Apple launches Special Edition iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus

Apple has launched special editions of its flagship Smartphone duo – iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus. Called 'PRODUCT RED Special Edition', the new variants of both Smartphones have Red-colored rear panels. They come in 128GB and 256GB internal storage capacities and will be available on the company's website and Apple Stores, at a starting price of $749.

Both special edition Smartphones will go on sale in US, as well as 40 other countries and regions, from March 24.

The iPhone 7 features a 4.7-inch Retina HD display, while the bigger iPhone 7 Plus comes with a 5.5-inch screen. Apart from that, other additions include a 12MP rear camera with f/1.8 aperture, 6-element lens, quad-LED flash, flicker sensor and more. The Smartphones' cameras use an Image signal processor to apply machine learning, for distinguishing between humans and other object in the image, adjusting the brightness and noise levels accordingly.

It's worth noting that while iPhone 7 features a single 12MP rear camera, iPhone 7 Plus comes with a 12MP dual rear camera setup having 2x optical zoom capability. Both sport a 7MP FaceTime-enabled front camera for selfies and video chats.

The two Smartphones are powered by Apple's new quad-core A10 Fusion chipset, with two high-performance cores and two high-efficiency cores. It's also claimed to be 50% faster than the A9 chipset, which powers the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus Smartphones.

Apple to setup iPhone Manufacturing Unit in Bengaluru

Apple plans to make iPhones for the Indian market in Bengaluru. Wistron, a Taiwanese OEM maker for Apple, is setting up a facility in Peenya, the city's industrial hub, to manufacture the iPhones. The facility will start production from next April.

Foxconn, Apple's largest Taiwan-based OEM, earlier committed to setting up a manufacturing plant in Maharashtra. The assumption was the plant would make only Apple products. But Foxconn has tied up with other players like Xiaomi and OnePlus for local manufacture and not necessarily to only make Apple products there.

This will be Apple's second big announcement for Bengaluru. In May, Apple announced a design and development accelerator in the city to grow the iOS developer community and also to guide Indian developers to leverage Apple's programming language Swift and build apps for Apple TV and Apple The facility will open early next year.

The Bengaluru manufacturing facility underscores India's importance for the Cupertino-based company.

Apple CEO Tim Cook's multi-city India tour earlier this year signaled the growing importance of India powered by the demand for Apple products by a burgeoning middle class.

Apple iPhone SE

Apple launches iPhone SE 

Apple to launch new iPhones on September 9

Apple Inc has invited journalists to a September 9 event, where it is expected to unveil new iPhone(s) and potentially a new version of its Apple TV set-top box.

The email invitation includes a colorful Apple logo with the sentence "Hey Siri, give us a hint," referring to Apple's popular digital voice assistant.

The company traditionally announces its new iPhones in September.

Apple is widely expected to unveil the iPhone 6S and the iPhone 6 Plus S. In general, the company launches upgraded versions to existing phones under the "S" range.

Media reports have indicated that Apple is preparing for the largest initial production run for its next iPhones by the end of the year.

The new iPhones are also said to feature Force Touch technology, which can distinguish between a light tap and deep press.

The event will be held at 10:00 am PT in the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco, which can hold about 7,000 people.

Apple launches new iPad Air 2 and iPad Mini 3

Apple has finally launched the new iPad Air 2 and iPad Mini 3 in India. Both the models are available online as well as across Apple authorised retail stores. 

The iPad Air 2, at 6.1 millimeters thin, adds many of the features previously available on iPhones. That includes the ability to take burst shots and slow-motion video and the inclusion of a fingerprint ID sensor for use instead of a passcode. It also has an anti-reflective coating, a first for a tablet, which makes it 56 per cent less reflective. 

You have the option to buy from six models of the iPad Air 2, priced in the range of Rs 35,900 to Rs 59,900. There are three models each under two categories - iPad with WiFi connectivity only and with both WiFi and cellular connectivity supported through a nano SIM. 

Based on their storage support, each model of iPad Air 2 has been priced differently. 

The iPad Air 2 16 GB WiFi-only model is priced at Rs 35,900, 64 GB at Rs 42,900 and 128 GB model at Rs 49,900, including value added tax. 

The three models of iPad Air 2 with both WiFi and cellular connectivity have been priced at Rs 45,900, Rs 52,900 and Rs 59,900, including VAT. 

Similarly, the iPad Mini 3 will also be available in two different categories - WiFi connectivity only and WiFi with cellular connectivity. Each of these categories has three models differentiated in terms of their storage support. 

The iPad Mini 3 models have been priced in the range of Rs 28,900 to Rs 52,900, including VAT. 

All the iPad Air 2 models have a 9.7-inch screen while the iPad Mini 3 comes with a 7.9 inch screen. 

iPad Air 2 has new Apple-designed A8X chip, which the company says, delivers 40 per cent improvement in computing performance and 2.5 times better graphics performance as compared to the previous version of iPad Air. 

Apple promises up to 10-hour of battery life in iPad Air 2 while surfing the Internet on wifi, watching video or listening to music. 

iPad Mini 3 has Apple's A7 chipset. Apple has added Touch ID feature in both iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3 so that users can unlock their iPad with touch of a finger and enhance security in transactions done through these devices. 

In Air 2, Apple has upgraded main camera to 8 megapixel while camera in the iPad mini 3 remains the same at 5 megapixel. The front camera of all the iPad models is 1.2 megapixel.
The cellular version of iPad supports all kind of telecom connectivity across frequency bands available for public, including CDMA, 2G, 3G and 4G.

Apple Watch to hit Indian Market in February

Apple is targeting India as its priority market for its wearable device, Apple Watch. The device is expected to hit the Indian domestic market by early February.

The bullishness of the company comes from initial market studies that show the Apple Watch has the potential to become a bestseller in India, after iPhones and iPads.

Apple also proposes to engage Indian developers to create apps for the device and is firming up the launch.

"Apple is bullish about the success of the Apple Watch in India since it already has a base of more than 4 million iPhone and iPad users who are initially the potential target," says one company executive in India.

The Apple Watch is expected to be launched globally in early 2015.

As per estimates, the price of the Apple Watch will be about Rs 28,000-35,000, which will be more than the cost of wearable products sold by rivals Samsung and Sony. The device will be compatible with the iPhone 5, 5c, 5s, 6 and 6 Plus, which run the latest operating system.

Apple last week rolled out the software that will help developers to come up with new apps for the Apple Watch. The company is hopeful the Indian base of developers will roll out local apps to expand the appeal of the device in the domestic market.

Apple is set to launch its latest tablets in India sooner. Pre-order demand for the latest iPad Air 2 and iPad Mini 3 has been encouraging and is expected to exceed levels reached at last year's launch of iPads. Demand for the new iPhones - iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, too has not come down and supplies have become regularized.

Apple launches ‘Apps for (RED)’ to fight AIDS

Apple has teamed up with the (RED) campaign, founded by U2 singer Bono, to raise money to fight AIDS. It has teamed up with a bunch of iOS developers for its biggest fundraising push yet for World AIDS Day. Between now and December 7, hundred percent of the proceeds from selected apps will go to the Product RED charity, and Apple will be throwing in a portion of the proceeds from every product sold on Monday, December 1.

The move came as the California-based maker of iPhones, iPads, iPods and Mac computers shows deeper support for social and environmental causes under the leadership of Chief Executive Tim Cook.

It also comes as Silicon Valley technology titans use their smarts, resources, and cash to help tackle global woes including Ebola, climate change, and overfishing of the seas.

Apple launched a version of its App Store featuring exclusive (RED)-branded content, with all money from sales to be donated to the Global Fund to fight AIDS.

The (RED) App Store will be open through Dec. 7.

“Apple is a proud supporter of (RED) because we believe that the gift of life is the most important gift anyone can give.”

 “For eight years, our customers have been helping fight AIDS in Africa by funding life-saving treatments, which are having a profoundly positive impact”, said ,” says Cook.

Apps in the (RED) App Store include versions of games Angry Birds, Clash of Clans, Farmville, FIFA 15, and Kim Kardashian Hollywood.

Apple also said that on World AIDS Day, held Dec. 1, the company will donate a portion of every sale at its real-world and online shops to the global fund.

On Friday, the company will begin rewarding some purchasers of its products in the United States with special-edition (RED) gift cards, with money donated to the Global Fund for each card distributed.

According to Cook, "this is the biggest push yet by Apple to raise money for the cause".

Few Pics : Apple Watch

Apple Offering $10k Prize to 50 Billionth App Downloader

Apple Offering $10k Prize to User that Downloads 50 Billionth App.

Apple's is celebrating its approach of the 50 billion App Store download milestone with a big bucks contest.

The lucky user to download the 50 billionth app will get an App Store gift card worth $10,000. The very next 50 app down-loaders after number 50 billion will each get a $500 App Store gift card.

The contest will only register 25 entrants per account per day. To be eligible, users must also be at least 13 years old.

Apple buying mobile security firm AuthenTec

Mobile and network security provider AuthenTec recently announced that it has been acquired by Apple. Apple has agreed to acquire the company for $8 per share, or approximately $356 million. 

“AuthenTec is a leading provider of mobile and network security,” said the company, which currently provides Android security solutions to Samsung. “Our diverse product and technology offering helps protect individuals and organizations through secure networking, content and data protection, access control and strong fingerprint security on PCs and mobile devices.” Apple has not yet confirmed the acquisition, but it will seemingly look to bolster security on its iPhone and iPad as the devices continue to gain ground in the enterprise market. 

The transaction was unanimously approved by AuthenTec's board. It still requires approval from a majority of the holders of AuthenTec stock. AuthenTec currently has about 44.5 million outstanding shares.