EU Agrees to Settle Antitrust E-Book Case Against Apple
As claimed by Reuters, EU regulators are willing to settle an antitrust investigation over alleged e-book price fixing against Apple and four publishing houses, including Simon & Schuster, HarperCollins, Hachette and Macmillan. In a settlement first offered back in September, the companies are seeking to avoid fines by giving iBooks rivals, in particular Amazon, the right to sell digital titles at a discount.
Belkin Debuts First Official Third-Party Lightning Dock and Car Charger
On Monday, Belkin introduced first authorized non-Apple Lightning accessories, including the Charge + Sync Dock and Car Charger for Lightning, which are both scheduled to arrive by end of December. Back in 2003, the company was also the first to sell third-party 30-pin products and has since become widely known for a wide range of iOS accessories of all kinds.
U.S. Apple Store Reportedly Lists Prices of Unlocked iPhone 5 Models
One of AppleInsider readers has allegedly discovered pricing for factory unlocked iPhone 5 units scheduled to appear on sale in several months on the Online Apple Store. While there is no confirmation that the info is official, the prices could merely serve as placeholders in the company’s database. However, they seem to line up with identical versions available in Canada where Apple sells only unlocked handsets.
iOS 6.1 Users to Gain Ability to Purchase Movie Tickets via Siri
Apple developers are currently testing the first update to the company’s newest mobile operating system, iOS 6.1. As reported by 9to5Mac, the new version will allow users to obtain movie tickets via Siri, Apple’s proprietary voice recognition service. Powered by Fandango, the software will be capable of deciphering distinctly pronounced requests to buy a certain amount of tickets for any movie in any of the theaters included in the program’s database. To successfully book a ticket, you don’t even have to know the name of the film. Instead of identifying the movie precisely by title, you can simply describe it in general terms, and Siri will automatically associate your query with one of the movies available.
Apple Patents Antitheft iPhone Solution
Judging from Apple’s latest patent application, the company is working on an alarm system for its iOS devices that would be capable of detecting movements typically performed by robbers when stealing a smartphone and ring the alarm in dangerous situations. In determining a theft, the iPhone would use the data from its built-in accelerometer, the same solution used for finding out how users are holding their unit.
Unauthorized Chinese Lightning Cable Taken Apart
Toxic Cables has disassembled a third-party Lightning to USB cable obtained from one of Chinese retailers that is selling the accessory for as little as $3.50. Although the connector reportedly functions properly for charging and syncing, the lack of appropriate shielding creates too much noise when connecting external music players. The build quality of the knock-off was also called “extremely poor” compared to the official Apple-branded version.
Apple Improves The Estimated Shipping Time for new iPad to 1-2 weeks posted on March 22, 2012 
New Intel Sandy Bridge Xeon chips to arrive next week for potential Mac Pro refresh posted on March 14, 2012 
Motorola ban against iPhones, iPads undone in Germany posted on March 10, 2012 
Change.org protest against Foxconn labor conditions scheduled for iPad launch at Georgetown store posted on March 25, 2012 
March 7 iPad 3 event confirmed, takes place in San Francisco posted on March 6, 2012
