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Apple iPad Air opening weekend sales to set a new record

Apple might be facing big issues with the production of the Retina screen-packing second generation of its iPad mini, but the iPad Air appears to be more than capable of making up for it. According to Piper Jaffray's analyst Gene Munster, the Air might be able to post a new record for opening weekend sales, beating the achievement of the iPad 4 and the first iPad mini from last year. Last year...

via GSMArena.com - Latest articles http://ift.tt/19r8Egp

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First iPad Air Reviews: 'Ridiculously Small and Light', Apple's Most 'Tempting Tablet Yet'

At its October 22 iPad-centric event, Apple provided multiple publications with iPad Air review units. The embargo on reviews has just been lifted, which means several sites are now posting their thoughts on the thinner, lighter iPad Air. We've gathered some relevant excerpts from each site in order to highlight the general release reaction to Apple's newest iPad. Jim Dalrymple, The Loop

It's very hard to describe how good the iPad Air feels in your hand without actually picking one up. It’s kind of like the first time you saw a Retina display for the first time—shock. This smaller size is great. If you have decent sized hands you can type with two thumbs on the iPad in portrait, something I wasn’t really able to do with the last generation iPad without a lot of stretching. Clearly a full-size iPad is not something you will be thumb typing with all the time, but it does give you an idea of how much smaller the iPad Air is.

Walt Mossberg, AllThingsD

In a feat of design and engineering, Apple has slashed the iPad’s weight by 28%, made it 20% thinner and 9% narrower, while increasing its speed and retaining the brilliant, 9.7-inch Retina display. The new iPad weighs just 1 pound, down from 1.4 pounds for the previous top-of-the-line model, the iPad 4, which is being discontinued. And it has done all this while maintaining the iPad's industry-leading battery life. In my tests, the iPad Air far exceeded Apple's claim of 10 hours of battery life. For over 12 hours, it played high-definition videos, nonstop, with the screen at 75% brightness, with Wi-Fi on and emails pouring in. That’s the best battery life I’ve ever recorded for any tablet.

Brad Molen, Engadget

Yes, as strange as it may sound, the latest iPad is actually just a larger version of the 7.9-inch mini. It's as if the smaller device -- which launched at the same time as the fourth-gen iPad -- was a pilot test for Jony Ive's new design language. Calling it the "Air" was fitting indeed, since it's ridiculously small and light compared to previous models. It measures 7.5mm thick and weighs only one pound (1.03 pounds, to be exact), making it 1.9mm thinner and 0.43 pound lighter than the iPad 4. Apple's also trimmed the left and right bezel by roughly 8mm on each side. If that doesn't sound significant, just hold the Air for a minute and then pick up an older iPad; the difference is immediately noticeable. Simply put, the iPad Air is the most comfortable 10-inch tablet we've ever used.

Matt Warman, The Telegraph

Its light weight and thin form mean it gets out of the way – you don’t notice it, but you notice what you're doing on it. That, potentially, unleashes a new generation of tablet-based productivity. The fact that Apple is now giving away even more software means that perhaps the rebranding is, therefore, more than simply a marketing exercise. Air may yet be the oxygen for a new wave of uses for the iPad.

Edward Baig, USA Today

As it happens, though, this latest full-size Apple tablet is the most tempting iPad yet, better than its already best of breed predecessors, superior still to each and every rival big screen slate that I've tested. Apple dominates the tablet apps ecosystem. Its tablet remains the easiest to use. In a side-by-side comparison against its immediate predecessor, the new iPad indeed opened apps more quickly and booted up and shut down slightly faster, though not to such a degree that I expect most people to notice.

Damon Darlin, The New York Times

What you may not know is this: Those 6.4 ounces make all the difference when, as you recline while reading or watching a movie, you conk out and the iPad falls forward to bonk you on the nose. The Air won't hurt you the way the old iPad did. The weight reduction and a 20 percent slimmer profile provide other benefits, too. My messenger bag strap didn’t dig into my shoulder as deeply when my iPad was in it. My hand didn’t cramp up while grasping the iPad Air for an hour while watching movies or playing games.

Other reviews: David Pogue AnandTech CNET Fox News Pocket-lint Mashable Bloomberg T3 TechCrunch Apple's iPad Air will be available to the public beginning on Friday, November 1, with initial online orders beginning at 12:01 AM Pacific Time in the United States and at varying times in other countries. Apple retail locations will open at 8 AM local time on Friday to begin in-store sales.

     via MacRumors: Mac News and Rumors - All Stories http://ift.tt/16kjZxm

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Intel to Begin Manufacturing 64-Bit ARM Chips in 2014

Intel partner Altera announced at the ARM developers' conference yesterday that the world's largest semiconductor chip maker will start manufacturing 64-bit ARM chips beginning in 2014, reports Forbes. The move brings Intel's chipmaking prowess to the most popular architecture for mobile devices and could prove to make Intel a foundry option for Apple and its custom A-series chips for its iOS devices at some point in the future.

“It’s huge. Imagine ARM’s most powerful and technologically advanced 64-bits processor built on Intel’s leading-edge fabs. A duo that will be hard to beat,” explains Nathan Brookwood, principal analyst at Insight 64. [...] “Intel will build Apple's, Qualcomm’s Snapdragon or the Nvidia Tegra for the right price. Now, the question is, are they ready to pay that premium and feed their direct competitor, except for Apple. But that would actually make business sense for everyone,” adds Brookwood.

Apple notably signed a three-year deal in June with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC) to produce A-series Chips for future iOS devices beginning in 2014, with the move seen as a part of Apple's strategy to move away from rival Samsung for component supplies. However, Samsung was soon after reported to have landed another deal to produce chips for Apple beginning with the A9 in 2015. According to a report in June, Samsung will also remain involved in next year's A8 chip family, with TSMC handling 60 to 70 percent of the manufacturing load and Samsung picking up the remainder. Apple was also originally rumored in 2011 to be moving from Intel's x86 architecture to ARM processors in future laptops, with a report in November 2012 also stating that Apple was considering the switch from Intel chips. A closer look at the potential move determined that Apple's potential shift from x86 to ARM for Macs was not implausible, as Apple could theoretically push ARM's power efficient based chips to become more suitable for its line of desktops and notebooks. While purely speculative, Intel's move into ARM chips could make such transitions smoother in the future.

     via MacRumors: Mac News and Rumors - All Stories http://ift.tt/1aTjj0j

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Google's Multiplayer Augmented Reality Game 'Ingress' Launching for iOS in 2014 [iOS Blog]

Ingress, a mobile-augmented reality game created by Google for Android devices, is set to launch on iOS devices next year, reports AllThingsD. Plans for the iOS version of the game were confirmed by Ingress product manager Brandon Badger, with the Android version experiencing over ten thousand active players a month and one million activations total since Google launched a closed beta for the title last November. As described in the Google Play description, the multiplayer gameplay of Ingress centers around two sides, The Enlightened and The Resistance, who compete against each other for clues about a mysterious new technology. The story is set in real-time with Google delivering new clues every week, with players claiming local landmarks around them in the real-world, which earns them points for their respective team in-game.

Ingress transforms the real world into the landscape for a global game of mystery, intrigue, and competition. Our future is at stake. And you must choose a side. A mysterious energy has been unearthed by a team of scientists in Europe. The origin and purpose of this force is unknown, but some researchers believe it is influencing the way we think. We must control it or it will control us. Move through the real world using your Android device and the Ingress app to discover and tap sources of this mysterious energy. Acquire objects to aid in your quest, deploy tech to capture territory, and ally with other players to advance the cause of the Enlightened or the Resistance.

An unauthorized version of Ingress was released for iOS earlier this year for both jailbroken and non-jailbroken devices, however the port's creators warn that players may be banned for using an unofficial app. A new Ingress story titled "13Magnus" began today with live events planned for 38 cities, concluding in San Francisco on December 14th. Ingress is set to launch for iOS in 2014, but Google has not specified when.

     via MacRumors: Mac News and Rumors - All Stories http://ift.tt/1aiH7KM

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Apple's iPad-Centric Event to Take Place on October 22

Apple will hold its much-rumored iPad event on October 22, reports AllThingsD. While the event will focus on Apple's upcoming fifth-generation iPad and iPad mini, the new Mac Pro and OS X Mavericks will also be featured at the event. Though Apple has not officially announced the event, AllThingsD has a solid track record when it comes to event predictions. Rendering of the 5th-generation iPad compared to iPad 4 and iPad mini

People familiar with Apple's plans tell AllThingsD that the company will hold its next invitation-only event on Tuesday October 22. The focal point of the gathering will the latest updates to the company’s iPad line, but new Mac Pro and OS X Mavericks will likely get some stage time as well, I'm told.

Apple's fifth-generation iPad will take on an iPad mini-style design, resulting in a thinner, lighter tablet with smaller side bezels. It's expected to feature a 64-bit A7 processor and an improved camera. Apple's iPad mini is expected to include the same 64-bit A7 chip along with a Retina display and an 8-megapixel camera. According to recent rumors, the iPad mini could be in short supply and may not see widespread availability until 2014. Update: The Loop's Jim Dalrymple has seconded the October 22 date with one of his famous "Yep" confirmations.

     via MacRumors: Mac News and Rumors - All Stories http://bit.ly/15YKkOo

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How-to: Automatically set up an Apple TV by touching it to your iOS Device

The easiest way to set up an Apple TV is with an iOS device. To use this easier setup mode, you’ll need a third-generation Apple TV, an iPhone 4s or newer, third generation iPad or newer, iPad Mini or fifth generation iPod Touch. Whichever iOS device you use must be running iOS 7. When the […] via 9to5Mac http://bit.ly/15OBMyB

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Behind the Scenes of the Original iPhone Launch

via Daring Fireball http://nyti.ms/17CleIN

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Cue personal assistant is Apple's latest acquisition

Just when you thought it was safe to stop talking about Apple acquisitions! As reported by AppleInsider and TechCrunch, Cupertino has snapped up another company: the folks behind personal assistant app Cue.

Cue, which began its life as a startup called Greplin, was a service (with an attendant iOS app) that operated as a personal assistant, drawing information from a variety of social networking accounts like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. This allowed users to search through the various information streams without having to log into each service individually.

It’s not hard to see what the appeal might be for Apple. The company’s invested time and energy in beefing up the capabilities of Siri, its voice-based virtual assistant, and in integrating services like Facebook, Twitter, and Linked In into its operating systems. It’s not hard to imagine Apple providing a built-in capability in its operating systems to easily and seamlessly search through all of those social networking services.

Cue’s website currently says that the service is no longer available; those users who were paying a monthly fee for the premium version of the account will receive a prorated refund. Any data stored on the company’s servers has been deleted.

To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

via Macworld http://bit.ly/1dYiCXl

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Apple releases OS X 10.8.5 supplemental update, iTunes 11.1.1

OS X Mavericks may be on the horizon, but don’t think we’re done with Mountain Lion quite yet. Late on Thursday, Apple released OS X 10.8.5 Supplemental Update 1.0, along with iTunes 11.1.1.

The Supplemental Update fixes a few issues with Mountain Lion, including a problem that might prevent some apps from using the FaceTime HD camera when running on a mid-2013 MacBook Air. Also patched are a pair of sleep issues: one where external drives were ejected after the computer went to sleep, and another where HDMI audio wouldn’t work right after the computer was woken up. Finally, there’s also a fix for problems with certain USB Bluetooth adapters.

Other than its lovely mono-numeric version number, iTunes 11.1.1 fixes a problem where podcasts were deleted, patches an issue where iTunes Extras displayed incorrectly, and improves stability. We could all use a little improved stability in our lives, right?

Both updates are, as of this writing, available via Software Update on eligible computers.

To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

via Macworld http://bit.ly/175v8ze

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What's still to come from Apple this fall

Long-time Apple watchers know that the fall season usually brings a bountiful harvest of new and updated products from the company. Indeed, just two short weeks in September have ushered in new iPhones, iOS 7, a new version of iTunes, a modest bump to the iMac line, a nice update to the Apple TV software, and several minor changes to the company’s product lineup including iPhone docks and even new iPod colors. But we didn’t see lots of stuff in September that many had hoped for, and the rumor mill is churning away (as usual) about all the things Apple supposedly still has up its sleeve for the fall.

What else should we expect from Apple in 2013? Here’s a look at some of the popular predictions out there, along with just how likely we think they are to appear.

A new full-size iPad

It’s been a year since Apple introduced a brand new full-size iPad. (Granted, that was only six months after the previous model.) That’s been enough time for the company’s competitors to show off their own new gear, and Microsoft, Google, and Amazon have all obliged. Now it’s time for Apple to weigh in.

If the supply-chain leaks are as solid here as they were with the iPhone, bet on a full-size iPad that’s taken on much of the iPad mini’s styling, with a thinner bezel on the longer sides and perhaps even different back colors. (Space Gray, anyone?) Also, some version of Apple’s speedy new 64-bit A7 chip is likely to make its way inside, along with some camera improvements—and it wouldn’t be entirely crazy to see the Touch ID fingerprint scanner, which debuted with the iPhone 5s, make an appearance. (We’re already spoiled, as unlocking our current iPads by tapping out a passcode feels like a chore.) Really, only one question remains: Will it come in gold?

To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

via Macworld http://bit.ly/17hCRxk

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Samsung to manufacture 30-40% of Apple's upcoming A8 chip

While the freshly announced, 64-bit CPU toting iPhone 5s is enjoying its time under the spotlight, a report has emerged, potentially shedding light on the production of Apple's next generation mobile SoC. According to Korean media, Samsung will handle the manufacturing of around 30 and 40% of the upcoming Apple A8 chip which will find a spot in future iOS devices. Taiwan Semiconductor...

via GSMArena.com - Latest articles http://bit.ly/16XmIKa

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Every iPhone ever compared in speed test [video]

Some, but not that many, surprises here.  One thing is certain: Web browsing has improved dramatically. via 9to5Mac http://bit.ly/16LwrSO

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How to tell which iPad model you have

Apple identifies all its iPads with "iPad" on the back. Not "iPad 2." Not "The New iPad." Just "iPad." As simple as this naming convention seems, it can cause plenty of frustration—just ask anyone who's ever tried to tell two seemingly identical iPads apart. Argh. It's easier than you think to find an iPad's model number—but you might need a magnifying glass.

Apple's model numbering system for the iPad denotes which generation iPad you have, as well as its wireless connectivity capabilities (whether it's a Wi-Fi model or has Wi-Fi and cellular modules inside). This is different from the SKU, which also denotes your iPad's storage capacity, color, and so on.

The model number is stamped onto the device itself. These model numbers usually start with the letter A and are followed by four digits. You can find this number on the back of your iPad: Flip it over, and look for the "iPad" label toward the bottom. You'll find the model number and serial number in this small text, and on older models, your iPad's storage capacity.

Here's a chart to help you understand what it all means:

To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

via Macworld http://bit.ly/1awdck6

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Apple iPhone 5s review: Step by step

It's that time of year again and Apple's in the usual record-breaking mood at the box-office. This is an S year in the Cupertino calendar but different enough - it may be that two phones instead of one account for almost double last year's record sales...

via GSMArena.com - Latest articles http://bit.ly/1fNO787

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A Closer Look at Apple's A7 Chip from the iPhone 5s

Earlier this week, Canadian firm Chipworks released some photos showing the interior of Apple's new A7 chip from the iPhone 5s, as well as the new M7 "motion coprocessor" and other components. The firm has now had a chance to look at the A7's transistor die photo in detail and make a preliminary effort at identifying the various components of the chip. Chipworks stresses that the identifications are still tentative pending full circuit analysis, but that most of the identifications appear to make sense.

We publish this with the caveat that these are best guesses – we have not done any real circuit extraction to confirm them. The dual-core CPU and cache make up ~17% of the die area, and the quad-core GPU and shared logic about 22%. The CPU itself is not packed the same way as the A6 (see below), it looks much more like a conventional automated layout; although Linley Gwennap thinks that it’s still Apple designed, not the first ARM A53/57 usage.

The analysis identifies the CPU portion of the chip as being at the lower left of the image, with the quad-core graphics located at lower right. Previous work by AnandTech has identified the graphics as Imagination Technologies' PowerVR G6430 configuration, a member of the new "Rogue" series of GPUs from the company. Also of interest is a large block of static RAM (SRAM) located along the right edge of the chip just above the graphics cores. Chipworks says that based on its size it represents approximately 3 MB of storage and that it could be the "secure enclave" used to house data associated with the Touch ID fingerprint sensor found on the iPhone 5s. No equivalent SRAM block is included on the previous-generation A6 chip from Apple. The A7 is otherwise a fairly standard chip compared to Apple's previous designs, measuring only slightly larger than the A6 but offering significantly greater performance.

     via MacRumors: Mac News and Rumors - All Stories http://bit.ly/18acQ2q

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iOS 7 How-to: Make FaceTime Audio calls and check how much data they use

New in iOS 7 is the ability to make FaceTime Audio calls. FaceTime Audio works internationally and works on a Wi-fi network, or on a cellular connection. Using Facetime Audio sounds nicer than actually using the iPhone to make calls. FaceTime Audio sounds deep, and closer to the actual sound of the voice. Another benefit […] via 9to5Mac http://bit.ly/19cWbZ3

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Is AppleCare+ worth it for your new iPhone?

If you just bought a new iPhone, Apple offers AppleCare+, which covers your phone for accidental damage for two years. But is it worth it? via Mobile http://bit.ly/1fJONvs