Weekly Mobile News Roundup – 11 October 2013

 Once again the week is coming to an end and that means it’s time for a roundup of the past weeks news!

Apple patent suggests devices could protect themselves from falling damage – Your iPhone probably wasn’t cheap, and if you’re relying on a budget case (or, worse yet, nothing at all) to protect your investment, there’s a good chance a long fall will do some serious damage. But what if your device was smart enough to protect itself from damage in the event that you knock it off your kitchen table or drop it during a spirited run in the park? That’s exactly what a new Apple patent is suggesting.

Apple Releases EFI Firmware Update 2.7 for Mid-2013 MacBook Air – Apple today released EFI Firmware Update 2.7 for the mid–2013 MacBook Air, which comes with several Boot Camp-related bug fixes for the MacBook Airs that were released in June.

iTunes Radio begins sporadically rolling out in Canada & UK – While we’ve only been able to confirm availability in Canada first hand, others are reporting that iTunes Radio is also starting to roll out in the UK

iTunes is Dead. Long Live iTunes! – iTunes is one of those applications that love it or hate it, many people can’t live without it in some way. What was once just a simple “jukebox application” has grown to become a megalithic, bloated program that, if you like iOS devices like the new iPhone 5C and iPhone 5S, you’re required to use.

Apple Reportedly Cutting iPhone 5c Production as Chinese Gray Market Prices Drop – Apple is reportedly cutting iPhone 5c production in half from 300,000 units to 150,000 units per day, according to claims by C Technology.

Apple Store set to open in Istanbul in January – Apple’s first store in Turkey – Apple is set to open its first retail store in Turkey in January 2014. It will be situated in the country’s largest city, Istanbul and mark Apple’s entry into its thirteenth country.

Apple prepping expansion of iPhone trade-in program to UK, Europe stores – In August, Apple launched an iPhone trade-in program for its United States-based retail stores. The promotion is part of Tim Cook’s grand plan to dramatically increase iPhone sales inside of his own stores.

Relive the past with Cloudpaint, MacPaint in the cloud – What’s more retro Mac than MacPaint? It was the application that drew many of us to the joys of Macintosh in 1984, as there was nothing like it on any other platform. The app, which was was included on the boot disks, let you do bit-mapped painting in a variety of monochrome patterns.

AirParrot for Mac 1.5.1 update brings better support for OS X 10.9 and Apple TV 6.0 – Following AirSquirrels update of AirParrot for Windows, the Mac version is now getting the same treatment. Bringing AirParrot for Mac to version 1.5.1, it adds better support for OS X 10.9 and the new Apple TV software 6.0.

Fitbit Releases Improved Fitness Wristband with Upcoming iOS 7 Call Notifications – While you’re waiting around for the iWatch, the fitness buffs among you might be interested in picking up the new Fitbit Force wristband. As AllThingsD reports, it includes all the features from last year’s popular Fitbit Flex, while adding actual watch functionality, a larger screen, an altimeter for measuring how many stairs you’ve climbed, and an system for measuring how long you’ve really been exercising.

Google Maps adds multi-destination directions and searchable reservations, events – On Wednesday the company announced it is adding more smarts to its Maps software to incorporate personalized search results such as hotel, flight and restaurant reservations, as well as upcoming event listings.