Thunderbolt is the new communication standard developed by Apple and Intel. You might remember that it was unveiled a few weeks ago with the new MacBook Pro computers. It was thought that Intel was mainly responsible for its development, with Apple playing a small role. However, Apple’s latest move seems to suggest that it played a larger role.

Apple has filed to trademark the name Thunderbolt, branding the high-speed data transfer as something they own, not something they share with Intel. So is Apple just trying to slide in and claim it or is there more to this?

A new rumor suggests that the iPhone 5 will have an aluminum back to replace the iPhone 4′s glass back. Along with the new chassis, there will also be a redesigned antenna that does away with the external design in the iPhone 4. You might remember that this issue led to Antennagate.

The new antenna will put the iPhone’s antennas back into the Apple logo, similar to the way the Wi-Fi iPad housed its antennas. There was even a patent that turned up recently that suggested Apple was working with Apple logo antennas for the iPhone, so this makes sense. I guess we will find out soon enough.

A report suggests that all Best Buy sales staff may receive iPads soon. The info comes from Forbes who received a tip from a “source with knowledge of corporate mobile device deployments,” who claims that an iPad roll-out for staff will happen for one of America’s top ten retailer’s with about 1,100 stores. So it would seem that they mean Best Buy, which has been an Apple Partner since the launch of the original iPad.

The retailer already has 27 Connected World stores, where sales staff are equipped with iPads, and other mobile devices. This could be part of a plan to expand the pilot program of Connected Word stores to all of its stores nationwide.

If you bought an iPad recently and were bummed out because the new one just came out, we have some good news for you. Apple has announced that users who purchased the first generation iPad within the last 2 weeks can get a refund. They can either request a $100 refund, or they can return their device to Apple for a full refund since the iPad 2 will be offered at the same prices of the current iPad.

Think of it as a trade in for the new device. This 2 week window means that those of you who purchased the iPad earlier than February 16 would not be eligible for the offer though. Hopefully you purchased yours at the right time.

Apple has announced a new line-up of accessories for the second generation iPad, which includes the new HDMI adapter and their new iPad 2 Smart Covers. And there’s also a new dock for the iPad 2, which is designed to work with the new slimmer design on the iPad 2 and it supports other iPad accessories like the iPad Camera Connection kit and the new Apple Digital AV Adapter as well.

As if we didn’t know that there would be new accessories for the latest and greatest Apple products. We are used to the drill by now. Apple haven’t announced pricing yet for the new iPad 2 Dock, but the previous one for the iPad retails for $29.

Now that the iPad 2 has been officially announced, it’s time for some accessories to show up. Apple’s Smart Covers are specially designed to protect the iPad 2′s screen and also keep it propped up for watching movies, FaceTime or typing. Of course other manufacturers are going to come up with their own and so Targus has just announced its series of new cases for the iPad 2 and one of them is the THZ045US, a 360° Rotating Stand/Case for iPad 2.

This iPad 2 case protects your tablet from scratches and acts as a stand too. It features a unique rotating mechanism that allows you to rotate your iPad 2 while it is still in the case. The THZ045US is available now for $59.99.

Steve Jobs said earlier that the new iPad pricing will stay exactly the same as the original iPad, which means a base price of $499 for the 16GB WiFi version. Well, despite the fact that you can’t get an iPad 2 until March 11th and you can’t pre-order it yet, it looks like Apple is already putting the original models on sale.

The base model 16GB WiFi only iPad is $399, with prices ranging up to $729 for the 64GB 3G model. You can also get a refurbished one for a starting price of $349. So if you want the original model, now is the time to get one. Will you be getting one?

Apple has officially announced the next generation iPad at their special event in San Francisco. The iPad 2 packs in a new dual processor called the A5, and Apple says it is up to two times faster than the original iPad but uses the same low power.

It also has faster graphics, up to nine times faster than the graphics of the original iPad, and it is also 33 percent thinner than the original iPad. It also comes with a built in gyrospcope and two cameras, and will be available in two colors, black and white. Both models will be available from AT&T and Verizon.

The above mockup was spotted in China and seems to match closely what we have been hearing about the iPad 2. It has a slimmer profile, an almost entirely flat back, larger speaker, and rear- and front-facing cameras. The model number is one for the original Apple TV while the FCC ID is for a WiFi-only iPad, but those could be placeholders since this is a mockup and not a real working tablet.

It looks like the SIM card slot has been repositioned to a slot that was once expected to house an SD card reader. There is also the 3G antenna and the sloped power button and headphone jack.

You love your 6G iPod nano right? So why not make it act as two gadgets in one, by making it a watch? There are plenty of watchbands on the market today that will let you wear your nano on your wrist, but most have to be ordered online or in Apple retail stores.

Well, if you don’t live near an Apple store, Best Buy will be carrying the full iWatchz Q series of bands for the nano. The bands are made from silicone and come in several colors. Best Buy will carry all of the colors and the bands will sell for just under $25. Great news.

4G is the big thing right now and everybody is hopping on the bandwagon. Everybody except Apple that is. An analyst from Telecom Pragmatics, Sam Greenholtz, says that the iPhone 5 will be launching later this year, and will not have any LTE radios and also that the iPhone 6 (to be released in 2012) will be the one supporting LTE.

Another analyst says that when Apple locked down the specs for the iPhone 5, they didn’t expect this level of hardware competition. That does sound believable. But if past iPhone launches are any indication, the exclusion of 4G this year might be on purpose. Well, we will see how it all plays out.

It’s been over a month since the tablet was introduced at CES, and now the Android tablet from Motorola is finally here. The Motorola Xoom is Google’s Honeycomb (Android 3.0) device and will ship with stock Honeycomb and no fancy overlay, UI or Blur from Motorola.

Some features include a dual-core Tegra 2 processor, a 10.1″ display, dual cameras, and a battery life of 10 hours. This one may just be the Apple competitor we have been waiting for. The Motorola Xoom will cost $599 with a 2 year contract on Verizon and is available right now.

You’ve probably been jealous of all of those iPad users reading The Daily on their iPads, right? Well, you won’t have to be jealous for long since it looks like News Corp’s tablet-only magazine could be heading to Android, maybe as soon as this spring.

The team has gotten a lot of help from Apple on the development side and as you know they were the first to use Apple’s new subscription service, so why wouldn’t they be ready for some Android? Hopefully this rumor has some truth to it.

Well, we knew it was coming and sure enough, Apple has sent out invites for its special event on the 2nd of March, where it will unveil the iPad 2. Should be interesting to see what the iPad 2 offers that the current one does not.

We already know that the iPad 2 will feature at least one video camera in front for Apple’s FaceTime software, we have also heard that the iPad 2 will have a slimmer design.

If you want to turn your iPhone into a very tiny laptop, here ya go. Mobile Fun has just released the TypeTop Swivel Bluetooth Keyboard for the iPhone 4. This case for the iPhone 4 will protect your Apple phone, and also give you an additional Bluetooth keyboard for your typing needs. I’m guessing you hate touchscreens if you are digging this.

The case allows you to prop the iPhone 4 up just like a laptop and type your documents and emails. The case can also swivel and tilt in almost any direction. The keyboard features a built in battery, so it doesn’t drain your phone. The TypeTop Swivel Mini Bluetooth keyboard for iPhone 4 is $56.