MacRumors

There's a new mobile analytics report out from Citrix [PDF] and it's filled with interesting data on mobile usage, including a tidbit that suggests iPhone 6 Plus owners use far more data than other iPhone owners.

People who own the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus consume twice as much data as people who own the smaller 4.7-inch iPhone 6, and iPhone 6 Plus data usage is 10 times higher than data usage on the 3.5-inch iPhone 3GS. That last statistic isn't surprising -- along with a small screen, the iPhone 3GS is much slower with hardware that's almost six years old.

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Citrix suggests that the higher iPhone 6 Plus data usage is due to its users treating it like a tablet, consuming more media like streaming movies on the device.

iPhone 6 Plus subscribers generate the most data volume, double that of an iPhone 6. This increase impacts subscribers when choosing a new device -- be careful to select a data plan that matches your super-sized screen.

Clearly the phablet sized iPhone 6 Plus shows data usage patterns more akin to tablet usage. For mobile operators, this increase provides an opportunity to shift subscriber Wi-Fi usage towards mobile networks.

Other details covering all smartphone usage (not just iOS) suggest that interest in mobile health apps is on the rise, with 78 percent of mobile health app users using fitness apps. Sports video watching on mobile devices is up from 21% in Q3 2014 to 50% in Q1 2015.

The report also has an enterprise section, which confirms that iOS is still the dominant mobile platform. iOS devices are responsible for 64 percent of devices managed in the enterprise, compared to 27 percent for Android and 9 percent for Windows Mobile.

Shortly after last week's deployment of OS X 10.10.3 to developers, Apple updated its official Aperture page on its website, adding a notice stating that Aperture will be removed from the Mac App Store when the Photos for OS X app launches.

The same notice can also be found in the app's Mac App Store description, as noted by MacGeneration [Google Translate]. Once removed from the Mac App Store, it will no longer be possible for new users to obtain the Aperture software, but those who have previously purchased Aperture will continue to be able to download it from the "Purchases" tab.

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Apple first announced the shuttering of both Aperture and iPhoto back in June, but the company did not specify at that time that the software would be removed from the Mac App Store entirely. Instead, it said only that there would be "no new development of Aperture" as it focused its resources on Photos for OS X.

Our first look at Photos for OS X came last week alongside the developer launch of 10.10.3, as several sites were given preview copies of the software ahead of its release. Reviews have suggested that the Photos for OS X feature set lies somewhere in between that of the consumer-oriented iPhoto and the pro-oriented Aperture.

iPhoto users will find they have more control over photos with new tools, while Aperture users will be disappointed to find that many tools, like the loupe, brushable adjustments, and custom metadata are missing. The general opinion is that in its current iteration, the Photos for OS X software is not suitable for professional users, and those who currently use Aperture will want to continue with the software or switch to an alternative like Lightroom.

The Photos for OS X software could see updates over the coming months to add more pro-oriented features such as third-party plugins, and there are certainly some benefits to the app -- it integrates with iCloud Photo Library, its editing tools are easy to use, and it's said to be much faster than iPhoto.

Photos for OS X will be released in the spring when the OS X 10.10.3 update is seeded to the public. Ahead of the official launch, Apple is planning to do a public beta, though a date for that is unknown.

Related Forum: OS X Yosemite

Apple shares are currently valued at roughly $124 each in intraday trading, giving the Cupertino-based company a record-breaking market cap exceeding $720 billion. Apple stock continues to rise after the iPhone maker became the first U.S. company to close with a market cap over $700 billion on Tuesday, the same day in which CEO Tim Cook spoke live at the Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference.

Apple shares have risen over 48% since the start of 2014, despite some critics suggesting that the company has faced a lack of innovation since the passing of late co-founder Steve Jobs. Apple has been particularly successful in China, which Cook claims has grown from a $1 billion to $38 billion market for the company in the past five years. Apple plans to expand from 19 to 40 retail stores in China over the next year to keep up with the high demand for its products in the world's most populous country.

Apple Stock February 2015
Apple announced its earnings results for the first fiscal quarter of 2015 last month, posting revenue of $74.6 billion and net quarterly profit of $18 billion, or $3.06 per diluted share. Apple sold a record-breaking 74.5 million iPhones during the quarter on the strength of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, paving the way for the company to report the most profitable quarter of any corporation ever.

Cook confirmed on Tuesday that Apple will announce any potential changes to stock buybacks or dividends during its April earnings call. The chief executive added that Apple does not need as much cash as it is generating for operations, assuring that it is committed to returning money to shareholders through its capital return program.

Tag: AAPL

Indie studio Camouflaj today announced its hit episodic stealth game République is being ported to PC and Mac and will be available to download on February 26 via Steam, GOG, and the Humble Store.

The team says the new edition of the game has been "rebuilt from the ground up" to access the power of the Unity 5 gaming engine. They also tout that the Remastered edition is the first commercial game to "fully utilize" the power and functionality of the Unity 5 engine, allowing for a deeper, more vividly realized world with physically based shading, real-time global illumination, and reflection probes.

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“Ever since we committed to doing a desktop version of République, we’ve been haunted by the task for delivering something truly special for PC players,” says Ryan Payton, designer at Camouflaj. “When we got a glimpse at the next iteration of Unity we realized that this was the answer — beyond redesigning the game’s controls and UI for desktop, we’ve completely gutted all the game’s art, rebuilding everything using Unity 5’s cutting-edge graphical features. The result is something you have to see to believe.”

The game follows the story of Hope, a young woman attempting to evade capture from a mysterious, overbearing sect of the government intent on capturing her. Putting the player directly into the game, Hope tasks gamers to hack cameras and survelliance systems to safely guide her through the byzantine levels she finds herself trapped in. The game has garnered much attention since its release on iOS in late 2013, with our sister site Touch Arcade commenting that, after the first episode, the game was "shaping up to be a masterpiece."

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The new Remastered edition will come with the first three episodes of the game - "Episode 1: Exordium," "Episode 2: Metamorphosis" and "Episode 3: Ones and Zeroes" - and include a Standard and Deluxe Edition.

The Standard Edition will retail for $24.99 and will include pre-purchase codes for the final two episodes of the story: "Episode 4: God’s Acre" and "Episode 5: Terminus." The Deluxe Edition includes all of this plus the complete soundtrack, an hour-long "making of" documentary, and two early prototypes (exclusive to the desktop version) for $34.99. Each will receive a 20 percent discount during the game's initial launch week.

The République Remastered edition has already shown up on Steam and GOG ahead of its February 26 launch date, but isn't yet available for pre-order.

Parallels today announced an update to Parallels Desktop 10 for Mac, the company's software for running non-Apple operating systems safely on a Mac. The new update brings "experimental support" for Windows 10 and Office Preview for Windows 10 - including the expected Word, Excel, and PowerPoint programs - into Apple's OS X Yosemite ecosystem.

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With the update available as a download within the Parallels Desktop app for existing users, the company promises the Mac-based Windows 10 experience will provide users with "everything Windows 10 has to offer." This includes everything from the new Start menu, Photos, Maps app, and Cortana, to the Windows Store beta which offers Office Preview for Windows 10, all available without having to erase the existing functioning operating system.

“Parallels Desktop enjoys very strong support among software developers and IT pros. We are happy to deliver all the tools they need to quickly and safely test or run the latest OS and applications, now including the Windows 10 Technical Preview,” said Parallels president Jack Zubarev.

Parallels Desktop 10 for Mac is available to download for $79.99, with a Student Edition coming in at $39.99. Similarly, users upgrading from existing Parallels Desktop versions, like 8 or 9, can get a discount for version 10, with upgrade pricing set at $49.99. A two-week free trial is available to anyone who wants to try out the program's features, including the new technical preview of Windows 10, for a limited time frame.

Authorities from two major U.S. cities and London on Tuesday reported (via Reuters) that smartphone theft has dropped drastically since the release of remote-access "kill-switches" that allow users to lock their missing smartphone before any crucial information is stolen. Specifically, the number of stolen iPhones dropped 25 percent in New York, 40 percent in San Francisco, and 50 percent in London.

The study was based on the 12 months following the launch of Activation Lock in September 2013 as part of iOS 7. These numbers have jumped up slightly from a similar report released last summer that saw iPhone thefts in each city fall by 19 percent, 38 percent, and 24 percent, respectively.

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According to Reuters, officials from each of the three cities - London Mayor Boris Johnson, San Francisco District Attorney George Gascon, and New York state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman - were each lobbying for laws that required the implementation of remote kill switches into every smartphone sold.

"We have made real progress in tackling the smartphone theft epidemic that was affecting many major cities just two years ago," said London Mayor Boris Johnson.

From data collected by the National Consumers League, Reuters reports that 1.6 million Americans reported stolen handheld devices in 2012. And in California alone - specifically San Francisco, Oakland, and a few other cities - smartphone theft accounts for more than half of all crimes perpetrated in each city.

“The wireless industry continues to roll out sophisticated new features, but preventing their own customers from being the target of a violent crime is the coolest technology they can bring to market,” Gascon said.

Apple's default Activation Lock feature received much praise following its launch in 2013. A few months later Apple and a few other notable smartphone makers, like Samsung and Google, entered into a voluntary agreement to have every smartphone sold on or after July 2015 come pre-installed with a kill-switch, a date that's rapidly approaching. California itself issued a law last August, designating a similar July 2015 date for every smartphone sold in the state to have the anti-theft software pre-installed.

During today's Goldman Sachs conference, Apple CEO Tim Cook announced that Apple is planning its "boldest, biggest, most ambitious project," yet in the form of a 1,300 acre solar farm in Monterey County, California.

The solar farm, which puts out enough power for almost 60,000 California homes, will provide enough renewable energy for Apple's new campus, every other office it has in California, all 52 stores in the state, and its data center in Newark, California. The solar farm is an $850 million project, which Cook says Apple is doing "because it's right to do."

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Image of Apple's North Carolina solar farm courtesy of Gigaom

We know at Apple that climate change is real and our view is that the time for talk has passed and the time for action is now. We've shown that with what we do.

Though highlighting the solar farm as good for the environment, Tim Cook also pointed towards the fiscal benefit of such a decision, explaining that there's a significant price difference between the fixed price of renewable energy and the price of brown energy. "We're thrilled to continue on the course of leaving the world better than we found it," said Cook.

Apple has already built a series of large solar farms in North Carolina, but at $850m, the Monterey County solar farm will be its most ambitious project yet.

Update: Apple will be partnering with First Solar and contributing $848 million to the First Solar California Flats Solar Project in Monterey County, California. Apple will be receiving 130 megawatts of the solar project under a 25-year power purchase agreement, with the remaining 150MW being sold to Pacific Gas & Electric.

Construction on the California Flats Solar Project will begin in mid-2015 and will finish by the end of 2016.

Apple CEO Tim Cook spoke at the annual Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference today, where he covered a range of topics from Apple's dedication to the environment, the major products the company launched in 2014, and his thoughts on the Apple Watch.

When asked by Goldman Sachs COO Gary Cohn what makes the Apple Watch different from other smart watches on the market, Cook recalled the MP3 industry.

If you think about the MP3 industry, we weren't the first company to make an MP3 player, there were lots of companies in this. They weren't used very much. They were fundamentally hard to use -- the user interface was bad and you almost needed a PhD to use them. They're not memorable. [...]

I see the smart watch category very much like that. There are several things that are called smart watches, but I'm not sure you could name any. There hasn't been one that changed the way people live their lives. At Apple, that's our objective. We want to change the way you live your life.

Cook went on to say that he believes the Apple Watch will do just that, impact people's lives in a meaningful way. He says that one of the major surprises will be the breadth of what the Apple Watch can do, and he expects that everyone will find something in the Apple Watch that they can't live without.

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Cook highlighted the many design options for the Apple Watch, its "fantastic" look, and the innovative ways of communication that it will enable. Cook says that he "constantly" uses Siri on his Apple Watch, and that he uses it when working out to measure activity.

He also pointed out the feature that pings people when they've been sitting for too long, which he sees in use on a daily basis at Apple. During meetings, he says, towards the end of the hour, people will begin standing up as their Apple Watch alerts them to do so. "A lot of doctors believe sitting is the new cancer," he said. "Arguably, activity is good for all of us." Cook says that he is "super excited" about third-party apps that are being developed for the Apple Watch.

I think everyone's going to have their favorite thing, just like when the App Store came out. Remember the saying 'there's an app for that? There's an enormous number of things it will do.

Earlier this month, Tim Cook confirmed that the Apple Watch is still on track to launch in early 2015, with shipments that will begin in the month of April. Pricing will start at $349 for the lower-end version of the device.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch 10
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Neutral)

tim_cook_headshot_glassesApple CEO Tim Cook is speaking at the Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference today, with the session kicking off at 3:30 PM Eastern / 12:30 PM Pacific. Cook's presentation is being broadcast on Apple's website and MacRumors will be updating this post to summarize Cook's comments.

Cook has spoken at the annual conference a number of times over the years, although he did not appear in 2014. While Cook has not made any major announcements at the venue in the past, he has at times offered an interesting perspective into Apple's business, so it generally worth paying attention to his comments.

Cook will almost certainly be asked about Apple's blockbuster iPhone sales and earnings in the last quarter, the company's strategy for managing cash and capital return to investors, company philosophy and more, and he is generally fairly open and thoughtful in sharing his ideas on many topics. The company's future product plans are not, however, something he has shown willing to discuss, maintaining a long tradition of secrecy for the company.

Welcome everyone. And welcome to you too, Tim. You joined Apple in 1998, became CEO in 2011. Going over financial and sales stats since Cook became CEO. Not a bad start, right?

Thanks everyone, and thanks Goldman for having us here. Cook giving "safe harbor" statement about forward-looking comments to satisfy regulators.

➜ Click here to read rest of article...

Apple CEO Tim Cook will be speaking at the annual Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference this afternoon, beginning at 12:30 PM Pacific Time. While Cook was not present at last year's conference, he has attended many times in the past.

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Cook is not likely to make product announcements during today's session, but previous conferences have seen him divulging details on Apple's philosophies and business practices. In 2013, for example, he spoke about Apple's cash usage, innovation, design choices, retail strategy, iPhone growth, and more.

Streaming audio of the Goldman Sachs conference will be available beginning at 12:30, and MacRumors will also provide highlights and coverage on what Cook has to share this year.

The Video Electronics Standard Association (VESA) yesterday announced a new Embedded DisplayPort Standard, version 1.4a, that the association claims "enables a higher video data transfer rate for increased panel resolution, greater color depth and higher refresh rates."

Along with other upgrades, the new standard will be able to take advantage of more advanced GPU video performance and display technologies, meaning a wider range of computing devices - laptops and all-in-one PCs like the iMac in particular - will be able to produce 8K content sometime next year.

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The new standard is for "embedded" panels with the ability to produce up to 8K quality display images, meaning eDP 1.4a won't work with external displays. The current DisplayPort standard is 1.2a, with VESA having announced the next-generation 1.3 standard with 5K support last September.

Full support of DisplayPort 1.3 will, however, need to wait until Intel releases its next-generation Skylake chips late this year or early next year. Apple's current 5K Retina iMac uses a custom solution to manage its 5120 x 2880 display, and 8K displays supported under the future 1.4a standard would come in at 7680 x 4320 pixels.

These higher-resolution displays at 8K should result in a more power-hungry machine, but VESA claims its new Multi-SST Operation will support a Segmented Panel Display feature, bringing lighter, lower-cost display architecture to the new eDP standard. According to Vice President Bong-Hyun You of Samsung Display Co., Ltd., this new strategy can "reduce panel thickness, reduce power draw, and reduce cost."

According to Craig Wiley, senior director of marketing at Parade Technologies, VESA board member, and editor for eDP 1.4a, “The adoption of eDP for embedded displays is now positioned for growth as eDP 1.4a has become highly optimized, especially at resolutions above quad HD. Compared to other embedded interfaces, it has the richest feature set along with the lowest power, wire count and EMI radiation, particularly when used with high-resolution panels. It will continue to evolve, along with DisplayPort, but with its own unique features specifically optimized for embedded applications such as all-in-one PCs, notebooks, tablets and smart phones.”

Currently, only select high-end television support 8K video playback, and the highest quality display Apple device is last year's 27-inch iMac with Retina 5K Display. Though not much content even exists to truly take advantage of an 8K display at this time, VESA's estimate of laptops, all-in-one PC's, and other devices gaining the new standard in 2016 may give enough time for the new technology to grow.

iPhone 6 Touch IDKGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who has provided reliable information about Apple's upcoming product plans in the past, claims that Apple's next-generation iPhone will feature an upgraded Touch ID module with reduced reading errors for an improved and safer Apple Pay experience.

"We think the new iPhone,expected to launch in 3Q15, will be equipped with an upgraded Touch ID module, with which Apple (US) intends to offer a better and safer Apple Pay user experience with reduced reading errors. We therefore raise our 2015F shipments of Touch ID module by 12.4% to 262mn sets, boosted by Apple Pay and new iPhone models."

Kuo told investors that he expects suppliers to ramp up for production of the improved Touch ID module shipments, which are expected to rise by 77% to over 260 million units, in the second quarter. The oft-accurate analyst added that the upgraded fingerprint scanner will "require more advanced precision for the module’s laser welding process."

KGI Touch ID Shipments
Sunnic and ASE Kuo are expected to be two of the main suppliers of components for Apple's new Touch ID alongside TSMC. Kuo predicts that Apple will release the next-generation iPhone in the third quarter of this year, lining up historically with past iPhone releases in September.

Kuo also points out that Touch ID embedded into a display is unlikely in the near term, despite several published patent applications from Apple on the topic. With a need for a sapphire display cover to minimize scratching and the complex algorithms needed for handling Touch ID within a display, it will be some time before such technology is ready for market.

Related Forum: iPhone

The latest report from network monitoring firm RootMetrics shows that both Sprint and T-Mobile made improvements in overall performance during the second half of 2014. Verizon was ranked as the top carrier in the United States for the third consecutive study, trailed by AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile, based on several categories: speed, reliability, call performance, text performance and data performance.

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The new data reveals Sprint closed out the second half of 2014 on a high note with significant improvements in network speed, reliability and call performance. While it continues to trail market leaders Verizon and AT&T, Sprint's network enhancements were enough for it to surpass T-Mobile in the United States and on a state-by-state level during the final six months of the year.

While the network still trails the leaders in every category, Sprint made tremendous strides—particularly in reliability—in the second half of the year. In fact, Sprint improved its tally of reliability index wins by 25 (all shared) compared to what we saw in the first half. Also consider that in the first half of 2014, Sprint recorded a download success rate below 97% in 108 out of the 125 markets that we tested; in this round of testing, that market count had dropped down to 52.

Despite ranking last in the United States and on a state-by-state level, T-Mobile continued to make improvements in large metro areas, with fewer dropped calls, blocked calls and failed downloads. RootMetrics predicts T-Mobile could place even more pressure on leading carriers Verizon and AT&T if it continues to make improvements in these regions, such as New York City, Chicago, Washington D.C., Philadelphia, Houston, Seattle and Las Vegas.

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Overall, Verizon and AT&T continue to offer the best network coverage and reliability nationwide, but T-Mobile and Sprint are stepping up the competition with continued improvements. The full RootMetrics report provides a comprehensive look at all four major carriers in the United States.

Anki today announced a sequel to its innovative iOS-compatible Anki Drive slot car racing game. Called "Anki Overdrive" and set for launch in September, it will include brand new cars, a customizable track - courtesy of magnetically interlocking track pieces and "bridges" that adjust track height - and even jump ramps (via Re/code).

Originally debuted on stage at WWDC 2013, Anki has slowly grown support for the original Anki Drive by adding new cars and track support but keeping the same basic static roll-out mat technology. The sequel, which the company plans to announce today at the New York Toy Fair, will retain the same basic concept of using a smartphone to control a physical toy car around a track, battling against an A.I. opponent or other players.

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The Anki Overdrive starter kit, which will retail for $150 and come with two cars, will include 10 modular track pieces that the company says can create up to eight different track options out of the box. They'll also be selling "expansion packs" that will give users the ability to add four way intersections, U-turns, and jumps into the mix. Those expansion packs will cost between $10 and $30, and additional cars will be around $50.


The team has boosted the software component, as well. Talking to Re/code, Anki co-founder Hanns Tappeiner said when the cars interact with a new, user-made track, they'll drive slowly and cautiously as they "map" the track to their memory, after which they'll begin speeding up. Tappeiner also highlights the potential for user imagination in weaving tracks around everyday household objects, not just limiting users to designated objects provided by Anki.

Tappeiner and I combined the pieces from two of the starter kits to make one criss-crossing mega-track stretching across a conference table. As advertised, we were able to use the stuff already on the desk — soda cans, water bottles, computer cables — to buttress the rising and falling pieces of the track.

Tappeiner also promised the much-loved meta game of advancing player levels - courtesy of the Anki Drive [Direct Link] companion app available as a free download - as you race and battle around tracks will remain firmly intact with Anki Overdrive. “Even though it’s a physical thing, we think of it as a video game,” Tappeiner said. “If this were a video game, every time you advanced a level you’d be in a different world.”

Tag: Anki

Passengers on select JetBlue Airways flights will be able to use Apple Pay to purchase things in-flight starting next week, according to USA Today. It will become the first airline to accept Apple Pay in-flight.

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Starting next week, passengers on select JetBlue Airways flights can use Apple Pay on their iPhone 6 and 6 Plus handsets to buy food, drinks and certain onboard amenities when the plane reaches cruising altitude. You'll be able to upgrade to available premium seats, too.

Eddy Cue, Apple's VP for Internet software and services, told USA Today that "somebody else doing it always puts pressure on the other guy" and that other airlines could follow suit.

JetBlue's flight attendants will have iPad minis outfitted with a special case that will accept both credit cards and Apple Pay. Starting next week, only intercontinental flights from JFK to Los Angeles and San Francisco will accept Apple Pay, with additional flights in March and plans for all JetBlue flights to accept the payment service in June. Like iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, the upcoming Apple Watch will also work with the system.


Cue notes that expanding Apple Pay into areas like travel is important. "Most people would prefer not to carry cash or worry about cash. There's a lot of opportunity there," Cue told USA Today. Apple would like to expand to subways and public transportation, but Cue said working with local governments and gaining funding for those initiatives moves slower than they would like. He says the eventual plan is to completely replace the wallet, and that Apple Pay is only the start.

Apple has continued to work with third parties to expand Apple Pay's reach, most recently having ChowNow update nearly 700 food and restaurant apps with the payment service.

Related Roundup: Apple Pay
Tag: JetBlue

Apple CEO Tim Cook will speak at a White House cybersecurity summit on Friday at Stanford University, according to The Hill. The summit is another battleground in which tech companies and the government will discuss encryption.

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The White House is expected to reveal its next executive action on cybersecurity at the summit, which will bring together tech executives, leading academics and government officials to discuss ways in which the government can better collaborate with the private sector on cybersecurity initiatives.

Cook and other technology executives have called for government surveillance reform, calling for limitations on government authority to collect users' information, oversight and accountability, transparency about demands and more.

Meanwhile, the FBI has been in talks with companies like Google and Apple about their privacy features and have expressed concern that their encryption makes it difficult for investigators to infiltrate a kidnapper or terrorist's device for information that could prevent crimes or attacks. One Department of Justice official told Apple that investigators' inability to access their devices could lead to children dying.

FBI Assistant Director Joe Demarest Jr. and Secret Service Deputy Director A.T. Smith are two of the government officials who will give remarks on Friday.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Following last week's news of a mysterious Apple-leased vehicle roaming the streets of Northern California, an Apple employee has given some details to Business Insider, suggesting Apple is working on a project that will "give Tesla a run for its money."

After writing about how the van could be used for a self-driving car, we got an unsolicited email from an employee at Apple about "vehicle development" at the company. [...]

"Apple's latest project is too exciting to pass up," the person said. "I think it will change the landscape and give Tesla a run for its money."

According to the site's source, who was verified to be an Apple employee, Tesla employees are "jumping ship" and choosing to work at Apple because of this unidentified project.

Last week's pictures unveiled a van that appeared to have multiple cameras on the top, similar to the vehicles Google uses for mapping. Given the van's similarity to other mapping vehicles, rumors have suggested that it is likely for an unspecified mapping project. Apple has been working to improve Maps in recent months, and it's possible the company is working on a feature that would compete with Google Street View.

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Photo of Apple van via Claycord

Other speculation has ranged a bit more towards the fantastical, suggesting that Apple is perhaps working on a self-driving car, but this seems unlikely due to Apple's tendency to focus on just a few products at a time. "We have zero issue coming up with things we want to do, said Tim Cook last January. "We must focus on the very few that deserve all our energy."

As Business Insider suggests, one probable project that could pique the interest of former Tesla employees is CarPlay. CarPlay, which brings an iOS-style interface to in-car infotainment systems, is still very much in the early stages. In the future, CarPlay, which is being built directly into many cars, could expand to offer a Tesla-style feature set. With the Tesla iPhone app, Tesla owners can turn on heating, lock and unlock doors from afar, flash the lights, and more.

Deeper integration between iOS and in-car systems is also easily imaginable, given Apple's desire to allow users to transition easily from device to device, as with its new "Continuity" iOS 8/OS X Yosemite feature. In October, Apple CEO Tim Cook hinted at an expansion of Continuity and suggested it would be incredibly important going forward. "Use your imagination and think about where Continuity goes," he said.

Given the ambiguity of the employee's statement, it is, of course, possible that the project in question is not even car-related and is something all together different.

Earlier this month, Tesla CEO Elon Musk directly contradicted the Apple employee's suggestion that Tesla employees are tempted by what Apple has to offer. In a report outlining the many employees Tesla has poached from Apple, Bloomberg spoke to Musk, who said "very few people" had left Tesla for Apple, despite Apple's offer of a $250,000 signing bonus and 60 percent salary increase.

Tag: Tesla

Along with iOS 8.2 and iOS 8.3, both of which have been seeded to developers in beta form, Apple is also said to be working on an iOS 8.4 update. According to 9to5Mac, the beta is codenamed "Copper," and set to be released later this year at some point after the Apple Watch becomes available for purchase in April.

Given the release timing after iOS 8.2 and iOS 8.3, it's possible that iOS 8.4 will be the update that introduces Apple's new streaming music service. Recent rumors have suggested that Apple's existing Beats music service will be rebranded, revamped with a lower price tag, and integrated into iOS and OS X. A timeline is unclear, but Apple could be aiming for a June launch, sometime around its annual Worldwide Developers Conference.

iOS 8.4 began appearing in MacRumors site logs towards the end of January, with usage spiking up at the beginning of February. The number of visits from devices running iOS 8.4 from both Apple IPs and non-Apple IPs remains relatively low, however, suggesting that development on iOS 8.4 is in the very early stages.

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Visitors to MacRumors.com via Apple's networks from devices running iOS 8.4

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Overall visitors to MacRumors.com from devices running iOS 8.4

iOS 8.2 has been in developer testing since November, and iOS 8.3, with wireless CarPlay support, a new emoji picker, and Apple Pay for China was just seeded to developers this morning. Along with its iOS 8 projects, Apple is also working on iOS 9, an update that may heavily focus on stability and optimization.

Related Forum: iOS 8