steelworker jingly: Editors desk: ?ingleton, Passbook, gripes, and giving thanks beyond the Wall

Sunday, October 7, 2012

Editors desk: ?ingleton, Passbook, gripes, and giving thanks beyond the Wall

Regarding Passbook

It's Thanksgiving weekend here beyond the Wall, in Canada, so I'll keep things brief. The iPhone 5 has launched and while we've done our full iPhone 5 review and iOS 6 review, there's still plenty left to cover. iMore has the benefit, and responsibility, of only having one phone to focus on a year, so we're going to make sure we do the best job possible for you. Top to bottom, inside and out, day one to year two, we're going to help you get the most out of your new iPhone.

Now, before the turkey...

?ingleton part deux

I'll be at the second annual ?ingleton Symposium this weekend in Old Montreal. Hosted by Luc Vandal, Guy English, Scott Morrison, and Petra Mueller, it brings a new vibe to an old idea -- get a bunch of Apple aficionados all together in one place, give them a great venue and access to great food and drink, and let them solve all the problems of the world. Or at least bitch about them.

Last year's debut was fantastic, and this year looks ready to impress. Speakers consist of pretty much the entire cast of Macworld, and more than a few developers/luminaries, including Jason Snell, Glenn Fleishman, Serenity Caldwell, Michael Lopp, Marco Arment, Molly Reed, Brad Ellis, Michael Jurewitz, Dan Moren, and Lex Friedman.

You can get more information and see videos of last year's speakers at ?ingleton.com and you follow them on Twitter @cingleton and on APN @cingleton.

I'll be tweeting and netting (is that a thing yet) any and all fun and frivolity that occurs before, during, and after as well, so be sure to follow along.

(And if you're visiting from the U.S., check out your iPhone 5 pay-as-you-go options.)

The details

I've been doing a series of posts here on iMore involving nitpicks or gripes about the iPhone 5 and iOS 6. I figure both hardware and software have been out for 5 years now and are mature enough that it's fair enough for us to start getting down to the nitty gritty. I don't believe in just complaining, however, so I'm also presenting some thoughts on how Apple could address the complaints. The latest one is about App Store search and how it could be fixed.

If we extol the virtues of iOS devices and features, and what Apple gets absolutely right, so we should be just as willing to call out things we think they can improve. These are the devices we use everyday, day in and day out, and how well they perform matters a great deal. If you have an iOS 6 or iPhone 5 gripes, let me know and we'll add them to the list.

Passbook

I've gotten a lot of questions, concerns, pushback, and feedback this week about Passbook, especially from readers, listeners, and viewers outside the US where support is lagging. I've already written about Passbook and my thoughts haven't changed much since then. Passbook itself is great but everything outside Apple's control -- getting passes into and transactions out of Passbook ranges from decent to deplorable.