Microsoft’s consumer PC sales growth has pretty much never declined. Not even when Microsoft released Vista. Not even when the economy went in the toilet.
But suddenly, the growth of sales is about to go negative, says Citi analyst Walter Pritchard.
If Windows starts to decline in numbers, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer might actually be in trouble. If things weren’t bad enough, Microsoft also has to contend with a ChromeOS from Google and maybe even some ARM powered laptops from Apple. Expand Expanding Close
With Apple’s purchase of two mapping companies over the last couple of years – Poly9 and Placebase – many have speculated that iOS 5 will finally be the iOS release where Apple moves from a Google Maps backend to an Apple backend. Multiple job postings on Apple’s official site backed up this speculation and even Apple promised some under-the-hood maps tweeks for their next-generation iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch operating system.
Now, sources have told 9to5Google that although Apple is working to improve the iOS Maps application, iOS 5 will not bring an Apple developed maps service and Google Maps is still in. Besides Apple’s purchase of both Placebase and Poly9, some speculated that Apple is building their own maps service to either compete with Google or step away from their input into iOS.
Apple began the process of distancing themselves from Google when former Google CEO Eric Schmidt resigned over “conflict of interest.” Apple has also added Microsoft’s Bing as a Safari search option and will be competing with Google head-to-head with their upcoming cloud-based music service. Those who enjoy Google Maps should not fear iOS 5, though, and hopefully Apple is working to implement turn-by-turn directions or something else to improve their maps application without changing the backend.
Businessweek helps to paint the picture of what Apple’s cloud music service may look like:
Apple’s music service, which Engadget and other tech blogs are already calling iCloud, might well represent the future of recorded music. Armed with licenses from the music labels and publishers, Apple will be able to scan customers’ digital music libraries in iTunes and quickly mirror their collections on its own servers, say three people briefed on the talks. If the sound quality of a particular song on a user’s hard drive isn’t good enough, Apple will be able to replace it with a higher-quality version. Users of the service will then be able to stream, whenever they want, their songs and albums directly to PCs, iPhones, iPads, and perhaps one day even cars. And the music industry gets a chance at the next best thing after selling shrink-wrapped CDs: monthly subscription fees, à la Netflix and the cable companies. “We will come to a point in the not-so-distant future when we’ll look back on the 99¢ download as anachronistic as cassette tapes or 8-tracks,” says Ross Crupnick, a music analyst at NPD Group.
Perhaps most interesting in all of this is that the Music Labels have been whining and moaning about how Apple dominates digital music and they have no control over anything including pricing. And now they are giving Apple another huge lead on their competitors with this service which many believe will be unveiled at WWDC next month. Fool me once, shame on you….? Expand Expanding Close
Besides the extremely unfortunate loss of life, Bloomberg posts a dire scenario on iPad production laid out by IHS iSuppli this evening:
The drop in manufacturing will depend on how long the plant is closed following a May 20 explosion that killed three people and injured at least 15, according to ISuppli. The total could be even greater if the suspension of operations at the facility lasts longer than a month, the firm said.
Another Foxconn factory in Shenzhen that produces iPads may not be able to make up for the lost output, ISuppli said. The manufacturing breakdown may lead Apple to miss ISuppli’s forecast of 7.4 million iPad 2 shipments in the quarter ending in June, the El Segundo, California-based research firm said.
Not all analysts are as down with Apple Bull Shaw Wu saying there may not be cause to worry. He said in a report today that the concerns are “overdone” and that production at other facilities is being ramped up to make up for the shortfalls. He expects Apple to sell 6.8 million iPads in the June quarter.
We were expecting a MacBook Air-like device. It turns out Dell’s new product, dubbed “Thinnest 15-inch PC on the planet” isn’t thinner than the 15-inch MacBook Pro I gave up a year ago for an Air. That’s the same one that came out with the Unibody manufacturing process in October 2008.
Dell’s 15-inch XPS 15z is .97 inches thick compared to the MacBook PRo’s .95 inches. It does weigh in at slightly less than the MacBook Pro (which is due for an update soon as well).
All of that being said, the XPS 15Z looks like a solid, loaded Sandy Bridge package for just $1000 – except the Windows OS of course. Imagery and video below: Expand Expanding Close
According to the WSJ, Foxconn has suspended production across many of its plants in China for two days while the government investigates the explosion that killed three people and injured many more.
Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., a Taiwan-based company better known by the trade name Foxconn that operates dozens of factories across China, said it closed all of its workshops that handle polishing for electronic parts and products pending further inspections.
At issue appears to be the flammable aluminum dust that comes from polishing parts like the iPad 2’s aluminum back. A student group out of Hong Kong called Sacom published a report on the dangers of flammable airborne aluminum dust in a report on May 6, saying workers complained about inhaling the dust and about poor ventilation. It isn’t clear whether the workshops referred to in Sacom’s report include the site of the accident.
The news is another setback for Foxconn, which is barely past a recent outbreak of public suicides.
Should the Chengdu production capacity not be restored anytime soon, Hon Hai may have to hire more expensive labor in Shenzhen, said Arthur Hsieh, an analyst at UBS.
While Foxconn has dominated the contract manufacturing industry until now, analysts say Hon Hai competitors like Singapore’s Flextronics Inc. and Taiwan’s Quanta Computer Inc. could try to woo some of its customers, including Apple.
Apple has finally made a public statement on the Lodsys matter. According to the Loop, Apple says that Lodsys has no claim to patent infringement because Apple has already purchased indemnity from Lodsys.
“Apple is undisputedly licensed to these patents and the App Makers are protected by that license,” wrote Bruce Sewell, Apple Senior Vice President and General Counsel.
While it is good to hear Apple finally come out with a statement on the matter, it doesn’t seem like the end of this case for everyone involved. Interestingly, we’ve been hearing that Apple is offering to help protect indy developers with representation against Lodsys.
In fact, it wouldn’t surprise me if Apple and Lodsys haven’t been negotiating behind the scenes for a long time now. Lodsys probably only went to indy developers when Apple decided it didn’t owe Lodsys any more money and negotiations broke off.
Full text of the email to Lodsys (via Macworld) below:
Although the previous generation iPod nano had curved glass (it wasn’t universally loved), the Samsung Nexus S was the first mainstream smartphone with curved glass. If Digitimes is right, the iPhone 5 may be the second (and likely more popular).
…the latest being circulated around the supply chain in Taiwan is that Apple is going to adopt a curved cover glass for its next generation model, according to industry sources.
That would seem to fly in the face of recent reports that the iPhone 5 would be very similar to the iPhone 4 in appearance. Digitimes has found what they think is anecdotal evidence.
However, in order to push forward the production of curved glass, Apple reportedly has purchased 200-300 glass cutting machines to be used by glass makers, said the sources.
The glass slicing machines are currently being stored at associated assembly plants and will be brought online once yield rates for the production of curved glass reaches a satisfactory level, the sources revealed.
Although Samsung is a competitor wrapped in lawsuits with Apple, it is also a major supplier and obviously has experience with curved glass screens. Expand Expanding Close
Bloomberg this evening reports that Apple and Sony have come to terms on a streaming music licensing deal, leaving the largest label, Universal, as the only one of the big four labels not to (yet) sign with Apple. Earlier this year and again this week, it was reported that EMI signed with Apple.
A licensing deal will allow Apple to more efficiently store music in the Cloud (it can store top songs only once rather than once for every user library that contains the song like Google). Apple could announce a product as early as WWDC or at a more traditional music event, like the one Apple usually introduces iPods at in the Fall.
Bloomberg also noted that Apple would need to reach agreements with music publishers, which control different rights than the labels. Expand Expanding Close
Logitech just announced three new products for iPad (OK Zagg’s been selling the Case for a few weeks already). We’re hoping to get some hands-on time with these products shortly. Until then check out the descriptions and the links below:
Created in collaboration with ZAGG®, the latest Logitech® Keyboard Case features the same sleek aluminum cover with military-grade, high-density padding as Logitech’s previously announced version. The protective case wraps around the iPad 2 to cover the screen and sides, and the Logitech Keyboard Case uses Bluetooth® connectivity to pair the keyboard quickly and easily. The new Logitech Keyboard Case incorporates a more intuitive keyboard layout and improved keystrokes for even more comfortable typing. It also adds a recess just behind the keyboard that props up an iPad 2 in portrait or landscape mode, virtually eliminating setup and packup time.
When you want to share your favorite music, the Logitech® Wireless Speaker is a great choice. It eliminates cables and lets you place your speaker wherever you want — up to 50 feet away from your iPad or Android tablet depending on use, settings and environmental conditions. And you’ll get rich, full stereo sound — even from across the room — with your speaker’s dual two-inch drivers and plenty of bass. A rechargeable battery powers your speaker for up to 10 hours depending on your use and settings—so you can take your music with you wherever you go. And setup couldn’t be easier. Just pair with your tablet using Bluetooth wireless, and you are ready to listen.
The Logitech® Tablet Keyboard, a keyboard-and-stand combo, comes in two versions, one for Android-based tablets and a second for iPads, and is designed to travel easily, set up quickly and add a touch of convenience to all the places you use your tablet. It pairs easily with your tablet over Bluetooth wireless, so you can use it on your desk, lap or anywhere within 30 feet of your tablet, depending on use, settings and environmental conditions.
They are all up for pre-order now and should start shipping in within a few weeks.
Toshiba Corp will spend about 100 billion yen ($1.19 billion) to build a factory for making small LCD panels, mainly to supply to Apple Inc’s iPhones, the Nikkei business daily said.The company’s wholly owned unit, Toshiba Mobile Display Co, will construct the facility in Ishikawa prefecture and the plant will churn out low-temperature polysilicon LCD panels, which allow for high-resolution images, the paper said.Work on the plant will start by early next year, with the production due to begin in the second half of 2011, Nikkei said.Toshiba Mobile Display already makes low-temperature polysilicon LCD panels at a facility in the prefecture and its monthly production capacity of 8.55 million units is projected to more than double with the new factory, the daily said. Apple will invest in a portion of the investment for the factory, the Nikkei said.
Displays for Mobile Phones and Portable Electronics: The mobile section of the booth will feature high-resolution LTPS displays, up to 367ppi (pixels per inch) resolution density, in sizes ranging from 3.3-inch to 4.0-inch with resolution formats ranging from Wide VGA (480 x 864) to HD (720 x 1280). In addition, these displays will demonstrate advanced technologies such as high-contrast (up to 1,500:1), high-color (up to 92% NTSC), and wide viewing angle (up to H/V 176º/176º). The displays are just a few representative examples of TMD’s broad line of thin and light displays for mobile smartphones and other portable electronic devices.
Of course, numerous reports have detailed a new iPhone with edge-to-edge 4-inch display panels.
OK, go ahead and start complaining about how Apple wouldn’t ever use a 720P display in an iOS device because of the application scaling stuff/additional fragmentation. We’ll be over here dreaming about a 720P iPhone. Expand Expanding Close
Just off the heels of rumors pointing to Apple repositioning the iPhone LED flash to the top-right side of the next-generation iPhone, purported iPhone 5 camera parts have appeared online. The above image shows the iPhone 5’s front-facing camera sensor in addition to the rear-camera sensor. The front-facing camera piece is re-designed, but we can’t tell any technical details, but the juicy information comes from the rear-facing camera…
Ugh. This is the kind of deal that you know is bound to fail in the long run. Skype is treading water, having just released a horrific Mac update to its chat software but building passable software on iOS as well as other platforms. Its major problem is that its innovation has slowed to a crawl since being picked up by eBay.
Which segues nicely to Microsoft, who is clumsily making purchases to cover its lack of innovation. Instead of building a VoIP service for its Windows Live Messenger, they are scooping up Skype’s huge user base of users for a lot of money -$7B if the WSJ is correct. Probably too much for a company that isn’t innovating and relying on old technology for its revenues. Speaking of Revenues, Skype’s plan is to start advertising in its chat window if its IPO prospectus is to be believed.
A Skype purchase will kill innovation (what’s left of it anyway) in the Skype product as it gets integrated with Windows Messenger/Live Communications probably long enough for Facebook and Google (and even Apple) to render it useless with their own VoIP products.
But, one thing will stay constant. Skype has always been behind on its Mac versions. Look for Microsoft to continue that trend as it is their sweet spot (see Office or anything really).
Best reactions from around the web:
“Microsoft buying Skype for over $7 billion isn’t the craziest thing I’ve heard, but it’s damn close.” Nilay Patel
“Everyone jump on Skype” is about to become “Everyone jump on Microsoft P2P VoIP client for Windows Live Communications 7 Home/Pro/Ult” :-/ – Rene Ritchie
So Microsoft is paying $7 billion to lose even more money online each quarter. Makes perfect sense. – MG Siegler
Two turds don’t make an Eagle – Vic Gundotra
Updated to $8.5B per Kara Swisher with an announce tomorrow.
The ‘not really endorsed by the labels but its ok because the Cloud is really just a hard drive partition that you own’ Cloud Drive service by Amazon is now working on iOS devices according to a report by TechCrunch/iFans today.
If you visit Amazon’s Cloud Player through the Safari web browser on an iOS device, you’ll see that it does in fact now work. You’ll first hit a warning page telling you that your browser is not supported, but just ignore that. Click into the music in your drive and it will begin playing. It works flawlessly — even to the point where if you get a Push Notification or incoming call, the music will be paused.
Amazon will probably announce the new compatibility at some point soon.
That’s all well and good but you know Apple is going to have a similar service, perhaps even endorsed by the record labels, ready by September at the very latest. Still, if you are already an Amazon music purchaser, this puts your Cloud collection on your iOS device.
Apple has long used the proxy of iTunes to push updates to its iOS devices: when a new software update is available, users need to plug their device in via USB, click update, and the new software version is downloaded and installed.
Smartphone competitors have long offered a different, more direct method for software updates that happens over-the-air. Specifically, when an update to Google’s Android operating system or HP/Palm’s webOS is released, users are provided an update notification and can update the software right on their phone. No computer required.
Now, Apple wants to provide the same convenience to their iPhone users and is preparing to provide over-the-air iOS updates, starting this fall.
Multiple sources (one as far back as March) say the new feature will debut in iOS 5, meaning iOS 5 will not come over-the-air but following point updates to it will. Just like tethering in iOS 3, Apple has the technology but cannot just unleash it everywhere. Apple and Verizon Wireless are said to have been in talks over these wireless software updates since early this year. Sources could not comment on whether or not Apple is negotiating similar deals with AT&T or international iPhone carriers.
The iOS-based AppleTV has been able to update itself without iTunes intervention so the hooks are obviously in iOS. Two things to note:
Updates are now over 600MB. Apple would have to make these smaller to get the carriers to agree to push these things as they are. We believe that Apple will make the updates much smaller by using incremental patches rather than full OS downloads
iTunes provides the backup to the iOS device so a failed update would need some sort of backup. We think there will be a Cloud-based backup system.
Obviously, if this is a feature in iOS 5, it should conceivably make its way to iPad and iPod touches as well. That means iTunes may no longer be a needed conduit for updating iOS devices in the future. It would also mean that the iPad could finally be a stand alone device.
According toTonyMacx86, the mid-2011 iMac lineup integrates the Intel BD82Z68 Platform Controller Hub. Indeed, iFixit’s teardown analysis confirms this. The Intel Z68 platform isn’t set for official release until May 11th so it looks like Intel is being really friendly with Apple again.
An interesting one from el Reg this evening. At today’s ESC conference, Apple cofounder Steve Wozniak dug into Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen who he chided for stifling innovation. Allen of course bought a patent engineering firm and is suing every technology out there for supposed patent violations.
“The other night Paul Allen was speaking at the Computer History Museum and I had four tickets. And I decided at the last minute not to go, because I remembered he’s suing all these companies like Apple and Google – but he’s not suing Microsoft – because he bought all these patents.”
From Wozniak’s point of view, Allen’s lawsuit will not help anyone except Allen and his lawyers. “Well heck,” he said, “Paul Allen should be out there investing in companies that are doing something, making products, actually making a new future for the world, and not ‘I’m … going to sue people, and get in bed with the lawyers to make my money.’ That’s not the right way.”
“It’s not really special what they come up with,.” he said, referring to patent-seeking teams of engineers. “But since you were a rich company, you can investigate [a technique] years before it’s going to be affordable for products. You could investigate it … and patent it, patent it, patent it.”
Woz then recalled that Apple had to pay RCA $5 or so for every one of the original Apple IIs for one such silly patent.
On the bigger picture, it is interesting how two number 2s could have turned out so diametrically opposed. Expand Expanding Close
A report relayed by EETimes today has Intel chasing after the next generation Apple AX chips contracts that will go into iOS devices.
”Based on a number of inputs, we believe Intel is also vying for Apple’s foundry business,” said Gus Richard, an analyst with Piper Jaffray & Co., in a new report.
”It makes strategic sense for both companies. The combination of Apple’s growing demand and market share in smart phones and tablets gives Intel a position in these markets and drives the logic volume Intel needs to stay ahead in manufacturing,” Richard said.
”Intel’s manufacturing lead gives Apple an additional competitive advantage in these markets and distances it from Asian competitors that are knocking off its products,” he said. ”Furthermore, it would also serve to weaken Samsung who is a significant competitive threat to both companies.”
Before the release of the A5, reports had been that apple was looking at TSMC for their chip foundry work. However, since the A5 was revealed to be the work of Samsung, who has manufactured all of Apple’s iOS device processors, TSMC was assumed to be on the back burner.
Since Apple is suing Samsung (and vice versa) Apple may be stepping up its attempts to get its AX processor line manufactured somewhere else.
Intel, however, isn’t in the foundry business. It designs and builds its own integrated processor architectures. Apple and Intel have had a pretty good relationship since the PowerPC handover over five years ago.
Apple’s carefully-worded Q&A on Location Data published in response to the location tracking PR fiasco has fell on deaf ears with US Congressmen and Senators. Representatives from both Apple and Google will testify at a Congressional hearing on May 10 to explain how they gather and use location data from users.
Meanwhile, carriers – who are required by law to track users – are taking notice of a new wind blowing through Senate on location privacy issues and are taking preemptive actions. So, what does Verizon Wireless – the nation’s greatest wireless operator that holds onto your location data and other info for seven years – plan to do?
Stickers, man! You read that right, the big red carrier plans to put location-tracking stickers on phones, like the one you see above provided as an illustration in Verizon’s letter to Senators Ed Markey and Joe Barton. It reads:
This device is capable of determining its (and your) physical, geographical location and can associate this location data with other customer information. To limit access to location information by others, refer to the User Guide for Location settings and be cautious when downloading, accessing or using location applications and services.
Something tells me this will be the first thing people remove when they get a new phone. Feel free to file this one under the “oh no, they didn’t” category.
$4.5 million might sound like a lot for the purchase of iCloud.com, but what if $4.5m bought Apple a portfolio of cloud-related domain names? See, Xcerion owns nine other cloud/iCloud related names, as pointed out by Elliot Silver, so it makes sense that Apple may have scooped up those names as well. Notably, Xcerion owns (or owned) names like iCloudMusic.com and iCloudApps, in addition to the following domain names:
iCloudNews.com
iCloudos.com (net and org, too)
iCloud.org
LiquidCloud.com (net and org, too)
iCloudBlog.com
LeadCloud.com
AlbumCloud.com
Like iCloud.com, Xcerion still is listed as the owner of the above domain names. Apple certainly likes to purchase multiple variations of domain names, so it would not be a surprise if they purchased the whole package.
The soon to be biggest phone maker in the world, who has been making phones and patenting its technology since before Apple was making iPods, is suing Apple in the US after suing Apple abroad last week. The move is in obvious response to Apple suing its biggest parts contractor for allegedly copying its iPhone and iPad designs with its Android phones and tablets. Samsung received the second-highest number of U.S. patents last year after International Business Machines Corp.
The lawsuit intensifies a legal dispute that began when Cupertino, California-based Apple sued Samsung earlier this month, claiming the Galaxy products “slavishly” copied iPad and iPhone technology and design. Samsung, which is also a supplier of some Apple chips, retaliated last week with lawsuits in Seoul, Tokyo and Mannheim, Germany.
In the U.S. complaint, Samsung accuses Apple of violating patents that “relate to fundamental innovations that increase mobile device reliability, efficiency, and quality, and improve user interface in mobile handsets and other products.”
The patented technology includes ways that a phone allows calls and Internet surfing at the same time; improvements in how text messages and attachments are sent; reductions in interference among mobile devices; and increases in the capacity of mobile networks, according to the complaint
According to GigaOM, Apple has scooped up the domain name www.iCloud.com from Xcerion, the maker of a cloud-based service. The deal is said to have gone down for somewhere in the range of $4.5m, and we don’t think Apple would pay that much for a domain name unless they would put it to good use. We think iCloud is a potential name for Apple’s upcoming locker service which should keep your music, photos, videos, and other media in the cloud. This service will likely tie directly into MobileMe and may even replace MobileMe’s long existing iDisk feature.
iCloud.com still points to the old owner’s website and a quick Whois search of the domain still pulls up the information for Xcerion. Apple will likely introduce their new cloud services at WWDC, and if GigaOM‘s report is legitimate, this might just be one of the best pieces of evidence for Apple’s upcoming cloud services yet. Apple’s cloud services will likely include a new music locker and possibly some new cloud features for iOS users. Apple recently stopped selling retail packages and discounted copies of MobileMe.
Update: iCloud changed their company name to CloudMe. Looks like Apple went after the iXXXX. Here’s the email we got last week (“chosen a new name” – ha!):
In order to better reflect the expanded offerings of our service, we have chosen the new name, CloudMe – Your files online with anywhere access. Our Web Desktop is just one of many ways to use CloudMe’s service. We have developed an entire suite of apps and services that allow you to go mobile and access CloudMe on the go.
The $39B dollar deal isn’t over yet and T-Mobile isn’t ready to drop its guns and surrender. Today they issued a challenge to iPhone owners (Read: Verizon and AT&T) in the Seattle area to prove that their network was faster than T-Mobile’s. They’ll give any iPhone owner $1000 if their download speed is faster.
Now obviously this has little to nothing to do with the iPhone vs. Galaxy and more to do with T-Mobile’s “4G” vs. AT&T and Verizon’s 3G which it appears is marginally better as John Patchakosfihskgweo points out in data from Rootspeed Metrics, below:
