Jordan Kahn

Apple updated its “Cards” app for creating and sending physical greeting cards that originally launched in October of last year at the iPhone 4S unveiling. Included in version 1.1 of the iOS app are new letterpress cards for Mother’s Day, which are just in time for the holiday that is celebrated in most countries during April or May (May 13 in the United States this year).

Other additions include “Get Well” cards, new designs for birthdays, thank yous, and other categories. As always, you can grab the update from the App Store now as a free download.

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As pointed out by MacStories, Apple recently removed trials for the iWork suite and Aperture 3 from Apple.com. The webpage formerly home to the iWork trial now includes a message informing users that iWork apps, such as Keynote, Pages, and Numbers, are available through the Mac App Store. Apple removed the trial for a short while last year before returning it; however, the company also informed users last month that the iWork.com Beta service would shut down July 31. Apple does not currently offer trial versions of the $20 Mac Store apps.

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Apple just published a press release that confirms the new iPad will launch in 12 additional countries Friday, April 20. Along with the 12 countries listed below, Apple confirmed an April 27 international launch date for nine more countries:

In addition to South Korea, the new iPad also will be available beginning on Friday, April 20 in Brunei, Croatia, Cyprus, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Malaysia, Panama, St Maarten, Uruguay and Venezuela. Beginning on Friday, April 27, the new iPad will be available in Colombia, Estonia, India, Israel, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, South Africa and Thailand.

Go past the break for the full press release.

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[vodpod id=Video.15797906&w=650&h=350&fv=autoPlay%3Dfalse]

Last year, Apple faced a class-action lawsuit over iOS games using the freemium model, which parents argued allowed children to easily rack up hundreds or thousands of dollars with in-app purchases. Apps would normally require a password before completing an in-app purchase, but iOS previously provided a 15-minute window after users entered their password, which subsequently allowed any in-app purchases within the time frame to complete without needing the password again. Of course, Apple no longer offers the 15-minute window. Eric Goldman’s blog (via PaidContent) reported this week that Apple’s request to dismiss the class-action suit, which alleges the company violated consumer protection laws, was refused. U.S. District Judge Edward Da Vila upheld four of the five claims from parents involved in the case:

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In January of this year, Apple released AirPort Utility 6.0, an updated version of the configuration tool for setting up home networks and AirPort products. With a redesigned interface much like the iOS Airport Utility app, many did not notice support for IPv6—the next version of Internet Protocol expected to follow IPv4—was completely removed. With Comcast now offering IPv6 services to home users in two cities and an official roll out later this month, experts at the North American IPv6 summit in Denver this week expressed concerns over Apple’s decision. NetworkWorld quoted Distinguished Engineer and Chief Architect for IPv6 at Comcast John Brzozowski:

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Today, we have two pieces of Intel-related news with reports claiming a solid April 23 launch date for the Ivy Bridge introduction, while others report Intel has begun shipping its next-generation Thunderbolt technology.

Late last month, we heard reports from CPU World, which claimed Ivy Bridge CPUs most-likely to land in future Macs would launch between April 22 and April 28 with availability by April 29. Today, we get a solid launch date with Cnet and various other sources reporting Intel will start its initial rollout April 23. As we detailed previously, many of the Ivy Bridge models included in the initial launch would be suitable for MacBook Pro-like devices and desktop offerings. However, Intel’s Ultra low-voltage U-Series Ivy Bridge processors most likely headed for MacBook Air-like designs are expected to launch in June.

Intel today said there would be over 100 Thunderbolt devices by year-end and another report coming from VR-Zone today claimed Intel started shipping its second-generation Thunderbolt controllers codenamed “Cactus Ridge,” which would align nicely if both these updates are headed to future Macs…

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Today, an Apple patent application popped up detailing a content creation and authoring tool that would allow designers to create content rich applications for various devices without programming code. While Apple’s patent covers a wide range of possible applications for the platform, it is clear to see the patent is describing the visual programming workflow introduced with iAD producer, Apple’s motion-rich ad creation platform launched in 2010.

The patent—described in detail by PatentlyApple— provided the images above and and to the right, which clearly show elements of the existing iAD platform.

Apple’s invention provides technology relating to a digital content authoring tool for amateur and professional content developers alike, without the need to understand or access any computer code. Additionally, the authoring tool is further equipped with the ability to manage digital assets and configure them for distribution and viewing on a variety of electronic devices – many of which have diverse hardware capabilities. Accordingly, the presently described technology eliminates many barriers to creating and publishing deliverable electronic content.
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[slideshow]

Update: The app is live on most stores now including the U.S. store for $2.99 here.

Rockstar announced a couple of weeks ago that the iOS port of classic PC, PlayStation 2, and Xbox title “Max Payne” would make its way to the App Store April 12. One day early, it looks like the game is already available in App Stores around the world with the New Zealand store, the Australian store, and others already listing the game.

The game in terms of plot and gameplay does not stray far from the original, but Rockstar updated the port with new high-res textures and graphics with full support for the iPhone 4S and the third-generation iPad’s Retina displays. Controls were reconfigured for the touchscreen, and Rockstar is bundling support for its Social Club Xbox Live-like network for iPhone 4, 4S, iPad 2, and the new iPad users. The game will also support cheats, such as the “Skip to Level.”

We will keep you updated when “Max Payne” lands in the United States store, most likely for around the $4.99 $2.99 mark. When it does, the universal app will be compatible with iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPod Touch 4, iPad 1, iPad 2, and the new iPad.

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The Apple Store went down last night and updated with a new “We’ll be back soon” logo, but Apple also appears to be testing a new virtual product tour as part of its sales chat feature. Apple has provided the ability to chat with sales support through certain product pages for a long time via an “Ask Now” button.

As of today, the feature has a slightly refreshed look, and —as discovered by MacMagazine— Apple is apparently testing a feature on at least the Brazilian store that lets Apple employees share their screen to give a guided tour of the product page. It appears the guided tours must be initiated by Apple support staff and confirmed by the user before beginning. The report also provided the image above, which shows the new feature in action.

The image to the right was sent in by a reader showing Apple support asking if the user would like to view their screen while chatting. The support staff also requested to talk on the phone during the guided tour.

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The U.S. Department of Justice and Attorney Gen. Eric Holder just announced (via CNN) a settlement with three publishers—Hachette, HarperCollins, and Simon & Schuster— following this morning’s report that it would launch an antitrust suit against Apple, Macmillan, and Penguin, which refused to settle. The settlement is said to give publishers the “freedom to reduce the prices of their e-book titles,” allowing Amazon to return to its previous wholesale model.

The states are seeking $51 million in restitution that will be provided through a credit toward a future book purchase or a check, although the Department of Justice’s charges remain civil. The exact details of the settlements with the three publishers were not discussed, but Apple, Penguin, and Macmillan will continue to fight charges in the lawsuit filed earlier today in New York.

As for exactly why Apple and the two other publishers have decided to take the case to court, at least one publisher is speaking. Macmillan’s Chief Executive Officer John Sargent published an open letter today explaining the company’s stance (via PaidContent). In the letter, Sargent claimed the Department of Justice’s settlement demands “could have allowed Amazon to recover the monopoly position it had built before our switch to the agency model.” He also said it is “hard to settle a lawsuit when you know you have done no wrong” and called the agency model the future of an “open and competitive market.”

Interestingly, AllThingsD pointed us to a line from the Department of Justice’s official complaint that indicates Apple proposed teaming up with Amazon at one point:

In addition to considering competitive entry at that time, though, Apple also contemplated illegally dividing the digital content world with Amazon, allowing each to “own the category” of its choice—audio/video to Apple and e-books to Amazon.

Go past the break for Sargent’s full letter, which is a great rundown of the case from the perspective of the publishers that have decided not to settle:

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[tweet https://twitter.com/#!/bloombergnews/status/190075312703410178]

Bloomberg is reporting that the United States has filed an antitrust lawsuit in a New York district court against Apple and publishers Hachette SA, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Penguin, and Simon & Schuster over alleged eBook price-fixing. The news follows reports from Reuters yesterday that the U.S. Department of Justice was preparing to launch a lawsuit against Apple and five major publishers accused of colluding to fix and increase the price of eBooks.

According to the report, all the parties named in the suit—except Macmillan, Penguin, and Apple— are willing to settle to avoid legal costs. The Department of Justice could announce “unspecified” settlements as early as today.

At the core of the settlement discussions is the agency model introduced with the iPad in 2010. The deal with publishers was described by Steve Jobs to biographer Walter Isaacson:

“We told the publishers, ‘We’ll go to the agency model, where you set the price, and we get our 30%, and yes, the customer pays a little more, but that’s what you want anyway…. They went to Amazon and said, ‘You’re going to sign an agency contract or we’re not going to give you the books.’ “

The model allows publishers to set their own prices as long as Apple gets a 30 percent cut and a guarantee that the same content is not offered lower elsewhere, but the Department of Justice is trying to return to Amazon’s wholesale model by giving retailers like Amazon control over pricing. Bloomberg explained:
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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAojzCKYk2c&feature=youtube_gdata_player]

We already know Apple has confirmed Italian, Chinese, Korean, and Spanish as new languages to be supported by Siri in 2012, and the company rolled out Japanese support in iOS 5.1 earlier this year. We have not heard much on any additional languages other than rumors of Russian, but today we get a look at Siri speaking Hindi through a proxy server via @kunalkaul123. He explained it connects to “my Google API Server,” presumably for the translation, but there is “still lots of work to be done.”

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AllThingsD just announced Apple’s Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook would appear as the opening-night speaker at this year’s D10 conference. The 10th D: All Things Digital conference will be Cook’s first time speaking at the event, and AllThingsD noted this is his first-ever appearance onstage at a non-Apple event since becoming CEO last year. Past D conferences were notably a stage for many in-depth discussions and interviews with Steve Jobs. Jobs last appeared at the event at D8 in 2010.

Walt Mossberg and I could not be more thrilled to announce that Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, will be the opening-night speaker at our 10th D: All Things Digital conference.

The D10 conference is slated for May 29 to May 31, 2012 at the Terranea Resort in Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif.

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iFixit introduced its iMac Mid 2011 Dual Hard Drive Kit ($69.95) last month for adding an SSD to both the 21.5-inch and 27-inch models. Meanwhile, OWC Macsales made its own kit available today for 2011 iMac users, which allows you to install any 2.5-inch Serial ATA SSD. The kit will work with most compatible SSDs, but OWC recommends its $99.97 OWC Mercury 6G SSD (up to 480GB) shown in the installation video below. As for the kit itself, it is now available through Macsales for $44.99. Here is what you will get:

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With iCloud’s Photo Stream feature, photos taken on a iOS device and photos imported to your computer are automatically sent to all your devices including Mac, iOS devices, Apple TV, and PC. On iOS, the photos are stored in the Photos.app and on Mac through iPhoto or Aperture. Understandably, launching iPhoto or Aperture just to pull a screenshot off an iOS device can be cumbersome. Most users would typically opt for Dropbox or email, which also requires several steps.

One way to avoid these steps is to create an auto-updating folder on your dock that allows access to Photo Stream images stored in the cloud. In this scenario, you will be able to instantly access photos on your Mac without having to use Dropbox or a similar solution. The Iconmaster (via LifeHacker) pointed us to an easy trick that allows you to save a search for PNG screenshots and filter them based on resolution and the type of image. The trick could also be used to access Photo Stream files depending on your search criteria.

After enabling Photo Stream on your devices, The Iconmaster walked us through how it works:

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Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg just announced that the social network has acquired photo-sharing app “Instagram” for $1 billion. Instagram’s CEO Kevin Systrom also made a statement through the company’s blog and confirmed it will “be working with Facebook to evolve Instagram and build the network.”

Zuckerberg’s full announcement is below, and Facebook’s official press release is here:

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We reported this morning that Apple has now begun internally seeding a prototype next-gen iPhone with the A5X chip that debuted in the new iPad and 1GB of RAM. Based on his recent trips to China and Taiwan, Topeka Capital Market analyst Brian White, who has Apple’s price target at $1,001 as of this morning, shared some new details of what he described as “the buzz around the new iPhone 5.” According to White (via Barron’s), he expects a “sleek” new iPhone to launch in the December quarter. He also expects the device to sport a new 4-inch display and include 4G LTE capabilities.

White set his price target based on an expected August or September unveiling of the product. He also claimed the launch “could be extraordinary” by dwarfing previous launches and driving the stock closer to our $1,001 price target.” According to the report, Apple is expected to start component production for the “iPhone 5” in June.

White also claimed sales of the new iPad could have been higher if not for a production issue with panel makers related to the new Retina display. Last month, Apple announced its “strongest iPad launch yet” with sales of three million new iPads on its debut weekend…

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Today, the company behind the speech recognition software baked into Apple’s Siri, Nuance, announced the latest version of its Mac application would go head-to-head with Adobe Acrobat. For $99, the company launched version 3 of its “Nuance PDF Converter for Mac” with a ton of new features.

Perhaps the biggest new addition is integration with Nuance’s servers, allowing you to save and access PDFs anywhere through Evernote or Nuance’s own PaperPort Anywhere platform. Other new features include the company’s optical character recognition technology for creating searchable PDFs and one-click word and spreadsheet documents through Nuance OmniPage Document Conversion integration. Nuance is also integrating FormTyper, a feature “which accurately and automatically converts PDF and scanned paper forms into professional looking electronic forms that can be filled, saved and shared online.”

Nuance PDF Converter for Mac will be live later today for $99 through the company’s website here. The previous version of the app is also available through Apple’s online store, so version 3 will likely make its way there soon. Nuance noted the app is just a fraction of Adobe Acrobat Professional for the Mac, which sells for $449. The full press release is below.

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Apple’s Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook was the highest-paid CEO in the United States during 2011, according to a report from The New York Times (via Bloomberg). The report cited data from research firm Equilar who tracked executive compensation throughout the year.

To take home the top spot, Cook received about $378 million. That number includes his salary, perks, and bonuses of $1.8 million in addition to a one-time stock grant of $376.2 million that vests in 2016 and 2021. The report noted that stat works out to roughly a million dollars a day. However, many are taking issue with the number, because the majority of the money requires Cook to stay with the company for 10 years before receiving it…

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Update: It appears they are now selling these. Unfortunately, we were able to get our hands on one and just can’t recommend the purchase due to extremely poor build quality. It’s possible we received a bad unit, but you’re taking the risk. Our unit didn’t close properly, which meant the iPad didn’t auto-sleep when closing the lid. Also, the iPad is only held in by a single piece of plastic at the top. Our iPad fell out during normal use several times, crashing screen-down on the keyboard. These among other issues.

Japanese blog Macotakara pointed us to the “NoteBook Case” for iPad, but by “notebook” the website really means a MacBook Pro clone. The case packs a built-in Lithium-polymer battery that allows you to charge the iPad while in use. It also features a USB port, mini USB port, and Bluetooth for the keyboard. The case is available through Japanese retailer Rakuten for 5,980 yen (or roughly $75), so it could land in Rakuten’s United States-based Buy.com in the near future. It is made specifically for iPad 2, but most cases should work with the third-gen iPad due to the tablets’ small difference in thickness.

Update: A reader sent us his unboxing and setup:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9tSl5VgrHBY&feature=youtu.be]

Go past the break for a full gallery.

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