Apple

A new report from Quartz today offers some details on Apple’s content negotiations for a much rumored revamped Apple TV. Most of the report echoes what we’ve heard several times in the past– Apple is apparently talking with HBO, Disney, MTV and others about a new TV service. According to Quartz, it could include a pay TV service that would see Apple “essentially becoming a cable company itself,” as well as the release of a “full-fledged television set”:

One alternative being considered is that Apple could essentially become a cable company itself. Under that scenario, sources say, Apple would launch what is formally known as a virtual multichannel video programming distributor. Apple is still interested in striking deals with cable companies that would allow people to plug their cable lines into the back of the TV set, bypassing a cable box, sources say. But at least two years of negotiations haven’t progressed very far.

Sources say Apple has concluded that it doesn’t need all, even most, content providers on board before it can release a TV set that people would buy. It just needs enough good programming to distinguish the new product, which will try to simplify the experience of connecting internet video to the TV.

The report doesn’t offer up any details that we didn’t hear around this same time last year (and the year before that), but it appears Apple could be closer to reaching the deals it needs to launch the next-generation of Apple TV. Earlier today we reported that former Hulu SVP Pete Distad has now officially started his new role at Apple as Product Marketing VP and is thought to be leading Apple executives through negotiations with cable and media companies. 
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The US Patent & Trademark Office today published a new Apple patent application (via PatentlyApple) that details a flexible material that could be used as a hinge to create a seamless enclosure for devices like the MacBook, for example. Apple details a technical process of using specialized machinery to laser cut “flex apertures” and interlocking features in a rigid material to allow it to bend and function as a hinge. On top of creating a seamless enclosure, Apple claims the process would allow it to reduce the size of devices that are often increased due to traditional hinge solutions. Imagine if the enclosure of a MacBook didn’t include that black plastic hinge and instead appeared to be a seamless piece of aluminium connecting the display to the bottom half of the unibody.

While MacBooks might seem like the obvious application for Apple’s invention, it also notes the usual list of devices that could potentially use the technology including everything from smartphones to televisions and game consoles. The patent also shows the material being used on headphone cables to allow a flexible connection from the cable to the earbud to prevent damage, and on what appears to be an iPad Smart Cover-like accessory:
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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOhAzd0tp28]

A new video has made its way online today showing what is allegedly the rear casing of the much rumored plastic-backed, lower-cost iPhone 5C that many expect Apple to officially unveil early next month. The report from Taiwan’s Apple Daily claims to provide some precise measurements for the lower-cost iPhone. Coming in at 24.55mm x 59.13mm x 8.98mm, the iPhone 5C appears to be slightly larger than the iPhone 5 due to the plastic back. The site also put the back shells through a number of scratch resistant tests in the video above and noted that its sources claim the device will include a reinforced material that will protect from everyday wear and tear. The roughly translated report also seems to claim that the iPhone 5S, in addition to the new dual LED flash and gold color option that we previously reported, will come in 3 colors. However, it isn’t clear if it’s referring to just the White/Black and Gold, or additional colors. We’re assuming the shot of the blue iPhone 5S in the video above is for illustration purposes only. Probably.
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If the iPhone 5C is launched in China at $400, and Apple’s partnership with China Mobile for a TDD-LTE version of the handset proceeds as expected, Apple’s market share in China could jump by a massive 19.3 percent – enough to make Apple the number one seller.

The prediction, reported in Fortune, was made by Morgan Stanley’s Katy Huberty on the back of an AlphaWise survey of 2,000 mobile phone owners in China. Full details below … 
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Logitech, the company behind some our favorite cases and keyboards for iPad, today announced the newest member of its iPad keyboard case family with the addition of the Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard Folio for the iPad mini priced at $89. It is currently available for pre-order with an expected release later this month in the US, Europe, and some locations in Asia.

Logitech appears to be making the case itself a little larger than the iPad mini in order to achieve a more comfortable keyboard size, but its solution for holding the iPad mini in snug seems to be a little more elegant than some of the other solutions we’ve seen. The company tells us the case utilizes a “SecureLock system” to hold the iPad in securely, and it’s using new materials that are “ultra-thin and ultra-light” in addition to being water-repellant.

It’s also making a version without a keyboard called the Logitech Folio Protective Case for iPad mini at $49 (pictured below). Logitech will be making the cases available in a selection of colors including grey, purple, and pink, but didn’t offer any specific details on availability. We’ll have a review as soon as they become available.
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The long-awaited Jobs movie opened this weekend, with Box Office Mojo reporting that it took seventh place in the weekend openings, grossing $6.7M against top-grossing movie The Butler at $25M. Distributor Open Road Films had expected Jobs to gross $8-9M.

Playing at 2,381 locations, Jobs opened in seventh place with an estimated $6.7 million. While it was never expected to match The Social Network, it’s still very disappointing to note that the Steve Jobs biopic earned less than one-third as much as the Facebook story. This is also one of star Ashton Kutcher’s lowest openings ever—among nationwide releases, it’s only ahead of 2003’s My Boss’s Daughter ($4.9 million).

Jobs had plenty of issues, including awful reviews and a comedy star playing dramatic (almost never a good idea). Most important, though, was the movie’s apparent tonal issues: while plenty of people enjoy their Apple products, the deification of Steve Jobs is a bit of a turn off. Jobs received a weak “B-” CinemaScore, and all indications are that it will disappear from theaters quickly …

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Jay Blahnik, a globally recognized fitness expert and instrumental consultant in the development of several Nike fitness products, has confirmed his new role at Apple. In July, we reported on unconfirmed whispers out of the fitness industry that Blahnik had been hired at Apple, likely to work on the iWatch. We’ve also since confirmed with additional sources that he has joined Apple, and these people say that Blahnik will be working on the iWatch team…

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We’ve had a look at just about all of the best portable Bluetooth speakers on the market but Bose, a company known for high (prices and) quality speakers, has never made our ‘best of‘ lists. Its regular Soundlink and Soundlink II products at $300-$349 have sound and features that lower-priced competitors, especially Logitech UE,  JBL Charge and even the Beats Pill were able to handily beat.

All of that ended the moment I got the $199 Bose Soundlink Mini, a product that shows that Bose is willing to think outside of its “hyper-premium price” box without sacrificing the quality of its product…

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Apple has replaced its iPad in Business apps website with a new site that is much simpler and more direct. The new page highlights multiple specific use cases for which a business could use an iPad, then presents specific applications to complete those tasks. The old website was more cluttered and less specific. The iPhone version of Apple’s business apps website still showcases the older format…

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Apple has opened up one of its rare replacement programs for the graphics card in some mid-2011 iMac configurations, according to a notice issued to Apple Support employees. The iMac in question is the model released in May 2011 with Sandy Bridge processors and Thunderbolt ports. This iMac was sold between that month and October 2012 when Apple launched thinner models with new internals. Apple says that AMD Radeon HD 6970M cards (both 1GB and 2GB configurations) in select versions of these 2011 iMacs could fail:

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Following several recent reports claiming that Apple was preparing to introduce a new gold color option for the next iPhone in addition to multiple color options rumored for a new low-cost iPhone, today MacBoutic (via Engadget) posted images allegedly showing the gold-colored back casing for the device.

Yesterday KGI’s Mingchi Kuo was the first reliable source to report that a next-generation iPhone would include “golden casing” alongside a new 128GB option. Previously, less reliable sources claimed also claimed that Apple had a gold iPhone in the works. Kuo also added that the next-generation iPhone will include “a sapphire home button with fingerprint  sensor,” something we’ve heard several times in recent months.

Curiously, the source of today’s photos says it “deliberately blurred the “Apple” logo and the words “iPhone” on the back” of the device.” It’s worth pointing out that we have no way to confirm if these are the real deal (we’ve certainly seen a lot of fakes floating around), and it’s easy to get your hands on color conversions that typically don’t include the Apple logo and other iPhone markings.
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Photo of Beijing Apple Store: news.cn

Apple appears to be preparing for increased focus on the Chinese market, with more than 200 (mostly) senior job openings appearing on LinkedIn, reports the WSJ. Some of these were added in the past three weeks, many within the last few days. Digitimes reported yesterday on Apple also seeking senior engineers in Taiwan.

With the developed market close to saturation point, the BRIC markets – Brazil, Russia, India and China – are key to Apple’s future expansion. Worldwide, smartphones represent only just over half of the total cellphone market, generating massive potential for future growth.

Apple’s challenge in China is as much a political one as it is marketing-based … 
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In a new report out today, KGI’s Mingchi Kuo updated his previous predictions for the iPhone 5S due for announcement on September 10th. Notably, he expects:

(1) the new A7, ARMv8 based AP (application processor), featuring a 1GB LPDDR3 RAM chip; (2) a sapphire home button with fingerprint  sensor; (3) main camera unchanged with 8MP, but featuring a larger F2.0 aperture with dual flash lights; (4) new option for golden casing; and (5) new option for 128GB storage.

We’ve heard the Sapphire fingerprint reading home button previously from Kuo and the A7 is the natural successor to the A6 and will likely be a 64-bit processor. The 1GB RAM seems in line with previous predictions but that 1GB of RAM will be faster according to Kuo:

We reckon A7 will upgrade memory bandwidth spec to LPDDR3 from LPDDR2 adapted by A6, in an effort to improve system performance. Since Apple is in charge of both hardware  and OS design, it is capable of minimalizing memory capacity at an optimized state. Therefore, A7’s RAM will likely be unchanged at 1GB.

However, the Gold option is something that has been only heard of in more sketchy rumors until now. Additionally, we discussed the 128GB option in our roundtable quite a bit yesterday. The iPad got a 128GB option this spring and the option on the iPhone would be a big differentiator for power users.

We’ve also heard the upgrade on the camera would include an F2.0 aperture with dual flashes but have heard a variety of megapixel options including 12 and 13. As with previous ‘S’ models, this one would be able to take dramatically better pictures, especially in low light situations.

Kuo doesn’t believe that there will be NFC capabilities in the iPhone 5S.

All told, Kuo expects Apple to sell 35M iPhone 5S units in 2013 (not including previous models and the lower cost iPhone 5C) as long as sapphire fingerprint reader manufacturers can keep up with demand.

Kuo’s record on parts predictions is good (timing notwithstanding) and these predictions should be taken seriously.

Mockups via MartinHajek.com, more here.
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Apple just released the 6th release of iOS 7 for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. The small 13.5MB update is available via Software Update and contains the usual bugfixes and improvements.

The update comes a week after the previous update and just hours after a report pegged the Beta 6 update for next week. The focus of the small update appears to be on an emergency issue with iTunes in the Cloud which requires a workaround.

This update addresses an issue with iTunes in the Cloud, where some purchases may download or play unexpected items. If you have any devices running previous versions of iOS 7 beta, you must:
1. Install iOS 7 beta 6
2. Install the ResetMusicAndVideosLibraries configuration profile
3. From Settings > Music, tap the Reset Media Library button
4. Restart the device

Notice something else new? Head down south to the comments.
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