Ed Sutherland - page 13

PC makers hoping to compete with Apple’s lightweight MacBook Air laptop want chipmaking giant Intel to cut prices in order to produce “Ultrabook” alternatives costing under $1,000. So far, the company has balked at any discounts, yet still seeks to capture 40 percent of the notebook market.

We are getting more indications why Apple suddenly put in orders for more iPhone 4 components. The tech giant will unveil an updated version of the stalwart iPhone 4 tailored for the China market, a Wall Street analyst told investors Monday.

Netflix, the DVD by mail service that killed the corner video rental store, is now Qwikster. The announcement comes as the company attempts to save its profitable streaming business from a consumer revolt.

Sprint appears to be adjusting its service in preparation for possibly getting the iPhone. After killing a program letting long-term customers update handsets more often, the No. 3 carrier cut its return time in half.

Even before it has even appeared on shelves, the iPhone 5 already is set for a lawsuit. Samsung plans to challenge Apple in court to prevent the next-generation handset reaching South Korean soil, according to a Monday report.

Too often, the image of older people and technology comes with seniors using bowling with the Wii, fumbling with web cams or being ripped off by Facebook scams. A new book about learning the iPad appears to feed into that misconception: use small words and speak very, very slowly.

The fallout from Apple’s lengthy battles with Samsung has started. The tech giant has inked a contract with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) to produce the A6 and successors. The move ends an exclusive deal with the Korean Samsung to produce chips for Apple’s iOS devices, according to a Friday report.

The news just never seems to be good for RIM. Thursday, the Canadian company announced it sold just 200,000 PlayBook tablets during the last quarter. Today, an analyst predicts the iPhone 5 will “steamroll” RIM’s upcoming BlackBerry 7 smartphones.

Apple fans hoping for an iPad 3 this year should just cool their jets, one analyst advises. There’s “no rush” to unveil a new version as rival devices stumble left and right. As Simon & Garfunkel might say: Slow down, you move too fast.

Is RIM’s PlayBook the next HP TouchPad? That’s the thinking of some reading the BlackBerry maker’s news that it shipped just 200,000 of its tablets last quarter, less than half that shipped the previous financial three-month period. What’s worse: there are also PlayBooks unsold at retailers. Can anyone say price cuts are on the way?

Although the iPad began as a “magical” device for consumers, Apple’s tablet is quickly finding a place in business. From do-it-yourself meccas such as Lowe’s to the glamorous Gucci, retailers are learning how the iPad attracts, retains and increases customers. Indeed, 25 percent of iPads sold in 2011 will go to businesses, according to New York consulting firm Deloitte.

Just how important was Steve Jobs’ departure as Apple CEO to sales of the iPad? Very little, according to a survey indicating consumers were prepared for Apple’s co-founder to step down.

Could Broadcom be the reason Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. announced a boost in business from “rush orders.” Some Wall Street analysts point to the Apple supplier needing parts to meet unexpected iPhone demand. In a bit of sleuthing, experts say Broadcom’s stable revenue in an otherwise faltering economy makes the most sense.

The long-running dispute between Apple and Samsung has erupted again, this time in an unrelated insider-trading trial. The former manager of Samsung’s U.S. division told a New York City court he leaked shipment data of LCD screens destined for the iPad to a Calif. financial analyst.

In the current wave of patent wars, Google has become an arms supplier, buying technology from other firms to increase Android’s ability to fight back against Apple. In its latest purchase in the Silicon Valley’s version of an arms bazaar, the Internet giant snapped up 1,023 IBM patents.

Apple and carrier Sprint have finished preparations for offering the iPad ‘before the holidays,’ according to a report citing unnamed sources. The iPad will follow an Oct. 7 launch of the iPhone 5, according to the Wednesday report.

Rival app stores should cooperate to improve the security of their downloads, an EU security agency advised. The security of apps should be as important as its functionality, the group argued Tuesday.

We knew Apple’s iPad dwarfed RIM’s PlayBook, but now the image seems even more lopsided, thanks to shipping numbers from a group of analysts. The Cupertino, Calif. company shipped 19 iPads each time the BlackBerry maker shipped one of its rival devices. Little wonder RIM, facing financial scrutiny Thursday, is back concentrating on its smartphones.

France is the latest stop in the magical mystery tour of European courtrooms for Apple and Samsung. Samsung is now the aggressor, filing a patent infringement lawsuit against Apple, charging the iPhone 3G, 3GS, iPhone 4 and 3G iPad violate the South Korean company’s patents.

Despite expectation Amazon’s tablet could challenge the iPad, analysts aren’t setting the bar too high for immediate sales. Indeed, the internet retailer will sell just 2 million of its 7-inch devices for the remainder of this year, one Wall Street expert suggests.

All of the chatter surrounding the iPhone 5 has created ‘unprecedented’ demand, one analyst announced Tuesday. More than 30 percent of consumers surveyed indicate they are either “very likely” or “somewhat likely” to purchase Apple’s latest smartphone, expected in October.

Apple wants courts to pause lawsuits with Motorola Mobility, claiming the Schaumberg, Il. company transferred ownership of contentious patents to Google. The legal wrangling cannot be settled until the Android maker’s acquisition of Motorola is finalized, the Cupertino, Calif. company charges.

In an odd bit of trash talk aimed at itself, AT&T replied to a Department of Justice objection to the acquisition of T-Mobile USA, the Dallas-based carrier saying T-Mobile is tiny and unlikely to be upgraded by its German parent. Additionally, AT&T said it has spent $30 billion upgrading its network between 2008 and 2010 and customers are still complaining.

Have you noticed the prices of iBooks increasing? It’s not a mystery that publishers now view electronic versions of their hardcover editions as a way to save money. Turns out publishers are adopting Apple’s “agency pricing” model, a move making cheap iBooks on your iPad or iPhone as rare as dime store novels.

New signs the iPhone 4 more than a year later is still hot in the minds of consumers. Last week, we wrote that the iPhone 4 is the top-selling U.S. smartphone despite cheaper Android alternatives. Another analyst tells investors the Apple handset shows ‘unexpected strength’ although the iPhone 5 is on the verge of hitting shelves.