In our review we said:

… The user interface of Affinity Designer for Mac is everything you’d expect from a modern app. While there is instant familiarity with the workspace from Illustrator, the user interface is more beginner friendly and is very intuitive. The software takes a more visual and gesture based approach rather than features being hidden deep inside menus.

Apple has published their own review of the app on its Awards page and the company echoes our views:

… This is an excellent example of what a state-of-the-art Mac app should be …

Affinity Designer is optimized for Retina Display and OS X Yosemite, and has a flexible and intuitive user interface that’s highly contextual, offering you the tools you need when you need them … Affinity Designer is localized in German, Spanish, French, and English, and is a modern, well-designed, highly capable, and extremely responsive design tool that’s a perfect match for today’s latest generation Mac hardware.

The developers of the app, Serif (Europe) Ltd., are extremely elated with this recognition but they didn’t forget to thank their fans for its success.

This is the stuff of dreams, and we want to thank Apple and all our fans that have made this a reality for us.

Affinity Designer is making great progress with regular updates that improve existing functionality and offer new features. The latest update supports Force Touch trackpad on the MacBook and MacBook Pro. With the new technology users can use pressure sensitivity to paint on the canvas.

We are very happy for Affinity Designer and look forward to future updates and wish them great success.

Congratulations!

Affinity Designer for Mac is now available for a 20% discount to celebrate the award.

This review is not about Illustrator vs Affinity Designer. Neither will I mention every feature of the app. I will cover those features which stood out to me as I used the app over the last few weeks.

It’s not often that we get to see people challenge what has become a ‘norm’ or an ‘industry standard’. A quick search on YouTube or Google for tutorials on learning how to draw vectors, learn web design or UI design will lead you to professionals using Illustrator and Photoshop as their preferred choice of software. If Affinity Designer for Mac needs to make its presence felt in an area dominated by Adobe, it needs to prove to users that it is better at accomplishing tasks related to graphic design.

For any application its UI is crucial to its success or failure. However, if you take a look at Illustrator or Photoshop their user interface isn’t all that comforting for beginners, yet pro users seem to have got accustomed to it. Over the years Adobe’s  software suite has increased the number of features it has however, not much has changed in terms of its UI and UX (user experience).

This is exactly where Affinity Designer makes its first big impression. The user interface of Affinity Designer for Mac is everything you’d expect from a modern app. While there is instant familiarity with the workspace from Illustrator, the user interface is more beginner friendly and is very intuitive. The software takes a more visual and gesture based approach rather than features being hidden deep inside menus.

The way we interact with software is increasingly changing. With the advent of touch based interactions on our smartphones and tablets, trackpads on notebooks and desktops, gestures have become a ubiquitous interaction mechanism. It’s great to see Affinity Designer embracing gesture based interactions. The software does this by creating active drop zones in the layer panel.

For example, you can create a clipping mask by simply dragging the object halfway under the main object. You can also mask a vector shape by dragging other vector next to its thumbnail in the layer panel. But, it doesn’t stop there as you drag the object in different drop zones the app shows you live preview of what a clipping mask or layer mask will look like. This feature is fantastic. If you never knew how these features work trying and testing with live previews makes experimenting a lot of fun.

Experimenting can only be fun if you can undo and get back to previous state in case you don’t like the changes. Affinity Designer features a modern take on undo function. You can slide through more than 8000 steps of history so there will never be a moment where you feel that you messed up your file.

It’s worth mentioning that Affinity Designers’ full compatibility with popular file formats such as .psd, .ai, and .pdf will play a critical role in its success. The developers spent almost four years in R&D while developing the software and compatibility with Adobe’s suite of apps is a great achievement.

Affinity Designer for Mac when under development carried a codename ‘Persona’. Although the app was named differently when released, Personas bring a new workflow to the mix. The app features three Personas, Draw, Pixel and Export.

Draw Persona is all about vector drawing however, you are greeted with a pleasant surprise when you click on Pixel Persona. The app geniously brings pixel brushes, selection and effects like smudging, blurring, erasing vector brushes, sharpening and more to a vector drawing app. Want to apply a grunge brush to your vector art? No need to switch the app you are using. Affinity Designer can handle both.

The developers didn’t just stop at adding pixel persona, they added an intelligent assistant to make your tasks easier and enable you to work in an intuitive manner.

If I switch from draw to pixel persona and add a pixel brush stroke to my artwork technically I would need to first add a ‘pixel layer’ however, with the assistant working in the background you don’t have to worry about it as it automatically does the needful. The assistant can also place mask layer inside the vector when erasing. It can rasterise vector layer and then apply other brushes, automatically add adjustment as child layer to selection and rasterise layer and then apply filters.

Even the layer blending modes have received some love and gained live previews. Scrolling through different blend modes such as overlay, multiply, soft-light etc. will show you a live preview of what your design will look like so that you can make better choice quickly. This feature again goes onto show that the developers have paid close attention to the details.

Affinity Designer features dedicated gradient and transparency tools. These allow you to apply multiple gradients in an intuitive manner without the need to open any dialogue boxes.

Once you’re done creating your graphic design you can use the export persona to export your design. You can choose to export your design as 1x, 2x and 3x which is important as you may be creating design for retina displays or even mobile devices.

Another feature I’ve really liked is continuous export, once selected it automatically updates the exported file in the specified format and setting even as you continue to make edits and make alternate design decisions. It’s great to know that your final artwork folder will always contain the latest file no matter how many times you choose to make changes. Since the exported file is always overwritten you won’t have to deal with any duplicates.

Can Affinity Designer replace Illustrator? The answer to this question will depend on whether you are doing a feature by feature comparison or questioning its capabilities as a graphic design software.

There’s no doubt that Illustrator wins when it comes to the number of features. However, this doesn’t takeaway the fact that Affinity Designer is a very promising and extremely powerful graphic design software for the Mac. If you never knew Illustrator existed and used Affinity Designer for your project, you’d be able to accomplish nearly everything.

Affinity Designer is not fighting a feature vs feature battle rather it sets an example of how keeping usability in the forefront can result in a more productive and intuitive experience. The developers have said no to many features and yes to the ones that don’t sacrifice usability and provide reliable experience without adding any clutter.

If you are a beginner in vector drawing and graphic designing, I would recommend that you start right here with Affinity Designer. If you are a pro user who has been using Illustrator all this while, give Affinity Designer a try (trial available) and you won’t regret it.

Even though the application overall has highly impressed me there are a few concerns. If you’ve been using Illustrator you’ve got accustomed to certain keyboard shortcuts. In Affinity Designer you may need to learn different shortcuts. The software currently lacks any sort of symbols management. You can’t type text on a path. The only way to work is with layers, there’s no support for pages or art-boards.

It’s important to note that Affinity Designer was released on October 02, 2014. With the set of features already available in V 1.x it’s exciting to wait and see how the developers expand the current feature set.

Another point worth mentioning is that Serif Labs has opted to sell the software for a one-time price and not a subscription model. This alone is a very attractive investment for anyone from beginners to professionals.

Affinity Designer for Mac brings a fresh breath of air to the traditional vector drawing applications. Its focus on usability without sacrificing on advanced features is applaudable.

Watch Affinity Designer Features Overview Video

The live streaming of the launch event will be available on Apple’s website and Apple TV. The live stream didn’t go so well during the iPhone event however, we hope that this time the company is well prepared to handle it.

Media invites were sent out by Apple last week which carried a tag line “It’s been way too long.” While it obviously doesn’t give much hint as to what the company will be unveiling, but it’s quite evident that the iPad lineup will be refreshed for the holiday season. Some are speculating that “been way too long” could be referring to iMacs finally getting Retina Display technology. Apple’s entire product lineup features the high resolution displays except the desktop computer.

We can expect an update on OS X Yosemite release date and it could be made available later this week. We can’t rule out that Apple TV could also be refreshed today. It’s been quite a long while since it has seen any major update.

iPad Air 2 could finally get TouchID making it easier for users to access secure information with the touch of their finger. NFC could also be included to facilitate ApplePay functionality.

A new processor, A8X will bring improved CPU and GPU performance and RAM could be bumped to 2 GB. It is unclear if the new processor will offer improved battery performance on the new iPad Air 2.

It may be hard to believe, but a lot of users do use tablets to take pictures and videos. The new iPad Air 2 is rumoured to feature 8-megapixel camera. We could also see Retina HD displays as iOS 8.1 code did reveal 3x graphics.

iPad mini 3 just like iPad 2 Air is rumoured to feature A8X processor, TouchID, and improved cameras.

What are your expectations from the event? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

I bought the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro with 512GB SSD, 2.5GHz i7 quad-core processor and 16GB RAM on August 15th, the day it was launched in India. This is my second Mac the first was a 27-inch mid 2010 iMac. I recently published the story behind me switching from an iMac to MacBook Pro, if you’re interested you can find it here.

It’s been almost 10 days since I’ve been using the new Retina MacBook Pro and this review will be focusing on real-world use, general observations and experiences. If you’re looking for a more technical review focusing on speed tests and tech specs, you may want to visit AnandTech for the most comprehensive hardware reviews.

Over the last 10 days my workflow has drastically changed. I was using a windows laptop before I purchased the iMac, and over the last 4 years working on a large 27-inch screen made me feel that going back to a laptop would be a challenge. However, I was prepared for the tradeoff between modern computing speed and screen space.

As I started working on the new Retina MacBook Pro I was pleasantly surprised with the fact that I was being more efficient in my workflow and obviously could get the work done much faster than ever before. Before I get into the details about how the MacBook Pro changed my workflow I should talk about how I work.

A typical day would see me browsing through hundreds of webpages, lots of email, working on Pages, creating presentations on Keynote,  producing wireframes for apps, web design etc. With the luxury of 27 inch screen I mostly had everything open on a single desktop area. This allowed me to always have a bird’s eye view of everything that was open and gave me a feeling of being in control over everything. I rarely ever used ‘Spaces’ (creating multiple desktop spaces in OS X) as I just liked everything at one space. Even though this allowed me to view more at once, it could easily be too distracting at times.

With the MacBook Pro going from 27-inch to 15.4 inch screen required me to adjust the way I worked. From having lots of windows open at once I instantly switched to a more organised workflow by creating multiple spaces. Also, using full screen apps now made more sense, having mail open full screen on a 27 inch screen is not the same as it being open full screen on 15.4 inch screen. Full screen apps such as Mail, Pages or Safari make more sense on laptop when compared to a desktop. So, even though now I would see less at once but this increased my focus on the task at hand. Over the last 10 days I’ve noticed that having less to view at once actually made more sense and one could be more productive this way. It’s worth mentioning that I do miss the large screen space when it comes to wire framing apps, websites or editing a movie, but retina display surely makes up for that.

The first thing I ever noticed about the new MacBook Pro was its flawless high-resolution screen. The text is crisp, photos look stunning and it’s a complete visual treat. It suddenly makes you wonder why on Earth would you ever work on anything that does not have a retina screen. So, it was love at first sight with the new screen.

Once you come to terms with how excellent the screen is you start noticing that everything is just swift. Thanks to the SSD launching applications, booting-up, waking from sleep, reading & writing data is very fast. I can’t stress enough on how ‘fast’ especially if you’re moving from HDD to SSD for the first time on a computing machine. I would never turn off the iMac as it would take about 3-4 minutes to boot-up and that often felt like a lot. Apple’s iOS devices ‘always on’ usage behaviour has certainly changed the way we expect the way modern computers should work. MacBook Pro takes only a few seconds (less than 15) to boot-up so turning it off when not using it can help you save some energy. Although, there are no major benefits of turning off your computer when not using it, however occasionally it will make it more responsive as it will clear the RAM being hogged by kernel tasks.

The next aspect about the Retina MacBook Pro that I want to highlight is 16GB RAM. For the last four years I had been working with 4GB RAM on my iMac. For the modern-day browsing and general computing activities 4GB just isn’t enough although it does depend on how you use your computer. Since, I love having 15-25 tabs open in Safari when I’m researching on some topic having access to lots of RAM is a huge advantage.

I’ve put the new MacBook Pro under extreme work load by having lots of safari tabs open, playing SimCity, working on a Pages document, importing photos to iPhoto and even working on Final Cut Pro and Aperture, but the MacBook Pro just keeps taking it all and doesn’t lag one bit. I would refer to myself as a “power” user, so working on a portable machine that can take all that load is extremely satisfying.

I was a bit concerned about the battery life of my new Retina MacBook Pro. I had considered holding off my purchase for another year in anticipation of Intel’s Broadwell chips that are expected to be much more power efficient. However, so far the battery life on the MacBook Pro has been very reasonable. Keeping the screen brightness low and keyboard backlight off while not activating the dedicated graphics chip the MacBook Pro has exceeded Apple’s battery guidelines. Switching from iMac to a MacBook Pro also gave me the freedom from being tied to my desk. This freedom to work from anywhere without sacrificing on power or battery is a huge benefit.

The last aspect I want to cover is the overall build quality. Apple’s Retina MacBook Pro is undoubtedly the best looking machine you can buy in the market. The unibody construction feels extremely solid and it doesn’t feel that heavy when compared with the older generation models.

When working for long durations the system does heat up and sometimes it can get a bit uncomfortable. The fans have rarely kicked in at full speed during normal use. In my daily use the fans kicked in at full speed only while playing SimCity as the game requires the use of dedicated graphics card.

The Retina MacBook Pro might be costly but it scores highly in all aspects you can think of. However, it may still not meet everyone’s requirement. If you’re into high-end gaming and love running games at highest graphics settings then this may not be for you. If you prefer having more than 1TB storage then you’d have to look elsewhere. Upgrading the machine after purchasing is not possible; 16GB RAM will always remain 16GB. The device has been rated low in repairability. If you want to play DVD’s you would need to buy a SuperDrive.

Other benefits of a MacBook Pro include iCloud, access to some of the best softwares from the Mac App Store, less susceptible to malware, extremely responsive multi-touch trackpad and the best customer support service.

Apple’s Retina MacBook Pro is the gold standard in laptops and OS X Yosemite will only put it further in the lead. If you’ve waited all this while to switch to the MacBook Pro lineup there was never a better time than today.

As I began using my first Mac with 27-inch large display and the fastest processors available at that time it was certainly an enjoyable experience. I could multitask and have TweetDeck open with almost 7 to 8 columns of different twitter feeds. So, more screen space allowed me to open more apps on the same desktop space. During the course of the last three years I increasingly felt tied to my workspace as working with a desktop obviously takes away the freedom of moving around.

When Apple announced the new iPad 2 in March 2011, it seemed to be the best option to bring balance to desktop computing by having a tablet to do other tasks while on the move. This combination of iMac and an iPad worked. I was able to check emails and respond while I was on the move, write reviews and more. As the App Store became populated with powerful apps like iWork, AppCooker, Omnigraffle I began doing advanced tasks like designing and wire framing apps and websites on the tablet. iPad became my first choice for tasks such as wire framing and designing as it felt extremely intuitive on a multi-touch screen.

All computing devices have a limited shelf life and as technology advances older products start slowing down. So, around mid 2013 the iMac and iPad 2 both started to age and not offer the same experience as before. Working from a stationary workspace also added more fatigue. This made me reflect back on that day when I had second thoughts about picking up a MacBook Pro instead of an iMac. Apple now had Retina displays in its MacBook Pro lineup and it felt like the perfect device for someone whose work involves a lot of writing and designing.

I waited for a while before making the switch to a Retina MacBook Pro as I wanted the processors to mature and offer stable experience to Retina display users.

When Apple announced OS X Yosemite during the WWDC, new features such as handoff wouldn’t work in my mid-2010 iMac. So, it was clear that iMac days were limited. On July 24 when public beta of OS X Yosemite was made available I installed in on my iMac and it worked fine for a few hours. The performance was laggy but that could be mainly due to the fact that it is a beta software and not final release. I rebooted the system a couple of times and it was the third reboot that killed my hard drive. The iMac was stuck on the boot screen and after a series of attempts to get the hard drive to work nothing worked. Eventually, I had to buy a new hard drive and then everything was fine. iMac being out of AppleCare warranty costs expensive repair. This particular model had a history of display and super drive being changed twice while under Apple Care.

After replacing the hard drive I decided to sell the iMac and buy a mid-2014 15.4-inch Retina MacBook Pro 512 GB SSD, 2.5GHz i7 Processor, 16GB RAM. It’s just been 2 days since I’ve started using the MacBook Pro and I haven’t missed having the iMac even one bit. Coming from HDD to SSD is like someone from the dialup connection days suddenly experiences the modern-day broadband. The absolutely stunning Retina display has an overwhelming “wow” factor. The text as I’m typing is set to very small font size but it’s so crisp and pleasing to the eye. Photos and videos look stunning with great colours.

I usually don’t quit apps as it used to take a little while to re-launch them but with the new Retina MacBook Pro tasks such as launching new apps, rebooting are so fast that you begin to appreciate the amount of power this machine has.

It’s only been two days, so there’s a lot for me to discover and it will be interesting to see how my impressions change after putting the device through daily usage. But, I can certainly say it’s been an extremely satisfying experience so far.

Do you have any first time Mac experiences to share? Let us know in the comments below.

The smaller 7.9 inch tablet from Apple, iPad mini with retina display went on sale at Apple’s retail stores on Tuesday. Due to tight supply and high demand Apple offered the device exclusively via personal pickup.

This allows customers who purchase the new tablet from Appel’s online store to pick up the device from a retail store of their choice. Sales of iPad mini with retina display are expected to be made available by other means as soon as supply catches up with the demand.

New product launches from Apple often exceed the company’s expectation in terms of demand however for iPad Air launch the models were available for online purchase and for walk-in customers.

iPad mini with Retina display will be available starting today in silver or space gray. iPad mini with Retina display Wi-Fi models will be available for a suggested retail price of $399 (US) for the 16GB model, $499 (US) for the 32GB model, $599 (US) for the 64GB model and $699 (US) for the 128GB model. iPad mini with Retina display Wi-Fi + Cellular models will be available for a suggested retail price of $529 (US) for the 16GB model, $629 (US) for the 32GB model, $729 (US) for the 64GB model and $829 (US) for the 128GB model.

iPad mini with retina display benchmark figures have now been revealed. Benchmark test on GeekBench shows that the dual-core 64-bit A& chip is clocked at 1.29GHz. In comparison, iPhone 5s processor is clocked at 1.30GHz and iPad Air at 1.39GHz.

One of the reasons of clocking processor speed below its full potential is often attributed to thermal considerations due to the form factor. Since iPad Air has a larger hardware footprint the same A7 processor used in all three devices is clocked higher than the other two.

Teardown of the iPad mini with retina display by iFixit reveals that the device is a bit thicker than the previous model – with a difference of 0.3mm. The new tablet features a much larger 24.3WHr battery compared to the 16.3WHr in the previous model. High resolution displays drive more power which explains the use of a larger battery.

The high resolution display measures at 326ppi and Apple continues to use displays from LG and Samsung. A7 chip used in iPad mini with retina display is identical to the one in iPhone 5s as opposed to being the same as the one in iPad Air.

As a result of the new hardware upgrades the new iPad mini will now provide unto 4 times CPU performance, 8 times graphics performance and continues to provide a full 10 hour battery life.

Are you going to purchase the new iPad mini with retina display? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

This years special iPad event ‘finally’ put all rumours and speculations at rest as Apple announced second gen iPad mini with Retina Display.

Apple entered into a new product category with a smaller version of the full size tablet. The purpose of iPad mini was to make the device even more portable. It was aimed at those of us who want to hold the device for long hours to read books, browse the web and want something that fits in a small bag without adding any extra weight. In 2012 when all iOS devices were already supporting high resolution display Apple announced iPad mini with the same resolution as iPad 2 with 1024×768 pixels.

Since its introduction many started speculating that the next gen 7.9 inch tablet will certainly feature retina display. However, some reports and bloggers expressed concerns about battery and weight of the device. John Gruber of Daring Fireball also remained sceptical about iPad mini going retina in 2013 and said, “we demand magic — a retina iPad Mini with no decrease in battery life, but no increase in thickness, weight, or price. And they need to produce at least 20 million of them by Christmas. Something has to give.”

Apple has made iPad mini with retina display a reality this year with the same 10 hour long battery performance. The display features 2048×1536 resolution  which is the same as iPad Air at 326 pixels per inch. With the new retina screen the hardware saw an increase of 0.01 inches in thickness and 23 grams (0.06 pounds) in weight. The fact that the device continues to provide battery for a full days worth of use even with retina certainly makes it worth the negligible thickness and weight.

iPad mini with retina display also features the 64-bit A7 chip and M7 coprocessor introduced in the iPhone 5s. This boost the performance of the new tablet upto 4 times in CPU and upto 8 times in GPU performance.

The 5MP rear camera and 1.2MP FaceTime HD camera remain the same even in the new model. Apple has added support for even more LTE bands in this new device and also delivers twice the Wi-Fi performance than before.

If reading and browsing the web are the primary tasks that you use the iPad mini for, then upgrading to the latest model is certainly worth considering. High resolution screen makes the text crisp without any fuzziness and each pixel in the photos deliver fantastic detail.

Apple will continue to sell the original iPad mini with 16GB storage at $299 for the WiFi and $429 for WiFi + Cellular. iPad mini with retina display will be available in 16GB, 32GB, 64GB and 128GB. The WiFi models start at $399 while cellular version starts at $529 and each model gets $100 expensive for more storage.

Will you be buying the new iPad mini this holiday season? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

Apple’s iPad media event has just gone live. The company will be providing a live video coverage of the new iPad keynote event. The event is being held at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco.

Apple CEO, Tim Cook, will take the stage to announce new product launches and updates for this year before we enter the holiday season. The email invite sent out to the media suggests that the company will “cover” many product announcements.

Rumors and reports published in the past provide enough evidence to expect new iPad 5 (fifth gen) and second gen iPad mini. We could also get new Haswell MacBook Pro models, final release of Mac OS X Mavericks, new iLife and iWork software updates and more.

iPad 5 is widely expected to feature a thinner and lighter design inspired by the advancements made with iPad mini. Hardware specifications are expected to include new 64-bit A7 chip, improved camera and possibly new Touch ID sensor.

There have been many conflicts reports about a second gen iPad mini with retina display. It is unclear if Apple will introduce the new smaller iPad with a high resolution display.

During WWDC Apple showcased a sneak peek at the new Mac Pro. Apple could use today’s event to announce shipping date for the high end Mac for the professionals.

This year Apple is offering a live video feed of the iPad launch event. Live video stream of the event is available on Apple’s website. In order to view live video streaming of the October iPad event you’d require Safari 4 or later on OS X v10.6 or later, Safari on iOS 4.2 or later. Streaming via Apple TV requires second- or third-generation Apple TV with software 5.0.2 or later.

Apple recently sent out media invites for the new iPad launch event scheduled for October 22nd. The company is busy making preparations for the iPad event decorating the venue with huge posters resembling the invite.

This year Apple is expected to announce new iPad 5 and second gen iPad mini alongwith other product updates. The theme of the fall event is “We still have a lot to cover.” It doesn’t give us much insight into what the company has in store for us however, based on many analysts reports and rumors published in the past we certainly have a fair idea of what to expect.

The company has a history for fine tuning their products to perfect and have a certain penchant for making products thinner and lighter. Fifth gen iPad is widely expected to shed some weight it put on during its third iteration. In addition to losing some weight it will also become smaller with thinner bezel. In the past, when announcing iPhone 5 Apple in its advertisements asked how can a phone become larger yet lighter and thinner.

Second gen iPad mini is rumored to feature retina display. The smaller tablet from Apple has the same resolution as an iPad 2. iPad mini is the only iOS device that doesn’t ship with a high resolution model. Even though many rumors have suggested that we might get a high resolution display some analysts have expressed doubt over cost and product rates.

The fall event is also expected to feature OS X Mavericks, MacBook Pro, Mac Pro and other product updates as well.

{Images via Apple Spotlight and MacRumors}

Apple recently sent out media invites for the iPad keynote event. The event  will be held on October 22nd at 10 AM PT at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco, California.

Last week WSJ leaked the date and now the event has been confirmed by Apple. The media invite features Apple logo with leaves in the iOS 7 color palette flying in the background. The leaves signify autumn line-up of new iOS 7 devices.

The theme of the event is “We still have a lot to cover.” This clearly suggests that Apple is planning to announce more than just one product line. Rumors and reports in the past have revealed that the company is prepared to launch new iPad, second gen iPad mini, new MacBook Pro with Haswell processors and OS X Mavericks.

Apple events usually focus on one major product and try not to announce too many new products at the same event. However, as the company is offering two line-ups of iPads and other product categories also need to be updated before the holiday season, this years’ event will be packed with announcements.

The fifth-gen iPad is expected to be inspired by the advancements in iPad mini and feature a thinner bezel which will make it lighter. Rumors suggest the new iPad will feature new camera and could possibly run on the new A7 chip. It isn’t clear if we will see TouchID in the iPad as the company has experienced low product yield of the sensor in the past.

Many analysts believe the second-gen iPad mini will go retina this year. iPad mini with a high resolution screen could prove to be a big boost in terms of new hardware feature. However, there have been some doubts expressed over cost and pricing of an iPad mini with a retina display.

OS X Mavericks was announced during WWDC. The company has been busy with iOS overhaul this year and during the iPad event we may finally get a release date for the upcoming software update for Mac.

Apple teased the developers at WWDC with the all-new Mac Pro. The release date wasn’t announced and it was showcased as a work in progress. The company could use the event as a platform to release the new Mac Pro.

iMac product lineup was recently updated with the Haswell processors and MacBook Pro line up has also been due for an update. It is expected that Apple will make these available on or before October 22nd.

The fall iPad event will be packed with major announcements. Stay tuned as Touch Reviews brings you the latest information and product launches from Apple.

Apple unveiled the all-new iPhone 5C during a keynote presentation on September 10th, the phone is now available for pre-order in 10 countries. The company began taking preorders for iPhone 5C at 12:01 am PT on September 13 on Apple.com.

iPhone 5C is also available for pre-order at major carrier partners. The phone is available in 5 colours: green, blue, pink, white and yellow. 5C is available in 16GB and 32GB models and is priced at $99 and $199 respectively with a two year contract. List of countries where the pre-orders have gone live include: U.S., Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and the United Kingdom

Technical specifications of iPhone 5C are similar to last years iPhone 5. It features a dual-core A6 chip, 8 megapixel rear camera, 4 inch retina display however, the shell of the phone is now polycarbonate. Apple has improved the front facing camera by featuring a 1.2 megapixel camera and the battery has been slightly improved.

Many believed that iPhone 5C will be a budget phone but, the phone will retail at $549 without a contract which is still very expensive. Apple’s strategy continues to remain the same. The company doesn’t want to cut down its margin and will offer its smartphone at premium price.

Mid-priced smartphones running Android have become increasingly popular in Asia for Samsung. Apple feels confident to compete in the $500-$700 range even for a phone with specifications same as last years and a polycarbonate body.

Third party retailers are offering discounts on the iPhone 5C even before it launches. Walmart is offering 5C at $79 with a two year contract. Even T-Mobile has a deal for no money down and 24 monthly payments of $22.

Will you buying the new iPhone 5C? What is the best feature according to you? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

During the special media event held on September 10th, Apple announced two new iPhones, colorful iPhone 5C and the ‘forward thinking’ iPhone 5S. While many believed that 5C would stand for “cheap” or low priced model, the reality is far from it.

The all-new iPhone 5C is a drastic departure from the design language Apple has been promoting since iPhone 4. Apple sold the original iPhone encased in a metal finish body and then the next two generations were made out of plastic. iPhone 3GS was the last plastic model we saw from Apple until now.

iPhone 5C takes us back to the iPhone 3GS design with some groundbreaking refinements to match up todays technological and engineering advancements. iPhone 5C is other words is like the modern day iPhone 3GS.

5C comes in 5 colorful flavors: green, blue, yellow, pink and white. The body of the iPhone is made out of polycarbonate and in its introductory video Jony Ive says they used plastic “unapologetically”. The company claims that even though the body is plastic it has a firm structure as a metal structure houses the sides of the body and also act as the antennas of the phone.

The colors of the phone are identical to the color palette of iOS 7. It’s no surprise that the marketing, software and hardware teams worked collaboratively at each stage in the making of iPhone 5C. The display is the same as iPhone 5, a retina display with 326 ppi resolution. Dimensions and weight of the device have been slightly altered as 5C stands 4.90 inches tall, 2.33 inches wide, 0.35 inch deep and weighs at 132 grams. When compared with the iPhone 5, the new 5C is heavier and fatter.

The smartphone uses the same dual-core A6 chip that was introduced in iPhone 5. Camera also remains the same with 8 megapixels, single LED flash however, the front facing camera has been improved to 1.2 MP.

iPhone 5C will ship with iOS 7 and feature color coordinated wallpapers. Many analysts believed that this will be a budget phone from Apple however the pricing hasn’t changed much. Just like in previous years when Apple announced a new iPhone the previous gen model would get a price reduction, iPhone 5C receives the same treatment.

It will be available in 16GB / 32GB variations priced at $99 / $199 respectively with two year contract. In contrast, iPhone 5S 16GB model also starts at $199. 5C isn’t the budget phone everyone was expecting from Apple. Without a contract the phone would cost around $700 which is still highly priced for the Asian market.

It’s interesting to note that Apple will continue to sell iPhone 4S for free with a two year contract.

Are you excited about the new iPhone 5C? Will you be pre-ordering the device on September 13th? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

Apple’s 7.9 inch tablet, the iPad mini is due for a refresh this fall and according to a new report the next gen iPad mini will have an almost bezel free design. We recently highlighted another report which claimed that Apple is facing shortage of retina display supply that could result in retina iPad mini launch to be delayed until 2014.

DigiTimes published a repot citing sources that claim Apple will introduce a redesigned version of the iPad mini to give the next-gen 7.9 inch tablet an almost bezel free look. The current iPad mini design already features a very narrow bezel to it is unclear how the company will accomplish this. The report further highlights that retina display iPad mini won’t be available for this holiday season however, customers can expect a refresh this fall with improved technical specifications.

While the new iPad mini may not be availabe during the year-end shopping season, Apple reportedly may first release a slightly updated version of the current iPad mini in the second half of 2013, which is expected to be lighter, thinner and equipped with improved specifications, the sources said.

Apple clearly dominates the tablet market space which is evident by the total mobile web share. The company has a very aggressive marketing strategy for its tablet product line-up. The introduction of a small 7.9 inch tablet gives Apple an edge to dominate the market further by entering the small screen tablet segment. The company does not want to give any room to its competitors to compete in this segment.

Tablet product category was revolutionised by Apple and it was the first company to sell it in large numbers. The product refresh cycle for tablets has become shorter since the third and fourth gen 10-inch tablet as both were introduced in less than a year.

Apple’s WWDC 2013 keynote event will kick off on June 10 where the company is expected to preview OS X 10.9, iOS 7 and now according to a new report we may also see next gen MacBook Pro models. The company in the recent years has used WWDC as a platform to showcase the latest advancements in its software and has made efforts to schedule hardware announcement events separately.

KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo in his report about Apple’s WWDC 2013 mentions that the company will introduce new models of MacBook Pro and MacBook Air that will be based on Intel’s latest Haswell processors. Kuo also believes that Apple will continue to offer non-Retina MacBook Pro models which is contrary to the claims made earlier.

Contrary to our previous projection, we now think Apple will continue to make the MacBook Pro alongside the MacBook Air and Retina MacBook Pro because the 13” MacBook Pro remains the most popular product in the MacBook line. Also, there is still demand in emerging markets, where Internet penetration isn’t advanced, for optical disk drives.

Kuo is his predictions for WWDC 2013 notes that updated non-Retina MacBook Pro models could ship “very soon” after WWDC but, the new Retina-MacBook Pro models may ship at a later date.

MacBook Air lineup is also expected to be refreshed however, the analyst believes that we may not see a Retina MacBook Air just yet and cites “cost, thickness and production concerns” as the top issues.

{via MacRumors}

According to a new report Apple is expected to launch lower priced iPad mini this year that could hit the market at $199 – $249 price points. With Android gaining market share in the smartphone and tablet market many analysts believe that the Cupertino, Calif., based company should address the low priced market segment.

We’ve reported on rumors about Apple working on a cheaper iPhone and now as iPad mini refresh is expected soon reports about cheaper iPad mini are beginning to flourish. The second gen iPad mini is expected to carry the same design but feature high resolution retina display and upgraded cameras. The processors and RAM would also see an update to support the high processing power required by the retina display.

In a research note, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo mentions:

Prior to iPad mini 2 launch, Apple might roll out a more affordable iPad mini to compete with Android products. To cut costs, Apple might push for lower component prices, use a more advanced process to produce the A5 processor, simplify metal casing production, remove the rear camera, cut storage to 8GB and find more component suppliers to lower costs. We think this cheaper iPad mini retail for US$199~249.

Kuo believes that at a lower price point Apple will be able to cater to the low end of the tablet market which is currently dominated by Android tablets. Apple has publicly denied all reports of a low-cost product and have continued to stress on quality of the products. However, it will be interesting to see if the company introduces a low cost tablet in the market to remain competitive and stop Android from dominating any particular market segment.

{via MacRumors}

A number of retailers are lowering prices on Apple’s iPad lineup, suggesting a possible refresh in the near future. Apple is expected to announce the release date for a brand new iPad 5 with a design similar to the current iPad mini. The company is also expected to release an iPad mini with a Retina Display, among other features. On Wednesday, Walmart lowered the price of the iPad mini to $299, offering customers a reasonable discount and matching the price of the iPad with that of the new fifth generation iPod touch.

Now, Best Buy appears to be following suit, lowering prices on older models of the iPad, specifically the third generation iPad by up to 30 percent. This means that a 16GB WiFi model will now be only $315, as opposed to the same model from Apple, which is currently being sold as a refurbished unit for $379. However, the Richfield, Minnesota based company is restricting the discount to in-store pickup only and the selection of devices is different for each location.

This likely means that the company may have a limited supply of third generation iPads and is looking towards a possible refresh. Overall, customers who purchase the older model will be able to buy a full sized iPad, running the same A5 processor as the current iPad mini, and a Retina Display as well. In terms of price, with Best Buy’s discount, the purchase is not bad for customers who don’t care for yearly software and hardware upgrades.

{Via MacRumors}

With the web abuzz with rumors of a new iPad 5 with an iPad mini-like design and even a redesigned mini with a Retina Display, retailers are beginning to slash prices on the device. On Wednesday, Walmart began selling Apple’s iPad mini for $299, marking one of the first price drops for the device since its release.

The $299 price point is only available for the 16GB WiFi iPad mini and is the same price that Apple is currently selling its refurbished units for. The iPad mini, from both Walmart and Apple still come with the Cupertino company’s standard 1 year warranty on all of its products and accessories. However, if the iPad mini is purchased from Walmart, the customer will be receiving a new device, as opposed to Apple’s refurbished units.

If a customer decides to partake in this deal, they may go through the in-store pickup process, giving them the option reserve a device online and then pick up in the store. It also appears that the “ship to home” option is also available, even though it was not when the deal originally went up. It is unclear if other retailers will begin to lower prices on Apple’s iPad. However, if other retailers do decide to follow suit with Walmart’s discount, it may be very soon, especially since Apple is expected to introduce a new lineup of iPads in the next several months.

According to a research report from RBC analyst Capital Markets analyst Amit Daryanani, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) rumored lower cost iPhone may not carry a Retina Display. Daryanani cited supply chain checks for his report and mentioned a June/July timeframe for both the iPhone 5S and the lower cost iPhone.

Our supply-chain checks indicate that AAPL is working to launch multiple new phones in the June/July time-frame this year. Specifically, AAPL will launch the iPhone5s and a more affordable but lower-end iPhone at the same time, in either late CYQ2 or early Q3. The low-end iPhone will have the same 4″ form factor as the iPhone5 but will have plastic casing and no retina display. With a lower price-point, AAPL will be able to target a growing and important part of the Smartphone market (sub-$400 price-band).

It is possible that a lower-cost iPhone could omit the Retina Display as that would allow for a better battery life and a cheaper price tag for consumers. However, Daryanani’s report note about the iPhone not carrying a Retina Display conflicts with earlier reports from KGI securities analyst Ming Chi-Kuo who reported that the low cost iPhone would carry a 4 inch display with 326 pixels per inch. This is the same number of pixels on every iPhone model since the release of the iPhone 4 and on every iPod touch since the 4th generation iPod.

Although the lack of a Retina Display does make sense to reduce costs, it is unlikely that Apple will take a step back on its iOS devices and strip away a feature that should be standard on every device. The new display is currently seen on devices in Apple’s iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch lineups and is even rumored to be included in the next generation of the iPad mini.

The Retina Display is also included on the iPhone 4, which is currently free with a two year contract in the United States. Since the release of iPhone 4, the Retina Display has been a standard feature on iOS devices, much like FaceTime on the company’s new releases.

Apple has required all developers to make their applications compatible with the iPhone 5’s and 5th generation iPod touch’s 4 inch Retina Display. This means that the company is making sure that all apps on the App Store are compatible with the current lineup of devices, as well as future devices.

{Via MacRumors}

Apple Inc. (AAPL) launched a new online campaign, adding “Why You’ll Love iPhone” section to their website. The promotion which highlights a number of reasons why customers love the iPhone, is seen on the front splash page of the company’s website, as well as an email newsletter and a dedicated “Why iPhone” page.

There’s iPhone.
Then there’s everything else.

What makes an iPhone unlike anything else? Maybe it’s that it lets you do so many things. Or that it lets you do so many things so easily. Those are two reasons iPhone owners say they love their iPhone. But there are many others as well.

On the “Why iPhone” page, Apple highlights a number of key features that make the iPhone attractive to its customers including the detail in the iPhone’s design, the Retina display, battery life, powerful and efficient A6 chip, as well as the company’s eight consecutive J.D. Power customer satisfaction awards.

By introducing this new campaign only a day after Samsung released its Galaxy S4 smartphone, it appears that Apple is reminding consumers why the iPhone is deemed one of the best smartphones. Samsung has gotten a leg up in the market against Apple, airing people based ads as opposed to Apple’s ads focused on the product.

With this campaign, alongside its new iPhone 5 ad campaign which centers on apps, Apple appears to be focusing entirely on user experience and is hoping to attract customers through usability as opposed to focusing on technical specifications.

{Via MacRumors}

Rumors of an next gen iPad mini have been on the web for several weeks now, and many reports are suggesting that the new device would include a Retina Display as one of the many new features. However, according to market researchers, the inclusion of a Retina Display would bump the price of the second gen iPad mini by up to 30%. This means that each iPad mini would cost Apple $12 more per unit to produce, and would subsequently cause a price increase for consumers.

According to Digitimes, this addition of $12 per unit would raise the total price of the iPad mini above $200 for production. A Retina Display would tack on a number of new costs, including a new LED backlight for the higher pixel density. Overall, this would total up to a 30% increase in price for production. The most expensive part of an iPad mini is the screen, which is $80 per unit. A teardown by research firm IHS iSuppli in November estimated that the iPad mini internals cost Apple $188 to produce.

Although analysts are expecting a price increase for consumers, it is likely that Apple will find a way to retain the current price point as they did with the 3rd generation iPad after it received a Retina Display. It is unclear exactly when Apple plans to introduce a iPad mini with Retina Display, however, other issues such as retaining the same form factor and battery life may also present an issues alongside the price.

{Via AppleInsider}

The iPad mini currently has a pixel density of 163 ppi (pixels-per-inch), which is the same as the iPad 2. However, Apple is reportedly working on a second gen iPad mini which is slated for release later this year. New rumors are now beginning to circulate that the next generation iPad mini will carry a 324ppi Retina Display.

According to news service BrightWire, AU Optronics is managing the production of the iPad mini and that the new screen on the device will be 2,048 by 1,536 pixels, which is four times as many pixels as the current iPad mini. Rumors about the iPad mini receiving a Retina Display have been around since the introduction of the device in October.

With a Retina Display on the same 7.9” screen, developers would only need to update the apps with high resolution artwork. During the introduction of the iPad mini, Apple noted that applications developed for the full sized iPad would be able to run on the 7.9” screen without being reworked. However, it appears that some apps do run letterboxed, similar to the transition from 3.5” screen of the iPhone 4S to the 4” inch screen of the iPhone 5.

Apps running letterboxed still take advantage of the Retina Display as they do not take up any more space than the device that it is developed for. Alongside the iPad mini’s thin bezel, majority of users won’t notice a huge difference when the device does letterbox videos or apps.

The rumored Retina Display, coming in at 324ppi would be 2 pixels short of matching up the current iPhone 5 display, which is an impressive feat when noting the larger screen size of the iPad mini. It is unclear how Apple plans to incorporate the Retina Display and retain the same form factor of the device without sacrificing the legendary 10 hour battery life.

{Via AppleInsider}

According to iLounge’s Jeremy Horowitz, Apple is looking to make some changes to its upcoming lineup of iOS devices, including an updated rear camera on the rumored next gen ‘iPhone 5S’ as well as a new iPad mini release. The iPad mini refresh is expected to release this October, just in time for the 2013 holiday season and around the same timeframe as the full-sized iPad refresh.

The iPhone 5S is still months away from mass production, but our source suspects that the star feature will be an upgraded rear camera—perhaps featuring Sony’s 13-Megapixel sensor, plus the aforementioned flash upgrade—along with a processor bump. Current prototypes are codenamed N51 and N53, with July mentioned as the target date.

Horowitz notes that “trusted sources” have provided information about the refreshes and have even supplied product code names. Code names are used during testing and development, prior to any naming of the device such as the iPhone 5 or iPhone 5S.

The sources note that the product code name for the refreshed iPad mini is J72 while the iPhone 5S is J85. Apple’s iPad mini is expected to retain the same form factor, and gain a Retina Display and perhaps a better camera system. In order for Apple to add a Retina Display to the iPad mini without sacrificing the thin design, the company will likely switch to the use of a IGZO display as rumored in the past.

This would allow the Cupertino company to retain the thin form factor of the current model and add in the Retina Display at the same time. This may also be a reasonable move for the iPhone as well, particularly for future generations which will be expected to be thinner. Despite iLounge’s claims that the iPad lineup will see refreshes in October which are in line with other credible sources.

{Via MacRumors}

Apple will reportedly be refreshing the iPad twice a year now, with the lineup consisting of both the full sized iPad and the iPad mini. Brian White of Topeka Capital Markets is suggesting that industry sources are pointing to launch of both the fifth generation iPad 5G and the second generation iPad mini in March. The conclusion was made by White after CES 2013 in Las Vegas from January 8-11.

The fifth generation iPad is likely to retain similar internals, but would be updated with an all new design, one similar to the one on the current iPhone 5. This may include the new slate/black and white/silver designs as well as the crystalline diamond cut edges which gives the device the “continuous” look, with the glass and aluminum meshing together. The iPad mini, which already has the latest design may retain its current form factor, however, it may be upgraded with the same A6 chip in the iPhone 5 and perhaps an 8 megapixel camera.

It is unclear if Apple will include the Retina Display in the iPad mini as that would mean a slight increase in thickness to house a bigger battery, although if the company switches to an IGZO display, it would not have to sacrifice thickness. White also previously claimed that Apple is looking to introduce new iPhones this summer in multiple colors and sizes. The credibility of these rumors remain unclear.

{Via AppleInsider}

Apple’s iPhone 5 is currently sold in 47 countries around the world, however, the Cupertino, California company promised that they would bring the smartphone to 100 countries by the end of 2012. Now, in order to keep that promise, Apple is planning to bring the iPhone to 50 more countries in December alone. On Monday, Apple announced that they will in fact be adding to the list of countries in which the iPhone is available.

Apple today announced iPhone 5 will be available in South Korea on Friday, December 7, with more than 50 additional countries being added in December, including Brazil, Russia and Taiwan. iPhone 5 is the thinnest and lightest iPhone ever, completely redesigned to feature a stunning new 4-inch Retina display; an Apple-designed A6 chip for blazing fast performance; and ultrafast wireless—all while delivering even better battery life.

Apple is bringing the iPhone 5 to South Korea on December 7th, followed by 49 others on December 14th and December 21st.

On December 14th, the iPhone 5 will be available in Albania, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, China, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Ecuador, Grenada, Indonesia, Israel, Jamaica, Jordan, Kuwait, Macedonia, Malaysia, Moldova, Montenegro, Panama, Paraguay, Philippines, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Taiwan, Turkey, United Arab Emirates and Venezuela.

On the 21st, Apple will release to the rest of the countries, which includes Barbados, Botswana, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Egypt, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritius, Morocco, Niger, Senegal, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St.Vincent & the Grenadines, Tunisia, Uganda and Vietnam.

With the iPhone 5 made available in so many different countries, and with the holiday season in full gear, Apple is sure to make record sales for the new iPhone, likely more than the iPhone 4S. Many of the Asian nations, such as Japan, South Korea, and China are major growth opportunities for Apple as a good portion of its revenue comes from that region.

{Via MacRumors}

Apple’s new product lineup, including the iPhone 5, iPad mini, and fourth generation iPad is finally coming to China, after the Cupertino company had trouble with specific certifications that the country requires. Earlier in the week, the iPhone 5 received certification in China, and was eligible to go on sale.

On Friday, Apple announced that they would be bringing the iPhone 5 to China, alongside the iPad mini and the fourth generation iPad. All of the iOS devices would go on sale over the next several weeks, with all three available in retail stores by the end of the month.

Apple today announced the Wi-Fi versions of iPad mini and fourth generation iPad with Retina display will be available in China on Friday, December 7, and iPhone 5 will be available on Friday, December 14. iPad mini and the new fourth generation iPad with Retina display are currently available in 42 countries, and iPhone 5 is available in 47 countries, including the US, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan and the UK.

China generally requires more certification than other countries and as a result, most products such as Google’s services, and Apple’s devices are introduced later. The iPhone 4S arrived two months after release in the United States, and the third generation iPad arrived four months after initial release.

However, it is crucial that Apple still bring their products to China, as it accounts for 15% of the company’s revenue. Apple CEO Tim Cook has mentioned multiple times that China is a big opportunity for Apple, with the company opening more retail stores to increase its presence in the country.

{Via MacRumors}