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 Trimming 200 Employees From Beats Team to Streamline Overlapping Functions
As part of its pending acquisition of Beats Electronics and Beats Music, Apple has begun making offers to Beats employees that will see roughly 200 of Beats' 700 positions phased out over the next few months. News of the job cuts was first reported by 9to5Mac yesterday, with additional detail provided by the New York Post.
According to the reports, most of the job cuts will be in human...
Read Full Article • 88 comments
Shazam Brings Always-On Music and TV Recognition to Mac With Free Menu Bar App
Music recognition service Shazam, which was one of the early App Store hits and has continued to see good success on mobile platforms, is now bringing its services to the desktop in the form of the first music, TV show, and ad recognition app for Mac.
Running as a menu bar item, Shazam for Mac quietly monitors audio around the user's Mac and provides not only pop-up notifications of the...
'Modbook Pro X' Tablet Based on 15-Inch Retina MacBook Pro Debuts on Kickstarter
Modbook, the company with a history of offering pen-based Mac tablets using the internals of Apple's notebooks, is announcing a new Kickstarter campaign today to support the launch of a new Modbook Pro X based on the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro. The $150,000 campaign will allow users to send in their own machines for conversion at $1999 or reserve complete systems directly from Modbook starting at ...
'Mid 2014' 27-Inch iMac Also Referenced on Apple Support Page
Following yesterday's spotting of an unreleased "Mac mini (Mid 2014)" on an Apple support page, French site Consomac noticed [Google Translate, via MacPlus] another entry on the same page mentioning a Mid 2014 27-inch iMac model. Both the Mac mini and iMac entries have since been removed from the page, although they are still visible on a cached version of the page from yesterday.
Apple did...
Apple TV Updated with CNBC and FOX NOW Channels
Apple today added two more channels to the Apple TV, delivering financial news channel CNBC and network FOX NOW to the platform.
CNBC offers access to a live stream of the financial channel, as well as on-demand clips from news segments and full episodes of the channels "Prime" content original series. Viewing requires authentication with one of a number of cable and Internet providers....
Bare Logic Boards for 4.7-Inch and 5.5-Inch iPhone 6 Compared in New Photos
Following the publication of several photos over the weekend showing what was claimed to be the bare logic board for the upcoming 4.7-inch iPhone 6, Nowherelse.fr now shares [Google Translate] a new set of photos showing the same part reportedly from the even larger 5.5-inch iPhone 6 model.
The photos include side-by-side comparisons of the part from both iPhone 6 models and the iPhone 5s, and ...
Retina MacBook Pro Updates Reportedly Due Tuesday, July 29: Minor Haswell CPU Updates Expected
Following yesterday's reported spotting of in-store digital signage from an Apple retail store in China showing upgraded specs for the Retina MacBook Pro, MacG.co now claims [Google Translate] the update is set to arrive tomorrow, July 29. The information comes from a reliable source who has accurately predicted MacBook Air, iMac, and iPod touch updates in recent months, although the source was...
Bare iPhone 6 Logic Board Surfaces, Claimed to Support NFC and 802.11ac Wi-Fi
Claimed internal components for the iPhone 6 are beginning to surface with increasing frequency as it is now likely less than two months until launch. In line with those developments, a new set of photos [Google Translate] shared by Nowhereelse.fr reveal what appears to be the bare logic board of the iPhone 6, likely the 4.7-inch model.
According to Nowehereelse.fr, the source who shared the...
Verizon to Begin Spot Throttling of High-Usage Customers on Unlimited LTE Plans
Following a report by Droid Life yesterday, Verizon has now confirmed to Gigaom that starting October 1 the carrier will begin spot throttling of certain high-usage customers connecting to carrier's LTE network. The policy affects users on grandfathered unlimited data plans that are no longer offered and who rank in the top five percent of data users at Verizon.
While Verizon has had a...
Kwikset's Kevo Smart Door Lock Adds Free Guest eKeys, Scheduling for Standard eKeys
While several high-profile smart deadbolt systems such as Lockitron and August have experienced significant delays, Kwikset has been shipping its Kevo Bluetooth deadbolt for some time now, and today the system is receiving a software update to provide new access options for users.
Similar in appearance to other electronic deadbolt locks with a relatively large housing on the inside of the...
OS X Yosemite Public Beta Launches Tomorrow, July 24
In a coordinated release today, a number of publications have released official overviews of the latest OS X Yosemite beta build alongside word of Apple's plans to open up the public beta tomorrow, July 24. As noted by The Loop, the public beta of Yosemite will be the same build released to developers on Monday.The public beta version of OS X Yosemite is the same version released to developers on ...
Apple Addresses iOS 'Backdoor' Concerns by Outlining Legitimate Uses for Targeted Services [Updated]
Earlier this week, forensic expert Jonathan Zdziarski attracted attention for his disclosures of what appeared to be "backdoors" in iOS that could allow for covert data collection of users' information from their devices. While Apple issued a statement denying that anything nefarious was involved, the company has now posted a new support document (via Cabel Sasser) offering a limited description...
Apple Reports Q3 2014 Results: $7.7 Billion Profit on June Quarter Record $37.4 Billion in Revenue [Call Complete]
Apple today announced financial results for the second calendar quarter and third fiscal quarter of 2014. For the quarter, Apple posted revenue of $37.4 billion and net quarterly profit of $7.7 billion, or $1.28 per diluted share, compared to revenue of $35.3 billion and net quarterly profit of $6.9 billion, or $1.07 per diluted share in the year-ago quarter.
Gross margin for the quarter was...
Kenu Prepares for Larger iPhones with Lightweight Airframe+ Car Vent Mount
Kenu's Airframe smartphone car mount has proven popular with MacRumors readers, and with Apple all but certain to release larger iPhone models later this year Kenu has just released a new Airframe+ mount that accommodates thicker cases and devices with screen sizes up to six inches.
Airframe+ with iPhone 5s in Apple case
Like the original Airframe, much of the appeal of the Airframe+ comes...
4.7-Inch iPhone 6 Rear Shell with Embedded Apple Logo Shown in New Photos
Earlier this month, we shared some high-quality photos and a video of what has been claimed to be the rear shell of the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 in rough form. uSwitch has now obtained a pair of photos showing the part in its completed state, revealing a polished finish and the removal of several interior physical features that had been part of the manufacturing process.
While the part shows a much ...
Bill Campbell Reflects on 17 Years on Apple's Board of Directors
Alongside his resignation from Apple's board of directors after 17 years of service, Intuit chairman Bill Campbell spoke with Fortune about his time with the company, sharing some insights about the company he first became associated with over 30 years ago as a marketing executive.
Bill Campbell at Apple's "Celebrating Steve" event relating the story of Steve Jobs trying out Siri
Among the...
Uncertainty Over Apple's Sapphire Plans for iPhone 6 Remains as Analyst Estimates Vary Widely
Debate among analysts over just how widespread Apple's use of sapphire displays will be in the iPhone 6 continues to rage, with The Korea Herald reporting on a new research note from NPD DisplaySearch Korea's Brian Huh putting Apple's sapphire display capacity at 45 million units for the iPhone 6 launch. With the iPhone 6 predicted to launch in an initial batch nearing 70 million units, Apple...
iOS 8 Beta 4 Reportedly Coming Monday, July 21
As iOS 8 proceeds through development and testing, the fourth beta version will be seeded to developers on Monday, July 21, according to BGR. A release on that date would mark a two-week interval since the release of the third beta on July 7, down from a roughly three-week interval between the second and third betas.
BGR regularly publishes reports predicting future release dates for iOS...
Apple Said to Be Planning Three iWatch Models from 1.6 to 1.8 Inches, Sapphire on High End
According to a new report [Google Translate] from Taiwan's Economic Daily News (via G for Games), Apple is planning to launch three versions of the iWatch in the third quarter of this year. The lineup is said to include a model with a 1.6-inch display and two models with 1.8-inch displays, with the high-end version of the larger size coming with a sapphire display cover for durability.
The...
iCloud Mail Outage Hits Small Number of Users for 17 Hours and Counting
Users experiencing difficulties accessing their iCloud Mail are not alone, as Apple is currently reporting an outage affecting the ability to receive mail through the service (via Business Insider).
While the issue affects only 0.1% of users, it is notable that it has persisted for approximately 17 hours now, having begun at roughly 1:30 PM Pacific Time yesterday.
Apple has not yet...
