Apple Buzz

Senators Piling on Apple's Taxes Are Missing the Point
May 23, 2013

So is Apple a tax-dodging evil company with a dark heart? No. The answer is no. However, Apple is certainly a corporation, and all corporations are driven first and foremost by profit -- no matter what the company says about the joy of making great products. Astoundingly passionate and driven individuals, who sometimes run corporations, might be driven by the joy of creation.

Amid Threats From Anonymous, Guantanamo WiFi Shut Down
May 22, 2013

Despite cries from the Left, the Guantanamo Bay detention camp is still up and running. The same, however, can't be said for Guantanamo's WiFi. The U.S. military turned off wireless Internet service at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base amid threats from the hacker collective Anonymous. Officials have also nixed access to social networks such as Facebook and Twitter, a spokesperson for the prison said.

Cook Plays Defense Against Senators Over Apple's Taxes
May 22, 2013

Apple CEO Tim Cook defended his company's tax policies in Congress Tuesday, after the Senate released a report that condemned it for tax policies that used global subsidiaries to avoid paying billions in U.S. taxes. Apple dodged taxes on as much as $44 billion in foreign income from 2009 to 2012, the report alleges.

Congressional Investigation Scopes Apple's Web of Tax Havens
May 21, 2013

A series of subsidiaries spanning numerous countries have helped Apple avoid billions in United States taxes, congressional investigators reported Monday. Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., head of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, which is looking into Apple's suspected transgressions, said that Apple "sought the holy grail of tax avoidance."

Apple's Cook Heads to Washington to Talk Taxes
May 17, 2013

Apple CEO Tim Cook is scheduled to appear before a U.S. Senate committee next week to answer questions about his company parking profits offshore. In a notice for the May 21 hearing, the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations said "representatives of a multinational corporation" would be appearing at the event, but a witness list wouldn't be available until Friday.

The Hot Mess That Is Apple's E-Book Legal Fight
May 16, 2013

The U.S. Justice Department is painting Apple as the "ringmaster" of an e-book price-fixing conspiracy. The news came out in court filings made public earlier this week as the DoJ prepares to do battle with the only member of the so-called conspiracy unwilling to admit wrongdoing and take a public spanking.

China Bashes Apple for Tax Evasion
May 13, 2013

China has been having a good go at Apple lately, having slammed the company in March for substandard post-sale service and quickly following that up with charges of copyright infringement. The latest accusation: tax evasion. Oh, and pornography. Apple's online stores in China reportedly are not paying proper import taxes for software sold to Chinese customers.

iPad Mini Sales Spat Puts Focus on Apple Suppliers
May 10, 2013

Don't blame Jason Cheng for the latest news that iPad mini sales may be declining in the second quarter. Cheng is CEO of Pegatron, an Apple supplier based in Taiwan, who this week reportedly blamed declining iPad mini sales for contributing to the company's flagging revenues. Cheng denies he made any comments about the iPad mini or any other specific product.

The Dastardly Benefits of iOS Homogenization
May 09, 2013

Google's Android offers up more cool homescreens and customizations than Apple's iOS. In iOS, you get to jiggle your stack of icons around on the iPhone or iPad homescreen and swap out the background photo. Woohoo. I can hardly contain my excitement. There are no live tiles, like Windows Phone. There are no fancy weather images, no retro themes.

Apple Basks in Bullish Reviews From Wall Street Media Giants
May 08, 2013

Apple's fall from grace on the stock market over the past six months has been well documented, but investor confidence seems to have taken a turn for the better over the past week. The company worked its way onto two high-profile lists. It was the top company on Barron's 500 list, up from its second-place finish in 2012 and fourth in 2011.

iOS7 Will Be Flat by Design
May 03, 2013

Compared to recent Apple announcements, the secrecy surrounding the next release of the company's mobile operating system, iOS 7, has almost been hermetic. There have been reports of improvements in email and calendar apps, as well as a possible expansion of the operating systems' gesture library so it will match Apple's OS X products.

The Report of Tablets' Death Was an Exaggeration
May 02, 2013

When I saw the widely reported quote from BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins that there won't be a reason to have a tablet in five years, my first reaction was one of keen interest. After all, what's the opposite of dead tablets? Something else that's supercool. I expected that Heins would say something revolutionary -- that he would express, at the very least, a better vision of a tablet-free world.

iOS7's Road Could Include More Auto Integration
May 01, 2013

Apple is reportedly working with automobile makers to push more integration of its operating system into vehicles. iOS 7 is expected to debut at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference in June, and the refreshed version might launch with a total user interface overhaul led by company design guru Jony Ive. That update will include embedding Maps and Siri into new cars.

A Bond Sale Today Keeps Apple's Taxman Away
May 01, 2013

A week after announcing its first drop in quarterly earnings in a decade, Apple is selling $17 billion in bonds to fund a $100 billion buyback program for its stakeholders. The sale will be the largest non-bank bond deal ever. The move was somewhat unexpected coming from a company with $145 billion in cash on hand and no debt, a rarity among tech companies.

Fingerprint-Recognition Flubs May Be Foiling iPhone Production
April 26, 2013

Fingerprints may do more than smudge the screen of the next iPhone. They may be holding up its production. There reportedly has been some grumbling in Apple's supply chain due to delays in getting the next iPhone on the assembly line. Production originally scheduled for June may have to be pushed back.

India to Get a Smartphone for the Blind
April 25, 2013

A company in India has developed a smartphone for the blind. The device will be equipped to read text messages and emails, and it will then convert the text to Braille. It will utilize shape memory alloy technology, which exploits a metal's ability to "remember" its original shape. The phone's screen is not a screen so much as a grid of pins that move up and down to form Braille characters.

The Tim Cook Earnings Show Needs an Edge
April 25, 2013

I admire Tim Cook's unflagging patience with investors and analysts during quarterly conference calls. However, I'm starting to wonder if his subtle digs and point-by-point comments are enough for a guy who's stuck on the biggest tech company stage in the world right now. I just wish he would conduct these calls while languidly sharpening a knife. In fact, I want the guy to pull out a freaking sword.

Apple's Mixed Earnings Bag Includes Stock Sweetener
April 24, 2013

For any company in the world, a quarter with revenues of $43.6 billion and profits of $9.5 billion would be cause for celebration. Unfortunately, Apple isn't any company. "Apple beat highly lowered expectations for the quarter," said Trip Chowdhry, managing director for equity research at Global Equities Research. Apple's numbers disappointed financial analysts.

Apple's Q1 Beats Wall Street, but Breaks a Profit Streak
April 24, 2013

Apple dominated the earnings roundup this week. Investors braced for a quarterly report that could determine whether the company's stock heads back towards last September's highs -- or continues its 40 percent-plus decline. Expectations weren't stellar for Apple before the Q1 report, but the company did barely beat analyst estimates thanks to high sales for iPhones and iPads.

Cook Replacement Rumors Smolder
April 22, 2013

Steve Jobs left big shoes to fill, and rumors circulated this week that Apple CEO Tim Cook may not be living up to expectations. This comes as Apple's stock closed at a 52-week low last Friday. Adding to the company's misery, Apple reportedly has earned the nickname "Poison Apple" with some Asian suppliers who are finding its high standards and low price expectations somewhat hard to meet.