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's U.S. Mac Shipments Fall 7.5% as Overall PC Market Plunges 14% Year-Over-Year [Updated]
Research firm IDC today released its preliminary calculations of PC shipments for the first quarter of 2013, finding the worst year-over-year performance in the nearly 20-year history of its tracking studies. According to IDC's numbers, the worldwide PC market declined nearly 14% compared to the first quarter of 2012, with the U.S. market declining by nearly 13%.Despite some mild improvement in...
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Apple's Jeff Williams Reportedly in China Addressing PR Fallout From iPhone Warranty Controversy
M.I.C. gadget points to a report [Google translation] from Chinese tech site Zol.com.cn earlier this week claiming that Apple Senior Vice President for Operations Jeff Williams is currently in China dealing with the public relations fallout from criticism of the company's iPhone warranty policies in that country.
The criticism appeared to have been coordinated by China's state-run media, with...
Apple Pays at Least $10 Million to License Palm-Related Patents From ACCESS
As noted by Mac Otakara, Japanese firm ACCESS today announced [Google translation] that Apple has agreed to license a set of patents related to Palm's smartphone technology. ACCESS acquired the patents when it purchased PalmSource in 2005.
ACCESS notes that the portfolio of patents, which was licensed to Samsung in 2011, includes intellectual property from Palm, PalmSource, Bell Communications ...
Amid Apple Campus 2 Cost Concerns, Foster + Partners Reportedly Taking on Apple Retail Store Projects
Less than a week after a report from Bloomberg Businessweek outlined how Steve Jobs' strict requirements for "fit and finish" at the company's upcoming Norman Foster-designed Apple Campus 2 in Cupertino have seen the cost of the massive project balloon to $5 billion, Marketing reports [via Pocket-lint] that Foster's firm has been tapped to work on retail store projects for Apple.Sources close to...
More Claims of Samsung Being Cut Out of Apple's A7 Chip Development
The Korea Times reports that Samsung has been excluded from Apple's plans for its next-generation A7 system-on-a-chip expected to be released next year to power upcoming iOS devices. According to the report, Apple is moving forward with plans to shift production to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC)."Apple is sharing confidential data for its next A7 system-on-chip (SoC) with the...
Apple's Removal of AppGratis From App Store Just the First Phase of Broader Crackdown
For the past several days, we've been following the story of Apple's removal of AppGratis from the App Store. AppGratis offers a popular app discovery service with the main feature being a hand-picked app offered free each day.
Apple acknowledged that it had pulled the app for violating two App Store rules related to offering apps in a manner which might be "similar to or confusing with the...
Alleged iPad 5 Front Bezel Photos Show Narrower iPad Mini-Like Sides
French site Noweherelse.fr has discovered [Google translation] a pair of photos of what is said to be the front bezel of the fifth-generation iPad. In line with rumors and earlier leaks of cases and a rear shell, the new photos reveal a design inspired by the iPad mini, with narrower side bezels rather than the uniform size seen on the current iPad.
Sources appear to be split on when the...
T-Mobile USA Announces Trade-In Offer for Existing iPhone Owners Ahead of iPhone 5 Launch
Ahead of Friday's launch of the iPhone on T-Mobile USA, the carrier has announced details on its trade-in program designed to entice current iPhone 4 and 4S users to switch carriers. The trade-in program reduces the down payment on a 16 GB iPhone 5 from $99.99 to $0, with additional credit of up $120 depending on the value of the device being traded.“Our message to iPhone 4S and iPhone 4...
Nearly Half of Surveyed U.S. Teens Using iPhones, Over One-Third Using iPads
Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster today released the results of his semi-annual survey of U.S. teenagers, finding that iPhone and iPad usage remains strong among the 5,200 teens included in the study. According to the report, 48% of teens now report that they are using iPhones, up from 40% just six months ago.We believe this demonstrates that Apple remains the top choice for teens despite more...
Google and Apple Losing Mobile Advertising Market to Publishers
Research firm IDC today announced the release of a new report covering the mobile advertising market, noting that ad networks such as those from Google and Apple are losing traction to publishers able to use their size to drive their own advertising sales.Where in past years, ad networks such as Google, Millennial Media, and Apple received most of the spending on mobile display ads, now...
iPhone 5S to Launch in 2-3 Different Screen Sizes?
Topeka Capital Markets analyst Brian White is out with another research note today sharing some highlights from day seven of his trip to China and Taiwan to talk with technology companies and other sources. Based on discussions with officials at an unnamed "tech-supply chain company", White now believes that Apple's iPhone 5S due for release later this year will arrive in two or possibly even...
Starbucks' Pick of the Week Goes Mobile Through iOS App With 'Angry Birds Star Wars'
Starbucks and Apple have long had a partnership to give away iTunes Store and App Store content to Starbucks customers, with the "Pick of the Week" program using physical cards with redemption codes on the back to allow users to download their free content.
As noted by CNET, Starbucks has now gone mobile with the Pick of the Week program, allowing users to access each week's selection directly ...
Apple Patent Watch: Offline iTunes Store Purchases, Proximity-Based Media Transfer Between Devices
Among Apple's granted patents released today, AppleInsider has noted a pair of inventions that appear to be of some interest. The first patent addresses the idea of offline iTunes Store purchases from mobile devices, allowing users to store "credit" that can unlock content already on their devices but not yet owned by the user.In some cases, a user may wish to add new media items to the library,...
Apple Notebook Refresh Expected Late This Quarter, But Only Modest Shipment Growth for 2013
Citing supply chain sources, Digitimes reports that Apple is expected to see only modest "single-digit" shipment growth for its notebook lineup in 2013, with the 13-inch MacBook Pro in particular seeing weaker-than-expected sales.Apple was confident about its 13-inch MacBook Pro performance for 2013, but the device's actual sales turn out to be weaker than expected, leaving the company still...
Apple Online Store Now Offering Refurbished Current-Generation 27-Inch iMac Models
Apple today began offering refurbished models of the current-generation 27-inch iMac for the first time, roughly four months after the models initially launched.
The two stock configurations of the 27-inch iMac are currently available at 15% discounts compared to brand-new units, with the low-end refurbished model priced at $1529 vs. $1799 new and the high-end refurbished model priced at $1699 ...
Apple Hiring Software Engineer for AuthenTec Fingerprint Sensor Team in Florida
Apple yesterday posted a new job listing (via AppleInsider) looking for a software engineer to join its team of fingerprint sensor engineers from AuthenTec, which was acquired last year for $356 million.
Apple refers to the job location as its "Melbourne Design Center" located in Melbourne, Florida, which is where AuthenTec was based, and is the only Melbourne-based position currently listed...
Google Close to Acquiring WhatsApp for $1 Billion?
Digital Trends reports that Google is on the verge of acquiring WhatsApp, the company behind the popular cross-platform messaging service WhatsApp Messenger.While the deal started four or five weeks ago, we’ve been told that WhatsApp is “playing hardball” and jockeying for a higher acquisition price, which currently is “close to” $1 billion right now.WhatsApp Messenger is currently a $0.99 app in ...
U.S. Patent Office Withdraws Primary Objections to Apple's 'iPad Mini' Trademark Application
Last week, we noted that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) had issued an initial office action denying Apple's application for a trademark on the term "iPad mini".
The examiner's primary objection to Apple's application related to all of the elements of the "iPad mini" name having been judged as descriptive rather than contributing to a unique product name. A second objection...
T-Mobile USA Rolling Out Software Update for Existing Unlocked iPhone Customers
In line with a report from earlier this week, TmoNews reports that T-Mobile USA has begun rolling out software updates for existing customers running unlocked iPhones on its network.
As the carrier notes in its support forum, the update enables a number of features, including LTE support where available, ahead of the official launch of new iPhone 5 sales for the carrier next week.Enables the...
Apple to Alter VPN On Demand Behavior in iOS 6.1 and Later Due to VirnetX Lawsuit
The Loop points to a new Apple support document disclosing that the company will be changing the behavior of the VPN On Demand feature on iOS devices running iOS 6.1 or later through a software update to be released later this month. The changes have been necessitated by a $368 million judgment against Apple late last year in a patent lawsuit brought by VirnetX.Devices using iOS 6.1 and later...
