2013/01/25
Finally, a Ramen Bowl with a Built-in iPhone Dock
2013/01/21
Use Facebook? Own an iPhone? Call Your Facebook-Using, iPhone-Owning Friends for Free
Smartphone Hype Builds, but Not for iPhone
Gadget bloggers are passing around invites for an upcoming press event and speculating about new chips and bigger screen. iPhone? No, this time, the hype is for Samsung. George Stahl reports on Markets Hub.
2013/01/17
Sprint offering Total Equipment insurance for iPhone on January 25th
After opting not to offer its Total Equipment Protection (TEP) service to iPhone customers, Sprint appears to have turned over a new leaf. An anonymous tipster has shared an internal screenshot with us noting that starting on January 25th, the carrier will start allowing its iPhone users to select TEP as an equipment insurance option. Similar to its policy with AppleCare+, Sprint will give customers 30 days from the date of purchase to add TEP to their account at a monthly charge of $11. However, unlike Apple's in-house coverage plan, Total Equipment Protection claims come with hefty deductibles ranging from $150 - $200, instead of a one time upfront charge. So, if you were looking to pick up an iPhone from Sprint and AppleCare+ wasn't exactly ringing your bell, you'll soon have an additional insurance option in less than a fortnight.
[Thanks, anonymous]
when.eng("eng.perm.init")When Assassin's Creed Hidden Arm Blade Meets the iPhone, You Get This
When you combine the hidden arm blade in Assassin's Creed with the iPhone, you get this strange contraption. It's called "Quick on the Call" and consists of metal rails with a case for your iPhone at the tip. Hopefully, the next version is a lot less buggy. Continue reading to see why.
[Source]
2013/01/16
Why Apple May Be Cutting Orders for iPhone 5 Parts
AP Photo/Lee Jin-manThe Wall Street Journal reports today that Apple is cutting its orders for parts for the iPhone 5 amid “weaker-than-expected demand.”
The news comes amid the near-meteoric rise of Samsung as Apple’s most prominent competitor, and the rise of Android — Google's mobile operating system — as a viable and often cheaper alternative to the iPhone.
So why is Apple cutting orders for its iPhone 5? As we wait for more details to emerge, here are a few theories from industry observers:
Apple might have over-ramped its supply orders. Front-end demand for Apple products is usually massive, and Apple might have overcompensated for it. The iPhone 5 is already expensive to produce, so scaling back would make sense as demand slowly levels off for the new iPhone.There could be supply issues. The iPhone production process has led to some delays in shipping the phone, and this could still be a lingering problem.The less-expensive iPhone 4 and 4S is eating into iPhone 5 sales. With a two-year contract, the iPhone 4 is free and the iPhone 4S is $99, and they might be popular enough among consumers that not everyone is opting for the iPhone 5, which costs $199 with a two-year contract in the U.S.Consumers are waiting for the next iPhone. The rumor mill is already spinning for the next version, and Apple CEO Tim Cook has noted on Apple’s earnings calls that rumors have the capability of depressing near-term sales numbers as consumers wait for new products. At the time: “It’s clear customers delayed purchase of a new tablet because of product rumors. Some of that was anticipated and some of it I wish wouldn’t occur, but it did occur.”Analysts continue to cite multiple explanations for a potential trim to orders unrelated to demand, including the ebb of flow of Apple’s supply chain and a strong holiday quarter.
Brian Blair, an analyst with Wedge Partners, says order cuts are typical after the holidays. He also noted that Apple uses multiple suppliers for individual parts making across the board cuts difficult to assess.
He estimates that Apple sold 50 million iPhones during the quarter, ahead of average analyst estimates around 47 million.
There is no question that Apple is facing greater competition in the smartphone market. Here are a few numbers to chew on: In 3Q 2012, Apple had 14.6% of world-wide smartphone shipments, down from a peak of 23% in 4Q of 2011, according to IDC. Samsung’s share rose to 31.3% in the third quarter of 2012, compared with 8.8% in the third quarter of 2010.
Samsung, over the weekend, posted a photo to Flickr that said the company had sold 100 million phones in its Galaxy S line ”from the supply side,” which is its main competitor to the iPhone. The Galaxy S III is considered by many to be the first major competition for the iPhone.
For now, all we have to work with is “weaker-than-expected demand.” We’ll find out more about iPhone sales on Jan. 23 when Apple delivers its earnings.
But it’s clear that Apple is facing increasing competition, leading it to possibly entering additional markets.
Earlier reports suggest that Apple is working on a less-expensive iPhone. One possible model is that the device will have a polycarbonate plastic shell, compared to the aluminum body of the iPhone 5. That could help it crack into a market that’s been long-held by Android and other cheaper smartphones.
Apple’s iPhones are very expensive without the carrier subsidies. While the iPhone 4 is now free with a two-year contract and the iPhone 4S is $99, without a contract the devices are still hundreds of dollars. The iPhone 4 without a contract, a phone two generations old, for example, costs $450 on Apple’s store. An iPhone 5 starts at $649 without a contract.
If Apple no longer holds complete dominance over the upper-tier smartphone market, it has to crack into other areas of the market that it doesn’t already have a large presence, like emerging markets and cheaper markets where subsidies aren’t as common.
This is a spot that Google’s Android excels in. Google‘s flagship Android phone, the Nexus 4, for example costs $300 for its cheapest model . This helps Google snap up market share in places where subsidies aren’t as widely used
Jessica E. Lessin contributed reporting to this post.
Apple Briefly Falls Below $500 After Cutting Orders For iPhone Parts
AP Photo/Lee Jin-manApple shar es fell below $500 Monday for the fist time since Feburary after a report of weaker-than-expected iPhone demand deepened a pessimistic sentiment that’s dogged its stock for months.
The latest stock drop came as signs of weaker iPhone 5 sales during Apple’s January-March quarter prompted the Cupertino, Calif., company to cut orders for screens and other handset components, according to a Wall Street Journal report that cited people familiar with the situation.
Strong sales of Apple’s newest handset are considered key to maintaining growth for the world’s most valuable publicly traded company. Apple has diversified its product lineup with products like a lower-priced version of its iPad tablet, but iPhone remains its most profitable big-ticket device.
Apple shares hit a low of $498.51 shortly after the open, but the stock quickly rebounded above $500. Shares recently traded at $505.68, down 2.8% in brisk trading. The slide extends the stock’s nearly 30% decline since September, when bullish expectations surrounding the iPhone 5's launch propelled the stock above $700.
Shares of Apple’s suppliers took a hit, too. Chipmakers Qualcomm fell 1.3% to $64.08, while Cirrus Logic was off 5% at $30.01. Qualcomm makes wireless radio chips found in millions of handsets, including the iPhone 5. Cirrus, a producer of audio chips, makes more than half its revenue from Apple devices.
Suppliers Avago Technologies and Skyworks Solutions , which reportedly gained a bigger footprint in Apple’s supply chain with the iPhone’s newest design, fell 1% to $34.01 and 1.5% to $21.06, respectively.
Initial reports of the iPhone 5's launch ironically focused on limits to supplies, as Apple stores repeated their ritual of selling out initial iPhone 5 inventories within hours at some locations. Changes to the iPhone 5's design made it hard for some suppliers to keep up with initial demand, according to reports.
Apple is still expected to report it sold millions of iPhone 5s during the quarter that ended in December, though its current quarter is now in doubt. Sanford Bernstein analyst Alberto Moel said the company might have made particularly large iPhone 5 orders to suppliers for the October-December quarter because of earlier concerns about manufacturing difficulties.
The company is expected to report the results for its December quarter, the first of its fiscal year, on Jan. 23.