Third-party insurance firm ProtectCell has issued a report based on its two million policies with various mobile device owners, saying that while iPhone users are 46 percent less likely than other platform smartphone owners to need a replacement device due to accidental damage, they are 65 percent more likely to have their device get stolen or go missing than other groups.
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4 hours ago | Posted in: industry, Apple
As reported previously, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met on Wednesday with Apple CEO Tim Cook at Apple headquarters as part of a California-driven initiative to strengthen commercial ties between the state and Israel. In a short video posted to the prime minister's official YouTube channel, Netanyahu can be seen touring Apple's headquarters and posing with Cook ahead of a lunch meeting.
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Following the discovery of a dormant but serious flaw in iOS 6 and iOS 7's handling of VPN and SSL security and the release of a patch by Apple to handle the issue, advertising and content-presentation company Onswipe estimates that more than 50 percent of the entire iOS userbase has already moved to iOS 7.0.6 as of March 3, under two weeks since the update became available. The transition has set a record for the fastest in iOS history.
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All obstacles have been cleared, and the long-planned Union Square flagship Apple Store has finally received final clearance from the San Francisco City Council to demolish the current standing building and begin renovations and construction on the new store. The new building will be a two-story structure with an all-glass frontage facing Union Square, utilizing a cantilevered design that features a patio and waterfall behind the store.
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As a result of a shift in strategy, Disney's Internet and video game department Disney Interactive is laying off 25 percent of its employees, effective immediately. Around 700 employees are now looking for work, following 2013's consolidation of Disney's mobile and social game development efforts.
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Slightly less than two weeks after the public release of OS X 10.9.2, which brought FaceTime audio calling, Mail improvements and an important security fix to Mavericks, Apple is seeding the first beta of OS X 10.9.3, build 13D12, to developers. The brief release notes mention that developers are requested to focus on audio and graphic drivers in their testing. The previous update was released after approximately 14 weeks of testing across seven betas.
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Digital comic book retailer ComiXology is asking all of its customers to reset their passwords, as a precautionary measure following an intrusion. An e-mail sent to users of the comic book store and reader app states that an "unauthorized individual" had gained access to a database containing usernames, e-mail addresses, and "cryptographically protected" passwords.
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[Updated: US version of the app now downloading normally] Apple appears to have released an updated iTunes Festival app, v5.0, with content support for next week's SXSW concerts in Austin, Texas. So far, though, mostly people outside the US have successfully downloaded the software; Americans trying to download it via iTunes are encountering errors saying the app is "unavailable." Likewise, the title doesn't appear in US App Store searches.
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12 hours ago | Posted in:
Eventbase, the creator of the official SXSW festival app has announced that it will be utilizing iBeacons at this year's events, which begin tomorrow in Austin, Texas. Eventbase plans to use the technology to allow the festival's attendees to participate further and have a more simplified experience, with functions including assisted badge pick-up, and access to Eventbases' new Season Live feature. The features will be available for iPhone users that have downloaded the SXSW Go app from the iTunes Store.
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CarPlay support is fairly easy to implement for apps, suggests Brian Lakamp, Clear Channel's president of Digital. iHeartRadio -- an app that streams Clear Channel stations -- is one of the few third-party offerings currently supported by CarPlay. "Apple is pretty selective about how they disclose information," Lakamp says about how his company gained a toehold. "Apple made us aware of the opportunity. We were enthusiastic to participate and then worked closely with them to build the demo that they just demoed in Geneva." The iHeartRadio team was given early access to the private CarPlay API.
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13 hours ago | Posted in:
Realmac has announced a large update to its Ember software for both OS X and iOS, featuring the new ability to organize folders for one's sidebar and collections. The Mac update is available in the App Store, and the iOS version has been automatically updated.
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Azoi has entered the health tracker market, by announcing a fitness-tracking smartphone cover that works with both iOS and Android devices. Wello contains a number of sensors on the side and back that take a snapshot of the user's vital signs after a few seconds of being held, with the results transferred wirelessly over Bluetooth 4.0 LE and recorded in a companion app.
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14 hours ago | Posted in: iPhone
Mercedes-Benz is working on an aftermarket installation option for older cars without Apple's CarPlay, the company has confirmed. While the technology will be present in the 2014 C-Class, even people with older C-Class models won't have access to the technology at first. Mercedes will only say that it's developing "an after-market solution for previous cars," leaving pricing and other details unknown.
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Apple is "scrambling" to make changes to the way in-app purchases work ahead of an FTC deadline, a source tells ZDNet. As a part of its $32.5 million settlement with the US Federal Trade Commission, Apple must fix flaws in the App Store that have allowed people -- mostly children -- to inadvertently rack up hundreds or thousands of dollars in iTunes charges. The deadline for those changes is just a few weeks from now, March 31st.
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Due to poor sales, unsold inventory of the iPhone 5c has amassed to more than three million units, anonymous Taiwanese supply chain sources claim. Production of the phone is said to have been cut completely towards the end of 2013. Regardless, manufacturer Pegatron allegedly is said to have two million or so units in stock, with the remaining phones being held by carriers and distributors.
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A company specializing in image processing semiconductors and software, Pixelworks, has revealed itself as an official Apple supplier through a new filing with the SEC. In 2013 Apple is said to have accounted for more than 10 percent of Pixelworks revenue. The news has sent the latter company's share price surging, boosting it by about 53 to 54 percent in Thursday trading, or more than $2.58 per share.
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