Tag Archives: aapl

Sports stars, fashionistas to shill for wearable devices

Apple and Google are taking different approaches to coax consumers into wearing their wearable computing devices. Apple reportedly will use sports stars to make its smartwatch-fitness band seem cool, while Google is taking the high-fashion approach with its Google Glass headset. Apple news website 9to5Mac reported Friday that Apple (AAPL) is teaming with well-known professional athletes to test the fitness capabilities of the company’s upcoming iWatch in intense training environments. Apple reportedly has invited stars from MLB, the NBA and NHL to its Cupertino, Calif., headquarters in recent weeks to be briefed on the device and test it. Those athletes include L.A. Lakers basketball star Kobe Bryant and L.A. Kings hockey player Dustin Brown. The iWatch is reportedly packed with 10 sensors, including ones for reading a person’s blood pressure, heart rate and hydration levels. The wrist device is expected to be unveiled in October. Apple CEO Tim Cook has…

Will Amazon make Apple offer free unlimited storage?

Amazon’s Fire smartphone could benefit iPhone users if it gets Apple to stop prodding customers to buy cloud storage plans for their smartphone photos. When Amazon (AMZN) CEO Jeff Bezos announced the company’s first phone at a media event on Wednesday, he touted that the Fire handset would offer unlimited free storage of photos in the Internet cloud. Anyone with an Apple (AAPL) iPhone who is frequently prompted that he or she doesn’t have enough online storage to back up their phone to iCloud knows that this is a major plus for the Amazon handset. Amazon is leveraging its Internet assets

Android tablets to pass Apple iPad installed base this year

Android tablets will reach the “tipping point” this year with their installed base surpassing that of Apple’s iPad, ABI Research predicted Friday. Google (GOOGL) Android-based tablets will have a “watershed” year in 2014, ABI analyst Jeff Orr said in a press release. Active users of Android slates from Samsung, Lenovo and others will top the number using Apple ‘s (AAPL) category-defining iPad tablet for the first time, he said. Shipments of branded tablets are likely to exceed 200 million units, worth more than $85 billion this year, ABI said. A significant portion of those shipments will be from smaller manufacturers in China and Taiwan coming out with next-generation Android tablets during the second half of the year, ABI said.