Feeling your iPhone isn’t quite as hot as a Samsung Note 7? There’s a case for that …
You know how it is, you love your iPhone, but sometimes another manufacturer comes out with a phone that just seems a little … hotter.
Samsung looks likely to win Supreme Court appeal against damages in Apple patent case
The never-ending court battle between Apple and Samsung over three iPhone design patents finally reached the Supreme Court yesterday. It had earlier been found that a total of 11 Samsung phones copied three design elements patented by Apple – including the famous ‘black rectangle with rounded corners.’ Lower courts ruled that Samsung should have to pay 100% of the profits earned from those phones, while Samsung thinks it should pay less.
Remarks by two of the Justices seem to indicate that they are leaning heavily towards Samsung’s side of the argument. Samsung’s position is that the patented features represent only part of the reason for purchase, and that they should accordingly have to hand over only part of the profits earned from them …
Why today’s Apple v Samsung Supreme Court case is so important, and why it won’t end there
The BBC has an interesting take on the Apple versus Samsung patent case that is finally heading to the Supreme Court today, arguing that a definitive ruling is needed in order to bring a 19th Century law into the 21st Century. It also explains why the legal battle probably won’t end with the Supreme Court’s ruling.
A one-paragraph recap for anyone who hasn’t been following the case closely. Samsung infringed several of Apple’s design patents – that is, patents concerned with how things look (in either hardware or software) rather than what they do. Samsung is no longer denying that. The lower courts ruled that Samsung must pay all of the profits made by infringing these patents. That’s the bit Samsung is fighting, arguing that it should pay a much smaller sum.
And it is this element of patent law which the BBC’s Dave Lee suggests needs to advance a century or two …
It’s over: Samsung permanently ends production of Note 7 after multiple fires in replacement devices
Samsung has officially ceased worldwide production of its Galaxy Note 7 after multiple reports of replacement models, like the original ones, catching fire.
I argued yesterday that the company ‘might as well write-off this year’s flagship phone as a lost cause,’ and there are today multiple reports (The Verge, Bloomberg and the BBC) that it has now done so.
South Korean tech giant Samsung has permanently ceased production of its high-end Galaxy Note 7 smartphones after reports of devices it had deemed safe catching fire.
“We recently readjusted the production volume for thorough investigation and quality control, but putting consumer safety as top priority, we have reached a final decision to halt production of Galaxy Note 7s,” the company said. “For the benefit of consumers’ safety, we stopped sales and exchanges of the Galaxy Note 7 and have consequently decided to stop production.”
The announcement was made in response to growing pressure …
Comment: Samsung’s literal meltdown will mostly benefit Google & LG, but should help Apple too
You might have thought things couldn’t get any worse for Samsung after a series of fires and explosions forced it to recall its flagship Galaxy Note 7. It had already been forced to recall almost 2.5 million devices at an estimated cost of a billion dollars, with all U.S. major carriers offering customers the option to return replacement devices also.
But things have now gotten worse. Much worse. The Verge has found that no fewer than five replacement devices have caught fire in the U.S. alone.
When it was just one case, I cautioned against jumping to conclusions, but with five separate fires in such a short time, we’re well beyond the point of being able to ascribe this to the simple statistics of lithium battery failures. All four major U.S. carriers have now pulled the Note 7 altogether, and Samsung has ‘temporarily’ halted production of replacement Note 7s …
Just when you thought slide-to-unlock was dead: Samsung owes Apple $120M in patent case
Bloomberg reports that Apple this week won an appeal in its long-running case against Samsung over its slide-to-unlock patent.
The decision reinstates an original $119.6 million verdict owed to Apple that a U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled was wrongly thrown out in a previous decision back in February.
Samsung acquires Viv, the AI bot developed by the original creators of Siri
Over the last year, the artificial intelligence assistant “Viv” has garnered a lot of attention. Viv was cofounded by Dag Kittlaus, Adam Cheyer and Chris Brigham, the original creaters of Siri, and has been billed as a more powerful and more capable personal assistant than Siri. Now, TechCrunch reports that Samsung has acquired Viv and plans to implement it into its devices.
Third-wave iPhone 7 launch on Oct 14, then Samsung’s home market on Oct 21 [U]
Update: Apple is also showing the October 14 date for Macao, Macedonia, Malaysia, Montenegro and Turkey, and it’s likely we’ll see more countries added soon.
Apple Premium Reseller iStore has tweeted that the iPhone 7 is coming to South Africa on October 14, with the information confirmed on both its website, above, and now Apple’s site too. We heard a week ago that it will be hitting India on October 7.
ET News is also reporting that Apple’s new iPhone is expected to be launched in Samsung’s home market of South Korea a week later, on October 21 – though it notes that this is not yet certain.
Through discussion that took place [yesterday], Apple Korea and three mobile network providers have decided to release the iPhone 7 on the 21st of October, based on final approval from Apple Headquarters.
Apple products are currently sold in South Korea only by third parties, but it appears that Apple has plans to take on Samsung directly on its home turf …
Apple taking the fight to Samsung: planning an Apple Store right by company’s South Korea HQ
The rivalry between Apple and Samsung may be about to intensify: the WSJ reports that the iPhone maker is considering opening up an Apple Store very close to Samsung’s HQ in Seoul, South Korea. Perhaps very close indeed!
Apple looked at sites across the street from the Samsung ’s longtime headquarters in Seoul, according to people familiar with the matter.
The move could be a very smart one for Apple …
PSA: Samsung’s new Gear S3 smartwatches work with iPhones, feature circular faces + cellular connectivity
Earlier today Samsung revealed its latest generation of Tizen-based smartwatches, the Gear S3 Classic and Gear S3 Frontier, and 9to5Google was on hand to test the device. While these two new devices don’t look much different compared to last year’s Gear S2 lineup, they do make some major improvements.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynTB211p1PQ
Obviously, the first thought with a Samsung wearable is that it is designed to go with their Andoid-based smartphones even though this one has LTE, GPS and a reported 4-day battery life.
But this time, they work with iOS…
Samsung seemingly attempting to patent … the Apple Watch
The never-ending patent battle between Apple and Samsung may have the design world on Apple’s side, but that doesn’t seem to be deterring Samsung from seeking to copy more Apple products. Patently Apple spotted what looks to be exact drawings of the Apple Watch in a patent application for a ‘wearable device’ filed by Samsung just yesterday.
111 designers including Dieter Rams & Calvin Klein back Apple in Supreme Court patent case against Samsung
The United States Supreme Court is set to take on Samsung’s appeal over Apple’s design patent case in two months, and today Apple has submitted an amicus brief with support from 111 famed designers ahead of the trial. Prominent names featured in the amicus brief supporting Apple include Dieter Rams, Calvin Klein, and Lord Norman Foster who is the designer behind Apple’s Campus 2 project. The Supreme Court is scheduled to take on Samsung’s appeal of the ruling in favor of Apple on October 11th.
Supreme Court to hear Samsung’s appeal over Apple design patent case on Oct. 11
Back in March, the Supreme Court stated that it would hear Samsung’s appeal in the company’s never-ending design patent battle with Apple. While Apple had urged the Supreme Court not to hear the case, saying that Samsung “had its day in court,” it was revealed on the court’s website today that the case will be heard on October 11th. The Supreme Court had initially announced its decision to hear the case in March, but a date was unknown until tonight.
Samsung mimics Apple’s ‘Shot on iPhone’ campaign with ‘Captured on Galaxy S7’
Samsung may think that running ads mocking Apple was the right thing to do, but it appears it isn’t above copying one of Apple’s most successful ad campaigns.
As CNET noticed, Samsung’s latest video ad – showing off the 4K video recording capabilities of its latest devices – is titled ‘Captured on Samsung Galaxy S7.’ Not quite as catchy as ‘Shot on iPhone,’ admittedly, but clearly inspired by the latter …
Samsung’s top marketing exec says ad campaigns mocking Apple were ‘relevant, bold and right’
Samsung’s executive VP for global marketing Younghee Lee has told AdWeek that its ad campaigns mocking Apple products were ‘relevant, bold and right.’
DOJ asks Supreme Court to send Samsung vs Apple case back to trial court
In what feels like a never-ending patent battle, the Department of Justice today filed an amicus brief regarding the ongoing case between Apple and Samsung. Back in December, it was announced that Apple and Samsung had reached a $548 million settlement, but shortly after that Samsung asked that Supreme Court hear an appeal of its case, saying that the lower courts misapplied the design patent law. Apple then asked the Supreme Court not to hear the appeal and argued that the case was closed, but in March the Supreme Court agreed to hear Samsung’s appeal over the case.
Next-gen Intel Kaby Lake processors on track to launch this year as Samsung unveils new super-small SSDs
We can usually get a decent idea of what the insides of an upcoming Mac will look like thanks to announcements from part manufacturers. A report last week detailed some of the changes that Apple has planned for its MacBook Pro refresh in the fourth quarter of this year and now Intel and Samsung have both made announcements that could offer a glimpse into what else Apple will introduce…
UBI Research forecast adds fuel to idea that only larger iPhones will get OLED screens initially
iPhone concept: Yasser Farahi/Ovalpicture
With most reports now agreeing that Apple will switch to OLED displays in iPhones in either 2017 or 2018 (but no consensus yet on which of the two years), UBI Research has now added fuel to the idea that not all models will benefit from the new screen technology.
The Korea Herald reports the firm’s president and chief analyst suggesting numbers that indicate a gradual rollout across models.
Lee Choong-hoon predicted an OLED iPhone with a curved screen would debut in 2018, saying OLED models would make up 30 percent or 100 million units of total iPhone shipments in the year and the figure could surge to 80 percent by 2020.
While the 30% figure could be explained by Apple launching its new iPhones late in the year, the ‘80% by 2020’ number would mean Apple continuing to manufacture some new models with the older IPS LCD screen tech for some time to come …
Apple loses market leadership to Samsung as number one smartphone OEM in the US
In the middle of seemingly stalling profits and a general slowdown of the smartphone industry — like Apple‘s notable first quarter of YoY growth drop in years — Samsung seems to be enjoying a moment of sunshine bathing.
Eleven months after losing the leadership to the Cupertino giant, the Korean manufacturer has climbed once again to the top of the US vendors’ list, as per a Counterpoint Research report (via Business Korea)…
Report: Apple reaches $2.6 billion agreement for Samsung to supply OLED panels starting in 2017
According to a new report from the Korean Herald, Samsung and Apple have reached a deal in which Samsung will supply around 100 million OLED display units to Apple beginning in 2017. The report comes as several other sources have stated that Apple plans to make the switch to OLED panels beginning next year.
iPhone and Samsung Gear S2 support draws closer as iOS app leaks
We’ve previously reported that the Samsung Gear S2 would be gaining support for iOS later this year, and it looks like that support is coming soon. A member of the XDA-Developers forums has shared a link to a potentially early version of a Samsung Gear S2 specific app that would allows iOS to pair with the device. While the app appears to be in the early stages (indications of the app’s creation dates back to March 2nd), it could potentially show us what the final app will look like.
Based on discussions in the forum, users looking to attempt the pair the devices may have to restore their S2 to factory settings before having it pair with the leaked iOS application. This may require having another Android device on hand, but the results seem to be mixed at this point. Some forum members are also indicating that they are able to receive notifications pushed from iOS, but have no way to reply.
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- Image Credit: matchev from xda-developers forums
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- Image Credit: matchev from xda-developers forums
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- Image Credit: matchev from xda-developers forums
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- Image Credit: rino76 from xda-developers forums
The Samsung Gear S2 Lite iOS application can be installed through iTunes, or by side-loading through Xcode. Before launching the application, a Samsung specific enterprise profile must be accepted through settings. We cannot stress this enough, installing applications from unverified sources is not guaranteed safe. Proceed with extreme caution.
The Samsung Gear S2 is available refurbished from Best Buy for $159.99, or new from Amazon at $249.
9.7-inch iPad Pro teardown finds Samsung RAM, smaller battery, and same low repairability
It’s been a year and a half since iFixit tore into the flagship 9.7-inch tablet from Apple, and now it’s finally time to look inside the smaller iPad Pro and see what it’s really made of. What you’ll find is your typical mix of components from Samsung, Bosch Sensortec, NXP Semiconductors, and others, plus a whole lot of battery. Cutting to the chase, iFixit rates the smaller iPad Pro’s repairability at a low 2 out of 10, which is the same as the iPad Air 2 it replaces but one point below what it rated the 12.9-inch iPad Pro last year. Here’s what’s inside the 9.7-inch iPad Pro and why iFixit says it’s not so repairable…
Foxconn’s acquisition of Sharp likely to reduce Apple’s dependence on Samsung
Foxconn’s acquisition of Japanese display-maker Sharp looks likely to help Apple reduce its dependence on Samsung as it prepares for a transition from LCD to OLED displays.
The WSJ notes that Samsung currently makes 95% of the world’s OLED displays, and that Apple always aims to have multiple sources of components to reduce risk and strengthen its negotiating position.
While Sharp doesn’t currently make OLED screens, it will almost certainly start doing so under Foxconn’s ownership.
Sharp can springboard off its existing technology to develop the screens, says Alberto Moel, a technology analyst for Bernstein Research. The two types use the same backbone, but OLED screens are topped with a layer of organic compounds instead of the liquid crystal layer for LCDs. “The first part of the production process is similar,” he said.
Foxconn has long been seeking to expand its role in iPhone production from low-margin assembly work into the more profitable component business.
Apple currently used OLED displays only in the Apple Watch, but is widely expected to switch to the newer display technology in the iPhone in either 2017 or 2018. While Samsung looks set to be Apple’s lead supplier, that’s something the iPhone maker will want to change over time.
Apple claims reversal of $120M jury verdict in Samsung patent case violated the U.S. Constitution
The endless patent battles between Apple and Samsung took an interesting turn this week when Apple claimed that the most recent court ruling violated the Seventh Amendment of the U.S. Constitution: the right to trial by jury.
Back in 2014, Apple was awarded $119.6M when Samsung was found to have violated three of the five patents in dispute. That award was overturned last month when an appeals court ruled that Samsung didn’t infringe one of the three patents, and declared the other two invalid.
The problem, explains Reuters, is that the appellate court didn’t just refer to the trial court record in reaching its conclusions, it also considered new evidence …