Apple

Skype update enables chatting with Messenger, Hotmail and Outlook.com contacts

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated August 24, 2016

Skype was recently updated with a taller UI tailored for the iPhone 5. Today, Microsoft pushed another update, bringing a few new features to the popular communications client. For starters, you can now merge your Skype and Microsoft account, which also enables the software to connect to Microsoft's other messaging properties. Most notably, this means you can now chat with Messenger, Hotmail and Outlook.com contacts right from Skype...

IDC: Android and iOS to surpass BlackBerry in enterprise this year

Cody Lee ∙ November 28, 2012

According to a new study by market research firm IDC, the iPhone will combine with Android handsets to overtake BlackBerry's enterprise marketshare for the first time ever this year. This is a major threat to RIM's struggling mobile platform, which has been using its popularity in the enterprise market to stay afloat as its consumer sales have plummeted...

Gene Munster talks Apple TV and more at Ignition conference

Cody Lee ∙ November 28, 2012

Reports that an Apple TV product is in the works have resurfaced a number of times over the past few years. Analysts continue to believe that Apple has something bigger planned for the living room than its current $99 hobby.

Perhaps nobody believes this more than Piper Jaffray's senior Apple analyst Gene Munster. And he was recently seen at Business Insider's IGNITION conference in New York talking about Apple's plans for the TV and more...

Amazon says Kindle sales double 2011 level, but where are hard numbers?

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated October 11, 2018

Amazon's Kindle Fire is the Rodney Dangerfield of tablets: it gets no respect. Again, Tuesday, the online retail giant reinforced that image by announcing Thanksgiving Weekend sales of the Kindle were "more than double" those in 2011 - but released no hard numbers.

Just how many Kindles - such as the $129 Kindle Fire Amazon pushed during Cyber Monday - were sold this year versus last year? Dunno. We have plenty of commercial spin, however. This year's Cyber Monday was the "biggest day ever" for global Kindle sales. The Kindle Fire HD "is the most gifted and most wished for" Amazon product worldwide, according to the company...

Who exactly is this Williamson guy anyways?

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated May 30, 2017

News that SVP Eddy Cue fired Richard Williamson, the executive who oversaw the development of Apple's much-maligned mapping service, came out of nowhere and surprised even seasoned watchers.

But who exactly is this Williamson guy?

Not much is known of the executive. Apple didn't list him on its Leadership page and he ain't talking to the press. I did some good ol' digging on the Interwebs and managed to compile a quick backgrounder on the (un)lucky software engineer, here's what I found...

Rdio for iOS gets a major facelift, new features

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 11, 2018

If you stream your music these days rather than spend your hard-earned cash on individual tracks on iTunes, you're likely using Spotify, Pandora or Rdio. The latter music subscription service is available in the U.S., U.K., Canada, France, Germany, Brazil, Australia, Spain, Portugal, Denmark, Finland, Sweden and New Zealand. The team just pushed a major update to their iOS and Android clients.

The software finally brings a unified interface across mobile platforms and the web, ditching the old grid-based navigation and replacing it with a consistently available sidebar that we're increasingly seeing in other apps like Path and Facebook. Rdio 2.0 also brings new features such as remote control, flawless queue syncing across platforms and more...

Qantas confirms Passbook support for boarding passes in Australia

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 27, 2012

Airline Qantas Tuesday announced Passbook integration for boarding passes in Australia. Travelers simply check in using their iPhone and select the "Add to Passbook" button when it appears on compatible devices. The national airline says that Passbook boarding passes will be color-coded to match the user's frequent flyer status. Qantas isn't stopping there as it plans on expanding Passbook functionality with live updates and other perks early next year...

Apple granted 36 patents covering Siri mic icon design, Lightning, widgets and more

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated April 10, 2018

Apple this morning has received patents covering more than three dozen different technologies, ranging from the obvious to the obscure. The company's patent filings as of late are even inspiring parody treatments like the Apple alphabet patent. Among today's grants are the filings describing ways to interface sports equipment with your iPhone, iPad or iPod, patents for Mac OS X dashboards and the MacBook keyboard and others seeking to protect icons and designs of popular software features.

Most people know of Apple's long-time association with Nike and the Nike+ app that records your running routine. Earlier this year, the Cupertino, California company filed a patent to go one step farther, interfacing your iPhone with a treadmill, or other workout machine at the local gym. Now it appears that patent was granted. But, wait, there's plenty more gadgets and gizmos Apple wants protected...

In time for holidays, Swiss watch maker Mondaine welcomes iPad users to the club

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 27, 2012

A design Apple licensed for the iOS 6 Clock app from the Swiss Federal Railways for an alleged $20 million was also licensed 26 years ago to Switzerland-based watch maker Mondaine. In fact, Mondaine Group CEO André Bernheim had at one point considered legal action against the iPhone maker before Cupertino relented and agreed to sign a licensing agreement. The clock face design is truly timeless: it's withstood the test of time and is still being used in SBB’s stations. Now, in a conveniently timed PR move, Mondaine issues a statement reminding Apple users it's the official licensee of the design for wrist watches and wall clocks, eventually hoping some fans would put Mondaine products on their holiday shopping list...

iPhone 5 helps Apple regain lead over Android in US smartphone market

Ed Sutherland ∙ November 27, 2012

Apple's iPhone 5 has helped the California-based gadget maker propel itself into the first place in the United States, topping Google's Android in arguably the world's most important smartphone market. Specifically, Apple's iPhone doubled its share of US smartphone sales and now enjoys a 48.1 percent share compared to 46.7 percent for Android.

The last time Apple held the lead in the US smartphone market was after the introduction of the iPhone 4S. Market research firm Kantar Worldpanel ComTech announced Tuesday Google's mobile operating system still dominates in Europe, where it holds up to 81 percent of the market share in some countries...

Retro gaming emulator Vectrex Regeneration due in the App Store this week

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 27, 2012

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZgcOm6n058

If you're fond of retro gaming, keep your eyes peeled for Vectrex Regeneration this week on the App Store. This universal iPhone and iPad game strives to emulate the popular Vectrex game console that famously made waves in the early '80s. Developer RantMedia Games announced on Twitter yesterday that Vectrex Regeneration should land on the App Store “in just three days”. A teaser seen above depicts gameplay that promises to emulate the original console, along with an interesting 3D interface to spice things up a bit...

Redesigned iMacs coming Friday, 27-incher shipping in December

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 27, 2012

Your dream desktop machine is around the corner. The thinner, redesigned all-in-one iMac lineup introduced last month will be available starting this Friday, November 30, Apple confirmed today. The 21-inch model comes in two flavors, with upgrade options including a faster Core i7 chip and a Fusion Drive. The top-of-the-line 27-incher will ship next month and includes up to a 3.2 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.6 GHz and Nvidia's GeForce GTX 675MX graphics. The 21.5-inch model will be available through the Apple Online Store, Apple’s retail stores and select Apple Authorized Resellers. The 27-inch iMac will be available for order through the Apple Online Store and will begin shipping in December...