Samsung

864 'Samsung' stories September 2010 - July 2012

Samsung Chief Product Officer talks patent wars and rectangles

Jake Smith Jul 30 2012 - 3:15 pm PT

After execs from both companies could not come to terms in an attempt to settle, both Samsung and Apple take the stand in a San José, Calif., court room this week. Apple and Samsung will face off for allegedly stealing each other’s patents. Apple also claims that Samsung’s Galaxy devices “slavishly” copied its beloved iPhone and iPad. The same type of trial already played out in many countries across the pond. It will be interesting to see where this all goes, especially after the injunctions against Samsung’s products we have already seen.

Samsung Chief Product Officer Kevin Packingham recently sat down with the folks at Wired to answer a few questions on the recent legal matters, shedding more light on Samsung’s view of the whole legal fiasco. First off, Packingham answers a question regarding the separation between Samsung’s component business that supplies necessary parts to Apple and the product team that Apple thinks is a bunch of copycats. Packingham answered: “There are times when I’m absolutely appalled that we sell what I consider to be the most innovative, most secret parts of the sauce of our products to some other manufacturer — HTC, LG, Apple, anybody…But you know, we also use Qualcomm components, and we source from other component manufacturers as well.”

Apple, of course, gets a ton of parts from Samsung, and it even partnered with Samsung on a factory in Texas to make A4 and A5 chips for the iPhones and iPads.

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Amusing tweets from the Apple vs. Samsung Trial: Google and Apple employees not yet vetted

9to5 Staff Jul 30 2012 - 10:46 am PT

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With Apple and Google having such a large presence in the Bay area, there is bound to be some ties to the companies represented on the jury…but both Apple and Google employees have made it to the Jury selection process. Imagine having to write the request to the HR department on this (Thanks, Dan Levine):

[tweet https://twitter.com/9to5mac/status/229997136362754048]

[tweet https://twitter.com/inafried/status/230000222753923074]

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[tweet https://twitter.com/inafried/status/229997431763369984]

Apple gets preliminary injunction on Samsung’s Galaxy Nexus smartphone, effective with $96 million bond(9to5mac.com)

Samsung objects to ‘gratuitous’ images of Steve Jobs in trial, prefers thermonuclear quotes instead

Élyse Betters Jul 30 2012 - 8:00 am PT

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Samsung vehemently objected to pictures of Steve Jobs in Apple’s opening slides for today’s massive trial, but U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh struck down the objections over the weekend.

The South Korea-based smartphone manufacturer claimed the “gratuitous images have no evidentiary value,” as it filed 14 objections to Apple’s opening slides.

The company further noted, as FOSS Patents reported, if Apple is given permission to use these slides, Samsung will “request that the Court allow it to use the quotes from Mr. Jobs — which do have nonprejudicial evidentiary value — and yet were excluded by the Court’s ruling on Apple’s Motion in Limine No. 7.”

In other words, Samsung wants to use the “thermonuclear war” quotes from Walter Isaacson’s “Steve Jobs biography” if Apple can use images of the company’s late founder. The contentious quotes from the biography were previously deemed hearsay and inadmissible in this litigation.

According to FOSS Patents, Apple explained the use of the pitcures in its responsive filing:

Three of the images are “from a joint exhibit – 1091 (the MacWorld 2007 video), which Samsung itself relies on in its opening demonstratives (at Samsung slide no. 148)”, so “Samsung cannot complain about Apple’s use of the same video” that shows “the public introduction of the iPhone on January 7, 2007, which launched the fame that the iPhone trade dress has acquired”. Also, “[b]ecause they demonstrate Apple’s notice of the 200+ patents covering the iPhone — including the asserted patents, they thus are relevant to willfulness”.

Another slide refers to an exhibition relating to Steve Jobs’s patents, which was organized by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. “Among the highlighted patents at the PTO exhibit are at least two patents at issue in this litigation — the D’677 and D’889” — and Apple argues that “[t]he Patent Office exhibit demonstrates praise by others to rebut non-obviousness”.

The fifth image of Steve Jobs in the presentation is “a screenshot from the announcement of the iPad in July 2010” and, therefore, “relevant to the introduction of the iPad and its acquisition of fame and secondary meaning”, Apple says.

Judge Koh overruled Samsung’s objections on Sunday and said the images are “relevant to Apple’s iPhone design patent and trade dress claims and is not unduly prejudicial.”

Get the full report at FOSS Patents.

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2005 Purple iPhone design could thwart Samsung’s assertion that Apple copied Sony

Seth Weintraub Jul 30 2012 - 5:37 am PT

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We hope you are not sick of early iPhone prototypes just yet, because the monster Apple vs. Samsung trial is kicking off today and another prototype has hit the docket. This time, Apple is releasing images of its “purple” iPhone design from 2005. It actually has some, if not most, of the design elements of the iPhone 4 design, which Samsung accused Apple of lifting from Sony. This one, again, is labeled “iPod”.

The chronological progression below is also posted in the filing (PDF) [via The Verge]:

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Obama’s campaign dropping 72 percent more than Romney’s on Apple products

Élyse Betters Jul 27 2012 - 12:15 pm PT

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U.S. President Barack Obama’s campaign spent over one-third of a million dollars on Apple products since the election began in 2011.

Obama for America forked over $353,000, according to official expenditure reports filed with the Federal Election Commission, and Dow Jones’ Joseph Walker promptly noted that amount could snag 1,780 new iPhones or 176 new MacBook Airs.

Romney’s campaign spent just $99,000 on Apple products during the same period.

Walker further correlated the campaign spending to donor contributions:

Overall, the tech community seems to be firmly in favor of re-electing Obama when it comes to opening up their wallets, according to contributor filings. Obama has raised $950,000 from the Big Five tech giants, compared to Romney’s $123,040. Apple employees seem to favor President Obama by a margin of 15 to 1. Campaign contributions from donors identifying themselves as Apple employees total $121,305, compared to the $8,175 donated to Romney.

Get the full report at FINS Technology.

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IDC: Samsung ships twice as many phones as Apple in Q2

Élyse Betters Jul 27 2012 - 11:15 am PT

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The IDC’s latest numbers mirror yesterday’s figures from Juniper Research.

One of the report’s main headliners is that phones are shipping faster than in previous years. About 406 million units shipped in Q2 2012—up from 401.8 million units in Q2 2011. Smartphone shipments also eyed a large year-over-year increase with a 42 percent gain.

The other big news bit concerns Samsung and Apple. The tech giants doubled their combined market share in just two years. Samsung, in particular, hit a new quarterly record after shipping 50 million phones in Q2, where as Apple shipped half as many iPhones during the same time. The Cupertino, Calif.-based Company suffered a quarter-over-quarter decline just six months after its latest iPhone unveiling.

IDC explained the widening gap:

Samsung extended its lead over Apple during the second quarter, taking advantage of Apple’s release schedule and launching its flagship Galaxy S III. In addition, Samsung experienced continued success of its smartphone/tablet hybrid device, the Galaxy Note. As a result, Samsung topped the 50 million unit mark and reached a new quarterly smartphone shipment record in a single quarter. What remains to be seen is how the company’s smartphones will fare against Apple’s next-generation iPhone expected later this year.

Apple posted an expected sequential decline last quarter, similar to years past. The quarter-over-quarter shipment decline came six months after it unveiled its latest iPhone. The decline is not unusual as iPhone shipment volume is highest in the first two quarters after its release. The company’s once-a-year release cycle usually results in two quarters of lower volumes leading up to the next-generation model introduction. Nonetheless, Apple made significant inroads into new markets and segments, including smaller regional carriers and prepaid service providers.

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Several old iPhone and iPad prototype designs surface: take a look at the iOS devices that could have been

Jul 26 2012 - 3:01 pm PT

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[slideshow]

The Verge has tracked down several images of old iPhone and iPad prototype designs from Apple the vs. Samsung trial case filings. Buzzfeed got their hands on a few more. Notably, many of these designs are codenamed N90, so what you’re mainly looking at are design considerations for the 2010 iPhone 4, the Apple device codenamed N90. Many of them are ugly and will hurt your eyes. Check out the entire gallery after the break or over at the Verge and Buzzfeed.

Besides iPhone prototypes, Apple was toying with an iPad design that featured an HTC Evo-like Kickstand. Given the above and below, we’re pretty happy with the decisions Apple made on these. Many, many more pictures below:

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Apple makes as much profit on one iPhone as it does on two iPads

Seth Weintraub Jul 26 2012 - 1:55 pm PT

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A quick Reuters report on an unsealed document in the Apple-Samsung trial reveals that iPhones are much more of a profit driver for Apple than its iPads. To the tune of double (!) per unit.

Apple Inc earned gross margins of 49 to 58 percent for U.S. iPhone sales between April 2010 and the end of March 2012…Apple had gross margins of 23 to 32 percent on U.S. iPad sales, the filing said.

That means Apple makes as much money on one iPhone as it does on two iPads (considering they cost roughly the same amount).

Who likes phone subsidies? Apple likes phone subsidies!

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Samsung says Apple stole iPhone design from Sony

Jordan Kahn Jul 26 2012 - 12:15 pm PT

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With Apple and Samsung’s jury trial slated to kick off in a federal district court in San Jose, Calif., this Monday, AllThingsD points us to trial briefs where Samsung’s lawyers argued Apple’s inspiration for the original iPhone CAD drawings and designs were inspired by a Sony product:

Right after this article was circulated internally, Apple industrial designer Shin Nishibori was directed to prepare a “Sony-like” design for an Apple phone and then had CAD drawings and a three-dimensional model prepared. Confirming the origin of the design, these internal Apple CAD drawings prepared at Mr. Nishibori‘s direction even had the “Sony” name prominently emblazoned on the phone design, as the below images from Apple‘s internal documents show..

Soon afterward, on March 8, 2006, Apple designer Richard Howarth reported that, in contrast to another internal design that was then under consideration, Mr. Nishibori‘s “Sony-style” design enabled “a much smaller-looking product with a much nicer shape to have next to your ear and in your pocket” and had greater “size and shape/comfort benefits.” As Mr. Nishibori has confirmed in deposition testimony, this “Sony-style” design he prepared changed the course of the project that yielded the final iPhone design.

The article referenced above is from a 2006 interview with Sony designers that appeared in Businessweek.

Apple granted stay on posting Samsung ads on its site and newspapers

Élyse Betters Jul 26 2012 - 10:07 am PT

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9to5Mac reported earlier this month that a U.K. Judge ruled Apple must publicly state Samsung did not copy the iPad design, but a London court ordered a stay today until the company’s appeal is heard this fall.

According to Bloomberg:

Apple Inc. won’t immediately have to publish a notice on its U.K. website that Samsung Electronics Co. didn’t copy its iPad tablet, a London court ruled today.
Apple was ordered earlier this month to put a note on its U.K. site and buy advertisements in British newspapers to alert customers to a court ruling that Samsung hadn’t copied the iPad’s design. Cupertino, California-based Apple appealed saying it didn’t want to advertise for its rival. The order is stayed until its appeal against the ruling is heard in October.

Apple’s public statements, if the appeal is rejected, will appear as a message on its website and in British newspapers.

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IHS iSuppli: Apple buying chips at a faster rate, will remain top OEM semiconductor buyer in 2012-2013

Jordan Kahn Jul 26 2012 - 6:44 am PT

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In a post on iSuppli citing the IHS iSuppli OEM Semiconductor Spend Analysis report, the research firm broke down Apple’s continued lead among top OEM semiconductor buyers, noting Apple is buying at a faster rate and “dramatically outperforming” No.2 purchaser Samsung. The research expects Apple to increase its spending on semiconductors to $28 billion this year from $24 billion in 2011, and also made the case for Apple’s continued growth in 2013. Apple will experience the fastest growth among the top 10 with the company “set to increase its chip buying at a rate nearly three times faster than the next-fastest-rising purchaser.”

Apple this year is expected to buy nearly $28 billion worth of semiconductors, up 15 percent from $24 billion in 2011, according to an IHS iSuppli OEM Semiconductor Spend Analysis report from information and analytics provider IHS (NYSE: IHS). This means that Apple will dramatically outperform the No. 2 purchaser, Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., allowing it to remain the world’s top OEM semiconductor buyer—a position it has held since 2010… Apple is set to expand its lead in global chip purchasing in 2013, with growth of 12.3 percent once again leading the Top 10 OEM semiconductor purchasers.

Senior analyst for semiconductor spending and design activity at IHS Myson Robles-Bruce explained the benefit of Apple’s dominance in the supply chain:

“It’s well known that Apple has already conquered the smartphone and tablet segments—but behind the scenes the company is engaging in another kind of conquest: the dominance of the electronics supply chain,” said Myson Robles-Bruce, senior analyst for semiconductor spending and design activity at IHS. “Such a dominant position provides critical benefits, allowing one to dictate semiconductor pricing, control product roadmaps and obtain guaranteed supply and delivery. For Apple, these benefits translate into competitive advantages, letting it offer more advanced products at lower prices, faster and more reliably than the competition.”

Next-gen iPhone cases come rolling in [Gallery]

Jul 18 2012 - 5:44 am PT

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Tvc-mall.com (via CydiaBlog) has some “iPhone 5” cases for sale (at just $1.58 each!) that seem to align with the many, many, many, many next generation iPhone body part leaks. One thing to remember: Just because a case maker is producing cases, does not mean the next generation iPhone will fit into it.

As you can see, the cases are longer to accommodate the larger 4-inch display and have a smaller dock connector hole at the bottom. The speaker holes are bigger with the addition of the headphone jack rumored to be moving down south.

If you are one of the 65 percent of smartphone owners who are already signed up for the next iPhone, are you buying a case for it yet?

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Judge rejects bids to block live-streaming TV service Aereo

Élyse Betters Jul 12 2012 - 7:09 am PT

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DR8lLt3gFZ8&feature=player_embedded]

Aereo—the service that streams over-the-air local TV to any Mac, iOS device, or PC running Safari for $12 per month—just got a second chance at survival. According to The New York Times, a U.S. federal judge on Wednesday rejected a temporary injunction spurred by television broadcasters, saying a ruling for the broadcasters would have shut down Aereo.

Reuters reported that Walt Disney Co., Comcast Corp., News Corp., Univision Communications Inc., and the Public Broadcasting Service tried to stop Aereo with the injunction, claiming they would “lose their right to retransmission fees from cable and other companies that rebroadcast their programming, and also lose critical advertising revenue”:

U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan said on Wednesday that while the broadcasters demonstrated they faced irreparable financial damage if were the venture were allowed to continue, Aereo also showed it would face severe harm if the requested preliminary injunction were granted.

‘First and foremost, the evidence establishes that an injunction may quickly mean the end of Aereo as a business,’ the Manhattan judge wrote in a 52-page opinion.

The New York Times quoted Aereo’s Barry Diller, who noted a trial still lies ahead for his company, but he is now “far happier to begin this process with the judge’s ruling.” One of the plaintiffs, CBS, told the publication it would continue to seek damages and a permanent injunction: “This is only a ruling on a preliminary injunction. This case is not over by a long shot.”

9to5Mac reviewed Aereo in March and found its broadcast TV-like experience encouraging and well worth a test-drive:

Overall, Aereo’s HTML5 user-interface is the most impressive on the Mac platform. Its ease of browsing, watching, and recording local TV through Safari is a unique take during an age that offers countless ways of viewing cable without an actual television. The main takeaway with Aereo is that it works best on the Mac and the iPad, video quality is identical to what one would see on a HDTV, and the DVR function is extremely handy.

[…] For many people, its DVR functionality alone is worth the $12 monthly fee. For others, the admission price might be too hefty when compared to cheaper services that also offer cable programming and better streaming.

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UK Judge rules against Apple in Samsung patent case, claims Galaxy Tabs ‘are not as cool’

Jordan Kahn Jul 9 2012 - 5:56 am PT

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Reports from last week noted that Samsung’s attempt to lift Apple’s preliminary injunction placed on the Galaxy Tab 10.1 in the United States was rejected by District Judge Lucy Koh. Today, in Apple’s ongoing patent cases with Samsung in the United Kingdom, Bloomberg reported Judge Colin Birss ruled against Apple, claiming Sammy’s Galaxy Tabs “are not as cool.” It is hard to imagine Apple losing in any more of a complimentary way, as Judge Birss claimed his decision was based partly on the fact Galaxy tablets “do not have the same understated and extreme simplicity” as iPad.

The Galaxy tablet doesn’t infringe Apple’s registered design, Judge Colin Birss said in a ruling today in London. He said that consumers weren’t likely to get the two tablet computers mixed up.

The Galaxy tablets “do not have the same understated and extreme simplicity which is possessed by the Apple design,” Birss said. “They are not as cool.”

The company provided a full email statement regarding today’s decision (via Pocket-lint). Samsung explained the court referred to roughly 50 pieces of prior art when dismissing Apple’s case:

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Apple posts $2.6M bond to begin preliminary injunction on Galaxy Tab 10.1

Jordan Kahn Jun 28 2012 - 7:25 am PT

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There were reports earlier this week that District Judge Lucy Koh issued a preliminary injunction on the Galaxy Tab 10.1 in the United States related to the ongoing cases between Apple and Samsung. At the time, reports claimed the ruling would kick in once Apple posted a $2.6 million bond. Today, FossPatents reported that Apple has since done so, allowing the preliminary injunction to formally take effect:

Apple didn’t hesitate to post its $2.6 million bond to protect Samsung against the possibility of a successful appeal, in which case the preliminary injunction would be found to have been improperly granted… the injunction has taken effect and Samsung must abide by it. Otherwise Apple could ask the court to sanction Samsung for contempt.

With Apple pulling $39.2 billion in revenue last quarter, we know it takes only a matter of minutes to make that $2.6 million, which is meant to protect Samsung from damages in case the injunction is found to be wrongly issued. On Tuesday, Judge Koh made a statement following her ruling that Samsung “does not have a right to compete unfairly, by flooding the market with infringing products.” FossPatents continued by giving its outlook for the trial set to take place this summer:

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Five years after launch: Apple sold 250M iPhones, accounting for $150B in revenue

Jordan Kahn Jun 27 2012 - 6:00 am PT

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According to a report from research firm Strategy Analytics, covering its Global Handset Shipments Forecast for Q2 2012, the company provided insight about the number of iPhones Apple has sold since the device’s launch five years ago on June 29, 2007. The report estimated that Apple sold 250 million iPhones, which accounts for $150 billion in revenue:

“The iPhone portfolio has become a huge generator of cash and profit for Apple. A quarter of a billion iPhones have been shipped cumulatively worldwide in the first five years since launch and Apple reaches its fifth birthday at the top of its game. However, there are emerging signs that the iPhone’s next five years could get tougher. Some mobile operators are becoming concerned about the high level of subsidies they spend on the iPhone, while Samsung is expanding its popular Galaxy portfolio and providing Apple with more credible competition.”

At its Q2 earnings report, Apple announced it sold 35.1 million iPhones during the last quarter, with 365 million iOS device sales to date.

(via The Globe and Mail)

Samsung opens ‘Easy Phone Sync’ app to help iOS users move to Galaxy products

Élyse Betters Jun 22 2012 - 9:47 am PT

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Samsung wants you.

The South Korea-based Company is making it easier than ever to jump ship from iOS to its Galaxy line with the Easy Phone Sync app. The software is free to anyone purchasing a Samsung Galaxy device, and it quickly installs on any Galaxy product, PC, or Mac.

In the most straightforward manner, it transfers media, contacts, content—and all that other stuff packed into handhelds—from iTunes to an Android-powered tablet or phone by Samsung. Users can also manage their content through iTunes to maintain preferences during the sync process.

For more information on Samsung’s plan to pilfer iPhone users from Apple, check out its newest marketing strategy that 9to5Google detailed earlier this week.

The press release is below.

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Foxconn CEO Terry Gou: iPhone 5 will put Samsung’s Galaxy S III to shame

Jordan Kahn Jun 20 2012 - 1:19 pm PT

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According to several local reports, Foxconn’s Terry Gou made some pretty bold statements at Hon Hai Precision’s annual meeting of shareholders on Monday. While there are a few translations, all seem to claim Gou urged customers to wait for the iPhone 5, “saying that the new model will put Samsung’s Galaxy III to shame.” A report from Focus Taiwan quoted China Times:

Gou said he has made it a lifetime goal to defeat Samsung — “a company with a track record of snitching on its competitors.”… He was referring to Samsung’s action in 2010 of snitching on four Taiwanese companies in an investigation by the European Commission on price-fixing in the flat panel industry…Samsung was exempted from the investigation by serving as a “tainted witness.” … Gou also urged consumers to wait for the launch of Apple’s iPhone 5, saying that the new model will put Samsung’s Galaxy III to shame.

Gou also apparently claimed that Foxconn’s Sakai plant “has an exclusive agreement with Corning Inc., an American manufacturer of glass, on large panel supply,” and his “competitors will not be able to secure any such material if they wished to.” We are going to wait to see if Foxconn issues a statement regarding these quotes, because we know a couple of stories in recent months misquoted Gou…
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Apple in court: Apple vs Motorola, Samsung wins damages, Kodak sues

Jordan Kahn Jun 20 2012 - 8:12 am PT

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There are several reports today on Apple’s ongoing court cases with Samsung and Motorola. First, we have the latest on the United States case between Apple and Google’s Motorola Mobility with Reuters reporting on a “crucial hearing” scheduled for today:

Federal Judge Richard Posner in Chicago will hear Apple argue why it should be able to seek an order barring the sale of some Motorola phones. Posner’s decision could affect the iPhone maker’s ability to negotiate favorable licensing agreements in its legal fights against Motorola and other competitors like Samsung Electronics Co Ltd… last week Posner granted Apple’s request for a hearing on a possible injunction, and ordered both sides to submit legal arguments in advance. Those documents were filed under seal on Monday.

The last time we reported on this Apple/Samsung Galaxy case in the U.S., Apple was forced to request a separate hearing for a ban on the Galaxy S III. A trial date for Apple’s previous injunction requests for the Galaxy line is set for July 30. In its patent disputes with the company in Europe, Reuters reported today that a Dutch court in The Hague ruled Apple would have to pay damages for violating a Samsung patent with pre-iPhone 4S devices:

A court in The Hague ruled Apple had violated a Samsung patent used in some of Apple’s phones and tablet computers to connect to the Internet, and said damages should be based on certain iPhone and iPad sales in the Netherlands… Damages should be based on Dutch sales figures since August 4, 2010, which the court said was the date when Apple could have known it was violating Samsung’s patent.

FossPatents weighed in:

…there’s no question that Apple is ready, willing and able to pay a FRAND royalty rate. It just didn’t want Samsung to win an injunction, or pay an excessive rate. Court documents say that Apple asked Samsung half a dozen times (!) to quote a FRAND rate before the 2.4% demand, which the court considered outrageous, was made… Considering the parameters and circumstances I just described, Samsung will be lucky to even recover its attorneys’ fees with this. The dispute will continue.

In other Apple court news, bankrupt Kodak is suing the company this week for wrongly claiming ownership of 10 patents and “interfering with plans to sell a large patent portfolio.” Reuters explained:

In a lawsuit filed on Monday in U.S. bankruptcy court in Manhattan, Kodak said Apple, the largest U.S. company by market value, wrongly claims to own 10 patents arising from work that the companies did together in the early 1990s… Kodak said Apple is the largest infringer of patents in that portfolio, and also a potential purchaser of those patents… “Apple’s strategy has been to use its substantial cash position to delay as long as possible the payment of royalties to Kodak” and interfere with the sale, Kodak said.

Apple won’t stop June 21 Galaxy S III launch

Jordan Kahn Jun 13 2012 - 8:34 am PT

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When we checked in last Friday on the ongoing Apple vs. Samsung cases in the United States, Apple’s lawyers were threatening Samsung with a temporary restraining order on the Galaxy S III to stop sales of the device before its June 21 release date. Apple was hoping Judge Lucy Koh would add the Galaxy S III to existing preliminary injunction requests that Apple previously made on other Galaxy products. However, according to a report from Reuters, Judge Koh ruled this week that Apple’s requests would “overload her calendar” given a July 30 trial date in the previous Galaxy cases is already set.

Apple can still request a ban on the Galaxy S III with a separate hearing date, but it likely will not be able to do so in enough time to block the device from launching later this month:

U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, California, effectively dashed Apple’s hopes of stopping the launch of Samsung Electronics Co Ltd’s new Galaxy S III smartphone, which also runs on Android. Koh had said Apple’s push to get a court order blocking the June 21 launch would overload her calendar… Koh last week said Apple could ask for a temporary restraining order against the Galaxy S III phone, but that would likely delay the trial over a Galaxy tablet and other smartphones. In her order on Monday, the judge said Apple would have to request a new hearing date if it wanted to stop sales of the Galaxy S III phone. That likely would not take place before the phone’s scheduled launch. Apple has not said what its next move will be.

Apple’s lawyers threaten Samsung with temporary restraining order to stop Galaxy S III sales (9to5mac.com)

Benchmarks for SSDs and USB 3.0 performance in new MacBooks

Jordan Kahn Jun 11 2012 - 11:02 pm PT

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Even before Apple’s unveiling of the all-new Retina MacBook Pros, refreshed previous-generation MacBook Pros, and MacBook Air lineups today, we knew most of Apple’s new Macs would receive performance improvements courtesy of new SSDs and USB 3.0. We are now getting our first look at benchmark data for the two new features—thanks to a Retina MacBook review unit benchmarked by AnandTech.

As for SSDs, we told you before that the new MacBook family would probably receive Samsung’s speedy 830 series. AnandTech’s report seems to narrow down the 830 series as the most likely scenario noting his review unit appears to be running a Samsung drive approaching read speed of 500MB/s, and writes close to 400MB/s:

The same updated SSD is present across all of Apple’s lineup: from the MacBook Air to the next-gen MacBook Pro. Based on the model number in Apple’s System Report I’d guess my review sample features a Samsung based drive… I ran a few tests using Quick Bench to validate Apple’s claims. In general it looks like read speed approaches 500MB/s, while sequential writes are closer to 400MB/s

When it comes to initial benchmarks for USB 3.0 performance, the chart to the right speaks for itself by showing a remarkable jump in performance over USB 2.0 on the early 2011 MacBook Pro:

USB 3.0 performance is much improved over the previous generation MacBook Pro. I used an Apricorn SATA to USB 3.0 adapter to measure copy time to/from a 512GB OCZ Vertex 4 SSD. The performance gap between USB 2.0 and 3.0 is nothing short of significant.

Apple’s lawyers threaten Samsung with temporary restraining order to stop Galaxy S III sales

Jordan Kahn Jun 8 2012 - 7:11 am PT

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Last time we checked in on the ongoing U.S. patent-related court cases between Apple and Samsung, Apple’s lawyers were requesting to add the Galaxy S III to its previous motion for a preliminary injunction against the Galaxy Nexus line of products from February.

Apple was hoping the courts would agree to withhold sales of the S III until a ruling on the preliminary injunction was made. Samsung recommended the judge dismiss Apple’s request and file a new motion, but Apple attorney Josh Krevitt threatened Samsung at a hearing on Thursday that Apple could file a temporary restraining order as early as today to stop sales of the S III before it launches June 21. Bloomberg reported:

Josh Krevitt, a lawyer for Cupertino, California-based Apple, told Koh he was considering filing a request for a temporary restraining order in the interest of blocking sales of the Galaxy S III before its scheduled release in the U.S. this month… Krevitt said a court order temporarily barring Galaxy S III sales in the U.S. will create “a mechanism to allow the court to decide this issue before the launch.”

First Samsung will have to prove in court today that the Galaxy S III includes a “different combination of features” from the Nexus in order to prevent Apple from adding the device to the previously requested preliminary injunction. According to Bloomberg, Samsung lawyer Bill Price claimed: “Apple’s urgency stems from its inability to “compete against the new features” of the Galaxy S III, and the company is trying to “prevent a phone from getting to the public that is better than Apple’s in many, many respects.”

Reuters noted that several Google attorneys attended Thursday’s hearing. If Apple files for a temporary restraining order, the scheduled July 30 trial date would likely be delayed. Apple is also trying its best to kill HTC.

Apple seeks US preliminary injunction against Samsung’s Galaxy S III (9to5google.com)

New Samsung CEO has strong relationship with Apple

Jordan Kahn Jun 7 2012 - 8:13 am PT

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Samsung officially appointed a new CEO today to replace Choi Gee-Sung, who will now take up a position as head of corporate strategy overseeing Samsung Group’s roughly 80 companies. Choi, who was CEO for over three decades, will be replaced by Kwon Oh-hyun, who Reuters explained is currently head of Samsung’s components business and has deep relationships with Apple. Samsung made a statement claiming there will be no major changes in the way the company operates, because Kwon will continue to run the components business that “became the sole supplier of the mobile processors” for iPhone and iPad under his leadership:

The South Korean group named Kwon Oh-hyun as its new CEO. Currently head of Samsung’s components business, which oversees chips and display, Kwon cemented Samsung’s position in memory chips, where it has almost 50 percent global market share, and expanded into non-memory, or logic chips, which now account for 40 percent of Samsung’s overall semiconductor revenue… Under Kwon, Samsung became the sole supplier of the mobile processors that power Apple’s iPhone and iPad – rival products to Samsung’s own Galaxy and Note. The 59-year-old former engineer, who studied electrical engineering at Seoul National University and Stanford, has also led a restructuring of Samsung’s LCD flat-screen business.

This article is cross-posted on 9to5Google.com

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Apple seeks US preliminary injunction against Samsung’s Galaxy S III

Élyse Betters Jun 6 2012 - 1:31 pm PT

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Apple put forward a second California litigation against South Korea-based Samsung earlier this week when it sought the court’s consent to add the Android-powered Galaxy S III smartphone to its motion for a preliminary injunction against the Galaxy Nexus.

According to FOSS Patents:

Apple made this move approximately 20 hours after I wrote about the Galaxy S III being “the obvious next target”. In my blog post I speculated that Apple might bring a preliminary injunction motion against it, possibly after awaiting tomorrow’s preliminary injunction hearing. Apple decided to forge ahead now. Apple is on the offensive against Android. Earlier this week it filed an ITC complaint requesting an immediate import ban of 29 allegedly-infringing HTC devices. There’s an important overlap: the “data tapping” patent that Apple is seeking to enforce against HTC’s current generation of products is one of two patents Apple is using against the S III.

Apple purchased the S III in the United Kingdom, where Samsung launched it on May 29. The U.S. launch date is June 21 — precisely two weeks after the preliminary injunction hearing.

Apple’s motion notes that “[a]ccording to press reports, Samsung has already sold over nine million preorders of the Galaxy S III; indeed, the Galaxy S III has been reported to be the most extensively preordered piece of consumer electronics in history.”

Apple filed the first preliminary injunction motion against the Galaxy Nexus in February over four disputed patents. The Cupertino, Calif.-based Company’s requested in its latest motion that Samsung withhold the launch of the device’s successor in the United States until the court rules on the preliminary injunction request.

Samsung replied to the motion this afternoon, contending Apple cannot continue to add to its record for the Galaxy Nexus:

“If Apple wishes to seek an injunction against the Galaxy S III, the Court should require Apple to file a new motion and allow the parties to develop a full factual record on all four factors. Accordingly, the Court should reject Apple’s motion to amend its current notice of motion for a preliminary injunction.”

This article is cross-posted at 9to5Google.

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