Eric Slivka
Eric is the Editor-in-Chief of MacRumors and has been writing for the site since 2008.
An avid swimmer and former biophysicist, Eric has been using Apple products for over 35 years and has been interviewed for pieces by The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Reuters, BBC, CNBC, and other publications.
Eric's current primary role involves day-to-day oversight of the editorial operations at MacRumors, but he also contributes occasional news and review articles while handling various other duties related to the site's operation.
An avid swimmer and former biophysicist, Eric has been using Apple products for over 35 years and has been interviewed for pieces by The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Reuters, BBC, CNBC, and other publications.
Eric's current primary role involves day-to-day oversight of the editorial operations at MacRumors, but he also contributes occasional news and review articles while handling various other duties related to the site's operation.
Eric Slivka's Articles
Apple Releases iOS 6 with New Maps App, Facebook Integration, Siri Improvements, and More
As expected, Apple has just released iOS 6 to the public, making the download available to users of recent iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch models. Users can obtain the update either by connecting their devices to iTunes and clicking the "Check for Update" button or checking for over-the-air updates on their devices via Settings -> General -> Software Update. It may, however, take a few minutes for...
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First iPhone 5 Unboxing Videos Posted as Reports of Premature Deliveries Begin
Following yesterday's publication of the first unboxing photos of the iPhone 5, several unboxing videos have now begun appearing. Among the first is one from UK gadget site T3, which received an official review unit from Apple and published its review as the embargo lifted late yesterday.
T3 has also posted a number of other videos showing off features of the iPhone 5.
A second video has ...
Time Warner Willing to Cede Control of User Interface in Potential Deals for Apple TV Products
Two weeks ago, Bloomberg reported on Apple's struggles to reach television content deals that would enable the company to broaden its living room reach by providing set-top boxes to blend live and recorded material. The report noted that cable companies have generally been reluctant to work with Apple as they seek to retain control over the software and other aspects of their businesses, with...
Hands-On Video with 'iPad Mini' Physical Mockup
Physical mockups of Apple's rumored "iPad mini", presumably based on leaked design specs from case manufacturers, have appeared with increasing frequency in recent weeks, and Gizchina.com has now obtained one of the dummy units to share new photos and a video giving an impression of how the device might look and feel. The dummy units are widely available through Chinese online marketplace Taobao ...
iPhone 5 Component Costs Estimated to Begin at $199
IHS iSuppli has released its estimate of the component costs involved in building the iPhone 5, performing a virtual teardown based on information revealed by Apple and industry knowledge. The estimate, which does not include numerous other costs involved in product development, manufacturing, and sales, such as research and development, software, patent licenses, marketing, and distribution...
Apple's Entire Design Team Travels to London for Award Acceptance
The London Evening Standard reports that Apple design chief Jonathan Ive and his entire team made a trip to London yesterday in order to accept a prestigious award from Design and Art Direction (D&AD). The acceptance of the award, which recognized Apple's design team as "the best brand and the best design studio of the last 50 years", was reportedly the first time the entire team attended such a ...
Shipping Estimates for New iPhone 5 Pre-Orders Through Apple Slip to 3-4 Weeks
The iPhone 5 does not officially launch until Friday, but pre-orders are clearly continuing to roll in through Apple's online store as the company has now bumped shipping estimates for new pre-orders to 3-4 weeks. Apple sold out of its launch day pre-order stock in just about an hour last Friday, with shipping estimates quickly moving to two weeks and then drifting to 2-3 weeks, where they have...
Apple's EarPods Receive the Teardown Treatment
The teardown experts at iFixit are undoubtedly itching to get their hands on the iPhone 5 later this week, and in the meantime they've decided to bide their time by taking apart Apple's new EarPods to see how the earphones compare to their predecessors. Overall, the teardown reveals a significantly revamped design with greater durability in the form of better-sealed components and increased cord ...
First iPhone 5 Unboxing Photos Reveal Packaging Layout and EarPods Travel Case
BGR shares a few photos of what seems to be the first publicly-revealed unboxing of the iPhone 5. It is unclear how the source was able to obtain an iPhone 5, but the photos show the box itself and the rear of the device, as well as the trio of accessories that are included in the box: EarPods, power adapter, and Lightning to USB cable.
The EarPods appear to be packaged identically to the...
Overview of Apple's A6 Chip Development and Future Plans
Semiconductor analyst Linley Gwennap has posted an interesting overview (via CNET) of the series of events that led to Apple's A6 system-on-a-chip, the company's first entirely custom ARM chip design. The report notes that Apple has likely spent in excess of $500 million on the project when including the purchase prices of chip firms P.A. Semi and Intrinsity.At this point, Apple has spent about...
'iPad Mini' Physical Mockup Surfaces Again...in Black
Nowhereelse.fr shares some new photos of an "iPad mini" that appeared on Chinese site Bolopad.
Despite reports from other sites indicating that is likely to be an actual iPad mini, it is clearly a physical mockup and is simply the black version of a white mockup that appeared last week.
The mockup is consistent with leaked case designs and other mockups, pointing to a somewhat rounded...
AT&T to Face Net Neutrality Complaint Regarding FaceTime Over Cellular Limitation
Late last month, we noted that net neutrality organization Public Knowledge had accused AT&T of violating Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules in limiting use of the forthcoming FaceTime over Cellular feature in iOS 6 to customers on the carrier's new Mobile Share plans. AT&T responded to note that it was within its rights to block FaceTime over Cellular for customers on other plans...
Five New Apple Retail Stores Opening for iPhone 5 Launch Week
In support of the initial launch of the iPhone 5 this Friday, Apple has announced five new grand openings for its retail store chain. The first opening of this week will take place on Thursday, when the new Rio Shopping store in Valladolid, Spain opens its doors. The somewhat unusual Thursday opening stems from the fact that the brand-new Rio Shopping mall itself is opening on that date....
iPhone 5 Sales Predicted to Hit 8 Million Units in Launch Weekend
Following Apple's announcement earlier today that it took two million iPhone 5 pre-orders in the first 24 hours of availability, Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster has published a new research note predicting that Apple will achieve sales in the range of 6-10 million units for the opening weekend, with the mid-range number of 8 million units being used for modeling purposes. Munster bases his...
Retina MacBook Pro Users Still Complaining of Image Persistence
Back in late June, we reported that some early purchasers of Apple's Retina MacBook Pro were experiencing image persistence or "ghosting" issues in which remnants of previously-displayed windows remain visible on the screen for sometime afterward.
Apple was reportedly replacing the affected machines and DisplayMate's Ray Soneira had indicated that it was likely to be an early production issue, ...
Apple Announces Over Two Million iPhone 5 Pre-Orders in First Day of Sales
Following today's announcement by AT&T sharing word that the iPhone 5 has broken pre-order sales records at the carrier, Apple has issued a press release noting that it too saw record-breaking pre-orders of over two million units in the first 24 hours of availability. The performance breaks last year's record of one million iPhone 4S units pre-ordered on the first day of availability.“iPhone 5 ...
iPhone 5 Lightning Connector to Support Direct USB Peripheral Hosting?
Mac Otakara reports that Apple's new Lightning dock connector is capable of hosting USB peripheral devices, meaning that Apple could potentially allow users to connect devices such as keyboard and other accessories directly to their Lightning-equipped mobile products.
Apple's Lightning to USB cable
Even if the report is true, however, it would require that Apple build device support for...
Panel Installation Nearly Complete at Apple's Massive North Carolina Solar Farm
We've been following Apple's work at its Maiden, North Carolina data center for quite some time, and early last month we saw some good aerial photos showing ongoing work at the site including the installation of a major solar farm to help meet Apple's renewable energy goals for the center.
GigaOM now shares some new video stills shot from the air by WCNC-TV showing that installation at the...
Confusion Over Free Lightning to 30-Pin Adapter with iPhone 5 as Apple Errs in Online Store [Updated]
As noted by iPhoneinCanada.ca soon after pre-orders for the iPhone 5 went live earlier today, Apple's online store in several countries appeared to be noting that the company's Lightning to 30-pin Adapter would be included with customers' orders free of charge. The disclosure came in the form of an option to add an "additional" adapter as an accessory.Your iPhone includes a Lightning to 30-pin...
New iPhone 5 Pre-orders Through Verizon Slip to September 26 Delivery [Update: AT&T at 14-21 Days]
While Apple's shipping estimates on iPhone 5 pre-orders quickly slipped to two weeks just an hour after the online store reopened earlier, the company's U.S. carrier partners have seen their supplies holding up a bit better with continued estimates of delivery on launch day on September 21.
That appears to be changing now, as Verizon is the first of the three major U.S. carriers to see its...
