MacRumors

In December, an apparent bug appeared in Apple's iMessage service that allowed iMessages to be sent to a stolen iPhone. The messages can, apparently, continue to be sent and received from the stolen phone after a remote wipe and a SIM card deactivation. This is obviously an unintended action, and though Apple explains the solution to be "toggle iMessage on and off" in the Settings app, that is an impossible act to perform remotely on a stolen phone.

The Next Web today reports of the case of an anonymous Apple customer who had her iPhone stolen and the lengthy discussions she had with Apple afterwards.

After her iPhone was stolen, Customer K had her SIM card deactivated. However, her friends told her that iMessages they sent continued to be delivered to the stolen iPhone because she hadn't invoked Find My iPhone's Remote Wipe feature. Apple's technical support personnel suggested a wide variety of solutions to prevent her messages from being sent to the other iPhone.

Suggestions to reset her Apple ID password, insert her SIM card into another iOS device, among others, made sense. One request, that she contact her friends and tell them to stop sending her iMessages, Customer K thought was completely unreasonable -- not to mention impractical.

Eventually, nearly 6 weeks after her phone was initially stolen, Apple did finally figure out a unique solution:

Apple was finally able to remotely push ‘code’ out to the stolen iPhone in order to make the problem stop. This was a result of an Apple Engineering Team weighing in on how to solve the issue.

After the problem was finally solved, the customer continued to push Apple on the issue of compensation and was directed to Apple's legal department. She informed Apple Legal that she was troubled by the length of time that it took to prevent the iMessages from going to the stolen phone and wanted compensation for the extensive breach of privacy.

Eventually, after a phone discussion with Apple legal, K was offered an iPod Touch as compensation for her trouble. Apple claimed it would give her a device with which to receive iMessages.

Apple has still not commented on the matter, but one theory is that the iMessage servers permanently link the UDID number of a particular handset to an Apple ID, so it knows what handset to deliver iMessages to. Messages continue to be sent to a stolen iPhone until iMessage is manually toggled on and off — a task that is impossible to perform on a stolen phone.

Patently Apple reports that Apple last week filed a curious new trademark application for the term "macroscalar". The company has typically quietly registered trademarks in countries such as Trinidad & Tobago, only to later apply for the marks in the United States and other major markets once the new products and features have been announced. While an application for "macroscalar" was indeed filed in Trinidad & Tobago last August, the new U.S. application and a similar one in Hong Kong are sparking speculation that Apple may have jumped the gun in announcing some new processor technology.

Apple's "Macroscalar" isn't just a new marketing line; it's a processor architecture that's been in the works at Apple since 2004. In fact, Apple owns at least four granted patents on the technology that has yet to come to light. We first covered it in 2009 and briefly twice last year.

ZDNet published more on Apple's macroscalar architecture last July following one of those patent disclosures, including an explanation of how the technique could be used to improve processor efficiencies by optimizing data-dependent loops.

The macroscalar processor addresses this problem in a new way: at compile-time it generates contingent secondary instructions so when a data-dependent loop completes the next set of instructions are ready to execute. In effect, it loads another pipeline for, say, completing a loop, so the pipeline remains full whether the loop continues or completes. It can also load a set of sequential instructions that run within or between loops, speeding execution as well.

From a user perspective, the technology could support faster performance and lower power consumption, something Apple would definitely be interested in pursing for its mobile devices.

Since Apple provides its own compilers as well as designing CPUs, it is uniquely positioned to offer a complete macroscalar solution to its large band of iOS developers, further widening the price/performance gap between it and the iPad wannabes.

Is it a breakthrough? It could be if the efficiencies it promises can be realized in practice. We’ll have to see just how good Apple’s compiler engineers are.

While no specifics on Apple's plans have been revealed, the public application for a trademark on the "macroscalar" term is a curious development for the company given that most of its trademarks relate to product and feature names and other promotional descriptions. As a result, speculation suggests that Apple could be preparing to make a significant announcement that will prominently feature the "Macroscalar" term in a similar way to how the company uses "Retina" to describe its high-resolution iPhone and iPod touch displays.

CNET reports on a new research note from analyst Linley Gwennap, who believes that custom circuitry in Apple's A5 system-on-a-chip including "earSmart" noise cancellation technology from Audience is the reason why Siri is currently an iPhone 4S-only feature. Gwennap cites Audience's S-1 filing made with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission last month in advance of the company's initial public offering in backing up his analysis.

Audience revealed details of its Apple partnership in January, when it filed paperwork for an initial public offering (IPO) of stock. Teardown work from iFixit and Chipworks revealed a dedicated Audience chip in the iPhone 4, but the iPhone 4S integrates Audience's "EarSmart" technology directly into the A5 processor, the company's S-1 filing said. [...]

"Even after accounting for the dual Cortex-A9 CPUs and the large GPU that provides the A5 with industry-leading 3D graphics performance, the remaining die area seems too large for the usual mundane housekeeping logic," Gwennap said in a report yesterday. "To reduce system cost and eliminate the extra package required for the Audience chip, Apple cut a deal to integrate the noise-reduction technology directly into its A5 processor, which appears in the iPhone 4S."

The earSmart technology found in the iPhone 4S is said to be significantly better at suppressing background noise than the technology used in the iPhone 4, enabling Siri to more easily pick out the user's voice.

Audience's standalone chip for the iPhone 4 was detailed last year, and teardown specialists quickly noted that a similar chip was missing from the iPhone 4S, with the presumption being that it had been integrated directly into the A5.

Audience outlines this development in its S-1, noting that it is now receiving royalties from Apple that will be lower than the payments it had previously received for the dedicated chips. Also of interest is Audience's disclosure that it has licensed its next-generation noise cancellation intellectual property to Apple, although Apple is under no obligation to use it in future devices.

Commencing in the three months ended December 31, 2011, Apple has integrated our processor IP [intellectual property] in certain of its mobile phones. Pursuant to our agreement, this OEM [original equipment manufacturer] will pay us a royalty, on a quarterly basis, for the use of our processor IP for all mobile phones in which it is used. We have granted a similar license to this OEM for a new generation of processor IP; however, this OEM is not obligated to incorporate our processor IP into any of its current or future mobile devices.

As part of the risk factors accompanying the regulatory filing, Audience notes that Apple and its contract manufacturers Foxconn and Protek represent roughly 80% of the company's revenue, and with payments from Apple decreasing under the new licensing arrangement, Audience's revenue could decline if it can not continue to bring new customers on board. Audience also acknowledges that it could see significant losses if Apple in the future develops its own technology or if it opts for a different solution such as noise cancellation technology integrated into baseband chips instead of Apple's own A-series chips.

New York City's Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA)'s sweetheart deal for Apple's just-opened Grand Central Terminal retail store seems to be paying dividends for the MTA and neighboring stores. One restaurant is reporting a 7 percent increase in sales since the store opened in December.

Michael Jordan's The Steak House is located across the terminal from the new Apple Store, Grand Central and co-owner Peter Glazier says the restaurant has seen a 7 percent jump in sales in the seven weeks that the Apple Store has been open, reports Crains New York. Glazier also says the rise isn't because Apple replaced another restaurant, Metrazur, in the terminal. "The jump only happened after Apple opened," said Glazier, not in the several months that the space was being renovated as the store was built.

There was some criticism of the deal that Apple and the MTA worked out, most notably around the lack of a revenue sharing agreement which is standard for most tenants of Grand Central. Apple's $60-per-square-foot lease agreement is also significantly lower than what most other tenants are paying. The MTA argued that a flagship Apple Store would bring in significant foot traffic to the terminal, benefiting both other GCT tenants and the terminal as a whole.

The MTA has previously noted that for every 1% increase in sales across the terminal's retailers, the MTA will gain $500,000 in rent due to the percentage rent provisions in place on the leases of nearly every other tenant with the exception of Apple.

MTA's gamble appears to be paying off, for at least one establishment.

(Photo via Yelp/Chris F.)

The Verge reports that Best Buy has been surveying some of its customers on proposed products and services, with the company including a description of a 42-inch "Apple HDTV" priced at $1499. The listing is undoubtedly simply a concept dreamed up by Best Buy to help gauge interest in such an offering, but provides an interesting perspective on what the major electronics retailer might be hoping for and what it thinks its customers would want in an Apple television set.

Be one of the first to get the all new 42" Apple HDTV at Best Buy for $1499. Apple finally reinvents what a TV can do:

- 42" 1080p LED flat panel display
- Incorporates Apple's operating system (iOS) found in its current Apple TV set top box which allows you to purchase and stream movies and other entertainment from the Internet
- Download and use apps from the App Store. Can you imagine playing Angry Birds on a big screen in your living room?
- Supports Apple's new iCloud service for storing your movies, TV shows, and music content that you've purchased from iTunes and beam them to your Apple HDTV.
- Use your iPad or iPhone as a remote control, and do everything from controlling your TV, to purchasing new shows and swapping content between your Apple devices and the iCloud service.
- Built-in convenience with built in iSight camera and microphone for Skype.
- In addition to iTunes, stream content from popular sites such as Netflix, YouTube, and flickr.
- Available for $1499

The promotional text makes no mention of Siri or voice control, which has been rumored to be one of the device's key revolutionary features following Steve Jobs' revelation that he had "finally cracked" how to reshape the way people interact with their television sets.

Best Buy's survey questions on the proposed Apple HDTV go on to assess respondents' level of interest in purchasing the product, whether they believe it is new and different and whether it would solve a problem or fulfill a need for them.

Samsung aired another of its series of Apple-mocking commercials during the 2012 Super Bowl tonight. In this ad, Samsung is pushing the new Samsung Galaxy Note.

Like the previous ads in the series, Samsung depicts iPhone fans standing in line for the new iPhone, while promoting their own products as the "next big thing".

Samsung's head of marketing has acknowledged she is directly targeting Apple and shooting to reach a more emotional connection with their consumers.

“Especially in U.S., people are obsessed with Apple,” Lee said, in a lengthy interview at the Consumer Electronics Show earlier this month. “It’s time to change people’s attention.”

The Samsung Galaxy Note that is depicted in the commercial is a 5.3" device which also comes with a stylus. Steve Jobs is famously quoted as saying "if you see a stylus, they blew it."

There had been some interesting claims last year that Apple had been actively testing an ARM (A5) based MacBook Air. The ARM processor is the same one that is used in the iPhone and iPad. An ARM-based MacBook Air, however, would raise a number of questions about what kind of device it might actually be. Would it run OS X, or iOS? Would it be closer to a Mac or an iOS device? One of the main advantages of using an ARM processor would be a reduction in power-requirements, but with a corresponding drop in computing power. Using ARM, however, would abandon binary compatibility with existing Mac OS X applications.

CNet reports on a research note from Citigroup analyst Richard Gardner who was able to meet with Apple CEO Tim Cook and CFO Peter Oppenheimer on Thursday. Gardner addresses this question in his note with the following:

"Tim Cook reiterated his view that rapid innovation on the iOS platform (and mobile OS platforms in general) will significantly broaden the use case for tablets, eventually pushing annual tablet volumes above those of traditional PCs. We have wondered whether Apple might offer an ARM-based version of MacBook Air at some point; we walked away from this meeting with the impression that Apple feels iPad satisfies--or will soon satisfy--the needs of those who might have been interested in such a product."

Based on his conversations with the Apple executives, it seems Gardner believes that the iPad will evolve to meet any needs that might be met with an ARM-based MacBook air.

Rumors have suggested that the iPad will likely be getting a significant upgrade in the near future, with a faster processor, improved graphics capabilities and the long rumored Retina display. Of course, Cook is unlikely to divulge specific product plans at analyst meetings, but a complete Apple transition to ARM processors seemed an unlikely prospect regardless.

In October, AT&T announced that they would start throttling data usage amongst mobile Unlimited Data Plan users. While AT&T no longer offers an Unlimited Data plan to new customers, many of the original iPhone purchasers are still grandfathered into that plan. Those iPhone users have been able to retain these Unlimited plans, even though AT&T has since moved to a tiered data plan structure.

When AT&T announced their plan to start throttling users, the company said that they would only be throttling the top 5% of users. Early reports of affected users had pointed to 10GB-12GB per month users as the initially affected.

It seems that ceiling has decreased significantly over the past few months, at least for some regions. John Cozen reports that he received his top 5% data usage warning after reaching only 2.1GB of data for January.

I received a message during my last billing cycle, warning I was in the top 5% of my region and would experience reduced data speeds next time I reach that level of data use. I immediately checked my data usage on the AT&T iOS app.

2.1 GB. Less than I expected considering AT&T offers a 3GB plan for $30 a month. The same amount I’ve paid for the unlimited data plan since signing up with them many years ago. AT&T no longer offers an unlimited data plan, anyone still on it has been grandfathered in.

Cozen contacted AT&T to make sure it wasn't a mistake, and after several back and forth exchanges, it seems clear that it wasn't a mistake. The AT&T representatives seemed to confirm that 2.1GB did fall in the 5% range and the only option to avoid throttling was to move to a tiered plan.

Cozen was understandably upset since AT&T even offers an unthrottled 3GB plan for the same price he is paying at $30 month.

AT&T's top 5% measurement seems to be region-specific, as some users are continuing to see higher than 2GB usage without throttling.

After a couple of issues with some software updates, Apple has made some quiet revisions to address the problems.

The first was a Snow Leopard security update which inadvertently caused problems with Apple's PowerPC emulation layer Rosetta. Macworld notes that Apple has since released Security Update 2012-001, version 1.1 for Snow Leopard. The new version seems to fix the PowerPC crashing issues described with the original update.

Meanwhile, the crashing/CUI errors with 10.7.3 Delta updater has also been addressed by Apple. 9to5Mac notes that Apple has responded by pulling the Delta update altogether, leaving the Combo updater alone.

The different between the Delta and Combo updaters is normally just download size alone. The Delta updater is a smaller download since it just includes the changes, while the Combo updater includes everything and weighs in at 1.3GB. The Combo updater should be available at this support page for direct download, but the page is presently not working. The direct download (1.3GB) link is still working at this time.

Some iTunes Match users are encountering difficulties when attempting to download songs they have previously uploaded to iTunes Match. Matched songs appear unaffected for most users. Threads on both the MacRumors Forums and the Apple Support Communities detail the issues.

I keep getting the "error = -2114" and "Please check that the connection to the network is active and try again." It then moves to the next download and most times is succsesful. I am getting this error in the last few hours and to about 10-20% of my downloads.

The Verge confirms that the issue occurs in both iTunes 10.5.2 and 10.5.3, and on both Snow Leopard and Lion.

There has been no word from Apple about the outage and the iCloud System Status page does not reflect any current issues.

This isn't the first issue that Apple has run into with iTunes Match in recent days. Apple is reportedly investigating a problem with songs with explicit lyrics being converted from "explicit" to "clean" after being matched.

Several Apple TV users have reported a new addition to the menus of their devices, with the new option bringing Genius recommendations for movies and TV shows in their libraries. Curiously, early reports noted that rather than carrying a correct menu title, the movie option carried the name "ATV.Menu.MOVIE.GeniusItem", suggesting that the new feature may have appeared prematurely. Apple seems to have fixed the issue, however, with the menu option now showing properly as "Genius".

Despite the strange display of the menu option, the feature does appear to have been functional since its initial appearance yesterday, with users being able to access Genius recommendations for their content.

Genius recommendations for movies and TV shows have been offered for some time in iTunes itself through the iTunes Sidebar, but those recommendations have not been available on the second-generation Apple TV. Genius recommendations are also available through the iTunes app on iOS devices.

Following Apple's release of iBooks Author last month to support creation of iBooks Textbooks, significant controversy arose regarding the software's licensing, which specified that the output from the software could only be sold via the iBookstore and not any other marketplace.

Some confusion had resulted from Apple's language, with some believing that Apple was claiming rights to all content used in the production of the iBooks Textbooks, perhaps attempting to exclude books from being published in any other form.

Apple has now addressed the issue by releasing an update to iBooks Author that includes a modified licensing agreement to clarify that Apple claims rights only to the .ibooks document format itself, with authors being free to distribute their content in non-.ibooks formats however they wish.

One key clarification comes in the "important note" included at the beginning of the license agreement. Previously, the note read:

If you charge a fee for any book or other work you generate using this software (a “Work”), you may only sell or distribute such Work through Apple (e.g., through the iBookstore) and such distribution will be subject to a separate agreement with Apple.

Apple has now clarified the note to read:

If you want to charge a fee for a work that includes files in the .ibooks format generated using iBooks Author, you may only sell or distribute such work through Apple, and such distribution will be subject to a separate agreement with Apple. This restriction does not apply to the content of such works when distributed in a form that does not include files in the .ibooks format.

A second clarification comes in section 2B, which addresses distribution of works created using iBooks Author. Subsection (ii) previously read:

[I]f your Work is provided for a fee (including as part of any subscription-based product or service), you may only distribute the Work through Apple and such distribution is subject to the following limitations and conditions: (a) you will be required to enter into a separate written agreement with Apple (or an Apple affiliate or subsidiary) before any commercial distribution of your Work may take place; and (b) Apple may determine for any reason and in its sole discretion not to select your Work for distribution.

With the updated terms, Apple has reworded this section and added bold text addressing ownership of the original content:

[I]f the work is provided for a fee (including as part of any subscription-based product or service) and includes files in the .ibooks format generated using iBooks Author, the work may only be distributed through Apple, and such distribution will be subject to a separate written agreement with Apple (or an Apple affiliate or subsidiary); provided, however, that this restriction will not apply to the content of the work when distributed in a form that does not include files in the .ibooks format generated using iBooks Author. You retain all your rights in the content of your works, and you may distribute such content by any means when it does not include files in the .ibooks format generated by iBooks Author.

iBooks Author 1.0.1 with the updated license agreement is a free download from the Mac App Store, but weighs in at the application's full size of roughly 140 MB.

asymco's Horace Dediu has released his latest calculations of revenue and profits in the global mobile phone industry, finding that Apple has increased its share of the top vendors' profits to 75%. Samsung followed in second place with 16% of industry profits while no other vendor accounted for more than 4% of profits.

Apple reached 75% of profit share, nearly 40% of revenue share and 9% of units share.

Apple and Samsung combined for about 91% of profits with RIM third at 3.7%, HTC fourth at 3.0% and Nokia last at 1.8% of a $15 billion total for the quarter.

Dediu's analysis covers eight top mobile phone vendors: Apple, Samsung, Nokia, Research in Motion, HTC, LG, Motorola, and Sony Ericsson. While the numbers do not include a few major players such as China's ZTE for which public numbers are not available, his analysis does provide a relatively solid picture of the industry.

According to Dediu's numbers, Apple has held the top spot in profits for 13 quarters in row since overtaking Nokia, and now dominates the industry with its 75% share of profits. Apple succeeds by generating high profitability on high-end devices, enabling it to take the majority of profits while still controlling less than 10% of unit sales.

While the odd "CUI Error" experienced by some users after upgrading to OS X 10.7.3 earlier this week has garnered a fair amount of attention, it appears that a security update released for Mac OS X Snow Leopard at the same time is also causing major issues for users who rely on older PowerPC applications that run under Apple's Rosetta framework.

Security Update 2012-001 was released alongside OS X 10.7.3 on Wednesday in order to bring some of the security fixes found in OS X 10.7.3 to users still running Mac OS X Snow Leopard. But as noted in several discussions at Apple's forums (1, 2, 3) and elsewhere, users are experiencing a variety of problems with Rosetta apps following the update, including repeated crashes when trying to use any commands from the applications' main dropdown menus.

Users are reporting a significant number of applications being affected by the issue, including Microsoft Office X and 2004, older versions of Adobe Photoshop, Quicken, Filemaker 7, and various other applications that had been written to run on PowerPC chips used in Apple's older machines.

With Apple's transition to Intel, the company developed the Rosetta framework to allow those applications to continue to function on new hardware. Apple has discontinued Rosetta in OS X Lion, but it was still included as an optional install in Mac OS X Snow Leopard and a number of users have continued to use PowerPC applications on those systems either because they do not wish to upgrade or because newer versions are simply not available.

As noted in the Apple discussion forums, one user has worked to create a patch to address the issue, but the patch does not yet appear to work for all Rosetta applications.

This is a band-aid and is only recommended in emergency situations. Apple is currently working on a fix, but until that happens, we are stuck with reverse-engineering their update. I hope this helps those in distress from this update.

Those who have spoken to Apple customer service about the issue have received varying responses, from notes that the company doesn't yet know what the problem is to claims that there is no issue and that Rosetta support has simply been discontinued, with the latter being unlikely to be true given that the change occurred with a minor security update.

Bloomberg reports that Apple has removed all non-iPhone 4S devices with 3G technology from its German online store following a win by Motorola in the ongoing patent dispute between the two companies. The devices, which include the 3G iPad 2, iPhone 4, and iPhone 3GS, remain available from Apple's physical stores and other resellers in the country.

The removal is related to enforcement of a December injunction focused on a Motorola patent on 3G GPRS technology.

“While some iPad and iPhone models are not available through Apple’s online store in Germany right now, customers should have no problem finding them at one of our retail stores or an authorized reseller,” [Apple spokesman Alan] Hely said.

Beyond the 3G issue, Motorola has also won an injunction against Apple related to its iCloud services. Motorola has yet to seek enforcement of that ban, but could do so if it elected to post a $132 million bond to help cover penalties if it ultimately loses the case on appeal.

Apple is appealing both decisions, but has apparently agreed to remove the numerous 3G devices from its German online store while the process remains ongoing.

Update: SlashGear reports that Apple has issued a statement claiming that the 3G GPRS injunction has already been suspended and that the affected iPhone and iPad devices will return to the German online store "shortly".

Apple has been granted a suspension of the German injunction against 3G-enabled iOS devices, with the iPad WiFi + 3G, iPhone 4 and other gadgets back on sale through the company’s online store. ”All iPad and iPhone models will be back on sale through Apple’s online store in Germany shortly” the company told us in a statement. “Apple appealed this ruling because Motorola repeatedly refuses to license this patent to Apple on reasonable terms, despite having declared it an industry standard patent seven years ago.”

Update 2: The affected devices are now available again in the German online store.

Apple CEO Tim Cook earlier this week explained that new Apple's new Senior Vice President of Retail, John Browett, was hired not to "bring Dixons to Apple", but instead "to bring Apple to an even higher level of customer service and satisfaction." In the initial press release announcing the hire, Cook went even further, saying that "John shares that commitment [to customer service] like no one else we’ve met."

Showcasing part of John Browett's dedication to customer service, MacRumors reader Paul Harmer passed along this story of a run-in he had with Browett in the UK:

Just a quick note about John Browett -

About a year ago I was with a friend in our local branch of PC World (part of the Dixons group) looking at plasma TVs. We were assisted by a really charming and knowledgable assistant, who I must admit appeared slightly better-dressed and older than most in the store. He must have spent at least 30 minutes with us, explaining the pros and cons of LCD vs plasma, and the best deals available. An excellent impression.

Turns out it was John Browett making one of his regular store visits, but we had to prise this out of him.

Hope he does well, genuinely impressive bloke, and this ties in with your comment about his passion for customer service. He means it!

Paul

In another example of how Browett may be a better fit for Apple than previously realized, Mr. Harmer emailed Dixons Group to share the story of his experience and received an email back from CEO John Browett himself:

Dear Paul,

Thank you for your kind comments.

Hope the TV works out well.

Happy new year

John

When Steve Jobs was CEO, he was known to occasionally respond to customer emails directly. Since he became CEO, Tim Cook has been doing the same.

John Browett begins at Apple in April.