Finally Microsoft Office Comes to the Apple iPhone

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> If you've ever wanted to create and edit Word and Excel documents on your iPhone, the wait is over. Microsoft is launching Office for iPhone, bringing Word, Excel and PowerPoint to the world's most popular smartphone.<br /> <br /> The version of Office the iPhone's getting is Office Mobile, which is nearly identical to the apps that already exist on Windows Phone. It includes phone-friendly versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint, but not other Office apps such as Outlook.<br /> <br /> Creating a version of Office for iPhone fits with Microsoft's new strategy of treating its services as platform-agnostic, and it comes to iOS long after other Microsoft apps, including OneNote and Lync. It also fits with Microsoft offering Office 365 as a subscription service, accessible from many devices, rather than a one-time download for one machine.<br /> <br /> "With Office 365 Home Premium and Pro Plus, we promised they'd work across all of your devices," says Julia White, marketing manager for Microsoft Office. "Now that those are out, it's time to expand think about other endpoints our users have said are important to them."<br /> <br /> The app is available to iPhone owners in the U.S. today, and in international markets early next week. Although anyone can download the app, only subscribers to Office 365 will be able to use it — the app prompts you to sign in with your Office or Microsoft account at startup. The iPhone doesn't count against a subscriber's five supported devices, and a single account supports up to five iPhones.<br /> <br /> Although it's long been rumored that Office would also come to the iPad, today's announcement applies only to the iPhone. Of course, almost any iPhone app will also run on the iPad; although the experience isn't optimized for a 9.7-inch screen, users can expand the iPhone app to nearly fill the iPad's larger display. However, Microsoft believes iPad users are better served by the Office 365 web apps anyway.<br /> <br /> "With the small screen, it makes a big difference to have a native application," says White. "With a tablet, you have more screen space to work with, so Office web apps provide a great experience there."<br /> <br /> It's notable that Microsoft is bringing a native Office app to iOS before Android, although Android users can access the Office web apps via the Chrome browser.<br /> <br /> Are you excited for Office for iPhone? Let us know in the comments.<br /> <br /> This Post Originally Published at <a href="http://mashable.com/2013/06/14/office-iphone/" target="_blank">Mashable</a>.</div>

Finally Microsoft Office Comes to the Apple iPhone

If you've ever wanted to create and edit Word and Excel documents on your iPhone, the wait is over. Microsoft is launching Office for i...

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Facebook Hashtags Not Open to Advertising Right Now

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> Facebook's introduction of hashtags paves the way for a lucrative stream of new advertising, but the company is not opening the program up to advertisers, at least not at this time.<br /> <br /> Reps from the company confirmed that hashtags are off limits to marketers right now. However, there doesn't appear to be any reason why Facebook would block hashtag buys in the future. Facebook is, however, encouraging marketers to use hashtags in advertising and arguing that Facebook will now amplify a hashtag's influence. A rep stresses thought that "using them and buying them are different."<br /> <br /> For Twitter, hashtags can be hot properties, especially during big events like the Super Bowl, the Presidential Debates and various awards shows, when marketers like Oreo get to display their real-time marketing chops. However, Facebook's use of hashtags is trickier since most posts on the network are private, not public.<br /> <br /> Advertising Age speculates that hashtags might ultimately bolster Facebook's Graph Search since hashtag mentions might provide a clearer expression of interest than Likes: "Likes are flawed signals, since users sometimes click on them arbitrarily or to satisfy a social obligation. But posting with a hashtag could be seen as a more tangible expression of affinity and could thus help to make graph search into a useful product."<br /> <br /> This Post is Originally published at <a href="http://mashable.com/2013/06/12/facebook-hashtag-advertising/" target="_blank">Mashable</a></div>

Facebook Hashtags Not Open to Advertising Right Now

Facebook's introduction of hashtags paves the way for a lucrative stream of new advertising, but the company is not opening the program...

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iOS 7 Updates Look a Little Too Familiar to Some Apple Developers

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> Stephen Orth wondered why Apple didn't use the metadata in photos to better organize pictures in the iPhoto app so, last September, he started developing an app of his own in his spare time to do just that. The result was Photowerks, a 99-cent iPhone app released last month, which lets users sort their photos by date and location.<br /> <br /> "I always thought it sounded strange that Apple didn't do that in its photo app," Orth told Mashable in an interview. "I figured it was just a matter of time before they did do it."<br /> <br /> As it turned out, it was less than a month before Apple did just that. During the keynote event at its Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday, Apple announced a new option for iPhoto called Moments that automatically organizes a user's photos and videos by — you guessed it — date and location.<br /> <br /> Orth was in the audience at the event when Apple unveiled a new feature strikingly similar to his own. His initial thought was, "Well, they finally did it." Shortly afterwards, he posted to Twitter that he and his new app had just been "sherlocked."<br /> <br /> The term dates back to 2002 when Apple introduced a search tool called Sherlock 3 that many in the developer community said blatantly ripped off a third-party application called Watson. In the years since, Apple has been accused of lifting features from other companies and apps, and this year's WWDC event was no different. In the course of the two hour keynote, Apple appeared to take features from photo apps like Orth's as well as from existing file-sharing apps, weather apps, music streaming services and password protection tools.<br /> <br /> "The gut reaction is always a little bit of surprise, of course, when Apple unveils something that you do," said David Chartier, a rep for AgileBits, whose password management app 1Password may face new competition from Apple's new iCloud Keychain service. "You kind of pause and watch thoroughly to see how far they are going to go with it."<br /> <br /> Based on Apple's brief presentation of its password tool, Chartier believes there is still plenty of room to differentiate 1Password from iCloud Keychain, but he says the AgileBits team continues to look at how much Apple's service overlaps with its own. "There's still a lot of unanswered questions about how far Apple did go," he said. "Apple is going to do what Apple is going to do."<br /> <br /> Some companies appeared to insult Apple for taking so long to catch up to their features. After Apple unveiled its long-rumored streaming radio service, a Pandora rep told Mashable that the new feature finally brought it "on par" with existing music streaming music services. Others we spoke with view Apple introducing similar features to existing apps as inevitable.<br /> <br /> "There is always inspiration in the air that people are taking and putting back into their own apps," said Pierre Valade, co-founder of Sunrise, a popular calendar app whose layout appeared to influence updates to Apple's calendar app. "The fact that they were maybe inspired us, maybe copied us, is fair: we copy other apps too."<br /> <br /> Omer Perchik, co-founder of Any.DO, a to-do list app with a similar user interface design to iOS 7, said he was actually "humbled" by the similarities. In fact, he believes the overlap will help his apps in the future because they already "look and feel like native applications" for the new operating system, without requiring a redesign.<br /> <br /> The same can't necessarily be said of Photowerks, the app Orth launched last month. Though he plans to add more sharing options and a better search feature to differentiate his app from Apple's before iOS 7 is released in a few months, he admits there's a chance demand for his app will "start trailing off," in which case he will turn his attention to another product.<br /> <br /> It wouldn't be the first time this happened to Orth. He introduced an invoice app for iPhone a couple months after the original model was released in 2007. He says the app sold well for about a year before other developers came out with similar products, which cut into his sales.<br /> <br /> "There's always the danger that a competitor comes in and makes a better app than you," he says. Unfortunately for iOS developers like Orth, sometimes that competitor turns out to be Apple.<br /> <br /> This article originally published at <a href="http://mashable.com/2013/06/11/ios-7-developers/" target="_blank">Mashable</a>.</div>

iOS 7 Updates Look a Little Too Familiar to Some Apple Developers

Stephen Orth wondered why Apple didn't use the metadata in photos to better organize pictures in the iPhoto app so, last September, he ...

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Why Apple Is Getting Into the Music Streaming Business?

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> Steve Jobs was perhaps the loudest critic of streaming music in the late 2000s. While companies like Pandora and Rhapsody gradually gained traction, the late Apple co-founder and CEO repeatedly denounced these services and resisted invitations to create a similar subscription option for music.<br /> <br /> "Never say never, but customers don't seem interested in it. The subscription model has failed so far," Jobs said in an interview with Reuters in 2007. The following year at Macworld, he reiterated the point: "We've never offered a rental model in music because we don't think people don't want to rent music."<br /> <br /> Five years later, it looks like Apple has stopped saying "never." The New York Times and CNET report that Apple is in final negotiations with major record labels to launch an Internet radio service similar to Pandora — which many in the media have dubbed "iRadio" — at its Worldwide Developers Conference later this month.<br /> <br /> By now, it's almost taken for granted that Apple is getting into the streaming music business. What's less certain is their reasons for doing so. Why is Apple — a company that generated more than $150 billion in revenue last year — investing in streaming music, an industry in which even the biggest players are still losing money?<br /> <br /> The primary motivation, according to analysts, is that Apple is playing defense. Not only are services like Pandora and Spotify growing their user bases, but bigger companies are also entering the space. Google recently unveiled a music streaming service similar to Spotify, and Amazon is said to be in talks to launch a music streaming service as well.<br /> <br /> "Everyone, even Microsoft, has a streaming music service. At some point, one of these companies is going to nail it," James McQuivey, vice president and principal analyst at Forrester, told Mashable. "When that happens, Apple will kick itself for not getting ahead of that."<br /> <br /> For years, McQuivey says, Apple's "primary objective" has been to focus on products and features that directly contribute to device sales. Music streaming, he argues, only increases sales "marginally," if at all, which may be why it wasn't a top priority early on. But as other companies boost their own media ecosystems, Apple faces increasing pressure to follow suit to lock in existing customers.<br /> <br /> "[Apple] is more interested in what they can do to maintain their relationships with people who have bought their devices so that when it comes time to upgrade, they will stay with their devices," McQuivey says.<br /> <br /> Changing Music Listening Habits<br /> When Apple introduced iTunes a little more than a decade ago, it helped revolutionize the music industry by providing a streamlined, legal alternative to p2p sites for purchasing songs online. This time around, it appears that Apple is less interested in revolutionizing music listening than responding to changes already afoot in the industry.<br /> <br /> "I think this is a very different conversation now than it was 10-12 years ago [when iTunes launched]," said Russ Crupnick, SVP of industry analysis at The NPD Group. "I don't think it's about revolutionizing anything."<br /> <br /> While iTunes still accounts for the vast majority of paid downloads, with 63% of the market in the fourth quarter, according to NPD, the overall makeup of music listening is changing fast. NPD found that nearly a quarter of 13-35 year olds listened to music through Internet radio services in the fourth quarter, up from 17% the previous year. If that's not enough, many of these services have already proven incredibly popular among Apple users: Pandora, for example, is the second most popular free iPhone app of all time.<br /> <br /> Apple's formula is often not to be first to a product category, but rather to put out a product that makes that category go mainstream. Most streaming services like Spotify and Rdio have just a small fraction of U.S. Internet users. Pandora has by far the widest largest user base of the bunch, with 200 million registered users worldwide.<br /> <br /> As Crupnick notes, "If I'm Apple, I'm thinking, 'We have our devices out there. Why shouldn't this be an Apple application, and why shouldn't we own that space?"<br /> <br /> Can Apple's Streaming Music Business Succeed Where Others Have Failed?<br /> For all their increased popularity, streaming music services are still money-losing businesses.<br /> <br /> Pandora, which was founded in 2000, has yet to have a profitable year. Spotify reportedly posted a net loss of $57 million in 2011. Much of this comes down to unfavorable licensing agreements. If recent reports are accurate, Apple will be paying rates comparable to Pandora, but analysts speculate Apple could save money in operational costs by virtue of being a larger organization. But that might not be Apple's primary concern.<br /> <br /> "I wouldn't expect that Apple would necessarily take a loss, but you don't have to make a whole lot of money in music for it to be a good deal for Apple and its consumers," Crupnick says.<br /> <br /> NPD found in a separate report that "many free streamers attributed buying more downloads to their discovery on a radio or via an on-demand service."<br /> <br /> If Apple can use music streaming as a further gateway to more iTunes purchases of songs and other products, it will pay off in the long run.<br /> <br /> Would you use an Apple music streaming service instead of other music apps, if it were to launch? Tell us in the comments below.<br /> <br /> This Post is Originally published at <a href="http://mashable.com/2013/06/03/apple-streaming-music/" target="_blank">Mashable</a></div>

Why Apple Is Getting Into the Music Streaming Business?

Steve Jobs was perhaps the loudest critic of streaming music in the late 2000s. While companies like Pandora and Rhapsody gradually gained ...

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Apple Will Release Trade-In Method to Lift iPhone 5 Sales

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> Apple is planning to launch a new trade-in program later this month in an effort to increase the number of customers upgrading to the most recent iPhone, according to Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the situation.<br /> <br /> Bloomberg reports that Apple will partner with Brightstar Corp, the wireless distributor that it has worked with for trade-in promotions on products sold by AT&T and T-Mobile. The new program may also help Apple's overseas expansion since the company could resell the devices abroad, according to the report.<br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWsne8O8EDTINvRi-vb3l7dLeVHLgxde_uZHnxeiNf-XsoXC8lq82eC17ebGuA8RxvTWdOCAlw79dN3TacauUwu5RSqLyNc8OLcNq-bn6kgXn9U7LY6SgEixepDvZWK9osXm0FYAMaFvQM/s1600/Apple.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Apple Will Release Trade-In Method to Lift iPhone 5 Sales" border="0" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWsne8O8EDTINvRi-vb3l7dLeVHLgxde_uZHnxeiNf-XsoXC8lq82eC17ebGuA8RxvTWdOCAlw79dN3TacauUwu5RSqLyNc8OLcNq-bn6kgXn9U7LY6SgEixepDvZWK9osXm0FYAMaFvQM/s400/Apple.jpg" title="" width="400" /></a></div> This would mark the first time that Apple has introduced a trade-in program, though Apple does already offer a recycling program online that lets customers trade in older gadgets like the iPhone 4s in exchange for a gift card.<br /> <br /> "They've always positioned [the program] as a sustainability initiative as opposed to a marketing initiative," Israel Ganot, CEO of the popular electronics trade-in service Gazelle, told Mashable about how the new program differs from the recycling program. "What's new here is that it's going to be done in store."<br /> <br /> Ganot believes that part of the reason Apple is launching the program now is because it's coming to the end of a long product innovation cycle and wants to "clear the shelf" of iPhone 5 devices "in anticipation" of the next model to be released in September or October.<br /> <br /> "It's a great way for Apple to get their best customers to upgrade more frequently and more affordably by providing a credit for the old device that they wouldn't use anyway," Ganot said.<br /> <br /> Bloomberg did not provide details about how much the trade-in program might offer customers towards an iPhone upgrade.<br /> <br /> Apple did not immediately respond to our request for comment.<br /> <br /> Article is originaly published at <a href="http://mashable.com/2013/06/06/apple-trade-in-sales/" target="_blank">Mashable</a><br /> <br /> Image courtesy of Flickr, <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/smemon/" target="_blank">Sean MacEntee</a></div>

Apple Will Release Trade-In Method to Lift iPhone 5 Sales

Apple is planning to launch a new trade-in program later this month in an effort to increase the number of customers upgrading to the most ...

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Spinpod Brings Time - Smartphone Lapse Photography

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> Capturing quality motion time-lapses and panoramas have long been feats reserved for the most adept photographers, but two Ph.D. candidates from the University of California, Los Angeles physics department are making the process available to all with a brand-new accessory.<br /> <br /> Enter Spinpod, via Kickstarter. Daniel Aharoni and Zhiping Chen last Friday took their product to the crowdfunding platform, where it's currently eyeing a funding goal of $75,000.<br /> <br /> According to the pitch video, the Spinpod is a portable photo helper for select smartphones and cameras. "Thinner than a deck of cards," the gizmo grooves with the iPhone 4, iPhone 5, iPod touch and most Android phones, with or without a case.<br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjttPJjHXz6B8Cb1nMsdgtgDcs-SAXfpLlhUo2ty_gbkAswAdazDk1CmZVKR_JtGAPa5eZy7LHRy3NY4f4vfh7sLzYdm2SOljhTj2j2uyCcaNkPe9kO52K5-JVREQSVvR2IDt5m4vbK3zai/s1600/Spinpod.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Smartphone Lapse Photography" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjttPJjHXz6B8Cb1nMsdgtgDcs-SAXfpLlhUo2ty_gbkAswAdazDk1CmZVKR_JtGAPa5eZy7LHRy3NY4f4vfh7sLzYdm2SOljhTj2j2uyCcaNkPe9kO52K5-JVREQSVvR2IDt5m4vbK3zai/s1600/Spinpod.jpg" title="" /></a></div> The gadget, which can double as a music holder, sound amplifier and video-chat port, is intuitive in application. After locking your device of choice in Spinpod's dock, select between panoramic mode and time-lapse mode. The former works with camera apps capable of continuous panoramic photography to produce seamless shots, and the latter lets you try your hand at an array — thanks to its versatility — of motion time-lapse maneuvers. You can mount the Spinpod to a tripod (or even connect one to another) to capture dynamic clips, and an LED lets you know which mode you're shooting in.<br /> <br /> Additionally, Spinpod features a five-, 10- and 15-second timer option for self-portraits. Spinpod isn't the only helper out there, though. Apple users might recall Galileo, a previous Kickstarter success that lets your iPhone do a full 360 via iPad control, as well as last year's Radian.<br /> <br /> Trying to make the leap to the market, the tech-savvy students behind Spinpod (pictured above) are giving interested backers a chance to snag one of the devices with a $59 pledge. But keep your eyes on Spinpod's Kickstarter campaign for updates on add-ons in the near future. Aharoni told Mashable that his team is working with iStabilizer's model of a four-wheel dolly meant for cameras, modifying it with a ball-head tripod mount so the Spinpod can motorize and drive dollies.<br /> <br /> According to Aharoni, the weight will be off the Spinpod and held on the dolly, so high-end photography equipment, such as DSLRs, will be supported for linear time-lapses. The dolly system, per Aharoni, will be able to be added to any current and future pledge, so all backers can receive a Spinpod as well as the mounting and dolly system.<br /> <br /> “The linear system is going to expand the base of people that can use [Spinpod],” Aharoni said.<br /> <br /> “It will be much, much more affordable than anything else that’s been out.”<br /> <br /> At time of publication, the Spinpod was about one-third of the way to its $75,000 goal. The funding period closes July 1 at 2 a.m. EDT.<br /> <br /> How do you feel about Spinpod? Are you willing to back the product? Share your thoughts with us in the comments.<br /> <br /> This Article is Originally Posted on <a href="http://mashable.com/2013/06/05/spinpod-time-lapse-photography-smartphone/" target="_blank">Mashable</a></div>

Spinpod Brings Time - Smartphone Lapse Photography

Capturing quality motion time-lapses and panoramas have long been feats reserved for the most adept photographers, but two Ph.D. candidates...

Read more »