Ed Sutherland - page 37

We close out another week of Apple deals with some bargains on hardware and software. First up is a new batch of price cuts on select iPhone Apps, including “Zooloretto,” a zoo management game. Next is a number of discounted iPads, including a 16GB Wi-Fi model for just $429. Finally, we take a look at some MacBooks, such as a 2.16GHz model for $590.

Along the way, we also check out some deals on iMacs (like an i3 with 22-inch screen for $1,019), some assorted gadgets and software for your Mac. As always, details on these items and many more can be found at CoM’s “Daily Deals” page right after the jump.

You may want to clear your schedule for February 3. That could be the day Verizon begins selling the iPhone — at least figures one blogger. Why pick that day? Turns out it wasn’t selected out of a hat, but based on several factors.

The Cupertino, Calif. tech giant has “blacked-out” Thursday, Feb. 3rd through Sunday, February 6th, denying any retail employee vacation requests, according to the blog, citing “a source close to Apple.” Earlier this week, a report surfaced that the iPhone maker was canceling vacations for retail workers sometime between late January and stretching into February. The move was seen as indicating a major product announcement was planned.

Apple’s new Mac App Store had more than 1 million downloads on its first day, the company announced Friday. Joining App Stores for the iPod, iPhone and iPad, this latest online venue for Mac applications was rolled into the Mac OS X 10.6.6 released for Snow Leopard users.

“We’re amazed at the incredible response the Mac App Store is getting,” Apple CEO Steve Jobs said in a statement. “Developers have done a great job bringing apps to the store and users are loving how easy and fun the Mac App Store is,” Jobs adds.

Apple reportedly is looking for a new a new finance chief. Although the tech giant denies it is shopping to replace current CFO Peter Oppenheimer, a Thursday news report suggests the Cupertino, Calif. company is seeking someone with more experience acquiring other firms.

Laurence Tosi, Oppenheimer’s counterpart at private equity firm Blackstone Group was approached by Apple, but has turned down the offer, according to Bloomberg News, citing “three people with knowledge of the matter.” Blackstone is the largest private equity firm, purchasing 30 companies in 2010.

We start the day with deals on applications for the iPad and iPhone. First up is a new crop of price cuts on select iPad apps, including “Spider-Man HD.” Next is a group of free iPhone apps from the App Store, including “Text Nanny,” a text-scheduling service. We wrap up our deal spotlight with a bargain on 8GB iPhone 3GS handsets. AT&T Friday begins offering the devices for $49 plus a two-year plan.

Along the way, we also take a look at an eMac G4 for just $150, plus a number of software packages for the Mac. As usual, details on these and many more items can be found at CoM’s “Daily Deals” page right after the jump.

Research in Motion’s answer to the 3G Apple iPad tablet now has a release date and carrier: this summer and Sprint. At “under $500 a pop, the PlayBook 4G already has potentially “tens of thousands” of corporate customers, according to a RIM senior vice president.

The tablet was demonstrated Wednesday at the Consumer Electronics Show. The device “performed smoothly as it went through its paces,” according to one report. RIM took the time to denounced as “absurd generalizations” talk that Adobe Flash cutting battery lifetime. The retort follows reports RIM may need to delay the PlayBook after an analyst claimed the tablet had only “a few hours” of battery life.

If you are looking for Apple to introduce a new product, a good time period may be between the last week of January and the first half of February. The Cupertino, Calif. company reportedly has cancelled vacations for its retail employees during that period, a possible signal a new product launch is imminent.

Apple has ordered the so-called vacation “black-out” period of three weeks after retail managers began expressing “reluctance” to grant employee requests for days off for January, according to a blog citing “people familiar” with the firm’s retail plans.

We start the day off with an assortment of bargains. first up is a new batch of price cuts from the iPhone App Store, including “Drake’s Tower,” an action game. Also under the spotlight is a deal on Apple’s touch-sensitive Magic TrackPad. Finally, were you one of the many who received the new iPod nano for a holiday present? If so, there is a wristband case to keep your tiny tunes close.

Along the way, we also check out a deal on Xserve servers, a 70 percent off deal on iPad cases, and software to control your Mac’s WebCam. As always, details on these and many other items can be found at CoM’s “Daily Deals” page right after the jump.

A vendor of iPad cases usually wouldn’t create a ripple in the tidal wave of products announced daily from the CES floor. However, Dexim is making headlines by displaying a case reportedly designed for the unreleased iPad 2. The case looks similar to one for the original iPad, with some subtle differences.

Along with a magnetic bluetooth keyboard that attaches to one of the case’s flaps, the product reportedly features a thinner design (matching rumors), openings for a front and rear camera supposedly for the expected Facetime support, and a large opening in the back.

Apple announced Wednesday it will open the Mac App Store Thursday, Jan. 6, the latest addition to stores already available for the iPod, iPhone and the iPad.

“Enter the same iTunes password you use to buy apps on iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch. And within seconds, your new app flies to your Dock, ready to go,” the Cupertino, Calif. company noted.

Tablet sales are expected to more than double in 2011, not so much due to first-time buyers, but from upgrades. The iPad could follow the trail broken by Apple’s iPod, creating a brand-loyalty that lasts for years, one analyst reasons.

Of the 24 million tablet sales projected this year, growing to 44 million by 2015, “the lion’s share will be iPads, despite many would-be competitors that will be released at CES, we see Apple commanding the vast majority of the tablet market through 2012,” Forrester Research analyst Sarah Rotman Epps said.

We start with free and discounted iPhone applications, led by dueling weather apps. In the free corner is “The WeatherApp,” which provides weather alerts and updates. This is just one of the entries in the latest crop of freebies from the iPhone App Store. In the “discount” corner is “WeatherNow,” a weather and clock combo once sold for $4, but now yours for just $0.99. This is just one of several iPhone apps being offered at discounted prices.

Also on tap is a deal on Apple’s AppleTV. The 160GB model is going for $120. Along the way, we also check out various ways to keep your iPhone powered-up, as well as insured from spills and drops. There is also a deal on an OEM version of a Mac OSX update and other Mac software.

Like always, details on these and many other bargains can be found at CoM’s “Daily Deals” page right after the jump.

Android reportedly may soon not be the monolithic threat it once was. The operating system codenamed “Honeycomb” from Google reportedly will be optimized for tablets, creating two tiers for products. The first tier will be using the first-gen Android, originally designed to compete with Apple’s iPhone. The second tier will use Android 3.0, require more powerful chips, and be aimed at the iPad 2.

As a result, some earlier Android-powered devices, such as Samsung’s Galaxy Tab, may soon be obsolete. But does it really matter? Surveys find most iPad owners use their tablet for checking email, surfing web sites, and keeping up with their social media contacts.

We all may have started 2011 with a New Year’s resolution, but Apple seems to have found the best way to get started on the right foot. The Cupertino, Calif. company gained $6 billion in value on the first business day of 2011, pushing the iPhone maker to a market capitalization of $302.32 billion.

Monday, investors rewarded Apple for its long string of popular electronic gadgets with a 2 percent jump in the stock’s price at $329.57 per share. If breathing down the neck of Exxon, history’s most profitable company isn’t enough, there’s even better ahead for Apple, if you believe Wall Street analysts.

We start the first week of 2011 with a number of deals for your iPhone, iPad or Mac. First up is the year’s latest crop of price cuts on iPhone applications, including “WeatherNow.” Next is several refurbished iPhone 4 handsets from AT&T, starting at $79 for a slightly-blemished 16GB model that was $129.

Along the way, we also check out a leather case for the iPad, sharply-reduced prices on iPod touch cases and VPN software for the Mac. As usual, details on these and many other bargains can be found at CoM’s “Daily Deals” page right after the jump.

All good things come to those who wait. That could be the motto for Apple fans anxiously awaiting what new goodies emerge from the folks in Cupertino.

If you are looking for Apple to introduce the long-awaited CDMA iPhone for Verizon customers, you will likely need to cool your heels until the March financial quarter of 2011, according to a prominent analyst out with his predictions for the upcoming year. Additionally, if you have your eye on an iPad 2, Apple’s second-generation tablet, you may need to wait until the flowers of Spring.

Samsung sold 10 million Galaxy S smartphones in 2010, the Suwon, South Korean company announced Monday. Although the handset helped goose Samsung’s third-quarter profits by 20 percent, the Android-powered device still lags behind Apple’s iPhone. The Cupertino, Calif. company sold 14.1 million iPhones in the September quarter.

“For the time being, Apple’s presence in the smartphone market will remain solid,” Seoul-based analyst Young Park told Bloomberg. However, Samsung could continue its rise “based on their brand power and their relationship with telecommunication companies,” Park adds.

We start off the last Daily Deals of 2010 with some New Year-themed apps for your iPhone. First up is a new crop of price drops on selected apps from the iPhone App Store, including the physics-based game “Burn the Rope.” Next is “Diner Dash,” an app seeming ideal for this time of the year when food is the center of our attention. We close out the deal spotlight with an app that might help you keep your New Year’s resolution for more exercise. “RunKeep Pro” keeps track of your fitness activity via the iPhone’s GPS sensor.

Along the way, we take a look at more apps for the iPhone, including “Real Soccer 2011”, as well as deals on the iMac and Mac Pro Xeon workstation.

Like usual, details on these and many other items can be found at CoM’s “Daily Deals” page, which starts right after the jump.
Here’s our wish for a happy, safe and prosperous New Year.

A company has sued Apple and a number of other technology firms, alleging their smartphones and other touch-screen devices violate a patent covering “double-click input.” Apple’s iPad and iPhone were specifically mentioned because the handset and tablet allow users to “double click or double tap a visual element representing content and interact with a second version of the interactive content.”

The lawsuit by Hopewell Culture and Design asks an Eastern Texas District Court to award “adequate damages” for the supposed violations. The U.S. Patent No. 7,171,625 was first filed in 2002. Also named in the lawsuit are Adobe, HTC, Nokia, LG Electronics, Motorola, Opera, Palm, Samsung and Quickoffice.

Following its success built from offering Android-powered iPhone alternatives, Taiwan-based handset maker HTC seems to now have the iPad in its sights. The company reportedly filed a patent application Dec. 26 for a “handheld device, namely a tablet computer.”

According to the report, the device is named the “HTC Scribe” and is seen as the company’s inevitable move into the burgeoning tablet market now controlled by Apple. The HTC device may “provide an alternative to the iPad,” IDC program Will Stofega told Bloomberg. The new tablet would rival the iPad’s price while providing an experience “as good or better” than the device from Cupertino, the analyst adds.

We start the day with deals on iPad and iPhone apps, along with more reduced prices on Apple’s tablet.First up is a new crop of reduced prices on iPad apps from the App Store, including “GT Racing: Motoro Academy.” Next is a new series of iPhone freebies, including “QuickSocial,” a social media and messaging utility. We wrap up the deal spotlight with more refurbished iPads, including a 16Gb Wi-Fi model for just $429.

Along the way, we check out cases for the iPhone and iPad, along with hardware, such as iMacs, Mac Pros and MacBooks. As always, details on these and many other items can be found at CoM’s “Daily Deals” page right after the jump.

Following an analyst note blasting a tablet hoping to compete with the iPad, maker Research in Motion responded, saying its PlayBook tablet “offers superior performance with comparable battery life.”

Tuesday, Kaufman Bros. analyst Shaw Wu told investors RIM’s tablet has a battery life of just a “few hours” compared to the iPad’s 10 hour lifespan or Samsung’s six hours. As a result, RIM has delayed introducing the PlayBook until later in 2011 for “a bit of re-engineering.”

Another analyst is fueling reports Apple will soon shift from the initial iPad design to the unreleased iPad 2. The Cupertino, Calif. company produced 1.6 million of the tablets in December, a sharp drop from the 2.1 million units created in November. The shift has also allowed Amazon’s Kindle e-reader to match iPad shipments.

Amazon’s ability to keep pace with iPad production in December is a sign that the Kindle “is going to mass market from niche market” and that the iPad’s erosion of Kindle’s market “is not obvious,” according to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of Concord Equity Research.

Four senior Apple executives and company board members recently donated more than 10,000 shares of the Cupertino, Calif. company’s high-flying stock. The donations benefitted unnamed charitable organizations with early Christmas gifts worth over $3 million, according to government records.

Apple board member and former clothing executive Millard Drexler made the largest donation of 6,800 shares worth more than $2.1 million. Drexler is CEO of J. Crew and former chairman of The Gap. Drexler made the donation on Dec. 14, a day when Apple stock closed at $320.29 per share.

We start out with some free iPhone applications and some reduced prices on popular apps for the Apple handset. First up is the latest crop of iPhone App Store freebies, including “iDestroy,” billed as a bug destroying game. Next is an assortment of price drops on iPhone apps, such as “Skeletal Anatomy,” a medical application. We wrap up our featured deals with an 8GB iPod nano for $120 plus free shipping.

Along the way, we make the case for cases, whether it is for your MacBook Air, your iPad or your iPhone 4. As always, details on these items, along with much more (such as as 64GB iPod touch or Morphie’s iPhone credit card reader) can be found at CoM’s “Daily Deals” page right after the jump.