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Apple could be planning considerable changes to the way it handles warranties on its devices, according to a new report.

The iPhone, iPad and Mac maker is said to be planning a revamp of its basic AppleCare warranty service to become a subscription that will cover all the Apple devices a user owns. AppleCare currently has to be purchased on a per-gadget basis. According to AppleInsider the company held a meeting about the changes on Thursday and plans to roll them out this fall.

The report also claims that Apple is working on some behind-the-scenes changes to the way it … Read more

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- Greenheart Games takes ironic aim at pirates.

- Samsung Galaxy S4 India launch weirdly tries "Gangnam Style."

- Original iPhone reportedly to be "obsolete" on June 11.

Bathroom break video: News reporter gets owned.… Read more

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. -- Though it is the undisputed king of incubators, many Y Combinator alumns have failed to make a profit over the years. But now, Watsi, which is hoping to bring a Kickstarter crowdfunding model to health care, is aiming to be its first (intentional) not-for-profit venture.

At Y Combinator's 16th Demo Day here today, Watsi showed off its platform, which is trying to be the first global crowdfunding platform for health care.

Rather than graduating from the Y Combinator program and seeking investment from tech-savvy venture capitalists, Watsi is soliciting donations from the tech community.

The … Read more

Researchers have been exploring breath tests for all sorts of uses -- from sniffing out everything from lung cancer to heart disease to diabetes. But testing for obesity? Could that really be possible?

According to a new study in the April issue of the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, the bacterial overgrowth that can be caught by a standard breath test may also reveal one's body fat percentage.

Apparently when one's microbiome (the complex infrastructure of good and bad bacteria that live in and on us) gets out of balance, with the bad bacteria outperforming the good, … Read more

Apple's warranty practices, and dealings with journalists, have brought the ire of one of China's largest media outlets.

Earlier today, The People's Daily -- which is owned by the Communist Party of China -- ran a story criticizing the iPhone and Mac maker for its response to issues raised about its warranty practices in the country.

Those issues came about during a TV segment on state-run network China Central Television Station earlier this month which claimed Apple repaired only broken or otherwise faulty parts within its products for customers in China, versus providing replacements in other countries. … Read more

Here's the scenario: a mom has a baby recovering from an ear infection. He's doing fine, but the doctor wants to do a follow-up visit to make sure he took the antibiotics well and is on the mend. The problem is that it's a hassle for the mother to load the baby and her toddler into the car to drive an hour each way for a quick 15-minute visit. Here's a solution: telemedicine, or a video chat on a computer or tablet with a physician from the comfort of the family's home.

Such chats are … Read more

Europe's justice chief has warned that European authorities "cannot sit on the sidelines" of enforcement issues, following a case that saw little action taken against Apple's unlawful warranty practices in the region.

In 2011, Apple was fined 900,000 euros ($1.2 million) by Italian authorities for misleading advertising relating to its AppleCare Protection service. In short, EU consumer law dictates that consumers are entitled to two years of warranty. Apple, however, only provided one, with an additional premium warranty "bolt-on" for an additional year.

Apple lost its appeal to the case the following … Read more

Regardless of whether you purchase it new, refurbished, or used, your Mac is likely a sizable investment that you might wish to keep running for as long as possible, not only because of the cost factor but also because of the time and effort it would take to migrate your data and workflow to a new system (even though Apple has made the latter quite easy if you have proper backups).

There are many ways your Mac can get damaged, become outdated, or otherwise experience greater wear and tear from use that can shorten its lifespan. In most cases these … Read more

Accusing Apple of a "misleading" and "illegal" AppleCare warranty policies, a Belgian consumer rights group will be taking the tech giant to court.

The Cupertino, Calif., company has come under fire after allegations were made that AppleCare, Apple's warranty system for products including the iPad and iPhone, does not conform to European law. As a result, Belgian consumer watchdog Test-Aankoop/Test-Achats has filed a complaint against the company (Dutch).

European consumer law states that within the European Union, two years' warranty must be provided for products free of charge. However, for customers elsewhere, AppleCare has … Read more