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Élyse Betters

Apple leads global PC shipments with 19 percent share, primarily due to the new iPad

Élyse Betters Aug 1 2012 - 8:02 am PT

Global client PC shipments rose 12 percent year-on-year in Q2 2012, with the new iPad recognized as the primary influence on growth rates, according to the latest data report from Canalys, who treat the iPad as a PC (and with the ability to operate without being tethered and to use external keyboards and monitors and the like, why wouldn’t you?)

Apple lead the overall charge, boosted by strong iPad sales, with an estimated 19 percent share of global PC shipments. Canalys explained:

Growth in pads more than compensated for disappointing sales of Ultrabooks. The new iPad had the biggest single impact on growth rates in the quarter, but Asus and Samsung made progress with their Transformer and Galaxy Tab product lines. Total pad shipments increased 75% to 24 million units, representing 22% of all PCs.

“There is now a large base of replacement buyers that simply must have the latest Apple product, and the decision to continue shipping the iPad 2 at lower price points has opened up new customers, for example in education,” added Canalys Research Analyst Tom Evans.

Samsung lead as the “Android pad vendor” in Q2. It more than doubled its Galaxy Tab shipments compared to Q2 2011, and Canalys said the company is “Apple’s chief challenger” in the tablet sector.

Get the full report at Canalys.

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Apple vs. Samsung: Opening Statements in the (Patent) trial of the century

Élyse Betters Jul 31 2012 - 2:21 pm PT

Apple and Samsung appeared in a San Jose federal court today, where U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh presides, to give opening statements starting at 9 a.m. PST.

Apple filed the first suit in this monumental case in April 2011. The Cupertino, Calif.-based company claimed Samsung infringed its patents by “slavishly copying” its iPhone. Samsung, a South Korea-based Company, promptly countersued.

This is one of the important cases to go to trial among a slew of other litigations on smartphone patents. If Apple wins, Samsung could suffer a financial blow and the ability to sell its infringing products in a large market. If Apple loses, its “thermonuclear war” against Android smartphone manufacturers could essentially wither away as Samsung collects royalty fees.

This morning’s most notable highlights are below (continually updated).

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Small number of users report total iCloud email loss, Apple working on the problem (Update: Apple acknowledges)

Élyse Betters Jul 31 2012 - 10:24 am PT

A discussion thread on Apple’s support forum appeared last night from a user who claimed all of his iCloud content disappeared without warning. A further glimpse at the following comments revealed the same situation occurred for a number of iCloud users.

One commenter, npascual, said an Apple support representative “acknowledged last night’s outage,” and then suggested the user “turn off all iCloud-related services on my iPad (Mail, Contacts, Calendars, etc.), wait a bit then turn them back on.” The representative apparently indicated “everything would return after a short period of re-synching.” However, npascual noted it had been a few hours since the call without any repair.

Check out the full thread here.

9to5Mac reached out to Apple on this matter, and we will update when more is known.

@9to5mac thanks having major issues here.

— Kyle Duffield (@KyleJDuffield) July 31, 2012

UPDATE: Well, Apple is owning up to the problem, according to its System Status page, but the company is neglecting to give an explanation as to what is happening.

More thread comments are below.

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AAPL Company

President Obama and Mitt Romney launch new iOS apps [Video]

Élyse Betters Jul 31 2012 - 7:45 am PT

[slideshow]

It would not be a modern political race without a couple new apps from the President and his Republican challenger, and the campaigns behind both parties are eager to spread the word with information-laced tech now that Election Day is less than 100 days away.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nafYT7_i4as&feature=player_embedded]

A new Obama for America app for iOS landed yesterday, with the Android counterpart coming soon, and it essentially provides users with facts on President Barack Obama’s policies, help for finding local events, coverage of breaking news, information for volunteering, and access to voting and registration rules by state.

Check it out: Obama for America by The Democratic Party | Free

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AAPL Company

In Soviet Russia, Apple is dictatorship to carriers?

Élyse Betters Jul 31 2012 - 7:11 am PT

Apple and carriers make sure the iPhone is subsidized in the United States, even though it still costs a pretty penny, but a new report by Bloomberg shows Americans should probably be grateful.

Russia does not have the same subsidized iPhone pricing, so its 64 GB iPhone 4S costs roughly $1242 USD through the country’s largest carrier, OAOMobile TeleSystems, otherwise known as MTS. The 8 GB iPhone 4, which will soon be two generations outdated, boasts a hefty $800 USD price tag.

“They’re more in a dictatorship mode where they say, ‘This is what you have to do or you don’t get the iPhone,’” said MTS Vice President of Marketing Vasyl Latsanych to Bloomberg. “Being arrogant with your partners in big markets doesn’t pay off.”

MTS Vice President for Strategy and Corporate Development Michael Hecker explained Russia’s smartphones penetration is slated to jump from 15.4-percent in Q1 2012 to 60 percent by the end of 2014.

“If Apple showed more flexibility then they would have a higher penetration in our markets,” contended Hecker.

As TechCrunch noted, Apple CEO Tim Cook dodged questions about the iPhone’s steep price in emerging markets during the Q3 2012 earnings call. The executive reiterated “great products” as the company’s goal when developing those regions.

Apple Senior Vice President of Industrial Design Jony Ive made similar comments during yesterday’s Creative Summit across the pond, where he said revenue does not drive the folks in Cupertino—but rather “great products” do. He explained the company is “pleased with revenues,” and its goal is again not “to make money.”

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Some Mountain Lion Tips and Tricks

Élyse Betters Jul 30 2012 - 1:22 pm PT

Mountain Lion eyed over 3 million downloads in just four days, but those early adopters were even more quick to notice a few unfavorable tweaks in Apple’s latest OS. Have no fear, though. We have a brief tips and tricks resource guide below.
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AAPL Company

Apps and updates: Djay, Where’s My Water?, Jurassic Park Builder, Scanner Pro, and more

Élyse Betters Jul 30 2012 - 1:00 pm PT

[slideshow]

A slew of apps updated today, and 9to5Mac gathered the most noteworthy ones in our regular round up below. Today’s crop includes new additions to popular iOS games, a Mac app going Retina, and improvements to productivity and entertainment apps. Per usual, we will continue to update this list throughout the day.

Check them out:

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WSJ: 40 percent of device thefts in NYC are Apple, including a jaw-busting iPad from our own reporter

Élyse Betters Jul 30 2012 - 8:41 am PT

[tweet https://twitter.com/SuzanneKellyCNN]

The Federal Communications Commission revealed last spring that 40 percent of all major city robberies now involve smartphones, but New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said over the weekend that same figure now applies to Apple product-related thefts in New York City, and the Wall Street Journal’s Rolfe Winkler should know first hand, as he was attacked recently while toting an iPad in Brooklyn.

According to the Winkler:

We were buried in an e-book when the subway doors opened at the Bergen Street stop in Brooklyn. In a flash, a pair of hands dove into my date’s lap and ripped away her iPad. Chasing the guy was instinctive. But he had a crew backing him up that I never saw. Instead of winning back the iPad, I found myself lying on the platform bleeding, my jaw split in half.

Winkler then cited a 2011 report from the New York Police Department to detail what he dubbed as “iCrime wave” statistics:

How big is the iCrime wave? National data aren’t available, but in New York, there were more than 26,000 incidents of electronics theft in the first 10 months of 2011—81% involving mobile phones—according to an internal police-department document. In Washington, D.C., cellphone-related robberies jumped 54% from 2007 to 2011, according to the Metropolitan Police Department. And the data may drastically undercount thefts. Since many don’t involve violence, many victims don’t bother reporting them.

Major theft of Apple devices is not limited to New York, however. In May, one notable woman, now known as the “iThief,” stole over 100 iPads across Texas-based Walmarts. The retail giant even caught her on video—check it out.

Retail crime is not as menacing as violent ones, though, such as the case from earlier this month, where several masked assailants carrying assault rifles overtook a truckload of Apple products passing through Aulnay-sous-Bois in Paris.

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Samsung objects to ‘gratuitous’ images of Steve Jobs in trial, prefers thermonuclear quotes instead

Élyse Betters Jul 30 2012 - 8:00 am PT

Samsung vehemently objected to pictures of Steve Jobs in Apple’s opening slides for today’s massive trial, but U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh struck down the objections over the weekend.

The South Korea-based smartphone manufacturer claimed the “gratuitous images have no evidentiary value,” as it filed 14 objections to Apple’s opening slides.

The company further noted, as FOSS Patents reported, if Apple is given permission to use these slides, Samsung will “request that the Court allow it to use the quotes from Mr. Jobs — which do have nonprejudicial evidentiary value — and yet were excluded by the Court’s ruling on Apple’s Motion in Limine No. 7.”

In other words, Samsung wants to use the “thermonuclear war” quotes from Walter Isaacson’s “Steve Jobs biography” if Apple can use images of the company’s late founder. The contentious quotes from the biography were previously deemed hearsay and inadmissible in this litigation.

According to FOSS Patents, Apple explained the use of the pitcures in its responsive filing:

Three of the images are “from a joint exhibit – 1091 (the MacWorld 2007 video), which Samsung itself relies on in its opening demonstratives (at Samsung slide no. 148)”, so “Samsung cannot complain about Apple’s use of the same video” that shows “the public introduction of the iPhone on January 7, 2007, which launched the fame that the iPhone trade dress has acquired”. Also, “[b]ecause they demonstrate Apple’s notice of the 200+ patents covering the iPhone — including the asserted patents, they thus are relevant to willfulness”.

Another slide refers to an exhibition relating to Steve Jobs’s patents, which was organized by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. “Among the highlighted patents at the PTO exhibit are at least two patents at issue in this litigation — the D’677 and D’889” — and Apple argues that “[t]he Patent Office exhibit demonstrates praise by others to rebut non-obviousness”.

The fifth image of Steve Jobs in the presentation is “a screenshot from the announcement of the iPad in July 2010” and, therefore, “relevant to the introduction of the iPad and its acquisition of fame and secondary meaning”, Apple says.

Judge Koh overruled Samsung’s objections on Sunday and said the images are “relevant to Apple’s iPhone design patent and trade dress claims and is not unduly prejudicial.”

Get the full report at FOSS Patents.

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New York State audit reveals that MTA gave Apple unfair advantage in Grand Central Store bidding

Élyse Betters Jul 30 2012 - 6:41 am PT

New York state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli’s latest audit suggested the Metropolitan Transportation Authority gave Apple an unfair advantage last year when the company bid for a spot in Grand Central Terminal.

According to The New York Post:

A fresh audit by state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli says the MTA last May allowed the California-based tech giant to set a daunting hurdle for rival bidders to clear in a tight, 30-day window — namely, that they be willing to front $5 million in cash.

“The competitive process followed by MTA . . . was at a minimum severely slanted toward Apple,” reads the report, submitted to MTA officials Friday and expected to be made public today.

DiNapoli’s report notes that Apple had been in private talks with the MTA for more than two years leading up to the bidding process.

In a saucy move that was rejected by the MTA, Apple even tried to get reimbursed by taxpayers for the initial $2 million it had paid the restaurant Metrazur to vacate the balcony atop the historic commuter hub, the report found — a deal that ultimately was worth $5 million.

MTA Chairman and CEO Joseph Lhota told The New York Post that DiNapoli’s report is overtly “bias against the MTA and Apple,” and he said the audit is “not fact-based, and, accordingly, their opinion is worthless.”

“The MTA’s lease process with Apple was open, transparent and followed both the spirit and letter of the law,” Lhota contended.

Apple opened its doors in Grand Central’s last winter and pays $1.1 million in rent for 2012, which the audit noted is below market, and the company notably does not share a percentage of its sales with the MTA. It is the only retailer at the station with such a deal.

On the plus side, there is an awesome Apple Store with free Wi-Fi in Grand Central Station!

[The full audit does not appear to be online as of press time.]

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Apple SVP of Design Jony Ive speaks on Apple’s design process and the ‘Bankruptcy Days’

Élyse Betters Jul 30 2012 - 6:29 am PT

Senior Vice President of Industrial Design Jonathan Ive spoke at the British Embassy’s Creative Summit this morning about Apple’s design focus, and Wired was on hand to get the report.

The Apple executive primarily described how revenue does not drive the folks in Cupertino but rather “great products” do. He noted the company is “pleased with revenues,” and its goal is again not “to make money.”

“It sounds a little flippant, but it’s the truth. Our goal and what makes us excited is to make great products,” said Ive. “If we are successful people will like them and if we are operationally competent, we will make money.”

Ive made similar comments on the day of his Knighting [audio] and to Walter Isaacson for the “Steve Jobs” Bio. Moreover, Tim Cook has reiterated Apple’s great products goal many times since he took the reigns as CEO.

Ive also recounted at the summit Apple’s bankruptcy days. He said Steve Jobs recognized Apple products needed to be better, so that is where the chief’s attention remained instead of trying to earn money.

He explained how, in the 90s, Apple was very close to bankruptcy and that “you learn a lot about vital corporations through non-vital corporations”. When Steve Jobs returned to the company in 1997, his focus was not on making money — “His observation was that the products weren’t good enough. His resolve was to make better products.” This was a different approach from other attempts to turn the company around, which had focused first and foremost on cost savings and revenue generation.

According to Wired, Ive then detailed how thrilled he feels to “be a part of the creative process”:
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Obama’s campaign dropping 72 percent more than Romney’s on Apple products

Élyse Betters Jul 27 2012 - 12:15 pm PT

U.S. President Barack Obama’s campaign spent over one-third of a million dollars on Apple products since the election began in 2011.

Obama for America forked over $353,000, according to official expenditure reports filed with the Federal Election Commission, and Dow Jones’ Joseph Walker promptly noted that amount could snag 1,780 new iPhones or 176 new MacBook Airs.

Romney’s campaign spent just $99,000 on Apple products during the same period.

Walker further correlated the campaign spending to donor contributions:

Overall, the tech community seems to be firmly in favor of re-electing Obama when it comes to opening up their wallets, according to contributor filings. Obama has raised $950,000 from the Big Five tech giants, compared to Romney’s $123,040. Apple employees seem to favor President Obama by a margin of 15 to 1. Campaign contributions from donors identifying themselves as Apple employees total $121,305, compared to the $8,175 donated to Romney.

Get the full report at FINS Technology.

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IDC: Samsung ships twice as many phones as Apple in Q2

Élyse Betters Jul 27 2012 - 11:15 am PT

The IDC’s latest numbers mirror yesterday’s figures from Juniper Research.

One of the report’s main headliners is that phones are shipping faster than in previous years. About 406 million units shipped in Q2 2012—up from 401.8 million units in Q2 2011. Smartphone shipments also eyed a large year-over-year increase with a 42 percent gain.

The other big news bit concerns Samsung and Apple. The tech giants doubled their combined market share in just two years. Samsung, in particular, hit a new quarterly record after shipping 50 million phones in Q2, where as Apple shipped half as many iPhones during the same time. The Cupertino, Calif.-based Company suffered a quarter-over-quarter decline just six months after its latest iPhone unveiling.

IDC explained the widening gap:

Samsung extended its lead over Apple during the second quarter, taking advantage of Apple’s release schedule and launching its flagship Galaxy S III. In addition, Samsung experienced continued success of its smartphone/tablet hybrid device, the Galaxy Note. As a result, Samsung topped the 50 million unit mark and reached a new quarterly smartphone shipment record in a single quarter. What remains to be seen is how the company’s smartphones will fare against Apple’s next-generation iPhone expected later this year.

Apple posted an expected sequential decline last quarter, similar to years past. The quarter-over-quarter shipment decline came six months after it unveiled its latest iPhone. The decline is not unusual as iPhone shipment volume is highest in the first two quarters after its release. The company’s once-a-year release cycle usually results in two quarters of lower volumes leading up to the next-generation model introduction. Nonetheless, Apple made significant inroads into new markets and segments, including smaller regional carriers and prepaid service providers.

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Tech Industry

Gas leak at (Dell, RIM, HTC &) Apple MacBook casings manufacturer Catcher injures 5

Élyse Betters Jul 27 2012 - 7:31 am PT

A chlorine gas leak at one of Apple’s Chinese supplier plants reportedly killed one person and left four others in comas late last night.

According to The Financial Times (via Xinhua Net), the deadly accident occurred at a Catcher Technology factory in eastern China. The company manufactures MacBook casings, as well as product casings for HTC, RIM, and others, and it confirmed late Thursday that the gas allegedly leaked during wastewater processing.

“The accident happened at the waste disposal facility and is not directly related to any manufacturing process, factory, or materials,” said Catcher Vice President of Corporate Finance James Wu in a statement to Reuters.

Another Catcher plant in Suzhou temporarily closed in October 2011 due to local residents who complained about bad odors emitting from the plant. The factory resumed processes within 10 days, however.

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AAPL Company

9to5Google: Fiber in KC, Talk outage, handwriting search, 3D maps, and more

Élyse Betters Jul 26 2012 - 11:40 am PT

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffHLIZh0PHg&feature=player_embedded]

There is a lot of interesting Google news that occurred today—most, of which, has Apple-related ties– and is covered on our sister site 9to5Google.com. [feed] [Twitter]

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uyeJXKfAcpc&feature=player_embedded]

Check out the top stories below.

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Apple granted stay on posting Samsung ads on its site and newspapers

Élyse Betters Jul 26 2012 - 10:07 am PT

9to5Mac reported earlier this month that a U.K. Judge ruled Apple must publicly state Samsung did not copy the iPad design, but a London court ordered a stay today until the company’s appeal is heard this fall.

According to Bloomberg:

Apple Inc. won’t immediately have to publish a notice on its U.K. website that Samsung Electronics Co. didn’t copy its iPad tablet, a London court ruled today.
Apple was ordered earlier this month to put a note on its U.K. site and buy advertisements in British newspapers to alert customers to a court ruling that Samsung hadn’t copied the iPad’s design. Cupertino, California-based Apple appealed saying it didn’t want to advertise for its rival. The order is stayed until its appeal against the ruling is heard in October.

Apple’s public statements, if the appeal is rejected, will appear as a message on its website and in British newspapers.

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Apple accidentally issues OS X Server codes for Mountain Lion Up-to-Date program

Élyse Betters Jul 26 2012 - 9:52 am PT

Apple officially enabled its Up-to-Date program after launching the new operating system, but some who tried to receive their free upgrade to OS X Mountain Lion immediately ran into problems. Many redemption codes were apparently coming up invalid, so Apple said it would replace the invalid codes over the next three days.

At least a half dozen commenters in the MacRumors Forum claim Apple sent the replacement codes today, but, unfortunately, the codes are for the “OS X Server components of Mountain Lion rather than Mountain Lion itself.” One commenter specifically said an error message appeared that warned the “OSX Server cannot be downloaded”:

[tweet https://twitter.com/snackdog/status/228534270673698816]
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Apple has a lot more NFC ideas than just a Wallet app

Élyse Betters Jul 26 2012 - 8:24 am PT

9to5Mac reported last month that prototypes of the next iPhone contained Near Field Communications hardware. The tech could obviously be used with the PassBook app to create some wallet-type functionality, but that is just the tip of the iceberg.

The US Patent & Trademark Office published more patent applications today from Apple that indicated the company envisioned much more NFC capabilities than a Wallet app. The company apparently filed the applications between 2009 and 2010, and the graphics depict an iPhone interacting and controlling everything from a television and DVR to a standalone camera and a projector.

Patently Apple detailed the patent applications:

Our report mainly focuses on the new system as it relates to an iDevice controlling and interacting with a possible standalone television in addition to an expanded version of Apple’s current Apple TV styled device. The updated Apple TV could one day control cable or satellite television programming and video game play via a video game controller. This would really be a boost for Apple if users were able to play high end RPG video styled games with a standard styled controller. Further, Apple’s invention runs deep and they envision NFC ready iDevices being able to control standalone cameras, projectors, in-home security systems, lawn sprinkler systems, your thermostat, garage door and more. One of these fine days, future iDevices will finally support NFC; and when they do – watch out, because Apple will open the floodgates and release a new generation of applications noted in this report and others like their forthcoming iWallet. Will Apple’s next generation iPhone 5 finally be the one that will introduce NFC? Only time will tell.

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Apple reports ‘best quarter ever’ in Q3 for US education institution Mac sales

Élyse Betters Jul 24 2012 - 2:06 pm PT

Chief Executive Tim Cook and CFO Peter Oppenheimer are live on Apple’s Q3 2012 call to give opening remarks, and the execs just revealed Apple saw its best quarter ever for U.S. education institution Mac sales. Rutherford County, N.C., for instance, purchased 6,000 MacBook Airs.

Other education-related statistics:

— 14 million iTunes U downloads, 700,000 new schools, and 750 new courses
— iPad 2 in K-12 market particularly strong—nearly doubling y-o-y (Apple sold 17 million iPads in Q3 2012, compared to 9.2 million in Q3 2011).

Oppenheimer said the iPad 2 price drop to $399 helped in education—sold twice as many iPads to U.S. schools as Macs during the quarter. About 11,000 iPads, for instance, were bought in Mansfield, Texas for students and teachers.

Regarding the iPad in education, Cook later added: “We have been very aggressive in this space, and I don’t see changing that.” The chief also noted the sales of the iPad in education are something he has “never seen.” He then addressed the education system’s typically “conservative spending,” but he explained Apple is “not seeing that at all with the iPad.”

Cook further mentioned he saw “hundreds of tablets come to market in the last year and have yet to see any of them gain traction.”

Apple’s financial results conference call to discuss Q3 2012 earnings is now underway, and 9to5Mac is live-blogging as company execs readily detail figures for the quarter. The call’s audio webcast and earnings release are available on Apple’s Investor Relations website.

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Report: Apple barely spends $500K lobbying in Q2, while Google soars past $5M

Élyse Betters Jul 23 2012 - 7:58 am PT

The congressional lobbying disclosure reports for Q2 2012 are available, and Apple is far behind Google in terms of money spent lobbying.

Fortune’s Philip Elmer-DeWitt reported that “Google has outspent Apple nearly 10 to one,” and he noted which bills Apple is giving the most attention:

The list is long, and it ranges from the Do Not Track Kids Act of 2011 to “issues related to the transportation of batteries.” Given the latest kerfuffle about Apple’s temporary withdrawal from the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool program a couple weeks ago, I was interested to see “EPEAT” on the list.

Google also took an active interest in environment, with its specific lobbying issues pertaining to “renewable energy policies.”

Apple’s report is here, while Google’s report is here.

This article is cross-posted on 9to5Google.

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Australian airliner moves to iPhones for business, iPads for pleasure

Élyse Betters Jul 20 2012 - 11:33 am PT

Australian airline Qantas previously announced it is dropping BlackBerry in favor of Apple’s iPhone and issuing iPads to pilots, but now it is rolling out iPads to passengers to compliment a new in-flight entertainment streaming service.

Qantas is abandoning RIM due to a recently conducted employee survey that indicated airline staffers prefer Apple’s smartphone offering. CIO Paul Jones told The Sydney Morning Herald that the iPhone offers a “user-friendly interface and simple access to emails, contacts and calendars, as well as meeting all Qantas’ security requirements.”

Staff members can also carry Android devices under the airline’s bring-your-own-device policy. The move to Apple’s iPhone will save Qantas millions of dollars, as will transitioning to the iPad to replace costly paper in the cockpit, according to NewStraitTimes. The airline will dole 2,200 iPads to pilots to improve communication and cutback on printed charts and manuals. The 64Gb iPads with 3G will save the airline about $1.5 million annually.

“Transition from the BlackBerry to the iPhone is part of Qantas’ broader mobility strategy and, once complete, will result in significant cost savings,” said a Qantas spokesperson.

With the full-scale shift to iOS in progress, Qantas further announced it plans to launch QStreaming across its B767 fleet. Qantas Domestic CEO Lyell Strambi revealed customers travelling on a Qantas’ B767 aircraft would now experience “in-flight entertainment streamed direct to iPads in every seat.”

“Following the successful trial of our QStreaming service this year, we will partner with Panasonic and use their eXW solution to provide over 200 hours of on-demand IFE content via iPads to every passenger in Business and Economy travelling on our B767 fleet,” Strambi explained. “QStreaming will be available free of charge to all our passengers across the B767 fleet.

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Facebook snatches up Mac and iOS developer Acrylic Software

Élyse Betters Jul 20 2012 - 10:23 am PT

Mac and iOS developer Acrylic Software just announced that Facebook has acquired it. Founder Dustin Mcdonald unveiled the news on Acrylic’s blog:

Our Next Project: Facebook

I’m happy to announce today that we’ve packed up our small Vancouver studio and will be making the move to San Francisco in the coming weeks to join the design team at Facebook.

For the past four years, we’ve worked tirelessly on creating truly awesome products with a focus on innovation and great design, and I’m incredibly proud of the work we’ve been able to accomplish during that time. Our flagship apps, Wallet and Pulp, have been used and loved by hundreds of thousands of people around the world. Building these products has been a fun and exciting ride, but the time has come to move on to newer and bigger challenges.

Facebook is an invaluable service that we all use daily, and a company I believe is one of the most innovative and important around today. After visiting late last year, I discovered that we shared many of the same core product design goals and principles, and it soon became obvious that it was a natural fit. Simply put, there’s an opportunity at Facebook to have a big impact in many people’s lives. More importantly, Facebook is full of extremely talented people who will be able to help realize its full potential in the years to come.

Our products and services have not been acquired by Facebook, and while there are no plans for further development on them, Wallet and Pulp will continue to remain available for download and purchase in their current form. We’ll certainly be the first to let you know of any updates or changes here in the future.

A special thanks to all of our customers and supporters who have helped us grow and build the best products possible throughout the last four years. We wouldn’t have been able to do it without you.

Dustin MacDonald

Acrylic Software

Acrylic Software is located in Vancouver, Canada, and its most notable products include Pulp and Wallet. Pulp presents news feeds in a clean, fresh UI for easy scanning through headlines, previews, and photos on a Mac or iPad, while Wallet allows users to track their sensitive information, such as web passwords, software license keys, credit card numbers, also on a Mac or iOS device.

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AAPL Company

As iPhone 3GS approaches $200 and below, it becomes a viable and low-cost prepaid phone

Élyse Betters Jul 20 2012 - 8:45 am PT

The iPhone 4 and 4S are available as prepaid devices for as low as $399 and $499, respectively on Cricket, but now Apple is making available its iPhone 3GS on India’s Aircel for just $180 with a $55 deposit on airtime/data. This corresponds with the global market pattern that has developed over the past few months, where the iPhone 3GS is trending toward $200 unsubsidized.

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Ashton Kutcher laying down reality distortion in Steve Jobs bowtie [Photos]

Élyse Betters Jul 19 2012 - 11:31 am PT

Images are surfacing on Twitter that depict actor Ashton Kutcher as the late Apple CEO Steve Jobs during his bowtie-wearing days. The biopic is apparently filming now at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, Calif., where students are live on scene to capture the action.

The last gallery image (via X17 Online) of Kutcher noticeably dressed as an older Jobs is also reportedly from the Los Angeles set.

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