Apple's no longer court monitored in ebook antitrust case
Apple’s e-book division will no longer be overseen by a court-appointed monitor after the US Justice Department ruled that the company had made improvements to its antitrust compliance program.
Despite the positive outcome for Apple, the Justice Department was critical of the company’s "challenging relationship" with the appointed monitor Michael Bromwich, claiming that the iPhone maker "never embraced a cooperative working relationship".
How to jailbreak iOS 9 with Pangu
As with every previous version of iOS, it had to happen -- jailbreak instructions for iOS 9 have been released. Rumors have been circulating for a little while that a group called Pangu was on the verge of releasing a jailbreak tool, and now it's available.
Pangu Jailbreak for iOS 9 cracks open iOS in next to no time, opening up the possibility of installing apps and applying tweaks that would not otherwise be possible. Whether you're rocking a new iPhone 6s or iPhone 6s Plus, or you have an iPad or older handset the whole process can be over in less than five minutes. Here's what you need to do.
Elon Musk changes tune of Apple talk
Tesla and SpaceX chief executive Elon Musk has been dropping quite a bit of shade on Apple over the past few months, claiming the company is a graveyard for sacked Tesla employees and that he is not afraid of a car built by the same engineers that created the Apple Watch.
On Twitter earlier this week, he backtracked on those claims, saying he does not hate the company. Musk said that Apple had a lot of talented engineers, the Apple Watch has an excellent design, and he is glad they’re working on an electric car.
Apple refreshes iMac line with Retina displays, faster hardware, new peripherals
Apple has refreshed its iMac line for late-2015, making Retina 5K displays standard on 27-inch models and introducing a new 21.5-inch version with a Retina 4K screen. The new iMacs also get faster processors and graphics, new internal storage options and two Thunderbolt 2 ports.
The Retina 5K display was first available on a more-expensive 27-inch iMac, initially priced starting at $2,499, that Apple introduced a year ago, and is now being made available as standard equipment on iMacs costing as little as $1,499. Meanwhile, the Retina 4K display is available for the first time on a 21.5-inch iMac, be it as an option.
iPhone 6s: Touching the future [Review]
I could have reviewed Apple’s new iPhone as soon as it came out, but I preferred to wait until I’d spent a decent amount of time with the device. My initial thoughts weren’t all that favorable, thanks to a bug that affected the mobile data feature, but Apple thankfully corrected this problem fairly swiftly and that’s the only major fault I’ve encountered to date.
Apple says with the iPhone 6s, "the only thing that's changed is everything", but that’s a bit of an exaggeration seeing as the phone looks pretty much identical to its predecessor, and sports the same 4.7-inch 750x1,334 screen (326 ppi).
Would you rather disable your adblocker or pay to access content?
German tabloid Bild has made a bold move with its website -- blocking anyone using an adblocker from accessing content. Visitors to the site who want to use a tool such as Adblock Plus are now faced with a stark choice: add Bild.de to a whitelist so ads are displayed, or cough up for a €2.99 monthly fee to remove ads.
This is not a move that -- at the moment at least -- every website could get away with. Bild finds itself in the unique position of being the top-selling tabloid newspaper in Europe; it can afford to lose a few visitors with this experiment. With adblocking back in the limelight at the moment, it's time to ask the question: would you rather disable your adblocker or pay to access content?
How to find out if your iPhone 6s has a 'good' or a 'bad' chip
As you may have read, there are two different versions of the A9 processor powering Apple’s new iPhone 6s and 6s Plus. One chip is made by Samsung (fractionally smaller), and the other by TSMC.
Apple says there’s no real difference between the processors (it used two different manufacturers to avoid supply issues), but it’s reported that devices with the TSMC processor run cooler and can give users up to 2 hours of additional battery life. There’s no way of knowing which processor your iPhone has simply by looking at it, but there is a simple trick you can use to find out what’s inside.
Panic over: iOS adblockers fail to trigger the 'adblockolypse'
For a company that doesn’t rely on advertising to make its money, Apple was never going to lose anything by allowing adblockers into the App Store unlike, say, Google.
Still, the recent move has certainly proved divisive. On one hand, websites that rely on advertising to survive have been bracing themselves for a loss of revenue, while many iPhone users have welcomed the change. Web pages reportedly load quicker in Safari without adverts, and if you’re on a capped mobile data plan you’ll benefit from the savings created by not downloading ads. The big question was always whether the move would impact advertisers in any meaningful way, and the early indications are that it has certainly made a difference, although it’s far from the "adblockolypse" many predicted.
Mozilla sets out its proposed principles for content blocking
With Apple embracing ad blocking and the likes of AdBlock Plus proving more popular than ever, content blocking is making the headlines at the moment. There are many sides to the debate about blocking ads -- revenue for sites, privacy concerns for visitors, speeding up page loads times (Google even allows for the display of ads with its AMP Project), and so on -- but there are no signs that it is going to go away.
Getting in on the action, Mozilla has set out what it believes are some reasonable principles for content blocking that will benefit everyone involved. Three cornerstones have been devised with a view to ensuring that content providers and content consumers get a fair deal, and you can help to shape how they develop.
Android is for Muggles -- Harry Potter 'Enhanced Editions' for Apple hardware only
While I was a bit old for the Harry Potter books when they first came out (so I thought at the time), I did enjoy the films. As someone who is extraordinarily average, I can understand the allure of a character like Harry, who goes from nothing to greatness.
Reading the series has been on my to-do list for quite some time now, as many people tell me it is not a children's-only affair. Today, Apple announces that it is enhancing the Harry Potter books on iBooks only. If you own a Mac, iPhone, iPad or iPod touch, you can experience the stories all over again, or for the first time, in the best way possible.
US tech giants and the (untaxed) billions in offshore accounts
A recently released report by advocacy group Citizens for Tax Justice has revealed the staggering amount of money being held in offshore accounts by US technology firms.
Offshore Shell Games 2015 discloses that almost 72 percent of businesses listed on the Fortune 500 operated tax haven subsidiaries as of the end of last year.
Beats Pill+ is an elegant Bluetooth speaker with Apple Lightning connector
As someone who just bought an iPhone, I find myself investing in Lightning cables. I needed one for my car, one for my backpack, one for my office and one for bedside charging. Apple's cables are well-designed, so I don't mind it, but many accessories, such as mobile keyboards and speakers, charge with micro USB. it would be nice if more things used Apple's connector.
Today, Beats by Dr. Dre, an Apple-owned company, announces the Beats Pill+. This Bluetooth speaker looks elegant, and should offer wonderful sound. The really cool aspect, however, is that it charges using a Lightning cable.
Microsoft's insane Surface Book price means it will be left on the shelf
At today's event in New York, Microsoft put on an impressive show. We were -- ironically -- expecting some surprises, and the announcement of the Surface Book meant we weren't disappointed; this is, after all, "the ultimate laptop". The looks are striking. The specs are impressive. The price tag is... eye-watering.
In a way, we should have expected some expensive hardware to be revealed today. With its Surface Pro range, Microsoft showed that it is not afraid to push up the price, but the Surface Book takes things a step further. $1,499 is the starting price. Make a few tweaks to the specs and you could find yourself relieved of a buttock-clenching $2,699. Is there any way to justify this price?
Microsoft is back!
That grinding against wood and dirt you hear is the sound of Steve Jobs rolling over in his grave. Microsoft is back! And badass! Today's Surface event in New York City outclasses Apple by every measure that matters: Aspiration, innovation, presentation, and promotional marketing. Microsoft proves that it can build end-to-end solutions—hardware, software, and services—as good as, and better than, the company cofounded by Jobs. Even more importantly: Present the new wares well. Today's event was exceptional.
But there is a shadow looming in the brightness that will matter to some Microsoft customers and not to others: Cost. Surface Book, for all its seeming greatness, is a budget-busting laptop for the majority of potential buyers. The low-cost config, at $1,499, comes with 6th-gen Intel Core i5 processor, 8GB RAM, and 128GB storage. To get the discreet graphics demoed today, with i7 chip, 8GB memory, and 256 SSD, you will spend $2,099. Doubling RAM and storage raises the price to $2,699.
iPhone 6s not selling well in Japan
Recent sales figures are suggesting that the iPhone 6s launch is not the unqualified success that many thought it would be.
Although global sales of 13 million units across the first weekend of availability are likely to temper any disappointments at Apple HQ, it seems not every country was overly keen to get their hands on the new smartphone.
© 1998-2025 BetaNews, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy - Cookie Policy.