Apple’s plan to replace Gorilla Glass with sapphire glass in iPhone 6 didn’t go so well as their partnership with GT Advanced resulted in dissolution due to production issues.

Apple and Corning’s Gorilla Glass share a long history. When Steve Jobs was working on the original iPhone he didn’t want to use a plastic screen, instead wanted it to be made of glass. Since glass screen would have been too easy to break someone recommended that Jobs should see what Corning was doing. At that time Corning was developing the Gorilla Glass technology however, it wasn’t ready for mass production. Jobs ordered a ton of Gorilla Glass and kept telling Corning CEO Wendell Weeks, “Don’t be afraid. You can do this.” In 2007 Apple introduced the iPhone with Gorilla Glass.

Corning’s Gorilla Glass has seen tremendous improvements since it began its first mass production in 2006. Gorilla Glass 2 was 30% thinner than the former, Gorilla Glass 3 used an entirely new composition. Gorilla Glass 4 which is expected to be featured on smartphones, tablets and other devices this year is twice as shatter-resistant in drop tests when compared to previous version.

It’s obvious that Apple makes for a large part of Corning’s revenue and they would’ve seen Apple’s move to consider sapphire for iPhone 6 as a possible threat. The company seems to have taken that as a challenge and started work on offering the same scratch-resistance as sapphire with ‘Project Phire’.

Competition in most cases can lead to innovation and if ‘Project Phire’ turns out to offer what Corning is promising then it is possible that Apple will continue to use Corning’s technology in upcoming iOS devices. Coring didn’t immediately provide any demo video or live demonstration of its new technology however, we can expect the company to share an update soon.

Glass used on smartphones and tablets is increasingly becoming another core technology. Apple has consistently shown interest in owning core technologies as it did try to “own” glass technology by partnering with GT Advanced for sapphire production.

It will be interesting to see if Apple continues to rely on Corning for its screen technology or develop something new.

Corning Gorilla Glass 4 Video

What happened to the iPod product category? iPod sales were cannibalized first by the iPod touch and then iPhone slowly cannibalized sales of the iPod touch. Apple has never been afraid of cannibalising the sales of its existing products. Apple’s late CEO Steve Jobs famously said, “If you don’t cannibalize yourself, someone else will.”

Is iPad facing the same fate as of the iPod? Will the iPad soon not be a major source of revenue for Apple? To understand these aspects let’s get into the details.

From iPad Air to iPad Air 2 – Not a major product update

If we look at the current trend of iPad sales we see some interesting figures; in Q1 2014 Apple sold 26 million tablets compare that to Q1 2015 the company sold 21.4 million. In 2013 Apple launched the new iPad Air and in 2014 the company launched iPad Air 2. Apple sold more iPad Air’s than iPad Air 2 during their respective holiday quarters.

One of the most obvious reasons that explains the fall in sales figures for iPad Air 2 could be due to the new tablet not being a major update when compared to its predecessor. iPad Air was a radical redesign and added many enhancements however, the iPad Air 2 received a modest update with improvements being camera, barometer, new processor with motion co-processor, and Touch-ID. These updates were certainly not enough for users who already own an iPad Air to upgrade.

Was iPad just a fad? Before we jump onto any conclusions we need to delve further into the tablet category.

Different Upgrade Cycles

Unlike iPhones customers are not looking to upgrade their tablets every two-years. Our smartphones have to endure much more rigorous use each day compared to the tablets. So even if you still own an iPad that was introduced in 2012 it may still be working just fine. I have an iPad 2, Retina Display MacBook Pro and iPhone 5. Even though the second-gen iPad now lags in performance after iOS 8 update I still don’t see the need to upgrade. One possible reason could also be that after purchasing the latest MacBook Pro I have increasingly felt lesser need to work on my iPad.

Users’ tablet upgrade cycle will largely depend on what you use the tablet for. If it’s just for browsing, emails, and watching movies then you’re probably not going to upgrade every two years. If you’re into gaming and love to play games on your iPad then upgrading every two years makes sense as Apple upgrades the tablets with much more capable graphic chips and all AAA game titles are quickly updated to take advantage of new features.

Smartphones have also become an expression of showing off the latest gadget you bought as one obviously tends to use it more often no matter where you are. Tablets would probably never reach that level of attention. You don’t upgrade your MacBook Air or MacBook Pro every year just because a new model was made available.

If we look at iPhone’s upgrade cycle where the company introduces major improvements every two years and follows up with minor improvements the following year it still continues to outperform previous years sales figures. iPad category certainly won’t give the same results. There’s still a lot of scope for the tablet however, its adoption into new markets and industries is dependent on factors other than just faster processor and better camera.

More choice

Another reason attributing to the decline in sales could be the introduction of large screen iPhones. Users who would previously carry an iPad mini and an iPhone can now carry just an iPhone 6 Plus. Apple has been always accused of not offering much choice to its customers however, now its a different story.

There’s a 7.9 inch iPad mini, 9.7 inch iPad, 4 inch iPhone 5S, 4.7 inch iPhone 6, and 5.5 inch iPhone 6 Plus. So, even though iPad sales in particular may have been affected, it could potentially be getting converted into iPhone sales.

With the new range of choices now available to customers it may take a couple of years for the sales figures to stabilise and adjust as customers make their choice for their preferred device for various computing purposes.

Content

iPhone had a three years lead on the iPad. When the iPad was first introduced it was not until the iPad 2 that we started seeing a large number of companies creating apps for their employees. iPad’s growth depends a lot on the ecosystem of apps other than games and productivity category. As web developers, companies, educational institutions develop more and more content optimised for the tablet we will witness continuous rise in tablet sales. Apple made a great move to tackle this issue by partnering with IBM to create enterprise ready apps.

So, should Apple be worried about the state of the iPad? No!  Apple should not be worried about lower iPad sales as it leads in market share and competitors aren’t making much progress in differentiating their products from the iPad. Microsoft is offering desktop computer experience on a tablet however, it doesn’t appear to be working favourably for the company. So, clearly if someone needs a tablet they are still looking at Apple.

The tablet market exploded after the introduction of the iPad. Apple’s competitors are waiting on Apple to take the next leap so that they can copy it.

As long as Apple continues to make improvements and make more capable tablets each year, this category is here to stay.

Photos Credit: Ben Miller, Lap Fung Chan

Michael Fassbender who played the role of Magneto in X-Men First Class and X-Men Days of Future Past was not the first choice for the role of Steve Jobs in the biopic. According to reports Christian Bale was the first choice for the main lead however, the talks didn’t materialise. Names of a number of actors approached for the movie started emerging which included George Clooney, Bradley Cooper, Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Cruise, Matthew McConaughey, Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Charlize Theron, Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson. However, a number of reasons lead to these actors not being involved in the project.

The rights for the book titled “Steve Jobs” written by Isaacson was initially purchased by Sony. Later Sony pulled the plug and now Universal will distribute the movie. The film has been adapted by Aaron Sorkin, know for his work on The West Wing and The Social Network.

The biopic is said to show three 30 minute scenes. Each scene will show launch of three major Apple products that Steve Jobs was a part of: the Macintosh in 1984, NeXT in 1988, and the iPod in 2001.

This isn’t the first movie based on Steve Jobs’ life. “Jobs” featuring Ashton Kutcher was released in 2013. In my view the movie was not the best representation of who Jobs was.

It will be interesting to see how this new movie will show the life of Steve Jobs when it releases in the theatres worldwide.

If the recent part leaks of the upcoming iPhone 6 weren’t enough a new HD video published by Russia-based YouTuber Rozetked, shows the parts of alleged new iPhone completely assembled. The assembled parts are claimed to be of iPhone Air / iPhone 6 which is rumoured to be 4.7 inch in size. This year Apple is expected to release two new iPhones with 4.7 inch and 5.5 inch screens sizes.

According to the reports published by various news outlets, iPhone 6 will feature sapphire crystal display, NFC chip, improved camera sensors, longer battery life and new sensors. There has been a lot of debate concerning the cost of the new iPhones as the sapphire crystal displays are costly and very hard to produce. It is possible that 4.7 inch screen size may be available at existing price points however a 5.5 inch screen iPhone could be priced $100 more.

Apple will be holding the iPhone event at  Flint Center for the Performing Arts which is much bigger than the venues Apple typically selects for new product announcements. It is interesting to note that the company is also building a three-storey structure at the event venue. There have been a few reports about Apple introducing a new wearable product during the event, it is unclear if the new structure is being built to showcase some specific functionality of the wearable product. If rumours are to be believed then the new iWatch(?) will only be demoed at the event, its availability is scheduled for early next year. Steve Jobs introduced the original Macintosh at the same venue almost 30 years ago.

Even though there have been many part leaks and we may have already seen the iPhone 6 which will be announced in 6 days from now it’s possible that a few surprise await us. Are you excited about the event? What are your expectations from the event? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

{via 9to5 Mac}

Apple’s SVP of Industrial Design, Jony Ive has achieved yet another accomplishment, having been awarded knighthood last year at Buckingham Palace. Now, the forty-six year old designer has made Time’s 100 most influential list with the likes of many other notables in Time’s lists which includes President Barack Obama, first lady Michelle Obama, Miami Heat forward LeBron James, Justin Timberlake, Jay-Z, Beyoncé and even Pope Francis.

Ive is listed under Time’s Artist category and is including in the same category with others such as writer George Saunders as well as actress and actor, Jennifer Lawrence and Bryan Cranston. The small anecdote written below Ive’s image was written by musician and activist Bono of the band U2. Bono was also a close friend of former Apple CEO Steve Jobs. Bono noted that Ive pursued “greatness over profit” and also went on to say:

What the competitors don’t seem to understand is you cannot get people this smart to work this hard just for money. Jony is Obi-Wan. His team are Jedi…

Jony Ive has been with Apple for over 16 years, having started in 1996 as leader of the company’s design team. Under his leadership and design sense, the company released several successes, which include numerous generations of the iMac, iPad, iPhone, and iPod. Late last year, Apple also appointed Ive with the role of leading and providing guidance for the Human Interface (HI) team at the company, which will allow for a tight integration between hardware and software, something that Apple is quite popular for.

Jony Ive has received many awards over his long career at Apple and worked under two of the company’s greatest CEO’s, Steve Jobs and Tim Cook. With his latest Time recognition, there is no doubt that the designer has many more years and many for awards to get through.

{Via AppleInsider}

Apple Inc. (AAPL) has had yet another management shift, making it the third retail executive departure from the company in the past year. According to IFOAppleStore, Apple’s VP of Retail, Jerry McDougal has left the company to spend more time with his family. McDougal has been a part of the company for 12 years, running Apple’s retail marketing, product merchandising, store operations, loss prevention and customer loyalty programs and worked under Apple’s former retail chief, Ron Johnson. Johnson left the company to become CEO of JC Penney to help the company reshape its retail future.

A key player in the birth of Apple’s retail chain and a potential candidate to lead the retail stores has left the company. Jerry McDougal, Vice-President of Retail, said goodbye to his colleagues last Friday, sources say. His departure was explained as not work-related, but rather so he could spend more time with his family.

McDougal was considered as a replacement for Johnson when he left the company for JC Penney and then again for John Browett who left the company late last year, alongside iOS chief Scott Forstall who was ousted from the company because of issues with Maps and Siri, as well as personal issues with other executives. According to AllThingsD, McDougal will be replaced by Apple’s VP of Finance, Jim Bean.

Jim Bean is moving to Retail to help support our store teams. Jim has been at Apple for 15 years and is a great leader who understands our culture and focus on customer service.

Apple expects employees on the campus to dedicate large portions of their daily time and lives to the company, and recently has been placing the duties of departing executives on other vice presidents at the company. Ultimately, Apple is restructuring the management team that once operated under former CEO and Chairman, Steve Jobs.

{Via MacRumors}

Apple’s late CEO and Chairman Steve Jobs undoubtedly left a major impact on the company, with principles that drive the company to this day since his death in late 2011. Following his death, a number of video tributes began to appear online, as well as rumors that there were multiple films coming out about the Apple co-founder’s life.

Late last year, it was confirmed that that the Steve Jobs biopic starring actor Ashton Kutcher would premiere at the Sundance Film Festival later this month. The movie now has a timeframe for release, which is slated for April 2013.

Distribution, both international will be handled by Open Road Films and Inferno Entertainment. This biopic is different from the film that is currently in production by Sony Entertainment and is being written by Aaron Sorkin. Sorkin’s version of the film is based on the official biography, called Steve Jobs and written by author Walter Isaacson.

Sorkin’s film currently does not have a date of release. However, the biopic starring Kutcher is confirmed for April, likely in the first several weeks before other fils from Sundance begin to be released.

{Via iMore}

Apple was recently approved for a number of patents by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The significance behind these patents is the fact that many of them were designed by late CEO Steve Jobs and Apple’s design chief, Jonathan Ive. One patent, filed as U.S. Patent D671937, and called “Electronic Device” referred to the iPhone 4 design and the antenna design which was the focus of intense scrutiny until it was redesigned in the iPhone 4S.

Jony Ive was also credited for some patents, such as the Bumper design for the iPhone 4 and 4S. It was filed as U.S. Patent D671930, and was simply named “Cover. Other patents included the Smart Cover, also called “Cover” and filed as U.S. Patent D671948 as well as the L-shaped Magsafe connector in older generation Macbooks which was entitled “Connector” and filed as U.S. Patent D671898.

Apple’s Magsafe connector is now called Magsafe 2 and ships with all new Macbooks. With all of these patents, Apple retains many of its original product ideas, which it can improve on as the generations of products progress. For example, Apple introduced the Smart Cover with the iPad 2 and is still sold with the fourth generation iPad and iPad mini and will likely continue to advance with future generations of the iPad.

{via AppleInsider}

Apple has changed a lot under new CEO Tim Cook, who took over after Steve Jobs stepped down and became chairman of the board. Following the passing of Jobs in late 2011, Tim Cook is trying to take the company in his own direction. This began with the removal of key employees at Apple such as the removal of Scott Forstall as SVP of iOS Software and the resignation of John Browett, head of retail operations.

Now, Apple is offering a new program, allowing some of its employees to take two week breaks from work for side projects that they may be working on, as it might benefit the company somehow in the future.

Apple’s culture is getting to be a little bit more like Google, and other Silicon Valley companies, says Jessica Lessin at the Wall Street Journal. Speaking on today’s News Hub video show, Lessin reports Apple started a program earlier this year called “Blue Sky” that lets employees take two weeks to work on projects outside their normal responsibilities.

Apple is implementing an idea that Google has already had for a number of years, however, Apple’s is much more limited and includes only a select group of employees. By doing this, Apple is hoping that the personal time will fuel innovation and ideas that wouldn’t come to fruition otherwise. By giving employees to enjoy their time and dabble in their own personal projects, Apple is allowing its employees to enjoy their jobs and bringing new ideas into the workplace.

{via iMore}

Pixar, one of the largest and most popular filmmakers in the world is honoring one of the world’s most popular CEOs, Steve Jobs. The Emeryville, California based computer animation film studio is naming their main campus building after Jobs, calling it the “The Steve Jobs Building”. Pixar’s blog, The Pixar Times notes that the building is one of the main centers in its entire campus and that the Late CEO Steve Jobs actually participated in the designing of the building. Jobs helped design the structure of the building so that employees could not lock themselves in their office all day and would have to come out to converse with each other.

Steve Jobs holds a massive portion of shares of Disney, after the giant acquired Pixar back in 2004. At the time, Jobs was CEO of Pixar, and was paid only $1 a year. Jobs also held up the film studio for years with his own personal money, putting in millions to help keep Pixar alive until it was acquired by Disney. Samad Rizvi, writer at The Pixar Times mentioned Job’s influence and how much of an impact he had on Pixar.

“He came up with the idea that the building should be centered around a large atrium, which would lead to accidental collaboration that may not occur if everyone was stuck in their individual offices. I find this to be the perfect way to honor the legacy of Steve Jobs. Placing his name above the main building not only reminds those who walk through the entrance of his importance to the formation of the studio,” Rizvi wrote, “but is also a meaningful representation of his influence on the famed building.”

This is only one of the many influences that Jobs has left on the world, including the hundreds of small design changes and products that he left behind at Apple. Pixar dedicating its campus building to Jobs appears to be the right choice as the company was transformed with the money and vision of the late CEO.

{Via AppleInsider}

This past Saturday, Apple opened the doors to its new retail location in Palo Alto, where media was allowed in to take pictures and partake in the grand opening celebration. The new Palo Alto, located at 340 University Drive is several miles from Apple’s corporate headquarters and will now serve more customers in the area, those that would otherwise crowd Apple’s original Palo Alto location during product releases.

According to AppleInsider, which also posted images of the grand opening, the store is 15,000 square feet of retail space and has the classic all glass design, which has become a trademark of Apple’s design.

Apple’s original Palo Alto was also the go to location for Apple’s former CEO and Chairman Steve Jobs who often attended for product releases and events. AppleInsider attended the grand opening and posted images of the University Drive retail store in Palo Alto.

Apple’s special iPad mini keynote event scheduled for today is expected to unveil all-new smaller iPad. The new “iPad mini” is rumoured to feature a 7.85 inch screen with 1024-by-768-pixel resolution at 132 pixels per inch (ppi), the same as iPad 2.

The company’s move to introduce a smaller version of the iPad will help iOS penetrate the ebook reader market and compete with the Kindle devices. Apple is widely expected to announce iBooks 3.0 and the announcement of iPad mini could be closely tied to Apple’s education initiatives. The iPad mini will also feature front and rear facing camera, lighting connector and could come in different colors.

According to recent reports, the entry level model of iPad mini is expected to be priced at $329. The new device could prove to be ideal for schools and those who want a tablet put prefer a smaller screen.

Steve Jobs was opposed to the idea of a smaller screen tablet however many believe that it was Eddy Cue who saw the potential of a smaller screen tablet that could help push iOS deeper in education market.

Unlike iPhone 5 media event, Apple will be live streaming the video of the iPad mini keynote event on Apple.com and via Apple TV, the event will kick off at 10 am PDT.

Reports of Apple Inc. (AAPL) releasing an “iPad Mini” in October have been around for quite some time, and since last year, more and more news sources are confirming that this release is most likely going to happen. The latest report from Bloomberg, also confirms the likelihood that Apple’s iPad Mini is slated for announcement in October, and will be shipping by the end of the year .

The new model will have a screen that’s 7 inches to 8 inches diagonally, less than the current 9.7-inch version, said the people, who asked not to be identified because Apple hasn’t made its plans public. The product, which Apple may announce by October, won’t have the high-definition screen featured on the iPad that was released in March, one of the people said.

The report also suggests that AAPL was in talks to develop a smaller iPad, since the introduction of the first generation even with Steve Jobs saying that a screen that small wasn’t ideal for users to enjoy their media. It makes sense for Apple to introduce an iPad Mini, because of the company’s history in improving on products offered by the competition, as well as producing products that consumers genuinely enjoy.

The report goes on to mention that the iPad Mini will likely have the same amount of pixels as the iPad before the Retina Display was introduced. This would put the resolution at 1024×768 pixels and would avoid the fragmentation of apps that Apple makes sure to avoid in all of its products. Apple is likely treading very carefully with the launch of the iPad Mini to make sure that they get this perfect.

An iPad Mini has the potential to affect the sales of the iPod touch if it is not priced properly. However, it appears to be almost certain that a smaller iPad will make an appearance later this October, even The Wall Street Journal reported that there is indeed an iPad Mini in the works. The iPad Mini is proposed for an October launch, the same timeframe as the next generation iPhone 5 and the public release of iOS 6.

{via MacRumors, Image Credit: iLounge}

With the introduction of iCloud during last year’s WWDC conference, it was clear that Apple was taking a new path with their offering of cloud services. Steve Jobs, who was CEO at the time of the introduction, admitted that the MobileMe services offered up as cloud features were definitely not the best product that Apple had offered its users. Since then, Apple has gradually been winding down operations associated with MobileMe, making the normally $99 a year service into iCloud.

iCloud offers users an initial 5GB of free storage and then begins to charge based on GB of storage. Earlier this year, Apple gave users the option to remove their files and even offered discs of the Snow Leopard software through MobileMe accounts for users to make the transition to iCloud as smoothly as possible. Apple is still allowing users to transfer their files from iDisk and images from Gallery, but is doing so on a final notice, as the website now displays a red sign that reads, “MobileMe is Closed”.

Apple is offering users the option to transfer their iDisk and Gallery files because both of those features as well as iWeb publishing did not and will not carry over to iCloud. Apple’s replacement for Gallery is likely the new PhotoStream feature and iDisk is being replaced by the variety of storage options offered in iCloud.

The Cupertino company has yet to mention a specific date as to when MobileMe would be permanently shut down, but it will likely be shut before the public release of iOS 6.

{via MacRumors}

According to a new report published by Bloomberg, iPhone 5, Apple’s sixth-gen iPhone was one of the last product designs Steve Jobs worked on. Apple’s iPhone hasn’t seen any major redesign since the introduction of iPhone 4. So, it’s not difficult to imagine that the company would have started working on iPhone 5 design just as iPhone 4 was being launched.

When Steve Jobs took medical leave in January 2011 to focus on his health, in an internal memo to Apple employees he specifically mentioned, “I will continue as CEO and be involved in major strategic decisions for the company.” The report published by Bloomberg cites people familiar with the matter who claim that “Apple co-founder Steve Jobs had worked closely on the redesigned phone before his death in October”.

Also, it’s worth mentioning that Jony Ive, Apple’s design guru, in an interview had mentioned that Apple’s secret design lab has “future for the next three years,”.

Considering the fact that Steve Jobs was still involved in major strategic decisions for Apple and the fact that iPhone 4  and iPhone 4S design remained almost the same it seems that iPhone 5 may very well be one of the “strategic” ideas Jobs was closely associated with.

The rumor mill is abuzz with news about the next gen iPhone 5 featuring 3.9 inch display with increased pixels and also include the next gen 4G networking. Even though 4-inch iPod touch display panels have been leaked on the internet it’s unclear if Apple will increase the size of the complete device or just increase the size of the display while still retaining the overall form factor and dimensions.

The current trend in the smartphone market seems to be to offer larger screen size phones however, Apple with its vision to maintain a streamlined product lineup has offered both iPhone and iPod touch in just one option i.e 3.5 inch display.

Apple is expected to unveil the sixth gen iPhone in October during a special media event. The new iPhone is also rumored to feature better cameras and faster processor with quad-core graphics chip.

{via Bloomberg}

Last week Fortune released their “Fortune 500” list, organizing and releasing their list of the top 500 companies in the United States, in order by revenue. Apple has been experiencing strong quarterly growth over the years, and as a result, jumped up 18 spots on the list since last year to occupy #17 in the new list.

The company emerged from the tragic passing of co-founder Steve Jobs saddened but in no perceptible way weakened. Under CEO Tim Cook, the company continued pumping out new products — like a significantly upgraded version of the iPad tablet. Apple nearly doubled its earnings per share in 2011, compared to 2010.

That helped nudge management to announce plans for the firm’s first dividend since 1995, returning some of the $97.6 billion in cash it had accumulated. Apple fans and analysts alike also continue to await a long-rumored television set from the gadget maker.

Apple has continued to increase its revenue and its profits continuously over the last year of 2012 in order to become the most profitable company in the United States, with $25.9 billion in profit. Apple surpassed Exxon Mobil and Chevron, holding the #2 and #3 spots.

Apple will likely climb higher, reaching new heights in stock prices, breaking the $600 barrier with the arrival of new CEO Tim Cook. Apple is referred to as one of the greatest business comebacks in history, rebounding after being 3 weeks away from bankruptcy. With two successful quarters in 2012, Apple is setting itself up for another successful, possibly moving up further on the Fortune 500 in the coming months.

{via MacRumors, Image: Credit}

Apple’s retail stores are truly one of a kind, blending materials such as glass and aluminum into intricate pieces of art that dress up any neighborhood they are built in. Apple intends to protect that idea, hoping to be the only one with a one of a kind experience for its customers. The latest act of preservation by the company is to patent the 54 foot tall, 75 foot wide and 30 foot deep glass design on its Apple Upper West Side store.

Details for the patent were revealed in a patent application earlier this week, published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The patent filing focuses specifically on the curved glass roof of the store, located blocks from Lincoln Center and a few avenues from Apple’s flagship Fifth Avenue Store. The support structure of the store are also parts of the filing, which highlights specific sections of the outer shell that adds to the design of the store.

The Upper West Side store opened in November of 2009, and since then has become one of the five stores in Manhattan. This latest patent comes only a week after the USPTO revealed plans to patent the cylindrical design of Apple’s main store in Shanghai, China.

Apple’s obsessive focus on the simplicity of its stores plays very well into the design of the store, which the company goes to great lengths to preserve and shelter from copycats. Much of this personal belief comes from the vision of former CEO and Chairman, Steve Jobs, who believed simplicity was the key to life, and vowed to preserve Apple’s ideas.

Apple Stores around the world receive about 18,000 visitors a week per store, with each store bringing in about $12.2 million in revenue. Apple has continued to expand its retail sector, focusing on countries such as China as well as larger cities in the United States.

{via Apple Insider}

Apple Inc. (AAPL) MacBook Pro model has been around for quite some time now, serving as the perfect combo between a consumer and pro product, in accordance to the vision of late CEO and Chairman of Apple, Steve Jobs. AAPL introduced MacBook Pro in 2006, and replaced the Powerbook G4, launching the Cupertino company into a wave of success for many years to come.

In recent weeks, rumors have been floating around the web that suggest Apple is going to drastically redesign the MacBook Pro and introduce a design very similar to that of the MacBook Air.

On Monday, Ming-Chi Kuo with KGI Securities, predicted that Apple may discontinue the 17 inch MacBook Pro indefinitely. Kuo noted that declining shipments from Apple were the main cause of speculation. It is very likely that Apple may discontinue the high end Pro, possibly because of the high price tag, and the company’s obsession with making their products thinner and lighter.

Kuo has a solid track record, previously indicating the discontinuation of the 13.3 inch polycarbonate MacBook, which was phased out of Apple’s product line and educational offerings last July. Apple’s redesign of the MacBook Pro, and discontinuation of the 17 inch model shows Apple’s dedication to simplify their product lineup and keeping the original vision for their products, making them more portable without sacrificing usability.

{via AppleInsider}

Apple is not known for use of celebrities to endorse their products. Of course, there were a few promotions a number years back, with The Black Eyed Peas and popular band U2 promoting iTunes and the iPod. However, Apple has never done a celebrity advertisement that showed faces and instead focused mostly on silhouettes.

Apple recently released two advertisements with actor Samuel L. Jackson and actress Zooey Deschanel. Samuel L. Jackson, known for his roles in movies such as Pulp Fiction and Snakes on A Plane and Zooey Deschanel, known for her role in the movie, 500 Days of Summer are both depicted as users of Siri.

Date Night iPhone 4S TV Ad

Rainy Day iPhone 4S TV Ad

Jackson and Deschanel ask Siri for a number of different things, including scheduling appointments, searching recipes, and playing music. The ad focuses on the celebrities using Siri in everyday situations, something that Apple has started to do recently, particularly with the introduction of Siri. This allows Apple to take a more personal approach to drawing in customers for the iPhone 4S and make it attractive to potential users. Siri launched last October with the iPhone 4S, and is still in beta stage, according to Apple’s website.

The ads were made by TBWA\Chiat\Day, who worked closely with Steve Jobs and other Apple executives on hundreds of Apple ads over the year. The ads feature branding for AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon at the end, as there are no brands mentioned in the ad itself. It’s interesting to see Apple begin to use celebrity endorsements for their products and reach even more customers, who are represented brilliantly by Apple’s choice of Jackson and Deschanel.

FaceTime, even with the faster 4G LTE on the iPad 3 is limited mainly because of carriers worrying about the overuse of data, which can bog down the network and can ultimately slow it for other users. On Thursday, in a report, The Verge revealed that FaceTime does not work on LTE network. A notification pops up, alerting the user that they are not connected to a WiFi and that FaceTime does not operate over 4G LTE.

In June 2010, Steve Jobs noted during the iPhone 4 keynote that Apple had yet to work with carriers in order to allow usage of FaceTime over 3G or 4G. Currently, Apple limits most of their products unless they can guarantee that the users will get a seamless experience and this most certainly falls in that category. Apple will likely allow FaceTime over 4G once the iPhone receives faster 4G LTE networking. This means that FaceTime over cellular network, unfortunately, may be limited for a few more years.

Apple Inc. (AAPL) earlier today won an injunction against Motorola in Germany over the photo gallery patent. The judgement was pronounced on Thursday at the Munich I Regional Court by Judge Dr. Peter Guntz.

AAPL and Motorola have been involved in a number of lawsuits and this recent victory over yet another patent allows Apple to enforce the ruling which could force Motorola to destroy any infringing products. Motorola could very well continue to sell its smartphones and tablet by seeding a software update to resolve the infringing feature.

It’s interesting to note that Apple has won this injunction against all accused products which include two smartphones and the Xoom tablet. If Motorola decides to issue a software update to avoid infringing on Apple’s patent then it could possibly impact the user experience who are used to certain behavior when they scroll lists or manage / browse photo galleries.

Florian Mueller, an intellectual property activist-turned-analyst, on his blog FOSS Patents reports that:

The glass is clearly more than half-full for Apple in this case (and even more so when considering that Apple also won the drastic remedies of destruction and recall).

Apple continues to be aggressive in its approach to fight against the Android platform which the Cupertino, Calif. based company claims to infringe on its many patents. In Steve Jobs’ biography it was revealed that Jobs considered Android a “stolen product” and that he would “spend every penny of Apple’s $40 billion in the bank, to right this wrong.”

Today’s ruling is the second injunction Apple has won against MMI in Germany so far. Those are the first two Apple v. Motorola casees that came to judgment in Germany.

In August last year Google announced that it would acquire Motorola for $12.5 billion and the move was largely seen as an attempt to acquire a stronger patent portfolio. However, with Apple winning injunction in recent lawsuits it remains to be seen if Google’s decision of acquiring Motorola would play out well when the deal finally comes through.

It is worth noting that due a Motorola patent ruling which is under appeal forced Apple to discontinue the “push” feature in iCloud and MobileMe email service within Germany. Users can still receive and send emails however, they would have to manually “fetch” the emails. Apple is appealing the decision and believes “this patent is invalid”.

Apple Inc. (AAPL) recently launched a new TV ad called “Harmony” which in 30 seconds highlights iCloud service for iOS and OS X. AAPL has been posting a series of iPhone 4S ads which show the all-new voice assistant Siri and the much improved camera and now with the latest ad the focus has turned to iCloud.

iCloud automatically stores music, photos, apps, calendars, contacts, documents and keeps all your iCloud enabled devices in sync. When Apple introduced iOS 5 during WWDC 2011 Steve Jobs took to the stage to talk about iCloud and repeatedly said, “it just works”. The new TV ad in a similar theme conveys that iCloud is “Automatic. Everywhere.”

The ad begins with the all-new welcome screen in iOS 5 which gives you an option to use iCloud and then goes on to show an album being purchased on iPhone 4S which then shows up on iPad 2 and MacBook Air. Then photos, calendar, app purchases, contacts update and iBooks are all shown to sync between different devices.

With the introduction of iCloud users can not only keep their iOS devices in sync but can also backup to the cloud, set up the device without connecting to iTunes and with iTunes Match they can upload their entire music library to the cloud.

iCloud is a free service available on devices running iOS 5 or higher however, if you need to add more space for backup then you could purchase additional storage right from your device.

Late Apple CEO Steve Jobs adored The Beatles and considered them to be an important part of music history, revolutionizing music as we know it. Apple and The Beatles have had a long history, with The Beatles using the Apple name for many aspects of their business.

Eventually, the two sides came into settlement, which led up to a 2007 agreement that Apple obtain the trademark and license it back to The Beatles for their own uses.

Beginning today, fans around the world can, for the first time, purchase ringtones for the Beatles’ 27 UK and US #1 hits, exclusively on iTunes.

Now, The Beatles are following up on their iTunes debut with Exclusive ringtones, available through the iTunes Store. The ringtones are 30 seconds long, like all others, and are priced at $1.29 apiece. The full list of The Beatles ringtones include:

“Love Me Do”, “From Me to You”, “She Loves You”, “I Want To Hold Your Hand”, “Can’t Buy Me Love”, “A Hard Day’s Night”, “I Feel Fine”, “Eight Days a Week”, “Ticket to Ride”, “Help!”, “Yesterday”, “Day Tripper”, “We Can Work It Out”, “Paperback Writer”, “Yellow Submarine”, “Eleanor Rigby”, “Penny Lane”, “All You Need Is Love”, “Hello, Goodbye”, “Lady Madonna”, “Hey Jude”, “Get Back”, “The Ballad of John and Yoko”, “Something”, “Come Together”, “Let It Be”, and “The Long and Winding Road”.

With the addition of The Beatle’s music in November 2010, Apple has featured The Beatles numerous times in their stores, including an exclusive free animated e-book of Yellow Submarine on the iBookstore, and numerous television ads for The Beatle’s music on iTunes.

Apple Inc. (AAPL) CEO Tim Cook mentioned earlier this week that John Browett was hired not to “bring Dixons to Apple”, but instead “to bring Apple to an even higher level of customer service and satisfaction.” Cook even went as far as to say that, “John shares that commitment [to customer service] like no one else we’ve met.”

With John Browett accepted as one of Apple’s more talented executives, the online community has begun to wonder what style of retail strategy that Browett will bring to the Cupertino company. On Thursday, Paul Harmer who wrote an email to Tim Cook further revealed that he had an unusual encounter with John Browett at one of Dixons’ retail stores, PC World. He described it as following.

Just a quick note about John Browett –

About a year ago I was with a friend in our local branch of PC World (part of the Dixons group) looking at plasma TVs. We were assisted by a really charming and knowledgable assistant, who I must admit appeared slightly better-dressed and older than most in the store. He must have spent at least 30 minutes with us, explaining the pros and cons of LCD vs plasma, and the best deals available. An excellent impression.

Turns out it was John Browett making one of his regular store visits, but we had to prise this out of him.

Hope he does well, genuinely impressive bloke, and this ties in with your comment about his passion for customer service. He means it!

Paul

In a another interesting twist, Paul Harmer also mentioned that after emailing Dixons Group, he recieved a personal response from Browett, then Dixons CEO:

Dear Paul,

Thank you for your kind comments.

Hope the TV works out well.

Happy new year

John

This new report allows many to see the retail experience that Browett will be bringing to Apple, an experience that is very familiar to customers. Late Apple CEO and Chairman, Steve Jobs was known to send emails to customers and address them directly, something that CEO Tim Cook has continued as well. Apple is making lots of changes to its executive positions, hoping to preserve its reputation for excellent customer service.

{via Mac Rumors}

John Browett, Apple Inc. (AAPL) new SVP of Retail replaced Ron Johnson after the executive left for a position as CEO of JC Penney. Browett is already making ripples at AAPL, noted as the “hired outsider” and as “the best by far” by CEO Tim Cook,.

Tony Hart noted on his blog that after emailing Apple CEO Tim Cook on the Cupertino company’s decision to hire Dixons CEO John Browett, he received a personal response from Cook who noted Browett as “the best by far”.

Tony,

I talked to many people and John was the best by far. I think you will be as pleased as I am. His role isn’t to bring Dixons to Apple, [it’s] to bring Apple to an even higher level of customer service and satisfaction.

Tim

Browett, who ran Dixons Retail, has raised some concerns with many who are familiar with the company’s store names, which run under Curry’s and PC World. However, Browett is considered to be a “rising star” in retail with his experience in leading operations at supermarket chain Tesco and running Dixons since 2007.

With Browett in place as SVP of Retail in the United States, Apple has broadened its search internationally for its next retail chief, hoping to bring new perspectives and different levels of skills on-board.

Tim Cook’s email response is something that has also caught the attention of many, who suggest that the new CEO is continuing the tradition of late CEO Steve Jobs, who occasionally responded to customer emails.

Apple continues to set examples in the retail sector in terms of customer service and carrying on a great tradition set by Steve Jobs. The company is now bringing in new leadership style, that can only get better as Apple adds more executives and bright minds from numerous countries, companies, and backgrounds.

{via Mac Rumors}