News

The quick and dirty version is this: what if steam power had remained a thing? Now, place it in the Victorian era (often the last decade of the 19th century), and imagine that engineers, gadgeteers, designgineers (I made that one up, and I'm sticking with it), and tinkers are coming up with the kinds of…

Strong iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus demand is driving up Apple's profits Mr. Caso told investors, Following a fresh round of checks post the iPhone 6 launch, we continue to expect 60-65 million iPhone unit production in [the fourth calendar quarter], which is consistent with consensus forecasts of 63-64 million iPhone and our 61…

I'd like to thank Digiarty for sponsoring TMO this week with a great giveaway of MacX DVD Ripper Pro. This normally sells for US$59.95 but this week you can get it for free via our special link. They are limiting this to 10,000 copies, so act quickly to be sure you get one of them.…

Google agrees to settlement in Rockstar patent infringement case Rockstar Consortium is a patent holding group backed by Apple, Microsoft, BlackBerry, Sony and Ericsson. The group purchased Nortel's patent portfolio, and then filed an infringement lawsuit against Google over claims the search technology it uses in Android OS is covered by the patents it holds.…

There should be a corollary involving law enforcement, any government, spy agencies, and politicians: when they argue for a reduction in privacy or civil rights for the sake of the children, they have lost that argument. At the very least, they've lost all philosophical standing. But that's what's been happening—again—in the last few weeks. First…

Let's start with your Mac. Here we have the public beta of BusyMac's BusyContacts, which is from the same folks who make BusyCal. Lots of people have replaced the default iCal/Calendar app on their Macs because they've come up against a limitation of some kind, and BusyCal helps get around most of them. This same…

Adobe Lightroom adds custom Aperture and iPhoto importer Lightroom is Adobe's pro-level photo management and editing app for the Mac. Apple's pro photo manager, Aperture, is being deprecated along with iPhoto in the coming months in favor of the new Photos app. Apple dropped the news on Aperture and iPhoto users in July saying, With…

As with the original, you tap to move your character around a series of dynamic worlds, interacting with objects and rooms that are oriented in all sorts of different, mind-bending ways. At times, you’ll need to rotate items and even the entire on-screen world to progress. I so want to avoid using M. C. Escher’s…

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has been in talks with Apple about privacy when it comes to HealthKit, the company's system level health data platform in iOS. According to Reuters, the FTC was seeking assurances that Apple would not sell that data to third parties or allow developers to do so. There are little or…

___________________ Have you ever visited a site you wish you hadn't? Perhaps it was a typing mistake or a an accidental click on the wrong place. Then you wonder, what kind of nasty Cookies have been left behind? Of course you could figure out the site name (now that you've quickly closed the tab) by…

GTAT: Apple refused to negotiate, pressured company into contract According to GTAT COO Daniel Squiller's testimony, Apple told the company to not waste its time trying to negotiate contract terms because the it doesn't negotiate with suppliers. He added that when GTAT pushed for what it saw as better terms, Apple said the terms were…

Want a Fitbit fitness tracker? They aren't at Apple's store any more. Word surfaced in October that Apple was planning on dropping Fitbit products from its inventory following the news that the company wasn't planning on supporting the HealthKit platform. HealthKit lets third-party health and fitness trackers share information so users can view their personal…

SEC launches investigation into GTAT's securities trading activity GTAT revealed the investigation in a regulatory filing on Thursday, saying the SEC is investigating trading activity along with its sapphire production business. The records the Commission is looking for go back to January 1, 2013. GTAT said the SEC requested “information regarding trading activity in the…

Apple blocks WireLurker trojans from launching An Apple spokesperson told The Mac Observer, We are aware of malicious software available from a download site aimed at users in China, and we've blocked the identified apps to prevent them from launching. As always, we recommend that users download and install software from trusted sources. WireLurker uses…

My Passport Wireless is a portable hard drive that uses 802.11n Wi-Fi technology to let you not only upload your media and free up space on your smart phone, tablet or other device, but also share your content with up to 8 other devices. An SD card slot will let you insert your camera’s memory…

A 2013 memorial to Steve Jobs in Saint Petersberg torn down because of Tim Cook's sexuality ZEFS chairman Maxim Dolgopolov told Russian media outlets his company was responsible for removing the memorial, according to Business Insider. He said ZEFS would consider reinstalling it if changes were made to tell people avoid buying Apple products. Tim…

Trent Reznor Onstage in 2009 Source: Wikimedia Commons Mr. Reznor said that he was still working on streaming music for Apple, but wouldn't specify exactly what he doing. “I am on the side of streaming music,” he said. “And I think the right streaming service could solve everybody's problems. Ownership is waning. Everybody is comfortable…

Documents in GTAT's bankruptcy filing will go public next week, despite requests to keep them sealed COO Daniel Squiller's sealed statement reportedly includes details Apple feels will harm its reputation and relationship with other parts suppliers, according to the Wall Street Journal. Judge Henry Boroff said, “I simply do not think [the statements] are sufficiently…

“The 2015 CES will feature 20 category-specific marketplaces highlighting innovation across diverse product areas,” CES wrote in a statement. “Special consideration will be given to Macworld exhibitors looking for exhibit space at the 2015 International CES.” CES and Macworld/iWorld occupied different places in the tradeshow world. Macworld/iWorld was a consumer trade show attended by members…

Microsoft Band wants some action in the fitness tracker market The Microsoft Band includes 10 sensors that track the usual data points found on other devices,including sleep tracking, but its built-in GPS, UV light sensor and galvanic shin response sensors set it apart. The UV sensor can alert wearers when they're getting too much sun…

In a conference call, and blog post, MCX tried to answer a variety of questions and offered information. Highlights are below: There are no fines for merchants who decide to stop working with MCX, but those who do so are doing so exclusively. Right now MCX is sticking with QR codes, but could switch later…

Cyborg! These are masks that come with a pocket for a smartphone to level up your look. Download a free companion app for your iOS or Android phone, and your smartphone becomes a roving eye. They look creepy and amazing, and they run about US $45, with a small charge for shipping to get it…

Remember That Old Saying that Pictures Are Worth 1,000 Words? Perhaps the best advantage to using a slideshow is the ability to add images to your presentation. Keynote offers a simple way to add images, but even better, it has tools for making simple adjustments and even edits. First, there are built in slide templates…

Twitpic closing down on Oct 25 Twitpic originally said it would close on September 25, but delayed when the possibility of a buyer for the company came into play. In the end, a deal couldn't be reached with any buyer, so Twitpic is packing up and going home. The company said on its blog, We…