Posts

Apple today has released an update to the Apple Store app for iOS. The update brings the app to version 5.2 and includes new Siri Shortcuts, delivery options, and more. Apple Store for iOS originally added Siri Shortcuts integration back in November. At the time, the feature was limited to pre-ordering the iPhone XR. Headlining today’s update, however, is a new array of Siri Shortcuts functionality. Apple says that you can now create custom voice commands with Siri Shorts to check product availability and check order status....

Apple keynote day is officially here. As is tradition, the company has taken its online store offline and is now displaying the message “We’ll be back.” The store won’t come back online until after its keynote is wrapped later this afternoon… Apple teases its new products with the message “We’re busy updating the Apple Store for you,” and encourages users to come back later to see everything that’s new. Apple today is expected to unveil a trio of new iPhones, including the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X....

If you’ve been wondering what’s different with Apple’s ads lately, you are probably not alone. Scott Trattner had been working with Apple’s exclusive ad agency, TBWA’s Media Arts Lab, since 2004, but left the firm in the summer of 2012 to join 72andSunny. Trattner worked on multiple campaigns for Apple, including the famous Get a Mac series. He served as the Executive Creative Director during his initial run with Apple’s ad firm....

Wired has an interesting profile today on Lisa Jackson, former head of the Environmental Protection Agency who joined Apple in June last year to oversee environmental issues. The publication joined Jackson as she traveled to Apple’s new data center outside of Reno, Nevada, and through the interview offers some interesting insight into what Jackson is trying to accomplish at Apple. The interview with Jackson is landing just as Apple is set to celebrate Earth Day tomorrow and make some new environmental related announcements:...

Apple was just granted a patent by the US Patent and Trademark Office (via Patently Apple) detailing 3D display & imaging technologies that could potentially lead to advanced Kinect-like navigation through performing gestures or manipulating holographic images within a virtual 3D space. Essentially, this would allow you to perform hand gestures within a virtual space while your hands are displayed on a screen, allowing for precise manipulation of on-screen elements....

Apple this morning confirmed it intends opening its Mac App Store on Thursday, January 6. The store will be available in 90 countries at launch and will feature both paid and free apps in various categories. “The App Store revolutionized mobile apps,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “We hope to do the same for PC apps with the Mac App Store by making finding and buying PC apps easy and fun....

Ahead of the iPad mini landing this Friday in the hands of those who pre-ordered, the Smart Cover for the iPad mini has been delivered to a number of customers already. Apple made the covers available to customers last Friday for $39—available in red, dark gray, light gray, pink, green, and blue. The Smart Cover attaches magnetically to the side of the iPad and folds over to cover the front. It can be folded three times for different viewing angles....

In the wake of the new 13-inch and 15-inch Touch Bar models today, Apple has stopped selling the much-beloved 2015 MacBook Pro. For people who despised butterfly keys, or mourned the lack of legacy ports on the 2016 and later MacBook Pro, until today Apple Store stocked a 15-inch 2015 model as an alternative. It may not have been as fast or as svelte as the latest models, but for people who had become disenchanted with Apple’s latest direction, it was their favorite computer....

Today, Apple introduced two new MacBook Air Laptops, as listed below. These new models feature a slimmer, unibody frame (0.68″ at its thickest point), LED-backlit displays, 2GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce 320m graphics, 802.11n wireless, full-size keyboard, Multi-Touch trackpad, FaceTime camera, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR, and up to 7 hours of battery life. The new models, which are available today: 2.3-lb. MacBook Air 11.6″ Core 2 Duo 1.4GHz 64GB SSD for $999 2....

Apple’s latest court battle with Qualcomm kicked off yesterday, with Qualcomm arguing during opening statements that its chip technology is instrumental in the smartphone industry. Today, Apple argued that for one of the patents in question, one of its engineers should be credited. Qualcomm is suing Apple over three patents, upon which it alleges the iPhone infringed. As reported by CNET, Apple today argued that a former Apple engineer should be credited on one of those patents....

While this could turn out to be nothing at all, there’s an interesting detail on Apple’s system status page: the Apple Online Store is scheduled to go down tomorrow from 12:00 am to 5:30 am PT. Apple’s online store typically goes offline for several hours ahead of product refreshes. Apple cites scheduled maintenance for the offline period, as MacRumors first pointed out, but the page specifies that the Apple Online Store “will be updated” which could mean either backend components or new product pages....

In its ongoing second major patent trial against Samsung, Apple yesterday filed a statement with the US District Court in California claiming that after examining the recently released Galaxy S4 it has “concluded that it is an infringing device and accordingly intends to move for leave to add the Galaxy S4” to its long list of 22 infringing products. Apple is hoping Judge Lucy Koh allows the S4 to be added, but in line with the court’s request to reduce the number of infringing devices ahead of a trial scheduled for spring 2014, Apple has also agreed to remove without prejudice one of the other 22 infringing devices from Samsung it currently has listed....

Apple has had some interesting retail storefront displays for the iPhone, iPad and Mac in the past, but its latest effort all but tops the cake. At the iconic Apple Store on Regent Street in London, the Cupertino-based company now has a row of iPads on display with colorful Smart Covers that automatically open and close. This video (from Vid.Me) does not explain how the Smart Covers are able to move on their own, although magnets underneath the shelf are almost certainly involved....

CNET reports that authorized resellers will be limited to those ‘who handle millions of dollars in Apple products,’ which will eliminate small businesses and individual sellers. “It was really a great thing for our family,” the 35-year-old consulting engineer from Colorado said, adding that the side business helped him pay off the medical bills, nursing school and existing student loans. “I feel our business is not being treated fairly and there’s nothing we can do about it,” Weil said, “and that’s what’s really frustrating” […] after selling $500,000 in merchandise through the site in the past two years, paying the company $80,000 in fees over the past three years and maintaining a superb seller performance record throughout....

. From 9to5Toys.com: Following price drops and minor processor upgrades for Apple Retina MacBook Pros this morning, Apple also further discounted its refurbished MacBook Pros. Apple took 15 percent off the MacBook Pros in January, and it dropped the 256GB 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro even more to $1,359 today. Other refurbished Retina MacBooks have been discounted as well. The 512GB 2.9GHz Retina MacBook Pro now sells for $1,779 refurbished. Apple also discounted its 256GB 13-inch MacBook Air to $1,099, and it received a price drop this morning to $1,399 new....

Apple just updated the official Apple Store app that allows iOS device users to make and track purchases, check in for reservations, and schedule Genius Bar and One-to-One appointments. The first new feature included in version 2.2 of the app is the new Express Checkout that was previously only available to online shoppers through Apple’s browser-based online store. The feature enables quicker purchases by allowing you to skip the shopping cart checkout process and simply enter your Apple ID to have purchases billed directly to the credit card on your account....

We’re less than a week away from the launch of Apple’s new Apple News subscription service, and the company is still working to finalize deals with major publications. The New York Times reports today, however, that Apple has made one notable deal with The Wall Street Journal. According to the report, Apple is pitching its Apple News subscription service as having the benefit of scale. Apple News comes pre-installed on every iPhone and iPad, which gives media outlets a wide new audience:...

Apple has just seeded the first beta of the next version(s) of its Safari browser for OS X. The new versions, 7.0.3 and 6.1.3, will be available for Mavericks and Mountain Lion users, respectively. Earlier today Apple also released a new OS X 10.9.3 developer preview along with a beta version of iTunes 11.1.6 to employees. Based on the rapid release of these app betas and the decreasing time between OS X betas, the OS X update is expected to be available to developers later this week....

Ahead of the launch of Apple Watch next month, Apple has started advertising the product in its retail stores, as pictured in the photos above (via @mikesiOShelp). This is the first glance at Apple’s upcoming retail push for the device and comes as Apple kicks off a campaign for Apple Watch in fashion magazines, on billboards, and elsewhere leading up to the device’s launch on April 24 in 9 countries....

We’re pasting without (much) editing some of the different tips we’ve gotten below: As noted, the home button does not work when Smart Sign app is running so it cannot be exited. The only way to get the home button to work again is to reset the iPad using the home and lock buttons. The Apple Store App will be updated tomorrow, and will be available world wide. It will support CTO orders, and should also be available as an iPad optimised app....