I just read a pretty interesting rumor at TUAW claiming that the people at iLounge are reporting that multiple vendors told them that Apple is banning all protective screen films for iPhones, iPod Touches, and other Mac products starting this May. Okay that sounded a bit like your teenage daughter telling you the latest gossip from glee club. “Susie said Tiffany saw Tina saying Stephanie is a fat cow!”

But according to TUAW and iLounge it’s true. Apple will stop carrying any screen protectors for their products, both in-store and online. Now I know the consumer base out there will freak out and have all sorts of reasons for being mad at Apple for this. “Apple is just trying to make it so we have to buy new iPhones!” Blah blah blah.

But as a former Apple Specialist who recently quit working in an Apple Store (by recent I mean yesterday), my response to this is THANK GOD! 

Let me sum up iPhone protective screen covers for you in one word. UNNECESSARY. Ever since they shipped the first set of iPhone screen covers to Apple stores a day has not gone by that I didn’t have to give my screen cover spiel to at least one customer, only to be ignored and have to sell them one anyway. Here it is:

Screen covers? They come in two main varieties. Glossy or Anti-Glare. The anti-glare is kind of nice because it makes it easier to see the iPhone in the sun. Do you need one? I don’t think so. You could take a key to the iPhone screen and try your best to scratch it and it won’t work. The iPhone’s screen is virtually scratch proof, and it’s not like it’s going to keep the screen from shattering if you drop it really hard.

To that they’d usually say, “Okay, I’ll take the anti-glare.” Were you even listening? What I would have liked to say when they ask me what the screen covers are good for is, “They’re good for putting little bubbles on your screen.” But you know, Apple has this policy of always speaking kindly of its third party vendors. 

And of course as soon as I ring it up the next question is, “Can you put it on for me?” 

NO.

This could become a huge point of contention with a lot of customers. “It’s your product. I need an expert to put it on so it looks good.” 

It’s not Apple’s product and if I put it on for you it will look like crap. TUAW speculated that Apple’s reason for removing screen protectors from the stores was because their presence in the store would imply that the screens scratch easily. I’m almost wondering if Apple’s real reason is simply so they no longer have to deal with customer service issues related to people complaining that the Apple employees won’t put the films on for them. 

Either way, I’m sure we’ll hear all sorts of fury from iPhone buyers as well as from the vendors who make these products. But in my almost three years of dealing with iPhones I have a lot of experience with customers bringing their iPhones into the store to have them fixed. You know how many scratched screens I’ve seen? One. Sure, I’ve seen tons of smashed to smithereens screens. But I’ve only ever seen one screen with a legitimate scratch. 

Of course if you really want a screen protector for your iPhone, you can still get them online or at any other store that sells iPhone accessories. Just don’t take it to an Apple Store and ask them to put it on for you.

The weirdest thing about using the iPad is that it makes using the iPhone even more enjoyable.

I’ve had the iPad for a week now. I use it for just about everything. I’m typing this post out in the Pages app as I my wife drives us to dinner. The experience has been great. There are definitely some things that seem to be lacking and I have a small feature wish list that is growing. But overall, the iPad is amazing. 

As I have immersed myself into the iPad experience and integrated it into my daily life I have made many observations about how it is affecting me, but one particular thing stands out more than any other. 

The weirdest thing about using the iPad is that it makes using the iPhone even more enjoyable. Now I don’t want that statement to be misconstrued. It’s not that using the iPad is bad in any way and therefore it makes going back to the iPhone a breath of fresh air. Like I said previously, I love using the iPad. But for some reason when I pick up the iPhone now, it seems even better. 

This could be partially due to the fact that it is so much lighter than the iPad. I’m not one of those people who are complaining that the iPad is “heavier than expected.” That’s a pretty ridiculous claim seeing as how we knew it was going to be 1.5 lbs since they announced it. So anyone who says the iPad is heavier than they expected clearly hasn’t ever held anything heavier than 1.5 lbs. And anyone who says that’s too heavy really needs to eat their Wheaties. My wife picked up the iPad for first time and her first comment was on how light it was. It’s not like she’s one of those weightlifting chicks. She’s almost as weak as I am. 

But in contrast the iPhone is less than 5 ounces, so it feels extremely light by comparison. 

The iPad’s touch screen is super responsive and downright magical. And for some unknown reason the iPhone’s touch screen feels snappier after using the iPad. That doesn’t make sense! Logic would tell us that if you start using a superior device, and then switch back to using a still-awesome-but-not-as-good device it should feel more sluggish, harder to use, and overall just less useable. And yet…it doesn’t. 

I don’t have a good explanation for this. I’ve racked my brain trying to come up with some sort of logic for this. I’m just going to have to chalk it up to the Apple Magic.” 

My Macbook Pro has become my “desktop” computer. My iPad is my portable computer. Someday my Macbook Pro will live out it’s full life and be ready to call it quits. When that time comes I’ll replace it with an iMac and then I’ll have the perfect Apple setup. Everything syncs with MobileMe. Everything is light and easy to use. Everything just works. 

What do you use your iPhone wallpaper for?

When I worked in the Apple store I saw a lot of iPhones and one thing that always interested me was what people choose for their iPhone wallpaper. The most common choice is either pictures of your kids or your pets. But occasionally people would surprise me. For instance, there was the one customer that had a picture of Dick Cheney on his iPhone. Dick Cheney? I don’t care how dedicated you are to the Republican Party, not even Dick Cheney’s mom would put him on her iPhone.

Seeing everyone else’s iPhone wallpapers has made me think a lot about what should go on my iPhone. The iPhone has really increased my productivity and everything about it is useful (well maybe some of the games I downloaded aren’t upping my productivity levels). So I decided I want my wallpaper to serve a purpose as well.

The picture above is what is on my iPhone.

For those of you ingrates who don’t know what you’re looking at, that’s Curly, played by the late great Jack Palance, in City Slickers. This photo is from the scene when Curly is explaining to Mitch, Billy Crystal, the secret to life.

Curly: Do you know what the secret of life is?

[holds up one finger]

Curly: This.

Mitch: Your finger?

Curly: One thing. Just one thing. You stick to that and the rest don’t mean shit.

Mitch: But, what is the “one thing?”

Curly: [smiles] That’s what *you* have to find out.

— IMDb Quotes: City Slickers (1991)

Having curly grinning at me every time I open my iPhone has been an amazingly effective way to keep myself motivated. So what’s my “one thing?” You’ll have to go to natesmithcomedy.com to find out.
So what’s on your iPhone wallpaper?

This is a conversation Joe and I had on Facebook the other day regarding his article about Navigation Systems and the iPhone. In the end I dropped my guard and Joe was victorious with a brutal verbal uppercut to my hairless chin.

If only Amelia Earhart had an iPhone…

virtualpants:

We took Chrome for iOS for a spin this weekend, tucking Safari into a folder and using Chrome exclusively on the iPhone and iPad. By Monday morning, Safari was back in the dock.

Chrome for iOS is impressive. Despite reports to the contrary, it often felt faster than Safari. Its interface…

I agree pretty heavily with this review. But who are we kidding? Chrome’s popularity with iPhone users will be based on one feature - Incognito Tabs. Don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about.

A young girl notices that a 4 x 1 Lego would fit nicely into another 4 x 1 Lego, prompting her tech journalist father to believe that Lego and Apple may be in cahoots. Read more on Dirty Rotten Apples.

slacktory:

As the legal battle between Apple and Samsung rages on in court, new details of a patent issued to Steve Jobs and Apple have surfaced, leading many to wonder if the patent system should have a serious conversation about how it issues protection to innovators.

That conversation, as it turns out, may be covered in the unearthed patent.

Read the full story here: Apple Wins Patent on Issuing Patents

Check out this story we wrote for Slacktory.com.

(via bestnatesmithever)

macnatico:

Samsung: We didn’t copy Apple.

Conan’s team nails it with this piece.

(Source: teamcoco.com, via teamcoco)