Apple

Apple eyes NFC to sync data between devices

Apple apparently still has its eye on NFC, at least as described in a freshly won patent.

Awarded Tuesday by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, an Apple patent called "System and method for simplified data transfer" describes a way of automatically transferring data from one device to another.

Both devices would be configured to copy data from one to the other. The first device may be set up to save and transfer data associated with specific apps. Powering up the second device would automatically tell the first device to transfer the data. The devices outlined in … Read more

Apple to reach 600 million users by end of 2013, says analyst

Apple could see more than 600 million users by the end of 2013, up from 500 million currently, according to Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Hubert.

The 600 million figure assumes that 40 percent of Apple's device sales will be to new customers. If the forecast holds true, Apple stands to generate a healthy amount of revenue and free cash flow per account.

Following growth of an estimated 55 percent in 2012, Apple's current tally of 500 million users ranks second only to the number of people on Facebook. Each of those accounts spent on average $329 last year, … Read more

Apple to charge $149 for in-store iPhone 5 glass repair -- report

Getting that cracked iPhone 5 display fixed might be a tad bit easier than it previously was.

Apple has decided to start repairing iPhone 5 displays in-store for those who have signed up for its $99 AppleCare+ package, Macrumors reported Monday, citing people who claim to have knowledge of its plans. The site also pointed to a forum in which one member says he has a friend who works at the Apple store and who said the company is now charging $149 to fix cracked iPhone 5 screens.

Another poster said the replacement takes only about 10 minutes.

Although Apple'… Read more

Windows Phone to own 12 percent of smartphone market by 2017

Microsoft's Windows Phone will account for 12.7 percent of all global smartphone shipments in another four years, Canalys said in a forecast released Tuesday.

The growth from just 2.4 percent in 2012 means that Windows Phone will capture third place among all smartphone platforms in 2017, just behind Apple's iOS. To obtain that growth, Microsoft will require an assist not just from Nokia but from Chinese vendors such as Lenovo, Huawei, and ZTE, according to Canalys.

"Nokia is the most active vendor in the Microsoft camp and it continues to make steady progress with its … Read more

Latest iPod Touch rates poorly on repairability, iFixit says

iFixit's latest teardown takes a look at Apple's new iPod Touch and finds that despite internal changes, the device received the same repairability score as its higher-capacity counterparts.

Apple quietly introduced its latest iPod Touch last week. The fifth-generation, 16GB iPod Touch features the same 4-inch Retina Display and dual-core A5 processor as the 32GB and 64GB versions but loses the rear-facing camera and LED flash.

The 16GB iPod Touch's slimmer design weighs about 3 ounces, is 4.86 inches tall, and is 2.31 inches wide. The gadget costs $229, less than its higher-end counterparts at $… Read more

Apple plans to bring AirDrop file-sharing to iOS -- report

Apple's AirDrop tool, which allows OS X users to share files between computers quickly and efficiently, is on its way to the company's mobile platform, a new report claims.

Apple is currently in the process of testing AirDrop on iOS 7, 9to5Mac is reporting, citing people who claim to have knowledge of its plans. According to the site's sources, AirDrop is currently embedded in the iOS share menu. It's possible that it could allow for sharing to Macs, though right now, it's focused on sharing between iOS devices.

Apple is expected to show off iOS … Read more

Want a free iPhone 5? Try Best Buy's limited trade-in program

Got an old iPhone lying around? For one day only, you can trade that for a free iPhone 5 at Best Buy.

Best Buy on Saturday will give customers a $150 trade-in credit for any working iPhone 4 or 4S, making the iPhone 5 free. The only out-of-pocket costs for the customer will be any applicable sales tax on the new phone and any applicable carrier activation fees.

Customers must be eligible for an upgrade and activate the iPhone 5 on a two-year contract with Verizon, AT&T, or Sprint to take advantage of the offer. The deal isn'… Read more

Walkmac revisited: The inside story of the 'first' portable Mac

Recently my brother-in-law, Ken Landau, was doing a major spring cleaning when he came across a bit of computing history in his basement: a Colby Walkmac, the first battery-operated Macintosh computer and first portable Mac with a LCD display.

I'd never heard of the Walkmac, which wasn't built by Apple but by electronics pioneer Chuck Colby, who founded Colby Systems in 1982. The Apple-sanctioned model you see here was "modded" around a stock Mac SE motherboard and hit the market in 1987, two years before Apple put out its Macintosh Portable in 1989 for $7,300. … Read more

Oh noes! Dots high scores disappear

If you know anything about the new hit iOS game Dots, which has already logged 3 million players and more than 250 million total plays, you know that for any serious player, it's all about high scores.

So I've been a bit upset over the last 24 hours after noticing that the Dots high score system had gone awry. On the one hand, my entire personal high score list had disappeared. But perhaps more troubling, the all-time high score list had regressed, with someone's world-beating score of 800 simply having vanished.

If this is all Latin to you, then take a trip over to the iOS App Store (Android users, help is reportedly on the way) and download Dots. Before you do that, though, clear your schedule for the next week so that your inevitable new obsession doesn't interfere with important meetings, dates, dinners, or even sleep. Now you're ready. … Read more