iOS Devices

9,871 'iOS Devices' stories May 2007 - July 2014

The devices that run the world’s most advanced mobile operating system

Check out our top stories on iOS Devices:

iOS devices refer to any of Apple’s hardware that runs the iOS mobile operating system which include iPhones, iPads, and iPods. Historically, Apple releases a new iOS version once a year, the current version is iOS 10. Here is the complete list of iOS 10 compatible devices.

Major case makers banking on leaked iPhone 6 design

Mike Beasley Jul 23 2014 - 5:04 pm PT

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For the past few months there have been a host of leaked schematics and dummies of the next-generation iPhone. While the veracity of those leaks won’t be fully confirmed until Apple shows the device off to the public later this year, at least one case designer is already creating covers for the phone based on those schematics.

As noted by iLounge, case maker Spigen has revealed its line of Thin Fit and Thin Fit A cases for the unannounced phone. Provided the iPhone 6 actually matches the leaked design, the Thin Fit lineup will run for $15 and be available in both clear and opaque styles in a selection of colors. The Thin Fit A will be available in gunmetal and black for the same price, with the only other difference being a cutout on the back for the Apple logo to show through.

The cases are scheduled to go on sale in late September, pending the announcement and release of the actual phone they’ll protect. You can find more photos over at iLounge.

Report claims Swatch and Timex partnering up on iWatch, but don’t count on it (Update: Swatch denies)

Mike Beasley Jul 23 2014 - 4:53 pm PT

13 Comments

<a href="http://www.swatch.com/en/watches/originals/new-gent/suow705-sprinkled" target="_blank">Swatch’s design style</a> clearly reflects Apple’s clean, uncluttered aesthetic

Update: Swatch has denied the claim, in a statement to Reuters.

A new rumor that popped up today from VentureBeat claims that Apple is working with Swatch and Timex to create different styles of its upcoming iWatch. The rumor puts Apple’s wearable plans in-line with Google’s: the Mountain View company makes the Android Wear software that powers hardware from a variety of vendors.

While it’s true that Swatch teamed up with Microsoft to create an ill-fated smart watch in 2004, it doesn’t seem likely that Apple is poised to join forces with any third party to create its own entry to this market. Here’s why…

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Apple reportedly discussing mobile wallet plans with credit card companies, may launch with iPhone 6

Benjamin Mayo Jul 23 2014 - 2:12 pm PT

2 Comments

The Information has a new report out discussing Apple’s progress on a mobile wallet payments service. The post echoes reporting by 9to5Mac earlier in the year.

The report says the service may launch this fall, enabling iPhone users to pay for goods with their devices in retail outlets. Apple has apparently discussed the plans with credit card institutions, according to the report, as a user’s banking information “would essentially be uploaded to the wallet”. Apparently, Visa is already onboard with the project.

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Apple ‘tentatively’ plans mid-September iPhone event as iOS 8 nears completion

Mark Gurman Jul 23 2014 - 7:38 am PT

18 Comments

Apple is gearing up for its first major hardware and software launches of 2014. The Cupertino-based company is “tentatively” planning a keynote address in mid-September to announce the iPhone 6 and provide final details on iOS 8, according to sources briefed on the plans.

These people say that the second and third weeks of September are the mostly likely weeks for the event to be held, but they add that manufacturing uncertainties could alter the event’s timeframe. A decision has not been finalized, and sources made it clear that the plans are in flux.

The event will showcase at least the new iPhone 6 with a 4.7-inch screen, the sources say, but a final decision on debuting the larger, 5.5-inch “phablet” model at the event has not been made. The 4.7-inch variant of the new phone is farther along in both internal testing and manufacturing preparation, the sources added.

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Opinion: Will the iPad be left behind in the shift to larger iPhones?

Ben Lovejoy Jul 23 2014 - 7:30 am PT

63 Comments

With Apple reporting lower-than-expected iPad sales for the second quarter in a row, it’s likely that Tim Cook will be once again be called on to reassure investors that the decline in year-on-year sales won’t continue indefinitely.

Cook has been very bullish on the iPad, despite the numbers, pointing especially to growing sales in the education sector and the opportunity for tablet growth in enterprise.

The penetration in business is low, it’s only 20 percent. If you looked at the penetration of notebooks in business it would be over 60 percent. We think there is a substantial upside in business.”

I think he’s right, especially with the IBM partnership. I mentioned in my opinion piece then that increasing penetration in enterprise could also help drive consumer migration from Android, as it gives people exposure to iOS devices. But the impact this has could well be offset by the iPhone 6 …
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First look at Fleksy’s upcoming keyboard launching alongside iOS 8

Mark Gurman Jul 23 2014 - 5:59 am PT

5 Comments

In addition to launching a redesigned version on Android, Fleksy today has given us a first look at its upcoming keyboard offering for Apple’s iOS 8. iOS 8 launches this fall with several new iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch features, including the ability for developers to launch custom system-wide keyboards. Fleksy previously announced that it is working on a keyboard for iOS 8 and has opened up signups for a beta, but today the company provided us with the first images and some new details…

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AAPL’s report card: how Q3 results fared against analyst expectations

Ben Lovejoy Jul 23 2014 - 4:25 am PT

5 Comments

Here’s how Apple’s Q3 results stack up against the analyst expectations compiled by Fortune. Revenue grew 6 percent, but Wall Street was expecting more. Earnings per share was marginally higher than expected, at $1.28 per diluted share. Gross margin was higher than expected at 39.4 percent.

iPhone sales were slightly lower than expected, while iPad sales were significantly below analyst predictions. Mac and iPod sales, in contrast, were higher.

Overall, market reaction was muted, with a slight drop in the share price in post-market trading – but with overall results broadly in line with expectations, all eyes now will be on Q4. Apple has issued wider than usual revenue guidance of $37 to $40 billion, but with the WSJ reporting that the company has ordered a record number of iPhones from suppliers, expectations will be at the high end.

Apple patent granted today shows dockable ‘iTime’ watch concept as well as conventional smartwatch

Ben Lovejoy Jul 22 2014 - 7:48 am PT

27 Comments

A patent application filed by Apple three years ago and approved today illustrates a new twist on the iWatch concept: a sensor-packed strap acting as a dock which allows a range of interchangeable modules to be snapped into place.

It’s not anything we’re likely to see make it into production: the docking concept dates back to 2011, and was probably intended by Apple to house an iPod Nano, converting it into a smartwatch in a more sophisticated version of the watch-straps sold in Apple Stores since way back in 2010. But the patent does tell us two things …
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Here’s what analysts expect Apple to announce today: revenue up 8.5 percent, earnings up 18 percent

Ben Lovejoy Jul 22 2014 - 5:09 am PT

8 Comments

With Fortune having now filled in the blanks in its analyst roundup, above are the final numbers Wall Street expects Apple to announce at around 1.30pm PT/4.30pm ET this afternoon.

With all 34 analysts having revealed their predictions, the consensus view is for year-on-year revenue to have grown by 8.5 percent, with earnings up 18.1 percent …
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Chinese sellers taking iPhone 6 pre-orders two months before anticipated launch

Ben Lovejoy Jul 22 2014 - 4:33 am PT

6 Comments

It might be two months before the rumored launch date of the iPhone 6, with a working phone yet to be sighted and no clue as to the retail price, but that isn’t stopping sellers taking pre-orders, reports the WSJ.

More than thirty sellers on Alibaba’s Taobao marketplace said they can help purchase the upcoming new iPhone 6s from the U.S. and Hong Kong. But there’s one catch: consumers have to pay a deposit ranging from 500 yuan ($80) to 7,999 yuan ($1288).

One seller even went as far as putting together a laughable mockup of an Apple webpage for the iPhone 6 (the full page can be seen below).

Another seller claimed the price of the unsubsidized 4.7-inch model would start at 5,288 yuan ($851) , with the 5.5-inch version starting at 5,988 yuan ($964), but there is absolutely no reason to think they have any information on Apple’s pricing plans.

Back in the real world, it’s been reported that Apple is looking to produce 70-80M iPhone 6 handsets by the end of the year, with production expected to begin imminently after Foxconn confirmed hiring 100,000 new workers for the project.

Here, for your amusement, is that full hilarious attempt at mocking up the iPhone 6 page on the Apple website (complete with the line that it was ‘made for iOS 7’) …

Changing the lives of people with Alzheimer’s, one iPod and one playlist at a time

Ben Lovejoy Jul 22 2014 - 4:03 am PT

5 Comments

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVkrI1R0XjA]

Alive Inside, a documentary film being shown in selected theaters across the U.S., tells the story of a social worker using iPods and personalized playlists to bring new life to nursing home residents with Alzheimer’s.

Dan Cohen puts together playlists of music from when the patients were young, transfers them to an iPod and then plays them to patients who had been unresponsive to conversation, generating dramatic transformations, reports Re/code.

Audiences first encounter Henry hunched over in his wheelchair, head down, hands clasped firmly together, unresponsive to the world around him.

As soon as a pair of headphones are placed on his head, the 94-year-old dementia patient opens his eyes, sits up straight and begins swaying and humming along with the music. Henry speaks animatedly about his favorite band leader, Cab Calloway, and even begins to emulate the jazz artist’s style of scat singing — at one point launching into a rendition of “I’ll Be Home for Christmas.”

Cohen discovered that music tapped into parts of the brain that could not be reached in other ways, and could revitalize people even in late-stage dementia, “demonstrating music’s ability to combat memory loss and restore a deep sense of self to those suffering from it.”

Described as “a joyous cinematic exploration of music’s capacity to reawaken our souls and uncover the deepest parts of our humanity,” Alive Inside won the Audience Award at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival. Apple is reportedly helping to promote the film, and a list of theaters where the film can be seen is available here.

WSJ: Apple prepares record number of 80 million 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch iPhones for production

Mike Beasley Jul 21 2014 - 5:09 pm PT

18 Comments

The Wall Street Journal reports that Apple has told its suppliers to prepare to build a record number of next-gen iPhones. According to the Journal, Apple is looking to produce 70-80 million units by December 30th. As reported earlier this month, both the 4.7-inch and the larger 5.5-inch models of the upcoming iPhone are expected to enter mass production in the coming weeks.

This is a big jump from the previous iPhone models. Last year the company only ordered 50-60 million of the iPhone 5s and 5c. Manufacturing parter Foxconn recently hired as many as 100,000 new workers to help meet the increased demand, and even ordered a custom line of robotic equipment to facilitate the production of iPhone 6.

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iTunes Festival app updated for London 2014, brings new design

Benjamin Mayo Jul 21 2014 - 11:29 am PT

2 Comments

This morning, Apple announced a new iTunes Festival for the United Kingdom, featuring over sixty bands, for September. The iTunes Festival app has now been updated to relay this information and exhibits the design style and iconography for the 2014 show. Because this is a UK show, the app is only available in the UK iTunes Store.

Currently, the app doesn’t feature much content — simply linking out to the iTunes Store app to enter the raffle for tickets. When the 2014 iTunes Festival starts, the app will stream the gigs alongside other related content. The festival will also be shown on Apple TV.

The app was last updated earlier this year for the corresponding 2014 show in the US.

Apple seeds iOS 8 beta 4 to developers with redesigned Control Center, Health improvements, more

Mark Gurman Jul 21 2014 - 9:54 am PT

53 Comments

Apple today released iOS 8 beta 4 to developers. It is now available via Software Update in Settings for those running earlier betas of iOS 8 on the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. The new update likely brings further design enhancements and bug fixes. iOS 8 comes out this fall and adds new features like health tracking, improved messaging, more efficient email management, and bolstered photo editing. We’ll be updating this post (below) as we discover new changes, and you can send us what you find to tips@9to5mac.com.

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Will Apple also update the next iPads with rounded edges? (Poll)

Ben Lovejoy Jul 21 2014 - 8:14 am PT

21 Comments

One of our favorite designers of Apple concepts, Martin Hajek, has put together this visual showing how a new iPad mini design might compare with the existing one if it were based on the design of the iPhone 6.

The existing design, top, has the familiar flat front and tapered, chamfered edge. The bottom one, Hajek’s concept, has the rounded edge now familiar from countless iPhone 6 renders, mockups and purported leaked parts …

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Light-up logo rumors for iPhone 6 likely have a more mundane explanation

Ben Lovejoy Jul 21 2014 - 7:30 am PT

14 Comments

While we can’t say for sure that rumors of a MacBook-style glowing logo in the iPhone 6 are false, the evidence for this idea is rather … ah … thin.

We first saw photos of what appears to be an ultra-thin rear casing more than a month ago, with some sites then claiming this would facilitate a light-up logo. A new claimed leaked photo is doing the rounds today apparently showing a cut-out logo aperture with a plastic backing thin enough to allow light to shine though.

Those images fuelled speculation that the logo would light up when new mails, SMS messages or updates arrived, allowing owners to put their handset on its front and still be made aware of people contacting them. Today our snaps, which we worked with leaks-world lynchpin Sonny Dickson to source, could offer conclusive proof that this is indeed the case.

Possible? Sure. Conclusive proof? Um, no. Exhibit A, the logo cutout on the iPad:

The reason the logo is cut out in this way is that while people love metal casings, radio signals don’t. Apple positions the wifi antennas behind the plastic logo to allow the radio signals to pass easily through.

On the iPhone 5s, Apple allows GSM, LTE, Bluetooth and wifi signals to pass through the casing by topping-and-tailing the metal rear casing with glass sections:

With the iPhone 6 visuals we’ve seen, there are breaks in the metal casing which are likely to be for radio signals, but they are much thinner than the end-caps on the 5s.

Positioning some of the antennas behind a plastic logo would be one way to make that work.

We’re not saying a glowing logo on the iPhone 6 is impossible, just that we certainly haven’t seen anything close to proof.

Apple will beat its own top-end guidance when it announces Q3 results tomorrow, say analysts

Ben Lovejoy Jul 21 2014 - 6:28 am PT

2 Comments

Fortune ran its usual poll of more than two dozen analysts, with the consensus view echoing earlier predictions that Apple will beat its revenue guidance of $36-38B by reporting $38.4B for its fiscal Q3 (calendar Q2). Gross margin is also expected to exceed Apple’s guidance of 37-38 percent, at 38.1 percent. This follows forecasts that iPhone sales would climb 15 percent year-on-year, while iPad sales will be flat.

Business Insider reports that Wall Street is once again expecting significant growth from AAPL.

46 Apple analysts rate the stock a buy, 13 call it a hold, and only 4 thinks it’s a sell. Citigroup, which was bearish on the stock, changed its analyst coverage and rated the stock a new “buy.” JMP securities upgraded the stock to outperform Monday morning. Other analysts have raised their price target …

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New photos of purported Lightning and audio connections for iPhone 6 surface

Mike Beasley Jul 18 2014 - 7:45 pm PT

6 Comments

A user on the MacX forum [translation] claims to have gotten his hands on a part from the upcoming iPhone 6 that features the data and audio connectors, as well as one of the device’s microphones. The source of these photos? According to the poster:

Source is one of my junior high school classmates, he never phones in Shenzhen, the manufacturing industry a few years, I did not ask him where to come

Given the fact that this is from an unknown source, it would be prudent to question the veracity of any claims made regarding these images. That said, there’s also a chance the part could be real. Let’s take a closer look at the second photo:

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EU accuses Apple of dragging its feet on protections for ‘misleading’ IAP-driven free apps

Benjamin Mayo Jul 18 2014 - 4:43 am PT

24 Comments

The European Commission has complained that Apple is taking too long to implement protections for freemium games in the App Store, reports BBC News. The Commission has decreed that both Apple and Google, the two biggest app store vendors, must make the “true cost of apps” clear before purchase. However, officials are upset that Apple has not yet committed to any such measures.

“Regrettably, no concrete and immediate solutions have been made by Apple to date to address the concerns linked in particular to payment authorisation,” the Commission said in a statement.

“Apple has proposed to address those concerns. However, no firm commitment and no timing have been provided for the implementation of such possible future changes.

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Can’t wait until September? The Goophone i6 is out now, and it will fool your friends

Ben Lovejoy Jul 18 2014 - 4:37 am PT

7 Comments

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Z2C8ED4piM]

The iPhone 6 may not actually exist yet, but that hasn’t stopped Chinese clone manufacturers releasing functional knock-offs based on the leaks and mockups. Now Goophone – the company which previously made an extremely close copy of the iPhone 5s – has joined the party with the WICO i6.

As ever with Goophone, the quality of both the casing and the iOS-themed Android skin is certainly good enough to fool the casual observer – almost worth getting one to prank people …

As for the real thing, production of the 4.7-inch model is expected to start next week, and the 5.5-inch version the second week in August, Foxconn hiring 100,000 new workers for the assembly process.

There’s been a steady stream of claimed leaked parts from the phone, including a scratch test of a sapphire display; both photos and video of the back of the phone; the LCD bracket; the chassis; a ‘more durable’ Touch ID sensor‘; and a battery and camera sensor.

4.7-inch iPhone production to start third week of July, 5.5-inch second week of August as Foxconn confirms hiring of 100K workers

Mike Beasley Jul 17 2014 - 7:04 pm PT

29 Comments

Apple is set to begin mass production of the next-generation iPhone next week, the Economic Daily reported today. According to the report, the smaller 4.7-inch model will enter production in the third week of July, while the larger 5.5-inch variant will enter production in the second week of August. The bigger of the two models is said to be facing production setbacks that could lead to a much later launch date than its smaller cousin.

iPhone manufacturer Foxconn added some credence to the timing of the production rumors by officially confirming plans originally reported earlier this month to hire 100,000 new workers to build the upcoming device. Sapphire crystal for the displays (which we’ve recently seen in multiple videos) has been in production at Apple’s Mesa, AZ plant for several months now in preparation for mass production.

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Asus reportedly sold more tablets than Apple in Japan during first half of 2014

Chance Miller Jul 17 2014 - 12:21 pm PT

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Image via <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ml1LzNFn8kc">TechSmartt</a>

According to figures released by market research company BCN, Asus sold more tablets than Apple during the first half of 2014 in Japan. Asus’ market share rose 8 percent year-over-year during the first half of 2014, the report claims, giving it a 38.9 percent portion of the tablet market in Japan. Apple, on the other hand, holds a 36.4 percent share (via Nikkei). This is the first time Asus has ever held the top spot in Japan, according to the report.
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Kickstarter campaign offers ‘Magsafe for iPhone’ (history says Apple lawsuit incoming)

Ben Lovejoy Jul 17 2014 - 6:41 am PT

28 Comments

The main product offered on this Kickstarter campaign is just another powered case (albeit a pretty-looking one) – but it was the ‘Magsafe for iPhone’ adapter three-quarters of the way down the page that caught my eye.

Plug in a slim adapter to the Lightning socket of your iPhone, plug in an adapter to your Lightning cable and you have the equivalent of a MagSafe connection on your phone.

It’s a neat idea, but sadly not one that is likely to survive scrutiny by Apple’s lawyers – at least, not using ‘MagSafe for iPhone’ as the description. Battery company Hyper, which makes external batteries for MacBooks and iPads, learned this the hard way when it offered MagSafe connectors. Apple’s lawyers sued, and forced the company to go via an airplane power adapter instead.

Without the description, however, it might survive. You can pledge $25 for the two-part adapter kit, with estimated delivery in November. The campaign currently has just over $6,000 pledged of its $50k target, with 43 days to go.

Analysts believe sapphire display covers will be limited to high-end iPhone 6 models only

Benjamin Mayo Jul 17 2014 - 6:27 am PT

12 Comments

Analysts at JP Morgan securities suggest that production output of sapphire display covers are not enough to satisfy all iPhone 6 demand and say that sapphire will be restricted to higher-end variants of the iPhone 6 only, in a report highlighted by the Taipei Times.

JP Morgan says that sapphire display cover volume will be about 10 million units in 2014. To put this number into perspective, Apple sold 51 million iPhones in the first full quarter of iPhone 5s sales last year.

“Sapphire covers will also be restricted to high-end iPhones, possibly the 128GB [gigabyte] ones,” the brokerage said in the report.

The report says that sapphire will be limited to higher-capacity iPhone models, “possibly” only the 128 GB SKU’s. The additional cost of sapphire over Gorilla Glass also factor in, aside from pure production limitations.

Matching a report from yesterday, the analysts also suggest that not all iWatches will ship with sapphire coatings, either. Both the iWatch and the iPhone 6 are expected to be announced in the third quarter.