O'Grady's PowerPage

Tag: Melbourne

  • Recent Apple job postings allude to chip development effort in and around Florida

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    If you’re looking to design chips for Apple in sunny Florida, your dream may have come true.

    Per 9to5Mac, Apple posted several job openings looking for both hardware and software engineers reveal that Apple is looking to begin its own chip development in Orlando, Florida.

    Last week it was discovered that Apple is hiring software engineers to work on fingerprint technology at Authentec in Melbourne, Florida, which is about one hour south of the future site of the company’s development labs.

    The job posting are interesting as Samsung, which works with Apple to develop the custom chips used in iPhones and iPads, continues to compete with Apple in the smartphone and tablet space.

    Tim Cook mentioned last May that the engine that drives the iPhone was produced in Austin, Texas, which many believe pointed to Samsung’s chip development location.

    The job listings range from ‘front end design management’ to ‘3D Graphics Micro-Architect’, all of which were posted in recent weeks.

    Notably, the area is already populated with relevant talent as it is home to popular semiconductor company/Apple chip partner Qualcomm which may be the reason for the location.

    Apple currently hosts a small office for its “Latin America General Manager” in Coral Gables, Florida, some five hours south of Orlando, Florida, illustrating the Cupertino-based company’s increasing presence in the Sunshine State.

    Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.

  • AT&T activates additional 4G LTE networks in 24 U.S. cities

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    Some speedy new 4G LTE networks are in place around the U.S.

    Which is never a bad thing.

    Per AppleInsider, AT&T this week announced that its high-speed 4G LTE network — compatible with Apple’s latest iPhone 5, iPad and iPad mini — has launched in 15 new markets, and also expanded coverage in a handful of other locations.

    A total of 10 new locations with 4G LTE reception were announced by AT&T on Friday:
    – Boise, Idaho

    – Boulder, Colo.

    – Bowling Green, Ky.

    – Harrisburg, Pa.

    – Hartford, Conn.

    – Lancaster, Pa.

    – Lexington, Ken.

    – New Haven, Conn.

    – Ogden, Utah

    – Providence, R.I.

    Those 10 are joined by five other markets that AT&T announced have LTE connectivity on Tuesday of this week:
    – Green Bay, Wis.

    – Melbourne, Fla.

    – Oxford, Miss.

    – Springfield, Mass.

    – Tucson, Ariz.

    Finally, AT&T also announced this week that its existing 4G LTE network has expanded in a handful of markets. They are:
    – Middlesex County, N.J.

    – Phoenix, Ariz.

    – Salt Lake City, Utah

    – Los Angeles, Calif.

    The latest expansions are the most significant update to AT&T’s network since mid-November, when the company’s 4G LTE coverage was extended to 24 new markets, including Denver, Colo., and Columbus, Ohio.

    In all, AT&T’s 4G LTE network has been launched in 124 markets. The company plans to reach 250 million people by the end of 2013, and 300 million by the end of 2014.

    As always, let us know how AT&T’s 4G LTE network is working out for you (and if it’s worth the fairly heady price tag you pay each and every month)…

  • You too can now smell like a new MacBook Pro…

    It’s hard to say if this was on your bucket list, but perhaps it’s worth looking into.

    Per Macworld UK, A unique fragrance – the scent of a newly purchased Apple product being opened for the first time – has been created for an upcoming art exhibition by Melbourne artists Gavin Bell, Jarrah de Kuijer and Simon McGlinn.



    The scent created with Air Aroma for Greatest Hits encompasses the smell of the plastic wrap covering the box, the printed ink on the cardboard, the smell of paper and plastic components within the box and, of course, the aluminum notebook which has come straight from the factory in China.

    The creation process included suppliers in the South of France sending over samples of fragrances with the aromas of glue, plastic, rubber and paper. The samples were then used as ingredients by Air Aroma fragrance designers to create a range of signature blend fragrances.

    To complete the fragrance they observed the unboxing of a new Apple computer to source fragrance samples. On completion the laptop was sent back to Australia, together with the scent of an Apple Macbook Pro.

    The fragrance will feature at an exhibition at West Space, in Melbourne, entitled ‘De facto Standard’ between April 20th and May 12th.