Mapping a Path Out of Steve Jobs' Shadow  —  Like all companies, mighty Apple (AAPL) is not immune to bungling a new product, though its apologies haven't always seemed heartfelt.  After slashing the price of the first iPhone by $200 only a few months after its debut in 2007 …

Asia's Apple Suppliers Begin Mass Production on Mini iPad  —  TAIPEI—Apple Inc.'s Asian component suppliers have started mass production of a new tablet computer smaller than the current iPad, people with knowledge of the situation said, as the Silicon Valley company tries to stay competitive …

Google Moves Ahead in Fight to Dominate the Map Apps  —  Apple has been taking lots of justified heat for its decision to replace Google Maps on the iPhone with a fledgling, and flawed, maps app of its own.  In my otherwise favorable review of the new iPhone 5, I called Apple's maps app …

Deutsche Telekom and MetroPCS agree on $1.5 billion T-Mobile merger  —  Apparently the “significant issues” that stood in the way of a prospective T-Mobile and MetroPCS deal couldn't have been too onerous.  Just a day after acknowledging that talks were underway both boards have approved the deal according to the Wall Street Journal.

Xbox Music to launch on October 26th with free ad-supported streaming  —  Spotify-like service on the way  —  Microsoft is preparing to launch its Xbox Music service on October 26th.  Multiple sources familiar with Microsoft's plans have confirmed the new service will launch at the same time as Windows 8.

Samsung Claims Jury Foreman Misconduct Tainted Apple Case  —  Samsung Electronics Co. (005930) asked a judge to throw out Apple Inc. (AAPL)'s billion-dollar trial victory in August, saying the jury foreman failed to disclose a lawsuit and his personal bankruptcy when he was chosen for the panel.

HP Details Turnaround Strategy, Provides 2013 Outlook  —  At HP's annual Securities Analyst Meeting, being held today in San Francisco, the company's leadership is mapping out strategic priorities for the future and providing a detailed multiyear roadmap to turn the company around.

Ellen Pao Says Kleiner Perkins Has Now Fired Her  —  Ellen Pao, the Kleiner Perkins partner who sued her own firm for gender discrimination and retaliation in May, has been fired, she said late Tuesday night.  —  In an update to a previous answer she had left on Q&A site Quora, Pao wrote, “I have been terminated from my job at KPCB.

Apple Turning to Select Retail Store Employees to Help Improve Maps for iOS 6  —  MacRumors has learned that Apple is piloting a program to tap into its vast number of retail store employees to help improve the company's new Maps app for iOS 6.  Details on the initiative remain unclear …

Tweetbot creator launches Netbot, a mature and polished App.net client for iPhone and iPad  —  Tapbots, the studio behind the popular Tweetbot client for Twitter, has brought its design prowess to the fledgeling communication platform App.net.  The company's new app Netbot serves users …

Nokia considers selling its Espoo headquarters for an estimated $250 million  —  Finnish company struggles to transition  —  Nokia's recent financial results show the company is clearly struggling to transition over to Microsoft's Windows Phone operating system, with CEO Stephen Elop admitting that Nokia …

Google Warns of New State-Sponsored Cyberattack Targets  —  In June, many Google users were surprised to see an unusual greeting at the top of their Gmail inbox, Google home page or Chrome browser.  “Warning: We believe state-sponsored attackers may be attempting to compromise your account or computer.”

Twitter Rolls Out Surveys - And Reminds Us Why It Cares About “Consistent User Experiences”  —  Here's an interesting new feature for Twitter advertisers: The chance to survey users directly.  —  Twitter is rolling out the tool today, which it will provide for free to some of its biggest advertisers …

AOL looking to spin out Techcrunch's CrunchBase  —  AOL, the New York-based media company that is the corporate parent of The Huffington Post and TechCrunch, is looking to spin out CrunchBase, the Techcrunch-owned database of technology companies and people that has become a useful resource for the technology business.

The “Lost” Steve Jobs Speech from 1983; Foreshadowing Wireless Networking, the iPad, and the App Store  —  In 1983, Steve Jobs gave a speech to a relatively small audience at a somewhat obscure event called the International Design Conference in Aspen (IDCA).

‘Netflixed’ author talks Hastings' glory, hubris, white lies (Q&A)  —  Author Gina Keating reveals some of Netflix's secrets in her upcoming book, such as the price Amazon offered to pay to acquire Netflix and the belief of some that Reed Hastings has a “social IQ of zero.”

Google Chairman Eric Schmidt Sold $130 Million in Shares over Last Week  —  The rise of Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) has been monumental of late.  Analysts have been forcing their price targets higher after Google keeps a huge lead in internet search and as Android keeps gaining market share in the smartphone universe.

Andreessen Horowitz Invests $15M In Text Annotation Startup Rap Genius  —  Here's an investment out of left field, but not really.  Andreessen Horowitz is dropping $15 million into startup Rap Genius.  It's not just about rap, though.  Think of it as “crowdsourced explanations of lyrics and historical texts.”

The Pirate Bay Returns After 2 Days Downtime  —  On Monday The Pirate Bay went offline.  By itself the downtime isn't really news as it happens every other week, but this time it took longer than expected to return.  —  The Pirate Bay was quick to inform TorrentFreak that they were dealing …

Skype takes on BT and Sky with launch of new free WiFi service in the UK and Ireland  —  Traditionally offering free WiFi access to travellers in airports and during seasonal holidays around the world, Microsoft-owned VOIP giant Skype is looking to expand its wireless footprint in the UK …

Why Apple is launching the iPad mini, in one statistic  —  One in four US adults now owns a tablet computer, and two-thirds of those who own a tablet purchased them in the last year, reports The Economist's Leanback 2.0 blog.  (This data does not reflect the introduction of the Google's new 7-inch tablet …