"A" Is For Apple And Its Upcoming iWatch

Rumors and trademark filings from Taiwan to Turkey are fueling the Apple rally. It's no secret that the next big thing from Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) is going to be an iWatch.

Is the iWatch going to be a game changer for Apple? Apple is one of the few technology companies in the world that has both the design and execution skills to bring a first-class smart watch to the market.

With Sir Jonathan (Jony) Ive heading up Apple's design team, the odds for a successful product being born out of Apple are good. Jony Ive is the same brilliant industrial designer who created many of Apple's biggest successes. Tim Cook, Apple's CEO, is coordinating and orchestrating supply chain logistics and marketing, and we're likely to see a first-class product coming out of Apple sooner, rather than later.

One thing Apple does perhaps better than any other company is to brand and develop a cult-like following. This was particularly evident when Steve Jobs, Apple's founder, was still with us. Many iPhone and iPad users will be quick to adopt whatever Apple is offering and with its huge installed base of users and cultists, it is going to be hard to see how this product could fail.

In today's video Continue reading ""A" Is For Apple And Its Upcoming iWatch"

Apple details government requests for data

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) says it received between 4,000 and 5,000 requests from U.S. law enforcement for customer data for the six months ended in May.

The company, like some other businesses, had asked the U.S government to be able to share how many requests it received related to national security and how it handled them. Those requests were made as part of Prism, the recently revealed highly classified National Security Agency program that seizes records from Internet companies.

Prism appears to do what its name suggests. Like a triangular piece of glass, Prism takes large beams of data and helps the government find discrete, manageable strands of information.

Prism was revealed this month by The Washington Post and Guardian newspapers, and has touched off the latest round in a decade-long debate over what limits to impose on government eavesdropping, which the Obama administration says is essential to keep the nation safe. Continue reading "Apple details government requests for data"