I’m not sure about things at the Apple Store (and looking at the news, I’m glad I’m not!), but I can certainly say that things at O2 were very well handled – in my queue, people came and took our order for coffees, lattes, teas, juices etc., and bought them from the shop across the road, which they covered the expense of. We also had a few handsets going up and down to play with, and communication with the staff was great, who kept coming out to check that we were alright and had all the information we needed. Friends at other O2 queues around London reported back to me on free smoothies, pastries and sweets!

My first impression: the glass façade feels amazing in your hand. It really does, you could just stroke it all day with a sensuality which you would never bestow on a human being. It’s reasonably heavy, but in a reassuring, dense way. The build quality feels really solid, and the side buttons are pleasantly ‘clicky’.

The display – the display is stunning. I actually think that it has impressed me more than any of the bigger things I was looking forward to; everything is unbelievably sharp and is just a joy to read. These little things really do make a difference. It works really nicely in conjunction with iBooks, where it is honestly quite hard to believe that you are not looking at a printed (self-illuminating!) page.

As for the camera, that tiny flash is pretty effective, and 5 MP is a huge relief (the 3GS’s mediocre camera being my main griping point).The colours are more life-like and just result in photos that actually look like something you may want to keep, content permitting.

I seem to be the only person who is not over the moon with the battery life – maybe it’s just my model? However, I really can’t see any difference to the 3GS battery span, which has always been extremely poor. Still, you win some…

The general verdict at the office is that the iPhone has finally arrived. There is no whining to be heard this time about the lack of this or that feature – it is a complete product. And it can only get better with future reincarnations. We’re really excited about what the incredibly fast, sharp hardware means for app development – as usual, watch this space!

So, the predictions were mostly correct – unlike those in the case of the iPad! With the 3GS being (even in name) a clear stopgap between the 3G and the next big iPhone remodel, it feels as though we have been waiting for this announcement forever! We shan’t run through all the spec upgrades, which are plentiful and can be ogled in full detail here. But which new features are we the most excited about?

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Video Calling
This is the first time that I’ve felt like I’m in the future. I’m sure if you’d asked my five year old self, I would have predicted ubiquitous video-phones long before now. I also thought we’d be riding jet-packs to work, so get on it please, Apple.

Sweet Design
I defy you to tell me it looks anything other than totally awesome.

Super-sharp Display
Apparently the pixels are indistinguishable to the naked eye. Sounds good to me!

Different Colours
No, it isn’t really a ‘feature’ per se, but I’d be fibbing if I denied how stoked I was to see that the two breeds of iPhone actually are distinguishable this time round. Now I just need to decide which one I want…

Decent Camera with Flash
Finally! The one point I felt I really did have to concur on with naysayers was the relatively poor quality of the camera. I’m looking forward to busting out Hipstamatic with this.

Two weeks to go, everyone!

Discussion and speculation has divided certain web communities, blogs, and even our own office! The premise of the video certainly appeals to many: ‘If the TV is so fun to watch, and the internet is so smart, why must we choose?’ However, certain aspects of the video rang hollow. Who reschedules a meal for a TV show – have the folks at Google not heard of TiVo, digital recorders, Sky+? Also, using one’s television to browse photos and play games or music – touted here as nothing short of revolutionary – as anybody with a Playstation or a HDMI cable knows, it is really anything but!

It is probably about time the TV industry got a huge kick. Satellite subscriptions have remained just as expensive and the TV Guide UIs just as ugly for far too long. Computer makers have been trying to get into the TV market for years, and current solutions in use include the Roku box, Apple TV and Boxee, amongst others. Far from innovative, it is actually nothing particularly new or original – with its integrated or set-top box format and backing from major companies it is in fact rather reminiscent of a terrible flop from Microsoft, the MSN TV:

However, this is one of the last frontiers which has not been optimally capitalised on. More developers getting into this arena can only push things forwards – and it only takes one company to make the breakthrough. There are some concerns regarding the concept itself – for instance, concerns regarding the quality of most web videos. With TVs getting larger and larger, and the rise of HD satellite and Blu-ray, is this content really able to compete? Additionally, TV is a mostly passive experience, whereas using a computer, iPad or iPhone is mostly interactive. Integrating these two ‘modes’ will be difficult – and it doesn’t seem to have been done right yet.

Do we have reason to believe that the ‘revolution’ will happen at the hands of Google? Critics say that they are just too sterile a company to develop something which is part of a home entertainment system, lacking the user-friendly nature and flash designs of competitors. Indeed, it would be fair to say that, aside from their legendary ‘endless’ beta periods, the other main criticism of Google’s operations is that though they frequently announce intriguing new projects, the final offering rarely turns out to be as remarkable as originally touted. They do, as a brand, lack the ‘wow’ factor of their main rival.

Further nay-sayers have focused on the long, almost whimsical line of products from the house of Google. “They should improve their own subpar/ugly products before they move on to new areas of the market!”, a web user declared. “They are obviously trying to be dominant in every area they can. How many damn products do they release each year, always something new? Even if they are great concepts, they always fail because they don’t spend enough time refining them.”, another wrote. Indeed, for a product which is due to launch in a few short months, a cartoon demo with no hint of the actual product does not fill one to the brim with confidence. It would be nice, in addition, if Google could unveil a logo that doesn’t look like ‘a guy in IT concocted it in Microsoft Publisher’ (another blog quotation).

For our own part, we’d love to see this take off, whether it be through Google, Apple, or somebody else. Google, in consensus with Microsoft here regarding Apple’s total control over the user experience, is once again staying out of the hardware domain, with Logitech manufacturing the units. An announcement several months ahead of the launch certainly gives Apple time to react, and many of us are waiting eagerly to see if this will mean an update to the AppleTV, which, generally regarded as a ‘hobby’ project for Apple, has gone for several years now without any major changes.

Frequent requests appear to be for a fully functional remote app, enabling users to use their iPhone or iPod Touch as a remote control (Apple does currently offer a free remote app of sorts), and for the addition of more features. General consensus seems to be that if Apple were to relaunch the AppleTV as compatible with apps, it would be a competition killer. Google also seem be thinking along these lines, including the following encouragement for developers in their blog post:

In our announcement today at Google I/O, we challenged web developers to start coming up with the next great web and Android apps designed specifically for the TV experience. Developers can start optimizing their websites for Google TV today. Soon after launch, we’ll release the Google TV SDK and web APIs for TV so that developers can build even richer applications and distribute them through Android Market.

As developers, we are always happy and excited at the prospect of new platforms to be working with, and we are reserving final judgement at this point – so watch this space for any Foreminds^TM innovation coming to your TV!

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The final crucial detail remaining: did we storm NYC after all? Well, we’re primarily lovers, not fighters, so no, not really. We did come back with a whole load of iPads, though!

Apparently, events began at the Gourmet Haus Staudt, a beer garden in Redwood City, California. And they began with Gray Powell, a young, inebriated Apple engineer, leaving without his iPhone. Despite being disguised as a 3GS with a bulky, plastic case, the gentleman who found himself in command of the product soon realised that something was out of the ordinary. The operating system seemed a little different, and when he awoke the next morning, the phone had been bricked remotely. After tinkering a little and removing the case, the model which subsequently appeared on Engadget emerged.

At this point, the new owner apparently set about trying to return the iPhone to Apple by phoning them, but his claims were fobbed off as ridiculous (one may wonder why, having seen the engineer’s name and Facebook account when exploring the phone, this alternative method of contact was not seen as preferable to navigating a large company’s customer support system – or maybe sending over an email to Steve Jobs with the serial number). It appears that, due to a bug with the OS 4 beta, Apple could not simply utilise MobileMe to track down the GPS location of the phone. After these exertions, the gentleman finally sent over some photos to Engadget. Gizmodo picked up on this, contacted him, and transacted $5000 for the purported prototype.

After some skepticism over the genuine nature of the product, the evidence appeared compelling. Further posts on Gizmodo showed the product dismantled, giving us some further ideas as to the specs. A letter from Apple swiftly followed, confirming the device as theirs, and requesting the immediate return of the device, which Gizmodo complied with.

Of course, features may be added or even removed before the launch, but here’s what we know so far:

• Front-facing video chat camera (yay!)
• Improved back-facing camera (larger lens)
• Camera Flash
• Micro-SIM
• Smaller, but higher-res display (purported to be 960×640, but as yet unconfirmed)
• Secondary mic for noise cancellation
• 16% larger battery (made room for by dramatically shrinking all the other internals)

Aesthetically:

• Split volume buttons
• 3 grams heavier
• A squared off design, devoid of the curves of previous generations
• An aluminium border, matching the iPad and Macbook designs
• Metallic power, mutes and volume buttons
• An entirely flat back, made of glass, ceramic or shiny plastic (aluminium would have caused signal problems)

And that’s all the information we have up until now! Certainly the front-facing camera, when combined with the multitasking update to the software, offers a very exciting possibility with regards to using Skype for video calls.

Many of the features are very promising prospects with regards to app development – for a very powerful piece of hardware. Watch this space for any further updates before the (hopeful) June launch.

Ails.

More than 100 new user features have been planned, with seven that the company are referring to as ‘tentpole’ features – those of particular importance. These are: multitasking, folders, enhanced email, iBooks, enterprise features, a game centre and iAds.

Multitasking, easily one of the most anticipated additions to the OS functionality, naturally grabbed all of the headlines. Making reference to the wait for this implementation, Steve Jobs remarked at the launch event: “we weren’t first to the party, but we’re gonna be the best.” The key selling point with iPhone multitasking is that it will purportedly operate in a way that doesnt hinder performance or battery life. This was achieved by analysis of thousands of apps and identifying what services were needed in the background. Apple have subsequently released APIs for seven services identified: audio, voice over IP, location services, push notifications, local notifications, task completion and fast app switching.

My personal favourite from the update is the realisation of folders. Aside from the obvious organisational benefits, this enables the management of up to 2160 apps – a huge increase from the current limit of 180.There’s no limit to the number of folders; they are even able to be placed in the dock!

Apple continues to push their new iBooks software (see our previous blog!) by bringing it to the iPhone. Thankfully, we will be able to sync our places and bookmarks between devices, allowing us to begin reading Pride and Prejudice on our iPhones, and seamlessly catch up with Mr. Darcy on the iPad later that day.

OS 4 will reportedly work with both the iPhone 3G and 3GS, as well as second and third generation iPod Touches – however, not all features, including multitasking, will be available for all devices. The update is available for developers now (in beta form), with the general release for the iPhone and iPod Touch set for this summer, followed by a version for the iPad in autumn.

Ails.

The Kindle apps aethetics have been widely praised, following the official announcement on Monday (see the offical page here). The interface will include visual page swipes, and a rather nifty book cover navigation view that features Kindle’s sihouetted figure, reading under a tree – with a sky that will change colour according to the time of day. Users will also be able to tailor the background colours and font sizes for the book texts, and adjust screen brightness from within the app.

Amazon already offer a free Kindle reader for the iPhone, so it is handy that the iPad version will also use Amazon’s Whispersync technology, which syncronises the last page read, allowing the user to start reading on one device and to continue on another. Bookmarks, notes, highlights and annotations are also synced.

The iPad app will allow full access to the Kindle store, where more than 450,000 books are available, though this may vary for non-U.S. customers. The store also offers free book samples (the first chapter) before you decide to buy.

Ails.

Yesterday also saw the unveiling of a prototype for Microsoft’s latest entry into the SmartPhone market – the Windows Phone 7 Series.

The Windows Phone 7 should provide another interesting platform for developers to utilise, whether porting current apps over, or developing specifically for it. A number of handset makers are reported to have committed to the Windows Phone 7, which is currently rumoured for a ‘holiday 2010′ release.

Ails.

As illustrated (left), not only will the iPad be running iPhone apps – scaled up with pixel doubling – it will be capable of running more complex software, such as a version of the iWorks suite. Apple have also announced that they will be completely renovating the majority of their apps in order to take advantage of the new capabilities the iPad offers. This whole new scope for creativity is certainly appreciated by other developers too – and we are looking forward to seeing what we will be able add to our own apps in development.

For the interested, full specs for the iPad are available here: http://www.apple.com/ipad/specs/. The product is due to be launched in March – UK prices to be confirmed!

Ails.