IOS

Apple Inc's iPad hit stores on Saturday after months of buildup, igniting excitement and kicking off a critical sales period that will determine if the sleek tablet computer becomes the next blockbuster.

Apple Inc's iPad hit store shelves on Saturday after months of breathless buildup, kicking off a critical sales period that will determine if the sleek tablet computer becomes the next blockbuster.

Apple's iPad, the subject of frenzied industry speculation since its unveiling in January, has so far not drawn the hordes that ushered in the iPhone three years ago.

Apple Inc's iPad scored well on battery life and ease of use in its first reviews, but it will not obliterate the laptop computer market yet, according to The New York Times and Wall Street Journal.

The iPad will not hit stores until Saturday, but the race to unlock its mysteries started several weeks ago in San Luis Obispo, a picturesque college town roughly 200 miles south of Apple's Silicon Valley headquarters.

Publishers are placing big bets that Apple Inc's iPad will kick-start a commercially viable transition to digital magazines and newspapers -- even though few executives have laid hands on the tablet ahead of launch.

Silicon Valley venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers is doubling the size of its fund for iPhone application developers, as it eyes new opportunities with the forthcoming launch of Apple's iPad.

U.S. stocks stayed near the break-even point on Tuesday as persisting worries about overseas fiscal problems offset optimism over data that underscored the view the economy was stabilizing.

U.S. stocks stayed near the break-even point on Tuesday as persisting worries about overseas fiscal problems offset optimism over data that underscored the view the economy was stabilizing.

U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday as consumer confidence and housing data reaffirmed the view that the economy was stabilizing, and Apple Inc's move to develop a new iPhone boosted telecom and chipmaker shares.

Apple Inc shares shot to a record high on Tuesday, rising about 2 percent after a report the company is developing a new iPhone that would work on Verizon Communications Inc's mobile network.

A subsidiary of Taiwan netbook PC pioneer Asustek has won orders to manufacture Apple's iPhone to run on the CDMA standard, a source said on Tuesday.

British state broadcaster BBC has delayed launching mobile applications delivering its news and sport free to devices like Apple's iPhone after newspapers expressed concern about direct competition.

After months of hype, speculation and secrecy, Apple Inc will finally put the iPad tablet to the test that truly matters: the buying public.

Opera Software said it would apply on Tuesday for its mobile browser to be distributed on Apple's iPhone, seeking to crack a new and potentially lucrative market closely guarded by Apple.

Media companies longing to bring a paid-for culture to the Internet might just get what they want if they pay more attention to the smartphone revolution that is changing the way people access the Web.

Apple Inc said the first iPads will be in U.S. stores on April 3 and hit nine international markets from Japan to the United Kingdom later in April.

AT&T Inc expects users of Apple Inc's iPad to connect to the Internet mostly using short-range Wi-Fi networks rather than AT&T's cellular network, the chief executive of AT&T said on Tuesday.

Apple filed a lawsuit against rival handset maker HTC on Tuesday, over the alleged infringement of 20 patents related to the iPhone's user interface, according to reports.

Steve Jobs defended Apple Inc's decision to maintain a $40 billion cash pile and said it was better to save the money for bold risks, like acquisitions, than to spend it on stock buybacks or cash dividends.

Apple Inc Chief Executive Steve Jobs holds his annual face-to-face meeting with shareholders on Thursday, and there will be no shortage of questions for a company famously stingy with information.