Apple

Now that the stainless steel Apple Watch is becoming widely available, owners are beginning to post photos showing their shiny steel Watches have already developed scratches on the casing. Since Apple’s videos touted its steel as specially cold-forged to achieve superior hardness, people have been surprised to discover that the finish is easily scratched – many comparing it to the back of an iPod. While this isn’t shocking for 316L stainless steel, it is concerning to customers who just spent $549 or more on the mid-range Apple Watch. But don’t panic! As I’ll explain below, you can easily fix the scratches yourself for around $5…

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If you’re still debating on which Apple Watch model to order, we may have a bit of help/advice to offer. Apple Watch Sport is the cheapest option to go for, but what exactly will you be missing over one that’s more expensive? Well, we took the plunge, picked up a few of them, and put together a helpful comparison video between these models…

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Apple Watch has undoubtedly been a long time in the making, but it’s finally here. Today we’re taking a look at the Sport models to see exactly what you get for between $349 to $399. Apple’s strategy for rolling out this product line hasn’t been favored by everyone, but if you were one of the lucky people to place a preorder two weeks ago, here’s what you can expect…

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As the Apple Watch slowly starts arriving to customers, the folks at iFixit have gotten their hands on the device and have started the teardown process. As usual, the site has shared detailed images of the teardown process and anecdotes along the way.

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Although the US will not receive their watches for a few more hours yet due to timezone discrepancies, some international customers have already taken delivery of their Apple Watch orders. For instance, some customers in Australia are now receiving their Watches, such as the one pictured above.

The image also clearly shows the packaging for the Apple Watch Sport finally. Unlike the gold Edition and stainless Watch models, the Sport is shipped in an elongated skinny rectangle with the Watch laid flat across the box.

More photos after the break …

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We’ve known for a while now that the popular Things to-do list management app is coming to the Apple Watch, and we even posted a few screenshots of the application this morning. But now, Cultured Code, the developers behind Things, have provided an in-depth look at how their application sets itself apart from the other task management Apple Watch applications. While the Mac, iPhone, and iPad versions of Things separate tasks into Today, Next, Scheduled, and Someday tasks, the Apple Watch app focuses in on the Today View.

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Update: Confusing the situation further, HDBlog has received news from Italian Apple PR that Milan will not have Apple Watch stock to buy.

Amidst all the craziness, it now transpires that Apple Watch will in fact be available to be buy at some retail locations on Friday. The New York Times reports that select boutique locations will have stock in the brick-and-mortar locations of Apple Watch Sport and Apple Watch.

This includes Dover Street Market in Tokyo and London, Maxfield in Los Angeles, Collette in Paris, the Corner in Berlin and Corso Como in Milan.

Apple had previously announced these locations in a press release but it was unclear whether the plans had changed as Apple had since said that there would be no in-store stock until June at the earliest. although now it appears this only applies to Apple’s own retail stores.

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According to a report from Bloomberg, Nokia is targeting Apple as a potential buyer for its maps business. Nokia has recently been trying to sell its HERE Maps division due to it losing revenue. The report claims that Nokia is seeking around $3.2 billion for its maps business. Nokia first bought the mapping assets in 2008 for $8.1 billion.

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LifeProof has become a household name in the iPhone accessory world since debuting its first ultra-protective case in 2011. The company has continued improving its waterproof cases with each new version of the iPhone. With the iPhone 5, LifeProof introduced its Nüüd series, which offers protection from water, snow, dirt, and shock while still exposing the display. We took a look at it last summer, noting that its an excellent choice for the adventurous iPhone user, albeit a bit bulky. It’s still available for $48.

With the iPhone 6, Apple presented LifeProof with a new challenge. The large, thin form factor of the iPhone 6 meant that LifeProof would have to work incredibly hard to develop a case that maintained a manageable form factor, while offering the same protection that users of the case have come to expect. We reviewed the LifeProof Fre for the iPhone 6 earlier this year and pointed out that it was a well thought out option, but that the Nüüd model would be very much welcomed. I’ve recently been testing the LifeProof Nüüd case for the iPhone 6. Here’s what you need to know:

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Ahead of the expected first Apple Watch arrivals on April 24th, Apple has began charging customer credit and debit cards. Various users on social media that pre-ordered the Apple Watch are reporting that they have been charged by Apple for their order. According to reader reports, both Apple Watch and Apple Watch Sport customers have been charged.

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Following an Apple Watch with gold link bracelet, an exclusive combo that Apple isn’t offering to consumers, surfacing on the wrist of designer Karl Lagerfeld, today Beyonce is flaunting the same model at Coachella, as shown in these images posted to her website. 
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With no official support from Apple, the third-party strap market for Apple Watch is still a bit of a wild-west, but there are some companies making it possible and offering inexpensive alternatives to Apple’s own bands.

Apple might have its own exclusive strap colors available for a select few, but you’ll likely need to go the third-party route if you want a similar level of customization for your Apple Watch.

Below we’ve put together a list of third-party bands already available to order, as well as adapters for traditional straps and replacement straps for Apple’s leather bands.
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Apple’s annual lottery for WWDC tickets officially ended this morning at 10AM PST and lucky developers have started receiving confirmation emails this evening. The developers who were lucky enough to win an opportunity to the attend event have received emails in their inbox and their credits have been charged.

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Known for publishing previously confidential documents, WikiLeaks has released a large collection of emails from last year’s widely publicized hack of Sony, notably including Apple agreements covering Sony’s Crackle Apple TV channel, video sales through iTunes, and other topics. The leaks include:

• The terms of Apple’s agreement to add Sony’s Crackle video service to the Apple TV, notably including a 3-year term (starting December 11, 2013), Sony’s retention of 100% of advertising revenue, and a promise that Apple will permit new types of overlaid/display ads on Crackle if it becomes technically feasible and Apple OKs it. Few details were previously known about the business terms between Apple and channel providers for the Apple TV.
• Apple’s agreements to distribute Sony videos through the iTunes Store, including the original 2007 agreement between the companies covering TV shows such as Charlie’s Angels and Who’s The Boss, term extensions and high-definition amendments, and the addition of iTunes in the Cloud (which Apple originally called “Virtual Storage Locker”).
• Sales forecasts for Sony games sold in the App Store, as well as charts suggesting that Sony’s iPhone and iPad game revenues far surpassed the amounts made on competing platforms.

The leaks go on to describe Apple and Sony product tie-ups, including the iPad’s “character” role in the film Sex Tape, as well as Sony’s internal reaction to Apple’s “Stickers” ad featuring a Breaking Bad reference, and an apparent effort by Dreamworks’ Jeffrey Katzenberg urging Sony not to collaborate with Apple…

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Apple kicked off its Apple Watch showcase today at Milan’s Salone Del Mobile Design Fair in Italy and on hand at the event were Apple executives including marketing chief Phil Schiller and designer Marc Newson.
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Apple is reportedly planning to launch Apple Pay in Canada, its first expansion of the payments service outside the U.S., this fall, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal. The company is reportedly in talks with banks for a launch as soon as November:
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Jobs and Forstall (Image via Getty)

According to a leaked email from the Sony Pictures hack, Snapchat has given former Apple executive Scott Forstall a 0.11 percent stake of its company for being an advisor. According to the email, Forstall was given his stake in early 2014 with his advisory occurring in January of that year.

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