Microsoft has launched a new ad titled “Less talking, more doing” targeting Apple’s iPad–using Siri’s own voice to verbalize what the iPad ‘can’t do’ when next to it its Windows 8 competitor. Check it out below:

The 32 second ad highlights how the iPad does not have real-time widgets, multitasking support within apps and lacks Powerpoint. The kicker at the end throws in price points where a 64GB iPad costs $699 compared to $449 for a 64GB Asus VivoTab Smart tablet.

It’s interesting how Microsoft is touting other tablets from its hardware partners instead of its Surface tablets, which have had lacklustre sales–less than 2 million. The Surface Pro starts at $899 with half the battery life of the Surface RT and was also formerly criticized for having the OS take up too much free space, as advertised 64GB models only had 23GB of usable storage according to the company.

What do you think? Maybe Microsoft should stick to showing off the Surface as a skateboard?

[via The Verge]

Microsoft Windows 8 Tablet Ad Thrashes the iPad Using Siri [VIDEO] is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

If you have been holding out for the Apple smart watch, the latest research report from KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo (as noted by MacRumors) believes the ‘iWatch’ will debut in mid-2014, rather than this year. The reason for the said delay is due to a possible lack of resources Apple may have to develop its smart watch version of iOS:

Apple may not have adequate resources to develop an iWatch version of iOS because it may require big changes to iPhone and iPad iOS this year. In addition, wearable device components aren’t mature. For these reasons, we think mass production of the iWatch is more likely to begin in 2H14, not 2H13 as the market speculates.

As for iWatch hardware details, Kuo predicts a display size of 1.5 to 2 inches, but also believes Apple will use technology (GF2 touch technology and application processor) from its iPod nano to implement into the watch based on their similar physical and computing abilities; the watch is also believed to focus on biometrics, which should increase security and help expand the growth of health apps.

Kuo’s reports have been accurate in the past in regards to Apple’s product road maps, and if this report follows suit we may not see an iWatch until next year. Wearable computing appears to be the latest trend, as watches such as the Pebble have exploded in popularity while head gear such as Google Glass looks to change the way we stay connected.

Just a couple days ago a report claimed Apple had allegedly sent a trial batch of 1000 watches to Foxconn for testing, while a related rumour said Apple had ordered 1.5-inch OLED displays with one-glass-touch sensors from RiTdisplay.

Apple ‘iWatch’ Seen to Launch in 2014 with iPod Nano Touch Technology is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

OtterBox today has announced it has acquired San Diego-based accessory maker, LifeProof. The former will begin to integrate LifeProof products into its line up over the next month. OtterBox CEO Brian Thomas said the following:

“The joining of OtterBox and LifeProof is a way to combine two great brands and provide customers with even more great products, services and choices for smartphone accessories,”

OtterBox is essentially nabbing up a competitor here, as LifeProof made similar cases that offers protection for iOS devices and other electronics. No financial terms of the deal were disclosed, but LifeProof’s 250 employees now join the OtterBox family (which sits at 650 employees worldwide) and remain in San Diego. Congrats to the LifeProof team.

Last November, OtterBox acquired Wrapsol, a protective film company that also makes protection for iPhones, iPads and more.

Yesterday, we posted about some huge savings on OtterBox iPhone and iPad cases over at Amazon.ca.

OtterBox Acquires Rival Accessory Maker LifeProof is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

As the blog post reports, you won’t need to type any letters into the search field. You’ll just tap the microphone and speak as you do now with Google Now, using the same omnibox you currently see in the app.

The update will also enable the app to reload web pages faster, a result of a more efficient cache use in the event of a slow network. But they didn’t stop there! Another welcome feature will be the option to open links in Chrome and return to the app with a single tap.

Although we don’t have exact information as to when will the update will land, both Yusuf Ozuysal and Milan Broum who sign the blog post say it should be available soon in the App Store.

Download Chrome [App Store link]

Chrome for iOS Soon to Get Voice Search is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

A passionate Canadian indie iOS developer, Adam Bell Adam Bell, has got his hands on Google Glass himself, and by taking advantage of Google’s Glass Mirror API (which is essentially a REST API) and “abusing” the iOS notifications, he managed to forward all iOS notifications from iOS to Glass (via 9to5Mac).

What this means is Google Glass users will get the benefit of receiving the system-wide notification — Facebook, Instagram, iMessage etc. — on their Glass, and take their iPhone out to respond to it.

As you can see from the video below, the tweak is working well, despite being in early stages only. Also, the tweak is currently available for jailbroken devices, due to the limitations of iOS. Bell says he will upload the tweak to GitHub shortly and eventually release a fully developed jailbreak tweak in Cydia.

Developer Hack Sends iOS Notifications to Google Glass [VIDEO] is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

According to Forbes’ sources, Gartenberg will report directly to Apple’s head of global marketing, Phil Schiller.

Gartenberg’s name will sound familiar for those who read Computerworld, Engadget, Slashgear and Macworld. He has written columns for the aforementioned technology blogs.

However, his departure has a precedent: back in February 2007 he joined Microsoft for a job he described as “to act as a bridge between Microsoft and end users.” But the euphoria last only three weeks, so he resumed his former job at Jupiter Research in March of 2007.

According to his blog, he was ranked by TechnoBabble as among the top 50 most influential analyst bloggers. He is the only analyst ranked in the top ten of both most influential as well as most engaging analyst categories on Twitter, according to Edelman’s TweetLevel.

Apple Hires Tech Analyst Michael Gartenberg, Joins Marketing Team is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

Accoridng to the official blog post, Zite will now gray out articles that have already been read and make publications’ titles appear in a ‘topic drawer’. “We wanted to give people enough of what Google Reader offered that they could plausibly transition,” Zite CTO Mike Klaas said. The updated Zite app, which was originally created to fix the flaws found in Google Reader, uses preferences and the articles users tend to read in order to get smarter and surface new content they may like.

It’s been a few months since our last iOS release, so we’ve got plenty to announce with the advent of Zite 2.3:

• We’ve made some changes to the product to serve Google Reader customers without straying from the core philosophy of Zite
• Zite welcomes new publishers into the fold
• New users will find their onboarding process streamlined
• Zite’s power is in our ability to personalize news to your tastes and interests and we’ve made a number of changes to our core algorithm that will further allow you to discover great content

The seven new publishers added to Zite are Atlantic Media (The Atlantic and Quartz), Business Insider, Fast Company, GigaOM, Salon, SAY Media (Remodelista and ReadWrite) and Serious Eats.

Download Zite 2.3 For iPhone, iPod touch & iPad [Direct Link]

Zite 2.3 For iOS Brings New Publishing Partners & Google Reader-like Features is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

Pearson, Penguin’s parent publisher who recently settled with EU authorities as well, has today agreed to pay $75 million as well as additional costs, in order to bring an end to all antitrust claims relating to eBook pricing in the US. Simon & Schuster, Hachette Book Group and HarperCollins had previously agreed to settle for around the $70m mark. The Attorney General also confirmed the settlement earlier today, saying that the investigations and resulting litigation has recovered $164 million in the region so far.

“Consumers are entitled to a fair, open and competitive marketplace,” says Attorney General Jepsen. “This agreement is yet another step toward providing restitution to those consumers who were harmed by alleged price-fixing within the eBook market and will further ensure that, going forward, consumers benefit from fair competition in the sale of eBooks.”

Meanwhile, Apple continues to maintain its stance that Apple entering the e-book market has helped the overall market more than it hurt it.

Penguin Settles Ebook Price Fixing Case For $75 Million Ahead Of Apple’s Trial is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

In an interview with Bloomberg, BlackBerry founder Mike Lazaridis and former co-CEO believes iPhone users will embrace the upcoming BBM iOS app with open arms, speaking at the Bloomberg Canada Economic Summit in Toronto.:

BlackBerry founder Mike Lazaridis said he’s confident that users of iPhones and other devices will embrace the company’s BlackBerry Messenger platform, which will be offered on rival phones later this year.

“BBM is by far the most compelling wireless experience and wireless social-networking environment,”

Lazaridis and fellow co-CEO Jim Balsillie stepped down from the company last January.

BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) was previously the crown jewel of the company, as the proprietary messaging app during the height of its popularity had its users proudly and loudly exchanging their “PINs” with fellow enthusiasts on social networks and gatherings.

But as the company declined for failing to innovate and acknowledge rival smartphones such as the iPhone (must watch video) and other Android offerings, cross platform third party alternatives such as WhatsApp have become a viable alternative. Recent launches of the Z10 and Q10 models based on a new operating system aim to make BlackBerry relevant again.

BlackBerry announced BBM for iOS will launch this summer just over a week ago, as detailed at their annual BlackBerry Live conference.

Are you excited for BBM on your iPhone? The number one problem would be trying to find friends and family that still use a BlackBerry.

BlackBerry Founder Says iPhone Users Will Embrace BBM is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource

The two Siri patents are US Patent No. 8,086,604 and US Patent No. 6,847,959 relating to a “universal interface for retrieval of information in a computer system.”

Apple asserted the ’604 and ’959 patents against the Android Quick Search Box, but with the launch of Google Now, it appears that the company wants to update its infringement claims accordingly.

To further complicate matters, Apple’s infringement analysis of the ’604 and ’959 patents focuses on Google functionality that Samsung incorporates into its devices. For example, in its original contentions, Apple identified Google’s Quick Search Box found on the accused Samsung phones as satisfying the limitations of the ’604 and the ’959 patents. Since Apple initially served those infringement contentions, however, Google released the Google Now search application, which in some instances, replaces the Quick Search Box, but incorporates the relevant ’604 and ’959 patented functionality.

The trial is scheduled for next spring.

Apple Says Google Now, Galaxy S4 Violates Siri Patents is a post from: iPhone in Canada Blog - Canada's #1 iPhone Resource