Apple's range of iPhone, iPad and Mac hardware generates significant interest and revenue for the company, but there is also an extremely healthy interest in the software that leaves through the company's Cupertino doors and ends up on our digital shelves. The company's iOS firmware has been top of the discussion agenda over the last few weeks for various reasons, but we mustn't forget the recent speculation and interest surrounding the next-generation of Mac OS X. We are under no illusion that Apple will manage to blindside us with certain aspects of OS X 10.9, but it seems that the current recruitment drive for interface engineers is suggesting that Apple's next desktop OS could come bundled with the Siri digital assistant, as mentioned before as well.
The need for a 128GB iPad has divided opinions, especially considering it has been introduced mid-schedule, but the latest Apple slate is now officially for sale through the Apple Online Store and physical retail outlets.
Concept designs of future iterations of our favorite products keep us dreaming of what one day may be, and given their reputation among the design elite, it's fair to say Apple gadgets get a lot of attention from designers and concept-makers. Ricardo Afonso envisions the iPad eventually taking on a transparent look at some point in the future -- a simple pane of glass which, as he puts it, "blends perfectly with the surrounding environment". Check out the images and video below for more.
The smartphone and tablet sales and shipment figures churned out by our resident numbers firms make for particularly intriguing reading, since different companies tend to draw differing, oft conflicting conclusions regarding which vendor enjoys a stronghold on the market. One such company unafraid to wade into the Apple-Samsung debate is Strategy Analytics, and according to its latest research, Apple has overtaken Samsung to stake its claim number one phone vendor in the United States. While the Korean consumer electronics giant managed to shift an almighty 16.8 million units in the last quarter, Apple appears to have piped its bitter rival, managing an impressive 17.7 million iPhone sales. Meanwhile, LG took third spot with a comparatively meager 4.7 million.
The power of voice recognition technology is being utilized by many companies across the globe, as it has been for quite some time. Siri (along with similar implementations of other platforms) has helped bring such technology to the forefront, and although the initial hype surrounding Apple's voice assistant has petered out somewhat, Honda has just announced its intention to bring Siri support to a fleet of its automobiles in the coming months.
The iPad mini may have proven somewhat divisive thanks to its lack of Retina display and high price, but once thing most seem to agree upon, is that its design is a cut above. So pleased is Apple with the shape and materials used with its smaller tablet, that it would appear the next major iPad release - dubbed the iPad 5 - will adopt some of the design traits of its smaller counterpart. A purported leak of the back cover of the next-gen iPad borrows most of its design from the iPad mini, and, having been unearthed by the guys over at 9to5Mac, looks to include a thinner side bezel.
The release of iOS may have been shrouded in controversy, but in terms of adoption rates, it has continually proven itself to be prolific. Early statistics showed that, despite the bad press, consumers were buying and upgrading their devices to iOS 6 at a rate of knots, and in its iOS 6.1 press release earlier today, Apple has revealed that nigh on 300 million iPhones, iPads and iPod touches are now running the latest firmware.
The news is perhaps about as predictable as when Call of Duty: Black Ops II swept past Halo 4 to take its usual position is market leader, but Windows 8 has - just three months after its initial release - surpassed Apple's OS X Mountain Lion in terms of market share. The Redmond company has seen a positive, if not overwhelming public response to its new operating system, and with many opting to upgrade online as opposed to purchasing a more expensive physical copy, the entire Windows process looks to be headed towards Apple's download-only direction.
It is no secret that iOS and Android devices are the leaders on the smartphone market, with outputs that greatly outweigh the other players. The latest data published on Monday shows that their lead has edged, having taken over 92.1% of smartphone shipments in the last three months of last year.
Another day and yet another iOS device related report, this time focused on speculation surrounding Apple's intention to introduce another iPad model to their existing product line. There's been plenty of discussion over the last few weeks about when Apple will refresh their existing iPad models, that discussion is still ongoing, but in the meantime it appears that the Cupertino based company is planning on introducing a single new iPad model to the existing device range.
