Month: November 2012

Revamped iTunes 11 arrives: Up Next, new MiniPlayer, deep iCloud integration, more

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 29, 2012

The Wall Street Journal, Apple's unofficial mouthpiece, was right reporting yesterday that iTunes 11 would launch at some point today. Yes, the eleventh major version of the decade-old media jukebox software just went live on Apple's servers. You can download it manually by heading over to Apple's iTunes Download page (and reload if necessary). Alternatively, choose Software Update from the Mac's Apple menu or run the Software Update app available in the Start menu in Windows...

AppleCare reps given pre-release iTunes 11 builds ahead of today’s release

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 29, 2012

According to a new report, Apple Care representatives are installing pre-release builds of iTunes 11 as we speak, most likely part of an effort to give them a couple hour lead time ahead of the official worldwide release later today. As you know, the Wall Street Journal yesterday reported that iTunes 11, after being delayed for a month due to unspecified “engineering issues” requiring parts to be rebuilt, will be ready for public consumption on Thursday, November 29...

The iPad mini is an iPad 4 cannibal, after all

Ed Sutherland ∙ November 29, 2012

The iPad mini is taking a bite out of sales of its full-sized counterpart. That's the conclusion of one Wall Street observer, who found fewer seven-inch Apple tablets available than the larger 9.7-inch iPad. But is the finding a sign of cannibalized iPads or something else?

A poll of fifty Apple stores by Citi uncovered the mini available in eighty percent of the locations, but severely limited, except for the 32 gigabyte version. However, all stores checked had the new fourth-gen iPad in stock, just six percent reporting limited availability...

T-Mobile could announce iPhone deal next week

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 18, 2016

All that free support to unlockers might not have been in vain. Merrill Lynch analyst Scott Craig reports in a note to clients Thursday that Deutsche Telekom could announce a long-expected iPhone deal for T-Mobile USA as early as next week. Funny, we thought the German carrier could not afford Apple's handset.

“We recognize that it has been a point of churn for us”, the carrier's op-chief recently said in response to concerns related to lack of iPhone in its offering. The company confirmed it lost nearly half a million subscribers because of the iPhone 5 launch.

Truth be told, T-Mobile, which has 33 million customers, now hosts about 1.5 million unlocked iPhones on its network. Moreover, it's been rolling out its iPhone-friendly HSPA+ network on the 1900MHz band in more markets. Our take is that a T-Mobile iPhone is inevitable, if not imminent...

Consumer Reports: AT&T has the best 4G LTE, worst voice and data service quality

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 29, 2012

Consumer Reports, an influential U.S. magazine that has been reviewing products since 1936, is out today with its annual rankings of major United States wireless operators. And just like last year and the year before, AT&T again was ranked the worst in the United States in customer satisfaction. On a brighter note, AT&T’s 4G service garnered the least complaints from customers...

Apple researching ‘realistic’ wireless charging methods

Ed Sutherland ∙ November 29, 2012

Apple has filed for a patent to solve one of mankind's most troubling questions: how do I recharge my iPad with this annoyingly-short power cord? In the application, the company suggests a 'realistic' way to wirelessly recharge your iDevice via near-field resonance. While near-field technology is more often used to grab data off your credit card at the grocery store, Apple sees the technology as a way to cut the cord between your laptop, iPad or iPhone and a wall charger, the way your mouse was set free years prior...

Fantastical for iPhone is here and it’s a thing of beauty

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated February 7, 2018

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-orFmHPTH0&feature=plcp

As promised, Flexibits today launched Fantastical for the iPhone. The app makes a leap from the Mac, where it's been deemed the most popular calendar software for the platform. And one of its trademark features - the natural-language engine which parses entries, allowing one to just type in full sentences to create events - is now available on the iPhone and is just as effective as on the Mac. And for those that don't like to type, Fantastical also supports dictation so you can speak the details for your event...

iPhone 5 gains network certification in China

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 29, 2012

Apple's handset has finally been granted a key network certification in China, opening door to a launch ahead of the important holiday shopping frenzy and Chinese New Year, the country's most important holiday. China’s Telecommunication Equipment Certification Center, as discovered by The Wall Street Journal, wrote in its license that the iPhone 5 is compatible with China Telecom's network, the country's third-largest mobile carrier. Vendors in China often start selling new handsets within weeks of approval, the paper writes, meaning the official iPhone 5 launch in the massive 1.33 billion people market is likely imminent...

From Russia without love: iPad patent appeal rejected

Ed Sutherland ∙ November 29, 2012

Apple's two-year attempt to get the iPad design patented in the Russian Federation hit a dead-end, when regulators ruled there was nothing "distinctive" about the tablet's makeup. The company had appealed an April rejection by the Russian Patent Office. This most recent rejection by the Russian Chamber for Patent Disputes seems to close the door on gaining a patent for the best-selling tablet.

In its response to Apple, written in Russian, the chamber ruled the iPad patent application - which describes rounded corners, a flat surface and round button beneath the screen - involves a design that is "traditional for modern communication devices, manufactured by different vendors"...

iPhone 5 supply now stabilized in US Apple Stores

Cody Lee ∙ November 29, 2012

Since its initial launch in late September, iPhone 5 supply has been extremely limited. But Apple must have gotten past whatever production issue it was having, because shipping times for the handset recently started showing just one week out.

And apparently, availability is looking even better at Apple's brick and mortar locations. According to a new poll conducted by Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster, a number of Apple Stores now have nearly every model of the iPhone 5 on hand...

Tony Fadell: Scott Forstall ‘got what he deserved’

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 18, 2016

Ever since Apple announced Scott Forstall is going to be leaving the company next year, people have been trying to piece together what happened. How could this guy, who has been a major factor in Apple's success, be pushed out like that?

We've heard a number of reasons for Forstall's ousting over the past few weeks, ranging from the iOS 6 Maps debacle, to personality conflicts. And today, former Apple executive Tony Fadell offers up a little more insight on the situation...

MyLED brings external notifications to your iOS device

Cody Lee ∙ November 29, 2012

Despite the many improvements Apple has made to the iPhone over the past five years, there are still some things missing from the handset. One of the biggest omissions, for a lot of folks anyway, is the lack of external notifications.

And Apple must agree, to some extent, because it added the LED Flash for Alerts feature in iOS 5. But the makeshift solution doesn't quite cut it for everyone, and that's where the myLED external notification light comes in...