Home Screen Widget ‘Blocks’ Imagined in New iOS Concept

One of the more popular feature requests from iOS users has been live widgets for the home screen, similar to Live Tiles on Windows Phone and Widgets on Android. While there have been no specific rumors of widgets actually coming to iOS 8, a new concept from Jay Machalani (via The Verge) offers an excellent vision of how this could be implemented on iOS with the “iOS Block”.

Here’s how it works. On your iOS device you have your list of icons like you know and love. They work and look the same way as before. But, if you want more information about an app, you can simply pinch the app icon bigger and it will now become an iOS Block. There’s no menu, no hidden options and no weird gestures to do. You literally make the icon bigger with your finger if you want more; it can’t be simpler and more intuitive than that.

When you pinch the icon, you will see the transformation/transition into a Block and at that point you have two choices: Either you pinch it back to an icon since you got the information you need or you release your fingers and the icon will remain a Block on your iOS screen.

Malachani imagines three possible sizes for Blocks, designed to take up the space of a 2×2 grid of icons on the home screen for iPhone, iPad portrait, and iPad landscape.

Malachani goes on to outline more details on how the Blocks would be constructed with a relative uniform layout consisting of an app icon in the lower left, a tap zone along the remainder of the bottom edge where buttons could be placed, and a content zone taking up the remainder of the Block. As examples, Malachani walks through how the stock Weather, Music, Calendar, Messages, and Photos apps might look as Blocks.

As Malachani notes, the concept is still a work in progress, as he is unsure exactly how iOS would handle moving other home screen icons to accommodate a new Block on a full home screen, as the normal method of pushing icons to the next page could be disruptive depending on how frequently Blocks are opened and closed.

Apple Reportedly Asking Chinese Authorities to Crack Down on iPhone 6 Leaks

iPhone rumors this year have included a steady stream of mockups, case designs and alleged schematics for the iPhone 6 emerging from China and other Asian countries. Sonny Dickson, well-known source of Apple hardware rumors, claims this wellspring of leaked information may be drying up due to increased security efforts by Apple and Chinese authorities.

iPhone 6 mockup (left) obtained by MacRumors and iPhone 5 (right) in the hand
Dickson claims Apple is working with Chinese officials to stifle leaks about the iPhone 6, hiring approximately 200 security officers to catch merchants who are selling accessories allegedly for the iPhone 6.

There are about 200 security officers trying to catch those who dare to sell i6 accessories.

— Sonny Dickson (@SonnyDickson) May 30, 2014

Apple is known for being a secretive company, with Tim Cook promising shortly after he took over as CEO that he was going to “double down” on secrecy when it came to future product information. Cook may be able to adequately control the flow of information from Apple’s employees by reminding them to “do the right thing,” but his power does not extend to Asian suppliers.

These overseas suppliers often are the weak link as they are privy to Apple’s unreleased products, but lack the strict oversight that discourages employees from intentionally leaking sensitive product details.

Apple’s Newest Japan Store Features ‘Green’ Wall for Climate Control [Mac Blog]

Apple’s upcoming Omotesando retail store located in Japan may incorporate a unique “green curtain” of vines and plants to help with climate control, according to Japanese Apple site Mac Otakara [Google Translation].

Though much of the store remains hidden under large curtains, one entire wall of the building appears to be entirely covered with plant life, which the site suggests is used to insulate the store to save energy. Toyko, where the store is located, can get quite hot and humid during the summer months.

The store’s construction walls also show off a leafy design, hinting at its unusually “green” exterior. In recent years, Apple has committed itself to lowering its carbon footprint, utilizing 94 percent renewable energy for both its data centers and corporate facilities. Apple was featured as a “Green Energy Innovator” by Greenpeace back in April, and the company has also hired former EPA chief Lisa Jackson to head up its environmental initiatives.

While the Omotesando store design appears to be Apple’s first of that nature, it is possible the company will adopt a similar strategy for future stores should it prove successful.

The new Omotesando store with its unique green wall may be opening as soon as June.

Apple in Talks With Retailers About Mobile Payments Service

Apple is in talks with several high-profile retail store chains about a mobile payment service, reports 9to5Mac. Citing a source with knowledge of the discussions, the site suggests Apple is speaking with retail store brands that sell luxury clothing and premium goods to gauge interest in such a service.

An Apple-branded mobile payment solution would likely be integrated directly into iOS devices, allowing people to use their iPhones or other devices to make purchases for physical goods both on the web as well as in retail stores. Currently, iTunes customers can use their accounts to make purchases in iTunes and in brick and mortar Apple Stores, a feature Apple hopes to expand to third-party retailers.

Discussions with retailers have reportedly focused on the difficulties behind building a unified payment service to be used with multiple retail outlets, with Apple also encouraging retailers to adopt the company’s Bluetooth-based iBeacons, which could potentially be used as part of a payments service in the future.

Every retail outlet has unique payment and transaction practices, so building a single mobile payments solution will require extensive research from Apple, and the company appears to be in that research and development phase.

Apple has also been asking retailers to survey customers regarding potential interest in paying for items with their smartphones and other mobile devices. Apple also has been seeking general insight from retail store chains to see if the companies would be interested in utilizing an Apple payments service.

Apple’s interest in a possible mobile payment solution has been rumored for years, but gained renewed attention in early 2014, after The Wall Street Journal reported Apple was looking to develop a mobile payment service to leverage its store of more than 800 million iTunes accounts, many of which have credit cards attached.

In April, the company was said to be in talks with several senior payments industry executives about possible roles at the company and Apple has also spoken with Paypal about a possible partnership.

According to Apple CEO Tim Cook, a mobile payment solution was “one of the thoughts” behind Touch ID. He has also said that Apple is “intrigued” with mobile payments, noting that there’s a “big opportunity on the platform.”

Apple has promised new hardware, software, and services in 2014, and it is possible that a mobile payment service could come later this year, though a set date is unclear as the company is still in the developmental stages.

Alleged iPhone 6 Back Cover Shown Off n New Photo

Despite a variety of iPhone 6 mockups and case leaks, there haven’t been as many part leaks for the iPhone 6 outside of what could be the front panel of the device, the backlight panel and the possible batteries. Now, Macfixit Australia has obtained what looks to be the back cover for the 4.7-inch silver iPhone 6.

Like many of the mockups, this photo also includes the antenna breaks near the top and bottom portions of the back. It also appears to have a green film on top of it, with silver poking through near the camera and flash holes near the top, indicating that this could be the white / silver iPhone 6. The cover also appears to be made out of a thin metal and includes clear cutouts for the camera and flash, unlike a lot of mockups, which also adds some weight to its possible authenticity.

The cover also appears to have the much-rumored round corners, which are similar to the design of the iPod Touch. This also keeps the iPhone in line with both the iPad Mini and iPad Air, which have more rounded back corners.

Aside from larger 4.7 and 5.5-inch displays, the iPhone 6 is rumored to have an improved A8 processor, an improved camera with optical image stabilization, new backlighting technology and 802.11ac Wi-Fi.

[VIDEO] New Apple iWatch parody ad is a good laugh and somewhat possibly Likely

The Apple iWatch has become somewhat of an elusive entity in the tech world, while Android stands across the way pushing out more and more wearable devices with every passing week. While all signs suggest that Nike is under Apple’s thumb to help develop the iWatch, we’ve still not had any real suggestion that Apple is particularly rushed in getting their competitor smartwatch ready. So while we wait to see what Apple has in store, let’s enjoy an Apple iWatch parody ad that makes light of the reputation that Apple, its devices, and smartwatches have garnered over the years:

My favourite bit? “The battery will last one whole… hour. On standby.” The funniest part is that it’s not hard to imagine that most of the issues featured in this video could come to pass. However, while it’s always more accessible to the masses to laugh at Apple products, this parody of an oddly Sony SmartWatch-looking iWatch could really have been of any smartwatch as many of them face the same issues and peeves due to its unique form factor.

What’s your favourite part of this Apple iWatch parody ad? Let us know what you think of the ad in the comments.

Source: YouTube

Beats Breakdown: Apple Paying $2.5B for Beats Electronics, $500M for Beats Music

Apple yesterday announced plans to acquire both Beats Electronics and Beats Music for a combined total of $3 billion, but a new report from The Wall Street Journal breaks those numbers down further.

As it turns out, Apple is paying slightly less than $500 million for the Beats Music streaming service, with the bulk of the money ($2.5B) going towards the purchase of Beats Electronics, which includes the company’s popular line of headphones and speakers.

At yesterday’s Code Conference, Beats co-founder Jimmy Iovine revealed that the service has 250,000 subscribers in the United States, a small number compared to Spotify’s 10 million worldwide listeners. Beats Music’s relatively modest size explains why it was so much cheaper than the company’s Electronics division, which pulled in $1.5 billion in sales in 2013 according to a source that spoke to The Wall Street Journal.

Leveraging iTunes and iTunes Radio, Apple may be able to grow Beats Music significantly in the coming months. Apple’s existing streaming music service, iTunes Radio, has a total of $40 million listeners and via iTunes, Apple has sold 35 million songs. The company also has more than 800 million iTunes accounts, most with credit cards attached, along with a wealth of data on customer listening habits.

“We think all of those things, when you put them all together, it’s on steroids with us together,” said iTunes Chief Eddy Cue.

Under the terms of the deal, Beats co-founders Jimmy Iovine and Dr. Dre will both be joining Apple to work under Cue, while marketing head Phil Schiller will oversee the Beats headphone business. Apple CEO Tim Cook has called Iovine and Dre’s talent and skills “really unique” and “very hard to find.” He also stated that Apple felt Beats Music was the first music service to “get it right” through the use of human curation.

Following regulatory approval, Apple’s purchase of Beats is expected to close during the fiscal fourth quarter.

Rumored Split-Screen Multitasking Feature for iOS 8 Not Ready for WWDC Preview

The rumored split-screen multitasking feature said to be coming with iOS 8 is still a work in progress and won’t be previewed at Apple’s upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference, according to Brian Chen of the New York Times.

Designed for the iPad Air and possibly a larger-screened iPad to be released in the future, split-screen multitasking would allow two apps to be displayed at the same time on a single screen while in landscape mode. It might also include a feature that allows users to share information like links, images, and text between two apps.

Split-screen multitasking concept, not rumor-based
The iPad’s inability to display two apps at once is a lack that Microsoft has used to heavily advertise its Surface tablet, which does have the ability to display multiple apps on the screen at one time.

While the multitasking feature will reportedly not make its debut at WWDC, it is still slated for inclusion in iOS 8. It appears multitasking will be limited to the iPad Air at launch, and it is unclear whether the smaller Retina iPad mini and iPhone might also gain the functionality.