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
Apple Executives Headed to China for iPhone Negotiations?
International Business Times covers a report from Chinese news site Sina.com.cn claiming that Apple executives, headed by vice president of iPod and iPhone Product Marketing Greg Joswiak, are headed to Beijing this week to discuss with representatives of wireless carrier China Unicom plans for launching the iPhone there. "Senior officials from Apple Inc are to visit China this week, and they...
Read Full Article • 19 comments
Apple Considering Turning iTunes Store Accounts into PayPal Competitor?
Silicon Alley Insider reports that Apple may be considering creating a competitor to eBay's PayPal online payments system, allowing users to make purchases at third-party sites via their iTunes Store accounts. The report does, however, make clear that the rumor is based on gossip and "not confirmed news." Wall Street gossips tell us that Apple executives have dropped hints suggesting the company...
Apple Releases Two New iPhone Ads: 'Share' and 'Travel'
Apple today released two new iPhone commercials, now available on Apple's iPhone ad gallery. Similar to some previous iPhone commercials, the new ads each feature three App Store applications linked by a common theme.
Share: Focuses on the iPhone's ability to easily share data and engage in multiplayer gaming.
- Mover [App Store, Free] - allows users to share photos, text clippings, and...
Apple Releases GarageBand 5.1 [Updated]
Apple today released GarageBand 5.1, addressing general compatibility and stability issues as well as several other minor fixes. This update addresses general compatibility issues, improves overall stability, and fixes a number of other minor issues. The issues addressed include:
- GarageBand track effects and Audio Units can now be added to a guitar track
- Improved support for Apogee audio...
Federal Trade Commission to Continue Investigation of Corporate Ties Between Apple and Google
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission today released a statement (via CNBC) commending Apple and Google for Google CEO Eric Schmidt's resignation from Apple's Board of Directors. The FTC, however, claims that it will continue to investigate the corporate ties the between two companies for potential anti-competitive activities related to "interlocking directorates". On August 3, 2009, Apple announced...
Apple Tablet Seen by Analyst While Competitors Hold Off to Wait for Details?
Barron's chimes in (subscription required) with its contribution to recent Apple tablet rumors, claiming to have spoken with an unnamed "veteran analyst" who has seen firsthand a prototype of the forthcoming device. Unfortunately, the source provides little detail on the device other than to note that it will excel at displaying video content. The machine impresses with its display of hi-def...
Google CEO Eric Schmidt Resigns From Apple Board of Directors
Apple today announced that Google CEO Eric Schmidt has resigned from Apple's Board of Directors due to increasing competition between the two companies and its impact on his effectiveness as an Apple Board member. "Eric has been an excellent Board member for Apple, investing his valuable time, talent, passion and wisdom to help make Apple successful," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "Unfortunately,...
Amazon Begins Accepting Pre-Orders for Mac OS X Snow Leopard
Several MacRumors readers have reported that Amazon has begun taking pre-orders for Apple's forthcoming Mac OS X Snow Leopard. Amazon is currently offering Snow Leopard at Apple's announced price of $29 for OS X Leopard users, and the listing notes that while Snow Leopard is slated for a September release, no official release date has been announced.
Amazon has also prominently featured an...
FCC Investigating Apple's Rejection of Google Voice iPhone Application
The Wall Street Journal reports (subscription required) that the U.S. Federal Communications Commission has opened an inquiry into Apple's rejection of an official Google Voice application for the iPhone as well as the removal of numerous third-party applications offering Google Voice functionality. In particular, the FCC is interested in AT&T's role in the decision-making process. In letters...
Apple Releases iPhone OS 3.0.1 to Address SMS Security Vulnerability
Apple today released iPhone OS 3.0.1, addressing an SMS security vulnerability disclosed at yesterday's Black Hat cybersecurity conference in Las Vegas. The release of iPhone OS 3.0.1 has been expected since a spokesperson for UK iPhone carrier O2 claimed earlier today that a fix for the issue would be coming from Apple on Saturday.
Apple has also posted a security document describing the...
Apple Unlikely to Directly Enter e-Book Market?
Silicon Alley Insider reports that Apple is unlikely to create its own "iTunes for e-books" and will instead rely on third parties to deliver e-book content through the existing App Store. An e-book industry source has reportedly indicated that while Apple had contemplated directly offering e-book content several years ago, the plans were scrapped once the company fully grasped how difficult the ...
Images of Chinese iPhone Surface, Regulatory Approval Granted
Engadget reports that a China-specific iPhone carrying model number A1324 received a five-year approval from China's State Radio Regulatory Commission on May 7th, opening the door for the company to launch the iPhone there. Separately, PC World notes that Chinese news portal Sina.com.cn posted a set of three images (included below) of the new Chinese iPhone earlier today, although it has since re...
Apple Revamps Company Job Listings Site
Apple has launched a revamped version of its job listings site, offering a modern design more in line with the rest of Apple's site and providing additional resources for prospective job applicants to guide them in understanding the company's philosophy and preparing to apply for positions with Apple. The site offers background information and job descriptions for both corporate and retail...
Apple to Release Fix for iPhone SMS Vulnerability on Saturday?
According to BBC News, an O2 spokesperson has revealed that Apple will be delivering an update on Saturday to address an iPhone SMS security vulnerability disclosed yesterday at the Black Hat cybersecurity conference in Las Vegas. An O2 spokesperson said the patch would be available Saturday through iTunes.
"We will be communicating to customers both through the website and proactively," the...
Apple Begins Offering AppleCare for iPhone in Canada
Apple has begun offering AppleCare for the iPhone in Canada, allowing iPhone 3G and 3GS owners there to extend technical support and hardware warranties to a total of two years from the date of iPhone purchase. The AppleCare plan is priced at $79 in Apple's Canadian online store.
Despite having launched AppleCare for the iPhone in the U.S. shortly after the release of the original iPhone in...
Apple Finally Discontinues Shake? [Updated]
Alongside today's introduction of updated Time Capsule models, Apple appears to have finally discontinued Shake, its long-standing high-end digital compositing and visual effects software package. While Shake's product pages remain available on Apple's site, it is no longer listed in the online Apple Store and MacRumors has received word that Apple sales representatives have been informed of the ...
iPhone SMS Security Vulnerability to Be Disclosed Today
Forbes reports that cybersecurity researchers plan to publicize today at the Black Hat conference in Las Vegas a security vulnerability in the iPhone SMS messaging system that reportedly would allow hackers to in theory "take over every iPhone in the world". Using a flaw they've found in the iPhone's handling of text messages, the researchers say they'll demonstrate how to send a series of mostly...
Apple Updates Time Capsule to 1 TB and 2 TB Capacities [Updated]
Apple this morning quietly updated its Time Capsule combination wireless router and network-attached storage drive to double the models' capacities at the same price points as the previous models: 1 TB for $299 and 2 TB for $499. While Apple's main Time Capsule product page is not yet reflecting the upgraded capacities, the new models are available in the online Apple Store, where a small...
Apple Releases MobileMe iDisk Application for iPhone [Updated]
Apple's MobileMe iDisk application for iPhone [App Store, Free], which has been listed as a forthcoming feature since Apple revamped its iPhone feature pages following its Worldwide Developers Conference in early June, is now available for download from the App Store. The application allows MobileMe members to easily browse and view files stored on their iDisk and share files with others via...
Apple Asking Developers to Submit Keywords to Facilitate App Store Searching [Updated]
MacRumors has heard that Apple has begun requesting that developers add keywords to their App Store application submissions in order to facilitate improved searching. As detailed in a report from AppleInsider, developers are permitted to enter up to 255 characters' worth of keywords for each application. "It is important to enter keywords for all applications as soon as possible so your...
