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iOS7 for Devices

As we approach the expected release date for iOS7 I wanted to highlight the features we’re looking forward to here at CHNO. Rest assured, we will be installing the new software as soon as it is publicly available (we don’t take part in the developers preview as a matter of choice; as we don’t ‘develop’ it’d be a huge drain on our time constantly assessing new beta releases of the software as it continues to be improved prior to launch), and reviewing it for our clients here.

I’ve watched the Apple videos several times now, and whilst initially being a little disappointed with the ‘look’ of the software I am beginning to appreciate it more now. As with all ‘fashions’, design trends change over time and it’s clear that “fresh and clean” is becoming “fresh, clean and simple” right now. Gone are the little 3D bevel effects (the much talked about ‘flattening’ of iOS) and textures in things like Game Centre (about time too!, Newsstand and iBooks.The icons remain consistent with their use, and hark back to their original textured versions, but look so much clearer now.

As someone that has used iPhone since the 3G phone came out, the one thing that has frustrated me more than anything is the lack of a quick switch for turning things like wifi on and off. Finally with Control Centre we have the answer. With a swipe upwards from the bottom of the screen (swipe down from the top still brings up Notification Centre), you now can turn Airplane mode on/off, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth also. Not only that, but Do Not Disturb mode is easier to get to. There’s other tools in there too (torch anyone?) which I’m […]

New Mac Pro Coming Soon

Way back at WWDC in June, Apple finally announced that the next generation of Mac Pro would be coming in ‘the fall of 2013’. Well, fall’s nearly here and gossip is starting to spread that the release is imminent (possibly as early as mid-September).

What can we expect?

Well, the naysayers think its a marginal upgrade, but we think this is a radical reworking of the Pro computer. Recent experience has shown us that no longer are we held back (as much) by CPU speeds – our machines are struggling to keep up with huge quantities of data being pumped around them by hungry applications working on huge files like high resolution images and HD video. The trend has begun for SSD to become the norm, but that in itself raises serious heat and power dilemmas for the engineers building these machines. The old Mac Pro was big and heavy (to allow heat dissipation from multiple spinning hard drives and high-rated power supplies). The move to SSD allowed engineers to look at new architectures to reduce the size of the machine, whilst at the same time increasing the performance. As always with Apple, we can expect a beautifully designed, manufactured and packaged machine (probably at a premium price), despite the obvious comparisons to a recycling bin!

Time will tell on whether this new Mac Pro will be a sign of things to come in terms of desktop design. But we can’t wait to get our hands on one to see how well they perform in comparison to the current top end machines.