apple

Apple profit slips 18%, but iPhone, iPad sales stay strong

Apple surprised Wall Street today with stronger than expected earnings in its second quarter, though the company came up short in its estimates for the next one.

Apple reported earnings of $9.5 billion on $43.6 billion in sales. That was right on target with the $9.5 billion in profit and just barely above the $42.3 billion in sales that Wall Street expected. It was also above Apple's own expectations, which were between $9.23 and $10.23 per share on sales of $41 billion to $43 billion.

By comparison, Apple tallied up a higher $11.… Read more

Apple boosts stock buyback, ups dividend 15 percent

Apple boosted its stock buyback and approved a 15 percent increase in its quarterly dividend.

With some $145 billion now in Apple's coffers, investors have clamored for management to return more cash to shareholders. Now the company is responding -- big time. Apple said Tuesday afternoon that it intends to use "a total of $100 billion of cash under the expanded program."

As part of the program, Apple increased its share repurchase authorization to $60 billion, up from $10 billion announced last year. The company said it was the largest single share-repurchase authorization in Apple's history. … Read more

AT&T Q1 profit edges up as it adds 291,000 net customers

AT&T on Tuesday reported a slight gain in profit amid growth powered by its tablet business.

The Dallas telecommunications provider posted a first-quarter net profit of $3.7 billion, or 67 cents a share. In the year-earlier period, it posted a profit of $3.6 billion, or 60 cents a share. Excluding the impact of the sale of its advertising business and a tax settlement, the carrier reported earnings of 64 cents a share, up from 59 cents a share from a year ago.

Revenue, meanwhile, fell 1.5 percent to $31.4 billion, also affected by loss … Read more

Apple iTunes makes sweet music in online video market

iTunes tops the charts in online video sales, according to market research firm The NPD Group.

Apple claimed 66 percent of all TV shows sold and 65 percent of all movies sold online last year. In second place, Amazon took home 14 percent of all TV shows sold in cyberspace. Amazon and Xbox Video each grabbed a 10 percent chunk of all feature-length films sold over the Internet in 2012.

iTunes also scored the lead in the video-on-demand market, biting off a 45 percent share of all online movie rentals. Amazon Instant Video accounted for 18 percent, leaving Vudu with … Read more

A last echo of iPhone 'antennagate' -- $15 checks

The clamor that surrounded Apple's iPhone "antennagate" episode has long since subsided, but there's now a faint echo to be heard.

Some iPhone owners in the last day or so have received a $15 check that was the result of Apple's February 2012 settlement of a class action lawsuit over problems with the iPhone 4 antenna, according to reports at 9to5Mac and the TUAW blog.

When the iPhone 4 debuted in June 2010, an uproar quickly ensued from a very vocal array of users who complained of dropped calls and poor reception, and who put … Read more

Apple iOS users hit by online access glitches

Apple iOS users bumped into some trouble with several online services today.

Updates on Apple's status page this morning revealed that users might get an error when signing into their iCloud accounts or creating new accounts.

Users may incorrectly receive an authentication error when attempting to use iCloud. Setting up a new iCloud account from an eligible device may be temporarily unavailable.

Additionally, some people were unable to create new Apple IDs or sign into the Game Center app. Some iTunes users had been unable to access the iTunes store or make purchases, but Apple's status page indicates … Read more

Confessions of a technology pack rat

I'm taking spring cleaning seriously this year. I've already Craigslisted a good chunk of my furniture and hosted a massive yard sale. Now, I'm breaching the depths of uncharted waters in my closets and desk drawer. I'm going after all those old gadgets I've been hanging onto for years. What wonders will I discover?

I have old cell phones. I have old computers. I have sickening piles of cords tangled about each other in knots that may never be unraveled. Why do I do this to myself? Do I really think I'm going to need to make a call on that 2002 LG VX-10 with the extended battery pack? It's time for it to go, along with all the other dusty old tech that hasn't felt a surge of electricity in years.… Read more

ITC tosses Motorola's legal complaint against Apple

The U.S. International Trade Commission today ended Motorola's case against Apple, which accused the iPhone and Mac maker of patent infringement.

In a ruling (PDF), the ITC said that Apple was not violating Motorola's U.S. patent covering proximity sensors, which the commission called "obvious." It was the last of six patents Motorola aimed at Apple as part of an October 2010 complaint.

That complaint was part of a larger legal effort by Motorola against Apple that also involved patent lawsuits in several U.S. District courts.

The decision follows a long series of determinations, … Read more

Thermostat whiz Nest wants to reset your peak power use

After succeeding at the once inconceivable task of making thermostats sexy, Nest is now out to change peoples' relationships with their utility companies, and make the energy industry more efficient in the process.

Today, Nest, the company founded by Tony Fadell -- the "godfather" of the iPod and fellow former top Apple employee Matt Rogers -- rolled out its next big effort.

While many had speculated that the company's follow-up to its Learning Thermostat would be another smart home appliance, the company instead unveiled Nest Energy Services, a broad initiative aimed at attacking the problems of general … Read more