Archive for November, 2015
Apple Takes 94% of Global Smartphone Market Profits
Back in summer, we reported that despite having a relatively small market share on global smartphone market, Apple managed to get 92% of the profits. Today, a new report from a research firm called Canaccord Genuity appeared on the Internet suggesting that thanks to strong iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus sales as well as due to the release of the updated handsets in September, Apple is now taking 94% of the entire smartphone industry profits.
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Apple Apps Are Incorrectly Ranked on Some iOS Devices
As it was spotted by analysts from Sensor Tower, the iOS App Store Top Free Charts section may display incorrect ratings for such apps as Pages, Keynote, Numbers and iMovie on a number of devices. The researchers claim that on some iOS gadgets the aforementioned apps have higher ratings than on the desktop App Store version and other iOS devices. As an example, the experts show the screenshots of the App Store Top Free Charts on the iPad mini 2 and on the iPhone 6s Plus. In the first case, we can spot iMovie, Keynote and Numbers in the Top-10 list. In the second case, we don’t see any of these applications among the first ten most popular.
Apple Once Again Rumored to Release 4-inch iPhone Next Year
According to the latest report from IHS Technology researcher Kevin Wang, the long-awaited 4-inch iPhone called probably the iPhone 6c may be released in mid-2016. Previous report from this source pointed to the release of the device in the fourth quarter of 2015, however, because of the new report from KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo or under some other circumstances, Wang decided to change the forecast.
Tim Cook Says Apple Won’t Create ‘Converged Mac and iPad’
Apple CEO Tim Cook has recently assured the reporters and Apple fans that the company is not planning to create a "converged Mac and iPad." According to Cook, the company is interested in creating the best tablet in the world and the best computer in the world, however, these should be two separate products, not the one. Such words once again prove that Apple fights against the so-called ‘hybrid’ products that combine the features of tablets and laptops. Still, the statement looks quite strange as in recent weeks, the company has been heavily promoting the iPad Pro with a Smart Keyboard that makes this device reminiscent of the MacBook.
Jonathan Ive Reveals Story Behind Apple Pencil
In the most-recent interview to The Telegraph, Jonathan Ive, the Chief Design Officer at Apple has shared some interesting facts about the Apple Pencil. According to Ive, the company wanted to replicate the natural feel and functionality of a pen or pencil and make the iPad Pro stylus work as good as possible. Thanks to the advanced technologies developed by Apple, it became possible to use the Apple Pencil with iOS and write, draw and perform other input operations by applying force to the display. Just like you do with a real pencil.
Saurik Updates Cydia Substrate to Version 0.9.6110
Saurik has recently released an update to Cydia Substrate. The latest version has an index 0.9.6110 and contains fixes for corrupt extensions that previously led to Substrate crashes. Apart from that, the developer has also added some other minor improvements, bug fixes and stability enhancements.
Top 10 Stories of the Week
It is Sunday today, which means that it’s high time I told you about the most interesting posts of the past seven days. Most of the articles this week deal with Apple’s iPad Pro and that is not strange since the device has just gone on sale in a number of countries worldwide. There are some posts about the Apple Watch and the next-generation iPhone.
Apple Improves App Store Search Algorithms - Developers
Apple has noticeably changed the search algorithms used in the App Store. Thanks to these improvements, TechCrunch reporters claim, now it is much easier to look for applications using the keywords and other parameters. The results are way more relevant than a couple of weeks ago, and the speed of the search has also been enhanced.
Quanta Computer Already Working on Apple Watch 2?
According to the latest report from people familiar with the matter, Apple supplier called Quanta Computer is currently working on the next-generation Apple Watch, which is expected to be launched in 2016. This company assembles the first generation of Apple’s wearable device, so the rumor about the development of the new smartwatch looks quite plausible.
First iPad Pro Hands-On Videos Appear Online [Video]
The long-awaited 12.9-inch iPad Pro went on sale in the United States and a number of other countries on Wednesday, November 11th. It’s Friday now, and first lucky customers have already received their pre-ordered tablets. What this means is that now we have an opportunity to take a look at first exclusive hands on videos and short reviews revealing new features of Apple’s largest-ever tablet and decide whether we need this device or not.
I’ve chosen a couple of clips I find the most interesting and posted them below. Take a look and let me know what you think about the iPad Pro.
First reviewer says that the iPad Pro is actually ‘almost Pro’ as it doesn't have any new features, except for the screen size, in comparison with the iPad Air 2.
Apple to Shut Down Beats Music on November 30th
According to the latest report from people familiar with the matter, the Beats Music service will officially stop working on November 30th. In case you don’t know, this streaming music service has been used to create Apple Music, which is now immensely popular among the customers in the United States, Europe and Asia. Former Beats Music subscribers are encouraged to switch to Apple Music.
iPad Pro Outperforms Other iOS Devices in Benchmarks
ArsTechnica experts have recently tested the iPad Pro using Geekbench 3 benchmark and compared the results of this tablet with the results of the iPhone 6s, iPad 2, iPad mini 2 and iPad mini 3, iPad mini 4 and iPad Air 2. The iPad Pro outperforms all iOS devices that have been tested in both single-core and multi-core tests and that is not strange since Apple has assured its users that this device is the most efficient in the entire lineup of portable Apple-branded gadgets.
Below you can take a look at the charts showing the Geekbench results.
iFixit Team Performs Teardown of 12.9-inch iPad Pro [Images]
The iFixit team has recently performed a teardown of the 12.9-inch iPad Pro, which went on sale on Wednesday, November 11th. The experts have found many interesting things inside of Apple’s largest tablet ever and shared the information with us. Below you may take a look at the images showing the disassembled iPad Pro and read about the key specs of the long-awaited device.
Apple Launches Apple Music on Android
Apple has just launched its streaming music service called Apple Music on Android. Just as it was announced earlier this year, the service costs $9.99/month and offers users unlimited access to thousands of songs of various genres. Family membership requires Mac or iOS device, however, that’s not strange for the service created by Google’s market rival.
Apple Won’t Use AMOLED Displays in Next-Gen iPhones - Analyst
According to the latest report from a usually-reliable KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, Apple won’t use the AMOLED displays for the next-generation iPhone. The expert believes the company will continue using the TFT-LCD displays for at least three years or even longer.