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.

Eric Slivka's Articles

apple tv itunes match menu

Apple Turns on iTunes Match for Apple TV with New 'Music' Section

Wednesday November 2, 2011 8:45 pm PDT by
While Apple revealed as part of its notes on the new iTunes 10.5.1 beta 2 released earlier today that iTunes Match is now available for testing on Apple TV, the option is appearing not just for developers but also for regular users. The general public is unable to activate the feature, however, as subscriptions to iTunes Match must be initiated through iTunes 10.5.1, which has yet to see a...
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Siri's Impact on Data Usage Examined

Wednesday November 2, 2011 11:05 am PDT by
With the release of the new Siri intelligent assistant on the iPhone 4S, some users have been curious about how much data the feature uses given that most users are on limited data plans and that Siri must communicate with outside servers in order to function. Ars Technica has now taken a look at a set of common Siri tasks, determined that those specific queries used an average of 63 KB of data. ...
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'Steve Jobs' Easily Tops Best Seller Lists in Debut Week

Wednesday November 2, 2011 9:21 am PDT by
The Bookseller reports that Walter Isaacson's authorized biography of Steve Jobs easily topped the best-seller list in the United States and United Kingdom during its first week of availability. Citing Nielsen's BookScan data for U.S. figures, the report claims that the book sold 379,000 copies, outselling second-place The Litigator by John Grisham by more than three-to-one.Despite being on sale ...
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Czech Carrier Dumps iPhone Over Apple's 'Business Terms'

Wednesday November 2, 2011 8:50 am PDT by
Bloomberg briefly reports that Czech carrier Telefonica/O2 has apparently announced that it will cease selling all iPhone models, objecting to Apple's "business terms".Telefonica Czech Republic AS won’t sell Apple’s new iPhone 4S and will end sales of all Apple’s models because of Apple’s business terms, Hospodarske Noviny reported, citing Telefonica’s local spokesman Hany Farghali.No additional...

Video of 75-Minute 1995 Interview with Steve Jobs

Wednesday November 2, 2011 8:10 am PDT by
Last month, following the death of Steve Jobs, Computerworld published a transcript of a lengthy 1995 interview with Steve Jobs conducted as part of an oral history program for the Computerworld Information Technology Awards Foundation. The complete, unabridged video of that 75-minute interview has now been posted, offering an interesting look at Jobs before his return to Apple. In the...
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Samsung to Depose Jony Ive and Other Apple Designers, Seeks iPhone 4S Source Code

Wednesday November 2, 2011 7:48 am PDT by
The legal battle between Apple and Samsung continues to rage in a number of different countries, and Samsung is going on the offensive with recent attempts to obtain testimony from Apple senior vice president Jony Ive and other designers, as well as to receive access to the iPhone 4S source code and the detail of Apple's agreements with carriers in Australia. Samsung's planned depositions of ...
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Former Retail Store Manager Steve Cano to Succeed Ron Johnson as Apple Retail Chief? [Updated]

Wednesday November 2, 2011 7:39 am PDT by
Yesterday, we noted that Apple senior vice president for retail Ron Johnson had been removed from Apple's list of senior executives, in line with his previously-announced departure to become CEO of department store chain J.C. Penney. The transition occurred with no announcement from Apple regarding Johnson's successor. Steve Cano (left) and Ron Johnson (right) at 2004 grand opening of ...

New Steve Jobs Documentary to Air Tonight on PBS and UK's Channel 4

Wednesday November 2, 2011 7:00 am PDT by
Last week, we noted that PBS is set to premiere a new documentary about Steve Jobs tonight, offering interviews with a number of prominent personalities with connections to Jobs. The documentary will also include brief clips from a rare 1994 interview in which Jobs talks about his views on life. PBS has now released a pair of clips from the show ahead of its premiere, offering a glimpse at...
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Tim Cook Putting His Stamp on Apple

Tuesday November 1, 2011 1:26 pm PDT by
The Wall Street Journal takes a look at Tim Cook's first two months officially in the role of Apple CEO, noting some of the differences between his management style and that of Steve Jobs.In recent weeks, Mr. Cook has tended to administrative matters that never interested Mr. Jobs, such as promotions and corporate reporting structures, according to people familiar with the matter. The new chief...
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C Spire Launching iPhone on November 11th, 'Unlimited' Non-Streaming Data and 500 Minutes for $50

Tuesday November 1, 2011 10:28 am PDT by
Regional U.S. carrier C Spire garnered headlines last month for its announcement that it would begin offering the iPhone 4S in the coming weeks, becoming the fourth U.S. carrier to offer the iPhone and coming ahead of several other larger carriers, most notably T-Mobile USA. C Spire has now confirmed that it will launch both the iPhone 4S and iPhone 4 on November 11th, alongside the iPhone...
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Apple Updates GarageBand for iOS with iPhone and iPod Touch Support

Tuesday November 1, 2011 9:17 am PDT by
Apple today announced the launch of GarageBand for iPhone and iPod touch, making the previous iPad-only version a universal app.“GarageBand on iPad has been a big hit and we think customers will love using it on their iPhone or iPod touch,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. “The innovative Multi-Touch interface combined with Smart...
itunes match end of october

Apple Misses iTunes Match Launch Target as iTunes 10.5.1 Developer Beta Expires

Tuesday November 1, 2011 8:29 am PDT by
At its "Let's Talk iPhone" media event early last month, Apple announced that it would be launching its iTunes Match service in the United States at the "end of October". That launch date was itself apparently a slight delay from Apple's original plans given that support for the feature had been built into developer builds of iTunes 10.5, which was released in mid-October to support iOS 5 and...
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Retail Chief Ron Johnson Departs Apple for J.C. Penney, No Successor Named

Tuesday November 1, 2011 8:05 am PDT by
In line with his previously-announced transition, Ron Johnson has left his position as senior vice president of retail at Apple to take over as CEO of department store chain J.C. Penney. As noticed by 9to5Mac, Johnson has been removed from Apple's list of senior executives. Johnson came to Apple from Target eleven years ago, overseeing the launch and strong growth of Apple's retail store...
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iOS Surges Past 60% Share of Mobile Web Traffic

Tuesday November 1, 2011 7:40 am PDT by
Net Applications has released its latest monthly data on Web traffic, revealing that Apple's iOS was able to ride the strength of the iPhone 4S launch and continued iPad momentum to surge past a 60% share of traffic. According to the data, iOS was responsible for 61.64% of the mobile Web traffic during October on a geographically weighted basis. Net Applications Mobile/Tablet Top Operating ...
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Apple Announces Next Round of International iPhone 4S Launches for November 11th

Tuesday November 1, 2011 6:12 am PDT by
Apple today announced that its next round of international launches of the iPhone 4S will occur on Friday, November 11th. This next phase of Apple's rapid rollout of the new device involves 15 countries, including Hong Kong and South Korea.Beginning Friday, November 11, iPhone 4S will be available in Albania, Armenia, Bulgaria, El Salvador, Greece, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Malta, Montenegro, New...
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Native Gmail App for iOS Reportedly Set to Launch

Monday October 31, 2011 9:15 pm PDT by
MG Siegler shares word that Google is preparing to launch a native iOS application for Gmail, offering some expanded capabilities beyond the current mobile-optimized version for Safari. According to Siegler's sources, the app may even have already been submitted to Apple for App Store approval.Google is on the verge of launching their native Gmail app, multiple sources tell me. In fact, I...
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Apple 'Questioning' the Future of its Mac Pro Line?

Monday October 31, 2011 12:20 pm PDT by
Late last week, we noted that with pricing information on Intel's upcoming Sandy Bridge E Xeon processors surfacing, Apple's options for a potential "Early 2012" Mac Pro have begun to clear up. The Mac Pro has not been updated since mid-2010, and delays in Intel's new chips have pushed their availability out from late this year to early next year. But despite the new processors now being in...
apple in store pickup nyc

In-Store Pickup for Apple Online Store Orders Expanded to New York City

Monday October 31, 2011 11:11 am PDT by
Earlier today, we noted that Apple is planning a number of enhancements to its online and retail store shopping offerings, perhaps most notably allowing retail store customers purchasing shelf-stocked accessories and other items to utilize a self-checkout option through the company's Apple Store iOS application. One other enhancement that first rolled out last week is the ability for customers ...
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Apple Planning Surge in Retail and Cloud Spending in 2012

Monday October 31, 2011 9:15 am PDT by
Last week, Apple released its annual 10-K report, offering a summary of the company's financial performance and other items of interest for fiscal 2011. One interesting tidbit from the report is gaining some attention for its glimpse into the future, as GigaOM reports on a new research note from UBS analyst Maynard Um addressing Apple's planned capital expenditures (CapEx) for fiscal 2012. From ...
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Apple Retail Stores to Allow Self-Checkout via iOS App for Accessory Purchases

Sunday October 30, 2011 10:08 pm PDT by
MacRumors has learned that Apple is planning to launch an update to its retail store iOS app that will allow consumers to utilize self-checkout for purchases of accessories and other shelf-stocked items at the company's retail stores. According to our source, self-checkout purchases will be charged via the Apple Store app to the customer's iTunes Store account. It is not entirely clear what...