Product Reviews Net » apple http://www.product-reviews.net Information on the latest gadgets, technology, news and product reviews Sat, 26 May 2012 11:39:50 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 2012 MacBook Pro eyed by new ZenBook Prime http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/26/2012-macbook-pro-eyed-by-new-zenbook-prime/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=2012-macbook-pro-eyed-by-new-zenbook-prime http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/26/2012-macbook-pro-eyed-by-new-zenbook-prime/#comments Sat, 26 May 2012 11:39:50 +0000 Daniel Chubb http://www.product-reviews.net/?p=150588 While a growing number of laptop users are going Apple, it seems that the popular brand is also receiving increased competition that not only compete on a power level, this has never been a problem for Apple alternatives, but for once are competing on a style level rather than the powerful plastic Window’s laptops we’ve seen before.

We know there are some nice slick metal laptops running Microsoft Windows, but again they have always seemed one step behind Apple in terms of style and a solid build, which is found in MacBook Pro’s and Air’s.

The new ZenBook Prime is a great option for those that love Windows – while most Apple users are thinking new MacBook Air vs. MacBook Pro in 2012, and are waiting for a release date, it seems that the real announcement some Windows users wanted included the name “Asus Zenbook Prime UX32VD“. The specs on this laptop are extremely impressive, which include GeForce GT 620M graphics, a full 1080p IPS display, and a solid build thanks to the brushed aluminum frame as seen in the photo below. You can also see a quick hands-on review in the video below this article. Interestingly some people might consider it looks like a MacBook Air with a quick glance, and while these same people feel most brands are copying Apple in different industries, but we’ll let you debate that one in the comments.

The bottom-line: If you love the way Microsoft Windows 8 is heading then the new ZenBook Prime is a no-brainer for you, although one thing that’s hard for most MacBook users to do is return to Windows, especially considering the love affair some people have with all Apple products. This then leaves Apple users to decide what MacBook is best for them, whether that be the Air or even the new 2012 MacBook Pro, which is rumored to be everything the Air is and a lot more. Think Thin, SSD, more power, memory, a new Retina display, and a slim profile as seen with the air – this could be the best of both worlds.

Are you looking forward to the 2012 MacBook Pro refresh with Ivy Bridge processors? What price would you like to see the new MacBook Pro start from, and is there a minimum battery life you’re looking for?

Watch the video below of the Asus Zenbook Prime UX32VD at a recent press event, and then let us know if you’re thinking more along the lines of MacBook Pro or Zenbook Prime? You might also want to read our recent article on possible Voice Dictation with the next MacBook.

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]]> http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/26/2012-macbook-pro-eyed-by-new-zenbook-prime/feed/ 0 New MacBook Pro 2012 models may feature Voice Dictation http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/25/new-macbook-pro-2012-models-may-feature-voice-dictation/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=new-macbook-pro-2012-models-may-feature-voice-dictation http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/25/new-macbook-pro-2012-models-may-feature-voice-dictation/#comments Fri, 25 May 2012 09:45:18 +0000 Alan Ng http://www.product-reviews.net/?p=150571 We have some exciting news for those of you who are looking to pick up a new MacBook Pro. You may have seen Apple’s new voice dictation feature on the 3rd generation iPad, but now we are hearing that we could see this feature on the new MacBook Pro models as well.

For those that are not aware, the new iPad doesn’t feature full Siri functionality yet, but it does bring a portion of the assistant’s capabilities with a fairly decent voice dictation mode. This was Apple’s first crack at shifting this over to the tablet community and now it could be extended to Mac OS X users as well.

A report over at 9to5Mac shows that Apple could make this possible, exclusively on Mac OS X Mountain Lion. At the moment, the MacBook Pro and Air models do not come with a separate voice speech button as seen on the new iPad’s virtual keyboard. However, an easy workaround appears to be in place as voice dictation on future MacBook Pro models could be accessible by simply pressing both command buttons simultaneously which are located either side of the space key.

If Apple are indeed planning to do this, we would like to see some improvements to voice dictation accuracy first. If you have used Siri on the iPhone 4 or dictation on the new iPad, you’ll know that it could obviously do with some enhancements in detecting speech more accurately.

Having voice dictation on New MacBook Pro models would obviously imply that Apple plans to make this a viable way of inputting text away from the physical keyboard. It would be fantastic if blog entries or long passages of text could be made via voice dictation on Mac OS X, but the software would obviously need some work first before this becomes a reality. At the moment, trying to input several sentences on the new iPad dictation doesn’t really work and you’ll probably agree if you have tried this out before.

Would you like to see voice dictation extended to Apple’s upcoming MacBook Pro refresh? Hopefully we will see some clarity on this at WWDC 2012 which starts next month.

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]]> http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/25/new-macbook-pro-2012-models-may-feature-voice-dictation/feed/ 3 Behind iPhone 5 and iPad 4 manufacturing http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/25/behind-iphone-5-and-ipad-4-manufacturing/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=behind-iphone-5-and-ipad-4-manufacturing http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/25/behind-iphone-5-and-ipad-4-manufacturing/#comments Fri, 25 May 2012 09:30:19 +0000 Daniel Chubb http://www.product-reviews.net/?p=150575 We have been hearing a lot about the practices Foxconn use when creating products for their partners, and this received mixed reactions from both consumer and even those that work at Foxconn. We’ve heard some consumers explaining that this seems like “slave labor” in their opinion, and then some forums have had postings from Foxconn employees explaining they get “paid a lot of money” in terms of income for their part of the world.

It’s fair to say that Apple are on the ball with quality in the supply chain – while not every reader will agree with this statement, seeing Apple reject certain suppliers for not meeting standards is a sure sign that they have their eye-on-the-ball. Apple have climbed all the way to the top spot for worldwide technology companies, and having a share price back in 1990 of $35.50 to $584.90 at the start of this month shows the popularity.

Another sign that Apple are keeping an eye on the business – in a recent article by iPhone Rumors they touch on a few signs being seen right now for manufacturing of Apple products, and it’s their view that making an iPhone 5 and iPad 4 is more about politics than anything else. This has been shown with deals that are being made right now between Foxconn and Sharp, and could eventually cause problems for Samsung and their partnership with Apple, which is already rumored to be a highly stressful one.

The article also points out a few facts, this is always good when stating possibilities, and these include Apple running trial manufacturing runs with MSMC for A6 chips, and also Apple taking the supply of DRAM away from Samsung.

We’ve all heard about the courtroom battles between Samsung and Apple, but do you think the ending of contracts between these two brands can be more damaging?

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]]> http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/25/behind-iphone-5-and-ipad-4-manufacturing/feed/ 1 Losing unlimited data for iPhone 5 http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/24/losing-unlimited-data-for-iphone-5/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=losing-unlimited-data-for-iphone-5 http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/24/losing-unlimited-data-for-iphone-5/#comments Thu, 24 May 2012 12:15:39 +0000 Daniel Chubb http://www.product-reviews.net/?p=150547 We looked a few days ago at Verizon’s Unlimited Data plan, which should be still available to customers as long as they stick with their existing phone or upgrade to one at full price (unsubsidized). Obviously certain Verizon customers are not happy with this news, especially thanks to phones being more data dependable just as the upcoming iPhone 5 is likely to be.

Some previously loyal Verizon customers are going to move away if they are made to make a choice like this, and have an opinion that “this is not rewarding loyalty“. Others clearly point blame not at Verizon Wireless but federal regulators for allowing capping and throttling of data in their opinion, and also add blame for this change with unlimited data plans. Would you agree with opinions like this?

Other phone users will buy a phone outright – we’re seeing an increasing amount of users starting to buy cell phones outright, rather than subsidized phones on long contracts, which includes an aim to buy direct at Google for a Nexus. This also applies to the iPhone 5, Apple’s 6th generation model, which should see a release date towards the end of 2012. There are also cheaper devices that are in the sights of buyers wanting to buy a phone and move to a network of their choosing.

The iPhone 5 will not be cheap if you plan on buying it outright, but would you lose your previous unlimited data just to get an iPhone 5 subsidized? Or would you rather find the money to buy the next iPhone outright and keep unlimited data with Verizon?

Newly formed iPhone Rumors has touched on this very issue, and point out that some of their readers have explained that losing the unlimited data plan would stop them buying an iPhone in 2012. Are you planning on buying the new iPhone, and how loyal are you to Verizon? You can also read about Steve Jobs alleged part in the new iPhone 5 redesign here.

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]]> http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/24/losing-unlimited-data-for-iphone-5/feed/ 5 Siri Vs S Voice: Video battle tells the story http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/23/siri-vs-s-voice-video-battle-tells-the-story/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=siri-vs-s-voice-video-battle-tells-the-story http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/23/siri-vs-s-voice-video-battle-tells-the-story/#comments Wed, 23 May 2012 13:46:20 +0000 Alan Ng http://www.product-reviews.net/?p=150541 With Samsung unveiling their S-Voice assistant for the Samsung Galaxy S III, many consumers are naturally wondering if it is going to be just as good, or even better than Apple’s Siri app for the iPhone 4S. Just like Apple though, it appears that Samsung may have a new problem on their hands trying to keep the app exclusive to their upcoming new handset.

You may remember that Apple insisted that Siri was an iPhone 4S feature only and they didn’t approve of unofficial attempts to port the software over to other iOS devices. Samsung is now facing the exact same thing as recent reports suggest that they have had to ‘block’ S-Voice from being used on other Android devices after it leaked out a few days ago.

In their efforts to explain their reasoning behind the block, Samsung has said that S-Voice is still ‘test software’ and that they didn’t want consumers to judge the program before they have had a chance to improve it. Correct us if we’re wrong, but isn’t the Galaxy S III due out in a matter of days in Europe anyway? It sounds to us like they just want to keep the app exclusive to the Galaxy S III as a method of selling more handsets – Apple style and obviously very logical from a business point of view.

With that issue out of the way, how does S-Voice actually compare to Siri for those that have managed to have an early test run on either the Galaxy S III or other Android devices? An excellent video provided by GSMArena tells the exact story and based on what we see, it looks like Siri may still be on top for the moment. Siri performs searches much more quickly, and the speed of S-Voice may grow to be frustrating for Android users.

One thing that S-Voice does do better than Siri at the moment though is open specific apps. Telling Siri to change your Facebook status or open Dropbox results in your assistant politely replying that she is unable to do this. S-Voice on the other hand has no problem doing this, so this may be an area which Apple needs to improve on.

Should Samsung really be focusing on blocking this app from other Android users, rather than trying to improve the speed of S-Voice searches before the device launches in Europe? They won’t want to play second fiddle to Apple of course, but it looks like Siri may be the better assistant for the time being. If you have had a chance to preview both already, let us know which app you think comes out on top.

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]]> http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/23/siri-vs-s-voice-video-battle-tells-the-story/feed/ 2 New 3.9-inch iPhone could offer fullscreen 16:9 movies http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/23/new-3-9-inch-iphone-could-offer-fullscreen-169-movies/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=new-3-9-inch-iphone-could-offer-fullscreen-169-movies http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/23/new-3-9-inch-iphone-could-offer-fullscreen-169-movies/#comments Wed, 23 May 2012 13:30:28 +0000 Alan Ng http://www.product-reviews.net/?p=150540 A lot of people are expecting the next iPhone to come with a quad-core processor as a minimum requirement. One area that is still up for debate though is display screen size. Should Apple stick with their winning 3.5-inch formula or experiment with a new display screen size closer to the 4-inch standard that we see today?

As you can imagine, there is divided opinion over this. Obviously the current crop of Android handsets all surpass the 4-inch range and many Apple fans would love to see an iPhone which offers a much bigger display to suit their multimedia viewing needs.

On the other hand, Apple has stayed true to a 3.5-inch diagonal display screen on every single iPhone released, including the original, so perhaps their priority is not about the size of the display screen, but improved performance and usability instead. That hasn’t stopped the 4-inch iPhone rumors though from coming out on an almost daily basis.

This week we have heard the latest whispers from 9to5Mac that Apple’s next generation iPhone will be a 3.99-inch effort, with a new resolution of 1136×640 pixels. What’s interesting is that the width of the iPhone is set to stay at 1.9632 inches, meaning there’s still no edge to edge display. However, we may be seeing a display which increases the height of the display to 3.484 inches tall. The new resolution is also thought to be very close to a 16:9 screen ratio, which may be excellent news for those of you who enjoy watching media in this format.

A picture showing a mock up of the new iPhone’s display has been provided below, courtesy of Niilo Autio. As you can see it looks noticeably different to the iPhone 4S, but still pretty sexy in our opinion. It’s not the 4.xx-inch display or edge to edge screen that you may have wanted, but it’s still a bigger screen and it looks rather nice.

Would you have any objections if the next iPhone looked like this? Watching full screen 16:9 movies on the iPhone is a great prospect to look forward to, so let’s hope that Apple is planning to reveal more details at WWDC 2012.

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]]> http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/23/new-3-9-inch-iphone-could-offer-fullscreen-169-movies/feed/ 1 Tradition shows MacBook Pro 2012 model about to release http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/23/tradition-shows-macbook-pro-2012-model-about-to-release/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tradition-shows-macbook-pro-2012-model-about-to-release http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/23/tradition-shows-macbook-pro-2012-model-about-to-release/#comments Wed, 23 May 2012 09:33:01 +0000 Daniel Chubb http://www.product-reviews.net/?p=150542 You will always find one sure sign that a new Apple product is about to release, even without any confirmation, and this is a price drop on the old model and low stocks. This is exactly what’s happening right now to make way for the new MacBook Pro 2012 model, and it’s a tradition that goes way back for years even with the first generation of MacBook’s and iPods.

This time it is Best Buy deciding to cut the price of the MacBook Pro with lines crossing out old prices on their store, something you rarely see Apple do with their online store, and the new price at the popular electronics retailer has dropped by up to $200. The same thing happened earlier this year shortly before the iPad 3 got a release date, and we saw Best Buy drop $50 off the price of an iPad 2.

Will the new MacBook Pro be worth an upgrade? While we cannot be sure on the final specs for the 2012 model, some details are as solid as they get without Apple confirmation. You can see in our earlier article that the 2012 MacBook Pro is likely to feature a Retina display with simplified modes, and upgrades to ports, hard drive (maybe SSD), memory and of course the processor.

Now that we’re moments from WWDC 2012 and an obvious release for the new MacBook Pro, are you ready to buy one?

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]]> http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/23/tradition-shows-macbook-pro-2012-model-about-to-release/feed/ 2 Automatic features of Mac OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion take shape http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/22/automatic-features-of-mac-os-x-10-8-mountain-lion-take-shape/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=automatic-features-of-mac-os-x-10-8-mountain-lion-take-shape http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/22/automatic-features-of-mac-os-x-10-8-mountain-lion-take-shape/#comments Tue, 22 May 2012 15:57:05 +0000 Daniel Chubb http://www.product-reviews.net/?p=150531 Being a developer of iOS has helped us gain extra insight into the latest features of future updates before they become public knowledge, although when it comes to Mac OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion we have to rely on rumors reaching our inbox.

In the last few hours we’re hearing about some more features take shape in Mountain Lion, and in particular the Automatic Downloads feature promised earlier on this year. The latest developer build of OS X 10.8 has shown signs of automatic app installs, although these are not fully working in the current beta. You can see a message pop up asking you to turn on automatic app downloads for future purchases, which will not work in the current developer build but is likely to release for testing very soon.

We welcome this feature to Mac OS X and have loved being able to buy apps on our iPhone 4S, which are then automatically downloaded to our iPad 3, although this can be any iOS device you’ve selected to have automatic downloads after installing iOS 5. The majority of Mountain Lion owners will enjoy the same benefits soon, and the software is scheduled to go on sale later this summer. You can read more about Mountain Lion’s new automatic download feature in this article.

You might also want to read about Messages beta, which we posted some videos and details on back in February this year, and if you’re thinking about purchasing the new 2012 MacBook Pro you can read about description Retina modes here.

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]]> http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/22/automatic-features-of-mac-os-x-10-8-mountain-lion-take-shape/feed/ 1 iOS 5.1.2 update wished before iOS 6 http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/22/ios-5-1-2-update-wished-before-ios-6/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=ios-5-1-2-update-wished-before-ios-6 http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/22/ios-5-1-2-update-wished-before-ios-6/#comments Tue, 22 May 2012 15:11:05 +0000 Daniel Chubb http://www.product-reviews.net/?p=150504 We’ve been hearing about a few rumors surrounding possible iOS 6 features over the last few weeks, which is not surprising considering WWDC 2012 is almost here, but there are plenty of users running iOS 5.1.1 that have problems and want a fix to these as soon as possible.

While our tests have found hardly any issues with the latest software update, the same cannot be said for other users with hundreds of posts on the official Apple forums. These users are wishing for the iOS 5.1.2 update to fix issue they have, and iOS 6 couldn’t be further from their mind. The focus for some people is if these issues should be expected with each update, and considering the amount of people owning iOS devices you’d expect problems from a certain amount of people.

It’s fair to say some of the problems being reported could be isolated cases that are related to specific installs, more weight is given to this after our tests with 3 different iPhone 4S models running the latest iOS. Intermittent problems we’ve heard about include crashing with Safari, App Store updates crashing certain apps, and the email client crashing. We first thought this is a small problem affecting a select number of users, especially considering our tests, but it’s clear there is some sort of pattern considering the amount of users reporting similar crashing and freezing. You can see for yourself via the Apple forums here.

Are you more concerned about an iOS 5.1.2 update releasing rather than iOS 6? The issues being reported are not tied to just the iPhone and we’ve heard about the iPad 3 also having intermittent problems as well since iOS 5.1.1, although a few users have managed to correct issues with a fresh install of the software. You can read more on iOS 6 in a recent article here.

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]]> http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/22/ios-5-1-2-update-wished-before-ios-6/feed/ 2 Karma gift giving app for iPhone http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/22/karma-gift-giving-app-for-iphone/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=karma-gift-giving-app-for-iphone http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/05/22/karma-gift-giving-app-for-iphone/#comments Tue, 22 May 2012 09:31:45 +0000 Daniel Chubb http://www.product-reviews.net/?p=150521 The Karma app has hit the headlines recently thanks to Facebook’s acquisition, although how good is this application really and does it bring a better solution to send gifts to friends and family?

Just 8 days into this month the Karma app jumped to version 1.80, and with it brought bug fixes that has made the experience better, which has been pointed out by a few comments on the official iTunes page with statements like “working again“. We had a little play with Karma on our iPhone and found it pretty easy to use, and it was great to not have to know the address of the person you want to send a gift to (never been that good with keeping track of addresses).

We’d have to agree with the new iPhone Rumors blog, when they state the app has a “very niche catalog“, which is thanks to what seems to be a selective partnership by those behind Karma. It will be interesting to see how the gifting app changes now it has been acquired by Facebook, and we hope they expand the gift catalog dramatically to provide a better service.

What do you think about the Karma gift-giving app for iPhone? Do you think the best gift is your time rather than spending it on Facebook, or is this a good solution for your busy lifestyle? We’ve embedded a video below that features the Karma co-founder talking about the app, and why it was created in the first place. The key success for this app comes from everyone sharing everything on Facebook, and with that connection you’re able to reach out and send a gift with Karma via email, SMS, and Facebook.

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