Mark Gurman

Apple has opened up one of its rare replacement programs for the graphics card in some mid-2011 iMac configurations, according to a notice issued to Apple Support employees. The iMac in question is the model released in May 2011 with Sandy Bridge processors and Thunderbolt ports. This iMac was sold between that month and October 2012 when Apple launched thinner models with new internals. Apple says that AMD Radeon HD 6970M cards (both 1GB and 2GB configurations) in select versions of these 2011 iMacs could fail:

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUdYebAN-Fs]

Larry Ellison, the CEO of Oracle, longtime close friend of Steve Jobs, and former Apple Director, shared with CBS’s Charlie Rose what he believes post-Jobs Apple will look like. As quoted by AllThingsD:

“Well, we already know,” Ellison told Rose. “We saw — we conducted the experiment. I mean, it’s been done. We saw Apple with Steve Jobs. We saw Apple without Steve Jobs. We saw Apple with Steve Jobs. Now, we’re gonna see Apple without Steve Jobs.”

Ellison’s quote seems to be referring to Apple’s history with Steve Jobs (the time in which the company launched the iPhone, iPad, and iPod, for example) in comparison to Apple’s darker years with leadership from the likes of John Sculley and Gil Amelio.

Now, with Steve Jobs’s hand-picked successor Tim Cook and the rest of the leadership team with Jony Ive, Craig Federighi, and Eddy Cue at the helm, Ellison seems to think that the pattern of dark days under leaders other than Jobs will repeat itself.

Updated with larger embed via CBS news below, which includes his thoughts on Larry Page being evil and the quote above being put into better context:

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Image via <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/shanghaidaddy/4444779602/in/photolist-7LLE85-bjGce9-7LLExS-7X3TR7-9WWqCL-bepqXP-9XBTYw-7VzKHA-bepqTv-bepqP2-bepqJc-bepqD6-bepqxF-7zrnxR-7zv8s1-cSjqLL-81gkaM-9w9Hfc-bDqzWX-ercVuv-eNUGCf-bfoHWa-9aXhCK-8T4TuB-byHASi-ebuyCS-a65L1S-dBQrY9-e39tKK-aqUYwc-drrKYZ-8xouBm-8xov7q-azkgHt-a65L3f-a62UpF-a62UoB-a62UmB-a62Unn-a65L4s-dRhAY6-dyRScD-dyXkiq-ddkczz-9iCbpz-9iFiQC-7TmVNY-9nuiGM-dHJig2-dHJhxp-dHJhG8/lightbox/">Flickr</a>

Last week, we reported that Apple, will soon kickoff a trade-in-program for third-party or counterfeit USB power adapters in its retail stores and select authorized resellers. The program will allow anyone with an unofficial USB power adapter for iOS Devices to exchange that adapter for an Apple-built unit at a discounted price of $10 dollars. The program comes in response to a couple of controversial situations in which people in China reportedly passed away or became injured due to faulty, counterfeit charging adapters…

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Oslo, Norway in Apple Maps (No 3D available)

Update: From a 9to5mac Reader in Norway:

Regarding the issues where the Norwegian government is blocking Apple from mapping the capital, Oslo, in 3D: it seems the law that is being sited actually was withdrawn in 2005, but issues with an old computer system in the police department blocks the update from being put to use! http://www.osloby.no/nyheter/Loven-som-hindrer-Apple-a-flyfotografere-Oslo-ble-vedtatt-opphevet-i-2005-7277631.html

Apple is being blocked from capturing 3D, aerial footage of Norway capital Oslo for its iOS and Mac Maps applications, according to Norway-based newspaper Aftenposten. As part of removing Google Maps from iOS, Apple, last year with iOS 6, launched its in-house Maps app with 3D “Flyover” data being a premier feature. Flyover allows users to see a 3D representation of many cities across the globe.

According to today’s report, Norway’s National Security Authority is not allowing Apple from capturing the 3D data needed for the feature. Apple uses small aircraft equipped with advanced camera systems and actually flies them around buildings. The data is then processed at Apple and formatted for the Maps app…

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Product:

The Twelve South HiRise, which was announced last week, is an aluminum stand and docking/charging station for Apple devices that include a Lightning dock connector. The HiRise supports the iPhone 5, fifth-generation iPod touch, seventh-generation iPod nano, and the iPad mini (the 4th-generation iPad is too large). Unlike the typical iOS Device dock, the HiRise, as the product name implies, raises your device a few inches high in the air. Twelve South also ships versions of the HiRise for the MacBook (review) and iMac (review)…

Features/Performance: 

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RcicFebqRE&w=640&h=360]

One of Pixar’s early employees, John Lasseter, accepted a Disney Legends award for Steve Jobs. The awarded was accepted and presented yesterday at Disney’s D23 conference. The Disney Legends award is granted to key people in the growth and success of Disney. As Pixar’s creator and a former Disney Director, Jobs certainly made a positive impact on Disney. Lasseter’s speech recounts several encounters and experiences that he shared with Jobs over the course of their time together. A video from another angle is below:

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<a href="http://9to5mac.com/2013/08/10/new-mockups-claim-to-show-iphone-5s-and-iphone-5c-designs-gallery/">iPhone 5S/5C physical mockups</a>

Apple’s next two iPhone models will be named iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C, according to a report from Japan-based Macotakara. With repeated reports and rumors of the next-generation iPhone retaining the same design as the iPhone 5, the “iPhone 5S” name has long been claimed and regarded as the name of the new flagship iPhone. Apple’s iPhone 4S and iPhone 3GS retained the designs of the iPhone 4 and iPhone 3G, respectively.

However, because of Apple’s surprise naming scheme for the third-generation iPad (The new iPad), an outright claim of the name “iPhone 5S” may be important to some interested in the upcoming device.

As for the “iPhone 5C,” this name gained attention when purported packaging materials for the upcoming, lower-cost, plastic iPhone surfaced in photos online. It is unclear what the “C” in “5C” could stand for, but speculation and logic points to the “C” standing for “color.” Like recent iPod touch models, this plastic iPhone is rumored to come in a series of colors…

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U.S. President Barack Obama met with Apple CEO Tim Cook and other technology company executives today to discuss government surveillance, according to a report from Politico. Earlier this week, according to the report, the President and his staff began holding confidential meetings about surveillance tactics and topics such as the recent NSA-related controversies with company executives and other members of pertinent organizations.

Those invited were mostly senior executives, including Cook, Stephenson and Cerf, as well as representatives of groups like the Center for Democracy and Technology and Gigi Sohn, the leader of Public Knowledge, according to three sources familiar with the meeting. Each declined comment for this story.

The report names AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson and former Google Vice President Vint Serf as the other technology community members involved in the meetings. Serf recently was appointed by President Obama to the National Science Board, and Serf is also known as a pioneer of the internet…

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All the way back in January, we posted the first photographs of the back shell for the next-generation full-sized iPad with Retina Display. According to these photos, the next 9.7-inch iPad will look like a larger iPad mini, complete with thinner bezels. Since then, videos and some photos of the front panel and digitizer for the future product have also emerged.

Today, a series of new shots have emerged at repair shop MacFixit’s website (via MacRumors) of the front panel and digitizer. The site provides the following tidbits about the part:

– The display area is the same as the iPad Retina.

– The edges of the frame are narrower using the same style as the iPad mini.

– The ITO (Indium tin oxide) is the same as the iPad mini.

– There is now 2 connectors instead of 1.

– The connectors have been changed from FFC (Flat Flexible Cable, like the iPad 2/3/4) to FPC (Flexible Printed Circuits, like the iPhone 4/5).

Recent reports have pointed to the new tablet launching in early September. A full gallery of all the photos are below:

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In light of the upcoming launch of iOS 7, designer Stu Crew and other designers have imagined what a version of the OS X operating system with iOS 7 design principles could look like. Crew’s design matches iOS 7 by removing the heavy, metaphoric textures from OS X. The image above showcases a look at a desktop with many of the apps, and you can see how Finder, Calculator, Contacts, and iTunes received inspiration from iOS 7.

With iOS 5, iOS 6 and OS X Lion, OS X Mountain Lion, Apple moved to unify both the feature-sets and user-interfaces of its mobile and desktop operating systems. This fall, due to a leadership change at Apple, iOS and OS X will see different design philosophies. iOS 7 is “flat,” lacks heavy textures, while OS X retains its long-existing silver/metal design, keeps the green felt in Game Center, but drops the leather in Calendar and Contacts.

With integrated experiences and uniformity embedded into Apple’s DNA, it would not be surprising to see OS X look like iOS again in coming years. Below is a full gallery from Crew (in addition to some more mockups from other designers) of what an iOS 7-inspired OS X could look like.

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