Articles about Apple

Global smartphone sales figures published by Gartner show that Windows-based devices have a market share of just 0.7 percent. The latest figures cover the first quarter of 2016 and reveal that fewer than 2.4 million handsets with Microsoft's OS installed were sold.

This is a dramatic drop from the first quarter of 2015. A year ago the numbers were hardly earth-shattering, but with a 2.5 percent market share they were decidedly healthier than right now. While Windows Phone continues to drop like a stone, Android's seemingly unstoppable rise continues, with Google increasing its market share from 78.88 percent a year ago to 84.1 percent in Q1 2016. Apple suffered a drop to 14.8 percent.

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Fifteen years ago today, the first Apple Store opened at Tysons Corner Center in McLean, Va. I was there, covering the event for CNET News. Four days earlier, then CEO Steve Jobs briefed journalists—bloggers, bwahaha, no—across the way at upper-scale Tysons Galleria. Most of us thought his scheme was kind of nuts, as did analysts, and news stories reflected the sentiment. Recession gripped the country and rival Gateway was in process of shuttering more than 400 retail shops. Timing was madness.

But companies that take big risks during economic downturns are most likely to reap rewards later. Retail would be Apple's third walk across the tightrope during 2001. The others: iTunes (January); OS X (March); iPod (October). I've said before that these four are foundation for all the company's successes that followed, including iPhone. But 15 years ago, battling the Wintel duopoly with less than 2 percent global PC market share, Jobs figuratively walked a tightrope across the Grand Canyon carrying original Macintoshes in each arm.

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The Chinese government is quietly scrutinizing foreign technology products sold in the country, the New York Times has reported.

According to the report, executives from companies like Apple are being called in by a Cyberspace Administration of China committee to explain, in person, things like encryption and data storage.

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The days when you forget your driver’s license and ending up paying a fine for it might soon be a thing of the past, as there are people out there working on a paperless version of the license.

According to a BBC report this week, the UK’s Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency is working on such a project, and there’s already a prototype in place. A photo of the prototype was tweeted recently by CEO Oliver Morley.

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Even though it is not Apple's most important product, Apple Watch is actually a market leader. In Q1 2016 shipments totaled 1.5 million units, according to a new IDC report, making it the undisputed king of this market.

Apple Watch actually holds a healthy lead over its Samsung-made rivals, having a market share of 46 percent as opposed to 20.9 percent share for the second place player. As you can see, the market as a whole is rather small, with total shipments of just 3.2 million units in an entire quarter.

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Apple this week invested $1 billion in Xiaoju Kuaizhi Inc. -- known as Didi -- by far the dominant car-hailing service in China with 300 million customers. While Apple has long admitted being interested in car technology and has deals to put Apple technology into many car lines, this particular investment seems to have been a surprise to most everyone. Analysts and pundits are seeing the investment as a way for Apple to get automotive metadata or even to please the Chinese government. I think it’s more than that. I think it is a potential answer to Apple’s huge problem of foreign cash and a grab for leadership in what may well be the second automotive age.

Apple has about $200 billion in offshore investments. That number is continuing to grow yet making very little return compared to Apple’s phone and computer businesses. As I’ve written before Apple has been very good at leveraging its cash to get better terms from suppliers but that game isn’t going to be getting any better (or worse) and the cash continues to pile up.

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Even though I own an iPhone, I am not an Apple "fanboy". I use both Linux and Windows on the desktop, and embrace most of Google's services. Quite frankly, if Google pulled its offerings from iOS, I would probably switch to Android. In other words, I am deeply entrenched in the search giant's ecosystem.

Today, Google releases a new keyboard for the iPhone. Called "Gboard", it drastically improves the typing experience on Apple's smartphone in many ways, including "Glide Typing", emoji search, and animated GIF search to name a few. If you own an iPhone, stop what you are doing and install it now. Trust me, folks.

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The case of the FBI seeking to force Apple to provide backdoor access to the San Bernardino shooter's iPhone focused attention on security and encryption once again. The agency may have been able to gain access to the phone with help from a third party, but the Indian government has gone one better.

Communications Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has revealed that the government has a tool that can be used to gain access to, among other devices, Apple's iPhone. This is not to say that a tool has been created that bypasses encryption, rather that a method for getting past the lockscreen has been developed.

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Neil Patrick Harris is one cool dude. From playing a boy-doctor on the TV show, Doogie Howser MD, to becoming one of the premier hosts for fancy award shows, the man is undeniably awesome. There are even some rumors that the handsome actor could replace Michael Strahan on Live! with Kelly Ripa, but I digress.

Today, NPH becomes the latest Apple advertisement star. In a video titled "Thank You Speech," the actor shows off the hands-free capabilities of the iPhone 6s.

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The iPhone 6S and 6S Plus are arguably the best smartphones on the market, although I am sure many Android and Windows Phone users will disagree with me. Yes, they are expensive, but when it comes to Apple, you often get what you pay for. In other words, you aren't just paying for the sum of the parts, but the overall positive experience.

With that said, you should always protect your investment. Replacing a broken iPhone -- especially if you didn't splurge on Apple Care -- is quite the costly affair. The best way to do this is with a good case. X-Doria's Defense Lux cases for iPhone 6S were pretty rugged, although a bit slippery. A lack of "grip" on the back made the iPhone something fairly easy to drop. Now, the company adds the Defense Lux Impression Cases for iPhone 6 and 6S. With rear dimples, it should alleviate the "slippery" concern of the non-Impression model.

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LG today announced that the US government has certified its G5 and V10 flagship Android smartphones for enterprise and military use. The testing was conducted by the National Information Assurance Partnership (NIAP), which verifies the compliance of products with the "Common Criteria" international security standard, which is said to be recognized by 25 countries.

Although LG is only boasting about the two aforementioned handsets, NIAP's test results show that G4, its flagship from last year, is also fit for use in enterprise and military sectors, when running Android 6.0 Marshmallow. NIAP's stamp of approval was received on April 14.

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When it comes to business devices, employees can often have a big impact on decision-making. In other words, they can influence IT and executives by expressing a desire for the same type of device they use at home. When Blackberry devices, for instance, fell out of favor with home users, they soon lost their luster in the enterprise too.

iPhone and iPad devices are wildly popular in the enterprise, but not only because employees love them. They are also very secure, thanks to things like touch ID and regular operating system updates. Apple has even partnered with world-class companies, such as IBM, which bolstered the positive perception for iOS. Today, Tim Cook and company announce yet another monumental partnership, this time with SAP.

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The iPhone 5c belonging to San Bernadino shooter Syed Rizwan Farook is not the only iPhone that the US authorities have managed to hack this year. According to a report by Los Angeles Times, the Los Angeles Police Department has "bypassed the security features" of an iPhone 5s.

The iPhone 5s in question was used by April Jace, the wife of The Shield actor Michael Jace, who is facing murder charges, being accused of killing his partner on May 19, 2014. And, according to court documents reviewed by the publication, on March 18 the LAPD claimed to have found a "forensic cellphone expert" who could hack the device, which is believed to hold important evidence in the trial.

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I love my iPhone 6s, but the battery life often isn’t as good as I would like. On most days I can make it through to the late evening before the device requires charging, but occasionally it needs a bit of a boost before then. The Low Power mode built into iOS 9 comes in handy, but like most people I’d rather just have longer battery life.

While carrying around a power pack saves the day when I’m out and about and away from a charging point, it’s a bit of pain having to lug it around. This is where ThinCharge comes in handy -- it’s a battery pack built into a thin case.

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One of my favorite places to shop is Kohl's. Now, I have many reasons, but primarily, I like its selection of affordable "Big and Tall" clothing. Yes, I'm a fat guy. Most of my wardrobe is bought there, including, quite often, my sneakers too. Heck, they even sell wonderful home goods, such as towels, coffee makers, and picture frames to name a few. It is a great "one-stop-shop".

An annoying thing about the Kohl's shopping experience, however, is carrying two cards for the retailer. You see, the company offers a charge card --  which is often required for the discounts -- plus a loyalty card for building rewards. I've often wondered why they do not just combine them. Starting today, thanks to Apple Pay, you can leave both cards at home, and get the benefits with just your iPhone.

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