Buyer’s Guide: Deals on Older iPads, Retina iMac, Apple Accessories, and Apps [Mac Blog]

As we mentioned in last week’s Buyer’s Guide post, the deals in the month of January aren’t great, but there are still a few discounts to be had on various products like the previous-generation iPads, the Retina iMac, the MacBook Air, and a few Retina MacBook Pro models.

We’ve also got a handful of accessory deals for you this week, on iPhone cases, iPad keyboard cases, Thunderbolt docks, and the Jawbone Big Jambox, plus some deals on Mac and iOS apps.

iMac

As of yesterday, Apple is selling the new 27-inch Retina iMac in its online refurbished store, offering discounts of 15 percent off, which beats any Retina iMac price that can be found in store this week.

Selection varies, but there are quite a few configurations available for purchase at a discount, which gives consumers looking for a Retina iMac deal a lot to choose from beyond the standard configuration.

For example, the 4.0GHz Retina iMac with 8GB RAM and 1TB Fusion drive can be purchased for $2,339, a discount of $410 compared to the price when purchased new, and the stock 3.5GHz/8GB/1TB Retina iMac is available refurbished for $2,119, a discount of $380.

All of Apple’s refurbished machines come with a 1 year warranty, but stock fluctuates often, so potential buyers may need to wait for a desired machine to show up in the store.

iPads

We don’t recommend buying an iPad Air 2 or Retina iPad mini 3 this week if you can help it because there are no sales going on, but Best Buy is still offering now-discontinued higher-capacity Cellular versions of the iPad Air and the iPad mini 2 at discounted prices up to $130 off the standard price.

– iPad Air Cellular Silver 64GB (AT&T) – $499.99
– iPad Air Cellular Space Gray 64GB (AT&T) – $499.99
– iPad Air Cellular Silver 128GB (AT&T) – $599.99
– iPad Air Cellular Space Gray 128GB (AT&T) – $599.99

– iPad mini 2 Cellular AT&T Silver 64GB – $399.99
– iPad mini 2 Cellular AT&T Space Gray 64GB – $399.99
– iPad mini 2 Cellular AT&T Space Gray 128GB – $499.99
– iPad mini 2 Cellular AT&T Silver 128GB – $499.99

Retina MacBook Pro

– 13-inch 2.6GHz/8GB/128GB (Adorama) – $1,149, $150 off
– 13-inch 2.6GHz/8GB/256GB (Adorama) (B&H Photo) – $1,399, $100 off

MacBook Air

– 11-inch 1.4GHz/4GB/128GB (Best Buy) (B&H Photo) – $829.99, $70 off
– 11-inch 1.4GHz/4GB/256GB (Adorama) (B&H Photo) – $999, $100 off
– 13-inch 1.4GHz/4GB/128GB (Best Buy) – $849, $150 off
– 13-inch 1.4GHz/4GB/256GB (Adorama) (B&H Photo) – $1,099, $100 off

Apps

Apple’s free app of the week is Marvell Pinball, a game that’s normally priced at $0.99. It’ll be available for free for the next seven days.

Goat Simulator is 60 percent off for a limited time, dropping the price to $2.99. Space Age: A Cosmic Adventure is also on sale for a limited time for $1.99, down from $3.99. For more app deals, make sure to check out our sister site AppShopper, which has a section dedicated to price drops.

StackSocial is offering 10 Mac apps for $10, a bundle that includes Disk Map, MenuTab Pro for Facebook, NotesTab Pro, CopyClip 2, Privacy Protector, Share Bucket, StatsBar, StockTab, Alerts for Gmail, and InstaReel for Instagram.

MacHeist also has a bundle of Mac Apps for $14.99, which includes Default Folder X, VirusBarrier, uBar, Speedy, TotalFinder, Parallels Access, CodeKit, and Cocktail. Little Snitch and Postbox will be included if enough bundles are sold.

Apple Accessories

Groupon is offering a refurbished Jawbone UP24 for $69.99, down from the original price of $99. The Speck CandyShell Case for the iPad mini is also available from Groupon for $11.99, down from its regular price of $44.95.

The Nintendo Clip Case for the iPhone 5/5s is available for $7.99 from Groupon, down from $29.99, and the site is also selling custom iPhone cases for the iPhone 5/5s/6/6 Plus from PrinterPix for $7.99 to $14.99. Cases are normally priced at $39.99.

MacMall has a couple Thunderbolt docks on sell this week. The Elgato Thunderbolt 2 dock is available for $199.99, down from $229.95, and the StarTech Thunderbolt 2 Docking Station is available for $269.99, down from $329.99.

Logitech’s Ultrathin Bluetooth keyboard for the iPad mini can be purchased for $37.99 from Groupon, down from $79.99, and Daily Steals has Apple Earpod earphones for $9 instead of $29.

Daily Steals is also selling the Belkin USB 2.1 Swivel Charger for $8, down from $29.99, and the Jawbone Big Jambox can be purchased from Best Buy for $199, a $100 discount.

MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors.

Work Continues on iOS 8.1.3 With Retail Employees Receiving Second Beta Seed

Apple is continuing its behind-the-scenes work on the upcoming iOS 8.1.3 update, and as of yesterday, retail employees that have been testing the software received a second iOS 8.1.3 beta, build 12B466, which is six builds newer than the previous seed they received on Wednesday, January 7.

Last week, we speculated that the iOS 8.1.3 beta was close to release due to the fact that it was shared with quite a few retail employees, but it appears there are still bugs that Apple is working on fixing before it provides the 8.1.3 update to the public. MacRumors continues to see an uptick in the number of visits received from devices running iOS 8.1.3, and while we expect the update will be released to the public in the next week or two, it is not clear exactly when a launch could come.

Overall visitors to MacRumors.com from devices running iOS 8.1.3
According to our source, iOS 8.1.3 appears to contain only under-the-hood bug fixes with no readily apparent visual changes to the operating system. Apple has not provided employees with release notes.

With iOS 8.1.2 and iOS 8.1.3 positioned as minor updates, Apple has opted not to share the software with developers ahead of its release, instead testing the updates in house. Testing the iOS 8.1.3 update with retail employees is a new move for Apple, as it marks the first time retail workers have been invited to participate in the testing of an iOS beta. Retail employees have been involved in the beta testing of OS X for years.

Apple may have avoided seeding the iOS 8.1.2 and 8.1.3 betas to developers in order to focus developer testing on iOS 8.2, which is currently on its fourth beta. iOS 8.2 is a major update that is expected to be released alongside the Apple Watch in the spring months.

As we mentioned last week, along with iOS 8.1.3 and iOS 8.2, our site metrics indicate that a small number of Apple employees in Cupertino are also working on iOS 9, the successor to iOS 8 that we expect will be previewed in the summer and released in the fall alongside new iPhones.

An iOS 8.3 update that was also observed in testing months ago has declined in activity according to our web logs, with visits from devices running it having peaked in late November and not rebounding significantly in the new year following the holiday lull.

Apple’s Swift Programming Language Proving Popular With Developers [iOS Blog]

Apple’s new Swift programming language is growing rapidly in popularity according to RedMonk’s latest Programming Language Rankings. The analysis ranks the future popularity of programming languages based on the amount of discussion on Stack Overflow and the usage on Github.

As expected, the top programming languages ranked by RedMonk include JavaScript, Java, and PHP in the top three slots with Objective-C rounding out the top ten.

Though it does not rank as high as its Objective-C counterpart, Swift was singled out by the researchers for growth that “is essentially unprecedented in the history of these rankings.” In two calendar quarters, Swift has climbed from the 68th slot in Q3 2014 to the 22nd slot in Q1 2105, a jump of 46 slots. Given this meteoric rise, Swift is expected to become a Top 20 language sometime this year.

According to Chris Lattner, head of Apple’s Developer Tools department, the Swift programming language was in development for four years before its official unveiling during WWDC 2014. From its conception, Swift was designed to be more approachable and fun, allowing developers to produce apps quickly and easily. Developers can use Swift code to build new apps or to add it alongside Objective-C into existing apps.

Designers Envision Concepts for Apple Watch Apps Like Uber and Instagram [iOS Blog]

Digital agency Huge yesterday released a set of renderings showing off their concepts for how existing popular apps like Fandango, Foursquare, Chase Bank, and others could take advantage of the Apple Watch when the smartwatch launches in the coming months.

Breaking down the major new features of the Watch, including the Taptic Engine, Voice command, and the Digital Crown, Huge reminds readers that none of the renderings are based off any confirmed apps from the companies or Apple itself, but they do offer an interesting look at the possibilities.

Huge also smartly points out that the success or failure of apps on the platform lies in developers embracing its smaller-scale and not just shoehorning existing iOS user interfaces and features into the Watch but making something new and unique. Interaction between the Apple Watch and the iPhone will of course be key, however.

Features such as native voice control, haptic feedback, and a digital crown that can be used to magnify, scroll or zoom within apps crack open a whole new world of design requirements and opportunities. The smartest companies will do more than offer facsimiles of their existing apps; they’ll create custom experiences that exploit the watch’s unique interface.

Tackled first are “existing apps” that the company reimagines for the wearable platform, namely Uber. Pointing out Uber’s dependency on tracking a car, Huge thinks possible voice control, a quick messaging system between the user and driver, and easy peeks at real-time car tracking would push the app to be even more popular on the wrist.

On the banking side, the company takes a look at the possibilities for an app like Chase, thinking the transfer of money, checking balances, and alerts for bills due and deposits made could provide even more ease-of-mind for customers banking on the go.

On the more social side, Huge mocks up an idea for movie-going app Fandango consisting of electronic ticketing, alerts for movie times, and, of course, theater time listings for movies nearby.

Perhaps most questionable, but also one of the most interesting, are Huge’s ideas for Instagram on the Apple Watch. Though most users probably wouldn’t mind taking out their iPhone to check the service, Huge envisions the Watch version of the app as more of a companion piece: alerting users to photo comments, tags, and likes, with possible photo browsing relegated to the digital crown. The company also points out the significant gain any news outlet, like The New York Times, could receive from having alerts and breaking news sent right to their readers’ wrists.

Next, the company looks at “new use cases” the Apple Watch will enable, thanks to the release of WatchKit to developers a few months ago. Though iBeacons have been the source of some questionable developments about the possibility of location-based advertisements hitting the Apple Watch, Huge points to a few clever alternatives, like the watch notifying a user passing a grocery store that they have milk or bread on their shopping list, for example. More broadly, Huge envisions a native to-do list app in the vein of Apple’s Reminders but which could easily best its iPhone counterpart due to its easier-to-access location on the Watch.

The Apple Watch launch is rapidly approaching, although a rumored March release date has yet to be confirmed by Apple. Apple has promised it will share more information on the Watch as its launch nears, and third-party developers have been hard at work on their Apple Watch projects for some time now. But for the time being, readers can see the possibilities outlined above, as well as others including a kitchen assistant, haptic feedback-fueled navigation, and a sports-focused news app, in Huge’s feature published at Fast Company.

Intel CEO Responds to Rumors of ARM-Based Macs, Says Relationship With Apple Is ‘Strong’

Intel CEO Brian Krzanich appeared today on CNBC’s Squawk Box to talk about the financial future of the technology company. Following discussions about Intel’s disappointing Q1 forecast and flat PC sales, CNBC anchor Betsy Quick questioned the executive about rumors that Apple may eventually drop Intel chips from its Mac computers in favor of its own processors.

Unfazed by the questioning, Krzanich toed the company line, revealing no new information about the future of Intel’s relationship with Apple and simply calling it a “strong” one.

I just hear the same rumors. Our relationship with Apple is strong and their products are great. Apple is always going to choose the supplier who can provide them the most amount of capability in innovation for them to build on, for them to innovate. They’re a company based on innovation. Our job is to continue to deliver parts that have that capability give them that, that are better than our competitors. And then they want to use our parts. So I wake up every morning making sure that across the board, whether it’s Apple or Lenovo or Dell or any of our customers — we have to provide the most competitive part: performance, price, reliability, all of those.

http://player.theplatform.com/p/gZWlPC/cnbc_global?playertype=synd&byGuid=3000347186&size=530_298
In his latest report, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo offered the prediction that Apple may launch ARM-based Macs in the next few years. In this scenario, Apple would replace the Intel chips it currently uses with custom designed A-series chip, allowing the company to better time processor upgrades with new product launches. Apple last year was forced to delay major product launches across its MacBook Air and MacBook Pro lineup, offering only minor processor bumps due to delays in Intel’s Broadwell processors.

Rumors of Apple’s interest in ARM-based Macs are not new, with earlier reports suggesting Apple has developed ARM-Based prototypes of the iMac, Mac Mini, and a 13-inch notebook model. If the rumor pans out this time, the switchover to ARM processor would initially target low-end machines that would benefit from the low battery consumption of the ARM-based architecture. Future expansion may be possible as improvements in Apple’s A-series processor begin to rival the performance of Intel’s entry-level offerings.

Retina 5K iMac Models Now Available From Apple’s Online Refurbished Store

Apple recently started selling the 27-Inch iMac With Retina 5K Display in the refurbished section of its online store, as first noticed by 9to5Mac. These refurbished models offer customers the chance to save up to 15 percent off the retail price of a brand new model.

Several 27-inch Retina iMac models are available, including the entry-level model which is availablee for $2119 and includes a 3.5GHz Intel Core i5 processor, 8GB of memory and a 1TB Fusion Drive. Other available Retina iMacs include a $2,419 model with 16GB of memory and a 3TB Fusion Drive and a $2,549 unit with 16GB of memory and 512GB flash storage. All three models are in stock and available to ship today.

After months of speculation, Apple unveiled the 27-Inch iMac With Retina 5K Display during its October media event. The consumer desktop features a 5120 x 2880 pixel display with improved contrast, viewing angles, and color accuracy. Early impressions of the machine were favorable with reviewers praising the “stunning display” and noting that it is a “huge step up” from Apple’s notebook Retina displays.

Popular ‘Monument Valley’ Game Earned More Than $5.8M, Saw 1.7M Sales on iOS

Ustwo, the developers behind the hit game Monument Valley today published a detailed infographic that gives a rare inside look at what it takes to develop an ultra popular game and the rewards developers can reap from creating an app that soars to the top of the App Store charts.

For those unfamiliar, Monument Valley is a highly popular indie puzzle game that asks players to lead the main character through a series of mazes spanning 10 separate levels. The game was highly praised for its design, which included a unique and striking art style.

According to Ustwo’s infographic, it took Ustwo’s eight person team 55 weeks and $852,000 to develop the original version of Monument Valley ahead of its April 2014 launch. The app’s Forgotten Shores expansion, released in late November, took an additional 29 weeks and $549,000 to develop.

Monument Valley received some negative attention after the expansion was priced at $1.99 in-app by users who believed that the update should be free, but the half a million in development costs for the Android and iOS apps explain why it would have been largely unreasonable for the team to release an expansion at no cost.

The more than $1 million that Ustwo poured into the development of Monument Valley paid off, and the game earned a total of $5,858,625 from 2,440,076 sales. 81.7 percent of all revenue came from iOS from 1,736,431 sales while Google Play and Amazon represented a combined 18.2 percent of revenue. The game’s highest one day revenue was $145,530, which it earned on the first day it launched.

Monument Valley saw upticks in sales after earning an Apple Design Award in June, following the launch of the Forgotten Shores expansion, at Christmas, and after the December announcement of its status as iPad Game of the Year.

The majority of iOS sales came from the United States at 38 percent, and the game ended up being translated into 13 local languages. 12 percent of sales came from China, five percent from the U.K., and 4.4 percent came from Japan. Half of the players who purchased Monument Valley finished the game, and 24 percent of players went on to purchase Forgotten Shores.

Ustwo’s full Monument Valley infographic can be seen over at the company’s blog. Monument Valley can be downloaded from the App Store for $3.99. [Direct Link]

iPhone 6 Gets Sent Into Space By Urban Armor Gear [iOS Blog]

Back in late November, iPhone case maker Urban Armor Gear sent an iPhone into space using a weather balloon, and in early January, the site shared a video depicting the iPhone’s journey to the stratosphere in an Urban Armor Gear case.

The iPhone soared 101,000 feet into the atmosphere, and was subjected to 70 mile per hour winds and temperatures that dropped to -79 degrees Fahrenheit. Though turned on at launch, the iPhone later shut off and froze due to the cold weather

Urban Armor Gear hooked the iPhone up to a weather balloon rig that also included a GPS locator and two GoPro cameras for filming. Upon descent, the iPhone and the flight rig withstood 150 RPM rotation speeds, and at landing, the rig broke while the iPhone managed to remain unscathed.

“Our cases already meet military drop-test standards, but now we can officially say that they are space tested as well,” said Steve Armstrong, co-founder of Urban Armor Gear. “The fact that the iPhone survived its space adventure and returned fully functioning showcases our commitment in providing our customers world-class, or in this case out of this world, protection for their premium devices.”

The iPhone was protected by an Urban Armor composite case which promises military-grade protection, but it did not have a screen protector and still managed to come out undamaged. After landing, the iPhone powered back on and was fully functional, demonstrating the durability and solid construction of the device.

‘iPod Father’ Tony Fadell to Take Charge of Google Glass

Following some leadership changes that Google has implemented, Tony Fadell, creator of the Nest thermostat and “iPod Father,” will oversee Google’s Glass division, reports The Wall Street Journal. Google is planning on splitting out Glass, its wearable headset computer, from the Google X research lab into its own unit, led by Ivy Ross, who will report to Tony Fadell. Fadell will be in charge of Glass, and will provide “strategic guidance” on the product.

Largely seen as a failure at this point, Google Glass failed to drum up enough developer interest to truly establish itself in the wearable market and Google has continually pushed back the product’s mass market release.

Google has opted to cease selling Glass to consumers through the Explorer program, but the company will continue to sell the product to companies and developers. In November, Glass Head of Business Operations Chris O’Neill said the company remained “completely energized and as energized as ever” about Glass and that Google remained “committed as ever” to an eventual consumer launch.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Google still has plans to release a new version of Glass in 2015, but details on the upcoming product and its potential launch date are unclear. With the shift, it appears that Google is shying away from public testing in favor of internal testing, a strategy used by Apple.

Under Tony Fadell, Glass could see some significant changes. In addition to creating the Nest thermostat, which was acquired by Google in early 2014, Fadell has been credited as one of the original creators of the iPod. Widely known as the “iPod Father,” Fadell was the SVP of Apple’s iPod division from 2006 to 2008 and helped to produce early versions of the popular music player.