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MacBook Pro declared 'best-performing' Windows laptop

An Apple 13-inch MacBook Pro is the "best-performing" Windows laptop? Yes, says a PC services company that has done "frustration analytics" on some of the best-selling PCs.

The MacBook Pro won out over established PC makers like Dell, Acer, and Lenovo, according to Soluto, which was quick to explain its finding.

A main factor in this machine's metrics is the fact that every Windows installation on it is clean. With PC manufacturers loading so much crapware on new laptops, this is a bit of an unfair competition. But, on the other hand, PC makers should … Read more

Busy fall for Apple, Xbox, and Amazon

CNET Update is out of breath:

Apple fans will have to wait until the fall for new "amazing" products, or so promises CEO Tim Cook.

Samsung fans will also be doing some waiting. The Galaxy S4 was said to hit stores this weekend, but the smartphone is facing supply issues -- and that's causing T-Mobile and Sprint to push back launch dates and only sell online. But you may be able to find one on Saturday in stores at AT&T, and on Tuesday at U.S. Cellular. [Read CNET's review here.]

For shoppers that … Read more

iPhone should come to the big screen in the fall

Tim Cook likes to talk in religous tones about Apple's higher calling. Speaking at the Goldman Sachs Technology conference last month, Apple's CEO laid out his credo, noting that the only thing the company will never do is produce "a crappy product."

"That's the only religion that we have," Cook said. "We must do something bold, something ambitious, something great for the customers, and we sweat all of the details."

In the meantime, customers and investors are waiting for Apple to do something bold and ambitious again, and Cook is calling … Read more

Use the Apple Store app to alert you when it's time to upgrade

Apple released on Tuesday a small update to its Apple Store app for the iPhone. The update added the ability to add your wireless account to the app and receive an alert once your line is eligible for an upgrade.

Adding your account to receive upgrade alerts only takes a few seconds. Before you add your account, you'll need to know the last four digits of the account holder's Social Security number, the billing ZIP code, and the account password. At least this was the information I needed for a Verizon account; your experience may vary.

To add … Read more

Auctioning Tim Cook: Winner gets coffee with Apple's CEO

Apple CEO Tim Cook is selling his time, and it's worth $50,000.

Cook is auctioning off a coffee meeting with himself at Apple's headquarters in Cupertino, Calif., to raise money for the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights. Nine bids have already been submitted on charity auction site Charitybuzz, with the current highest at $10,500.

Charitybuzz is calling the item a "power meeting" that lets a lucky winner "nab one-on-one access to one of the most powerful figures in tech and business." The meeting can run between 30 minutes … Read more

Apple celebrates 10 years of iTunes

Apple on Wednesday started celebrating the 10-year anniversary of its iTunes store.

When users head to the iTunes Store, they'll find a new feature called "A Decade of iTunes." The reason? Simple: on April 28, Apple will celebrate the 10th anniversary of the iTunes store.

The feature allows users to browse a timeline of stories and the events that got iTunes to its place today. Things kick off with 2003 and the events that marked that year for iTunes. Users can then move their way through subsequent years and get glimpses of the way the store looked … Read more

Apple shares sputter after profit decline

Apple's shares were hovering around the $400 mark again today, and not in a good way.

By the end of trading on Wednesday, the shares had largely pulled themselves out of their funk, closing at $405.46, just a hair below the previous day's close.

But things were a bit gloomier in the first few hours of trading Wednesday, when shares in the high-profile technology company were generally down 1 percent or more to just around $401, with a handful of dips into the $399 range or below. Shares had closed Tuesday, just ahead of Apple's earnings … Read more

iMac launch should have been delayed, admits Apple's CEO

The new iMacs should have been announced in 2013 instead of last year, Apple CEO Tim Cook has admitted.

During Apple's second-quarter earnings conference call on Tuesday, Cook acknowledged that customers had to wait too long to receive their iMacs after the new models were announced last October.

"If we could run it over, frankly, I would have announced the iMac after the turn of the year," Cook said. "Because we felt our customers had to wait too long for that specific product."

Following the announcement of the two new iMacs, the 21.5-inch model finally became available on November 30Read more

Apple CEO Tim Cook: Mobile payments still in their infancy

Apple doesn't seem ready to leap into the mobile payments arena, at least according to comments made Tuesday by CEO Tim Cook.

During Tuesday's conference call announcing fiscal second-quarter earnings, Cook responded to a question about mobile payments.

"I think it's in its infancy," the Apple CEO said. "I think it's just getting started. Just out of the starting block."

Reading between the lines, that likely means Apple has no plans to jump onto the mobile payments bandwagon, at least not at this point. Past rumors have continually suggested that the company … Read more

Apple sets WWDC for June 10-14

This year's edition of Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference, the place to find out about what's in the works for Mac OS and iOS, is set for June 10 to 14.

The five-day event will take place at San Francisco's Moscone West Center, bringing together Apple executives and engineers with developers from around the world working on apps and other software technologies for the iPhone, iPad, and Macs.

"Our developers have had the most prolific and profitable year ever, and we're excited to show them the latest advances in software technologies and developer tools to … Read more