Google’s infrastructure spending spree continues; $1.2B in Q1
photo: Google
Google spent $1.2 billion on property and equipment in the first quarter of 2013, nearly doubling last year’s first quarter. Read more »
How to quickly edit and share photos from your point-and-shoot camera on your iPhone
With sales slumping due to the popularity of cameras in smartphones, companies like Canon are making cameras that let smartphones access photos directly for editing and sharing. Read more »
Apple stock tanks on bad news from audio chip supplier
Cirrus Logic is believed to be the main supplier of audio chips for the iPhone and iPad. It missed badly on revenue and has some investors worried that Apple way overestimated the number of mobile devices it could sell during the quarter. Read more »
China raps Apple once again, but this time over porn distribution
Echoes of the conflict with Google surface in the Chinese government’s attempt to crackdown on “obscene pornographic content” that it says is coming in through Apple’s App Store. Read more »
This is why Apple wants to launch iRadio
People still buy a lot of music downloads, and most of them use iTunes to do so. That’s why Apple is now building its own streaming service. Read more »
Gracenote co-founder on ‘iPod day’ and better music through data
photo: Flickr / ヨシキ
More than a decade ago, Gracenote received some cryptic advice from Apple to buy more servers. What followed — the launch of iTunes and iPod — blew up Gracenote’s database to epic proportions and laid the groundwork for a metadata empire. Read more »
Foxconn nearing new iPhone production, reports point to summer launch
photo: Credit: Bowen Liu/Apple Inc. via Bloomberg
Bloomberg says the hiring began in mid-March at a Zhengzhou factory for work on a new Apple device as well as older model iPhones. The Journal says Foxconn has been hiring 10,000 new workers every week since then. Read more »
My iOS 7 wish list
While I may be wishing upon a star here, I’m hopeful that Apple beginning support for a third-party audio interface is a sign of change from Cupertino regarding features they may add to iOS. Read more »
Apple set to pay $53M in water-damaged iPhone warranty dispute
According to court documents found by Wired, Apple’s method for detecting water damage in iOS devices may not have provided totally clear-cut evidence. Read more »
Microsoft takes hits after bad PC numbers
photo: Flickr / ToddABishop
With Q1 PC sales breaking records — and not in a good way — Microsoft is taking heat with two analysts downgrading its shares. Read more »
The PC market is a horror show right now
We can pretty much stop arguing about whether the PC industry is deathly ill or not: the numbers speak for themselves, with its worst quarter since tracking began in 1994. Read more »
Foxconn sales drop could foreshadow Apple earnings
photo: Credit: Bowen Liu/Apple Inc. via Bloomberg
Hon Hai Precision Co. is the parent company of Apple’s biggest manufacturing partner. On Wednesday it reported it saw a 19 percent drop in its sales for the first quarter of 2013. Read more »
T-Mobile goes even lower: bring in old iPhone, waive $99 fee for iPhone 5
With a special promotion beginning on Friday, the carrier is hoping to give potential customers even more reasons to switch from a competitor to their new contract-free iPhones for sale. Read more »
AppGratis: Apple approved our iPad app a week before removing iPhone app
The AppGratis episode highlights an ongoing issue for the iOS App Store review team: inconsistently rendered decisions about app approvals. Read more »
Book review: Former Kindle exec on Kindle flaws, Nook strengths and Google’s future in ebooks
In a new book, former Kindle exec Jason Merkoski examines where e-reading platforms are now and how they could change in the future. If you’re looking for secrets about Jeff Bezos, though, you’re in the wrong place. Read more at paidContent »
Google could face Android antitrust investigation in Europe, after Microsoft complains
photo: Image Credit: Louis Gray
Not satisfied with targeting Google over its search practices, Microsoft and its allies have complained to EU competition authorities over the way Google services are bundled with Android. Read more »
As JC Penney and Ron Johnson just learned, it is always about the team
Ron Johnson, former retail chief of Apple was hired by JC Penney as a man with the silver bullet. Both didn’t realize: winning comes from team (and timing). Read more »
Hey, Tim Cook: We found an executive to run Apple Retail for you
Former Apple retail chief Ron Johnson’s job as CEO of J.C. Penney didn’t work out. Meanwhile, Apple hasn’t found anyone to fill his old position. Read more »
AppGratis yanked from iOS App Store for two rule violations
App Store guidelines prohibit apps that use push notifications for marketing purposes and those that simply promote other apps. AppGratis is just the latest to be pulled for these kind of violations. Read more »
Wearable design, Misfit and the age of the glanceable UI
A second generation of wearable computing is emerging that focuses on design and a so-called glanceable UI. Valley startup Misfit Wearables is leading the charge, and trying to create a new type of user experience. Read more »
Last week on Pro: smart meters, smart watches, and more
For a deeper dive into the topics and technologies covered on GigaOM, check out the latest in-depth analyses on GigaOM Pro, our subscription-based research service. This week: the future of the smart watch, investing in smart grid technology, and more. Read more »
Can big tech overcome its love-hate relationship and destroy patent trolls once and for all?
Almost every tech company claims to hate patent trolls, but they certainly don’t always back up their words with actions. Recent patent activity around the Hadoop big data platform might show how companies can effectively battle trolls — if they really want to. Read more »
GigaOM Reads: A look back at the week in tech
Its a unicorn. No it’s a phone. Actually it is Facebook Home, for now; Apple’s China Syndrome is making it think different; The Bit coin boom (& bust); Chrome & WebKit go to war and did Vdio really kill the Rdio star? Read more »
5 lessons I learned at Apple about how to design and build hardware
photo: Bowen Liu/Apple Inc
No matter how brilliant or beautiful your new gadget may be, it’s doomed if you can’t figure out how to make it efficiently, consistently and economically. An ex-Apple supply guy offers insights on how to make that happen. Read more »
The case for the next Apple phone being the iPhone 6, not iPhone 5S
Segall thinks “iPhone 5S” is an unwise idea is because it tells potential buyers that it’s an “off year” for Apple innovation. Read more »
Jolla’s Sailfish OS SDK installers are now out for Windows, OS X and Linux
Developers can now sink their teeth into the smartphone OS that picks up where MeeGo left off. However, the operating system will struggle to make its voice heard in a turbulent year for mobile. Read more »
Facebook and Apple: it’s complicated
Here’s what Mark Zuckerberg had to say about Apple, the iPhone and Facebook in two different one-on-one interviews that hit Thursday. Read more »
Apple builds on its lead as top U.S. smartphone maker; HTC takes biggest dip [chart]
Samsung may have a lead in the worldwide smartphone market, but Apple’s dominance is growing in the U.S. Read more »
Apple’s massive Jobs-designed future headquarters project is $2B over budget
The building will be green and energy efficient, but, Businessweek reports, it’s the “fit and finish” — the extra visual and structural flair — that Steve Jobs’ design calls for that are ballooning the price. Read more »
Is Google’s new Blink browser engine good or evil? It depends
There’s both good and bad in Google’s news that it would be forking WebKit to create the Blink rendering browser engine. It really comes down to motive: Is it just for speed of development or for more control over web standards? Read more »
Apple has to think different about China
Rather than the local media and government coming around to the way Apple does business, Apple is learning that its usual playbook for success doesn’t necessarily work in China. Read more »
A new iPhone may be on track to arrive this summer
According to the WSJ, Apple has two different phones in production, the follow-up to the iPhone 5 and the long-rumored low-cost iPhone. Read more »
Apple back on China’s good side after Tim Cook’s apology
it will be interesting to see what kind of precedent this sets for how Apple gets along in its No. 2 market with the Chinese media, and more importantly, the Chinese government. Read more »
China extracts personal apology from Apple CEO over iPhone warranty policies
photo: China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology
Open letters from the Apple CEO are few and far between, as are apologies. But from Tim Cook they come when he senses that public opinion is turning dangerously against the company — see also “Apple Maps.” Read more »
China consumer group demands Apple offer 2-year iPad warranties
China’s top consumer watchdog group is the latest to attack Apple over issues of consumer protection. It’s the latest bout of criticism Apple has received in the Chinese media. Read more »
What it takes to be a mobile hit: Five friends, zero VC dollars and lots of chutzpah
John Arrow is the 26-year-old CEO of a four year old mobile application company that has 375 employees. Here’s how he managed to grow his business while growing as a leader at Mutual Mobile. Read more »
A Facebook phone: Is this the final brick in the social network’s walled garden?
A “Facebook phone” is one of the longest-running rumors in the technology world, but a number of observers think such a beast is actually going to make an appearance next week. But do users actually want one? Read more »
The dark matter of the virtual world: resources
The era of constrained resources is just beginning, so right now access to resources acts as sort of dark matter, quietly putting pressure in complex ways on how the virtual world operates. Read more »
With Presence app, People Power pulls a pivot
photo: People Power
Energy management startup People Power is back with a new remote monitoring app designed to reuse old iOS devices as security cameras. It’s a nice app and People Power’s gateway drug to the internet of things. Read more »
IoT Podcast: Why the Hue internet light bulb is a bright idea
photo: Philips
Want the creation story behind the Philips Hue connected light bulbs? In this week’s podcast we explore that and what people are doing with Hue and what might be next for Philips in the connected home. Read more »
