Thứ Ba, 3 tháng 5, 2011

iPhone 5 to come in ‘standard’ and ‘pro’ flavours?

Apple could be set to offer a double whammy of smartphone goodness this year, with news that the Cupertino massive is to launch two versions of the iPhone5.
The iPhone Download Blog is reporting that the new iPhone will come in two variations: standard and pro.
Now the iPhone Download Blog isn’t the first to send rumour and speculation skipping off hand in hand in Apple land, but it seems that this specific piece of information came from an insider who believes that Apple is stocking up on phone components of differing quality.
iPhone duo
The components being ordered won’t fit into one iPhone so it is thought that consumers may be able to buy either a budget iPhone or one which has better components inside.
Alternatively, the differing components could be used in the new iPod touch that Apple is rumoured to be working on – which fits better than a complete strategy change from Jobs’ lot.
It is still thought that the iPhone launch will miss its annual June release in favour of a release sometime in September – a date usually kept for the launch of new iPods.

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Thứ Hai, 2 tháng 5, 2011

Apple Building Two iPhone 5 Models for Release This Fall

Apple is reportedly building two iPhone5 models for a scheduled fall release.
According to an employee of an Apple part supplier, there is reason to believe that the iPhone 5 will actually be two devices: a ‘standard’ and ‘pro’ model.
Previous rumors have said that the iPhone 5 would be a significant redesign of its predecessor, and we’ve also heard rumors that the iPhone 5 will end up being only a slight evolution of the iPhone 4.
Due to the extensive amount of NDAs our source had to sign to work with Apple, he could not give us very many details. He does believe that Apple is going to build two iPhone models, which he referred to as a ‘normal’ and a ‘pro’ version.
Our source says that Apple is ordering components of similar function, but some of them are the very best of what you can get right now.
While the rest of the ordered components are just the standard versions, Apple is also ordering better quality components of the same function. Our source says that both types of components wouldn’t go in one device together, which makes him believe Apple is up to something with a ‘pro’ version.
We believe our source is reliable regarding this information. On top of that, we have also heard from an inside source at Apple that the iPhone 5(s) will definitely not be released until Q2 of this year. Apple’s internal revenue forecast for the next business quarter is the lowest it’s ever been, which means no new iPhone(s) until at least August or Septembe
According to our inside source at Apple, the company is making plans for the next iPhone announcement in the fall after the “Back to School” season. The next iPhone announcement will take place in the exact same time frame as Apple’s music and iPod event has in the past.
This isn’t the first time that we’ve heard about a fall iPhone announcement, and we believe our source has only helped confirm that news.
Recent rumors of an iPhone 4S have suggested that the next generation iPhone will only be a slight redesign and focus more on internal hardware. We’ve heard that the next iPhone (whether it be two devices or one) will be a global device capable of running on all carriers.
Perhaps Apple will keep the ‘normal’ version of the iPhone 5 as a carrier-specific device, and introduce a global phone with upgraded specs as the ‘pro’ version.
[The above image is merely a concept and not the real iPhone 5.]

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Thứ Sáu, 29 tháng 4, 2011

Further Indication iPhone 5 Release will be Q4 2011

It’s a rumor which has been around since Apple officially announced the date for WWDC 2011, and now Reuters have added further fuel to the fire.  We’re talking about the next generation of iPhone not being released soon after the conference as has been the tradition, but in September instead.
Quoting a trio of individuals with ‘direct knowledge of the company’s supply chain’, the report says production of the iPhone5 won’t begin until July or August, leading to a September shipping date.This ties in with the previous rumors suggesting a Q4 release for the phone, which given Apple’s preference for short lead times indicated a late Q3/early Q4 announcement.  Why they’ve decided to extend the life of the iPhone 4 this time isn’t known, but it could be down to many things:
  1. The White iPhone 4.  It’s still supposed to be on its way, don’t forget!
  2. iOS 5.  Perhaps the new software isn’t quite ready?
  3. Supply Problems.  Touchscreens, new camera lenses etc.
  4. A change in Apple’s release structure across the board.
A September onwards release date should please a few people though, as anyone with an 18-month iPhone 4 contract will be a few steps closer to upgrading to the fifth model than expected!
Reuter’s sources also say the iPhone 5 won’t look all that different to the iPhone 4, something many have also suspected.  If the design doesn’t change, the good news is all those iPhone 4 cases won’t be useless; unlike any iPad 1 cases you may have…
Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference will take place between the 6th and 10th June 2011.

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Chủ Nhật, 24 tháng 4, 2011

iPhone 5 on September 13th: five reasons release isn’t worth waiting for

Thứ Bảy, 23 tháng 4, 2011

Did Sony CEO Howard Stringer Spill The Beans About An 8MP iPhone 5 Camera?

We’re recently reported that very few new features appear to be solid for the iPhone5. But a recent slip-up by the Sony CEO suggests that an 8-megapixel camera might be a definite upgrade for the next iPhone. read Charles Moore’s new article:
MacNN, Appleinsider,, CNET, and several other Apple-watcher sites reported over the weekend that Sony CEO Howard Stringer may have inadvertently revealed that Apple is gearing up to equip the iPhone 5 with an eight-megapixel camera.
9To5Mac’s Seth Weintraub, who attended the event, reports that Stringer, in a Talking Tech with Sony event interview with The Wall Street Journal’s Walt Mossberg at Carnegie Hall’s Zankel Hall in New York, commented that his company’s camera sensor plant at Sendai, Japan, is among 15 of the company’s facilities damaged by last month’s catastrophic earthquake and tsunami, and that the supply interruption will delay shipments of sensors to Apple. Since Sony sensors are not used in the iPhone versions 4 and 3GS, which employ 5-megapixel and 3.2 megapixel OmniVision camera sensors respectively, it’s not a major deductive leap to infer that the higher-resolution CMOS sensors sourced from Sony would most likely be destined for the next revision iPhone 5.A PhoneArena blog from six weeks ago notes that OmniVision shares nosedived last summer when a rumor spread that due partly to complaints about a yellowish color shift in still photos shot with the OmniVision sensor camera, Apple might be moving to Sony for its next generation iPhone camera sensors — possibly Sony’s Exmor R sensor unit that is used in the Sony Ericsson Xperia arc and Xperia neo. That 8MP sensor is backlit to help it finesse low light conditions, similar to the way the iPhone 4′s 5MP OmniVision sensor does. Indeed, rumors of Apple dropping OmniVision in favor of Sony as its iPhone camera supplier are longstanding.
PhoneArena also reports that OmniVision has announced that it has an 8MP camera sensor of its own coming, the OV8820, which incorporates the same low-light performance enhancements, plus HD video at 60fps, and Full HD at 30fps, and which had been projected to begin mass production in March, but that production problems have occurred.
Not everyone agrees that Apple will use Sony CMOC camera sensors in the iPhone 5. Analyst Yair Reiner of Wall Street’s Oppenheimer & Co. is quoted by Appleinisider isaying he expects OmniVision to remain Apple’s camera supplier for the fifth-generation iPhone, corroborated by checks with contacts in Apple’s supply channels, dismissing the notion an Apple-Sony hook-up as “rather silly.”
Whatever, regardless of whether the iPhone 5‘s camera supplier is to be OmniVision or Sony, it looks like camera sensor supply problems may be a significant factor in Apple’s evidently postponing the iPhone 5 introduction from an anticipated Worldwide Developer’s Conference release until some time later in the year. With the iPad 2′s camera performance being that unit’s most unanimously panned feature in reviews, Apple will want to get the camera right in the iPhone 5, where it is arguably a much more important feature than it is with the tablet product.
Also, with Sony Ericsson rumored to be getting 12MP+ camera equipped phones ready for summer release, Apple will need at least the 8MP sensors to remain even ballpark competitive in that context.
[iphone5newsblog.com]
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Thứ Năm, 21 tháng 4, 2011

iPhone 5 production begins in July, ships in September; looks like the iPhone 4 – Reuters

Reuters reports that the iPhone 5 will begin production in July and ramp up for a September release.  This fits in with a lot of the chatter out there over the last few months. It isn’t certain why Apple chose to deviate from its previous June/July schedule, but perhaps iPhones are the new back to school items…or are going to be grouped with iPods from now on. Apple typically holds a fall media event at the beginning of September. This would be the perfect place to showcase their new iPhone.
The new smartphone will have a faster processor but will look largely similar to the current iPhone 4, one of the people said. They declined to be identified because the plans were not yet public.
The companies would begin production either in July or August before shipping components to Hon Hai Precision Industry Co Ltd, flagship of Foxconn Technology Group, for assembly, they said.
The next-generation iPhone is rumored to include the dual-core A5 processor and graphics enhancements found in the iPad 2, possibly 64 GB of storage, a larger screen, a metal back, and new cloud-based functionality through Apple’s upcoming iOS 5. We will most likely learn Apple’s thinking behind their fifth-generation handset at the upcoming World Wide Developers Conference (WWDC) in early June. This is the event where Apple is promising the introduction of iOS 5.

iPhone 5 Coming in September, Similar to iPhone 4

According to a report from Reuters, Apple is scheduled to begin production of the iPhone 5 in July/August with a September release. This news coincides with other reports that Apple will push back the next generation iPhone’s launch to a later fall date.
It is unclear as to why Apple is not following the usual summer release schedule for the iPhone, but all signs point to a different roadmap for 2011. The iPhone 5 is reported to have a faster processor and look very similar to the current iPhone 4.Reuters,
“Apple Inc suppliers will begin production of its next-generation iPhone in July this year, with the finished product likely to begin shipping in September, three people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.
The new smartphone will have a faster processor but will look largely similar to the current iPhone 4, one of the people said. They declined to be identified because the plans were not yet public.”
Apple’s focus will be on software at WWDC this summer. iOS 5 will be previewed, and the iPhone 5 will most likely ship with the new OS. If the iPhone 5 does closely resemble the iPhone 4, iOS 5 could be what sets the new device apart from the iPhone 4.
We’ve heard that the iPhone 5 will be a significant redesign of the iPhone 4, but there have also been multiple reports claiming that the device will be similar to the current design.
A recent analyst report speculated that the iPhone 5 will have an A5 processor with a 8 MP camera. While the device could remain similar to the iPhone 4, it will definitely have some significant hardware upgrades to set it apart form its predecessor. For a comprehensive look at what to expect from the iPhone 5, check out this infographic.
The white iPhone 4 will supposedly be released at the end of this month, which would give Apple enough time to profit off its sales before introducing the iPhone 5 in the fall.
What do you think about this iPhone 5 news? Are you ok with waiting till the fall for its release, or will you be picking up another smartphone (Android?) this summer?