Tech
WWDC 2021 Announced For June: Expect Apple’s Big Clues For iPhone 13, Mac Or… AR Glasses – Forbes
Apple’s Worldwide Developers’ Conference (WWDC) has just been announced and it’s going to be online only. Again. WWDC is the platform Apple uses to reveal the next software for the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and Apple TV. And what it announces at WWDC gives us the clearest hints of where the iPhone 13, Apple Watch Series 7, iMac and other products are heading. And this time, it even looks like Apple just could be warning us about a whole new product line: its augmented reality headset.
Last year, the company announced WWDC in May for dates in late June, saying it would be the biggest-ever, and all free. This time, the event has snuck back to its early June slot and will run Monday, June 7 through Friday, June 11. And it’s free again.
Last year’s attendance was record-breaking, Apple says. Well, when you’re not limiting people to squeezing into a series of largish rooms, that’s not surprising.
Not to mention that if you don’t have to pay the $1,600 fees usually charged to attendees, even before there’s the cost of travel and hotels to think of, then big attendance seems likely. Well, there’s nothing wrong with an inclusive event.
The annual Swift Student Challenge where young developers show off their coding skills in Swift Playground is now open for submissions, Apple said. The tagline this year is Glow and Behold, and the image shows a youthful Memoji-type image, so young devs are the target.
The image, as you’ll see is wearing glasses. Well, strictly speaking pince-nez, but we’ll let that pass. And you’ll also see that the date of the conference is reflected in the glass. Sure, this could just be what is being glimpsed on the MacBook screen, but it may also be a tip-off from Apple.
AR glasses, likely called Apple Glass, have been rumored for a while now. The thing about a whole new product category like this is it will need apps to work. And app developers, even the speediest, need time to get their apps together.
So, could we expect to see Apple Glass revealed as a sneak peek of upcoming hardware, with developers invited to pitch in and create stuff for the new device? If so, I’d expect Apple to explain that Apple Glass would land in 2022, giving devs time to prepare.
Let me come clean: though I think this is possible Apple Glass could appear, my gut tells me that a hardware event is the real home for such an announcement, and I’d expect that to happen in the Fall at the earliest, with possible hardware release in Spring or Summer 2022. Or much later. More details on this in the AppleUnboxed newsletter out tomorrow. Sign up here, if you’d like to read it.
Anyway, back to the event itself. Since Apple claims it has 28 million developers, maybe online is the way to go if you want more than a tiny fraction of them enjoying the conference.
Apple CEO Tim Cook has the floor in a previous keynote, but this year’s will be another mini-movie.
David Phelan
Of course, WWDC speaks to an audience way beyond the developers, through the keynote that opens the conference each year at 10AM Monday—though Apple is scrupulous in devising an event that appeals to the developers through precise information and great detail.
But it’s the road map that the keynote sets out to the public which will tell us more about the next round of Apple hardware products until they actually arrive.
Apple plays its cards close to its chest but there are always clues. If Apple talks about advanced iPhone camera software that boosts certain features and introduces new ones, it will do so only in terms of how it will benefit current iPhone hardware. But you can bet it’ll be a clear indicator that the cameras on the iPhone 13 will be worth watching.
At WWDC last year, Apple announced sleep tracking was coming to Apple Watch in watchOS 7. But it was only when Apple Watch Series 6 was revealed that we learnt that the faster-recharging battery in Series 6 made it a perfect fit on that model.
Mind you, there’s disinformation, too. See the other image below for WWDC 2021? Well, again, what’s with the pince-nez? But more importantly, the earbud the kid is wearing, that’s emphatically not Apple telling us what the next AirPods will look like.
But…
Could they be the earpieces for Apple Glass? Ooh, Apple, you tease, you.
Another image for this year’s WWDC.
Apple
This year, we can expect details on macOS, watchOS, iOS, iPadOS and tvOS. Those will certainly be part of the event.
But we may get more. There’s talk of a new M processor that will succeed the M1 chip in future Mac hardware and Apple might reveal the chip or even the chip and another iMac or MacBook Pro that will sport the new processor.
My money’s on a new iMac at WWDC.
It’s more than two months before WWDC happens, but expect more rumors to land between now and then.
Before you go, why not sign up for my AppleUnboxed newsletter, bringing you insider information, reviews, tips, comparisons, news and rumors about the Cupertino giant? Out on Wednesdays.
In the latest issue: the rumored release date for the iPhone 13, tips and tricks for Apple Notes and the Breathe app reviewed.
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By Steve Scherer
OTTAWA (Reuters) – Canada’s Telesat is racing to launch a low-earth-orbit (LEO) satellite constellation to provide high-speed global broadband from space, pitting the satellite communications firm founded in 1969 against two trailblazing billionaires, Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos.
Musk, the Tesla Inc CEO who was only a year old when Telesat launched its first satellite, is putting the so-called Starlink LEO into orbit with his company SpaceX, and Amazon.com Inc, which Bezos founded, is planning a LEO called Project Kuiper. Bezos also owns Blue Origin, which builds rockets.
Despite the competition, Dan Goldberg, Telesat’s chief executive officer, voices confidence when he calls Telesat’s LEO constellation “the Holy Grail” for his shareholders – “a sustainable competitive advantage in global broadband delivery.”
Telesat’s LEO has a much lighter price tag than SpaceX and Amazon’s, and the company has been in satellite services decades longer. In addition, instead of focusing on the consumer market like SpaceX and Amazon, Telesat seeks deep-pocketed business clients.
Goldberg said he was literally losing sleep six years ago when he realized the company’s business model was in peril as Netflix and video streaming took off and fiber optics guaranteed lightning-fast internet connectivity.
Telesat’s 15 geostationary (GEO) satellites provide services mainly to TV broadcasters, internet service providers and government networks, all of whom were growing increasingly worried about the latency, or time delay, of bouncing signals off orbiters more than 35,000 km (22,200 miles) above earth.
Then in 2015 on a flight home from a Paris industry conference where latency was a constant theme, Goldberg wrote down his initial ideas for a LEO constellation on an Air Canada napkin.
Those ideas eventually led to Telesat’s LEO constellation, dubbed Lightspeed, which will orbit about 35 times closer to earth than GEO satellites, and will provide internet connectivity at a speed akin to fiber optics.
Telesat’s first launch is planned in early 2023, while there are already some 1,200 of Musk’s Starlink satellites in orbit.
“Starlink is going to be in service much sooner … and that gives SpaceX the opportunity to win customers,” said Caleb Henry, a senior analyst at Quilty Analytics.
Starlink’s “first mover” advantage is at most 24 months and “no one’s going to lock this whole market up in that amount of time,” Goldberg said.
Telesat in 2019 signed a launch deal with Bezos’ aerospace company Blue Origin. Discussions are ongoing with three others, said David Wendling, Telesat’s chief technical officer.
They are Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd, Europe’s ArianeGroup , and Musk’s SpaceX, which launches the Starlink satellites. Wendling said a decision would be taken in a matter of months.
Telesat aims to launch its first batch of 298 satellites being built by Thales Alenia Space in early 2023, with partial service in higher latitudes later that same year, and full global service in 2024.
‘SWEET SPOT’
The Lightspeed constellation is estimated to cost half as much as the $10 billion SpaceX and Amazon projects.
“We think we’re in the sweet spot,” Goldberg said. “When we look at some of these other constellations, we don’t get it.”
Analyst Henry said Telesat’s focus on business clients is the right one.
“You have two heavyweight players, SpaceX and Amazon, that are already pledging to spend $10 billion on satellite constellations optimized for the consumer market,” he said. “If Telesat can spend half that amount creating a high-performance system for businesses, then yeah, they stand to be very competitive.”
Telesat’s industry experience may also provide an edge.
“We’ve worked with many of these customers for decades … That’s going to give us a real advantage,” Goldberg said.
Telesat “is a satellite operator, has been a satellite operator, and has both the advantage of expertise and experience in that business,” said Carissa Christensen, chief executive officer of the research firm BryceTech, adding, however, that she sees only two to three LEO constellations surviving.
Telesat is nailing down financing – one-third equity and two-thirds debt – and will become publicly traded on the Nasdaq sometime this summer, and it could also list on the Toronto exchange after that. Currently, Canada’s Public Sector Pension Investment Board and Loral Space & Communications Inc are the company’s main shareholders.
France and Canada’s export credit agencies, BPI and EDC respectively, are expected to be the main lenders, Goldberg said. Quebec’s provincial government is lending C$400 million ($317 million), and Canada’s federal government has promised C$600 million to be a preferred customer. The company also posted C$246 million in net income in 2020.
Executing the LEO plan is what keeps Goldberg up at night now, he said.
“When we decided to go down this path, the two richest people in the universe weren’t focused on their own LEO constellations.”
($1 = 1.2622 Canadian dollars)
(Reporting by Steve Scherer in Ottawa; Editing by Matthew Lewis)
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Nova Scotia Health’s mental health and addictions program hopes to offer more online support to people across the province after receiving a significant donation this week.
The QEII Foundation announced that RBC is contributing $600,000 toward the province’s e-mental health programming.
“It’s particularly important for the current time under all the strains of COVID,” said Dr. Andrew Harris, a psychiatrist and the senior medical director for the program.
The plan for online programming has been in the works for years, he said, but the pandemic expedited the push. Last June, the department launched a number of applications that can be used to help those with anxiety, depression and addictions.
Since then, as many as 3,000 Nova Scotians have used the site to access mental health services.
“There’s a persistent difficulty in accessing services,” Harris said of traditional models in Nova Scotia. He said those who don’t need intensive therapy may find the support they need through the online programs.
He uses the example of someone who can’t take time off work to speak to a clinician.
“It’s better for them to be able to access a service after hours or on the weekend. So our e-mental health services are tailored a little bit to meet that need.”
Calls to crisis line increase
Harris said the province’s mental health crisis line continues to see a 30 per cent increase in calls for help, so he’s trying to raise awareness that services can be accessed immediately online.
“I think everyone is aware that for a lot of people it’s much easier to talk about a physical illness than a mental illness. So there’s an allowance there for privacy, for some anonymity but still making available things that can help the person who is struggling in the community.”
The online portal has a list of programs that people can use, covering things like reducing stress, solving problems and becoming mindful. It mirrors a site in Newfoundland and Labrador that Harris said is used to help people in remote areas.
Harris said the donation from RBC will be used to continue to evaluate more services, and pay for the licensing of the products that are mostly developed by other organizations.
He encourages anyone who is struggling to test out the site, and use it as an entry point into the mental health system.
“It’s important for people to acknowledge when they’re struggling. It happens to all of us through our lives in different times.”
Anyone in Nova Scotia looking to access the tools can visit: https://mha.nshealth.ca.
Source:- CBC.ca
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Samsung
Samsung
- Release date: April 9
- Price: $499.99
The Galaxy A52 5G is the most expensive smartphone of the bunch. It comes with a 6.5-inch FHD+ screen and a quad-camera system that includes some of the same features as Samsung’s more expensive Galaxy S phones. These include Single Take, which creates several different photos or video clips with different effects with a single press of the shutter button.
Its screen can also boost its refresh rate up to 120Hz for smoother scrolling and performance, a feature that has become common on pricier flagship phones but is rare on cheaper models. It’s also the only phone in this A-series lineup to include Samsung’s notch-free screen design.
Samsung
- Release date: April 8
- Price: $399.99
The less expensive Galaxy A42 5G has a slightly larger screen than the A52 5G, but scales back on certain features when it comes to the camera and screen refresh rate.
Still, it has a triple-lens camera with high-resolution sensors, and like its pricier sibling it also supports Single Take.
Samsung
Release date: April 9
Price: $279.99
The Galaxy A32 5G is Samsung’s cheapest 5G smartphone to date. It has a large 6.5-inch screen, but it’s made from an LCD panel instead of Super AMOLED. That means it will likely lack some of the contrast and boldness of Samsung’s other devices. But Samsung hasn’t skimped on the camera considering this model has a quad-lens main camera, which is rare if not unheard of at that price.
Samsung
Release date: April 9
Price: $179.99
Samsung’s Galaxy A12 doesn’t come with 5G support, but it still gives you a lot for the price. For less than $200, you’re getting a quad-lens camera and a large 6.5-inch LCD screen. But remember this phone only has 32GB of storage, so it’s best suited for those who don’t store a lot of photos and videos on their device.
Samsung
- Release date: April 29
- Price: $109.99
The Galaxy A02s is Samsung’s cheapest phone, offering a 6.5-inch LCD screen and three main cameras. It doesn’t have 5G support or as much computing power or camera prowess as Samsung’s other A-series phones, but that’s to be expected for a device at this price. This phone is truly for those who just need the basics and little else.
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Source:- Business Insider
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