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Greenpeace’s “Guide to Greener Electronics” Ranks Ap

Greenpeace just released its newest “Guide to Greener Electronics”. Now, you may be asking yourself what this has to do with Apple? Well, according to the guide, the global environmental group has ranked Steve Jobs’ legacy the fourth greenest company among worldwide device makers....

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First Retail Store from Apple Considered Pilgrimage for Fans

Posted by zduncan | Posted in Computer, Computer Accessories, Device, iPad, iPad | Posted on 10-12-2010

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Apple's First Retail StoreWhen Apple opened their very first retail store in Glendale, California, nobody believed that it would attain the cult status that it has. Passionate fans of Apple have consider it a pilgrimage to travel to the store solely for the reason that it is Apple Store #1.

The Apple Store located in the Glendale Galleria was actually opened at the exact same time as another Apple Store in Virginia though the California store is listed in the Apple books as the first store. What is considered an unassuming and uncool location still attracts large attention from Mac fans.

According to author Sarah McBride, “Some visitors return home and brag online about purchasing gear at the Glendale branch, part of a vigorous game of one-upsmanship about the number and quality of the Apple Stores they have visited.”

McBride went on to say that “To find the Glendale store, customers navigate past a crowded food court, ascend your average, everyday escalator and look for the familiar silver Apple hidden among stores like a discount men’s suit shop and a teen-fashion retailer.”

The contrast between Apple’s first Glendale store and their new megastore in Shanghai is intense with the Shanghai store containing a massive cylindrical glass entrance which houses stairs that take customers  below ground into the store. Another contrast is the Apple store on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan which is Apple’s most profitable store.

Employees of Apple’s retail stores often ask for transfers to the store in Glendale due to the incredible popularity and distinction of the store. Customers of the Glendale store also remark about how the employees there seem more knowledgeable about Apple and its products.

The first Apple Retail Stores opened on May 19, 2001 in McLean, Virginia at the Tyson’s Corner Mall and in Glendale, California at the Glendale Galleria. The retail stores for Apple have become an important part of the growth of the Mac as Apple reports about every quarter that nearly half of the Macs sold in retail stores are to customers who have never owned one before.

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Apple Sues Sanho Over MagSafe Power Cords

Posted by jlong | Posted in Computer, Computer Accessories, iPad | Posted on 28-09-2010

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To say that Apple is protective of their products would be an understatement.  Throughout the years Apple has been very secretive with their products and very reluctant to let third party accessory makers in on the action. Apple has no problem taking companies who they feel have infringed on their copyrights to court, and their latest victim is Sanho Corporations, makers of the incredibly popular HyperMac batteries. MacBook users have always been fans of the HyperMac batteries because of their ability to extend battery life anywhere from dozens to hundreds of hours. Is this convenience about to end?

While Apple is not happy with Sanho overall, their biggest problem is the use by Sanho of Apple’s trademark MagSafe power connector. The MagSafe power connector has been around since the introduction of the MacBook back in 2006 and has never been licensed out to third party accessory makers in all of that time. The MagSafe power connector is essentially like any other power cord except that it connects to the laptop through a magnet. By using magnets instead of fasteners, Apple guarantees that if the MagSafe cord is tugged on or tripped over it will release without harming the computer. Since it was clearly against the law to produce their own MagSafe connectors, Sanho took another approach and instead repurposed pre-existing MagSafe connectors.  When Sanho says repurpose, what they really mean is that they buy used MagSafe power cords and splice the connector onto their HyperMac batteries. For quite awhile this ingenious tactic kept Sanho flying well under Apple’s radar, but when Apple discovered what Sanho was really doing, they were quite upset.

Apple is also suing Sanho over their use of the 30-pin dock connector which Apple uses on a wide range of their products, including the iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, and various other iPods. While the 30-pin connector is licensed out to some third party accessory makers, Sanho is not one of them.

It is clear that Apple is probably in the right for this case, at least in a legal sense, but they may have a difficult time nailing Sanho for the use of their MagSafe connector. Since Sanho purchases used MagSafe power cords for their products, the power cords may be protected under the doctrine of first sale, meaning that since the product in question is used that Apple cannot protest it being sold. Either way the court case goes, it would be unfortunate to lose HyperMac batteries overall. They are incredibly useful devices that can power a MacBook for a whole day or charge an iPhone over long trips. It may be in Apple’s best interest to leave well enough alone in this case, but with a court track record like Apple has it is unlikely the monster of a company will back down.

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