Editorial

iCloud gets kicked in the Core Data sync -- totally had it coming

By Rene Ritchie, Thursday, Mar 28, 2013 a 12:11 am

iCloud -- specifically the iCloud frameworks for syncing Core Data databases -- has been getting kicked around lately, and by almost all accounts, deservedly so. Back in November developers like Instacast's Vemedio and Steve Streza of Informal Protocol posted about their problems with it and its opacity, and Paul Haddad expressed similar concerns during the second episode of Debug. More so even than Siri and Game Center server issues, it felt like proof positive that Apple faced significant challenges in a future where online services were as important as native software.

Editor's desk: GDC bound!

By Rene Ritchie, Sunday, Mar 24, 2013 a 6:43 am

I'm about to leave for San Francisco, California and the Game Developer Conference (GDC 2013). I certainly don't have to tell anyone here how great the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad are for gaming. Whether or not Apple "gets" gaming, they've enabled a lot of technology that a lot of developers have used to make great games. That's why, increasingly, iOS is a big deal in the gaming industry, and at events like GDC.

I'll be there along with our gaming editor Simon Sage, and Windows Phone Central's Paul Acevedo. Our goal at the show is to get a better idea of where mobile gaming is going in 2013, get a look at some upcoming titles, and do our very best to bring you all with us. As always, the official stuff will go up right here on iMore, Android Central, CrackBerry, and Windows Phone Central, and if you want the behind-the-scenes shenanigans, you should follow us on Twitter @reneritchie, @simonsage, and @segacon.

Swinging for the stars: On Apple's hiring of Kevin Lynch

By Rene Ritchie, Wednesday, Mar 20, 2013 a 11:39 am

Last night news broke that Adobe's chief technology officer (CTO) Kevin Lynch was leaving to join Apple as their new vice president of technology. Reporting to senior vice president of technologies, Bob Mansfield, rumor has it he'll be charged with coordinating between the software and hardware divisions. Confusion, doubt, and curiosity has followed.

Samsung's Galaxy S4

By Rene Ritchie, Friday, Mar 15, 2013 a 10:35 am

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Last night I had the pleasure of attending Samsung's Unpacked Event, Part 1, and watching them pitch the next generation of their phenomenally successful smartphone line -- the Galaxy S4. It was held at Radio City Music Hall, with a simultaneous party at Times Square. And it was an impressive debut, though not one without some important caveats.

The "iPhone 5S" problem

By Rene Ritchie, Monday, Mar 11, 2013 a 11:35 pm

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Apple may or may not release a product called the "iPhone 5S" this year. The presumption, however, fueled by Apple having previously released the 2009 iPhone 3GS-as-in-speed, and the 2011 iPhone 4S-as-in-Siri, is that 2013 will see an iPhone 5S-as-in-something update. Whether it ultimately proves real or not, the perception of a yearly update cycle and its tick-tock nature, is becoming problematic.

Why iPhone battery life sucks

By Rene Ritchie, Saturday, Mar 9, 2013 a 8:21 am

You get a new iPhone, you add a bunch of push mail accounts, download apps that hit the GPS and light up notifications, you watch a ton of video and play as many games as you possibly can, you do it all over LTE while blaring your Bluetooth speaker, and you curse that the frakken battery doesn't last several days. Matthew Panzarino of The Next Web rightly claims battery life is the iPhone's -- is every phone's -- biggest flaw:

Switching to Android. Or not.

By Rene Ritchie, Thursday, Mar 7, 2013 a 8:52 pm

Andy Ihnatko, with whom I have the pleasure of working on MacBreak Weekly, has written a series of three articles for TechHive detailing why he decided to switch from an iPhone 4S to a Samsung Galaxy S3.

Skating to where the customers are going to be

By Rene Ritchie, Wednesday, Mar 6, 2013 a 3:31 pm

"Skating to where the puck is going to be" is an old Wayne Gretzky saying that Steve Jobs once quoted, and so it gets rehashed a lot when discussing Apple's strategy for moving into new markets. Typically that's with hardware like iPhone, iPad, or potential hardware like the rumored iWatch, or with features like iTunes, AirPlay or Passbook. It's also an apt way to describe Apple's commercial strategy.

Editor's desk: Apple bites man!

By Rene Ritchie, Sunday, Mar 3, 2013 a 12:14 pm

There's an old cliché in journalism that no one reads "dog bites man" because, after a while, it becomes too commonplace, too dull. However, everyone reads "man bites dog!" because it's anything but commonplace, but dull, and no matter how ridiculous, it demands attention. When those attention-getting headlines don't naturally present themselves, of course, some publications are more than happy to simply manipulate or manufacture them.

That's something I've been struggling to put into terms lately when it comes to Apple coverage lately -- that after being put as high on a pedestal as possible for a modern company, the only thing of interest remaining to an attention-seeking media and greedy money maker community is watching them fall. Even if that fall is completely made up.

The true cost of free-to-play games

By Rene Ritchie, Friday, Mar 1, 2013 a 8:47 pm

The App Store has become dominated by free-to-play or "freemium" games. I started discussing this with some smart people on Twitter earlier today, but wanted to expand on it here, because I think it's important. What we don't acknowledge we can't change, and it feels like the current direction of iOS gaming needs to change. While some of the free-to-play games are brilliantly balanced and realized, providing value for both the makers and the players, most are not. Most suck. And a lot of that is our fault.