Facebook releases photos-only app for iPhone

Just weeks after purchasing Instagram for $1 billion, Facebook has announced it’s new photos-only app — which allows users to snap, filter and share.  Sound familiar?

The Washington Post says first impressions of the iPhone app, simply called “Facebook Camera,” are largely positive.  Unlike the regular Facebook app, Facebook Camera deals exclusively with photos: your feed is made up of nothing but your friends’ latest pictures, in a higher resolution than before.

Facebook Photos product manager Dirk Stoop told the Post that’s the whole point: streamlining the users’ experience so they can upload multiple photos at once, add filters and share easily, right from their iPhones.

Now, you may be thinking — didn’t Mark Zuckerberg just buy Instagram?  A spokesman for Facebook told TechCrunch that Facebook Camera isn’t meant to be a competitor for the wildly successful app, which continues to run as an independent program on rival social networks like Twitter.

The main selling point — uploading multiple photos at once — is what developers are hoping will get iOS users to download the app.

So far, reviews of Facebook Camera on the App Store are hovering around 4 out of 5 stars.  It’s a promising start, but users do have one notable complaint: approving location services automatically syncs the app with your Camera Roll — not a plus if you’re concerned about uploading pictures by mistake.

Would you download a separate Facebook app just to manage your photos? Let us know in the comments.

Copyright 2012 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Article source: http://www.abcactionnews.com/dpp/news/science_tech/facebook-releases-photos-only-app-for-iphone

iPhone 5 launching with 3.95-inch display, more pixels?

(Credit:
Apple)

With each new Apple product launch, there’s typically one feature that gets the most attention in the rumor mill. This time around, it’s the
iPhone 5‘s display.

According to Apple blog 9to5Mac, citing sources, the Cupertino, Calif.-based company is currently testing at its headquarters two iPhones — only one of which will be released — boasting larger displays. And although rumors have suggested the device will come with a true 4-inch screen, 9to5Mac claims it’ll actually boast a 3.95-inch display.

The new
iPhone‘s screen will be just as wide as that of its predecessor, 9to5Mac claims, but will be slightly taller, allowing Apple to add 176 pixels. The new resolution on the iPhone will be 640×1,136, according to the blog. Apple’s current Retina Display on the
iPhone 4S features a 640 x 960 resolution.

Although Apple hasn’t confirmed it’ll even launch a new iPhone, let alone what size screen such a device might have, the rumor mill has been saying for months now that the device will come with a larger display.

Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported Apple is buying 4-inch screens for its next handset. Earlier this month, Apple-focused site iLounge made the same claim 9to5Mac has, saying that the iPhone 5 will have a taller screen measuring about 4 inches.

The larger screen should help Apple make some customizations to iOS 6, according to 9to5Mac. The blog claims Apple is currently considering adding a fifth row of icons to the operating system’s home screen, thanks to the additional screen real estate. It might also change the look and feel of built-in applications to accommodate the taller display.

One other tidbit from the 9to5Mac story: its sources say Apple’s next iPhone will, in fact, come with the long-rumored smaller Dock connector.

CNET has contacted Apple for comment on the rumor. We will update this story when we have more information.

Article source: http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-57438952-37/iphone-5-launching-with-3.95-inch-display-more-pixels/

Leaked Front Panel Reveals iPhone 5 with 4-Inch+ Screen?

It has been the general consensus among most people that the “next iPhone” will have a larger display, but now we’ve got some physical evidence to back that claim. This “leaked” front panel is coming by way of one of Apple’s suppliers.

To be fair, what you see here is the leaked front panel for what is reportedly the next-generation iPod touch. At the same time, it is reasonable to think that the front panel on the new iPod touch will be in line with the new iPhone, especially if both are going to be increasing in screen size at the same time. What’s curious is that the opening in the middle measures 4.1-inches, whereas several current rumors are saying the “iPhone 5″ will have a 3.95-inch screen. And then there’s the Wall Street Journal saying that it’ll be “at least four inches.”

If we take all of these at face value, the 3.95-inch screen could easily hold up, since the display doesn’t have to completely fill out the 4.1-inch opening. You’ll also notice that the relative dimensions are different too, making for a “taller” iPod touch and iPhone. This changes the aspect ratio of the display, from what we can tell, so this could prove problematic for the porting and development of many iOS apps, at least in the short term.

Along with the leaked front panel are leaked images of what we think are the front and rear cameras on the next iPhone. It’s likely that there will be no real difference from the perspective of the end user compared to the iPhone 4S, but the rear module is missing the LED flash.

[Source]

Article source: http://www.mobilemag.com/2012/05/24/leaked-front-panel-reveals-iphone-5-with-4-inch-screen/

Apple iPhone 5′s Larger Screen Welcomed By Developers

Apple is in for good news as their speculated decision to introduce larger displays in the next generation of the iPhone has garnered positive feedback from developers. The new iPhone is rumored to have a display measuring 4 inches from corner to corner. This new phone is expected to be introduced in October later this year.

Since being launched in 2007, Apple’s iPhone has always sported a screen measuring 3.5 inches. However, the company seems to have realized that the demand for larger screens is growing, and has already placed orders with its suppliers. Reportedly, this version of the iPhone has been worked on by Steve Jobs himself. Larger displays are favoured by developers and will appeal to the users as well, specifically to smartphone gamers. It will also help game developers include an additional row of icons or extra gameplay area.

In the case of apps, too much information on the screen can often result in crowding. However, with larger displays, more information can be displayed without making the interface look cluttered. Besides, Apple can always ask its developers to work on two versions of the app, one for the new iPhone with the larger display and another for the earlier iPhone models. This has already been done by several developers when the iPad was introduced in the market or when several versions of an app are introduced for several kinds of phones that run on the Android platform.

Apple could benefit from this change and earn more revenue as larger displays provide potential for spacing mobile ads efficiently for app developers. With increasing number of people opting for smartphones over their laptops for several tasks and accessing the internet from their mobiles, ad developers must focus on developing mobile ads as a source of revenue. Smaller screens make it difficult to place ads and cause equal inconvenience to users. Larger screens will also help differentiate the next generation of iPhones from the previous ones, possibly attracting more consumers and helping the platform stay abreast of the latest trends.

In several cases, Apple users are looking forward to changes in the iPhone design along with the introduction of new features and apps. The iOS ecosystem has always thrown in favourable changes every time it has evolved and this is yet another change worth looking forward to.

Article source: http://www.mobilebloom.com/apple-iphone-5s-larger-screen-welcomed-by-developers/2214127/

Apple Testing Two Versions Of The iPhone 5

iPhone 4′s Retina Display v.s. iPhone 3G (Photo credit: Yutaka Tsutano)

Apple is testing two different versions of the next-generation iPhone, both of which feature a longer display and a screen aspect ratio close to 16:9, according to a report on 9 to 5 Mac.

Both of the versions being tested feature a 3.999-inch display. The screen width stays the same at 1.9632 inches wide, but 176 pixels have been added to the height, taking the screen resolution up to 640 x 1136. This takes the screen aspect ration close to that of 16:9, which means that videos at this resolution can play full-screen at their native resolution.

Last week there were multiple rumors coming from sources speaking to the Wall Street Journal, Reuters and Bloomberg, all claiming that the next iPhone will have a bigger screen than the 3.5-inch screen that the iPhone has had since it was launched back on 2007. Sources speaking to the WSJ say that the screen will be “at least four inches diagonally,” while the sources speaking to Reuters say that the screen will be 4-inches exactly. Bloomberg’s sources only claimed that the screen would be bigger than the current 3.5-inch.

Both Reuters and the Wall Street Journal’s sources agreed that screen production will occur at three suppliers, LG Display, Sharp — the company that was allegedly going to manufacture thinner IGZO screens for the iPad 3 — and Japan Display, a company created in April formed as a joint venture between Sony, Toshiba, Hitachi and the Japanese government.

A 4-inch display would give the new iPhone roughly 30 percent extra viewing area.

The current iPhone features a 3.5-inch screen with a resolution of 640 x 960 and an aspect ratio of 3:2.

The rumors also claim that Apple is testing iOS version 6, which adds a sixth row of icons to the device’s home screen and extends the user interface of apps.

There’s also unconfirmed reports that the current 30-pin dock used to charge and dock the phone is being replaced by a smaller dock connector on the two prototypes.

For more rumors, check out this iPhone 5 rumor roundup post from last week.

Article source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/adriankingsleyhughes/2012/05/23/apple-testing-two-versions-of-the-iphone-5/

Speculation Meets Specification: Evidence Mounts for iPhone 5 with 4-Inch, 16 …

Yes, Apple rumors have a life of their own. I referred to them earlier in the week as a manifestation of the “collective unconscious,” and indeed they are a consensual hallucination, a waking dream.

But, it’s all a bunch of hooey until Tim Cook takes the stage, right?

No. Technology is so central to our lives—and within our technological lives Apple products have taken central position. And within that center, our phones are bullseye, dead center. This centrality means that the product development of the iPhone is no longer a private, corporate affair. This is the other meaning of the term “public company” that has come to the fore through the internet and social media. And it has turned the journalism of technology on its head.

The rumors come from two different directions, speculations about features and form factors and the specifications of the components within. The vector of design speculations begin as soon as the dust has settled from the release of the current version of the product, particularly with the iPhone and iPad. The vector of leaks and rumors from the Apple supply chain, though somewhat more credible, come much later, closer to the beginning of the next manufacturing cycle.

We are right about at the moment when those two lines are about to cross for the iPhone 5 (or whatever it will be called). Recent supply chain rumors include both reductions of orders for current models and aggressive placing of orders for ±4-inch screens from an increasing number of (in some cases new) suppliers. At the same time, the speculators have been rehearsing the scenarios using photoshop and 3-d rendered thought experiments for how this will play out in the software of iOS 6 and in the physical appearance of the new device.

The latest UI exploration is from Rene Ritchie at iMore, who comps up the implications of a 16:9 iPhone screen in terms of iOS elements like notifications, widgets and keyboard layouts as well as for default and custom designed apps. In just about all cases, the vertical orientation is trivial and the landscape a bit awkward. Ritchie lays out what he considers to be the “three laws by which Apple iOS products seem to be governed”:

1. Apple will only do things that grow profits now, or better position them to grow profits in the future.
2. Apple will delight users with magical experiences, except where doing so would conflict with the first law.
3. Apple will empower developers to make insanely great apps, as long as doing so doesn’t conflict with the first and second laws.

Apple’s Senior Vice President of Industrial Design, Jony Ive, told The Evening Standard that the company strives to, “develop products that seem somehow inevitable.” Purely on the basis of Ritchie’s “laws” and his explorations, it would be easy to come to the conclusion that, to use Ive’s term, the larger screen for the iPhone is “inevitable.” Add to that an increasing drum beat of manufacturing signals from Asia, and it begins to feel like a fete accompli.

But Ritche himself concludes his piece cautiously, “October is a long way off and Apple may yet decide a more conservative, less ambitious iPhone screen is the way to go.… If Apple does go with a 4 inch, 16:9 iPhone, they already know how they’re going to implement it and how they’re going to handle any problems, pain, and other turbulence during the transition.… And it’ll be for two reasons and two reasons alone. To make a better product and sell more iPhones.”

Apple already has the mobile OS the consumers prefer. Combining that with a larger screen and 4G will remove Android’s other advantages and positon Apple well for future growth. It’s sounding pretty inevitable to me.

Article source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/anthonykosner/2012/05/24/speculation-meets-specification-evidence-mounts-for-iphone-5-with-4-inch-169-screen/