so it can be assumed they also won't support simultaneous voice and data

This also means that while AT&T can do voice and data at the sam time on GSM, they still don;t on LTE for the same reasons. When you are surfing and talking you'll be on GSM/HSPA+

Plans, Pricing and Ordering

16GB USD $199, $299 for 32GB, and $399 for 64GB with 2 year contract.

Unlocked pricing isn't available yet, but should match the 4S. USD $649 for 16GB, $749 for 32GB, and $849 for 64GB

This is what was stated by TechCrunch

This seems to be supported by pricing listed on AT&T's site for "off-contract", but not "unlocked" devices.

Unlocked iPhone's in Canada will only be sold on-line to avoid scalping according to iMore

If you want to keep unlimited data on Verizon you have to get an unlocked device. If you want a subsidized Verizon phone you have to get a Share Everything Plan.

AT&T requires a Mobile Share plan if you want to use FaceTime over Cellular

AT&T customers can keep their unlimited plans and the throttling cap reportedly gets raised to 5GB

International travellers

For international travelers Verizon looks like the best choice for the iPhone 5. They will unlock you after 60 days if your account is in good standing, then overseas you can use GSM data networks with local pre-paid SIMs. They also seem like they might have the best chance for compatibility with LTE networks in Europe and Asia, but that's not 100% confirmed yet.

The Verizion phone supports the LTE 1 (2100 MHz),3 (1800 MHz), 5 (850 MHz) bands which are the same ones supported on the GSM iPhone sold in Germany, UK, Australia, Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, and Singapore. 1,3,5 also seem to be supported LTE bands on Verizions US and Japan nretworks.

The AT&T GSM/LTE model does LTE Band 4 (AWS), 17 (700b MHz) for US and Canada.

The Apple site does give this warning though, "Band support does not guarantee support on all LTE networks running on the same bands."

Available in US, Canada, UK, France, Germany, Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, and Singapore

Ships and is available at 8:00 AM local time on September 21st

iPhone 5 will roll out worldwide to 22 more countries on September 28, including Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

Apple plans availability in 100 countries by the end of the year

Apple discontinued the 3GS.

iPhone 4 (8GB) is now free with 2-year contract

iPhone 4S (16GB) is $99 with 2-year contract

iPod Touch

5th generation

Same exact display as the iPhone 5

Updated to a dual-core A5 processor. And dual-core graphics, up to 7x faster

Also an anodized aluminum case. Again same material as the Macbook Pro

Thin, under ¼ inch thick

Height: 4.86 inches (123.4 mm)

Width: 2.31 inches (58.6 mm)

Depth: 0.24 inch (6.1 mm)

Weight: 3.10 ounces (88 grams)

Comes in colors. Black, Silver, Pink, Blue,, Yellow, Red

Same beveled edge as the iPhone.

iPod Touch Loop. A leather (faux-leather?) strap that attached to a button (spring-loaded) on the back of the iPod Touch

Wireless

802.11a/b/g/n Wi-Fi (802.11n 2.4GHz and 5GHz)

Bluetooth 4.0

Nike+ support built in

Airplay Mirroring on the iPod Touch

Camera and Video

5-megapixel iSight camera

Five-element lens

LED flash

ƒ/2.4 aperture

1080p HD video recording

FaceTime HD camera with 1.2MP photos and HD video (720p)

Sapphire crystal lens cover

Camera sticks out a bit from the case

Lightning Connector

Battery

40 hours of music

up to 8 hours of video playback

Siri supported on iPod touch in iOS 6

Pricing and Availability

32GB for USD $299 and 64 for USD $399

Available in October

Still selling 4th Gen iPod Touch in 16GB for $199 and 32GB for $249

iPod Nano

7th generation, light and super thin. 40% thinner.

Back to taller form factor

Height: 3.01 inches (76.5 mm)

Width: 1.56 inches (39.6 mm)

Depth: 0.21 inch (5.4 mm)

Weight: 1.1 ounces (31 grams)

2.5" multi-touch display with "home" button

240-by-432-pixel resolution at 202 pixels per inch

Volume buttons on the side.

Lighting connector

Support for video playback

720 by 576 pixels, 30 frames per second

Seems to be 720p? Might need to convert iPhone or iPod videos

Bluetooth

FM radio with live pause

Nike+ and pedometer built-in

No integrated speaker, like

White front plate on all designs except the black.

round app icons

Longer battery, up to 30 hours of music playback

Colors: Black, Silver, Purple, Yellow, Blue, Green, Pink, Red

16GB for $149 USD

Available in October

EarPods

New earbuds from Apple. That they have spent 3 years designing

Will ship on all new iPod and iPhones except the iPod Shuffle

Supposed to be better fitting. Still hard plastic, but Apple used hundreds of 3D ear scans to find a common volume and design a shape.

Not sealed

Ports to optimize acoustics

One on the back to adjust midrange

Ports in the stem to provide airflow and freer speaker movement for better base

In line controls and mic

Works with all iPads, the iPhone 3GS and up, iPod classic (120GB and 160GB versions, iPod nano 4th generation and up, and the third-gen iPod shuffle and up

Also works will Siri by pressing and holding the center button

Carrying case

$29.00 USD and available now

iOS 6

FaceTime over cellular

Will be supported by all US iPhone carriers and on ALL devices that support FaceTime

AT&T will require you have a mobile share data plan

Panorama Camera mode

Will be supported on the iPhone 4S and is on the 5th gen iPod Touch

Accessed under 'Options' from the Camera app

Maps

More flyover cities

New icon, 3D buildings

detailed rendering of shrubs and trees

ghosting of cars

buildings fade from view as you pass through them

Turn by Turn directions

Photostream Sharing

Share photos with friend from your device

Can do it publicly or privately

Friends can also leave comments on the photostream photos

Mail has VIPs

Passbook for tickets, boarding passes, pre-paid gift cards, loyalty cards

New iTunes

66% of downloads come from iOS devices

Edge to edge designs

Expands down, like iOS folders, to show track details

"In the Store" feature shows other albums and tracks available in the iTunes store in the main interface

Artists Photo galleries

See music library and playlists at the same time, Drag and drop songs to add and create playlists. Dragging albums in the main interface slides out a playlist panel.

"Up next" icon in the LCD shows what the upcoming track is. Can add items to your "up next" list. Feature is a lot like the current Party Mix, but for your main library

More "spotlight like" search where results drop down below the search bar

New Mini-player

Redesigned

Roll over to get the controls

Up Next button

Search built-in to mini-player

iTunes in the Cloud is fully integrated

Both local and purchased content will be displayed in the Library

Sync playback positions

redesigned Store and iOS apps

Previews play in background while you're browsing

Artist concert pages.

New iTunes in late October

Apple also released iTunes 10.7 which is an update to support new iPods and iPhone when it's released next week

Odds and ends

Ping will be shutdown on September 30th

iPhone 5 sales set to break records

The iPhone 5 went on sale at 12:00 PDT on Friday morning.

Seemed like the iOS App Store app was up immediately, but Apple's Store website took a bit longer to come up and start taking orders.

Either way, an hour an 17 minutes later reports started showing up that iPhone 5 ship times had slipped to 2 weeks indicating that Apple had sold out of it's online pre-sale inventory.

The carrier sites for Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint continued to show availability for 7/21 ship dates though Friday morning and by my last check on Friday afternoon PDT only Sprint was still listing 7/21 availability.

As far as I can tell Apple isn't yet offering unlocked devices in the US. In the EU I believe Apple only sells unlocked devices directly, with subsidized model being sold directly from the carriers.

The fact that this iPhone had a simultaneous 9 country launch likely contributed to the fast pre-sale sell out and most analysts are predicting huge numbers.

In a statement to The Loop, Apple said, “We’ve been completely blown away by the customer response.”

There were reports Saturday of some customers getting emails letting them know that their devices pre-ordered Friday might arrive on launch day rather than 2 weeks later.

iCloud.com complete. Out of BETA

Web based versions of Reminders and Notes have been added to iCloud.com

Changes to both web apps sync to your Mac on Mountain Lion and your iOS devices

There are also now apparently iOS style banner notifications in the web interface say if you get an email come in while looking at your Calendar.

Mail was also updated to support VIPs

You can also control which apps give you notifications

Sponsor: Circus Ponies

iTrash

Put the trash back on the Desktop and in a fixed place

circusponies.com/itrash

You can actually place iTrash's icon anywhere on the desktop

Helps with muscle memory as it's not moving around like it does in the Dock