Happy Black Friday! Here’s hoping none of our readers got pepper sprayed or even shot at today while out scrounging for the best deals they could find on their favorite electronics and other merchandise. We’ve been safely ensconced here at MacLife.com World Headquarters gearing up for “Phase Two” next week with Cyber Monday, the unofficial shopping day sequel to the festivities that are going down today, Friday, November 25, 2011. Let’s be careful out there!
If you were among the folks looking for that Play Instantly subscription game app we reported about on Wednesday, you’re not alone. As it turns out, Apple pulled the app from the App Store, leaving developer Big Fish Games in the dark as well, according to a follow-up report from Bloomberg. “We were notified that the app was removed,” explains Big Fish founder Paul Thelen. “We’re trying to follow up with Apple to try to figure out what happened.” As it turns out, the app had actually been available since November 18, and Thelen claims his company was “surprised by the move” after working closely “with Apple for several weeks to ensure that it met the requirements for recurring monthly charges made through the App Store.” Needless to say, it’s not the first time that Apple has approved an app and then yanked the rug out from under a developer -- here’s hoping Big Fish can get it worked out.
Despite rumors and numerous reports to the contrary, the latest (and largest) Apple Store in the world did not open in time for Black Friday. According to The New York Post, the new location at Grand Central Station in New York City is now scheduled to open its doors on December 9, “just in time for the final two weeks of the Christmas shopping crunch.” Needless to say, we’ll believe it when we hear it from Apple, but The Post seems pretty confident in its sources and we’re inclined to think it’s probably accurate information, judging from recently leaked photos of the store being in the final stages of preparation.
Reuters is reporting what many of us already know: The folks who use Cupertino’s mobile products are mighty loyal. But in case you don’t believe it or feel the need to have a study done about it, research firm GfK is happy to oblige, claiming that 84 percent of iPhone users plan to go iPhone again when they replace their device, compared to only 60 percent of those using devices running Google’s Android. The number keeps dropping when you get to those using Research in Motion’s BlackBerry, with only 48 percent of users planning to remain loyal. “Apple is clearly ahead of the game, but developments next year will challenge that,” claims GfK analyst Ryan Garner, without really explaining the logic behind the comment. GfK conducted their research with 4,500 people in Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, China, the United States and Japan.
AppleInsider is reporting that photos of an 8GB iPhone 4 manufactured in Brazil have leaked out, courtesy of the website MacMagazine.br, who received them from one of their readers. The photos apparently show the words “Brazilian Industry” on the back of the handset in Portuguese, along with the required “stamp of approval” from ANATEL, Brazil’s equivalent of the FCC here in the U.S. The photos allegedly come from Apple manufacturing partner Foxconn’s facilities in Brazil, where the company has been considering “an investment as large as $12 billion on production facilities.” Will Brazil become the next China? Only time will tell...
The folks at MacRumors have compiled a comprehensive list of discounts on Apple products for the post-Thanksgiving Black Friday shopping extravaganza today, so if you were too chicken to brave the crowds and are still looking for online deals not featured in our guide posted on Thursday, this is a good place to start. The report covers sales tax considerations, deals on iPad 2 and other key Apple products and a few software and accessory bargains that are worth a look before the clock strikes midnight and we do it all over again on Cyber Monday.
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