Apple

WWDC roundup: what to expect from Apple’s keynote

Cody Lee ∙ June 1, 2014

We're now less than 24 hours away from Apple's highly anticipated WWDC 2014 keynote. Beginning at 10 AM PST tomorrow, Tim Cook and other executives will take the stage at the Moscone Center in San Francisco to give us all a glimpse of the company's future.

We don't know exactly what's going to be talked about, outside of new versions of OS X and iOS, but the rumor mill has provided us with a bevy of possibilities. So, as we do every year, we've put together a roundup of all the things we're expecting Apple to announce...

Five things the Galaxy S5 does better than the iPhone 5s… and vice versa

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 17, 2018

The Galaxy S5 has been my go-to device and my daily driver over the last month or so. I know that may seem like blasphemy since I write for iDownloadBlog, but I have a lot of reasons for doing so.

For starters, I wanted to become more familiar with the competition. I already had a good sense about Samsung's offerings and Android in general, but nothing can replace hands-on usage and the balanced perspective that comes with that.

If I wanted to seriously be able to take an objective look at Apple and at Samsung, and at iOS and Android, then I would need to have a better understanding of competing devices. What better device to help develop such an understanding than what is arguably the iPhone's biggest competitor, the Galaxy S5?

Since I've acquired one, I've mostly been enjoying my time with the GS5. In fact, I've traveled to South Korea, home of Samsung, which has made my perspective about the whole competition even more well-rounded. With all of this in mind, I wanted to compile a list of some of the things that I enjoy about the Samsung Galaxy S5. These are five things that I believe that the GS5 does better than Apple's flagship iPhone 5s. Afterwards, I'll do a reverse comparison, and tell you what I think the iPhone does better. Want to see which items made the cut? Check inside for the details.

Designer’s book ‘Keep it Simple’ highlights early Apple phone and tablet prototypes

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 17, 2018

In a follow-up to his 2012 book 'Design Forward,' industrial designer Hartmut Esslinger released 'Keep it Simple' late last year. The book talks about the collaboration between Esslinger and Steve Jobs during the mid-80s, which led to the creation of several iconic Apple products.

For a little context, Esslinger founded the design firm 'Frog' in 1969, which was contracted by Apple in 1982. Most notably, the firm developed the 'Snow White' design language for Cupertino company, but it was also responsible for designer a number of lesser known prototypes...

How the Apple-Beats deal affects HP, AT&T and others

Joe Rossignol ∙ Updated June 6, 2018

If you haven't been following the latest news, it is a prerequisite to know that Apple has acquired Beats for $3 billion before reading further. The announcement has created a lot of confusion in regards to what the acquisition means for Beats and existing partnerships with the brand. Just to be clear, Beats collectively refers to both Beats Electronics, which markets high-end headphones, speakers and audio software, and the streaming music service Beats Music.

Prior to being acquired, Beats had several partnerships with other brands, including companies that are direct competitors with Apple. Most notable is Hewlett-Packard, which uses Beats Audio branding and technologies in its product lineup. AT&T has an exclusive deal with Beats Music to sell subscriptions and an unlimited music downloading family plan, and design firm Ammunition has a partnership to create Beats products. Even HTC has been in the mix.

Read ahead to find out how the Apple-Beats deal affects all of these deals…

Apple’s longtime PR chief Katie Cotton retires

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 17, 2018

As Apple announced earlier this month, its vice president of worldwide corporate communications Katie Cotton has left the company. According to a report from Recode, today was the last day of her 18-year tenure in Cupertino.

Cotton was a polarizing figure in the tech world. Tasked with being the media gatekeeper for one of the most secretive companies in the world, she was known for her aggressive protection of Apple and tight control over information...

Luca Maestri officially begins work as Apple’s new CFO

Cody Lee ∙ Updated November 3, 2017

If you don't know the name of the guy in the picture, you should probably learn it. That is Luca Maestri, and he is Apple's latest Senior Vice President. Maestri used to be the company's Corporate Controller, and is now its Chief Financial Officer.

Apple announced in March that its long-time CFO Peter Oppenheimer would be retiring this year, and Maestri would be taking his place. And according to SEC paperwork filed today, he officially became Oppenheimer's successor as of May 29th...

Trademark filings discovered for Healthbook, HealthKit and iResearch

Cody Lee ∙ May 30, 2014

With Apple's WWDC keynote now just a few days away, speculation regarding what the company will announce on Monday is heating up. We saw the iOS 8 and OS X banners earlier today, and now we have some mysterious trademark filings.

The folks over at MacRumors have discovered several trademark applications related to the term 'Healthbook,' which is a new app rumored for iOS 8. The documents don't say they were filed by Apple, but looking at the clues, it's fairly obvious...

OS X Yosemite could be unveiled at WWDC on Monday

Cody Lee ∙ May 30, 2014

Apple is continuing to decorate the Moscone Center this afternoon ahead of next week's Worldwide Developers Conference. Earlier today we saw water-covered banners go up for iOS 8, and now we have an image of the inaugural OS X 10.10 banner.

As you can see in the image above, the sign consists of a large X in front of a mountainous background. It's believed this is actually the 'El Capitan' rock formation in Yosemite national park, which would suggest Apple is calling the 10.10 update 'Yosemite.'

Concept imagines how Apple could implement Home screen widgets in iOS

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 30, 2014

Ah, the widgets. Among the defining Android features, widgets regularly find themselves on top of many people's wish list for iOS. Apple does not provide iOS widget functionality, though it's a non-issue to folks who are jailbroken thanks to literally hundreds, if not thousands, of widgets in Cydia.

I guess you could go as far as saying widgets are one of the prime allures of jailbreaking. While no one outside Apple can't really tell whether or not the company will ever allow widgets into the App Store, we can always speculate: there's (some) hope for widgets in iOS as Tim Cook alluded to opening up iOS a little bit more for third party developers in the future.

Until that day comes, non-jailbreakers are stuck with a bunch of concepts. Enter Jay Machalani, the brains behind this remarkable concept envisioning widgets in iOS. 'iOS Blocks', as he calls them, resemble Live Tiles in Windows and can be moved around and placed anywhere on the Home screen with a simple gesture...

Watch the full Eddy Cue and Jimmy Iovine interview at Code Conference

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 30, 2014

Having originally anticipated sending its online services and software engineering chiefs, Eddy Cue and Craig Federighi, to speak at Recode.net's Recode Conference, Apple's changed its mind after announcing the $3 billion Beats buy and has opted to dispatch Beats co-founder and music mogul Jimmy Iovine instead of Craig.

My colleague Cody has published several articles covering the two men's appearance at the conference. Based on a couple video snippets Recode published earlier this week, we've heard that Apple’s best product pipeline in 25 years is coming later in 2014, learned about the latest iTunes stats and gotten amused by Eddy Cue's opinion on the current state of TV (in short, it "sucks").

The interview is now available for streaming straight from Recode and I've included the full video for your viewing pleasure right after the break...

New Japan Apple Store features eco-friendly ‘green’ wall for climate control

Cody Lee ∙ May 30, 2014

Last week, Apple's Lisa Jackson spoke at the Fortune Brainstorm Green conference about the company's efforts to reduce its carbon footprint. She noted that all of its data centers run on renewable energy, and it's working toward a similar goal with its retail stores.

And today we get a glimpse of those efforts with photos of a new Apple Store in Tokyo, Japan. The store, which is expected to open next month, features an eco-friendly design with a curtain of thick vines on at least one wall that will help control the store's climate...

Item printing resurrected in 1Password for iOS, iTunes backups added

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 13, 2018

1Password by AgileBits, one of the finest password management utilities on iOS and OS X, has received an update in the App Store today.

For starters, the new version 4.5.2 brings back the item printing feature after previously being removed. Next, this edition of 1Password adds another syncing option, in addition to Dropbox and iCloud: iTunes.

This allows you to store backups of your passwords, notes, credit cards and other private information as local files that can be accessed and copied to your computer using the iTunes File Sharing feature. You should also experience faster syncing and more reliable performance overall.

1Password for the iPhone and iPad is $17.99 in the App Store...