Apple

Rumor: Apple looking to acquire German television maker Loewe

There's been no shortage of talk regarding an Apple-branded TV set this year, as the entire television industry awaits the company's entry into the market. Everyone wants to see if it can do for TVs, what it's done for phones and tablets.

Well AppleInsider is adding more fuel to the fire today, as it's reporting that Apple is in talks to purchase Loewe AG, a German TV manufacturer. Apparently, the iPad-maker has put an offer up of $100+ million for the company...

Here’s Ashton Kutcher playing Steve Jobs

TMZ, a celebrity news site, just posted a set of nice photos depicting actor Ashton Kutcher dressed in Apple's late co-founder Steve Jobs' classic attire.

The image was allegedly taken as Kutcher was making his way to the set of an upcoming independently produced biopic aptly named Jobs: Get Inspired.

The flick is not to be confused with Sony's biopic entitled Steve Jobs: The Movie, based on Walter Isaacson's authorized bio book.

Here, have a look at Kutcher channeling Jobs and tell us what you think...

Apple renames ‘iPad Wi-Fi + 4G’ to ‘iPad Wi-Fi + Cellular’ in several countries

Well it looks like after months of fighting with the Australian government, and several other organizations, Apple has finally broken down and removed the '4G' branding from its tablet.

9to5Mac made the discovery just a few moments ago, pointing out that the one time named 'iPad Wi-FI + 4G' tablet model has been renamed to 'iPad Wi-Fi + Cellular' in Apple's online store...

Rumor: iOS 6 code-named Sundance, could bring third-party Siri support

Rumors regarding the next major version of Apple's mobile operating system have really picked up over the past few days. And considering that WWDC is now less than a month away, that's really not surprising.

You see, Apple is expected to show off iOS 6 (or at least a preview of it) during its Developer Conference next month. And everyone in the tech world is trying to guess what new features it will bring...

iPhone 5 not yet finalized but still set for October release

With the iPhone 5, next iPhone or whatever moniker Apple decides to give the next generation smartphone set to be released later this year, much of the discussion of late has centered around what that release will see brought to the table.

To date, for example, all iPhones have featured a 3.5-inch display while the Android-powered competition has seen huge variation in display sizes and technology over the last 48 months. Could the iPhone 5 see a new form factor, complete with new screen size? While possible, the suggestion now is that the intricacies of the iPhone 5 have yet to be finalized at Apple with less than six months to go until the handset is expected to begin shipping.

The latest claims come from iMore, whose sources appear to be confident that October is still the month we will be lining up outside our local Apple Stores, even if Apple itself doesn't quite know what the thing we are buying will look like...

AllThingsD confirms Apple will use its own mapping system in iOS 6

Earlier this morning, 9to5Mac reported that the next major release of iOS, expected to debut at WWDC next month, will include a completely redesigned Maps application. The report explained that this would be one of iOS 6's major new features.

While the site certainly has some credibility in the world of Apple rumors, it's always nice to get some corroboration from other sources. And we've just received that, from AllThingsD's Apple guru John Packzkowski...

Apple bringing Reminders and Notes web apps to iCloud?

Are you a developer? Have you visited the iCloud.com beta login page recently? In case you missed it, two new icons appeared at a beta login page for iCloud.com briefly before Apple took the beta page down. This clearly suggests Apple is working on bringing Notes and Reminders web apps to iCloud.

Folks also discovered references to an upcoming iOS 6 beta in the code strings for this iCloud beta page.

As we told you last week, Apple could be bringing iOS and Mac Notifications to the iCloud website. So it all makes sense now: Reminders and Notes apps, which are now available on iOS devices and are coming to Macs with Mountain Lion installed later this summer, will also be replicated on the iCloud web site along with web notifications.

Let's hope Apple will take the resulting notifications conundrum seriously...

Apple tells court Samsung ruined evidence

In an ongoing legal fray, Apple dealt another blow to Samsung, its key supplier of NAND flash chips, displays and processors for iPhones and iPads.

The iPhone maker has accused the international conglomerate of purposefully destroying documents that would have been advantageous to Apple's position.

Apple now wants the judge to instruct the jury as follows...

Adobe releases two new Touch apps for iPad, Proto and Collage

Photoshop maker today released two new iPad apps on the App Store, Adobe Proto and Adobe Collage. If you're fond of prototyping apps or programs that let you sketch ideas, and are a user of Adobe's CS suit of desktop applications, you may wanna consider these programs.

Both Proto and Collage tie nicely with Creative Cloud, Adobe's new subscription-based cloud service which syncs your content between tablet and desktop, letting you access files from the web and easily share with others...

Foxconn readying iTV manufacturing using Sharp’s cutting-edge display plant, CEO hints

Apple is working on a much-anticipated full-blown television set, Foxconn CEO hinted in a Friday interview with a Chinese newspaper. It should feature an aluminum body, Siri voice commands and a sophisticated camera for FaceTime video calling. Foxconn is the world's largest contract manufacturer and Apple's favorite partner that gets commissioned to assemble their products.

Oh, and remember when Foxconn recently acquired an eleven percent stake in Japanese giant Sharp? The deal led to a 50-50 joint venture concerning Sharp's cutting-edge display plant. Well, that was "one of the preparations made for the new device", Foxconn CEO said.

One of the preparations could also be Apple buying a stake in Foxconn. Also important, as we explained Apple is likely interested to tap Sharp’s technology to produce Indium Gallium Zinc Oxide (IGZO) panels for own-branded television set...

iOS 6 said to replace Google Maps with Apple’s own cutting-edge 3D Maps

If a new rumor is to be believed, iOS 6 - the next major release of Apple's iOS operating system powering the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad - will forgo Google Maps in favor of Apple's in-house mapping service based on incredible 3D maps. The headline new feature will still be called Maps.

However, this is where all similarities reportedly end. The iPhone maker is rumored to innovate Google-backed maps in iOS with an awesome 3D technology based on a declassified missile targeting technology. This in-house solution is said to offer "a much cleaner, faster and more reliable experience". More importantly, Apple's own mapping service will reduce their dependency on Google.

Moving from a Google Maps backend to an Apple backend is also important given that the two companies have been at odds ever since the search Goliath decided to challenge the iPhone with its Android platform...