After seeding a number of betas over the past few months, Apple has finally seeded OS X 10.9.2 to the public. As expected, the update includes FaceTime Audio, new contact blocking controls for both iMessage and FaceTime and Mail fixes.
Additionally, Apple has included a fix for the nasty SSL connection verification bug that popped up last week. So we recommend that everyone grab this new version of Mavericks by visiting the 'Software Update' tab in the Mac App Store...
In addition to issuing a quick fix for a dangerous SSL vulnerability with last week's release of iOS 7.0.6 (you can apply the update without upgrading your firmware), Apple has also released a companion update for its $99 streaming box, the Apple TV.
The Apple TV 6.0.2 software update (hat tip to iDB reader Gil) carries a build number of 6646.81.1 and fixes the SSL bug which allows attackers to steal your usernames and passwords used on iTunes Store and other services, by posing as a legitimate site.
The exploit affects Apple's Safari browser so Apple TV users are not necessarily in immediate danger like their Mac counterparts...
GT Advanced Technologies, a U.S.-based company Apple's partnered with on mass-scale sapphire manufacture in its new Mesa, Arizona facility, today released earnings for the 2013 holiday quarter and said that 2014 will be a "transformational" year for the company. Plans to supply sapphire glass to Apple are "progressing well" as GT expects a very profitable second half of 2014.
Its projected revenues also indicate a Fall launch for the next iPhone model (or models, if you believe the rumors). According to GT, the company has "started to build out the facility in Arizona and staff the operation" during the previous quarter...
In time for the start of the 2014 Major League Baseball (MLB) season, the official MLB.com At Bat app has finally received its long-expected iOS 7-focused redesign. This is a major refresh as the app was last updated in October 2013.
MLB.com At Bat version 7.0, now available free in the App Store, has hit a home run for iOS 7 with a brand new interface (flatter, of course), a new league-wide scoreboard functionality and inline video playback. I've included a few screenshots of the new design and some additional tidbits right below the fold...
Disney has launched an interesting new iOS app, Movies Anywhere, which offers access to a library of hundreds of movies and exclusive content from the studio, including original programming and never-before-seen videos. It's especially interesting that the iPhone and iPad app, available free in the App Store, allows users to connect their iTunes account to instantly access all their Disney content purchased from the iTunes Store within the app, without the need to go through Apple's stock iOS Videos app or visit the iTunes Store...
Apple posted a quiet update to the Retail Store section of its website last night with a revamped design. The new UI brings the portal more in line with iOS 7, and is just the latest among many design updates the company has made to frequently-visited Apple.com.
Gone are the skeuomorphic graphics, textured backgrounds and borders, which have all been replaced by healthy doses of white space and of course, thinner fonts. There's also now an edge-to-edge image of the Amsterdam Apple Store on the new landing page...
While the dust is far from settled on the nasty SSL bug found in iOS last week, a new security flaw in the mobile OS has been brought to light. The new flaw makes it possible for attackers to covertly log every touch a user makes, including keyboard and Touch ID presses.
Researchers at security firm FireEye made the discovery, saying in a blog post that the gap exists within iOS' multitasking feature that allows for the background monitoring, and it can be exploited via a malicious app install or remotely via a separate app vulnerability...
The details of Tim Cook's life post high school are fairly well known. We know he went to and graduated from Auburn University, and that he bounced around at a few companies, including Compaq, before landing at Apple in the late 90's. And the rest is history.
But what about before all of that? Well, until now not much was known about what Cook was like in his earlier years. That changed this week though with a profile of the CEO published bynews site AL.com. And yes, we've collected some excerpts for you below...
A rather interesting statue honoring Steve Jobs was unveiled in Belgrade, Serbia today by famed sculptor Dragan Radenovic. The work is the result of an art competition that saw more than 10,000 entries and will end up in Apple's Cupertino headquarters.
The statue, which has been garnering mixed feedback as the story bounced around the web today, features Jobs' head along with the Latin letter A and the binary digits one and zero. It also features a pair of Serbian letters: E, and then III rests at the bottom...
Apple's been using GPU parts from Imagination Technologies since switching to its own in-house designed iOS device processors, starting with the iPhone 3Gs in 2009. This UK-based firm does not churn out actual chips. Instead, it licenses out its GPU designs and intellectual property to vendors like Apple, Intel, Qualcomm and many others - that's why "they" call it a fabless semiconductor maker.
Now, Apple's engine that powers iOS devices typically combines Imagination's GPU and ARM's CPU blueprints with some memory, I/O logic and other supporting functions on a single die, a solution known in the semiconductor industry as a system-on-a-chip (SoC).
Moreover, both Apple and Intel own a stake in Imagination, another indication of its importance to Apple's mobile future. See, Imagination's PowerVR graphics processors coupled with Apple's efficient mobile operating system have been largely responsible for the smooth graphics, transitions and animations seen throughout iOS. It's the reason iOS is the smoothest mobile OS out there.
At CES earlier this year, Imagination unveiled a new GPU that we suspect should make its way into upcoming iOS devices. Today, the company is detailing some of its more intricate aspects and boy does it make our hearts sing: it supports 4K resolutions and outperforms even Nvidia's upcoming Tegra K1, apparently enabling the most powerful graphics yet in mobile phones and tablets...
After releasing seven beta builds of the upcoming OS X 10.9.2 update to its registered Mac developers, Apple appears to be putting finishing touches on this highly anticipated second Mavericks update. A pre-release build of OS X Mavericks version 10.9.2 is now in circulation among a small group of Apple employees, indicating that a public release is around the corner. The OS X 10.9.2 update will (hopefully) fix Mail bugs while enabling greater feature parity between iOS 7 and Mavericks.
The latter entails enabling FaceTime Audio calling on the Mac and giving users the ability to block individual senders through the Messages app. Both of these features are supported in Apple's mobile operating system.
The software will also fix dozens of bugs and bring useful tweaks and under-the-hood improvements, all listed below the fold...
GN ReSound, a company that's been working with Apple to take the stigma out of wearing an aid, today formally launched the world's first 'Made for iPhone' hearing aid, the LiNX. The accessory is designed for the hearing impaired users and offers direct streaming of sound from the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, without the need for an additional remote control, accessory or pendant.
It marries power-efficient Bluetooth Smart to third-generation 2.4 GHz wireless networking based on the all-new SmartRange chipset while offering some advanced features. Jump past the fold for the full reveal...