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Surprise: Microsoft's working on a smartwatch of its own
Apple's reportedly working on one, Google's developing an entire ecosystem and hundreds of smaller companies either have products already on the market, or currently under development. The question isn't who's building a smartwatch, it's who isn't building one. And as expected, you can count Microsoft out of that latter camp. The software giant turned computer manufacturer is working on its own wearable concoction (not pictured above), according to a Forbes report, with Kinect engineers even pitching in with the project. The unannounced device will reportedly collect health data day and night, such as your heart rate, and will work with Android, iOS and Windows Phones alike. It's also said to sport a design similar to Samsung's Gear Fit, a color touchscreen facing a wearer's wrist and a two-day battery. Opening the device up to multiple platforms would be a key selling point, and continuous monitoring could make the Microsoft wearable a fit for casual users and fitness buffs alike.
It takes skill to be this wrong about an Apple rumor
I've written about some silly Apple rumor articles in the past, but I've never seen a piece get so many things wrong as quickly as this Apple/Beats writeup by Mark Hibben on Seeking Alpha (which was then regurgitated on PCMag). Called "Why The Apple/Beats Deal May Be Dead," the article was published on May 27, roughly 24 hours before the deal was officially confirmed. Hibben starts off by attacking the rationale for the theoretical deal, pointing to Billboard articles which suggested that, amongst other things, iTunes Radio is a flop and Apple finds Beats to be more ideal. He does a brief takedown on articles by David Goldman and Ben Thompson who used these theories as their basis for support of an Apple/Beats deal, before wrapping up with "Can $3.2 billion worth of desperation ever really be cool?" No, but apparently $3 billion can be. I'll let Tim Cook's quote from an interview with the Wall Street Journal speak for itself here: "We love the subscription service that they built -- we think it's the first one that really got it right." Sounds to me like Apple absolutely adores the Beats service, and the suggestion that Apple finds it superior to even the company's own iTunes Radio service, which provides ad-free listening with an iTunes Match subscription, is spot-on. The next sticking point for Hibben is the "infamous" Dr. Dre video, which was posted to Facebook and seemed to indicated that Dre had indeed made a big-money deal. Though Apple wasn't mentioned specifically, it seemed to fit in with the rumors at the time, and its immediate takedown was another sign that something was up. Hibben suggests that even if a deal was indeed in place, this likely jeopardized it to the point where it might have been outright cancelled. To this I have to ask, when was the last time Apple announced a new product or service that wasn't rumored to exist long before its debut? The "culture of secrecy" that Hibben points at Beats not fitting into is a bit of a myth in its own right. Yes, the company would love to keep everything on lockdown, but Tim Cook and Co. aren't blind to the fact that we live in a world where everything will be leaked in one form or another. In fact, having the public first learn of a possible deal from the likes of an enthusiastic Dr. Dre and movie star Tyrese directly connects the company to a market they would greatly benefit from, which is urban youth. As Micah Singleton points out in a fantastic piece on The Daily Dot, this buy is as much about cultural influence as it is about headphones or streaming music, and whether Hibben likes it or not, that video probably helped more than it hurt. The Seeking Alpha piece wraps up by suggesting that Apple's stock will take a hit once everyone realizes a deal isn't actually going to happen. "Tim Cook's leadership will of course again be called into question." Nah, it won't be, because the deal was confirmed the next day, and now everyone is falling all over themselves to praise Apple for making such a bold move. Tim Cook wins this round, and he wins big.
TUAW TV Live: Steve & Doc discuss the odds for WWDC 2014
On Monday morning, June 2, 2014, a bunch of Apple execs are going to take to the stage at Moscone Center West in San Francisco to share the company's latest with developers. A lot of us would love to see new devices from the company; new product categories we haven't even dreamed of and that the rumor sites never had a clue were coming. But let's be realistic -- Apple is a company that admits to never making a big decision without saying "No" a lot to new ideas. So will we see something new? On today's TUAW TV Live, Shawn "Doc Rock" Boyd and I are going to rehash some of the rumors that have been banging around the blogosphere for the past several months and give 'em our best guess for a probability of actually being announced at WWDC 2014. It's sure to be a lot of fun, and you can join in on the discussion by joining the chat room. To watch the show and take part in the chat, just scroll down a tiny bit, log into the chat room, and be sure to press the "play" button on the video window around 5 PM to watch the stream. If you don't have time to watch the complete show today, come back to this post later when we'll have the recording available for your viewing pleasure. Contact the podcast Follow the hosts on Twitter: @stevensande, @docrock, @TUAW Send your questions to @stevensande E-mail us: tvlive at tuaw [dot] com
The man behind some of gaming's most notorious rumors outs himself
Excited about Fallout 4? Well, cool it, because that's not necessarily a real thing. You're forgiven if you thought it was, and not just because we love you: rumors swirled about the supposed game for months. While at least one of them was true -- and yes, Fallout 4 is assuredly a possibility -- some of the most widely reported rumors were total bullshit. And not just any ol' poop, but carefully crafted lies from a single man -- that's according to a profile piece by Kotaku's Jason Schreier. The alleged fake leaker also promulgated false rumors of Watch Dogs and Call of Duty, both of which were widely reported among gaming sites. It's a fascinating tale, and we suggest heading over to Kotaku for the full piece. [Image credit: Karin Dreyer, Getty Creative]
Forget headphones, Apple's interest in Beats is about paid music subscriptions
The rumor mill exploded last week amidst reports that Apple is considering purchasing Beats Electronics for US$3.2 billion. While most of Apple's acquisitions are small, surgical, and neatly fit into the company's future product plans, the Apple/Beats rumor raised many more questions than it answered. Why, after all, would Apple be interested in a company that, at the end of the day, is primarily known for selling expensive headphones? While there are no shortage of talking heads who believe the rumored acquisition has to do with Apple attempting to make inroads on a younger and hipper demographic, it's hard to take that line of reasoning seriously. The extent of Apple concerning itself with its "image" starts and ends with marketing. So what's likely at play here? Streaming music. Earlier today, Bloomberg reported that Apple, first and foremost, is primarily interested in Beats Music. Any deal would deepen Apple's ties to the music industry at a time when digital download sales are falling. Apple hasn't changed its iTunes music service much since it was introduced more than a decade ago. Today, iTunes still provides downloads of singles for 99 cents, as well as downloads of albums, even as subscription music services including Spotify Ltd. flourish. Apple became interested in doing a deal with Beats after executives were impressed by Beats Music, the online music streaming service unveiled earlier this year, which was rapidly converting users into paying subscribers, said a person with knowledge of the talks, who asked not to be identified because the discussions are private. That digital downloads are on the decline is no secret. What's more, Apple's iTunes Radio hasn't quite been the hit Apple may have been hoping for. While Apple's streaming radio service reportedly has about an 8% share of the audio streaming market, it's been reported that only 1-2% of listeners actually end up purchasing songs via the buy button. Meanwhile, the revenue generated from subscription sites like Spotify continue to grow, and in some areas, is giving iTunes a run for its money. If we take the rumored $3.2 billion acquisition price out of the equation for a second, integrating Beats Music into the Apple ecosystem starts making a lot more sense. Apple's rollout of iTunes Radio demonstrates that the company still cares about remaining relevant in the music space. Beats Music itself has been highly regarded for not only offering a compelling subscription package, but more so because it offers users professionally curated music playlists. Imagine for a second, a future iteration of iOS 8 coming with a Beats Music app placed front and center on the homescreen. You'd have to imagine that this would be a more enticing proposition than iTunes Radio. Further, given how many consumers have already given Apple their credit card information, perhaps getting folks to sign up for Beats Music subscriptions will be a streamlined piece of cake. Perhaps all it will take is a quick Touch ID thumbprint and, just like that, a new subscriber is born. The rumored Beats deal hasn't yet been confirmed, so as with any Apple rumor, assume nothing is a done deal until an Apple press release hits the wires.
That biometric EarPod story was a load of baloney
Late last week, the tech news world was buzzing due to a post on Secret purporting to be leaking details about the next generation of Apple's EarPods. As you can see in the image above, the post made some big promises that understandably got people excited. A large number of news outlets -- from 9to5Mac to the Daily Mail -- all ran with the story with various degrees of skepticism. We chose not to, since while it certainly paralleled descriptions of certain patents we'd heard about from Apple before, it was ultimately just a rumor. Today the person behind that rumor came out and admitted it was all a hoax in a long Tumblr blog post explaining their motives and confusion when the whole story exploded. As our world becomes more connected, voices that were once anonymous are given the megaphone of the public square, leading to more situations were simple mischief becomes news. If the Secret poster's blog is to believed, all of this started as a dumb joke: I'd been messing around with secret as an outlet for comedy. The anonymous nature makes it a fun place to post things you can't on twitter. I've been posting a few jokes there for a week or two. Because of the way Secret works, your posts only go to your friends and so I've been posting stuff there to try and give my friends a laugh. I like jokes and funny ideas and so Twitter and Secret are great for this kind of stuff. I wouldn't go as far as to call it art but it's a place I can test my creativity in a way I like to. I was sitting there doing my business thinking what today's joke would be. I take medication for ASD related stuff that can sometimes raise my blood pressure, so I was wishing I had an iPhone accessory that would measure it. I looked around on Amazon and eBay and couldn't find a good one at a price that it was worth to me. I was then thinking I wish Apple had a way to build one in to the phone. I started thinking how that would be possible. You can get the pulse from the camera with an app, but blood pressure is another thing. I thought jokingly you could wrap the headphones around your arm and measure it that way. From that, I thought a fake iPhone rumor about it would be a funny idea. The idea of Apple including a free heart pressure monitor, something that would cost >$100-$200, seemed ridiculous to me. I added the iBeacon thing to stretch it further and the audio jack port moving idea as some contrived logic to make it sound believable. Like the strait man of the comedy sketch. When small numbers of people in my "circle" started commenting (I don't know who they are) I played along with vague descriptions of how I would know about this. This vagueness caused people to collectively fill in the gaps. I made this mistake of not correcting people and playing up to the comments. Without releasing it, I had begun not just joking with a few friends, but accidentally trolling a far larger audience. Like all good rumors that get out of hand, the post didn't just reach the few intended friends it was original intended for. The very nature of Secret makes it impossible to know who is posting a story in the first place, removing one of the most important rules of making a joke work: the audience should know it's a joke. This joke was believable though; Apple has patents that could in theory be used to design exactly this kind of EarPod and with its recent acquisitions in the health field this rumor was just confirmation of what many readers already thought might be happening. It was a completely believable story -- only it couldn't be verified, so we didn't run with it. Thankfully this situation resolved itself quickly. The author of the Secret felt bad and worried about getting someone in trouble so they came clean. This might be a little paranoid. But one thing that worries me is with this timing, if I'm close enough to the mark with my guess, is that Apple might think someone they trust is leaking stuff, and someone might get in trouble for it. I made it all up. If I'm close. It's a lucky guess. I'm not vain enough to think that Apple hired someone based on my rumor. It was likely in the pipeline for ages. But it gave false verification to the fake rumor and made things even more complicated. Some posts are even suggesting that this "leak" is causing other manufacters (sic) to respond which sounds ridiculous. But again, fills me with fear that I might have even taken a small part in directing how Samsung spends their R&D money. I don't want to be like that XBOX 720 guy. But I wanted to come clean about how it happened and say sorry to anybody I've pissed off. I'm still amazed just how easy it was for it to get big without trying. That last line right there is why we here at TUAW rarely post specific rumor stories, but rather round them up all in one place humorously. Ultimately, it's too easy to sell a big idea that people already want to be true without any verification at all. We could say "this is a rumor, take it for what it's worth" but by reporting a story, even with a caveat, we're putting our name behind it. So when you think about sending us an email asking why we're not covering a current hot rumor, remember the EarPod incident of 2014. We promise -- the second we can prove that something is real, we'll do our best to tell you about it. You can read the complete Tumblr confession right here.
China wages war on internet porn and rumor-mongering (again)
If you're a porn connoisseur or troll in China, chances are your year hasn't been great so far. Some 110 Chinese porn websites and 3,300 social accounts on services like Sina Weibo and WeChat have gone dark since January as part of the government's new Cleaning The Web 2014 campaign, and that crackdown shows little sign of stopping. It's not just porn that's being hunted, either -- this rigmarole is just as much about clamping down on odious internet rumors as it is about rooting out NSFW pics and slash fiction.
It's way too easy to fake a photo of a "new" iPhone
There have been a whole lot of supposedly leaked photos of the mythical 4.7-inch iPhone 6 lately -- or at least bits and pieces of it. A production mold pops up here and a front panel shows up there, and the Internet eats it up because, hey, it's photographic evidence, right? The already grainy photos get filtered through Twitter and other social networks that downgrade the image quality even further, and before long we're left with a low-res picture that is hard to pick apart. To be clear, I'm not doubting the theory that Apple is indeed working on a 4.7-inch smartphone. Apple clearly wants to make something bigger than the iPhone 5 and 4.7 inches is a happy medium between the current 4-inch display and the maybe-too-big land of the 5-inch crew. But relying on uncredited photos to back up a rumor is something the tech world loves to do, and the trend is even more pronounced when it comes to stories about Apple. Want a "photo" of the still-rumored 5.5-inch iPhone "phablet"? Coming right up! The photo above was created in photoshop in about 25 minutes. It didn't take much to whip it up, and I'm definitely no Photoshop wizard. A couple of crappy photos, some Photoshop tweaking, and a noise filter or two and you have yourself a genuine "iPhablet" that has a good chance of catching on with the social media crowd who crave anything that looks even remotely like an Apple product. You could tear apart the photo and analyze it enough to prove its true identity, but 9 out of 10 people who see the story won't bother. As far as they're concerned, it's as believable as anything else, which is why these types of rumors run rampant. So whether you're a skeptic by nature or you buy every rumor being sold, this is a friendly reminder to take everything with a grain of salt. Wait, no, a bucket.
Ming-Chi Kuo and The Legend of the $3,000 iWatch
Along with the iPhone predictions I covered yesterday from KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo -- who, despite being wrong about new Apple products many times, is described by various outlets as "spot on" and "pretty reliable" -- we were graced with a supposed bit of insider info on Apple's still mythical iWatch. Along with Kuo's theory that there will be two different sizes of the wearable, the analyst makes a downright shocking claim that Apple's watch will be priced as high as "several thousand US dollars." As usual, this sketchy claim was treated as all but confirmation that Tim Cook is indeed poised to drop a wrist-worn device as expensive as a used car on the world, and the headlines flowed forth. "Here's how much the iWatch will cost," "The most accurate Apple analyst in the world is predicting iWatches will cost several thousand dollars," and "Apple's iWatch could cost over $1,000" are just a few choice examples, but there are plenty more. Perhaps I wake up on a different frequency than the rest of humanity, but I would sooner believe that Apple is planning to purchase a national coffee chain than give any credit to a rumor that the company's unannounced wearable is priced as high as the Mac Pro. Do you know who would buy a $3,000 iWatch? Nobody. Ok, that's probably not true; I imagine there are a half dozen executives growing tired of their Rolexes, but that's never been Apple's market. Apple makes premium products, and the iPad, iPhone, and Mac are often pricier than the competition, but they're priced to be desirable. Apple isn't in the business of cheap products, and they're also not going to try to compete with Louis Vuitton. Kuo adds a little bit of flavor to the iWatch rumors by adding that the device itself will have a "fashionable appearance" and "we predict the iWatch casing and band will come in various materials." Talk about painting with broad strokes. By adding obscure, meaningless details like this, Kuo's overall iWatch prediction list looks a little bit better, even after we discover that the most critical bullet point -- the price -- was a total miss. So if and when the iWatch is announced, and we all discover it's priced in the ballpark of Apple's other mobile gadgets, will this be counted as a massive error by Kuo? Of course not. The world will brush it off and the next time the analyst comes calling with a wild guess, he will still be described as "almost always correct." [Details & high-res version of movie poster available here]
Apparently everything about the iPhone 6 is already known
Well, that's it, everyone! According to this BGR story, there's nothing left to know about the iPhone 6; we have all the information already. Wait, no we don't. The "insider" mentioned in the headline is none other than Ming-Chi Kuo, analyst with KGI Securities. Granted, Kuo has had some reliable reports about unreleased Apple products in the past, but he's also been wrong -- a lot. And not just wrong about small things, like the TouchID sensor being convex (it's recessed and flat) or his insistence that the iPhone 5s would have a 128GB model at launch, but bigger things, such as all-new Retina MacBooks and the launch of a "low-cost" iPad mini. So, with that all in mind, allow us to react to this allegedly thunder-stealing report that "may have taken all the mystery out of Apple's upcoming next-generation iPhone launches later this year." Beginning with the main flagship iPhone 6 model, Kuo reports that it will indeed feature a new 4.7-inch display panel. The analyst also says Apple's new iPhone will feature a big design overhaul that is much thinner, and the bezel on the sides of the display will be reduced by between 10% and 20% so that the phone can still be used comfortably with one hand despite the larger screen. Interestingly, Kuo believes that Apple will add NFC chips to this year's iPhone models. The new iPhone phablet will feature a full HD 1,920 x 1,080-pixel display that measures 5.5 inches diagonally, according to Kuo. That works out to a pixel density of 401 ppi. Apple's first phablet will seemingly sport specs that are very similar to the smaller iPhone 6 model, including the A8 processor, NFC and Touch ID. The battery will be much larger, however, with Kuo suggesting that it will be between 50% and 70% bigger than the current iPhone 5s battery. Kuo also says that the power/sleep/wake button on both new iPhone models will be moved from the top of the phone to the side, so it can be reached more easily on the larger phones. Many large Android phones have the power button situated on the side as well. The analyst claims that Apple will switch from Gorilla Glass to sapphire crystal to cover the iPhone's displays, but possibly only on the high-end models with 64GB of memory. This is due to supply constraints, Kuo said, though ultimately Apple will supposedly move all of its iPhone models to sapphire.
This iPhone 6 rumor is a special kind of stupid
Apple rumors usually fall into one of three categories: Believable, unbelievable, and ridiculous. A recent claim from International Business Times is making a strong case for a fourth, even less plausible designation. According to the IBT, Apple's next iPhone is definitely going to come with a stylus. IBT makes the claims not once, but twice, even going so far as to suggest that you should expect a stylus with the iPhone 6. The site draws its conclusion from a recently outed patent for an "iPen" device that uses orientation sensors built into the stylus itself as well as a touch panel, as well as an extendable tip. The system would theoretically allow the implement to be used like a traditional drawing device, producing different on-screen effect depending on how it is held and its angle to the screen. To link such a patent to the upcoming next-generation iPhone is absurd to say the least, and there's quite literally zero reason to think that the two have any relation to one another. The iPhone has a touchscreen and the patented stylus is designed to work with touch panel of some sort... that's about as tenuous a correlation as I've ever seen. This theory also completely ignores the fact that Apple has scoring patents for a "smart pen" or stylus since 2010, and almost every one of them either notes its use for tablets, or doesn't name a host device whatsoever. If anything, I'd argue that an super-stylus makes much more sense on the still-mythical "iPad Pro," rather than anything designed to stick in your pocket, and even that claim would be a huge stretch. The iPhone has always been about simplicity, and it was the original anti-stylus smartphone. To suggest a change at this point in the device's heritage is over the top to say the least. "So let's not use a stylus. We're going to use the best pointing device in the world. We're going to use a pointing device that we're all born with - born with ten of them. We're going to use our fingers. We're going to touch this with our fingers. And we have invented a new technology called multi-touch, which is phenomenal. It works like magic." -Steve Jobs, announcing the original iPhone in 2007 In the seven years since Jobs stood on stage and made that statement, our fingers haven't gotten any less awesome, and touchscreen technology has improved even further. Would an "iPen" make sense for artists? Absolutely. But most artists wouldn't find a 4 or 5-inch screen ideal for scribbling, and it certainly wouldn't be a reason to include one alongside the next iPhone. Not. Gonna. Happen. [Photo credit: Michael Gil (iPhone)]
BlizzCon 2014 on the way?
Sharp eyes over at MMO-Champion discovered a small change to a page on the official BlizzCon site yesterday. The Terms and Conditions section of the BlizzCon Virtual Ticket page has been updated to read BlizzCon 2014 on the header title. At this time, there doesn't appear to be any other adjustments made to any page on the site -- not even in the Terms and Conditions itself, which still lists the year as 2013. While this is by no means any kind of a definite confirmation that we'll be seeing another BlizzCon this year, it's the first sign we've seen of another event happening. Statements made at a panel at BlizzCon 2013 indicated that Blizzard very clearly didn't want to take another year off from the event. This year marks not only the tenth anniversary of World of Warcraft, but the twentieth of the Warcraft franchise -- which is more than enough reason to throw another convention, even beyond the multiple games being released this year. Although we don't have any real confirmation, information about BlizzCon is usually released in the spring -- so we might just be hearing more about the event soon.
How to photograph a leaked Apple product
So you got your hands on an unreleased Apple product -- maybe even a prototype (oooooooh, yummy) -- and you want to let the whole damn world know about it? Good news! There's a tool that people like you often use to share their good fortune with the rest of the world, and it's called "The Internet!" Here in this wonderful digital land, there are writers and publications that will spread just about anything you can throw at them, as long as it can't actually be verified in any possible way. There are more of these types of websites than you can count on all your fingers and toes, but the good news is that if you get one of them to pay attention to you, the rest will follow suit! This is all dependent on one thing: having a fantastic, perfect, amazing photo to sacrifice to the rumor gods. Here are the rules you need to follow to become an anonymous Apple deity. Rule #1: Don't take a photo of a complete gadget It doesn't matter if you have an entire, functional version of Apple's unreleased phone, tablet or watch, because rumors aren't good if they don't have a little mystery to them. What you really want is a nondescript component that could really be used for absolutely anything. This way you give the rumor sites a bit of room to work in their own theories. The first thing you need to do is disassemble the device in question and find the most unremarkable part of it to focus on. The first two photos in this lineup won't get the rumor juices flowing, but that tiny, mysterious metal chunk really makes you wonder. What is it? What could it be for? Does it fit inside the new iPad or does it house the long-rumored NFC chip for the iPhone 7s? That's the kind of photo that gets clicks, ladies and gents. Tip: You get big bonus points if you can make it look like the photo was taken in a manufacturing setting. Rule #2: Obscure, obscure, obscure It might be tempting to take a great photo of a meaningless piece of glass or metal and just call it a day, but while it's a fantastic start, it's just doesn't pop unless we make sure there's some sort of unnecessary barrier to viewing the image clearly. There are a lot of tricks you can use, including placing the object behind a piece of glass, adding a ton of unnecessary glare to the photo by taking it at a weird angle or making sure the object is covered in plastic or other packaging materials. Because if you're going to take the time and substantial risk of leaking a product made by one of the most successful companies on the planet, there's zero reason to remove the sticky plastic. Tip: Do your best to make sure nobody can read any text on the object. Things like item numbers, manufacturing codes or other information that could lend credence to your claim aren't important to anyone. They just want a vague blob. Rule #3: Maximum excitement! If you have access to an unreleased Apple product, you're going to be pretty damn excited about it. The best way to express your excitement is to shake your hands violently as you snap the photo. This technique adds credibility to your claims by showing everyone that you're really nervous about getting caught. If you accidentally snap a perfectly still photo, you can add this "excitement" later in a program like Photoshop. The final rule If you've followed these steps, you should have a photo you can be proud of, and one that the internet will eat up with a jealous fervor. Many sites will argue over whether it's true, resorting to social media to vent about why someone does or doesn't believe it, but in the end, none of this matters, because you're the real winner even if nobody knows your name. That is one gorgeous leaked product photo. What is it? What does it do? Is it for the iPhone? Can we at least pretend it's for the iPhone? Of course we can! I took the photo, so I know what it really is. You don't. That means that I have the power, and I'm not giving it up. And I'm most certainly not going to tell you the truth, because that's the fourth and final rule of Apple rumormongering: Always leave them wanting more. [Photo credits: Ivyfield, Smemon, Uka0310, Parislemon, Mvchi, Dafe]
Rumor: World of Warcraft movie starts shooting today
Blizzard Entertainment originally announced plans to make a World of Warcraft live-action movie in 2006. After eight years of delays, disputes, and false starts, it looks as though someone is finally yelling, "Action!" on one of the most anticipated game-related movies ever to swirl through the rumor mill. Last night, director Duncan Jones tweeted, "Going to start shooting the movie tomorrow. Crikey! Better find my specs!" While Jones didn't mention World of Warcraft specifically, the movie was expected to start shooting this month with a planned release date of March 11th, 2016. Dominic Cooper, Paula Patton, Clancy Brown, Toby Kebbell, and Travis Fimmell have all been confirmed as stars.
Mark Kern removed as CEO of Red 5 Studios [Updated]
According to a recent report from Gamefront, Red 5 Studios CEO Mark Kern has been terminated by the company's board of directors, effective immediately. Vice President of Development James Macauly has apparently sent an email to all employees informing them of the change in leadership, with this latest dismissal coming in the wake of several previous layoffs at the Firefall studio. No official statement has been issued to the public by the company at this time. An anonymous source within the company has also spoken out against Kern in The Escapist, claiming that the CEO was frequently absent and arrived sporadically to hand down arbitrary decisions. How true these statements are cannot be confirmed, although the company does hold a low rating for employee satisfaction overall. We'll have more on the situation if and when a statement is issued regarding Kern's continued employment or lack thereof. [Update: Red 5 Producer Matt DeWald has issued a formal statement on the now-confirmed rumors: "As of Thursday, December 19th, Mark Kern is no longer the Chief Executive Officer of Red 5 Studios. Mark founded Red 5 Studios in 2006 to provide exceptional game entertainment along with a world-class team of developers working on the MMO Shooter, Firefall. Red 5 Vice President of Development, James Macauley, will be moving into the role of acting CEO. The team at Red 5 continues work on Firefall and looks forward to all that we have to offer in 2014."]
Sony A7 reportedly pictured in blurry screengrab, teases viewfinder
Remember that full-frame mirrorless shooter Sony's expected to release? Sony Alpha Rumors claims to have found an (admittedly low resolution) image of the fabled camera. The blurry shot shows a little more than half of the rumored camera's face, teasing undefined outlines of the device's control wheels, as well as a protruding bump that could hide an traditional viewfinder. The rig looks a bit like a mash up between Sony's A900 and the mirrorless NEX-7, borrowing elements from both designs. The camera is rumored to launch later this month, and is expected to come in 24- and 36-megapixel variants (respectively called the A7 and A7r). Check out the source link below for more rumors and speculation.
Apple working on "new secret project" with Maps
Apple posted a job Friday seeking a Maps Web User Interface Designer to work on a "new secret project," according to MacRumors. The original wording has now been removed from the posting, but not before MacRumors made a copy of it. Its description originally read: Design, develop, and maintain complex front-end code for a new secret project Document and build unit tests for your code. Work with operations, QA, and product management to maximize product effectiveness The Web UI Designer - Maps posting also calls for someone with a minimum three years experience building native and web apps who also has HTML, CSS, JavaScript, JQuery, DOM, XML, JSON and Javascript experience. Though there are no clear signs what the "new secret project" is, it could very well be that Apple wants to offer a web-based version of its maps in addition to its Maps apps for iOS and the upcoming OS X 10.9 Mavericks. A web-base Apple Maps would allow Windows users to easily look up places and directions from their desktops and then send those bookmarked locations or saved directions directly to their iOS devices -- as Mac users will be able to with OS X 10.9 Mavericks this fall.
Rumor: XLGAMES eyes restructuring after disappointing ArcheAge performance
Is XLGAMES in trouble? There's a rumor coming out of Korea that may indicate as much, according to MMO Culture. The website says that XL is preparing for a round of restructuring "after ArcheAge did not meet financial expectations in the Korean market after the massive outlay for its development." The fantasy sandpark title has been in development since 2006 and debuted with a subscription business model before going free-to-play. ArcheAge still has not launched in the West, and publisher Trion remains mum on any sort of release date. [Thanks Dengar!]
Project Titan: A brief history of a game that doesn't exist
For the last several years, the MMO community has been abuzz with rumors regarding Blizzard Entertainment's Project Titan. Long reported to be a brand-new MMO based on an entirely original intellectual property, Titan was a top-secret project discussed only through occasional interviews, job postings, and hearsay. No footage ever slipped through the cracks; no early alpha build accidentally leaked to the web. Unfortunately, Project Titan as we knew it is no more. Rumors broke in May that development on the project had been restarted from scratch, and Blizzard offered comments that didn't so much as confirm those rumors as lend them a hefty amount of credence. Now it seems as though whatever we might have known about Titan may no longer apply, and whatever Blizzard had created so far may never see the light of day. With that in mind, let's take a little adventure through the rumorsphere and look back on the history of Project Titan and the stories surrounding it.
Talkcast, 7pm PT/10pm ET: Rumors crazy enough to be true
All-new dial-in experience! See below -- do not call into Talkshoe, we won't be there. Be sure to set up Fuze Meeting before the show if you want to join in live. It's Sunday once again, so we come round to that long standing tradition, the TUAW talkcast! This is the last Talkcast for August, which means that we're just around the corner from the month in which we'll finally get to see some new Apple products. There have been a few revelations (or carefully planned leaks) about the upcoming iPhones that we'll discuss tonight, along with anything else that happens to come to mind while we're all chatting away. Reminder on new-style talkcasting: With some help from the fine folks at Fuze, we're using a new system to record the show. This should let everyone listen in live -- and, if you want, raise your hand as you would in the Talkshoe room to get unmuted and chime in. You can join the call in progress (meeting # is 20099010) at 10 pm ET from any computer via this link; if you download the Mac or Windows Fuze clients ahead of time, you'll get better audio and a slicker experience, but browser-only will work fine. Just click the phone icon to join the audio once you're in. Using an iPhone or iPad? Grab the native clients from the App Store and get busy. (Even Android users can join the party.) Still feel like using the conventional phone dial-in? Just call 775-996-3562 and enter the meeting number 20099010, then press #. While the Fuze web and native clients have a chat channel, we'd like to reserve that for host participants, requests to talk and other real-time alerts... so the full-on chat for the show will appear in this very post at 10 pm tonight. You'll need Twitter, Facebook or Chatroll credentials to participate in the chat. We'll remind everyone to check back in at that time. Your patience and forbearance with our new tech is appreciated in advance. For the time being, the podcast feed of the show will continue to originate from Talkshoe and should be there within 24-36 hours. See you tonight!
