Apple

Since more than a few analysts, leakers, and reports think Apple is going to build a colorful set of plastic, low cost iPhones, we wondered what such an animal would look like. Since Apple already makes colorful iPod touches we started there. One report said that Apple would create at least three additional colors in addition to white and black. iLounge had more specifics saying it took some elements of iPhone, iPod touch and iPod classic? Since we didn’t know which colors to pick, we decided to do ten. Tactus claimed to have the plastic shell so we threw in a little of that as well. We then fed it to one of our favorite 3D modelers Ferry Passchier. He did an incredible job combining the reports into a realistic render with the color options above. He also provided us with a real life render below.

Credit: Ferry Passchier

With iPhones that look this colorfully delicious, I wonder if Apple is worried about cannibalizing its popular aluminum models? Some other previous renders and leaks follow:
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Last May, after some residents voiced concern about Apple’s planned Spaceship Campus 2 project, Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer sent out a brochure/mailer to local residents, hoping to alleviate concerns about the huge new office building and surrounding Campus 2.

Click to enlarge, via Macrumors

Apple last week updated its Campus 2 plans with the inclusion of walk and bike trails and other specifics on the land use. As Macrumors notes, Cupertino residents have begun receiving updated mailers with the new updated information and focused on the positive environmental impact the buildings will have.

At Apple, the environment is a top priority, and we’ve designed Apple Campus 2 with cutting-edge features to make it energy-efficient and environmentally sustainable. Several of these green technologies are highlighted in this update.

As at our existing campus on Infinite Loop, we are committed to 100% renewable energy to power Apple Campus 2. This will include onsite generation from photovoltaics and fuel cells. As part of this effort, approximately 8 megawatts of photovoltaics will be installed, creating one the largest installations of its kind on a corporate campus anywhere in the world.

Apple started in Cupertino, and we are excited to continue to grow here. As we build the new campus, we also plan to invest in new roadways and intersection improvements, add new sidewalks and better bike lanes, and plant new trees in newly created medians in the surrounding neighborhood.

Find Steve Jobs’ original Campus 2 submission to the Cupertino City Council video below:
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WWDC 2013 sold out in a matter of minutes likely cutting out a few developers who wanted to head to San Francisco for the show. For those who who missed out or who can’t make the trip to San Francisco, Apple will again be offering Tech Talks this Fall in a number of cities. (Apple will also be offering videos of WWDC session videos as they unfold.)

 In 2011, Apple’s Tech Talk hit 9 cities though it is far from certain that Apple will be hitting the same places this time around:

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From 9to5Toys.com

Find the best deals/buying advice at 9to5Mac.com/products

Update: As is often the case, Amazon has matched Best Buy (which could save some tax $)

Best Buy is taking $125 off all of their stock of iMacs for two days only. New iMacs now start at $1174.99 for the 21.5-inch variety and $1674.99 for the 27-inch variety shipped or site-to-store. These iMacs with super-slim profile were released late last year with low inventory and these are the deepest discounts we’ve seen.

More specials at Best Buy’s 2-Day sale.
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We reported earlier this week over on our sister site 9to5Google that the extremely popular Swype keyboard was now available for Android users on Google Play. Unfortunately its arrival came after the implementation of the similar Gesture Typing feature that Google introduced in Jelly Bean. While we know Swype owner Nuance has a pretty tight relationship with Apple through its voice recognition technology being used in Siri (although Siri’s co-founder told us Apple could “likely replace Nuance without too much trouble”), a Swype exec has now confirmed the company has had talks with Apple over its revolutionary keyboard tech.

iFans points us to a Reddit AMA with Swype Vice President Aaron Sheedy where the executive confirms discussions with Apple have taken place:
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=NoVW62mwSQQ

“Everyday more photos are taken on the iPhone than any other camera”

This is the best one I’ve seen in awhile and runs a full minute. Reminds me of “We Believe” and  “We’ll always”.

Also on Apple.com. 
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After years without an update, Twitter has updated its official Mac app with Retina display support and much more:

Today we’re announcing a few improvements to Twitter for Mac:

• Photos: It’s easier than ever to share photos. Simply click the camera icon in the lower-left corner of the Tweet compose box, and choose a photo to share. If you prefer, you can still drag and drop photos from the desktop.
• Retina display support: Now Twitter is even more vibrant and detailed on the highest resolution Mac notebooks. With this update, Tweets will be clearer and sharper, creating a more vivid experience.
• 14 more languages: In addition to English, Twitter for Mac now supports Dutch, French, German, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Malay, Portuguese, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Traditional Chinese, and Turkish.

Along with these updates, Twitter for Mac offers keyboard shortcuts, support for multiple accounts and timelines, and other features that you’ve come to love.

You can get this update now in the Mac App Store. Keep an eye out for more improvements to come, too.

P.S. I'm taking a break from iOS to work on Twitter for Mac full time.

— Ben Sandofsky (@sandofsky) April 25, 2013

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That was quick…

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Patently Apple spotted two car-related Apple patent applications, one allowing an iPhone to act as a smart-key, the other helping you locate your car when parked in a large car-park.

The smart-key idea uses a Bluetooth connection from the phone to unlock the car, which could be done either manually or via a proximity rule, unlocking your car as you approach it …
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Apple has just revised its plans for its massive upcoming new headquarters, scheduled to be completed by 2016. The revised plans, known as Submittal 6, focus less on the structure of the building itself, instead highlighting the surrounding land and facilities, showing off new bike paths, larger parking areas, and photos of street renderings.

The parking areas have been increased in capacity from 9,000 to 9,240 in the main lot, and 1,500 to 1,740 in an additional location, the report states. Updated bike access plans include new features such as enhanced bike lanes called “buffered bike lanes,” as well as bike boxes and two-stage turn boxes (images below).

Conversion apps feel like a design playground, with so much potential for uniqueness and variety in their interfaces. The trend has been towards multifunction, multi-purpose Swiss-army knife apps that attempt to cover a whole range of disparate measurements. In my experience, as a result of racing to add one more ratio to their feature list, the simplicity of these apps suffer.

Currency sidesteps this battleground entirely and, as the name implies, focuses solely on converting amounts of money. The app touts support for over 160 currencies from around the world, which was more than enough to satisfy my needs. The app surfaces a handful of common currencies at first launch, each accompanied with a beautiful representation of its respective country’s flag.

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via Business Insider

Unless the “April-ish” predictions by iMore’s Rene Ritchie come true for the iPad 5 launch event, Apple will have gone 230 days without a keynote when it holds WWDC on June 10-14th. 

To make it worse for Apple hardware-lovers, that event is billed as showing off the next version of iOS and OS X so we’re not guaranteed to see any new Apple gadgetry there. The wait is unusually long for Apple as Jay Yarrow demonstrates in his thoroughly researched timeline of Apple’s recent keynotes.

Apple CEO Tim Cook hinted during yesterday’s conference call that Apple wouldn’t have anything notable in terms of hardware until the Fall, though it is unclear exactly what he meant by that.

The 132 day wait between the 2010 MacBook Air and the iPad 2 was the longest hardware dry-spell before the one we are currently enduring.
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This morning, Apple officially announced that its 2013 Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) will take place at Moscone West in San Francisco from Monday, June 10 until Friday, June 14th.

Tickets for the conference will go on sale at 10 AM Pacific / 1PM Eastern time tomorrow, April 25th.

The conference typically includes several sessions for iOS and OS X developers to work on their code and new projects alongside Apple engineers. Additionally, Apple engineers will make presentations about new developer-focused features in iOS and OS X.

Indeed, in Apple’s announcement of the WWDC 2013 dates, Apple says that the conference will include details about the next iOS and OS X releases:

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An insightful Reuters blog by financial journalist Felix Salmon suggests that Apple’s surprisingly low share price may be due to the evolving nature of the company leaving it between two sets of investors.

Conservative investors, who like slow-growing stocks with high dividends, are constitutionally uncomfortable with the volatility inherent in the tech world. And technology investors, who are happy taking that kind of risk, want to see substantial growth. Apple, notwithstanding the fact that it’s one of the most valuable companies in the world, is falling through the capital-markets cracks.

Apple always used to be the company which surprised and delighted investors and customers alike. Its guidance to investors was deliberately pessimistic, blowing through those figures when it reported actual revenue and earnings. It was notoriously secretive about new products, launching new ones in a playful manner with Steve Jobs’ famous ‘One more thing‘ moments…
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