New iPhone eh!

It's official! The iPhone 3G is coming to Canada!

Earlier today, "It's a Small World" was used as the fanfare to announce that 70 countries will have unfettered access to the most coveted digital device on the planet.

This morning, Steve Jobs, members of his team, and a number of software developers introduced the new Apple iPhone 3G which runs on the faster 3G network. The mobile phone boasts a 3.5 inch display; built in camera; and embedded GPS technology. Jobs claims that the battery power would provide 5 hours of talk time; 5-6 hours of browsing at high speed; 7 hours of video; or 24 hours of audio.

No more pretending... the iPhone is one powerful computer! Courtesy of the shared Software Development Kit made available only a few short months ago, a number of new tools will soon be available via the iPhone App Store at prices set by the developers (starting at 'free'). A few of the highlighted applications capitalize on the read/write web and are surely just the tip of the iceberg:

The Office Hub: MS Word, PowerPoint, Excel and the iWork apps will be viewable. Mobile Me promises to synchronize information on a number of disparate devices as dot-Mac is re-tooled to harness this handheld.

Blog in Your Pocket: Typepad makes it simple to create blog posts including photos directly from your iPhone.

Global Reporting Device: While the idea of a cell phone equipped camera as a reporting device has been around for a while, the Associated Press has optimized the Mobile News Network for the iPhone. Your photos will know from where they've been taken, making it easier than ever to be an on-the-scene reporter!

Social Networking from your Palm: Loopt, a Twitter-like app has been created for keeping tabs on your contacts. The word may enter the lexicon as GPS is leveraged to plot networked buddies as pushpins on a map.

Live Sports Connection: Sports fans will appreciate “At Bat”, a tool created by www.MLB.com: Real time video highlights channeled to your phone minutes after the play!

Band on the Go: An innovative interactive application promises to turn the iPhone into a Music Machine. With 'Cow Music’ the touch sensitive screen will allow your iPhone to emulate a variety of musical instruments. You can create, save and edit music on the go!

Digital Game Machine: Sega, Pangea, Digital Legends, and other software companies will turn the iPhone into a handheld video gaming device. Titles like Cro-Mag Rally are only the beginning. I can see many advertisers porting (or licensing) free interactive games to the iPhone in order to engage eyeballs.

The Doctor's Brain: MIMvista is one of a few companies preparing to launch upwards of a dozen medical apps. Rich medical information will be available at a doctor's touch, with options to zoom, scroll, and measure. Thanks to an embedded accelerometer, images will even when you shake the phone.

Today's news is that the iPhone 3G is coming to Canada; Tomorrow we may even forget that it's a telephone!


Today's Teacher 2.0 Podcast provides an audio overview.

To capture your own highlights, check out the WWDC 2008 Keynote Presentation.

Photo Credit: Betacontinua

5 Mac Predictions and one Sure Thing

With the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference only a few short days away, here is my wish list:

1] Apple will launch the iPhone in Canada. Roger's says they've reached agreement for this year, so why not with the anticipated 3G iPhone launch? Will GPS be included?

2] We'll see the first mass market touch screen notebook computer. If it works on a phone, it will work on a screen. It's only a matter of time... isn't it?

3] Safari will be re-tooled to include many embedded social networking tools. Look out Flock!

4] Cloud computing will come to .Mac services with the launch of iLife online. Web versions of Keynote, Pages, iMovie, Garageband and more will be compatible with both Mac and PC.

5] iTunes will be renamed to reflect the diverse media available for purchase/download. Developer applications for the iPhone will be made available for download beginning... "Today!"

What is for sure, is that Steve Jobs will wear blue jeans and a black crew neck shirt and will highlight the explosive growth in Mac sales. He'll sip from a water bottle intermittently and will speak slowly and deliberately using highly graphical slides as a backdrop. Steve will talk about the past with great pride and reverence, and will reinforce the wonders of the Leopard, the current Mac operating system. He'll highlight a new ad for iTunes and may even take a jab at the PC with a new Mac-PC ad. Audience members will laugh, and smile, and applaud, in giddy anticipation of "One more thing...."


Photo Credit: Ben Stanfield; Anthony Sigalas