WSJ

The Wall Street Journal posts full video of Tim Cook interview

Cody Lee ∙ November 10, 2014

In October, Apple CEO Tim Cook participated in an interesting on-stage interview at The Wall Street Journal’s inaugural WSJ.D Live conference. During the 30-minute discussion, Cook talked about several topics including Apple Pay, Apple Watch and more.

Of course, Cook has done a handful of high profile interviews in recent months, but he does divulge some new details regarding Apple and its products during this talk. We covered some of the highlights here, but now you can watch the whole thing on video.

Jony Ive: creating Apple Watch posed more challenges than iPhone development

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 31, 2014

Creating the Apple Watch, Apple's first new category device since Steve Jobs's passing in late 2011, posed more challenges than iPhone development due to social expectations around wearing a pocket computer on one's wrist, Apple's design tzar Jony Ive told The Wall Street Journal on Friday.

Ive and his team are largely responsible for the look and feel of Apple's hardware over the past two decades, and since 2011 have been tasked with stewardship of the software and all design across the company.

Here are a few soundbites from the interview.

Tim Cook talks Apple Watch battery, Apple Pay numbers and more in WSJ interview

Cody Lee ∙ October 28, 2014

Tim Cook took the stage earlier tonight at the Wall Street Journal’s inaugural WSJ.D Live conference at the Montage resort in Laguna Beach, California. The CEO participated in a lengthy interview, as well as a Q&A session, which produced some pretty interesting tidbits regarding Apple and its products.

Of course, given that Cook has done a handful of high profile interviews in recent months, you've probably heard some of the stuff mentioned at tonight's event. However, he does offer up some new information regarding Apple Watch battery life, why the iPod classic was discontinued, and other morsels.

New report suggests Apple-GT Advanced deal fell apart over iPhone 6 displays

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

The deal between Apple and GT Advanced, which involved the former giving the latter a near-$600 million loan, fell apart over iPhone 6 displays, reports The Wall Street Journal. The outlet says Apple expected GT to produce sapphire for the displays of its new handsets, but it either wasn't tough enough or the yield was too low.

GT Advanced made the surprise announcement on Monday that it would be filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, and it had its first hearing this afternoon. We expected the proceeding to offer a better explanation of what happened, but GT was granted a secrecy motion that closed the hearing and sealed all documents.

WSJ: 12.9-inch iPad delayed to 2015, Retina MacBook Air entering production in December

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 9, 2014

Due to strong demand for the iPhone 6 Plus, which continues to exhibit a 3-4 week delay on the Online Apple Store, Taiwanese suppliers have reportedly pushed back plans to produce a rumored larger iPad with a 12.9-inch screen to 2015, according to people familiar with the matter cited by The Wall Street Journal Thursday.

The so-called iPad Pro was originally scheduled to enter mass production in December, the financial newspaper added. Moreover, mass production of a new MacBook Air model with “a higher resolution” screen should commence in December, as per WSJ's sources.

Apple ‘surprised’ by GT Advanced bankruptcy filing, company spokesperson says

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 8, 2014

In its first public comment Wednesday following a totally unepxected bankruptcy filing of its supplier GT Advanced Technology earlier this week, Apple now says it was taken aback by such turn of events while confirming its priority going forward will be preserving jobs at the Mesa, Arizona plant that GT had agreed to run on Apple's behalf.

Company spokesman Chris Gaither said in a written statement to Reuters, The Wall Street Journal and other major outlets that “we are focussed on preserving jobs in Arizona following GT's surprising decision and we will continue to work with state and local officials as we consider our next steps”.

Tim Cook speaks out on recent iCloud hacks, promises new security measures

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

Tim Cook sat down with The Wall Street Journal today, but not to talk about how excited Apple is about next week's iPhone event. Instead, the CEO answered questions regarding the recent iCloud scandal, which led to the posting of dozens of nude celebrity photos earlier this week.

Apple has already released a statement on the matter, claiming that iCloud and its subsequent services had not been breached. Cook reiterated those claims today, and added that the Cupertino company plans to rollout a number of new security features to make its devices more safe.

WSJ: NFC-enabled iWatch has ‘a role in mobile payments’, features curved OLED screen

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 13, 2018

Adding up to the ongoing conversation about Apple's purported wearable project dubbed by the media the 'iWatch', The Wall Street Journal affirmed Thursday that the fashionable gizmo will connect to the upcoming iPhone 6 via NFC and come in two sizes to appeal to both gender’s preferences.

NFC stands for Near-Field Communication, which is a short-range wireless technology required for the handset's rumored mobile payment functionality.

In their write-up behind the paywall, reporters Lorrraine Luk, Daisuke Wakabayashi and Greg Bensinger quote people familiar with the matter as saying that both iWatch sizes feature a curved organic light-emitting diode screen, or OLED.

There will be sensors to track and monitor health and fitness data, as expected. According to the Journal, Apple's use of NFC technology on the iWatch signals that it “sees a role for the device in digital payments”.

Nokia tries maps again, confirms free iOS navigation app coming based on Here Maps

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 3, 2014

Nokia executive Sean Fernback told the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday that the Finnish telecommunications company will be releasing a brand new cross-platform mobile navigation app for the iOS and Android platforms later this year.

Nokia, which sold off its handset division to Microsoft, kept its Here mapping service. The forthcoming GPS navigation app would be unique in that both the maps themselves and searches would work without an Internet connection.

WSJ: higher-end 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch iPhone 6 models to get sapphire displays

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

The Wall Street Journal reports this afternoon that Apple plans to use sapphire crystal displays in higher-end models of both the 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch iPhone 6 models this fall. The news directly contradicts recent reports, which said the company had scrapped such plans due to complexity and cost.

According to today's report, though, the firm is still very much pondering the idea, and plans to move forward with it if it can get enough sapphire produced in time for launch. The outlet says that Apple may charge more for the phones due to the material's higher costs, a long-running theory this year...

Beats Music CEO Ian Rogers to head iTunes Radio at Apple

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

Following the completion of Apple's Beats acquisition today, the Wall Street Journal reports on a major position appointment for the two companies. Apparently, Beats Music CEO Ian Rogers (left) has been assigned to lead Apple's iTunes Radio team.

Citing sources familiar with the situation, the outlet says that Rogers will head up both streaming services at the company. He's been tasked with creating cohesion between the two offerings, to better compete with services like Pandora and Spotify...

Hilton rolling out iPhone door locks in all hotels globally beginning next year

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated February 9, 2018

Picture this: after a long and exhaustive flight, you finally arrive at a hotel. But instead of waiting on the lines clogging the front desk to pick up a key, simply bypass the receptionist and head straight to your room safely knowing that an iPhone in your pocket doubles as the room key.

It's precisely the kind of fantasy that Hilton has dreamed up and now working to make a reality across the vast majority of their hotels by 2016.

This is according to a Wall Street Journal report Monday. That's right, beginning 2015 some Hilton hotels will allow for door unlocking with a smartphone, with the global roll-out expected to complete by the end of 2016...