Monthly Archive for August, 2011

I-phone 5 Rumors to launch October 7

Published on August 20, 2011 in Internet, News and Technology. 0 Comments Tags: , .

The iPhone 5 could go on sale on Friday, October 7, with preorders to start on September 30, according to the latest rumors in the ongoing saga of the hotly anticipated next edition of Apple’s smartphone

Citing intel from its own sources, 9To5Mac said yesterday that Apple had been eyeing either October 7 or October 14 as potential iPhone 5 launch dates. But with preproduction apparently running smoothly, the site says, Apple has opted for the earlier date.

Apple will reportedly offer the phone for preorder a week before it hits store shelves, looking at either September 29 or 30, though 9To5Mac’s sources pin the 30th as the most likely date. Assuming the preorder date is accurate, at least for now, that also means Apple would have to hold its iPhone 5 unveiling sometime in September. Apple typically shows off new iPhones and iPads at high-visibility media gatherings some days or weeks ahead of the devices going on sale.

The October 7 date has also been floated by TiPb. However, the tech news site suggests taking the reports with a grain of salt since even if the date is on the money at this point, Apple’s plans are fluid. Even 9To5Mac admits that “the date could and likely will change again.”

But October itself has been strongly suggested as the launch month for the iPhone 5 by All Things D’s Kara Swisher, pointing to information from her own sources.

TiPb isn’t quite sure the new phone will be an iPhone 5. The site said it keeps hearing that the device will be an iPhone 4S with some improvements but the same design as the existing phone, a rumor that’s been around for awhile.

Other reports say that Apple will launch two phones–the new and improved iPhone 5 and a more budget-friendly iPhone 4S, one that may even tap into the company’s iCloud service to provide cloud-based storage. TiPb says that the debut of two new phones from Apple could explain the conflicting rumors that it’s heard.

And yet other reports have put a potential iPhone launch date as early as September 7.

Adding further tidbits to the iPhone 5 saga, Macpost has published images purporting to be of replacement parts for the new phone. Replacement parts such as a camera lens and an audio jack have recently popped up online among different Chinese resellers, according to the site, and show some subtle differences from parts for the iPhone 4.

Finally, global carrier Telefonica will reportedly start cutting back on its stock of the iPhone 4 through September 12. Revealing the news, Engadget cited a source who said that such a move “will of course prepare us for the launch of a new smartphone.” The source didn’t offer up a specific date when the new phone will debut, though Engadget said it’s heard that the launch will occur in October.

 

 

Overcoming Barriers to Communication

Published on August 8, 2011 in Customer Relationship and Motivation. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

On May 10th, Microsoft announced its whopping $8.5 billion-dollar purchase of Skype. Why would the software giant pay such a princely sum for a company that had suffered $689 million dollars worth of losses in the previous year? Put simply, because Skype has lived up to its stated purpose: “to break down barriers in communication.” For eight years, the VOIP provider has been on the leading edge of harnessing Internet technology to allow people to connect with one another across the globe.

Let’s look at three communication barriers Skype’s innovations have helped to break down and how leaders must learn to overcome similar communication challenges.

Distance

When phone customers dial to a destination outside of their network, rates skyrocket due to the connection fees required to route to the originating call to its intended recipient. Also, as anyone who has ever been billed roaming charges can attest, making calls when traveling across international borders incurs substantial costs. By translating voice waves into data packets and transferring them across the World Wide Web, Skype circumvented pricey dimensions of international calling.

Distance acts as a barrier to communication for leaders who face the challenge of casting vision to a network of middle managers, front line workers, customers, and partners. The farther the vision must travel, the weaker it becomes. When the leader at the top is the only one who can express the vision, he or she has little to no chance of seeing it spread throughout the organization. However, by equipping and empowering leaders at all levels to articulate the vision in a compelling way, the best communicators overcome the distance separating them from their audience.

Cost

Not only does Skype reduce surcharges associated with long-distance calls across international boundaries, it allows any customers to get in touch with anyone, anywhere for no cost whatsoever. Skype decided to keep its basic communication service and software free for users. As a result, people can chat with one another, for free, from anyplace on the globe as long as they are connected to the Internet. By making its basic product free, Skype attracted millions of users. Then, Skype marketed extra services like ringtones, voicemail, and group video calling to earn its revenues.

Obviously, a product has far greater appeal when its manufacturers have figured out how to remove costs so that customers can access the product with little to no expense. Communication works much the same way. An audience will only invest a certain amount of energy to understand a message. The more time and attention people must pay to absorb what you say, the fewer people will connect with your message. As a communicator, you must eliminate the costs upfront by investing your time and energy to make the message simple, to put it in context, and to share it in a creative and entertaining way.

Diverse Audiences

People use a variety of electronic devices to communicate with one another, thus any application designed for widespread usage must function across a variety of platforms. Skype has been engineered to work well on a wide range of gadgets. Thanks to its flexibility, Microsoft can employ Skype to help its customers connect across several platforms: personal computers, smartphones, email clients, gaming consoles, etc. With Skype, people no longer are limited to calling one another on a phone, but they can talk together while playing video games or surfing the Internet, too.

Just as Skype has learned to tailor its product to appeal to customers using a variety of communication channels so leaders must broadcast their messages in several different ways to connect with diverse audiences. Not everyone loves to read books; some people obtain and retain information better by watching videos or participating in learning exercises. Leaders who communicate the most effectively deliver their messages in numerous formats and share those messages across a wide assortment of platforms. By communicating through outlets familiar to their audience, leaders “speak their language,” and influence the greatest possible number of people.

Source: John C. Maxwell