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Windows Phone ad sees iPhone and Android owners trading insults at wedding

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 22, 2017

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z19vR1GldRI

Despite the massive marketing blitz, Microsoft's Windows Phone platform has managed to regain but a fraction of market share lost to iOS and Android in years past. Figuring it could take a page from Samsung's marketing handbook, Microsoft on Monday published on its YouTube channel a new Windows Phone commercial which takes a mandatory jab at Apple's iPhone and its Siri digital personal assistant while also poking fun of Gorilla-sized Android devices from Samsung. The funny ad is aimed at boosting Microsoft's and Nokia's stagnant sales of Lumia handsets in the United States...

Alleged leaked Japanese carrier document claims iPhone 5S pre-orders start June 20

Cody Lee ∙ April 29, 2013

Tim Cook caused quite a bit of commotion last week when he told investors that Apple "has some amazing new hardware, software, and services coming this fall." Most folks took it as we aren't going to see anything new from the company until then.

But that may not be the case, according to a purported leaked document from Japanese wireless carrier KDDI. The internal note, meant for sales floor staff, offers up plan pricing information and some details about the upcoming iPhone 5S smartphone...

If Apple loyalty holds up, iPhone will surpass Android in U.S. market share by 2015

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

Whenever I stumble upon a survey predicting that Apple's iPhone will loose traction to not just Android, but Windows Phone as well, my blood starts to boil in my veins.

And just like clockwork, you can count on the likes of IDC and Gartner to come out of the woodwork every now and then with wild predictions of the iPhone's demise by 2015, 2016 or 2017.

History has taught me to take such long-term predictions with a healthy dose of skepticism, even more so if data comes from big name firms whose crystal ball peering is based on "polls" that sample a few hundred random people, at best.

With that in mind, here's a survey that paints a rather rosy future for the Apple smartphone. Noting that Android is actually losing one out of every six customers to other phone vendors, Yankee Group ran their spreadsheets and determined that Apple will surpass Android in U.S. market share by 2015, provided Apple brand loyalty numbers hold up in the coming years...

Why Apple is borrowing money to pay for $60B stock buyback

Ed Sutherland ∙ April 26, 2013

To bolster its stock in the eyes of investors, Apple recently announced it would buy back $60 billion worth of shares. Such a move makes sense - after all, the iPhone maker does have this cash hoard of nearly $150 billion. However, it turns out Apple won't touch that money, opting instead to borrow the funds.

By borrowing the money, Apple keeps its billions out of the reach of U.S. taxes, saving the corporate giant money while also retiring expensive stock dividends.

You didn't think there was any altruism involved, did you? The move, however, isn't without its pitfalls. Moreover, Apple isn't alone in a corporate game of chess where it's all about manipulating the tax code, according to a report Friday...

A first: smartphone shipments outnumber feature phones

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated February 28, 2017

For some time, the mobile phone industry has been shifting toward more powerful smartphones and away from basic mobile phones. Now comes word that smartphones outnumber feature phones for the first time. The line was crossed in the first quarter of 2013 with 216.1 million smartphones shipping, accounting for 51.6 percent of all handsets sold. Smartphone shipments grew 41.6 percent during the quarter, up from 152.7 million units shipped during the same period in 2012, one industry research firm announced Thursday...

Swype talked to Apple over its keyboard tech

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated February 24, 2018

Swype virtual keyboard technology is pretty popular on Android devices, and it's easy to see why. With error-correction algorithms and a powerful language model to guess the intended word, Swype lets you enter words by sliding a finger from the first letter of a word to its last letter, lifting only between words.

While Swype's owner Nuance partners with Apple on the voice recognition technology powering Siri, the iPhone maker never implemented the Swype input method on iOS devices, instead choosing to advance its own intelligent virtual keyboard technology. That said, it's interesting that Swype and Apple have had discussions concerning the feature...

Display shootout: iPhone 5 vs Galaxy S4

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 26, 2013

CEO Tim Cook during an earnings call re-iterated Apple very much remains focused on providing the highest quality mobile screens and argued his company would never compromise the experience by creating a Gorilla-sized iPhone with a subpar display. Specifically, Cook painted color reproduction, power consumption, quality and other factors determining the quality of a mobile screens as progressively suffering on larger displays.

"We would not ship a larger display iPhone while these trade-offs exist," he said Tuesday. But is that really the case? Display wizards over at DisplayMate took Apple's iPhone 5 and Samsung's Galaxy S4 through a battery of tests putting the screens through their paces. The results are surprising...

New iPhone commercial: Photos Every Day

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NoVW62mwSQQ

Apple has posted a new commercial on its website and on its YouTube channel, and it's one of the better ones I've seen in recent memory. The video — entitled Photos Every Day — is a montage of the many ways that people use their iPhone's to take photos in everyday situations. The commercial ends by saying: "Everyday, more photos are taken with the iPhone than any other camera."

Apple patents see iPhone as car-finder, auto starter

Ed Sutherland ∙ April 25, 2013

When your smartphone and automobile come up in conversation, too often the discussions center around texting while driving, or distracted driving. However, two patents submitted by Apple suggest the iPhone could become your car's best friend - at least that's the hope of the consumer tech giant.

The two patents filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office outline ways to replace your car's key fob with the iPhone and a Bluetooth connection to remember your location in a crowded parking garage, as well as creating an intelligent car starter/theft prevention tool...

Behind the numbers: iPad market share falls but usage belies Android gains

Ed Sutherland ∙ April 25, 2013

Let the post-mortem begin. It is a ritual on Wall Street: forecast Apple's quarterly numbers, then afterwards dissect the data the iPad maker releases. And once more, the coverage conflates shipment with usage to determine the status of Apple or Android.

Although Apple Tuesday announced selling 19.5 million iPads during the first quarter of 2013 - an improvement from 11.8 million tablets sold during the same three-month period in 2012 - the focus Wednesday was on the iPad shedding market share to Android. But do unit sales trump actual usage?

Companies still deploying iOS first as Android remains MIA online

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated April 11, 2018

You would think, given Android's raw numerical advantage, that app developers would first build for the larger market. However, Apple's iOS appears to offer companies other, more valuable qualities. Indeed, one need only look to last Friday, when Twitter unveiled its #music service - available initially only to iOS users. Another iOS exclusive, Twitter's Vine, has yet to hit the Android platform.

Key to why companies are still developing apps first for iOS are findings that Apple's mobile software is both used more often and the users are more loyal to the apps they download. What is Android's response: change how such things are measured....

Are Samsung drones trolling Apple?

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated December 6, 2022

We don't usually go in for conspiracy theories, but one is drawing quiet a bit of attention - and factual basis. Has corporate giant Samsung, stung by its more than $1 billion patent lawsuit loss to Apple in 2012, waging war on the iPhone maker? A number of signs point to the affirmative, including an apparent tactic to swamp any critics with pro-Samsung comments.

Along with blatant examples of the business press spinning news against Apple and for Samsung, there has been reports of fake Samsung product reviews. Additionally, we've seen up-close attempts by pro-Samsung 'trolls' to dominate comments...