Apple

Apple Stores outrank Tiffany in US retail sales per square foot

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated April 10, 2018

Next time you are in an Apple Store, look down. You are standing in the most profitable real estate of all retail. For the second year in a row, Apple Stores rank #1 with the highest sales per square feet, once again beating Tiffany for the top spot.

According to Retail Sales' ranking of U.S. chain stores, Apple Stores pull in $6,050 per square foot compared to Tiffany's $3,017. Apple's brick-and-mortar locations see 100 million visitors every three months, with each Apple Store visitor leaving $45...

iHelicopters release a new iDevice-controlled toy: the iUFO

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 10, 2018

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98p_epP0TRQ

iHelicopters, the makers of iPhone-controlled vehicles are on a roll again. After creating a lineup of iPhone-controlled helicopters, RC cars and the rocket-launching Cobra copter, their latest offering is the iUFO. As the name suggests, it's a flying device that resembles an unidentified flying object. Its rotor system is maneuverable via your iPhone, iPad or iPod using a free app that talks to the unit via the transmitter which plugs in the headphone jack .

Its spherical design is aimed at protecting the rotors from hitting nearby objects and breaking. The manufacturer says the system even allows iUFOs to roll over the ground without crashing the rotors and says you don't have to worry about crashing the unit against the walls or ceiling...

iPad growth puts breaks on PC replacement cycle

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated April 10, 2018

Memo to PC makers: Your best days are over. That's the word from one Wall Street observer who says tablets such as Apple's iPad are reducing the need to regularly replace laptops and other computers. Indeed, the PC replacement cycle relied upon by computer makers will be one to two years longer, resulting in a loss of 50 million to 100 million PCs shipped annually, by 2015. By contrast, tablet sales are expected to skyrocket from 182 million in 2013 to 300 million by 2016 - with Apple the major beneficiary...

First LTE iPad mini pre-orders are now en route to US customers

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 13, 2012

During the September 12 iPad mini unveiling Apple vaguely indicated that the Wi-Fi + Cellular model would start shipping “a couple of weeks after the Wi-Fi models”. Then, when it started accepting pre-orders and announced opening weekend sales of three million iPads, the company reiterated that the cellular version of both the fourth-gen iPad and the smaller one will be available in the US on AT&T, Sprint and Verizon “in a few weeks”.

We’re now receiving reports that some customers who pre-ordered a Wi-Fi + Cellular iPad mini are receiving shipping notices from their courier service. Many are seeing delivery dates of this Friday, November 16, or the following Monday, with some deliveries reportedly set for as early as tomorrow, November 15...

Apple launches 2012 Holiday Gift Guide

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 13, 2012

With winter holidays upon us, Apple has now launched its official Holiday Gift Guide for this year. A special page on the company's web site is now live, highlighting a range of first and third-party gadgets and accessories that Apple hopes might be a nice guideline for those on the lookout for perfect holiday gift.

The main four sections group products according to Apple's major product lineups: iPad gifts, Mac gifts, iPhone gifts and iPod gifts. Fender's iOS-friendly Stratocaster guitar Cody told you about yesterday (an Apple Store exclusive) is among the listed products, as is the Nike+ FuelBand wrist band accessory, Parrot's AR Drone and many other gadgets...

Apple giving select employees two weeks off to work on special projects

Cody Lee ∙ November 12, 2012

Tim Cook has ushered in a number of changes to Apple in his first year as the CEO. He's instituted an employee donation program, and a few weeks ago he spearheaded one of the biggest management shakeups in the company's history.

And this afternoon, we can add another alteration to the list. According to a new report, Cook has signed off on a new program, code-named "Blue Sky," that gives select employees up to two weeks to work on special side projects...

New in iOS 6.1: Reset Advertising Identifier

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

With the release of iOS 6, Apple replaced its controversial unique device identifier system (or UDID) with the Advertising Identifier. It's a non-permanent, non-personal, device identifier, that advertising networks use to track your behavior.

Since its introduction, users who don't like targeted advertisements have had the ability to limit ad tracking via a toggle in the Settings application. And in iOS 6.1, users will gain the ability to reset their Advertising Identifier as well...

iPhone 5 shipping estimates improve to 2-3 weeks

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 12, 2012

Availability of the iPhone 5 is finally improving as Apple, its suppliers and contract manufacturers bind forces to improve manufacturing yield rates. When Apple in September started accepting online pre-orders for the device, shipping times quoted on the online Apple Store fell to 3-4 weeks within 45 minutes.

Availability would not improve until today. Now, after admitting to falling behind the iPhone 5 demand, Apple's contract manufacturer Foxconn has been hard at work with suppliers like Sharp to remove bottlenecks. Analysts who last week surveyed over a hundred Apple Stores, found out the device could be consistently available within 2 to 3 weeks.

We're happy to report that today, estimated shipping times for new iPhone 5 orders on the online Apple store dropped to 2-3 weeks, another sign of the iPhone maker and its supply chain slowly beginning to catch up to strong demand for the popular device...

New iOS-friendly Fender guitar spotted in Apple’s web store

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

With the holidays just around the corner, Apple has been seen stocking up on app-enabled accessories. A few weeks ago we noted that the iPad-maker had started selling iPhone-controlled lightbulbs, and now it's added an iOS-friendly guitar to its inventory.

Fender, a long-time legend in the guitar business, has created a custom version of its popular Squier Stratocaster guitar with built-in USB and iOS connectivity. This means that you can plug into anything from a complex digital studio, to your iPad, and rock out...

Apple posts iOS 6.1 Beta 2, new Apple TV beta

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

Apple just seeded its registered developers with the second beta of iOS 6.1. The software follows November 1 release of the first iOS 6.1 beta which brought out MapsKit improvements and other tidbits.

Beta 2 has a build number of 10B5105c versus 10B5095f for Beta 1. Apple says iOS 6 Beta 2 contains bug fixes and improvements over iOS 6.0.1, in addition to tweaks like a new information card in the Passbook app.

A new beta of the Apple TV software is also available. The new iOS 6.1 beta is available for the various iPhone, iPod touch, iPad and Apple TV devices. Apple's registered developers can download them via the company's developer portal.

The iPhone maker also released Xcode 4.6 Developer Preview 2 today (build 4H95e), its preferred development environment for third-parties that write Mac and iOS apps. Your release notes and additional info are right below...

In Italy, AppleCare products removed over warranty policy shenanigans

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 25, 2016

Bloomberg in October reported of Justice Minister Viviane Reding pushing EU regulators into probing Apple over its ambiguous warranty advertising in the European Union. And earlier in the year, consumer groups demanded that eleven EU countries pressure Apple into complying with EU's consumer laws. As a result, Apple's warranty plans with extended device coverage are about to be pulled from retail channels in Italy. Better still, Apple is finally informing buyers that EU law entitles them to a minimum two-year seller guarantee, free of charge...