Newsletter 2012.03

Despite its not being the major overhaul many were expecting, 3 million new iPads were sold worldwide in the first weekend after its release. Some online write-ups were postive, with most interest focussed on the new Retina Display, while others were quite cynical.

Results from a recent study show that free smartphone apps can use far more battery power than paid, ad-free apps. This is caused by constant requests to systems that work out where the user is located and feed them targetted advertising.

On Sunday March 18th users of Google Chrome outnumbered those of Microsoft Internet Explorer. Even though it was a temporary blip of only 0.23%, this is the first time IE’s position has been so seriously challenged in 13 years. We could well see Chrome becoming the world’s most popular browser in the near future.

At the recent SXSW (South by Southwest) festival in the US, a division of advertising agency BBH launched an experiment in which homeless people could earn money by turning themselves into roaming wi-fi hotspots. Responses were polarized – some praised the creativity of the scheme, others were shocked by the commodification of the homeless.