Month: March 2019

Standford University announces of Apple Heart Study results of major U.S. Study

Apple Inc March 16, 2019 0

Stanford Medicine today reported results of the Apple Heart Study, the largest study ever of its kind, which enrolled over 400,000 participants from all 50 states in a span of only eight months. Apple and Stanford created the study to evaluate Apple Watch’s irregular rhythm notification, which occasionally checks the heart's rhythm in the background and sends a notification if an irregular heart rhythm appears to be suggestive of atrial fibrillation (AFib). As part of the study, if an irregular heart rhythm was identified, participants received a notification on their Apple Watch and iPhone, a telehealth consultation with a doctor and an electrocardiogram (ECG) patch for additional monitoring.

“We are proud to work with Stanford Medicine as they conduct this important research and look forward to learning more about the impact of Apple Watch alongside the medical community,” said Jeff Williams, Apple’s COO. “We hope consumers will continue to gain useful and actionable information about their heart health through Apple Watch.”

Stanford Medicine researchers presented their findings today at the American College of Cardiology’s 68th Annual Scientific Session and Expo. Study results showed 0.5 percent of the over 400,000 participants received an irregular heart rhythm notification, illustrating the feature’s ability to give a user important health information without creating unnecessary burden to their doctor’s schedule. Many participants sought medical advice following their irregular rhythm notification, using the information to have more meaningful conversations with their doctors.

“As physicians, we are always trying to find ways to offer patients health information that is meaningful to them for individualized care,” said Sumbul Desai, MD, Apple’s vice president of Health. “Seeing medical research reflect what we’re hearing from consumers is positive and we’re excited to see Apple Watch helping even more consumers in the future while collaborating with the medical community to further research.”

Maxell sues Apple for alleged Patent Infringements

CompuScoop Staff March 16, 2019 0

“Long-time magnetic storage and electronics maker Maxell on Friday launched a lawsuit against Apple, accusing it of violating 10 U.S. patents, some of them inherited from Hitachi,” Roger Fingas reports for AppleInsider.

“Three of the patents — 6,748,317, 6,580,999, and 6,430,498 — are connected to walking navigation, and Maxell cites features like Find My Friends and pedestrian routes in Apple Maps as infringements,” Fingas reports. “A third patent, 8,339,493, involves Apple camera design, while a fourth (7,116,438) relates to wireless communication and AirDrop file transfers.”

“Also cited are Maxell’s 6,408,193 covering cellphone technology, 6,928,306 for ring alerts, 6,329,794 for controlling power consumption, 10,212,586 for unlocking one device with another, and 10,084,991, which the company says is violated by FaceTime video calls and iTunes video,” Fingas reports. “A wide range of Apple devices are listed as infringing, including iPhones, iPads, and Macs up to 2018 models.”

Read more in the full article here.

Steve Jobs Predicted a bunch of tech in the 1980’s and 1990’s that actually came true

Dan Uff March 16, 2019 0

“Steve Jobs made several assessments about the impact that computers and the internet would have on our lives in speeches and interviews from the 1980s and 1990s,” Lisa Eadicicco and Kif Leswing write for Business Insider. “His remarks… were remarkably on-point.”

“In an audio recording from Jobs’ speech at the International Design Conference in Aspen that year, Jobs refers to ‘”an incredibly great computer in a book that you can carry around with you that you that you can learn in five minutes,'” Eadicicco and Leswing write. “‘The next stage is going to be computers as ‘agents,” he said in a 1984 interview with Newsweek’s Accessmagazine published by The Daily Beast. ‘In other words, it will be as if there’s a little person inside that box who starts to anticipate what you want. Rather than help you, it will start to guide you through large amounts of information. It will almost be like you have a little friend inside that box.'”

“‘I’ve always thought it would be really wonderful to have a little box, a sort of slate that you could carry along with you,’ he also said to Newsweek’s Accessmagazine in 1984,” Eadicicco and Leswing write. “‘You’d get one of these things maybe when you were 10 years old, and somehow you’d turn it on and it would say, you know, ‘Where am I?’ And you’d somehow tell it you were in California and it would say, ‘Oh, who are you?” he also said during the Access magazine interview. A 2016 study from Influence Central indicates that the average age a child receives their first phone is 10.3 years old.”

Much more in the full article – recommended – here.

Apple will pursue Oscar and Emmy nods for new video service

CompuScoop Staff March 15, 2019 0

Apple Inc. is targeting prestigious awards for an upcoming slate of original movies and TV shows, demonstrating grand Hollywood ambitions for a video streaming service that will compete with Netflix Inc., Amazon.com Inc. and established studios, according to people familiar with the plans,” Anousha Sakoui and Mark Gurman report for Bloomberg. “The Cupertino, California-based technology giant is hiring strategists to help craft campaigns for entertainment industry awards, including Hollywood’s highest prizes like the Oscars and Emmys, the people said.”

“Apple is forming a team of people with awards strategy experience. In January, it hired one such person from Walt Disney Co.’s television group,” Sakoui and Gurman report. “The iPhone maker is also seeking a high-level candidate to oversee the process, one of the people familiar with the situation said. The company could be in the running for Emmy awards as early as 2020, according to people familiar with the process.”

“Winning top prizes can draw consumers to subscribe to streaming services. It also attracts higher-profile directors and actors,” Sakoui and Gurman report. “Apple will charge for some content, while other video will be free for Apple device users.”