Web Warp Blog

Web Warp Blog is no longer being updated

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 19 Apr 2014 08:24:00 +0000

Web Warp Blog has been retired, feel free to enjoy the archive of blog posts on this site. For new posts please head to www.dmather.com.

Categories include: Reviews, Photo Galleries and general blogposts.

iOS 7 Find My iPhone Security Loophole

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 27 Sep 2013 22:47:00 +0000

The latest iOS software for the iPhone, iOS 7, has many positive and negative new features. For those that aren't keen on pastel colours and transparent affects then iOS 7 is not you. Of greater importance though is a potential security flaw with Control Centre. Control Center is a new feature which lets you control a variety of system settings.

When using Control Centre from the lock screen you can activate Airplane mode - this prevent's Find My iPhone working if your device has been stolen.

However this device is still not usable to criminals due to iOS 7's Activation Lock:

With Activation Lock, your Apple ID and password will be required before anyone can:

Turn off Find My iPhone on your device
Erase your device
Reactivate and use your device

To avoid this is turn off Control Center for the Lock Screen from the Settings app on the iOS device.

Apple have released iOS 7.0.2 to patch a security flaw where users could gain some access to the iPhone through the Control Centre.

iOS 7 Released 18/9/13

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 18 Sep 2013 19:49:00 +0000

Today Apple have released the latest version of their mobile devices operating system, iOS 7. It is available for millions of iOS devices through the 'Software Update' page on the General section of the Settings app.

iOS 7 is completely redesigned from iOS 6, which had previously followed the UI look from each previous version of the mobile operating system. iOS 7 takes a new approach of simplicity, layering and a new colour palette. All of the Apple apps, Camera, Messages etc. are also completely redesigned.

The new design minimises intrusion and hopes to give the user the information they exactly when and where they need it. For example FaceTime is full screen, as the conversation you are having is the focus of your attention.

The redesigned Photos app looks really good. It automatically groups your photos in 'moments' based on the time and location that the photos were taken. Other changes include the Control Centre which you can pull up from the bottom of the page to turn things like bluetooth and wi-fi on and off. Also included in Control Centre is brightness controls, music controls and a torch (flashlight).

For more information see Apple's webpages: http://www.apple.com/uk/ios/

Updated YouTube app icon on iOS

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 21 Aug 2013 19:59:00 +0000

The YouTube iOS app icon has been featured on +Web Warp Blog before: YouTube and iOS6 - September 2012, it was praised for changing from an old fashioned television (not very YouTube) to a much more sensible 'YouTube' branding which everyone who has used the website will recognise:

So why is it changing to this??

The app update inlcudes: Watch a video while searching for the next one, just like picture-in-picture and Search for playlists and use the “play all” button for endless entertainment. What are your thoughts on this app icon change?

Audi R8 V10 Advert

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 12 Aug 2013 20:13:00 +0000

This has got to be one the best car adverts ever. Thanks Audi for uploading it to +YouTube!

Siri in your car

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 12 Aug 2013 18:45:00 +0000

Apple's Siri comes to selected new cars. Once the iPhone is paired the car entertainment system can be used to interact with Siri to listen to text messages and make basic enquiries.

Google Doodle Celebrates Schrödinger's Birthday

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 12 Aug 2013 11:51:00 +0000

Today's Google doodle celebrates Erwin Schrödinger's 126th Birthday. Erwin Schrödinger is most famous for his though experiment Schrödinger's Cat which explores quantum theory superposition. The cat in the box with a vile of poison which will at some point break represents a sub-atomic particle whose properties cannot be accurately predicted, only observed through measurement. The cat cannot be assumed to be alive or dead, as it may be either, so the cat is assumed to be alive and dead. Only when the box is opened is the cats fate revealed.

Now TV Box

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 01 Aug 2013 06:11:00 +0000

Now TV is a premium online video on demand service powered by Sky. As it's powered by Sky the available content will be very familiar to Sky TV's Sky Movies and Sky Sports customers. The sport packages give you access to Sky Sports with flexible pay-as-you-go packages such as a £9.99 day pass. Sky Movies is also available on monthly subscriptions.

You can get Now TV on mobile devices (iOS and Android), online through the Now TV website. To get Now TV on your TV you could use a PS3 or Xbox 360 and now the new Now TV Box.

The Now TV Box is remarkably small, less than 9cm wide. This form factor is very similar to the Apple TV. It's also very cheap, only £9.99 to purchase, including postage and packaging. The device includes access to a small range of other services including BBC iPlayer, Spotify and Demand 5.

Disappointingly for a new device, a likely a result of the low cost of the box the HDMI output is limited to 720p resolution.

For more details check out Now TV's webiste: https://shop.nowtv.com/

#vLondon - Chris Pirillo London Meetup

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 21 Jun 2013 21:05:00 +0000

So it's a typical British summer day (bright but showery) when non other than YouTube personality/Tech website creator/all round geek +Chris Pirillo decides to meet some UK fans - outside. Of course it was raining! He had flown over to the UK as a social reporter aboard British Airways UnGrounded flight from San Francisco to London Heathrow.

This gave Chris an opportunity to meet local fans in the UK and to provide fans an opportunity to meet each other. The Facebook event had over 100 attendees who said they were going, on the ground the figure of 75 was banded around a fair amount. Not bad for a vlogger/geek/tech meet up in Hyde Park with less than 48 hours notice.

The event was impromptu and unscripted, it harnessed the power of community on social media websites. Drawing together like minded individuals who may never have found each others online content, and almost certainly would never have met.

There was a lot of filming! This has created a collection of YouTube videos which show the event from almost every angle. It's a fascinating way to witness the event, even having been there in real life. Recently there was talk of crowd sourcing video at music gigs (on BBC Click). I can really see this working as it is very immersive.

Check out my video of the meet up below and be sure to check our the various other videos of the event, each with their own perspective.

OS X Mavericks Wallpaper

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 16:46:00 +0000

Apple's next desktop OS will be version 10.9, called OS X Mavericks, as announced at the recent developer conference WWDC2013. The OS will feature huge improvements on optimisation of both performance and power consumption, particularly useful for MacBook's. Other features include Maps and iBooks on your Mac, which sync with your iOS device, naturally. Improvements to other apps/workflows such as Finder and Calendar. Support for multiple displays is also improved.

If you can't wait to get your hands on the version of OS X you can at least get the default wallpaper which is below. OS X Mavericks also breaks the naming convention of recent years where Apple named Mac OS X after big cats (Cheetah, Puma, Jaguar, Panther, Tiger, Leopard, Snow Leopard, Lion and Mountain Lion).

Download the full resolution image here.

PS4 vs Xbox One - Game Sharing

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 21:42:00 +0000

Both Sony and Microsoft announced more details about their future consoles at this weeks E3 expo. One aspect which has got people talking is the different approaches that Microsoft and Sony have taken to used games.

With the PS4 title's on disc can be passed to another person, and played on their PS4, as shown in the Sony instructional video below! This video mocks Microsoft's proposed DRM (digital rights management) system which is thought to inhibit sharing of titles, even those purchased on disc...

The Xbox One may allow you to share the game with up to ten family members, reports n4g.com. But details are unclear to say the least. The DRM restrictions on the Xbox One include having to connect your Xbox One to the internet so it can communicate with the Xbox Live servers at least once every 24 hours, otherwise your games will not play! Historically there have been instances where Xbox Live has been down for days.

There are some Xbox 360 games, including Codemasters F1 2012, which separate the multiplayer license from the disc, meaning if the disc is leant or sold that the new owner has to download a licence from Xbox Live in order to play the online multiplayer feature. I'm not a fan of this policy (who would be?) and am not thrilled that Xbox One will be even more restricted.

Does the Xbox One DRM concern you? Will it sway you towards the cheaper and less restricted PS4? And since the Xbox One is not backwards compatible with Xbox 360 then Xbox 360 customers may be tempted to switch to PS4? Feel free to discuss in the comments section below!

iOS7 - First Look

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 22:36:00 +0000

Apple's WWDC2013 conference keynote did not disappoint. One of the announcements, and probably the one which will affect the most number of Apple's customers is iOS 7. Apple's mobile operating system has a brand new UI which looks great. It will be available on the iPhone 4, 4S and 5; the iPad 2, 3, 4 and Mini; iPod Touch 5th Gen.

Some of the new features such as the new music app look really good, but this post is just a quick first look of the new UI. From Apple's page: www.apple.com.

The new look is as per the rumours in some ways, simple colour palette, radical change from iOS 6. But in other ways it is just incredible. The apps apear to 'float' on a pane above the wallpaper. By tilting your device you can see 'behind' the app icons! There is a huge amount of translucency and the app icons look fantastic. Let us know what you think in the comments section below.

Microsoft Wireless Mobile Mouse 3500 - Unboxing

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 08 Jun 2013 14:36:00 +0000

Join me live on YouTube as I unbox the Wireless Mobile Mouse 3500, and give you my first impressions.

The mouse features BlueTrack technology so it glows blue from the bottom rather the familiar red. It combines optical and laser technologies. Its a great little mouse, a perfect companion for your laptop.

More information from Microsoft: Click Here

WWDC2013

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 12:16:00 +0000

Apple's World Wide Developer Conference 2013 (WWDC2013 for short) kicks off in a weeks time on June 10th in San Francisco. The 5 day conferences promises to showcase to developers the direction that Apple is taking it's world class operating systems iOS and OS X.

The Apple fan base eagerly await new of features which will need to compete with the recent updates to Google Android operating system and the latest Samsung hardware such as the Galaxy S4 and the Galaxy S4 Mini (due in July).

Many predictions include a larger screen size for mobile devices. This may be more difficult to achieve with backwards compatibility unless it's equally scaled in both directions. Apple where keen to stress on the creation of the iPhone 5 that the iPhone was the perfect width for the human hand. Based on this I would not expect a huge size increase unless they run two models at different sizes. This is a habit they have previously made with the iPod and more recently with the iPad and the iPad Mini. Much like Samsung they would then cater for more screen sizes to suit individual consumers.

The conference may even hint at new hardware releases such as a much awaited retina display iPad Mini or 3G/4G connected MacBook Air. For OS X I predict there will be even further integration with Apple's iCloud and a more 'iOS' approach to desktop computing. This has been a theme for the past couple of years.

iTunes Match may be revamped to include a streaming service to compete with Google Play All Acess, Spotify, Rdio, Bloom and Last.fm. Many rumour mills refere to this Apple services as 'iRadio' which would certainly fit nicely along side iTunes, iCould and their iDevices.

The buzz around the event is already building. See the latest tweets #WWDC2013 below!

Tweets about "#WWDC2013"

Feel free to post your predictions to comments section below.

New iPod Touch

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 30 May 2013 20:44:00 +0000

Apple have quietly switched their 16 GB iPod touch model from the iPod Touch 4th Generation to a new cut down version of the 5th Generation variant. This change has already taken affect on the US and UK Apple Store's online and will filter into retail outlets from tomorrow. This makes the iPod Touch range far more consistent as the entire range now has the iPhone 5 spec 4 inch retina display and the A5 processing chip.

The previous version, the 4th Generation also came in a 32 GB option. This has been dropped. The new 16 GB iPod Touch costs £199 in the UK, which is the same price as the outgoing 4th Gen iPod Touch with twice as much storage at 32 GB. The new version is also only available one colour - a black facia with silver back. Previously the iPod Touch was very similar to the iPhone with white and black options or though they had a mirrored back as per previous versions too.

A comparison of the now discontinued iPod Touch 4th Generation and the current iPod Touch range, featuring the new 16 GB model, is shown below.

This is an interestingly timed change as we are only weeks away from Apple's WWDC 2013 conference. This shows a firm commitment to the 4 inch retina display with 6 rows of apps as all of the current iPod Touch's have now moved away from the 3.5 inch retina display which is still available on the iPhone 4 and the 4S which are both current models for sale in addition to the iPhone 5.

Gmail's New Inbox

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 29 May 2013 22:41:00 +0000

Google recognise that these days peoples Gmail inboxes are bombarded with loads of emails. They created Priority Inbox in 2010 (info here) but now it's time for another inbox revolution. This time they are calling it Gmails 'new inbox'.

The basic principle is a set of customisable tabs for managing emails which are Updates, Offers, Social or, and most importantly, Primary. The emails are filtered automatically. Here's an image of the new layout from Gmail's blogger page.

Here's a description of the new feature on Google's website: click here. And below is a promo video for the service. Gmail users should get this automatically added to their account in the coming weeks however from Gmail's blogger page:

If you'd like to try out the new inbox on Desktop sooner, keep an eye on the gear menu and select Configure inbox when it appears in the Settings options.

Copy enters the online storage fray

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 17 May 2013 21:08:00 +0000

So what do you look for in an online storage solution? If the answer is an unlimited referral scheme then 'Copy' is a new service which you will love. It's a direct competitor of Dropbox, and their service is very familiar to Dropbox users. Just like Dropbox you can access your data via mobile apps and securely share specific files or folders with other users.

Unlike Dropbox the referral scheme gives you 5 GB instead of 500 MB and it isn't caped to 32 GB but is unlimited. At time of writing +Chris Pirillo has 3.5 TB from collecting a load of 5 GB referral bonuses!

Get a Copy account today with a bonus of 5 GB: https://copy.com?r=0zuL03

Or try Dropbox and get a bonus of 500 MB: http://db.tt/iTCsG6x

Should Dropbox, Box.net or Mega be worried about losing market share to Copy? Maybe it's best not to worry and just to take full advantage of Copy's generous offer!

The New Google+

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 15 May 2013 21:58:00 +0000

Google's developer conference started today and with it came a raft of updates from Google about various products and services which they offer. Google+ has received a complete redesign, with a slick, stylish and more intelligent website. You can see how great the site looks for yourself by clicking here, as it's up and running already. The pages themselves, such as Web Warp Blog's page are surprisingly similar in layout to Facebook pages.

The new page and in built intelligence is demonstrated in this Google promotional video:

What do you think of the new Google+? Feel free to comment below using our new Google+ powered commenting system!

Boeing 787 Dreamliner

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 11 May 2013 14:46:00 +0000

The 787 Dreamliner, Boeings latest passenger jet, has suffered from technical difficulties which have lead to delays. Boeing has moved past these problems now and are increasing the speed of their production, reports the Los Angeles Times. This is exciting news as the 787 is one of two planes (the other being the Airbus A380) which are set to increase luxury and space on long haul flights.

The plane was demonstrated at Farnborough Air Show last year, and pushed to the extreme! This YouTube video below shows you how the 787 will not be flown with passengers on board!

iSocial Network

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 01 May 2013 23:28:00 +0000

Could Apple be looking to create a social network? Apple created computers for people. Then they created portable music devices which became iconic with digital music. They added a set of touch screen devices which would of seemed science fiction only a decade ago.

Apple contribute to a huge amount of our technological lives. Even 'non-Apple' users enjoy the latest movie trailers which are often distributed by Apple using Quicktime and many Windows users organise their music with iTunes. But where next for this technological giant. A sceptic will say that the bubble will eventually burst and Apple's fortune will change. It's speculated that their glory days are over following the death of Steve Jobs and the increasing strength of the competition in the mobile device markets. But more optimistic folk may point out that Apple never stay still and that new products and services will come online to fuel the frenzy associated with Apple fan boys.

They already have numerous services wrapped up under the iCloud brand. These include email, calendar, notes, to do lists etc. This is similar to Google who have a primary focus on web services and of course launched Google+ as a (second) attempt to compete with social networking sites such as Facebook. Their previous service, Buzz, was far from successful. So would Apple try to create a social network to compete with Facebook and Google+?

With Shared Photostreams they have created the ability to share photo content with other iPhone/iPad users. This is similar to a social network as you can comment on, or like, photos (sound familiar). But this feature is limited on the computer and doesn't include a 'profile page' etc. that would expect from a social network. The iMessage service is Apple device specific messaging but again this performs one of the tasks required of a social network and simply replaces SMS messages for iPhone users messaging each other.

Their iOS operating system for the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch and OS X Mountain Lion for their computers integrate with Facebook and Twitter already. And Apple have tried before to create a social network - Ping - was a music orientated network built within iTunes to help users share music. But this already happend on existing social networking sites, and users often had concerns over their privacy. Who want's to publish online every track they buy from iTunes. No one used to stand over your shoulder when you picked up a CD in HMV or Woolworths!

Based on Apple's previous trend to keep services limited to it's own hardware (iTunes being a notable exception) it is hard to believe that a social network would build any momentum in this cross platform world where Facebook lets you communicate over any device to anyone else using different platform. Would Apple end up competing with device specific services like BBM? Not a great move for the future.

Bottom line is no one needs or wants another social network, especially one that would not be cross-platform or webpage based. And it would not help Apple sell hardware. What Apple could do is integrate more of the existing social networks, such as Google+, into it's iOS and OS X operating systems to make their products more flexible (like Android devices, which can share content to millions* of services)

*millions is probably an exaggeration.

Google Glass Explorers

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 11:18:00 +0000

So project Google Glass has finally reached the lucky few 'Explorers'. Engadget demonstrate here a point if view video of playing fetch with the dogs. It's certainly a different perspective to the typical hand shaking smart phone video approach, and it's quite engaging too. It also leaves the filmers hands free whilst filming which is why he can stroke the dogs and play fetch. The general consensus though was that Glass had a little to offer around the home when computers, tablets and smartphones are all vying for your attention whenever you receive an email of a Google+ notification already. Here is the article on Engaget: http://www.engadget.com/2013/04/26/living-with-google-glass-day-two/

What are your thoughts on Google Glass? Is it (and products like it) the future of personal computing? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

Google Maps Treasure Hunt for April Fools

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Google have a great history of April Fools jokes and this years is a treasure hunt for Google Maps. You can browse around their 2D treasure maps and then pop into 'street view' to see the world through a periscope. Look out for pirates, treasure and landmarks such as the sunken Titanic.

View Larger Map

Feedly

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 01:03:00 +0000

So Google Reader is ending on July 1st 2013 (Google Reader blog). Google are hoping to focus more on their headline products. Is this a reflection that RSS are becoming less popular?

So what are you going to do with all your favourite RSS feeds?

Feedly has taken full advantage of this situation by allowing you to copy over your feeds from Google Reader directly into Feedly through your Google account. This is extremely smooth and painless and the look and feel of the site is very similar to Google Reader. A little more emphasis is put articles images than Google Reader which was more clinical. Feedly is free (for now) and there is a Chrome add-in and Android and iOS apps too.

Hope that helps :-)

Stop the Cyborgs!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 00:11:00 +0000

Update 2021: Stop the Cyborgs website is no longer running

A new campaign group has been set up to "stop the cyborgs" in response to the Google Glass project. For those of you are aren't aware of the Google Glass project here is a quick summary: Glass is basically a futuristic product from Google which puts Google services such as Maps and Google+ along side photography and video capture into a heads up display within a pair of glasses. They feature voice recognition as the user interace so you can ask glass to take a picture, post a status to Google+ or even to video call with someone right from your glasses. This takes mobile technology to the next level. To find out more about Google Glass click here.

So now you have seen Google Glass are you sceptical? Are you fearful of Glass wearers taking video of you in public spaces? If you are then Stop the Cyborgs is a website fot you. It's going to be a huge debate over the potential invasion of privacy when Glass (and similar future products, one assumes) allow wears to record/stream to the internet live video from their perspective. If you are concerned Stop the Cyborgs even offer signage which you can print off to declare your shop/business/cafe etc. a Google Glass free zone.

This may be a case of closing the stable door after the horse has bolted for privacy campaigners though. Mobile technology has moved at such a fast pace in smart phones that many of the potential privacy invasions already exist. A huge proportion of the population now carry smart phones which are capable of almost all of the features of Google Glass, although if you someone is filming with a smartphone it would be more obvious.

Smart phones are also personally identifiable to the manufacturers and include location data by default. Social media such as Facebook and Twitter are constantly allowing your location to be published and some services, such as foursquare, are completely location dependant.

One of the key concerns on the Stop the Cyborgs website is facial recognition software, but Facebook already does this for pictures that people upload already, although this did cause a stir amongst pro-privacy groups.

As we see the future from todays perspective the technology around may well reduce our privacy but provide will improve our access to information from the internet. The information available will be increasing personalised, local and relevant. Tecnology such as the Nike Fuelband to track your level of exercise and Google Glass to help you get around with directions will be complemented by internet connected cars which take services like Tom Tom's traffic live service and integrate it into your car's dashboard. Smart cars will be able to direct you to a free car parking space in a car park and help you find your destination quickly and easily.

The question is, should Google Glass really be subject to such a negative campaign? Wearable/integrated technology is a progression from smart phones which is not going to be easy to prevent. Comments are welcome below.

Facebook Messenger's Free Call arrives in the UK

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 12:46:00 +0000

The Facebook Messenger app as been a curious addition to the Facebook mobile apps lineup. It's only advantage over the messages section of the Facebook app itself was the loading time. It appeared as though Facebook were trying to 'replace' text messaging with their Messenger app. This was until January when in America and Canada users were able to use the Messenger app to make voice calls to contacts over their data contract or Wi-Fi connection.

This feature now comes to the UK, but without too much of a fanfare as it's more of a beta test and will be rolled out properly once bugs are squashed. To try out the feature for yourself in the UK you'll need the iOS version of the Facebook Messenger app. Then just swipe right to reveal a list of your contacts. Tap a contact for their information and the new 'Free Call' button will be there. If it's got a green phone symbol, you are good to go! If they don't answer you can even leave a voice message.