Study: BlackBerry has twice the failure rate of iPhone

November 14, 2008 · Filed Under Apple, Gadgets, Iphone, Phones, blackberry, cellphones · Comment 

Apple’s iPhone has half the failure rate of RIM’s BlackBerry in the first year of use, a study carried out by a mobile-phone warranty firm has found. 

The SquareTrade study

Figures from the analyst firm Canalysys, released last week, showed Apple has now overtaken RIM in the global smartphone sales stakes.

SquareTrade had to project their figures for the iPhone’s failure rate over a two-year period, as the handset has not been available for that long — nonetheless, that rate came in at between nine to 11 percent. The equivalent failure rate for BlackBerry handsets was 14.3 percent, with the Treo coming in at 21 percent.

Breaking the figures down, the most prominent malfunctions for iPhone users appear to be touchscreen-related, accounting for a third of all reported issues with that handset. However, 12 percent of iPhone users reported accidental damage to their handsets within the first year of use — the average for other handsets is nine percent.

“It’s likely that any iPhone owner can guess the reason iPhone accidents are so common,” the authors wrote. “After two minutes of handling an iPhone, it’s impossible to escape noticing that the handsets are incredibly slippery. The form doesn’t help, either. The dimensions make for a difficult grip, especially for those with small hands. These two factors conspire to make the iPhone more accident prone than just about any other handset model we’ve seen.”

The report’s authors also noted that fewer than half-a-percent of iPhone owners reported battery problems after a year of use, compared with around one percent for BlackBerry and Treo users.

SquareTrade’s study did not take into account software issues handled directly by the retailer or fixed by firmware updates.

ZDNet UK has requested comment on SquareTrade’s report from both RIM and Apple, but had not received it at the time of writing.

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Accessory Kits Convert DSLRs into Movie Cameras

November 13, 2008 · Filed Under Cameras, Gadgets · Comment 

DSLR_filmmaker3.jpg

Those Zacuto DSLR Cine kits we mentioned last month? They’re here, and they’re expensive.

Zacuto makes baseplates for movie cameras onto which can be bolted, strapped and hung all manner of accessories, from shoulder mounts to counter-balances to a rather fetching set of handlebars. The new kits, however, are designed to work with the new breed of movie-shooting DSLRs, specifically the Nikon D90 and the upcoming Canon 5D MkII.

There are a few advantages to shooting movies with these cameras: You get access to a huge range of (by movie standards) cheap lenses which can produce a shallow depth of field for a very filmic look. And the bodies themselves, while they’re not exactly budget models, are a lot less expensive than the equivalent dedicated video cameras.

Zacuto, though, didn’t get the memo. It’s four new kits range from $660 (DSLR Docu Kit) up to almost $5000 (DSLR Filmmaker Kit), and while the top end Filmmaker setup incudes everything, even a Lunchbox and a Universal Donut (!), the Docu kit is literally just a baseplate and a couple of metal poles.

We’re likely coming at this from the wrong angle. Compared to accessories for still cameras, these kits are exhorbitant. Compared to the prices movie makers are used to, though, this is small change. Available now.

Product page [Zacuto via Photography Bay]

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