Many designers say Apple’s once polished software has lost its luster. Olof Schybergson, CEO of design firm Fjord, believes Scott Forstall’s departure could spark a new era of software innovation for the company and define Tim Cook’s tenure. Read more »
Should the same app have a different interface on different devices? Netflix doesn’t think so, updating its Android app for smartphones to replicate the tablet interface found on Android slates and on Apple’s iPad. The improvements make it easier to find and watch content. Read more »
Nuance is offering up a new SDK that will allow big consumer-facing companies to embed virtual voice assistants directly into their mobile apps. Called Nina, the software is intended to cut through app clutter and allow customers to accomplish complex transactions through simple speech commands Read more »
The iPhone kicked off the mobile data revolution. The astonishing thing is Apple succeeded where the rest of the wireless industry had failed. Carriers, network vendors, handset makers and OS developers had the same vision as Steve Jobs and Apple. They just failed to execute it. Read more »
AT&T President Glenn Lurie has big ambitions for Ma Bell’s Digital Life division. He’s not slapping together a bunch of connected home applications. He’s building a platform — an iOS for the Internet of things. And like the iPhone, Digital Life may come with its own Siri. Read more »
Ask a VC about big data and she will probably tell you about visualization of the user interface. We’re talking about intuitive UIs that let users visually work with data using charts and tools, not algorithms. It’s hard to do right, but the payoff could be huge. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Should the industry take “Project Glass” seriously? Does Google have a truly disruptive user interface technology in its labs? Project Glass aligns with critical UI factors, and it plays to Google’s strengths in user interface and its data, mapping and communications expertise, so don’t dismiss it ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Smartphones have Google Goggles, an image-recognition search app, but consumers may one day have “Google glasses.” Google has introduced Project Glass, a concept for glasses that integrate directly with Google services. It may sound like a silly project, but there’s a reason the device makes sense. Read more »
Apple added 4- and 5-finger gestures last October, but the features don’t seem commonly used. After two weeks with my new iPad, however, I’m suddenly taking advantage of these gestures and they make the iPad experience even better. Here’s a quick list of these useful gestures. Read more »
With its new iOS app, Clear, Realmac Software has taken the “less is more” axiom to its ultimate conclusion. Fjord’s Alfred Lui and Aynne Valencia explain why we’ll soon see more of this stripped-down approach to interface design, thanks to three big industry trends. Read more »
Sony Corporation unveiled its next-generation back-illuminated CMOS digital image sensor on Monday, which boasts a stacked design that saves space, lowers power requirements and increases quality, all of which adds up to a veritable mating call for Sony component customer Apple. Read more »
Apple released its latest iOS beta on Monday, and details have since emerged that make it a noteworthy update, both for iPhone users and for others waiting in the wings on some of Siri’s features to trickle down to the rest of the iDevice family. Read more »
At least one of Apple’s patent disputes has come to and end on Thursday, according to the other party in the case. Elan Microelectronics Corp has settled with the Mac maker, the Taiwanese company said, in a deal that involves a $5 million payout from Apple. Read more »
One of the jailbreak features I really wish would come to the platform legitimately is the ability to use launchers to quickly start an app without digging through multiple home screens. Luckily, you can mimic the behavior of a quick launcher with iOS 5′s Notification Centre. Read more »
Amazon’s promised software update for its Kindle Fire is now live and rolling out to devices over the air. If you can’t wait and you’re not near a computer to download the software, no worries: You can do it all directly on the Kindle Fire. Read more »
The idea of physically manipulating digital data through gestures, as shown in the movie Minority Report, may seem like sci-fi, but there’s much that applies to the desktop of tomorrow. Oblong’s John Underkoffler envisioned the future at the GigaOM Net:Work event on Thursday. Read more »
Connectivity changes everything. That’s the credo driving just about every corner of our day-to-day lives. As human beings, we are now connected to one another through not just our social networks but also our cars, the books we read, the albums we download and even our own health and wellness habits (to name just a few areas). With that in mind, GigaOM Pro has singled out certain areas in the technology industry where we see this shift to constant connectivity taking place most drastically. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Facebook debuted a new profile design called Timeline at its f8 conference Thursday in San Francisco. If you don’t love the new look at first sight, you better learn to at least like it: Timeline will soon be the only profile design available to Facebook users. Read more »
Feed-based UIs are powerful because they encourage frequent usage and participation. They’re becoming one of the most important ways to present information, and are critical areas of competition in social networking and ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Skype just dropped an update for its Mac client. Version 5.3 includes support for HD video, so long as your Mac is equipped with one of the new FaceTime HD cameras introduced in MacBook Pros earlier this year, or a third-party camera that supports HD resolution. Read more »
After debuting at January’s Consumer Electronics Show, the ASUS Eee Pad Slider is nearing a release. An Australian blogger has one of the first units and shares his impressions. I’m not sold that many folks will want the extra weight and bulk of an integrated keyboard. Read more »
Netlix recently posted a job opening for a UI designer specialized on kids websites and online games. Does the video giant plan to launch a separate website dedicated to its large library of kids content, or will the entire Netflix UI become a bit more kid-friendly? Read more »
The travel web search has been one of the tech industry’s most crowded and cutthroat spaces since the launch of Expedia 15 years ago. But the stiff competition didn’t stop Adam Goldstein, the CEO of San Francisco-based startup Hipmunk, from throwing his hat in the ring. Read more »
You might have heard, a company called RockMelt announced a browser last week. The even called it a “social browser.” It got a lot of media attention, partly because Marc Andreessen’s VC firm funded it. Big deal. Browsers don’t matter anymore. Here’s why ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
You may have heard, a company called RockMelt announced a browser last week, even calling it a “social browser.” Thanks in part to Marc Andreessen’s VC firm funding it, the product got a lot of media attention. Big deal. Browsers don’t matter anymore. Here’s why not. Read more »
In the realm of might-have-beens, MySpace shows more promise than Friendster. But unlike some former web leaders, it’s still salvageable. MySpace shouldn’t try to challenge Facebook for social network leadership, but it can remain a valuable consumer media business, if not a technology driver. Here’s ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Just about every company online should add some social spice to its site, but in Yahoo’s case, an aggressive dose could help the former Internet giant maintain its huge audience and advertising leadership ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Last week, Google dramatically changed its core search interface with Google Instant. With the trend of feed-like user-interfaces continuing to gain momentum, it’s worth taking a look at some of the advantages and disadvantages, as well as how businesses can implement and add value to ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Critics of Apple’s iPhone intrusive notification system have new hope for more efficient and less bone-jarring alerts — Rich Dellinger left Palm to rejoin Apple last month. Among other UI contributions, Dellinger invented the superbly elegant and highly effective notification system used by Palm’s webOS. Read more »
Via Apple 2.0, Oppenheimer analyst Yair Reiner asserts in a research note that Apple’s lawsuit with HTC over the iPhone interface was the culmination of “blunt talks” with other phone manufacturers. According to Reiner, starting in January Apple began closed-door discussions with OEMs regarding the company’s […] Read more »
