Rumors

Apple rumored to add iOS e-wallet via NFC to 2012 iPhone

According to reports from tech industry site DigiTimes, smartphone makers are convinced that Apple will be adding near field communications, or NFC, to the next-generation iPhone, widely expected to be released in 2012.

The current smartphone market only has about 10 percent adoption of NFC technology, but according to Taiwan-based phone manufacturers, that number could rise to 50 percent by 2013.

Samsung, HTC, Nokia, and RIM all have NFC-enabled phones currently on the market. Rumors last spring had Apple adding the e-wallet technology to iOS and what is now the iPhone 4S. That, of course, did not come to fruition.… Read more

Rumor: Apple delays iOS 5.0.2 update to conquer memory leaks

Last week, German tech site macerkopf.de stated that sources close to the development of iOS 5.0.2 claimed the update was coming this week to address battery performance issues that have been plaguing several iPhone 4S users since its release. Today, the site claims that the update will be delayed because of memory leaks in the code.

The most scandalous reports about the iPhone 4S thus far have been the battery performance issues, a problem that even Apple admitted, which it is not one to do very often.

The current version of iOS (5.0.1) was supposed … Read more

Will iOS 5.1 give Siri hardware access?

According to German Web site Macerkopf.de, iOS 5.1, the first major update to Apple's mobile operating system, will give Apple's voice-controlled assistant Siri the capability to access certain hardware features of the iPhone 4S.

The Web site's source is listed as an Apple developer commenting on a forthcoming iOS 5.0.2 update that will address battery issues yet again, as well as the future iOS 5.1 update that will contain the Siri updates.

If you're a power user, this news should be fairly exciting. Giving Siri the capability to adjust hardware settings … Read more

Instagram CEO hints at video posts coming soon

Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom, speaking at TechCrunch Disrupt in Beijing, hinted at a future addition to the popular image-sharing service that would include video posts.

Systrom's talk at the Disrupt event also included thoughts on international expansion for Instagram and how social media should be approached in places like China. But, the real gem was his backstage comments about video.

"Our job and our vision is to allow you to tell the story of your life, and whatever tools that may be for video, we'll end up making them," he said. "I'm not sure … Read more

Apple investigating power-efficient OLED for mobile devices

In a recent patent application uncovered by AppleInsider, Apple is investigating the use of power-efficient organic light-emitting diode displays for its mobile devices, a technology that could help improve the battery life of iPhones, iPads, and iPod Touches.

Apple is banking on OLED's light emissive approach, which has lower power constraints than LED's light transmissive technology, currently used in iPhones and iPads.

In short, when OLED displays need to show white, it uses a ton of power to do so. As AppleInsider notes, the darks are darker, the contrast ratio is better, and the power efficiency is outstanding--save … Read more

New Apple Store app: Buy online, pick up in-store, check yourself out

The new and improved Apple Store app will reportedly let you order a product online and then pick it up and even pay for it yourself at your local Apple store.

The beans on the revamped app for iOS were spilled by the folks at Boy Genius Report, who cited a "trusted source" for their information.

Slated to debut tomorrow, this major update to the app will offer an in-store pickup option that's already surfaced at some Apple retail outlets. Last week, the option was up and running at three Apple stores in San Francisco, while BGR … Read more

Gmail to get a native iPhone, iPad app?

According to sources speaking with TechCrunch columnist MG Seigler, Google has indeed been working on, and even submitted, a native app for Gmail. And oh yeah, it's pretty cool.

Despite Google's pretty great UI for Web-based Gmail on iOS, the native app has been a unicorn of sorts in the iOS community since the announcement that third-party apps could be written for the iPhone and subsequently the iPad. Seigler writes:

"At first, the talk was that Apple wasn't going to allow another mail app on their device. Then it was that Google was simply focusing on … Read more

Apple expected to launch 4G LTE iPhone next year

Apple is expected to unveil a 4G iPhone next year as competition in the LTE smartphone market heats up, according to a DigiTimes report.

Citing industry sources in Taiwan, DigiTimes says that Apple will join Nokia, RIM, and Sony Ericsson in diving into the 4G market next year as more carriers kick off LTE services around the world.

HTC, Samsung, Motorola, and LG all currently sell LTE handsets, but HTC leads the U.S. market with a 60 percent share of 4G customers, say DigiTimes' sources.

Apple has expressed some reticence about jumping onboard the LTE bandwagon in light of … Read more

iPhone 5 to be major makeover, 'shatter' sales record

The iPhone 5 will represent a major upgrade over its predecessor, helping "shatter" the sales record captured by the iPhone 4 at launch last year, says an analyst with Ticonderoga Securities.

Providing his take on the new iPhone ahead of today's launch event, analyst Brian White expects the iPhone 5 to offer a "sleek, aluminum unibody enclosure" that's more like the MacBook Air than the iPhone 4. The new enclosure will not only look better but be stronger and lighter, avoiding the cracks that sometimes appear in the glass back of the iPhone 4.… Read more