MacRumors

Pebble today announced that its second-generation smart watch, the Pebble Steel, will be available in Best Buy stores beginning on June 15.

First announced in January, the Pebble Steel features a stainless steel body with a leather or steel band, an upgrade from the plastic design of the first-generation Pebble. The Pebble Steel also features smaller side and top bezels than the original, for a slimmer, lighter profile.

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Pebble Steel has been incredibly popular since we launched it at CES in January, with demand far exceeding our expectations. Our premium smartwatch takes everything our users love about the original Pebble--simplicity, ease of use, weeklong battery life, water resistant design, rich notifications, the Pebble appstore, and regular updates--and wraps it up in a sleek new stainless steel and Corning Gorilla Glass body.

When purchased from the Pebble website, the Steel retails for $249, a price that includes both a steel and leather band. The version sold through Best Buy will include just a leather band for a price of $229.

In addition to being available at Best Buy retail stores and the Best Buy website this Sunday, the Pebble Steel will continue to be available through the Pebble website.

One of the major iOS 8 announcements at last week's Worldwide Developers Conference was support for systemwide third-party keyboards, and a number of prominent keyboard developers have announced their intention to support iOS. Fleksy was the first to share a photo of its keyboard running on iOS 8, and today TouchPal has posted a video of its keyboard in action.


TouchPal's video shows its keyboard supporting gesture/sliding input similar to Swype, as demoed in the stock Messages app on iOS 8. TouchPal also supports autocorrect and predictive word suggestions, although these are not shown in the demo.

While iOS 8's public release is still several months away, it's clear that keyboard developers, many of whom including Swype, Adaptxt and SwiftKey have honed their offerings on Android, are moving quickly to support iOS.

Several major keyboard developers have already been working with iOS, as seen with the SwiftKey Note app with Evernote integration and Fleksy's developer tools that allow developers to add support for the firm's predictive keyboard on an app-by-app basis. As a result, we expect quite a few third-party options ready for the iOS 8 launch.

ipad_air_family_20136Displays for Apple's next-generation iPad Air are set to begin production this month, reports Korean site ETNews [Google Translation] (via AmongTech), with other major parts such as the camera module also set to enter production soon.

Apple's second iPad Air is expected to continue to feature the same featherweight design introduced with the first iPad Air, using the same 9.7-inch Retina LCD with a resolution of 2048 x 1536. LG Display will begin production on the displays in June, with Samsung and Sharp ramping up production next month.

Though the next-generation iPad Air will not see any design changes, it may see some hardware improvements in the form of an upgraded 8-megapixel rear camera, an improvement over the current 5-megapixel camera. It may incorporate the same 8-megapixel camera used in the iPhone 5s, which also includes a larger sensor for improved low-light performance. iOS 8 will also bring photography updates to both Apple's existing and next-generation iPad Airs, in the form of new panoramic and time-lapse modes.

Along with a better camera, the iPad Air is unsurprisingly expected to include an upgraded A8 processor to improve both performance and battery life and the Touch ID fingerprint sensor first introduced with the iPhone 5s.

It is unclear when Apple plans to release its second-generation iPad Air, but rumors have pointed towards a release in September or October, which would be in line with previous iPad releases. Apple's Retina iPad mini is expected to be updated at the same time, featuring many of the same improvements.

Related Roundup: iPad
Tag: ETNews
Buyer's Guide: iPad (Buy Now)
Related Forum: iPad

Earlier this year, Apple was rumored to be in negotiations with chipmaker Renesas Electronics to acquire its Renesas SP Drivers division, which produces chips for smartphone displays including the iPhone. Talks between the companies reportedly "failed to make progress," with touchpad and touchscreen maker Synaptics entering the picture as the likely acquirer. As noted by Reuters, that deal is now official, with Synaptics paying $475 million for Renesas SP Drivers.

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Synaptics previously supplied the scroll wheel for the first iPod, but lost Apple as a customer when the Cupertino company decided to bring its touch technology in house. Synaptics hopes to bring back Apple as a customer now that it will be acquiring Renesas SP Drivers in a deal expected to close later this year.

"Our better opportunities are really complementary technologies to what they do internally. And at this junction I don't believe they do any driver chips internally so that would really be an opportunity for us," Synaptics Inc Chief Executive Rick Bergman said to Reuters.

Synaptics reportedly will use this acquisition to develop a single-chip solution that combines its touch technology with Renesas SP's display technology. This combined chipset is projected to improve display performance and lower component cost for smartphone makers such as Apple and Samsung. Synaptics also manufactures fingerprint sensors and controls 90 percent of the market after it acquired fingerprint ID provider Validity for $255 million last year.

Related Forum: iPhone

Nearly six months post launch, base configurations of the new Mac Pro are now available to ship within 24 hours from Apple's online store for its North American and Asia Pacific regions. Base models in other countries are still listed at 3-5 business days, but those should also move to 24 hours soon. Custom-configured models are listed as available to ship in 1 -2 weeks in most countries.

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In addition to orders for shipment, base Mac Pro systems are now also available for same-day Personal Pickup in select U.S. Apple retail stores.

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Apple's latest Mac Pro model is assembled in the U.S. at an Austin, Texas facility run by Flextronics. Tim Cook and Eddy Cue recently visited the factory, which has been receiving praise for bringing manufacturing back to the U.S. The plant is approximately a mile away from Apple's expanding Northwest Austin campus that has added more than 700 workers with the recent first expansion phase and eventually will add 3,600 employees to the previous 3,100 employee campus by the end of 2021.

Since the Mac Pro debuted at the end of 2013, Apple has been quiet on the hardware front in 2014, pushing out a small upgrade to the MacBook Air and a new 8 GB iPhone 5c for some markets. Apple is rumored to be working on a Retina MacBook Air and new iMac models, perhaps including a more affordable iMac that will address growth in foreign markets.

Related Roundup: Mac Pro
Buyer's Guide: Mac Pro (Neutral)
Related Forum: Mac Pro

Taiwanese media star and race car driver Jimmy Lin has once again surfaced showing what he seems to be passing off as a legitimate iPhone 6, although the device is more likely to be one of many physical mockups seen in recent months.

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Lin has a history of such postings, having shared what he claimed was a mini iPad back in 2010 two years before the real iPad mini debuted, what was clearly an iPhone 5 mockup, and what appears to have been a knockoff iPhone 5c shell or dummy unit based on accurate design specs that were circulating ahead of the device's release last year.

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In his latest "iPhone 6" photos, Lin shows the device next to the iPhone 5 and 5s, comparisons that have been seen in a number of different settings already. Among the suspect aspects of his unit are what appears to be a nonfunctional yellow blank in place of the rear flash, a larger than expected FaceTime camera hole, and a lack of any photos with the unit turned on.

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Lin's unit appears very similar to one we've seen in photos sent by a supplier to screen protector and stylus firm Halo-Direct, although this unit lacks the Apple logo seen on Lin's.

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The 4.7-inch iPhone 6 is expected to debut around the September timeframe, with an even larger 5.5-inch model reportedly also in the works. It is unclear, however, where that larger model will debut alongside or up to several months later than the smaller version.

Related Forum: iPhone

Apple is planning to update its iMac line with faster processors and lower prices next week, according to a new report from MacGeneration (Google Translate). Citing the same sources that correctly predicted the MacBook Air refresh this past April, the website also notes that Apple may also include Thunderbolt 2 ports on the new iMacs and will launch them later in the week instead of the usual Tuesday release day as done for other Apple products.

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Like the MacBook Air refresh, Apple may be planning to increase the processor speed of at least some configurations by 100 MHz by using a number of recently launched processors, including the 3.3 GHz i5-4590, the 3.4 GHz i5-4690, and 3.6 GHz i7-4790 for the 27-inch model as well as the 3.0 GHz i5-4590S and 3.2 GHz i5-4790S for the 21.5-inch model. It is also possible that Apple will cut the price of the standard iMac configurations to go along with these minor spec bumps.

KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo predicted last year and earlier this year that Apple would be launching a lower-cost iMac in the near future to address growth in foreign markets.

Meanwhile, recent evidence in the OS X Yosemite developer preview has also indicated that Apple is gearing up to launch Retina Display-equipped iMacs in the near future. It is possible that Apple may then initially move to split the iMac lineup, selling the Retina models at higher price points alongside cheaper non-Retina models. A lower price point for the non-Retina models may also help address growth in critical foreign markets such as China.

Related Roundup: iMac
Buyer's Guide: iMac (Neutral)
Related Forum: iMac

Photos from the winners of the seventh annual iPhone Photography Awards have been posted on the IPPA website, offering a look at some of the best pictures taken with the iPhone over the course of the past year.

Like last year, the photos include a range of subjects, from landscapes and animals to people and macro shots. The winning photo, featuring a hiker on a snowy mountain comes from photographer Julio Lucas. The second and third place photos feature a shadowed man and a spotted dog on a matching background.

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Along with three top winners, the IPPA also has awards for several different categories, including animals, architecture, children, flowers, food, landscape, nature, and more. A closeup snapshot of a fox won in the animal category and a fantastic shot of an incoming storm won in the panorama category.

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According to the rules of the contest, all of the photos were taken with an iPhone. While photo editing apps like Instagram, VSCO, and Snapseed were permitted, no external manipulation was allowed.

Apple's iPhone 5 and iPhone 5s continue to be, by far, the most popular cameras on photo sharing site Flickr and Apple has remained committed to improving the iPhone's camera with each new iteration. Several camera improvements were introduced with the iPhone 5s, including a True-Tone flash and an improved sensor, and even more camera improvements are expected with the upcoming iPhone 6.

Photos from all of the winners of the iPhone Photography Awards can be found on the IPPA website.

Construction at Apple's Spaceship campus continues, with the circular building beginning to take shape according to an image posted to Twitter by KCBS news and traffic reporter Ron Cervi (via 9to5Mac).

In the most recent shot, a wall has been built around the perimeter of the building, outlining where the foundation will be poured. A different tweet by @DawnMortensen notes that Pruneridge Avenue, a road that runs through the campus itself, has been permanently closed.

Street-level photographs back in December revealed several buildings still standing, but another aerial photo from February suggested a large portion of the demolition work had been completed. During construction, Apple has closed off sidewalks and built a large green privacy fence to keep the area hidden.

Campus 2

Cervi has been posting a number of images of the campus over the past few months, tracking the progress of construction. Campus 2 is expected to open in 2016.

Ringly, a new iPhone-connected smart ring designed for women, uses Bluetooth LE to connect to a phone, lighting up and buzzing to alert users of calls, messages, emails, and other app notifications.

Billed as the first connected ring, Ringly aims to allow users to continue to receive notifications even while a phone is put away in a bag or otherwise unavailable. The ring, which lasts for up to three days on a single charge, connects to an accompanying iPhone app to deliver notifications.

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Ringly creates jewelry and accessories that connect to your phone and notify you about the things that matter most. Put your phone away and enjoy the moment.

Ringly is designed to light up or vibrate when a notification is received, and it is entirely customizable by the end user. It features four vibration patterns and five colors that can be assigned to different notifications. Incoming Twitter notifications might buzz in a certain way, for example, while a phone call might light up. The ring is also able to sync with reminders, letting users know when a meeting or appointment is coming up.


Ringly is available in three sizes (6,7, and 8) with four different designs that feature precious and semi-precious stones in 18K matte gold settings. Three of the rings can be pre-ordered for $145, while a fourth ring sells for $180. The rings will retail for considerably more, starting at $195. The first 1,000 rings sold are also advertised as having a real diamond in the side.

Apple has expanded the content available on iTunes Radio with a new ESPN Radio station and more than 40 local National Public Radio (NPR) stations. First noticed by AppleInsider, the new stations can be accessed directly within iTunes Radio on both iOS devices and desktop computers via a search, though the new stations may be available to some users in the Featured section.

The ESPN Radio station on iTunes Radio offers the same live streaming content that is available through traditional ESPN radio affiliates, and the schedule of content can be found on the ESPN Radio website. Content includes national sports talk shows including Mike & Mike, The Freddie Colman Show, The Dan LeBatard Show, and more.

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Special events, such as the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Major League Baseball playoffs and World Series, and college football will be broadcast on the station, kicking off with the broadcast of the Atlanta Braves vs. the Colorado Rockies game on Wednesday, June 11 at 5 PM Pacific Time.

"We are thrilled to make our industry-leading sports talk and championship play-by-play content available to fans via iTunes Radio," said Traug Keller, senior vice president, ESPN production business divisions. "And we are excited to partner with Apple to expand our digital reach. Our fans can look forward to expanded ESPN Audio offerings on both the national and local sports levels in the future."

Along with the new ESPN station, there are over 40 new NPR stations from cities like Los Angeles, San Diego, Chicago, Austin, and more. NPR first came to iTunes Radio back in March with the launch of a national news channel and at that time, NPR officials promised additional content from local stations. Content provided will include a mix of live and taped news.

iTunes Radio, which launched alongside iOS 7 last September, is still limited to the United States and Australia. Apple does, however, have plans to expand iTunes Radio to the UK, Canada, and New Zealand in the near future, eventually bringing the service at least 100 countries.

Amazon has updated its Kindle app for iOS to version 4.3, adding the ability to listen to the Audible version of Kindle books that you own. According to Amazon, there are over 45,000 Kindle/Audible titles eligible for this new in-app listening feature.

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The new Audible feature ties into Amazon's Whispersync technology, which automatically syncs progress between the Kindle and Audible versions of a book. The feature allows Amazon customers to read a book at home and then listen from where they left off when they open the Audible version of the book. In order for his feature to work, customers must own both the Kindle and Audible version of the book title.

Other changes in Kindle 4.3 for iOS version include the ability to download a collection of books, the addition of a sleep timer and new narration speeds up to 2x. Amazon also improved its X-Ray search feature and improved overall performance and stability of the app.

Kindle for iOS is a free app that can be downloaded from the App Store. [Direct Link]

Last week, it was reported that Apple has begun producing some of its television ads internally rather than relying on longtime partner TBWA, and now Ad Age has an extensive look at the company's evolving ad strategy that is seeing much more work being brought in-house.

Amid criticisms that it has failed to innovate, Apple is increasingly taking marketing into its own hands. It's madly building an internal agency that it's telling recruits will eventually number 1,000 -- the size of Grey Advertising. It's pitting TBWA/MAL against this internal agency with "jump balls" to mine the best creative ideas, a controversial tactic with outside agencies, let alone an internal one. It's going after some of adland's boldest-faced names to staff its in-house shop -- in some cases, it's even poached executives from TBWA/MAL. And, in what once would have been seen as a sacrilegious breach of the Apple-MAL bond, it's been inviting some of the ad industry's top shops to pitch on major projects.

The report notes that Apple's hiring efforts have frequently received a "frosty reception", with some ad executives feeling that Apple has lost its creative energy while others worry about the cost of living in Cupertino.

"Powerful" iPhone 5s ad delivered by TBWA/Media Arts Lab

Still, it's clear that Apple has been working to shake up its advertising efforts over the past several years, with Apple executives having serious issues with some of TBWA's work. Apple had reportedly considered dropping TBWA, but the two longtime partners have continued to work together even as Apple has looked to other internal and external groups for new creative sparks.

The lengthy report is an interesting read highlighting Apple's sometimes controversial tactics with respect to TBWA, as well as an examination of what the future may hold for the relationship between Apple and its longtime ad agency. Amid continued growth by Apple and concerns over the quality of some recent ad campaigns, it's understandable that Apple has been looking at various strategies for raising its advertising game, but just how things will play out over the long-term remains to be seen.

Apple's quarterly iPhone sales may beat Wall Street estimates, based on new data from Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty. According to the firm's AlphaWise Smartphone Tracker, Apple could sell as many as 39 million iPhones in the second calendar quarter of the year, beating Wall Street's predicted 35 million and topping the 31.2 million sold in the same quarter last year.

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Huberty believes iPhone sales will get a boost this quarter due to deep discounts on iPhone upgrades that entice consumers to buy a new iPhone, despite the upcoming rumored launch of the iPhone 6. Apple recently launched a promotion that encourages customers to trade-in their old iPhone and receive credit towards an iPhone 5s or 5c. Apple is offering iPhone 4 users up to $99, while iPhone 4s owners can get up to $199 as a store credit, making an upgrade to a subsidized iPhone 5s virtually free.

Carriers and third-party retailers also have discounted the iPhone in recent weeks, with Best Buy last month offering up to $200 trade-in value for customers who bring in an older iPhone and upgrade to an iPhone 5s or 5c. To maintain this sales momentum, Apple also may start selling the iPhone along with contract-free calling and data plans for T-Mobile and AT&T.

Morgan Stanley's "AlphaWise" smartphone tracker compiles sales data using Google Trends data and historically is more accurate at forecasting iPhone sales than Wall Street consensus estimates, although Huberty may still tweak her numbers in the closing weeks of the quarter.

Related Forum: iPhone

Apple has been awarded a patent by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (via AppleInsider) that details a weightlifting tracker that could pair with a watch-like device to provide live progress-tracking to users, offering a potential scenario where Apple's highly-rumored iWatch could be used.

The patent details how a transmitter could attach itself to a weightlifting bar to count repetitions in real time. The transmitter itself is described as having a number of components, including an accelerometer, processor, Hall effect sensor, and display. While some scenarios describe the sensor as showing live information all by itself, a few note that the small beacons could transfer data to devices such as a watch or phone.

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A sensor (500) shown on-top of a body bar

In one embodiment, display 512 is part of a watch (or a MP3 player or a cell phone) that may be seen when worn or used by the user when performing exercises; and measurements determined by processor are transmitted to the watch (or to the MP3 player or cell phone) for display.

In a situation where data is transferred to a watch, the patent notes that the watch's housing could include a processor to store data and inform the user of repetitions for workouts over time. This would allow the device to breakdown a user's workout with the use of multiple sensors, even giving information about the body bar or other equipment used.

Whether Apple integrates the technology described in the patent into a specific product remains to be seen. However, recent reports surrounding the iWatch have described the device as having a multitude of biometric sensors to track a number of health-related metrics, including activity levels.

Furthermore, it is likely that the iWatch will integrate with iOS 8's recently introduced Health app, which provides an easy to read dashboard of health and fitness data that can be pulled from different sources. Apple also debuted a new TV ad called "Strength" last week that focused on fitness accessories and apps.

Apple's iWatch is expected to launch later this year, with a recent report stating that the company is aiming for an October unveiling and release date.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch 10
Tag: Patent
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Caution)

Apple appears to be removing many of the popular music downloading apps from the iOS App Store, including those that allowed users to obtain files from third-party file sharing sites. The move is likely in an attempt to push the iTunes Store and iTunes Radio, as well as to clean up the App Store ahead of an overhaul in iOS 8.

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A search for the term "music download" in the App Store displays a message inviting users to try out iTunes Radio, while glancing through the first few results shows apps for streaming services such as Spotify and other music-based apps that lack downloading capabilities.

Previously, the same search would show results for a number of apps that could download music and audio files from websites such as Soundcloud and YouTube, with many appearing on the App Store's "Top Charts" section. Some developers have also noted that Apple has asked them to remove audio downloading functionalities from their app, perhaps to prevent potential piracy.

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A previous search for "download" apps in the App Store. (Image credit: evolver.fm)

The crackdown on music downloading apps may very well be related a revamp that Apple will launch alongside iOS 8. Among those changes to the App Store include an improved search algorithm, an "Explore" feature to improve discoverability, app bundles, and TestFlight beta testing for developers. A report yesterday also highlighted Apple's crackdown on apps that incentivize ad watching and social sharing.

Thanks, Branden!

macbook_air_mavericks_roundup_headerApple today released MacBook Air SMC update 2.0 for mid-2013 MacBook Air models, addressing an issue that could cause excessive battery drain when the computer's lid is closed.

This update is recommended for MacBook Air (Mid 2013) models.

This update addresses an issue which may cause the battery to drain faster than expected when the lid is closed.

This is the second battery fix released for the 2013 MacBook Airs, with update 1.9 fixing a battery issue that could cause the battery to unexpectedly cease functioning.

The update can be downloaded from Apple's support site or via the Software Update tool in the Mac App Store.

Apple today posted the OS X Yosemite video shown during its Worldwide Developers Keynote, which gives a look at some of the new features and design changes introduced with the operating system.

Covering the changes to the dock and icons along with showing off Yosemite's translucency, the video also highlights AirDrop, Finder, Messages, and Notification Center, giving an overall view of the revamped OS.

We reconsidered every element of the Mac interface, large and small. The result is something that feels fresh, but still inherently familiar. Completely new, yet completely Mac.

First introduced last week, Yosemite includes significant design changes that focus on translucency and a flatter, more modern look, along with a push towards deeper integration with iOS 8. Yosemite introduces several new features that work with iOS 8, including Handoff, Instant Hotspot, and the ability to make and receive phone calls and SMS messages.

Multiple apps and features have also been updated, including Spotlight, Mail, Notification Center, and Safari, and there's a new focus on iCloud with iCloud Drive. More information on Yosemite's major changes can be found in our OS X Yosemite Roundup, while details on smaller tweaks can be found in the "OS X Yosemite: All The Little Things" forum thread, created and maintained by MacRumors forum users.

Related Forum: OS X Yosemite