MacRumors

A series of rumors over the past several months have suggested that the next-generation iPad could gain an SD card slot, making it easier for consumers to load photos directly onto the device without needing to resort to a dongle attached via its dock connector. Cases surfacing last week and claimed to be for the next-generation iPad suggested that the slot might make an appearance on the top left side of the device, opposite the mute switch and volume rocker.

But a new report from AppleInsider claims that an SD card slot is unlikely to appear in the next-generation iPad, with the unknown case cutout actually corresponding to the 3G model's SIM card slot, which has reportedly been located from further down the left edge of the device.

In a mockup analysis of all the openings and recesses in those cases, it was speculated that that left-side opening could represent the much-rumored SD Card slot. However, a person that AppleInsider trusts on matters such as these has since rebutted that notion, stating instead that the break in the next-gen iPad enclosure at that location is actually a relocation of the tablet's SIM card slot.

That may explain why some of the other next-gen iPad casings making the rounds don't sport the same opening, as users of 3G iPads aren't likely to need ready access to the SIM slot on a daily basis. And like Gruber's sources on the subject, the same person referenced above gave no indication that there's an SD Card slot elsewhere on the device.

Apple is expected to launch the next-generation iPad sometime in the next few months.

Macworld magazine highlights their "Best of Show" awards for products shown at Macworld Expo 2011 this year.

Mac Products

- Awind McTiVia - Transmits your Mac's video and audio to your HDTV over Wi-Fi. The $199 receiver connects to your TV via HDMI. Based on MirrorOp technology, this video shows it in action.
- Dane Elec myDitto Key - A USB key that lets you easily access your home myDitto file server securely while on the go.
- Global Delight's Boom - A $4.99 software volume booster for your Mac.
- OWC Mercury Aura Pro Express SSD - SSD Upgrade for the new MacBook Air. Previous coverage.

iOS Products

- BusyMac BusyToDo - iOS ToDo list manager that syncs with BusyCal or iCal over MobileMe. On sale for $0.99 during Macworld.
- Scosche myTrek Pulse Monitor and iOS App - Armband that monitors your pulse and tracks your progress on an iOS app over Bluetooth.
- Pocket Informant 2.0 - Calendar and task manager for iOS. On sale for $4.99 during Macworld.
- Zagg ZaggMate with keyboard - iPad case with built-in Bluetooth keyboard and stand.
- Rain Design iRest for iPad - An iPad stand designed to also be used on your lap with soft foam cushioning.
- TenOne Designs Fling - A physical joystick that attaches to your iPad's screen.

With Apple set to discontinue the Xserve in just a few days, a number of observers noted earlier this week that Apple's shipping estimates for last-gasp orders are listed as "April". While the reason for the over two-month delay in shipping is unknown, Apple representatives have simply reported that the company is winding down manufacturing and that the "April" estimate is a worst-case scenario.

According to 9 to 5 Mac, Apple is planning to redirect customers interested in Xserve/Xsan solutions to Active Storage, a company founded by former Apple employees who left the company after it discontinued its Xserve RAID offerings in early 2008.

Since the time of that report, Active Storage has updated its website with a teaser for an apparently new product set to debut on January 31st just as Apple discontinues the Xserve. The teaser image appears to show a rackmountable hardware unit, seemingly in a 2U form factor, covered with a black cloth. While the company has released no other information about the forthcoming product, it does appear as though Active Storage is preparing to fill the void left by the Xserve's discontinuation, quite possibly with Apple's blessing and assistance.

LA Weekly reports (via The Next Web) that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Apple over the iPhone 4 and its claimed propensity for breakage. The lawsuit feeds off the "Glassgate" publicity that has seen the iPhone 4 judged to be more accident-prone than other smartphones due to Apple's use of glass on both the front and back of the device.

Apparently fed up and pissed off, California resident Donald LeBuhn filed a class action lawsuit earlier this week in L.A. County against Apple, claiming the company knows about the design flaw and refuses to warn consumers that "normal" use leads essentially to a broken phone.

According to his lawsuit, first reported by Courthouse News Service, LeBuhn threw down $252 in September for a new iPhone 4, but three weeks later the glass broke when his daughter accidentally dropped it approximately three feet to the ground while sending a text message.

He previously owned a 3GS version of the iPhone and claims the glass did not break when accidentally dropped from similar heights.

In his filing, LeBuhn cites Apple marketing materials for the iPhone 4, which claim that the "ultradurable" glass used in the iPhone 4 is "20 times stiffer and 30 times harder than plastic". According to LeBuhn, these claims are misleading at best, and his suit seeks full refunds for customers covered by the class action suit and reimbursement for any repairs made.

With all of the focus on Apple's flash-based iPod devices, it's easy to forget that the company still offers the iPod classic for users looking to carry around larger music libraries while on the go. Apple last updated the $249 iPod classic in September 2009, boosting the device's capacity from 120 GB to 160 GB, and some have wondered whether Apple will be discontinuing the device given the lack of updates since that time.

But as noted by Hardmac, a new line of 1.8-inch hard drives introduced by Toshiba earlier this week could breathe new life into the iPod classic and enable Apple to boost its capacity to 220 GB. Toshiba's new MKxx39GSL series (PDF) comes in 160 GB, 200 GB, and 220 GB capacities, all in a single-platter form factor matching the 5 mm drive thickness used in the current iPod classic.

It is unknown when Apple would make the shift to a 220 GB iPod classic if it indeed elects to adopt the new Toshiba drive. The company has in recent years shifted to a yearly iPod update cycle centered on September releases, meaning that the company would likely have to either wait another seven months to update the iPod classic along with the rest of the line or quietly release a mid-cycle capacity bump for only the iPod classic. With the iPod classic having missed the September 2010 update seen by the rest of the iPod line and the current model thus now being almost 18 months old, Apple could easily consider the mid-cycle upgrade if it is indeed planning on keeping the device alive.

Research firm IDC yesterday released results for global mobile phone unit shipments in the fourth quarter of 2010, showing Apple slipping to fifth place behind Nokia, Samsung, LG and a surging ZTE. Apple had entered the top five in fourth place last quarter on the strength of the iPhone 4 release, garnering 4.1% of the market, and dropped slightly this quarter to 4.0% as a booming market offset Apple's own unit growth. But on a year-over-year basis, Apple's 86.2% growth easily outpaced the overall market's 17.9% expansion.

The iPhone maker slipped to the number 5 position despite a record quarter for unit shipments and the departure soon thereafter of CEO Steve Jobs on medical leave. It was the company's second straight quarter on IDC's Top 5 list. The iPhone sold particularly well in developed regions of the world, such as North America and Western Europe. Apple, which said it could have sold more iPhones last quarter had it been able to make more, is set to introduce the touchscreen device on Verizon next month.

Despite only appearing in the top five for the final two quarters of the year, Apple was also able to make the list for full-year 2010, shipping 47.5 million iPhones to snag fifth place with 3.4% of the overall mobile phone market. Apple's shipment increased 89.2% in 2010, well ahead of the overall market's 18.5% growth for the year and enough to push Apple's share of the market to 3.4% from the previous year's 2.1%.

All Things Digital reports that Microsoft is "looking at" the possibility of offering its Office productivity suite through the Mac App Store, a move which could be a tremendous boost the new marketplace for Mac OS X applications modeled on Apple's successful iOS App Store.

"It's something we are looking at," Microsoft's Amanda Lefebvre told Mobilized. However, the company said its product is already available in lots of places as well as via the Webincluding in a new, free 30-day trial version.

"It's something we haven't ruled out," she said. "We just have to see how that relates to our business."

It is unclear how Microsoft would deal with Apple's restrictions on Mac App Store content and Apple's standard 30% cut of revenue from applications sold through the store if it did in fact to offer Office through the marketplace, but such a move would obviously be a significant vote of confidence in the Mac App Store given Office's widespread popularity.

Soon after the iPad's introduction early last year, Microsoft offered similar sentiments about bringing Office to Apple's tablet device, but the company had decided by the time the iPad actually launched in early April that it had "no current plans" to make the move.

Microsoft has, however, taken its first steps onto the iOS platform with last week's release of OneNote, and the company noted in today's interview that it is committed to bringing Office to more platforms.

Macworld Expo 2011 kicked off this week with the floor show opening today. This is the second year that Macworld expo has gone on after Apple's withdrawal in 2009. Last year's show was considered a success and early reports claim that this year's show claim higher early numbers in both floor space and pre-registration. Unlike CES and WWDC, Macworld Expo remains open to the general public so much of the foot traffic comes from interested Apple consumers.

The show seemed busy and crowded on the first day, and there were many well known products but also a few new ones.

A brand new product introduced was The Fusion Phone, which promises to be a combination landline dock, speaker and charger for your iPhone. It also provides a traditional dock connector for recharging and a passthrough USB connector so you can sync with your computer.

Beyond the usual dock features, it also offers a bluetooth connection so you can play music or take phone calls through the traditional handset. The Fusion Phone will begin shipping in April, and pre-orders are being taken now for $149.

Navigon, the makers of the popular turn-by-turn navigation app for the iPhone and iPad, announced the release of a car windshield mount accessory with car charging cable. The $49.99 accessory was promoted as a "barely there" design to showcase the iPhone itself.

The company was also promoting its Navigon 1.7 release which came in December. The latest version of the turn-by-turn software offers a single Universal app that supports both iPhone and iPad. Navigon takes advantage of the larger iPad screen to make it easier to plan routes, and those routes can also be sent by email to your iPhone version. So pre-planning can take place on the iPad, even if you don't want to have to bring it with you in the car. Other new features included Zagat content and Google reviews for restaurant ratings, active lane assistance, retina display support and a way to send back map errors to their map provider.

Navigon North America is presently on sale for $49.99 (from $59.99).

Splashtop was showing off their remote desktop app for iPhone and iPad. The $1.99 apps allow you to remotely control your Mac OS X installation over Wi-Fi or 3G. It does require a client to be installed on your Mac for it to work, but also has full support for sound and claims higher performance than traditional remote desktop clients.

A free trial of the iPad version is available that limits sessions for 5 minutes.

Apple today released iTunes 10.1.2, with Apple's download page details noting only that the update offers stability and performance improvements.

About iTunes 10.1.2
iTunes 10.1.2 provides a number of important stability and performance improvements.

A look at the release notes included with the actual download reveals, however, that the update also brings support for syncing the CDMA iPhone set to launch on Verizon early next month.

iTunes 10.1.2 syncs music, movies, and more with iPhone 4 (CDMA model) and provides a number of important stability and performance improvements.

iTunes 10.1.2 is available via Software Update and Apple's iTunes download page.

With Verizon set to launch the iPhone in just a few weeks, analysts have been attempting to estimate just how many units Apple might be able to sell through the carrier during the first year, with many analysts projecting the number to be in the range of 10 million units and reports of Apple preparing for shipments of 25 million CDMA iPhone units worldwide suggesting that the estimates may at least be in the ballpark.

But according to All Things Digital, one analyst has gone out on a limb to note that Verizon might be able to sign up as many as 25 million iPhone customers over the first year, if Apple can make the units quickly enough. According to R.W. Baird analyst William Power, surveys of current wireless customers reveal that substantial numbers of both current feature phone and smartphone users say that they are "probably" or "definitely" going to purchase a Verizon iPhone soon after the device's launch.

From the survey:

- 29 percent of current Verizon feature phone owners said they will "probably" or "definitely" upgrade to the Verizon iPhone in the next three months. The carrier has roughly 64 million postpaid feature phone users, so that's 19 million potential iPhone upgrades, assuming eligibility.

- 25 percent of Verizon's current smartphone users said they will "probably" or "definitely" switch to the iPhone. That's 4.8 million additional potential iPhone sales, again assuming eligibility.

Grand total: 23.8 million potential Verizon iPhone salesfrom the carrier's installed base alone. Add to that the 5.6 percent of current AT&T iPhone users who told Baird they planned to switch to Verizon and that number rises to nearly 25 million.

Surveys of future buying plans are of course subject to a fair degree of error when it comes to predicting actual results, as some customers will undoubtedly fail to follow through on their stated plans. Taking into account that factor, as well as constraints on Apple's production capacity and the eligibility of surveyed customers to upgrade at the best pricing, Power is maintaining an estimate of 10 million Verizon iPhone activations in the first year, but the survey result do indicate incredible awareness of and interest in Apple's smartphone offerings.

The Loop reports that Apple and News Corp have issued invitations for a media event scheduled for Wednesday, February 2nd at 11:00 AM to introduce The Daily, a new tablet-focused news publication set to debut on the iPad.

According to the invitation, the event will be held at the Guggenheim Museum in New York City and will feature Eddy Cue, Apple's longtime iTunes executive who currently holds the title of Vice President of Internet Services.

Apple has been claimed to have worked with News Corp to develop new functionality to support recurring billing via users' iTunes accounts for subscriptions to publications such as The Daily. The Daily is rumored to be priced at 99 cents per week after a free introductory period.

A number of companies either connected to or competing with Apple's iPhone have reported earnings yesterday and today, helping to paint a picture of the current status of the smartphone market.

AT&T, Apple's longtime exclusive iPhone partner in the United States, reported that it had activated 4.1 million iPhones during the fourth quarter of 2010, a figure that has historically included both sales of new devices and re-activations of previously-sold devices either handed down or resold by their owners. The new activations are down from the previous quarter that saw 5.2 million activations on the carrier.

Looking at its broader wireless business, AT&T added 2.8 million wireless subscribers during the quarter to reach a record 95.5 million customers, although only 400,000 of those net additions were of the more profitable postpaid contract variety. A full 61% of the company's 68 million postpaid subscribers are now on "integrated devices" offering virtual or physical QWERTY keyboards, up from 46.8% a year ago.

AT&T also announced that it added a total of 442,000 iPad and Android-based tablets to its network during the quarter, noting that the segment marks a substantial new growth market for the carrier but declining to break out the mix between iPad and Android devices.

Overall, AT&T's earnings were down substantially from the year-ago quarter, although the difference is primarily due to one-time accounting charges for pension and restructuring obligations. But analysts have expressed concern about AT&T going forward, citing lower-than-expected performance in its landline phone business and concerns over the effect of loss of exclusivity for the iPhone.

AT&T's results come as a pair of smartphone manufacturers reported their own earnings, taking the opportunity to express concern over the iPhone's debut on Verizon next month. Motorola Mobility announced results essentially in line with analyst expectations, but offered guidance for the current quarter of a net loss of between 9 and 21 cents, below the break-even expectations of analysts. Motorola Mobility CEO Sanjay Jha noted during a conference call discussing the earnings that the carrier has already seen a slowdown in sales as customers wait for the iPhone to come available on Verizon.

"I think that we have seen some slowdown as a result of the announcement at Verizon," CEO Sanjay Jha told analysts on a conference call.

Meanwhile, Nokia posted another earnings drop and acknowledged its continuing losses in smartphone market share that has seen the company's portion of the market sink to 31% from 40% in the year-ago quarter. Looking ahead, Nokia is also guiding toward a weak first quarter of 2011 as the company seeks to develop competitive strategies under new CEO Stephen Elop to both bolster its sagging traditional mobile phone sales and face off against the iPhone and Android devices in the smartphone segment. According to Elop:

"In Q4 we delivered solid performance across all three of our businesses, and generated outstanding cash flow. Additionally, growth trends in the mobile devices market continue to be encouraging. Yet, Nokia faces some significant challenges in our competitiveness and our execution. In short, the industry changed, and now it's time for Nokia to change faster."

Skype today announced that Skype 5 has gone gold, exiting the beta stage that began last November. The company has made a number of tweaks to the application based on user feedback from the beta period, primarily working to reduce the size of the application's window as it attempts to find the optimum layout for the new single-window interface.

We've reduced the minimum window size, so that those of you who prefer to keep Skype to one side of your screen, for example, can do that more easily. We've also tightened up the contact list, so that you can see 30% more contacts at once. We've reduced the amount of whitespace in the sidebar too.

In addition, we've tweaked the way instant messages are displayed to reduce the amount of whitespace, allowing you to see more of your conversations without scrolling.

Other changes include the return of full-screen mode for video calls and easier access to chatting functions during calls.

But probably the most significant change is the shift of group video calling to Skype's premium package, priced at $4.99 per day or $8.99 per month. The feature had been free during the beta testing period, although the company had signaled its intentions to charge for it once it officially launched.

As noted by Business Insider, Netflix today revealed in its quarterly earnings release (PDF) that the new Apple TV released at the end of September has already surpassed the iPad in terms of number of hours of Netflix content streamed.

The devices with large installed bases - meaning Windows and Mac laptops, Sony PS3, Microsoft Xbox, and Nintendo Wii - are the most popular devices for watching instantly from Netflix. AppleTV has done very well for us, and in just four months has passed the also-growing iPad in Netflix viewing hours.

While it should not be a surprise that the Apple TV is seeing strong performance when it comes to Netflix streaming due to its position as a set-top box for viewing content on a traditional TV, it is somewhat remarkable given the disparity in sales volumes between the two Apple products.

Apple's most recent earnings release revealed that the company has sold nearly 15 million iPads, while the Apple TV only reached the one-million mark at the close of the year. While not all of the sales of either device have occurred in markets where Netflix offers streaming content, iPads still likely outnumber Apple TVs by at least an order of magnitude in Netflix's markets.

Verizon has begun sending out information to corporate customers with more details about their iPhone launch. Verizon is offering existing customers a chance to buy the Verizon iPhone on February 3rd, a week before the general public.

According to the email we've received, Verizon will begin pre-order sales at 3am Eastern on February 3rd.

- Make sure you have your My Verizon self-serve account set-up online. Orders can only be placed through your my Verizon account. You can register/setup your account at... secure.verizon.com

- On February 3rd at 3am EST, Verizon Wireless will allow our current customers to order upgrades or new lines to their accounts through your My Verizon online account (make sure you have registered before the 3rd).

The email also indicates that the pre-sale inventory is limited, so when that inventory is depleted, customers will have to wait until the February 10th public launch date.

Verizon is also allowing some existing AT&T iPhone customers to trade-in their iPhone for credit when buying a new Verizon iPhone 4. We not sure if this will be offered to non-corporate accounts, but the trade-in price list is as follows:

iPhone 2G - 16GB: $60
iPhone 3G - 16GB: $105
iPhone 3Gs 32GB: $160
iPhone 4- 16GB: $280
iPhone 4 - 32GB: $360

Customers, of course, could do better selling their iPhones themselves, though this could provide a relatively low-hassle way to switch carriers. The prices listed here are higher than Verizon's normal trade-in program. New Verizon iPhones will be shipped 2 day FedEx by default or optionally next day air.

MacRumors has heard from several sources that supplies of Apple's existing MacBook Pro models, particularly the 15" and 17" sizes, are beginning to run low in Apple stores and at third-party retailers, suggesting that the company may be drawing down stock in advance of an update to the product line. At least one major retail chain has reportedly notified its branches that it has been unable to fulfill replenishment orders, a situation that has been tied to forthcoming product updates in the past.

The 17" MacBook Pro generally appears to be in the shortest supply at the moment, with Amazon quoting a shipment window of 1-2 months for the base Core i5 model and several popular resellers connected through Amazon's systems also showing low stocks of the 17" models. For its part, Apple continues to show "within 24-hour" availability of all MacBook Pro models in its online stores, suggesting that the company may be prioritizing remaining stock to serve its customers directly.

Apple's MacBook Pro has been expected to receive an update in the relatively near future, as the line is due for an revision any time now and sources have indicated that the MacBook Pros would indeed be updated some time in the first half of this year. A new version of the MacBook Pro will almost certainly incorporate Intel's Sandy Bridge microarchitecture and could see the company adopt some aspects of the its successfully revamped MacBook Air in order to improve performance and reduce size and weight.

Popular gaming firm Feral Interactive made a brief debut on the Mac App Store at the marketplace's launch earlier this month, offering its LEGO Harry Potter title for a very brief time before pulling the application, apparently due to issues with file corruption possibly related to the large download size. But Feral is now back in the Mac App Store in a big way: Besides restoring LEGO Harry Potter Years 1-4 to the store, the company has also rolled out three other titles, including BioShock, Borderlands, and Rome: Total War.

BioShock, the popular first-persion shooter game that originally debuted for Mac in late 2007, has been ranked among the top gaming titles of the last few years by numerous outlets. The game is priced at $39.99 on the Mac App Store.

Set in an alternate 1960, BioShock places you in the middle of an underwater utopia gone badly wrong. With a provocative and intelligent storyline, this is a game that is alternately beautiful, thrilling, funny, frightening and always involving. An experience that makes you think while you play.

Borderlands, another science fiction-themed first-person shooter, was only released on the Mac platform last month, coming in a "Game of the Year" edition with bonus content included. That expanded edition is now also available through the Mac App Store, priced at $49.99.

Finally, Feral has released Rome: Total War ($29.99), a strategy game available in a "Gold Edition" that also includes the Barbarian Invasion expansion pack for the original game. And of course LEGO Harry Potter Years 1-4 is now back in the Mac App Store at the same $49.99 price point at which it originally appeared.

Feral is not the only big-name Mac game developer to start bringing its titles to the Mac App Store, as Aspyr Media earlier this month launched Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and Civilization IV: Colonization, the first of what is expected to a significant number of Aspyr titles to make their way to the Mac App Store.