Apple recently announced a new partnership with IBM. IBM, which knows a lot more about the enterprise them Apple, will develop over 100 industry-specific applications for the iPhone and iPad, and IBM's more than 100,000 consultants and software developers will work with their corporate customers — companies such as Nestle, FedEx, Deutsche Bank, Johnson Controls, Luxottica, American Airlines, Barclay’s, Cisco Systems and GE — to encourage iPhone and iPad use. IBM will even sell iPhones and iPads directly to IBM's corporate customers. As Apple CEO Tim Cook said, today's Apple and IBM are a good match because "We do not compete on anything. And when you do that you end up with something better than either of you could produce yourself." You can get more details in this article by Arik Hasseldahl of re/code. I remember the days when lawyers wondered whether an iPhone had a place in a law firm environment, back when BlackBerry dominated the market. If this works as planned, I suspect that Apple will sell a ton more iPhones and iPads to companies. And more selfishly, I hope that this increased focus on business leads to developments in iOS security, collaboration, etc. that can be used by lawyers in addition to the companies that we represent. And now, the recent news of note:
- As I think about what kind of wearable device Apple might be working on for introduction later this year and how attorneys might make use of it, I'm interested to find out what attorneys are doing with the Android-based products that are currently on the market. Alabama attorney Steven Sciple wrote a review for The Droid Lawyer of the LG G Watch and how he uses it in his law practice.
- Similarly, Florida attorney Rick Georges talks about how he uses his Samsung Gear 2 smartwatch in an interview with Nicole Black for Above the Law.
- John Edwards of Law Technology News explains how to make the most of Wi-Fi on an iPhone or iPad.
- Federico Viticci of MacStories reviews Hours, a good looking app that attorneys and others can use to track billable hours. Click here to get Hours ($4.99):
- I listen to a lot of podcasts, and I've tried just about every podcast app, but until recently had never found one that I really liked and thus just stuck with Apple's own app. But Marco Arment recently released Overcast, and it quickly became my favorite app for playing podcasts. If you listen to podcasts like I do, check out Jason Snell's review of Overcast for Macworld; I agree with just about every word in his article. Click here to get Overcast (free):
- I sometimes hear people say that they wish that the iPad had a USB port to make it easier to transfer files from a computer. Walt Mossberg of re/code reviews an upcoming device called iStick that looks to be the next best thing; a thumb drive that has both a USB and a Lightning connector that you can use to transfer files between a computer and an iPad without having to put the files on the cloud. Considering the price ($80 to $250) you should look into other options too, like Transporter (a past sponsor of iPhone J.D.), but the iStick is an interesting idea.
- Marco Tabini of Macworld wrote a good article about Touch ID, the fingerprint scanner on the iPhone 5s that I suspect will also be on the iPad later this year. His article discusses not only what Touch ID is today but also how it will be expanded in iOS 8 in a few months.
- Are you ready for some football? In the past if you wanted to subscribe to NFL Sunday Ticket, you had to also subscribe to DirecTV. But this year, you'll be able to subscribe from any iOS device for $200. Sam Oliver of AppleInsider has the details.
- Are you ready for some hiking? Stephanie Mlot of PC Magazine reviews the GoTenna, an upcoming device that allows you to stay connected to other iPhone and Android users up to 50 miles away even when there is no cellular or Wi-Fi service. You can also use it when traveling abroad to stay in touch with another GoTenna users without paying international cellular roaming fees.
- Do you have a suggestion for Apple? You could also just send an email to Apple CEO Tim Cook. As AppleInsider reports, that is what one man did when he had a complaint about the quality of the music played when on hold with Apple, and Tim Cook read the email and fixed it.
- The Joy of Tech has a funny cartoon on an iPhone game that many of us have played before. There is also a funny take on the recent Apple-IBM collaboration.
- And finally, Jimmy Kimmel created a funny video this week on the new products that Apple might come out with this Fall: