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China - page 16

Former WSJ editor will help lead Apple’s PR assault on China

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Apple Store
The mural outside one of Apple's Chinese Apple stores.
Photo: Apple

Apple has hired a former Wall Street Journal correspondent from China to assume the post of PR Director for its Shanghai office.

Given that Apple shows such a mastery of the press, it’s no surprise to hear that it’s used to picking the cream of the tech-reporting media crop to work in its PR roster. Wei Gu falls into this category — even if her new role comes at a challenging time for Apple in China.

Maybe Apple really will make iPhones in USA

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iPhone 7 back
Designed by Apple in California. Assembled by Foxconn in USA?
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

The iPhone may soon be made in the USA.

Donald Trump claimed during his campaign that he would force Apple to move production of its products back to America. According to a new report, Apple has already started looking into whether that would be possible.

Donald Trump’s trade war with China could hurt iPhone sales

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President Trump: Apple encryption could protect ‘criminal minds’
Donald Trump has been outspoken on the subject of China.
Photo: Gage Skidmore/Flickr CC

A state-controlled Chinese newspaper suggested that a “naive” trade war led by Donald Trump could hurt U.S. brands, including Apple.

President-elect Trump previously said he will put in place a 45 percent tariff on Chinese imports as a form of taxation to “stop [China] cheating” through currency manipulation.

Apple gets one step closer to iPhones made in India

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Apple supplier is increasing its ability to build masses of iPhones in India
Designed in California, made in India. Maybe.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple has “sought incentives” to set up a manufacturing facility in India, according to a new report.

Apple reportedly made its case to the country’s Department of Revenue and Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeITY).

8 takeaways from Apple’s Q4 2016 earnings call

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Apple CEO Tim Cook
iPhone sales were down in Q4 2016.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple can’t make enough iPhone 7 devices to satisfy demand from customers (and from Wall Street to make more money).

During Apple’s Q4 2016 earnings call today, Apple CEO Tim Cook and CFO Luca Maestri hinted that big things are in the pipeline that should put the company back on track to growth — and it all starts Thursday with the MacBook Pro.

Here’s what we learned from the Q4 earnings call:

What to expect from Apple earnings call Q4 2016

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money
Apple will reveal Q4 2016 earnings on October 25.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

During tomorrow’s Apple earnings call, Tim Cook is likely to unload some bad news. Wall Street expects Apple to report its first annual revenue decline since 2001, snapping one of the most impressive streaks ever witnessed.

Slumping iPhone sales mean Apple’s annual revenue could drop to $215.67 billion for 2016. That would be a significant decline from the $233.72 billion in revenue Apple posted in 2015 — but there may be light at the end of the tunnel.

Apple beware: Chinese phones are taking over the world

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iPhone 7
iPhone shipments fell last quarter.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

For the second quarter in a row, Chinese smartphone makers produced more phones than market leaders Apple and Samsung, according to a new Q3 shipment volume report from global market research firm Trendforce.

Apple saw its iPhone volume production fall 5.3 percent from the three months previous, while Samsung registered minor growth of 1.3 percent. Chinese smartphone makers on the other hand? A quarterly increase of 18 percent.

This doesn’t quite tell the whole story, though.

Apple will open a second R&D center in China next year

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Photo of Apple CEO Tim Cook talking with Chinese children to illustrate an Apple history article about the deal that brought the iPhone to China Mobile, the world's largest carrier.
Apple is upping its focus on China.
Photo: Apple

Apple has announced plans for its second R&D center in China, located in the country’s manufacturing hub Shenzhen. The 2017 opening will help Apple further grow its market in the world’s second largest economy as it challenges local competition.

“We are excited to be opening a new Research and Development center here next year so our engineering team can work even more closely and collaboratively with our manufacturing partners,” Apple spokesperson Josh Rosenstock said.

Apple joins board of ‘Chinese Uber’

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Didi Chuxing is China's answer to Uber, but is much bigger. Apple just made a $1 billion 'strategic' investment in the company.
Apple's "strategic" investment is paying off.
Photo: Virginia Werner / Cult of Mac

Apple has scored a seat on the board of Didi Chuxing, the Chinese Uber rival that Apple invested $1 billion in earlier this year.

Although Didi Chuxing denied it at the time, regulatory filings show that Apple took the board position in late June, one month after it made its generous investment — designed to aid Apple’s continued push into China and interest in shaking up the automotive industry.

Apple will open its first R&D center in China later this year

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beijing_zhongguancun-010
Apple's new R&D center will reportedly employ 500 people.
Photo: Meinhardt Group

Apple has reportedly set up its first R&D center in China, located in Beijing’s Zhongguancun Science Park, according to a statement issued by the Zhongguancun Park Management Committee.

The plan is for the center to hire a total of 500 employees, who will focus on a wide range of Apple products and devices including, “the development of computer software and hardware products, communication, audio and video devices, as well as advanced technologies for consumer electronics products and the information industry.”

Apple’s iPhone 7 slogan in Hong Kong? ‘This is penis’

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jet black iphone 7 plus
Well, that's one way to sell the new iPhone 7.
Photo: Apple

Tim Cook says that Apple designs its new products with the Chinese audience in mind. However, judging by one of the translated slogans for its new iPhone 7, that same localized care and attention doesn’t extend to every aspect of Apple’s business

The proof? One of the slogans for the iPhone 7 is apparently being read by some audiences as “This is penis.”

Hey, at least iPhone 7 Plus owners can feel good about themselves!

iPhone market share continues to decline in China

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google-facebook-and-others-following-apples-lead-on-encryption-image-cultofandroidcomwp-contentuploads201601iPhone-6s-Live-Photos-jpg
But the iPhone 6s was the top seller in the U.S.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Tim Cook may believe China is Apple’s future biggest market, but that belief is challenged by new data showing the iPhone’s market share in “urban China” continues to decline.

The iPhone fell 4.4 percentage points to 14.3 percent for the three months ending in July, according to the latest figures from Kantar Wordpanel ComTech. Android, by comparison, rose 5.6 percent to a dominating 85 percent during that same time period, representing an all-time high for Google’s mobile OS in China.

China is buying smartphones again, but not iPhone

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iPhone 6s
Apple's luck just won't change in China.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

iPhone sales continued to decline in China during the second quarter of 2016, despite a slight rise in overall smartphone shipments. High-end devices from Samsung are also struggling, and it seems unlikely the situation will change soon.

Chinese youths smashing their iPhones in protest against U.S.

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Cult of Mac buyback
Apple is running into more problems in China.
Photo: Warren R.M. Stuart/Flickr CC

Tim Cook has been open about the fact that he views China as Apple’s future biggest customer, but right now it sure seems like the company can’t get too many breaks there.

Not only has Apple had its products booted off the list of approved state purchases in China, been forced to shut down its iBooks Store and iTunes Movies in the country, and been sued for broadcasting an obscure patriotic movie from 1994, but now young people are reportedly smashing their iPhone to protest U.S. foreign policy.

China is worried Pokémon Go will uncover secret military bases

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Pokemon GO
All your base are belong to Pikachu.
Photo: Niantic Labs

With Pokémon Go mania running wild, did you really think the worst that might happen was some would-be Ash Ketchum stumbling across a dead body?

If so, your concerns are mild compared to those of people in China. Although the game isn’t actually available there, rumors on Chinese social media claim that the game could be an attempt by Google and Nintendo to uncover details of secret military bases in the country.

Leaked iPhone 7 rear casing caught on video

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A black iPhone 7 would be killer.
A black iPhone 7 would be killer.
Photo: Martin Hajek/Flickr

The first video of the allegedly headphone-jack-free iPhone 7 has finally found its way into the Apple rumor mill.

A video of two alleged iPhone 7 rear shells was posted on Chinese social networking site Weibo today, showcasing the simplified design Apple supposedly plans to unveil in September. The controversial decision to kill the headphone jack would free up room for a second speaker and hopefully a larger battery.

Check out the video:

Apple donates $1 million to help Chinese flood victims

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China
Tim Cook meeting with China's vice premier.
Photo: Apple

Apple has donated $1 million to the efforts of the China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation (CFPA), following China’s worst flood in years.

“Our thoughts are with all those devastated by the flooding along the Yangtze River,” Tim Cook wrote in a note on Chinese social networking site Weibo, which he first joined back in May 2015.