Apple has been enjoying a stellar start to 2014 where the company has put to an end doubts about its dominance. The company sold as many smartphones as Samsung last quarter, recorded the most profitable three months in history, and saw just about everyone give it a good old pat on the back. The celebration is not over for Cupertino though as it became the most valuable company in history this week.

The company’s shares closed Tuesday as $122.02, which means that the market capitalization of Apple values the brand at more than $700 billion. Wall Street is now saying that Apple is worth $710.7 billion, making it the first company to ever crack that magic $700 billion mark. It is also significantly more than the current second place company could manage.

That company was oil giant Exxon, which closed with a market capitalization of $385 billion. Compared to tech rivals, Apple is worth more than Google and Microsoft combined.

iOS 8 may only be midway through its life cycle, but Apple is obviously already preparing its follow up, iOS 9. Codenamed Monarch, it has been popping up lately with several sources spilling the proverbial beans on the software. Likely to be announced early this summer and rolled out with new products in the fall, iOS 9 will reportedly be much more stable platform.

A new report says that Apple will not necessarily be chasing a slew of new features with iOS 9, but will instead be focusing on optimizing the software, making it more stable, and getting more consistent speed performance. Certainly, iOS 8 has not been as well received as previous iterations, with many complaining that it was rather rough around the edges. Apple has largely resolved any teething problems, but will be looking to avoid them altogether with iOS 9.

Apple is already deep into development on iOS 9 and the software will almost certainly be announced at the company’s WWDC event in June before launching on new devices in the fall. Codenamed Monarch, iOS 9 is shaping up to be a piece of software that will smooth over cracks in iOS 8, rather than being a huge overhaul. Read More »

Apple’s iOS 8 has enjoyed solid adoption rates, much better than anything Android can dream of, but not as good as the uptake of iOS 8. The OS had found its way to 46% of all iOS devices within a few days of its release, but since then the growth has been slower. However, slow and steady has definitely been the iOS 8 way and Apple has announced that adoption levels are now at 72%.
Cupertino released its newest data that revealed 25% of users are still rocking iOS 7, while just 3% are still back on earlier builds (that are now obsolete in terms of updates).
Of course, Android and iOS have been locked in a long battle, but this is one area where Apple win hands down. For example, Android 5.0 Lollipop has been available since the start of November, but per Google’ latest data, Lollipop has only found its way to 1.6% of Android devices. That’s a number iOS 8 achieved more than twenty fold within days of release.

Things really are going brilliantly for Apple at the moment; so much so that the fact the iPad sales continue to decline has been completely forgotten. With record profits and record sales, Apple is on a high, but things are getting better according to Kantar Worldpanel ComTech. The market researcher says that for the first time since 2012 Apple sold more device in the US than all Android products combined.
Cupertino grew its market share by 3.8% year-on-year through the fourth quarter of 2014, taking a total of 47.7% of the market with its iOS operating system. As for Android, Google’s platform accounted for 47.6%, dropping below iOS by just 0.01%. Of course, Android is likely to reclaim the crown this quarter, but it really is an astonishing feat that Apple is competing with Android with such a limited portfolio compared to Android’s vast array of products.
Kantar found that the iPhone 6 was the best-selling smartphone in the United State through the Christmas, which is hardly a surprise. Next in line was Samsung’s Galaxy S5, not bad for a device that has been available for ten months.
There were similar results in Europe, with Android slipping 3.8% to 66.1% of the market (compared to 2013), while iOS surged by 6.2%.

When it comes to making money, Apple is at the top of the game. The very top in fact, with the company earnings record amounts of profits through the last quarter off increased sales and higher margins. With $18 billion in profit, Apple made the best ever quarter in the history of business, beating out Russian oil company Gazprom. With that huge amount of cash, it is interesting to know where the company gets the money from.
Well, a new infographic breaks down exactly what Apple makes, how the company makes profit, and where the money comes from.
The infographic reveals that the average sale price of sits at $687 during the fourth quarter of 2014, which is a $50 hike over the same period through 2013. The reason for that price increase is the iPhone 6 Plus, a handset that is more expensive than the previous iPhone flagships. A brief explanation why Apple makes more than Android rivals would be that Android’s average selling price is $254.
Apple spends on average $220 to build and sell an iPhone, which means Cupertino makes a massive 200% in profit from each device. So, with the company selling record numbers it is easy to see where that amazing profit came from, not to mention over $74 million in total revenue. According to various sources and the company’s own books, Apple now has $178 billion in clear cash, with the iPhone the driving force behind the success with 68% of the company’s revenue.

Accusations of Apple no longer being an innovator are of course nonsense, the company ushered in 64-bit chips, fingerprint sensors, and so on over the last two years. However, a new patent could be the most innovative thing Apple has done in some time as the company has filed a patent with the USPTO for a new version of the company’s iconic Home Button. Read More »

Trade-in compiling company CompareMyMobile based in the UK revealed its new annual report (2014 edition) that shows trade in results from the country through last year. The survey shows which devices and companies get the most trade-ins, taking into account such factors as depreciation, and the most valuable smartphones. Read More »