News tagged ‘iPhone’
Apple Adds Revised iPhone 4 and White iPod Touch Models to Inventory Database
Apple has reportedly added revised iPhone 4 and iPod touch models to its internal inventory database. There are three new iPod touch models under the codename N81A that are suggested to be the new white iPod touch in three different capacities. As we know, the original black iPod touch has a N81 codename. The white iPod is expected to have the same SPU as the current model, an improved ambient light sensor and the addition of an oleophobic coating. The new iPod touch is likely to be released on October 13th or 14th.
The revised iPhone 4 has appeared in Apple’s inventory database under N90A codename, suggesting a minor change over the existing N90 device. That might be the rumored "iPhone 4S" that has been seen in a number of parts leaks and bearing a nearly identical appearance to the iPhone 4.
Amazon announced iPad killer: Kindle Fire
Today Amazon announced their tablet called Kindle Fire. It has 7" IPS display, custom android OS, weights 413g, has 8Gb of storage, Wifi. Unfortunately it does not have 3G. The price is attractive though - $199. Shipments start November 15.
We are not sure that this device can be a real iPad killer. However it will definitely compete with other Android tablets, like Blackberry Playbook, HP Touchpad and others.
More specs:
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Microsoft And Samsung Enter Into Cross-Licensing Agreement
Microsoft
Apple to Discontinue iPod Classic and iPod Shuffle
According to TUAW, Apple is about discontinuing the iPod classic and iPod shuffle as a part of “product transition” this year.
It seems that the "product transition" Apple mentioned on the last earnings call could very well be within the iPod line. Specifically, if you want to buy an iPod shuffle or iPod classic from Apple, you should do it sooner rather than later. We've heard those two iPods are getting the axe this year.
The iPods now only make up for 8% of Apple’s total revenue. As the below graph shows, iPod sales have been falling over the last few quarters and although Apple doesn’t break these figures down model by model, its believed the iPod touch is what has held iPod sales up. The iPod nano also appears to be safe for the time being. The last official word about the iPod Classic came from Steve Jobs over a year ago. He said that they had no plans on discontinuing the iPod Classic at that time. Now, it seems they have changed their plans.
Gene Munster: ‘Let’s talk iPhone’ Hints At New Voice-controlled Assistant Feature
Gene Munster, Piper Jaffray’s analyst, attributed additional meaning to the “let’s talk” part of the headline on invitations that were sent out for Apple’s media event on October 4th. He said that it is a clue to the Assistant feature of upcoming iPhone. In a note to investors Munster said:
Facebook iPad App to Launch at iOS 5 and iPhone 5 Event
Facebook is expected to launch its long-awaited iPad application at the media event that Apple is going to held on October 4th alongside iOS 5 and the next-generation iPhone 5.
Facebook will launch its long-awaited iPad app at Apple’s iPhone 5 launch event on Oct. 4, Mashable has learned. In addition to the iPad app, Facebook is also expected to release a revamped version of its iPhone app and may unveil an HTML5-based mobile app marketplace.
Apple and Facebook worked together to integrate Facebook into iOS but due to disagreement, final release of the application was postponed. Now the companies seem to reach consensus. Last week, Robert Scoble also revealed that he had heard that Facebook would be releasing its iPad app at Apple's event on October 4th. Facebook is also likely to introduce a revamped iPhone application.
The secret of iPhone 5 design is revealed
M.I.C. Gadget is reporting that iPhone 5 prototype device was lost by Foxconn or possibly stolen. That is why there are lots of iPhone 5 cases in China today. The design could really be the final one since case manufacturers must be very certain to have shipped "thousands" of cases already. Producing a mold for silicone case costs tens of thousands of RMB (thousands of USD) and a mold for hard plastic cases costs even more.
A case supplier told that a device had gone missing from the Foxconn factory in the Shenzhen Futian district. The prototype was disguised in a case to make it look like the current device. It was apparently a test model with a finalized iPhone 5 teardrop chassis but only had slightly modified iPhone 4 internals.
The person who had access to the prototype wiped the phone's software, thus disabling the GPS hardware needed to track it down. It was then allegedly sold to one of the iPhone case manufacturers for RMB ¥20,000 (about $3,100). We were told that Foxconn was aware of the loss and had penalized internal management for the incident. We also heard from another source that the person who "lost" it was paid to do so.
We are very sure that one or more of these case manufacturers have access to what is believed to be the prototype of the iPhone 5 with the finalized design. It is not simply getting tipped on the dimensions and shapes of the next iPhone to make the molds.
By looking at iPhone 5 case photos one can say that the future iPhone 5 has teardrop desing. It is much thinner (33%) than iPhone 4, but a bit larger in height and width. The height of the case is 4.84 inches (12.3 cm), width - 2.72 inches (6.9 см). The dimensions of iPhone 4 are 4.5 x 2.31 x 0.37 inches (115.2 x 58.6 x 9.3 mm).
Take a look at the video, where this new iPhone 5 teardrop design case is compared to iPhone 4 and iPod Touch:
Here are the photos:
Apple Confirms: Media Event on October 4th
Apple has reportedly sent out invitations for a media event set for October 4th. As far as we know the event will take place at Apple’s headquarters in Cupertino. If you look at the invitation posted above, it becomes clear that this media event will obviously focus on the next-generation iPhone - the tagline for the banner is “Let’s talk iPhone”. The invitation also includes four Apple’s applications: Calendar, Clock, Maps, and Phone. We suggest that all applications may be connected with the new system of voice recognition that Apple is focusing on now – Assistant that is waited to appear on the iPhone 5.
Apple is expected to unveil two iPhone's during this media event. The next iPhone 5 is rumored to feature the company’s A5 processor, 1 GB of RAM and a 8-megapixel camera, iOS 5 with iCloud integration. The iPhone 4S is expected to be a low-price smartphone.
The event will begin October 4th at 10:00 am PT.
Skype Released Updates For Its Native iPad, iPhone and iPod touch Apps
Today Skype updated its app for
Intel: Existing Macs With Thunderbolt Will Support Fiber Optical Cables
Dave Salvator, Intel’s representative, said to
Apple has been denied trademark for Multi-Touch
The United States Patent and Trademark Office has denied an Apple’s application for a trademark on the term Multi-Touch, applied by the company on January 9, 2007, the day the iPhone was introduced. Receiving deny, Apple appealed to the Appeal Board. The board also refused to grant the trademark, noting that the term "multitouch" has taken on generic meaning, being used by a wide variety of publications to describe the touchscreen technology on Android phones, tablets, and notebooks.
Thus, from the foregoing, we find that “multi-touch” not only identifies the technology, but also describes how a user of the goods operates the device. Based on the evidence discussed above, as well as other evidence in the record, we agree with the examining attorney that MULTI-TOUCH indeed is highly descriptive of a feature of the identified goods. We now consider whether applicant has submitted sufficient evidence to establish acquired distinctiveness of this highly descriptive term.
Apple Updates Anti-Malware Tools to Address New Trojan Threat
Blurred screenshot of PDF file deployed by OSX/Revir.A
Late last week, a new trojan threat has targeted Mac users. It consists of two parts, with the first being a trojan downloader known as "OSX/Revir.A" that downloads and opens a PDF document containing "offensive political statements" written in Chinese, and installs a a backdoor known as OSX/Imuler.A that allows to get access to the user's machine.
When the backdoor is installed, it will set up a launch agent on the system that is used to continually keep the malware active on the system. It will then connect to a remote server and send the system's current username and MAC address to the server, after which the server will instruct it to either archive files and upload them, or take screenshots and upload them to the server.
Apple has quickly responded having updated its malware definitions for Snow Leopard and Lion systems so that they can recognize the trojan.
CNET has also reported that another trojan horse, known as OSX/flashback.A, has been discovered. The new trojan masquerades as a Flash Player installer to trick users into installing the package.
Apple Announces Q4 2011 Conference Call For October 18
The fourth fiscal quarter ends on this Saturday, September 24th, and as usual Apple will hold its conference call webcast to announce results, this year on October 18th.
Apple’s conference call webcast discussing Q4 – 2011 financial results will begin at 2:00pm PT/5:00pm ET on Tuesday, October 18, 2011.
Please note that comments made during this call may include forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties, and that actual results may differ materially from these forward-looking statements. For more information on the factors that could influence results, please refer to Apple’s SEC filings.
In Q3 2011, Apple managed to earn $28.57 billion of revenue with net profit of $7.31 billion, sold 20.34 million iPhones, 9.25 million iPads, and 3.95 million Macs. The previous quarter was record for Apple, especially comparing with the results of the year-ago quarter, when Apple posted revenue of $20.34 billion with 3.89 million Macs, 14.1 million iPhones and 4.19 million iPads sold during the quarter.
Analysts Dispute Supply Chain Conclusions of iPad Production Cuts
JPMorgan analysts have recently predicted that Apple slashed its fourth quarter iPad production plans by 25%, suggesting significant price cut. But The Wall Street Journal believes that such argument is insufficient to make these predictions. Other analysts not that Apple appears to have actually accelerated production ahead of the holiday shopping season. Sources also indicate that Apple plans to begin production of the iPad 3 at the end of the fourth quarter or early in 2012, so accelerating production now, the company tries to ease that transition.
We believe chatter regarding iPad production cuts are misleading – we have seen pull-ins, not cuts. We have noted recent comments by competitors discussing iPad production cuts for 4Q. Our recently published AAPL supply-chain checks noted a sequential decline in 4Q iPad builds from 17 mln-19 mln units in 3Q to 11 mln-13 mln units in 4Q. However, the 4Q sequential decline was accompanied by an increase in 3Q builds, leading us to conclude that production was likely pulled-in from 4Q to 3Q.
Some analysts suggest that the fourth quarter production cuts may be connected with shifting some production to Brazil by the end of the year.
Apple Plans To Produce Devices With Curved Glass In Early 2012
Sources close to Apple’s supply and manufacturing chain (