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What’s next for Apple: WWDC, iPad Pro, iMac, MacBook, Apple TV, original content & more
What new product announcements might Apple have in store for its upcoming Worldwide Developer Conference in June? Last week we were talking iOS 11, macOS 10.13, watchOS 4 and tvOS 11. This week we get into the hardware possibilities for the event, including the products the company currently has in the works and others due for an update.
Filed under: Apple
Comment: Rumored Apple TV account switching in tvOS 11 may suggest multi-users for iPad with iOS 11
A new rumor over the weekend claimed Apple TV is gaining a new multi-user feature with tvOS 11 later this year. Account switching makes a lot of sense for a shared device like the Apple TV, but users have wanted this feature on iOS for a while too. Would Apple ship account switching with tvOS and exclude the feature from iOS?
Filed under: Apple
Apple releases third iOS 10.3.2 beta
Apple rolling out third macOS 10.12.5 beta for Mac
Apple is rolling out the third macOS 10.12.5 developer beta through the Mac App Store.
Filed under: Apple
Apple releases watchOS 3.2.2 beta 3 for Apple Watch
tvOS 10.2.1 beta 3 rolling out for Apple TV
iPhone 8 could ship without Touch ID entirely, analyst believes
iPhone 8 render without front Touch ID
Recent conflicting reports suggest Apple has not yet finalized the design of the flagship iPhone 8 this year in terms of how Touch ID will be implemented. If Apple introduces a new edge-to-edge display as expected, Touch ID will have to change from its bottom front location as the chin is dramatically reduced.
The best case scenario based on rumors is that Apple manages to implement the fingerprint scanner into the new OLED display, although low yield rates may rule that out this year. The less desired scenario is Apple moves Touch ID to the backside like Android phones today.
Now an analyst has floated what would likely be an even less popular scenario: no Touch ID.
Filed under: Apple
9to5Toys Lunch Break: Beats Solo3 Wireless Headphones $160, 13-inch MacBook Air $750, Duet iPad App $10, more
Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.
TODAY’S CAN’T MISS DEALS:
Beats Solo3 Wireless On-Ear Headphones $160
Apple’s entry-level 13-inch MacBook Air on sale for $750 shipped
Duet Display for iOS/Mac goes 50% off: $10 (Reg. $20)
BeatsX Wireless In-Ear Headphones go to $120 at Amazon and Best Buy
The Howler iOS adventure-puzzler free for first time in years (Reg. $1)
- App Store Free App of the Week: Hyperburner iOS space racer free (Reg. $3)
- Link Twin iOS puzzler gets very first price drop: $1
- LVL 3D puzzler gets very first price drop: $1 (Reg. $2)
- WikiLinks Smart Wikipedia Reader for iOS now available free
Review: Perfect Apple Watch case for Nike+ bands, 50% off deal
Hands on with the best AirPods accessories
9to5Rewards: SkylinkNet Plus Alarm System Starter kit [Giveaway]
MORE NEW GEAR FROM TODAY:
Apple AirPort Express Base Station $67 (Reg. $99)
- Logitech Circle Wireless 1080p Security Camera $130 (Reg. $170+)
- Daily Deals: HP Officejet Pro AiO Printer w/ AirPrint $60, more
- Yamaha 5.1-Ch. 4K A/V Receiver for $145 shipped (Reg. $200+)
- Lowe’s, CVS, Jiffy Lube, Cabela’s and more gift cards up to 20% off
- Hisense 50-inch 4K Smart Ultra HDTV for $329 shipped
- SanDisk’s best-selling 32GB SD Card now $10 Prime shipped at Amazon
- Games/Apps: BioShock Collection from $24, Ghost Recon $42, iOS freebies, more
- Geneva’s Touring S DAB and Bluetooth Radio offers a precision aluminum design
- Lenovo ThinkPad 11-inch 4GB Chromebook marked down to $140
- Smartphone Accessories: Jackery QC 20100mAh Power Bank $27, more
- Magic NutriBullet Rx Blender hits Amazon all-time low at $105 shipped
- Gear up for Earth Day: Renogy 100W Solar + Suaoki 20,000mAh Generator combo $273 shipped
- Garmin Nüvi 5-inch GPS Navigator System for $80
NEW PRODUCTS & MORE:
Bose unveils Revolve 360-degree Bluetooth Speaker made from solid aluminum
PowerUp replaces your MacBook Pro charger and adds much more to the mix
Candy Crush and Moschino release Jeremy Scott designed apparel collection
- RIVER hopes to be your ultimate mobile power and recharge station
- House of Marley’s Stir It Up sustainably-crafted record player
- Dagadam is the Smart Watch for AI Notifications on iOS and Android
- DJI Phantom 4 Advanced brings updated specs, better camera
- Nintendo Direct Highlights: Splatoon 2, ARMS, Pikmin, new amiibo [Videos]
- Logitech’s new Z537 Bluetooth Speaker System promises to give your Mac booming audio
- The Copenhagen Wheel adds electric motor and smart features to any bicycle
- NBA Playgrounds drops next month for Switch, PS4, Xbox One + new trailers
- Walmart will begin discounting products you choose to pick up in-store
- Star Wars Battlefront 2 debut trailer leaks, watch it right here while you can
- Sony announces super thin $700 e-paper tablet
- Uncharted: The Lost Legacy releases in August w/ 10+ hour campaign
- Misfit’s Flare is a low cost fitness tracker that doesn’t skip out on functionality
- Under Armour SpeedForm Record Equipped shoes takes fitness to a new level
- Gorillaz launch new AR/VR app to host largest ever listening party
- The KERUO L7 smart pocket projector puts the big screen in the palm of your hands
- Anker takes the wraps off new slim iPhone 7 battery case with Lightning port access
- Teodoor offers full smart lock functionality in the ‘world’s smallest package’
- Kniterate is a smart 3D printer for the aspiring tailor
- Ford’s smart crib will get your infant to sleep without having to take a night drive
- Play Elder Scrolls Online for free on PS4, Xbox One, Mac/PC
- Knomo’s water-resistant LiveFree bag offers wireless charging on the go
MORE DEALS STILL LIVE:
SanDisk 128GB MicroSDXC Card for $33 Prime shipped
Elago’s adorable W3 Apple Watch Stand is back under $10
Nest 3rd Gen. Learning Thermostat in two colors $219 shipped
Filed under: Apple
Apple CEO Tim Cook receiving Free Expression Award tomorrow night, event to be live streamed
Apple CEO Tim Cook at roundtable meeting with then President-elect Donald Trump in December
Apple CEO Tim Cook will receive the 2017 Free Expression Award tomorrow night at the Newseum in Washington D.C., and Cook’s appearance will be broadcasted live for free. The Newseum highlights Cook’s public positions on social issues including privacy and LGBT rights while serving as the head of Apple.
Filed under: Apple
Apple posts Mother’s Day gift suggestions one month out, at prices starting from $49
As the company has done now for several years, Apple has posted some gift suggestions for Mother’s Day, which takes place on May 17, with prices starting from $49 …
Filed under: Apple
Union Square Apple Store hosting Al Gore and Lisa Jackson for Earth Day event this week
Former Vice President Al Gore with Apple CEO Tim Cook and company
Apple is set to host former Vice President Al Gore and Apple Environment VP Lisa Jackson at an open event in San Francisco later this week. The duo will discuss environmental issues publicly at the Union Square Apple Store on Wednesday night ahead of Earth Day this Saturday.
Filed under: Apple
Samsung playing a key role in iPhone 8 supply chain management as OLED competition grows
A report out of Korea claims that Samsung will not only be manufacturing the OLED screens for the iPhone 8, but also playing a key role in the supply chain management for related components.
Samsung Display, the display-making unit of Samsung Electronics, is the only panel maker globally that mass-produces OLED panels for smartphones. Its market share stands at a whopping 95 percent currently. Because Apple is still less experienced in OLED, the display maker is said to be playing a key role in the overall supply chain management that consists of its own key parts suppliers …
Filed under: Apple
NBA player Stephen Curry switches from iPhone ad to Vivo – but still uses iPhone personally
NBA player Stephen Curry doesn’t seem to mind which smartphone manufacturer wants to hire him to appear in ads. The Golden State Warriors player who appeared in an iPhone 6s video ad back in 2015 is now appearing in one for Android manufacturer Vivo.
Filed under: Apple
Pariti app shows you your debts, offers to save you money via peer-to-peer lending
If you have a mix of loans, credit card debts or other borrowing, it can be hard to see just how much the interest rates and fees are costing you. A new app – currently only available in the UK but with plans for international expansion – takes a really interesting approach to this.
Filed under: Apple
Is Technology Actually Making Us Less Productive? [New Research]
After working in my role here at HubSpot for almost eight months now, I’ve started to go into autopilot when I turn on my computer every morning.
I open up my email app, my calendar app, my organization and productivity app, my grammar-checking app, my note-taking app, my analytics tool, and my blogging tool.
And that’s only when I first get into the office.
By the end of most days, my browser is full of different tabs, and so many apps and tools are running that they eventually start shutting down of their own accord. When all of these sites, apps, and tools are working, I spend a significant portion of my day using them: to write, to proofread, to extrapolate data, to keep track of what I’m working on, to update notes — all in the name of efficiency.
But as it turns out, the tools and apps that we marketers use every day could actually be making us less efficient. If you feel the pain of switching between 1,000 apps per day like I do, read on for new data from HubSpot Research.
The Trouble With Tools
We surveyed more than 2,000 business owners, salespeople, and marketers in the U.S. and U.K. The biggest finding from our research? Marketers and salespeople are using too many productivity tools and apps, and it’s actually making us less efficient.
Marketers are using a ton of tools.
You probably knew this one already from your own day-to-day experience, but it bears repeating: There are an enormous number of marketing tools out there, and marketers are using a lot of them to get their jobs done every day.
HubSpot Research analyzed our customer base of over 20,000 websites, and we found that each website has an average of 13 tool integrations — one website even had 88 tools and apps. The marketing app and tool landscape is incredibly crowded and constantly evolving, a phenomenon Chiefmartec.com chronicled in this extremely busy graphic:
Source: Chiefmartec
Now, before you keep reading, think about how many tools you use every day to do your job. Keep that number in mind as you keep reading the results of our survey.
Marketers underestimate how many tools they’re using.
When I counted up the number of tools I use every day, my initial count landed at seven tools and apps. But then, when I started digging into my internet history, I realized the number was actually higher. HubSpot’s internal communications platform is a tool I didn’t consider. The same goes for our file-sharing service, my social media scheduling tool, and an analytics bookmark.
By the time I fully audited every single tool and app I use in a given day to do my job, the number was in the double-digits. And as it turns out, I’m not alone.
When we asked our survey respondents how many technologies they used in their day jobs, their answers were surprising — and perhaps too low.
Source: HubSpot Research
The majority of survey respondents said they only use between one and five tools to do their jobs every day, and we think these numbers err on the conservative side for the same reason my initial number was so low. When technology becomes a part of your day-to-day routine, it’s easy to forget you’re using it — and to notice that it could make your day less efficient.
When apps and tools are built into your workday as browser extensions, bookmarks, homepages, and push notifications, for example, it can be easy not to count them. But as it turns out, using them is taking up valuable time.
Too Much Tech = Too Little Efficiency
In an ironic twist, tools designed in the name of productivity and efficiency could be impeding those results.
Marketers are wasting time.
We asked marketers to estimate how much time they spend each day logging into, using, and jumping between the different tools and technologies they use. The results were surprising: Marketers are losing up to five hours per week managing and operating apps to get their jobs done.
Source: HubSpot Research
Marketers are getting frustrated.
The two biggest pain points for survey respondents were how much time it takes to work in and operate the myriad of different marketing tools out there, and how much time it takes to switch between tools using different logins and passwords.
Source: HubSpot Research
That hour lost to managing different tools and technologies each day is all the more aggravating if the tools share functional capabilities, and a majority of the marketers we surveyed think up to five tools they use could be redundant.
Source: HubSpot Research
I don’t know about you, but there are definitely redundancies between some of the tools I use. Heck, I use two to-do list apps and still write my list down with a pen and paper every day. How many tools do you use that work to do different versions of the same functions?
Marketers could be using that time to do other cool things.
Perhaps the most frustrating aspect of the inefficiency of tools is that time spent managing tools takes away from time that could be spent tackling big-picture challenges, creating content, or closing prospects. Here’s what the marketers and salespeople we surveyed said they wished they could be doing with that time:
Source: HubSpot Research
The three things marketers would prefer to focus on — growing web traffic, creating content, and converting new leads — might look familiar. They’re critical pieces of the inbound and content marketing funnel, and without ample time to dedicate to these tasks, marketers might not be able to generate as many leads as needed for their sales teams’ success.
What’s the Solution?
So, let’s recap.
The results of this survey aren’t great. Marketers and salespeople are having trouble being as efficient and productive as possible because they have to manage so many different tools. They’re sacrificing time to work on projects of greater impact and magnitude to log into tools and extrapolate data.
But not to worry — we suggest two steps to maximize efficiency and stay productive in the face of hundreds of productivity tools to choose from.
1) Do an audit.
If you didn’t do it earlier while reading, sit down and write down (or type) a list of all of the websites, tools, apps, extensions, and bots you use every day to get your work done. From your sticky notes app on your computer to your pen and paper to-do list, make an exhaustive list of everything you use to get everything done.
2) Consolidate and integrate.
Then, try to categorize your tools and apps into different functionalities to identify any redundancies in your productivity system. If you’re using three different types of to-do lists, as I do, can you cut two and just use one? If you’re spending time reporting data from three different analytics programs, sit down with your team to determine if there’s a more efficient way you could be reporting, or if your KPIs are up-to-date with your team’s needs.
The ultimate goal should be to create a system of tools that are easy to use and make marketers’ jobs as productive as possible. To learn more about how we’ve done that here at HubSpot, read about our completely integrated Growth Stack here.
How much time do you think you lose each day to redundant tools and apps? Share with us in the comments below.
Original Macintosh emulator now available on the Internet Archive
It seems to be a day for nostalgia. As Woz & the original Apple I team got together, the Internet Archive has put online a web-based emulator of the original Macintosh from 1984.
The emulator allows you to run a wide range of early Macintosh software, from the MacWrite and MacPaint apps supplied with the machine through games like Lemmings and Frogger to early Microsoft apps like Multiplan and Chart. It even runs Microsoft Flight Simulator 1.02!
Filed under: Apple
Apple will still be here in 2075, says Woz, as original Apple I garage team get together
Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak has told USA Today that Apple will still be around in 2075 – alongside Google and Facebook.
Apple will be around a long time, like IBM (which was founded in 1911). Look at Apple’s cash ($246.1 billion, as of the end of its last fiscal quarter). It can invest in anything. It would be ridiculous to not expect them to be around (in 2075). The same goes for Google and Facebook.
He made the prediction ahead of the Silicon Valley Comic Con, whose theme is ‘The Future of Humanity: Where Will We Be in 2075?’ and said that he and Steve Jobs made that assumption from the start …
Filed under: Apple
Sketchy drawings depict bezel-less iPhone 8 with Home Button, camera and speaker integrated behind screen
A sketchy series of images has been circulating this morning, supposedly showing an iPhone 8 prototype design with mockup renders and technical measurement drawings. The images have been shared by KK, which has a mixed record of accuracy.
The drawing is impressive, depicting an iPhone front dominated by screen with just 4mm of bezels on every side. However, the original sourcing is unclear and the details are pretty circumspect …
Filed under: Apple