Based on information from a press release obtained by Gizmodo, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak is planning to star in a reality television show where he will co-host with former Mythbusters star Kari Byron. The show will focus on gadgetry and the future of technology.
Said to be titled The Woz, the show will feature Wozniak interacting with and testing futuristic gadgets hands-on. The press release goes on to say that the show "introduces the audience to facilities where science fiction is quickly becoming reality."
Though a Tweet by Wozniak suggests the show was at least pitched to Discovery Channel, little else is known about The Woz at this time.
Sprint is planning to unveil a new competitive pricing promotion today that offers to cut customers' phone bills in half if they switch from Verizon or AT&T. As reported by Re/code, sales associates are being trained on the promotion now with a consumer launch planned for Friday.
The deal requires existing Verizon and AT&T customers to bring in their current bills, and Sprint will set them up with similar plans at half the cost of the service portion of their current bills (i.e., data, text and calling). Customers will have to buy unsubsidized devices or rent them through Sprint's new leasing plans.
Getting ready to launch one of our most exciting promotions ever!! Especially designed for Verizon and att customers who love to save money
— MarceloClaure (@marceloclaure) December 2, 2014
In addition to the pricing plan discount, Sprint is also offering up to $350 to cover early termination fees or previous phone installment plan costs. Customers taking advantage of this offer must turn in their existing phones to receive the bonus.
The upcoming promotion does not include competitor T-Mobile, which already offers discounted prices and holds a smaller market share than AT&T and Verizon. It is estimated that Verizon and AT&T control up to 70 percent of the mobile phone market in the United States.
Update: Sprint's press release on the promotion outlines the full terms of the deal and the process customers must follow to take advantage of it.
Following the release of its original Thunderbolt Docking Station earlier this year, popular TV and video accessory maker Elgato has now introduced an upgraded Thunderbolt 2 Dock.
Elgato's new dock is similar to the original, sticking with an aluminum shell and black plastic core, now with added focus on taking advantage of Macs and accessories with Thunderbolt 2 ports. The Thunderbolt 2 Dock also shuffles around the arrangement of the ports compared to the original, but maintains the same feature set.
Just like its predecessor, Elgato's new Thunderbolt 2 Dock has three USB 3.0 ports, two Thunderbolt ports, an HDMI port, an Ethernet port, audio in and out ports, and a port for the power source.
As noted by iLounge, the change in port arrangement has seen the two audio ports on the device's front swapped and now sitting to the right of the front-facing USB 3.0 port, instead of the left. The rear Ethernet port has also been moved from between the HDMI and power ports on the original to the far left of the new version's rear section, shifting everything else slightly to the right.
Elgato claims the dock can support any HDMI input display, even those reaching up to 4K resolution. The Thunderbolt 2 Dock also has a few features not offered by many other hubs: the USB ports provide enough power so that you can boost the charge of your iPhone or iPad even if your computer is shut down and not connected to the dock, use Apple SuperDrive, or even connect additional USB bus-powered devices onto an Apple Keyboard.
The same menu bar utility that enables high-powered USB support and allows for easy ejection of the Thunderbolt 2 Dock is still free and available for download.
Elgato's Thunderbolt 2 Dock comes in at the same retail price of its predecessor, $229.95 with an included Thunderbolt cable, and can be purchased from Elgato's official website. Elgato's launch comes as OWC continues to take pre-orders for its Thunderbolt 2 Dock, which will begin shipping later this month with pre-order pricing of $249 without a Thunderbolt cable. Pricing on OWC's dock will rise to $299.99 once it launches.
Clear and Ember developer Realmac Software today launched Typed, a new Markdown writing app for the Mac that emphasizes a minimal, responsive UI with multiple export features and customizable typefaces.
When a user is writing inside of Typed, the app's interface automatically scales text to fit the current window size and contains a live character and word count functionality. Content written inside of the app can also be automatically exported to a number of formats including HTML, RTF, and PDF with auto save and auto preview options.
The app also contains a full screen feature called "Zen Mode" which includes six soundtracks designed to help a writer's focus, and contains six font choices with one signature typeface that differentiates headers from body text. Typed also contains intelligent cursor placement when formatting text, keyboard shortcuts akin to other writing applications, and support for OS X Yosemite and OS X Mavericks.
Apple today announced on its website (via ifoAppleStore) that it will be opening a new store in Toledo, Ohio this Saturday, December 6. The store will be located at the Franklin Park Mall, which is home to a number of high-end and casual retailers. ifoAppleStorenotes that this newest Apple Store carries a roll-out number of 266, which indicates that the store has been planned for years. Newer Apple Stores carry a 600-series rollout number.
The Franklin Park Mall location marks Apple's first store in Toledo and eighth total in the state of Ohio. Apple's other stores in the state include locations in Akron, Cincinnati, Columbus, Westlake, and Woodmere.
The Apple Store Franklin Park Mall opens at 9:00 A.M. this Saturday, December 6, and the company is expected to hand out commemorative T-shirts to the first 1,000 customers to visit. The location has also already begun accepting reservations for workshops and Genius Bar appointments.
Last week, Japanese magazine Mac Fanpublished possible schematics depicting the design of a 12.2-inch "iPad Pro" or "iPad Air Plus". The schematics suggested that the larger-screened tablet would carry dimensions of 305.31mm x 220.8mm x 7mm, or 12 inches x 8.7 inches x 0.28 inches, which is in line with previous rumors about the device. Now, YouTube user Canoopsy (via Nowhereelse.fr) has created a video showing how an iPad Air Plus with those dimensions would measure up to Apple's other devices including the company's current iPads, iPhones and 13-inch MacBook Pro.
Some reports have noted that the larger iPad would carry a 12.9-inch display, however Mac Otakara has suggested a 12.2-inch display for the device in two of its reports. A 12.2-inch iPad Air Plus is of course shown to be much bigger than Apple's current line of iPhones and bigger than the iPad mini 3 and iPad Air 2, as it even approaches the display size of the 13-inch MacBook Pro.
The iPad Air Plus is said to also feature a new A9 processor and dual top and bottom speakers for improved audio. Mac Otakara claims that the iPad Air Plus and a new iPad mini 4 may launch between April and June of 2015. KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo also suggested earlier this month that the iPad Pro may not enter production until the second quarter of 2015 as Apple shifts its production resources towards improving supplies of the iPhone 6 Plus.
Dropbox for iOS has been updated to version 3.6 today, adding the ability to rename files and folders. Navigating to an individual file and then tapping on the new "more" action button next to the share sheet button will reveal a set of file management options that includes renaming capabilities.
Along with files, folders can also be renamed directly within the Dropbox app for iOS, with a quick swipe to the right to reveal the new renaming function.
The addition of file renaming functionality follows a recent update that saw Microsoft and Dropbox partnering up to add Dropbox support to Microsoft's suite of Office apps, allowing documents in Word, PowerPoint, and Excel to be saved to a user's Dropbox account.
- You can now rename your files and folders! - Swipe right on a folder to see more actions, including rename. - We've moved a few things around - there's a new more actions button (⋯) when viewing files - On iPhones, the more actions button (⋯) also includes the full file name, size and other details. - Edit Office documents and save them back to your Dropbox
In a blog post early this morning, Microsoft officially announced the acquisition of Acompli, developers of email client app for iOS and Android. The acquisition price was over $200 million, according to Re/code.
Acompli Email is well regarded for its vast array of features including Microsoft Exchange support, easy navigation to access recent emails and contacts, and ease of use with attachments and files.
The acquisition is a step forward for Microsoft's push on mobile productivity, including bringing Office to iOS earlier in the year. The company has kept a steady stream of updates flowing to the iOS versions of Office as well, including adding printing capabilities, third-party fonts, and, most recently, optimized iPhone versions of Word, Excel, and Powerpoint for smaller screens. Acompli is now the newest addition to Microsoft's vast array of productivity-based offerings.
We’re excited about what’s possible as we build on the app’s success and bring it together with work currently in progress by the Outlook team. Our goal is to deliver fantastic cross-platform apps that support the variety of email services people use today and help them accomplish more.
This acquisition brings us an app with innovative technology and a set of talented people who are passionate about reinventing email and communications on mobile screens. It will expedite our work to deliver the full power of Office to mobile devices. Stay tuned for more details in the coming months.
The absence of a proper Outlook app for iOS has forced many users to flock to third-party apps whose lack of certain features, particularly Exchange support, prove insufficient. Though there's no official word yet on what the company plans to do with Acompli beyond bolstering the Outlook effort, it's easy to see where it could fit in their mobile productivity suite of apps.
Apple this week is scheduled to appear in court and face accusations that it deliberately crippled competing music services and players in an iPod class action lawsuit from 2005, reports The New York Times. The trial will feature testimony from Steve Jobs, whose emails and a videotaped deposition taken before his death will play an important part in the plaintiffs' case.
The complaint focuses on Apple's older iPod models, which only supported music purchased on iTunes and songs downloaded from CDs. Also being disputed is Apple's FairPlay system of encoding purchased music, which limited music playback to the iPod and not competing MP3 players. In the suit, consumers claim Apple violated antitrust law by deliberately limiting interoperability with competitors, while exclusively promoting its products and services.
The email testimony is expected to paint Steve Jobs as an aggressive businessman who worked hard to ensure the success of the iPod and iTunes. This success often came at the expense of smaller competitors, which were not allowed to connect to Apple's popular iPod ecosystem. In one already released email, Jobs addresses Apple's lack of support for the-then upcoming MusicMatch music store.
"We need to make sure that when Music Match launches their download music store they cannot use iPod," he wrote. "Is this going to be an issue?"
Part of the case also involves Apple's interactions with RealNetworks, which devised a workaround in 2004 that allowed content from its music store to be played on the iPod. In an angry statement released to the media, Apple accused RealNetworks of hacking the iPod and threatened to disable this functionality in future iPod software updates.
To counteract Jobs' testimony, Apple is expected to argue that updates to the iPod and iTunes were designed to improve the platform for the consumer and not cripple competing devices. The company also likely will point out that the price of the iPod has gone down over the years, despite Apple's alleged monopolistic behavior.
According to a new survey conducted by analysts at UBS, interest in the smartwatch market is continuing to grow ahead of the Apple Watch launch early next year. Of the 4,000 respondents asked to partake in the survey across four different countries, about 10 percent cited that they are "very likely" to buy a smartwatch in the next year. Based on projections of Apple's iPhone sales and the current installed base of iPhones compatible with the Apple Watch, the analysts predict Apple will sell 24 million Apple Watches within the first nine months.
Figure 10 indicates that 10% of respondents (401 out of 4,000) are very likely and 17% (682 out of 4,000) somewhat likely to buy a smartwatch in the next 12 months. That is a three-fold increase vis-à-vis the 386 respondents claiming to already own a smartwatch and a four-fold increase if we assume that around one-third of the currently owned smartwatches are actually fitness bands.
Based on an estimate of 240 million iPhones compatible with Apple Watch being in customers' hands by the end of 2015, UBS suggests this could translate to 24 million Apple Watches sold in the first 9-12 months of availability, depending on supplies.
In a smaller survey of customers who registered as very likely to purchase a smart watch, the Apple Watch placed second to the Samsung Gear in buying intentions, although UBS expects those positions to reverse once the Apple Watch becomes available.
The analysts also expect the new Apple wearable to redefine the category much like previous products from the company have done for their respective technological categories. Despite first-version limitations in daily charging and iPhone tethering, UBS sees significant potential for the Apple Watch and predicts it will become the spiritual successor to the iPhone in the long-term.
Cellular and battery technology is not yet sufficiently miniaturized to fit in the Watch and allow independent functioning. We would think the ability to do so is maybe five years away. In fact, the screen size differential may mean that the Watch and the iPhone will prove complements rather than substitutes. Arguably that is the way the iPad and Mac might be playing out, different products for different jobs.
Given that about two-thirds of Apple's profit is generated by the iPhone, the company has to be concerned about the longer-term threat of replacement technology, whether it be a leap in handset technology or loss of key functions to wearables. With a sophisticated user interface and third-party apps coming on, Apple may be readying for the time when the Apple Watch encroaches on the smartphone market.
The Apple Watch is set to launch in "early 2015", reportedly in the "spring" according to an internal video from retail chief Angela Ahrendts.
While most of the major discounts appeared on Black Friday, many retailers are continuing sales on what has been called Cyber Monday. There are still significant discounts on iTunes gift cards, Macs and accessories.
T-Mobile is offering a 64GB iPhone 6 for the price of a 16GB iPhone 6, a $100 discount.
Online Retailers
- Zagg - iOS accessories 25% off - Twelve South - 25% off BookBooks - Griffin Technology - iOS/Mac Accessories - 30% off - ProClip - Car mounts for mobile devices - 20% off with code 20THANKS - Optrix - $50 off PhotoProX + Monopod bundle with code cm50
MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these retailers.
T-Mobile is offering a significant discount on its iPhone lineup for Cyber Monday, most notably taking $100 off the 64GB model of the new iPhone 6. Instead of just a straight cash discount, the carrier is offering a memory upgrade that boosts the storage of the smartphone without additional cost to the customer.
The carrier's upgrade offer allows you to buy a 16GB model iPhone 6 and receive a free upgrade to the 64GB model, a $100 savings. The promotion also extends to the iPhone 5s and 5c, with T-Mobile upgrading the 32GB iPhone 5s to the 64GB version and the 8GB iPhone 5c to the 32GB model.
T-Mobile's promotion runs until midnight Pacific Time tonight. This offer is one of several promotional pushes by the carrier designed to attract new customers to its cellular network. Earlier this year, T-Mobile introduced a generous $350 per line termination fee bonus and phone buyback program to customers who switch carriers. It also recently launched an iPhone "test drive" program that allows customers to try an iPhone on T-Mobile for seven days without cost.
Apple's iPad has lost its lead over Google's line of Chromebook laptops in the U.S. education market as Google shipped more devices to schools last quarter, according to figures released by IDC (via the Financial Times). In Q3 2014, IDC notes that Google shipped 715,500 Chromebooks to U.S. schools while Apple shipped 702,000 iPads. Analysts note that this advantage for Google's Chromebooks can be attributed to their low cost, which starts at $199 for some models.
Samsung, HP, Dell and Acer make Chromebooks and has been active promoting the device to school districts, she added. Low upfront costs and simpler device management for schools’ IT departments has increased their appeal, compared with Apple’s higher-priced tablets, which start at $379 for last year’s iPad Air, including educational discounts.
While the iPad’s touchscreen makes it a versatile device, the Chromebook’s integrated keyboard is also a factor in its appeal. “As the average age of the student grows the need for a keyboard becomes very important,” said Ms Singh.
The report also notes that the Apple still holds a commanding lead over other tablet manufacturers in the U.S. education market, as numbers from the company in July stated that the iPad had an 85% market share.
The news follows a report about the worldwide tablet market issued by IDC last week, which stated that year-over-year growth is expected to slow to 7.2% in 2014 from 52.5% in 2013. Analysts estimated that the market slowdown can be attributed to a decline in iPad shipments, as Apple is expected to ship 64.9 million iPads this calendar year which is a decline of 12.7% from 2013. Apple is rumored to be preparing a 12.2-inch "iPad Pro" for early next year, which could be equipped with faster specs than the iPad Air 2 and may be aimed at the enterprise market.
As it has done for the pastthreeyears, Apple is once again recognizing December 1 as World AIDS Day at its retail locations by coloring their Apple logos red for the occasion. Several Apple Stores in the United States and the United Kingdom are expected to change the color of their logos, with images from Twitter showing that the company's store in Sydney, Australia has already adjusted its logo.
The Apple Store in Sydney, Australia (Image credit: @AusNewsNetwork)
Last week, Apple announced a new campaign for World AIDS Day 2014 done in collaboration with (Product) RED which saw the launch of a special Apps for (RED) section in the App Store and a donation initiative. The Apps for (RED) section is active until December 7 and contains 25 well known apps with the proceeds benefiting the Global Fund to fight AIDS. All of Apple's customers who purchased a select Apple product on Friday, November 28 received a special (RED) iTunes gift card, and during December 1, Apple will donate a portion of every sale at its retail and online stores to the Global Fund to fight AIDS.
Apple sells a number of (Product) RED items where a percentage of the profits are donated to the Global Fund to fight AIDS. Throughout the past, those items have included iPod nanos and shuffles, iPad Smart Covers, iPhone Bumpers, iPhone cases, and more. This past June, (Product) RED announced that Apple had contributed $75 million to the Global Fund to fight AIDS.
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.
Japanese magazine Mac Fan has published some possible schematics depicting the design of the larger-screened "iPad Pro" or "iPad Air Plus" in its January issue, which have been shared by Mac Otakara [Google Translate] along with some information about the upcoming device.
The schematics suggest the tablet will include a 12.2-inch LCD display, and it points towards dimensions of 305.31mm x 220.8mm x 7mm, or 12 inches x 8.7 inches x 0.28 inches, which is in line with previous rumors about the larger tablet. Many rumors have suggested a size of 12.9-inches for the larger tablet, but this is the second report from Mac Otakara that has suggested the device will have a 12.2-inch display.
The "iPad Pro" or "iPad Air Plus" as Mac Fan calls it, is said to include a new A9 processor that's an upgrade from the A8X processor in the iPad Air 2, which is a bit of a deviation from previous rumors that have indicated the larger-screened tablet will use the same A8X processor introduced in the iPad Air 2.
Along with an upgraded processor, the tablet is said to have dual top and bottom speakers to allow for improved stereo audio, and design wise, the iPad Pro may look similar to the existing iPad Air 2 and the iPad mini.
Mac Fan also believes that Apple is working on an iPad mini 4, which will be equipped with the same A8X processor found in the iPad Air 2 and a thinner design that more closely resembles Apple's latest iPad Air. With the launch of the iPad mini 4, Mac Fan says both the iPad mini and the iPad mini 3 will be discontinued.
According to the report, both of these tablets may launch between April and June of 2015, which is in line with previous iPad Pro rumors. Earlier this month, reliable KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo suggested the iPad Pro may not enter mass production until the second quarter of 2015, following rumors that Apple had pushed back production to focus its attention on improving iPhone 6 Plus supply.
Star Wars: The Force Awakens is the seventh film in the Star Wars series and is set 30 years after Return of the Jedi. Directed by J.J. Abrams, the movie features actors like Andy Serkis, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Domhnall Gleeson, Gwendoline Christie, Lupita Nyong'o, and Oscar Issac, along with stars from the original films including Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, and Carrie Fisher.
In addition to being featured by Apple, the teaser for Star Wars: The Force Awakens will be shown in a selection of theaters across the United States on Friday.
The trailer was initially overwhelmed by traffic and should also appear on Apple TV, and through the iTunes Movie Trailers app for iOS. The iTunes Movie Trailers app can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]
Paypal Digital Gifts is offering $100 iTunes Gift Cards for $75 via eBay - a 25% discount, for Black Friday. The codes are delivered digitally to PayPal registered email addresses. The offer is only available to U.S. customers and expires tonight at midnight (Eastern).
Black Friday sales kicked off last night and officially continue through today. Some sales may last the weekend. We've previously provided a comprehensive list of sales on Mac, iPhone, and iPad products.
Black Friday sales below have been updated to reflect ongoing sales this weekend
While Black Friday has officially, ended, may offers continue through the weekend into Cyber Monday.
iPad Deals
Best Buy is still discounting its entire stock of iPad Air 2 tabletsby $100, which is the best deal available on Apple's newest iPad. The $100 discount applies to all colors and capacities, and brings the price of the 16GB WiFi-only iPad Air 2down to $399.
Best Buy is also discounting all of its iPad mini 3 stockby $75, dropping the price of the 16GB entry-level WiFi-only model to $324. Shoppers looking for an especially good deal may want to check out Best Buy's supply of iPad mini 2 tablets, some of which are discounted by $75 to $100.
For those unable to shop at Best Buy, Target is also offering a solid deal on the iPad Air 2, providing a $140 Target gift card with any iPad Air 2 purchase (prices start at $499). Target is also offering $100 gift cards with the purchase of the iPad mini 2, iPad mini 3, and original iPad Air in all colors and capacities.
Mac Deals
Best Buy, B&H Photo, and MacMall are offering solid deals on Apple's range of MacBooks, iMacs, and Mac minis, and Mac Pros.
B&H Photo has a $200 discount on the new 3.5GHz/8GB/1TB 5K Retina iMac, dropping the cost down to $2,299, the lowest price we've seen yet. The site also has the 6-core 3.5GHz/16GB/256GB Mac Pro for $3,499, a discount of $500, and the 15-inch 2.2GHz/16GB/256GB Retina MacBook Pro for $1,699.99, a discount of $300.
MacMall has activated their CyberMonday deals which lasts through Monday with modest deals on Macs and iPads.
Other Deals
Many retailers are also offering deals on an array of Apple products, with Beats headphones being a popular discount item. Many stores are also offering iPod touches, Apple TVs, fitness accessories, and more at low prices, and a list of deals is located in the roundup.
Online Retailers
- Speck - 25 percent off many of its iPhone cases - Casetify - exclusive 25 percent off discount site wide with the discount code MACRUMORS.
- AppShopper - running of discounts on iOS and Mac apps
Our Black Friday roundup will be updated throughout Thursday and Friday, so make sure to keep an eye on it for the best Apple deals this holiday season.
MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these retailers.
Sprint is planning to unveil a new competitive pricing promotion today that offers to cut customers' phone bills in half if they switch from Verizon or AT&T. As 
While most of the major discounts appeared on 
