keynote

Qualcomm nabs Microsoft's CES keynote slot

The company lucky enough to nab Microsoft's keynote spot at the 2013 Consumer Electronics Show is ... Qualcomm.

Paul Jacobs, chief executive of the wireless chip giant, will give the coveted pre-show keynote at CES, filling the slot Microsoft vacated late last year. Jacobs, who also gave keynotes at the 2012 and 2010 shows, will speak at 6:30 p.m. PT on January 7. The show officially runs January 8-11.

Qualcomm may not be the most obvious pick for the CES keynote, but its selection is the latest sign of a shift within the technology industry. PCs have been … Read more

iPhone 5: No Steve Jobs, no sizzle

Apple's iPhone 5 launch with new iPods and an iTunes overhaul highlights the new era at the company that revolves around incremental updates, design prowess, and control of an entire user experience. But something is missing: the Steve Jobs reality distortion field.

Jobs' showmanship was brilliant. He could take an incremental update -- or a feature that has been seen somewhere else before -- and make you think it was brilliant, amazing, and beautiful. I knew it was a game, but it was one I played willingly. I'm going through Apple keynote withdrawal.

Now I'm beginning to … Read more

Can iWork on the iPad really compare to a Mac?

Apple offers versions of its iWork suite (Pages, Keynote, Numbers) for both the Mac OS and iOS platforms, and given that the new school year is right around the corner, students might be weighing the options for creating and managing projects using either iPads or Macs.

While having been a fan of Apple's iWork suite in OS X since its debut and enjoy having the apps available for other platforms, I have been somewhat skeptical of using the iPad or iPhone to write a full report, a formatted resume, or managing calculations in a spreadsheet. Being a touch-only device, I've considered the iPad in large part as a viewing tool where you can look up information and browse through it, rather than buckling down and creating intricate and detailed content, especially with regard to office-related tasks. While Apple's touch-based input panels in iOS have made entering strings of text relatively easy, and along with gestures it provides a unique approach to drawing and arranging objects in applications, the question does arise as to whether this approach is adequate for more-detailed work such as word processing, presentations, and spreadsheets.… Read more

Panasonic to deliver opening keynote at CES

The Consumer Electronics Association, the organization that runs the Consumer Electronics Show, announced today that Kazuhiro Tsuga, the newly appointed president of Panasonic, will deliver the CES 2013 opening keynote speech.

"Panasonic is one of the largest and most dynamic consumer-electronics companies in the world, and I congratulate Mr. Tsuga on his official appointment to president of Panasonic Corporation this morning," CEA Chief Executive Gary Shapiro said in a statement. "We are thrilled to have Mr. Tsuga take the stage for his opening keynote at the 2013 International CES, and we look forward to hearing his vision … Read more

Add labels to help organize object transitions in Keynote

Apple's Keynote application is a popular alternative to Microsoft's PowerPoint presentation software for OS X users, and was initially distributed as part of Apple's iWork suite but now is available for download from the Mac App Store. As with most presentation software packages, Keynote supports a number of transitions for presentation objects like shapes, text boxes, and pictures. While these transitions can be used in unique and clever ways when demonstrating points on slides, sometimes they may be difficult to organize.

In order to move shapes around on a slide, you can select them and then choose … Read more

Apple shows smarter Siri, new MacBooks

Today's show has Mountain Lions, MacBooks and Siri, oh my!

Apple news overload at Monday's WWDC keynote presentation. Here's a quick summary of what you need to know.

Apple's next mobile software, iOS 6, will bring a few changes this Fall, including:

Video chatting on Facetime will be available on a cellular network, so no more Wi-Fi restrictions. Apple is launching its own Maps app with a 3D mode, called Flyover. It'll also have turn-by-turn directions, alert users to traffic issues and re-route accordingly. You can also ask Siri for directions. Siri is getting several upgrades, … Read more

What I want to see in iOS 6

As is always the case with every Apple event, there's really no way we can know what the company will announce at the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference keynote on Monday. I'm personally hoping Tim Cook will walk out there with the iPhone 5 (my iPhone 4 is getting a little rough around the edges), but others are saying that won't come until fall. We're probably about due for a Mountain Lion update as well, but many are saying that won't be here until later in the summer.

Tune in Monday anytime after 8 a.m. PT for our Apple WWDC keynote live blog.

Of course that leaves a ton of possibilities, from new laptop refreshes to Apple TVs, and who knows what else Apple has up its sleeve. But most people agree that an announcement about iOS 6 will probably be a major part of the presentation this Monday.

With that in mind, I've got a few things on my personal wish list for iOS 6.… Read more

Nintendo confirms Netflix, Hulu Plus, others for Wii U

Nintendo's Wii U console will have a host of streaming-video options, the company announced today.

Netflix streaming, Hulu Plus, and Amazon Instant Video will all be available on the Wii U, Nintendo announced at its E3 keynote. YouTube support will also be available on the platform.… Read more

Microsoft plans to bring ESPN, other sports and shows to Xbox

Microsoft has dramatically expanded the sports and entertainment offerings available via its Xbox 360.

At its E3 keynote today, the company said that it plans to add 35 more content providers to the Xbox, including Nickelodeon, Machinima, and others. That, Microsoft says, will complement the more than 200 million movies, television shows, and videos it has added to Xbox Live in the last year.

The big draw, however, might be the addition of more sports content. According to Microsoft, it will soon offer full access to ESPN programming across many of its channels, including ESPN, ESPN 2, ESPN 3, and … Read more