MacRumors

Apple yesterday posted a job listing for a "Buzz Marketing Manager" based out of New York (via Dwight Silverman and Business Insider), with the description outlining a position responsible for managing such areas as product placement in film and television and fostering relationships with "high-profile influencers" to promote the Apple brand.

- Product placement in film & television. Work with the creative side of film & TV to place Apple products. This includes getting necessary approvals, managing and trafficking product inventory, following up with studios, and monitoring media for successful placements.

- Build and maintain relationships with high-profile influencers. Influential Apple users could be directors, actors, artists, athletes, designers and select brands or institutions. Determine which relationships have potential to maximize benefit to Apple.

- Leverage relationships to book events at Apple Store Soho. Collaborate with Apple Retail, PR and iTunes to ensure maximum positive outcome for the effort. Produce a podcast for each event into iTunes and maximize the promotional value of the content through PR efforts and partner channels.

Apple describes the role as new and reporting to the head of worldwide Buzz Marketing, suggesting that Apple is expanding its efforts in the area.

Buzz marketing has been receiving significant attention recently, in large part due to Samsung's aggressive efforts in the area led by the "Oscar selfie" posted by Ellen Degeneres. The stunt, which became the most retweeted Tweet in history, was quickly revealed to have been coordinated by Samsung, which was a promotional sponsor

Former Burberry CEO Angela Ahrendts has officially joined Apple and is now listed on the company's executive page alongside other major Apple execs like Jonathan Ive, Tim Cook, Eddy Cue, and Craig Federighi.

Ahrendts will take on the role of Senior Vice President of Retail and Online stores, a position that has seen significant turnover in recent years. Back in 2011, Ron Johnson left the position to join J.C. Penney after 11 years with Apple and while the role was filled by John Browett in 2012, he was ousted just months later. Since that time, Apple has operated without a retail leader.

Angela is responsible for the operation and expansion of Apple retail and online stores, which have redefined the shopping experience for hundreds of millions of customers around the world. Apple retail stores set the standard for customer service with innovative features like the Genius Bar, personal setup and one-to-one personal training to help customers get the most out of their Apple products.

Back in October, when Ahrendts' hiring was first announced, Apple CEO Tim Cook noted he was "thrilled" she was joining the team, emphasizing that she shared Apple's values, "focus on innovation," and the company's dedication to customer experience.

Prior to joining Apple, Ahrendts served as CEO of Burberry beginning in 2006. She is largely credited with boosting Burberry back to fame after a decline, tripling the company's revenue and working to merge Burberry's online experience with the brick and mortar experience.

With her luxury brand experience and her dedication to improving customer experience, it's possible that Ahrendts could bring some significant improvements to both the online and retail shopping experience at Apple, at a time when the company is poised to launch several new flagship products, including the iPhone 6 and the iWatch.

Apple will begin notifying its users of secret personal data requests from law enforcement, according to The Washington Post, as the company believes users have a right to know in advance if their information is being targeted by the government.

Apple, Microsoft, Facebook and Google all are updating their policies to expand routine notification of users about government data seizures, unless specifically gagged by a judge or other legal authority, officials at all four companies said. Yahoo announced similar changes in July.

Prosecutors, however, say the move could tip off criminals, allowing them to destroy potential digital evidence, cover their tracks and intimidate potential witnesses before law enforcement can build their case. Alternatively, the Post notes that some companies who already notify users before a government requests have found that investigators have dropped data requests to avoid having suspects learn of their inquiries.

In the United States, the typical search warrant requires the police to notify the suspect that they are being searched. However, so-called "sneak-and-peek" warrants are not unheard of and allow investigators to search a suspect's house or other property without any notification. This ability was expanded in the PATRIOT Act, allowing the Federal Government to utilize such warrants in nearly any crime.

Apple and the other companies are seeking to nullify these sneak-and-peek warrants as they pertain to the digital realm.

Apple's changes will be unveiled in an updated privacy policy later this month, an Apple spokeswoman told the Post, and users will be notified in "most cases" when their information is requested by a government entity. Cases in which Apple would not notify users include data requests from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court and subpoenas from the FBI for national security investigations.

“Later this month, Apple will update its policies so that in most cases when law enforcement requests personal information about a customer, the customer will receive a notification from Apple,” company spokeswoman Kristin Huguet said.

The Cupertino company has been increasingly concerned about privacy matters since the discovery of secret intelligence program PRISM, with CEO Tim Cook saying the NSA would have to cart them "out in a box" before it could access Apple's servers. Apple has also hired certified privacy professional Sabrina Ross as privacy counsel to oversee the protection of customer data.

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.

Apple may be adding to its wearables team, as MIT researcher Eric Winokur will be joining the company in the coming weeks, according to a source who spoke to MacRumors. Winokur, who does research at MIT's Medical Electronic Devices Realization Center, has recently worked on an ear-worn "wearable vital signs monitor." According to his LinkedIn page, one of his specialties is "wearable medical device R&D."

My professional experience includes many aspects of research and development in the electrical engineering field, with an emphasis on medical monitors. From conceptualizing designs to following through with circuit layout (both IC and PCB) and building full prototypes, I have enjoyed being involved in the entire process.

Specialties: Wearable medical device R&D, circuit design, PCB and IC layout, signal processing, physiological to electrical signal conversion

Winokur is listed as an author on a number of academic papers focusing on cardiovascular ear-worn devices that measure vital signs. His work was published in two 2012 papers, the first entitled "An ear-worn continuous ballistocardiogram (BCG) sensor for cardiovascular monitoring" and the second entitled "A wearable vital signs monitor at the ear for continuous heart rate and pulse transit time measurements." Ballistocardiography aims to measure the movement of blood into major vessels with each heart beat.

Both papers describe an ear-worn device that is designed to wirelessly monitor vital signs using a built-in triaxial accelerometer. The devices are described as taking on the form factor of a hearing aid and are wirelessly connected to a PC for data recording and analysis.

Word of Winokur's hiring comes just as a rumor has surfaced claiming Apple is planning to launch EarPods headphones with integrated heart rate and blood pressure sensors. While the claim is extremely sketchy, Apple patent applications have revealed the company's interest in integrating biometric sensors into headphones in the past.

Regardless, it is unclear if Winokur will continue his work on ear-worn monitoring devices at Apple or perhaps move to focus on wearables in general, such as the iWatch. Given the timing of his hiring, it is unlikely his expertise will impact any of Apple's product plans rumored for later this year, but he may certainly contribute to the company's ongoing efforts in the health and wearables area.

In a 2011 interview with ABC, Winokur described the benefit of the medical device he was developing, suggesting it was to be worn in the ear all day for continuous monitoring of blood pressure and heart rate.

"The goal is to have this worn, basically throughout the day," Eric Winokur, an MIT Ph.D. candidate told Ivanhoe.

It measures heart rate and blood pressure at your head, and could help doctors track conditions like high blood pressure more accurately and continuously to better personalize treatment.

Winokur listed some typical questions that patients will be able to get answers to using the device, "Is my medication working? Should I increase it? Should I decrease it? What's my overall health?".

In recent months, Apple has taken an intense interest in health monitoring, hiring multiple health experts with a range of skills and interests, including non-invasive monitoring of heart rate, oxygen saturation, glucose, and more. Many of the experts have joined the company's iWatch team, focusing on developing a sensor-laden wearable device that may be released later this year.

Alongside the iWatch, Apple is also developing iOS 8, which is said to have a heavy focus on health with its included "Healthbook" app, designed to aggregate health-related data from a variety of sources. While Winokur's role is currently unknown, he is set to join Apple next month.

A seemingly wild rumor of Apple planning to launch new EarPods headphones with integrated heart rate and blood pressure sensors has been making the rounds today after the claim was posted on anonymous information sharing platform Secret (via Reddit).

Apple's new EarPods will have sensors in them, for heart rate & blood pressure. Also iBeacons so they don't get lost. They will require the lightning port, it's why the audio jack was moved to the bottom. [...]

It stores the data in a similar way to thumbprint point data, fully encrypted and nothing identifiable. But nice to send to your doctor to keep track of at which point your blood pressure started rising for example. [...]

Redesigned remote too. Extra mic for better noise canceling.

While a number of major tech stories have in fact broken on Secret, the anonymous nature of the platform makes it all but impossible to separate legitimate claims from fiction without corroborating information from other sources. As a result, it's easy to dismiss this EarPods rumor from someone claiming to have recently been let go from Apple.

But what makes the rumor a bit more interesting is that it has roots in Apple's research as documented in patent applications dating back years. Whether the Secret rumor is a fake inspired by those patent filings or if there actually is something to it is unknown, but it's worth taking another look at what Apple has proposed.

In one patent application filed in March 2007 and claiming a priority date of September 2006, Apple proposes using sensors integrated into various accessories or even devices themselves to collect physiological data.

The present invention can include systems and methods for integrating sensors for tracking a user's performance metrics into electronic devices and accessories therefor. In one embodiment of the present invention, the electronic devices can include portable media devices similar to iPods sold by Apple Inc. of Cupertino, Calif. or cellular telephones similar to iPhones designed by Apple Inc.

In one embodiment, the present invention can include headsets having one or more integrated physiological sensors. The headsets can be, for example, headphones for receiving audio signals from a media device or headsets for communication with cellular telephones. The sensor signals can be transmitted to a data repository through the same communication channel through which audio signals are transmitted to the headset (e.g., hard-wired or wireless).

A second filing, which was granted as a patent this February, more directly addresses headphone-based physiological monitoring, although the application is also quite old, having been filed in August 2008 with an October 2007 priority date.

The invention pertains to a monitoring system that can be placed proximate to the head or ear of a user. According to one embodiment, the monitoring system can be used with a hearing device, headphones, earbuds or headsets. The monitoring system can, for example, be used to monitor user activity, such as during exercise or sporting activities. The positioning of the monitoring system can also facilitate sensing of other user characteristics (e.g., biometric data), such as temperature, perspiration and heart rate.

Advantageously, the invention can provide monitoring capabilities within a hearing device. Assuming the user is otherwise using the hearing device, such as to provide audio output by a portable media player, the user gains monitoring capabilities without requiring the user to wear or carry an additional article.

MacRumors is pleased to announce the Fifth Annual MacRumors Blood Drive, throughout the month of May 2014. Our goal is to increase the number of life-saving donations in real-world communities by encouraging everyone in our online community to step forward. While most blood drives are specific to a geographic location or collection center, our blood drive is online and worldwide. Our past blood drives have collectively recorded donations of hundreds of units of blood and platelets.

We ask that you:

1. Donate blood or platelets at any donation center or hospital near you. Join the bone marrow registry in your country. Sign up for the organ donor registry in your state, province, or country.

2. Post in the MacRumors 2014 Blood Drive! thread. Tell us about your donation or registration experience, or post a post-donation selfie. We'd like to thank you.

3. Share the news and our message with other people you know, online and in person. Convince one other person to donate blood in the month of May. Help us thank the donors who post about their experiences.

For details see the MacRumors 2014 Blood Drive! thread and our traditional Honor Roll of recognized donors.

Why donate blood or platelets?

Donated blood and platelets save the lives of people recovering from accidents, undergoing surgery, or struck by illness. These are people in your own neighborhoods who need your help. Donated blood and platelets are needed every 2 seconds, not just when hurricanes, earthquakes, and other disasters occur. An hour of your time could save up to 3 lives.

Why join the bone marrow registry?

With a simple cheek swab you are volunteering to donate stem cells or bone marrow if you match someone dying from a disease like leukemia. There are many thousands of people each year searching for donors to save their lives. You might be the one and only person who can save a particular patient's life.

Why join the organ donor registry?

Thousands of people die every year while waiting for organ transplants. Your donation of organs when your own life ends could save the lives of as many as 8 people.

The lives you save may belong to your friends, neighbors, relatives, or complete strangers. Someday you may receive the same generosity from others. There's no gift more precious than the gift of life.

See the links and general information in our two knowledge base articles: Blood and Platelet Donation and Organ, Tissue, and Bone Marrow Donation. Donor eligibility rules vary by country.

1. If you are eligible to donate blood: Schedule a blood or platelet donation, in May if possible. Register for the bone marrow registry. Register as an organ donor.

2. If you aren't eligible to donate blood: Some people aren't eligible to donate blood for medical reasons, while others are barred by government policies that many find outdated. Speak your mind about it in the Blood donor eligibility thread. You can probably still register for the bone marrow registry and register as an organ donor.

3. Help our drive by thanking donors and convincing a friend or relative to donate blood.

Apple charity

Apple's support for charity has picked up in recent years. Apple has supported a number of health, relief, and charity efforts over the years, especially through Product (RED). See our updated knowledge base article: Apple Support for Charity.

According to 9to5Mac, Apple may use WWDC 2014 to focus on OS X 10.10, giving the desktop OS more attention than iOS 8 during the annual developer conference. Apple allegedly has been moving iOS user interface developers to the OS X teams in order to finish up the new design in time for early June conference.

As has been previously reported, Apple is not merging the two operating systems, opting to keep iOS and OS X as separate entities, but the next version of OS X may share similar design elements with iOS 7.

The new look will have similar toggle designs to iOS 7, sharper window corners, more defined icons across the system, and more white space than the current version. However, OS X characteristics like the Finder, multi-window multitasking, and Mission Control will not disappear in favor of a more iOS-like experience.

Apple is targeting the desktop OS for release in the fall along with new hardware that will ship with this latest OS X version. Though the internal development codename of OS X 10.10 is "Syrah," the shipping name is still unclear, with Apple apparently securing trademarks for popular California locations that would match the new theme started with "Mavericks."

On the iOS 8 side of development, Apple is allegedly pushing some features of iOS 8 off to version 8.1 as the company focuses intently on its next version of OS X. Though Apple may present most of the new features of iOS 8 at WWDC next month, some notable additions such as transit functionality in Maps may not be available until later versions of iOS 8.

iCloud will reportedly see some significant changes in the coming year with improvements on the developer side that make it easier to implement support for the service. Siri may also see Shazam integration, allowing users to identify a song using the voice assistant. Lastly, iOS 8 is reportedly being optimized for Apple's upcoming A8 processor and the rumored larger display of the iPhone 6.

The new iPhone’s larger display, as well as a “high-priority” iOS device that is not an iPhone, also lends itself to another core iOS 8 addition. The feature, dubbed by Apple employees as “multi-resolution support,” is designed to improve the performance of both App Store applications and the general iOS operating system across multiple new iOS device resolutions.

Apple TV is also now a priority for Apple, with the company rumored to be bringing in hardware and software engineering resources from within the company to work on the next generation device. Apple may be concurrently developing new hardware as well as a revamped iOS-based software system to power the device. Apple had hoped to introduce the hardware in early 2014, but the product's debut has been pushed off. It is, however, unclear whether a new Apple TV will make its way into the WWDC keynote.

A new physical mockup claiming to be based on real iPhone 6 machine schematics from supply chain sources has surfaced on Chinese technology blog 86Digi (via Nowhereelse.fr, Google Translate).

Notably, the mockup also shows two antenna breaks cut out on the device's rear, with the post noting that Apple will incorporate a three-stage aluminum design on the back of the iPhone 6. This is partially in line with a report from Mac Otakara last week that claimed Apple would be doing away with the glass breaks currently found on the iPhone 5s in favor of an aluminum design, although it is unsure how Apple will incorporate changes to its overall antenna layout to accommodate the new look.

The photos and video of this new mockup follow images of other physical mockups in recent days, including another model from a case manufacturer showing the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 and one showing the larger 5.5-inch iPhone 6 based on design drawings shared by Japanese magazine MacFan last month.

The iPhone 6 is expected to be unveiled this fall in two different sizes of 4.7-inches and 5.5-inches. The 4.7-inch version of the device will likely ship first in the third quarter of 2014, while the 5.5-inch version is estimated to ship later this year or early next year as Apple solves issues with the phone's display and battery.

In addition to a larger display, both versions of the iPhone 6 are expected to include a thinner profile, a faster A8 processor, Touch ID fingerprint sensor, and an improved camera that may feature optical image stabilization or electronic image stabilization. Jefferies analyst Peter Misek also claimed in a research note earlier this month that Apple is negotiating for a $100 price increase on the iPhone 6.