ForeSee
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Daily Update for August 7, 2013
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
iTunes Store tops ForeSee survey for video streaming satisfaction
Analytics firm ForeSee's recent Mobile Satisfaction Index: Media and Entertainment Edition has a nice plum for Apple: the firm's survey of customers found that iTunes scored the highest in terms of satisfaction, beating out HBO GO, Netflix, Amazon Instant Video and Hulu Plus. As ForeSee points out, iTunes uses a "slightly different model than its streaming counterparts," actually requiring iTunes customers to download the content prior to viewing. The survey notes that this eliminates the performance issues seen with competing services, which are often plagued with error messages or playback problems, particularly when streaming on public WiFi systems. iTunes managed a satisfaction score of 80, with HBO GO and Netflix close behind at 79. The average of all of the services surveyed was 78, meaning that for the most part consumers are fairly happy with streaming media.
Daily iPad App: Foresee plans your activities based on the weather
I'm an outdoorsy-type person and I set time aside each week to go hiking and kayaking with my children. My plans sometimes go awry because the weather turns sour at the time I selected. To improve my odds of getting outside as planned, I decided to check out Foresee, a new weather-scheduling app from BorderLeap. Foresee lets you select an activity and set three primary weather parameters like temperature, cloud cover, humidity and more. The app will then scan the forecast and determine the best time for your activity. The app doesn't reveal just the optimal time, it shows you the full day on an hourly basis and uses a smiley face to reveal the best times for your activity. Likewise, all the bad times are marked with a frown. I tried changing the parameters, and the app updated the smile/frown accordingly and accurately. You can set up multiple activities and swipe easily between them. The app works on a daily basis so you can see the best activity times each and every day. I didn't mind seeing my activity everyday as I like to get outside as much as possible, but it might be nice to have the option to schedule out activities for a range of days. This would be beneficial for folks who want to plan for the weekend or a vacation. Overall, I found Foresee to be useful for predicting the best time to go outside. It's not real-time and doesn't take into account quick changes in the weather, but for general planning it works great. Foresee is available from the iOS App Store for US$0.99.
Apple tops e-store satisfaction survey
If you've been happy with a purchase that you made at Apple's online store, you're not the only one. Michigan-based ForeSee announced today that the Apple online store received the highest satisfaction score of any computer-related company and was tied for second place overall with QVC.com. ForeSee surveys almost 21,000 visitors to the top 100 online stores as ranked by annual revenue, and has been doing so since 2005. Apple scored an 85 this year, up from an 80 ranking last year. The only e-store that beat Apple's was Amazon, which ForeSee says "continues to set the standard for e-retailers." Amazon received an 89 score. Other electronics manufacturers fell behind Apple, with Dell at a score of 80, HP at 79, and Sony and Microsoft both at 78. There's good news in the report for anyone purchasing electronics online -- scores of 80 and higher, which ForeSee CEO Larry Freed refers to as being on "the threshold of excellence," are becoming much more common than in the past. The complete report can be downloaded for free from ForeSee by filling out an online form.
Apple tops latest mobile shopping satisfaction survey
With more and more consumers using smartphones to visit retailer websites, it's important for those retailers to make sure that shoppers have the best possible mobile shopping experience. Research firm ForeSee announced today that Apple's mobile shopping satisfaction score was at the top of the pack, with 85 percent of 3,000 consumers putting the company on top of their list. While the ForeSee study doesn't specifically say it, the Apple Store app seen at right could be the reason that Apple's mobile shopping score was higher than overall satisfaction with Apple's web store (at 83 percent). Others in the top five were (in decreasing order of satisfaction) Amazon, Dell, Netflix, and eBay. According to the ForeSee results, mobile is playing a growing role in the retail experience. A full third of shoppers used their mobile phones to research products, while 15 percent actually made purchases. About one in five online shoppers used their phones to compare prices or products while in a physical retail location. Satisfaction with the mobile shopping experience is important for repeat business. ForeSee's research shows that mobile shoppers who are highly satisfied with their mobile experience are 54 percent more likely to consider that same company the next time they want to make a similar purchase, and they're twice as likely to make purchases from that retailer's mobile channel again.
