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SAN FRANCISCO -- Apple's new MacBook Airs look better than before, but they don't reach for the stars.

OK, so I'll admit: having a potential 12-hour battery life is incredible. It's a very big deal indeed. But the new 2013 MacBook Airs unveiled at Apple's WWDC keynote weren't revolutions of design, or even of features. They're another well-polished upgrade step to an already excellent laptop that's becoming as familiar in form as an iPod or an older MacBook Pro.

To be honest, there was more on my wish list. Primarily, this.

Higher-res … Read more

"Reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated," Mark Twain once remarked.

The same might be said about the 13- and 15-inch non-Retina MacBook Pros, which some Apple watchers thought might be on the chopping block after Apple killed the 17-inch MacBook Pro at last year's WWDC and the MacBook Air line received an anticipated update.

For the moment, the standard MacBook Pros live on, coexisting with the lighter, slimmer MacBook Airs that are now equipped with Intel's more energy-efficient fourth-gen Core i-series "Haswell" chips and a much better set of battery life specs. … Read more

Update: Back up now; see update below.

Apparently a lot of developers are eager to get their mitts on preview versions of Apple's next iOS and OS X software.

Enough are visiting the developer site to bring things to a screeching halt. Users who attempt to make their way there are currently getting page load errors, as well as a page that tells users: "We'll be back soon."

This has happened plenty of other times, and is expected to be sorted out, though Apple's currently offering no guidance on when. Additionally, its fancy system status page … Read more

If you were expecting a wow moment during the opening of Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday, odds are that the litany of incremental changes to its hardware and software disappointed. No big surprises. No "one last thing" sort of announcements were in the offing.

But this year's developers conference also occurs at an unusual time for Apple. The company that brought the world smartphones and tablets is in the unfamiliar position of fighting the perception that Samsung and others are winning the technology race. And when the opportunity came to give voice to that frustration … Read more

A little bit of organization can go a long way -- especially when it comes to pictures and videos.

That seems to be the theme for the improvements coming to iOS 7's Photos and Camera apps, with new features to help rediscover the photos you've already taken and make it easier to snap ones in the future.

Photos app Given how many people seem to use their smartphones as their primary camera, it's amazing how lacking organization is within the iOS Photos app, which is basically just a never-ending folder of photos and videos.

With iOS 7, … Read more

Apple can still put on a show -- at least according to your tweets. The Twittersphere erupted in utter elation over the unveiling of OS X Mavericks and iOS 7 during Apple's keynote address at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference.

During the two-hour keynote, a majority of Twitter users tweeted in excitement around Apple's latest Mac operating system and its radically redesigned mobile OS, according to data provided to CNET by social-media management startup HootSuite. For both OS X and iOS 7, more than 90 percent of tweets registered on the positive side of the spectrum, the firm … Read more

Apple may not be able to do anything to stop a mugger from stealing your iPhone, but changes in iOS 7 will prevent the thief from trying to sell the phone as new.

At its Worldwide Developers Conference here on Monday, Apple unveiled several security enhancements. Activation Lock is the most interesting. Though the company didn't go deep into detail on the new feature, Apple's head of Mac software engineering, Craig Federighi, said the feature prevents unauthorized resetting of an iPhone or iPad.

Basically, if the Find My Phone tracking utility has been deactivated, or if the phone … Read more

Apple touted several new and improved products at its keynote event at the Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday, from a revamped iOS design to a music streaming service to a new MacBook Air. But some items were noticeably missing in action.

Apple revealed several changes to its MacBook Air, including the adoption of Intel's fourth-generation Core "Haswell" processor, built-in support for Wi-Fi 802.11ac, and beefier battery life. But the new version of Apple's ultrabook will be stuck with the same resolution as always since the Retina Display wasn't on the list of enhancements.

Although … Read more