iPhone

Technology analysts TrendForce estimated that total smartphone production for 2017 reached 1.46B units, up 6.5% on the previous year. It predicts that growth will be slightly slower in 2018 as component costs continue to rise.

The company also predicts that iPhone sales will increase significantly this year, while those of Samsung smartphones will fall …

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Apple has clarified its policy on battery replacements. As long as the owner of the iPhone 6 (or later) handset is willing to pay the $29 fee, and the device is not otherwise damaged, Apple will process the repair without requiring further checks of condition.

This comes after some reported cases where Apple Store employees were refusing customers with ‘ineligible’ batteries which still passed Apple diagnostics testing.

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Earlier this week, Apple issued a candid apology for how it handled the rollout of a feature that balances iPhone performance with aging batteries. The apology came after growing resentment from some users and a slew of lawsuits.

In addition to the “We’re sorry,” Apple also announced discounted battery replacements for affected users.

Some are saying, however, that Apple’s apology didn’t go far enough…

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After growing controversy, Apple this week issued a public apology for how it handled slowing down older iPhones in conjunction with aging batteries. In addition to its apology, Apple also said that it would be lowering the price of iPhone battery replacements from $79 to $29.

Originally, the company said it would start the lower-priced iPhone battery replacements in late January, but you can actually take advantage of it now…

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The iPhone was the best-selling tech product of 2017, says a USA Today report, outselling all the products in slots #2 to #5 combined. It follows news that Apple dominated device activations leading up to Christmas.

According to Daniel Ives, an analyst with GBH Insights, who compiled the chart for USA Today, Apple will sell 223 million iPhones in 2017, up from 211 million phones the previous year …

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After Apple reduced its iPhone battery-swap price to just $29 as part of an apology for its handling of the performance-throttling controversy, iFixit has done the same for its DIY kits for older devices …

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Apple today published an open letter on its website apologizing for how it handled performance on iPhones with older batteries, specifically “how we have communicated that process.”

We’ve been hearing feedback from our customers about the way we handle performance for iPhones with older batteries and how we have communicated that process.

We know that some of you feel Apple has let you down. We apologize. There’s been a lot of misunderstanding about this issue, so we would like to clarify and let you know about some changes we’re making.

To make up for the confusion, Apple is offering cheaper battery replacements and says a future iOS update will include features that offer more insight into battery health.

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The latest lawsuit to be filed against Apple in the battery throttling controversy looks to be the most serious to date. A French environmental group has hit Apple with litigation over alleged planned obsolescence. If found guilty, Apple executives could actually face jail time in addition to millions in fines.

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The controversy over Apple slowing down older iPhones in response to battery degradation doesn’t seem to be dying down.

Apple is facing a series of lawsuits over the issue, and it’s reported today that the equivalent of the FCC in Samsung’s home market of South Korea is now seeking an explanation from the iPhone maker …

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New data from Flurry Analytics shows Apple continuing to dominate with new device activations during the week leading up to Christmas Day. iPhones and iPads made up 44% of devices measured by Flurry from December 19 to December 25 with second seen as a distant second at 26%.

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As its battle with Qualcomm continues to escalate, Apple is again said to be considering modems from MediaTek for the 2018 iPhones. DigiTimes reports that Apple is looking for additional capacity after ‘transferring half of its orders to Intel from Qualcomm’…

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2017 was a huge year for Apple across the board. It marked the introduction of three new iPhone models, a range of new Macs, an all-new Apple Watch, and much more.

As has become the normal, Apple spread its releases across the entire year in 2017, introducing new products in pretty much every quarter.

As it continues to expand into new product categories, keeping track of when Apple releases certain products and software updates can be tricky, but that’s what we’re here for. Read on as we break down everything Apple released in 2017…

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Receiving a new iPhone or iPad as a gift is a wonderful thing, but setting up a new device has historically been a chore. Manually pairing accessories, joining Wi-Fi networks, remembering which password goes with which account, and the ever-increasing steps required to actually use your shiny new toy make up the worst first world problems.

The good news is Apple has acknowledged this pain point and created a dramatically simpler way to pair or upgrade new products including iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, Apple TV, and AirPods.

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Apple’s stock price has seen a sharp drop this morning on the first day of trading since Christmas Day, and a new report on tepid iPhone X demand going into next year is to blame. Analysts are adjusting their forecasts on iPhone X shipments at the start of 2018 based on demand largely being fulfilled during the holiday quarter, and the $999-$1149 price may be the cause.

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Update: As the Chicago Sun-Times reports, Apple now faces a second lawsuit over the “deceptive, immoral and unethical” tactic of slowing older iPhones. More here.

Following yesterday’s revelation that it slows down older iPhones to help manage batter wear, Apple today has been hit with its first class action lawsuit over the tactic. The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles, California, accuses Apple’s battery saving “feature” of causing users to suffer and hurting the value of older devices…

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Winter is officially here in the Northern Hemisphere, and that means it’s cold enough in a lot of locations to start wearing gloves. Recently I’ve been testing out Mujjo’s Double Layered Touchscreen Gloves, a great way to a stay warm without giving up iPhone usability.

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One of my-all time favorite additions to the iPhone’s camera app is Live Photos, the feature that saves a short, 3 second video clip with each photo you take. Playing back Live Photos from an event has always been cumbersome though, requiring you to swipe through each photo and play each clip separately. Now, a new app aims to solve that problem by instantly turning groups of your Live Photos into shareable video clips.

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KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo predicted earlier this month that new iPhones next year will pack noticeably higher capacity batteries, but that move may not be entirely to extend battery life. Kuo’s latest investment advisory predicts “upgraded 3D-sensing and AR-related functions” that are more power-hungry.

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Apple caused a furore yesterday when it admitted that it deliberately slows down older iPhones.

The issue first came to the fore with a Reddit thread, which showed a significant difference in performance on the same device when fitted with old and new batteries. Geekbench founder, John Poole, confirmed the phenomenon, and developer Guilherme Rambo subsequently identified the code that controlled it.

Apple then confirmed the facts, and explained its reasons …

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There have long been rumors that Apple plans to eventually converge Macs and iOS devices into a single product line running the same operating system. I expressed my own concerns about this way back in 2013, though also listed some things from which we could draw reassurance.

Apple has consistently denied the rumors, Tim Cook doing so with a particularly striking phrase back in 2012.

You can converge a toaster and refrigerator, but these things are probably not going to be pleasing to the user.

But yesterday’s news that Apple plans to support cross-platform apps that run on iPhone, iPad and Mac does raise a variation on this concern …

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