Apple loses US Army contract, Russian govermnent wants to ban iProducts due to security concerns

    Apple has lost the U.S. Army defense contract in favor of Android for upcoming Army-approved smartphones and tablets, as well as  for apps that will be necessary for missions.
  There have been concerns about security for Android as compared to other mobile OS but most officials deemed Android the most secure, as the Army will be able to use the open source software as they choose, likely beefing up security even more. In terms of stability and connectivity, the OS is leaps and bounds above the competition.
    During combat, the devices will likely have to have satellite  phone-capabilities, meaning round-the-clock data and voice with no lapses. The Army wants every soldier to have one of the future Android devices, to ensure they are connected during missions. A prototype dubbed the Joint Battle Command-Platform is already being tested. Apps will include "critical messaging" for exchanging medevac requests and other emergencies, and A Blue Force Tracker program to make sure soldiers know where friendlies are. Finally, the phones will be able to withstand extreme wear-and-tear  and will likely be similar to the rugged "ToughBooks" created by Panasonic.

[iPhone jokes] and tornadoes

Apple embareses itself at Computex 2011 without even showing up

    There are two reasons why Apple is always missing at world wide conventions and technology expositions; first, Foxconn makes all Apple products and apple doesn't want a Foxconn booth and second, Apple software is always behind, behind schedule, behind the competition and behind in all benchmarks that aren't ordered by Apple.

    During Computex 2011 Tweakers.net did some benchmarks on a prototype Android Honeycomb tablet, which ran on Intel x86-based version of the OS and compared the results with the current generation of ARM tablets.

    The tablet was made by Compal Electronics with Intel's new prototype and Oak Trail platform on board. The used CPU has two cores, both at 1.5 GHz do their work, assisted by 1GB of RAM. The Intel GMA600 GPU is based on the PowerVR SGX535.

Lower is better

    The benchmarks show the combination of ARM hardware versus the Intel's Oak Trail x86 platform.

   Using the SunSpider benchmark the speed of the Safari iOS JavaScript engine clearly scores last even though it has roughly the same processing power as the Tegra 2 and is based on ARM Cortex A8 just as the Playbook CPU.

    Finally Linpack benchmark, Quadrant and CaffeineMark 3 were run. The results of both benchmarks are less significant as iOS didn't even qualify for further tests, in spite of the ARM CPU.

Why does it take an hour to put an album on an iPhone?

    Why does Apple force users into an experience that almost inevitably ends in sadness, if not outright disaster? There's a straight answer to that question and it's what pushed me away from my iPhone 3G and onto a Nexus One in the summer of 2010. 

    The whole point of selling an iPhone/iPod touch isn't to sell a piece of hardware, it's to loop an end-user into a system that continually drains their credit card.

     But here's the thing: what if you don't want to go all-in with that ecosystem? What if you enjoy casually using an app here or there on the iPhone, and what if you just want to throw a record on your device five minutes prior to heading out on a ten-day road trip? What if you want to make quick and subtle changes to your iPod, iPad or iPhone, without iTunes selfishly consuming what's left of your day? That, friends, is apparently an impossible task, especially if you've got a handful of devices or - gasp! - more than one computer that your device talks to.

iPhone manufacturer reports $218 million full-year net loss

    Foxconn, the mega-manufacturer behind all Apple products (more than 1/3 of Foxconn is dedicated to Apple products), posted a $218.3 million net loss for 2010. While the company had previously predicted lower earnings amid suicide-related wage increases and welfare costs, the reported figure is still worse than analysts' estimation of around $202 million, which also far outweighs the prior year's $38.6 million profit. Foxconn puts the blame on higher consolidated income tax and increased competition, as well as "cost streamlining actions" -- a reference to the ongoing relocation and expansion plans, which are also the outcome of the Chinese suicides -- that took longer than expected and led to increased spending along with higher manufacturing overhead. As for 2011, Foxconn said it'll "take decisive actions to conclude our capacity relocation, optimize our cost structure and return to profitability." Of course, further losses could accelerate plans to increase prices, which could ultimately put everyone in a lose-lose situation if Foxconn can't compete. 

     Foxconn plans to develop a robotized product line and mechanize the workforce to slowly replace the slave-like labor in hope to compete with giants like Nokia, Samsung or HTC.

    Of course Apple hasn't done anything regarding worker well-fare, nor have the manufacturing costs increased. Have you ever wondered how come Apple icon products aren't made in good ol' America?

Via: Foxconn International Holdings (PDF)