Apple Unveils Black Friday Discounts
Patent Filing Provides New Evidence On Microsoft Augmented-reality Glasses
Apple Unveils Black Friday Discounts
The company on Friday unveiled its Black Friday shopping event, with discounts on iPads, iPods, Macs, and accessories. The savings are available from brick-and-mortar Apple Stores as well as the online Apple Store.
As in prior years, the savings are modest. For example, the company’s knocked $41 off the price of the 16GB fourth-generation iPad and $31 off the 32GB fifth-generation iPod touch. You can also save an additional $10 off the higher capacity models: the 32GB and 64GB iPad drop $41 and $51 each, and the 64GB iPod touch is also discounted $41. Apple’s also discounting older models, such as the iPad 2 and the fourth-generation iPod touch.
For Macs, you'll save $101 on the Retina MacBook Pro, older MacBook Pros, and the MacBook Air. However, unlike the iOS devices, those savings are flat no matter which model you opt for, including build-to-order options.
Those looking to pick up an AirPort Express, Magic Mouse, Magic Trackpad, or Wireless Keyboard can save $11 on their usual prices, and the iPad Smart Case, polyurethane Smart Cover, and leather Smart Cover have dropped $15, $11, and $21 respectively. Also there are find mild discounts on two models of Apple headphones, and the AirPort Express and Time Machine.
In general, Apple doesn’t discount the prices of its non-refurbished products; Black Friday is the rare exception to that rule. And while the discounts may not be on the steep side, those customers planning on buying an iPad or Mac for the holiday season may not have any other chances to save money on Cupertino’s products.
There is one notable omission from the Black Friday sale: the iPhone. If you’re in the market for one of Apple’s smartphones, you’ll still be paying full price for them—consider that those devices are already heavily subsidized by the company’s carrier partners, so any further discounts come out of Apple’s pocket.
Source: Macworld
Patent Filing Provides New Evidence On Microsoft Augmented-reality Glasses
The notion of Microsoft releasing its own augmented reality glasses for a future Xbox isn't new, having surfaced over the summer as part of a 56-page document that purported to detail plans for the next version of the Microsoft console. But a newly released patent application provides another big clue.
The filing, seeking a patent on "Event Augmentation with Real-Time Information," describes technology for displaying information about a live event in the user's field of view, using a head-mounted display. It's similar in concept to Google’s Project Glass.
Here’s the additional clue that was picked up on: one of the two inventors listed on the patent is Kathryn Stone Perez, who is executive producer on the Xbox incubation team.
A separate Microsoft patent filing that was recently reported on, for a "consumer detector" to manage content rights in the living room, also mentioned head-mounted displays as a viewing technology. Perez and her Xbox incubation team members were listed as inventors on that patent filing, as well.
While the augmented-reality technology could have broad applications in a variety of areas at Microsoft, this growing evidence suggests that the company has been been thinking seriously about augmented reality heads-up displays as it contemplates the future of the Xbox, specifically.
Source: Geekwire
Write a comment below. No registration needed!
