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Mar 17
Ad may hint at upcoming MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, Mac...

Apple's ads on the Australian publication, "PC Authority" (http://www.pcauthority.com/au/), may have leaked info on upcoming MacBook Pros, MacBook Airs and Mac Pros.

Apple's online Australian store lists the lowest priced versions of the MacBook Pro, MacBook Air and Mac Pro at A$1,599, A$1,999 and A$3,599, respectively. However, an ad at "PC Authority" shows price jumps of A$300, A$400 and A$900, respectively.

"Then again, considering the expectation that the mobile computers will get Core i7 CPUs while the Mac Pro will get all dressed up with Core i7-980X regalia, this development is perhaps not all that surprising," says "engadget" (http://www.engadget.com/2010/03/17/...

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Mar 17
Apple removes protective screens from Apple stores?

Apple has banned protective screen film from its retail and online stores, according to the "iLounge" web site (http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/news/comments/apple-bans-protective-scr...), which says this will affect both cases and individual film packages beginning in May.

In communications with vendors that have been ongoing for “some time now,” according to one company, Apple has said that it will remove both film-only solutions from its stores, as well as any case or other accessory that includes film protection as part of its package, such as cases that include film screen protectors. According to sources, the ban will impact all forms of screen film, including completely clear film, anti-glare film, and mirrored film, regardless of whether the purpose...

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Mar 17
Analyst: iMac to account for 25% of worldwide desktop...

Caris & Company analyst Robert Cihra says growth in the overall personal computer market for 2010 is trending upwards of 15 to 20%, fueled by greater than 90% growth in combined sales of netbooks and notebooks. However, it's the iMac that will account for 25% of worldwide desktop growth, he says.

In a note to clients -- as reported by "AppleInsider" (http://www.appleinsider.com) -- Cihra said desktop sales are showing signs of life for the first time in 24 months, given strong performance of the iMac line that could boost year-over-year shipments by approximately 3%, compared to last year's 12% slippage.

"We continue to model note/netbook accounting for greater than 90% of PC unit growth in 2010, but with desktops at least now looking like they’ve stopped eroding and can resume at least some low single-digit recovery after 2 years of decline, driven by emerging markets, corporate...

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Mar 17
Study: mobile apps will outsell CDs by 2012

The global mobile apps economy is set to be worth $17.5billion by 2012, according to an independent report commissioned by GetJar (http://www.getjar.com/), the world’s second largest app store.

Mobile app downloads across all types of handset are also expected to increase from over seven billion downloads in 2009 to almost 50 billion in 2012 -- a year-on-year growth rate of 92%.
This would mean that the value of apps sold would be greater than the value of CDs sold in 2012 ($13.83 billion).

To understand the potential of the “global mobile apps economy,” GetJar commissioned independent consulting firm Chetan Sharma Consulting to lift the lid on the rapidly expanding global apps market. The aim of the project was to analyze the potential and real value of the mobile apps market worldwide, using first hand data.

It is clear that by 2012, off-deck paid-for apps will be the biggest revenue...

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Mar 17
Some feel Apple may become the new 'evil empire...

Some pundits have said that Apple is in danger of becoming the next Microsoft -- as in "evil empire" Microsoft. I personally don’t think that’s going to happen, but find the possibility fascinating. I never would have believed anyone would have asked it when I begin my Mac journalism career almost 20 years ago doing reviews for the late, lamented "MacSense" site.

At the time, Apple was always -- ALWAYS -- described in the press as “beleaguered” or “troubled.” Many pundits didn’t think the company would last -- and it was, indeed, usually bleeding money. Then the stars aligned, Steve Jobs returned and you know the rest of the story. The iMac, the iPod, the iPhone, now the iPad.

The Mac still has a much smaller percentage of the computer market than Windows (though that number is growing), Apple is now THE tech company, known for its inventive products, great marketing and ultra cool factor. So I guess it's inevitable that some feel Apple's on the verge of becoming the...

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Mar 17
I'm not a fan of big government, but our '...

On Tuesday, the Federal Communications Commission delivered the National Broadband Plan (http://www.broadband.gov/) to Congress. I wasn't a big fan of the bazillion dollar US stimulus package, nor am I a fan of big government, but our nation's "digital divide" must be addressed.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) was signed into law on February 17, 2009. The Broadband Initiatives funded in the Act are intended to accelerate broadband deployment across the United States. The Recovery Act authorizes the FCC to create a National Broadband Plan, that “shall seek to ensure that all people of the United States have access to broadband capability and shall establish benchmarks for meeting that goal.”

We're the only industrialized nation without a national policy to promote universal, high-speed Internet access. Part of the National Broadband Plan looks to free an...

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Mar 16
Yankee Group: mobile app demand is soaring

Smartphone users are downloading increasing numbers of apps, and more of the apps they download come at a price. The result is a supercharged mobile app gold rush that’s shattering Yankee Group’s (http://www.yankeegroup.com) previous revenue estimates and reaching a whopping US$11 billion by 2014.

In the new report, “The Mobile App Gold Rush Speeds Up,” the research group sees several factors -- increased smartphone shipments, more app stores and more expensive apps -- combining to nearly double forecasted mobile app revenue, from $537 million to $1.6 billion in 2010 alone. While most app developers and store owners will garner a share of the riches, users of Apple’s iPhone and AT&T’s network download the most apps and generate the most revenue.

“Apple’s innovative one-click technology and AT&T’s exclusive deal for the iPhone put them ahead for now,” says Carl Howe, director at Yankee...

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Mar 16
Apple granted patents for Aperture tool, computer...

Apple has won patents from the US Patent & Trademark Office for the Aperture tool for straightening digital images and for a computer housing design that displays the illuminated Apple logo. Aperture is the company's software for pro and semi-pro photographers.

Patent number 7679625 is for a digital image straightening tool. Per the patent, as the user operates the straighten control, the rotational orientation of a selected image is changed. According to one embodiment, a grid is superimposed over the image while the straighten control is being operated, to assist the user in selecting the proper rotational orientation. In addition, after a rotational adjustment, the image is automatically cropped to ensure that the orientation of the peripheral shape of the image remains unchanged. The inventors are Joshua D. Fagans, Jeffrey L. Robbin, Timothy B. Martin and Timothy E. Wasko.

Patent number 7,679,894 is for a display housing for a computing device. An improved...

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Mar 16
Some feel Apple may become the new 'evil empire...

Some pundits have said that Apple is in danger of becoming the next Microsoft -- as in "evil empire" Microsoft. I personally don’t think that’s going to happen, but find the possibility fascinating.

In fact, I never would have believed anyone would have even posited the scenario when I begin my Mac journalism career almost 20 years ago doing reviews for the late, lamented "MacSense" site. At the time, Apple was always -- ALWAYS -- described in the press as “beleaguered” or “troubled.” Many pundits didn’t think the company would last -- and it was, indeed, often bleeding money. Then the stars aligned, Steve Jobs returned and you know the rest of the story. The iMac, the iPod, the iPhone, now the iPad.

The Mac still has a much smaller percentage of the computer market than Windows (though that number is growing), Apple is now THE tech company, known for its inventive products, great marketing and ultra cool factor. So I guess it's inevitable that some feel Apple's on...

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Mar 16
Donovan's Views: more Jonathan Schwartz...

By Gaurang Donovan

The former Sun Microsystems former Vice-President (five various positions), Chief Operating Officer, President, and Chief Executive Officer Jonathan Schwartz, wrote on his "What I Couldn't Say" blog (http://jonathanischwartz.wordpress.com/2010/03/09/good-artists-copy-grea...) last week about a 2003 threat of future legal action that he claims Steve Jobs made to his office in a telephone call while raising the idea  that the graphical effects of a Sun prototype Linux desktop may be violating Apple's intellectual property (if Sun commercialised that prototype). 

Schwartz wrote his reply was simple and left Steve Jobs silent without a response. The reply mentioned how he had been watching a recent presentation of Jobs and how Apple's newly released Keynote ...

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Mar 15
Analyst: Mac, iPod sales looking to beat the Street...

In a note to clients today, Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster expects Mac sales for the current fiscal quarter to beat the Street's estimates and anticipates iPod sales will meet those estimates. He bases his prognosis on data from the NPA research group.

Munster says that NPD retail data points to sales of 2.8 to 2.9 million Mac units sold for the March quarter. The Street estimate is 2.7. Munster is forecasting Mac unit growth of 26 to 315 year-over-year.

The analyst adds that NPD data points to sales of nine to 10 million iPods for the March quarter., compared to a Street consensus of under nine million. He's predicting a 7% percent increase in year-over-year sales.

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Mar 15
New Apple prototype scientist to work on wearable...

In January, Apple hired Richard DeVaul as a senior prototype scientist, apparently to work on wearable computers.

Previously, DeVaul was the founder and president of AWare Technologies, a company that now makes Activity AWareness products and core technology. However, it was formed in 2004 as a contract research company focused on ambulatory monitoring for soldiers and athletes. The company successfully executed SBIR Phase II and STTR contracts with the US Army, and participated in the DARPA ASSIST BAA as part of the IBM/MIT/Georgia Tech team. In addition, AWare has provided athletic motion analysis services to Olympic sport organizations.

A graduate of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), DeVaul has also served as a research assistant at MIT. orked with Professor Alex "Sandy" Pentland as part of the Human Dyanmics group at the MIT Media Lab. Ph.D. dissertation on "The Memory Glasses," a heads-up display  that focused on the problems associated with wearable...

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Mar 15
Donovan's Views: Fleishman vs Enderle -- mano a...

By Gaurang Donovan

As alluded to in the late January 2009's article, "Donovan’s Views: distorted grudges" (http://www.macsimumnews.com/index.php/archive/donvans_views_distorted_gr...), I have a strict reading policy. I hope tech journalists, editors and reporters should note it when doing their job. 

What is the policy? I stop reading or watching immediately any report that includes appearances of Rob Enderle or John Dvorak's voice or words and the reporter that chose to include them will enter my discredited list. I don't care what network or publication, its size, or precious reputation, it is simply my strict policy. 

Yet I found myself actually reading all of the individual tweets between technology writer and author Glenn Fleishman and self-professed former...

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Mar 15
High tariffs nix Apple retail store in Brazil?

Steve Jobs has allegedly told a Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) government official exactly why no retail store is planned for the country -- ”super crazy” import taxes, he wrote in an e-mail, according to to the "ifoAppleStore" site (http://www.ifoapplestore.com/db/2010/03/15/no-to-retail-store-in-brazil-...).

Jobs’ remark highlights an on-going trade dispute between the U.S. and Brazil over cotton trade, and how international affairs can affect the selection of store sites, the article adds. As reported by "MacMagazine Brazil" (http://...

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Mar 15
ABI Research: smartphone market 'reborn' in...

Fourth quarter mobile handset sales almost always outpace the performance seen in the rest of a year. But according to the latest market data from ABI Research (http://www.abiresearch.com), the final quarter of 2009 was remarkable for the strength of smartphone shipment growth compared to the rather lackluster preceding nine months.
 
“4Q 2009 saw 25% more smartphones shipped than 3Q,” says analyst Michael Morgan. "Granted, the fourth quarter is usually better than the third, but 3Q saw only a 3.6% growth over the second quarter. The robust strength of this market’s recovery is very encouraging indeed.”
 
Individual vendors had plenty to be pleased about. Apple had its best smartphone quarter on record. Nokia did extremely well, shipping 21 million smartphones compared to its usual 15-16 million. BlackBerry had a strong showing as well.
 
The good performance was driven...

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Mar 15
IDC: computer market rebound will drive double-digit...

After a severely constrained first half, steeply discounted computers along with improving economic conditions steered the global computer market back into the black in the latter half of 2009. According to the International Data Corporation (IDC) "Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker,"the yearly growth rate for the worldwide computer market in 2009 was 2.9%.

Portable computers remained the key market driver, with shipments increasing 18.4% in 2009 compared to 2008. Consumer purchases of portables were the sole driver of the market, growing at 38.5%, according to IDC (http://www.idc.com). Commercial shipments were severely strained but showed signs of life near the end of the year as fourth quarter growth came in just under 1%, providing a glimpse of an anticipated commercial refresh in 2010. As a harbinger that the pace of ASP declines will moderate, mininotebook growth slowed in the fourth quarter as the volume of other...

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Mar 15
Turn off Wi-Fi to help prevent laptop theft

Credant Technologies (http://www.credant.com), an endpoint data security specialist, says laptop users should turn off their Wi-Fi signals before stowing their laptop in the boot of their car or stashing their laptop in the office cupboard or desk drawer, apparently out of sight of thieves.
 
Why? Due to the widespread availability of low-cost keyfob WiFi detectors and sophisticated directional detectors that can be used by thieves to detect the presence of an out-of-sight laptop," he added. Plus, auction sites are selling WiFi detection kit for "pocket money prices," says Credant.
 
Apparently, the real focus of identity thieves is the company laptop, which, as well as being a saleable item in its own right, can also contain valuable company data that can potentially be sold to the highest bidder online. Just because the latest laptops have a set time -- sometimes up to 30 minutes -- before...

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Mar 11
Is the iPad the beginning of the end for the Mac? No

In a report for "PC Mag" (http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2361204,00.asp), Sascha Segan says that the rise of the iPhone OS-based iPad could be the beginning of the end for the Mac platform. I understand his reasoning, but that's just not going to happen.

Segan says that if Apple could have a do-over, it would use the iPhone OS for its computer line. He thinks that the iPad should be thought of as "the new Mac -- a "new mode of home-based computing that Apple hopes will bubble up through its product line."

"This means no independent software stores, fewer open-source projects, and perhaps a blanket ban on BitTorrent, Flash, and Firefox," Segan writes. "It means a much more restricted peripheral market. The Mac will no longer be a PC as we know it -- it will be an 'end-to-end experience' like the iPhone."

According to his prognosis,...

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Mar 11
Strategy Analytics: iPhone owners most likely to...

iPhone owners are not only most satisfied with their phones, they are most likely to buy their next phone from Apple, as well, according to a recent study from Strategy Analytics (http://www.strategyanalytics.com), which found a strong correlation between satisfaction and repeat purchase intentions.

The research group's report, “iPhone Owners Most Satisfied and Likely to Repeat Purchase,” analyzes satisfaction across 12 features, as well as repeat purchase intentions for leading mobile phone manufacturers. Key findings include:

° Over half of the device users surveyed are less than satisfied with their current web browsing experience;

° Owners of 12-key keypad products in the US are least satisfied with the text input experience; and

° In Western Europe, although LG owners indicate higher satisfaction levels, that information does not necessarily translate to higher...

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Mar 11
Apple patents range from quickstart workout generation...

A plethora of Apple patents have appeared at the US Patent & Trademark Office. Here's a summary of each.

Patent number 2010062905 involves a method for a quickstart workout generation and calibration. Systems and methods for generating a quick start workout template and calibrating an electronic device using the workout template are provided. The electronic device may create and store a workout template to be used in conjunction with a workout. The workout template may be selected in a quick start fashion to restart the same workout. The workout template may be defined at least in part by a selection of any suitable workout goal and/or any suitable associated media. If the media associated with the workout goal is changed or is removed, a new workout template may be created. The electronic device may be calibrated or recalibrated using the workout template. If the electronic device is calibrated or re-calibrated with respect to a particular sensor, the...

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Mar 11
Apple patent offers a 'virtual competitor'...

Apple wants you to work out harder by competing against a virtual competitor per a new patent (number 2010062818) at the US Patent & Trademark Office. The patent is for a portable electronic device for providing real-time interaction between a user performing an exercise routine and a virtual competitor.

Some embodiments of the portable electronic device may include a sensor for receiving a plurality of user performance metrics associated with the user, a processor for generating a comparison between the plurality of user performance metrics and a competitor workout file associated with the virtual competitor, and a display for displaying a summary of the comparison in real-time. The inventors are Allen P. Haughay, Jeffrey T. Lee and Irwin W. Graves Jr.

Here's Apple's background and summary of the invention: "Fitness enthusiasts sometimes need new sources of motivation, such as when training indoors during inclement weather. Modern health clubs partly serve this...

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Mar 11
Of albums, iTunes LPs and the iPad

I'm enough of a dinosaur that I want my albums in CD form, for the most part. However, I have bought some iTunes LPs and, if I decided to go all digital in the future, this is the format I'd prefer.

Unfortunately, it seems the iTunes LP isn't doing well. But let's back up. When the format was unveiled in September 2009 as part of iTunes 9, it was described by Apple as "the evolution of the music album" that delivers "a rich, immersive experience for select albums on the iTunes Store by combining beautiful design with expanded visual features like live performance videos, lyrics, artwork, liner notes, interviews, photos, album credits and more." In other words, it was intended to evoke the feeling of spinning an LP record and holding the jacket in your hands.

However, according to some sources, the format doesn't seem to be taking off. Paul Bonanos, writing for "Salon" (...

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Mar 10
iPhone could overtake Blackberry in market share next...

New data from Trefis (http://www.trefis.com), a new financial platform that allows you to see how a company's products impact its stock, says the iPhone could overtake the Blackberry in market share in 2011.

As reported by "Forbes" (http://blogs.forbes.com/greatspeculations/2010/03/05/iphone-could-overta...), Trefis says RIM’s market share lead over Apple has been shrinking and Apple will be able to overtake RIM market share by early 2011. Trefis believes sales of the iPhone will eventually outpace BlackBerry sales for the following reasons:

° Apple’s ecosystem of consumer products (Macs, iPad, Apple TV) and services (iTunes, iPhone apps) make the iPhone a more...

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Mar 10
Gaming on the Mac picking up Stream

Now that Vale is bringing its Steam, Valve’s gaming service, and Source, Valve’s gaming engine, to the Mac, the Mac gaming situation should improve.

Not that it's been terrible. However, gamers have long complained about the lack of Mac games -- at least compared to the bazillion gaming titles for the PeeCee.

Steamworks for the Mac supports all of the Steamworks application programming interfaces, and Valve has added a new feature, called Steam Play, which allows customers who purchase the product for the Mac or Windows to play on the other platform free of charge. For example, Steam Play, in combination with the Steam Cloud, allows a gamer playing on their work PC to go home and pick up playing the same game at the same point on their home Mac.

"The inclusion of WebKit into Steam, and of OpenGL into Source gives us a lot of flexibility in how we move these technologies forward," Steam development director John Cook told "IT Wire" (...

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Mar 09
Analyst: iPad will beat Kindle's all-time sales...

Apple could have the bestselling e-book reader of all time in just three months on the market, according to an estimate from FBR Capital analyst Craig Berger.

In a note to clients -- as noted by the "Latest Electronics" site (http://www.latestelectronics-dennis.com/?p=3117) he thinks Apple is set to ship five million iPads just in the first half of 2010. At this rate, the tablet would push past Amazon’s unofficial lifetime record of three million Kindles in just the three-month span between early April and the end of June.

Saturday, April 3 is when the iPad will go on sale in the U.S. At least the Wi-Fi only version will; the Wi-Fi + 3G model will hit US store sleeves in late April.

In addition, all models of iPad will be available in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK in late April. Beginning a...

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Mar 09
EFF criticizes the iPhone Developer Program License...

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) -- an organization founded to promote rights in the online and networked world -- has blasted the iPhone Developer Program License Agreement, saying that the "entire family of devices built on the iPhone OS (iPhone, iPod touch, iPad) have been designed to run only software that is approved by Apple - a major shift from the norms of the personal computer market."

"Overall, the Agreement is a very one-sided contract, favoring Apple at every turn," says the EFI. "That's not unusual where end-user license agreements are concerned (and not all the terms may ultimately be enforceable), but it's a bit of a surprise as applied to the more than 100,000 developers for the iPhone, including many large public companies. How can Apple get away with it? Because it is the sole gateway to the more than 40 million iPhones that have been sold. In other words, it's only because Apple still "owns" the customer, long after each iPhone (and soon, iPad) is...

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Mar 09
Apple wins design patents for iPod shuffle, MacBook...

Apple has won three design patents from the US Patent & Trademark Office. They involve a power supply, the iPod shuffle and the MacBook Air

Patent number D11,415 is for the ornamental design of a power supply. Patent number D611,470 is for the ornamental design of an electronic device (the Apple remote). Patent number D611,469 is for the ornamental design of another electronic device (the MacBook Air).

The inventors on all the patents are Bartley K. Andrew, Daniel J. Coster, Daniele De Iuliis, Evans Hankey, Richard P. Howarth, Jonathan P. Ive, Steve Jobs, Robert Duncan Kerr, Shin Nishibori, Matthew Dean Rohrbach, Peter Russell-Clarke, Douglas B. Satzger, Christopher J. Stringer, Eugene Antony Whange and Rico Zorkendorfer. Three other patents by Apple have also appeared at the US Patent & Trademark Office. Following is a summary of each.

Patent number 7,675,529 is for a method and apparatus to scale graphical user interfaces. To scale a...

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Mar 09
Analyst: iPad content to equal almost 30% of revenue...

According to Broadpoint analyst Brian Marshall, the sale of applications, e-books, newspapers and magazines for the iPad is predicted to equal nearly 30% of the revenue Apple will earn from selling the hardware by the end of 2011.

In a note to clients -- as noted by "AppleInsider" (http://www.appleinsider.com), the analyst believes content revenue will top 10 percent of total iPad hardware revenue by December of 2010, and a year later that number will nearly triple. He's increased his forecast for iPad shipments in the 2010 calendar year to four million units, up from a previous prediction of 2.2 million.

Marshall told clients that "if the device lives up to its potential," he could see it shipping more than seven million in this year alone. "We believe the iPad offers a rich media experience that will translate into a content-based recurring revenue stream over time," he says.

...

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Mar 09
Analyst: Apple's lawsuit against HTC a '...

Oppenheimer analyst Yair Reiner has issued a behind-the-scenes report on the patent suits Apple filed last week against HTC, the Taiwanese smartphone maker. As noted by "Fortune" (http://brainstormtech.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2010/03/09/apple-talks-tough...), Reiner told clients:

"Starting in January, Apple launched a series of C-Level discussions with tier-1 handset makers to underscore its growing displeasure at seeing its iPhone-related IP [intellectual property] infringed. The lawsuit filed against HTC thus appears to be Apple's way of putting a public, lawyered-up exclamation point on a series of blunt conversations that have been occurring behind closed doors.

"Our checks also suggest that these warning shots are...

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Mar 09
How about a division to help companies to integrate...

Recently I pondered (http://www.macsimumnews.com/index.php/archive/is_closer_integration_betw...) whether closer integration between Mac OS X proper and the iPhone OS was coming. Regarding that convergence, I would like to see Apple either license or get into the business of helping a lot of different companies upgrade their interfaces.

Like what? Home phones, office phone systems, auto information displays and controls, ATM machines, home information and security systems, etc. I could go on, but you get the idea.

Now I don't think Apple will license the Mac or iPhone OS. However, there many areas where Apple isn't likely to get directly involved or where the company has little or no interest in making hardware/...

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Mar 08
Analyst predicts continued upward swing in Mac sales

Using recent figures from the NPD research firm (http://www.npd.com) Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster is predicting a continued upward swing in Mac sales in the months ahead.

"We expect the strong year-over-year growth in NPD data that we saw in January to continue in the month of February," he wrote in a note on Monday -- as noted by "TheStreet.com" (http://www.thestreet.com/_yahoo/story/10697430/1/apple-dell-h-p-poised-f...). "We believe this represents a buying opportunity ahead of NPD data for the month of February on March 15."

Mac shipments climbed 33% during the first fiscal quarter of this year reaching 3.36...

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Mar 08
IDC computer market predictions look good for the iMac...

Many of the trends that influenced the worldwide computer market in 2009 will continue to resonate in 2010, but their impact will change as new market forces come into play. The news is good for Apple laptops and the iMac and, well, not bad for the iPad.

According to the International Data Corporation (IDC), the lower prices brought on by last year’s challenging economy will create new opportunities for emerging sub form factors, such as ultrathin portables and all-in-one desktops.

“We’re expecting consumer and commercial personal computer buyers alike to be more experimental with new types of computer, especially because of their lower price points,” says Bob O’Donnell, program vice president, Clients and Displays. “Hardware vendors and software developers should seize the opportunity to promote differentiation by rewriting the computing experience to match the new variety of Personal Computer sub form factors arriving in the market.”

IDC’s predictions for...

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Mar 08
Blu-Ray still (slowly) gaining ground

It appears that the pundits who predicted that Blu-ray would never make it are wrong. It’s been an uphill battle—especially once the economy bottomed out—but the next gen optical technology continues to gain ground, if slowly.

Overall, worldwide DVD and Blu-ray player and recorder unit shipments declined to 137 million units in 2008. The In-Stat research group expects a modest increase in 2009, with a more healthy increase in 2010, spurred by high volume shipments of Blu-ray players.

Standard Definition DVD players will decline at a slow but steady rate as consumers opt for Blu-ray for replacement or upgrades in the primary television room. DVD players will continue to ship in areas where HD programming is less accessible including Latin America, the Middle East, Africa, and parts of Asia, and for secondary television sets within a household.

In North America, significant price drops of Blu-ray players are driving unit shipments to triple in 2009. With Blu-ray...

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Mar 05
Analyst: Apple will sell 33 million iPhones this year...

In a note to clients, Merrill Lynch analyst Scott Craig thinks Apple will see 33 million iPhones this year even without a deal with Verizon deal, as many folks have expected -- or at least hoped for (including Yours Truly).

However, for Apple to continue to grow the iPhone market, it has to had more carriers at some point, he told clients. If Apple did indeed add a Verizon iPhone to its offering, Craig predicts that would see another eight million of the devices sold in 2011.

Without a Verizon deal, Craig told clients he's upping his “base case” for the iPhone next year. He thinks 2011 units could go as high as 55 million if more carriers, including Verizon, are added by Apple.

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Mar 05
ChangeWave: huge wave of iPad demand striking Amazon

A ChangeWave (http://www.changewave.com) survey of 3,171 consumers -- conducted in the aftermath of the January iPad announcement -- shows a huge wave of pre-launch demand for the iPad and offers key evidence that the Apple tablet will have a major impact on the e-Reader, laptop and home entertainment markets.

In particular, while a handful of e-Reader manufacturers – most prominently Amazon – clearly have a major head start, the survey findings show the iPad is poised to profoundly shake up this market. Among consumers who already own an eBook reader, the Amazon Kindle (68%) towers over its next closest rival, the Sony Reader (10%). But to gauge the potential impact of the iPad on this market, we asked eBook reader owners whether they would have purchased their current e-Reader if the Apple iPad had also been available.

One part of ChangeWave's survey asked "Now think back to when you purchased...

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Mar 05
Apple Remote to 'go universal'?

An Apple patent (number 20100052870) for an intelligent infrared remote pairing has appeared at the US Patent & Trademark Office. It indicates that Apple may be eyeing its own universal remote control or, more likely, expanding the range of the current (or future versions of the) Apple Remote.

Systems and methods for associating a remote controller with a device are provided. The systems and methods generally relate to receiving a request from a remote controller to pair the remote controller to a device at several devices and determining at each of the several devices the strength of the wireless pairing request signal received by that device. If a device determines that its received signal is the strongest, the device may be paired with the remote controller. If instead a device determines that its received signal is not the strongest, it may ignore subsequent communications received from the remote controller. The inventor is Nicholas Vincent King.

Here's...

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Mar 05
Migration Kit: inventory/stock control software for...

For those new to the column, Macsimum Migration is our term for companies moving from Wintel machines to Macs -- or at least adding or increasing the number of Macs they use. A Migration Kit is an overview of Mac OS products for a particular occupation, such as dentistry, accounting, etc.) This week we look at inventory/stock control software for the Mac.

BestellWas!

BestellWas! (http://www.everling-net.de/) is a German merchandise and inventory control system for a small or middle size mail order business. Package modules include contact management, article and services management with automatic inventory control, accounting as well as mass mailing functions. The Mac OS X software is ready for use with the Euro and offers many reporting features.

Business Open

Business Open (http://...

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Mar 04
iPad delays? Yes. No. Yes. Maybe

Will the iPad launch be delayed? Yes, no, and maybe.

Checks in Taiwan find some minor delays on production of the Apple device, according to ThinkEquity analyst Vijay Rakesh -- as noted by "Barron's" (http://blogs.barrons.com/techtraderdaily/2010/03/04/apple-thinkequity-re...). His findings echo a similar assertion by Canaccord Adams analyst Peter Misek. However, Misek's assertions were contradicted by a "DigiTimes" report that said there are no delays.

“The manufacturing of the iPads was supposed to pick up in February, buy volumes in March are still low,” Rakesh wrote in note to clients. “But checks are indicating iPad volumes will pick back up to the 800,000-1 million units/month [range] into...

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Mar 04
Apple renews Newton trademark

Make of it what you will, but "Patently Apple" ( http://www.patentlyapple.com/patently-apple/2010/03/hmm-apple-has-renewe...) reports that Apple's filing pertaining to their Newton logo design trademark that appears to have been renewed or has been automatically set to renew on Oct. 13, 2010.

So what's a Newton? It was the first personal digital assistant proposed by then-Apple CEO John Sculley in 1987; the Newton project was initiated in 1990. The Newton prototype was announced two years later. In 1993 the Newton MessagePad was announced just shortly after Sculley resigned. Unfortunately, the MessagePad ended up as the butt of many jokes (including a famous “Doonesboro” cartoon) because the handwriting recognition, a vital part of the device...

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Mar 04
Apple files trademark applications for 'iFrame...

Apple's trademark applications (77946787 and 77946791) for "iFrame" have appeared at the US Patent & Trademark Office. When Apple introduced iMovie '09, it also introduced iFrame, a new video format it developed.

iFrame captures video at a resolution of 960 x 540 at 30 frames per second and uses a 16:9 aspect ratio (a la all the HD and DVD standards). It's slightly lower in quality than 720p and takes up at least a little less space. iFrame works with Mac and PC video-editing applications such as iMovie '09 and uses industry-standard codecs such as MP4, H.264, AAC and QuickTime. According to Apple "iFrame is designed to make importing and editing video fast and easy without taking up a lot of space on your hard drive."

Currently, the only two camcorders using iFrame are the Sanyo VPC-HD2000A (see today's review) and VPC-FH1A. The question is if other camera manufacturers will adopt it and whether it will become a "real"standard. The jury's still out on this.

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Mar 04
Patents indicate advanced cooling designs for Macs,...

Four Apple patents have appeared at the US Patent & Trademark Office that show Apple is working make sure future Macs and other devices run even cooler.

Patent number 2010051243 is for methods and an apparatus for cooling electronic devices using flow sensors. Per the patent, an electronic device can be provided with a housing having at least one wall defining a cavity and a flow sensor at least partially contained within the cavity. The flow sensor may be configured to detect a flow characteristic related to the flow of a fluid through a first portion of the cavity. The electronic device may also include a processor configured to alter a performance characteristic of the electronic device based on the detected flow characteristic. The inventors are Ihab A. Ali and Frank Liang.

Patent number 2010053883 involves methods and an apparatus for cooling electronic devices through user interfaces. Per the patent an electronic device can be provided with a user interface...

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Mar 04
Computer shipments to grow 20% this year -- and the...

Worldwide computer shipments are projected to total 366.1 million units in 2010, a 19.7% increase from 305.8 million units shipped in 2009, according to the latest preliminary forecast by Gartner (http://www.gartner.com). And the iPad will figure heavily into the equation.

According to the research group, worldwide computer spending is forecast to reach $245 billion in 2010, up 12.2 percent from 2009. This forecast is more optimistic than Gartner's December 2009 forecast, which anticipated 13.3% growth in computer shipments in 2010 and 1.9% growth in spending.

Gartner anticipates all regional markets will return to growth and exhibit more normal seasonality in 2010. The market will remain robust with unit growth continuing to increase strongly over the next few years as home computer demand accelerates and professional replacements rise in the recovery from the global recession.

"The personal...

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Mar 04
Socially-connected mobile consumers find more interest...

As Google prepares to win over prospective Android developers at next week's Game Developers' Conference in San Francisco -- the largest event of its kind -- the latest data from Mplayit (http://www.mplayit.com) from its cross-platform app store on Facebook shows that games are four times as popular among iPhone users than among the Android user base.

BlackBerry users are twice as likely to be looking for game content than Android users, despite the device's strong business reputation.

"Android is a powerful platform of compelling APIs (applications programming interfaces), but Google needs to persuade both gamers and game developers to get on board," says Mplayit CEO Michael Powers. "GDC will be a critical opportunity for Google to build the all-important developer momentum that will in time fan out to the ordinary consumer. Meanwhile, we're focused on helping consumers discover the great apps that...

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Mar 04
North by Northeast: I'm not ready for a cloudy...

“North of Northeast” is a column that offers commentaries from a Canadian perspective. Google's invested millions in it. Apple's moving steadily towards it and Microsoft's Office isn't far behind.

Everywhere you turn, more and more companies are extolling the virtues of "the cloud." My colleague, Dennis Sellers just wrote an interesting piece where he quotes an unnamed executive as saying "Apple want's to eliminate the hard drive." 

I am skeptical. But then again I live a fair portion of my life under a "cloudless" sky. We may do a lot of talking about how connected we are becoming, but for a very large percentage of us, reliable, high bandwidth access to the Internet is still just a dream. My own son, living just forty-five minutes outside of Toronto, surrounded by millions of people, is in a small rural pocket that still relies on dial-up.

Even here, on the remote tip of southwestern Nova Scotia I have 15MBPS Internet access, but with very...

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Mar 04
Cloud computing -- is it safe?

There are reports (http://www.macsimumnews.com/index.php/archive/apple_reportedly_eyes_clou...) that Apple wants to get into "cloud computing" and eliminate the hard drive when it comes to storing music and movies. Maybe I'm a dinosaur, but I'm not totally convinced that I want most of my data in the clouds.

There are those who say it's perfectly safe. Cloud Computing can save companies money without putting business information at risk, according to "Above the Clouds: Managing Risk in the World of Cloud Computing, a new book by cybersecurity expert Kevin T. McDonald, senior critical infrastructure protection (CIP) and cybersecurity analyst for ICF International (...

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Mar 04
What's in a name: iPhone 4G?

Watch for it ... the discussion on what Apple is going to name it's next generation of iPhone. Will it be the iPhone 4G? The 3.5? The some-other-name-that-doesn't-include-G? It's hard to say. G here could easily mean the generation of the iPhone, or it could mean the G for mobile technology (e.g., 4G comes after the 3G service that AT&T has).

What do you think it will be?

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Mar 03
Apple's lawsuit against HTC unleashes firestorm...

Yesterday Apple filed a lawsuit (http://www.macsimumnews.com/index.php/archive/apple_sues_htc_for_patent_...) against HTC for infringing on 20 Apple patents related to the iPhone's user interface. And the reaction has been, well, all over the map.

As many as 10 of those violations involve the Nexus One, Apple said in a complaint submitted to the U.S. International Trade Organization (ITC). Apple also filed a similar lawsuit in federal court in Delaware that cited 10 different patents. That lawsuit, however, did not specify the HTC-made phones that allegedly violated Apple's patents. One analyst says that it's not money Apple is after.

"Apple's not in the business of litigation," said Barry Cohen, a patent and intellectual property attorney at Thorp Reed & Armstrong LLP. told...

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Mar 03
Rumor: first iPads to go on sale March 26

Apple store employees will get a glimpse of the iPad on March with the device likely to go on sale March 26, according to a report at the "LA Gadgets Examiner" (http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-11295-LA-Gadgets-Examiner~y2010m3d2-i...).

The article says that this release date is for the Wi-Fi versions only, and that the 3G models won't be available until April or May. Also, commercials will purportedly start airing on March 15.

When it was unveiled by Apple, it was announced that the iPad would be available in late March worldwide for a suggested retail price of US$499 for the 16GB model, $599 for the 32GB model, $699 for the 64GB model. The Wi-Fi + 3G models of iPad would be...

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Mar 03
Apple reportedly eyes cloud services with goal of...

Apple representatives have purportedly been talking with some of the major film studios about enabling iTunes users to store their content on the company's servers, two people "familiar with the discussions" told "CNET" (http://news.cnet.com/8301-31001_3-10462562-261.html?part=rss&subj=news&t...). That's in addition to streaming television shows and music.

"CNET" says that, under the plan, iTunes users will access video from various Internet-connected devices -- preferably the upcoming iPad. Last month Apple reportedly talked to record companies about similar plan involving music. Apple's vision is to build proverbial digital shelves where iTunes users store their media, one of the sources told CNET, adding that "basically, they want to eliminate the hard...

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Mar 03
Apple is 'best run company in the US'

Erick Maronak, manager of the Victory Large Cap Growth Fund, says Apple is the best-run company in the U.S., helping to make it the most attractive stock investment. It and Teva Pharmaceuticals are his top stock picks.

"Apple and Teva Pharmaceuticals are top picks due to their dominant industry positions, strong financials, capable management teams and the ability to provide 17% to 20% growth against very reasonable valuations," he told "TheStreet.com" (http://www.thestreet.com/_yahoo/story/10693524/1/apple-little-understood...). "Apple is hardly undiscovered yet not fully understood. Arguably the best-run company today, Apple has five segments in computing, consumer...

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