Eric Slivka
Eric is the Editor-in-Chief of MacRumors and has been writing for the site since 2008.
An avid swimmer and former biophysicist, Eric has been using Apple products for over 35 years and has been interviewed for pieces by The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Reuters, BBC, CNBC, and other publications.
Eric's current primary role involves day-to-day oversight of the editorial operations at MacRumors, but he also contributes occasional news and review articles while handling various other duties related to the site's operation.
An avid swimmer and former biophysicist, Eric has been using Apple products for over 35 years and has been interviewed for pieces by The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Reuters, BBC, CNBC, and other publications.
Eric's current primary role involves day-to-day oversight of the editorial operations at MacRumors, but he also contributes occasional news and review articles while handling various other duties related to the site's operation.
Eric Slivka's Articles
Lodsys Patents Under Attack as Legal Challenge to Their Validity Commences
FOSS Patents reports that Lodsys, the company that has begun filing lawsuits against App Store developers for implementing in app purchases and upgrade links, now finds itself on the receiving end of legal action. According to the report, a Michigan firm has filed a request for declaratory judgment regarding the validity of the four patents Lodsys is using in its own lawsuits. While a...
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Apple Releases iTunes 10.3.1, Potentially Fixing iOS Device Syncing Bug [Updated]
Just a day after releasing iTunes 10.3 to support some early iCloud features such as automatic downloads and access to previously purchased content, Apple has already pushed out iTunes 10.3.1 via Software Update and the company's software downloads page.
The documentation accompanying the release merely offers the same information as found with the original iTunes 10.3 release, providing no...
iOS 5 Contains References to Two Next-Generation iPad Models
TUAW reports that references to two new iPad models have been discovered in the just-released iOS 5 beta: "iPad3,1" and "iPad3,2". Given that there are currently three iPad 2 models internally identified as "iPad2,1" (Wi-Fi), "iPad2,2" (GSM), and "iPad2,3" (CDMA), the appearance of only two models in iOS 5 lends credence to rumors that the next-generation cellular-capable iPad may come as a...
Apple Updates iBooks With 'Read-Aloud' Feature for Children's Books
Apple today pushed out an update to its iBooks application for iOS devices [App Store], bringing several improvements including a new "read-aloud" narrator to select children's books. iBooks 1.3 adds several new features and improvements:
- Help your children learn to read with the new read-aloud feature included in select children's books from the iBookstore.
The read-aloud feature uses a ...
OS X Lion Developer Preview 4 Adds 'Find My Mac'
Alongside yesterday's announcements related to OS X Lion, Apple pushed out a fourth developer preview version of the next-generation operation system set to make its public launch next month. Among the new features in this build of Lion is "Find My Mac", a feature similar to the one already in use for iOS devices.
Evidence for Find My Mac functionality in Lion had been building, but the...
Demo of iPad's AirPlay Mirroring in iOS 5
One of the new iOS 5 features quickly touched on by Apple yesterday in its iOS 5 introduction was AirPlay Mirroring for the iPad 2, enabling users to wirelessly transmit the on-screen content of the device to an Apple TV for display on a television. The iPad 2 currently supports display mirroring via a Digital AV Adapter that provides a wired connection to a TV via HDMI.
One of the...
Apple Still Planning to Include Nuance/Siri Voice Features in iOS 5?
One of the major rumors for iOS 5 that failed to materialize at Apple's WWDC keynote yesterday was new voice features from Nuance and Siri. The rumors had pegged iOS 5 as receiving significant integration of voice recognition capabilities, potentially handing off much of the processing for that functionality to its new North Carolina data center.
Apple's keynote was of course devoid of any...
Magellan Updates 'RoadMate' GPS Apps With Lifetime Traffic and Maps, Yelp, and Google Local
Magellan today released an update to its RoadMate North America and RoadMate USA apps for the iPhone, bringing an overhauled user interface, lifetime traffic and maps, and integration with Yelp and Google Local Search.Magellan today announced a new version of its RoadMate North America App for iPhone is now available on the App Store. With major user interface enhancements designed for mobile...
Apple Seeds Safari 5.1 Developer Preview for Mac and Windows to Developers
Alongside yesterday's high-profile developer seeds of OS X Lion Developer Preview 4, the first iOS 5 beta, and several iCloud-related betas including iTunes 10.5 and iPhoto 9.2, Apple also provided developers with a developer preview version of Safari 5.1 for both Mac and Windows. According to an announcement on Apple's developer portal, Safari 5.1 brings a number of enhancements to the...
iTunes 10.3 Now Available for Download
Yesterday, we noted that Apple had begun promoting availability of iTunes 10.3 on its main iTunes site but that the actual download page was still serving up iTunes 10.2.2 and that Software Update had yet to begin offering the new version to users.
A few hours later, iTunes 10.3 did in fact become available for download, bringing compatibility with some early iCloud features making their way...
Both OmniVision and Sony Supplying 8-Megapixel Camera Sensors for iPhone 5?
DigiTimes reports that both OmniVision Technologies and Sony have won orders to supply an 8-megapixel camera sensor for the next-generation iPhone, with Apple's existing supplier OmniVision reportedly set to handle 90% of the load.OmniVision has grabbed a majority of total CMOS image sensor (CIS) orders placed by Apple for the fifth-generation iPhone, market sources have claimed. Meanwhile, power ...
Apple Rolls Out First iCloud Features: Automatic Downloads, Purchased Content Listings
While Apple's new iCloud service doesn't fully launch until the fall alongside iOS 5, the company has already rolled out a few small portions of the service to existing users. Among the additions are automatic downloads and listings of purchased content for easy redownloading.
Automatic downloads allow users to set preferences to have newly-purchased content such as music, apps, and books...
Apple Details MobileMe-to-iCloud Transition
Apple today posted a new support document outlining the transition from the company's existing MobileMe service to the new iCloud service announced today. According to the document, Apple has automatically extended all MobileMe subscriptions active as of today through June 30, 2012 free of charge.Effective June 6, 2011, if you had an active MobileMe account, your service has been automatically ...
Video of WWDC 2011 Keynote Now Available
Just an hour after the end of the keynote at its Worldwide Developers Conference, Apple has already posted a video of the event.
Apple did not broadcast the event live, so the video as an opportunity for viewers to see for the first time Apple's presentations that saw the introduction of OS X Lion, iOS 5, and iCloud.
Other keynote announcement highlights:
- iTunes Match: $24.99/Year,...
WWDC 2011 Pre-Keynote Roundup and Coverage Details [Updated]
Line for WWDC 2011 keynote (via @reneritchie)
With just under two and a half hours to go before Apple CEO Steve Jobs takes the stage for his keynote address at the company's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in San Francisco, it's time for us to set the stage with final details on the latest rumors and coverage information.
Attendees have been securing their spots in line early to...
New Time Capsules Rather Than Apple's Servers to Act as Hub for iCloud Data Syncing?
Cult of Mac reports that it has received information indicating that revamped versions of Apple's Time Capsule wireless router/hard drive combination will serve as the hub for iCloud data syncing, with data stored directly on the device rather than on Apple's servers.Our source didn't have any information about the hardware, but detailed how the Home Folder access system works. Files saved on...
U.S. Antitrust Regulators Concerned Over Apple's Interest in Nortel Patents
Last December, it was revealed that Apple was among the parties interested in bidding on a huge trove of patents from Nortel Networks that had been placed up for auction. While group of over 6,000 patents covers a wide variety of areas, Apple was thought to be primarily interested in those patents related to LTE and other mobile technologies.
Competition for the patents has been heating up, ...
Analysts Claim LTE-Enabled iPad Arriving Before the Holidays
The Wall Street Journal briefly reports on a research note from Hong Kong-based analyst firm CLSA claiming that checks with Apple's suppliers indicate that the next-generation iPad will debut before the end of this year, in time for the holiday shopping rush. According to the report, the updated iPad will include improvements to the display and LTE compatibility for cellular data use.While most...
More Claims of 'Deep' Twitter Integration in iOS 5
Earlier this week, TechCrunch reported that Apple is said be integrating Twitter into iOS 5, offering users the ability to easily share photos and other content via the service. Those claims dovetail nicely with Twitter's announcement the following day that it will launch its own photo-sharing service. Daring Fireball's John Gruber hinted, however, that Apple is planning to take things even...
Questionable Screenshot of iCloud Login Page Surfaces
FunkySpaceMonkey.com posts a screenshot of what it claims to be the login page for a beta version of Apple's iCloud service, claiming to have obtained the image from "Apple's internal server".If you want all the rumors about they'ree [sic] easy to find on every site. But here's the first fact about it. We got a first look at the beta login page of iCloud, from Apple's internal server.The...
