Business News Holding

Author: Antony Maina

Amazing iOS Features that will Benefit your Business

Apple has announced several revolutionary measures stretching across enterprise IT, developer and consumer spheres.

Among the features is an interesting one known as continuity. This feature allows you to start a given activity on one device and complete it on another. This means you can start working on a document on your iPad and finish it on a Windows PC. Any changes made from one of your devices are replicated on all the others.

Other interesting features are he HomeKit and HealthKit platforms which depend on a range of technologies to incorporate personal data and functionality, that is, your health and your home. Although both do not have an instant enterprise impact, both make iOS devices, such as an iPhone, more personal than they have been in the past.

The incorporation of the HomeKit and the HealthKit, though largely accepted, have their own fair share of concerns. For instance, users are more concerned on what information IT professionals or employees can access or see on a managed device. In view of this concern, Apple has designed features that protect user privacy as they have done with iOS 7. In addition, with iOS 8, the policy has to change from full wiping to wiping only the corporate data. This will prevent wiping off of the user’s personal data.

The introduction of Mail Drop and iCloud Drive is big news to OS X, the iCloud interface, and iOS. The Mail Drop is a welcome addition to iCloud as it has the ability to load huge attachments automatically into your iCloud account.

Other features that you stand to enjoy with the new iOS 8 include AirDrop, Auto-Hotspot, iOS app extensions, and Markup, among others.

Apple currently dominated the enterprise mobility space and it seems it will remain so for a long time to come.

June 13, 2016
Amazon Launches Cloud Drive SDK For Developers

Amazon has recently made a few changes to its cloud service, giving it more robust capability.

Earlier this year Amazon announced a Cloud Drive option that allowed users unlimited cloud storage and recently the company released an SDK for their cloud storage service that gives developers a chance to build Cloud Drive storage options into their applications.

With this new update app developers can now easily integrate the storage service to their apps.

The SDK is already available for both iOS and Android, so developers can get down to working on their apps without worrying about compatibility.

This update is also beneficial to end-users as they can now easily use Amazon Cloud Drive through their favorite apps.

Amazon says that developers can utilize the new SDK on existing apps, apps they’re developing or even add the integration to new apps.

There are already a handful of Android apps that are already using the SDK and these include Presentations HD Basic, PlanMaker HD Basic, TextMaker HD Basic and A+ Gallery. These are just a few that were highlighted by Amazon but as we speak, more developers could already have integrated this service on their apps.

July 22, 2015
Kenwood’s first aftermarket Android Auto units now shipping

Kenwood’s first Android Auto aftermarket units were first unveiled at CES 2015 in January and the company has now released prices for its 2 models that are already shipping off to the dealers. The DDX9902S and the DDX9702S are to retail at $950 and $900 respectively, but you can get them at Amazon now for $750.

The 2 double-DIN DDX units are designed to be the center of a vehicles information and entertainment system. A 6.95-inch resistive touch display puts a wealth of audio/video entertainment, back-up camera, and navigation at the driver’s fingertips.

Each of these gadgets is equipped with playback of streaming media from a Bluetooth enabled media/phone as well as Bluetooth technology for handsfree phone conversations.

You also get support for Sirius satellite radio, built-in HD radio, HDMI input, and DVD playback.

This is of course not the first aftermarket unit to hit the market. Earlier this year, Pioneer also launched their Android Auto units that hit the market in March.

Get Kenwood eXcelon DDX9902S Multimedia Receiver with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto from Amazon.

July 15, 2015
OnePlus to Launch OnePlus 2 via Virtual Reality

OnePlus recently announced their intentions of launching their new OnePlus 2 smartphone via virtual reality. This of course comes as shock to many as it has never been done before. It is said that using virtual reality will be a cheaper alternative for the company, but more importantly, it is a new venture that breaks away from the traditional keynotes and audience-tech announcements.

Of course this is not the first time that OnePlus are doing something unexpected. In fact, they are quite well-known among peers as loud and disruptive when it comes to marketing, and this recent venture proves all that.

Carl Pei, the cofounder of OnePlus, says: “In our industry, product launches tend to be the same. An auditorium, a keynote, and a seated audience. For the OnePlus 2 launch, we didn’t want that barrier between us and you; we want to invite you into our world, because you’re a major part of it. That is why we will be unveiling the OnePlus 2 to the world completely in VR.”

He also said that the VR launch will allow fans and the audience at large to stand next to OnePlus team as they unveil the new handset. You will also have a 360 degrees view.

On top of all that, OnePlus said they are working on their very own Google Cardboard viewer and giving them away for free. The company wants to make the launch viewing experience to be as simple, smooth, and straightforward as possible and they are developing a Cardboard viewer specifically for OnePlus One users.

The launch will kick off on July 27 at 7:00pm PT and all are invited to attend. The new Cardboard viewer be available soon.

July 8, 2015
Box and IBM Join Hands to Boost Analytics and Cloud Storage

Box and IBM have combined their cloud products as a way of boosting their appeal and scope. The partnership will bring together IBM security technologies and tools with Box’s cloud storage services, enabling the two companies to have a global reach offered by the IBM cloud.

Aaron Levie, Box’s CEO said in a blog post that the partnership will help them target more public sector and enterprise customers, which he insists they cannot do alone. He further said: “We’re taking the best of Box’s technology and combining it with IBM’s impressive portfolio of leading security, analytics, content management and social capabilities to jointly create all-new offerings and outcomes for customers.”

In this new partnership Box will have at their disposal IBM security technologies and enterprise-grade content management tools. The agreement also allows Box users to store data on the IBM Cloud.

Meanwhile, IBM will be able to increase their Watson Analytics service scope by analyzing data and content stored in the Box platform.

Both companies will provide consultancy to enterprises looking at using Box with their existing data and systems. They will also work together to create content management apps and integrate Box features into IBM’s MobileFirst for iOS apps.

This is of course not the first time we are seeing Box entering into such partnerships as they already have a working relationship with Microsoft, a major IBM competitor in the cloud business.

July 7, 2015
Netgear Launches New Cloud-Based IT Service Platform

Netgear has launched Business Central – a secure, cloud-based IT service platform. The company says that this new platform will provide SMEs with a cost-effective way of establishing, providing and managing key IT networking services. The Business Central Wireless Manager, for example, will help firms and organizations, Systems Integrators (SIs), and Value-Added Resellers (VARs) to centrally manage their entire wireless networks through the cloud.

Business Central Wireless Manager will, for instance, help in delivering cost-effective Wi-Fi and at the same time it will enable single or multiple Netgear ProSAFE Wi-Fi access points (APs) that are centrally managed via a standard web browser.

Administrators will therefore have the power to manage multiple APs on one site or across multiple sites. All management functions will also be completely hosted on the web so there won’t be need for hardware or physical upgrades.

With the manager, administrators will also be able to configure wireless security settings, run bandwidth usage reports, control Wi-Fi access on the network and manage wireless SSIDs, all in a few clicks.

The Business Central Wireless Manager is already available at reseller and partner channels. The final prices may vary depending on the specific reseller’s bundle. VAR have the advantage of a 90-day free trial.

July 6, 2015
The X900C Sony 4K Ultra-thin Android TV Now Available For Pre-order
Dust has barely settled after Sony launched their super HQ-resolution 4K televisions in April and yet they are back in the market with a new offering – the Sony 4K Android TV X900C.

The TV comes in 65-inchs and 55-inches. The TV also boasts a Touchpad remote control, 2,160p (4) resolution, 4 X HDMI inputs and 3 X USB 2.0 ports, as well as Motionflow technology (Sony’s term for its interpolated frames and 120Hz frame rate that makes the motion pictures to move smoothly).

Though Android TVs are no longer jaw-dropping since we have seen a couple of them in the market, the X900C still manages to capture our attention as it is a great combination of Android TV and 4K tech.

The X900C TV sets are available for pre-order with the 55-inch version set to cost $2,500 while the 65-inch will cost $3,999. They are to hit the retailers on July 19^th, 2015.

Highlights:
- HD is upscaled to impressive 4K Ultra HD1,2
- Streaming 4K Ultra HD is enhanced for improved clarity2,3
- Brilliant, expanded color with TRILUMINOS display
- Ultra-thin floating style shows all picture with no bezel
- Android TV with Google Cast, voice search & Play Store apps4
- Stream PS3 games directly to your TV5
- Skip the menu and access the top video services fast
- Precise motion clarity with Motionflow XR 960
July 2, 2015
Oracle Announces 24 New Cloud Services

Oracle has recently announced that it will be offering 24 new cloud services. Some of the new services include mobile, integration, big data and SQL, and Exadata database.

However, the biggest buzz was on the Archive Storage Cloud Service and according to Oracle’s CTO Larry Ellison, this service was specifically tailored to go head-to-head with Amazon Glacier, costing only one-tenth of Amazon’s offer.

The company’s chairman also added that their platform-as-a-service and software-as-a-service businesses were doing really well. This is the same message that was pushed some few days ago when Oracle announced their quarterly results. The move is seen as a push to soothe concerns about the 5% drop in overall revenue.

Oracle had sold US$426 million worth of business in platform-as-a-service and software-as-a-service in the last quarter. “That’s an industry record – no company has ever sold that much in just one quarter,” said Ellison.

It will be interesting to see how the new cloud services will be received as it is clear that Oracle is keen on promoting itself as cloud and infrastructure provider.

July 1, 2015
You can now use Messenger without a Facebook account

Whether you use an iPhone or an Android phone, chances are you already have Facebook Messenger installed. The good news however is that you no longer need to have a Facebook account to access Messenger.

As a Messenger user who doesn’t have a FB account you will now be able to use Messenger to send messages to other Messenger users who’ve also signed up without joining Facebook (discoverable by phone number) and also with those friends that have a Facebook account.

This recent move makes Messenger quite similar to WhatsApp, the popular messaging tool that Facebook acquired last year for a whooping $19 billion. WhatsApp has approximately 800 million users with Messenger coming in close with 700 million users.

With Facebook building a Messenger platform that is more than easy to use and now opening it up to non-Facebook users, it is unclear what the company sees for the future of WhatsApp. At the very least, acquiring WhatsApp ensured the massive user base could no longer be swooped by a rival company.

June 29, 2015
Box partners with Microsoft to bring You Office Online document Creation and Editing

Good news to Box users, as they can now create and edit Microsoft Office documents using Office Online without having to leave the cloud storage service. This new merger is part of the plan to expand Microsoft Cloud Storage Partner Program.

According to Box’s David Still, there are already more than a billion Excel, Word, and PowerPoint files in Box and users can now use the recently announced service to create and even edit Office files all inside Box. Any changes you make to an Office Online document/file will automatically be saved on the cloud, so you do not have to worry about having to re-upload the files again to Box.

In the press release, Box’s CEO Aaron Levie says that the new model for enterprise productivity depends on creating seamless, device agnostic connections between the core applications that people use to get work done. With over a billion users, Levie admits that the merger with Office is a crucial move in their growth and also in the transformation of the way people work and do business.

The new announcement combines Box’s robust storage and sharing features with Office’s productivity.

This new feature is already available to Box business users with an Office 365 license and all Box users with a personal account.

June 26, 2015