Patent applications suggest Apple may be preparing to bring Apple Pay to India

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 29, 2017

Despite low buying power, India with its population of 1.32 billion people represents a massive marketing opportunity for the increasingly popular smartphone payment services. Small wonder that the Cupertino company now appears to be preparing to bring its own mobile payments service to its customers in India, said a new report.

Apple Pay currently works in sixteen major markets.

According to a BusinessStandard article, the iPhone maker has submitted at least five applications with the Indian Patent office over the past year, all related to its digital payments system. The patent applications range from using biometrics to authenticate payments to securely transferring payment to a device such as a point of sale device.

While Indian law clearly states that software is intrinsically not patentable, exceptions exist for devices with software. If Apple's patents are granted, Apple Pay could hurt homegrown digital payments firms such as Paytm, Mobikwik, Freecharge and several others.

Samsung Pay launched in India in March 2017, while Google plans to bring Android Pay there later this year by anchoring the service to the government-backed Unified Payments Interface.

Last week, Facebook made a patent application of its own with the Indian Patent office. It outlines a digital wallet service that would presumably be integrated into its popular Messenger and WhatsApp messaging services.

Apple has been doubling down on the Services category as a way to boost sales of iPhones in India and elsewhere. Recently, the firm began assembling iPhone SE in Bangalore, in a facility run by its supplier Wistron, marking the first time the cupertino company has assembled any iPhone model in the country.

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Apple could open app development facility in Indonesia

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 29, 2017

Apple could open an app development center in Jakarta, the capital and the most populous city of Indonesia and home to an upcoming Apple research and development center.

According to a source who spoke with Japanese outlet Nikkei, Apple's app development center will open in suburban Jakarta as early as October, allowing the company to start selling its newest phones in Indonesia.

The Cupertino technology giant currently relies on a network of resellers to push iPhones in the country as the devices are unavailable through its online store in Indonesia.

But what do apps have to do with hardware sales?

Nikkei explains that Indonesia in 2015 imposed regulatory rules requiring phones sold in the country to use at least 30 percent locally procured components by 2017. Apple did not set up local production in the country, but last year the government had a change of heart and now counts locally developed mobile apps as “locally produced” content for smartphones.

Sensing an opportunity, Apple is now set to open an app development facility in Jakarta.

However, the policy change has drawn the ire of Samsung, which in 2015 established a smartphone production line inside its existing manufacturing plant in suburban Jakarta.

“Had the rule on app development come earlier, the South Korean company could have saved a lot of money by using Apple's approach,” added Nikkei. “Policy shift means Apple can meet the quota with a smaller investment,” reads the article.

Similar sourcing requirements for foreign goods have prevented Apple from selling iPhones directly to customers in India. Recently, however, Apple and the Indian government have come to terms of doing business locally, paving the way for iPhone SE production in the country.

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Video: Samsung’s stretchable AMOLED prototype display in action

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 29, 2017

Samsung showed off a prototype of its stretchable 4K AMOLED display with glasses-free 3D, measuring 9.1 inches diagonally, at last week's Display Week 2017 conference. Today, Samsung Display's official YouTube channel shared a video of the stretchable display in action.

Samsung has been making flexible AMOLED panels for its flagship Galaxy phones for a few years now, but this new display has the elasticity to bend in two directions. The video shows the prototype AMOLED panel as having up to 12mm of travel before returning to its original shape, without any image degradation when pressed.

Here's the video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_EMBTHbkXnE

Samsung says the next-generation tech might one day be used for wearable devices and more.

“Compared to conventional flexible OLEDs that can be formed in only one direction, such as bending, folding, or rolling a screen, the Samsung Display stretchable AMOLED panel can be flexed in two directions,” explains Samsung Display.

“When the screen is pressed from above, it depresses like a rubber balloon, then returns to its original flat shape. The screen when stretched up or down, even when pressed, has sufficient elasticity to recover.”

Apple is said to be making a major switch from the traditional LCD panels to the more energy-efficient AMOLED display technology with iPhone 8, but the move is said to be short-lived: the Cupertino giant has been researching even more power efficient micro-LED screens, based on its 2014 acquisition of micro-LED experts LexVue.

The iPhone maker could kick off trial production of its next-generation micro-LED display panels by the end of this year, according to supply chain reports, meaning this technology most likely won't debut before iPhone 9 in 2018 although Apple Watch Series 3 could debut this year with a micro-LED display.

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In time for iPhone 9, TSMC’s 7nm tech moving to volume production in 2018

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 29, 2017

Chip foundry Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), which counts Apple as its biggest client, is ready to move its cutting-edge seven-nanometer process technology to volume production in 2018.

According to DigiTimes, an improved version of TSMC's seven-nanometer process using extreme ultraviolet technology will be ready for volume production in 2018, according to company co-CEO CC Wei.

The firm's five-nanometer node is slated to enter risk production in 2019, Wei added.

TSMC currently makes A10 chips for iPhone 7 and is said to be exclusively churning out the upcoming Apple-designed A11 processors for iPhone 8 and other 2017 iOS devices.

TSMC in April reportedly began stockpiling A11 chips for 2017 iPhones.

The firm should step up its pace of inventory building from June onward, said industry sources.

iPhone 8's A11 system-on-a-chip should be built on TSMC's ten-nanometer process technology, yielding faster performance and lower power consumption.

The A11 Fusion chip inside iPhone 7 is being manufactured on TSMC's 16-nanometer node.

Apple is building a brand new chip dedicated to artificial intelligence and machine learning, Bloomberg said recently, but it's unclear if the new chip will make its way into iPhone 8.

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Latest iPhone 8 schematics show a lip at the top where 3D sensors/earpiece are located & more

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 29, 2017

Prolific leakers Benjamin Geskin on Monday shared some fresh new images, allegedly showing off latest iPhone 8 schematics and a CAD rendering based on the technical drawings of the phone. The schematics depict a lip at the top of the handset's OLED display where 3D sensors for the front FaceTime camera along with the earpiece would presumably be located.

On the back, we can see a circle which indicates neither a rear Touch ID sensor nor wireless charging support. According to Geskin, the circle is simply a placeholder for the Apple logo.

And here's a CAD rendering of the device based on the schematics.

Other iPhone 8 features hinted at by this technical drawing include no physical Home button out the front, a vertically-stacked dual-lens camera out the back with an LED flash integrated directly in the bulge, an elongated Power button on the right side and more.

Today, Slashleaks shared a few images showcasing yet another iPhone 8 dummy wrapped in a protective case allegedly “confirming” the device would come with no physical Home button.

It also hints at a Touch ID sensor integrated directly into the display and a vertically-oriented cutout on the back for a redesigned dual-lens camera system, aside from other features.

Apple will preview iOS 11 at WWDC next month.

It'll be interesting seeing what user interface changes Apple has added to iOS to make room for the rumored function area at the bottom of the display and to possibly take advantage of the tiny regions at the top of the device.

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New images show iPhone 8 dummy wrapped in a protective case

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 29, 2017

Accessories vendors are no strangers to designing cases for unreleased iPhone models based on rumors alone, and this particular leak is no exception. Even though we're still months away from iPhone 8's likely introduction this fall, Slahleaks today published a few images of another iPhone 8 dummy wrapped in a protective case.

The dummy unit appears to reflect Apple's rumored final iPhone 8 design with no physical Home button, Touch ID integrated directly into the display and a full-screen face, among other features. A vertically-oriented cutout on the back for a redesigned dual-lens camera system is displayed prominently.

As you can see for yourself, the dummy unit shown on the photos is virtually all glass on the front, with only a physical slit within the OLED display, likely for an embedded earpiece. The side bezels, as per the annotations, should be only three millimeters wide.

It's been speculated that iPhone 8 would use 2.5D cover glass like the iPhone 6/6s/7 series that's slightly rounded on sides rather than have the OLED display extend all the way to the left and right edges of the device, like with Samsung's Galaxy S8. Apple is said to be releasing the iterative LCD-based iPhone 7s and iPhone 7s Plus devices alongside iPhone 8.

Economic Daily News said last week that Apple has solved all technical issues related to its next-generation fingerprint reader, meaning iPhone 8 is likely to integrate an optical fingerprint sensor to enable authentication directly on the handset's OLED screen.

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Apple Maps enhances Apple Park coverage with 3D building models, walkways & more

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 29, 2017

Apple has updated a Maps backend with 3D buildings, campus walkways and other information pertaining to Apple Park, the company's massive new headquarters in Cupertino, California. As first noted by MacRumors, the enhanced coverage of Apple Park includes 3D building models in the standard 2D view, as well as access roads running in and out of the campus, traffic directions, pedestrian walkways and more.

Other relevant Apple Park points of interest that can now be found on Apple Maps include the Steve Jobs Theater, the research and development facilities, Apple's fitness center for employees, above-ground parking and a pond at the center of the main building.

Earlier this month, Google added three-dimensional imagery of the main ring-shaped office building that's a bit out of date. Apple Maps implemented 3D images of the site along with descriptions and searchable geolocation tags back in March 2017.

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Wallpapers of the week: gold inspiration

Jim Gresham ∙ Updated October 23, 2018

Nothing emits luxury more than gold. Okay, there is platinum, but the smooth creamy, rich color of gold has been deemed the pinnacle of opulence for centuries. This week's wallpaper collection is inspired by the color gold, to allow us to share in the experience. Great for Space Gray, black, red, or, obviously, gold iPhones, the downloads will be a perfect compliment to your favorite device.

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SpotAngels, Ditty, Gaia GPS, and other apps to check out this weekend

Cody Lee ∙ Updated October 17, 2018

This week's edition of our Apps of the Week roundup includes an app for preventing parking tickets, a musical meme-maker, and an off-road GPS app. And as usual, we have two great new games for you to check out this weekend.

SpotAngels

This isn't a new app, but it's worth checking out for those who aren't familiar with it. SpotAngels detects when you park and sends you alerts if and when you have to move your car. It does this by using your phone's motion sensors and Bluetooth (as it disconnects from your car) to know that you've parked, and then it checks your location against its data base of trouble spots. These include meters, to away zones, street cleaning, permit parking and other rules in dozens of major cities like New York, Dallas and Portland. The app also helps you find free parking around you, and since it's crowd-sourced, anyone can submit an update. SpotAngels is available for free.

Ditty

Here's another not-so-new app that you might find fun to play with this weekend. It's called Ditty, and it allows you to make goofy songs and music videos using a mix of GIFs, photos, videos and more. The app will actually sing anything you type, and there are tons of famous songs to choose from, with new content added weekly. Add your friends to follow their feeds, or post a Ditty yourself for a chance to be featured in the app. Ditty is available for free (with some IAPs).

Gaia GPS

Established GPS apps like Apple Maps and Waze do a nice job of getting you around the streets. But what about getting you around off road? That's where Gaia GPS comes in. This app features a beautiful and well-thought out interface that makes navigating the backcountry simple. Features include worldwide topo, road and satellite maps, syncing of photos, tracks and waypoints, a database with hiking trails, parks and other natural sights, and several customization options. This is a freemium app, and unfortunately most of the features are tucked behind an in-app purchase. But, Gaia has a great track record in this space and the app is getting rave reviews. If you need something like this, check it out. Gaia is available for free (with some IAPs).

Zombie Gunship Survival

The long-awaited sequel to Zombie Gunship is here! Zombie Gunship Survival has you as one of the few survivors in a devastating zombie apocalypse. To stay alive, you must take the gunner seat aboard a heavily-armed AC-130 ground attack aircraft and blow up the undead in this intense, high-definition shooter experience. You'll build up your remote airfield as a base for operations, defend that base, deploy your troops to annihilate the undead, and try to survive one of the most hostile environments ever. This is another freemium title, so there are a lot of in-app purchases, but the game itself has nearly a 5-star App Store rating on 1,200 reviews. Zombie Gunship Survival is available for free.

Goat Simulator PAYDAY

The goat is back! Goat Simulator: Payday is the most criminally realistic goat simulation ever! There are 3 new thugs, including a flying flamingo that can control people's brains, a wheelchairing dolphin that can climb almost any surface, a spitting camel, and of course the goat. You can meet up with your Pranknet crew, buy masks to disguise your identity, carry out "jobs" to collect cash to buy things, and you can even steal and drive cars. There's no real elaborate story line here, just a GTA-style open world adventure game that encourages you to inflict the maximum amount of destruction. Goat Simulator PAYDAY is available for $4.99.

More apps to check out Apple’s free app of the week: klocki You can now drag and drop files on iPad between Readdle’s productivity apps 1Password’s Travel Mode protects your private data from unwarranted searches Not to be outdone by Instagram, Snapchat unveils custom Stories of its own Duet Display brings even more desktop power to your iPad drawing experience YouTube TV app gains AirPlay support New Pokémon game is based on Magikarp, the weakest Pokémon ever At long last, Konami’s Pro Evolution Soccer 2017 hits App Store
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Minimalists can put the Settings app on a diet with SkinnySettings

Anthony Bouchard ∙ May 27, 2017

Most people use the Settings app on a daily basis given just how much functionality is packed inside of it from both Apple and the jailbreak tweaks you’ve installed from Cydia.

That said, if you find the Settings app is more cluttered up than it needs to be out of the box, then you might like the concept behind a new free jailbreak tweak called SkinnySettings by CydiaGeek.

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