Year: 2014

Tim Cook made $74M last year, the highest among all tech CEOs except Zuckerberg

Cody Lee ∙ April 4, 2014

Apple CEO Tim Cook doesn't have an easy job. Not only is he in charge of one of the largest companies in the world, but he has to do so in the shadow of one of the most highly regarded executives of our generation, amidst constant criticism from those that say Apple's best days are behind it.

No need to worry though, Tim is well compensated. According to a new report, he took home $4.3 million in salary and incentives last year, and another $70 million in vested stock options. All told, Cook banked more than any other tech CEO in 2013 except for Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg...

Apple’s PRODUCT (RED) contributions top $70 million

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 4, 2014

Product Red - styled as (PRODUCT)RED - is a marketing brand licensed to other companies, established in 2006 by U2 frontman and activist, Bono, together with Bobby Shriver of the ONE/DATA, with the goal of raising awareness and funds to help eliminate HIV/AIDS in Africa.

The initiative earns money on each participating Product Red sale and proceeds go straight to The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

Apple's been one of Product Red backers since its inception, thanks mostly to late Steve Jobs who was on good terms with Bono. Product Red today announced that Apple's contributions to the charity have reached a cool $70 million...

Kotoro lets you mix colors in a fun puzzle game

Lory Gil ∙ Updated October 13, 2018

When you were a kid, you probably learned about colors. First, we learned about the basic spectrum of primary colors, red, yellow, and blue. Then, we learned about secondary and tertiary colors. Red and yellow make orange. Red and orange make red-orange, etc.

Kotoro is a puzzle game that combines a similar game mechanic as Osmos, but uses colors instead of creatures. Mix colors to create new ones. Don’t mix the wrong ones or you won’t be able to get the right hue…

Meet Project Ara, Google’s modular smartphone

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 28, 2019

Last October, Motorola’s Advanced Technology and Projects (ATAP) group, then a subsidiary of Google, announced an interesting partnership with PhoneBloks with the goal of creating highly modular smartphones that customers could build and update themselves much like LEGO bricks.

Basically a free, open hardware platform, Project Ara calls for a structural metal endoskeleton frame designed to hold a bunch of different items in place.

Swappable parts would include commonly used phone components like a display, keyboard, battery, electrical components, cameras and custom 3D-printed module enclosures. The audacious idea behind Project Ara is to allow folks to easily swap out malfunctioning modules or replace components with better parts as technology evolves.

Those who custom-build PCs will know what I'm talking about. It's interesting that the 100 engineers strong ATAP group, led by former DARPA director Regina Dugan, was not included in Google's sale of Motorola to Lenovo and instead got folded into Google’s Android team to work under the direction of Android's new head, Sundar Pichai.

Today, Google posted a video providing a glimpse into the DIY smartphone project, ahead of the first Ara Development Conference which runs April 15-16 at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California...

Samsung one step closer to commercializing ultrathin graphene screens for wearables

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 4, 2014

Samsung has been the world's largest maker of LCD panels since 2002. By 2004, the conglomerate was the world's top manufacturer of OLED panels accounting for a 40 percent market share worldwide and as of 2010 has a commanding 98 percent share of the global AMOLED market.

Small wonder that Apple used to source most of its screens for iOS devices from Samsung up until 2012, when Tim Cook & Co. began slowly shifting display orders away from the Galaxy maker amid the ongoing patent spat.

But Samsung is not standing still. According to a report by The Wall Street Journal Friday, the Galaxy maker has claimed significant progress on graphene, described as the next wonder material...

How to quickly shorten links using Action Menu

Jeff Benjamin ∙ April 4, 2014

Have you ever wished for a native way to shorten URLs in iOS? Obviously, you can easily do so with third-party apps, but iOS lacks a native way to shorten links on stock devices.

If you're jailbroken, however, it's easy to shorten URLs directly from the copy and paste menu using a handy Action Menu add-on. The add-on, which is entitled Goo.gl shortener for Action Menu, allows you to shorten URLs directly from the copy and paste menu. Take a look at our video walkthrough to see how it works.

Must-see: Apple’s breathtaking Istanbul store

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

With grand opening of Apple's first retail store in Turkey confirmed for this coming Saturday, Apple dispatched Steve Cano, its Vice President of Retail Operations, to Istanbul to show off the structure's incredible architecture and design to the press.

Although CEO Tim Cook and Turkish President Abdullah Gül were not in attendance, the significance of this particular store, Apple’s 424th, can't be overstated. If you've been following Apple's retail efforts, you're familiar with the look and feel of the company's flagship retail locations, often likened to the shrines attracting devotees who worship Apple's sexy products there.

But starting with the recently redesigned Stanford 2 store in North California, Apple has seemingly adopted a fresh new design language for its brick-and-mortar locations, now focused on the 100 percent seamless glass appearance with lots of open space so visitors feel like they're part of the surrounding landscape.

The new Turkish store is a continuation of this trend and you really need to see the photographs to truly appreciate what Apple has accomplished here...

Expedia now giving away free travel-related iOS apps, starting with Over

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated November 19, 2018

If you're the type who enjoys seeing new places and meeting new and interesting people, chances are you're using Expedia to plan your trips.

Originally started by the Windows giant Microsoft, the online travel service was later spun off as a separate entity because it was "no longer about software intensive technology" and they were "concerned that they would not do their best at this."

Since then, Expedia's been doing great: it's grown into a multi-billion dollar business and is now the world's largest full-service online travel company. Expedia.com is ranked the 138th website in the United States by the web traffic reporting service Alexa.

They have a decent iOS application and now Expedia is offering free iPhone and iPad apps related to traveling as part of its new 'Media Lounge' service.

Expedia Hotels & Flights for iOS has been bumped to version 3.6 and can now be downloaded free from the App Store. Hit the break for more info...

Video pits Apple’s Touch ID against Samsung’s Galaxy S5 fingerprint scanner

Cody Lee ∙ April 4, 2014

Following the debut of the iPhone 5s and its Touch ID fingerprint scanner in October last year, Samsung introduced the Galaxy S5 with its own fingerprint recognition tech. The handset was unveiled last month, and is slated to launch for major carriers on April 11.

The two scanners are quite different, with Touch ID requiring a press-and-hold action and Samsung's solution more of a swiping motion, but they essentially serve the same purpose. So we thought this new video comparing the two of them was worth a look...

Facebook Pages Manager 3.0 is out with new pinning and editing features

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

Facebook has posted an update for its Pages Manager this afternoon, bringing the app to version 3.0. The update includes the usual bug fixes and performance improvements, as well as a handful of new pinning and editing features.

Pages users can now pin and unpin posts to the top of their Page timelines from within the app, allowing them to highlight important events and other announcements. You can also now create and edit events on the iPad, and more...

Greenpeace praises Apple and others for helping build a greener Internet

Cody Lee ∙ Updated December 2, 2016

Apple has quite the history with environmental organization Greenpeace. The outfit has panned the iPad maker several times over the years for using toxic chemicals in its products and other non-green practices—it even staged a protest outside of its Cupertino headquarters back in 2012.

A lot has changed over the years, however, and this week, instead of protesting Apple, Greenpeace took to the skies to praise it and other companies for helping build 'a greener Internet.' That image you see above is of a blimp that the environmental advocacy group flew over Silicon Valley...

WWDC 2014 wallpapers for iPhone and iPad

Jim Gresham ∙ Updated June 6, 2018

Earlier today, Apple announced via a press release its annual developer conference will be held Monday, June 2 at San Francisco's Moscone West. Each conference and media event Apple holds, a cleverly designed artwork is released along with the announcement. Merely hours later, many fans and graphic artists take their own visions and create iOS wallpapers to celebrate the occasion. Inside this post, find various forms of the WWDC 2014 wallpapers, prepped and ready for your Lock or Home screen...