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These iOS vs Android Flame Wars Have to Stop
Jordan Crook, TechCrunch:
But what’s happening with iOS vs. Android is different. Instead of seeing an epic clash between two companies, or watching a customers-vs.-company saga unfold, we’re seeing customers in Group A join sides with Company A, while Group B joins sides with Company B. Apple and Google are supposed to hate each other, but just because we use their products doesn’t mean we need to hurl hateful, meatless comments at each other.
The problem is that those who would debate mobile platforms in this manner are basically stuck in the myopic, Microsoftian attitude that “there can be only one.”
I have an iPhone 4S and a Galaxy Nexus (as well as an iPad, Kindle Fire, and some other stuff not worth mentioning). I can see the appeal of both Android and iOS platforms — they each have their strengths and weaknesses and are actually so fundamentally different that in reality they cater to entirely different kinds of people.
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Contact and Calendar apps in Mountain Lion
Looking at the new Contacts and Calendars apps in Mountain Lion, it seems that Apple has taken a step back from its previous UI mistakes in Lion. Contacts is back to a nice, three-pane view, and the “Calendars” button in Calendar (nee iCal) now opens a left-side panel rather than a pop-over.
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iMessage Notification Control
With the new Messages app for Mac out in beta now, the next thing Apple is going to need to do is add some more control over notifications on the iOS side. As much as I’d like to replace some of my group iChat use with iMessages instead, having my iOS devices fire off notifications every few seconds is going to get real old, real fast.
In the very least there needs to be an option to mute notifications from specific conversations.
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About iMessage and FaceTime Phone Number Registration
An interesting report from Ars Technica this week:
Some unlucky iPhone owners are beginning to discover that, despite their best efforts to remove all information from their stolen phones, thieves and unsuspecting buyers are still able to send and receive iMessages as the original owner — even after the device is registered under a new account. Almost nothing seems to work — remote wiping, changing Apple ID passwords, or even moving the old phone number to a new phone — and users are becoming more than frustrated that thieves are so easily able to pose as them.
This actually makes some sense — not that it isn’t a security issue that Apple should address. This has actually been a problem with FaceTime since iOS 4.0, BTW, but obviously is less of a concern there since you can generally see who you’re talking to :)
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A product of the iPad Generation
“Sorry, Victoria, the TV isn’t a touchscreen… yet.”