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

swiftkey ios 8 ss

SwiftKey's Systemwide Gesture Keyboard Launching Alongside iOS 8 for Free

Tuesday September 16, 2014 6:00 pm PDT by
Earlier this year, popular Android alternative keyboard maker SwiftKey expanded to iOS with a note-taking app integrating the company's gesture keyboard. And with Apple opening up iOS to systemwide third-party keyboard as part of iOS 8, SwiftKey is ready to expand its presence. In a blog post and appearance at TechCrunch Disrupt last week, SwiftKey showed off its iOS 8 gesture keyboard and...
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Official iPhone 6 and 6 Plus Cases Arriving Ahead of Friday's iPhone Launch

Tuesday September 16, 2014 12:22 pm PDT by
While shipping vendors have been instructed to hold deliveries of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus until Friday's official launch date, there is no such restriction on the official Apple cases designed for the new devices. As a result, several MacRumors readers and others who placed orders for cases when iPhone pre-orders went live last Friday have already begun receiving their case orders. iLounge has ...
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Netflix Launches in Germany, Including on Apple TV

Tuesday September 16, 2014 11:03 am PDT by
Netflix today officially launched [Google Translate] its subscription movie and TV show service in Germany, and as noted by ifun.de [Google Translate], the launch includes day-one support on the Apple TV. Apple has significantly expanded content offerings on the Apple TV over the past year or two, but many of the additions have been limited to the United States. The Netflix channel has,...
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Apple Approving iOS 8-Optimized Apps, but Extensions Not Working Properly Yet

Tuesday September 16, 2014 7:28 am PDT by
Following last week's iPhone and Apple Watch media event, Apple officially invited developers to begin submitting their iOS 8 apps for App Store review ahead of tomorrow's public release of the new operating system. While a number of developers have been tweaking their apps to work better with iOS 8 over the past few months, the major step forward comes as apps begin to support the new...
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Retina iMacs and Apple Displays Within Reach as New DisplayPort 1.3 Spec Finalized

Monday September 15, 2014 10:34 am PDT by
With Dell having announced its upcoming 5120 x 2880 "5K" display that would be the equivalent of a Retina 27-inch iMac or Apple Thunderbolt Display and Apple rumored to be launching its own such display later this year, connectivity options for such displays have now taken a significant step forward with today's official release of the DisplayPort 1.3 specification by the Video Electronics...
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T-Mobile's iPhone 'Test Drive' Program Upgrades: iOS 8 Soon, iPhone 6 Units Later

Monday September 15, 2014 7:25 am PDT by
Several months ago, T-Mobile US launched an iPhone "test drive" program allowing users to test an iPhone 5s on the carrier's network for seven days free of charge. The program helps users decide if T-Mobile's coverage is satisfactory in the areas they frequent, and also gives users unfamiliar with the iPhone a free introduction to the platform. With Apple ready to release new iPhone hardware ...
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AT&T Executive: 'Amazing to See the Volume' as iPhone 6 Debut Tops 5s and 5 Launches

Friday September 12, 2014 7:30 am PDT by
While Apple's launch-day supplies for the iPhone 6 are holding up fairly well so far, the larger iPhone 6 Plus has been sold out as shipping estimates move to 3-4 weeks. Overall, demand appears to be high as many expected, with the new form factor and larger displays serving to entice new and upgrade customers. AT&T executive Ralph de la Vega addressed the iPhone 6 launch in comments at the...
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Apple's Ultra-Slim 12-Inch Notebook Coming in Mid-2015 With Silver, Gold, and Space Gray Options?

Thursday September 11, 2014 2:00 pm PDT by
With Apple's Mac notebooks continuing to prove popular with consumers, the company has been rumored for some time to be working on a 12-inch notebook that could feature an ultra-slim form factor, Retina display, a new buttonless trackpad, and a fanless design. Rumors of such a machine have surfaced from several sources over the course of the past year, suggesting Apple has indeed been working on...
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Sapphire Displays for iPhone 6 Missed by 'Weeks' Due to Yield Issues

Thursday September 11, 2014 11:27 am PDT by
One of the biggest rumors for the iPhone 6 was a new sapphire display cover courtesy of Apple's partnership with GT Advanced Technologies. Some rumors had suggested sapphire might be limited to high-end models, but at the device's unveiling earlier this week the feature was nowhere to be found on any of the new models. GT's stock took a significant hit as it became clear the iPhone 6 was not...
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Apple September 2014 Media Event: Spoiler-Free Video Stream [Video Posted]

Monday September 8, 2014 1:28 pm PDT by
With Apple's September 2014 media event kicking off Tuesday morning at 10:00 AM Pacific Time, some users are interested in avoiding all of the announcements and waiting until Apple posts the recorded video of the event so as to experience it without already knowing the outcome. For those individuals, we've posted this news story, which will be updated with the link to the presentation once...
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Apple Expanding Boston-Based Research Team Working on Siri Speech Recognition

Monday September 8, 2014 1:17 pm PDT by
Last year, we highlighted a profile of Apple's Boston-area speech technology team speculated to be working on enhancements to Siri. The group's efforts appear to have been ramping up since that time, with a June report claiming Apple is seeking to eventually move away from the Nuance-powered system currently used for Siri. Apple's team in Cambridge appears to still be growing, with BetaBoston...
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Apple Now Sending Alert Emails When iCloud Accounts Accessed via Web

Monday September 8, 2014 7:35 am PDT by
In an interview last week, Apple CEO Tim Cook noted that Apple would be beefing up iCloud security measures in response to the recent disclosure of compromised celebrity accounts. Among the additional security features said to be rolling out over the following two weeks were new email alerts whenever there is an attempted password change, a device restore from the account, or a login from a new...
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Purported Schematics and Details on iWatch Show Rectangular Body, Round Sensor Plate

Monday September 8, 2014 6:39 am PDT by
With just one day to go until Apple's media event where it is expected to show off not only the iPhone 6 but also its much-rumored "iWatch" wearable device, last-minute leaks and rumors are continuing to roll in. The latest involves schematics and details on the iWatch, and while it is difficult to assess the validity of the claims and images (which have been reposted to Imgur) given that they...
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Apple Filling Out Flyover City Tours Ahead of iOS 8 and OS X Yosemite Launches

Sunday September 7, 2014 8:28 am PDT by
One of the new mapping features included in iOS 8 and OS X Yosemite is Flyover city tours, which leverages the existing Flyover imagery to provide users with an automated aerial tour of landmarks in a given city. When the feature first appeared early in the iOS 8 beta testing process, only a handful of cities were supported, and while the number of available tours remains small, Apple has added...
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Former GT Employee Appears to Confirm Apple's Plans for Sapphire Display Covers

Sunday September 7, 2014 6:12 am PDT by
While it is commonly taken as a foregone conclusion that the sapphire partnership between Apple and GT Advanced Technologies is focused on iPhone display covers, it bears noting that the two companies have never publicly confirmed what the sapphire will be used for. Sapphire is already used to protect the camera and Touch ID sensor on recent iPhone models, and the material is also said to be...
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More Photos and Videos of Claimed Working iPhone 6 Devices Surface

Sunday September 7, 2014 5:41 am PDT by
Following yesterday's leak of what appeared to be a working 4.7-inch iPhone 6, passions have run high between those who believe the device to be genuine and those who believe it to be a fake or a clone. Commenters in our forums naturally scrutinized the images and videos looking for inconsistencies and have found a few, including longer hands on the Clock app icon, an "upside down" color gradient ...
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iWatch to Run Third-Party Apps, Key Developer Partners Already at Work

Saturday September 6, 2014 5:22 pm PDT by
Apple's upcoming wearable device, popularly known as the iWatch, is expected to be unveiled at Tuesday's media event, although a launch will reportedly come perhaps as late as early 2015. Part of the reason for the early unveiling may be to give third-party developers time to build apps for the new device, and 9to5Mac reports that will indeed be the case. Moreover, key third-party developers are...
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Apparent Working 4.7-Inch iPhone 6 Reveals Home Screen Layout, Passbook Icon With Payments [Updated]

Saturday September 6, 2014 7:28 am PDT by
Chinese site cnBeta highlights a series of photos posted by Weibo user zzray showing what is claimed to be an official, functional, and activated iPhone 6. While the authenticity of the device can not be confirmed, it does have some interesting characteristics worth noting. iPhone 5s (left) and claimed iPhone 6 (right) (Click for full size) First, the overall design looks very polished and...
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Rear Camera of 5.5-Inch iPhone 6 With Optical Stabilization and Other Parts Shown in New Photos

Friday September 5, 2014 8:54 am PDT by
A number of parts from Apple's upcoming iPhone 6 models have leaked in recent months, but a new photo set from Feld & Volk [Instagram page] offers some fresh details on the new devices. At the top of the list is the rear camera from the 5.5-inch iPhone 6. As shown in comparison photos, the module is thinner and otherwise larger than the one from the iPhone 5s, but with Apple shaving down the...
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Apple's TestFlight Beta Testing Service Gearing Up Alongside iTunes Connect Revamp

Friday September 5, 2014 7:39 am PDT by
Earlier this year, Apple acquired Burstly, the company behind the popular TestFlight service for managing beta testing of iOS apps, and at WWDC in June Apple announced it would be relaunching TestFlight with iOS 8 as an integrated service for developers and testers. With the redesigned iTunes Connect web portal launching yesterday, the service is now including references to TestFlight and the...