Old iPhone Nano concept design
The Wall Street Journal seems to confirm an earlier Bloomberg report that Apple is working on a smaller, cheaper version of the iPhone due this summer:
One of the people, who saw a prototype of a new iPhone several months ago, said the new device is intended to be sold alongside the current line of iPhones and would be about half the size of the iPhone 4. The phone, one of its codenames is N97, would be available to mobile carriers at about half the price of Apple’s main line of iPhones, the person said.
The previous Bloomberg report claimed the price of the smaller iPhone would be $200 without contract, opening the door to the phone possibly being discounted to free with contract. The iPhone Nano rumor has been circulating for years with various case designs and enclosures suggesting at least prototype work had been done on it over the years.
Next, The Wall Street Journal claims that Apple is also working to revamp its MobileMe service. Apple is reportedly considering making MobileMe a free service. The new free service could serve as a digital “locker” for photos and video, or become the focal point for online music.
Both the new smaller iPhone and revamped MobileMe service are expected this summer.
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According to The Age, Sony is looking to its new “Music Unlimited” streaming service not only as an opportunity to grab a piece of the digital music pie but also in hopes of one day being able to pull its music from Apple’s iTunes Store entirely.
If Music Unlimited becomes popular it will provide a credible alternative to iTunes for music publishers, including Sony Music Entertainment, which includes Bob Dylan, Beyonce, Guy Sebastian and Delta Goodrem in its stable of artists.
”If we do [get mass take up] then does Sony Music need to provide content to iTunes?” Mr Ephraim asked. ”Currently we do. We have to provide it to iTunes as that’s the format right now.
”Publishers are being held to ransom by Apple and they are looking for other delivery systems, and we are waiting to see what the next three to five years will hold.”
Apple and Sony have recently faced off over App Store content as well, with Apple reportedly rejecting Sony’s eBook software from the App Store due to new enforcement of Apple’s rules requiring content purchases to be made available through the company’s in-app purchasing mechanism.
Apple itself has been rumored many times over the years to be developing a subscription and/or streaming music service, presumably utilizing the capacity of its new North Carolina data center, but the company has reportedly yet to get music labels on board with the plan.
Sony’s goal of pulling music from iTunes is of course dependent on a viable alternative such as Music Unlimited developing, something that has yet to occur as evidenced by Apple continuing to hold the lion’s share of the digital music market.
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As part of its quarterly earnings release issued today, Google announced changes to its top-level management structure, with the most high-profile change seeing co-founder Larry Page replacing Eric Schmidt as CEO as of April 4th. Page will take charge of day-to-day operations at the company, while Schmidt will become Executive Chairman and focus on business deals, partnerships and outreach. Google co-founder Sergey Brin will direct his energies to new and strategic product efforts.
- Starting from April 4, Larry Page, Google Co-Founder, will take charge of Google’s day-to-day operations as Chief Executive Officer.
- Sergey Brin, Google Co-Founder, will devote his energy to strategic projects, in particular working on new products.
- Eric Schmidt will assume the role of Executive Chairman, focusing externally on deals, partnerships, customers and broader business relationships, government outreach and technology thought leadership–all of which are increasingly important given Google’s global reach. Internally, he will continue to act as an advisor to Larry and Sergey.
Commenting on these changes, Eric said: “We’ve been talking about how best to simplify our management structure and speed up decision making for a long time. By clarifying our individual roles we’ll create clearer responsibility and accountability at the top of the company. In my clear opinion, Larry is ready to lead and I’m excited about working with both him and Sergey for a long time to come.”
Schmidt has posted additional thoughts on the changes in a blog post.
Google and Apple have had a complicated relationship over the years, with the two companies previously sharing a close relationship in facing off against Microsoft in the personal technology market and Schmidt joining Apple’s board of directors in 2006.
But with both Apple and Google making strong pushes into the smartphone arena and the two companies competing in an ever-growing number of markets, questions arose about the close ties between them. Schmidt stepped down from Apple’s board in 2009, citing diminishing effectiveness as he was forced to recuse himself from increasing numbers of discussions due to potential conflict of interest. Even with Schmidt’s departure from Apple’s board, tensions between the companies have remained high.
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Steve Ballmer Demoing HP Slate-Style PC at CES 2010
According to the New York Times, Microsoft will once again be pushing their vision of the slate or tablet computer at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2011 in January.
According to people familiar with Microsofts plans, Steve Ballmer, Microsofts chief executive, is expected to announce a number of these devices when he takes the stage at C.E.S., showcasing devices built by Samsung and Dell, among a number of other manufacturing partners.
Microsoft has been long talking up the tablet or slate form factor over the years, but none of their products have reached mainstream success.
In fact, this time last year, rumors were full force about Apple’s then-unreleased iPad. Talk of this Apple tablet dominated rumors and generated a lot of interest at 2010′s CES even though Apple wasn’t even a participant. Microsoft even demoed an HP slate PC which never ultimately came to market. Meanwhile, Apple’s iPad has been seen as a huge success.
Microsoft’s newest effort is said to be running under the Windows 7 operating system and is being aimed at a more productivity focused device than the iPad:
The company believes there is a huge market for business people who want to enjoy a slate for reading newspapers and magazines and then work on Microsoft Word, Excel or PowerPoint while doing work, explained a person familiar with the companys tablet plans.
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In mid-October, it was reported that warehouse club chain Costco would cease carrying iPods after it lost out in an expansion of iPad availability that saw its rival Sam’s Club and other retailers such as Target and Wal-Mart gain distribution rights for the popular tablet device. In subsequent weeks, observers noted Apple’s products beginning to disappear from Costco’s stores.
The Seattle Times reports that the parting of ways between Apple and Costco has been officially confirmed, with the two companies coming to a “mutual agreement” to end their long-standing relationship.
The chain is phasing out Apple products, per a mutual agreement between the companies, Galanti told The Seattle Times. Costco had sold iPods and pre-loaded iTunes cards for years, although never at huge discounts; and Apple never allowed Costco to sell its products online like other retailers, he said. “In the past couple months, we agreed to wind down.”
Apple spokeswoman Amy Bessette said the company has no comment.
Apple’s firm hold over pricing for its products and the deep discount pricing of warehouse clubs such as Costco have been somewhat at odds over the years, with the opposing sides reaching a middle ground of slight discounts on Apple products appearing at the club chains.
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DigiTimes reports that suppliers of the backlight unit (BLU) for the next-generation iPad have been selected, quashing speculation that Apple might turn to OLED for display technology in the revised tablet device. According to the report, Taiwanese firm Coretronic has been selected to supply BLUs to iPad display vendors Chimei Innolux and LG Display, with Radiant Opto-Electronics also supplying BLUs to LG.
Coretronic has reportedly entered the supply chain for the second generation iPad, and will supply BLUs to Chimei Innolux (CMI) and LG Display.
Coretronic has declined to comment.
The second generation iPad is expected to hit the market at the end of the first quarter of 2011 and suppliers in the supply chain are estimated to start shipments in the first quarter.
It is understood that Coretronic is the only BLU supplier of CMI for iPad 2, while LG Display is getting iPad 2 BLUs from Coretronic and Radiant Opto-Electronics.
Rumors of Apple adopting OLED display technology have surfaced prior to the release of numerous portable Apple products, dating as far back as 2003 with early-generation original iPods. OLED technology can offer lower power requirements and superior contrast ratios to traditional LCDs, but pricing, technical, and production capacity issues have slowed adoption of the technology over the years.
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Research analysts have gained significant attention over the years for their predictions of Apple’s production plans, with “channel checks” frequently being cited as the basis for their assessments. These checks involve receiving information, often secondhand, from representatives of Apple’s manufacturing partners.
The Wall Street Journal reports, however, that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is now investigating the legality of such channel checks, looking to determine whether some of the tactics amount to insider trading as the analysts share the non-public information with their clients.
Where once insider-trading cases were built around a single tip about a merger, for example, prosecutors appear to be broadening into new territory. They are examining how arcane, confidential, but presumably routine data may move company stocks.
“Insider trading basically comes down to where you know or ought to know that the person from whom you’re getting this information has a duty to someone else to keep it confidential,” said former Securities and Exchange Commission Paul Atkins in a video interview with The Wall Street Journal. “If you go in and pay the mail clerk to give you special information, that’s not proper.”
While the investigation appears to be a broad look at a number of small research firms, the report focuses on those digging up information on Apple, which has become a prime target due to its financial performance, stock growth, and the company’s secrecy about its own plans.
Such channel-check information has become crucial to Apple traders, who have come to expect a weekly dose of information from channel checks about Apple’s iPad and iPod businesses.
Analysts relay the information – known in the business as “build plans” – weekly to savvy technology investors, who often dart in and out of heavily-traded Apple shares. Such information has grown to be almost as important as Apple earnings, able to move shares throughout the quarter.
The SEC is also taking a look at “expert network” consultants, who seek to connect investors with employees of certain companies for a fee, and whether those consultants have shared inside information to their clients. No analysts or consultants have yet been charged with any wrongdoing, but the SEC is clearly interested in learning more about their tactics and business practices.
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In a commentary on the latest rumors of Apple planning to release a 7-inch iPad model early next year, The Loop‘s Jim Dalrymple notes that such a device has existed in Apple’s labs for quite some time, having been developed alongside the 9.7-inch model that became the original release of the iPad.
The fact is, Apple already has a 7-inch iPad. They have had one of the smaller devices since they started making the 9.7-inch iPad that we have now.
To be clearer, the two devices were developed at the same time. They have pretty much the same specs, except, of course, the 9.7-inch model has a higher density screen than its smaller counterpart.
Apple’s tablet plans date back many years, even preceding those for the iPhone, which itself evolved from the early tablet concepts. Consequently, it should not be a surprise that Apple has been toying with various sizes and form factors over the years. Last year, it was reported that Apple had investigated a range of screen sizes for its tablet projects over the previous several years, ranging from 4 inches up to as much as 12 inches and including a 7-inch version.
For whatever reason, Apple decided to launch with the 9.7-inch iPad we see today, but it appears that the company has been ready to release a 7-inch version on relatively short notice for some time. With a number of other companies gearing up to launch 7-inch tablets over the coming months, observers are naturally speculating about whether Apple plans to match that size with its own offering. But as Dalrymple notes, Apple may not even feel that it needs to release the smaller model in the face of the coming competition.
With other companies releasing their 7-inch tablets, you may wonder why Apple doesn’t push its device out the door. I think the answer to that is quite simple – they don’t have to release it.
The iPad is the one of the best selling devices in history. Why would Apple need to release a smaller version to compete in a market it owns. It doesn’t.
With a smaller model almost certain to command a lower sales price, Apple may be hesitating to release the 7-inch iPad as customers continue to snap up the current iPad nearly as fast as the company can stock them. Consequently, observers will have to wait for additional information to come to light to see if and when Apple begins to move forward on production of the smaller iPad or if it continues to sit on the design while undoubtedly refining it in its labs as technology advances.
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The MacRumors forums have reached half a million members, reaching a new milestone in forum participation. Tens of thousands of users joined MacRumors in recent months, fueled by speculation and discussion surrounding the release of iOS 4, the iPhone 4 launch, the controversy over the iPhone signal strength problem, and Apple’s release of new iMacs, Mac Pros, and other products. Just shy of 20000 members joined in June and over 20000 in July, the highest monthly totals in MacRumors history.
MacRumors was founded in February 2000 by Arnold Kim and Blake Patterson. The forums have grown at an increasing rate each year since. Over the past 6 months forum registrations have reached about 500 per day (15000 per month).
A number of factors have contributed to the success and growth of the site, including MacRumors’ reputation for careful evaluation and reporting of rumors and speculation and the expansion of our staff to cover more news. Our growth also reflects Apple’s growth, with its expansion into new business areas, the rising number of Apple customers, and the attention focused on Apple by the press and the public in general, both in the U.S. and internationally.
Some members register for MacRumors seeking technical help, while others want to discuss the latest news and rumors. Many stay for years, reading and writing posts about both Apple and non-Apple topics as they participate in our ever-changing and ever-growing online community. Some forum members have been along for the entire ride. Of the forum posters who joined in 2000, 43% have been active within the last 2 years. The following members, listed by user name, have been logging in or posting for over 10 years: 63dot, balloons, barefeats, bigjohn, CompUsed, curmi, dsma, Ishan, jeremycrandell, kainjow, Mark Colangelo, mdntcallr, michaelrjohnson, nodttiurp, outZider, stukick, tviolation, and vanguys. Congratulations!
We thank our regular visitors, new forum members, and long-term members for their support over the years. In an online community the users, not just the meeting place, make the site what it is.
Other past and more recent milestones of interest: 1 million posts (August 2004), 5 million posts (February 2008), 200 thousand members (July 2008), 10 million forum posts (May 2010), 1 million forum threads (August 2010)
MacRumors administrators: arn, Doctor Q, Knox, longofest, Mudbug, WildCowboy, xUKHCx
MacRumors moderators: see list
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Apple doesn’t appear to be going without the services of a number of SurfaceInk’s engineers, however, as a number of them appear to have recently moved over to be in the direct employment of Apple. While it has not been uncommon for SurfaceInk employees to make the transition directly to Apple over the years, there certainly appears to be a significant number of them making the move just as Apple drops its partnership with SurfaceInk itself.
According to LinkedIn profiles, we’ve identified four engineers from SurfaceInk who became Apple employees as of August 2010: Paul Yuan and Alex Yeung (Product Design Engineers), Jared Kole (Product Development Engineer), and Craig Leong (R&D, Mechanical Engineer). In addition, Josh Pong and Margie Duffy moved in August from SurfaceInk to become Product Development Engineers at Apple through staffing firm Ryzen Solutions, while William Yarak took a Consulting Product Design Engineer position with Apple just this month.
In total, we have documented at least seven former SurfaceInk employees who have reported moving to Apple in just the past few weeks, with several more appearing to have moved earlier this year. Consequently, it appears that Apple may have picked up for itself a substantial portion of the SurfaceInk expertise it had been relying upon for collaborations on engineering design for its products.
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