Apple

HTC alters functionality of US handsets to bypass Apple patents

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 17, 2012

If you ever wondered whether Apple's patent infringement claims against HTC were worth the pain, here's your answer.

Responding to a recent exclusion order by the United States International Trade Commission (ITC) concerning HTC One X and Evo 4G LTE shipments, the Taiwanese handset maker, once the dominant force in the Android camp, is now pre-loading its U.S. phones with an altered build of Android software.

Designed to bypass Apple patents, it changes the expected behavior of these devices. As a result, flagship HTC phones waiting to be imported into the United States now feature notably different functionality compared to HTC devices shipping elsewhere in the world.

The change is also impacting the uniformity of the Android experience, suggesting Apple was right to sue in the first place...

Sprint won’t make money on the iPhone until at least 2015

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 17, 2012

Sprint Nextel, the third-largest wireless operator in the United States, won't turn a profit on Apple's iPhone until at least 2015, CEO Dan Hesse asserted during the company’s annual shareholders meeting on Tuesday.

So why did Sprint cough up a whopping $15.5 billion to get the iPhone in the first place?

Well, being in it for the long haul, Sprint is prepared to go the distance in order to slow subscriber turnover and create a new segment of higher-value subscribers. Plus, iPhone customers use less data and are more profitable, if Hesse is to be believed.

From Sprint's standpoint, betting the farm on the iPhone and making huge investments in 4G LTE infrastructure will be worth it, even with the legitimate risk of bankruptcy...

Viacom and Time Warner Cable settle dispute over iPad streaming rights

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 17, 2012

Media giant Viacom and cable telecommunications company Time Warner Cable have finally resolved a legal dispute concerning streaming of Viacom content through Time Warner Cable's iPad app. As a result, Time Warner Cable subscribers will soon be able to enjoy their daily fixture of Viacom shows such as The Daily Show With Jon Stewart and Jersey Shore on their iPads.

Remember, a year ago Viacom filed a suit in Federal District Court in Manhattan to prevent Time Warner Cable from streaming its content through their iPad app, claiming the cable company did not have legal rights to stream shows via its own app.

Viacom's similar lawsuit against the Cablevision Systems Corporation and its iPad app is still pending, though...

Apple wins WIPO dispute, secures ownership of iPhone5.com domain

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 17, 2012

Less than two weeks ago, Apple filed a dispute claim with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) over the iPhone5.com domain name. The move has been deemed an obvious attempt at keeping those pesky traffic-hungry web masters at bay ahead of a forthcoming sixth-generation iPhone introduction.

It appears Apple has won this dispute, as indicated on the WIPO’s website and WHOIS search, which now lists the iPhone5.com domain as ‘Terminated’, a tell-tale indication that the original owner has relinquished ownership…

Rumor: part suppliers preparing to ramp up production for ‘iPad Minis’

Cody Lee ∙ Updated July 11, 2017

This 7-inch iPad seems to be becoming more and more real by the week. Not only has the device been confirmed by industry insiders and other credible sources, but part suppliers are now receiving orders from Apple to build the thing.

Makotakara passes along a report from The Liberty Times, a publication that the site describes as "one of the top four major Taiwan news media," regarding the purported 'iPad Mini.' And it appears that Apple is moving forward with plans to produce the smaller tablet...

Nuance exec: Siri set “a new bar”, could get “more personalized”

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 25, 2016

Digital secretary Siri was, and still is, the headline feature of the iPhone 4S. It owes some of its allure to the vast processing power of Apple's servers that run a remarkably sophisticated voice recognition software licensed from Nuance, a Burlington, Massachusetts-based provider of arguably the best voice technology money can buy.

According to Nuance’s marketing honcho, you can bet on Siri to improve over time. Upcoming developments in personal assistants will enable new stuff, such as more accurate voice recognition and personalization. So yeah, eventually you'll be able to ask Siri “Is my favourite movie on tonight?”

How many daily downloads does it take to make the App Store’s Top 25?

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 3, 2018

Until Apple gives the App Store a much-needed redesign, its lists of the top 25 most downloaded paid and free apps are going to remain the most popular ways users use to discover new titles.

Developers know that making these lists can substantially boost their app's popularity. But just how many downloads does it take for an app to get there? TechCrunch has the answer...

Apple files motion to dismiss Siri-related lawsuit

Cody Lee ∙ May 16, 2012

A few months ago, a New York man by the name of Frank M. Fazio filed a class-action lawsuit against Apple over its voice assistant, claiming that the company's Siri TV ads were misleading of its capabilities. A similar suit popped up a few weeks later.

Apple, obviously, doesn't agree. And it feels that if a customer isn't happy with Siri — which is still labeled as Beta, mind you — or the iPhone 4S itself, then he or she is more than welcome to return the handset within 30 days for a refund...

iPhone tops another customer satisfaction survey

Cody Lee ∙ May 16, 2012

Even though the Android platform sits on top of several major smartphone categories — marketshare, hardware specs, etc. — there's one list that it can't seem to climb: customer satisfaction. That particular stat belongs to iOS.

The iPhone has taken home more than 6 J.D. Power Satisfaction awards, and countless other smaller surveys. And it just added another notch to its belt, coming in first in the latest American Customer Satisfaction Index report...

Samsung just lost $10B market value on Apple order stoppage rumor

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 16, 2012

Samsung has lost a whopping ten billion dollars of market value on rumors of order stoppage concerning DRAM chips. The iPhone maker has reportedly secured half the manufacturing output from Elpida, a struggling Japanese maker of dynamic random access memory chips.

Apple is Samsung's biggest client and Cupertino's business contributes substantially to their fortunes so no wonder Samsung’s shares fell yesterday more than six percent to a nine-week low, effectively wiping out a cool $10 billion of the company's market capitalization...

Poll: should the next iPhone have a bigger screen?

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 16, 2012

With Android devices typically sporting displays measuring between 4.3 and 4.8 inches diagonally (and beyond) and the usually credible Wall Street Journal throwing its weight behind recent reports asserting a four-inch iPhone, we're eager to learn about your take on this drama.

Would you prefer the next iPhone to sport the same 3.5-inch display as prior iPhones? A four-inch iPhone, you say? How do you feel about a monstrous 4.8-inch iPhone?

Apple and Samsung now represent nearly half of all smartphones sold globally

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 16, 2012

Research firm Gartner is out this morning with its first-quarter phone sales survey. The results show that Apple and Samsung together now represent 49.3 percent of all smartphones sold globally, up from 29.3 percent in the first quarter of 2011, while other vendors continue to experience a decline.

China has now become Apple's second-largest market for smartphones, after the United States and rival Samsung pretty much leads all, having overtaken both Apple and Nokia in smartphone and cell phone shipments, respectively...