There has been no shortage of Apple patent applications published by the US Patent & Trademark Office today (via PatentlyApple). Three of the most interesting with potential to be implemented in upcoming products include a dual OLED backlighting system for future iPads, integrated speaker clip for iPod nano, and new hold and swipe gestures for iOS devices. First up we have a patent application that backs up a report from DigiTimes claiming Apple is considering alternative backlighting systems with a dual-LED light bar design for iPad 3....

Tim Cook is one of 14 CEOs of major tech companies to sign an open letter calling on Texas not to pass the so-called ‘bathroom bill.’ The bill would require school students to use the restroom matching the gender on their birth certificate even if they currently identify as the opposite gender. The CEOs told Texas governor Greg Abbott that the proposed legislation is discriminatory and bad for business. Apple first spoke out on the issue in February, opposing the Trump administration’s decision to devolve the decision on bathroom use to schools rather than the federal government....

Apple is holding its first special event of the year today, and we expect a combination of iPad announcements, AirTags, and more. What to expect during Apple’s April Event If you haven’t been following along with the rumors, here’s a quick recap of everything Apple could announce at today’s event. Not all of these are set in stone, but they are all possibilities: New iPad Pro with mini-LED display technology on the 12....

UPDATE [Tuesday, November 29, 2011 at 1:52pm]: Apple has yanked the app from the App Store. This one will probably be removed any moment now, but Apple has allowed an unlimited tethering application called “iTether” into the App Store. The $14.99 application is very simple. Install the app on your iPhone, install its complementing application for the Mac or PC, plug in your USB cord and you’re good to go. Speeds will likely depend on your network connection but it’s working great for me....

Just how much money did Apple make last quarter? It’s time to find out: Apple just announced its Q3 2018 results with $53.3 billion in revenue and $11.5 billion in profit backed by selling 41.3 million iPhones, 11.55 million iPads, and 3.7 million Macs. Apple had offered revenue guidance between $51.5 billion and $53.5 billion. That compares to $45.4b in revenue, $8.72 billion profit, 41 million iPhones, 11.4 million iPads, and 4....

Research firm comScore is out today with its usual report covering U.S. smartphone subscriber market share for the three month period ending in May. Over the last three months Apple has gained in both categories including ‘top smartphone OEMs’ and ‘OS usage’, continuing its lead as the top smartphone manufacturer and growing its share of the market by platform. The previous three month period had Apple at 38.9% of the market, making it the number #1 smartphone vendor in the US over second place Samsung....

Apple may be planning to block drones from over-flying its Apple Park campus, but it is also reportedly interested in experimenting with its own drone flights. The government has opened up applications to companies interested in being able to conduct experimental drone flights beyond those currently permitted by FAA rules, and Apple is said to be one of the applicants … Reuters reports that the program would exempt participating companies from four FAA regulations....

Earlier this week, Apple has reorganized its online page where it details upcoming data collection operations for Apple Maps. This takes the form of cars equipped with LIDAR and photographic cameras being driven around cities, and ‘pedestrian’ surveys where Maps employees walk around wearing backpacks fitted with similar sensors. The data is ultimately fed back into Apple Maps to improve accuracy. The page now reports that ground surveys will begin in Andorra in April....

Apple today launched support for turn-by-turn directions in Apple Maps for India, an emerging market that Apple has pinpointed for future growth potential. Now, Indian iPhone customers or tourists can get precise routing throughout the country. Apple also launched support for ride-hailing apps Uber and Ola, so you can request rides from inside of Maps using the two biggest taxi app in India. Apple has a thousands of employees at its Indian offices, who are all focused on improvements to the worldwide Apple Maps service....

Apple’s Senior Vice President of Internet Software and Services Eddy Cue was spotted alongside Tim Cook at the annual Sun Valley conference for technology and media executives. According to a tweet from Bloomberg‘s Jon Erlichman, Cue and Cook arrived today at the conference, as pictured above. In response to a question about the event being a “big week,” Cook reportedly said, “we’ll see.” The week long conference held in Idaho, which Tim Cook attended last year, is a media-and-content-heavy conference focused on making deals, partnerships, and acquisitions....

Following a report yesterday claiming that Apple was being investigated by the Department of Justice over anti-competitive practices surrounding the launch of its rebranded Beats streaming music service, Bloomberg this evening now corroborates that report. Bloomberg says that the Federal Trade Commission is investigating whether Apple is using its large iTunes store to put rival streaming music services like Spotify at a disadvantage. FTC officials have reportedly been in contact with at least one record label regarding Apple’s practices....

Apple has started emailing developers who won the Apple TV developer kit lottery today, according to several users on Twitter who received the message. Users who have been selected will be shipped a development model of the next-generation Apple TV to aid in the creation of their apps. To claim the kit, developers need to login to the Developer Center by 5PM local time on Wednesday and agree to Apple’s terms and conditions....

The big announcement was an upgrade to the iPhone 4, called the 4S, which will be integrated with Apple’s iCloud service. Said Phil Schiller, Apple’s VP of Worldwide Product Marketing, “iPhone 4S plus iOS 5 plus iCloud is a breakthrough combination that makes the iPhone 4S the best iPhone ever… while our competitors try to imitate iPhone with a checklist of features, only iPhone can deliver these breakthrough innovations that work seamlessly together....

Apple has filed a number of patent applications for different ways of embedding a fingerprint reader into a display, and one of these has today been granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Apple first applied for the patent in 2015. In addition to allowing Apple to eliminate a separate Touch ID sensor, the patent also explains how embedding the reader into the screen can make for a more seamless experience …...

When we reported on Apple’s courtroom woes in March, we told you lawmakers were sending letters to iOS devs (Apple included) and questioning them on their privacy policies about how apps access contact data without explicit user permission. Despite promises, Apple has yet to carry out an update requiring apps to ask for user-approval, but an earlier case over the collection of user data has been given the green light by U....

Buried inside all of Apple’s announcements today were some notable changes to the company’s AppleCare+ repair program. While Apple has long charged $99 for repairs of current-gen devices and $79 for previous-gen repairs, the company today announced that there is now a flat $99 charge for all incidental repairs under AppleCare+. For one of the most common repairs, however, there’s a nice pricing improvement… Perhaps most notably, however, there’s a new fee that applies exclusively to screen repairs for AppleCare+ customers....

We brought you an “iPhone 5 conversion kit” earlier this week that essentially allowed you to purchase a back plate mod kit resembling the leaked images of the white and black next-generation iPhone backs. Apple does not want you to get your hands on the new iPhone design just yet, so it not surprisingly issued a take down notice to the makers of the mod kit. The sellers still promise to accept orders for the next 48 hours and continue to ship to those who have already ordered....

As it does every year, Apple has officially kicked off its iTunes Boxing Week sale with discounts on select albums for this week only. The sale, which both UK and Canadian users will find under a special section in the iTunes store on both iOS and Mac, will likely remain available through the end of the week. While “Boxing Day” is officially recognized in Canada and elsewhere on the 26th, retailers usually offer a Black Friday-type event for Boxing Day with most sales lasting the entire week following Dec....

Apple is preparing to enhance its Apple Store-based iPhone sales operations in the United States around pre-paid and month-to-month plans in order boost sales, according to a source briefed on the upcoming initiatives. For the first time in U.S. Apple Stores, customers will be able to purchase an iPhone at full-price and then connect the phone to a pre-paid plan or a month-to-month plan within the store. Previously, iPhone customers could only buy full-priced iPhones as unlocked devices then connect the devices to pre-paid plans or month-to-month plans via a previously purchased SIM-card or through a carrier store…...

Seemingly in an effort to combat the ongoing problem of accidental App Store subscriptions, Apple has added an extra step to the subscription process in the App Store. Apple will now present users with a “Confirm Subscription” popup before finalizing the details. This change was first noted by developer David Barnard on Twitter this afternoon. Starting sometime in the last week, Apple has added an additional step to the subscription process....