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Archive for December 8th, 2011
Grand Central Apple Store uncovered
Apple took down the tarps covering the front of its soon-to-open Grand Central Terminal Store. Visitors may see now the entrance to one of Apple’s largest retail locations in the world, the stairs leading up to the store that were previously blocked off by a large black display with digital sign teasing the forthcoming grand opening, as well as a glowing Apple logo, on the east balcony. The store is lit by chandeliers hanging overhead. Apple’s products are placed on the maple wood tables. 315 employees will serve customers.
The 23,000-square-foot store will be one of Apple's largest retail locations in the world. It sits in a prime location in Grand Central Terminal, though which an estimated 700,000 people pass every day. Apple sent out a press release on Wednesday, announcing that the new Grand Central store will open at 10 a.m. this Friday, Dec. 9. It noted that the store overlooks the historic Main concourse from the East and North East balconies of Grand Central Terminal, and features two Genius Bars.
Leave a commentCloud Gaming Company OnLive Releases Its App For Tablets And Mobile Platforms
The pioneer of cloud gaming has the release of its playable app for tablets and mobile devices. Now top-tier, console-class games that was previously limited only to computers and consoles are available for playing through the free on more than half a million mobile devices over mobile networks and Wi-Fi in the UK and US.
Apple selling record 30 million iPhones in December quarter
UBS (Investment Firm) analyst Maynard Um now believes Apple will sell as many as 30 million iPhones in the December quarter, up from a previous estimate of 28 million. The firm changed its expectations for the iPhone sales because of AT&T's announcement that it expects its best smartphone quarter ever thanks to the iPhone 4S.
The firm didn’t change its predictions for the iPad. It still expects that Apple will sell 12 million units in the fourth quarter of 2012 and may achieve 13 million iPads because of seasonal boost during the holidays. UBS numbers are quite conservative due to its belief that "there might be a slight shift in consumer preference to the company's Macbook computers." Um said customers may not be able to buy multiple Apple products simultaneously and could instead elect to purchase larger ticket items with more functionality.
In light of the expected iPhone upside, UBS raised its revenue estimates to $38.5 billion, up from $37.2 billion. The firm now expects earnings per share to reach $9.90, compared to a previous projection of $9.47. For fiscal 2012, Um sees Apple bringing in $142.7 billion in revenue and $35.83 EPS.
Apple's iPad 3 will be slightly thicker with same screen size
Citing an Asian supplier who is allegedly crafting components for Apple's next iPad, Japanese blog Macotakara claims that Apple's third-generation iPad will be slightly thicker than the iPad 2 for an "unknown reason." That means that third-party cases that cover the back side of the device won’t fit to the iPad 3, but Apple’s Smart Covers will remain compatible with the next-generation Apple’s tablet.
The screen of the iPad 3 will have the same 9.7-inch screen size as the iPad 2, but Apple is rumored to implement the Retina Display technology into the next-generation iPad. One reason for a thicker frame on the iPad 3 could be the components necessary to include a high-resolution Retina Display.
In order to include a Retina Display, Apple may adopt entirely new display technology. One report in November suggested Apple would use IGZO displays from Sharp to reach a 330 dots-per-inch screen resolution. But that report claimed the IGZO display would also allow for a future iPad to be thinner, not thicker. Other reports, however, claimed that Apple would utilize a dual-LED light bar system to illuminate the Retina Display of a third-generation iPad. Apple's apparent difficulties with the higher resolution displays and new LED backlight designs were said to have already affected the launch schedule of the next iPad.
The Retina Display technology was firstly introduced by Apple with the 2010 iPhone 4. Apple boasts that an individual pixel on such screen is so small that cannot be distinguished by the human eye.
Ivy Bridge to Bring Triple Display Support to MacBook Air
Intel intends to launch its mobile Ivy Bridge processors in April and May of next year. The report posted yesterday ttracts special attention to the fact that the Ivy Bridge platform, both mobile and desktop, will provide support up to three independent displays. Noteworthy, one of those displays will be an internal one.
While we're talking about graphics, as with the desktop Ivy Bridge processors, the mobile processors also support up to three independent displays, although one of these will be the built in display in the notebook, but hopefully we'll see notebooks with a DisplayPort connector as standard come next year.
The current Sandy Bridge platform supports only two independent displays. For example, the 13-inch MacBook Pro can only drive two external displays by turning off its internal display. More powerful MacBook Pro models can currently drive two external displays in addition to the internal one. But Ivy Bridge opens door to a direct support of three displays. Users of the MacBook Air will be able to connect to two external displays.
Apple Submits Revised Plans and Renderings for Apple's New Campus
Apple has reportedly submitted revised plans for their so-called "Spaceship" campus. The company plans to break ground on the project next year and open the facility in 2015. This mega-campus in Cupertino, Calif., is expected to provide Apple with approximately 2.8 million square feet for up to 13,000 employees. Late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs personally presented the original plans for the campus to the City of Cupertino in June. Following Jobs' presentation, city officials quickly voiced support for the project. Jobs described it as follows:
It's a pretty amazing building. It's a little like a spaceship landed. It's got this gorgeous courtyard in the middle... It's a circle. It's curved all the way around. If you build things, this is not the cheapest way to build something. There is not a straight piece of glass in this building. It's all curved. We've used our experience making retail buildings all over the world now, and we know how to make the biggest pieces of glass in the world for architectural use. And, we want to make the glass specifically for this building here. We can make it curve all the way around the building... It's pretty cool.
The City of Cupertino posted an update to the company's "Apple Campus 2 Project" on Tuesday evening. Though most of the new renderings are higher-quality versions of the original design, some of the images show a darker color for the structure's roof. Other changes include addition of parking plans, drawings for a private jogging path and a proposed expansion of the corporate fitness center from the original proposal of 25,000 square feet to 45,000 square feet.