12 June 2012

iOS 6 beta in the Singaporean eyes

Hi guys! So basically after finally getting iOS6 up on my new iPad, i have been playing around with it for pretty much the entire day (After I got 3 hours of sleep at least, thank god Im on leave today). So here I am now at the end of the day with some of my take backs from playing around with it. This might even prove more useful to Singaporeans since I will try to make my comments based on how it will affect us. Click on!

How to get iOS6 on your device

Tempted to get your hands on iOS 6 after seeing all the changes? I know I am. (In the end haven't slept and just stayed up all the way working on it). However I faced some problems which kinda made me waste a few hours. So learn from my mistakes and don't mess up! Click on to find out how to install iOS6 beta on your selected iOS device.

Retina MacBook Pro updated in Apple Store

Decided to just point this out since it appeared before bed. The new MacBook Pro has been updated into the Apple Store. To get more info, you can go to the Apple Store and check it out directly. For Singaporeans, prices starts at $2988SGD, ouch.

Even more of an additional note, MacBook Airs has quietly had a price increase to $1388 for the cheapest model (Previously $1288). Guess you are basically paying for the spec bump. Going by the info on the Mac Compare page, here is a basic list of some of the upgrades for a typical MacBook Air.
Click on!

WWDC updates gathered from various sites

Here are just some of the sites I am gathering info from, feel free to check out on my opinions of what will be announced tonight at the same time!

Click on for more. If I have any live readers lol, keep refreshing!

11 June 2012

WWDC2012 is finally here!

And WWDC2012 is finally coming soon! In about 3 hours time (1am Singapore Time, apologies I previously put 2am because i forgot to check about daylight savings), Tim Cook will be going up on that stage to bring us the new cool item into the Apple World!

So what do we know so far? Or at least whats rumored / confirmed. Here are some of the things expected to be shown today.

iOS6! 
Even though I thought this year it would be pushed back to be released with the next iPhone, guess they decided to go ahead with the annual tradition of pushing for the new iOS in June. This has been 100% confirmed with banners being put up at the event hall.

New Stock Apps!


iOS6 will probably come together with changes with some changes to the stock apple apps or even new ones, should tradition hold true. Apple's new Maps app perhaps? Or maybe a new Organizer app rumored to be released tonight?

FaceBook integration!
A function several users have been crying out for FaceBook integration in iOS, and with recent Tim Cook's interview at AllThingsD, Tim Cook has told us to "Stay Tuned". Will it finally be here? Well, stay tuned!

Siri on the iPad!
Another thing that had people scratching their heads wondering why it did not come with their new iPads, Siri! I personally don't really use it that much, but is 8 months enough time for Siri to finally be done with its 'beta' status and be released in the other devices aside from 4S? Hmmm...

iPhone 5???

Another thing which some people are still hoping for, the new iPhone / iPhone 5! As before, I don't think this will appear tonight, but some videos have come in showing a new iPhone's back cover in with new port (minus the 30pin port), moved audio jack position, elongated body of 4 inches long and several other changes. Does that mean it will appear tonight? Chances are low, but, who knows?

Thats it for the iOS segment of things. Of course that won't be everything, I do expect some minor updates, such as iCloud enhancements (finally allowing a stock folder to be created in your phone like dropbox anyone?) and other app enhancements, but probably not the focus for tonight. Moving on to Macs!

New MacBooks!
A specs sheet has been leaked out, showing some general details of incoming MacBooks, such as 15 inch retina MacBook Pros among others, all in together with a price list. To get a general idea of what the terms mean, you can check out 9to5Mac's site. In my opinion, this is definitely on the cards for tonight's announcement.

Mountain Lion finally out!


Several websites believe that Mountain Lion will be out today, which following trends of 2009 and 2011's WWDC, should be pretty true. This is probably a given actually, considering how Apple has been seeding developers with beta versions over the last few months, and even providing a release date for end summer 2012. (kinda like this month lol?) As long as the new MacBooks are announced today without any changes, this should be confirmed.

Last but not least, Apple TV updates together with iTV?
Updates with probably be made to the Apple TV software together with the new iOS. Hopefully it addresses some complains about how users find it unintuitive. Personally I just use it to Airplay my iPhone / iPad so it doesn't really concern me.


Whats really on everyone's mind will be whether Apple will finally release its own TV today? Think this has already been discussed by too many people so shall not touch too much on it. As before, my opinion is, not yet, way too soon. I would expect more towards end of this year or maybe even next year. Though if some analysts are right, what is so special about Apple's version of the TV will be more on its OS and apps, rather then the screen. So technically speaking, entirely possible to be done since the technology is obviously all there. Its more towards whether they are ready to release it. Considering all the hoohah from the iPad's being mailed all across the world and the lack of it so far, well. Totally not going to happen. Better luck in October!


And thats about it for this post. I have finally done this post with 1.5 hours to go to the conference. Do check out this blog after the conference to see what was released!

07 June 2012

PC Show is here!

And the PC show is here! This is gonna be a short post because I am at the office. For anyone interested in looking out for hot deals, check out Bootstrike's website, where he is uploading all the leaflets they are giving out at the PC show, so you can know about the deals even while you are in the office. Thats what I am doing now LOL.

So what are you waiting for?

Personally, I am looking for a bluetooth speaker with speakerphone capabilities. Something like the Jawbone Jambox (Dont know what is that? You should google and check it out), but hopefully on the cheaper side since I am more interested to use it as a speakerphone rather then playing music so I can work with something slightly lousier. Any recommendations?

04 June 2012

Singtel bringing in 4G plans. Excitement? NO!



Singtel has just launched a 4G media event where they have officially launched their 4G data plans. So we finally have 4G in Singapore! Does that mean we should all start buying the new iPads and sign up with Singtel? NO! Since Singtel kinda just used a different frequency from the iPads (Basically works with the Androids LTE phones only), this isn't really anything to be excited about. Though honestly even if it were iPad friendly, I still won't be excited. Here's why...


Flexi Lite
Flexi Value
Flexi Plus
Flexi Premium
Monthly subscription
$39.90
$59.90
$99.90
$205
Local outgoing minutes
100
200
500
2000
Local SMS
800
(previously 550)
900
(previously 650)
1000
(previously 700)
2500
(previously 2000)
Local data bundle
(previously 12GB)
2GB
3GB
4GB
12GB
Excess usage and data cap
(previously $2.76/MB)
$5.35/GB (w GST) for 3G subscribers. Applicable to 4G subscribers during promotion from 1 July to 31 Dec 2012.

$10.70/GB (w GST) from 1 Jan 2013 for 4G subscribers.



So, aside from our 'supposedly' faster 4G data speeds, we got extra local useless SMSes and extremely nerf-ed data bundles, woohoo! And why do I say supposedly faster? Thats because their "typical download speeds between 3.4Mbps and 12Mbps" is pretty much still slower then the standard of HSPA+ promised since ages ago, which is 3G levels. 

And of course adding much to local SMSes when everyone is pretty much just using Whatsapp (which is why you would even be in the category of people interested in 4G anyway), is really just adding insult to injury. Lets not even get started on the data bundles which is now less then 20% of the original amount for the cheapest plan.

Personally the only good thing i see out of this is that they are finally starting to count excess data in GB instead of the previous MB, making excess data charges a lot less crazy. So if you use android phones, feel free to get excited about 4G. Personally, even if they had made this available for the iPad's frequency, i doubt i will be changing anytime soon...


29 May 2012

WWDC for June is set!



Woohoo! WWDC is coming soon! And as you would expect, a keynote has been set and confirmed for 11 June 2012, set at 10am Pacific Time (GMT -08:00). That is 1am Singapore time on 12 June 2012 if you intend to catch it like I do. There is even an app that you can download to obtain the schedule of WWDC2012 if you are interested in what goes on.

WWDC 2012 (USA)

So what does this mean? Or rather, what is in store for us on that day? Here are some possibilities.

1. A new iPhone???

9to5Mac reports on a new iPhone case part which was discovered to be sold by China parts supplier. Personally, i doubt this will happen so soon, but there is of course still that slight chance.

2. iOS 6!
Boy Genius Report has released exclusive images of a new maps app for iOS 6, which utilizes 3D mapping, which will likely replace the current Google Maps. Again, I think this is something abit too early and only due to be released together with the new iPhone.

3. MacBook Pro cum Air and iMac updates

Definitely what seems to be the most likely thing to be announced come June 11. There are a few different versions of what is expected on that day. Some say that we will get 15 inch ivy bridge MacBook pros, which will be at a half way point in size between the pro and air while providing retina display, which seems very possible. Chances are they will also remove the optical disks so as to save space, just to allow their pros reach the air sizes.

4. iScreen / iTV / iHub or whatever Apple choses to name it
And last but not least, something which has been discussed and suggested that may appear anytime. The proposed iTV. Or iScreen. Or iHub. Whatever they choose to name it. This one is another wild card, with no real info on when is it exactly coming. And of course with that means June being a viable possibility. With not much info on what to expect from this one, it is anyone's guess when it appears. Maybe a Steve Job's style "One More Thing" to finally come from Tim Cook?

And thats about all the things which you can look out for in a nutshell, hope that the info was useful!


26 May 2012

Absinthe 2.0 Jailbreak is out!

Hot off the press, the new jailbreak is finally out!

Here are some links that you can refer to for more info or to download, courtesy of iDownloadBlog.

Instruction page on how to jailbreak with a Mac
Instruction page on how to jailbreak with a Windows PC
Download page for Windows and Mac (Scroll down to Absinthe 2.0)

Also for those who have already jailbreak-ed to a tethered version previous and want to convert to untethered, you can refer to this link to use the Rocky Racoon 5.1.1 Untether package

Enjoy peeps! Especially for those new iPad users (me included), this is something you have been waiting for~

24 May 2012

Multiple Updates

Hi guys, really sorry for the lack in blog posts last few days. Basically been busy with work so haven't even had much chance to take out my MacBook which I always use to blog. Things should improve by late June. In the mean time, I have quite a few things up so I am going to just summarize up the post.

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Your new Jailbreak tweak of the week, Unfold



Unfold is one of those previously cool concept ideas which became a real tweak you can get from the BigBoss repo, so yes, strictly for jail breakers. What it does is replace your slide to unlock with a slide to unfold. Really a cosmetic tweak which looks pretty good so you might want to try it out, especially since it is free. Just take note it only works on iPhones for now.

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Jailbreak coming in soon!

According to news from most iOS news sites, the next jailbreak, Absinthe 2.0, is coming in the next couple of days and will support most devices up till 5.1.1. In fact, especially for people using the new iPad, you should especially update it till 5.1.1, since it apparently will not work for previous versions. The same goes for all A5 devices (Which means iPhone 4S, iPad 2 and the new iPad) For more info, you can check out iDownloadBlog or CultofMac posts.

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Kickstarter love

CordLite for lighted iPhone cables so that you can plug them in the dark. Really looks like a cool idea, though abit pricey at $30USD (Add in another $10USD for Singaporeans and it really hurts) Think its exactly something which you might need/add to your cool factor? Go to their funding page here.

 Une Bobine (Weird name I know) gives you an iPhone cable combined in together with one of those memory wire alike kinda things. Put together, you get a bendable iPhone cable that is still stiff enough to maintain in a position that you want to. That means you get to have an iPhone stand that you get to shift around however you want, yet continue charging at the same time. At $25USD with free worldwide shipping, it looks pretty worth it. Check it out here.

And last but not least, you guys remember Pebble? It has finally ended at a cool sum of $10 million dollars funding and a promise for an update to bluetooth 4.0. It has even confirmed a collaboration with Twine, which is basically another Kickstarter sensor filled device that notifies you of various things through motion sensors, humidity sensors etc. To read up more about the collaboration or about Twine, you can look at their Twine Blog here.

And thats about it from me for now. Hopefully I will have more time soon for my next post~