Apple's newest iPhone customers aren't just old customers upgrading older devices – in fact, the vast majority are migrating from other platforms. Apple CEO Tim Cook told the Wall Street Journal in an interview that a large percentage of consumers buying iPhones lately are coming from devices that aren't iPhones, and that most of those are shifting over from Android. This is potentially better news for Apple than its record-breaking 74.5 million iPhones sold during the past quarter, because it means there's plenty of headroom to improve on that number in the future.
A lot of the apprehension that crops around Apple when it posts huge numbers like it did this past quarter involves analysts predicting it has or is about to reach a ceiling, but the way in which Apple is racking up sales is as important as how many it's moving. Apple CEO Tim Cook has pointed to new markets with lots of consumers new to smartphones as key opportunities, and the company's success in markets like Greater China has shown those sentiments to be true.
The size and shape of the emerging smartphone market is debatable, however, and partly at the whim of global economic climate shifts (and that's doubly true when you're targeting the rarefied higher end of the market). What isn't as hard to pin down is the pool of existing smartphone users who own an Android device: It's a huge market, one that we've spent the last few years watching as it grows.
Apple's situation with the iPhone in some ways parallels what happened with the Mac: Cupertino led the way with a relatively successful early product before it ceded the majority of the market to a competitor and started making gains once again. The big difference is one of scale: iPhone was never on the ropes in the way the Mac was, and as a result the moment (now) when it starts bringing switchers back to its platform sees it doing so from a position of power. The Macs steady gain in the PC market, when applied to the iPhone/Android equivalent, could translate to huge sales volumes if Apple can continue to convince people to switch camps.
Nothing on the horizon would seem to indicate Android devices are on the verge of gaining any significant technical advantage over iPhones, and Apple's pacing in terms of releasing larger-screened devices has clearly done a lot to trigger of users waiting for that feature on iOS hardware. And with Samsung seeming like a ship that may have lost its rudder, Apple may be fighting a battle without a truly organized resistance.
The new iOS 8.1.3 update makes it easier to upgrade from iOS 7 to iOS 8 and fixes several small issues with iOS 8. We spent several hours using the new iOS 8.1.3 update on the iPod touch 5th generation to see how the iPod touch handles this update. Apple still sells this same iPod touch, but inside it is still running older hardware that may not handle the latest software as well as an iPhone 6 Plus.
In our early iOS 8.1.3 review for the iPod touch 5th gen we will explore the performance of this small, but important update on the iPod touch and help you decide if you should install iOS 8.1.3 or wait.
Overall our experience using iOS 8.1.3 on the iPod touch is positive, but it is not as fast as on newer devices with more power.
read our early iOS 8.1.3 review on the iPod touch 5th generation.
I routinely use the iPod touch to listen to podcasts, watch an occasional video and do light web browsing, even though my main devices are the iPhone 6 Plus and the iPhone 6. The iPod touch is not as fast as these devices, but it is still very usable.
Here is an early iOS 8.1.3 review on the iPod touch 5th generation to help you decide if it is worth installing the update on your iPod touch.
iOS 8.1.3 Installation
The iOS 8.1.3 installation went smoothly on the iPod touch 5th generation. The download took about 15 to 20 minutes and the installation another 5-10 minutes.
After rebooting I had to cancel two app installations that had started, but not finished before the update, but this was a minor issue to deal with.
All other apps remained in place and logged in to their respective services.
iOS 8.1.3 on iPod touch 5th gen Performance
As you read my early iOS 8.1.3 review on the iPod touch 5th generation keep in mind that we likely use our devices in different ways. Expect similar experiences to what I am sharing, but know that apps, accessories and home networks can alter the overall iOS 8.1.3 performance on individual devices.
Apps
This iPod touch is not one I use for gaming very much, as I prefer to use bigger screens for that. This is a small device I carry to listen to podcasts, occasionally watch Netflix, browse the web and use for Google Hangouts.
All of these apps and services work fine on iOS 8.1.3 for the iPod touch. The stock apps also work as expected.
iOS 8.1.3 Battery Life
There is no immediate drain on iOS 8.1.3 battery life on the iPod touch 5th generation. This is a good sign as any fast draining would indicate a problem with the update. I will monitor this closely over the next week.
Although we don't use it for gaming we are pleased with the overall performance of iOS 8.1.3 on this device.
WiFi & Bluetooth
WiFi and Bluetooth are incredibly important on the iPod touch 5th generation as they keep me connected to the Internet for downloading podcasts and listening to music as well as connecting Bluetooth headphones to the device. Both work great after the update, but I will check them on multiple networks over the next week.
Bugs & Issues
At this point there are no major iOS 8.1.3 update bugs or issues present on this device. That is good news considering the overall age of the iPod touch. Small bugs may take time to appear, so I will watch the performance and any odd behavior.
Speed
The iPod touch is not as fast as the iPhone 5s or iPhone 6, but it is not incredibly slow. There is still some lag when switching apps or opening an app for the first time, but it is not bad enough to prohibit using the iPod touch and is better than we experienced when using an iPad 2 on iOS 8.
Should You Install iOS iOS 8.1.3?
Overall the iOS 8.1.3 iPod touch performance is good.
If you are still on iOS 7, you may not want to use the iOS 8.1.3 update as your first upgrade, since there is no way to go back to iOS 7 after the upgrade. There is also no iOS 8.1.3 jailbreak, so users on iOS 8.1.2 who rely on jailbreak tweaks should avoid the update.
That said, the overall iOS 8.1.3 update performance is very good for an older device and there are no apparent problems that require a heavy warning against an upgrade. We'll share a full review in about a week that will include more details about the performance on the iPod touch 5th generation.
iOS 8 vs iOS 7 Walkthrough: What's New in iOS 8
iOS 8 vs iOS 7 Walkthrough – Home Screen
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We start our iOS 8 vs iOS 7 walkthrough with the iPhone home screen, which is where you’ll start your iOS 8 experience after an update this fall.
These screens are incredibly important as you see them anytime you turn on the iPhone or need to choose an app to launch. There is no way around using them, so Apple needs to make sure they work just right.
As you can see in the iOS 8 vs iOS 7 comparison above, there is no change between the home screen in the new iPhone software. Apple changed the status bar and some other small visual changes in iOS 7, but there are no updates for iOS 8.
We could see Apple change the home screen slightly for iOS 8 for the iPhone 6. The new iPhone will feature a larger 4.7-inch display with a higher resolution. This is something Apple may use to add more icons to the screen. Or they could stick with the current layout, it’s tough to tell.
Ahead of any major product release, we often see part leaks and case molds, which give us hints on the sizing, features, and design of the forthcoming product, and the “iPad Pro” is no exception. We’ve previously seen what’s said to be an iPad Pro dummy model for Apple’s upcoming large-screened tablet, and today, French site Nowhereelse.fr [Google Translate] has shared an image of a case that may be designed for the device.
According to the site, the image of the case originated from a reliable source that the site has been in contact with “for many years.” Though the case in the photo is not depicted next to an object to provide a size reference, it is clearly quite large and could fit a tablet in the range of 12.2 to 12.9 inches.
The case appears to have two speaker cutouts at both the top and bottom, which would accommodate the stereo speakers that have been rumored for the device. There are also cutouts for a headphone jack at the top left of the case, volume buttons at the right, a camera cutout at the back, a Lightning port cutout at the bottom, and a power button cutout on the top right, all of which is in line with previous iPad Air and iPad mini designs.
The one unknown is a cutout on the left side of the case, which could possibly be for a SIM tray, suggesting that this is a case for a Cellular iPad Pro. Previous design drawings have not suggested that there’s another port in that particular location.
Because case makers often create molds based on leaked design specs and information that may not be accurate in an effort to be the first to come out with accessories for a new product, some of the design elements could be slightly off. There have certainly been a few misses over the years when it comes to case designs, mainly when rumors of a tapered iPhone were circulating, but for the most part, case leaks have been highly accurate.
The “iPad Pro,” as it has been named by the media, is rumored to include a 12.2 to 12.9 inch screen, an A8X or A9 processor, and a design that is similar in style to the iPad Air or iPad mini, with a thin body and a high-resolution screen. Recent rumors have suggested that it could be the first Apple tablet to ship with an included stylus due to its size.
A launch date for Apple’s larger iPad remains unclear, but rumors have suggested that it could be released in the second or third quarter of the year.
Taylor Mac offering his musical interpretation of the culture of the 1930s through the 1950s.Credit Sara Krulwich/The New York Times
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“Everything you’re feeling is appropriate,†says Taylor Mac, repeatedly, as if to soothe anxious children, during the second three-hour installment of his opus in progress, “A 24-Decade History of Popular Music,†which is having its premiere at New York Live Arts as part of the Under the Radar festival. The assurance may well be needed for anyone in the audience uncomfortable with being uncomfortable â€" either physically, emotionally or politically.
In Mr. Mac’s frolicsome romp through three decades of the hit parade (with many digressions into music more obscure), much is asked of the audience. We descend from our seats almost as soon as the show has begun to huddle onstage together as if in a Depression-era shantytown. Later, all the white members in several rows of the audience are asked to squeeze into the sides to mimic in miniature the white flight to the suburbs that took place in the 1950s.
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Theater Review: Taylor Mac's 'A 24-Decade History of Popular Music: 1900-1950s'JAN. 14, 2015
Given the demographics of theater audiences â€" even for a genre-bending and gender-obliterating performer like Mr. Mac â€" much squeezing is necessary; the suburbs are more crowded than the shantytowns. I was relieved when the gays were allowed back downtown. (“But no gentrifying!†Mr. Mac admonished.)
Photo
Taylor Mac in “A 24-Decade History of Popular Music,” at New York Live Arts.Credit Sara Krulwich/The New York Times
And how do you feel about Nazi armbands rendered in glittering sequins? Would you be interested in slipping one on and joining Mr. Mac for a romp through the bucolic German countryside to the jaunty tune of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s “The Surrey With the Fringe on Top�
In truth, of course, those of us who have come along for Mr. Mac’s sprawling adventure into the making and masking of culture(s) through music will mostly feel the same giddy exhilaration we experienced through the first part. And even Mr. Mac’s more discomfiting salvos are charged with sly purpose. As he explains during the show, an overriding theme of this ambitious endeavor â€" to culminate in a 24-hour concert covering all 24 decades of music, from 1776 to 2016 â€" is exploring “how communities are built through dire circumstances.â€
As before, roughly each hour of the show is devoted to a single decade â€" here the 1930s through the 1950s and directed by Mr. Mac and Niegel Smith. For the 1930s, Mr. Mac glides onstage in a tattered black dress that looks like a Bob Mackie as repurposed by Martin Margiela. Sentiment inside the shantytown is galvanized around our mutual suffering, as Mr. Mac sings heart-tugging numbers like “Soup,†a mournful ode to that minimal meal, and the classic “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?†This segment felt somewhat less shapely than most of the others, but Mr. Mac’s performance is a nightly work in progress that makes room for improvisatory digressions, and as he cheerfully confesses, he doesn’t at all mind things that go on longer than they should.
The segment devoted to the 1940s, by contrast, was perhaps the most emotionally stirring so far. Mr. Mac, sporting a brilliant headpiece that evokes Joan Crawford’s complicated coifs of the time, rendered in what looks like a neon-colored Slinky, begins with a perky version of “The Trolley Song.†But he then segues into a subversive rendering of that inviolably upbeat song, “Accentuate the Positive.â€
The lyrics remain the same, but we have now entered the concentration camps, and the song has been eerily transmogrified into an anthem echoing the ethos of the Third Reich. (I’m not sure I’ll ever hear the line “eliminate the negative†again without feeling a distinct chill.) The lyrics to Cole Porter’s Wild West number “Don’t Fence Me In†are also cast in a ghoulishly comic light. That Mr. Mac is not afraid of bad taste is abundantly clear. He jokingly refers to the shows the prisoners put on in the camps as “out-of-town tryouts.â€
Mr. Mac returns to a recurring theme in the performances, the experience of gay men and women in a time before homosexuality was acknowledged, let alone accepted, in the final section devoted to the 1950s. Here he movingly recalls his own first discovery that there were men who felt like he did about men â€" many of them â€" when he and a friend journeyed from his hometown, Stockton, Calif., to San Francisco to watch that city’s first AIDS march. Mr. Mac’s recollection of discovering a home in the world just as it was burning down makes for a particularly piercing moment.
But much lighter passages abound, too: It was the 1950s in America, after all. Mr. Mac winks his way through the Connie Francis teenybopper anthem “Where the Boys Are.†And, in a slapstick sequence, he bounces around the audience, enacting a mad fantasy of prison as, ahem, a liberating sexual playground for a gay man of the 1950s.
Remember, those of you asked to mimic sexual play with Mr. Mac: Everything you’re feeling is appropriate.
A 24-Decade History of Popular Music
1900-1950s
Conceived, written, performed and co-directed by Taylor Mac; co-director, Niegel Smith; music director/piano/backing vocals by Matt Ray; lighting by John Torres; costumes by Machine Dazzle; executive producer, Linda Brumbach; associate producers, Kaleb Kilkenny and Alisa E. Regas; co-produced by Pomegranate Arts and Nature's Darlings. Presented by New York Live Arts, Bill T. Jones, artistic director; Jean Davidson, executive director, and the Public Theater, Oskar Eustis, artistic director; Patrick Willingham, executive director; Mark Russell and Meiyin Wang, festival co-directors, as part of the Under the Radar festival. At New York Live Arts, 219 West 19th Street, Chelsea; 212-924-0077, newyorklivearts.org. Part 1 plays on Sunday as part of a six-hour marathon with Part 2, which plays through Sunday. Running time: 3 hours.
A version of this review appears in print on January 22, 2015, on page C5 of the New York edition with the headline: Let Everyone Mingle, Awkward as It May Be.
There are still faint hopes that Apple will revive its legendary digital music player, the iPod touch. While rumors have been persistent that the Cupertino-based company has dumped the idea altogether, many trust that the 6th generation iPod touch will eventually show up even in an era where smartphones hold the crest. Some rumors have gone a bit wild though, as they suggest that it may come as soon as March this year.
If Apple is planning to restore the lineup, it is already a bit overdue. The current iPod touch flagship was released back in 2012 and it is still in the market bearing the same $ 199 price tag.
According to Gospel Herald, the iPod touch 6G will have an A8 processor chipped in. The two-year delay of the device’s release, though, is justified by speculations that it will get an A9 processor instead.
The music player is also said to come in two sizes, 4.7 inches and 5.5 inches. Do these numbers ring a bell? Yes, rumor mills say that the iPod touch 6G will bear the same dimensions as Apple’s flagship smartphones. Furthermore, the device is said to support Apple Pay, the firm’s new mobile payment service.
This may come as a bit outrageous — a music player bearing features identical to the iPhone 6. If Apple will go through it, the sales of their first-ever large-screened offering will be hurt. Furthermore, many will opt to get a more capable device instead of one that only offers video and music playback.
The iPod touch 6G has an uncertain future but media outlets bet on seeing the product refreshed during the Mobile World Congress in March. Stabley Times noted though that Apple is unlikely to release the digital media player in a full-scale event and may instead opt for a press release in unveiling it. However, it added that if the titanic tech firm ever launches it with a bang, then it will have to give way to the Apple Watch to take the whole spotlight first, as it is already set to be unveiled in “early 2015.” This could mean that if ever the iPod touch 6G exists, it is still a matter of time before it comes out.
Apple Apple should experience record average selling prices (ASPs) for iPhones in the December quarter with my estimate coming in at $ 690 vs. the Street's average of $ 660. This will be driven by the 6 Plus costing $ 100 more than any previous iPhone for the same memory configuration and by pricing 64GB memory versions only $ 100 higher than the entry 16GB versions. It could come in a bit higher but the stronger dollar should dampen the rise. (Note that I own Apple shares).
Previous record was $ 647 in the December 2011 quarter
For the past three fiscal years Apple's December quarter has had the highest iPhone ASP. This is largely due to initial buyers opting for higher memory models and this year should be no exception.
For the previous three years (December 2011, 2012 and 2013) the iPhone's September to December quarter ASP increase has been 4.1%, 3.7% and 10.3%, respectively. In dollar terms the increases have been $ 25, $ 23 and $ 60, respectively. In the September 2014 quarter the iPhone's ASP was $ 603 so to hit my $ 690 estimate the sequential ASP change needs to be 14.4% or $ 87.
One sign that Apple's iPhone ASP could rise so much is that in the September 2014 quarter the ASP increased by 7.5% and this is with the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus only being available for 9 days. In the previous three years the June quarter to September quarter iPhone ASP increase has been negative 3.6%, an increase of 1.8% and a decrease of 0.7%, respectively.
I have built a model with three scenarios on what percentage Apple's iPhone 6 and 6 Pluses were sold along with various memory configurations. I also adjust for previous models based on the previous year's projection vs. actual. While it is a fairly straight forward model (all cases assume 75% iPhone 6's and 25% 6 Plus's) and I only change the memory percentages the overall results are close to each other. The results average to an ASP of $ 689 which I rounded to $ 690. I have developed a Google Doc that has the assumptions and results via this link.
One indication of memory mix is Japan's iPhone sales
I have been following iPhone sales in Japan via the BCN website which tracks smartphone sales. Besides Apple's iPhone 6 being the dominant smartphone in the December quarter the 64GB models have held the top position all three months and two of the top three. While I don't have any market share percentages I believe it does show the strength of the 64GB versions.
There are tons of Chinese iPhone look-a-likes out there, and at this year’s Consumer Electronics Showcase in Las Vegas we found yet another.
This is the Gold-East MS937, and it looks a lot like the iPhone 6. Everything from the size of the bezels along the side of the screen to the gold trim look reminiscent of the iPhone.
Lisa Eadicicco
There’s even a round home button, although it’s not outlined in gold or silver like that of the iPhone 6. The Gold-East MS937 may look like the iPhone, but it’s a lot cheaper at $ 115.
Lisa Eadicicco
That cheap price makes sense when you take a look at the phone’s hardware. There’s a 5-megapixel main camera, which is much lower than the 8-megapixel camera on the iPhone and the 16-megapixel camera on phones like the Galaxy Note 4.
The screen isn’t full HD either — it’s 1280 x 720 — and based on the product description it doesn’t seem like it can connect to 4G.
The Gold-East MS937 is one of several phones made by Chinese tech companies that look like Apple’s iPhone. Even brands like Lenovo and Huawei have made Android smartphones that resemble the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.
Google Glass hasn't changed the world. Not even close. Briefly hailed as the wearable heir to the smartphone, Glass has mainly become an object of derision, confusion, and indifference. Google never really succeeded in making a convincing case for why we'd all want to wear our phones on our faces.
The iPod, on the other hand, was a device that radically changed the trajectory of personal tech. The conceptual parent of the iPhone, the iPod upended the recording industry, revitalized Apple, and ushered in the online, on-demand era of music, movies, books, and TV. And the guy who designed the iPod? He now works for Google.
Tony Fadell joined the company when Google paid more than $ 3 billion for Nest, the smart-home startup he co-founded. At the time of the acquisition almost exactly one year ago, we made much of how Nest's connected thermostats and smoke alarms would give Google entree to the oceans of data these smart devices will generate as they become commonplace in people's homes. But buying Nest also brought Google something else: a guy with a proven record of designing hardware that is radically new but also widely embraced by consumers.
Nest CEO Tony Fadell. Nest
In that light, Google's decision today to give Fadell oversight of Google Glass makes a lot of sense. If any gadget needs a guiding hand to transform it from geek fetish to viable product, it's Glass. But the challenge is steep, even for Fadell. The problem is that Glass' failure doesn't ultimately stem from people perceiving it as uncool; it's that Glass isn't perceived as all that useful. Google had hoped Glass' early users would help find the functions for its form; now Fadell will have to push reset on that unsuccessful effort. Instead of asking users what Glass is for, Fadell must find a way to tell them.
No Clear Advantage
From the time of its first limited release in 2013, critics have railed against Glass as a privacy invader and a anti-social intrusion on everyday face-to-face contact. But the outrage drew attention away from the more mundane question of what the real point was of having access to the basic functions of your smartphone through a tiny display permanently hovering just above your eye. To make sense as a general purpose consumer device, a gadget needs to have a clear advantage over those that preceded it. Glass' advantage compared to pulling out your phone was never clear, and Google never effectively articulated it. Instead, Google seemed to hope that by offering Glass to a select number of early adopters and techies through its Glass Explorer program, which is now ending, the device's first users would do the work of figuring out what it was for.
That didn't happen, at least not in a way that made those advantages obvious to the general public. Over the past two years, we've learned that consumers are not clamoring for heads-up displays; what they really want are the same old smartphones, except with ginormous screens. As innovative as Glass may seem in its newness, newness alone does not entail innovation if the equation does not also include usefulness.
Glass came into the world as a gadget looking for a reason to be, and that reason hasn't been found.
A caveat: connected headsets like Glass are here to stay in specific, mostly work-related contexts. Certain specialized occupations such as surgeon, construction worker, or jet-engine mechanic will benefit greatly from access to a constant stream of information that the person on the receiving end can consume while keeping both hands free. The future of wearable devices isn't about a single device that does everything. It's about lots of different devices that each do one thing really well.
And in a future like that, what place does Glass really have? That's what Tony Fadell will have to figure out. Perhaps resetting Glass means re-presenting it to consumers as a device for work. And since consumers rather than IT departments are now driving the tech that gets used in the workplace, a reimagining of Glass for enterprise could still offer a path to mass adoption.
To be sure, Google is still signaling mainstream ambitions for its beleaguered eyewear. Along with putting the device in Fadell's hands, Google is also pushing Glass out of the experimental nest of its Google X division (Glass is "graduating," Google says). But if Glass is really out of its infancy, as Google asserts, it's hardly all grown up. Giving the device to Fadell is a gamble that, with his user-experience chops, he will be able to define, implement, and convey a sense of purpose through which potential consumers will finally "get" Glass. But that still leaves the question: Who is that potential consumer?
Clarity of Vision
In a recent podcast post-mortem on the Consumer Electronics Show, Andreessen Horowitz partner Benedict Evans described the Internet of Things as a kind of inversion of the typical path for new tech. Instead of a great need that innovators strive to develop new tech in order to meet, the Internet of Things consists of a wealth of devices waiting for consumers to figure out what they're good for. Evans said that, in that context, the real value of Nest to both consumers and Google isn't so much in its thermostat or its smoke detector as gadgets unto themselves. Instead, the value of Nest is in the company's jumpstart on creating a user-friendly system that conveys not just the usefulness of each device individually, but that through its design communicates how that usefulness evolves as more devices connect to the system.
"The point of of Nest isn't the thermostat," Evans said. "It's the route to market and the communication."
To succeed, Fadell needs to imbue Glass with a similar clarity of vision. And if anyone seems capable of making the case for Glass, it's the guy who managed to persuade consumers that devices as boring as the thermostat and the smoke detector could be transformed into much more useful appliances. Unlike Glass, however, the thermostat and smoke detector both have obvious, well-defined purposes that tech augments by connecting them to each other and the internet.
Glass came into the world as a gadget looking for a reason to be, and that reason hasn't been found. Someone with Fadell's gift might be able to find it. But he'll have to look pretty hard. Relaunching Glass as primarily a tool for work seems like the most fruitful path to take, to find highly specific niches where Glass makes sense. But the likelihood that even Fadell can convince the world of the need for a face-mounted smartphone is slim. It's not like Google to think small. But Fadell will have to narrow Glass' view if he wants it to survive.
Could it possibly get any better than mac ‘n’ cheese for dinner? Probably not. Which is why we’ve included not one, but three mac ‘n’ cheese recipe options for your dining pleasure. You’re welcome.
Best ever mac ‘n’ cheese: We ran this recipe for “really the best-ever mac ‘n’ cheese” a few years ago — and though I don’t know if I would agree that it’s the best-ever, I love the fact that it takes just over an hour to make, perfect if you’re thinking about what to put on the table for dinner tonight.
Famous Dave’s mac ‘n’ cheese: A medley of original flavors make this mac ‘n’ cheese shine. It starts with four different types of cheeses, the sauce built out with corn niblets, spicy jalapenos, fresh parsley and a touch of barbecue sauce. Top it with a crumbly breadcrumb topping and bake it until its wonderful aroma is simply too much to bear. (This dish can also be assembled ahead of time and refrigerated until you’re ready to bake.)
Queen and Diva’s mac ‘n’ cheese: With no fewer than four types of cheese, mac ‘n’ cheese couldn’t get much better than this version. Extra rich and creamy, the secret ingredients include a can of mushroom soup and sour cream for tang. Assemble it ahead of time, if you’d like, then refrigerate until ready to bake. You can find the recipe below.
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese, divided
8 ounces goat cheese
1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Cook the macaroni according to the instructions on the package until al dente. Drain.
2. While the noodles are cooking, in a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, salt and pepper. Whisk in the sour cream and melted butter.
3. Stir the macaroni into the bowl with the egg mixture and set aside.
4. In a large saucepan, heat the Velveeta cheese, cream of mushroom soup and the milk over medium heat and cook, stirring frequently, until the cheese is melted and incorporated with the soup and milk to form a nice sauce consistency. Add additional milk to thin if the sauce is too thick. Remove from heat.
5. Stir the sauce in with the macaroni, then stir in half (1 cup each) of the cheddar and jack cheeses. Place the macaroni mixture into a greased 13-by-9-inch baking dish.
6. Spoon the goat cheese in dollops over the macaroni mixture, then sprinkle over the remaining cheddar and jack cheeses.
7. Bake until the cheese topping is melted and the sauce is bubbly, about 30 to 40 minutes. Remove and cool slightly before serving.
We’re pleased to announce the relaunch of the CBS News app for iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch, which is now available in the App Store for FREE! Our new app features a completely new design and lots of exciting new functionality. Most notably, the app includes CBSN, the recently launched 24/7 live streaming digital news network from CBS News that allows you to watch live news anytime, anywhere. CBSN combines the vast news gathering resources of CBS News and the best segments from shows like Evening News and 60 Minutes to bring you top stories, special features and live coverage of breaking news throughout the day. You can sit back and watch the live stream or view previously aired segments, or even explore a big story more deeply through related videos. Anchored coverage begins at 9 am ET each weekday.
Our new app has a dramatically different visual design as well. We’ve made a number of changes that we hope will make it easier to use. To begin with, we’ve simplified our section fronts and article pages and combined crisp, modern fonts, larger headlines and better line spacing to improve readability. We’ve incorporated more dramatic imagery with full screen galleries. We’ve integrated video and photo galleries more seamlessly into our articles so that you can view all elements of a story in one place. And we’ve also incorporated our special In-Depth sections into the app, which allow you to easily explore the latest updates and highlights from big, ongoing stories, like the Paris attacks, evolving technology and the annual entertainment awards shows. In-Depth sections can be accessed from the navigation or directly from related articles.
There’s some exciting new functionality in the app as well. We’ve added an innovative feature to the iPhone version called Quick Read, which offers an article preview on the front door before you click through to the full story, allowing you to skim the top news in a more substantive way. Likewise, on the iPad app, for big ongoing stories, users can preview additional updates right from the front door by tapping on the “+[number]” indicator below the headline. We’ve also added the ability to bookmark stories for viewing later and to share stories and videos more easily by sharing directly from the hard news section fronts or the show front doors. Another big functional improvement is new customization options. You can start the app in News or Shows mode, adjust font sizes, and reorder the news menu to correspond with your interests (e.g., moving Politics and Video right below Latest for easy access). We’ve also added alerts so that you&# 8217;re up to date on all the major breaking news.
We’ve also added additional content to the app from our broadcast programs. The latest episode of 60 Minutes and 48 Hours is now available every week. So if you want catch up on the occasional missed episode, no matter where you are, you’ve got it! For full access to those programs, including previous weeks and seasons and special content from our archives, you can still download the dedicated 60 Minutes and 48 Hours apps.
Of course, you can still access all the great content from the previous CBS News app, ranging from our timely and deep news reporting to our business and financial content from CBS MoneyWatch to content from our broadcast programs – 60 Minutes, Evening News, CBS This Morning, Sunday Morning, Face the Nation and 48 Hours. We hope these improvements make it easier stay connected to the news and shows you love.
For current CBS News app users on the iPhone and iPod Touch, your app will update to include all of the new features above. For iPad users, ditch your old CBS News app and download the new CBS News app. The old CBS News for iPad app will no longer be supported after February 28th, 2015.
Get the FREE CBS News app for iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch, available for download at the App Store here.
For our Android users, we haven’t forgotten about you. A new app will be available to download soon.
Summary:This keyboard case for the iPad may be the best option currently available.
I discovered the Slim Book keyboard case by visiting ZAGG’s web site, where it is on prominent display befitting a new product. With the iPad in the lid of the Slim Book, it’s possible to adjust the tablet to a range of viewing angles to fit any environment.ZAGG Slim Book for iPad(Image: ZAGG)
What sets the Slim Book apart from other keyboard cases for the iPad is how the tablet in the lid attaches to the keyboard. According to ZAGG it attaches magnetically, which allows for easy detachment of the iPad for use without the keyboard.
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It is also possible to attach the iPad to the keyboard backwards, forming a stand for viewing video and similar activities. You can also fold the keyboard behind the iPad for using as a tablet while still attached. That makes four modes the Slim Book supports: laptop, detached tablet, attached tablet, and stand. This makes the aptly named Slim Book a very versatile option for those needing a keyboard for the iPad.
ZAGG claims a whopping two year battery life, based on an hour use a day. That is the longest battery life I’ve seen on a keyboard for the iPad.
According to the ZAGG website, the Slim Book is available for the iPad Air, iPad Air 2, and the iPad mini. At the time of publication, it’s out of stock for the iPad Air 2, not yet available for the iPad Air, and available for the iPad mini. It is priced at $ 129.99 for both iPad Air models and $ 119.99 for the iPad mini.
Even though ZAGG states the iPad Air model of the Slim Book is not yet available, it is on sale at Amazon. I ordered one that will be here shortly, and plan a full review once I have it.
See also:
iPad keyboards: How to choose the right one for the way you work
Seven best iPad Air keyboards (hands on): June 2014
Five best iPad Air keyboards (hands on): April 2014
The iPhone 6 is a hit. Ahead of its release in September devoted fans once again queued around the clock and over Christmas Apple achieved record sales figures. But what about those yet to decide if the jump to the larger iPhone 6 is for them? I can help.
Having lived with the iPhone 6 since launch I've noticed both significant pros and cons. In fact there are enough on each side to be dealmakers or deal breakers, depending on your individual needs. So let's try and make up your mind:
Best
Screen Size
If you're a long time iPhone user wedded to your 3.5-inch or 4-inch display I have a simple message: don't worry! The 4.7-inch display on the iPhone 6 is arguably its best feature. It remains usable with one hand (even for those with smaller hands thanks to 'Reachability') and third party apps are updating fast to take advantage of the extra real estate so everything feels less cramped.
iPhone 6 beside the iPhone 6 Plus – image credit Gordon Kelly
Some concerns have been raised about the relatively low resolution (1334 x 750 pixels) compared to the 1080p and 2k displays on rivals, but don't fear. It still passes Apple's 'Retina Display' standard (326 pixels per inch – the point where Apple claims our eyes cannot pick out individual pixels) and you have to look incredibly close to see the difference.
Furthermore its vibrant colours, superb brightness and viewing angles more than compensate meaning it is still one of the best smartphone displays on the market.
Read more – Apple iPhone 6 Review: Bigger Is Better
Build Quality
Apple may have abandoned the more angular design of the iPhone 4/4S and iPhone 5/5S but that is an entirely good thing. Gone is the fragile glass back of the 4/4S and patchwork metal of the 5/5S to be replaced with a unibody aluminium chassis that is both harder wearing and – in my opinion – visually far more appealing.
In addition, while bendgate haunted the iPhone 6 Plus, the iPhone 6 is extremely rigid and the chamfered edges and machined power and volume buttons remain top quality. The original metal iPhone remains my favourite Apple design visually, but the iPhone 6 is right up there.
iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus demonstrating 'Reachability' – image credit Gordon Kelly
Performance
Again purely reading specification sheets will give you the wrong impression. After all the dual core 1.4GHz Apple A8 chipset and its 1GB of RAM in the iPhone 6 sound completely overwhelmed by rivals with quad and octa-core chipsets with 3GB of RAM or more.
But again this is comparing apples with oranges (excuse the pun). iOS 8 has had its problems on older phones, but it runs incredibly quickly and smoothly on both the iPhone 6 and identically powered iPhone 6 Plus. In fact glitches in the release version of Android 5.0 Lollipop means the new iPhones remain the most responsive phones currently on the market and nothing will trouble them from the App Store for at least a few years.
Read more – iPhone 6 vs Galaxy S5 Review: Apple Gatecrashes Samsung
The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus both have superb build quality – image credit Gordon Kelly
Camera
You'll be picking up a theme here, but again the performance of the iPhone 6's camera is far greater than its megapixel rating would have you believe. In fact the eight megapixel lens on the iPhone 6 is in a completely different league to the 8MP lens on the iPhone 4S and even the iPhone 5 and iPhone 5S which also stuck with the same size sensor.
iPhone 6 (left) vs Galaxy S5 – Image credit Gordon Kelly
What the iPhone 6 excels at is consistency. The Galaxy Note 4 and Nexus 6 offer it serious competition and, at times, the extra detail in their larger 13MP sensors can be seen, but the iPhone 6 takes consistently superb photos no matter the conditions.
This is all the more remarkable as the iPhone 6 has 'digital image stabilisation' (DIS) rather than the preferable 'optical image stabilisation' (OIS) seen in the Note 4, Nexus 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. There have been many weak DIS implementations down the years, but Apple has done a brilliant job with the iPhone 6.
iPhone 6 in low light – image credit Gordon Kelly
It is also worth mentioning the iPhone 6's underrated video. Again DIS does a great job of keeping everything steady and – while it may lack 4k recording like the Note 4 and Nexus 6 – its slow motion video in particular is a class above anything else I have seen so far from competitors.
Read more – iPhone 6 Plus Long Term Review: Beautiful Freak Is The iPhone's Future
Apple isn’t making another 4-inch iPhone, according to supply chain sources
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iPhone 6c release date rumours and images
Will Apple launch an iPhone 6c, a 4-inch replacement for the iPhone 5c? We think Apple should launch a new 4in iPhone 6c in 2015, but supply chain sources say there are currently no plans to do so. We examine the rumours about the iPhone 6c, including iPhone 6c release date rumours.
by Karen Haslam| 06 Jan 15
Will Apple make another 4-inch iPhone (like the iPhone 5c or iPhone 5s), or will it only make larger iPhones (like the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus) from now on? And if we are going to get a new 4-inch ‘iPhone 6c’, say, when will this device launch?
In this article, which we began compiling back in 2014, we’ve been bringing you all the latest iPhone 6c release date speculation, rumours about the new features the iPhone 6c could have and iPhone 6c leaked images and mockup illustrations from around the web.
There’s already a lot of talk about the iPhone 7 and the iPhone 6s, but not so much about the iPhone 6c, which is what we’re calling the successor to Apple’s iPhone 5c, the iPhone 5s’s (marginally) cheaper and (massively) more colourful sibling. This article is all about Apple’s next 4-inch iPhone – although whether the company will make a new 4-inch iPhone at all, after the great success of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, remains to be seen.
iPhone 6s release date rumours
iPhone 7 release date rumours
Updated, 6th Jan, to include comments from a supply-chain source who claims that Apple is not working on another 4-inch iPhone.
Why Apple should launch an iPhone 6c
Is Apple ever going to launch a successor to the iPhone 5c, its entry level, slightly cheaper iPhone option? We certainly hope so, for a number of reasons:
1) We think that Apple needs to continue to offer a 4in iPhone. For some people even the 4.7in iPhone 6 is too big
2) While Apple and Apple Shareholders care more for profit and good margins than marketshare, having a lower-cost phone to offer people who haven’t yet owned an iPhone is a great way to get them into the ecosystem. It’s also necessary for breaking into the huge markets of China, India and Africa.
3) Apple has for a number of years offered a previous year’s flagship model as a low-cost entry-level phone and it’s a strategy that has served it well. The iPhone 5c was a slight departure from this practice, but was essentially a repackaging of the iPhone 5 a year after that model launched. Since the launch of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus in September 2014 there have been four phones on sale. We expect Apple to continue this practice, but we don't expect to see the iPhone 6 repackaged as the entry level just yet. The iPhone 5s is a more likely contender for this rebadged entry-level role, we think.
4) The iPhone 5c has been a great success, despite complaints that it wasn't as cheap as expected. Described inaccurately as a flop, Apple was estimated to have sold 24 million iPhone 5c models by June 2014. By October 2014 it had topped the UK smartphone sales charts. According to Kantar Worldpanel ComTech: “The iPhone 5c was the best selling phone in Britain in August with 8.9% share, outselling the flagship iPhone 5s with 7.6% and the Samsung Galaxy S5 with 6.0%.”
5) Reports are suggesting that the iPhone 5s is continuing to sell well, as well as the iPhone 6, in fact, and better than the iPhone 6 Plus. The reason for this is likely to be due to some people preferring a handset that is 4-inches, rather than 4.7- or 5.5-inches. The Kantar Worldpanel's research indicates that during the three months ending in October the iPhone 5s was the second best selling iPhone in the US, behind the iPhone 6. It accounted for 26% of the devices sold in that period. There are a few other reasons why the iPhone 5s may have outsold the iPhone 6 Plus, one is that supply of the biggest iPhone has been constrained. Another reason is that the three months that ended in October also included almost two months of sales prior to the new iPhones going on sale. Whatever the reason though, it does suggest that there is a lot of interest still in the 4in iPhone model.
Read more about the iPhone 5c.
Will Apple discontinue the iPhone 5c?
Rumour has it that Apple is going to discontinue the iPhone 5c before the end of 2015.
There is some credibility to the claim as KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes it to be true, and he is generally quite a credible analyst. Kou claims that iPhone 5c and iPhone 4s production will end in 2015. The 4s is still sold in emerging markets.
When Apple announces the successor to the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus we think it is likely to discontinue the iPhone 5c, with another iPhone taking its place as the entry level model.
So expect the iPhone 5c to disappear in September 2015, or maybe even before then.
See: iPhone marketshare. See: Is the iPhone 5c really a flop?
Why Apple needs to discontinue the iPhone 5c
The iPhone 5c is only available with a paltry 8GB of storage. Given that installing iOS 8 took up 5.6GB of storage for some, many iPhone 5c users will struggle with future updates unless they use iTunes to update the iPhone – the only way to update to iOS 8 without deleting anything.
Read: Why 16GB isn’t enough for iPads and iPhones
The iPhone 5c doesn't include a finger print scanner and therefore will not be able to support Apple Pay. Despite the fact that it has a fingerprint scanner, even the iPhone 5s cannot support Apple Pay instore as it doesn't have an NFC chip.
Read more about Apple Pay.
Will the iPhone 5s become the iPhone 6c?
Rather than introduce an iPhone 6c, a discounted iPhone 5s may become the entry-level iPhone in 2015. The 16GB version of the iPhone 5s may replace the iPhone 5c, but we think that Apple would be wise to repackage in plastic and rebadge the iPhone 5s as the iPhone 6c, perhaps adding an NFC chip while they are at it.
iPhone 6c release date
It is certainly possible that Apple will continue to offer a lower-cost iPhone as it did with the iPhone 5c. The significant thing about the iPhone 5c when it launched in 2013 was that although those in the know recognised it as a repackaged iPhone 5, to anyone else it looked like a whole new iPhone and that was a great reason to buy one.
Apple may decide that it is preferable to repackage the iPhone 5s as the iPhone 6c in 2015 to encourage sales.
If it does so, then the iPhone 6c could launch in September 2015 alongside a new 4.7in iPhone, and a new 5.6in iPhone. Read our iPhone 6s release date rumours and iPhone 7 release date rumours to find out what to expect.
Will Apple launch a new 4-inch iPhone at all?
There are rumours that a new 4in iPhone is in the works at Apple.
The claim comes from a Taiwanese parts manufacturer who says that Apple is working on an iPhone mini that will feature a 4in display and will launch in 2015. The source was initially credited in this article.
In late December analyst Timothy Arcuri of Cowen and Company backed up the report, claiming that his sources have suggested that it is “possible” that Apple will launch three new iPhones in 2015, with one of those new iPhones sporting a 4in display. Arcuri dubs the smaller iPhone the iPhone 6S mini.
But in early January, those of us who want Apple to refresh its 4-inch iPhone range were disappointed to hear new predictions. A Chinese-language website called feng.com (the same site that reported the claims above, in fact) cites sources within Apple’s supply chain who say that no such device exists at present; and that Apple has not made “any new production tasks” related to a 4-inch device.
Here’s what the site says in more depth (converted from Chinese using Google Translate, so please forgive the clumsy phrasing):
“Supply chain sources said that Apple has not made any new production tasks iPhone 4 inches to parts of the supply chain, and therefore will be launched on 4-inch screen Apple iPhone 6s argument is not true – at least so far. Sources believe that after using the 4.7 inches of the iPhone 6 listing has been refreshed Apple smartphone sales record, and therefore the re-launch of the new Apple iPhone 4-inch screen is likely to suffer the same embarrassment like iPhone 5c market reaction.”
Doesn’t sound good, does it? We can only hope that the source has got things wrong, or that plans are simply not sufficiently advanced for plans to have reached the supply chain.
iPhone 6c features
What’s the next step for Apple’s ‘c’ series iPhones? Will Apple bring new colours for the iPhone 6c? Will it get new features such as a camera upgrade, a processor boost or a design tweak?
We think that Apple wants to move all its products over to Touch ID so we surmise that the company could decide to repackage the iPhone 5s in a similar polycarbonate case to the iPhone 5c and sell it at a lower price. Customers would get all the features of the iPhone 5s, but Apple would be able to produce it for less, enabling the company to lower the price.
We’ll update this article as soon as we find out more about the iPhone 6c, so check back regularly for the latest information.
iPhone 6c images
While there are no leaked images of the iPhone 6c, designers have created concepts of the device.
The fact that there are no leaked images of a new iPhone 6c is evidence in itself though. We’ve seen so many leaked iPhone 6 images that it’s highly likely we would have seen an iPhone 6c leak by now if one was in the works alongside the new flagship.
The most recent iPhone 6c concept, and definitely the most appealing yet, is a new concept video by designer Joseph Farahi (below). He’s imagined a 4.7in iPhone 6c with colourful plastic chassis just like the iPhone 5c.
SET Solution thinks that the ‘c’ in iPhone 6c could stand for Curve, so has created a video to show what a curved iPhone 6c could look like.
We quite like iPhonesoft.fr’s iPhone 6c concept, which is slimmer and has an edge-to-edge display.
Designer Martin Hajek has also created a similar concept image, as shown at the top of this article.
Other iPhone 6c rumours
It’s easy to imagine the changes Apple may decide to make to the iPhone 5c should it decide to continue the product line:
The iPhone 6c could have additional, or different, colours. The five colours used for the iPhone 5c are on-trend for the year 2014, but will they still be fashionable in 2014-2015? If not, Apple may decide to update the colours to suit new fashion trends.
It’s also likely that a new iPhone 6c would have an improved camera and processor, and would possibly also be thinner and lighter than the current model. As it stands, the iPhone 5c is slightly thicker and heavier than the iPhone 5s, at 8.97mm and 132 grams compared to the iPhone 5s’s 7.6mm and 112 grams.
We also think that if Apple follows this strategy the iPhone 6c will get a Touch ID button for security purposes.
The iPhone 6c will run iOS 8, which Apple unveiled during its WWDC 2014 keynote. You can find out more about iOS 8 here.
Do you think Apple will release an iPhone 6c? Do you think it should? What new features would you like to see in a future iPhone 6c? We’d love to know your thoughts in the comments section below.
How successful was the iPhone 5c?
In Apple’s 27 January 2014 financial call, Apple CEO Tim Cook effectively acknowledged that the sales of the iPhone 5c were not as high as expected. “It was the first time we’d ever run that particular play before, and demand percentage turned out to be different than we thought. We sold more 5S than we expected,” Cook said, tacitly admitting that the iPhone 5c under-performed.
At the time Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster said: “Demand has not been good. [Apple] will discount it and use that as a lever to improve unit growth. I don’t think they will get rid of it completely.”
Jefferies analyst Peter Misek was even more harsh, he thought the iPhone 5c had a short life-span ahead of it. “I would expect them to cancel the product after the iPhone 6,” he said. “Price cuts are not what Apple does. They build products that they are passionate about and then charge accordingly.”
However, the iPhone 5c has not been as unpopular as some have presented it to be. The iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c both outsold Samsung’s leading smartphones this year. Back in Mac, according to research from Counterpoint, the iPhone 5s was the best selling phone in the UK. During that month sales of the iPhone 5s accounted for 11.1% of the market while the iPhone 5c sales were 11% – in the same period the just-launched Samsung Galaxy S5 saw just 9%. See: iPhone marketshare.
Looking at Counterpoint’s worldwide data, the iPhone 5s is still out in front, although the Samsung Galaxy S5 moves into second place above the iPhone 5c. See: Is the iPhone 5c really a flop?
Furthermore, Apple was estimated to have sold 24 million iPhone 5c models by June 2014. And by October 2014 it had topped the UK smartphone sales charts, becoming: "The iPhone 5c was the best selling phone in Britain in August with 8.9% share, outselling the flagship iPhone 5s with 7.6% and the Samsung Galaxy S5 with 6.0%," according to Kantar Worldpanel ComTech.
We think that despite suggestions that the iPhone 5c has been a “flop” it has proven to be a popular alternative to the iPhone 5s and before that, the iPhone 4s.
Is the iPhone 5c too expensive?
Prior to the launch of the iPhone 5c much of the talk was about Apple launching a cheaper iPhone, although in the end it turned out not to be quite a cheap as people had hoped.
We think that the iPhone 5c is now a good price, but we’d prefer it if it was 16GB rather than 8GB.
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iPhone 6c release date rumours and images: ‘Apple not making another 4-inch iPhone’
Apple is currently being overly silent about the release of the iPod 6th generation, and this could turn out to be quite scary for iPod collectors. Hence, wishful thinking and wild guesses are only the available information as of this moment about any forecast for the iPod 6th generation. Here are some rumors about the iPod Touch 6th Generation Release Date and Features.
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There are various rumors suggesting that the iPod device will make its entry into the market or at least make an appearance next year. Almost certainly the Apple Company is not getting enough time to work on the iPod range since the Company seems to be a bit busy with the iPad and Mac.
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According to rumors, the future of the Apple iPod will be revealed shortly after the Holiday Season ends. According to reports by Stabley Times, as suggested by Latino Post, Apple is now enjoying the successful sales on their carrier smartphones, the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus. In effect, there has not time for the Cupertino-based giant to give its attention on the development of the iPod. Currently, they are more interested to make developments on their iPhone updates.
But, some of the rumored specifications have already been revealed in the market. According to reports by Master Herald, the iPod 6th generation contains the integration of the A8 processor along with the 1 GB of RAM. The new iPod device should entirely match the specs of the iPhone 6 except the inclusion of calls and sizeable screen. However, Stabley Times disagrees. According to Stabley Times, a big display will be the principal attraction in being a media player asset which will help the Apple device to score more sales.
On top of that, the latest variety of iPods will be released in vibrant colors on the body in order to attract the younger generation of this time’s market. A retina screen will also be contained in the device together with its modest dual-core old generation A5 processor, a larger storage capacity, and a radio application. But the wildest part of the rumors is the inclusion of Apple Pay and Touch ID.
In the meantime, there are various reasons as to why the iPod range of devices could be discarded by the manufacturer. One of the possible reasons is that the media could become insignificant if the same set of specs of iPhone is included in the iPod. iPod lovers could expect some more information by this year.
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