Review TechRadar: Phone and communications news 04-13-2013

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iMessage, FaceTime go down again in second Apple outage Apr 12th 2013, 19:50 It appears that Apple's iMessages and FaceTime outage earlier this week was not an isolated incident, as Apple users had no doubt hoped. The messaging and video chat networks went down again for some users this morning. Tuesday's iMessage and FaceTime outage lasted more than five hours and affected users on both iOS and Mac OS X seemingly on a global scale. Today's service interruption was really more of a hiccup, lasting little over one hour according to Apple, though CNET reported that it was actually closer to two. Does it really matter? One of the things that attracts everyday consumers to Apple is the company's reliability. If there's an issue with a product or service, Apple is normally quick to help, and the "geniuses" in Apple stores can solve most problems with a quick visit. Anything that tarnishes that image can't do Apple any good. Granted, the lack of iMessages this morning and on Tuesday likely went unnoticed by many iOS users, as all it meant was the little bubbles changed from blue to green as normal SMS messages were sent instead. Some who found Apple's FaceTime video chat service down may have felt the outages more keenly, though. In any case, Apple has yet to release a statement or provide a reason for the outage, despite our and others' queries. We'll update this story if and when they do. Nvidia shows off next-gen mobile graphics, calls iPad 'vintage 1999' Apr 12th 2013, 15:43 Nvidia has just finished hosting its big investors' event, and the big reveal was its next-generation mobile Kepler GPU chip. Jen-Hsun Huang, Nvidia's chief exec, demonstrated the generational leap by comparing footage of a current-generation iPad 4 game with some of Battlefield 3 running on the new mobile GPU. VentureBeat posted a recording of the video presentation, which is a suitably impressive look what smartphones and tablets could soon be capable of, while Huang called current iPad graphical capabilities "vintage 1999". Nvidia's new Kepler chip will be capable of playing high-end PC games, and we expect to see it appear in the first Tegra 4 device when it appears (with Project Shield likely getting in there first). This means that Kepler Mobile will likely come in Tegra 5, and will give phones and tablets the ability to churn out high-end specs and DirectX 11 graphics when it does. Kill the competition "We want to get multiple years ahead of the competition," said Huang. "It was worth the sacrifice." By sacrifices, Huan was referring to how the company delayed other priorities to push Kepler Mobile ahead. Nvidia also confirmed to investors that its Project Shield gaming device was still on schedule for a Q2 release this year, which is good news for those who have been doubtful Nvidia could deliver in time. Huang also added that the device was aimed at driving Android gaming to its full potential. He announced that Nvidia had invested $10 million (around £6.5m/AUS$9.5) in Shield, making it significantly less costly compared to other big console launches. Mobile CRM apps to grow by 500% Apr 12th 2013, 13:58 A massive shift is taking place in the provision of customer relationship management software (CRM), according to IT analyst Garner. It is predicting that the number of mobile CRM apps available will rise from over 200 in 2012 to more than 1,200 in 2014, and that by 2016 more than half of CRM will be delivered as software-as-a-service (Saas). In a new report on the subject, it is forecasting that developers will respond in a big way to the increase in mobile working, but warning that not all of the apps will be up to scratch. "Many organisations want to extend their customer service to the mobile platform market. However, the reality is that not all good applications make a good mobile application," said John Jacobs, Research Director at Gartner. The company says that some CRM vendors will gain a competitive advantage from the shift to apps, but will have to decide whether to provide them free of charge, in paid versions or both. There could also be a shortage of development skills. SaaS will increase its share of the CRM market from 39% in 2012 to 42% by the end of 2013 to more than 50% in 2016. Joanne Correira, Research Vice President at Gartner, said: "Almost all large organisations will use a mix of SaaS and non-SaaS CRM applications for the next decade, which will require IT orgaanisations to develop the skills needed to integrate SaaS and non-SaaS deployments." The report also predicts that Salesforce will retain its position as the leading vendor in the world CRM market by revenue over this year, after having taken the spot from SAP last year. In-Depth: Cheap iPhone release date, news and rumours Apr 12th 2013, 13:52 The iPhone. For many it's the hottest bit of tech you can own, a fashion statement and powerful travel companion all in one - but for others it's an overly expensive solution to a problem which is solved equally well by cheaper Android and Windows Phone devices. But perhaps not for much longer. Alongside the talk of an inevitable iPhone 5S and iPhone 6, we've noticed a rash of slightly more eyebrow-raising news suggesting a cheap iPhone could be on the way. Word of a budget iPhone has been doing the rounds for the past few years, but the reports have intensified post-iPhone 5. Apple itself has been hit-and-miss when it comes to talking about a cheaper iPhone, with Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing Phil Schiller saying in January that the firm's focus will never be on low cost handsets, while CEO Tim Cook said "we are making moves to make things more affordable" in February - so make of that what you will. We've perused all the leaks, claims, suggestions and "upstream supply chain" comments to bring you the latest vibe on the cheap iPhone and whether we will see one or not. It's a (release) date! Apple has stayed true to form and hasn't given any details away regarding its next smartphone(s), but we're expecting the next iPhone instalment to arrive in September, and thus this seems the mostly likely time for the budget iPhone to stride onto the scene. Some sources have suggested the next fleet of iPhones could be with us sooner - around July/August time, which could mean we're in for a treat when WWDC (Apple's annual conference) rolls around in June. How low can you go? Price is the single biggest factor when it comes to a budget iPhone, but it's one part of the puzzle which has not seen much in the way of leaks. A cheap iPhone needs to be able to challenge the cost effective Android and Windows Phone handsets which are currently populating the bottom end of the market, so really we'd like to see it rock up somewhere in the region of £200/$310/AU$300). The only thing we've seen regarding the price of a cheaper iPhone is a rumour suggesting Apple is targeting the $330 (around £210/AU$310) price point - which would be nice. No Retina for your retinas There is some confusion over the screen size of the cheaper iPhone, with some reports suggesting it will pack a 4.5-inch display, while others point towards a smaller 4-inch offering - similar to the one found on the fifth generation iPods and iPhone 5. If Apple are really looking at a more affordable iPhone we'd be surprised if it turns up sporting a screen which is bigger than the iPhone 5, and we reckon 4 inches or below is far more likely. Don't go expecting the budget iPhone to pack the beautiful retina display of its brothers though, with the low-cost handset far more likely to land a lower resolution - possibly 1,136 x 640. Plastic fantastic We've become accustomed to the iPhone's premium design, with high quality materials oozing style and class, but things could well get a lot more plastic with a cheaper iPhone. According to the Wall Street Journal, Apple is looking to clad the budget iPhone in polycarbonate, instead of aluminium and toughened glass, in an attempt to keep the cost down. These musings have be reinforced by Digitimes' famous "upstream supply chain sources", who also revealed the cheaper iPhone would rock up with a plastic body. Apparently the budget iPhone won't just be a jazzed up iPhone 3GS, nor will it be a scaled down iPhone 5, with iLounge claiming the cheaper iPhone will be an absurd mash-up of the latest iPhone and iPod, plus the original iPod classic - retro! Stop, colour time What's this, an iPhone which doesn't just come in black and white? Well yes, that may become reality with a cheaper iPhone on the cards. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo (who actually has a decent track record) reckons the budget iPhone will be available in a range of colours, with apparently between four and six choices. This was followed by sources who spoke to Macotakara, claiming the cheap iPhone will be available in five colours - which could see it sport the same blue, red and yellow which accompany the black and white on the current range of iPods. Related Stories Nokia rolling out software bumps for Lumia 920, 820 and 620 handsets Huawei Ascend W2 specs leak online O2 Refresh brings a new way to pay for your phone Motorola X phone apparently delayed until late August Opinion: It's time for networks to wake up to what users actually want

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