Opinion

Why Apple would want to make the iPhone’s screen bigger

Cody Lee ∙ June 6, 2012

According to recent rumors, reports and speculation, Apple's next-generation smartphone will finally receive a bump in screen size. It seems like everyone is convinced that the next iPhone, expected to drop later this year, will be sporting an all-new 4-inch display.

But while we've heard a number of theories regarding how Apple could go about implementing such a change, we've yet to hear any explanations for why it would want to. Why would it all of a sudden want to change the iPhone's display size after 5 years?

Two months on – why I am still glad I didn’t buy a new iPad

Oliver Haslam ∙ June 1, 2012

The eagle-eyed amongst you will have already spotted that the title says "two months on" and, clearly, we are beyond the two month mark since the new iPad was made available to an expectant public. The reason for my tardiness is that this post has taken the better part of two weeks to write, and I almost scrapped it on a few occasions.

To understand why that is, let's delve right on in to why I didn't buy the new iPad and, importantly, why I am glad about that fact.

So, before we continue, and before I open myself up to more than my fair share of abuse, I suggest you make yourself a good cup of coffee, and get yourself comfortably. We're about to begin...

On clueless analysts and iTV being such a “terrible use of retail space”

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated June 13, 2016

Pacific Crest's Andy Hargreaves wins the coveted title for this week's Most Idiotic Analysis concerning a rumored HD TV television set from Apple, aptly dubbed by the press the iTV.

In a note issued to clients on Tuesday, Hargreaves provided two arguments against an Apple-branded telly.

First, such a device would be of little value to couch potatoes unless it came with a bucket load of premium Hollywood entertainment. Up to a point, he argued Apple thus far has failed to get content owners in line to stream movies and television shows to the TV.

Bear with me for a sec.

Secondly, he wrote a 46-inch HD TV set "would be a terrible use of retail space relative to iPhone, iPad or the Apple TV set-top box".

Has this guy heard of warehouses? What about jumbo-sized walls of Apple's retail stores? And whoever said Apple would need to stock hundreds of big-screen iTVs in retail outlets, especially if they'll fetch a cool $2,000 a pop, as rumored...

Samsung’s hand shown, will Apple come through with the next iPhone?

Oliver Haslam ∙ May 8, 2012

We may still be a good five months away from Apple's expected iPhone 5/Next iPhone announcement, but Samsung has already shown its hand with the Galaxy S III.

Building on the already hugely popular Galaxy S II handset, the third generation of the Galaxy S line will feature some interesting software additions alongside a reasonable speed bump and rather large screen. All in, it's an impressive-looking update for a company that has already shown that it is more than capable of going toe-to-toe with Apple when it comes to kicking out huge sales numbers and satisfied customers.

But shy of taking the Roman numeral approach to naming conventions and calling the next iPhone the iPhone V, what will Apple do to take the fight to Samsung now that the Koreans have firmly placed their stake in the ground? What must Apple do in order to compete with a handset that has seen almost as much excitement and expectation as any Apple product? The truth is that it might not actually need to...

Is Verizon intentionally talking customers out of iPhones?

Cody Lee ∙ May 5, 2012

Of the 6.3 million smartphones Verizon sold last quarter, 3.2 million of them were iPhones. This means it sold more Apple-branded handsets than it did all other smartphones combined. So the carrier must really be pushing these things, right?

Well as it turns out, that doesn't seem to be the case. CNET's Chris Matyszczyk recently went to his local Verizon store to investigate a rumor that Big Red reps were actually purposely diverting iPhone sales. And judging by the account, they are...

Opinion: why Apple forced Target to boot Kindle over “conflict of interest”

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 18, 2016

As you probably know by now, this morning's big news has Target dropping Kindle hardware from their retail stores. The story has been officially confirmed by a spokesperson for the nation's second-largest discount retailer, after Walmart. The resulting finger-pointing, largely centered around Apple and its iPad, is based on an unnamed source mentioning a "conflict of interest" as Apple apparently put the arm on Target...

Who says all jailbreakers are pirates?

Cody Lee ∙ April 28, 2012

"After all most jailbreak users are only in it for running unlocks and pirating apps." This was the last line in a series of tweets by infamous iDevice hacker I0n1c, talking about the state of the jailbreak. While I'm not typically the kind of person to get riled up over such an ignorant comment, I feel like there's a similarly negative consensus about jailbreaking that needs to be addressed.

It's a fairly true statement to say that all iOS app pirates are jailbreakers. After all, I don't know of any other way to pirate apps – and if there is, it can't be easier – than by jailbreaking. But to say that all, or even "most" jailbreakers are pirates is asinine. From where I'm sitting, the jailbreak community looks pretty awesome. And it's made up of much more than just pilferers....

Why Apple’s next iPhone launch is so important

Cody Lee ∙ April 19, 2012

A week from now, Apple will be announcing its sales figures for the past three months on its quarterly earnings call. Analysts think the company sold in upwards of 12 million iPads and 33 million iPhones, thanks to the continuous momentum of the new 4S.

But according to Goldman Sachs' Bill Shope, Apple's next smartphone launch is the one to watch. The analyst recently raised his Apple stock price target from $700 to $750 on the belief that the sixth-generation iPhone launch is the most important one ever...

Thoughts on the 4-inch iPhone theory

Cody Lee ∙ April 11, 2012

Yesterday, an intriguing theory on how Apple could build an iPhone with a 4-inch screen made its way around the tech world. The idea is based on the fact that Apple could make the display larger, without drastically increasing the size of the handset.

Judging from the feedback I've gathered from our readers, on Twitter, and on other websites, the consensus seems to be that this theory is way off base; Apple would never do anything like it. But to me, it feels like everyone is overlooking a few things...

Does Apple have an obligation to create more American jobs?

Cody Lee ∙ April 5, 2012

At this point, it's fairly common knowledge that Apple outsources its manufacturing work overseas. Labor is much cheaper in countries like China, where there are no minimum wage laws, so it's a huge draw for companies looking to lower their costs.

But not everyone's ok with this. CNN's Clyde Prestowitz recently wrote an article entitled "Apple has an obligation to help solve America's problems." The piece is essentially about the company's lack of job creation in the US, and what it should do about it...

Thoughts on the new iPad

Cody Lee ∙ April 2, 2012

The new iPad has been out for nearly three weeks now, and most of the folks who are going to weigh in on the tablet, have. The Retina display looks great, and LTE is lightning-fast. But otherwise the consensus seems to be that it's not much different than its predecessor.

This has spawned quite the debate throughout the internet on whether or not iPad 2 owners should consider upgrading to the newer slate. And the, once again, consensus seems to be that it isn't. Does this mean that Apple is losing its touch? Read on for my thoughts...

What Apple should do with its money

Cody Lee ∙ March 20, 2012

Sunday night, when Apple announced that it was going to be holding a conference call the following morning regarding its plans for its massive cash pile, the internet ran wild with speculation.

We heard all kinds of theories, ranging from a surprise Twitter buyout to a small carrier acquisition. But Apple's actual announcement of dividends and stock buybacks was much more tame.

While this outcome might have appeased investors, it left some of us wanting more. Here's what I think the company should do with its money...