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iPhone

Google still wants Apple to use its maps, Eric Schmidt says

The Apple Maps fiasco may have died down, but Google still wants its mapping program to be default on iOS, said Google Chairman Eric Schmidt.

Schmidt, speaking today during an AllThingsD mobile conference, declined to say why Apple decided to go with its own mapping system rather than working with Google as it had in the past. But he said his company is still pushing Apple to use Google Maps as the primary navigation tool on iOS.

"We would still really like them to use our maps," Schmidt said. "It would be easy for them to take … Read more

Apple to sell 75 million low-cost iPhones next year, says analyst

A low-cost iPhone could see unit sales of 75 million in 2014, projects Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster.

In an investors note released today, Munster said he expects Apple to sell a $300 non-subsidized iPhone starting in September. Such a device is likely to trigger a 30 percent cannibalization rate, which means that for every three low-cost iPhones sold, one full-price iPhone is cannibalized.

As such, Apple's share of the high-end smartphone market may dip to 37 percent next year from 43 percent last year. But its share of the low-end (under $400) market will rise to 11 percent … Read more

Latest iPhone 5S rumor pegs camera at 12 megapixels

As rumors swirl about Apple's manufacturing partners kicking into high gear to produce the next version of the iPhone, a new report adds some more detail on what could be inside the new device.

The latest comes from Vietnamese site Tinhte, which says Apple's next iPhone (expected to be called the 5S) will sport a 12-megapixel camera. That's as compared to the 8-megapixel sensor found on both the iPhone 5 and 4S.

Now it wouldn't be unusual for Apple to make improvements to its camera, which it's done with each successive iPhone model. But the … Read more

Businessman buys $15 million black-diamond iPhone

What do you do with a 26-carat black diamond that's been in the family for generations? If you're a fan of Apple with a few extra coins clanking around in your pocket, you apparently attach the jewel to an iPhone.

According to CNN and British craftsman Stuart Hughes' Web site, "Joe," a businessman from Hong Kong, commissioned Hughes to turn an iPhone 5 into a shiny $15 million affair.

After crafting a solid gold chassis, Hughes added 600 white diamonds as decoration, and reserved the Home button to be adorned with the aforesaid black diamond. … Read more

The 404 1,249: Where we get the senior discount (podcast)

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- Ever wondered how Apple employees travel around the Cupertino campus?

- Taking New York's upcoming Citi Bike Share plan for a test ride.

- Why don't cell phones have a dial tone?

- Forget following teens, your new favorite Tweeter is 94 years old.

- Speaking of old people, here's Jeff's dear, old granny with a 404 sticker on her walker.

- Speaking of speaking of old people, here's a soul-cuddling video of an older landlady lip-syncing her favorite song from the 1930s.… Read more

T-Mobile: iPhone drove one of the biggest weekends ever for us

T-Mobile Chief Marketing Officer Mike Sievert boasted that the carrier had "one of its biggest weekends in the history of the company" thanks to the launch of the iPhone on Friday.

T-Mobile on Friday launched the iPhone in its stores for the first time, finally catching up to its larger rivals, and even smaller regional carriers. Sievert told CNET that iPhone sales did better than he expected, although he declined to provide specific figures.

"We had really ambitious internal goals, and we beat them," he said.

The iPhone is important to T-Mobile in multiple ways. It … Read more

Foxconn hires more workers to prep for new iPhone, says WSJ

Apple's next-generation iPhone has already prompted supplier Foxconn to bump up its ranks.

Also known as Hon Hai Precision, the Taiwan-based supplier confirmed today that it has hired around 10,000 employees for the assembly line at its factory in Zhengzhou since the end of March, the Wall Street Journal has reported. The Zhengzhou plant is a major producer of the iPhone.

A spokesman for Foxconn told the Journal only that the company increased its workforce to meet seasonal demand from customers. But "executives familiar with the situation" said the extra employees were hired specifically to get … Read more

The 404 1,248: Where we take a staycation in the dead zone (podcast)

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- Electrosensitive community moving to a secluded town in Green Bank, Va.

- Facebook fixes comment threads for Pages and public figure.

- A promising 'Home' for the Facebook obsessed.

- Five ways to get more out of Facebook Home.

- Prepare a digital will for your Google accounts.

- Roger Ebert's Twitter lives on.

- Microsoft exec reportedly leaves job following testy Xbox tweets.… Read more

T-Mobile's iPhone off to a damp, but hopeful, start

NEW YORK--There are bright summer mornings in midtown Manhattan when tech enthusiasts happily line the streets around the famous Apple "cube" on Fifth Avenue or sneak to nearby carrier stories to land a new iPhone or iPad.

This was not one of those days. It was gray and soggy outside T-Mobile's flagship store in midtown Manhattan this morning, a wet reminder that winter isn't quite over despite what the calendar says. Similarly, T-Mobile hasn't yet succeeded in attempts to move past its own dark season.

But T-Mobile, for once, had a reason to celebrate. Today … Read more

Lower-priced iPhone could cost as much as $400, analyst says

Suppliers and vendors in China are buzzing about Apple releasing a lower-priced, plastic smartphone in July, and according to another analyst report that supports the rumors, the device could sell for $350 to $400.

Topeka Capital Markets analyst Brian White wrote that he attended a technology trade show in China and spoke with companies that worked with Apple.

His report mirrored an earlier analyst report that Apple will announce the lower-priced iPhone and the iPhone 5S at the same time in June and then release the products in July. White's report included some pricing details as well.

"We … Read more