Episode 428 – Aussie Tech Heads Shownotes

posted in: Show Notes

Cheap ‘Apple Watch’ copies on sale via Alibaba site

They both feature “digital crown” dials on their sides, similar-styled straps and identical user interface graphics to Apple’s forthcoming wearable.

However, their listings reveal they run on Google’s Android platform rather than Apple’s Watch OS.

Other giveaways that the watches are not the iPhone’s official “companion” include:

  • They are being offered for about 250 yuan ($40; £26.50) – a fraction of the 2,588 yuan that Apple will charge for its smartwatch in China when it goes on sale next month

  • They do not feature the same heart-monitoring sensors on their rear – although this is not always made clear

  • They boast longer battery life


Apple iTunes, App Stores crash globally

Some of Apple’s services such as App Store, iTunes Store, Mac App Store and iBooks Store remained disrupted for nearly 11 hours on Wednesday night, a glitch apple attributed to an internal Domain Name System (DNS) error.

Apple said its iCloud Mail and iCloud Account & Sign In were also affected until about 1am Sydney time.

The problem also reached Apple’s physical retail outlets, which reportedly used mechanical credit card swipe machines in lieu of electronic POS devices.


Apple quietly puts up local iPhone 6 prices

Apple has increased the price of its iPhone 6 and 6 Plus smartphones in Australia by as much as $200.

A base-level 16GB iPhone 6 will now set buyers back $999, compared to $869 at the September launch.

The price of the midrange 64GB iPhone 6 has been hiked up past the $1000 mark to $1149, $150 higher than its $999 launch price. And the top-line 128GB iPhone 6 is now $1299, rather than $1129 as previously.

The larger iPhone 6 Plus models have also had a price increase – the 16GB variant is now $150 more expensive at $1149, the mid-level 64GB model is now $1299 compared to $1190, and the largest 128GB iPhone 6 Plus will now cost $200 more at $1449.

The price increase may be a result of fluctuations in the Australian dollar, which has fallen significantly in the six months since Apple launched the devices from US$0.93 to US$0.77.


Apple TV price slash makes it a more attractive proposition

Australian Apple Watch prices and shipping dates confirmed

Apple gets into medical research with ResearchKit

Apple reveals MacBook Air killer, and it’s a MacBook


Google opens London shop as new marketing strategy

Opening its first store-in-a-store in London this week, Google is looking to raise its already worldwide image.

“This is about marketing, not selling,” said Ezra Gottheil, an analyst with Technology Business Research. “While Apple’s stores are real stores with huge volumes, this is about building the brand and exposing people to Google who don’t know about all the Google offerings.”


Google CFO retiring, going backpacking

Pichette’s decision to retire, which he said caps about 30 years of “nearly nonstop work”, came as a surprise to investors, although Wall Street took the news in stride.

the 52-year-old French Canadian announced


Facebook removes the ‘feeling fat’ status update, replacing it with ‘stuffed’

An option on Facebook to say you’re “feeling fat” is being removed after pressure from a campaign group.

Endangered Bodies had criticised the social media network after it offered the status update along with “I’m feeling optimistic” and “I’m feeling hopeless”.

However, Facebook has changed its mind after an online petition and replaced “fat” with “stuffed”.

The woman who set it up, Catherine Weingarten, wrote: “This success shows us that people together can challenge the cultural messages that are so damaging to our ability to love ourselves and live comfortably in our bodies.

“As someone who struggled with body image, I feel so happy that I’ve helped eliminate one form of body-shaming hatred on the internet.”


Minecraft ban reports investigated by Microsoft

Microsoft is investigating reports the Turkish government is preparing to ban the game, the BBC understands.

A Turkish Family and Social Policies Ministry study said the game promoted violence, according to local media.

according to Fatih Oke, a spokesman for the Turkish Embassy in Washington DC, a ban was “out of the question”.

According to the Haberturk newspaper, the ministry’s report said: “Although the game can be seen as encouraging creativity in children by letting them build houses, farmlands and bridges, mobs [hostile creatures] must be killed in order to protect these structures. In short, the game is based on violence.”

The Family and Social Policy Ministry does not have that kind of authority to ban any product.


Apple’s shopping mall traffic power pays off

Apple draws so many shoppers that its stores single-handedly lift sales by 10 per cent at the malls in which they operate, according to Green Street Advisors, a real estate research firm. That gives Apple the clout to negotiate extremely low rents for itself relative to its sales, while creating upward pressure on prices paid by mall neighbours who might not benefit from the traffic.

using its bargaining power to pay no more than 2 per cent of its sales a square foot in rent. That compares with a typical in-line tenant, which pays as much as 15 per cent, according to industry executives.

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