Apple grabbing a bite of the apple

They claimed it would happen, but gamers were apprehensive.

Slowly but surely however, it appears that Apple are beginning to corner the handheld gaming market.

Is that a gadget in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?

I can appreciate a good jacket.

A versatile piece of clothing that not only covers you up in the cold but also adds style to your outfit. Practical AND aesthetic, a perfect balance!

That’s usually the case with well-made jackets, but sometimes that balance is tipped towards one side – such as with this ‘jacket’ that I saw last night:

WTF?!

By travel clothing specialists Scottevest, the Carry-On Coat is designed to hold all your gadgets and some other essentials (such as a passport, clothes, water and shampoo) in one… jacket as you travel around, minimising carry-on and check-in luggage.

Now maybe this is just me, but when your jacket comes with an accompanying ‘pocket map’ I think it is taking things a bit too far.

This jacket is decked out with multiple pockets specially designed for certain tech toys (a ‘pocket’ for an iPad, pockets with special clear-through sections so you can control your iPod/iPhone) and even has it’s own Personal Area Network built-in. A weight management system and “NoBulge Pocket Design” minimises any awkwardness of carrying your shirt and shoes in your pockets.

Never mind the issues you’ll inevitably face when you walk through airport scanners and so on, this thing just plainly makes you look like a “d-bag” as so eloquently put by a commenter on Engadget.

But to some extent, I do understand where the need for such an item comes from. The marriage of tech and fashion is one that many companies strive to achieve.

And consequently, many of us fall prey to it – cases for our phones, bags for our laptops… but it’s not necessarily a bad thing when in good taste.

Now that's a nice looking DS case

Being connected is a right, not a privilege

Yesterday (or the day before, I don’t really remember) the BBC reported that Finland had become the first country in the world to make broadband a legal right for each citizen.

From the 1st of this month, people in Finland have the right to a 1Mbps connection, with an aim for each person to have access to a 100Mbps broadband line by 2015.

This means that telecommunication companies would have to offer at minimum 1Mbps broadband connections to customers.

In explaining the decision, Finland’s communication minister Suvi Linden said this:

“We considered the role of the internet in Finns everyday life. Internet services are no longer just for entertainment.”

I’m feeling fairly lazy (had a night out last night, zzz) so please pardon the lower quality of writing and shorter length, but I’ll just say a few words on this.

Hopefully this decision paves the trail for other countries to follow. I especially hope that Australia takes note – our broadband infrastructure s horribly behind compared to our Asian friends, for one…

It also touches on how the Internet has now become a part of our lives. It is integrated into our routine – wake up in the morning and check your e-mails and news online. Look up movie times, public transport timetables. Talk to relatives overseas. Even do your shopping.

We’re only just beginning to really tap into using the internet to the best of its ability as a communication platform. The possible implications of Finland’s decision are big, especially for news. I honestly hope things go well for them, and I look forward to some decent broadband back here at home in a few years.

Not looking like the Apple of my eye

It has been a few days since the new iPhone 4 was released to the world. While many are calling it the best smartphone out on the market at the moment, the release has not been without a few bumps in the road – one fairly large bump being reception issues, namely calls dropping out due to touching the lower part of the left side of the iPhone (as the metal sides of the iPhone now act as antennas).

One iPhone owner decided to e-mail the head man in charge of Apple – Steve Jobs – regarding this issue, only to get a blunt reply:

Thanks for the great advice, Mr Steve Jobs

This doesn’t seem to be an isolated issue, with many users going to Apple stores and asking representatives for help.

A case for the phone or even something that covers just the sides of the phone (something that Apple themselves have released alongside the iPhone 4 – called a Bumper) would allay the issue.

and that's worth $30 USD

But users looking for a quick fix for what can essentially be seen as a design fault will not get a free Bumper, according to documents distributed to retail stores – which basically tell salespeople to not promise customers a free Bumper.

Apparently iPhone users have been holding their mobile phones incorrectly this whole time, as the document instructs that sales reps tell customers to just hold the phone in a way to avoid touching the problem area. Or in other worlds, tell people what Steve Jobs said in his e-mail, except be more polite.

So for the owners of a shiny new iPhone 4, they will have to either learn to hold their mobiles in a new way, or buy some sort of case to use their phones properly.

The whole way Apple has gone about this issue frankly annoys the hell out of me. It is like they have the attitude of ‘there’s nothing wrong with the product, rather there’s something wrong with the user.’

I mean, telling us how we should hold our phone? How conceited can you get.

Don’t get me wrong, if I could afford to own an iPhone 4 with my measly uni budget I’d have one. It’s just that Apple’s response to the reception issue sort of sucks.

Fix your damn phone, or provide owners with some sort of fix in the meantime.

Much love to Engadget in this post!