Apple

Apple Pay’s launch in Australia faces pushback as greedy banks balk at transaction fees

Christian Zibreg ∙ August 17, 2015

Apple Pay certainly has a long way to go before it becomes ubiquitous. The service is currently available on a limited basis in the United States and the United Kingdom and is yet to hit major markets such as Canada, Japan, Germany, Italy and more.

In Australia (or colloquially, Down Under), banks are reportedly reluctant to give up on interchange fees in exchange for seamless technology and are said to loathe a third-party providing an extra layer between them and their customers at the point of sale.

iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus available beginning September 18?

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 16, 2018

German blog Macerkopf.de is reporting that Apple's upcoming 'iPhone 6s' and 'iPhone 6s Plus' smartphones will hit store shelves on Friday, September 18, or nine days following the rumored September 9 unveiling that BuzzFeed’s usually-reliable John Paczkowski recently reported on.

Apparently two of Germany's top three wireless carriers expect to kick off sales of the new handsets on Friday, September 18.

This assumed schedule would match up nicely with past iPhone release patterns.

How to boot your Mac in Verbose Mode

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated June 14, 2023

We previously discussed how booting your Mac into macOS' Safe Mode can help troubleshoot various issues with your computer. In more obscure situations and borderline cases, however, Safe Mode may not be enough to understand why your Mac freezes or crashes during the system boot process.

Enter macOS Verbose Mode.

Not only does Verbose Mode makes it easy to access detailed status messages as your Mac is starting up, but also lets you see what's really going on behind the scenes and watch as macOS loads kernel extensions and other startup items.

In this tutorial, we're going to cover booting your Mac in macOS' Verbose Mode, explain in which situations it might come in handy and give you some handy tips related to using Verbose Mode.

Sprint’s brand new ‘iPhone Forever’ plan lets you pick up a new iPhone anytime you want

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated November 2, 2017

U.S. carrier Sprint on Monday announced a new plan which allows those who don't own one of the latest iPhones on their contract to upgrade at any time.

Aptly named 'iPhone Forever,' the new plan will set you back $22 per month and is available starting today to both new and existing Sprint users.

Here's how iPhone Forever compares to similar early-upgrade offerings by rival carriers.

Best Buy said to offer Apple’s extended warranty plans beginning September 13

Christian Zibreg ∙ August 17, 2015

Best Buy could start selling the AppleCare and AppleCare+ extended warranty protection plans for various Apple products as soon as Sunday, September 13. According to an internal training video obtained by MacRumors, Best Buy's outlets in the United States are gearing up to sell Apple's extended warranty plans for the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and other eligible products, such as the 27-inch Thunderbolt Display.

If the sources are right, Best Buy will become Apple's first non-carrier retailer to sell extended warranty plans which are normally offered via Apple's retail store and on the company's online store.

New purported details about next iPhone and iPad’s ‘A9’ chip emerge

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 2, 2018

Interesting tidbits regarding Apple-designed 'A9’ chip said to power the upcoming 'iPhone 6s' and 'iPhone 6s Plus' handsets surfaced Monday, offering some previously unknown details regarding its performance and design.

It appears that the next iPhone and iPad's processor could employ so-called system-in-package (SiP) design which squeezes some additional components into a tiny chip, including the baseband modem and the power management circuitry.

Moreover, a leaked benchmark purports to compare single and multi-thread performance of several unreleased mobile processors, such as NVIDIA's Denver 2, Samsung's Exynos M1, Huawei’s Kirin 950, LG's NUCLUN 2 and Apple's A9 and A9X.

Apple launches new Link Bracelet Kit, L/XL Sport Bands and standalone Modern Buckle

Christian Zibreg ∙ August 14, 2015

After launching its wearable device earlier this morning through Best Buy Canada and the Australian department store Harvey Norman’s outlets in Auburn, New South Wales, Apple surprised Apple Watch fans by making available a few new accessories on its online store.

An all-new Link Bracelet Kit and L/XL Sports Bands to fit bigger wrists are now available through the Apple Online Store.

In addition, the 38mm Modern Buckle band is now available on a standalone basis for the first time since the Apple Watch's April debut.

Documents show Apple’s car is further along than many suspected

Cody Lee ∙ August 14, 2015

Apple's self-driving electric car, codenamed Project Titan, is further along than many suspected, reports The Guardian. The publication has obtained documents that show that the Cupertino company is already scouting locations to test the vehicle.

The Guardian's Mark Harris said the documents were obtained legally under a public records request, and they contain correspondence between Apple engineer Frank Fearon and an employee for top-secret vehicle testing ground GoMentum Station.

AT&T cutting prices of shared data plans and unveiling new ones tomorrow

Christian Zibreg ∙ August 14, 2015

U.S. wireless carrier AT&T announced this morning a few notable changes coming to its shared-data plans beginning tomorrow. For starters, customers on existing Mobile Share Value Plans with fifteen and twenty gigabytes of cellular data will now pay less for their high-speed 4G LTE data: the 15GB plan will drop from $130 to $100 per month while the 20GB tier will go from $150 down to $140 per month.

Apple Watch hits Best Buy in Canada and Harvey Norman in Australia

Christian Zibreg ∙ August 14, 2015

Keeping true to its promise, Best Buy Canada today began carrying the Apple Watch in its retail stores throughout the country. The electronics retailer's online store in Canada is now selling Apple's watches, too. In addition, the Apple Watch is now available through the Australian department store Harvey Norman's outlets in Auburn, New South Wales.

My #1 next-gen iPhone feature request has nothing to do with Force Touch or better cameras

Christian Zibreg ∙ August 14, 2015

A bunch of short-sighted analysts are downgrading $AAPL on the basis that the rumored Force Touch screen on the 'iPhone 6s' and 'iPhone 6s Plus' won't be enough of a hardware differentiator to motivate owners of the present-generation iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus to upgrade.

To them, I say: you'd be hard-pressed to call Force Touch the defining feature of the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus. A convenience, yes. But a marquee new feature? No way.

But wait, what about “the biggest camera jump ever”? Surely a rumored 12-megapixel back shooter with 4K video capture and a five-megapixel upgrade to the iPhone's paltry 1.2-megapixel front-facing camera would warrant an upgrade?

While perks like substantial camera upgrades, force-sensing screens, faster chips, two times faster LTE and a stronger body are much appreciated, these expected enhancements won't convince me to upgrade my rusty old iPhone 6 Plus unless the forthcoming phones offer this one feature I have been craving for years now.

Court denies Samsung’s latest appeal request in ongoing patent case

Cody Lee ∙ August 13, 2015

The US Federal Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday denied Samsung's request to reconsider the court's decision to uphold damages awarded in its patent infringement case, reports the San Jose Mercury News. The damages amount to more than $400 million.

This is just the latest turn in what seems to be a never-ending patent case between Samsung and Apple. In 2012, a jury found Samsung guilty of infringing on Apple's patents and awarded the iPhone maker $1 billion in damages, which has since been cut in half.