Articles about Apple

Now that Apple has unveiled the new iPhone 6s, you may be wondering how it stacks up against its main rival, Samsung's Galaxy S6. The major under-the-hood improvements that Apple has packed into its latest flagship smartphone, coupled with the refinement added by Samsung for its own top-of-the-line offering, make this a very interesting comparison.

Choosing between iPhone 6s and Galaxy S6 is very difficult, as both feature attractive designs and high-end internals, which is why we will highlight and explain the major differences between the two smartphones.

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This might seem like an easy question to answer. On the face of it, if you like Apple, opt for the iPad Pro. If you fall into the Microsoft camp, buy yourself a Surface Pro 3. But perhaps it's not quite that simple. Apple touts the iPad Pro as being the tool to increase your productivity, while Microsoft pitches the Surface Pro as blending the best of a tablet with the power of a desktop. But which is better?

'Better' is very subjective, but let's try to look at things as objectively as possible. Price is going to be a key concern for many people, and both devices start at $799 and while this is obviously a similarity, it also highlights a key difference. Part with $799 and you can buy either a 32GB iPad Pro, or a 64GB Surface Pro 3. Neither comes with a cover or keyboard as standard, but the Surface includes a pen while the Apple Pencil will set you back a further $99. Of course, the comparison is about much more than just price.

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Apple just unveiled its new Apple TV at a media event. The set-top box, which is part gaming console as well, boasts several new functionalities including the iOS-based tvOS, support for voice-search Siri, and a new app store designed just for the media streaming device. Despite all these features, there are a couple of off-putting limitations that you should consider before purchasing the new Apple TV.

The Apple TV was rumored to be a great gaming console with support for tons of iOS titles. But when Apple stepped on the stage to make the announcement, not only did the company not announce those features, making it clear that not all the iOS games will support the TV, a couple of things that the company did unveil now are making the whole package, which starts at $149, less exciting.

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Microsoft and Apple are battling the US government over the right to keep their users’ data safe, and according to a report by The New York Times, the American tech companies are winning.

At least they’re winning in the public relations game, as the general notion today is that those companies are doing everything they can to protect their users’ privacy.

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This just arrived in my inbox from Apple: Offer to download what could be the final build before Apple certifies OS X 10.11 as golden: "Thank you for participating in the Apple Beta Software Program. Your feedback and usage of the OS X El Capitan public beta has helped us make this release great. We are pleased to give you access to the OS X El Capitan GM Candidate".

Promises. Promises. "If you are currently testing OS X El Capitan, please back up your Mac and do the following to install the GM Candidate. Go to your Purchased tab in the Mac App Store and click the Download button next to OS X El Capitan GM Candidate. When your download finishes, the installer will automatically launch. Follow the onscreen instructions to complete installation".

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Apple's decision to start iPhone 6s and 6s Plus preorders on Saturday September 12 surprises me. Friday is typical, which lets the company tabulate an extra day into the weekend when reporting the number of preorders the following week. So you have to wonder why the change. I asked Apple PR, but there is yet no response to my query.

In 2014, Apple announced iPhone 6 and 6 Plus also on September 9th, a Tuesday. Preorders began on Friday the 12th and sales one week later. In 2013, there was no preorder option for iPhone 5s, just straight sales starting Friday September 20th; announced the 10th. In 2012: Friday September 14th for preorders; the 21st for sales. In 2011: again Friday, October 7th preorders and October 14th sales.

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If you watched the Apple event today, you were treated to many amazing announcements. New iPhones are always something to get excited about, but the Apple TV was arguably more interesting -- an inexpensive iOS game console? Holy cow. The star of the show, however, was the often-rumored iPad Pro. Yes, the fabled larger tablet finally made an appearance. It certainly looks like a productivity beast, and companies like Microsoft and Adobe cosigned this notion with cool demos.

While Apple will sell an official keyboard attachment that should be great, expect many third-party options too. Today, Logitech announces that it will offer its own iPad Pro accessory, called the CREATE Keyboard. The company worked closely with Apple on the design, so it should be particularly wonderful. Of course, it uses the new Smart Connector port, and not Bluetooth -- awesome.

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You may have heard that Apple had a little get together today. There were lots of big launches -- the iPhone 6S, the iPhone 6S Plus, and the iPad Pro. Those waiting for an iPhone fix were given quite a lot to get excited about, but like your friendly local drug dealer, Apple has a 'sweetener' to help ensure its customers just keep on coming back for more: the iPhone Upgrade Program which lets you upgrade to a new iPhone every year as long as you keep paying each month.

On the face of it, it might seem like a good deal -- particularly as the price includes Apple Care -- but is that really the case? What Apple's actually doing is feeding the habit of iPhone junkies, keeping their addiction going a little bit longer, and a little bit longer, and a little bit longer. In reality, Apple would like you to perma-rent your iPhone and keep paying through the nose for it. Ideally forever. And the sad thing? People will be quite happy to bend over and take it.

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Even before Apple officially unveiled its new “professional” grade tablet, the seeds of its demise were being sown. The culprit? None other than arch-rival Microsoft which, by partnering with Hewlett Packard and Dell to distribute and support its Surface Pro line of products, essentially locking-down the enterprise tablet market once and for all.

Some were confused by the recent announcement that these two PC industry stalwarts would agree to resell Microsoft hardware, at least in the enterprise. After all, both HP and Dell produce products designed to compete with Microsoft’s Surface lineup. By adding the Surface Pro 3 (and eventually, Surface Pro 4) to their catalogs, they seemingly risk cannibalizing their own device sales.

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At a media event today, Apple announces an update to the Watch. The Cupertino-based company announces watchOS 2 with support for native apps, and on the hardware side, the new gold and rose gold aluminum Apple Watch Sport models. Available as a free upgrade, watchOS 2 will become available on September 16.

At the event, where the company also unveiled the iPhone 6s, the iPhone 6s Plus, the iPad mini 4, the iPad Pro, some much-anticipated features for the Apple Watch were announced. Among many new features, the company said that watchOS 2 is bringing support for native apps -- finally you can run an app on the Watch, instead of mirroring it to your timepiece, as well new watch faces. The company said that it would make apps faster and more fluid.

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The next version of Apple’s mobile operating system was announced three months ago, and developers and brave beta testers have been able to try it for a while. What we didn’t know -- until today -- was when the latest iteration would be available to the world at large.

If you’ve been waiting for iOS 9 the great news is you don’t have too much longer to go. The updated Apple OS will be available to iPhone, iPad and iPod touch users from September 16.

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We have come to expect new iPhones to be introduced in September, and today Apple does not disappoint as it takes the wraps off the new iPhone 6s and its bigger brother, iPhone 6s Plus. Typical of "s" models, both smartphones retain the design first seen in the previous generation while improving upon their predecessors in a couple of key areas.

With the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, Apple has focused its attention on build quality, cameras, display, and performance. Both flagships, of course, ship with a new version of iOS, which will be generally available later this month, on September 16.

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The big iPad news coming out of Apple today was undoubtedly the new super-sized iPad Pro, but it wasn’t the only iPad mentioned. While there’s no sign of a successor to last year’s iPad Air 2 (rumors say that’s not expected until next year) Apple did mention -- in passing -- a new iPad mini 4.

This is the first update of the smallest iPad in nearly two years, and it’s been worth the wait.

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There have been rumors of a super-sized iPad for ages now, but at today’s Apple event Tim Cook finally took the wraps off the iPad Pro -- the most advanced (and largest) iPad ever.

It's a sizable tablet -- 12.9 inches on the diagonal. Cleverly the width of the iPad Pro is exactly the same as the height of the iPad Air, which will allow you to run iPad apps with space to spare. Handy since iOS 9 allows for multi-tasking.

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Apple knows how to put on a show, and today is no different. Even those with little more than a passing interest in the company are (come on, admit it!) eager to see exactly what will be unveiled. For the most part we know what to expect. There's the iPhone 6s, iOS 9 and Apple TV which are all but guaranted to make an apperance, and there have been suggestions about the long-rumored iPad Pro. Whatever the event holds, there is sure to be at least one surprise, and there's not long to wait to find out more.

There's a live stream if you fancy watching the event live, but if you're not able to for any reason we've got you covered with this live blog. Thing kicks off at 10am PDT/6pm BST -- just keep hitting refresh for the latest updates!

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