Apple

6,155 'Apple News' stories November 2008 - July 2013

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Apple News and Brief History

Before you can properly understand Apple News, it’s important to know its history. Apple was founded by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak in 1976. In 1977, Apple’s sales were growing with the success of its early computers. Within a few years, Jobs and Wozniak hired designers and a production line crew. Apple went public in 1980 and was an instant success. Over the next few years, Apple shipped new computers featuring new graphical user interfaces, such as the original Macintosh in 1984. As the market for personal computers expanded through the 1990s, Apple lost market share to the cheaper Microsoft Windows on PC clones. Eventually, Wozniak and Jobs both left Apple. Jobs would go on to found NeXT and would return to Apple when NeXT was acquired in the late 90s. Apple then began a journey to the great second act in the history of the business world.

Since the release of the iPod in 2001, Apple has become a major player once again in the technology industry. After releasing the iPhone in 2007, the iPad in 2010, and the Apple Watch in 2015, Apple is now one of the largest companies in the world. Apple’s worldwide annual revenue totaled $274.5 billion for its 2020 fiscal year.

Today, Apple operates retail stores all across the world, has a growing services division, and an ever-expanding hardware lineup. The technology industry follows Apple news to see where the company is headed in the future.

Keep reading for the latest Apple news

Apple plans 137-acre, 20 Megawatt solar array adjacent to its new Reno data center in partnership with NV Energy

Chance Miller Jul 1 2013 - 5:30 pm PT

According to a new report from GigaOM, Apple is planning to build a new solar panel farm in Reno, Nevada in conjunction with NV Energy. Reno is also where Apple’s latest data center is located. The company already has two similar-sized solar farms in North Carolina to power its data center there, but this is the company’s first in Nevada.

The solar farm, dubbed “Ft. Churchill Solar Array,” will be able to proved between 18 to 20 MW in power, which is about the same as its plants in North Carolina, which both put out 20 MW in size. With this solar farm, however, Apple will be utilizing a new technology that includes both solar panels and mirrors that focus the sun’s rays up to seven times onto the panels.
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Report: iPhone 5S will support super-fast LTE Advanced

Chance Miller Jul 1 2013 - 7:10 am PT

According to an alleged insider at SK Telecom, the South Korean carrier is in talks with Apple to release an iPhone with LTE-Advanced data speeds, with it most likely being the “upcoming iPhone 5S.” The carrier official said that SK Telecom approached Apple about the idea, rather than vice versa, but that the company still seems interested and the two are “in the middle of negotiations.” The Korea Times notes that Apple would most likely use a Qualcomm modem to take advantage of the technology.

In theory, LTE-Advanced could double the download speeds of normal LTE thanks to new carrier aggregation technology that allows downloads over multiple radio channels simultaneously.
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Apple continues to grow as top smartphone vendor in US during May

Jordan Kahn Jun 28 2013 - 9:10 am PT

Research firm comScore is out today with its usual report covering U.S. smartphone subscriber market share for the three month period ending in May. Over the last three months Apple has gained in both categories including ‘top smartphone OEMs’ and ‘OS usage’, continuing its lead as the top smartphone manufacturer and growing its share of the market by platform.

The previous three month period had Apple at 38.9% of the market, making it the number #1 smartphone vendor in the US over second place Samsung. In May, Apple continues that lead by increasing its share 0.3 percentage points to 39.2% of the market. That’s significantly higher than the 23% Samsung grabbed despite growing 1.7 percentage points during the quarter. In a close race for third place is HTC with 8.7%, Motorola with 7.8%, and LG with 6.7%, all of which dropped less than a percentage point since last quarter.

When it comes to the market by OS usage, Android is still on top, growing 0.7 percentage points to 52.4% this quarter. Apple experienced slightly less growth at 0.3 percentage points to capture 39.2% of the market up from its 38.9% share last quarter. That means the majority of the growth, once again, comes at the expense of BlackBerry and Microsoft.
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RadioShack to carry Virgin iPhone 5 tomorrow for as low as $499 with trade-in

Jordan Kahn Jun 27 2013 - 12:25 pm PT

Update: The no-contract, Virgin Mobile iPhone 5 and promotional discounts are now live on RadioShack’s website.

We reported last week that the iPhone 5 would be coming to Virgin Mobile tomorrow starting at $549.99 on its usual no-contract, $30/month unlimited plans. RadioShack will be one of the first to carry the device and is also planning to offer a number of promotional discounts to celebrate the launch.

RadioShack will start carrying the Virgin Mobile iPhone 5 tomorrow both online and in-store for $549.99 (that’s for the 16GB model), but will also be offering $50 for eligible trade-ins until the end of next month. On top of the same $50 trade-in for iPhone 4S and iPhone 4, the retailer is also slashing prices on those two devices to $399.99 and $299.99 until July 6th.

Virgin Mobile will have both the black and white versions of the iPhone 5 available on its monthly no-contract plans starting at $35/month and its $30/month auto pay plan.
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Apple’s iTunes Radio label royalities revealed, plans to add talk radio for sports, weather

Jordan Kahn Jun 27 2013 - 6:12 am PT

Leading up to the unveiling of Apple’s new iTunes Radio service earlier this month at WWDC, we reported on some small details regarding deals Apple had reached with the major labels necessary to get bring its Pandora competitor to market. Earlier reports claimed that Apple was paying Warner around 10% of ad revenue— that’s around twice as much as Pandora reportedly pays. Today, The Wall Street Journal provides us with some in-depth info on what Apple is paying labels and publishers after taking a look at the terms of the deal.

Apple will in fact be paying well over the 0.12 cents per listen Pandora offers the labels, as well as a percentage of ad revenue, and the payout will also increase during the service’s second year:

During iTunes Radio’s first year, Apple will pay a label 0.13 cents each time a song is played, as well as 15% of net advertising revenue, proportionate to a given label’s share of the music played on iTunes. In the second year, that bumps up to 0.14 cents per listen, plus 19% of ad revenue.

However, there are some exceptions. The report notes that Apple won’t have to pay royalties for songs that users already have in their iTunes library. That will apparently extend to “songs that might be on an album that a listener owns just part of.” Interestingly, Apple also won’t pay for songs skipped before the 20 second mark and those included in special promotions, but it can only skip paying royalties on two songs per hour for each iTunes Radio user:
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‘There’s something wrong with those colors’

Jordan Kahn Jun 26 2013 - 11:53 am PT

We’ve heard some stories in the past of Steve Jobs’ involvement in the construction of the Pixar campus in Emeryville, California and the main building, now named “The Steve Jobs Building” in honor of its co-founder and former CEO. In it’s recent tour of the building, senior design project manager Craig Payne, who happened to come with Steve to Pixar from NeXT, told BuzzFeed another interesting story about Jobs’ attention to detail during the project:

“So Steve loves the Hills Brothers building in San Francisco, and he wanted to replicate that [brick] palette,” says Payne. “So we found a company in Washington state that agreed to match that as best as possible. It was like five different colors of brick. So they made a 10-foot-high by 10-foot-wide panel of the brick, and Steve said, ‘I love it.’ He even said, ‘I want to eat it,’ which is a funny comment. It was done. We found our brick.”

That is, until the brick started to be applied to the walls. “Steve looked at it and said, ‘There’s something wrong with those colors,’” says Payne. “Sure enough, they took the production brick and they built another panel next to the one that he approved, and one of the colors was off. We were in a real mess because we were at the point where the brick was going to be laid on the building. We went back to the brick manufacturer, and we were like, ‘That deep brown needs to be deeper.’ They sent, like, three more samples, and after the third sample they said, ‘We’re going to do one more, but that’s it, and if you don’t like it, we’re done.’ They were just at their wits’ end. So I was the sacrificial lamb. I flew up to Spokane. The brick came out of the kiln, the guy grabbed the brick and said, ‘Do you want it or not?’ I didn’t lose my job, so I guess I made the right decision.

You can check out the rest of BuzzFeed’s tour of the Pixar building here.

Apple Store Bellevue flooded after heavy rain (photo)

Ben Lovejoy Jun 26 2013 - 3:46 am PT

Photo: fox.com

Fox reports that the Apple Store in Bellevue was one of more than a dozen stores flooded in the Bellevue Square Mall after heavy rain.

And at least 14 stores at the Southcenter Mall in Tukwila had minor flood damage when the storm drains could not handle all the water, the Tukwila Fire Department said.

There were no injuries. Damage estimates were not immediately available.

A clean-up operation is in progress, and the mall is expected to be open normally today.

Thanks, Tony.

Apple Online Store opens in Russia, establishes direct sales in key emerging market

Mark Gurman Jun 25 2013 - 11:26 pm PT

Today, Apple has finally launched a version of its official online store for customers in Russia. The online store is similar in style to Apple’s online stores in other countries. Customers in Russia are now able to order iPhones, iPads, iPods, Macs, accessories, and more directly from Apple to their homes. Apple is celebrating the launch by taking up Apple Russia’s homepage to announce the new store (image above)…

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Cupertino to live stream public meeting on Campus 2 environmental impact tomorrow

Jordan Kahn Jun 25 2013 - 10:30 am PT

Update, July 2: The City of Cupertino just posted the recording of last week’s meeting (above).

Earlier this month Apple published a report detailing its economic impact on Cupertino from the construction of its brand new ‘Campus 2’, aka ‘Spaceship’ campus. Tomorrow, the public in and around Cupertino will get their chance to weigh in on Apple’s impact on the surrounding area with a public comment period. The City of Cupertino will be live streaming the event and is also allowing the public to submit comments through www.cupertino.org/applecomments.

Many of the comments submitted congratulate Apple on its new project, but others are concerned about the removal of trees and other environmental issues:

We are concerned about the fate of the trees in and around the new Apple Campus. A couple of months ago, we met a man who claimed he was an arborist hired by Apple and that he planned to chop down 6000 trees on the Campus and around the streets with replacements of new trees. We don’t know it has been confirmed by the Apple Campus 2 or not.

These trees have been living in our neighborhood for more than 40 years(?) – when we moved into this area in 1989, they were already quite big. And we enjoy so much of these beautiful trees – they give us shade in summer and they make our streets much enjoyable while walking along. Especially they improve our environment and give us clean air. Please let these trees happily live in our neighborhood with us and our children and children’s children. Many thanks

The meeting will take place tomorrow at 6:30 pm local time at Cupertino Community Hall and live streamed at www.cupertino.org/webcast. Cupertino linked to a full copy of Apple’s Campus 2 Draft Environmental Impact Report on its website.

Hack brings Russian subscription TV service ‘UnliMovie.tv’ to Apple TV, no jailbreak required

Jordan Kahn Jun 25 2013 - 8:31 am PT

Russian blog iGuides.ru points us to a new hack for Apple TV users that brings Russian subscription TV & movie service Unlimovie.tv to the device with no jailbreak required. The service, which is currently in beta, requires users to manually change the DNS on their device (easily accessible from within Settings) in order to access its digital TV service directly through Apple’s own Trailers app.

It isn’t the first hack of its kind: Just a couple weeks back, one of our favorite media servers, Plex, arrived on Apple TV without a jailbreak through what appeared to be a similar hack of the stock Trailers app.

The Unlimovie.tv service is currently in beta, allowing users to access a number of Russian digital TV channels for free, but the creators plan to officially launch the service in September through its paid subscriptions. That is, of course, if Apple doesn’t put an end to it in the meantime.
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European iPhone marketshare falls 5% in Q1 2013 according to IDC, whilst competitors grew, but Apple remains in second place

Benjamin Mayo Jun 25 2013 - 7:10 am PT

Figures from IDC released today show that iOS smartphone marketshare fell 5% year-over-year in Europe, even though iPhone growth in the US was very strong in the same period.

Apple’s share fell from 25% in Q1 2012 to 20% in Q1 2013, representative of approximately 6.2 million unit shipments. IDC notes that European smartphone market grew overall at a rate of just 12 percent, the slowest increase the company has ever recorded. The weakness in demand evidently hit Apple, but competing Android manufacturers have seen substantial share gains in the slump. Close rival Samsung, for instance, saw shipments rise by 1.8 million units to account for almost half of the whole market. Sony was another benefactor, gaining six percentage points over the period when compared to last year.

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Samsung could settle in EU antitrust case over use of essential patents against Apple

Jordan Kahn Jun 25 2013 - 6:13 am PT

Reuters reports that Samsung is currently in preliminary discussions with EU regulators regarding a possible settlement related to charges that it abused its market dominance by blocking Apple from fairly using its essential patents in various ongoing patent disputes:

The talks came after the European Commission, which acts as EU competition regulator, told Samsung in December that it was acting unfairly by seeking injunctions against Apple over use of the essential patents.

“Samsung has been involved in settlement discussions for several months now. Samsung wants to settle,” said one of the sources, who declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the matter.

If Samsung does settle in the case, it could avoid as much as $17.3 billion in fines. However, it would presumably have to agree to license its essential patents on fair terms, which could have an impact on current cases related to the European Union’s 3G UMTS standard.

Hands-on video: Apple’s iOS 7 for iPad

Michael Steeber Jun 24 2013 - 1:04 pm PT

Earlier today, Apple launched new beta releases of both iOS 7 for iPhone/iPod touch and the iPad. We have provided full screenshot tours and change logs for the need software seeds. Additionally, we have created the video below that demonstrates how iOS 7 works on the iPad. We previously posted a video of how iOS 7 runs on the iPhone.

iPad video below:

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From beta 1 to release: how each major iOS version has transformed

Michael Steeber Jun 24 2013 - 7:00 am PT

Following its introduction earlier this month, Apple’s newest operating system has fallen under criticism and scrutiny from both designers and casual users alike. Due to both the tight development timetable and the new design direction under Jony Ive, following the removal of former iOS SVP Scott Forstall last fall, iOS 7 is, understandably, the most controversial and intriguing iOS version yet.

In response to much of the negative criticism directed towards iOS 7, some have suggested that iOS 7 will change substantially before it is released to the general public. Looking back at previous versions of iOS reveals a long trend of subtle refinements to the operating system during beta periods, not dramatic changes. Let’s take a look at how each version of iOS has transformed:

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New Apple Store at QuakerBridge Mall near Princeton, NJ opening Saturday (Updated)

9to5 Staff Jun 23 2013 - 9:21 pm PT

9to5Mac reader @TylerBiedka over the weekend visited the upcoming site of a new Apple Store at the QuakerBridge Mall just a few miles south of Princeton, NJ.

It has been speculation that Apple will be opening a new store in the newly upgraded QuakerBridge Mall, just 5 miles south of Princeton University sometime this fall.

It seems as though they might be ahead of schedule. I was there just last night, and the traditional black barrier was up with the logo and website. Although today was a different story. The black barrier was gone, the steel frame is exposed, and just the glass is covered in black wrap. (Please see attached images).

In addition, as I walked up to the store, my iPhone 5 picked up on the Apple Store wifi. It seems as though the store will be open early to mid july. (Please see attached wifi screenshot).

The new store site hasn’t exactly been a secret but with a working Wifi and the telltale black signage, it would appear that the Autumn opening speculation might be a bit conservative.

Update: (June 25th) The Store page has gone live indicating that it will open on Saturday morning.

Apple notifies iTunes users of $100M in-app purchase settlement details, $5 credit to those inappropriately charged under $30

Scott Buscemi Jun 23 2013 - 6:41 pm PT

Parents of kids who racked up hundreds of even thousands of dollars in in-app purchases can now begin to seek compensation for their bills.

The “Apple In-App Purchase Litigation Administrator” just sent out an email with information regarding the settlement and deadlines for submitting payment requests.

In short, those with charges under $30 will receive a $5 iTunes gift card. Cash refunds will be distributed to those with bills exceeding that amount.

Here’s the email in its entirety:

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‘Serious’ Game developers getting tripped up by rules and regs of Apple’s App Store

Zach Kahn Jun 21 2013 - 1:39 pm PT

We’ve already detailed iOS 7’s support for MFi hardware game controllers as well as enhancements to in-game leaderboards, new turn-based game modes, and even new security measures to curb cheating, but with all of these great new additions to the platform we often wonder, ‘what really goes in to making a great iOS game?’ Moreover, while Apple’s App Store is designed to foster independent creativity and allow for any developer with a vision and talent to make it to the top of the charts, why is it that we often see the same old games flood the Top Paid and Top Free categories?

Polygon’s Tracey Lien asked the same question and gives us a handful of great insights into the world of iOS game development. It turns out that, with Apple’s strict App Store policies, making a game isn’t as easy as some might think. In her feature, Lien states that a number of ‘serious games’ have recently been rejected by Apple due to violating the App Store’s guidelines. This would appear to be business as usual as we’ve seen a plethora of apps — both games and otherwise — rejected from the App Store for violating the stringent guidelines, but Lien claims that many of the developers she spoke to have found the policies that they’ve been charged with violating often to be vague and/or completely subjective.

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New iPhone 5S photos unfortunately reveal little new about the device

Michael Steeber Jun 20 2013 - 11:47 pm PT

MacRumors has allegedly gotten their hands on photos of what appear to the rear shell and components of the rumored iPhone 5S. While these photos reveal little new about the device, they provide a closer picture at what we might see from Apple later this year.

Most notably, the photos depict a redesigned rear shell for the next generation iPhone, making room for a larger, dual-LED flash cutout, and presumably a higher resolution camera. Previous reports have noted that Apple has been experimenting with a 12 or 13-megapixel camera for the iPhone 5S, along with an improved night shooting mode.

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Apple & DOJ submit closing arguments as e-book price fixing trial comes to a close

Zach Kahn Jun 20 2013 - 4:23 pm PT

After a three week debate between Apple and the U.S. Department of Justice, the controversial e-book price-fixing case concluded today with final summations at the U.S. District Court in Manhattan. As part of its last remarks, Apple presented a 136-slide deck describing its case against the DOJ in full detail underscoring its argument that they did not conspire with publishers to illegally fix e-book prices.

On the other side of the argument, the DOJ argues that Apple was the “ringmaster” of a plot to raise mainstream e-book pricing above Amazon’s pre-established $9.99 price point by moving the industry from a wholesale model to an agency model. In the proposed model, Apple granted retailers the ability to set prices much like Apple’s App Store. Like Apple, the DOJ provided a deck explaining their point of view. Both decks can be viewed below.

U.S. District Judge Denise Cote is expected to rule on the case in the coming weeks.

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Pegatron exec puts kibosh on $99 iPhone rumors

Jordan Kahn Jun 20 2013 - 7:53 am PT

Remember that report from Reuters claiming Apple is building a low-cost iPhone that will sell for mere $100? This morning a report from ChinaTimes claims Pegatron chairman Tong Zixian dismissed the rumors by claiming the word “cheap” shouldn’t be associated with the product and that the “price is still high.” We have a feeling some of the company’s comments might have been lost in translation, but it’s only stating the obvious: Apple’s doesn’t make cheap products and $99 without some sort of subsidy is probably out of the question for the company’s much rumored “low-cost iPhone”.

According to the analysts, Apple’s low-cost iPhone will likely debut for somewhere in the neighbourhood of $300.

Apple posts full WWDC 2013 Keynote to YouTube

Michael Steeber Jun 19 2013 - 5:52 pm PT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRmjUzcpLO0

Just like last year, Apple has uploaded their full WWDC 2013 Keynote from last week to their YouTube channel. Previously, if you wanted to view this year’s keynote, you’d have stream it from Apple’s site, or through the Apple Keynotes Podcast (HD Link) in iTunes.

Apple comments on $30 Million iPad deal with Los Angeles Unified School District

Zach Kahn Jun 19 2013 - 10:47 am PT

Along with their major update to Apple TV, Apple announced today that it has been granted approval from the Los Angeles School Board of Education to begin a massive iPad program starting this fall. The news was earlier reported by the LA Times.

The program will equip students across the nation’s second biggest school district with iPads that include the Pearson Common Core System of Courses delivered via a new app as part of the integrated solution. Additionally, each iPad will come preloaded with Apple’s iWork (Pages, Keynote, Numbers) and iLife (iMovie, iPhoto, GarageBand) suites in addition to a range of educational third-party apps. Apple notes that the $30 million commitment is only the first phase of a larger roll out for Los Angeles Schools.

“Education is in Apple’s DNA and we’re thrilled to work with Los Angeles Unified public schools on this major initiative as they plan to roll out iPads to every student across 47 campuses this fall,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “Schools around the world have embraced the engaging and interactive quality of iPad with nearly 10 million iPads already in schools today.”

For more details, check out the full press release below.
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Big Apple TV 5.3 update adds HBO GO, WatchESPN, Sky News and more

Zach Kahn Jun 19 2013 - 7:13 am PT

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Apple has just pushed out a massive update to its $95 set-top box that brings the much anticipated HBO GO and WatchESPN channels to the platform. According to the Apple press release, users will be able to watch content from HBO and ESPN directly from their Apple TV without the need for a direct cable subscription though “HBO GO on Apple TV requires a subscription to HBO through participating television providers” (thanks mom and dad!). HBO GO on Apple TV was reported by Bloomberg earlier this year while ESPN talks have been going on for over a year.

Video by Matthew:

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Solid Mac Bundle including Corel Painter, iTunes TuneUp, DiskDrill, Mac Scan, NetSpot Pro, more: $30

9to5 Staff Jun 17 2013 - 9:00 pm PT

From 9to5Toys.com:

StackSocial has a pretty impressive bundle hitting this evening for just $29.99. In it you get 9 solid apps including:
Painter Lite: Ease Into the World of Digital Art
TuneUp: Organize Your iTunes Music Collection in Just a Few Clicks
Disk Drill Pro: Protect and Recover Data Like a Pro
MoneyWiz: Personal Finance For Your Mac
Voila: The Best All-in-One Mac Screencapture Tool
DVDRemaster 8: The Ultimate DVD Re-Encoding Solution
DesktopShelves: Fight Clutter on Your Desktop by Organizing Files on Shelves
MacScan: MacScan is the premier Macintosh security program
NetSpot Pro: The Only App for Wireless Site Survey, Wi-Fi Analysis, & Troubleshooting on Mac OS X

StackSocial also has Dragon Dictate for half off at $99 for both PC and Mac.