Apple

First full trailer for Ashton Kutcher’s ‘Jobs’ film released

Cody Lee ∙ June 21, 2013

The first official trailer for Ashton Kutcher's 'Jobs' was finally released today, giving the general public its first glimpse at the movie. We saw a snippet of the film earlier this year, when it debuted at the Sundance Film Festival, but it never really made it beyond the tech world.

'Jobs' has had an interesting year thus far. After receiving mixed reviews at Sundance, the film's April release date was canceled and the project was shelved. Then, earlier this month, we learned it would finally be hitting theaters in August. So without further ado, here's your trailer...

Apple’s iTunes owns 75% of digital music sales

Ed Sutherland ∙ June 21, 2013

Apple's iTunes is one of those happy ironies. Begun as a way to boost sales of Macs and other hardware and content with breaking even, the service now rakes in $20 billion per year selling digital warez such as video, books, apps and music - a whole lot of music. In fact, Apple now sells 75 percent of all digital music, according to a new analysis.

In a series of peeks into how iTunes earns all that revenue, independent analyst Horace Dediu paints a picture where more than a half-billion users are pointing to a future where apps surpass digital music sales...

iPad mini to finally hit Brazil next Tuesday following eight-month wait

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

It's widely believed an unknown portion of iPad mini production is being handled by Foxconn’s recently built manufacturing facilities in Brazil. It's remarkable then that the iPad mini is still unavailable in the country. The situation is finally set to take a turn for the better as the iPad mini is slated to arrive in Brazil next Tuesday, June 25. As you know, Apple launched the iPad mini in the United States and several other key markets eight months ago, in October 2012...

Samsung reportedly cutting Galaxy S4 production, S3 going in early retirement

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated October 12, 2018

The unstoppable advance of Samsung may have hit a bump in the road. A report from South Korean claims the Apple smartphone rival plans to reduce production of its just-released Galaxy S4 by 10-15 percent, while sending the S3 to an early retirement.

The South Korean-based firm also believes the flagship Galaxy S4 won't be able to increase its share of the smartphone market alone, requiring a range of new models to do the job, the Thursday report claimed...

Virgin Mobile to land iPhone 5 next Friday

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated July 13, 2017

After months of speculation, Virgin Mobile announced it will finally start carrying Apple's iPhone 5 starting Friday, June 28. The handset will be offered on a subsidy basis on a two-year contract and with one of the Beyond Talk plans, starting at $35 a month for unlimited 4G LTE data and messaging. Virgin Mobile is owned by Sprint and supports both Sprint's CDMA 3G and LTE 4G radio technology (see coverage map here)...

FTC to launch inquiry into patent trolls, including issuing subpoenas

Ed Sutherland ∙ June 21, 2013

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is expected today to approve an investigation into so-called patent trolls, according to the New York Times. Results of the investigation could be used as part of a possible antitrust lawsuit.

FTC chairwoman Edith Ramirez has said the technology involved in one smartphone could spur thousands of patents. In 2012, patent trolls - politely referred to as patent-assertion entities - comprised 60 percent of some 4,000 patent lawsuits. In 2011, the number of patent lawsuits were half that amount, the Times reported...

Apple starts charting iOS adoption, 96% of users are on iOS 6

Christian Zibreg ∙ June 21, 2013

Apple has started charting the iOS adoption figures via a portal for its registered developers. While Google's been doing this for quite some time now, it's the first time Apple offered the continuously updated official iOS adoption data.

Key takeaway: a whopping 96 percent of Apple customers are now using iOS 6, as measured by the App Store during a 14-day period ending June 3, 2013.

There is a massive difference compared to Android 4.x versions that, according to Google's dashboard web page, was on 58.6 percent of Android devices accessing the Android Play store during a 14-day period ending on June 3, 2013.

And with 39.8 percent of Google customers on the now outdated Android 2.2 Froyo and up to Android 3.2 Honeycomb software, Apple's huge advantage in terms of platform fragmentation is undisputed...

Tokyo court finds Samsung guilty of infringing on Apple’s ‘rubber banding’ patent

Cody Lee ∙ June 21, 2013

On Friday, a Tokyo court found a number of Samsung's legacy smartphone models to be guilty of infringing on one of Apple's patents. More specifically, it's the infamous 'rubber banding' patent, which Apple has used in a number of courtroom battles.

For those unfamiliar with the 'rubber banding' property, it covers the software action that triggers the bounce-back animation when a user reaches the end of a scrolling document. And the Japan court feels older Samsung handsets infringe upon it...

Why it took HBO GO so long to come to Apple TV

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

Yesterday morning, Apple announced that an update was available for its Apple TV devices. The new software, which was earmarked as version 5.3, featured a handful of content streaming apps including WatchESPN and HBO GO.

Users have been clamoring for HBO GO to land on Apple's ATV platform for quite some time, as its been available on iOS for years. So what took it so long? According to HBO's chief technology officer, it was building the app itself...

Wi-Fi Alliance launches 802.11ac certification

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

The so-called Gigabit Wi-Fi, better known as 802.11ac, has yet to be officially ratified but that hasn't stopped Apple from implementing the technology on the refreshed MacBook Air lineup and the redesigned AirPort Extreme and Time Capsule base stations, which were both announced during the WWDC keynote earlier this month.

That said, it's fairly safe to assume that Apple will also roll out 802.11ac across the upcoming iPhone 5S, iPad 5, iPad mini 2 and a next-gen Mac Pro, Apple TV and MacBook. For what it's worth, Apple reportedly partnered with chip maker Broadcom to outfit all Macs with 802.11ac chips.

Apple is usually among the first companies - if not the first - to implement each new major revision to the Wi-Fi standard. And while this allows Apple's customers to live on the bleeding edge of technology, it also exposes early adopters to their fair share of teething issues...

Best Buy to relaunch iPhone 4/4S trade-in offer this week

Cody Lee ∙ June 20, 2013

All through this month, nationwide electronics chain Best Buy has been taking $50 off its iPhone 5 handsets. This means that if you were in the market for such a device, you could score a 16GB iPhone 5 for just $150, with contract.

And it's looking to sweeten the deal. The retailer says that it's going to be relaunching its iPhone trade-in offer this week that will allow customers to trade in their old iPhone 4 or 4S for a free 16GB iPhone 5 with a 2-year agreement...