'DockPhone' Adds Phone Dialing to Yosemite, Bypassing FaceTime [Mac Blog]

DockPhone, a newly released Mac app, fixes a problem many OS X Yosemite users have faced in the months since the release of the new operating system: the inconvenience of opening FaceTime or Contacts to make a phone call on a Mac. With DockPhone app, users can now search for contacts or directly enter a number within the app, bypassing the need of opening FaceTime altogether.



Though it was one of the major new Continuity features included in OS X Yosemite when it launched earlier this year, many users lamented needing to open FaceTime or Contacts to place phone calls from their desktops or laptops. Receiving calls was simple, but making them through the video chat app designed for a different purpose or cluttered Contacts app felt unintuitive.





DockPhone lets users skip that step, offering a streamlined experience allowing users to easily enter a contact's name or specific phone number to start a phone call. The app interacts with FaceTime behind the scenes to connect with your iPhone, and finally get the call out to the person you dialed. As with making normal phone calls on a Mac, users still need OS X Yosemite on their Mac, an iPhone with iOS 8 or later, and both devices on the same Wi-Fi and iCloud accounts.



While DockPhone is not the first app to offer such functionality, with others such as Keypad having launched some time ago, DockPhone uniquely allows users to also use their voice to begin phone calls. After clicking the microphone button, simply saying the name of a contact or reciting a phone number will begin a call. Recent contacts also appear in widget form in the Notification Center sidebar of your Mac screen, with quick-access prompts to contact them again.



DockPhone is available for download from the Mac App Store for $0.99. [Direct Link]

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Posted in 2014 at 03:38PM, December 22

Discarded Power Mac G5s 'Upcycled' Into Modern Office Furniture [Mac Blog]

Apple's Power Mac G5 has a distinctive aluminum design that was disruptive when it launched in 2003. Inspired by this milestone in design, designer Klaus Geiger has "upcycled" this aging Apple hardware into furniture because the machines are "simply too good to be disposed of." (via DesignBoom )





As part of a project aptly titled "Benchmarc", Geiger has carefully created a sitting bench using a carved wooden plank that forms a bridge between two Power Mac G5 units. The machining on the wood is aligns the curve perfectly with the shape of the Power Mac chassis.





Beyond benches, Geiger also has crafted a movable conference table, file cabinets and more using discarded Power Mac machines. Additional concept renderings include an entire office full of furniture designed around old Power Mac G5 units.



Though interesting as a one-off furniture design project, this isn't the first time Apple hardware has been recycled. Both the iMac and the Mac Pro have been converted into fish aquariums, while a Power Mac G3 became an unusual roadside mailbox.

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Posted in 2014 at 03:38PM, October 23

Apple Looking to Expand Pittsburgh Research and Development Offices [Mac Blog]

Apple is looking to expand its presence in the Pittsburgh area by possibly doubling its office space in the city, reports the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . Apple currently operates out of the Robert Mehrabian Collaborative Innovation Center located at Carnegie Mellon University. Apple joined Intel, Carnegie Mellon CyLab and other innovators when it moved into the site in 2005 .





Apple's lease on the location ends at the end of the year, and there is no room for expansion at the Collaborative Innovation Center. The Cupertino company reportedly talked to Carnegie Mellon about alternative on-campus sites while also hiring a realtor to find a larger facility in a different part of the city. Apple currently leases 12,000 square feet at Carnegie Mellon and is looking to move to a location that offers up to 20,000 square feet. It is not known whether this new office will supplement or replace the current facility at the Collaborative Innovation Center.



Apple is expanding its domestic footprint on many fronts, including building a new data facility in Reno, Nevada and expanding its operations office in Austin, Texas. And just yesterday it was reported Apple is working to expand its facilities in the Boston area where it has a team working on speech recognition.



The company also is building a new corporate office in Cupertino that is under extensive construction. The highlight of the new campus is Apple's "spaceship" office building, which will occupy 2.8 million square feet when it is completed in 2016. The site also will house a 2,400 car parking garage, 100,000 square foot fitness center, 120,000 square foot auditorium, and more than 4,500 trees.

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Posted in 2014 at 03:38PM, September 09

Apple Looks to Boost AppleCare+ Membership With New 60-Day Purchase Window

Apple today revised its AppleCare+ support service, lengthening the time new iPhone and iPad owners have to purchase the protection plan from the previous 30-day window to an extended 60-days. The new 60-day AppleCare+ option is available both in store and online in all AppleCare+ regions, with the exception of Japan which still offers the original 30-day window, reports 9to5Mac .



AppleCare+ is a premium warranty service for iPhone and iPad owners, providing warranty support and accidental damage coverage for two years from the date of device purchase. The plan costs $99 and includes two accidental damage replacements that cost $49 per incident for the iPad and $79 for the iPhone.



Apple also is discontinuing the previous AppleCare option that extends warranty service for the iPad and iPhone, but does not provide accidental damage coverage. Going forward, Apple will only offer the standard 90-days of free support that is included with every iPhone or iPad purchase as well as the option to upgrade to two-years of AppleCare+ for $99. This change goes into effect today in the United States, Canada, and Japan.



Apple hopes these changes as well other other future improvements will boost the adoption rate of AppleCare+. To compete with carrier and insurance options, Apple may improve its insurance plans for the iPhone as well as expand AppleCare+ internationally beyond its current coverage regions. The international service now has approximately 30 million subscribers and has brought in more than $2b in revenue since its introduction three years ago.

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Posted in 2014 at 03:38PM, July 01

Microsoft announces Windows Phone 8.1

Microsoft on Wednesday took the wraps off Windows Phone 8.1, the latest version of its mobile operating system that it hopes will help spark more demand for its mobile products. Among other things Microsoft announced that Indian vendor Micromax would be making low-cost Windows Phones, which should help Windows Phone gain some traction in emerging markets versus Android. Among other things, Windows Phone 8.1 ads a pull-down Action Center that gives Windows Phone users quick access to key settings and mobile apps.

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Posted in 2014 at 03:38PM, April 02

Galaxy S5 afterthoughts: Are smartphone lovers in for another boring year?

After months of rumors and hype that had reached its boiling point, Samsung finally unveiled its brand new Galaxy S5 flagship smartphone on Monday. You can read my hands-on preview of the Galaxy S5 here, but in a nut shell, it's a good phone. There are a number of new features that add value to Samsung's user experience, and the company managed to dial back the pile-up of useless features that we have taken to calling "feature spam." The screen is bigger, the battery lasts longer and the processor is more powerful. In the end, however, the Galaxy S5 appears to be the continuation of a very boring year for smartphone lovers, who saw precious little excitement in 2013.

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Posted in 2014 at 03:38PM, February 25