iOS Devices Still Account for Vast Majority of In-Flight Internet Use [iOS Blog]

Infographics released by in-flight Wi-Fi service Gogo (via CNET) reveal that iOS devices continue to dominate customer use with an 84% share, although Android use has grown significantly in the last two years.


As further evidence of the post-PC trend, the majority of access - though only just - is on tablets, accounting for 35% of usage compared to 33% for laptops. When it comes to iOS devices, iPads are used more often than iPhones.


Web-browsing is the top activity for Gogo users, with email, social networking, news and weather completing the top five slots.

Gogo is available on Air Canada, Air Tran, Alaskan Airlines, American Airlines, Delta, Frontier, United, US Airways, and Virgin America, with over 1,500 commercial airplanes and over 5,000 business jets equipped for the service.

Skype Updates iOS App With New Calling Experience and Bug Fixes [iOS Blog]

Skype has updated its iPhone and iPad apps with a "new, beautiful calling experience" and a number of bug fixes and improvements.

What's new

✓ Beautiful new calling experience
✓ Mark all your recent chats as read with just a few taps.
✓ General fixes and improvements
- One-to-one chats now appear in the correct order.

Skype is available for iPhone or iPad on the App Store. [Direct Links: iPhone, iPad]

Apple Exploring Wireless Charging for iPhone as Early as 2013?

Digitimes is reporting that both Apple and Samsung are expected to introduce wireless charging solutions for their "flagship models" of smartphones in 2013.


While their "industry sources" pinpoint Qi inductive charging as the technology to be used by Samsung, Apple appears to be working on their own version of wireless charging.

Apple is likely to adopt the wireless charging technology developed internally, but it remains unknown if the next-generation iPhone will come with built-in wireless charging capability or with other attached accessories, said the sources.

Samsung's solution is said to be likely an add-on accessory to replace the back-cover of their smartphones. Palm used a similar back-cover replacement option for their short lived Touchstone wireless charging system for the Palm Pre. Digitimes' sources, however, weren't clear if Apple's solution would be built-in or an additional accessory.

Speculation has linked Apple to wireless charging solutions before, but Apple's Phil Schiller downplayed that possibility in late 2012. When questioned by AllThingsD about wireless charging systems:

As for wireless charging, Schiller notes that the wireless charging systems still have to be plugged into the wall, so it's not clear how much convenience they add. The widely-adopted USB cord, meanwhile, can charge in wall outlets, computers and even on airplanes, he said.

Apple has previously been shown to have done research into magnetic resonance charging technology which is distinct from the more commonly used inductive wireless charging.

Digitimes has a mixed record with Apple rumors, so Apple's likelihood of incorporating such technology so soon remains uncertain.