Next-Gen iPhone Reportedly Already in Production, On Track for October Launch:

According to a report from Japanese blog Macotakara last week, Apple’s next-gen iPhone has already gone into production at Apple’s Chinese manufacturing partner. If true, it mean the device would likely be ready to launch in September (even if Apple doesn’t actually launch it that month.)

Macotakara has a relatively decent track record – and they reported that the new iPad went into production in January of this year, which is likely accurate given typical manufacturing times. The estimate also seems likely based on the expected October launch of the next-gen device. Likewise, The Wall Street Journal also reported that production of the next-gen iPhone would begin in June.

Meanwhile, 9to5Mac this morning shares new images posted by Apple.proshowing a supposed next-gen iPhone faceplate with a centered Facetime camera. The faceplates line up well with previously leaked panels, as well asleaked photos and schematics of next-gen iPhone components.

The fact that so many leaks and rumors agree about the design of Apple’s next iPhone is significant – although the same was true of last year’s iPhone rumors, and Apple released the iPhone 4S rather than a redesigned next-gen handset.

Even so, it’s rare for Apple to keep a design around on one of their flagship products for more than a couple of years . Further, Apple seems to have formed a pattern of changing the design every two years, as with the iPhone 3G and the iPhone 3GS.

The device is expected to feature a two-tone metal rear casing, and a thinner design compared to the iPhone 4S. It’s also expected to feature a smaller dock connector, taller 4-inch screen, LTE compatibility, and other internal enhancements, and (judging by the iPhone 4S) will likely be released in October.

Hacker Shows How to Steal In-App Purchases on iOS (Please Don’t Steal From Developers!)

Earlier today, a story began making the rounds about how a hacker discovered how to steal in-app purchases on iOS devices. While I’d like to say I was shocked to see how many sites provided detailed instructions on how to steal from developers, the sad truth is that I’m actually not shocked at all! Unfortunately, this sort of thing happens all the time.

The story (no, we’re not linking to it. Sorry!) has gotten a number of responses. Unfortunately, most of those responses are little more than thoughtless knee-jerk mentions of how Apple’s clearly lagging behind in security, and how they need to fix this immediately. Because it’s clearly Apple’s issue, right? Wrong.

First of all, the problem doesn’t lie with Apple’s in-app purchasing system. It has more to do with how developers implement in-app purchasing. An app that has properly implement in-app purchasing cannot be hacked using the method that circulated this morning. As Matthew Panzarino points out, Apple has provideddetailed and publicly available instructions for how to properly implement in-app purchases.

This isn’t about who’s fault this is: the people who are really responsible are the ones who would shamelessly steal from developers just because they can. The bigger issue to address is the fact that hacks like these pose risks for both developers and users alike.

As developer Steve Troughton-Smith points out on Twitter, methods like the one circulating this morning pose a serious potential threat to the account security of anyone who uses them. The hack intercepts the purchase before it gets to Apple, which could let the hacker responsible steal your iTunes account information.

Aside from the security risk, the biggest issue of all deals with the harm that stealing content causes to the development community. Most developers aren’t rich. They make a living off of their apps and content. When you steal their content, you might as well be stealing from their wallet.

Even worse, when users steal from developers, it reduces their incentive to continue working on improving their apps, or make new ones. Why would they put hard work into something that isn’t profitable for them? Stealing from developers puts the entire app ecosystem at risk, and robs every user of potential new apps and innovations.

Plenty of sites have just told you how to steal from developers – just so they could sit back and collect some page views! Your responsibility is to do the right thing. Don’t steal from developers. For that matter, don’t steal at all! Just because you can steal something doesn’t mean you should.

Windows Phone 8 vs. Jelly Bean vs. iOS 6: Which one comes out on top?

iOS 6 and Jelly Bean still ahead of the Windows Phone 8

Apple introduced iOS 6 at WWDC, after that Microsoft unveiled its Windows Phone 8, and later on Android 4.1 Jelly Bean was released at the Google I/O event. To stay in the competitive mobile market, Microsoft is trying to rebuild the mobile platform. In order to understand these leading OSes, why not compare them? Here’s what we have come up with.

User Interface

Apple’s iOS platform is loaded with innumerable features. The company has tried to introduce many newer versions over the year, but its UI has somewhat remained the same all along. The iOS 6 has minor visual changes with the same plain menu stretched across pages, although Android offers complete customizations as you can place your favorite widgets and re-size them on the homescreen. Microsoft’s Windows phone 8 is much similar to Windows Phone 7.5, but it has been given a new touch with lively tiles, which can be resized. What’s more, Window Phone 8 UI can also be used to personalize the lively tiles.

Maps

The iOS 6 has its own Mapping app powered by TomTom. Google Maps is used in Android 4.1 Jelly Bean integrated with Google search listings. Microsoft is also trying to enter in the mobile market with a big bang. To promote Windows Phone 8, Microsoft will add the Nokia Maps in the phone and tablets. Apple’s iOS 6, Google’s Jelly Bean and Microsoft’s Windows Phone 8 are configured with 3D views, turn by turn navigation and traffic information. Windows Phone 8 and Jelly Bean support offline mode for maps, but Apple’s iOS 6 doesn’t.

Voice assistant

Apple is trying hard to improve Siri-integration within iOS 6. Jelly Bean has some speech recognition and voice search abilities. It also has the knowledge graph and a built-in speech recognizer. Microsoft’s Window Phone 8 is loaded with voice commands to make calls, send texts and search the web, etc.

Social Network Integration

The iOS 6 is wholly socially integrated. Earlier Apple’s iOS 5 had Twitter integration, but the company has added Facebook in the iOS 6. Jelly Bean is completely loaded with social integrations like Facebook, Twitter, Dropbox, Google+ and Picasa, etc. After learning the tricks of marketing, Microsoft has also integrated Windows Phone 8 with Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Windows Live.

Mobile Payment

Apple’s iOS 6 has a feature called as Passbook, which allows you to keep your debit cards, credit cards and tickets, etc. in one place.  Jelly Bean includes Google Wallet, which allows mobile payments rewards, offers and deals, etc. Google Wallet is accelerated to NFC. Microsoft’s Windows Phone 8 has a feature called Wallet helping store your credit/debit cards, rewards and additional features.

Calling Features

The iOS 6 is loaded with many calling features like ‘rejecting the call with a response.’ It also allows you to personalize your settings with response templates. You can use the DO NOT DISTURB feature, where the device won’t disturb you about your calls/messages. Android offers a feature known as quick auto-replies after declining calls. It also allows you to filter out your calls for some specific people. Microsoft’s Windows Phone 8 has advanced filtering and call block options.

Video Calling

Apple’s FaceTime can be used on cellular networks and Wi-Fi. However, it is limited to ‘i’ devices, while Google’s Android offers Gmail and Gtalk to communicate with Gmail users on other device platforms. Microsoft’s Windows Phone 8 allows video calling by Skype, which supports other devices and platforms.

Apps

App store is loaded with many apps and their numbers are increasing one after another day. Google has also redesigned the Google Play store. Microsoft is planning to add some more apps.

Conclusion:

Although the Windows Phone 8 has been loaded with some really good features, it still lags far behind the iOS 6 and Jelly Bean in terms of user experience, features and apps. There is no doubt that Microsoft has done well with the Windows Phone 8, but to catch up to Apple and Android, it has to do a little bit more. But the question is will the Windows Phone 8 give the iOS 6 and the Jelly Bean a run for their money? Well, it will depend on how well the Windows Phone 8 devices do in the market. While Apple and Android devices are literally dominating the market, Windows Phone handsets and tabs have not been able to do that well. With the Windows Phone 8, Microsoft has done its bit. Now it is up to the handsets maker to do their part as well.

iOS Doubles Android’s Growth Rate in Q2 2012::

As Apple and Google continue to grapple with each other over domination of the mobile, comScore’s latest research provides some very compelling insight into how the race is going. Interesting, this time around, comScore has found that Android’s growth is slowing down significantly, while iOS continues to gain share at twice Android’s rate.

The research notes that Android currently dominates the mobile market with a 50.9% share of the market, compared to 31.9% for iOS – but while Android only saw gains of 0.9% over the past three months, iOS grew by a significantly larger 1.7%. This follows a previous report suggesting that Android’s  growth rate may be leveling off.

What’s especially interesting about the data is that, while Apple did not release any new iOS devices last quarter, several new Android devices hit the scene, making Apple’s increase in growth much more significant by comparison.

Is Android losing its forward momentum while Apple catches up from behind? It’s difficult to draw such conclusions given only 3 months of data as a basis – but it certainly seems that way! You can check out the full report over at comScore.

Google Announces Android 4.1 Jelly Bean

As well as introducing its brand new Nexus 7 tablet and the Nexus Q, an Apple TV competitor, Google also announced the new version of Android, 4.1 Jelly Bean at its I/O conference, Tech Crunch reports.

The new version of the mobile operating system features Project Butter, making the user experience ‘buttery smooth’, as well as improved voice typing, with an internet connection no longer a necessity to make it work. Notifications and the Camera app have also been updated, while Google Now “gets to the right information at the right time… automatically”.

It’s not a significant update by any means, but it’s something to compete against the upcoming release of iOS 6 in the fall, with the Nexus 7 also at the core of Android 4.1. We’ll have to see if it takes off and which manufacturers start using it, but regardless, it’s uphill battle for Google and it will be hoping that sales of its next tablet make up the lost ground on the iPad.

iOS Users More Loyal to Apps Than Android Users:

Localytics, via MacDailyNews:

In the early days of the App Store and Android Market (Google Play) publishers focused on developing an initial presence and, with the limited data available, could only measure success by the total number of downloads. However, many of those downloads were poorly acquired and never turned into long-term customers.

In March 2011, Localytics published research showing that 26% of downloaded apps were only used one time. However, another 26% of customers used new apps more than 10 times.

Localytics: “Among customers who first downloaded a phone or tablet app in 3Q 2011, compared to 3Q 2010, both one-time usage and long-term retention numbers improved. One-time usage of apps dropped over 15%, from 26% to 22%. More importantly, those who used an app more than 10 times in the following months improved 19%, growing from 26% to 31%.”

The average number of apps on a smartphone increased from 32 to 41 apps, and the apps share of internet usage increased from 73% to 81% in the last year. (Nielsen)

Google I/O webpage updated with streaming portal, new events, live blogging gadget and more

Aside from providing easy access to remotely viewing all the exciting announcements and insightful developer panels, Google is also making it easy for those attending and following the show to share their thoughts on new developments to the Android ecosystem and other Google products. A live blogging gadget can be customized and embedded to your website, interfacing directly with G+ to make things nice and simple.

Finally, Google has updated their events listing with a series of community-oriented gatherings, including a cardboard tube battle hosted by the Cardboard Tube Fighting League. Pretty extreme. Also scheduled are a laser etching and welding workshop, Sony Google TV party, and a chance for folks to pitch the next big idea to a panel of entrepreneurial experts.

Check it all out by heading over to the Google I/O site now and be sure to stay tuned to Phandroid for complete coverage of the week’s happening live from Mountain View, California. Also, don’t forget to enter for your chance to take home some Google I/O swag, including all the goodies Big G feels fit to giveaway during their keynote presentations.