IPHONE

News of the probable launch of iPhone 5 September 12 and the $2.5-billion quarterly dividend payout August 16 have made Apple (AAPL) stocks a top pick among retail investors and hedge funds.

While Apple is yet to speak anything related to its upcoming iPhone iteration, unofficially dubbed the "iPhone 5," numerous sources have indeed quenched the thirst of many enthusiastic minds to some extent by providing information about the device, ranging from its design and features to a possible release date. However, one thing still remains a mystery - the name, by which Apple's sixth generation iPhone will finally be called.

Mac OS X Mountain Lion has out for about three weeks now, and millions of downloads later, it looks like Apple is getting ready to release the first major maintenance update for the new platform. Apple seeded OS X 10.8.1 to developers on Friday, but what exactly is Apple planning to fix in 10.8.1? Here are 4 major bugs, errors and issues that Apple definitely needs to fix in the 10.8.1 update.

Market researcher Gartner Group (NYSE: IT) said global smartphone sales eased 2.3 percent in the second quarter to 419 million units, accounting for a record 36.7 percent of all mobile phone sales.

On Tuesday, Apple received a patent for touch screen LCD technology that will result in a thinner, lighter panel for its iPhone 5 release, according to Apple Insider. This news comes just as a new rumor has surfaced saying that Apple will begin accepting pre-orders for the iPhone 5 on Sept. 12, the same day the phone will allegedly be unveiled.

Shares of Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL), the world's most valuable technology company, have recovered lost ground and are trading not much below their record high of $644 set on April 10. Despite a setback when third-quarter earnings fell shy of estimates last month, they could set another record again this week.

Rumors about a black Samsung Galaxy S3 gathered pace last week. And now, a new report Monday apparently confirmed that the black-colored Galaxy S3 is indeed going to be a reality sooner than later. UK retailer MobileFun has listed the smartphone for pre-orders at a price of £499.95 (around $785).

Just a day after the tech world was amazed by purported leaked photos of the motherboard of Apple's next generation iPhone, aka "iPhone 5," a new report surfaced Monday, suggesting that the release date of the highly anticipated smartphone of 2012 is just over a month away, with Apple to start taking pre-orders from the second week of September.

We're about a month away from the alleged date when Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) is expected to debut the iPhone 5, and fans are very excited to see what Apple's design wizards have come up with for this year's model. On Monday, French site NowhereElse posted pictures from Chinese forum Weiphone showing different angles of what appears to be the iPhone 5's new logic board. The logic board in question matches perfectly with previous rumors, specs, and features of the iPhone 5 prototypes....

Microsoft’s upcoming Windows Phone 8 is likely to see a release date this fall, as manufacturers Nokia and HTC have been ramping up production of smartphones based on this platform, DigiTimes has reported.

Another allegedly leaked photo in the slew of what is believed to be images of Apple's iPhone 5 has surfaced. Last week pictures of the smartphone's components surfaced, and now a new diagram that puts these pieces of the reported iPhone 5 in context has appeared online.

From the claimed photos of the next iPhone's back panel to the smaller dock connector, many leaked photos of the rumored iPhone 5 parts have created much buzz around the tech world over the last few months. And now, thanks to another set of leaked photos of the purported new iPhone, it's time to peep into the handset's motherboard.

Samsung's Galaxy S3 has become one of the leading smartphones on the market, hitting the 10 million-unit sales mark in less than two months after its launch. Although the device has been dubbed as the Korea-based company's flagship smartphone of 2012, it does come with its share of issues.

For about a year, Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble were almost completely alone in the 7-inch tablet market. It was nice while it lasted. The past few months have seen Google and Microsoft unveil their 7-inch tablet offerings, and it looks like Apple is about ready to get into the minitablet game, too.

Romney supporters were to download an app called Mitt's VP, which promised they would be the first to know of his running mate. So on Friday night, who was the first to break the news of Mitt Romney's VP? Well, whoever it was, it wasn't the Romney campaign.

We're about a month away from the alleged reveal of the iPhone 5 which will reportedly take place at an Apple media event planned for Wednesday, Sept. 12. But what if every rumor up until now has been fake? What if all of these reports were planted by Apple to throw us off the scent? For more than a year, designers across the Internet have dreamed up their own ideas and concept designs for what they thought Apple should do with the iPhone 5. Who knows? Maybe Apple will actually listen to one ...

With the Apple iPhone 5 release date reportedly looming on the horizon, information about the coming phone has been leaking everywhere. Now, new photos are allegedly showing the iPhone 5's battery, but could its comparatively small size cause big problems for Apple?

Apple plans to finally launch the iPhone 5 on Sept. 12. Since May, however, photos and pictures of future iPhone components have been popping up around the Internet, and by now, most people think they know what the iPhone 5 looks like. But to what degree can this iPhone evidence be trusted?

Shares of BlackBerry developer Research in Motion (Nasdaq; RIM) jumped on speculation IBM (NYSE: IBM) might be interested in part of the company. But others like Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) and Oracle (Nasdaq: ORCL), might also want its technology, too.

A report from Rene Ritchie says Apple plans to release a brand-new "mini iPad" when it launches the iPhone 5 in September. Even though most people can assume a 7-inch "mini iPad" would be able to do most -- if not all -- of the same things a typical iPad can do, there are a few nuances of the tablet's alleged features and specs that may attract -- or repel -- potential customers. Here are seven features, specs, and price rumors we've heard from the iPad Mini so far.

Apple's iPhone 5 is expected for a September release date, and as the month draws near the rumor mill has been churning harder than ever. Early on Thursday, a new set of reportedly leaked photos have found their way to the web, according to Apple Insider.