Analyst

Analyst talks iPhone 8: OLED screen with no Home button, wireless charging and more

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 22, 2016

Apple will be launching new iPhones this fall, likely to be marketed as 'iPhone 7' and 'iPhone 7 Plus'.

Should the company stick to its established S-upgrade cycle, and there's no reason to believe it won't, then we should see an 'iPhone 7s' and 'iPhone 7s Plus' in 2017, right? That's what conventional wisdom has taught us, but one analyst's turned that conventional wisdom on its head.

Citing industry sources, Barclays analyst Mark Moskowitz recently wrote a lot of nice things about Apple's 2017 iPhone, which he called a “mega cycle” upgrade that will feature a bunch of significant hardware advances that should help increase Apple's iPhone sales by as much as 10.3 percent.

KGI: major iPhone redesign due in 2017 with all-glass enclosure, AMOLED Retina screen and more

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 18, 2016

An iPhone 7, which we expect will launch this fall, won't differ much from the existing iPhone 6/6s design style because Apple is saving a major visual refresh of its smartphone for 2017, according to a research note Sunday by well-informed KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

The note, a copy of which was obtained by MacRumors, quotes the analyst as saying that a 2107 iPhone refresh will bring not only the rumored jump to the superior AMOLED display technology but a whole new design language for the iconic smartphone that will ditch the all-metal appearance in favor of an all-glass enclosure.

KGI analyst predicts 25 percent lower Apple Watch shipments this year

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 11, 2016

KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who is one of the most reliable Apple analyst out there, estimated in a note sent to clients Monday that shipments of the Apple Watch will decline 25 percent in the calendar 2016, despite the expected introduction of a second-generation model some time later this year.

According to the note, a copy of which was obtained by MacRumors, Apple will sell a total of 7.5 million Apple Watch units this year versus an estimated 10.6 million Apple Watch sales in 2015.

Guy who predicted iRing motion controller calls for 40% thinner Apple Watch 2 due at WWDC

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 8, 2016

Drexel Hamilton analyst Brian White, who is currently touring component makers in China, wrote in a note to clients Friday, a copy of which was obtained by MacRumors, that Apple will unveil a forty percent thinner second-generation Apple Watch at WWDC this summer, its annual pilgrimage for developers.

“We walked away with the sense that the Apple Watch refresh will not occur in September with the iPhone 7,” reads White's analysis.

Instead, it's “more likely” to occur within the next 2-3 months and “thus we believe an unveiling at WWDC in June makes sense”. Oh, and they also “believe” that the Apple Watch 2 “could be” twenty to as much as forty percent thinner than the current one.

It certainly doesn't take a genius to figure out that the next Apple Watch is going to be thinner than the first model.

KGI: dual cameras to be exclusive to 5.5″ iPhone 7

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 4, 2016

Apple's upcoming iPhone 7 will feature dual cameras for improved photography features, but only on the flagship 5.5-inch model, according to an investment note by KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, a copy of which was obtained by AppleInsider this morning.

The analyst, who has a strong track record in predicting Apple's future product plans, thinks that iPhone shipments will fall below 200 million units this year due to a soft iPhone SE launch and weakening demand for the current flagship iPhone model, the iPhone 6s.

KGI: 5.8″ AMOLED iPhone with iPhone 4-like curved glass design due in 2017

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 28, 2016

Last month, supply chain sources claimed Apple was working to launch a 5.8-inch iPhone featuring rigid AMOLED display panels some time in 2017.

And now, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has said pretty much the same thing in his most recent analysis issued to clients yesterday, a copy of which was obtained by AppleInsider.

The device should have a curved glass casing similar to the design of the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4s and a “completely new form factor design” with narrow bezels providing a “more comfortably grip.”

Intel has reportedly secured orders for a ‘significant portion’ of iPhone 7 cellular modems

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 4, 2016

Chip giant Intel has secured orders for a “significant portion” of cellular modems on Apple's upcoming iPhone 7, according to a note CLSA Securities analyst Srini Pajjuri sent to clients, a copy of which was obtained by NDTV.

The current iPhone 6s generation uses Qualcomm's MDM9635M LTE Cat. 6 cellular modem and the previous-generation iPhone 6 series is outfitted with Qualcomm's MDM9625M modem so if this particular analyst is right, Qualcomm is set to lose some serious money should Apple dual-source cellular modems for the next iPhone.

KGI: iPhone SE will have 12MP iSight camera, iPhone 5s to go half price

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 27, 2016

Apple's upcoming four-inch 'iPhone SE' will cost between $300 and $400 in the United States, it will have a twelve-megapixel camera on the back rather than an eight-megapixel shooter, as previously rumored, and is entering mass production soon. Moreover, the existing iPhone 5s is slated to be discounted by fifty percent.

That's the gist of a note KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo sent to clients, a copy of which was obtained by AppleInsider.

iPhone 7 may ship with wired EarPods after all

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 12, 2016

Apple's upcoming iPhone 7 will include an all-digital, wired edition of the EarPods headphones that will connect to the handset's Lightning port, not the wireless edition as previously rumored.

According to an analyst note from Barclays, a copy of which was obtained by Business Insider, Apple has not yet purchased a license from its supplier Cirrus Logic that would permit the company to use Cirrus' active noise-canceling software.

Cirrus technology would be needed to filter out background noise during phone calls were Apple to ditch the traditional 3.5mm headphone jack in favor of wireless Bluetooth headphones.

Analyst Gene “iTV” Munster calls for S-upgrade to Apple Watch this Spring

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 2, 2016

Apple analyst Gene Munster—the guy who has been predicting a full-on television set with a shiny Apple logo on it for well over five years before admitting he was terribly wrong—is back!

In a note to clients, a copy of which was obtained by Business Insider, the Piper Jaffray analyst is calling for an 'S-upgrade' to the Apple Watch this Spring.

In sticking to its annual upgrade cycle Apple will now make an S-version of the wrist-worn device, reasons Munster. If he's right, that would constitute borrowing a page from the iPhone's book.

As you know, iPhones recycle same design with so-called S-upgrades that focus on hardware advanced every other year. This Spring, Munster posits, the Apple Watch will receive refreshed internals like faster chips, packed inside enclosures unchanged from existing watches.

KGI: iPhone 7 Plus will have dual lenses with optical image stabilization and zoom

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 27, 2016

Reliable analyst (if there is such a thing) Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities sent an interesting report to clients, a copy of which was obtained by AppleInsider.

In it, he predicts that a new, premium edition of Apple's iPhone 7 Plus will be outfitted with a dual-lens system with optical image stabilization and optical zoom, realized through technology Apple obtained from last year's acquisition of Israeli camera technology company LinX Imaging.

KGI: 3D Touch-less iPad Air 3 due in H1 2016

Christian Zibreg ∙ December 15, 2015

KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo shared some interesting predictions for 2016 iPhones and iPads in a note sent to clients this morning, a copy of which was obtained by MacRumors.

For starters, Kuo is adamant that the third-generation iPad Air will be arriving in the first half of next year. The tablet won't be outfitted with a pressure-sensing screen due to alleged production issues related to building a 9.7-inch 3D Touch sensor array.