Apple

Amazon Instant Video gets overhauled with iOS 7 styling

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 7, 2014

Amazon on Monday issued a new version of its Instant Video for iOS app. Available free in the App Store, the new Amazon Instant Video version 2.5 now finally features a brand new user interface on the iPhone and iPad which honors Apple's human interface guidelines for iOS 7 development.

Released initially for the iPad in August 2012 and later updated with iPhone UI, the app picked up support for background AirPlay wireless streaming to the Apple TV back in September 2013.

If you live in the Amazon cloud, Instant Video for iOS is your gateway to the world of Hollywood entertainment available on Amazon's video service. Today's facelift arrives after the online retail giant announced (and started selling on the same day) its own set-top box last week, the $99 Fire TV that does voice and runs games.

Read on to learn more...

What early iPhone 5 buyers wanted: stronger battery, better Maps, bigger screens and more

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 7, 2014

According to Apple's internal survey conducted with early iPhone 5 buyers, the company was well aware it didn't have what consumers wanted most, as far back as the Fall of 2012.

An internal research note from Apple’s lawsuit with Samsung, published by Business Insider reporter Jay Yarrow, indicates the one thing iPhone 5 buyers wanted most was longer battery life, hardly a surprise as the longer-lasting battery is the most frequently cited complaint among smartphone buyers in general.

Early iPhone 5 adopters were also asking for a much improved built-in Apple Maps application, the #2 item on the wish list, and a bigger screen as the third most often requested feature. We're of course expecting iPhones with bigger screens in the second half of this year.

If there's any substance to the rumors floating around, Apple is working on a 4.7-inch iPhone and another one with a screen measuring between five and 5.7 inches diagonally, although the latter model could be delayed over issues with in-cell production technology for the larger screen size...

Apple’s iPhone trade-in program extends to Germany

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 7, 2014

Apple's own iPhone trade-in program is now available across company-owned online and brick-and-mortar retail outlets in Germany. Now available via the Online Apple Store and through Apple's free Apple Store application for the iPhone and iPad, the initiative allows German shoppers to trade-in their existing device in good condition and receive a gift card worth up to €230, or about 315 in US dollars.

Like in the United States, German customers can then redeem the amount on the gift card against a new iPhone purchase to help bring down the upfront cost of the hardware. Your existing devices get disposed of in an environmentally friendly way instead of ending up in landfills...

Internal Apple slides explain why it thinks iPhone growth is slowing

Cody Lee ∙ April 6, 2014

Despite posting 50+ million iPhone sales last quarter, Apple's stock slid some 6%. As impressive as the numbers were, they still fell short of Wall Street expectations and reaffirmed fears of slowing growth. Apple's YoY (year-over-year) iPhone growth is now down to just single digits.

The question is why? And Apple has a pretty good idea of what the answer is. According to some internal documents brought to light by the ongoing Samsung trial, the company attributes the slowing in iPhone growth to consumer want for larger, cheaper handsets and other factors...

Steve Jobs email reveals past Apple TV ideas: apps, ‘magic wand’ remote and more

Cody Lee ∙ April 5, 2014

We're only a few days in, but we've already learned a lot from the Apple-Samsung patent trial. With it being a legal proceeding, the public is given access to information it wasn't previously privi'ed to by way of executive testimonies, corporate emails and other evidence.

In fact, earlier today a particularly interesting email surfaced from former Apple CEO Steve Jobs. The document, which was submitted as evidence in the case, features a list of things Jobs wanted to discuss at the company's 2010 'top 100' meeting, including the Apple TV...

Apple engineer explains how the iPhone was designed for ‘normal people’

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 16, 2018

The Samsung trial marched on today, with Apple's Greg Christie taking the stand. You might remember Christie, the senior software engineer, from this WSJ article last month, where he detailed some of the early stages of original iPhone development. And this afternoon, he did the same thing in court.

More specifically, Christie shared some new details on the development of the iPhone's 'Slide to Unlock,' which is one of the patents that Apple's accusing Samsung of infringing. He said initially, his team wanted the handset's display to be always on, but they quickly discovered it needed a locked mode...

Apple settles patent infringement suit with Intertrust Technologies

Cody Lee ∙ April 4, 2014

Apple has reached an out-of-court settlement with Interest Technologies this week. The holding company, which is jointly owned by tech giants Sony and Philips, filed a lawsuit against the iPad-maker last year for allegedly infringing on more than two dozen of its patents on distributed computing.

The original suit didn't layout specifically which patents Intertrust was accusing Apple of infringing, but the company counts digital rights management (or DRM) tech among its inventions. So it's not too surprising that the two sides notified the court on Tuesday that a settlement had been reached...

Tim Cook made $74M last year, the highest among all tech CEOs except Zuckerberg

Cody Lee ∙ April 4, 2014

Apple CEO Tim Cook doesn't have an easy job. Not only is he in charge of one of the largest companies in the world, but he has to do so in the shadow of one of the most highly regarded executives of our generation, amidst constant criticism from those that say Apple's best days are behind it.

No need to worry though, Tim is well compensated. According to a new report, he took home $4.3 million in salary and incentives last year, and another $70 million in vested stock options. All told, Cook banked more than any other tech CEO in 2013 except for Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg...

Apple’s PRODUCT (RED) contributions top $70 million

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 4, 2014

Product Red - styled as (PRODUCT)RED - is a marketing brand licensed to other companies, established in 2006 by U2 frontman and activist, Bono, together with Bobby Shriver of the ONE/DATA, with the goal of raising awareness and funds to help eliminate HIV/AIDS in Africa.

The initiative earns money on each participating Product Red sale and proceeds go straight to The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

Apple's been one of Product Red backers since its inception, thanks mostly to late Steve Jobs who was on good terms with Bono. Product Red today announced that Apple's contributions to the charity have reached a cool $70 million...

Meet Project Ara, Google’s modular smartphone

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 28, 2019

Last October, Motorola’s Advanced Technology and Projects (ATAP) group, then a subsidiary of Google, announced an interesting partnership with PhoneBloks with the goal of creating highly modular smartphones that customers could build and update themselves much like LEGO bricks.

Basically a free, open hardware platform, Project Ara calls for a structural metal endoskeleton frame designed to hold a bunch of different items in place.

Swappable parts would include commonly used phone components like a display, keyboard, battery, electrical components, cameras and custom 3D-printed module enclosures. The audacious idea behind Project Ara is to allow folks to easily swap out malfunctioning modules or replace components with better parts as technology evolves.

Those who custom-build PCs will know what I'm talking about. It's interesting that the 100 engineers strong ATAP group, led by former DARPA director Regina Dugan, was not included in Google's sale of Motorola to Lenovo and instead got folded into Google’s Android team to work under the direction of Android's new head, Sundar Pichai.

Today, Google posted a video providing a glimpse into the DIY smartphone project, ahead of the first Ara Development Conference which runs April 15-16 at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California...

Samsung one step closer to commercializing ultrathin graphene screens for wearables

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 4, 2014

Samsung has been the world's largest maker of LCD panels since 2002. By 2004, the conglomerate was the world's top manufacturer of OLED panels accounting for a 40 percent market share worldwide and as of 2010 has a commanding 98 percent share of the global AMOLED market.

Small wonder that Apple used to source most of its screens for iOS devices from Samsung up until 2012, when Tim Cook & Co. began slowly shifting display orders away from the Galaxy maker amid the ongoing patent spat.

But Samsung is not standing still. According to a report by The Wall Street Journal Friday, the Galaxy maker has claimed significant progress on graphene, described as the next wonder material...

Must-see: Apple’s breathtaking Istanbul store

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

With grand opening of Apple's first retail store in Turkey confirmed for this coming Saturday, Apple dispatched Steve Cano, its Vice President of Retail Operations, to Istanbul to show off the structure's incredible architecture and design to the press.

Although CEO Tim Cook and Turkish President Abdullah Gül were not in attendance, the significance of this particular store, Apple’s 424th, can't be overstated. If you've been following Apple's retail efforts, you're familiar with the look and feel of the company's flagship retail locations, often likened to the shrines attracting devotees who worship Apple's sexy products there.

But starting with the recently redesigned Stanford 2 store in North California, Apple has seemingly adopted a fresh new design language for its brick-and-mortar locations, now focused on the 100 percent seamless glass appearance with lots of open space so visitors feel like they're part of the surrounding landscape.

The new Turkish store is a continuation of this trend and you really need to see the photographs to truly appreciate what Apple has accomplished here...