MacRumors

Taiwan-based accessory maker Yi Lin Enterprises has posted new photos on Weibo showing the purported rear shell of Apple's iPad Air 2 (Google Translate, via Mac Otakara). The images show off a gold housing with a number of design changes, including a new speaker grille with larger holes and a relocated rear microphone alongside the iSight camera.

Last month, an alleged "perfect replica" of the iPad Air 2 surfaced, showing off a Touch ID home button for the device and recessed volume buttons along with the same refined speaker grille. The prototype followed the leak of a supposed front panel from the iPad Air 2 this past April, which showed an integrated display that may hint at a thinner form factor for the tablet.

Apple's iPad Air 2 is expected to launch alongside the iPad mini 3 later this year, and is expected to include a faster A8 processor in addition to the aforementioned Touch ID fingerprint sensor and refined physical features. Rumors have also suggested that Apple is working on a larger, 12.9-inch iPad Pro, however recent reports have indicated that plans for the tablet may be on hold for the foreseeable future.

Apple launched a new television ad in its "You're More Powerful Than You Think" campaign, this time called "Dreams". The song in the ad is "When I Grow Up" by Jennifer O'Connor.

It is the fourth ad in the series, with previous spots "Powerful", "Strength", and "Parenthood" focusing on the sheer variety of apps on the iPhone, workout apps, and apps for parents.

Like the other ads, "Dreams" shows the iPhone used in various situations in everyday life, extended with apps from the App Store. Apps and accessories featured in the spot include:

- Vaavud Wind Meter, an anemometer that plugs into the iPhone's headphone jack
- Response Deck, an app for fire and EMS first responders
- iTranslate Voice, a near-real time language translation app
- Veterinary AliveECG, a portable heart monitor for pets
- ForeFlight Mobile, a civil aviation mapping and weather app for pilots
- SAM-1, an appcessory for measuring water pH and other data

"Dreams" debuts just over a month after the previous spot, "Parenthood", was released at the end of June.

Apple’s $3 billion acquisition of Beats was finalized today, and as the two companies merge into one, the positions some former Beats employees will take on at Apple are becoming clearer.

According to a new report from The Wall Street Journal, Ian Rogers, who serves as the CEO of Beats Music, will take Apple’s own iTunes Radio streaming music service under his wing, heading up both streaming music services. Rogers will likely report to Eddy Cue, the SVP of Internet Software and Services at Apple, who oversees all of Apple’s content stores.

Rogers, a former Yahoo executive, will run both teams to create cohesion in Apple’s streaming-music options, according to the people familiar with the matter. Pandora and Spotify, the two-biggest streaming music services, each offer both a free ad-supported service and a subscription-based service.

As previously reported, Beats co-founders Jimmy Iovine and Andre Young (aka Dr. Dre) are also expected to take on senior roles at the company, and while it remains unclear exactly what the duo will do at Apple, Iovine may also become involved with iTunes, securing deals and marketing opportunities.

Earlier today, Apple posted a message on its website welcoming the Beats team to the family, as Beats shut down its own online store. While many former Beats employees are transitioning to Cupertino or continuing to work in a Los Angeles office, approximately 200 employees in human resources, finance, and other areas where there was overlap with Apple have only been given temporary positions as the company tries to find new roles for them.

United States President Barack Obama will today sign a bill that makes cell phone unlocking legal again, writing the Unlocking Consumer Choice and Wireless Competition Act into law following its unanimous approval by the Senate and House of Representatives.

Obama has long supported the act, which was originally introduced via a 2013 "We the People" petition that gathered more than 100,000 signatures calling for cell phone unlocking to be made legal. It first became illegal to unlock a cell phone in January of 2013, after an exception in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act expired, restricting U.S. customers from shifting their service to other carriers or using their devices abroad with local SIM cards.

Now that cell phone unlocking is once again legal, consumers and third-party unlocking services will be able to unlock paid-for cell phones and tablets without receiving express permission from carriers and without facing criminal penalties. The changes will make it easier for consumers to take their devices to the carrier of their choice after contractual obligations have been fulfilled and it will also be easier to use existing devices abroad.

The bill not only restores the rights of consumers to unlock their phones, but ensures that they can receive help doing so if they lack the technological savvy to unlock on their own.

The most important part of this joint effort is that it will have a real impact. As long as their phone is compatible and they have complied with their contracts, consumers will now be able to enjoy the freedom of taking their mobile service -- and a phone they already own -- to the carrier that best fits their needs. At a time when partisan gridlock all too often threatens progress on everyday issues that matter to consumers, working together we listened to your voices, and the American people benefited as a result.

In December of 2013, U.S. cellular carriers and the FCC also came to an agreement over a set of voluntary principles that will make it easier for wireless customers to unlock their devices and switch from carrier to carrier after a contract has been fulfilled.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Apple today updated its website with a new page celebrating its acquisition of Beats Electronics and Beats Music.

Today we are excited to officially welcome Beats Music and Beats Electronics to the Apple family. Music has always held a special place in our hearts, and we’re thrilled to join forces with a group of people who love it as much as we do. Beats cofounders Jimmy Iovine and Dr. Dre have created beautiful products that have helped millions of people deepen their connection to music. We’re delighted to be working with the team to elevate that experience even further.

And we can’t wait to hear what’s next.

The page also links visitors to the the front page of the revamped Beats Electronics website, which contains a message from the Beats team about joining Apple.

As part of these changes, Beats Electronics also has confirmed the closure of its online store. Going forward, all transactions will be handled through Apple's Online Store and customers are advised to contact Apple about purchases made after August 1, 2014.

Apple's acquisition of Beats Electronics and Beats Music is moving forward, with the deal recently receiving regulatory approval from the European Commission. U.S. regulators are expected to weigh in on the deal in a decision to be announced sometime this quarter.

In other acquisition news, Bloomberg also reported that Vivendi sold its 13 percent stake in Beats Electronics to Apple for $404 million. This stake was held by Vivendi's Universal Music Group.

Update 7:48 AM: Apple has confirmed to TechCrunch that U.S. regulators have indeed signed off on the deal, finalizing Apple's acquisition of Beats.

Nowhereelse.fr [Google Translate] has published several high-resolution images purportedly showing flex cables from both the 4.7-inch and the 5.5-inch iPhone 6. These latest images add to the growing number of flex cables and other internal components for the iPhone 6 that have surfaced in the past few months.

These images include a possible look at the home button cables from both iPhone 6 models. The photos show two different designs for the part, each with a square section for the Touch ID sensor but distinct from the iPhone 5s part. While Apple's iPads are also rumored to be gaining Touch ID functionality this year, the parts shown in the photos are compact enough that they are much more likely to be for the iPhone.

Another set of photos shows a flex cable with the ambient light/proximity sensors and a microphone. The corresponding part from the iPhone 5s includes the device's FaceTime camera, but the camera is not included on the purported iPhone 6 cable.

As the rumored September launch of the iPhone 6 approaches, we expect to see additional part leaks, especially for the 5.5-inch model which may enter mass production in the coming month. Supply chain reports claim the 4.7-inch model entered mass production in July.

Rumors suggest Apple may stagger the launch of the iPhone 6, introducing the 4.7-inch model in September and following that launch with the 5.5-inch version later in the year.

Echoing his earlier iWatch predictions, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo today suggested (via AppleInsider) that Apple's iWatch will be available in limited quantities in 2014, with only three million devices hitting store shelves before the end of the year.

Kuo says that while market predictions point towards shipments between 5 and 10 million smart watches before the end of 2014, his own prediction based on supply chain checks is at three million units due to the iWatch's late production date.

Earlier this month, Kuo released a report pointing towards a November production date for the iWatch. Difficulties developing the screen for the device as well as its sapphire crystal cover are said to have slowed development on the iWatch, pushing back targeted production dates. "We believe developing the hardware and OS of iWatch will be a much more difficult task than for Apple's existing products," Kuo wrote.

Kuo believes that continued problems with the sapphire display for the iWatch may lead Apple to produce some of the devices with glass covers instead of sapphire. In the note, he also points towards TPK as the supplier for the iWatch's touch module. TPK's recent earnings report has suggested iWatch production has been delayed and will not begin until until the fourth quarter.

Apple is said to be aiming to introduce the iWatch at an October event, which means it may debut before production even begins. In the event that the device does not enter production until November, Apple may launch the device well after it is first introduced, much like it did with the Mac Pro. As a result, the iWatch may be available in very limited quantities in 2014, with availability increasing in early 2015.

Microsoft's Office for iPad apps, including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint received a major update today that adds several new user-requested features to each app. All three apps have gained the ability to export files as PDFs, and each one has also gained new Picture Tools that let users crop to focus on the right part of an image. Third-party fonts have also been added to each app.

Excel now includes improved external keyboard support to make the experience of using Excel on the iPad more like a desktop usage experience. There are more print options available, and a new "Flick to Select" feature lets users flick to select all data in a row or column.

Excel is all about interacting with, consuming, and manipulating your data. When it comes to interacting with data, PivotTables are key to helping explore that data. With Excel for iPad you can now sort, filter, expand and collapse, show details, and even refresh PivotTables whose data is all contained within the workbook. You can even change how your PivotTables look and feel by changing both their visual style and layout.

We’ve also made it easier to consume workbooks and select data, including a large data range, with the introduction of a new flick gesture. Simply grab the selection handle, flick it in any direction, and Excel will automatically select from where you started to the next blank cell. Say you’re at the top of a column of data and want to select all the way to the bottom. Just flick down and the column is selected automatically.

Word didn't gain new features beyond the Picture Tools, Fonts, and ability to send PDFs, but PowerPoint has seen some improvements. The app has a new Presenter View that lets users view and edit speaker notes, see next slides, and jump to other slides while presenting. Presenter tools allow for highlights and drawings to be erased within presentations, while new media features make it possible for users to play videos, sound effects, and background music while presenting. There are also new tools to insert videos from the Camera Roll and add/edit hyperlinks.

With this update you can also make your presentations more rich and interactive than ever by more easily including video and sound to help get your point across. Not only do all of your embedded videos and sound recordings now play right from PowerPoint for iPad, but you can insert video directly from your Camera Roll as well. This allows you to quickly record, embed, and present interactive content more quickly than ever, and all from one device.

Today's update is the second major update the Office software has gotten since its March release. Back in April, the three apps gained some important features that had been missing since launch, including the ability to print directly from the apps.

Microsoft's Office for iPad apps have proven to be highly successful for the company. During its Q4 earnings call in July, Microsoft announced that its Office for iPad software had been downloaded more than 35 million times.

Microsoft has committed to continually improving its Office for iPad apps, which now directly compete with Apple's own iWork suite including Numbers, Keynote, and Pages. "As this wave of updates hopefully shows, we're making good on our commitment to delivering continuous updates and improvements to the Office for iPad apps," read's the company's blog post on the new update.

All of the updates to the new Office apps are currently available and can be downloaded from the App Store for free. While the apps can be accessed for free, unlocking full capabilities, including editing and creating documents, requires an Office 365 subscription.

- Microsoft Word for iPad [Direct Link]
- Microsoft Excel for iPad [Direct Link]
- Microsoft PowerPoint for iPad [Direct Link]

Apple's content delivery network is now live in the US and Europe, reports analyst Dan Rayburn of Frost & Sullivan (Via ArsTechnica). The CDN may deliver multiple terabits of data per second, allowing Apple to more efficiently to distribute software updates and other content to its customers.

Apple's CDN apparently went live recently as current trace routes provided by Rayburn show that OS X downloads are piped directly from Apple to internet service providers, such as Comcast. Apple is paying for this direct route in order to avoid congestion and other issues during times of high volume traffic, such as when a new version of OS X is released. Other providers who possibly have negotiated these interconnect deals with Apple are rumored to include AT&T and Verizon, both of which have similar contracts with Netflix.

Apple has not publicly commented on its CDN plans, but the company is expected to use the network to deliver iOS and OS X downloads, while gradually transitioning its iTunes and App Store away from Akamai and other Level 3 CDNs.

"It’s too early to know how much traffic will come over and when, but Apple’s already started using their own CDN much faster than I expected. The pace of their build out and amount of money they are spending on infrastructure is incredible. Based on my calculations, Apple has already put in place multiple terabits per second of capacity and by the end of this year, will have invested well more than $100M in their CDN build out."

Apple allegedly has been working on building this content delivery network for several years, with a rapid acceleration in the past year to bring the service online. The rollout of this network brings content delivery under Apple's direct control, helping to ensure its customers can access data reliably and quickly.

As part of its pending acquisition of Beats Electronics and Beats Music, Apple has begun making offers to Beats employees that will see roughly 200 of Beats' 700 positions phased out over the next few months. News of the job cuts was first reported by 9to5Mac yesterday, with additional detail provided by the New York Post.

According to the reports, most of the job cuts will be in human resources, finance, and other areas where there is overlap between Apple and Beats staff. Some Beats employees will reportedly transfer to Apple's headquarters in Cupertino, while others will remain at Beats' current facility in the Los Angeles area.

Apple has issued a statement to Re/code confirming that some Beats employees have received only temporary offers from Apple as part of the transition.

Apple spokesman Tom Neumayr’s explanation: “We’re excited to have the Beats team join Apple, and we have extended job offers to every Beats employee. Because of some overlap in our operations, some offers are for a limited period and we’ll work hard during this time to find as many of these Beats employees as we can another permanent job within Apple.”

Apple's $3 billion deal to acquire Beats and its headphone and streaming music businesses has been approved by European regulators, but will not be finalized until U.S. regulators sign off on the deal. Apple indicated at the time the acquisition was announced that it expects the deal to close this quarter.

Security research Karsten Nohl of Berlin's SR Labs has revealed a flaw in USB devices that potentially allows hackers to evade all known security measures used by a computer. In a report by Wired, Nohl says his BadUSB exploit is "almost like a magic trick" because "you cannot tell where the virus came from."

The exploit takes advantage of a flaw that allows a hacker to tamper with the firmware that controls the functions of USB devices such as mice, thumb drives and keyboards.

Because BadUSB resides not in the flash memory storage of USB devices, but in the firmware that controls their basic functions, the attack code can remain hidden long after the contents of the device’s memory would appear to the average user to be deleted. And the two researchers say there’s no easy fix: The kind of compromise they’re demonstrating is nearly impossible to counter without banning the sharing of USB devices or filling your port with superglue.

“These problems can’t be patched,” says Nohl, who will join Lell in presenting the research at the Black Hat security conference in Las Vegas. “We’re exploiting the very way that USB is designed.”

Nohl, along with fellow SR Labs researcher Jakob Lell, will present additional details on this attack during a presentation at the annual Black Hat hacking conference, which will be held next week in Las Vegas. The title of his presentation is "Bad USB - On Accessories that Turn Evil."