Apple says some employee computers were breached by hackers
photo: Shutterstock / mkabakov
They found their way in through a vulnerability in Java. But the company says there is no evidence that “any data left Apple.” Read more »
How switching to Android helped me deal with my addiction to connectedness
There are many things I like better about my Android phone compared to my old iPhone, but one of the big ones is something that is missing: namely, all those irritating real-time notifications Read more »
This week in cloud: Amazon upsets Apple; NTT backs Cloud Foundry; cloud taxes in dispute
photo: Shutterstock / Gena96
Amazon is numero uno in consumer appeal, beating out even Apple and Google, according to Harris Interactive. Also, Cloud Foundry gets big backer in NTT and states reconsider sales taxes on cloud services. Read more »
Google going retail?
photo: Flickr / blakespot
Google isn’t just an internet search company any more. As it pushes Google TV, Google Glasses, and Chromebooks, it needs to let customers try-before-they-buy. Read more »
Apple appeals iPhone exclusive trademark loss in Brazil
Are we in for a rerun of last year’s iPad trademark episode in China? It’s certainly shaping up that way. Read more »
Why big change may be coming to iOS this year
An analyst predicts Apple will re-build iOS to work on faster processors this year. Based on the age of iOS and personnel changes made last year, this isn’t a bad bet. Read more »
Report: Apple loses exclusive iPhone trademark in Brazil
photo: Flickr / gaby_bra
A Brazilian company that registered the trademark in 2000 is also allowed to legally use the iPhone name in Brazil, according to a ruling reported Wednesday. Read more »
Apple lowers price on 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro, MacBook Air
photo: Om Malik/GigaOM
The 13-inch 128 GB MacBook with Retina display is now $1,499, $200 lower than when it was announced four months ago. Read more »
Why is Opera moving to WebKit? Because it has to.
Opera has confirmed that it’s adopting the WebKit rendering engine and the Chromium framework. Why? Apple and Google have so much influence that the mobile web is being written to their specs. Read more »
More details emerge about scope of Apple smart watch project
Apple may be further along in developing an “iWatch” than previously thought. A new report says there is a team of 100 people working on the project. Read more »
Tim Cook: Apple doesn’t have a cash hoarding problem
photo: Chris Hondros/Getty Images
Apple’s CEO defended the company against attacks that it’s irrationally conservative about cash and reiterated that the board of directors is in “very active discussions” about returning more money to shareholders. Read more »
Apple issues iOS 6 software fix for iPhone 4S owners
Some European carriers had started warned their subscribers not to upgrade to iOS version 6.1 until Apple had a chance to address the issues. Read more »
The fate of Apple’s $137B cash pile could be made more clear this week
photo: Flickr / Tracy O
Tim Cook could use his speaking slot at the Goldman Sachs tech conference Tuesday to signal how he’s thinking about Apple’s excess cash. Read more »
Macmillan will pay $20M to settle remaining ebook pricing lawsuits
photo: Shutterstock / zimmytws
Macmillan is paying $20 million to settle the class action and states’ lawsuits remaining against it. Read more at paidContent »
Hold off updating your iPhone 4S to iOS 6.1, European carriers warn customers
photo: Getty Images / Oli Scarff
Vodafone UK and 3 Austria have told subscribers that they should avoid updating their iPhone 4S to the latest version of iOS, while Apple works on a fix for reported 3G connectivity problems. Read more »
Reports: Apple testing curved glass, iOS-powered smart watch
The watch would run the same iOS platform as the iPhone, according to the NYT. The WSJ adds that Apple has talked with its chief manufacturing partner about such a device. Read more »
Apple snags a television expert from LG Display
The OLED Association noted this week that Apple had hired away James (Jueng-jil) Lee, an LG researcher and expert in television displays. Read more »
Ex-Apple designer explains why it’s just a matter of time for the iWatch
Bruce Tognazzini lays out why he thinks Apple already has all the pieces in place to build an iOS-based smart watch. Read more »
Apple: We’re talking about how to distribute more of $137B in cash to shareholders
photo: Flickr/401(K) 2012
Apple responded to investor David Einhorn’s public comments Thursday about his dissatisfaction with how the company is handling its cash with its own statement. Read more »
Twitter’s Vine app now has a 17+ age rating, user reporting tool
After pornography was found on Vine, Twitter has quietly updated the app with an age-rating warning and a user/content reporting tool. Read more »
How we’ll know when Google Play really has caught up to the iOS App Store
Android is catching up to iOS in terms of apps for sale and developer attention. But the most influential mobile companies have yet to bypass iOS for Android. Read more »
iTunes launches Breakout Books section to highlight self-published titles
Apple has launched a new section of the iBookstore, “Breakout Books,” that highlights popular ebooks from self-published authors. Read more at paidContent »
A potential clue about Apple’s streaming music service surfaces
9to5Mac say they found unused “buy” icons in the iPad’s Music app that appear to be linked to streaming radio, a service Apple has been said to be working on. Read more »
Infographic: the periodic table of smartphones
Apple’s iPhone and other smartphones are full of rare earth minerals China is one of the biggest producers (and consumers) of these rare earth minerals, which are becoming such hot commodities that entrepreneurs and investors are thinking about mining the moon for them. Read more »
Two years and three CEOs later, publisher JV Bookish is ready to help users find their next book
The long-delayed Bookish, a website backed by Hachette, Penguin and Simon & Schuster and designed to promote book discovery and sell books, launched Monday night and is designed to be a one-stop shop for readers looking for their next book. Read more at paidContent »
GarageBand 101: Using Apple loops to help songwriting
photo: Shutterstock / Elaine Barker
Not ready to shell out for Logic Pro? GarageBand can be a useful and relatively cheaper way to draft and write songs for budding songwriters and musicians. Read more »
Data centers haven’t just changed computing, they’ve changed communities
photo: CC license by Flickr user IntelFreePress
Following the opening of data centers, communities in Oregon, Washington and Virginia have made new policies, built many new homes and prompted environmental activism. Read more »
Friday funny video: How to use a dual-screen Windows tablet in Starbucks
Heading to a coffee shop without your Mac? Consider this sneaky method to use a two-screened Windows laptop — and save your Apple stickers! Read more »
With 18M iPhones sold during Q4, Apple outsells Samsung in U.S.
photo: Samsung
While whole year sales are another story, during the fourth quarter of 2012 Apple sold more smartphones than any other seller in the U.S. market, according to a new report from Strategy Analytics. Read more »
Apple to stop Mac Pro shipments to EU ahead of promised 2013 update
Apple won’t immediately have a new model ready that meets new safety regulations. But CEO Tim Cook promised last year something “really great” is coming in 2013. Read more »
Even as the iPad grows, Apple loses ground
Apple is the world’s biggest tablet maker. But despite increasing shipments by 48 percent, it’s continuing to lose ground to Samsung, Asus and others. Read more »
Why Apple is the stumbling block in Amazon’s ebook transition
photo: Shutterstock / Stacie Stauff Smith Photography
As the ebook transition moves forward, Amazon should worry that Kindle is not going to be the device leading the revolution. Read more at paidContent »
BlackBerry 10 smartphone launch gets a few cheers, a bunch of jeers and a lot of meh
Research In Motion — which has renamed itself BlackBerry — launched its new smartphones at a star-studded event in New York, but responses to the new devices ranged from sharply critical to “ho hum,” and that could be lethal. Read more »
Judge denies new trial, keeps Apple’s $1B verdict over Samsung intact
A set of rulings issued late Tuesday mean there won’t be a retrial of Apple v. Samsung, but neither will Apple be getting more money: Judge Lucy Koh found Samsung patent infringement was “not willful.” Read more »
The next Apple TV is still a box, just smaller
Still waiting for Apple to announce a big-screen TV? Then you might have to wait a bit longer: The next Apple TV device will be even smaller than the currently-selling version. Read more »
A few tweaks later, 500px back in iOS App Store after pornography snafu
With better search filters, a user reporting tool, and a new 17+ rating, the popular photography app 500px is back on the iOS App Store a week after being booted by Apple. Read more »
So that 128GB iPad? It’s real, and it’s available from Apple on Feb. 5
Apple framed the move to release its biggest-ever capacity mobile device as a way to help professionals in a variety of industries replace their traditional computers with the iPad. Read more »
In the platform wars, open is ultimately more valuable than closed, says Betaworks
photo: Shutterstock/Luis Santos
In his annual letter to shareholders of the seed-stage incubator Betaworks, founder and CEO John Borthwick argues that while closed platforms can be valuable in the short term, open systems and services will ultimately prevail. Read more »
Apple makes it easier to find Passbook apps in iOS 6.1 update
Apple has restored a page within Passbook that explains what it does as well as the vital link that takes users to “Apps for Passbook” in the App Store. Read more »
Apple updates iOS 6 with new Siri, iTunes Match features and more LTE coverage
The iOS 6.1 update is available via iTunes or over the air update for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch users. Read more »
