As previously announced at Apple's March 9 media event, HBO's online-only subscription services has just launched on Apple's $69 set-top box, the iPhone, iPad and on the web ahead of the series premiere of its hit show Game of Thrones on April 12.
The video subscription service will be available exclusively on the Apple TV and the iOS platform for a limited time. A free 30-day trial is available if you sign up in April, after which watching HBO NOW will set you back $14.99 each month.
When pre-orders for the Apple Watch kick off this Friday, April 10, making reservations for in-store pickup will be limited to one per customer through Apple's Reserve and Pickup service, MacRumors has learned from sources.
Would-be buyers in the United States, the United Kingdom and possibly in other launch countries will be required to present a valid government-issued photo ID upon pickup at the Apple Store where they placed their Apple Watch reservation, the publication reported Tuesday.
In an interesting break from the publicity Apple normally gets for free whenever customers line up outside its stores to be the first to get their hands on latest new gizmos, the company is now instructing its retail employees to suggest customers buy the Apple Watch and the new twelve-inch MacBook through the Online Apple Store.
According to an internal memo Apple's retail chief Angela Ahrendts sent to Apple Store employees entitled 'Get in line online', obtained by Business Insider, Apple suggests that “the days of waiting in line and crossing fingers for a product are over”.
While we're sure you Star Wars fans have every copy in your man cave, you'll soon be able to add the George Lucas-made films to your iTunes.
The makers of Star Wars announced on Monday the entire, six movie collection is coming to iTunes on Friday, April 10. The App Store on Twitter promoted the link, containing the ability to purchase each movie separately or as a collection when the content goes live in a few days.
Apple has quietly acquired Ottocat, reports TechCrunch, a little-known startup with some interesting search tech. The deal went down a few years ago—sometime in 2013—but its impact is still being felt today. The site believes the company's tech is behind the App Store's fairly new 'Explore' section.
There's little evidence of the acquisition, except for a patent granted to Apple that lists Ottocat co-founder Edwin Cooper as an inventor. The patent is titled "System and Method for Divisive Textual Clustering by Label Selection Using Variant-Weighted TFIDF," and clearly incorporates Ottocat's tech.
Tim Cook sent out a memo to all Apple employees today, pumping them up for their retail Apple Watch kickoff on Friday. While the device will not officially available until the 24th of this month, customers will be able to submit pre-orders and try on the wearable beginning on the 10th.
In the memo, obtained by 9to5Mac's Mark Gurman, Cook tells employees that tens of millions of people have watched their Apple Watch keynotes and developers have submitted over 1000 new apps and updates with support for the device. He also announces special employee pricing.
Ahead of its upcoming Code Asia conference, Foxconn granted tech publication Recode guided access to its manufacturing facility in Shenzhen, China where it assembles iPads, Macs and other products. We've seen similar behind-the-scenes reports in the past, but today's piece offers a current look at employee conditions inside one of Foxconn's largest factories.
During their tour, Recode says that it observed both the remnants of past tragedies and several signs of improvements. For instance, there are still nets atop of buildings to help prevent suicide jumps, and many buildings are still covered in rust and grime. But Foxconn has added several college-like amenities such as a track, multiple swimming pools and an Internet Cafe.
Apple has opened up early Apple Watch access to more developers ahead of its April 24 launch, reports the Financial Times. The company had previously allowed select, high profile developers to visit its Cupertino campus and use working versions of the device, but within the last two weeks it has expanded the offer to ~20 devs per day.
The program is huge for developers, allowing them to test their apps on a working device, rather than the Mac-based simulator Apple released last year. It's also very secretive, as entrants are asked to sign strict non-disclosure agreements, and forced to work in conference rooms draped with curtains and guarded by Apple security.
Boy, is LG Display on a roll today. Not only has the company's website inadvertently pre-announced a supposedly upcoming iMac refresh featuring an 8K resolution Retina screen, but a well-informed LG Display related official ostensibly said Apple is also “creating iPads with a 12-inch display,” based on a very power-efficient oxide LCD screen technology, Taiwanese publication ETNews reported Monday.
Oxide LCD, also known as IGZO, requires a fraction of power compared to LCD IPS screens on current iPads, while rendering more vibrant colors and deeper blacks with quick response times and high color saturation.
In a somewhat bizarre move, Apple supplier LG Display may have inadvertently leaked Apple's unannounced iMac whopping an 8K Retina screen, writing on its website last week that, I'm quoting, “Apple has also announced that they will release the ‘iMac 8K’ with a super-high resolution display later this year”.
Apple, of course, has not publicly announced plans for a new iMac update. LG Display is Apple's important supplier of desktop and mobile screens and the Cupertino company is known to have cut off suppliers who pre-announced its products. Neither LG nor Apple commented on the matter at post time.
It's been a busy weekend in Apple Watch news, so let's take a look, shall we?
To start, 9to5mac has given us an early look at the new Apple Watch-themed display that will be dressing Apple Stores across the world. We'll see the new display on April 10, coinciding with the launch of Apple Watch pre-orders and in-store try-on appointments for prospective users.
So you thought the new 4K television you paid ridiculous amounts of money for during Christmas was going to be supported by Apple soon enough? Sorry bud, maybe a couple more years.
Apple scoopster John Paczkowski of Buzzfeed reports that when Apple's next-generation Apple TV is released to the market later this year, it will lack 4K video capability, even as the television industry grasps onto the new technology that provides a more detailed and immersive viewing experience.