Apple’s Vice President Tara Bunch led a town hall session on Thursday, at which the Cupertino corporation told tech staff that big changes are coming to AppleCare and AppleCare+ services this fall. This “broadening” of the company’s current policies is intended to cut costs and make them more appealing to consumers. Of the biggest changes announced was the ability for customers to have their iOS devices repaired on the spot at Apple retail stores in the near future. (more…)
Rumors of an iPad mini with Retina display have been circulating ever since Apple released the tablet without one last October, but it might be wise to hold off on purchasing one when it comes out.
While market research firm NPD DisplaySearch has told CNET that the iPad mini is expected to gain a Retina display in a third-quarter refresh later this year, it also speculates that a second iPad mini model could follow. (more…)
The impending closure of Google Reader on July 1st has forced me to seek out alternative news reader solutions, even if I am admittedly stubborn in doing so. I ultimately decided to permanently setup my iPad mini on my desk as my dedicated news discovery portal. At first, I didn’t think I would be impressed.
But, within just a few hours, I realized that there are quite a few gems on the App Store for tracking headlines, should they be coming from Twitter, traditional RSS feeds or elsewhere. Join me ahead as I walkthrough the best news apps for iPad.
Some cases are amazing for my uses, and some are less than good. There are some that lie in the middle, however, and the Booqpad mini from case manufacturer Booq definitely falls into that category. This case is not all too typical, though, because it does offer some very intriguing features. Sadly, in my case, these features do little more than add bulk rather than provide functionality. (more…)
Most cases are just a little too bulky for my tastes. Even with my iPhone 5, I tend to prefer sleeves that hold your device during commute rather than a case that tightly hugs the device all day long. This especially is true with Apple products due to their Ive-ness–their extremely high level of “fit and finish.” It just doesn’t seem right to cover that with a layer of silicone. That said, my devices need protection when they’re not being used. That’s why I typically go for sleeve cases like the Papernomad. (more…)
MapCraft is now available on the iTunes App Store for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.
Minecraft continues to take the internet by storm, even almost four years after it was originally introduced to the public. Likely due to such high demand, Mojang continued to release a “Pocket Edition” of the game for Android and later for iOS. On top of this, countless third-parties have released Minecraft clones and world viewers that further bring the game to iOS and other mobile platforms. (more…)
For the patient group of users that have been anxiously awaiting the release of the iPad mini with Retina display, which seems inevitable based on Apple’s refresh cycle for iOS devices in the past, you’ll be pleased to hear that Apple has reportedly cut back on iPad mini orders as the launch of the second-generation model with a Retina display gets closer.
Unfortunately, this news comes from hit-and-miss Taiwanese supply chain source DigiTimes:
Apple has reportedly cut its shipments of the iPad mini to between 10-12 million units for the second quarter of 2013, according to industry sources. [...] Apple’s cut comes as it is adjusting its reserves for the next-generation iPad mini, which is likely to be released in the third quarter, added the sources.
While it has been unreliable on a number of occasions in the past, this report from DigiTimes does line up with previous rumors about a Fall launch of an iPad mini with Retina display. It’ll be interesting to see what Apple has to release before that time, as there hasn’t been an official media event since the original iPad mini unveiling in late October.
Apple has added a new “why you’ll love an iPad” page to its website, listing various reasons why the iPad should be your tablet of choice. Among the reasons cited are a J.D. Power and Associated award for ranking “Highest in Customer Satisfaction Among Tablets,” over 300,000 apps designed specifically for iPad, an exquisite design, two different display sizes in the full-sized iPad and iPad mini, long-lasting battery life, rear- and front-facing cameras, ultrafast wireless and LTE, iOS 6 and iCloud, and award-winning support from real people by visiting the Genius Bar or calling 1-800-MY-APPLE. (more…)
Apple manages to keep tight control over the value of their products, and even without Apple’s help, it’s rare to find a current-generation iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad on any kind of decent sale. Well today is one of those days that we actually see such a deal pop up.
Online merchant Rakuten (formerly Buy.com) currently has listed the iPad mini for sale at the price of $299.99. Not only that, but the online dealer will ship it to you for free as well. Interestingly, the site lists the original price as “$339.99 + Free Shipping.” They of course have taken $40 off of their ten-dollars-more-than-normal price to bring the total down to $299.99. I would recommend grabbing one while you can. (more…)
The jailbreak is here and there are countless tweaks and modifications that we can now make to our iOS devices. Let’s remember for a second, though, that one of the most important and obvious modifications we make to iOS is already supported by iOS–changing our wallpaper.
We all know that any wallpapers that work with iPad 2 will also look identical on the iPad mini, but I recently purchased an iPad mini and have been looking for some good backgrounds. If your looking for device wallpapers like me, head over to our Wallpapers page and select your device. If you’re on an iPad mini, hit the comments for this post and share your latest; I could use one.