Tag Archives: Mac

OS X Yosemite & iOS 8 @ WWDC

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Apple’s annual WWDC is always feature packed.  This year’s emphasis was on software (as with last year) and we saw major upgrades to both iOS and OS X.

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Apple showed off iOS 8, the next generation of iOS at the conference which sports loads of new features such as a health app, user profiles, a better photos app, updated messages app, and more.  Spotlight has been completely redesigned and iCloud now comes with iCloud Drive, a competitor to others such as DropBox and Google Drive.

OS X Yosemite also saw its debut with a completely redesigned interface similar to that of iOS 7.

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As with last year’s iOS 7, the radical new design of Yosemite takes some time to get used to.  It’s certainly a stark new overhaul and might be a but of adjustment to long-time mac users (look at Finder)!  Every element of Yosemite has been redesigned with the new look and it’s quite impressive.  The new feel conveys a sense of depth and content. Notification center on the mac has also been redesigned and completely revamped.

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We’ll have more on each individual feature of iOS and OS X in the coming days.   Stay tuned!

 

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Notes from Apple Quarterly Earnings

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Notes from Apple’s Quarterly Earnings

20131022-162209.jpg– 4.8 Million Macs Sold in Fiscal Quarter One
– 80% of all iOS users are now on iOS 7, making it the most popular mobile OS in the world.
– Apple remembered Mac’s 30 Year Anniversary last week
– $4.4 Billion made from iTunes
– iTunes hit new records
– App Sore passed 65 Billion Downloads
– 130,000 Chinese Apps
– $7 Billion from Apple Stores (Record)
– 4 New Stores Opened
– 166 Stores OutSide USA
– Average Revenue was $16.7 Million/store
– iBeacons Rolled Out in Quarter One
– Apple has $158.8 Billion in Cash

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Apple Reports Quarterly Earnings

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Apple today announced its quarterly earnings.   The conference call officially begins at 5:00 EST/2:00 PST.  Listen live here.  We will bring you updated news as time progresses.  The company had a record breaking quarter.

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Quarter 1 accounts for the holiday season, the most important quarter of the year.  Apple also reached a multi year deal with China Mobile in late 2013.

Apple’s Quarterly Earnings

iPhone and iPad Sales Drive Record Revenue and Operating Profit

CUPERTINO, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Apple® today announced financial results for its fiscal 2014 first quarter ended December 28, 2013. The Company posted record quarterly revenue of $57.6 billion and quarterly net profit of $13.1 billion, or $14.50 per diluted share. These results compare to revenue of $54.5 billion and net profit of $13.1 billion, or $13.81 per diluted share, in the year-ago quarter. Gross margin was 37.9 percent compared to 38.6 percent in the year-ago quarter. International sales accounted for 63 percent of the quarter’s revenue.

“We love having the most satisfied, loyal and engaged customers, and are continuing to invest heavily in our future to make their experiences with our products and services even better.”

The Company sold 51 million iPhones, an all-time quarterly record, compared to 47.8 million in the year-ago quarter. Apple also sold 26 million iPads during the quarter, also an all-time quarterly record, compared to 22.9 million in the year-ago quarter. The Company sold 4.8 million Macs, compared to 4.1 million in the year-ago quarter.

Apple’s Board of Directors has declared a cash dividend of $3.05 per share of the Company’s common stock. The dividend is payable on February 13, 2014, to shareholders of record as of the close of business on February 10, 2014.

“We are really happy with our record iPhone and iPad sales, the strong performance of our Mac products and the continued growth of iTunes, Software and Services,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “We love having the most satisfied, loyal and engaged customers, and are continuing to invest heavily in our future to make their experiences with our products and services even better.”

“We generated $22.7 billion in cash flow from operations and returned an additional $7.7 billion in cash to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases during the December quarter, bringing cumulative payments under our capital return program to over $43 billion,” said Peter Oppenheimer, Apple’s CFO.

Apple is providing the following guidance for its fiscal 2014 second quarter:

• revenue between $42 billion and $44 billion

• gross margin between 37 percent and 38 percent

• operating expenses between $4.3 billion and $4.4 billion

• other income/(expense) of $200 million

• tax rate of 26.2 percent

Apple will provide live streaming of its Q1 2014 financial results conference call beginning at 2:00 p.m. PST on January 27, 2014 at www.apple.com/quicktime/qtv/earningsq114. This webcast will also be available for replay for approximately two weeks thereafter.

Mac Turns 30 Today

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Happy Birthday, Mac!
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Thirty years ago today, Steve Jobs, just 29 years old, took to stage in an event that would define his career forever.  On January 24, 1984, Jobs unveiled the Macintosh, a computer which would revolutionize the industry forever.

Jobs’ device took years of work and the perfectionist would not stop until his product was perfect.  His love of perfection and minimalism defined who he was and revolutionized countless industries.

Today, the Mac lives on, a revolutionary machine, in various forms.  Customers can purchase a MacBook Pro with Retina Display, MacBook Air, Mac Mini, iMac, or the newly redesigned Mac Pro.

Apple today changed its homepage to commemorate the thirty year anniversary.  Various celebrations are also being held today and this weekend around the globe.

Feel free to enjoy the video below, a historic event and landmark in  tech industry.

Apple Roundup

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It’s been a slow week for rumors (and a busy one for holiday shoppers), so I decided to compile everything into one article.

Apple recently released the first beta of OS X 10.9.2 to developers.  The update includes various bug fixes and other minor enhancements, but most notably now includes FaceTime Audio, a service introduced in iOS 7.

FaceTime Audio is available currently only on iDevices, but will soon include Macs.  Apple is likely to release 10.9.2 (to the public) sometime next year.

On other Mac news, Apple’s Mac Pro, radically redesigned and re-envisioned, saw preorders on Thursday and is now shipping in February.  Wow.  You probably have a better shot of getting your hands on one at your local Apple Store.

Furthermore, iTunes Connect, the developer portal, will not be accessible to developers for over a week.  This means that App Pricing, Stats, and app uploads will not be available.  While this doesn’t officially affect customers, you won’t have any updates or price changes during this time.

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Breaking: Apple Anounces Mac Pro Price and Availability

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Apple today announced that it will offer the Mac Pro, announced at WWDC in June, for $2,999 (baseline model) starting tomorrow. While this may be a steep price point, Apple does not target most customers with this device. As the name implies, the Mac Pro is a professional device and is intended to be used by pros (i.e. developers, photographers, videographers, etc.).

The new Mac packs a punch with all SSD, new processors, and an incredible design – one that’s a leap back to the “classical” design days of Apple in 2001-2004.

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Review: Apple iBeacons

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Image Credit: MacRumors

iBeacon. The name speaks for itself (as does practically every other i product). With the release of iOS 7, Apple introduced a new feature in it’s API to developers. “iBeacon” allows users to receive notifications on their iDevice when they approach a location specific place and have the notification disappear when they leave. Sounds cool? Well, it could have serious applications and the possibilities are endless.

Most recently, rumors pointed to Apple integrating it in their own stores. A few days later, the rumors were confirmed and Apple indeed integrated iBeacons into its stores.

So what exactly are these iBeacons? Spam machines? Well, partially. I happened to test out the iBeacons when purchasing a new computer at the Apple Store yesterday (oh, and I saw the code class Apple has been promoting). First off, you have to have the Apple Store App installed. Once you have the app installed, you’ll be prompted to enable the notificatoins. If you have in-store iBeacon notifications enabled, you’ll receive info when you walk towards a specific section. I walked towards the iPhone table and was presented with a notification (see below). Not bad, but not great. I was unimpressed with the overall usage – I didn’t get notifications for the iPad or Mac sections (not sure why).

iBeacons do have potential. A lot of it, in fact. But they need to be utilized to their potential. Can’t wait to see what Apple does in the future.

More pictures to come soon! Check back soon.

Apple Teases Black Friday Deals

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Apple has begun to tease its Black Friday deals in an email sent to customers today.  The event will be offered online and in Apple retail stores this Friday.  Apple rarely, if ever, offers discounts on any of its products with the exception of Black Friday.

Prices have yet to be announced, but they’re likely to be the same as last year: $100-200 off Macs (depending on the model), about $50 off an iPad, etc.  We will bring you updated prices when we learn more.

Is it a good time to buy an Apple product?  You decide!  Let us know in the poll below. 


Breaking: Apple Announces Quarterly Earnings

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Apple today announced earnings of $7.5 Billion on 33.8 Million iphones, 14.1 Million iPads, and 4.6 Million Macs.

According to Apple, the sale of 33.8 million iPhones was record breaking for the September three-month quarter. Apple sold 0.1Million more iPads this year than it did last year. However, Mac sales are down, at 4.6 Million units sold compared to 4.9 Million a year ago. Apple’s official conference call begins at 2:00 PST at investor.apple.com.

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