News tagged ‘Retina Display’

According to a research note issued by Citi analyst Richard Gardner, the next-generation iPad will be introduced in February.

According to "several sources" the next iPad will launch in February, and it will sport a screen with double the resolution of the current model.

Gardner says, "there do not appear to be any significant technical hurdles remaining" to prevent a launch of a high-resolution iPad, despite rumors to the contrary.

Some of the prior reports of a mid-winter launch for the iPad 3 suggested that Apple's display suppliers were struggling with mass production of the higher-resolution 2048x1536 displays.  It still unclear is whether the next-generation Apple’s tablet will be thinner or slightly thicker than the iPad 2. Some sources claim that it will be slightly thicker due to use a dual light bar system that is necessary for the Retina Display. But others suggest that Apple will use a new technology that will allow the iPad 3 to be slightly thinner than the current model.

Citing an Asian supplier who is allegedly crafting components for Apple's next iPad, Japanese blog Macotakara claims that Apple's third-generation iPad will be slightly thicker than the iPad 2 for an "unknown reason." That means that third-party cases that cover the back side of the device won’t fit to the iPad 3, but Apple’s Smart Covers will remain compatible with the next-generation Apple’s tablet.

The screen of the iPad 3 will have the same 9.7-inch screen size as the iPad 2, but Apple is rumored to implement the Retina Display technology into the next-generation iPad. One reason for a thicker frame on the iPad 3 could be the components necessary to include a high-resolution Retina Display.

In order to include a Retina Display, Apple may adopt entirely new display technology. One report in November suggested Apple would use IGZO displays from Sharp to reach a 330 dots-per-inch screen resolution. But that report claimed the IGZO display would also allow for a future iPad to be thinner, not thicker. Other reports, however, claimed that Apple would utilize a dual-LED light bar system to illuminate the Retina Display of a third-generation iPad. Apple's apparent difficulties with the higher resolution displays and new LED backlight designs were said to have already affected the launch schedule of the next iPad.

The Retina Display technology was firstly introduced by Apple with the 2010 iPhone 4. Apple boasts that an individual pixel on such screen is so small that cannot be distinguished by the human eye.

Research firm ChangeWave released on Thursday results of an early November survey of iPhone 4S owners that shows that 77 percent of respondents indicated they are "very satisfied" with their iPhone 4S, another 19 percent said they are "somewhat satisfied," while j 2 percent fell into the "unsatisfied" category. After launch of the iPhone 4, 72 percent of Apple customers were "very satisfied" with their purchase, and 21 percent were "somewhat satisfied."

ChangeWave also asked customers what their favorite specific features of the iPhone 4S are. Siri topped the list of most-liked features on the iPhone 4S, with nearly half of survey respondents citing it. Second place was ease of use with 39 percent, and the new 8-megapixel camera took third with 33 percent. Faster Web browsing was the fourth most popular feature at 24 percent, the high-resolution Retina Display took fifth with 23 percent, and iCloud service was in sixth with 19 percent.

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Rumors about Apple’s plans to implement high-resolution 2048x1536 Retina display to the next-generation iPad have been circulating for some time now. According to different sources, the new iPad 3 is required two light bars in order to manage the much higher resolution, so that it will be 0.7 mm thicker than the iPad 2.

Some analysts predict that Apple will continue using in-plane switching (IPS) technology for the new display. But Jeffries analyst Peter Misek together with Forbes suppose that Apple is not going to use IPS on the iPad 3, and seeks new ways and technology to produce the iPad 3 with a thinner and lower-power design.

Also, we believe that Apple and Sharp together have a modified IGZO (indium, gallium, zinc) technology to achieve 330 dpi, which is sufficient for an HD display while not using IPS nor having to include dual-bar LED backlighting. In our view, this should lead to several design advantages, namely the device can be thinner, battery life should be longer, and the overall experience for users should be meaningfully improved.

According to rumors from Apple’s back office, the company is developing a larger iPhone display and a smaller display for iPad. An insider said to The Korea Times that Apple is engineering a shrunken version of the 9.7-inch iPad. According to the IDG, which translated the publication from Korean, a new iPad called iPad mini will feature a 7.35-inch display.

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The iPad 3 with Retina display will unlock very valuable capabilities for professionals, for example, for pilots who use tablet for electronic charts and doctors who use it for medical imaging. Many airlines replaced conventional flight bags weighing 40 pounds or more with light-weight iPad. But the iPad is not allowed to be used further than a 50-mile radius of the originating and destination airports, because the charts are quite complex to be displayed on any electronic device.

While "about 75 to 80 percent of a flight is done using the autopilot, in conjunction with the flight management system," according to Flight Safety Foundation executive vice president Kevin Hiatt, the ability to use an electronic device to navigate highly complex flight maps could be expanded with the additional resolution in a "Retina Display" iPad.

And this is only one example how the iPad 3 with Retina display might be used. Other professionals would similarly benefit from such a doubling improvement in resolution of 2048 x 1536 pixels.

Asian trade publication DigiTimes reports, citing it sources, that Apple is exploring two alternative backlight design for the rumored Retina Display on iPad 3, as the single LED light bar currently used in the iPad 2 doesn’t provide enough brightness for the display.

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Digitimes claims that Apple plans to completely overhaul its iPad, iMac, iPhone and MacBook Air lines in 2012, saying nothing about MacBook Pro, Mac mini, Mac Pro and iPod lines.

Apple plans to completely overhaul its product lineups, including iPad, iMac, iPhone and MacBook Air, in 2012 and is expected to finalize order volumes for key parts and components for the next-generation iPad in December, according to sources in the upstream supply chain.

The iPhone is most likely to be redesign. The iPhone 4S has the same design as the previous generation iPhone 4. So it is quite reasonable to suggest that the iPhone will receive a new design. As for iMac, its design hasn’t been changed for some years. And it’s unclear how drastically it would be changed. The iPad is expected to become thinner in 2012. Some analysts believe that Apple’s tablet could finally receive Retina display. Finally, the MacBook Air. The notebook will certainly receive new design next year. There are rumors about a 15" Air-like design. Moreover, the Air and Pro lines is expected to be merged into one, but the Air form factor will dominate the consumer market in the near future.

Digitimes suggests that Apple's next iPad should enter mass production soon with a launch set for March 2012. But this new product won’t be a “real” iPad 3 rather an updated iPad 2. The “real” iPad 3 is expected to be launched no earlier that the third quarter of 2012. Although Digitimes does not provide any distinction as to what qualifies as a "real iPad 3", the site claims that it would be thinner than the iPad 2 and offer longer battery life.

The most obvious difference between the updated iPad 2 and the “real” iPad 3 is an ultra-high resolution Retina display that is rumored to be implemented in the iPad 3. Rumors about Apple’s plans to build in such display in their devices have been circulating for months. But the most recent reports indicate that Apple's suppliers are finding it challenge to produce such high density displays. Anyway Apple could change their plains at any moment.

UBM TechInsights posted their estimates  on price of the major components of the iPhone 4S. They suggest that the value of the components used to make the Apple iPhone 4S comes to $203 for the 32GB model which will be sold for $299 on a subisidized basis.

The most expensive part is the flash memory which costs $38. The second most expensive component   is Retina display wearing a $31 price tag. That is followed by the dual-core A5 processor, which costs $26. Making the new iteration of the iPhone a World Phone added $6 to the cost of a GSM-only unit, while the updated 8MP camera added only $3 to the price of the components.

iPhone’s rival HTC ThunderBolt was valued at $262 according to TechInsights. It includes such components as a LTE chipset, bigger battery, but lower resolution screen, and slightly slower processor, comparing with the iPhone 4S’.

The recently-announced 8GB Apple iPhone 4 indicated that Apple now offers the phone with small margin. Its component cost is $156 and the company is going to sell it for $99 with a signed 2-year contract.

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As FinancialPost reports, J.P. Morgan’s analyst Mark Morkowitz suggests that Apple will release two models of iPhone in September. The first is the redesigned iPhone 4 -expected iPhone 5 – and the second is a cheap mass market handset with a tentative name “iPhone 4-plus” or “iPhone 4S”.

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Apple reportedly has made a deal with Simplo and Dynapack to produce and supply a thinner and lighter battery for the iPad 3. Such battery means that the company may work on the iPad with a potentially thicker high-resolution Retina display. The cost of new batteries is 20-30% higher that the current iPad batteries but provides longer service life and higher safety.  Mass production of such batteries are planed on the first quarter of the next year.

With the upcoming iPad 3 to feature a thinner, lighter battery module that is widely believed to be priced 20-30% higher than iPad 2’s, Simplo Technology Co. and Dynapack International Technology Corp., both Apple Inc.’s contract suppliers of iPad and Macbook battery packs, will hence secure a surefire profit drive for the near future.

Institutional investors pointed out that the battery pack for iPad 3, scheduled to be massively produced in the first quarter of next year, has been redesigned to be thinner and lighter with a longer service life than iPad 2 edition’s.

Recently Digitimes reported that the production of the next-gen iPad’s high resolution display remains to be a problem. As a result, Chimei Innolux Corporation didn’t get certification to become an LCD provider for Apple’s next-gen tablet.

“CMI has cut into the supply chain of iPad 2, which uses IPS panels, but the new Apple tablet is more demanding in terms of resolution, the sources said. The iPad 3 will feature a 9.7-inch panel with resolution of 2,048x1,536 compared to the iPad 2's 1,024x768”.

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The Wall Street Journal reports that Apple is working on its next generation iPad with the 2048x1536 Retina display that might be launched early 2012.

The next generation iPad is expected to feature a high resolution display - 2048 by 1536 compared with 1024 by 768 in the iPad 2 - and Apple's suppliers have already shipped small quantities of components for the sampling of the iPad 3. Suppliers said Apple has placed orders for a 9.7-inch screen device.

The Wall Street Journal's sources claim that Apple is aiming to launch the iPad 3 in early 2012 and has already started placing orders for many of the key components for the next iPad. They also indicate that a trial run will begin in October.