Apple rolls out Movies in The Cloud to more than 30 new countries

Apple sure has been busy today. Hot on the heels of this morning's iTunes Match expansion, it appears that the company has added movies to its iTunes in the Cloud feature for users in 30+ new countries.

Folks from the UK, Ireland, Brazil and other areas are reporting that they are now able to stream previously-purchased films to their iOS devices, using iCloud. Keep reading to see if your country made the list...

This iPhone app promises to help you detect skin cancer

Sometimes it seems like the list of things our iPhones can do is endless. Third-party apps turn our devices into heart monitors, sleep machines, scanners and more.

Apparently, there's even an app that can help you detect cancer. UMSkinCheck for iPhone promises to help you easily detect skin cancer without the need of a trained professional...

First screenshots of Firefox OS arrive

Mozilla's Firefox OS may be driven by HTML5 but it sure looks a lot like an unusual cross between iOS and Android. It's already got strong support from carriers and now the first screenshots depicting the user interface and various system apps have surfaced.

The interface looks distinct enough to stand on its own, even though Mozilla clearly borrowed some of the best design practices from iOS and Android...

The Dark Knight Rises game lands on App Store

The Dark Knight Rises, the third installment in Nolan's Batman film series and a sequel to the 2005 Batman Begins and 2008 The Dark Knight, has hit the silver screen with a 87 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes, a testament to film director Christopher Nolan's skills. The movie's box office success is bound to help Gameloft's officially licensed title sell well.

If you've been tingling with anticipation, you'll be delighted to know that The Dark Knight Rises the game has just landed on the App Store and can be downloaded now for your iPhone, iPod touch and iPad...

Apple’s former retail boss Ron Johnson knew Apple had a great future back in 2000

Ron Johnson just can't escape his past as Apple's widely successful head of retail. He left Apple last November to join the struggling retailer J.C. Penney and apply some Apple magic to its mid-range department stores. Johnson was interviewed by Fortune's Jennifer Reingold and of course the inevitable questions of his work at Apple popped up, among the many other topics of conversations. Here's what came out of him...

Verizon’s finance chief says the next iPhone could drop in the fourth quarter

Verizon's finance chief Fran Shammo dropped a hint concerning the next iPhone's availability during today's earnings call. Discussing the company's second-quarter results that saw Verizon activate 2.7 million iPhones for a 45 share of all smartphones sold on their network, Shammo hinted that the iPhone 5 (or whatever you prefer to call it) will arrive during the fourth quarter of this year.

The comment puts to rest rumors that the next iPhone could land in September. Conveniently enough, the latest iOS 6 beta 3 is set to expire on September 30. Conversely, Shammo's comment is also in line with Apple's annual refresh cycle. As the iPhone 4S launched on October 4, 2011, an updated model shouldn't arrive before October of this year at the earliest...

iTunes Match rolls out in Hungary, Poland and other markets

iTunes Match, Apple's scan-and-match music service (also doubling as a streaming service of sorts), is being rolled out in Hungary, Poland and several other markets, it's been revealed today. This is in addition to an expansion in late April that saw iTunes Match roll out in Greece, Portugal, Austria, Slovenia, Bulgaria and other markets...

Verizon activates 2.7M iPhones, Q2 share drops to 45% of smartphones

iPhone 4s

Verizon Wireless today announced results for the June quarter. The company activated 2.7 million iPhones, representing 45 percent of the carrier's total smartphone sales that hit 5.9 million units during the quarter. This is down from the 4 .3 million iPhones and a 55 percent share in the holiday quarter and a 50 percent share in the first quarter, when the company activated 3.2 million iPhones. For comparison, Verizon activated 2.4 million iPhones in the year-ago quarter. Blame the decline on iPhone seasonality and those pesky iPhone 5 rumors...

Tim Cook met with Samsung execs again to talk patent issues

As ordered by US District Judge Lucy Koh, Tim Cook reportedly met with Samsung's CEO and President of Mobile Communications earlier this week to discuss the ongoing patent war between the two companies.

Apple and Samsung's two-year long battle has recently landed them in Koh's northern California courtroom. And with the trial set to kick off on July 30th, the judge wanted them to give peace talks one last shot...

Apple using reservation system in China iPad launch to thwart scalpers

After months of waiting, Apple's third-generation iPad is going to go on sale in mainland China tomorrow. But don't expect overnight campouts or long lines. Word is that Apple has implemented a pre-register buying system to handle tomorrow's tablets sales.

And you can't blame them. Especially after what happened back in January at the iPhone 4S launch in Beijing. As you may recall, an Apple Store was forced to close down due to a mob of angry shoppers. But Apple has a plan this time to avoid the crowds...

Fieldrunners 2 lands in the App Store

Nearly four years ago, a tower defense game by the name of Fieldrunners landed on iOS. The game was an instant hit, and has since been ported to a number of other platforms and consoles.

Last night, Subatomic Studios returned to its roots, and released Fieldrunners 2 in the App Store. The long-awaited sequel includes upgraded graphics, and several new gameplay elements...

Apple granted patent for smaller charging port

Rumors that Apple has been looking to trim the size of the dock connector in future iOS products started back in February of this year. It's believed that the company is making the change in an effort to save space inside of its devices.

We've since seen the smaller dock connector on a number of "leaked" next-gen iPhone components, cases and more. And if that wasn't enough to convince you that the change is coming, check out this newly-granted patent...