Views | Steve Jobs, the iPhone 5 and the economics of language
A woman uses the iTunes music application on an Apple iPhone. (File photo)
Technology worshippers were eagerly awaiting the launch of the iPhone 5 at the time this article was being written. The buzz around the latest gizmo from the Apple stable was expected. The company has mastered the art of getting prospective consumers to talk about its iconic products even before they are launched.
Hyperbolic adjectives are not unknown among Apple groupies. An economist believes that such use of passionate language is central to economic activity.
• • •
News Report
• Apple to showcase new iPhone after 15-month hiatus
• • •
Deidre N. McCloskey is a brilliant economic thinker who challenges the dry economics taught in universities. She opens a new paper with a lament: “A worrying feature of economics as presently constituted is that it ignores language working in the economy.” An economy is not just an information exchange; it is a conversation.
“… a large part of economic talk is not merely informational or commanding but persuasive,” says McCloskey. So your boss will not just inform you about a handsome bonus but say that your work in the year has been brilliant — or vice versa. You do not just tell your regular fisherwoman that you will not buy her fresh catch but will tend to tell her why the prices are absurdly high. Or, in an example borrowed from the McCloskey paper, you will exclaim: “The new iPhone is lovely!”
Does any of this have any economic significance? It does, says McCloskey. The value of such sweet talk — as opposed to the cheap talk that game theorists like to talk about — is around a quarter of income in a modern economy, an insight that is not supported by direct data in the paper but which obviously pleases a columnist who is in the business of persuasion.
McCloskey was writing in response to a question posed by the US National Science Foundation to 252 top economists in the country on what the big research ideas for the next ten years could be. “Formal maximum-utility economics cannot explain the sweet talk. The research would need to establish the fact beyond doubt, bringing together for example mathematical economists and rhetorical theorists. It can be treated mathematically by showing the cooperative equilibria (for example) cannot be achieved without trust created by earnest talk. In a way it is the oldest and most obvious finding of game theory that games have of course always a context of rules and customs and relationships, all of them affected by language.”
Information is central to the economics of people as diverse as F.A. Hayek and George Akerlof. Hayek’s greatest contribution to economics was to tell us about the role of knowledge in society and how information is transferred between economic agents in a market. Akerlof showed how markets can implode when there is asymmetric information. McCloskey seems to be pushing the research agenda further, by pointing out that we transmit information through language.
Steve Jobs seems to have instinctively understood this in the way he has built excitement around his products.
Article source: http://www.livemint.com/2011/10/04124415/Views--Steve-Jobs-the-iPhone.html?h=A1
Categories: Uncategorized Tags: Iphone 5
Tech Trends: iPhone 5
The iPhone 5 expected to be introduced Tuesday may just be the first smartphone where we do as much talking with the phone as we do on the phone.
The big almost-surprise that Apple’s been holding back until now apparently is voice control that is so much more powerful and integrated into the phone as to qualify as possibly revolutionary rather than evolutionary.
The strong hint that this functionality, labeled simply “Assistant,” is coming was in Apple’s invitations to the media event Oct. 4 at Apple’s headquarters in Cupertino: “Let’s talk iPhone,” it says. If you had an iPhone 5 in your hand right now, it might answer, “OK, what would you like to ask about me?”
Apple acquired Siri, a San Jose-based voice-recognition startup, in April 2010. Siri has an impressive iPhone app by the same name that primarily integrates with search, so that you might say, “Siri, where’s the closest Starbucks?” and it will answer, “The nearest Starbucks is at …” Or you might say, “Siri, where can I get dim sum around here?” and it will answer, “OK, here are some dim sum restaurants I found nearby …”
When Apple acquired Siri it obviously saw potential. What if this were integrated into the iPhone’s operating system, with hooks into all kinds of applications? Some examples:
- “How do I get to SeaWorld from here?” Reply: “Would you like me to map the directions for you?”
- “Send a text to Jim Rogers saying I’ll be late for lunch.” A mini version of the iPhone’s Message app would appear on your home screen, already filled out for you to check before sending.
- “Set up a meeting with Jim Rogers at two o’clock tomorrow.” A mini calendar view appears on the home screen showing the appointment. “Would you like to send an email notification?” “Yes.” “Work email address or personal email address?” “Work.”
Assistant also reportedly makes use of Nuance‘s speech-to-text technology for dictating messages, and is integrated with the Wolfram Alpha online computational knowledge system (a darling of math geeks everywhere).
A few pieces have fallen into place to make this a likely time for the introduction of Assistant.
Enough time has passed since acquisition of Siri to integrate and perfect the technology into iOS5. The processing horsepower and more working memory that are needed are expected to be in the new iPhone. Many media reports suggest the new phone will incorporate the same A5 dual-core processor used in the iPad 2, and that the new phone will have 1 GB of RAM to work with.
Look for Assistant to be the centerpiece of the iPhone 5′s introduction tomorrow. Other upgrades that appear likely, in addition to the more-powerful processor and more RAM:
- A larger display, to keep up with the Android Jones, likely something around 4.2 inches.
- A slimmer case, but will it be the familiar iPhone 4 shape or something more curved or tear-shaped? Unclear.
- A version available for sale with Sprint Nextel. This wouldn’t be too technically difficult to accomplish as Sprint uses the same CDMA technology as Verizon Wireless. Making the iPhone available on Sprint will help bolster sales against the Android-powered phone onslaught.
- Near-field communications, or NFC. This will enable all sorts of interesting technology, including “bump to pay,” which eventually will replace credit cards; “bump to share,” for anything from contact information to playlists; and “bump to pair” to simplify Bluetooth matching.
- 4G or not to 4G? That’s still a question. Some reports have the full-fledged long-term evolution 4G chips too big and warm to fit comfortably in the slimmer cases. But Apple could enable HSPA+, a kind of “4G lite” that ATT uses that would provide dramatically faster data speeds while still not as fast as full-fledged 4G LTE. The issue with that is it leaves Verizon and Sprint customers out in the cold.
- As memory prices continue to fall, likely more storage available in the form of a 64 GB version. At the same time there will be a lot of emphasis on cloud storage, streaming and services for things like your iTunes media as Apple tries to make a splash in that arena with its new data center in North Carolina and iOS5 built to use iCloud.
- Many observers are expecting the introduction of a less-expensive model of iPhone, often referred to as the iPhone 4S, which in addition to using older technology likely would have perhaps just 8 GB of storage and depend on iCloud for additional storage.
Whatever is introduced Oct. 4, past experience points to the new models going on sale 10 days after introduction, which would put the time to line up in front of your local Apple store at Oct. 14 or 15.
Article source: http://fortbragg.patch.com/articles/tech-trends-iphone-5
Categories: Uncategorized Tags: Iphone 5
As iPhone 5 Unveiled, Rivals Closely Taking Notes
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Samsung will be at the front seat taking pictures. It’s readying exhibit A for its counter-attack against Apple. Samsung has been sued by the Cupertino, California-based company on allegations that its devices slavishly imitated the design and functionality of the iPad and iPhone. Samsung, who is ironically a key supplier of parts for the iPad and iPhone, is preparing to strike back, and possibly seek an injunction on the release of the iPhone 5, as Apple has been infringing Samsung’s wireless patents since the first iPhone was released.
They will be also closely watching Tim Cook. Cook took over Jobs’ post as CEO in August, although the former has been unofficially running the company since January. Cook has been more of a operations and supply chain guy, taking care of Apple’s margins and profits. Now taking charge of touting Apple’s new devices, Cook is not expected to become the showman and visionary that Jobs was. Shareholders are staying put for now as many Jobs-grade products are already in the pipeline. But rivals are closely watching when Cook will stumble or make one bad decision.
With competition intensifying, and Apple releasing a single tablet, smartphone and laptop model each year, there is no room for error for Apple. And of course, rivals are hoping that early reviews of the iPhone 5 will highlight the device’s lack of significant improvements, in order to shake up Cook’s early rule on Apple.
Android rivals have been able to gain ground while Apple was facing production issues on the iPhone 5. But only Research In Motion and Nokia were bruised by the Android group’s aggressive punches. Notwithstanding that the rivals’ phones had superior specs, the iPhone 4 has manageably held the forth, selling
20 million units in Apple’s most recent quarter. If the iPhone 5 fails to live up to great expectations, they’re hoping that Apple’s brand and marketing prowess would lose their glitter.
But if the iPhone 5 continues Apple’s stint of unprecedented success, holidays, Samsung, et al., will be setting their sights for next year. They’re already preparing their checklists for this year’s iPhone 5 but also for the iPhone 6. They already are aware of reports that the iPhone 6 will have quad-core processors (which would make phones as powerful as desktops), a platform that would take advantage of Apple’s iCloud infrastructure, and have a screen made of curved-glass.
And, as tradition says, they will always try to come up with something more.
They dream that the iPhone 5 is dubbed a failure at the event in Oct. 4. When they wake up, they’ll be scratching their heads on why, no matter what they do, they just couldn’t beat the iPhone.
Article source: http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/224546/20111004/iphone-5-unveiled-rivals-closely-watching.htm
Categories: Uncategorized Tags: Iphone 5
Whoa! iPhone 5 release date Sprint "exclusive" — O RLY?
By Richi Jennings (@richi 
) – October 4, 2011.
Want to rock an iPhone 5 at release date? Better switch to Sprint — or so say the rumors. It seems that Sprint (NYSE:S) may have an exclusive on the new pomaceous shiny, leaving the rest of us with a warmed-over iPhone 4 (or “4S”), with no 4G. Just when we thought we knew what Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) CEO Tim Cook will announce, everything changes again. In IT Blogwatch, bloggers’ heads spin.
Your humble blogwatcher curated these bloggy bits for your entertainment. Not to mention: “That look” from your spouse is universal across cultures…
Chris Nerney reports:
Sprint…has cut a deal with Apple in which [it] has committed to buying 30.5 million iPhones over the next four years…according to the Wall Street Journal.
…
Apple is expected to unveil the iPhone 5 on Tuesday. It will be the first iPhone that Sprint will be allowed to sell. … But the company is laying a heavy bet on the Apple device…arguably a huge gamble, with Sprint laying down a lot of money up-front.
Jonathan S. Geller triangulates, reaching a fascinating conclusion:
Sprint won’t even break even…until 2014, which is surely a huge risk…but why? I have been going back and forth for weeks…on a piece of information…that is so unbelievable, even from a source this solid, that I couldn’t report it. … [But now] it doesn’t look so crazy.
…
I have been told that Sprint will be getting the iPhone 5…as an exclusive. And it will be a 4G WiMAX device…[with] Faster CPU…4-inch screen…1GB of RAM…Slightly larger design…but thinner and with a larger battery…iPhone 5 exclusive software…Dedicated Assistant button.
But Matt Buchanan calls it an unbelievable fantasy:
How could something so ridiculous be true, in any realm of possibility? … [E]verything about this seems wrong. The WiMax. The Sprint exclusive. A deal of this magnitude being kept so secret until today.
…
I will eat my…hand if this is true. And a whole cow.
While Om Malik says it’s “not that crazy”:
Apple has to love this deal–it basically ensures a nice revenue stream…even if the world goes into recession…[and] it takes away some of the Android momentum at one carrier. … The exclusivity…is what reduces the risk [for Sprint].
…
On an average, in the U.S., average revenue per user for iPhone is …about $1,080 a year. … Now if Sprint manages to match Verizon’s performance…it can attract about 3 million iPhone customers…[which] works out to about $3.2 billion in revenues…a nice 10 percent bump.
…
[C]razy yes, but not completely loco!
Whatever the truth, Jonny Evans predicts long lines:
Everyone is going to want this phone…
- millions of existing iPhone owners just itching to upgrade…
- millions who have never owned an iPhone who want to…
- millions using other smartphones who plan to switch. …
In typical Apple fashion, these things are going to sell out fast…as new Apple CEO, Tim Cook, ruefully tells investors: “We can’t make these fast enough.”
And Finally…
“That look” from your spouse is universal across cultures
[Hat tip: Josh Halliday]
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Richi Jennings is an independent analyst/consultant, specializing in blogging, email, and security. He’s the creator and main author of Computerworld’s IT Blogwatch — for which he has won American Society of Business Publication Editors and Jesse H. Neal awards on behalf of Computerworld. He also writes The Long View for IDG Enterprise. A cross-functional IT geek since 1985, you can follow him as @richi on Twitter, pretend to be richij‘s friend on Facebook, or just use good old email: itbw@richij.com. You can also read Richi’s full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
Article source: http://blogs.computerworld.com/19037/whoa_iphone_5_sprint_exclusive_on_release_date_o_rly?af
Categories: Uncategorized Tags: Iphone 5
Surveillance footage of lost iPhone 5 prototype automatically erased
By Chris Smith
Published: 08:41 PM EST (05:41 PM PST)
Existing surveillance footage that could have offered answers to questions about an iPhone 5 prototype that went missing this summer has been automatically erased before being viewed by police investigators.
The recordings have been deleted in an automatic process after the hard drive storing the images reached full capacity, CNet reports. The drive contained footage from six surveillance cameras placed inside the Cava 22 bar where an Apple employee reportedly forgot a next-gen iPhone prototype on July 22.
But, the cameras do not record continuous video. Instead they take pictures roughly 3 minutes apart, which are then saved locally for a limited amount of time. On top of the gaps between recordings, sections of the bar are poorly lit. As such, these factors suggest the deleted surveillance footage may have not provided much insight into the matter even if retrieved in time.
The San Francisco Police Department recently requested access to the available recordings while looking into the role police officers played during Apples unofficial investigation of the situation. Jose Valle, whose family owns Cava 22, was unavailable when the police first asked for the available video recordings. He then contacted SFPD, but police officials have yet follow up on their investigation.
Cupertino, Calif.-based Apple has not filed a police report, though it did conduct a search of a house in the Bernal Heights neighborhood on July 24 after tracking the missing iPhone to that location. Apple personnel allegedly performed the search of Sergio Calderons home, car and computer under police supervision. SFPD has said that the officers were not part of the actual search.
Credit: Greg Sandoval/CNet.
At this time, it remains unknown what happened to the lost iPhone prototype. In the two months since the event, images of the missing device or the actual unit do not appear to have made their way to the press ahead of the announcement of a new iPhone. Apple is expected to unveil at least one fifth-generation iPhone on Tuesday at 10 a.m. PDT.
This year’s lost prototype fiasco oddly mirrors a similar situation from last year. In early 2010, an iPhone 4 test unit disguised as an iPhone 3GS was left in a German beer garden in California and ended up being purchased by a blog. Images of the prototype and a review of the pre-release unit were then published a few months ahead of the official iPhone 4 media event. The investigation in that case has been completed and the two suspects alleged to have found last years iPhone prototype have recently pleaded not guilty in an ongoing trial.
Article source: http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/11/10/03/surveillance_footage_of_lost_iphone_5_prototype_automatically_erased.html
Categories: Uncategorized Tags: Iphone 5 News
Apple iPhone 5, Arrington’s New Blog, Klout’s Fail
Tech news, lot’s of it: Apple iPhone 5, Arrington’s New Blog, and Klout’s Fail, for starters.
On Tuesday, Apple introduces another product we all expect to be super cool, and have a presentation that we know will be super cool. This one is scheduled for Tuesday and to rollout the much anticipated iPhone 5, which is said to have a better camera and longer battery life.
The only uncool aspect of this news may be the absence of Apple Co-Founder and CEO Steve Jobs, who usually gives these presentations. This time, it will be new Apple CEO Tim Cook on stage, and not doing his best impersonation of Mr. Jobs. But that said, Jobs will be in the room for the event. Expect a long standing ovation.
But with or without Steve, signs point to a Twitter explosion Tuesday.
As of this writing, two Twitterers reported 1.4 Tweets per second about the iPhone 5; the number of Twitter Tweets is 8,868 tweets per second for Beyonce’s Baby Bump, followed by 7,196 tweet updates per second for the Women’s World Cup final, and 5,106 tweets per second for the news of Osama Bin Laden’s killing by American forces.
Can the iPhone 5 intro top all of those?
The bet here is no, and for one simple reason: television, or the lack of it.
Michael Arrington Gets UnCrunched
TechCrunch Founder Michael Arrington’s rumored new blog is up, running, and now as of this writing five posts old. It’s called “UnCrunched” and is a simple WordPress blog with little in the way of fancy design or a neat logo. What UnCrunched has is a lot of the famous tech startup observer’s observations about startups, people, and his new venture capital effort CrunchFund that he started with Patrick Gallagher.
It also includes a blog post called “Brutal Honesty” that confirms what this blogger said about Arrington having a “shtick” a few weeks back. The short story is Michael does have a heart, just as this blogger has tried to tell anyone within orbit.
Klout Fails WordPress Self-Hosting Bloggers
Klout, the scoring platform that keeps tabs on your social media performance by “monitoring” how often you create content on your blogs, and on major sites like Twitter, YouTube, and Facebook, has a problem. It totally ignores self-hosted WordPress blogs, like this one at Zennie62Blog.com .
The system Klout set up asks one to install a username and password for their WordPress blog, which is a routine request. But for a self-hosted WordPress blog, the username is almost always “admin” – there are thousands of people who have this.
Because it’s so common, it’s reasonable to expect WordPress to accomodate for this, but that’s not the case at all. What’s worse, there’s no sign of Klout fixing this problem in the near future. So, if you’re on Klout and have a self-hosted WordPress blog, you’re just plain out of luck – this blogger too.
Of course, this means Klout’s social media estimation score’s not all that reliable.
Stay tuned.
Article source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/abraham/detail?entry_id=98847
Categories: Uncategorized Tags: Iphone 5 News
iPhone 5 release date: Leaks show off shots and details of iPhone 4S
By
Rob Waugh
Last updated at 10:22 AM on 4th October 2011
Zealous bloggers at German sites such as iPhone fan site iFun caught a snapshot of Vodafone Germany’s site offering a menu of new ‘iPhone 4S’ models today – but there was no sign of iPhone 5.
Likewise, within the latest ‘beta’ version of iTunes, Apple Insider and 9 to 5 Mac reported several references to iPhone 4S – and images show the new phone looks EXACTLY like the old iPhone 4.
The 9 to 5 Mac went blog further with an – as yet unconfirmed – ‘leaked’ release date of October 14.
German iPhone site iFun captured this tantalising glimpse of iPhone 4S on Vodafone Germany’s website. Is it telling that it looks the same as iPhone 4, or has Apple simply kept any redesign under wraps?
Nothing is certain, but it looks increasingly likely that iPhone 4S might launch today – and iPhone 5 might not appear until 2012.
A design concept shows a rounder, curvier new look for iPhone 5, with a larger screen. Other tech insiders say it’s unlikely that Apple will go back to the rounded ‘look’ it abandoned before
Many insiders think the iPhone unveiled will be ‘iPhone 4S’ – a faster model with a better camera and antenna, but still similar to iPhone 4 in shape
EMAIL ABOUT iPHONE ’5GS’? WATCH OUT!
Security software company Sophos is warning that a slick-looking email. seemingly from Apple, offering details of the iPhone ’5GS’ will infect your PC (not Mac) with malicious software if you open it.
‘Apple’s iPhone 5 is due to be revealed to the world tomorrow, which makes
today the perfect opportunity for cybercriminals to take advantage of the
excitement and exploit it for their own ends,’ wrote Sophos’s Graham Cluley on the company blog.
Analysts predict Apple will ‘shatter’
its one-day sales record of 1.7 million due to ‘pent up demand’, and it
will sell more than 100 million next year.
Opinion is split over whether there will be one or two models launched today – and whether or not it’s called ‘iPhone 5′, the phone will offer a serious upgrade from last year’s iPhone 4.
What seems certain is that Apple is going to launch a phone with its fast A5 processor and upgraded camera tomorrow. Upgraded speech functions – including a talk-to-text function also seem highly likely, whatever the casing looks like.
‘This launch won’t be underwhelming,’ Will Findlater, editor of Stuff magazine told Mail Online.
‘We’ve waited 15 months for a new iPhone and the old model now looks old-fashioned – it’s not dual core, and the camera isn’t competitive.
‘Apple’s rivals have made huge gains over the past year. Apple needs to upgrade.’
Something big is launching, that is for
certain. Huge areas of Apple’s forums are closed ‘for maintenance’ –
which hints at big changes to come.
The new iPhone is expected to smash iPhone 4′s sales record of 1.7 million handsets in one day. Fans queued for up to seven hours to get one of the sought-after phones
RUMOURS: THE LATEST (AND LAST) ROUND
Analysts Ticonderoga Securities said, ‘We expect the iPhone 5 to get a makeover with a sleek, aluminum unibody enclosure that more closely resembles the MacBook Air than the iPhone 4′.
A leaked picture on Weibo – China’s Twitter, was reported by sites such as 9 to 5 Mac, appeared to show an all-new chip, ‘It is not an iPad 2 chip, since it looks rather different. It bears some resemblance to the current chipset layout in the iPhone 4.’
It won’t be 4G, predicts analysts Wedbush Morgan, ‘Expect a new iPhone in early October with store training to begin soon, an iPhone targeting emerging markets, and a 4G iPhone in 2012, with an improved interface.
Apple will sell 107 million iPhones in 2012, predicts Janney Capital, ‘Apple is well positioned to capture an enormous profit pool as mobility and content worlds converge.’
Such moves are near-necessary to allow iPhone to keep pace with rivals such as Samsung and HTC.
What’s dividing analysts and insiders is
whether the screen size and casing will change – with some predicting a
similar case to iPhone 4 with an upgraded antenna, and others
predicting a redesigned, even ‘curvy’ case.
‘The competition has really ramped up this year,’ says Findlater. ‘The Taiwanese phone company HTC and Samsung both have very hi-tech handsets. Apple need to reinvigorate.
Both HTC and Samsung are launching flagship models within day’s of Apple’s handset. Whether they will even be noticed in the wave of excitement surrounding iPhone remains to be seen.
‘Both companies are still wary,’ says Findlater. ‘They’ve got to be at the top of their game to even compete, otherwise Apple will blow them out of the water. The onus is now on Apple to raise the stakes.’
Some users have predicted a bigger screen – as ‘apps’ such as Facebook’s seem to be behaving oddly, and re-formatting themselves as if in anticipation of a larger screen.
Leaks from Apple’s own inventory seem to have confirmed that the new phone (whatever it’s called) will ship with the fast A5 processor found in iPad 2. Voice-control functions also seem highly likely.
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So the press release is gong to say the new I-Phone has what their “suppliers/competitors” have had for months. Voice control, Voice to text, 8mp camera, HD record etc. Old news. Where is the new innovation all the i-phone users keep bleeting on about?
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@Brad, UK. Get outside. Get a life. Get a girlfriend. Get some glasses before you go blind.
- Dave, Southampton, 4/10/2011 11:39——-I will have a girlfriend when I get the Iphone. Please see previous post.
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@Brad, UK. Get outside. Get a life. Get a girlfriend. Get some glasses before you go blind.
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I will stick to my iPhone 4 thank you!
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relax. its just a phone. who cares? apart from apple fanbois and sheeple.
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Apple are loving it. Every 6-12 months they re-release the same product with one or two add-ons and their fanatical devotees will spend hundreds of pounds buying it – even when they already have the near identical predecessor.
Apple should be commended for having a devoted fanbase that will slavishly buy anything and everything Apple release.
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Article source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2044801/iPhone-5-release-date-Leaks-shots-details-iPhone-4S.html?ito=feeds-newsxml
Categories: Uncategorized Tags: Iphone 5 News