iPhone Coding Language Now World’s Third Most Popular

Objective-C — the programming language used to build applications for the Apple iPhone and iPad — is now the third most popular language on Earth, according to a new study.

Moving into the third spot in the oft-cited TIOBE index, Objective-C has surpassed C++, another derivative of the venerable C programming language.

C itself is still at the top of the list, followed by Java.
Just a year ago, Objective-C was ranked 46th on TIOBE’s list, and its sudden rise is all about Apple. “This is less about Objective-C and more about the success of the Apple ecosystem,” says Nolan Wright, the technology chief at Appcelerator, an outfit offering a development tool that spans various languages and platforms. “Objective-C is enjoying that benefit. If it had been another language [on the Apple platform], it would have enjoyed that too.”

Apple settled on Objective-C because it was the language of choice on the NeXTSTEP operating system, which was developed by Steve Jobs and his NeXT Inc. in the mid-1980s and later became the basis for Apple’s Mac OS X operating system as well as iOS, the operating system that drives the iPhone and the iPad.

Originally developed in early ’80s by two developers at a company called Stepstone — Brad Cox and Tom Love — Objective-C was barely on TIOBE’s radar in the summer of 2008. But then Apple launched the iPhone App Store.

Now, according to the TIOBE Index — which surveys engineers and crawls the web for code — Objective-C accounts for 9.3 percent of the world’s software, while C++ stands at 9.1 percent. And a second survey, the Transparent Language Index, puts Objective-C at 9.2 percent and C++ at 7.9 percent.

Though the Apple App Store is the main reason for the recent rise of the language, Eric Shapiro, technology chief of app developer ArcTouch, also argues that the language is easier to use than most. “Almost anybody can just pick up a book and learn [Objective C] basics,” he tells Wired. “That doesn’t make you an expert, but that does mean that so many more [developers] are familiar.”

There’s still a learning curve, says Appcelerator’s Nolan, but once you climb it, you benefit from, well, Apple. “Apple probably has the most developed developer ecosystem,” he says. “Once people get passed that learning curve, people tend to really enjoy the language.”

But Objective C is unlikely to surpass the popularity of Java anytime soon. Unlike Objective C — which is predominantly used build “front-end” software on devices such as the iPhone — Java is a mainstay on servers running “back-end” software that feed online services to phones, tablets, and PCs. Plus, it’s the language used to build applications on Google’s Android mobile operating system.
This article comes from:http://www.wired.com/wiredenterprise/2012/07/apple-objective-c/

Amazon Said To Plan Smartphone To Vie With Apple IPhone

Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) is developing a smartphone that would vie with Apple Inc. (AAPL)’s iPhone and handheld devices that run Google Inc. (GOOG)’s Android operating system, two people with knowledge of the matter said.

Foxconn International Holdings Ltd. (2038), the Chinese mobile- phone maker, is working with Amazon on the device, said one of the people, who asked not to be identified because the plans are private. Amazon is seeking to complement the smartphone strategy by acquiring patents that cover wireless technology and would help it defend against allegations of infringement, other people with knowledge of the matter said.

A smartphone would give Amazon a wider range of low-priced hardware devices that bolster its strategy of making money from digital books, songs and movies. It would help Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos -- who made a foray into tablets with the Kindle Fire -- carve out a slice of the market for advanced wireless handsets. Manufacturers led by Samsung Electronics Co. and Apple shipped 398.4 million smartphones in the first quarter, according to researcher IDC.

Drew Herdener, a spokesman for Amazon, declined to comment.Mark Mahaney, an analyst at Citigroup Inc., said in November that Amazon is planning to release a smartphone.

Seattle-based Amazon considered buying wireless patents from InterDigital Inc. before the King of Prussia, Pennsylvania- based company said in June that it will sell the assets to Intel Corp. for $375 million, two people said. Amazon is taking pitches and setting up briefings with other sellers, the people said.

This article comes from:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-07-06/amazon-said-to-plan-smartphone-to-vie-with-apple.html

iPhone revenue hits US$150 billion within 5 years

Apple's iPhone has been a sales juggernaut since its launch. And a new study from research firm Strategy Analytics seems to drive that point home.

Since the iPhone's launch in June 2007, Apple has generated cumulative revenues of US$150 billion, according to Strategy Analytics. Neil Shah, senior analyst at Strategy Analytics, told CNET in a phone conversation today that the number only includes hardware sales. Accessories, apps, and software and services, which typically represent 3 percent to 5 percent of Apple's iPhone revenue each quarter, were factored out.

Moving on to hardware units, Strategy Analytics said that 250 million iPhones have shipped globally.Despite the obvious good news for Apple, the research firm is not necessarily sure that Apple can hold on to the same level of profits it has secured in the iPhone market over the last several years.

"There are emerging signs that the iPhone's next five years could get tougher," Strategy Analytics executive director Neil Mawston said today in a statement. "Some mobile operators are becoming concerned about the high level of subsidies they spend on the iPhone, while Samsung is expanding its popular Galaxy portfolio and providing Apple with more credible competition."

According to Shah, the "concern" carriers are having comes down to economics. He told CNET that with Apple's US$600 wholesale iPhone price to carriers, companies like AT&T and Verizon are forced to take a US$300 to US$400 hit when they sell the device for US$199 or US$299 with a two-year contract. And Apple, seeing that it "has the selling power," is unwilling to negotiate that pricing, Shah says.

It's a much different story for popular Android-based devices like the HTC One X or the Samsung Galaxy S3. Shah told CNET that while the wholesale price on the Galaxy S3 is high--he believes it's about US$500 or US$550--carriers have been able to negotiate that down to US$400 or so, making the chances of them quickly getting their cash back much higher.

"The Galaxy S3 subsidy is considerably lower," Shah told CNET, adding that popular Android-based devices could make carriers think twice about playing so nicely with Apple. Still, not everyone is so sure that carriers will do much to change things. In a research note published last month, Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty said that all three US iPhone carriers are required by contract to provide certain subsidies, and those agreements will remain in place for years. What's worse for carriers, the contracts won't expire at the same time, effectively eliminating their chances of teaming up on Apple to lower subsidies.
Apple, meanwhile, is free to continue to rake in the cash.

This article comes from:http://asia.cnet.com/iphone-revenue-hits-us150-billion-within-5-years-62217180.htm

Enterprise Mobility: iPhone at 5: How Apple Changed the Smartphone, Business Mobility

Apple began selling the iPhone five years ago June 29, calling it "revolutionary" and "magical" and a "reinvention of the phone." The iPhone wasn't the first smartphone or the first phone to offer users access to their email or the Internet, but given the way people reacted to it and the tremendous changes the iPhone created—to the mobile industry, to people's lives, to the way business is done—it might as well have been.
 
The iPhone introduced the touch-based user interface, which, like the mouse, changed the way we interact with our devices. It made it more intuitive, simpler and more fun. The iPhone became immediately enmeshed in people's lives and so also their workplaces, making enterprise policy makers terrified for the security of their data—countless articles described tactics for keeping such rogue devices from infiltrating BlackBerry territory. A few security fixes and tweaks on Apple's end, and today the iPhone is so invaluable a tool that IT departments have likewise adjusted and tweaked, designing bring-your-own-device policies that take advantage of users' easy relationship with these robust, application-rich mobile machines.

 By the time the iPad was introduced, enterprises needed no convincing of their business worth. "iPhone ushers in an era of software power and sophistication never before seen in a mobile device, which completely redefines what users can do on their mobile phones," Apple announced in 2007. If in a few weeks' time, after introducing the iPhone 5, Apple says the same thing, who will be surprised?

This article comes from: http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Mobile-and-Wireless/iPhone-at-5-How-Apple-Changed-the-Smartphone-Business-Mobility-346239/

Travelport launches mobile travel itinerary app for iPhone and Android

Travelport, the business services provider to the global travel industry, has announced the launch of a new travel application for users of smartphones in the UAE and Saudi Arabia.

Following a successful launch in the UK earlier this year, the new app is now one of the first, fully integrated GDS powered travel itinerary apps available in these countries.


ViewTrip Mobile delivers time critical information and other valuable tools to enable travellers to be fully aware and in control of their travel arrangements at any time. Among the useful features are:
• Simple, one-time registration with future trips automatically synced to the mobile.
• Flight status with live flight alerts.
• Detailed airport and city guides offering easy to digest information.
• Location aware services - find offers on local restaurants, the location of your nearest bank and much more.
• Weather forecasts and currency conversion.
• Itinerary management - easily and quickly add other items to itineraries.

Travelport, through their development partner ManticPoint, are also offering a white label version of ViewTrip Mobile. The white label version will enable travel agents to:
• Brand the app and itineraries using their own logo and colours.
• Take control of content including agency specific help and advice and decide which affiliate content appears.
• Proactively manage and target communications with the traveller via the app when disruption or the travel environment changes.

"Mobile technology is playing an increasingly important part of a traveller's overall experience and our mobile strategy continues to result in new, innovative solutions for our customers," commented Rabih Saab, president and managing director, Middle East and Africa at Travelport.

"ViewTrip Mobile is an exciting step forward for travellers as it provides them with rich trip information along with a wide array of destination content and tools, all in the palm of their hand. We are constantly developing new products that satisfy the needs of the travel community and are thrilled with the positive impact ViewTrip Mobile is making," added Saab.

Travelport ViewTrip Mobile is available free of charge to all Travelport travel agency customers currently using the Travelport ViewTrip itinerary solution. To get started, travellers click the link included in their ViewTrip itinerary to register and download the app.

This article comes from:http://www.ameinfo.com/travelport-launches-mobile-travel-itinerary-app-304651

Anyone can use Navy iPhone app

The Navy Operational Fitness and Fueling Series released an iPhone app in April to let sailors and civilians access its library of exercises, workout routines and meal planning.

As of the end of May, the app had been downloaded nearly 5,500 times.Though it hasn’t been out long, feedback from sailors has been overwhelmingly positive, said Lisa Sexauer, program manager for fitness, sports and deployed forces support at Navy Installations Command. It is rated 4.5 out of 5 stars by users in the iTunes App Store.

“They like the food choice features and the fact that there are videos so they can refine their own movement efficiencies,” she said.The videos, like the entire app, can be accessed without cellphone service or an active Internet connection once the almost one-gigabyte app is downloaded to the iPhone. That means that the entire workout is available any time, anywhere, even aboard a ship — because most ships have limited Internet access and no cellphone service while at sea.

“The app is actually housed on the device. When you head to the gym, by selecting your parameters, your entire workout is available to you,” Sexauer said.Parameters include fitness level, duration of exercise, equipment that is available and stage.

The fitness levels relate to both overall health and familiarity with NOFFS exercises; Sexauer suggested that everyone begin with Level 1.Within each level are four stages, labeled A through D. Each level has an increased number of sets and repetitions.

The exercises, which take into account how much room is available for fitness on different kinds of vessels from subs to aircraft carriers, are in line with the Navy’s 21st Century Sailor and Marine wellness initiative, Sexauer said.

One key to the app is ensuring no injury during the exercises. Videos, detailed descriptions and still photos show sailors how to correctly perform each exercise.

This article comes from: http://www.visaliatimesdelta.com/article/20120618/LIFESTYLE/306180007/Anyone-can-use-Navy-iPhone-app

Meet Moboto: the Talking iPhone Toy

Ever wish your iPhone dock was just a little more interactive? Have we got a Kickstarter project for you: Moboto.Designer Mark Solomon created the device for those of us who fantasized our stuffed toys were alive when we were a child (ie. pretty much everyone). Moboto turns your recharging iPhone into a seemingly life-like companion.

With the Moboto dock and app, an iPhone can take on various personalities to convey information to its user. It can display a blinking eyeball that changes color depending on your device’s battery life. Moboto can also be a flower that shows rain or sunshine in the background to convey the current weather outside in a beautiful way.

Solomon says Moboto is for geeks and non-techies alike.“When you dock your phone it just launches the app and it brings to life the character,” he said. “It’s going to enable you to have a little bit of fun with something that is normally a mundane task. Instead of just having your iPhone by your bedside or in a dock at night, it’s plugged into Moboto and you can see its expressions.”

The personalized dock can visualize the weather, time and battery life. Touch the screen to interact with its characters — by playing with the eyeball, for example, which blinks when it’s poked.“We just take the data that we get on the phone and visualize it in some way,” Solomon added. “It adds some whimsy to your day.”

Moboto is reminiscent of the Android robot with a stout little body. Select which style suits you best from the seven mock-ups that Solomon and his team have created so far: one has a sweater, another has a tie. Some can be personalized.

In the future, Solomon aims to allow users to command Moboto via Twitter. He’s currently experimenting with a hashtag that causes Moboto to sing a song. Tweet #Moboto1, for example, and the device lip-syncs theBeastie Boys‘ “Intergalactic.”

“We’re still figuring out what to do with this,” he said.And it Moboto owners don’t actually want to hear “Intergalactic” in the middle of the night when someone tweets it? No problem. Just be sure you set your alarm, and Moboto will sleep soundly, too. By default, each device is connected to the Moboto Twitter account, but users can disconnect that feature if they want.

This technology might also become really useful to sports fans. Solomon imagines a custom app that would feed a sports fan details via a talk feature. (The main Moboto app itself will be constantly updated.)

Solomon and his small team of designers, software engineers and advisors are based on San Jose. The group’s Kickstarter campaign requests a total of $400,000 to put Moboto into production.So far, they’ve reached nearly $20,000 with 33 days left — so they’ve got plenty of time.

Solomon said the Moboto teams likes to think of themselves “as a hardware company making software. The software is what brings its heart and soul,” he said.

This article comes from:http://mashable.com/2012/06/14/moboto/

Apple's eyes open iPhone distribution: The fallout

Apple has cut prepaid distribution deals with Sprint’s Virgin and Cricket and the initial reaction is to dismiss the moves because few users are going to shell out the cash for an unsubsidized iPhone. On further review, Apple’s prepaid deals are likely just the beginning of a move to a new distribution model.

Distribution 101 dictates that the more units you produce the lower the cost of goods falls. If you assume that Apple cuts more prepaid deals around the world it could harm rivals with just limited success.

This case was made by Barclays Capital analysts on Monday. They were focused on Apple and its impact on carrier subsidies—a bane for wireless players—and what happens if the iPhone follows an open distribution model.


Barclays analyst Ben Reitzes lays out the case:

Our checks indicate that Apple’s deals with prepaid players (Sprint’s Virgin Mobile and Cricket) are likely only the beginning of Apple’s efforts to expand via partnerships into the open distribution and prepaid markets in the US and internationally. The mid-tier smartphone market has been the fastest growing niche of the smartphone market in recent quarters.

The most successful vendors in the mid tier are Samsung, Nokia, Huawei, ZTE, and RIM. Much of the ~225mn unit mid tier smartphone market is at or below $200, and much of the ~1bn unit feature phone market is at or below $75. Even limited share gains (prudent given Apple’s $350-$400 price point) could eat materially into the growth markets for rival vendors. This could add $4.70 to our CY13 Apple EPS estimate of ~$54.

The emphasis from Reitzes boils down to the midtier smartphone market and the total addressable market. For instance, Nokia has had success in the mid-range market as has Huawei. Today, Cricket is offering an iPhone 4 for $400 and an iPhone 4S for $500. Virgin is going with $549 and $649 for the iPhone 4 and 4S, respectively. IF there’s volume on these deals, however, those prices are likely to fall.

Initially, there’s a mental hurdle to clear with this effort. Prepaid subscribers are often subprime credit material. How are these people going to shell out $400 or more for an unsubsidized iPhone? That said, Apple can leverage its brand and make inroads. If you assume all phones will be smartphones, Apple has a huge shot to get some serious volume.

This article comes from:http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/apples-eyes-open-iphone-distribution-the-fallout/79737

Warning: Apple's new Jam Session may be addictive

Apple's (AAPL) new feature on its GarageBand app for the iPad may be habit-forming, creating a persistent and chronic time-suck that could swallow you whole.


It's called Jam Session, and allows up to four people to "play" their iPads -- or iPhones and iPod touches -- together over Wi-Fi or Bluetooth and record songs.
When Apple's marketing chief Phil Schiller unveiled the updated GarageBand app at the launch of the third-generation iPad in March, he introduced Jam Session in one of those we're-all-kids-at-heart moments that Apple orchestrates so well. He even called Jam Session "the best new feature'' of the incredibly popular GarageBand suite.

For $4.99, it's downloadably yours. Musician or wannabe, it doesn't matter. With a bit of practice, Jam Session can make a recording star out of anybody. It's not perfect, and its smorgasbord of technical widgets can overwhelm. But it's still awesome, precisely because of that rich mother lode of audio possibilities.

You can record up to eight tracks on an endless menu of both simulated instruments and orchestral synthesizers, tweak the sound effects to your heart's content, then edit each track by cutting, looping or splitting them until you're practically channeling famed record producer Berry Gordy.

Session, we reached out to the venerable J.C. Smith, a native East San Jose blues guitarist and iPad newbie. For two hours one recent afternoon at Gradie and Jeannine O'Neal's Tiki Studios, a 45-year-old recording shrine tucked into an East San Jose residential neighborhood, Smith and four members of his namesake band dipped into Jam Session for the first time.

"I'm not a computer guy, I'm a piano guy," joked keyboardist Todd Reid, hunched over one of four iPads propped on the piano bench in front of him. While drummer Donnie Green started tapping on the drum set splayed across his glowing screen, his brother Robert began plucking the virtual bass.

Hovering nearby, tenor saxophone player Abraham Vasquez looked on with amusement. Jam Session doesn't yet have a horn section, but Vasquez was able to dub in his instrument once the bluesmen had done their virtual business.

After running to the Apple Store earlier in the day to familiarize himself with this strange new app, Smith was ready to go. Jam Session requires a "bandleader'' to controls things on one of the iPads, so Smith pushed a musical-note icon that "invited'' the other three to join the jam. He then selected the "Hard Rock'' guitar from an assortment of styles on the pull-down menu, added some fuzz distortion using a "Vintage Drive'' special-effects tool, then went to town picking out a riff for a 12-bar blues number.

The others joined in. There were timing issues as the four tried to synchronize their sounds, so they tried laying down one track at a time, including Reid, who added a bluesy organ to the mix. In the end, they decided to go back to playing the four parts simultaneously. And then they nailed it.

It took time, patience and a fair amount of musical intuition. But 90 minutes into the session, after laying down then ripping up tracks to start over several times, the band had pieced together the backbone of what they'd eventually call "Eastside Shuffle."

"Let's add the sax now,'' Smith said to Vasquez, who attached headphones to the master iPad, then added his blues solo right over the rhythm section, blowing the horn into the iPad's built-in microphone. At one point, for reasons nobody could quite figure out, the finished song suddenly vanished from the bandleader's iPad screen. But because the individual tracks were still on each of the tablets, the band was able to quickly stitch it all back together again.

"I think it's a lot of fun,'' Smith said after the session. "The iPad and the app enhance your creativity and give you new ways to think about your music and your instrument.
"I think it's cool,'' he said. "If I had an iPad, I'd play with Jam Session all the time.''

This article comes from:http://www.mercurynews.com/business/ci_20796668/apple-new-jam-session-may-be-addictive-ipad-iphone-record-songs-garageband

Apple In China: iPad OK’d, China Mobile Takes iPhone

Could Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL), the world's most valuable technology company, be getting a new jolt from the burgeoning China market, its second largest?
 

Chances are the Cupertino, Calif.-based company will be able to start selling more products as early as next month, when it starts its fourth fiscal quarter.
Besides boosting revenue and profits from China, where Apple CEO Timothy Cook visited in March, the approvals could dramatically boost the company's prospects in China, where middle-class incomes are spurring consumer purchases. Market researchers say Samsung Electronics (Seoul: 5930) holds about 25 percent of Chinese smartphone sales while Apple's share is only around 7 percent.

The approvals could also assist Apple shares, which have fallen 14 percent from their all-time high of $644 set on April 10. At midday Monday, they were at $554.42, down $10.47. 

China's Telecommunications Equipment Certification Center said the new iPad is compatible with China Unicom's (NYSE: CHU) 3G wireless services. The approval removes the last obstacle to selling the products.

Apple sold 11.8 million iPads last quarter, bringing cumulative sales to about 55 million.The China regulatory approval came around the same time the same agency approved the acquisition of Motorola Mobility by Google (Nasdaq: GOOG), the No. 1 search engine. Google closed the $12.5 billion acquisition of the Motorola Android smartphone maker on May 22.

China Unicom had been Apple's exclusive iPhone seller until recently, when the company added China Mobile Ltd. (NYSE: CHL), the No. 3 carrier.Last quarter, China accounted for $7.9 billion of Apple's overall revenue, or 20 percent of the total. "We had an incredible quarter in China," Cook said, when he discussed results with investors.

But Apple's primary contractor, Foxconn, a unit of Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision Industries (Taipei: 2317), couldn't meet initial consumer demand: Before the Year of the Dragon began in late January, consumers rioted over iPhone shortages in Shanghai.Cook visited Apple retail stores in Beijing and Shanghai during his tour, his first as Apple CEO.

Besides boosting Apple sales, analysts believe the company sells the iPhone 4S at a higher margin than in the U.S. Apple's overall gross margin, or sales less costs of revenue, rose to a record 47.1 percent last quarter from only 41.4 percent a year earlier.

For earnings, that could also add more to Apple's bottom line. Jefferies analyst Peter Misek estimates Apple will report third-quarter net income around $9.38 billion, or $10.02 a share, compared with $7.3 billion, or $7.89 a year ago.

Meanwhile, Misek and other analysts expect Apple to refresh the iPhone 4S before long with a successor, an iPhone 5 or whatever monicker Apple decides, which will be an improved product with better displays and features, a higher retail price and resulting higher margins.

This article comes from:http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/348472/20120604/apple-china-ipad-iphone-4s-unicom-mobile.htm

More Details on the iPhone 5 Touchscreen Come to Light

Apple has reportedly settled on a larger, 3.95-inch display for its upcoming smartphone. This will require a slight change in the resolution.

The larger display will measure 3.95-inches diagonally and will keep its familiar 1.94-inches width. The new iPhone screen will grow to 3.45-inches tall and will sport a new resolution of 640 x 1136. Reports say that Apple has decided to add 176 pixels to one end of the screen, bringing it close to a 16:9 screen ratio.

It seems that Apple is attempting to use the new pixels by adding a home screen with a fifth row of icons and extended application UIs that allow users to more content, perhaps similar to Android’s widgets.

Backward Compatibility
The biggest concern for any change of resolution is breaking the backward compatibility for apps. If the new iPhone uses the unconfirmed screen resolution of 640 x 1136, then current third-party apps made for the 640 x 940 screen will still be able to run unmodified, but they will be left with a blank space above and/or below.

Aside from the new resolution, the next-generation iPhone is expected to keep its Home button unmodified, and include the new, smaller mini-Dock connector that has been brought up in previous rumors. Apple is expected to include the narrower dock connector to all of its mobile devices over time.

This article comes from:http://www.brighthand.com/default.asp?newsID=18940&news=detail+iphone+5+touchscreen

New NASA App 2.0 Released For iPhone, iPod Touch

NASA released an updated version of the free NASA App for iPhone and iPod touch on Monday. The NASA App 2.0 includes several new features and a completely redesigned user interface that improves the way people can explore and experience NASA content on their mobile devices.

A team at NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, CA, completely rebuilt the NASA App for iPhone and iPod touch. It now has a fast and intuitive interface for the approximately 4.7 million people who've downloaded it so far. Other new features of NASA App 2.0 include weather forecasts in the spacecraft sighting opportunities section; maps, information and links to all of the NASA visitor centers; a section about NASA's programs, as well as the ability to print, save and access favorite items, and bookmark images. The NASA App 2.0 requires iOS 5.0 or later.

"This is our first major redesign of the NASA App for iPhone since our initial release in 2009," said Jerry Colen, NASA App project manager at Ames. "We are really excited about this release and think users are going to love the new interface and features."

All of the NASA Apps for iPhone, iPod touch, iPad and Android showcase a wealth of NASA content, including thousands of images, videos on-demand, live streaming of NASA Television, the agency's Third Rock online radio station, mission and launch information, featured content, stories and breaking news. Users also can find sighting opportunities for the International Space Station and track the position of the orbiting laboratory. App users also easily can share NASA content with their friends and followers on Facebook, Twitter or via email. In total, the apps have been downloaded by more than 8.8 million people.

This article comes from:http://www.aero-news.net/index.cfm?do=main.textpost&id=e3eb9bc7-a7c6-490e-b074-2e9c04c2ebee

Sneak A Peek Inside An iPhone Factory

The iPhone is considered by many to be a magical device. It would almost seem like they’re made inside some kind of Willy Wonka-esque factory full of happiness and sunshine. We all know that is not the case as the Foxconn factories have been well-documented in the news. There have been reports of worker abuse and inhumane working conditions. This has led to worker suicides on multiple occasions, but the company has made great strides in the last year to clean its act up.

M.I.C. Gadget obtained a video of Foxconn CEO Terry Gou and a Chinese reporter taking a tour through the Zhengzhou branch of Foxconn. It’s a fascinating look at the inside of a factory that many people always thought was some kind of internment camp full of human rights abuses. The video clearly shows what looks like a modern factory with everybody working in relative contentment even if it is extremely mundane.

Unfortunately, the video is in Chinese so don’t expect to really understand what’s going on. Fortunately, The Next Web has translated parts of the video. Apparently, the tour consists of Gou talking about expanding the Foxconn plant in a flyover of a desert area. Then the group hits the plant proper where they show the production of the iPhone 4S and its display. Gou also make the claim that his factory is better than any other factory in other major production countries like Germany and the U.S.

Even though I can’t really understand the video, it’s a fascinating look inside of the most infamous factories in the world. It looks much different than I expected it to, but I guess that’s to be expected. After hearing all of the horror stories, it only makes one think of terrible things when it comes to Foxconn. Check out the video for yourself to see the birthplace of your iPhone.

This article comes from:http://www.webpronews.com/sneak-a-peek-inside-an-iphone-factory-2012-05