Apple’s trade-in program will reportedly offer gift cards for rival smartphones
In the past, Apple has done its part to attract Android users over to its own mobile platform, but a new report suggests that the company will begin increasing its efforts soon. In an attempt to boost iPhone sales, Apple will reportedly soon offer gift cards towards new iPhones when users trade in rival devices. According to 9to5Mac’s unnamed sources, the new trade-in program will be similar to Apple’s current system, which lets Apple retail store employees determine trade-in values for devices based on cosmetic and functional damage. While calling out Android devices specifically, the report mentions that non-Apple smartphones will be elidgible for trade-in as well. We’re assuming that means Windows Phone and BlackBerry devices are included in the program, though the report doesn’t specifically mention either.
The new program will purportedly begin in the coming weeks, following “extensive training programs” for employees that are slated to begin by the end of this week. Also, the report states that Apple store employees will only be able to transfer address book contacts, and users will have to transfer any additional data by themselves.
For right now, there’s no telling how much you’ll receive from the company if you want to trade-in your old Galaxy Nexus for some extra credit. Odds are you won’t receive much, but the offer may be there in the coming weeks if you’re interested. What do you think? Will Apple’s ploy to offer money to competitors tempt Android users? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Otterbox Video Review: Hands-On With the Defender and Commuter Cases for iPhone 6 Plus [iOS Blog]
Otterbox is well known for offering some of the most protective iPhone cases on the market, and the company’s offerings for the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus don’t seem to be any exception. We went hands-on with Otterbox’s two most protective cases for Apple’s new devices, the Defender and the Commuter.
As with all of Otterbox’s rugged iPhone cases, more protection requires sacrificing the sleek, slim design of the iPhone. Both the Defender and the Commuter are bulky, but offer drop protection, dust protection, and screen protection. Check out our review to see the differences between the two cases.
Otterbox cases can be purchased from the Otterbox website. The Commuter for the iPhone 6 is priced at $39.90 and the iPhone 6 Plus version is priced at $49.90. The more protective Defender case for the iPhone 6 is priced at $59.50 and the iPhone 6 Plus version of the Defender is available for $69.90.
Apple Seeds Fourth OS X 10.10.3 Yosemite Beta to Developers, Public Beta Testers
Apple today seeded the fourth beta of OS X Yosemite to developers and public beta testers, almost a month after seeding the first OS X 10.10.3 beta and just days after releasing the third beta to developers.
Today’s beta appears to be nearly identical to the third 10.10.3 beta released last week, but it appears to solve a problem that prevented beta 3 from working with the new 2015 Retina MacBook Pro and MacBook Air.
The new beta, build 14D105g, is available for registered developers through the Software Update mechanism in the Mac App Store and through the Mac Dev Center.
Earlier betas of OS X 10.10.3 have brought several new features to Yosemite, including the new Photos for OS X app. Designed to integrate with iCloud Photo Library, Photos for OS X is a replacement for both iPhoto and Aperture and is on track to see an early 2015 public launch. Reviews have suggested that while Photos is a suitable replacement for iPhoto, with more advanced tools and performance optimizations, it may leave professional users disappointed.
Along with the new Photos for OS X app, the first three OS X 10.10.3 betas introduced a redesigned emoji picker that consolidates emoji into a single page with clear labels, new diversified emoji and emoji skin tone modifiers, new flag emoji and updated emoji for the iPhone, iMac, and Apple Watch. There’s also support for Google 2-step verification when setting up accounts in System Preferences, Force Touch APIs for developers, and new data sources for the “Look Up” feature.
Apple’s trade-in policy may soon offer gift cards for rival devices
Apple’s not exactly new to courting Android fans, but a reported change to its trade-in policy could finally get owners of other smartphones pledging allegiance to Cupertino. The usual slew of unnamed sources told 9to5Mac that Apple will soon allow customers to swap non-Apple smartphones for gift cards in-store, just like people can currently do with old iPhones, iPads and Macs. If 9to5’s report holds true, retail employees are already being trained on the particulars of the process now, and you’ll be able to ditch your old gear in one of the company’s well-lit glass shrines in the coming weeks.
Don’t worry: Apple seems equipped to ensure your address book makes the leap just fine. The rest of your phone’s contents? Well, you’re mostly on your own there.
If you’ve ever done the trade-in dance at an Apple store, the process should seem plenty familiar – the gadgets you bring in will be graded on cosmetics and functionality, and you’ll get a gift card at the end to put toward a shiny new iDevice. At this point, no one’s entirely sure how Apple will determine the value of the Galaxy S3 you’ve had sitting in a drawer for a year and a half, but that’s sort of beside the point. There’s a decent chance that you’d net more cash by fencing your old phones by yourself, anyway. Thing is, Apple’s game is one of convenience and delight: if it can pay you a pittance for an aging device, sell you one of its own and leave you feeling pleased about the whole thing because of the painless process its devised, you’ll only feel more comfortable buying Apple stuff down the road. Never, ever underestimate the power of warm and fuzzy feelings. The move’ll probably see Apple shelling out millions of dollars in gift cards in aggregate, but that’s a small price to pay considering Tim Cook’s well-documented desire to get more people buying iPhones from their local Apple Store.
Filed under: Mobile
Source: 9to5Mac
‘Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine’ Film Debuts at SXSW, Eddy Cue Calls It ‘Inaccurate’ and ‘Mean-Spirited’
Following the premiere of Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine this weekend at SXSW in Austin, Texas, reviews of the film have begun circulating in the media. The Guardian notes that the documentary portrays Jobs as “a man with dazzling talent and monomaniacal focus, but utterly lacking in empathy,” with director Alex Gibney showing several examples of the late Apple co-founder’s less-desirable behaviour that are typically overshadowed by his successes.
“Yet this man, whose belief in his own righteousness was unshakeable, also terminated Apple’s philanthropic programmes, presided over huge corporate tax evasion, paid Chinese workers making iPhones a pittance, and only stumped up maintenance for his first daughter after dragging his ex-girlfriend through the courts, claiming that she was promiscuous and he was infertile, until a DNA test proved otherwise. Finally, he agreed to pay $500 a month – he was worth $200m at the time.”
Apple senior executive Eddy Cue was quick to express his disappointment in the documentary, describing the film on Twitter as “an inaccurate and mean-spirited view of my friend” and “not a reflection of the Steve I knew.” Cue added that the best portrayal of Jobs is in the upcoming book “Becoming Steve Jobs,” which he describes as “well done and first to get it right.”
Very disappointed in SJ:Man in the Machine. An inaccurate and mean-spirited view of my friend. It’s not a reflection of the Steve I knew.
— Eddy Cue (@cue) March 16, 2015
The Hollywood Reporter has a nearly equal assessment of The Man in the Machine, describing the film as a “two hour-plus corrective to uncritical idolatry of [Jobs], a film that roots around in his misdeeds and mean traits, not in search of a complete portrait, but in the spirit of a Judgment Day prosecutor who knows damn well the defendant was not a holy man.”
Other publications that reviewed the documentary include Variety, TechnologyTell and Indiewire. The film is expected to debut in theaters later this year.
Apple to Lure Android Users to iPhone With New Trade-In Program
Apple plans to lure Android switchers to the iPhone by offering them Apple gift cards in exchange for their Android devices, reports 9to5Mac. The gift cards will be available under a new recycling and trade-in program that will provide in-store credit for users who trade in old smartphones, including those that come from rival smartphone manufacturers.
The new program will work similarly to Apple’s existing trade-in program, which provides users with gift cards for older Apple devices that can be used towards a new purchase. Value of the gift cards provided to Android switchers will vary based on the individual device, its age, and its condition.
Apple has been making efforts in recent months to attract users switching from Android devices. In addition to this new trade-in program, the company has also created a detailed guide that walks Android users through moving data from their Android devices to the iPhone.
Following the launch of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, Apple CEO Tim Cook said the devices had brought the highest Android switcher rate Apple had seen in three years. At the time, Cook also said he expects to see more customers switching over to iPhone.
Apple retail employees will begin receiving training on the new trade-in program this week and it will launch in the near future.
Feld & Volk Expanding Luxury iPhone 6 Lineup With Carbon, Titanium, Sapphire, and More [iOS Blog]
Following a number of leaks last year that saw the company reveal the NFC-equipped logic board from the iPhone 6 and even build a booting device from parts in the weeks before the device’s official debut, Feld & Volk moved quickly to launch its own versions of the device. The company specializes in modifying iPhones for the luxury market by replacing the standard rear shells with new ones made from other high-end materials, frequently including touches such as gold plating and lighted Apple logos.
Feld & Volk’s first iPhone 6 offering was its Wood collection, priced at $3900, but the company is now moving forward with a number of new collections to be shown starting later this week at the Baselworld watch and jewelry expo in Switzerland.
Feld & Volk’s iPhone 6 Wood collection
Among the new materials being shown by Feld & Volk are carbon and titanium, with a new model pairing a carbon rear panel with a titanium frame and a glowing blue Apple logo. The iPhone 6 Carbon is already being featured by French retailer Colette, which notably was the site of the Apple Watch’s first public appearance last September.
Other new collections from Feld & Volk will include one with alligator leather and another featuring a sapphire back with a titanium frame, and Feld & Volk is also teasing upcoming announcements involving illumination to build upon the company’s glowing Apple logo feature.
Feld & Volk’s iPhone 6 Carbon collection
While there has long been a market for modified luxury versions of Apple’s products, the segment is seeing increased attention with the upcoming launch of the Apple Watch, with Apple itself selling 18K gold versions of the device priced at $10,000-$17,000. Feld & Volk and other similar companies are no doubt looking to capitalize on this move by Apple, and Baselworld is likely to be the site of a number of such announcements. Feld & Volk will be making additional announcements at the expo and will be providing updates on its site and Facebook page.
‘Pebble Time’ Kickstarter Gained Momentum Following Apple Watch Event [iOS Blog]
The record-breaking Kickstarter for the new Pebble Time smartwatch gained some momentum off of Apple’s “Spring Forward” event last week, reported TechCrunch over the weekend.
The crowd-funding campaign brought in on average $6,000 per hour the Sunday before the big Apple Watch event, a statistic which rose to $10,000 per hour as the event happened on Monday, March 9 and leveled off at $16,000 per hour on March 10.
Speaking on the matter, Pebble CEO and founder Eric Migicovsky said the Apple Watch event doubled the rate of contribution to the Pebble Time Kickstarter, but as TechCrunch pointed out, it was closer to nearly tripling the campaign’s hourly rate.
Apple’s entry into the smartwatch market no doubt sparked interest in users interested in a wearable device, but perhaps looking for a cheaper alternative, with the ability to connect with Android phones or have a longer-lasting battery life. That train of thought appears to be unsurprising to Migicovsky and the Pebble team, who expected a boost coming off of the Apple Watch event.
“Apple’s event this week caused a nice spike in support for us, as anticipated,” Migicovsky told TechCrunch. “When the biggest company in the world enters your market, that’s the kind of validation you can only dream of. Ultimately the more awareness for smartwatches, and the more choice for consumers, the better for everyone. 2015 is going to be an extraordinarily exciting year.”
The Pebble Time Kickstarter began on February 24, and reached its goal of $500,000 in just under twenty minutes, allowing the company to introduce a more formal option in the Pebble Time Steel one week later. The campaign currently has about 72,000 backers with just over $18.5 million pledged and eleven days to go until its completion.
Retina MacBook Pro Users Complain of Anti-Reflective Display Coating Wearing Off
A growing number of users have turned to the Apple Support Communities, MacRumors discussion forums and Facebook in recent weeks to voice their complaints about the anti-reflective coating on Retina MacBook Pros becoming stained or wearing off. The long-standing display issue appears to affect several MacBook Pros, including mid-2012 to mid-2014 models sold between June 2012 and present.
The anti-reflective coating appears to be wearing off under a variety of circumstances, including the pressure of the keys and trackpad on the display and the use of third-party cleaning solutions and microfiber cloths. While the issue is typically isolated to small areas of the screen, some users have shared pictures showing the anti-reflective coating wearing off across virtually the entire display.
“I had the exact same problem, and I followed the cleaning instructions on the Apple website: a lint free cloth and a small amount of water,” writes MacRumors forum member wj2. “Was trying to remove a mark in the corner of my screen and a shiny scratch appeared on the bezel. It grew in size and it looked like the coating on the bezel was coming off like everyone is saying. Started happening at the top of my display by the camera also. I looked it up and stumbled across this same forum and realized that it was a problem that I should take up with Apple.”
Affected users have received mixed responses from Apple. While some Retina MacBook Pro owners covered under a one-year limited warranty or AppleCare Protection Plan have been able to get their notebook replaced through the Genius Bar for no charge, others have been told that cosmetic damage is not covered under warranty and offered to have their notebooks repaired for a service charge costing hundreds of dollars.
While the anti-reflective coating issues are not new, with complaints dating back to at least August 2013, the problem has been gaining momentum in recent weeks. The issue has received over 90,000 views and close to 400 responses between the Apple Support Communities and MacRumors discussion forums, and dozens of users have submitted pictures of their damaged Retina MacBook Pros throughout March in a Facebook group set up to discuss the problem.
Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
John Gruber: Apple Invented USB Type C
During its Spring Forward Apple media event, Apple announced that the new 12-inch MacBook would adopt the new USB standard USB Type C, which is a multifaceted port that can do multiple things like video and charging. In the newest episode of his podcast The Talk Show, John Gruber mentioned that Apple may have invented the new standard.
I have heard, can’t say who, but let’s call them “informed little birdies”, that USB-C is an Apple invention and that they gave it to the standard bodies. And that the politics of such is that they can’t really say that. They’re not going to come out in public and say it, but they did. It is an Apple invention and they do want it to become a standard.
Gruber’s comment comes at the 54 minute mark of the podcast, with TechCrunch’s Matthew Panzarino saying that Apple inventing USB-C and giving it to the standard bodies wouldn’t surprise him. Gruber goes on to note that there are some contexts in which Apple wants users to have a standard port, but that there are other contexts in which they want users to have proprietary ports.
However, Gruber says he does not know whether Apple will adopt USB-C in other devices like iPhones and iPads. Currently, the new USB standard will be only be available for the new 12-inch MacBook. Recently, Google announced that its new Chromebook Pixel would also adopt the standard.
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