There are new reports surfacing about the upcoming Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone. The next-generation iPhone (expected to be called the “iPhone 5S”) will likely have a similar design as the iPhone 5, but may also come with a fingerprint scanner.
Whenever the police seizes iPhones and iPads from suspects and criminals, they generally send Apple a request to help them decrypt information. These requests have become so common that Apple now has a large waiting list. According to court documents reviewed by CNET, an agent from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives were told that there would be a 7-week wait before Apple can handle the case that he submitted.
Groupon has updated their iPhone and Android application to include a universal search feature, which enables consumers to search for deals nearby. The search covers discounts that are time-sensitive and deals that are rolling. Groupon’s search enhancements will help keep consumers engaged with the company’s mobile apps in a market where they are competing against companies like Yelp and Foursquare. The update has been applied to customers in the U.S. and will be rolled out internationally later this year.
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Market research company IDC has revealed that Microsoft’s Windows Phone powered devices have outsold the iPhone in seven and the BlackBerry in twenty-six different markets during Q4 2012. Microsoft Windows Phone outsold the iPhone in Argentina, India, Poland, South Africa, Russia, and the Ukraine. The seventh market includes several countries including Croatia and the “rest of central and eastern Europe.” These are markets where Nokia has been traditionally strong.
Ars Technica has gotten their hands on some photos of an early iPhone prototype from early 2005. The images were sent to Ars Technica from a former Apple employee that worked on various Apple hardware projects in the early 2000s. He declined to be named out of fear from getting in trouble by his employer. The early iPhone prototype has several ports including USB ports, an Ethernet port, and a serial port. Apple never planned on making this prototype a final product.
Google has released the Field Trip application for the Apple App Store. Previously the app was only available for Android. The application runs in the background of your phone and shows you information about nearby businesses including where to shop and eat. Field Trip grabs information from websites like Food Network, Run Riot, Sunset, Inhabitat, Daily Secret, and Zagat. You can control the sources that you want Google to pull information from. You can download the app from here.
The Hulu app on Android had a Kids Lock feature for quite a while. Now the same feature is available on the iPhone and iPad. The Hulu Kids Lock is a virtual button that makes it possible for parents to block mature content from being viewed by kids. Parents can disable to the Kids Lock by inputting a password. The feature was added in version 2.7 of Hulu for iOS.
Sprint has sold 2.2 million iPhones for Q4 2012. Unfortunately, the company sells each device at a loss. Selling that many iPhones was partially the reason why they reported a $1.3 billion net loss for the quarter. The company aims to profit from each iPhone owner by phone plans over a two-year contract.
