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
Other iPhone 4 Press Conference Notes: Over 3 Million Sold, White Models Coming, International Releases July 30th
While the big news out of Apple's iPhone 4 press conference was the announcement of free cases for customers and a positioning of antenna issues as affecting nearly all smartphones, there was additional news from Apple CEO Steve Jobs, including acknowledgment of proximity sensor issues with a fix promised for the next iOS software update. Jobs also made several other announcements which may be...
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Apple to Offer Free Cases for iPhone 4 Customers
At its iPhone 4 press conference today, Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced the results of the company's investigation into complaints of signal problems on the new device. According to Jobs, the issue is being experienced by a very small proportion of customers but that the company wants every customer to be satisfied.
To that end, Jobs outlined three steps the company has taken:
- iOS 4.0.1 ...
Coverage of Apple's iPhone 4 Press Conference
Backstage at Apple Town Hall (via mrvideobba)
Apple today is holding its iPhone 4 press conference where it is expected to address issues with the device's cellular signal reception.
The event is scheduled to kick off at Apple's Cupertino headquarters at 10:00 AM Pacific Time / 1:00 PM Eastern Time, or just about one hour from now. Apple will not be providing live video or audio coverage of ...
Foxconn: Apple Not Subsidizing Recent Wage Increases
In late May, word surfaced that Apple would be providing subsidies to workers at its Taiwanese manufacturing partner Foxconn. The subsidies were reported to be in the range of 1-2% of profits from the Apple products being produced and were part of a larger effort to address low morale and increasing public scrutiny over employee suicides at the company's mammoth manufacturing complex in...
'Firefox Home' Hits the App Store
Mozilla's Firefox Home [App Store] has hit the App Store, allowing users to sync their Firefox history, bookmarks, and open tabs from their desktop to their iOS device, where they can be accessed through a WebKit-powered web viewer. Get up and go and have everything waiting for you on your iPhone: Your Firefox history, bookmarks and open tabs, just as you had left them on your desktop computer. ...
iPhone 4 Signal Issue Can Be Fixed With a Software Update?
Despite the fact that today's release of iOS 4.0.1 addressed only the display of signal strength on the iPhone and not actual signal attenuation issues caused by touching the antenna in the side of the iPhone 4, a software fix may yet still be possible.
According to The New York Times, the signal attenuation issue is the result of an interaction between communication software within the...
Apple's Signal Strength Display Changes in iOS 4.0.1 and 4.1 Detailed
Late last month, Anandtech detailed the signal strength drop-off experienced by iPhone 4 users when bridging the antenna gap at the lower left corner of the device, mapping how the "bars" of signal strength shown on the device correspond to actual signal levels and how holding the phone in various positions affected that signal under iOS 4.0.
Anandtech has now followed up with a test on...
Apple Reportedly Placed Bid to Buy Palm, Was Outbid by HP
Silicon Alley Insider reports that it has spoken with a source close to the negotiations that ultimately resulted in HP acquiring Palm earlier this year. According to the source, Apple was very interested in acquiring Palm, primarily for its intellectual property, but was outbid by HP.
Even more interestingly, the source claims that Apple was interested in keeping Palm's business intact,...
Apple Addresses iPhone Signal Strength Display With iOS 4.0.1 and iPad Wi-Fi Connectivity With iOS 3.2.1
As predicted earlier today, Apple has released iOS 4.0.1 (8A306) for the iPhone 4, 3GS, and 3G. According to the release notes, the update addresses changes to the signal strength indicators as promised by Apple earlier this month. - Improves the formula to determine how many bars of signal strength to displayEarly reports on the signal strength indicator changes included in the iOS 4.1 beta...
Analyst Claims Design Fix for iPhone 4 Signal Issue Being Deployed
TheStreet reports on new research from Rodman Renshaw analyst Ashok Kumar claiming that Apple has developed an internal insulator to isolate the iPhone 4's antenna connection that has been causing signal reception issues. Apple has created "a design fix for the iPhone 4 that more adequately insulates the transceiver," said Rodman Renshaw analyst Ashok Kumar, who spoke to the company's...
Gartner: U.S. Mac Sales Market Share Nearing 10%
Research firms Gartner and IDC yesterday both released preliminary reports detailing U.S. and worldwide PC shipments for the second quarter of 2010, with both firms showing sales growth of Apple's Mac product outpacing that of the industry as a whole.
Apple's U.S. Market Share Trend: 1Q06-2Q10 (Gartner)
According to Gartner's report, Apple placed fourth among U.S. computer shipments with a...
Apple Antenna Engineer and Carrier Partner Expressed Early Concern Over iPhone 4 Design
Bloomberg reports that Apple senior engineer and antenna expert Ruben Caballero expressed his concerns to CEO Steve Jobs early in the iPhone 4's design process over the device's antenna design. Apple Inc.'s senior antenna expert voiced concern to Chief Executive Officer Steve Jobs in the early design phase of the iPhone 4 that the antenna design could lead to dropped calls, a person familiar...
FaceTime for iPad and iPod Touch to Be Linked to Email Addresses?
Boy Genius Report claims to have received information from the new iOS 4.1 beta partially revealing how FaceTime might work with future front camera-enabled iPad and iPod touch devices. While those devices have been presumed to gain FaceTime functionality in future hardware revisions as Apple seeks to expand the network of people able to participate in video calls using its standard, the...
Apple Releases First Beta of iOS 4.1 and iPhone SDK 4.1
Apple today released the first beta version of iOS 4.1 and the associated software development kit (SDK) to developers. There is no word yet on changes included in the updates.
Many users have been waiting for a promised iOS software update to address signal strength display issues on the iPhone 4, but it is likely that Apple is planning to push out a smaller update specifically addressing...
Microsoft Executive on Apple: 'iPhone 4 Might Be Their Vista'
Computerworld reports that Microsoft Chief Operating Officer Kevin Turner today compared Apple's iPhone to his company's much-maligned Vista operating system, suggesting that Apple might be headed for a similar experience to that of Microsoft in terms of customer response and criticism. "It looks like the iPhone 4 might be their Vista, and I'm okay with that," said Kevin Turner, Microsoft's chief...
iPad and iPhone in the Spotlight on Jimmy Fallon and at Oxegen 2010
Apple's iOS devices are beginning to make their usefulness as musical instruments known, with a number of musicians adopting them for use on stage in increasingly prominent roles.
Last night on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, English New Wave band Squeeze performed one of its early UK hits, "Pulling Mussels (From The Shell)", with keyboardist Stephen Large sharing time between his Roland VK-8...
Consumer Anticipation for iPhone 4 Dampening Enthusiasm for BlackBerry Devices
ChangeWave Research today released a new study based on a survey of 4,000 professionals and early-adopter consumers showing considerable enthusiasm for the iPhone 4 ahead of its launch, much of it coming at the expense of Research in Motion's BlackBerry line.
Survey data collected in the 10 days leading up to the iPhone 4's launched showed that 52% of surveyed customers planning to purchase a...
Survey Finds Strong Consumer Interest in Cloud-Based iTunes Model
Market research firm NPD today announced the results of a recent survey of iTunes Store customers regarding their interest in a free or paid streaming service that would allow them to access content on a variety of devices. According to the survey, about 15% of the 50 million U.S. iTunes Store customers would be interested in a paid model, with that number nearly doubling if the service were to...
Apple Prepping Genius Bar Changes: Focus on Shorter Wait Times, Multitasking, Overnight Repairs
MacRumors has learned that Apple is preparing an overhaul of the functionality of its Genius Bar, with the company positioning the changes as a "giant leap forward" for the Family Room concept that has come to embrace both the Genius Bar itself and roving specialists able to help customers with their mobile device support needs at locations throughout Apple's retail stores.
According to...
Apple Acquires Web Mapping Firm Poly9
MacDailyNews points to a report [Google translation] from French language newspaper Le Soleil in Quebec City, Canada claiming that Apple has acquired Web mapping firm Poly9. In recent years, especially, Poly9 has given birth to programming interfaces (APIs) for several large clients such as Apple, Microsoft, Yahoo, MSNBC and NORAD. Poly9 based in part on the base maps of Google Earth, Google Maps, ...
