Year: 2016

KGI (again) predicts iPhone demand has peaked for the year due to lackluster improvements

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 14, 2016

Shortly following the iPhone 7 launch in September 2016, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo predicted fewer iPhone 7 sales than the iPhone 6s garnered in 2015. In a new note issued to clients today, a copy of which was obtained by MacRumors, the analyst reiterated his belief that iPhone demand has peaked for the year due to a lack of significant improvements.

He is now forecasting a drop in unit shipments in November and December from five to fifteen percent based on supply checks and greater iPhone 7 stock availability.

Apple spent years testing if touchscreens made sense on the Mac

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 14, 2016

As first reviews of the new MacBook Pro hit the web this morning, Apple's marketing boss Phil Schiller took to Backchannel to dispel some of the myths saying his company has been stubbornly dismissive of the idea of a touchscreen Mac for no apparent reason. Schiller reveals that Apple has actually spent years testing if touchscreens made sense on the Mac before realizing that touching things on a 27-inch screen quickly becomes “absurd”.

New Apple ad highlights Beats Solo3 Wireless 40-hour battery & on-ear controls

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 14, 2016

During the official iPhone 7 unveiling last month, Apple announced one brand new and two improved Beats by Dr. Dre headphones, all of which utilize the new Apple W1 wireless chip: Powerbeats3 Wireless, Solo3 Wireless and the upcoming BeatsX earphones. A new ad Apple posted Monday, featuring Karlie Kloss, Young M.A., Brunas Schmitz and Justine Skye, highlights some of the Solo3 Wireless features enabled by the W1 chip, like touch controls and a longer lasting 40-hour battery.

Some Chinese users are giving their old iPhones a makeover to look like iPhone 7

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 14, 2016

Reuters is reporting that some users in China are giving their older iPhones a makeover to look like the latest iPhone 7 rather than buying brand new devices. Folks who don't have the money to upgrade to the latest and greatest iPhone have resorted to replacing their iPhone 6/6s back casing with a fake iPhone 7 shell complete with false dual-cameras and even dust plugs to hide the removed headphone jack.

“The makeover quirk mirrors a broader view among some Chinese users that the iPhone 7 doesn't have enough new features to convince them to trade up,” writes Reuters.

Microsoft is bringing integrated developer environment Visual Studio to the Mac

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 14, 2016

Visual Studio, an integrated development environment from Microsoft, is coming to the Mac. That's according to Redmond's prematurely published and now-deleted press release that TechCrunch spotted Monday. Microsoft's Xcode of sorts, Visual Studio is used to develop native Windows apps, as well as websites, web apps and Azure-driven cloud services.

Visual Studio for Mac should be formally announced at the Connect() conference later this week. Microsoft previously brought its cross-platform code editor, Visual Studio Code, to macOS.

Amazon Music Unlimited expands to UK, Germany and Austria

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 14, 2016

After making its U.S. debut last month, Amazon's $9.99 per month music-streaming service is set to expand to the United Kingdom, Germany and Austria beginning Monday, announced the online retail giant. The service was live in the United Kingdom at post time, with roll-outs in Germany and Austria following later today.

Earlier this morning, rival Google released revamped Play Music apps with machine learning-driven recommendations based on user location, activity and time of day.

Google Play Music gains redesigned interface and smarter, AI-driven recommendations

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 14, 2016

Google on Monday announced overhauled Play Music apps with smarter, AI-powered recommendations based on user location, activity and time of day are now available for iOS, Android and on the web. In addition, the app can optionally save your most recent songs and a few recommended tracks for offline listening, even if you forget to download them yourself. The revamped Play Music app is available on the App Store for free.

Not to be outdone by Google, rival Amazon this morning announced that its recently launched music-streaming service, dubbed Music Unlimited, is now available in the United Kingdom and expanding later today to Germany and Austria.

Samsung to buy Harman for $8 billion

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 14, 2016

Galaxy maker Samsung today announced it is purchasing Harman International for $112.00 per share in cash in a deal valued at approximately $8 billion. If the deal goes through, it'll be Samsung's largest acquisition to date. With the purchase of Harman Samsung is essentially buying a competitive advantage as it looks to take on Apple's rumored Project Titan and the CarPlay platform, Android Auto and other automotive systems.

How to convert CAF files to MP3 or AAC

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated September 10, 2018

From time to time, you might come across an audio file format known as .caf (Core Audio Format), which was originally created by Apple to put an end to file size barriers set by other audio file types.

Unfortunately, not every audio player or device works with .caf files, so it might do you good to know how to convert them to another audio file type using the software that comes with your Mac. In this tutorial, we'll show you how to convert .caf files to more commonly-used audio files such as AAC or MP3 with Garageband.

Wallpapers of the week: golden fields

Jim Gresham ∙ Updated October 17, 2018

Every Sunday, the Wallpapers of the Week section brings you photo quality images for your favorite iOS devices. Aside from jailbreaking, keeping a fresh selection of wallpapers is the quickest and easiest way to customize your interface.

We source images from around the Internet, reader submissions, and items we stumble across on Twitter. Today's collection is a set of original photographs, perfect for the autumn weather.

Jailbreak tweaks of the week: EmojiSuggest, PasswordRecovery, & more…

Anthony Bouchard ∙ November 13, 2016

There has been a slight resurgence in activity for the jailbreak community this week compared to last week, but things are still a lot slower than they usually are due to the lack of a refreshing jailbreak release for iOS 10.

Despite the lull, there have been some pretty interesting jailbreak tweak releases in Cydia this week, and we'll be recapping on all of those on this roundup.

Rushline, Feelca B&W, Delphi, and other apps to check out this weekend

Cody Lee ∙ Updated February 9, 2018

This week's Apps of the Week roundup features some great selections, including a new app for holding private conversations in public, a black & white photography app, and a strange countdown timer aimed at helping you get things done. And as always, we've picked two cool games for you to check out.