A few hints have already pointed towards an AR headset for Apple’s products, however, there now may be clearer evidence. Developer Steven Troughton-Smith has pointed out in a readme within a new release, which explains to employees how they can run AR apps on an iPhone without using the headset. So is Apple’s AR Headset on the way?
9to5Mac’s Guilherme Rambo highlighted (tweet below) how the latest iOS 13 beta drop (Gold Master) and the iOS 13.1 beta releases containt something called Apple’s “StarBoard” system shell to run AR apps as well. Smith suggests that rendering could be done on the iPhone itself and use of an additional gamepad/motion control device.
Apple didn’t mention anything about AR in it’s September event, nor did they mention a new Apple TV or Ultra Wideband location Tags. However, the leftover notes could suggest that it could have been a late scratch. While it could also be something new is in the pipeline.
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First of all, we were very impressed! As TON of new products was announced at this years September Apple Event, including an impressive Apple Watch Series 5 and a brand new PRO line up of iPhones!
September Apple Event, a run down
Apple Arcade
At tonight’s Apple event, they revealed a price and a launch date for it’s subscription based Netflix style gaming service. It launches on the 19th September and will cost $4.99 p/m for a Family plan. Including a Frogger game from Konami, an underwater adventure game called Shinsekai from Capcom and a music based game from AnnaPurna, SayonaraWildheart. – Apple Arcade is US only at the moment, here’s hoping it comes the UK not too soon after launches in the US!
AppleTv+
Apple’s Netflix style film and tv show service, Apple TV+, now has a release date. 1st November 2019. It’s incredibly cheap at $4.99 and will begin streaming in over 100 countries. Nothing was mentioned about non Apple exclusives, so we’re going to assume that’s all that’s going to be available. Tim Cook stated during the keynote that each month new shows will be added to the platform.
Plus if you purchase an iPhone, iPad, Mac or Apple Tv you’ll get a whole year for FREE!
Much like Disney’s service, Apple will be releasing a new episode each week, with 3 episodes being available at launch. While some shows will dump the whole season on you at once.
Apple Watch Series 5 was announced at September’s Apple Event, this time the Apple Watch comes with a brand new “Always On” display.
The screen will never go to sleep, allowing owners to always see the time and if you have fitness complications, see what your fitness stats are. While the screen will dim, it will always be visible. The display will help with power usage too, reducing the refresh rate down from 60hz to 1hz while not being used. The new Apple Watch will also have an ambient light sensor to adjust the brightness to your surroundings.
Features
The Apple Watch Series 5 comes with a built in compass with tools like an altimeter. Cellular owners of the Apple Watch Series 5 will have free emergency calling without needing to be linked to an iPhone. The Apple Watch has a noise meter on it to make sure your hearing isn’t affected. Also announced is a new Research App, where users can opt in to record their health data to be used in things such as the Apple Hearing Study, Apple Heart and Movement Study and Apple Women’s Health Study.
The Aluminium version comes in black, gold, polished metal and will be made out of 100% recycled aluminium. As with other generations of the Apple Watch, it’s also available in Stainless Steel, Titanium and ceramic models.
Prices in the US Start at $399 for regular and $499 for cellular. Series 3 gets a price cut to $199. So expect UK prices to be similar.
Apple Watch Series 5 pre-orders start today and will go on sale on 20th September.
The most popular iPad to date got a slight refresh at the September Apple Event, most notably bumping the screen from 9.2″ to 1o.2″
It comes with iPad OS built in, which means that there’ll be greater support for one handed use, extra gestures and improved support of the Apple Pencil. The new iPad 10.2″ comes equipped with the A10 chipset, improved smart connector for Keyboard Support, 8MP camera, AR support, Picture in Picture support and much like the Apple Watch Series 5, made from 100% recycled aluminium.
$329 so expect pricing in the UK to be about the same. Pre-orders open today and will ship at the end of the month.
The iPhone 11 is here and there is a HUGE focus on cameras. The iPhone 11 comes with a dual camera system, a 12MP 9f/1.8) lens and a 12MP (f/2.8) ultra wide angle lens.
Apple says that this has the capability of the equivalent of a 2x optical zoom out! The camera can also shoot 4k 60 fps on both the back AND front cameras. Including slo-motion on the front camera. Apple even showed off a quirky “slofies” promo video.
Other camera based features include automatic night mode detection, shooting video whilst in photo mode (simply hold the camera shutter down) and a zoom wheel.
Furthermore Apple showed off something called a Semantics Processor and “multiscale tone mapping.” So this means that the camera will be better at focusing on people and not blowing out the highlights. Apple also noted that the portrait mode will be better at taking portrait photos of pets.
Inside the iPhone 11 is the fastest CPU and GPU in any Smartphone the A13 bionic. Also, battery life has also improved by 1hr over the XR. The iPhone 11 also has spacial audio, Dolby Atmos and toughened glass on the front and back.
Prices start at $699 and will be available in purple, white, yellow, green, black and Product (Red)
Pre-Orders start on Friday ready for Sept 20th pick up.
The powerful models to the iPhone 11 were announced at this years Apple Event too. The iPhone 11 Pro and the iPhone 11 Pro Max. Slightly different to the iPhone 11, the Pro models have a “surgical-grade stainless steel” case and matte finish and a lot more power on the insides.
Cameras
For example the iPhone 11 Pro models have an extra wide angle lens to the telephoto and standard camera. Similar to how the telephoto lens zooms in, the wide angle will allow uses to zoom out. Allowing you to capture more of your shot, without needing to step back. Therefore giving users a lot more flexibility and control when taking photos.
A new mode called “Deep Fusion” will take 9 photos across all three cameras, stitch them together, creating a single high quality image. Furthermore the third party app Filmic Pro will allow you to record from multiple cameras at once, including the selfie photo. So you’ll be able to get footage from the front shooter right alongside the rear camera, all at the same time! Much like it’s smaller counterpart. The iPhone Pro versions also have access to the night mode and slow motion features.
Insides
The Pro iPhones are powered by the A13 Bionic Processor, they also have brand new screens. Super Retina OLED screens which have a 2Million to one contrast ratio and have up to 1,200 nits of brightness. Which Apple claim are 15% more energy efficient than ever before. They also have HDR10 support and Dolby Vision. Furthermore they also have Dolby Atmos and Spacial audio much like the normal 11.
Furthermore, battery life has vastly improved over the XS, the 11 Pro will get 4hrs over the XS and the 11 Pro Max gets 5hrs more.
The iPhone 11 Pro starts at $999, the 11 Pro Max $1,099. Pre-orders start on Friday 13th Sept at 1pm BST and they’ll be available for pick up on Sept 20th.
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The walkie talkie feature on Apple Watches has been a well received feature and Apple were looking to bring a similar feature to iPhones! The new technology would have let people send text messages to other iPhones over a 900MHz radio spectrum. A spectrum that is typically used for dispatchers in the utility and manufacturing industry. The new feature would have brought walkie talkie esque abilities to iPhones. Without the need for WIFI of Mobile internet according to The Information.
However, the feature would have been different to the current walkie talkie feature on the Apple Watch. The information reports that Apple and Intel were working together on the project. It would have seen intel chips in future iPhones before it was shelved. Internally it was reportedly known as Project OGRS “ogres”. This would most likely have been in reference to patents which were filed a year ago which eluded to an Off Grid Radio Service.
Why did Apple Shelve it?
Why was it shelved? Well, The Information report says that the the internal champion on the project Rubén Caballero, left Apple earlier on in the year. Coupled with Apple settling with Qualcomm, and Apple’s expected move from Intel modems to Qualcomm put an end to it. Apple going with Qualcomm over Intel was so significant it caused Intel to sell it’s entire smartphone modem business. Which Apple purchased for $1Bn
This feature does sound pretty cool to be fair and maybe we’ll see this type feature in the future. Maybe with that there would be no excuse to not texting back, “I didn’t receive your text” wouldn’t fly.
Mario Kart Tour originally was planned to be released on mobile platforms in March of this year (2019). As Nintendo delayed the release of a mobile version of the the ever popular karting game to give it a nice polish.
Now, Nintendo have announced that the official launch date for Mario Kart Tour. That release date is not too far away at all. You can strap in, put the pedal to the metal on September 25th. For those eager to play Mario Kart Tour you can sign up for pre-registrations for both the Android and iOS versions of the game on the game’s official website. By doing this, players will be notified as soon as the game is ready to download.
There was a closed beta of the game and up until now, Nintendo didn’t give too much information away about Mario Kart Tour. The game features race courses inspired by iconic real world cities which rotate every two weeks. The game is “free-to-start”, which means players will have to decide whether to spend money on it. The Microtransactions will be used to unlock features and perhaps even characters.
This game looks absolutely incredible and we cannot wait to give it a go for ourselves. Nintendo will be releasing more information via their official Twitter account. So keep an eye on Twitter for more details as the games release date approaches.
Welcome to the official #MarioKartTour Twitter account! Buckle up, because we have a lot of information to share as we race towards launch! pic.twitter.com/EbG5WB0dVa
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The Mac Pro has finally arrived and despite the mammoth computing company getting a roasting online for it’s cheese grater look. It’s the insides that make all the difference. It’s the Mac Pro we’ve all been waiting for. The interior is structured for modularity, designed to be upgraded any time a consumer wants. Bringing with it huge flexibility in terms of how much power a consumer wants and needs at the time of purchase. While still being able to upgrade if they needed to going forward.
28 Cores. That’s what the Mac Pro will be capable of. 28cores of new Intel Xeon Processors. It’s going to be powered by 300W and heavy duty cooling. Therefore allowing it to be fun to it’s fullest capabilities at all times, without the worry of it over heating. Not too sure if I’d want to do that for too long though! Maximum RAM is a HUGE one and something that we are very very impressed by, it’s a number we didn’t even think was possible too! So, what is it? 1.5TB of RAM. Yes you read that correctly. 1.5 TERABYTES! It’s able to do this with six-channel memory across 12 DIMM slots.
Furthermore there are 8 PCI Express slots, while 4 of them are double wide to allow larger expansion cards. Other connectivity features are 2 USB-C / Thunderbolt 3 slots. There are also 2 USB-A slots on the rear and 2 USB C /Thunderbolt 3 slots on the top of the machine.
While that’s not all either! Apple are launching a custom expansion module. They’re calling it an MPX Module. So, you connect it via a dedicated Thunderbolt 3 slot, which Apple have built into the motherboard. Consequently this delivers additional power and high spped connectivity to components.
So what is a MPX Module?
The MPX Module is a giant quad-wide PCIe card which houses 2 graphics cards. It has it’s own dedicated heat sink and has a custom Thunderbolt connector to hook into the computer. So, this isn’t some ProSumer device. This device is built for your production houses, but it pays to dream! Don’t believe us? Well Apple will also sell an optional “Afterburner” dedicated video editing card. This video editing card uses FPGA to process up to 6billion pixels per second. Again. This device is a beast.
The power supply maxes out at 1.4kw. There’s 3 large fans at the front which sit behind an aluminium grille. This will provide air to the components and the sysyem at a rate of 300cubic feet per minute. Worried it is going to sound like it’s going to take off? Apple says the device remains quiet. Impressive.
Apple also sell the Mac Pro with optional wheels, if you want to move it easily.
Releasing this autumn it comes with a hefty price tag. $5,999. That’s a base line. So the maxed out device could be astronomical! Base model is a 32GB of memory, an octa-core Intel Xeon CPU, Radeon Pro 580X graphics card and 256GB SSD.
Apple also announced a high grade monitor too, a 32-inch 6K Pro Display XDR, which is priced at $4999. It comes without a stand though, which is priced at $999.
So taking all that into account. We can but dream about these devices. Production Houses, you’re being spoilt. They look sooooo goood!
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We came across the below tweet earlier on the week and we are very very impressed! Who needs Google Glasses or Apple Glasses when you have got your phone and AR! Say hello to Google Maps AR! It’s now looking like it’s starting to roll it out slowly to some users
https://twitter.com/ow/status/1106211516217470977
Google announced this feature in May of 2018 at it’s annual I/O developer conference. At the time it was called the AR Visual Positioning System. Which provided a layer of augmented reality over reality. Just raise your phone in front of your eyes and you are given directions of where to go. Whereas if you were to put your phone down it will revert back to the traditional map view.
It doesn’t look like something I’d use all the time and Rachel Inman the AR lead for the project told the Wall Street Journal that it’s not meant to be used as a primary navigation tool. Rather intended to be put to use when looking for a difficult to find specific road.
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The Apple March 25th Streaming Event which many believe to be the birth of a long awaited video service. Which will be of a streaming service of some sort. However it may not be the typical Netflix type of subscription video service. But something else entirely different.
If rumours are to be believed it may be an enhanced version of the iTunes store and associated Tv app for the iPhone/iPad. The event is said to be more of an update to an already established service than the birth of a new one. The new updated platform will hold all of Apple’s Originals and the iTunes transactional video on demand service (movies, tv shows). Furthermore it will aggregate a broad range of third party tv and OTT video services. So things like HBO and of Showtime.
Strategy
The new service will not be available to non-Apple devices. But Apple is also opening iTunes video content for viewing on non Apple devices via Airplay 2, on third party smart Tv’s. Apple make more money via third party services than it does selling movies and tv shows through iTunes. According to Ovum, iTunes global market share fell from 70% in 2011 to 22% in 2018! Yet it’s share in global retail OTT video revenue share it’s increased from 5% in 2016 to 10% in 2018.
It appears like Apple’s aim would be to get people back into iTunes. With the help from their Apple Originals videos. According to Ovum, the Originals service will also be free to Apple device owners, the content may also be already pre installed in the new app! Consequently once people are using iTunes, Apple will encourage users to browse their TVOD service and to sign up for the third party streaming services.
Apple will look to take all the best bits from Netflix/Amazon and incorporate them into their service. For example the high end productions from Netflix (Apple Originals) aggregation of third-party services (such as Amazon Prime Channels) and the curation of the TVOD service (Amazon). With Apple’s closed wall ecosystem and a 600million Apple device user base and what you’d expect to be a user friendly interface, Apple may be in a strong position.
The Future
According to Ovum, hybrid services that the one Apple is rumoured to be launching will take 33% of subscription market share by 2023. While Netflix’s global market share will stabilise around the 20% mark and Amazon’s will slightly increase to 12%.
Apple look to be placing their bets on rather than building a rival to Netflix. To reimagine TV while incorporating the best of Netflix. It seems as though Apple will move into this strategy in to the 2020’s. With a TV world whereby consumers can build their own entertainment package from multiple on-demand services and linear channel services. Plus AVOD where it charges consumers a subscription for access while also carrying advertising. While 2010’s belonged to Netflix and streaming the forthcoming years may look very different.
Figure 1: Netflix, Amazon and other services in the USA, 2018-2023 (in millions)
Source: Ovum
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First of all, as gadget lovers we all want the latest and greatest phone that’s out every year. While that may be the Samsung Galaxy S10 or the Apple phone out later on this year. The phone’s available on offer are getting dearer and dearer though. www.CompareMyMobile.com, have listed ways in which give us, the punters the best way to save some cash when buying new phones. Looking at the best contract or the best solution when trading in phones. Furthermore they’ll look at the best deals in buying and selling phones and sim only options.
Rob Baillie’s Tips
If you want the new Samsung Galaxy S10 or are waiting for the Galaxt Fold, CompareMyMobile.com will have the best solution for you. While, phones are getting dearer and they want to help.
“This was an interesting gamble for Samsung. The rush to seize the spotlight ahead of the biggest mobile event of the year meant they risked splitting the interest – deflecting buyers away from a very impressive S10 flagship handset, and towards the technically flashy, futuristic Fold device, that is at a price point which it can’t really back up yet in terms of proving value, that said sales are looking strong suggesting their new model does enough to get people upgrading.
The good news is that recycling prices have held steady in the aftermath of the launch, despite older phones typically declining in value when a new model is launched. In the four days leading up to the launch the average Samsung device trade in value was £70.66, and the four days after it was £70.78 with the average S9 losing less than £1 off the best price in the period before” Rob Baillie, mobile expert at www.comparemymobile.com
Not so Smart
Rob even gave some advice for those not looking to have all the latest gizmo’s:
“If you’re not yet ready to make that kind of investment, there are some fantastic phones on the market at the moment that won’t cost you thousands but also a lot of competing messages. The average consumer is likely to be lost in jargon-heavy white noise – do they need 5G? Do they need a bigger screen? Do they need a smaller screen? – when what they really want is a stable phone with a good performance and battery life. The market is about to be flooded with options and the risk is it will simply leave consumers with analysis paralysis, choosing to make no choice at the risk of making the wrong one. This is why we have rounded up the best options on the market.” Rob Baillie, mobile expert at www.comparemymobile.com
Trade In’s
To save some cash you can unlock your mobile at no additional cost to you once you are out of contract. So, all you have to do is phone your provider. Consequently, you can sell it to a much wider market this way. Furthermore you can get an additional 10% on what you would’ve received if you want to trade it in! Also, see below for a look at what you can be entitled to:
Device
Working
Samsung Galaxy S6 32GB
£ 73.00
Samsung Galaxy S8 64GB
£ 220.10
Samsung Galaxy S7 32GB
£ 121.00
Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge 32GB
£ 123.10
Samsung Galaxy S9 64GB
£ 300.26
Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge 32GB
£ 95.00
Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus 64GB
£ 248.20
Samsung Galaxy S8 64GB
£ 203.00
Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus 64GB
£ 280.20
Samsung Galaxy S5 16GB
£ 36.00
Samsung Galaxy S9 64GB
£ 300
Apple iPhone 6 16GB
£ 85.00
Apple iPhone 7 32GB
£ 178.10
Apple iPhone 8 64GB
£ 321.10
Apple iPhone X 64GB
£ 476.10
Apple iPhone XS 64GB
£ 645.00
Rob Baillie’s Picks
SO YOU’RE LOOKING TO SAVE MONEY:
BUY: A Samsung Galaxy s10e 128GB on O2 via e2save , with £190 upfront cost, 4GB of data and unlimited minutes and texts
Monthly price: £29
SELL: Samsung Galaxy S8 64GB for £220.10
NEW EQUIVALENT MONTHLY PRICE: No upfront cost and £27.75 per month
GO BIG:
BUY: Galaxy S10 plus with 128GB of memory on ee via Metrophone with no upfront cost and a mighty 60GB of data
Extras: unlimited minutes and texts + £25 auto-cashback
Monthly price: £58.00
SELL: Galaxy S9 Plus 64GB for £280.20
NEW EQUIVALENT MONTHLY PRICE: £45.28
YET WHO NOT GO CLASSIC:
BUY: Galaxy S10 128GB on EE via Buymobile.net with 50GB of data
Extras: unlimited minutes and texts
Monthly price: £43 + £99 for the handset
SELL: Galaxy S9 64GB for £300
NEW EQUIVALENT MONTHLY PRICE: No upfront cost and £34.62 a month
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When we think of smart home tech we think of the Apple’s, the Amazon’s, the Phillips’ of the world. When we say to you flat packed furniture the company that springs to mind is IKEA. IKEA smart home invasion is coming your way in 2019.
However, that soon may change in 2019, with IKEA set to become a major player in the smart home market. Wired are reporting that by playing to it’s strengths, not only in brick and mortar stores. One can assume that their displays is the perfect opportunity to show off how the tech works, before a customer buys it. But, furthermore by building inline sales and partnerships with the big boys in Sonos, Apple and Xiaomi.
Weapons in their arsenal
IKEA already have smart home kit in their Arsenal, with smart home light bulbs (TRÅDFRI) and smart electrical outlets (KADRILJ and FYRTUR) both systems are low cost and near invisible tech. They both work manually as you’d expect and automated controls. Not only that, but they also work within the main ecosystems of the three big players within this market. The Google Assistant, Amazon’s Alexa and Apple’s HomeKit. If IKEA are smart enough they could put smart home tech into all aspects of the home, be that kitchen gadgets, home entertainment or garden accessories.
As you would expect IKEA are implementing the same DIY aspect of their furniture into their smart home tech.
“It is as simple to install KADRILJ and FYRTUR as all our other blinds….You can even change from an old HOPPVALS or SKOGSKLÖVER to this one, using the same bracket. This means that the customers can easily install the smart blinds themselves, a unique IKEA property.” Lena Engman, business leader home textiles at IKEA
Wired are reporting that Björn Block, business leader of IKEA Home Smart confirms that we will see more smart products in 2019. This smart home push begins with the smart blinds that are releasing in ‘some markets’. The highest profile product will be a smart speaker: SYMFONISK, this will be in collaboration with Sonos. Which, consequently, is part of a long-term Future Home Sound Project.
SYMFONISK was first teased in June last year and is expected to hit stores ‘mid to end of the year’. The smart speaker was designed to fit in to various pieces of IKEA furniture. Which not only makes sense in the home of customers but even easier for the retail powerhouse to show off it within their stores.
Will this foray into the Smart Home market dent the grip that the big boys have on it? Will people take IKEA seriously in the tech world? Only time will tell, but if done right IKEA have a great outlook on things, after all, we all buy our flat packed furniture from there, why not our smart home tech if it were integrated perfectly?
For a more extensive look at how IKEA are taking on the smart home market please click here to check out WIRED’s deep dive look at IKEA’s Smart Home Invasion.
