MacRumors' Mac Blog: Mac Apps, News and Rumors

OS X 10.9.3, released last week, boosted the maximum VRAM used by the Intel HD 5000/5100/5200 graphics chips used in the most recent 2013/2014 MacBook Airs and Retina MacBook Pros. First noticed by French site Mac4Ever [Google Translation], updating to 10.9.3 increases available VRAM from 1024MB to 1536MB, boosting the size of the shared memory, possibly to further improve 4K performance on...

The original "rainbow" Apple logo signs that were used at Apple's Cupertino, California headquarters are set to be auctioned off in June for somewhere between $10,000-$15,000, reports Design Taxi (via The Verge). The signs will be auctioned off by British auction house Bonhams, with the larger, 46 x 49 inch version made out of foam and the smaller, 33 x 36 inch version made out of fiberglass. ...

Activist investor Carl Icahn has purchased another 2.8 million Apple shares worth some $1.70 billion according to a regulatory filing from Thursday (via The Wall Street Journal). In total, Icahn now owns more than 7.5 million shares of Apple, bringing his stake to almost $4.5 billion. Icahn's investment follows Apple's April announcement of a dramatic increase in its share repurchase...

There's a great deal on the entry-level 27-inch 3.2GHz iMac with 8GB of memory and a 1TB hard drive this week. It's available for $1,659.99 from Best Buy, Amazon, and B&H Photo, which marks a discount of $139 and one of the lowest prices we've seen. The best deal for many users will likely be from B&H Photo, as the site does not charge sales tax outside of the state of New York. Best Buy and ...

Apple today released iTunes 11.2 with several improvements to Podcast browsing, giving users a way to find new episodes with an "Unplayed" tab and the ability to save favorite episodes to a computer. Episodes can also now be deleted after they're played, and episodes that are available to download or stream can be found in the "Feed" tab. There's a fix for an issue that caused iTunes to become ...

Shipping estimates for the Mac Pro through Apple's online store continue to rapidly improve, with the company's European stores such as the UK now showing 1-2 weeks for new orders. Online stores for other regions are still listing estimates of 2-3 weeks, but they should be seeing a similar improvement shortly. After months of shortages for the completely revamped Mac Pro following its...

Apple today updated its professional audio software Logic Pro X to version 10.0.7, adding support for 24 processing threads on 12-core Mac Pro models along with several new features to enhance the functionality of the app and an array of bug fixes. What's new - Now supports 24 processing threads on 12-core Mac Pro models - The current volume, pan, and send values for all selected tracks...

Google has launched a new feature for its experimental Chrome Canary browser for Mac, enabling a beta function that allows users to open local Mac files using Chrome apps in Finder. Using the feature, Chrome apps can be associated with OS X files, bringing Google one step closer to replacing desktop functionality with its browser. For example, the Chrome Text app can be used to open any Mac...

There are some decent deals to be had on several Apple products this week, including the iMac, the cellular iPad Air, and the 2013 MacBook Air, all of which are available at low prices from various retailers. B&H, for example, is currently offering the 21.5-inch 2.7Ghz iMac with 8GB of memory and a 1TB hard drive for $1,149, a $149 savings off the regular price. The higher-end 21.5-inch iMac ...

Apple's head of North American sales, Zane Rowe, will be leaving the company, reports The Wall Street Journal. Rowe, who initially joined the company two years ago from United Continental Holdings, will be replaced by Doug Beck. Beck already oversees sales in both Japan and Korea, and following Rowe's departure, he will take over North American sales.Doug Beck has done a great job helping to...

Apple today seeded build 13D61 of OS X 10.9.3 to developers, just over a week after releasing the ninth OS X beta, build 13D55, and nearly two months after the first 10.9.3 beta. This seed is accompanied by Safari 7.0.4. The beta is available through the Software Update mechanism in the Mac App Store as well as through the Mac Dev Center. Apple continues to ask developers to focus on...

The latest OS X beta, 10.9.3, may see a public release within the next few days, as AppleCare employees have received a fresh build of the beta. The last build seeded to developers was 13D55, but as noted by 9to5Mac, employees have been given build 13D62, which suggests the beta is nearing the end states of testing.The OS X Mavericks 10.9.3 Update is recommended for all Mavericks users. It...

Apple is apparently gearing up to open a sixth retail location in Manhattan by late 2015, according to a new report from ifoAppleStore.  The current interior of the building as occupied by VBH (via ifoAppleStore) Likely to be located at 940 Madison Avenue, the future store will occupy a former banking complex built in 1921 that currently houses luxury retailer VBH. The building itself...

New Apple Senior Vice President of Retail and Online Stores Angela Ahrendts has received a signing bonus potentially worth $68 million at current share prices, in the form of 113,334 restricted stock units that vest over the next four years.Ahrendts will receive shares spread over several different vesting periods between June 1, 2014 and June 14, 2018, assuming Ahrendts stays with the company. ...

Apple has donated $500,000 to SF Gives, an anti-poverty initiative formed by Salesforce.com CEO Marc Benioff and Tipping Point CEO Daniel Lurie, reports Fortune. Apple's contribution comes ahead of the SF Gives' Wednesday deadline, which looks to get 20 companies to contribute $500,000 each, or $10 million in total to fund charitable programs in the Bay Area. The Cupertino, Calif.-based tech ...

Apple hired former NV Energy VP Bobby Hollis as its Senior Renewable Energy Manager earlier this month, according to Hollis's LinkedIn page (via Mike Taylor). Hollis spent five years at electric company NV Energy in Nevada, where he served as the Vice President of Renewable Energy and Origination. Hollis also served on the board of the Solar Electric Power Association before leaving NV Energy...

With the release of updated 11 and 13-inch MacBook Air models, multiple retailers have begun dropping the price on older versions of the MacBook Air. Because the only upgrade to the 2014 MacBook Air is a slightly improved processor, the lower prices on 2013 MacBook Air models are appealing to consumers looking for a deal. We've gathered up some of the best price cuts ($200 off) on Apple's...

Apple today seeded build 13D55 of OS X 10.9.3 to developers, just over a week after releasing the eighth OS X beta, build 13D45a, and nearly two months after the first 10.9.3 beta. The beta is available through the Software Update mechanism in the Mac App Store as well as through the Mac Dev Center. Apple continues to ask developers to focus on Graphics Drivers, Audio, Mail, Contacts and...