The Verge: Apple iPad versus Windows 8 (Preview) Tablets

Joshua Topolsky of The Verge has created the nifty video above detailing some of the advantages and disadvantages of Apple's iPad compared to devices powered by Microsoft's newest Windows, Windows 8.

Note: The version of Windows used in this comparison video is a pre-release version and many, if not most, issues with the operating system have since been remedied.

Australia: Apple Maps Can Kill You

Sometimes technological updates are helpful and extremely welcome, but sometimes, like the latest version of Apple's Maps in iOS6, it's a very bad thing indeed. There has already been considerable backlash over the switch from the integrated Google Maps experience within iOS devices to Apple's Google-free Maps system. The new Maps in notoriously inaccurate, often creating places that don't exist or moving places entirely.

In Australia, however, Apple's Maps are so bad that the local police of Mildura have had to issue warning to travellers that using Apple's Maps could be a danger to their lives. An excerpt from the article at The Verge is included below--click the source link to read the full article.

[T]he police have had to rescue motorists that ended up in the wrong place — some stranded without food or water for 24 hours. Others were forced to walk "long distances through dangerous terrain" in order to get phone reception; since temperatures can reach up to 46° Celsius (115° Fahrenheit), the police have called it a "potentially life-threatening issue."

Source: The Verge

Tek Syndicate: Has Apple Really Ever Invented Anything?

Tek Syndicate takes a look at the claim that Apple has invented much of the things we use today. Watch the video and see the infographic at FailBlog below for more information.

Infographic: Failblog

The Patent Wars Rage On: Apple Granted Virtual Page Turning, Rounded Corners Patents

Recent lawsuits have many questioning the state of the United States patent system, with many decrying its overwillingness to approve any patent application tossed on its desk with the right company's name attached to it. Just-approved patents granted to Apple for virtual page turning and rounded corners have even more people questioning the system. See the source articles below for the full story.

Source: The Verge - Rounded Corners
Source: The Verge - Virtual Page Turning

Apple Reportedly Moving Away from Intel

The Verge is reporting that Apple is contemplating the move from Intel's x86 and x64 processors in its Mac products to its own weaker, more power-efficient mobile processors currently used in the iPhone and iPad. Click the source link below for the full article.

Source: The Verge

Armando Ferreira: Apple iPad Mini vs. Google Nexus 7

YouTuber Armando Ferreira takes a look at the pros and cons of the two most prominent small-size tablets on the market today. Is price truly the biggest difference between the two, or is there something more?

Scott Forstall Forced to Leave Apple, Changes Coming for iOS?

Scott Forstall, a former Apple executive in charge of Apple's iOS development and design was forced to resign recently after the recent catastrophic disaster that was Maps in iOS 6. According to sources, The Verge reports that Scott Forstall refused to sign a document apologising for the issues caused by the change in technologies, including notoriously bad maps and broken directions. Jony Ive has taken-over as his replacement.

According to The Verge, "Forstall is said to love so-called skeuomorphic interfaces that imitate real-life objects (leather binding, wood, paper, and so on) while [Jony] Ive is firmly against them."

If this is the cast, will we see Apple make a swift move away from its skeumorphic design practices in iOS? How will this affect the user experience on iOS devices? Leave your thoughts in the comments section down below.

Source: The Verge

Armando Ferreira: Comparing iOS to Android, Nexus 7 to iPad Mini

YouTuber Armando Ferreira discusses Apple's new iPad Mini and compares Apple's advertising and marketing strategies to reality. In this video, he discusses product durability, compatibility, and utility.

Betanews: Chromebook vs. Surface in the Classrooms, iPad Out of the Picture?

Technology has become so critical to the classroom that teachers are constantly left wondering what schools will be provided with next for their word-processing and Internet-based research needs. For some time since the release of Apple's iPad, a emphasis was placed on smaller, more portable devices that students could use when and how they needed to. Derrick Wlodarz of Betanews argues, however, that the conversation of educational technology has shifted away from Apple iPad and onto Google's Chromebooks and Microsoft's Surface.

Click the source article for more.

Source: Betanews.

The Verge: iPad Mini Pricing is a Concern in the Classroom

The Verge's Bryan Bishop talks about Apple's new iPad Mini, a smaller 7.9" version of its larger 9.7" cousin, the iPad announced earlier today. The new Apple device is priced at $329 for the entry-level model with 16 GB of storage space. However, in a world where a similar device offering comparable services with a better screen, the Nexus 7, a 7" Android 4.1 based tablet sells for $200 on the Google Play store, it's hard to justify the purchase of a device with so high a premium, even if Apple is making an effort toward better support for education with their latest updates to iBooks. See the full story at the source link below.

Source: The Verge

Apple, Bruce Willis Bring Digital Rights Issues to the Forefront

Lee Newton and Steve Zaragoza of SourceFed, YouTube's largest general news channel, discuss the outrage of actor Bruce Willis (Die Hard, RED) against Apple because of an iTunes policy that states that when you purchase from iTunes, you aren't actually purchasing music from iTunes. That's right.

According to the iTunes Terms and Conditions, you aren't buying the music, but merely a right to listen to the music.

This brings up a very important question for all of us in the digital age:

Is it okay for us to merely be renting this digital content? How can this impact the classroom? Leave your response in the comment section down below.