Type of Article: MacTech Blog

Apple has been granted a patent (number 8264310) for its Smart Cover for the iPad. The patent is for an accessory device for peek mode.

A magnetic attachment mechanism and method is described. The magnetic attachment mechanism can be used to releasably attach at least two objects together in a preferred configuration without fasteners and without external intervention. The magnetic attachment mechanism can be used to releasably attach an accessory device to an electronic device. The accessory device can be used to augment the functionality of usefulness of the electronic device.

An Apple patent (number 8265022) for an apparatus and methods for transmission of emergency call data over wireless networks has appeared at the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office.

The invention is for methods and apparatus for providing useful data in association with a high-priority call such as an emergency call. In one embodiment, the data comprises a data (e.g., an MSD or FSD) embedded within one or more real-time protocol packets such as RTP Control Protocol (RTCP) packets, that are interspersed within the voice or user data stream (carried in e.g., RTP packets) of an emergency call.

An error message displayed in the latest beta of iOS 6 for Apple TV suggests that support for iBooks may be coming to Apple’s set-top box. But what about the Mac?

After downloading an e-book from Apple’s iBookstore, an Apple TV tied to the same iTunes account will present users with a notification, according to “AppleInsider” (www.appleinsider.com) The prompt tells the user that the Apple TV attempted to automatically download the iBooks content, but it couldn’t be accessed because the device doesn’t have the necessary software installed.

An Apple patent (number 20120226774) for “display snooping” has appeared at the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office. It’s designed to provide displays that may be used as secondary display devices.