Apple Watch has a smaller screen in tweaked video

Apple has released a new version of its Apple Watch design video, and a perceptive viewer noticed a slightly different design from the original. Most noticeable is a smaller sapphire screen and larger bezel on the Watch render, which appears to more closely match the prototype hardware we saw last month. None of this too surprising — Apple had no doubt prepared the video using 3D renders before the final design was locked, and the changes are small enough that most folks won’t care. Still, it does make us wonder if there may be more fine-tuning before production starts in January, especially given rumors of battery-life issues.

[Image credit: Khaos Tian/Twitter]

Filed under: Wearables, Apple

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Via: 9to5 Mac

Source: Khaos Tian (Twitter)

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Pokemon Trading Card Game Now Available for iPad with Online Multiplayer [iOS Blog]

The Pokemon Trading Card Game (TCG) Online has officially launched for the iPad following its debut at the Pokemon World Championships in August.

The title is the first licensed Pokemon game to be released for iOS, and allows players to build a deck of Pokemon cards and battle against other players while obtaining booster packs. Users can also enter tournaments for prizes, and customize the look of their cards, deck boxes, and avatar.

PLAY, TRADE, AND CHALLENGE OTHER PLAYERS AROUND THE WORLD
Have fun learning and mastering the Pokémon Trading Card Game Online! Practice against the computer or go head to head with your friends or other players from around the world. Unlock cards and decks as you play to build up your collection and make truly unique decks. Your decks and card collection are stored as a part of your Pokémon Trainer Club account, allowing you to switch between iPad and desktop with ease.

EASY TO START: Choose from Grass, Fire, or Water decks, step right into a game, and learn as you go in an easy play experience.

EXPAND YOUR COLLECTION: Earn cards, open booster packs, trade with other players, and build the perfect deck around your favorite cards. Your collection grows with you!

CUSTOMIZE YOUR EXPERIENCE: Build your own decks, customize the look of your cards, deck boxes, and avatar, and join your friends online.

Pokemon TCG Online is a free app for the iPad and can be downloaded through the App Store. [Direct Link]

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iTunes Store Now Accepting Donations for City of Hope Medical Center

Apple has launched a new page on its iTunes Store allowing users to donate to City of Hope, which is a non-profit charity focusing on medical research and treatment. The page can be accessed through the desktop iTunes Store as well as the iTunes and App Store apps on iOS, with options for $5, $10, $25, $50, $100, and $200 donations available.

Apple will transfer 100% of each donation to City of Hope, as all donations will be billed to an iTunes account. With Apple currently holding 800 million iTunes accounts, the company has a large customer base that can take part in the donation program.

Apple has conducted similar donation campaigns throughout the past few years, which include programs for Super Typhoon Haiyan relief efforts in 2013, Superstorm Sandy relief in 2012, Japanese earthquake and tsunami relief in 2011, and Haitian earthquake relief efforts in 2010.

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iPhone 5 Battery Replacement Program Now Includes Models with Third-Party Displays [iOS Blog]

Apple’s iPhone 5 Battery Replacement Program now covers iPhone 5 models that had their displays replaced with third-party components, according to a new posting on Apple’s GSX site for service providers that was brought to MacRumors’ attention.

Previously, iPhone 5 models that had their displays replaced were barred from receiving a brand new battery replacement from Apple. The company generally did not replace batteries in devices that might have seen damage due to liability issues and required phones with damaged displays to correct that issue before progressing.

Additionally, Apple’s refusal to replace batteries in phones with new displays likely saw some contention amongst those who purchased refurbished iPhone 5 models and had not personally had any work done on the device.

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Apple Planning to Offer iPad Air 2 with Gold Option

Apple is planning to offer its new 9.7-inch iPad, which has thus far been known as the iPad Air 2 unofficially, in a gold color choice in addition to the already available silver and space gray variations, reports Bloomberg. The new option would bring the iPad up to color parity with its iPhone models, which have been offered in three colors since last year’s iPhone 5s.

New versions of the company’s 9.7-inch iPads, anticipated to be unveiled this month, will include gold as a choice of color for the rear metal cover, adding to the silver and gray available for the lighter iPad Air, the people said, asking not to be identified ahead of an announcement. That brings the color palette into line with the iPhone 5s, which come with silver or gold backs for models with a white faceplate, and space gray for those with a black front.

Bloomberg’s sources indicate that the new color choice may be an attempt to boost iPad sales, which dropped slightly in the past year. CEO Tim Cook previously said the iPad sales dip was a “speed bump“.

In early September, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo predicted that Apple would announce an iPad Air 2 with a gold option amongst other features like an anti-reflective display and the Touch ID Home button.

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Microsoft Gives Early Look at Windows 10 Featuring Windows 7 Elements, Broad Adaptability

Microsoft today unveiled its next-generation Windows operating system, Windows 10, previewing the OS at an event in San Francisco focused on its corporate users. Like Windows 8, Windows 10 utilizes live tiles, but it also draws in design elements from Windows 7 to make it more appealing to users who have thus far opted not to upgrade to Windows 8.

The Start menu and taskbar, interface elements that are familiar to all Windows users, are placed front and center in Windows 10 in an effort to make the OS "familiar, compatible, and productive, according to Microsoft’s head of operating systems Terry Myerson.

While Apple has managed to get the bulk of its user base to update to the newest version of OS X on a regular basis, Microsoft has had less success in recent years. As of April, 49 percent of Windows users continued to use Windows 7 (introduced in 2009), while 28 percent continued to use Windows XP, an operating system more than 12 years old. Windows 8 and 8.1 were installed on just 11 percent of devices in April. In a press release, Microsoft outlines some of the specific features that are coming to Windows 10:

Expanded Start menu. The familiar Start menu is back, providing quick one-click access to the functions and files that people use most, and it includes a new space to personalize with favorite apps, programs, people and websites.

Apps that run in a window. Apps from the Windows Store now open in the same format that desktop programs do. They can be resized and moved around, and have title bars at the top allowing users to maximize, minimize and close with a click.

Snap enhancements. Working in multiple apps at once is easier and more intuitive with snap improvements. A new quadrant layout allows up to four apps to be snapped on the same screen. Windows will also show other apps and programs running for additional snapping, and it will even make smart suggestions on filling available screen space with other open apps.

New Task view button. The new Task view button on the task bar enables one view for all open apps and files, allowing for quick switching and one-touch access to any desktop created.

Multiple desktops. Instead of too many apps and files overlapping on a single desktop, it’s easy to create and switch between distinct desktops for different purposes and projects — whether for work or personal use.

In addition to introducing some familiar Windows 7 features into Windows 10, Microsoft is also hoping to focus on personalization, creating a Windows experience that is customized to each individual user’s preferences. Windows 10, like Windows 8, will run on a wide range of devices, including both PCs and tablets, with “a tailored experience for each device.”

Windows 10 adapts to the devices customers are using — from Xbox to PCs and phones to tablets and tiny gadgets — and what they’re doing with a consistent, familiar and compatible experience, enabling even greater productivity. Windows 10 will run across the broadest range of devices ever from the Internet of Things to enterprise datacenters worldwide.

Many of the details on Windows 10 remain unknown at the time being, as the software is in the early development stages. Microsoft is aiming for a public release in the fall of 2015.

On Wednesday, Microsoft will launch a Windows Insider Program that will provide beta testers with a technical preview of Windows 10 for laptops and desktops, with access on other devices coming later. With the program, Microsoft is hoping to make the development of Windows 10 the “largest-ever open collaborative development effort.”

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Apple, Paypal Talks Over Apple Pay Soured Due to Samsung Deal

Apple and PayPal were in talks that would potentially have seen PayPal becoming a “preferred payment process” for Apple Pay, reports Bank Innovation, but those talks ended abruptly after PayPal inked a deal with Samsung to allow users to make PayPal payments with the Galaxy S5’s fingerprint sensor.

Apple was reportedly so annoyed with the partnership between the two companies that it ended talks with PayPal and even went so far as to exclude PayPal from Apple Pay all together, not listing it as an acceptable payment platform in its developer documentation.

But while these talks were going on, PayPal went ahead and partnered with Samsung on the Galaxy S5 fingerprint scanner, a move that was reportedly forced onto PayPal by eBay CEO John Donahoe. PayPal’s now-former president David Marcus was purportedly categorically against the Samsung deal, knowing that it would jeopardize PayPal’s relationship with Apple. Donahoe won the day, however.

Apple and PayPal appear to be in somewhat of a dispute following the introduction of Apple Pay and PayPal’s exclusion, with the latter company recently launching an ad campaign that subtly attacks Apple and Apple Pay.

In the advertisement, PayPal alluded to the recent hacking of celebrity iCloud accounts and suggested PayPal was the safer platform for transferring money. Without a deal between the two companies, PayPal is facing significant competition from Apple Pay.

In addition to allowing users to make purchases in retail stores with their phones, Apple Pay also lets users buy items in support apps using a debit or credit card connected with an iTunes account. PayPal works in a very similar way, letting users attach a credit or debit card and then make purchases through the service, alleviating the need to enter credit card details.

Apple has plans to launch Apple Pay in the coming weeks, through an update to iOS 8.

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