Apple

Apple has admitted that problems with its MobileMe service may mean 10% of emails have been lost for good. The service, aimed at users of mobile devices such as the new iPhone, gives access to features such as online data storage, an address book ... and calendar, and email, with data and setting accessible from all the user's devices. While the launch last month at first appeared to have gone without a hitch, some customers soon after reported problems accessing their emails (both new and old). According to a company blog, this issue only affected 1% of users -- however, Apple now says, "We ... (view more)

In the technological world, few other phenomena are receiving as much attention as "cloud computing". The concept pertains to files and programs that are stored in places beyond the hard drive, existing exclusively in the air around us (or in ... "clouds"). In actuality, this secured data is stored on some kind of encrypted Internet server. All of us have had at least one previous experience with cloud computing. Anytime you use an Internet-based backup service, an online word processor, or send an email using Windows Live Hotmail you are clouding. Microsoft has been staying ahead of their ... (view more)

Apple claims to have sold a million of its new iPhones in three days, but that doesn't mean a million people now have one. The company recently put out a press release saying it had sold the millionth iPhone 3G. Noting the phone is on sale in 21 ... countries, CEO Steve Jobs said "It took 74 days to sell the first one million original iPhones, so the new iPhone 3G is clearly off to a great start around the world." (Source: apple.com ) However, that figure is somewhat misleading. Fortune magazine reports that Apple only counts its own sales when somebody hands over the money in an Apple store. But ... (view more)

American company Psystar began selling a copy of Mac's PC for $399 in April and already Apple is ready to bite back for the infringement. Look-alikes are everywhere in today's consumer market. However, in the world of electronics, companies are much ... more careful than other industries about copyright. Although unable to handle normal software updates, Psystar's cloned tower is able to run the Leopard operating system (OS). (Source: arstechnica.com ) According to Apple Insider, Apple delayed its decision to file a lawsuit because it was only at the beginning of this month that Psystar began to ... (view more)

Apple's in-store activation scheme for the launch of the new iPhone seems to have backfired thanks to a software bug. The problem isn't with the phone itself -- as far as anyone can tell, they work exactly as advertised. Instead, the glitch lay in ... the servers used to activate the phone service. Apple brought in the scheme after fears people would buy phones and then sell them abroad, particularly in markets which don't yet have a licensed local carrier. To combat this, U.S. buyers have to get their phones activated in person. In most cases, this involves signing a minimum two-year service ... (view more)

The new 3G iPhone is set for a roaring start in the United States and Britain, but Canadian consumers appear sceptical after the recent announcement of a phone plan they deem unfair. The device launches on Friday at 8am in AT&T stores (unlike ... the original phone which was held back till 6pm on its launch last year). The time switch is because the new phone must be activated in-store rather than at home. As this process could take up to 20 minutes per customer, long lines should inevitably build up. Thus, AT&T wants to spread sales across the day; a new policy is designed to make it harder for ... (view more)

The new iPhone 3G has made headlines with a price $100 lower than the original 8GB model. A recent study by hardware analysts iSuppli estimates that the manufacturing cost for each phone is $173.00 (the original cost $280.82). Thus, the company ... makes a $26.00 profit on each handset. iSuppli offers two reasons why the profit margin is high, and why the price of the device has dropped by one third. First, mobile phone providers have always lost money on delivering handsets, but made them up via subscriber fees. The analyst firm ballparks Apple will get about $300 per unit from wireless ... (view more)

Many people have been wondering why the new 3G iPhone is much cheaper than expected. It turns out wireless carrier AT ... (view more)

The arrival of the iPhone application store in July could signal big profits for the company in 2009. Analyst Gene Munster predicts that once the store is available to customers, 91% of the currently 85 million multi-touch handheld users (61.6 ... million iPhone users and 23.4 iPod touch users) "would at one time or another tap into the App Store during the course of a year." $1.2 billion is the total if each of the 85 million customers spent $15 during 2009 at the apps store The news from analyst Gene Munster is based upon his projected best case scenario for the company. (Source: ... (view more)

We're accustomed to battles between technology companies, many bitter. But there's a new phenomenon emerging, one where companies previously uninterested in the tech market begin to challenge the industry's most powerful players. One example is ... Amazon's Kindle, which has by all accounts trumped Sony's text Reader. Now, Netflix may just have trumped Apple TV. Netflix, best known for renting DVD movies through the mail, now offers a $99 device that will give any of its 8 million subscribers access to movies and shows on their TV sets. The new device is approximately one half the price of Apple ... (view more)