News flash: Apple is adding a new storage option for the iPad with Retina display. Come Tuesday, February 5 the new iPad will sell with 128GB of valuable space in black and white for $799 (Wi-Fi model) and $929 (WiFi + Cellular model). Once it’s out, the latest and greatest fourth-gen Apple slate will be available in 16, 32, 64, and 128 gigabyte variants. Perhaps this will pave the way for iPhones and iPods to finally see storage capacity bumps in the future.
[Via Apple]
On Wednesday Apple reported its first quarter financial results and the company broke more records, naturally. Apple posted a $13.1 billion profit on $54.5 billion in revenue. Compare this to one year ago, that’s up from a profit of $13.06 billion on $46.33 billion in revenue. Says CEO Tim Cook: “We’re thrilled with record revenue of over $54 billion and sales of over 75 million iOS devices in a single quarter. We’re very confident in our product pipeline as we continue to focus on innovation and making the best products in the world.”
Now let’s break it down by product category. Apple sold 47.8 million iPhones in the quarter (compared to 37 million in the year-ago quarter); 22.9 million iPads (compared to 15.4 million); 4.1 million Macs (compared to 5.2 million); and 12.7 million iPods (compared to 15.4 million). The company’s “hobby” Apple TV sold 2 million units representing a 60 percent unit increase over the year-ago quarter.
Looking ahead to the second fiscal quarter of 2013, Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer expects revenue between $41-$43 billion.
Leading up to and following Apple’s quarterly financial results, its stock (AAPL) took a nosedive below the $500 threshold. Today, January 24, it dropped 63.51 points (12.35%) to $450.50 when the market closed. After hours it dropped another 2.13 points to $448.37. If there was a time to announce an exciting new product that promises to revolutionize the way we watch and consume TV content, that time would be now.
[Via Apple]
At the end of the year Apple digs into its archive of music, movies, TV shows, apps, books, and podcasts to share with its customers its top-selling content. Since the iTunes Store and the App Store are so prolific these days, I deem it appropriate to take a look at what we bought up from Apple’s widespread ecosystem in 2012.
In the music department, Apple lists the 20 top-selling songs and 25 top-selling albums of the year. Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Call Me Maybe” lands at #1 on the song list and rounding out the top 5 are Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used To Know,” Fun.’s “We Are Young,” Maroon 5’s “Payphone,” and Nicki Minaj’s “Starships.” Maroon 5 managed to land on this chart twice; “One More Night” comes in at #17. Also, Flo Rida’s hit singles “Whistle” and “Wild Ones” show their staying power securing the #9 and #10 slots, respectively. For the second consecutive year in a row, Adele’s 21 sits high as the most purchased album of the year; what follows is Taylor Swift’s Red, Mumford & Sons’ Babel, One Direction’s debut Up All Night, and Fun.’s Some Nights. The only artist to show up twice on this chart is Mumford & Sons; their 2010 effort Sigh No More keeps selling and fell in the #6 position.
In addition to these charts, Apple handpicks their own selections in a section they call “Editor’s Choice.” They named Frank Ocean Best New Artist and they had this to say about his much buzzed about release Channel ORANGE: “Deftly original, the brooding R&B outcast and Odd Future cohort spilled a can of stinging venom and vulnerability that spread worldwide.” Grizzly Bear’s Shields was awarded Best Album, Fun.’s infectious single “We Are Young” nabbed Best Song, and they enjoyed the fusion of country and gospel from The Lumineers so much to label their self-titled debut release Breakthrough Album.
The Hunger Games, Downton Abbey, Fifty Shades of Grey, Angry Birds Space, and YouTube dominated the other content categories. Click here to browse Apple’s Best of 2012 charts (the link opens in iTunes).
At Apple’s October special event that introduced the world to iPad mini, Tim Cook and company also unveiled the eighth iteration of the all-in-one iMac. This week Apple made it official that the 21.5-inch model will ship Friday, November 30–that’s today! If you’ve been holding out for the 27-inch behemoth then your wait continues. Apple hasn’t pegged it with a release date; they’re only saying it will start selling in December. The redesigned iMac houses its miniturized tech inside an aluminum and glass enclosure that measures just 5mm thin at its edge. A new storage option called Fusion Drive allows customers to customize their computer with 128GB of flash storage and either a 1TB or 3TB HDD; the two are fused into a single volume to provide faster read and write speeds. The 21.5-incher starts at $1,299 and is available for purchase today.
In other Apple news, iTunes 11 was finally released on Thursday. The redesigned music player and device manager features a new look with new library views and an updated Store layout, Up Next allows you to queue up songs, playlist creation is simpler, the MiniPlayer is smaller but enhanced, and iCloud is built-in making content downloaded on any iOS device instantly accessible in your iTunes library, Mac or PC. Get your download on today.
On Thursday Apple reported its fourth quarter financial results, and it’s another record-breaker for the company. Apple posted a $8.2 billion profit on $36 billion in revenue. Compare this to one year ago, that’s up from a profit of $6.62 billion on $28.72 billion in revenue. Says CEO Tim Cook: “We’re very proud to end a fantastic fiscal year with record September quarter results. We’re entering this holiday season with the best iPhone, iPad, Mac and iPod products ever, and we remain very confident in our new product pipeline.”
Now let’s break it down by product category. Apple sold 4.9 million Macs during the quarter (representing a 1 percent unit increase over the year-ago quarter); 26.9 million iPhones (representing an 58 percent unit growth); 14 million iPads (representing a 26 percent unit growth); and 5.3 million iPods (representing an 19 percent unit decline). Their “hobby” known as Apple TV sold 1.3 million units generating revenue that Cook admits is “quite small” but he is still dedicated to the streaming product.
Looking ahead to the first fiscal quarter of 2013, Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer expects revenue of about $52 billion and diluted earnings per share of about $11.75.
On Tuesday Apple took the stage for the second time in two months to announce a slew of new hardware. The 13-inch MacBook Pro has been gifted a Retina display to match its 15-inch brother, the Mac mini packs the latest specs, the iMac slimmed down in a major way, a fourth generation iPad with Retina display replaced its six month old predecessor, and the tablet now has a smaller companion in the iPad mini. Read on for the full rundown organized by product category.
The Mac
13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display
This summer Apple introduced the “next-generation” MacBook Pro with a 15-inch model featuring a Retina display with a resolution of 2880 x 1800. This week the 13-inch model received a similar upgrade. The new MBP sports a 13.3-inch display with a resolution of 2560 x 1600 (that is 4x the number of pixels than the previous 13-incher). Apple is calling it “the world’s second highest resolution notebook display” behind the 15-inch MBP with Retina display, of course. The screen promises rich color, deep blacks, 29 percent higher contrast ratio, 75 percent reduced reflection, IPS for 178 degree viewing angle, and 300 nits brightness. The optical drive is gone, and this allows for a slimmer design; the new MBP is 0.75 inches thin (20 percent thinner than before) and weighs 3.57 pounds (almost a pound lighter), making it the lightest MBP ever. It features a FaceTime HD camera, backlit keyboard, left and right speakers, glass multi-touch trackpad, built-in WiFi, Bluetooth, and 7 hours of battery life. Ports along the left side include MagSafe 2, two Thunderbolt ports, one USB 3 port, a headphone jack, and dual mics; on the other side there’s an SD card slot, one HDMI port, one USB 3 port. The 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display specs start at 2.5GHz dual-core i5 processor, 8GB RAM, and 128GB flash storage for $1699. Now shipping.
Apple’s MacBook lineup includes 13 and 15-inch MacBook Pros with and without Retina displays and 11 and 13-inch MacBook Airs.
Jump after the break to see the new Mac mini, iMac, iPad, and iPad mini. Continue reading Apple intros 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display, updated Mac mini & iMac, fourth-gen iPad & iPad mini
One fall event wasn’t enough. On October 23 Apple will take the stage again to make another product announcement following September 13’s event that introduced the iPhone 5 and the new iPod lineup. So what is there to expect? The invitation’s tagline is “We’ve got a little more to show you.” I added the emphasis there because all signs point to the company revealing the iPad Mini, miniaturized version of their hugely successful tablet. It will likely feature a seven or eight inch Retina display with a $200-$300 starting price tag so as to directly compete with Google’s Nexus 7, Amazon’s Kindle Fire, and Barnes and Noble’s Nook. Also on tap? Possibly the introduction of the 13-inch MacBook Pro with an upgraded Retina display to match its bigger brother.
Check back here in one week to find out what Apple has up its sleeves.
One year ago today visionary leader Steve Jobs passed away at the age of 56. When you visit Apple.com you will notice the effort that his company put into remembering him on this mournful day in history that is still ripe in memory. Load the homepage and it immediately starts to play a touching tribute; a montage of powerful images fade in and out as we hear Steve introduce some of the most influential technological advances of our time. The video also includes some of Steve’s most impactful quotes regarding Apple’s DNA. When it ends, a note from his successor Tim Cook appears and it opens like this: “Steve’s passing one year ago today was a sad and difficult time for all of us. I hope that today everyone will reflect on his extraordinary life and the many ways he made the world a better place.”
I never met the man, but I miss him dearly. I will forever be grateful to have served my part at his company during the Apple retail revolution. Each and every day I experience Steve’s contributions to society when I boot up my computer, listen to music, and flick away at my phone. But it’s more than that; his inspiration and motivation to work hard, succeed, and love what you do is keen advice that sits with me at my core. Thank you, Steve, and rest in peace.
To say Apple’s latest iPhone is popular is a huge understatement. In a press release outed on Monday, Apple reported that over five million iPhone 5s were sold in three days over the course of the device’s launch weekend (Friday, September 21 to Sunday the 23rd). Two million of them were preordered in the first 24 hours. In addition, Apple shares that over 100 million devices have been updated to iOS 6 since its September 19 debut.
“Demand for iPhone 5 has been incredible and we are working hard to get an iPhone 5 into the hands of every customer who wants one as quickly as possible,” said Apple CEO Tim Cook. “While we have sold out of our initial supply, stores continue to receive iPhone 5 shipments regularly and customers can continue to order online and receive an estimated delivery date. We appreciate everyone’s patience and are working hard to build enough iPhone 5s for everyone.”
To restate what Cook said in his obligatory quote, the press release admits: “Demand for iPhone 5 exceeded the initial supply and while the majority of pre-orders have been shipped to customers, many are scheduled to be shipped in October.”
Today the iPhone 5 is available in the US, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore,and the UK. On September 28 it goes on sale in 22 more countries and by the end of the year it will be sold in over 100 countries. This is only the beginning for the smartphone to beat. Jump after the break for the full PR.
[Via Apple 1, 2] Continue reading Apple sells over 5 million iPhone 5s during launch weekend
On Wednesday Apple unveiled the next-generation iPhone and it’s called the iPhone 5. They also used their stage time to discuss iTunes+iPod, showing off a redesigned iTunes Store for iOS, a simplified version of iTunes for desktop, and showcasing the next-generation iPod nano and touch. We begin with the top story…
iPhone 5
The iPhone 5 is a beautiful piece of hardware made entirely of glass and aluminum. It’s the thinnest and lightest iPhone to date, measuring at 7.6mm thin (that’s 18% thinner than the iPhone 4S) and weighing 112 grams (20% lighter than the 4S). Apple’s calling it “the world’s thinnest smartphone.” The screen has grown for the first time to 4-inches, boasting a Retina display with 326 pixels per inch and a resolution of 1136×640. The additional screen real estate allows for a fifth row of apps in the home screen, and all of Apple’s apps take advantage of it. Third party apps will see the letterbox effect, but developers can easily tweak their apps to also fill up the screen properly. The iPhone 5 also features 44% more color saturation than it’s predecessor and integrated touch sensors in the screen make it 30% thinner than before outputting a sharper image and less glare in sunlight.
The bigger screen is just the tip of the iceberg. The new iPhone packs ultrafast wireless with built-in GPRS, EDGE, EV-DO, HSPA, HSPA+, DC-HSDPA, and, yes, LTE. In the U.S., LTE will be provided by Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint. A single chip does voice and data; also inside is a single radio chip and a dynamic antenna. 802.11a/b/g/n WiFi is there as well.
The newly designed-by-Apple A6 chip features a CPU that’s 2x faster than before, with 2x faster graphics as well. The chip itself is 22% smaller than the previous A5 processor. Apple managed to make battery life better, too. It goes like this: 8 hours of 3G talk time, 3G browsing, and LTE browsing; 10 hours of Wi-Fi browsing and video playback; 40 hours of music playback; and 225 hours of standby time.
Both the back-facing iSight camera and the front-facing FaceTime camera have been upgraded. The iSight cam features an 8 megapixel sensor (3264×2448) with backside illumination, hybrid IR filter, five-element lens, and fast f/2.4 aperture. The 25% smaller design also boasts a dynamic low light mode, spatial noise reduction, a smart filter for improved color matching, better low-light performance, and faster photo capture (40% faster than the 4S). 1080p HD video recording is still here with improved video stabilization, face detection, and the ability to take photos while recording video. The back-facing camera can also take panoramic shots now thanks to a simple enhancement in the Camera app in iOS 6. Moving to the front side, the FaceTime camera takes 1.2 megapixel photos, shoots 720p HD video, and features backside illumination, face detection, and FaceTime over cellular (with Verizon and Sprint only).
Audio is better with three built-in microphones located in the front, back, and bottom of the phone. The improved speaker design is 20% smaller than before and features a five magnet transducer, a noise-canceling earpiece, and wideband audio for better phone call performance.
Say goodbye to the nearly decade old 30-pin dock connector. Apple announced the new Lightning connector that is found in the iPhone 5. It’s 80% smaller than its predecessor, it’s all-digital with an 8-signal design and adaptive interface with improved durability and get this–it’s reversible, meaning you can plug it into the bottom of your device face up or down. Apple will sell a 30-pin to Lightning adapter for those who own accessories like sound docks that were strictly designed with the 30-pin connector in mind.
Apple spent time detailing the next version of their mobile OS, and you can read all about iOS 6 right here. It brings Apple-designed Maps, the new app Passbook, and enhancements to Notification Center, Safari, Mail, Photos, and Siri (among over 250 new features) to the iPhone and its brethren. It’s available as a free upgrade to iPhone 4S, 4, 3GS, 3rd-gen iPad, iPad 2, and 4th-gen iPod touch owners on September 19.
Now it’s time to talk pricing and availability. The iPhone 5 features a two-tone exterior and will come in two hues: black/slate and white/silver. It’s priced exactly like the 4S was: $199 (16GB), $299 (32GB), $399 (64GB). It’s available for preorder starting Friday, September 14 and ships one week later on September 21 in the U.S., Canada, UK, France, Germany, Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, and Singapore. A week after that it releases in 20 more countries, and by December it will ship in 100 countries with 240 carriers around the world. In other news, the iPhone 4 (8GB) is free and the iPhone 4S (16GB) is dropping to $99 effective immediately.
Here we go people. The moment you’ve all been waiting for is almost here. Today Apple sent out invitations inviting press to attend a special event where the company will announce the next iPhone. The invite, posted above, teases “It’s almost here” and features a giant number 12 (referring to the date September 12) and its shadow is the number 5 (likely referring to the name of their next smartphone, the iPhone 5). After Apple reset the naming scheme with the third-generation iPad and simply called it “the new iPad,” most were led to believe that the next iPhone would shed a number and be known as “the new iPhone” to be in line with its bigger sibling. The 5 featured in the invite, however, has people speculating again. Will it be the iPhone 5, or perhaps the number here refers to the amount of new devices the company will unveil? In addition to a new iPhone, also in the rumor pipeline is an iPad mini and Apple typically announces updated iPods in September. Things to think about.
Other things to think about: how will the next-gen iPhone be different from the 4S? iOS 6 will ship out the gate, obviously, and rumor has it that it will sport a larger 4-inch screen and it is very likely that it will take advantage of 4G LTE speeds. Add to the speculation in the comment section below.
For now, mark your calendars; the date is September 12 and the time is 10AM PST. It all goes down at San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Center for the Arts and you can be sure that all the details will be posted here as soon as Tim Cook and company wrap up the festivities. At last, iPhone 5 here we come.
Mountain Lion, the successor to Snow Leopard and the ninth major release of Apple’s OS X, is now available. OS X 10.8 comes complete with over 200 new features including Messages, Notification Center, Share Sheets, Twitter integration, Notes, Reminders, and Game Center, AirPlay Mirroring, dictation, and iCloud enhancements. Mountain Lion requires you running OS X v10.6.8 or later, 2GB of memory, and 8GB of available space. You won’t find it in stores on-disc; you must download it from the Mac App Store. It costs a low $19.99. Upgrade today. (Note: If you purchased a qualifying Mac on or after June 11, you can receive the new OS for free. Plus all Macs shipping out now will come with Mountain Lion preloaded.)
Update: In typical Apple fashion, the hardware/software company announced that after just a mere four days after putting Mountain Lion on the market, three million copies of the new OS were sold, “making it the most successful OS X release in Apple’s history.” Added emphasis. For more self-congratulatory quotes, jump after the break for the official PR.
[Via Apple 1, 2] Continue reading Apple’s OS X Mountain Lion is out now