Apple

Hidden iOS 7 feature puts panoramas in lock screen

An otherwise undocumented iOS 7 feature has been discovered that lets users view the entirety of large, panoramic photos on their iPhone's lock screen.

The feature uses the device's built-in gyroscope to track movement, and pans across the photo. In its demos of the software at the Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday, Apple had only shown off that the background of the lock screen and home screen would move slightly as users tilted the phone.

A Vine of the eye candy, spotted by Business Insider on Wednesday, shows the feature in motion. Try not to throw up watching … Read more

Tim Cook maintains Steve Jobs' Beatles business model

Tim Cook likes to talk about Apple's values and the virtues of teamwork. At the Worldwide Developers Conference this week, he told the 5,000 developers in attendance to build products for Apple's platforms that trigger emotional responses, such as "delight," "surprise," "love," and "connection" for users.

One of the videos shown at WWDC, and released as a TV ad, introduces the world to Apple's value system: "We spend a lot of time on a few great things...until every idea we touch...enhances each life it touches.&… Read more

Kanye remixes: I am the next Steve Jobs

Dear readers, I hadn't thought to mention this before, but I am the next F. Scott, Fitzgerald, Mark Twain and Ernest Hemingway. There's more than a soupcon of Hunter S. Thompson here too.

There's also a touch of Walt Whitman, and I do have my John Updike and Arthur Miller moments. The latter I call Miller Time.

I apologize for such sudden immodesty, but I have been inspired by the great producer, rapper, fashion icon, and Kardashian-impregnator Kanye West.

He, you see, believes he's the next Steve Jobs.

You might think this is a temporary aberration, … Read more

2013 MacBook Air gets low repair score from iFixit teardown

Newly unveiled by Apple, the 2013 13-inch MacBook Air has received the teardown treatment from the folks at iFixit, who gave out low ratings on the ability to repair and upgrade the laptop.

At its WWDC keynote on Monday, Apple revealed several enhancements to its 11-inch and 13-inch MacBook Air ultrabooks, including a faster solid-state drive, an upgrade to Intel's fourth-generation core processor, increased battery life, and support for 802.11ac Wi-Fi.

On the outside, the new MacBook Air is virtually the same as its predecessor. But a peek at the innards of the 13-inch version uncovered the new tech. … Read more

iOS 7 looks great, but can it lure this Android user?

iOS 7 is still not quite the Droid I've been looking for in an iPhone.

I've been an Android devotee for about three years now, but ever since the introduction of the iPhone 4S and Siri -- something totally new running on a nice piece of hardware -- I've been considering making the switch to iOS. As intriguing and enticing as the 4S was, I balked due to the lack of LTE. The iPhone 5 fixed that, but by then iOS seemed stale to me, and the lack of any major new innovations kept me tapping away on my aging Droid Razr and led me to declare that the iPhone and the ascendant Apple of this century's first decade had peaked. (Actually, the phrase I used was "jumped the shark" -- I suggest reading the original post for an explanation.)

So I watched with great interest on Monday as Apple unveiled a reboot to its mobile operating system in the form of iOS 7, which is being hailed as beautiful and ambitious. CNET editors have dubbed it a "radical new look" and part of Apple's "quest for perfection and the devotion to creating objects of profound and enduring beauty," as our Dan Farber put it.

From what I've seen of the OS, you'll hear no disagreement from me, but I'm still left comparing Apples and Androids.… Read more

As Apple reorients its Maps, Google forges ahead

Apple blew it big-time last year with the botched launch of its own Maps. At its Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday, the company tried to show that it knows which direction to take Apple Maps.

We won't how know how well it works until the fall. But Google -- the leader in online maps -- isn't waiting around.

Google's purchase of Waze -- a deal that Google confirms Tuesday but won't elaborate on -- will, if nothing else, keep a rival from snapping up the hot Israeli startup.

Google reportedly spent more than a literal ton of cash … Read more

Why the MacBook Air didn't get a Retina display

Love that battery life in the new MacBook Air? Well, that's one reason Apple didn't go Retina this time around, according to an analyst.

The iPhone, the iPad, and the MacBook Pro all have Retina displays, why not the MacBook Air? Power consumption is probably the most important factor, according to Sweta Dash, senior director of display research & strategy at IHS.

"Apple almost doubled the battery life [with the new MacBook Air]. You can't do that with a Retina display" in an ultrathin laptop like the Air, she said.

Not at the moment at … Read more

Social media users like the sound of iTunes Radio

Apple finally unveiled its music streaming service, iTunes Radio, and the social Web approves.

Social media analytics company NetBase found that 94 percent of social media users had positive comments about iTunes Radio following the product's release during Apple's WWDC developers conference on Monday, which means only 6 percent had negative comments.

The streaming service, which is tied into Apple's popular ecosystem, was highly discussed in the media in recent weeks as a competitor to services like Pandora and Spotify.

NetBase said iTunes Radio received the most positive comments among all of Apple's products announced on … Read more

Is Marissa Mayer worth more than Tim Cook?

You can never underestimate the competitiveness of your average CEO.

You can also never underestimate the business sense of charities who know when they're on to an easy earner.

Tuesday brings news of Marissa Mayer trying to see whether lunch with her might be more valuable than coffee with Tim Cook.

Recently, someone who clearly values power over food paid $610,000 to have coffee with the Apple CEO. This was all organized by auction site CharityBuzz, which guilts people into doing exciting things and paying for them hugely.

Now, similar forward-thinkers are being asked how much it's … Read more