The American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) has released its annual rankings for customer satisfaction in the category of personal computers, which include both traditional computers and tablets, with Apple’s line of Macs as well as the iPad topping the survey’s rankings for the tenth straight year. Apple’s satisfaction rating of 87 is ranked above other competitors such as Hewlett-Packard and Dell, which finished with scores of 80 and 79, respectively. The satisfaction rating of each company in the survey is dependent on factors such as customer expectations, perceptions of quality, and perceptions of value.
Apple maintains the strong lead it has held for a decade, inching up 1% to an ACSI score of 87 Still, Apple’s position might be a bit more precarious in 2013. While iPhone sales are rising, shipments of Mac PCs declined and iPad sales are slowing, pointing to possible saturation in the tablet market. Nevertheless, even as Samsung and other manufacturers of Android-based devices make inroads, Apple continues to dominate in the U.S. market, with iPads accounting for about 80% of all tablet usage.
Early last month, the ACSI also released its annual rankings for smartphone satisfaction in the United States, which revealed that the iPhone 5 was topped by Samsung’s Galaxy S3 in customer satisfaction.
As the new report notes, Mac sales have stagnated in recent quarters alongside significant weakness in the overall PC market, remaining flat in July with a 5% year over year drop expected for the September quarter. Apple is, however, set to release the newest version of its operating system, OS X Mavericks, in late October, with a refresh of the company's iPads and much of its Mac line expected to happen in the next few months.
After being introduced at Apple's September 10 iPhone event, the third game in the Infinity Blade series has been released in the App Store. Though it runs on multiple devices, Infinity Blade III has been optimized for both the iPhone 5s and iOS 7.
The game includes the same tap-to-move controls found in the original two titles, as well as a larger, more immersive game world that features new quests, side missions, and ClashMob engagements. There are two playable characters, Siris and Isa, along with three new game modes that offer group-based challenges.
Our sister site TouchArcade has published a review of the game that highlights some of the new features, noting that Infinity Blade III "takes the familiar Infinity Blade formula and tweaks it to the point of perfection."
One really has to reach to even come up with anything bad to say about Infinity Blade III. You could argue that it's not enough of a departure from the previous games, but when we're looking at the conclusion of a trilogy I think it's totally appropriate to take what the last two games were about and tighten that up in any small way you can. You also still don't have any kind of free roaming ability, if there's anyone out there who is still worked up about that.
Infinity Blade III is launching this week, and I feel like at some point we've called each subsequent Infinity Blade game the best game on the App Store, at least in some regard. Infinity Blade III follows in the footsteps of its predecessors, and everyone with an iOS device capable of running it needs to download Infinity Blade III. From a gameplay perspective it's super fun, the plot has me totally sucked in, and calling Infinity Blade III a technical masterpiece is an understatement.
In addition to its in-depth review, TouchArcade has also provided a detailed plot guide, which walks gamers through the storyline of the first two games.
Infinity Blade III is a universal app that can be downloaded from the App Store for $6.99. [Direct Link] It supports both iOS 6 and iOS 7 and runs on the iPhone 4 and higher, the iPad 2 and higher, the iPad mini, and the fourth and fifth-generation iPod touches.
At its September 10 iPhone event, Apple provided multiple publications with iPhones running iOS 7. The embargo has now lifted on review posts, so we have gathered some relevant excerpts from each site in order to highlight general release reactions to Apple's new operating system.
iOS 7 isn’t a big change functionally from what we’re all used to with iOS 6. Apple kept most of things we know about how to use the operating system and integrated them with the design.
Of course, that is the big change with the new iOS—the look and feel are newer, some would say flatter. While we were all a bit shocked with the look when it was first introduced, it doesn’t take long to adapt. In fact, there are many things I like better.
The complete absence of graphic embellishments makes it especially utilitarian — in both senses of the word. That’s good, because whatever button or function you need is easier to find; it’s bad, because, well, it can look a little boring.
Then again, the new look is primarily visible at the Home screen, where a jarringly different color palette greets you on the Apple app icons, and on the options screen. The rest of the time, you’ll be using your regular apps, many of which will look no different than before.
The recommendations iTunes Radio serves up based on genres and artists I like were very (frighteningly?) accurate, and that makes for a thoroughly enjoyable lean-back listening experience. I’m still an Rdio fan when it comes to streaming music services, and their new personalized radio stations are also impressive, but Apple will provide everything most users need in custom Internet radio with this new feature, which is also available in an upcoming iTunes update on the desktop.
Its new look, new user interface and new functions represent the biggest overhaul to the iPhone's core software since the original model launched in 2007. Nearly everything has been improved, including multi-tasking, notifications, access to common controls, email, Web browsing and Siri. Like any big change, it's a shock at first, but I have come to like it and consider it a step forward, despite a few issues.
A new video has been released by TLD, comparing the iPad mini-like structure of the fifth-generation iPad to the fourth-generation iPad.
To make the comparison, TLD took apart a fourth-generation iPad to see how its components would fit inside the iPad 5 casing, revealing that the battery takes up more space in the new iPad. Previously, there had been a video released comparing the new iPad casing to that of the iPad mini.
While Apple will likely redesign many of the internal components of the iPad to fit within a new casing, it is worth seeing how much component shrinking will be required to make up for the lack of side bezel.
In early September, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported Apple would experience manufacturing challenges with the smaller form factor of the new iPad.
Apple is expected to unveil the new full-size iPad in addition to a new iPad mini, both of which are likely to launch with the new A7X chip, in October.
At its September 10 iPhone event, Apple provided multiple publications with iPhone 5s review units. The embargo has now lifted on review posts, so we have gathered some relevant excerpts from each site in order to highlight general release reactions to Apple’s iPhone 5s.
Setting up a fingerprint is as easy as resting your finger on the Home button and following the onscreen instructions. The button will vibrate when it’s reading; lift your finger and rest it on the button again; and repeat until it’s done. Very simple.
Speed increases are something we expect with new Apple products, but the iPhone 5s goes above and beyond expectations. In addition to the faster processor, the iPhone 5s is also the world’s first 64-bit phone. These changes make the 5s up to twice as fast as the iPhone 5—that’s a significant increase.
At first glance, it’s easy to dismiss the fingerprint sensor as a whiz-bang feature designed to attract eyeballs and do little else. But this isn’t that. The fingerprint sensor, unlike some other questionable recent smartphone tech like gesture control or eye-tracking, doesn’t feel like a gimmick or tech demo; it feels like a mature feature that actually enhances the overall experience of using an iPhone in a noticeable way that you encounter very frequently.
All my pictures were slightly sharper than on the iPhone 5 and low-light pictures were much less washed out by the flash. The camera app has been improved, with a new burst mode that takes many shots quickly and then picks the best ones, and a slow-motion video feature that lets you choose parts of an action sequence to slow down. It worked seamlessly.
First, let’s tackle the camera’s low-light performance. The shots we took with the 5s were consistently better than what we took with the 5: they were sharper, with finer details, more natural colors and far less noise. As you might expect, our daylight shots were roughly on par, though there were a few times when the 5s won out by a slight margin, offering just a little more detail. All told, the 5s plays in the same league as all those other flagships with a bigger emphasis on imaging.
Even so, our sample shots still showed more noise and less detail than the same images taken with the Nokia Lumia 1020. The 5s also does a good job of reproducing color, but it’s not the best performer in this category, either. Make no mistake, though: the iPhone has been – and continues to be – great as a simple grab-and-go camera. It may not be a best-in-class performer, but the vast majority of iPhone users will still be happy.
Apple hasn’t opened up Touch ID yet to outside app developers, something I’d like to see happen sooner than later. The company has also delayed release of a feature called iCloud Keychain that would let you store all your Web passwords in the cloud. So in the future you might be able to use your fingerprint to get past all your Web passwords, making Touch ID potentially more powerful.
One thing not seen elsewhere is the True Tone flash system in the 5s. It is based on two flashes working in tandem to automatically determine the intensity and best combination of flashes. I got generally lovely results taking flash photos, though I noticed it sometimes took an extra second or so before the camera actually took a picture.
The Touch ID-enabled home button feels invisible; it works with a tap, can recognize your finger from many angles, and feels like it has less of a fail rate than fingerprint sensors I’ve used on laptops. It’s impressive tech. It worked on all my fingers, and even my toe (I was curious).
The most heavily promoted feature is the 5S’s fingerprint sensor, which, ingeniously, is built into the Home button. You push the Home button to wake the phone, leave your finger there another half second, and boom: you’ve unlocked a phone that nobody else can unlock, without the hassle of inputting the password. (And yes, a password is a hassle; half of smartphone users never bother setting one up.)
The best part is that it actually works — every single time, in my tests. It’s nothing like the balky, infuriating fingerprint-reader efforts of earlier cellphones. It’s genuinely awesome; the haters can go jump off a pier.
During its iPhone event that took place on September 10, Apple handed out a number of iPhone 5c review units to various publications. The embargo on reviews has just been lifted, which means a slew of sites are posting reactions to Apple’s colorful new phone lineup. We’ve gathered some interesting excerpts below to highlight the general reaction to the release.
The budget model, the new iPhone 5C, comes in five colors ($100 for the 16-gigabyte model with a two-year contract, $550 without). It’s essentially identical to last year’s iPhone 5, except that its back and sides are a single piece of plastic instead of metal and glass.Actually, “plastic” isn’t quite fair. The 5C’s case is polycarbonate, lacquered like a glossy piano. Better yet, its back edges are curved for the first time since the iPhones of 2008. You can tell by touch which way it’s facing in your pocket.
It’s a terrific phone. The price is right. It will sell like hot cakes; the new iPhones go on sale Friday. But just sheathing last year’s phone in shiny plastic isn’t a stunning advance.
There is absolutely no give to this phone at all. It doesn’t bend or buckle anywhere in the casing, which is what you want, obviously. It feels as solid as the 5s.
The iPhone 5c doesn’t actually feel like plastic. It’s strange when you first pick it up, but it almost feels like ceramic or a similar material that is glossy and hard. The manufacturing process that Apple used to make this phone and the metal reinforcement it used in the plastic casing certainly worked on making this phone tough.
To date, Apple’s choice of materials has been one of its prime differentiating factors, at least from an aesthetics point of view, vs. the Android crop of competitors. So does dipping back into a polycarbonate shell threaten the image Apple has tried so hard to cultivate?
The answer is a resounding ‘No.’ Apple notes that the iPhone 5c is actually polycarbonate because it wanted to get the colors just right, and doing so in metal just wasn’t feasible. Further, it points out that there’s a steel frame (which doubles as an antenna) girding that polycarbonate shell, which results in a phone that feels sturdy in the hand, without the flex or perceived fragility of other plastic device designs.
The iPhone 5C has the same A6 processor and the same 4-inch Retina display as the iPhone 5. Colors on the 5C’s display look warmer.
It’s just slightly thicker and heavier than the iPhone 5. And while the 5C isn’t as refined-looking as the iPhone 5 or the new 5S, it isn’t a tacky plastic phone, either. I’ve tested plastic phones before, including the Samsung Galaxy S4 and the new Moto X from Motorola, and this phone feels more solid in the hand.
We’re not going to lie. The iPhone 5c is gorgeous – we’d even argue that it’s the most beautiful iPhone since the 4 and 4s. It instantly makes the iPhone 5 and 5s look staid in comparison.
Sure, we prefer materials like aluminum and glass over plastic, and we appreciate the intricate craftsmanship that goes into building the iPhone 5 and 5s, but still, we can’t help it – the 5c just triggers some reptilian part of our brains that screams, “OMG, color!”
The Obama administration has filed a petition with the Federal Communications Commission asking that all wireless carriers be required to unlock all mobile devices, reports The Washington Post. The move comes several months after The White House backed a "We the People" petition that successfully garnered more than 100,000 signatures calling for cell phone unlocking to be made legal.
The "We the People" petition was started following an October ruling by the Library of Congress' Copyright Office that ended an exemption within the Digital Millennium Copyright Act that formerly allowed cell phone unlocking. It became illegal for U.S. mobile phone users to unlock newly purchased cell phones without express permission from their cell phone carriers on January 26, 2013.
According to Tuesday's petition from The White House's National Telecommunications and Information Administration, permitting unlocked devices, including both smartphones and tablets, would increase both competition and consumer choice.
"Americans should be able to use their mobile devices on whatever networks they choose and have their devices unlocked without hassle," said Lawrence Strickling, assistant secretary of the NTIA.
The FCC reportedly began investigating whether or not the cell phone unlocking ban results in harmful effects for consumers in March, though no news has surfaced on the issue since then.
At this time, it remains illegal for individuals to unlock cell phones purchased after January 26, 2013 in the United States. Carriers are still permitted to unlock devices, however, and unlocked devices can also be purchased at unsubsidized prices from a number of carriers.
iCloud.com has received a makeover with new icons and design inspired by iOS 7, after previously rolling out to beta customers back in August. The background wallpaper mirrors the dynamic, slowly changing wallpaper offered in iOS 7 as well.
The site is using new icons for Mail, Contacts, Calendar, Notes, Reminders and Find My iPhone; while iWork for iCloud is still using the older-style iWork for iOS icons.
The apps -- with the exception of iWork -- have all received extensive redesigns as well, using lighter pastel colors and slimmer fonts.
Earlier this year, Adobe unveiled two cloud-enabled hardware offerings: the "Mighty" stylus and the "Napoleon" digital guide and ruler. The tools were in the development phase at the time, but Adobe has now announced that both Mighty and Napoleon will be released during the first half of 2014.
To bring the products to fruition, Adobe is teaming up with Adonit, known for its own line of Jot styluses. Both tools are constructed with brushed aluminum and feature Creative Cloud connectivity via Adobe software to allow users to store preferences and save their work remotely.
Bluetooth LE is enabled on both tools, and Mighty, Adobe’s "cloud pen", is pressure-sensitive, letting digital artists create line drawings with variable widths based on pressure. Napoleon, the digital ruler, is designed to function alongside the stylus, allowing users to draw straight lines and arcs.
With our first tools for the new creative — Project Mighty and Napoleon — we are confident that we can help make digital creativity both more accessible and more natural by combining the accuracy, expressiveness and immediacy of pen and paper with all the advantages of our digital products and the Creative Cloud. As we shared in our initial demo, Project Mighty is pressure sensitive, which helps it draw a natural and expressive line. It is also connected to the Creative Cloud, giving you the ability to carry all of your favorite personal digital assets, brushes and colors with you, copy/paste across devices and more.
Along with a release date for its upcoming hardware, Adobe announced that its Creative Cloud apps have garnered more than 1 million subscribers since being released earlier this year.
The company's Photoshop Photography Program has also gone live today, giving current owners of Photoshop CS3 or higher an opportunity to purchase both Photoshop and Lightroom for $9.99 per month.
iPhone 5s inventories are said to be very limited at launch, according to reports from several different publications sourcing employees at Apple Retail Stores and cellular carriers.
One source told AllThingsD that an unnamed carrier will have "grotesquely unavailable inventory" and another said they were disappointed with the shipments of the phone from Apple. BGR likewise said 5s supply would be "severely constrained".
9to5Mac's Mark Gurman claims three of four units shipped to Apple Stores will be the new Space Gray color -- gold and silver options will be more difficult to come by -- while phones meant for AT&T's network will be more plentiful than those for Verizon. He also says 16GB and 32GB models will be in greater supply than 64GB units.
A survey from earlier this year showed that the 16GB and 32GB models were far more popular than the 64GB version, with nearly 90% of iPhones purchased being the lower two capacities.
Finally, Gurman says Apple will be updating its Apple Store iOS app to show the in-stock status of various iPhone models at their local Apple Retail Stores.
Apple's newest retail store in Station Park near Salt Lake City, Utah is set to open on Friday, September 20, the same day that Apple will begin selling its iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c in stores.
Located in Farmington, Utah, Station Park is an outdoor shopping mall that features a number of upscale retail stores. The Apple Store, which spans approximately 10,000 square-feet, is located in the middle of the mall next to the H&M clothing store.
While store openings normally begin at 10:00 AM, the new store will open its doors at 8:00 AM in order to begin selling Apple’s iPhones. The company will likely also be handing out commemorative T-shirts to the first 1,000 customers to visit the store.
Customers can begin making reservations for workshops and Genius Bar appointments af the Park Station location today.
Burberry today released the full 15-minute video of its Spring/Summer 2014 fashion show shot entirely with Apple’s upcoming iPhone 5s, following several images and short clips that were shared on its Instagram feed earlier this week.
First announced last Thursday, the partnership between Apple and Burberry was designed to showcase the improved camera capabilities of the iPhone 5s through a series of videos and photos taken by the fashion house.
In an interview with Pocket-Lint, Burberry’s chief creative officer Christoper Bailey revealed that the runway show, along with billboards and imagery for Burberry stores, were captured with 14 iPhone 5s devices.
Nine phones were used to shoot the show itself, with three on a moving rail cam following models, one on the roof, and another outside on a jimmy rig to grab celebrity snapshots. According to Bailey, it was Jony Ive who initiated the partnership for Apple, and the quality of the camera that prompted Burberry to use the device.
I’ve known Jony [Ive] for a long time and he is a mate of mine and it is something that organically grew. It wasn’t some strategic plan that we had to do it. Also the dates just worked out. They [Apple] announced the phone on the 10th, our event was on the 16th, it goes on sale on the 20th.
Today we've been capturing all our content on the new phone. It's mainly because of the quality. We streamed the show live. We weren't using cumbersome cameras that needed to be controlled by 7 people, but this tiny phone instead. Using the iPhone we streamed it to millions of people around the world. It's remarkable.
Apple's iPhone 5s, available in three colors, will be available for purchase online at 12:01 AM Pacific Time on Friday, September 20 and will be in retail stores beginning at 8:00 AM.
Perfect Weather is a new weather app from Contrast (formerly App Cubby), the developers behind shortcut app Launch Center Pro. While there are hundreds of weather apps available in the App Store, Perfect Weather offers detailed information packaged in a no-frills single-screen design.
The app offers a seven-day forecast that includes an interactive line graph of expected temperatures for the next 24-hour period. Sliding a finger on the graph provides the estimated temperature at exact moments, and swiping to the left reveals specific information about humidity, pressure, visibility, wind speed, sunrise, sunset, and more.
Perfect Weather is organized in a manner similar to Apple's Passbook. There is a main forecast window, but pulling down allows access to additional locations and tapping will minimize the window to reveal an animated radar map underneath. The radar map displays either 20 minutes of rain activity or three hours of cloud activity.
All the weather info you need at a glance:
- 7 day forecast - Weather maps with radar and clouds - Detailed current conditions - Temperature chart with hourly forecast pop-up
Clear interface that's easy to use:
- See temperatures in all locations at once - Switch quickly between locations - View and share severe weather alerts
Because Perfect Weather uses data from NOAA for its radar map and forecasts, it is only available to users within the United States. The app can be downloaded from the App Store for $2.99. [Direct Link]
Apple has updated OS X Server, the application that runs on top of OS X Mountain Lion to expand the system's server feature set.
The update adds several bug fixes, though the 'What's New' section includes a number of new features that were originally added back in December 2012.
What's new
- Fix for administering Profile Manager from iPad mini. - Support for using bonded or virtual network interfaces in Server. - Fix for setup failures due to an SSL error. - Fixes for upgrading from Lion Server.
For information on the security content of this update, please visit: support.apple.com/kb/HT1222
Apple is hiring a number of musical experts to program its iTunes Match stations, according to a report from CNET. The human touch on the music stations stands in stark contrast to the algorithm-driven methodology that is used by Pandora, the current leader in streaming music.
Pandora uses algorithms and user feedback to determine what songs should be played, whereas Apple will have humans programming its wide variety of stations.
Apple has been staffing up and is looking to hire a range radio music programmers. These are people with deep knowledge in genres such Latin, metal and alternative music who will be responsible for selecting and promoting songs out of the thousands of new releases each month. Apple has also been trying to poach people from the labels themselves.
CNETalso says Apple has been working with major music labels to promote "heat seekers", acts that labels believe are on the verge of breaking out, but haven't quite made it to that point.
Apple has always had a human touch on the iTunes Store, with editors reportedly choosing what albums and tracks to feature based on sales and personal preference, rather than a 'pay-to-play' system. The company uses a similar methodology on the App Store with its Staff Favorites and Editor's Choice sections. iTunes Radio also features celebrity Guest DJs, including Katy Perry and Jared Leto at launch, as well as exclusive content -- the Katy Perry station, for example, includes an unreleased track from her new album.
The ad-supported iTunes Radio is included free with iOS 7, launching tomorrow. Subscribers to Apple's $25/year iTunes Match service, however, will hear no ads and will be able to skip an unlimited number of songs.
Members of the New South Wales police force located in Australia have begun a four-week trial program to allow officers the use of iPad minis when issuing traffic citations to drivers, reports Australian tech site Delimiter (via TUAW). Specifically, the deployed iPad minis are pre-loaded with an app called “Mobile Notices”, which is developed by Australian app maker Gridstone and allows officers to retrieve driver history, photos, vehicle information and license information from police databases.
If a citation is issued, the driver can opt to receive a PDF of the ticket via email or text, delivered right then and there (provided that the officer is within range of a compatible network). Lembit Pikkat, director of Grindstone, notes that no information gathered by the remote officers is stored on their iPads. Instead, it's all sent to the central police database for secure storage.
Earlier this year, Apple redesigned the iPad in Business section of its website and spotlighted the Redlands Police Department, which highlighted the police force’s use of the iPad and iOS devices for live information, communication, and real-time maps.
Apple is set to release the latest version of its mobile operating system, iOS 7, tomorrow. The company has also highlighted the benefits of the new software update for businesses on a dedicated page.
As Apple prepares to begin selling the new iPhone 5s and lower-cost iPhone 5c this Friday, September 20, the first publicly-revealed unboxing photos of both devices have surfaced, depicting the specific packaging layout and content of each device.
Italian technology website HDblog.it [Google Translate] has shared a set of unboxing photos of both devices showing various details about each packaging, citing a source at Chinese carrier China Unicom who posted the photos to Chinese microblogging site Sina Weibo. The first set of photos show the iPhone 5s box from various angles, revealing it to be consistent with previous unconfirmed photos of its packaging.
Another photo also shows the assorted colors of iPhone 5c devices in their plastic shells. Additionally, the website has posted what appears to be the first unboxing video of the lower-cost iPhone 5c, with the blue colored device being removed from its packaging and revealing the package contents of Apple’s EarPods headphones, a Lightning cable, and a USB wall charger.
Amazon has released an update to Instant Video app for iOS with various new features, including full support for Apple’s AirPlay video streaming and full integration with movie information website IMDb. The update also provides users the ability to read customer reviews, and search for related videos in the context of a specific a cast or director, as well as concurrent downloads and a faster and more streamlined interface.
What's New in Version 2.1
* AirPlay to Apple TV * IMDB cast and director information, ratings, goofs, trivia and quotes * Read customer reviews * Find other videos featuring cast or director * Customers who watched this also watched ... * Concurrent downloads * Improved offline experience * Faster and more responsive interface * Bug fixes and stability improvements
AirPlay is a welcome addition for many users, offering a streamlined method for users to send content to their televisions via an Apple TV, serving as a relatively simple solution in the absence of a dedicated Instant Video channel for the set-top box.
Biggest design overhaul since iOS 7 with Liquid Glass, plus new Apple Intelligence features and improvements to Messages, Phone, Safari, Shortcuts, and more. Developer beta available now ahead of public beta in July.
Biggest design overhaul since iOS 7 with Liquid Glass, plus new Apple Intelligence features and improvements to Messages, Phone, Safari, Shortcuts, and more. Developer beta available now ahead of public beta in July.
The Obama administration has filed a petition with the Federal Communications Commission asking that all wireless carriers be required to unlock all mobile devices, reports 
Apple has updated 
