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News tagged ‘research’
Apple Researching Stylus Concepts with Optical Tracking and Haptic Feedback
Back in 2007, then the first-generation iPhone was launched, Steve Jobs offered an idea of a stylus for the iPhone. And it seems that Apple is still researching his ideas for stylus-based input. Unwired View has recently posted Apple patent applications filed in late 2010, highlighting optical and haptic stylus concepts. However, there is no evidence that Apple is seriously looking at incorporating a stylus into its products, but it remains clear that the company is thinking about how such pen-based input could be used in novel ways.
Apple's optical stylus is based on a tiny camera on the tip of the pen, allowing it to track patterns on a device's screen that is invisible to the user's eye.
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Rumor: LG Display, AU Optronics have passed certification for 'iPad mini' LCD panels
Taiwan's The Liberty Times has recently reported that display makers LG Display and AU Optronics have passed certification tests for LCD panels bound for a rumored "iPad mini" and are now preparing shipments of the panels to Apple. The report also said that Radiant will supply the backlight module.
Author Chen Meiying said that, according to market rumors, the so-called "iPad mini" is expected to come out at the end of the third quarter or into the fourth quarter of this year. 2012 shipment targets were said to be six million units.
iOS Dropped To 29 Percent Of US Smartphone Sales In The First Quarter
CNET that iOS U.S. market share dropped by 12 percent in the first quarter, which enable Google’s Android to take almost two-thirds of the market.
According to market research company NPD Group, Android was able to capture 61 percent of the U.S. market, which is a considerable gain from the 49 percent registered in last year’s fourth quarter.
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iPad tablet market share will dip to 50% by 2017
NPD, market research firm, suggests that Apple’s tablet market share will drop to just over 50 percent by 2017. Android and Windows-based devices will, obviously, have a hand in it, and, as NPD expects, will begin continue to eat into the iPad's overwhelming lead by 2014.
The overall tablet market will swell from 81.6 million units in 2011 to 424.9 million units by 2017, and tablet shipments will surpass those of notebooks by 2016.
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Apple's iPhone climbs to 31% share of US smartphone market
comScore released on Tuesday quarterly data from its MobiLens service, which surveyed 30,000 mobile subscribers users, revealing that the iPhone made up 30.7 percent of the U.S. smartphone market and 14 percent of the mobile market in the first quarter of 2012.
Apple's share of the smartphone market grew 1.1 percent when compared to the fourth quarter of 2011. The figures were up 0.5 percent from Apple's three-month average from February.
Apple plans to block competitors' prying ears with new off-campus cafeteria
The San Jose Mercury News reports that on Tuesday the Planning Commission unanimously approved the project of 21,468-square-foot cafeteria near Apple’s Cupertino, Calif., headquarters. The non-Apple employees will not be welcomed in the cafeteria that will allow Apple employees to speak freely about their business without fearing that competitors are eavesdropping.
"We like to provide a level of security so that people and employees can feel comfortable talking about their business, their research and whatever project they're engineering without fear of competition soft of overhearing their conversations," said Dan Wisenhunt, Apple's director of real estate facilities. "That is a real issue today in Cupertino because we've got other companies here in our same business."
The cafeteria will be a two-story building that will include a cafe, meeting rooms, lounge areas and courtyard space. The second floor will be intended for cafeteria employees for storage, locker rooms, restrooms and more. The site will also include 70 parking spaces housed in an underground garage.
Apple Predicted To Stop Making 17-Inch MacBook Pro
Ming-Chi Kuo, research analyst from KGI Securities, has issued a new report saying that Apple may discontinue the 17-inch MacBook Pro due to weak sales.
Also he expects that Apple will introduce new MacBook models that will combine power of the MacBook Pro and portability of MacBook Air models and dropping of 17-inch model will be part of this revamp.
Suppliers Pointing To iPhone 5 With 4-Inch Display And ‘Sleek Look’
Today analyst Brian White from Topeka Capital Markets has issued a new research report sharing new details about the iPhone 5 that he heard from Apple’s suppliers during his recent trip to Asia. According to the report () , White expects a new iPhone will have “sleek” look and a larger 4-inch screen:
Analysts Expect $1000 Share Price For Apple Within The Next Year Or Two
During the past couple of days, two high-profile research analyst published reports forecasting that Apple will reach $1000 per share milestone in one or two years. With such a high share price the company’s market capitalization will push toward an unprecedented trillion-dollar level.
Apple working on physical game controller for iPads and other iOS devices
AnandTech's Anand Lal Shimpi reports Apple is working on its own physical controller to similarly enhance gameplay on its iPad and other mobile devices. He has been made aware of "an internal Apple project to bring a physical controller to market."
Regardless, Lal Shimpi believes such devices may soon be a necessary accompaniment for hardcore mobile gamers, especially as smartphones and tablets come close to equaling the performance of existing game consoles.
Analyst Speculation Points to 2013 for Launch of Apple Television Set
Hong Kong-based research firm CLSA suggests that Apple's much-rumored television set is likely to debut in 2013 rather than the late 2012. CLSA also claims that Foxconn's investment in Sharp is likely to speed up development and launch of an Apple television.
We continue to view Apple TV hardware as a 2013 event.
The timing of Hon Hai/Foxconn's equity stake and partnership with Sharp along with Hon Hai Chairman Terry Gou's separate 46.5% investment in Sharp's Sakai City plant lends further credibility that Apple TV is in the works. This also follows reports that Apple is investing ~$1.3bn in equipment destined for Sharp facilities.
iPhone And Android Own Over 90% Of U.S. Smartphone Market
According to the from research company Nielsen, Apple’s iOS and Android have both accounted for over 90 percent of U.S. smartphone purchases in last three months. During the same period the closest competitor RIM’s Blackberry was bought only by 5 percent of respondents. Other operating systems such as WebOS, Symbian, Windows Phone get only 4 percent share combined.
RIM hiring iOS developers
Research in Motion has recently posted a job listing on its website that reveals that the BlackBerry maker is looking to hire developers for an undisclosed iOS enterprise app to be distributed through Apple's App Store. A RIM spokesperson confirmed the rumours. As he said, “the company is indeed developing an iPhone app as part of its BlackBerry Mobile Fusion project.”
Along with the usual coding and communication skills, requirements called for a candidate well-versed in creating apps for both the iPhone and the iPad.
Apple Announces Plans to Initiate Dividend and Share Repurchase Program
Yesterday Apple hold a conference call where the company announced its plans to initiate quarterly dividend of $2.65 per share sometime in the fourth quarter of its fiscal 2012, which begins on July 1, 2012.
Additionally, Apple said that it authorized a $10 billion share repurchase program that begins on September 30, 2012. The repurchase program is expected to be executed over three years, with the primary objective of neutralizing the impact of dilution from future employee equity grants and employee stock purchase programs.
Apple reportedly recruiting workers for Israeli R&D center
Hebrew-language newspaper Calcalist now reports that Apple and Anobit, which was acquired by Apple late last year, are actively recruiting workers for the company's research operations in Israel. That goes against the rumors claiming that the downsizing was said to be part of the acquisition, as some of Anobit's employees were no longer needed at the company.
According to the report, Anobit has changed its name to HDC (R&D center in Herzliya). The company's former president, Airel Maislos, is believed to be the new senior executive at Apple's development center.