Good Morning Flint!: fatherhood

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WHAT DO GENESEE COUNTY JUDGE ARCHIE HAYMAN AND POP STAR JUSTIN BIEBER HAVE IN COMMON?

Justin Bieder The pop star told his Twitter followers that he's even addressing the paternity suit brought against him in late 2011. [13]

For Judge Hayman he is challenging paternity to two children .A hearing date in Oakland County, where the case was transferred, has been set for Oct. 10.[1]

This article assembled here by Terry R. Bankert a Flint MI Divorce, Bankruptcy and Paternity Lawyer. 810-235-1970

Ketchmark said Hayman is required to seek revocation of the affidavits of parentage before the court can consider DNA testing.[11]


Genesee Circuit Judge Archie Hayman wants DNA testing to determine whether he is the father of two children born out of wedlock.
And he wants the results of that paternity testing sealed from public view.[11]

But the Flint attorney suing the judge for more than $4 million in child support and other damages says not so fast.[11]

Flint attorney Denise Ketchmark opposed both of Hayman's requests in filings today, responding to a flurry of motions filed by Hayman's attorney in Genesee Circuit Court Wednesday. [11]

Our society has changed and the law changes with it. The number of nonmarital births in recent decades ?has led to an increased focus on the fathers of ?these children. Many of these alleged ( reputed ?or putative) fathers of nonmarital children ( children declared to be born out of wedlock) seek ?recognition of their legal rights and expanded roles ?in the upbringing of their children.[1] Some do not.

CHIPPING AWAY
?

These legal rights are now ?expanded through new laws like Michigans PA 159 MCL 722.1431 chip away at the ??presumption the husband is the father or that if you sign an acknowledgement of paternity you have assumed fatherhood forever.

A ?child now could be trapped in litigation to determine paternity. Newly born children could be subjected to tests to establish their legitimacy, with the slightest challenge to the child's legitimacy resulting in the administration of these tests and protracted legal proceedings. All the while, the child is in "legal limbo."[10] I think the court will work had to keep this from happening to children the focus of a paternity litigation.


Michigan has recently enacted legislation to ?increase the rights of putative or alleged fathers and to allow acknowledged father sto sidestep responsibility?in Public Act 159 MCL 722.1431 et al.

That prior to June 12 2012 Actions under the Paternity Act Could only ?be brought by the mother; the father; a child who became 18 years old after August 15, 1984, and before June 2, 1986; or, in certain circumstances, the DHS. MCL 722.714(1). MCL 722. 1431 et al added new classifications

That the history of the Paternity Act and the older bastardy act is one of confusion concerning the civil, criminal, or quasi-criminal nature of the proceedings. See Romain v Peters, 9 Mich App 60, 155 NW2d 700 (1967). However, a paternity action is generally considered to be civil in nature. Bowerman v MacDonald, 431 Mich 1, 427 NW2d 477 (1988).

In law, paternity is the legal acknowledgment of the parental relationship between a man and a child usually based on several factors. [12]

At common law, a child born to the wife during a marriage is the husband's child under the "presumption of legitimacy", and the husband is assigned complete rights, duties and obligations as to the child. The presumption, however, can be rebutted by evidence to the contrary, at least prior to a formal court ruling involving the putative paternity (often this is a decree of divorce, annulment, or legal separation). Jurisdictions differ widely on when a judgment establishing paternity or a support obligation based on the presumption can be set aside on the grounds that the husband was not in fact the father.
In the case of an unwed mother, a man may come forward and accept the paternity of the child, the mother may petition the court for a determination, or paternity can be determined by estoppel over time.[12]


Ketchmark has asked that the judge deny Hayman's request for DNA testing, saying he waived the right to blood or genetic tests to determine if he is the biological father when he signed the affidavits of parentage.[11]



THAT ?MCL 722.1431 generally ?cited as the "revocation of paternity act" ??gives standing in these revoking paternity causes ?to ?the acknowledged father ??and authorizes the court to review and revoke the paternity of the minor child.

The judge has not admitted paternity in any filings tied to the lawsuit and his attorney has told The Flint Journal, ?We?re real confident at least one of the children is going to turn out not to be his biological child."[11]



THAT 722.1443 Sec. 13.(2)generally authorizes a ?court to ?Revoke an acknowledgment of parentage.


MOVING PARTY IS MOVANT


THAT MOVANT? IN THE HAYMAN CASE IS A 722.1433 Sec. 3.(1) generally. "Acknowledged father" ?which means a man who has affirmatively held himself out to be the child's father by executing an acknowledgment of parentage under the acknowledgment of parentage act, 1996 PA 305, MCL 722.1001 to 722.1013.

THAT generally the burden of Clear and Convincing evidence is on the Movant .


ACKNOWLEDGED FATHER SECTION SEVEN

THAT? the acknowledged father has held himself out to be the ?the child's father by executing and acknowledgement of paternity .

THRESHOLD FOR REVOKING ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF PARENTAGE

?THAT 722.1437 Sec. 7 (1)generally. The acknowledged father, may file an action for revocation of an acknowledgment of parentage. An action under this section shall be filed within 3 years after the child's birth or within 1 year after the date that the acknowledgment of parentage was signed, whichever is later. The requirement that an action be filed within 3 years after the child's birth or within 1 year after the date the acknowledgment is signed does not apply to an action filed on or before 1 year after the effective date of this act 06/12/2012.

THAT 722.1437 Sec. 7 (2) generally an action for revocation ?of an Acknowledgement of Paternity under this section shall be and is supported by an affidavit signed by the movant ?filing the action that states facts that constitute 1 of the following which the movant argues happened and will prove:

(a) Mistake of fact.

(b) Newly discovered evidence that by due diligence could not have been found before the acknowledgment was signed.

(c) Fraud.

(d) Misrepresentation or misconduct.

Hayman claims in a court filing that the affidavits were obtained "because (Ketchmark) hid the truth of the children's paternity" and were obtained by misconduct and duress.[11]

(e) Duress in signing the acknowledgment.

THAT 722.1437 Sec. 7 (3) generally.If the court in an action for revocation under this section finds that an affidavit under subsection (2) is sufficient, the court shall order blood or tissue typing or DNA identification profiling as required under section 13(5).

THAT in 722.143 Sec 7 (3) generally the person filing the action has the burden of proving, by clear and convincing evidence, that the acknowledged father is not the father of the child.

IF THE MOVANT PREVAILS
?

THAT ?IN 722.1437 Sec. 7 (4) generally the clerk of the court shall forward a copy of an order of revocation entered under this section to the state registrar. The state registrar shall vacate the acknowledgment of parentage and may amend the birth certificate as prescribed by the order of revocation.

ORDERING OF DNA TEST SHALL BE ORDERED UNDER THIS ACT

THAT IN 722.1443 Sec. 13.(5) generally the court shall order the parties to an action or motion under this act to participate in and pay for blood or tissue typing or DNA identification profiling to assist the court in making a determination under this act. Blood or tissue typing or DNA identification profiling shall be conducted in accordance with section 6 of the paternity act, 1956 PA 205, MCL 722.716.

THAT THE DNA TESTING IS NOT BINDING

THAT IN 722.1443 Sec. 13.(5) generally the results of blood or tissue typing or DNA identification profiling are not binding on a court in making a determination under this act.



COURT ACTION AVAILABLE AFTER THRESHOLD MET
.

THAT IN 722.1443 Sec. 13.(2)generally an action filed under this act authorizes ?the court to do any of the following:

(a)THAT the court is authorized ?to Revoke an acknowledgment of parentage.See 722.1443 Sec. 13.(2)(a)

(d) THAT the court is authorized ?to make here a Determination of Paternity and enter an order of Filiation as provided for under section 7 of the paternity act, 1956 PA 205, MCL 722.717. See 722.1443 Sec. 13.(2) (d)

MCL 722.1443 Sec. 13.(3)generally. A judgment entered under this act does not relieve a man from a support obligation for the child or the child's mother that was incurred before the action was filed or a person from seeking relief under applicable court rules to vacate or set aside a judgment.


COURT MAY DECIDE TO NOT REVOKE PATERNITY? BUT?BECASUE OF THE STATUTES CLUMSY WORDING THIS DOES NOT CLEARLY APPLY TO ACKNOWLEDGEMENT.

THAT IN 722.1443 Sec. 13.(4)generally. A court may refuse to enter an order setting aside a paternity determination or determining that a child is born out of wedlock if the court finds evidence that the order would not be in the best interests of the child.

THAT IN 722.1443 Sec. 13.(4) ??generally.The court ?shall state its reasons for refusing to enter an order on the record.

THAT IN 722.1443 Sec. 13.(4)generally.The court may consider the following factors in deciding to not revoke paternity:

(a) Whether the presumed father is estopped from denying parentage because of his conduct.

(b) The length of time the presumed father was on notice that he might not be the child's father.

(c) The facts surrounding the presumed father's discovery that he might not be the child's father.

(d) The nature of the relationship between the child and the presumed or alleged father.

(e) The age of the child.

(f) The harm that may result to the child.

(g) Other factors that may affect the equities arising from the disruption of the father-child relationship.

(h) Any other factor that the court determines appropriate to consider.

?


PREPARED BY
Terry R, Bankert P.C.
Attorney at Law P49048
1000 Beach St.
Flint MI 485903
tel.1-810-235-1970\Http://www.attorneybankert.com




[1]
Child Welfare Information Gateway
Children?s Bureau/ACYF
1250 Maryland Avenue, SW
Eighth Floor
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Administration for Children and Families
Washington, DC 20024
Administration on Children, Youth and Families ?703.385.7565 or 800.394.3366
Children?s Bureau ?Email: info@childwelfare.gov
www.childwelfare.gov

[2]
Michigan Family Law Benchbook ch 10 (ICLE 2d ed 2006), at

http://www.icle.org/modules/books/chapter.aspx/?lib=family&book=2006553550&chapter=10

(last updated 07/06/2012).

[3]4-30 Child Custody and Visitation ? 30.02 Child Custody and Visitation
Copyright 2012, Matthew Bender & Company, Inc., a member of the LexisNexis Group.
CHAPTER 30 RIGHTS OF PUTATIVE FATHERS TO CUSTODY AND VISITATION
4-30 Child Custody and Visitation ? 30.02

[4]

CHAPTER 64 ADOPTION LAW, PROCEDURE AND PRACTICE * , 6-64 Family Law and Practice ? 64.15, ? 64.15 Challenges by Birth Parents, Family Law and Practice Copyright 2012, Matthew Bender & Company, Inc., a member of the LexisNexis Group.

[5]

6-63 Family Law and Practice ? 63.09 Family Law and Practice
Copyright 2012, Matthew Bender & Company, Inc., a member of the LexisNexis Group.
CHAPTER 63 PATERNITY PROCEEDINGS *
6-63 Family Law and Practice ? 63.09

[6]


[7]
Michigan Family Law ch 21 (Hon. Marilyn J. Kelly et al eds, ICLE 7th ed 2011), at

http://www.icle.org/modules/books/chapter.aspx/?lib=family&book=2011553510&chapter=21
(last updated 07/06/2012).
[8]
CHAPTER 63 PATERNITY PROCEEDINGS * , 6-63 Family Law and Practice ? 63.02, ? 63.02 Preliminary Considerations, Family Law and Practice Copyright 2012, Matthew Bender & Company, Inc., a member of the LexisNexis Group.

[9]
Michigan Family Law Benchbook ch 10 (ICLE 2d ed 2006), at

http://www.icle.org/modules/books/chapter.aspx/?lib=family&book=2006553550&chapter=10
(last updated 07/06/2012).

[10]
4-30 Child Custody and Visitation ? 30.02 Child Custody and Visitation

Copyright 2012, Matthew Bender & Company, Inc., a member of the LexisNexis Group.

CHAPTER 30 RIGHTS OF PUTATIVE FATHERS TO CUSTODY AND VISITATION

4-30 Child Custody and Visitation ? 30.02
[11]

http://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2012/09/attorney_says_genesee_circuit.html#incart_river_default

[12]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paternity_(law)

[13]
http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1693606/justin-bieber-new-book-just-getting-started.jhtml

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Source: http://goodmorningflint.blogspot.com/2012/09/fatherhood.html

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We can't afford to lose momentum on food ... - Ghana Business News

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You Are Here: Home ? General News ? We can?t afford to lose momentum on food security now ? Kofi Annan

Page last updated at Friday, September 28, 2012 13:13 PM //

Kofi Annan

The Chairman of the African Green Revolution Forum (AGRF), Dr Kofi Annan, has called on African leaders not to be complacent despite the success chalked up in the area of agriculture in the recent past.

He said it was time African leaders upheld their part of the bargain by increasing investments and encouraging public private partnerships to ensure that all farmers, large and small, contributed to ensuring food security on the continent.

?We cannot afford to lose the momentum in ensuring food security now and action is required from all governments on the continent and every partner to achieve this,? he said.

Dr Annan, a former United Nations Secretary General, was addressing the 2nd African Green Revolution Forum in Arusha Tanzania Thursday.

He said African governments must help farmers to expand their farms and to treat their farms as businesses.

He indicated that through the Alliance for a Green Revolution on Africa (AGRA) seven countries had been reached with 330 new varieties of crops while 380 hectares of land had been rejuvenated in the last three years.

Dr Annan said Africa could transform its agricultural sector significantly, if their leaders collaborated with the right partners adding that strategic change would only occur with result oriented partnerships.

Tanzanian President, Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, blamed African leaders for not doing enough to ensure adequate investment in agriculture.

He noted that many African countries had failed to implement the 2003 Maputo Declaration which enjoined them to commit 10 per cent of their budgets to agriculture leaving the sector undeveloped.

Opening the ongoing AGRF, President Kikwete said though African leaders knew what they needed do to revolutionalise agriculture and help change the fortunes of millions of Africans whose lives depended on agriculture, they had not done that.

He said: ?We know what needs to be done, we are doing something about it but we have not done enough to support the development of agriculture in Africa.?

President Kikwete said if African leaders did not invest in agriculture, the much taunted agricultural transformation would be like ?a song without dancers.?

He said it was time for African leaders to adopt more effective ways of growing and developing agriculture on the continent to promote food security, enhance nutritional levels and create better living conditions for the people.

President Kikwete indicated that though most economies in Africa relied on agriculture, the sector remained backward characterised by traditional methods of farming, low use of improved seeds, fertilisers and lack of financial credits.

He said it was disturbing that despite the fact that about 70-80 per cent of Africa?s population were involved in agriculture, only five per cent of all arable land was irrigated in Africa.

Also he said Africa used only 10 per cent of the world?s fertiliser.The results, he said, had been small farm sizes, low yields, low income and poverty.

He said it was not surprising that about 239 million of the continent?s people were food insecure.

President Kikwete stressed the crucial need for African leaders to help scale up investments in agriculture by investing in irrigation, increase support for research and agricultural development and support mechanised agriculture.

He called on leaders to be responsive to the needs of all farmers, especially small holder farmers, to reduce poverty and hunger and enhance living standards.

The President of the AGRA, Ms Jane Karuku, noted that misguided policies and neglect had affected the development of agriculture in Africa and stated that the AGRA was committed to working to unlock the potentials in the agricultural sector of Africa.

She said subsistence farming should not be seen as an acceptable way of farming and that the AGRA continued to provide improved seeds and technical support, particularly for small holder farmers to improve their productivity and profitability and integrate them into competitive markets.

Ms Melinda Gates, Co-founder and Co-Chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, said there was the need to improve agriculture in African countries if they wanted to see a change in the lives of its people.

Over 1,200 stakeholders in agriculture, including 14 heads of state, 23 ministers of agriculture, agri-business entrepreneurs and farmers are attending the forum in Arusha Tanzania.

The AGRA is an initiative of the Rockefeller Foundation and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to help promote food security on the continent.

The three-day forum being held on the theme: ?Scaling Investment and Innovation for Sustainable Agricultural Growth and Food Security would discuss effective ways to ensure food security on the African continent.?

Source: Daily Graphic

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Source: http://www.ghanabusinessnews.com/we-cant-afford-to-lose-momentum-on-food-security-now-kofi-annan/

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Auto Shop Management Blog ? ? 7 Ways Information Systems Impact Customer Relationships in Auto Repair

7 Ways Information Systems Impact Customer Relationships in Auto Repair

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Angels' Pujols ends longest HR drought of career

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Los Angeles Angels' Albert Pujols celerates a two-run home run against the Toronto Blue Jays during the fifth inning of a baseball game in Anaheim, Calif., Sunday, May 6, 2012. This was Pujols' first home run of the season. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

Los Angeles Angels' Albert Pujols celerates a two-run home run against the Toronto Blue Jays during the fifth inning of a baseball game in Anaheim, Calif., Sunday, May 6, 2012. This was Pujols' first home run of the season. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

Los Angeles Angels' Albert Pujols watches his two-run home run against the Toronto Blue Jays during the fifth inning of a baseball game in Anaheim, Calif., Sunday, May 6, 2012. This was Pujols' first home run of the season. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

Los Angeles Angels' Albert Pujols (5) heads into the dugout after a two-run home run with Mike Trout against the Toronto Blue Jays during the fifth inning of a baseball game in Anaheim, Calif., Sunday, May 6, 2012. This was Pujols' first home run of the season. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) ? Albert Pujols has hit his first regular-season home run since joining the Los Angeles Angels, ending the longest drought of his 12-year career after 33 games and 139 at-bats.

Pujols' two-run shot into the left-field bullpen Sunday came in the fifth inning against Toronto's Drew Hutchison.

Pujols was playing his 28th game for the Angels since leaving St. Louis and signing a $240 million, 10-year contract. The homer, estimated at 390 feet, came in his 111 at-bat for the Angels.

The three-time NL MVP hit seven home runs in spring training. His regular-season drought began last year with the Cardinals.

Pujols' home run was his 446th in the big leagues. The only game he's missed this season was Saturday night's 6-2 victory, when manager Mike Scioscia gave him the day off.

Pujols' longest homer drought prior to this was in 2011, when he came up empty in 27 straight games and 105 at-bats. His longest previous drought at the start of a season was in 2008, when he failed to get one in his first eight games and 27 at-bats. The 32-year-old first baseman averaged 40.5 home runs during his 11 seasons with the Cardinals, including a career-best 49 in 2006. He is the only player in major league history to hit at least 30 homers in each of his first 11 big league seasons.

This was Pujols' first home run at Angel Stadium, the 31st big league ballpark in which he's hit one.

Associated Press

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Faced with Breivik's unflinching account, Norway surprises world with its civility

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A reporter covering Anders Behring Breivik's trial marvels at the degree of civility Norwegians have shown him, considering the brutality of the July 2011 terror attacks and his lack of remorse.

In the first two weeks of Anders Behring Breivik's trial, the Norwegian man reiterated his conviction that he did the right thing when he killed 77 people on July 22, 2011 ? even if it meant shooting unarmed Labor party youth members as young as 14 trapped on an island or bombing government buildings in Oslo. Those killed were??legitimate political targets,? he said.

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The attacks were ?gruesome but necessary" for preventing Labor from continuing to undermine Norwegian society with its lenient immigration policies, Mr. Breivik said. The party had betrayed the country by promoting the Islamic colonization of Norway and ipso facto the ethnic cleansing of indigenous Norwegians. He would do it all again, he said.?

International onlookers have been shocked to see how civil the whole trial is proceeding, given the scale and brutality of his crimes ? together they are?the worst national tragedy the country has experienced since World War II ??and Breivik's lack of remorse.?

On April 16, the first day of the 10-week trial, a lineup of prosecutors, forensic psychiatrists, and the legal counsel for the victims all approached Breivik in court to shake his hand. Wearing a suit and neatly trimmed beard, he politely extended his right hand to greet them. Outside, people lined up orderly to enter Oslo District Court. There was not a single sign denouncing him, nor any banners calling for the death penalty.

On the second day of the trial, he was allowed to begin his six-day testimony of what happened in the years leading up to the attack, including his preparation for that day. At the end of the first week he recounted, in chilling detail, of how, after packing a ham and cheese sandwich that morning, he shot and killed 69 people at the Labor party youth summer camp on Ut?ya with a Glock pistol and Ruger semi-automatic rifle.

If this all sounds surreal, that?s because it is.?

It is surreal to see a well-dressed upper class man sit in a court and calmly explain how he killed Norwegians to prevent Norway?s demise. It?s incomprehensible to hear how a man, who supposedly had all the economic means and generous provisions of a cradle-to-grave welfare system, could turn into Norway?s most notorious killer in modern times. And that is part of what scares Norwegians: the thought that he is one of them.?

Despite the atrocity of his crimes and his behavior, Norwegians still want to see him get a fair trial. But that means?he has a legal right to explain himself in court, even if there is a risk that he spreads his propaganda. The trial is also key in determining Breivik's sanity, which is at the crux of this case. The prosecution even defended his right to keep reading from his prepared speech on his first day of testimony in spite of protests from the legal counsel for the victims, who were offended by his one-hour long monologue.?

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Rare Met revival of Britten's shipboard opera

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NEW YORK (AP) ? Absent from the Metropolitan Opera for 15 years, Benjamin Britten's great maritime tragedy "Billy Budd" has made a brief but welcome return in the season's closing days.

If the lead singers were a variable lot at Friday's premiere, the night was still a success because the real stars of the show ? the conductor, the chorus and the set ? all performed magnificently.

That set, designed by William Dudley for the 1978 John Dexter production, is a cutaway depiction against a black background of the H.M.S. Indomitable, a British gunship sailing toward battle with the French in 1797. When the action begins, we're on the main deck, but as scenes change, the ship seamlessly shifts and grows before our eyes, taking us down to the captain's cabin and the sailors' berths and even expanding to reveal seven levels at once.

In adapting Herman Melville's novella, Britten and his librettists ? E.M. Forster and Eric Crozier ? invented a prologue and epilogue in which Captain Vere, now an old man, reflects on the events of the story. In brief, a good-natured young foretopman, Billy Budd, is falsely accused by the master-at-arms, John Claggart, of fomenting mutiny. Tongue-tied, Billy strikes Claggart dead, and Vere ? despite his conviction that Billy is innocent ? feels he has no choice but to see him hanged.

The role of the captain (originally written for Britten's life partner, Peter Pears) was taken in this revival by tenor John Daszak in his Met debut. He sang with a bright, pungent tone and notably crisp diction, though his sound occasionally turned strident on high notes. Dramatically, he was persuasive both as an old man tormented by guilt and as an embattled captain facing an impossible choice.

Baritone Nathan Gunn performed the title role, looking the epitome of Melville's handsome sailor and acting with youthful vigor. He sang sweetly in quiet moments like "Billy in the Darbies," his haunting aria on the eve of execution, but much of the time one longed for a more powerful sound.

Bass James Morris has virtually owned the role of Claggart at the Met, but his voice has lost strength, especially at the low end. He etched a subdued portrait of a corrupt soul who cannot tolerate the presence of unalloyed goodness in the world.

There were many strong contributions from the all-male cast, starting with the chorus, whose role in this opera is vital. The fine trio of officers consisted of baritone Dwayne Croft ? a former Billy himself ? and bass-baritones Kyle Ketelson and the debuting Ryan McKinny. Tenor Keith Jameson was impressive as the Novice, the weak-willed sailor who does Claggart's dirty work.

David Robertson, making a too-infrequent appearance, conducted the Met orchestra in an energetic and moving performance of Britten's score, which is filled with surging melodic themes amid its spiky dissonances.

An AP Entertainment Review

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HBT: O's 1B takes mound, tops Red Sox in 17

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It wasn?t pretty, but in many ways, Chris Davis had the most remarkable day on a baseball field that I can ever remember.

Starting at DH, Davis fanned in his first five at-bats, hit into a double play into his sixth and grounded out in his seventh before moving to the mound to pitch the 16th and 17th innings and picking up a win in a 9-6 game against the Red Sox.

Davis very nearly took the loss in the 16th, but Marlon Byrd was gunned down at home plate on Mike Aviles? double with two outs. The Red Sox then turned to a position player of their own in the 17th, and Darnell McDonald gave up a three-run homer to Adam Jones, giving the Orioles a 9-6 lead.

After Jones? homer, Davis grounded out, making him 0-for-8 on the day.

The bottom of the 17th started with an infield single off Davis? glove and a Dustin Pedroia walk, but Adrian Gonzalez struck out on three pitches to put a cap on his own 0-for-8 day and McDonald grounded into a double play to end it.

Davis became the first position player to win a game since Philadelphia?s Wilson Valdez got a victory in the 19th inning of a game last May 25. Before that, the last to do it was Rockies catcher Brent Mayne in 2000.

Davis?started his outing showing a 90-91 mph fastball, but he quickly faded into the mid-80s in the 17th. Of course, it still worked out for him. McDonald was sitting in the 81-83 mph range in his inning of work.

Despite having three opportunities, Davis managed to avoid picking up his sixth strikeout. He could have been just the eighth player to reach that mark (dating back to 1918) and the first since Milwaukee?s Geoff Jenkins in 2004.

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Bose SIE2i Sport Headphones

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                     Bose SIE2i Sport Headphones  |  from US$119.95  |  www.bose.com

Seriously, with the popularity and improvements of Bluetooth technology, we hardly feel the need to be wired, especially when it comes enjoying our favorite tunes while exercising. However, if you are one of those that felt that music transmitted via Bluetooth is anything but music to your ears, then a pair of purpose-built sport headphones backed by a reputable audio equipment maker is what you need, for which the Bose SIE2i Sport Headphones might just be a worthy contender for a place in your ears. As usual, Bose have intentionally omit the inner technical specifications of its product but what we know is this pair of buds features Bose’s TriPort headphone technology for wide-range of sound. Other features include Bose’s StayHear tips that conform securely to any type of ear shapes, hydrophobic cloth covering the speaker elements tot keep the moisture out but lets the audio pass through freely, an inline remote and mic for use with iPhone and iPod for music control and in the case of iPhone, taking of calls and it comes packed with a Reebok fitness armband to hold your mobile device. The Bose SIE2i Sport Headphones is available now with a sticker of $149.95. Oh, if you need a pair of buds without iDevice support, the slightly cheaper $119.95 SIE2 Sport Headphones is the one to go for.

  

McLaren P1 - Successor of world's greatest car McLaren F1

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                                 McLaren P1  | US$tba  |  www.mclarenautomotive.com


More than two decades on after the first introduction of one of the world greatest car, the McLaren F1, McLaren has decided on a potential successor and that is the new McLaren P1, a car that no doubt have a huge shoes to fill. Naturally, we, like any car enthusiasts, are excited but much to our dismay, the details are scant – extremely scant, in fact. But at least, there are some images, which are available after the break, to tease our senses and flirt with the bank accounts of the insanely rich. That said, the P1 is all but a concept at this point in time which will not be realized until 2014 which should leaves those ‘almost filthy rich folks’ with a little more time to pile up on the cash necessary for this exotic car that, according to McLaren, “sits above the 12C and 12C Spider, in terms of both price and performance.” Till then, the car will be presented at the Paris Motor Show(aka Mondial de l’Automobile 2012, September 29 to October 14) as a design study for which we would oblige to think that McLaren will be using this opportunity to gauge the (elite) public interests and perhaps, draw more inspiration to further fine tune this potential next icon (and perhaps, benchmark) of the British marque ahead of a production version next year. More information will be available following an official McLaren Automotive press conference happening on the September 27 but for now, scroll down and treat yourself to some official images of the P1.

 

Peugeot Onyx concept scooter : Hybrid three wheeler for the future

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One great thing about conceptual designs is this – you need not be constrained by limitations in the real world, although sometimes a working concept is better than just a drawing. Which is why we are interested in the Peugeot Onyx concept scooter that will accompany the 507kW hybrid-powered Peugeot Onyx supercar concept at the 2012 Paris Motor Show that will happen later this week. According to leaks, the three-wheeled Onyx-inspired Concept Scooter looks mean as heck, where it will follow a similar copper-and-matt black color scheme that is found on the diesel-hybrid Onyx, although since this is not a supercar, you can be sure that its performance levels will not be up to snuff.
At the back lies a solitary 17” wheel, and the entire Peugeot Onyx Concept Scooter functions as a plug-in hybrid setup that will merge a 400cc internal combustion engine alongside an electric motor, pumping out 45kW of power and 58Nm of torque in the process. Touted to hit a maximum speed of 150km/h, it has a fuel consumption of 2.0 litres per 100km, which is pretty far when you think about it. Of course, when running on pure electricity alone, its range varies from 30km in EV mode (at 50km/h) to 500km when working in tandem with the combustion engine.


[caradvice]

The Esoterism Embrace-5 adds an aluminum bumper to your iPhone 5

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Word has it that the back of the iPhone 5 is susceptible to scratches, a “feature” which apparently Apple’s Phil Schiller considers to be “normal”. However if protecting the back of your iPhone 5 isn’t really that much of a priority, but instead you’d rather add a bumper case to your iPhone, the folks at Esoterism have something for you in the form of the Embrace-5. This is a pretty fancy and sleek looking aluminum bumper for your brand new iPhone 5, and if you’re wondering where might you have seen that design before, try looking down at your watch (assuming you’re wearing an analog one, not digital).
The top portion of the Embrace-5 features a knob which also makes the bumper case a tool-less one, which at the same time sports a design that “merits a mechanic watch’s classic aesthetic”. We’re not sure how we feel about the weird knob at the top, but if you think it looks great and wouldn’t mind getting one for your iPhone 5, you can expect to pick one up from Esoterism’s website come October for $89.

Monitor2Go Portable display for the tablets

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                                            Monitor2Go   |   $299.00   |   www.mmt2.com


A smartphone connected to appropriate equipment to turn it into a tablet makes sense. So does a tablet being equipped with a portable keyboard and turned into a laptop. However, a separate display for a tablet doesn’t sound right. That is, until you discern the idea behind it.
Mobile Monitor Technologies has now dished out a portable display for the tablets. It is being touted as ‘Monitor2Go’ and has a 15.6 inch display. It can be connected to iPad tablets as well as a number of other mobile devices.
The company plans on targeting corporate clients with this product. Imagine wanting to share what’s on your iPad’s display with your other colleagues in an organizational meeting. Once you connect up the tablet with Monitor2Go, you can easily do so since this portable display comes with 180 degrees rotation.
However, one significant problem with Monitor2Go is that it doesn’t pack a battery of its own. The display has to be plugged-in in real time to power it up which may be a huge inconvenience for many. It is already available for ordering on the official website of MM Technologies and is available in two variants: one is priced $299 for a 1366 x 768 resolution while the other costs $329 for a 1600 x 900 display.

iPhone 5 Complete Review : Is it worthy or not !!

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 Now that the retail units of the iPhone 5 have reached the market, independant reviews are trickling in and this is our stab at providing a review of the iPhone 5 that actually lists the pros and cons of Apple’s latest smartphone. The iPhone 5 came with great anticipation, and we take it that everybody who “absolutely wanted one” have probably pre-ordered or has lined up to get one last Friday. Now the interesting part starts and we’re trying to help people who are on the fence, or first-time users.

If you are reading this review, you are probably wondering if you should jump on the iPhone 5 wagon (as a first-time user), upgrade from your existing smartphone (iOS or not), or simply wait for something better. In the end, this is a personal decision, but I hope that this review will give you with enough information to form an educated opinion. Ok – let’s see what the iPhone 5 is really made of.

Technical highlights

First, it’s nice to give you an technical overview of the phones that I would myself consider for my primary smartphone: the iPhone 5, the Galaxy S3, the Galaxy Note 2 and the Lumia 920.  The specs are not important to the point that I would choose a phone based on that, but this is a nice refresher and I would encourage you to look at those (and more devices cited in this review).

	iPhone 5	Galaxy S3 (U.S)	Lumia 920
Display	IPS (1366×640)	S-AMOLED (1280×720)	IPS (1280×768)
Display size	4″	4.8″	4.5″
Display PPI	326	306	332
Processor	Apple A6	Snapdragon S4	Snapdragon S4
Storage	16GB+	16GB+	32GB
microSD	no	yes	no
Battery	1430mAh	2100mAh	2300mAh
Width	2.31″	2.51″	2.78″
Height	0.3″	0.34″	0.4″
Length	4.87″	5.47″	5.1″
Weight	3.95oz	4.69oz	6.52oz

Context (good to know…)

We all use smartphones differently, so it’s important that I tell you what I do with my smartphone(s): I typically check email often with the built-in email app (via Microsoft Exchange), and reply moderately because typing on the virtual keyboard is tedious. I browse the web several times a day to check on news sites, but rarely watch movies or play music. I don’t call much – maybe 10mn a day, if at all.
On the “apps” side, I have a couple of social networks (FB, G+), a receipts manager and random apps (<20), but I rarely play games or do something super-intensive like video editing. This usage pattern will affect battery life and the perception of what features are useful. Now you know where we’re coming from…
Finally, I’ve setup the iPhone 5 with a backup of my iPhone 4S so that we run nearly in identical situations for the various comparisons.

Industrial design (high-quality)

The iPhone’s success is due to many things, but industrial is clearly a huge part of it. Looking at the photos does not always convey what the phone actually looks like and definitely does not tell you how the iPhone 5 feels like in use.




At first glance, the iPhone 5 is simply a little bit taller – that’s the obvious thing that most people see at first sight. The realization of the increased thinness comes next, then finally, it is the weight which is noticeably lower than the iPhone 4S’.
Although I was definitely expecting the phone to look like I described above, the new height does look a bit weird – this is more striking in the real-world than it is with the photos. I’d like to have your feedback on that in the comment section – this is a matter of personal preference, so I won’t dwell too much on this.
The lighter weight (3.95oz vs. 4.8oz) is very (very!) nice. I previously mentioned that the iPhone 4S was relatively heavy for its size, and it’s ironical that back then iPhone-lovers (if not fanatics) said “I prefer heavy because it feels solid!”. Now the same folks are upgrading and are saying “lighter is so much better!” — in any case, I’m glad that it is noticeably lighter, and I think that anyone who carries a phone in their pants or shirt pocket will be very pleased with this.
The sides are very similar to the iPhone 4S. The only notable difference is that the 3.5mm audio jack is at the bottom vs. the top. The SIM tray has moved a little bit too. The new speaker design is really nice, much nicer than the iPhone 4S which was good too.





We have the white version here, and I’m not a big fan of the aluminum back – BUT I’ve received multiple reports from my friends that the black version scratches more easily (they bought it, and those who complained got scratches on day 1). Obviously there is always the option of buying a case, which kind of ruins the design.




It would have been nice if there was a little curve in the back (like the original iPhone), and the white bands at the top and bottom are a “un-Apple-like” in my opinion. They are present because aluminum blocks radio waves, so Apple has to include those bands to allow the signal to go through. It’s a common problem that Apple was able to work-around in previous iPhones.
Still, if you liked the previous iPhone 4/4S designs, this is a relatively close evolution so chances are that you will like this too. Also, it’s hard to argue that the iPhone 5 does not have a great build quality and materials, even if the iPhone 4S remains Apple’s best design work in my view and we think that the “endless pursuit of thinness” may have deprived the iPhone 5 of greater features such as 2X battery life and next-gen camera stabilization.

Display (very good)

 


Obviously, the screen is 0.5” longer, which allows Apple to add one more row of icons and more screen real estate. I’ve already talked about the aesthetics, so if we put that aside, what are the repercussions on the usability and user interface?
Well, after using the iPhone 5, the good news is that this doesn’t affect the phone negatively. The bad news is that it doesn’t make the user experience a whole lot better neither.
Of course, having “more pixels”is a “good thing”. However, the increased size doesn’t make the screen any easier to read, much better to watch movies on, or faster to type with. Those aspects are extremely important, and are the main drivers of the rapid “display arms-race” that the rest of the industry is engaged in. Being able to see one more line or row is “not bad”, but it doesn’t change the user experience either.


                                                        iPhone 5 Side by side with the Samsung Galaxy S3 


That said, I did appreciate the extra space in the photo app, and it also makes 16:9 movies a bit better.
In terms of image quality, the new display has better contrast and color range than the iPhone 4S’ which was already very nice. This makes photos “pop” more and movies will surely look better as well. On the other hand, I noticed that the color of my unit was a bit yellow-ish, and seemed a bit too saturated, OLED-style.
I don’t think that the general public will mind the slightly over-saturated colors, but those who really liked the iPhone for its lack of over-saturation (vs. Samsung’s displays) may be a bit bummed about this. Overall, I’d still say that the display is “very good”, but comes short of “excellent” because, there are more impressive screens out there.

What’s new?

4G LTE (fast!): clearly LTE was way overdue, so this is a very important addition, especially for the Verizon iPhone customers that were still stuck with “3G” while AT&T folks had access to an already much faster HSPA+ network. On AT&T you still get to fall-back to HSPA+ if LTE is not available, but on Verizon, it drops from LTE to 3G, so this is something that you need to keep in mind when you figure out which carrier to choose. We’ve learned recently that the Verizon model comes unlocked, so an AT&T nano-SIM will work in it, although LTE may not. That’s pretty cool, and we don’t know it this will last…
From a historical perspective, while it’s true that early LTE devices were way too power-hungry when LTE was just introduced by Verizon. However, that problem mostly went away with the Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 and in early 2012. Unfortunately, the timing didn’t line up with Apple’s iPhone 4S design cycle.
4G LTE “global” capability myths & facts: while the iPhone 5 will be sold in worldwide markets, don’t expect your particular handset to be LTE-compatible with all (or even “most”) LTE carriers worldwide. It has been reported that this was a “global LTE traveler phone”. There are at least 41 LTE bands (frequencies) in the world  and the iPhone 5 can support between 2 and 5 LTE bands depending on which model you have. According to Apple’s iPhone 5 specs:

• iPhone 5 GSM model A1428*: LTE Bands 4 and 17 (AT&T)
• iPhone 5 CDMA model A1429*: LTE Bands 1, 3, 5, 13, 25 (Verizon)
• iPhone 5 GSM model A1429*: LTE Bands 1, 3, 5

Now, there is often a fallback to 3G or HSPA+ when LTE is not available, and your luck will vary depending on the country you are visiting. I just want to make sure that I set the expectations right because the Apple Keynote was definitely not clear about this, and some of the subsequent press coverage wasn’t either.
Apple A6 chip:  Apple’s new system on a chip (SoC) is much faster than the iPhone 4S chip. We’ll get back to more specific performance numbers later in the review, but here’s the perceptual stuff: the general user interface feels very similar to the iPhone 4S, maybe a tad snappier. However, tasks that need more “muscles” like photo processing or gaming should feel faster. App loading gets a moderate boost (this may be due to faster storage) and so far my app that seems to benefit the most from the iPhone 5 is… Facebook. Yes – weirdly enough, Facebook is much faster (I run the same version on my 4S) and I’m sure that LTE helps a lot too.
WiFi-N: as you may have seen, the new iPhone 5 has been updated to the latest and fastest WiFi-N standard (from WiFi-G). While the theoretical speed improvement may be interesting, in the real-world, your internet is definitely not fast enough to saturate event WiFi-G. However, WiFi-N may have better range at the router level. It’s great but don’t get too excited about it.
WiFi issue: symptom: the WiFi just “spins” … I’ve bumped into regular WiFi issues: every once in a while, the WiFi stops working and download don’t happen. I have to reboot the phone to “fix” this issue… this is VERY annoying. Drop a comment if you’ve heard/seen of similar issues. I don’t remember seeing this covered by “Apple accredited press” during the pre-launch period, but you can track this on the Apple support forums where people post remarks like “This is driving me NUTS!” — for now, I’ll work under the thesis that this is a fixable software problem and that it doesn’t plague ALL units.

Killer apps

I usually use this section for stand-alone apps but I will also lump-in some iOS apps in here because I don’t think that iOS 6 requires its own paragraph because unless you have some old hardware (3GS?) you should, and will, probably upgrade anyway, so let’s stick with the critical stuff and feel free to ask a question in the comments section. I will be happy to reply.
Apple Maps (Mapocalyptic!): As you may have seen, the Maps application went from using Google Maps to Apple maps. We were quite impressed and excited when Apple presented this to the world. However it turned out to be disappointing when we took it in the field. A lot of users have reported gross accuracy problems (there’s even a tumblr site dedicated to this), but I’ve bumped into problems with seemingly simple requests: in San Francisco, typing “sutter st and bush st sf” yields “Not found” with Apple Maps, while m.google.com finds a location that is close enough. Apple maps is really bad at guessing when you make a typo, and we all know that typing on tiny virtual keyboards does not yield typos, right?


     Even with an additional typo, Google Maps handles the search. Apple Maps fails this real-life test.


It’s not yet clear how this will affect you day to day usage of maps, but things do look fairly bad. And it gets worse: there are thousands of  apps that rely on the same flawed maps via the iOS Map API. Now, we’re talking about Apple Maps contagion.
Side by side with the Galaxy S3. Display size does matter. Google’s transparent UI allows for more Maps to be visible, and there are more important details visible.


Also, the support for public transportations has gone away. Of course, it is possible to download a separate application from the bus/metro/tram company, but it is also true that a tight integration in the Map application is much better. What’s sad is that the old Google-powered Map application that iOS had did not evolve for years, so we were anxiously waiting for an upgrade, which turns out to be a FAIL.
From what I understand, there is a rather big problem with the Maps data: it is not accurate, and Apple has apparently been relying on computer algorithms to check it. But Google has been employing thousands of humans to check their data. That is why it’s so much better.
I think that Apple should have had waited or introduced an Apple Maps “beta” as a separate application. Users could have chosen between the Google-powered one or the Apple-powered one, based on merit. Heck, they could even ask their community to help and provide feedback… on second thoughts, “asking for what customers want” would not be Apple-like, I guess.
Yet, making sure that mapping works properly would have meant putting the users interests first. The good news is that Google is planning to release Google Maps as an app, and my hope is that the iOS version will finally (!) catch up with the Android version which is -by far- the best mapping application (with map caching and all). This cannot come soon enough. If you agree, drop a comment below. For my part, I’m even ready to pay for it.
Updated phone app: the Phone app now has a “do not disturb” function that allows you to quickly decline a call and send a pre-baked message at the same time. This is not really a new feature on other platforms, but it’s nice to have and that can come in really handy. Better late than never!
Virtual keyboard: Ironically, despite having hundreds of thousands of apps at their disposal, most users still refer to text-based communication as being the “critical” application for them. That’s why you must not underestimate the importance of a virtual keyboard. The more productive you want to be, and the more likely this element may get in the way.
Because the iPhone 5 display has the same width as the iPhone 4S, the keyboard is exactly the same as it was. It is very responsive which is great (only the Windows Phone keyboard is more responsive in my opinion). While it is possible to achieve relatively high typing speed (for a virtual keyboard), the smaller keyboard requires more muscle control from the hand/fingers. That’s why large virtual keyboards are so much more comfortable to type on. For short sentences, the voice recognition works reasonably well if you use words found in the dictionary.
Email: The biggest change in the email app is that it is now possible to attach a photo or a video while you are editing the message. Before that, you had to go to the gallery and create an email from there. Yes, it’s fairly ridiculous that it took so long for Apple to fix this, but it’s finally here. Note that only photo and video attachments are supported. Other types of files are not. (I tested this with a hosted Exchange account).
Calendar: No new features here. The good old iOS calendar works “OK”. Because the screen is too narrow, you don’t get the “week” view in portrait mode, but you can turn the phone 90 degrees to see it in full-screen in landscape mode – not bad. Also, in portrait mode, you can see a couple more hours in the timeline. In one of the few instances where the larger screen is obviously useful.
Facebook apps + OS integration: iOS 6 finally gets Facebook integration. This adds some basic sharing and calendar+contacts sync features. This is a welcome addition that Android and Windows Phone users have been mostly able to enjoy for quite some time now. Not really rocket science, but now you don’t need to go to the Facebook app to share a photo… you can do it directly from the gallery app (duh, right?).
Skype: Skype works very well both for audio and video calls. Audio is typically never a problem, but outgoing video may be. I’m glad to report that outgoing video is quite crisp (see image below), and incoming video is very clean as well. Of course, that assumed good bandwidth. Facetime works similarly, so you have multiple choices when it comes to video chat. Facetime is one of the things that I find to be very well implemented, and yet it has a hard time getting traction because Apple thinks of it as one of the eye-shiny candy stuff that would sway people into the Apple “walled garden”. Apple should create a Windows version like it did for iTunes.
Web browsing: Safari has been updated with iCloud tabs, which keeps track of your tabs over several devices. It’s handy if you want to continue browsing whatever page you had open on that desktop computer you used last. This competes with existing alternatives from Firefox or Google Chrome. Overall, I like the Chrome browser better, but Safari has a cool Offline Reading mode that I want to test the next time I fly.

Entertainment

Video playback: it is most definitely not a problem. Our standard 1080p MP4 files were synchronized over iTunes without any issues, but keep in mind that iTunes won’t accept all the video formats, and it’s very difficult to upload files that iTunes doesn’t like to your iPhone 5. This has been one of the major point that Android users often point out.
With Android, it is possible to manage your files as if your phone was a USB drive, so you can upload anything you want, and install an app to read those files later on. The Android OS does not try to approve everything you do, which I like.
The only thing that I find frustrating with videos on iDevices is how slow iTunes is. When I travel I need to “plan” which movies I’m going to download HOURS in advance if not on the day before because it takes forever to download stuff.

Gaming (excellent!): The iPhone 5 has excellent capabilities and has the fastest graphics processor among smartphones. Thanks to this powerful setup, the iPhone 5 is capable of running the most demanding games, and many of the older titles will run at a solid 60FPS. I thought for a moment that Infinity Blade II would also run at 60FPS, but not really: it’s more like 30FPS, which is still very good. I’m impressed by the gaming capabilities.

 
Speaker-quality (very good): Since the iPhone 4, Apple has used good speaker hardware. This is no different and the sound here is very good. I think that of all the handsets, only the HTC One X is better (with a fuller sound). The Samsung Galaxy S3 is close, but a bit behind the iPhone 5 in my opinion.

Imaging (very iPhone 4S-like, very good)

Despite the hype, the camera performs very similarly to the iPhone 4S. Side by side shots in Photoshop (iPhone 4S on the left, iPhone 5 on the right) 
Photo: In terms of photography, the iPhone 5 was touted by some as a clear improvement over the iPhone 4S, but I did not see much of a difference, especially in terms of photography.
Overall, Apple has kept the same settings they had before: the iPhone 5 tends to over-expose and crank the ISO, so it trades low-light visibility for additional noise in the photo. This is a sound trade off, especially when the end game is to share photos etc. As long as you don’t print them, chances are that photos will be downsized or viewed on a small display, both of which will hide the noise.

                                                   A Panorama shot with the iPhone 5.


The real photographic function that was added was the Panorama, which I like very much. The quality of the stitching is very high and the camera app uses a single aperture, which helps a lot. I found the image to be quite distorted, even for a moderately wide panorama, but other than that, this is a very good introduction to Panoramas for iOS users. that was about time because those were already very fun on my Galaxy S2…
Video: The video quality is very similar. Apple has announced that the video stabilization has been much improved over the iPhone 4S. It may be so, but the difference was not obvious during my tests. I may have to go back and build a more elaborate test, but this just proves my point: it’s not obvious. In any case, I’ve shot a couple of video in relatively dim lighting with the iPhone 5 and Galaxy S3. The difference was again not obvious, and I think that most people would say that they are comparable.
Still, the relative performance of the iPhone 5 is very good, so is the Galaxy S3 and the Galaxy Note 2. Right now, the Lumia 920 seems to be the only game-changer in town when it comes to optics. Keep an eye out for that one.

Performance (excellent)

Geekbench: The synthetic benchmark show us that the CPU (general purpose computing) side of the Apple A6 chip is effectively 2X better than the previous iPhone 4S. However, to keep things in perspective, the iPhone 4S was also largely outgunned by TI, Qualcomm, Samsung or NVIDIA for a while now.
Also, keep in mind that Geekbench is largely focused on floating point operations that are used in scientific computations, and polygonal 3D games. It doesn’t really scale with additional (4) cores. Interestingly floating point instructions are usually not the ones to be the most executed for an average user. I’d love to find another integer-focused benchmark, so please drop a comment if you have a suggestion.
With that in mind A6 CPU architecture is just barely better, or slightly worse than what Qualcomm or Samsung have (many Galaxy S3 users get 1700+ in this benchmark, but our unit got 1455). The real shine of the Apple A6 is the outstanding graphics performance. If you play mobile video games, this is clearly a winner. Check this:


                               In terms of performance, 3D greaphics is the highlight of the iPhone 5

GLBenchmark 2.5: with a score of 25 FPS (offscreen, 1080p), the iPhone 5 and its A6 chip takes the lead when it comes to “polygonal graphics performance”. Because Apple doesn’t mind spending more money on the chip die size, it has added more graphics pipeline to its GPU, and the performance simply scales nearly linearly to the additional horsepower available – that is the magic of computer graphics. The iPhone 5 graphics performance here is impressive, it’s as simple as that.
SunSpider is a Javascript test that mostly measures how good the Javascript engine is. Performance jump of 100% have been witnessed after software updates, so keep in mind that this may not be a great CPU test. It also uses a single-core, so it won’t be able to differentiate much between single and multicore architectures. Also, please don’t consider it to be a “web performance” test, because it is not. Most of the perceived web performance is felt during the load time and rendering time, both of which often have nothing to do with Javascript performance.



The iPhone 5 benefits from the latest software JavaScript optimization, and scores very well. Again, keep in mind that this does NOT measure the hardware performance, but rather the browser. Chrome on the same machine gets 4000ms.
Perceived performance: Synthetic benchmarks can only carry us so far. What they don’t show for example is the user experience is smooth and responsive (responsiveness is not always solved with brute-force processor power). In the end, what good is raw performance if you can’t perceive it?
The iPhone and and iOS 6 provide excellent performance and responsiveness. On the surface, most users won’t feel the difference when just scrolling around. The apps loading time seem better, but it won’t change your life. I’ve noticed meaningful improvements with the email app, but Facebook is the app that has benefited the most of the combination of fast chip, storage and LTE network.

Battery life (good)

60mn video: in progress…
60mn LTE activity: in progress…
With an overnight depletion of 5%, the iPhone 5 stays within the normal iPhone norm. This is pretty good given the small battery capacity and the fact that LTE was ON (although chances are that the phone uses WiFi when in the office anyway)
Frankly, I’m pretty impressed by what Apple can squeeze off the small 1430 mAh battery. The iPhone 5 has about the same battery life than my iPhone 4S, which does comparatively well against other competitors. That makes me want to see iPhone with a 3000mAh battery even more. As it is I can easily get by a normal day, but during more “intense” periods (tradeshows, travel) the battery is likely to last an 8-hr day or so.
With a larger battery, Apple would have a shot at burying the competition. On the other hand, this sets the bar for everyone else to optimize their software. Consumers on all platforms will win. In the meantime, just consider that this is about the same as the iPhone 4S.
Keep in mind that battery life varies a lot depending on the apps that run in the background, your network reception, your local network density and the amount of time that the: display is ON.

So what’s the fuss about?

I’m not sure why people have to fight over which phone their friends buy/use, but it is clear that smartphone are extremely personal devices and in some ways, people think that it reflects on themselves and how cool they (the folks) are.
It is true that most of the new iPhone 5 features have in general been widely available on other platforms for some time. Yet, many of them are really, genuinely, useful features. It’s normal that iOS users do get excited about some them.
With iPhone 5, Apple catches up and raise the bar in the iPhone product line just enough to keep the competition at bay (the Galaxy S3 was the best-selling smartphone in America for a moment), and does a good job of protecting and even growing its eco-system. The timing is good too: Oct-December is when smartphone sales are going through the roof.

Storage (limited, or expensive)

It used to be that 16GB was good enough, but with games fetching 1GB (Infinity Blade II), and HD movies weighing 4.5GB each, things can add-up quickly. Heck, I even managed to have 11GB of photos and videos that I shot with the internal camera of my iPhone 4S. Don’t underestimate the amount of storage that you will need.
When it comes to the iPhone 5 pricing, it comes down to one thing: storage. Apple makes huge margins (80%+?) on storage upgrades. For example, if you go from 16GB to 32GB (+16GB), it costs $100 more. Jump to 64GB and it costs $200 more than the base model. It is not possible to extend the iPhone 5 (or any iPhone) storage with an add-on. high-markups for storage is a fundamental pillar of Apple’s business. For reference, a Sandisk 16GB micro-SD card costs about $6 on Amazon, and the 32GB card costs $20.
If you need more storage for HD movies (5GB each) and photos (3.5MB each), you can save a substantial amount of money by buying a smartphone with a microSD card. Not only it is much cheaper, but you can also extend it further down the road as microSD cards continue to grow in size. Finally, you can probably re-use the same microSD in your next phone/tablet or even camera (with an SD adapter).

Conclusion

 

Saying that the iPhone 5 is “the best iPhone yet” is technically true, it is also horribly unhelpful. It is obvious that a newly introduced product will be better than the one released last year.
Depending on your point of view, I suppose that you may take away from this review that the iPhone 5 “is better, but not *that* much” better”. To me, this is mainly a performance upgrade (4G LTE, CPU, GPU) and while the new design is nice, its best feature is the much lighter weight.I find the WiFi issues to be a bit disturbing, but I’m not sure how widespread this is yet, so I’ll keep monitoring the support forums.
If you have an iPhone 3GS or and iPhone 4, are happy with Apple, iTunes and iOS, and can get a carrier upgrade, this is a no-brainer: just do the upgrade and you will obtain a new iPhone 5 which feels like the old one, but better in every way. If you can get the carrier subsidy, just go for the iPhone 5 and don’t try to save $100 by getting an iPhone 4S. If you already have an iPhone 4S, I don’t think that it is worth breaking your contract ($250?) and paying for a new device ($200+), but ultimately, this is up to you.
If your horizon expands beyond the Apple walled garden, you may certainly find options that are very attractive elsewhere. If Android is of interest, you can get the Samsung Galaxy S3 which is nice, bigger and with a microSD slot. The HTC One X has the best sound system and an overall nice design. The Galaxy Note 2 is hugely comfortable and has a pen which can sense pressure. If you want a huge battery capacity (3300mAh), you can check the new Motorola RAZR Maxx HD. Finally, if you care about photography, I would recommend looking at the Nokia 920 which promises to be the best camera phone and the best Windows 8 of 2012.
I hope that this review gave you a good feel for how it is to use the iPhone 5, and that it properly sets your expectations about the pro and cons. Now it is up to you to choose if it deserves your hard-earned money! If there is something that I have not covered, or if you have additional questions, please drop a comment below, and I will do my best to reply in a timely fashion. Thanks for reading it!