iPhone

The 404 1,289: Where Alex Winter gets us Downloaded (podcast)

Our guest on today's episode is Alex Winter. You might recognize him as Ted from "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure," but you might not know that he's also a documentary filmmaker. His latest project is a story about the rise and fall of Napster called "Downloaded."

It traces the history of the file-sharing service but it also looks at the industry waves it caused in its aftermath, leading up to Spotify and iTunes as it exists today.

We'll talk with Alex about the road to making the movie, his introduction to Sean … Read more

Samsung's avalanche vs. Apple's snowflakes

Two companies are battling for the hearts and minds of billions of mobile users. One company offers a smorgasbord of phones, tablets, and laptops. It's the something-for-everyone approach, with a broad range of devices, price points, colors, and features. The other currently offers a limited range of mobile devices. Its latest smartphone is available in one size, in black or white. But, both companies are succeeding with their different approaches.

This week, the something-for-everyone company, Samsung, unleashed an avalanche of products in London, including five models of its flagship Galaxy S4 smartphone. The models have a 5-inch or 4.… Read more

At long last, Apple's iPhone 5 comes to Virgin Mobile

Apple's iPhone 5 is on its way to Virgin Mobile, the carrier announced Friday.

Starting on June 28, customers will be able to buy the white or black iPhone 5 on Virgin Mobile's Web site, at the company's dealers, and at RadioShack. The 16GB model will set customers back $549.99, while the 32GB and 64GB options will be available for $649.99 and $749.99, respectively.

Rumors have been circulating for months that Apple was planning to bring its iPhone 5 to Virgin Mobile. In October, in fact, rumors had suggested that the iPhone 5 would come to the prepaid Virgin Mobile unit … Read more

Apple: E-book pricing verdict could have 'chilling effect'

NEW YORK -- Apple warned that a guilty verdict in its e-book price-fixing case could have a negative impact on how digital media deals are negotiated in the U.S, the company said Thursday in its closing arguments.

But the U.S. Department of Justice, which initially sued Apple and a handful of the nation's largest publishers early last year, said Apple and the publishers had two objectives when making their deals: raise e-book prices and restrain retail price competition to hurt Amazon.

Declaring that Apple violated antitrust laws and served as the ringleader in a conspiracy to change … Read more

The 404 1,288: Where we put our toys on ice (podcast)

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- Tostilocos: Tijuana street food hits the mainstream.

- Sixteen San Diego Comic-Con exclusives that have the Internet talking.

- Microsoft pulls a 180, reverses Xbox One always-on DRM and used games policy.

- Microsoft on Xbox One reversal: Dude, E3 held us up.

- "Sound City" is a documentary directed by Dave Grohl about the fabled eponymous recording studio in Van Nuys, Calif.

Episode 1,288

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Apple's low-cost iPhone won't be cheap, says Pegatron CEO

Has one of Apple's major suppliers just outted the much-rumored low-cost iPhone?

At a shareholders meeting on Thursday, Pegatron CEO T.H. Tung served up one intriguing comment about the so-called "cheap" iPhone, suggesting that the product is real but that it won't be cheap, according to China Times as covered by blog site Macotakara.

Tung said the price of the phone would be "fairly high," though he apparently didn't reveal any specific price ranges. The CEO explained that compared with cheaper feature phones, today's smartphones are able to do so many … Read more

The 404 1287: Where we just need a green bed (podcast)

Polygon's Russ Frushtick joins me in the studio today to talk about the lighter side of our recent trip to Los Angeles. Best of all, he'll help answer the most-asked question of last week: "What was the best food you had at E3?"

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- Enter CNET's "From Old School to Tech Cool" contest.

- What do you think of the new "Anchorman 2" trailer?

- Follow Russ on Twitter.

- Listen to Russ' podcast, The Besties.

- Watch Human Angle on Polygon.… Read more

The 404 1286: Where we're tired of zombies (podcast)

On today's show we're welcoming Dan Chiappini from GameSpot Australia along with 404 veteran Scott Stein. We'll briefly recap Scott's time down at WWDC but then get right into some more E3 talk where we make Scott feel jealous about missing what was probably the biggest E3 in something like seven years. Dan think he knows why Nintendo refuses to open its "vault" of games and we all wonder how the company can rebound from a bleak E3 showing.

We're also chatting about the mundane abundance of shooters at E3, the lack of innovation, and which games actually piqued our interest.

And be sure to enter CNET's awesome "From Old School to Tech Cool" contest that's currently underway on our Facebook page!

- Follow our new buddy Dan Chiappini on Twitter.

- Make sure to do the same for 404 veteran Scott Stein.

- Catch up on Scott's and the rest of CNET's WWDC coverage.

- Give CNET's E3 2013 page one last skim.… Read more

Apple's Eddy Cue: Steve Jobs was confused in his e-mails

NEW YORK -- An e-mail from late Apple CEO Steve Jobs about e-book deal terms is no smoking gun, just a confused draft of a message, said a high-level Apple executive Monday during the e-books antitrust trial.

Eddy Cue, Apple's senior vice president of software and services, testified that he never received an email from Jobs that said publishers would have to change their e-book sales terms with Amazon in order to reach an agreement with Apple. Cue said he didn't receive any of the four other drafts of the message, either.

Furthermore, Cue said there's no … Read more

Apple holds a quarter of e-book market, Eddy Cue says

NEW YORK -- Apple sells about a quarter of all e-books in the market, a high-level executive at the electronics giant said Monday.

Eddy Cue, Apple's senior vice president of software and services, estimated that Apple holds a 25 percent share of the market, about on par with Barnes & Noble. He noted the two companies often flip the ranking, with Barnes & Noble sometimes having a higher share than Apple.

"I believe it's close," Cue said in his testimony Monday during Apple's e-book pricing trial. "At different times, we go back and forth.&… Read more