As the world waits to hear Apple's quarterly earnings report next week, there are rumblings that the company is cutting back on iPhone 5 part orders by nearly half. A sign of trouble in paradise or just business as usual following a busy holiday quarter and the rumored handset refresh that could arrive by mid-year? You be the judge after reading our weekend recap...
MacRumors reported Sunday that Apple appears to be cutting back on part orders for the iPhone 5, with the most obvious explanation being the company is seeing weaker than expected demand for its latest handset following what's expected to be a boffo holiday quarter. According to The Wall Street Journal, the part orders have been reduced by "roughly half" of Cupertino's previously plans, although no actual numbers were cited to back that up. The report comes amidst rumors of a supposed "iPhone 5S" due by mid-year, as well as rumblings that the company is working on a cheaper version of the iconic handset that could retail for as little as $99.
Following a U.S. Department of Homeland Security recommendation outlining the discovery of a Java 7 security flaw, Apple moved quickly to disable the software in OS X as Oracle promised a fix was on the way. According to AppleInsider, that fix is now ready and waiting as a free download from the Java website. "The fixes in this Alert include a change to the default Java Security Level setting from 'Medium' to 'High," the release notes explain. "With the 'High' setting, the user is always prompted before any unsigned Java applet or Java Web Start application is run."
Apple doesn't (yet) have drive-thru service at its retail locations, but they might want to consider it after an incident on Sunday. According to The Verge, the Lincoln Park Apple Store was involved in an auto accident involving a Lincoln Town car (no joke!), leaving one person injured. Judging from photos taken on the scene, the car appears to have hopped over an unprotected section of curb and smashed through the front window of the store at an angle. "There was no snow on the ground, so it's not clear how the driver managed to achieve such a spectacular loss of control," the report noted.
AppleInsider reported late Friday that a bankruptcy court judge has approved the sale of Kodak's digital imaging patents, with the intellectual property going to a consortium that includes Apple, Google and Microsoft, among others. According to The Wall Street Journal, Judge Allan L. Gropper approved the terms of the sale, putting a collection of 1,100 patents related to capture and display of digital images into the hands of a collective group of companies, heading off any future patent wars at the pass. The group's winning bid of $527 million was received in December, but the judge was clearly hoping for more (as much as $2 billion), calling the final price "disappointing."
iFun reported Friday that Apple may be preparing the final gold master build of iOS 6.1 for developers, a sign that the public release could be imminent. Citing "a reliable source," the website claims the pending fifth beta release will indeed be the pre-release version, pending any show-stopping bugs discovered at the last minute. iOS 6.1 could be unleashed to developers as early as today, although there's no word on when the rest of us might be able to get our hands on it.
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(Image courtesy of The Verge)
