For customers who buy a $500 contract-free iPhone 4S through carrier Cricket Communications, its parent company, Leap Wireless, is likely to still pay a subsidy of about $150 to achieve that price.
On June 22, Cricket Wireless will become America's first fully prepaid wireless carrier to offer Apple's iPhone, with an "unlimited" $55-per-month plan.
Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook hinted at the future of Siri in an interview on Tuesday, stating the company has "a lot going on" in its development that users will see over the coming months.
Samsung on Tuesday launched its flagship Galaxy S III smartphone in 28 countries across Europe and the Middle East, where it will compete head-to-head with Apple's iPhone 4S.
A new report quotes a former Apple employee as saying that people at the company are "embarrassed by Siri" and late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs would have "lost his mind" over the feature's performance.
John Malkovich is the latest celebrity to star in television commercials from Apple and Verizon touting the convenience of the Siri voice assistant feature of the iPhone 4S.
Because the Siri and Dictation features for iOS must be sent to Apple to be converted to text, IBM has barred the use of them from its corporate networks, citing security concerns.
Sprint's CEO views his company's up front payment to offer the iPhone as a long-term investment that won't see any returns until 2015.
Though it only sells smartphones, Apple represents nearly 8 percent of all worldwide mobile phone sales, making it the third-largest handset maker.
Apple has filed a motion to dismiss a set of class-action lawsuits, which accuse the company of falsely advertising its Siri voice assistant feature for the iPhone 4S, under the grounds that the plaintiffs did not specify exactly what claims led them to purchase the device.
Apple has begun drawing down build plans for its current iPhone models, as sales begin to ease in anticipation of a new sixth-generation model expected to launch later this year.
When asked for the "best smartphone ever," Siri will now provide a range of witty responses to users rather than giving details on the Nokia Lumia 900.
When asked to find the "best smartphone ever," the Siri personal assistant software on the iPhone 4S will tell users to check out the competing Lumia 900 smartphone made by Nokia.
Sales of the iPhone in Japan reached 7.25 million units in all of 2011, making Apple the top smartphone vendor in the country.
Apple continues to ink deals with smaller regional carriers in the U.S., as Kentucky's Bluegrass Cellular, California's Golden State Cellular, and Kansas' Nex-Tech Wireless will begin offering the iPhone 4S on May 18.
In an effort to placate shareholders upset over Sprint's iPhone deal with Apple, the company's chief executive has returned more than $3.25 million in compensation.
Further demonstrating the importance of China to Apple's business, the country has now surpassed the U.S. in terms of smartphone subscribers, making it the largest smartphone market in the world.
Walmart, the largest retailer in the U.S., dropped the price of Apple's iPhone 4S with a two-year AT&T contract by as much as $74 at some locations, but the retailer later explained that the reductions were a "pricing error."
Seven months after the launch of the iPhone 4S, suppliers are expecting shipments to slip 15 to 20 percent in the current quarter, as customers begin to hold off for Apple's next-generation handset.
Samsung on Thursday took the wraps off its highly anticipated Galaxy S III smartphone, featuring a 1.4-gigahertz quad-core processor, 4.8-inch HD Super AMOLED screen, and Google's Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich operating system.
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Neil Hughes
AppleInsider Staff
Josh Ong
Sam Oliver
Slash Lane
Katie Marsal
