Apple Maps first launched in iOS 6 to much excitement. Previously, Google Maps had powered the iPhone maps experience, but the relationship between Apple and Google became strained as Google held critical features of the mapping experience from the iPhone. If you remember back to that period, Google Maps on the iPhone didn’t even have built-in turn-by-turn directions. Apple began the process of replacing Google Maps with Apple Maps and unveiled its work during the WWDC 2012 keynote....

After previously announcing a July 26th grand opening date in an interview with SVP Angela Ahrendts, Apple has now revealed an impressive collaboration with 21 artists to celebrate their new Piazza Liberty retail store in Milan, Italy. As expected, “Cosa farai domani, Milano?” or “What will you do tomorrow, Milan?” is the slogan Apple chose to promote their new store. Yesterday evening, workers covered Piazza Liberty’s glass fountain and entryway with large banners displaying a colorful Apple logo formed from a collage of art styles....

Apple is looking to fill a new “Video Partnerships” lead that will be responsible for negotiations with content providers like TV networks and movie studios with the goal of expanding its video services, including the Apple TV app and Universal Search. The position calls for prior “business development/transaction” qualifications in the TV or movie industries with studio, network, distributor, or agency experience preferred: The job listing surfaced this week alongside continued reports of Apple’s negotiations with content providers for original content....

Sonny Dickson this evening posted posted a log and video of a never before seen in public version of pre-iPhone era software that was built as an alternative OS to what eventually became iOS. The OS, which was devised in the iPod’s heyday, was based on a virtual click-wheel that was put on the touch display. A set of menus is navigated with the touch much like one would using an iPod of the time....

Apple today started inviting its retail employees to participate in testing macOS 10.12, the latest version of Apple’s Mac operating system unveiled earlier this week during a press event at the company’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference. An excerpt from Apple’s memo to employees below: Apple notes that employees aren’t required to participate in the test and that the process is voluntary and “not an expectation of your job”. Testing for the retail seed program is done on an employee’s personal computer....

In the face of the shrinking economy and broad market decline, AAPL yesterday surged 2.8 percent at $411.65 a share for a market valuation of $381.62 billion. The Cupertino, California gadget king has been worth more than Exxon Mobil since August 2011. The latter used to be the world’s most-valued company bar none for a long time. Apple’s market cap is also approaching the combined value of Microsoft and Google....

Apple today posted a job listing on its website seeking a software engineer to help “implement new mail anti-abuse infrastructure” for iCloud mail services. The candidate will join Apple’s iCloud team and must have experience with mail and spam systems/architecture, so it appears Apple is looking to cut down on the amount of spam that iCloud users receive. There have been some hiccups with Apple’s iCloud mail service in the past (apart from frequent iCloud service outages), including a problem with the service’s automated spam filters that caused legitimate emails to be sent to spam....

iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 12 Pro Max pre-orders are set to begin on Friday, November 6. Ahead of pre-orders officially opening up, Apple is now accepting iPhone Upgrade Program pre-approvals through the Apple Store app and the Apple Online Store. Here’s how to get pre-approved for your iPhone 12 mini or iPhone 12 Pro Max upgrade through the iPhone Upgrade Program: Open the Apple Store app on your iPhone Choose your preferred model Complete the upgrade process within the Apple Store app You can also confirm your eligibility under the “For You” tab of the Apple Store app, where you should see a “Check upgrade eligibility” button....

Apple is hiring dozens of talented people on a daily basis, but this one deserves your attention. Jan-Michael Cart, a mass media arts student from Georgia, is the brains behind a bunch of very insightful iOS interface concepts you’ve likely seen on the web, as noted by iPhoneinCanada.ca. This includes the notification center and application switcher mockup videos below. As Apple is always on the lookout for young blood, Cart’s work caught the company’s attention and they decided to hire him as an intern, he announced in a blog post:...

There are several reports today on Apple’s ongoing court cases with Samsung and Motorola. First, we have the latest on the United States case between Apple and Google’s Motorola Mobility with Reuters reporting on a “crucial hearing” scheduled for today: The last time we reported on this Apple/Samsung Galaxy case in the U.S., Apple was forced to request a separate hearing for a ban on the Galaxy S III. A trial date for Apple’s previous injunction requests for the Galaxy line is set for July 30....

The US Patent & Trademark Office today published a new Apple patent application (via PatentlyApple) that details a flexible material that could be used as a hinge to create a seamless enclosure for devices like the MacBook, for example. Apple details a technical process of using specialized machinery to laser cut “flex apertures” and interlocking features in a rigid material to allow it to bend and function as a hinge. On top of creating a seamless enclosure, Apple claims the process would allow it to reduce the size of devices that are often increased due to traditional hinge solutions....

LG OLEDs are a new level of thin According to a job listing sent privately to employees of companies that specialize in display technologies Apple is looking to implement the OLED technology into future products. Apple has job listings to the same company before but solely focused on AMLCD displays. Notably an uptake of these job listings for AMLCD display engineers occured during mid-2008 when Apple surely was amidst development of the iPad and future iPhone products....

Apple has recently added two new companies to its list acknowledging data providers for Apple Maps. The two latest additions, GasBuddy and GreatSchools, first spotted by applemapsmarketing.com, are likely a sign that Apple intends to add additional features or points of interest to its maps apps for iOS and Mac. GasBuddy is a service that aggregates data from local websites to offer up to date information on gas prices, while Great Schools gathers data and reviews for local schools....

[Update: Apple’s system status board has been updated to acknowledge the blip and note the issue is over.] If you’re having issues getting started with Apple Music this morning, you’re not alone. The iOS app started the day by asking subscribers to sign up and join Apple Music (a force quit fixed for me but the problem persists) and iTunes on the Mac is also serving up error messages for a great number of users....

Top mobile operating systems. Source: Global Statcounter, November 2011. Click for larger. A pair of reports released today reveal that Apple’s iOS mobile platform increased its lead over Android for the month of November, while Symbian remains the most commonly-used mobile operating system globally. This follows last month’s trend when iOS increased its lead over Android as well. Per Global Statcounter data, a mobile analytics service tracking three million sites, iOS in November 2011 accounted for nearly one-quarter of mobile OSs, growing from 23....

Apple just updated its End User License Agreement for the iBooks Author application, and the changes clearly outline the Cupertino, Calif.-based Company only requires .iBooks formatted products created in iBooks Author to sell through the iBookstore. With that said, Apple aims to sell the packaged format without claiming the content nor restricting where else authors can distribute the content. iBooks Author released alongside iBooks Textbook last month and controversy immediately brewed over its terms and conditions, which many claimed infringed upon software rights and imposed unjust requirements…...

As promised, Apple has opened up a new portal at me.com/move for developers that the MobileMe service to migrate their entire account over to iCloud. The process is quite simple as you can see in the screenshots above and below. Apple lets you take your Mail, Contacts, and Calendar information over to iCloud and also tells users that they can continue using iWeb, iDisk, and Photo Gallery up until June 30, 2012....

As noted in a report today from Ad Age (via MacRumors), Apple is now allowing non-developers to access and use the iAd Workbench platform. Previously, iAd Workbench users had to at least be enrolled in Apple’s $99/year registered developers program, but now opening an iAd Workbench account will only require an Apple ID which is free to create with any Apple service or device. Ad Age reports that customers using iAd Workbench can choose between payment based on cost-per-click or cost-per-thousand impressions, although rates are currently not clear....

According to a new report from the Wall Street Journal (citing e-commerce trade publication Internet Retailer), Apple has managed to overtake Staples and claim the number-two spot in the world of online retail. Apple’s online sales data jumped a significant 24% last year, although this jump is mostly due to the fact that Internet Retailer now includes the company’s online hardware sales along with digital download data from iTunes and the App Store and doesn’t seem to reflect an actual sales increase of that magnitude....

Ahead of Apple’s fiscal Q1 2015 earnings report today, there were signs that Apple had enjoyed significant growth in China and a record number of smartphone sales in the region during the holidays. Today, we get some more insight into that growth, as Apple reported a 157% increase from the previous quarter: revenue of $16.144 billion in Greater China compared to $6.292 billion in Q3. That’s up 70% year over year from the $9....