Here are your Apple rumors and AAPL news items for today:
Shifts: Demand for Apple‘s (AAPL) newest flagship iPhone continues to be stronger than expected, AppleInsider notes. According to a report from industry research fur NPD, Apple is planning to increase the production of its iPhone 5s by 75%. The iPhone 5s debuted last month alongside the less-expensive iPhone 5c. The iPhone 5s includes a fingerprint sensor as well as Apple’s new 64-bit A7 processor and comes in white, gold and gray. The iPhone 5s was in short supply during its launch weekend, prompting at least one wireless carrier to complain that it hadn’t been provided with enough of the new flagship iPhones to meet demand. However, NPD says that things aren’t as rosy for the iPhone 5c, which contains essentially the same internal components of the iPhone 5, which it replaced, in a colorful plastic casing. The report notes that checks with Apple’s supply chain indicate that production for the iPhone 5c has been trimmed by 35%. That corresponds with other recent reports that Apple has scaled back production of the iPhone 5c. The iPhone 5s has been said to be outselling the iPhone 5c by two-to-one, despite its higher price.
Upcoming: While iPads are expected to take center stage at Apple’s special media event on Tuesday, a number of other products could also make their debuts alongside the tablets, CNET notes. The company issued invitations with the tagline “We still have a lot to cover” last week. Most analyst consider it almost a certainty that Apple will reveal an slimmer, lighter fifth-generation iPad, which borrows design elements from the iPad Mini. It remains unclear if the new iPad will include the Touch ID fingerprint sensor found in the iPhone 5s. The company is also expected to unwrap an updated iPad Mini with a Retina screen. However, numerous reports have cited a shortage of iPad Mini Retina screens among Apple suppliers, possibly delaying its launch or badly constraining launch-time supplies. In addition to the new iPads, Apple’s may also unveil updated Macs and announce the launch of its refreshed Mac operating system, OS X Mavericks. Apple could also debut an updated version of its Apple TV streaming box, which has not been updated since last year. Recent rumors have suggested that a new Apple TV box could be revealed before the end of this year, though other reports say the new device isn’t ready for an imminent launch.
Storm: Apple’s iCloud can be compromised and user data accessed by hackers, ZDNet notes. The claim comes from Vladimir Katalov, who told an audience at the Hack In The Box conference in Malaysia last week that a lack of two-factor authentication in iCloud makes it possible for a hacker to penetrate iCloud accounts with just an Apple ID and a password. The account holder’s linked mobile devices would not be needed. iCloud data is encrypted, but the encryption key is stored along with the data, which would make it easy for hackers to decrypt the data once the account had been compromised. Katalov also notes that some iCloud data is stored on servers belonging to Amazon (AMZN) and Microsoft (MSFT).
For more about the company, check out our previous Apple Rumors stories.
