factory

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

Intel isn't churning out chips at the usual rate, reflecting the PC market's downturn and the slow uptake of Windows 8, according to an analyst.

Intel's factory utilization is down around 60 percent, well below normal, said Jim McGregor, principal analyst for Phoenix based Tirias Research, in a phone interview. The news was first reported at ITWorld.

"A lot of this started in September when holiday shipments of PCs didn't go the way they expected," McGregor said. "That [60 percent utilization rate] is increasing as they burn off inventory. But they're still … Read more

Basic photo editors are sometimes insufficient for some users' needs. CollageFactory Pro for Mac provides some specialized features for those working with photos, but at a price.

CollageFactory Pro for Mac can be used for free but it will place a watermark on all printed documents if you do so. The full version without restrictions may be purchased for $29.99. The program is sizable at more than 200MB, but downloaded and installed smoothly after we accepted a lengthy user agreement. The design works well and has a menu bar on the left side where you can click to load … Read more

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- Just say no: Polaroid returns with an instant camera shaped like...the Instagram icon.

- "Fresh Prince of Bel Air" theme song prompts school lockdown.

- You should watch "Room 237," a fan theory documentary about "The Shining."

- 50 fan theories that will blow your mind, and the Subreddit that goes with it.… Read more

Apple has so far failed in its responsibility to monitor its Chinese suppliers for worker violations, claims a labor watchdog group.

In a report released yesterday, Student & Scholars Against Corporate Misbehavior (SACOM) accused three of Apple's Chinese suppliers of inhumane worker conditions. The three suppliers -- Foxlink, Pegatron, and Wintek -- fail to provide for basic human needs and continue to use student workers, according to SACOM.

Over the past few years, Apple has increased its audits of Chinese factories and taken action against those that violate its supplier code of conduct. Regardless, SACOM's report asserts that … Read more

Watchers of Apple and the industry no doubt recall Tim Cook's comments in a recent interview about bringing some Mac production back to the U.S. in the coming year. But which Mac might the Apple CEO be talking about?

DigiTimes thinks it knows. A new report from the Asia-based blog cites "sources from the upstream supply chain" as saying that it'll be the Mac Mini. Keep in mind, however, that DigiTimes' reports aren't always reliable. And then there's this: Earlier in the month, Fortune's Philip Elmer-Dewitt laid out several reasons why he … Read more

Despite recent efforts to improve working conditions at Foxconn's factories, a new investigative report claims that there are still numerous issues.

The findings come in a report by French TV program Envoyé Spécial, which yesterday aired hidden-camera footage it captured at Foxconn's facility in Zhengzhou, China, which manufactures Apple's iPhone. It's also the same factory where a worker strike occurred two months ago.

Among the issues found by the group, as relayed by Engadget, were workers living in buildings that were in the process of being built, meaning those living there were without … Read more

Chinese labor arbitrators have ruled against the father of a Foxconn worker severely injured in a factory accident last year, according to documents reviewed by Reuters.

Zhang Guangde -- the father of Zhang Tingzhen -- took Foxconn to court in October, a year after his son was hit with a massive electrical shock while repairing a spotlight in Foxconn's Shenzhen factory. Zhang suffered major brain damage after falling 12 feet to the ground, an injury that required doctors to remove half of his brain to keep him alive.

Since the accident, Foxconn had been paying Zhang's medical bills. … Read more

Samsung is up against a slew of labor abuse accusations in China, according to a report from China Labor Watch.

An investigation conducted by the watchdog group in October and November uncovered worker violations at several factories, those owned directly by Samsung as well as by its suppliers.

The report is in contrast to the one that Samsung itself released this week. Samsung's own internal audit of suppliers found no child labor violations, a key concern among watchdog groups and Samsung itself. However, Samsung's own audit did discover other issues at supplier factories in China, including overtime hours … Read more