If your biggest complaint about the last iPad generations was that it was too thick and too heavy, the upcoming iPad 5 should address those concerns. According to a report by Digitimes, the next generation should begin production around the July timeframe, and the new 9.7-inch tablet will be from 25 percent to 33 percent lighter than its predecessor, with a thinner bezel similar to the Mini variant.

The 2,048×1,536 pixel-density Retina display will use thinner glass to contribute to the weight savings, courtesy of new touch-sensor technology. The backlight equipment has also been fiddled with, saving some weight and heft there, too. However, the third and fourth generation iPads actually put on mass over the the iPad 2, largely associated with the Retina display gear.

NPD DisplaySearch told CNET last month that “part of the thinner/lighter design will be reducing the size of the LED backlight, partly by making the display more efficient, and partly by using more efficient LEDs.” DisplaySearch also cited the likely shift to a “a film-based touch sensor.”

Digitimes is expecting monthly iPad shipments to increase to 2 million to 3 million units for the fifth generation by September, according to sources in the supply chain. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo from KGI Securities believes that Apple must issue the next iPad as soon as it can muster, in order to maintain its lead in the tablet category. Microsoft’s (NASDAQ:MSFT) Surface tablet nabbed 7.5 percent of the tablet market in less than six months, and with a more affordable variation on the way, the Windows-based device poses a larger threat.

While Apple has historically used Spring events to reveal fresh iPads, the company has been uncharacteristically quiet this year, allowing analysts to feel around in the dark as speculations run rampant. Two prominent analysts Brian White and Gene Munster, among others, both incorrectly predicted an iPad 5 release in March or April, and now over halfway through May, no one has heard a peep.

Here’s how Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) traded Tuesday:

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Despite the vehement and unapologetic testimony the Apple chief executive made before the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, the hearing was full of many surprising and arguably amusing moments.

The irony was palpable when the iconic ring of an iPhone was heard in the background during Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill’s opening statement, just as she was explaining how much she loved Apple products.

While it was not exactly an amusing moment to most Americans, Kentucky Senator Rand comments provided one of the greatest talking points of the entire hearing. His statement contrasted starkly to the general tenor the hearing. Excluding Paul, the bipartisan tone of the subcommittee was one of condemnation when it ask Apple to explain its use of Ireland-based companies to avoid U.S. corporate income tax.

Take the opening statement of Democratic Senator Carl Levin of Michigan, who is the chairman of the subcommittee, as an example. He said: “The offshore tax-avoidance tactics spotlighted by the subcommittee do real harm. They disadvantage domestic U.S. companies that aren’t in a position to reduce their tax bills using offshore tax gimmicks. They offload Apple’s tax burden onto other taxpayers – in particular, onto working families and small businesses. The lost tax revenue feeds a budget deficit that has reached troubling proportions, and has helped lead to round after round of budget slashing and the ill-advised sequestration now threatening our economic recovery.”

In contrast, Paul made a case for Apple. “Frankly, I’m offended by the tone and tenor of this hearing,” he said in his opening statement. “I’m offended by a $4 trillion government bullying, berating and badgering one of America’s greatest success stories.” Instead, he argued, that “if anyone should be on trial here, it should be Congress” for creating what he termed a Byzantine and bizarre tax code.

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Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) had a rough day, with Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook testifying before the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations regarding what The New York Times’ iEconomy series termed the “extraordinary lengths” the iPhone maker has taken to avoid paying its fair share of taxes. Still, Apple made no apology for the company’s tax strategy. But investors remained concerned; the company’s shares fell $3.27, or 0.74 percent, to $439.66 on Tuesday. Here’s a cheat sheet to today’s top Apple stories:

Is Apple Still the World’s Most Valuable Brand?

While there are many newcomers and large risers on the list of the world’s most valuable brands, familiar names dominate the top of the rankings.

The world’s most valuable 100 brands grew their worth 7 percent to $2.6 trillion last year, according to a new report by BrandZ, the world’s largest brand equity database. All but two of the 13 categories in the ranking posted year-over-year growth, as technology and the oil and gas brands lagged behind overall. In comparison, the aggregate value of the list only edged 0.4 percent higher in the previous year and 4 percent during the official 2009 Great Recession… (Read more.)

Does Apple Have a Winning Plan Abroad?

Apple may have figured out its move for competing with Samsung (SSNLF.PK) and other rivals in foreign countries. But it may never be enough to actually come out on top.

Worldwide, Apple has had trouble keeping up with its major Korean competitor. While the iPhone might have been the first smartphone on the scene, it has never been the most affordable, and in a lot of places, that has been a problem. Developing nations have been particular trouble for Apple… (Read more.)

Cook: Apple’s Tax Practices Are Not Unfair!

As Cook asserted in the opening moments of his testimony before the Senate, Apple paid a corporate tax rate of 30.5 percent in 2012, which resulted in a bill of $6 billion of the past fiscal year. The iPhone maker was not brought before the Senate subcommittee because it has violated the law, but because an analysis of the company’s current practices will serve to further the legislative body’s attempt to draft new tax codes. In response to questions from Senator Carl Levin of Michigan and John McCain of Arizona, Cook stated plainly: “We pay all the taxes we owe.”… (Read more.)

Follow Meghan on Twitter @MFoley_WSCS

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Video chat has been a major issue for AT&T. It has long limited the availability of video chat on the network, having only recently allowed customers not on unlimited plans to use Apple‘s (NASDAQ:AAPL) FaceTime app. And with the launch of Google’s (NASDAQ:GOOG) new Hangouts app, which integrates video chatting, Gmail, and the old Google Talk app into one, AT&T users weren’t happy they couldn’t access video chat. Upon trying the new app, customers were met with a message reading: “You must be connected to a Wi-Fi network to join a video call.”

AT&T says customers on unlimited plans will be able to use video chat by mid-June, as long as they have an LTE device from Apple, Samsung, or BlackBerry (NASDAQ:BBRY). Other devices will gain the capability by the end of the year, but it will take “work” on the company’s part to see it happen. Some have speculated about whether said work entails technical work on the mobile network’s capabilities or paperwork to craft a contract that will allow AT&T to charge customers what they deem is fit.

Strangely enough, AT&T customers can use any video chat app that has not been preloaded on the phone and can be downloaded from the Internet. FaceTime is an example of one video chat app that comes preloaded on most phones, while Skype is one that is more frequently downloaded online. No devices have yet shipped with Google Hangouts preloaded, but the app is available for download in the iTunes Store. Once downloaded to an iOS device, an AT&T customer can use Hangouts, but the app is still blocked from Android devices on the network. Additionally, it makes little sense to limit the apps based on whether they came preloaded or whether they were downloaded, since the downloaded apps use the same amount of bandwidth as the preloaded ones. AT&T claims that preloaded apps are used more frequently, thus the reason for the distinction.

Either way, by the end of the year AT&T customers should be able to access video chat apps regardless of the device or whether they’re on an unlimited plan.

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The Irish government claims that its transparent tax code is not “the Holy Grail of tax avoidance” as Senator Carl Levin (D-Mich.) called it during Apple’s hearing. The report from the Irish government went on to say that if U.S. companies are using the country as a tax haven, its because loopholes in U.S. tax law allow them to. Ireland’s Deputy Prime Minister Eamon Gilmore said the problems “are not issues that arise from the Irish taxation system,” and need to be addressed first in the U.S.

Ireland has used its pro-business tax code to attract multinational corporations including Apple, Google (NASDAQ:GOOG), Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), and Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) to set up camp in the country. According to the American Chamber of Commerce, U.S. firms invested $30 billion in Ireland last year, more than all of Asia combined. This has helped Ireland fight growing unemployment. Many Irish feel that if Ireland raises taxes for these companies, they will only move on to countries in Asia and leave Ireland with higher unemployment than the country already has.

According to the Senate report, Apple purposefully exploited a loophole in tax law so it wouldn’t have to pay income taxes on cash kept in Apple Operations International, which is located in Cork, Ireland, and received dividends comprising 30 percent of Apple’s global profits between 2009 and 2012. The report stated that “Ireland has essentially functioned as a tax haven for Apple.”

While Ireland claims that U.S. companies keeping funds in the country is essentially not their problem, it might become an issue for the country if American companies start pulling out in the aftermath of Apple’s Senate hearing, and in the face of more scrutiny of money being kept there.

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Sirius XM has grown more than expected, and estimates the trend will continue. Chief Executive Officer James Meyer spoke at the annual shareholders’ meeting Tuesday. Meyer gave some optimistic estimates about the company’s future, although he also gave a disclaimer about a number of factors that could inhibit Sirius XM’s growth, including increased competition, reliance on auto makers, and increasing royalties for music rights.

New car sales make up much of Sirius XM’s growth. In 2012 67 percent of cars sold had satellite radio, and the prediction about higher amounts of subscribers corresponds to expected car sales. Sirius scoops up new customers by offering a free trial period of satellite radio with new cars, hoping to hook users with their unique and ad-free content. Sirius used projections of new car sales to estimate its growth. Sirius XM estimates that its satellite radio service will be used in 100 million vehicles by 2018.

Sirius XM isn’t worried about competition from Pandora Media Inc. (NYSE:P) and other terrestrial radio services. Sirius XM had $142.34 in revenue per subscriber in 2012, while active Pandora users only brought in $6.51 each. Pandora is a free service that is inhibited by advertisements, while Sirius is ad-free but costs around $20 a month depending on the package. Some analysts believe that the success of one company spells the end of the other, but whether that has to be the case remains to be seen. As of now, both companies have been able to grow despite targeting the same audience.

Sirius XM ended 2012 with 23.9 million users, and expects to have 25.3 million by the end of the year. Analysts are feeling good about Sirius, with many top organizations rating the stock as a buy.

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More and more Americans are wondering if there is any need for a two-year wireless contract. The latest smartphone sales figures show a major jump in prepaid phone sales in 2013, fueled by offerings from T-Mobile (NYSE: TMUS) and other carriers. As Verizon (NYSE:VZ) hastily enters the prepaid game, it’s possible the growing number of no-contract users will force every major carrier’s hand and put a serious dent in the old subscription model.

The NPD Group, which tracks mobile phone sales, released sales figures comparing the first quarter of 2012 with the period just passed in 2013. The numbers are surprising, with 32 percent of smartphone sales tied to prepaid plans, a jump from 21 percent the year earlier, with the total number of prepaid phones sold doubling in 2013. Analysts believe smartphone users at the end of their contracts are seeing wasted minutes and data in the two-year period they were tied to wireless carriers, leading them to investigate better values outside of subscriptions.

The trend has already forced Verizon’s hand into the prepaid game. The top wireless carrier is offering unlimited talk and text plans with 200 MB of data for $60, plus $70 for larger data plans, to counter offerings from T-Mobile at the same price points. AT&T (NYSE:T) is also offering prepaid plans to keep its hand in the game of shifting consumer priorities. Both AT&T and Verizon are keeping their best service out of the hands of subscribers to offer an incentive to pick up two-year contracts.

As of yet, both AT&T and Verizon have reserved 4G service for its subscribers only. For prepaid customers, they offer 3G service for smartphones, whether it’s an iPhone or an old flip-phone handset. Consumers who want better plans have to turn to T-Mobile’s plans that have been modified to accept any type of phone and any level of data consumption. Ironically, it was T-Mobile’s inability to sell customers on its subscriptions that forced the carrier’s hand in going completely contract-free.

Samsung led the pack in prepaid smartphone sales for the first quarter, racking up 32 percent of the market. Its popular Galaxy is keeping the Android OS on top of the worldwide smartphone market, and is showing a drift away from budget phones in the prepaid sphere. Stephen Baker, VP of analysis at the NPD Group, noted that the lack of iOS or Android releases likely contributed to the drift away from postpaid plans. Without a popular phone to wow the public, consumer focus goes back to getting the best value from carriers. A total break from subscriptions is not impossible to imagine.

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Many had been expecting Microsoft to go from the Xbox 360 to an “Xbox 720,” but instead it went the other way, and there was good reason for the choice of the new name. One of the first things shown off about the device was its ability to link together a number of different elements of entertainment all in one device.

Microsoft’s Don Mattrick said that the new mission with the Xbox One was to connect games, TV, and entertainment. Yusuf Mehdi came on after Mattrick to talk about the all-in-one experience that the Xbox One is intended to offer.

In his demonstration, Mehdi showed off a lot of what the Xbox One could do. Simply saying, “Xbox, on,” he made the machine turn on. He then showed how voice commands could quickly switch from television broadcast to a movie to music to a game and around and back again with only a second of delay between the command and the completion of the task. Voice gestures were only the beginning, as body gestures could be picked up by the Kinect and translated into controls for the device, such as grabbing the air and squeezing in toward the torso to get back to the Xbox One home screen.

Mehdi also showed off the various forms of integration between elements that took place on the machine. He showed a movie running side-by-side with an Internet browser that he could then control with a completely separate tablet. He also showed a feature that will be a favorite among sports enthusiasts, showing how he could watch a live broadcast of a sporting event and have the Xbox One keep track of his fantasy league statistics in real-time. If he wanted, he could even pull Skype open in the middle of all that to brag to a friend.

In terms of what’s “under the hood,” as Microsoft’s Marc Whitten put it, the device will have eight gigabytes of RAM, making it a powerful multitasking device. It will support Blu-ray. It is built on 64-bit architecture, it runs “three operating systems in one,” and will have “practically silent operation.” Also, for whatever it’s worth, it will have five billion transistors — significantly more than the Xbox 360. That’s just the hardware of the main machine. The new controllers stay true to the older version, but will be able to deliver vibration more precisely, such as to the triggers. The Xbox One will also include a new Kinect device with many upgrades from the original, the ability to process “two gigabits of data per second,” and a central role in the Xbox One experience.

Microsoft is also working to make it one of the fastest and most seamless experiences it can. As Mattrick put it, they want to create an experience that is “simple, instant, and complete.” A strong focus on the cloud is one way the company will do this, and to keep that supported, the company will have 300,000 servers running for the Xbox One. Whitten said that this is “more than the entire world’s computing power in 1999,” and it compares to the 15,000 servers available for the current Xbox Live.

Of course, it’s not only about the hardware and support. Content is what drives the platform. At the event, a deal with EA Sports (NASDAQ:EA) was announced for four new games running on the new “EA Sports Ignite” game engine, including a Fifa, a Madden, an NBA, and a UFC game. Also, perhaps some of the bigger news, an Xbox One exclusive Halo TV series is being produced with the help of Steven Spielberg. Activision (NASDAQ:ATVI) Chief Executive Officer Eric Hirshberg also came on to announce and show the next game in the company’s most popular franchise, “Call of Duty: Ghosts.” The new game will feature numerous upgrades and even a dog-friend. Microsoft’s Phil Spencer added that more titles were currently in development for Xbox One than at any point in the rest of Xbox’s history. He said there were 15 exclusive games in development and that eight of those were brand new franchises.

One of the most interesting — and potentially creepy — notes of the event was how often the company hinted at some level of artificial intelligence. A promotional video said, “You and your TV are going to have a relationship,” and suggested a number of things it would know about users. Mattrick said the Xbox One would be a platform “where your TV becomes more intelligent,” and said Xbox Live was a “living service that gets better every day.” Adding to the eeriness is of course the ever-watching, ever-listening eye of the Kinect device. Needless to say, those are all meant to be elements that make the console great, not creepy.

Much more can be expected in the coming weeks, especially as one of the bigger gaming events — E3 — is set to take place soon.

Follow Mark on Twitter (@WallStMarkSheet)

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Flickr was once the most popular spot for amateur and professional photographers to post and share their work. After purchasing the popular site, Yahoo failed to make changes necessary for Flickr to compete with other photo sharing sites like Instagram, which was purchased by Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) for $1 billion, and many previously dedicated users closed their accounts.

Flickr will finally have a mobile app comparable to Instagram, which only works through Android and iOS devices. Flickr’s mobile app will offer more filters and editing tools than other photo-sharing sites. In addition to the smartphone and tablet apps, the revamped Flickr will have larger images, the ability to upload full resolution photos, and 1 TB of free storage space. Facebook and other photo services compress photos when uploading them, so offering full resolution photos will appeal more to serious photographers than other sites.

Flickr will also stand out through offering more storage space for users than any competing photo storage websites. The terabyte of space Flickr will give for free costs $49.99 per month on Google‘s (NASDAQ:GOOG) photo service. A terabyte of space is basically unlimited and can store over half a million photos. No other website has offered so much free storage.

The vow to improve Flickr comes on the heels of an announcement that Yahoo has purchased popular blogging site Tumblr. Both are part of Yahoo Chief Executive Officer Marissa Mayer’s plans to make Yahoo more relevant to younger users. Yahoo has failed to maintain the hip factor it once had and is struggling to remain relevant in the face of competition with Google and social networking sites. Yahoo will pay $1.1 billion for Tumblr, which will remain a separate entity with CEO David Karp keeping his position. Acquiring Tumblr will help Yahoo gain a foothold in the youth demographic by gaining access to its 300 million unique monthly visitors and expand Yahoo’s social networking options.

Flickr will be undergoing a fresh marketing campaign to attract new users and remind former ones that the site still exists. If the revamped Flickr is successful, investors can be more optimistic about how Yahoo will handle ownership of Tumblr as well.

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Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL): Dell has announced that Project Ophelia, an Android-based device that will plug into a display’s HDMI port to allow it to run applications or access files stored remotely, will begin shipping in July. Dell is also working on a keyboard that will work in tandem with Ophelia, “for users to type when Ophelia is docked to a screen.” The company will demonstrate Ophelia on  a 19-inch and a 55-inch screen at next week’s Citrix Synergy conference in Los Angeles.

Google (NASDAQ:GOOG): YouTube’s video upload rate has surpassed the 100 hours per minute mark, just after its eighth birthday. At this time last year, YouTube was uploading 72 hours per minute. YouTube is still a growing platform, with future plans to unify its design across platforms, as well as rolling out premium subscriber channels to help diversify its monetization efforts.

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