Forget the earlier renders. Forget the leaked components. Forget the dummy mockups made of parts that were supposedly built using leaked schematics. This is what we want to see from Apple when it finally unveils the new iPhone 6 this coming September — and as it turns out, this might be the closest anyone has come to the real thing.
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Is Apple taking a page from Samsung’s classic gadget spam playbook? G for Games points us to a new report from Taiwan’s Economic Daily News claiming that Apple is planning to release three different versions of its fabled iWatch — one version with a 1.6-inch display and two different versions with a 1.8-inch display, with only one version having a display that’s made from sapphire.
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It will still be about two months until the world gets its first official glimpse at Apple’s new iPhone 6, but you can already buy a working iPhone 6 clone that mimics the next-generation iPhone’s look and software. Dubbed Wico i6, the plastic iPhone 6 copy is a fully functioning smartphone and it has been captured in a hands-on video for the first time.
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We saw more than a dozen terrific paid iPhone and iPad apps gone on sale for free this week, but app sales are the gift that keeps on giving. Today, we have six awesome paid iPhone and iPad apps worth a combined $24 to share with you — and if you act fast, you can get them all for free.
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Google’s main I/O 2014 announcement was the new Material Design language that covers not only the next major release of Android (Android L), but also Google’s apps across platforms and screens. Material Design is what Google wants developers to use for their apps as well, whether they’re for Android, iOS or the web, and ArsTechnica has put together a great collection of screenshots, shared by Google during its I/O sessions, via its online Material Design guidelines or leaked online.
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Smartwatches will probably take off at some point. Apple’s iWatch will definitely help and once that launch is behind us, Samsung will probably start to put more marketing muscle behind its own smartwatch offerings. For the time being, however, smartwatches currently on the market are pretty weak. They offer precious little in the way of truly compelling functionality, leaving users with an unnecessary device that is yet another gadget to charge all the time.
The Ritot, however, is a smart wrist-worn wearable that might actually be worth checking out.
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Google’s Project Ara modular smartphone is no longer just a neat idea for the distant future. The company really wants to start selling modular handsets next year, and in order for module developers to be able to come up with their own interesting smartphone additions until then, Google is preparing to ship Project Ara development boards to interested parties.
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Epicor Software Corporation, a global leader in business software solutions for manufacturing, distribution, retail and services organizations, is celebrating the 30th anniversary of electronic cataloging for the automotive aftermarket. The company introduced the industry’s first electronic catalog (eCatalog) in August 1984. Today, Epicor eCatalog products and related data solutions are used by tens of thousands of parts professionals, more than 100,000 vehicle service providers and millions of consumers throughout North America and around the world.
The first-generation Epicor eCatalog of the mid-1980s was limited only to the supplier lines and catalogs carried by each auto parts store. Nevertheless, many replacement parts distributors and jobbers quickly realized that their counterpeople were often twice as productive and far more accurate when they relied on the eCatalog rather than print volumes. Also fueling early adoption was the rapidly accelerating growth of vehicle platforms and corresponding part number proliferation. The new eCatalog also helped users eliminate pricing mistakes, reduce returns and improve inventory control and buying practices.
“Our first eCatalog opened the door to countless opportunities to improve efficiency and accuracy at the parts counter, which remains the nexus of virtually every vehicle repair,” said Scott Thompson, vice president, automotive, retail distribution solutions for Epicor. “Epicor eCatalog products are even more important and prevalent today, connecting tens of thousands of wholesalers with service providers, and driving an ever growing number of business-to-consumer eCommerce websites.”
In stark contrast to the company’s first eCatalog, the Epicor PartExpert eCatalog suite includes more than 10 million parts, 7,800 manufacturer product lines, and 27 million interchanges and covers virtually every vehicle make and model marketed within North America over the past 40 years. The company’s data and eCatalog solutions are now referenced in more than 70 percent of aftermarket parts sales in North America. Epicor replacement parts data is also used by leading global online retailers such as Amazon.com and eBay.
The Epicor PartExpert product suite includes the Cover-to-Cover graphical eCatalog module featuring part images and specifications; an integrated VIN decoder; BuyerAssist electronic buyer’s guide; InterChange OE and competitive interchange module; “All Lines” instant access to more than 7,800 manufacturer product lines; the comprehensive ItemExpert non-application item database; PartExpert OE original equipment parts eCatalog; and Epicor OE for Parts Not Found, a new module that enables users to identify the OE part number for applications for which no equivalent aftermarket part is available. Epicor combines these value-added tools with a complete service product suite including the LaborExpert labor estimating tool, ServicePlus OE scheduled maintenance services and parts, TireExpert tire fitment and replacement guide, and RepairExpert repair information database to help users increase sales and customer loyalty.
The post Epicor Marks 30 Years of Automotive Aftermarket eCatalog appeared first on Engine Builder Magazine.
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Comcast didn’t earn its reputation as America’s Worst Company overnight — it took years and years of hard work. From offering customers ridiculously overpriced bundle packages, to having the highest fees among any of its competitors, to offering some of the absolute worst customer service of any company in the United States, Comcast has toiled away tirelessly to perfect its craft of angering its own customers, who have little choice but to stick with the cable giant due to the sorry state of America’s home broadband market.
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Microsoft will soon announce a massive round of layoffs, according to a new report from Bloomberg. Thousands of employees will be let go as Microsoft looks to integrate the devices and services business it recently acquired from Nokia. The report says that the reductions could be announced as soon as this week, and it could be Microsoft’s biggest ever round of layoffs, topping the 5,800 cuts it made five years ago in 2009.
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