Why the iPad Pro will dethrone the iPad 2 - VentureBeat

After its inaugural week on the market, Apple's shiny new tablet, the iPad Pro, claimed just 0.03 percent of total iPad market share. Given that the company recently reported a 20 percent decline in iPad sales, the release of the iPad Pro is all the more interesting as the industry at large debates the future of the tablet. But there are plenty of reasons to expect success for this new device.

Taking on the "phablet"

Apple has been positioning the iPad Pro as a tool for business, an emerging territory for the tablet market. With accessories such as a stylus and detachable keyboard, Apple is transitioning from a consumption-centric device to one with an emphasis on work capabilities.

Opportunity for iPad Pro: This transition just might prevent the tablet from being phased out by the "phablet" by providing services that a phablet can't.

Where the tablet is today

Amongst Apple's tablet models, the iPad 2 remains the most adopted – with 20 percent of the current market share. The company's most recent models – the iPad Air 2, the iPad Mini 3, and the iPad Mini 4 – have a combined share of just 12 percent of the market.

Opportunity for iPad Pro: It's the first iPad in recent years to make significant changes from its predecessors, most notably in the size of the device. Its screen size is a whopping 12.9 inches, a 25 percent increase over the previous Air models and a 39 percent increase from the Mini models. Previous research has shown that larger-screen devices have led to more app engagement and up to 34 percent more time spent in-app. This has proved true with the new iPad Pro, which had the longest average app session length of any iPad model in its first week, at almost five minutes.

---

From VentureBeat

Customers don't just get irritated when you screw up cross-channel personalization. They jump ship. Find out how to save your bacon on this free research-based webinar with Insight's Andrew Jones.

---

As apps continue to grow in popularity and necessity, all signs point to the new, large iPad Pro as offering a great user engagement opportunity for app publishers and brands.

The role of iOS 9

Currently, 64 percent of iPhones have upgraded to iOS 9, while 54 percent of iPads have the newest operating system.

Opportunity for iPad Pro: The best features of the new OS – picture in picture, slide over, and split view – aren't available on the older iPad models, which may be Apple's "in" to encourage users to upgrade to the iPad Pro, where all three features come preprogrammed.

Low early adoption might be iPad Pro's Trojan horse

Early adopters have not been kind to iPads the way they have been to iPhones. The iPad Mini 4 (released Sept. 2015) had just a 0.2 percent adoption rate in its first month. All of the models released in the last three years have had low adoption rates in the first month (with the exception of the iPad third generation, which had very little competition at the time). As more models have been released, users seem to have found the lack of differentiation between models as a reason not to upgrade.

But this release is different. Not only is the iPad Pro set apart from previous releases by things like new accessories and an upgraded operating system, but the enterprise is hungry for a viable tablet option.

For Apple and the iPad Pro, it might just be that all the pieces are coming together. And since we're staring down the holiday season, where we can expect people to add new devices like the iPad Pro to their wishlists, we should see a change in adoption numbers soon.

Raj Aggarwal is CEO and cofounder of Localytics.

ipad – Google News

Cyber Monday iPod Touch Deals - Discounts Up to $181 on iPod Touch from Amazon - News Recorder

Your wait for the best offers on Apple's iPod touch is over.  This year there are several options available with deals available.  During Cyber Monday week you can find the iPod Touch discounted from $ 15 to $ 200 at sites like Amazon, Walmart and Best Buy.  We've found iPod Touch deals ranging as low as $ 109.

Amazon iPod Touch Deals:

You can save $ 30 on the purchase of Apple iPod touch 5th Generation  model. This iPod is available at Amazon stores for $ 269.99. Free shipping is included with the purchase of this product.

Amazon is also providing you the opportunity to get a discount of $ 181 on the purchase of Apple iPod touch (6th Generation). The original price of this iPod is $ 399.99, but it is available for $ 218.99 this Cyber Monday as one of the iPod deals.

And finally,  you can save $ 65.02 on the purchase of the Apple iPod touch (5^th generation) for a price of $ 233.98.

Walmart Deals on iPod Touch:

Walmart also has some deals  on the purchase of Apple iPod Nano 16GB.The original price for this product was $ 145. You also have the option of free in store pick up or shipping for this product.

If you wish to buy refurbished products, Walmart is offering you Apple iPod Nano at a price of $ 109.99 with a discount of $ 22.01. The original price of this product is $ 132. Free shipping is included with it.

Best Buy iPod Touch Deals:

Visit Best Buy and you will be able to buy Apple iPod 6^th generation latest model at a price of $ 199.99. Best Buy is also providing discounts on open box products which are certified. You can buy the same model for a discount of $ 17 making its price to $ 182.99. Free shipping is also provided along with the purchase of this product. There are also special facilities for cardholders such as 6-month financing facility and also 5% rewards on purchase with cards. This product is available with unique features like 4" retina display, 8GB iSight camera, and with 40 hrs of non-stop music playing. All these products are available as part of the Cyber Monday iPod touch deals.

ipod – Google News

Apple's Mac Market Share Could be a Lot Higher Than You Think - Motley Fool

MacBook Pro. Photo: Apple

Apple‘s (NASDAQ:AAPL) Macs are not as popular as Windows-powered PCs. Apple’s share of the traditional PC market has risen in recent years, but by most metrics it continues to hover in the single digits. Apple sold 5.7 million Macs in the third quarter, while Microsoft‘s (NASDAQ:MSFT) hardware partners shipped more than 60 million traditional PCs, according to research firm Gartner.

But Apple’s Phil Schiller has a different take on the Mac. In a recent interview with Mashable, the Apple marketing chief argued that Apple’s share of the traditional PC market may be quite a bit higher.

Approaching 25%
Here’s Schiller speaking to Mashable’s Lance Ulanoff:

“There are endless numbers of stats out there, you can quote any of them to tell any story, but the number that closet reflects what we all experience and see as we travel around is actually a U.S. market share approaching 25%…That closer reflects what we see when we go to the airport, when we go to the coffee shop, when we go to schools. You increasingly are seeing more Macs than PCs.”

Schiller qualifies his market share claim with two important distinctions: first, he’s only taking about U.S. market share, and second, he’s only speaking about the sort of PCs one is likely to encounter among consumers — not the many machines sitting in the cubicles of Fortune 500 workers.

Apple’s Macs are certainly more popular in the U.S. than in other markets. According to research firm IDC, Apple’s share of the global PC market was 7.8% in the second quarter, but its U.S. market share was higher — 13.5%. In total, Americans purchased about half the Macs Apple sold in the second quarter. IDC doesn’t draw a distinction between consumers and business users, but NPD confirmed to Mashable that, among consumers, the Mac’s U.S. market share is near 25%.

The importance of the Mac business
Apple derives around two-thirds of its revenue from the iPhone, but the Mac is its second-largest business. Last quarter, the Mac generated about 13% of Apple’s revenue — $ 6.9 billion.

The Mac also serves an increasingly important strategic role in Apple’s broader ecosystem. Last year, Apple introduced Handoff, a new feature included in OS X Yosemite. Apple’s Macs function well as stand-alone devices, but serve their owners better when paired with Apple’s smartphone. iPhone owners can answer calls through their Mac, and in certain apps — including Safari and Mail — pick up where they left off. This appears to be a long-term strategic aim for the company, as Apple’s latest OS X update, El Capitan, pushed the concept further. “The best thing about El Capitan is that it makes iOS better,” declared The Next Web’s Nate Swanner.

Microsoft targets the Mac
Schiller’s comments come on the heels of unprecedented aggression from Microsoft. Early in October, Microsoft unveiled the Surface Book, the first laptop from the Windows-maker. Microsoft has marketed the Surface Book as a MacBook Pro killer, explicitly encouraging Mac owners to ditch their machines for its new PC. The Surface Book remains fundamentally a Windows computer, with all the issues and complications that entails, but it sports top-notch hardware and has received strong reviews.

Microsoft’s hardware partners have long offered a wide variety of machines, but haven’t been able to stop the Mac’s steady march. Free of the bloatware that often plagues Windows PCs, and sporting a unique design, the Surface Book may be the first computer that poses a risk. 

But for the time being, Apple’s Mac business is in great shape. Mac unit sales rose 3% on an annual basis last quarter, while the broader PC market fell almost 11%.

The next billion-dollar iSecret
The world’s biggest tech company forgot to show you something at its recent event, but a few Wall Street analysts and the Fool didn’t miss a beat: There’s a small company that’s powering their brand-new gadgets and the coming revolution in technology. And we think its stock price has nearly unlimited room to run for early in-the-know investors! To be one of them, just click here.

Sam Mattera has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Apple. The Motley Fool recommends Gartner. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

mac – Google News

Why an iPhone 7 without a headphone jack should not surprise you - VentureBeat

The latest Apple rumor is a fun one: The next iPhone reportedly won't have a 3.5mm headphone jack. Instead, iPhone owners will have to use an all-in-one Lightning connector, according to a "reliable source" cited by Japanese website Mac Otakara (via Mac Rumors).

As far as iPhone rumors go, this one doesn't surprise me in the slightest. Mark my words: Apple is working on replacing the headphone jack with Lightning.

The report claims the new same-sized Lightning connector will support Lightning-equipped headphones, and have a digital-to-analog (DAC) converter for backwards compatibility with wired headphones using standard 3.5mm stereo jacks. In other words, you'll have to buy a 3.5mm-to-Lightning adapter, which Apple will happily sell you, if you want to use wired headphones, earbuds, or even Apple's current EarPods (pictured above).

And that's the first thing that jumps out at me regarding this rumor: Apple introduced its EarPods in September 2012, first shipping them with the iPhone 5 (they are sold independently for $ 29). A refresh is long overdue. When the next iPhone lineup arrives, it will have been four years since the EarPods were released.

What has Apple done in those four years to suggest that a new set of headphones to accompany its products is on the way? Oh, not that much. The company only acquired Beats Electronics, launched Apple Music (including on Android), and opened up its MFi (Made For) licensing program to include headphones that use its proprietary Lightning port.

That's right: As of June 2014, third-party manufacturers have been able to create headphones that connect to iOS devices via a Lightning cable. Aside from Philips, not many have jumped on this bandwagon. Once Apple removes the headphone jack, that will change very quickly.

And of course, the rumor also says Apple is planning to release its own Lightning-equipped EarPods, which would likely ship with the iPhone 7 (and presumably be sold separately, as well). Eventually, Apple would phase out its current EarPods, once all other iOS devices lose the headphone jack.

But I'm going to go further and say Apple will also release Beats-branded headphones that use the Lightning port. Maybe they won't be ready for the iPhone 7, but it would be silly for the company not to offer more premium (and expensive) headphones that work with the latest iPhone.

If you still think this is unlikely, let me remind you that Apple has done this before. Again, in 2012 with the release of the iPhone 5, the company retired its proprietary 30-pin dock connector in favor of the smaller Lightning connector.

There was naturally a lot of controversy surrounding this, but Apple did it to make its device slimmer (and the story with the iPhone 7 will be the same). The removal of the headphone jack, which will mean the Lightning connector is used for charging as well as audio output, will be arguably more controversial since the 3.5mm jack is standard in all audio products. Apple's 30-pin connector was already proprietary.

So iPhone fans will be doubly angry. Not only will their existing Apple headphones no longer work with the new iPhone, but almost no existing headphones will work.

And yet, this won't stop Apple. Maybe it won't happen with the iPhone 7, or even the iPhone 7s, but Apple is definitely experimenting with killing the headphone jack. There is precedence for such a move, and it lines up perfectly with the company's style of removing ports and simplifying its devices. Again, I wouldn't be surprised if it happens with the iPhone 7.

Apple will kill the 3.5mm headphone jack. It's inevitable.

Apple designs and markets consumer electronics, computer software, and personal computers. The company’s best-known hardware products include the Macintosh line of computers, the iPod, the iPhone, and the iPad. Apple software includes:… read more »

Powered by VBProfiles

iphone – Google News

It's Time to Give Up My Walkman for an iPod - Town Hall

The Left delights in their moral superiority about shopping on Thanksgiving and Black Friday. Progressives and Big Labor are petulant about the dirty dozen stores that will remain open on Thanksgiving Day, and mainstream media carps about the "Black Friday Creep" of businesses opening its doors earlier.  

I don't shop on Black Friday, and I am home all day with my family on Thanksgiving; however, I understand too that a modern economy never really sleeps. Why should it? How can it? Frank Sinatra sang about how capitalism's most important city – New York, New York – is a city that never sleeps.

"I want to wake up, in a city that doesn’t sleep And find I’m king of the hill Top of the heap."  

You don't make it to the "top of the heap" by keeping your doors closed or by ignoring changing times and technologies. Entrepreneurship, innovation, disruption, and transformation are pillars of free enterprise. Sometimes this requires getting up earlier, staying open longer, welcoming modernity, and embracing new technology.

As Charles Murray has eloquently made clear, "everywhere that capitalism subsequently took hold, national wealth began to increase and poverty began to fall. Everywhere that capitalism didn't take hold, people remained impoverished. Everywhere that capitalism has been rejected since then, poverty has increased." Free enterprise is the only system in the history of humankind to lift people – billions of people – out of poverty.     

So, for those of you celebrating capitalism this Thanksgiving or Black Friday, take a look at your credit and debit cards. I write this because just this week my bank sent me a new business card with chip technology. My bank is embracing new technology (and modernity) to help protect me from having my accounts hacked.

An astounding 48 percent of the world's credit card fraud happens in the United States. In recent years, our credit card security has fallen behind most nations, making us the target of choice for fraudsters. Being the weakling in the room is not the proper place for American Entrepreneurship. It's really kind of sad when Europe is the iPod to America's Walkman when it comes to banking technology. This must be fixed.  

The immediate answer lies in the thumbnail-sized computer chip found in my new bank card – an EMV chip. It stands for Europay, MasterCard, and Visa, the three companies that originally created the standard. Perhaps your bank has already issued you a new EMV chip-enabled card. These chip cards, unlike the magnetic stripe cards we're all used to, can't be counterfeited. Though not a panacea to all card-related cybercrime, they are a huge step in the right direction. EMV cards have been the standard in Europe for a decade.

While we know how to make credit cards far more secure, the urgency to embrace this technology has been lacking. Resistance to making the switch to EMV technology in the United States has, not surprisingly, come down to cost. Banks have been slow to issue new cards and retailers have been reluctant to pay for new terminals to read chip cards. For businesses that have to buy multiple terminals, sometimes hundreds, the cost is considerable. But the cost of inaction is too great. Card fraud is expected to top $ 10 billion in the United States this year alone.

However, we are starting to turn a corner. On October 1, we saw a shift in liability that should provide increased market incentive for banks and retailers to pick up the pace of the EMV transition. For years, a card issuer absorbed the costs associated with counterfeit fraud transactions. Now, liability for fraudulent charges rests on the weakest link in the chain. That means, in case of counterfeit fraud, retailers are responsible if they haven't upgraded to EMV-enabled terminals and banks are responsible if they haven't issued consumers new chip cards.

Unfortunately, while banks are making significant progress in issuing new cards to consumers, retailers aren't moving nearly as quickly to upgrade payment terminals. That's a shortsighted mistake. While upfront costs of upgrading terminals may be considerable, liability from a major incident of counterfeit card fraud could be crippling.

Quickly adopting EMV technology is the first, critically important step to righting the ship. More work will be needed, but ignoring modernity and technological change is the antithesis to American Entrepreneurship. We are a country of innovators and entrepreneurs, and it is past time we fix this problem.

In the spirit of modernity, maybe I will venture out this Friday to do a little shopping? While out, I'll finally replace my Walkman with one of these new-fangled iPod things. Happy Thanksgiving.        

ipod – Google News

Apple's Mac Market Share Could be a Lot Higher Than You Think - Motley Fool

MacBook Pro. Photo: Apple

Apple‘s (NASDAQ:AAPL) Macs are not as popular as Windows-powered PCs. Apple’s share of the traditional PC market has risen in recent years, but by most metrics it continues to hover in the single digits. Apple sold 5.7 million Macs in the third quarter, while Microsoft‘s (NASDAQ:MSFT) hardware partners shipped more than 60 million traditional PCs, according to research firm Gartner.

But Apple’s Phil Schiller has a different take on the Mac. In a recent interview with Mashable, the Apple marketing chief argued that Apple’s share of the traditional PC market may be quite a bit higher.

Approaching 25%
Here’s Schiller speaking to Mashable’s Lance Ulanoff:

“There are endless numbers of stats out there, you can quote any of them to tell any story, but the number that closet reflects what we all experience and see as we travel around is actually a U.S. market share approaching 25%…That closer reflects what we see when we go to the airport, when we go to the coffee shop, when we go to schools. You increasingly are seeing more Macs than PCs.”

Schiller qualifies his market share claim with two important distinctions: first, he’s only taking about U.S. market share, and second, he’s only speaking about the sort of PCs one is likely to encounter among consumers — not the many machines sitting in the cubicles of Fortune 500 workers.

Apple’s Macs are certainly more popular in the U.S. than in other markets. According to research firm IDC, Apple’s share of the global PC market was 7.8% in the second quarter, but its U.S. market share was higher — 13.5%. In total, Americans purchased about half the Macs Apple sold in the second quarter. IDC doesn’t draw a distinction between consumers and business users, but NPD confirmed to Mashable that, among consumers, the Mac’s U.S. market share is near 25%.

The importance of the Mac business
Apple derives around two-thirds of its revenue from the iPhone, but the Mac is its second-largest business. Last quarter, the Mac generated about 13% of Apple’s revenue — $ 6.9 billion.

The Mac also serves an increasingly important strategic role in Apple’s broader ecosystem. Last year, Apple introduced Handoff, a new feature included in OS X Yosemite. Apple’s Macs function well as stand-alone devices, but serve their owners better when paired with Apple’s smartphone. iPhone owners can answer calls through their Mac, and in certain apps — including Safari and Mail — pick up where they left off. This appears to be a long-term strategic aim for the company, as Apple’s latest OS X update, El Capitan, pushed the concept further. “The best thing about El Capitan is that it makes iOS better,” declared The Next Web’s Nate Swanner.

Microsoft targets the Mac
Schiller’s comments come on the heels of unprecedented aggression from Microsoft. Early in October, Microsoft unveiled the Surface Book, the first laptop from the Windows-maker. Microsoft has marketed the Surface Book as a MacBook Pro killer, explicitly encouraging Mac owners to ditch their machines for its new PC. The Surface Book remains fundamentally a Windows computer, with all the issues and complications that entails, but it sports top-notch hardware and has received strong reviews.

Microsoft’s hardware partners have long offered a wide variety of machines, but haven’t been able to stop the Mac’s steady march. Free of the bloatware that often plagues Windows PCs, and sporting a unique design, the Surface Book may be the first computer that poses a risk. 

But for the time being, Apple’s Mac business is in great shape. Mac unit sales rose 3% on an annual basis last quarter, while the broader PC market fell almost 11%.

The next billion-dollar iSecret
The world’s biggest tech company forgot to show you something at its recent event, but a few Wall Street analysts and the Fool didn’t miss a beat: There’s a small company that’s powering their brand-new gadgets and the coming revolution in technology. And we think its stock price has nearly unlimited room to run for early in-the-know investors! To be one of them, just click here.

Sam Mattera has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Apple. The Motley Fool recommends Gartner. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

mac – Google News

Why an iPhone 7 without a headphone jack should not surprise you - VentureBeat

The latest Apple rumor is a fun one: The next iPhone reportedly won't have a 3.5mm headphone jack. Instead, iPhone owners will have to use an all-in-one Lightning connector, according to a "reliable source" cited by Japanese website Mac Otakara (via Mac Rumors).

As far as iPhone rumors go, this one doesn't surprise me in the slightest. Mark my words: Apple is working on replacing the headphone jack with Lightning.

The report claims the new same-sized Lightning connector will support Lightning-equipped headphones, and have a digital-to-audio (DAC) converter for backwards compatibility with wired headphones using standard 3.5mm stereo jacks. In other words, you'll have to buy a 3.5mm-to-Lightning adapter, which Apple will happily sell you, if you want to use wired headphones, earbuds, or even Apple's current EarPods (pictured above).

And that's the first thing that jumps out at me regarding this rumor: Apple introduced its EarPods in September 2012, first shipping them with the iPhone 5 (they are sold independently for $ 29). A refresh is long overdue. When the next iPhone lineup arrives, it will have been four years since the EarPods were released.

What has Apple done in those four years to suggest that a new set of headphones to accompany its products is on the way? Oh, not that much. The company only acquired Beats Electronics, launched Apple Music (including on Android), and opened up its MFi (Made For) licensing program to include headphones that use its proprietary Lightning port.

That's right: As of June 2014, third-party manufacturers have been able to create headphones that connect to iOS devices via a Lightning cable. Aside from Philips, not many have jumped on this bandwagon. Once Apple removes the headphone jack, that will change very quickly.

And of course, the rumor also says Apple is planning to release its own Lightning-equipped EarPods, which would likely ship with the iPhone 7 (and presumably be sold separately, as well). Eventually, Apple would phase out its current EarPods, once all other iOS devices lose the headphone jack.

But I'm going to go further and say Apple will also release Beats-branded headphones that use the Lightning port. Maybe they won't be ready for the iPhone 7, but it would be silly for the company not to offer more premium (and expensive) headphones that work with the latest iPhone.

If you still think this is unlikely, let me remind you that Apple has done this before. Again, in 2012 with the release of the iPhone 5, the company retired its proprietary 30-pin dock connector in favor of the smaller Lightning connector.

There was naturally a lot of controversy surrounding this, but Apple did it to make its device slimmer (and the story with the iPhone 7 will be the same). The removal of the headphone jack, which will mean the Lightning connector is used for charging as well as audio output, will be arguably more controversial since the 3.5mm jack is standard in all audio products. Apple's 30-pin connector was already proprietary.

So iPhone fans will be doubly angry. Not only will their existing Apple headphones no longer work with the new iPhone, but almost no existing headphones will work.

And yet, this won't stop Apple. Maybe it won't happen with the iPhone 7, or even the iPhone 7s, but Apple is definitely experimenting with killing the headphone jack. There is precedence for such a move, and it lines up perfectly with the company's style of removing ports and simplifying its devices. Again, I wouldn't be surprised if it happens with the iPhone 7.

Apple will kill the 3.5mm headphone jack. It's inevitable.

Apple designs and markets consumer electronics, computer software, and personal computers. The company’s best-known hardware products include the Macintosh line of computers, the iPod, the iPhone, and the iPad. Apple software includes:… read more »

Powered by VBProfiles

iphone – Google News

Why the iPad Pro will dethrone the iPad 2 - VentureBeat

After its inaugural week on the market, Apple's shiny new tablet, the iPad Pro, claimed just 0.03 percent of total iPad market share. Given that the company recently reported a 20 percent decline in iPad sales, the release of the iPad Pro is all the more interesting as the industry at large debates the future of the tablet. But there are plenty of reasons to expect success for this new device.

Taking on the "phablet"

Apple has been positioning the iPad Pro as a tool for business, an emerging territory for the tablet market. With accessories such as a stylus and detachable keyboard, Apple is transitioning from a consumption-centric device to one with an emphasis on work capabilities.

Opportunity for iPad Pro: This transition just might prevent the tablet from being phased out by the "phablet" by providing services that a phablet can't.

Where the tablet is today

Amongst Apple's tablet models, the iPad 2 remains the most adopted – with 20 percent of the current market share. The company's most recent models – the iPad Air 2, the iPad Mini 3, and the iPad Mini 4 – have a combined share of just 12 percent of the market.

Opportunity for iPad Pro: It's the first iPad in recent years to make significant changes from its predecessors, most notably in the size of the device. Its screen size is a whopping 12.9 inches, a 25 percent increase over the previous Air models and a 39 percent increase from the Mini models. Previous research has shown that larger-screen devices have led to more app engagement and up to 34 percent more time spent in-app. This has proved true with the new iPad Pro, which had the longest average app session length of any iPad model in its first week, at almost five minutes.

---

From VentureBeat

Customers don't just get irritated when you screw up cross-channel personalization. They jump ship. Find out how to save your bacon on this free research-based webinar with Insight's Andrew Jones.

---

As apps continue to grow in popularity and necessity, all signs point to the new, large iPad Pro as offering a great user engagement opportunity for app publishers and brands.

The role of iOS 9

Currently, 64 percent of iPhones have upgraded to iOS 9, while 54 percent of iPads have the newest operating system.

Opportunity for iPad Pro: The best features of the new OS – picture in picture, slide over, and split view – aren't available on the older iPad models, which may be Apple's "in" to encourage users to upgrade to the iPad Pro, where all three features come preprogrammed.

Low early adoption might be iPad Pro's Trojan horse

Early adopters have not been kind to iPads the way they have been to iPhones. The iPad Mini 4 (released Sept. 2015) had just a 0.2 percent adoption rate in its first month. All of the models released in the last three years have had low adoption rates in the first month (with the exception of the iPad third generation, which had very little competition at the time). As more models have been released, users seem to have found the lack of differentiation between models as a reason not to upgrade.

But this release is different. Not only is the iPad Pro set apart from previous releases by things like new accessories and an upgraded operating system, but the enterprise is hungry for a viable tablet option.

For Apple and the iPad Pro, it might just be that all the pieces are coming together. And since we're staring down the holiday season, where we can expect people to add new devices like the iPad Pro to their wishlists, we should see a change in adoption numbers soon.

Raj Aggarwal is CEO and cofounder of Localytics.

ipad – Google News

Apple's Mac Market Share Could be a Lot Higher Than You Think - Motley Fool

MacBook Pro. Photo: Apple

Apple‘s (NASDAQ:AAPL) Macs are not as popular as Windows-powered PCs. Apple’s share of the traditional PC market has risen in recent years, but by most metrics it continues to hover in the single digits. Apple sold 5.7 million Macs in the third quarter, while Microsoft‘s (NASDAQ:MSFT) hardware partners shipped more than 60 million traditional PCs, according to research firm Gartner.

But Apple’s Phil Schiller has a different take on the Mac. In a recent interview with Mashable, the Apple marketing chief argued that Apple’s share of the traditional PC market may be quite a bit higher.

Approaching 25%
Here’s Schiller speaking to Mashable’s Lance Ulanoff:

“There are endless numbers of stats out there, you can quote any of them to tell any story, but the number that closet reflects what we all experience and see as we travel around is actually a U.S. market share approaching 25%…That closer reflects what we see when we go to the airport, when we go to the coffee shop, when we go to schools. You increasingly are seeing more Macs than PCs.”

Schiller qualifies his market share claim with two important distinctions: first, he’s only taking about U.S. market share, and second, he’s only speaking about the sort of PCs one is likely to encounter among consumers — not the many machines sitting in the cubicles of Fortune 500 workers.

Apple’s Macs are certainly more popular in the U.S. than in other markets. According to research firm IDC, Apple’s share of the global PC market was 7.8% in the second quarter, but its U.S. market share was higher — 13.5%. In total, Americans purchased about half the Macs Apple sold in the second quarter. IDC doesn’t draw a distinction between consumers and business users, but NPD confirmed to Mashable that, among consumers, the Mac’s U.S. market share is near 25%.

The importance of the Mac business
Apple derives around two-thirds of its revenue from the iPhone, but the Mac is its second-largest business. Last quarter, the Mac generated about 13% of Apple’s revenue — $ 6.9 billion.

The Mac also serves an increasingly important strategic role in Apple’s broader ecosystem. Last year, Apple introduced Handoff, a new feature included in OS X Yosemite. Apple’s Macs function well as stand-alone devices, but serve their owners better when paired with Apple’s smartphone. iPhone owners can answer calls through their Mac, and in certain apps — including Safari and Mail — pick up where they left off. This appears to be a long-term strategic aim for the company, as Apple’s latest OS X update, El Capitan, pushed the concept further. “The best thing about El Capitan is that it makes iOS better,” declared The Next Web’s Nate Swanner.

Microsoft targets the Mac
Schiller’s comments come on the heels of unprecedented aggression from Microsoft. Early in October, Microsoft unveiled the Surface Book, the first laptop from the Windows-maker. Microsoft has marketed the Surface Book as a MacBook Pro killer, explicitly encouraging Mac owners to ditch their machines for its new PC. The Surface Book remains fundamentally a Windows computer, with all the issues and complications that entails, but it sports top-notch hardware and has received strong reviews.

Microsoft’s hardware partners have long offered a wide variety of machines, but haven’t been able to stop the Mac’s steady march. Free of the bloatware that often plagues Windows PCs, and sporting a unique design, the Surface Book may be the first computer that poses a risk. 

But for the time being, Apple’s Mac business is in great shape. Mac unit sales rose 3% on an annual basis last quarter, while the broader PC market fell almost 11%.

The next billion-dollar iSecret
The world’s biggest tech company forgot to show you something at its recent event, but a few Wall Street analysts and the Fool didn’t miss a beat: There’s a small company that’s powering their brand-new gadgets and the coming revolution in technology. And we think its stock price has nearly unlimited room to run for early in-the-know investors! To be one of them, just click here.

Sam Mattera has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Apple. The Motley Fool recommends Gartner. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

mac – Google News

It's Time to Give Up My Walkman for an iPod - Town Hall

The Left delights in their moral superiority about shopping on Thanksgiving and Black Friday. Progressives and Big Labor are petulant about the dirty dozen stores that will remain open on Thanksgiving Day, and mainstream media carps about the "Black Friday Creep" of businesses opening its doors earlier.  

I don't shop on Black Friday, and I am home all day with my family on Thanksgiving; however, I understand too that a modern economy never really sleeps. Why should it? How can it? Frank Sinatra sang about how capitalism's most important city – New York, New York – is a city that never sleeps.

"I want to wake up, in a city that doesn’t sleep And find I’m king of the hill Top of the heap."  

You don't make it to the "top of the heap" by keeping your doors closed or by ignoring changing times and technologies. Entrepreneurship, innovation, disruption, and transformation are pillars of free enterprise. Sometimes this requires getting up earlier, staying open longer, welcoming modernity, and embracing new technology.

As Charles Murray has eloquently made clear, "everywhere that capitalism subsequently took hold, national wealth began to increase and poverty began to fall. Everywhere that capitalism didn't take hold, people remained impoverished. Everywhere that capitalism has been rejected since then, poverty has increased." Free enterprise is the only system in the history of humankind to lift people – billions of people – out of poverty.     

So, for those of you celebrating capitalism this Thanksgiving or Black Friday, take a look at your credit and debit cards. I write this because just this week my bank sent me a new business card with chip technology. My bank is embracing new technology (and modernity) to help protect me from having my accounts hacked.

An astounding 48 percent of the world's credit card fraud happens in the United States. In recent years, our credit card security has fallen behind most nations, making us the target of choice for fraudsters. Being the weakling in the room is not the proper place for American Entrepreneurship. It's really kind of sad when Europe is the iPod to America's Walkman when it comes to banking technology. This must be fixed.  

The immediate answer lies in the thumbnail-sized computer chip found in my new bank card – an EMV chip. It stands for Europay, MasterCard, and Visa, the three companies that originally created the standard. Perhaps your bank has already issued you a new EMV chip-enabled card. These chip cards, unlike the magnetic stripe cards we're all used to, can't be counterfeited. Though not a panacea to all card-related cybercrime, they are a huge step in the right direction. EMV cards have been the standard in Europe for a decade.

While we know how to make credit cards far more secure, the urgency to embrace this technology has been lacking. Resistance to making the switch to EMV technology in the United States has, not surprisingly, come down to cost. Banks have been slow to issue new cards and retailers have been reluctant to pay for new terminals to read chip cards. For businesses that have to buy multiple terminals, sometimes hundreds, the cost is considerable. But the cost of inaction is too great. Card fraud is expected to top $ 10 billion in the United States this year alone.

However, we are starting to turn a corner. On October 1, we saw a shift in liability that should provide increased market incentive for banks and retailers to pick up the pace of the EMV transition. For years, a card issuer absorbed the costs associated with counterfeit fraud transactions. Now, liability for fraudulent charges rests on the weakest link in the chain. That means, in case of counterfeit fraud, retailers are responsible if they haven't upgraded to EMV-enabled terminals and banks are responsible if they haven't issued consumers new chip cards.

Unfortunately, while banks are making significant progress in issuing new cards to consumers, retailers aren't moving nearly as quickly to upgrade payment terminals. That's a shortsighted mistake. While upfront costs of upgrading terminals may be considerable, liability from a major incident of counterfeit card fraud could be crippling.

Quickly adopting EMV technology is the first, critically important step to righting the ship. More work will be needed, but ignoring modernity and technological change is the antithesis to American Entrepreneurship. We are a country of innovators and entrepreneurs, and it is past time we fix this problem.

In the spirit of modernity, maybe I will venture out this Friday to do a little shopping? While out, I'll finally replace my Walkman with one of these new-fangled iPod things. Happy Thanksgiving.        

ipod – Google News

iPad Pro review – the creative future's looking good - The Guardian

Apple's iPad Pro offers hugely improved screen resolution and graphics performance. Photograph: Apple

The first impression of the latest entry to Apple's tablet range – the iPad Pro (from £679, apple.com) – is of its 5.6 megapixel, 32.8cm (12.9in) screen, which surpasses the size and resolution of anything Apple has previously offered. It looks stunning. Fire up a Pro-optimised game such as The Room Three (£3.99, Fireproof, App Store) and it bursts into life. As well as the obvious aesthetic charms, with a tricksy puzzler like this, the added detail is of real benefit as you prod, poke and drag puzzle boxes around to progress. The scope of the series is expanded in its second sequel, with multiple rooms each becoming part of the puzzle rather than focusing only on the boxes themselves. It's a satisfying development and showcased best on this new hardware.

Apple's Tim Cook unveils the iPad Pro – video.

However, it's the computational heft beneath the glossy exterior that is sure to most impress. More powerful than the vast majority of mobile computers, claims Apple, and capable of editing 4K video – four times more detailed than standard HD TV – meaning that iMovie (free with the device) comes into its own. The Pro won't replace a laptop for high-end users – the limited on-board memory sees to that – but is perfect for creating the fanciest of home movies to put on YouTube.

The full Microsoft Office suite is available for free through the App Store (though an in-app purchase is necessary to edit files), and the huge touchscreen, combined with the new keyboard connector, makes working between them a breeze – whether it be with Apple's minimalist release (£139) or the sturdier, backlit offering from Logitech (£109.99). Procreate (£4.49, App Store) offers a more creative outlet and now offers even greater precision with the release of Apple Pencil (£79). It only works with the Pro, and is sure to be a niche proposition, but it interacts with sensors under the screen to allow control that is sure to appeal to artists. Just look at what David Hockney achieved with a plain old iPad – it would be no surprise to see the next generation pushing the boundaries of what digital painting can achieve.

ipad – Google News

Why an iPhone 7 without a headphone jack should not surprise you - VentureBeat

The latest Apple rumor is a fun one: The next iPhone reportedly won't have a 3.5mm headphone jack. Instead, iPhone owners will have to use an all-in-one Lightning connector, according to a "reliable source" cited by Japanese website Mac Otakara (via Mac Rumors).

As far as iPhone rumors go, this one doesn't surprise me in the slightest. Mark my words: Apple is working on replacing the headphone jack with Lightning.

The report claims the new same-sized Lightning connector will support Lightning-equipped headphones, and have a digital-to-audio (DAC) converter for backwards compatibility with wired headphones using standard 3.5mm stereo jacks. In other words, you'll have to buy a 3.5mm-to-Lightning adapter, which Apple will happily sell you, if you want to use wired headphones, earbuds, or even Apple's current EarPods (pictured above).

And that's the first thing that jumps out at me regarding this rumor: Apple introduced its EarPods in September 2012, first shipping them with the iPhone 5 (they are sold independently for $ 29). A refresh is long overdue. When the next iPhone lineup arrives, it will have been four years since the EarPods were released.

What has Apple done in those four years to suggest that a new set of headphones to accompany its products is on the way? Oh, not that much. The company only acquired Beats Electronics, launched Apple Music (including on Android), and opened up its MFi (Made For) licensing program to include headphones that use its proprietary Lightning port.

That's right: As of June 2014, third-party manufacturers have been able to create headphones that connect to iOS devices via a Lightning cable. Aside from Philips, not many have jumped on this bandwagon. Once Apple removes the headphone jack, that will change very quickly.

And of course, the rumor also says Apple is planning to release its own Lightning-equipped EarPods, which would likely ship with the iPhone 7 (and presumably be sold separately, as well). Eventually, Apple would phase out its current EarPods, once all other iOS devices lose the headphone jack.

But I'm going to go further and say Apple will also release Beats-branded headphones that use the Lightning port. Maybe they won't be ready for the iPhone 7, but it would be silly for the company not to offer more premium (and expensive) headphones that work with the latest iPhone.

If you still think this is unlikely, let me remind you that Apple has done this before. Again, in 2012 with the release of the iPhone 5, the company retired its proprietary 30-pin dock connector in favor of the smaller Lightning connector.

There was naturally a lot of controversy surrounding this, but Apple did it to make its device slimmer (and the story with the iPhone 7 will be the same). The removal of the headphone jack, which will mean the Lightning connector is used for charging as well as audio output, will be arguably more controversial since the 3.5mm jack is standard in all audio products. Apple's 30-pin connector was already proprietary.

So iPhone fans will be doubly angry. Not only will their existing Apple headphones no longer work with the new iPhone, but almost no existing headphones will work.

And yet, this won't stop Apple. Maybe it won't happen with the iPhone 7, or even the iPhone 7s, but Apple is definitely experimenting with killing the headphone jack. There is precedence for such a move, and it lines up perfectly with the company's style of removing ports and simplifying its devices. Again, I wouldn't be surprised if it happens with the iPhone 7.

Apple will kill the 3.5mm headphone jack. It's inevitable.

Apple designs and markets consumer electronics, computer software, and personal computers. The company’s best-known hardware products include the Macintosh line of computers, the iPod, the iPhone, and the iPad. Apple software includes:… read more »

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iphone – Google News

Toledo benefits from Ohio University's big upset of Northern Illinois: MAC ... - cleveland.com

CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Toledo Rockets got a nice Mid-American Conference inheritance Tuesday night. Ohio University upset Northern Illinois on the road, leaving Toledo alone atop the MAC’s West Division.

The challenge now is to stay there. If the Rockets can avoid the same fate Friday at home against Western Michigan (6-5, 5-2), they will head to the MAC title game next week in Detroit’s Ford Field against Bowling Green.

Ohio outclassed the Huskies from start to finish, 26-21, knocking out NIU quarterback Ryan Graham in the third quarter and forcing the Huskies to use a fourth quarterback this season as the top two were already out for the season.

A pair of backup OU quarterbacks each threw a touchdown pass and kicker Josiah Yazdani had four field goals. Tailback A.J. Oullette rushed for 140 yards to control the clock more than 10 minutes longer against the defending MAC champions, who never led in the game.

The Bobcats (8-4, 5-3) were already on the list of seven MAC teams eligible for a bowl game, but the victory over the Huskies (8-4, 6-2) might be worth a better bowl destination in the end.

Also Tuesday, Bowling Green bounced back easily from its loss to Toledo last week by trouncing Ball State on the road behind quarterback Matt Johnson. The Falcons have had the MAC East title wrapped up for weeks.

But the MAC West drama is extended to the final day of the season. Toledo (9-1, 6-1), with its tailback tandem of Kareem Hunt and Terry Swanson, must hold off the Broncos to get that short bus trip across the state line. A loss by Toledo could lead to a four-way tie (NIU, Toledo, WMU, Central Michigan) for first place. In that scenario, Northern Illinois would win the tiebreaker and get a third straight trip to the Motor City.

Here is the rest of the MAC Schedule for the week.

FRIDAY

Western Michigan (6-5, 5-2) at Toledo (9-1, 6-1), noon, CBS Sports Net: The Broncos can salvage a somewhat disappointing season with a road upset at Toledo. But the Rockets, coming off a road win at Bowling Green, will be tough to handle at home with tailbacks Terry Swanson and Kareem Hunt both at full strength and the UT defense back on top of its game.

Kent State (3-8, 2-5) at Akron (6-5, 4-3), noon, ESPN3: A late season roll with three straight wins has propelled the Akron Zips to bowl eligibility. Quarterback Tommy Woodson is coming off a four-touchdown game over Buffalo, arguably his best performance of the season. Kent is going in the opposite direction, having lost four straight as scoring remains a huge challenge.

UMass (2-9, 1-6) at Buffalo (5-6, 3-4), 4 p.m., ESPNU: A very disappointing exit for UMass, playing in its final season in the MAC. UB needs a win to become bowl eligible.

Central Michigan (6-5, 5-2) at Eastern Michigan (1-10, 0-7), 1  p.m., ESPN3: CMU holds out hope of getting a share of first in the MAC West, but must win and hope for help from others.

mac – Google News

Holiday tech support: 7 tips for the iPhone - The Verge

You finally convinced your parents it was time to leave their beloved flip phone behind and upgrade to a more modern device. They went with the iPhone, a dependable choice we've recommended as the best smartphone you can buy for several years in a row. They love the new phone but of course there are some minor problems you'll need to help troubleshoot. We're here to help ensure that your holiday tech support sessions go quickly and smoothly, leaving you more time to fill up on stuffing and enjoy the big game.

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I can't find the apps I want

It's easy to get carried away with the excitement of a new phone and download a ton of apps. Pretty soon you've got four or five screens’ worth and it can be tough to find the one you want quickly. Take 15 minutes to learn what apps your parents use the most. Then put those services into folders organized by themes like News, Entertainment, Messaging, and Photos. If they don't use Apple's native services much, get those off the home screen and organize them into a single folder where they can be found when needed. That may also allow you to free up some space in the dock on the bottom for your parents’ most important apps.

My phone won't stop beeping and buzzing

This is an easy one! Lots of apps default to aggressive notification settings, and it's easy to opt-in without noticing while trying to set the app up for the first time. Go into settings with your parent and disable all the notifications they don't need or didn't even realize they had turned on. As a bonus you may end up leaving them a phone with better battery life.

I'm out of memory

Apps seem like small, lightweight services. After all, you can download most of them over your mobile data connection while walking down the street. But over time they can start to take up a lot of memory on your device, leading to performance issues and annoying warnings, especially if you buy the basic 16-gigabyte model. Unless your parents are gamers, the main culprit here is digital media: typically magazines, music, videos, and photos. That last one is usually the biggest data hog, but it's a complicated problem too, so let’s address that separately.

16GB goes by fast

If your parents download print publications to enjoy on their iPhone or iPad, that can start to eat up a lot of storage. Check out the memory usage for apps like The New Yorker and delete issues they've already read. The same thing goes for music they bought on iTunes and imported to their phones. They can free up some space by pruning that selection down to just the essentials. But a better option would be to help them transition to streaming music.

BUY YOUR WAY OUT: If your parents have invested heavily in iTunes the easiest streaming service for them to begin with is probably Apple Music. You can select a few of their most essential tracks for offline play, so that there will always be some music on the phone even if there is no data connection. The rest you can favorite or pull into playlists so it's easily accessible but isn't taking up storage space. If your parents don't want to pay for streaming music, you can start them up with the free version of Spotify or Pandora instead, keeping a few tracks saved on the phone and these apps for the rest.

Photos:

The most straightforward way to get photos off your phone is to import them to a PC with more memory. But that just pushes the problem of limited storage from one device to another. Cut the cord and help your parents set up a cloud storage account that will ensure all their photos are securely backed up and more space is always just a click away.

BUY YOUR WAY OUT: If your parents are willing to shell out for iCloud, set it up to automatically import their photos when on Wi-Fi and delete the originals on a regular basis. It's a simple solution, but it will cost them.

Let Google manage your iPhone photos

If they are the kind of folks, like mine, who prefer to preach thrift, the best option depends on what ecosystem they live in. If they rely on Gmail, I would recommend downloading and installing Google Photos for them. Set it up to automatically upload photos over Wi-Fi. For now they will have to delete everything manually after uploading, but Google says an update is coming soon to iOS that would allow photos to be automatically deleted from local storage after they upload.

If your parents are devoted Windows users, do the same thing with the OneDrive app. If they are Dropbox users, well they don't need your help figuring out cloud storage, although it might be a good time to sit down and have a heart to heart about what happens to data when a startup doesn't make it.

Should I upgrade to the latest version of iOS?

Like teenagers, iPhones will reach a stage where unexplained changes arrive, often in the middle of the night. It might seem like the answer to the upgrade question is simple: get the newest OS and ensure that you get the most out of your phone's native services, that any newly discovered security bugs have been patched, and that you'll have access to all the latest apps and their latest features. But when you're running tech support for your parents, it can pay to be a little more cautious.

Upgrading to the latest version of iOS can make certain beloved apps a little buggy for a while. It can change the position of buttons and services within the phone and eliminate certain features that, while antiquated to your mind, your parents have come to rely on. For this reason I would recommend that you have your parents wait at least a few months before upgrading. By that time a lot of the big bugs will have been squashed and most apps will be updated. More importantly, you'll have had time to learn the quirks of the latest software, which will make it much easier to deal with any problems your parents encounter.

What else should I use besides Facebook?

Holidays are a time for families to come together and share stories about their lives. For the younger generations, this will likely include a lot of delightful messaging and jokes on services like Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, and Vine. Older relatives will often ask, and occasionally demand, to be let in on all the fun.

It's fairly simple to set your parents up on Facebook and Instagram, and those are probably the safest places to provide a peek inside your life. Beyond that it might also be worth having a chat about messaging. Not everybody uses iMessage, it turns out, and if you're not one of them, let your parents know which of the dozens of social networks / messaging apps out there you do use. Oh and if you're also an iPhone user, why don't you set up your own phone to work with FaceTime, for once? You should call your parents more often. They miss you.

My phone feels old

We've all been there. Someone in the family is bound to show up to turkey time sporting the latest and greatest unit. It's no fun to see the cutting edge when you're only halfway through your two-year upgrade cycle. That's especially true if your phone has been acting slow or buggy, freezing or shutting down without explanation. But there is a new solution, and it's one that might benefit you and your parents.

Apple wants to sell you a new iPhone every year

BUY YOUR WAY OUT: Apple recently introduced its own purchase plan for the iPhone, joining the mobile carriers in offering the device on a monthly installment plan. Apple's plan is actually a great deal if you're the kind of person who wants to upgrade once a year.

That pace can seem really fast for many people, but the phone you get is unlocked, meaning it will work on any carrier. A neat trick is to have one person, you or your parent, use the phone for a year. Then pass the lightly used model to the next person. The purchase plan includes Apple Care to take care of any necessary repairs. If your parents are still one or two upgrade cycles behind you — mine are both currently sporting the 4S — you can upgrade yourself and them on an annual basis and share the cost. Everybody wins!

iphone – Google News

It's Time to Give Up My Walkman for an iPod - Town Hall

Jerry Rogers   

Jerry Rogers is the president of Capitol Allies and the founder of its Six Degrees Project, an independent, nonpartisan effort that promotes entrepreneurship, economic growth, and free market ideals.

ipod – Google News

iPad Pro vs iPad Mini 4 vs iPad Air 2: which tablet should you buy this Christmas? - The Week UK

At its launch back in 2010, the iPad was regarded as something of an oddity – sitting somewhere between mobile device and personal computer. But Apple went on to create and then dominate the tablet market, which initially grew rapidly but gradually, in recent years, has begun to recede.

With the release of the new iPad Pro just ahead of Christmas, the technology giant is hoping to revive its flagging sales by making greater inroads into the personal computer market. But with three different iPads now available, which is best? Read our guide to find out which of the three latest iPads you may wish to put under the tree this year. 

iPad Pro

The iPad Pro was launched to some fanfare last month, offering a range of improvements over previous iPads including higher specs and swifter performance. The new A9X chip has twice the memory bandwidth of the iPad Air 2 and significantly greater storage as well. Apple claims that the new processor means the iPad Pro is more powerful than 80 per cent of portable PCs sold last year. That claim is key to understanding the iPad Pro’s target audience – consumers who want the productivity of a laptop but in tablet form. The screen is 12.9 inches and is optimised for Apple's latest addition, the Apple Pencil, a £79 stylus which allows users to draw onto the screen with accuracy. 

The high-end specs and larger size – it is 80 percent bigger than the previous model both in terms of screen size and weight – come at a price. The cheapest iPad Pro is £679, considerably more than the starting price of an iPad Air 2.

However according to Digital Trends, the premium price could be worth it: “Aside from portability, there is really no category the iPad Pro doesn’t excel at. It is certainly costly, but anyone who can afford it will likely find it to be the best tablet on the market.”

Following its release reviewers have expressed a range of views on the iPad Pro, not all of them positive.

Forbes’ Patrick Moorhead focusses on the design of the iPad Pro.

“The iPad Pro feels like what you would expect with an iPhone or iPad with its brushed aluminum body, beveled edges, edge to edge glass and a physical home button with Touch ID. It's as thin as an iPhone at 6.5mm and feels lighter than you would expect for a device with a 12.9-inch display. The iPad Pro weighs nearly the same as the original iPad at 1.57 pounds, which means that you can use it easily with two hands, but it could be a challenge with one hand for extended periods of time.”

Moorhead praises the tablet’s four speakers which, which compare to just one in both of the smaller iPad models. “My audio experience was really good,” he says “with a much deeper bass response than I've ever experienced on an Apple iOS product. I really appreciated the new speaker system while playing games and movies.”

One of the greatest disappointments for many reviewers though is the iPad Pro’s keyboard.

“I was disappointed with Apple's optional keyboard case, says tech reviewer Walt Mossberg on The Verge. “It's essentially a shallow Mac keyboard, with keys like Command that mean something only in Mac OS X, but not a single shortcut key to an iPad function, like Home or Search. It's also not backlit, and it has only one angle in which it holds the screen. Additionally, it's so light and small compared to the screen that I find it difficult to balance properly on my lap for typing.”

It is also very expensive, he notes, at It's also really costly, at £139 in the UK, making it an expensive addition on top of its already high price compared with the iPad Air 2 and iPad Mini 4.

Those considering getting an iPad Pro as a replacement for a laptop may be turned off by the issues with the keyboard and the device’s sheer scale. According to Kurt Marko writing for Forbes “Unlike the original iPhone or Apple Watch, the iPad Pro isn’t a revolutionary device, however with a few evolutionary tweaks, it has the potential to push more people into an utterly post-PC existence.”

Jeremy White writing for the Daily Telegraph is less sceptical that the Pro suffers from an identity crisis saying that it can be “whatever you want it to be. Transform it into a writing tool, a technical design platform, an artist’s sketchbook, professional video editing suite – all at the touch of a button or swipe of that Pencil.” Those looking for a regular tablet may feel the Pro is too much, but it remains the biggest and most powerful offering from Apple you can slip into your satchel… as long as your satchel is not tiny. 

iPad Air 2

The iPad Air 2 was, until very recently, the newest and brightest of the iPad contingent. Even a year on from its release, the iPad Air 2 is a very impressive piece of kit, beating this year’s Samsung tablet offering, the Galaxy Tab S2, in a recent performance comparison by Tablet PC Review.

The iPad Air 2 is also much more portable than the iPad Pro. On its release it was described as “ludicrously thin” by TrustedReviews and critics praised its ergonomic design and “lightweight feel”.

Despite receiving a 5/5 review from Stuff, the publication’s reviewers still found the removal of the mute switch from the side of the iPad a little annoying, and criticised the Air 2′s camera, saying “the iPad Air 2 doesn’t have the megapixels, aperture or flash of almost any recent decent smartphone.”

With a starting price of £399 the Air 2 also offers much greater value for money for those not looking to replace their laptop or home computer but who still want significant power and functionality from a tablet.

iPad Mini 4

The new iPad Mini 4 is “better in nearly every way” than its predecessor, the Mini 3, says The Verge. “It has the best-looking screen Apple’s ever put on a small iPad, which alone is worth the step up from iPad mini 2 or 3.” According to the International Business Times, it’s the “best small tablet yet.”

The iPad Mini 4 offers the same functionality and performance as the iPad Air 2 and repackages it in a smaller form. A much smaller form. The iPad Mini 4 weighs just 298.8g, compared to the 496g iPad Air 2 and the mammoth 713g iPad Pro.

However, the iPad Mini 4 is not actually the smallest iPad Apple has ever produced. It measures 203.2 x 134.8 x 6.1mm so it is actually slightly bigger than the iPad Mini 2, but it is also slimmer and less heavy at just 298.8g.

The iPad Mini 4 offers a fully laminated display which, coupled with its anti-reflective coating, makes it much easier to use when it is sunny.

As Pocket-Lint notes, Touch ID is included on the iPad Mini 4, making it Apple Pay compatible. For anyone hoping to use their tablet as a mobile wallet, the Mini’s size means that you can more easily slip it into a handbag or coat pocket – the iPad Pro and iPad Air 2 are more likely to require a larger bag to carry around.

Like its larger siblings, the camera on the iPad Mini 4 features both burst mode and slo-mo video. And again, given that it is much more portable than the other two iPads, these features are more likely to be useful for taking pictures or videos in public. But for making video calls all three tablets have the same front-facing 1.2Mp cameras – so none will edge out the other in terms of their FaceTime abilities alone.

The main difference between the iPad Mini 4 and the iPad Air 2 comes in the detail of the screen resolution. As iDigitalTimes explains: “both iPads have the same screen resolution, but because the iPad Air 2′s display is bigger, the iPad Mini 4′s screen is more detailed.”

The iPad Mini 4 is, however, the cheapest of Apple’s tablets, starting at £319 – so if price is your main concern, this is probably the iPad for you.

Conclusion

The choice of which iPad to choose is really down to how much money you’re willing to spend and how portable you want your tablet to be. There is a reason why the latest device has Pro in its title, reviewers say. The large-format iPad Pro, while undoubtedly the most powerful of the three devices, is more expensive or may be too big for many users, in which case the iPad Air 2 or the iPad Mini 4 would be appropriate. Still, as Digital Trends concludes, one tablet clearly comes out on top: “The Pro is certainly costly, but anyone who can afford it will likely find it to be the best tablet on the market.”

ipad – Google News

9 Holiday Gifts For The iPhone Lover In Your Life - TechCrunch

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It doesn't matter how old they are. It doesn't matter how many new phones come out. The iPhone lover in your life is going to upgrade their phone when Apple tells them that it's time to. Hey, that's cool. It doesn't matter that there's a lot of cool Android phones out there. This person loves everything about their iPhone, sleeps with it at night, busts it out at dinner and would smack you in the face if you took it from them.

So how about a few gifts to keep them happy?

Need gift ideas for anyone else you know? Check out all of our Gift Guides right over here!

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iphone – Google News

iPad Pro review: Why the best iPad yet won't work for everyone - Macworld

Hardware & Accessories

Get to know the iPad Pro   (1:41)

Take a closer look at Apple’s mega-tablet, the iPad Pro with the Smart Keyboard and Pencil.

• Apple iPad Pro $ 799.00

  

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  What is this?
  

  Amazon Shop buttons are programmatically attached to all reviews, regardless of products’ final review scores. Our parent company, IDG, receives advertisement revenue for shopping activity generated by the links. Because the buttons are attached programmatically, they should not be interpreted as editorial endorsements.

  If price is no object, the iPad Pro plus the Apple Pencil let you do more with Apple’s tablet than ever before.

Executive Editor, Macworld

Well, I tried. I tried the whole "use the iPad Pro instead of my computer for a week" thing and barely lasted a day. It doesn't fit my workflow like my MacBook Air does, so I stopped trying to force it—and that's OK. Apple's newest largest tablet doesn't need to be a laptop replacement to be good, but for a $ 300 premium over the cheapest iPad Air 2, it does need to deliver more than just a larger screen.

In some ways it does. Thanks to a faster processor and more RAM, the iPad Pro can enable a new class of applications that feel as powerful as desktop apps. Support for the Apple Pencil is limited to this iPad, so if your work includes drawing or drafting, or you'd rather handwrite notes than type them, your choice is clear: Buy this iPad Pro or wait a year to see if Pencil support trickles down to more models.

So much screen, you could drive a truck between those icons. 

But if you aren't planning to use the Pencil, it could be hard for most people to justify the extra cost over an iPad Air 2 or even an iPad mini 4—at least, it is for me. As a work tool, the iPad Pro is a little like the Mac Pro, or the MacBook Pro, or even something specialized like a miter saw: If you really need it to do your job, you likely know you need it, and you don't need me to tell you. If you find yourself wondering if you really need it…you probably don't.

The Pencil is the iPad Pro's big selling point

Using the Pencil is awesome. It feels natural, and it writes naturally, and makes a cheap rubber-tipped capacative styluses feel like trying to write your name with a hot dog. Drawing and even just doodling with it are wonderful experiences thanks to the pressure sensitivity and tilt detection that help it act more or less as you would expect, with very little lag. I haven't done much drawing or painting since college, but the Pencil just makes me want to use it, and the fact that I can doodle, or color, or sketch, or mind-map while catching up on a show in Hulu in a Picture-in-Picture window appeals to me in a unique way. It's a strange blend of nostalgia for the time when paper and pencils were my daily tools of choice, and that futuristic tingle of using something that feels so cutting edge.

Apple

The Pencil has next to no learning curve, since it reacts to your movements pretty much like a real pencil would.

I'm not really sure why it's so round—I hate putting it down and seeing it roll away—and I'm fairly afraid of losing the little cap that covers the Lightning port. And I don't actually need the Pencil for my workflow, since I mostly type text into boxes and edit JPEGs in Pixelmator. So while I love using it like I used to use notebooks and pens, I could buy an iPad mini and a lot of very fancy notebooks and pens before I hit the $ 900 barrier to entry of the iPad Pro and Pencil. But graphic designers will think this setup plus an app like Astropad is a bargain compared to a Wacom Cintiq. More uses for the Pencil could emerge over time as well—developers and tinkerers are already experimenting. (Our full Pencil review is here.)

Hits and misses when trying to work

Some work apps really do benefit from a bigger canvas. Drawing apps like the wonderful Procreate, sure. Editing photos with Pixelmator, definitely. Apps with a lot of tools like iMovie are a natural for a larger screen. And when you're working with two apps side by side, it's great to be able to give each of them the space of an entire iPad Air. But the apps I use the most on my iPad—Byword, Safari, Kindle, Mail—are just as good on a 9.7-inch iPad Air (or even a 7.9-inch iPad mini) as they are on the 12.9-inch iPad Pro. (Full benchmarks are here.)

Apple

iMovie on the iPad Pro: It's faster and roomier than ever, but I'd still rather use a Mac.

Plus, running two apps side by side isn't exactly multitasking. I kept running into limitations that I could work around, but didn't want to have to. I liked having Byword open along with Safari in Split View on the iPad Pro. But on my Mac, I typically have more than one Byword document open at a time—one file with notes and another with an article in progress, usually—and the iPad can't do that, since you can't have the same app open in both sides of Split View. If you want to see two webpages side by side rather than just in tabs, you have to open them in different browsers. And of course, not every iPad app supports Split View.

That's not all. On my Mac, I use a few utilities that can run in the background, like RescueTime, which logs every minute I spend using various Mac apps and websites, but has no iOS version. Only on my Mac can I record Skype calls for the podcast, while plugged into ethernet for the occasion. My Mac lets me download files more easily and organize them however I like—although the iCloud Drive app in iOS 9 has made that easier on the iPad than it's been in the past.

It's still the best iPad ever

One of the things I like best about the iPad Pro is that while it isn't as capable a work machine as my Mac, it's a way better iPad than my Mac. No, really—for all the iOS creep into Mac (from iBooks to Maps to Launchpad to swipe gestures), the iPad is still better at a slew of tasks that my brain has firmly categorized as "mobile" since iOS does them so well.

Ken Mingis

After using the iPad Pro for a week, the iPad Air 2 didn't suddenly seem like a tiny child's plaything—9.7 inches is still a respectable size. 

As I set up my iPad Pro, I first took a look at the Applications folder on my Mac, so I could grab equivalent iOS App Store offerings like Slack, Byword, Pixelmator, Tweetbot, and Things. But then I took a look at my iPhone home screens, so I'd remember to grab my favorites from the mobile side, such as Kindle, My Fitness Pal, Spotify, and Pocket Casts. It was cool to be able to log a snack or take a quick Instapaper break, and then get back to my writing and editing work, without having to switch devices. And I loved listening to podcasts or music while writing full-screen, then just swiping up to Control Center for the playback buttons, always handy but tucked neatly out of sight.

Still, everything in the paragraph above is just as possible on the smaller iPads than the nice, big, roomy iPad Pro. Apps on the Pro launch faster, which makes Split View feel more fluid, since you're switching apps and flipping back and forth in a blink. But aside from Pencil support and overall speed, I'm hard-pressed to name a task I can do better on the iPad Pro than on the smaller (and more reasonably priced) iPads in the lineup.

It's light in my bag, but big on my lap

Big as it is, the iPad Pro feels a lot lighter in my shoulder bag than the 13-inch MacBook Air I typically carry. Even with the Smart Keyboard, which bulks the iPad Pro up to 2.3 pounds, it's a noticeable change from my 2.9-pound, 13-inch MacBook Air. When working at a table, the iPad Pro doesn't feel too large, but when I curl up in bed to watch Netflix or read Kindle books on it, it starts to feel a little unwieldy—I want to prop it up on pillows way on the other side of the bed, or I feel like I'm watching movies too close to the screen.

The speakers are much improved, though, which does make a difference when using the iPad Pro as an entertainment device. Apple included four speakers, and the top two are used for treble while the bottom two are used for bass—no matter how you hold the tablet. They sound good, loud enough to fill an average room with music even if you don't have a Bluetooth speaker handy.

Apple

The big screen and powerful speakers makes gaming and watching videos more immersive—and distracts from the size of the tablet you're holding. 

Still, compared to using a laptop, the iPad Pro is just less comfortable all around. When sitting at a desk with the Smart Keyboard, I didn't like how I couldn't adjust the angle of the screen, or keep my hands in one relative position. (Reaching up to tap the screen feels awkward at first, but after about a day and a half, I found myself reaching up to tap the screen of my MacBook Air, instead of going for the trackpad.) The software keyboard keeps coming up even when I have a Bluetooth keyboard paired, thanks to a bug that I'm told is being addressed in iOS 9.2—it's not a deal-breaker now, but it is annoying for half the screen to be gobbled up by a keyboard I don't need.

Battery life is excellent—starting a workday at 85 percent charged, I didn't get the 10 percent warning until almost 4 p.m. I do wish the iPad had the Low Power Mode that I've been enjoying so much in iOS 9 for my iPhone, but that mode works by throttling some performance behind the scenes (stopping background app refresh, slowing down the processor speed), and Apple might have felt these weren't acceptable trade-offs to eke more power out of the iPad Pro. The tablet ships with a 12-watt USB power adapter for charging—both the battery life and the tiny universal charger are big points for the iPad Pro over a MacBook.

Bottom line

Apple offers multiple sizes of iPhones, laptops, and iPods, so it makes total sense to expand the iPad lineup from two sizes to three, and with the Pencil, Apple's given the 12.9-inch iPad a rightful claim on the name Pro.

For me, it's just not worth the considerable premium in price over an iPad Air 2 (which starts at $ 499 for 16GB) or my favorite model, the iPad mini 4 ($ 399). The Pencil is fabulous, but instead of shelling out $ 799 for the entry-level (32GB, Wi-Fi only) iPad Pro and another $ 99 for the Pencil, I could get a maxed out 128GB iPad mini 4 with cellular for $ 729 and have plenty of money left for all the fancy pens and notebooks my heart desires.

Susie Ochs Executive Editor

Susie has been covering Apple since 2006, and when she isn’t glued to her MacBook Air and iPhone, you can find her building sand castles at the beach or snowboarding in the mountains.
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ipad – Google News

Black Friday Deals 2015: Apple Watch, iPod Touch, iPods, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s ... - Gospel Herald

The new Apple iPhone 6S and 6S Plus are displayed during an Apple media event in San Francisco, California, September 9, 2015. REUTERS/Beck Diefenbach

With Black Friday and Cyber Monday this week, there will be a lot of consumers who will want to purchase a new Apple product, especially when it comes to the newest Apple products like the iPhone 6S, iPhone 6S Plus, Apple Watch, iPod Touch and all manner of iPods. This is where the best deals can be obtained at retailers like Best Buy, Target, Wal-Mart, and Amazon but these deals can vary depending on the phone carrier like Verizon, Sprint, AT&T, and T-Mobile.

iPhone 6S

Apple Store:  The iPhone 6S is $ 649.00 for the 16 GB version, $ 749.00 for the 64 GB version, and $ 849 for the 128 GB version.  The price also depends on the carrier as well. 

Amazon:  Prices are pretty comparable here. 

Best Buy:  For the iPhone 6S/iPhone 6S Plus, customers can get a guaranteed $ 200 Best Buy Gift Card with trade-in of an iPhone 5 or newer and purchase or lease and activation of any iPhone. 

Target:  The iPhone 6S with 16 GB is $ 149.99 with a qualifying 2-year plan on Verizon, AT&T, or Sprint. 

Wal-Mart:  The biggest deal is that there is $ 100 savings and a $ 100 Black Friday Gift Card for $ 200 Total Savings on any iPhone with contract, and activations begin at 9 PM. 

iPhone 6S Plus

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Apple Store: The iPhone 6S Plus is $ 749.00 for the 16 GB version, $ 849.00 for the 64 GB version, and $ 949 for the 128 GB version. 

Amazon:  Prices are pretty comparable to that of the Apple Store. 

Target:  The iPhone 6S Plus with 16 GB will cost $ 249.99 with the same plan.  Both Apple devices will give a free $ 250 Target Gift Card for well-qualified guests with installment billing activation.

Wal-Mart:  As stated with the iPhone 6S, the biggest deal is that there is $ 100 savings and a $ 100 Black Friday Gift Card for $ 200 Total Savings on any iPhone with contract, and activations begin at 9 PM. 

Apple Watch

Apple Store:  The price of this product varies, and they are available in 38 mm and 42 mm sizes with different straps with prices from $ 549 to $ 1,099.99

Amazon:  It is possible to save over $ 100 on the Apple Watch, but you should investigate what model and brand that you are getting. 

Best Buy:  Customers can receive up to $ 100 Savings on the Apple Watch.

Target:  The Apple Watch is available with a free Gift Card of $ 100, starting at $ 349. 

The Apple Watch was relased in April for $ 349 to start. Photo: Apple

Apple iPod Touch

 

Apple Store:  The iPod Touch is $ 199.00 for the 16 GB version, $ 249.00 for the 32 GB version, $ 299.00 for the 64 GB version, and $ 399.00 for the 128 GB version. 

Amazon:  Prices are pretty comparable to the Apple Store here. 

Best Buy:  The store is running a deal of $ 50 off all iPod brands.  By the way, you can buy one Apple product and get 40 percent off all iTunes Gift Cards. 

Target:  There is also a 30 percent off all iTunes Gift Cards. 

Wal-Mart:  The iPod Touch 16 GB available for $ 165 each. 

ipod – Google News