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Apple stores are well known popular destinations for tech lovers and not only. But exactly how popular? According to a report from analyst Horace Dediu, posted on his Asymco blog, the correct answer to the question is: extremely popular!

In his post relating sales per square foot in Apple retails stores, he claims that the Cupertino tech giant just set another record in Q1 of 2012. He apparently calculated the exact amount of revenue per customer and he came up with $57.60. The revenue generated per location was situated at $13 million for the months between January and March. The whole survey showcased that Apple is still above its competition when it comes to sales per square foot. It even beat popular clothing and jewelry mogul Tiffany & Co.

Foot traffic within Apple stores also increased quite nicely with 7%. In translation, your average Apple store probably saw the average traffic of 250,000/per store/per quarter. Dediu tries to find a reason for this trend, stating:

“The reason for this might be the increase in floor space of newer stores and the renovation of older stores. The new store throughput rate might be an upper bound due to fire regulations.”

On the other hand, I feel like more and more people have started having access to high quality technology and, as a result, of course they visit the Apple store to look at possible purchases, asking for help at the Genius Bar or just to see what’s new. And I’m not even counting the futuristic architecture of most of the Apple stores, so a trip there, might be considered just for that.

Source: Asymco

Yahoo’s Small Business Advisor writes today that Philips has just launched an intelligent LED light bulb called the Hue 1.1, and has partnered with Apple in order to distribute the light bulb to early adopters by selling it in Apple stores. So what exactly are the main features of a “smart” light bulb? According to Philips, Hue has a geofencing feature meaning that it can be programmed (via an iOS app) by the user to change colour, or turn off or on when you enter or leave your home or office. In fact, Philips says that owners of Hue light bulbs, “don’t ever worry if [they’ve] switched [their] lights off or not. Just walk out the front door and they’ll switch themselves off.”


Yahoo explains that the smart bulb also has an alarm feature, whereby it can be set to wake the owner up naturally by slowly becoming brighter at your chosen wake-up time. As you might expect, Hue has many other timer features, such as turning itself off, or flashing, or changing its colour at set times. Hue bulbs can even be configured to change colour for certain set events, such as letting you know when it’s raining (this one would be on all the time in the UK!), blinking to show when your sports team that you follow is starting to play, and you can even change the colour randomly via text message. Although this all sounds like fun, Hue bulbs have some practical uses too, such as flooding a room with bright light automatically if someone is moving around inside the house in the early hours of the morning, for example. This could be used to startle a burglar and alert the householder of their presence, or stop an elderly person from falling over and hurting themselves in the dark.

As you might expect from all that, the bulbs are pretty pricey, with a starter set costing $200, and each Hue bulb costing $60. This price is expected to halve by 2020, however, and by 70% in the next 10 years.

Source: Philips Partners with Apple on Smart LED Bulb - Yahoo! Small Business Advisor

If you’re an avid iOS gamer, then AppleInsider has some great news for you today, reporting that two of Gameloft’s very popular games are available to download for free for a short time (no idea for how long). The games in question are Gangstar Rio: City of Saints, and N.O.V.A. 3, and both usually retail for around $6. There’s no denying that Gameloft’s games are often a little similar (cough) to other games such as Grand Theft Auto, but this doesn’t make them any less fun to play. Gangstar Rio sees the player controlling a customizable gangster in Rio, across more than 60 missions, wielding lots of weapons, and even flying with the aid of jetpacks! N.O.V.A.3 - Near Orbit Vanguard Alliance is the latest edition to this incredibly popular FPS series of games from Gameloft, where the player takes on the role of an armoured shooter on a mission to save the earth. You can even indulge in 12-player multiplayer battles using live chat. So if all that sounds enticing to you, then click on the links below, but be warned, both games are very large to download, with N.O.V.A.3 weighing in at 1.69GB, and Gangstar Rio taking up 878MB.

Click here to download N.O.V.A. 3 - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/n.o....474764934?mt=8

Click here to download Gangstar Rio - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/gang...453051448?mt=8

Source: Gameloft's Gangstar Rio, N.O.V.A. 3 go free on iOS for a limited time

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In a new interview with Intel’s CEO, Paul Otellini admitted that he had the chance of being part of the iPhone story from the beginning. According to him, the Cupertino tech giant proposed that Intel manufacture the chips for the first smartphone it released. Strangely enough, Intel passed on the opportunity, taking its business elsewhere. The decision was based upon Apple not being willing to pay the price Intel proposed for its chips.

"We ended up not winning it or passing on it, depending on how you want to view it. And the world would have been a lot different if we'd done it.”

That’s basically how the complicated partnership between Samsung and Apple kick started back in those early days. Apple is trying to break the bonds it has created with the Korean competitor now, but at first, the Cupertino tech giant used Samsung ARM system-on-chip design. However, with the advent of the iPhone 5, Apple introduced its homemade ARMv7.

Otellini, who is retiring this week, went on to explain that back then, the iPhone was an obscure brand and Apple had a set budget in mind when chip production was concerned.

“"At the end of the day, there was a chip that they were interested in that they wanted to pay a certain price for and not a nickel more and that price was below our forecasted cost. I couldn't see it. It wasn't one of these things you can make up on volume. And in hindsight, the forecasted cost was wrong and the volume was 100x what anyone thought."

We bet that Otellini regrets his decision now, seeing how popular all the devices branded by Apple have become, but history has been written.

Source: AppleInsider

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Most people purchase smartphones and tablets for one simple reason. They love to play games and the mobility such technology offers. Keeping this in mind, Google has just launched a new interesting Chrome Experiment.

And it’s all about gaming. In this particular example, racing. The game, called Racer, allows users to play the same scenario on multiple devices such as iPhones, iPads or Android devices and even share screens. So, for example, if you join together two devices, the vehicle in the game will continue to move from one screen to the next one. Did we get your attention yet?

Sadly, eager players have to wait a while until they can try Racer for themselves. The experiment is not yet available for the general public, but Google has performed a quick demonstration of it and it looks really interesting. There’s also a video available online which showcases users playing Racer and swiping around the screen to direct the car from one screen to the next. We’re wondering why Google decided to design a game and not an application per se, but the result is pretty great nevertheless.

However, users interested in playing the game will have to have installed the mobile version of Chrome on their tablet or smartphone.

Overall, this Chrome experiment stretches away, covering more possibilities of gaming. It’s especially great for people who love multiplayer mode. The results are quite awesome, as players can enjoy all varieties of games – with friends and family.

Source: Google Chrome Racer

Google made lots of announcements at its Google I/O developers’ conference yesterday, including launching a new standalone version of its Hangouts app for iOS. According to AppleInsider, the new app has been designed by Google to integrate Google Talk, Google+ Messenger, and the original Hangout video chat feature. As AppleInsider notes, this revamp represents a move by Google to more effectively organise its diverse chat and comms services, in order to compete with the likes of Facebook, and the incredibly popular iOS app, WhatsApp. The reason WhatsApp is so popular is because it enables you to very easily chat amongst a group of people and add all sorts of media to the chat to make it really fun. The integrated app also acts as Google’s answer to popular Apple services such as FaceTime and iMessage, although unlike FaceTime and iMessage (but just like WhatsApp), Hangouts will be usable across all platforms, which could give it a distinct advantage over the Apple services.

Click here to download the free app: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/hang...643496868?mt=8

Source: Revamped, cross-platform Google Hangouts app competes with Apple's iMessages, FaceTime [u]

Google is currently holding its Google I/O developer conference, where, AppleInsider reports, it has just announced that it will be giving Google Maps for iOS a facelift, in a bid to make it the number 1 Maps app for iOS. The newly announced revamp includes a redesigned interface, giving a “cleaner” look, and this will be not just in the mobile version, but also the desktop one. And with Google having acquired the Zagat rating system, ratings will now be five-point instead of four-point. Improved live incident coverage for both transit and traffic has also been added, with the app updating continuously with new traffic incidents, even suggesting alternate routes. The BBC feature on the update notes that advertisers will have their businesses more clearly displayed on the maps too. iPad owners will be particularly interested to hear that Google is also launching a tablet-specific version of Maps, with larger, richer content, as well as suggestions for things to do in the area of interest, and user interface that capitalises on the bigger screen size provided by a tablet.


Source: Reworked Google Maps for iOS, Android gains better search, tablet compatibility
BBC News - Google Maps revamp promotes ads and personalises details

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Do you own an iPhone? Well, in case you ever want to get rid of it, you have a better chance of selling it for a good price, than if you owned a Galaxy model from Samsung. At least, according to Piper Jaffray Gene Munster’s resale value index, which was just posted this week.

The report analyzed resale prices posted on popular shopping site eBay for the iPhone 5, iPhone 4S, iPhone 4 and Galaxy III/Galaxy Note II. The final index showcased that even if the​​ iPhones are generally more expensive than the Samsung devices, their price margin remains steadier. For example, depreciation for the iPhone 5 during th​​e 8 weeks when the data was calculated, was set at 11.2%, while the Galaxy’s was 13.7%. The all time winner of the study was weirdly enough, the iPhone 4S. Apparently, it doesn’t matter than Apple put out a new smartphone already, the value of the 4S has dropped only with 7% during the time the research was conducted.

For example, the average iPhone 4S price was situated at $349 in March, but by May it dropped to $312. To compare, the iPhone 5 on the other hand went from $535 to $465. In Android camp, the Galaxy S III dropped from $360 to $320, while the Galaxy Note II was the biggest loser, from $550 to $444.

Last but not least, Munster predicts that the iPhone will experience more depreciation as the iPhone 5S is being readied for release.

Source: AppleInsider

AppleInsider reports today on a very interesting theory, first reported on by TechCrunch, as to why Facebook’s new Home feature on Android has failed to seize the public’s imagination, or has turned out to be a “flop” as they put it! It’s all down to the popularity of Apple’s iPhone with Facebook employees, apparently! According to this theory, Facebook did not have enough people working on Home who were familiar with what does and does not work on Android, because so many of the testers were iPhone users who were much more familiar with iOS. So, the theory goes, because they were unfamiliar with Android, and not regular Android users, the Facebook testers didn’t realise how annoying it was that Home removed such popular Android features as widgets and the app dock for favourite apps, or didn’t allow the user to create app folders. TechCrunch says that it’s also for this reason that the iOS Facebook app is so much better than Home. AppleInsider points out that Facebook has admitted its mistakes with Home on Android, and is preparing to update it with various tweaks, including bringing back the popular apps dock, among other features.


Source: iPhone's popularity among Facebook staff may have aided in Home's lackluster launch

We are always saying how happy Apple customers usually are about their products. But that’s not always the case. According to a Florida woman, the tech giant was aware of a faulty flex cable messing with the iPhone 4’s power button, but chose to do nothing about it, hoping the whole thing would just go away.

But the woman decided that Apple should be held accountable so she sued the Cupertino company for no more than $5 million. And apparently, she’s not the only one unhappy with the iPhone 4. It turns out that she’s actually the representative for a whole group of people who own iPhone 4s with defect power buttons that hinders them from turning on/off the device or locking it.

In order to build a case, she has gathered countless testimonies from forum users who seem to be complaining about the same problematic button. She also managed to find a fix-it-yourself video tutorial on YouTube that teaches users of decrepit iPhones how to fix the button. The person behind the video is also heard commenting that the iPhone 4 faulty button problem affects a lot of users.

Debra Hilton, the woman in question, explains in the petition that when first purchased, the iPhone 4’s button seems to be in good condition, but after a year of intense use, it caved in. That’s problematic, since the iPhone 4 warranty is already expired at this point, so the user has to pay good cash for the problem to be solved.

The lawsuit was filed in San Jose, California.

Source: GigaOm

Boy Genius Report writes today of what would appear to be the first confirmation from an industry insider that Apple’s next iPhone will feature a fingerprint sensor. According to the report, PayPal’s chief information security officer, Michael Barrett, made the following statement during his keynote address at Interop. “It’s widely rumoured that a large technology provider in Cupertino, Calif., will come out with a phone later this year that has a fingerprint reader on it.” After dropping that little hint, Barrett went on to say that Apple will not be the only company to introduce fingerprint tech in the near future: “There is going to be a fingerprint-enabled phone on the market later this year. Not just one, multiple.” As BGR notes, it was Apple CEO Tim Cook’s very smart decision to buy AuthenTec that is at the centre of its introduction of fingerprint technology, possibly stealing a march on other manufacturers, which is something that those who have been quick to criticise Cook in recent months would do well to note.


Source: iPhone 5S Fingerprint Scanner Confirmed? | BGR

Cult of Mac reports today on a new rumour direct from sources in Apple’s supply chain in Taiwan saying that the iPhone 5S could have a sapphire crystal capacitive touch home button incorporating a fingerprint sensor. The source goes on to say that the sapphire crystal home button will replace the traditional physical home button, with the toughness of the crystal protecting the fingerprint sensor underneath. The iPhone 5 has a sapphire crystal camera lens on the rear camera, designed to prevent scratches. Cult of Mac says that Apple is finally prepared to do away with the home button, as it can be unreliable and stop working after long periods of use, so it’s hoped that using capacitive touch technology to replace the physical home button will prove to be more reliable. The fingerprint sensor would be built into this technology as well. The source in Taiwan said that the iPhone 5S and the new, cheaper plastic iPhone would both be released in either August or September. There's no indication as to how accurate these sources are, so, as always, take this story with a pinch of salt, especially as other leaked alleged iPhone 5S parts pictures show a normal-looking home button array.


Source: Cult of Mac » iPhone 5S To Get Sapphire Crystal Home Button With Fingerprint Sensor [Rumor]