MacRumors

The Atlantic reports that a Securities and Exchange Commission filing reveals Amazon has quietly acquired voice recognition firm Yap, perhaps signaling intentions to take on Apple and Google in the market.

Though the acquisition was apparently completed in September, no public announcement has been made by either company. The filing does not mention Amazon by name, but Yap merged with a company called "Dion Acquisition Sub" that just so happens to be headquartered at 410 Terry Avenue in Seattle, Washington, an Amazon.com building.

Yap had been working on a beta service for converting voicemail messages to text, but reportedly possesses a significant amount of intellectual property underlying speech recognition technology. The consumer voicemail transcription service was discontinued on October 20th.

Google has of course integrated voice recognition in some of aspects of its business, including a Google Search app for iOS, for some time. And Apple has made a high-profile entrance into the market with Siri on the iPhone 4S, a new virtual personal assistant that accepts voice input for conducting various tasks or retrieving information.

Amazon, which has long competed with Apple in a number of digital download markets, is now pushing into the mobile hardware market as well, building upon its successful Kindle offerings with the introduction of its new Android-based Kindle Fire tablet. While considerably smaller and cheaper than Apple's iPad and focused on tying into Amazon's existing services, the Kindle Fire is being seen as one of the strongest potential competitors for the iPad to yet emerge.

Fortune notes that Apple has risen to fourth place in Greenpeace's annual ranking of electronics manufacturers by environmental criteria, as published in the organization's annual Guide to Greener Electronics. Apple moved up to fourth place this year from ninth place in last year's survey, making gains in the greenness of its products and sustainability efforts in its operations, but remaining below average in its energy scores.

As noted in the report on Apple (PDF), the company does score some points on the energy front for its use of renewable energy sources, with select facilities in Texas, California, and Ireland powered by 100% renewable sources, representing 13% of the company's facility-related energy usage. Apple is also beginning work on a solar farm at its new North Carolina data center, an item unmentioned in Greenpeace's report. The most significant ding in Apple's energy scores according to Greenpeace is a lack of a stated advocacy policy for clean energy.

With Amazon's forthcoming Kindle Fire tablet staking out a new position at the bargain end of the tablet market with its $199 price tag, some have wondered how significantly the device will eat into Apple's potential iPad sales.

A new survey from RBC Capital Markets and ChangeWave Research now puts some numbers to that impact, revealing that 26% of those surveyed customers who have either already pre-ordered a Kindle Fire or are "very likely" to purchase one have either delayed or put on indefinite hold previously-planned iPad purchases.

The survey also reveals relatively strong overall interest in the Kindle Fire, with 5% of survey respondents registering as either having already pre-ordered or being very likely to purchase the device. That compares with 4% of respondents who had indicated similar intent for the original iPad back in February 2010. The tablet market is of course at very different level of maturity now, however, given that Apple's iPad has sparked consumer interest in the form factor.

For its part, Apple has reportedly indicated that it welcomes the arrival of the Kindle Fire, suggesting that yet another Android-based tablet entrant heavily customized to integrate with Amazon's services will further fragment that platform and drive more customers toward the stability of Apple's iOS.

Digitimes shares a report from Taiwan's Commercial Times claiming that Apple has cut orders for iPhone components during the fourth quarter by 10-15%. The report claims that sales of the device have slowed significantly since the pre-order and launch phase and that shortages of a few components have also been impacting overall production. iPad production may also be seeing some cutbacks.

According to a Chinese-language Commercial Times report, Apple is likely to adjust downward its shipments of iPhones and iPads from related suppliers by 10-15% in the fourth quarter.

Related iPhone 4S suppliers including cases and camera lens makers as well as ODM assemblers have received notice from Apple to reduce their shipments for the fourth quarter, but none of them has confirmed the report, the paper said.

Some international IC players have also indicated that their revenues are likely to slide by 10-15% in the fourth quarter due to the shipment adjustments for iPhone 4S.

Sales of the iPhone 4S hit four million units on its opening weekend last month, significantly higher than the iPhone 4's debut of 1.7 million units last year.

Apple has moved quickly to expand iPhone 4S availability internationally, and the company has continued to experience tight supplies of the device at its own retail stores. But if the reports out of Taiwan are to be believed, at least a portion of that crunch may be due to lighter-than-anticipated production in the face of component shortages and a targeted cutback by Apple.

Update: RBC Capital Markets analyst Mike Abramsky notes in a new research report that the suggestion of weaker-than-expected sales does not mesh with evidence of sell-through from carriers and other points-of-sale. He suggests that Apple may simply be pulling back slightly from an initial over-ordering of components, something the company has reportedly engaged in at times in order to gain the most favorable pricing possible.

ZDNet is reporting that Adobe has announced to its partners that the company has discontinued development on Flash Player for mobile browsers. The news comes roughly a year and a half after the publication of Steve Jobs' "Thoughts on Flash" open letter, laying out his thoughts on the use of Flash in mobile devices and explaining why Apple would not support Flash on their mobile devices.

Instead of working on mobile Flash, Adobe plans to continue developing its tools to produce applications that work on mobile app stores, including Apple's App Store.

From Adobe's announcement:

Our future work with Flash on mobile devices will be focused on enabling Flash developers to package native apps with Adobe AIR for all the major app stores. We will no longer adapt Flash Player for mobile devices to new browser, OS version or device configurations. Some of our source code licensees may opt to continue working on and releasing their own implementations. We will continue to support the current Android and PlayBook configurations with critical bug fixes and security updates.

ZDNet notes that the announcement should go public on Adobe's website in the next day.

Update: The complete announcement has now been posted to Adobe's site.

Vooma has announced an iPhone case with a backup battery and, more interestingly, an unlocked SIM slot. The case works with a jailbreak-only app that emulates the iPhone's native phone app to allow calls via the external SIM. At its core, the case unlocks any jailbroken iPhone.

TechCrunch's John Biggs tried a pre-release version of the case and came away impressed:

Once it’s set up the Peel PG92 works seamlessly and even uses a similar interface to Apple’s own dialer – although it’s clear that the programmers had to cut a few corners to get the look and feel correct. For example, the dialing screen is actually a bitmapped copy of the original dialer and the letters and numbers are slightly warped. However, all of the major functionality is recreated in the Vooma app.

However, this is clearly a very cool and clever hack and it works without problems on any jailbroken iPhone.

Details are scarce, but it appears that the case fits mini-SIM cards, not the micro-SIM that fits in the iPhone 4 and 4S. Also, the external SIM could be used for voice calls only -- data most likely goes through the SIM card that's installed in the iPhone. Because the external SIM is used via its own app the internal SIM can still be used for voice calls even with the case installed.

The case would be most useful for international travelers who wish to install a prepaid SIM card from a local carrier, without having to unlock their subsidized iPhone from a domestic carrier. Unlocking an iPhone is typically more difficult than a simple jailbreak.

Vooma has a sign-up form on its homepage to get more information on the Peel PG920, but the company has disclosed no details about pricing or availability.

When Apple introduced the Siri voice assistant, the company made it clear that the feature was exclusive to the iPhone 4S alone.

There was some speculation that Siri required the iPhone 4S's faster processor, but recent hack have shown Siri to run quite well on the iPhone 4. Meanwhile, one rumor even claimed that Apple been internally testing Siri on the iPhone 4, raising some hopes for an eventual release.

Unfortunately, Michael Steeber posts an Apple reply to a bug report which states quite clearly that Apple isn't planning on supporting Siri on older devices:

Engineering has provided the following feedback regarding this issue: Siri only works on iPhone 4S and we currently have no plans to support older devices.

Apple generally keeps quiet about their plans, so this is probably as much as we'll hear for an official position on the possibility of official Siri support on the iPhone 4 or iPad 2.

Last week, Apple confirmed that some iOS 5 users are experiencing battery life issues on their devices due to some bugs in the operating system, issues that Apple is working to address with iOS 5.0.1 currently in developer testing.

9to5Mac reports that Apple has now expanded its testing to include some of those users who have reported problems with their devices, reaching out to them through Apple's invitation-only customer seeding program.

Apple invites you to participate in a software seeding project. We have selected you, based on a referral from AppleCare for participation in our program, to assist us in testing an upcoming iOS 5 Software Update. Please follow the directions below to complete the invitation process.

Apple is also apparently notifying its retail store support staff of the battery issues, instructing them to encourage customers to hang on for "a few weeks" until the software update is ready for release. Under the notice, support staff should not offer replacement handsets for battery life issues at this time unless potential hardware defects are found.

A small number of customers have reported lower than expected battery life on iOS 5 devices. If you are helping one of those customers, follow standard procedure to rule out any hardware issues with the device. If no hardware issues are found, let the customer know that Apple has found a few bugs in iOS 5 affecting battery life and Apple will release a software update to address those in a few weeks.

In addition to the battery life issues, iOS 5.0.1 is also including several other fixes and enhancements, including multitasking gestures for the original iPad, bug fixes for Documents in the Cloud, improved voice recognition for Australian users, and security enhancements.

Apple today posted a new support document outlining procedures users should follow if they experience strain relief problems with their "T" style MagSafe power cables on various notebook products. Long-standing issues with fraying on those cables resulted in Apple redesigning the MagSafe several years to adopt an "L" style connector that puts less strain on the cable.

While Apple has for several years offered a replacement program to users whose MagSafe adapters (as well as pre-MagSafe "barrel" style adapters) have exhibited signs of strain relief problems, the company has updated its support materials to reflect that a settlement has been reached in a court case over the design of the connectors.

According to the terms of the settlement, Apple will offer full or partial refunds to customers who purchased replacement adapters and will also continue to cover the cost of replacement adapters for users who have future problems with the issue. Apple will offer users who purchased a replacement adapter within one year of purchase of the original computer a $79 cash payment, with users who replaced their adapters in the second year receiving $50 and those who replaced in the third year $35.

The settlement will provide a cash payment if you are the original owner (by purchase or gift) of certain Apple MacBook or MacBook Pro computer models (“Subject Computer”) or separately purchased an Apple 60W or 85W MagSafe MPM-1 (“T”) Power Adapter (“Adapter”), your Adapter showed signs of Strain Relief Damage, and you purchased a Replacement Adapter within the first three years following the initial purchase of the Subject Computer or Adapter. If the court approves the settlement, you may be entitled to a cash payment in the following amounts depending on whether you purchased your Replacement Adapter during the first, second or third year following the initial retail purchase of the Subject Computer or Adapter: (a) first year, the actual amount you paid (excluding taxes and shipping/handling fees) up to a maximum of $79; (b) second year $50; (c) third year $35. There is a limit of three refunds per Subject Computer. You may also be able to obtain a Replacement Adapter at no charge from Apple if your Adapter shows signs of Strain Relief Damage now or in the future.

The settlement program is open to all purchasers of machines with T-style MagSafe power connectors who provide a valid claim form and proof of purchase for the replacement adapter. Users have until March 21, 2012 or three years from the date of original purchase, whichever is later, to file a claim for a previously-purchased replacement adapter. Apple will cover current and future replacements free of charge through December 31, 2012.

Late last month, we noted that Apple had begun notifying Australian resellers of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 of the injunction prohibiting the sale of the device in that country. While the injunction applies only to Samsung, Apple's notice of infringement would make it easy for the company to target the retailers with separate suits.

But The Sydney Morning Herald reports that at least one retailer is prepared to stand up to what it believes is a bluff on Apple's part, taking steps to engage in a cat and mouse game with the company.

At least one, dMavo, said it had created a separate entity in Europe to place it outside the jurisdiction of Australian courts, with the tablets delivered to customers from Asia.

"We have a new entity established and a separate server - just to deal with the tablet orders - that is undergoing testing as of last Saturday," dMavo managing director Wojtek Czarnocki said.

"Was Apple just bluffing or do they really want to play the cat and mouse game? We're up for it."

Czarnocki notes that the changes imposed very little cost for his company while opening the door for a flood of sales with the injunction against Samsung itself hampering supplies from other channels. dMavo has indeed been experiencing server troubles over the past few days, as interest in the company's offerings and the publicity surrounding its stand against Apple has tested its capacity.

One patent attorney consulted by The Sydney Morning Herald suggests, however, that dMavo may have opened itself up to significantly more risk with the moves demonstrating its open defiance of the injunction. If dMavo's Galaxy Tab revenue is shown to funnel back to Australia in any way or have other connections to Australian companies, the company could be found liable for infringement.

[Patent specialist Mark] Summerfield said Apple might now be compelled to take action to avoid appearing weak. He said Australian judges would not look kindly on dMavo's attempts to bypass the injunction and "are almost obliged to find some way to punish it to ensure that the courts retain their authority".

For its part, dMavo is banking on a November 25th court date for Samsung's appeal of the injunction, hoping that Samsung can win its case and have the injunction lifted before Apple can come after dMavo.

Influential ratings and reviews magazine Consumer Reports, which famously refused to recommend both the GSM and CDMA iPhone 4 models due to antenna issues, has now determined to its satisfaction that the iPhone 4S does not suffer from the same issue. The determination means that Consumer Reports is now willing to list the iPhone 4S as a "recommended" device.

Apple’s newest smart phone performed very well in our tests, and while it closely resembles the iPhone 4 in appearance, it doesn’t suffer the reception problem we found in its predecessor in special tests in our labs.

In special reception tests of the iPhone 4S that duplicated those we did on the iPhone 4, the newer phone did not display the same reception flaw, which involves a loss of signal strength when you touch a spot on the phone’s lower left side while you’re in an area with a weak signal.

Early reports from users had indeed suggested that the iPhone 4S did not possess the antenna issue that some users had complained about in the iPhone 4, but Consumer Reports clearly undertook its own testing of the device for its assessment. Consumer Reports also indicates that the 8 GB iPhone 4, introduced alongside the iPhone 4S as a lower-cost device, does continue to suffer from the antenna problem.

While Consumer Reports is now able to recommend the iPhone 4S, it does not list the device at the top of its smartphone rankings, placing it below several Android phones with larger displays and support for faster cellular networks. That was not the case last year, when the magazine ranked the iPhone 4 first among smartphones despite the antenna problem that led it to withhold a "recommended" rating.