Bloomberg: Samsung in race with Apple to get wristwatch to market

By Cody Lee on Mar 19, 2013

We’ve heard a lot of talk in recent months that Apple is working on a wristwatch-like device. And it could be ready to launch as soon as this year. We’ve also seen some alleged leaked screenshot images that suggest Samsung is working on a similar product.

Tonight, Bloomberg is out with a new report that adds significant weight to both rumors, claiming that not only are both companies preparing wearable devices that perform similar functions as smartphones, but they’re both racing to get them to market… Read More

 

Morgan Stanley: the iPhone 5S will have a ‘killer feature’

By Cody Lee on Mar 18, 2013

Morgan Stanley’s resident Apple expert Katy Huberty appeared on CNBC’s Fast Money Halftime Report this morning, in a rare TV interview, to field questions on her firm’s current positive buy ratings for both HP and Apple.

Asked about Apple, Huberty—who has an overweight rating on the stock with a price target of $630—says the company is poised for a big year with new software features for the upcoming iPhone, including one ‘killer feature.’ Read More

 

Report: iPad mini to rule 2013, Retina model due in Q3

By Christian Zibreg on Mar 18, 2013

A new week brings a fresh batch of iPad rumors. According to a report out of Asia, Apple is gearing up to launch a Retina iPad mini in the third quarter of this year, alongside a redesigned fifth-generation 9.7-inch model with an iPad mini-like aluminum design, featuring a thinner bezel and lighter frame.

Despite Apple slashing shipments for its full-size iPad 4 in nearly half, from 60 million units down to 33 million units, the story notes the company has not reportedly seen any material decrease of iPad mini demand since its launch in October of 2012… Read More

 

Supply chain chatter points to Retina iPad mini debut in second half of 2013

By Cody Lee on Mar 16, 2013

I have to admit, it feels kind of weird that we’re in the middle of March and there’s been no word of new iPads. I know, Apple just released two new ones back in October. But still, there’s been an iPad event in the first quarter of every year for the past three years.

We’ve heard plenty of rumors though. There’s been a lot of talk of the 5th-gen iPad getting a design makeover, and Apple’s widely believed to give the mini a Retina display. And according to a new report, we can expect the latter in the second half of this year… Read More

 

Budget iPhone: colors, 4-inch screen, super-thin plastic casing mixed with glass fiber

By Christian Zibreg on Mar 15, 2013

Apple’s budget iPhone, a rumored all-new design targeted at emerging markets where carriers rarely subsidize cell phones, will be offered in a range of colors and have a “super-thin plastic casing mixed with glass fiber”, one reliable analyst wrote in a Friday note to clients. The specs for the device were apparently decided on back in 2011 and call for a four-inch screen resembling the iPhone 5.

Dismissing talk of a 4.5-inch entry-level iPhone, the report argues Apple is “unlikely to abruptly change” its stance on screen size just because Android makers are increasingly building phablets. Jump past the fold for more tidbits… Read More

 

Analyst: Apple would be ‘stupid’ not to release budget iPhone

By Christian Zibreg on Mar 14, 2013

Many analysts have voiced their support for a rumored less-pricey iPhone which  they hope will help Apple recover from market share losses in emerging markets, namely China, India, Brazil and Russia – all huge markets for handsets. BTIG’s Walter Piecyk goes further, calling Apple “stupid” if it doesn’t release said device before year’s end.

By his own estimates, Apple could sell about 36.5 million less-pricey iPhones in fiscal 2014 for an additional $11 billion in revenue – and that’s after accounting for some inevitable cannibalization of the higher-priced iPhone models… Read More

 

TSMC allegedly finalizing Apple A7 chip designs

By Christian Zibreg on Mar 14, 2013

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), the world’s leading independent semiconductor foundry, is reportedly finalizing production designs for Apple’s in-house engineered A7 processor expected to power a 2014 wave of iPhone, iPad and iPod upgrades. If a new supply chain report is anything to go by, the chip will be fabbed on TSMC’s 20-nanometer process technology, reportedly moving into risk production in May-June, with volume shipments expected in the first quarter of 2014.

TSMC has long been speculated to enter Apple’s supply chain and become a manufacturer of the engine which powers iDevices. So far, Apple has fabbed all of its iDevice chips at Samsung’s plant in Austin, Texas. This is the first time TSMC has been reported as actually prepping to manufacture Apple’s next-gen A-series chip. Earlier this week, we heard that in addition to TSMC, Samsung and Intel are also vying for Apple chip contracts… Read More

 

China Mobile announces major LTE push ahead of rumored iPhone launch

By Cody Lee on Mar 14, 2013

China Mobile announced today that it’s going to be spending a staggering $7 billion on its LTE network this year, setting the stage for what could be a late iPhone 5 launch. The carrier’s current network standard doesn’t properly support the popular popular handset.

In fact, China Mobile—the largest wireless provider in the world by subscriber base—is one of the few remaining major carriers in the world that doesn’t offer Apple’s smartphone. But recent chatter indicates that there’s a good chance that could change this year… Read More

 

Twitter reportedly readying standalone music discovery app for iOS

By Cody Lee on Mar 13, 2013

Last year, Twitter acquired popular music discovery service We Are Hunted. The company developed proprietary search technology than can continuously scan the Internet to identify trending new music around the world.

And according to a new report, Twitter is getting ready to launch a new standalone app based on that technology called Twitter Music. The app, which is expected to debut on iOS, will bring music discovery to the masses… Read More

 

Alleged Google Now for iOS promo video surfaces on YouTube

By Cody Lee on Mar 12, 2013

This is pretty interesting. An alleged promotional video showcasing a Google Now—Google’s impressive voice assistant that debuted in Android Jelly Bean last summer—for iOS app surfaced on YouTube this afternoon.

The big deal here is that while Google added some Now elements to its iOS Search app last fall, it kept location and contextual-based features exclusive to Android. But if the promo clip is real, that could be changing soon… Read More

 

LinkedIn reportedly buying Pulse for up to $100 million

By Cody Lee on Mar 12, 2013

When word started spreading around yesterday that Pulse was about to be acquired by a “major platform” company, I would have guessed it was either Yahoo or Microsoft. The popular news reader app seems like it would be a great fit for either firm.

But according to the latest reports, the buyer is actually the social networking site for business professionals LinkedIn. The company has allegedly already sealed a deal with Alphonso Labs, the maker of Pulse, worth between $50-$100 million… Read More

 

New report claims iPhone 5S will feature a fingerprint sensor and NFC

By Cody Lee on Mar 11, 2013

The chatter regarding Apple’s next-generation handset, the iPhone 5S, has stayed fairly consistent over the past few months. The talk points to a device with an iPhone 5-like design, an improved camera system and other internal upgrades.

Another rumor that continues to surface is that the phone will feature a built-in fingerprint sensor. And it’s popped up again this morning in a new report, claiming the 5S will use that and NFC to push Apple further into mobile payments… Read More

 

Apple said to be using Qualcomm Snapdragon SoC in upcoming budget iPhone

By Cody Lee on Mar 8, 2013

If Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal, and oh, I don’t know, about a dozen other outlets are to be believed, Apple is going to introduce a lower-cost iPhone this year. It’s said to feature a hybrid metal/plastic shell, and retail for less than $300.

Outside of those few details, though, we know very little about the handset. But a new report out of China this morning allegedly has new intel on the device, claiming it will use a Qualcomm-made SoC and go into production next month… Read More

 

Lowball royalty offers said to be causing delay in Apple’s streaming music service

By Cody Lee on Mar 7, 2013

Multiple reports are out this morning, claiming that the reason we haven’t seen Apple’s streaming music service—which was expected to launch as early as Q1 of this year—yet is due to negotiation woes with record labels.

As usual, the problem stems from money. Apparently Apple is only offering the labels half of the royalty rate that they are receiving from Pandora. And the service could be delayed until the summer, or possibly longer… Read More

 

Apple looking to bolster its iOS vehicle integration team

By Cody Lee on Mar 7, 2013

This is pretty interesting. A series of new job listings have been discovered on Apple’s website, calling for applicants to fill a variety of positions related to iOS device integration with in-car stereos.

The listings are particularly relevant, given this week’s report that Ferrari and Apple are in talks to “broaden their partnership.” Could Apple be looking to get into the in-car entertainment space? Read More

 

Swatch CEO disparages iWatch, Microsoft could re-enter the smartwatch market

By Christian Zibreg on Mar 6, 2013

With the rumor-mill lately shifting into overdrive, pundits and tech watchers alike have been racing to guesstimate which one comes out first, an Apple-branded smartwatch or a standalone television set. And as established outlets like Bloomberg claim Apple’s rumored wearable device runs iOS (meaning it could be jailbreakable) while doubling as a health monitor of sorts, little wonder that market incumbents are getting a little worried, to say the least.

Their reaction of course is expected and understandable given Apple’s market power and street cred in the consumer electronics space. Enter watch maker Swatch, whose CEO took to Bloomberg to disparage the iWatch as a failure even before the non-existent device has had a chance to hit the market.

In his view, the Apple smartwatch won’t be revolutionary because mimicking the iPhone features on such a tiny wearable device is “difficult.” Rrrright… Read More

 

Tim Cook and Eddy Cue met with Beats CEO last month over music service

By Cody Lee on Mar 6, 2013

Earlier this year, an interesting story surfaced alleging that Interscope-Geffen-A&M chairman and Beats CEO Jimmy Iovine spent years trying to convince Steve Jobs to do a subscription-based music service. Obviously, Jobs never succumbed.

But the conversation wasn’t over. Fast forward to today, a new report says that Iovine met with Tim Cook and Apple’s internet software and service guru Eddy Cue last month to discuss—surprise!—his new subscription-based music service… Read More

 

iPhone 5S production reportedly already underway at Foxconn

By Cody Lee on Mar 5, 2013

Talk of Apple’s next-generation iPhone has really begun to pick up over the past few days, with two reports coming within the last 24 hours claiming that the company is set to roll out its new handset this summer.

And that continues to be the consensus, as another report has surfaced this evening corroborating the theory. Japanese blog Macotakara is claiming Foxconn has begun ramping up production of the iPhone 5S… Read More

 

Rumor: iPhone 5S in August, new iPads possibly as early as next month

By Christian Zibreg on Mar 5, 2013

If a new report from a fairly accurate source is to be believed, Apple could be gearing up to launch next-generation iPads as early as next month, with both a fifth-generation 9.7-inch model and a second-generation 7.9-inch iPad mini apparently being considered for April, and each rocking Apple’s high-resolution Retina display.

As for the iPhone 5S – a seventh-generation iPhone and a specs upgrade over the current iPhone 5 – Apple is looking to release this phone in late-summer, approximately around August… Read More

 

Analyst doubles down: iPhone 5S with fingerprint sensor coming this summer

By Cody Lee on Mar 5, 2013

Back in January, KGI Securities’ Ming-Chi Kuo revealed, what he believed to be, Apple’s product roadmap for 2013. Kuo is known to have well-placed sources in Apple’s supply chain, and has been accurate in the past, so his predictions tend to carry more weight than others.

The report claimed, among other things, that Apple is planning to release an iPhone 5S—complete with faster processor, improved camera and built-in finger print sensor—alongside the long rumored budget iPhone, this summer. And today, Kuo doubled down on his claims… Read More

 
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