Tag Archives: Apple

WWDC15: Apple updates OS X, iOS & watchOS, unveils Apple Music streaming service

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2015’s World Wide Developers Conference was all about software for the house that Jobs built. Apple CEO Tim Cook led an extensive first-look extravaganza at the many updates coming to the company’s myriad operating systems. The desktop OS X, the mobile iOS, and even the new watchOS are all receiving user experience and performance upgrades soon. Additionally, Apple unveiled its next revolution in the music industry: there was the iPod, and iTunes, and now Apple Music. Jump after the break to learn all about it. Continue reading WWDC15: Apple updates OS X, iOS & watchOS, unveils Apple Music streaming service →

Apple reports ’15 Q2 results: $58 billion revenue & $13.6 billion net profit

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On April 27, Apple reported its 2015 second quarter financial results. Apple posted a record quarterly revenue of $58 billion and net profit of $13.6 billion. Compare this to one year ago, that’s up from revenue of $45.6 billion and net profit of $10.2 billion. Says CEO Tim Cook: “We are thrilled by the continued strength of iPhone, Mac and the App Store, which drove our best March quarter results ever. We’re seeing a higher rate of people switching to iPhone than we’ve experienced in previous cycles, and we’re off to an exciting start to the June quarter with the launch of Apple Watch.”

Now let’s break it down by product category. Apple sold a record 61 million iPhones in the quarter (compared to 43.7 million in the year-ago quarter); 12.6 million iPads (compared to 16.4 million); and 4.6 million Macs (compared to 4.1 million). Apple does not specifically disclose sales figures for the iPod and Apple TV. As for the recently released Apple Watch, it’s too early to tell, but you can expect Cook and co. to share numbers in the upcoming third quarter.

Looking ahead to the third fiscal quarter of 2015, Apple CFO Luca Maestri expects revenue between $46 billion and $48 billion.

In related Apple news, Cook confirmed during the earnings conference call that Best Buy stores will (finally) support Apple Pay later this year. Also, if you’re a Discover cardmember, you will be able to get in on the Apple Pay fun this fall.

[Via Apple; Engadget; BusinessWire]

Apple Watch preorders going live: here’s what you need to know

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The Apple Watch is coming. Are you ready?

Today, one day before pre-orders go live on Friday, April 10, Apple outed a press release detailing how the big launch is going to work. If you want a Watch anytime soon, be ready to preorder online tonight at midnight–specifically, Friday morning at 12:01am PDT. All three styles including the Apple Watch Sport, Apple Watch, and Apple Watch Edition are bound to sell out faster than you can say Steve Jobs, so you’ll want your finger on the checkout button precisely at that time. After securing a preorder, customers can expect product delivery beginning Friday, April 24.

Angela Ahrendts, Apple’s senior vice president of Retail and Online Stores, also mentions in the press release that the company “will be taking orders for Apple Watch exclusively online during the initial launch period.” I added the emphasis there because it’s important to note. At least at launch, you will not be able to walk into a store to buy the Watch; Apple is making it available for purchase solely at its online store for now.

However, that does not mean Apple Stores and select boutiques around the world won’t be showing off the newly minted timepieces. Visit a brick-and-mortar Apple Store “for a personalized session with a Specialist to try on, fit and size their band, and explore the amazing features of Apple Watch.” Though you won’t be walking out of the store with it, such a session will surely help you decide on which style and size are best, and then you make an informed buy online. Happy shopping, and may the odds be ever in your favor!

Need something to do while you’re waiting for pre-ordering to go live tonight? Hop after the break to watch four recently uploaded official Guided Tours to learn your way around the Watch and its snazzy UI. A general overview, as well as focused looks at Messages, watch faces, and Digital Touch, will get you acclimated with Apple’s “most personal device.”

Is that not enough? There’s more. It’s not Watch-related, but it’s still something you should know. HBO NOW, the premium cable network’s standalone streaming service, has gone live across Apple devices including Apple TV, iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. Get the app and get started with a free 30-day trial. Ready to dive in? Sign up for the $14.99 monthly subscription and you’re good to go. HBO releases its new streaming service just in time for the season premieres of Game of Thrones, Silicon Valley, and Veep.

[Via Apple] Continue reading Apple Watch preorders going live: here’s what you need to know →

“Apple engineer” talks new MacBook in hysterical viral video

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Mere days after Apple’s “Spring Forward” keynote, an absolutely hysterical video regarding one of the product announcements made at the event has surfaced and gone viral.

At the keynote, Apple CEO Tim Cook and his team unveiled a new MacBook that’s so thin and light that it had to do away with all the ports you’re used to having on a notebook, namely, the ubiquitous USB port. What you’ll find on the new MacBook is a smaller, single USB Type-C port that will charge it. If you want to connect external devices to it, such as hard drives and monitors, you’ll have to pick up adapters (until, of course, Type-C becomes a true industry standard).

Anyway, that’s more than enough background you’ll need to enjoy this funny clip. YouTuber Armando Ferreira presents, “Apple Engineer Talks about the New 2015 Macbook.” You might want to grab some tissues to dab away tears of incoming laughter; enjoy!

Apple solidifies Watch release date & pricing, unveils HBO standalone streaming service, HealthKit, plus a shiny new MacBook

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On Monday, Apple CEO Tim Cook hosted the company’s latest keynote dubbed “Spring Forward” and it packed quite a punch. Everyone was expecting more details about the anticipated Apple Watch–release date and pricing was finally made known–but before getting to all that, Cook announced an exciting launch with HBO, he introduced a forward-thinking platform called HealthKit that aims to support the medical field in new and exciting ways, and a brand new MacBook packed with all kinds of cool technology made its debut. For all the details, skip after the break. Continue reading Apple solidifies Watch release date & pricing, unveils HBO standalone streaming service, HealthKit, plus a shiny new MacBook →

Apple reports ’15 Q1 results: $74.6 billion revenue & $18 billion net profit

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On January 27, Apple reported its 2015 first quarter financial results. Apple posted a record quarterly revenue of $74.6 billion and net profit of $18 billion. Compare this to one year ago, that’s up from revenue of $57.6 billion and net profit of $13.1 billion. Says CEO Tim Cook: “We’d like to thank our customers for an incredible quarter, which saw demand for Apple products soar to an all-time high. Our revenue grew 30 percent over last year to $74.6 billion, and the execution by our teams to achieve these results was simply phenomenal.”

Now let’s break it down by product category. Apple sold a record 74.5 million iPhones in the quarter (compared to 51 million in the year-ago quarter); 21.4 million iPads (compared to 26 million); and 5.5 million Macs (compared to 4.8 million). iPod sales surely declined as they do every year these days, and the company no longer discloses specifically how many units from this product line are sold.

Up to now, consumers have only privy to a somewhat large release window regarding the highly anticipated Apple Watch. In atypical Apple fashion, Cook narrowed that timeframe down to a specific launch month to eager reporters on an earnings conference call. The Apple Watch, previously pegged for an “early 2015” release, will hit the market in April.

Looking ahead to the second fiscal quarter of 2015, Apple CFO Luca Maestri expects revenue between $52 billion and $55 billion.

Update: APPL stock is soaring following the release of these record results. That’s more than likely because of the unexpectedly high $74.6 billion revenue. At the end of last quarter, CFO Maestri expected revenue between $63.5 billion and $66.5 billion. The company undershot, and the market is currently respecting it for that.

 

[Via Apple]

iTunes shares 2014’s top-selling music, movies, TV shows, apps & more

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Apple returns to reveal its best-selling media across the major entertainment industries including music, movies, TV shows, apps, and books. Consumers flock to the iTunes Store for the latest and greatest, and so it’s always fun to look back and discover which products made the biggest dent in their respective categories.

The top-selling album of 2014 is actually a soundtrack: it’s Disney’s Frozen! Included in the top 20 are T-Swift’s 1989, Coldplay’s Ghost Stories, Sam Smith’s In The Lonely Hour, Beyonce’s self-titled surprise album, and Lorde’s magnificent debut Pure Heroine. The top-selling song of the year is Pharrell Williams’ addictive “Happy,” a song that made waves in the animated feature Despicable Me 2. Also in the top 20 are John Legend’s “All of Me,” Katy Perry’s “Dark Horse,” Sam Smith’s “Stay With Me,” A Great Big World’s “Say Something,” and OneRepublic’s “Counting Stars.” In addition to these top-selling lists, Apple likes to share hand-picked Editor Choice awards and they include: Best Artist (Beyonce), Best Album (Taylor Swift’s 1989), Best Song (Iggy Azalea’s “Fancy”), and Best New Artist (Sam Smith).

Top-selling movies include Frozen, The LEGO Movie, The Wolf of Wall Street, Catching Fire, and Neighbors. Apple named Guardians of the Galaxy Best Blockbuster, The LEGO Movie Best Family Movie, Boyhood‘s Richard Linklater is crowned Best Director, and Obvious Child is Best Discovery. Moving over to TV, Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, Downton Abbey, Breaking Bad, and Scandal are amongst the year’s best-selling series. Apple named Fargo TV Show of the Year, The Honorable Woman is Best Discovery, Key & Peele is Best Breakthrough, and Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson’s performances in True Detective are commended.

Apple’s App Store truly houses the best app ecosystem–there are just so many to choose from. In 2014 people gravitated toward trivia game Heads Up!, which receives my personal Best App To Help Pass The Time Award. Other best-selling paid apps include Minecraft–Pocket Edition, Afterlight, Plague Inc., Sleep Cycle alarm clock, and Facetune. And I bet you can easily guess the top 5 best-selling free ones: Facebook Messenger, Snapchat, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram. 5 for 5? Thought so.

Are you a reader? John Green’s The Fault in our Stars, Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl, Veronica Roth’s Insurgent, Allegiant, and Divergent are among the best-selling fictional tales. Top-selling non-fiction novels include Flash Boys: A Wall Street Revolt by Michael Lewis, Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand, Lone Survivor by Marcus Luttrell and Patrick Robinson, Heaven is for Real by Todd Burpo and Lynn Vincent, and Duty by Robert M. Gates.

We cannot forget about podcasts! I will share with you my favorite podcast this year. It’s Serial, from This American Life. It’s being called the most popular podcast of all-time and for good reason. It tells a highly serialized and incredibly addicting true crime story across 12 episodes. It’s like a riveting TV drama, except you get to imagine all of the characters and settings in your head. In addition to Serial, which Apple calls the Best New Podcast, other top-selling podcasts include works from NPR, HowStuffWorks.com, Joe Rogen, Carolla Digital.

Open iTunes to view all of the best-selling media across Apple’s digital storefronts.

Apple reports 2014 Q4 results: $42.1 billion revenue & $8.5 billion net profit

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On October 20, Apple reported its 2014 fourth quarter financial results. Apple posted a record quarterly revenue of $42.1 billion and net profit of $8.5 billion. Compare this to one year ago, that’s up from revenue of $37.5 billion and net profit of $7.5 billion. Says CEO Tim Cook: “Our fiscal 2014 was one for the record books, including the biggest iPhone launch ever with iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. With amazing innovations in our new iPhones, iPads and Macs, as well as iOS 8 and OS X Yosemite, we are heading into the holidays with Apple’s strongest product lineup ever. We are also incredibly excited about Apple Watch and other great products and services in the pipeline for 2015.”

Now let’s break it down by product category. Apple sold 39.3 million iPhones in the quarter (compared to 33.8 million in the year-ago quarter); 12.3 million iPads (compared to 14.1 million); and 5.5 million Macs (compared to 3.8 million). iPod sales continue to decline; Apple reports 2.6 million units sold, down 24 percent from the year-ago quarter.

Looking ahead to the first fiscal quarter of 2015, Apple CFO Luca Maestri expects revenue between $63.5 billion and $66.5 billion.

[Via Apple]

Apple dates iOS 8.1 with Apple Pay & OS X Yosemite, intros updated iPads, iMac & Mac mini

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On Thursday Tim Cook and company took the stage in Cupertino to make some new Apple hardware and software announcements. In addition to announcing an updated iPad Air, iPad mini, iMac, and Mac mini, Apple also dated the next version of iOS and OS X both coming in just a few days time. For the full scoop, jump after the break. Continue reading Apple dates iOS 8.1 with Apple Pay & OS X Yosemite, intros updated iPads, iMac & Mac mini →

Apple introduces new iPhones, a payment process, and a watch

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On Tuesday Apple held their highly anticipated event introducing to the world the next-generation iPhone, the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 and 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus; Apple Pay, the company’s new payment process that hopes to revolutionize the way we checkout at physical and online merchants; and the Apple Watch, an entirely new entrant in a brand new product category for the company. Jump after the break for all the major details. Continue reading Apple introduces new iPhones, a payment process, and a watch →

IKEA parodies Apple in mock commercial for its 2015 product catalog

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A fantastic Apple parody comes on the heels of that company taking center stage to unveil the next iPhone and possibly a wearable device rumored to be the iWatch. And it comes from an unlikely source: the Swedish company that sells ready-to-assemble furniture and other home accessories, IKEA. Promoting IKEA’s new product catalog one Jörgen Eghammer, the company’s “Chief Design Güru,” spitfires jokes that you might see coming and yet they pack the humorous punch you’re looking for. “It’s not a digital book or an ebook, it’s a book-book.” Other choice quotes:

“[It] comes fully charged and the battery life is eternal.”

“Notice something else? No lag.”

“Amazing.”

Enjoy the parody, and make sure to stick it here for the latest Apple news; major announcements are coming Tuesday, Sept. 9.

[Via Time; thanks @AndySchar]