Daily News Courier

iOS 6 Beta 3 Leads to Concerns That Carriers Could Charge for FaceTime

According to a report on AppleInsider today, iPhone 4S users who have downloaded the latest iOS 6 beta, version 3, have found an error message that has prompted some to think that AT&T and its fellow carriers could be intending to charge for the use of FaceTime video chat on 3G. The find was reported by iDownloadBlog, which discovered the following notification, which only appears when the user tries to use FaceTime on AT&T?s 3G network:

Quote:

---

?To enable FaceTime over cellular on this account, contact AT&T at 611?.

---

AppleInsider says that the message only appears on AT&T, and not on Verizon. AT&T has issued a statement on the matter, but it doesn?t give much away ahead of the launch of iOS 6, simply stating that it is ?working closely with Apple on the new developer build,? and will ?share more information with our customers as it becomes available.?

Source: iOS 6 message prompts speculation carriers may charge for 3G FaceTime

How To Make A Metamaterial That Expands Under Pressure And Contracts In Tension

Treating materials like complex networks leads to substances with extraordinary counterintuitive properties, say physicists

Compress a material and it will deform in the direction of the applied force: in other words, it becomes squashed. Similarly, a material under tension will stretch.

New Photos of iOS 6 Maps 3D App

BGR has exclusive photos today of Apple?s brand new Maps app which is due to appear in iOS 6, replacing the current Maps app which is made by Google. BGR says that aside from obtaining the exclusive photos of the app in action, it has also heard from sources that the new app will have a new navigation bar, which will be silver, rather than the blue bar in the current Maps app. This also leads BGR to speculate that maybe Apple will be changing the overall colour scheme in iOS 6 from blue to silver. BGR says that it has also heard that the Apple Maps app will have a floating ?locate me? button in the bottom left corner of the screen. Accessing the 3D mode will be very easy, all you will have to do is go to the turned-up corner in the bottom right of the screen, exactly the same as you do now, and enable the 3D setting. You will then be able to toggle in and out of 3D mode simply by touching a 3D icon in the bottom-left corner.

Source:
Apple Maps iOS 6 — 3D, coming this summer

Report: Apple

LG Display and AU Optronics Said to be Cleared to Make LCD Panels for iPad Mini

Yet more news about Apple?s rumoured iPad Mini project today, with AppleInsider writing about a new report on Taiwan?s The Liberty Times, which says that both LG Display and AU Optronics have passed certification tests to make LCD panels for the iPad Mini, and are now preparing shipments of the panels for Apple. The Liberty Times also said that Radiant will be supplying the backlight module and Nissha Printing will be making the thin-film sensor for TPK and Chimei Innolux. This follows on from previous rumours saying that the iPad Mini would be using G/F2 thin-film touch technology from Nissha. The report also says that the iPad Mini will be released at the end of Q3 or the start of Q4 this year, with a shipment target for this year of six million units. As more and more stories start to emerge from credible sources about the possibility of an iPad Mini, the likes of Barclays analyst Ben A. Reitzes are saying that his research leads him to believe that Apple will indeed be releasing an iPad Mini this fall.

Source: Rumor: LG Display, AU Optronics have passed certification for ‘iPad mini’ LCD panels

LTE-equipped Samsung Galaxy S III coming to TELUS in Canada

Following the phone's unveiling in London last week, Canadian carrier TELUS is the first North American mobile network to reveal that it'll be carrying the LTE version of Samsung's new Galaxy S III. TELUS says the phone will be available "in time for the summer," which fits with the June timeframe that Samsung has marked for the Galaxy S III's U.S. launch.

TELUS says it isn't offering any details on pricing or specifications just yet, which leads us to believe that the device it'll offer may differ somewhat from what we saw in London last week. That's to be expected, however, and we've already heard plenty of reports suggesting a different chip may power the LTE version of the Galaxy S III.

Nevertheless, it's good news for Canadians on TELUS, though with no mention of any exclusivity deal, we wouldn't be surprised to see other Canadian carriers declaring their interest in the device in the days and weeks ahead. For more on the Galaxy S III, check out our exhaustive coverage of the London launch event last week, which includes detailed hands-on impressions.

We've got TELUS and Samsung's press release after the break.

read more

Moore’s Law Lives Another Day

The three-dimensional transistors of Intel’s new generation of chips continue the 50-year trend of faster, more tightly packed chips.

“[Gordon] Moore is my boss, and if your boss makes a law, then you’d better follow it,” says Mark Bohr, who leads Intel’s efforts to make advances in microchip design practical to manufacture. Moore’s Law, of course, was first proposed by Bohr’s boss in 1965, when Moore pointed out that the number of transistors on a chip doubles every two years. Remarkably, the computer industry has maintained that pace ever since, training us to expect computers to become ever faster in the process.

Late-night poll: Would you switch carriers for a phone?

We ask a lot of hypothetical questions in our nightly polls. Back when they first started, we decided that the main focus is for us to get to know each other a little better, and that leads to a lot of what-if kind of situations. Like tonight's, where I'm asking if the right phone could make you switch carriers.

Imagine the HTC One X, or the "next" Galaxy phone, or another up and comer we haven't heard about yet. One you really, really like. Now imagine that you're told it won't come to the carrier you're currently using. What would you do? Would you pass on it, hoping to have a better selection next time around, or do you pay any ETF, port your number and jump ship?

I'm a T-Mobile customer, but I could leave for Sprint or AT&T, which both have excellent coverage around here. But I wouldn't, partially because I like my cheaper monthly costs, and because I like the way T-Mobile treats customers who bring their own phones. I'll happily use whatever device suits me best until it's time to buy a new one. But I can see the draw, because I have considered it once or twice and thought about leaving for AT&T — over a phone. In the end I didn't, and don't really regret it.

What about you guys? Would you leave or stay if you found out your carrier wasn't ever going to get the phone you just had to have? Answer in the poll., and tell us why in the comments.

Network Science Reveals The Cities That Lead The World’s Music Listening Habits

If you live in North America, you’ll soon be listening to the music now playing in Atlanta whereas in Europe, Oslo leads the scene, according to a new analysis of global listening habits

The evidence that ideas and fashions spread through society like viruses or like wildfire is compelling. Numerous studies have examined the networks in which this spread takes place and with increasingly large data sets to work with, researchers have become increasingly confident in their network-centric view of the world. These tools are teasing apart the large scale behaviour of humanity in ever increasing resolution.

The U.S. Leads in Clean Energy Investments

But does it really matter where clean energy is developed and deployed?

Last year the United States attracted more private investment in clean energy than any other country, according to a report released today by the Pew Charitable Trusts,

The U.S. Leads in Clean Energy Investments

But does it really matter where clean energy is developed and deployed?

Last year the United States attracted more private investment in clean energy than any other country, according to a report released today by the Pew Charitable Trusts,