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China Unicom reportedly threatening to drop iPhone subsidy next month

Christian Zibreg ∙ August 17, 2012

China's second-largest telco, China Unicom, could abandon iPhone subsidy once its contract bundles expire in September, an Asian trade publication wrote on Friday, citing industry sources. The anti-subsidy sentiment is nothing new, but apparently China Mobile is unable to justify billions in prepayments to Apple and high investments in infrastructure in order to cope with fast-growing traffic because sales of contract iPhones reportedly have not met its internal expectations...

Analysis: why the iPhone won’t be No. 1 in China

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated March 19, 2019

When Lei Jun, founder and CEO of China's mobile company Xiaomi Technology, took the stage in Beijing yesterday to announce the Xiaomi Phone 2, his company's successor to the MiOne phone, it was a familiar sight to anyone who has ever watched one of Apple's famous theatrical product unveilings.

Clad in a black turtleneck, blue jeans and runners and standing in front of a giant screen as the audience of more than a thousand devotees cheered and clapped, the unveiling bore more than a passing resemblance to an Apple event starring Steve Jobs.

But that's beyond the point. What matters is that Xiaomi Technology. Ever heard of the company? Founded only two years ago, it's already worth more than BlackBerry maker Research In Motion. Its latest smartphone has better hardware than the iPhone 4S, yet sells for less than half the price.

Xiaomi's Q1 2012 revenue was nearly $1 billion on sales on three million phones. Not bad for a two-year old handset maker doing business in the 1.33 billion people market, which recently overtook the United States in terms of iOS and Android activations. Xiaomi is one of many iPhone contenders in China whose names you've never heard before.

Can Apple respond to this latest local challenge to the iPhone?

Angry Birds Seasons update brings new bird, 20 new levels

Cody Lee ∙ Updated February 7, 2016

It's that time of year again. The days are getting shorter, preseason football has commenced, and children are starting, or will soon be starting, school again.

So naturally, Rovio has released its Back to School update for Angry Birds Seasons. The update includes 20 new schoolyard levels, and (gasp!) a new bird...

Pod2g uncovers major SMS security flaw in iOS

Cody Lee ∙ Updated October 11, 2018

Despite the fact that Apple continues to receive praise for the security in iOS, hackers continue to discover vulnerabilities. Just look at all of the exploits that have been used in past jailbreaks.

Today, Pod2g adds another one to that list with his newly discovered SMS flaw. It has to do with the way the iPhone handles SMS, and could open the doors for text message spoofing...

Rumor: Apple to use special ITO film coating on iPad mini

Cody Lee ∙ August 17, 2012

As you've probably gathered already by the months of chatter, Apple is widely expected to unveil a new tablet next month. It's said to have a 7.85-inch display, and a profile as thin as the iPod touch.

Of course, since there's been no official word from Apple regarding the product, all of this is still essentially speculation — rumors if you will. And this morning, we've got another one to add to the pile...

Apple’s new set-top box rumored to feature cloud DVR, social integration and more

Cody Lee ∙ August 16, 2012

Yesterday, a scoop from The Wall Street Journal sent shockwaves through the Apple community, claiming that the fruit company is now focused on building a cable receiver of sorts, rather than the long-rumored TV set.

Today, the publication added some new information to its initial report, offering up more details about the set-top box. It's said to feature an iPad-like interface, and is designed to simplify the we access and view content...

Judge Koh to Apple’s attorneys: are you smoking crack?

Cody Lee ∙ August 16, 2012

You have to feel for US District Court Judge Lucy Koh. For the past three weeks, she's had to listen to attorneys from both Apple and Samsung argue over boring technology patents.

On top of that, she's had to put up with the non-stop shenanigans from both side's legal teams, such as bickering, stalling, and tedious requests. And today, Koh finally had enough...

Apple submits its master plan for a large-scale data center in Oregon

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 25, 2016

Apple is moving the ball forward to build a new data center in Prineville, Oregon. Having purchased an 160-acre parcel in Prineville from Crook County for $5.6 million back in February, the company has now filed paperwork with the city officials revealing plans to build a monster 500,000 square feet data center facility akin to that in Maiden, North Carolina which powers iCloud...

Easily dismiss incoming iPhone calls with ‘Turn to hangup’

Cody Lee ∙ Updated February 25, 2013

One of the many benefits of having a jailbroken device is the ability to add functionality to it. And there are countless tweaks available that can make the easiest tasks, even easier.

Such is this case with this next tweak, called Turn to hangup. As the name suggests, it makes dismissing an incoming iPhone call as easy as flipping over your handset...

Apple stock closes at all-time high ahead of new product rollouts

Cody Lee ∙ August 16, 2012

Apple's stock price has been on a bit of a roller coaster over the past 6 months. After nearly touching $650 during a mid-day spike back in April, it plummeted below $600, and has hovered around that mark ever since.

But good news for investors, it looks like AAPL is back on the rise again. Over the past few weeks the stock has climbed back above the $600 mark, and today, it closed at an all-time high of $636.34 per share...

Apple messed up: retail layoffs were a glitch, changes are being reversed

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated March 19, 2019

MacRumors caused quite a commotion earlier in the week with a worrying story about significant layoffs of Apple's retail staff in the United Kingdom, United States and Canada, just a few weeks before the next iPhone's arrival.

Responding to news, Apple's new retail boss John Browett has gone on the record, likening those changes to a glitch in the system, an unusual case of management miscommunication at Apple, if you will.

Changes are now being reversed and Browett reportedly instructed leadership teams to tell employees that "we messed up".

Wait, what?

Google+ app now opens links in Chrome if you have it

Cody Lee ∙ August 16, 2012

Google updated its Google+ iOS client yesterday with just a handful of changes. There were some bug fixes, performance enhancements, and the age limit for creating hangouts was lowered to 13.

But perhaps the most interesting change in the client is the new Safari workaround. For those of you who have it installed on your device, Google+ can now open web links in Google's Chrome browser...