MacRumors

Amid rumors of both 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch versions of the iPhone 6, speculation about what resolutions Apple will use for the new devices has generated a number of different theories. The most concrete suggestion so far has been a 1704 x 960 resolution that could see the current "2x" Retina display move to an even sharper "3x" display.

A new photo from Russian luxury modified iPhone vendor Feld & Volk [Instagram page] now shows the display of the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 under a microscope, with the firm telling MacRumors the panel does indeed carry a resolution of 1704 x 960.

The photograph posted by Feld & Volk does not, however, necessarily appear to agree with that claim, as it seems to show roughly 13 pixels per mm in the horizontal and vertical directions, while a 4.7-inch display at 1704 x 960 should be closer to 16 pixels per mm. The current iPhone 5s display is roughly 10.5 pixels per mm.

A potential answer to this problem arrives in another report today from 9to5Mac, which has discovered references to yet another resolution of 1472 x 828 within recent Xcode 6 beta releases.

This particular file outlines for the system where icons, by default, will be placed on an iPhone’s Home screen. This particular file, which was added in Xcode 6 beta 5 earlier this month and still exists in yesterday’s Xcode 6 beta 6, is optimized for an iPhone with a resolution of 414 (width) x 736 (height). The iPhone SDK parses hardware resolutions via “point values,” so the actual “Retina” resolution is in fact double (or potentially triple) whatever numbers the SDK presents.

While analysis quickly becomes speculative, one way Apple could use both of these rumored resolutions would be to to launch a 4.7-inch iPhone at 1472 x 828 and a 5.5-inch model at 1704 x 960. In that scenario, both iPhone 6 models would have pixel densities of 355-360 pixels per inch. This translates to roughly 14 pixels per mm in each direction, close to what is seen in the Feld & Volk photograph.

Depending on how the rumored 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch sizes have been rounded for convenience, the two iPhone 6 panels could actually offer the exact same pixel density, slightly higher than current iPhones and allowing for efficiencies in the manufacturing process if the same technologies and production methods are used in the two new models.

Apple is expected to introduce the iPhone 6 at a media event on September 9, but it remains unclear whether the company plans to show off both models at the same time, and even it does, there have been rumors that the larger model should ship up to several months later than the smaller version.

With the iPhone 6 launch less than a month away, we've been seeing new images of leaked parts on a near daily basis. Multiple images of both the front panel and the rear shell of the 4.7-inch device have surfaced, but for the first time, the two parts have been photographed together, giving us our clearest look yet at Apple's upcoming iPhone 6.

Shared by luxury iPhone vendor Feld & Volk [Instagram page] high quality images of the two parts show the glossy front panel's slightly tapered edges melding seamlessly into the rounded edges of the rear shell for a sleek, continuous curve.

A side view of the two pieces together also gives us a good idea of just how thin Apple's newest iPhone will be. Assembled, the iPhone 6 is expected to be significantly thinner than the 7.6mm thick iPhone 5s, coming in at approximately 7mm.

With its softly rounded corners and redesigned pill-shaped volume buttons, the iPhone 6 closely resembles the style of the iPad mini, iPad Air, and newest iPod touch. Shell images also suggest the iPhone 6 will adopt redesigned speaker holes, a round True Tone flash, an embedded Apple logo, and a relocated right-side power button for easier one-handed use.

It's important to note that Feld and Volk's images still depict unfinished iPhone 6 parts that are in rough condition, and Apple's completed device will undoubtedly look even more polished.

Along with the assembled front panel and rear shell, we've seen virtually every other iPhone 6 part, giving us a fairly good idea of what to expect from the device. For a full walkthrough of each aspect of the iPhone 6, make sure to check out our roundup.

Apple may be planning to delay the launch of its iWatch until 2015, according to a new report from KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. Echoing several past reports that have also alluded to a 2015 launch date, Kuo suggests that difficulty manufacturing the device will lead to its postponement.

We reiterate our view that iWatch, as compared to existing products, and as Apple's (US) first attempt at a wearable device, represents a much higher level of difficulty for the company as regards component and system design, manufacturing and integration between hardware and software. While we are positive on iWatch and believe that the advantages of the design and business model behind it are difficult to copy, we think, given the aforementioned challenges, that the launch could be postponed to 2015.

In a July report, Kuo predicted mass production on the iWatch would begin in November, with a launch coming in 2015. Kuo has suggested that the iWatch's small form factor, its use of a flexible AMOLED screen, and its sapphire display cover have all contributed to production difficulties.

Kuo's language in the report, which suggests the launch of the iWatch "could" be postponed, indicates that he is somewhat uncertain about the target ship date for the device. Though Kuo has a solid track record when it comes to Apple rumors, he has provided inaccurate guesses at times.

While it may seem like a 2015 launch date contradicts rumors that have pointed towards an October debut for the device, it is entirely possible that Apple will introduce the iWatch months before it is available to ship to customers. Historically, Apple has introduced some products in new categories ahead of their ship date.

The Mac Pro, for example, was introduced at WWDC in June before sales began in December. Steve Jobs also unveiled the original iPhone six months before it launched, and the iPad was shown at an Apple event more than two months ahead of its sale date.

Rumors have suggested the iWatch will contain a multitude of health and fitness sensors, measuring metrics like calorie consumption, sleep activity, blood oxygen levels, and more. It's said to integrate deeply with iOS 8's Health app and it may come in multiple sizes and at multiple price points.

Apple today saw its stock hit the $100 mark for the first time since its seven-for-one split that took place in early June. Following the split, Apple was trading at roughly $92 a share, but since that time the stock has trended upward until hitting the $100 mark today.

The company is also very close to an all-time high stock price, accounting for the stock split. Apple's all-time intraday high was set on September 21, 2012 at $100.72 ($705.07 on a pre-split basis), and the all-time high closing price was set just a few days earlier on September 19 at $100.30 ($702.10 pre-split).

Even as Apple sits at almost record high share prices, the company is not ready to set a new high for overall market capitalization, which is calculated as the share price multiplied by the number of shares available. That is due to Apple's aggressive stock buyback program that has seen the company reduce its share count by almost 600 million over the past two years.

The move is intended to boost value to investors by reducing share supplies while also putting to use some of Apple's vast cash holdings. Much of the share repurchase program is, however, being financed by low-interest debt, as the majority of Apple's cash is currently held overseas, and it would be considerably more expensive for Apple to pay required taxes on that cash to bring it home for domestic uses than to simply pay for the repurchase program out of its ongoing domestic earnings over time where tax is already being paid.

The repurchase program has also signaled to investors that Apple has believed its stock to be undervalued, demonstrating the company sees purchasing its own stock as a better use of cash than other investment opportunities. And finally, reducing share counts also eliminates future dividend payments that would have been made on those now-retired shares, providing an additional financial benefit to the company.

Update 1PM PT: Apple's stock price closed at an all-time high of $100.53, breaking its previous closing high of $100.30 ($702.10 pre-split) set on September 19, 2012.

While Apple released a sixth developer preview of OS X Yosemite yesterday, a corresponding sixth beta of iOS 8 was not provided to developers at the same time. As a result, the company's iOS beta 5 released earlier this month may turn out to be the final build seeded to developers before the golden master release.

Though developers may not see another beta version, a new report from BGR claims Apple has released a sixth iOS 8 beta to its testing partners. The release would explain conflicting rumors as to whether there would be a sixth beta version if this version is made available only to carriers and other partners for testing rather than the broader developer community.

According to BGR, this beta 6 version of iOS 8 is being released only to testing partners and will not be seeded to developers for testing because the timing is so close to the golden master build. The build change log obtained by BGR is as follows:

OTA Software Update Paths
Carrier Builds
Not Available
User Builds
Not Available

Issues fixed since Seed 5

Baseband & Telephony
Fixed an issue where incorrect pop up message was displayed when SIM was removed
Fixed an issue where clicking on cancel button turned LTE on
Fixed an issue where excessive registration was tried with dual IMSI SIM

Continuity
Fixed an occasional mail continuity failure from OS X to iOS
Fixed an issue causing continuity to fail after opening control center

FaceTime
Fixed an occasional problem where MT call connection quality would be incorrectly treated as “poor”

GameCenter
Fixed an issue where the active photo cannot be deleted

iCloud
Fixed a problem where document sync would sometimes consume excessive cellular data

iTunes Store
URLs for the store app are no longer broken in received mail
Fixed a problem with excessive prompts to sign in to the iTunes Store

Keyboard
Fixed an intermittent issue keyword shifting when rotating the screen
Fixed an issue where the emoji keyboard was unusable on Safari

Mail
Notes are no longer duplicated when opened through Gmail
Fixed an issue where after withdrawing a draft with attachments, browsing to another message resulted in the attachments getting lost
Fixed an issue where forwarding an email without a photo attachment still sends a photo
Fixed an issue when forwarding an email with an attached photo just brought up the original message without a photo
Fixed an issue where email could be deleted from the lock screen without prompting for a passcode

Maps
Fixed a problem where maps would sometimes consume excessive cellular data

Messages
Added support for SMS relay opt-in prompt
Fixed issue that caused devices to receive SMS via relay for unselected aliases
Fixed failures sending current location via MMS
Fixed an issue where messages partially overlap Chinese keyboards
Fixed an issue where changing a group name didn’t propagate to other devices until a message is sent

Phone
Fixed an issue where an incoming call was being relayed back to originating phone
Fixed an issue where options on declining a call didn’t work with call relay

Photos
Fixed an issue where edited photos did not display properly after restoring from backup
Improved full screen photo sharing
Set default to keep all photos on device for users with 5GB iCloud space
Fixed an issue where a user could not select multiple photos and upload to Facebook via Safari

Push Notifications
Improved push connection management upon account logout with multiple associated devices
Fixed a problem where Exchange push notifications would stop after responding to an invitation from the lock screen
Fixed an issue where a user does not receive a notification for incoming messages when the banner for the previous one is pulled down

Springboard
Fixed an issue unlocking an iPhone while on an active call
Fixed an issue where the keyboard would sometimes become unresponsive when the screen is locked

Visual Voicemail
Fixed an issue where Voicemail could not be played under certain error conditions
Fixed an issue where Phone App hanged when tried to check Voicemail

Testing partners with iOS beta 6 must approve the version by September 5, ahead of the final iOS 8 preview and the introduction of the iPhone 6 on September 9. A public release of iOS 8 for current devices will likely come roughly a week later, just a few days before the launch of the iPhone 6 in the first wave of markets.

According to BGR's sources, Apple may still have some work to do, as this build allegedly has already been rejected for an issue with YouTube playback in Safari.

The iPhone 6 may incorporate Qualcomm's MDM9625 LTE modem, according to a new photo of the device's supposed logic board shared by GeekBar (Google Translate, via G for Games).

Originally announced in 2012 and featuring support for speeds of up to 150 MBPS and improved LTE networking, the Category 4 chip would mark an improvement over the Qualcomm MDM9615 chip found in the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5. The MDM9625 is also more durable than its predecessor, allowing for lower temperatures under heavy performance thanks to a refined 28-nanometer production process.

Along with those features, the MDM9625 includes support for next-generation LTE Advanced networks, which have yet to roll out in most parts of the world. News of the MDM9625's inclusion in the iPhone 6 also contrast a detailed yet sketchy report from VentureBeat posted earlier this month, which stated that the iPhone 6 would include a Category 6 LTE modem capable of 300 MBPS throughput speeds. That radio however was said to not include support for LTE-Advanced networks as featured in the MDM9625.

GeekBar also posted a supposed schematic from the iPhone 6 yesterday, which appeared to show support for near field communications (NFC) in the device. The schematic also references a NAND flash chip, which was originally interpreted by the website to be 1 GB of DRAM in the device.

Apple will announce the iPhone 6 at an event on Tuesday, September 9. The launch of the 4.7-inch version will probably follow soon after, as production issues may hold back the release of the 5.5-inch version until late this year or early next year. In addition to a larger display, the iPhone 6 will feature a thinner chassis, a faster A8 chip, an improved camera with stabilization, and more.

Apple today announced that it has added 21 more acts to the lineup for this year's iTunes Festival in London, adding artists such as Lenny Kravitz, The Script, Foxes, and more. Those acts will join artists such as Maroon 5, Pharrell Williams, David Guetta and many others for 30 nights of concerts at The Roundhouse throughout September.

Free tickets for the concerts in London will be available through iTunes in a lottery system as well as through local radio stations. For those not attending in person, the iTunes Festival will be broadcast via Apple TV, iOS app, and the iTunes Desktop application.

Earlier this year, Apple held the first iTunes U.S. Festival at South by Southwest (SXSW) 2014, which was held at Moody Theater. The 2013 iTunes Festival in London featured performances from a large lineup including Justin Timberlake, Thirty Seconds to Mars, Jack Johnson, and more.

Last Friday, a report and photos of a new Lightning cable with a reversible USB connector surfaced, which was followed by another image from frequent iOS device part leaker Sonny Dickson. Now, Dickson has shared a new short video of the Lightning cable in action, showing its USB connector being reversed and plugged in both ways.

Apple could start shipping a new Lightning cable alongside the next wave of iOS device releases this fall, which will likely start with the iPhone 6 next month. It is unknown if the updated cable will contain any new features aside from a reversible USB connector, although past rumors have pointed to support for high-definition audio playback.

An Apple patent discussing a reversible USB connector was also published last month, and discussed a more user-friendly design compared to current cables. However, it is unknown if this new cable will face challenges from the likes of California company UltraTek, which already holds a patent itself for a reversible connector and currently sells cables through major online retailers.

Sprint today announced the debut of a new Sprint Family Share Pack plan, aiming to draw customers by offering significant amounts of data. Sprint's new plan provides customers with 20GB of shared data, which is double the amount that Sprint offered with its previous Framily plans.

For a limited time, customers who switch to Sprint will get the 20GB of shared data plus an additional 2GB of data per line for $100 per month until the end of 2015, with support for up to 10 lines (including a waived $15/month device fee). That equates to 40GB of shared data for 10 lines, up from the 1GB per line Sprint originally offered under its Framily plans.

The Sprint Family Share Pack, offering double the high-speed shareable data for smartphones, basic phones, tablets and mobile broadband devices, will be available starting Aug. 22. For example you can get four lines and 20GB of data for $160 compared to 10GB of data for the same price from AT&T or Verizon.

But wait, there's more. To kick off Sprint's "new day for data" campaign, Sprint is offering a limited-time promotion for the Sprint Family Share Pack: For a family with up to 10 lines, get 20GB of Shared Data and Unlimited Talk & Text for only $100 a month through 2015 – and, as an added bonus, customers will get an additional 2GB per line for up to 10 lines. For a family of four, that's a savings of $60 per month better than AT&T’s and Verizon’s current pricing through 2015; double the data of Verizon; and more than double the high-speed data of AT&T and T-Mobile.

To further sweeten the deal and attract new users, Sprint is offering up to $350 (via Visa Prepaid Card) to cover early termination fees for users switching from other carriers. Sprint's device fees are still applicable, requiring both Easy Pay users and those who sign up for subsidized phones to pay device fees in the range of $15 to $25 (minus the $15 discount).

While the promotional $100/month price is only for new customers, existing Sprint subscribers can get 20GB of shared data for up to 10 lines for $160 per month. Current subscribers cannot, however, get the 2GB of bonus data being offered to new customers. A full breakdown on pricing:

Sprint's website also promises to bring more "great announcements" in the near future. Sprint's new CEO, Marcelo Claure, has pledged to bring more disruptive pricing to Sprint following its failed merger with T-Mobile.

Sprint's new plan will be available beginning on Friday, August 22.

Apple today released a new version of OS X Yosemite to developers, two weeks after releasing the fifth Developer Preview and more than two months after unveiling the new desktop operating system at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference.

The update, build 14A3429f, can be downloaded from the Mac App Store and through the Mac Developer Center. Apple has also released a Dictation Language update and Xcode 6 beta 6, though it appears the Xcode 6 software has been temporarily removed from the Developer Center.

OS X Yosemite brings a flatter, more modern look to OS X, with an emphasis on translucency and redesigned dock, windows, and more. It also includes a multitude of new features, such as improved integration with iOS 8 through Continuity, a new "Today" view in Notification Center that offers integration with third-party apps, a retooled Spotlight search with new data sources, and several new features for apps like Mail, Safari, and Messages.

Over the course of the beta testing period, each Developer Preview has added new features and refined the look and performance of OS X Yosemite. DP 4, for example, added a revamped version of iTunes with a streamlined design and support for Family Sharing, while an earlier beta introduced a new Dark Mode.

Today's Developer Preview is limited to registered developers, but in late July, Apple made a version of OS X Yosemite available to the public as part of a wide-ranging beta test. The pre-release version of Yosemite available to those participating in the public beta program is not expected to receive as many updates as the developer version.

Notable changes in DP 6:

Settings - The System Preferences menu has a new look with new icons.

Battery icon - There's a new battery icon.

Wallpapers - Developer Preview 6 introduces new Yosemite-themed wallpapers.

Do Not Disturb - The "Do Not Disturb" button in the Notification Center has returned in Yosemite DP 6. It was missing from previous betas.

Dashboard - The Dashboard in Yosemite is now translucent.

Icon updates - There are new hard drive icons in DP 6. There are also new icons for Font Book, Mission Control, Notes, Terminal, and Script Editor.

Messages Screen Sharing - A feature that allows users to share their screen using Messages was activated in DP 6. Screen sharing requires only an iMessage/Apple ID account and does not require users to have an AIM account as it did previously.

Update 6:00 PM PT: A new version of Xcode 6 beta 6 is available for download after being pulled from the Developer Center earlier today.