So yeah, Apple still has the moxie to rake in the big bucks, as you’ve no doubt heard from Cupertino’s fiscal first quarter results earlier today. We can’t help but think that this bubble has to burst eventually, but hey, it’s a wild ride while it lasts, right? Unfortunately for U.S. carrier partner Verizon Wireless, the quarterly financials weren’t quite as rosy. Ready to find out more? Then read on and discover all the news that’s fit to print for this Tuesday, January 24, 2012.
Verizon Blames Quarterly Loss on Pensions, Subsidy Costs
We all know that Apple just clocked in another record quarter with 37.04 million iPhones sold — and according to Bloomberg, 4.3 million of those were activated last quarter on Verizon Wireless. Unfortunately, the Big Red carrier’s news wasn’t all rosy, with total smartphone sales of 7.7 million — about 1.5 million shy of analyst projections. Despite total sales of $28.4 billion (a 7.7 percent increase over last year), Verizon as a whole lost $2.02 billion last quarter compared to its $2.64 billion profit a year ago, which the company blamed on handset subsidies paid out to wireless customers.
Inside Apple: The Secret Packaging Room
Fortune writer Adam Lashinsky’s book Inside Apple hits stores tomorrow, and much like Walter Isaacson’s official bio on Steve Jobs, nuggets of information have been leaking out in the last week or so in advance of the release. According to NetworkWorld, one such detail outlined in the book examines a room in Apple’s headquarters dedicated to product packaging — a secret area “only accessible to a select few with the requisite security badges” for the purpose of testing boxes. “To fully grasp how seriously Apple executives sweat the small stuff, consider this: For months, a packaging designer was holed up in this room performing the most mundane of tasks — opening boxes,” Lashinsky reveals. The attention to detail even extends to the unboxing experience as well. “One after another, the designer created and tested an endless series of arrows, colors, and tapes for a tiny tab designed to show the consumer where to pull back the invisible, full-bleed sticker adhered to the top of the clear iPod box,” Lashinsky writes. “Getting it just right was this particular designer’s obsession. What’s more, it wasn’t just about one box. The tabs were placed so that when Apple‘s factory packed multiple boxes for shipping to retail stores, there was a natural negative space between the boxes that protected and preserved the tab.” Shouldn’t come as much of a surprise to anyone who’s owned an Apple product…
Readdle Serves Up PDF Expert 3.2 for iPad with Full Text Search
It’s no secret that the iPad makes a great vehicle for reading and even editing PDF files, which is why developer Readdle continues to innovate with their PDF Expert for iPad. The company just pushed out a new version 3.2 update, adding full text search across your entire PDF library — no more simply searching by file name, the complete text of every PDF document inside the app is available to you. PDF Expert 3.2 also adds a new sorting panel for reordering files based on Name, Date or Modified Date, along with support for the Tab and Arrow keys on Bluetooth keyboards while filling out PDF forms for lightning-quick text entry. Last but not least, the update introduces a new Eraser tool for your handwriting, located in the Pens toolbar. PDF Expert 3.2 is available now from the App Store for only $9.99, and is a free update for previous owners.
Virgin America Christens Plane with Famous Steve Jobs Quote
The late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs left us with many memorable quotes, but somewhere near the top of that list resides “Stay hungry, stay foolish.” According to Cnet, the expression now has a new lease on life, with the words emblazoned on the side of a new Airbus A320 aircraft as part of the Virgin America fleet (photo above, if you don’t mind squinting).“”The ‘Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish’ aircraft name was actually submitted as a tribute to Mr. Jobs by one of our employees in an internal plane naming competition,” Virgin America spokesperson Abby Lunardini explained to CNET on Monday.“”The idea behind Virgin America was to reinvent the travel experience by thinking differently about design and service–we are known for the tech-forward amenities we offer onboard.” Considering Virgin’s presence in Silicon Valley and the company’s “fleet-wide Wi-Fi with touchscreen entertainment and power outlets at every seat,” we think Jobs would approve.
iStoryTime Hearts “Biscuit’s Valentine’s Day”
Ready to introduce your child to the forthcoming Valentine’s Day in a special way? zuuka’s iStoryTime line has just published a new title together with HarperCollins Children’s Books entitled Biscuit’s Valentine’s Day. Available as a $2.99 universal app for the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch, the title is also making its debut on the Amazon Appstore for the Kindle Fire as well as Barnes Noble’s Nook Color and Nook Tablet devices. The story follows that loveable puppy Biscuit as he delivers “sweet puppy love” to his special friends, including Daisy, Puddles, Grandma and Grandpa. “Biscuit has been a family classic for almost two decades and for good reason as the lovable yellow puppy teaches children life lessons such as how important it is to give rather than receive,” said Woody Sears, founder of zuuka. “We’re very excited to add another Biscuit book to the iStoryTime library and look forward to many more.” The app includes fully animated Read to Me and Read to Myself modes, memory and puzzle games as well as a sticker and coloring book, all wrapped up neatly in a 110MB app that’s available for download from the App Store today.
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(Image courtesy of Cnet)
Article source: http://www.maclife.com/article/news/tuesday_recap_verizon_quarterly_loss_steve_jobs_plane_biscuit%E2%80%99s_valentine%E2%80%99s_day
