STEVE JOBS

Slowly but surely, Apple's operating systems are converging, but bonding these two separate systems together would be impossible without iCloud. On Monday, Apple introduced two new additions to the iCloud Beta portal for iOS 6 developers, including the Notes and Reminders apps, before it releases Mountain Lion this month and iOS 6 this fall.

The wait is finally over for people in the U.S. who were looking forward to Samsung's latest flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S3. Sprint made the handset available for in-store purchases from July 1, while AT&T announced that it would be selling the phone in its stores from July 6. But if a recent note by one industry analyst is to be believed, it won't be an easy road for this successor of the S2.

Apple will begin transitioning the leadership role within its hardware engineering department, now that Bob Mansfield has announced his retirement. Apple was quick to name Dan Riccio as Mansfield's successor, mentioning that Riccio will learn the new role over several months. During that time, the hardware engineering team will continue to report to Mansfield.

Google (Nasdaq: GOOG), the No. 1 search engine, Wednesday showed its first tablet, the Nexus 7, priced at $199, as part of its annual Google I/O developers conference.

If you hoped pre-ordering a new MacBook Pro with Retina Display would make you the first one on your block with Apple's latest, greatest laptop, think again. Many customers that placed orders for Apple's 15-inch Retina Display-powered MacBook Pro were originally quoted a 7-10 day waiting period. Those same customers are now receiving e-mails from Apple, stating their beautiful new laptops won't ship until or after July 25.

The online travel site Orbitiz came under criticism Tuesday after admitting it is showing Mac users pricier travel options than PC searchers

Apple?s new Retina Display MacBook Pro line boasts high-definition images and resolution, but that doesn?t mean the new laptops are picture perfect. Some owners have reported an image persistence issue with the recently-revealed MacBook Pro, according to Apple Insider.

Apple wants to protect us from Big Brother, and it has invented a useful clone making technology to do so. The patent, which is designed to throw government agencies and businesses off the scent of individual, private citizens, describes a unique method to help users keep their personal information hidden in cyberspace by creating false clones of personal information, which are stored and executed via your iCloud ID.

Apple quietly lifted part of Steve Jobs' famous reality distortion field on Sunday, switching out a statement that claimed its Mac computers were completely immune to viruses with a less-forward statement: It's built to be safe. Apple can no longer say its Macs are perfect, but the company is making great strides to improve the honesty of its PR while making users and developers feel safe all the same.

Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) CEO Larry Page has lost his voice, must avoid speaking and won?t deliver a speech at a Google developers? event this week in San Francisco.

Apple introduced some stunning new products and software at WWDC 2012, but pro users felt particularly neglected at the June event in San Francisco. Despite a few bumps in the specs, the iMac and Mac Pro were largely untouched this year, but Apple CEO Tim Cook promises something really great later next year. We're hearing a new desktop may come even sooner, but sans Retina Display.

Apple's shining white façade is picking up grime in the year after the death of genius CEO Steve Jobs. Recent weeks have brought a marketing gaffe at the World Wide Developers Conference and accusations of racial profiling against Iranian-Americans and Farsi speakers by Apple Store employees.

Microsoft has always been known as a software company, but that perception changed on Monday when the company unveiled its first-ever tablet in Los Angeles. Even though Apple popularized the tablet genre with the iPad, Microsoft's Surface tablet will directly compete with the bestselling tablet, as it is slightly thinner, features a bigger screen, and it can also do several things the iPad can't do, such as type well or sit up straight.

In a radical shift for Bill Gates' 37-year-old software company, Microsoft unveiled a tablet in Los Angeles on Monday. The Surface aims to be a direct competitor to Apple's iPad, sporting a form factor that's thinner than Apple's tablet, and it also tackles several things the award-winning iPad can't do, like type well or stand up straight.

Foxconn, Apple?s major manufacturing partner, has expressed interest in buying more shares in Sharp, according to Slash Gear. This is fueling rumors that the companies are working towards Apple?s rumored ?iTV,? although there has been no official word on the device?s development.

Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT), the world's biggest software company, introduced its first tablet, Surface, to battle Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) in the tablet sector

The MacBook Pro With Retina display will ship from Apple in three to four weeks, the Apple Store website says. This is a further delay from the two to three weeks Apple told customers they'd have to wait for the laptop as recently as a few days ago, technology website Vr-zone reported Friday.

Those looking to purchase Apple's MacBook Pro with Retina display will certainly learn to conserve their notebook personal computer's battery power, for one big reason: It will be pretty expensive to replace the glued-down battery in the new notebook PC, reported ComputerWorld.

Before Apple shocked the WWDC audience with a completely-redesigned MacBook Pro with a stunning Retina Display, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo predicted Apple would unveil such a notebook, and he even correctly forecast most of the features. On Thursday, describes how Apple will follow up the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro with a smaller, 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina Display, to be released in October 2012.

The online Apple Store page for the Retina display-equipped MacBook Pro shows that the shipping dates for both the 2.3 and 2.6GHz models have been changed from 2-to-3 weeks to 3-to-4 weeks. However, there's apparently no shipping delay for the non-Retina MacBook Pros.

Much to the consternation of would-be buyers, Apple Inc.'s (NASDAQ: AAPL) MacBook Pro with Retina display is totally sold out in the city of New York, just three days after the new laptop was announced at the company's World Wide Developer's Conference (WWDC) 2012.