Antitrust inquiry: How Apple and Google compete

Given the looming presence of Microsoft (MSFT) on the PC desktop, we tend to think of Apple (AAPL) and Google (GOOG) as corporate best friends united by a common enemy.

But the news Monday night that the U.S. government has opened an inquiry into the two companies' "interlocking directorates" under the Clayton Antitrust Act has prompted a fresh look at the extent to which Apple and Google are, in fact, competitors.

We MORE

Consumer Reports loves those MacBooks

In an embarrassment of plaudits, Apple (AAPL) swept all three laptop categories in Consumer Reports' latest study of personal computers. The reader survey, published Monday, is the cover story of the magazine's June issue.

In all, five Apple notebooks made the cut. In one category --13-inch notebooks -- Apple won the top three places.

In that category, the 13-inch aluminum MacBook was No. 1, the solid-state MacBook Air No. 2, and the MORE

Apple's stealth rally

Apple's (AAPL) shares Monday morning shrugged off bad news to soar past $128.24 share. The iPhone had just been unseated by Research in Motion's (RIMM) BlackBerry in NPD's latest smartphone rankings, but by close of day Apple's stock had climbed to $132.08, up 3.8% for the day.

What the significance of that $128.24 price point?

That was Apple's closing price on Friday Sept. 26, 2008. The following Monday, Morgan Stanley's Kathryn Huberty MORE

The Battle of the Carriers, Round Two

In the dog days of summer last year, when balky downloads in cities across the U.S. were slowing iPhones to a crawl, Wired.com's Gadget Lab launched a survey of 3G network speeds to try to pinpoint the problem.

Gadget Lab invited iPhone owners all over the world to run a simple network test and submit their findings electronically.

After collating the results from 2,636 users -- 62% of them in the U.S. MORE

Netbook sales will soar to 22 million in 2009 - IDC

Pressure is mounting on Apple (AAPL) to do something about the netbook problem.

IDC reported Friday that worldwide shipments of these sub-compact portable computers grew seven-fold year-over-year in the first quarter of 2009, according to Computerworld's Agam Shah. By the end of the year, IDC estimates, netbook shipments could reach 22 million.

Meanwhile, Apple's market share is shrinking, and Mac sales fell last quarter for the first time in five and a half MORE

Would you pay $849 for a new MacBook?

A report last week that Apple (AAPL) is preparing to slash prices on its entry level MacBook and iMac models has triggered a flurry of speculation about what the new price points might be.

According to AppleInsider's Kasper Jade, Apple sees the cuts -- which could come in the next month or two -- as an "interim solution" to the growing popularity of netbooks, those sub-compact laptops that Steve Jobs once MORE

iPod touch Net share grew 36% in April

The growing popularity of the iPod touch -- Apple's (AAPL) iPhone without the phone -- finally registered in the Internet market share data gathered every month by Net Applications.

Stuck for three months running with a 0.11% share of Web traffic, the iPod touch's share in April jumped to 0.15% -- a 36% increase in one month, according to preliminary data released overnight Friday. See the chart below:

The iPhone also gained MORE

J.D. Power survey: iPhone tops in all but battery

Apple's (AAPL) iPhone took first place in J.D. Power's 2009 smartphone consumer satisfaction survey released Thursday.

The iPhone ranked highest in every category except battery life, where it was tied for last place with Motorola (MOT).

Research in Motion's (RIMM) BlackBerry, by contrast, scored highest in battery life but ran with the middle of the pack in the other categories (physical design, ease of operation, features, operating system and overall satisfaction).

The survey MORE