plastic

Apple doesn’t break down its iPhone sales figures, so we don’t know for sure that the iPhone 5c sold poorly, but certainly everything we do know seems to point in that direction – from early sales estimates through analytics and consumer surveys to Apple switching production from the 5c to the 5s.

Tim Cook said in an earnings call that “the mix was something very different than we thought,” and intimated that the model might be dropped: “If we decide it’s in our best interest to make a change, then we’ll make one.”

None of this necessarily means that the 5c was a complete failure, of course: record-breaking iPhone sales right from the outset could mean that the plastic phone did ok, it’s simply that the 5s sold far better than expected. It could also be that it was the extra sales gained from the 5c that helped break those records.

But I suspect not. While the brightly-colored 5c was not without its fans, it was the iPhone 5s with its Touch ID sensor and gold colored model that got all the attention, and I don’t think Tumblr advertising is going to change that. So my bet is we will again see a trend away from  colorful plastic iPhones … 
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8IAkbWJNfY

Apple has started airing a new advertisement for the iPhone 5c. The ad is called “Plastic Perfected” and it focuses on the colors and materials of the new iPhone model. Much of the advertisement is reminiscent of scenes from Apple’s executive promotional video for the device. The iPhone 5c launches this Friday alongside the iPhone 5s.

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avO5FXj7K-c

Following the release of the new iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c, Microsoft has uploaded a video poking fun at the new Apple smartphones. The video pretends to be a “fly on the wall” during an Apple product development meeting, apparently attempting to make fun of the plastic materials and colors of the 5c.

The videos don’t exactly position Windows Phone against iOS, simply taking jabs at iOS without explaining any benefits of the Microsoft platform.

The ad also mentions iWatch development and the new gold iPhone 5s with fingerprint scanner. The video above follows our roundup of the latest iPhone parody videos (and some additional ones below). Several more videos from Microsoft are also below:

Update: The videos have been removed. 

Update 2: Mirror of one of the ads replaced above

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A small surprise yesterday during Apple’s introduction of the new iPhone 5c and iPhone 5s was the launch of new cases for the devices. The iPhone 5s gets a new leather case in six colors, and the 5c gets colourful silicone cases with small circular cutouts meant to show off the iPhone’s color underneath. The silicone 5c cases don’t seem to be getting the best response following yesterday’s unveiling, but the good news is there are already several reputable case manufacturers with cases available for both the iPhone 5c and 5s.

The biggest complaint (apart from comparisons to crocs) seems to be lack of attention to detail, highlighted best in the image of the “iPhone” text to the right.  If Apple’s new cases won’t cut it, below we’ve put together a roundup of the best cases from around the web that are already available to order and coming soon for the launch of the device later this month. 
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As Apple’s September 10th iPhone event approaches, a few new photos claiming to show packaged “iPhone 5Cs” and accompanying materials have surfaced online. The first photo comes from website iApps.im, and it purports to show several “iPhone 5C” units in packaging. The “iPhone 5C” is what many are calling Apple’s upcoming lower-cost, plastic-backed iPhone. The packaging in these photos appears to line up with a purported packaging leak from earlier this year…

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Leading up to the unveiling of a new lower-cost plastic ‘iPhone 5C’ expected at Apple’s September 10 event next month, Apple is looking to hire an “experienced plastics material engineer” to work on iPhones and iPads. The engineer would join Apple’s iPhone/iPad Materials team and must have “extensive experience in plastic material properties, part design and fabrication.” While we know the current iPhone and iPads do use some internal plastic parts, the job listing also makes mentions of aesthetic requirements as well as experience in “plastic materials and design for manufacturing in terms of geometry and cosmetic quality.” That could be a hint the position will involve more than just the design of internal plastic parts.

There have been a ton of unconfirmed leaks claiming to show the plastic lower cost iPhone’s colourful back casings, but we posted the first photos of the next gen full-sized iPad back in January showing the device will borrow its design aesthetic from the iPad mini. It would be a stretch to imagine Apple might be working on a lower-cost, plastic iPad, but it is something it prototyped early on. Apple is expected to unveil the new lower-cost plastic iPhone alongside the new iPhone 5S at its event next month. There have been some conflicting reports this morning regarding the iPads, but we’re still expecting new iPads to be announced a later event.

As Apple’s iPhone 5S event approaches, some new details about the new device’s internals are emerging. Clayton Morris has claimed on Twitter that the iPhone 5S’s A7 processor is “running at about 31% faster” than the iPhone 5’s A6 chip. The iPhone 5’s A6 chip is dual-core, and it seems like the iPhone 5S will also remain dual-core.

However, there could be a major differentiator: 64-bit. We’ve independently heard claims that some of the iPhone 5S internal prototypes include 64-bit processors.

It’s unclear if 64-bit will make the cut, but it’s been in testing. We’re told that the 64-bit processing will assist the A7 chip in making animations, transparencies, and other iOS 7 graphical effects appear much more smoothly than on existing iOS Devices…

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<a href="http://9to5mac.com/2013/08/10/new-mockups-claim-to-show-iphone-5s-and-iphone-5c-designs-gallery/">iPhone 5S/5C physical mockups</a>

Apple’s next two iPhone models will be named iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C, according to a report from Japan-based Macotakara. With repeated reports and rumors of the next-generation iPhone retaining the same design as the iPhone 5, the “iPhone 5S” name has long been claimed and regarded as the name of the new flagship iPhone. Apple’s iPhone 4S and iPhone 3GS retained the designs of the iPhone 4 and iPhone 3G, respectively.

However, because of Apple’s surprise naming scheme for the third-generation iPad (The new iPad), an outright claim of the name “iPhone 5S” may be important to some interested in the upcoming device.

As for the “iPhone 5C,” this name gained attention when purported packaging materials for the upcoming, lower-cost, plastic iPhone surfaced in photos online. It is unclear what the “C” in “5C” could stand for, but speculation and logic points to the “C” standing for “color.” Like recent iPod touch models, this plastic iPhone is rumored to come in a series of colors…

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Analyst Ming-Chi-Kuo, who has a fairly strong track record in predicting future Apple products (timing not withstanding), has issued a new report with claims for some of Apple’s new products for the rest of 2013. The following is a breakdown of Kuo’s claims by product:

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New numbers out today from research firm Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (via AllthingsD) show that consumers in the U.S. are purchasing an increasing number of previous generation iPhones compared to recent years. It certainly helps make the case for a much rumored lower-cost iPhone, with the iPhone 4 capturing 18 percent of iPhones sold in the US during the June quarter, and the iPhone 4S an impressive 30 percent.

As noted by AllThingsD, the 52 percent of total iPhone sales captured by the iPhone 5 is much less than the iPhone 4S had just nine months into its release:

Nine months after the iPhone 5′s debut, it accounts for about half of all iPhone sales. The 4S still accounted for nearly three-quarters of iPhone sales almost a year after its launch.

While the obvious conclusion to draw from the data is an increased demand for a lower priced iPhone, CIRP’s Josh Lowitz thinks Apple could continue to take on the lower price market in the US with its previous generations of iPhones:
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