Advertising tracking firm Ace Metrix today shared its data on viewer reactions to Apple's new celebrity iPhone 4S ads featuring Siri and starring Samuel L. Jackson and Zooey Deschanel

Kickstarter is a popular place for wild ideas to gain some traction, but sometimes an idea clicks with so many people it's possible to wonder why no one thought of it before. Such is the case with the Pebble digital wristwatch . It uses an e-paper display, similar to the screen on the Amazon Kindle, and connects to the iPhone (and Android devices) via Bluetooth.

Back in January at Macworld, we noted that Autodesk was planning to bring its Inventor Fusion mechanical design software to the Mac.

Topeka Capital Markets analyst Brian White has released a new research report today outlining some of the takeaways from a recent trip to Asia to talk with companies in Apple's supply chain. According to White, chatter from those suppliers is pointing toward a larger 4-inch screen on the iPhone 5, which will also include a redesign bringing a "new, sleek look". In our view, this will be the most significant iPhone upgrade with a four-inch screen and a new, sleek look that we believe will require a Unibody case.

Macotakara points to a news report [ Google translation ] from TV Tokyo's World Business Satellite in which a Foxconn recruiter claims that the company is hiring 18,000 new workers to support production of the iPhone 5. According to the recruiter, the device is planned to launch in June.

iMore weighs in with information it has heard about the new iPhone that is due later this year.

Following the new Apple TV's slip to a 1-2 week shipping estimate in Apple's U.S. online store late yesterday, the first signs of Apple's supplies of the new iPad beginning to run short have now emerged , with 16 GB and 64 GB models of the AT&T 4G iPad in white now showing estimated shipping dates of March 19 in the store. All models had previously been listed as delivering on the launch date of March 16

With iOS 5.1 apparently sitting in a holding pattern awaiting the launch of the iPad 3, it should be no surprise that work is well underway on iOS 6.0, the next major update which should appear to the public later this year if past history is any indication.

Apple today released a series of three EFI firmware updates bringing Lion Internet Recovery to the company's Late 2010 MacBook Air, Mid-2010 iMac, and Early 2010 MacBook Pro. Available firmware updates include: - MacBook Air EFI Firmware Update 2.3 (2.98 MB): This update enables Lion Recovery from an Internet connection on MacBook Air (Late 2010) models and addresses an issue where the system could restart if the power button is pressed immediately after waking from deep sleep. - iMac EFI Update 1.8 (3.02 MB): This update enables Lion Recovery from an Internet connection on iMac (Mid 2010) models

BGR reports that Apple is planning to launch a completely redesigned iPhone in the fall of next year, following the trend set by the iPhone 4S of new hardware being released later in the year as opposed to the mid-year timeframe used previously. According the report, the next iPhone will utilize an aluminum back panel rather than the glass found on the iPhone 4 and 4S.