MacRumors

While PrimeSense, Apple's latest acquisition, is best known for developing the chip powering Microsoft's original Kinect motion-sensing gaming system, its 3D sensors have also been used in several industries beyond television and gaming.

It has been widely rumored that Apple will incorporate motion sensing technology into a potential upgraded set top box or television set, a logical potential use for PrimeSense's assets, but other uses of PrimeSense's sensors indicate Apple could also incorporate the technology into Macs and mobile devices, 3D scanners, or interactive retail displays.

Multiple companies have already taken advantage of PrimeSense technology via its existing Carmine sensors and NiTE natural interaction middleware.

The Technology

PrimeSense uses "Light Coding" for its 3D depth sensing, which involves a near-IR light source that projects an invisible light into a room or a scene. A separate CMOS image sensor then reads the IR-light and captures it along with a series of synchronized images.

The infrared patterns cast by the IR-light, which enable depth acquisition, are then deciphered by the company's chips to create a virtual image of a scene or object.

Mobile Devices, Gaming, and Mapping

PrimeSense's newest 3D sensor and most recent technology, the Capri, is a system-on-a-chip small enough to be incorporated into mobile devices and laptop computers. According to PrimeSense, the Capri enables a mobile device to "see the world in 3D," letting users interact with their surroundings, "blurring between the real and virtual worlds."

A demo of the Capri at Google I/O earlier this year focused heavily on the augmented reality applications of the technology rather than gesture-based uses. The Capri is able to scan a full environment in 3D, including furniture and people, providing an on-screen representation. It is also able to measure virtual objects and provide relative distances and sizes, which could have a number of uses in interactive gaming, indoor mapping, and other applications.

Apple has filed several different patents that pertain to similar technology, including a 2009 patent that referenced "hyper-reality" displays to allow users to view 3D objects on electronic devices and a 2012 patent describing the use of motion sensors to create a virtual three-dimensional interface for iOS devices.

At Google I/O, PrimeSense suggested that its Capri chip was ready for market and could be embedded into various mobile devices by manufacturers. An embedded Capri chip could then be used in "hundreds of thousands" of applications created by app developers using a companion SDK. Apple could potentially include the Capri or a similar chip in its future iOS or Mac devices as well as a potential set top box or television, opening up a new avenue of app development.

3D Scanning and Printing

PrimeSense's chips can be used to create highly accurate 360 degree scans of real world objects, which can then be sent to 3D printers to create an exact replica of an object. The technology can also be used to scan real world objects and incorporate them into applications, which PrimeSense has demoed as useful in home decorating and catalog-style apps.

PrimeSense's 3D scanning technology has already been used by 3D Systems to create a 3D peripheral scanner called "Sense," which is aimed at consumers. Apple has expressed some interest in 3D printing to create prototype products and PrimeSense’s sub millimeter accuracy 3D scans could possibly be useful in the creation process.

Interactive Displays and Retail

On its website, PrimeSense describes interactive digital displays that incorporate touch, almost touch, object pointing, and gesture interfaces that can be used to attract and engage users as well as incorporating analytics information such as people counting, tracking, and demographics classification.

With PrimeSense sensors, digital signs and displays can respond to people's presence and movement via touch or "almost touch," which allows 3D sensors to "see the space between the user and the display."

Apple is reportedly working on increasing customer engagement at its Apple Stores, through the implementation of Bluetooth LE iBeacons that would give customers additional information on products via their own mobile devices. PrimeSense’s technology could also be used to improve customer engagement, through the use of immersive, interactive displays and 3D technology incorporated into its Apple Store apps.

Currently, companies like Bodymetrics use the technology to allow customers to get their bodies scanned in-store and at home, which then facilitates virtual try-ons.

Competition

Though Microsoft originally relied on PrimeSense technology for the Kinect, it purchased PrimeSense rival Canesta in 2010 and has since developed its own in-house solutions for the Kinect motion sensing system that shipped with the recently released Xbox One.

At the time of Microsoft's purchase, PrimeSense rival Canesta was believed to have more potential as it utilized a specialized chip geared specifically towards 3D recognition, while PrimeSense was more affordable. It is unclear how the two technologies compare at the current point in time, but PrimeSense will undoubtedly flourish under Apple’s wing.

Future Use

While news of Apple’s PrimeSense acquisition first surfaced in July, confirmation of the purchase didn't come until November, suggesting a long period of negotiations. Apple is reported to have paid $345 million for PrimeSense, which employs approximately 150 employees in Tel Aviv and several other locations around the world.

It is not known how Apple plans to incorporate PrimeSense's sensors and software into its products, but there are a wide range of possibilities for the technology. According to PrimeSense, its Capri chip is immediately ready for deployment, but as the technology is already several months old and rather large, it is likely that Apple will work with PrimeSense on developing new technology custom built for Apple products.

Late last week, we highlighted a pair of Apple patent applications offering details on the company's implementation of its "Touch ID" fingerprint sensor in the iPhone 5s. The highly technical patent applications showed how the system works and revealed that Apple first moved to protect the ideas with the filing of several provisional patent applications in May 2012.

A third Touch ID-related patent application filed by Apple also quietly surfaced last week (via Unwired View) but has flown under the radar until now because it appears to have published on the World Intellectual Property Organization's database but not the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's database.

This third patent application is the most revealing yet with regard to Touch ID, showing how Apple has envisioned expanding the feature to incorporate trackpad functionalities, tracking movements of a user's finger or thumb over the sensor to navigate through user interfaces on the device's screen. In one example, Apple shows how a user moving his or her finger right to left across the Touch ID home button could pan a map, with a subsequent upward movement across the home button triggering activation of a multitasking interface.

Other examples show how users could take advantage of "revolving" or "twisting" motions of their fingerprints on the Touch ID home button to initiate actions. Adding the ability to recognize presses of various durations for the Touch ID home button and even sensors for detecting how hard the button is being pressed could offer even more powerful user interface navigation capabilities right from the home button.

Moving beyond the home button, Apple addresses the possibility of integrating Touch ID right into a device's display, allowing any area of the screen to be dynamically designated as a sensing region for the user's fingerprint. In one example, the area of a display representing the device's email app could require a valid fingerprint touching the icon in order for authorization to be granted.

Overall, Apple's patent application is a massive 610-page document incorporating 464 claims covering a wide range of applications for Touch ID in the future. Beyond the examples highlighted here, the application covers a number of other areas including:

- Enhanced touch typing recognition through sensing which fingers are touching the keys
- Using pressure and movement sensing to turn the home button into a simple game controller
- Using revolving "scroll wheel" motions on the home button to navigate through multitasking app listings
- Using fingerprint verification to enforce parental controls on age-rated media content, restrict maximum device volume, or automatically increase font sizes for children, seniors, or visually-impaired users
- Autofilling web forms or loading personalized web pages based on fingerprint identification
- Supporting multi-user profiles including authorized and guest profiles through fingerprint authorization
- Authorizing location "check-ins", mobile payment information, or photo/document author tagging based on fingerprint identification
- Supporting simultaneous multi-user configurations by allowing users to define separate areas of a device's screen for drawings, notes, or other content based on fingerprint recognition

Apple's patent application was filed on May 20, 2013, but cites as priority several provisional patent applications dated as far back as May 2012.

Apple has posted a teaser page on its Australian online Apple Store for a "one-day Apple shopping event" on Friday, November 29th.

The one-day Apple shopping event is Friday, 29 November.

Shop online and get free shipping, or visit your favourite Apple Retail Store.

Black Friday, which is a major shopping day in the United States and several other countries, marks the kickoff of the holiday shopping season. On Black Friday, retailers often offer significant discounts on popular products to lure customers into their stores.

Apple's international online and retail stores also participate in these sales, though Apple's discounts tend to be very modest. Last year's discounts for Apple's core products were as follows (in USD):

- iPad with Retina Display - $41 Off
- iPad 2 - $31 Off
- iPod touch - $ 31 Off
- iPod touch 4th Generation - $21 Off
- iPod nano - $11 Off
- MacBook Pro with Retina - $101 Off
- MacBook Pro - $101 Off
- MacBook Air - $101 Off

For absolute savings, customers will have better luck with third- party merchants that tend to offer steeper discounts on Apple products on Black Friday. We have also gathered all of the best deals on Apple products and accessories into a comprehensive roundup.

Following a September report stating that Apple may be working with Quanta Computer to develop a larger-sized iPad, Digitimes is now reporting that the Taiwanese-based manufacturer has landed the contract to mass-produce the tablet for the second half of 2014. Just last week, a report had claimed that the larger iPad was being targeted for an early 2014 launch.

The article also mentions that Quanta is expected to face difficulties when assembling the larger iPad because of its unique industrial design and assembly, which could also lead to constrained supplies:

Quanta is expected to encounter several challenges in terms of industrial design and assembly when making the large-size iPad. And since the size is not the mainstream specification, order volumes are expected to be limited, the sources said.

Component makers have also reportedly started pilot production for the iWatch, although low yields are rumored to be the reason behind delaying mass production of the device from Q1 2014 to Q2 2014. Quanta, Inventec, and Foxconn are said to be competing for iWatch production orders.

Last week's report from The Korea Times indicated that production of a 12-9-inch Retina Display to be used in a next-generation iPad was already underway at an Apple supplier in Korea. The larger tablet is also said to carry an improved display nearing ultra high-definition (UHD) quality, which would be significantly bigger and contain many more pixels than Apple's current 9.7-inch iPad Air.

Meanwhile, iWatch reports have surfaced occassionally in the past couple of weeks, with Apple rumored to be releasing both 1.7 and 1.3-inch display sizes of the watch for men and women. NPD DisplaySearch analyst Paul Gagnon also noted that Apple appears to have put its major television product plans on hold for the time being in order to focus on wearables such as the iWatch.

Apple has confirmed its acquisition of Israeli 3D body sensing firm PrimeSense, reports AllThingsD. The move comes after months of speculation, as Apple was first reported in July to be looking to acquire the firm behind the original 3D body sensing technology used by Microsoft for its Kinect platform. The negotiations gained notoriety again earlier this month as Apple was said to be on the verge of a deal, agreeing to purchase PrimeSense for approximately $345 million, but was held up due to a final legal issue.

Apple spokeswoman Kristin Huguet confirmed the PrimeSense deal with the boilerplate comment the company typically provides when news of one of its acquisitions leaks: “Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans.”

The report also notes that while PrimeSense became known for developing Microsoft's first-generation Kinect sensor, Microsoft has since deployed its own homegrown sensor technology for the current generation Kinect, which currently ships with the Xbox One.

Apple has expressed interest in Kinect-like motion control of such products as appliances and vehicle instrumentation, but the main area where the company has been rumored to be using the technology is in television. Reports have indicated that Apple is looking at Kinect-like motion control for its future television set, although the project is said to be seeing continuing delays due to difficult content negotiations with Apple shifting its near-term focus to wearables such as the "iWatch."

Yesterday, the one-of-a-kind products designed by Apple's senior vice president of design Jony Ive and designer Marc Newson were sold off at Sotheby's charity auction to benefit Product (RED), with winning bids for the four products ranging from $461,000 to $1,805,000.

Most notably, the one-of-a-kind red Mac Pro designed by the duo was sold for $977,000, with the desktop computer originally estimated to sell at a max of $60,000. Additionally, the pair of solid gold Apple EarPods from the designers sold for $461,000 and was previously estimated to grab a max bid of $25,000. The special edition Leica camera and the one-of-a-kind aluminum desk sold for $1,805,000 and $1,685,000, with both originally estimated to sell at max prices of $750,000 and $500,000 respectively.

The auction also included the sale of many other items curated and in some cases customized by Ive and Newson, such as a Steinway & Sons grand piano that sold for $1,925,000 and a customized magnum of Dom Perignon 1966 with a custom red label that sold for $93,750.

Both designers have gotten a great amount of press coverage over the past few weeks leading up to the auction, with the designers being interviewed by Vanity Fair to talk about the collaborative design process and the amount of work that went into the products, as well as an interview on the Charlie Rose Show discussing their overall obsession with perfection. The two had also previously appeared in a video discussing the auction and their role in it.

In total, all of products auctioned off at the special event raised nearly $13 million. Proceeds from the auction will go to Product (RED), a longtime Apple partner. Apple has raised more than $65 million for the charity since 2006.

Black Friday, which is a major shopping day in the United States, marks the kickoff of the holiday shopping season.

During Black Friday, retailers often offer significant discounts on popular products to lure customers into their stores, so we've gathered all of the best deals on Apple products and accessories into a comprehensive roundup.

In the roundup, we've listed the best deals on popular Apple products at the top of the page, which is followed by a list of deals by retailer. There's also a list of notable discounts on accessories and software, as well as a section that covers broader holiday deals.

Currently, the best deals on iPads can be found at Target, where an iPad Air is essentially priced down to $379 after taking into account a $100 Target gift card with purchase. Walmart is offering the original iPad mini for $199 ($299 with a $100 Walmart gift card). As for the Retina iPad mini, Target is offering a $75 gift card with the purchase of any mini, but it is unclear how much Retina mini stock stores will have. Target stores have begun receiving small quantities of Retina iPad minis this week.

For the iPhone 5s, Walmart is offering the best price at $114 (including $75 gift card) with a two year contract. Target is offering a $50 discount, bringing the price to $150. Walmart also has the best price on the iPhone 5c, essentially paying customers $30 to purchase one ($45 base price plus a $75 gift card). Sam's Club also has a holiday sale on November 24 where the iPhone 5c will be sold for $0.96.

Because there is a week remaining until Black Friday, there are still multiple retailers who have yet to release holiday pricing. Apple, for example, always offers small price cuts on its products and is likely to do so again this year.

We will continue to keep tabs on the best deals available and update our Black Friday roundup over the course of the next week as new discounts continue to surface. The Black Friday roundup, along with the rest of our roundups, can be accessed through our roundup index page or through the "Roundups" tab in the navigation bar on all MacRumors pages.

A pair of patent applications related to Apple's new flagship iPhone feature Touch ID shed some new light on how the fingerprint sensor itself works, as well as the "Secure Enclave" inside the A7 processor that analyzes and stores user fingerprints.

The first, as noticed by Patently Apple, details a method by which the iPhone scans a finger and then provides that data to the "Secure Enclave" for matching and eventual approval.

Rather than storing actual images of fingerprints, Apple takes a fingerprint map and runs it through a sort of encryption to prevent thieves from pulling fingerprint data from a compromised iPhone. The enclave only allows fingerprints to be checked against known valid ones, not the other way around.

From Patently Apple:

Apple's invention includes a process of collapsing the full [finger] maps into a sort of checksum, hash function, or histogram. For example, each encrypted ridge map template can have some lower resolution pattern computed and associated with the ridge map. One exemplary pattern could be a histogram of, e.g., the most common angles (e.g., a 2 dimensional (2D) array of common angles). The exemplary pattern could include in each slot an average value over a respective vector of the map. The exemplary pattern could include in each slot a sum of the values over a respective vector of the map. The exemplary pattern could include the smallest or largest value within a respective vector of the map, or could be a difference between a largest and a smallest value within the respective vector of the map.

One interesting note about the secure enclave patent is the main inventor, Wayne Westerman. He was one of the lead inventors on the multi-touch technology that Apple eventually purchased and uses as the key feature in Apple's billion-dollar iPhone and iPad lines. Westerman has been a senior engineer at Apple since his company, Fingerworks, was purchased by Apple in 2005.

In a separate application, Apple lays out the different parts that make up the Touch ID fingerprint sensor, including the different bits that Apple shows off in its marketing materials (shown below). Bottom image courtesy Patently Apple.

AppleInsider notes that the patent addresses the opaque home button that nonetheless scans fingerprints:

Touch ID's aesthetic treatments have been included as well, as the patent details "an ink assembly...printed on the lens" that "has the effect that the otherwise-translucent button can be made opaque, so the elements of the fingerprint recognition sensor are not immediately visible to the user."

Neither patent has yet been awarded, with the applications initially filed in March. Provisional applications were filed back in May of 2012, illustrating how long the technology has been in development.

Many U.S. and Canadian Apple Retail Stores will be opening early on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving and the traditional start of the holiday shopping season. Apple had planned to open some stores on Thanksgiving day itself, but CEO Tim Cook cancelled that plan because he wanted employees to be with their families on the holiday.

Shoppers interested in going to Apple Stores as early as possible, on the only day of the year that Apple offers sale prices on its merchandise, should check Apple's Retail Store Locations page where special holiday hours are posted on each store's page. Some locations will be opening as early as 6AM.

Some retail stores in other countries have pop-ups as well, as many countries will see extended holiday hours as we move deeper into the holiday season.

In past years, Apple has offered discounts on iPads, iPods and some Mac models on Black Friday.

Apple today updated its U.S. online store to begin offering sales of unlocked, SIM-free iPhone 5s models, with shipping estimates currently set at 1-2 weeks compared to 3-5 business days for carrier-specific purchases (via 9to5Mac). Pricing is the same as for other unsubsidized iPhone 5s models, with the 16/32/64 GB models available for $649/$749/$849 respectively.

While the launch brings official unlocked device sales to Apple's stores for the first time, many of the carrier-specific models sold by Apple have been unlocked all along when purchased at full retail price. For example, the T-Mobile iPhone 5s models sold by Apple have been unlocked since launch, although the company has not been specifically marketing them as such. There had been some early confusion about the issue, as Apple initially listed some iPhone 5s models as unlocked leading up to the launch, but the company removed that text at launch time.

With today's addition, the company is now more clear about offering unlocked models without the need for any SIM card to be included at the time of purchase, with the models available for use on a number of carriers around the world.

As Apple notes on the store page, unlocked iPhone 5s devices are model are A1533 and are compatible only with GSM networks.

Following a surprise launch last week that saw Apple's retail stores offering the new Retina iPad mini only for Personal Pickup of online orders, the company's U.S. stores have now begun selling the device to walk-in customers. Supplies do, however, remain extremely tight, and thus ordering online for Personal Pickup to secure a specific model is still advised.

The launch of walk-in sales was noted this morning in a research note from Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Brian White, who indicated that a number of New York City stores received shipments designated for walk-in customers last night and this morning. MacRumors has confirmed that walk-in sales are now being offered in some stores, although one store contacted by MacRumors reported that it was still offering only Personal Pickup options.

Apple has also updated its iPad retail page to simply encourage customers to purchase in-store, rather than specifically noting that they should purchase the Retina iPad mini online for in-store pickup.

The tight supply constraints on Retina iPad mini models mean that Personal Pickup remains unavailable for many models at many stores, with several supply trackers attempting to help customers determine whether their desired models are available in their areas. Online orders through Apple's U.S. online store continue to show 5-10 business day shipping estimates for all models.

Update 10:40 AM: White has issued a new note reporting that 26 out of 32 stores surveyed by his team currently have at least some stock of Retina iPad mini models available for walk-in purchase.

Following a discussion about the duo's design vision and obsession with perfection in a Vanity Fair article last month, Apple's senior vice president of design Jonathan Ive and industrial designer Marc Newson appeared on the Charlie Rose show last night, with airings of the interview occurring last night on PBS and again tonight on Bloomberg TV.

Simplicity is refining and being able to define the very essence of what something does, and therefore you understand what it is and you understand what it does....but simplicity for us, it's not just the absence of clutter, it's not just stuff that's not there, it's this tremendous gravity to trying to find that very simple solution.

Ive and Newson have collaborated numerous times throughout the past few months to select and customize products for Sotheby's charity auction to benefit Product (RED), including a one-of-a-kind Leica camera, an aluminum desk, solid gold Apple EarPods, and a one-of-a-kind red Mac Pro. Product (RED) has been a longtime Apple partner, with the company raising more than $65 million for the charity since 2006. The two had previously appeared in a video discussing the auction and their role in it.

Update: The full video of the duo's interview on the show has been posted above.

Apple has published a new page on its website dubbed "Life on iPad", which documents six stories of people using their iPads in various ways to improve their lives. The page, which was first discovered by The Verge, also includes copy highlighting how people have used the iPad in ways that Apple hadn't foreseen.

The six stories focus on Siemens Energy-Wind Service, champion speed skater Bridie Farrell, Palmaz Vineyards, Riviera Racing Team owner and driver Mark Post, Broadway director and choreographer Jeff Whiting, and Dr. Itaru Endo, director of digestive surgery and liver transplantation for Yokohoma City University.

All six stories detail how each person and/or company is able to use the iPad to enhance either their lives, careers, and businesess or others' lives. For instance, Dr. Endo's story discusses how he and his team created iPad apps to to reduce the possibility of complications during surgery.

The app uses augmented reality to overlay complex vascular systems during operations. This reveals liver perfusion patterns that are invisible to the human eye, giving greater insight into the exact location of certain blood vessels. The app also shows local blood flow territories and assesses potential risks in real time. “The visualization of liver blood vessels puts surgeons at ease,” Dr. Endo explains, “and it helps to ensure that the right incisions are made at the right time.”

The new page also includes the "Life on iPad" video that debuted at the company's iPad Air event in October and stays in line with Apple's recent theme of highlighting the iPad's ability to be used for a wide variety of tasks, from everything to games and media consumption and creation to business and educational needs.

Apple today released an updated version of OS X 10.9.1 for developers and AppleSeed members, which carries a build number of 13B35. The first version of 10.9.1 seeded to developers last week had a build number of 13B27.

Build 13B35 of OS X 10.9.1 includes several fixes for Gmail in OS X Mail, along with improvements to Smart Mailbox functionality. It also fixes an emoji bug with VoiceOver and provides updates to the Shared Links tab when the Safari Sidebar is open. Apple previously released several Mail fixes in a standalone Mail update for Mavericks users.

The 10.9.1 update improves the stability and compatibility of your Mac, and is recommended for all OS X Mavericks users.

The update includes the following fixes:

- Improved support for Gmail in OS X Mail, and fixes for users with custom Gmail settings
- Improves the reliability of Smart Mailboxes and search in Mail
- Fixes an issue that prevented contact groups from working properly in Mail
- Resolves an issue that prevented VoiceOver from speaking sentences that contain emoji
- Updates Shared Links periodically when open in the Safari Sidebar
- Improves compatibility of the VPN server in OS X Server

Registered developers and AppleSeed members can download the update through the software update tool in the Mac App Store.