With the news late last week that the iPhone 5s was shipping within 1-3 days for the UK and many other markets across the world, the signs were there that Apple was finally getting on top of supplies. Now, it has emerged that - in the U.S., at least - the Cupertino giant has achieved 100 percent stock rate in all of its Retail Stores, with each variant of the iPhone 5s available in every single outlet.
Tim Cook and Apple's executive team are always keen to wax lyrical about how many apps have passed through the App Store over the last five years. The majority of the company's media events heavily feature slides featuring the number of available third-party applications available and the amount of revenue that has been paid out to the developers who create and publish those apps. In the relatively short lifespan of the App Store, Apple has managed to hit, and go beyond some pretty impressive milestones. Recent data from AppsFire suggests that Apple have hit yet another notable goal by now having over one million apps live in the U.S. App Store alone.
Siri caused more than a stir when it first hit the scene along with the iPhone 4s back in 2011, but even though consumers and commentators alike were fascinated by this feature that could answer back (if you had the right accent), the novelty did seem to wear off, and apart from the Eyes Free in-car integration, it's been a while since Apple's much-loved voice assistant really made the headlines.
The iPhone has improved in a variety of ways over the last few years, and like most other smartphones on offer, the rear-facing camera has been treated to regular enhancement. A camera is a complex being, with many elements combining to offer the very best snap-shooting experience, and one of the areas OEMs have sought to crack is the camera's ability to shoot in low lighting conditions. The iPhone 5 and subsequent 5s are far superior to any of their predecessors when there's not much light around, but the Lightstrap Kickstarter project, which, to offer an analogy, is almost the lovechild of an iPhone case and a torch.
When the iPhone 5s was first released, it was pretty darn hard to get hold of. And on its first day of sale, once supplies ran out, it was weeks before shipments resumed as Apple's early inventory was completely spent. Gradually, though, things have improved, with consumers looking to purchase the latest and greatest Cupertino smartphone not being subjected to waiting periods of more than a week. As of right now, the iPhone 5s is available in the US, UK, Asia Pacific and Middle East, with shipping times for the device back down to a much more palatable 1-3 days.
Foursquare is undoubtedly thought of as the App Store's premier location-based social network. In a genre that is extremely crowded with the likes of Twitter, Path, Facebook and even Instagram to a certain extent, Foursquare continues to shine bright due to their offering being all about location services. As with any premier App Store app that's worth its weight, Foursquare has been going through a regular period of change to fall in line with the aesthetics of iOS 7, resulting in version 7.0 of the Foursquare iOS app going live today featuring a completely new interface.
The phrase "selling a kidney" is often used to describe just how desperate some folks are to get a hold of the latest iPhone, and while, as far as we know, this hasn't actually happened, it is true that in some countries, you'd need to work for over ten weeks - without any living expenses - to afford a new Apple smartphone.
Square Enix has previously been guilty of teasing mobile gamers by announcing that the much anticipated Final Fantasy VI would be coming to mobile sometime "this winter". Developers and publishers are often understandably reluctant to commit to concrete launch dates for fear of having a spanner thrown in the works and subsequently having to renege on that promise. The winter is now well and truly upon us, and although we haven't yet been blessed with an actual release date, Square Enix has used the annual Jump Festa expo to release two official screenshots of the visuals that gamers can expect on iOS and Android when the title launches.
It's no secret that Apple is looking to make a lot more of its Apple Store app than it has so far. Over the past few years, it has been used to place orders, pay for purchases wirelessly when in the Apple Store, and to check out the latest products released by the Cupertino company, but in more recent times, we've seen Apple promote the app by giving away free stuff. With this this in mind, as well as the fact that the holiday season is now upon us, Apple has released a playlist of Christmas-themed songs from famed artist such as Mary J. Blige, Kool and the Gang and Kelly Clarkson, and all are available for free through the Apple Store app.
Famous faces make for great advertisement fodder when the right celebrity is used to promote a product, and with Samsung's strange, enigmatic promotion of Galaxy devices through a lengthy football (soccer)-themed campaign, picking a star like the legendary German forward Franz Beckenbauer to be head coach of the so-called 'Galaxy 11' seemed an informed decision.
