Apple’s Mac sales continued to slide this quarter, as Apple sold only 3.95 million computers running OS X, down just over 1 percent from the 4.1 million they sold in Q1 2013, and pretty much flat compared to the 4 million they sold in the same quarter last year. That’s no surprise: PC sales are sluggish in general, and while Macs aren’t running wild, flat growth is better than a dip. → Read More
Apple now has $145 billion in cash on hand — a 5.8 percent increase over the past three months. The company last reported that they had $137.1 billion in cash back on December 30. To put this into perspective, with $140 million, you can produce the movie Spider-Man. Apple has enough money to produce a thousand blockbusters. Apple could use its cash to acquire some companies. But with more… → Read More
Apple has been the subject of plenty of financial scrutiny (perhaps even more so than usual) recently, and now all that speculation has come to a head.
The Cupertino company has just released its fiscal Q2 2013 earnings — it reported $43.6 billion in revenue (up from $39.2 billion in the year-ago quarter) along with $9.5 billion in quarterly net profit, which works out to earnings of $10.09… → Read More
Conventional wisdom has it that Apple has reached its peak and can only disappoint from now on. Yet, many financial facts don’t make sense. The market is too harsh with Apple compared to its competitors. But when it comes to products, there is an unsettling detail: there was no product release during fiscal Q2 2013. While Apple is certainly not doomed, its future looks gloomy. That’s… → Read More
We’ve received direct word and noted on Twitter that that Mike Culbert, a longtime Apple hardware engineer, has passed away after battling cancer. According to his friends, he was a “brilliant engineer, a wonderful human being.” He will be missed. → Read More
Apple’s Siri voice assistant on iOS devices retains information to help the company generate better and more accurate results in the analysis process that takes place at its remote servers. The company has never previously revealed exactly how long it keeps that data or how exactly it works, but now Wired has learned from an Apple spokesperson exactly how Siri IDs and store data, as well as for… → Read More
Apple shares (NASDAQ:AAPL) are currently trading down at $398.11, 6.6 percent below yesterday’s closing price of $426.24. It represents a stark downturn for the stock as well as a 16-month low. Earnings could be to blame as they are coming soon and investors are not sure what to expect. → Read More
ComiXology just published a blog post discussing (and ultimately backing down from) a recent decision to ban the latest issue of Saga from its iOS comics store.
Yesterday, Saga writer Brian K. Vaughan described the situation thusly: “Unfortunately, because of two postage stamp-sized images of gay sex, Apple is banning tomorrow’s SAGA #12 from being sold through any iOS apps.” → Read More
iOS App Discovery Service AppGratis just confirmed that it was indeed pulled from the App Store on Friday. At the time, commentators were left wondering what was wrong with AppGratis’ app. Founder and CEO Simon Dawlat wrote a long blog post explaining the full story. “AppGratis is very much up and running,” Dawlat said. “The reports of our death are greatly… → Read More
Twitter acquired the mini-video-taking app Vine last October before it ever launched, sending everyone into a frenzy about the company getting into the video space. In late January, Twitter finally launched the app to much applause. Since then, it’s gone from being temporarily removed from the featured section due to an issue over adult content to being used in interesting ways by brands… → Read More
It’s sure been an interesting week for this of us who cover browsers. Last weekend, we heard that Internet Explorer 11 will probably support WebGL and SPDY. Then, on Tuesday I got an email from Mozilla, asking if I had time to get on the phone with Mozilla’s CTO Brendan Eich to talk about the organization’s next generation browser engine Servo and the Rust language it is written… → Read More
Apple pulled discovery service and daily deal app AppGratis from the App Store. So far, AppGratis is not communicating on the issue and users can only speculate about what the issue is. Sometimes, Apple pulls an app because its latest update crashes or because the app uses a private API. Then, the developer has to submit a new release to return to the App Store. But there could be a bigger issue. → Read More
Apple’s trajectory in the U.S. smartphone market over the past little while has been an upwards one, with the company gaining more and more iPhone subscribers every month. During the three month period covering November 2012 to February 2013, Apple added 8.9 million new iPhone subscribers, while Android as a platform in total added only 2.9 million. That means Apple’s share of the total smartphone… → Read More
Google’s statement on Facebook’s introduction of “Home” was short and sweet, but very telling, so let’s dissect it a little bit. As we noted earlier, Facebook went with Android first because of its flexibility. Basically it’s easy to customize. Other platforms, not so much. Zuckerberg even mentioned that Windows Phone might be a bit easier to work with, calling… → Read More
Apple made a small but important change to the way its mobile apps appear in the iTunes App Store, which will help parents better determine which applications and games are appropriate for their children. The company has relocated the age rating (e.g. 9+, 12+, etc.) by moving it up from its previous position at the bottom of the app’s detail page, so that it now appears directly beneath the app… → Read More
Apple’s massive new spaceship-style headquarters in Cupertino is not on-budget or on schedule, according to a new report at Bloomberg Businessweek. The article provides an inside look at what exactly the project requires, down to specific standards around the perfection of surface finishes put in place by Steve Jobs. Blowing past budgets with building projects is pretty much guaranteed, but… → Read More
A couple of new Apple patent applications published today show how the company might be thinking about competing with recent innovations from other big tech companies with similar, but different designs. The first is a filing that describes a convertible MacBook design, with a touch-sensitive screen that separates from the base. The second is a method for navigating a Street View-style view of… → Read More
Tim Cook’s apology to Apple’s Chinese customers has divided observers, some of whom claim that the public mea culpa might undermine the Cupertino company by giving credence to government criticism. Cook’s letter was posted (link via Google Translate) on the Chinese Apple Web site on Monday after two weeks of heated attacks by China’s state-run media. Cook focused on… → Read More
Pro tip: You can now watch, listen, and subscribe to our TechCrunch TV videos on iTunes. In addition to the video versions, each segment has an audio-only podcast, perfect while driving or working out.
A few weeks ago, we quietly relaunched our redesigned iTunes site. After some tweaking, we’re now ready to get the word out. → Read More
Apple is looking to start production of a new iPhone of “similar” design to the current one during the second quarter of 2013, according to a new report from the Wall Street Journal. The production ramp-up is designed to set the stage for a summer launch of a new flagship iPhone, the report claims, which agrees with information we’ve heard from our own sources recently. → Read More
The much-rumored Apple iWatch isn’t as exciting as you might have thought.
We’ve heard rumors of flexible displays and Siri integration, but it appears that Apple’s iWatch is actually just a band meant to connect with the Apple device of your choice. → Read More
The mainstream has had little reason to care that Android gives developers much more customization freedom than iOS. But if Facebook’s fabled Android homescreen is a hit, the stubbornness of Apple’s closed mobile platform could be framed as a drawback after years of its cohesive design and ease being seen as assets. → Read More
Right after it launched the iPad mini, Apple filed a trademark application for the name with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). As Patently Apple noticed earlier today, however, the USPTO will likely refuse Apple’s trademark filing because, the reviewer argues, “the applied-for mark merely describes a feature or characteristic of applicant’s goods.” The… → Read More
I’ve long believed that touchscreens leave a certain something to be desired when it comes to playing games, and if a new (and very curious) report holds true, Apple may feel the same way. According to PocketGamer.biz’s Jon Jordan, Apple has been meeting with developers on-site at this year’s Game Developers Conference in San Francisco to talk about a forthcoming Apple game controller. → Read More
A confidential presentation that describes a Shenzhen-based manufacturer’s 2013 product plans points to a few interesting bits of information about the iPhone 5S launch in June 2013 and Foxconn’s role as manufacturer of record for Apple products. → Read More
Apple has a new patent filing just published by the USPTO today which details a wraparound-style AMOLED display that could make it possible to create an iPhone that’s almost entirely screen, with touch gestures and virtual buttons replacing physical ones completely. The patent describes designs that could have a seamless, continuous surface resembling the fourth generation iPod nano, as well as… → Read More
Tim Cook has said that China will soon become Apple’s biggest market, but the government is not as besotted as Chinese consumers. China’s state-run media has taken several swipes at Apple this month, moves which may be part of a (heavy-handed) public relations strategy to pave the way for locally grown operating systems as the Chinese government seeks to move its IT industry away… → Read More
Apple is in court again in China, defending another of its products from attack based on pre-existing claims from a Chinese company. This time around it’s Siri, Apple’s virtual assistant, that has landed it in Chinese legal trouble, after last year another company took issue with the iPad trademark resulting in a $60 million settlement deal. → Read More
Strong growth in tablet sales is helping to drive overall growth in the global smart connected device market, according to analyst IDC. The analyst notes that market expansion last year was “largely driven” by 78.4% year-over-year growth in tablet shipments — which exceeded 128 million units. It expects tablet shipments to surpass desktop PCs in 2013, and portable PCs in 2014. → Read More
Apple was granted a patent Tuesday by the USPTO that describes a system for implementing multi-touch in a mobile device even when there the display itself isn’t actively showing any images. It’s a neat trick, and one that could help portable gadgets save battery life by not invoking the most battery-hungry element in their construction nearly as frequently. → Read More
Austin, TX
Seattle, WA
San Diego, CA
Menlo Park, CA
San Francisco, CA
Berlin, Germany
